35 “Stay dressed for action and keep your lamps burning, 36 and be like men who are waiting for their master to come home from the wedding feast, so that they may open the door to him at once when he comes and knocks. 37 Blessed are those servants whom the master finds awake when he comes. Truly, I say to you, he will dress himself for service and have them recline at table, and he will come and serve them. 38 If he comes in the second watch, or in the third, and finds them awake, blessed are those servants! 39 But know this, that if the master of the house had known at what hour the thief was coming, he would not have left his house to be broken into. 40 You also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.”

41 Peter said, “Lord, are you telling this parable for us or for all?” 42 And the Lord said, “Who then is the faithful and wise manager, whom his master will set over his household, to give them their portion of food at the proper time? 43 Blessed is that servant whom his master will find so doing when he comes. 44 Truly, I say to you, he will set him over all his possessions. 45 But if that servant says to himself, ‘My master is delayed in coming,’ and begins to beat the male and female servants, and to eat and drink and get drunk, 46 the master of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he does not know, and will cut him in pieces and put him with the unfaithful. 47 And that servant who knew his master's will but did not get ready or act according to his will, will receive a severe beating. 48 But the one who did not know, and did what deserved a beating, will receive a light beating. Everyone to whom much was given, of him much will be required, and from him to whom they entrusted much, they will demand the more.

What does it mean to be “awake” and waiting for your Master? Luke 12:37 says “Blessed are those servants whom the master finds awake when he comes. Truly, I say to you, he will dress himself for service and have them recline at table, and he will come and serve them.” In other words, the man with eternal blessing is the one who is awake, sober, alert, focused on Christ and His Kingdom, and always ready for his Master. He will be blessed, and Christ will serve Him and open up a seat at His table.

Luke 12:43 speaks of the man who initially waits for the Master, but then tires of His “delay.” He moves on to feed the desires of the flesh, and his unprepared heart leads to eternal destruction. 

Today perhaps more than ever it is very difficult to be singularly focused on one thing, the main thing, the only thing. Life is noisy— not only with inconsequential things, but even with good important things— family, children, work, studies, relationships, and so on and so forth. But they are all planets that revolve around the one Sun. There is only one star in this solar system. If you miss the star, you miss the main point.

Let me ask us to take (at least) 10 minutes today to set aside a quiet time, a quiet place, a time before God’s throne and presence, before the cross of our Savior, and ask our Master what really matters to Him in this life.

• What are His areas of focus for you?
• What are His desires for you?
• What is His will?

All other things aside from the answer to those questions are meaningless. We aren’t missing out on anything else (although it feels like it). With Christ in our crosshairs, with His presence and His glory as our singular target, the eternal weight of glory and richness is incalculable. Let’s pray for grace to be “awake” today, tomorrow, always, both in our own quiet closets and with our covenant body, or else we may be left unprepared.