In this sermon, the preacher discusses three parables from the Bible. The first parable, from Matthew 24, emphasizes the importance of faithful and sensible servants who provide food at the proper time. Jesus warns against mistreating fellow servants and highlights the consequences of such actions. The preacher emphasizes the need for pastors and preachers to seek God's anointing and the gift of prophecy to bless and help others. The second parable, from Luke 11, focuses on the importance of compassion and love in ministering to people who are struggling and in need. The preacher expresses a desire to feed and uplift those who are discouraged and enslaved by sin. The third parable, from Mark 13, highlights the idea that every child of God has a specific task or role to fulfill. The preacher emphasizes the importance of being a watchful doorkeeper and protecting the church from harmful influences. Overall, the sermon emphasizes the need for pastors and believers to faithfully serve and minister to others with love, compassion, and the guidance of the Holy Spirit.

We'll continue our study in the parables and turn to parable number 30 today which is Luke chapter 18 and verses 1 to 8. Now today our subject is watching and praying and we're going to look at a number of parables that Jesus spoke on this subject and here is one of them and it's specified that this is a parable concerning prayer. It says he was telling them a parable and the purpose of the parable was to show that at all times they ought to pray and not to lose heart. Now before we go from that first verse, the two things I want you to notice in that verse, the two things that we find difficult in prayer. One is to pray persistently at all times and the second is not to get discouraged and give up. So the two things he said there because you know sometimes we pray and pray and pray and nothing happens and we can lose heart and we can stop praying and Jesus knew that. In Gethsemane Jesus prayed, he didn't get a clear answer from the father prayed again, saying the same thing. There's nothing wrong in saying the same thing again in prayer. That's how Jesus prayed on the last day of his earthly life and then he prayed for one hour and he went back a third time, prayed the same thing and there he has given us an example. Now if we use our logic, we will never pray because prayer is one of the most illogical things you can think of. You know clever people, I've discovered one thing through all these years, the cleverer a man is, the less he prays and the simpler a man is in his trust in the Lord. The more he prays. Why? Because a clever person tends to use logic and he begins to say well, why do I need to pray? God already knows my need, right? Why I don't have to tell him something which he doesn't know and secondly, I can't force God to do what he doesn't want to do. So let's use praying and then we can say well, supposing you're praying for somebody else, you can say well, I don't love that person more than God loves him. So let's use praying. So every angle from which you look at it, it's not a logical thing to pray and yet we know that Jesus, the days when he was on earth, he would often slip away into the wilderness and pray, prayed an all-night once and in Gethsemane, as I said, he prayed again and again. So there are many things in the Christian life which if you use your mind, you won't do. The Bible says, trust in the Lord with all your heart and don't lean upon your reason. Proverbs 3 verse 5 and 6, it's head versus heart. Don't lean upon what your reason says but trust in the Lord with all your heart and so there are many things I don't understand but I see that Jesus prayed and I see the Bible says pray and even if I can't explain why God delays and all those things, I do what scripture says. So that's just my way of introduction and it says here that Jesus spoke about a judge. Sometimes he tried to draw a contrast between a bad person and a good God and here's one of those examples. He said there was a bad judge and there was this widow who kept on going to this judge asking for justice and the judge would not give justice to the widow but she would be there every morning, afternoon, evening, never gave him any peace, early in the morning and go to the office and come to the house late at night and finally the chap got so fed up he said okay because this widow is bothering me so much, verse 5, I will give her that legal protection otherwise she'll wear me out because she'll never give up and then the Lord said see what this unrighteous judge said that even a bad man like that who didn't fear God, did not respect man, was willing to do that for a helpless widow. Why won't a good God do more for you if you also cry to him day and night just like this widow did? See when we pray to God there are many things that we don't know what is the right time for God to give an answer. Many times in the gospels you read about Jesus that it was written his hour has not yet come even in this first miracle he said no I'm sorry my time has not come. Jesus lived by the timing of the father if it was not time to do something he wouldn't do it and he didn't know when the time would come because he lived on earth as a man. There are three things I want you to remember that God does not allow us to have. One, Matthew 4.10, worship. No man is permitted to receive worship. Only God can receive worship and the other is Romans 12.19, vengeance. To take revenge on somebody we're not permitted to do that. God says vengeance is mine I will repay says the Lord. And the third thing is the timing of events. Acts 1.7. It's not for you to know the times and the seasons which the father has reserved and kept in his own power. So that means however spiritual I may be I cannot know the time and a season for something. Even Jesus when he was on earth because he limited himself as a human being he said I don't even know the date of my second coming. That's the father knows even the angels don't know that. So remember these three things just like you cannot receive worship from people you're not supposed to take revenge on people. Also this last thing which many people don't realize we are not supposed to know the time when God does certain things and because we don't know we keep on praying. We don't know when God's going to answer it that's up to him but we know he's a loving father that's sure. We know he hears prayer and we also know that if we don't pray that thing will not happen. So here we see that Jesus pictured the church like a widow. Isn't that interesting that Jesus did not picture the church like some Roman soldier or rich businessman because Roman soldiers and rich businessmen are very powerful people influential people but a widow you know in the society in which Jesus lived 2,000 years ago is just like in the villages in India today. A widow who doesn't have a husband doesn't have a son doesn't have any male member in the house is one of the most helpless human beings on the face of the earth and Jesus took a widow as a picture of a child of God. A child of God is not supposed to be strong. Jesus said I send you like sheep in the midst of wolves. The worldly people are the wolves believers like a sheep always Jesus took the picture of a helpless person. So we shouldn't be discouraged if we are helpless people if we don't have much money and if we don't have much influence and maybe we don't have much education we're not so smart not so capable not so able as other people it doesn't make a difference. That's exactly how we're supposed to be. Don't envy the other person who has got capabilities. Are you like a helpless widow? That's the picture Jesus used but this widow was not just a helpless widow she was persistent. She kept on going to the judge and that's the thing we can learn from this parable. However weak we may be we should keep going to God in prayer and asking him to give us what is our legal right. What did she ask for? Did she ask for something illegal unrighteous? No she asked for her legal right. You know maybe she had a little property and her neighbor tried to encroach on that property because he thought oh there's a helpless widow she can't do anything I'm a strong man I will encroach on this widow and that's how the devil has encroached into our property. Do you know that the devil has encroached into your property and what did this widow do as the neighbor kept encroaching more and more and more and more into her property and she found her property going to her neighbor what did she do? She didn't just sit there she said this is my property I'm not asking for my neighbor's property I'm asking for my property I'm going to go to the judge and I'm going to keep on going till I get my property back. How does this apply to us? Do you know what our legal rights are? I'm not talking about unrighteous illegal things I'm talking about what is our legal right? Who is the enemy? The enemy is the devil and this is what this widow prayed here avenge me give me legal protection verse 3 from my enemy what is my legal right and where does satan encroach for example this body you know the bible says that this body was purchased by Jesus Christ on the cross and it says in 1 corinthians 6 glorify God in your body because you have been purchased it says in the same chapter this body is the temple of the holy spirit it says this body is a member of Jesus Christ now even though this body is a temple of the holy spirit the devil is encroached into this temple he's come right into God's house do you know God's house is not this building it's this body and he's come into this body polluted it with all types of sins made us slaves to our lusts made us lose our temper so that we cannot control our tongue made us lust so that we cannot control our eyes and what are we widows doing when the enemy is occupying all this we sit there and the enemy is occupying occupying occupying occupying what are we supposed to do we're supposed to go to the judge we're supposed to go to our father to God and say God give me my legal right the devil's got no right to take my property this belongs to you this doesn't belong to the devil does my tongue belong to the devil it was purchased by Christ on the cross do my eyes belong to the devil what right has the devil to make me use my eyes to lust no what right is the devil to make me use my tongue to tell a lie or to get angry with someone what right has the devil to use my hands to commit a sin with these hands give me my legal right and those who keep on going to God and say God I'll never give up till you give me my right Romans 6 14 says sin shall not rule over you that's my legal right 1 John chapter 3 verse 8 says the Son of God came to destroy the works of the devil that's my legal right Romans 16 verse 20 says the God of peace will crush Satan under your feet that's my legal right that Satan should be under my feet not on top of my head he's got to be under my feet because he was defeated on the cross and we got to tell the devil that he was defeated on the cross he doesn't like to hear it I remember once when I was asking a young lady to tell the devil you were defeated on the cross she had a demon inside I didn't know that she turned around to me and said I have not been defeated on the cross in another voice so then I spoke to the demon I said you have been defeated on the cross you're a liar get out of her in Jesus name and then when the demon left I said now tell the devil you were defeated on the cross and she could say and that day I decided one thing I'm going to tell the devil as often as possible that he's defeated on the cross I want to tell you to tell the devil that you have never done it before tell him frequently Satan you were defeated on the cross you got no right to touch my body you got no right to touch my family you got no right to touch my bank account you got no right to touch my property it all belongs to Jesus now if you don't ask for your legal rights the enemy will just keep on encroaching encroaching encroaching and God wants you to come to him and claim your legal rights otherwise you won't get it otherwise you'll find the devil takes away a lot of things which he has no right to take what part of me is the devil supposed to have is he supposed to have my body no is he supposed to control my mind no is he supposed to destroy my business handle my money no he has got no right on any part of me do you know that once you know that you know that's the main thing I believe we need to know our legal rights and so this lady the wonderful thing about her was that she knew her legal rights she kept on going to God and asking till she got now we go to a second parable you know our faith is manifested in persistence and a weak believer can prevail in prayer because he's his father is a righteous judge in Luke chapter 11 we come to a persistent neighbor now there is a difference here also there's a neighbor this is a story verses five to eight of a man who had a visitor come to his house at midnight and he didn't have any food to give him he had already eaten his dinner and he was very kind to this neighbor and said have you eaten your dinner and that man said no and he didn't have any food in the refrigerator no food in the house so what did he do he went to his neighbor's house and banged away at the door at midnight now you see we wouldn't go to a friend even a friend's house at midnight and bang away at his door and then that man from inside says don't disturb me I'm in bed my children are sleeping please don't disturb me and this fellow says I'm going to disturb you I'm not going to give up he said go away he says no I'm not going to go away he gets on bang this fellow says fellow won't leave me okay what does he want and he said I want some bread friend of mine has come okay here it is take it please go away Jesus was contrasting a irritated neighbor with a loving father you see he said if that neighbor who said don't disturb me finally got out and gave the bread because this man persistently not won't God give what what did this man ask for lend me three loaves Luke 11 5 what is the application of it for our life how much more how much more than this reluctant neighbor verse 13 your heavenly father will give the holy spirit to those who ask him very simple question even children can answer it according to verse 13 will the heavenly father give the holy spirit to those who don't ask him no why not because you don't have because you don't ask because you don't you don't ask because you don't value the power of the holy spirit you know the number of christians who don't value the power of the holy spirit and they don't receive that power because they don't ask they don't ask because they don't value they value so many other things like they ask for help they ask for wealth they ask for money they ask for scooters and cars and houses and lands what should they be asking for they should be asking for something more valuable and more eternal than all this the power of God's holy spirit why because that's the only way notice this parable in both these parables there was persistence asking asking asking but one big difference and I hope you noticed what that difference is in the case of the widow she was asking for herself and that's right we can go to God and ask for ourselves Lord give me victory over my anger give me victory over my lust give me victory over my love of money give me victory over my laziness give me victory over my love of comfort and ease which hinders me from serving the Lord give me victory over my love of food could be so many things it's right to ask for that forgive my sins give me victory over sin but this man in Luke 11 was asking for somebody else that's the second stage we first ask for ourselves because we need to be clean otherwise the pipe through which the living water flows will not be clean then it'll be dirty water flowing through us so we need to start with cleansing our own heart but then secondly we need to ask for other people because there are people around us in need I hope you recognize that all around us are people who are in need and I don't meet all of them I meet some and each of you meet some you have friends and relatives that nobody else in this room knows you meet certain people in this world whom nobody else in this room will ever meet except you you're the only one who's going to meet those people maybe you live in a certain area you have certain neighbors nobody else in this room knows about them you got certain relatives nobody in this room knows about them and those are the people around you who are in need and when you see their need what do you do you can say well that's not my business but this man could have said that when he saw this man and this man came and he said well I haven't had dinner tonight he could have said well sorry I'm sorry you didn't have your dinner let's go to bed now he didn't say that he had compassion for that man's need that's why he went to his neighbor's if he did not care for his friend he would not have gone to his neighbor's house it's very important to understand that and he went to his neighbor's house and said give me something to meet this man's need and it's a picture of me going to God and saying father here is a person in need or here are some people in need and I don't have what it takes to help them give me what I can give them and Jesus said how much more will your heavenly father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him that means the gifts of the Holy Spirit we can say in Luke chapter 18 the first parable we're talking about the power of the Holy Spirit to help us overcome sin to occupy reoccupy territory which the devil took away but here the emphasis is on the gifts of the Holy Spirit the supernatural gifts of the Holy Spirit by which we can serve others you know the Bible speaks about the fruit of the Spirit and the gifts of the Spirit the fruit of the Spirit is for myself if I have joy that doesn't bless you it blesses me if I have peace in my heart that doesn't bless you it blesses me and many things like that character brings my life into a very blessed position but the gifts of the Holy Spirit are not for me all the gifts of the Holy Spirit are for other people when Jesus said the Spirit of the Lord is upon me because he has anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor to set free those who are downtrodden to release the captives to open the eyes of the blind it's all for other people Luke chapter 4 and you read 1 Corinthians chapter 12 all the gifts of the Spirit if a man has the gift of healing who is blessed not him other people if a man has the gift of evangelism who is blessed other people if a man has the gift of teaching who is blessed other people the gifts of the Holy Spirit are for other people and a selfish person will never ask for the gifts of the Holy Spirit with the proper motive you know there are a lot of people seeking today for the baptism in the Holy Spirit for the gifts of the Holy Spirit but I believe many of them are seeking with the wrong motive they are not starting at the right point they go to God and say God give me power what are they seeking power for so that they themselves can become great evangelists or mighty servants of God they're not seeking for somebody else they're seeking for themselves and that's why the devil is able to counterfeit the gifts of the Holy Spirit because whenever a man is seeking in selfishness he will end up with a counterfeit so the first thing we need to do in seeking for the gift of the Holy Spirit and the gifts of the Holy Spirit is start with the right motive what is the right motive here we read compassion for somebody whom who has come across my path who is in need you got it compassion for somebody around me who is in need then from that compassion I go to the father and say God my dad father give me what can help this man in my knee in his knee you know like the disciples when they had to feed the 5000 what did they do it was not their job to multiply the five loaves and feed five that was not their job their job was to go to the Jesus with an empty basket Lord give us some more more hungry fellows over there and the Lord multiplies the loaves and they go back and distribute it and when the basket is empty what do they have to do come back to the Lord who did the production Jesus who did the distribution the disciples it's much more difficult to produce it's easier to distribute supposing the Lord told his disciples okay here are five loaves go and multiply it and give it to the 5000 how could they have done that but when he did the multiplication of the loaves and gave it only that then to distribute wasn't that easy now some of us have a problem serving the Lord because we are trying to produce we're not supposed to produce we're supposed to distribute I thank God for the day I discovered that in my life that I am not in the production business I am in the distribution business when I don't have something I just have to go like this man went to his neighbor and say father here are some people in need give me something to give them now for many many years I have been preaching God's Word and sometimes five times a day or different number of times a day even more than that sometimes and I would have been a nervous wreck by now if I had to produce I don't have to produce I've only got to distribute but I have to have compassion I want to share this with you for all of you who are called to preach God's Word start with compassion for the people who sit in front of you that's what I see to be compassion love these are people who should be kings but they're slaves to sing these are people who should be overcomers and conquering but they are defeated these are people who should be full of the joy of the Lord but they are discouraged Lord how can I feed them how can I feed them give me some loaves to give them and yet it bang and bang and bang and bang and bang and bang and say Lord I'm not going to leave you until you give me the supernatural gift of prophecy so that I can exhort like it says in 1 Corinthians 14 verse 2 and 3 I can exhort and edify and comfort those are the three loaves we read about three loaves here I've often gone to the Lord like that give me not for myself I'm already encouraged for these people and God always gives if you start with compassion don't ever try to seek God for any gift of the Holy Spirit if you don't start with compassion for a needy world for people who are in need around you that's what we learn from this parable and the result was it says here a wonderful verse he will get up and verse 8 and give him as much as he needs I want to say one more thing here it's not enough just to have compassion I must also recognize that I don't have what it takes to help this person if I think oh I've got enough to help this person I'm not going to be able to help him I'll tell you what I mean for example if we are to think of this matter of sharing the word when I talk about sharing the word I'm not talking about just standing in the pulpit I don't share the word only in the pulpit I sit down talk to people so many places when I'm sitting in their house or they're sitting in my house and that your sisters also experience don't you sit together sometimes and what you can share God's word maybe five minutes three minutes when you sit talking to people so this parable applies to all situations where we have to give God's word to a needy person maybe one sentence maybe two three minutes and if I think oh yeah I've got plenty of knowledge I can teach this person then I have a sense of self-sufficiency and I won't be able to bless them I have to have a sense of my own need Lord I don't have that's what this man had a sense of his own need my house is empty my fridge is empty there's no food in the house I have to go and get it from my neighbor if you feel that you know particularly if you've studied the Bible a little bit and you got Bible knowledge you can feel a sense of yeah I've got what it takes you know it's very easy for me because I've preached so many years I can say oh yeah I've got so much experience preaching God have mercy on me and I pray that day will never come in my life where I begin to think like that I say Lord even if I preach for a hundred years I don't have what it takes to help these needy people I have knowledge oh yes but knowledge is not what people need they need a word from heaven there's a lot of difference between a word from heaven and knowledge there's a lot of preaching of dry knowledge in churches today and you know knowledge is like pictures of food supposing you got a hundred hungry people in front of you and you say okay I'm going to feed you now and you show them a picture of chicken biryani or another picture of some ice cream and you enjoy that and you know they're going to get more hungry at the end of that but a lot of if you give knowledge to people it's like that you give knowledge he doesn't feed them he's like pictures beautiful pictures color pictures of food that's what knowledge is don't give people knowledge give people life and life can only come from heaven and life can only come through the Holy Spirit's gifts knowledge can come from your head you can study and study and study and study and prepare a wonderful sermon and give it out to people that's not the way we're supposed to help people we're going to seek God for a touch from heaven an anointing of the Holy Spirit the gift of prophecy and then we give it forth it blesses people that's how we're supposed to do it okay now we go to a third parable parable number 32 Luke chapter 11 verse 11 to 13 where Jesus said suppose one of you fathers is asked by his son for a fish he won't give him a snake will he he asked for an egg will he won't give him a scorpion if you being evil know how to give good gifts to your children how much more shall your heavenly father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him and in Matthew chapter 7 a similar parable he says instead of Holy Spirit he says how much more shall your heavenly father give good things Matthew 7 11 to those who ask him so here Jesus is picturing the first he pictured a judge in the second he pictured a neighbor and the third now he pictures a father we are fathers and he said you are evil that's the interesting I want you to notice here if you verse 13 Luke 11 13 being evil that teaches us one thing that the best earthly father the best earthly father is evil compared to God I'm not saying we are evil but compared to God we are now yeah I'm a I'm a father of four sons but I think to the best of my knowledge I have tried my best to be a very good father and none of my sons will say I was an evil father to them I have sacrificed to help them but compared to God even I am an evil father that's how good God is Jesus is trying to say how much better God is than that unrighteous judge how much better God is than that reluctant neighbor and how much better God is than the best earthly father that's like saying the star has got a light but when the sun arises that light becomes darkness this light of the star in the same way my goodness as a father is like the light of the star but the goodness of God is like the light of the sun my goodness disappears so if you can see God like this you know a lot of people have got a wrong concept of God all false religions picture God like a policeman who's just waiting to catch you for doing something wrong you know like a strict judge who's out to punish you and the devil portrays that picture and I'm sorry to say that even some Christians think of God like this they are scared God is going to punish me God's going to hurt me no Jesus tried so much to convince his disciples God is a loving father he's not here to hurt you he's here to help you he's here to bless you and I believe it's our calling those of us who share the word with other people to present God to other people as a loving father because that's what he is he's better than the best earthly father and Jesus said if a son comes to his father and says dad I'm hungry can you please give me some bread the father will never give him a stone if he asks dad can you give me some fish he'll never give him a snake teaching us that God will never never never never you can keep on repeating that never give you something evil we got to be absolutely convinced about that never even if I ask him for something evil he won't give it to me sometimes we ask God for something and he doesn't give it to us because we may wonder why but he knows it's not good for us right now maybe he'll give it to us later there's something like if a one-year-old child asks for a sharp blade which father will give it to the child and the child can scream oh daddy you don't love me you're not giving me that blade but the father says no I won't give it to you he'll harm yourself and sometimes there are gifts we ask God for we will harm ourselves with that supposing you pray Lord please help me to win that lottery ticket I don't think God will answer that in fact I'm pretty sure he won't because you'll cut yourself and destroy yourself with all that money even if you get it so there are things which God can do but he won't do just like a father will take that blade away no matter how much that child cries no matter how much you pray God says no because he loves us too much in the same way you will not give a father will not give a 500 rupee note into the hand of a three-year-old child not because 500 rupees is not good but that three-year-old doesn't know how to handle it so sometimes we ask God for something and he doesn't give it to us and say no hang on you've got to be a little more mature to handle that you go and ask God to give you say a gift of healing tomorrow boy and somebody you pray for gets healed your head will become so big with pride that you'll destroy yourself and go to hell God doesn't want you to go to hell so he doesn't give you something before you are mature enough to handle it God is a loving father Jesus taught that very clearly and that's he said it in order to encourage us to have faith you know when I realized that I have a father in heaven it's easy to have faith that's why Jesus said whenever you pray say our father in heaven why did he say that because he wanted us before we prayed for anything to start with faith if you don't have faith you can't get anything from God have you seen that promise in the bible for those who don't have faith you know where it is it's a wonderful promise in the bible for those who don't have any faith I'll show it to you James chapter 1 and verse um six to eight it says here when you ask God for wisdom let him ask in faith verse six but if you don't have faith verse seven don't expect to receive anything from the Lord what a promise you won't get anything from the Lord that's a promise for all those who don't have faith all anybody sitting here without faith he has a promise for you you won't get anything from the Lord I don't want to be like that but how to have faith by recognizing that I have a father not a policeman not a judge a father Jesus said our father who art in heaven that means one who controls the whole universe who runs this whole universe this earth is a small little speck and I've got a dad up in heaven who runs this universe and on this speck of earth there's a small person called me and all my problems are so small for God you know sometimes have you seen these ants taking a small bit of food along the floor it's so tiny it's a big burden for that ant you know I think when God looks at us from heaven it's like that we are carrying such a big burden that's your God can you please help me with this it's like that ant looking at us human beings can you please help me with this wee tiny bit of food I say sure little ant and I take it over there and put it in the hand says boy what a miracle that's how God is I hope you have faith our father who in heaven praise God we go to now parable number 33 Matthew 24 verse 45 to 51 here Jesus was speaking about servants who should be watching you know watch and pray he said who is that faithful and sensible master slave rather faithful sensible slave whom his master can appoint in charge of his household to give them their food at the proper time but if that slave instead of giving them the food beats his fellow servants was 49 the master will suddenly come verse 50 and punish him now here Jesus is speaking about those who are appointed by God to feed others and instead of feeding them they beat them when we stand up to preach in the pulpit we must never beat people don't say you fellows are like this and you fellows are like that that's beating them feed them a lot of people don't feed they beat even parents beat their children not with a stick but with words oh you're good for nothing how many times I've told you don't do that we're not to be like that to our children our calling is to feed not beat to feed them with what they need and it says here a servant must be faithful and wise you know there are two requirements for a true servant of God he must be faithful and he must be wise to give exactly what this person needs what does this person need like a good doctor you know a patient comes to him he examines him looks at the x-ray looks at the scan report and says I know what you need this medicine will take care of it and then another patient comes and he looks at his blood report and other things and says I know what you need is this medicine that's a wise doctor he knows exactly what to give to each person and that's our calling to be wise servants we see people in need all around us that we can have the right word when in personal conversation when we speak to a young person or a sick person or speak to a church or to speak in the streets to unbelievers the right word like a good doctor wise and we really need to seek God for that and it says here that blessed is that servant who does that when the master comes that means this is what he is spending his time doing I have to feed other people the bible says we are priests according to the order of Melchizedek Jesus Christ is a high priest according to the order of Melchizedek Hebrews chapter 7 says that we are priests according to the order of Melchizedek what did Melchizedek do in Genesis 14 he gave food to Abraham when he was tired and exhausted he gave him some food that's what we're supposed to do he gave him some words of encouragement and we're supposed to be priests of after the order of Melchizedek Melchizedek didn't come with a stick to beat Abraham he came with a food and if you're a priest according to the order of Melchizedek you'll have spiritual food for the people around you you listen to God and God will give you that to feed other people and it says here about these servants who are always watching my master may come any time I must be ready I must prepare these people to be ready for the coming of the Lord I want to show you one more verse in Mark chapter 13 and verse 34 it says here that this is a similar parable a man was appointed went on a journey and he left his house in charge of his servants and to everyone he gave a particular job that's the thing I want you to notice in verse 34 if you're a child of God there is a particular task that God has given you and you have to do it and he says he's appointed a doorkeeper I believe that every church needs a doorkeeper a doorkeeper is a prophet who watches who are these fellows coming in a godly elder brother who makes sure that the wolves don't come in who makes sure that the goats get converted into sheep before they come in do you know why so many churches around us are destroyed because they don't have doorkeepers but here it says that God has appointed a doorkeeper to stay on the alert to watch and be alert and a lot of doorkeepers today in Christendom are sleeping that's why we have such a mess in so many churches may God raise up many servants who are faithful and wise and good doorkeepers the last parable verse 34 34 parable 34 Luke chapter 21 verse 29 to 32 also refers to something concerning the last days behold the fig tree and all the trees now in the old testament the figs were a picture of Israel also Jeremiah in his visions he sees good figs and bad figs and the Lord spoke about that as being the good people and the bad people in Israel so the fig tree is a picture of Israel the vine is a picture of the church but the fig tree is a picture of Israel and you read in the old testament about people about the fig tree and the vine frequently and Jesus said I'm the true vine but he never said I'm the true fig tree the fig tree refers to Israel and the vine to the church and when it speaks about the fig tree here in Luke chapter 21 and verse 29 he is speaking about Israel and he says watch the fig tree one day it'll put forth leaves not fruit he's not saying that Israel will become a spiritual nation but he's saying that Israel will come back to the land and there'll be a religious people there and he said that in verse 24 of Luke 21 2,000 years ago when the Romans were ruling Jerusalem Jesus said Jerusalem will be ruled by many non-Jewish people that's the meaning of the word Gentiles Jerusalem will be ruled by many non-Jewish people until the time for the non-Jewish people to rule Jerusalem will be over I'm paraphrasing verse 24 and you know when that happened Jesus said it 2,000 years ago but it happened only in June 1967. I remember those days and there was what's known as the six-day war and Israel occupied Jerusalem for the first time in 2,000 years and Jesus said when you see the fig tree putting forth its leaves no verse 31 the kingdom of God is near there are many signs about the second coming of Christ wars rumors of wars earthquakes famines but those things have taken place throughout these 2,000 years even though there are many more now but here is something that never happened in 2,000 years for 2,000 years Israel never captured never had possession of Jerusalem in fact not only 2,000 years from more than nearly 600 years before Christ from the time the Babylonians came and captured Jerusalem that you read in the book of Jeremiah and second chronicles when the Babylonians captured Jerusalem 586 years before Christ from that time till 1967 Israel never had control over Jerusalem Jesus said watch we're talking about watching and praying these things are happening in our lifetime the kingdom of God is much nearer than you think one of these days Christ will come time will be over and the question in that day will be what did you live for is your conscience clear have you settled everything with God and with men are you right with God are you living for eternity watch and pray and don't ever get discouraged let's pray again I want to invite you to respond to the word of God that you've heard this evening don't get discouraged if you're seeking the glory of God persistent prayer God is a good God he's a loving father ask him for the power of the Holy Spirit to serve people around you who are in need you can't do that without the Holy Spirit's gifts God will give you more surely than an earthly father will give bread to his son he's so eager to give you the gifts of the Holy Spirit to serve others if you have compassion Heavenly Father help us each one to live our lives with a sense of how near we are to the coming of Jesus Christ how we see prophecy being fulfilled right before our eyes things that you said 2,000 years ago help us to respond to your word and spend the rest of our days for the glory of God alone we pray in Jesus name amen amen God bless you