Matthew 23; Luke 20-21; Mark 13 – November 4 & 5

Luke 21:34 is a verse that stuck out to me today. Jesus says, "But take heed to yourselves, lest your hearts be weighed down with carousing, drunkenness, and cares of this life, and that Day come on you unexpectedly.” When we let the pursuit of temporal desires and the “cares of this life” fill our heart, our heart will be “weighted down.” In other words, we won’t be able to perceive the reality of the day; we will have a misconstrued perception of reality and we won't see what Jesus is doing. The picture that Jesus gives us in this verse is of a person who is drunk, hung over, and not aware of what is going on, so is overtaken by the destruction that a sober person could see coming. Let’s look at the same verse in two other translations:

• Amplified:
  

“But take heed to yourselves and be on your guard, lest your hearts be overburdened and depressed (weighed down) with the giddiness and headache and nausea of self-indulgence, drunkenness, and worldly worries and cares pertaining to [the business of] this life, and [lest] that day come upon you suddenly like a trap or a noose”

• International Standard Version:
  

"Constantly be on your guard so that your hearts will not be loaded down with self-indulgence, drunkenness, and the worries of this life, or that day will take you by surprise”

Jesus tells us what to do instead in Mark 13:33, “Take heed, watch and pray; for you do not know when the time is.”