Days of Noah
It was a day like any other. The sun rose for everyone and life was going as usual: work, school, meals, weddings, etc.
It was a day carried out by busyness – Night and day, and the in-between. It was a day after many days of normal life – Days that amount to months and months that amount to years, in which the anxiety lies always in the next.
It was a normal day, until it rained.
“Concerning that day and exact hour, no one knows when it will arrive, not even the angels of heaven—only the Father knows. For it will be like it was in the days of Noah when the Son of Man appears. Before the flood, people lived their lives eating, drinking, marrying, and having children. They didn’t realize the end was near until Noah entered the ark, and then suddenly, the flood came and took them all away in judgment. It will happen the same way when the Son of Man appears.” – Matthew 24:16-39
The return of Jesus will be like in the days of Noah. He will appear right on a normal day, in the middle of busyness.
Noah had received a revelation and warning from God 120 years before. He had time to prepare and step in obedience to build an ark that would save him and his family. (Hebrews 11:7) Through years and decades, many saw Noah doing the illogical and saying the irrational. Perhaps some actually paid attention to him and cared enough to listen, but they had to go back to live a normal life.
Noah, our hero of faith, remained faithful to the mission God had entrusted him.
Suddenly the flood came and many were regretting their decisions – they stopped feeling sorry for Noah’s craziness and started feeling sorry about their foolishness – they hadn’t realized the day was near, completely unmindful and unprepared. It will be the same when the Son of Man appears…
The reality we see with our eyes is nothing but an illusion; normal days unconcerned with eternity are nothing but fiction.
Just like Noah, we have been given the gift of revelation and warning, for the end is near, and it’s always foolish to assume there is more time. Midnight is so late for those who procrastinate. It’s time to prepare, and preparation comes from obedience. Noah prepared for something he had never seen, but he followed the instructions he was given to carry out God’s plan. It’s the same for us, being led by the Holy Spirit to accomplish His purpose through us.
To be prepared is to live ready and think about how selfish we are if we live ready but fail to share it with others. We should care enough to get people ready.
My father always says, “Preparation time is never wasted time.”
When Jesus comes, all plans for tomorrow will die in a moment and most of humanity will hear the ark door shut.