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Christ's Kingdom and the End Times

Month: April 2021

Rescued from the Punishing Day of the Lord

April 27, 2021 /

By Steven J. Hogan

~ A Saturday Morning Post #214 ~

The Bible talks extensively about the “day of the Lord,” a phrase referring to a frightening, devastating period of time when God intervenes in the affairs of this world and judges the ungodly. In the Old Testament, the prophets described in detail many of these “days”, times when God righteously punished deserving sinners, cities, and nations. Here are some examples: “I will punish the world for its evil, and wicked people for their sin” (Isaiah 13:11); “The day of the Lord is awesome and very terrifying – who can survive it?” (Joel 2:11); “You will get exactly what your deeds deserve” (Obadiah 1:15); and “I will destroy people and animals.” Zephaniah 1:3

The most dreadful and destructive “day of the Lord” is still coming, and it will occur at the end of this age, when the holy, powerful, and sovereign God judges the entire world. Matt. 24:29 speaks of these celestial signs suddenly darkening the skies, alerting and warning everyone on earth that this day of doom is soon to begin. “The sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light… and the powers of heaven will be shaken.” Rev. 6:12-14 also tells us that there will be a “great earthquake… and every mountain and island were moved out of their place.” Every single person on this earth will know that something dramatic and cataclysmic is going to happen, and they seem to know what it is, for they say, “Hide us from the presence of Him who sits on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb.” Rev. 6:16-17

This severe judgment will be unleashed upon this sinful world during the second half of Daniel’s 70th week, a seven-year time frame. The Antichrist will be ruling the world, unbelievers will be living in “peace”, and Jews and Christians will be undergoing persecution. Then these cosmic disturbances will darken the skies, alarming the unbelievers. Not long after that, seven “trumpets” will be blown resulting in fiery and deadly judgments killing billions of people and animals. “There came hail and fire… a third of the living creatures in the sea died… torment for five months… they would kill a third of mankind.” Rev. 8:7, 9; Rev. 9:5, 15

Soon after that, there will be seven more judgments, for the “bowls” will be quickly poured out resulting in more death and destruction. “It became a loathsome and malignant sore… every living thing in the sea died… men were scorched with fierce heat… they gnawed their tongues because of pain… and huge hailstones, about one hundred pounds each, came down from heaven upon men” (Rev. 16:2, 3, 9, 10, 21). And the evil unbelievers living on earth still “blasphemed the God of heaven… and did not repent of their deeds” (Rev. 16:11). Without question, these wicked sinners will deserve to be greatly punished. “Righteous are You, who are and who were, the Holy One, because You judged these things.” Rev. 16:5

Then Jesus Christ will suddenly appear on the scene. The “King of kings and Lord of lords,” along with the armies of God, will come racing down to earth and strike down the nations. “He treads the wine press of the fierce wrath of God, the Almighty.” (Rev. 19:15-16). He will royally crush that devilish Antichrist and his evil partner, the false prophet. “These two were thrown alive into the lake of fire” (Rev. 19:20). “Hallelujah! For the Lord our God, the Almighty, reigns.” Rev. 19:6

What about the Christians? What happens to them during this time? They will not be on earth during this wrath!!! That’s because of “Jesus, who rescues us from the wrath to come” (1 Thess. 1:10). But there’s still some confusion among Christians as to what will happen to them in the end-times, and when. Matthew 24, the most important prophecy chapter in the Bible, gives us the order of end-time events: First, there are birth pains – wars, famines, earthquakes, and plagues (Matt. 24:4-8). These events, affecting both Christians and non-Christians in various parts of the world, are not part of the day of the Lord, God’s wrath, for they take place before it even begins. Second, there’s great tribulation, the persecution of Christians and Jews brought on by the Antichrist. Matt. 24:9-14 talks about this tribulation as it affects the Christians, and Matt. 24:15-26 tells us the origin of this great tribulation, that it’s instigated by the Antichrist and starts in Jerusalem, and that it affects the Jews. Rev. 13:13-17

Matt. 24:27 describes a brilliant light flashing from east to west, the glorious, celestial signal that Christ is coming, and obviously, this happens after the birth pains and great tribulation. Then Matt. 24:28 gives a most sobering message, that vultures gather which means people are dying during this time. But there’s something else we need to know – that this great tribulation is cut short by these sky-darkening signs (Matt. 24:29) which, as Acts 2:20 tells us, are “before the great and glorious day of the Lord.” This can only mean that this great tribulation, this period of persecution, is before the day of the Lord, the period of punishment. Matt. 24:30 then informs us that immediately after these celestial-darkening signs, the skies will be lit up by Christ’s glory (Matt. 24:27). It is at that point that Christ will gather together all the believers from all time, those still on earth and those already in heaven. “He will send forth His angel with a great trumpet, and they will gather together His elect from the four winds, from one end of the sky to the other.” Matthew 24:31, 1 Thess. 4:16-17, 2 Thess. 2:1

This should make it clear to Christians that the rapture takes place after the great tribulation has ended but before the day of the Lord, before God’s wrath begins. People who say the birth pains and great tribulation are part of the day of the Lord are wrong, are in error. Great tribulation is when Christians and Jews are persecuted by the Antichrist, and the day of the Lord is when unbelievers are punished by God. Yes, we may be persecuted but we won’t be punished. As 1 Thess. 5:9 says, “God has not destined us for wrath, but for obtaining salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ.” This “salvation” refers to physical salvation, to being raptured and rescued from God’s wrath, the disastrous and deadly day of the Lord. 2 Thess. 1:6-10 tells us the same thing, that there will be relief from tribulation for Christians, but retribution and eternal destruction for disobedient and ungodly unbelievers.

What 21st century Christians need to understand is that the church will still be on earth during the birth pains and great tribulation, but not during that dreadful day of the Lord, which is only for unbelievers. The order and nature of end-times’ events, shown also in Rev. 6 – Rev. 8, make this very clear. In Rev. 6:1-8 we read about the first four seals, which speak of the birth pains. Rev. 6:9-11 talks about the 5th seal, which is Christians suffering great tribulation and being martyred. Then Rev. 6:12-17 tells us about the 6th seal, which describes the sign of the end of the age, the world-waking celestial disturbances warning us of God’s coming wrath. But this wrath, pronounced by the 6th seal in Rev. 6:16-17, is not poured out on the earth until after the breaking of the 7th seal (Rev. 8:1), which then results in the opening of the scroll and the trumpet judgments (Rev. 8:2-9:21). In between Rev. 6 and Rev. 8 is Rev. 7, which tells us two things, the sealing of 144,000 Jews, and the church, just having been delivered out of great tribulation, worshiping God in heaven.

Since we are so close to the end of this age, it is extremely important that all Christians know this order of end-time events: 1. birth pains; 2. great tribulation. 3. celestial signs (darkness and then light). 4. the rapture of the church. 5. the wrath of God on earth. It is now 2021, and at this time, we’re in phase 1, the birth pain stage. But great tribulation is coming soon, and right after that, catastrophic, life-altering, earth-shaking, God-judging events will impact the entire world. Everything on earth will change, and if you are a Christian, you will be changed too, for you will be glorified. “We shall all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet, for the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed.” 1 Cor. 15:51-52

What a time to be alive! As Christians, it’s absolutely imperative that you know these things, and then tell others who don’t know, and especially those who aren’t Christians. Tell the unsaved that today is the day of salvation, that now is the time they need to turn from their sin to Jesus Christ. Tell them not to wait, for the time is coming when it will be too late, and they will be left behind, and suffer, and be punished, and not just on earth during the day of the Lord, but in an extremely painful and everlasting hell. Matt. 25:30, 41, 46; Rev. 14:10-11

Tell the unsaved that God is holy, and that He must judge sinners who rebel against Him, who reject the truth of the gospel – but also tell them that God is merciful, that He offers forgiveness to all who come to Him and believe that Jesus Christ is the Savior, the only One who can save them from their sins, and from that terrible day of the Lord on earth, and from that punishing wrath in hell. “This is the will of My Father, that everyone who beholds the Son and believes in Him will have eternal life, and I Myself will raise him up on the last day.” John 6:40

P.S. You need to know about the Day of the Lord, the coming wrath of God on this sinful earth. Understanding this subject will sober you up, make you more holy, and motivate you to tell the lost about what they will experience if they don’t turn from their sin to Christ for salvation. Here is another post that will help you understand this most important subject – “The Day of the Lord, the Wrath of God on Earth.”

Holy Communion – From Christ’s Cross to Christ’s Crown

April 15, 2021 /

By Steven J. Hogan

~ A Saturday Morning Post #213 ~

Every Christian is to take communion, to take the bread and cup on a regular basis. And why? God commands you to, for He knows how vitally important it is for your relationship with Him. At its core, Christianity is about God’s love for you, and consistently observing communion helps you know this love, and also fuels and fires your love for Him. 1 John 4:19

When we have communion, we are looking back and remembering that Jesus Christ died on the cross, His saving death being a demonstration of His love for us (Rom. 5:8). But we are also looking ahead and thinking about being with Christ in the kingdom ages and, specifically, at the marriage supper of the Lamb (Rev. 19:7-9), when as Christ’s Bride, we will be with Him and freshly experience His love for us. Taking communion helps us to not only remember the past, but to look forward to the future, with the result that we are renewed by His love in the present. In this post we will look at communion from the past to the present to the future, from Christ’s cross to Christ’s crown.

1) Luke 22:14-20 (past). It was the last supper, Jesus’ final meal with His disciples before He suffered and died on the cross for us. We also know this as the first Lord’s supper, that time when Jesus transformed the last Passover meal into the first communion meal. Christ was signaling the end of the Old Covenant with the holy place, priesthood, and sacrifices, and the beginning of the New Covenant, which was accomplished by His death, the shedding of His blood on the cross for us, the means by which our sins would finally and forever be forgiven.

The church age was soon to begin, and Jesus Christ was instituting communion for the church, and for every Christian in the church, and not as a ritual to be repeated, but as a time to intimately remember Him. We all know how easily we forget things, but you never want to forget Christ and what He did for you on the cross. God knows you need to regularly be reminded of His love for you, of Christ’s death for you, by which all your sins are forgiven – and taking communion with other Christians is one of the best ways to do this.

Note what Jesus said, “I shall never again eat it until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God” (Luke 22:16). Jesus was looking ahead to when all the people to be saved would be saved, when the church age would be over, when all believers would be together during the millennial kingdom age. He was vowing to not take the bread and cup until His work in building the church was complete, at which time He and His Bride would have their first meal together at this special marriage supper. For emphasis, Jesus says it again, “I will not drink of the fruit of the vine from now on until the kingdom of God comes” (Luke 22:18). It’s so encouraging to see Jesus’ loving heart, His passionate desire to be with us. As Jesus is excited about seeing us, might we be excited about seeing Him and being with all the believers. Without a doubt, it will be the greatest, grandest, most glorious wedding reception this world has ever seen.

2) 1 Corinthians 11:23-26 (present). The command for Christians to take communion is stated again. God is stressing this point because it’s what every Christian in every church in the entire world needs to be doing. Having communion is to be a continual constant in the lives of Christians during this church age. Paul reminds us what Jesus said, “This is My body, which is for you” (1 Cor. 11:24). I cannot overstate the significance of this verse, for Jesus gave His body which means He gave His entire life “for you”, and His life was perfect, and therefore would be the perfect sacrifice. Jesus loved you so much, shown in that He gave His life for you, the innocent One substituting His life for the guilty ones, and all to make you holy and perfect forever (Heb. 10:14). This divine, spiritual exchange is the heart of the gospel, the most important transaction, the most wonderful news in the world, that Jesus took your sins, and gave you His life. “Christ died for sins once for all, the just for the unjust, so that He might bring us to God.” 1 Peter 3:18

Again, we read Jesus’ words, “This cup is the new covenant in My blood; do this, as often as you do this, in remembrance of Me” (1 Cor. 11:25). The Jews who were celebrating the Passover were to realize that the lamb’s blood which had been smeared on doorposts allowing their forefather’s escape from Egypt had been pointing to, and was now replaced by, the Lamb’s blood, which enabled them and all believers in Christ to eternally escape sin and death. The cup that represented the lamb’s blood was now representing Christ’s blood. Indeed, this new covenant is God’s sure promise to us that Christ could and would save us, for “without shedding of blood there is no forgiveness.” Hebrew 9:22

“As often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until He comes” (1 Cor. 11:26).Taking communion means we are not just looking back but looking forward – and we are to keep proclaiming Christ’s death which was in the past, His victory over sin and death, “until He comes”, which is in the future. Truly observing communion means having faith in what Christ did for you on the cross, and hope for what He will do for you in the coming Kingdom. And this faith and hope produces a real and present love in your heart for your most amazing and gracious Savior.

What Paul said about proclaiming “the Lord’s death until He comes” (1 Cor. 11:26), reminds us what Jesus said about how He would not be drinking the fruit of the vine “until the kingdom of God comes.” (Luke 22:18). Just as Jesus was thinking about the future, of that time when He would be with us, might we also be thinking of the future, of that time when we will be with Him. From the day of Pentecost and the start of the church until the signs in the heavens and the end of this age, Christians are to be taking communion, remembering and loving the Lord, and looking forward to seeing Him face to face and being with Him forever.

3) Revelation 11:15 (the future) – “The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ, and He will reign forever.” Jesus Christ told us that the kingdom of God would be coming (Luke 22:18), and it’s at the very start of this kingdom that all believers will be together with Him at the “marriage supper of the Lamb” (Rev. 19:9), this most holy wedding reception, the greatest banquet ever – and Christ will be at the head table, hosting this glorious and magnificent occasion.   

Finally, Jesus Christ breaks His fast, for He told us at the last supper, at the first communion, “I shall never again eat it until is fulfilled in the kingdom of God” (Luke 22:16). Christ has been waiting for close to 2000 years for this time when we, His Bride, celebrate our divine and eternal marriage with Him. Now that we are in the end-times, it won’t be long before all believers will be with Christ having sweet fellowship with Him, and the most wonderful meal.

The purpose of this post is to help you more clearly understand the importance of taking communion. Remember, it’s a faith event, for you are to be believing, to be remembering what Christ did for you in the past when He died on the cross. It’s a hope event, for you are to be looking ahead and thinking about what God has planned for you in the future, that you will be with Jesus during the kingdom age, and specifically that you will be with Him and all the believers at the “marriage supper of the Lamb,” the first of many meals with your Lord and Savior. And it’s also a holy event, for you are thinking about the most holy Christ and thanking Him for making you holy forever (Heb. 10:12-18). And again, it’s a love event, for thinking about what Christ did for you in the past and what He will do for you in the future will fill your heart with love for Him in the present, and the desire and strength to keep living for Him until He comes. “‘Yes, I am coming soon.’ Amen. Come, Lord Jesus.” Revelation 22:20

P.S. God wants us to keep taking communion during our time on earth to help us keep loving Him and living for Him. Never forget this, for you don’t want to lose your first love for Him. Here are two more posts about your love for the Lord in these days: “The Rapture, A Love Story”, and “Loving the Lord and Longing to See Him.”

Christ is Coming Back to Earth, and Soon

April 9, 2021 /

By Steven J. Hogan

~ A Saturday Morning Post #212 ~

Jesus Christ is coming again – He’s coming back to this earth. That’s the truth, and it’s going to happen very soon – and He needs to, for its obvious that this world is becoming more and more of a sinful mess. And when Christ comes, everything will dramatically change, and every person on this planet will be greatly affected. “They will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory.” Luke 21:27

How do we know? Because God told us so – “… that He may send Jesus, the Christ appointed for you, whom heaven must receive until the period of restoration of all things.” (Acts 3:20). Jesus Christ, the Creator, the Son of God, and Lord of lords, first came to this world about 2000 years ago. When He was here, Jesus Himself told us that He was coming again. “Behold, I am coming soon.” Rev. 22:12

Do we know when Christ will return? We do not know the exact time, but we will know the general time, and that’s because God told us many clear, visible signs and events that will be occurring before His Son returns to earth. “When you see all these things, recognize that He is near, right at the door.” Matt. 24:32-34
* The Jewish people will miraculously return to their land and become a nation, which has already taken place. Ezekiel 36-37, Matt. 24:15-20
* Most people will hear about, and some will experience “birth pains” happening around the world – earthquakes, wars, plagues, famines, and economic distress. Matt. 24:4-8, Rev. 6:1-8
* There will be an extremely evil man, the Antichrist, who will rule the world for a short time, who will force people to worship him and take his mark, the “mark of the beast”. Rev. 13
* Both Christians and Jews will be greatly persecuted all over the world. Matt. 24:9, 21-22
* The Jews will be offering sacrifices in a newly built temple in Jerusalem. 2 Thess. 2:3-4
* There will be increasing lawlessness and evil, which is now quite evident in every country. Matt. 24:12
* The gospel of Jesus Christ will be preached in all the nations in the world. Matt. 24:14
* God has given us these signs to alert us, to warn us, to wake us up to the fact that His Son is coming back soon. And He does not want us to be surprised!

What will happen when Christ comes back to earth? Five major, global events will occur:
1. The first thing to happen when Christ returns is the rapture, when He suddenly, powerfully, and lovingly takes all the Christians from this earth to be with Himself. At that time, all believers who have ever lived, those from earth and those already in heaven, will be glorified, be given brand-new, immortal bodies, and be gathered to Christ. Matt. 24:30-31, 1 Cor. 15:42-44
2. The wrath of God will be poured out upon this earth. This is the Day of the Lord, a most dreadful time when billions of people will be punished and die, and deservedly so, for sinning, for rebelling against God. You do not want to be here when this happens! Revelation 8-9, 16

3. The redemption, the salvation of a large remnant of Jews will take place at the very end of Daniel’s 70th week, a seven-year period of time. Daniel 9:24, Romans 11:25-26
4. The Antichrist and the devil will be soundly defeated. 2 Thess. 2:8-9, Rev. 20:1-3
5. Christ’s reign on earth will begin. His glorious rule will last exactly 1000 years, during which time the earth will be repopulated. “God is the King of all the earth… God reigns over the nations” (Psalm 47:7-8). People will be saying, “Peace on earth,” and there will be love, justice, and harmony like never before.

How about you? What will happen to you when Christ comes back? Will you experience God’s mercy and be raptured, or be left behind and experience God’s wrath? “It’s a terrifying thing to fall into the hands of the living God” (Heb. 10:31). You do not want to ignore, dismiss, or forget what God is telling you about His Son’s return to this planet. With respect to our future, Jesus declared, “Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will not pass away” (Matt. 24:35). If you happen to be living on earth when Christ comes back, your life will be greatly changed, one way or another. Which way will it be?

The only answer to all your problems is Jesus Christ. And your biggest problem is sin. It’s rejecting and disobeying God. It’s not loving Him but instead loving yourself and other things, being an idolater (Psalm 115:4-8, Col. 3:5-6). About 2000 years ago, Jesus Christ came to this world to take care of our sin problem. He lived a perfect life, and then died on a cross, being punished by His Father for peoples’ sins, taking the wrath they deserved.

To get right with God, to receive God’s mercy and be forgiven, to go to heaven, you must tell God that you are sorry you sinned against Him, and believe that Christ died for you, was punished for your sins and paid the penalty you should have paid. “God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us” (Rom. 5:8). “Christ also died for sins once for all, the just for the unjust, so that He might bring us to God” (1 Peter 3:18). “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.” John 3:16

It’s not going to be long before Christ returns to earth and changes everything! “For yet in a very little while, He who is coming, will come, and will not delay” (Heb. 10:37). Again, don’t be left behind! “You will see the Son of Man… coming on the clouds of heaven” (Matt. 26:64). “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.” 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17

P.S. Next to the gospel of Jesus Christ, how you can be forgiven of your sins and receive eternal life, the coming of Christ back to this earth is the most important subject there is. I have written a number of posts on this subject. Here are a few more I encourage you to read: “Christ is Coming Again, and He’s Coming Soon”, “Jesus Christ, the Savior, Judge, Redeemer, and King”, and “Everything on This Earth Is Going to Change.”

The Resurrection: Death to Life in Spirit — and Body

April 2, 2021 /

By Steven J. Hogan

~ A Saturday Morning Post #211 ~

Our biggest problem, by far, is death. People physically die, and all people are spiritually dead – and that’s the truth. Now there are two kinds of death, physical and spiritual – and they are related in that sin is the cause of both. People physically die because of their sin, and people are spiritually dead because of their sin. “The soul who sins will die” (Ezek. 18:4). “The wages of sin is death” (Rom. 6:23). “You were dead in your trespasses and sins.” Ephesians 2:1

The sobering truth is that people who are physically alive are spiritually dead, which means they are separated from God and spiritually lifeless, unless they have been spiritually saved. And the person who is not spiritually saved during his life on earth, and then physically dies, will be eternally dead, painfully separated from God forever. What is so sad is that many people don’t understand this enormous spiritual problem of sin and death. They have been deceived by their wrong thinking, and by the devil himself. “The god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelieving” (2 Cor. 4:4, 11:13-15). Some people don’t even believe in sin, others believe you can sin but there are no consequences, and others think they will be annihilated, will go out of existence when they die, but that’s just not true – these are all deadly errors, much worse than having a physical disease, like Covid-19. 1 John 1:8-10

In our world, most people focus on the physical. There are doctors, nurses, hospitals, special diets, medicines, nursing homes, supplements, gyms, and exercise. None of these are wrong in and of themselves, but “bodily discipline is only of little profit” (1 Tim. 4:8). Most people are overly concerned about physical issues but don’t realize that sin and death are their primary problems. You know that Covid-19 has resulted in global havoc, and has now consumed and controlled people’s lives for over a year. Think of the virologists and immunologists, and the efforts by countries to solve this one little, but big, physical problem. I am not saying we shouldn’t have doctors, nurses, etc., and shouldn’t do what we can to help people be safe and well. The point I am making is that we tend to focus on the physical and not the spiritual. Our far bigger problem is sin, ignoring God, rebelling against Him, disobeying Him, worshiping idols, but not loving Him. And the consequences of not dealing with this deadly sin problem are not just temporal, but eternal, and are not just physical, but spiritual.

Most people who focus on the spiritual do not have the correct answers, many of whom should know better, like ministers, rabbis, imams, swamis, etc. To sum it up, most of them say that the way to get right with God is by our own efforts, that we need to carry out religious duties, that our good deeds will outweigh our bad deeds, and then we can go to heaven and live forever. But this thinking is not right – it’s terribly wrong and spiritually dangerous, and the results are eternally deadly and extremely painful. People need to know that hell is real, is justly deserved, and a devilish place where sinners are punished forever. “‘Depart from Me, accursed ones, into the eternal fire which has been prepared for the devil’… these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.” Matthew 25:41, 46

What then is the answer? The answer is not “what” but “who”? It’s the person of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. He came down to earth about 2000 years ago and become a man and, therefore, a mediator between God and man. Sin is man’s main problem, the cause of both spiritual and physical death, and Christ, the perfect God-man, could pay for our sin. Christ dealt with our sin by taking it upon Himself while dying on a cross, His Father then pouring out His wrath upon His Son instead of upon us. That’s why Christ cried out, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?” (Matt. 27:46). “God made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him” (2 Cor. 5:21). Everyone needs to know that there are only two options – either you pay for your own sin by being punished forever in hell, or Christ pays for it Himself. 

The person who repents of his sin, who sincerely tells God he is sorry he sinned against Him, and believes that Christ took his place and paid for his sin is born again, is forgiven, becomes spiritually alive (Eph. 2:1-5). This is good news, the greatest and most important news in the world, that through Christ we can defeat both sin and death – and it’s because of God’s great love for us. “God demonstrates His own love toward us in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us” (Rom. 5:8). “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.” John 3:16

Jesus Christ didn’t stay dead, and He couldn’t, and that’s because He was God and as God and man, He defeated sin and therefore death, seen when His Father raised Him from the dead. The only answer to our problem of being spiritually and physically dead is Jesus’ death-and-resurrection. And Jesus’ resurrection clearly proves He is the Victor, the Conqueror of sin and death, thereby being the One who can give us both spiritual and physical life. “This man… you nailed to a cross… and put Him to death. But God raised Him up again, putting an end to the agony of death, since it was impossible for Him to be held in its power” (Acts 2:23-24). And a person who is physically alive on earth becomes spiritually alive when he believes in Christ, and after he physically dies (unless he is raptured), he will be glorified, be given a perfect body, be physically alive forever. (1 Thess. 4:15-17). Jesus said, “Do not be afraid; I am the first and the last, and the living One; and I was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore, and I have the keys of death and of Hades (hell).” Revelation 1:17b-18

Jesus speaks of our new spiritual life and new physical life this way: “This is the will of My Father, that everyone who beholds the Son and believes in Him will have eternal life, and I Myself will raise him up on the last day” (John 6:40). We are spiritually made alive when we believe and are physically made alive when Christ raises us up. Paul says it this way: “These whom He justified, He also glorified” (Rom. 8:31). We were justified, spiritually made alive, when we believed in Christ, and are glorified, physically made alive, when the church is raptured “on the last day.” Paul also tells us, “He who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Christ Jesus” (Phil. 1:6). And you see this gap of time between becoming spiritually alive and physically alive. For Christians, this good work of salvation began in the past when we were born again, and it will be completed in the future when Christ returns to rapture the church.

The greatest chapter in the Bible on the resurrection is 1 Corinthians 15. The main message is that Jesus Christ was raised from the dead, and therefore Christians will be raised from the dead – and we are talking about physical resurrection and life. “For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ all will be made alive. But each in his own order: Christ the first fruits, after that those who are Christ’s at His coming” (1 Cor. 15:22-23). Christ’s resurrection took place about 2000 years ago, but our resurrection will take place in the future, “at His coming.” It’s sad that many Christians do not even think about how their salvation is not yet complete. But be excited and filled with hope, for it will happen soon, at the end of this age, at the coming of Christ, which is not many years from now. “…waiting eagerly for our adoption as sons, the redemption of our body. For in hope we have been saved.” Romans 8:23-24

Since we live in the end-times, it won’t be long before Christ’s comes back to glorify us, to give us our brand-new body, to “transform the body of our humble state into conformity with the body of His glory” (Phil. 3:21, 1 Cor. 15:42-44). This most amazing transformation takes place at the sounding of the last trumpet – “Behold, I tell you a mystery; we will not all sleep (physically die), but we will all be changed (physically glorified), in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet; for the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed. This perishable must put on the imperishable, and this mortal must put on immortality.” 1 Corinthians 15:51-53

How should you live during this church age, knowing this wonderful news about Christ’s resurrection in the past and your resurrection in the future? You are to live a holy life, a brand-new life. “Therefore we have been buried with Him through baptism into death, in order that as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so too we might walk in newness of life” (Rom. 6:4). You are to know that you have the resurrection power of Christ and can carry out all His plans for your life. “I pray that the eyes of your heart will be enlightened, so that you will know… what is the surpassing greatness of His power toward us who believe. These are in accordance with the working of the strength of His might which He brought about in Christ when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places” (Eph. 1:18-20). You are to know the Lord and have this close relationship with Him, daily experiencing His resurrection power in your life. “I count all things to be loss… that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection” Phil. 3:8-10

Finally, be exceedingly thankful and wholeheartedly working for the Lord, knowing that it won’t be long before you leave this earth and are with Him forever. “Thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your toil in the Lord is not in vain.” 1 Corinthians 15:57-58

P.S. As a Christian, you need to know and be excited about the resurrection of Jesus Christ and about your resurrection in both spirit and body. Here are three previous posts on the importance and the blessings of the resurrection – “The Resurrection and the Rapture of the Believers”, and “Christ’s Resurrection Means the Best Is Yet to Come”, and “The Resurrection and the Rapture – 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18.”

© Steven J. Hogan and ChristsKingdom.org, 2018. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this site’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Steven J. Hogan and ChristsKingdom.org with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.

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