33Beware, keep alert; for you do not know when the time will come. 34It is like a man going on a journey, when he leaves home and puts his slaves in charge, each with his work, and commands the doorkeeper to be on the watch. 35Therefore, keep awake—for you do not know when the master of the house will come, in the evening, or at midnight, or at cockcrow, or at dawn, 36or else he may find you asleep when he comes suddenly. 37And what I say to you I say to all: Keep awake.” Mark 13:33 - 37 (NRSVA)
Some things happen which cause words to be chiseled in stone. On April 20, 1896 at 6:30 in the evening in the small Austrian village of Braunau Am Inn, just across the border from German Bavaria, Klara gave birth to a son. She was married to Alois. Alois was a widower and Klara was quite pregnant at the time; he was twice her age, as well as technically her uncle. At age 39 Alois was running for public office and on the advice of his uncle Johann Hiedler, was going to change his name from Schicklgruber (the name of his unwed mother) to Alois Hiedler. When he wrote it at the magistrate’s office he wrote “Hitler” instead of Hiedler. That Easter Sunday evening, the mother of this newborn, named her baby boy “Adolph”.
Adolph Hitler has been called the worst madman monster of the 20th century, responsible for the persecution, torture and execution of more people than almost anyone in history.
Today the three story house in which he was born that Easter evening is not marked in any way by his name. There is simply a marker in front which declares the voice of Hitler’s victims…For peace, freedom and democracy, never again fascism, millions of dead admonish. The phrase “never again fascism” is chiseled in stone…something that must never be forgotten, a reminder that we must always refuse and rebuke the kind of hate for which Hitler stood.
The words of Jesus in our passage are chiseled in stone even more dramatically; He said: I’m coming back – so keep awake! It is a warning! September 11, 2001 is a date chiseled in stone; 911 has become part of our culture – you don’t have to explain the terrorist attack and the resultant deaths of thousands. You don’t have to explain how it led to the war in which we’re now embroiled. This past week terrorists struck again at Mumbai (Bombay), India. The thread that ties 911 and Mumbai together is more than that both were terrorist attacks; in both instances there were warnings – signs that the event was imminent. Jesus also gave fair warning that he is coming back. But it’s more than a warning; it is also a comfort for the believer in Jesus Christ that our Master is not gone forever…He is going to return!
This morning I want to talk with you about the two choices we have concerning the chiseled words of Jesus; we can believe He’s coming back, and therefore we ought to live like it…or we can ignore it!
Believe it or Not!
We live in an age of skepticism, unbelief and apathy. A poll taker asked a woman on the street, Ma’am, would you agree with the statement that the most common problems of our time are ignorance and apathy? She answered as she brushed past him, I don’t know, and I don’t care!
If you are in that number (which is increasing exponentially) who deny Christ, either in word, or worse, with their lives – my only advice could possibly be to ask you to be honest – investigate what Scripture has to say about Jesus and be thorough about it. Don’t settle for some of the empty-headed pop-sophistication that pronounces the Gospel as unfounded without even reading the book. Do you really want to settle your eternity on the basis of unexamined and uninformed opinion? Rather, investigate the claims of the Bible about who Jesus is – then make your own decision.
I knew briefly a great scholar from the Baptist ranks named Hershel H. Hobbs. Dr. Hobbs preached a revival at our home church several years before he died. I got to study with him in a small group for a week. We met at 6:30 each morning and studied for 2 hours. In those ten hours Dr. Hobbs took us through the book of Galatians at a depth that required spiritual pressure suits. His only notes were pinned inside his skull. I once asked him during that week, considering all the choices available, what caused him to be a Christian; his remark: It was a case of negligence; somebody accidentally left a Bible open, and I read it. I also asked him what he would be if he wasn’t a Baptist – He said, ashamed!
When it comes down to it, all the predictions and all the descriptions of Biblical and future events mean nothing if you reject the authority of Scripture. It all comes down to belief…you either believe or not. But considering what’s at stake, make your decision an informed one – actually read the Bible before you dismiss it.
If you DO Believe It – Behave It!
Most of us who claim to be believers, followers of Jesus, spend more time trying to figure out when He is coming back, when we should be doing what He said we should do. Jesus stated that the only way the date of His return would be revealed would be when the Father in heaven decided it was time. That is a closed question. It’s much the same as when my Father used to end the discussion with, because I said-so! There’s no sense digging that hole any deeper! Rather you just do what you’ve been instructed to do. For believers….
1. He told us to be Actively Alert
33Beware, keep alert; for you do not know when the time will come. 34It is like a man going on a journey, when he leaves home and puts his slaves in charge, each with his work, and commands the doorkeeper to be on the watch.
You and I must be alert to the times in which we live. This world has largely turned its back on God, and we have been given the job of reconciliation, bringing God’s lost sheep back to him. That is a job that is not for sleepwalkers.
2. He told us we are Accountable
35Therefore, keep awake—for you do not know when the master of the house will come, in the evening, or at midnight, or at cockcrow, or at dawn, 36or else he may find you asleep when he comes suddenly.
When the owner of a business returns after a time away, those who’ve been in charge of managing the business know they will be asked how things went…how are sales?…any problem in production?...what’s happening with expenses and revenues. The owner has a right to ask. The employee has a duty to give account.
This coming Tuesday I will sit at a long, oval table in the Slane Center at High Point University. I will be at one end, facing our District Superintendant and six or seven members of the Board of Ordained Ministry. They will ask me questions. The reason I will go is because I am accountable to the Bishop, the D.S. and, in particular, and more importantly the Lord, for how I have used this past year to advance the Kingdom. (I also like my job and want to keep it).
At the accounting time in Heaven Jesus will only want to know how we did with what He placed at our disposal. He will want to know how we treated those in our homes, and those homeless. He will want to know if we used our time wisely to spread His good news.
Calvin Miller tells in one of his books about walking “…through Children’s Hospital in Omaha not too long ago, and I saw a little baby boy there, below two years of age, with tubes running in and out of his body—clearly very, very sick. I asked the nurse about him, and she said, “I want to thank you for asking about him. He will die before he is 2 years of age, but the worst part is that his mother died in childbirth and his father’s in the penitentiary. Nobody comes; nobody asks about him much, and he lays there. You’re one of the first to even ask about him.” I walked out of the hospital that day thanking God that my two children are well and that it wasn’t my baby. Then it seemed like out of the very atmosphere around me, God said, “Yeah, that is your baby.” If you’re a servant, the world you see and touch is yours. [1]
Which Brings Us to Bethlehem at Advent
To be quite honest, I’m not very concerned about the birth of a child in a stable two thousand years ago. I am interested (incredibly so) in the fulfillment of God’s promises to unhinge the forces of evil that bind our world (and my life) to set me free. What happened at Bethlehem was the creaking of a hinge about to swing wide open.
And beyond the door are the stones with the words chiseled. May it be that when He comes, He finds us holding the hand of the little ones, living out those words chiseled in stone – feed my sheep, let the little ones come, go work in my field. Even so, come, Lord Jesus, come.
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ENDNOTES:
1- Calvin Miller, “The Mind of a Servant,” Preaching Today, Tape No. 51
