Matthew 24:36-39
“No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. For in the days before the flood, people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, up to the day Noah entered the ark; and they knew nothing about what would happen until the flood came and took them all away. That is how it will be at the coming of the Son of Man.
Do you remember where you were on May 21, 2011? If Harold Camping’s prediction of Jesus’ return had been correct, I’m sure you would, but 5/21/11 was just another ordinary day for just about every person on the planet. Sadly, many of Camping’s followers had emptied their savings in order to pay for billboards and bus wrap advertising. They hit the streets all over America to warn people of the Lord’s imminent return. I never doubted their sincerity, but I did question their knowledge of the Word of God. Harold Camping had been in Christian broadcasting for decades…and he should have known better.
Nobody knows when Jesus is coming back to earth…including Jesus. There are times when I hope and pray that it’s soon, given the condition of the world we live in, but in the end I am faced with the undeniable conclusion that my desire is a selfish one. Who fears “The End” when you have the golden ticket to paradise? It’s easy to say that I want Jesus to return TODAY because as His child I have nothing to fear…but what about the billions of souls on this planet who have yet to call Him Savior and Lord? Do we care about what will happen to them upon the Lord’s return?
Scripture tells us that we may be able to tell the “season” of His return, but not the day or the hour. It will be a total shock to all of us, believer or not. It will occur in the midst of an ordinary day when people all over the globe will be working or eating or sleeping or going to school or hanging out with their friends or watching television. In that astounding moment the future of every living person will be set. Some will go to Heaven. Most will go to Hell.
That Day will be both beautiful and terrible. Joyful and sorrowful. Glorious and awful. A dream come true or the worst nightmare imaginable. As Christians, we know the way out and have been given the charge to share it with as many people as we can. The lost people in our lives may not see it coming, but we do. The question, of course, is what are we going to do about it? I hope we will all love them enough to share with them the only way out: repent and believe on the Lord Jesus Christ.
