SIGNS OF THE TIMES

SIGNS OF THE TIMES

And he said also to the people, When ye see a cloud rise out of the west, straightway ye say, There cometh a shower; and so it is.

And when ye see the south wind blow, ye say, There will be heat; and it cometh to pass.

Ye hypocrites, ye can discern the face of the sky and of the earth; but how is it that ye do not discern this time?

Luke 12: 54-56

Jesus speaks in the above verses of our ability to do a simple thing.  We can go outside, take a look at the sky, and see storm clouds coming from the west, the direction we usually get our weather from.  We can tell from this simple observation that there will be rain.  Similarly, when we feel the wind coming from the south, we usually understand that we will experience a warm up, or heat.  I remember living in Chicago and experiencing this heat from the south phenomenon quite abruptly when, the winds changed direction and suddenly the temperature might rise dramatically when a warm front passed through.  Winds from the north were usually cooler, and a wind from the south would usually bring heat.

Jesus goes so far as to call us hypocrites if we can make these simple observations of the weather, and yet, cannot detect the signs of the times we are living in.  Jesus seems to be saying, look, you ought to be able to discern the time as well as we discern the weather.  He is saying, apparently, that this discernment should be simple, and easy, just like discerning when it is going to rain.

The context of Jesus' statement is the preceding verses in Luke Chapter 12.  Jesus talks about how we are to be watchful so that His return does not catch up off guard.  He says in verses 35 to 40 that we are to have our "lights burning" to be "waiting" for his "return",  He tells us to "be ready" "for the son of man cometh at an hour when ye think not". 

Sometimes storms blow up suddenly, or the weather changes with little warning.  Yet, if we are watching, paying attention, we will still see it coming.  We will be ready because we are expecting it, we know that Jesus can bring a storm into this world at anytime,  and we don't want to be caught off guard.

Daily Bible Reading and Study Report

SEPTEMBER/30/2013

READ:

1 Chronicles 13-14

Ezekiel Chapter 26

Luke Chapter 23

Bible Study:  30 minutes

Daily Prayer Report

SEPTEMBER/30/2013

Evening Prayer:  15 minutes

Morning Prayer:  30 minutes

Noon Prayer:       15 minutes  

(DEER)

Daily Exercise Report

SEPTEMBER/30/2013

Pull Ups - 20

Crunches - 100

Ab Work (Crunches, leg lifts, bicycling legs) - 4 minutes

Push Ups - 68

PRAYER

Lord, help me to be watchful, and discerning of the times we live in.  I don't want to be a hypocrite.  In Jesus Name, Amen.