Holding on to our hope that Jesus will return

 Luke 12:35-48

35“Be dressed for action and have your lamps lit; 36be like those who are waiting for their master to return from the wedding banquet, so that they may open the door for him as soon as he comes and knocks. 37Blessed are those slaves whom the master finds alert when he comes; truly I tell you, he will fasten his belt and have them sit down to eat, and he will come and serve them. 38If he comes during the middle of the night, or near dawn, and finds them so, blessed are those slaves.

39“But know this: if the owner of the house had known at what hour the thief was coming, he would not have let his house be broken into. 40You also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an unexpected hour.”

41Peter said, “Lord, are you telling this parable for us or for everyone?” 42And the Lord said, “Who then is the faithful and prudent manager whom his master will put in charge of his slaves, to give them their allowance of food at the proper time? 43Blessed is that slave whom his master will find at work when he arrives. 44Truly I tell you, he will put that one in charge of all his possessions. 45But if that slave says to himself, ‘My master is delayed in coming,’ and if he begins to beat the other slaves, men and women, and to eat and drink and get drunk, 46the master of that slave will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour that he does not know, and will cut him in pieces, and put him with the unfaithful. 47That slave who knew what his master wanted, but did not prepare himself or do what was wanted, will receive a severe beating. 48But the one who did not know and did what deserved a beating will receive a light beating. From everyone to whom much has been given, much will be required; and from the one to whom much has been entrusted, even more will be demanded.

We are not to give up our hope that this world is all that there is. 

One day, at the end of space and time as we know it, the Lord Jesus will return. He will come as God's king to bring in God's kingdom. 

The prophet Daniel speaks of the coming of the Son of Man: 'To him was given dominion and glory and kingship, and all peoples, nations, and languages should serve him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion that shall not pass away, and his kingship is one that shall never be destroyed' (Daniel 7:14)

Just because it has not happened in the last 2000 years does not mean that it will not happen
Just because we can't imagine it, it does not mean that it will not happen. 

The first Christians, when they saw Jesus buried in a tomb, could not imagine that he would rise again. 

So don't give up our hope.

Don't give in to despair

That means we need to keep alert: not to let the things that we need to do slip - the heart stuff: prayer, bible reading and study, meeting together with other Christians, receiving communion, obedience in the little things. 

(I think that is partly what the parable of the foolish bridesmaids is about: they had not kept their oil filled. Matthew 25:1-13)

It is the heart stuff that keeps us open to God and to the Holy Spirit: that enables him to keep the light alive, to keep that longing for him, that waiting for Jesus fresh. 

The danger is that if we do lose our hope, if we do start to think that it is all about this world then we will drift into becoming self-indulgent ('eat and drink and get drunk' v45). We will think that it is all about me, satisfying my needs and my passions. 

And if we lose our hope then we will forget our calling. Jesus reminds Peter that he, and the apostles - and it applies to church leaders today - are first called 'to give the other slaves their allowance of food at the proper time': they are called to feed God's people, to teach God's people. 

And if we lose our hope and think that this world is all that there is, then there is the danger that we will become abusive, that we will 'beat the other slaves', that we will treat them as if they exist for my benefit.

And these verses warn that when the Son of Man does return there will be accountability.
Those who have 'beaten' others unfairly will be beaten fairly. 

But they also have a great promise: that the slaves who are still alert, who are waiting, longing for the Son of Man to come, who are still seeking to serve him - will, in fact, be served by him. "I tell you, he will fasten his belt and have them sit down to eat, and he will come and serve them".

And as an anticipation of that day, today in this communion we come to his table to receive from him.