He is The
Way, the Truth, and the Life
(1
Thessalonians 4:16,17; 5:5-11; Acts 1:10; Philippians 4:4; John 14:1-3)
Jesus promised His disciples He would come
again.
John 14:1-3 (NKJV)
14 “Let
not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me. (2) 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. (3) And if I go and prepare a place for you, I
will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be
also.”
Second
Coming of Jesus
Christmas, we shared
biblical truth that with the Birth of Christ Jesus, there
also came victory over sin
and death. Today, as we continue in our
study, and in our Thanksgiving, Worship,
Praise, and Exaltation of the CHRISTmas,
(our greatest gift) we will commit to
our everlasting remembrance a precious promise He left all believers at THE
LAST SUPPER. He promised His
disciples He would come again. That promise
brings Joy to the World. You
will find that promise in John
14:1-3, "Let not your heart be
troubled. You are trusting God, now trust in Me. There are many homes up there
where my Father lives, and I am going to prepare them for your coming. When
everything is ready, then I will come and get you, so that you can always be
with Me where I am. If this weren't so, I would tell you plainly. And you know
where I am going and how to get there."
The Holy Bible tells us that Christ's return will be exact and genuine. Scriptures also tells us that as Jesus
ascended to heaven and as his disciples were looking, two angels stood by them
dressed in white (Acts 1:10). These
angels told the disciples something very important: “Men of Galilee, why do you stand gazing up into heaven? This same Jesus,
who was taken up from you
into heaven, will so come in like manner
as you saw Him go into heaven.”
Luke says thusly: "At that time they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power
and great glory."
ear Friends, I cannot express this enough. . .as we
celebrate, we ought to meditate (myself included) on the very reason that we even have CHRISTmas. Last eve, after feasting on
food for my physical body, I fed my spiritual
body, mind, and heart and soul on a few of TCM biblical movies that
celebrated the Birth of Christ. Good
stuff. This morning, as I thought on
how, and/or what direction I would continue my writing on the ‘First’ Coming of
Christ, my mind was still (Holy Spirit
at work)reflecting on one of the TCM movies_ King of King; I went to this scripture passage: Revelation 1:7, NIV. "Look, He is coming with the clouds,
and every eye will see Him, even those who pierced Him; and all the peoples of
the earth will mourn because of Him." Hmmm, why am I here, I wondered? Was
there something left wondering in my mind after seeing that particular movie? Was
there perhaps a message that I am to share with you while I too learn more of His Saving
Grace? Shall we go back to the First
Coming – The Birth of Christ.
The Two Comings
of Christ
Here’s what we know: At present we are living amongst the
two comings of Christ. Christ came to
earth the FIRST TIME about 2000
years ago when he was born as a Baby in Bethlehem. Someday Christ will come to this earth for a second time. We call
this the SECOND COMING of Christ.
The first coming is a past event. It has already happened. The Bible says,
"Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners " (1 Timothy 1:15). He has already done this! "And we know that
the Son of God is (has) come. " (1 JOHN 5:20). He has come,
and the Bible also teaches that He will come again!
Some of the differences between the first
and second comings of Christ:
|
THE FIRST COMING OF CHRIST
|
THE SECOND COMING OF CHRIST
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The Cross
Christ came to die.
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The Crown
Christ will come to rule and reign.
|
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The first coming of Christ
is a matter of HISTORY.
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The second coming of Christ
is a matter of PROPHECY.
|
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It has already
happened!
|
God's Word tells us that it
will happen!
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Christ
HAS COME (1 John 4:2).
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It will take place in the
FUTURE.
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Christ came to be the
SAVIOUR OF SINNERS (Matthew 1:21).
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Christ WILL COME (Acts
1:11).
|
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Christ came to be man’s
SAVIOUR (John 3:17).
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Christ will come to be the
KING OF KINGS (Revelation 19:16).
|
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Christ was killed by His
enemies (Matthew 27:20-25).
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Christ will come to be man’s
JUDGE (Jude 14-15).
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When Christ came the first
time He was rejected by the Jewish people (John 1:11). They crucified their
Messiah.
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When Christ comes the second
time He will be received by the Jewish people (Zechariah 12:10-11; Romans
11:25-28; Matthew 23:39).
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hhhh, Dear Friends, there is soooo much to be shared
about CHRISTmas, that will surely change yours lives. But, alas, there’s no
time; I wish we could sit around a fire place, drink a few mugs of hot tea, and
share Jesus. However, since we can’t do
that, (this time) here are a few things that will start us on our way to seeing
Jesus face-to-face. Oh, if I could only be found as faithful as
Enoch. Hebrews 11:5, tells us by faith Enoch was taken away so that
he did
not see death, “and was not
found, because God had taken him”; for before he was taken he had this
testimony, that he pleased God.
So, who will see Him when He comes and what exactly will
we see and hear when He comes? I want to be in that number! Did you see the movie ‘Left Behind’? I certainly
don’t want to be in that number of those left behind.
In 1 Thessalonians
4:16-17, we fine: "For the Lord
himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the
archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise
first. After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up with
them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord
forever." Are you happy about
it? I am. I get excited about NOTHING ELSE but the WORD
of GOD.
What can man tell me about His
Coming? Why should we believe man when
the Bible tells us in 2 Peter 3:10, NKJV
that Christ's coming will be unexpected and dramatic.. And His coming will be visible to us all so it
says in the Book of Matthew 24:27, NIV: "For
as the lightning comes from the east and flashes to the west, so will be the
coming of the Son of Man.” And continue reading where it ‘clearly’ states
thusly: “But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night, in which 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."
Closing
Thoughts –
The Lord's Second Coming to Earth will be Unrestricted, Almighty, and Spectacular.
In His FIRST COMING Christ came as Savior; in
His SECOND COMING, He will come as
judge!
Tonight, I
want to leave this reminder from Matthew
24:36-39: "No one knows
about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only
the Father." So, with that
thought in mind, I personally will be living each day as if it were the
last. "As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the Son
of Man. For in the days before the flood, people were eating and drinking,
marrying and giving in marriage, up to the day Noah entered the ark;
and they knew nothing about what would happen until the flood came and took
them all away. That is how it will be at the coming of the Son of Man."
UT, in the Book of Titus
2:11-14, are Words of hope while we wait for Jesus. Scripture goes thusly: " For the grace of God that brings salvation
has appeared to all men, teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly
lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in the present age,
looking for the blessed hope and glorious appearing of our great God and Savior
Jesus Christ, who gave Himself for us, that He might redeem us from every
lawless deed and purify for Himself His
own special people, zealous for good works."
esus is coming to
receive us, HIS BRIDE which is the Church stands before us today as our Savior, the Lamb
slain for our
sins. But if we do not turn
to Him in faith, He will one day stand before us as our righteous Judge. He
will say: "On earth I was your
Savior, but you would not believe. Here I am your Judge; depart from Me to
everlasting punishment. “We don’t have to face the Lion in the judgment. The Lamb is waiting to save us.
Believing on Him today!
Playwright Janet Irene Thomas
Founder/Chairman/CEO
Bible Stories Theatre of
Fine & Performing Arts
Paul Harvey writes: “The relationships we entered, stayed in, or ended, taught us important lessons. Some of us have emerged from painful circumstances with strong insights about who we are and what we want. Our mistakes? Necessary! Our frustrations, failures…stumbling attempts at growth and progress? Necessary too! Each step of the way we learned. We went through exactly what we needed to become who we are today. Is our past a mistake? No. Our mistake is mistaking that for the truth.” God can ‘reframe’ our past in the light of the grace and mercy that brought us to where we are today. So, what are we to do? We are to learn from it and move on. Amen
