The Messiah is Coming!
In February 2001 I had the opportunity
to be part of a small tour group to the
In
the 
this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done”
(Lk 22.42).
Looking across from
What a fascinating statement! Leaving
aside all the questions about how we are to understand the details, here we
have Jews, Christians and Moslems all expecting something to happen.
Coming Again
The
Second Coming of Christ is strongly embedded in Christian doctrine. It is
tragic that too often we have left this doctrine to sects and to Christian groups
that go well beyond the teaching of Scripture.
The
Apostles’ Creed affirms that Jesus “was conceived by the Holy Ghost, born of
the virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, dead, and
buried; he descended into hell. The third day he arose again from the dead; he
ascended into heaven, and sits at the right hand of God the Father Almighty; from
thence he will come again to judge the living and the dead.”
The
Nicene Creed likewise affirms that Jesus “ascended into heaven, and sits at the
right hand of the Father; he will come again with glory, to judge the living
and the dead; and his kingdom will have no end.”
The
Second Coming of Christ is strongly embedded in the teaching of Jesus himself.
Jesus
and his disciples were in
“Teacher,”
they asked, “when will these things happen? And what will be the sign that they
are about to take place?” (v. 7)
Part
of Jesus’ answer is simply about the destruction of the
Jesus
warns them not to be seduced by false messiahs and false prophets who appear
(v. 8), not to panic because of rumours of wars and revolutions (v. 9) – “These things must
happen first, but the end will not come right away.”
There will be dramatic
happenings – “great earthquakes, famines and pestilences in various places, and
fearful events and great signs from heaven. But before all this, they will lay
hands on you and persecute you…” (vv. 11,12a).
Probably every generation has witnessed various “signs”, leading some to
speculate that the end was near.
The Bayeux Tapestry which records the Norman invasion
of
Our
age has certainly had a large measure of “great earthquakes, famines and
pestilences in various places…” Some folk have been quick to jump to a
conclusion, “This is definitely the end time – look at all that has been
happening!” Maybe… Certainly we are reminded of the impermanence of our hold on
planet Earth!
Of
course, God intends us to use the earth’s resources responsibly, to stop
polluting our environment, to care for the poor and the vulnerable… But above
all, he is calling us into relationship with himself. He has sent his own Son,
Jesus Christ, to live on this earth the life he intended us to live, to teach
and to heal, and to give his life as the means by which we can be forgiven. He
calls us and all people everywhere to repent and believe the gospel.
But the
time of his grace doesn’t go on forever. In Genesis 6 we read, “The
Lord saw how great man’s wickedness on the earth had become, and that every
inclination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil all the time. The Lord
was grieved that he had made man on the earth, and his heart was filled with
pain. So the Lord said, ‘I will wipe mankind, whom I have created, from the
face of the earth – men and animals, and creatures that move along the ground,
and birds of the air – for I am grieved that I have made them.’ But Noah found favour in the eyes
of the Lord” (vv. 5-8).
Ah,
but that’s just the Old Testament, isn’t it? Really?
Then listen to what the apostle Peter wrote in his second letter – “But they
deliberately forget that long ago by God’s word the heavens existed and the
earth was formed out of water and by water. By these waters also the world of
that time was deluged and destroyed. By the same word the present heavens and
earth are reserved for fire, being kept for the day of judgment and destruction
of ungodly men” ( 2 Pet 3.5-7).
But as Christians, we aren’t principally looking for
the end, but for the Return of our Lord.
Be Ready
Peter goes on to say, “Since
everything will be destroyed in this way, what kind of people ought you to be?
You ought to live holy and godly lives as you look forward to the day of God
and speed its coming. That day will bring about the destruction of the heavens
by fire, and the elements will melt in the heat. But in keeping with his
promise we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, the home of
righteousness” (vv 11-13).
In January 1974 we
were in process of leaving Childers for Stanthorpe. We had an admirable system
for recording the main categories in each box and a careful numbered record of
everything. Just a day to go before the packers arrived. We were pleased with
our progress. At around 8.30 the mailman’s whistle called me to the letterbox.
I did a quick scan of the mail for later reference, but picked out the copy of Christianity Today. The “What If…”
cartoon would be worth a laugh. And here it is… The man is reading his book of
prophecy and looks over his shoulder to see that the angelic heralds are
already blowing their trumpets. “It’s early!” the caption reads. We had a
chuckle and got back to work. Then at 9am, the doorbell rung. It was the removalists – a full day early!
Our
priorities suddenly changed! Our numbering and recording system went completely
by the board. Items like our precious typewriter were tucked in at the top of
the load without any protective box!
If
anyone tells you they know when the coming of the Lord will be, don’t believe
them! Jesus himself said, “No one knows about that day or hour, not even the
angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father” (Mt 24.36). He told us, “You
must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not
expect him” (Lk 12.40).
Christmas
is coming! Are we ready? On this first Sunday of Advent, we are reminded of
Jesus’ promise to return again in glory. Are we ready? What kind of people
ought we to be? What kind of church ought we to be? The people of
© Peter J. Blackburn, Halifax &
Ingham, 29 November 2009
Except where otherwise noted, Scripture
quotations are from the New International Version, © International Bible
Society, 1984.
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