HERE OR HEREAFTER?

(2 Timothy 4:8-10)  Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day: and not to me only, but unto all them also that love his appearing.  9  Do thy diligence to come shortly unto me:  10 For Demas hath forsaken me, having loved this present world, and is departed unto Thessalonica; Crescens to Galatia, Titus unto Dalmatia.

            When reading the scripture below Micah 4:1-3 we see “…that it shall come to pass… the house of the LORD shall be established in the top of the mountains,” and that we should be looking for the coming of that Day.  That song verse “What A Day That Will Be” can you imagine that day?

              If you love the thought of His appearing, you are not in love with this present world. (1 John 2:15) "…If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him." (James 4:4) "Whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God."

            You and I, as Paul did, need to set our sights higher than this passing scene. Demas, and so many people of this world, want to have his portion here and now. Paul, you and I, are pilgrims and strangers, not only in love with Jesus but with His appearing. I wonder how many really love the thought of the return of Jesus.  We do not sense it much in churches today. People hit and miss coming to church, there is no urgency concerning being there. There seems to be no joy in knowing that the King, our Lord and Saviour, is coming. Moreover, we as fundamental Baptists, who do not always seem to "love" the thought of Jesus’ return, find that our interest is purely academic, and not affectionate with a love for Jesus Christ.

              You cannot love and live in two worlds at a time. The love of the world and the love of the Father simply cannot coexist in the same heart.  This double standard is the source of our problem.  We are not willing to give up the grandeur of the world for the austereness of Christianity.  Our grandeur will come later, in our Eternal Life with Jesus.  Does the song “What A Day That Will Be” scare you or thrill you?

              Are you in love with this world today or with the day that is to come? It makes a difference what you choose.

Bro. John R. E Chastain, re-written and based on a devotion written by Dr. Larry M. Groves

Micah 4:1-3  But in the last days it shall come to pass, that the mountain of the house of the LORD shall be established in the top of the mountains, and it shall be exalted above the hills; and people shall flow unto it.  (2)  And many nations shall come, and say, Come, and let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, and to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths: for the law shall go forth of Zion, and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem.  (3)  And he shall judge among many people, and rebuke strong nations afar off; and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruninghooks: nation shall not lift up a sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more.