He got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves, “Quiet! Be still!” Then the wind died down and it was completely calm. He said to his disciples, “Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?”
They were terrified and asked each other, “Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey him!”
– Mark 4:39-41
California might come to mind when we think of states with earthquakes. But did you know that Yellowstone National Park, which straddles Wyoming, Idaho, and Montana, experiences hundreds of earthquakes each week? What’s more, the area sits atop a so-called supervolcano, and it’s been 70,000 years since it last erupted. Then there’s the New Madrid Seismic Zone (NMSZ), which covers parts of seven states from Illinois to Mississippi. During the Winter of 1811–12, it experienced 15 tremors with estimated magnitudes of 6.5 to 8.0. That’s on par with the 1989 San Francisco, 1994 Los Angeles, and 1995 Kobe, Japan, earthquakes. Seismologists report that the NMSZ appears to be about 30 years overdue for a magnitude 6.3 quake, which would likely cause billions of dollars of damage and perhaps thousands of injuries and deaths.
Disasters, whether natural or manmade, happen every day. They’re often unpredictable. And there’s no guarantee that we could save ourselves, our family, or property from the resulting destruction — even if we recognize their warning signs. But today, there are cautions of a much greater world-changing event that could strike in 100 years, 20 years, two weeks … or maybe even tonight.
God promises us through the Bible that one day, a Savior (Jesus) will call his followers home. Then later, he’ll return to right all the wrongs of this world, reward those who believe in him, and direct all others to an eternity of torment. Many of the Bible’s prophesies about the matter have already been fulfilled, such as the relatively recent prediction about the re-birth of the State of Israel. There’s nothing to stop his Second Coming in our lifetimes.
Yes, Jesus could return in five minutes or in 500 years. But either way, we must be prepared. That’s because none of us knows when our own time on Earth will expire. Check the headlines, and you’re bound to read stories about people killed suddenly in an accident, during a crime, or through a sudden health crisis, such as a stroke or heart attack. Like the estimated 230,000 people in 14 countries that perished in the December 26, 2004, tsunami, they had no idea that the day would be their last.
This brings us to the obvious question: Are you prepared to meet your Maker? Your answer has eternal consequences.
“So you also must be ready,” Jesus warns, “because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him.”
Our God is a God of justice. And since we’ve all failed to live up to his standards, we all deserve the penalty that Jesus endured on the cross — for our sakes — about 2,000 years ago. So, whether we leave this life from a natural disaster or naturally through old age, the question remains: How can we rest assured that we’ll spend eternity with God rather than forever without him? The answer is not a particular action we can take, but rather a certain Person we must trust:
“I am the way, the truth, and the life!” Jesus assures us through John 14:6. “Without me, no one can go to the Father.”
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