Dear
Fellow Children of God,
When I grew up in Gainesville, Florida, I had a friend,
Tommy, whose grandfather had lived in Atlanta.
Since Tommy and I knew each other in the 60’s and 70’s, I guess his
grandpa lived in Atlanta around 1900, or earlier. Tommy once told me that his grandfather shared
with him that he had a chance to buy stock in the Coca Cola Company in the very
beginning, but did not think it was a safe investment. So Tommy’s grandpa turned down the opportunity. It seems his grandfather shared this truth
with some regret. If he had known the
truth of what the future held for Coca Cola, Tommy’s grandpa would surely have
bought stock. But, he didn’t know and he
missed out. Perhaps you’ve heard similar
stories.
If you worship in a Christian congregation which uses the
traditional church calendar, this past Sunday was the last Sunday of this past
church year. This coming Sunday, the First Sunday in Advent, is first Sunday of the
coming church year, sort of a New Year’s Day.
The assigned Scripture readings for a 3 week period have focused on a
topic which Jesus spoke about often, but a topic which is often ignored in our
world today. This topic is His Second
Coming, which we sometimes call Judgement Day.
Jesus’ final coming was important to Jesus and He taught
about it often. But, there is some
discomfort associated with what Jesus tells us the future holds. At a time when people declare, “No one can
tell me what to do,” the idea that there will be a final reckoning is
considered close-minded. The idea that there
is such a thing as right and wrong seems old fashioned and un-enlightened to
many in our world. Therefore, this teaching
of Jesus’ final coming to judge the world is often ignored or denied by many today.
But God’s children do know Jesus’ promises about the
future! In the readings for this coming
Sunday we will hear Jesus speak in Matthew 24.
“35 Heaven and earth will pass away,
but my words will never pass away. 36 "No one knows about that day or
hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.” (Matthew
24:35-36) Whether people ignore or deny
what Jesus says, we believe that the end IS coming. However, we do not know when that will be. In truth, if we die before Jesus comes, that,
in effect, is our Judgement Day. Most
often, we don’t know when that day is either.
Since Jesus’
sharing the truth of this final day speaks of consequences and ultimate justice,
it is a teaching of God’s law. But, that is not all Jesus teaches about the
coming Final Day. In the assigned Gospel
Lesson from Luke 21 in worship two weeks ago, we heard Jesus give a different perspective
on His final coming. He spoke good news,
or Gospel. “When these things begin to take place, stand up and lift up your heads,
because your redemption is drawing near."
(Luke 21:28) Christians, people who believe that
Jesus Christ is our Savior, have a different view of Jesus’ Second Coming. Yes God will finally declare judgement and
bring justice. But, Christians believe
that God executed His justice on Jesus when He was on the cross, in order to forgive
us and offer mercy to us. Jesus paid the
price for the sins in the world. All who
believe in Jesus are forgiven and are saved.
So when Jesus returns, Jesus who paid for our sins, those who believe in
Jesus see His coming as a day of redemption. Jesus comes to take us out of the
pain of this world, to heaven.
Therefore, those who know and believe in Jesus want to be
prepared for this final, ultimate, truth.
Jesus says, "Therefore
keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come.” (Matthew
24:42) We know what the future
holds. The practical side of Jesus’
important teaching is that we want to be ready. We want to be living in faith,
following Jesus, when He comes, no matter when that is.
My friend, Tommy, told me the story about his
grandfather, implying regret that his grandpa missed his opportunity. The important message which Jesus teaches is
that He is coming again as Judge. The world will come to an end. This is not just an old fashioned idea, it is
God’s truth. We do not want to miss the
opportunity for redemption. We want to
watch and be ready when Jesus comes.
A Child of God, Watching and Praying for Jesus
to Come Again!
Pastor Jonathan
P.S. Kathy and I returned
home to Alaska from Florida on Friday, November 18. On Friday and Saturday we did “coming home
chores”. I preached on Sunday, and have
served as a substitute teacher Monday through Wednesday. (Whew!)
It’s good to be home. J
P.P.S. Because of
my schedule I have not yet been fishing in Alaska. But, there are possibilities on the horizon!
*****
ABOUT THIS DEVOTION - I retired at the end of August 2019
from serving as senior pastor of St. John Lutheran Church in Palmer, AK. I was writing a weekly devotion previously
entitled, "Thoughts from the Pastor."
When I retired many asked me to continue writing these devotions. So I have continued writing. However, with life's changes I now call this
weekly devotion "Journeys Through Life as a Child of God." Since I am no longer senior pastor at St.
John, I felt it right to only send this message to those who asked to receive
it. (Though I am now serving again
part-time at St. John as assistant to the pastor.)
So, if you
stopped receiving these devotions and wondered why, now you understand. And, if you are now receiving these devotions
and do not wish to receive them, please let me know, and I’ll gladly remove
your name from my distribution list. My
e-mail address is jonrock53@mtaonline.net.
My prayer
is that these devotions help each of you in your daily walk with our Lord,
Jesus.
*******
Jonathan Rockey
Child of God
Husband, Father, Son, Grandfather
Pastor Emeritus, St. John Lutheran Church
E-Mail: jonrock53@mtaonline.net
“1 John 3:1 How great is the love the
Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that
is what we are!” (1 John 3:1 a)
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