Some extra clothes, a toothbrush, money, tickets for the venue, a map might be helpful, perhaps some snacks for along the way, and depending on the amount of time, a suitcase to put everything in. “And he said unto them, Take nothing for your journey, neither staves, nor scrip, neither bread, neither money; neither have two coats apiece.” (Luke 9:3)
Many people plan extensively for their journeys, when my wonderful wife and I were blessed to go on vacations, we would start our list many weeks in advance, attempting to make sure as much as we could, that when we sat in the car the morning we were planning to leave, the only thing on our mind was an offering of thanksgiving to the Lord, for the ability to praise Him properly where we were going, and then all thoughts of any preparation departed from our minds, the journey was ahead of us.
Our next journey, and yours, if you have given your life to Christ? The rapture, the moment that we will depart the earth as promised in 1 Thessalonians 4:17. So then, since the Lord has determined to use me for life applications of the Scriptures through analogies, how are you preparing for this trip, have you been writing down or memorizing everything you will need to know so that when the day appears, you will be prepared, or will you be one of those who will be ashamed at His coming? (1 John 2:28)
“But know this, that if the goodman of the house had known in what watch the thief would come, he would have watched, and would not have suffered his house to be broken up.” (Matt. 24:43) There is one of the first steps, even though we are told in Mark 13:32, “But of that day and that hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels which are in heaven, neither the Son, but the Father,” we are to be prepared. So then, just how are we to do that, how are we to prepare for our final journey when we do not know when we are leaving, we do not know the hour, much less the day, what are we supposed to pack, so to speak, for a journey that we will not be returning from for almost seven years?
Well, one would be oil, as told to us in the parable by the Lord in Matthew 25:1-13, we are to make sure that we have plenty of oil, which would be the knowledge of the Word of God about this event, the lamp is of course us, but there is one thing in that account that the Lord left out, purposely I would presume, the way to light the wick of that lamp. There must be the capability to start a fire, to make a spark, and that would be the Holy Spirit, yet we are the ones that must strike the match, so to speak.
Another would be the parable of the ruler that went on a far journey and left at least three of his servants some money to increase what he had entrusted to them. (Matt. 25:14-30) When the Lord returns for us, He expects to see a profit from His laborers, not just the return of His initial investment. We are to be studying the Word of God daily, so that we can give an account, (1 Peter 3:15) that same account all men will give to the Almighty, each on their own day. (Romans 14:12)
The Lord is not going to be impressed with your church attendance record, He will not be overly concerned with how many Scripture verses you have memorized, or with how much time you spent in contemplation of Him, He will ask you what you did for Him. “Then shall the righteous answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungred, and fed thee? or thirsty, and gave thee drink?” (Matt. 25:37)
We prepare for this wonderful, final journey by doing, “Blessed is that servant, whom his lord when he cometh shall find so doing.” (Matt. 24:46) By applying His Word not just in our hearts, but to those we meet, as often as we meet them, in whatever way that He has seen profitable to use us.
My friends, you should have had your bags packed a long time before all these so-called signs of the end of the last days started appearing, you should have been working from the moment you got up from your knees at the cross and began to carry yours. If not, if you are indeed saved, when He arrives, you will be ashamed.
