Judgment Is Coming.

Writing to the believers in the "eternal city" of Rome, Paul makes this statement: "So then every one of us shall give account of himself to God." (14:12).

Centuries later, American statesman Benjamin Franklin wrote: "Our new Constitution is now established, and has an appearance that promises permanency; but in this world nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes." However, there is only one thing that is absolutely certain, and it is neither death, nor taxes. It is that every single one of us will have to face Almighty God for an accounting of our individual lives!

 

So, we would be wise to take heed of the warning given to the Children of Israel, by the prophet Amos, some 500 years before Paul: "Prepare to meet thy God, O Israel" (4:12); and the words of the anonymous wrote of the Letter to Hebrew disciples of Jesus: "It is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment." (9:27).

Of course, the disciple of Jesus has no need to fear, for "There is therefore now no condemnation (judgment) for those who are in Christ Jesus." (Rom.8:1). How can this be? It is so because the Lord Jesus has paid for our sins and purchased our redemption with His shed blood. He "was delivered for our offences, and was raised again for our justification" (Rom.4:25).

Nevertheless, even as His disciples, we still "must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ" (II Cor. 5:10), where "the fire will test what sort of work each one has done. If the work which any man has built on the foundation survives, he will receive a reward. If any man’s work is burned up, he will suffer loss, though he himself will be saved, but only as through fire." (I Cor. 3:13-15). In other words, we need have no fear when we appear before the Father, because the Son will be beside us saying "This one, Father, is mine"! However, we will then appear before the Saviour, Who will judge all that we did "in the body" (II Cor. 5:10). Now that could refer to our fleshly, mortal, bodies. However, the same Greek word is used to refer to the church, as the body of the Christ, and so I believe that this is how Paul is using it here. It is our Christian life that will be judged by the Lord Jesus, because all that went before our conversion was dealt with at our conversion.

Those who die in unbelief, however, not having trusted Christ as their Saviour, will face a different meeting with God. The apostle John describes the awesome scene as he saw it in the Revelation he was given of the Lord Jesus. "And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Also another book was opened, which is the book of life. And the dead were judged by what was written in the books, by what they had done." (Rev. 20:12). But no one can ever be saved by his works (Eph. 2:9). Therefore, "if any one’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire." (Rev. 20:15). 

I commented, at the beginning of this post, that not even death is certain! That may have raised a few eyebrows. However, God's Word teaches that there will be a rapture - a snatching up - of true disciples of Jesus before the final time of tribulation. Paul writes: "For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the archangel’s call, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first; then we who are alive, who are left, shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air; and so we shall always be with the Lord." (I Thess.4:16-17).

So, those who are "raptured" will include both believers who have already tasted physical death, and those who are still physically alive at that moment. They are those who will never die! 

I am one of many who are utterly convinced that we are in the very last days, leading up to that rapture. Are you ready for it? If not, then I urge you to act, and to do so quickly. If I may be of any further help, please feel free to contact me using the e-mail address at the top of the blog.

I.H.S.

The letters of the heading are well-known to many. They are found on pulpit-falls (the piece of material that hangs down in front of the lectern in most church building pulpits) in many church buildings - certainly in those of the Presbyterian persuasion in which I was reared, and in which I ministered for many years. They stand for three Latin words: "Iesous Hominum Salvator" that translate as "Jesus, Saviour of Mankind" - the basic message of the Gospel.

I was reminded of the letters when I watched the "Big Hymn Sing, 2020" from the Scots Church in Melbourne, Australia, recorded in the church building. There was the pulpit; and there was the pulpit-fall. By the way, for those who appreciate some of the "old" Christian hymns, it is worth watching - at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3l66Qz2ScIQ&t=1688s

When I was much younger, I realised that I could 'play with' those letters. Indeed, they could be formed in three different ways, each of which teaches us another important truth for the true disciple of the Lord Jesus. The first combination is H.I.S. That's pretty obvious! If I am a disciple of Jesus, then I belong to Him - I am HIS! So Paul, writing to the early believers in the great metropolis of Rome, refers to them as "... who are called to belong to Jesus Christ;" (Rom.1:6; emphasis added). There is something good about 'belonging'. That is, basically, why people join all sorts of groups and organisations - from cycling clubs to choirs; from political parties to painting classes; from sporting groups to stamp collectors. However, the best group to which anyone can belong is the family of Almighty God - those who have been born again through the work of God the Holy Spirit in their lives, as they have come, in repentance and faith, and accepted the salvation that was gained for them by the sacrificial death of the Lord Jesus, at Calvary.

A second combination follows on from the previous one. If I am H.I.S., then I am S.I.H. - Safe In Him. In His "High Priestly Prayer", recorded in John 17, (and, by the way, the true "Lord's Prayer"!) the Lord Jesus refers to His disciples with these words: "While I was with them, I kept them in Thy name, which Thou hast given me; I have guarded them, and none of them is lost but the son of perdition, that the scripture might be fulfilled." (John 17:12-13; emphasis added). Again, in Paul's letter to the early Roman believers, he pens these wonderful words: "Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?  As it is written, 'For thy sake we are being killed all the day long; we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered.' No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am sure that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord." (Rom 8:35-39; emphasis added). If I am truly His, then I am safe in Him.

The final combination returns to I.H.S. but, this time, I see "In His Service". Again, going back many years, we young believers were often taught that we are "saved to serve" and, of course, the One Whom we serve is the Lord Jesus Himself. This was the 'boast' of those first disciples of Jesus. Indeed, the word usually translated as "servant" is, more correctly, "slave". So Paul introduces himself to the early believers in Rome as "Paul, a slave of Jesus the Christ" (Rom.1:1); James commences his letter in a similar manner: "James, a slave of God and of the Lord Jesus, the Christ." (James 1:1); Peter is "Simon Peter, a slave and apostle of Jesus, the Christ." (II Peter 1:1).

Jesus, Himself, spoke these words: "I am among you as One Who serves." (Lk.22:27) - and serving Him is the greatest privilege that mortal man may enjoy. Of course, if I am truly HIS, and am assured that I am Safe In Him, then it will be my great desire to be In His Service!

"Iesous Hominum Salvator"; "Jesus, Saviour of Mankind". May He be your Saviour, your Lord, and your King. It will be for your eternal good, and to His eternal glory.

One of a kind!

This week, my wife and I each received our "Carte de Séjour"! "What", most of the readers of this blog will be asking, "is that?" Well, it means that, having lived in France for more than five years, we now have official evidence that we are considered to be residents of the country. It does not mean that we have been naturalised - we still hold UK passports, and expect to return to Scotland if we are spared to reach a "certain age"!!

The Carte de Séjour contains a passport-type photograph (so not the most flattering!), and other specific information about  - just as our passports do. However, in a first for either of us, it also contains our fingerprints! I shall have to be doubly careful to wear gloves on my next burglary mission!!!!! (joke!).

I also read, recently, of a particular type of pottery, named "Raku" pottery. This is, in origin, a Japanese method of firing clay pottery in which each piece is hand-formed (i.e. not formed on a potter's wheel)  - a process, it is claimed, that allows the spirit of the potter to speak through the finished work, with particular directness and intimacy. 

Once the clay has been shaped by the potter, it is fired in a kiln then, glowing hot, it is thrust into a pile of combustible material that quickly takes the heat from the vessel. The result is a "one of a kind" - something that is truly unique.

So what might be the link between a Carte de Séjour, and Raku pottery?! Well, I think that it is in the personal connection. Something that it uniquely "me" (my fingerprints) in somehow embedded in my Carte de Séjour; the potter's personality is, apparently, "imprinted" in the Raku pottery.

So it is with each of us. We bear the imprint of the Creator. He has spoken through His work with particular directness and intimacy. Each of us is formed in a unique way, for a unique work. "We are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them." (Eph.2:10).

However, although we are created for good works we are, ourselves "works in progress". We must experience the kiln of affliction. Aching hearts, weary spirits, ageing bodies, are all processes that Almighty God uses to finish the work He has begun.

This means that we need have no fear of circumstances - however unpleasant, or inconvenient, or apparently pointless!  Be "patient in tribulation" (Rom.12:12), and await the finished product. "Let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing." (James 1:4).

You, whoever you are, are "one of a kind". There has never, in the whole history of the world, been anyone exactly like you. No matter for how long the world exists, there will never be anyone exactly like you. And you are beloved of God! He created you; He knows what is best for you. Our responsibility is to stay as close to Him as we can, and to remain within His will for us. It's the best that we may do for ourselves - and for others!

May you draw close to Him, and live in His light, that you may fulfil His purposes for you - His unique creation.

The year of cancellations!

This week, we (my wife and I) received the news that our flight to Israel, booked for September 30th, has been cancelled. It had been booked in January for a three-week visit to the Holy Land, as a "holiday of a lifetime" and our gift to one another for our Golden Wedding Anniversary - on September 4th. To celebrate the actual date, we had planned to visit Scotland and have a meal with our family. The ferry was booked just a week before the Prime Minister announced that France had been removed from the list of 'safe' countries. That meant that we would have had to spend our complete time there in isolation! This evening we amended the ferry booking to later in September - but, of course, may well have to postpone the date even further!

Sadly, we are experiencing no more than many have already experienced over the regular holiday months in the Northern Hemisphere. It's been that sort of year (and it isn't over, yet!). Some of us are not even fully convinced that all of the restrictions that have been put in place are necessary, helpful, or even fully enforceable!

The cause of all of this upset is, of course, something that is invisible to the human eye. It is a virus - Covid-19 - that has disrupted not just our own plans; not just the plans of so many in Western Europe; but people the world over. We have discovered the truth of the words of the Scots bard, Robert (Rabbie) Burns that "The best-laid plans o' mice and' men gang aft agley"! (from "To a mouse"). For those who need a translation, a rough one would be: "No matter how carefully we make our plans, be we mice or men, they often go awry"!

I was speaking by 'phone, just last evening, with my younger daughter. In the course of that conversation, we mused on previous plans that had not come to pass. At one time, it was my own plan to emigrate to Australia - but when the opportunity came to do so, I failed to seize the moment!

However, there is One Whose plans are always fulfilled. That One is Almighty God, the Creator and Sustainer of all that is. As we read His Word - the Bible - we discover that His plan is for this world that we know to eventually be destroyed, and to make way for a new heaven, and a new earth. He has not said precisely when that will happen, but He has given us some indications of the season in which it will take place. The first sign - and the one that will happen in a nanosecond - will be the rapture* of the true disciples of Jesus, the Christ (see I Cor.15:51ff; I Thess.4:13ff). That will be followed by a seven-year period of tribulation. It will be after that period that the Lord Jesus will return, with His church, and after that, the new heaven and the new earth.

The apostle John was given a glimpse of all of that which he recorded in what we know as the Revelation of Jesus the Christ. He wrote: "Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband; and I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, "Behold, the dwelling of God is with men. He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself will be with them; He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning nor crying nor pain any more, for the former things have passed away. And He who sat upon the throne said, "Behold, I make all things new."Also He said, "Write this, for these words are trustworthy and true." And He said to me, "It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. To the thirsty I will give from the fountain of the water of life without payment. He who conquers shall have this heritage, and I will be his God and he shall be My son. But as for the cowardly, the faithless, the polluted, as for murderers, fornicators, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars, their lot shall be in the lake that burns with fire and sulphur, which is the second death." (Rev 21:1-8).

It is only those who have a personal relationship with the Father, through the Lord Jesus and His atoning sacrifice at Calvary, who will inhabit that new heaven and new earth. The signs are all around us that the rapture - that will set this particular timetable in motion, is very close. The big, and extremely important, question is: "Are you ready?" If you are not, then I urge you to do something about it - and to do it now! Writing to the Corinthians, Paul stated "Behold, now is the acceptable time; behold, now is the day of salvation." (II Cor 6:2; emphases added); while the writer of the Letter to Hebrew disciples of Jesus asked the unanswerable question: "... how shall we escape if we neglect such a great salvation?" (Heb 2:3).

"Rapture ready" - should be the aim of each and every one of us!

* The subject of the Rapture is dealt with, in greater depth, in my book "Great Words of the Faith", available from Amazon in both paperback, and Kindle formats. Links are at the top of the blog. Please permit me to emphasise that I do not receive a single penny from sales. ALL royalties are sent, by Amazon, directly to the Bank Account of Release International, in support of the persecuted church.

Why Jesus?

For many decades, the answer given by many, to the question above, has been along the lines of: "Because He will make you happy"; "Because He will give you meaning and purpose in life"; Because He will ensure that you are healthy, and wealthy"; "Because the whole world will look so much better when you accept Him into your heart"!

That, however, is not what the Bible teaches!  That, I would respectfully suggest, is not the experience of hundreds of thousands of disciples of Jesus in what we refer to, collectively, as "The Persecuted Church".  That was certainly not the experience of the young men who, with the name of Jesus on their lips, were murdered by terrorist thugs of the so-called Islamic State, on a beach in Libya.

So why did Jesus - God in human flesh - come to this earth; and why should I yield my life to Him?  The apostle John, in his first letter to the church at large, writes: "The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil." (I John 3:8).  He continues: "No one born of God commits sin; for God's nature abides in him, and he cannot sin because he is born of God. By this it may be seen who are the children of God, and who are the children of the devil: whoever does not do right is not of God, nor he who does not love his brother." (I John 3:9-10).  This is not teaching what is sometimes referred to as "sinless perfection".  The same John has already written: "If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us." but "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just, and will forgive our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.  If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us." (I John 1:8-10).

What John is saying is that Jesus came to save us from sin.  It's that simple.  You are a sinner; I am a sinner.  You don't need me to tell you that; I don't need you to tell me.  As sinners in God's eyes, we deserve nothing other than His righteous judgement, and punishment.  We deserve, when our mortal lives come to an end, nothing other than banishment from His Presence throughout eternity.  (If you want to know more about eternity, I recommend my book: Great Words of the Faith - link to the Kindle edition at the top of the page.  Costs less than a fish supper!).  However, I do not need to bear that punishment, because Jesus has paid the penalty - the Righteous for the unrighteous (see I Peter 3:18) - and I may go free!   No wonder that His disciples sing about, and rejoice in, His amazing grace!

Have you confessed - to Him, and to yourself - that you are a sinner.  That's the first move - recognising that, as the Anglican prayer puts it: "there is no health in [me]".  You then need to put pride behind you, and accept that you can never, ever, make up for the sins of the past, never mind those that you will commit during what remains of your mortal life.  You need to accept that only His sacrifice, made on your behalf, can cleanse you from sin, and make you acceptable to the sinless Creator of all that is.  When you do that, you are immediately justified (another word that is dealt with in the book already mentioned!) - in other words, Father God looks at you, and sees Jesus!  You are also assured that all of your sins are forgiven: "For there is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus." (Rom 8:1).

That's why Jesus came!  Not necessarily to provide us with peace, joy, love, fulfilment, and lasting happiness, and all of the other assurances given by some modern "evangelists".  A blog post is not the place to produce a sermon, but do follow the link Do you need God? Find out here! if you want further help and guidance.  For so many, the words of Jesus: "In the world you have tribulation;" (John 16:33) are a daily, and often very painful, experience!  However, Jesus continued: "but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world."

Why Jesus?  Because "... God so loved the world that He gave His only Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life.  For God sent the Son into the world, not to condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through Him.  He who believes in Him is not condemned; he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God." (John 3:16-18).  Because "He who believes in the Son has eternal life; he who does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God rests upon him." (John 3:36).

The end-times.

It never fails to amaze me that I can read a Biblical passage for the umpteenth time - and see something that I have never noticed (or, at least, never fully taken in) before.

Part of my personal devotions this morning involved reading I Thessalonians 5:1-11.  I was struck, as never before, by what the apostle wrote in (what we know as) v.3: "When people say, 'There is peace and security,' then sudden destruction will come upon them as travail comes upon a woman with child, and there will be no escape."

As we look at a world in turmoil, I hear many suggest that this is a sign of the end-times - the Rapture, the tribulation, and the Second Advent.  However, this morning, I started to wonder if the opposite is true - if, in fact, the events that we witness on our television screens, night after night, new-bulletin after news-bulletin, indicate that it is not yet God's time for those tumultuous events to take place!

Could it be that it is when the events of Revelation 13, [inter al], take place, and when there is a true "one-world" government under the authority of the "man of lawlessness" (I Thess.2:3), that there will be the superficial peace to which the apostle refers?  If so, then that will be the time at which the saints of God will "... be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air;" (I Thess.4:17; see also I Cor.15:52).

Of course, the important thing is to be ready for that glorious event whenever it may take place.  The true disciple of Jesus is already prepared, although even we must be ever watchful! (cf. Matt.24:42, inter al).

Robert Murray McCheyne was a most godly minister of the Gospel.  He was settled to the pastorate of St. Peter's Church, Dundee, where he ministered for about seven years, until his death at the tender age of 30.  I cannot vouch for the absolute veracity of the story - although it has what J.B.Phillips would call 'the ring of truth' - but it is recounted that, one evening, while entertaining a group of men in his home, the topic of conversation turned to the return of the Christ.  Well, they didn't have such exciting things to discuss as Eastenders, Britain's got Talent, or I'm a celebrity - get me out of here!  Anyway, Mr. McCheyne asked each of his friends if they thought that the Lord might return that evening.  To a man, and in the manner of the period, they replied "I think not."

Mr. McCheyne then quoted, from the Authorised Version (this was the middle of the 19th century!), the words of the Lord Jesus: "Therefore be ye also ready: for in such an hour as ye think not the Son of man cometh." (Matt 24:44).

Are you ready?  We can never know the precise time!  Regardless of what I thought this morning, it could be tonight!

On the scrap heap?

The story is told of a blacksmith who gave his heart to the Lord. Though conscientious in his living, still he was not prospering materially. In fact, it seems that, from the time of his conversion, he experienced more trouble, affliction, and loss than ever before. Everything seemed to be going wrong.

One day a friend who was not a Christian (yes, it's possible for disciples of Jesus to have friends who are not!) stopped at the little forge to talk to him. Sympathising with him in some of his trials, the friend said "It seems strange to me that so much affliction should pass over you just at the time when you have become an earnest Christian. Of course, I don't want to weaken your faith in God or anything like that. But here you are, with God's help and guidance, and yet things seem to be getting steadily worse. I can't help wondering why it is."

The blacksmith did not answer immediately, and it was evident that he had thought the same question before. But finally, he said "You see here the raw iron which I have to make into horse's shoes? You know what I do with it? I take a piece and heat it in the fire until it is red, almost white, with the heat. Then I hammer it unmercifully to shape it as I know it should be shaped. Then I plunge it into a pail of cold water to temper it. Then I heat it again and hammer it some more. And this I do until it is finished."

"But sometimes I find a piece of iron that won't stand up under this treatment. The heat and the hammering and the cold water are too much for it. I don't know why it fails in the process, but I know it will never make a good horse's shoe."

He pointed to a heap of scrap iron that was near the door of his shop. "When I get a piece that cannot take the shape and temper, I throw it out on the scrap heap. It will never be good for anything."

He went on, "I know that God has been holding me in the fires of affliction and I have felt His hammer upon me. But I don't mind, if only He can bring me to what I should be. And so, in all these hard things my prayer is simply this: Try me in any way you wish, Lord, only don't throw me on the scrap heap."