We’ve all seen them. Cats who spend hours on hours day after day, year after year haunched on a window sill, peering at the world beyond. Why do they do this? Well, sure, they do it for the warmth of the sun, perhaps out of curiosity, perhaps because windows are elevated and heigth to a cat is a sign of dominance. Or, maybe they are just bored. But those aren’t the only reasons, perhaps not even the main reason. Watching them, I’ve often wondered what is going through their mind. Is it some Pythagorean theorem they are solving, or are they just thinking of their next meal? Or, nothing at all?
Not everyone loves cats, though. So, take dogs. I’ve known dogs (and possibly, so have you) who take up residence near their master’s or mistresses’ bedside while their human caregiver was ill, whether just overnight with the stomach flu or for several years with some chronic illness. Their patience and devotion is something we can all admire.
In His Olivet discourse, Jesus tells us to “keep watch” as far as His return was concerned (Matt 24: 42.). The word in Greek is Γρηγορεῖτε which means “watch” or “wake” as opposed to sleep (cf the parable of the foolish virgins in Matthew 25.)
“Therefore keep watch (Γρηγορεῖτε), because you do not know on what day your Lord will come. But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what time of night the thief was coming, he would have kept watch and would not have let his house be broken into. So you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him.”
Matthew 24:42-44
Going back to Matthew 24:32, Jesus speaks of the fig tree in the context of the end times. Jesus says: “Now learn this lesson from the fig tree: As soon as its twigs get tender and its leaves come out, you know that summer is near.” It’s possible that Jesus is literally saying that he’ll arrive in the late spring or summer of a certain year, but more likely, the context is that we can gage that when the events Jesus enumerates in Matthew 24 occur, His return is near. In the same way, we can tell that summer is almost here based on the leaves of the fig tree (which proceed the event.)
Signs of the Lord’s return
“You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places. All these are the beginning of birth pains.
“Then you will be handed over to be persecuted and put to death, and you will be hated by all nations because of me. At that time many will turn away from the faith and will betray and hate each other, and many false prophets will appear and deceive many people. Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold, but the one who stands firm to the end will be saved. And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.”
Matthew 24:6-14
Eye in the Sky
At the moment, with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Sergei Lavrov, his Foreign Minister suggesting that a nuclear war is a real, perhaps an imminent possibility, the U.S. military and the armed forces of our NATO allies have undoubtedly increased their own watchfulness (i.e., alert status.) After all, we don’t want another Pearl Harbor. Intelligence (INTEL) gatherers are scanning the the vast territory of Russia for ominent signs of missile launches with the aid of our spy satellites. Some satelites are over submarine bases in Murmansk and Kola Bay to the North or above Fokino (Vladivostok) in the far east of Russia looking for a Russian “boomer” (nuclear submarine) that slips silently from its mooring into the deep with a deadly cargo. Perhaps one satellite is over Sevastopol, peering at Southern Ukraine and the Crimea. Our subs are possibly near the Greenland-Iceland-UK gap, listening for signs of the passage of enemy subs pouring into the Atlantic. U.S. Navy E-8B Mercury aircraft crews are putting in more hours aloft as they prepare for their vital role of coordinating our defensive and offensive capabilities. We cannot not afford to be careless in times when vigilance is needed.
But lets return to the theme of watching for the Lord’s return, and not Russian nukes. The question is why are we supposed to watch for Jesus’ return? Is His return like a train? If we’re careless or inattentive, we’ll we miss the “train” and be left behind? The answer is most likely “No.” If we’re indeed Christians, then getting caught up with the Rapture is part of our salvation. So, there seems to be two obvious reasons to be attentive to the prophetic “season.”
Be ready
The first reason is one which Jesus mentions in Matthew 24:4 where the Lord speaks of false messiahs, people like Jim Jones, David Koresh and others. Even today, Christians in the U.S. are being deceived by politicians (including ex-presidents), conspiracy theorists, insurrectionists, etc.
Secondly, if we are going to live a Godly life at any point in our time on earth, it might be best that we do so when Jesus returns. I’m not talking about some impossible plane of perfection that we cannot obtain, yet alone maintain. What I mean is this would be a bad time for a Christian man to be in bed with someone else’s wife. Or for a Christian woman to be addicted to alcohol, things like that.
In Romans 13:11-14 the Apostle Paul writes (perhaps with the second coming in the back of his mind:
“And do this, understanding the present time: The hour has already come for you to wake up from your slumber, because our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed. The night is nearly over; the day is almost here. So let us put aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light. Let us behave decently, as in the daytime, not in carousing and drunkenness, not in sexual immorality and debauchery, not in dissension and jealousy. Rather, clothe yourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ, and do not think about how to gratify the desires of the flesh.
Romans 13:11-14
Nor am I suggesting that we push our cat aside and claim the window sill for ourselves. But what we can do is create a sense of expectancy within out spirit, so we’re ready when Jesus comes for us, His Church.
The Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Station in Enerhodar, Ukraine is on fire
Russian forces using tanks and missiles have reportedly set ablaze one of the reactor units at the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Station in Enerhodar. Firemen are not able to reach the blaze because of hostile fire. There is a potential for a disaster “10 times worse than Chernobyl” according to the Ukrainian Foreign Minister. Fortunately, the unit that was hit is under rennovation and is offline, though there is nuclear material within it.
