From Ben – 7 August 2016

The Rio Olympics gets under way this weekend with great excitement. Rio has worked hard to clean up its sprawling city and polluted waters. The cost of getting ready for this world event has taxed the country to the limit and has cost an estimated $5 billion. 85000 soldiers and armed police have been mobilised to protect the ½ million people expected to attend the games.

As I have followed the huge effort Rio has gone to in preparing for the start day, I could not help but think of how we need to prepare for the greatest event this planet has ever known, ie. the return of Jesus Christ.

Unlike the huge team that has worked so hard in Rio, knowing the start day 4 years out, the coming of Christ will be sudden and unannounced. He said he would come like a thief in the night, suddenly and unexpectedly and like lightening that flashes instantaneously across the sky.

Although we do not know the exact date of his coming, he has set some very specific signs out in Matthew 24 as warning signs. I believe we must live in a state of readiness for that spectacular and imminent event. We can’t consider ourselves ready until we have fully surrendered ourselves to Jesus Christ as saviour and Lord and are certain we are not allowing unconfessed sin to cling to our lives. We must put our lives in order.

We need to be ready and prepared for we do not know when the Lord will return. Tomorrow may be too late…