We have been meditating on various topics over the past few weeks. Every week we receive words of encouragement and edification. Last day, I had come across a nutshell of Br. Zac’s message. In the message, he speaks of just as how we need 5 fingers to have a firm grip, there are 5 things that we need for a firm grip in our christian life. We have been hearing of these 5 things over the past week. The fingers are: the value of the blood of Jesus which justifies us, the fullness of the Holy Spirit, the word of God, taking up the cross daily and fellowship with our brethren. God has been speaking to us these 5 important things from the beginning of this year because He wants to remind us that the days are near. We are at the end and the night is about to get over and the day is about to come.
In the light of this, let us read from 1 Thessalonians 5:4-11, “But you, brethren, are not in darkness, that the day would overtake you like a thief; for you are all sons of light and sons of day. We are not of night nor of darkness; so then let us not sleep as others do, but let us be alert and sober. For those who sleep do their sleeping at night, and those who get drunk get drunk at night. But since we are of the day, let us be sober, having put on the breastplate of faith and love, and as a helmet, the hope of salvation. For God has not destined us for wrath, but for obtaining salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, who died for us, so that whether we are awake or asleep, we will live together with Him. Therefore encourage one another and build up one another, just as you also are doing.” This chapter speaks of the day of the Lord. This is the call for us now – to be alert. We can’t take things easy but we need to be alert and sober because the day of the Lord is very near. God hasn’t destined us for wrath but for eternity. In Mark 14 from verse 32 onward we see of when Jesus was in the garden of Gethsemane with Peter, James and John. Jesus asks his disciples to pray for Him and to intercede and support Him in the last hours of His life on earth. Jesus soul was deeply grieved. In verse 37 and 38 we read, “And He came and found them sleeping, and said to Peter, “Simon, are you asleep? Could you not keep watch for one hour? Keep watching and praying that you may not come into temptation; the spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.”” Jesus had asked them to pray but found them sleeping. Jesus understood that their spirit was willing but their flesh was weak. This happened again. And the third time, Jesus told them that the time was up. God has given plenty of opportunity and circumstances for us to be alert and sober. We are in the end times, just like Jesus said before His crucifixion. The disciples wanted to pray, they did not intentionally sleep, but their flesh was weak. Their flesh wasn’t allowing them to be a help or support for Jesus. Jesus wanted His disciples to pray so that they may not come into temptation. His concern was not only for Himself but also that his disciples they may be strong in the time of temptation when He was away and being crucified. Jesus asked them 3 times to be alert and sober and to pray, but they couldn’t. When we go back to the verse in Thessalonians – in our spirit we know that we are not of darkness, even though we know of the 5 fingers that we need in our Christian life, we find many times that our flesh is weak. That is why we should be humble and not be sleepers. The other day I was noticing my daughter during her sleep. She was in deep sleep and started crying suddenly. When I asked her what happened, she replied, “I fell down”. She didn’t actually fall down, but she was dreaming that she had fallen down. She was not awake. Many a times, we Christians are like her. We are not in the real world but rather sleeping and dreaming. We are not realistic about our spiritual life. God wants us to be awake and sober and to know God’s plan for our life; to be awake from darkness and be partakers of the light which is God’s divine nature. The fact that pulls us back is the priority we are giving to these worldly, unrealistic dreams. Our eyes should be open to see that these are unrealistic and just worldly things and to follow the matters that are important to God.
In the verses that we read first we read, that God has not destined us for wrath. He doesn’t want us to be partakers of darkness at any point. That is the reason why He says that we should be awake and be in a realistic Christian life. The worldly things are like a dream which is unreal. We should be careful that our words, deeds and actions shouldn’t be based on these unrealistic things and driving us away from the spiritual blessings. We also read that we should encourage others. We shouldn’t be sleepers in areas that we can encourage our brethren, to stand shoulder to shoulder when there is joy or sorrow. If there is a word of encouragement that we have, we should freely give. For encouragement also we need to have an alert attitude. Our eyes and ears should be open to the needs of our brethren. We need to be alert and sober to have love, faith, hope of salvation live with Jesus and to encourage one another.
When we look at Paul, at the end of His life He says in 2 Timothy 4:3-5, “For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires, and will turn away their ears from the truth and will turn aside to myths. But you, be sober in all things, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry.” How confidently Paul says in verse 6-8, “For I am already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time of my departure has come. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the course, I have kept the faith; in the future there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day; and not only to me, but also to all who have loved His appearing.” Paul encourages Timothy to be sober, to endure hardships, to do the work of an evangelist and there by fulfill His ministry. Paul encourages Timothy to follow his example. If we love God’s appearing, we need to be alert and sober, not being sleepers, but with zeal do what God has asked each one to do.
In Mathew 25 we read of the parable of 10 virgins. The 5 foolish virgins had less oil. They didn’t give importance to their inner life. They were satisfied with showing people their external life. They were not alert and sober in their inner life. They missed the coming of the bridegroom. When they came, the door was shut and had to hear from the Lord that He doesn’t know them. We see from this parable that our dreaming of unrealistic things will ruin our spiritual life and that may be the end for us. The door may be closed for us. We have to be alert about our spiritual condition and not be dreamers in unrealistic worldly things. In the Old Testament we read in Judges 7 we read of how Gideon chose 300 men. The men who were chosen were the ones who cupped water in their hands and drank water and those who lapped the water were sent home. God sent home those who became so involved in drinking the water, picturing being drawn into earthly things. God chose the ones who cupped the water in their hands and were alert in case the enemy would strike. The 300 men were alert and on guard even while they were involved in their earthly needs. We need earthly things like our job, our food but we have to be on guard and be alert. We have heard the illustration of the rubber band – we need to be fixed in the heavenly and be alert even when we have many earthly needs that need our attention. A sleepless, drowsy state can ruin our christian life. In Ephesians 6 we read of the armor that we should put on. Like the 300 chosen men, we should be alert in case the enemy strikes and put on the armor of God so that we can grow more spiritually. This way God can build us up and we can encourage one another. We don’t want to be like the disciples that gave in to the flesh and slept. Jesus wanted them to be strong in the times of temptation. But we see that the disciples failed. We see how Peter wept after he denied Jesus and remembered that Jesus had warned him. God has spoken to us, and we are gripped but because of our drowsy attitude, we fall into temptation and that can cause us to be at unrest. When we fall into a temptation, we realize the importance of what we have heard from the word of God. But God wants us to be alert and be witnesses for Him. Difficulties and pressures may come our way, but we shouldn’t be unrealistic of all these worldly things; rather be alert and sober in our Christian walk. When we meet Jesus, we shouldn’t be ashamed and think that we could have given Him more. May God help us to be like Paul and say that we have done our part when we were here on this earth.
