This morning I’m putting some thoughts together for a little talk I’m giving this Sunday morning.  I’ve been asked to fill in with a little sermon on Luke chapter 21.

Cool, I always enjoy these little fill-ins…

If you’re familiar with this particular chapter, you know that it is just slightly controversial.

As I’m reading through it, I’ve been noting the parts that Christians like to debate one another over, as well as the parts that are difficult for folks to understand, thinking about how best to make the difficult simple and understandable for those who don’t have multiple Seminary degrees. Actually, that isn’t as difficult as people think; all you need to do is to approach the text as written instead of trying to cram it into a bunch of preconceived notions about it.

As I’ve been looking at it, a verse has leaped from the page, and I thought I’d share it here…

“Be careful, or your hearts will be weighed down with dissipation, drunkenness and the anxieties of life, and that day will close on you unexpectedly like a trap.

Luke 21:34

Jesus said this to His disciples while discussing His return and the conditions that will prevail during that time.  I realize that many have ideas about all of that, but various notions about His return are not what I want to get into here, for there is a much more important thing to take into account, not only for the very last days, but for today. We are supposed to be ready for His return no matter when it takes place.  Jesus is quite clear that it will shock most people when it happens, so be ready!

Consider what He says here: If we are not careful, our hearts will be weighed down by dissipation, drunkenness and the anxieties of life.  Dissipations would be self-indulgent living.  Drunkenness is self-explanatory and so are the anxieties of life.  I wonder how many of us deal with self-indulgence and anxiety?  It seems to me that it is all too easy to be weighed down by these kinds of things, and maybe all of us get caught in the trap from time-to-time. The real problem with doing so is that we take our focus away from living for Christ and onto other things.  Can we do this and serve Him at the same time?

Not too likely.

Maybe the real question we need to ask ourselves each and every day is something like this:

If Jesus came back today, would I be ready?