“When the Son of Man returns, it will be like it was in Noah’s day. In those days before the flood, the people were enjoying banquets and parties and weddings right up to the time Noah entered his boat. People didn’t realize what was going to happen until the flood came and swept them all away. That is the way it will be when the Son of Man comes. Two men will be working together in the field; one will be taken, the other left. Two women will be grinding flour at the mill; one will be taken, the other left.”
– Jesus, Matthew 24: 37-41
Although they try, rarely do Hollywood film producers capture the essence of who Christ is and what the Bible says. But as I read Jesus’ words spoken in Matthew 24, a scene from the movie “Left Behind” immediately comes to mind.
Hundreds of people are on a passenger airliner. It is in the middle of the night. There is no turbulence, the flight is peaceful. All of the passengers are sound asleep. Suddenly an elderly woman wakes up and notices that her husband is not in the seat beside her. She summons the flight attendant and asks, “Have you seen my husband? Can you check to see if he is in the bathroom?”
He checks the toilet, but the woman’s husband is not there. As this is happening, other passengers happen to awaken. They too are missing friends and loved ones who were sitting next to them on the plane. The flight attendants, somewhat confused themselves, try to assure the passengers that their friends and loved ones are still on the plane. After all, it’s a huge plane.
But as more passengers awaken, more chaos and confusion ensues. The lights come on, and to everyone’s horror – half of the people on the plane are missing. Equally disturbing, the only thing left in the seats where they were sitting are the clothing and jewelry they were wearing.
And it is in this scene that the audience is confronted with the greatest, most important question in the history of mankind:
Where will you be on the day of Christ’s return?
Loved ones, we are the audience Jesus was speaking to in Matthew 24. And we are confronted with this same, sobering question today: Where will we be? It is a question that none of us can avoid, as hard as we may try.
There is no Good News without the bad news. But so many times when we share the Gospel of Christ with others, we forgo talking about the bad news. And in doing so we render them a great disservice. What urgency is there to give an answer if there is no recognition of the problem?
The Bible tells us that when Jesus returns, those who don’t know Christ will be separated from God and will endure His eternal wrath. Just as heaven is very real, so too is hell. But here is the Good News: You get to decide. Those who spend eternity in hell, ultimately, did so by their own choosing. But some don’t realize they have a choice.
You see, when we Christians gloss over God’s forthcoming judgment and wrath, we devalue the precious and immeasurable value of what Christ achieved for us on the cross at calvary. There can be no Good News without the very bad news!
J. I. Packer says it another way. “If we would know God, it is vital that we face the truth concerning his wrath, however unfashionable it may be, and however strong our initial prejudices against it. Otherwise, we shall not understand the gospel of salvation from wrath, nor the propitiatory [reconciling] achievement of the cross, nor the wonder of the redeeming love of God.”
If we could truly comprehend what God’s wrath is like, what hell must be like as the Bible describes it, there would be no length we wouldn’t go to share this Good News with everyone we know and see.
So many people don’t believe in the Good News, because they don’t recognize just how bad the bad news really is. Some may say, “Well, fear isn’t the proper motivation to win hearts over to Christ.” Perhaps it’s worth revisiting what Jesus himself said in Luke 12:4-5:
“I tell you, my friends, do not be afraid of those who kill the body and after that can do no more. But I will show you whom you should fear: Fear him who, after your body has been killed, has authority to throw you into hell. Yes, I tell you, fear him.”
Let us not taint the blood that Christ shed by ignoring the truth of how unholy and undeserving we are, and how infinitely holy, loving and merciful God truly is. It is the precious blood from His Son Jesus Christ that saves us; that seals our eternal glory with the risen King, through God’s grace and goodness.
This is Good News indeed!
Former Blackout Artist 