One of the things I hear very often, especially when I’m around people who love to study prophecy and the end times, is that it is likely that the Lord will return “within our lifetimes.”
My personal opinion of this is that it just might be the case. However, we can’t be dogmatic about it, because we simply don’t know. People have been saying the exact same thing for a very long time, since the time of Paul the Apostle. So, while we can’t know the day or the time that Christ will return, there are a few things that we can do to make sure that we are ready.
People have been anticipating the coming of the Lord since Paul wrote 2 Thessalonians, and Christ himself referenced his return several times. Paul had to address believers in Thessalonica who were quitting their jobs. Their reasoning was, “If Christ is returning soon, why work?” In response to this, Paul had to lay down the law, and state that those who don’t work, won’t eat (2 Thessalonians 3:12). Even so soon after the time of Christ, people were looking for the end of days.
