Parables of Grace: The Parable of the Watchers | Guest Speaker: Seth Millican

So as we continue through Christ's parables this morning, Jesus is continuing what what we see in the gospel is kind of this constant interaction he has with the crowds of people.

It seems like they follow him everywhere.

And when he's doing that, it seems like he's doing one of one of three things constantly.

He's either healing, he's teaching, or he's arguing with the scribes and the Pharisees.

Like he's always doing one of these three things.

So last week in chapter 11, uh we talked about uh he spent some time in prayer.

He moves into chapter 12 and he's talking to the people.

He talks about the scribes and the Pharisees.

He goes through this conversation about wealth and putting things in their proper place, uh priorities with a rich young ruler.

He talks about anxiety, and then in our passage today, he moves into this conversation about death or the end of life or the doctrine of last things.

So the flow is kind of like, hey, don't be anxious now, let's talk about death.

So in today's passage, he's talking to the people of Israel.

He's been through this whole uh line of conversation about different subjects, and he he kind of ends with this message that it's like, be ready.

Just be ready because death and the return of Christ uh should incentivize us to be watchful, like these servants that are waiting on their master to return from a wedding feast.

And for the wise servants, the master will serve them.

He's gonna spend time with them, he's gonna rejoice with them.

It's gonna be a great day for those watchful servants.

But there's an alternative.

There's also the alternative where the unwise servants they get distracted, they take their eyes off the ball, they get caught up with the cares of this world, and the master's return uh catches them off guard.

Now, death is a tough subject.

Uh in 1993, though, somebody launched a website that kind of formalized a series of awards that have been around since the early 80s, and we now know them as the Darwin Awards.

So the Darwin Awards commemorate individuals who protect our gene pool by making the ultimate sacrifice of their own lives.

Darwin Award winners eliminate themselves in an extraordinarily idiotic manner, thereby improving our species' chances of long-term survival.

Like, for example, Lim Ba, a magician who died in October of last year after accidentally steaming himself to death in a giant wok while trying to cleanse his body and soul.

Or maybe more uh more of a southern Georgia flavor, Cody Horn died getting towed in a golf cart by a garden hose behind a vehicle going down the interstate.

So normally the word comes posthumously, but they also do honorable mentions, like for the guy who swallowed uh nitroglycerin pills and tried to detonate them by running into a wall.

So, in some respects, I think it's it we we we get this perverse satisfaction by laughing at these kind of you know, here, hold my beer kind of stunts.

But deep deep down, I wonder if at times we do that.

I think we do that because our tendency to laugh at these situations is easy because we it's it's not just about man's inherent stupidity.

It's we we don't like death.

We hate death, we're we have this aversion to death, and our tendency to cement these events into permanent memorial may actually be an attempt to distract from the very real pain of death, um, to cover up our struggle with death, the the challenge that we we have when we deal with death, or to avoid having to deal with the meaning of death because end-of-life issues are so real and raw.

Now it's estimated that over 609,000 people will die in the U.S.

from cancer just this year.

In 2016, 37,461 people died in automobile accidents.

Since 1775, over 666,000 soldiers have died in combat serving our country.

More than 64,000 people died of drug overdoses in 2016.

And in 2014, 2.26 million people died in the United States, the number one cause of which was uh heart disease.

But death is not just a statistic, it's a deeply personal event.

I think if we ask for a show of hands, probably better than half the room, half the folks here this morning have experienced the death of a loved one or somebody that they were close to just in the last 12 months.

And it's precisely that deeply painful and personal, kind of inescapable flavor of death that Jesus is talking to in today's passage.

Look again at the end of verse 40.

You must also be ready, for the Son of Man comes at an hour you don't expect.

The message here is the Son of Man is coming.

This entire parable of the Watchers revolves around one thing, and it's the temporary nature of this life and the absolute certainty that one day it will end.

This passage is God's reminder to us that death is a reality of this life, but that viewed through a gospel lens, death can actually be fruitful.

Because let's be honest, we all hate death, and we should hate death.

In fact, uh Russell Moore, in a book called A Theology for the Church, argues the predominant cultural narrative around death is some it's sort of a Darwinian naturalism, along with most non-Christian philosophies that assumes that death is the natural ending point to life.

Christian eschatology, on the other hand, insists differently, seeing death as an alien invader of the cosmic order, a curse from the Edenic fall, and a strategy of the enemy spirit to crush God's image-bearing humanity.

He continues, we actually should hate death.

A Christian's eschatology does not consist in his prophecy charts, but in his funeral service.

And nowhere, perhaps, is a church more theological than at a funeral.

Now, eschatology is just the part of theology that deals with the set of doctrines that revolves around death and judgment, the final destiny of the soul and the final destiny of mankind.

So more continuous, perhaps clearer than any other set of doctrines.

Our eschatology reminds us that the Bible is one coherent story with one author and one theme.

The storyline begins in an innocent garden and it ends in a glorious garden city, and all in between, there's this bloody and violent war between Jesus and the serpent.

All along the way, Scripture speaks of God's purpose to build a kingdom for his anointed, incarnate Son as the firstborn among many brothers.

Eschatology, then, is inherently messianic in both the Old and in the New Testaments.

So today, as we confront the reality of death, there are several reasons that even the Church of Jesus Christ should hate death.

First, we hate death because it's the ultimate reminder of just how much sin has corrupted our physical world.

In verse 38, the passage is very clear.

If he comes in the second watch or in the third and finds them awake, blessed are those servants.

We see the servants are in a place that the master is not.

We are separated from God.

We no longer live in the Garden of Eden where we walk with God daily, daily, on a daily basis face to face.

So let's face it, Russell Moore continues, he argues again, the more we're conformed to the image of Christ, the more we're frustrated to live in a world of funeral homes and electric chairs and abortion clinics.

We see rust on our cars, and we see wrinkles in our faces, and mold on our bread, and impatience with our children, and temper and traffic, and we're constantly reminded that this world is just not as God created it to be.

The earth is broken.

So we hate death because it reminds us about sin's corruption, but we also hate it because it's the ultimate reminder that this physical world and our place in it is temporary.

It is not forever.

Eventually it will end, whether it's through death or through the second coming of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Let's look back again at verse 40.

You must also be ready, for the Son of Man comes in an hour you don't expect.

There are no exceptions here, unfortunately.

Even the greatest, most dedicated Christian believers will eventually get old and sick and eventually die.

The old saying about death and taxes is pretty true.

It's inevitable and it's final.

C.S.

Lewis said that 100% of us die and the percentage cannot be increased.

So we hate death because it reminds us of sin's corruption.

We hate it because of the temporary nature of this life.

But despite an anti-aging treatment market worth over$140 billion in 2015, there's nothing we could do about it.

Maybe this is in our humanity, maybe this is the part we hate the most.

We hate death because it's the ultimate reminder that we're not in control.

Verse 40 is very clear.

We don't know the hour when Christ will return or when our lives will end.

We talk a lot about grace here at Redeemer in terms of our performance, and we talk a lot about how there's nothing we can do to merit what is freely given to us in the cross.

Death is kind of the same way.

There's nothing we can do to earn our way out of death or postpone death or make it come at a different time, and in our flesh, we don't like that.

We don't like not being in control.

Finally, we hate death because it's ultimately incomplete.

Death leaves us hanging.

We don't like that.

Let's look back at verse 37 and verse 40 45, 46.

It says, Blessed are those servants who the master finds await when he comes.

Truly I say to you, he will dress himself for service.

He'll have them recline at table, and he'll come and serve them.

And then in 46, the master of the servant will come on a day when he does not expect him, and in an hour he doesn't know.

So for both the wise and the foolish servants, the arrival of the master is not the end of the story.

Right?

There's a part two for both of them.

Death is the first part of a two-step process that is ultimately incomplete until we see the fulfillment of God's kingdom in Christ and the redemption of this world.

Returning to a theology for the church, Russell Moore again argues that the reign of death is not simply the expiration of individuals.

It's not just our bodies going away.

It's a deceptive and destructive kingdom of Satan that leads to a final confrontation, a final judgment, and praise God, a final defeat.

The knowledge that death isn't really about our heart stopping or our bones decaying or our funerals is actually a messianic symbol of what has to happen before that final redemption can take place.

And that knowledge of death's deeper symbolism holds the answer to the fruitfulness in death and ultimately a deep and lasting meaning for those found in Christ Jesus.

So having looked at the reality of why we hate death, let's now turn and look at the reassurance that we can find in the fruitfulness of death.

So, for death to be fruitful, we have to first acknowledge that outside the grace of the cross, and this is the tough part, outside the grace of the cross, there's no comfortable explanation for death.

Many of us have experienced that tough, that awkward conversation with a nonbeliever or somebody who's experienced the death of a non-believer, and our heart aches.

We just want to comfort them.

We want to make them feel better.

We have this very humanly driven, very culturally driven inclination to just make the pain go away.

But John Owen said, we cannot enjoy peace in this world unless we're ready to yield to the will of God in respect to death.

Our times are in his hand and at his sovereign disposal, and we must accept that as best.

So winsome honesty is critical as we deal with death, not just for ourselves, but as we seek to minister to others as well.

Death is a powerful tool that points people to the cross as we explain the reality of Christ's great struggle to redeem our souls and defeat the enemy for eternity.

Ultimately, we really need to change how we think about death.

Not something to be feared or run from or surrendered to, but something that we should hate.

We should see it as a battle, something we should fight, not surrender to.

And we do that simply by preaching the gospel of Jesus Christ at all times.

And we talk a lot about that here.

Preach the gospel at all times, but especially, particularly in the case of death, when we learn of a family member that's passed away or when we stand at the casket of an unsaved friend, we must preach the saving gospel of Jesus Christ.

Now the follow-on to that is positive.

In fact, it's beautiful.

We can find fruitfulness in death, knowing that even though outside the cross there's no comfortable explanation for death, in the cross we find every comfortable explanation for death.

And that's what we preach here every Sunday.

The glory of that gospel is grace.

That even though we're more broken by sin than we could ever imagine, we're more loved by God than we could ever dare to dream.

We don't have to surrender to death, we don't have to outperform death, we don't have to meet a certain standard, so we maybe don't have to fear death.

When we're saved by Christ's death on the cross, we can rest in that finished work, knowing that even in death, he is victorious.

And because he's victorious, we can honestly embrace death.

Look at verse 38.

If he comes in the second watch or in the third and finds them awake, blessed are those servants.

The wise servants are watching and they're waiting patiently, expectantly.

They're ready for their master to return.

In 1 Thessalonians chapter 4, Paul talks about the eschatology of the church, and then he instructs us, therefore, encourage one another with these words.

1 Thessalonians 4 · chapter mention

Going back to a theology for the church, Russell Moore argues that there's one man that doesn't have to bow to death as a tax collector.

That's the perfect man, Jesus Christ, who lived a perfect, sinless life, and he's not accountable to death.

Christ's resurrection was the first and the final wave of counterattack against the satanic wages of sin and has forever given us the opportunity to also participate with him in defying death's tyranny.

In becoming worldly saints, Michael Whitmer argues that God is so committed to this world that he will one day make it his permanent residence.

The whole world will be his temple, with his glory streaming from the new Jerusalem, and the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord as the waters cover the sea.

Habakkuk chapter 2 and Isaiah chapter 11.

Habakkuk 2 · chapter mention Isaiah 11 · chapter mention

So as we greet death with the gospel of Jesus, we can actually embrace it because it reminds us of who is in control and that because Jesus became sin for us, we don't have to fear death or outperform death or try to postpone death.

In fact, if you look at the passage today, it's constantly repeated the master, the master, the master, the master.

And what we see is this entire parable is being driven by the master.

So as we acknowledge that God's sovereignty over death comes through Christ's resurrection, we can actually embrace death because we know that Christ lasts.

Oh death, where is your stain?

Our master has defeated death, and he drives the ark of our story.

As we look to verses 36 and 45, we see fruitfulness in death because it reminds us to be cautious about our relationship with this world and the things that are in it.

It says, Keep your lamps burning and be like men who are waiting for their master to come home from the wedding feast, so that they may open the door to him at once when he comes and knocks.

But if that servant says to himself, My master is delayed in coming and begins to beat the male and the female servants, and eat and drink and get drunk.

Rest, I think, touched on this last week when earlier in the chapter in verses 16 to 21.

He told them a parable saying, The land of a rich man produced plentifully, and he thought to himself, What shall I do?

For I have nowhere to store my crops.

So he said, I'll do this.

I'm going to tear down my barns, I'm going to build bigger ones, and then I'm going to store all of my grain and all of my stuff.

And I'll say to my soul, Soul, you have ample goods stored up for many years, so relax, eat, drink, and be merry.

But God said to him, Fool this night, your soul will be required of you.

So Christ reminds us that wise servants are patient and watchful, while the unwise servants are doing anything but watching and waiting.

There's clearly a right way and a wrong way to prepare for eternity.

If we turn our attention too much to the idolatry of things or people or success or work or wisdom or even character or spiritual disciplines, we won't be ready for Christ's return because we're not resting in his finished work on the cross.

So we hate death.

We hate death because it reveals the extent of sin's corruption in this world.

We hate death because it reminds us that our situation in this life is temporary.

We hate death because it reminds us that we're not in control, and we hate death because ultimately it's an incomplete step.

It leaves us hanging.

But we also realize that we can find fruitfulness in death if first we acknowledge that there's no comfortable explanation for death outside the cross, but that in the cross there is every comfortable explanation for death.

We can find fruitfulness in death when we embrace death through rest in the finished work of the gospel because we know who is in control and we know that ultimately he will be victorious.

Finally, we can embrace death because it's a bridge into eternity, and a biblical eschatology reminds us that eternity in God's kingdom is something lovely beyond our human imagination.

In fact, placed in the context of God's overarching story, death is hopeful.

I think it's uh maybe a little ironic that our culture has developed this antithesis for graveyards.

We don't like cemeteries, we don't like graveyards, and we think about Halloween and horror movies and all these different kinds of things.

Uh, maybe it shouldn't surprise us uh when we live in a culture where companies are making billions of dollars on plastic surgery and anti-aging cream and dozens of all these other life-giving kind of treatments.

We're superstitious, we're distrustful, we're negative towards these very visible reminders that sin corrupts that we're not in control, and that this mortal life will inevitably end.

So imagine with me walking through a graveyard in one morning, it's very quiet, it's perfectly still and peaceful.

You can just barely see these uh visible monuments of people lives gone past, and people who are once young and vibrant and talented and productive and skilled and all these other kinds of things.

Even the the gravestones themselves are evidence of the corruption of this world.

They're faded, they're chipped, they're dirty, they're worn, names and dates and reputations and accomplishments seemingly gone to the past.

Except what maybe if they're not?

What if because there's an empty hole in the ground somewhere in the Middle East?

One day that silence and still enough will be broken.

One day that eastern sky will explode in glory, and the heavens will ring.

With a joyful, thunderous shout of a resurrected Galilean conqueror, as he returns and says to us, Right, beloved, we are home.

That wasn't supposed to happen.

In practice, it wasn't supposed to happen.

So let's close with verse 37.

Blessed are those whom the Master comes and finds ready.

This next part's the kicker as Jesus gives us just a glimpse of what eternity with him will be like.

Truly I say to you, he will dress himself for service and have them recline at table, and he will come and serve them.

Let's read another passage with a similar message.

Revelation chapter 19.

Revelation 19 · chapter mention

The Holy Spirit, through the Apostle John, says, Then I heard what seemed to be the voice of a great multitude, like the roar of many waters, like the sound of mighty peals of thunder, crying out, Hallelujah, for the Lord our God, the Almighty reigns.

Let us rejoice and exalt and give him the glory.

For the marriage supper of the Lamb has come.

The bride has made herself ready, and it was granted to her to clothe herself with fine linen, bright and pure.

For the fine linen is the righteous deeds of the saints.

And the angel said to me, Write this blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb.

And he said to me, These are the true words of God.

So blessed are those whom the Master finds ready, because we join him at the marriage supper of the Lamb.

Eternity with Christ will be glorious beyond our human imagination.

So let's rest in the fact, let's lean into the fact, even that death is painful, that we hate death.

It's okay to hate death, it's okay to not like it.

But let's also rest in the fact that viewed through the lens of the gospel, it is a symbol of the magnificent struggle that has taken place for thousands of years, that has even taken place right now between our conquering Savior and the serpent himself.

Let's find fruitfulness in seeing death through the lens of the gospel and rest in the fact that because of his perfect death, we don't have to fear death.

Because we're accepted and loved by him who conquered death.

Let's pray together.

Heavenly Father, we thank you that in the cross, every tough question, every hard issue, everything that we struggle with is made clear, it's made simple.

Father, give us the grace to rest in your finished work.

Jesus, we thank you for your life, we thank you for your death, we thank you for your resurrection, we thank you that you suffered for us.

And Lord, we thank you that you love us beyond our comprehension.

We thank you for the cross, thank you for grace.

Jesus thank you for praying.