Tuesday, November 11, 2014

Do You Recognize Him?

And His disciples asked Him, "Why then do the scribes say that Elijah must come first?" And He answered and said, "Elijah is coming and will restore all things; but I say to you that Elijah already came, and they did not recognize him, but did to him whatever they wished. So also the Son of Man is going to suffer at their hands." Then the disciples understood that He had spoken to them about John the Baptist. Matthew 17:10-13 
 
Jesus was continually teaching His disciples. Teaching them about prophesy and fulfilled prophesy. Who was this Elijah? Not the prophet Elijah of the Old Testament—but John the Baptist, as prophesied in Isaiah and recorded in Matthew…Now in those days John the Baptist came, preaching in the wilderness of Judea, saying, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand." For this is the one referred to by Isaiah the prophet when he said, "THE VOICE OF ONE CRYING IN THE WILDERNESS, 'MAKE READY THE WAY OF THE LORD, MAKE HIS PATHS STRAIGHT!'" Matthew 3:1-3 

People were busy in Jesus day just like we all are now—focusing on our career, job, family, friends, sports, or hobbies. We’re not looking at the really big picture. Jesus was trying to tell His disciples about the big picture. What has been prophesied for our future? Jesus spoke about His return and said…You also must be ready all the time, for the Son of Man will come when least expected." Luke 12:40 NLT. Paul wrote…For you know quite well that the day of the Lord's return will come unexpectedly, like a thief in the night. 1 Thessalonians 5:2 NLT. So there we have it. We need to recognize who Jesus is…just like people needed to recognize who John the Baptist was. We need to be ready for Jesus’ return.

RSVP:  Jesus explained who John the Baptist was…and foretold of His own suffering. We’ve been told to be ready.  How will you respond to Jesus today?   

Prayer ~ Jesus, thank you for Your message across the years to us. Continue to show me on a daily basis what I need to do to be ready. For today, I’ll search my scripture, read, study, and speak to my family about the importance of being ready. I don’t want anyone to be left behind.

© 2014 by Mickey M. Hunacek. All rights reserved.
All scripture quoted from the New American Standard Bible (NASB) unless otherwise noted.

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