by Kevin Burton
Lois Blanchard wrote a 15-stanza poem. The first one gets her point across.
"If Jesus came to your house to spend a day or two, if He came unexpectedly, I wonder what you'd do."
You know what this is all about. In the physical realm, if family is coming for a visit, if it's time to host a Super Bowl party or bunco night, you're going to do some re-arranging.
You're going to do some cleaning and maybe put a lot of things in a closet or off in a room not opened to the visitors.
Now that's when you knew about the visit. If you didn't, what things in your living room would be embarrassing to you?
When the doorbell rings for the unexpected visit, it's too late to do much. If Jesus visited unexpectedly, that instant housecleaning is already too late because he knows the shape of the place at all times.
Let's say it a different way. Let's say we're packing for a trip, going to meet Jesus in Montreal. Your physical suitcase will have clothing and such. I'm not talking about that.
You're going to leave your French-English dictionary at home, because Jesus speaks fluent French. Not talking about that either.
What kinds of things – attitudes, plans, priorities – would you include or exclude if you were going to be on vacation with Jesus? Which of the available sites, concerts, shows would you plan to take in with Jesus?
Blanchard's eighth and ninth stanzas:
"And I wonder if the Savior spent a day or two with you, would you go right on doing the things you always do?"
""Would you keep right on saying the things you always say? Would life for you continue as it does from day to day?
"Would we act differently if Jesus walked among us physically? I'm thinking yes," wrote Darlene Turner on the Suspense Without Borders blog. "We probably would be more careful on what we said to others, how we treated our neighbors, and how much time we spent doing meaningless activities. We're all guilty."
"Then, there are the thoughts we shouldn't be thinking. Remember He knows everything," Turner writes "Are there some you would try to hide from Him? Again, we're all guilty."
Let's now expand the thought to the possibility of Jesus visiting not just our home, but our church and city.
"The way we live and the way we act determine in a great way how we would treat the Lord," wrote Shelby Floyd in an online post for Heartland Church of Christ in Greenwood, Indiana. "The way we treat the poor, the downhearted, the stranger, the sick, the thirsty and the hungry is really how we would treat the Lord.
Of course we know that the triune God is ever present with us.
"Have I not commanded you? Be strong and of good courage; do not be afraid, nor be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go." (Joshua 1:9 NKJV)
"Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age. Amen" (Matt. 28: 19-20).
The Bible also tells us there is coming a time when Jesus will return physically.
" Behold, He is coming with clouds, and every eye will see Him, even they who pierced Him. And all the tribes of the earth will mourn because of Him. Even so, Amen" (Rev. 1:7 NKJV).
Until that time, here's a final thought from Turner:
"Even though Jesus IS with us, how about we pretend He is walking with us physically every day, every hour, every second of our lives. If we did, I know we would shape up and be the child He longs us to be," Turner wrote.
"Will you accept the challenge? I do."
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