Return of the King - Luke 12:35-48

So we're going to read from Luke chapter 12 from verse 35.

Luke 12 · chapter mention

Luke chapter 12 verse 35.

Luke 12:35

It's page 1045 in the Church Bible.

Be dressed, ready for service, and keep your lamps burning, like men 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.

It'll be good for those servants whose master finds them watching when he comes.

I tell you the truth, he will dress himself to serve, will have 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 second

or third watch of the night.

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.

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'll be good for that servant whom the master finds doing so when he returns.

I tell you the truth, 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

he then begins to beat the men servants and maid servants and to eat and drink and get drunk.

Well, the master of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect him, and an hour

he is not aware of.

He will cut him to pieces and assign him a place with the unbelievers.

That servant who knows his master's will and does not get ready or does not do what his

master wants will be beaten with many blows.

But to 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.

Thank you, Ralph.

Well, this morning we're starting, if you look in your summer term program, a short series

on four simple parables from Luke's Gospel.

And all of them have a particular theme on the subject of the return of Jesus.

So, Jesus coming again.

So, how should that shape and change us in our lives today?

And the first one that we're looking at this morning is the return of the King.

So, let's ask God's help as we pray together.

Let's pray.

Let's pray.

Father, we thank you for your word.

We thank you for these parables in Luke's Gospel.

Stories that Jesus told to explain to us something of his return.

We pray that as we read and as we listen this morning, that these stories would shape and change us.

And show us how we are to live in the light of your return.

We pray, Father, that we would be filled with hope.

And that our lives will be put in order.

So that we are living as faithful servants waiting for you.

Father, please help us, then we ask in Jesus' name.

Amen.

Well, I'm not going to start just yet, actually.

I've got some sheets here.

I've got some sheets here.

Thank you.

Thank you.

So, you'll see in the summer term program, anyway, we'll be looking at four parables in Luke,

in June and then come July and August

we will have different speakers from some of our partnering churches

so you can be praying for them as well as they prepare and get ready for that.

Then on Wednesdays we'll be following up on our talks

for the month of June so the parable we look at this morning

we'll be looking at that next Wednesday evening in our home groups.

Thanks very much Maria for your help there.

So let's look at Luke chapter 12, 35 to 48.

Luke 12 · chapter mention

The first heading we have there is what time, any time?

Well whenever my parents had to go out for an evening

or if they were going away for a few days

my only question was this

what time will you be back?

Because as a teenager I quickly learned the benefits

of knowing the exact time the parents would get home

it's valuable information.

But my parents were also quick learners

they soon learned that the best answer

to give their scheming teenage son was this

expect us any time.

In other words you know we will be back

so make sure when we do get back

the house is in order.

In a sense that's exactly what Jesus is saying to us here

in verse 40.

Look at verse 40 with me.

You also must be ready

because the son of man, that's Jesus

will come at an hour

when you do not expect him.

The promise of Jesus' return

is not to try and catch us out

but to make sure we are ready.

It's a gracious advance notice

for us to get things in order.

He is saying to us

you know I will return

so make sure when I do return

you are ready.

Look how Jesus describes

his return

in verse 40 again.

Let's read verse 40.

You must be ready

because the son of man

will come.

The son of man

is a title.

It was Jesus' favourite way

of referring to himself.

And the son of man

it doesn't just describe

a person

but it actually describes

a great event

that is going to take place

which the son of man

is at the very centre of.

So to get a bit of background

to this we need to go back

to Daniel chapter 7

Daniel 7:13

verse 13 and 14.

So keep your finger in Luke

and have a flick back

to Daniel chapter 7

Daniel 7:13

verse 13 and 14.

The song that we didn't know earlier

is actually based on these verses

that's why we sang it.

So Daniel chapter 7

Daniel 7:13

verse 13 and 14.

Here Daniel has a vision

of what will take place

at the very end

and the person

at the very centre

of that vision

is the son of man

and it tells us

what it will be like.

So Daniel chapter 7

Daniel 7:13

verse 13.

He says,

In my vision at night

I looked

and there before me

was one like

a son of man

coming with the clouds

of heaven.

He approached

the ancient of days

that is God

and was led

into his presence.

He was given

authority,

glory

and sovereign power.

All peoples,

nations

and men and women

of every language

worshipped him.

His dominion

is an everlasting dominion

that will not pass away

and his kingdom

is one that will

never

be destroyed.

You see in those

few verses

it describes

the coming

of God's king

with absolute power

and supreme authority.

So back in Luke

when Jesus says

I am the son of man

Jesus is saying

I am

that king.

I will return

and when I return

I will restore order,

establish peace

and execute

justice.

justice.

I am this

glorious king

who is to come.

I'm sure we've been

all aware

of the investigations

into FIFA

over these last

couple of weeks.

No one it seems

is off limits.

All the facts

are being made known.

Every bribe,

every corrupt payment

is being exposed.

Well when the son of man

comes in all his glory

no one

and nothing

will be off limits.

He will expose

every wrong.

He will correct

every injustice

and he will establish

his eternal kingdom.

Now Jesus is saying

we must be ready

for the return

of the king

because when this king

comes

it will come

as a surprise.

Look how Jesus

describes it

in verse 35

of Luke 12.

he says it will be

a surprise.

He says be dressed

ready for service.

Keep your lamps

burning.

Like men

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.

Jesus can come

at any time.

like the master

who went to the wedding

he could return

surprisingly early

or he could return

surprisingly late.

We might not know

when

would it be

tomorrow

next week

will it be

in five years

we do not know

when

but we do know

he will.

and the good

news is

if we are

ready for

the king's

return

there is a

wonderful banquet

that awaits us

verse 37

it will be

good for

those servants

whose master

finds them

watching when

he comes.

I tell you

the truth

he will

dress himself

to serve

and will

have them

recline

at the table

and will

come

and wait

on them.

What a wonderful

picture

that is.

Those who are

ready

for the return

of king

Jesus

will be

welcomed

into his

eternal kingdom.

They will be

seated

at the

master's

table

and served

by the

master

himself

dining

with the

king

of kings

at his

eternal

banquet

verse 38

it will be

good

for those

servants

whose

master

finds them

ready

even if

he comes

in the

second

or third

watch

of the

night.

Great

blessing

awaits

those who

are ready

for the

return

of the

king.

So here

is the

big question

are we

ready?

Are we

ready for

the return?

verse 39

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.

When we

lived in

Dublin

don't worry

Kim I hope

it doesn't

happen to

you

when we

lived in

Dublin

our home

was broken

into twice

and each

time it

was a

complete

surprise.

Nobody

told us

when the

thieves were

going to

come.

We didn't

get a

letter in

the door

saying we're

going to

be around

Sunday

night

7 o'clock.

But that's

the point

isn't it?

Thieves

don't have a

habit of

telling you

when they

are going

to come.

You just

have to be

ready and

make sure

your house

is secure.

In the

same way

Jesus has

not told us

when he

will return

but that

he will

return.

And the

promise of

his return

is not to

try and

catch us

out but

to make

sure we

are ready.

It is a

gracious

advance

notice for

us to

get things

in order

before it

is too

late.

So the

return of

Jesus is

going to

come.

Now to

help us

think through

what it

means to

be ready

for Jesus

he introduces

us to

two people.

In the

second part

of this

parable we

have the

faithful servant

and an

unfaithful

servant.

So look at

verse 41.

Peter asked

Lord are you

telling this

parable to

us or to

everyone?

Who is it

that needs

to be

ready?

Who is

this message

for?

Well while

it may apply

to everyone

and I think

there is an

application to

everyone,

it is

especially

directed at

those who

claim to

be disciples

of the

Lord Jesus.

So let's

look at these

two characters

in turn.

First we

have the

faithful servant

and the

question we

need to be

asking ourselves

is am I

like this

faithful servant?

Verse 42.

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?

Now the

question is

quite simple.

when the

master returns

will he

find the

servant

manager

behaving in

a way that

is fitting

to his

position?

You see

the head

servant

has the

special task

of making

sure that

all the rest

of the

servants are

ready for

the return

of the

master.

The servant

manager is

responsible for

the other

servants.

it's his

job to

keep them

awake at

the various

watches of

the night.

It's his

job to

make sure

they're well

fed and

that they're

strong and

they're keeping

an eye out.

If the

servant

manager is

not ready

then how

are the

others going

to be

ready?

So the

application is

this.

The faithful

servant that

we have in

verse 42

is the

person who

is taking

discipleship

seriously.

They

understand what

their

responsibility is

as a

disciple,

in particular

to other

disciples,

to the

rest of

the church

family.

They know

their position

and their

calling is

to take

care of

other

believers.

elders.

They know

that they

have a

responsibility

to fellow

disciples to

make sure

that they

are built

up and

encouraged in

the faith.

Now God

in his

goodness has

provided his

church with

elders and

teachers and

leaders and

God puts

them in

place to

take care

of the

house.

But it

isn't just

the responsibility

of elders and

leaders.

it is the

responsibility of

everyone.

As

disciples,

our calling

is to get

alongside one

another and

make sure that

we are ready

for the return

of Jesus.

So let's

try and think

that through in

practice what it

might look like.

We just had

tea and coffee

together.

The person that

you were talking

to.

Do you

know how

they are in

their relationship

with God?

Do you know

how they're

getting on in

their faith?

Are you

aware that

there are

some people

within the

family of the

church who

are struggling

and perhaps

drifting?

people?

Do you

see, God

has placed

us as

people into

a church

family to

watch out

for one

another.

It's our

responsibility to

take care of

the house,

to keep an

eye out for

one another,

to make sure

that we're

living faithfully

as disciples.

disciples.

This is what

a faithful

servant is

all about.

Verse 43,

it will be

good for

that servant

whom the

master finds

doing so

when he

returns.

So when

Jesus returns

and he finds

us as

disciples taking

care of each

other and

looking after

each other,

that's going

to be good

for us.

Verse 43,

or verse

44, he says,

I tell you the

truth, he will

put him in

charge of all

his possessions.

The disciple

who takes

his responsibility

seriously

will be

richly blessed

when the

master returns.

He will

enjoy life

in the

king's

kingdom

forever.

He will

have a

seat at

the table

of the

king's

banquet

and he

will live

forever

with him.

Are we

faithful

servants?

But then

there's the

other one,

the unfaithful

servant,

verse 45.

But suppose

the servant

says to

himself,

oh, my

master is

taking a

long time

in coming.

And he

then begins

to beat

the men

servants

and the

maid

servants

and to

eat and

drink and

get drunk.

Now, the

contrast

couldn't be

more stark,

could it?

We had the

faithful servant

who's making

sure that all

the servants

are well

looked after,

that they're

prepared and

they're ready.

The unfaithful

servant is,

well, he's just

carrying on and

doing whatever

he likes.

The unfaithful

servant is the

one who does

not take

discipleship

seriously.

They're

neglecting their

responsibility.

responsibility.

They ignore

their position

and calling.

Rather than

invest time

in other

people,

they're actually

investing time

in themselves.

In practice,

an unfaithful

servant

is a

consumer.

In other

words, they

see the

church community

as a place

where you

go to

get,

rather than

a family

to join

in to

serve.

Oh, they're

very happy to

come along and

use the

services that

are provided.

But the

care of

others and

the teaching

of others,

well, that's

not my

responsibility.

Well, if

that's you,

yes, it

is your

responsibility.

God has

placed us

as a

family

together

to build

each other

up, to

care for

one another.

That was

the role of

the servant

in the

house.

He was

to manage

the house

and to

look after

people.

So how

are we

practically

going to

do that?

Well, let

me make

two suggestions.

first, let

me speak

here to

those who

are parents

of younger

children and

even if you

have older

children or

teens.

Make it

your priority

to disciple

your little

children.

God has

given you

the gift of

children and

placed them

into your

care so

that you

may manage

them, so

that you

might get

them

ready for

the return

of the

Lord Jesus.

That is

your primary

responsibility.

So parents,

make it

your objective

to be a

faithful servant

and raise

your children

as disciples

who are

ready.

So that's

the first

thing.

Let me say

this to us

all as a

church family.

Let us

make meeting

together as

a church

family a

priority.

We say it

so often

and here's

the reason

why.

Because we

need one

another to

be responsible

to each

other, to

build each

other up.

Plan your

week, plan

your timetable,

plan your

terms.

We meet on a

Sunday morning,

we meet

together on

Wednesday

evenings.

If we

don't plan

for these

things, then

we'll be doing

something else.

Plan to be

there, not to

be seen, not

to earn brownie

points, not to

get God's

attention, but

so that you

can meet with

others and pray

with them and

listen to them

and encourage

them as we

talk through

God's word

together.

together.

Take time

with one

another to

build each

other up in

the faith.

You don't

need to be a

trained teacher.

You don't

need permission.

We just do

it.

If we are

disciples, the

people in the

church family are

your and my

responsibility.

It's not just

the role of

elders and

leaders.

It is the

calling of

every disciple

and to

ignore our

responsibility

is very

serious.

Very serious.

Look at

verse 46.

The master

of that

servant, so

the master

of this

unfaithful

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.

It's harsh

language, isn't

it?

But it's

intentional and

it's intentional

to wake us

up, to

show us that

this is

serious.

To ignore our

responsibility, to

reject our

calling as a

disciple means

we will be

treated as

an unbeliever.

Instead of

blessing, there

will be

judgment.

Verse 47.

That servant

who knows his

master's will

and does not

get ready or

does not do

what his

master wants

will be beaten

with many

blows.

Rather than

dining with the

king in his

eternal kingdom,

kingdom, they

will be shut

out and

separated from

the king

forever.

Because a

true disciple,

the faithful

servant, will

be watching out

for those who

need built up

in the faith.

Now maybe

this comes as

a shock to

you.

That's the

way in which

Jesus' parables

work.

They come with

a shock.

Maybe you

didn't realise

how serious

a disciple

was.

I didn't

know that I

had to do

this.

I didn't

know that

people within

the church

family was

my responsibility.

Well maybe

that's you.

And what

does Jesus

say to us?

Well look at

verse 48.

But the

one who

does not

know and

does things

deserving

punishment will

be beaten

with few

blows.

You see

for those who

have not

understood their

responsibility,

rather than

being judged,

they will be

disciplined.

And Jesus

is using this

parable and

he's teaching

us through it.

He's saying,

will you wake

up to your

responsibility?

I can

discipline you

now or you

can ignore

that and

face judgment

later.

God in

his grace

warns us

of the

return of

Jesus so

that we can

put things

in order

today.

The promise

of his

return is

not to try

and catch

us out,

but to make

sure we are

ready.

So what

is our

response

to this?

Well,

there are

two things.

First,

there is an

awesome

privilege.

Look at

verse 48,

the last

part of

verse 48.

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.

You see,

if we're

disciples this

morning,

I want us

to see that

we have been

given so

much.

God has

given to

us his own

son,

Jesus Christ,

the faithful

servant,

the one who

came not to

be served,

but to

serve,

and to

give his

life as

a ransom.

The one

who came

and died

for us,

the one

who came

and took

the punishment

that I

deserve,

and through

our faith

in Jesus,

we can

now be

forgiven.

All of

our sin

and shame

and guilt

has been

dealt with

once and

for all.

We are

now welcomed

into God's

family,

treated and

treasured

as his

own child.

And because

of what God

has given

to me

through

Jesus,

I am

no longer

an outsider

and left

outside.

I am a

servant of

the King

with the

promise of

a place

at his

banquet

in his

eternal

kingdom

forever

and forever.

If we

are disciples,

we have

received

so much

grace

and mercy

in abundance

day after

day after

day.

We are

truly privileged

people if

we are

disciples of

Jesus.

But with

this awesome

privilege

comes great

responsibility.

Do you see

what it says

at the end

of verse

48?

Everyone who

has been

given much,

much will

be

demanded.

from the

one who

has been

entrusted

with much,

much more

will be

asked.

You see,

when we

experience his

forgiveness

and welcome,

when we see

that we've been

brought into

the King's

palace,

welcomed into

his family,

being able to

serve the

eternal King,

when we see

the grace and

the mercy that

has flowed to

us, it

motivates us

to serve

one another.

It fills us

with a desire

to reach out

and to build

people up with

the amazing

grace of God.

Discipleship

is serious.

It is an

awesome

privilege,

but with it

comes great

responsibility.

Look at

verse 40

again.

You,

me,

disciples,

even if we

are not yet

a disciple,

you also

must be

ready,

because the

Son of Man

will come at

an hour

when you do

not expect

him.

Let's pray.

our Father

God, we

come to

you as

one who

is gracious

and

merciful,

and we

ask that

you would

now forgive

us for

the times

we have

neglected

our

responsibility,

and we

have acted

more like

an unfaithful

servant

rather than

a faithful

servant.

Help us

to see

afresh the

amazing grace

and mercy

that we

have received.

Give us

a vision

of that

eternal

banquet,

seated at

the King's

table,

served by

the King

of Kings

himself

for all

eternity.

May you

motivate us

afresh,

fill us

with a

desire to

care

for the

church

family,

to build

each other

up in the

faith,

so that

we are

ready

for the

coming

name of

Jesus.

Father,

we thank

you for

our

church

family.

We

thank you

for the

support of

one another.

Thank you

that you

have given

to us

each other

wonderful

gifts from

you to

serve one

another and

to help

each other.

and we

pray that

we would

do so

more and

more and

that the

return of

the King

would motivate

us afresh.

We pray

this in

Jesus' name.

Amen.

We're going

to sing

together

a song

which talks

about

Jesus who

is the

faithful

servant,

the one

who came

to serve

us,

and in

response

that we

would bring

our lives

and serve

one another.

So let's

stand together

as we sing

this.

Amen.