Good morning on this Friday, last day before the weekend, and a couple days before the Lord's Day. I hope you're looking forward to gathering together with God's people on this coming Sunday. Always a highlight of the week is for those who love the Lord and love his people.

I hope to see you in God's house on Sunday if you can make it, at least if you're in our area. If you're watching somewhere else, I hope you join with God's people in your locale and can fellowship and worship the Lord together on the Lord's Day.

The Imminent Return of Christ

Well, Jesus is coming again. Now to some people that sounds like the proverbial guy with the sandwich board that says the sky is falling, and it's about as realistic. It's about as much a reality. Jesus is coming again.

Well, he is. He is. He's promised that he is. And those who are followers of Christ, that is a hope that we anticipate. It's one we expect. Now in today's passage in Luke chapter 12, Jesus talks about this a little bit, but he focuses not so much on.

Timing.

At all, really.

He never, never tells us to look for signs and expect him to come because certain things happen and because this has happened and this has happened and this has happened, then you know this is the date that Jesus is going to come.

No, no, he never encourages that. But in today's text, what he really focuses on is the fact that his coming is imminent. It is unexpected. We don't know when he's going to come, just that he is. So he says, for example, be ready for the Son of Man is coming in an hour you do not expect.

So.

Because of that coming, unexpected coming of the Lord Jesus, his return at any time, there are some implications. One of them is being a readiness, being ready for his coming. And how are we to be ready for his coming?

Well, that's what the really the bulk of this passage is talking about, where we are to be ready for his coming by being faithful in our calling, faithful in the duty that he has placed upon us, faithful in our service to the Lord.

And he does, he expresses that truth by talking about the servant whose master goes away and he's in charge of things while he's gone. And is the servant going to be faithful is the question. When the master comes back, will he find the servant doing what he gave him to do?

Now what that is for you and for me may be two completely different things in a lot of ways. There are some things that definitely overlap. As believers in Christ, there are some responsibilities that are universal of all believers.

But there are individual unique responsibilities that you have as a servant of Christ that I don't have and vice versa. I've been called to be a pastor. I have certain responsibilities in that regard.

Your calling may be something completely different. And whatever that is, whatever that calling, whatever our duty, we're to be faithful in doing it as unto the Lord. So he could come at any time and we are responsible to be faithful in the fulfilling of our calling.

Faithfulness in Our Calling and Service

And then we're to do so with an awareness of being held accountable.

For.

Our service, for our labor for the Lord. And how we live out our calling in our Christian life. We're going to be held accountable for that. He brings us out by talking about when he comes, if there's this servant who he's, it's like I would interpret it this way, he professes to be a Christian.

He makes everybody think he's a Christian. He talks about being a Christian. He wears the label of a Christian. But essentially he lives like an unbeliever. He conducts his business like any.

Other.

Unbelieving, ungodly person would conduct it with shady deals or whatever, however he does it. He lives morally like an unbeliever lives his life. He's just like any unbeliever in his lifestyle, in his behavior.

In other words, he's not.

Demonstrating.

Faithfulness to Christ in his calling, in his duty, in his service to the Lord. And yet he's claiming the label.

Well,.

The Lord holds out not much hope for such a person. He says if the if the servant says such a thing as this that you know my master's delaying his coming and he begins to beat the male and the female servants to eat and to drink and to be drunk, living a profligate, excessive life, the master of that servant will come in a day when he's not looking for him, Jesus says, and an hour when he's not aware.

Because remember, remember, Jesus is coming unexpectedly. And he will cut him in two and appoint him his portion with the unbelievers. Now that's pretty severe. Now what he's talking about, I believe here, is you know in the New Testament context, it's one who professes to be a Christian but isn't one.

Just lives like the world, the rest of the world, and you know, he's a pagan, basically a pagan, living like a pagan, but taking the label. Jesus says he's going to have his part with the unbelievers.

Accountability for Faithfulness

He goes on to say that those who are truly believers, who are you know, our servants of the Lord,.

If.

If if he if you if you know what God's will is for you, but you don't do it. You know what it is, but you don't do it. You don't prepare yourself properly to do his will. Then he uses the illustration this way, you'll be beat with many stripes.

To the one who did not know yet committed things deserving of stripes, he'll be beaten with few. For everyone, for everyone to whom much is given from him, much will be required. And to whom much has been committed, of him much more will be asked.

So there is an accounting. Uh that we'll have to face for our faithfulness. I trust that'll challenge us in this day, today, that we may be faithful in what God has called us to do. Be aware that I I will be accountable.

For.

My faithfulness in my service to the Lord. I should not take it flippantly. And I should delight, I should delight in serving him faithfully. After all he's done for me, I should delight to serve him faithfully.

And that I think should be the emphasis. So may God give us that uh, may God give us that desire and that intention as we live for Christ. Our Father in heaven, help us to be faithful in the calling to which you've called us.

A Prayer for Faithfulness and a Closing Blessing

And I pray that I pray that we would not be like the the servant.

Who.

Totally disregarded you, your will, and did our own thing, lived our own selfish life. Lord, we'll answer for that in eternity. Deliver us from such thinking, we pray. And we ask this in Jesus name. Amen.

All right, have a good rest of your Friday and may the Lord bless you on this weekend. Have a good day.