“Ready or Not… Here I Come!"
Mark 13:32-37
First Sunday of Advent
Mark 13:32-37 “32 “But about that day or hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. 33 Be on guard! Be alert! You do not know when that time will come. 34 It’s like a man going away: He leaves his house and puts his servants in charge, each with their assigned task, and tells the one at the door to keep watch. 35 “Therefore keep watch because you do not know when the owner of the house will come back—whether in the evening, or at midnight, or when the rooster crows, or at dawn. 36 If he comes suddenly, do not let him find you sleeping. 37 What I say to you, I say to everyone: ‘Watch!’”
Pause right there. “Are you ready for Christmas?” That’s a popular question this time of year. It has to do with Christmas card lists and presents for the family. Let me ask you a different question – are you ready for the return of Christ? Are you? Isn’t that more important? By the way, you might want to mention the more important question to those how ask, “Are you ready for Christmas?”
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Did all of you play hide and seek when you were children? Probably? I sure did. Grew up on a farm in Suffolk ( actually it was Nansemond County ). There were so many good hiding places in the barns! When it was my turn to count and find the other kids, I would say it real loud, “5-10-15-20.” All the way to 100. Do you remember what it was like to be in your hiding place and hear that one kid yell, “READY OR NOT, HERE I COME!” You never wanted to be found and have to be “it” the next time.
Today, on this First Sunday of Advent, the Apostolic Church chose to look forward to the Second Coming of Christ. Guess when? One day closer today than yesterday is always my answer. “32 “But about that day or hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.” Guess how? That’s an easy one! 1 Thessalonians 5:16-17 “16 For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. 17 After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever.”
Now – guess what? It’s going to be something like the game of Hide and Seek. There is a time of counting. That’s going on right now: “5-10-15-20.” On that day, there will be winners and losers. On that day, it will be Jesus who proclaims: “READY OR NOT, HERE I COME!”
Where does that leave us? We have to do what Jesus instructed us to do in Mark 13:37 “What I say to you, I say to everyone: ‘Watch!’”
On this First Sunday in the Christian Calendar, I want to offer you three ways for us to be Watchful Believers who are READY!
First – WAKE UP AND WATCH!
35 “Therefore keep watch because you do not know when the owner of the house will come back—whether in the evening, or at midnight, or when the rooster crows, or at dawn. 36 If he comes suddenly, do not let him find you sleeping.”
I have told you before that I meet with 2 other ministers every week on Zoom. We have been in a Discipleship Band for almost 3 years. We start each of our meetings with one person saying, “Awake, O sleeper and rise from the dead.” The others respond, “And Christ will shine on you.” These words are found in Ephesians 5:13-16
“13 But everything exposed by the light becomes visible—and everything that is illuminated becomes a light. 14 This is why it is said:
“Wake up, sleeper,
rise from the dead,
and Christ will shine on you.”
15 Be very careful, then, how you live—not as unwise but as wise, 16 making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil.”
A Discipleship Band is a group of 3-5 men or 3-5 women who meet as a means to accountable discipleship. We meet and say those words to open for a reason. Rev. JD Walt, the founder of Seedbed Ministries, put it like this: “The hardest part (of living an awakened life), I am pretty sure I’m already awake.”
This message of WAKE UP is not a message to the world because they don’t believe Jesus is coming back to gather in the sheep of His pasture. This message of WAKE UP is for the Believers who just don’t care. Let me assure all of you, the Return of Christ is NOT optional. It’s coming. Hey, we keep praying for it every Sunday – “Thy Kingdom come.” If you read the end of the Book – there is what we call the consummation of all things. Revelation 21:3-5 “3 And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Look! God’s dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. 4 ‘He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death’ or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.” 5 He who was seated on the throne said, “I am making everything new!”
The Return of Christ must come before there can be a new heaven and a new earth. It’s time for the Church, the Body of Christ, to WAKE UP and stop hitting the snooze button.
Second, WATCH AND PRAY!
“33 Be on guard! Be alert! You do not know when that time will come.”
I have mentioned before that we are living in a day and a season when we need to do more than just polite praying. We learned to pray as children. We learned to pray out of a sense of duty. Now, I truly believe it’s time for Believers to pray with cries of desperation!
Crying out to God, with true and honest communication, will help guard us from carelessness in regard to sin. From my point of view, way up here in the pulpit, you folks are not chasing after sin. Nope! Sin is chasing you. When we allow it and give in, the answer is turning to prayer. More often though, when we are in sin – we turn FROM prayer and God’s Word. The reverse is also true – when we are praying and in God’s Word we turn from sin.
Since Christ is coming back, sooner rather than later, we need to be praying for the lost. Remember when I said on that day there will be winners and losers. We are the winners – those who are saved. Those who are lost – the unsaved – will be the losers. I personally believe it will too late for those folks on that day, just like a person today who dies without receiving the precious gift of salvation. Make a list of family and friends that need to receive that gift and pray, pray, pray.
In 2024, I would like us to join together during Lent in a prayer effort. Dr. Terry Teykl has written a small book – “My Most Wanted Devotional, 40 Days to Pray for the Lost.” I was mentioning the end of the Book and we need to remember that satan also knows how it ends. His desire is for more souls to take with him into the pit of hell. What is our job? To get more names in the Lamb’s book of Life.
First - We need to WAKE UP AND WATCH!
Second - We need to WATCH AND PRAY!
Third, WATCH AND WORK!
“34 It’s like a man going away: He leaves his house and puts his servants in charge, each with their assigned task, and tells the one at the door to keep watch.”
Earlier today, I read the description of what we call the Rapture in 1 Thessalonians 5. It appears that those Believers in Thessalonica were just sitting around waiting for the Rapture. Paul had to remind them in 2 Thessalonians 3:10-13 “10 For even when we were with you, we gave you this rule: “The one who is unwilling to work shall not eat.” 11 We hear that some among you are idle and disruptive. They are not busy; they are busybodies. 12 Such people we command and urge in the Lord Jesus Christ to settle down and earn the food they eat. 13 And as for you, brothers and sisters, never tire of doing what is good.
Ever since I was in the Church as a child, I was taught to ask this question: “If Jesus comes back today, would you want Him to find you ________________?” (fill in the blank) What might you put in there? Scrolling through Facebook? Sharing gossip on the phone? Watching a movie full of F-bombs?
What about the “assigned task” for each of us? Until the Return of Christ, your work and my work is MINISTRY, MINISTRY, MINISTRY. Do I need to repeat that? When Jesus comes to call us home, we all want to hear “Well done thou good and faithful servant.” What is our service to God? MINISTRY, MINISTRY, MINISTRY!
Today is reminder – the Return of Christ is NOT optional.
One day – today or tomorrow or some other day – we will hear, “READY OR NOT, HERE I COME!”
Do you dread the Day of Judgement?
(OR)
Do you rejoice in this day because you are AWAKE AND WATCHING;
because you are WATCHING AND PRAYING;
because you are WATCHING AND WORKING?
TEACHING SHEET
The Return of Christ:
Guess when? One day closer today than yesterday.
Guess how? 1 Thessalonians 5:16-17
Guess what? It’s going to be something like the game of Hide and Seek.
There is counting. There will be winners and losers. And we will hear on that day - “READY OR NOT, HERE I COME!”
WAKE UP AND WATCH! v. 35-36
Ephesians 5:13-16 “Wake up, sleeper, rise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you.”
What do we pray for every Sunday? “Thy Kingdom Come.” This is leading to what comes later – the consummation of all things. Revelation 21:3-5
Are you sure you are awake? Are you still hitting the snooze button?
WATCH AND PRAY! v. 33
Now is the time for Believers to pray with cries of desperation!
If you are in sin – you will turn FROM prayer and the Word.
If you are praying and in the Word – you will turn FROM sin.
We need to be praying for the lost – they will the losers. Make a list of family and friends that need to receive the gift of salvation: ___________________________________________________________________________________________
Now, pray, pray, pray.
WATCH AND WORK! v. 34
The Believers in Thessalonica need a reminder to keep working – 2 Thessalonians 3:10-13.
“If Jesus comes back today, would you want Him to find you ________________?” (fill in the blank) What might you put in there? What about the “assigned task” for each of us? Until the Return of Christ, your work and my work is MINISTRY, MINISTRY, MINISTRY!
Do you dread the Day of Judgement?
(OR)
Do you rejoice in this day because you are AWAKE AND WATCHING;
because you are WATCHING AND PRAYING;
because you are WATCHING AND WORKING?
