THE END TIMES: A CALL FOR READINESS

READINGS: THIRTY THIRD SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME

The first reading (Daniel 12:1- 3) and the Gospel reading (Mark 13:24-32) of this 33rd Sunday of Year B, sounds like doom and gloom, whereby the light of this world will become dark, natural disasters of unknown magnitudes will happen, major wars will erupt, the Anti-Christ will appear offering a godless utopia to deceive many. Then there will be persecution and martyrdom of those who do not cave in, and then, life as we know it on earth will come to an end. Many preachers and seers have fruitlessly preoccupied themselves with trying to figure out when the end times will be. A comedian spoke of a Pentecostal preacher who had predicted the end of the world, wrongly, three times. In his latest prediction, this minister says that the new date is November 21 and if it rains, it will be November 22.

The Lord did not prophesy about the end times to prompt speculations as to when these things might happen or when He might return. He was clear that not even himself, as the son of man, knows and that the only one who knows is God. Rather, He said these things to call our attention to the importance of being watchful and standing ready. Unfortunately, waiting is not second nature to us. We are impatient creatures. We want what we want, and we want it now. If we can’t have it right now, we’re going to do something else. While waiting and standing ready is difficult for us, compared to the alternative, we have no choice.

If we don’t prepare ourselves ahead of time for Judgment Day, we won’t have time to prepare on that day. It is either we are ready, or we aren’t, either we have acknowledged Christ as Lord and Savior, or we haven’t; either our sins have been forgiven or we are dead in sin, and there is no time to seek forgiveness. So, whether Jesus comes again in our lifetime or not, whether we will be alive to see the end of the world as we know it or not, one thing is certain, we will see the end of our own lives. So, either way, my friends, we need to be spiritually prepared.

To be spiritually prepared, we need to become very intentional in our relationship with God; intent on knowing God and pleasing Him. We cannot fall into the trap of complacency and erroneous belief that there is no judgment day. That is the biggest trap the devil has set to ruin many people. There will be a judgement day. Let us never second guess God on that.

We also need to be very confident of our trust in Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior and that by His stripes we are healed. Scripture says, “Approach the throne of grace with confidence” (Hebrews 4:15)—a confidence that helps keep us holding unto Jesus, even to the end of time, for Scripture says, “No one who believes in Him will ever be put to shame”; a confidence that helps us forgive others even as we have been forgiven; a confidence that helps us develop feelings of compassion, love, and empathy for others even as we have experience it in Christ Jesus; a confidence that invites us to always stay reconciled with God, self, and others.