LOJ #137: ‘Are You Ready?’
Andover Baptist Church-March 4th, 2012
Opening
A. Susan sings?
B. Text for today is Luke 12:35-38and our sermon is titled ‘Are
You Ready?’
C. Scripture NET:
"12:35 Get dressed for service and keep your lamps burning; 12:36 be like people waiting for their master to come back from the wedding celebration, so that when he comes and knocks they can immediately open the door for him. 12:37 Blessed are those slaves whom their master finds alert when he returns! I tell you the truth, he will dress himself to serve, have them take their place at the table, and will come and wait on them! 12:38 Even if he comes in the second or third watch of the night and finds them alert, blessed are those slaves!”
D. Children’s Sermon(SLIDE)
1. Call the kids forward and tell them I will be right back
2. Tell them to count to a hundred for me
3. Come back at like 20 (after setting alarm)
4. Did I surprise you?
5. When did you think I was going to come back?
6. I didn’t say I was going to come back once you got to
100
7. Jesus went back to heaven to be with His Father, He told
us one day that He would return and that we wouldn't
know when, but that we should be ready at anytime
8. Do you know how you can be ready for Jesus to return? 9. You first know that He died on the cross for your sins
and that He is your Savior, Next you do what He tells
you and live for God
E. Introduction
1. Alarm goes off
2. Duck down behind the pulpit….put on mask and
bring up my Fallout shelter sign and military water jug
3. Preparedness is the message today
4. Is it preparedness for
a. The end of the world?
b. An economic crash?
c. An asteroid crash?
d. A zombie apocalypse?
e. Nuclear war?
f. The last drop of crude oil?
g. David Hasslehoff getting another T.V. show?
h. As terrible as the all those are, especially the last
one, the answer is Nope!
5. People try to get ready for all those scenarios
6. In fact there is a show on the National Geographic
Channel that a co-worker of mine told me about
a. It’s called Doomsday Preppers
b. They tell how to conserve water
c. They show a man who has made a truck that runs
on wood
d. They have outdoor survival techniques
e. They seem prepared for every worldly disaster or
event save one
7. It will be the most important event of all time (along
side Creation and the Life of Christ)
a. What is it?
b. It is when the Son of Man, the Alpha and the
Omega, the Word of God, Jesus our Lord and
our Messiah breaks forth in His 2nd Coming
c. THAT is the event mankind should be preparing
for
d. No Survival Kit is going to prepare you for the
return of Jesus
e. There is not a shelter built in which you can hide
8. How, then, are we to prepare?
a. It has nothing to do with gas masks, bomb
shelters and the stockpiling of food
b. Our preparedness is to be of a spiritual nature, not
a physical one
c. The only thing that can prepare you for Jesus is
that you are living for Him when He returns
9. So where is your focus? Is it simply on the moment in
front of you, on the things of this world….or is it
looking towards the sky, knowing that at any moment
the Son of God might appear
10. How many of you believe Jesus will return today?
Well those of you who didn’t raise your hands had best
be prepared as if He was….because He is going to
return on a day you don’t think He will
11. And listen today and next week (if He tarries) because
you are not ready
Sermon
READ: Luke 12:35, 36 (Scripture slide)
"12:35 Get dressed for service and keep your lamps burning; 12:36 be like people waiting for their master to come back from the wedding celebration, so that when he comes and knocks they can immediately open the door for him."
A.'Get dressed for service'
1. How many of you when your lounging at home wear a
belt and tie? Not many
2. Likewise the 1st century individual would not wear a
belt while relaxing at home
3. They, in fact, wouldn’t put on a belt unless they were
planning on going somewhere
4. The wording Jesus uses here literally means ‘let your
loins be girded up’
a. Reference to the practice of tucking the ends of a
long cloak into a belt to shorten it up
b. You would do this before doing an activity like
running, so that you were not slowed down, or
worse caused to fall on your face because of
your cloak
c. The example that I thought of in this case, is the
classic scene in the old western or war movies
where people are falling all over themselves
trying to get dressed when they are attacked
early in the morning by the enemy
d. That is what it will be like for those not ready for
Jesus
e. In our vernacular Jesus is telling us not to get
caught with our pants down
5. When Jesus is telling us to ‘Get dressed’, He is telling
us to be ready and anytime
a. Okay, but ready for what?
b. For service and their Master’s return
John 12:26 (NET) “If anyone wants to serve Me, he must follow me, and where I AM, My servant will be too. If anyone serves Me, the Father will honor him.”
c. We are not to be the type of person that needs to
be reminded constantly to be ready (parents know
anyone like this?)
d. We are to be in a perpetual state of anticipation of
Jesus’ return and also in serving Him and His
church
6. How are we as believers supposed to be dressed for
service?
a. I watched the movie ‘Act of Valor’ this week and
one thing that struck me about the movie was that
the soldiers involved had very unique equipment
that aided them in being prepared for action
b. If you are a believer in Christ, you then too are a
soldier for Him and we too have very specialized
equipment, so to speak, to prepare us for action
and battle
c. Paul speaks of this equipment inEph. 6:10-17
Ephesians 6:10–17 (NET)“6:10 Finally, be strengthened in the Lord and in the strength of his power. 6:11 Clothe yourselves with the full armor of God so that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. 6:12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world rulers of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavens. 6:13 For this reason, take up the full armor of God so that you may be able to stand your ground on the evil day, and having done everything, to stand. 6:14 Stand firm therefore, by fastening the belt of truth around your waist, by putting on the breastplate of righteousness, 6:15 by fitting your feet with the preparation that comes from the good news of peace, 6:16 and in all of this, by taking up the shield of faith with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. 6:17 And take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.”
d. That is how we are to be dressed and ready for
battle
B. Jesus then tells us to 'keep your lamps burning'
1. A servant who is waiting on their master to return, needs
to be ready even if it is dark outside
2. In order to do this, they need the light of a lamp
3. It was not always an easy task to get these lamps lit, and
definitely not something you would want to attempt in
the dark as your master was waiting to come in
4. As Christ followers our light of witness must always be
On, there is no reason to snuff out it’s light or hide it
under a bushel
Matthew 5:16 (NET)“In the same way, let your light shine before people, so that they can see your good deeds and give honor to your Father in heaven.”
C. Jesus tells us next to ‘Be like people waiting for their master to
come back from a wedding celebration so that when he comes
and knocks they can immediately open the door for him’
1. ‘Be like’ means someone to immolate
2. Extremely rich homeowners would have a servant that
did nothing but let people in or kept people out
3. Here we have such servants waiting upon their master
a. In this case the master had taken a trip to a
wedding feast, and depending on the
circumstances these feasts could last a few days to
even a week
b. All the servants know for sure is that the master
has gone away but will shortly return
c. The master was not accountable to tell them
when he would return, but he expected his
servants to be ready whenever he does
d. When the master comes knocking he wants that
door to be immediately opened to him without
any hesitation or scrambling
D. So what does this mean to us?
a. Like these servants waiting on their master, we are to be
ready for the return of our Master, Jesus Christ
Philippians 3:20 (NET)“But our citizenship is in heaven – and we also await a savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ”
Jude 20–21 (NET) “1:20 But you, dear friends, by building yourselves up in your most holy faith, by praying in the Holy Spirit, 1:21 maintain yourselves in the love of God, while anticipating the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ that brings eternal life.”
b. It means we are to be careful about how we live
Ephesians 5:15–16 (NET)“5:15 Therefore be very careful how you live – not as unwise but as wise, 5:16 taking advantage of every opportunity, because the days are evil.”
c. It means that as faithful servants we should focus on our
Master’s desires and not the selfish and worldly things
that would cause us to be unfaithful to our duty to Him
2 Timothy 2:1–7 (NET)“2:1 So you, my child, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. 2:2 And entrust what you heard me say in the presence of many others as witnesses to faithful people who will be competent to teach others as well. 2:3 Take your share of suffering as a good soldier of Christ Jesus. 2:4 No one in military service gets entangled in matters of everyday life; otherwise he will not please the one who recruited him. 2:5 Also, if anyone competes as an athlete, he will not be crowned as the winner unless he competes according to the rules. 2:6 The farmer who works hard ought to have the first share of the crops. 2:7 Think about what I am saying and the Lord will give you understanding of all this.”
d. And it is to serve as a reminder that one the Master will
knock at our door
Revelation 3:20 (NET)“3:20 Listen! I AM standing at the door and knocking! If anyone hears My voice and opens the door I will come into his home and share a meal with him, and he with Me.”
READ: Luke 12:37, 38 (Scripture slide)
"12:37 Blessed are those slaves whom their master finds alert when he returns! I tell you the truth, he will dress himself to serve, have them take their place at the table, and will come and wait on them! 12:38 Even if he comes in the second or third watch of the night and finds them alert, blessed are those slaves!"
A. Those servants that their master finds alert will be 'Blessed’
1. The emphasis is on 'to be awake, alert'
2. Reading a book one time called 'The Gift of Fear', it
talked about knowing your situation when you walk into
a room, etc…..simply paying attention might just save
your life
3. Alertness is being ready and attentive
4. Our lives are to be alert to two primary things: 1) the
return of Jesus 2) the roaring lion, the devil who seeks to
devour us
5. So often Christians live their lives as if Jesus’ return is a
distant event, it’s not distant it’s immanent and that the
devil is just a character in a scary movie
6. That is a foolish way to live, a costly mistake
1 Peter 1:13 (NET)“Therefore, get your minds ready for action by being fully sober, and set your hope completely on the grace that will be brought to you when Jesus Christ is revealed.”
B. What blessing will these servants receive?
1. The Master will ‘'dress Himself to serve'
2. This was unheard of! The master serving the servants?!
3. With a Master like this, one should be glad to be a slave!
4. Jesus will not only share a meal with His faithful
servants He will serve us
5. This is the Messianic feast in heaven
Luke 13:29 (NET)“Then people will come from east and west, and from north and south, and take their places at the banquet table in the kingdom of God.”
Revelation 19:9 (NET)“Then the angel said to me, “Write the following: Blessed are those who are invited to the banquet at the wedding celebration of the Lamb!” He also said to me, “These are the true words of God.”
6. Those who served Christ and were ready for Him, are
the ones who Jesus Himself is serving
7. Do not underestimate the significance of this event! It is
the crowning jewel in the crown of hope for the
believer!
8. One commentator stated that this is the greatest promise
in all of Scripture
9. It's a promise that should motivate you and I to be ready
for Jesus and serving Him here and now for as long as it
takes for Him to return
D. But what should really motivate us is how Jesus our Messiah,
served us!
1. No greater example for service can be given then His
Luke 22:27 (NET)“For who is greater, the one who is seated at the table, or the one who serves? Is it not the one who is seated at the table? But I am among you as one who serves.”
2. We see His service to the Apostles on the night of the
Last Supper
John 13:4–5 (NET)“13:4He got up from the meal, removed His outer clothes, took a towel and tied it around Himself. 13:5 He poured water into the washbasin and began to wash the disciples’ feet and to dry them with the towel He had wrapped around Himself.”
3. Did He not serve us by His death on the cross? By His
becoming flesh and making His dwelling among us?
Mark 10:45 (NET)“For even the Son of Man did not come to be served but to serve, and to give His life as a ransom for many.”
E. In light of this we ALL are to be waiting for and serving Christ
1. How do you serve Christ?
2. By serving others.
3. How can you do that? For one thing be involved in the
Church.
4. There are a handful who serve here at the church. And
a bucket full who don’t, where are you? I’m not saying
that to be cruel or condescending, but it’s true.
5. You should be serving because it is the Christlike thing
to do, but at the very least for the reward that is in store
for doing it!
6. One day all of mankind will be held accountable to how
they responded to Jesus, and even as believers we will
be held accountable to how we served Him (cf. Rom
14:10; 2 Cor. 5:10)
7. When you refuse to serve, for whatever reason, the only
one your truly hurting is yourself
F. Jesus closes saying, ‘Even if he comes in the second or third
watch of the night and finds them alert, blessed are those
slaves!’
1. From what is said in Scripture we can suspect that
Jesus’ return is going to be a global surprise, in the fact
that the time will be one that is unsuspected
2. People always ask, ‘When will the end times come?’
We are living in them since the days of Jesus
resurrection
3. Jesus IS going to return that’s a fact
4. But Church, if one is ready for Jesus’ return, it does it
really matter when Jesus returns
5. He could come back at any time (the watches mentioned
here are 9pm-midnight and 12 am to 3am)
6. Point being, it's a dark world and we should not let our
faith fall asleep in it!
7. We are to be ready for action, not sleepy due to
weariness, laziness or self-indulgence
Application (slide)
A. If Jesus came back now, how would He find your life?
B. Would He catch you slacking off or alert?
C. Are you ready?
Invitation
Let us sing our last song #,
LORD’S SUPPER
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