Sermon #484 Miscellaneous Sermons

Title: The Second Coming Of Our Lord

Text: 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18

Reading:

Subject: The glorious advent of the Son of God

Date: Thursday Evening - March 3, 1983

Tape #

Introduction:

Get hold of this blessed fact - Our Lord Jesus Christ is coming again. Just as he came in humiliation to redeem his people, he shall come a second time in power and great glory to resurrect his people from the grave and to reign upon the earth. The promise was given when our Lord ascended up to heaven in glory - “This same Jesus, which is taken from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven.” We are “Looking for,” anticipating, “that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Savior Jesus Christ.” My subject tonight is - The Second Coming of Our Lord. Here are five facts about the second advent.

1. Our Lord could come at any moment (Rev. 1:7).

There is nothing necessary to prepare for the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ. The time is at hand. “Lift up your heads, your redemption draweth nigh.” Indeed, the sense of scripture is that our glorious Redeemer is presently coming; he is on his way now. We should live, moment by moment, in anticipation of his glorious appearance.

2. Our Lord is coming in power and great glory (2 Thess. 1:7-10).

The Bible nowhere speaks of our Lord coming in secret to rapture the church and then coming again in judgment seven years later. The second advent of Christ will be a climatic thing. Suddenly, he shall appear in glory.

3. Our Lord will come in a real body (Rev. 1:7).

I will not attempt to say what the glory of his body will be; but two things are sure: Christ will come in a physical body, the same body in which he hung upon the cross. And his body will be so glorious, so bright, so dazzling, that every living creature shall see him, and the earth shall melt before him.

4. When Christ comes a mighty resurrection shall take place (John 5:28-29).

The resurrection of the just - The people of God shall be raised to immortality, life, and eternal glory. The body of flesh shall be gathered from the dust, and in those bodies we shall see the Lord, our Redeemer (Job 19:25-27).

The resurrection of the wicked - The ungodly, the unbelieving, shall also be raised, their bodies shall become immortal and untied to their souls, so that they may endure everlasting damnation in hell.

5. At the second coming of Christ, this world shall be destroyed and He will create new heavens and a new earth (2 Pet. 3:10-14; Rom. 8:18-23).

The people of God will not spend eternity floating around like ghosts in the air. In these very bodies, we shall live for ever upon the new earth. Heaven shall be brought to the earth. Righteousness shall reign here. And the Paradise of God, the heavenly city, shall be with men.

Before we look into the text, let me give you a little background information. Thessalonica was a large and prosperous city of commerce. Paul came to this city after leaving Philipi, and stayed for about three weeks, preaching every sabbath day. His ministry there was greatly blessed of God. Some Jews, a large number of Gentiles, and many women were converted. This group of new converts was the beginning of a gospel church in Thessalonica. And these are the people to whom Paul addressed this his first inspired letter.

But the unbelieving Jews of the city were so upset by Paul’s success that they raised an angry mob and assaulted the house of Jason, where Paul was staying, Paul and Silas escaped by night and went to Berea, and from there they came to Athens. But, being concerned about the welfare of this young church, Paul sent Timothy back to Thessalonica to confirm, establish, and comfort God’s saints. He wrote this letter and sent it to the church there, hoping to encourage them in their afflictions and sufferings, and the exhort them to stand fast in the faith of Christ and the ordinances of the gospel.

Proposition:

And in this epistle, Paul gives the people of God clear instructions concerning the resurrection of the dead and the second coming of our Lord, for the comfort of their hearts and the encouragement of their faith.

Divisions:

In these verses, Paul gives us five words of comfort about the second coming of our Lord. He gives us a word of comfort about…

1. Our departed friends (vv. 13-15).

2. Our Lord’s return (v. 16).

3. The living saints (v. 17).

4. Our glorious reunion (v. 17).

5. Our final position (v. 17).

I. First, Paul gives us A WORD OF COMFORT ABOUT OUR DEPARTED FRIENDS (vv. 13-15).

We have all been to the funeral home. We have taken many to the cemetery. We all have many friends and loved ones who died in the faith. Here Paul admonishes us not to be in sorrow for those who are taken from us, as though we had no hope.

NOTE: There is some sorrow that comes when a loved one is taken from us. But if that one who is taken from us is a believer, if he dies in Christ, there is no reason for us to be despair, or to sorrow and mourn as those who have no hope. Don’t be ignorant about those who are taken from us.

A. When the believer dies, he simply falls asleep in the arms of Christ. What could be more comforting than that?

· Lazarus (John 11:11-13).

· Stephen (Acts 7:54-60).

It is truly a blessed thing, a thing to be desired, to fall to sleep in the arms of Christ. It is the believer entering into his long awaited sabbath, his rest with the Lord. The body falls to sleep, and the soul awakes (Rev. 14:13).

NOTE: It is only the body which sleeps in the grave. The soul never sleeps. At death the soul enters into a state of activity, such as cannot be known in this world. There is no such thing as soul sleep.

1. Immediately upon death, the soul enters into a temporary state, an intermediate body, in which it lives between death and the resurrection (2 Cor. 5:1-10; Lk. 16:19-31).

2. The children of God go immediately into the bliss of heaven (Lk. 23:43; Phil. 1:21-23; Rev. 7:15-17).

3. The unbelieving go immediately into hell (The Rich Man).

B. None of God’s elect die until it pleases the Lord to bring them home.

Our departed friends are with the Lord. They are beholding his glory, feeding upon the Tree of Life, and drinking from the Fountain that flows from the throne of God. Why should we weep for them?

C. When our Lord comes, their bodies shall be raised from the graves.

Those who have died in the faith will lose nothing by having fallen to sleep in Christ. They shall be raised first. We who are alive when Christ comes will have to wait for a moment, until the dead in Christ arise. It will be glorious waiting, but we will have to wait (vv. 15-16).

NOTE: Beloved, we must learn to confidently rest in hope of the resurrection. The resurrection of Christ secured the resurrection of his people.

1. Christ is called the firstfruits of the resurrection, the firstborn from the dead. If he is the first, there must be at least a second.

2. The resurrection of the body is that for which we hope (1 Cor. 15:17-23; 52-54).

3. Though this hope of the resurrection was not so bright in the Old Testament church as it is today, yet, it was clearly revealed even to the saints of that age (Psa. 16:9-11; 17:15; 73:24).

The wise man said, “The wicked is driven away in his wickedness: but the righteous hath hope in his death” (Psa. 14:32).This is what I am saying, Christ arose as our Surety, and as surely as he arose all who are in him must also rise from the dead (Col. 3:1-4).

II. Secondly, Paul gives us A WORD OF COMFORT ABOUT THE SECOND COMING OF OUR LORD (v. 16).

This is the blessed hope which we anticipate. The Lord himself shall descend from heaven. He came once and was despised and rejected of men. He came once in humiliation and sorrow to suffer and die. But he is coming again in power and great glory to reign. In this earth, in the place where the battle was fought and the victory won, King Jesus must reign gloriously.

A. Our great King shall return with a shout of triumph and victory; The voice of the archangel and the trump of God shall sound.

1. The trumpet-blast shall announce the coming of the great King.

2. The trumpet-blast shall sound the glorious year of jubilee for God’s elect - Then we shall be free!

3. The trumpet-blast shall announce the mighty conquest of our King.

a. Death shall be swallowed up in victory.

b. Satan shall be thrown into the lake of fire.

c. Every rebel shall be crushed with the rod of his strength and consumed with the brightness of his glory.

4. The Lord’s coming will be public, visible, and audible. The reverberating sound will go through the universe.

a. Every eye shall see him.

b. All of God’s elect shall be gathered from the four corners of the earth.

c. The wicked shall wail because of him, and the saints shall rejoice (2 Thess. 1:7-10).

B. Children of God, lift up your heads with hope in anticipation of this great day - Our Lord, Our Redeemer, is coming again.

1. He is coming for his bride.

2. He is coming Himself.

3. He is coming soon.

· The One who stood as my Surety.

· The One who lived for me.

· The One who died for me.

· The One who intercedes for me.

III. Here is A WORD OF COMFORT REGARDING THE LIVING SAINTS (v. 17).

“We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed” (1 Cor. 15:51). There will be a remnant of God’s elect living upon the earth. But at the last day, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, we shall all be caught up and changed. A glorious transfiguration shall take place. Like Elijah, we shall be swept up into glory in a full array. It could happen today. No; it could happen before my next word is spoken!

IV. Fourthly, HERE IS A WORD OF COMFORT CONCERNING OUR GLORIOUS REUNION (v. 17). “Caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air.”

The air is spoken of in scripture as the sphere of Satan’s power. He is called “the prince of the power of the air.” This is what Paul is saying, the transfiguration and reunion of Christ’s redeemed ones will take place right in the heart of satan’s territory! The Lamb that was slain, and all the hosts of his elect shall be victorious and Satan shall be shamed, mocked, and defeated. Today, it appears that he is loosed for a little season; but his days are numbered. Soon, King Jesus will throw the old serpent into the lake of fire. And, at that moment, a glorious reunion shall take place.

A. All the saints of God shall be united.

This appears to be the order of things -

· Christ will descend.

· The dead shall be raised.

· The living shall be snatched up to meet the Lord.

· The world shall be destroyed and recreated.

· We shall come to the earth with Christ.

NOTE: This word “meet” is only used four times in the New Testament (Matt. 25:1, 6; Acts 28:15). It always implies a friendly encounter.

Chrysostom said, “When a king enters the city the loyal go forth to meet him; the criminals, in confinement, await their judge.”

It is in this way that the Kingdom of God shall come to the earth (Rev. 21:1-5).

B. In that blessed hour, Christ shall see of the travail of his soul and shall be satisfied.

All who were given to him in the everlasting covenant, redeemed by him at Calvary, called by his spirit, and all for whom he has made intercession these two thousand years, shall be with him; they shall see his face; there shall be one fold and one Shepherd; and they shall be one (John 10:16).

C. Would you be a part of this glorious reunion?

You are freely invited to come to Christ today (Rev. 22:17). If you refuse to come, there will be no mercy for you in that day.

V. Then, Paul gives us this fifth WORD OF COMFORT REGARDING OUR FINAL POSITION (v. 17). “So shall we ever be with the Lord” (Rev. 22:3-5).

· We have been redeemed by him.

· We shall be made like him (1 John 3:2).

· Then we shall be forever with him.

He has gone to prepare a place for us, and when his intercessory work is done and all his elect are saved, he shall come again and receive us unto himself, that where he is, there we may be also. Then, his great prayer shall be answered (John 17:24).

· Earth’s greatest blessing is to find him.

· Heaven’s greatest honor is to be with him. And this is promised to all who trust him.

Application:

Now, my friends, comfort yourselves and one another with these words (John 14:1-3).

· Our departed friends are safe.

· Our risen Lord is coming again.

· We shall soon be changed.

· Soon the whole family of God shall be united.

· We shall forever be with the Lord.