2 posts tagged “moment”
Are you the one who was to come, or should we expect someone else?
John the Baptist asked this question of his cousin Jesus. It was an important question to John, because he was at the moment a prisoner of King Herod. He was waiting to see the proverbial light at the end of the tunnel and his liberty.
Go back and report to John what you see and hear: The blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cured, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the good news is preached to the poor. Blessed is the man who does not fall away on account of me.
Jesus preached the same message as John, but with an important twist. Oh yes, Jesus called for repentance, just like John, but He also preached that salvation was possible for all, even sinners, tax collectors, and their loathsome Roman overlords.
Jesus surely cared about his cousin John and wanted to free him from King Herod's prison, but He did not intervene to do that. Oh sure, He could have, but Jesus did not work that way. His kingdom was not of this world. His kingdom would come by invitation and response, not by His own divine power and might.
Take for example Jesus' encounter with the rich young ruler. Remember how He said the man lacked one thing? He told the man, Go, sell all you have, give it to the poor, and follow Me. Sadly, the man, who was actually a pretty good guy otherwise, could not do that. So the man walked away, unable to part with his riches and to enjoy being the 13th disciple of Jesus.
Did Jesus then run after the man and let him keep his materialistic god? No, he did not. He just let him go. He simply let him make his own decision. He respected his free will. Jesus did not really care about the man's money, but he did care about the man. He knew that the man's riches had a hold on him and he offered him a once in a life time opportunity to have true liberty!
I like the term being a non-anxious presence. To me it means what Jesus did here, addressing an issue but also showing he cared about the man. He cared enough to offer him a place in His own troupe of disciples. How sad that this man missed his opportunity for real liberation.
There are many who are weak and poor and need rescuing, but this man was not one of them. He was bound in a prison of his own making. He was possessed by his possessions.
How about you, my friend? Are you generously opening your hand to the poor at this Advent Christmas season and throughout the year? Are you still thinking that you can take it with you? Or, are you dedicating all that you are and all that you have to the Master who still invites you to follow Him today?
Jesus is waiting for you to make your choice.
Do it today.
1 Thessalonians 4:16 NIV:
For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first.
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I am studying 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18 this week. I am fascinated with verse 16, above.
What is the loud command given when He comes down from heaven? Does Christ give the command or someone else?
I think the loud command is a great "Hark!" It sounds dramatic enough. Or maybe it's "Behold!" Or perhaps it is "Look out below!"
The Lord himself will come again. He will come with a loud command. We don't know what he will command us, but it will be loud. Of that we can be sure. It will be so loud that everyone will hear it, even when jackhammers are jackhammering. Will it be so loud that it hurts our ears?
It makes me remember being in school and hearing the morning announcements begin over the P.A. (public address) system.
I also think of when sailors hear their Captain say over the P.A. system, "Now hear this!"
Whatever the loud command is, it is meant, no doubt, to get our attention, to stop what we're doing, and just listen. We need to ready ourselves to do just that.
The Lord's return will happen, says Paul. He wanted to reassure the Christians in Thessalonica that Christ was coming again.
"Now hear this!" Christ will come with a loud command.
As I think about this verse, I ready myself for that moment. When it happens, I will not count it as a surprise. I will look forward to the return of Christ with joy and anticipation.
In the meantime, I will enjoy His daily presence, communicated by the Holy Spirit, by which Christ is "with us always," just as He promised!
