A Season of WaitingSample

The In-Between Times

We’re living in the in-between times. God in the person of Jesus has paid one visit to our world. God in the person of Jesus will one day pay another visit. The first visit was to offer eternal life; the second will be to check on what we have done with that offer. We rightly celebrate the coming of Jesus into the world. It was good news then and is still good news today. God hasn’t given up on His world. Jesus offers a way back to God. For those who have accepted that offer, the second coming of Jesus is more good news. One day we’ll experience the promised new heavens and new earth. One day what we know in part will be known in full.

The Bible uses pictorial language to describe this second and final visit. It seems to add up to lots of turmoil in our world prior to His coming. That in itself doesn’t allow us to speculate on a particular date or time. There’s always been trouble, always natural disasters. What we focus on is going about our daily business. Jesus at His first coming gave us an idea of the life we should live: to go on living recognising that what we do matters both now and always. Our own death may come before that second divine visit. But those who belong to Jesus can be sure that however and whenever it happens, they will share forever in His sort of life. We live as people who are prepared to die, and we die as people who are prepared to live.

Written by David Reay