Luke 21:34-36 says it – no one is responsible for you but you. Each of us is responsible to look to him or herself – to try hard and succeed or do nothing and fail. These verses are no parable with hidden meanings, they are plain words from the very Son of God.
He says this to all of us: “And take heed to yourselves, lest at any time your hearts be overcharged with surfeiting, and drunkenness, and cares of this life, and so that day come upon you unawares.”
A modern English translation goes like this: 'Pay careful attention to yourselves, in order to avoid a mindset that exaggerates the importance of being satisfied, of overindulgence, or undue attachment to the things of this temporary life, insomuch that you become unaware of your own doom.'
Nobody is going to do it for you – you are on your own.
This is what the very Son of God said about the coming day of judgment: “For as a snare shall it come on all them that dwell on the face of the whole earth.” In other words, no one will be exempt from that day. If you think your salvation exempts you, think again. Christ has this to say to those who think that way: “Watch ye therefore, and pray always, that ye may be accounted worthy to escape all these things that shall come to pass, and to stand before the Son of man.”
Said another way, 'All these things will definitely happen. If you want to escape them and stand before the Son of man, you must make sure you are worth it.' Prayer and vigilance are your only ticket.
The “snare” of those final times will catch people doing what they always do. Why do animal snares baited with food catch animals? It is because their very animal nature will not pass an opportunity to eat.
What is the nature of man? Even the religious share that human nature. We are conditioned to think along the lines of human nature. We go to church for an hour on Sunday, but we run home to watch the game on TV. We want a new car. When it comes to spending our hard-earned cash, we are very concerned that we get all our money can buy, and no skimping on quality – that will just not do.
Paying our bills occupies our thoughts. Going to the theater for a new movie, or eating out, or unwinding at a bar – these are the mousy little thing that will get us ensnared. We want our fair share. Some of us want more than our fair share. God forbid that anyone should stand between us and the things we try so hard to obtain.
History proves human nature, even among the religious, is all too willing to war and kill for the things it thinks it deserves. Look at all the protests and terrorism in our present day – how quickly willing people resort to violence over matters that are actually quite meaningless.
Anyone who really desires not to be caught in the snare must work especially hard not to be swept along in the tide of human nature. When the ship comes in, will you have a ticket, or will you be a part of the raging tidal beast racing toward that tiny piece of cheese – and personal doom?
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