Discover The Word

IDEA: The return of Jesus Christ should not only keep us watching but find us working. TEXT: Matthew 24:45-51; Matthew 25:1-13; Matthew 25:14-30

PURPOSE: To help listeners understand that believing in the return of Jesus Christ has consequences for the way we live.

Do you think much about the future? What do you think about?

Does it matter very much in the way you live today?

Does the way you think about the future now differ very much from how you thought about the future in the past?

As a Christian who takes the Bible seriously, what do you know for sure about the future?

What difference should that make?

In Matthew 24 and 25, Jesus tells us three parables.

One is about two servants in charge of a household.

Another is about ten young women who could not stay awake before a wedding.

And another is about some slaves who were given a great deal of money to invest.

I. What are some facts that emerge about the return of Jesus in these three parables?

Jesus’ coming may be delayed. Why was that important for Matthew’s readers to understand?

His coming will be sudden. So what?

II. How might the neglect of the second coming of Christ reveal itself in Christians today?

III. Is it possible that too much emphasis on the second coming of Christ could lead people astray?