Be Alert Or Get Hurt
The Lord wants us to be alert (Rev 3:2, Wuest). He had Gideon take only those soldiers who were alert to the possibilities of imminent battle (Judg 7:6-7). God preferred a few soldiers who were watchful and ready over far more who were fairly careless. In a different context, the Lord pronounced a woe on those who were spiritually careless (Amos 6:1, Rotherham). He wants His people to be alert, diligent, ready.
In a similar way, the wise men were watchful enough to notice the rising of a new star by which God was indicating the birth of Jesus Christ (Mt 2:2, CSB). As a result, the Lord gave them the honor of seeing Jesus. They were alert and were blessed because of their watchfulness.
Contrariwise, Adam and Eve were not alert. God had previously hinted to Adam that the Garden of Eden needed to be guarded but Adam (Gen 2:15, AB), who seems to have been near Eve (Gen 3:6), didn’t look out for her safety. Eve, too, was careless in her answer about God’s generosity since she didn’t convey that He allowed her to freely eat all she wanted from every other tree. She also added a prohibition – ‘nor touch the tree of life’ (Gen 3:3). Their carelessness, their lack of alertness, was costly and resulted in the curse.
Do we want to avoid unnecessary problems? Let’s be alert. We become alert as we choose to be indifferent to worldly pursuits (Lk 17:31, WPNT note) and are in tune with the Lord (Mt 24:45, CW).
Instead of being timid, learn to be appropriately bold.