But about that day or hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but the Father alone.
“Watch out, stay alert; for you do not know when the appointed time is. It is like a man away on a journey, who upon leaving his house and putting his slaves in charge, assigning to each one his task, also commanded the doorkeeper to stay alert. Therefore, stay alert—for you do not know when the master of the house is coming, whether in the evening, at midnight, or when the rooster crows, or in the morning— so that he does not come suddenly and find you asleep. What I say to you I say to all: ‘Stay alert!’”
If you play in the outfield in baseball or softball, you take a specific stance when the batter steps up to the plate. Your eyes fix on the batter, ready for the ball to fly into the air; your glove is on, ready to catch when the ball is heading to you; and your feet are ready to run to the ball if it flies out of reach. Imagine none of the outfielders were paying attention just because the batter was far away from them. This would be silly but also dangerous. The ball could hit them if they weren’t paying attention, and they could make costly mistakes. When the ball is in play, the players know to take their game-ready stance.
In Jesus’s conclusion of this glimpse into the end times He gave his disciples a call to stay alert. Generations later, our call is still the same. It is easy to get distracted with the comfort of this world, the pursuits of success and notoriety, and even the happiness life can bring us, but the call has not changed: “Stay alert!” Stay alert in your faith. Stay alert because you don’t have all the time in the world. The time to follow the call of Christ is now. Are you ready?
- How active are you in your faith right now? Are you “staying alert” as Christ called?
- What makes it hard to stay alert? What are the things that distract you from that?
- Pray and ask God to grow your alertness and trust in His timing for your life and His return.
