“Blessed is that servant, whom his lord when he cometh shall find so doing. Of a truth I say unto you, that he will make him ruler over all that he hath. But and if that servant say in his heart, My lord delayeth his coming; and shall begin to beat the menservants and maidens, and to eat and drink, and to be drunken; The lord of that servant will come in a day when he looketh not for him, and at an hour when he is not aware, and will cut him in sunder, and will appoint him his portion with the unbelievers.” (Luke 12:43-46)
Jesus is returning soon. It may or may not be in our lifetime, but this does not mean we should not prepare for it. The reason being, Jesus will come when we least expect it. Death comes the same way, so don’t delay His coming or death. Not living for Jesus will not do you well in the end. When the Lord returns, He expects to see us doing work for His kingdom. If we say Jesus is delaying His return and live like the world, then He will appoint us with the unbelievers. To be appointed with unbelievers means that we will be punished along with them. The measure of our punishment is defined by what we know or don’t know in this life. And if a person is naïve and doesn’t know God’s will, but lives a sinful life, he will be judged much differently. This person, along with people in the faith that struggle with certain sins and were sorry for them, will have a punishment that ends. God is not cruel to cause people to be punished forever if they don’t deserve it.
“And that servant, which knew his lord’s will, and prepared not himself, neither did according to his will, shall be beaten with many stripes. But he that knew not, and did commit things worthy of stripes, shall be beaten with few stripes. For unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall be much required: and to whom men have committed much, of him they will ask the more.” (Luke 12:43-46)
God’s servants who knew God’s will, and prepared not, are beaten with many stripes. They are appointed with the unbelievers. However, those who knew not God’s will, and were sinful, will be beaten with few stripes. The same goes for people in the faith that struggle with certain types of sins, but know the Lord. God will punish them differently as we all fall into this category at times. This is like a punishment similar to purgatory, for those who were unaware of God’s will. The same goes for people who knew His but faced difficulties overcoming certain sins, while seeking forgiveness. This punishment is less than people in hell, for it has an end to it. What we know in this life will be used against us in the next. What we don’t know will not be used against us in the next. God expects more out of those who are aware of His will but fail to act, than from those who are unaware and live a sinful lifestyle. Thankfully, Jesus is the judge. He knows who doesn’t deserve to be punished forever and is saved. Amen.
