No One Knows The Hour!

Matthew 24:36-44 KJV; Devotion for 1st Sunday in Advent. Are you as prepared for Christ to return in full glory as you are for Christmas morning?

The Last Day Will Come For All People

Heaven and earth shall pass away: but my words shall not pass away.

"But of that day and that hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels which are in heaven, neither the Son, but the Father.

Take ye heed, watch and pray: for ye know not when the time is.

For the Son of Man is as a man taking a far journey, who left his house, and gave authority to his servants, and to every man his work, and commanded the porter to watch.

Watch ye therefore: for ye know not when the master of the house cometh, at even, or at midnight, or at the cockcrowing, or in the morning:

Lest coming suddenly he find you sleeping.

And what I say unto you I say unto all, Watch."

                                                               (Mark 13:31:37 KJV)

I've heard a lot of excuses for not worshipping God and for not following Jesus as a servant to others.  I can't come to worship or fellowship on Wednesdays because that's my bowling night. Talk about a false god! There are other excuses just as poor and some even worse.

According to the Gospel of Mark, Jesus warns us to watch and pray for we can never be sure when the last day will come. The world might end tomorrow or never in our lifetimes. But, the last day will come for us all and for many of us sooner than we expect or hoped for. It is not advisable to put off worshipping God and reaching out in Christian love to the people around you. As good as the intention is that day may never come.

As professed Christians we also profess to be lovers and servants of God. Let us not be found sleeping on the job when Christ comes again in full glory. Rise up and live life according to the will of God while there is still time!

"Be ye therefore followers of God, as dear children;

And walk in love, as Christ also hath loved us, and hath given himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweetsmelling savour.

(For the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness and righteousness and truth;)

Proving what is acceptable unto the Lord.

And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them.

But all things that are reproved are made manifest by the light: for whatsoever doth make manifest is light.

Wherefore he saith, Awake thou that sleepest, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall give thee light.

See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise,

Redeeming the time, because the days are evil.

Wherefore be ye not unwise, but understanding what the will of the Lord is." 

                                                                      (Eph 5:1-2, 9-17)

God's Peace - Pr. J.

Be Prepared And Wait

 

Heaven and earth shall pass away: but my words shall not pass away.

But of that day and that hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels which are in heaven, neither the Son, but the Father.

Take ye heed, watch and pray: for ye know not when the time is.

For the Son of Man is as a man taking a far journey, who left his house, and gave authority to his servants, and to every man his work, and commanded the porter to watch.

Watch ye therefore: for ye know not when the master of the house cometh, at even, or at midnight, or at the cockcrowing, or in the morning:

Lest coming suddenly he find you sleeping.

And what I say unto you I say unto all, Watch.

                                                                           (Mark 13:31-37 KJV)

The end is near! I seem to hear that a lot in conjunction with the attempt being made to do a total reset on the economy and yes even the whole world. The proclamation that the end is near has been announced ever since Jesus walked the earth. Is it really?

Jesus said that no one knows that day or hour. No one knows when it will be except for the Father. Jesus also warns us that because no one knows we should always be prepared. We should always be watchful. Are we prepared for his return in full glory?

Today begins the season of Advent. It is a time to remember not just the first coming of the Christ; but, to look to his return in full glory. 

I have often been asked if I am ready for Christmas. My response is always something like: if we are not ready for Christmas; if we can't figure out how to get ready for one Holy Day; then we are not ready for Christ to return to take us to himself.

Yes, one day the earth will pass away. But, the Word, who is Jesus the Christ, will never pass away. Prepare yourself by getting to know the Word. Be prepared for he may come again today. But, it may also be a very long time from now and in that case you still need to be prepared and watch and wait.

God's Peace - Pr. J.

Be Prepared!

 

But of the times and the seasons, brethren, ye have no need that I write unto you.

For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night.

For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape.

But ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief.

Ye are all the children of light, and the children of the day: we are not of the night, nor of darkness.

Therefore let us not sleep, as do others; but let us watch and be sober. 

                                                                                     (1 Thess 5:1-6 KJV)

No one can know when their last breath will be taken. As a thief in the night, the Lord will come in full glory and we cannot know when that will take place. But, we can be prepared. 

To guard against thieves in the night there are many precautions we can take. Surely, we can at least lock our doors. I prefer it to be quiet in the house so that I am easily awakened by any unusual noises. I also do not go to bed intoxicated by anything. If someone breaks in, I would like to be of sober enough mind to at least know it and be able to either defend myself and/or at least call for help. There are many other ways that we can secure our homes and ourselves against thieves who do their mischief at night.

We can also prepare for the day when the Lord comes unexpectedly like a thief in the night. Scripture tells us we will not and cannot know the day or the hour. But, we can and should prepare for that day by reading and hearing his word. We can prepare by listening to him as well as bringing our concerns to him so that he might lead us in the way he would have us go. 

There are many ways that we can prepare for his coming. Do not delay your preparations for another day, another year, another time. No one knows when that day will come. It could be today, tomorrow or a thousand years from now. It makes no difference. Watch! Wait! But, be prepared to see the Lord in full glory!

God's Peace - Pr. J.

Signs and Wonders

So Jesus came again into Cana of Galilee, where he made the water wine. And there was a certain nobleman, whose son was sick at Capernaum.

When he heard that Jesus was come out of Judaea into Galilee, he went unto him, and besought him that he would come down, and heal his son: for he was at the point of death.

Then said Jesus unto him, Except ye see signs and wonders, ye will not believe.

The nobleman saith unto him, Sir, come down ere my child die.

Jesus saith unto him, Go thy way; thy son liveth. And the man believed the word that Jesus had spoken unto him, and he went his way.

And as he was now going down, his servants met him, and told him, saying, Thy son liveth.

Then enquired he of them the hour when he began to amend. And they said unto him, Yesterday at the seventh hour the fever left him.

So the father knew that it was at the same hour, in the which Jesus said unto him, Thy son liveth: and himself believed, and his whole house. 

                                                                                 (John 4:46-53 KJV)

"Then said Jesus unto him, Except ye see signs and wonders, ye will not believe.." (vs 48)

How many signs and wonders have we seen and yet our faith is less than a mustard seed? It always amazed me that whenever I led or attended healing services they were so very poorly attended. Does no one want to be healed? Does no one believe that God will answer our prayers for health and wholeness?

Actually, I believe that maybe many of us are afraid to see the signs and wonders of God. That might mean our lives will change forever and we kind of like living in our sickness. We sort of like sin. We don't want to be made whole because if we are made whole we might stand up, walk, and follow Jesus.

In reality, we have all seen signs and wonders. We just fail to acknowledge them. We have seen the lame walk; the cancer victim live years after doctors predicted they would die. As we have gotten to know Jesus a little more intimately, we have already seen radical changes in our lives and in our lifestyles. But, does get any credit or glory for this new life; for the healing of our spirits? In some case, yes. In other cases, I am afraid that our egos step in and claim credit for it all.

Miracles abound. They are all around us. Healing and wholeness occur. 

May the Holy Spirit open our ears and our eyes and our hearts to a greater understanding of all that God has done for us. He has granted us wholeness in Jesus Christ our Lord.

God's Peace - Pr. J

Getting Old

The hoary head is a crown of glory, if it be found in the way of righteousness. (Prov 16:31 KJV)

All is well with my soul and pretty much my body! What can you expect when you begin to age 😊 For some reason I don't have a lot of gray hair yet. Both of my sons have at least as much if not more. But, I am aging. My doctor is quite diligent in making sure I am healthy. My annual check ups usually include a lot of follow up tests!

I was on the road at 4 a.m. this morning. And, that is why I am so late writing this. Howard drove since I was having a minor surgery that I had to be put to sleep for and I was not able to drive afterwards. Everything went as expected. The surgeon let Howard know that "all is well." I figured it was. God has been very good to me. I don't always take too good care of myself; though, so along with my gray hairs my body inevitably is slowly but sure deteriorating - just as we all do.

I won't be doing much for the next couple of weeks. Every time I've gone out in the yard this afternoon, I've wanted to pick up the rake and clean the pond. Oh... it is so hard not to be doing something!

Hopefully, tomorrow morning I will get hot and get a blog done in a half way decent hour - like the early morning 😊

Don't worry about those gray hairs! Each gray hair; each day brings us closer to seeing the full glory of our Lord!

God's Peace - Pr. J.

Ask The Right Person; Ask Our Father

Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you:

For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened.

Or what man is there of you, whom if his son ask bread, will he give him a stone?

Or if he ask a fish, will he give him a serpent?

If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your Father which is in heaven give good things to them that ask him?

                                                                                          (Matt 7:7-11 KJV)

We do not live in vacuums. There are people around us and there is God our Father who is with us and for us. When things go terribly wrong life just seems like it is not worth it, maybe we should consider who we are depending on; who we are trusting, to walk with us through this life. Are they helping or hindering? Are we trusting someone to be there for us when they are not even there for themselves? 

Are you looking for peace in your life? There is one who can help us. That is God our Father who was willing to give us the most precious gifts of life and salvation through the sacrifice on the cross of His only begotten Son. When we are in dire need of help, ask Him. Ask our Father who loves you that much. He can and He will help you on the path to a life of peace.

Most of our earthly fathers would help us according to their abilities. That is what love is. How much more will our heavenly Father help us in our hour of need!

When in need, it would behoove us to ask the right person for help. Turn to Him and find relief; find peace; find joy in His eternal loving presence.

God's Peace - Pr. J.

Good Works Don't Fool God

And unto the angel of the church in Sardis write; These things saith he that hath the seven Spirits of God, and the seven stars; I know thy works, that thou hast a name that thou livest, and art dead.

Be watchful, and strengthen the things which remain, that are ready to die: for I have not found thy works perfect before God.

Remember therefore how thou hast received and heard, and hold fast, and repent. If therefore thou shalt not watch, I will come on thee as a thief, and thou shalt not know what hour I will come upon thee.

Thou hast a few names even in Sardis which have not defiled their garments; and they shall walk with me in white: for they are worthy.

He that overcometh, the same shall be clothed in white raiment; and I will not blot out his name out of the book of life, but I will confess his name before my Father, and before his angels.
                                                                                  (Rev 3:1-5 KJV)

Sometimes we can seem so faithful to the world outside because of all our good works. But, to the angel of the church in Sardis, Jesus says, "I know your deeds; you have a reputation of being alive, but your are dead." (vs 1) Wake up and repent! Walk with Jesus, dressed in the white robes of his righteousness.

May we always remember that our good works might fool some of the people; but, they can never fool God. We are saved by faith alone in Christ alone.

God's Peace - Pr. J

Keep Awake - Be Prepared!

"Therefore, keep awake—for you do not know when the master of the house will come, in the evening, or at midnight, or at cockcrow, or at dawn, or else he may find you asleep when he comes suddenly. And what I say to you I say to all: Keep awake.”  (Mark 13:35-37 NRSV)

Keep awake! No matter what day or hour it is, be prepared. When I was a child, I remember, certain people I knew use to make fun of people of a certain denomination because they would go out drinking and carousing on one evening and then go to confession the next day. They thought it quite strange that people should think that they can go and do things they knew full well they'd be repenting of the next day. The weird thing about it was that the same people who pointed fingers at those making confession actually were out carousing with them; but, they didn't go to confession. 

Doing things that we know we are going to repenting of probably is not a very good idea. It's just not a good idea to be thinking we can manipulate God. Jesus certainly died for our sins; but, does that make it right that we should continue to do those things we know we should not do with the understanding that we can be forgiven? Was Christ's sacrifice worth so little? 

Besides, how do you know that the hour will not come for you to stand before the throne of God while you are in the midst of purposely doing what you know you ought not be doing? 

Keep awake - be prepared! Do not let our Lord return and find you on a path that you should not be following.

God's Peace - Pr. J

Be Prepared!

“Be dressed ready for service and keep your lamps burning, like servants waiting for their master to return from a wedding banquet, so that when he comes and knocks they can immediately open the door for him. It will be good for those servants whose master finds them watching when he comes. Truly I tell you, he will dress himself to serve, will have them recline at the table and will come and wait on them. It will be good for those servants whose master finds them ready, even if he comes in the middle of the night or toward daybreak. But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what hour the thief was coming, he would not have let his house be broken into.You also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him.” (Luke 12:35-40 NIV)

^\

Be prepared! The LORD has called you to be His own. Will you be ready? Or... are you too busy preparing for the next party? The next sports game? The next whatever? And, you do know what I mean when I say "parties." There are parties and then there are "parties." Of course, the LORD wants you to enjoy life and to celebrate at gatherings. There are those parties where we gather together to celebrate someone's birthday or a wedding or even a community picnic. But, then there are those "parties" that include celebrating illegal or immoral behavior. The latter party in no way prepares us to meet the LORD. 

The LORD wants us to enjoy life and all that gifts He's given us. But, the question we must ask ourselves is if these pleasures the number one priorities in our lives? If given a choice, what will you choose: the Kingdom of God for all eternity or immediate pleasure and gratification? Will you choose to sleep through life or will you be prepared for the return of the Master?

"Be dressed ready for service and keep your lamps burning."

God's Peace - Pr. J