Home Coming Soon

Home Coming Soon
by David Brenneman

“Do not let your heart be troubled; believe in God, believe also in Me.  In My Father’s house are many dwelling places; if it were not so, I would have told you; for I go to prepare a place for you.  If I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself, that where I am, there you may be also.  And you know the way where I am going.” John 14:1-4.

There's a day that we are to be excited about, to be ready for, to look forward to.

"Know this first of all, that in the last days mockers will come with their mocking, following after their own lusts, and saying, “Where is the promise of His coming? For ever since the fathers fell asleep, all continues just as it was from the beginning of creation.”  For when they maintain this, it escapes their notice that by the word of God the heavens existed long ago and the earth was formed out of water and by water,  through which the world at that time was destroyed, being flooded with water.  But by His word the present heavens and earth are being reserved for fire, kept for the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men.  But do not let this one fact escape your notice, beloved, that with the Lord one day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years like one day.  The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance." 2 Peter 3:3-9.

There's many who do keep thinking that the return of Jesus Christ is a far off day.  We have no shortage of those who have tried and are trying to set a date.  Unbeknownst to these people is that they aren't being used by God to do this but rather are being used by Satan.

"So then each one of us will give an account of himself to God." Romans 14:12.

"Since all these things are to be destroyed in this way, what sort of people ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness, looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be destroyed by burning, and the elements will melt with intense heat!" 2 Peter 3:11-12.

My Dear Reader let no one fool you into being lazy about living out your purpose in life in Christ.  That you're going to have time to get done what you might have been called to be doing.  That there's no hurry. 

We do not know the day nor the hour.

“But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father alone.  For the coming of the Son of Man will be just like the days of Noah.  For as in those days before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, and they did not understand until the flood came and took them all away; so will the coming of the Son of Man be." Matthew 24:36-39.

Really consider your ways the Bible says.  Consider your motivations for what you strive after in this life.

Do not forget the further words of Jesus.

“But when the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the angels with Him, then He will sit on His glorious throne.  All the nations will be gathered before Him; and He will separate them from one another, as the shepherd separates the sheep from the goats;  and He will put the sheep on His right, and the goats on the left.  “Then the King will say to those on His right, ‘Come, you who are blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.  For I was hungry, and you gave Me something to eat; I was thirsty, and you gave Me something to drink; I was a stranger, and you invited Me in;  naked, and you clothed Me; I was sick, and you visited Me; I was in prison, and you came to Me.’  Then the righteous will answer Him, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry, and feed You, or thirsty, and give You something to drink?  And when did we see You a stranger, and invite You in, or naked, and clothe You?  When did we see You sick, or in prison, and come to You?’  The King will answer and say to them, ‘Truly I say to you, to the extent that you did it to one of these brothers of Mine, even the least of them, you did it to Me.’   “Then He will also say to those on His left, ‘Depart from Me, accursed ones, into the eternal fire which has been prepared for the devil and his angels;  for I was hungry, and you gave Me nothing to eat; I was thirsty, and you gave Me nothing to drink;  I was a stranger, and you did not invite Me in; naked, and you did not clothe Me; sick, and in prison, and you did not visit Me.’  Then they themselves also will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry, or thirsty, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not take care of You?’  Then He will answer them, ‘Truly I say to you, to the extent that you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to Me.’  These will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.” Matthew 25:31-46.

Consider it well that not one of the promises that Jesus made has He ever failed to accomplish.  In many respects after enduring the cross every promise thereafter wasn't nearly as difficult for Him to fulfill.

Jesus IS coming back.  We are commanded to be looking and ready and praying for the hastening of it.

Are you?  Or are you so self-absorbed in life that you aren't leaving room for both growing in Christ or aren't seeking that day to arrive?

Satan's going to cause busyness to rob you of your eternal perspective.

Satan's going to try to inject slivers of doubt about the return of Jesus.

Satan's going to try anything he is permitted in the lives of Believers to get them to not take the absolute certainty of Jesus returning seriously.

I am about to start my 6th month of dedicating at least an hour an evening to Bible study and reading.  The more I read the more I know that we really don't have much time left until Jesus does return.  My Spiritual Dad, Mike Wingfield, at www.ptnews.org always says "Get ready for the shout that will take us out!". 

The Bible says that in every single generation since the ascension of Jesus Christ back to Heaven, Satan's always had a man ready to be the Antichrist.  We have one right now living somewhere in Europe. 

You see, Satan's schemes include smoke screens about the return of Jesus Christ because even he doesn't know when it will be.  So he's always having to prepare someone to step in at a moments notice.

The world at large is being conditioned to believe whatever he would say to them.  Computers, economics, and manufacturing are being adapted now to handle the loss of millions of people because of the Rapture of the Church.  People the world over are being propagandized to believe what they are told to believe...and it's working.

Do you really want to be ashamed at His coming or do you want instead to be found living in obedience to God's Word in Christ Jesus?

We don't know when, we do know He promised. 

We know that He gave us commands to follow and it's on us to follow them and follow through with them.

Jesus will open the Heavens and call His Church to come home.  First will be those who have died in Christ receiving their glorified bodies then those of us who are alive and remain will get theirs.

"But we do not want you to be uninformed, brethren, about those who are asleep, so that you will not grieve as do the rest who have no hope.  For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so God will bring with Him those who have fallen asleep in Jesus.  For this we say to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep.  For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first.  Then we who are alive and remain will 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.  Therefore comfort one another with these words." 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18.

Get ready for the shout that will take us out!

All New American Standard Bible Scripture Excerpts used by permission. (C) 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by the Lockman Foundation. A corporation not for profit.