Daily Devotional

A Ministry of the Kerwin Baptist Church

May 09, 2019

by Pastor Hawtree

BIBLE READING: MATTHEW 24

42 Watch therefore: for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come.
43 But know this, that if the goodman of the house had known in what watch the thief would come, he would have watched, and would not have suffered his house to be broken up.
44 Therefore be ye also ready: for in such an hour as ye think not the Son of man cometh.
45 Who then is a faithful and wise servant, whom his lord hath made ruler over his household, to give them meat in due season?
46 Blessed is that servant, whom his lord when he cometh shall find so doing.

We are basically given two commands in these verses. We are to “watch therefore”, and we are to “be Ye also ready”. This all centers around the fact that Jesus is coming again. We must be prepared, and we must be ready. I do find it interesting in the illustration given, that the way that the watchmen prepared for the Thief to come, was to give “meat” to the household in due season. This passage says that he would have watched closer so that the thief could not have penetrated, or broken through the secure barrier of his house, but when God tells us how to be a “faithful and wise servant”, He tells us to give our household “meat in due season”. Then God says that we will be blessed if He finds us being faithful to watch, prepare, and feed our household. It is a little confusing. What does giving meat to the family have to do with protection from a thief?

I was interested in the phrase “would not have suffered his house to be broken up.” The words “broken up” is really one word in the Greek. It means to penetrate, or to break through. You and I need spiritual “meat”, because our thief is constantly trying to break through the walls of protection around our families and churches. We are going to have to have energy to fight, and battle to hold up those barriers. If we are starved spiritually, we will have no energy to do spiritual battle. Dads, you need to feed your family spiritual meat in due season. God says you will be blessed if you are faithful to do so. Jesus could come at any time, so our time is short, and Satan knows it. We have no idea when the thief will hit our house, our marriage, our church, or our children next. So, we better be vigilant, prepared, and full of God’s Word when he does.