Jesus Is Coming Again (2 of 2)

Transcription

1 Program Transcript # 1384 Jesus Is Coming Again (2 of 2) The Truth In Love P.O. Box 865 Hurst, TX requests@thetruthinlove.com

2 Jesus Is Coming Again (2 of 2) Program # 1384 Robert Dodson Good morning. We're glad that you've joined us again for The Truth In Love. Last week we discussed that Jesus is coming again, and this week we want to continue that discussion. Already we have found that when Jesus comes again, He's going to come suddenly and unexpectedly. Nobody really knows when Jesus is coming. Today we want to ask another question: What's going to happen when Jesus comes again? Of course, there are all kinds of imaginative ideas about what's going to happen. Books have been written and movies have been made, and much of this comes from a misunderstanding of the Old Testament prophets or other highly figurative books like the book of Revelation in the New Testament. What we hope to do this morning is to give a framework in which we can interpret these more difficult passages. We're going to look at some very plain and clear passages of Scripture to provide this foundation for a better understanding of what's going to happen when Jesus comes again. 2

3 The first thing that we learn about the day when Jesus comes again is that it will be a spectacular day. It will be a tremendous event. Look with me if you will in Matthew 24:27. Here's a passage that's found in the midst of the discussion about the destruction of Jerusalem. As we learned last week, the destruction of Jerusalem (which happened in 70 AD) would be a local event and Jesus Himself would not come at that time. The second coming of Jesus at the end of the world will be a global event, and it's something that will be known throughout the world. Look what He says here in Matthew 24:27. For as the lightning comes from the east and flashes to the west, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. When Jesus comes again, it will be like the lightning. He's going to come suddenly and unexpectedly, but it's going to be an event that will be seen from one end of the globe to the other. Notice also this same teaching in Revelation 1:7. Here John tells us, 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. Yes, when Jesus comes again, every eye will see Him. Perhaps you've heard of this so-called secret rapture when God will come and take up all of the saints, and they'll disappear, and those left behind will wonder what happened to them. That's not going to happen. No, when Jesus comes again, it will be like lightning from the east to the west, and every eye will see Him. If you look with me in 1 Thessalonians 4:16, we're going to see that not only is it going to be a bright, shiny day when every eye sees the Lord, but it's going to be a noisy day as well. Here it says, For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Yes, when the dead are raised up, when Jesus comes for His saints, it's going to be a noisy day. There's going to be a shout, the 3

4 voice of the archangel, the trump of God. When Jesus comes again, it's going to be a spectacular event. I also want you to notice that when Jesus comes again, all of the dead are going to be raised. In John 5:28-29, the Bible speaks of this. I know that there is a very popular doctrine that says that Jesus is going to raise up His people and He is going to take His saints into heaven for seven years, and during that time there's going to be a terrible tribulation upon the earth. He'll then return at the end of the seven years, and those who died during the tribulation will be raised up, a second resurrection. He will then establish His kingdom on this earth for one thousand years and there will be a final or third resurrection. Again, all of this is pure speculation, imagination of the mind, a twisting of the Scriptures and a misunderstanding of the old prophets and of the book of Revelation. Rather, what we see in the Scripture is that when Jesus comes again, all of the dead are going to be raised at the very same time. Read with me John 5: Here is where Jesus very clearly tells us, Do not marvel at this; for the hour is coming in which all who are in the graves will hear His voice and come forth those who have done good, to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil, to the resurrection of condemnation. In the very same hour, at the very same time, both those that have done good and those that have done evil will be raised. When Jesus comes, He's going to speak, and all who are in their graves are going to come forth. There's not going to be a separation of seven years or a thousand years, but there's going to be one resurrection at the end of the world. In fact, the Bible speaks of this in Acts 24:15 as the resurrection of the dead, both of the just and the unjust. There will be one resurrection for all the dead. Notice this also from John 6, where Jesus tells us, not just once, twice or three times, but actually four times, that this resurrection will take place at the end of the world. In John 4

5 6:39, the Bible says, This is the will of the Father who sent Me, that of all He has given Me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up at the last day. All who were given to Jesus are going to be raised up at the last day. You see it again in verse 40. And this is the will of Him who sent Me, that everyone who sees the Son and believes in Him may have everlasting life; and I will raise him up at the last day. Again, the believers of Jesus are going to be raised up at the last day. Look at it a third time in verse 44. Here Jesus once again says, No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him; and I will raise him up at the last day. Finally, we read in verse 54, Whoever eats My flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day. Jesus is not talking about cannibalism here, but He's using a metaphor to speak of those who partake of Him through His teachings. He said, The words that I speak to you are spirit, and they are life (John 6:63). He tells us that those who do partake of His teachings, are obedient to Him, and those who truly believe in Him are going to be raised up at the last day. There are not going to be seven years of days or a thousand years of days, but at the last day when Jesus comes again, all of the dead are going to be raised. It will be a spectacular day and a resurrection of all that are in their graves. Also, when Jesus comes again, all of the living are going to be changed. Look with me in 1 Corinthians 15. We're going to read verses In this chapter, the apostle Paul is discussing the resurrection of the dead. Notice what he says, Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; nor does corruption inherit incorruption. Behold, I tell you a mystery: We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal 5

6 must put on immortality. So when this corruptible has put on incorruption, and this mortal has put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written: Death is swallowed up in victory. Paul tells us that all of the living will be changed. All of this is going to happen in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye. Notice that instantaneously when Jesus comes and every eye looks upon Him and the dead are raised up, all of the living are going to be changed. Why? Because this corruption cannot put on incorruption. We in the flesh are not prepared to inherit the eternal kingdom that Jesus is bringing for us. We must be changed. We must be conformed to His glorious body according to Philippians 3: John 3:2-3 reminds us that when Jesus comes, we're going to see Him, and we will be like Him. There's a glorious reward and a tremendous hope for those of us who are Christians, who are prepared for when Jesus comes again. We're all going to be changed, Paul says, and that is going to be at the last trumpet. There are not going to be seven years of trumpets or a thousand years of trumpets. At the same time that Jesus comes, when the dead in Christ are raised and all of the dead are raised, so all of the living are going to be changed. I want you to notice another thing about what will happen when Jesus comes again. Look at Revelation 20, beginning in verse 11. We find in this passage that John has a vision of the throne of God and the judgment of all people. Let's read it together. Then I saw a great white throne and Him who sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away. And there was found no place for them. And I saw the dead, small and great, standing before God, and books were opened. And another book was opened, which is the Book of Life. And the dead were judged according to their works, by the things which were written in the books. 6

7 Notice in this particular passage that a great judgment is going to happen, and it will be a judgment of all people. I like the way the apostle Paul describes it in 2 Corinthians 5:10 where he reminds us that, We must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive the things done in the body according to what he has done, whether good or bad. The judge on that day will be Jesus Christ and every one of us will stand before Him in judgment. The books are going to be opened, and we're all going to be judged according to our works, as we see in Revelation 20:13. The sea gave up the dead who were in it, and Death and Hades delivered up the dead who were in them. And they were judged, each one according to his works. On that day, it will be too late to get prepared. There will be no second chances after Jesus comes again. We'll be judged according to what we've done in the body, as we just read from 2 Corinthians 5:10. It's in this lifetime that we have to prepare ourselves to meet the Lord in judgment. How you stand on that day will depend upon your relationship with Jesus Christ. Have you trusted in Him? Have you trusted in Him enough to do what He's told you to do to get prepared and to be prepared for that judgment day? The books are going to be opened, and one of those books is going to record what you've done with Jesus and with His words. You remember that Jesus said in John 12:48, He who rejects Me, and does not receive My words, has that which judges him the word that I have spoken will judge him in the last day. Yes, we'll all be judged by the same standard, by the words of Jesus Christ. All of us who are alive today are responsible to the gospel of Jesus Christ. We're going to stand before the judgment seat of Christ, and each one of us will give account of himself to God, as Paul wrote in Romans 14:12. You won't be able to say, My wife did this or my children did this or the church has done 7

8 this, but God's going to want to know where you are. Where are you spiritually with Jesus Christ today? Are you ready and prepared to meet Him in the judgment? Is your name written in the book of life? That will be another one of those books that is going to be opened and He's going to look to see if your name is written there. Listen to this warning from Revelation 20:15, And anyone not found written in the Book of Life was cast into the lake of fire. It will be a sad day for those who have failed to prepare themselves for judgment. I want you to notice another thing about what's going to happen when Jesus comes again. We've already talked about the fact that He's going to come in a very spectacular way and the dead are going to be raised and we're all going to be changed to stand before the judgment seat of Christ, but I want you to understand that what happens at the judgment will result in an eternal separation. We're all going to be eternally separated. We see this picture in Jesus' teaching in Matthew 25. After Jesus spoke of His coming again, He gave several parables, and one of them was the parable of the sheep and the goats and how they're going to be separated on that last day. Read with me beginning in verse 31. When the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the holy angels with Him, then He will sit on the throne of His glory. All the nations will be gathered before Him, and He will separate them one from another, as a shepherd divides his sheep from the goats. And He will set the sheep on His right hand, but the goats on the left. Then the King will say to those on His right hand, Come, you blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. Yes, there will be some, those on the right hand, who will be told to enter into the everlasting kingdom of God. But then there will be those on the left hand. Look with me as we continue in verse 41, Then He will also say to those on the left hand, Depart from Me, you cursed, into the everlasting 8

9 fire prepared for the devil and his angels. Hell wasn't prepared for us, it was prepared for the devil and his angels. God doesn't want any of us to go there, but there will be some who refuse to listen, accept, believe and obey the gospel of Jesus Christ, and that will be their everlasting punishment. He speaks of it in Matthew 25:46. And these will go away into everlasting punishment, but the righteous into eternal life. Yes, just as long as we will have life with God in heaven, so there will be punishment for some in an everlasting hell. When Jesus comes again, there's going to be an eternal separation. At that time the kingdom of God will be delivered up to the Father. Look with me again in 1 Corinthians 15, and I want you to notice how it speaks of Christ coming. At the end of verse 24 we see, Then comes the end. Just before that, he had said, Christ at His coming. He is speaking of Christ at His coming, and then comes the end, when He delivers the kingdom to God the Father, when He puts an end to all rule and all authority and power. For He must reign till He has put all enemies under His feet. The last enemy that will be destroyed is death. Jesus Christ is now reigning in His kingdom, and He will continue to reign until His last enemy is destroyed. That last enemy is death. When is death going to be destroyed? We've already learned that death will be destroyed when Jesus comes again. Because when Jesus comes again, all of the dead are going to be raised. At Christ's coming, then comes the end. That's when the kingdom will be delivered over to the Father. I want you to notice that this kingdom is an everlasting kingdom. It's not a kingdom of this world, it's not earthly, it's not fleshly and it's not temporal. There are those who are waiting for Jesus to come to this earth and establish a military, political kingdom upon the earth. Again, this doesn't fit with the plain passages of Scripture. When Jesus came the first 9

10 time, He said that He was going to establish His kingdom. In fact, the message that the kingdom was at hand is found in Matthew 3, Matthew 4 and Matthew 10. In Mark 1:15 we find that the time is fulfilled. In Mark 9:1, the Bible tells us that some that were standing there that day listening to Jesus would not taste of death until they saw the kingdom come with power. Indeed it did come with great power as the Holy Spirit was poured out on the apostles. You read about it in Acts 2. Since that time, we read about the kingdom of Christ in existence. It had already been established. Peter proclaimed in Acts 2 that Christ was now seated at God's right hand until He should make all His enemies the footstool under His feet (Acts 2:33-35). In Colossians 1:13, we read about those who had been translated out of the power of darkness into the kingdom of God's dear Son. In Hebrews 12:28, we learn that we are now (present tense) receiving the kingdom. John, in Revelation 1 said that he was in the kingdom, already enjoying the kingdom with saints of his day. It's clear that Jesus came, and that He established His kingdom. I know there were those who were looking for Him to come riding in on a white horse and conquer the Romans and set up a kingdom like the glory days of David and Solomon. But Jesus explained to them in Luke 17:20-21 that His kingdom did not come with observation. He said that His kingdom is within you. It's the rule and the reign of Christ through the gospel in our hearts, when we submit to that and trust Jesus with our lives. When Jesus stood before Pilate and was asked if He was the King of the Jews, He explained to Pilate, My kingdom is not of this world. If My kingdom were of this world, My servants would fight (John 18:36). No, it's not a political or military kingdom. It's a spiritual kingdom. It's the kingdom of God within you. It's the reign of Jesus Christ through the gospel of 10

11 Christ, and it will continue until Jesus comes again. That's not going to be the beginning of the kingdom. That's going to be when He delivers the kingdom over to the Father. Finally before we run out of time today, I want you to know that when Jesus comes again, this physical universe will cease to exist. In Genesis 1:1, the Bible says, In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Our physical universe came into being. But Jesus tells us that when He comes again, it will come to an end. Read 2 Peter 3:10 where he says that the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night (or suddenly and unexpectedly), and the heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the elements will melt with fervent heat; both the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up. We'll receive, as it goes on to say, a new heaven and a new earth (2 Peter 3:13). It will not be a renovated universe, but new of a different kind, a new habitation for man, a spiritual, not a fleshly; a heavenly, not an earthly; an eternal, not a temporal home. That's what the Bible really teaches us about the second coming of Jesus Christ. To those folks who first heard these teachings, it was very real. They desired it and they anticipated it. They even had a word for it, Maranatha. As Paul says in 1 Corinthians 16:22, O, Lord, come! That was their prayer. I'm afraid that many of us have forgotten about that today, and we get so wrapped up in the affairs of this life. Let me tell you, when Jesus comes, it's not going to matter what kind of house you live in or what kind of car you drive or what kind of clothes you wear. The only thing that's going to matter is: Are you right with God, your family, your friends and others? I want to know this morning that if you could say, O Lord, come, and He would come, would you say it? If not, why not? Why not get prepared? Why not get ready? Let us know how we can help you towards heaven today. 11

12 2013 The Truth in Love Robert Dodson, Speaker Chad Seaton, Director The Truth in Love P.O. Box 865 Hurst, TX