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"And then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky with power and great glory" (Matthew 24:30)
I was on my way somewhere recently, beloved, when I passed a construction site where a new store for a well-known grocery chain is being built. The sign showed the name of that chain in splendid letters with the two words following: "COMING SOON!" That corporation wants us as potential customers to know that if we will just be patient and anticipate the grand opening, soon a new store will stand on that location and serve the needs of all in that community.
Even as I passed by and read the sign, beloved, I could not help but smile and think instantly of Jesus' promise to us just like the one in the verse of Scripture above. And as I see what is happening all around us in the world today, including the staggering changes taking place right here at home, I am thrilled at the prospect that Jesus is indeed coming soon!
If you've never read, and I mean really read, Matthew's twenty-fourth chapter, then let me encourage you to do so...and soon. You see, Jesus has laid out for us the order of events that will precede His coming and, very simply, this world falling apart morally and socially and politically is a major part of the preparation for that coming. It is not my intention here in this brief post to examine all the details of events preceding the day of His return, but rather to encourage you to do precisely what that grocery chain that is building the store is urging its future customers to do - anticipate its coming. I want you to be fully aware of all that is going on around us, especially here at home, but I do not want you to be discouraged or fearful. Rather I want you to see in all of it the announcement of Jesus that should gladden our hearts: "COMING SOON!" This is a time to rejoice, beloved, as well as a time to be as active as we can be in standing up for kingdom values and in promoting the message of the cross to this lost generation. It may well be our last opportunity to do so.
I am not at all sure if we will ourselves become customers of that soon coming grocery store that is even now being built. But I do know this. I know that we will be a part of what Jesus is Himself even now preparing for us, what is even now "under construction." What a "hard hat area" that must be! One day we who know Christ by grace through faith will not have to think about Him "coming soon" for He will arrive in power and glory and every promise of Scripture will be fulfilled. Jesus Christ as King of Kings and Lord of Lords will be forever all in all.
COMING SOON! Could any news possibly be any more exciting than that? Are you ready for His coming, beloved? Do you know someone who isn't? Why not tell them He's on the way?
Ron
Saturday, May 18, 2013
Sunday, May 12, 2013
Fired Up or Spewed Out?
"I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot; I wish that you were cold or hot. So because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of My mouth" (Revelation 3:15-16)
Tepid. Now there is a word you don't hear in normal everyday conversation! Try using that one in a sentence, grammar-fans! Actually, tepid is a very descriptive but at the same time disgusting word. Case in point: Have you ever poured for yourself a steaming cup of coffee, only to be distracted and set it down in order to go and take care of whatever it was that drew your attention away? Who hasn't? Some time later you remember that patiently waiting cup of coffee and go looking for it. When you find it, what happens? You put the cup to your lips hesitantly and take a swig. EWWWWW! Tepid! The coffee is no longer hot but neither is it yet cold. It is instead lukewarm. Revolting! So you pour it out in disgust.
It is bad enough when coffee that should be steaming and delicious is lukewarm and disgusting, beloved. But when it happens to those who profess to be Christians, it is a spiritual tragedy. Jesus described the degree of such a condition in His words to John that were meant for the Asian church in the city of Laodicea. And in His statement we discover a wonderful challenge for our own living today.
Note that Jesus accused the professing believers in Laodicea of being "neither hot nor cold." To be "hot" spiritually, a translation of the Greek word zestos, is to be filled with the Spirit of God and to be ablaze with love for and commitment to Jesus Christ. We like to use the term "on fire" to describe such believers today. On the other hand, to be "cold" spiritually, a translation of the Greek word psuchros, is to go beyond mere disbelief. It is to take a stand as strongly against the gospel of Jesus Christ as being "hot" is to stand for it. That Jesus was sending this warning to a local church speaks volumes of what can and does happen today even among those professing faith in Christ and part of an organized visible body.
Perhaps what is most surprising here, however, is Jesus' stated preference concerning those in Laodicea professing to be His followers, that they be either "hot" or "cold" rather than "lukewarm." The preference for them to be spiritually "hot" we can certainly understand. But "cold"? Perhaps the answer lies in a closer look at the word "lukewarm." The Greek word chliaros describes a spiritual state in which one professes to be a true follower of Christ, yet in whose life the evidence of the life of God does not exist. This is the one who has substituted "religiosity" for saving faith and "heated religious activities" for genuine service to the Lord. Jesus' preference is understood, then, because to be "cold" or an outright denier and rejecter of the gospel tells us what the need is and how to go about meeting it. But of the one who has all the outward signs of being a Christian yet whose heart Christ does not occupy becomes the worst of all stumbling blocks. He presents himself to the world to be something he in actuality is not! And in condemning and rejecting such a person, the world will often do so with a wide stroke of the brush and will reject Christianity altogether.
Jesus declared His preference that we be either "hot" or "cold" instead of choosing to be "lukewarm." But do not assume for a moment that He would actually have any one to reject the gospel message! The challenge laid before us here through His words to the Laodiceans is that we need to be on fire every moment of every day for the Lord Jesus Christ! Anything less is simply unacceptable. It is already to Him because He said so and it should be as unacceptable to us as well.
Ron
Tepid. Now there is a word you don't hear in normal everyday conversation! Try using that one in a sentence, grammar-fans! Actually, tepid is a very descriptive but at the same time disgusting word. Case in point: Have you ever poured for yourself a steaming cup of coffee, only to be distracted and set it down in order to go and take care of whatever it was that drew your attention away? Who hasn't? Some time later you remember that patiently waiting cup of coffee and go looking for it. When you find it, what happens? You put the cup to your lips hesitantly and take a swig. EWWWWW! Tepid! The coffee is no longer hot but neither is it yet cold. It is instead lukewarm. Revolting! So you pour it out in disgust.
It is bad enough when coffee that should be steaming and delicious is lukewarm and disgusting, beloved. But when it happens to those who profess to be Christians, it is a spiritual tragedy. Jesus described the degree of such a condition in His words to John that were meant for the Asian church in the city of Laodicea. And in His statement we discover a wonderful challenge for our own living today.
Note that Jesus accused the professing believers in Laodicea of being "neither hot nor cold." To be "hot" spiritually, a translation of the Greek word zestos, is to be filled with the Spirit of God and to be ablaze with love for and commitment to Jesus Christ. We like to use the term "on fire" to describe such believers today. On the other hand, to be "cold" spiritually, a translation of the Greek word psuchros, is to go beyond mere disbelief. It is to take a stand as strongly against the gospel of Jesus Christ as being "hot" is to stand for it. That Jesus was sending this warning to a local church speaks volumes of what can and does happen today even among those professing faith in Christ and part of an organized visible body.
Perhaps what is most surprising here, however, is Jesus' stated preference concerning those in Laodicea professing to be His followers, that they be either "hot" or "cold" rather than "lukewarm." The preference for them to be spiritually "hot" we can certainly understand. But "cold"? Perhaps the answer lies in a closer look at the word "lukewarm." The Greek word chliaros describes a spiritual state in which one professes to be a true follower of Christ, yet in whose life the evidence of the life of God does not exist. This is the one who has substituted "religiosity" for saving faith and "heated religious activities" for genuine service to the Lord. Jesus' preference is understood, then, because to be "cold" or an outright denier and rejecter of the gospel tells us what the need is and how to go about meeting it. But of the one who has all the outward signs of being a Christian yet whose heart Christ does not occupy becomes the worst of all stumbling blocks. He presents himself to the world to be something he in actuality is not! And in condemning and rejecting such a person, the world will often do so with a wide stroke of the brush and will reject Christianity altogether.
Jesus declared His preference that we be either "hot" or "cold" instead of choosing to be "lukewarm." But do not assume for a moment that He would actually have any one to reject the gospel message! The challenge laid before us here through His words to the Laodiceans is that we need to be on fire every moment of every day for the Lord Jesus Christ! Anything less is simply unacceptable. It is already to Him because He said so and it should be as unacceptable to us as well.
Ron
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