Eyes Peeled

 DEVOTION

THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO LUKE

EYES PEELED

Luke 17:22-37

22 Then he said to his disciples, "The time is coming when you will long to see one of the days of the Son of Man, but you will not see it. 23 Men will tell you, 'There he is!' or 'Here he is!' Do not go running off after them. 24 For the Son of Man in his day will be like the lightning, which flashes and lights up the sky from one end to the other. 25 But first he must suffer many things and be rejected by this generation. 26 "Just as it was in the days of Noah, so also will it be in the days of the Son of Man. 27 People were eating, drinking, marrying and being given in marriage up to the day Noah entered the ark. Then the flood came and destroyed them all. 28 "It was the same in the days of Lot. People were eating and drinking, buying and selling, planting and building. 29 But the day Lot left Sodom, fire and sulfur rained down from heaven and destroyed them all. 30 "It will be just like this on the day the Son of Man is revealed. 31 On that day no one who is on the roof of his house, with his goods inside, should go down to get them. Likewise, no one in the field should go back for anything. 32 Remember Lot's wife! 33 Whoever tries to keep his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life will preserve it. 34 I tell you, on that night two people will be in one bed; one will be taken and the other left. 35 Two women will be grinding grain together; one will be taken and the other left." 37 "Where, Lord?" they asked. He replied, "Where there is a dead body, there the vultures will gather." 

NIV

We know to look for the lighting and flashes of light across the sky because only the Lord God could cause such a display of power, and He and he alone is the one who will save us from the hour of trial for this earth. When we think of the many things Jesus must have suffered and that he was rejected by the Jews, at least those who thought they were the ones in authority, we are right at the time we remember his suffering, however, for some reason we call it, “Good Friday”. We have a brief description of his suffering at the hands of the Romans. Still, we do not think we truly grasp the horrific beating, the flogging that tore open his skin, and the humiliation of being nailed to a cross, naked, with people hurling insults, one by one there must have been more than we can even imagine that occurred from the hands of evil people, yet we call it, “Good Friday”. It is good because the fact remains that because Jesus went to the cross, and his blood was shed, our sins have been forgiven. We know that sounds selfish, that we are glad Jesus suffered and died in our place and took our shame upon himself. Perhaps the better way to describe our feelings is relieved, grateful, and humbled because of the love God demonstrated toward us while we were still sinners. We do have to remember what it costs for our redemption, to be reconciled with God, and at the same time be aware that we should not just live our daily lives eating and drinking, buying and selling, planting and building as if nothing else. There is nothing we can do to gain eternal life other than by faith in Jesus Christ, which is accepting Him as our Lord and Savior, always being aware that he will return for us with lightning and flashing across the sky. Although we must occupy, working for our sustenance, looking with one eye to provide our life on earth, yet with faith that Jesus is our provision and our provider, for our life here and there, while we keep one eye peeled on the Eastern sky, life up our head, for our redemption is drawing nigh.