Matthew 24:42-44
Therefore, stay awake, for you do not know on what day your Lord is coming. But know this, that if the master of the house had known in what part of the night the thief was coming, he would have stayed awake and would not have let his house be broken into. Therefore you also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.
The duration of Christ’s stay on earth has been filled with numerous controversial and life-altering events. From showcasing His divine powers to manifesting His divine wisdom through the debates He had with different religious people of His time, all of His teachings demand a response from us.
All of the teachings of Jesus Christ require us to confess, repent of our sins and trust in Him. And in this specific passage, there is a specific act of repentance that He commands us to do: Stay awake and be ready.
Jesus taught that His return will be like a thief in the night. No one knows the exact day and hour of His return. In his humility and humanity, Jesus even said that He himself does not know it (Matthew 24:36). The Apostles, before the resurrection of Jesus, were much concerned about whether or not Jesus would rise again from the dead—a concern that we do not share with them because now we know that He truly rose from the dead. But this means that our concern now is not the truthfulness of His resurrection but the certainty of His return.
After declaring His return from Heaven, He gave two parables to paint a clear picture of the godly response to His inevitable return. In those parables, those who responded wrongly were characterized by the virgins who did not have enough oil (Matthew 25:1-13) and the steward who buried his talent (25:14-30)—two stories that emphasize one spiritual truth that we must all uphold: Stay awake and be ready.
As believers of our time, we have the privilege of always looking back at the finished work of Christ and uphold the irrefutable claim of the empty grave. In the same breath, we are given the responsibility to look forward to His second coming. But this time, His return will no longer be to die for our sins:
Hebrews 9:28
so Christ, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time, not to deal with sin but to save those who are eagerly waiting for him.
In light of Christ’s glorious return, Holy Week is no longer just a recollection of the events prior to the resurrection of Jesus Christ. In light of His finished work on the cross, it is also an anticipation of His victorious return.
In what ways have you taken the glorious return of Jesus Christ for granted? Are you looking forward to the return of Christ? Why? Why not?
1 Corinthians 3:13-15
each one's work will become manifest, for the Day will disclose it, because it will be revealed by fire, and the fire will test what sort of work each one has done. If the work that anyone has built on the foundation survives, he will receive a reward. If anyone's work is burned up, he will suffer loss, though he himself will be saved, but only as through fire.
Meditate on 1 Corinthians 3:13-15. Take some time to examine and evaluate your life. Since we are justified by grace through faith in the promises of Jesus Christ for our salvation, genuine believers will be judged by Jesus to inherit their gracious rewards (Matthew 25:31-34).