Jesus continues His teaching on His return and the end of the age by turning His disciples attention from the broad panorama of prophecy to the question of how His people should live in light of what is coming. The emphasis is not on knowing what will happen and when it will unfold, but on being prepared for the One who will come.
If there is a parable stressing the sense of urgency of our preparation, it is the parable of these ten virgins Jesus tells us about. Five were ready when the bridegroom unexpectedly arrives at midnight; five were not. When the foolish virgins finally returned, they cried, "Lord, lord, open up for us" (v. 11), but He answered, "I do not know you" (v. 12). The purpose of the Lord's response should reveal to us that the core issue was not about their failing to anticipate the proper timing of His arrival. The core issue is that their lack of preparation revealed that they did not belong to Him. And the sobering truth is that the opportunity for grace abounds among us right now, but Scripture is clear that there will come a time when grace will no longer be available to us. The door to God's mercy will be shut just like it was on these five virgins.
The parable of the talents reveals another danger: allowing a distorted view of God to turn what He has entrusted to us into a source of anxiety and paralysis rather than an opportunity for faithful stewardship. His provision and the talents and responsibilities He entrusts to us can become sources of crippling anxiety rather than opportunities to respond in faith. The third servant allowed himself to be deceived which produced a fearful response - hiding what belongs to God - a pattern we see echoing all throughout scripture. Deception produces fear, fear leads to hiding, and hiding keeps us from obeying what God has called us to do.
Jesus then brings his teaching on the Mount of Olives to an end with a humbling reminder of the judgement of God coming upon the nations. The Christ who first came in humility and mercy will return in glory and righteousness. The gentleness of Jesus should never be mistaken for indifference toward sin. The Savior is also the Judge, and His perfect justice means that wickedness will not be overlooked forever.
A day will come when men and women won't be given an option to surrender to God and bend the knee. A day will come when every knee is going to bow and every tongue is going to confess. And part of me laments for this day because I know the opportunity for grace is past, but part of me is so eager for sin to be dealt with in such a permanent way. I don't know what it's like to live in a world that is rid of the presence of sin, but I yearn for it. I yearn for a day when all be made right, for all eternity.
So even though I pray often for Jesus' return, I am thankful for His delay because the opportunity for mercy among us is so rich. While I wait, I find encouragement in the words of the Apostle Peter, "The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise...but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance." (2 Peter 3:9).