Live Ready

Today on the summit life with Jeannie Green is the body law.

The judgments about judgment is between those who are Christians are some Christians also going to be caught unprepared and swept away in judgment. In other words, does just becoming a Christian, so to speak, make you prepared receives is talking about life. The Bible teaching ministry of pastor, author and religion.

Jeannie here, as always, I'm your host Molly bit of edge as we continue our new teaching series called In-Stat that takes us through the book of Luke pastor JD teaches what it means to live ready for Jesus's return.

Are we awake to the task that Jesus love for his church or are we asleep at the wheel. We commented that Jesus will return soon or to be live without urgency. As followers of Christ, we should live in such a way that only makes sense if you believe that Jesus could be back at any moment, it looked like, well, let's join pastor JD as he shares today's message title writing one of my favorite all-time classic does not come on the Hallmark Channel is HR Charles Dickens a Christmas Carol, the one with George C. Scott not Mickey Mouse. By the way, although that one is good also but the gist of the movie is that Ebenezer Scrooge is a greedy heartless man.

He is a workaholic. He is a miser. He scripts on paying his workers.

He looks down on the knee. He despises Christmas because he thinks of Christmas as a sentimental holiday freeloaders. All that changes. One night when he gets visited by three ghosts, the ghost of Christmas past, present and future, all of them have an impact on him, but it is that it is his vision of the future that transforms them without one with that with that one vision.

He gets a glimpse of the impact of his selfishness. He hears how people regarding him, his grave is abandoned and the only emotional response that comes from his death is a poor couple who are actually elated that he is gone. I know some of you are sitting there like will now just totally spoiled the whole movie for me was in the story has been out for 180 years. Okay gentlemen like oh I was given a home and read it for the first time tonight that is not my fault I take no responsibility for that but the movie illustrates the power of pressing fast forward in your life.

Occasionally, so that you can see things from the vantage point of the future things in the present look different from the perspective of the future. We know there's no way that shouldn't be anything brand-new never seen a really suspenseful movie for the second time your experience watching the movie the second time is so much different than the first because you know what's going to happen or how many of you saw that the really gripping documentary free solo free solo about a man who scales mountains with no robes or harnesses.

I remember being so nervous as he scaled one of those mountains that I actually pause the documentary jumped online to see if you were still alive and then returned to watch the movie in a much calmer state pressing fast forward was helpful and help me reinterpret what I was seeing in the present. See, I share that because of Luke chapter 12 Jesus tells his disciples to press. Fast forward for a moment and think about their present lives.

From the vantage point of being in got your Bibles and hope you do think about opening up, turn them on whatever work in a book and a jump in the loop 12 and pick up where we left off last weekend I write this down as you're doing that it is only by thinking clearly about the future that you will live wisely in the present. It is only by thinking clearly about the future that you will live wisely in the present. That's probably why Jesus talked about the future so much. Did you know you but you did vision of the second coming of Christ is the most talked about doctrine in the Bible. I know that is a big huge statement, but it is true just by the numbers of the 260 chapters we have in our New Testament there are 318 references to the second coming of Christ.

That means that roughly 1 out of every dozen verses is about the second coming of Christ for everyone prophecy we have in the Bible concerning the first coming of Christ. There eight to talk about his second what Henry to celebrate an entire holiday that is devoted to his first coming, but we barely even mentioned the second one. Furthermore, New Testament writers use the second coming.

To motivate obedience to almost every single moral command found in the New Testament. In other words, they understood that you would gain the strength to obey the commands by reflecting on how close eternity is and how immanent Jesus's return is now the church I grew up in. When I was a boy was a little thing I can say it obsessed with the second coming. We talk about it all the time we had RRR rapture boardgames in our rapture bumpers that you have bumper to bumper stickers on our congregation rapture. This car will be unmanned and we made rapture jokes like there was no tomorrow. Okay our annual prophecy conferences were the best attended events of the year and for special Sunday night services we would watch the Billy Graham movies about the tribulation on our Sunday school walls we would have posters of timelines with dates and pictures of dragons that were matched with names of contemporary politicians and you think that I making this up, but I assure you I am not my pastor would often end our services by saying Mary NAFTA Marinette that which is the Hebrew for the Lord is coming, and then he would say, brothers, sisters, it might be today and I believed it. I believe it is a kid. I live in a perpetual state of anxiety about Jesus coming back to me not being ready to if for any reason at all. I called out to my parents and they did not respond.

I would run to the house in a panic, just positive. I would find I would find my mom's close, summer, fall neatly into a power the Florida sheep had ascended to be with Jesus and I been left by now we might've been a little on the on the overboard side but but but I will say this might search had something that I think we lack in hours. I would say might even be lacking in this entire generation of Christians, and that is the earnest expectation of Jesus return.

It could be today. It could be today.

Do you think that.

Have you even thought that yet today listen to how Jesus instructs his disciples in Luke 12 verse 35 is will will begin stay dressed for action by the way, this is the first of four images that Jesus is going to communicate a posture of readiness. If you're taking notes. Write this down. Stay dressed for action. At least that's what it is in English. Unfortunately, our English translations do not translate the Greek literally here because what Jesus says is so much more colorful in Greek, the Greek, reads literally, keep your loins girded in those days men wore robes, which of course were were were comfortable and stylish and breezy, but not at all ideal if you were going to work or run or fight. So on those occasions member put on these belts that would tighten things up down there, so to speak, so that they were ready for action. And Jesus said, let there be a metaphor for how you live do not live in a posture of leisure. You need to live in fight mode. Think of it like this kids how many kids we got in the house were where whatever gives your Adrian I did it sort like that game musical chairs.

Some of you don't remember that because I would be playing post-Soviet because one of many violent games we had to put behind is not a coda started, but the basic gist of musical chairs was this right you get a group of kids River people and you set up some chairs and is always one less chair than there are people in any place of music when the music stopped to get a scramble for a chair and it always ends up in some violent shoving match between a couple of people right. The point is if you win this game. You walk around the stairs in a posture readiness and if you're in a posture of leisure you're going to be left out musical chairs is based on the idea that the music is going to stop that a certain but you will know when it's gonna stop and because of that, you've got to walk around in a posture readiness.

That's basically what Jesus means by keep your loins girded here's a second image continuing on in verse 35 verse 35 keep your lamps burning timberlands burning and be like men were waiting for their master to come home for the wedding feast so that they may open the door to him at once. When he comes and knocks by no delay. Blessed are those servants whom the master finds awake when he comes. Truly I say to you, you will dress himself for service and have them recline at table, and he will come and serve them. If he comes in the second watcher in the third watch, and binds them away.

Blessed are those servants and those days when a rich man went to a wedding.

None of the servants knew exactly how long he would be gone. And that's because in those days, you never knew how long the wedding was held last people I coming to the wedding might be delayed in getting there. So they get there a day or two late.

It would be a bit last one day, Ricky last several days, you would find out when you got there. And of course because they didn't have cell phones. Back then they couldn't. They couldn't text or call the servants. These matters can do that when they were on their way back home so the servicers had to keep the house ready all the time because the master doesn't want to return home to a dark cold house with all the servants sleep in their pajamas you should also he says live like that.

Jesus says, verse two, and keep your lamps burning should remember to keep your lamps burning, verse 35 ready for me to return it in the hours that your second image which leads us to the third image, verse 39 but know this, but if the master of the house had known what hour the thief was coming, he would not left his house to be broken into. You also must be ready for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect number three right like a posh like you're watching out for thief verse 39 but watch out for thief thieves. As a general rule, do not schedule the break-ins you never to get a notification on your phone from some appositional thief is on the way right there goal is to surprise you. So if you know that a thief might be coming sometime in the night, you better stay up all night to be ready for him. Same thing is true with me. Jesus says the point here of course is not that Jesus is some sinister rudeness of billing, just that he might come when you're not expecting him and if you are not ready for him when he returns, then you will be ruined. It will be like having a thief common in destroyer house now verse 41 Peter asked an absolutely fantastic question Lord Peter asked are you ~scribbled us because other people. In other words, Peter wants to know if Jesus is directing this warning only to outsiders. Workers also warning in this for the disciples. That's a very important question because it's one of Jesus's big themes in the book of Luke, listen is the dividing line of judgment, the dividing line of judgment isn't between those who are Christians and those who art or are some Christians also going to be caught unprepared and swept away in judgment. In other words, does just becoming a Christian, so to speak, make you prepared or is Jesus talking about something more. Is this a warning that he would direct toward people who are active in the church and you will notice in the next few verses that Jesus doesn't actually answer Peter. Instead, he tells Peter another story to help him and the other disciples, self diagnose whether they are living ready which is Jesus's answer is St. Peter. This most definitely applies to you because a lot of my so-called followers to be caught unprepared and they're going to face judgment. Because of that again. All this is a consistent theme in the book of Luke, we see that now. Two weeks in a row. This the third week. Not everybody who calls themselves a follower of Jesus actually is followers of Jesus are only those who live ready and a lot of churchgoing people were to find themselves coming up short on judgment day. Just because you call yourself a Christian just because you are active in church didn't actually mean that you are watch this verse 42 verse 42 and the Lord said, the Lord said to then is the faithful and wise manager, whom his master will sever his household, to give them their portion of food the proper time.

Blessed is that servant, whom his master will find so doing when he comes. Truly I say to you, he will set that servant over all his possessions but that servant says to himself, or my master is delayed in coming and begins to beat the male and female servants, and to eat and drink and get drunk master that servant will come on a day when he does not expect him at an ad at an hour that he does not know and he will cut him in pieces and put him with the unfaithful manservant who knew his master's will, but did not get ready, or act according to his will. That servant will receive a severe beating. Here is your fourth image as stewards who do not want to be caught idle like stewards you don't want to caught idle because the servants forgot the boss was coming back.

They started to commandeer their master stuff for personal use. So they started to throw parties for their friends on his dime. They started to drink all of his really good wine.

They started to wear his close maven force the other servants to attend to their needs when it took over his office and put their feet up on his desk so the master comes back, he's going to say what are you doing these things are yours. I didn't give these things to you for your personal use. I entrusted them to you for you to continue on with my purposes and got the word that Jesus uses in verse 42 for the servant is the word auto know most which literally translates as manager restored Reiki a looming store to store. It is not just somebody who owns the assets.

You make us do what is not somebody who owns the assets stored is somebody who manages those assets for somebody else.

When you are stored in the blog you you have control of it, but it's not yours to use for your purpose. It's something that the master gave you for his purposes, so you got for images that all communicate the exact same thing you should live ready.

You should live in anticipation of your masters return very busy about your task very busy about your task and if you don't live that way. Not really my disciple Judas the wording of verses 46 and 47. If, when the master returns you to find you ready you will be cut in pieces, and he will put you with the unfaithful and how much clearer could he get there to get the exact same judgment that the unsaved person gets know this is serious stuff. Again, look things very concerned that you realize that a lot of people think the followers of Jesus actually aren't as demonstrated by the fact that they just don't live ready. So what does this look like. Practically speaking, what you look like a live ready. Practically speaking, maybe three things three characteristics you can glean from the stories about the lives of the ready number one you will be awake to your task, you will be awake to your task. Verse 37 Blessed are those of the master finds awake you can read their active at the task when he comes.

What is that task well. What is the specific task that Jesus is given to us before he left. We caught the great commission right but we are commissioned to do. Matthew 28 1920 going all the world, all the nations and make disciples of all the nations recall that the great commission because it is Jesus's marching orders for his church. This is the task for the church. Right now our mission is to make disciples from every nation by the lake. The Greek word for nations.

They are not verse is not a reference to the 206 nation states that are in existence in the world right now. The word in Greek Pontotoc F. May all the nations, is a reference to the different ethnic and language groups. You can see that in the word ethnic content. All that ethnicities the different cultures and ethnicities.

Sociologists say that there are a total of 17,442 of those F nae in the world in existence today. Our task is not finished until there is a thriving church planting, disciple making disciple movement among every single one of you want to know what God is mostly doing in the world right now, that's it writes what he wants us to be doing. Luke records it this way in Luke 24, 47, he says he says for as it is written, this gospel of repentance must be preached. This forgiveness of sins has to be preached in all nations, beginning at Jerusalem know you wonder why we talk so much of this church about global missions. It's not because we like to travel is because it's what we know the master has given us as our great task to the question you gotta ask yourself is, are you doing anything personally. With that you divvy are you praying are you going we got a thousand of you. By the way going short-term trips here from the cemetery to the last couple of years, have you gone yet to come to the great commission.

It's like John Piper says you've only got three options to go the sin to disobey. That's one of our task is another one I think dispatches points to that is meeting the physical needs of the people around us to notice that in verse 42 in verse 42 Jesus describes the faithful and wise manager is the one who gives others their portion of food at the proper time. I think you can deduce from that of the faithful servant of the one making sure the physical needs of people around them are met is using his resources to make sure that other people get fed the unfaithful servants in this parable are those who verse 45 begin to beat the male and female servants into eat and to drink and get drunk. In other words they use. They commandeer what God gave them to bless others to take care of only themselves and I'm sure though I but while this is mine on people today in our church and any church look at their money is their own know in Florida are in this. I work for its mine. I do whatever I want with it buying so Abigail give God is you little taxes and everything. But if I want to use all the stuff to buy a bigger house, better close Microsoft that's my prerogative before I didn't want to be belongs to me. I worked for different realize that is not how God sees your resources as you work for and yes God wants you to enjoy it, but the master said, who was the one who you think gave you their talents who gave you the opportunities you understand there's a huge difference between walking through a door of opportunity in creating that door the first place that air that you breed this talent, you employ that help you enjoy the earth you walk God, where did all that come from God says I gave you all that iDVD ability to multiply money I gave it to you with the responsibility to use it for my purposes which you commandeered all of that and turn it inward on yourself and you got besotted with the world pleasures and thought only about your needs and you got drunk on the world and you were asleep at the task.

Do not miss this God considers us not using our resources to bless others as an act of grave injustice.

It's not just a failure to be generous is an act of injustice I've shown you this before but the apostle Paul talks about our failure to share the gospel with the nations or the people around us talked about in terms of injustice. Romans 114 Paul says I am a better I am under obligation to people and a member of the gospel, you have to ask, why would he be under obligation to his. He understood that with the privilege of hearing the gospel comes the responsibility to share with those would never followers of Jesus those who refrain so are we watching, reading and working for him each day until he returns to get a reminder today to live on purpose here on Senate life with Jeannie Greer rainy teaching series here on the program called In-Stat. If you happen to join us late today or if you'd like to catch up on any previous broadcasts in our study in the book of Luke.

Visit us@jeanniegreer.com in his current teaching series GPU emphasize stepping out in faith by committing to do whatever God calls us to do and to go wherever he calls us to go even though we don't know what the journeys going hold for. How does the discipline of memorizing Scripture or any other spiritual discipline, for that matter.

Help us step out in faith. You have heard it said Molly that the best way to confront allies to know the truth world is filled with lies and some we know that our enemy uses lies will away that you counteract Satan's lies is you memorize scripture and be able to apply the right Scripture the right moment the Spirit of God will do some amazing things in your heart was Scripture, but he cannot bring to the surface.

What you have and put in there is a one of the things you want to do at that summit like this help people know Scripture better that comes not just the preaching. It also comes to memorizing Scripture memorizing Scripture's mother's things and people in the daylight. Now degraded, but did that, but sometimes it's the journey of a thousand miles on the how to take the first step to reproduce some Scripture memory card, and so on. Would love to Ted to be able to give you these, I think to be a great tool on some specifically chosen verses that will enrich your spiritual life to get deeper in the gospel and help you counteract the lies of Satan put together a pack of 50 of these for you if you want to carry these promises in your heart are new summit like memory verse cards make it easy for you to memorize Scripture.

So take a look and reserve yours today@jdgrid.com you can list a dozen reasons why this is such an important thing for us to do throughout our lives, but for the sake of time.

Here are the top four reasons. Number one Jesus memorize Scripture. He quoted from 24 different bucks roughly 108. It's clear that he thought of the Scriptures as the ultimate authority in life and we understand the heart and the desires of God. Why would we not follow Jesus by knowing and trusting Scripture the way that he did. Second, we are called to memorize Scripture.

Colossians 316 tells us to let the word of Christ dwell in us richly. Deuteronomy 6439 tells us to bind God's law on our foreheads teach our children talk about it wherever we go into making an integral part of our lives. Third, memorizing Scripture renews our mind and transfers are and lastly memorizing Scripture helps the same in Jesus's time of temptation in the wilderness. He countered Satan's deceitful words with words of truth found in Scripture, we love to get you a copy is our way of saying thanks when you donate to support this ministry Senate life is funded by listeners like you do when you give your actually getting to another listener to an admission by giving today and remember to ask for our brand-new rejoice always, Scripture memory cards, 86633 528-663-3552 training forgive online Jeannie 18 are finally inviting you to join us again next thinking is this teaching series titled how do we stay awake to the reality that Jesus could return in time, coming in hot here in 2022. Again right here next Senate life Jeannie your ministry