‘If therefore thou shalt not watch, I will come on thee as a thief, and thou shalt not know what hour I will come upon thee.’ Christ faithfully warns his church. Evidently mere exhortation to do what was right was not enough. The church needed to be warned of the consequences of not obeying. This warning is so worded that it almost implies that the speaker regards the people as having made up their minds not to take any notice. May we be delivered from an attitude which is not willing to respond to any exhortation to change. We ought to practise continuous reformation of our lives, but sadly as time goes on we can become content with what we already have and be less and less willing to change.
Christ will come as a thief. Though the same words are used to describe his coming at the end of the world, the reference here is to a particular coming to this church. The Lord who knew that he would not return in the lifetime of this church spoke of a judgment that would fall on them specifically. By acts of providence, Christ comes unexpectedly and does not hesitate to remove a disobedient church. Doesn’t this set back his cause? Apparently, yes, but ultimately, no. He will not be forced by his people into blessing them when they are disobedient. He will be faithful to reprove; we can manipulate the Lord.
The same applies to any local church. It is not that Christ comes without warning. This was the warning. But it was the last warning. If they did not heed this, there would be no further warning. The next thing they would know would be judgment. It is a dangerous matter indeed to ignore the Lord’s warnings.