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There are many Christians who are looking forward with great joy to the return of the Lord. In our scripture readings for today we are given reasons to rejoice in the return of Jesus to earth as the King overall the world and also reasons to be anxious. On this first day of the Christian calendar, it is somewhat disquieting that we are warned of earthquakes and cosmic calamities that will usher in the return of Jesus the Christ.
Most of us would much rather focus on our Christmas shopping, decorating and planning for the celebration of the birth of Jesus than to contemplate the end of the world as we know it. Yet, the world changed when Jesus first took on the form of human flesh and entered this world through the womb of a virgin. At Christ’s birth the heavens revealed to the wise men the place of where to find this newborn king by the appearance of an unusual cosmic event with the birth of a new star. Then at Christ’s death on the cross the veil in the Temple was torn in two when the earth was cracked open by an earthquake. So it is only fitting that these two signs will herald the return of the King of Kings.
The prophet Zechariah warns us that the Lord’s return will cause such a great earthquake that “the Mount of Olives shall split in two from east to west by a very wide valley” as the precursor of the Lord’s return. When this occurs, Zechariah writes, “then the Lord my God will come, and all the holy ones with him”. As Christians, we believe that this will begin the reign of Christ as the King of all.
Concerning Jesus’ return Luke writes, “Jesus said, ‘There will be signs in the sun, the moon, and the stars, and on the earth distress among nations confused by the roaring of the sea and the waves. People will faint from fear and foreboding of what is coming upon the world, for the powers of the heavens will be shaken.” In other words, there will be an unprecedented cosmic activity in the heavens that will affect the oceans and bodies of water causing cataclysmic tidal waves that will threaten to flood the whole world. Notice I said ‘threaten’ because the Lord God promised back in the Book of Genesis to Noah that He would never destroy the earth again by flooding it. Please turn in your pew Bibles to page seven, chapter eight. We will be reading verses twenty through twenty-two.
“Then Noah built an altar to the Lord, and took of every clean animal and every clean bird, and offered burnt offerings on the altar. And when the Lord smelled the pleasing odor, then the Lord said in His heart, ‘I will never again curse the ground because of humankind, for the inclination of the human heart is evil from youth; nor will I ever again destroy every living creature as I have done.
As long as the earth endures, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night, will not cease.’”
This is the promise of God Almighty. Unlike we humans who have a tendency to break our promises, the Lord never breaks His promises. So we can only surmise that the folks who are so upset about this seemingly impending disaster are unbelievers who are either not aware of God’s promise or do not believe the Word of God.
Yet, whether or not folks believe in God’s protection and provision, after the heavens are shaken; then the Lord Jesus will return in great glory. For believers this news should not be frightening or the signs that accompany the return of the Lord; because they are sent from God to announce the entrance of the King of Kings. This will be the beginning of the real New Age when every knee will bow and proclaim Christ as King. For the believers this will be a time of great joy, but for the unbelievers it will be a time of judgment.
In this prophesy we as Christians find great hope for the return of Christ will usher in the reign of the King of Kings. Christ’s rule on earth is revealed to us in John’s writing of the Revelation. Turn to page 1403 in your pew Bible. We will be reading from chapter twenty-one, verses one through eight.
Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. And I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying,
‘See, the home of God is among mortals. He will dwell with them; they will be his peoples, and God himself will be with them; he will wipe every tear from their eyes. Death will be no more; mourning and crying and pain will be no more, for the first things have passed away.’
And the one who was seated on the throne said, ‘See, I am making all things new.’ Also he said, ‘Write this, for these words are trustworthy and true.’ Then he said to me, ‘It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. To the thirsty I will give water as a gift from the spring of the water of life. Those who conquer will inherit these things, and I will be their God and they will be my children. But as for the cowardly, the faithless, the polluted, the murderers, the fornicators, the sorcerers, the idolaters, and all liars, their place will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulphur, which is the second death.’
The scriptures bring hope to the faithful, but those who refuse to follow the teachings of Christ are doomed to a second death. This is the judgment of the Lord. Unlike political correctness, the Lord’s judgment does not allow much grey area given for humans who have lived their lives following the desires of the flesh. So how do we, who have sinned against God, escape such an awful fate?
God has given us a Way to receive Life and not eternal death. The Way to eternal Life is through Jesus Christ, the only Begotten Son of God. God the Father sent His Son, Jesus, into the world to be the Atonement for all of our sins. This is God’s amazing gift of love for all of humanity. Yet, astonishingly, many choose to reject this most generous gift from the Lord. Imagine just for a moment how that must break our Father God’s heart.
I do not believe that the Lord takes pleasure in the deaths of those who have refused to accept His Son, Jesus as their Atonement for Their sins. Instead, I believe that the Lord God Almighty weeps at the deaths of sinners who have refused His gift of forgiveness. No matter our race or gender, humans have been created in the image of God. The gift of salvation comes with the simple price of saying yes to the Lord and accepting Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. After taking this step of faith and being baptized into the Body of Christ through the waters of baptism, we are called to live a life of holiness.
In Paul’s first letter to the Thessalonians, we find these words of encouragement, “May the Lord make you increase and abound in love for one another and for all, just as we abound in love for you. And may he so strengthen your hearts in holiness that you may be blameless before our God and Father at the coming of our Lord Jesus with all his saints.”
The reason that these are words of comfort is because Paul is not telling the believers to love one another or be holy on their own. Instead, Paul is praying that the Lord Jesus will prepare them by opening up their hearts to love one another. He also knows that they cannot be holy on their own, but that they need the Lord to ‘strengthen their hearts in holiness’. These gifts, the gift of love for others and the gift of holiness come from the Lord.
It is in our human nature to love ourselves and to be selfish. Only when we allow the Lord to change us can we know what it is like to love those whom we would naturally find to be repugnant. Only through the divine intervention of Christ in our lives can we know true holiness, because holiness is a godly attribute not a human one.
Holiness is not usually instantaneous. It is the fruit of living in submission to Jesus Christ. Holiness is a process of self denial that is contrary to human desires. It comes from abstaining from the desires of the flesh and seeking in its place to live a life that is evident of the fruit of the Holy Spirit; which is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. When these fruits are evidenced in our lives, then we can be assured that they are from the Holy Spirit. We can be assured of this, because our human nature goes against a life that is lived for God.
As we begin this Advent Season, let us seek the Lord to guide us in the ways of holiness that we may be found worthy when Jesus returns. May we seek this Advent to open our hearts in love to the Lord who has given us hope in place of judgment through Jesus the Christ. Let us remember that the Hope for the entire world is found in Jesus, the Gift of Love. May the Lord help us to be willing to share His love with others.
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