Mark 13:33-37 – Be watchful and faithful

Rounding up Mark 13, we see the Lord’s call to be both watchful and faithful. He had said that no one knows the timing of His return. Yet many people today are engaged in speculating when He will return. This is exactly what the Lord does not want us to do. The purpose of telling us that His return is a closely guarded secret is to keep us alert and anticipating. Notice that in these five verses this word “alert” is used four times: verses 33, 34, 35 and 37. The “alert” in verse 33 is a call to be discerning and aware. The next three times the word “alert” has a different meaning. It carries the meaning of being watchful and yet at the same time being faithful.

Verse 33 says, “Take heed, keep on the alert; for you do not know when the appointed time will come.” He was calling on believers to be discerning and be aware of what’s going on. And having made the call, He proceeded to tell a story to remind His disciples and us, to exercise faithful discipleship while waiting for His coming.

The story tells of a master who would be going for a long journey. Prior to his journey he summoned his servants and put them in charge of various tasks. He specially told the doorkeeper to stay on the alert for the master could return anytime.  The doorkeeper was expected to be at his post, alert, awake and guarding. He could be susceptible to tiredness or to the enemies’ attack. He might even be lured by temptation and found deserting his post. Or He might even desert his post because of disloyalty in times of danger and crisis, and switch allegiance.

Notice the Lord developed his story around the four watches of the Roman night: evening – 6 to 9 pm; midnight – 9 pm to 12 midnight; rooster crows - midnight to 3 am; and morning - 3 to 6 am. We will see that the events that would happen soon happened around these watches. In the evening at the upper room; at midnight in Gethsemane; rooster crows in the home of the high priest; and morning before Pilate. It also appears as if the Lord was also hinting to the disciples what they would be doing - the betrayal of Judas; the inner circle sleeping in prayer at Gethsemane; the denial of Peter; the desertion after the Lord’s arrest, and etc.  

The call of the Lord to them and us is to stay alert, be discerning and be faithful. There will be situations that we will encounter in life that may distract us and cause us to compromise, while awaiting for His return. We must be careful not to be lured into thinking that it’s still a long way before He will come back, and start to engage in activities that will made us lose our focus, and become unfaithful in our service and walk with Him.       

O for a closer walk with God, a calm and heavenly frame,
A light to shine upon the road, that leads me to the Lamb!