Unless you are very young, you probably remember sayings that were popular when you grew up, but don’t make as much sense now. Do you remember “Can you dig it?” or “Lay it on me.”? How about “Cruisin’ for a bruisin’” or “Made in the shade.”? Maybe you go further back to “Take a powder” or “Flip your wig”. I’m not sure what generation the phrase, “Wait you’re your father gets home” came from, but in our day of shared working and disciplinary responsibilities, it seems somewhat archaic. The premise is that a housewife is promising some kind of action to children at home upon the return of a working dad.
If you’ve ever heard that saying, you know that it generally does not mean good news for those kids waiting for their father’s arrival. For most of us, it carried with it the idea of delayed disciplinary action stemming from a breaking of the rules. At the same time, it COULD mean a time of joyful reuniting with Dad, including playing catch or good ol’ fashioned “wrassling”, followed by family dinner and a peaceful evening together.
In our current series, “Stirred not shaken”, we’re studying the second letter of Peter to a group of people who were being told by some other people that the promise of God’s return to earth to make things right was an old fashioned and irrelevant idea that was no longer needed. This Sunday we’ll look at those “very great and precious promises” (2 Peter 1:3-9), where they come from, and what they mean for those of us who wait.
And what does “Wait ‘til your Father gets home” mean when referring to what Joel called “…the great and terrible day of the Lord”? Well, it depends on your perspective. For some, it will definitely be a day of reckoning and judgement. But for others it will be an event of reward and indescribable joy.
Are you looking forward to God’s return or dreading it? What do your actions today tell you about what you should expect when the Lord returns? Despite ancient and present efforts of some to convince you that these are archaic and irrelevant issues, the reality is that your future in eternity depends on your answers.
Looking forward to and hastening the day,
Kurt