by David Brenneman
"Therefore we also have as our ambition, whether at home or absent, to be pleasing to Him. For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may be recompensed for his deeds in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad." 2 Corinthians 5:9-10.
“But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father alone. For the coming of the Son of Man will be just like the days of Noah. For as in those days before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, and they did not understand until the flood came and took them all away; so will the coming of the Son of Man be." Matthew 24:36-39.
As I have come to discover in my evening Bible studies, at the end of each chapter of 1 Thessalonians, Paul makes reference to the return of Jesus Christ.
The things created in order to drive home the point of Jesus returning by various churches today isn't remotely close to what Jesus, through His Spirit, are conveying.
Nobody is going to have a chance to say anything that will be of any relevance in Jesus giving them another chance. In the twinkling of an eye as we read in 1 Corinthians 15:52 "in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet; for the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed." is how quickly it will happen.
A heartbeat. In between two heartbeats the Church, the Bride of Christ Jesus will leave this world. As it says in 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17 "For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive and remain will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we shall always be with the Lord." so it shall be.
With no warning at all catastrophic global disasters accompanied by a global earthquake will rock all of civilization.
What manner of man ought we to be?
"Commit your way to the Lord, Trust also in Him, and He will do it." Psalms 37:5.
" Trust in the Lord with all your heart And do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He will make your paths straight. Do not be wise in your own eyes; Fear the Lord and turn away from evil." Proverbs 3:5-7.
"But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh." Galatians 5:16.
"If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit." Galatians 5:25.
"For all who are being led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God." Romans 8:14.
Do you see it now? If indeed we believe that we were bought with a price, the shed blood of Jesus Christ, our lives will matter in light of eternity. Our lives will be doing something in Christ.
When, not if, Jesus returns...will you be ready to give an account of your life before Him? Will you be ashamed of your responses to His Spirit's direction in your life that you hadn't heeded? Will all your excuses suddenly fall flat?
Jesus spoke in parables about these days that lie ahead about His return but they are truth concerning what's to come.
While the world deals with a vastly unprecedented global disaster, we will be engaged with the King of Kings and Lord of Lords, our Savior Jesus Christ.
Paul battled anxiety on levels that some today share. But his was tied to his concerns for the churches planted. He said that he counted all things as loss compared to the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus.
We are indeed as well commanded to bear fruit. Both with regards to repentance and in sharing Christ with others who are by birth destined for Hell.
Are you, my Dear Reader, pursuing the fruit of the Spirit? Are you so wrapped up in whatever is going on in your life that you've neglected to live?
Some people can sit in silence and be so aware of their bodies that they can feel their heart beating.
Try it. And note that faster than one beat comes after the previous one Jesus is going to return. Paul was for whatever his reasons believing that it could have happened in his lifetime. For certain it can happen in yours.
Paul must not have looked in the Scriptures to see what was yet to happen to Israel, that by this point in Human history HAS already happened.
As John MacArthur pointed out in his study notes that I shared earlier in another post, all that remains is the completion of the Church. No other significant prophecies.
Just for the current church to be the church to whomever that last person is and they say yes to Jesus being the forgiver of their sins and the leader of their lives.
There doesn't need to be any fanfare or even a delay between that happening and Jesus calling for His Bride to come home.
We have work to be doing until that time. We probably won't know who the last Antichrist is going to be. We won't see the fulfillment of the book of Revelation, Daniel or Ezekiel or any other prophecies outlined in the Scriptures that are reserved for after the Church leaves.
We're to stand firm, stay focused, be in the Spiritual Armor we were given. Setting our minds on the things that are above and not on the things that are of this world.
Should today be that day...how will you be before Jesus? As the song goes will you fall to your knees, raise your hands in worship...what will your response be to being face-to-face with Jesus?
That day is coming. Are you learning to walk in the Spirit? Are you removing things from your life that aren't beneficial in your walk with Jesus? Are you showing the world that you are a child of God?
It's always better to be prepared as Paul admonished many churches to be than to be caught off guard as Jesus wrote in a few parables.
Get ready for the shout that calls us out!
All NASB Scripture Excerpts used by permission.
New American Standard Bible
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