Vineyard Church | Weekly Update March 19th, 2025

Be ready for the Lord’s coming… This is the subheading in my Bible introducing the passage from Luke 12:35-48. “Be ready for the Lord’s coming.” Eschatology, the study of the Biblical end times, consumes much attention and energy of the modern Church, and debates over phrases like “be ready” occupy the arguments and debates of so many in the American Church. 

Looking at the phrase from the perspective of Luke 19:10, which tells us that the Son of Man came to seek and save the lost, perhaps we can find a meaning of this phrase that aligns with what Jesus actually said and what His objective has always been. Let’s start with His words:

35 “Be dressed for service and keep your lamps burning, 36 as though you were waiting for your master to return from the wedding feast. Then you will be ready to open the door and let him in the moment he arrives and knocks. 37 The servants who are ready and waiting for his return will be rewarded. I tell you the truth, he himself will seat them, put on an apron, and serve them as they sit and eat! 38 He may come in the middle of the night or just before dawn. But whenever he comes, he will reward the servants who are ready. 
39 “Understand this: If a homeowner knew exactly when a burglar was coming, he would not permit his house to be broken into. 40 You also must be ready all the time, for the Son of Man will come when least expected.” 
41 Peter asked, “Lord, is that illustration just for us or for everyone?” 
42 And the Lord replied, “A faithful, sensible servant is one to whom the master can give the responsibility of managing his other household servants and feeding them. 43 If the master returns and finds that the servant has done a good job, there will be a reward. 44 I tell you the truth, the master will put that servant in charge of all he owns. 45 But what if the servant thinks, ‘My master won’t be back for a while,’ and he begins beating the other servants, partying, and getting drunk? 46 The master will return unannounced and unexpected, and he will cut the servant in pieces and banish him with the unfaithful. 
47 “And a servant who knows what the master wants, but isn’t prepared and doesn’t carry out those instructions, will be severely punished. 48 But someone who does not know, and then does something wrong, will be punished only lightly. When someone has been given much, much will be required in return; and when someone has been entrusted with much, even more will be required. Luke 12:35-48 (NLT)

This passage is rich in imagery and insight, all of which points to the core objective of Jesus’ ministry: to seek and save the lost. First, the subtext of what Jesus is saying suggests how futile it is to debate a timeline of the Blessed Hope of His return. We won’t, and can’t, know when it will happen, so why waste time trying to figure it out? So, what should we do instead?

Notice, first, in verse 47, that Jesus speaks of a servant that knows what the master wants. We can stop here and ask, what does the master want? That’s a great question, and we can find the answer earlier in the passage.

One of the most remarkable “ah-ha” moments I’ve had reading Scripture came through verse 37, where Jesus tells us that when He returns, He will come to serve. His reign in the New Heaven and New Earth is one of service! He Himself will seat them, put on an apron, and serve.

Those whom master expects to find are those who have been sought by Jesus. They’ve experienced salvation as the entry point of a transformation that leads to a lifelong process of surrendering our will in order to take up His cross daily and follow the path that He set before us. Viewing the end times through the lens of Luke 19:10 allows us to embrace the mystery of His return while we focus on what is in front of us to do now: serve.

Adam Greenwell
Pastor
Billings Vineyard Chruch www.billingsvineyard.org