December 5

Read: Matthew 25:1-13

And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly and I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ (I Thessalonians 5:23).

Am I Ready For The Coming Of The Lord?

Jesus is coming again. God has planned it. Our Lord promised it. The Bible teaches it. The purpose of the Holy Spirit is to get us ready for it. Am I ready for the Second Coming?

First Thessalonians is crystal-clear in its call to holiness of heart and life. In this Epistle, God’s Word is equally explicit in linking the call to holiness with our preparation for Christ’s second coming. “The Lord… stablish your hearts unblameable in holiness before God, even our Father, at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ” (3:12-13). “And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly; and I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ” (5:23).

It is not only our profession that will be tested at the coming of the Lord, but our whole manner of life. To pass scrutiny we must be holy. Only those whose hearts are pure can with joy look forward to the coming of Christ.

In this connection, what do we learn from Jesus’ parable of the ten virgins? Oil is one of the Bible’s symbols for the Holy Spirit. In this parable all of the ten virgins had some oil; all of them were planning to be ready for the bridegroom when he came. But five of them were shut out. Only those who had the extra supply of oil had enough. Does not our Lord here teach us that we need the Holy Spirit in His fullness if we are to be ready for the Second Coming?

When Jesus comes to reward His servants, Whether it be at noon or night, Faithful to Him, will He find us watching, With our lamps all trimmed and bright?

— Fanny J. Crosby