If Jesus is Coming Back Soon, What's Taking So Long? | Doug Batchelor

bible on it and we can write some of the others down but we're going to find out what the bible has to say about this subject few things can be more climatic than the truth about the second coming of jesus and yet i encounter people from time to time that say oh yeah you preachers you've been talking about jesus coming for 2 000 years and he's still not here how can you believe the bible now you expect that in the world but what happens when you start hearing that in the church the attitude the lord delays his coming if jesus is coming so soon what's taking so long you know i remember hearing the story back in 1980 about harry r truman not to be confused with that president harry s truman harry r truman was a 83 year old gentleman that lived on the side of mount saint helen and they had a little cabin there he and his wife and they would take in lodgers and rent plastic boats that went out on the lake and they were there for many years and his wife passed away and he sort of became something of a crusty local codger and and when they started having some geologic activity in mount st helens and it was shaking a little bit uh people said harry don't you think you ought to get out of here i said no this mountain's been shaking for years they've been telling me i'm on a volcano for years and it hasn't budged since i've been here then the geologist started issue very serious warnings saying everyone needed to evacuate the area around mount st helens and uh harry said i'm not going anywhere so if it blows up here i am i'm not leaving they've been saying the mountains are going to blow as long as i've been here nothing's happened yet so by the way it's it's over a mile away and i got spirit lake between me and the mountains i'll be fine and they couldn't get them off the hill and then when finally on may 18th 1980 mount help me mount st helens blew up in a big way uh nothing was ever seen or heard from mr truman again it's believed that he was killed by the pyroclastic cloud that came flooding down the mountain and buried his area with 150 feet of hot ash oh no it's not going to blow nothing's going to happen to me i remember when that happened we were living not far from 101 and when you went up northern california and you entered from oregon into washington instead of saying you're now entering washington someone had taken green paint and painted out the w of washington and it says you are now entering ashington it was quite an eruption some of you remember that well jesus said that he is coming quickly if you go to the last book in the bible and the last chapter in the last book in the bible just in that chapter there are hundreds of verses about the second coming but just in that chapter look at what it says revelation 22 7 jesus tells us he is coming quickly behold i am coming quickly blessed is he who hears the words of the prophecy of this book revelation 22 12 and behold i am coming quickly and my reward is with me to give to everyone according to his work revelation 22 20. last verse is in the bible here he who testifies says these things surely i am coming quickly amen even so come lord jesus so is there any question but that the lord said i'm coming quickly he certainly did say that now you probably will be helped by knowing that the word quickly or soon the word that is used for that is not a very direct translation in the greek the word is tahees that is translated sooner quickly it actually means without unnecessary delay it does not always mean immediately and that right there should help us understand was jesus saying i'm coming very quickly and yet two thousand years went by keep in mind when god told adam i'm going to send the messiah a redeemer and every jewish mother hoped that her child would be the messiah but after 100 years went by 500 years went by a thousand years went by and they kept saying he's coming the messiah is coming 2 000 years went by 3 thousand four thousand years went by finally the wise men come into jerusalem and they say where is he that is born king of the jews and god's people had grown tired of waiting the only ones who are really looking for his coming the first time were some shepherds and some gentile wise men god's people were troubled by these wise men that said we've heard the king has come they it become a ritual for them they weren't really thinking it was going to happen could that happen to the church again well here we are 2 000 years after jesus said i will come again and he says i'll come quickly but quickly and soon like i said they're words that have perspective it's a relative term if i say the popcorn will be ready soon and you're using a micro microwave you're talking three minutes if you ask newlyweds will you be planning on starting a family soon and they say yes soon well that could be three years it's at least nine months so soon means different things depending on the context when you're speaking about the context of eternity well soon of course takes on a little different form [Music] now you have to have an eternal perspective god tells us that look at time the way god looks at time psalm 90 verse 4 for a thousand years in your sight are like yesterday when it is past it's like a watch in the night so when god says soon keep in mind he lives forever psalm 90 verse 10 the days of our lives are 70 years and if by reason of strength or 80 years yet they're both is only labor and sorrow for it is soon cut off 80 years soon cut off you know someone asked billy graham what was one of the most important things he had learned in his life what did he learn about life that really stood out he said the brevity of it he was in his 90s and he lived of course to 99. he was in his 90s he said the thing that's impressed me so much is the brevity of life yeah i'm in my 90s but it went by so quick so keep in mind it doesn't matter at what time in the continuum jesus might come in your life it's soon you know for most of the world it's going to be too soon that's right most of the world will not be ready it's going to overtake them as a surprise psalm 39 verse 5 indeed you have made my days as a handbreadth my ages has nothing before you certainly every man at his best is but a vapor my life it's like the morning fog the sun comes out and poof we're gone you look at the history books look at the generations of people that have lived people like you and you think where have they gone i mean their lives right now there are dash in the cemetery and so when god says i'm coming soon when we get to heaven we'll say yeah it really was soon and after that first million years go by you'll say wow it was really quick our lives are short compared to eternity james 4 14 for what is your life it's even a vapor that appears for a little time and then it vanishes away a man asked the lord so lord what is a a million years for you lord said well it's like a minute wow and lord what is a million dollars for you it's a million dollars would be like a penny i said yeah a million dollars would be like a penny for me then he thought he said lord can i have a penny he said sure in a minute second peter 3 8 but beloved do not forget this one thing that with the lord a day is as a thousand years peter is quoting what moses wrote in psalm 90 that days as a thousand years and a thousand years is one day let me pause there real quick 1000 years as a day based on adding up the ages in the bible and no one knows exactly you need to stay away from setting dates i'll share some more scriptures about that in a moment but you can just look at the panorama of history and we know that adam was created somewhere approximately 4 000 years before christ and then 2000 years later abraham was born then 2000 years later jesus was born and here we are 2 000 years later and then we live and reign with christ for 1 000 years in heaven during the millennium right total of 7 000 years and that thousand years in heaven is going to be like a sabbath six days you work one you rest god in history jesus is sowing the gospel seed six thousand years and then you let the land rest for one year a person might be a slave for six days but then the six years seventh year he goes free you see this pattern all through the bible so it shouldn't surprise us that here we are six thousand years after creation approximately which means that we're right on the cusp of sundown friday for that millennial sabbath a day with the lord is as a thousand years so god is not late as some men count slackness why is god waiting the lord is not slack concerning his promise he's made a promise he's not slack as some people count slackness it's based on their counting they think that he has not come but he is long suffering to us word not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance you know that when you fly in an airplane that uh sometimes it will say the plane is supposed to take off at ten o'clock and you're sitting on the plane and the door is still open and people are still boarding at 10 15 and you're thinking we're going to be late and lo and behold they get there on time you know why they build in an anticipated delay to try to get some straggling passengers to get as many of them as they can more passengers they leave behind because maybe they're late on another flight they lose money and so yeah they see departure 10 o'clock but they don't always shut the door 10 o'clock have you noticed that because they're wanting to get as many as they can well the lord he's wanting to get as many as he can he's not late he's still going to arrive on time i promise you that so we've got to be careful about setting dates and false alarms and one reason people say well where is the lord is because so many people through history have set dates even in our lives in recent years we've had different people that you know harold camping hal lindsay others that have tried to peg a date for the second come in and then it comes and goes and people say well he's never going to come if another false alarm pretty soon after someone cries wolf so many times he probably is no wolf you know that story and then when the wolf really does come people aren't ready the devil is using all of these false alarms to put god's people to sleep so see everyone says he's coming it doesn't happen matthew 24 23 jesus said if anyone says to you look here's the christ or there do not believe it for false christs and false prophets will rise and show great signs and wonders and deceive if possible even the very elect see i've told you beforehand therefore if they say look he's in the desert go not out look he is in the inner rooms do not believe it it will be like lightning coming out of the east even unto the west and so everyone's going to know when he comes but he says they'll be false christ same chapter verse 4 and 5 take heed that no one deceives you for many will come in my name saying i am the christ and deceive many many false christs and many false dates that people set for his return now just to show that god knew that his coming was not going to happen in the first generation after jesus it's not like jesus gave a bad prophecy when he said i'm coming quickly look what paul said in second thessalonians two verse one now brethren concerning the coming of our lord jesus christ this is the context of the second coming and our gathering together to him being caught up to meet him in the air we ask you not to be soon i thought he was coming soon it says don't be soon shaken in mind or troubled either by spirit or by word or letter as if from us that the day of christ has come let no one deceive you by any means some things have to happen before he comes now he may come for you if you die but as far as the world the main literal second coming there's some things in prophetic chronology that have to happen for that day will not come unless a falling away comes first and the man of sin be revealed the son of perdition we know that before christ can return god came to earth in this son of god to reveal the truth and before the lord returns satan is going to either possess somebody or he's going to create a grand impersonation of christ to deceive paul said there'd be a grade falling away now a lot of that falling away has already happened actually in history so he's basically saying it's not going to happen right away some things have to happen first you can see that in that verse correct so let's avoid again setting any dates matthew 24 36 but of that day and hour no one knows not even the angels of heaven but my father only now because no one knows the day or the hour does not mean we're not to know when it is near jesus gives us signs so we can know when it's near we'll mention that in a minute acts 1 6 therefore when they had come together this is after the resurrection acts chapter 1 they asked the lord lord will you at this time they're asking for a time restore the kingdom to israel and what did jesus say it is not for you to know the times of the seasons which the father has put in his own authority don't be trying to calculate the date if we put that energy into living holy lives we'd have a better church i think but you'll receive power when the holy spirit has come upon you that you might be my witnesses jesus said don't waste all your time sequestered in some church steeple trying to calculate the date of my return instead let your light shine tell people that i'm coming back again luke 19 verse 13 verse 11 and 13. now as they heard these things he spoke another parable he was because he was near jerusalem notice and because they thought the kingdom of god would appear immediately jesus gives them a parable because they thought the kingdom of god would appear immediately he didn't want them to think it was going to appear immediately the kingdom of god did come spiritually right away jesus said the kingdom of god is at hand that's a spiritual kingdom it's already here when you invite christ in to your heart as your king that's where he reigns his king the spiritual kingdom is available now the literal kingdom where christ comes to this world and the devil is destroyed that kingdom hasn't happened yet so he speaks a parable to him and in the parable it's a parable of the 10 minutes he has his servants he delivers these ministers money to him to them and he said do business till i come occupy till i come what does jesus want us to do until he comes stay busy doing his work you know someone said the secret to the christian life is you want to live like this might be your last day and you want to plan like you could be here a thousand years if you want to stay busy you want to plan ahead and but at the same time live every day like it could be your last day i remember it's happened to me a couple times where i've preached to a group of people and that i heard before the week past that someone that was in the crowd died and i always have to evaluate was i clear with the gospel did i do everything i could do in my capacity to call them to a decision in christ it could have been the last sermon they heard and so we never know most of us god is good you know we eventually get old we get sick and we die but some people are taken by surprise so you want to be ready all the time amen he said occupy till i come john 21 18 jesus as he's meeting one of his last meetings with peter and the apostles he says to peter most assuredly i say to you when you were young you girded yourself you dressed yourself and you walked where you wished but when you are old what do you mean lord when i'm old aren't you going to come before i get old how many people have wondered that lord i'm not going to get old am i years ago when i first became an adventist pastor i had the option to opt out of social security where they would not take it out of my paycheck not everyone has that option but ministers had that option i said i'm not going to need social security jesus will come before i get old so i'm letting y'all know because i may need some help in the future yeah he said when you are old you will stretch out your hands and another will gird you and carry you where you do not wish this he spoke signifying by what death he would glorify god and he said follow me nobody knows how much time they have in the book christ triumphant page 343 it says no one has a true message fixing the time when christ is to come how many people nobody no one's got that message to fix the time be assured that god gives no one authority to say that christ delays his coming either 5 years 10 years or 20 years be ready also for the son of man comes in an hour when you think not we've got to be ready all the time amen now this brings us to the point of where we are today the lord foretold just before he's coming there would be cynical servants in the church that are scoffing the idea of the imminence of his return that is very dangerous and unhealthy ii peter 3 3 know this first that scoffers will come in the last days walking according to their own lusts and saying where is the promise of his coming for since the fathers fell asleep all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation back in the days of noah god said a disaster calamity is coming and he preached for 120 years and at first some people were thinking what could happen world is pretty wicked they may have even helped noah build the ark but then as year after year went by and it never rained they started thinking all things continue as they were from the beginning peter's actually referring to noah's time and then the flood came and took them all away and very few were ready because they had scoffed at the invitation and waited until the door was closed could history repeat itself there's another flood coming the bible says this time the heavens and earth are in store to be cleansed by fire not by water matthew 24 jesus in matthew 24 what is he talking about matthew 24 the disciples are asking what are the signs of your coming the end of the world destruction of jerusalem and in that discourse starting in verse 48 christ said but if that evil servant says in his heart my master is delaying his coming what kind of servant if the evil servant begins to scoff and say ah he's not coming back it's been so long the master of that servant will come on a day that he's not looking for him and an hour that he is not aware of and he will cut him into and appoint him his portion with the hypocrites and there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth and again in ezekiel 12 verse 21 the word of the lord came to me and this is in the old testament in the old testament god had given several prophecies saying that they would be carried off to babel and then after 70 years he'd be able to go home but it seemed like everything was taking so long before these prophecies were fulfilled even in the old testament notice ezekiel 12 21 the word of the lord came to me saying son of man what is this proverb that you and the people have about the land of israel which says the days are prolonged and every vision fails all these visions of prophets about us being carried to babylon and later the visions about us getting out of babylon they all fail tell them therefore thus says the lord god i will lay this proverb to rest i'm going to put that to sleep and they'll no more say that proverb in israel but say to them that days are at hand the fulfillment of every vision you know every prophecy that god made has happened they've not failed even joshua all the prophecies that moses made about what was going to befall the children of israel before joshua died he said everything that god has foretold has happened not a word has fallen to the ground of all the lord has said heaven and earth will pass away my word will not pass away all these other prophecies came true the prophecy about jesus coming do you think it's going to fail i promise you will see jesus come it may be in the resurrection hopefully the resurrection of the just it may be in the resurrection of condemnation but you're going to see him come and he'll say yep his word never fails it's coming certainly habakkuk 2 verse 3 for the vision is yet for an appointed time but at the end it will speak and it will not lie now this is this is an interesting phrasing though it tarries wait for it because it will surely come it will not tarry what does that mean that means though it appears to tarry wait for it it will surely come look at hebrews 10 37 for yet a little while and he who is coming will come and will not tarry now the just will live by faith it says he who is coming will come and will not tarry you may think that he's tearing he's late now that just shall live by faith but if anyone draws back my soul has no pleasure in him but we are not of those who draw back don't lose faith in his coming we are not of those who draw back to perdition but those who believe to the saving of the soul jesus said john 14 3 i go to prepare a place for you and i will come again and receive you to myself that where i am you may be also do you think jesus lied he said after three days i'll die and i'll rise again did he do that so when he says and i will come again no man knows the day of the hour is he going to come again i believe it friends acts 1 11 the angel said men of galilee why do you stand gazing into heaven when jesus ascended this same jesus who was taken from you into heaven will come in like matter as you have seen him go into heaven he will come god said it jesus said it the angel said it the apostle said it the prophet said it revelation 1 7 behold he is coming in the clouds and every eye will see him those also he who pierced him and all the tribes of the earth will mourn because of him even so amen and you read in matthew 24 then the sign of the son of man will appear in heaven this is matthew 24 30 and all the tribes of the earth will mourn and they will see the son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory and then peter says in second peter chapter 3 verse 10 but the day of the lord will come though the scoffer scoff the day of the lord will come as a thief in the night it's going to surprise most people remember hearing about a an evangelistic service in a baptist church they were having a revival service and the place was packed and they had the seats all the way right up to the platform and this is one of those old-time you know kind of charismatic baptist preachers and he went back and forth on the platform and when he wanted to make a point about jesus coming soon he'd go right up to the edge and he'd shake his fist he'd say i am coming soon then he walked back and forth and he'd rant and rave and he'd come back and he'd say i am coming soon the third time he gave some more scriptures and waved his hands in the air and wanted to really emphasize the point he came forward said i am coming soon and he tripped on the microphone wire and he fell off in the lap of a couple that were right on the front row he untangled himself got back on the platform then he apologized to that couple the man stood up and said don't apologize pastor you warned us three times jesus said i am coming soon i mean how many he said i'm going to come again how many warnings do we want he's going to come again there's a russian proverb it says god is never late but he sell them on time second peter 3 9 the lord is not slack concerning his promise as some counts likeness he's going to come so how do we know when his coming is near why should we as a church and as a people be emphasizing the second coming haven't christians been doing this for 2000 years what makes us any different because god gives us in the scheme of prophecy and outline so we know where we are and when you look at that outline there are things that have to happen that have happened so we know that we're living in the last age of the church the church called the age of laodicea that's very clear furthermore we know we're living at the time when a deadly wound was inflicted and has been healed and you've got the ten horns that appeared we're living at a time following the great tribulation of the dark ages we're living in a time when man is destroying the earth what other time in history has the church been getting together and saying we're going to have councils on how to save the environment you know the book of revelation says god will destroy those who destroy the earth what other time in history was like that we're living in a time when the gospel can go into all the world jesus said matthew 24 14 the gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world for a witness unto the nations then the end will come well this is a time where everywhere i've been in the world people have access to the gospel now through the internet or through satellite television there's hardly any corner not i'm not saying everyone's heard the gospel yet a lot of people that haven't but it's it's going to it's getting within reach of everybody in this generation so this makes it a different time and christ also said except those days be shortened no flesh would be saved man would self-destruct if you go back just in my grandfather's age most dangerous weapons were cannonballs and you could have a billion cannonballs you're not going to destroy the world but now man has the ability with chemicals and nuclear weapons to destroy the planet so this is different we see in the scheme of prophecy where we are now add to this that the lord foretold there would be the appearance of a delay before his coming notice how i worded that there is an apparent delay this is clearly taught by the lord remember matthew 24 48 at the end of the signs where jesus talks about it he said if that evil servant says in his heart my lord delays his coming you know matthew 24 talks about the second coming but if your bible is read letter edition you'll also notice matthew 25 is also red letter meaning it's all one discourse christ has not stopped teaching at the end of matthew 25 he tells the parable of the ten virgins and what's going on there while the bridegroom tarried evidently he's delayed you can also read moses he goes up the mountain he says i've gone up the mountain i'm going to come down the mountain they said when are you coming down he didn't tell him when he says i'm going to talk to god i'll come back and he goes up 40 days go by and 40 nights and the people get tired of waiting and they end up it was a time of testing they end up breaking the commandments and they make a golden calf and they have a wild worship service and then a party and like some churches today and while the people saw that moses delayed what was happening during the delay they were being tested jesus said if that evil servant says my lord delays his coming samuel told saul the king says you're going to go fight against the philistines and i'm going to give you victory go down to gilgal wait for me seven days i will come to you after seven days i will come to you that's by the way first samuel ten verse eight then you go to first samuel thirteen eight he waited 7 days according to the time set by samuel but samuel did not come he was delayed saul was being tested he lost patience he assumed the prerogatives of the priest he offered sacrifice which he was not supposed to do then samuel came he did come on the seventh day but it was later than he had expected you can look here in matthew 24 verse 44 be ready for the son of man is coming at an hour you do not expect and again matthew 24 13 he that endures to the end the same will be saved endures what endures apparent delay you see this is taught all through the bible connected with the second coming people we're going to think what's taking so long i think we're living in that time right now where the church is being tested which means we're right on schedule everyone's wondering where is the lord even when jesus resurrected lazarus his sisters did not understand they said lord if you had been here why are you late he wouldn't have died what took so long he said no this delay was planned because i'm going to use it for the glory of god you can be sure that if if god does not come yet it's for your good and for the good of the gospel he is not late now i want you to also notice in revelation 10 verse 5 and 6 it pictures an angel standing on the sea and on the land with his hand raised up to heaven this is during the time of the remnant church prophecy and he swore by him who lives forever and ever who created heaven and earth and all the things that are in the earth and the sea and all the things that are in the sea that there should be delay no longer why would the angel say there should be delay no longer except there must have been delay did you get that why would the angel say there shall be delay no longer these means now it's going to happen and when the final events do begin to happen they're going to happen quickly friends i think we have a little window left to preach the gospel to the world you know there's a letter that was written october 14 it's called letter 131. i want you to notice this there are those who say not only in their heart but in their works my lord is delaying his coming because christ's coming has been long foretold they conclude there must have been a mistake regard to this doctrine but the lord says if the visionary wait for it it will surely come it will not tarry past the time that the message is born to all nations tongues and people shall we who claim to be students of prophecy forget that god's forbearance to the wicked is part of his vast and merciful plan by which he seeking to compass the salvation of souls shall we be found among the number who cease to cooperate with the lord who are found saying my lord delays his coming you know what the word adventist means it's a people who are excited about the imminent advent they are proclaiming and living in an expectancy of the imminent advent of the lord how sad if adventists cease to be adventists another reason it is so important to keep this expectancy alive is there is a sanctifying influence when we realize that our lives are limited that for every one of us listening jesus is coming soon it is true first john two three first on three sorry verse two and three beloved now we're the children of god and it's not yet been revealed what we shall be but we know that when he is revealed when he comes we shall be like him for we will see him as he is and everyone that has this hope in him purifies himself just as he is pure looking forward to the coming of the lord has a purifying influence on us james 5 7 8 therefore be patient brethren until the coming of the lord what is the apostle telling us be patient see how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth waiting patiently for it until it receives the early in the latter rain we're waiting for the latter rain you also be patient establish your hearts for the coming of the lord is at hand well it's like when jesus said the kingdom of god is at hand whenever you invite jesus in your heart in one sense he's come for you in romans 13 verse 11 paul says and do this knowing the time that now it is high time to awake out of sleep for now is our salvation nearer than we first believed the night is far spent the day is at hand therefore let us cast off the works of darkness let us put on the armor of light let us walk properly as in the day not in revelry or drunkenness or lewdness in lust nor in strife and envy but put on the lord jesus christ and make no provision for the flesh to fulfill its lust how do we respond to the truth that christ is coming back don't make a provision for the flesh live godly lives first thessalonians 3 13 so that he might establish your hearts blameless in holiness before our god and father at the coming of the lord jesus christ with all of his saints why is the lord waiting as long as he can not just for the world but for the church because he's calling on us to be holy and we ain't there yet he tells us he wants us to establish our hearts that we might be ready for his return first thessalonians 5 23 now may the god of peace himself sanctify you completely may your whole spirit soul and body be preserved blameless at the coming of the lord jesus christ notice the emphasis on holiness before his coming the bible tells us that we are to pray always that we are accounted worthy to escape all the things that are going to come upon the world and to stand before him blameless when he comes that should be our goal that we're living lives where we're a witness in the world heard about this man he pulled up to a uh a stoplight there was one car in front of him where a lady unfortunately was texting on her phone and this guy was in a hurry and he was supposed to be a christian but when he saw that the light turned green and the lady was looking down at her phone and texting he finally got impatient he honked the horn well she looked up and looked over her shoulder and then the light turned red again now he's really mad and he is banging his dashboard and he's shouting he's shaking his fist and he's carrying on and while he's doing all of that he hears a policeman outside his window and he rolls down the window and there's a policeman he's got his gun drawn he said sir please get out of the car so what did i do wrong so sir get out of the car so i'm allowed to vent and yell and scream in my car if i want to said sir i'm asking you to get out of the car so he gets out of the car and he says now i want you to turn around he handcuffs him he puts them in the back of the police car says i don't understand i didn't break any law it says i'm allowed to carry on and yell and scream i had my windows up i was in my car policeman ran a license check and then he unlocked the handcuffs and he let him go so it's just not the last you're going to hear of me policeman said well let me tell you what happened he said i was right behind you when you started to honk your horn and carry on because that person missed the light and he said i saw you screaming and yelling and shaking your fists and pounding the dash and honking your horn he said and then i looked on the back of the car and you've got a pro-life license plate holder you've got the little fish christian fish you've got a jesus coming soon bumper sticker he says i thought for sure you stole the car so we need to be living like christians right can't just do the bumper sticker thing it'll have a purifying influence in our lives titus 2 11-15 for the grace of god that brings salvation has appeared to all men teaching us that denying ungodliness and worldly lust we should live soberly righteously and godly in the present age looking for the blessed hope and glorious appearing of our great god and savior jesus christ how do we live holy godly looking forward to his coming who gave himself for us that he might redeem us from every lawless deed and purify to himself his own special people zealous of good works and yet there are some in the church that say that we're not really supposed to be transformed and holy everything i read about the second coming tells us that we're supposed to be holy and that's why peter said scoffers will come walking after their own lusts saying where is the promise of his coming why do they say that because they're living walking after their own lusts roman says knowing that it is high time now that we wake out of sleep how are we to live eagerly waiting for his return this is talking about a people in the last days who are not ashamed to talk about the second coming let's read it together hebrews 9 27 and as it is appointed for men wants to die but after this the judgment so christ was offered once to bear the sins of many to those who eagerly wait for him he will appear a second time apart from sin for salvation he's coming for those that are looking for his coming they are eagerly waiting for him first corinthians 1 verse 7 so that you come short in no gift eagerly waiting for the revelation of our lord jesus christ who will also confirm you to the end that you might be blameless in the day of the lord jesus christ i'm so glad for the promise that as we live with that purifying influence of the hope the blessed hope of the second coming that we are eagerly looking forward to his coming that we are proclaiming the eminence of his coming that he says i am going to prepare you through that truth you know if everything we do is done in the context of our lord could come anytime don't you think that affects your behavior if you live every day knowing i'm terminal this could be my last day you know you're all terminal as far as these bodies you've got now do not inherit the kingdom of god that's a sobering thing to realize you're going to die you don't know exactly when so what's the best time to get ready someone asked a jewish rabbi when is the best time to repent he said the last day of your life so what if you don't know what the last day of your life is the rabbi said exactly today is the day a couple of years ago karen and i were in the seychelles islands had a wonderful time there preaching to the people and made some good friends they're probably watching now or at least on their time zone and it so happened while we were there parked in the harbor by the island they had this incredible yacht it looked like a cross between a yacht and an ocean liner and it turns out it is a private yacht and i said who owns that they said the ruler of abu dhabi and i got his name here somewhere i don't know if i could say it all but he's the prince of abu dhabi ruler of the country the name of the yacht it's called the azam super yacht it is uh it was built completed in record time took four years to build it 2013 it's 590 feet long almost as long as two football fields private yacht it is also not only the biggest yacht in the world it is one of the fastest in the world it will go 37 miles an hour can you imagine ocean you could ski barefoot behind that you really could and but you better have the money for the gas because it consumes 13 tons of fuel per hour at top speed 13 tons of fuel per hour it accommodates large open plans it's got beauty salons massage and guests and you can have 36 guests in it has 80 crew it costs 600 million dollars to build catch this and it costs 50 million dollars a year to maintain because 24 hours a day all year long it is staffed with a crew oh it's also got its own private submarine it's got anti-missile hardware because the prince is also the head of the military there it's got just uh you know water de-salad it's like a a city his master suite is all bulletproof they are the crew we saw the crew they're on that boat 365 days a year it's always man they always have to have fresh food ready should he come in it's got a helicopter pad on it they don't know when he's coming he doesn't announce because he's worried about security so they have to live in a state of constant expectancy that the king is going to come at any time and they have everything spotless all the time and sometimes he shows up with a party so they got to have enough food for him and everybody in the party and so they live in a food is stock the generators go on the beds are turned down at night they act like he's going to be there any minute the lesson for us is obvious we don't know exactly when but is your king jesus more important than the king of abu dhabi should we as his crew be keeping the boat shipshape ready keeping our garments clean knowing that he could drop out of the sky in his holy helicopter at any time this is how christians should live if for no other reason because we don't know what our last day is we want to be ready for his return amen don't know when that day is but we know it is soon jesus tells us you may not know the day or the hour but when you see the final signs lift up your heads what does it mean for people to be living in the last days with their heads lifted up it means they're living with expectancy they are proclaiming they're talking about jesus coming again and you know this church has exploded around the world because it is a church that talks about jesus coming we are the church this is the age that the world needs to hear that particular message get ready get ready get ready the king is coming amen you want to live it in your life it has a sanctifying influence you want to share it with all around you if that's your desire why don't you stand with me we're going to sing a song we don't often sing but he's got a perfect message it's number 207 if you use your hymnals it may be admorn and let's sing this with our hearts when sunlight through darkness and shadow is breaking that jesus will come in the fullness of glory to receive from the world his own oh lord jesus how long how long hear we shout the glad song christ returneth hallelujah hallelujah amen hallelujah it may be at midday it may be at twilight it may be purchased the blackness of midnight will burst into light in the blaze of his glory when jesus receives his home oh lord jesus how long how long hear we shout the glad song christ returneth hallelujah hallelujah amen hallelujah [Music] should we go without dying no sickness no sandness no bread and no crying cut up through the clouds with our lord into glory when jesus receives his own oh lord jesus how long how long here we shout the glad song christ returneth hallelujah [Music] hallelujah loving father lord we thank you for this message from your word that tells us you will keep your promises your word never fails that your son is coming and soon lord what a exciting thought to realize that we could be living in that last generation that will live and remain and be caught up to meet you in the clouds whatever the time i pray that we can live in such a way that we are all sanctified by the truth that this life is temporary that you are coming soon and that your kingdom is going to be the one that will last forever bless each person lord i pray that we will have our priorities straight of seeking first your kingdom laying aside the sins that beset us running that race by fixing our eyes on jesus and bless each person and we thank you and pray this in christ's name amen now i've got a closing

Channel: Doug Batchelor

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Id: KFAMAxbnrKE

Length: 51min 0sec (3060 seconds)

Published: Sat May 01 2021