Signs Pointing To Christ's Return

Yesterday morning I had breakfast with a friend at a local restaurant, as we often do on Wednesdays. We talked about the sorry state of world affairs and the struggles we both have in personal and family life. That is a common theme of our conversations. A couple hours later a pastor-friend dropped by my study to share some all too familiar problems he has in shepherding his flock. Members of long standing are no longer coming to worship. No matter what he or his elders do or say, they will not fellowship with other members. In several cases those folks even refused to open their doors when visitors from their congregation come by.

As you know, if you've followed this week's Blogs, we are meditating upon lessons the church has chosen to read on this second-last Sunday of the church's year of worship. The Gospel, Luke 21:5-28, speaks about the same things that my two friends and I discussed. Jesus says we are not to be surprised when we hear about earthquakes, famines and pestilences, as well as terrors and great signs from heaven. What do we read in the news? Here's an example from but a few weeks ago:

A sudden storm left at least five quake survivors dead and dozens more wounded as it blasted through Haiti's capital, tearing down shabby tent homes, trees and power lines. Those killed on Friday included two young girls and a 93-year-old woman who lived in close quarters with the tens of thousands of people left homeless by the powerful January 12 quake that devastated this impoverished Caribbean nation. 

In addition to that, we hear of Christians being persecuted in many lands, as has been the case from Jesus' day to the present. This very month we read about a string of anti-Christian killings in Baghdad. Since Tuesday evening of last week, there have been 13 bombs and two mortar attacks on homes and shops of Christians in which a total of six people were killed and 33 injured. A church was also damaged.

The attacks came less than two weeks after 44 Christian worshippers, two priests and seven security personnel died in the seizure of a Baghdad church by Islamist gunmen and the ensuing shootout when it was stormed by troops.

Our Lord Jesus predicted this very thing as he said, "You will be hated by all for my name's sake" (Luke 21:16-17). He also said these sorts of things in the natural world and in human affairs would continue right up to the very end of this present age. Listen to His words:

"And there will be signs in sun and moon and stars, and on earth distress of nations in perplexity because of the roaring of the sea and the waves, people fainting with fear and with foreboding of what is coming on the world. For the powers of the heavens will be shaken. And then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory" (Luke 21:23-27).

We Christians are a peculiar lot. We believe that our Lord and God is intimately involved both in the happenings of the natural world and in the affairs of man. So deeply committed is He that He chose to become one with us, a plan He announced from the creation of the universe. He by whom all things were made and without whom nothing can continue, became a Man. He did all this so that He might rescue us from our own folly and unfaithfulness by His sacrificial death upon a cross (see John 1:1-16).
He who came once in great humility is coming again soon to complete what began then. When He returns we and the entire created world will finally be set free from hatred, war and death. That's the new song we sing and we invite everyone to join with us (Psalm 98:1-9).