Revelation 22:3-5; “No longer will there be anything accursed, but the Throne of God and of the Lamb will be in it, and His servants will worship Him. They will see His face, and His name will be on their foreheads. And night will be nor more. They will need no light of lamp or sun, for the Lord God will be their light, and they will reign forever and ever.” (ESV -all emphasis is mine)

Matthew 24:36, 44; “But concerning that day and hour, no one knows; not even the angels of Heaven, nor the Son, but the Father only. Therefore, you also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.”

There are two instances where Jesus will return; the Rapture and the Second Coming, and the exact day and hour for each is not given.

In Revelation 1:7, John tells us, “Behold He is coming with the clouds, and every eye shall see Him, even those who pierced Him, and all the tribes of the earth will wail on account of Him. Even so, Amen.”

The fact that every eye will see Him tells us this is the actual return of Jesus to earth to rule for the millennium from Jerusalem. Sadly, by the end of the thousand years, there will be those who will team up with Satan who will have been bound in a bottomless pit up to then.

Revelation 20: 1-3; “Then I saw an angel coming down from Heaven, holding in his hand the key to the bottomless pit, and a great chain. And he seized the dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years, and threw him into the pit and shut and sealed it over him, so that he might not deceive the nations any longer until the thousand years were ended. After that, he must be released for a little while.”

One would believe that with Satan bound and unable to perform his evil deeds, no one would be subject to sin. Especially with our Lord and Savior actually on this earth and on a throne in Jerusalem. This time, Jesus will not be here as a sacrifice but as Lord of Lords and King of Kings.

When Satan is released, we’re told he would come out and “deceive the nations that are at the four corners of the earth” (Revelation 20:7-8). And their numbers that will follow him are like the sand of the sea. He would have them believe that they would be able to defeat Jesus, but fire will come down from Heaven and consume them (Revelation 20:9).

After this, the White Throne Judgment will take place where all from the beginning of time up to Calvary who were out of the will of the Father, and all from Calvary to the end of the millennial reign of the Savior that had never received or accepted Him will receive their eternal punishment. No one at that Judgment will escape from the Lake of Fire.

The Rapture of all believers, alive and deceased, will take place prior to the seven-year tribulation. Jesus will appear, but only to those who are taken up into the clouds to meet Him.

The Rapture is described in 1 Thessalonians 4:13-17;

“But we do not want you to be uninformed, brothers, about those who are asleep, that you may not grieve as others do that have no hope. For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, through Jesus, God will bring with Him those who have fallen asleep. For this we declare to you by a word from the Lord, that we who are alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep.

“For the Lord Himself will descend from Heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and the sound of the Trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord.” (Note: Paul said “brothers,” but this includes all believing sisters as well.)

Paul also tells us in 1 Corinthians 15:51-53, “Behold, I tell you a mystery. We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed. For this perishable body must put on the imperishable, and this mortal body must put on immortality.”

The Rapture will only be fully witnessed by those who are a part of it. For the ones who are left behind, all they will know is a number of people have instantly disappeared. “Twinkling of an eye” has been calculated by experts at considerably less than one second.

For those who are left behind, during the tribulation they will still be able to call out to Jesus for eternal Salvation, but because of the absolute rule by the ultimate antichrist and false prophet, they will most likely be martyred for doing so.

It should be noted that the unforgivable sin right now is to pass from this life without having Jesus as your Savior. During the tribulation, taking the mark of the beast will also be unforgivable (Revelation 14:9-11).

Christians are not immune from answering for what we do in this life. In 2 Corinthians 5:10, we’re told, “For we must all appear before the Judgment Seat Of Christ, so that each may receive what is due for what he has done in the body, whether good or evil.” We will receive or lose rewards for our actions here but will still be with Jesus in Heaven forever.

What A Day That Will Be! This is the title of a beautiful hymn from 1955 written by Jim Hill (1930-2018). Hopefully, you will experience the blessing that awaits all true believers of the Lord and Savior.

1) There is coming a day when no heartaches will come. No more clouds in the sky, no more tears to dim the eye. All is peace forevermore on that happy golden shore; What A Day, Glorious Day, that will be.

Ref.) What a day that will be, when my Jesus I shall see. When I look upon His face, the One who saved me by His grace. When He takes me by the hand and leads me to the Promised Land. What a day, glorious day, that will be.

2) There’ll be no sorrows there, and no more burdens to bear. No more sickness and no more pain; no more parting over there. And forever I will be with the One who died for me. What a day, glorious day, that will be. (ref)

Today would not be too early to call on the Savior. Each passing day brings us closer to the Trumpet of God and the shout from an archangel. All who have called on the name of the Lord prior to this will be taken up to meet Him. Don’t be left behind! All the signs of the end of this age are here now. The Rapture could be at any moment now.

Mara-natha! Come, Lord Jesus!

huebshman46@gmail.com

 

 

Scripture References: Matthew 10:1-4; Mark 10:35; Luke 9:49; John 1:35, 2:9-10, 12:21-22; Acts 3:1-11; Revelation 1:9

Summary: Our look at the twelve apostles continues with the “inner circle,” or most notable in the Scriptures due to their words and work.

The list of the twelve ordinary men commissioned by the Lord Jesus Christ to preach the Gospel always lists Simon Peter as the first due to his character, his devotion to Jesus, and his task of being the leader of the twelve and his role of both the pastor and teacher to the “sheep” and “lambs” that would become part of Christ’s flock. The next apostle listed is the exact opposite of Peter’s brash personality, and that person was his brother Andrew. He was quiet, inquisitive, and always seeking the spiritual life. He is also noted for bringing people to Jesus. He was a master of what would become personal or one-on-one evangelism.

The name Andrew means “manly” in Aramaic, which was the common language of the community around Galilee. In Greek, the language in which the New Testament was written, his name is translated as “Andreas.” He was a native of Galilee, specifically from the town of Bethsaida, and a fisherman like his brother. They were in a partnership with James and John, the sons of Zebedee. Andrew had originally been a disciple of John the Baptist. The Baptist introduced Jesus to the community (John 1:35) and told both Andrew and John to leave him and to follow Jesus instead. They ended up spending an entire day with the Lord (John 1:38). Andrew brought Peter to meet Jesus (John 1:42).

He brought the boy who had loaves and fish to Jesus, who used them to feed 5,000 or more men, women, and children, a miracle that is recorded in all four gospels (John 6:8-9). He also brought Greek inquirers to meet Jesus (John 12: 21-22). He was one of the apostles who asked Jesus about the end times (Mark 13: 31). Andrew was later martyred for his preaching about Jesus. Traction tells us he witnessed to the wife of a Roman official, who ordered to have him whipped and nailed to an “X” shaped cross. For three days while slowly dying, he pleaded with anyone who passed by to come to Christ for salvation. Andrew would become the patron saint of both Scotland and Russia.

The next apostle listed is James. He is the brother of John, not to be confused with James, the half-brother of Jesus, the author of the letter that bears his name. He became pastor of the church at Jerusalem. James, the brother of John, was known for his fiery temperament and nicknamed “the son of thunder.” He was called by Jesus while working with his father Zebedee (Matthew 4:21; Mark 1:14; Luke 5:10). He was an eyewitness to the Transfiguration of Jesus (Matthew 17:1; Mark 9:2; Luke 9:28). He also witnessed the daughter of Jairus raised to life by Jesus (Mark 5:37; Luke 8:51) and was in the Garden of Gethsemane with the Lord on the night of Jesus’ betrayal, arrest, and crucifixion (Matthew 26:37; Mark 14:33).

After the resurrection of Jesus, his temper and animosity toward those who opposed Jesus gave way to becoming a dedicated preacher of the Gospel and a soul winner (Mark 16:15; Acts 1:8-11, 2:1-4). Tradition states that he traveled to Spain to preach the Gospel as well as in Judaea and Samaria. He was put to death by Herod Agrippa in AD 44. He was the first apostle to die a martyr. The “son of thunder” became a saint of God.

The last member of the apostolic “inner circle” was John. He would write five books of the New Testament. This includes his Gospel, three letters, and Revelation. He played a major role in the first-century church, bringing the Gospel to Asia Minor (present-day Turkey), and served as pastor of the church of Ephesus, which had been founded by the apostle Paul.

John’s writings put an emphasis upon love, specifically a Christian’s love for Christ, Christ’s love for the church, and love for one another. In his early years, he had been a disciple of John the Baptist like Andrew (John 1). He was called from his father’s fishing business by Jesus soon afterward (Matthew 4:21; Mark 1:18). Like his brother James, he was also known as a “son of thunder” and at times demonstrated pettiness and vindictiveness toward anyone outside of the twelve (Mark 9: 38-41; Luke9: 49-50, 54-56).

In his later ministry with Jesus, he was an eyewitness to the raising of Jairus’ daughter and the Transfiguration (Matthew 17:1; Mark 5:37, 9:2: Luke. 8:51, 9:28). He also learned humbling lessons about true greatness (Matthew 20:20-28; Mark 10:35-45). As Jesus ministered and demonstrated His love not only to His people but to the Gentiles (non-Jewish) (John 4; Matthew 15:21–28; Mark 7:24-30), John learned to love others as well, and he and Jesus forged a bond of devotion that is found throughout his Gospel.

In the later ministry with Jesus, he was at the Last Supper (John 13: 23), cared for Jesus’ mother (John 19:25-27), and was an eyewitness to the empty tomb (20: 2, 8). His life and work became a living testimony to the early church and believers throughout history (21:20-25). He was active in the development and leadership of the first-century church, as recorded in the book of Acts, and in his later years, even when he was sent to the island of Patmos as a punishment from Rome for preaching about Jesus (Revelation 1:1, 9). He was the only apostle to die a “natural” death. He died of old age in Ephesus around 98 AD. With his death, the apostolic era came to an end. The Canon of Scripture was completed, and the full record of God’s actions and words was established forever.

The next group of apostles is not as prominent in the New Testament, but they were chosen by the Lord Jesus to accomplish His will and carry on His mission. That is in itself an honor. We are the heirs of that honor as He still commands us to go and preach the Gospel to every living creature until He returns. Our study of the other apostles and their work will continue in the next message.

donaldwhitchard@outlook.com

https://ocosbe.org/donald-whitchard/