August 12: JOYFUL ANTICIPATION

“Therefore you also be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.” Matthew 24:44

Readiness is an aspect of life that makes everything more enjoyable. Before the days of cellphones, a widowed lady in her 70s received a letter from her old college roommate saying that she was coming for a long-weekend visit on a certain date, which was only a few days away. In a burst of energy and excitement, the lady began an organized effort to clean, scrub, dust, water plants, grocery shop, and cook. She prepared small casseroles and froze them, hoping that her friend could stay longer than just one or two days. But the day before her old roommate was to arrive, she received a tearful call. Regretfully, her friend had a bad case of the flu and did not want to risk spreading it (she had hoped to feel well enough to travel by this time).

She wished her friend well and expressed a standing invitation to come as soon as she regained her health. In deep disappointment, the temptation to grumble began to push its way into her thoughts, but these thoughts evaporated when she realized the heightened enjoyment of being at home with everything in such excellent order!

Although the spiritual application of this story is fairly obvious, how many of us are sincerely open to the ways that the Lord wants to cleanse our lifestyles, scrub our minds, dust off our Bibles, water our souls, and feed us with the Bread of life? Our Best Friend hopes that we will come to understand what is pleasing to Him and replace our bad, sloppy, or thoughtless habits with healthy ones. He says: “Who then is a faithful and wise servant, whom his master made ruler over his household, to give them food in due season? Blessed is that servant whom his master, when he comes, will find so doing. Assuredly, I say to you that he will make him ruler over all his goods.” (vv.45-47)

Jesus then goes on to address professed believers who do not live daily in joyful anticipation of His advent. They carelessly speak of His coming as “delayed.” They criticize those who preach of His soon coming and keep company with others who prefer the “wine of Babylon” (see Revelation 14:8). Jesus came to set in motion the restoration of all things (Acts 3:21; see also Matthew 28:20), to exalt the law and make it honorable (Isaiah 42:21). He kept it perfectly and promises power to those who yield to the transformation that He offers (Romans 8:4). “But if that evil servant says in his heart, ‘My master is delaying his coming,’ and begins to beat his fellow servants, and to eat and drink with the drunkards, the master of that servant will come on a day when he is not looking for him and at an hour that he is not aware of…” (Matthew 24:48-50)

For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men, teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in the present age, looking for the blessed hope and glorious appearing of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, who gave Himself for us, that He might redeem us from every lawless deed and purify for Himself His own special people, zealous for good works. Titus 2:11-14