The second half of Luke 12 is focused on the subject of watchfulness. Jesus taught on this subject often, advising that His return would come like a thief in the night (1 Thess 5:2) with no one knowing the hour it would happen. We must always be ready and watching.
Read verses 35-38. Jesus told His disciples to be dressed and ready for service and to keep their lamps burning. They should be like servants waiting for their master to return from a wedding banquet, ready to open the door for Him the moment He returns. How do we, His disciples, do that? Studying His Word, knowing what it teaches, and always living according to its precepts. Serving Him always, even when we do not see Him around. He should find us living for Him when He comes. We are told that He will seat us at the table and serve us when He comes. It will be good for us if He comes and finds us ready. But how do we make ourselves ready?
Read verses 39-40. We know that He can come again at any time, even in the middle of the night. We must be ready at all times because we don’t know, even the angels don’t know, when He will come (Matt 24:36-39). We must be ready at that time and have our salvation sorted out. This is the most important thing of all. Jesus is speaking here of Salvation. When He comes again, there will be rewards for those who have accepted His forgiveness of sins, His salvation. They will be ready and waiting. But we must be ready when He comes. Once His second coming occurs, it will be too late. And we don’t know when He will come, so we must make sure that we are always ready by securing our salvation. In the context of this parable, ready means to have received His salvation and watching/waiting means to be doing His work on earth and living obedient lives.
Read verses 41-48. Peter then asked Him whether this parable only applies to the believers or whether it applied to everyone. So far, Jesus had only spoken about what will happen to the believers when He comes again. Jesus now begins to address those who are not serving Him in His absence. And… He speaks of harsher punishments for those who knew to do right than for those who did not know to do right. He also introduced here an accountability for the gifts and talents we have been given. God expects us to use them to the best of our abilities and will hold us accountable for that. We will be held accountable by God for our actions and our inactions.
Read verses 49-53. Jesus said that He has come to bring a fire to earth, forcing men to make choices, spiritual choices. He was constrained at the moment as He still needed to go to the cross, but after that, people would have to make choices about what they believe and how they would respond to God and not everyone would make the same choices. These choices would divide people, even families. He understood the seriousness of His ministry.
Read verses 54-59. Jesus said that people could read the signs to interpret the weather. Why couldn’t they interpret the signs of the times? It would not be much longer before He would go to the cross to be crucified. He ends with a statement about resolving issues with adversaries before we are dragged before a judge and thrown into debtors’ prison. This is an allusion to doing business with God and resolving the matter of your sins before you are thrown into Hell. Will you be ready when He comes?
Responding to God: Have you confessed your sins to God and received His forgiveness/salvation? Do you live your life in obedience and service to Him? Do you seek to lead others to God’s salvation?
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