Watch Yourselves (Luke 21 & 22)

Luke 21 and 22 are the two chapters that we will be discussing today. In these two chapters, we see Jesus has entered the last phase of his mission on earth. The time of the betrayal, the cross and the resurrection was at hand. It is believed that Jesus spent the last week of his life in Jerusalem. Luke 21 and 22 talks about the events of this last week.

Luke 21 begins with Jesus' observation of the poor widow who put in two small copper coins into the offering box. Here is a woman, who needs help desperately but still makes a point by giving away her last two coins. She gave sacrificially and in God's eyes she had given far more than the rich that were present at that time. This teaches us that all giving must be sacrificial. One preacher once said, if your giving doesn't hurt a bit, you haven't given much. However, since giving is not the topic we will be focusing today, I don't wan't to dwell on it any longer.

Soon after the widow's offering, Jesus foretold the destruction of the temple and Jerusalem. this aroused the curiosity of the disciples who then wanted to know the exact timing of these things and the signs that would signal the beginning of the end. Jesus then spoke about the signs that they were to expect, namely false christs, wars, earthquakes, pestilences, famines etc. These signs have always been part of human history but we can expect the signs to become more common as we near the Lord's day. Jesus ends his teaching on the end times, by issuing a solemn warning that we ought to heed with utmost care. 

But watch yourselves lest your hearts be weighed down with dissipation and drunkenness and cares of this life, and that day come upon you suddenly like a trap.

Despite all the signs that will herald His coming, Jesus says that it will be far too easy to miss these signs if one is not watchful and waiting for His return. There is a drunkenness and dissipation (waste) that can keep one from heeding the warnings and seeing the signs. This is evident especially in our generation, where people are obsessed with social media, inflating their lifestyles by making it seem more exciting to gain more followers on their twitter, Facebook and Instagram accounts. I am not saying that being on social media is a wrong thing, but if it is wasting your time and other resources, it might be time to step down and take a step back. As disciples of our Lord, let us not play the world's game of show off and pride, we have far more serous things to attend to. If we do not watch, pray and study from His Word, surely we will fall in the tribulation that is to come. The disciples found this out when all of them abandoned Jesus in his final hours, even Peter who emphatically stated that he would die with Jesus. Their failures can be tracked down to their lack of prayer in the Garden of Gethsemane. Jesus on the other hand prayed even more earnestly at that most testing of times and came out victorious fulfilling every iota that was meant to be fulfilled. Such is the power of watchfulness and incessant prayer.