Some have used this passage to make a claim for a rapture wherein the righteous are immediately taken to a different Heavenly place. But such a use is cherry-picking the passage without noting Jesus’ comparison to the flood. At the flood, the righteous stayed on earth and it was the unrighteous that disappeared.
But there are more important things in this passage. It’s a continuation of Jesus’ warning and call to faithful discipleship in difficult times.
Jesus’ point here is not about creating charts or calendars of the end. His point is about faithfulness in the meantime. The flood came suddenly, ordinary life was interrupted, and people were swept away. That same element of surprise will mark the coming of the Son of Man.
Readiness, then, is not about anxious watching but about faithful living. It is being the servant who keeps at the work entrusted to them - caring, loving, serving - even when it feels like the master is delayed. The alternative is the servant who uses the time for selfish gain, who exploits others, and who is caught off guard when the master returns.
Jesus calls his disciples to live today as though tomorrow is the day. Not in fear, but in faithful persistence.
How often do we actually think about the possibility of tomorrow being the day?
Matthew 24:36-51
“But nobody knows when that day or hour will come, not the heavenly angels and not the Son. Only the Father knows. As it was in the time of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the Human One. In those days before the flood, people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day Noah entered the ark. They didn’t know what was happening until the flood came and swept them all away. The coming of the Human One will be like that. At that time there will be two men in the field. One will be taken and the other left. Two women will be grinding at the mill. One will be taken and the other left. Therefore, stay alert! You don’t know what day the Lord is coming. But you understand that if the head of the house knew at what time the thief would come, he would keep alert and wouldn’t allow the thief to break into his house. Therefore, you also should be prepared, because the Human One will come at a time you don’t know.
“Who then are the faithful and wise servants whom their master puts in charge of giving food at the right time to those who live in his house? Happy are those servants whom the master finds fulfilling their responsibilities when he comes. I assure you that he will put them in charge of all his possessions. But suppose those bad servants should say to themselves, My master won’t come until later. And suppose they began to beat their fellow servants and to eat and drink with the drunks? The master of those servants will come on a day when they are not expecting him, at a time they couldn’t predict. He will cut them in pieces and put them in a place with the hypocrites. People there will be weeping and grinding their teeth.
Psalm 130:5-6
I hope, Lord. My whole being hopes, and I wait for God’s promise. My whole being waits for my Lord—more than the night watch waits for morning; yes, more than the night watch waits for morning!
Prayer
God,
You tell me to stay ready. Honestly, I don’t always know what that means. I get tired of waiting. I get distracted. I want to live like I have all the time in the world. All the pressures of finances, retirement, insurance…none of these are great helps for living in the moment.
Help me to stay faithful in the little things to love, to serve, to pray, even when nothing feels urgent.
By your Spirit & in Christ,
Amen.