Pastor's Comments May 18, 2012

“. . . He is LORD of Lords and KING of Kings, and those who are with Him are CALLED, CHOSEN, and FAITHFUL.”

In writing I cannot help but wonder whether we keep in the forefront of our minds and in our hearts the praise and honor that should continue to be offered in prayer to our Father and Jesus Christ for the awesome calling and selection we have been given to be numbered among the Firstfruits of God’s Spiritual Harvest.

It is incredibly awesome to realize that Spirit-begotten mortal men and women, such as we are, will soon be changed by a resurrection from the dead, or changed if yet living, and rise to meet Jesus Christ in the clouds of this earth’s atmosphere. Can we picture this in our minds?

The angels will gather together the saints to meet Jesus Christ in the clouds from the beginning of creation: great people of past ages, such as: Abel, Enoch, Noah, Abraham and Sarah, Isaac and Rebecca, Jacob, Joseph, Moses, Aaron, Miriam, Joshua, and all the prophets (Hebrews 11).

Included will be all the apostles and others: Peter, Andrew, James and John, and the other eight apostles, James and Jude the brothers of Jesus Christ, and Mary the mother of Christ, and Mary Magdalene, Mary, Martha and Lazarus, and many others. There will also be the Apostle Paul along with all of the brethren from the Day of Pentecost in 31 A. D. until our time today.

We will once again see Mr. and Mrs. Armstrong, and others that we have known who remained faithful to our God and Jesus Christ.

Can we imagine the happiness and joy experienced at that time; the blessing of being with our Bridegroom, and all of those saints throughout past history (Hebrews 12:1-2)? Then together with Christ descending down to the Mount of Olives and aid Him in beginning to turn this world right side up, from being upside down (Acts 17:6).

Think about the blessing of teaching the world God’s good and right way of life that will give them their heart’s desires in a right and positive way. What a blessing this will be when it becomes reality. For now we can only meditate and dream about it.

There is little time left in this spiritual race of life to continue proving our obedience and faithfulness to our God before the return of Jesus Christ to this earth. Undoubtedly all of us realize this and with desire of both heart and mind all of us want very much to be accounted worthy to stand before Christ in this soon-coming time.

In the meantime the rewards Jesus Christ wants to give us are yet hanging in the balance—and will— until our change at last comes.

Though we have in the past experienced some real knotty and difficult problems, Scripture makes known those in front of us will become much more difficult before the Coming of Jesus Christ. God led the Apostle Paul to write:

“. . . We must through many tribulations enter the Kingdom of God” (Acts 14:22; Matthew 10:16-42).

In addition to the problems we will yet encounter from the world there are the problems of keeping our minds and hearts where they should be for we are barraged with distractions of all kinds coming at us from all directions along with the pull of Satan's nature within us, the law of sin! Romans 7:23-25.

This is a most terrible time for all of us for us as His people in this end-time. For as Jesus said in warning, "And because lawlessness will abound the love of many will grow cold" (Matthew 24:12).

We see evil abounding all the time and coming at us, in public, through television, movies, and the news media! And as Jesus made known, this is A SIGN of where we now are!

In addition, we are also seeing OMINOUS SIGNS in the House of Joseph, and the nations of this world that should enable us to see the end-time prophecies are almost in place making known they are on the very verge of being fulfilled!

Weather reports in the heart of America’s breadbasket along with terrible diseases are also making known the Famine and Pestilence (disease epidemics) are virtually here, to be followed immediately by the Great Tribulation!

Then a little later, Armageddon! This would be the end of all of mankind through the unleashing of all the hydrogen bombs by the armies who will be gathered there – and would, except for the divine intervention of Jesus Christ as He returns to this earth!

Brethren, where we now are, and have been, can be compared to a woman in the early stages of delivery of her baby when there is some time between contractions once they begin.

Then the contractions begin coming closer together until the final contractions come – the crowning of the baby’s head – and the most intense pain! It is at this point that she feels it is too much!

But, then, the baby is delivered – the pain is over and forgotten for joy as she holds her newborn baby in her arms.

Jesus Christ used this very example in regard to the problems and challenges God’s people face in this life:

“Most assuredly, I say to you that you will weep and lament, but the world will rejoice; and you will be sorrowful, but your sorrow will be turned into joy. A women when she is in labor, has sorrow because her hour has come; but as soon as she has given birth to the child, she no longer remembers the anguish, for joy that a human being has been born into the world. Therefore you now have sorrow; but I will see you again and your heart will rejoice, and your joy no one will take from you” (John 16:20-21).

To give us an idea of the destructive power of just one hydrogen bomb, it has been said on TV that one nuclear tipped missile on an atomic submarine carries more destructive power than all the bombs exploded during World War II!

Christ will intervene exactly at the right time to stop this madness! As He descends to this earth all of the survivors of the world will actually SEE Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior returning to this earth as KING of Kings and LORD of Lords in AWESOME POWER AND GREAT GLORY! Revelation 1:7.

Christ admonishes His people in Scripture to always be watching while praying that each and every one of His people might be accounted worthy to stand before Him:

"WATCH THEREFORE, for you do NOT know WHAT HOUR your Lord is coming. ... Therefore you also be ready, for the Son of Man is coming AT AN HOUR when you do NOT expect Him" (Matthew 24:42, 44; Luke 21:36).

Not only is Israel and the world asleep to what will soon entrap them, as was the pre-Flood world of Noah, but many members in God's Church are also asleep (Matthew 25:1-13; Luke 17:26-27)! Many we see about us as members are sleeping their way into the Great Tribulation and will be martyred (Revelation 6:9-11; 3:16-18).

The question needs to be asked by each one of us as to where we now are in regard to our relationship with God? Hopefully, very close to Him. However it is easy to deceive ourselves thinking we are – when maybe we are not (I Corinthians 10:12)!

Always and always, we have to be AWARE of who we are, and our desperate need for God! At the same time we should be doing all the things necessary to make sure as much as we can that we have a zealous ongoing relationship with our God. And though we suffer some real difficulties here and there, we must keep right on going and never quit! Luke 14:34-35. We must be building our strength of endurance (Proverbs 24:10).

We would do well to keep in mind the attitude of the apostle Paul as he suffered all the difficulties and sufferings he had to endure before he was martyred:

"But what things were gain to me, these I have counted loss for Christ. But indeed I also count all things as loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord. for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as rubbish, THAT I MAY GAIN CHRIST, and be found in Him, not having my own righteousness, which is from the law [obeying God's laws is not enough -- there has to be a relationship based on faith], but that which is through FAITH in Christ, the righteousness which is from God by FAITH; THAT I MAY KNOW HIM AND THE POWER OF HIS RESURRECTION, and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death IF BY ANY MEANS, I MAY ATTAIN TO THE RESURRECTION FROM THE DEAD" (Philippians 3:7-11).

Like the apostle Paul, we MUST desperately want to be included with all of the others in this coming resurrection and our change to eternal life with all of our beings! Continually, we need to be made AWARE of the seriousness of our calling and election God has granted us!

We must be vigilant and observant of the signs that are making known this present civilization is soon to perish and most of mankind with it (Isaiah 24:6); and we should want to be saved from it! Revelation 18:4.

In addition, we need to think about the AWESOME REWARDS that will enable us to fulfill the responsibilities Christ intends to give to each one of us in the new world (Matthew 16:26-27).

Eternal life and great responsibilities combined will prove to be very meaningful and precious to all of God's people.

NEW SPIRIT LIFE ALONG WITH RESPONSIBILITIES WILL BE FOREVER FULFILLING AND FILLED WITH HAPPINESS DUE TO CONTINUED ACHIEVEMENT!

Jesus Christ makes known to us what the downside will be if we set our goals on worldly pursuits! He also makes known the upside by our keeping focused on the real and lasting goals that are soon to come:

Then Jesus said to His disciples, "If anyone desires to come after Me, let him DENY himself and take up his cross and follow Me. For whoever desires to SAVE his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for My sake will FIND it. For what is a man profited if he GAINS the whole world, and LOSES his own soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul? For the Son of Man will come in the glory of His Father with His angels, and THEN HE WILL REWARD EACH ONE ACCORDING TO HIS WORKS" (Matthew 16:24-27).

Shortly thereafter Christ gave the disciples A VISION, A GLIMPSE, of what He and all others who will be changed at His coming by also having Moses and Elijah with Him:

Now after six days Jesus ... was TRANSFIGURED before them HIS FACE WAS LIKE THE SUN AND HIS CLOTHES BECAME WHITE AS THE LIGHT. And behold, Moses and Elijah appeared to them talking with Him (Matthew 17:1-3).

Brethren, this is what we will soon be like if we keep on keeping on – FOCUSED on Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior.

While waiting for Christ to come back to this planet earth, and seeing this world spiraling out of complete control, with all of its glitter and glamour, the enticements that come at all of us though the media, books, magazines, television and so on, unless we are very careful, these can lead to OUR SENSE OF AWARENESS AND PERCEPTION BEING DULLED; forgetting the reality of our special calling.

Always, it is a daily struggle to keep our minds and hearts where they should be and we MUST not be moved away from all that God wants to give us.

While waiting for His coming, Christ has given His people a great and wonderful responsibility to perform; the gospel is to be preached and published to the world AS A WITNESS of that which is soon to become a reality – never to end! Matthew 24:14; Revelation 3:7-8.

This responsibility of desiring to SHARE with mankind “THE TRUTH” God has so graciously opened our minds to see and understand enables us to keep our eyes on the wonderful blessings just ahead of us and later for mankind!

We as individual Christians are to be in back of and supportive of that MESSAGE while at the same time we are to be living our lives in such a manner as to be A LIGHT to this world and THE SALT of the earth (Revelation 3:7-8; Matthew 5:13-16).

As members of God's Church, we live a miniature type of that new world for eight days during the Feast of Tabernacles and the Last Great Day.

And after we return to our homes each year we are to be living examples of what we lived during that brief period of time in our daily lives. And through the remaining years that we have left, all those with whom we come into contact, can see and learn about A WAY OF LIFE they see nowhere else!

By fully living God’s way of life, we are making known that it is representative of the new world to come! The only way to live!

By outsiders viewing the members who really are living God's way has sometimes led some to want to know more about the Good News of Tomorrow's World and all that it holds forth for them and all of mankind!

It is realized that God has called us to live by His very high standard – the example that Jesus lived while in the human flesh (John 13:15; I Peter 2:21; I John 2:6; John 12:48; Matthew 28:19).

While making the effort to live as He did, we find this to be very difficult at times. We struggle with our own human nature and problems that we encounter virtually on an everyday basis.

This often leads to a lot of stress and we feel sometimes that we are failures because of not always being able to measure up to God's standard as we know we should.

As I have mentioned several times before during such times, I often go to the Psalms for solace and encouragement. For in those prayers we see where David cried out to God for forgiveness and the strength he needed to remain within God's care and love.

And we see in those Psalms and other Scriptures he always received it. Further, we also see in Scripture where David will not only be in God's new world, but will also be rewarded by being made king over all Israel.

A great lesson to learn from his life is that though he encountered heavy problems and failures, he always got up and kept on going. That is why he has made it!

God is no respecter of persons. He loves each one of us and will always be there for us in all of our needs as long as we remain faithful to Him and His way of life. And at the end of it all, for all who will endure to the end, there will be the blessing of rewards for each one of as well as there will be for David.

The disciples asked Jesus what would there be for them as the result of giving up their profession and devoting their lives completely to Him. Jesus answered their question by telling them of their great rewards, that each one would be a king over individual tribes of Israel.

At the same time He also gave them encouragement to deal with and overcome the monumental problems and difficulties they would face before their human lives would end; sadly, most of them were martyred.

When the disciples heard it [the virtual impossibility of a rich person entering into life], they were exceedingly amazed, saying, "Who then can be saved?" But Jesus looked at them and said to them, "With men this is impossible, but with God all things are possible."

Then Peter answered and said to Him. "See, we have left all and followed You. Therefore what shall we have?" So Jesus said to them, "Assuredly I say to you, THAT IN THE REGENERATION, when the Son of Man sits on the throne of His glory, you who have followed Me will also sit on 12 thrones judging the 12 tribes of Israel. And EVERYONE who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or wife or children or lands, FOR MY NAME'S SAKE, shall receive a hundredfold, and inherit everlasting life" (Matthew 19:25-29).

To comfort His disciples during the times of great stress and to give them encouragement and incentive, Jesus further said to them [and meaning all of His called and chosen people of this age, including us], Jesus said:

"Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God believe also in Me. IN MY FATHER'S HOUSE [the New Temple to be built in Jerusalem, Ezekiel 40-48, and the New Jerusalem to come to earth after GWTJ, Revelation21-22.] ARE MANY MANSIONS [offices - enough for each one], 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 TO MYSELF; that where I am, there you may be also.

And where I go you know, and THE WAY you know. [As He told Thomas] I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me" (John 14:1-6).

There is another Scripture that I have sometimes gone to over the years that reveal the LOVE and COMPASSION God has for us when we are loaded with problems and suffering real discouragement. These Scriptures have been a real help to me and I am sure they will be for you as well:

"Come TO Me all you who labor and are heavy laden, AND I WILL GIVE YOU REST. Take My yoke UPON you AND LEARN FROM ME, for I am GENTLE AND LOWLY IN HEART, and you will FIND REST for your souls. For My yoke is easy [compared to the weight the world is carrying] and My burden is light" (Matthew 11:28-30).

Brethren, my desire in writing these comments is to encourage all of us to clear our minds away from the difficulties that we all face in this daily life, and keep our minds and hearts FOCUSED on all that Jesus Christ holds forth before us with His great love and desire to give each one of us!

WE MUST REMAIN FAITHFUL TO GOD AND OUR CALLING AT ALL COSTS so that we might be counted worthy to be glorified with Jesus Christ at His coming, and be among all those many thousands of Firstfruits who will have been resurrected or changed if yet living! I Thessalonians 4:13-18.

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