Mark 13:32-36

Watch and Pray

The humanity of Christ is a difficult part of this scripture to grasp -> that Jesus Himself would not know the hour of His return is difficult to understand

It boils down to the fact that Jesus was just as human as you and I -> He just managed to do it without sin

We may never fully understand how incredible this fact is, but thank God its true!

It is overwhelmingly likely that this lack of knowledge vanished as He ascended to be with the Father

“Watch” here does not imply sitting around and doing nothing, but rather means to be alert

It is watching with the connotation of action -> we will spend more time on this in the parable that follows

This once again stresses the need to pay attention, that we not be swindled by the false messiah’s, prophets, and teachers

The Parable

The Son has taken a far journey to be seated at the right hand of God, leaving His house behind (the church)

But don’t worry, He left His comforter -> this is just that Jesus is not physically with us any longer

He is still active, in that He is making intercession for us to the Father (Heb. 7:24-25)

The current situation is better than the disciples had -> Jesus was limited in His flesh, and they did not have the indwelling of the Spirit

That said, it will be a lot better when we are in the direct presence of the Son when He is not limited by the flesh!

He has left us in charge while He is gone -> not to dictate our will, but to carry out the master’s

Any authority that we have has been given by the master, not earned by the servant

He has given every one of His servants a work, showing that He is still in charge

Furthermore, His giving of everyone a work renders us without excuse for laziness -> there is something the master expects you to be doing!

It is something that must be done, as God’s other children are busy doing their role

Don’t let Him find you asleep -> our sleep comes when we grow comfortable, and it leads to lapses of judgement, urgency, and zeal

Watch and pray -> the same expression that Jesus used in the Garden of Gethsemane to the sleeping disciples (Mk. 14:38) -> no coincidence!

The master will come back, and He should find His house in order

We treat the Lord’s return like we used to treat our parents return, but the consequences are far more dire (1 Pet. 5:8)!

What He said to the disciples, He says to all saints through all time -> watch!

This is the big takeaway that God’s children should have when we study the day of the Lord

His return means that we need to ensure His church is in order when He gets here!

If you are lost, the big takeaway is that the Lord’s return is real, imminent, and horrifying

You need saving from it, and that is exactly what He offers by grace through faith!