A Broken Record

“And do this, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep; for now our salvation is nearer than when we first believed.” Romans 13:11

Ronald Reagan is one of the most intriguing men who served as President of the United States. When he was a young man, Reagan worked at a radio station and sometimes played records of sermons. His shift at the station was a one-man operation and so, on occasion, Ron would set the record playing and then sneak out for a cup of coffee. One day he got a call while he was at the coffee shop from the station’s owner, ordering him back to the station, and then … he received his termination notice. He had returned to the station finding the record skipping at a particular point in the sermon;

“Go to Hell, go to Hell, go to Hell, go to…”

There are probably several messages we could draw from this funny little sequence, but what spoke to me most was this, that in recent years we’ve heard the message repeated over and over again like a broken record, “The end is near, the end is near, the end is near, the end… and, “The Lord’s return is at the door…”;

Yet, the fact is that we are very near to the Lord’s return and there are many signs of His soon coming.

So if the message sounds repetitive perhaps it’s because the Lord’s return is much nearer now than when we first believed – even at the very door. And the whole point of thinking about and dwelling upon Jesus’ return is that we want to be ready, keeping close accounts with Him, living holy and fruitful lives…spotless, blameless, at His coming. Our bridal love for Him will keep us looking up and listening for the cry; “Behold, the bridegroom cometh!”