Theological term
Watchfulness
3 sermons · All terms
The Olivet Discourse, Part 14
The Parable of the Talents (Matthew 25:14–30) is Christ's definition of watchfulness: not passive waiting for the Son of Man's return, but diligent, faithful stewardship of whatever the Master has entrusted. The sermon expounds the three servants in turn, establishing that talents are distributed according to God's sovereign wisdom rather than merit, that faithfulness rather than quantity of output determines commendation, and that the one-talent servant's condemnation flows directly from a defective doctrine of God. The central application is that justification by faith alone is never a license for inactivity — those truly justified will evidence it by serving the Master's interests in light of His coming.
The Olivet Discourse, Part 12
Matthew 24:45–51 closes the first section of practical application in the Olivet Discourse with a parable of two servants: one faithful, one wicked. The parable's central question — 'Who then is a faithful and wise servant?' — is designed to arrest the conscience and promote eschatological self-examination. Watchfulness for Christ's return is not idle sky-gazing but active fidelity in one's God-appointed vocation, whether pastoral ministry or ordinary daily labor. The wicked servant's ruin flows directly from his denial of the master's return, a pattern the sermon presses against both unbelievers and professing Christians living as practical atheists.
The Olivet Discourse, Part 11
Matthew 24:36–44 presents Jesus's declaration that no one — not even the angels, nor the Son according to his human nature — knows the day or hour of the coming judgment, followed by the analogy of Noah's generation and the illustration of the thief in the night. The sermon works through a contested exegetical question: whether 'that day' in verse 36 refers to the AD 70 destruction of Jerusalem or to the final second coming, concluding that the hortatory application holds on either reading. Central to the exposition is a careful defense of the hypostatic union — Christ's genuine ignorance according to his humanity is not a denial of his divinity but a necessary consequence of the incarnation. The controlling exhortation is watchfulness: not withdrawal from ordinary life, but faithfulness, preparedness, and diligence under the conscious reality that God is near and will judge the living and the dead.