WEBVTT 00:00:01.440 --> 00:00:04.019 In scripture one of the most exciting themes 00:00:04.019 --> 00:00:06.299 I think that there is for us to ponder and that 00:00:06.299 --> 00:00:09.900 is the blessed hope of the believer What we've 00:00:09.900 --> 00:00:15.259 called a meeting in the air The last time we 00:00:15.259 --> 00:00:18.320 talked together about this theme the end of the 00:00:18.320 --> 00:00:21.760 age We talked about the fact that in this present 00:00:21.760 --> 00:00:27.500 age in which we live The tares and the wheat 00:00:27.500 --> 00:00:30.000 are sewn together. That is, there are those who 00:00:30.000 --> 00:00:34.380 are true children of God through faith in the 00:00:34.380 --> 00:00:38.119 Lord Jesus Christ. And then there are those who 00:00:38.119 --> 00:00:41.320 are not the true children of God, but who are 00:00:41.320 --> 00:00:44.259 the counterfeits. And as we saw in the parable 00:00:44.259 --> 00:00:47.780 Jesus told in Matthew 13, those counterfeits 00:00:47.780 --> 00:00:52.140 are placed into the professing church by Satan. 00:00:53.579 --> 00:00:56.619 It's not really our business to try to separate 00:00:56.619 --> 00:01:00.439 the true from the counterfeit. Our job in this 00:01:00.439 --> 00:01:03.079 world is to preach the gospel of Jesus Christ, 00:01:03.100 --> 00:01:05.500 that the Lord may use that message to call out 00:01:05.500 --> 00:01:09.900 his body. The time of separation is going to 00:01:09.900 --> 00:01:13.560 come at the end. But right now it's good for 00:01:13.560 --> 00:01:16.540 us to remember that within the professing sphere 00:01:16.540 --> 00:01:20.159 of Christendom, there are those who are truly 00:01:20.159 --> 00:01:23.040 the children of God and there are those who while 00:01:23.040 --> 00:01:27.200 professing, while using some of the same language 00:01:27.200 --> 00:01:31.000 that we might use, are not genuinely the children 00:01:31.000 --> 00:01:35.120 of God. By their fruit, Jesus said, you will 00:01:35.120 --> 00:01:39.439 know them. We also saw that this age is going 00:01:39.439 --> 00:01:43.980 to close with an increasing moral and spiritual 00:01:43.980 --> 00:01:49.540 apostasy. That is, there is going to be an increasingly 00:01:49.540 --> 00:01:56.150 broad and deep movement away from this book, 00:01:57.989 --> 00:02:00.670 a movement away from the revelation which God 00:02:00.670 --> 00:02:05.290 has infallibly given to us in the Bible. This 00:02:05.290 --> 00:02:08.349 will take place within the professing Christian 00:02:08.349 --> 00:02:11.610 church, within Christendom. That's where the 00:02:11.610 --> 00:02:15.389 apostasy takes place. In the last days we can 00:02:15.389 --> 00:02:20.729 expect what I suppose will be a rather large 00:02:22.870 --> 00:02:27.210 ecumenical movement, with many groups getting 00:02:27.210 --> 00:02:30.909 together on a certain basis, calling themselves 00:02:30.909 --> 00:02:33.349 the Christian Church, calling themselves the 00:02:33.349 --> 00:02:37.610 Church of Jesus Christ, calling upon Him as Lord, 00:02:38.069 --> 00:02:42.729 and yet denying Him, and denying the blood of 00:02:42.729 --> 00:02:45.069 the Lord Jesus Christ, the only atonement there 00:02:45.069 --> 00:02:53.259 is for the sin of man. Each of the ages which 00:02:53.259 --> 00:02:56.400 have preceded this, and I personally believe 00:02:56.400 --> 00:02:59.539 that in the total outline of time that there 00:02:59.539 --> 00:03:04.080 are seven of these ages, each of them has ended 00:03:04.080 --> 00:03:08.360 in judgment. God has given to man during each 00:03:08.360 --> 00:03:14.939 of these ages a certain test. Inevitably, man 00:03:14.939 --> 00:03:18.460 has failed that test and that age has ended in 00:03:18.460 --> 00:03:21.300 judgment. Sometime we may go back and trace that 00:03:21.300 --> 00:03:25.539 through the scriptural record of history. But 00:03:25.539 --> 00:03:28.080 tonight I want you to notice with me that this 00:03:28.080 --> 00:03:31.460 age in which we live likewise is going to end. 00:03:32.129 --> 00:03:36.090 not in more people coming into the kingdom and 00:03:36.090 --> 00:03:38.930 peace being gradually established and the name 00:03:38.930 --> 00:03:41.789 of Christ being called upon more and more by 00:03:41.789 --> 00:03:45.590 people and finally Jesus comes gloriously. But 00:03:45.590 --> 00:03:48.069 rather this age is going to end not only with 00:03:48.069 --> 00:03:53.650 an apostasy but with a terrible and awful series 00:03:53.650 --> 00:03:57.129 of judgments which God will pour out upon the 00:03:57.129 --> 00:03:59.750 earth dwellers as they are called in the book 00:03:59.750 --> 00:04:03.759 of the Revelation. That period of time, that 00:04:03.759 --> 00:04:07.900 period of judgment when these series of judgments 00:04:07.900 --> 00:04:11.919 are poured out is often called the tribulation 00:04:11.919 --> 00:04:17.639 period. It is our conviction that that tribulation 00:04:17.639 --> 00:04:21.779 period is going to be signaled, it's going to 00:04:21.779 --> 00:04:25.139 be initiated by what we're talking about tonight 00:04:25.139 --> 00:04:28.800 and that is the rapture of the Church of the 00:04:28.800 --> 00:04:32.269 Lord Jesus Christ. That is our subject this evening. 00:04:32.829 --> 00:04:34.970 We believe that the rapture of the church is 00:04:34.970 --> 00:04:38.769 the next event on God's calendar. Now we need 00:04:38.769 --> 00:04:41.110 to ask two or three questions in order to get 00:04:41.110 --> 00:04:43.069 to the heart of this subject. First of all, what 00:04:43.069 --> 00:04:47.269 is the rapture? Well, you will not find that 00:04:47.269 --> 00:04:50.370 word in your Bible concordance. It does not occur 00:04:50.370 --> 00:04:53.850 in the English translation of the Bible. Then 00:04:53.850 --> 00:04:55.970 you say we believe a doctrine where the word 00:04:55.970 --> 00:04:59.120 is not even found in the Bible. Yes, just as 00:04:59.120 --> 00:05:01.920 surely as we believe in the Trinity, and the 00:05:01.920 --> 00:05:05.660 word Trinity is never found in the Bible. Yet 00:05:05.660 --> 00:05:08.920 the word Trinity describes accurately a doctrine 00:05:08.920 --> 00:05:11.959 which the Word of God teaches to us, just as 00:05:11.959 --> 00:05:15.879 the word Rapture describes to us an event which 00:05:15.879 --> 00:05:20.740 the Word of God predicts. Now, the word Rapture 00:05:20.740 --> 00:05:25.959 actually comes from a Latin word. which is translated 00:05:25.959 --> 00:05:29.339 from the Greek word in 1 Thessalonians 4, 17, 00:05:29.399 --> 00:05:33.399 caught up. There was a Latin translation of the 00:05:33.399 --> 00:05:36.040 New Testament made centuries and centuries ago. 00:05:36.180 --> 00:05:39.319 And when they came to that particular Greek word 00:05:39.319 --> 00:05:43.100 caught up, they used the word, the Latin word, 00:05:43.160 --> 00:05:45.500 from where we get the word rapture. So that is 00:05:45.500 --> 00:05:48.769 its origin. The Greek word, and that of course 00:05:48.769 --> 00:05:51.009 is the language in which the New Testament was 00:05:51.009 --> 00:05:53.110 written, and it might be good for you to turn 00:05:53.110 --> 00:05:56.769 on to 1 Thessalonians 4 right now because that 00:05:56.769 --> 00:06:00.069 is the text we'll be looking at. The Greek word 00:06:00.069 --> 00:06:04.069 here in verse 17 for caught up means to snatch 00:06:04.069 --> 00:06:09.329 away by force. It means to seize, as if you were 00:06:09.329 --> 00:06:14.050 to seize the hand of a child and remove him from 00:06:14.050 --> 00:06:17.800 the path of an automobile. It means to remove 00:06:17.800 --> 00:06:21.600 in the face of danger. An interesting word in 00:06:21.600 --> 00:06:23.639 the light of the events that we expect at the 00:06:23.639 --> 00:06:26.959 end of this age. Now we ask the question, who 00:06:26.959 --> 00:06:29.319 is involved in the rapture? Who is involved in 00:06:29.319 --> 00:06:32.259 this catching up, in this seizure that we're 00:06:32.259 --> 00:06:36.199 talking about? Well, it's not enough simply to 00:06:36.199 --> 00:06:38.480 say that it's the saints of God because there 00:06:38.480 --> 00:06:41.339 are many saints of God scattered throughout the 00:06:41.339 --> 00:06:44.000 Old Testament. And we do not believe the rapture 00:06:44.000 --> 00:06:46.680 will include those in the Old Testament. Neither 00:06:46.680 --> 00:06:50.579 is the word elect usable here because the word 00:06:50.579 --> 00:06:53.839 elect refers to Old Testament saints as well. 00:06:55.259 --> 00:06:57.860 Who is going to be raptured? The answer to that 00:06:57.860 --> 00:07:01.439 is, as we understand the Word of God, the Church 00:07:01.439 --> 00:07:06.060 of the Lord Jesus Christ. The Church of the Lord 00:07:06.060 --> 00:07:08.920 Jesus Christ is that body of people who have 00:07:08.920 --> 00:07:12.939 been called out during this age to belong to 00:07:12.939 --> 00:07:15.889 the Lord Jesus. I'd like you to turn with me 00:07:15.889 --> 00:07:19.410 to Acts chapter 15, where we don't see the word 00:07:19.410 --> 00:07:22.269 church used, but we see a good definition of 00:07:22.269 --> 00:07:30.050 it. Acts 15 and in verse 13. And after they had 00:07:30.050 --> 00:07:32.389 stopped speaking, James answered, saying, Brethren, 00:07:32.509 --> 00:07:36.750 listen to me. Simeon has related how God first 00:07:36.750 --> 00:07:40.709 concerned himself about taking from among the 00:07:40.709 --> 00:07:47.560 Gentiles a people for his name. Now that last 00:07:47.560 --> 00:07:52.779 clause in verse 14 is a fairly decent understanding 00:07:52.779 --> 00:07:56.399 of the church. Certainly there are those who 00:07:56.399 --> 00:07:59.259 are Jews who have been saved during this age 00:07:59.259 --> 00:08:01.439 and who are part of the church. A remnant of 00:08:01.439 --> 00:08:05.540 Israel has been saved, but by and large those 00:08:05.540 --> 00:08:08.339 who have been saved in this age in which we now 00:08:08.339 --> 00:08:12.100 live have been Gentiles. What is God about in 00:08:12.100 --> 00:08:14.779 this age? It is that He is taking from among 00:08:14.779 --> 00:08:18.000 the Gentiles, from among the nations, a people 00:08:18.000 --> 00:08:21.740 for His name. And He goes on to say, and with 00:08:21.740 --> 00:08:25.319 this the words of the prophets agree, just as 00:08:25.319 --> 00:08:29.879 it is written, after these things I will return 00:08:29.879 --> 00:08:33.419 and I will rebuild the tabernacle of David. Now 00:08:33.419 --> 00:08:37.039 what is the speaker saying here? Well, he is 00:08:37.039 --> 00:08:39.759 saying that the prophets agree with what has 00:08:39.759 --> 00:08:43.879 taken place. It's not that the Old Testament 00:08:43.879 --> 00:08:47.200 predicted the Church because they did not. The 00:08:47.200 --> 00:08:49.860 Church is a mystery that was not revealed until 00:08:49.860 --> 00:08:53.919 this age in which we live. But the Old Testament 00:08:53.919 --> 00:08:56.480 prophets agree with. In other words, what has 00:08:56.480 --> 00:09:00.279 happened fits into their scheme of things. And 00:09:00.279 --> 00:09:03.940 what the speaker here, James, is pointing out 00:09:03.940 --> 00:09:08.139 is that the prophet said, Amos in view, after 00:09:08.139 --> 00:09:12.279 these things I will return. What things? Calling 00:09:12.279 --> 00:09:17.740 out of the Gentiles for his namesake. After that, 00:09:18.200 --> 00:09:21.220 the Lord says, I will return and I will rebuild 00:09:21.220 --> 00:09:24.080 the tabernacle of David. In other words, God 00:09:24.080 --> 00:09:27.340 is not finished with the Jewish nation. God still 00:09:27.340 --> 00:09:29.980 has a purpose for Israel and he will fulfill 00:09:29.980 --> 00:09:33.980 that purpose after these things have been completed. 00:09:34.779 --> 00:09:38.559 That is, the calling out of a Gentile, primarily, 00:09:38.919 --> 00:09:42.440 people for his name's sake. So who is involved 00:09:42.440 --> 00:09:45.600 in the church? Who is the church? It is those 00:09:45.600 --> 00:09:49.399 who are called out in this age, mostly of Gentile, 00:09:49.559 --> 00:09:54.259 somewhat of Jew. Now we have talked about that 00:09:54.259 --> 00:09:56.340 subject in the book of Ephesians, so I'm not 00:09:56.340 --> 00:09:59.980 going to belabor it. Let us come to our text, 00:10:00.000 --> 00:10:03.490 which is in 1 Thessalonians 4. and see how the 00:10:03.490 --> 00:10:10.049 rapture will occur. We have some wonderful words 00:10:10.049 --> 00:10:13.350 here of the Savior given through the Apostle 00:10:13.350 --> 00:10:30.509 Paul, 1 Thessalonians 4 and verse 13. Better 00:10:30.509 --> 00:10:34.269 for since we believe that Jesus died and rose 00:10:34.269 --> 00:10:37.529 again Even so God will bring with him those who 00:10:37.529 --> 00:10:41.029 have fallen asleep in Jesus for this we say to 00:10:41.029 --> 00:10:43.710 you by the word of the Lord that we who are alive 00:10:43.710 --> 00:10:46.629 and Remain until the coming of the Lord shall 00:10:46.629 --> 00:10:49.929 not precede those who have fallen asleep For 00:10:49.929 --> 00:10:52.090 the Lord himself will descend from heaven with 00:10:52.090 --> 00:10:55.190 a shout with a voice of the archangel and with 00:10:55.190 --> 00:10:57.509 the trumpet of God and the dead in Christ shall 00:10:57.509 --> 00:11:01.919 rise first then We who are alive and remain shall 00:11:01.919 --> 00:11:06.539 be caught up together with them in the clouds 00:11:06.539 --> 00:11:09.460 to meet the Lord in the air, and thus we shall 00:11:09.460 --> 00:11:13.480 always be with the Lord." How will the rapture 00:11:13.480 --> 00:11:17.259 occur? Well, I think we see in this key passage 00:11:17.259 --> 00:11:19.960 some important facts about it. First of all, 00:11:20.240 --> 00:11:23.360 the Lord Himself is going to be involved in the 00:11:23.360 --> 00:11:27.360 rapture. It says that the Lord Himself will descend 00:11:27.360 --> 00:11:30.570 from heaven. where he is now, at the right hand 00:11:30.570 --> 00:11:34.370 of God the Father. He is not going to send angels 00:11:34.370 --> 00:11:38.870 for us and they then return us to heaven, but 00:11:38.870 --> 00:11:42.909 it says that he himself is going to descend from 00:11:42.909 --> 00:11:46.529 heaven. Just as a bridegroom comes personally 00:11:46.529 --> 00:11:50.629 for his bride to receive her, so will our heavenly 00:11:50.629 --> 00:11:53.769 bridegroom come to receive us, his bride, the 00:11:53.769 --> 00:11:56.830 church. It says here that he is going to come 00:11:56.830 --> 00:12:01.419 with a shout. Now that's an interesting idea, 00:12:01.620 --> 00:12:05.960 isn't it? The word shout was used in that day 00:12:05.960 --> 00:12:09.519 in the military. It is the shout or the command 00:12:09.519 --> 00:12:13.860 of a military officer or leader. It is a summon. 00:12:14.019 --> 00:12:19.700 It is a call. The Lord is going to come from 00:12:19.700 --> 00:12:24.539 heaven and not to the earth, but come from heaven 00:12:24.539 --> 00:12:28.799 into the visible atmosphere of the world. And 00:12:28.799 --> 00:12:31.840 from that point it says he is going to shout. 00:12:34.059 --> 00:12:36.360 Now exactly what he is going to say we are not 00:12:36.360 --> 00:12:40.100 told in Scripture. It may be that he is going 00:12:40.100 --> 00:12:44.240 to say something like he did at the tomb of Lazarus 00:12:44.240 --> 00:12:50.879 when he said, Lazarus what? Come forth. Or it 00:12:50.879 --> 00:12:53.379 may be that he will use those words that were 00:12:53.379 --> 00:12:57.519 spoken to the Apostle John in Revelation 4 .1. 00:12:57.529 --> 00:13:02.429 when John was bidden, come up here. And John 00:13:02.429 --> 00:13:05.950 was removed from the Isle of Patmos up into the 00:13:05.950 --> 00:13:08.610 heavens to see those things which will surely 00:13:08.610 --> 00:13:12.370 come to pass on the earth. Someone has said perhaps 00:13:12.370 --> 00:13:15.409 he will use those words from the Song of Solomon 00:13:15.409 --> 00:13:19.710 which say, arise my love, my fair one, and come 00:13:19.710 --> 00:13:23.950 away. Whatever it is our Lord will say on that 00:13:23.950 --> 00:13:27.210 day, you and I who know him will hear his voice. 00:13:28.889 --> 00:13:31.769 We need not wonder if we're going to be listening 00:13:31.769 --> 00:13:34.889 to something else or too busy to hear it. I will 00:13:34.889 --> 00:13:38.370 guarantee you that you will hear his voice on 00:13:38.370 --> 00:13:41.590 that day. For his voice will be as the voice 00:13:41.590 --> 00:13:45.549 of a commander ordering you and me to appear 00:13:45.549 --> 00:13:50.120 in his presence immediately. And it says, with 00:13:50.120 --> 00:13:55.419 the voice of the archangel. The voice of an angel. 00:13:56.840 --> 00:14:01.259 What an amazing statement that is. I don't understand 00:14:01.259 --> 00:14:04.399 that to mean that an angel is going to shout, 00:14:04.440 --> 00:14:07.980 but rather that our Lord's voice will be with 00:14:07.980 --> 00:14:11.240 the authority as it were of an archangel, one 00:14:11.240 --> 00:14:14.940 of great authority. And it says furthermore that 00:14:14.940 --> 00:14:17.940 on that occasion there will be the trumpet of 00:14:17.940 --> 00:14:23.039 God blown. Now, what is the significance of a 00:14:23.039 --> 00:14:27.879 trumpet? Well, a trumpet is used in ancient Israel 00:14:27.879 --> 00:14:31.980 to call the people together. They, of course, 00:14:32.059 --> 00:14:35.519 did not have communications as we do today. And 00:14:35.519 --> 00:14:38.340 even up until recently, within the last hundred 00:14:38.340 --> 00:14:41.899 years or so, armies were ordered into battle. 00:14:41.960 --> 00:14:45.509 They were ordered into camp, they were ordered 00:14:45.509 --> 00:14:47.710 to sleep, they were ordered to rise, they were 00:14:47.710 --> 00:14:53.009 ordered to retreat by a trumpet. The bugler would 00:14:53.009 --> 00:14:56.649 give a certain sound and the troops knew exactly 00:14:56.649 --> 00:14:59.690 what to do. Well the idea is here that there 00:14:59.690 --> 00:15:03.049 will apparently be the sound of a trumpet and 00:15:03.049 --> 00:15:07.129 that trumpet sound will be our signal to look 00:15:07.129 --> 00:15:11.129 up and to come together. Now, there are those 00:15:11.129 --> 00:15:14.350 who confuse the trumpet judgments in Revelation 00:15:14.350 --> 00:15:18.409 with this trumpet, and they sometimes identify 00:15:18.409 --> 00:15:21.610 the seventh trumpet that is sounded in Revelation 00:15:21.610 --> 00:15:24.769 with this trumpet because it is the last trumpet, 00:15:25.350 --> 00:15:31.210 as it is called in 1 Corinthians 15. I do not 00:15:31.210 --> 00:15:34.409 understand that the same way. Those trumpets 00:15:34.409 --> 00:15:37.690 in Revelation are trumpets of judgment, not of 00:15:37.690 --> 00:15:40.759 summons to salvation. And then there are those 00:15:40.759 --> 00:15:44.139 who identify it with the trumpets that are mentioned 00:15:44.139 --> 00:15:48.340 in Matthew 24, 31. And I again do not identify 00:15:48.340 --> 00:15:52.120 it with those trumpets. I believe this is a unique 00:15:52.120 --> 00:15:55.799 trumpet sound that is for the Church of the Lord 00:15:55.799 --> 00:15:59.220 Jesus Christ. And it says in response to that 00:15:59.220 --> 00:16:02.179 sound of the trumpet, the dead in Christ shall 00:16:02.179 --> 00:16:06.960 rise first. It is wonderful to note that death 00:16:06.960 --> 00:16:10.090 has not annihilated. our loved ones who've gone 00:16:10.090 --> 00:16:14.289 on before us in Christ. Death has not blotted 00:16:14.289 --> 00:16:20.330 them out. We can no longer speak with them. We 00:16:20.330 --> 00:16:24.470 are unable to see them and to express our love 00:16:24.470 --> 00:16:28.169 to them as we could when they were with us. But 00:16:28.169 --> 00:16:33.009 they are still very truly in existence. Their 00:16:33.009 --> 00:16:37.210 bodies have been buried, but their spirits The 00:16:37.210 --> 00:16:39.850 essence of who they were, their life principle, 00:16:39.990 --> 00:16:43.210 their force of life, is with the Lord in heaven. 00:16:43.789 --> 00:16:46.470 And indeed we see that earlier here, for it says 00:16:46.470 --> 00:16:50.649 in verse 14, God will bring with him those who 00:16:50.649 --> 00:16:55.049 have fallen asleep in Jesus. He is going to bring 00:16:55.049 --> 00:16:57.470 them with him because they are now in heaven 00:16:57.470 --> 00:17:01.929 with him. And they will be with him as he returns. 00:17:03.310 --> 00:17:05.869 Fallen asleep, does that mean that they have, 00:17:05.869 --> 00:17:11.390 in fact, dozed off for a few decades, a few hundred 00:17:11.390 --> 00:17:13.890 years, waiting until that time that they would 00:17:13.890 --> 00:17:18.049 be awakened from the dust? Not at all. The term 00:17:18.049 --> 00:17:21.029 fallen asleep here is a picturesque term of what 00:17:21.029 --> 00:17:24.970 happens to the body. But it does not describe 00:17:24.970 --> 00:17:28.009 the condition of their soul. To be absent from 00:17:28.009 --> 00:17:30.109 the body is to be present with the Lord, and 00:17:30.109 --> 00:17:32.509 one does not sleep in the presence of the Lord. 00:17:33.490 --> 00:17:36.390 Death did not annihilate them. Death did not 00:17:36.390 --> 00:17:38.849 separate them from the Lord Jesus Christ. In 00:17:38.849 --> 00:17:42.650 fact, death took them to His presence. And they 00:17:42.650 --> 00:17:46.950 are kept safe there. And they are going to one 00:17:46.950 --> 00:17:51.609 day return with our Lord as He comes. And the 00:17:51.609 --> 00:17:53.490 very first thing that will happen after that 00:17:53.490 --> 00:17:56.049 trumpet sounds is that their bodies are going 00:17:56.049 --> 00:18:01.059 to be miraculously brought back. Even though 00:18:01.059 --> 00:18:04.440 they may have decayed and gone to dust, their 00:18:04.440 --> 00:18:08.299 bodies will be resurrected from the grave anew, 00:18:08.579 --> 00:18:11.779 a glorious body like Christ's body of glory. 00:18:12.259 --> 00:18:15.779 And their spirit and body will be reunited once 00:18:15.779 --> 00:18:18.680 more. At just what point in the air or still 00:18:18.680 --> 00:18:21.240 there at the point of the grave, we are not told. 00:18:21.640 --> 00:18:24.119 But it happened so instantaneously it's hardly 00:18:24.119 --> 00:18:27.099 worth talking about that point. For their bodies 00:18:27.099 --> 00:18:31.329 are raised and they are reunited forever, to 00:18:31.329 --> 00:18:33.890 be complete and whole, never to face death again, 00:18:33.930 --> 00:18:36.809 never to go through that valley once more. They 00:18:36.809 --> 00:18:40.809 are together forever. And as soon as that happens, 00:18:40.809 --> 00:18:44.190 it says, then we who are alive and remain. And 00:18:44.190 --> 00:18:47.130 notice that Paul expected to be alive on that 00:18:47.130 --> 00:18:49.849 day. I'll come back to that in a moment as we 00:18:49.849 --> 00:18:53.869 talk about the eminency of Christ's return. But 00:18:53.869 --> 00:18:56.569 we can say that today because we are alive on 00:18:56.569 --> 00:18:59.799 the earth, we who are alive and remain. and should 00:18:59.799 --> 00:19:02.220 we pass from this scene and there be a hundred 00:19:02.220 --> 00:19:04.640 years from now another generation looking at 00:19:04.640 --> 00:19:07.220 this same text they will be able to say the same 00:19:07.220 --> 00:19:10.839 thing we say tonight that we who are alive and 00:19:10.839 --> 00:19:17.240 remain on that day shall be caught up that is 00:19:17.240 --> 00:19:20.279 we will be caught up together with these who 00:19:20.279 --> 00:19:25.700 have been raised caught up together with them 00:19:26.279 --> 00:19:30.579 in the clouds, or in clouds is how some understand 00:19:30.579 --> 00:19:33.420 that. Certainly it will be in the atmosphere 00:19:33.420 --> 00:19:36.440 of the clouds. That is where the reunion will 00:19:36.440 --> 00:19:40.019 take place with them and with our Lord. But it 00:19:40.019 --> 00:19:42.859 may picture here clouds of believers as it were 00:19:42.859 --> 00:19:45.720 arising from the continents of the earth. If 00:19:45.720 --> 00:19:48.119 you can just imagine yourself standing back from 00:19:48.119 --> 00:19:51.019 the earth on that day watching the events taking 00:19:51.019 --> 00:19:54.099 place and seeing from here this great continent 00:19:54.099 --> 00:19:57.369 of Africa. this cloud of saints being caught 00:19:57.369 --> 00:20:00.009 up into the sky to meet the Lord. And that is 00:20:00.009 --> 00:20:01.789 true in every part of the world. Perhaps that 00:20:01.789 --> 00:20:05.089 is the picture that is used here. And it says 00:20:05.089 --> 00:20:07.130 that we are caught up together with Him. Our 00:20:07.130 --> 00:20:10.809 bodies are changed in that moment. No longer 00:20:10.809 --> 00:20:14.089 will we have a body like we do now, but it will 00:20:14.089 --> 00:20:17.329 be a different kind of body, identifiable with 00:20:17.329 --> 00:20:20.990 this one, but a different body, a body like Christ's. 00:20:22.160 --> 00:20:24.960 And then it says, caught up to meet the Lord 00:20:24.960 --> 00:20:28.400 in the air. The picture here is of a face -to 00:20:28.400 --> 00:20:33.160 -face meeting in the atmosphere. I like that, 00:20:33.539 --> 00:20:36.039 because that's the very place of Satan's domain. 00:20:37.279 --> 00:20:39.819 Satan is called the prince of the power of the 00:20:39.819 --> 00:20:44.480 air. His domain at the present time is the atmosphere 00:20:44.480 --> 00:20:48.240 of this world. And it seems to me that our Lord 00:20:48.240 --> 00:20:51.799 is is calling together his people in victory 00:20:51.799 --> 00:20:55.980 in the very midst of Satan's domain and Satan 00:20:55.980 --> 00:20:59.960 can do nothing about it as God's people gloriously 00:20:59.960 --> 00:21:03.079 are brought together in the church for the first 00:21:03.079 --> 00:21:07.460 time since those early days after Pentecost because 00:21:07.460 --> 00:21:09.960 soon after that it was scattered for the first 00:21:09.960 --> 00:21:14.160 time we are all brought together we who are a 00:21:14.160 --> 00:21:17.099 part of this body of the Lord Jesus Christ this 00:21:17.099 --> 00:21:20.589 unique group of people being called out in this 00:21:20.589 --> 00:21:25.369 age. And we are together with the Lord. And it 00:21:25.369 --> 00:21:29.309 says, so shall we ever be with the Lord and with 00:21:29.309 --> 00:21:33.609 each other. Well, when is the rapture going to 00:21:33.609 --> 00:21:38.789 occur? Well, you got your watch out? It does 00:21:38.789 --> 00:21:40.910 no good to look at a watch or to look at a calendar 00:21:40.910 --> 00:21:43.569 because we can't date the rapture that way, can 00:21:43.569 --> 00:21:46.880 we? There is a word that we use to talk about 00:21:46.880 --> 00:21:49.400 the rapture and its timing and that word is the 00:21:49.400 --> 00:21:54.079 word imminent. It is a word which means that 00:21:54.079 --> 00:21:56.960 it can happen at any moment. Notice that the 00:21:56.960 --> 00:21:59.359 Apostle Paul felt it could have happened in his 00:21:59.359 --> 00:22:03.819 day. The point is that there was nothing as far 00:22:03.819 --> 00:22:07.400 as the Apostle was concerned that needed to precede 00:22:07.400 --> 00:22:11.529 this event. There was nothing as far as he was 00:22:11.529 --> 00:22:14.410 concerned that had to happen before the rapture. 00:22:14.650 --> 00:22:16.609 He felt that the rapture could have happened 00:22:16.609 --> 00:22:20.569 at any moment in that day. It was not God's time. 00:22:22.049 --> 00:22:25.150 Likewise, we believe today it can happen at any 00:22:25.150 --> 00:22:29.049 moment. This may not be God's time. It may not 00:22:29.049 --> 00:22:31.329 be, but I believe as we look around us and as 00:22:31.329 --> 00:22:34.069 we'll be talking in weeks to come that we indeed 00:22:34.069 --> 00:22:38.140 are living in that day. I believe that this is 00:22:38.140 --> 00:22:44.140 the terminal generation of this age. The Lord 00:22:44.140 --> 00:22:48.480 could come at any moment. There are no signs 00:22:48.480 --> 00:22:52.220 that have to precede it. There are signs that 00:22:52.220 --> 00:22:54.700 need to take place before He comes back to the 00:22:54.700 --> 00:22:57.779 earth. But that's not what we've been reading 00:22:57.779 --> 00:23:01.359 about in 1 Thessalonians 4. This is His coming 00:23:01.359 --> 00:23:03.740 back into the air, into the atmosphere of the 00:23:03.740 --> 00:23:07.470 world. to call up there into His presence the 00:23:07.470 --> 00:23:11.450 Church. He does not then come on down to the 00:23:11.450 --> 00:23:15.670 earth. He returns on back into the heavens. And 00:23:15.670 --> 00:23:17.670 there are some things that will take place, and 00:23:17.670 --> 00:23:22.049 we'll be studying about those. There are signs 00:23:22.049 --> 00:23:24.670 that must precede His second coming to the earth, 00:23:24.690 --> 00:23:29.230 but nothing needs to happen before He comes for 00:23:29.230 --> 00:23:33.490 the Church in the Rapture. Now, as I have outlined 00:23:33.490 --> 00:23:36.569 this, obviously my position and the position 00:23:36.569 --> 00:23:39.470 that we teach at our church is what is called 00:23:39.470 --> 00:23:43.369 a pre -tribulation rapture of the church. In 00:23:43.369 --> 00:23:46.069 other words, we believe the Bible teaches that 00:23:46.069 --> 00:23:49.450 the rapture of the church will occur before the 00:23:49.450 --> 00:23:52.509 tribulation. I want to hasten to say that there 00:23:52.509 --> 00:23:56.890 are fine people, godly people, Bible scholars 00:23:56.890 --> 00:23:59.250 who believe differently than we do about this. 00:24:00.490 --> 00:24:03.769 Not everybody can be right on everything. And 00:24:03.769 --> 00:24:06.490 it may be that we're wrong on this. That's not 00:24:06.490 --> 00:24:08.289 my conviction, or I would believe what I think 00:24:08.289 --> 00:24:12.910 is right. But I believe that they're wrong. There 00:24:12.910 --> 00:24:14.650 are those who believe the rapture will occur 00:24:14.650 --> 00:24:16.470 in the middle of the tribulation. I have a very 00:24:16.470 --> 00:24:18.269 close friend right here in the Twin Cities who 00:24:18.269 --> 00:24:20.849 takes that position. He's right on many things, 00:24:20.849 --> 00:24:24.230 but he's dead wrong on that. And then there are 00:24:24.230 --> 00:24:26.730 those who believe the rapture is going to occur 00:24:26.730 --> 00:24:29.470 after the tribulation. I have even more problems 00:24:29.470 --> 00:24:32.150 with that position. You say, well, why do you 00:24:32.150 --> 00:24:35.250 believe so strongly in a pre -tribulation rapture? 00:24:35.670 --> 00:24:37.630 Well, I've preached a whole message on that on 00:24:37.630 --> 00:24:40.309 another occasion, but just a point or two. And 00:24:40.309 --> 00:24:44.190 I'd like you to turn back earlier here in 1 Thessalonians 00:24:44.190 --> 00:24:51.089 to see my point. Chapter 1 and verse 10. He says, 00:24:51.250 --> 00:24:54.380 we have turned from God to God, rather, from 00:24:54.380 --> 00:24:56.640 idols, to serve the living and true God, and 00:24:56.640 --> 00:25:01.359 to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised 00:25:01.359 --> 00:25:05.019 from the dead. That is Jesus. Notice the rest 00:25:05.019 --> 00:25:10.519 of that verse. The wrath which is spoken of here, 00:25:10.740 --> 00:25:15.480 I believe, is more than eternal hell. In fact, 00:25:15.599 --> 00:25:17.640 I don't believe that that's what Paul has in 00:25:17.640 --> 00:25:21.119 mind. I believe the wrath that he is speaking 00:25:21.119 --> 00:25:25.160 of here is the wrath of God that God is going 00:25:25.160 --> 00:25:28.079 to pour upon this Christ -rejecting world at 00:25:28.079 --> 00:25:31.579 the end of this age. It is called in the book 00:25:31.579 --> 00:25:35.359 of the Revelation a time when the wrath of God 00:25:35.359 --> 00:25:38.259 and the wrath of the one who sits upon the throne 00:25:38.259 --> 00:25:42.339 is poured out upon the world. It is an official 00:25:42.339 --> 00:25:47.089 period when God's wrath Will fall upon the unbelieving 00:25:47.089 --> 00:25:53.170 world as it has not in thousands of years Indeed 00:25:53.170 --> 00:26:01.230 as it has not since the flood Now what this verse 00:26:01.230 --> 00:26:04.589 tells us is that we who are looking for the Lord 00:26:04.589 --> 00:26:08.109 Jesus Christ Who are they the ones who have turned 00:26:08.109 --> 00:26:12.970 to God from idols to serve the Lord? He says 00:26:12.970 --> 00:26:18.740 we are those Who are being delivered from the 00:26:18.740 --> 00:26:22.539 wrath to come that is I believe the tribulation 00:26:22.539 --> 00:26:24.839 period a similar thought in chapter 5 and verse 00:26:24.839 --> 00:26:30.660 9 Where he says for God has not destined us for 00:26:30.660 --> 00:26:35.880 wrath But for obtaining salvation through our 00:26:35.880 --> 00:26:40.500 Lord Jesus Christ Now there are other verses 00:26:40.500 --> 00:26:43.839 in scripture for example Revelation 3 10 which 00:26:43.839 --> 00:26:49.539 says I will keep you out of the hour of testing 00:26:49.539 --> 00:26:53.140 that is coming upon the earth, the hour of tribulation 00:26:53.140 --> 00:26:56.319 that is coming upon the earth. I believe that 00:26:56.319 --> 00:26:59.839 that is a verse that applies to a pre -tribulation 00:26:59.839 --> 00:27:01.740 rapture of the church. I won't go any more into 00:27:01.740 --> 00:27:05.000 detail than that. I think it is significant that 00:27:05.000 --> 00:27:07.640 when the period of the tribulation is described, 00:27:08.640 --> 00:27:11.380 in some detail, as it is in Revelation chapters 00:27:11.380 --> 00:27:16.970 4 through 19, You see absolutely no mention of 00:27:16.970 --> 00:27:20.990 the Church or of the Bride of the Lord Jesus 00:27:20.990 --> 00:27:24.470 Christ on the earth. No mention of it whatsoever. 00:27:24.849 --> 00:27:27.210 Yes, there are redeemed people on the earth, 00:27:28.269 --> 00:27:30.930 but not the Church of the Lord Jesus Christ. 00:27:30.970 --> 00:27:35.349 Mentioned in chapters 1, 2, and 3, but not in 00:27:35.349 --> 00:27:39.380 chapters 4 through 19. and then again mentioned 00:27:39.380 --> 00:27:42.259 at the end of the book. Why? Because those chapters 00:27:42.259 --> 00:27:45.759 focus on the wrath of God upon the earth. And 00:27:45.759 --> 00:27:48.740 I believe the church is not mentioned in that 00:27:48.740 --> 00:27:51.740 narrative because the church is not present in 00:27:51.740 --> 00:27:56.940 the world during that period of time. A couple 00:27:56.940 --> 00:27:59.059 of questions that people often ask about the 00:27:59.059 --> 00:28:00.759 rapture and then we're done. First of all, what 00:28:00.759 --> 00:28:07.250 about children? Has not every parent of young 00:28:07.250 --> 00:28:11.650 children wondered, what about my children if 00:28:11.650 --> 00:28:15.269 the rapture should occur? That is those who have 00:28:15.269 --> 00:28:17.390 not trusted the Lord Jesus Christ yet because 00:28:17.390 --> 00:28:20.210 they are not old enough to believe. They're not 00:28:20.210 --> 00:28:23.369 old enough to understand the gospel. What about 00:28:23.369 --> 00:28:27.069 our children? Will they be left behind? The first 00:28:27.069 --> 00:28:29.289 thing we have to confess is that there is no 00:28:29.289 --> 00:28:33.230 clear scripture on this subject. God has not 00:28:33.230 --> 00:28:36.309 given us a verse that we can point to that gives 00:28:36.309 --> 00:28:39.769 us a specific answer. However, I believe that 00:28:39.769 --> 00:28:45.109 it is consistent with God's past actions to say 00:28:45.109 --> 00:28:48.950 that He would remove our children with us who 00:28:48.950 --> 00:28:52.109 have not yet come to an age of accountability. 00:28:53.230 --> 00:28:57.809 Now, I am not including children who have come 00:28:57.809 --> 00:29:00.549 to that age of accountability and who have refused 00:29:00.549 --> 00:29:04.900 to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. But I am 00:29:04.900 --> 00:29:07.799 talking about those children who have not yet 00:29:07.799 --> 00:29:10.180 come to that age where they understand these 00:29:10.180 --> 00:29:12.859 things. We could go back and talk about Noah 00:29:12.859 --> 00:29:17.740 and the fact that his family, older to be sure, 00:29:18.740 --> 00:29:21.640 but God rescued the family of Noah with him. 00:29:22.799 --> 00:29:25.980 We could talk about Lot and God's attempt to 00:29:25.980 --> 00:29:29.700 rescue all of Lot's family, but ultimately only 00:29:29.700 --> 00:29:33.450 two daughters. We could talk about Rahab and 00:29:33.450 --> 00:29:36.089 the fact that when that judgment came upon Jericho, 00:29:36.369 --> 00:29:40.710 Rahab and her family were delivered from that. 00:29:41.630 --> 00:29:44.069 But I think that the strongest past action we 00:29:44.069 --> 00:29:46.710 can point to is the age of accountability that 00:29:46.710 --> 00:29:51.890 God apparently drew in the wilderness. The people 00:29:51.890 --> 00:29:54.849 of Israel rebelled against the Lord in unbelief, 00:29:54.869 --> 00:29:56.970 and God brought judgment, you remember, on that 00:29:56.970 --> 00:30:00.369 generation, but God drew a line of responsibility. 00:30:00.879 --> 00:30:05.319 and the age was 20. And he said, those that age 00:30:05.319 --> 00:30:09.759 and below will continue to live and may go into 00:30:09.759 --> 00:30:12.000 the promised land, but everyone above that age 00:30:12.000 --> 00:30:16.619 is going to die in the wilderness. Well, you 00:30:16.619 --> 00:30:20.759 say those are not exactly as strong as I'd like 00:30:20.759 --> 00:30:22.839 them to be. Well, perhaps not as strong as I 00:30:22.839 --> 00:30:25.960 would like them to be either. But I believe that 00:30:25.960 --> 00:30:29.460 we can look at those scriptures and from that 00:30:29.460 --> 00:30:33.640 reason that we need not be alarmed about our 00:30:33.640 --> 00:30:38.180 children and the rapture. I believe that we can 00:30:38.180 --> 00:30:42.240 trust the Lord to do what is right and to do 00:30:42.240 --> 00:30:48.420 what would bring glory to Him. And then a second 00:30:48.420 --> 00:30:50.720 question that is sometimes asked, what about 00:30:50.720 --> 00:30:54.460 my loved ones? What about my friends to whom 00:30:54.460 --> 00:30:57.920 I've witnessed and who have rejected the gospel? 00:30:58.880 --> 00:31:02.779 What about them? when the rapture occurs. Won't 00:31:02.779 --> 00:31:06.259 that be an opportunity for them to understand 00:31:06.259 --> 00:31:08.940 that what I've told them is the truth so that 00:31:08.940 --> 00:31:12.920 they can then get saved? Won't they believe then 00:31:12.920 --> 00:31:16.079 once they see that this tremendous event has 00:31:16.079 --> 00:31:20.779 taken place? Won't they then realize and understand 00:31:20.779 --> 00:31:23.619 that what I've said to them is true and they 00:31:23.619 --> 00:31:28.779 will turn to Christ? Turn with me to 2 Thessalonians 00:31:28.779 --> 00:31:36.490 chapter 2. I have bad news for you. I believe 00:31:36.490 --> 00:31:38.990 that the Word of God indicates that those who 00:31:38.990 --> 00:31:42.750 have willfully rejected the gospel of Jesus Christ 00:31:42.750 --> 00:31:46.950 before the rapture of the church will not be 00:31:46.950 --> 00:31:51.990 saved in the tribulation period. Notice what 00:31:51.990 --> 00:31:53.990 our Lord says. He talks here about the coming 00:31:53.990 --> 00:31:58.829 of the Antichrist. He describes him in verse 00:31:58.829 --> 00:32:01.670 9 as the one who's coming is in accord with the 00:32:01.670 --> 00:32:05.769 activity of Satan, with all power and signs and 00:32:05.769 --> 00:32:09.049 false wonders. I tell you, this individual is 00:32:09.049 --> 00:32:11.130 going to be something to behold. He'll even claim 00:32:11.130 --> 00:32:15.670 to have raised the dead. And it says, and with 00:32:15.670 --> 00:32:18.829 all the deception of wickedness for those who 00:32:18.829 --> 00:32:23.589 perish. And he says, because they did not receive 00:32:23.589 --> 00:32:27.869 the love of the truth. so as to be saved. Verse 00:32:27.869 --> 00:32:34.190 10, I believe, is a warning of judgment upon 00:32:34.190 --> 00:32:37.829 those who willfully reject the Lord Jesus Christ, 00:32:38.470 --> 00:32:41.130 who understand the gospel and knowingly turn 00:32:41.130 --> 00:32:44.150 against the Lord. I believe that this verse teaches 00:32:44.150 --> 00:32:47.990 that he and a Christ will come and that they 00:32:47.990 --> 00:32:51.769 who have rejected Christ knowingly will be deceived 00:32:51.769 --> 00:32:55.539 by his wickedness. and that they will perish 00:32:55.539 --> 00:32:59.279 in their sin. Why? Because they did not receive 00:32:59.279 --> 00:33:03.339 the love of the truth so as to be saved. I believe 00:33:03.339 --> 00:33:05.720 that there will be many, many people saved in 00:33:05.720 --> 00:33:08.440 the tribulation period. They will not be a part 00:33:08.440 --> 00:33:10.660 of the Church. They will be a part of a separate, 00:33:10.660 --> 00:33:16.839 distinct body, not the Church. But untold thousands 00:33:16.839 --> 00:33:19.660 of people will come to faith in Jesus Christ. 00:33:21.369 --> 00:33:24.609 But I say sadly I don't believe that one person 00:33:24.609 --> 00:33:28.329 who rejects the gospel of Jesus Christ before 00:33:28.329 --> 00:33:30.950 the rapture of the Church will be among them. 00:33:32.049 --> 00:33:35.609 And I say that with sadness because I too have 00:33:35.609 --> 00:33:39.750 family members that I'm not sure about as far 00:33:39.750 --> 00:33:42.990 as their relationship to Christ, but who I know 00:33:42.990 --> 00:33:46.269 have heard the truth. And I have friends in the 00:33:46.269 --> 00:33:49.109 same condition just as you do. And that is not 00:33:49.109 --> 00:33:51.170 a pleasant thought, and that is one reason that 00:33:51.170 --> 00:33:54.650 you and I, with urgency, need to implore them 00:33:54.650 --> 00:33:59.670 to trust the Lord Jesus Christ. You see, in one 00:33:59.670 --> 00:34:02.849 sense, when we share the gospel with them, we 00:34:02.849 --> 00:34:05.750 are not only presenting to them the way of salvation, 00:34:06.710 --> 00:34:09.250 but if they in the hardness of heart choose to 00:34:09.250 --> 00:34:11.869 reject it, we have given to them their own blindness. 00:34:14.480 --> 00:34:17.260 That is why the Apostle Paul says to some we 00:34:17.260 --> 00:34:19.539 are the saver of life unto life and to others 00:34:19.539 --> 00:34:22.679 the saver of death unto death and who is sufficient 00:34:22.679 --> 00:34:29.320 for that he says Who is sufficient for it? I'll 00:34:29.320 --> 00:34:33.519 say one thing that if I'm wrong on this And I'd 00:34:33.519 --> 00:34:36.519 like to say I really hope I am Although I don't 00:34:36.519 --> 00:34:39.900 believe so If I'm wrong and those people can 00:34:39.900 --> 00:34:43.820 be saved They're going to miss out on being a 00:34:43.820 --> 00:34:47.139 part of the Church of the Lord Jesus Christ. 00:34:48.019 --> 00:34:51.099 They're going to miss out on the glorious, marvelous 00:34:51.099 --> 00:34:54.500 privilege of being a part of that redeemed body 00:34:54.500 --> 00:34:58.940 that you and I are a part of in Christ. Oh yes, 00:34:58.960 --> 00:35:01.460 they'll be redeemed. They'll be able to enjoy 00:35:01.460 --> 00:35:04.800 with us the glories of heaven. But we who are 00:35:04.800 --> 00:35:07.039 a part of the body of the Lord Jesus Christ, 00:35:07.119 --> 00:35:09.840 you see, are going to reign with Him over the 00:35:09.840 --> 00:35:13.789 new heavens and new earth. It's not that we are 00:35:13.789 --> 00:35:16.050 better than anybody else. It is just that God 00:35:16.050 --> 00:35:18.550 has chosen in His sovereign plan to make us a 00:35:18.550 --> 00:35:22.050 part of this group, that group that will reign 00:35:22.050 --> 00:35:26.010 with Christ as His bride, as His co -regent over 00:35:26.010 --> 00:35:29.989 His new heavens and new earth from His new Jerusalem. 00:35:30.710 --> 00:35:33.429 And if they can be saved after the rapture of 00:35:33.429 --> 00:35:35.949 the church, they will miss out on that privilege 00:35:35.949 --> 00:35:39.110 and that in itself is a sad thought for them. 00:35:40.210 --> 00:35:43.719 As we close tonight, I think we all have to ask 00:35:43.719 --> 00:35:45.460 the question, are we ready if the Lord should 00:35:45.460 --> 00:35:48.940 come? Have you trusted the Lord Jesus Christ 00:35:48.940 --> 00:35:52.800 as Savior? Young person, have you trusted Jesus 00:35:52.800 --> 00:35:56.940 Christ as your Savior? Grandparent, mom and dad? 00:35:58.260 --> 00:36:00.639 I think one of the most heartbreaking scenes 00:36:00.639 --> 00:36:03.820 I can think of is that when the rapture of the 00:36:03.820 --> 00:36:07.880 church takes place, there will be those who will 00:36:07.880 --> 00:36:12.369 be separated from loved ones. There will be husbands 00:36:12.369 --> 00:36:16.369 and wives separated. There will be parents and 00:36:16.369 --> 00:36:20.690 older children separated because there will be 00:36:20.690 --> 00:36:24.050 those who will have believed and taken away with 00:36:24.050 --> 00:36:29.289 Christ while the others are left to face the 00:36:29.289 --> 00:36:32.849 awful tribulation coming upon the earth and the 00:36:32.849 --> 00:36:36.190 deception of Antichrist. Are you ready should 00:36:36.190 --> 00:36:39.610 our Lord come tonight? And, O Christian brother 00:36:39.610 --> 00:36:42.309 and sister, the exhortation to us is to be faithful. 00:36:42.969 --> 00:36:47.090 Jesus said, occupy till I come. He said for you 00:36:47.090 --> 00:36:49.869 and me to be about His business in the world. 00:36:50.309 --> 00:36:54.969 It's going to get dark. It always does as night 00:36:54.969 --> 00:36:59.050 comes on. But we are children of the day. We 00:36:59.050 --> 00:37:02.969 are sons of light. And as God's called out ones 00:37:02.969 --> 00:37:06.070 in this age, let us be faithful to our Savior. 00:37:07.079 --> 00:37:09.900 and let us walk with Him and know the joy of 00:37:09.900 --> 00:37:12.840 His fellowship in the midst of a crooked and 00:37:12.840 --> 00:37:16.480 perverse generation. I'd like for you to sing 00:37:16.480 --> 00:37:21.239 with me a chorus only, 466 is the number. I'm 00:37:21.239 --> 00:37:28.840 sorry the whole hymn is not in our hymnal. But 00:37:28.840 --> 00:37:32.099 the chorus simply says, when we see Christ, We'll 00:37:32.099 --> 00:37:34.039 sing at a cappella. Would you stand with me? 00:37:34.320 --> 00:37:37.199 It will be worth it all when we see Jesus.