THE KING’S BUSINESS
759
direct reference from the parable of the virgins in the 25th chapter of Matthew. All the ten virgins, the wise as well as the foolish, are repre sented as slumbering until the mid night cry is heard, “Behold the bride groom cometh: go ye out to meet Him.” This would seem to indicate that a general indifference to the sub ject of the Lord’s return, because of its long delay, would characterize the whole Church, but that just before actual appearing there would be an awakened conviction of His near ap proach. Whatever the midnight cry may mean it would seem at any rate to indicate a revival of interest in the doctrine of the Lord’s return as oc curring shortly before His personal appearance. During, the past century there was a wide-spread awakening among ev angelical Christians to this great hope of the Church. During the last few years even radical criticism had been turning its attention to the New Tes tament teaching about Christ’s second coming. And the momentous events of the past months with their shat tering disappointment of human ex pectations, have turned the hearts of multitudes to the Divine message of prophecy and to the promise of the coming of the King. Never before in the history of the Church have men been so ready to receive this truth, All these signs of the second ad vent gather deep significance from their concurrence with one another in the very days in which we live. They do not declare the hour or the day of His appearing. But they are the sound of His footfall as His approach draws nearer, and they help us, while we work and wait for the Master, to watch for His return and to listen for the coming of His feet.
JEWISH REVIVAL. We are already seeing signs of the revival of the Jewish nation. The Zionist movement began in 1897 with the object of reorganizing the Jews and restoring them to their own land. The present war will almost certainly result in the delivery of Palestine from the Turk and probably in the estab lishment of an independent Jewish state. Thus the momentous events of these days are fast preparing the way for that particular event with which our Lord immediately connects His glorious appearing. 5. A Social sign. In close con nection with the close of Israel’s trib ulation we find in the Gospel of Luke the prediction of great distress and apprehension among the nations (Luke 21:25, 26). “Upon the earth distress of nations in perplexity for the roaring of the sea and the bil lows : men fainting for fear, and for expectation of the things which are Coming on the world; for the powers of the heavens shall be shaken (R. V.). Do not these words reflect the very feeling of the world today? During the past year the things which men counted solid and secure have gone to pieces, the foundations of civ ilization have been shaken, and the whole social and economic fabric is threatened with collapse. The pres ent world catastrophe simply staggers the mind and no man dare imagine what its ultimate results may be. The world is fast coming to the end of itself and to that state in which it can only wait in utter helplessness for the return of Him who alone can solve its problems and establish the nations in peace and righteousness. 6. To all these signs may be add ed another and final one, which we may call a Christian sign. This is drawn by inference rather than- by
Made with FlippingBook - professional solution for displaying marketing and sales documents online