FBCD_FaithEssentials_June_FlipBook

Todd Gaddis

Heaven. As the disciples watched His departure, two angels appeared and said, “Why do you stand looking into the sky? This Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come in just the same way as you have watched Him go into heaven” (Acts 1:11).

“A THIEF IN THE NIGHT”

A basic belief in the Christian faith, the Second Coming is mentioned over 300 times in the New Testament alone. And while many are obsessed with when this event will occur, I’d like to come at it from the angle of how and why. First, Jesus will return suddenly. He said to His disciples during Passion Week, “Therefore be on the alert, for you do not know which day your Lord is coming” (Matthew 24:42). Later, He told John in the Patmos vision, “Behold, I am coming like a thief. Blessed is the one who stays awake and keeps his clothes, so that he will not walk about naked and men will not see his shame” (Revelation 16:15). Paul voiced the same warning: “You yourselves know that the day of the Lord will come just like a thief in the night” (1 Thessalonians 5:2). I’ll never forget walking into the church I served several years ago, surprised and angered to discover that the door to my office had been busted open. Screws and springs from the doorknob lay strewn across the floor. Thieves had broken in through a window during the night and stolen a television, VCR, and sound equipment. If we had known they were coming, we would have installed a security system or arranged for someone to stand watch. They entered the building unexpectedly and we were unprepared. Such will be the scenario when Jesus makes His earthly return. While believers will rise to meet their Savior in the air, the unredeemed will remain behind, unprepared. I implore you to “Be ready; for the Son of Man is coming at an hour when you do not think He will” (Matthew 24:44).

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