Key Text: "Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go; to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I WILL COME AGAIN, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also." John 14:1-3.
This is the first sermon in a series of four with the general theme "The Blessed Hope." The ones to follow in sequence are "Confidence in His Return," "Closeness of His Return," and "The Challenge of His Return." At the conclusion of these sermons, our prayer is that hearts will be rekindled with a new flame concerning the blessed hope of our Saviour's return.
What do the apostles say concerning our Lord's return? First, Paul gives us the true picture of the resurrection of the dead and the translation of the living saints at our Lord's return in 1 Corinthians 15.
Second, writing to the Thessalonians, Paul again gives the great assurance of the coming of the Saviour, the resurrection of the dead, and the translation of the living saints. We shall be caught up together to meet the Lord in the air, and so shall we ever be with the Lord.
Third, Peter writes that there is a new world coming. The whole third chapter of the epistle of II Peter sets forth this great truth. "Nevertheless we, according to his promise, look for new heavens and a new earth wherein dwelleth righteousness." II Peter 3:13.
Fourth, the apostle James believed in the second coming of the Lord Jesus Christ. "Be ye also patient; stablish your hearts: for the coming of the Lord draweth nigh." James 5:8.
Filth, Hebrews 10:35-38 certainly encourages and warns us not to cast away our confidence in His coming.
Sixth, Paul calls the second coming the Blessed Hope. "Looking for that BLESSED HOPE, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ." Titus 2:13.
And seventh, John in his book of Revelation wrote 22 chapters having to do with salvation, signs of Christ's return and the actual, literal, personal, visible and premillennial coming of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Ellen G. White says, "Dwell on present truth, on Christ's second coming. The Lord is coming very soon. We have only a little while in which to present the truth for this time--the truth that is to convert souls. This truth is to be presented in the utmost simplicity, even as Christ presented it, so that the people can understand what is truth. Truth will dispel the clouds of error." Evangelism, p.624.
As we study God's Word, we learn of four themes from Genesis through Revelation. These themes are Creation, Sin, The First Coming of the Lord Jesus Christ, and The Second Coming of the Lord Jesus Christ.
When Christ came the first time He took care of the sin problem; when He comes the second time He will take of the two problems of sorrow and death.
I heard of an old preacher who was presenting a powerful sermon on the Second Coming, and a man who did not believe it rose to his feet and said, "You can't get that out of the Bible." The preacher paused and then said, "That's right, you can't. It's in there and you can't get it out. Ws in there to stay."
1. Found in the gospel: "For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him" I Thessalonians 4:14.
Every time the gospel is preached, every time a person comes to know the Lord Jesus Christ through the saving grace of the gospel, it reminds us of His return. In the gospel, we find the sin of the sinner forgiven and the salvation of the Lord bestowed.
2. Found in His Word: "For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep." 1 Thessalonians 4:15.
His first coming was promised in Genesis 3:15, and that promise was kept by a real and literal advent. Now, friend, since God kept His first promise of the Saviour's first advent, we can be assured that He will keep His second promise of the second advent. "...I WILL COME AGAIN..." John 14:3. I believe our resurrection will be as real and literal as His sure Word.
David declared, "I will worship toward the holy temple, and praise thy name for thy loving-kindness and for thy truth: for thou hast magnified thy word above all thy name." Psalm 138:2.
I feel there are five reasons why the Lord Jesus Christ must return. They are as follows:
First, He must return because of the flood and because of Sodom and Gomorrah! Listen, friend, if the Lord does not return and punish sin in our world today, He would need to make an apology to the people of Noah's generation and the people of Lot's time.
Second, the Lord must keep faith with the dead saints. Those blessed saints who died in the Lord were promised a resurrection from the grave and life without end. He will come again to keep that promise and to keep faith with the saints.
Third, the Lord must secure the universe. Satan, sin and sorrow have marred the universe, and this must be brought to an end. His return and the creation of a new world will take care of this: There is a new world coming.
Fourth, He is coming again because love cannot tolerate separation. Love cannot put up with separation, cannot endure separation, and will not permit separation endlessly. The Lord longs to be with His people.
And fifth, He must return to finish and complete what He started. What He began must be ended and bound off Sin was taken care of at the cross. Christ finished all He had to do in planet Earth when He cried from the cross, "...It is finished..." John 19:30. Now, He will return to change these vile bodies and give us a body like unto His glorious body. Philippians 3:21. He is coming again to finish and bind off what He started.
"For the Lord Himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.": 1 Thessalonians 4:16,17.
1. His coming will be PERSONAL. "For the Lord Himself shall descend from heaven..." Verse 16.
2. His coming will be SUDDEN. "Therefore be ye also ready: for in such an hour as ye think not the Son of man cometh." Matthew 24:44. A Scotch preacher said to a group of people one day, "Do you think that Jesus will come today?" And they said, "No, we think not." And the preacher replied, "'In an hour that you think not the Son of man cometh."'
When Noah was expecting the flood, he went ahead building the ark and preaching God's present truth concerning the coming flood. While he waited, he worked, and while he worked, he witnessed. And so should it be with the church today. We must occupy until He comes.
Ellen White says, "The promise of Christ's second coming was ever to be kept fresh in the minds of His disciples. The same Jesus whom they had seen ascending into heaven, would come again, to take to Himself those who here below give themselves to His service. The same voice that had said to them, 'Lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end,' would bid them welcome to His presence in the heavenly kingdom.
"As in the typical service the high priest laid aside his pontifical robes, and officiated in the white linen dress of an ordinary priest; so Christ laid aside His royal robes, and garbed Himself with humanity, and offered sacrifice, Himself the priest, Himself the victim As the high priest, after performing his service in the holy of holies, came forth to the waiting congregation in his pontifical robes; so Christ will come the second time, clothed in garments of whitest white, 'so as no fuller on earth can white them.' He will come in His own glory, and in the glory of His Father, and all the angelic host will escort Him on His way." Acts of the Apostles, p.33.
3. His coming will be VISIBLE. There will be no secret rapture; nowhere to hide from His return. Every eye shall se Him. "Behold, he cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see him, and they also which pierced him: and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of him. Even so Amen." Revelation 1:7. That same Jesus of Nazareth is coming again. Acts 1:11.
And what kind of people should we be when that time comes? II Peter 3:14 says,
"Wherefore, beloved, seeing that ye look for such things, be DILIGENT that ye may be found of him in PEACE, WITHOUT SPOT, and BLAMELESS."
1. DILIGENT: Friend, we should learn lessons from the fact that He is coming again. It is a sad, tragic thought to know that many will be left behind because they have not made preparation for that day.
2. PEACE: Peace with God and peace with our fellow man should be the ultimate goal of all of God's children. Every sin must be confessed, every sin forgiven, and every sin washed by the blood of Christ.
3. WITHOUT SPOT: When we come to God through His Son, Jesus of Nazareth, we are clothed with the robe of His righteousness (His perfect life given as a free gift) just as in the story of the Prodigal Son in Luke 15 and the robe for the marriage supper in Matthew 22:11.
4. BLAMELESS: John, the beloved, was standing on the Isle of Patmos when Jesus came to him and said, "Behold, I come quickly" The old saint of God looked up longingly and cried out, "Even so come, Lord Jesus." We would say today from the depths of our hearts, "Even so, come, Lord Jesus; take us out of this world of sin and trouble and take us to thyself" if He should come, would you be ready? Get ready, for the Bridegroom cometh!
Among the surprises that await us in heaven will be three astonishing ones that John Newton pointed out. The converted slave-dealer, who wrote the universally loved hymn "Amazing Grace," perceptively understood what every sinner will feel who has been redeemed by Christ's atoning sacrifice. He wrote, "if I ever reach heaven, I expect to find three wonders there: First, to meet some I had not thought to see there; second, to miss some I had thought to meet there; and third, the greatest wonder of all, to find myself there!" And that greatest wonder will cause John Newton and all of God's children to fall on their knees in gratitude for God's amazing grace. But let's not wait. Now is the time to begin expressing our gratitude.
Someday the silver cord will break,
And I no more as now shall sing;
But oh, the joy when I shall wake
Within the palace of the King.
--Crosby
Heaven is a prepared place for a prepared people. Let each of us be there.