Imagine waking up tomorrow morning with absolute certainty that Jesus will return at 5:00 that afternoon. There would be no speculation about signs and no uncertainty about prophecy. We would know that before the day ended, we would see Jesus.
How would we spend those final hours?
We might begin the morning in prayer, but it would probably be different from the hurried prayers we sometimes offer while thinking about everything else we need to do. We might confess sins we have excused, make the apology we have postponed, or call someone we have avoided because neither of us would take the first step.
The resentment we have carried might suddenly feel too heavy to hold for one more hour. Yesterday’s temptation might lose its appeal, and the argument we were determined to win might no longer matter. We might speak more gently to our spouse, listen more patiently to our children, treat a coworker with greater compassion, and become more generous with our possessions and time. A great deal could change before lunch.
But the most revealing question would not be what we changed. It would be why we changed it. Would we suddenly live differently because our hearts had been transformed through allegiance to King Jesus? Or would we change because the approaching deadline had finally made obedience serve our own interests?
A countdown can change our behavior without changing our allegiance.
The fear of judgment can make us drop a sin temporarily. The desire to enter heaven can make us perform acts of kindness. Knowing Jesus is only hours away can make us appear remarkably faithful for one day. But temporary compliance is not transformation. Transformation is revealed when the lordship of Jesus reshapes the ordinary direction of our lives, even when no countdown is visible.
Jesus did not die merely so we could escape what happens when the clock reaches five. He died and was raised so that we would no longer live for ourselves.
Paul wrote:
“and he died for all, that those who live might no longer live for themselves but for him who for their sake died and was raised.” (2 Corinthians 5:15 ESV)
That is the life of allegiance. We no longer live primarily for ourselves. Our decisions are no longer governed only by what pleases us, protects us, advances us, or makes us comfortable. We begin living for the One who died and was raised for us.
That does not mean we become perfect. It means our lives belong to someone other than ourselves. King Jesus has our loyalty. His will increasingly shapes our choices, His character becomes what we desire, and His kingdom becomes more important than building our own. When we sin, we do not defend it as our right. We confess it because it betrays the allegiance we sincerely desire to live out.
This is why Jesus’ parable of the ten virgins is such a sobering picture of readiness. All ten knew the bridegroom was coming. All ten went out to meet him. All ten carried lamps, and all ten became tired while they waited.
“As the bridegroom was delayed, they all became drowsy and slept.” (Matthew 25:5 ESV)
The five wise virgins were not distinguished by sleepless perfection. They had prepared to remain ready through the delay. The five foolish virgins also wanted to enter the wedding feast, but their last-minute frenzy could not create what should have already been present.
“And while they were going to buy, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the marriage feast, and the door was shut.” (Matthew 25:10 ESV)
The door was shut.
We should not soften those words until they lose their warning. Jesus did not tell this parable merely to create an interesting discussion about the end times. He told it because there is an urgency to following Him that we cannot safely postpone. There will be a moment when preparation is no longer possible, and our intentions to repent, surrender, forgive, reconcile, and pledge our allegiance to King Jesus will be exposed as no substitute for having done so.
Jesus concluded:
“Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour.” (Matthew 25:13 ESV)
The warning is severe, but it is also pastoral. Jesus gives us the warning before the door is shut. He tells us now because there is still time to respond. He exposes our delayed obedience because He loves us too much to allow us to confuse good intentions with readiness.
Paul wrote:
“For he says,
‘In a favorable time I listened to you,
and in a day of salvation I have helped you.’
Behold, now is the favorable time; behold, now is the day of salvation.” (2 Corinthians 6:2 ESV)
Now is the time.
Not because we know Jesus will return at five today. We do not know the day or the hour. Now is the time because we know He is returning. The danger is not that the grace of Jesus is insufficient to save us. His grace is greater than all our sin. The danger is presuming upon that grace while continuing to reserve our allegiance for ourselves.
We tell ourselves we will become serious about Jesus later. We will forgive when the wound hurts less, confess when the risk is smaller, abandon the sin after one more indulgence, and serve when our schedule becomes less crowded. We will give when we feel more secure and surrender when obedience no longer costs so much. We assume there will always be another hour.
But what if there is not?
The announcement that Jesus will return at five would not change the truth. It would only make the truth impossible for us to ignore. Jesus is already King, and He already has rightful claim over our lives. His commands are already worthy of our obedience. The people around us already need our patience, mercy, forgiveness, and love. The sin we would abandon at four is already destroying something at ten. The apology we would make at noon is already needed at nine. The allegiance we would pledge during the final hour is already owed to the King who died and was raised for us.
If knowing Jesus would return at five changes the way we live at ten, the problem is not that we lack information about His return. The problem is that we have allowed the uncertainty of when He will return to weaken the certainty that He will return.
Still, this post is not asking whether we could produce one flawless day for Jesus. None of us could. Even if we knew the exact hour, we would still have regrets. We would remember opportunities we missed, people we hurt, prayers we neglected, and acts of obedience we delayed. A final day of frantic activity could never erase a lifetime of sin or make us worthy to stand before the King.
Our peace is not found in convincing ourselves that we have obeyed perfectly. John wrote:
“If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” (1 John 1:9 ESV)
Our peace is found in the faithful King to whom we have given our allegiance. We trust what He has done, depend upon His mercy, and continue living toward Him. Wholehearted allegiance does not mean flawless obedience. It means Jesus has our yes. When we fall, we turn back toward Him. When we sin, we confess rather than hide. When He corrects us, we yield rather than harden our hearts. When obedience is costly, we remember that the One calling us is the King who gave Himself for us.
John gives us a beautiful picture of the confidence this produces:
“And now, little children, abide in him, so that when he appears we may have confidence and not shrink from him in shame at his coming.” (1 John 2:28 ESV)
John does not tell us to wait until the final hour and panic. He tells us to abide in Jesus now. That is how we become the people we want to be when five o’clock approaches.
The person standing at 4:59 will not be created by the final minute. That moment will reveal the person we have been becoming through our daily allegiance to King Jesus.
If we spend the ordinary hours living for ourselves, the final hours may become a desperate attempt to save ourselves. But if we spend the ordinary hours learning to trust, love, obey, and abide in Jesus, then the approaching hour will carry something more than fear. It will carry anticipation.
This does not mean a faithful follower would have nothing to do during those final hours. We might still make an apology, confess a sin, repair a wrong, share the gospel, serve someone, or hold our family especially close. But we would not be trying to build an entire life of allegiance in one afternoon. We would simply be finishing the day the same way we had learned to live it, by honoring our King.
The transactional person sees the final hours primarily as one last opportunity to escape judgment. The transformed person sees them as one last opportunity to honor the King before seeing Him face-to-face. As five o’clock approaches, would we be overwhelmed by the frenzy of trying to make ourselves presentable? Or could we look toward His arrival with the solemn joy of knowing that the King we have been living for is finally coming?
Paul could say:
“For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.” (Philippians 1:21 ESV)
John heard Jesus promise, “Surely I am coming soon.” His answer was:
“Amen. Come, Lord Jesus!” (Revelation 22:20 ESV)
Those are not the words of people who believed they had achieved perfect obedience. They are the words of people who knew whom they belonged to. Who we will be when five o’clock approaches is being formed by whom we are living for today.
Now is the time to become people who can meet that hour, not with the frenzy of trying to save ourselves, but with the peace of knowing the King who is coming. Then His return will not merely be a deadline we fear. It will be the arrival we have learned to anticipate.
As you sit with this teaching today, consider what you would immediately change if you knew Jesus would return at five. If you already know that change is needed, why are you waiting for a visible countdown? Is your life increasingly being shaped by wholehearted allegiance to King Jesus, or are there areas you are still reserving for yourself?
If you are willing, share your reflections or questions in the comments so we can learn and walk this journey together.
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