based on the LGG Study: Come, Lord Jesus, Come / w5d5
Scripture: Our Road Map For the Journey / Luke 21 (SOAP: verses 34-36)
“But be on your guard so that your hearts are not weighed down with dissipation and drunkenness and the worries of this life, and that day close down upon you suddenly like a trap. 35 For it will overtake all who live on the face of the whole earth. 36 But stay alert at all times, praying that you may have strength to escape all these things that must happen, and to stand before the Son of Man.” Luke 21:34-36 NET
Observation and Application from the Journey
For the last five weeks, we have heard, in various ways, the reminder that Jesus is coming again. We have been warned to stay alert and to be ready. We have read words of excitement, hope, doom and gloom, warning, and victory. Today’s message is much the same.
The signs will be clear; the Kingdom of God is near! The question is, will we be so caught up in the world that we are too earthbound to grow excited about what and who is coming?
Today’s passage, specifically vs. 34-36, draws our attention once again to the warning to be alert but not just to the signs around us. Here, the disciples are warned not to become weighed down or caught up with the pleasures or worries of this life, allowing those things to blind them from the clear signs that God’s Kingdom is near.
He does not want them so consumed by the things of this world that they fail to pay attention to the signs of His coming kingdom.
Bibleref..com
Whenever and wherever in history we are found waiting for His return, Jesus makes it clear that His disciples are to: “Stay alert at all times, praying that you may have strength to escape all these things that must happen, and to stand before the Son of Man.”
With Christ, we will always have the hope of heaven, a hope that will one day be a reality for all who have placed their faith in Jesus Christ. –1
Prayer of response to the journey
Father, so much around us heightens our senses to the coming reality of Christ’s return. Help us not be so caught up with the world that we shrink back from the excitement that the Hope of Heaven brings. Help us not to tremble in fear or be weighed down with worries but to pray, as Jesus said, that we have the strength to escape all these things that must happen and to stand before Him. Put Your hedge of protection around us and fill us with Your peace that passes all understanding, guarding our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. May we wait with patience, excitement, and alertness to those around us who need to know JESUS, and may we be quick to share Him in Jesus’ name, I pray. Amen and Amen!
The More We Know: side trails of the journey
Wisdom and Encouragement: “Being on guard is something we must do actively and purposefully. We must intentionally fight back against the worries we face in this life by bringing our burdens to God in prayer, realizing that this world is not our home. Better days are ahead. Jesus could return at any time. The pains, tribulations, and worries of this life will not last forever. God has a plan, and nothing is out of His control.” LGG Journal entry, Come, Lord Jesus, Come p. 170
- LGG Journal entry, Come, Lord Jesus, Come p. 170 ↩︎
Me From the Inside Out 