February 28
“Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour in which the Son of Man is coming,” Matthew 25:13.
In the Gospel of Matthew chapters 24 and 25, the evangelist reports that the Lord Jesus spoke to His disciples about the end of two kingdoms – the end of the kingdom of the Jews and the end of the kingdom of this world.
It was Tuesday of Holy Week. Jesus had been teaching in the temple from early morning until evening. As He left the temple to return to Bethany for the night, His disciples called His attention to the beautiful, massive construction of the temple. Like most of the Jews, His disciples were highly impressed at the splendid building that had been built under the supervision of King Herod.
Jesus and His disciples had left the temple area and were seated on the Mount of Olives, from where they could look down upon the beautiful temple. Jesus was not as impressed as His disciples, and He told them that the day was coming when there would not be one stone left upon another. That beautiful building would be destroyed. While seated on the Mount of Olives, His disciples asked Him when that would happen and when He would come again at the end of the world.
Jesus did not answer the disciples’ questions with specific dates. However, He did inform them of the destruction of the temple as had been foretold by the prophet Daniel. He went on to tell them that there would be signs and wonders that would be seen in the heavenly bodies – the sun, the moon, and the stars – and that the laws of nature will be shaken.
He also informed them that the people of the world would ignore the signs of the times and they would live as they did in the days of Noah, rejecting God’s warnings and refusing to heed His pleading to come to repentance and faith. He clearly stated that no one knows the day or the hour when He will return on Judgment Day. The day is unknown to the angels and was even unknown to Jesus during the days of His humiliation, when He did not always use His divine knowledge and powers. He could honestly say that only the Father knew when the Day of Judgment had been set.
In view of all of the preceding, what is the watchword for us? “Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour in which the Son of Man is coming!” The call of the hour is, “Be spiritually wide awake and prepared! Always be ready for the Savior’s coming by believing and trusting in Him as God’s Son and your Savior who came to this earth to redeem you.” Trust Him when He says, “Your sins are all forgiven! I shed My holy precious blood to wash them all away! By believing in Me you are a member of God’s family. You are prepared for the day when I will come again!”
“Great God, what do I see and hear?
The end of things created;
The Judge of mankind doth appear,
On clouds of glory seated.
The trumpet sounds, the graves restore
The dead which they contained before;
Prepare, my soul, to meet Him!
O Christ, who died and yet dost live,
To me impart Thy merit;
My pardon seal, my sins forgive,
And cleanse me by Thy spirit.
Beneath Thy cross I view the day
When heav’n and earth shall pass away,
And thus prepare to meet Thee.” Amen.