Be Ready

Now while the boys and girls are heading for their class,

and perhaps you can turn in your Bibles,

we're going to hear in just a moment from 1 Peter chapter 4.

1 Peter 4 · chapter mention

And maybe as a reminder, so Bob's going to come and read for us,

and then lead us in prayer.

And just a reminder to students and young workers,

there's a lunch fairly shortly after the service,

and then Bob's going to share with us about the person and work of the Lord Jesus.

So please do stick around if you've signed up.

If you've not signed up, please do come along anyway.

And Bob will come and share with us.

Thanks, Bob.

Our first reading is from 1 Peter chapter 4, verses 7 to 11,

1 Peter 4:7–11

and then we'll read from 2 Peter chapter 3.

2 Peter 3 · chapter mention

These are two of many passages in the New Testament that remind us that we live in the present,

in the light of future events that are sure to take place.

1 Peter chapter 4.

1 Peter 4 · chapter mention

The end of all things is near.

Therefore, be alert and of sober mind, so that you may pray.

Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins.

Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling.

Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others,

as faithful stewards of God's grace in its various forms.

If anyone speaks, they should do so as one who speaks the very words of God.

If anyone serves, they should do so with the strength God provides.

So that in all things, God may be praised through Jesus Christ.

To him be glory, be the glory and the power forever and ever.

Amen.

And our second reading near the end of 2 Peter, 2 Peter chapter 3, at verse 8.

2 Peter 3 · chapter mention

Do not forget this one thing, dear friends.

With the Lord, a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day.

The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness.

Instead, he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.

But the day of the Lord will come, like a thief.

The heavens will disappear with a roar, the elements will be destroyed by fire,

and the earth and everything done in it will be laid bare.

Since everything will be destroyed in this way, what kind of people ought you to be?

You ought to live holy and godly lives.

As you look forward to the day of God and speed is coming.

That day will bring about the destruction of the heavens by fire,

and the elements will melt in the heat.

But in keeping with his promise, we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth where righteousness dwells.

Let's pray.

Our Father in heaven, we thank you for these vivid and encouraging pictures of what lies ahead.

Lord, so often we look at this world, we look at our lives, we look at the city in which we live,

and we see so much that is dislocated and disjointed.

And we are promised that a day is coming when all that is wrong will be put right,

when all that is evil will be judged and condemned,

and that there will be indeed a new heavens and a new earth.

We pray that in the light of what the Lord Jesus will one day bring to completion,

that today we might live lives that are characterized by holiness and by love and by joy and by service.

We pray, too, that we would recognize that the Lord is not slow,

but rather he desires that people would come to a living and permanent relationship with him.

Lord, we pray that today, if anybody here may be not yet in a relationship with Jesus by faith,

that they might recognize that today is an opportunity,

an opportunity to repent and to believe,

and to recognize the one who has come and the one who will come again.

We thank you for those, as we were reminded, the many who serve within this congregation,

and we pray that as we serve, we should do so,

as those who serve with joy and serve with thanksgiving and serve with a glad heart.

We pray for this city in which we are met.

We pray for this community in which we are located.

And we recognize the beauty of the city, its history, and its heritage.

A growing number of people want to call Edinburgh their home,

a place to study, a place to live, a place to work.

And we pray that we, as your people, and as members of your church,

that we would consider ways of reaching this growing population

from all different parts of the world, from all different parts of the United Kingdom.

We pray that there might be a church in every community,

a place where people are welcomed,

and a place where people may be introduced or taught in the name of the Lord Jesus.

So, Lord, you know each of our own individual lives.

You know our story.

You know the past.

You know today.

And you and you alone know the future.

In a room with a gathering of this size,

there are many issues and cares and concerns.

Most are unknown to us,

but all are known to you.

You know the very heart of each one of us.

You know the joys and the sorrows.

You know the anxieties and the fears.

And we thank you that we can come to you in the name of Jesus,

to that throne of grace where we can receive help,

where we can receive mercy,

where we can receive grace,

because this is our time of need.

Hear us, O Lord, we pray,

not because of who we are,

but hear us because we come to you in the name of Jesus.

And we ask that you would hear us because of who he is.

And we pray in Jesus' name.

Amen.

Now, before we turn back to Luke's gospel,

we're going to sing again another section of a psalm,

this time a section of Psalm 113.

We're going to sing the first six verses.

And again, we can stand as we sing together.

Amen.

O praise you, servants of the Lord,

sing praises to his holy name.

O blessed be the name of God,

His praise forevermore proclaim.

From east to west the praise of God.

Each day is to be spread abroad.

The Lord is high above the earth,

His glory far above the sky.

Who else is like the Lord our God,

the one who sits enthroned on high.

He is the one who stoops down low

to look on heaven on earth below.

Now, again, if you have your Bibles,

if you're using a church Bible,

it's on page 1045.

It will be in Luke chapter 12,

Luke 12:35–48

verses 35 to 48.

We're continuing to follow the journey of Jesus

towards Jerusalem.

And the emphasis this morning

is to be ready for Christ's return.

Luke chapter 12,

Luke 12 · chapter mention

beginning at verse 35.

Be dressed, ready for service,

and keep your lamps burning.

Like servants waiting for their master

to return from a wedding banquet.

So when he comes and knocks,

they can immediately open the door for him.

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 make them recline at the table,

and will come and wait on them.

It will be good for those servants

whose master finds them ready,

even if he comes in the middle of the night

or towards daybreak.

But understand this,

if the owner of the house had known

or whatever the thief was coming,

he would not have let his house be broken into.

You also must be ready

because the son of man will come

at an hour when you do not expect him.

Peter asked,

Lord, are you telling this parable to us

or to everyone?

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.

But suppose the servant says to himself,

my master is taking a long time in coming,

and then he begins to beat the other servants,

both men and women,

and to eat and drink and get drunk.

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.

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.

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.

Amen.

This is God's word.

Let me begin by asking a question.

What connects the following three jobs?

The soldier on a tour of duty,

the fireman or the firewoman,

and a first century household servant.

One sentence is one answer in two ways.

It's the need to be ready.

Each of those figures could be called into service

at any moment.

And they need to be ready

because they could face an inspection

from the commander or master.

Jesus, represented in our stories as the master,

has been preparing his disciples,

his servants,

for the truth that he is going away.

He is on this journey to Jerusalem.

He will go to the cross to die.

Three days later, he will rise again from the dead,

and then he will return to the glory of heaven.

He has been preparing them for that,

but now he prepares them for something else.

He prepares them for his certain future return.

The Old Testament spoke of it as the day of the Lord.

We hear it also in the New Testament.

Perhaps we are familiar with the idea

of the second coming of the Lord Jesus.

This is what Jesus is preparing his disciples for,

saying, be ready.

Be ready because Jesus is coming back.

Be ready because Jesus will bring history to an end.

Be ready because Jesus will judge the living and the dead.

Be ready because Jesus will either reward or punish.

So when we hear this repeated note to be ready in our text,

we need to hear the urgency from Jesus

so that we would let that certain future day

shape how we live in this day.

That it would shape our faith and obedience.

It would shape our mission to make Jesus known,

and it would influence us to trust in Jesus

if we're not already his followers

because he calls us to be ready.

We'll think about it in three different ways.

Here's the first, be ready because Jesus rewards

faithful servants.

I don't know how many of you have watched Downton Abbey.

I imagine many of us are at least familiar with it.

Downton was centered on the house of the Earl of Grantham.

And living with the Earl and Lady Grantham

and some of their children were this team of servants.

There was Bates, he was the chief valet,

and there was others underneath.

And those servants had to be geared up and ready

to serve the Earl and Lady Grantham

and their family day or night.

Downton's quite helpful for reminding us

about the way things were in the first century.

So the parable in verses 35 to 38

is something that would have been familiar

to the people of Jesus' day.

So the master has gone away.

He went away to a wedding banquet.

The servants are at home.

And there is that responsibility for them

to be watchful, to be ready,

because sometime in the future,

the master would return.

They needed to be ready to open the door,

to be ready to have the house all set

for his arrival.

So verse 35 and verse 36 are very familiar.

But then you come to verse 37 in our text,

and there is a huge surprise.

We've said this before.

Whenever we're reading a parable that Jesus tells,

always look for the surprising

and the unexpected piece of the story,

because that often leads us

to what Jesus is emphasizing.

Listen to verse 37.

It will be good for those servants

whose master finds them watching when he comes.

And here's the surprise.

Truly I tell you,

he will dress himself to serve,

will make them recline at the table,

and will come and wait on them.

Do you notice the reversal that's happened?

And what Jesus is saying is

that he is the master who is ready and willing

to reward his faithful followers

in the grace of the gospel

and in the promise that is in the Bible

of an end of time, eternal feast.

It's what heaven is pictured as,

and Jesus says he has come to serve.

It's a theme we find in Jesus' words in other places.

Mark chapter 10 and verse 45.

Mark 10 · chapter mention

We read,

The Son of Man did not come to be served,

but to serve,

and to give his life as a ransom for many.

Jesus is the king of glory.

And Jesus is our humble servant king.

Jesus came to serve us

by suffering in our place,

by dying and taking on himself

the punishment, the penalty,

that our sin deserves.

He serves us by taking our spiritual debt

and paying it in full

and giving us his perfect righteousness

and giving us true freedom.

There's another passage

where Jesus speaks of being a servant

for his people.

In John chapter 14,

John 14 · chapter mention

I think the words might be up on the screen

or they should be, I think.

In John chapter 14,

John 14 · chapter mention

Jesus prepares his followers.

He says,

Do not let your hearts be troubled.

And then he speaks about his father's house.

So this is heaven.

My father's house has many rooms.

If that were not so,

would I have told you

that I'm going there

to prepare a place for you?

Jesus goes to make preparation.

And if I go and prepare,

I will come back

and take you to be with me.

So here is the picture.

Jesus is returning

to the glory of heaven.

And he is going to make preparation

an eternal home for his followers.

How does he make that preparation?

By going to the cross to die for us,

to deal with our sin

that separates us from a holy God,

by rising again,

giving us who trust in him

the promise of future eternal life

and our return to heaven.

Jesus prepares the way

and he promises he will return one day

and he will take us to glory forever.

So Jesus picks up this language of serving.

And we also have within the word of God

this wonderful promise of feasting

within the Bible.

So we began singing Psalm 23

and there in Psalm 23,

we have the picture of the king.

The king who prepares a feast

for his people.

The king that gives grace to his people,

giving us strength

for our journey of faith

until we are home,

dwelling in the house of the Lord forever.

Jesus rewards faithful servants then,

but he also gives us grace upon grace today.

Do you know that every time

we gather together for worship

or every time like last week,

as the people of God,

we share the Lord's Supper together,

it's like we're having this appetizer.

Jesus invites us in

and Jesus comes to serve us from his word

and to give us grace,

to feed us spiritually,

all the time anticipating

this eternal feast that's yet to come.

Another way that we can see it,

Jesus' first sign,

first miracle,

John chapter 2,

John 2 · chapter mention

his first sign that reveals his glory,

it was providing wine at a wedding.

And we have this wonderful symbol

of here is Jesus

and he is the master of the wedding feast.

He is the one who provides

the overflow of the very best wine.

He is the one who has come,

the master who comes to bring joy.

And what Jesus does in this parable

is he promises that to his disciples

as he's on the way to the cross.

Jesus is preparing an eternal, joyful feast.

He is the master who serves us

in dying on the cross to forgive and to save.

And so we have this promise

that we're invited to be encouraged by,

that when we are ready for his return,

when we are trusting in him,

when we are looking to live

in faithful obedience to him,

then we're promised a feast.

We're promised a life of love and joy

that we can hardly even begin to imagine

when Jesus returns

to establish his people forever

in resurrection life

in the new heavens and the newer.

So what's the message for us?

The message is,

because Jesus is coming back again

as judge and king,

and because he does provide reward,

we should be ready.

Today, we should be ready.

Regardless of whatever anyone else is doing

in our family,

in our friendship group,

in our society,

be ready.

All the time, be ready.

To receive this reward,

how do we receive it?

How are we to be ready?

First,

we need to put our faith in Jesus.

The first thing we need

is to be served

by Jesus our master.

We need to trust

that when Jesus died on the cross for sin,

he died on the cross for my sin

to bring me peace with God.

We need to trust and submit to his authority.

So we must first be served,

and then,

to be ready,

we must be serving our master,

being ready for his return.

What does it look like

to be watchful and obedient

as we await Jesus' return?

That's why we read Peter's letter,

1 Peter chapter 4.

1 Peter 4 · chapter mention

So remember,

Peter heard these parables,

and these parables stuck with him.

And as he called on the people

to be alert and of sober mind,

here's what he said.

Here's what readiness looks like.

It looks like being a praying people.

And it looks like loving one another.

And it looks like showing hospitality.

And it looks like using our gifts

to serve other people.

In other words,

being ready means living

the faithful, ordinary Christian life

that he calls us to.

But we do that knowing

there's this wonderful reward coming.

So be ready,

because Jesus rewards faithful servants.

Then in verse 39 and 40,

the picture changes.

But the call to be ready remains.

Be ready,

because Jesus' return

will be unexpected.

So in verse 39 and 40,

there is still a house in view.

So let me read.

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.

You also must be ready,

because the Son of Man

will come at an hour

when you do not expect him.

So now we're picturing a household,

and this time the readiness

is to be ready

for an unexpected visit.

Here's the picture of the thief

in the night.

We need to be ready.

And my favorite picture of this,

and it's never too early

to begin with Home Alone,

is Kevin McAllister,

the star of Home Alone.

If you don't know the movie,

you still have a few weeks

before Christmas,

you need to watch it.

But Kevin McAllister

is a wonderful example of this,

because he is on high alert.

He is ready.

He sets all kind of traps

around his house,

around his uncle's house,

so that when the wet bandits

or the sticky bandits

come to rob the house

or the toy store,

they fail.

Because he is ready.

But,

here's the thing.

the whole story of Home Alone

only works

because Kevin knows

the exact time

when the thieves will arrive.

He overhears them.

Now I can't remember

what time it is.

Nine o'clock, I think,

is when the wet bandits

are going to come to his house.

So he can be ready.

But the truth Jesus brings

is that his return,

while it is certain,

the timing is unknown.

So we must be ready

at all points

as a matter of urgency

because we do not know

when Jesus will come again,

when the Son of Man

will come.

Notice the way Jesus

talks about himself there

in verse 40

as the Son of Man.

We can skip over it,

but it's important

to stop and recognize

here is a huge claim,

actually Jesus is making

about himself.

The Son of Man

as we meet him

in the Old Testament,

this figure from the book of Daniel

in chapter 7,

he is a figure

who appears

in the throne room of heaven.

He is given glory

and authority

and power

to set up

an eternal kingdom.

And so when Jesus says,

I'm the Son of Man,

he's saying he is

the King of glory.

He is the eternal King

whose authority

we need to recognize.

He is,

Acts chapter 17,

Acts 17 · chapter mention

Paul tells us,

God's appointed King

and Judge.

He is the one

who does have authority

over our lives.

He is the one

who will come back

at the end of history.

He will bring in

the new creation,

having judged

and condemned evil

and having purified the earth.

So because of who

Jesus is,

we must be ready

to meet him.

We must be ready

for his certain return.

And we need to be careful

because the timing

is unexpected,

because his return,

the time of that

is unknown,

we must be careful

not to be complacent,

not to be caught

off guard.

A.W. Tozer,

who is a Christian minister

and writer

in the post-war period,

asked the question

in one of his articles,

what happened

to the church's hope

in the return of Christ?

And he was sort of examining,

in this case,

the West,

Canada and the States

particularly,

but recognizing

the danger there is

when a society lives

with a great amount

of affluence

and wealth

and security

and comfort.

We can easily

slip into the trap

of thinking,

this is it.

We're living

the dream right now.

Last week,

we met the fool

who built bigger barns

and said,

oh, brilliant,

I can store up

for myself,

I can eat,

drink and be merry

and lost sight

of matters of eternity.

And there is a danger

for us in that.

Again,

we can listen

to Peter.

This time,

remember what he said

in 2 Peter 3.

He said,

remember that

just because Christ

hasn't come back yet,

it doesn't mean

he's slow

in keeping his promises.

Rather,

it's a sign

of his merciful patience.

That Jesus

hasn't come back yet

has given us

an opportunity

to repent

and to be right

with God

even today.

But he does remind us

that day will come,

will come

like a thief

in the night.

Therefore,

how should we live?

This time,

the emphasis

is on living

holy lives,

godly lives,

as we look forward

to the certain

but the unexpected

coming

of the Lord Jesus.

Now,

before we move

to our last point,

I think it's worth

pausing for a moment

just to consider,

I guess,

a question that might arise

or an objection

that might come

because these parables

focus on the idea

of Jesus as a master

and we are servants.

Maybe we don't like

that idea

of serving anyone.

Maybe that runs

counter to

what we're looking for,

the pursuit

of personal freedom.

There's a couple

of observations

I was reading,

I was dipping

into a book

this week,

I don't do this

very often,

by a French psychiatrist

and the book

was called

The Weariness

of the Self.

Really interesting,

not written

by a Christian

but he was arguing

for a direct

relationship

between

the modern view

that we are self-made

and we are self-sustaining,

okay,

so that and the one hand,

direct line between

those realities,

those ideas

and

the rise of depression

and anxiety.

In our day

he was arguing

that we're being told

nothing is truly forbidden.

You can be

whatever you want to be,

you can do

whatever you want to do,

and we're living

with that language

all the time,

but we're also living

with the reality

that actually nothing

is truly possible.

And he argues

that's why people

are exhausted,

anxious,

and becoming

distressed,

depressed.

Bob Dylan

made the point

in one of his songs

many years ago,

you've got to serve

somebody.

In his song

he said,

it might be the devil

or it might be the Lord

but you've got to

serve somebody.

Maybe nowadays

it might be

yourself

or it might be

the Lord.

And the point

that Alan Ehrenberg,

that psychiatrist

was making

is when we

live to serve

ourselves,

it strikes him

and perhaps

it strikes us

that that can be

a recipe

for melancholy

and misery.

And what we need

to recognize

is that as Jesus

presents himself

as a master

over us,

he is a far

better master.

He is a master

who gives us grace.

He is a master

who gives us himself.

He is a master

who gives us

joy and life

today

and the promise

of a feast

of joy

and life

and love

that lasts

forever.

So when we

recognize

and submit

to Jesus

as a better

master,

we have the promise

of hearing

wonderful words

and end

to exhaustion

and feeling

condemned

and feeling like

we'll never be

anybody.

We will hear

from Jesus,

well done,

good and faithful

servant.

Enter your

masters,

happiness.

Jesus himself

will welcome

his people

to that eternal

home,

that eternal

kingdom,

entry into

a world

of perfect

love.

And as we've

seen in Luke's

gospel,

Jesus will be

welcoming

very unexpected

people into

his kingdom.

He's a good

master.

He welcomes

outsiders.

He welcomes

outcasts.

He welcomes

great sinners.

He welcomes

the poor

and the sick

and the needy.

And he can do

that because

he will go to

the cross

to pay for

our sin.

He will go to

the cross

to show us

amazing grace.

There is no

master

like

our Jesus.

One last

point is

Jesus tells

us to be

ready.

Verse 41

to 48,

be ready

and serve

responsibly.

Peter asks a

question in

verse 41,

Lord, are you

telling this

parable to

us or to

everyone?

Is this just

for us

12, us

disciples,

who you have

called to

yourself?

Is it for

the whole

church?

And Jesus

answered is,

yes, it's

for leaders

and yes,

it's for

Christians and

church members.

This is for

everybody.

And so he

returns to

give us the

picture in a

slightly different

form.

Verse 42,

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?

So this

time the

picture of

the master

has gone

away again

for an

unknown

period,

but this

time he's

put someone

in charge.

A household

manager is

to look

after the

day-to-day

running.

And the

question now

becomes,

when the

master

returns,

will he

find that

that servant

has been

responsible

and faithful

or irresponsible

and unfaithful?

And that

will determine

either reward

on the one

hand or

punishment

on the

other.

Let's

focus first

on the

faithful and

responsible.

Verse 42

and 43,

it will be

good,

43 and 44

rather,

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

of his

possessions.

And again,

I would

suggest that

this is

perhaps part

of a story

that we

might expect.

If a

servant

serves

others

well

within a

household,

we might

expect

promotion

and reward.

reward.

We see

it in

the

Old

Testament

story

of

Joseph.

In

our

junior

youth

group

last

night,

we were

thinking

about

the

story

of

Joseph.

And

Joseph,

even when

he's sold

to be

a slave,

is found

faithful in

Potiphar's

household and

eventually

receives

rewards.

We might

expect this

part of

the story,

but again,

we need to

pay attention

to the

next part

of the

story and

to see

a surprising

detail.

As attention

turns to

one who

is unfaithful

and

irresponsible,

what does

it look

like?

Verse 45,

the servant

says,

my master

has taken

a long

time in

coming,

and he

begins to

beat the

other servants

and to

eat and

drink and

get drunk.

So he's

abusing

his power,

he's drunk

and he's

unprepared,

and the

outcome,

verse 46,

the master

will come,

he will

cut him

to pieces

and assign

him a

place with

the unbelievers.

Where's the

emphasis

falling there?

A severe

punishment,

perhaps a

shocking

punishment,

getting our

attention.

This isn't

talking about

ordinary,

everyday things,

this is

talking about

the reality

of eternal

judgment.

This isn't

just a story

saying,

work hard

at your

job,

so when

head office

comes,

or the

boss

comes around,

they will

say,

good job,

and they

won't say

you're fired.

No,

this is

Jesus is

your king

and your

master,

and he

will come

back one

day,

and we

will stand

before him

on that

day,

and he

will pass

judgment

on all

of our

lives,

that will

lead us

to an

eternal

destination.

salvation.

This is

life or

death,

this is

heaven or

hell,

this is

eternal

glory or

eternal

grief,

and he

tells us

this and

he warns

us so

that we

would be

ready,

that we

would resolve

today to

be ready,

that we

would be

serving

responsibly.

We come

to the

end of

verse 47

and 48,

and we're

hearing all

through the

parables,

these themes

of responsibility

towards the

master,

the reality

of his

return,

and the

realities of

reward.

Jesus reminds

us that this

final judgment

will be

fitting,

but I want

us to

recognize

the words

of Jesus

at the end

there,

from everyone

who has been

given much,

much will be

demanded,

and from the

one who's been

entrusted with

much,

much more

will be asked.

The more

privilege we

have,

the greater

our

responsibility.

And I want

us to

recognize that

because of

this truth,

that in

our world

today,

there are

billions,

literally

billions of

people who

as yet have

not heard

about Jesus.

There are

over 7,000

language groups

in our world

today that

don't have

any part

of the

Bible in

their

language.

In our

world today,

there are

around about

700 million

believers in

the Lord Jesus

who will

experience

persecution

for their

faith,

and they

don't have

the freedom

to have a

Bible or

to worship

in a church

like we do.

And I want

to say that

because compared

to so many,

we have been

given wonderful

gospel

privileges.

Those gospel

privileges need

to be enjoyed

and also we

need to live

responsibly in

light of all

that we have

been given

that we

will be

fine serving

Jesus and

his kingdom.

So Jesus

tells his

servants,

his disciples

on his way

to the

cross,

be ready.

Today is a

good stock

taking moment.

Am I

ready?

Am I

living today

for Jesus

as my

master?

Am I

engaged in

serving others

in his

name?

Is the

honor of

King

Jesus

my main

concern,

my main

motivation

in life?

And if

it's not,

let this

be a day

where we

can repent,

where we

can seek

renewal,

so that we

might live

responsibly

today in

light of

Christ's

certain

return.

Just like

those jobs

that require

constant

readiness,

the soldier

on tour,

the fireman,

the servant,

to be a

follower of

Jesus requires

us to be

ready to

serve him

in our

lives as

we eagerly

wait for

his return,

living today

in light of

eternity and

of our

returnal

reward.

Let's pray

together.

Lord God,

we thank you

that when

Jesus came,

he didn't

leave us in

any doubt as

to how the

history of

the world

will play out

and how it

will draw

to a

close.

That gives

us peace

when we

can be

so anxious

about wars

and fighting

or perhaps

the climate

crisis.

Lord, we

thank you

that this

world is in

your hands,

that you

will bring

it to an

end when

Jesus returns.

And Lord,

we recognize

again that

Jesus was

so clear that

all of us

will stand

before his

judgment seat

and that we

must be

ready.

And so we

pray that you

would, by

your spirit,

allow us to

examine ourselves,

that you would

allow us to

reflect on how

good a master

Jesus is,

that you would

allow us to

reflect on the

call to live

as servants,

so that each

one of us

would be found

faithful,

and to be

watchful,

to be found

trusting in

Jesus, our

Lord, our

King, our

Saviour, our

Master, our

Friend.

We pray in his

precious name.

Amen.

And now we'll

close with a

hymn, we will

feast in the

house of Zion,

a great hymn

reminding us of

that eternal

promise.

So let's again

stand as we

close our time

together.

we will feast

in the house of

Zion, we will

sing with our

hearts restored.

He has done

great things,

we will say

together, we

will feast and

weep no more.

be burned by the

fire.

He is the Lord,

our God, we are not

consumed by the

flood.

upheld, we will

upheld, we will

be

gathered up, we will

feast in the house

of Zion, we will

sing with our hearts

restored.

Lord, we will feast and

we will feast and weep no more.

Christ as new

Lord, we will

ausp tener

on the

earthstage and

dile

for eis

afraid for the promised morning oh how long God of Jacob be my strength we will feast in house of

Zion we will sing with our hearts restored he has done great things we will say together we will feast and weep no more

every vow we've broken and betrayed you are the faithful one from the garden to the grave

bind us together bring shalom we will feast in the house of Zion we will sing with our hearts restored

he has done great things we will say together we will feast and weep no more

we use these words from the end of second Thessalonians chapter 2 as we close may our Lord

2 Thessalonians 2 · chapter mention

Jesus Christ himself and God our Father who loved us and by his grace gave us eternal encouragement

and good hope encourage your hearts and strengthen you in every good deed and word amen