The Coming of Christ for His Church

Dr. Charles Stanley: God the Father through the Lord Jesus Christ the moment we accepted him as our savior saved us, our spirit and our soul. And we are heaven bound. He says our citizenship is now in heaven from whence we look for the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ. So while we are saved and redeemed here and now, he says the completion of that redemption is future.
Guest (Male) (Narrator): The Bible says that through faith, Christ saves us, redeems us, and makes us fit for heaven. Today on In Touch, the teaching ministry of Dr. Charles Stanley will wrap up our series on the church with a look at the final piece of the work God will accomplish on behalf of his followers. Stay with us for the completion of the story with a clear understanding of the coming of Christ for his church.
Dr. Charles Stanley: If you'll turn to John chapter 14, and this is the last message in our series on the church, and today, Christ coming for his church. In John chapter 14 is that beautiful consolation chapter where Jesus talks about his coming again, before his crucifixion the next day. I believe if you could only read one portion of the Gospel of John, chapter 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, right before he goes to the cross the next day, contains some of his most precious, beautiful assurances to the believer. So in the midst of sharing with them his heart at this particular time, he said to them, knowing they were going to have some real difficulty facing what was ahead of them, he said, "Let not your heart be troubled. You 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 you may be also. And whither I go you know, and the way you know." But Thomas saith unto him, "Lord, we know not whither thou goest, and how can we know the way?" And Jesus said to him, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No man cometh unto the Father but by me. If you had known me, you should have known my Father also, and from henceforth you know him and have seen him." Philip said to him, "Lord, show us the Father and we'll be satisfied. It sufficeth us." Jesus said unto him, "Have I been so long time with you and yet hast thou not known me, Philip? He that hath seen me hath seen the Father, and how sayest thou then, show us the Father? Believest thou not that I am in the Father and the Father in me? The words that I speak unto you, I speak not of myself, but the Father that dwelleth in me, he doeth the works. Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father in me, or else believe me for the very works' sake." Jesus said in this 14th chapter that one day, the time being unknown to man, that he would return for his body, the bride, his church, of which you and I are a part. The first message in this series we talked about what the church is, and that is that the church is the bride of Christ. As he pictures his return and you understand the whole idea of the wedding ceremony and how it took place in those days, then you can understand why Jesus would picture his coming back for his church as the bridegroom coming for his bride. Jesus gave us the promise that he's coming. And it's interesting what he said. He said, "Don't let your heart be troubled. You believe in God, believe also in me." Then he gave us the promise that where he was going, there we would be also. Now isn't this just like God? Listen to what he did. Jesus, right before his crucifixion, assured them that he was coming back. And then if you'll turn to Acts chapter one for a moment, and on the day he ascended, right in the presence of his apostles, right before them, the scripture says that God provided those apostles a blessed assurance. He says in verse 10, "And while they looked steadfastly toward heaven as he went up, behold two men," that is two angels, "stood by them in white apparel." And listen to what they said, "Ye men of Galilee, why do you stand here gazing up into heaven? This same Jesus which is taken up from you into heaven shall so come in like manner as you have seen him go into heaven," which was God's beautiful way of affirming, reaffirming, and confirming what the Lord Jesus Christ had said to them. Not only was he leaving, but he is also coming back again. Now have you ever thought about this question, why is Jesus Christ coming back for his church? I mean, why doesn't he just clean up this whole mess to begin with? Why should he come back and take us to heaven? You say, well, he's made a promise. He certainly has indeed made a promise. But I want you to look at three reasons why he's coming back. The first one is found in Ephesians chapter one. And if you'll recall in Ephesians chapter one, he refers to the fact that the Holy Spirit has sealed every single believer, every single child of God. One of the reasons he's coming back is to complete the process of redemption that he has begun. So he says in verse 13, "In whom you also trusted after that you heard the word of truth, the Gospel of your salvation, in whom also after that you believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise." That makes us a child of God. Now watch this, "Which is, or who is, the earnest or guarantee of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession." Who is the purchased possession? We are the purchased possession. He says until the redemption of the purchased possession. He says on another occasion, "Our redemption draweth nigh." How is it that you and I can be saved now, having been redeemed as a past act? How is it that we can have been redeemed already, and then him talking about the fact, until the purchased possession, our redemption? Here's what he means. That God the Father, through the Lord Jesus Christ, the moment we accepted him as our savior, saved us, our spirit and our soul. And we are heaven bound. He says our citizenship is now in heaven from whence we look for the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ. So while we are saved and redeemed here and now, he says the completion of that redemption is future. And that is when the Lord Jesus Christ comes, what is he going to do? He's not only going to change these physical bodies here, or if you've passed on before, resurrect that old dead body. He says that body's going to be changed like unto his body, fashioned like unto his, so that our redemption ultimately is not only soul and spirit, but likewise body. The total you, that is the total you, is going to be redeemed. Your new glorified body, he says, fashioned like unto the body of Jesus Christ. He says in 1st John, when we see him, we'll be like him. That doesn't mean we're going to look like him, but our bodies are going to have the same substance, that we will not be hindered by time, space, or matter. He says we will be like him. He says for we will see him as he is and we will be like him. He says we are presently being conformed to his likeness. Every single believer, the Holy Spirit working in your life is conforming you to the likeness of Christ. He's not conforming your body, he's conforming your spirit, so that you and I are growing within. But the ultimate redemption of God not only involves the spirit of a man and the soul of a man, but likewise the body. He says that which he has begun in us, he will complete or finalize or bring to its full fulfillment. So one of the reasons he's going to take us out of this life is that is the completion of his whole redemption plan. He is saving and redeeming the total you, not just part of you. And then the most beautiful reason he's coming is back in John chapter 14. Look at that. And he said to his apostles here, "If I go to prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you unto myself, that where I am, there you may be also." The primary reason Jesus Christ is coming back for us is that you and I may live with him eternally in a place that has been prepared for you and me. Now think about this. What is it that Jesus Christ tried to share with his apostles over and over and over again? He said, "When you receive me, I come to abide in you." And he says, "As I and the Father are one," he says, "My will is that you and I live in oneness." What is it that Jesus was saying continuously but that he wanted us to live in oneness with him? That's why he says he came to live within us. We're in Christ and Christ is within us. He prayed that we might live in that perfect oneness of harmony and humility before him, submission to him. And as we submit to him, what happens? He moves into our life, we move into his life, and the two become one. And we become one with Jesus Christ. You know why he's coming after us? Because when he comes to receive us unto himself, the oneness, the unity, the absolute and totally unhindered harmony between two beings will be consummated when Jesus Christ takes us out of this life. We leave this old physical body, we leave this old sin principle down here, and then in all the perfection of what Jesus Christ is, then we will be in perfect harmony with him. That's why he's coming. And there's an old gospel hymn we ought to sing every once in a while. "This world is not my home, I'm just a-passing through. My treasures are laid up somewhere beyond the blue." You see, the truth is we're just on a journey down here. If you're saving it up, dear brother, like you're going to stay here forever, you're going to be sadly mistaken. Because look, when you get the first glimpse of heaven, you're going to realize this was all hay, wood, and stubble down here. And he is preparing for us a place. Listen, he says, "If I go to prepare a place for you, I'm coming again to receive you unto myself, that where I am, there you may be also." So you see, you and I as believers must always live with our hands open and our feet loose, ready to be taken at any moment, ready to move at the beckoning call of God because nowhere in this Bible does it say this world is our home. He says, first of all, our citizenship is in heaven from whence we look for the coming of Jesus Christ. Now if my citizenship is up there, that means that's my home. This is just, listen, he says we have a temporary body. So don't worry if you have to give it up. You're going to get a better one. He says you live in a temporary place, a home. And I want to tell you something else, the cemetery plot that somebody's already purchased for you, that's only temporary. Your body is only going to be there for a short period of time because he says one of these days when he comes, even that is going to be emptied. Now what you and I have to ask is how's all that going to take place? What does he have in mind when he says he's coming? So if you look in 1st Thessalonians for a moment, 1st Thessalonians chapter four and 1st Corinthians 15 are two great chapters to talk about the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ. And let me show you how he's pictured this here. He says that he is coming for his bride. Who is the bride? He says the church is his bride. Well you say, when was the contract made? When you and I received the Lord Jesus Christ as our personal savior. So that when you and I were saved by the grace of God, we at that time were, that is the contract was set in our marriage to Jesus Christ. We're part of the bride. Then he says the next thing that's on is going to happen on his calendar is that he's coming for his bride. He's coming for you and me. And then he says when he takes us home, there's going to be the great marriage feast of the Lamb as described in the book of Revelation. So when he talks about his coming, it's all a beautiful, glorious, positive thing. There's not the fear that oftentimes we implant in the minds of people about the coming of Jesus. The fear is to be there when Jesus comes back in judgment upon those who have despised and rejected him. But you see, for him to take the picture of a beautiful marriage scene, here comes the bridegroom, coming for the bride. She has anticipated his coming, she has prepared for his coming, she's looked forward to it, she's lived for it, she just can't wait for him to get there. That's not a time to be sad, that's a time to be happy and rejoicing. So he sets his coming again for his body in that kind of a context. Now what does he say is going to happen? Back in 1st Thessalonians, here's what he says is going to happen. He says there's going to be a shout, the voice of a shout, the sound of a trumpet. And the Lord Jesus Christ is going to appear in heaven. And you remember what the angels told the apostles? They said just as you have seen him ascend, so you will see him descending. You and I are going to see the Lord Jesus Christ descending. He's coming for his body. When the Bible says in Revelation chapter one verse seven that every eye shall see him, that's when he comes in judgment upon the earth. But when he comes for his body, the Bible says he's coming like a thief in the night. He's coming for his bride. And you see, that's the way oftentimes the bridegroom would come. Or sometimes at night time with his friends, there would be a shout, the bridegroom is coming, the bridegroom is coming, and then the bride knew that he was on his way. But she lived prepared for the coming of the bridegroom. God wants you and me living in continuous preparation for the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ. So the Bible says he's coming with a shout, the voice of the archangel, the trumpet of God is going to sound. And he says the first thing that's going to happen is going to happen in the graveyard. And that is that your beloved family and friends who have passed on before you, he says when that sound of the trumpet and the shout, what do you suppose that shout is? Is it that Christ is coming or is it just a shout, "Arise"? And that is that every single body of every single believer that has ever lived is going to come out of the earth, out of the seas, that which was destroyed in wars, burned in fires. He says is coming together. He says those bodies are going to be resurrected, fashioned like unto the body of Jesus Christ, caught up in the air, united with soul and spirit in the air, their glorified resurrected body. Then he says we which are alive and living in a here when that happens, he said following the transformation and that resurrection, he says likewise we're going to 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. It's not going to be a time to be afraid. This is the body of Christ. This is the bride. You know what's happening? The bride is going to meet the bridegroom. The bridegroom is coming after the bride and it's all going to be one glorious occasion. That promise belongs to every single person who has accepted Jesus Christ as their personal savior. You say, well I don't believe any of that. Well let me ask you this, then what's your plan? If you don't believe that, what's your plan? You say, well I'm just going to die and that's going to be the end of me. And I want to tell you my friend, you can't prove that. The witness of the most wicked heart says deep down inside when they take all the layers of pride off, even when they go to the grave, somehow I'm going to still exist. You sure are. Because when you die from this life, you're either going the presence of God or you're going to hell. And you see, we're just sharing what Jesus who is the Son of God, who came from heaven, who knows what... listen, he knows what it's about. Who is seated at the Father's right hand today, interceding for us and overseeing the preparation for our new home in heaven. And I want to ask you my friend, if you're not saved by the grace of God and this isn't your plan and you've not fit your life into this plan, then what's your plan? And you see the real truth is you don't have one. Even though you die, yet shall you live, either in hell or in heaven. But live you must because you were created an everlasting being. That is from the time you were born, you will exist forever and ever and ever somewhere. And we're just saying this is God's plan. And I want to encourage you that if you've never come to grips with God's plan, to do that. You see, he tells us very simply three things we must do. Only three things. The 24th chapter of Matthew and 1st Corinthians 15, you don't have to look, listen. He says first of all we're to watch, that is to be diligent. He could come today, he could come a thousand years from now. He says the times and the seasons are not of your concern. He says but you're to be watching. That's the first thing, watching, discerning the times. He says and you see you and I live in this beautiful time. When the tree puts out its first bud, you know that spring is nigh. Likewise, he says we are to be not only watching, he says but we're to be ready. How do you get ready? You receive the Lord Jesus Christ as your personal savior. You yield your body, soul, and spirit to him, giving him undivided possession, control, and use of your life. And then yielding your life to him, you do the third thing, and that is he says, "Be ye therefore steadfast, unmovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as you know that your labors are not in vain in the Lord." We're to be doing three things as the Lord Jesus Christ makes preparation for coming to receive us. We're to be watching and discerning the times. We're to be ready in our heart, keeping our heart clean before him. And we are to be diligently investing our lives in the lives of other people whereby multitudes of people are being made ready for the coming of Jesus Christ, which he says is an actual divine irrevocable fact that Almighty God has spoken through his Son Jesus, reaffirmed through those angels, and is setting the stage in the very view of this generation that exists today. You and I are living in a time when Jesus Christ could come for his church. And what we have to ask is in preparation for that, what are we doing? And I want to ask you one simple question my friend, are you ready? If you have never received Jesus Christ who will be the one who comes, listen, how can you reject Jesus Christ here and expect him to receive you when he comes? You remember what he said? You say, well I believe in God, I don't believe in Jesus. Jesus said, "You've never seen the Father till you've seen me. You've not understood the Father till you've understood me. You cannot go to the Father till you first come through me." What will you do at the appearance of the Lord Jesus Christ if you've rejected him? You see if you want to get ready, the first step is to receive Jesus Christ as your personal savior. That's the first step. The second step to be baptized, identified with the body, the bride of Christ. And then beginning to grow in the Lord, invest your life, your time, your money, and all that you have, listen, not in this life, but in the life to come because all that we do in the name of Jesus Christ with the proper motive for his glory and his praise and his honor is like sending up riches before God into heaven. And you see, if you and I have the proper concept of what it's all about, we're just down here on a journey. This is a temporary situation, but my friend, that is eternal. Now you answer for me. Is it a wise man who makes his preparation for that which is eternal and lasting, or is it a wise man who soaks his life into that which is temporal and limited and shall one day be consumed in one mighty blast of the wrath of God? A wise man makes preparation for where he's going to spend eternity, and that's my plea to you today, right now.
Guest (Male) (Narrator): Thanks for listening to In Touch, the teaching ministry of Dr. Charles Stanley. Preparing for eternity isn't about working harder or doing more, it's about trusting Jesus to forgive your sins and making you fit to stand spotless before the righteous and holy God. If you'd like to learn more about salvation and following Jesus, visit intouch.org. To listen to this message again, click on the link to Today on Radio. And connect to our online store to order a copy of the complete message, The Coming of Christ for His Church. You can also have this message as part of Dr. Stanley's teaching set titled Uniquely a People of God. Again, that's intouch.org. You can also call or text 1-800-INTOUCH. If you prefer to write, our address is In Touch, Post Office Box 7900, Atlanta, Georgia, 30357.
Guest (Male) (Narrator): Some of the things in the Bible are not as clear as we might like, but it tells us what we need to know. Today's Moment with Charles Stanley is coming up.
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Dr. Charles Stanley: You may read a lot of things in this book that don't make sense to you, but that doesn't mean that they're senseless. You may read a lot of things in this book that you cannot understand, a lot of prophecies that you can't put together, you can't put all the pieces together, the time sequence won't work out to suit you, and you can't figure it all out. It is a foolish man who closes the book and lays it aside because he cannot understand it. The best way to understand the word of God is to get in it, having first of all gotten into Jesus Christ and Christ in you, the Holy Spirit indwelling who is our teacher, and asking him to teach you the truth. And things that once looked foolish will become tremendously inspiring, motivating passages of scripture to your heart. And I'm saying to you, there is no way to fathom the whole truth, but one thing I've discovered: all the truth that I need is right here. It'll tell me how to get saved, it'll tell me how to walk in the spirit, it'll tell me how to be victorious in this life, and tell me how God's going to take me home and tell me a little of what's going to happen when I get there. And as far as I'm concerned, brother, that's all I need to know.
Guest (Male) (Narrator): You can learn more about how to find guidance and direction from the word of God at intouch.org. And if you have a story about what you've learned through this program, please share it with us. On In Touch next time, are you living wisely or foolishly? Learn about gaining wisdom from above when we return next time on In Touch, the teaching ministry of Dr. Charles Stanley. This program is a presentation of In Touch Ministries, Atlanta, Georgia, and remains on this station through the grace of God and your faithful prayers and gifts.