"Lift up your heads, because your redemption is drawing near." These are the words of Jesus Christ spoken in Luke 21:28. Jesus was speaking of the end times, the close of this age.

There have been periods on earth where God worked in particular ways with people. There was the age of innocence before Adam and Eve ate the forbidden fruit and the ravages of sin filled the earth. After sin entered the world through Adam (Romans 5:12-14), the world spiraled downward until it was so wicked that God brought judgment in the form of a worldwide flood. The flood killed every living thing except eight people, whom God saved by His grace. A representative number of every living creature was also spared the destruction in a great ship called the ark (Genesis 7:23).

The next thing God did was to present to the people He created a set of standards representing His righteous character. This was called the Law. The purpose was to teach the people the ways of God so they could live in harmony with Him.

Rather than drawing us closer to God, the Law served to reveal the stubbornness and self-will of people. God once again judged His people with armed invasions and subsequent captivity.

God never completely snuffed everyone out; there was always a remnant. To this remnant, about 2,000 years ago, God sent His Son Jesus Christ to live among men and show forth the glory and majesty of God in human form.

Jesus Christ was God. He was virgin-born and lived a sinless life.

The pattern of men remained the same. Just as they stepped away from God in the Garden of Eden and turned their backs on the Law of God, now they rejected Jesus Christ and crucified Him.

None of this caught God by surprise. For mankind to be redeemed and returned back to God, there needed to be a sacrifice for sin--a sinless sacrifice that God could accept. We as people can do nothing to save ourselves. Jesus Christ is the only means of salvation.

God raised Jesus Christ from the dead in glorious resurrection. Jesus now sits at the right hand of God the Father in heaven, waiting to come back to earth in judgment and glory.

Jesus told His followers, "I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am" (John 14:3). This is the Blessed Hope, the promise that Jesus Christ is coming back to rescue those who believe in Him.

There are a lot of scary things going on in the world right now. There seems to be turmoil beyond any human solution. We literally do not know what tomorrow might bring our way.

Jesus said, "Be always on the watch, and pray that you may be able to escape all that is about to happen, and that you may be able to stand before the Son of Man" (Luke 21:36).

Things can and likely will get worse. In the meantime we need to be focused on what is really important--our relationship with Jesus Christ and our eternal destiny.

So, keep looking up. One thing for sure: Jesus is coming back!