I woke up in my Sydney home, same as every morning only to look out my window and see the sky was blood orange. All I could manage was a sleepy exclamation of “Woah…” but there was plenty of shock across the nation.
Fires in Queensland, flood warnings in Victoria, a foot of snow in the mountains and Sydney's biggest dust storm in living memory. Wednesday the 23rd of September was a day of extreme weather conditions that had a lot of people talking. Many people around me were talking about the end of the world (armageddon, the apocalypse etc.). But what will really signify the end of this world??
Jesus tells us in Matthew 24
‘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.’
This is only glimpse, the whole chapter describes various ‘desolation’ that is to come. But as we read through it we can notice one thing…. All of this has happened or is happening right now. We are reminded by the recent earthquake/tsunami in Samoa and poverty in Africa. All of it has happened EXCEPT for one thing.
Jesus has not yet returned.
From this we can know he is coming, and when he does we will know it. He warns that people may pose as him and is clear that we will know when it is really he. ‘For as lightning that comes from the east is visible even in the west, so will be the coming of the Son of Man.’
So those who looked at the dust filled sky thinking the world was ending were half true. Jesus is coming. He will come to judge the living and the dead. This world will pass away. But truly we do not know when that will be “Therefore keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come.”
All we know is that when he comes we will know it. It could be tonight… are you ready?