We need to keep the word of Christ’s endurance and keep the Lord’s works until the end (Rev. 3:10; 2:26).
As we study the vision of the seventy weeks in Daniel 9 in relation to God’s economy, we will experience the shining of the prophetic word as a lamp conveying spiritual light in darkness (2 Pet. 1:19). Under the shining of the prophetic word, we can receive the Lord’s warning and have the proper attitude toward His coming.
Our attitude today should not be one of passively waiting for a distant return of the Lord, sometimes in the future, but an active and eager waiting for His return which results in preparing, asking, desiring, and trusting in His imminent coming!
The Lord Jesus warned us to watch and take heed to ourselves, lest as we wait for Him and live in this world at the end of this age our hearts would be weighed down with debauchery, drunkenness, and the anxieties of life, and the day of the Lord’s return may come upon us suddenly as a snare (Matt. 22:42; Luke 21:34).
It is not enough to know that the Lord is coming soon; we need to have the attitude of eagerly waiting for His return!
Lord Jesus, make us those who not just KNOW about Your return but are eagerly preparing for Your coming! Shine on us through Your prophetic word, and enlighten us that we may see how imminent is Your return. Save us from being weighed down with the anxieties and the things of this age. Lord Jesus, come! Fill us with a desire and expectation for Your return!
The Prophetic Word is Made More Firm
In 2 Pet. 1:19 we see that the word of the prophecy in the Bible is like a lamp shining in a dark place – the age we live in today is a dark place, a dark night, and people are moving and acting in darkness.
But as we take heed to the prophetic word, we receive not merely knowledge in letters for our mental apprehension but spiritual light to shine in the darkness! This light guides us to enter into a bright day, and we are enlightened to pass through the dark age of today until the Lord’s appearing dawns and the morning star rises in our heart!
As we read the prophecies in the Bible concerning the end of the age and the Lord’s return, we need to be open to the Lord that we receive His shining, receive His warning, and have the proper attitude toward His coming!
In view of His return, the Lord warns us to watch (Matt. 24:42) and take heed to ourselves (Luke 21:34). We need to be watchful, beseeching at every time, that we may prevail to escape all the things which are about to take place and to stand before Christ (Luke 21:36).
We need to pray and beseech the Lord that we may escape and be raptured before the great tribulation that we may meet the Lord at the beginning of His return, His parousia!
Our Attitude Toward the Lord’s Return
The Lord’s appearing, His coming back, is a warning, an encouragement, and an incentive to us; we should love His appearing and look forward to it with earnest expectation and joy (2 Tim. 4:1-8).
What should our attitude be as we see the prophetic word being made more firm and being fulfilled in our days? As we realize that the Lord’s coming is very near, we need to have a proper attitude toward His coming.
Merely hearing a message or sermon about the Lord’s return or reading about it in the Bible / spiritual books is not enough. We need to adopt the attitude of WAITING for the Lord’s coming! We shouldn’t read the prophecies in the Bible to satisfy our curiosity, but we should have a waiting attitude for the Lord’s return!
This attitude is not a passive sitting back waiting until the last week comes and then we will get serious with the Lord, but an active act of waiting! An active waiting for the Lord is something that changes our being, rules our intellect, sustains our hope, and inspires our living!
The Lord’s coming is an incentive, an encouragement, and a warning to us. It is something that affects the way we live and causes us to be eager to be prepared for His return!
Being Recovered in our Experience of Waiting for the Lord’s Coming
We need to not only know the truth concerning the Lord’s coming but be recovered in our experience of waiting for the Lord’s coming.
We are the widows who have nothing in this world, our only hope is to be reunited with our dear Husband. Also, we are the virgins who are waiting for the Lord’s coming, preparing themselves to enter with Him in the wedding feast.
We need to adopt such a waiting attitude and never give it up! We do business, we take care of this and that, we go to school, we take care of our daily needs, but our eyes are SET on His coming!
Sister M. E. Barber was a wonderful pattern in this respect: she didn’t just know that the Lord will return soon but her whole life was a life of waiting for His return. It was a big surprise to her that the Lord would not come back in her lifetime.
One time as the new year was coming near she prayed, Lord, there still is time if You want to return this year – You don’t have to wait until the next year! Another time, she was walking with brother Nee and she told him, The Lord’s coming is very soon: maybe we will see Him right after we turn this corner!
If we do not care for the Lord’s return or substitute anything else for it, we are instantly fallen. Our whole life is a life of preparing for the Lord’s return! In our daily life the Lord needs to recover the experience of waiting for the Lord’s return!
The attitude we have is that we desire His return, we ask Him to return, we are preparing for His return, and we trust in His return! We don’t merely mentally agree with the Lord’s return but we desire it!
Lord Jesus, we want You to come back! Come back, dear Lord Jesus! We ask You, come soon! Prepare us for Your return! Cause us to love You with our first love! Lord, our eyes are set on You! Will You return today? Lord, will You tarry until this evening? Fill us with the expectation and desire for Your return in our lifetime! We don’t want to sit passive waiting for Your return. Lord, recover the matter of actively waiting for Your return in all Your saints!
References and Further Reading
- Sharing inspired from brother Andrew Yu’s speaking in this message and portions in, The Prophecy of the Four “Sevens” in the Bible (ch. 6), as quoted in the Holy Word for Morning Revival on Crystallization-Study of Daniel and Zechariah, week 4 (entitled, The Vision of the Seventy Weeks and the Age of Mystery).
- Further reading:
# The Up-to-date Presentation of the God-ordained Way and the Signs concerning the Coming of the Christ (by Witness Lee, chs. 6-7).
# 2 Pet. 1:19 and the footnotes on “lamp shining”, “a dark place”, and “until the day dawns”.
# M. E. Barber’s story and her eager awaiting the Lord’s return. - Hymns on this topic:
# Lord, how long, dear Bridegroom, / ’Til You come, Lord, how soon? / Don’t delay for that coming day, coming day.
# Make haste, Beloved! / Come quickly soon! / Jesus, our desire. / Thy Bride calls for Thee.
# Lovely One, come soon. / Precious Lord, return! / Lord, do not delay. / We’ll redeem everyday / For Your coming soon. - Pictures credit: both via, Inspiration Unlimited Facebook page, HWMR Daniel and Zechariah Quotes album.
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Because of the prophetic word, the Lord warns us to watch [Matt. 24:42]….In Luke 21:34 the Lord warns us to take heed to ourselves that our hearts may not be weighed down with debauchery and drunkenness and anxieties of life, and that day come upon us suddenly as a snare….We also need to be watchful, at every time beseeching, that we may prevail to escape all the things which are about to take place and to stand before Christ (Luke 21:36). To escape all the things which are about to take place is to be raptured to the heavens before the great tribulation to meet Christ at the beginning of His parousia. (The Prophecy of the Four “Sevens” in the Bible, pp. 92-93)
yes, because a man of very body he get pertinacity in this world he will come back again he endurance, and have mercy, and so sociable for human being
and he be the light of the righteousness he will open way for us. but following Christ in your heart.
2 Pet 1:19 & we hv t prophetic word made more firm, to which u do well to give heed as to a lamp shining n a dark place, until t day dawns & t morning star rises n ur hearts.
PTL, we hv t prophetic word of t scripture as t shining lamp n t midst of our darkness which guides us!
May we b those who watch & wait 4 Ur coming wit a full & accurate knowledge, on fire 4 U Lord! Mat 24:42
Amen 🙂
to attain maturity is not an overnight matter therefore, for the Lord's coming we must prepare ourselves, by loving the Lord and grow in Him, that at His appearing we May be mature to be raptured and receive the reward. O Lord Jesus thank You of showing us all the signs of Your appearing so that we will be watcfull and remain faithful to the end. this will be our encouragement for Your appearing, come Lord Jesus..{Rev.22:20}
We need to have the proper knowledge related to the Lord’s coming from the prophetic word that we may receive the Lord’s WARNING and we need to have a proper ATTITUTE toward His coming. The attitude we have is that we DESIRE His return, we ASK Him to return, we are PREPARING for His return, and we TRUST in His return! If we really love the Lord and that there is nothing in this world for us, we would desire His return. We have no heart for this world, because our husband, Christ, is not here. As we go about our daily living on earth, our eyes are set on His return. We are also like a slave waiting for our Master to return to settle account with us. While waiting, we love our fellow saints, and we serve faithfully. The Lord warns us to WATCH and to TAKE HEED that our hearts may not be weighed down with debauchery and drunkenness and anxieties of life, and that day come upon us suddenly as a snare. Instead, we redeem our time, we go out of the world, paying a price to gain oil in our vessel. Day by day we keep His word by enjoying it and not denying His name by calling on Him to enjoy Christ’s person. We also need to help the new ones to love the Lord and His appearing that they may be persons waiting and desiring for the Lord’s return."Come, Lord Jesus!"