WEBVTT

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For those of you who don't know, I'm Felicia.

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Hello. I'm excited to be here with you all today.

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Thank you all for being such a wonderful church

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family to the SALT students. I know they really

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enjoy you guys, and they're excited to come here

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and to work in your community, and I know that

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God is doing great things, so we praise him for

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that. I have a sermon today that God has been

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really... Making me think about a lot this year

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is his second coming, and so this sermon is kind

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of a burden of my heart, something that he's

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been really encouraging me with. And so my prayer

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is that this could also be a message of encouragement

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to you. Now, most sermons don't really begin

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with the end and end with the beginning, but

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this one's going to do that a little bit. And

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I know that might not make sense, but that's

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because we're going to be talking about the coming

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of Christ, which is the end of some things and

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the beginning of a whole lot more. Today, I'm

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impressed to remind you why we're all here, specifically

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our church. Does anyone know what we're called?

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If you do, shout it out. One person knows what

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we are. Yes, thank you so much. Anybody else?

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Let's try that one more time. What are we? Okay,

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I was worried I came to the wrong church, maybe.

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I don't know. Maybe this was a Baptist church.

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I'm not sure. Yes, we're Adventists. And I think

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sometimes, because we hear that a lot, we forget

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the significance of the meaning of an Adventist.

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The advent of Christ. That he is coming again.

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That means so much for us. Most of you are probably

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familiar already with the three angels' messages,

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right? So what are they? We'll go through them

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one by one. If you know them, I hope more than

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one person will shout it out. Right? The first

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one. What's the first one in Revelation 14, 7,

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if you need a hint? Fear God and give glory to

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him. That's right. The hour of his judgment has

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come. And the next one? Verse 8. Babylon is fallen.

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And the next, the third one. What's the third

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message? If anyone worships the beast, that's

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right. Those who worship the beast and receive

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his mark will face God's holy judgment, essentially.

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That's the third message. We're familiar with

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these, right? Everybody's heard this before.

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But see, I've heard it said, the three angels'

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messages, and I think a more correct statement

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would be the three angels' message, right? Because

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ultimately, this is all one message. They all

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have the same message. What is that message?

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In summary, the message is Jesus is coming. Will

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you be ready? And it's an invitation. It's not

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an invitation to fear, but an invitation to hope.

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Jesus is coming. Will you be ready? So let's

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bow our heads for a word of prayer as we get

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started today. Heavenly Father, we are so thankful

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for your son Jesus and what his life and death

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and resurrection means for each of us. And I

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pray today that we would dwell on that and that

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it would light us on fire. that it would strengthen

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us, that it would comfort us. Lord, I pray that

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it would light the world on fire. I pray, Lord,

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that you hide me behind the cross. This is not

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my words, but yours. And I pray that you would

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be the one who speaks to each heart here, that

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you would bring the right words to give peace,

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to give hope, to give comfort, and to give your

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call. We want to be ready for you, Jesus. I pray

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you be with us now and open up our minds and

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our hearts to hear what you have to say to us.

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In Jesus' name, amen. Jesus is coming. Will you

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be ready? A few months ago, I was... Can you

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hear me better? Okay. A few months ago, I was

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fasting and praying because... I had a big question

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for God about the immediate future of my life.

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I recently finished schooling. I was starting

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in the workplace, and I wanted to know what direction

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he wanted to send me in. I was spending some

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time fasting and praying, and during that time,

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I had this dream. I'd never had a dream like

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this before. In the dream, there were a whole

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lot of Adventists. We were all at some great

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gathering, as Adventists do. And I saw all the

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prophecies that we know. I saw symbols of lots

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of different prophecies. There were presentations

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going on of the Daniel 2 statue and things from

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Revelation. And we were inviting people and sharing

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that message. talking to someone, and I was busy

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beginning to weep as I shared the testimony of

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what Jesus meant to me. And in the middle, I

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was interrupted, because all of a sudden, it's

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like everything disappeared, and the sky opened

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up, and it was all these brilliant colors, like

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when you see a picture of galaxies far away.

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And it touched the ground, and all these angels

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came pouring out of the heavens. And I heard

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this voice ringing over and over until I woke

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up. Jesus is coming. Will you be ready? Jesus

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is coming. Will you be ready? I find that oftentimes

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in life, when I have questions for God, when

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I'm going through difficulties, disappointments,

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or painful circumstances, God does not necessarily

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answer my immediate question in that moment.

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But he does bring me back to this message. Felicia,

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I'm coming. Will you be ready for me? I will

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be there. Hold on. At the beginning of my time

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in college, I had a similar experience, at least

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a similar message. I was going through a different

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situation of question asking and searching and

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going through a difficult season. And I had gone

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on Sabbath to the woods alone to pray and spend

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time with God. I was out in nature. And I was

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out on some rocks overlooking water when all

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of a sudden I didn't see anyone that day except

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for this person. There was a man a few yards

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off who appeared, for lack of a better word.

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There wasn't like smoke and puffs, but he showed

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up. And he was like a few yards off from me to

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the left as I was sitting there. And he greeted

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me. He glorified the day. And then he just looked

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me straight in the eyes and he began to say words

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that to this day I couldn't repeat to you, but

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I know what they meant. I know what he said.

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And it sounded a lot like... what God says to

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his people in Isaiah 62 11 when God says indeed

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the Lord has proclaimed to the end of the world

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say to the daughter of Zion surely your salvation

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is coming behold his reward is with him and his

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work before him so again the message surely your

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salvation is coming Jesus is coming that is the

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good news that's the only news that we need to

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tell people about And of course, everything else

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we share, all of the truth is wrapped up in this

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one great truth. That he, our salvation, our

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king, Jesus, is coming. And that changes us now,

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today, presently. And every time I've gone through

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seasons of great difficulty, this has been the

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promise God brings me back to. And I know it's

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the promise that he has for you in your seasons

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of distress and grief and difficulty and perplexity.

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So we want to talk about the coming of Christ

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today. In a few weeks, as you know, it was up

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on the screen earlier, we're going to have an

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evangelistic series. Everybody knows about that,

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right? October 24th is when it's starting. We're

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going to have an evangelistic series, and we're

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going to cover one of the nights, the second

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coming of Christ. It's pretty important that

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we cover that. And you're going to hear some

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key aspects of the second coming of Christ that

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you are probably familiar with. Show of hands,

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who here has been to an evangelistic series before?

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Or you've heard one? Yeah. I kind of figured

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that. So some of these concepts will be familiar

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to you. If they're not, we're going to review

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them quickly here. The second coming of Christ

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is going to be an audible event. We know 1 Thessalonians

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4 tells us, the Lord himself will descend from

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heaven with a shout. That's right. With the voice

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of an archangel and with the trumpet of God.

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And the dead in Christ will rise first. It's

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going to be so noisy, it wakes the dead. It's

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going to be pretty loud, I think. Psalm 50 is

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another verse that tells us the coming of Christ

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will be noisy. Our God shall come and shall not

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keep silent. It's going to be audible. It's going

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to be loud. Every ear, even deaf ears, will hear

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the coming of Jesus. And I think that will be

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a beautiful first thing to hear to someone who's

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only ever heard silence. It's also going to be

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a visible event. Maybe this is familiar to you

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as well, right? The coming of Christ will be

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very visible. Matthew 24, 27 tells us, As lightning

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comes from the east and flashes to the west,

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so also will the coming of the Son of Man be.

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And, of course, Revelation 1, 7 says, Every eye

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shall see him coming. Everyone will see him,

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even the dead, even those who have been blind.

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Every eye will see the coming of our God. We

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will hear him. We will see him. And we know this

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is literal. I don't know if any of you heard

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about this, but apparently last week the rapture

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happened. I have bad news, everybody. We didn't

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make it. But that might be good news, actually.

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It's a literal event. There's no secret rapture,

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and you all know this. When Christ comes again,

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he'll come in the same way as he went. I imagine

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the disciples standing there, you know, in Acts

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chapter 1 when we read about this, and they've

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just been 40 days with their resurrected Lord,

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spending time with him, those precious moments,

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and now he begins to ascend into heaven. And

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I imagine if I was one of the 12 standing there,

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my neck would be craned back as far as it could

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go, watching, watching, watching, as he gets

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more and more distant. And I think I would have

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a lot of thoughts in that moment. And then the

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silence is broken suddenly. I'm broken from my

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thoughts about this. By angels who come and say,

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in verse 11, right, this same Jesus who was taken

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up from you into heaven will so come again in

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like manner as you saw him go. So the coming

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of Christ will be audible, visible, and literal.

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Is that familiar to a lot of you here? I see

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heads nodding. Good, because that's not what

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I want to spend the most time talking about today.

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You all know this, and I think it's good that

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we have this knowledge. It's important. But our

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relationship with Christ is more than cognitive,

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more than intellectual. It is personal. This

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coming means more to us than just these three

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things. So we're going to look at a deeper meaning,

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at a deeper anticipation of what the coming of

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Christ means. And I invite you to use your sanctified

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imaginations with me today and to dig deep and

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think personally for yourself, to picture those

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faces and those scenarios in your own life as

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we discuss some of what the coming of Christ

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means. Today we're going to address three points,

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because when we comprehend the hope... that we're

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looking forward to. And when we look forward

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by faith as our forefathers have, this is what

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equips us and strengthens us to bear life's burdens

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with joy and peace and hope. And it motivates

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us also to tell others. So, three things that

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we're going to cover today. The second coming

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of Christ. What is his coming bringing an end

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to? What is the second coming of Christ bringing

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a beginning to? And what... If he's coming again

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and it brings an end to certain things and a

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beginning to other things, what are we going

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to do about it? So what is his coming bringing

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an end to? What is his coming bringing a beginning

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to? And what are we going to do about it? So

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if you have your Bibles, and I'm sure you do,

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please open with me to Revelation 21. We're going

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to spend a lot of time here. We're just going

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to start on verse 1 and read through. And we

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won't have time to get through all of it. but

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we're going to cover some key points. There will

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be some other verses, but keep your bookmark,

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your finger, your bulletin in Revelation 21,

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because that's where we're going to start, and

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it's where we're going to end. Verse 1, we're

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just going to start reading. It says, Now I saw

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a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven

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and the first earth had passed away. Also, there

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was no more sea. Okay, let's pause there. So

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what is his coming bringing an end to? Well,

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we see in this first verse that there's a new

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heaven and a new earth because the first have

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passed away. The first earth has passed away.

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So we see the end of this earth. We also see

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the beginning of a new world. Well, we're going

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to look at that more in depth in a minute. So

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let's focus on what it's bringing an end to first.

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It's bringing an end to this earth, this world

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that's imperfect and stained by sin and broken.

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But I want to focus on that small phrase at the

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end of verse 1 that says, and there was no more

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sea. I want to focus here because Revelation

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is a book with a lot of symbolism. I think that

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while we could talk about the literal, there's

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no more sea, there's no more divide, I think

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what we need to look at here is the symbolic

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of what is his coming bringing an end to. What

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does it mean that there's no more sea? Well,

00:13:52.500 --> 00:13:55.649
some of you might be wondering. about the outfit

00:13:55.649 --> 00:14:00.649
I'm wearing. This is from Fiji. I spent a summer

00:14:00.649 --> 00:14:03.509
there, living in a village, working with the

00:14:03.509 --> 00:14:06.610
local people, sharing the gospel, doing Bible

00:14:06.610 --> 00:14:10.509
work and evangelistic series and teaching students.

00:14:11.009 --> 00:14:15.309
And those people love you with all their heart.

00:14:15.850 --> 00:14:18.909
I loved my time there. It was the most challenging

00:14:18.909 --> 00:14:21.970
mission I've ever done. But when I left, I cried

00:14:21.970 --> 00:14:25.059
so hard. And I actually look forward to calling

00:14:25.059 --> 00:14:27.100
one of them this evening, which I don't get to

00:14:27.100 --> 00:14:29.580
do often because most of them don't have a way

00:14:29.580 --> 00:14:33.019
to keep in touch. They don't have the same technological

00:14:33.019 --> 00:14:36.379
advancements that we do or opportunities that

00:14:36.379 --> 00:14:40.779
we do and might take for granted. To the Fijians,

00:14:40.919 --> 00:14:43.720
they were a sailing nation, especially before

00:14:43.720 --> 00:14:48.879
modern times. The sea... is representative of

00:14:48.879 --> 00:14:51.559
distance between people. They have this goodbye

00:14:51.559 --> 00:14:54.519
song that they sang me when I left. And they're

00:14:54.519 --> 00:14:56.620
beautiful singers, by the way. It's called Isale.

00:14:57.240 --> 00:15:01.580
And Isale, the main chorus to translate for you,

00:15:01.639 --> 00:15:03.559
says something along the lines of, we know you

00:15:03.559 --> 00:15:06.399
have to return to your beautiful country of roses.

00:15:06.840 --> 00:15:09.759
And were the sea not so rough, perhaps we could

00:15:09.759 --> 00:15:12.360
follow you there. But know that you will always

00:15:12.360 --> 00:15:15.039
be remembered. You will always be remembered

00:15:15.039 --> 00:15:18.850
in Lomo Lomo. or Suva, or whatever village you're

00:15:18.850 --> 00:15:20.889
from, they fill in the blank. But in my case,

00:15:20.970 --> 00:15:27.289
Lomo Lomo. So the C, the C means separation.

00:15:27.710 --> 00:15:30.730
That's what it represents. It puts distance between

00:15:30.730 --> 00:15:34.049
loved ones, between friends. And when I said

00:15:34.049 --> 00:15:37.669
goodbye to my church family in Fiji, it meant

00:15:37.669 --> 00:15:41.210
I was saying goodbye for however long till we

00:15:41.210 --> 00:15:43.389
meet again, whether in this world or the next.

00:15:43.529 --> 00:15:45.870
And neither of us could guarantee when that would

00:15:45.870 --> 00:15:49.879
be. because they don't have a way to keep in

00:15:49.879 --> 00:15:52.799
touch, and we don't have a way to message each

00:15:52.799 --> 00:15:56.360
other like we do here in America. The C means

00:15:56.360 --> 00:16:01.320
separation, and I hate separation. I hate goodbyes.

00:16:01.480 --> 00:16:04.700
Many of you probably do, too. Growing up, my

00:16:04.700 --> 00:16:06.480
mom would have to go on a lot of business trips.

00:16:06.620 --> 00:16:10.559
She would fly away to Europe, and I hated goodbye

00:16:10.559 --> 00:16:14.340
every time. I still hate goodbyes, because it's

00:16:14.340 --> 00:16:18.269
separation. And true love always seeks togetherness.

00:16:18.450 --> 00:16:22.450
That is why each of us in our hearts doesn't

00:16:22.450 --> 00:16:25.090
like separation. You don't like being separated

00:16:25.090 --> 00:16:27.450
from people you love because you want to be together.

00:16:27.710 --> 00:16:30.370
You get that from your Heavenly Father. We get

00:16:30.370 --> 00:16:33.769
that from our Heavenly Father. So the coming

00:16:33.769 --> 00:16:36.330
of Christ first and foremost means the end of

00:16:36.330 --> 00:16:39.889
separation. The end of separation not just from

00:16:39.889 --> 00:16:42.639
God. which we're going to look at more, but also

00:16:42.639 --> 00:16:45.200
from man, from our fellow man. The separation

00:16:45.200 --> 00:16:48.340
of literal distance between us, but there's a

00:16:48.340 --> 00:16:51.080
greater spiritual significance. The separation

00:16:51.080 --> 00:16:54.200
that sin has caused for us. The reason we have

00:16:54.200 --> 00:16:57.580
tension and hatred and anger and strife and selfishness.

00:16:57.620 --> 00:17:00.600
The things that separate us in our homes. Broken

00:17:00.600 --> 00:17:04.680
families, difficult situations. No more separation

00:17:04.680 --> 00:17:07.779
when Jesus comes again. It's the end of those

00:17:07.779 --> 00:17:10.500
things. We don't have to be uncomfortable in

00:17:10.500 --> 00:17:13.079
that situation with someone anymore. We can live

00:17:13.079 --> 00:17:16.160
peaceably among all men. That is our call today,

00:17:16.339 --> 00:17:19.500
now, and we can live in it because of this guarantee

00:17:19.500 --> 00:17:23.160
we have in Christ. So it means the end of separation.

00:17:24.940 --> 00:17:27.200
You know, the Fijians also have an expression,

00:17:27.359 --> 00:17:29.680
they hate goodbyes too, which I learned when

00:17:29.680 --> 00:17:33.059
we were hugging and sobbing in the airport. They

00:17:33.059 --> 00:17:36.420
don't say goodbye, they say sotatale. Sotatale

00:17:36.420 --> 00:17:40.750
means... We'll meet again. And I love this expression

00:17:40.750 --> 00:17:44.130
of hope. I imagine, probably not in Fijian, but

00:17:44.130 --> 00:17:46.349
Jesus probably was saying something similar as

00:17:46.349 --> 00:17:50.069
he ascended into the sky. I am with you always,

00:17:50.349 --> 00:17:55.069
he said, even to the end of the world. Verses

00:17:55.069 --> 00:17:57.930
2 and 3, let's keep reading to continue this

00:17:57.930 --> 00:18:01.950
point about the end of separation. Then I, John...

00:18:24.000 --> 00:18:29.140
This is good news. Amen? God himself will be

00:18:29.140 --> 00:18:32.230
with them. It's not just an end of separation

00:18:32.230 --> 00:18:36.210
horizontally between friends and relatives and

00:18:36.210 --> 00:18:39.670
loved ones. It's an end of the separation that

00:18:39.670 --> 00:18:43.509
has divided us from our God. We will no longer

00:18:43.509 --> 00:18:46.829
be separated from the source of all life and

00:18:46.829 --> 00:18:49.849
hope and comfort and joy. We will finally see

00:18:49.849 --> 00:18:53.569
him in the flesh. We will see him face to face.

00:18:53.630 --> 00:18:55.650
We will hear him. We will touch him. We will

00:18:55.650 --> 00:18:58.869
worship him in person. There will be no more

00:18:58.869 --> 00:19:03.670
distance between us and our God. The one source

00:19:03.670 --> 00:19:07.529
of love that every human heart aches for. There

00:19:07.529 --> 00:19:10.109
is a God -shaped hole in each of us that only

00:19:10.109 --> 00:19:13.890
God can fill. And when he comes again, when I

00:19:13.890 --> 00:19:17.630
embrace my creator, when you hug Jesus, it will

00:19:17.630 --> 00:19:22.349
close the distance between us forever. And there

00:19:22.349 --> 00:19:26.970
will be nothing greater than that. I truly believe.

00:19:27.710 --> 00:19:30.109
Every pain and ache and longing that we have

00:19:30.109 --> 00:19:34.430
endured will be sealed up with the presence of

00:19:34.430 --> 00:19:39.529
our king, side by side with us forever. There's

00:19:39.529 --> 00:19:42.470
this place where I'm from, I'm from North Carolina,

00:19:42.710 --> 00:19:45.769
called Ocracoke Island. It's this tiny island

00:19:45.769 --> 00:19:47.950
on the outer banks, which is a strip of islands.

00:19:48.009 --> 00:19:51.710
You have to take a boat to... along the coast

00:19:51.710 --> 00:19:55.109
of North Carolina. Ocracoke is 13 miles long.

00:19:55.269 --> 00:19:58.589
Three miles of that have houses or anything.

00:19:58.890 --> 00:20:02.250
And the rest is all state park. And it's beautiful

00:20:02.250 --> 00:20:05.529
sugar white sand, miles of beach. All you can

00:20:05.529 --> 00:20:08.809
see in the distance is the horizon. And I love

00:20:08.809 --> 00:20:11.930
when I would go with my family multiple years

00:20:11.930 --> 00:20:14.549
in a row when I was younger, I would climb to

00:20:14.549 --> 00:20:17.509
the top of a sand dune. And I would sit on that

00:20:17.509 --> 00:20:21.910
white, bright sand. And I would look out at the

00:20:21.910 --> 00:20:23.950
place where the sky meets the sea, which seems

00:20:23.950 --> 00:20:28.349
so endless. And I would think. And when I long

00:20:28.349 --> 00:20:33.170
most for Jesus, when I am going through the hardest

00:20:33.170 --> 00:20:37.089
situations, where I wish I could just lean my

00:20:37.089 --> 00:20:39.990
head on his shoulder right then and there, that

00:20:39.990 --> 00:20:43.819
is where I go in my imagination. I go to Ocracoke,

00:20:43.880 --> 00:20:46.779
this bright, white, light place, and I sit beside

00:20:46.779 --> 00:20:49.619
Jesus on the sand dune, and we watch the ocean

00:20:49.619 --> 00:20:52.700
together. And I think about how vast and endless

00:20:52.700 --> 00:20:56.039
his love for me is. And we never say anything,

00:20:56.180 --> 00:21:00.660
he and I, when we sit there. I just take comfort

00:21:00.660 --> 00:21:05.240
in knowing he is present. And you can take comfort

00:21:05.240 --> 00:21:08.420
in knowing that he is present. But friends, when

00:21:08.420 --> 00:21:11.930
Jesus comes again, That won't be my imagination

00:21:11.930 --> 00:21:15.009
anymore. I can really visit that place with him.

00:21:15.109 --> 00:21:18.630
He'll make a better place. I know he will. And

00:21:18.630 --> 00:21:21.930
he will really be there, sitting beside me on

00:21:21.930 --> 00:21:26.150
the sand. He'll really be there, just as he is

00:21:26.150 --> 00:21:28.150
now, but I'll be able to touch him, poke him

00:21:28.150 --> 00:21:29.970
in the side, you know, that kind of thing, like

00:21:29.970 --> 00:21:37.450
Thomas did. As surely as I have him then, because

00:21:37.450 --> 00:21:40.359
of his promise, his word to us. I have him now.

00:21:41.539 --> 00:21:45.960
That is what the coming of Christ means. As surely

00:21:45.960 --> 00:21:48.900
as he has promised to return, you already have

00:21:48.900 --> 00:21:52.220
him now. You can be certain he will come again.

00:21:52.839 --> 00:21:55.039
When you sit down at a restaurant and you order

00:21:55.039 --> 00:21:57.759
your food, you don't get up and leave after the

00:21:57.759 --> 00:22:00.660
waiter goes away because you're sure the food

00:22:00.660 --> 00:22:03.779
is coming. Maybe it hasn't before, and you've

00:22:03.779 --> 00:22:06.880
questioned that restaurant, but Jesus is better

00:22:06.880 --> 00:22:11.230
than a restaurant. And if he promises, it is

00:22:11.230 --> 00:22:15.269
so. I love one of Spirit of Prophecy's expressions,

00:22:15.529 --> 00:22:18.950
as surely as the oak is in the acorn, so the

00:22:18.950 --> 00:22:22.609
gift is in the promise. I might hold an acorn

00:22:22.609 --> 00:22:25.630
in my hand and not see an oak tree, but should

00:22:25.630 --> 00:22:28.369
I plant it and give it enough time, in perfect

00:22:28.369 --> 00:22:31.089
timing, there will stand before me an oak tree,

00:22:31.210 --> 00:22:34.750
and nothing else, because the promise is sure.

00:22:35.690 --> 00:22:38.430
When a woman is with child and she has a baby

00:22:38.430 --> 00:22:43.049
developing in her womb, typically you don't see

00:22:43.049 --> 00:22:45.349
people carry on with life as normal and then

00:22:45.349 --> 00:22:47.190
when the baby gets there they go, oh yeah, we

00:22:47.190 --> 00:22:49.930
should like paint a room and go buy a cradle

00:22:49.930 --> 00:22:54.089
and get some diapers. You start preparing already

00:22:54.089 --> 00:22:58.490
as though the baby has already come. Why? Because

00:22:58.490 --> 00:23:02.089
the promise lives within you. It is already so.

00:23:03.759 --> 00:23:07.480
And we have a promise that lives in us. As surely

00:23:07.480 --> 00:23:10.140
as Jesus has promised to us that he will come

00:23:10.140 --> 00:23:13.339
again, he has come to us now in our hearts today.

00:23:14.039 --> 00:23:16.839
So I don't have to live with the joy and excitement

00:23:16.839 --> 00:23:20.119
in that day alone of the coming of Christ, but

00:23:20.119 --> 00:23:24.119
now, today, I can behave as though Christ has

00:23:24.119 --> 00:23:27.039
already come, as though I am positive. He's coming

00:23:27.039 --> 00:23:30.740
again. It can change the way I deal with the

00:23:30.740 --> 00:23:33.900
circumstances and situations that life brings

00:23:33.900 --> 00:23:38.380
my way in a fallen world. So let's keep reading.

00:23:38.940 --> 00:23:45.519
Verse 4. And God will wipe away every tear from

00:23:45.519 --> 00:23:50.519
their eyes. There shall be no more death, nor

00:23:50.519 --> 00:23:54.400
sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain.

00:23:54.880 --> 00:24:00.160
for the former things have passed away. There's

00:24:00.160 --> 00:24:03.839
a lot in this verse. Let's start with the first

00:24:03.839 --> 00:24:07.160
thing. We've talked about the end of separation

00:24:07.160 --> 00:24:11.460
from man and from God. Let's talk about the end

00:24:11.460 --> 00:24:17.740
of permanent separation, the end of death. When

00:24:17.740 --> 00:24:22.279
Jesus comes again, and you've heard this before,

00:24:22.460 --> 00:24:26.490
1 Corinthians 15 says, Death is followed up in

00:24:26.490 --> 00:24:31.349
victory. O death, where is your sting? O grave,

00:24:31.589 --> 00:24:35.269
where is your victory? Thanks be to God who gives

00:24:35.269 --> 00:24:37.890
us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

00:24:38.829 --> 00:24:42.789
When Jesus comes again, there will be no more

00:24:42.789 --> 00:24:47.410
dying. Those who are dead in Christ will rise.

00:24:47.789 --> 00:24:51.630
You know it. You've read the promises. You've

00:24:51.630 --> 00:24:54.940
heard the promises. But as surely as Jesus has

00:24:54.940 --> 00:24:58.240
already come to take our place, death no longer

00:24:58.240 --> 00:25:01.059
affects us in the same way. You and I don't die.

00:25:01.220 --> 00:25:06.480
We fall asleep. So the fear of death also is

00:25:06.480 --> 00:25:09.839
eliminated for us now because the coming of Christ

00:25:09.839 --> 00:25:13.279
is sure then in that day. We don't have to fear

00:25:13.279 --> 00:25:17.180
this anymore because our story is only on pause,

00:25:17.220 --> 00:25:22.869
but it's not over. And that is good news. Death

00:25:22.869 --> 00:25:26.470
is unnatural for us. We hate it, and we're supposed

00:25:26.470 --> 00:25:28.910
to because it was never supposed to happen. We

00:25:28.910 --> 00:25:32.829
have no capacity to deal with it in a normal

00:25:32.829 --> 00:25:37.509
or peaceful way because it's unsettling. It should

00:25:37.509 --> 00:25:41.490
be. It's a separation from God, and it is a permanent

00:25:41.490 --> 00:25:44.950
separation, and it hurts. And that's okay that

00:25:44.950 --> 00:25:48.990
it hurts because we have a promise, a good news.

00:25:49.450 --> 00:25:51.569
of one who has come to conquer death and the

00:25:51.569 --> 00:25:54.930
grave on our behalf and on behalf of those we

00:25:54.930 --> 00:25:57.869
have loved and do love and long to see again.

00:25:59.369 --> 00:26:03.609
I know this is the sweetest promise. For so many

00:26:03.609 --> 00:26:07.029
of you and for me, we can think of people we

00:26:07.029 --> 00:26:11.009
look forward to seeing again. We don't have to

00:26:11.009 --> 00:26:13.329
fear death anymore because it's not our end.

00:26:13.710 --> 00:26:16.890
The life we now live, we live in Christ Jesus

00:26:16.890 --> 00:26:21.119
who has given up his life. for us and he has

00:26:21.119 --> 00:26:24.819
instead given us his life that we may live eternally

00:26:24.819 --> 00:26:30.200
I have multiple friends actually in the past

00:26:30.200 --> 00:26:34.359
two years who I have talked with who recently

00:26:34.359 --> 00:26:37.660
lost family members that they love and it's shifted

00:26:37.660 --> 00:26:39.880
my perspective on this verse a little bit because

00:26:39.880 --> 00:26:42.339
I have before as many of you I'm sure have rightly

00:26:42.339 --> 00:26:45.259
thought of I've considered what it will be like

00:26:45.630 --> 00:26:47.849
to be there on that day and to see people coming

00:26:47.849 --> 00:26:50.829
forth from the grave and being with us in the

00:26:50.829 --> 00:26:53.309
kingdom. And that's a beautiful thing to imagine.

00:26:53.869 --> 00:26:57.329
But now I have a new perspective of the joy I

00:26:57.329 --> 00:27:00.569
will feel when I get to watch people I love be

00:27:00.569 --> 00:27:03.349
reunited with people they love. It's not just

00:27:03.349 --> 00:27:07.049
my privilege now to run into the arms of my loved

00:27:07.049 --> 00:27:10.490
ones, but to watch the people I care for see

00:27:10.490 --> 00:27:13.680
people they love again and be reunited. And the

00:27:13.680 --> 00:27:16.680
greatest, of course, reunion of all is to be

00:27:16.680 --> 00:27:20.920
reunited with our Heavenly Father. I hope you're

00:27:20.920 --> 00:27:24.759
using your imaginations with me right now. So

00:27:24.759 --> 00:27:28.500
the coming of Christ brings an end to death and

00:27:28.500 --> 00:27:32.839
to our fear of death. It's simply a pause button

00:27:32.839 --> 00:27:44.279
now for us, but it's not our end. Even when we

00:27:44.279 --> 00:27:48.819
die now in this world, we die differently, right?

00:27:48.920 --> 00:27:52.539
We die daily, by the way. But I mean when death

00:27:52.539 --> 00:27:55.559
comes, as it comes to each of us or people we

00:27:55.559 --> 00:27:59.680
love, we can have a peace that we hold on to

00:27:59.680 --> 00:28:03.240
that is a witness to others, that tells people

00:28:03.240 --> 00:28:06.400
that we are sure Christ is coming again. If you

00:28:06.400 --> 00:28:09.470
know the promise is certain, You're not going

00:28:09.470 --> 00:28:12.230
to act the same way. You still grieve, you still

00:28:12.230 --> 00:28:15.130
weep, you still mourn, but you go on singing.

00:28:16.150 --> 00:28:19.049
And people wonder at that, because for some people,

00:28:19.190 --> 00:28:23.390
what's beyond us is a mystery, and that's scary.

00:28:23.710 --> 00:28:26.490
It's like looking forward into darkness, whereas

00:28:26.490 --> 00:28:29.490
for us, we look forward into light, into the

00:28:29.490 --> 00:28:32.009
hope of an eternity, where there is love and

00:28:32.009 --> 00:28:34.450
joy and peace. And so when we confront death

00:28:34.450 --> 00:28:38.500
as Christians, we handle it differently. Why?

00:28:38.500 --> 00:28:41.880
Because Jesus is coming again. And when my Lord

00:28:41.880 --> 00:28:46.799
comes, he rattles graves. And I want to live

00:28:46.799 --> 00:28:49.019
in such a way where others pause and wonder,

00:28:49.119 --> 00:28:52.940
how sure is this promise if they can live out

00:28:52.940 --> 00:28:55.480
their life so differently, even in the face of

00:28:55.480 --> 00:28:58.019
something that seems so permanent? Even in the

00:28:58.019 --> 00:29:00.920
permanency of death, they seem to see impermanency.

00:29:04.410 --> 00:29:06.390
is the most permanent separation we experience

00:29:06.390 --> 00:29:09.230
in this world, and yet Christ's coming brings

00:29:09.230 --> 00:29:13.390
an end to that separation permanently. He brings

00:29:13.390 --> 00:29:17.990
eternal life, the beginning of forever with Jesus.

00:29:18.190 --> 00:29:20.890
But it starts today because as surely as we have

00:29:20.890 --> 00:29:25.890
the promise then, we have it now. So let's continue.

00:29:26.009 --> 00:29:29.730
Verse 4 has a lot more to unpack. It's the end

00:29:29.730 --> 00:29:33.490
of sorrow. Why? Why is the coming of Christ the

00:29:33.490 --> 00:29:35.589
end of sorrow? Well, we've looked at a couple

00:29:35.589 --> 00:29:38.269
reasons. Because of separation, it's no longer.

00:29:38.690 --> 00:29:41.869
And death is no longer. Because we are united

00:29:41.869 --> 00:29:44.250
to God. But I want to suggest to you that one

00:29:44.250 --> 00:29:47.089
of the reasons sorrow ends in that day is because

00:29:47.089 --> 00:29:50.930
the coming of Christ is the beginning of perfect

00:29:50.930 --> 00:29:55.210
justice. The coming of Christ is judgment day,

00:29:55.329 --> 00:29:58.390
right? And that's good news for those who have

00:29:58.390 --> 00:30:01.180
an advocate with the Father. That's good news

00:30:01.180 --> 00:30:04.200
for those of you who have suffered under injustice

00:30:04.200 --> 00:30:08.380
in a world where justice does not rule. And all

00:30:08.380 --> 00:30:14.160
of you have. So much of our sorrow comes from

00:30:14.160 --> 00:30:16.539
living in the corruption of an unjust world.

00:30:17.720 --> 00:30:20.299
Anger is your justice emotion. It's our justice

00:30:20.299 --> 00:30:24.019
emotion. God gave it to us. God gets angry too.

00:30:24.660 --> 00:30:27.140
And when God gets angry, he's angry with the

00:30:27.140 --> 00:30:30.240
injustice he sees. And we're designed to get

00:30:30.240 --> 00:30:32.480
angry at injustice that's done to us or done

00:30:32.480 --> 00:30:35.960
to other people around us, especially the vulnerable.

00:30:36.079 --> 00:30:38.440
That's why God over and over, I love that we

00:30:38.440 --> 00:30:41.279
serve a God who remembers the widows and the

00:30:41.279 --> 00:30:44.759
orphans, the fatherless, again and again in the

00:30:44.759 --> 00:30:48.140
scriptures. He looks out for the voiceless and

00:30:48.140 --> 00:30:51.140
the vulnerable, and he hates to see injustice

00:30:51.140 --> 00:30:55.640
done to them, just as you do. Anger is our justice

00:30:55.640 --> 00:30:59.650
emotion. But much of our sorrow comes from the

00:30:59.650 --> 00:31:03.029
unforgiveness that we face when that anger is

00:31:03.029 --> 00:31:06.569
not properly and rightly handled. God has called

00:31:06.569 --> 00:31:09.569
us to be angry and not to sin, but sometimes

00:31:09.569 --> 00:31:12.690
we don't know what that looks like. When we live

00:31:12.690 --> 00:31:14.890
in an unrighteous world and sin is done to us

00:31:14.890 --> 00:31:18.069
or to someone we love, we're often tempted to

00:31:18.069 --> 00:31:20.769
hold on to that thing that happened and not let

00:31:20.769 --> 00:31:24.619
it go. to repeat the injustice again and again

00:31:24.619 --> 00:31:27.200
to ourselves, to relive it in our minds over

00:31:27.200 --> 00:31:32.400
and over. Why? Because we're afraid if we don't

00:31:32.400 --> 00:31:35.059
remember, if we don't hold on to what was done,

00:31:35.220 --> 00:31:39.940
they'll get away with it. That's why. We hold

00:31:39.940 --> 00:31:43.119
on to the things that are done because we're

00:31:43.119 --> 00:31:46.720
afraid that the person that has wronged us or

00:31:46.720 --> 00:31:50.339
the situation that has been done will... not

00:31:50.339 --> 00:31:53.480
receive justice. And it's fair for us to assume

00:31:53.480 --> 00:31:55.400
that because we live in a world where we don't

00:31:55.400 --> 00:31:58.359
see perfect justice meted out. Even our justice

00:31:58.359 --> 00:32:02.039
system is imperfect. And so we hold on to the

00:32:02.039 --> 00:32:05.200
wrong that was committed. We hold on to it in

00:32:05.200 --> 00:32:07.700
unforgiveness, not realizing that's what it is,

00:32:07.819 --> 00:32:11.079
because we think, if I don't remember what that

00:32:11.079 --> 00:32:14.380
person did to me, then they get away with it.

00:32:14.460 --> 00:32:17.339
No one else saw. No one else saw. I was a little

00:32:17.339 --> 00:32:20.019
girl. When this thing happened, I have a teacher

00:32:20.019 --> 00:32:22.559
who has this story. Her grandfather abused her

00:32:22.559 --> 00:32:26.700
when she was very young. And she held on to that

00:32:26.700 --> 00:32:30.720
for years, even after he died. She relived it

00:32:30.720 --> 00:32:35.460
because no one else knew. So he got away with

00:32:35.460 --> 00:32:39.079
it. But he didn't. No one gets away with anything.

00:32:39.299 --> 00:32:42.960
We serve a God who sees. And he sees all things.

00:32:43.059 --> 00:32:45.880
And he sees your tears and your sorrow and your

00:32:45.880 --> 00:32:48.880
pain. He sees the circumstances and situations

00:32:48.880 --> 00:32:52.279
that have happened to you and to those you love.

00:32:52.480 --> 00:32:55.440
And he hears every cry. And I know there are

00:32:55.440 --> 00:32:57.839
times we cry out into what seems like silence.

00:32:58.640 --> 00:33:01.960
A call for justice. A call for someone to see

00:33:01.960 --> 00:33:04.960
and to do what is right. And to right the wrongs

00:33:04.960 --> 00:33:07.240
that have been committed. And sometimes we feel

00:33:07.240 --> 00:33:11.140
that we are met with nothing in response. But

00:33:11.140 --> 00:33:13.880
we have a God who sees. and who has promised

00:33:13.880 --> 00:33:16.720
to come again and bring perfect justice with

00:33:16.720 --> 00:33:20.680
him. I love one of the first personal names that

00:33:20.680 --> 00:33:24.599
we see all the way back in Genesis. You know,

00:33:24.660 --> 00:33:28.019
the first woman in the Bible to name God. In

00:33:28.019 --> 00:33:29.680
fact, I think it might be the first person to

00:33:29.680 --> 00:33:34.259
give God a personal name is Hagar, who is a woman

00:33:34.259 --> 00:33:39.140
and a slave and a Gentile. And when she is wronged,

00:33:40.269 --> 00:33:42.230
And sent away with her son in the wilderness

00:33:42.230 --> 00:33:45.630
basically to die. She cries out at injustice.

00:33:46.049 --> 00:33:50.410
And God hears her. And he brings help. And he

00:33:50.410 --> 00:33:53.869
blesses her. And she calls him the God who sees

00:33:53.869 --> 00:33:58.869
me. I do love that name for God. The God who

00:33:58.869 --> 00:34:04.279
sees me. So a lot of sorrow that we have. comes

00:34:04.279 --> 00:34:07.079
because of this holding on to something. We try

00:34:07.079 --> 00:34:09.940
to hold on to the need for justice because we

00:34:09.940 --> 00:34:12.380
have not placed our trust fully in God that he

00:34:12.380 --> 00:34:15.219
is perfect in justice and that when he comes

00:34:15.219 --> 00:34:18.619
again, he will make it all right. We can trust

00:34:18.619 --> 00:34:22.239
that he's coming again. Justice is sure. We might

00:34:22.239 --> 00:34:26.059
not see it today, but it is. Sure, and we don't

00:34:26.059 --> 00:34:28.340
have to keep reliving the pain and the hurt.

00:34:28.380 --> 00:34:31.280
We can give it over to God and let him carry

00:34:31.280 --> 00:34:35.139
the burden of perfect execution of justice. That's

00:34:35.139 --> 00:34:37.780
a burden too heavy for us, friends. We can't

00:34:37.780 --> 00:34:42.280
do it. But we can carry the lighter yoke of forgiveness,

00:34:42.420 --> 00:34:46.360
which Christ has given to us, and let him carry

00:34:46.360 --> 00:34:49.559
the burden of justice. Because it is a heavy

00:34:49.559 --> 00:34:52.679
burden and it is, in God's word, called a strange

00:34:52.679 --> 00:34:56.539
act that he will do in that day. But it's not

00:34:56.539 --> 00:35:01.059
ours to carry out. The cross of Christ means

00:35:01.059 --> 00:35:04.039
every person has equal opportunity to be redeemed

00:35:04.039 --> 00:35:06.960
and covered for their sins. But we know that

00:35:06.960 --> 00:35:09.000
to those who harden their hearts and won't accept

00:35:09.000 --> 00:35:11.639
that gift, they cling to the sin that will destroy

00:35:11.639 --> 00:35:14.389
them. Because, friends, when God pours out his

00:35:14.389 --> 00:35:17.329
unmixed wrath, it will be on the sin that has

00:35:17.329 --> 00:35:20.190
hurt his children. And anyone who chooses to

00:35:20.190 --> 00:35:22.809
cling to that sin will burn up with it. He's

00:35:22.809 --> 00:35:25.530
not aiming at you or me. He's not aiming at us

00:35:25.530 --> 00:35:30.730
in that day. He's aiming at sin. And that's why

00:35:30.730 --> 00:35:33.949
right now he's doing everything he can to warn

00:35:33.949 --> 00:35:38.489
us to get out of the way, to let go of that which

00:35:38.489 --> 00:35:42.769
would destroy us. To hold on to him instead.

00:35:42.849 --> 00:35:47.769
To trade yokes and let him take care of it. You

00:35:47.769 --> 00:35:50.530
don't have to keep reliving your pain. Grieve

00:35:50.530 --> 00:35:55.329
it. Mourn it. Move through it. Please do. But

00:35:55.329 --> 00:35:59.110
we cannot allow suffering to determine our experience

00:35:59.110 --> 00:36:03.550
with God. We cannot allow suffering to limit

00:36:03.550 --> 00:36:06.170
our understanding of how close God is to us.

00:36:06.309 --> 00:36:09.150
Pain alerts us to the presence of sin in our

00:36:09.150 --> 00:36:14.179
life. but not the absence of God. Pain does not

00:36:14.179 --> 00:36:20.699
mean the absence of God. When Jesus comes, sin

00:36:20.699 --> 00:36:23.719
will be eradicated, so pain will also be removed

00:36:23.719 --> 00:36:26.159
because we will no longer need pain to alert

00:36:26.159 --> 00:36:30.199
us to the presence of sin. We're created as emotional

00:36:30.199 --> 00:36:33.000
beings. We need to process our emotions, including

00:36:33.000 --> 00:36:36.139
grief and pain. I'm not saying don't do that.

00:36:36.420 --> 00:36:40.809
I'm saying bring it all before Jesus. Process

00:36:40.809 --> 00:36:43.150
with him because nobody knows your grief better

00:36:43.150 --> 00:36:46.449
than the one who walked the hill to Calvary.

00:36:47.449 --> 00:36:51.949
No one knows like Jesus knows. And he's been

00:36:51.949 --> 00:36:56.269
there before you. How you feel cannot, must not

00:36:56.269 --> 00:36:58.889
be allowed to define the reality of God's love

00:36:58.889 --> 00:37:03.070
for you. His word and his promise to us, which

00:37:03.070 --> 00:37:05.550
is sure, needs to be our rock and our fortress

00:37:05.550 --> 00:37:08.489
of defense that we hide in in times of trouble.

00:37:09.519 --> 00:37:12.739
When you bear sorrow in this world and grief

00:37:12.739 --> 00:37:15.679
and pain and you wonder where he has gone, he

00:37:15.679 --> 00:37:19.699
has not forsaken you. I love this quote from

00:37:19.699 --> 00:37:21.619
a book I've been reading for my master's class.

00:37:22.059 --> 00:37:25.420
God meets his people most powerfully in experiences

00:37:25.420 --> 00:37:29.239
where they fear he is absent. When you cry out

00:37:29.239 --> 00:37:31.539
into what seems like the darkness, the void,

00:37:31.719 --> 00:37:34.059
and it seems like nothing comes back to you,

00:37:34.159 --> 00:37:38.110
God has not abandoned nor forsaken you. He has

00:37:38.110 --> 00:37:42.210
promised to be with you always. He never leaves

00:37:42.210 --> 00:37:45.929
or forsakes his own. Imagine with me that I have

00:37:45.929 --> 00:37:48.190
an apple. I wish I had brought an apple, but

00:37:48.190 --> 00:37:49.730
I don't have any apples, so I didn't bring an

00:37:49.730 --> 00:37:52.829
apple. Imagine I have an apple, and I set it

00:37:52.829 --> 00:37:55.230
on the table in front of me, and I look at that

00:37:55.230 --> 00:37:58.469
apple. I can see it very clearly. And then maybe

00:37:58.469 --> 00:38:00.670
I walk a little closer to the apple and closer,

00:38:00.989 --> 00:38:04.070
and I can see it better and better. But if I

00:38:04.070 --> 00:38:06.469
put that apple on my head, can I see it very

00:38:06.469 --> 00:38:11.579
well? No. Am I closer or further away from the

00:38:11.579 --> 00:38:15.320
apple? It's closer than it was when I could see

00:38:15.320 --> 00:38:18.800
it clearly in front of me. Sometimes, just because

00:38:18.800 --> 00:38:21.739
we don't see God, that does not mean he's far

00:38:21.739 --> 00:38:27.239
away. It doesn't mean that. Sometimes we don't

00:38:27.239 --> 00:38:31.780
see God and he's carrying us. Sometimes we don't

00:38:31.780 --> 00:38:36.000
see him because he's in the middle of a process.

00:38:38.059 --> 00:38:42.039
Of putting salve on our eyes. And removing the

00:38:42.039 --> 00:38:47.039
blindness. We can't allow pain to make us believe

00:38:47.039 --> 00:38:51.699
that God is absent or not with us. God has promised

00:38:51.699 --> 00:38:53.659
to bring the beginning of a reign of perfect

00:38:53.659 --> 00:38:56.639
righteousness and peace and justice. And that

00:38:56.639 --> 00:38:59.539
is why we will have an end to sorrow. An end

00:38:59.539 --> 00:39:04.239
to pain. There will be an end to crying. No more

00:39:04.239 --> 00:39:06.900
tears. He'll wipe every tear away. When Jesus

00:39:06.900 --> 00:39:08.800
comes again, it's the beginning of a forever

00:39:08.800 --> 00:39:11.980
kingdom of righteousness ruled by unselfish love.

00:39:12.239 --> 00:39:15.360
We all long for justice because there has never

00:39:15.360 --> 00:39:17.480
been perfect justice so long as there has been

00:39:17.480 --> 00:39:20.119
sin in this world, and we have the promise that

00:39:20.119 --> 00:39:24.800
it is coming with Jesus. Jesus is coming again,

00:39:24.940 --> 00:39:30.960
and he will make all things new. Verse 5, Then

00:39:30.960 --> 00:39:34.599
he who sat on the throne said, Behold, I make

00:39:34.599 --> 00:39:37.579
all things new. And I'm going to come back to

00:39:37.579 --> 00:39:39.900
verse 5 to finish, but I'm going to pause there.

00:39:40.619 --> 00:39:44.260
We have an end to separation and sorrow and crying

00:39:44.260 --> 00:39:48.260
and pain and death. And we have a beginning of

00:39:48.260 --> 00:39:52.480
new life and peace and hope. New beginnings,

00:39:52.639 --> 00:39:56.880
new bodies for the lame, new hearts, new minds.

00:39:57.280 --> 00:40:00.039
All those things that you've seen and done and

00:40:00.039 --> 00:40:04.159
thought of, watched or read or heard, any experience

00:40:04.159 --> 00:40:06.980
you've had. that now lives there and you wish

00:40:06.980 --> 00:40:10.239
you could scrub it clean from your mind, will

00:40:10.239 --> 00:40:15.699
be washed away. We will be restored, recreated,

00:40:16.000 --> 00:40:19.920
given a new beginning. And friends, the promise

00:40:19.920 --> 00:40:24.679
is for us now, today, not just in that day. The

00:40:24.679 --> 00:40:27.800
process begins now, today, when I wake up and

00:40:27.800 --> 00:40:31.039
say, Jesus, I invite you to be king in my life.

00:40:31.800 --> 00:40:37.039
I want to live for your coming. There will be

00:40:37.039 --> 00:40:40.099
great rejoicing in that kingdom. Isaiah 65 says,

00:40:40.219 --> 00:40:42.880
Behold, I create a new heavens and a new earth,

00:40:43.079 --> 00:40:45.780
and the former shall not be remembered or come

00:40:45.780 --> 00:40:48.980
to mind. But be glad and rejoice forever in what

00:40:48.980 --> 00:40:52.280
I create. For behold, I create Jerusalem as a

00:40:52.280 --> 00:40:56.400
rejoicing, and her people a joy. I will rejoice

00:40:56.400 --> 00:40:59.960
in Jerusalem and joy in my people. The voice

00:40:59.960 --> 00:41:02.719
of weeping shall no longer be heard in her, nor

00:41:02.719 --> 00:41:06.030
the voice of crying. We will be rejoicing because

00:41:06.030 --> 00:41:08.489
of perfect justice and the end of sin and suffering

00:41:08.489 --> 00:41:11.369
and the presence of our God. And God himself,

00:41:11.710 --> 00:41:17.030
friends, will be rejoicing over his people. Verse

00:41:17.030 --> 00:41:21.869
6, we keep reading in Revelation. Verse 6 says,

00:41:22.050 --> 00:41:26.369
He said to me, It is done. I am the Alpha and

00:41:26.369 --> 00:41:29.150
the Omega, the beginning and the end. I will

00:41:29.150 --> 00:41:31.630
give of the fountain of the water of life freely

00:41:31.630 --> 00:41:34.869
to him who thirsts. He's the beginning of life,

00:41:35.050 --> 00:41:39.969
the end of death, and sin. He's the end of thirsting

00:41:39.969 --> 00:41:41.989
and the beginning of eternal fulfillment and

00:41:41.989 --> 00:41:44.849
joy. He's the beginning of our peace. He's the

00:41:44.849 --> 00:41:48.090
beginning of our rest. He's the beginning of

00:41:48.090 --> 00:41:55.010
everything for us. Verse 7. He who overcomes

00:41:55.010 --> 00:41:57.610
shall inherit these things, and I will be his

00:41:57.610 --> 00:42:02.730
God, and he shall be my son. When Jesus comes

00:42:02.730 --> 00:42:05.309
again, it's the beginning of our inheritance.

00:42:06.250 --> 00:42:10.449
What inheritance is that? Well, we can read on

00:42:10.449 --> 00:42:12.550
to find out. We're going to skip down a few verses

00:42:12.550 --> 00:42:16.690
now to 10, 11, and I'll read through 12 probably.

00:42:17.730 --> 00:42:20.190
He carried me away in the spirit to a great and

00:42:20.190 --> 00:42:22.329
high mountain and showed me the great city, the

00:42:22.329 --> 00:42:24.989
holy Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from

00:42:24.989 --> 00:42:28.489
God, having the glory of God. Her light was like

00:42:28.489 --> 00:42:31.670
a most precious stone, like a jasper stone clear

00:42:31.670 --> 00:42:36.150
as crystal. And she also had a great and high

00:42:36.150 --> 00:42:39.070
wall with 12 gates and 12 angels at the gates

00:42:39.070 --> 00:42:41.030
and names written on them, which are the names

00:42:41.030 --> 00:42:44.670
of the 12 tribes of the children of Israel. What

00:42:44.670 --> 00:42:47.449
inheritance do we have? We have a rich and beautiful

00:42:47.449 --> 00:42:51.610
city of God, a kingdom, a mansion prepared for

00:42:51.610 --> 00:42:55.639
us. We have eternal life. we will be seated on

00:42:55.639 --> 00:43:00.780
the throne with Jesus Christ. That is astounding

00:43:00.780 --> 00:43:04.179
to me, because I know myself, and I know what

00:43:04.179 --> 00:43:08.420
I have done. And to be invited to come up higher

00:43:08.420 --> 00:43:10.559
and to sit with him on his throne when he rules

00:43:10.559 --> 00:43:15.679
in perfect justice doesn't seem very fair. It's

00:43:15.679 --> 00:43:18.519
not fair to him. It's more than good for me,

00:43:18.659 --> 00:43:22.429
but it doesn't seem very fair to Jesus. But that

00:43:22.429 --> 00:43:24.650
is the magnificence and the magnitude of the

00:43:24.650 --> 00:43:27.849
love of Christ. And when he comes again, it's

00:43:27.849 --> 00:43:29.909
the beginning of our inheritance. You know, most

00:43:29.909 --> 00:43:32.750
of the time, an inheritance begins when someone

00:43:32.750 --> 00:43:38.110
dies. Well, in a way, that's true, because I

00:43:38.110 --> 00:43:41.409
have died, and now I have an inheritance with

00:43:41.409 --> 00:43:45.730
my God. But in other ways, Jesus is a little

00:43:45.730 --> 00:43:48.510
different. Our inheritance begins this time with

00:43:48.510 --> 00:43:53.179
a wedding, a wedding feast. A celebration. We

00:43:53.179 --> 00:43:55.920
get to be forever together in a city that is

00:43:55.920 --> 00:43:58.199
bright and fair and beautiful and that we sing

00:43:58.199 --> 00:44:01.480
about and think about often. That is our inheritance.

00:44:01.820 --> 00:44:04.800
Our inheritance is also that peace and joy and

00:44:04.800 --> 00:44:07.260
rest which we've been talking about. It's an

00:44:07.260 --> 00:44:10.780
inheritance of life abundantly. And friends,

00:44:10.780 --> 00:44:13.900
because Jesus is sure to come again, it starts

00:44:13.900 --> 00:44:18.219
today. Now. You don't have to wait for that day.

00:44:18.300 --> 00:44:20.719
You shouldn't wait for that day. The call and

00:44:20.719 --> 00:44:25.059
invitation is for now. Let's keep reading verses

00:44:25.059 --> 00:44:28.219
22, and I'm going to go through the end of the

00:44:28.219 --> 00:44:31.320
chapter here. I saw no temple in it, for the

00:44:31.320 --> 00:44:34.320
glory of the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are

00:44:34.320 --> 00:44:37.679
its temple. The city had no need of the sun or

00:44:37.679 --> 00:44:40.219
of the moon to shine in it, for the glory of

00:44:40.219 --> 00:44:47.820
God illumines it. The Lamb is its light. Night.

00:44:47.820 --> 00:44:51.800
No more night. Darkness. And the beginning of

00:44:51.800 --> 00:44:55.079
a light so bright and constant and eternal that

00:44:55.079 --> 00:44:59.519
in that city there is never darkness. Never night.

00:44:59.639 --> 00:45:02.139
You know, sometimes I hope for naptime in heaven,

00:45:02.260 --> 00:45:05.179
but then I realize that when Jesus comes again,

00:45:05.239 --> 00:45:07.739
I won't need it. The light will be so bright

00:45:07.739 --> 00:45:10.340
and so refreshing, I will not be weary anymore.

00:45:10.599 --> 00:45:15.539
He comes again to refresh us. The Lamb is its

00:45:15.539 --> 00:45:17.539
light, and the nations of those who are saved

00:45:17.539 --> 00:45:20.079
shall walk in its light, and the kings of the

00:45:20.079 --> 00:45:24.219
earth bring their glory and honor into it. Its

00:45:24.219 --> 00:45:27.219
gates shall not be shut at all by day. There

00:45:27.219 --> 00:45:29.739
shall be no night there, and they shall bring

00:45:29.739 --> 00:45:33.219
the glory and the honor of the nations into it.

00:45:33.280 --> 00:45:36.760
But there shall by no means enter into it anything

00:45:36.760 --> 00:45:40.179
that defiles or causes an abomination or a lie,

00:45:40.300 --> 00:45:43.300
but only those who are written. In the Lamb's

00:45:43.300 --> 00:45:46.139
book of life. I want to be written in that book

00:45:46.139 --> 00:45:48.320
of life, brothers and sisters. How about you?

00:45:50.340 --> 00:45:53.119
The beginning of our inheritance. I think something

00:45:53.119 --> 00:45:55.739
else that I see here in these verses over and

00:45:55.739 --> 00:45:58.460
over is the glory. The glory of God. The glory

00:45:58.460 --> 00:46:01.639
of God. That is our inheritance, ultimately.

00:46:02.380 --> 00:46:06.400
To suffer with Christ is the promise also to

00:46:06.400 --> 00:46:09.780
glory with Christ. That is a glory we cannot

00:46:09.780 --> 00:46:13.409
imagine. But each of us born into sin is a glory

00:46:13.409 --> 00:46:16.730
thief. We put others down, we lie, we cheat,

00:46:16.809 --> 00:46:20.449
we steal, all to try to get glory. Every day,

00:46:20.449 --> 00:46:24.730
you and I try to get glory. We use people as

00:46:24.730 --> 00:46:27.889
tools to get it. We use our job, our situation,

00:46:27.969 --> 00:46:30.570
our circumstances. We're always trying to get

00:46:30.570 --> 00:46:33.750
glory. But when we surrender our lives fully

00:46:33.750 --> 00:46:37.650
to Christ, when we truly begin to live for his

00:46:37.650 --> 00:46:41.710
glory instead of our own, When we end trying

00:46:41.710 --> 00:46:45.610
to seek our own glory, that's the moment he has

00:46:45.610 --> 00:46:49.690
promised an inheritance of his glory to us. When

00:46:49.690 --> 00:46:52.329
I start looking for God's glory, not only will

00:46:52.329 --> 00:46:56.050
I find it, but he will pour it out on me. And

00:46:56.050 --> 00:46:59.329
that is an incredible gift. So to suffer with

00:46:59.329 --> 00:47:02.429
Christ, be encouraged, friends, means the promise

00:47:02.429 --> 00:47:06.170
of glorying with Christ. And I don't fully comprehend

00:47:06.170 --> 00:47:09.349
yet what that means. And probably you don't either.

00:47:10.050 --> 00:47:13.750
But I know it'll be joyful. What if the greatest

00:47:13.750 --> 00:47:16.289
disappointments that we go through in this world

00:47:16.289 --> 00:47:21.650
are really the preparation, the realization that

00:47:21.650 --> 00:47:24.650
we were never made to dwell here in brokenness?

00:47:25.110 --> 00:47:30.210
What if the disappointments we face are to cause

00:47:30.210 --> 00:47:32.869
us to long for a glory that God wants to give

00:47:32.869 --> 00:47:35.250
us, that he knows the extent of, and we haven't

00:47:35.250 --> 00:47:38.800
even begun to think about? What if all the questions

00:47:38.800 --> 00:47:45.039
you're asking are to point you back to a Savior

00:47:45.039 --> 00:47:48.800
with all the answers? And what if the silence

00:47:48.800 --> 00:47:55.300
is an invitation to listen? Not to believe that

00:47:55.300 --> 00:47:58.300
he's absent, but that he's there holding you

00:47:58.300 --> 00:48:01.579
in the midst of your pain and tears and agony.

00:48:01.820 --> 00:48:06.699
He knows. He knows better than anyone. Better

00:48:06.699 --> 00:48:10.880
than anyone. Romans 5 .5 says, Hope does not

00:48:10.880 --> 00:48:13.239
disappoint because the love of God has been poured

00:48:13.239 --> 00:48:15.960
out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was

00:48:15.960 --> 00:48:20.079
given to us. Now, 1 Thessalonians 5 .8 tells

00:48:20.079 --> 00:48:22.340
us what this hope is, this hope that does not

00:48:22.340 --> 00:48:24.519
disappoint. Because I don't know about you, but

00:48:24.519 --> 00:48:26.260
I've had many hopes in life that disappoint.

00:48:26.800 --> 00:48:29.139
Things as small as hoping for that candy bar

00:48:29.139 --> 00:48:31.239
that they ran out of at the grocery store, all

00:48:31.239 --> 00:48:34.960
the way up to hopes that things would work out

00:48:34.960 --> 00:48:39.269
in life. with somebody or something, a job, a

00:48:39.269 --> 00:48:42.150
relationship, and it didn't work out, and that

00:48:42.150 --> 00:48:45.429
hurts. All of you have had hopes that have disappointed,

00:48:45.610 --> 00:48:50.269
I'm sure. Some of us know what it is to be disappointed

00:48:50.269 --> 00:48:52.929
because we raised up a child and we thought we

00:48:52.929 --> 00:48:54.670
raised them up in the way of the church, and

00:48:54.670 --> 00:48:58.670
yet they seem to be a prodigal son wandering

00:48:58.670 --> 00:49:02.869
still. Some of us thought God led us into...

00:49:03.079 --> 00:49:07.079
that marriage, and it ended in divorce and brokenness,

00:49:07.079 --> 00:49:10.760
and our hopes were disappointed. Others poured

00:49:10.760 --> 00:49:13.980
years into that job. They loved that position,

00:49:14.159 --> 00:49:18.639
and then it was taken from them, and they're

00:49:18.639 --> 00:49:21.539
disappointed. I don't know what your disappointment

00:49:21.539 --> 00:49:24.039
is, but I know that you've faced disappointment.

00:49:25.219 --> 00:49:28.139
Some of you have been asking God for years to

00:49:28.139 --> 00:49:31.079
answer a question. a big one, and you haven't

00:49:31.079 --> 00:49:35.840
heard anything, and that's disappointing. I don't

00:49:35.840 --> 00:49:37.699
know what your disappointment is, but God knows,

00:49:37.880 --> 00:49:40.420
and he has promised us a hope that does not disappoint,

00:49:40.639 --> 00:49:43.900
and this is the burden of my heart, that in every

00:49:43.900 --> 00:49:48.639
season of pain that I have walked through, God

00:49:48.639 --> 00:49:51.699
may not answer my immediate question then, but

00:49:51.699 --> 00:49:54.239
he always points me back to a hope that does

00:49:54.239 --> 00:49:58.260
not disappoint. What hope is that? We read in

00:49:58.260 --> 00:50:02.380
1 Thessalonians 5 .8, Let us who are of the day

00:50:02.380 --> 00:50:05.000
be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith

00:50:05.000 --> 00:50:08.559
and love, and as a helmet, the hope of salvation.

00:50:09.840 --> 00:50:13.159
That is the hope that does not disappoint. I

00:50:13.159 --> 00:50:15.000
was walking with a friend around the lake this

00:50:15.000 --> 00:50:19.619
summer. He thought he had been led into the relationship

00:50:19.619 --> 00:50:25.110
he was in only for it to end right before. He

00:50:25.110 --> 00:50:27.769
was thinking of proposing, and he couldn't understand

00:50:27.769 --> 00:50:31.289
that. He saw God leading, and he didn't understand

00:50:31.289 --> 00:50:33.610
that situation, didn't know why it went that

00:50:33.610 --> 00:50:35.809
way. God hadn't answered him and explained why

00:50:35.809 --> 00:50:39.309
either. And I said to him, I said, you know,

00:50:39.369 --> 00:50:43.070
in my experiences with disappointment and loss,

00:50:43.289 --> 00:50:46.190
I find that God always redirects me to look up,

00:50:46.230 --> 00:50:49.809
to look higher than the good gifts that we were

00:50:49.809 --> 00:50:53.579
hoping he would give us, to a greater gift. that

00:50:53.579 --> 00:50:59.480
is guaranteed, to a hope that is eternal, to

00:50:59.480 --> 00:51:04.940
salvation, to a day when my Jesus comes and every

00:51:04.940 --> 00:51:08.719
answer will be given for every question I have

00:51:08.719 --> 00:51:12.320
asked. Every ache will be filled in that day.

00:51:13.000 --> 00:51:16.659
So right now, sometimes I go through silence

00:51:16.659 --> 00:51:20.420
and asking questions and struggling with God.

00:51:20.840 --> 00:51:25.280
and wrestling to trust him, and hurting. But

00:51:25.280 --> 00:51:29.340
I have a hope that roots and anchors me. You

00:51:29.340 --> 00:51:33.119
have this hope. Salvation is your hope. It's

00:51:33.119 --> 00:51:36.500
not just a call to an eternal life. What good

00:51:36.500 --> 00:51:38.659
would an eternal life like the one we live now

00:51:38.659 --> 00:51:42.099
be? It's a hope to a life that is full and free

00:51:42.099 --> 00:51:47.239
and abundant. It's a life where there is no more

00:51:47.239 --> 00:51:50.900
sorrow and suffering and pain. where all of your

00:51:50.900 --> 00:51:54.860
questions are answered. God does not waste your

00:51:54.860 --> 00:51:57.980
pain, brothers and sisters. He never lets your

00:51:57.980 --> 00:52:02.460
suffering be meaningless. Never. We can press

00:52:02.460 --> 00:52:05.059
on in the face of disappointments and pain because

00:52:05.059 --> 00:52:07.780
something greater lies ahead. And when we have

00:52:07.780 --> 00:52:10.179
nothing else to hold on to but that single thread,

00:52:10.380 --> 00:52:13.199
it is an unbreakable thread of hope, this hope

00:52:13.199 --> 00:52:17.000
of salvation. It does not disappoint. and the

00:52:17.000 --> 00:52:19.380
love of God through it has been poured out in

00:52:19.380 --> 00:52:22.119
our hearts, and the Spirit has been given to

00:52:22.119 --> 00:52:26.000
us, who comes to us to comfort us in our distress.

00:52:27.400 --> 00:52:32.039
So I want to go back to verse 5 one more time,

00:52:32.159 --> 00:52:36.860
because I didn't read all of it. He who sat on

00:52:36.860 --> 00:52:39.679
the throne said, Behold, I make all things new.

00:52:40.199 --> 00:52:43.599
And he said to me, Write, for these words are

00:52:43.599 --> 00:52:48.619
true and faithful. We've talked about some of

00:52:48.619 --> 00:52:51.579
what Christ's coming brings an end to, some of

00:52:51.579 --> 00:52:54.539
what Christ's coming brings a beginning to, and

00:52:54.539 --> 00:52:56.360
now I want to challenge you with what are we

00:52:56.360 --> 00:53:02.039
going to do about it. In other words, when he

00:53:02.039 --> 00:53:04.219
says write, these words are faithful and true,

00:53:04.380 --> 00:53:09.820
share, tell the world, proclaim it from the rooftop.

00:53:11.019 --> 00:53:14.500
Once you have realized what personally the coming

00:53:14.500 --> 00:53:17.420
of Christ means for you, The fulfillment of your

00:53:17.420 --> 00:53:22.480
hopes. The satisfaction of your dreams. The easing

00:53:22.480 --> 00:53:24.800
of the aches and pains and the washing away of

00:53:24.800 --> 00:53:28.159
sin forever. When you recognize that, you cannot

00:53:28.159 --> 00:53:31.320
help but tell someone else. Because everywhere

00:53:31.320 --> 00:53:34.099
you look, you will see someone else who is hurting

00:53:34.099 --> 00:53:37.880
and broken and who needs this good news. They

00:53:37.880 --> 00:53:39.920
need to know that the coming of Christ is for

00:53:39.920 --> 00:53:43.130
them too. to bring justice into their world,

00:53:43.250 --> 00:53:46.369
to bring peace into their heart, to bring love

00:53:46.369 --> 00:53:51.070
to their situation and healing and mending. We

00:53:51.070 --> 00:53:53.510
have to tell others, brothers and sisters, and

00:53:53.510 --> 00:53:56.289
if we're not longing to, maybe we need to take

00:53:56.289 --> 00:53:59.949
some time to know for ourselves what the coming

00:53:59.949 --> 00:54:03.769
of Christ means for us, what the promise really

00:54:03.769 --> 00:54:08.840
is. Something greater is ahead of us. And it's

00:54:08.840 --> 00:54:12.960
what gives me strength to bear today. There is

00:54:12.960 --> 00:54:17.900
a model that Paul uses in some of his scriptures

00:54:17.900 --> 00:54:22.239
in the New Testament. And it's a model that was

00:54:22.239 --> 00:54:24.099
brought up, again, by a book I've been reading

00:54:24.099 --> 00:54:25.960
recently. For those of you who are interested,

00:54:26.239 --> 00:54:28.079
it's called Instruments in the Redeemer's Hands,

00:54:28.239 --> 00:54:32.000
and I highly recommend it. But this model is

00:54:32.000 --> 00:54:34.719
called Suffer, Comfort, Comfort, Hope. And the

00:54:34.719 --> 00:54:37.989
idea is that, again, to suffer with Christ, is

00:54:37.989 --> 00:54:40.969
to glory with him. God sometimes, and I know

00:54:40.969 --> 00:54:43.829
this is hard for us, sometimes God invites us

00:54:43.829 --> 00:54:49.130
to suffer. Sometimes he invites us to suffer

00:54:49.130 --> 00:54:51.969
with Jesus. But never is that the end of the

00:54:51.969 --> 00:54:55.050
sentence. Never. Because if he invites you to

00:54:55.050 --> 00:54:57.929
suffer with him, he will also invite you into

00:54:57.929 --> 00:55:01.690
his comfort. That is why he has sent to us a

00:55:01.690 --> 00:55:04.929
comforter. If he invites you to suffer with him,

00:55:05.480 --> 00:55:09.360
He invites you to know him more, to be drawn

00:55:09.360 --> 00:55:12.579
closer to his heart, to experience a comfort

00:55:12.579 --> 00:55:17.639
you cannot know outside of Jesus Christ, to experience

00:55:17.639 --> 00:55:22.039
the refreshing power of his love, the water for

00:55:22.039 --> 00:55:25.079
a thirsty soul, the peace that surpasses understanding,

00:55:25.500 --> 00:55:29.800
the joy that none can take away, even in the

00:55:29.800 --> 00:55:34.500
depth of sorrow. Sometimes he invites us to suffer,

00:55:34.619 --> 00:55:37.739
but always it's an invitation to be drawn closer

00:55:37.739 --> 00:55:40.960
to God and to be embraced by his love and comforted.

00:55:41.139 --> 00:55:45.300
And when he has come to you and comforted you,

00:55:45.420 --> 00:55:48.679
your invitation is to go and to find one who

00:55:48.679 --> 00:55:51.300
suffers like you and to comfort them with the

00:55:51.300 --> 00:55:55.280
same comfort which you have been given. And I

00:55:55.280 --> 00:55:59.760
love this message. Because now what the enemy

00:55:59.760 --> 00:56:02.960
intends for evil, God has purposed for good.

00:56:03.500 --> 00:56:07.059
What he has brought to seem like the end of your

00:56:07.059 --> 00:56:10.719
life now gets to be the beginning of a great

00:56:10.719 --> 00:56:14.460
act of witnessing for God. What seems like some

00:56:14.460 --> 00:56:16.900
of the weakest moments can become our greatest

00:56:16.900 --> 00:56:19.280
strengths for God because where I am weak, there

00:56:19.280 --> 00:56:22.260
he is strong. The things that have grieved me

00:56:22.260 --> 00:56:25.760
the most, when God has come to comfort me, are

00:56:25.760 --> 00:56:28.900
now ways in which I am strengthened to go and

00:56:28.900 --> 00:56:31.400
help someone who is suffering in the same way,

00:56:31.519 --> 00:56:34.599
to know that there is a God who comes to us and

00:56:34.599 --> 00:56:38.539
who comforts us and who will come again. Now

00:56:38.539 --> 00:56:41.500
we have the invitation to go and tell others,

00:56:41.699 --> 00:56:45.420
to point them to the same comforter. And you

00:56:45.420 --> 00:56:47.679
cannot point them to one you do not know, and

00:56:47.679 --> 00:56:49.659
it will not be very convincing if you say, well,

00:56:49.739 --> 00:56:52.179
I know God can help you, and you are not speaking

00:56:52.179 --> 00:56:56.539
from experience. I invite you, friends, experience

00:56:56.539 --> 00:56:59.579
the comfort of God in the midst of your suffering.

00:56:59.920 --> 00:57:03.059
That is the invitation Jesus says to you and

00:57:03.059 --> 00:57:07.619
to me. And when we have suffered and been comforted

00:57:07.619 --> 00:57:12.980
and comforted others, then we have hope. Hope

00:57:12.980 --> 00:57:16.099
that doesn't disappoint. Because at the end of

00:57:16.099 --> 00:57:19.500
it all, all of this will be washed away. And

00:57:19.500 --> 00:57:27.190
we will have eternal joy forever. You have gone

00:57:27.190 --> 00:57:30.329
through tribulation because you live in a sinful

00:57:30.329 --> 00:57:33.469
world primarily, but not because Jesus doesn't

00:57:33.469 --> 00:57:36.750
love you. But perhaps you've also gone through

00:57:36.750 --> 00:57:40.050
suffering so that you may know his love better

00:57:40.050 --> 00:57:43.650
and so that you can better share it with someone

00:57:43.650 --> 00:57:46.769
else. I had a friend, and he says it so much

00:57:46.769 --> 00:57:48.630
more beautifully than I do, that was talking

00:57:48.630 --> 00:57:52.550
to me a few weeks ago. He's a pastor now, and

00:57:52.550 --> 00:57:54.909
he was sharing a sermon about this concept of

00:57:54.909 --> 00:57:59.139
suffering. And he said, Felicia, you and I can't

00:57:59.139 --> 00:58:02.440
see the way God does. But he knew before, from

00:58:02.440 --> 00:58:04.880
the beginning when he made us, that we would

00:58:04.880 --> 00:58:07.139
choose whatever option brought us closest to

00:58:07.139 --> 00:58:09.760
him. And that's why he lets us go through what

00:58:09.760 --> 00:58:12.960
he does. Because he knows that at the end, we

00:58:12.960 --> 00:58:17.000
wouldn't have it any other way. Because he knows

00:58:17.000 --> 00:58:19.619
what's coming. And he knows that we would have

00:58:19.619 --> 00:58:21.820
chosen whatever will get us an inch closer to

00:58:21.820 --> 00:58:24.889
him. as close as we can press to our Father and

00:58:24.889 --> 00:58:27.349
our God. And if that means walking through some

00:58:27.349 --> 00:58:30.809
difficulties now, when that day comes, it'll

00:58:30.809 --> 00:58:33.730
have been worth it. And I praise God for that

00:58:33.730 --> 00:58:37.909
hope because it never disappoints. So Jesus is

00:58:37.909 --> 00:58:41.030
coming to make everything new. He's coming to

00:58:41.030 --> 00:58:43.670
bring perfect answers that satisfy every aches

00:58:43.670 --> 00:58:46.809
in our lives. He's coming so that we can rejoice

00:58:46.809 --> 00:58:50.980
in the Lord always, beginning today. He's coming

00:58:50.980 --> 00:58:53.239
to be the fulfillment of the comfort that you

00:58:53.239 --> 00:58:57.460
have now in this day. He's coming to end sorrow

00:58:57.460 --> 00:59:01.019
and suffering and crying and pain and difficulty.

00:59:01.099 --> 00:59:04.699
He's coming to bring justice. He's coming to

00:59:04.699 --> 00:59:08.420
begin your life. But that beginning starts right

00:59:08.420 --> 00:59:11.800
now. And all around us, brothers and sisters,

00:59:12.000 --> 00:59:15.719
are people who don't know. And they're going

00:59:15.719 --> 00:59:19.190
through just as much pain as you are. Maybe worse

00:59:19.190 --> 00:59:21.389
because they don't have the same anchor for their

00:59:21.389 --> 00:59:29.650
soul. And if we sit and do not tell them, their

00:59:29.650 --> 00:59:35.150
suffering is on us. But I know that each one

00:59:35.150 --> 00:59:38.670
of you, as you walk in a personal knowledge of

00:59:38.670 --> 00:59:41.670
the Lord Jesus Christ, your Savior, my Savior,

00:59:41.869 --> 00:59:44.469
longs to tell someone else. And I know every

00:59:44.469 --> 00:59:46.610
one of you is being given an opportunity today

00:59:46.610 --> 00:59:50.190
by God. To reach out to your brother. Your sister.

00:59:50.369 --> 00:59:52.809
Your friend. The lady at the grocery store. Maybe

00:59:52.809 --> 00:59:56.809
not today on Sabbath. But your neighbor. Your

00:59:56.809 --> 00:59:59.449
son. Your daughter. Your uncle. Your aunt. There

00:59:59.449 --> 01:00:01.610
is someone in your life God has placed there.

01:00:01.909 --> 01:00:04.349
Because an experience of suffering that you have

01:00:04.349 --> 01:00:07.730
questioned its purpose for. You can now go to

01:00:07.730 --> 01:00:10.429
them and comfort them. Because what God has done

01:00:10.429 --> 01:00:13.010
for you. Because of how he has comforted you

01:00:13.010 --> 01:00:15.670
in your situation. And he has put that person

01:00:15.670 --> 01:00:18.269
in your path. So that your suffering doesn't

01:00:18.269 --> 01:00:20.989
have to be meaningless. So that your pain doesn't

01:00:20.989 --> 01:00:24.730
have to be wasted. And I hope that you see that

01:00:24.730 --> 01:00:27.010
and you take every advantage of those opportunities

01:00:27.010 --> 01:00:30.349
to rejoice in God and to proclaim how good he

01:00:30.349 --> 01:00:33.389
is to you. Because that is the best testimony

01:00:33.389 --> 01:00:37.530
we can give anyone else. To invite them to the

01:00:37.530 --> 01:00:45.070
same abundance. In 1 Thessalonians 2 .19, Paul

01:00:45.070 --> 01:00:48.329
says, what is our hope? or joy, or crown of rejoicing?

01:00:48.469 --> 01:00:50.869
Is it not even you in the presence of our Lord

01:00:50.869 --> 01:00:56.429
Jesus Christ at his coming? You know, Paul could

01:00:56.429 --> 01:00:59.170
have said that my hope, my joy, and my crown

01:00:59.170 --> 01:01:03.230
of rejoicing is being present with Jesus. But

01:01:03.230 --> 01:01:06.769
greater than this to Paul was the thought of

01:01:06.769 --> 01:01:09.269
seeing his church in the presence of the Lord

01:01:09.269 --> 01:01:14.019
Jesus. I can't wait to be with God. But there

01:01:14.019 --> 01:01:16.679
are people I pray for every day, and when they're

01:01:16.679 --> 01:01:19.400
there, it'll make it that much better. And I've

01:01:19.400 --> 01:01:21.460
told Jesus we're not going to heaven until they're

01:01:21.460 --> 01:01:24.219
ready. So sorry we're still here, everyone. We're

01:01:24.219 --> 01:01:26.539
waiting on a few people. But I know you're praying

01:01:26.539 --> 01:01:29.000
the same prayers, and that will be my crown of

01:01:29.000 --> 01:01:32.800
rejoicing, to see a kingdom that is full, full

01:01:32.800 --> 01:01:38.420
of people that look like Jesus and that worship

01:01:38.420 --> 01:01:43.599
and honor him who alone is worthy. At the end

01:01:43.599 --> 01:01:47.199
of it all, we will turn and look and behold our

01:01:47.199 --> 01:01:49.380
God, and we will kneel before the pierced hands

01:01:49.380 --> 01:01:52.519
and cast our crowns at pierced feet, and we will

01:01:52.519 --> 01:01:56.139
proclaim, Holy, holy, holy is our God, and worthy

01:01:56.139 --> 01:01:59.079
is this Lamb who was slain for us. Right now

01:01:59.079 --> 01:02:01.239
you might not feel that, you might not understand

01:02:01.239 --> 01:02:03.860
that, but the promise is that that's a hope that

01:02:03.860 --> 01:02:08.619
won't disappoint, that it will be so. So what

01:02:08.619 --> 01:02:10.579
does the second coming of Christ mean to me?

01:02:11.230 --> 01:02:13.510
It's not just literal and audible and visible,

01:02:13.650 --> 01:02:15.530
though these are wonderful things. To me, the

01:02:15.530 --> 01:02:17.670
second coming of Christ means that every pain

01:02:17.670 --> 01:02:22.489
I have endured and have yet to face is not meaningless.

01:02:24.289 --> 01:02:27.349
It means it'll be nothing when that day comes

01:02:27.349 --> 01:02:30.110
in comparison to the glory that's going to be

01:02:30.110 --> 01:02:34.429
revealed to me in Jesus. His love will burn it

01:02:34.429 --> 01:02:39.329
all away. When I'm weary, I take courage because

01:02:39.329 --> 01:02:42.619
Revelation 22 says three times, and repetition

01:02:42.619 --> 01:02:46.079
in the Bible is important. Three times he says

01:02:46.079 --> 01:02:49.639
to us, I am coming quickly. He is on his way.

01:02:49.960 --> 01:02:54.579
Jesus is coming. Will you be ready? That is an

01:02:54.579 --> 01:02:57.940
invitation. It's not a threat. And we need to

01:02:57.940 --> 01:03:02.719
live like it is. When he comes, he'll say, well

01:03:02.719 --> 01:03:06.840
done, my good and faithful servant. When I feel

01:03:06.840 --> 01:03:09.880
like I can't go another step, When my sword and

01:03:09.880 --> 01:03:12.599
my shield are heavy. When the armor I have fought

01:03:12.599 --> 01:03:15.000
in for so long feels like it's weighing and pressing

01:03:15.000 --> 01:03:19.139
down on me. And when I fall to my knees, I think

01:03:19.139 --> 01:03:21.880
of the day when Jesus will approach me and he'll

01:03:21.880 --> 01:03:24.840
replace the shield with a harp to sing praises

01:03:24.840 --> 01:03:27.440
to him. And he'll take my heavy sword away and

01:03:27.440 --> 01:03:30.460
give me a palm branch of victory. And he'll remove

01:03:30.460 --> 01:03:34.139
my armor that has worn me down and I will wear

01:03:34.139 --> 01:03:37.300
his robe of righteousness. And instead of a helmet

01:03:37.300 --> 01:03:39.849
on my head, I will have a crown that I don't

01:03:39.849 --> 01:03:46.610
deserve. And I think of that because it's coming

01:03:46.610 --> 01:03:49.530
quickly. And there are others around me who are

01:03:49.530 --> 01:03:54.230
weighed down and oppressed too. And they can

01:03:54.230 --> 01:03:57.590
have the same hope. And I want to tell them about

01:03:57.590 --> 01:03:59.349
it because it's what gets me through the hard

01:03:59.349 --> 01:04:04.329
days. And it can get them through it too. Let

01:04:04.329 --> 01:04:07.559
us not grow weary of doing good. For in due season

01:04:07.559 --> 01:04:10.719
we will reap if we do not give up. So primarily,

01:04:10.840 --> 01:04:12.980
I want to say to each of you, don't give up.

01:04:13.460 --> 01:04:17.420
I don't know your situation. Don't give up. He

01:04:17.420 --> 01:04:21.739
is coming quickly. I ask you, what do you look

01:04:21.739 --> 01:04:26.739
to when you hurt? Where is your hope? What does

01:04:26.739 --> 01:04:31.639
the second coming mean to you? Is it important

01:04:31.639 --> 01:04:37.639
enough in your life to tell someone else? What

01:04:37.639 --> 01:04:40.800
does the second coming mean to you? So I have

01:04:40.800 --> 01:04:44.139
two appeals today, brothers and sisters. The

01:04:44.139 --> 01:04:49.039
first appeal is this. I want to invite you to

01:04:49.039 --> 01:04:51.760
think about that question. What does the second

01:04:51.760 --> 01:04:55.900
coming of Christ mean to you? What is that thing

01:04:55.900 --> 01:04:59.260
you are longing for to be made right? Who is

01:04:59.260 --> 01:05:02.320
that person you want to see again? What is that

01:05:02.320 --> 01:05:04.880
situation with Jesus that you just really need

01:05:04.880 --> 01:05:07.679
an answer to? Or that place you want to go and

01:05:07.679 --> 01:05:10.360
spend time with him? What does the second coming

01:05:10.360 --> 01:05:13.300
mean to you? I want to invite you to take time

01:05:13.300 --> 01:05:16.320
this week to reflect on what that coming means

01:05:16.320 --> 01:05:20.659
to you. What are you hoping and longing for?

01:05:21.519 --> 01:05:24.199
And I don't mean a passing thought. I mean really

01:05:24.199 --> 01:05:26.840
sit down and pray through this. Maybe read these

01:05:26.840 --> 01:05:29.860
same passages again and think, God, what is it

01:05:29.860 --> 01:05:32.159
that my heart longs for that only your coming

01:05:32.159 --> 01:05:35.539
will satisfy? And if you're willing to do that,

01:05:36.199 --> 01:05:40.019
willing to take the time this week to pray with

01:05:40.019 --> 01:05:43.519
God and to consider and to think about what the

01:05:43.519 --> 01:05:46.480
coming of Christ personally means to you and

01:05:46.480 --> 01:05:50.300
why it changes your life today, I invite you

01:05:50.300 --> 01:05:59.679
to stand with me right now. My second appeal

01:05:59.679 --> 01:06:04.619
is that after you have done this and you sit

01:06:04.619 --> 01:06:07.730
with that, And really consider what it means

01:06:07.730 --> 01:06:11.710
to you. And why it changes your life. If you're

01:06:11.710 --> 01:06:14.909
willing to share it. If you're willing to look

01:06:14.909 --> 01:06:19.690
around and find someone else. Maybe it's someone

01:06:19.690 --> 01:06:22.590
in your home. Someone in your workplace. Someone

01:06:22.590 --> 01:06:26.309
next door. I don't know. But God knows and he

01:06:26.309 --> 01:06:28.530
put them there for you. If you're willing to

01:06:28.530 --> 01:06:32.409
share why the coming of Christ is so important

01:06:32.409 --> 01:06:37.340
to you. Personally. I want to invite you to come

01:06:37.340 --> 01:06:41.260
forward as we pray together so that we can seal

01:06:41.260 --> 01:06:44.820
that commitment. If you're willing to take the

01:06:44.820 --> 01:06:48.239
time to share what the coming of Christ personally

01:06:48.239 --> 01:06:50.579
means to you, I invite you to come to the front.

01:06:51.159 --> 01:06:54.679
Just so God can see that before all you make

01:06:54.679 --> 01:06:56.940
the commitment, I will live a life as though

01:06:56.940 --> 01:07:00.599
he has come today. And I will tell the world

01:07:00.599 --> 01:07:06.510
how important his coming is to me today. And

01:07:06.510 --> 01:07:09.250
when I suffer, I will suffer in the comfort of

01:07:09.250 --> 01:07:12.389
my Christ and I will find someone else and I

01:07:12.389 --> 01:07:14.949
will share with them what his coming means to

01:07:14.949 --> 01:07:21.510
me. I want you all to take courage. There is

01:07:21.510 --> 01:07:26.610
a God who sees you. And he is coming again. And

01:07:26.610 --> 01:07:29.070
he's not just coming for you and me. He's coming

01:07:29.070 --> 01:07:31.170
for the people we love and the people we don't

01:07:31.170 --> 01:07:33.289
know and people around us who have suffered too.

01:07:37.019 --> 01:07:41.340
Let's have a word of prayer. Heavenly Father,

01:07:41.539 --> 01:07:44.780
I thank you so much for the joy of your salvation,

01:07:45.039 --> 01:07:49.679
for the rock Jesus Christ, who is coming again

01:07:49.679 --> 01:07:52.380
to us and who has come to live in each of our

01:07:52.380 --> 01:07:56.840
hearts. Lord, you see every man, woman, and child

01:07:56.840 --> 01:08:02.099
here. You see their broken hearts. You hear every

01:08:02.099 --> 01:08:09.940
cry, every one. No tear goes unnoticed. No grief

01:08:09.940 --> 01:08:13.980
goes unfelt by the heart of infinite love. And

01:08:13.980 --> 01:08:16.800
I want you to comfort them with this, Lord. Comfort

01:08:16.800 --> 01:08:22.060
each of us with this knowledge. Just as surely

01:08:22.060 --> 01:08:25.760
as you are coming in that day, we can take heart

01:08:25.760 --> 01:08:29.119
now, today, that you will set right the wrongs,

01:08:29.119 --> 01:08:31.720
that you will answer the questions, that we will

01:08:31.720 --> 01:08:34.729
have perfect comfort. that every grief will be

01:08:34.729 --> 01:08:38.409
wiped away, every tear wiped away, every sorrow

01:08:38.409 --> 01:08:42.909
ended. Our joy will be complete in you, Jesus,

01:08:42.989 --> 01:08:46.810
and we thank you for this. So you see every commitment

01:08:46.810 --> 01:08:49.689
here to spend some time with you considering

01:08:49.689 --> 01:08:53.949
what it is that we're hoping for, why we long

01:08:53.949 --> 01:08:57.430
for our Jesus to return. And I pray that you

01:08:57.430 --> 01:08:59.590
would come to each one and bless them in that

01:08:59.590 --> 01:09:03.439
time of reflection. You also see those who have

01:09:03.439 --> 01:09:07.140
made the commitment to look around and to rejoice

01:09:07.140 --> 01:09:11.079
telling others of why they rejoice, why they

01:09:11.079 --> 01:09:14.079
have hope, why they go forward even when it's

01:09:14.079 --> 01:09:18.340
really hard. You have seen the commitment to

01:09:18.340 --> 01:09:20.399
your Lord to comfort others who are mourning

01:09:20.399 --> 01:09:23.500
with the same comfort that we ourselves have

01:09:23.500 --> 01:09:26.979
been comforted by. I pray you seal those commitments

01:09:26.979 --> 01:09:31.010
and I pray this week, even today, Lord. that

01:09:31.010 --> 01:09:34.850
you would bring someone to each of us, and that

01:09:34.850 --> 01:09:36.890
we would be aware when they come into our path

01:09:36.890 --> 01:09:40.090
and when we see their suffering, that you have

01:09:40.090 --> 01:09:42.170
made us aware that you have opened our eyes to

01:09:42.170 --> 01:09:44.390
that person because you've called us to be the

01:09:44.390 --> 01:09:46.930
hands and feet of Christ to them. You've called

01:09:46.930 --> 01:09:49.810
us to bring Christ to them today so that they

01:09:49.810 --> 01:09:53.850
can know of his coming tomorrow. So please seal

01:09:53.850 --> 01:09:56.789
our commitments, Lord, and bless us to be your

01:09:56.789 --> 01:09:59.359
witnesses to the world. that these words are

01:09:59.359 --> 01:10:02.619
faithful and true. Just as surely as you have

01:10:02.619 --> 01:10:07.880
promised, we have it. We have you, Lord. And

01:10:07.880 --> 01:10:10.460
greater still than this is the promise that you

01:10:10.460 --> 01:10:12.739
have us, and you will never leave nor forsake

01:10:12.739 --> 01:10:16.899
us. I thank you for each of these. I thank you

01:10:16.899 --> 01:10:19.899
for the hearts here that you long to heal and

01:10:19.899 --> 01:10:24.079
fill and to send out. So send us out now, Lord,

01:10:24.140 --> 01:10:27.899
to be your witnesses. and your light in the world.

01:10:29.239 --> 01:10:31.579
In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.