Friday Night Message: "What does it mean to watch?"

June 23, 2023

Good evening Brethren …

 We continue our series of messages seeking to understand what it means to “watch”, as used in the Bible.  Before actually defining the Greek words translated into the English text, we need to ask another question, lest we “throw out the baby with the bath water”?

 ●      Is It Wrong to Watch World News?

In the previous messages on this subject, it may seem that I am against “watching”.  So am I at all saying that it is evil or wrong or foolish to keep abreast of world news? – Absolutely NOT.  Is it not a good use of your time to watch the news and to study the approximately 1/3 of the Bible that is prophecy? – NO, I am not saying that at all.

The UCG regularly produces and publishes and distributes material regarding news, trends in society, possible prophetic signs, etc.  And we should be aware of major national and international events, world trends, possible prophetic fulfillments. 

But again, my original question is this – Is that what it means to watch, in the Biblical sense?  If you really want to Biblically support the idea of watching world news, perhaps a better place to turn to is the Olivet prophecy in the 24th chapter of Matthew.

Matt. 24:1-3 – Then Jesus went out and departed from the temple, and His disciples came up to show Him the buildings of the temple.  And Jesus said to them, Do you not see all these things?  Assuredly I say to you, not one stone shall be left here upon another, that shall not be thrown down. Now as He sat on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to Him privately, saying, Tell us, when will these things be?  And what will be the sign of Your coming and of the end of the age?

So when will the “end time” begin?  What are the signs?  We then come to read verses in the rest of Matthew 24, which answer those questions above…  widespread deception, horrific warfare, major catastrophes, global crises … even the very question of human survival.

Matt. 24:36 - … of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, but My Father only.  Here Jesus discourages us to “set dates”.  However, there are a couple verses here in the 24th chapter that states that we can know when it could be close.

Matt. 24:32-33 – Now learn this parable from the fig tree:  When its branch has already become tender and puts forth leaves, you know that summer is near.  So you also, when you see all these things, know that it is near… even at the doors!

Watching world news can certainly be a profitable use of some of your time, but I believe that there is a danger in missing the deeper meaning of this NT admonition for Christians to watch, and its proper application in our daily lives.

And that fuller meaning and significance of watching truly goes far beyond reading a daily newspaper, or spending hours and hours per week watching Fox News or CNN or CSPAN.

Good Sabbath to you all, please pray for good weather.

Fred