How Do You Keep from Being Caught Off Guard?

A few years ago, while driving along a curvy and hilly highway, I came over a hill and saw an older lady walking down the middle of the road and as I slowed, she fell and could not get up. A car in the oncoming lane quickly stopped to help. Seeing the dangerous situation, I immediately positioned myself at the top of the nearby hill to wave down traffic so they would slow down before anyone was hurt. (Everything turned out OK.)

I became a temporary watchman.

A watchman’s primary task is to warn. He provides information so others can plan appropriately. I waved my arms wildly so drivers would begin to slow down long before the danger. Weathermen are watchmen who provide weather forecasts that allow listeners to prepare for inclement or severe conditions.

Watchtowers have been built into walls to facilitate those who watched for enemies. In more recent times fire towers and lighthouses were used to detect danger and issue warnings.

In general, people want to know of danger ahead of time in order to prepare. We don’t want to be caught off guard!

Yet, warnings are sometimes inconvenient, even disruptive. People are evacuated at the smell of natural gas or because of a bomb threat. Some people become frustrated or angry because of the inconvenience. Sometimes people refuse to believe a warning.

Recall the tale of the boy who cried, “Wolf.” Again and again the boy called out a warning when there was no wolf. Then, when a dangerous wolf came, no one believed his warning. I sometimes wonder if that describes our nation when it comes to the warnings found in Scripture. Preachers warn, but nothing really bad happens. So, people stop listening.

Christians can be lulled into a kind of sleep when life is going well. We experience no real threat of personal danger. We live in times of abundance where good jobs are available. We have enough money to save and invest. We can enjoy leisure and entertainment...any day...every day.

Jesus was a watchman when He foretold the destruction of Jerusalem in Matthew 24. He continued His warnings by blending them into a warning about the Second Coming and Final Judgment (chapter 25). The simple point is that when we know that God’s judgment is certain, but we do not know when it will come about, we must be alert; we must prepare.

Jesus told His listeners how to recognize the signs of the times. He told them that when they saw the abomination of desolation standing in the holy place, those in Judea should literally run for their lives. Writing to a Gentile audience, Luke reported the same warning, but in terms that are easier for us (Gentiles) to understand:

But when you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, then recognize that her desolation is near. 

—Luke 21:20

After that Jesus told a parable saying that people are able to discern the changing of the seasons by watching a fig tree. His point was that there were signs of change regarding spiritual matters that they should also be able to discern.

The winds of change are blowing in the United States. Laws are being passed that portray evil as good and that portray good as evil. We have enjoyed many years of peace in the church.

So then let us not sleep as others do, but let us be alert and sober.

—1 Thessalonians 5:6

Wake up! Open your Bible! Let’s be ready!

Mark Stinnett

July 11, 2021