Coming Suddenly

And, behold, I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to give every man according as his work shall be. – Revelation 22:12

Text: Matthew 24:27, 36-42; Acts 1:11

Prop: a movie poster that says “Coming Soon” or a computer rescue boot disk

Summary: The return of Jesus to earth will be sudden and unexpected. We should be ready and expecting His return anytime.

Look what I have with me. (show poster) This movie poster says “Coming Soon.” That means that at some point in the near future this movie will be shown, but we are not sure of the exact date. We can expect to see it soon and be waiting for it to come out. Today I want to tell you about the return of Jesus to earth. Unlike a movie we will never know exactly when Jesus will come back so we need to be ready.

The return of Jesus is certain but it is a mystery; we don’t know everything but we have a few clues.

Clue #1: His return will come suddenly. (Read Matthew 24:27) A bolt of lightning is quick and powerful. It flashes suddenly and strikes without warning. We know when Jesus comes back it will all happen quickly.

Clue #2: No one knows the exact date or time of his return. (Read Matthew 24:36) This event is so big that even the angels in heaven haven’t been let in on this secret. There is no use in trying to guess a date because only God knows.

Clue #3: His return will be unexpected by many. (Read Matthew 24:37-42) Jesus compared his return to the flood of Noah’s day. A warning had been given but many people ignored it until it was too late. When Jesus returns some people will be taken just as some were taken when the door to Noah’s ark was closed… one shall be taken, and the other left. (verse 40). We should not be lulled to sleep by the lullaby that some sing saying, “where is the promise of his coming?” (2 Peter 3:4)

What should we do? Jesus tells us to be ready anytime. He wants us to be expecting his return. We don’t need to worry about choosing the date; we just need to be on the welcoming committee. We should ask Jesus to be our Savior and be serving Him and living a godly life.

When he left the earth (see Jesus Ascends) the two angels said he would come again in the same manner he left. (Acts 1:11) He left in person and he will return in person to the earth. He promised, I will come again, and receive you unto myself. (John 14:3) Are you ready? Then be looking out and looking up for Jesus!

Alternate introduction: Use a computer rescue disk for a prop. Explain how you never know when your computer may crash so you are ready to boot it with a rescue disk to save the data.

©2001 by Jim Kerlin. All rights reserved.

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