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Hearing this reiterated BF, thrills my heart.It has been referred to as the Christian’s greatest hope. From the prophets and patriarchs of old, to the early church, to the Protestant Reformers, the visible, literal, and glorious coming of Jesus Christ has been their most cherished expectation. But that seems to have become a lost relic to most of Christendom. Instead, a plethora of human and ecclesiastical inventions has taken its place. Was the early church wrong? Has God changed His mind, or, are His people being woefully deceived?
The Apostle John, in the book of Revelation, poignantly declares, “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” (Revelation 1:7). The Savior Himself foretells, “Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken: And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other” (Matthew 24:29-31). The Gospel writer Luke shares the testimony of the angels, “And while they looked steadfastly toward heaven as he went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel; Which also said, Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into 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” (Acts 1:10-11).
The Blessed Hope, the visible, literal, glorious appearing of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, is certain. The ancients look forward to it. For example, the patriarch Job, finding himself in the most despicable of the physical human condition, declared, “For I know that my redeemer liveth, and that he shall stand at the latter day upon the earth: And though after my skin worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall I see God: Whom I shall see for myself, and mine eyes shall behold, and not another; though my reins be consumed within me” (Job 19:25-27). King David exclaimed, “Our God shall come, and shall not keep silence: a fire shall devour before him, and it shall be very tempestuous round about him” (Psalms 50:3).
The angels promise it. The early church believed it. But most of all, The Savior assures us of it. Says He, “Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father’s house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also” (John 14:1-3). The apostle Paul makes the Blessed Hope his focal point in outlining the plan of human redemption to the young minister, Titus. He writes, “For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men, Teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world; Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Savior Jesus Christ” (Titus 2:11-13)
As the world crumbles from the weight of sin, the Christian must have faith in that Blessed Hope. Now is not the time to get discouraged, fearful, and despondent. For not too distant, the heavens will roll back and the Lord will descend. Men may be deceived by popular fiction and grandiose, money-making Hollywood productions; but God has not changed His mind. The patriarchs, prophets, early, and Protestant Reformers had it right. Be faithful and true to His word and he shall grant you a crown of eternal life and an existence of immortal glory. Hold fast to the Blessed Hope.
.
We Have This Hope
1
We have this hope that burns within our hearts,
Hope in the coming of the Lord.
We have this faith that Christ alone imparts,
Faith in the promise of His Word.
We believe the time is here,
When the nations far and near
Shall awake, and shout, and sing
Hallelujah! Christ is King!
We have this hope that burns within our hearts,
Hope in the coming of the Lord.
2
We are united in Jesus Christ our Lord.
We are united in His love.
Love for the waiting people of the world.
People who need our Savior's love.
Soon the heav'ns will open wide,
Christ will come to claim His bride.
All the universe will sing
Hallelujah! Christ is King!
We have this hope, this faith, and God's great love,
We are united in Christ.
It has been referred to as the Christian’s greatest hope. From the prophets and patriarchs of old, to the early church, to the Protestant Reformers, the visible, literal, and glorious coming of Jesus Christ has been their most cherished expectation. But that seems to have become a lost relic to most of Christendom. Instead, a plethora of human and ecclesiastical inventions has taken its place. Was the early church wrong? Has God changed His mind, or, are His people being woefully deceived?
The Apostle John, in the book of Revelation, poignantly declares, “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” (Revelation 1:7). The Savior Himself foretells, “Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken: And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other” (Matthew 24:29-31). The Gospel writer Luke shares the testimony of the angels, “And while they looked steadfastly toward heaven as he went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel; Which also said, Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into 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” (Acts 1:10-11).
The Blessed Hope, the visible, literal, glorious appearing of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, is certain. The ancients look forward to it. For example, the patriarch Job, finding himself in the most despicable of the physical human condition, declared, “For I know that my redeemer liveth, and that he shall stand at the latter day upon the earth: And though after my skin worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall I see God: Whom I shall see for myself, and mine eyes shall behold, and not another; though my reins be consumed within me” (Job 19:25-27). King David exclaimed, “Our God shall come, and shall not keep silence: a fire shall devour before him, and it shall be very tempestuous round about him” (Psalms 50:3).
The angels promise it. The early church believed it. But most of all, The Savior assures us of it. Says He, “Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father’s house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also” (John 14:1-3). The apostle Paul makes the Blessed Hope his focal point in outlining the plan of human redemption to the young minister, Titus. He writes, “For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men, Teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world; Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Savior Jesus Christ” (Titus 2:11-13)
As the world crumbles from the weight of sin, the Christian must have faith in that Blessed Hope. Now is not the time to get discouraged, fearful, and despondent. For not too distant, the heavens will roll back and the Lord will descend. Men may be deceived by popular fiction and grandiose, money-making Hollywood productions; but God has not changed His mind. The patriarchs, prophets, early, and Protestant Reformers had it right. Be faithful and true to His word and he shall grant you a crown of eternal life and an existence of immortal glory. Hold fast to the Blessed Hope.
.
We Have This Hope
1
We have this hope that burns within our hearts,
Hope in the coming of the Lord.
We have this faith that Christ alone imparts,
Faith in the promise of His Word.
We believe the time is here,
When the nations far and near
Shall awake, and shout, and sing
Hallelujah! Christ is King!
We have this hope that burns within our hearts,
Hope in the coming of the Lord.
2
We are united in Jesus Christ our Lord.
We are united in His love.
Love for the waiting people of the world.
People who need our Savior's love.
Soon the heav'ns will open wide,
Christ will come to claim His bride.
All the universe will sing
Hallelujah! Christ is King!
We have this hope, this faith, and God's great love,
We are united in Christ.
Where in scripture does it say we are the bride of Christ?
John the Baptist said he’d already witnessed the bridegroom had the bride?
This is what made his joy full.
The Resurrection/Rapture of the saints in the Blessed Hope. Not the second coming, which is described as follows in the book of Jude: And Enoch also, the seventh from Adam, prophesied of these, saying, Behold, the Lord cometh with ten thousands of his saints, To execute judgment upon all, and to convince all that are ungodly among them of all their ungodly deeds which they have ungodly committed, and of all their hard speeches which ungodly sinners have spoken against him.
This corresponds to Revelation 1:7 and many passages in the OT concerning "the day of the LORD" (a time for divine judgments).
Why would He have a marriage supper with us, but no wedding?
Even so, my friend!who are the guests?
No John, they are not lost at all. They witnessed the wedding.Even so, my friend!
"Go ye therefore into the highways, and as many as ye shall find, bid to the marriage.
So those servants went out into the highways, and gathered together all as many as they found, both bad and good: and the wedding was furnished with guests." Matt 22:9-10
And not being part of the Bride, are those guests lost from God?
It has been referred to as the Christian’s greatest hope. From the prophets and patriarchs of old, to the early church, to the Protestant Reformers, the visible, literal, and glorious coming of Jesus Christ has been their most cherished expectation. But that seems to have become a lost relic to most of Christendom. Instead, a plethora of human and ecclesiastical inventions has taken its place. Was the early church wrong? Has God changed His mind, or, are His people being woefully deceived?
The Apostle John, in the book of Revelation, poignantly declares, “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” (Revelation 1:7). The Savior Himself foretells, “Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken: And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other” (Matthew 24:29-31). The Gospel writer Luke shares the testimony of the angels, “And while they looked steadfastly toward heaven as he went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel; Which also said, Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into 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” (Acts 1:10-11).
The Blessed Hope, the visible, literal, glorious appearing of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, is certain. The ancients look forward to it. For example, the patriarch Job, finding himself in the most despicable of the physical human condition, declared, “For I know that my redeemer liveth, and that he shall stand at the latter day upon the earth: And though after my skin worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall I see God: Whom I shall see for myself, and mine eyes shall behold, and not another; though my reins be consumed within me” (Job 19:25-27). King David exclaimed, “Our God shall come, and shall not keep silence: a fire shall devour before him, and it shall be very tempestuous round about him” (Psalms 50:3).
The angels promise it. The early church believed it. But most of all, The Savior assures us of it. Says He, “Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father’s house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also” (John 14:1-3). The apostle Paul makes the Blessed Hope his focal point in outlining the plan of human redemption to the young minister, Titus. He writes, “For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men, Teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world; Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Savior Jesus Christ” (Titus 2:11-13)
As the world crumbles from the weight of sin, the Christian must have faith in that Blessed Hope. Now is not the time to get discouraged, fearful, and despondent. For not too distant, the heavens will roll back and the Lord will descend. Men may be deceived by popular fiction and grandiose, money-making Hollywood productions; but God has not changed His mind. The patriarchs, prophets, early, and Protestant Reformers had it right. Be faithful and true to His word and he shall grant you a crown of eternal life and an existence of immortal glory. Hold fast to the Blessed Hope.
.
We Have This Hope
1
We have this hope that burns within our hearts,
Hope in the coming of the Lord.
We have this faith that Christ alone imparts,
Faith in the promise of His Word.
We believe the time is here,
When the nations far and near
Shall awake, and shout, and sing
Hallelujah! Christ is King!
We have this hope that burns within our hearts,
Hope in the coming of the Lord.
2
We are united in Jesus Christ our Lord.
We are united in His love.
Love for the waiting people of the world.
People who need our Savior's love.
Soon the heav'ns will open wide,
Christ will come to claim His bride.
All the universe will sing
Hallelujah! Christ is King!
We have this hope, this faith, and God's great love,
We are united in Christ.
Children/sons & daughters of God, and the Body of Christ, yes, both. Flesh of His flesh, and bone of His bone, born from God.Searching for answers myself, we can’t be the body of Christ, the bride of Christ, the children of God, and the sons of God all at once.
Can we?
Amen!!!!!!!!!!!I’d kinda like to see my grandchildren get a chance to witness Him myself. I realize many people have miserable lives and want to escape their reality, but for me I’ll continue to suffer this crap if it means others will come to know Him.
It can't be, for many reasons.Which strongly suggests that the rapture is part of the second coming, that Jesus catches the saints up in the air, on His way to mount Olive.
Man i was just reading this again . SOUND IT OUT SISTER . SOUND IT OUT . OUR KING IS A COMING and THAT IS A FACT .“He which testifieth these things saith, Surely I come quickly. Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus.”
Revelation 22:20
Tell that to the guest who showed up without a garment . Cast out He was .Even so, my friend!
"Go ye therefore into the highways, and as many as ye shall find, bid to the marriage.
So those servants went out into the highways, and gathered together all as many as they found, both bad and good: and the wedding was furnished with guests." Matt 22:9-10
And not being part of the Bride, are those guests lost from God?
who are the guests?
It can't be, for many reasons.
Much love!
Okay, so who are the guests?He prepares a table for me, in the presence of my enemies...Psalm 23.
Mat 22:2 “The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who gave a wedding feast for his son,
Mat 22:3 and sent his servants to call those who were invited to the wedding feast, but they would not come.
Mat 22:4 Again he sent other servants, saying, ‘Tell those who are invited, “See, I have prepared my dinner, my oxen and my fat calves have been slaughtered, and everything is ready. Come to the wedding feast.”’
Mat 22:5 But they paid no attention and went off, one to his farm, another to his business,
Mat 22:6 while the rest seized his servants, treated them shamefully, and killed them.
Mat 22:7 The king was angry, and he sent his troops and destroyed those murderers and burned their city.
Mat 22:8 Then he said to his servants, ‘The wedding feast is ready, but those invited were not worthy.
Mat 22:9 Go therefore to the main roads and invite to the wedding feast as many as you find.’
Mat 22:10 And those servants went out into the roads and gathered all whom they found, both bad and good. So the wedding hall was filled with guests.
Actually it doesn't. We could debate it if you wish, but why?2 Thessalonians 2 says at His coming, we will be gathered together to be with Jesus - after the mid trib event of the son of perdition committing the abomination of desolation.