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 "However, when the Son of Man comes, will He find faith on the earth?" Luke 18:8...."Christ is not coming for a defeated, whining, moaning, broken or divided church, but a glorious one." Samuel Rodriguez

When Jesus left to return to heaven and the presence of the Father, He told His disciples, His church, that He would return, and bring His people fully to Himself. He exhorted them to be watching for Him. Since that time, we, the church, have had varying degrees of interest in doing so. Usually our interest hinges on what is happening in the world around us, and so, at various times of crisis, the church has looked for Him more diligently than when there was none. Right now, we're in such a time, and many talk of His soon return. This writing has almost nothing to do with the timing of His return, whether near or not. It doesn't even have a great deal to do with the conditions of the world, though we are to take note of those conditions since Jesus spoke of them in connection to His return. What I write of today concerns the condition of His church upon His return, which is something we seem to easily lose sight of. We're accomplished at pointing out the impurity and sin of our surrounding culture, but our sight is clouded as to the condition of our own hearts.

The above quote from Rodriguez really speaks to me because I think the first part gives an accurate picture of much of the professing church. In our comfort obsessed western culture, we are prone, no, driven to complain and moan about anything that threatens that comfort. Many are praying for a movement of God upon the nation and church, but what is the motive behind the prayer? How much of it comes from a yearning to be a pure and holy people? How much of it comes from a desire for God to change our outward circumstances, or activities that we dislike, and so restore everything to the way we want it to be, while leaving us unchanged? How much of our prayer comes from defeated, broken spirits that just want Him to get us out of a place we don't like, rather than from hearts that despite everything, live in victorious faith? The church He returns for will be glorious and victorious. Does that describe the corner of His Body where you and I currently reside?

In John 17, Jesus prayed that His church, we His people, would be one in Him. A unified people is who He'll return for, but can we honestly say we're anything close to that? Look at what we bicker over? Look at how steadfastly we defend our "turf." Loyalty to denominations and organizations have taken precedence over loyalty to Him. I'm a Wesleyan-Arminian, and I believe that strain of Christian faith is closest to the teachings of His Word, but I will not let that keep me from having rich fellowship with brothers and sisters who may have a slightly different view of what certain Scriptures are saying. I have learned so much from Calvinists, Charismatics, and Pentecostals. So much so that I know our differences are minor. On the essentials of faith, we don't differ, and we need to celebrate that unity, not quarrel over who's the closest to having everything "right."

I hunger for His return, but when He does return, whether for all His church, or just for me when my time here closes, I want to be found in faith. I want to leave this world fully alive in Him, always reaching for more of Him. I don't want to bemoan all that I don't have, or have lost, but all that I have and can never lose in Him. I want to be living as "more than a conqueror" when He comes. I don't think He will accept any other spiritual state. Do you share that desire? Do you, your household, and your local fellowship look like what He will return for? Do I? Or, do we far more resemble what Rodriguez speaks of? In our hearts, we know. So does He.

Blessings,

Pastor O