Luke 12:35-53

Luke 12:35-53 (The Message)
When the Master Shows Up 35-38"Keep your shirts on; keep the lights on! Be like house servants waiting for their master to come back from his honeymoon, awake and ready to open the door when he arrives and knocks. Lucky the servants whom the master finds on watch! He‘ll put on an apron, sit them at the table, and serve them a meal, sharing his wedding feast with them. It doesn‘t matter what time of the night he arrives; they‘re awake—and so blessed!
39-40"You know that if the house owner had known what night the burglar was coming, he wouldn‘t have stayed out late and left the place unlocked. So don‘t you be slovenly and careless. Just when you don‘t expect him, the Son of Man will show up." 41Peter said, "Master, are you telling this story just for us? Or is it for everybody?" 42-46The Master said, "Let me ask you: Who is the dependable manager, full of common sense, that the master puts in charge of his staff to feed them well and on time? He is a blessed man if when the master shows up he‘s doing his job. But if he says to himself, ‘The master is certainly taking his time,’ begins maltreating the servants and maids, throws parties for his friends, and gets drunk, the master will walk in when he least expects it, give him the thrashing of his life, and put him back in the kitchen peeling potatoes. 47-48"The servant who knows what his master wants and ignores it, or insolently does whatever he pleases, will be thoroughly thrashed. But if he does a poor job through ignorance, he‘ll get off with a slap on the hand. Great gifts mean great responsibilities; greater gifts, greater responsibilities!To Start a Fire 49-53"I‘ve come to start a fire on this earth—how I wish it were blazing right now! I‘ve come to change everything, turn everything rightside up—how I long for it to be finished! Do you think I came to smooth things over and make everything nice? Not so. I‘ve come to disrupt and confront! From now on, when you find five in a house, it will be—
Three against two, and two against three; Father against son, and son against father; Mother against daughter, and daughter against mother; Mother-in-law against bride, and bride against mother-in-law."Devotion: The story in the beginning is an analogy for us. Jesus is the master in the story. He left earth after His resurrection (Mark 16:19) but He will be coming back to earth again. And when He returns, He will want to know what we, as His managers have been doing with our time. Are we looking forward to His return, ready to open the door for Him, so to speak? Have we been using our time wisely, making the most of every day? Or have we been focused on the smaller picture, and get caught up in the day-to-day tasks and forget about Jesus altogether?
We know Jesus wants us to serve Him, represent Him, and love others like He would. It can be easy to forget amongst busy schedules, taxiing kids back and forth, work, paying bills, worrying about money, etc. But He has come to change everything, to turn everything rightside up, including our lives and priorities. Focus your thoughts on Him, and He‘ll do just that, so we can be ready for His return.
Prayer: Jesus, thank you for the ways You‘re always teaching me. I‘m glad You‘re coming back, and I want to be ready. Help me to look forward to that time, and live my life today as a good manager over the things You have given me. Amen.