ARE YOU CONSCIOUS OF IT?

[Pastor Bayo Afolaranmi]

Dearly Beloved,

ARE YOU CONSCIOUS OF IT?

"For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever" (1 Thessalonians 4:16-17 NIV).

Recently, I sent out a message in my Internet ministry that has to do with what God would do "by this time next year." I even made it a prayer wish and sent it to people by SMS, BlackBerry Messenger (BBM), WhatsApp Messenger, Yahoo Messenger, Skype, and Facebook chats and wall posts. Undoubtedly, thousands of people received the message and the prayer wish. Out of the people that responded to the message and the prayer wish through these various means, one respondent made a remark that caught my attention: "If Christ tarries. Amen." While other people and even I may be preoccupied by something good that God would do next year or even next moment, we may not be conscious of the imminent second coming of Jesus Christ!

It is a fact that Jesus Christ will come one day to take His own and bring others into final judgement. Nevertheless, no one knows when the trumpet would sound to signal the beginning of this final event. Jesus Christ emphasized this to His disciples (see Matthew 16:27; 24:36-44; 25:13; Acts 1:7, 11). The fact that no one knows when this important event will take place makes it very expedient to be vigilant and expect it any time. However, because it is over two thousand years now that the promise was made and yet it has not been fulfilled, many people have either ignored it or even refuted it. However, it will surely happen unexpectedly one day. The Bible says in 2 Peter 3:8-10, "But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day. The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance. But the day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything in it will be laid bare" (NIV. See also Isaiah 46:13; Habakkuk 2:3; Luke 18:7-8; Hebrews 10:37).

It is good to have plans for the future and wish that God would do some earthly good things in the near future. However, are you conscious of the second coming of the Lord Jesus Christ? Do you remember that He may come any time? Are you preparing for Him? Do not let Him meet you unprepared!

In His service,

Bayo Afolaranmi (Pastor).