Be Ready Always

 
“Watch therefore, for you know neither the day
nor the hour in which the Son of Man is coming.” 
~Matthew 25:13

We hear a lot about the predictions made by man as to when Jesus is really coming back for His followers and the “signs” that point to our being in the end times. How should we respond to these predictions? Should we dress in white and stand on our roof tops waiting for Christ to swing down and pick us up? Should we believe that major, destructive storms mean that His return is nigh? Well, whether we believe in such predictions or not, we should not let these predictions or possible “signs” determine when we will be ready.

“Let your waist be girded and your lamps burning; and you yourselves be like men who wait for their master, when he will return from the wedding, that when he comes and knocks they may open to him immediately. Blessed are those servants whom the master, when he comes, will find watching. Assuredly, I say to you that he will gird himself and have them sit down to eat, and will come and serve them.” ~Luke 12:35-37.

No matter when the end times start, no matter when Jesus will return, no matter what signs are predicted, and no matter how hard secularists bash us in our belief of His return, we need to be the sheep whom our Shepherd will “find watching”. We cannot honestly be leading Christian lives if we only get concerned about how we are living based on the predictions. Our lives should be lived in accordance with God’s Word at all times and in all seasons. Because it’s going to be one scary event to be left behind to face the Anti-christ and think about how we could have made a difference after Christ has already returned for that faithful.

“Then Peter said to Him, ‘Lord, do You speak this parable only to us, or to all people?’ And the Lord said, ‘Who then is that faithful and wise steward, whom his master will make ruler over his household, to give them their portion of food in due season? Blessed is that servant whom his master will find so doing when he comes.” ~Luke 12:41-43

One thing that I would like to add here, is that we should not be worried about the signs of the end times nor the predictions; rather, we should be concerned about how we are making a difference in the lives of those around us. How do they view us as different, in a positive way, from the world? Do even our “acquaintances” see Christ’s love shining through us? We need to understand how important our witness is, because eternity is forever: Heaven or hell. One will be a glorious eternity and the other will be a place of bitterness forever and ever with no end.   

“For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved. He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.” ~John 3:17-18

In closing, I would like to share with you a testimony which Sarah Mally gave in her sister, Grace Mally’s book “Will Our Generation Speak”. This book was given to me last year by three of my friends and I have slowly been going through the book as I find the time.

“The Cost”

“I imagined myself as a spectator watching a scene unfold before my eyes. First, I saw a man who was helping others--yet not simply in the way that any man might help someone else. This was much different. It was as if tenderness and kindness were just flowing out of Him. I could tell He was a good man--GOOD in a way that I had never seen before. Every single thing He did was good. His face was so pure. I had never seen honesty like that, never seen love like that. It’s like I finally knew what love was--now that I saw Him. All I wanted to do was to keep watching Him because everything He did was so amazing. Even the simple normal acts of service that He was doing--I was astonished by them...by Him, I mean. The way He spoke...I could just tell He was right, that He spoke the truth, that everything He said was right by definition. And the way He looked at people. I wished He would look at me, but He never did. I was just a spectator. But I knew I would never forget this goodness that I had seen. It was almost as if I was in a daze, not quite able to comprehend it, stunned that this kind of righteousness could even exist. I wanted to just keep watching him. I felt that I would be content if I could simply watch Him for the rest of my life.

But then suddenly the scene changed before my eyes. I didn’t want to believe what I was seeing. People were looking at Him with angry stares. It was more than mere anger; it was rage; He was looking back at them with such..such..I don’t even know the word..it was as if He was on a totally different playing field. There was such tenderness in HIs eyes. A touch of sorrow, an ocean of love. Their rage turned into vehement shouting and accusations, and then I began to watch the most horrible scene of my life. The whips they were holding were cruel and scourging unbearable to watch. But how could this be? He was so good, so pure, so tender. He was the best person I had ever known. This must stop. I tried to yell out for someone to help, for someone to stop this. But I realized, again, I was only a spectator. Lash after lash. Blow after blow. I couldn’t look--especially because it was Him. It was the worst possible injustice I could imagine. This could not be happening. It had to stop.”

She went on to say…

“Stunned and traumatized, I stepped back. I forced myself to breathe. I tried not to comprehend what I had just seen: One so deserving of glory and praise, yet receiving such punishment. I’m not sure how long it was before I realized that I was holding something: I also had a whip in my hand. It was then I understood that my hand also was on the rod that fell on Him. Was I responsible? For this? I realized that I had not been merely a spectator.

At last it was over. It was finished. It--was--finished, for all eternity! It is done! God the Father has seen the anguish of His soul and has been satisfied. Never would I have dreamed that justice would have been this costly. How vast is the extent of my sin--that this was the price. And how immeasurable the extent of His love--that this much He would pay.”

~Sarah Mally (from “Will Our Generation Speak?” by Grace Mally, 2012)

In Christ,

Anna