“Be dressed for service and keep your lamps burning, as though you were waiting for your master to return from the wedding feast. Then you will be ready to open the door and let him in the moment he arrives and knocks.”
I have written on this before but was led to share again because this is so important for us to understand. We have to be dressed already, that means we are not still looking for cloths, we have them. When we accept Jesus as the Lord of our lives, we are starting to put on the cloths necessary to grow and develop in our walk. We continue to get dressed as we light our lamps and keep our lamps burning we are purposely making an effort to learn and (die to self) that is when we can be ready and waiting. We need to see that taking the first step doesn't make us ready, it's being fully dressed.
In Ephesians chapter 6 verse 11 we are told, “Put on all of God’s armor so that you will be able to stand firm against all strategies of the devil.” When we are ready we understand the things of this world and we can avoid them, but when we don't keep our lamps burning or (renew our mind) daily we can miss or be blinded by the Devils strategies. As we see in 2 Corinthians chapter 4 verse 4 we see that satan is the god of this world; “Satan, who is the god of this world, has blinded the minds of those who don’t believe. They are unable to see the glorious light of the Good News. They don’t understand this message about the glory of Christ, who is the exact likeness of God.” Our belief helps us open our heart but our being dressed and ready keeps us aware. Look what it says in 1 Peter chapter 5 verse 8; “Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour.”
When we are not renewing our mind it wanders so it is important to embrace the fact that we are His children and He sent His Son for us all so that we can be home for eternity with Him. Jesus tells us plainly what to do and why it is important, in Luke chapter 12 verse 31 “Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and He will give you everything you need.” We can't pray for God to do everything for us, He started it all by sending His Son while we were yet sinners, now we need to co-labor with Him to grow to be more like Christ, so that is who people see in us. Amen