Covenant Devotional #6 - Matthew 24:14-30

"... And this gospel of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.

“So when you see the abomination of desolation spoken of by the prophet Daniel, standing in the holy place (let the reader understand), then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. Let the one who is on the housetop not go down to take what is in his house, and let the one who is in the field not turn back to take his cloak. And alas for women who are pregnant and for those who are nursing infants in those days! Pray that your flight may not be in winter or on a Sabbath. For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been from the beginning of the world until now, no, and never will be. And if those days had not been cut short, no human being would be saved. But for the sake of the elect those days will be cut short. Then if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Christ!’ or ‘There he is!’ do not believe it. For false christs and false prophets will arise and perform great signs and wonders, so as to lead astray, if possible, even the elect. See, I have told you beforehand. So, if they say to you, ‘Look, he is in the wilderness,’ do not go out. If they say, ‘Look, he is in the inner rooms,’ do not believe it. For as the lightning comes from the east and shines as far as the west, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. Wherever the corpse is, there the vultures will gather.

“Immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, and the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken. Then will appear in heaven the sign of the Son of Man, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory."

(Matthew 24:14-30 ESV)

We wait neither in vain, nor eternally. As short-lived and generally short-sighted as we modern westerners tend to be, it is easy, I think, to only half believe the truths we speak. Particularly when it comes to the ultimate, impending termination of this present age as it is washed over and categorically subsumed by the age to come with the return of Christ.

We struggle with perspective and we struggle with “forever”. To my five year-old daughter, a two hour car ride is “forever”. We Americans tend to think that a couple hundred years as a nation and a breathtaking defense budget means that we’ll be around forever. But destinations are ultimately reached, empires rise and fall, and this age of creation will one day be brought to an end. Just because it’s been two thousand years since Jesus said, “I’ll be back”, that doesn’t mean he didn’t mean it. He did. And he does. “They will see the Son of Man coming…”, Jesus says; and we will. As surely as the night gives way to dawn itself, He comes.

And so we pray: Come, Lord Jesus.