Turn with me, if you would, in the New Testament to the Gospel of Matthew in chapter 24, verses 29 through 51. And this is on page 830 in your pew Bibles. This is the first book in the New Testament in the 24th chapter. We'll begin reading at 29th verse. It is a strong conviction of mine that under every sermon, eternity is at stake. And that whenever the Word of God is read and proclaimed, people are making eternal decisions, one way or another. Firm belief of mine that the word always accomplishes its purpose, and it either hardens hearts or it softens hearts. But it doesn't leave us the same. Eternity is at stake under this text. As we read this text this morning, you're getting a glimpse into eternity. We started Matthew 24 last week, and we saw that this is Jesus' call to endurance. That between Jesus' first and second coming, there is nothing but trouble for the people of God. And we need to be aware of that. Our children need to be aware of that. And so Jesus, as we saw last week, He's preparing his disciples. He's preparing his church. Verses 4 through 28 that we saw last week. Jesus is saying tribulation is coming. Difficulty is coming. And one specific example of that difficulty is the destruction of Jerusalem. in A.D. 70, and so verses 4 through 28 are all about the difficulty between Jesus's first and second comings. One example of that difficulty is in verses 15 to 21. You have the destruction of Jerusalem. Jerusalem is the city that had rejected Christ. And so there will be judgment for the city. And so verses 15 through 21 are a very specific example of tribulation, but the destruction of Jerusalem, all that is that's a picture of the judgment of the final judgment that comes at the end of the age. And so our question last week was, how should we live in between the two comings of Christ, his first and second coming? Jesus warns us you need to guard the truth. You need to get ready for trouble. And you need to bear witness. This gospel of the kingdom must be proclaimed as a witness to all nations. This section we're going to read today, if last week was more of a call to endurance to the very end, and those who endure to the end shall be saved. If last week was a call to endurance, this week is a call to stay awake. to stay alert. Because no one knows the day or the hour. Here the disciples are asking about dates and times and seasons. When will this happen? When will your coming occur? And Jesus basically tells them, it's not for you to know. Jesus will not satisfy the impatience of men. He will not do it. We impatiently make demands. He's not going to answer that. Jesus is saying that between the first and second coming, your duty is stay awake. I invite you to turn with me to verse 29 of Matthew 24. We'll be reading through to verse 51. Immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened and the moon will not give its light and the stars will fall from heaven and the powers of the heavens will be shaken. Then will appear in heaven the sign of the Son of Man and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn And they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. And He will send out His angels with a loud trumpet call. And they will gather His elect from the four winds from one end of heaven to the other. From the fig tree, learn its lesson. As soon as its branch becomes tender and puts out its leaves, you know that summer is near. So also, when you see all these things, you know that He is near at the very gates. Truly, I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all these things take place. Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away. But concerning that day and hour, no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father only. For as were the days of Noah, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. For as in those days before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day when Noah entered the ark, and they were unaware until the flood came and swept them all away, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. Then two men will be in the field. One will be taken and one left. Two women will be grinding at the meal. One will be taken and one left. Therefore, stay awake, for you do not know on what day your Lord is coming. But know this, that if the master of the house had known in what part of the night the thief was coming, he would have stayed awake and would not have let his house be broken into. Therefore, you also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect. Who then? as the faithful and wise servant whom his master has set over his household to give them their food at the proper time. Blessed is that servant whom his master will find so doing when he comes. Truly, I say to you, he will set him over all his possessions, but If that wicked servant says to himself, my master is delayed and begins to beat his fellow servants and eats and drinks with drunkards, the master of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect him. At an hour, he does not know and will cut him in pieces. and put Him with the hypocrites, in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Amen. The grass withers and the flowers fade, but the Word of our God stands forever. This is a call to stay awake. The way Jesus is announcing these things, you have a vivid description of the coming of the Son of Man. You have a picture of the literal, physical, bodily second coming of Christ in verses 29 to 31. In verses 32 through 35, you have a lesson of the fig tree, and the lesson of the fig tree is When these things are happening, you need to be aware that the end is near. In verse 36, you have the statement of a general principle. Nobody knows when precisely this is going to happen. So, in verses 37 through 44, you have Jesus saying, you need to remain on your guard. You need to be watchful. You need to be on the lookout for the end, for the final days of the Son of Man. 45 through 51, you have Jesus really answering the question, what should we do? What should we be found doing when Christ returns on the clouds of heaven? It's an announcement, it's a declaration, it's a call to stay awake. So you look at verse 42. Therefore, stay awake, for you do not know on what day your Lord is coming. Now, why would Jesus make this imperative command? This is a command. Jesus's words are full of command. Why would he make this particular command to stay awake? Doesn't he know that our tendency is to fall asleep? Isn't this precisely what he's going to say? In the parable after this section, the parable of the ten virgins, stay awake, be on guard, be watchful. Is this not exactly what he had to tell his disciples in the Garden of Gethsemane? His disciples go with him on the evening before his crucifixion. And all Jesus wants is for them to pray with him. That's all He wants. All He wants is for them to stay awake and to pray with Him. Their eyes are heavy, their flesh is weak, and they fall asleep. And Jesus says, could you not watch with me for one hour? Watch and pray that you not fall into temptation. What is our problem? Our problem is spiritual sleepiness. Jesus knows exactly what sort of command we need. Stay away. The Apostle Paul, the way he will encourage the Corinthians, be on your guard. Stand firm in the faith, act like men, be strong. He knows that the Corinthians need commands like that because their tendency is to not be on guard. Their tendency is, The problem with the hearts of men is that we are weak. We're wobbly, we totter. Is this not the major problem facing the American church? I mean, across the board, what is the main problem facing the American church? We're sleepy. We are spiritually indifferent Apathetic. We give a whole host of attention, a vast amount of energy to other things in life except our spiritual life. Why is that? The reason is because the sin that is within us is just like a lullaby. Sin lulls us to sleep. Jesus knows this is our problem. He's urging us to stay awake and he's urging this because of our tendency to spiritual laziness and apathy. The church, I've said this before in sermons and conversations, the church is always one generation away. One generation away from extinction. And you look at church history and that is exactly, that is exactly true. A generation is lost and the gospel is gone in that particular location. And the Holy Spirit, in his sovereignty, in his determination, he takes the gospel elsewhere. This is an alarm to us. Stay awake, for you do not know on what day your Lord is coming. Two ways in which we stay awake as the people of God. And the first is we be aware. You stay aware. What does he say about the days of Noah in verse 39? They were unaware. So the very first thing that we do as the people of God is we are aware. Aware of what? We are aware that history is moving. That the machine of time is rolling. And these wheels don't stop. That history is moving towards a goal, towards an end point as we know it. Look with me at verses 29 to 31. Jesus's vivid description of His coming, He says, immediately after the tribulation of those days. What are those days? Well, He's speaking of the entire period of trouble between His first and second coming. One example of which is the destruction of Jerusalem. period of history here after the tribulation of those days. The sun will be darkened. The moon will not give its light. Y'all, this is not just a weather report. This is a prediction of judgment. This is Old Testament language. The very physical world and creation itself will groan and will break and will crack at the coming of the Son of Man. The sun will be darkened. The moon will not give its light. Stars will fall from heaven. The powers of the heavens will be shaken. And then will appear in heaven the sign of the Son of Man. This is His standard. This is His banner. The Lord Jesus Christ, in his first coming, he comes in humiliation. He comes in the form of a baby. He comes wrapped up in swaddling cloths. You know, needing to have his diaper changed. He comes as a baby. In his first coming, he comes and he has to grow physically. In His first coming, He is nailed to the cross by Roman spikes. In His first coming, He wears the crown of thorns on His head. In His first coming, He comes specifically in order to bleed. When He comes again, He's not coming to bleed. When He comes again, He wears a crown, but it's not the crown of thorns. It is the crown that is filled with the jewels. And those jewels are the names of His people. They're all there on His crown. And He's coming back with His angels and the archangels and all the saints on the other side. And they are returning as an army with banners. That's the sign. The sign is the banner, the standard, the flag of the Son of Man. And all the tribes of the earth, they mourn. They mourn because they missed it. They missed the opportunity. There are no conversions on the last day. And so the tribes of earth, they recognize that they missed They miss something precious. And they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory, and He will send out His angels a loud trumpet call. You know, this is what the Apostle Paul speaks of. This is the mystery he speaks of. That we're all going to be changed in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. We celebrate the resurrection on the Lord's Day, so you could spend some time reading through 1 Corinthians 15 this afternoon. That last trumpet sounds, and the dead are raised imperishable. But the Lord Himself descends, the way He encourages the Thessalonians. The Lord Himself descends with a cry of command. with the voice of an archangel, with the sound of the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will rise. That's what is being described here. The coming of the Son of Man. How do you stay awake? You stay aware of what's coming. History moves us. You notice the lesson of the fig tree? You see these signs and all these things happening. In other words, all the days of trouble, all the tribulation. Jesus is speaking to this particular generation right in front of Him. He's speaking to people who lived during that time. And He's saying, all these things I'm telling you about, you know, the part about being hated. That's the hard thing about being a Christian, isn't it? say hard things, and no one says thank you. You ever notice that? No one says thank you for saying hard things. Has that ever happened? It has never happened to me. I'll guarantee you. People don't say thanks for saying hard things. Jesus is saying all these things, being hated, being slandered, being misrepresented, being delivered up to death, being deceived, having false, all these things. He's talking to that generation saying all those things are going to happen to you. That's why he says in verse 34, this generation will not pass away until all these things take place. He's not talking about his second coming. Jesus was not mistaken. Jesus was not wrong in his timetable. He's not given a timetable. That's not his desire. He's not going to satisfy our impatient desire for dates and times. What he is saying is, this generation, the folks I'm talking to right now, is not going to pass away until all these troubles will come upon you. And that should move you. History should move you to stay ready. We have resolutions and goals that we set. I started thinking about my own personal resolutions I might make come January. I think resolutions are a good thing. I think our tendency is to make them and then not keep them, but I think they're a good thing. They help us to take stock of where we've been and where we're going. We set goals for ourselves personally, emotionally, spiritually, vocationally, That moves us. Jesus is setting a goal for you. He's setting a standard. He's setting a mark. This is what's going to happen. Do not be caught unaware. Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away. It gives you a general principle here. Concerning that day and hour, no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father only. No, Jesus is not saying, I don't know what's going on. That's not what Jesus is saying. Jesus is not saying, my Father is here and I am here. What He is saying is, In my humanity, two natures, one person, human nature, a divine nature in one person, that's our Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ. Even in my humanity, in my submission to the Father's will, even then, the date is not certain. Now y'all, in His divinity, His divine nature, His God nature, of course He knows all things. Of course He does. Always has, always will. But what's His point? He is answering questions of when and where by the disciples. He's saying, it's not for you to know. What you will receive and what he will tell his disciples in Acts chapter one is that you will receive power. And you'll be my witnesses. Are you willing? To rest. On the promises of God. If we're talking about staying awake and being aware here this morning, we're talking about These promises of the second coming. And we don't know when it happens. We know certain things have to happen before it happens, like the gospel is proclaimed to all the nations, but we don't know the exact day or hour. You're waiting on that call. And you don't know what your vocation is going to look like over the next year. And you're waiting. You don't know the day or the hour. You don't know what the next year holds for you. Are you willing to rest on the promises of God? Folks waiting on organ transplants have to deal with this very same thing. You know, you're waiting for a replacement. One of your innards. And you're waiting. You're waiting for that call. You don't know the day or the hour. Are you willing to rest on the promises of God? Are you willing to be ignorant? Or do you love control so much that you have to know? Are you willing to be at peace and rest in the promises of God? Well, the first way that we stay awake is we are simply aware. They were unaware in the days of Noah and they swept away. The second thing that we need to do if we are to stay awake is to be found faithful. If the first way in which we stay awake is we're simply aware and the awareness keeps our eyes open, Well, then the second way or manner in which we stay awake is we stay active. We stay faithful. You know, it's when you it's when you get idle that you start, you know, atrophy sets in, your muscles start to waste away. Verse 45, Jesus says, Who then is the faithful and wise servant whom his master has set over his household to give them their food at the proper time? I want you to notice in this whole section at the end of Matthew 24, verses 45 to 51, notice the ethical division that's going on. There are two types of people at the end of Matthew 24, there are those who are aware of the second coming and they're looking for it, they're waiting for it. And that moves them, that directs how they live. The other group, the second group, is unaware of the second coming, or if they are aware, they just don't care. There's that apathy thing again. Verse 46, blessed is that servant whom his master will find so doing when he comes. What does Jesus want his disciples to do? He wants them to be found faithful. Nothing fancy. I mean, there is nothing elaborate or complex here. Blessed is the servant who is found so doing when he comes. That's an ethical division. Truly, I say to you, he will set him over all his possessions. There's a reward for the righteous. You know, you need to hear this. Jesus does not overlook your work of faith and love and patience. He's not going to overlook that. What does he do with a faithful servant? He sets him over all his possessions. This very thought is what can stir you. It can wake you up. There is an ethical impulse here. But, if that wicked servant says to himself, He's speaking in the core of his being. He's speaking to his heart. Y'all, where does sin start? So much sin starts when we begin talking to ourselves. You ever notice that? You start talking to yourself and things start happening. Words start coming out. The wicked servant says to himself, what does he say? My master is delayed. I don't know when he's gone. He's gone. He's not around. Psalm 36. Transgression speaks to the wicked deep in his heart. There's no fear of God before his eyes. He flatters himself. That his sin will not be found out and hated. This wicked servant's flattering himself. Master's gone. He's delayed. He's a pretty lenient guy anyway. He begins to beat his fellow servants and eats and drinks with drunkards. The master of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect him. At an hour, he does not know. What was the wicked servant's problem? He did not have a vivid awareness that his master is coming back and he's going to have to give an account. Meditation on the second coming of Christ fuels a life of godliness. When the Holy Spirit creates a Christian, what is he doing? He has taken a sinner and he's cleaning him up. He's polishing this old stone and he's polishing it to be this perfect, spotless diamond. And you take a lump of coal, you work on that thing long enough, you polish up, it becomes a diamond. When the Holy Spirit makes a Christian, that's what He's doing. And He moves you to faith in the Son. He moves you to place your trust in the One who was crucified and resurrected. And when that happens, something on the inside changes. There's new life. Your heart's made new. And you're not only pardoned of sin, you are sanctified from sin, you are purified and purged and sin begins to be rooted out of you. There's an ethical division, and as you're aware that history is moving somewhere and that we're moving towards an end goal when the Son of Man returns. All of a sudden, I have no qualms about saying judgment, the last judgment, can be a very legitimate motivator. Here it is. You have the ethical division. Two groups of people. One is unaware and indifferent and doesn't care. And what happens? They beat their fellow servants. Why is it the Christians are so ugly to each other? We're indifferent. I don't care. Ethical division, those who are aware of the second coming and the accounting to be rendered. And those who are not. And so the master calls for an accounting. And verses 50 and 51, you have a graphic, a picture of hell, as you will find in the scriptures. He comes at an hour he does not know. We'll cut him in pieces and put him with the hypocrites. In that place, they'll be weeping and gnashing their teeth. Let me ask you this morning, are you ready? As we close this morning, I want you to answer this question in your own mind. Are you ready for the coming of the Son of Man? You can't be ready if you're at ease. You can't be ready if you're unaware. Are you ready? Are you ready to sing that song? When He shall come with trumpet sound, O may I then in Him be found, dressed in His righteousness alone, thoughtless, thoughtless to stand before the throne. Are you ready to sing that song? Christian, are you here this morning? Are you ready for the coming of the Son of Man? Do you long for this day? Do you ache for this day? Do you want to see that day? Do you have a desire to guard the truth? Do you treasure the truth? Do you embrace suffering, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put to shame, because God's love is poured into our hearts by the Holy Spirit. Christian, are you ready for that day? Believer in the Lord Jesus Christ, are you bearing witness? Are you testifying to the cross of your Savior, longing for the day when this gospel, the knowledge of the glory of Christ, covers the earth as the waters cover the sea? Are you aware, Christian, of this day? Yes, we get a little sleepy spiritually sometimes, but have you been awakened this morning? If you're here this morning and you are not a Christian and you have not professed faith in Christ as of yet. If you're here this morning and you are not in Christ, dear friend, you're hearing the alarm. Don't sleep through the alarm. Don't hit snooze on this one. Have you been awakened? Dear friend, if you are not a Christian here this morning, you need to hear the command to repent, to see your sin for what it is. And there is an accounting at the last day. Dear friend, I'm saying this to you for your good, not your bad. You need to hear the command to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ that you might be saved. Sing you to sleep this morning. Not physically necessarily, but spiritually. Sometimes physically. Sin would sing that spiritual lullaby to us. May we hear the call and answer and be ready for the Son of Man. Would you pray with me? O Lord Jesus, that today we would bow the knee to you as the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. O Lord, that we would be aware. And O God, that when you return, that we might be found faithful. O Lord, we thank you for a text such as this one, calling us to stay awake. And O Lord, we pray that Lord, that when we become drowsy, we pray that You would sound the alarm and draw us back. Lord, we love You, and we ask You would send us out from this place as heralds of the King, as burning, shining lights. In all this we pray, in Jesus' precious name, Amen.