Like a Thief in the Night |
by David A. DePra |
| Jesus said He would come back. And if there is one thing He |
| told us to do regarding His return, it was "Be ready." Why? |
| "Because," He said, "You don't know when My return will be. I'm |
| coming like a thief in the night." |
| Now, we must ask: How does a "thief in the night" come? |
| Does he give the owner of the house he intends to visit advance |
| warning of his coming -- advance warning of any kind |
| whatsoever? No. Does he write the home owner a letter giving |
| him hints and clues, perhaps not to the precise day of his arrival, |
| but of the approximate time? No. Does he tell the home owner, |
| "I am coming to your house. You cannot know when. But here a |
| bunch of events and circumstances which will happen |
| immediately before my arrival. Pay attention to them, and you'll |
| be able to figure out about when I'm coming." No, he doesn't. |
| A "thief in the night" doesn't tell the home owner any of those |
| things. |
| The point should be obvious. A thief in the night doesn't give |
| advance warning at all. Indeed, if there is one thing a thief in |
| the night DOESN'T do, it's give information about when he's |
| going to arrive. Jesus said that HIS second coming would be as |
| "a thief in the night." So what does that tell us about the chances |
| that we could figure out when that will be? |
| Today, many are predicting when Jesus will come. Almost to |
| a person, those who venture into this arena will admit they don't |
| know the day or hour -- for Jesus said we could not know that. |
| But many of them say that we can know the approximate date. |
| And to verify this, they point to the Bible. They claim that Jesus, |
| and the apostles, said that certain world events, and other things, |
| must happen before Jesus returns. And then they add, "See. All |
| of these things have happened. Therefore we can know that the |
| return of Christ is imminent." |
| Let's look at just one such commonly quoted verse: |
| For many shall come in My name, saying, "I am the Christ," |
| and deceive many. And you shall hear of wars and rumors |
| of wars....for nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom |
| against kingdom. And there shall be famines and pestilences |
| and earthquakes in divers places. (Matt. 24:5-7) |
| This verse has been continually quoted as proof that the |
| return of Christ is near. Afterall, there are many false prophets |
| today. There are wars and rumors of wars. Famines and |
| earthquakes are increasing in different places. But notice the |
| part of the passage that ISN'T quoted: |
| "See that you be not troubled. For all these things must come to |
| pass. BUT THE END IS NOT YET." |
| So in other words, rather than use these events as indications |
| that His return is near, Jesus is using them as examples of things |
| which mean NOTHING as far as indicating when He will return. |
| The question is, will the Body of Christ LISTEN to what He is |
| saying? |
| Jesus said His coming could be likened to the coming of a |
| "thief in the night." As a result, He told us that there was only |
| ONE thing we could do. What was that? Figure out the time |
| from so-called clues and hidden messages in the Bible? No. |
| He said, "BE READY." Why? For you KNOW NOT the day nor |
| hour in which the Son of Man comes." * |