Readiness


ROB ROY MCGREGOR III Moderator


A


s we come to the end of this Synod Emphasis year devoted to the theme Pre-


paring the Church for the Return of Christ Jesus, I would like for us to consider some remarks Jesus ad- dressed to his disciples about their readiness for his return. One of the salient features of Jesus’


return is that it will be sudden and unexpected, a fact that anticipates anxiety. He uses the image of a home- owner (Matthew 24:42-44). If that homeowner knows when a thief is coming, he will be awake and watch- ing. If he does not know when the thief might strike, he will always have to be on the lookout. This much, then, is clear for us in our day. The Son of Man is coming again, this time in judgment, but we do not know when, so we too must be constantly vigilant. Jesus assures his disciples that a


good and wise servant remains faith- ful and continues to carry out his assigned tasks during his master’s absence and that he is therefore re- warded when his master returns (Matthew 24:45-47). The wicked and foolish servant, by contrast, lacks faithfulness and fails to carry out his assigned responsibilities during his master’s absence, and we learn that he suffers the just consequence when his


master returns (Matthew 24:48-51). We see also that watchfulness for the return of the Son of Man is an active engagement. His servants must always be in the process of doing what he has commanded them to do while he is away. Other- wise, they face the consequence of being treated violently and cast into a place where “there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth” (Matthew 24:51). Jesus then tells the Parable of the Ten Virgins to show his disciples how to be constantly vigilant without being apprehensive (Matthew 25:1-13). The parable relies on the image of a bridegroom. Jesus portrayed himself earlier as a bride- groom (Matthew 9:14-15), an image that is completed later when the Church is depicted as the Bride of Christ (Revelation 19:6-10). Each of the young women in the marriage procession was expected to be


ready at a moment’s notice to accompany the bridegroom to his awaiting bride for the evening ceremony. Each would have made preparations to light the way with her own lamp. It was not uncommon for a bridegroom to be late. That un- certainty required the wisdom of foresight. In the parable, five of the ten virgins brought along an extra flask of oil and were deemed wise because they were pre- pared for the delay. The other five virgins brought no extra oil and were deemed foolish because they were not prepared. When the bridegroom arrived, the wise virgins were ready to engage in the procession and to participate in the wedding banquet. The foolish virgins were not ready to participate in the festivities and found themselves excluded from the banquet—and justly so, for they had failed to be ready at a moment’s notice for the bridegroom’s appearance. The teachings of Jesus that we have been considering here reinforce the as-


surance that a Day of Judgment awaits us and encourage us to watchfulness and faithful perseverance. If we claim to have the genuine saving faith that is imparted to us by the effective presence of the Holy Spirit, we must demon- strate it by living consistently within the confines of the faith we profess. In other words, we must “practice what we preach.” In this vein, we do well to re- member that our testimony as believers is meant to have public consequences. Jesus challenges us to be “the light of the world,” thus showing the world the knowledge of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus (Matthew 5:14). Each of us has a sphere of influence for Christ, a sphere that includes the people we come in contact with each day, many of whom may not know the gospel. Our lives, if genuinely Christian, will reflect our faith and our readiness. We will be living witnesses to the power of the gospel. Even though Jesus’ return may be long delayed, we must not relax our vigilance, a vigilance that is not anxious, but be at peace because we are ready at all times for his appearing. To that end, let us be steadfast in welldoing, for in due season we will reap.?


Dr. Rob Roy McGregor III is Professor of Economics at UNC Charlotte and an elder at Back Creek ARP Church in Charlotte, NC.


Preparing the Church for the Return of Christ Jesus May/June 2021 3


Moderator’s Challenge


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