Of course most of us watch the signs due to our deep desire to be with Christ - to be in His very presence for a vast array of reasons. Personally, I live for that moment - that moment that we will be in His very presence. The chance to fall at His feet and worship Him directly and in person. The opportunity to thank Him for what He did on the cross. To see His face. To be with Him. To talk directly with Him.
Most of us live for that moment.
It will be by far the most significant, meaningful, fulfilling, exciting, exhilarating, emotional, gratifying, loving, tender, beautiful moment that can possibly be imagined.
Of course all of that goes without saying. This is the moment that we are all living for. It is what keeps us prophecy watchers going - it is what keeps us energized and excited. As wonderful as Heaven and New Jerusalem will be and all of the wonders that it will hold - all of that will pale in comparison with simply being in the presence of Jesus. That moment cannot come soon enough for us.
But beyond that - there are solid scriptural reasons that we watch the signs of His coming. The scriptures will be listed below.
But it is our job - with this knowledge to spread this word. It isn't being done by the churches, it isn't being done by most pastors - so it is up to us to spread this message - not only to the Church but to everyone.
Time is growing short. We must get this word out and soon, as this age is rapidly coming to a close.
The scriptures below all pertain to Jesus' command to watch for His return.
Aren't the reasons obvious?
How do we want Jesus to find us when He returns? Earnestly watching and waiting for Him because our intense love for Him dictates such?
Or - not really caring or concerned about His return. Not even caring enough to entertain the possibility that He will return. Which attitude would please Jesus the most?
Jesus actually made His desires quite clear and we would be wise to pay attention to His words:
Luke 12:35-40
"Be dressed and ready for service and keep your lamps burning like men waiting for their master to return from a wedding banquet, so that when he comes and knocks they can immediately open the door for him.
It will be good for those servants whose master finds them watching when he comes.
It will be good for those servants whose master finds them ready, even if he comes in the second or third watch of the night.
You must also be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him."
Luke 12:53-56
[Here we see Jesus addressing the fact that His followers, at the time of His first coming didn't know or understand the prophecies about His coming]
"He said to the crowd: When you see a cloud rising in the west, immediately you say, 'It's going to rain', and it does. And when the south wind blows, you say 'It's going to be hot' and it is.
Hypocrites!
You know how to interpret the appearance of the earth and the sky. How is it that you don't know how to interpret this present time?"
In other words, they knew about the signs in the weather, because such knowledge was important to them for farming purposes, etc. So what does it say about them for not knowing the prophetic signs of Christ's coming?
Mark 13:32-37
"Be on guard! Be alert! You do not know when that time will come. It's like a man going away; He leaves his house and puts his servants in charge, each with his assigned task, and tells the one at the door to keep watch.
Therefore keep watch because you do not know when the owner of the house will come back - whether in the evening or at midnight, or when the rooster crows, or at dawn. If he comes suddenly do not let him find you sleeping.
What I say to you I say to everyone: 'Watch!'"
Matthew 24:42
"Therefore keep watch because you do not know on what day your Lord will come.
So you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him."
Matthew 25:13
"Therefore keep watch, because you do not know the day or the hour."
Each of these commands to watch - were coming just after Jesus had described the signs of His coming, so the obvious context of these commands was watching these very signs.
Each of these commands to watch - were coming just after Jesus had described the signs of His coming, so the obvious context of these commands was watching these very signs.
Now we can turn to Jesus' words just after His resurrection, starting with His conversation with the two men leaving Jerusalem towards Emmaus - two men who obviously had no understanding of the prophecies concerning Jesus death and resurrection:
Luke 24:25-27
"He said to them, 'How foolish you are, and how slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken! Did not the Christ have to suffer these things and then enter his glory?' And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he explained to them what was said in all the scriptures concerning himself."
[Imagine that. Jesus considered these men slow of heart. Not slow of intellect. Slow of heart. They were considered by Jesus to be slow of heart for not understanding the prophecies about His coming to earth. That alone is some serious food for thought isn't it?]
In Luke's version of the post-resurrection period, the next story involved Jesus' appearing to His disciples and His message was basically the same:
Luke 24:44-45
"He said to them, 'This is what I told you while I was still with you: Everything must be fulfilled that is written about me in the Law of Moses, the Prophets and the Psalms. Then he opened their minds so they could understand the scriptures."
So we can easily see that Jesus immediate concern in the post-resurrection scenario was explaining the prophecies which related to His coming - prophecies that were missed by His followers - and the importance of prophecy and how understanding such prophecies (of His coming) is a matter of the heart.
In short - knowing and understanding the prophecies about Jesus coming - whether the first or second, or the gathering up of the Church Saints - is important to Jesus, therefore it should be important to us.
It also reveals our heart for Jesus, our love for Jesus and our longing to be with Him.
Perhaps the apostle Paul captured this sentiment best in 2 Timothy 4:8
"Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing."
Amen.
Watching is hard - we all know that. It is hard for a variety of reasons that have been discussed before. Over time, living with the minute to minute anticipation of being with and seeing Christ Jesus can be difficult and tiring. But it will be well worth it - and more importantly, it reveals a deep devotion and love for Jesus.
When He comes - I want Him to find me watching - waiting - expecting - hoping - just as any bride awaits the wedding day.
It will happen. That moment. The signs tell us it will be soon.
We know from the scriptures that our waiting, our watching and our excitement will be pleasing to Jesus.
What a great way to enter paradise.
See you all there.
What a glorious moment it will be.
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