Thief

We had a very unsettling experience at our house recently. My husband, who works a swing shift, had just gotten into bed, and I was waking up for the day. In my sleepy-eyed state, I wandered into the living room and looked out our sliding glass doors. It took me a moment to register what I was seeing. There, in the remnants of the overnight condensation, were hand prints. Someone had been in my backyard and looked into my home. I immediately checked all the other doors and windows; everything was locked, and there were no other signs of disturbance. The gate was not tampered with, and nothing appeared disturbed. Still unsure if what I was seeing meant what I thought it did, I asked my husband to come to the living room. We stood there hypothesizing about what else it could be and reviewing the timeline of the night before: what time my husband came home from work, what time he had gotten in bed, and if he had heard anything unusual while he was in the living room unwinding. Though I felt a deep sense of invasion, I thank God that no real harm was done.

Theft is nothing new. In fact, Christ spoke of theft (technically burglary) as a parable regarding his second coming:

“Therefore be on the alert, for you do not know which day your Lord is coming. But be sure of this, that if the head of the house had known at what time of the night the thief was coming, he would have been on the alert and would not have allowed his house to be broken into. For this reason you also must be ready; for the Son of Man is coming at an hour when you do not think He will" (Matthew 24:42-44, NASB).

This is a portion of a larger teaching in Matthew 24-25. When reading scripture, it is important to remember that chapters and verses were added for organization and do not always reflect proper breaks. To read only Matthew 24:42-51, the section titled "Be Ready for His Coming" in my Bible, would be to miss that Jesus' words stem (pun intended) from the previous section in which he uses a fig tree to make a point. As the pastor of my youth would have said, When you see the "therefore" in verse 42, you need to see what it's there for.

Jesus had been speaking about the signs of his return and compares the signs to a fig tree.  When you see the leaves appear on a fig tree, you know that summer is coming.  I love when my fig tree starts leafing. I am reminded that winter will not last forever and that summer is coming.  I understand that you may not know that, but those who are familiar with fig trees know this. I think that is one of the important lessons we should learn here: not everyone will recognize the signs, but Jesus wanted the disciples to be prepared.  Like leaves on a fig tree, there will be signs that point to his return. Signs, however, are not a calendar. They can prepare you, but they do not tell for sure.

My good friend recently gave birth to her third child. Because of previous complications, she had a c-section scheduled.  She knew the time her child would arrive.  Historically, most expectant parents cannot predict when their child will be born. When I was pregnant with my first son, I recall being told to pack my hospital bag earlier than I thought necessary because labor could come at any time. (The idea of labor pains is part of Jesus' teachings here, too.  See Matthew 24:8.) The day my son was born, I woke up and quickly recognized the signs of his coming, but even that close to the event I could not predict when he would be born. In the same way, those who are looking for Christ's second coming will see the signs but will not know exactly when he will come.

I'm not going to lie to you. For several days after I saw those hand prints, I was on high alert. Every shifting shadow in my backyard caught my attention. I checked the locks on doors and windows as night came. I even slept in pajamas that would be suitable for running out of the house in the middle of the night. I thought that was a brilliant decision at first, and then I was concerned that I might be a little too worried.  However, I take comfort in the fact that Jesus thought it was a good idea for me to sleep in a bra.  As he said in the revelation: “Behold, I am coming like a thief. Blessed is the one who stays awake and keeps his clothes, so that he will not walk about naked and men will not see his shame” (Revelation 16:15, NASB).

My 100

The number 100 appears frequently in the Bible. Abraham was 100 years old when Isaac was born to him (Genesis 21). The courtyard of the temple was 100 cubits on the north/south side (Exodus 17). The Israelite army would be able to fight 100 men with only five if obedient to God (Leviticus 26). The penalty for slandering a woman after marrying her was 100 shekels and the inability to divorce her... #awkward (Deuteronomy 22). Jacob bought a burial property for 100 shekels, and Joseph was eventually buried there (Joshua 24). Saul requested a dowry of 100 foreskins from David, and was paid two hundred... #superawkward (1 Samuel). Obadiah hid 100 of God's prophets in caves to protect them (1 Kings 18). The unnamed man's offering feeds 100 people (2 Kings 4). There were 100 gold sprinkling bowls in the temple (2 Chronicles 4).

Jesus also used the number in His parables. Jesus says the Word is a like a seed that will produce a crop 100, sixty, or thirty fold (Mark 4). Jesus says that He, like a man who owns 100 sheep, would leave ninety-nine to fine one that is lost (Luke 15). Jesus compares human forgiveness to a servant whose master forgave his debt of ten thousand bags of gold but would not forgive his co-worker who owed him 100 silver coins (Matthew 18).

There's another 100 that doesn't get the same glory some of these other verses get. It's easy for me to read about Abraham receiving his blessing at 100 or even laugh about David's dowry payment, and I love to read Jesus' parables as both spiritual wisdom and well crafted literature. However, I don't often turn to Revelation when I open the Bible.

I took a New Testament class my second semester in college. As we approached Revelation, Professor Bob Smith told us that we would be reading the book in its entirety during class.  Instead of sitting at the desks of our basement level class, we would be lounging in the cafeteria to read it one sitting.  The other lectures all blur together; that one stands out.

In chapter sixteen, the seven bowls of God's wrath are poured out on earth. Terrible things happen, but the people refuse to repent and glorify God. It reminds me of the Egyptian plagues on steroids. If I'm being honest, I really struggle with this passage. I'm pretty stubborn, and I'm not sure that festering sores would make me worship God. I guess that's the problem: I don't allow difficulties to draw me to God the way they should.

The seven bowls are poured out, the kings meet together at Armageddon (after the sixth bowl, to be accurate), and a voice comes from the temple saying "It is done!" Don't get this confused with Christ's proclamation on the cross "It is finished!" This voice in Revelation is more like how we might say "well, that happened." Then come the lightning, thunder, an earthquake, and (are you ready for it?) 100 pound hailstones. Not a 100 pound hailstone - hailstones, plural. Not only did the people refuse to bless God because of these hailstones, they actually caused the people to curse Him.

I don't know if any of the difficult things going on in our lives are mini-bowls of wrath (shot glasses of wrath?). I don't know why things happen or why God operates the way He does. However, I know that every day is an opportunity to repent, to glorify God, and to seek His will in my life.

So on this, my 100th blog post, let me say: Don't wait for 100 pound hailstones.

FMF: Tomorrow

In these days, more than our current generation can recall, we recognize the uncertainty of tomorrow. There has never been a guarantee that things will happen a certain (excepting if God so desires), and man's will has never been able to deliver an outcome. But that's ok. That's how it is. We have known this for a long time, even if it has never seemed so. The Bible says:

Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to such and such a city, and spend a year there and engage in business and make a profit.” Yet you do not know what your life will be like tomorrow. You are just a vapor that appears for a little while and then vanishes away. Instead, you ought to say, “If the Lord wills, we will live and also do this or that.” (James 4:13-15, NASB)

Prosperity and comfort give the illusion of certainty. When we are well invested, our finances feel certain. When we are well employed, our provision seems certain. When we own a home, our shelter seems certain. These are just molecules in the vapor of our lives. They freeze in the cold and evaporate in the heat. Eventually they are nothing.

We ought to, instead, put our faith in the God who was, is, and always will be (Revelation 1:8). He does not change (James 1:17). He is the same yesterday, today, and forever (Hebrews 13:8). He has plans for us (Jeremiah 29:11), and so let us trust Him for them and take part in them.



This post is a prompt from Five Minute Friday and was written in approximately five minutes. For more information, visit fiveminutefriday.com.