December 6
“The day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night, in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the elements will melt with fervent heat; both the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up,” 2 Peter 3:10.
“Advent” means “coming.” In this Advent meditation, we direct our attention to Judgment Day, the Second Coming of Jesus, “The day of the Lord,” which, “will come as a thief in the night.” Certainly, the day will come, but it will come when least expected – “as a thief in the night.”
Frequently, there are people who have tried to set the date when Jesus will come again. Our response to those remarks is given in Scripture: “Of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father,” Mark 13:32. The date and hour is unknown both to people and to the angels. At the time Jesus spoke the words recorded by the evangelist Mark, He said that even He did not know when that day will come. How could He, the all-knowing Son of God, speak that way? Jesus spoke those words when He was in the state of humiliation – that is, during the time when He did not always and fully use His divine attributes. He was not using His divine knowledge at the time. Another example of not using His divine attributes would be with reference to His almighty power. He always had, but did not always use, His almighty power. If He always would have used His almighty power, His enemies would not have been able to crucify Him, and we would not have a Savior!
As Peter foretells, the world that once was destroyed by the great flood in Noah’s day will be destroyed by fire. “The elements will melt with fervent heat; both the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up!” Literally, we are sitting on a powder keg, and God, not men, will light the fuse!
Why is this earth still in existence? God is patient, “Not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance,” 2 Peter 3:9. This is our time of grace. There are still some souls out there somewhere who need to hear the Gospel, through which the Holy Spirit will bring them to faith in Jesus as their Lord and Savior. During this time of grace, before the end comes, you and I and all Christians should proclaim the Good News of Jesus and His love throughout the world.
Should we be living in fear of the Day of Judgment? No, as Christians, we have nothing to fear. We live by faith in the almighty Son of God who is always near us and who promises, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.” So we may boldly say: “The Lord is my Helper; I will not fear. What can man do to me?” Hebrews 13:5-6.
By faith in Jesus as the Son of God and our Savior, who fulfilled the Law of God in our place, and who took all our sins upon Himself and carried them to Calvary’s cross where He poured forth His precious blood to wash them all away, we have the assurance that we can stand before God as His forgiven children. When Jesus comes again, we will be welcomed by Him into the halls of heaven!
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 You 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.