““But as for that day or hour no one knows it – neither the angels in heaven, nor the Son – except the Father. Watch out! Stay alert! For you do not know when the time will come. It is like a man going on a journey. He left his house and put his slaves in charge, assigning to each his work, and commanded the doorkeeper to stay alert. Stay alert, then, because you do not know when the owner of the house will return – whether during evening, at midnight, when the rooster crows, or at dawn – or else he might find you asleep when he returns suddenly. What I say to you I say to everyone: Stay alert!”” Mark 13:32-37 NET https://bible.com/bible/107/mrk.13.32-37.NET
Many Christians think the end of time is near. This thinking is not new. The Apostles reflect it in their New Testament writings and have been echoed by the saints through every age. The message serves as a warning for how we should live whenever Jesus returns to establish His eternal throne on earth as it is in heaven. We must be found faithful to His work, proven by its fruitfulness. Jesus warns any branch that does not bear fruit He will remove and burn with fire. If Jesus were to appear today, would we be able to point to people whose lives are now in the kingdom of God because of our work? Have we made God’s kingdom larger by winning more people into it, and have we made God’s kingdom better by becoming more holy and helping others do the same? If we have little or no fruit to show, perhaps we are like the servant who buried his talent, waiting for the Master to return so He could have what was entrusted to the servant. Of course, that servant was removed from the eternal presence of the Master for his faithlessness in seeking to be fruitful for the Master. Our culture reflects the effectiveness of our obedience to God’s command to make disciples, teaching everyone to obey everything Jesus commanded. Do we want His return today, or do we want to make a greater effort to do His work so that when He does return, we will be found faithful with fruit to prove it?
