For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so comes as a thief in the night. (1 Thessalonians 5:2)
When the Lord returns, He is returning for a church without spot or blemish. It is up to us to prepare ourselves. When a bride prepares for her wedding, is it the bridegroom that prepares the bride? No it is the bride herself. However, because there is nothing we can do to save ourselves, how we prepare ourselves is to trust in the Blood sacrifice of Jesus our Lord. Making ourselves ready has all to do with what Jesus has already done for us. Through His grace we learn obedience to and application of God’s word. While we wait, we are to occupy till He comes. We are to be a beacon and a light to the world. We are not to be so heavenly minded that we are no earthly good, but we are also not to love the world or the things of the world. They key to life is balance. Let His word guide you and let the same word light up the path that He has prepared for you.
This world is fighting for our attention, for our time, for our children and for our future. We need to be aware of this so that we can know the tactics of the enemy. Complacency is one of the greatest dangers to the Believer. We become desensitized toward things that would hurt us by them slowly gaining access to our lives. It is like a frog being placed in cool water in a pot and then having the heat turned up slightly so that the boiling point is reached so slowly that the frog doesn’t even jump out of the water because of the false sense of comfort. Then the water boils and the frog is dead! We can see terrible things taking place all around us but the wonderful news for us is that where sin abounds, grace abounds even more! God can not be outdone.
It is God’s desire that none should perish so we need to share the truth of God’s love by sharing Jesus for all to see. Our unconditional love is an example to others as we joyfully await His return and look for Him to roll the sky back like a scroll and take His bride!
Pastor Michael Cannatello
lazarusministry.com
