Anticipating the Day of the Lord

In the Old Testament, the prophets spoke of the day of the "visitation of God." It was seen sometimes as a day of great comfort and rejoicing, and at other times as a day of great distress and judgment.

At the birth of Jesus, God visited the earth. This visitation is celebrated in the Spirit-inspired hymn of Zacharias, in which he twice makes mention of God's divine visitation (Luke 1:68–69, 78).

The New Testament calls Jesus the "Bishop of our souls." He is the Bishop Incarnate. His visit to this world has changed the course of history. The initial visit of our heavenly Bishop was cloaked in mystery. He came not as a military general but as a baby in a rock-hewn manger. But He came to care for our souls. He came to see our situation. He came with divine blessing and redemption. He also came with a divine warning.

Our Bishop announced to the world that at some future date He would make a second visit. He promises to appear once more to review His troops. For those who love His coming, His next visit will be an occasion of unspeakable joy and glory. At that visit, the consummation of His bishop's task will be complete.

For those who ignore the first visit of the Bishop, His second visit will be one of sudden disaster. That will be the day of the Lord, the day Amos described as a day of darkness, with no light in it (Amos 5:18).