Corona Devo 350

32 “However, no one knows the day or hour when these things will happen, not even the angels in heaven or the Son himself. Only the Father knows. 33 And since you don’t know when that time will come, be on guard! Stay alert!

34 “The coming of the Son of Man can be illustrated by the story of a man going on a long trip. When he left home, he gave each of his slaves instructions about the work they were to do, and he told the gatekeeper to watch for his return. 35 You, too, must keep watch! For you don’t know when the master of the household will return—in the evening, at midnight, before dawn, or at daybreak. 36 Don’t let him find you sleeping when he arrives without warning. 37 I say to you what I say to everyone: Watch for him!”  ~Mark 13:32-37

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When I babysat during my teenage years, even though I was never quite sure when the Mr. & Mrs. of the household would return, I always purposed to have the house picked-up and the dishes done before the parents came home.  And one of the cardinal rules of babysitting was: Don’t let them find you sleeping when they arrive.

When we have a party at our house, there is a list of preparations that occur days prior and right up until the doorbell rings.  Each family member has instructions about the work they are to do, and the teamwork both lightens the load and readies us for the celebration.

Babysitting and party-prep are good "small-scale-models" of how we should be living our lives daily for Christ.  One day, not so far down the road we will each take our last breath on Earth.  When the Master of the household returns for us, He will not care if we have dirty dishes in the sink or if we have recently vacuumed, but He will inspect how we have lived our lives for Him.   If we have dirty sin that has piled up for years or a Bible that was never dusted off, it will be as if God found us sleeping on the job and ignoring the instructions about the work we were to do.

God's instructions fill the Bible and they should also be filling our hearts and days.  God gave Moses 10 big ones called the Commandments and they included things like: Thou shalt have no other God's but me, don't murder or commit adultery or steal or lust after another's spouse (Exodus 20).  And there are many more such as "Love your neighbor" (Mark 12:31) and "Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you" (Ephesians 4:32).

Living for the Lord will not culminate in a pop-quiz that we should fear or "hope that we can pass" when we die.  Instead, the outline for studying how to live-for-Christ is written in love throughout the pages of the Bible.  What's great is that there are tons of stories in there about people screwing up all-along-the-way, just like we do each day.  And the recurring theme throughout God's Word is His forgiveness, forgiveness, forgiveness.

But that doesn't mean that we should be apathetic/lazy/or procrastinating in following God's instructions, or that we should be unconcerned about His return.

Quite the contrary--God blatantly warns us to be on guard! Stay alert! (Mark 13:33): 

32 “However, no one knows the day or hour when these things will happen, not even the angels in heaven or the Son himself. Only the Father knows. 33 And since you don’t know when that time will come, be on guard! Stay alert!  ~Mark 13:32-37

We don't know the day or hour that will be our last, but we can be comforted that the Lord gives us both the privilege and the responsibility of staying alert and watching for his return.  

And it will be worth the front-end obedience in our lives.  Today, let's ask Jesus to wash away the dirty sin sitting on the counters of our lives and shoved in the dark corners.  Let's dust off our Bible's and listen to what God's Word is saying to us with an open heart.   

Because “The coming of the Son of Man can be illustrated by the story of a man going on a long trip. When he left home, he gave each of his slaves instructions about the work they were to do, and he told the gatekeeper to watch for his return. 35 You, too, must keep watch! For you don’t know when the master of the household will return—in the evening, at midnight, before dawn, or at daybreak. 36 Don’t let him find you sleeping when he arrives without warning. 37 I say to you what I say to everyone: Watch for him!”  ~Mark 13:34-37

Blessings,

sarah

https://sarahsundy04.blogspot.com/