THE DAY OF THE LORD
THE DAY OF THE LORD
2 Peter 3:10 “But the day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar, the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything in it will be laid bare.”
The beginning of the year 2020 has been filled with many dreadful events. Observing from the world news, some parts of the Australian continent was hit with a massive bush fire. There were flash floods in some parts of the world that left a devastating path and claimed hundreds of lives including the city of Jakarta, Indonesia. Recently, the United States and the Islamic Republic of Iran stir the world to an uproar because of many unsolvable disputes that almost lead to war. We heard of the supposed flight of a Ukrainian passenger jet that was erroneously hit by a missile moments after take off that also claimed the lives of all passengers on board. Yesterday, January 12, 2020, the Taal volcano in Talisay Batangas, Philippines which was dormant for a long time suddenly erupted and many families and residents were displaced from their homes. All of these are a few of the many horrible reports all over the world. With so many religious beliefs and scientific justification, most people in the Christian world relate these happenings to what the Bible called, the signs of the end times. Many others, often, do not care about what these things are all about, while some also called these as creator-designed natural disasters that should not be used to blackmail people to fear into becoming suddenly religious. Not so with science, because they highly believe in their ideologies, knowledge, and wave of extensive researches.
What exactly then is the Day of the Lord as described in the Bible? For further reference; see the books of Joel 2:30-31, Acts 2:20-21 and Isiah 13:6&9. No matter what everyone says, no one is exactly saying the right thing other than the written law of God. To avoid speculation and confusion, it is safe to study the matter and find the truth through the Bible. Deuteronomy 29:29 says, “The secret things belong to the Lord our God, but the things revealed belong to us and our children forever, that they may follow all the words of this law.” Ensuing this verse, I want to point out these two questions, are these events that happened still hidden from us? Do we still ignore these situations before our very eyes and treat them as common? I hope it is already clear and it has opened our minds that these are all in the control of God and we should not carry these things lightly. May these serve as a warning and reminder of the impending judgment of God in the whole world, for us to make sure that we are standing right before the Almighty God. The Lord Jesus Christ, when He was still with His disciples had warned them too of the coming destruction. He told them all the signs that precede before the coming of the Lord, read the whole chapter of Matthew 24. On the other hand, the Apostle Peter described that the day of the Lord will be like a thief coming in the night, verse 10. It is swift without any precautions for sure. A thief would not even consider being merciful if he or she was caught in the act but ready and willing to exterminate anyone who obstructs just to escape. The heavens will disappear with a roar and the elements will be destroyed by fire and the earth and everything in it will be laid bare. Imagine the catastrophic sight when a missile is fired out to a certain place? Surely, nothing would be left for consumption to where it falls. How about the terrifying blows of every fire of lava that comes out of a volcano? So hot! That everything near him is in great danger. Not counting the needless damage a flood would leave, and the many other horrifying events that are causing the world in chaos? Not hidden in our very sight, the world we live in has never been safe ever since our forefathers. Sad to say that there is no safe place to stay because even the very place we thought safe are not. That day will bring in about the destruction of the heavens by fire, and the elements will melt in the heat, verse 12.
The only and safest place is in the Holy presence of God. For who can be against us, if God is for us? Therefore, we have to keep watch, pray and be true to our calling as the day of the Lord is approaching so fast. Let me leave you with this question in verse 11, “since everything will be destroyed in this way, what kind of people ought you to be?” That’s up for you to answer and hope you will make up your mind.
