Ready Or Not, Here He Comes | June 2022 Monthly Newsletter
Written by Ps. Nicholas Hung | Senior Pastor of Antioch Gospel Church
Hi Church,
As always, we trust that you’re well and prospering in His grace – pursuing His purposes with faith and fervour and living life closer to His heart than ever before.
Here’s a thought for the day …
Our house was the perfect picture of chaos this morning. In the rush to get on our way to school, having already walked through the front door and with the whole family packed into the car, one of the children realised an essential item had been left behind and requested the key to re-enter the house.
Several minutes later, having not yet found the item, another request was put out – for the help of the entire family. So we all tumbled out of the car and the focus turned to hunting for the misplaced item. Over the next several minutes, it became increasingly evident that everyone was going to be late solely due to the disorganisation and mismanagement of a single family member.
Minutes later, as frustration rose and tempers flared, and with the item still not found, dad (that’s me) made the call to go to get everyone back in the car and go to school without it.
Of course, we were late. The item was still missing. No-one was happy.
I in particular wasn’t very impressed, primarily because this particular family member had spent most of the morning sitting down doing something totally unimportant instead of managing their life how they ought to have.
This whole situation brought my mind to the words of Jesus:
“Be dressed for service and keep your lamps burning, as though you were waiting for your master to return from the wedding feast. Then you will be ready to open the door and let him in the moment he arrives and knocks. The servants who are ready and waiting for his return will be rewarded. I tell you the truth, he himself will seat them, put on an apron, and serve them as they sit and eat! He may come in the middle of the night or just before dawn. But whenever he comes, he will reward the servants who are ready. “Understand this: If a homeowner knew exactly when a burglar was coming, he would not permit his house to be broken into. You also must be ready all the time, for the Son of Man will come when least expected.” (Luke 12:35-40 NKJV)
The Son of Man, our Lord Jesus, is coming back to earth. None of us know exactly when – but we do know that it’s going to happen when we least expect it. And that means we must be ready – all the time.
In spiritual terms there’s no time for a last minute frenzy like we experienced in our household this morning. There’s no second chance. There’s no backup procedure for being late - no ‘late arrival note’ protocol. Those who are late simply miss out on the reward. The gates to the heavenly realm are closed and the unprepared are left outside.
We cannot afford to be unprepared or late. ‘Late’ in the kingdom of God is ‘too late.’ It’s like missing the train – only there’s not another one arriving at the platform in 4 minutes time, and there’s no alternative method of transport. We just miss out.
The fact of the matter is this: We know that Jesus is coming. So are we ready? And if we’re not ready yet, are we actively getting ready? It’s plain to see that this morning’s rush could have easily been avoided just by preparing the school bag in advance – preferably the evening before. A simple act of thinking and planning and preparing ahead and the stress could have been averted altogether.
Jesus’ call is clear. Are we actively serving God? Is our heart burning passionately for God? Are we living in anticipation for Jesus’ return? Is the posture of our heart ready anytime? As the traditional game of hide-and-seek goes; the searcher shouts out aloud, “Ready or not, here I come.”
Church, get ready … Jesus could come back anytime! Let’s keep Him at the centre of our hearts at all times and let’s lead others to that place too. We’re believing with you for a fruitful and blessed season. Stay hot for God and keep shining His glory.
Blessings,
Pastor Nicholas Hung