HOST: Ron House
SPONSOR: Start2Finish
“But watch yourselves lest your hearts be weighed down with dissipation and drunkenness and cares of this life, and that day come upon you suddenly like a trap. For it will come upon all who dwell on the face of the whole earth. But stay awake at all times, praying that you may have strength to escape all these things that are going to take place, and to stand before the Son of Man.” And every day he was teaching in the temple, but at night he went out and lodged on the mount called Olivet. And early in the morning all the people came to him in the temple to hear him.
As I read this passage, my eye is immediately drawn to the phrase, “Lest your hearts be weighed down.” Jesus, still speaking about the end of time and His return, is warning His listeners not to become distracted by the things of this world so that they are not prepared for His coming. But this phrase indicates that Jesus was warning about more than just a simple lack of awareness or watchfulness. He was warning about the danger of allowing the cares and temptations of life to fill up their hearts and keep them from being devoted to God. Once again, the focus of Jesus’ teaching is on the heart. It may be that we don’t often see how participating in the pleasures of life can be detrimental to our spiritual well-being. We make a distinction between the physical and spiritual and don’t understand the close connection. But as Jesus teaches, the physical things that we participate in and make a part of our lives have an indelible impact on our hearts. What we do affects where our hearts are, and where our hearts are define our lives and relationship with God.
How can the cares of life “weigh down” our hearts?
Don’t forget to pray and have a great day!
