Lesson 06/03/07

WILL YOU BE SURPRISED BY THE SECOND COMING?

I don't know about you but I don't like surprises. Or, to be more precise, I don't like being caught off guard only to find myself fumbling around for an appropriate response. I guess I don't like it because I'm not good at thinking on my feet. But whether I like them or not, I have two questions in regards to this matter of surprises. First, are surprises biblical? That is, does God appear to endorse the idea of surprises? Second, can someone be sort-of-surprised? While you think about these two questions let me share the official definition of the word with you.
   The American Heritage College Dictionary defines surprise as:
1. To encounter suddenly or unexpectedly; take or catch unawares. 2. To attack or capture suddenly and without warning. 3. To cause to feel wonder, astonishment, or amazement, as at something unanticipated.
      Does God endorse the idea of surprises? Sure! In Genesis 2 God caused Adam to fall into a deep sleep and while he was asleep took one of his ribs, sewed him back up, and out of the rib created woman. When Adam woke up do you think he was surprised by the woman? You bet! Pleasantly surprised? That's an understatement if ever there was an understatement. He was jumping-up-and-down-whooping-it-up surprised!
      Incidentally, while were on the subject of women let me ask you a question that has been bothering me all week. Why is it that the winner of the Miss Universe contest is always from Earth? We're you mildly surprised by that question? Probably, as most jokes have an element of surprise contained within them. It's this element of surprise that prompts us to laugh.
      Then while I'm thinking about it, I'm collecting donations for a sponsored walk so during this class period I'm going to be passing around a sign-up sheet. Please give generously as it is for a worthy cause. I'm hoping to raise so much money that I will be able to take a taxi.1
      What other God-ordained surprises do we find in Scripture? Let me see; just off the top of my head I think of the parting of the Red Sea, Gideon being called a mighty warrior, David sparing Saul's life, the tables being turned on Hamam, and God revealing himself to me.
      Second, can someone be sort-of-surprised? Technically, according to the definition, probably not. But when I think of surprise birthday parties for say someone's 50th birthday maybe the idea of sort-of-surprised fits. They are not surprised in the technical sense of the word.   But they may be astonished that more than one person would be involved in such an event and in that sense they are sort-of-surprised, perhaps even caught off guard.
      In the matter of being surprised and sort-of-surprised I believe many people will be surprised when Jesus comes again. I also believe that many of us who are citizens of the kingdom of God will be sort-of-surprised. But whether we're surprised, sort-of-surprised, or not surprised at all Jesus does not want us to be caught off guard. To this end, he shared five stories with the disciples.    The five stories are found in the twenty-fourth and twenty-fifth chapter of Matthew.   The first of the five, found in Matthew 24:36 - 41, serves as the backdrop for the remaining four stories. It reads:
      "No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. 37 As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. 38 For in the days before the flood, people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, up to the day Noah entered the ark; 39 and they knew nothing about what would happen until the flood came and took them all away. That is how it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. 40 Two men will be in the field; one will be taken and the other left. 41 Two women will be grinding with a hand mill; one will be taken and the other left."
      This first story is simply a retelling of a story that has been around for a long time, the story of Noah. It's told to remind you and I that despite all the distressful signs that will characterize the last days life will tend to go on as usual. Men and women will still be doing what they need to do to make ends meet and to put food on the table. In the midst of ordinary life, as pictured in this story, the Son of Man will unexpectedly appear.
      Jesus' purpose in retelling the story of Noah is simple. He was telling the disciples, as well as you and I, to expect that the second coming of Christ will come on a day when we're not expecting it. It will come as a surprise.   Here's why! Since we don't know what the date is, we tend to act as if the date isn't on anyone's calendar. We're wrong! It's on God's calendar and one day we will be taken by surprise - literally.
      We now come to the second story. In vv. 42 - 44 we read:2
      "Therefore keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come. 43 But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what time of night the thief was coming, he would have kept watch and would not have let his house be broken into. 44 So you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him."
      It would be nice if thieves announced ahead of time as to when they were going to break into our home. That way, we could be sitting there with either a shotgun in our lap or the police at our side. But thieves, for good reason, don't share their calendar with us. Hence, we take steps to prevent thieves from breaking into our home.
      In this one sense, God is like a thief. In his wisdom, for reasons of his own, he chooses not to share his calendar with us. In an odd sort of way, as we shall see in the third story, this reveals our true character. But this second story is simply telling us that due to the unexpectedness of the second coming of Christ constant vigilance is necessary - whether we like it or not.
      We now turn our attention to the third story. It's found in vv. 45 - 51. We read:
      "Who then is the faithful and wise servant, whom the master has put in charge of the servants in his household to give them their food at the proper time? 46 It will be good for that servant whose master finds him doing so when he returns. 47 I tell you the truth, he will put him in charge of all his possessions. 48 But suppose that servant is wicked and says to himself, 'My master is staying away a long time,' 49 and he then begins to beat his fellow servants and to eat and drink with drunkards. 50 The master of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he is not aware of. 51 He will cut him to pieces and assign him a place with the hypocrites, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth."
      Here we are given a snapshot of two servants. The first is not only faithful but wise. Or perhaps, he, used in the generic sense, is faithful because he is wise. Furthermore, he is a person of integrity in that the master of the household could drop in anytime and this man would be found doing his job and doing it well. For despite the delay, he always meets the needs of others at the appropriate time. In the end, as you can easily imagine, he is amply rewarded for being a good and faithful servant.
      The second servant, though obviously irresponsible, isn't simply irresponsible. He is abusive. He is also self-indulgent, perhaps even alcoholic. You'd think he would be happy go lucky without a care in the world. I don't pretend to understand the psychology of it, but my guess is that his errant behavior is a useless attempt to silence a guilty conscience.
      Unprepared for the master's return, the man is correctly labeled as a hypocrite. For he expected more from others than he did from himself; failing to consider that leaders are not exceptions. As a hypocrite, as someone who has no regard for the master of the house, he was verbally(?) cut to pieces and directed toward the dump - the place of his own choosing.
      What we need to note is that faithfulness is a result of wisdom. It's also to be noted that the delay reveals our hand. Satan uses it to badger us with doubt; whispering to us that Christ isn't really coming back. This would be just like our foe to taunt us with the notion that our God has lied to us. Hence, we may as well eat, drink, and be merry.
      We now come to the fourth story. We find it in Matthew 25:1 - 13. We read:
      "At that time the kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom. 2 Five of them were foolish and five were wise. 3 The foolish ones took their lamps but did not take any oil with them. 4 The wise, however, took oil in jars along with their lamps. 5 The bridegroom was a long time in coming, and they all became drowsy and fell asleep.
      "At midnight the cry rang out: 'Here's the bridegroom! Come out to meet him!'
      "Then all the virgins woke up and trimmed their lamps. 8 The foolish ones said to the wise, 'Give us some of your oil; our lamps are going out.'
      "'No,' they replied, 'there may not be enough for both us and you. Instead, go to those who sell oil and buy some for yourselves.'
      "But while they were on their way to buy the oil, the bridegroom arrived. The virgins who were ready went in with him to the wedding banquet. And the door was shut.
      "Later the others also came. 'Sir! Sir!' they said. 'Open the door for us!'
      "But he replied, 'I tell you the truth, I don't know you.'
      "Therefore keep watch, because you do not know the day or the hour.
      At that time! At what time? At that hour when the master returns. We don't really know what time this is, we just know there will be a time when the Lord returns. At that time, the kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took oil lamps and went out to greet the bridegroom even though they didn't really know what time he would show up.
      Wisely, five of them took along an extra jar of oil just in case the bridegroom was delayed. The other five failed to do so. I suppose they figured that they would figure out things as they went along. Or as someone put it, "I'll jump that hurdle when I come to it."   In other words, planning ahead wasn't their strength. Or maybe they simply figured someone would feel sorry for them and pitch in so as to make-up for their lack of preparation. Or to be more exact, to make up for their lack of anticipation!
      At the stroke of midnight "the cry rang out" that the bridegroom had arrived. The ten virgins rubbed their sleepy eyes and immediately trimmed their lamps. But the five foolish ones didn't have sufficient oil to trim them so they turned to the other five in hopes of obtaining the needed oil. To their dismay they were told "No, there may not be enough for both us and you. Instead, go to those who sell oil and buy some for yourselves."
      The point of the story is simple. Either you are prepared ahead of time or you are not prepared at all. If you think you can wait until the last minute you're wrong. Or if you think the preparedness, or anticipation, of someone else can be transferred to you, you are sadly mistaken.
      In this regard, Charles Swindoll tells a story that will knock your socks off. Here it is word for word off of a taped recording.
      I worked at a machine shop for four and a half years. I worked alongside a black fellow named George. George was born again and he loved the teaching of Scripture on prophecy. And George was a sweeper, he cleaned out the shavings underneath these huge lathes and machines that we would be running. I remember hearing him sing the hymns and many of them had to do with the Sweet Bye and Bye and the Roll is Called up Yonder and those gospel songs and hymns spoke of the coming of Christ.
      Late one afternoon we were all weary, it was a Friday afternoon and I looked at George and I said, huh, referring to quitting time which was just about three o'clock. I said to him about ten minutes to three, "George, are you ready?"
      He says, "huh-huh."
      But he was all dirty. He was just obviously not ready. He looked like, he looked like he was ready to keep on working.   I said, "Are you ready to go home?"
      He said, "Yeah, I'm ready."
      I said, "Oh, you're not ready. Look at you. Man, you've got to go clean up. You've got to go. . ."
      "No, let me show you something."
      So he unzipped his coveralls and underneath were his, . . . the neatest cleanest clothes you can imagine. He had them already. All he did when the whistle blew was to unzip and step out of that coverall, and just walk up and punch the clock and he's gone.
      He says, "You see, I stays ready to keep from getting ready."3
      You see, the five foolish virgins felt they could get ready when the time came to be ready. They were wrong, dead wrong. How about you? Do you stays ready to keep from having to get ready?
      On a final note, let me tell you that there is something else I like about this story. George kept his coveralls on until quitting time. He served his master and others right up until the whistle blew. And when it blew, he was ready and eager to go home.