A lot of us like to live as the early disciples lived. We want to live like children whose parents have gone out of town for the weekend. So we leave Frito bags and open cans of Coke all around the house, and we can guess when our parents are going to come back. In those last few hours of Sunday afternoon we clean up the house like crazy, assuming the mess never seen is the mess never made.

A lot of us want to live our lives that way with Jesus. We watch for the signs. Jesus said that is like the man who knew what time his house was going to be broken into.

Did you hear that? You didn't, because you didn't laugh. If you had heard it, you would have fallen over laughing. This is the story Jesus tells them. He says, "It's like the man who is sitting in a gathering, looks at his watch and goes, ‘Sorry, guys, I've got to go.' Why? ‘There's a guy who is going to break in my house at 9:30 and I really want to be there when he breaks in.'"

If you knew your house was going to be broken into you never would have left it. You would be prepared for the break in. Jesus said, "In the same way, you know I am coming back. Why do you live as if I never will?"

But we watch for signs, don't we? Something happens in the Middle East and all of a sudden there will be forecasts and all the sermons will talk about The Second Coming and this proves it. This guy's name — when you subtract the second name and talk about his mother's name on his dad's side — and you add all the numbers it is 666, so this guy is the anti-Christ and it proves Jesus is coming back by the weekend. Then all of a sudden that crisis (whatever it is) settles down and we're back to the routine. We're back under the illusion that time is ours to manage — that we have this gift of time and it is ours.

In the fourth chapter of James the writer reminded the early believers no one should say, "I'm going to go to this town and I'm going to spend a year there and I'm going to do my business." Instead, he should say, "If it's the Lord's will I will go there and I will do this and that." To say anything else is to brag, is to boast, is to put yourself in the place of God, saying time is yours and you're the one in control of it. You're the one whom time obeys.

He adds this warning: "Anyone who knows what is right and doesn't do it sins." Like Jesus, James brings the believers back to the moment in front of them. You shouldn't be spending your time saying, "Here's what I'm planning to do; here's all I anticipate doing." You should do what you know you should do in the moment in front of you.

Don't put off until tomorrow telling the people you love that you love them. Don't put off until tomorrow doing what you know the Lord is calling you to do today.  In each moment be obedient, in each day be faithful, because that's the moment you have, that's the day you have. We grab our day planners. We circle dates in the future and we say, "On that day this will happen. On that day I will be there and I will accomplish this kind of business and I will take care of these things on that day," as if those days are already ours. They're not. Tomorrow isn't promised to you, nor to me. You're supposed to say, "If the Lord wills I'll be there Thursday. If the Lord wills I'll be at my appointments tomorrow."

Yet you know, as I know, that is not the way we think or the way we live. Sudden things can happen. The ambulance comes to your house, or picks you up at your office, the doctor comes in and shakes his head and your plans change. I don't care what was on your calendar - things change. You think you're in control. You think time is yours.