What is it that makes you heart race with sudden urgency?
So as you may remember from my last couple of blogs I was in Colorado last week. Wednesday morning I got myself out of bed and dragged through the motions of getting packed and out the door to the airport. I had come down with some sort of nasty bug which left me feverish and aching all over. I wasn't moving very fast so I gave myself plenty of time to get my rental car turned back in and get to the airport.
I got through security and rather uneventfully and still have a couple of hours before my flight. I wondered up to the mezzanine level with the restaurants and made my way to paradise cafe and bakery. They have some really good fresh food there and I was in need of something with less grease then the average fast food joint. So I ordered a sandwich and salad combo and sat down enjoying my meal with plenty of time to spare.
At about 10:45 I heard something over the loud speaker referencing a flight to Portland but didn't think much of it sense my flight wasn't leaving until noon. Then about 5 minutes later I heard it again. Flight number 369 to Portland is departing from gate B26. I look at my ticket and sure enough that's my flight. I grab my stuff and race towards to the gate in my weakened state. Maybe my phone hasn't made the time change I must be late.
I get to the gate with a rather panicked look on my face and get the word "Portland" out of my mouth. The jet way is not attached to the airplane. I start to panic that I have missed my flight. The woman kindly says the flight will be boarding next. The announcement had apparently been simply a gate change. I really wish they had said in the announcement "gate change!" Maybe they did and I missed it, but whatever the case may be, it got my attention.
Luke 21 catches my attention in much the same way. I have read the prophecies of Jesus many times. I know they talk about wars and rumors of wars. They talk about earthquakes, famines, and all kinds of other nasty things happening through out history. But it's through out history. It is to be expected, these things will happen says Jesus they are not the signs of the end.
But then we get to verse 25 "There will be signs in the sun, moon, and stars. On the earth, nations will be in anguish and perplexity at the roaring and tossing of the sea." Sound familiar to anyone yet? "Men will faint from the terror, apprehensive of what is coming on the world, for the heavenly bodies will be shaken. At that time they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. When these things begin to take place, stand up and lift up your heads, because your redemption is drawing near."
I read this and I can't help but think of Japan and the tilting of the earth's axis with the raging of the seas. It gives me the same feeling as "flight 369 to portland is departing from gate B26." There is something happening there is something coming. I have been content to know Jesus is coming sometime soon, but this is not soon as in sometime in the future this is soon as in soon.
I get a little bit of fear in my gut, until I read the rest of the passage. Stand up lift up your heads because the end of the world is coming??? No! Because your redemption is near! This is good news, this is a relief, this is what I want. I don't know the day or the hour when Jesus is coming, I think scripture is pretty darn clear about that one. But no matter how soon is soon I can look forward to it remembering why he is coming.
Redemption is near!!!
If you are not sure redemption is something you want to be near, I encourage you to take the time to find out. Take a look around this old earth and see the suffering abounding. Then take a look at Jesus again or for the first time and see if he isn't the kind of person you would like to spend eternity with. The nice part about it all is we can start spending time with him now, we don't have to wait for the day the earth falls apart.
May we take a better look at who Jesus is today and why his coming would be such a very, very good thing.
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