More on Bible

I had a pre-marriage counseling session the other day. As we discussed one of the topics which I always look at, "how will you spend the holidays?", the couple shared that because he is a pilot, he is often out of town. Then he said, "I am always off on Christmas Day, it's just that I might be in a hotel somewhere when I am off."

When I was a younger man an American President made the following statement: "It depends on what the meaning of "is" is." I knew, of course, that this intelligent and well educated man was correct. I did not respect him for it, but his point was spot on. The definition of words is important. Just like my pilot friend above. He is "off" on Christmas, but it depends what the word "off" means. In his case, it did not mean "home with nothing to do" it simply meant he would not be in the air.

Jesus tells us (Mark 13:37) to "Keep Awake!" What does He mean? Last night the baby stirred several times, I heard and woke. In one case he was already with momma, in the other two, he was just tossing in his sleep. No one thinks that Jesus meant that, i.e., not sleeping at night. Most of us know that it means be alert, be watchful, live life in anticipation of the coming Kingdom. But here is my question, "What does being alert mean on a day by day basis?"

We are like Secret Service agents, each moment of every day we are supposed to be on the ready for 'the event' and we are to scan the horizon for signs. The problem is, it is hard to be alert and on the ready at every moment. It is also important to determine what "be awake" means to Jesus. Our assumptions about grace & works, about human & divine causality, about church & individual will all impact how we shape and define being alert/watchful/awake. In light of our human condition, that is unavoidable. But in light of Jesus' command, it is not optional. It also seems important enough that we need to get it right. My assumption is watchfulness is related to being a student of Scripture, praying and serving others in anticipation. It also means looking to God's Great Act. How about you?