Matthew 24:37-42 tells us the return of the Son of Man will catch people by surprise.
Verse 37-39 says it quite plainly, When the Son of Man returns, it will be like it was in Noah's day. In those days before the Flood, the people were enjoying banquets and parties and weddings right up to the time Noah entered his boat. People didn't realize what was going to happen until the Flood came and swept them all away. That is the way it will be when the Son of Man comes.
As I look around my life here in Los Angeles, especially in my part of town, there is a lot of partying and fun-loving going on.
Is enjoying life okay?
I think so if there is gratitude to God and within proper boundaries.
Americans love their freedom. The automobile and the open road are icons of our society. However, this freedom is not without rules. If everyone were on the road doing their own thing we would have chaos!
Are we living in days like the days of Noah?
Don't know. It looks like it in many ways. But the fact remains, we don't know when Jesus is coming back.
So what do we do?
Verse 40-41 offers an agricultural metaphor, Two men will be working together in the field; one will be taken, the other left. Two women will be grinding flour at the mill; one will be taken, the other left.
Question: do you want to be the one taken or the one left?
It all depends on where the one taken winds up!!
People who believe that the Second Coming of Christ involves a "catching up" of believers up to heaven before judgment falls upon the earth will say that you want to be taken.
On the other hand, it is possible the opposite could be the intention: the one taken faces suffering.
Wind the clock back to the bad old days when armies would swarm through an area and rape and pillage. Men would be taken from the field and forced to support the invading army as a slave. The women would be taken from the field and forced into slave labor and sexual gratification of the conquering army.
Either way, the point simply is that we don't know when the Son of Man will come in judgment. He has come in redemption in the Cross. He will come again in judgment.
Verse 43, So be prepared, because you don't know what day your Lord is coming.
Lord, help me to live a life of faithfulness to you, love for others and holiness in all things. However your return unfolds, help me to be found following you. Amen.
1 comment:
Rene
You really hit on something that many folks tend to miss. In ancient times, getting "left behind" was a good thing. It meant you got to stay in your homeland, and you were not enslaved in a foreign land.
Great post.
Blessings
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