If I go and prepare a place for you I will come again... (John 14:3)
10 January 2016
Dear Phyllis,
Looking at the events of the daily news today it is difficult to come to any other conclusion than we are right at the door of the end of this age. I have radically changed my views of several eschatological events but one doctrine that I refuse to move on is the imminent return of Christ.
That was a tremendous promise that Jesus made to the disciples that night in the upper room. No one disputes His first coming, and if there is any validity to the Words of Christ the one certain promise that He made to them was that He would come back for them so they could be with Him forever in heaven. And as we read His prayer in John 17 we see that what He prayed for and promised was not only for them but for those who would believe on Him through their word (Jn.17:20). That means us. If we would accept Jesus' promise at face value it is difficult to think anything other than He would be back within a few weeks. And as we read the NT we see very clearly that the 1st century church expected Jesus return during their life time. Obviously, to comment on this problem was the reason why Paul wrote 1 Thessalonians (4:13-17). In the 59 years that I have been following the Lord I don't recall one person that I felt was walking close to Jesus who didn't believe that they would see the return of Christ. And I believe the reason for this is because it is the witness of the Holy Spirit. But for 2000 years millions have believed that they would live to see Christ's return, but haven't. Does that mean the Holy Spirit lied? No, I believe this is one of the most fundamental witnesses of the Holy Spirit in the heart of any Christian. The reason for this is that this is the attitude that every Christian should have every day. Jesus certainly taught this in several parables and repeatedly told us to be ready at any time.
There are several reasons why this attitude is important. I have thought of a married couple with much different temperaments. The husband is a fastidious melancholic who insists eveything be spotless. And the wife is a sloppy sanguine who always leaves a stack of dirty dishes in the sink and laundry lying on the floor. What should the house look like? Of course it should be clean. Anything less than this would be unchristian. To any husband who has high standards and tells his wife to keep the place neat, and she replies, “Hang you, Jack, I'll wash the dishes when I want, and if you don't like the bed you can make it yourself.”; the kindest thing that could be said about such a woman is that she is defiant and rebellious. And an honest assessment of that attitude is that it is a repudiation of the wedding vow. It would be a stretch to call that woman a Christian. For any Christian woman, her husband is the core of her life and her primary responsibility is to love, obey, follow, and please him. I don't see how anyone could challenge that position.
But if the husband is away on business, what should the wife's attitude be concerning the house? She should live with the anticipation that he might come home at any time. If she did that she would keep the dishes washed and the bed made. She wouldn't want to have him come home and find the place looking like a pig pen. This hope of Jesus' imminent return is a major incentive to live a clean life. I heard of a girl who went to a dance one night and prayed, “Lord Jesus, please don't come right now. I don't want you to find me here”. I knew of a man who went to a bar and had the same problem. He said, “I sure hope Jesus doesn't come when I am in here”. This is a major reason why the Holy Spirit places that hope in our hearts to keep us clean and away for things we shouldn't do. In Matt. 24:42-51 Jesus told us to always live in view of His imminent return and said the servant who said, “My Lord delays His coming”, will have their portion in hell.
Another reason for this hope of the return of Christ is that it helps us to hold out for a little more. I remember when I was at a horrible time with Rosemary; I couldn't imagine lasting one more day. I recall a couple of times of thinking, “I can't make it through the day but maybe I can make it until noon”. And at noon thinking, “perhaps I can make it 'til supper”. There are times when we can't imagine going any further, but we hope, if Jesus comes today I'll be alright.
But another reason for the anticipation of Jesus coming now is because we love Him. Sometimes when I was a boy I would ride my horse and come home after dark. My mother would stand outside listening for the sound of hoof beats. When she heard the sound of a horse galloping down the road she knew I would be home soon. Sometimes Pammy is out late with friends. I go to bed but, try like I might, I lay there listening for any sound of the car. When I hear traffic on the highway in front of our muban (housing area) my pulse quickens and I wonder, “Is that Pammy?”. If we love Jesus as we should, everyday our hearts should be outside listening for the sound of the hoof beats of His horse or the Trumpet.
There are five positions on the rapture; pre-trib, mid-trib, post-trib, a-trib (I don't know), and split rapture. I have changed my position on several doctrines or time-lines of the end time events. Hang the time-line of events. I don't care. Recently I moved my position on the time of Ezek. 38, 39. For years I have strongly believed Hal Lindsey's position that this is the Russian invasion of Israel at the beginning of the seven years of tribulation. The other day I noticed that this is God's supper feast for fouls (Ezek. 39:4, 17-20). This is exactly the same thing that we read in Rev. 19:17, 18. If this is the same event– and it sure looks like it is– then Ezek. 38 & 39 is Armageddon. If that is correct then that would identify Gog as the anti-Christ. I have been surprised to discover that there are a number of Christian scholars who are taking the position that the Islamic Mahdi is the anti-Christ. Indeed in reading the Quran, Islamic and Christian eschatology are almost identical except we see the Islamic Messaih as the anti-christ.
There is much to say and I am out of space and time. But, man howdy, we must be close. Oh hallelujah, it isn't far from here!
bill
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