I am chuckling to myself this morning. A few Sunday’s ago, a gentleman came to church who had not been there for about four or five years (he had moved out of town). As soon as the service was over, he came up to the front to meet me, carrying a bunch of papers he had been writing on throughout the service.
He said he really liked one comment I made during the message but then proceeded to tell me that I needed “to preach out of Revelation because,” as he waved his arm around the building, “they are ignorant and need to know.”
He probably made that comment three or four times as he stood there with me. I politely listened, all the while I wanted to say something like “you haven’t been here for four years, how do you know what I’ve been preaching on?” But I did not say that. I held my peace and thanked him.
I have given a lot of thought to what he said since that morning. Mostly about prophecy and how to approach it. I understand we are to be aware and be ready, but I will admit my view of prophecy is probably a bit off.
In Matthew 24, that great chapter of the Signs of the End Times prophesied through Jesus, multiple times Jesus tells them, “when you see ….” After telling them the signs that they will “see,” he commands them to be ready. “This is why you also must be ready, because the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.” [24:15, 33, 44 HCSB]
The introduction to the Book of Revelation also tells us. “Blessed is the one who reads aloud the words of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear, and who keep what is written in it, for the time is near.” [Revelation 1:3 ESV]
So, here is my warped view. I think we are to read our Bibles through and through, at least once a year. I think we are to become increasingly familiar with it from the beginning, through the middle, all the way through the Book of Revelation. I think we are to become SO FAMILIAR that we will recognize and “see” things unfold – even if we do not understand them! I think we will then be “ready” all the time for God to do what God is going to do!
I am not searching the headlines every day to see if something fulfills something written in the Scriptures. What I am doing is working to stay close to my Savior and LORD … that way when God does what God is going to do, I will never need to worry that I will miss it!
