Tag: Christ’s return

Categories
Acts Devotionals

A prayer

Acts

And he said, ‘The God of our ancestors has appointed you to know his will, to see the Righteous One, and to hear the words from his mouth, since you will be a witness for him to all people of what you have seen and heard. (Acts 22:14-15)

Lord, you have chosen me for yourself. (Ephesians 1:3-14).

In these troubled times, I look forward to the day when you return, and I will see you face to face. (1 Corinthians 13:12, 1 John 3:2)

Now, let me hear your voice each day so that I may know your will. (Isaiah 30:20-21, Romans 12:2)

And let me be your witness in this dying world. (Acts 1:8, 2 Corinthians 5:13-21).

In Jesus’ name, amen.

Categories
2 Corinthians

When Jesus returns

2 Corinthians

In Paul’s warning to the Corinthians in this passage, I see a warning to us as well.

Paul told them,

I already gave you a warning when I was with you the second time.

I now repeat it while absent: On my return I will not spare those who sinned earlier or any of the others,since you are demanding proof that Christ is speaking through me.

He is not weak in dealing with you, but is powerful among you.For to be sure, he was crucified in weakness, yet he lives by God’s power.

Likewise, we are weak in him, yet by God’s power we will live with him in our dealing with you. (2 Corinthians 13:1-4)

When Paul had last visited the Corinthians, he came in weakness.

In other words, he didn’t come exercising his authority, but rather with tears, suffering rejection by the Corinthians and grieved by their sinful attitudes. This, though he had laid down his life for them.

But now he was saying that when he came back, he would not come in weakness, but in the power of God, exercising the authority God had given him to judge the Corinthians.

And he warned them, “I will not spare those who sinned earlier or any of the others.” (2 Corinthians 13:2)

Jesus says the same thing to us. When last he came, he came in weakness.

He came as a man, a poor carpenter and itinerant teacher. He came not as a conquering king, but as a crucified Savior.

But by the power of God he was resurrected and the day will come when he will come back. And when he comes back, it will not be in weakness, but in power.

More importantly, when he comes back, he will not spare those who continue to reject him. Rather, he will bring judgment.

The problem with many people today is that they simply see Jesus as the loving Son of God who sacrificed everything for us to show us how much he cares for us.

That’s true. He did.

But they forget that when he comes back, he will come back in judgment. The time for mercy for those who reject him will be past.

He will no longer simply be the Lamb of God, but the Lion of Judah, the king who will reign forever. And those who continue to rebel against his rightful rule will face his wrath.

And like Paul with the Corinthians, he will not spare any who continue in their rebellion. (See Luke 19:11-27, in particular verses 14 and 27)

So the question you and I have to ask ourselves is this: Have we submitted to Christ’s rule in our lives? Or will we continue to live in rebellion to him?

God is patient with us. But that patience will not last forever.

Let us not test the patience of God in our lives but rather accept his mercy and grace while we still can.

Categories
1 Corinthians

What we will be

1 Corinthians

I was talking with some students in their 60s last week, and we were talking about how some researchers were saying that 60 and 65 are becoming the new middle age because of increasing lifespans.

I asked them how long they hope to live, and all of them said between 75-80. I would probably agree, the main reason being that by that time, our bodies are really starting to fall apart, something I really don’t want to have to deal with.

I’d much rather live in my new body that God provides me, and that’s what Paul talks about here.

Some of the Corinthians were asking, “What will our resurrection bodies be like?”

And Paul compares our current bodies to a seed that is planted in the ground. The seed that is planted is quite different from what grows out from that seed.

In the same way, our current bodies when they are planted in the ground are quite different from what our new bodies will be like. How will they be different?

Paul says,

The body that is sown is perishable, it is raised imperishable; it is sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory; it is sown in weakness, it is raised in power; it is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body.

If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body. (1 Corinthians 15:42-44)

Our bodies, as they are, grow old and will eventually die, but our new bodies will never die.

Our bodies will deteriorate and rot in the ground, but they will be raised in glory.

Our bodies are growing weaker as we age, but our new bodies will be strong and healthy, never to grow sick or old again.

I think about my dad in his final days. He was completely blind due to an accident. He could barely move around towards the end, his body weakened by multiple bypasses and a variety of other health problems.

At the end, he couldn’t even speak. He could only lie there.

It was hard to see him that way. But I know that now he has been freed from all that, and when that day comes when Christ returns, and the final trumpet sounds, he will receive a new body and meet Christ in the air.

Assuming I’m still around when it happens, I’ll be joining him not long after. And all things will be made new. On that day, we will all sing,

Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting? (1 Corinthians 15:55)

I can’t wait for that day.

Categories
Acts

Waiting for his return

Acts

It must have been awesome to see Jesus suddenly start ascending into heaven. And I think it’s perfectly understandable that the disciples were standing slack-jawed looking into the heavens where Jesus disappeared. I probably would have done the same.

But then two angels appeared. And they said,

Men of Galilee…why do you stand here looking into the sky?

This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven. (Acts 1:11)

I think we see two things here.

First, the hope that we have. That though this world is a mess and will only get worse, Jesus will return. The day will come when he comes back and makes all things right.

But second, we have work to do until he does come back.

I think the angel was implying to the disciples, “Don’t just stand there slack-jawed. Do what Jesus told you to do.”

For the disciples, the first thing they had to do was go back to Jerusalem and wait for the Holy Spirit to come. And before we can do any kind of ministry, so do we.

Like I said in my last blog, while we can “accomplish” much on our own, it is nothing compared to what we can do when we are filled with his Spirit. It is people filled with God’s Spirit who can turn this world upside down (Acts 17:6 — ESV).

So let us not just look at this world and complain. Let us not just look at the heavens longing for Christ’s return. Instead, let us be filled with his Spirit, doing the things God has called us to do.

Categories
Matthew Matthew 25

Parable of the ten virgins: Being ready

Matthew

In this chapter, we see two parables on what Jesus was just talking about, watching for his return and also doing the things he’s asked us to do until he comes.

In this first parable, I think it’s easy to try to over-interpret each facet of the parable, and I think we can get into trouble trying to do so.

The main point, again, is that we are to watch and be ready for when Jesus comes back, because he will come back when we don’t expect it.

That’s what happened with these bridesmaids.

The bridegroom had gone to the bride’s house and was due to return to his home for the wedding banquet, and so everyone was waiting for his return.

But for some reason, it took more time than they expected, and so when the bridegroom finally came, they were fast asleep.

Awakened from their slumber, the bridesmaids quickly realized that their lamps were going out and needed more oil.

Five of them were ready for such a situation and quickly refilled their lamps.

The other five, however, were not ready and as a result, had to go out and buy more oil and by the time they came back, the doors were shut, and they could not enter.

The point? Some thought they were ready and were not, while others were truly ready for the bridegroom’s return.

Those who were ready were able to join the banquet, while the rest were shut out.

Many Jews will be like this when Jesus finally returns. They have been yearning for the Messiah for so long. And some will be ready; they will have already acknowledged Jesus as Messiah, been filled with his Spirit, and be ready to enter the kingdom when Jesus comes.

But others, though they claim to be waiting for the Messiah, are not ready. And they will find that out when Jesus returns. That the Messiah they’d been waiting for had been Jesus all along.

But when they find out, it will be too late, and they will be locked out of his kingdom.

But the same can be said of the rest of us. Many people claim to be Christians but have never truly received him as Lord and Savior. Rather, they merely have the “form of godliness but deny its power.” (2 Timothy 3:5)

They claim to follow Christ, but in their hearts, merely live for themselves. And when Jesus returns, they’ll realize that they are not ready for his return, and will find themselves locked out of his kingdom.

How about you? Are you ready for when Jesus returns? There is only one way. The apostle Paul wrote,

If you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. (Romans 10:9)

Are you ready for our Lord’s return?

Categories
Zechariah

He who will come again

Zechariah

One of my favorite Easter songs is “Rise Again,” by Dallas Holm. In the last verse of the song, it says,

Go ahead
Say I’m dead and gone.
But you will see that you were wrong.

Go ahead,
Try to hide the Son.
But all will see that I’m the one.

’Cause I’ll come again.
Ain’t no power on earth can keep me back.
’Cause I’ll come again.
Come to take my people back.

In this passage, we see something of Christ’s return.

In verses 1–8, we see the judgment that will come upon the earth and its kingdoms.

If we compare this passage to Revelation 6, we see that the white horses represent war; the red horses, violence and bloodshed; the black horses, famine and death.

The dappled horses probably correspond to the pale horses of Revelation, perhaps symbolizing death by plagues.

But terrible as these things are, God is in control.

Until now, believe it or not, this judgment has actually been held in check by the hand of God.

But the time will come when he fully releases it upon all the earth and we’ll experience a time of trouble beyond what we’ve ever known.

But after all this, Jesus will come again, and he is represented here by someone of the same name, Joshua (which as I’ve mentioned before is the Hebrew version of the Greek name Jesus).

Joshua, as we’ve seen, was the high priest at the time. But Zechariah was told to make a crown for him and to put it on his head. And as he did, he was to make a prophecy of the one he symbolized, the coming Messiah.

Unlike Joshua, who was merely a priest, and unlike Zerubbabel who was merely a governor (not even a king, though he was of royal blood), one was coming who would be both king and high priest.

Zechariah said of him,

It is he who will build the temple of the Lord, and he will be clothed with majesty and will sit and rule on his throne. And he will be a priest on his throne.

And there will be harmony between the two. (Zechariah 6:13)

The temple mentioned here is probably the temple written about in Ezekiel 40–43, not the one Joshua and Zerubbabel were building. And Zechariah says that at the time this new temple is built, Jesus will be the perfect king and priest.

What do we take from all this? Hope.

We look at the world around us and see all the trouble surrounding us. We look at our political leaders, and we see people that cannot be fully trusted. The words “honest politician” are seen as an oxymoron.

Ministers of Christ don’t always have the greatest reputations either. Many are often scoffed at with all the scandals that we have seen in the church, and people often look for the first sign of hypocrisy in them.

But when Jesus comes, he will reign in righteousness, and his holiness will be beyond reproach. Through him, we will all see what the Father is truly like.

So let us not get discouraged by all the wars, disease, famines, and natural disasters that we see. God is in control.

And let us not be disheartened by the corrupt political and spiritual leaders that we see either. Jesus is coming back.

So let us focus on him, rather than all these other things. If we focus on these other things, it’s easy to lose hope. But when we focus on him, our hope can never be taken from us.