The Day and the Hour.
When we speak of the coming of the Lord, we think of a day and an hour when. He will come. But we must distinguish between His coming for the church and His coming to Israel, for those will be two different events, and at different times.
When the Lord Jesus comes for the church He will descend into the air, and then the dead saints will be raised, and the living saints will be changed, and all will be caught up together to meet the Lord in the air. After that, when He comes to Israel, He will come in His glory to the earth, accompanied by His mighty angels, and the church, and will reign over Israel.
Now, in the verse we have before us, it is His coming to Israel, for the deliverance of the godly ones, that is in view. And He gives them signs by which they may know that the time is near, but He does not tell them the day, nor the hour. Of the day and hour neither man nor angel knows. It is known only to the Father.
So also is it as to the day and hour when He will come for the saints who are now waiting for Him. This is not spoken of in this chapter, but it is spoken of in the next, where we have the parable of the ten virgins. In verse 13 Jesus says: “Watch therefore, for ye know neither the day nor the hour.” So, whether it be we who are waiting for Jesus now, or the believing remnant of the Jews by and by, neither we nor they know the hour. And if we find anyone trying to fix the date of our Lord’s return, we may be sure they are wrong. Our part is to be always ready, and always watching. “Let your loins be girded about, and your lights burning; and ye yourselves like unto men that wait for their lord, when he will return from the wedding; that when he cometh and knocketh, they may open unto him immediately. Blessed are those servants, whom the lord when he cometh shall find watching. Verily I say unto you, that he shall gird himself, and make them to sit down to meat, and will come forth and serve them. And if he shall come in the second watch, or come in the third watch, and find them so, blessed are those servants.” (Luke 12:35-3835Let your loins be girded about, and your lights burning; 36And ye yourselves like unto men that wait for their lord, when he will return from the wedding; that when he cometh and knocketh, they may open unto him immediately. 37Blessed are those servants, whom the lord when he cometh shall find watching: verily I say unto you, that he shall gird himself, and make them to sit down to meat, and will come forth and serve them. 38And if he shall come in the second watch, or come in the third watch, and find them so, blessed are those servants. (Luke 12:35‑38)).
The Lord Jesus would have us watching for His coming all the time. If He told us the day or hour we would not need to watch till the time came. But He wishes us to be thinking of Him all the time, and of the happy moment when we shall see His face, and behold His glory. He is coming for us: it may be today, or it may be tomorrow, or we may have to wait a little longer. We don’t know, but we know it will not be long, and He would have us ready, and watching with desire for His coming, just like the faithful servant who loves his master, and who waits with his hand on the latch, listening for the sound of his master’s feet; ready to open, the moment he hears his step. Happy for us, if we are thus watching!
My dear young reader, do you love the Lord Jesus? Do you know Him as your Saviour? If so, may you and I be watching for His coming again. We don’t know the time, but He says, “Behold I come quickly,” and we want to be ready, and to welcome Him with glad hearts.
ML 07/17/1904