Dear Brothers and Sisters,
Have you ever taken a pop quiz? Me too.
Ever flunked a pop quiz? Yup, me too.
And let me guess, your excuse was, "But it was a pop quiz. You can't study for a pop quiz. You don't know when it's gonna be!"
Okay, fair enough point about not knowing what day the quiz will be. But yes you can study for a pop quiz! If you take some time every night to review the material and read over what you learned in class, then you'll be ready for a pop quiz no matter when the teacher decides to grace your day with your GPA's stealthiest natural predator.
It's the same way with the second coming of Christ. We don't know when it's going to happen. We'll just be going about our business like any other day, just like it says in Matthew 24:36-39:
"No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. For in the days before the flood, people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, up to the day Noah entered the ark; and they knew nothng about what would happen until the flood came and took them all away. That is how it will be at the coming of the Son of Man."
So what can you do to prepare? You have to become stronger Christians, my beloved brothers and sisters! You must see the impending return of Christ as a reason to further your personal holiness.
What is it that you need to do in order to further your personal holiness? Well, the best thing to do is to assume that tomorrow is the big day. Imagine Christ is coming back tomorrow morning, bright and early. And, with that mindset, ask yourself these questions:
1.) What am I doing in my life that I would be ashamed to be doing when Christ walks in my front door?
2.) Where do I go that I would be embarrassed if Christ were to to find me there when He returns?
3.) With whom do I associate that Christ would be disappointed to find me in the company of such a person?
4.) What am I neglecting or avoiding in my life that I wouldn't want Christ to ask me about?
5.) What comes out of my mouth that I would be ashamed to say if Christ was in the room?
Oh, you don't have to answer right away. Take some time and really think about these questions. I reccomend you write them down on an index card, and put it in your wallet, or somewhere else where you will see it often. (I have mine taped on the inside of my Bible.) Think about them often.
If Christ was coming in the next 24 hours, in the next 12 hours, in the next hour, what would you be ashamed of? What would you be afraid to tell Him about?
The answers, my brothers and sisters, are different for everyone. But whatever answers you come up with, those are the things that are keeping you from reaching a greater degree of holiness in the sight of God. Those are the things you need to fix in your life in order to prepare for His coming.
1 John 2:28 tells us to "continue in Him, so that when He appears, we may be confident and unashamed before Him at His coming." In other words, Christ's second coming will be a time of great joy and blessings for you as long as you work hard to prepare for it.
What are you doing to "prepare ye the way of the Lord" in your life? This is one pop quiz you can't afford to fail. So get studying, brothers and sisters.
God bless.
~BYR
