Now Is The Time⏳: The Lie 🤥 of Later⌛️and A Wake-Up Call ☎️ to Come Home

Andrea Brown
Jul 16
7 min read

Friend, what if the greatest spiritual danger isn’t disbelief, but delay?

The lie of “later” sounds harmless. But Scripture reveals a sharper truth: the only safe time to respond to God is now.

“Behold, now is the favorable time; behold, now is the day of salvation.”

2 Corinthians 6:2.

In a world intoxicated with comfort and convenience, one of the enemy’s most effective deceptions is not outright denial of truth, but delay in walking in it.

The devil doesn’t always shout, “God isn’t real!” Sometimes, he merely whispers, “You’ve got plenty of time.”

This subtle and sinister lie has lulled many into a spiritual slumber. It’s the false lullaby of procrastinated repentance and postponed faith. It says, “Later,” it whispers, “Eventually, Someday.”

But the truth of Scripture strikes a chord of holy interruption: “Now.” Not tomorrow. Not next year. Not when life slows down. Now is the time of salvation!

The Spirit’s Invitation: Urgent, Not Optional

The Gospel is not merely an invitation to a future paradise; it is present-day rescue from self, the vicissitudes of life, future judgment, and a daily impartation of divine life. Delaying response to Christ is not harmless hesitation; it is active resistance against the Spirit of Grace (Hebrews 10:29).

Jesus never called for casual curiosity. He called for repentance—a radical turning from self to God.

“Then Jesus said to His disciples,"If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me.” Matthew 16:24.

“Today, if you hear His voice, do not harden your hearts.” Hebrews 3:15.

Procrastination regarding the Spirit’s wooing is not neutral ground but rebellion in disguise. Each “not yet” whispered to the Holy Spirit is a step further from truth and a gamble with eternity.

The Prophetic Clock: What Time Is It?

Scripture is not silent about the urgency of the hour. Jesus rebuked the religious leaders of His day for knowing how to interpret the weather but failing to discern the signs of the times (Matthew 16:2-3). Today, we stand in a prophetic moment that demands similar discernment.

God’s timepiece is the nation of Israel 🇮🇱, and it is ticking⏰

Israel: A Nation Reborn

“Shall a land be born in one day? Shall a nation be brought forth in one moment?” Isaiah 66:8.

In 1948, prophecy was fulfilled before the eyes of the world. After nearly 2,000 years of dispersion, Israel became a nation in a single day, fulfilling Isaiah’s ancient words. The return of the Jews to their homeland continues—even amid war and unrest. The regathering of the diaspora is not coincidental; it is an eschatological event.

Jerusalem: A Heavy Stone

“I will make Jerusalem a heavy stone for all the peoples… all the nations of the earth will gather against it.” Zechariah 12:3.

Israel remains a geopolitical epicenter of tension and hostility, just as God said it would be. The world’s obsession with Jerusalem is not political; it is prophetic. The hostility toward God’s covenant people (the nation of Israel and Spiritual Israel) is intensifying as the culmination of the age draws near.

The Spirit of the Age: Perilous Times

“But understand this, that in the last days there will come times of difficulty. For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, heartless, unappeasable, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not loving good, treacherous, reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, having the appearance of godliness, but denying its power. Avoid such people.

For among them are those who creep into households and capture weak women, burdened with sins and led astray by various passions, always learning and never able to arrive at a knowledge of the truth. Just as Jannes and Jambres opposed Moses, so these men also oppose the truth, men corrupted in mind and disqualified regarding the faith.” 2 Timothy 3:1-8.

Our generation checks every box Paul outlined: rampant pride, disobedience, slander, and a counterfeit form of godliness devoid of power. The “man of lawlessness” (2 Thessalonians 2:3) is not merely a future figure—the spirit of antichrist is already active, conditioning hearts to reject truth and embrace lawlessness.

“Children, it is the last hour, and as you have heard that antichrist is coming, so now many antichrists have come. Therefore we know that it is the last hour.” 1 John 2:18.

Scoffing at the Promise

“Where is the promise of His coming?”2 Peter 3:4.

Scoffers abound, inside and outside the Church, mocking the hope of Christ’s return. But Peter warns us not to be deceived: the delay is not denial. It is mercy. God is not slow; He is patient, desiring all to come to repentance (2 Peter 3:9).

The very mockery of His return is, ironically, a sign of its nearness.

“For you yourselves are fully aware that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night.” 1 Thessalonians 5:2.

Jesus Is Coming Soon — and then the Judgment.

II.

Two events remain on the horizon of redemptive history:

• The Harpazo (catching away of the Church)

Jesus gave us a preview in the Upper Room Discourse: "And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also." John 14:3. It is one Scripture that breathes such tremendous hope. Notice that there is no mention of judgment, God's wrath, or the Antichrist; simply a catching away to be with Him forever. It reminds me of the catching away of one Old Testament saint: “Enoch walked with God, and he was not, for God took him.” Genesis 5:24.

I won't jump into it here; this post isn't a debate of whether the rapture or the second coming are the same or about pre-tribulation or post-tribulation; we can discuss that at a later date. However, please allow this verse to simmer. Then consider the Apostle Paul's words here, “For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord. Therefore encourage one another with these words.” 1 Thessalonians 4:16–18.

• The Second Coming (Christ coming with His saints.

“So that he may establish your hearts blameless in holiness before our God and Father, at the coming of our Lord Jesus with all his saints.” 1 Thessalonians 3:13

“Then I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse! The one sitting on it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he judges and makes war. His eyes are like a flame of fire, and on his head are many diadems, and he has a name written that no one knows but himself. He is clothed in a robe dipped in blood, and the name by which he is called is The Word of God. And the armies of heaven, arrayed in fine linen, white and pure, were following him on white horses. From his mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations, and he will rule them with a rod of iron. He will tread the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God the Almighty. On his robe and on his thigh he has a name written, King of kings and Lord of lords.”Revelation 19:11–16.

While the exact timing remains debated among believers, one truth remains: We are closer now than ever before.

“Besides this you know the time, that the hour has come for you to wake from sleep. For salvation is nearer to us now than when we first believed.” Romans 13:11.

The convergence of prophecy is undeniable. We're not waiting for signs—we’re living in them!

Respond to Grace, Today

Jesus isn’t merely offering a ticket to heaven. He is offering Himself, right now. Forgiveness, healing, identity, purpose, and many more great and precious promises are gifts available today. Why wait to be known and loved by the One who gave His life for you?

“Come to Me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” — Matthew 11:28

This writing isn’t fear-mongering; it’s Gospel urgency. Eternity is too long to risk being wrong.

Final Plea: Don’t Delay! Receive the Good News of Salvation Today!

• Jesus is coming.

• Grace is available.

• Judgment is coming.

• Hell isn’t a myth—it's a bona fide reality.

The invitation is now, not when it’s convenient, not when you feel ready—Now.

“Seek the Lord while He may be found; call upon Him while He is near.” Isaiah 55:6.

The door of grace is open, but it won't be forever. Don’t gamble with your soul on the myth of “later.” Come to Jesus. While it is still called today.

“But what does it say? “The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart” (that is, the word of faith that we proclaim); because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved.”

Romans 10:8-10

Reflection

What area of your life have you been putting off surrendering to Jesus, waiting for a “better” time?

If you knew Jesus was coming in the next moment, how would you live differently in this moment and what’s stopping you from living that way now?

Let's Pray

Father God,

You are the Alpha and the Omega,

the Author of time and the Keeper of every breath.

Thank You for this holy interruption, this divine pause that reminds us: now is the moment that matters.

Forgive us, Lord, for the ways we’ve delayed,

for the times we’ve listened to the whisper of “later”

instead of the voice of Your Spirit calling, “Today.”