Are You Ready for the Second Coming?
Introduction: Friends, Jesus is coming again. We sang about it this morning. We believe it! The second coming is one of the fundamental, foundational truths of the Christian faith. It is not possible to read the Scriptures with any sort of objectivity without seeing Jesus’ return as a major theme, expectation, and hope. And we need to be ready for it!
The second coming is the culmination of the person and work of Jesus Christ. As a member of the Trinity he existed from eternity past, but nearly 2,000 years ago he gave up the glory of his position with his Father in heaven and humbled himself by becoming a human being. Through the miracle of the incarnation he became a baby in the womb of the virgin Mary; was born into a peasant home; grew up in a backwater town called Nazareth; was presented to the nation of Israel as their Messiah when he was about 30 years of age; taught the truth of God and demonstrated the power of God for about 3 ½ years; but then was put to death as a common criminal on a Roman cross. Three days later he was raised from the dead, spent 40 days comforting and teaching his disciples, and then ascended into heaven as his disciples watched in amazement.
For the past 2,000 years Jesus has been reunited with his Father in heaven. But he is not through with this world yet. Even now he is acting as our High Priest, praying for us, serving as our advocate with the Father, preparing a place for us, and, of course, he is head over the Church.
One of these days he is going to come again, this time not in meekness as a little child, but in power and great glory as a conquering King. When he comes again, he will reward his faithful servants, judge the wicked, and set up a righteous Kingdom that will have no end.
When we get to chapter 21 later this winter, we will learn of some of the amazing signs that will precede the second coming – signs in the political landscape, signs in the weather, signs in the church, and signs in the Middle East. But in our passage today Jesus is concerned that we look inward, not outward. He seems to be asking the question, “Are you ready for the second coming?”
Luke 12:35-48 reads:
“Be dressed ready for service and keep your lamps burning, like men waiting for their master to return from a wedding banquet, so that when he comes and knocks, they can immediately open the door for him. It will be good for those servants whose master finds them watching when he comes. I tell you the truth, he will dress himself to serve, will have them recline at the table and will come and wait on them. It will be good for those servants whose master finds them ready, even if he comes in the second or third watch of the night. But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what hour the thief was coming, he would not have let his house be broken into. You also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him.”
Peter asked, “Lord, are you telling this parable to us, or to everyone?”
The Lord answered, “Who then is the faithful and wise manager, whom the master puts in charge of his servants to give them their food allowance at the proper time? It will be good for that servant whom the master finds doing so when he returns. I tell you the truth, he will put him in charge of all his possessions. But suppose the servant says to himself, ‘My master is taking a long time in coming,’ and he then begins to beat the menservants and maidservants and to eat and drink and get drunk. The master of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he is not aware of. He will cut him to pieces and assign him a place with the unbelievers.
“That servant who knows his master’s will and does not get ready or does not do what his master wants will be beaten with many blows. But the one who does not know and does things deserving punishment will be beaten with few blows. From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked.”
I think it is very appropriate that this passage comes right after the threefold warning we examined last week regarding Fear, Greed, and Worry. What could be a greater antidote to those three roadblocks to spiritual maturity than to lay hold of the amazing truth that Jesus is going to come again?
As Jesus addresses the subject of his second coming for the first time here in Luke, he camps on two themes – watchfulness and faithfulness. Watchfulness is necessary because we don’t know when Jesus will come again. Faithfulness is necessary because when he comes, he will come with judgment.
Watchfulness is necessary because we don’t know when Jesus will come again.
Verse 40 says plainly, “The Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him.” Elsewhere Jesus states the same truth even more explicitly, “No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, not even the Son, but only the Father” (Matthew 24:36, Mark 13:32).
In view of such verses, it is amazing how many people have tried to set a date for the second coming. Somehow they think that by scrutiny of obscure passages and esoteric reading of the signs of the times, they can discover something Jesus Himself chose not to know! Entire religions, like the Jehovah’s Witnesses, have been founded on attempts to set a specific date for Christ’s return.
Even some evangelicals have come perilously close to doing that. I was in seminary when the Six Day War broke out in the Middle East in June of 1967, and I remember an eminent professor, who should have known better, telling us he didn’t expect school to start in September because the rapture of the Church was imminent. Strangely, even as he spoke they were still taking tuition deposits for the Fall semester!
But you know something? We can make a mistake that is just as bad, maybe worse, than trying to nail down the date of the second coming, and that is ignoring the fact of the return of Christ. Frankly, I think there are a great many Christians who are totally unprepared for the second coming!
In view of the fact that his return will be at an unexpected time, Jesus urges his disciples to be ready at any time! First, he says that …
Readiness is expected. He begins with an illustration from the culture of his day–an important and wealthy man goes to a wedding. An ancient wedding celebration could go on for a week, so the time of his return is not predictable. If the servants are smart, they will be ready, so that when their master comes and knocks, they can immediately open the door. This includes being dressed appropriately and keeping the lamps burning.
In the original language of the New Testament, the phrase, “be dressed ready for service” is literally, “having your loins girded.” The long flowing robes of ancient times could easily get in one’s way; therefore, when someone was preparing to work, he gathered up the end of his robe and tucked it into his belt, leaving him free for activity. The meaning is, “Don’t let anything get in the way of serving your master appropriately. Remove all hindrances.”
The burning lamp was a cotton wick floating in a bowl of oil. Always the wick had to be kept trimmed and the oil filled, or the light would go out, leaving the household in darkness. The image here is that the Lord will return to a darkened world, and he desires for his disciples to shine as the light of the world, relying on the power of the Holy Spirit (often symbolized by oil) to impact the lives of unbelievers around them.
Not only is readiness expected; …
Readiness will also be rewarded. Look at verse 37: “It will be good for those servants whose master finds them watching when he comes.” And then we are told an amazing thing–this particular master will change places with them. He will seat the servants at the table and will wait on them, so pleased is he to find the servants in readiness, the house in order, and all the lamps lit. The point is clear: the Creator of the Universe is going to honor all his faithful servants throughout the ages when he comes. It’s going to be awesome!
Third, Jesus warns that …
Readiness must be constant. Almost any of us can meet a deadline if we know it’s critical and in our own interests to do so. But it’s what Eugene Peterson calls “a long obedience in the same direction” that causes many of us to stumble. We get apathetic; we lose interest; we get distracted. That’s why Jesus says in verse 38, “It will be good for those servants whose master finds them ready, even if he comes in the second or third watch of the night.” He’s talking about the graveyard shift here. He is talking about the time when we are least likely to be alert. He’s talking about times when the economy is strong, the Blues are winning, the Republicans are in charge of Congress, there’s very little persecution, and no one is threatening us with nuclear war. Even then we need to be watchful.
After all, says Jesus, using a rather earthy example, no one would have to worry about being burglarized if the burglar announced his coming in advance. But burglars don’t generally do that; therefore, vigilance is required all the time.
Here is the message of our first paragraph summarized: the reality of Jesus’ return, in the face of the uncertainty of its timing, demands vigilance.[i]
But something is required of us besides watchfulness. I know some people who are very watchful of the second coming: They study prophecy constantly; they pore over charts of the end times; they scour the newspaper for signs and for hints as to who the anti-Christ might be; they speculate about how many airplanes will crash when the rapture occurs because pilots like Jack, and Dave and Steve will be checking out in mid-flight.
The second requirement Jesus lays on us has to do with faithfulness.
Faithfulness is necessary because when he comes, he will come with judgment.
This section is introduced by a question from Peter: “Lord, are you telling this parable to us, or to everyone?” That sounds innocent enough, but I suspect Peter is actually trying to give Jesus the opportunity to affirm what he strongly suspects, namely that he and the rest of the Twelve are the ready ones, and the rest of the people are the unready ones. “Lord, go ahead and say it – let these scribes and Pharisees have it with both barrels.”
But Jesus doesn’t answer Peter’s question directly, and I think by not answering it he is in effect saying, “Peter, I’m addressing my warning to anyone who claims to be a spiritual leader, for in due time one’s actions will betray his heart. Never mind asking who is and who isn’t ready–your job one is to be a faithful servant.” And to illustrate what he means, Jesus tells another parable–that of the faithful servant over against the unfaithful one.
Here’s the story: A wealthy man is about to leave on a journey. Before leaving, he places one of his most trusted servants in charge of the other servants. In this capacity the newly appointed manager not only supervises the work of the other servants, but he is also responsible to see that they are well provided for.
Undoubtedly the landowner himself in this parable is Jesus. The servant who is given oversight probably refers to the Scribes and Pharisees, but also to the Twelve Apostles, and by extension to all pastors and ministers, and by further extension to elders, deacons, teachers, parents, and every believer who has a ministry (which should be every believer). Doing the will of the Master and caring for those in need is a task assigned to all believers.
Now Jesus entertains the possibility that the servant put in charge could be either faithful or unfaithful.
The faithful servant will be rewarded with responsibilities and privileges. Jesus says it will be good for the faithful servant, and he will be put in charge of all the master’s possessions. Faithfulness in what is assigned earns more opportunity, more responsibility, more privileges. What does that mean? Well, I think Jesus is talking about heaven here. We don’t know as much about heaven as we would like, but we do know that the common notion that time there will be spent floating on clouds and eating bonbons is far from the truth. That would get old really fast—maybe not the bonbons, but at least the scenery.
Worship will be our highest priority in heaven, just as it should be here, but serving God will also be a major occupation. I think Christ’s promise here implies the assignment of certain specific tasks in the life hereafter, each task a matter of pure delight and satisfaction, and each in perfect harmony with the individuality of the person for whom it is marked out.
Frankly, I wouldn’t be surprised if each of us is assigned a part of the universe to govern. Assignments will be made, by the way, not the way they are often made here, that is, based on looks, wealth, speaking ability, charisma, etc., but rather based solely on faithfulness. It may be the case that a faithful Sunday School teacher or a shut-in who is a faithful prayer warrior will receive a galaxy to rule, while some high-profile Christian leader or mega-church pastor is assigned to a black hole. Faithfulness is what will be rewarded.
But not all servants will be faithful. In fact, there were very few faithful shepherds among the religious leaders of Israel. There was at least one unfaithful servant among the Twelve, though the others didn’t know it yet, and there are undoubtedly many unfaithful servants in the visible church today. What about those who are unfaithful?
The unfaithful servant will receive punishment or discipline. Look at verse 45: “But suppose the servant says to himself, ‘My master is taking a long time in coming,’ and he then begins to beat the menservants and maidservants and to eat and drink and get drunk.” Who is he talking about here? Do Christian leaders beat their parishioners? Well, they can. I think of the torrent of clergy sexual abuse that has come to light in the past decade or so. This is not a new problem—it’s been going on for decades, but it’s only recently been exposed for the awful problem it is. When a pastor or a counselor or a Sunday School teacher takes advantage of his position of authority and uses it to entice innocent children or emotionally needy people, that’s tantamount to beating them.
There are other kinds of abuse. I have a book in my library entitled Churches that Abuse. The subtitle reads, “Help for those hurt by legalism, authoritarian leadership, manipulation, excessive discipline, spiritual intimidation.” Another is entitled Healing Spiritual Abuse – How to Break Free from Bad Church Experiences. I think of Diotrephes, concerning whom the aged Apostle John warned his friend Gaius in 3 John 1:9-10,
“I wrote to the church, but Diotrephes, who loves to be first, will have nothing to do with us. So if I come, I will call attention to what he is doing, gossiping maliciously about us. Not satisfied with that, he refuses to welcome the brothers. He also stops those who want to do so and puts them out of the church.”
That’s spiritual abuse!
What will happen to such unfaithful servants? Jesus says, “The master of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he is not aware of. He will cut him to pieces and assign him a place with the unbelievers.” Serious business! This is not punishment light. The cutting in pieces seems to speak of terrible and painful punishment. “A place with the unbelievers” has to be a reference to hell.
We can certainly accept this as just punishment in certain cases. That’s exactly what the Pharisees deserved; Judas too. And in our own day I think of a clergyman who has been in the news this past year. He abused literally hundreds of children placed under his spiritual care over several decades. He never repented; in fact, he denied he did anything wrong in the face of overwhelming evidence to the contrary. It seems that he went into the ministry because of the unsupervised access it gave him to children, and when caught previously, he manipulated the system to get transferred to other clerical posts. I think most of us have no problem accepting the judgment Jesus seems to prescribe for such a person. In fact, if one of our children were a victim, we might want to help cut him to pieces.
But not every unfaithful servant is such a monster. Some people are unfaithful because they are lazy or distracted, or even ignorant. Are they going to hell, too? And if so, what about me? I try to be a faithful servant, but I often fail. Is Jesus suggesting that each of us is in danger of hellfire? I think the last paragraph of our Scripture text deals with this question as it makes important distinctions between three different kinds of unfaithful servants.
The one who is willfully disobedient will be punished in hell. We’ve already considered that particular kind of unfaithful servant. But in verse 47 Jesus speaks of a second kind of unfaithful servant:
The one who fails to do what he knows he should do will be severely disciplined. He will be beaten with many blows. This is serious and nothing to be sneezed at, but it appears to be a very different result that being cut into pieces and cast into Hell. Jesus seems to be referring not to a servant who is wicked and opposed to all that the Master stands for, but rather one who simply fails to get the job done. Perhaps he was working too many hours or playing too much golf or distracted by other pursuits. He knows better, but he doesn’t do better. He will be disciplined severely.
Then there’s a third unfaithful servant in view in verse 48: “But the one who does not know and does things deserving punishment will be beaten with few blows.”
The one who fails out of ignorance will also be disciplined, but less severely. Ignorance is not bliss; it’s not even an excuse; it will only lighten the discipline, not remove it. Now I think the Bible clearly teaches that there are degrees of punishment in hell based on the knowledge one has. In Luke 10 Jesus said of the towns in which he and the disciples ministered but where the people rejected their message, “It will be more bearable on that day for Sodom than for that town.”
But I personally think Jesus is not speaking of degrees of punishment for unbelievers here, but rather of degrees of discipline for believers. You see, there are two great judgments spoken of in the Scripture – the Great White Throne Judgment for the unsaved and the Judgment Seat of Christ for the saved. Everyone at the Great White Throne will be cast into Hell, but some will suffer more than others. Everyone at the Judgment Seat will go to heaven, but some will receive more rewards than others.
Now I think this interpretation of Luke 12 is verified by a very interesting passage in 1 Corinthians 3, where I would like for you to turn with me. Paul has been dealing with the issue of personality cults in the church—people’s tendency to follow this charismatic leader over that one. His answer to that kind of sinful behavior is found in verse 6: “I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God is the one who made it grow.” Now I pick up in verse 10:
“By the grace God has given me, I laid a foundation as an expert builder, and someone else is building on it. But each one should be careful how he builds. For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ. If any man builds on this foundation using gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay or straw, his work will be shown for what it is, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each man’s work. If what he has built survives, he will receive his reward. If it is burned up, he will suffer loss; he himself will be saved, but only as one escaping through the flames” (1 Corinthians 3:10-15).
He’s talking about the church here and his fundamental exhortation is, “Be careful how you build.” There’s only one foundation, Jesus Himself, but there are many materials you can use as you serve him. Some will last and some will not. At the end of the age, when Jesus comes, there will be a judgment—here the judgment seat of Christ for those who are believers. Fire will test not the quantity, but the quality of the work we have done. If our service survives the fire, we will receive a reward. If it doesn’t, we will suffer loss. We will be saved, but “only as one escaping through the flames.” By the way, this statement that “he himself will be saved” is not a guarantee to every person in church; Paul is only speaking to believers here, as is clear from verse 1, where he makes it clear he is only speaking to “brothers” or members of the family of God.
I think this passage teaches that some people will get to heaven by the skin of their teeth. They will have no faithful service to present to the Savior. They will have no trophies to lay at his feet. They will stand there naked and empty-handed. Now granted, that’s infinitely better than the fate of those who are not part of the family of God. But we must not minimize those words, “He will suffer loss.”
I think 1 Corinthians 3 is talking about the same issue as Luke 12:48. The unfaithful servant who doesn’t oppose God or persecute his church but nevertheless fails to be obedient will suffer loss; he will suffer blows, many or few, based upon the extent of his knowledge, his opportunities, and his gifts; based upon his faithfulness.
Conclusion: God’s expectations of us are always commensurate with the knowledge and privileges he has given. Look at the last sentence of our passage: “From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked.” I think that is true of believers and unbelievers alike. For unbelievers, the more opportunities they are given, the greater will be their punishment at the Great White Throne Judgment. For believers, the more opportunities they are given, the greater will be their discipline and loss at the Judgment Seat of Christ.
I want to tell you something that you probably wouldn’t expect to hear from this pulpit. It could be very dangerous for you to be here today. If you have sat in our services week after week and have heard the Good News that Jesus died for you, paid the penalty for your sin, and extends to you the free gift of salvation, but you have never repented of your sin or surrendered your heart to Christ, I would hate to be in your shoes at the judgment. There will be no second chance there. There will be no plea bargaining at that bar of justice.
But friends, even if you know Christ as your personal Savior, it could be dangerous for you to be here, too. The more you learn of God’s truth, the greater is your responsibility to live it. The more the opportunities you are given, the more God expects of you. The greater the resources he puts within your control, the greater the return he expects from your investments.
Jesus is coming again. The first time he came humbly with the offer of salvation; the second time he will come with power as the righteous Judge. If we reject his offer of salvation now, one day we will have to face him as our Judge. Believe me, now is the day of salvation; don’t put off his offer one more day.
Tags:
Second Coming
Watchfulness
Faithfulness
Discipline
[i]. Darrell L. Bock, Luke: The NIV Application Commentary, 356.