1He showed me a river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb, 2in the middle of its street. On this side of the river and on that was the tree of life, bearing twelve kinds of fruits, yielding its fruit every month. The leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations. 3There will be no curse any more. The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in it, and his servants will serve him. 4They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads. 5There will be no night, and they need no lamp light or sun light; for the Lord God will illuminate them. They will reign forever and ever.
6He said to me, “These words are faithful and true. The Lord God of the spirits of the prophets sent his angel to show to his bondservants the things which must happen soon.”
7“Behold, I am coming soon! Blessed is he who keeps the words of the prophecy of this book.”
8Now I, John, am the one who heard and saw these things. When I heard and saw, I fell down to worship before the feet of the angel who had shown me these things. 9He said to me, “You must not do that! I am a fellow bondservant with you and with your brothers, the prophets, and with those who keep the words of this book. Worship God.” 10He said to me, “Don’t seal up the words of the prophecy of this book, for the time is at hand. 11He who acts unjustly, let him act unjustly still. He who is filthy, let him be filthy still. He who is righteous, let him do righteousness still. He who is holy, let him be holy still.”
12“Behold, I am coming soon! My reward is with me, to repay to each man according to his work. 13I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End. 14Blessed are those who do his commandments, that they may have the right to the tree of life, and may enter in by the gates into the city. 15Outside are the dogs, the sorcerers, the sexually immoral, the murderers, the idolaters, and everyone who loves and practices falsehood. 16I, Jesus, have sent my angel to testify these things to you for the assemblies. I am the root and the offspring of David, the Bright and Morning Star.”
17The Spirit and the bride say, “Come!” He who hears, let him say, “Come!” He who is thirsty, let him come. He who desires, let him take the water of life freely.
18I testify to everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: if anyone adds to them, God will add to him the plagues which are written in this book. 19If anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God will take away his part from the tree of life, and out of the holy city, which are written in this book. 20He who testifies these things says, “Yes, I am coming soon.”
Amen! Yes, come, Lord Jesus!
21The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with all the saints. Amen.
Focus on the What - Not on the When
Christ Returning in the Clouds
Throughout the ages, believers have had an interest in the timing of Christ’s return. If we study the scriptures, we see that He repeatedly tells us that He is coming back. That is a certainty. I know in my own case, part of my desire for His return is that I might not have to experience physical death someday. Sometimes when we see suffering and misery in the world, we just wish that He would come back and set it all right. I can AMEN the statement “Come Lord Jesus!” (Revelation 22:20). Yes, believers have always had a keen desire to know when He will return, and that is understandable. However, there is a danger in trying to pinpoint when He will return. He tells His disciples that there will be signs before His coming, but no specific time is given. He specifically says that only the Father knows. Some people have put the business of living in the present on hold as they expect Jesus to come in the next few weeks, months, or even years. They are laser-focused on the specific “when” instead of living out their lives to walk in the Spirit doing the “what” that the Bible tells us to do while we wait.
Jesus never instructed us to radically alter our daily behavior and activities in anticipation of His return. Instruction after instruction is given by Paul as to how we are to live our lives, with no mention of whether this should change in any way based on Christ’s imminent return. The truth is that we’re just supposed to be doing what we’re supposed to be doing, whether He is coming in ten minutes or in ten thousand years. We are just told to be ready. We are told to have our lamps filled. I think “being ready” means to be living each day directed by the Holy Spirit and acting on the tasks that He sets before us. Don’t put life on hold. Go to school. Get an education. Pursue a career. If God provides a spouse, get married. If you’re married and have kids, pray for them and teach them to work hard and to love Jesus. Raise them in the fear and admonition of the Lord. Love your neighbor. Do justice. Love mercy. Walk humbly with God. The Bible says a lot about how we are to live REGARDLESS of when Jesus will return. Don’t get sidetracked from living out your life according to the whole counsel of God’s Word. Sitting and waiting is not a biblical option.
Jesus did give some clues to His disciples about "birth pains" that would precede His return. The world will steadily move toward becoming a more lawless and godless place. Near the end of times, Paul tells Timothy “ 2 For men will be lovers of self, lovers of money, boastful, arrogant, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy...(see 2 Timothy 3:2-5 for the whole list). That certainly looks a lot like the current progression of things. That’s okay. God is sovereign. He is working His purposes out. So, what are we to do? We are to jump into life and be the salt and the light to the world around us. Get involved with your neighbor. Share the gospel with enthusiasm. He is coming again! Don't neglect the here and now, but don't become too attached to it either. We don’t know when, and we don’t need to know when. The best way to prepare is to live each day to its fullest, led by the Spirit, and be the salt and the light to the world. Don’t be too concerned about the “when”. Focus on the "what". Jesus Himself said that only the Father knows when that will be.