"The Last Days"

By Gobel Brockman


     "The Last Days." For hundreds of years, that has been the subject of discussion, debate, and argument. Many have tried to predict its time, sometimes garnering many followers in the process. It's been the topic of countless books and movies, and the theme of more sermons than any of us could ever know. Many watch the news with bated breath as each story can seemingly be tied to "the return of the Lord." Before I proceed with my main point, let me establish a few thoughts:

*Do I believe in "the rapture of the church?" Absolutely.
*Do I believe it can happen at any time? Yes.
*Can I say with certainty that we are living in "the last days" right now? I have no idea.

     But there is one thing that I am sure of, and it's what I want to talk about this week:

     You ARE living in YOUR last days.

     I have no idea when "the rapture" is going to happen, but I do know that if it doesn't happen in my lifetime, and if I live a normal lifespan, it's already about two-thirds of the way over. Any time I'm asked about my view of prophecy, I always begin the discussion by quoting Proverbs 27:1: "Do not boast about tomorrow, for you do not know what a day may bring." I also usually quote James 4:14 which says that "our lives are like a vapor." I do not know when Jesus will return to this earth, but I do know that every day I wake up, I'm one day closer to the LAST day I'll wake up.

     As I said, I do believe in the return of Christ, and I believe that we need to be prepared for it. I don't want my message this week to take away from what the Bible calls "the blessed hope." (Titus 2:13) I'm simply saying that all over this world today, thousands of people will pass into eternity before the sun sets in their part of the world, and I don't have the promise that I won't be one of them - and neither do you. So rather than engage in protracted debates about "What will 'the mark of the beast' really be?" or things of that nature, I want to live as though RIGHT NOW is my opportunity to do something for Jesus that's going to have lasting value. RIGHT NOW is my chance to give glory to Christ with my life and my praise and worship to Him. And if He gives me tomorrow, I get to repeat it all over again. When you think about it, that's pretty awesome in itself: we have the opportunity to worship and work for our Creator and Savior - RIGHT NOW. As Paul said in II Corinthians 6:2 "Today is the day of salvation."

     Am I trying to scare you with the thought of death? No, I'm simply reminding us all that if the Lord does indeed delay His return, every one of us are going to face it. When that time comes, prophecy debates will no longer matter; how we responded to the call of Jesus will be the thing that DOES matter.

     Still, with all of that being said, I want to end this week's devotional the same way the Bible ends its message with its next-to-last verse found in Revelation 22:20: "Even so, come Lord Jesus."

     RIGHT NOW would be just fine. That's a blessed hope indeed.