Amos 5:18-20 (NKJV Strong’s) “Woe to you who desire the day of the Lord!
For what good is the day of the Lord to you?
It will be darkness, and not light.
It will be as though a man fled from a lion,
And a bear met him!
Or as though he went into the house,
Leaned his hand on the wall,
And a serpent bit him!
Is not the day of the Lord darkness, and not light?
Is it not very dark, with no brightness in it?”
We all know that one day, the Day of the Lord will come.
The similarities is clear.
Remember the days of Noah?
The Lord observed that the wickedness of man was prevalent throughout the whole world. Much like Noah’s day.
Genesis 6:13 (NKJV Strong’s) “And God said to Noah, “The end of all flesh has come before Me, for the earth is filled with violence through them; and behold, I will destroy them with the earth.”
Before the flood, Noah was 500 years old, and he had three sons. Shem, Ham, and Japheth.
When Noah was 600 years old, the flood waters came. Jesus made mention of the flood of Noah’s day.
Luke 17:26-27 (NKJV Strong’s) “And as it was in the days of Noah, so it will be also in the days of the Son of Man: They ate, they drank, they married wives, they were given in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, and the flood came and destroyed them all.”
When the Lord Jesus made mention of this, notice the conditions. People lived life like all was fine. Not a care in the world. Then suddenly, destruction came upon them. Much like today.
Notice Amos 6:1. (NKJV Strong’s)
“Woe to you who are at ease in Zion,
And trust in Mount Samaria,
Notable persons in the chief nation,
To whom the house of Israel comes!”
The children of Israel were taking it easy in the land of Israel. Much like many believers today. The world and the believers are taking it easy when there should be grave concern about the impending Day of the Lord.
Now, anyone in their right mind doesn’t want the Day of the Lord to come. The Day of the Lord, as Amos said, will be “darkness and not of light.”
No one should desire the Day of the Lord, in the sense of gloating or rejoicing. On the other hand, it’s clear that when that day comes, the Lord will pour out His wrath on man. He will execute vengeance on the wicked. This is nothing to rejoice about.
2 Peter 3:9-13 (NKJV Strong’s)
“The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.
But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night, in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the elements will melt with fervent heat; both the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up.
Therefore, since all these things will be dissolved, what manner of persons ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness, looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be dissolved, being on fire, and the elements will melt with fervent heat?
Nevertheless we, according to His promise, look for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells.”
The Bible tells us the Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord. In other words, Noah made an effort to seek God while others played around.
Much like today.
The coronavirus stopped man in his tracks just like all of the other worldwide plagues in the past where billions were afflicted, and millions perished. All of these pestilences is consistent with Matthew 24:7. It’s a clear sign that got everyone’s attention. But just because it has our attention, it doesn’t mean that everyone will repent.
After each plague that turned into a pandemic, man dealt with the plague, they buried their dead, and resumed life, hoping that it would never happen again. But the people never responded to the Lord. And if they did, it’s short lived.
Many are saying, including believers, that we don’t need to hear “gloom and doom” messages. We want to hear things of hope, healing, deliverance, faith, overcoming, taking authority over coronavirus.
Preach to us these things, not gloom and doom.
What about my job, my financial blessings, my finances, my purpose in life?
Give me these things and leave the gloom and doom at the door. Some will say that we can preach both. But look at the OT prophets. Did they preach both? Or did they warn the people of what the Lord would do if the people of Israel failed to repent?
So it’s not about gloom and doom?
It’s about warning people of all of the signs we’re seeing today. The Lord requires that we read the signs and warn the people.
If something happens and no one gives the warning, there will be coming a day when the warnings will cease. Just like in Noah’s day.
2 Peter 2:4-5 (NKJV Strong’s)
“For if God did not spare the angels who sinned, but cast them down to hell and delivered them into chains of darkness, to be reserved for judgment; and did not spare the ancient world, but saved Noah, one of eight people, a preacher of righteousness, bringing in the flood on the world of the ungodly;”
Noah was a preacher of righteousness. We know what preaching is. You have to say or proclaim something. In this case, Noah preached righteousness. So not only Noah built the ark as instructed by the Lord, Noah preached righteousness.
But the people refused to find grace in the eyes of the Lord. They’ve rejected Noah’s preaching. They lived their lives as if all things would remain the same.
Getting back to “normal.”
It’s the same in certain houses of worship. They preach things as if there’s no care about the end of the last days.
2 Peter 3:1-4 (NKJV Strong’s)
“Beloved, I now write to you this second epistle (in both of which I stir up your pure minds by way of reminder), that you may be mindful of the words which were spoken before by the holy prophets, and of the commandment of us, the apostles of the Lord and Savior, knowing this first: that scoffers will come in the last days, walking according to their own lusts, and saying,
“Where is the promise of His coming?
For since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of creation.”
And this is the condition which makes the coming of the Lord highly probable.
Just like when the Lord God said “The end of all flesh has come before Me, for the earth is filled with violence through them; and behold, I will destroy them with the earth.”
He will say it again for the final time.
Just read the Book of the Revelation of Jesus Christ.
Again, no one knows the day or the hour. At the same time, no one should desire the Day of the Lord.
Just know, that the coming of the Day of the Lord is on schedule.
The Minister’s Crucible 