Last time we closed with the statement - there are only two days guaranteed to any of us: "this day" and "that day." This day is today. The Bible declares that "Now is the time of God's favor, today is the day of salvation." (2 Corinthians 2:2). If you are alive, there remains yet an opportunity to accept God's favor, His unmerited favor which is called grace. It is by grace that we are saved, and it is by faith that we receive that grace. There is no better way to describe what that grace is that to use the Bible's own words. "God demonstrates His own love for us in this; While we were still sinners, Christ died for us." (Romans 5:8)
It will not get any easier to be saved in the future and the future is not guaranteed to any of us. That's why there is an air of urgency for people to be saved today. Remember this: there is no sin so small that it does not need the grace of Christ's death on the cross, and there is no sin so large that it can't be covered by the grace of Christ's death on the cross.
We have now progressed in these writings to the mid-point and beyond of the 70th week of Daniel. In most of the popular literature, and in much of the theological works, this has been erroneously labeled as The Tribulation. Jesus stated that in the world, all of His followers would know tribulation (thlipsis in the Greek), but not to worry because He had overcome the world. (John 16:33). However, Jesus did warn that after the Antichrist is revealed, there would be a time of great tribulation. (Matthew 24:21). It would begin in Jerusalem. Remember, by now the temple will have been rebuilt and the Jewish system of animal sacrifice will have been reinstated. In Israel there will be many devout Jews, who will be observing the Sabbath, so Jesus says following the revelation of the Antichrist, "Let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains.......pray that your flight will not be in winter or on the Sabbath.....for then there will be great tribulation, such as has not occurred since the beginning of the world until now - and never will be equalled again." (Matthew 24:16-21)
Jesus then says "If those days had not been cut short, no one would survive, but for the sake of the elect (Christians who have made their calling and election sure), those days will be shortened." (Matthew 24:22) And so that there is no mistake about His coming (parousia in the Greek), Jesus warns us to disregard reports that He is already here; There will be signs in the heavenlies preceding His return. We will deal with that in some detail next time. For now, I want to share with you a true story to illustrate how vulnerable some people are to deception.
About ten years ago, a couple who appeared to be in their 40's showed up for a Sunday worship service. They each carried a Bible, appeared like mature Christians, knew the language and remained after service and talked with several people. A week later they showed up again, and this time I got to talk with them. I found out that they were from the New Haven area and they asked if they could come speak with me sometime in the middle of the week. At the appointed time they arrived and we sat in my office. For 15-20 minutes the conversation revolved around what you could call "orthodox Christianity and ministry." Then, suddenly the conversation made a u-turn and within minutes this couple was doing their best to convince me that Jesus had already returned to Earth. It got worse. They were convinced that He was living in Litchfield, CT under the alias of Charlie Brown.
I spent two or three minutes trying to convince them of their error, and when they didn't budge I had to ask them to leave in the spirit of 2 John 7-11. I've never forgotten that episode, and it serves to remind me to pray for discernment and wisdom. Just because someone claims to have a message from God, we should always check to see if it matches with the written word of God.
These blogs continue to be written so that through endurance and the encouragement of the Scriptures you might have hope. (Romans 15:4)
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