Let us commence our service this
evening by singing together hymn number 471, the tune is Boylston
number 12. Prepare me gracious God to stand
before thy face, thy spirit must the work perform, for it is all
of grace. Hymn 471, tune Boylston number
12. I am the gracious one to stand before thy face. Thy Spirit, Master, work the
floor, for it is all of grace. Te concilium Sancto Christi ? Church magnified ? ? Hear the
great choir ? ? Among the sons of God ? ? With the rising sun
of day ? and shall never wake again. O Spirit of my Savior,
and save me in Thy sight. Let me attest Thy power, Let
me Thy goodness prove, Till my thoughts o'erflow, Let us read together from the holy
word of God in the book of the revelation and chapter 22. Revelation chapter 22. And he showed me a pure river
of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne
of God and of the Lamb. In the midst of the street of
it, and on either side of the river, was there the tree of
life, which bear twelve manna of fruits, and yielded her fruit
every month, and the leaves of the tree were for the healing
of the nations. And there shall be no more curse,
but the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it, and
his servants shall serve him, and they shall see his face,
and his name shall be in their foreheads. and there shall be
no night there, and they need no candle, neither light of the
sun. For the Lord God giveth them
light, and they shall reign for ever and ever. And he said unto
me, These sayings are faithful and true, and that the Lord God
of the holy prophets sent his angel to show unto his servants
the things which must shortly be done. Behold, I come quickly. Blessed is he that keepeth the
sayings of the prophecy of this book. And I, John, saw these
things and heard them. And when I had heard and seen,
I fell down to worship before the feet of the angel, which
showed me these things. Then saith he unto me, see thou
do it not. For I am thy fellow-servant,
and of thy brethren the prophets, and of them which keep the sayings
of this book. Worship God. And he said unto
me, Seal not the sayings of the prophecy of this book, for the
time is at hand. He that is unjust, let him be
unjust still. And he which is filthy, let him
be filthy still. And he that is righteous, let
him be righteous still. And he that is holy, let him
be holy still. And behold, I come quickly, and
my reward is with me. To give every man according to
his work shall be. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning
and the end, the first and the last. Blessed are they that do
his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life,
and may enter in through the gates into the city. For without
are dogs, and sorcerers, and whoremongers, and murderers,
and idolaters, and whosoever loveth and maketh a lie. I, Jesus, have sent mine angel
to testify unto you these things, in the churches. I am the root
and the offspring of David, and the bright and morning star.
And the spirit and the bride say, come. And let him that hear
it say, come. And let him that is a thirst,
come. And whosoever will, let him take
the water of life freely. For I testify unto every man
that here is the words of the prophecy of this book. If any
man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues
that are written in this book. And if any man shall take away
from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take
away his part out of the book of life and out of the holy city
and from the things which are written in this book. He which
testifies these things saith, surely I come quickly. Amen. Even so come, Lord Jesus. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ
be with you all. Amen. May the Lord bless the
reading of his own precious word and grant to us a spirit of real
prayer. Holy, holy, holy Lord God Almighty,
which is an art, an art to come, the Alpha and the Omega, the
beginning and the ending, the first and the last, from everlasting
to everlasting thou art God. And we desire to bow in humble
worship before thy glorious majesty, We desire, O Lord, that thou
would pour upon us thy blessed spirit, holy, divine, and blessed
spirit of truth. We pray for thy heavenly power.
We pray for thy divine unction. We pray for the opening of the
word of truth, for the spirit of power. We pray for the sealing
of the spirit, that the word of truth may be sealed into our
hearts, as we read in thy word, whereby ye are sealed. by the
Holy Spirit of promise, sealed unto the day of redemption. Lord,
may we know that sealing tonight as we gather around thy Word,
and hear the prayer of our opening hymn, Prepare me, O gracious
God, to stand before thy face. Thy Spirit must the work perform,
for it is all of grace. Lord, may we know that gracious
preparation for eternity to be made ready as thou, Lord Jesus,
has said, be ye also ready for at such a time as ye think not
the Son of Man coming. And Lord, we are given reminders
of these solemn things and that we do pray that it may be a speaking
voice unto us that we may seek that gracious preparation. Lord,
we do pray that thou wouldst remember us as a church and as
a congregation and work mightily, powerfully and effectually among
us. We do humbly pray thee, bring
forth precious souls, bring them forth from nature's darkness
into the glorious light of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Quicken
souls and make them cry, give me Christ or else I die. Lord,
let us see thy work and thy power and thy glory as thou usest to
be in the sanctuary, read in thy word, in the preaching of
the apostles that there was added unto the church daily, such as
should be said. We pray that we may see such
a day, that there may be a reviving, a renewing, an engathering, a
rebuilding, a replenishing. Lord, do hear us, we humbly pray
thee for thy great namesake. Wilt thou not revive us again? And as the psalmist himself says,
arise, arise, O God of grace. Into thy rest descend, thou and
the ark of thy strength. Let thy priest be clothed with
salvation, and thy saint shall shout aloud for joy. O abundantly
bless the provision of thy house, and satisfy her poor with bread. O Lord, we do beseech thee, grant
that the Lord Jesus Christ may be exalted as a Prince and as
a Saviour, for to give faith and repentance and remission
of sins unto many. Hear us, O Lord. Grant that the
glory and light of the gospel may shine into this village and
the surrounding villages and hamlets, that we may see the
pulling down of the stronghold of Satan and the setting up of
the kingdom of the Lord Jesus in the hearts of sinners. Lord,
let thy work appear unto thy servants and thy glory unto their
children. We do humbly beseech of thee.
Show us thy ways, O Lord, and teach us thy paths. We do humbly
pray thee for thy great namesake. Lord, we do pray that thou wouldst
fulfil those wonderful and precious promises. I will bring thy sons
from far, and thy daughters from the ends of the earth. They shall
come from the north and from the south and from the east and
from the west. Lord, we pray that it may be
so, that we may see thy work and thy power and thy glory among
us and among the churches of God. Remember all thy servants
as they labour in word and doctrine upon the walls of Zion, and do
return unto Jerusalem with mercies. and do make bare thine holy arm
in the gospel. And that we do pray most graciously
that thou would remember our deacons, give them grace, give
them wisdom, give them help. We do humbly pray thee. And thou
knowest all their responsibilities, not just here, but among the
churches of God. And Lord, we do pray that thou
would remember each one of our brethren and sisters in church
fellowship. Remember them with the favour
that thou bearest unto thy people, and visit them with thy great
salvation. And help us to love each other,
serve each other, bear each other's burdens, thereby fulfilling the
law of Christ. By this shall they know that
ye are my disciples, because ye have love one to another. Lord, increase our faith, increase
our love, and graciously add unto us as a church, we do humbly
pray thee. Exercise those that are spiritually
minded to follow thee in thy sacred ordinances, and graciously
make them willing in the day of thy power, we do humbly beseech
thee. And oh Lord, we do pray. that
thou in thy great name would revive us and renew us and replenish
us. We pray for the dear children
that gather with us, that they may be blessed of thee, taught
of thee, that they may have the fear of the Lord, which is the
beginning of wisdom in their hearts in their young and tending
years. We think of thy lovely words,
Lord Jesus, suffer little children to come unto me, and forbid them
not, for of such is the kingdom of heaven. Lord, we pray for
the young friends, that they may know thy blessing, that they
may be brought to living faith in Jesus Christ, that they may
become followers of thee, and of those who through faith and
patience inherit the promises So bless them, Lord, we humbly
pray them. Bring them into union with Christ.
And it may be their chief desire, give me Christ or else I die. Lord, we do pray that thou wilt
be with them in all the paths of providence, in their education,
in any future employment, and also regarding a partner in life's
journey. We lovingly commend them to thee.
and to the word of thy grace which is able to build them up
and to grant them an inheritance among them that are sanctified. We pray for those that are seeking
thee, that have not yet found thee, that we pray that that
time may hasten on when there will be a revelation of Christ
and that thou would lead them and bring them into union and
communion with the Lord Jesus. Hear us, O Lord, we pray. We
pray for those that walk in temptation, whether the enemy comes in as
an angel of light or as a roaring lion, that they may be delivered. Each one of us, Lord, needs that
deliverance. And thou hast promised that when
the enemy comes in like a flood, the spirit of the Lord will lift
up a standard against him Hear us, O Lord, we pray thee, and
work mightily among us. Remember parents and give them
wisdom and grace to bring up their children in the nurture
and admonition of the Lord, we do humbly pray thee. And Lord,
we pray that the family altar may be raised and the word of
God read and prayer made in the home, that there may be a spiritual
atmosphere. Lord, we pray. for all in the
midst of the journey of life, that they may know thy blessing
and thy favour. Those that wander, those that
no longer gather with us, that used to gather with us, we pray
for them. We pray that the appointed time
may roll on apace, not to propose but call by grace, to turn their
feet to Zion's hills, We thank Thee, O Lord, that there are
none beyond Thy power and Thy grace and Thy love and Thy mercy. We thank Thee that Thou art able
to do abundantly more than we can even ask or think. And, O Lord God, we pray that
Thou would remember those of us that are now in the evening
time of life's journey and that Thou would prepare us for that
great change which must come. and that thou would bring us
safely unto thy heavenly kingdom. When I tread the verge of Jordan,
bid my anxious fears subside. Do hear us, Lord, we pray. And
sometimes, Lord, there is no warning, and we pray to be prepared. Lord, we do pray that thou would
remember all thy servants that labour in word and doctrine upon
the walls of Zion, that thou wouldst set them free and at
liberty, that thou wouldst grant that they may dip their foot
in oil and be made acceptable unto the brethren. We pray for
those that are taking pastorates in the coming months and pray
that thou wouldst gird them with all sufficient grace and seal
thy ministry into the hearts of the hearers. We pray Thee,
the great Lord of the harvest, that Thou would send true labourers
into the harvest, that Thou would build the walls of Jerusalem,
that Thou would send a day of real prosperity. O Lord, we do
thank Thee. We thank Thee of our little house
of prayer. We thank Thee for the supply of all our many returning
needs. We thank Thee that Thou art God
over all and blessed for evermore. We thank Thee that Thou art able
to do abundantly more than we can even ask or think. Above all, we thank Thee for
Jesus Christ, that wonderful, profound truth of the Word made
flesh and dwelling among us. We thank Thee that in Him the
Holy Law has been fulfilled and honoured and magnified on the
behalf of thy people, and everlasting righteousness has been brought
in, in our Lord Jesus Christ. We thank thee for Calvary, where
the Lamb was slain, where sin was put away, where divine justice
was satisfied, where God and sinners are reconciled. We thank
thee for the blood of Jesus Christ, God's Son, that cleanseth us
from all sin, He poured out His soul unto death. He was numbered
among the transgressors, for He bared the sin of many. Oh,
we thank Thee for our Lord Jesus Christ and the glory of His name
and the fullness of His grace. Death has been swallowed up in
victory and the dear Saviour has bodily ascended into heaven.
Tis He instead of me is seen when I approach to God What a
wonderful glory that we have such a high priest who is passed
into the heavens. Jesus, the Son of God. Oh, we do thank Thee. Most gracious
Lord, we thank Thee that in Him we know the love of our eternal
Father. And we thank Thee that through
Him we receive that wonderful gift of the Holy Ghost. Be with
us as we turn to thy holy word. Come and touch one's lips with
a live coal from off the heavenly altar. Be mouth, matter, and
wisdom unto us. We ask with the forgiveness of
all sin, for Jesus Christ's sake. Amen. Let us now sing together hymn
number 284. The tune is Beautiful Zion, 444. When shall my sorrows end? When my days of mourning cease? Then shall I to Christ ascend? Only place of happiness. Hymn 284, tune Beautiful Zion,
444. In my soul ? And shall fly to Christ the Savior
? ? On the wings of Bethlehem ? Paschim, Paschim, Adonai, Glorim,
Gloram, Seraphim, Then I cry, my Saviour God, God
of Jesus, I love Thee. She walked in ancient times,
Where earth and sea may stand in awe, Sorrows dimly come at night,
Lights alone the glimmering bright. love within. Let my pride not stand by thee, Chained at last by eager year,
Chained, now drawn by power of fear. Come, God of Shepherd, we pray,
Tell me, is the light for me? ? And it is the eye of day ? ?
Chains shall be and I am free ? Greatly feeling to need the Lord's
gracious help, I direct your attention to the chapter that
we read, the 22nd chapter of the book of the Revelation, and
we'll read verse 20 for our text. Revelation 22, reading verse
20 for our text. He which testifies these things
saith, surely I come quickly. Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus. He that testifieth these things. I know I often point it out to
you, but you know, friends, never forget the opening of the book
of the revelation, the revelation of Jesus Christ which God gave
unto him and that is the book of the revelation.
Many come to the book of the revelation in a speculative way
and trying to work out where we are in history and etc. never forget the opening words.
It's the revelation of Jesus Christ and right the way through
we have revelation after revelation of the glorious person of our
Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. He that testified these things
and it's Christ in this first chapter as it says John to the
seven churches which are in Asia Grace be unto you and peace from
him which is and which was and which is to come. That's a paraphrase
of the name Jehovah. And from the seven spirits which
are before his throne and from Jesus Christ. So he testifies
of these things. And from Jesus Christ who is
the faithful witness and the first begotten of the dead and
the prince of the kings of the earth. unto him that loved us
and washed us from our sins in his own blood. We have a beautiful
revelation there of the doctrine of the Trinity. It says, grace
be unto you and peace from him which is and which was and in
which to come as the eternal father and from the seven spirits
which are before his throne The number seven is the number of
perfection. It means the glorious, eternal,
infinite person of God, the Holy Ghost, the seven spirits, the
perfect spirit. There's only one spirit, which
is the eternal spirit of God, the Holy Ghost, and from Jesus
Christ, who is the faithful witness and the first begotten from the
dead. and the prince of the kings of the earth unto him that washed
us, that loved us and washed us from acids in his own blood. And really the fundamental commencement
of this revelation, verse 7, behold he cometh with clouds
and every eye shall see him and they also which pierced him and
all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of him, even so. Amen. And then these words, I
am Alpha and Omega. That's the first letter and the
last letter of the Greek alphabet. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning
and the end in set the Lord which is, and which was, and which
is to come, the Almighty. You know, these, we're instructed
in these words. Paul, he says in Hebrews chapter
13 and verse 8, Jesus Christ is saying yesterday and today
and forever. What's he saying? Jehovah Jesus. He means yesterday eternal. He
means the present. He means eternity to come from
everlasting to everlasting. our God and that is one of the
essential meanings of the word Jehovah, the self-existent, the
eternal God and in the Greek language there is not the same
words as we find in the Hebrew and therefore the name Jehovah
in the New Testament which was written in Greek is paraphrased
but in actual fact it instructs us as to the meaning of the name
Jehovah. And again and again we come throughout
this book to these words, I come quickly, the Lord Jesus Christ. Another broad look at the book
of the Revelation is that it's like a series of snapshots. It
doesn't go in chronological order. We are given a revelation of
Jesus Christ here with his saints on earth. We're given a revelation
of Jesus Christ when he comes a second time without seeing
unto salvation. We're given in this book the
revelation of Satan and his power here on earth. The devil has
come down on you having great power. But then though the powers of
Antichrist that are under the control of the devil, we see
that self-evident today in the day in which we live. The powers
of Antichrist are anti-Christian. And we see that power increasing
in the day in which we live. But the fundamental teaching
of the book of the Revelation is that though these powers appear
at times to completely envelop the church here on earth and
threaten to overcome it here on earth and yet the lamb the
lamb that is in the midst of the throne he reigns supreme
and that is the fundamental teaching of the book of the revelation
the lamb of god the son of god who said all power is given unto
me in heaven and in earth that he will never allow the devil
to destroy the church or his people. And so we have these revelations
given to us at the different times of the tremendous power
of Satan here on earth and of the spirit and power of Antichrist
and yet Christ is above it all. We read here in the revelation
of the last time that time called Armageddon here in the book of
the Revelation. And the church is completely
encircled with the powers of evil and wickedness. And they're
ready to destroy it. But then Christ appears and sends
a complete deliverance and destroys the work of the enemy and takes
his people unto himself. And that happens again and again
and again here in the book of the revelation. And that is why
it is called a revelation of Jesus Christ. And there are some
beautiful revelations of Jesus Christ here in this beautiful
book. And we have seven angels, we
have seven vials of wrath. The number seven again is the
number of perfection And so when the seventh angel sounds, and
then that's the end of time, time should be no more. And we
read in the 11th chapter, in verse 15, the seventh angel sounded,
that's the last angel. And there were great voices in
heaven saying, the kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms
of our Lord and of his Christ, and he shall reign forever and
ever. And the four and 20 elders, that
is representing the Old Testament church and the New Testament
church. The Old Testament church, the 12 tribes of the children
of Israel, and the New Testament church, the 12 apostles of the
Lamb. And that is what is represented
in the four and 20 elders, which sat before God on their seats,
fell upon their faces in worship saying, We give thee thanks,
O Lord God Almighty, which art and was and art to come, because
thou hast taken to thy great power and hast reigned. Jesus
shall reign where'er the sun does his successive journeys
run. He shall reign from shore to
shore. He's the King Eternal, immortal
and invisible, the only true God. And the nations were angry,
and thy wrath is come. and the time of the dead that
they should be judged, and that thou shouldest give reward unto
thy servants the prophets, and to the saints, and them that
fear thy name, small and great, and shouldest destroy them, that
destroy the earth. So this is the great picture,
if you want to put it that way. The revelation of the book of the Revelation,
that Jesus reigns supreme that his people will and do have enemies
the principal one being satan and that there will appear to
be times when satan is in control and you know the enemy satan
would love you to think that he is in control he tried in
in his futile way to convince the lord jesus christ the son
of god himself that he was in control he said i will give thee
all the kingdom of the earth they were his already and yet
he has that affront i will give thee all the kingdoms of the
earth they were they were the kingdoms of the whole of this
earth he's the king eternal immortal and invisible the only true god
see the affront of satan He which testifies these things
said, surely I come quickly. Amen. Even so come. Lord Jesus, I come quickly. Look at the emphasis. Verse seven
in this chapter 22. Behold, I come quickly. Verse 12, and behold, I come
quickly. And you find it right the way
throughout the word of God, I come quickly. The second coming of
Jesus Christ. What seemed to stand out and
make these words so poignant to me is yesterday afternoon
I received a telephone call from one of my brother-in-laws and
he'd found his son laying face down in his bedroom, dead. Behold,
I come quickly. At such a time as ye think not,
the Son of Man cometh. When you think, when you're not
looking for him, but we opened with that hymn tonight, prepare
me, gracious God. We need preparing. Be ye also,
For at such a time as ye think not the Son of Man coming, surely
I come quickly. Now to the soul that has been
prepared, that soul who the Spirit of God has entered, that soul
under a sense of their own sinnership, their own insufficiency, their
own helplessness, their own sinfulness. Because that is what happens
when the Spirit of God enters a heart. Listen to the words
of Jesus, when He, the Spirit of Truth, is come. He doesn't
mean there necessarily the day of Pentecost. He means when He
comes to a sinner's heart. When He, the Spirit of Truth,
is come. He will reprove the world of
sin, of often sinning. And if spared, I shall still
say it. I couldn't give you a penny for your religion if it has no
sin in it. The whole need not a physician. I come not to call the righteous
but sinners to repentance. Sinners can say, and none but
they, how precious. is the Saviour. And it's when
the Holy Spirit gives us to feel our need as a poor sinner before
a holy God, our need of salvation, our need of redemption, when
the Holy Spirit in that way opens our eyes and we feel our darkness,
you feel it. It's not just something you see,
you feel it. The darkness within you. The
darkness of this world. You feel it. It's a darkness
that can be felt. Why is it that a person feels
that? Because the Holy Spirit has quickened
their soul. They feel their need. They feel
their emptiness. They feel their poverty. That's
why the Lord Jesus Christ in his teachings in the Sermon on
the Mount, blessed are the poor in spirit. Who are these poor
in spirit? In the many pulpits today there's
a social gospel that is preached and when they speak of the poor
in spirit, they speak of literal poverty. But that's not what
it's meant. It's a spiritual poverty. A spiritual
poverty. You could be the richest man
in the world and feel your spiritual poverty. And this is the work of the Spirit
in the heart, to bring us to feel our need as a poor sinner
before a holy heart searching God. He which testifies these
things says, surely I come quickly. Amen. Even so come, Lord Jesus. We read here in verse 16 of this
chapter, I Jesus have sent mine angel to testify unto you these
things in the churches. I am the root and offspring of
David and the bright and morning star. Just look at that. Again, it's a revelation of Jesus
Christ. I am the root and offspring of
David. Now, if you take a cursory glance at that, you say it contradicts
itself. How can he be the root and the
offspring? Why? Because in that revelation here
we're given of Christ, it's those two natures that are in His glorious
person. He's the Son of God, the Son
of Man. As the Son of God, He was David's root. David drew
all his strength and all his wisdom from Jesus, the Son of
God. David himself said, thou art
my rock and my fortress, my strong and my high tower, under these
shall I continually resort. I am the root, David's root,
David's strength, David's wisdom. We read in the life of David
in those difficult times, especially with Saul, and we read this,
and David behaved himself more wisely. Why? Because God gave
him wisdom. That wisdom that cometh from
above, which is first pure, then peaceable. God gave him wisdom,
and we read it again and again, and he behaved himself more wisely. Why? Because Christ was his root. He was. When David could have
slain Saul, he dare not do it. Why? Because Saul was literally
God's anointed. He dare not do it. His men urged
him on. He said, the Lord has given him
into your hand. No. He would not slay the Lord's
anointed. You see, that was the fear of the Lord in David. That
man had pursued him, wanted to kill him, but he couldn't slay
him. No. He was the Lord's anointed. And that was the fear of the
Lord in exercise in the heart of David. Now, I am the root
and the offspring of David. Christ is David's greatest son. We read of the Lord Jesus that
he was born of the seed of David. You know, in that beautiful prophecy
in Isaiah, Isaiah chapter nine, and verses six and seven, very
well known. You could probably quote it to
me. For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given, and the
government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall
be called Wonderful, Counselor, the Mighty God, the Everlasting
Father, the Prince of Peace. That's our Lord Jesus Christ.
Of the increase of his government and peace, there shall be no
end. Now listen, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom
to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice
from henceforth, even forever, the zeal of the Lord of hosts
will perform this. You see, he was born of the seed
of David. He's David's greatest son, David's
greatest son. Joseph and Mary were both of
the seed of David. You see, these things are written
for our instruction. I am the root and the offspring
of David. So we have that beautiful revelation
of the divine and the human in the glorious person of our Lord
Jesus Christ. Some people argue with us, and
I've had many argue with me on this point. They say you shouldn't
divide the divine and the human. I'm not. That union that was
made between the divine and the human in the womb of the Virgin
Mary is an indissoluble union that will never ever be broken.
It wasn't even broken in death. In that lifeless body in the
tomb was the Son of God. That union was never broken.
The Lord of life experienced death. He was there in that dead
body in the tomb. It's a glorious truth. That union
between the divine and the human is an eternal union. Christ is
now in heaven. The holy God-man sits at the
right hand of the Father. A man there is, a real man, with
wounds still gaping wide, from which rich streams of blood once
ran in hands and feet and side. It is no wild metaphor we speak,
no. This man is true almighty God. Such a high priest have we who
is passed into the heavens, Jesus, the son of God. And the apostle
says there, conserving the Lord Jesus Christ in heaven, how that
he is touched. He's touched with the feeling
of our infirmities. He was tempted in all points
like as we are, yet without sin. What a great high priest. What
a glorious high priest. Let us therefore, this is what
the apostle says when he's speaking of these things in Hebrews 4.
Let us therefore come boldly. Why? Because there's a great
high priest. Jesus, the Son of God, sitting
at the right hand of the Father. It is. Come then, repenting sinner,
come. and trust upon his grace. Oh,
what thou wilt, the total sum is cancelled by his death. He which testifies these things
says, surely I come quickly. Amen, even so come, Lord Jesus. Then we read here in verse 17,
and the Spirit, you notice it's written with a capital S, because
it's the Holy Ghost and the Bride. That's the Church. The Church
is the Bride of Christ. And the Spirit and the Church
speak with one voice. And the Spirit and the Bride
say, come. And him that heareth say, come. And let him that is athirst,
come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely. I've always looked at it, a beautiful
gospel word, and it is. But looking at it today, I see
something extra there. It's in our text. Even so come,
Lord Jesus. The Spirit and the Bride, even
so come, Lord Jesus. There's a longing to see the
coming of Christ. In Peter, he says, look in and
hasten unto the great day of the Lord. wherein the heavens
being on fire shall be dissolved in a fervent heat. Looking in
haste into that great day, the true believer in Christ, under
a sense of the power of his love, of the spirit of faith, of that
confidence in Christ, they long for that day when Christ will
come in power and in great glory. But you know, there in the epistle
of Peter, the second epistle, he gives us some very strong
warnings, doesn't he? Especially in the third chapter
of the second epistle of Peter. This second epistle, beloved,
I now write unto you, in both which I stir up your pure minds
by way of remembrance. that ye may be mindful of the
words which were spoken before by the holy prophets and the
commandments of us the apostles of the Lord and Saviour, knowing
this first, that there shall come in the last days scoffers,
we live in those days, scoffers, walking after their own lusts
and saying, where is the promise of his coming? For since the
fathers fell asleep, all things continue, as they were from the
beginning of creation. Now listen to what the spirit
of God says here, for this they willingly are ignorant of, that
by the word of God the heavens were of old. This is what man
is ignorant of today. This is why we have so much of
the spirit that is trying to be forced on us of evolution,
because man is It's a willing ignorance. He does not want to
believe there is a God. He does not want to believe there
is a creator, because it's something that terrifies him, that he must
give answer to the living God. And therefore they deny that
there is a living God. And therefore they deny that
there is a creation. They said it all just happened.
We don't need a God. And when you look at their theories,
how ridiculous they are. By a long stretch of the imagination
you can't believe what they're saying. One day they say so many
billion years, another day they add a few more billion years
and they change their minds all the time. For this they willingly
are ignorant of, that by the word of God the heavens were
of old and the earth standing out of the water in the water,
whether by the world that then was being overflowed with water
perished. You know what man gives us the
evidences of evolution and what they call the Ice Age is actually
evidences of the flood in the days of Noah. But they are willingly
ignorant and they refuse to believe that. Whereby the word that then
was being overflowed with water perished. But the heavens and
the earth which are now by the same word are kept in store,
reserved unto fire against the day of judgment and perdition
of ungodly men. But beloved, be not ignorant
of one thing, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years.
You think of that, and a thousand years as one day. The Lord is not slack concerning
his promise. What promise? That he's coming
again. that Jesus is coming to judge
the world in righteousness. The Lord is not slack concerning
his promise, as some men count slackness, but is long-suffering. Remember, he's writing to the
Church of God, but is long-suffering towards us, that is towards the
Church of God. Not willing that any should perish,
but that all should come to repentance. That is, all the chosen of the
Father, all the redeemed by the Son, but they should all come
to repentance. This world, my beloved friends,
remains, it's not destroyed by God, because there are yet precious
souls to be gathered unto Christ, that were chosen by the Father,
that were redeemed by the Son, and they are yet to be born again
of the Spirit, and that is the meaning of this word. but is
long-suffering to us, Lord, that is to the church, not willing
that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.
But the day of the Lord will come. Now notice again, we have
in our text, I come quickly, but the day of the Lord will
come as a thief in the night, in the which the heaven shall
pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with
fervent heat, the earth also, and the works that are therein
shall be burned up. See you then. all these things
shall be dissolved what manner of persons ought ye to be in
all holy conversation and godliness looking for and hastening unto
the coming of the day of god wherein the heavens being on
fire shall be dissolved and the elements shall melt with fervent
heat nevertheless we who the church the bride of christ nevertheless
we According to his promise, look for a new heavens and a
new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness. We look for a new heaven and
a new earth. He which testifies these things
says, surely I come quickly. Amen. Even so come. Lord Jesus, that's the language
of the Church. Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus. Do you long for the coming of
Christ? Many seem to be held in much bondage. I mean now Christian
believers in the day in which we live. And you speak of the
coming of Christ and they speak with great trepidation and great
fear. My beloved friends, when Christ
is made precious, that fear is taken away. It is. It's a wonderful thing to have
that fear taken away and then looking and hasting. Just like the Lord's servant
Stephen, the first martyr, He was looking up into heaven,
Lord Jesus, receive my spirit. See, he was looking and hasting
onto that day of the Lord. He was ready and prepared in
that day of the Lord. As I preach, my mind, it keeps
going to the fifth chapter in the gospel according to John. we read of the day of judgment
there and we read of the father loving the son and it says in
the verse 20 for the father loved the son and showeth him all things
that himself doeth and he will show him greater works than these
that you may marvel for as the father raiseth up the dead and
quickneth them even so the Son quickeneth whom he will. For
the Father judges no man, but hath committed all judgment unto
the Son. That all men should honour the
Son, even as they honour the Father. He that honoureth not
the Son, honoureth not the Father which sent him. Verily, verily,
I say unto you, the hour is coming, and now is, when the dead shall
hear the voice of the Son of God, and they that hear shall
live. Notice what it says, the dead.
Those in their graves, the dead shall hear the voice of the Son
of God, and they that hear shall live the general resurrection
of all men. For as the Father hath life in
himself, so it be given to the Son of life in himself. and hath
given him authority to execute judgment also, because he is
the Son of Man. Marvel not at this, for the hour
is coming, in which all that are in the grave shall hear his
voice, and shall come forth, they that have done good, unto
the resurrection of life, and they that have done evil, unto
the resurrection of damnation. When it says, they that have
done good, it is speaking of Christian believers, quickened
by the Spirit, brought to faith in Jesus Christ, become followers
of Jesus Christ. He went about doing good, so
should the Christian believer. They that have done good, unto
the resurrection of life. And they that have done evil,
unto the resurrection of damnation. My dear beloved friends, it says
here in the chapter 20 of the book of the Revelation, it says
that concerning the second coming of Christ, verse six, blessed and holy is
he hath part in the first resurrection. What is the first resurrection? It's the new birth. It's to be
born again of the Holy Ghost. It's to be brought from spiritual
death into spiritual life. That is the first resurrection.
Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection. On such, the second death hath
no power. but they shall be priests of
God and of Christ, and shall reign with him 1,000 years. I
believe that 1,000 years, as here in the book of the Revelation,
some very symbolic numbers, I believe it is the period of time that
we are now, when precious souls are being gathered unto Christ,
the gospel is being preached, as it has been for the last 2,000
years, The kingdom of Christ, the Lord's people are being gathered
unto him. And when the thousand years are
expired, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison. And I believe,
if not deceived, that is where we are now. We see the powers
of evil and unrighteousness, the increase of Satanism and
evil and unrighteousness on a grand scale. And when the thousand
years are expired, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison and
shall go out to deceive the nations which are in the four quarters
of the earth, God and Magog, to gather them together to battle,
the number of whom is as the sand of the sea. And they went
up on the breadth of the earth and compassed the camp of the
saints about and the beloved city and fire came down from
God out of heaven and devoured them. And the devil that deceived
them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the
beast and the false prophets are, and shall be tormented day
and night forever and ever. Now, he gives us a graphic description
of the day of judgment. And I saw a great white throne,
and separately, comma, and him that sat on it. He saw this great
white throne, then he saw something more magnificent. Him that sat
on it, from whose face the heaven and the earth fled away, and
there was found no place for them. And I saw the dead, this
is the general resurrection, and I saw the dead, small and
great, stand before God, and the books were opened, and another
book was opened, which is the book of life, and the dead were
judged over those things which were written in the books according
to their words. And the sea gave up the dead
which were in it. And death and hell delivered
up the dead which were in them. And there were judged every man
according to their works. And death and hell were cast
into the lake of fire. This is the second death. And
whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast
into the lake of fire. He which testifies these things
saith, surely I come quickly. Amen. Even so come, Lord Jesus. Can you say that? Can I say that? I believe I can. Even so come,
Lord Jesus. Having that sweet confidence
that one is in Christ, born again, alive through our Lord Jesus
Christ, even so come, Lord Jesus. May the Lord add his blessings. Let us now sing together hymn
number 1061. The tune is Rest 211. Lord, I believe a rest remains
to all thy people known, a rest where pure enjoyment reigns,
and thou art loved alone. Hymn 1061, tune Rest 211. I am the ocean to whom I live. God rest ye merry, gentlemen.
God rest ye merry, gentlemen. God rest ye merry, gentlemen.
God rest ye merry, gentlemen. God rest ye merry, gentlemen. O that I now by the wills I know,
may even enter in! Dear Saviour, now Thy power is
known, ? The Saviour, now God, now His
Son ? ? The truth which keeps one still ? ? In earthly scorn yet ? All my
hope is found in Him. ? To me the rest of faith impart
? ? To me the rest of faith impart ? ? The strength of my heart
? Come now, dear Savior, ? Of the
plains here I'm told is true ? ? No longer from my nature's
side ? ? No longer from my nature's side ? Now may the grace of our Lord
Jesus Christ, the love of God the Father, the sacred fellowship
of the Holy Spirit, rest and abide with us each both now and
for evermore. Amen.