If you’ve been watching world events
changing our landscape each and every second you’ve no doubt have a great amount of
thoughts going through your mind…..like what can I be certain about and what not.
We all like certainty in our lives. It helps provide some sort of direction. Like things are all planned out. But, look around you again. Just when you think you have it all figured
out, anything can happen. And often times it does. We could lose our job, a pet
could get run over, a parent could suffer a heart attack, the furnace could
quit working or your husband or wife could leave and take the children with
them. Now, that’s a pretty ugly way to
look at some facts of life that could occur.
But hey, they do.
Matthew Henry might have summed it up best on
his “Complete Commentary on the Bible”.
“In this age of theory and ‘we can not know for sure about anything’, it
is wonderful to have a belief system concerning which we may ‘know with
certainty.’ Henry comments about a
surefire direction in Luke 1:4. “It was
intended that he should know the certainty of those things, should understand
them more clearly and believe more firmly.
There is a certainty in the gospel of Christ, there is that therein
which we may build upon; and those who have been well instructed in the things
of God when they were young should afterwards give diligence to know the
certainty of those things, to know not only why we believe, but why we believe it, that we may be able to
give a reason of the hope that is in us.”
These are not easy times. More than ever before our faith will be put to the test. That I'm certain of. With many apparent signs, it should be obvious that the LORD'S return could be soon. That I'm certain of too.
A message from Focus on the Family in 2011 spelled things out a little more succinctly. "Let's assume for a moment that these are the end times. What then? How should a Christian respond? Fortunately, the apostle Peter gives us straightforward answer to this question. Writing specifically with reference to the end of the age, when "the heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the elements will melt with fervent heat, and both the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up, "Peter does not suggest that believers head for the hills, adopt a 'fortress mentality' and start stockpiling food and weapons. Instead, he ask "since all these things will be dissolved, what manner of persons ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness, looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be dissolved, being on fire and the elements will melt with fervent heat?" (II Peter 3 10-12).
As Peter sees it, end-time Christians are called to do one thing: they are to practice holiness and do good to others wherever and whenever they can. They are supposed to work the works of God 'while it is day' (John 9:4)
These are not easy times. More than ever before our faith will be put to the test. That I'm certain of. With many apparent signs, it should be obvious that the LORD'S return could be soon. That I'm certain of too.
A message from Focus on the Family in 2011 spelled things out a little more succinctly. "Let's assume for a moment that these are the end times. What then? How should a Christian respond? Fortunately, the apostle Peter gives us straightforward answer to this question. Writing specifically with reference to the end of the age, when "the heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the elements will melt with fervent heat, and both the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up, "Peter does not suggest that believers head for the hills, adopt a 'fortress mentality' and start stockpiling food and weapons. Instead, he ask "since all these things will be dissolved, what manner of persons ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness, looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be dissolved, being on fire and the elements will melt with fervent heat?" (II Peter 3 10-12).
As Peter sees it, end-time Christians are called to do one thing: they are to practice holiness and do good to others wherever and whenever they can. They are supposed to work the works of God 'while it is day' (John 9:4)
Hopefully this will help easy some worries you might have. God is near and loving and he is coming. That we can all be certain of. Now the question is, are you ready?
YGG,
John
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