The end of the church year is a time when the saints of God are called to cast our eyes towards the heavens in anticipation of our Lord’s return in glory. A repeated refrain that we find in the Revelation of St. John is that Jesus is coming soon. Intended as a word of comfort for the saints rather than a word of judgment, we are bold to respond in faith, “Amen. Come, Lord Jesus!”
It is good for us to offer this petition to our Lord each day and not just in the gray and latter days of November. “Come, Lord Jesus” is not simply the opening line of a meal time prayer but the cry of the faithful who live among all manner of evil and terror. We can face the hardships of this life knowing that our Lord is indeed coming soon. We can also pray that He does come quickly for the sake of His Bride, the Church. No matter the circumstances in which we find ourselves, these closing words of the New Testament console the hearts and strengthen the faith of God’s saints.
Even as we pray for our Lord to come quickly, we are emboldened to confess the eternal Gospel (14:6) to all the world. The assurance of Christ’s return strengthens His Church for the mission that He carries out through her. Sainted Louis Brighton wrote, “Christ reigns so as to enable the church to carry out and complete her mission. Among all the tribulations and sufferings on earth, the Lord Christ unveils his exalted glory for the comfort of the church and for the empowerment of her mission. From the time of Christ’s victory and ascension up to the End, all history is controlled by the Lord Christ for the sake of his church and her mission of witness. And when that mission is completed, the curtain will fall on this world’s existence and the Lord will come to claim his bride.” (Revelation, p. 312) Even as we pray “Come, Lord Jesus,” we confess Jesus in our callings as God works through us until He fulfills His promise in His return. To that promise, may we pray, “Amen. Come, Lord Jesus!”
Prayer – Lord God, heavenly Father, send forth Your Son to lead home His bride, the Church, that with all the company of the redeemed we may finally enter into His eternal wedding feast; through the same Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.
Fraternally in Christ,
President Lee Hagan