“Watchful For His Appearing” Jesus Christ came to earth the first time to buy our salvation with His life.  This great salvation that was poured out for mankind is the principle message in the New Testament.  Equally important and relevant to the believer is Jesus’ second coming to earth.  The return of Jesus is mentioned 318 times in the New Testament, as well as by every New Testament writer.  The promise of Christ’s return was the primary focus of the early church.  Consequently the first 300 years since the church’s beginning was the most evangelistic period in its history.  The imminent return of Jesus motivated holy living among Christians.  Believers wanted to be found faithful, being about the Master’s business when Jesus came back for them. Tragically, the Bible was not deemed important in the centuries following, and the promise of Jesus’ return was all but lost.  The church and the world spiraled downward into deep moral decay known as the “Dark Ages,” a dismal era that lasted 1100 years.  Political, ruthless power ruled the masses in the guise of “religion,” and forbade the Bible to be translated and read by the common folk.  William Tyndale and other courageous martyrs defied Rome and paid the ultimate price for translating the Bible in English, allowing multitudes to read the Word of God.   With the publishing of the Bible and the event of the Reformation during the 16th and 17th centuries, the teaching of Jesus Christ’s return resurfaced.  The result was that the church once again was spurred on to live holy in a very dark world, and missionaries in great numbers launched out to fulfill the Great Commission of our Lord: “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit” (Matthew 28: 19). The last two centuries of modern history has experienced unprecedented, worldwide evangelism.  The availability of the Bible brought light back into a dark world, transforming nations and millions of souls.  America’s bedrock of freedom with its rule of law was founded upon that eternal Book, though many try to rewrite or “spin” that historical fact to denigrate the power and authority of God.  Jesus taught His disciples to be watchful for His return since He would return unexpectedly and suddenly, as a “thief in the night” (Matthew 24:42-47).  Jesus taught them parables that illustrated His return: the five wise and the five foolish virgins (Matthew 25: 1-13), the parable of the talents (Matthew 25: 14- 30), the illustration of the Days of Noah (Matthew 24: 36-44) and the illustration of the two servants (Matthew 24: 45-51).  The reason for these parables was to charge every believer to live a holy life, pleasing to God. In so doing, they would be found faithful when Jesus suddenly returned to take His bride, the Church, away with Him to glory.  Jesus calls the believer who loses faith in His return an “evil servant.”  In the parable of the two servants, the “evil servant says in his heart, ‘My master is delaying his coming,’ and begins to beat his fellow servants, and to eat and drink with the drunkards, the master of that servant will come on a day when he is not looking for him and at an hour that he is not aware of, and will cut him in two and appoint him his portion with the hypocrites.  There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth”  (Matthew 24: 48-51).  What a frightening end for the deceived backslider! Thank God for His word, the Bible, which we are free to read and live by.   We can know His will and His pleasure by the instruction of the scriptures.  Since His word will judge us, the study of the Bible should be of utmost importance: “He who rejects Me and does not receive My words, has that which judges him—the word that I have spoken will judge him on the last day” (John 12: 48).  If we love the Lord and His appearing, we can have confidence by faith that we will hear Him say upon His return: “Well done, my good and faithful servant.  Enter into the joy of your Lord” (Matthew 25:21). “Dear Jesus, thank You for Your word that teaches me of your imminent return for those who love You.  Help me to remember that You could appear for me at any moment, and to live my life in a way that pleases You.  Help me to keep an eternal perspective so that I don’t place too much value on the temporary “stuff” of earth and miss what is truly important: obeying You and leading souls to You.  I want to be found faithful upon your return.  Empower me with Your Holy Spirit so that I might live victoriously over sin in this unholy world.  Amen