Stay Awake


Luke 21:25-38
25 “And there will be signs in sun and moon and stars, and on the earth distress of nations in perplexity because of the roaring of the sea and the waves, 26 people fainting with fear and with foreboding of what is coming on the world. For the powers of the heavens will be shaken. 27 And then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. 28 Now when these things begin to take place, straighten up and raise your heads, because your redemption is drawing near.” 29 And he told them a parable: “Look at the fig tree, and all the trees. 30 As soon as they come out in leaf, you see for yourselves and know that the summer is already near. 31 So also, when you see these things taking place, you know that the kingdom of God is near. 32 Truly, I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all has taken place. 33 Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away. 34 But watch yourselves lest your hearts be weighed down with dissipation and drunkenness and cares of this life, and that day come upon you suddenly like a trap. 35 For it will come upon all who dwell on the face of the whole earth. 36 But stay awake at all times, praying that you may have strength to escape all these things that are going to take place, and to stand before the Son of Man.” 37 And every day he was teaching in the temple, but at night he went out and lodged on the mount called Olivet. 38 And early in the morning all the people came to him in the temple to hear him.



Jesus left many questions unanswered as He traveled Israel preaching His message of love and completing His work of salvation. Since I probably won’t get to take my journal with me into eternity, I guess I’ll just have to remember all those questions so that I can ask them when I get there. But while the language is slightly cryptic, Jesus tells us exactly what is coming. There is no question left about the end except for the exact date. But it is coming and we He fills us in as to the signs of His eminent return.



The words that come to mind that describe The End are difficult, horrendous, terrifying, and violent. The End will involve the entire planet, no universe, in catastrophic destruction. Sounds terrible; and so it will be. We witness these exact signs on a daily basis. And there’s our truth for today. We are indeed witnessing all that Jesus foretold and so we must heed His words to “stay awake” and “watch yourselves”. Our only goal is to stay prayerfully awake (alert) for His return. Now, that is easier said than done.



The distractions that surround us are manifold. I can’t believe the attention the stupidest thing can get. Today we’re immersed in the PokémonGo game for our phones. Really? Don’t we have better things to think about? Not that there’s anything inherently wrong with games. But we seem to become obsessed at the drop of a hat and I have to wonder why that is. I suspect it might have something to do with our willingness to skip over the important and focus on the trivial. That is exactly what Jesus is warning against here. The fact that He will return soon is obvious to even most casual observer. His exhortation is to stay awake and so this text reminds us to continue on that path.

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