Would you turn back to James
chapter 5 and look at the, well, let's read all these verses
again, two verses, but be patient, therefore, brethren, James chapter
5, verse 7, be patient, therefore, brethren, unto the coming of
the Lord. And he's talking about the second
coming, the advent of the Lord Jesus Christ. Now this is a glorious
thing to think about. He's going to come back physically. He's going to come back physically. Behold, The husbandman waiteth for the
precious fruit of the earth and hath long patience for it until
he receive the early and latter rain. Be ye also patient, establish
your hearts, for the coming of the Lord draweth nigh. Now he will return. Make no mistake about it. A lot of emphasis is put in religious
circles on when he will return. And that's the wrong emphasis.
Not when, who is coming. He will return. Now James is speaking to a persecuted
people. Look what he said in verse 6
about the rich men who have condemned and killed the just and he doth
not resist you. Now he says to these people who
are being condemned and killed, be ye therefore brethren patient. Be patient. Look what it says in verse 8.
Be also patient. Establish your heart for the
coming of the Lord draweth nigh. Now this is talking about the
bodily return of the Lord Jesus Christ. And no matter what's
going on right now, it's okay because he is returning. No matter what you're going through,
don't forget he is Now look what he says, behold, verse 7, the
husbandman waiteth for the precious fruit of the earth and hath long
patience for it until he received the early and the latter rain.
Now, the farmer works hard to plant his crop. There's a lot
of work involved. A lot of work. He's not a fatalist. He doesn't
believe that The crop will just come up without him doing anything.
He's planting, he's plowing, he's doing all those things.
But he knows the only way there'll be a harvest is if the rain comes
down from heaven. He knows he can't make anything
grow. It has to be what the Lord does.
And just as that farmer waits for the rain to come down, we're
waiting for Christ to come back, patiently waiting. Now, when he returns, here's
something I love to think about. Everybody's going to know it.
How many people are even concerned about his return in the world
right now? Very few. But when he returns,
everybody will know it. He said, as the lightning cometh
out of the east and shineth even unto the west, so shall the coming
of the Son of Man be. Matthew 24, 27. We read in Revelation
1, 7. Behold, he cometh with the clouds,
and every eye shall see him. Well, there's something exciting
about that. To think that everybody's going to know who he is. Most
folks don't care right now, but they'll care then. And they'll
know then. They'll know exactly who it is
that's returning. How will they know? I don't know.
I don't know, but they'll know. Every eye shall see Him coming
with the clouds. And He is coming with great glory. When the Son of Man shall come
in His glory, and all the holy angels with him. Then shall he
sit on the throne of his glory. Now, before this second coming
that I'm talking about, there was the first coming. Some 2,000 years ago, Christ
came to this planet. The word was made flesh and dwelt
among us. Now, not too many people knew
about it, did they? Few shepherds? I mean the coming of the Son
of God. And no one knew about it. He grew up in obscurity.
Why did he come? One of my favorite verses is
scripture. Thou shalt call his name Jesus for he shall save
his people from their sins. That's why I came. He, the Lord
Jesus Christ, shall. There's no doubt about this.
He's not going to make a stab at it or offer it. He shall save. not make salvation possible.
This is his promise with regard to me and you are all these people. He shall save his people, not
everybody, his people, the elect of God, those the father gave
him before time began to be saved. He shall save his people from
their sins. And that's what I need to say
from my sins, my sins. How's he going to do? How did
he do that? Well, he paid the debt. He took my sins and my
sorrows and He made them His very own. He bore my sins in
His own body on the tree and He put them away on Calvary's
tree and He takes His righteousness and gives it to me and I've been
saved from my sins. What a blessed thought. When He first came, He came for
this purpose. to save his people from their
sins. And beloved, that is exactly
what he did. And that fills my heart with
joy right now, because my sin is ever before me, to think that
he has already saved me from my sins. I stand before God justified,
without guilt, because that's what he came to do the first
time. He came to save his people from their sins. And he ascended
back to heaven. And we read in Acts 111 that
the angels said as they watched him ascend, ye men of Israel,
why stand ye gazing up into heaven? This same Jesus, which is taken
from you to heaven, shall come in like manner. He's going to
come with the clouds. He's going to return to show,
as Paul said, who is that blessed and only potentate, the King
of kings and the Lord of lords. Would you turn with me for a
moment to First Thessalonians chapter four? Verse 16. For the Lord himself shall descend
from heaven with a shout, and with the voice of the archangel,
and with the trump of God, and the dead in Christ shall rise
first. Then we which are alive and remain
shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the
Lord in the air. And so shall we ever be with
the Lord. Wherefore, comfort one another
with these words." The Lord's coming back. Wouldn't it be wonderful if he
came back today? He would, wouldn't it? You know, he said, behold,
I come quickly. John said, even so, come, Lord
Jesus. Now he said that 2,000 years
ago. He said, that was a long time ago. No, it's not. No, it's
not. One day with the Lord is as 1,000
years and 1,000 years is a day. He'll come at his time, but he
shall come. Now the Lord foretold all of
this before his crucifixion. He said to the chief priests,
hereafter shall you see the Son of Man sitting on the right hand
of power and coming in the clouds of heaven. And you know what
they said when he said that? Put him to death. He's guilty
of death. And you know, they had no idea
that all they were at that time were pawns in his hands performing
his will. You see, he came to die. And
when they said put him to death, it's because that's what he purposed
for them to say. and everything they did, he was in complete
control of. He came to die, but when he's coming the second time,
it's not to die. Now, upon his return, according
to 2 Thessalonians 2.8, the Antichrist shall be destroyed with the brightness
of his coming. His coming. is so glorious, it's
so bright that the Antichrist himself will be destroyed by
that brightness. We read in 2 Thessalonians 1
verses 7 and 8 that when he returns he will come in flaming fire
to take vengeance on them that know not God. and them that obey
not the Lord Jesus Christ." Now, His coming, understand this,
His coming will not be rejoiced in by the great majority of the
population. They're going to call for the
mountains and hills to fall on us and hide us from the wrath
of the Lamb. They're not going to be rejoicing
in His coming, but there are going to be some people who are
completely overjoyed at the second advent of the Lord Jesus Christ. Now, how can I be ready for his
coming? Would you turn with me to 1 John
chapter 2? How many times have you been going down the highway and you
see some kind of sign that says, are you ready for his coming?
I've seen so many of those. My thought is, are you? You wrote
that, you don't even know what you're saying when you say something
like that. How is someone ready for his coming? Well, look in
1 John 2, verse 28. And now, little children, abide
in him, that when he shall appear, and this is talking about his
second advent, we may have confidence and not be ashamed before Him
at His coming." Now, how is it that somebody can be ready for
His coming? And this is talking about His second advent when
He physically comes from the heavens and the clouds and comes
back and every eye is going to see Him. Now, how in the world
can somebody be ready for that? I remember when I was a kid,
I would think about His coming. I'd think, what if I'm committing
some kind of sin? Right when he comes here, that would just
terrify me to think of, oh, and I've had religious people say,
you can be ready for his coming and so on. Well, how is somebody
ready for his coming? Well, he said, and now little
children abide in him. Now, when God passed through
Egypt in judgment to destroy the firstborn, And he instructed
the children of Israel to put blood over the door of the house. And he said, when I see the blood,
I will pass over you. Now, what if somebody decided
to go ahead and go on outside? They would have been destroyed. You take the ark. There was one
place of safety, one place of security. It was in the ark,
nowhere else. What if somebody said, well,
I can go out for a little bit? What would happen? He would have
been drowned. He would have been destroyed.
What about the city of refuge? There's only one place of safety
in the city of refuge. What if somebody said, well,
I'm going to go outside of the city. I'm getting tired of it in here.
What would happen? the avenger of blood would come
and kill him. And to abide in Christ means this, this is conscience. You only want to be in Christ. You don't want God to look at
you or see you in any way other than simply in the Lord Jesus
Christ. And you don't want to go outside
of him. You want to stay right there and you find all your safety,
you find all your security, you find all your comfort simply
being in him. And you don't want to have anything
to do with God looking at you apart from Christ. All I want
him to see is Christ and me in him. Now the only way that I'm
not going to be ashamed before him and his coming, the only
way I'm going to have confidence is simply being found in him. I'm staying in him by the grace
of God. I don't want to be anywhere else.
That's all I want. Folks do what they want to do,
don't they? They do what they want to do. If you want to get
outside of Christ, you'll get outside of Christ. But if you
want to stay in Him, you'll stay in Him, won't you? Folks do what
they want to do, and I know what I want to do. I want to be found
in Him. I love what Paul said, Oh, that
I may win Christ and be found in Him. not having my own righteousness,
which is of the law, but that which is through the faithfulness
of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith. Now that's what every believer
desires and the only way you and I will be ready for him when
he comes and not be ashamed before him at his coming. is by simply
being found in the Lord Jesus Christ. Now, if I said that the
only place of safety was in this room, And all that you could
ever desire is in this room. There's nothing that you could
possibly desire that's not in this room. This is the greatest
place to be in the world. And outside of this room, there's
nothing but wrath. You step outside the door and
you'll be zapped. What would you do? You'd stay
in a room, wouldn't you? That's what every believer wants
is simply to be found in the Lord Jesus Christ. Now, turn
with me for a moment to 2 Peter chapter 3. Verse 10, but the day of the
Lord will come as a thief in the night. in which the heavens
shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall
melt with fervent heat. The earth also and the works
therein shall be burned up. Seeing then that all these things
shall be dissolved, what manner of persons ought ye to be in
all holy conversation and godliness, looking for and hasting unto
the coming of the day of God, when the heavens shall be dissolved
in the elements shall melt with fervent heat nevertheless we
according to his promise look for the new heavens and the new
earth wherein dwelleth righteousness. Now when he comes there's gonna
be a new heaven and there's gonna be a new earth wherein dwelleth
righteousness. Now here's another scripture
Colossians 3 4 when Christ our life shall appear then shall
we appear with him in glory. Now I love that scripture. when
Christ our life. What about your life? Christ's life is the only life
I know about. Christ our life. When Christ our life shall appear,
speaking of his second advent, then shall we appear with him
in glory. Turn to this scripture, Hebrews
chapter 9. Now be patient. Be patient. The coming of the
Lord draweth nigh. He's going to come when he is
determined to come. Now before I read this passage
of scripture to you, what's your greatest enemy? I know the answer of every believer.
Your sins. Your sins. Now beginning in verse
24, Hebrews chapter 9, For Christ has not entered into
the holy places made with hands, which are the figures of the
true, but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence
of God." What are those next two words? For us. Speaking of every believer. Nor
yet that he should offer himself often as the high priest enters
into the holy place every year with the blood of others. For
then must he have often suffered since the foundation of the world.
But now once in the end of the world have he appeared to put
away sin by the sacrifice of himself. And here's a question
I'd like to ask you. Did he do it? Did he do it? Yes, he did it. Now let's go
on reading. And as it's appointed unto men
once to die, but after this the judgment, so Christ was offered
to bear the sins of many, and unto them that look for him shall
he appear the second time without sin unto salvation. You see, he bore my sin. He put them away, and they're
gone. And when He comes that second time, you know how He's
gonna come? Without sin. All that sin's put away, and
you and I, every believer, will be received by Him. 2 Timothy chapter 4. This is
saying the same thing. 2 Timothy chapter 4, beginning
in verse 6. For I am now ready to be offered,
2 Timothy 4, 6, and the time of my departure is at hand. I
fought a good fight. I finished my course. I've kept
the faith. Henceforth, there is laid up
for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous
judge, shall give me at that day, and not to me only, but
also unto all them that love his appearing. Now let me ask
you a question. Do you love his appearing? You know, I love to think of
all this difference. I love His appearing as my surety. I think
of Him taking the full responsibility of my salvation before time began.
Don't you love His appearing as your surety? I love His appearing
when He became flesh and kept the law for me. I love His appearing
on the cross when my sin was made His sin and He put it away. I love his appearing when he
walked out of that tomb. What was left in the tomb? Nothing,
because he put the sin away. I love his appearing right now
as my great intercessor, representing me before the Father, and how
I love to think of his return, his appearing. Do you love his
appearing? Well, you have the same crown
that laid up for you that Paul is spoken of. The Lord, the righteous
judge, will give everybody that loves His appearing. You see,
at His appearing, we'll be changed. At His appearing, we shall be
changed. Paul said, Behold, I show you
a mystery. We shall not all sleep, but we
shall all be changed. Now, what will be changed? I won't be a sinner anymore.
That's what will be changed. I'll be in a body that has never
sinned and never will sin. And I won't even remember what
it's like to sin or be a sinner. The change is that I will be
a sinner no more. Can you imagine a state of sinlessness? We can't even imagine it, can
we? Can you imagine what it's like to go five seconds with
wholly pure thoughts? All I gotta do is say, don't think about
something, and I know what you're gonna think about, and I know
what I'm gonna think about. That's what we have called the flesh.
Paul said, oh, wretched man that I am, who shall deliver me from
the body of this death? We're not saying that anymore.
I'll be absolutely positively without sin. And I'll behold
His face in righteousness. Paul put it this way in Philippians
chapter 3 verse 21. We look for the Savior, the Lord
Jesus Christ, who shall change our vile body. that it may be made like unto
his glorious body according to the working whereby he is able
to subdue all things unto himself. Now that's why it will be changed.
He's able to subdue all things unto himself. I have Abraham's
persuasion. Abraham was fully persuaded.
that what God had promised he was able also to perform. I have
Paul's persuasion when he said, I'm persuaded that he's able
to keep that which I've committed to him against that day. I'm
persuaded of that. You know, because of who he is,
I'm persuaded he can save me. I'm persuaded he has saved me.
1 Thessalonians chapter 3 verse
13. It says that he will establish
our hearts unblameable in holiness at his coming. Now turn with
me to 1 John chapter 3 for a moment. 1 John chapter 3 verse 1. Behold
What manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we
should be called the sons of God. Now, God is utterly independent. He has no needs at all. He's perfectly sufficient within
himself. He doesn't need me. He doesn't
need you. But think about this. He wants
you because that's who he is. He loves you. He loves you in a way that you
don't have, and I don't have any way of grasping it. Behold
what manner of love the Father hath bestowed, hath showered
upon us, that we should be called the sons of God. To me, that is the hardest thing
to get hold of, that there is, that God actually wants me loves
me. You know when I read Romans 9
13, Jacob have I loved but Esau have I hated? I don't have any
problem with Esau if I hated. Do you? I mean, Esau was a profane
man. He didn't think God was worth
a bowl of soup. He sold his birthright. And he was a profane, wicked
man. And remember, God's hatred is a pristine, pure, holy hatred. It's not like our hatred. It's
with regard to his righteous, holy character. And I have no
problem thinking about God hating Jacob because I don't have any
problem with thinking about God hating me. I really don't. I can see why he would. Here's
what I'm amazed by. His love for Jacob. Do you know
he's called the God of Jacob more than any other title in
the scripture? The God of Jacob. Jacob, you look at Jacob's character,
there wasn't a whole lot to him. But God loved him because he
loved him. That's the only reason. He loved
him because he loved him. Behold, what manner of love the
Father hath bestowed upon us, that he call us his sons, his
daughters, his children. Therefore the world knoweth us
not, because it knew him not. Do you think the world has any
appreciation of this? Not at all. Why, they get mad at God
hating Esau. They think that's not fair, that's
not right. They don't have any appreciation of the love of God. You know, let me remind you something
about Romans 9, 13. Jacob, have I loved Esau, have
I hated? It's about God. It's about God, his character. We're amazed that Jacob have
I loved. I'm even more amazed that he
would love me. Now verse two, behold, now are
we the sons of God, right now. I'm accepted in the beloved as
he is, so are we in the world right now. Beloved now are we
the sons of God and it does not yet appear what we shall be.
Now remember John at this time is writing under the inspiration
of God the Holy Spirit. divine inspiration. Could you
ever be more inspired than while you're writing scripture. I don't
see how you could. But he said it does not yet appear
what we shall be even though he was writing under the inspiration
of the Holy Spirit. He had no idea what it would
be to be without sin, to be made just like Christ. He said, I
can't even conceive of it, but let's go on reading. But we know
that when he shall appear, this is talking about his second advent,
when he shall appear, we shall be like him. perfectly conformed to His image. Now there's such glory in His
appearance that seeing Him as He is, seeing
His isness will change us into His image. Now isn't that glorious? That's how glorious He is. Simply
one sight of His isness will transform us into perfect likeness
to him. And that's what you got waiting
on you. Can you be patient? Things might be bad now, but
they're not gonna stay that way. You don't have much longer to
go. When he shall come with trumpet sound, oh may I then in him be
found. Now verse three. Every man that hath this hope
in him purifies himself even as he is pure." Now before very
long, you're going to be just like Christ. And between now and then, everything
is working together for your good and His glory. And even while you're sitting
there, even while I'm standing here, the scripture says, right
now as he is, so are we in this world. Now you may be looking
at some hard times. Be patient. The coming of the
Lord draweth nigh. Matt, could you give us a closing
hymn?