Jesus Said to Stay Awake and Be Watchful: Are You Ready? (Luke 21:34-36)

Discover the powerful call to vigilance. Jesus commands us to "stay awake and be watchful" so that we are always ready for His return. In this message, learn how being alert—watching rather than merely predicting—produces obedience and prevents disobedience. Drawing on teachings from Luke 21 and other prophetic scriptures, this sermon challenges us to live each day in anticipation of Christ’s imminent return. Learn how spiritual watchfulness can transform your life and prepare your heart for the blessed hope of His coming. https://youtu.be/Pg3hPQBSasg Table of contentsJesus Said We Can Tell When His Return Is NearBe Watchful Versus PredictingAvoiding Being Weighed Down By Dissipation, Drunkenness, and the Cares of this LifeBeing Watchful for Christ’s Return Produces ObedienceIgnoring Christ’s Return Leads to DisobediencePray (Stay Awake) to Escape TemptationChrist Expects Us to Stay Awake SpirituallyThe Relationship Between Staying Awake and PrayingEvery Generation Is Supposed to Believe They’re the LastChrist Returns Soon or Quickly?Regardless of When Jesus Returns I was always happy to see my students read C.S. Lewis’s The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe when I taught elementary school. I loved the allusions to Christianity, and Aslan remains one of my favorite fictional pictures or types of Christ. Consider this exchange between Susan and Mr. Beaver about Aslan: “Who is Aslan?” asked Susan.“Aslan?” said Mr. Beaver, “Why don’t you know? He’s the King. It is he, not you, that will save Mr. Tumnus.”“Isis he a man?” asked Lucy.“Aslan a man!” said Mr. Beaver sternly. “Certainly not. I tell you he is the King of the wood and the son of the great Emperor-Beyond-the-Sea. Don’t you know who is the King of Beasts? Aslan is a lionthe Lion, the great Lion.”“Ooh!” said Susan. “I’d thought he was a man. Is hequite safe? I shall feel rather nervous about meeting a lion.”“That you will, dearie, and no mistake,” said Mrs. Beaver, “if there’s anyone who can appear before Aslan without their knees knocking, they’re either braver than most or else just silly.”“Then he isn’t safe?” said Lucy.“Safe?” said Mr. Beaver. “Don’t you hear what Mrs. Beaver tells you? Who said anything about safe? ’Course he isn’t safe. But he’s good. He’s the King, I tell you.”“I’m longing to see him,” said Peter, “even if I do feel frightened when it comes to the point.”1 I like how Mr. Beaver describes Aslan: not safe but good. I also like how Susan describes seeing Aslan as frightened but still longing to see him. As we come to the end of the Olivet Discourse and think about Christ’s return, maybe this is how we feel about seeing Him, too. Later in the book, I believe C.S. Lewis was trying to convey a lesson about readiness when Peter faces his first battle against a monstrous wolf that threatens all the creatures and the children. Peter is afraid, yet he charges at the monster anyway and kills it after a fierce struggle. Out of breath but relieved, Peter turns and sees Aslan “close at hand.” Aslan immediately says, “You have forgotten to clean your sword.” Blushing, Peter notices that the sword is “smeared with the wolf's hair and blood,” so he bends to wipe it clean. After this, Aslan knights Peter and says, “Rise up, Sir Peter Wolf’s-Bane. And whatever happens, never forget to wipe your sword.” I believe Aslan was trying to teach Peter a lesson about being prepared. Jesus does the same in this morning’s verses. Of all the ways Jesus could conclude the Olivet Discourse, He tells us to do two things: stay awake and be watchful. Jesus Said We Can Tell When His Return Is Near Consider this theme that sets up this morning’s verses. In Luke 21:8-11 Jesus looked to the far future and described the birth pains that precede His Second Coming, or precede the birth. He said there would be false christs, wars, and tumults. Then, in Luke 21:25-27 He described more signs associated with His Second Coming: Luke 21:25 “And there will be signs in sun and moon and stars, and on the earth distress of nations in perplexity because of the roaring of the sea and the waves, 26 people fainting with fear and with foreboding of what is coming on the world. For the powers of the heavens will be shaken. These are called signs because, like our signs, they point to something, in this case, Christ’s return. They help us identify when the Second Coming is close. Jesus is so intent on us looking for His return that in the following verses, He preached the parable of the fig tree, which is all about looking for His return. Toward the end of the Olivet Discourse, Jesus made two statements about knowing when His return is near: Luke 21:28 Now when these things begin to take place, straighten up and raise your heads, because your redemption is drawing near.” Luke 21:31 So also, when you see these things taking place, you know that the kingdom of God is near. So, Jesus told us we can tell when He will be returning. How do we reconcile this with Jesus also saying: Matthew 24:36 “Concerning that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father only…42 Stay awake, for you do not know on what day your Lord is coming…44 You also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect. Jesus said nobody knows, not even Him, during His First Coming. The Parable of the Ten Virgins is primarily about preparing for Christ to come for His bride. We don’t know when that will happen. The bridegroom comes, the foolish virgins aren’t ready, and Jesus ends the parable this way: Matthew 25:11 [The foolish] virgins [said], “Lord, lord, open to us.” 12 But he answered, “Truly, I say to you, I do not know you.” 13 Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour. Be Watchful Versus Predicting So, on the one hand, Jesus says we can tell when His return is near, but on the other hand, He says nobody knows. How do we resolve this tension? We should focus on being watchful versus predicting. This is why the most common simile for Jesus’s return is a thief in the night: 1 Thessalonians 5:2 The day of the Lord will come LIKE A THIEF IN THE NIGHT. 2 Peter 3:10 The day of the Lord will come LIKE A THIEF… Revelation 3:3 I will come LIKE A THIEF, and you will not know at what hour I will come against you. Revelation 16:15 “Behold, I am coming LIKE A THIEF! Blessed is the one who stays awake. We don’t know when a thief will strike, but if we did, we would do two things: stay awake and be watchful. Similarly, we don’t know when Christ will return, but if we know He will, we will do two things: stay awake and be watchful, which is precisely what Jesus says in the following verses: Luke 21:34 “But watch yourselves lest your hearts be weighed down with dissipation and drunkenness and cares of this life, and that day come upon you suddenly like a trap. 35 For it will come upon all who dwell on the face of the whole earth. Avoiding Being Weighed Down By Dissipation, Drunkenness, and the Cares of this Life Jesus listed three things that can make us unprepared for His return: dissipation, or some Bibles say carousing, drunkenness, and the cares of this life. We know what drunkenness is. Let’s talk about the other two. The Greek word for dissipation is kraipalē; this is the only place it occurs in Scripture and refers to the hangover caused by drunkenness. Of all the things Jesus could list that would keep us from being prepared for His return, why did He mention these two? Jesus is talking about staying awake and being watchful, and being drunk or hungover is the opposite. Jesus also mentioned the cares of this life, which might seem strange because it is reasonable to care about this life. He’s likely warning against caring too much about this life. If we are too focused on this life, we won’t think about Christ’s return. Being Watchful for Christ’s Return Produces Obedience We might expect Jesus to tell us to be watchful for His return, but instead, He told us to watch ourselves. There is a strong relationship between being watchful for Christ’s return and watching ourselves: 1 John 3:2 We know that when [Christ] appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is. 3 And everyone who thus hopes in him purifies himself as he is pure. Everyone who looks forward to Christ appearing or returning will purify themselves. D.L. Moody wrote, “The moment a man realizes that Jesus Christ is coming back again to receive His followers to Himself, this world loses its hold upon him. Gas stocks and water stocks and stocks in banks and railroads are a very much less consequence to him then. His heart is free, and he looks for the blessed appearing of his Lord, who, at His coming, will take him into His blessed kingdom.”2 When we think about resisting temptation and overcoming sin, we know we have many tools: we read or memorize verses that convict us about that sin we pray that God helps us resist that temptation we reach out to someone to help us be accountable Focusing on Christ’s return should be added to the list because it is a strong deterrent to sin. Anyone looking forward to Christ’s return will, as Jesus said, be watchful themselves. I still remember my first pastor’s wife saying, “If Christ returned during my lifetime, would I want Him to see me doing whatever I am doing?” I didn’t take that to mean that she thought she had to be praying or reading the Bible every minute, but I did take it to mean that she didn’t want to be doing anything she would be ashamed of when she met Christ. Ignoring Christ’s Return Leads to Disobedience The other side is that if we don’t believe Jesus could return soon, it will also impact our lives. This isn’t just my opinion; it’s precisely what Jesus taught earlier.