Transcription

Chris
Hey, Jeff. What time is it?

Jeff
Uh, it’s about two minutes after ten.

Chris
Wow. Well, you know what? Knowing the time is a good thing. And today we’re talking about the timing of Christ’s return. Oh, wow.

Jeff
That’s cool. So he’s Chris, and I’m Jeff, and we’re the Bible guys. Now, what I didn’t say is, is that two minutes after ten in the morning or two at minutes after ten at night, we could be recording at night.

Chris
Oh, yes. Probably not. Because we. Because we are. We are, you know, out there man. We live on the edge.

Jeff
That’s right. We’re hard workers. Yeah.

Chris
So. Okay, so, hey, today, uh, Desiree has given us a couple comments. Yeah, just as shout outs of people who, uh, comment frequently. So we love our listeners. And it’s been fun and, you know, always fun to interact with them. So here’s a couple shout outs.

Jeff
These comments probably are from YouTube.

Chris
Uh, or that’s a great question. I would assume.

Jeff
So from one of the social media platforms I would assume so, yeah.

Chris
Uh, somebody said there’s no name given. Actually, that said, these two pastors chemistry is so unique and great. I hope they stay blessed with great friendship forever and ever. Exclamation mark

Jeff
Oh, that’s so nice.

Chris
Me too.

Jeff
Yeah. Me too. I hope we’re blessed with friendship forever and ever.

Chris
You’re my friend. Oh, that’s really cool. Hey, you know what I do? I do like, uh, I love the chemistry that we do have. Yeah, yeah. And a lot of people actually say, Jeff really makes fun of you a lot. And I and I always respond and say, that’s because he loves me.

Jeff
That’s right. I make fun of everybody that I love. Yeah, that’s right. My my family at Thanksgiving when we get together at Thanksgiving or Christmas or something. Yeah, it’s just full on brutality the whole time. And then we leave going, that was so much fun. So yeah, yeah, if I’m making fun of you, you’re part of the family for sure. Yeah.

Chris
That’s great. All right. Uh, the second one’s, uh, is from Diane F and she said so thankful for all I hear and learned here. All of the. And all of the laughs and giggles crack me up.

Jeff
Hahaha. That’s awesome. Thank you Diane.

Chris
That’s very nice.

Jeff
It is really nice. Yeah.

Chris
And by the way, that is exactly the order in which we hope people respond, right? Yes, that’s right, I learned something. And by the way, I like I like the laughs and the giggles. Yeah, that’s good. And then, uh, this last comment is by Dan we don’t know Dan’s. Hi Dan. Last initial, but Dan said not sure how I came across this channel, but I like this content. I’m here for it. Good conversation, good personalities, good spiritual word. Keep doing what y’all are doing. So I guess it’s from the south.

Jeff
From the south. Well, good.

Chris
Yeah, south of the Mason-Dixon or he’s from the south and he moved up to the north. That’s right. Either one he used y’all.

Jeff
Y’all.

Chris
That’s right. So I lived in Atlanta for ten years and I miss seeing y’all I do too.

Jeff
Yeah, yeah. So I lived in, uh, Texas for quite a while, and, uh. Yeah. Yeah, it’s it’s such a good word. It’s so useful. Yes. Because you can say y’all. Meaning all y’all. Yeah, right. There’s all y’all people or y’all just means, you know, it’s talking about you specifically or talking about your little group. Y’all is just it’s a great both of you. All of you. Yeah. It’s great.

Chris
And um, and by the way, thank you. Dan and I actually love the fact that you said not sure how I came across this channel. Yeah. Which means, uh, you know, you stumbled upon us somehow, and and you’re continuing to listen and watch and comment and interact. Yeah. So, Dan, we appreciate you, buddy.

Jeff
So, hey, if you’re on YouTube or if you’re tracking along on, uh, Spotify or Apple, you know, the iTunes podcast or whatever uh, subscribe. Trust me, it would help us so much if you subscribe. We almost have a thousand subscribers on YouTube. Once we get to a thousand subscribers, it gives us a lot more control over the page. Uh, we’re almost there. Would you please, if you’re a listener, we know there’s about 300 of you that listen almost every day that have not yet subscribed. So please click that little subscribe bell in the corner. Subscribe. It’ll help us so much. And let’s just get that done. But then, uh, leave comments and share these things. What happens is the algorithms that’s paying attention to this thing push us out to other people. Uh, and maybe we’ll find another Dan this week because you shared or liked or made a comment. So that’s that really would help a lot if you do that for us. Thank you.

Chris
It is important. So please do that for us.

Jeff
That’s amazing. Well thank you guys. You’re so nice. I just I’m still always amazed people listen.

Chris
Yeah me too.

Jeff
Yeah yeah it’s amazing.

Chris
So well today we’re talking about the timing of Christ’s return. And we did actually mention this on day one, which was two days ago. Yeah. Uh, we talked about, you know, how nobody can really know. Yeah, but there are so many more specifics about his coming. Uh, you know, how it talks about just just in different parts of the Scripture, uh, not just in revelation, but also, you know, Jesus talking about it, Luke writing about it, Paul mentioning it. Right. So we’re going to look at those.

Jeff
So I had a conversation with a guy one time, uh, a couple years ago. And he was like, I know I’m within months of when Jesus is going to come back. And I said, so, you know, the Bible says you can’t know. He said, I know that’s what the Bible says, but I really do think you can know. Yeah. And I’m like, you’re a Bible student. And he goes, yes. And I said, the Bible says, you can’t know, right? I know, but I think you can know. Right. And I’m like, how how are you using the Bible to prove something when the Bible is so emphatic? So we decided to take essentially two chunks of two days saying, you can’t know. And we’re just using more and more and more. How many times does Jesus have to tell you you can’t know right before you finally agree?

Chris
Okay, I guess it’s so ironical, isn’t it? He’s like, I love the Bible, so much. I don’t care what the Bible says, but I love it so much that I think I know, I know, and so, uh, hey, this next thing.

Jeff
So we’re talking about the timing. Yes. Of the return of Jesus. Um, and, you know, there’s maybe more TNT packed into this topic than just about any other, uh, particularly with regard to the idea of a rapture in general which we’re going to be talking about. But so, again, we already mentioned this. Old Christians argue about the details pre-post mid a right, whatever. But the new Christians man alive, they just look up and that’s we need to get back to the wonder and enthusiasm and confidence in Jesus that we had when we were brand new Christians, and maybe not be so, so dogmatic you know. Yeah, uh, on it. So, hey, here’s a few ideas. One is Jesus is coming back suddenly. Matthew 2444 Jesus said, you also must be ready all the time, for the Son of Man will come when least expected.

Chris
Yeah, so so not only do we not know, but it’s when we don’t know. That’s right.

Jeff
That’s that’s gonna be unexpected.

Chris
The unexpected. Yeah. So nobody’s gonna expect it.

Jeff
Exactly.

Chris
So there’s nobody gonna go, and. No, nobody’s gonna be right. Right. So, uh, so the obviously the the thrust, the main point of this sentiment is that we should be ready all the time. Yeah, right. Remember that old DC talk song? Uh, what was it called? Was it called be ready, be ready

Jeff
Yeah yeah yeah yeah. And it’s it’s a new song had people get ready. Right. There’s that. There’s that old Motown song. People get ready. Yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah.

Chris
I like the DC talk one better, but, uh, we must all be ready. But but the idea is, is that I believe, uh, you know, somebody. I heard this, you know, it’s been said a thousand times in all generations, but, uh, you should live every day as if Jesus is coming today.

Jeff
Today? That’s right.

Chris
Because if you know, it’s that whole Tim McGraw song live like you were dying, it’s like, what would you do? I go, you know, skydiving, right? Well, on the spiritual side of things, what if Jesus were coming today? Uh, who would you tell? How would you live your life? How would you spend your minutes? Right, right. And would you say the things that should be said if you were convinced he was coming back?

Jeff
Uh, and knowing it’s unexpected. That question that you asked, who would you tell? I think is incredibly important. Yeah.

Chris
And by the way, that’s enough for our listeners to walk away with just that thought. Yeah. And say, like, I if I live with that thought just today, this will have been worth my time. Yeah, yeah

Jeff
So, uh, Luke 17, he says yes, it’ll be business as usual right up to the day when the Son of Man is revealed. Right? So this idea of being unexpected, it doesn’t have to be scary. We keep highlighting this idea. Jesus isn’t coming to scare us. He’s coming to save us. So just because it’s unexpected doesn’t mean it’s scary. Uh, the other one would be soon. Jesus is coming soon. Uh, as a matter of fact, in revelation 2020 or 22, verse seven, this is how we know he’s coming soon, because he says, look, I’m coming soon.

Chris
There it is.

Jeff
Blessed are those who obey the words of prophecy written in this book, as we said. So it’s coming soon and it’s right. Basically, we should be living with an expectancy so we don’t know when it’s going to be a surprise, but we should have an expectancy that it’s going to be soon.

Chris
And then there’s plenty of scriptures actually we’re going to burn through these. Yeah. But we do think it’s important to read the support of why it’s supposed to be a secret. Right? So Jesus says and Paul says, uh, that, that his coming is a secret. Uh, I’m going to read Matthew 24. However, no one knows the day or hour when these things will happen. Not even the angels in heaven or the son capital S himself. Only the father knows. Yeah, so? So he’s just really clear that, uh, that God the Father, who, by the way, has the will for our lives, he’s the one that sets in motion. He’s in, in even today, he seems to have that role in our lives. God the father is the one that sets the will and has the will for us. Right. And and it’s the same with his revelation when it’s coming. That’s right.

Jeff
Um, in the, uh, acts, we’ve already read this verse, but acts one six and seven says so. When the apostles were Jesus, they kept asking him, Lord, has the time come for you to free Israel and restore a kingdom? And he replied, The Father alone has the authority to set those dates and times. They’re not for you to know. So, uh, hey, it’s a secret, basically.

Chris
So let me read, uh, first Thessalonians chapter five, verses one through three. Paul says this now concerning how and when all of these things will happen. Dear brothers and sisters, we don’t really need to write you, for you know quite well that the day of the Lord’s return will come unexpectedly, like a thief in the night. When people are saying everything is peaceful and secure, then disaster will fall on them. And suddenly, as a pregnant woman’s labor pain begins, uh, and there will be no escape. And again, I’ve already mentioned this so many times. Paul is the master of visual aid, right?

Jeff
Thief in the night, labor pains, thief in the night, labor pains.

Chris
And he’s trying to compare it to something that happens unexpectedly. Nobody expects a thief, right? Right. And nobody, you know. And a woman not to. Not to that. She knows it’s coming soon. Yeah, yeah, but that labor pain hits man.

Jeff
Oh my goodness, it’s a surprise.

Chris
It’s a surprise.

Jeff
Um, but here this is really, I think, um, one of the, uh, we keep coming back to the same thing. He doesn’t tell these things to scare us. He’s telling us these things to say. I’m coming back to save you and Titus. Chapter two kind of blends those two ideas. Verse 11 through 13, it says, for the grace of God has been revealed, bringing salvation to all people. And we are instructed to turn from godless living and sinful pleasures. And we should live in this evil world with wisdom and righteousness and devotion to God, while we look forward with hope to that wonderful day when the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ will be revealed. So we’re looking forward to that day. We want to live godly lives today. We want to walk away from sinful pleasures today. We want to live in righteousness and walk in wisdom. Today, while we’re looking forward to this hope of when Jesus is going to be revealed, you know, um, I think we have some time.

Chris
I can share this I think, uh, honestly, have you ever met somebody who they believe in heaven so much that they’re completely content with this life being over because they know that the next life is better? Yeah, yeah. And they believe in heaven so much that they have no doubt. And so, I mean, it’s one thing to say, of course I look forward to heaven, but I want to live as long as I can. Right, right. Uh, you know, I believe in heaven, but I just have so much life to live. And I want to see my grandkids and all these different things. And, of course, you know, I have those sentiments, too, but I just admire and look up to so much the people who think heaven is so real and so much better that they’re just like Jesus just come back now. Well, it’s one of the blessings of aging.

Jeff
You know, most people don’t think of aging as being a blessing. But, um, so often the older you get, the pain of life becomes greater. Uh, oftentimes, you know, um, you have more people in heaven than still here on earth. They’ve already gone ahead of you. Uh, your body is starting to run out of gas as life becomes more and more difficult. And you remember what it was like to have all of your faculties and all of your abilities. And then, you know, the Bible says God’s going to make everything new in heaven, so everybody you love is there, or more of the people that you love are there. Uh, and you’re running out of gas here. And you begin looking forward to that. I think that that’s one of the blessings of of getting older.

Chris
Uh, and by the way, uh, so, uh, we have a member on our staff, Debbie, her mother in law passed, and we both went to the funeral. Yeah. And it was one of those funerals where, uh, you couldn’t get much of a better funeral in that she was she was 91. And then also, she had lived a super godly life. Right. And so and so one of the things that I said was, uh, Debbie said, well, you know, the funeral is maybe kind of small because, you know, this person’s not going to show, and this person’s old and this person’s old. And I wrote back and said, as a person who’s done a lot of funerals and been part of hundreds, just know that, uh, this is actually unusual and it’s such a privilege. So the signs of a phenomenal funeral are these that when most of the people who show up don’t know that person, they just know the kids. Oh, right. And the people who show up, they’re sort of they’re they don’t even necessarily know the deceased. They’re just there to support the kids. Right? Right, right. That means that they’ve lived a long time. Yes. Right. 91. Which means everybody she knows is gone. Yeah, yeah. Just about. Yeah.

Jeff
Her husband’s in heaven. And then.

Chris
And then the other one was the godly legacy part, which by far is the most important. Yeah. Right. So when you have that much of a godly legacy and that much age, uh, it’s just a wonderful thought to think she’s now in heaven with everybody. Well, with most of the people that she lived life with. Yeah, that are gone before her. Yeah.

Jeff
So along that theme, then, you know, we tend to be afraid of death when, when you think of you’re afraid of dying. But that person who has the hope of heaven doesn’t have to be afraid of dying. It’s just it’s a transition from this life to that. As a matter of fact, it’s a promotion. If you if we really believe in heaven, which we’re going to unpack heaven next week in a way that I think people are going to love, when you get convinced of how incredible heaven is, you don’t look at death as a as a horrible thing or an ending of something. It’s a promotion to the next, to the better, to the perfection that God has for us. Um, but you have to remember, how often does he have to remind us? Don’t be afraid. We already read it. But, uh, revelation chapter one, verse 17. Uh, uh, John says, when I saw him, I fell at his feet as if I were dead. But he laid his right hand on me and said, don’t be afraid. I’m the first and the last. I’m the living one. I died. But look, I’m alive forever and ever. And I hold the keys of death and the grave. The reason why we don’t have to be afraid is because he’s on our side. And he has the keys to that prison of death and the grave. He’s already got him. He’s already solved it. And so he just says, don’t be afraid. And this is one of God’s recurring themes. The things he we’re going to talk about over the next couple of days are scary. But he says, you don’t have to be afraid because I have the keys. Yeah.

Chris
And that’s and that’s a good scary because if being scared, uh, propels you to believe in God or to turn to God, right? Because there are times in our lives where we have to understand, like, Jesus is both intimidating and powerful and just and and judges as he is good and fair and loving and gives grace. Yeah. So there’s both sides of the coin, you know, that’s why he says, uh, don’t be afraid. I love how he talks about himself. I’m the first. In the last. Yeah, right. The majesty of that moment. And yet the right hand on the shoulder says, don’t be afraid, because I know you. Right. I have died for you, you know, uh, by the way, uh uh, one of the songs by by Newsong. Uh, have you ever heard this ones with me? Yeah. Yeah. So? So the lyrics are like, I was dreaming about heaven, uh, standing in those pearly gates. We were all there. And I was so scared, uh, in the presence of one so. Great. Yeah. And then he says, uh, uh, it’s something about, uh. I was so afraid, And I went to go turn around. I felt, oh, I felt so very unworthy. Right. And I and I was so afraid, and I and I turned to go. But then I heard someone say, father, this one’s with me. He’s part of the family. He’s one of the reasons I died on Calvary. So, father, welcome him in. I prayed, I paid the price for him. Father. Oh, father, this one’s with me. Yeah, and I just. I think about that, and I think that’s a great. That’s that’s what this scripture is that you just read. Yeah. Right. As he puts the right hand on and says, don’t be afraid. Yeah.

Jeff
He’s with me.

Chris
Yeah, right. You don’t have to be afraid. Yeah, because God’s intimidating. But. But he’s for you. Yeah.

Jeff
My my wife, um, and I, we have opportunity to travel a little bit together recently, and, uh, because I have to travel a lot, do a lot of global work with the Timothy Initiative. Uh, I have pretty high status with Delta. So, you know, I get on the plane first, and, you know, they give me all kinds of special privileges. Fancy pants. Yeah, they give me a lot of privileges. And, you know, you go to the Sky club and all that kind of stuff. Well, it’s 50 bucks for you to go to Sky club if you can get in. Right. If you got the right ticket, uh, for me, I just get it for free. Whatever. So, uh, my wife sometimes will stand back and go, oh, I you know, I said, no, come with me, you with me, and I’ll just tell the person at the counter she’s with me. Oh, okay. Welcome Mrs. Forster. Right. And they just because I have the privileges she can come with me. And that’s how that works. And, um, that’s what I think about when. When I think about standing in heaven. There’s no chance I can get in that. Not on my own. I don’t even deserve to be standing in line to get there. But the only way we’re gonna get there is that he punched our ticket, right? Yeah. So, um, the only person that should be nervous. Quite honestly, what we’re trying to say is the only person that should be nervous about these things that we’re reading about is the person who’s not prepared. Right? So being prepared is the most important thing. And how do you do that? Right. That first Thessalonians chapter five, he says, For God chose to save us through our Lord Jesus Christ, not to pour out his anger on us. Christ died for us so that whether we’re dead or alive, when he returns, we can live with him forever. So encourage each other and build each other up, just as you are already doing. So he’s saying, listen, this is why Jesus died. Uh, you know, if you’re saying, hey, okay, I want to be on the right side of this story. I want to make sure things are settled. You know, for my mom. My mom was in her mid-twenties and had only gone to church a couple of times, 2 or 3 times her whole life, and didn’t really know she believed in a god, but she really didn’t know anything. And she went to a movie. Hal Lindsey had that movie, um, uh, the late great Planet Earth back in the 70s, and it was kind of based on the book of Revelation, and it really got her attention. Like, if that’s really in the Bible and if that’s true, I want to be on the right side of that story. Right. And but she just didn’t know how. And it was a couple years later that she finally ran into a Christian who could explain to her, how can you be on the right side? And it just comes down to Romans chapter ten nine, ten and 13 say that, first of all, we have to believe in our heart that Jesus is who God says he is and that God did raise him from the dead. And we have to invite him to be the Lord. That just means the king, the boss. He’s. I’m not the king anymore. Jesus. You are. And then if we’ll confess our sins to him, he’ll forgive our sins. And then Romans 1013 says, everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved. That’s all you have to do. You say, Jesus, I, I believe you paid the price for me. Jesus, I want you to be the king. I’m not the king anymore. You be the king of my life. Would you save me? And the Bible says everyone who calls the name of the Lord will be saved. Yeah, that’s what it is.

Chris
That’s great.

Jeff
So these things aren’t to scare you. These things are to get your attention and draw you to Jesus. So you’re on the right side of this? Yeah.

Chris
And I and I love how the verse that we just read in revelation one where the last phrase he says, I hold the keys to death and the grave. Right. So, so what better phrase for Jesus to say in the future? Because when he was on earth, because he said, I died, but look, I’m alive forever and ever. So Jesus is the one who came down. He died on a cross for one reason to pay for our sins. But then God rose him from the grave. Three days later, proving once and for all that he is more powerful than sin and death. And so he holds the keys because he came down proving that, you know, he’s more powerful than that. So the sacrifice was paid by Jesus that was required that sin demands and and he paid it for you, and he paid it for me. So we don’t have to be afraid of sin because God took the punishment upon himself. The Bible says, that’s right. So. So all that to say, uh, Jesus has been through every single nuance of your sin, right? So if you think to yourself, well, Chris, you don’t know what I’ve done, you don’t understand, like how I’ve done like my like, my neighbor has done something bad, but I’ve done something that if you heard this, these details, that’s a whole new level of unforgiveness or punishment. Right? And what I’m saying to you is that Jesus clearly has taken upon himself the punishment for all sin and has conquered it, and he is victorious over it. And so the invitation of believing in him, the invitation of trusting him for heaven, the invitation of calling him friend, there is no sin that you have done that has not been paid for or forgiven. God knows and is over, and has conquered and done away with and paid for all the sins in our lives, no matter what they are.

Jeff
That’s powerful. That first phrase in first Thessalonians five nine, God chose to save us through our Lord Jesus Christ, not to pour out his anger on us. Right? So a lot of people feel like I’m too far from God. I’ve sinned too much. And he says, I don’t want to punish you. I paid the price. My son paid the price for you, so come to me. And so we are going to read now. Now, tomorrow we’re going to begin to really get into the specifics, right? So we took a couple days to lay the foundation. We’re getting to some of the specifics of the events and the people. All the things are going to happen. And God does pour out his wrath on evil. But he says, listen, I don’t want to pour out my wrath on you. I want to save you. Right? But it’s your choice.

Chris
Yeah, because he says so that you may live forever.

Jeff
That’s right. But it’s your choice. Call everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.

Chris
Well, that’s a great place to end and we will pick up tomorrow. Hopefully you’ll join us on The Bible Guys.