There has been much talk about the Lord's coming. At church or at precept, we are all talking about the Day of the Lord. What is this day about?
Wayne Barber was so good about part 2 of the Day of the Lord. He asked what should we do about what we have heard. Our teacher and facilitator Steven also asked us the same question before we began watching the tape. So bear with me as I share this because my heart has been burdened at the tape. As usual the fellowship at tea was great. Not just the food. But to be able to sit down and catchup with each other after a long week.
The day of the Lord is a terrible period of time to start with. After the birth pangs that we are witnessing right now, there will be even more massive destructions. There will be this GREAT earthquake that will destroy 1/3 of the world's population and there will be great floods you have never ever known. God will unleash His anger fully and without mercy.
Today we witness God's mercy in the midst of the disasters. When He said He could do it, He did with Japan. Lots of lives were lost in just those few seconds. Why is He like that?
We always want to remember God is love. He is. He has for many, many centuries stall His coming because He wants many, many more to come and know Him and not go through Tribulations. We must never forget God is also a Judge. He will judge the earth, those who persecute His people and those who refused to call Him Lord. Our God is also a God of wrath.
For those of us who are saved. Yes, not Christians, because not all those who say they are Christians are saved. Those who continue to live in their sinful ways, God will say He doesn't know you. Those who think that because they are Christians and yet rationalize what is sin and what is not sin, then God will say "Depart from me! You evil one." Those who call themselves Christians and sat on the pews and continue to sin, God will tell them that they are evil doers and will send them to outer darkness where there will be nothing else but darkness and the gnashing of teeth.
God chastise those He loves because He will prune the branch so that the branch will bear forth fruits. Check when was the last time you bore fruits for the Lord. If you have been having a jolly time drinking, making merry with friends who don't know the Lord, then you should really run to God and ask for forgiveness. Where is God when we are with our friends? When He listens into our conversation with people, what will He hear? Will He hear His name glorified? Will He hear how much He love them? Will He hear blaspheme? How much longer do we want to wait before it is too late to tell others about Jesus?
So remember that the Lord is God and He judges. Whoever tells you that God doesn't judge, then You are so wrong. Only those who are saved are also judged. We are judged by Christ's righteousness. Because we know Jesus, believe He is the son of God, came and died and rose again so you may have an eternal relationship with Him and we will not be judged by our sins. Instead we are accountable for what we do with what we know. What I know must affect How I live for Him. How I live for Him will matter because this is How I will be and even better when I see Him face to face.
The fury we saw in our time now is nothing compared to the Day of the Lord. The first part of the day of the Lord will see Great Tribulations for those who are still here on earth. Then Jesus will descend from Heaven with the saints (I will be there) and then will totally destroy all those who hurt His people (Isarel) and then Jesus will rule on earth. Everyone will know Him. Everyone will worship Him. Then the saints will reign with Jesus.
Satan will be bounded and cast in hell for 1000 years. The immortals will rule the mortals and then Satan will be let lose after 1000 years. There will be another war, big one between the saints and Satan. The battle of Gog and Megog. The earth will be destroyed and then a new heaven and a new earth will form.
The Day of the Lord is a display of God's wrath. We who are saved know this wrath that is to come. What will we do after we hear all these?
I have a few things or people I need to speak to about God. I will wait for the right time. I also realized that time is very short. There are many of us who are still hung up on ourselves about things that to them may be most important.
I am waking up to one fact that as I was sinking in my depression, I forgot to do the work of the Lord. I am trying to redeem the time I lost with many people I have not spoken to about the Lord while I was out living for some thing else.
Please pray for me. I have invited some of my ex students to join me at BBTC on Good Friday. Li Nanxing will be there. Mandarin Service is at 930am and English service is at 11am. Pray that they will come. They are my top priority in my life right now. I love my ex students and I am unwilling that they don't know how much God loves them.
I am also going to speak to some ex students way back when I was a young teacher. These young women are very successful in their careers. I hope to reconnect because when I left them we were not really friends. We split ways because of my stand about tongues speaking. Although I believe there is a place for the speaking of tongues now I think the most important thing is to find them and meet them. I care alot about people and those I don't care, I erase them from my mind. But this group of ladies, for the past 25 years have been on my mind.
Jesus has bought us over, with a heavy price. So we technically belong to Him. It means we are to submit ourselves to Him and let Him use us.
For those of us who are saved, what do we do about the Day of the Lord? We won't be here to witness this. God has spared us of this wrath. But what does that tell us about who God is? How should we walk everyday with this God who is all loving yet all powerful? Circumspectly! Reverend our God and get to know Him more. Put His word in our hearts because His word is the spring water for our lives. We cannot bargain with Him about how we want to live our lives. And demand this and that from Him. To do that will make us rather shameless.
Then again if He can just knock out Japan in a few seconds and render this nation to naught, what can He not do for us who believe? What are we afraid of? If He is all powerful, can He then not get us out of temptations? Can not God hear us when we call according to His will?
I am comforted that God will allow me this sinful creature to reign with Him when He comes again. Baffling!
Our time should be spent on living for God and to reach out to all those we care about and don't know Him. It is not time on merry making. The Lust of the flesh, the Lust of the eye and the pride of life will only get more and more worse. Darkness gets darker. We are to be the light of this dark, dark world. We have to walk circumspectly. We have to point them to God. Our happiness is not important anymore. Whether people reject us or not is not important anymore. We live for a bigger purpose. We must live like we only have ONE day. What do I want to do even with ONE day? Who do I want to be with?
In that ONE day, I want to speak to my dearest friends about the Lord. The ONE person I want to be with is myself in my room praying for those I love to know Him and to have a relationship with Jesus.
Remember this week that God is a judge. He watches and knows the hearts that truly seek Him. Those He loves, He will chastise. I thank God for His chastisement. At least I know He loves me very much. Like a mother disciplines a wayward child, so does the Lord do it to bring us back to His fold.
Many are preaching the LOVE gospel. But this LOVE cost God His only beloved son. To live in our flesh daily is to crucify Jesus over and over again. Have you been doing this? I have. May God forgive me.
The Lord is coming. He knows our hearts and if we turn to Him or away from Him. He is not deceived.
Thank you Lord for all that you have done and will do in the days ahead. Because I know you are coming, my problems seem so small now. Help me not to make people happy because they want to feel better. Help me show them that You are the one who can really satisfy their lives. May my faith in what You can do for me be strong. I bring all those I care about to your loving hands and that in due time, they can know you personally.
