| For the revelation awaits an appointed
time; it speaks of the end and will not prove false. Though it linger, wait for it; it will certainly come and will not delay. Hab.2:3 |
Fellow Believer,The greatest revival recorded in the Bible is that of Nineveh. Warned by Jonah that it would be overturned in 40 days, the Ninevites humbled themselves and pleaded to God for mercy. "When God saw what they did and how they turned from their evil ways, he had compassion and did not bring upon them the destruction he had threatened" (Jonah 3:10).
This supreme mercy of God notwithstanding, some unbelievers are bound to label Jonah a false prophet. After all, God did not destroy Nineveh as Jonah had warned. But the message Jonah gave the Ninevites, the Bible states clearly, was that which God had given him.
Since God knows the end from the beginning, why did He tell Jonah to give that city such a message? Because it was His good pleasure to use the fear of God and of His judgment to bring salvation to the Ninevites.
Quite probably, it was for the very same reason that God led Harold Camping to write the book 1994? and thousands of studious Bible students to check his findings against the Scripture and draw the same conclusion that Christ might return in September 1994. Indeed, as God used these believers to warn people of Judgment Day approaching, untold numbers of His lost sheep have become saved.
The Lord may have directed His servants to issue the warning of His imminent return for two other reasons:
1. To effect a prophesied condition that characterizes the end-time period. Until this past August, very few people had given any thought to the world coming to an end. Hence, very few really scoffed at the idea that Christ would return to judge this earth. But because Camping's message has at last been disseminated by the secular press and media, scoffers have now been coming in droves for sure, even from within the Christian circle. This fulfillment of II Peter 3:3 in our day underscores all the more that the Lord is right at the door.
2. To help churchgoers examine themselves to see if they are truly in the faith. Every child of God, the Scripture repeatedly declares, awaits the return of Christ eagerly; and every believer is led by the Holy Spirit to unconditionally love his fellow believer. So, if we had greeted the possibility of Christ's returning with nonchalance, or if we have no love for God's children, especially those whom God has used extensively for decades to save and feed His flock, then we should really thank God for giving us an extra grace period in which to repent and seek His salvation.
FourthQuarter, 1994