"The Second Coming"

 

"For God did not appoint us to suffer wrath but to receive salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ. He died for us so that, whether we are awake or asleep, we may live together with him." – I Thessalonians 5:9-10

 

"Very truly I tell you; whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be judged but has crossed over from death to life."

– John 5:24

 

            Belief in the return of Christ is the aspect of our Christian hope that fills us with assurance and confidence and motivates us to truly live for him. This weekend at the ministers' meeting of the Central Conference we heard the testimonies of the nine pastors from our conference who are being ordained at the Covenant Annual Meeting in June. One of them shared a story about an important moment in her faith. At age 14 she decided to witness to a friend, as she had learned to do in church. She began by asking her friend, "If you died today, why do you think you would go to heaven?" Her friend, predictably, answered, "because I am a good person." That opened the door for her to share about Jesus, to lay out the gospel and talk about Christ's dying for our sins, his resurrection, his coming again in glory, and the need for personal faith. But the friend then asked a question that convicted her, and ultimately set her on a new path. The friend asked, "If you really believe that is true, then why do you live the way you do?" That was the turning point in this pastor's young life. "If I really do believe in the Gospel, then why do I live as If I don't, why do I go along with everyone? If I really believe that Christ died for my sins and that he is returning some day, then I need to begin living for Christ consistently." When we talk about the Christian hope and the return of Christ, it is for the purpose of leading us to live out our faith.

            At the heart of Christian hope is the return of Christ in power and glory. This leads us to true repentance and active living for Christ.

            Kathy and I know a missionary couple in Chile and read their newsletters telling of the aftermath of the earthquakes there. In the last one, Ricardo told of talking to a pastor of a church in one of the most devastated areas. This pastor said that self-appointed prophets are going to churches and predicting that even worse natural disasters are on the way, as a punishment from God. The effect of these "prophecies" is that people, who are already shaken, are now plunged into fear so severe that they cannot do anything, at the very time when they need to be working together to rebuild their lives. They are in need of hope, and they need to live in hope.

            We heard a much different report from David Husby, Director of Covenant World Relief, this weekend, concerning the recovery work going on in Haiti. The earthquake there is being called "the greatest disaster of our time" because it hit in such a concentrated area. But they are finding a great deal of cooperation among the relief groups working there, a willingness to follow a plan, to work together and to stay for the long recovery. There has also been a significant turning to God in prayer and worship. God loves the people of Haiti. God is at work in Haiti. Over one million dollars have been given to Covenant World Relief for Haiti, and a portion of that has come from Covenant Churches in Sweden, Japan, and India, and a Free Church in Slovakia. About half of that money has been spent so far, as Covenant World Relief is working closely with partner organizations like World Relief and Medical Teams International. Here is a picture of hope: People working together in unity, with a common commitment, with faith and deep love for the people they serve. People who believe are living out their faith. Hope moves people to commitment and action.

            Christian hope has a center and the center is the return of Christ in glory. Hope is Christ-centered. When we die in Christ we know that we will be with Christ, and so at his return we will also be with him.

            I Thessalonians 4:14: "We believe that Jesus died and rose again, and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him."

            Those who die in Christ are now in true fellowship with the risen Lord. Those who will be alive when Christ returns will meet him in the air and come with him to establish his reign. Hope in Christ gives assurance and confidence, and it changes the way you live and the way you work together for God's Kingdom.

            N.T. Wright puts it this way; "When God renews the whole cosmos, the New Testament insists, Jesus himself will be personally present as the center and focus of the new world that will result." The Christian hope, he says, "... is that one day Jesus will be with us face to face." Acts 1:11 "the angels says, "Éthis same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven."

            The Greek word that the New Testament uses for the return of Christ is parousia, and it simply means "presence." Wright says it can also mean "royal presence" and that by royal Presence Christians meant that Jesus is Lord and Caesar is not. When Paul speaks of this "presence" of Christ he is remembering the words of Jesus in the time just before his death when he said, "you will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory" (Luke 21:27). This became part of Paul's missionary preaching, to speak of the return of Christ. So the Thessalonians heard of Christ's return along with the Gospel message.

Now the Thessalonian Christians came to him with a question. It is not clear just what the question was, but they were worried about the hope of those Christians who died before Christ's return. The pagan philosophers of their time held no hope for those who died. One said, "Once our brief light sets there is one unending night to be slept through." And another said, "Hopes are for the living: the dead are without hope."

            So perhaps this church is now wondering if those who died will miss the return of Christ. They grieve because of ideas found in the pagan culture. But Paul assures them that because of the resurrection of Jesus, death is a temporary condition. Death is a kind of sleep, from which one awakes. If Jesus is risen, then those held by death will be let go, will be set free, just like the Israelites were set free from Pharaoh's grasp.

            I Corinthians 15:22-26: "For as in Adam we all die, so in Christ all will be made alive. But in this order: Christ, the first fruits; then, when he comes, those who belong to him. Then the end will come, when he hands over the Kingdom to God the Father after he has destroyed all dominion, authority and power. For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet. The last enemy to be destroyed is death."

            The point is that when Jesus returns, when he is present in power, then we will be with him forever. Michael Holmes writes, "Death is not a barrier between believers and Jesus. All believers in Jesus will be with the Lord forever."

            To be "in Christ" means we will be received by him in death, and we will return with him when he returns, when he is "present" on earth again. Jesus puts it this way in the Gospel of John: "Whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be judged but has crossed over from death to life."

            How are we then to live in hope? Paul says we are to be "awake" and "sober." "Awake" means aware, watchful, full of faith, full of hope, full of love. That means working together for the purposes of God's Kingdom. It means to be confident and active in faith. "Sober" means sober; not drunk, not living in the night, not hiding or living a double life.

            The question that convicted the pastor when she was young is also asked of us: "So, if that is what you believe, why do you live the way you do?"

            The answer is in humility to surrender to the Lordship of Christ, to make a firm commitment to live in hope, to wait for the return of Christ. For it is our belief in the return of Christ that fills us with assurance and confidence and motivates us to truly live for him.

            Amen.