“Therefore you also be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect. Matthew 24:44. NKJV
“People only look for a Savior when times are bad”. Have you ever heard this saying? If you think about it for a moment it certainly begins to make sense. When things are going smoothly and the future looks bright, people tend to focus more on what they have rather than the things of above. If we consider the passage from Matthew and focus on the phrase “at an hour you do not expect”, what exactly are we being told by our Savior?
If asked to describe the current mood of many in this country I believe it would be accurate to use the words “cautious optimism”. From what I have seen, read, and heard the past few weeks it would seem the majority in this country are excited and pleased to witness the change in direction of our government and the results so far in fulfilling the promises made. The “doom and gloom” many felt in the past is being replaced and there is a very real expectation of life returning to some sense of normalcy.
“But as the days of Noah were, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be.“For as in the days before the flood, they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark,“and did not know until the flood came and took them all away, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be.” Matthew 24:37-39. NKJV
“Watch therefore, for you do not know what hour your Lord is coming. Matthew 24:42. NKJV
I can’t help but wonder, however, if this is exactly the situation Jesus is warning us about in the passages above as well as most of the entire chapter of Matthew 24. While the attention of most people is being focused on the changes we are seeing, it follows that we may not be “watching” as well as we are directed to do for the return of Christ for His Church. One could also easily make the argument that there are similarities between the current mood of many and the description given of the mood during the days of Noah which appears to be "things as normal". While admonishing us to watch for His return and to avoid focusing on our present circumstances. Jesus goes on to make the point that there is also another expectation for us as believers.
“Who then is a faithful and wise servant, whom his master made ruler over his household, to give them food in due season? “Blessed is that servant whom his master, when he comes, will find so doing.” Matthew 24:45-46. NKJV
It would appear that what Jesus has in mind for us in this particular time is to resist focusing on how our life here on earth may improve in the coming months and rather focus on fulfilling the task He has given to all that believe in Him and that is to be wise servants sharing and encouraging others with the gospel of Christ. Encouraging fellow believers and sharing the good news with those who have yet to make a choice is what our Savior expects from us.
“For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek.” Romans 1:16 NKJV
The first thing that comes to my mind when I think of the word ashamed is that the focus is on what other people think. In other words, I am not worried about what I think, or what my convictions may or may not be, but rather I am worried about what others might think. Yet the Bible makes it clear that as believers our first and only thoughts should be about what God would want us to do, and pleasing Him.
“Finally then, brethren, we urge and exhort in the Lord Jesus that you should abound more and more, just as you received from us how you ought to walk and to please God;” 1 Thessalonians 4:1 NKJV
Not only has God commanded us to share Him with an unbelieving world, it pleases Him to see us do it! Are you concerned with pleasing God, or is your focus on what someone else might think of you? I believe Paul is reminding us that we need not be ashamed to share what we believe if we remember we are following the instructions of our heavenly Father. The disciples were in this position right after Jesus commissioned them and returned to Heaven, and their response to the high priest was this;
“But Peter and the other apostles answered and said: "We ought to obey God rather than men.” Acts 5:29 NKJV
I think this makes it perfectly clear where they placed their priorities; they were much more concerned with what God would think than what the people might think. I somehow think as well that they were remembering something Jesus said during His ministry when He was sending them out to share the gospel for the first time.
"Therefore whoever confesses Me before men, him I will also confess before My Father who is in heaven.” Matthew 10:32 NKJV
So it would appear that what Paul wants us to know is that there is no reason to be ashamed when we are doing the will of our Father in heaven. Yet Paul goes one step further in this verse which not only sends a message to the people of Rome, but to those who choose to listen today. Notice if you will the reason Paul says he is not ashamed; it is because of the power of God! Paul was writing to the Romans, who at that time in history were the most powerful people and nation on earth. Yet what does Paul say to them but that as powerful as they were, there was a greater power that they did not possess and that was the power to give eternal life!
“What if God, wanting to show His wrath and to make His power known, endured with much longsuffering the vessels of wrath prepared for destruction,” Romans 9:22 NKJV
We find here that Paul suggests God has a plan to show the world His power. I believe that God's plan is to first demonstrate that power through those who believe, and as we approach the time of tribulation begin to show His power through the shaking of His creation. Anyone who has even a basic knowledge of what occurs during the tribulation understands that God is going to exhibit His power through natural catastrophes that devastate the earth. Are we seeing the beginnings of that process even now, and is the rapture of the church imminent? Many of those who choose to watch faithfully as Jesus commanded would answer that question with an emphatic “yes”!
Who would have thought that looking for a return to normalcy would in fact be a sign of our coming deliverance? Yet I had a conversation recently where it was suggested that when we get to heaven we will be astonished at the number of signs we missed simply because we never considered that virtually anything could have be a sign from God if we had simply changed our earthly perspective to a heavenly one. God’s desire is for us to be a witness of His power to an unbelieving world before He goes a step further and does it by shaking the very foundations of the earth during the tribulation. I would suggest that rather than focusing on a return to normalcy we focus on sharing the gospel.
Have you made the choice to accept Jesus as your Savior and Lord? If not, I hope you will consider doing it today. You can do this by simply praying a prayer like this one:
Jesus I know I am a sinner and have broken your commandments and sinned against you. I believe you died and rose again for me as a sacrifice for my sins. I ask you to forgive me of my sins and come into my heart so that I can begin to live for you. Amen.
Keep Watching.
