A HEART PREPARED FOR THE RETURN OF CHRIST

Matthew 24:42 says, “Therefore keep watch because you do not know on what day your Lord will come.”  Are you ready for the return of Jesus? The enemy is preparing now for His return. The Antichrist Spirit is making arrangements and preparing to fulfill Bible prophecy. 

The day before Jesus rose from the dead, you would think the religious leaders of the day would be resting and feeling relieved because their desire to have Jesus crucified was granted. They believed that the disciples would scheme a way to make this seem like it happened.

Matthew 27:62-66

The disciples also were feeling uneasy the day after Jesus was crucified. What they should have been doing is putting their hope in the promise of Jesus rising again. They felt defeated and afraid. I feel at times that the Church today has those same feelings, but we should not be in despair, looking at problems the way the world does.  We can have hope. 

“Hope deferred makes the heart sick”.  Proverbs 13:12

How do we hold onto hope in the dark days as we wait on the Promises of God to become a reality in our lives personally?

Instead of giving in to fear, doubt, and all the evidence of our current circumstances that tells us  God doesn’t care about us, we cling to what we know is true and we make the decision to believe the Word of God. GOD IS FAITHFUL TO HIS WORD!  (Psalm 145:13)

“God is not a man, so He does not lie. He is not human, so He does not change his mind. 

Has He ever spoken and failed to act? Has He ever promised and not carried it through?”

Numbers 23:19 

Wouldn't it have been awesome to read that the disciples, instead of despairing and hiding in fear, were in preparation mode for the great feast and the return of their Lord and Savior?

How much more, now, should we everyday prepare for the Lord's return?  There is no reason for us to live a life of fear and worry (Matthew 6:25-33), but have a life of trusting God and encouraging others to do the same. 

I truly believe what God is asking his children to do is simple: Believe that He is who He says He is, and that He keeps His promises. We must wait on the Lord with expectation.

“I pray that God, the source of hope, will fill you completely with joy and peace because you trust in Him. Then you will overflow with confident hope through the power of the Holy Spirit.”

Romans 15:13

When we doubt and worry, we lose hope, and that loss of hope can make us feel and do things we normally would not do. When this happens we become distracted and see some of these things manifest in our life:

•  Forgetting that God is our friend and that He will never leave us or forsake us                Psalm 25:14   Deuteronomy 31: 6-8

One way to hold on to hope is to make sure our relationship with God is personal. To be in His Presence, to speak with Him, and to know His voice are all part of having a close and intimate relationship with God. Knowing His will for us and obeying His Word will help us hold on to hope. We worship and give Him praise in the waiting. 

•  Taking on too many things, even things that seem worthwhile 

Many people do a lot of really good things but they miss the great that God wants them to do.  We can spread ourselves so thin that weariness and impatience sets in.  When this happens we can become irritable to the point of losing our peace. Pressure can start to build and we begin to have strife and disconnect towards those in our lives. Joy is lost and we start to live the world’s way and in our own strength. God does not want this for us.  Proverbs 17:22

•   Getting bogged down by fear, worry, and doubt

When we fail to understand the difference between sacred and secular, we have a hard time putting God first. Jesus came to be Lord and Savior in the lives of all who believe and choose Him. We all need to make the choice of who or what we will serve. The Word says that we can not serve two masters (Matthew 6:24). When we worry and doubt about a certain area in our lives, we are putting God in a box saying that He doesn’t belong there. Instead of fear, worry, and doubt, let us live out what Proverbs 3:5-6 says, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding. Seek His will in all you do, and He will show you which path to take.”  and Isaiah 31:21  “Your own ears will hear Him. Right behind you a voice will say, ‘This is the way you should go,’ whether to the right or to the left.”

Whatever you're waiting on today, whatever fear or doubt you may have in a particular area of your life, don’t give up hope. Believe God is a promise keeper who can do the impossible (Matthew 19:26). Be around like-minded believers and be encouraged. We are to have the mind of Christ. As believers, we should be preparing our hearts for the return of our Messiah, and being about our Father's business every day as Jesus did. Truly believe that God’s timing is perfect!

“Yet I am confident I will see the Lord’s goodness while I am here in the land of the living. Wait patiently for the Lord. Be brave and courageous. Yes, wait patiently for the Lord.”

Psalm 27:13-14

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Author: Priscilla Campbell

Edited: Christine Platt