JESUS IS COMING BACK

Hundreds of years before Jesus was born, Isaiah, an Old Testament prophet, prophesied both of Jesus’ first and Second Advents (see Isaiah 9:6-7). As we know, the First Advent was fulfilled when Jesus was born. The details of the events surrounding His birth happened exactly in the manner in which they were prophesied. That fulfillment was proof that the Word of God is dependable. We celebrate that First Advent as Christmas, characterized by festivities, giving and receiving gifts. Looking back, we see that, that advent was very obscure, very few people knew anything about it, or cared about it. The key people mentioned in that event included: His parents-Joseph and Mary; the Inn Keeper; the shepherds; and the Wise men.

Similarly, the Second Advent will be fulfilled unerringly; Jesus is definitely coming back! Whereas He came as a helpless baby the first time, and did not catch the attention of many, things will be a lot different with the Second Advent. The Second Advent will not be obscure in any way; rather, as the Bible says, “Every eye will see Him” (Revelation 1:7 NIV ). He is going to come with the armies of heaven and the Christians who were raptured seven years earlier. This occasion is going to be grand, unlike anything we’ve ever seen. He is coming as the King of kings, the Lord of lords, the Ruler of the nations, and the Judge of the world, and He will hold sinners accountable for their wickedness, and reward the righteous.

Before His Second Advent though, there will be the rapture of the Church. The Bible describes the rapture as the sudden removal of all Christians from the earth to join with resurrected believers and Jesus Christ Himself, in the air. The rapture will usher in the tribulation period, a seven-year time of suffering, lawlessness, and severe persecution of Christians. At the end of the tribulation period, Jesus will return to earth to cleanse the world of sin and evil, and establish His Millennial Kingdom (a thousand-year rule). This will be Jesus’s Second Advent.

Jesus’ return to earth is mentioned not only in the Old Testament, but also in the New Testament. Jesus Himself spoke about His Second Advent while He was here on earth. Towards the end of His ministry, Jesus promised His disciples He’d return from heaven, “I am going there to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am” (John 14:2-3 NIV). Furthermore, the day Jesus ascended into heaven (forty days after His resurrection), two angels appeared to the distraught disciples who were amazingly watching, as their Master went up. The angels comforted them by saying, “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 NIV).

In the book of Revelation, John, the author, recorded for us Jesus’ message to the Churches. He said, “Behold, I am coming soon; my reward is with me, and I will give to everyone according to what he has done…I, Jesus, have sent my angel to give you this testimony for the churches. I am the Root and Offspring of David, and the bright Morning Star…Yes, I am coming soon (Revelation 22:12, 16, 20 NIV)! God is faithful; none of his promises has ever failed, and will not fail now! So let’s be ready; Jesus is coming back soon!   

  

After the millennium, there will be no more tears, pain, or suffering, which is what God had in mind right from the beginning of creation. There will be peace, no political garbage and lies! We will have one Ruler who is kind, loving, and just, and totally trustworthy. Wow! What a world that will be! We’ll get to call it our permanent home; a city whose Founder and Maker, and Ruler is God Almighty! Amen!

THINK ABOUT IT

      

God, the Creator, owns everything – the world and all that is in it (see Psalm 24:1; Isaiah 66:1). If He were hungry, He wouldn’t tell anyone, because He is capable of providing for Himself (see Psalm 50:12),

but He commanded tithing, and delights in and accepts our offerings (See Malachi 3:8-10; Exodus 34:20, 26; 35:5-9).

God is all powerful, and heaven is His dwelling place (see 1 Kings 8:27);

but He humbled Himself, became human, and dwelt among us (see John 1:14) to show us the way back to the Father.

God hates sin (see Psalms 45:7),

but He loves the sinner (see Ephesians 2:4-5).

God is love and has made a way for sinners to have a relationship with Him (see John 3:16), but He is also just and therefore will punish sin (see Isaiah 13:11).

God is patient and longsuffering, not wanting anyone to perish (see2 Peter 3:9),

but He will not wait forever; He will one day judge the world. It may be sooner than you think. You need to repent before it is too late (see Romans 2:16; Acts 17:31).

God knows all our needs, and can do for us without our asking Him,

but how else are we going to demonstrate faith in Him, or give Him thanks and glory? He wants us to ask (see Matthew 7:7-11; Romans 10:11).  

God is good, kind, and giving,

but He does not always say “yes” to our requests, because He’d rather give us something better than what we desire or request, like His grace  to endure (see 2 Corinthians 12:8-9).

God always knows the answers,

but He questions us to make us re-think our position or stand (see Job 38:4-39:27).

God is able to prevent problems in our lives;

but He allows them as a means of growing our faith in Him. If we didn’t have problems, how will we know He can solve them? (See Romans 8:28; James 1:2-4).

Think about it. God is all you need, and you need Him now (See Isaiah 55:6-7). Choose Him!

God Loves You No Matter What

The Bible tells us, “Nothing can separate us from the love of God.” Although this is very comforting, it does not mean we can relax and live any way we want. Unlike ours, God’s love is consistent. Humans love conditionally; God loves unconditionally. Humans choose whom they love, when, how, and under what circumstance. God loves everybody (see John 3:16). He loved us before the foundation of the world; He loved us when we were still sinners by sending His only Son to die in our place: “God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8 NIV).

With that said, there is a difference between God’s love and having a relationship with Him. In order to demonstrate His love for us even when we were sinners, He provided His Son, Jesus, as the atonement for our sin. Sin however, makes a relationship and ongoing fellowship with God impossible. You might be wondering why, since He loves us no matter what. This is why: God is holy and cannot coexist with sin. In order to establish a relationship with sinners and maintain ongoing fellowship with Christians, the sin has to be dealt with. He made provision through the blood of Jesus; now the rest is up to us. We need to repent of our sins.

If you’ve never asked God to forgive your sins and make you His child, please do that now. The Bible says we’re all sinners and that the punishment for our sins is eternal separation from God (see Romans 3:23; 6:23). Yet it also says, “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16 NIV). Do you want eternal life after you die? Well, this is the only way to obtain it. Although God loves you, where you spend eternity is your choice; God’s love by itself does not automatically translate into eternal life for you. You have a responsibility in this: you have to express your honest interest in being saved from sin.

Even if you’re a Christian, you have the tendency to sin, because Christians are not perfect (see 1 John 1:8-9). Sin interrupts our fellowship with God, causing our prayers to go unanswered: “If I had cherished sin in my heart, the Lord would not have listened” (Psalms 66:18). For those times, examine your heart and confess any sin, and God will restore your fellowship. The Bible reassures us, “If anyone does sin, we have an advocate who pleads our case before the Father. He is Jesus Christ, who is truly righteous. He himself is the sacrifice that ato Jones for our sins—and not only our sins but the sins of the whole world” (1hn 2:1-2 NIV).

Although God loves us, He will punish those who refuse to respond to His love: “For He has set a day when he will judge the world with justice by the man he has appointed. He has given proof of this to all men by raising him from the dead” (Acts 17:31 NIV). He also disciplines those who believe but do not walk in obedience to His Word. “My son, do not make light of the Lord’s discipline, and do not lose heart when he rebukes you, because the Lord disciplines those he loves, and he punishes everyone he accepts as a son” (Hebrews 12:5 NIV).So remember

God will always love you, but will not tolerate your sin. Your sinful ways will always cause a separation between you and God. Nothing can separate you from the love of God, but your sin will make a relationship with him impossible, and separate you from fellowship with Him. Take sin seriously!