by Pastor Greg Laurie
"Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour in which the Son of Man is coming."
—Matthew 25:13
Some years ago, I was asked to speak at an event called Promise Keepers. I was flying out of LAX, and that morning, I called ahead to make sure everything was on schedule. Much to my surprise, they had moved up my flight by one hour. (I didn't even know they could do that.)
So I got there, parked my car, and was literally sprinting to the gate. They were shutting the door just as I arrived. So I went up to the airline employee and said, "Ma'am, please. I have to get on that plane. I have a speaking engagement to a bunch of men."
"I am sorry," she said. "The flight boarding is over."
I could see the plane was sitting there, and the Jetway was still attached to the plane. I said, "Ma'am, it is still there. I can get on."
"I'm sorry, sir. Step away from the gate."
"Okay, ma'am. I really—I am going to speak to 50,000 men." But there was nothing I could say to change her mind. The door was shut, and I was too late.
There is coming a day when it will be too late to get ready for eternity, and the door will be shut to heaven. There is coming a day when Christ will come back, and if we are not prepared, we will miss it.
Jesus said, "Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour in which the Son of Man is coming" (Matthew 25:13). What does it mean to watch? It doesn't mean that we are supposed to quit our jobs or divorce our spouses as some people did when they thought they knew the actual date of the Lord's return. To watch is to be prepared. You make your arrangements ahead of time.
"Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour in which the Son of Man is coming."
—Matthew 25:13
Some years ago, I was asked to speak at an event called Promise Keepers. I was flying out of LAX, and that morning, I called ahead to make sure everything was on schedule. Much to my surprise, they had moved up my flight by one hour. (I didn't even know they could do that.)
So I got there, parked my car, and was literally sprinting to the gate. They were shutting the door just as I arrived. So I went up to the airline employee and said, "Ma'am, please. I have to get on that plane. I have a speaking engagement to a bunch of men."
"I am sorry," she said. "The flight boarding is over."
I could see the plane was sitting there, and the Jetway was still attached to the plane. I said, "Ma'am, it is still there. I can get on."
"I'm sorry, sir. Step away from the gate."
"Okay, ma'am. I really—I am going to speak to 50,000 men." But there was nothing I could say to change her mind. The door was shut, and I was too late.
There is coming a day when it will be too late to get ready for eternity, and the door will be shut to heaven. There is coming a day when Christ will come back, and if we are not prepared, we will miss it.
Jesus said, "Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour in which the Son of Man is coming" (Matthew 25:13). What does it mean to watch? It doesn't mean that we are supposed to quit our jobs or divorce our spouses as some people did when they thought they knew the actual date of the Lord's return. To watch is to be prepared. You make your arrangements ahead of time.