Transcript Document 7115628

Title Page
Lesson Eight
I Thessalonians 4:13-15
I Thessalonians 4:13-15
13 But I would not have you to be ignorant,
brethren, concerning them which are asleep,
that ye sorrow not, even as others which have
no hope.
14 For if we believe that Jesus died and rose
again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus
will God bring with him.
15 For this we say unto you by the word of the
Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto
the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them
which are asleep.
I Thessalonians 4:16-18
I Thessalonians 4:16-18
16 For the Lord himself shall descend from
heaven with a shout, with the voice of the
archangel, and with the trump of God: and the
dead in Christ shall rise first:
17 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.
18 Wherefore comfort one another with these
words.
II Thessalonians 1:7-8
II Thessalonians 1:7-8
7 And to you who are troubled rest with us, when
the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven
with his mighty angels,
8 In flaming fire taking vengeance on them that
know not God, and that obey not the gospel of
our Lord Jesus Christ:
II Thessalonians 1:9-10
II Thessalonians 1:9-10
9 Who shall be punished with everlasting
destruction from the presence of the Lord, and
from the glory of his power;
10 When he shall come to be glorified in his
saints, and to be admired in all them that believe
(because our testimony among you was
believed) in that day.
Focus Verse
Acts 1:11
Which also said, Ye men of Galilee, why
stand ye gazing up into heaven? this same Jesus,
which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so
come in like manner as ye have seen him
go into heaven.
Focus Thought
The second coming of our Lord is near.
We should make sure we are ready.
Introduction
Introduction
Life is filled with returns—some happy, and some
not so joyous. There are tax returns, election
returns, and returns on investments. Swallows even
return to Capistrano and turkey buzzards return to
Hinckley, Ohio. Someone said, “What goes around,
comes around.” Returning is a part of life.
Introduction
The biblical “returns” are nearly always joyous.
From Israel’s returns from exile or from idolatry or
other forms of spiritual waywardness to the classic
parable of the prodigal son returning home to the
feasting and rejoicing prepared by the waiting
father, returning is celebrated and associated with
good times. The greatest return that has ever
happened in the history of mankind is about to take
place—the return of the Lord for His bride.
Introduction
The Lord’s return has been the ultimate hope for
every Christian believer across the centuries. The
Old Testament looked for His coming in
redemption, but the New Testament anticipates His
return to reign and rule forever. Interestingly
enough, for every verse in the Bible that deals with
His first coming, three deal with His second
coming. Jesus is coming again!
In this lesson it is important to recognize that the
second coming of Jesus Christ will occur in two
advents. First, Jesus will come to catch away both
the living and dead who are in Christ Jesus. At this
first advent of Christ’s return, He will not set His
foot upon the earth; rather, believers will join Him
in the air. At the time of the second advent,
however, Christ will return to the earth with His
saints, and He will plant His feet on the Mount of
Olives, splitting the mount in two parts. (See
Zechariah 14:4.) We will consider both advents of
His return in this lesson.
Introduction
Coming
for
His
Bride
I. Coming for His Bride
The Lord is coming back for His bride, who will
rise to meet Him in the Rapture.
I.
A. The Catching Away
(Rapture)
Coming for His Bride (A)
If we believe that Jesus died and rose again, then
we believe that we have a living Savior. Believing
this truth—our being convinced that Jesus not only
died but rose again—is necessary for our
salvation. Nowhere did the Bible say that Jesus
slept for three days. He died and rose again!
Because He defeated death, we should not fear
death. He defeated it, and the hope of His return
comforts the hearts of His people with the
knowledge that He has broken the power of death.
I. Coming for His Bride (A)
Whether we live or die, we have nothing to fear,
for Jesus is going to come to receive us unto
Himself.
“For
the Lord himself
shall descend
I Thessalonians
4:16-17
from heaven with a shout, with the
voice of the archangel, and with the
trump of God: and the dead in Christ
shall rise first: 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”
(I Thessalonians 4:16-17).
I. Coming for His Bride (A)
We should understand a principle concerning
resurrection. When the body is resurrected, it is
not going to be exactly like the one that was
placed in the ground. It will be different—a
resurrected body, a glorified body like the
glorified body of Jesus Christ. There is much we
do not know about that glorified state, but we do
know that we shall be like Jesus (I John 3:2).
Philippians 3:20-21
“For our conversation is in heaven;
from whence also we look for the
Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ: who
shall change our vile body, that it
may be fashioned like unto his
glorious body, according to the
working whereby he is able even to
subdue all things unto himself”
(Philippians 3:20-21).
There also isfor
the rapture
ofBride
living believers
who
I. Coming
His
(A)
will be caught up together with the dead in Christ
to be with the Lord forever. The Greek word for
caught up has many meanings, one of which is “to
catch away speedily.” It also means “to seize by
force.” Jesus Christ will come in the air to catch
away the believers—to take them out of and
through Satan’s domain. (He is “the prince of the
power of the air” [Ephesians 2:2].)
Caught up could
also
meanBride
“to claim (A)
for one’s
I. Coming
for
His
own self.” That is Christ’s perspective of the
whole thing. He will return to claim us for
Himself, to take us out of this world. Living
believers will suddenly be translated, and they will
join the resurrected born-again believers in the air.
While somefor
will beHis
caughtBride
up, others (A)
will be
I. Coming
caught by surprise. Imagine the consternation and
chaos on earth as multitudes of people instantly
vanish. What chaos! What consternation upon the
earth when that happens! All of those without
Christ, however, will be left behind—even church
members who have pretended to know Him.
I.
B. The Rewards
(Judgment
Seat
of
Christ)
Coming for His Bride (B)
The Bible teaches that after the Rapture occurs,
believers shall stand at the judgment seat of Christ.
This judgment seat is only for the saved because the
lost, self-righteous, and agnostic people will not be
there.
I. Coming for His Bride (B)
The words “judgment seat” come from the Greek
word bema. The bema, an elevated seat or platform,
was a part of the Greek arena for the Olympic
games. On that elevated seat sat the king who
would look down upon those who performed in the
arena. As he watched, if he pointed his thumb up,
the participants were doing well.
I. Coming for His Bride (B)
However, if he pointed his thumb down, they soon
lost their heads. Thus, the king would pass
judgment from the raised seat or platform. After
judging the events, the king would give out
wonderful and glorious rewards to the participants
as they knelt before the bema.
I. Coming for His Bride (B)
Immediately after the Rapture, as Christians we will
be judged according to our works as we stand
before the bema of Christ. He will judge us on how
well we did at living the Christian life. Christ
Himself will judge the hidden things of darkness
and the counsels of the heart. The Bible teaches that
He will give crowns as rewards. (See II Timothy
4:8.)
I. Coming
His
Bride
This will be afor
glorious
meeting.
As we (B)
have walked
by faith on this earth, we have never seen the Lord
physically. However, we shall see Him as He is in
the Rapture (I John 3:2). Moreover, it is an eternal
meeting, for “so shall we ever be with the Lord” (I
Thessalonians 4:17). Death is the great separator,
but Christ is the great reconciler. He puts it all back
together. What a comfort is that thought!
I Thessalonians 4:18
“Wherefore comfort one another with
these words” (I Thessalonians 4:18).
I.
C. The Marriage Supper
of
the
Lamb
Coming for His Bride (C)
“Let us be glad and rejoice, and give
honourRevelation
to him: for19:7-9
the marriage of
the Lamb is come, and his wife hath
made herself ready. And to her was
granted that she should be arrayed in
fine linen, clean and white: for the
fine linen is the righteousness of
saints. And he saith unto me, Write,
Blessed are they which are called
unto the marriage supper of the
Lamb. And he saith unto me, These
are the true sayings of God”
(Revelation 19:7-9).
The Lord Jesus came in humility and poverty
when He was born in Bethlehem’s manger. The
Lord came in flesh through the Incarnation so that
He could come to claim His bride. Unfortunately,
He was scorned, misunderstood, and rejected by
His own people—the Jewish ones whom He had
come to make His bride. Consequently, Christ
turned to the Gentiles to take out from them a
people to become His bride, and the bride of
Christ is now making herself ready.
I. Coming for His Bride (C)
If we are in Christ Jesus—Jew or Gentile—we are
part of that bride. What does it matter if others
despise us? We should remember that we are His
beloved bride. He loves us with an everlasting
love, and one glad day He is coming to claim us to
be forever His and to be with Him. Certainly, He
is coming soon.
I. Coming for His Bride (C)
The Scripture declares that we will sit down at the
glorious marriage supper of the Lamb to celebrate
the marriage of the Lord and His bride—the
church. What a glorious time of celebration when
we are united with the One who redeemed us,
bringing us from rags to riches! What constitutes
the meal is not that important; what is important is
the fact that we are united with Jesus Christ, the
Bridegroom, forever.
I. Coming for His Bride (C)
Coming to Rule
II. Coming toand
RuleReign
and Reign
John mentioned a Battle of Armageddon where the
armies of the earth will be gathered together for one
final, climactic confrontation (Revelation 16:16).
Now that the world seems to be on the threshold of
this conflict, publishers have produced volumes to
explain and expound upon it. The geographic
location of this final battle is between Nazareth and
the Mediterranean—the Plains of Megiddo.
Revelation 9:16
“And the number of the army of the
horsemen were two hundred thousand
thousand: and I heard the number of
them” (Revelation 9:16).
This passage to
of Scripture
an army
II. Coming
Rulementions
and Reign
200,000,000 strong sweeping over the Middle East.
Joel prophesied, “I will also gather all nations, and
will bring them down into the valley of Jehoshaphat
[Armageddon]” (Joel 3:2).
Millions of Arab
come Reign
to realize that
II. Coming
to people
Rulehaveand
neither the West nor Russia is going to help them
destroy their foe, Israel. Perhaps they will call upon
China to help, for it may be the only nation capable
of mobilizing 200,000,000 fighters for an army.
Such a conflict would naturally involve the West,
however, as those nations probably would assist
Israel.
Whatever theto
scenario,
this and
final battle
will usher in
II. Coming
Rule
Reign
the second part of Jesus’ coming. This time, He will
come as the victor to set up His kingdom where He
will rule and reign for one thousand years.
Certainly, theto
LordRule
is worthyand
to ruleReign
and reign over
II. Coming
the earth. “Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive
glory and honour and power: for thou hast created
all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were
created” (Revelation 4:11).
Waiting
for
His
III. Waiting for His Coming
Coming
(A)
A. Watching
We should be watching for the signs of Christ’s
coming. Jesus never spoke of His return in terms of
time, but He did speak of the conditions that would
surround His return. We should busy ourselves in
preparation for His return by studying to recognize
the conditions of our day (Matthew 24:6-14), and
we should leave the timing of His coming to Him
(Acts 1:7).
III. There
Waiting
forsigns
His
Coming
are numerous
concerning
this intriguing
and frequently confusing subject. Jesus emphasized
(A)
to His disciples that we know neither the day nor the
hour of His return (Matthew 24:36). This fact causes
many people to shy away from giving serious study
to the Second Coming. Yet, His statement was only
a warning against those who try to force God into a
specific timetable for His coming.
III. Israel
Waiting
for His
plays a remarkable
role inComing
this thrilling event.
The prophet Zechariah recorded, “Thus saith the
(A)
Lord of hosts; Behold, I will save my people from
the east country, and from the west country; and I
will bring them, and they shall dwell in the midst of
Jerusalem: and they shall be my people, and I will
be their God, in truth and in righteousness”
(Zechariah 8:7-8).
III. This
Waiting
for His
is an unequivocal,
certain,Coming
and clear promise of
the Jews’ returning to the ancient Holy Land and
(A)
becoming a nation. On May 15, 1948, the world
witnessed the fulfillment of that part of Zechariah’s
prophecy.
III. Jeremiah
Waiting
foralsoHis
Coming
the prophet
affirmed,
“Thus saith the
Lord of hosts, the God of Israel; As yet they shall
(A)
use this speech in the land of Judah and in the cities
thereof, when I shall bring again their captivity”
(Jeremiah 31:23). Today Hebrew is the official
language after having fallen into disuse for
centuries.
III. Jesus’
Waiting
symbolismfor
of theHis
fig treeComing
denoted noteworthy
events relative to the Second Coming (Matthew
(A)
24:32). The fig tree symbolizes the nation of Israel,
which is flourishing. However, Jesus did not
mention fruit in the tree at this stage of history.
There is little religion in Israel as pilgrims returning
from there testify.
III. What
Waiting
fortoHis
Coming
is most baffling
Christian
believers, who
are aware of such prophecies, is that many modern
(A)
Israelis see no religious or prophetic connotation to
their existence today. A top official from that land
stated, “We see only political meaning to our land.”
There are tragically very few Christian believers
(fruit) among the Jews.
III. Zechariah
Waiting
forfive
His
Coming
prophesied
hundred
years before the
birth of Jesus of Israel’s future repentance. (See
(A)
Zechariah 12:10.) There also are similar passages in
the writings of Hosea, Amos, Micah, and others.
III. The
Waiting
for
Hisa world
Coming
fact is that we
are now
blinded by our
material and physical needs, plagued by political
(A)
intrigue and pride. Our lifestyle is much the way that
it was in the days of Noah. (See Matthew 24:38-39.)
Corruption is prevalent, immorality is called the new
morality, and wealth rules the earth. Immorality,
drunken lifestyles, illegal drugs, murder, stealing,
divorce, and other social maladies spell out the
impending doom of God’s righteous judgment upon
the wicked.
III. Scriptures
Waiting
His Coming
predictfor
a remarkable
increase in
knowledge as a significant sign of the conditions on
(A)
earth at the time of Jesus’ second coming. (See
Daniel 12:4.) Interestingly, more than one-half of
mankind’s knowledge has been acquired in the past
few decades. Moreover, 95 percent of all scientists
who have ever lived are living and working today.
III. Mathematics,
Waitingmedicine,
for His
Coming
marketing,
astronomy,
biology, farming, archeology, space technology, and
(A)
electronic communication are almost new fields
because of recent and brilliant discoveries and
advancements. However, it is only knowledge—not
wisdom—that is predicted to precede Christ’s
return.
III. The
Waiting
His
Coming
apostle Paul for
warned
Timothy
concerning the
spiritual climate of the Second Coming in such
(A)
detail that one would think he was living in our age.
“This know also, that in the last days
perilous times shall come. For men
Timothy
3:1-5own selves,
shall beII lovers
of their
covetous, boasters, proud,
blasphemers, disobedient to parents,
unthankful, unholy, without natural
affection, trucebreakers, false
accusers, incontinent, fierce,
despisers of those that are good,
traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of
pleasures more than lovers of God;
having a form of godliness, but
denying the power thereof: from such
turn away” (II Timothy 3:1-5).
III. Just
Waiting
His
before Jesus’for
return,
there Coming
will exist a great
hunger for peace worldwide (I Thessalonians 5:3).
(A)
Jesus declared that our world would experience a
terrible time of affliction or pressure: “For in those
days shall be affliction, such as was not from the
beginning of the creation which God created unto
this time, neither shall be” (Mark 13:19).
III. Mankind
Waiting
for
His Coming
is indeed
experiencing
this pressure
politically, economically, physically, and mentally
(A)
during our day—and it obviously is set to become
only worse. As God’s children scan world horizons
through the telescope of the “sure word of
prophecy,” they believe that the stage is being set for
the coming of the Antichrist. (See Daniel 8:25.)
III. How
Waiting
Coming
bright is thefor
futureHis
for God’s
children who
cherish “that blessed hope, and the glorious
(A)
appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus
Christ” (Titus 2:13)! In contrast, how dark and
dismal is the outlook and future for those who fail to
reckon with God and His gloom-dispelling, hopekindling prophetic Word!
III. Jesus
Waiting
Histhings
Coming
said, “And for
when these
begin to come to
pass, then look up, and lift up your heads; for your
(A)
redemption draweth nigh” (Luke 21:28). Certainly,
“the coming of the Lord draweth nigh” (James 5:8).
III. Jesus
Waiting
for His
further announced,
“AndComing
this gospel of the
kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a
(A)
witness unto all nations; and then shall the end
come” (Matthew 24:14). Apostolic organizations are
sending out many missionaries today as they attempt
to fulfill this prophecy. The latter day outpouring of
the Holy Spirit and the flood of translations of the
Bible into the languages of the world are fulfilling
numerous prophetic passages.
III. The
Waiting
world rushesfor
madlyHis
towardComing
its rendezvous with
destiny like a roaring current into the sea of God’s
(A)
horrifying judgment. However, the Christian moves
toward the fulfillment of his ultimate hope. The
apostle Peter foretold the coming of Jesus and
challenged us, “What manner of persons ought ye to
be in all holy conversation and godliness” (II Peter
3:11).
III. Indeed,
Waiting
forhope
His
our ultimate
is theComing
second coming of
Christ. God’s love was demonstrated through His
(A)
first coming, but His judgment will be poured out in
His second coming. However, for the believer, the
Second Coming will be the beginning of the
fulfillment of his ultimate hope in Jesus Christ. He
does not fear that day but looks for it with great
anticipation.
III. InWaiting
HisbeComing
these last days,for
we should
careful not to allow
our love for God and for lost souls to wax cold. We
(A)
should not allow the material and physical needs of
our time to blind our eyes to His soon appearing. We
must not lose our passion for the lost of this world
as we weep for our cities and nations. Over six
billion people now live in our world as the darkness
grows more intensive, extensive, and expensive.
More than ever before, we should be the light of the
world and the salt of the earth.
Transparency 3
B. Preparing
III.
III.Waiting
Waiting for
for His
His Coming
Coming
The writer of the Book of Hebrews entreated, “Let
(A)
(B)
us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of
faith. . . . Let us hold fast the profession of our faith
. . . not forsaking the assembling of ourselves
together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting
one another: and so much the more, as ye see the
day approaching” (Hebrews 10:22-23, 25).
Paul instructed Timothy that in light of the Lord’s
III.
III.Waiting
Waiting
for
for
His
His
Coming
Coming
coming, we should keep His commandments—
keep ourselves
pure. (See I Timothy 5:22; 6:14).
(A)
(B)
We should live a life of obedience as we anticipate
the second coming of the Lord. The Lord desires
for every person to have the opportunity to hear the
gospel of Jesus Christ. (See Matthew 24:14.)
Therefore, it behooves the church to be about the
business of evangelism. This is the will of God for
the church in the last days as we prepare for His
coming.
Reflections
No one knows the day or the hour when the Lord is
coming back for His bride. After taking His church
before the judgment seat to receive rewards, all
believers will participate in the Marriage Supper of
the Lamb.
Reflections
Next, the Lord is coming back in judgment to lead
the charge in the Battle of Armageddon. Following
this final battle, Jesus Christ will rule and reign
over the earth.
Reflections
We should be waiting for His coming to catch us
away, watching for the signs of that day with great
anticipation. We should be preparing for His
coming by “not forsaking the assembling of
ourselves together.” Together, we should keep His
commandments, live pure lives, and evangelize our
world.