MEMORISE:
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: 1 Thessalonians 4:16
READ: Acts 1:9-11
9 And when he had spoken these things, while they beheld, he was taken up; and a cloud received him out of their sight.
10 And while they looked stedfastly toward heaven as he went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel;
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.
MESSAGE
One of the anchors of our faith in Christ ia the hope that He is coming back. Again (1 John 3:2-3). Unfortunately, not a lot of people are still excited about this great event, which will surely take place. As a matter of fact, teachings on the last days and second coming of Christ have not been heard in some churches in the last five to ten years! This is not surprising because this attitude is in line with what the Lord foretold would happen in the last days, saying in Luke 17:26-27:
“And as it was in the days of Noe, so shall it be also in the days of the Son of man. They did eat, they drank, they married wives, they were given in marriage, until the day that Noah entered into the ark, and the flood came, and destroyed them all.”
As revealed by the Holy Spirit in today’s memory verse, the Lord’s coming is not going to be a secret event. He is coming with great grandeur, in His true personality as the King of kings and the Lord of lords. It is laughable that some so-called scholars claim that Jesus has already come secretly, while some others claim He has changed His mind and is not coming back again! On the day of His ascension, the angels who spoke with the disciples made it clear that He will return the same way He left.
There are some salient truths about the King we are expecting that we need to establish today. First is that He interacted with His disciples for forty days after His resurrection from the Dead, and He even ate with them (Acts 1:3, John 21:7-15). So, He is not a ghost, an apparition or the result of the disciples’ hallucinations. He was seen by over five hundred men, not counting the women who were also His disciples (1 Corinthians 15:4-8). So, his resurrection from the grave is not based on the wishful-thinking of just a few fanatics. Secondly, He ascended into heaven through the sky in the presence of His disciples. There was no gimmick or hidden magic trick about it. After His ascension, angels testified that He would return in like manner. Therefore, nobody should be deceived that Jesus Christ has secretly returned. As a matter of fact, He has no reason to return in secret. In light of these truths, believers must be ready for the imminent return of the King of kings. The amazing thing is that despite the stories Jesus told about kings who traveled and returned requesting accountability from their servants, many do not seem to understand that these parables are intended to prepare us for the events of the last days. I pray that you will be wise enough as the children of Issachar to accurately observe and understand the times and seasons we live in (1 Chronicles 12:32). God will keep you to the very end in Jesus’ Name.
PRAYER POINT:
Father, please let me not be put to shame at the return of the King of Kings, in Jesus’ Name.
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Ecclesiastes 4-7
Malachi 1
AUTHOR: PASTOR E. A. ADEBOYE
HYMN 17: HOLD THE FORTH.
1. Ho, my comrades, see the signal, waving in the sky!
Reinforcements now appearing, victory is nigh.
o Refrain:
“Hold the fort, for I am coming,” Jesus signals still;
Wave the answer back to Heaven, “By Thy grace we will.”
2. See the mighty host advancing, Satan leading on;
Mighty ones around us falling, courage almost gone!
3. See the glorious banner waving! Hear the trumpet blow!
In our Leader’s Name we triumph over every foe.
4. Fierce and long the battle rages, but our help is near;
Onward comes our great Commander, cheer, my comrades, cheer!
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