THE FAITHFUL SERVANTS

Luke 12:35-40 Let your loins be girded about, and your lights burning; and ye yourselves like unto men that wait for their lord, when he will return from the wedding; that when he cometh and knocketh, they may open unto him immediately. Blessed are those servants, whom the lord when he cometh shall find watching: verily I say unto you, that he shall gird himself, and make them to sit down to meat, and will come forth and serve them. And if he shall come in the second watch, or come in the third watch, and find them so, blessed are those servants. And this know, that if the goodman of the house had known what hour the thief would come, he would have watched, and not have suffered his house to be broken through. Be ye therefore ready also: for the Son of man cometh at an hour when ye think not.

The lesson of this parable is similar to that of the wise and foolish virgins - be prepared. Speaking to His disciples, and to all Christians today, Jesus tells us to be prepared. What are some things we should be prepared for? There are charitable deeds andservices to God, to the cause of Christ, and to our neighbor that we should be prepared,accept, and perform without delay. Are we prepared to teach a bible class; are we ready and willing to instruct those seeking salvation in the first principles of obedience that would put them into the body of Christ; are we prepared to feed the hungry, cloth the destitute, visit and pray for the sick, provide care for the of widows and orphans, comfort the downcast, and inspire the young? These are just a few of the things that we should be prepared to do, and should be doing when the Lord returns. What if we should die before the second coming of Jesus? Are we prepared to die; are we laboring in God's vineyard; are we slumbering on the job, waiting for a "more convenient season?" These, and many more questions, we should ask ourselves to determine our preparedness to meet Jesus on the day of our final judgment.

What if you knew the day, even the hour that Jesus would come again? No doubt you would be much more prepared to meet Jesus than you are at this moment. You would probably be found laboring diligently for God and the cause of Christ. Using the example Jesus gives us in the lesson parable, the home owner would be watchful, and well prepared, if they knew the day and hour that a thief planned on breaking into their house and robbing them of their valued possessions. However, a robber will not announce the time he plans to break into your house, and neither do we know the exact time of our Lord's coming. In both instances we should always be prepared. Block watches, window guards, security doors, various alarm systems are all preparations that can be made to avoid the loss of our earthly possessions. To protect and secure our spiritual blessings, we need to be prepared by continuously doing the will of God.

We want Jesus to find us as faithful servants - well prepared servants. When He calls us, through His word, to serve Him in any capacity as a Christian, we need to be ready. Let your loins be girded about. During biblical times people dressed in long, loose, and flowing garments, that were fairly easy to walk around in. However, they were very cumbersome and limiting when it was necessary to run or perform physical labor. Therefore, it was necessary to gird up the clothing and secure it with ties that would allow them to move more freely. To be ready to go to work, the laborer would prepare by girding up his clothing. In a like manner, those with lamps burning, or ready to be lit, were well prepared for work necessary to be performed after darkness set in. Those, in the parable, had their clothing girded up, and their lights were burning. They were ready for the bridegroom to return from the wedding. Faithful servants would always be prepared regardless of the time, either day or night, for their master's return. When he comes and knocks on the door, they will be ready to open unto him immediately.

These are prepared servants; these are faithful servants; blessed are these servants. How were they blessed? They were invited to sit at his table and partake of his feast. Are you prepared for your Master, Jesus Christ to come? Are your "loins girded" and are you diligently serving the will of God through Christ? Is your lamp trimmed and burning guiding others, as well as yourself, to salvation? If so, your blessings await. All things are ready, come to the feast. The Master awaits His faithful servants!