This is the Day?

But the day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything in it will be laid bare.

2 Peter 3:10

Almost forty years ago a thief broke into our house while my wife and I and our two very young children were all asleep. He came in the middle of the night without any warning, gathered what he wanted and left. The things that he took were not very valuable, but the peace of mind that was gone the next morning was significant. A few days later I had a dream that he was breaking back into our house. I was in a state of panic when I woke up.

When Jesus comes back to this earth He will come like a thief. He will not come to steal or destroy, but He will come without warning just like a thief.

If the Lord came to you today and said, “I am going to tell you the day and the hour when I will return, but you cannot tell anyone else,” what would you do with that information? Let’s pretend He told you that His return will be tomorrow at 7:33 pm (EST). So now that you know exactly when the Lord will return you can choose where you will be and what you will be doing when the trumpet sounds for His return.

I would start by making a list of the things that I would not be doing. I would not be upset and angry. I would not be working on paying bills. I would not be sitting in a movie theater trying to escape to an imaginary reality for ninety minutes. I would not be depressed. What is there to be depressed about if Jesus is about to return within the hour?

I suppose if I knew that Jesus would return and I knew exactly when, I would be sitting in a beautiful garden with my wife and my Bible. We would be praising the Lord and praying. And then He would come! Wow what a perfect picture!

There is no one who will know precisely the day or hour. Consequently I need to fill each and every moment with thoughts and deeds that would be appropriate for the Lord’s return. I need to keep this filter in my mind in place: “If Jesus returns while I am doing this, saying this, thinking this how would I feel about that?” Those actions, words and thoughts that would not be appropriate for the time of Jesus’ return need to be eliminated from my life.

Secret sin must be banished. In reality there is no such thing as secret sin, just ask Adam and Eve.

To live ready for His return means to live without doubt and fear.

In a few years at most I will suddenly be aware of the presence of the Lord Jesus. Either He will have come here or I will have gone there.

Lord, help me live today so that I can raise my hands, shout with joy and welcome You if this is the day of Your return!