«He who testifies to these things says, ‘Surely I am coming quickly’ «. Revelation 22:20
A FRIEND OF Randy Roberts came up to him and said, «l don’t want to hear any more sermons about Christ’s soon return.» Surprised by that statement, Pastor Roberts asked him why he had said that. His friend, a very successful professional, replied:
I’ve been hearing that since I was a boy. Again and again they told me Christ was coming soon, very soon. The time of trouble was around the corner. It would be a terrible time, and it was about to be unleashed on us. Every time I heard it, I was scared. And look, five decades have passed and Jesus hasn’t come. I don’t want my kids to grow up with the fear I had as a kid. So I would like no more sermons to be preached about «Christ’s imminent return.» *
Pastor Roberts’s friend was right: We’re constantly saying Christ’s coming will be very soon, and we will keep on saying it. Peter wrote that «the end of all things is at hand» (1 Peter 4:7). The apostle James also believed Jesus would soon return, and therefore admonished believers to be patient, «for the coming of the Lord is at hand» (James 5:8). Around the year AD 51, the apostle Paul wrote his Epistle to the Thessalonians, where he expounded on his belief on Christ’s imminent return, even believing some of them would be alive when it tool< place (see I Thessalonians 4:17). Paul wrote to the Christians in Corinth telling them «the time is short» (1 Corinthians 7:29). In Philippians, the apostle to the Gentiles is very emphatic when he says the Lord «is at hand» (Philippians 4:5).
Why is there such an emphasis on the imminence of Jesus’s second coming? It’s due to a practical matter: because we are to live as if it were to happen today. Accepting that the Lord’s coming ‘fis close at hand» will compel us not to be careless with our spiritual life, to be ready for the Second Coming as if it were to happen right now (see 2 Corinthians 6:2).
The imminence of Christ’s return should motivate us to live «soberly, righteously, and godly in the present age» (Titus 2:12). In fact, every minute that passes by brings us closer to the moment in which this precious promise will be fulfilled: «Surely I am coming quickly» (Revelation 22:20).
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Taken from: Devotional Readings for Adults 2023
“I AM WITH YOU”
From: J. VLADIMIR POLANCO
Collaborators: Lorina Maya & Avineyda Hernández
