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The Book of
2 Peter: Message Thirty Five
By Dr. Michael Guido, D.D.
One day Jesus shook
the shavings from His clothing, stamped the dust from His sandals,
turned the key for the last time in the door of Joseph's carpenter
shop, bid farewell to His mother and sisters and brothers, and came
to Jordan. There He was baptized, and then, after living a holy and
helpful life, He went to Calvary where He died for our sins.
But there's coming another day,
and it may come sooner than we think, when the Lord Jesus Christ
will shake the stardust from His royal robes, leave His home in
heaven, and come down for the Christians. That's the Day of Christ.
Let's think on that day. Some time
ago the Postmaster General received a phone call, demanding,
"Issue a stamp to commemorate the second coming of
Christ." That puzzled him, so the caller was turned over to his
special assistant. On hearing that demand, he didn't know what to
say or do. He stalled for time, and then said, "If you'll tell
me the exact time and place, I'll be ready to consider it."
That puzzled the caller, and he hung up. Weeks later, the special
assistant went to Kansas City. There he told this experience to the
reporters. It amused them, and they gave it a big spread. As soon as
the papers hit the streets, the special assistant received calls and
letters from readers who said, "We know the day!" But he's
still holding out, for the dates are all different, and they run to
the year of 2061. But the Lord said, "Of that day and hour
knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but My Father
only."
Let's think on the descent. It's
written in 1st Thessalonians 4:16, "The Lord Himself
shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the
archangel, and with the trump of God."
Did you get that? "The Lord
Himself shall descend." Not a substitute, not a spirit, not a
saint, but the Lord Himself. The angels said to the disciples on the
Mount of Olives, "Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up
into the heaven? this same Jesus, which is taken up from you into
heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen Him go into
heaven." And Jesus Himself said, "I will come again, and
receive you unto Myself." "But," you say, "when
He descends, or comes again, will He come to the earth?" Oh,
no; we'll meet Him in the air. "But," you say, "on
what will Jesus stand when He comes in the air?" Does He need
anything on which to stand? The Lord created the heavens and the
earth. On what did He hang the earth? Nothing. Then, does He need
anything on which to stand? Oh, no. But there was another time when
our Lord was suspended between the earth and heaven. They didn't
think He was good enough for heaven or earth. So they hung Him on a
cross. That's when He died for our sins, and that's when He said,
"Look unto Me all ye ends of the earth and be saved!"
There's life in a look. Look now, and be saved.
Let's think on the departure. It's
written in 1st Thessalonians 4:16 and 17, "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." Who are the dead in Christ? Those believers who are
now with the Lord. Why should they rise first? I don't know, unless
it's because they're lower down than we are, for their bodies are in
the sea and the soil. Then we who are still alive and remain on the
earth shall be caught up. The words "caught up" are
interesting. They mean "to carry off by force." The devil,
who is the prince of the power of the air, and his demons, won't
want to see us go or let us go. So the Lord Himself will come down,
and with supernatural force He'll snatch us out and away, and will
carry us off speedily to be with Him. Are you wondering, "How
long will it take for this to transpire?" The Bible answers,
"in a moment." We get our word "atom" from that
word. It refers to that which can't be cut in two. So the Christians
will be caught up in an atomic moment, in an instant of time so
small that it can't be divided. What an experience that will be! One
moment in grief, the next in glory; with a body that's perfect in
health, holiness and happiness. Will you be "in the
clouds" with the Christians? "Every year in the city of
London, on the 9th of November," said Guy King,
"we have a great procession called the Lord Mayor's Show."
"One time," he continued, "I met a young fellow on
the evening before the Show, and I mentioned that I was going to
town to see it." "Look for me," he said. "Are
you going to see it?" asked Guy King. "No," he
answered. "I'm going to be 'in it.'" He was one of the
musicians in the marching band. Both of them were going to be there.
But there was a big difference between them. One was going to be
"in it," and the other "at it." Are you going to
be "in it"? Are you going to be caught up? You're not, if
you're not a Christian. Become a Christian now by trusting Christ,
won't you?
copyright 2000 Guido
Evangelistic Association
All Scripture
verses are quoted from the New King James Version..
Click here to go to the next Scripture Study on the book of Second
Peter from the Sower.
This series of
messages on the Books of the Bible were originally
written for broadcast on Dr. Guido's radio program,
"The Sower." They are collected and
reprinted here for your enjoyment and spiritual
edification.
