6: EXPECTING HIS RETURN (Luke 12:35-48)

Today we conclude our BORN IS THE KING series and you might be saying it’s about time because we’re two weeks beyond Christmas.” But there’s an important part of the story most of us never attach to Christmas, a season that extends beyond Christmas that…

Many Christians refer to this season as ADVENT, a term is derived from the Latin word adventus meaning “coming” or “arrival.” Early Christians who used this term used it to

appreciate the 1st coming of Jesus - His birth and

anticipate the 2nd coming of Jesus -

In other words, Christians shouldn’t just be celebrating his birth, but we should be…

EXPECTING HIS RETURN

In case you haven’t noticed, we aren’t in heaven yet, and the task we have been given is not yet complete. We still have work to do and people to reach. And while trying to impact the world is often messy and frustrating, it is the eternal task Jesus has called us to.

He has commanded us to use our Time, Talents, & Treasure to impact others for eternity.

With eternity in mind - exchanging some of the TIME we could have with family & friends to engage those who don’t yet know & obey Jesus.

With eternity in mind, how are we using the TALENTS God has given to communicate the love of God to others & offer heaven to them.

With eternity in mind, exchanging our earthly TREASURE for eternal treasure of seeing other PEOPLE in heaven with us;

With eternity in mind, Jesus headed toward Jerusalem and the cross. And today as we dig in at Luke 12:35, we see Jesus prepare His disciples for His departure to heaven. Yet Jesus reminds them that He will NOT be gone forever. Instead, they should LIVE LIKE - WE should live like - we are EXPECTING HIS RETURN.

And as the late R.C. Sproul said well:

We don’t know the appointed day or hour of his return, but we know two things with certainty. One, that he is coming, and two, that his coming is closer today than it was yesterday. With each passing moment, human history moves closer to the return of Jesus.

WHEN will that occur? No one knows except the Lord Himself. But today we get a glimpse of WHAT will that day be like.

Here’s the cliff notes version: When Jesus returns when all things will be made right - a time of JOY for those who follow Jesus but a time of JUDGMENT for those who don’t.

Paul wrote about it this way.

2 Thessalonians 1:6–10 (NIV)

v6-8 God is just: He will pay back trouble to those who trouble you and give relief to you who are troubled, and to us as well. This will happen when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven in blazing fire with his powerful angels. He will punish those who do not know God and do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus.

v9-10 They will be punished with everlasting destruction and shut out from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of his might on the day he comes to be glorified in his holy people and to be marveled at among all those who have believed. This includes you, because you believed our testimony to you.

And, as we will see in today’s teaching, according to Jesus…

BIG TRUTH: The Master returns to bless His servants…and doom the Disobedient

Luke 12:35–36 (NIV) Be dressed ready for service and keep your lamps burning, like servants waiting for their master to return from a wedding banquet, so that when he comes and knocks they can immediately open the door for him.

First, it’s important to note that the focus of this story is NOT on the wedding, but the return of the Master. In the story Jesus is about to tell, the master had gone to the wedding of another and since wedding celebrations could last for seven days, the exact time of the master's return was not certain.

What WAS certain was that he WOULD return. As that was the case the servants were to be

dressed and ready for service. This phrase comes from the literal rendering of the Greek to “to gird up the loins” - an idiom like we might say, 'be sitting on go'. This is why most English translations (ESV, NASB, NIV) write it this way: be dressed ready for service. [1]

For the Jewish audience Jesus is speaking to, this kind of language points to tucking the long outer garment under a belt so they can move quickly, the same thing the Jewish people were told in being prepared to leave Egypt in the middle of the night in Exodus 12:11.

So too, the people who keep the lamps burning are prepared - on the lookout - expecting the master to return. And when he DOES return, these servants aren’t caught off guard. They are ready for service and keeping the lamps burning.

Luke 12:37 It will be good for those servants whose master finds them watching when he comes. Truly I tell you, He will dress himself to serve, will have them recline at the table and will come and wait on them.

This is strange language. It’s the servant’s job to serve the master, not the other way around. More on this in a minute.

Then Jesus says something strange. He compares the master of the servants with a thief. Let’s look at why He uses this comparison.

Luke 12:38-39 It will be good for those servants whose master finds them ready, even if he comes in the middle of the night or toward daybreak. But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what hour the thief was coming, he would not have let his house be broken into.

Our house robbed My first year in college on a Sunday night I came home from church on a Sunday night to find drapes blowing in the wind from an open window. ThenI discovered drawers open, the VCR gone, and several valuables missing. Our house had been robbed.

IF ONLY WE KNEW what time they were coming…I can assure you, my Dad & I would have been ready! Of course we didn’t even know they were coming. So too Jesus tells His audience…

Luke 12:40 You also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him.”

He’s not coming to steal anything, but the Master WILL return…expecting His servants to be doing what He has commanded. His return will be unexpected by most.

Now let’s double back to the passage we read earlier to feel the WEIGHT of what Jesus has just said!

Luke 12:37 It will be good for those servants whose master finds them watching when he comes. Truly I tell you, He will dress himself to serve, will have them recline at the table and will come and wait on them.

The Master will serve those who have been serving Him! Can you imagine that!!!

On the last night before His death, this is EXACTLY what occurred.

The most powerful person in the room took a wash basin and washed their feet. Why would the MASTER serve the servants? Because THAT’S WHO HE IS - a SERVANT.

So too, in the distant future, the KING of kings will still SERVE His servants! What an incredible day, what a day of joy & humility that will be! When…

BIG TRUTH: The Master returns to bless His servants…

I think that will be the time that we might respond like Peter did: “Lord, you’ll never wash my feet. (John 13:8) You shouldn’t serve me…I should serve you!”

But none the less, the Master will serve & bless His servants.

Then Peter asked an important question…

Luke 12:41 Peter asked, “Lord, are you telling this parable to us, or to everyone?”

What a GREAT question! This is the question the contemporary audience should be asking as well! Is this intended for just the 1st century disciples of Jesus within earshot, or is it meant for anyone who hears what He says?

The answer is ultimately found in vss. 47-48 - as we’ll see in a moment. This parable should concern all who hear it, but especially those who claim to be servants of Jesus.

Luke 12:42–44 The Lord answered, “Who then is the faithful and wise manager, whom the master puts in charge of his servants to give them their food allowance at the proper time? It will be good for that servant whom the master finds doing so when he returns. Truly I tell you, he will put him in charge of all his possessions.

BIG TRUTH: The Master returns to bless His servants…

The servants who have been doing what the Master commanded are given more responsibility when He returns.

This reminds me of the times my son has asked, “Daddy, can I have THAT?” and I have responded, “Everything I have…IS yours. Now, take care of what belongs to US.”

Did you know you will have responsibilities that the Lord will give you? Adam & Eve didn’t just sit around in the garden, naked playing a harp! They worked the garden! So too, the good servant will be given more responsibilities in the Kingdom.

But what about those who are disobedient to what the master has commanded?

Luke 12:45 But suppose the servant says to himself, “My master is taking a long time in coming,” and he then begins to beat the other servants, both men and women, and to eat and drink and get drunk.

This 'servant' begins to act like he is the master. He acts as though the master is not returning and he is now in charge. He treats others poorly but makes sure to satisfy his own desires - including the sinful ones.

Beware those who claim to follow Jesus, yet refuse to live like they will be accountable to the Master!

Some might counter and say this sounds like a person is saved be doing good works. To that I would say, “Good works don’t save us, but they demonstrate who really is saved.”

We’ve already seen what will happen to the servant who obeys the Master…

But what will become of of the ‘servant’ who DOESN’T obey His Master?

Luke 12:46 The master of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he is not aware of. He will cut him to pieces and assign him a place with the unbelievers.

WHOA! That doesn’t sound like our culture’s build-a-bear version of Jesus, does it!?

So, here’s a picture…

Where do we come up with this idea that people can pray a prayer, tell some people they believe in Jesus, live a life full of disobedience without any concern for eternal things…and be OKAY when Jesus returns?

This is just NOT Biblical. Where is the FEAR of the LORD? Where is the real sense of future accountability?

The Master cutting the disobedient to pieces and assigning him/her to a place with unbelievers means ETERNAL DOOM!

You see…

BIG TRUTH: The Master returns to bless His servants…and doom the Disobedient

And believe it or not, there are even different levels of judgment awaiting the disobedient. Jesus continues…

Luke 12:47–48a (NIV) The servant who knows the master’s will and does not get ready or does not do what the master wants will be beaten with many blows. But the one who does not know and does things deserving punishment will be beaten with few blows.

Both end up in a place of punishment - one experience harsher punishment than the other - one experiences many blows versus few blows.

Who experiences the most punishment? Those who KNEW what the Master wanted, but were NOT Expecting His Return.

This should cause a PAUSE to those who have been blessed to know God’s Word & God’s will. This should cause us to do a self-examination…

to ask THIS QUESTION - If Jesus returned today, would I be Excited or Ashamed?

For those of us who have heard the Gospel of Jesus - who have been taught His Word - who have been reminded that our Time, Talents, & Treasure belong to Him - we need to listen to the closing words from the Lord Jesus in today’s teaching.

Luke 12:48b …From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked.

What have YOU been entrusted with?

Has the Lord blessed you with His Scriptures and those who teach it well so you can understand it and apply it? Much given…much demanded.

Has God given you the task of raising a family? Much given…much demanded.

Has God given you financial prosperity that allows you to bless others financially? Much given…much demanded.

Has God given you given the ability to teach, encourage, administrate, or multiple other gifts and abilities to further the KINGdom? Much given…much demanded.

ONE QUESTION: What am I DOING with what I’ve been GIVEN?

BIG TRUTH: The Master returns to bless His servants…and doom the Disobedient

Whether He Returns BEFORE you die OR you DIE before He returns…

You will NOT escape His gaze.

You will NOT deceive Him with your smooth talk.

NOR will you dismiss your actions of sacrifice & service with eternity in mind.

On the day that…

BIG TRUTH: The Master returns to bless His servants…and doom the Disobedient

Give Jesus your LIFE. Surrender your sin & seek His forgiveness!

Give Jesus your BEST. Seek Him! Get in the Scripture. Live expecting His return! Lay your head on the pillow with this thought - I Gave Jesus my BEST today!

___________

Johannes P. Louw and Eugene Albert Nida, Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament: Based on Semantic Domains (New York: United Bible Societies, 1996), 683.

___________

AND…all this leads to the Lord’s Supper, a time when we appreciate the first coming of the Lord Jesus to pay for our sins, AND…anticipate the 2nd coming of the Lord Jesus, when he will join us at the table to SERVE us!

This is meant for followers of Jesus.

Listen to the lyrics of this song as we prepare ourselves to remember the great price that Jesus paid for us.

VIDEO

Luke 22:14–20 (NIV)

When the hour came, Jesus and his apostles reclined at the table. And he said to them, “I have eagerly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer. For I tell you, I will not eat it again until it finds fulfillment in the kingdom of God.” After taking the cup, he gave thanks and said, “Take this and divide it among you. For I tell you I will not drink again from the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes.”

And he took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, “This is my body given for you; do this in remembrance of me.”

[take bread]

In the same way, after the supper he took the cup, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you.

Before you drink the juice, turn to those around you and say, “He did this for YOU and me.”

[take juice]

1 Corinthians 11:26 (CSB)

For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.

Turn to your nieghbors and say, “Let’s live like He’s returning.”

SING: Jesus paid it all

Jesus paid it all, all to Him I owe. Sin had left a crimson stain, He washed it white as snow.

Discussion Questions

“Whether He Returns BEFORE you die OR you DIE before He returns…you will stand before the Master. Answer this: If Jesus returned today, would I be Excited or Ashamed? Explain.

Read Luke 12:35-44. Name a couple of ways that the master will bless His servants when He returns.

Read Luke 12:45-48. What is the warning to the ‘servant’ who isn’t expecting the Master’s return? Why should this cause a PAUSE to many who claim to be Christians?

“Good works don’t save us, but they demonstrate who really is saved.” Do you agree with this statement? Explain your answer.

What have YOU been entrusted with? What are you DOING with what you’ve been GIVEN?

Share any ‘aha’ moments in today’s study - what you learned or how you were challenged. What does God want YOU to do with what we studied today?

Ask how you can pray for one another. Then do it!