“But the end of all things is at hand; therefore be serious and watchful in your prayers.”
therefore
“Therefore” draws an inference to the phrase “the end of all things is at hand.” Because of the coming crisis, Christians are to follow the following seven directives (vv. 11-17). These are as binding on the child of God as “you shall not kill” (Ex. 20:13).
The Holy Spirit sets forth these commands in light of the nearness of the dire situation these Asia Minor Christians were about to face. They were to lay these things to heart. The “therefore” is the verbal link between seven exhortations that follow and the pressure the Asia Minor Christians will encounter.
PRINCIPLE:
We need to operate on divine directives during duress.
APPLICATION:
It matters how we think under pressure. The Word of God will mold and direct our thinking. As the Spirit of God deposits truth in our mind, our thinking will change (2 Co. 3:18), and God will progressively transform us. Eventually, the Lord of Glory will dominate our entire thinking apparatus. He is Lord of the mind (1 Co 2:16).
Our head is usually the last citadel to capitulate to the sovereign Lord. “I know better. I am too wise. I am too smart. It doesn’t stand to reason….” This is a proud head. We are too top-heavy (2 Co 11:3). In 2 Co 11:3, Eve wanted to be smarter, more brilliant, and clever. We can corrupt our minds from the simplicity that is in Christ.
If we do not operate on the principles of the Word, we will fail miserably under trial. We must use the resources of God’s Word. Many of us run to some friends for sympathy. If we depend on a sympathetic ear, we will not learn to pipe the Word into our soul in times of disaster.
People who attend churches that do not teach the Word but operate on entertainment and social life will end in tragedy. People indifferent toward the Word will not cope in times of deep trouble. Social life does not carry us in disaster. In times of disaster, we do not think in terms of musical chairs! The thing we remember is what God says about suffering if we are mature. No incubator Christian living will carry us.
