What Lightning?
“‘See, I have told you ahead of time. So if anyone tells you, “There he is, out in the wilderness, do not go out; or, “Here he is, in the inner rooms,” do not believe it. For as lightning that comes from the east is visible even in the west, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. Wherever there is a carcass, there the vultures will gather.’”
Today’s Text: Matthew 24:15-28 (Living Life Daily Devotional)
The sign of Jesus’s returning will not be hidden or obscure or a secret. Everyone will see it, but not everyone will see the sign as the coming of Christ. And that is so, so tragic.
When it comes to interpreting the end times, we need a healthy dose of humility. We also need to pay careful attention to the full counsel of Scripture, instead of picking and choosing the parts of Scripture we want to make prophetic versus “mythological.”
What I mean is the following. The Old Testament Scriptures prophesied the coming of the Messiah pretty much since Genesis 3:15. And yet, those who had the best education in the Scriptures were the ones who misunderstood the nature of the Messiah the most—the scribes, teachers of the law, Pharisees, and Sadducees.
In the end, the Jewish authorities assumed the role of being the gatekeepers of who could be the Messiah or couldn’t be the Messiah. Because really, all they wanted was to hold on to their standing among the elite and their power.
As a sidebar: The Jewish authorities give us yet another indication of how education is way overrated. Harvard University started out as a seminary. There is still a seminary there. But it became the bastion in higher education of critical theory (that is, wokeness to the extreme). And all of academia in the United States just had to follow along, because, you know, it’s Harvard. … So stupid. Knowing a lot of things don’t make anyone smart. In fact, it might make someone more stupid.
If higher education could teach us how to be humble and wise and to actually care for people … now, that would be worthwhile.
But hey! Isn’t that what the Bible is for?
Anyway, back to the point. They misunderstood. And we must not assume that we know any more or any better than they do. We must be humble and keep our hearts and minds attentive to the full counsel of Scripture, especially when it comes to the end times.
The key to truly understanding the Scriptures and recognizing the end times when it comes has to be faith—and the obedience that is born of faith. If we are not ready for, if we are not preparing for, if we are not eagerly anticipating Jesus’s return, what is it that we really believe from the Scriptures?
And besides, we will all meet our Maker soon enough.
Father, You are the Alpha and Omega, the Beginning and End. From Your eternal throne, You have set the restoration of this world into motion, and You see it all unfold before You. It is too magnificent for us to fully comprehend. Thank You for Your salvation. Thank You for not giving up on me. But help us to live in obedience and faith, preparing ourselves for the day of the coming of our Lord. In Jesus’s name. Amen.
