Hallelujah, our King is coming! How glorious that day will be when there is no more pain, no more sadness, no more anger, no more injustice, no more fear. For those who have accepted Christ as their Savior, Jesus’ second coming will be a wonderful, joyous occasion! Although we all deserve eternal punishment in hell because of our sin, God loves us SO much that He prepared a way for us to be saved through His sacrifice! All we have to do is acknowledge that we are sinners and believe that Jesus Christ paid the penalty for our sins! Though this world may have terrible trials and pain, we can look forward patiently in expectation of a better day – a day when we get to be in Heaven with our Abba Father (Romans 8:15).

Follow along with these verses:

• Romans 8:15
• Psalm 2:1-12
• Luke 21:25-28
• James 5:7-12
• Ephesians 4:2
• 2 Peter 3:8-14
• 1 Peter 4:7-9
• John 5:24-29

The passage in Psalms 2:1-12 speaks of the rebellion of earthly kings/government. We see this type of rebellion in our world today, too – all of the moral ambiguity within our culture is not something the Lord supports. He has made right and wrong clear to us both in our consciences and in His Word! When we reject His truth, that’s when we tend to stray off into a “gray area” of moral ambiguity. However, when the world tries to fight against the Lord, He laughs at their feeble attempts. God has placed His Son on the throne and no one can fight against Him and win, for He has authority over all creation. This passage tells us to stand with the Lord. He is a just and righteous God, and He will not tolerate rebellion and lawlessness. However, if we choose to take refuge in Him, we know we will be kept safe and protected by our all-powerful God.

Scripture tells us that we will know when the second coming of Jesus is happening. There will be cataclysmic events and we will see Jesus (Luke 21:25-28; 2 Peter 3:8-11). This is going to be an absolutely terrifying event for those who have rejected God, but for us who have trusted in Him, it will be pure joy because we know that we will be forever with Him! James 5:7-12 gives us some instructions on how to conduct ourselves while we are waiting for the imminent coming of the Lord. It could happen at any time, so we must be ready!

Don’t grumble about each other, brothers and sisters, or you will be judged. For look—the Judge is standing at the door!

James 5:9 NLT

One very specific instruction we are given in light of this knowledge of the Lord’s return is that we shouldn’t be such complainers about other people. Oh goodness gracious…. guilty as charged. It’s so hard not to complain about other people sometimes, especially when they really just seem to have it out for you. But clearly, the Lord is telling us through James that we really shouldn’t be so quick to judge others for their mistakes, because we make plenty of our own mistakes, too (Ephesians 4:2). God will be the Judge over all – and He is coming soon! This is an area where I need continuous guidance and reminders from God. Ever catch yourself going off about someone else when you’re talking with one of your friends and you have this little twinge in your gut… and you start to feel guilty? Yeah, same. I need to learn to listen to the Holy Spirit’s prompting through my conscience in these moments.

The end of the world is coming soon. Therefore, be earnest and disciplined in your prayers. Most important of all, continue to show deep love for each other, for love covers a multitude of sins.

1 Peter 4:7-8 NLT

The Lord isn’t really being slow about his promise, as some people think. No, he is being patient for your sake. He does not want anyone to be destroyed, but wants everyone to repent.

2 Peter 3:9 NLT

We must demonstrate love and godliness to other people here on earth, and be fervent in our prayers, while we wait for the coming of the Lord! We’ve got to share His gospel with the world because He wants everyone to be saved. He loves all of the people He created and knows them all – He wants them to know Him, too. He wants to give us life in Him so that we will be judged as holy and blameless as a result of His covering of mercy over us.

“Very truly I tell you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be judged but has crossed over from death to life.”

John 5:24 NLT

Let your passion of Christ continue to grow so that His love will overflow from you and begin to affect the lives of others! We are here on this earth to bring glory to the God Who made us and develop a personal relationship with Him. Shouldn’t we want to share this incredible news with others, too? Let’s pray for courage, passion, and godly wisdom to bloom within us so that we can stand strong in the Lord’s truth and wait patiently for His arrival.