Who then is the faithful and wise servant, whom his master has set over his household, to give them their food at the proper time? Blessed is that servant whom his master will find so doing when he comes.
(Matt 24:45-46)
Read: Matthew 24:36-51
Devotion: Ever since Christ ascended into the clouds, his people have been expectantly awaiting his return. Despite what the scoffers have been saying since he left (2 Pet 3:3-4), Christ is coming again soon. The reason he hasn’t come back yet is because he is patient and merciful, bringing forth the salvation in full measure of his people (2 Pet 3:9). To him, who has the perspective of eternity, it has only been a short while since he left and only a short time until his return (2 Pet 3:8).
For us, however—his finite and short-sighted people—it seems like long time. And so we have mixed thinking within us that is caused by two real possibilities. On the one hand we know that Christ is coming soon and that his coming will be like a thief in the night—sudden and unexpected (Matt 24:44). The beginning of his return could occur even before you finish reading this devotion. And yet, on the other hand, there is a real possibility that his coming may not be during our lifetimes. The secret things belong to the Lord and thus, for all we know, the day of the Lord may not come for another two millennia or more from now.
In light of these real possibilities, our sinful and doubt-filled hearts want to spin off into all sorts of speculation and uncertainty. In response to our doubts we could discuss the temptation to become impatient toward Christ or despair as we wait for him in a fallen world. But let us instead discuss another pitfall we are prone to as we wait for Christ’s return. It’s complacency, and it’s probably the most common trap we fall into.
Complacency sets in when we forget the immanence of Christ’s return. He has promised that he is coming soon, but his “soon” could be another thousand years. “Therefore,” we think, “Surely he isn’t coming in my lifetime.” Though we believe that he is coming back to save his people and bring his judgment, we live as though he’s not coming back at all. Thus, we often put off vital disciplines like biblical meditation (Col 3:16) prayer (1 Thess 5:17), and evangelism (Matt 28:18-20). The mindset is similar to the unbeliever who we’re trying to evangelize but who tells us, “I’ll live my life how I want and then on my deathbed I’ll repent and believe and be saved.” The clear response to that thinking is: “What if you don’t have a deathbed? God may require their soul long before they have the chance to die peacefully at an old age.”
Likewise, to the believer who is living a complacent life because they think that Christ will not return in their lifetime, we need to pose the question: What if he does? What if the sign of his appearing occurs today? When he comes, what kind of servant will he find in us (Matt 24:45-51)?
We must shake off any complacency in our lives and in our hearts. We have been called to be faithful stewards of God’s grace while our Master is away (Matt 25:14-31). If our lives are spent frittering those things away, abusing these gifts, and generally living lives that are no different than the lives of the unbelievers around us, can we even expect him to view us as one of his servants when he returns? Will we not be in danger of being counted among the rest of unrepentant hypocrites and cast out into the outer darkness (vv. 50-51)?
Therefore, let us be ready for the Lord’s return in our hearts, our character, and in the pattern of our living. We are called to wait, yes, but it is not a complacent waiting that we’ve been called to. Christ has called us to a waiting that consists of an active hope that views all of life in light of his return, and then bears itself out in a faithful living in accordance with all that he has revealed in his Word.
Therefore, stay awake, for you do not know on what day your Lord is coming. But know this, that if the master of the house had known in what part of the night the thief was coming, he would have stayed awake and would not have let his house be broken into. Therefore you also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect (Matt 24:42-44).
Ponder and Pray: Discuss how we can avoid complacency? How does God’s Word and the church help us in this area? Finish by praying for Christ’s return.
