Storm Warning! - A Reflection on Luke 12:54-59


He also said to the crowds, “When you see a cloud rising in the west, you immediately say, ‘It is going to rain’; and so it happens. And when you see the south wind blowing, you say, ‘There will be scorching heat’; and it happens. You hypocrites! You know how to interpret the appearance of earth and sky, but why do you not know how to interpret the present time?

“And why do you not judge for yourselves what is right? Thus, when you go with your accuser before a magistrate, on the way make an effort to settle the case, or you may be dragged before the judge, and the judge hand you over to the officer, and the officer throw you in prison. I tell you, you will never get out until you have paid the very last penny.”

 

I have a question for you. If the weather forecast predicted a storm and you looked up and saw dark clouds in the sky, would you or would you not carry an umbrella with you if you were going out? You would, right? Why? Because you would want to be prepared when the storm hit. The next question is from Jesus. If you are wise enough to do this when it comes to facing natural storms, why are you not wise enough to prepare yourself for a far greater storm that is heading your way? This storm, of course, is the Final Judgment that will take place when Jesus comes for the second time. Are we prepared?

 

What is the preparation we need to make? In the context of this passage, the main thing we need to do is repent. Immediately after Jesus said these words, he spoke about a few Galileans that the ruler Pontius Pilate had just put to death. “Do you think that these Galileans were worse sinners than all the other Galileans because they suffered this way?”, Jesus asked. “I tell you, no! But unless you repent, you too will all perish” (Luke 12:2-3). We will be reflecting on this tomorrow, so I’ll speak about repentance then; let us talk today about our readiness for Final Judgment. 

 

If Jesus were to show up today, have we made our peace with him? Or are we still at war with him? Whenever we sin, we move against God. If we deliberately continue sinning we are engaged in a full scale rebellion. Two thousand years ago God came down from his throne to forgive us our trespasses and to give us new life. We are living today in times of grace and mercy. But before he left, he told us that he’d be back again, only this time it would be to judge men. 

 

And for some strange reason most of us don’t seem very bothered by it. Yes, we become concerned about dark clouds in the sky that foretell rain, but we don’t seem to be concerned with the darker clouds that are around us today. Let us not be foolish but take heed of them. I wrote a song a few years ago about the impending storm. It’s called “Rider on a White Horse” and is largely inspired by a few passages in Revelation 19. Please have a listen. 

 

Consider it a weather report. 

Here  it is: https://youtu.be/qWc01R0UiGo


Watch a video of this reflection by Aneel Aranha here: https://youtu.be/UQ67hfZKb9o


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