TRUE LEADERSHIP

 

Jeremiah 33:14-16; 1 Thessalonians 3:9-13; Luke 21:25-36.

Introduction

Our theme for today brings me memories of preparing for an examination. The anxious tension mixed with speculations about what to answer in the exam. That should have been our atmosphere, but God removes it all as we prepare for His coming. 

The Christian life is a journey lived in the tension between what Christ has accomplished and what Christ will accomplish at His return. From Genesis to Revelation, Scripture teaches that God’s people are a "waiting people." We live with one leg in the present and the other in eternity.

To “prepare for His coming” means more than just a spiritual expectation or a slogan to shout "Maranatha" and respond, "...Come Lord." It is a lifestyle. It means shaping our daily conduct, values, relationships, and priorities around the undeniable truth that Jesus Christ is coming again. This is to say that living with the awareness that the return of Christ is not merely a distant doctrine but a present reality that should shape how we live each day.

I have emphasised before that Christian readiness involves an active posture of the heart, a willingness to live in alignment with God’s purposes while expecting God's future intervention. Let me reiterate that a believer's readiness is not fear-driven, but hope-driven, not passive, but purposeful.

What Does it Mean to Prepare for His Coming?

1. Preparation Rooted in the Promise.

Jeremiah prophesied during Israel’s darkest hour, a time of exile, loss, hopelessness, and disintegration. In Jeremiah 33:14-16, the promise of a “righteous Descendant from King David's line” refers to the Messiah who will bring justice, faithfulness, and restoration to the people of Israel. In context, Israel waited under hardship and exile, but God assured them of hope and ultimate redemption. 

Preparing, then, means aligning ourselves with God’s righteousness, trusting His promises, and living with confidence in His future restoration.

Israel had to hold onto God’s promise while everything seemed contrary. Likewise, preparing for Christ’s coming means aligning our lives with God’s righteousness even when the world around us grows darker.

2. Preparation as Blameless in Holiness

The Thessalonian church was faithful, but still young in the faith. Paul does not call them to idle in waiting, but to abound more in love, and to allow God to establish them blameless in holiness for the day Christ appears.

Preparation for His coming is about transformation. Our expectancy of His coming must produce spiritual maturity marked by greater love, deeper purity, and stronger faith.

3. Preparation Through Alertness and Prayer

In Luke 21:25–36, Jesus warns of signs in the heavens, distress among nations, and His sudden coming. Yet, Jesus urged the disciples not to be afraid but to;

“Stand up and lift your heads.”

“Keep alert”

“Pray always.”

 

Preparation for His coming, according to Jesus, is alertness in prayer. The Christian is not supposed to hide or panic, but remain spiritually awake, prayerful, discerning, and confident in God’s sovereignty.

As I have previously taught, being alert is a lifestyle that refuses spiritual laziness and pursues daily communion with God, expecting Christ's return at any moment.

Preparation for His coming, then, is not optional. It is the faithful response to the reality that Christ will come again, a call to live in light of eternity.

3 Key Steps to Prepare for Christ’s Coming

1. Walk in Righteousness and Faithfulness

The promise of the “righteous Descendant” (Jeremiah 33:14-16) shows that the coming Messiah will bring justice and righteousness. Christians are therefore called to reflect God's righteousness in our lives. In 2 Peter 3:11-12, we are urged to live “holy and godly lives” as we prepare for the day of His coming.

This is about turning from sin and a compromised life.  You are expected to live with integrity in your thoughts, words, and deeds.

Seek justice, mercy, and love for your neighbour in your everyday decisions. (Micah 6:8). Trust in God’s promises, do not live in fear, but in faith by His faithfulness.

Preparing for Christ’s coming is not just about expectation, but also about transformation. A life of righteousness shows that the “King” we await is already shaping our hearts.

2. Cultivate Love, Holiness, and Spiritual Maturity

Paul prays that believers “may abound more and more… in love toward one another and toward all, as we do toward you,” and that God may “establish your hearts blameless in holiness before our God and Father at the coming of our Lord Jesus with all His saints.”

The call to holiness and godliness is frequent throughout Scripture (1 Timothy 4:7-8; 2 Peter 3:11-14).

Let true love shape your relationships, priorities, service, everyday speech and conduct. Commit to spiritual disciplines such as prayer, study of the Word of God, and fellowship with fellow believers. Encourage one another in faith, good works, and love (Heb. 10:24-25).

Beloved in Christ, when we cultivate holiness and love, we reflect the character of Christ, and we become community witnesses to the hope we profess. Understand that, as we anticipate Christ’s return, our lives testify to His transforming power.

3. Remain Alert, Prayerful, and Expectant

Jesus indicated that many will be “distracted with the cares of life,” and caught unprepared. So He exhorts, “Be on guard at all times, and pray that you may have strength to escape all these things and to stand before the Son of Man.”

We are always admonished to stay awake, sober, alert (1 Thess. 5:6-8), because “the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night.” The parable of the wise and foolish virgins (Matt. 25:1–13) reflects the same truth to us.

Keep a lifestyle of prayer and daily communion with God, so that your hearts will remain sensitive and expectant. Maintain spiritual vigilance and do not let popularity, trending, comfort, sensuality, or worldliness lull you into complacency. Stay anchored in the hope, remembering that Christ’s coming may be unexpected, and that we do not know the day or the hour (Mark 13:33; Matt. 24:42-44).

Watchfulness and prayer guard us against spiritual drift, deception, and complacency. They keep us connected to God, alert to His voice, and ready to meet Christ at any moment.

Always remember this from me: Christians are called daily to live with eternity in view, to let holiness and love characterise their daily walk.

Conclusion

Beloved, the coming of Christ is not a distant, abstract hope, it is the anchor of our faith and the motivation for our living.

May we be found faithful when He comes. Amen.

Shalom aleikhem...