It’s All About the Moment
It’s All About the Moment
By Jonathan C. Brentner
The voices we hear from the world are increasingly at odds with what read in God’s Word. The commercials we see on television encourage us to get the most out of this life, to “just do it.” The message of the world is all about living for the moment.
And I would agree…although I have a much, much different “moment” in mind. In 1 Corinthians 15:51-52 Paul wrote, “Behold! I tell you a mystery. We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed. In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed.” (emphasis mine)
For those of us who belong to Jesus, it’s not about the thrill of a moment in time; it’s all about the moment when eternity begins for us. It’s all about the “twinkling of an eye” when Jesus takes us home to the place that He’s now preparing for us (John 14:2-3).
It’s this future “twinkling of an eye” that has repeatedly refreshed my soul during this shocking year that has forever changed life on planet earth.
The Misery of 2020 Points to a Much Greater Threat
I am sure we all can recall heartbreaking and disturbing experiences from 2020. We have witnessed the activity of our enemy in our world as never before. The devil has created a culture of fear in our communities and furthermore, his minions have made their endgame abundantly clear; they plan to take full advantage of COVID-19 to make Satan’s plan for world domination a reality.
The coronavirus and what the World Economic Forum (WEF) dubs as The Great Reset go together like a couple in love walking down the street arm in arm. These elite globalists intend to use COVID-19 as a springboard to advance their plans for a Marxist New World Order.
The articles and videos on the WEF website openly describe their radical plans for controlling the lives of everyone on planet earth. One of the videos begins with these chilling words about their vision for 2030, “You’ll own nothing, and you’ll be happy.” They make The Great Reset sound like a glorious utopia when in reality it will become a living hell for those alive when it comes to full fruition.
The intent of the world’s most powerful and wealthiest people is communism; how else can one describe their vision for 2030 where no one owns any personal property, not even the clothes they wear (yes, they actually say this in one of their articles). This is Satan behaving precisely as Jesus described him in John 10:10. Satan will work through the Antichrist and those who follow him to “steal and kill and destroy.” These words precisely sum up what the elite globalists at the WEF and UN have in mind for the people under their jurisdiction.
According to James Delingpole of Breitbart News, “COVID-19 has provided the perfect pretext” to usher in “a globalist takeover” of virtually every aspect of human life. “Put simply,” Delingpole continues, The Great Reset “is the blueprint for a complete transformation of the world economy. There will be no money, no private property, no democracy. Instead, every key decision — what you do for a living, how much stuff you consume, whether you can take a vacation — will [be] decided for you by a remote, unaccountable elite of ‘experts.’”
Lest you think the idea of The Great Reset is the product of a bygone era when John Lenin sang Imagine about a wistful utopia, it has become a hot topic today. Newsweek recently devoted an entire issue to it. The campaign slogan of Joe Biden, “Build Back Better,” comes directly from the WEF and their plans for world dominance.
Kerry, who Biden named as his special presidential envoy for climate last week, has already affirmed his allegiance to the radical agenda of the WEF. “The notion of a reset is more important than ever before, I personally believe…we’re at the dawn of an extremely exciting time.” Kerry further assured the elites of the World Economic Forum (WEF) that a Joe Biden presidency would quickly advance the globalist “Great Reset” agenda “with greater speed and greater intensity than many might imagine.”
Some popular prophecy teachers recently said, “The Great Reset is the great tribulation.” I wholeheartedly agree. A lady from Australia recently sent an e-mail to me in which she said the tribulation is coming toward us at “warp speed.” This is so true!
What we see happening around us is the beginning of what the apostle John wrote about in the book of Revelation. And if this is the case, and it is, then the rapture will happen sooner than many people can even begin to imagine.
Our Eternal Hope Far Exceeds All Earthly Threats
So why bring up all the current news about the coming Great Reset in a post about the moment Jesus comes for us? Because it confirms that the tribulation is knocking on the door, and this means Jesus’ appearing is ever so near. The threat to our future well-being is substantial, but our hope in Jesus’ soon appearing is greater; our hope far exceeds all threats from the enemy of our souls.
Because the rapture must happen before the tribulation, we are not waiting for the “Reset” of life and the radical transformation of life as we know it, but rather for our ascent into the clouds. We may see more of Satan’s plans for this world come to fruition before the rapture, however, the Bible assures us that we will be with Jesus in heaven well before the antichrist assumes control of the rapidly approaching Great Reset.
I do not know what the remainder of 2020 or 2021 have in store for us who believe. We may experience greater restrictions on our freedoms and perhaps added suffering.
Circumstances, no matter how terrifying they seem, cannot derail our hope nor hinder the Lord’s sovereign agenda for His church, Israel, and the world. In other words, nothing can interfere with our “blessed hope.” Jesus is coming soon to take us home; that is the moment when our faith will become a reality.
In Philippians 3:20 Paul wrote, “But our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ.” The word for “await” in the Greek denotes an eager anticipation of something. I believe it signifies the apostle’s “goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus” (Phil. 3:14)
Spectacular News for All Those Securely in Christ
Paul also wrote about his excited expectation of Jesus’ appearing in Romans 8:23-25. I especially like his words in verse 23, “And not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies.”
This is spectacular news for all my fellow groaners in 2020. Jesus will not disappoint us; He is coming and at that moment we will receive immortal bodies and fully experience our membership in God’s forever family.
If you are wondering why I am so certain that our departure from this world will occur before the start of the coming tribulation, see my blog post entitled The Biblical Necessity of the Pretribulation Rapture.
If you groan because the events of 2020 have taken a heavy toll on you, take heart and focus on the prize that lies ahead of you. The Lord may keep us waiting a bit longer, but we can be absolutely certain He will not disappoint us. Jesus will surely reward our patient endurance just as He promises us in Revelation 3:10-11.
If you have not read 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18 recently, I encourage you to do so often as a reminder of your wonderful and glorious hope. These verses reveal the outcome of our faith. Many today make the foolish mistake of divorcing our “blessed hope” from the Gospel message; they say it’s a third order doctrine. It’s most assuredly not!
Our imminent departure from this world is the essence of our Gospel hope per the Lord’s assuring words through the apostle Paul in Romans 8:18-25.
I very much need a constant reminder of my hope and I suspect that many of you do as well. Despite writing about it, I far too often lose sight of the Lord’s appearing as the true prize that awaits me as well as all those whose sins are covered by Jesus’ blood.
You see, it’s all about the moment Paul described in 1 Corinthians 15:51-52; it’s the “twinkling of an eye” when the glorious hope of the Gospel becomes reality for us and Jesus turns our perishable bodies into imperishable and immortal ones.
I cannot imagine a better moment than that.
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