Greetings again my Brethren. Happy New Year! And I hope 2022 will be a happy year for you all. But please know whether you have a happy new year or not is not up to God, but up to you. It is God’s intention for you to have a happy year, a prosperous new year not in the way of money, a new car, or a new house, maybe a new job, but a biblical prosperity which has nothing to do with things mentioned above. Biblical prosperity (all throughout the Bible) is to push forward in God. When Joseph was in prison God said (Genesis 39:2) he was “prosperous man.” And what did he own maybe a loincloth. Love not this world nor the things in it (1 John 2:15) in 2022, for if you do the love of the Father is not in you. Okay let us continue looking at some diverse attitude toward the Lord’s (Jesus, remember LORD is the Father in Scripture) visit. Last month we looked at how His visit was often unwanted. The last thing we want is for the Lord to show up when we are doing things we know we ought not to be doing, but that is when He needs to show up. Unless we are walking with the LORD in the place we ought to be we will not truly welcome or even appreciate a visit from the Lord. It is all about our heart condition my friend. So this month we will look how unexpected the Lord can be when He visits. In Mark we read, “Then shall two be in the field; the one shall be taken, and the other left. 41 Two women shall be grinding at the mill; the one shall be taken, and the other left.
42 Watch therefore: for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come.” (Matthew 24:40-42) Here the Lord is talking in the future not present day. Now to get a complete understanding we must know there are two other pairs and in Luke 17:34 there is a third, two men in one bed, but in all three stories are talking about a separation of people, in the future, (some say during the resurrection or what some call the rapture) where one group was doing things correctly for God and the other groups were doing things wrong. Two women in the field. What does the field represent? That is right the world, the place where sowing and reaping of the Gospel message happens for a harvest. The Lord shows up in a visit and does not take the harvest, but the sower and reapers. The harvest will be gathered in later. The lady that was doing things correctly was taken the other lady was left. Two women grinding (working for God) at the mill. What does the mill represent? The processing of the word of God. One women was taken the golden grain of the Gospel and removing the chaff, weeds, and the tares correctly and the other women was not so she was left. so, why was she left I do not know, maybe so that she could learn how to correctly process the grain again I do not know and I believe nobody really knows. All I know is God said it in His word and I believe it. You know my friend we can only defend the word of God only as far as what we can read, anything else is speculation and assumption and you know what too much assuming can make of us? Two women were working the Lord visits and He takes one and leaves the other. In Luke, two men were in bed and He takes one and leaves the other. What does the bed represent? The bed is always represented of a place of sickness or death. Like a sick bed. Here two men were in the bed of sickness or death and the Lord shows up and takes one and leaves the other. One could have been saved, the other not. One could have been healed by the LORD the other not One could have lived from their sickness the other could have died. Again like with the women we do not know why one man was taken and the other man left. But let us not miss the point I am trying to make, the women and the men were NOT expecting the visit from the Lord. All throughout Scripture we see where we have to be ready for a visitation from the Lord. The disciples (maybe all 82 of them) asked Jesus, “And as he sat upon the mount of Olives, the disciples came unto him privately, saying, Tell us, when shall these things be? and what shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world?‘ (Matthew 24:3) Or when will you visit again. And Jesus replied,
“But know this, that if the goodman of the house had known in what watch the thief would come, he would have watched, and would not have suffered his house to be broken up. 44 Therefore be ye also ready: for in such an hour as ye think not the Son of man cometh.
45Who then is a faithful and wise servant, whom his lord hath made ruler over his household, to give them meat in due season?” (Matthew 24:43-45) did you get that? Read it again. They ask when will all of these supernatural and spiritual things happen and Jesus said, “be ready for in such an hour as ye think not.” Jesus does not have to tell us when He will come for a visit, He just shows up. We like to have things all arranged, well not so with Jesus. He likes just showing up. Maybe He wants to see our reaction. I do not believe He wants to see if He can catch us doing things we ought not to be doing. That is not the Jesus I serve, but at any rate when he shows up He plans to separate some and leave others.
More next month as we continue to look at more diverse attitudes towards the Lord’s visit. Do you see Him draw near? Please know God is near to them who are near to Him. Do you feel His presence? Do you see His hand in your life? He is waiting on us to make our first move. Written by David Stahl
