Watch Out!

“Watch out! Don’t let your hearts be dulled by carousing and drunkenness, and by the worries of this life. Don’t let that day catch you unaware, like a trap. For that day will come upon everyone living on the earth. Keep alert at all times. And pray that you might be strong enough to escape these coming horrors and stand before the Son of Man.” [Luke 21.34-36]

Luke's account of this warning by Jesus is perhaps the most intriguing of all.

There is a sense that the coming of Jesus Christ will be something that requires effort on our part - watchfulness. That watchfulness is associated with strength (...pray that you might be strong enough to escape...). So, it seems to be more than just 'watching'. There seems to be some association with effort (requiring strength).

But there is yet something else particular to Luke's account of Jesus' instructions  to "Watch out!" that should really concern us. The strength required to be ready could very possibly be the strength not just to avoid the apathy and carelessness of indifference (yielding carousing and drunkenness), but also the strength to overcome the worries of this life (which in other scripture is defined as "what you will eat, what you will wear...").

In a recent post of mine, I discussed busyness and how it caused folks to miss the wedding feast they had been invited to. Busyness is most always associated with "what you will eat, what you will wear..."

It appears then, that just being in anticipation of Christ's return is not enough if that anticipation does not include the effort of ridding our lives of everything that dulls our senses (including the worries of this life).

Here's a potentially disturbing way to look at all this: If "Watch out!" is the mandate for being included in the gathering of His own that Jesus promised, how will the un-watchful know whether this event has taken place or not? Maybe because of the "one taken - one left" scenario? Arguably, if that person is not watching for Jesus (i.e. their hearts are dulled by carousing and drunkenness, and by the worries of this life), is there any guarantee that same person will notice the absence of their fellow man?

In Matthew 25, we see that it is in the watching out for our fellow man, that we are indeed watching out for Jesus. Watching out for our fellow man (and therefore Jesus) cannot happen if we are watching out for ourselves.

Father, I am seeing there is much more to being watchful than just looking at the sky.