Jesus taught candidly about His return to gather the saints to Him. He taught it so emphatically that all the early disciples believed the coming of the Lord would occur during their ministry lifetime. Among the disciples, Paul had an especially keen knowledge of the return of Christ. He describes the day to be like the coming of a "thief in the night." If we knew that a thief was coming to rob us we'd prepare carefully for that moment. But, since we don't know when a thief may come, we must always be ready as if one would come at any moment. Jesus said we don't know the time or hour of His coming, but we must be ready. Are you ready should Jesus come back today, maybe tonight?
What would be different about your life if you knew today was your last day on this earth? What would your priorities be? What last minute details would drive you? What would you most communicate to others? You see, the limits of time cause us to see what is really important. When the critical hour is upon us the really important stuff gets done. We like to roll the dice when it comes to that critical hour. We go through life thinking, "Well Jesus isn't coming today. I'll have time to get my things in order." Oh really, "Jesus said nobody knows the day or hour when He will return, except the Father."
Given this fact we're left with only one option – live as if today was our last. Live so there is no doubt concerning our future. Paul writes, "So then, let us not be like others, who are asleep, but let us be alert and self-controlled. For those who sleep, sleep at night, and those who get drunk, get drunk at night. But since we belong to the day, let us be self-controlled, putting on faith and love as a breastplate, and the hope of salvation as a helmet." He says, "Encourage one another and build each other up; test everything, hold on to what is good, and avoid every kind of evil."
The good news is while there remains time we can do something about who we are if we need to. God accepts us at our point of beginning. We can start a new walk with Him today. We can renew our relationship with Him. We can invite the Holy Spirit into our life. We can begin to live like we are supposed to. We can make the first thing – the first thing. His priority can be our priority. We can choose to live our lives so there is no doubt concerning our future. Are you ready?
