Take Heed

Take Heed To Yourself – Luke 21:25-38 (Read all of Chapter 21; parallel to Mark 13)

The phrase “Take Heed” occurs 55 times in the Bible.

34 And take heed to yourselves, lest at any time your hearts be overcharged with surfeiting, and drunkenness, and cares of this life, and so that day come upon you unawares.

· The phrase “that day” is a reference to the End Times, the Tribulation Period, and the Second Coming of Jesus. It is certainly a reference to a day of destruction.

o Here it is a reference to the siege of Jerusalem and the Second Coming. BUT, Jesus is not talking about the future, He is talking about ‘YOUR’ here and now. What you should be doing right now. Taking Heed To Yourself.

· take heed; look at how you are living right now.

o Surfeiting - A drunken state that is completely without moral restraint.

o A state in which a minority of this nation lives, and a majority tolerates. We live in the day where evil is called good and good is called evil.

· sin has a way of consuming you and stealing your life from you

· through deception, Satan blinds the minds of men – 2 Corinthians 4:4 In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them. (He deceives the saints of God as well, 22:3, not that Judas was a saint, but he walked with Jesus daily).

35 For as a snare shall it come on all them that dwell on the face of the whole earth.

· “it” is ‘that day’ the Second Coming of Christ; the Tribulation Period.

The End cannot be prepared for by anticipating it and forecasting about it, but rather by watchfulness and faithfulness in our present daily lives. He plainly said, “watch ye therefore, and pray always.” In other words, deal with the future in the here and now.

36 Watch ye therefore, and pray always, that ye may be accounted worthy to escape all these things that shall come to pass, and to stand before the Son of man.

· Watch & Pray always.

· To put it another way, walk in the Spirit, live in the Spirit, and be led by the Spirit. Galatians 5.

· We escape by way of the Rapture of the Church.

Do you consider yourself as worthy to stand before the Son of man? According to the Bible, you should.

The Bible says:

· 2 Corinthians 5:21 For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.

· 2 Peter 1:1 Simon Peter, a servant and an apostle of Jesus Christ, to them that have obtained like precious faith with us through the righteousness of God and our Saviour Jesus Christ:

That’s according to the Bible. But what about the way you are living? Do we live each day as if it were the day the Lord would return? If HE came today, would you be caught in sin and shame OR would you be accounted worthy? I dare say for the greater part of us it would be both, for if we are born again, we have the righteousness of Christ and will be called up with Him. But I think as well that many of us would be caught, if not in sin, most certainly in shame.

What should be do? “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel.” Mark 1:15. The Gospel message is more than just the Death, Burial, and Resurrection of Jesus Christ unto salvation. It is also the means of Sanctification and living a life that glorifies God. Does your life glorify GOD?