Noted evangelist Billy Sunday preached this encouraging and uplifting
sermon
on the second coming of Jesus Christ. A triumphant return that the Bible
foretells will come in the future at a time no one knows.
May God bless,
Carl
my website -- http://www.nettally.com/saints/
my blog -- http://www.anniemayhem.com/cgi-bin/wordpress/
---
The Second Coming Of Christ
by Billy Sunday
"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. Wherefore comfort one another with these words" (1
Thessalonians 4:17-18).
The meeting here mentioned is to be the greatest meeting the Bible
tells us anything about. There have been some wonderful meetings, but
never
has there been one to compare with this. It was a wonderful meeting the
children of Israel had on the shore of the Red Sea, after Pharaoh's
pursuing
host had been destroyed in the angry waters, and Miriam, the prophetess,
with her timbrel, led the people in singing, "Sing ye to the Lord, for he
hath triumphed gloriously: the horse and his rider hath he thrown into the
sea" (Exod. 15:21).
And it was another great meeting they had at the foot of Mount
Sinai,
when the Law of God was given to them amid thunders and lightnings and
fire
and smoke.
That was a great meeting, too, on Mount Carmel, when Elijah, the
sturdy Tishbite, defied the prophets of Bal; and that was a great meeting
where David danced before the Ark of God, as it was home into Jerusalem.
It
was a great meeting when Solomon dedicated the temple, and the glory of
the
Lord came upon the people, and those were great meetings that were held on
the banks of the Jordan when Jerusalem and all Judea went out to hear the
man who dressed in camel's hair and wore a linen girdle, and lived on
locusts and wild honey.
It was a wonderful meeting when Jesus preached the Sermon on the
Mount, and another when He fed the multitude with five loaves and two
fishes. And that was a great meeting on the day of Pentecost, when the
Spirit came like a ru****ng mighty wind, and under Peter's preaching about
three thousand were converted.
All these were great meetings, and any number of others have been
held, both in former times and in our own day. Those were great meetings
in
the early days of Methodism, when Wesley and Whitefield preached to great
multitudes in the fields. Those were great meetings when multitudes were
flocking to hear Finney and Moody; and great meetings have since been held
by other great evangelists all around the world. But no meeting has ever
been held anywhere or in any time that could begin to compare in
im****tance
with the greatest of all meetings that is to be held in the air, when our
Lord comes to make up His jewels.
That meeting is the one for which all others have been preparing the
way. It will be the crowning meeting of all history. The purpose of all
that
has been done in this world up to the present time has been to prepare for
that great meeting in the air.
From Adam, mankind has been marching step by step up a grand
stairway
leading direct to that meeting in the air. The call of Abraham was one
step
toward it, and Jacob and his twelve sons were another. Joseph ruling Egypt
was another; the deliverance under Moses another; the conquest of Canaan
under Joshua another, and so on with every event in sacred history. It was
for this Jesus suffered on the Cross to make atonement for sin. It was for
this He arose from the dead and ascended into Heaven, where he took His
place at the right hand of the Father. It was for this the Holy Spirit
came
at Pentecost, and it was for this that Churches have been organized and
missionaries sent to the ends of the earth.
These things have all been done to prepare the way, and lead up to
the
meeting which is so graphically described in the text. It was for this
meeting God made His plans before He laid the foundations of the earth,
and
it was of this meeting He was thinking before the morning stars sang
together.
We are not told when Jesus will come, but we are told that His
coming
is sure, and we are charged to watch for it. Anybody who says that he
knows
when Jesus is coming is a liar. When they say that they know when He is
coming they lie.
Only Jesus and the Father know when the Savior is coming again. Yet
the Church today shows as little concern about His coming again as His
disciples did about His going away. All this is fully in accord with
Peter:
"There shall come in the last days scoffers walking after their own lusts,
saying, Where is the promise of His coming, for since the fathers fell
asleep all things continue as they were from the beginning until now?" (2
Pet. 3:3-4).
Jesus not only foretold His going away, but charged His followers to
expect His return, and be ready for it: "Watch, therefore, for ye know not
what hour your Lord doth come. Therefore, be ye also ready, for in such an
hour as Ye think not the Son of Man cometh" (Matt. 24:42-44).
Jesus said: "This gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the
world for a witness unto all nations; then shall the end come" (Matt.
24:14).
Before I started to Preach in Omaha God knew the names of every man,
woman and child who would be saved as a result Of my preaching - If God
didn't know that, He wouldn't be God. And God knew all about the fools who
wouldn't be saved, and He knew that all of Omaha wouldn't be saved. I tell
you that God is pretty wise to who are going to Hell and who are going to
Heaven - The sooner you get that through your head and don't try to
sidestep
Jesus, the sooner the devil will let go the stranglehold he has upon most
of
you.
There is not a nation on the face of the earth that has not had the
Gospel preached within its bounds. The second coming of Christ is the
emphatic doctrine of the New Testament. It is mentioned and referred to
more
than 350 times, and yet the majority of Church members never heard a
sermon
on the subject; that is the reason they think so little of looking into
the
matter themselves.
The Church makes much of Baptism, but in all of Paul's epistles
Baptism is only mentioned or referred to thirteen times, while the return
of
the Lord is mentioned fifty times. This certainly shows which he
considered
the most im****tant. McCheyne, the great Scotch preacher, once said to some
of his friends: "Do you think Christ will come back tonight?" One after
another they said: "I think not." Then he solemnly repeated: "Watch,
therefore, for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come. Therefore, be ye
also ready, for in such an hour as ye think not the son of man cometh"
(Matt. 24:42-44). With such admonitions as this, what right have we to be
unconcerned about it and say, as many preachers do, "It is nothing to me;
I
take no interest in the subject, whatever." Who would care to travel on a
train where the engineer would never read his orders? Who would ride on a
****p where the captain never looked at the compass? You may call it
rubbish,
but the disciples called it the "blessed hope."
"Why call ye me Lord, Lord, and do not the things I say" If Jesus
had
said: "I will not return for 2,000 years," nobody would have begun to took
for Him before the time was near, but He expects his followers to be
always
looking for His return. Just as Simeon and Anna watched and waited for His
coming, so we should be watching and waiting for His return.
It is not enough to say, "Oh, I'm a Christian; I'm all right." We
are
not all right unless we obey the command to watch, for it is certainly as
much of a command to look for the coming of the Lord as it is to keep the
Sabbath holy. Nothing else will do so much to keep us right where we
should
be in our religious experience. Knowing that the bank examiner may drop in
at any moment keeps many a ca****er from becoming dishonest. We should
purify
the Church that it may be the proper Bride to meet the Lord in the air.
How
pure is the Church today? How pure are the Church members? How pure are
the
Preachers?
I suppose there would be a mighty scramble to get right with God if
you all found out that Jesus was going to return tonight. It wouldn't make
any difference to Jesus if you had to do the right thing just because He
turned up unexpectedly. You would have to prove to Him that you were on
the
level with Him, and although you might all be baptized, sprinkled and
immersed, there would be nothing doing in the salvation line if you didn't
play square with the Lord.
This old world is going to wake up some morning and find that all
good
men and women have beaten it, and she'll rub her eyes when she finds out
that the Lord has been here on the job and taken his own with Him.
Every time I preach and every time you do personal work, I feel that
we are helping to bring about the second coming of the Lord, and it sets
my
bones on fire when I think that the last man or woman need only be saved
before this campaign is over in order that the Lord may come. That is my
incentive to do the work I am doing. It is my hope that, before I finish
here, the Church will be purified as a Bride, ready to meet Jesus, the
Bridegroom, in the air.
A little more than twenty years ago Mr. Moody called a convention of
Christian workers to meet in Chicago, and that convention was in session
there in Moody's church for two months, and out of it came the great Bible
institute.
The daily program was to spend the forenoon at the church in prayer
and Bible study, and the afternoon and evening in doing practical
Christian
work.
A man who was my assistant some years ago attended that convention.
He
told me that one day Mr. Moody asked him to go down among the anarchists,
in
the hard parts Of Chicago, and hold a meeting there.
"Do the best you can," said Moody, "and some night I'll come down
and
help you."
My friend said that promise was a continual incentive to him to keep
up his courage and do his very best. He didn't know when Mr. Moody would
come, and so he looked for him every night, and the harder time he had,
the
harder he hoped and looked.
This shows how the constant expectation of the coming Of Jesus will
inspire and encourage us.
A great many say: "I believe the Millennium will come first, then
Christ will come at the end Of it." What people think has nothing to do
with
it, but what God says has everything to do with it.
Many have missed railroad trains because they believed they would
come
at a time that did not correspond with the official time card. You will
see
God's time card if you carefully read the Bible. Not a word can be found
in
the Bible that gives the slightest hope for the millennium before the
return
of Christ - but you can find plenty of verses that tell you to look for
the
coming of the Lord first.
As we look back over the 2,000 years since Christ, how far we seem
to
be away from the time when the will of God shall be done on earth as it is
in Heaven. Every edition of the press seems to make it clear that the
devil
is still having his way. Look at the reign of wickedness in our great
cities
in both high life and low. No college has ever yet made a Saint or ever
will. Education may improve conditions, but it can never change or cleanse
the heart. Look at the lukewarmness and indifference in the Churches
everywhere and see what many of them are compelled to resort to in order
to
keep from going under. See to what schemes and dodges and foolishness some
preachers have to resort to to get anybody to go and hear them.
There can be no millennium until Jesus comes; it is His presence
that
makes the millennium. You might as well talk of daylight not coming until
the sun goes down. The millennium cannot begin until Satan has been bound
in
the pit. Nothing is more certain than that the glory of God shall cover
the
earth, but it will be after Jesus comes.
Many have an idea the world will grow better and better until the
coming of the millennium, and everybody will be converted, and you hear
that
stuff preached, but the Bible does not teach any such trash.
On the day before the flood there were no doubt many people who were
sincere in thinking that the world was growing better, and yet it was so
hopelessly wicked that God had to destroy it. Some of the men who married
into the family of Lot may have made the same claim for Sodom, only a day
or
two before its destruction; no doubt Lot's wife was of the same opinion.
On
the day before the Crucifixion there were men in Jerusalem who undoubtedly
agreed with each other that the world was growing better. The world will
grow worse and worse. They did eat, they drank, they married wives, they
were given in marriage until the day that Noah entered the ark and the
flood
came and destroyed them all. Likewise also as it was in the days of Lot,
they did eat, they drank, they bought, they sold, they planted, they
builded. But the same day that Lot went out of Sodom it rained fire and
brimstone from heaven and destroyed them all.
"Even thus shall it be in the day when the son of man is revealed"
(Luke 17:27-30). Lawlessness, vice and crime will increase; Communism,
nihilism, anarchy, adultery, divorce, graft, all will continue to grow
until
they will finally ripen into the anti-Christ.
Many think and preach that the millennium will be brought about by
the
increase of knowledge, culture, great discoveries, such as the gasoline
engine, automobile, electricity, radium, liquefied air, wireless
telegraphy,
air****ps, etc. These have nothing to do with bringing the millennium. It
is
the personal reign of Christ that brings the millennium. Those who have
been
the greatest blessing to the world were filled with this hope and preached
it.
The word of God was vitiated and neutralized by the traditions of
men
when Jesus first came, and that is very largely the trouble in present
times. Instead of going to the Bible to find out what God says, the
Preacher
is too apt to go to his books, to see what the great men of his Church
have
to say about it, and all their preaching and teaching take its color from
the gl***** the rabbis wear, just as was the case in the time of Jesus.
The fact that Jesus was not recognized by the high-up authorities,
but
was rejected and crucified as an impostor, shows what a dangerous and
deadly
thing it is to accept the traditions of men rather than what God says
about
things.
Too many who are now masters in Israel are as much in the dark as
Nicodemus was. The truth is no harder to get at than corn on the cob, if
we
will first strip off the husk and shell it. We need to depend more upon
the
Holy Spirit and less upon our libraries if we would preach so that those
who
hear us will also hear the voice of God in our message. It is not what
Doctor This or Professor That has to say about it that settles the
question,
and settles it right, but who reads the Word. What does the Bible say
about
it? And what we need to do is to take the Bible as it reads, not as some
big
man says it means.
Big men have been mistaken about vital things just about as often as
little ones. The safest pilot is not the one who wears the biggest hat,
but
the one who knows the channel the best. We should let the Bible speak to
us
just as God means it should, without distorting it by the prejudices and
vagaries of those who are always trying to put their own camel into it and
strain out somebody else's gnat.
It is high time for Christians to interpret unfulfilled prophecies
by
the light of prophecies already fulfilled.
The curses on the Jews were brought to pass literally - so also will
be the blessings.
The scattering was literal; so also will be the gatherings.
The pulling down of Zion was literal; so also must be the building
up.
The rejection of Israel was literal; and so also must be the
restoration.
The first coming of Christ was literal, visible and personal, and
what
right has anybody to conclude that His second coming will be altogether
spiritual? If His first advent was with a real body, why not the same with
His second coming?
When Jesus first came the smallest predictions were fulfilled to the
very letter; and should this not teach us to expect that the same will be
true when He comes again? There are very many more prophecies concerning
His
second coming than His first, and does not this mean that God wants to
give
us the most favorable op****tunity possible to prepare for it? If the
humility and shame of Christ at His first coming were literal and visible,
should not His second coming in power and glory be also literal and
visible?
What right have we to say that the words Judah, Zion, Israel and
Jerusalem ever mean anything but literal Judah, Zion, Israel and
Jerusalem?
Some one has called attention to the fact that there are only two or three
places in the whole New Testament where such names are used in what may be
called a spiritual or figurative way. Jerusalem occurs eighty times, and
in
every case is unquestionably literal, except when the opposite is clearly
indicated by such qualifying terms as "Heavenly," "new" or "holy." Jew
occurs a hundred times, and only four are ambiguous. Israel and Israelite
occur forty times, and all literal, Judah and Judea about twenty times,
and
literal in every case.
John Bunyan was once studying the passage foretelling that the feet
of
the Lord should stand on the Mount of Olives, and he thus reasoned: "Some
commentators say that the Mount of Olives means the heart of the believer;
that it is only a figurative expression, and means that the Lord will
reign
in the heart of the believer, and the Holy Spirit will dwell there, But I
don't think it means that at all. I just think it means the Mount of
Olives,
two miles from Jerusalem, on the east."
And that is why the Lord could use the poor tinker so marvelously,
even when he was shut up in Bedford jail.
While face to face with them, Jesus taught His disciples to be in
constant expectation of His early return, and they so understood Him and
lived accordingly. They preached the doctrine and taught it in their
epistles, every one of them. Certainly, if anybody ever understood the
Lord
correctly, it was the men whom He personally trained to do that very
thing,
that they might hand the truth he gave them down to us. If they failed to
understand him, what hope is there that anybody else may do so?
Jesus is going to come and reveal Himself to the members of His body
at the very moment when the last soul is saved necessary to complete that
body - for the body of Christ must consist of a certain number of souls,
or
it never could be completed. If it were an infinite number it would be an
endless task, and Jesus would never return, for He can no more come with
His
Heavenly body than He could come the first time without a human body. It
is
the completion of the body of Christ, therefore, that will bring Him, and
this shows how we may help and hasten his coming.
"Looking for and hastening unto the coming of the day of the God
wherein the heavens being on fire shall be dissolved and the elements
shall
melt with fervent heat" (2 Pet. 3:12).
Every time we do personal work or try to get anybody saved, we may
be
doing something that will bring the coming of the Lord. Instead of being
discouraged by looking about us and seeing what a small prospect there is
of
the whole world being converted, it will set our bones on fire to think
that
perhaps the last man needed to complete the Lord's body and bring Jesus
back
to earth may be converted this very day. That gives us something definite
and tangible to work for, and hope for, don't you see? Colonel Clark, the
founder of the Pacific Garden mission in Chicago, put in six nights out of
every seven at the mission as long as he lived. One day somebody said to
him:
"Colonel, why don't you take some rest? You are killing yourself by
sticking to that mission so close. Why don't you take a vacation and go
away
somewhere and rest?"
"I can't do it, brother," answered the colonel. "I could never do
that, for every time I start for the mission, I think, maybe the last man
may be saved in our little meeting tonight, and the Lord will come; and I
wouldn't miss being at my post for anything in the world. When Jesus comes
I
want to be right where he expects me to be."
The Bible very clearly makes known the great truth that God's
purpose
for this dispensation is the completing of the Body of Christ. He is not
trying to save the world now; that is to be the work of the next
dispensation. Here is the scripture for it:
"God at the first did visit the Gentiles, to take out of them a
people
for His name. (The body of Christ.) And to this agree the words of the
prophets; as it is written. After this I will return and will build again
the tabernacle of David (the Jewish nation) which is fallen down
(scattered
and no longer being used)- and I will build again the ruins thereof, and I
will set them that the residue of men might seek after the Lord (through
their missionary efforts)" (Acts 15:14-17).
That is the present dispensation, and that is what God is doing now.
There is nothing said here about the conversion of the world, but it is
made
clear that a people is being chosen, and much Scripture might be quoted to
show that the people so referred to will constitute the body of Christ.
Throughout this dispensation the Lord has been working among the
Gentiles (those not belonging to the Jewish nation), and this shows the
purpose for which he has been working. There is no thought expressed there
of the Millennium.
"And to this agree the words of the Prophets (about God's purpose in
gathering a chosen People from the Gentiles). As it is written (and that
means what God says). After this (after the number of People to be chosen
from the Gentiles has been I will return (to direct dealing with Israel)
and
build again the tabernacle of David, which is fallen down"(Acts 15:15_16).
What does that mean? What does it mean for a house to be fallen
down?
Certainly that it cannot longer be used as a house while in that
condition.
Read the prophecy of Amos, from which this is taken, and see why it is
that
God is through with Israel until He has taken from the Gentiles the people
for His name. (To bear His name, to glorify His name.)
The mission of the Church - the Bride of Christ, or Body of Christ
is
to get ready to meet the Bridegroom. When the Body of Christ is completed
He
will reveal Himself to the members who are alive and in this world at that
time, and at the same moment they will be caught up to meet those who have
gone on before in the air, and from that moment they are forever with the
Lord.
The Body of Christ will be composed of believers from every race and
nation on earth. That is why the Gospel must first be preached as a
witness
to every nation. Not from every dispensation. It had its beginning on the
day of Pentecost and will be complete at the time of the meeting in the
air,
which is called the Rapture. For He is now preparing, perfecting and
completing the Church - the Body of Christ, the Bride who is to meet the
Lord in the air, and be with Him forevermore.
These different members will be found, one here and another there,
and
gathered together from all parts of the world, and the moment the last one
is saved Christ will be revealed - not to the world, but to his Church -
His
Bride - just as the electric light blazes out when the last condition is
fulfilled. At that time Christ will not be revealed to the whole world,
but
only to the individual members of His Body who may be alive and here at
that
time.
There remains no prophecy to be fulfilled. There is not a nation
where
the Gospel has not been preached. So Christ must be waiting for the
completion of the body of believers.
When the Rapture comes it will come in the twinkle of an eye. Those
who have died in the Lord will be resurrected, and they, with the
believers
who are alive, will be caught up to meet the Lord in the air. When the
Rapture comes it will come in the twinkling of an eye, and will be
altogether unexpected except by those who have been searching the
prophecies
and are looking for it, just as Simeon and Anna and the wise men were
looking for Jesus at His first coming. After it has occurred there will be
an army of Church members and Preachers who will not know that it has
come,
because they are not members of the Lord's Body; for the Lord will not at
that time be seen by any except those who have been caught up to meet Him
in
the air.
The remainder of the world will not know that He has been here, and
they will not know what has become of the missing ones. They will seem to
have disappeared in all kinds of unaccountable ways, unless their earthly
bodies shall be left behind them, as the linen clothes of Jesus were left
in
the tomb. But things will soon settle back into their old condition, and
the
world go on its way, as did Sodom after Lot was taken out of it.
The notion that people have about the second coming of Christ is
that
when He comes the Judgment Day will also come, and that the world will
come
to an end. This idea is unscriptural and shows how little the Bible has
been
searched to find and make known the real truth by those who are leaders
and
teachers in the church. Business will go on and governments will go on as
now. After Jesus comes and takes the believers out of the world, then
takes
place the great Tribulation, a description of which you will find later
on.
At the close of the Tribulation the Lord will return, bringing with Him
His
saintly members of His Body, to begin His Millennium reign. Then He will
reveal himself to the Jews. They will accept Him as their long rejected
Messiah. Then the millennium will begin - the devil will be cast into the
bottomless pit for a thousand years; nations will be born in a day,
through
the missionary efforts of the Jews.
When the Jews accept Jesus Christ and bring to Him all their
wonderful
energy and intelligence, oh, this world will grow as it has never grown
before! Nations will be born in a day.
The Jews have always been full of energy in business, as no other
people, and when they become ambassadors for Christ there will be no
lukewarmness or indifference. Either before or during the Tribulation the
Jews will have been restored to the holy land, rebuilding their Temple and
restoring the Jewish wor****p.
Also during the tribulation the antiChrist will come, most likely in
the person of some great king. It is supposed that he will be a personal
incarnation of the devil, just as Jesus was an incarnation of God. He will
go to Jerusalem, and there do great signs and wonders, by which he will so
delude the chosen people that they will accept him as their Messiah, and
pay
him divine honors in the Temple. It will be during this that Jesus will
return and destroy him by the brightness of His coming, "And then shall
the
wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of His
mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of His coming, even of Satan
with all power and signs and lying wonders" (2 Thess. 2:8-9).
The devil has got some of you so close to Hell that you can smell
the
fumes. He's no loafer. He's been working for 6,000 years, and he was never
laid up with appendicitis nor tonsillitis, nor the grip.
In the Lord's coming there are to be two distinct phases - His
coming
for the members of His Body, and revelation to them at the time of the
Rapture, or taking up into the air, and His coming with the members of His
Body at the close of the Tribulation, when He is revealed to the Jews and
destroys the antiChrist.
Overlooking these two phases has put some people in confusion about
the order of events, just as the failure to distinguish between the
prophecies pertaining to the first and second coming confused the Jews,
and
caused them to reject Jesus, through what they supposed to be His failure
to
fulfill prophecy.
Yes, Christ will come in person, and will destroy the antiChrist.
The
seat of his power will be Jerusalem. This is literal and not figurative.
The visible Church will be left here, strong in members and
organization. It will probably make a great show of missionary activity,
but
will have no more power against the principalities and powers of evil than
did the disciples who missed the Mount of Transfiguration have over the
demons that were tormenting the little boy.
In a worldly way it will appear to be in a very prosperous
condition,
rich in property and elegant buildings; but here is a picture of what it
will be after the salt of the earth has been taken out of it: "This know
also that in the last days perilous times shall come. For men shall be
lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers,
disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, without natural affection;
truce
breakers, false accusers, inconsistent, fierce, dcspisers of those that
are
good; traitors, heady, high-minded, lovers of pleasure more than lovers of
God, having a form of godliness but denying the power thereof" (2 Tim.
3:1-5).
Did you ever know a time in all history when the world was worse
than
it is now? People are passing up the Church and the Prayer Meeting for the
theater, the leg show and the movies. Oh, Lord, how we need someone to cry
aloud, "Return to God."
Bear in mind that this has no reference to the Turks, the heathen in
Africa or the people in the slums; but that it is a description of the
rank
and file of the Church, after the Lord has come and taken His Body out of
the world. For notice that it is said that these people have a form of
godliness which means that they are professors of religion. They are not
avowed infidels or atheists, but professed believers.
Let us consider, in the first place, something of what it may mean
to
have a part in that meeting in the air:
1. Well, the most glorious thing about it is that if we are there we
shall be members of the Body of Jesus Christ. It will mean that we are
members of the royal family of the universe; that we are kings and princes
who are to sit on the throne and reign with Jesus, and that we shall be
with
Him forevermore, never to be separated from him again. And this will mean
that we shall be the most exalted beings in all the universe, for who
could
be higher than the sons of God or the Bride of our Lord?
We are living in the most im****tant part of the world's history.
Great
heaven! I don't see how anyone can fail to be inspired.
It is an awful thing to miss being a part of the Body of Christ
because you're too big a fool to be a Christian. You would rather play
bridge. Well, then, go to the devil, if that's the way you want to live. I
can't stop you.
Whenever I remember I'm a part of the Body of Christ, a member of
the
royal family, I just want to shout "Hallelujah." In talking to men God
must,
of course, use the language of men, but He can only put into our words
just
a little of what He would tell us. A very little looking into the matter,
however, will show that He has used the most expressive words in our
language to show how near and precious is to be our relation****p to Him.
In
fact, He has used about all the words we have that could be used for that
purpose, as members of His Body, His Bride and sons of God.
If we are so fortunate as to have a part in that meeting in the air,
it will mean that we are among the most fortunate of all the sons of men,
and that we have lived in the most blessed of all times for men to live,
for
only those are eligible to member****p in the Body of Christ who live in
the
present dispensation.
Moses and David and Isaiah and Jeremiah had no such chance as we
have,
for the Body of Christ had its beginning at Pentecost. Neither will those
who live after the Rapture have an op****tunity, for the Body will then be
complete and the door closed forever, as it was in the faces of the
foolish
virgins. Jesus said of John the Baptist that he was the greatest of all
prophets, but that the least in the kingdom of God was greater than he.
What
an awful thing it would be, then, to have such a glorious op****tunity and
miss it! Others will know the joys of great salvation, for the world will
be
saved during the Millennium (the next dispensation), and the knowledge of
the glory of God will cover the earth as the waters cover the sea, but the
people of that day will have no place in the Body of Christ; they cannot
become members of the royal family. They will be loyal subjects of the
king.
That is why Paul could say, "For I reckon that the sufferings of
this
present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be
revealed in us" (Rom. 8:16).
There is a vast difference between a son of King George and a
subject
of Great Britain. The smallest babe of royal blood is greater than the
greatest man in the kingdom.
2. If we have a place in that meeting in the air it will mean that
we
are like Christ, for "when He shall appear we shall be like Him, for we
shall see Him as He is."
The true child of God is always longing to be like his Master, and
this heart yearning is the sure prophecy of what we shall then be. It will
also mean that we shall nevermore be separated from Him. The devil will
never again have power to separate us from Him for a single moment, and
wherever He is, there shall we be also. The fact that Jesus is to be here
during the Millennium would be proof conclusive that we shall be here with
Him, even if there were no other Scripture for it.
3. For some that meeting will mean that they reached it without
having
to pass through death, for it is to be composed of those who have gone
before, and those who are still living at that time. Some who are born
into
this world are never to die, and we may hope to be of that elect number.
The Christian has no business to be looking for death. It is his
right
to hope to live forever, and instead of expecting to go to the grave, he
should be looking for the coming of his Lord and the meeting in the air.
4. It will also mean that we shall then have bodies that will remain
young forever. Pains and aches, gray hair, wrinkles and feebleness will
never again be known. Listen to this: "Behold, I show you a mystery; we
shall not all sleep (die), but we shall all be changed. In a moment, in
the
twinkling of an eye, at the last trump, for the trumpet shall sound, and
the
dead shall be raised incorruptible (no longer subject to age or decay),
and
we shall be changed (into His likeness)" (1 Cor. 15:51-52). And it will
come
in the twinkling of an eye - in a moment - and that moment will be what
all
time was made for.
In that moment some will give up old age to be young forever. Others
will go from beds of pain upon which they may have lain prostrate for
years.
Others, from the most grinding poverty, will spring to eternal wealth.
Some
will go from burdens from which they expected no relief save death. From
what tribulations and troubles and afflictions will not that moment be a
deliverance, and how the angels will begin to crowd the battlements of
Heaven upon that glad meeting when they know it is about to come! In a
moment! In the twinkling of an eye!
"Come, Lord Jesus; come quickly," ought to be the daily prayer of
every Christian heart, And yet as we look about us now, and see how the
devil seems to be having his way as much as ever, it looks as if that
great
time would never come.
But you can't tell by appearances. An hour before the tidal wave
comes
there is nothing to indicate that it will ever come. Nobody dreamed of an
earthquake ten minutes before San Francisco began to rock and tumble.
Some time ago the President touched a golden key in the White House
and in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, the acres of machinery at the
great Seattle exposition, on the other side of the country, were in
motion,
and countless flags began to fly in the breeze; and that's the way the
Lord
will come.
Just that quick! Quicker than a clock can tick! Quicker than
lightning
can flash! Ten minutes before the President touched the golden key it
looked
as if the machinery would never start, but when the right moment arrived
it
was going. "Therefore, be ye ready, for in such an hour as ye think not
the
son of man cometh." God's clock is never behind the smallest fraction of a
second.
All signs point to the great event, some of which seemed to me to
be:
(a) Radical tendency to depart from the Christian life.
(b) Prophecies fulfilled - the gospel has been preached in every
nation.
(c) The world-wide expectancy of his coming.
(d) Revival among the Jews. They are flocking to Jerusalem.
(e) The political unrest.
(f) Extreme views on questions of government.
(g) Concentration of wealth in the hands of the few,
5. If we have a part in that meeting it will mean that we shall be
here in this world with the Lord during the Millennium - a thousand
years -with the devil chained and cast out - not a saloon, gambling hell
or
brothel in the world, and everything just as we want it. Hear this: "And
cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal upon
him,
that he should deceive the nations no more, till the thousand years should
be fulfilled; and after that he must be loose a little season."
"And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given
unto them; and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness
of
Jesus, and for the Word of God, and which had not wor****ped the beast,
neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or
in
their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years."
"But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years
were finished. This is the first resurrection."
"Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on
such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and
of
Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years" (Rev.20: 3-6).
6. To have part in that meeting will be to meet those who have gone
on
before - fathers and mothers and other loved ones. Think of how glorious
and
blessed that will be, and there will doubtless be infinite surprises that
the Lord will have in store for us, "For it hath not entered into the
heart
of man the things that the Lord hath prepared for them that love him."
7. Think of the delight of meeting and continuing with the other
members of the Lord's Body, who will then be as dear to us as the apple of
our own eye. Think of being intimate with Peter, James and John, Andrew,
Philip and the others, and of hearing from them again and again all the
incidents they witnessed in the life of Jesus. Think of being more
intimate
with Paul and Silas and Mark and Luke and Timothy, and the Saints who were
in Caesar's household, than we are with our very best friends now. Think
of
knowing Mary, the mother of Jesus, as well as You know your own mother,
and
of having her intimate friends, Martha and Mary Magdalene, and the unknown
disciples who on the first Easter morning walked with their risen Lord on
the way to Emmaus! Think of talking with Zacchaeus and Blind Bartimeus,
the
daughter of Jairus, and the wild man out of whom the legion of devils were
cast. And the blind man in the ninth chapter of John how good - it will be
to shake hands with him and tell him some of the good things, we have so
often thought about his courage.
And Joseph of Arimathaea, Nicodemus and the boy who had the five
loaves and two fishes. And the blind woman who touched the hem of His
garment; the widow who gave the two mites and the Philippian jailer who
got
the old time religion in an unmistakable way; the first leper who was
cleansed, and all the rest. How much we shall miss, if we miss that
meeting
in the air.
8. Think of how glorious it will be to live for a thousand years in
this world with our blessed Master and be closely associated with Him:
with
bodies that will not wear out or grow old, always in perfect health, and
with faculties for enjoyment a thousand times higher than we possess now.
The millennium will be the greatest time ever known, for it will be the
golden age of man. Poverty, sickness, war and pestilence will be unknown.
There will be no devil to cause human suffering and woe.
Then think of the delight of coming back into this world, where we
have had so much trouble and hard****p and poverty and sickness, to live
under such glorious cir***stances as will then prevail.
A man told a friend of mine that when {he was} a boy he footed it
for
nearly a hundred miles over the old National road. It was in August, the
weather hot and dusty, and the boy penniless, homeless and disheartened.
He
had on a pair of cowhide shoes, and his feet became so sore that over much
of the way he could only hobble along in great pain.
A little while ago he went over the same road in an elegant
automobile, and he never so enjoyed a ride in his life. The weather was
fine
and he had nothing to do but sit there and drink in the beauty of the day,
and think of how much better off he was than when he went limping over the
same road, a poor, helpless, sore footed boy.
Well, it will be something like that with us in the millennium,
perhaps, only vastly more glorious when we come back to have a good time
here.
9. It will also mean to be richly rewarded for all we have ever done
or suffered for the Lord. Near the close of his hard and strenuous life,
Paul said: "Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness,
which the Lord, the righteous Judge, shall give me at that day; and not to
me only, but unto all them that love His appearing" (2 Tim. 4:8).
Here are other verses showing there is to be a reward - "And when
the
chief shepherd shall appear ye shall receive a crown of glory that fadeth
not away" (1 Pet. 5:4). "And behold, I come quickly, and my reward is with
Me to give every man according as his work shall be" (Rev. 22:12).
10. If we have a part in that meeting we shall escape the great
Tribulation which is to come upon all the earth as soon as the members of
the Body of Christ are taken out of the world.
The Body of Christ is now the salt of the earth, and the light of
the
world. It is the army with which God now holds in check the principalities
and powers of evil. It is therefore evident that when this army is taken
out
of the world, the devil will have unhindered sway, and will immediately
begin to make this world as much like Hell as he wants it to be. In
speaking
of this awful time, Jesus said:
"Then shall be great Tribulation, such as was not since the
beginning
of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be. And except those days
should be shortened, there shall no flesh be saved; but for the elect's
sake
those days shall be shortened" (Matt. 24:21-22).
And here is what Daniel says of it:
"And there shall be a time of trouble such as never was since there
was a nation even to that time, and at that time thy people shall be
delivered (members of the Lord's body), every one that shall be found
written in the book" (Dan. 12: 1).
Human imagination is incapable of picturing the awfulness of this
great tribulation, that is surely coming on the world, and may begin this
very day - yes, even this very hour! Think of it! It is to be the worst
time
the world has ever known, or ever will know. A worse time than the flood;
a
worse time than the bondage of Egypt, and a worse time than the
destruction
of Jerusalem, when women and children were torn in pieces, and the very
name
of mercy was unknown.
A worse time than the reign of Nero; worse than during the Spanish
Inquisition; worse than when Cortes destroyed the Aztecs; worse than
during
the French revolution and the communists, and worse than during the Dark
Ages.
A worse time than when men were skinned alive; worse than when they
were pulled asunder by horses; worse than when men, women and children
were
thrown to hungry lions, and worse than when they were dipped in pitch and
burned as torches.
Do you want to live in that kind of a time? Well, the only thing
that
can surely save you from it is to have a part in that meeting in the air,
for no others who are living at that time can escape from it, and that
awful
time may be upon us within the next ten minutes, for it will begin at the
very moment the Rapture takes place.
There is now not a single prophecy remaining to be fulfilled before
the Lord may come, and the members of His Body be caught up to be with him
in the air.
It stands to reason that the tribulation must be the most awful time
known, because for the only time in all history the devil will then be
loose
and have unhindered sway. Everything he can do that will add to human woe
will certainly be done. Governments will go to pieces, and there will be
no
security of life and property. A man may be a millionaire one day and a
beggar the next. Every chaos of crime and outrage of every kind will be
turned loose. God will let the world and the universe see for a time what
it
will mean to live under the devil's rule, and will let those who pass
through the Tribulation see that the good they so long enjoyed was because
of the presence of the good.
Some of you people who throw your votes and influence in favor of
whisky and all kinds of hellishness that go with it may live to find out
in
the bitterness of the Tribulation just what is meant by sowing the wind
and
reaping the whirlwind.
It is supposed that the Tribulation will cover a period of seven
years. It might be seven hundred years, but it cannot be less than seven
years. God in His mercy will make it as short as possible. That the real
Church of God, believers, members of the Body of Christ, are to be taken
out
of the world before the world is saved is as clearly taught in the Bible
as
that through the atonement made by Christ man may have salvation from sin.
What will it mean to the world? Every believer will be instantly
taken
out of the world; homes will be rent in twain, husbands will be robbed of
Godly wives, children will be taken out of the world and those left behind
will wring their hands in grief.
No doubt newspapers will print extra editions. Universal
consternation
will reign. The world will neither see the Lord, neither will they see
their
loved ones go. Those who have died in the faith will be raised. The
statement of Jesus shows that not all the people are to be caught up in
the
air in clouds, but one here and there:
"There shall be two men in one bed; one shall be taken and the other
left. Two women shall be grinding together; the one shall be taken and the
other left. Two men shall be in the field; the one shall be taken and the
other left" (Luke 17:34-36).
This makes it look as if the number caught up in the air would not
be
large. When will the meeting in the air occur? In regard to this Jesus
said:
"But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels which
are
in heaven - neither the Son, but the Father. Take ye heed, watch and pray;
for ye know not when the time is" (Mark 13:32-33).
But also said, after speaking of conditions that would prevail about
that time:
"So, likewise ye, when ye shall see all these things, know that it
is
near, even at the doors" (Matt. 24:33),
Will the world come to an end when Jesus comes and takes away the
members of His Body? No, not for at least 1,000 years; perhaps longer. The
Millennium must come after Jesus comes, and must have its beginning at the
close of the great Tribulation.
The real truth is, that great event will not bring destruction to
anything that is good, but will, on the contrary, introduce an era of the
greatest progress and prosperity the world has ever known.
The coming of Christ will bring the Millennium - the golden age of
man
in this world - when the arts and sciences, and everything else that man
ought to delight in, will flourish as never before, and never until Jesus
comes will the knowledge of the glory of God cover the earth as the waters
cover the sea.
To say that the second coming of Christ is a pernicious thing to
preach is the same as saying it would be a calamity for God to rule. It
will
be the culmination of the redemption of this world, and to say that it
would
put an end to all progress is as foolish as to say that putting the roof
on
a house would ruin it and throw the carpenters out of work.
There is nothing more clearly declared in the Bible than that Christ
will come and reign on earth during the Millennium, when all will be
restored that was lost by the fall. Then and only then will God's will be
done on earth as it is in Heaven.
The scribes and Pharisees thought that business was going to be
endangered by Christ's first coming. The only business that will be hurt
by
the second coming of Christ will be the devil's business. At the time of
His
coming there will be no general resurrection or judgment.
At the close of the Millennium reign of Christ the devil will be
loosed out of the pit for a season, and look for the first time upon a
world
without sin. He will tempt people. They will be as foolish now and yield
to
his lies and subtlety.
He will gather his host and come against the saints to battle. Fire
will fall from Heaven and consume them. Then takes place the resurrection
of
the wicked dead. Then the judgment of the Great White Throne, with Christ
to
judge.
There is this about it, however: we are living nearer to it than
anybody ever lived before, and when it does come it is going to come in a
moment - in the twinkling of an eye -and the only safe course for us to
pursue is to be ready for the Bridegroom when He comes.
"Take ye heed, watch and pray, for ye know not when the time is, For
the son of man is as a man taking a far journey, who left his house and
gave
authority to his servants, and to every man his work, and commanded the
****ter to watch. Watch ye, therefore, for ye know not when the master of
the
house cometh, at even or at midnight or at the cock crowing or in the
morning; lest coming suddenly he find You sleeping. And what I say unto
You
I say unto all, watch" (Mark 13:33-36).
We are not told when Jesus will come, but we are told that his
coming
is sure, and we are charged to watch for it. How it would affect our lives
and make hard things easy to bear if we would only do this and always be
doing this.
Don't you know how eagerly you get ready for company that you love
when you receive a telegram saying that they are surely coming? How you
clean house and want to have everything in the very best kind of order!
If we were continually looking for the coming of Jesus we would be
as
careful to keep our lives as clean as you would be to have your homes
clean
if you were expecting company. The certainty of His coming would also be a
constant source of comfort and inspiration to us, if we believed it to be
near.
The Lord does not come to the world at the time of the Rapture, but
only reveals himself to the members of His Body. At the time of his
resurrection He was only seen by those who believed on Him. Pilate and the
High Priest, and those who crucified Him, did not know that He was risen.
So
it will be at the time of the Rapture. The world will not know that He has
been here, and will have no knowledge of Him until He comes with the
members
of His Body, at the close of the Tribulation.
What an awful thing, then, to have the glorious privilege of living
in
His dispensation, with all that it means, and miss getting into the Body
of
Christ by refusing to become a Christian.
The Preacher owes it to his people to look into these things, that
He
may show them their great privilege, and warn them of the awful things
that
may come upon them, if they miss their chance and have to go through the
Great Tribulation. The Preacher who has never qualified himself to preach
a
sermon on the sure and certain coming of his Master will have to answer
for
an awful breech of trust when he stands before Him.
Our fleet of battle****ps made its remarkable trip around the Horn
and
around the world, and again dropped anchor at home on schedule time,
almost
to the minute, in spite of storm and the fickleness of the wind and wave,
and if the calculations of men can be wrought out so precisely, certainly
we
have the right to expect that God will execute His plans with absolute
precision in whatever task he sets for himself.
Certainly we can think of nothing so improbable as that He would
complete His program for creation on schedule time, and yet would so tie
his
own hands by failure to anticipate and provide for all possible
emergencies
and contingencies that the train of His purpose for redemption would be so
delayed or nearly wrecked that it would almost have to be abandoned.
Do not think it for a moment. God's purpose can no more be kept back
a
minute than the Heavenly bodies can be delayed a minute. In redemption God
is working by the clock as surely as in creation, and His chariot of
salvation is not marked late by a single minute. Come, Lord Jesus!
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