[232 words]
Marge Wilson had had enough! For the fourth morning in a row, she had gone to the chicken pen only to find feathers strewn about and one of her good laying hens gone. She knew one thing for sure, the chicken-stealing varmint was consistent and it would surely be back for more. But this time she would be ready for him, waiting with shotgun in hand!
As Jesus spoke of His second coming and the final judgment of mankind, He compared the great event to a thief that comes in the night. Unlike Ms. Wilson’s chicken-stealing varmint, the arrival of the Christ will be a total surprise. “Watch therefore, for you do not know what hour your Lord is coming. But know this, that if the master of the house had known what hour the thief would come, he would have watched and not allowed his house to be broken into. Therefore you also be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.” (Matthew 24:42–44)
When the trumpet sounds and the voice of the archangel rumbles, every eye will see Christ and there will be surprise, shock, dismay, dread, and mourning by all non-believers. (1 Thes. 4:16; Rev. 1:7) But for those of us who are watching, it will be a great and wonderful day! (2 Tim. 4:8)
Jay Launius
Maud church of Christ
Maud, TX