Failing To Discern the Time – Luke 12
“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 12:56
In Luke 12, Jesus is warning the people about the “leaven” of the Pharisees. The main problem that permeated them was hypocrisy. They covered their sin with a cloak of religious zeal. Yet, underneath their pious appearance were sinful hearts that could not and would discern the truth.
In Luke 12:54-59, Jesus commented on their ability to discern what the weather would be like by the signs of the sky and earth, yet they could not discern the time. They could accurately tell you what kind of weather they would have tomorrow based on clouds and wind, but they could not see what kind of judgment they were about to face based on signs and evidence from the ministry of Jesus!
How sad to be living during the very days of Christ, hearing His teaching, watching Him do miracles, and seeing Him fulfill all kinds of prophecy and not being able to realise that He is the Christ! The result of their hard-heartedness is that they would face God’s judgment. How much better to deliver themselves before they faced the judge, than to wait until it was too late (Luke 12:57-59).
What obvious work of God are we missing? Do we focus all of our attention on signs of weather, finance, and sport yet fail to miss the obvious signs of what God is doing, who Christ is, and the fact that we will all stand before God one day?