The imminence of Christ's return is the central theme, urging believers to live in constant anticipation and readiness. The sermon examines seven key verbs from Scripture that describe our attitude toward this event: to believe, to abound in the work of the Lord, to stand firm, to wait, to comfort one another, to look for His appearing, and to abide in Him. These actions are presented as essential responses to the promise of Christ's return, ensuring believers will have confidence and not be ashamed when He appears. The ultimate message is one of hope and encouragement, reminding believers that Christ's return brings comfort to the afflicted and serves as a challenge to faithful stewardship.
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Dr. R.A. Torrey, in one of his little books, wrote a very forceful paragraph. The Lord Jesus Christ said he may come this year. The Lord Jesus Christ may come this month. The Lord Jesus Christ may come this week. The Lord Jesus Christ may come tomorrow. Then he adds, something more significant, the Lord Jesus Christ may come today. I think I could narrow the margin and say, the Lord Jesus Christ may come tonight.
I hope you all believe in. I hope everyone present with us subscribes to the imminency of the return of our Lord. If you don't, you have my sympathy. because I don't believe you're in accordance with the teaching of the Word of God. I believe an understanding of this doctrine would lead us to conclude that the Lord Jesus Christ may come at any moment. And you may tag me in any momentist if you wish. I believe that is the teaching of the Word of God. A history of the English-speaking world can be traced through a study of the English language.
During different periods, under different circumstances, marking off many epochs in history, words have been introduced into our language so that by a careful examination of these words in our language we can trace the history of the English-speaking world. Words of Anglo-Saxon and words of Latin origin have crept into our language, as we have already intimated, at different periods, at different dates, marking off outstanding epochs in our history as an English-speaking people.
Trades and professions all have their own terminology. And if we only understood some of the terms employed by the trades and by the professions, we would have an insight into the work of the trades and the operations of the professions. An understanding of the nomenclature of the sciences of any one of the sciences will give a little understanding, although it may be but cursory, a little understanding of that particular science. Now, if words in our language are of such tremendous importance to us, how much more the words of Scripture?
There are outstanding words in the doctrine of the coming of our Lord that merit close examination. And I would like to examine just a few of these words with you, a few of the verbs that are used by God the Holy Spirit in connection with the return of our Lord Jesus. Only seven have I chosen, and of course it's not necessary that we consider all seven. There are many others. All bringing to us our attitude toward the event, our attitude, our present attitude toward the Lord.
our attitude toward fellow believers, our attitude toward the world. So let us read some of these verbs that we're going to use. They're used positively. There are certain verbs that are used in a negative way, but the ones we have chosen for this evening are used in a positive way. Things that we ought to do, things that we must do in view of our Lord's return. Turn with me first of all to John fourteen. Let us read back into the thirteenth chapter in order to get the context in which this particular verb is found.
Verse thirty-three, Little children, yet a little while I am with you, ye shall seek me, and as I said unto the Jews, whither I go ye cannot come. So now I say to you, And your commandment I give unto you, that ye love one another, as I have loved you, that ye also love one another. By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have loved one to another. Simon Peter said unto him, Lord, whither goest thou? Jesus answered him, Whither I go, thou canst not follow me now, but thou shalt follow me afterwards. Peter said unto him, Lord, why cannot I follow thee now?
I will lay down my life for thy sake. Jesus answered him, Will thou lay down thy life for my sake? Verily, verily, I say unto thee, The cock shall not crow till thou hast denied me thrice. Let not your heart be troubled. Ye 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 ye may be also.
I think we can all appreciate the predicament in which the disciples found themselves. The Lord here tells them that he is going away. and the words that follow leave them more or less mystified. Peter, the spokesman of the group, because I think he spoke for others as well as himself, was willing to go anywhere geographically that the Lord was going. And the words of the Lord just simply mystified these men. They couldn't understand him. And so he said to them, Do you believe in God? believe also in me.
It's the verb to believe that I like to talk about for a little while. He speaks here of his going away, and then he makes the promise to return. He directed their attention to the Father's house, and of course, I think at first they thought the Father's house to be the temple. They had heard him use that appellation in connection with the temple. you made my father's house a den of thieves. They'd heard him say that. And so when he spoke of the father's house, they would think of the temple and its architecture. And he did make reference to the fact that underneath the pavement there were certain apartments, temporary abodes, where the priests stayed during their period when they functioned in the temple.
But he wouldn't be satisfied that such a place be for his bride. He said, I go to prepare a place for you. You're not going to be in one of those places of abode under the pavement. You're going to be actually inside the veil. True, there'll be no veil there. But the place of the bride, the place of the Christian church, is before the throne. And that is, of course, as we understand it in tabernacle terminology, inside the veil. And so, amidst all the perplexity of their hearts and their trouble and their sorrow, he says now, believe in me.
You believe in God. God is invisible. Shortly I too shall be invisible. But as you believe in the invisible God, believe in me even though I too become invisible, because I am God. And if sorrow has filled your hearts relative to my going, let me leave these words with you. I am coming back again. And in view of the return of our Lord Jesus, which may be this very night, let us continue to believe in him. In fact, The first verse, I understand, is somewhat difficult to translate because of the different moods in which it originally appears.
The first clause is in the indicative mood, but the second clause is in the imperative mood. That means that it's actually a command. The Lord assumes that they all believe in God, but since that assumption may be true or otherwise, He enforces this upon them. He commands them, Believe in me. And the tense of the verb is simply this, Keep on believing in me. Keep on believing in me. And so, beloved brethren, we too at times are perplexed. We find ourselves confronted by dilemmas in this life.
Our pilgrimage is Sometimes is upon the mountain top. At other times we're down in the shades of the valley. But let us keep on believing in Him who promised, if I go away, and in our Spanish version we could use the word sincere, since I go away, I will come again. Keep on believing. In the second chapter of John's Gospel, the verb to believe is translated by the verb to commit, and that's really what it means. There are two movements in believing.
There is the first movement of giving credence. Do you believe the Lord Jesus Christ is coming? Do you believe that he may come tonight? Now that's credence. But now the second movement is commit yourself to that which you believe. Without reservation, commit yourself wholly to that glorious fact that he may come tonight. Let us turn over a few pages in our Bible to First Corinthians, chapter fifteen. And we shall read the very last verse of this interesting chapter, this remarkable dissertation on the resurrection.
Paul, in the first part of the chapter, deals with the fact of the resurrection. And he proves that there will be a resurrection for all of God's people, because Christ himself has been raised from among the dead. And he is the first fruits of them that's left. And since he has been raised by the mighty power of God, we too shall be raised from among the dead. He deals with the fact of the resurrection. And then in the closing half of the chapter, he deals with the manner of the resurrection. And he answers the fool that asks the question, well, how can this possibly be? And after dealing with the resurrection, and indicating that the last trump will sound and the dead in Christ, they shall rise first, and we all get it.
We all shall be changed. Corruption, putting on incorruption, mortality, putting on immortality, and we all shall be changed. Oh, thank God for the rapture of the church. Thank God for the Christian hope. Now, in view of that, read the last verse. Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, unmovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, for as much as you know that your labor is not in vain in the Lord.
I'd like to call your attention to the verb to abound. In view of his promise to return... we must go on believing. In view of the glorious triumphant resurrection and the mighty transformation of the living, we ought to go on abounding in the work of the Lord. To abound is to increase in measure or in rank or in stature. It is going beyond the mark that was previously imposed. and we must therefore increase our efforts.
We are very labor conscious today. In fact, we're pretty well dominated by labor today, whether we like to believe it or not. And what is the cry of labor? Less work, fewer hours, fringe benefits, early retirement and more pay. Do less and less and less, but get more and more and more. That is more or less the idea of labor today. There's no retirement in the cause of Christ.
There should never be with us the idea of doing less and less. Paul says at the end of this most interesting and instructive chapter, abounding in the work of the Lord. Get the adverbial conjunction at the beginning of the verse. What does it mean anyway? Very important. It links this verse with the whole chapter. In simple language, what Paul is saying is, because of these things, brethren, Because the dead in Christ will rise, because we're all going to be changed, because Jesus is coming, because of these things.
Let us be steadfast. Not moved about with every wind of doctrine. Let us remain immobile as far as Christian doctrine is concerned. No defection. And let us abound. And again, the verb tends to just go on abounding, go on abounding. Not as sometimes, like the grasshopper, a jump now, and then a rest later, and then another jump, but a going on constantly, increasing our efforts, widening our borders.
engage ye more fully and more devotedly in service for our beloved Lord Jesus. Here are two very important verbs I would suggest, the verb to believe and the verb to abound in the work of the Lord, both in connection with the return of the Lord Jesus. Now turn with me to the Epistle to the Philippians. Chapter three, the last part of it. Verse twenty. For our conversation, our manner of life or our citizenship is in heaven.
From whence also we look for the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall change our vile body or this body of humiliation, that it may be fashioned like unto his glorious body, according to the working whereby he is able even to subdue all things unto himself. Therefore, another adverbial conjunction, joining verse one of the last two verses of the third chapter. Therefore, my brethren, because of this, my brethren, dearly beloved and long for, my joy and crown.
So stand fast in the Lord, my dearly beloved. Because the Lord Jesus Christ is coming, because he is going to transform us and refashion us, so that we will be fit to stand alongside of him in his glory, we are to stand firm. The verb that I call your attention to is in that first verse. It is rendered stand fast here. It actually is stand firm. What is the opposite to standing firm?
It's deviation, a turning aside, a defection. And Paul gives to us an illustration of two who did not stand firm. Oh, yes, they had stood firm at one time with him. This is a very, very interesting passage of the Word of God, and there's a play on a certain word in this passage. Verse three, just look at it. I entreat thee also, true ye old fellow, help those women which labored with me in the gospel with Clement also and with other my fellow laborers whose names are in the book of life.
Verse two, I should have read also, I beseech odious and beseech syndicate that they may have the same mind in the Lord. Now let me paraphrase it and try and give you the idea of the play that's on the word to join here. I beg of these two sisters, Paul says, that they be joined in one mind in the Lord, and I entreat thee true joiner, that you have these labors, these sisters that join themselves with me and labors, that they be rejoined together.
Something had come in between them. Something had parted these two sisters. At one time they had labored with Paul, and what a privilege, what a wonderful honor to labor along with Paul. But they had also labored along with Clement, who wasn't the great light that the Apostle Paul was. And what is more, they had labored with others, and their names are not even mentioned. That was the past, but something had come in and interfered with their fellowship so that they're now part.
They're not standing firm where once they stood. They're not standing firm in gospel activity. They're not standing firm in Christian fellowship. They're not standing firm for the benefit of the church in Philippi. Paul says, Because Christ is coming in order to transform us and translate us to glory, stand for our. I think the application here, of course, is in regard to church and Christian fellowship, inter-assembly fellowship among the saints.
But you can make application of this in any way. matter. Just simply, if it's a matter of standing for God, then stand firm. There were two brethren out in California a few years ago. There were certain troubles among God's people, and these two men had discussed these troubles. One brother, very aggressive, a little bit too belligerent toward the other. He said to him, He said, You'll never settle anything because you haven't got enough fight in you. The other brother said, Well, I don't want to fight, brother, but I want you to understand that I have two feet, and by the grace of God I intend to stand on my two feet.
Stand for it. The Lord is coming. don't let us relinquish any of the truth of God or any of those blessings which are ours through the truth of God, because the Lord Jesus Christ is coming. Let us turn to First Thessalonians chapter one. This epistle I think is Paul's first epistle that is speaking chronologically. In this first chapter I think we have chronologically speaking the second reference in church history to the return of the Lord Jesus.
I'm sure we all must understand that the early church had the epistles long before they had the Gospels. Now, in the canon of Scripture, we start and we read the Gospels first, but the early church had the falling epistles and probably most of John's epistles and Peter's epistles before they ever had the four Gospels. God gave them the doctrine of the Gospel and an understanding of the Gospel before he gave the historical background to the Gospel. In all probability, the very first letter that was written after Pentecost was the Epistle of James.
And in that we have the delightful reference to the coming of our Lord. James said a way back within ten years of Pentecost, the coming of the Lord draweth nigh. Now don't tell me that he did not intend us to live in anticipation of the Lord's return. For true James, a way back Within about ten years of Pentecost, we read these delightful words, The coming of the Lord draws not. Now, First Thessalonians chapter one, in all probability, is the very second reference to the return of the Lord in the chronology and the history of the Christian church.
Oh, just let us read from verse eight. For from you sounded out the word of the Lord. not only in Macedonia and Akai, but also in every place your faith, God's word is spread abroad so that we need not to speak anything. For they themselves show of us what manner of entering in we have unto you, and how ye turn to God from idols to serve the living and true God, and to wait for his Son from heaven. whom he raised from the dead, even Jesus, which delivered us from wrath to come.
I like the other translation, and to wait for a son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, even Jesus, our deliverer from the wrath to come. Don't tell me the church is going to go through the tribulation. Jesus our deliverer from the wrath to come. At a Kansas City conference quite a few years ago, during the question and answer period, that question was submitted. Will the church go through the Great Tribulation? August Van Ryn was one of the speakers at that conference, and I was rather pleased that that question fell to him.
The answer did in a very humorous and yet a very forceful way. Before he returned to his Bible, he said, Brethren, he said, Can you imagine a bridegroom on the eve of his wedding day taking his bride out and beating her up and giving her black eyes and really clobbering her around and then expecting her to turn up at the wedding the next day? Then he opened his Bible and from Scripture sought to answer the question. Our Lord Jesus Christ is coming and he may come tonight and deliver us from the wrath to come.
But notice the bird. The first one we looked at was to believe. The second one was to abound. The third one was to stand firm. Here's the fourth. To wait. To wait for his son from heaven. I believe this is the only occurrence of this verb in all the New Testament. And it means to stand in the expectancy of the appearance of one whom you know is coming, or whose coming may be foreseen.
The element of patience is in the Word. We know he's coming. When he went away, he said he would come. The angel said, This same Jesus, whom you have seen taken up into heaven, shall so come in like manner as you have seen him go. We know he's coming. What is our attitude? Patiently, we must daily live in the expectancy of the one of whose coming we are fully aware because he has spoken of it to us in his word to wait to wait one of whose coming we are fully aware because he has spoken of it to us in his word to wait to wait, just patiently waiting, anticipating at any moment the return of Jesus, our
deliverer, from the coming wrath. It seems to me, brethren, we very frequently lose our equilibrium. We're just like the pendulum of a clock. We're either in the one side or the other. never in that point of proper balance, that point of equilibrium. So often we're all activity at the expense of worship. So often we're all activity at the expense of expectancy.
We need to hold these things in perfect balance. While we are to abound in the work of the Lord, we are to wait with patience and with expectancy his return because we know he's coming. Don't let us forget that. I think there is a calmness in the Christian faith. I believe there's a peace in the Christian's heart. I believe that we can afford at times to desist from even activities. And just in His presence, wait, wait, wait. The heart going out in holy expectancy, crying, as we have heard already this evening, come, come, come.
Oh, I know the heart sometimes does cry, come, but very frequently it's because we want it as an escapism. The trials become too many. The pressure is too great. The opposition is too firm and we say, Oh, come, Lord, just deliver me out of this. Oh, that it might be from a heart filled with devotion. A heart so occupied with Christ, a heart that knows He's coming and longs for His coming and is just patiently waiting. Other things can fall into place. But the heart is just expecting to see him at any moment.
Turn over the page to the fourth chapter. For the sake of time, because I'm sure we're all well acquainted with this paragraph, and if you're not, you should be. Let's read just the last verse. And again you have a verbal conjunction. All these verbs of which we're calling your attention are definitely linked with the concept of his return. Wherefore comfort one another with these words.
I think there were two perplexities in Thessalonica. I think some of God's people had suffered martyrdom. Some had been cut off prematurely, some had died. And of course, the others were grief-stricken. It's not wrong to sorrow. It's not wrong to sorrow. Some of us, during this past week, we have had happenings that have made us very sorrowful. But we sorrow not as those that have no hope.
They sorrowed at Thessaloniki. And what added to their grief was this. They had misunderstood some of the teaching of Paul. And they had concluded that those that had died, whether through natural causes or through martyrdom, They had come to this conclusion, These, our beloved brethren who have died will not participate in the glorious rapture of the church. Paul writes this letter to correct the misunderstanding. Now he says, after having explained the whole matter to them, relative to the return of the Lord Jesus, he uses the verb to comfort.
Wherefore comfort one another with these words. Oh, there are weary hearts to cherish, brethren, while the days are passing by. Within a few days I stood at two open graves where two beloved brethren, worthy men, men held in high esteem, were laid away. It was my duty. It was my privilege. Yes, it was my honor to grip the hand of two widows and say it's only for a little while.
You've done your all now. You can do no more. But Jesus is coming. Yes, there are grease-stricken hearts everywhere. Thank God there's a bomb of grace and it is the truth that the Lord Jesus himself is coming in person. I had a little manuscript in my hand that I was correcting just the day before yesterday. And the writer of that manuscript was emphasizing the fact that the Lord Jesus Christ is coming in person.
Not the archangel, nor any other one of the heavenly hosts, but he himself is coming. The Lord himself shall descend from heaven. I have a biography of a man by the name of Samuel Blow who served the Lord many, many years ago in England. He was invited to conduct some Bible classes in the home of one of the nobility of England. Some Lord had heard him speak and had invited him to his palatial home and in turn had invited in his neighbors to listen to Samuel Blow as he expounded the Word of God.
Samuel Blow had never been in that part of England before, but he took train to the station. He got off at the station with his bags and parcels and stood rather bewildered because there was no one there to meet him. And as he stood in the station just waiting and wondering and praying and asking God to open the way, a man in a livery came in. It is a man in a chauffeur's uniform came in and looked around and saw the lone stranger standing with his bags and parcels and went up and said, Are you Mr. Samuel Blow and He said, Yes, I am. And just in an instant the man, the chauffeur, or the coachman as he actually was, gathered up the bags and the parcels and he was gone and left Samuel Blow standing there alone, more puzzled than ever.
I wonder, what do I do now? I've lost all my baggage. It's a strange affair. A little while a very dignified gentleman calmly slowly walked into the station, looked around, spotted the stranger, went up and said, Are you Mr. Samuel Blow? Are you the gentleman that I heard speaking such and such a place? Yes, I am. You just come with me. Oh, but sir, he said there was a man came in here and he's taken all my baggage and all my parcels. He said, I'd like to get my baggage back if I can. Never mind, Brother Blow said to the Lord. You come with me.
I sent my coachman for your baggage, but I came myself for you. The Lord Himself shall descend from heaven. Wherefore comfort one another with these words, no matter what the trial may be, no matter how deep the valley may be, or how dark it may be, there's comfort in the thought. Jesus is coming and he may come tonight. He may come at any moment. Turn over to Titus, please. Titus chapter two.
Verse eleven, For the grace of God that bring us salvation has appeared to all men, teaching us that denying ungodliness and worldly lust, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in this present world. Looking for that blessed hope and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Savior Jesus Christ, who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity and purify on himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works. These things speak and exhort and rebuke with all authority. Let no man despise thee.
The verb is to look, looking for that blessed hope and the glory superior of the great God and our Savior Jesus Christ. I know there are some brethren, and they think they see here both the rapture and the revelation. But the definite article is omitted in the original language, making it but one event. It's not looking for the blessed hope and the glorious appearing of the great God and of the Lord Jesus Christ.
It's rather all but one event. The Lord Jesus Christ Himself is the great God, and He's our Savior, and He's coming according to the Blessed Hope. What are we doing? Are we looking for Him? I understand this verb means to receive the future into the mind so that you consider the future as if it has already been realized. I don't know whether you have noticed in reading the Scriptures that God very frequently uses the present tense for the future tense.
God speaks of the future as already consummated. Our brother gave us an example of it this evening when he quoted from Romans eight. Whom he called, then he also justified. Whom he justified, then he also glorify. As our brother intimated, it hasn't been consummated as an experience in us as yet. But as far as God is concerned, it is as good as consummated. God uses the present at times to indicate that the future is so secure. that he considers it an already accomplished fact.
And so as we look, we receive the future into our minds as if already consummated. And therefore, with expectancy, we anticipate with joy the coming of our Lord Jesus. We're looking for the consummation and the realization of that blessed hope. Dear old man lay for many years in his bed in Bay City, Michigan. Thirty-five, forty years ago I called on that old gentleman. He was living just around the corner from the home in which I was staying, so I slipped in very frequently.
Whenever I went into that room, on every occasion I went into that room, he said, He hasn't come yet. He hasn't come yet. He hasn't come yet. Every time I went in, those were the words of salutation. He hasn't come yet. The dear old man was looking. He was looking. He was considering it almost as a realization even in his weakness. Oh, may God help us just to accept the future as if an already consummated fact. The Lord Jesus said, The blessed hope shortly will appear, and we are to live daily looking for that future.
Turn with me to First Job, chapter one, or chapter two, right? Verse twenty-seven. But the anointing which ye have received of him abideth in you. And ye need not any man teach you. But as the same anointing teacheth you of all things, and is truth, and is no lie, and even as it hath taught you, ye shall abide in him.
And now, little children, abide in him. That when he shall appear, we may have confidence, and not be ashamed before him at his coming. Here's another interesting verb. I'll give you the infinitive again. It's the verb to abide. He's coming. He may come tonight, brethren. We may not have any sessions tomorrow. We may be in glory tomorrow. We don't want a session that will be. What a glory of session that will be. I lay on the hospital cot feeling very sorry for myself during the Easter conference.
And on the door there was a card saying, No visitors. I'm not there. The saints are all gathered there, listening to the ministry of the Word of God, joining in hymns and singing and rejoicing and worshiping, and here I am, all by myself, and a tag on the door, no visitors. And what was worse, I heard the announcement even at the conference. Late that night, two brethren came into my room. I don't think they saw the tag on the door. If they did, they ignored it. Father Gordon Mitchell, brother Ron Hogan, quietly slipped into my room about, oh, I guess it must have been half past eight, quarter to nine.
And I had a bit of the conference. And I had a bit of the conference fellowship that night. It was just delightful for about fifteen minutes. As my brethren told me of what was going on. And as Brother Ron read from the Book of Psalms and prayed that night. Yes, they did more than comfort me. They taught me something that irrespective of our circumstance, instead of feeling sorry for ourselves, there's only one thing that is imperative, to abide in Him.
To abide in Him. Get the eye off men altogether. You need not that any man teach you. No man should be a source of teaching to us. Men may be the channel of teaching, but no man should be the source of teaching to us. We have the anointing, and we abide in him because he abides in us. And now in view of the return of our Lord Jesus comes this exhortation, and now little children, abide in him, that when he shall appear, We may have confidence or boldness or courage and not be ashamed or embarrassed or confused before Him as His coming.
It's almost ten o'clock and nearly took all the time. But let me just give you these verbs again and these are only examples. In reading the Scriptures you pick out these important words. They have tremendous messages. In view of the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, keep on believing. In view of the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, keep on abounding. In view of the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, stand firm. Don't defect and don't deviate.
View of the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, wait. View of the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, comfort all whose soul and more. View of the coming of the Lord Jesus, just look, keep looking, keep looking. And in view of the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ, abide in him so that when he does come, We'll have courage. We'll have boldness. Let me illustrate this word for you. A personal experience. Going a way back to Kansas City, Missouri again.
Brother Will Till and myself were the invited speakers at their conference. I don't know what year it was, way, way back over the years now. We were taken to the same home, we enjoyed the same hospitality, and in that home there was just a little boy, just a wee toddler. And while our host and hostess prepared a little bedtime snack, the little fellow came in and he looked at Brother Bill, my bachelor brother, He had already pulled out some manuscripts from his bag and he was very busy writing and the little fella kind of looked at him and sized him up and then passed by.
So I beckoned to the little fella to come. Finally I got so friendly with him or got him to be friendly with me that I got him up on my knee. And I gave him a little horsey ride on my knee the way you do with little children. Oh, he enjoyed himself. until he got perfectly confident. That's the word that we have here. He became quite courageous. He forgot all about embarrassment. And finally he reached up and he touched my mustache. And then in baby talk he said, Mr. Gunn, it would look better up there. Did you get the idea?
That's the idea of confidence, the confidence, the artlessness of a little child. Oh, when we get home to glory, is that going to be our attitude there? Absolutely at home, in perfect freedom, unembarrassed. Or are we going to behave ourselves to the point that we're going to be embarrassed? Oh, let us abide in him. that when he shall appear, we shall have confidence and not be ashamed before him at his coming. In pride and final and everlasting punishment, that's what the coming of Christ means to Satan.
What should the coming of the Lord mean to us as individual Christians? Well, to the afflicted and bereaved, and there are those around us. I was thinking of our dear brother Rayburn's family. Donald Armstrong's family, others that we know, called home suddenly to be with the Lord. To the afflicted and bereaved, the coming of the Lord is a message of comfort. It's not desperation, it's desperation. It's hope. It's comfort. To those who serve as stewards of His grace, the coming of the Lord is a challenge.
that we may not be ashamed before him at his coming. And to all of us who hold dearly the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, every man that hath this hope set on him purifies himself even as he is pure.