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 Sermon on

Greatest Event of the Ages

By Brian Pepper

As we look around this world of ours we see nothing but trouble and that is just what Jesus said it would be like.  For in His great prophecy of Matthew 24 and Luke 21 he mentions that there would be wars and rumours of wars, famines, pestilences and earthquakes in many places, that men would be fearful because of what was happening on the earth.  He even mentions that the powers of heaven would be shaken and He indicated that, as we near the final hours of this earth’s history there will be even more dramatic events.
 

Christians need not fear

He also assured his followers that though these things would be fearful there were also signs of encouragement. Luke 21:28 says: "And when these things begin to come to pass then look up, and lift up your heads; for your redemption draweth nigh."

Now isn’t that a wonderful statement! There is no need for Christians to be fearful.

Jesus says "Look up, lift up your heads."  Why? "For your redemption draweth nigh."  And that is what we are looking for. Jesus was the greatest of all the prophets and what did he say?  John 14:2-3 says: "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." What a wonderful promise! The promise of His own coming in glory. Why, all the prophets of all ages have told us that very thing.
 

With Tempestuous Fire

David, a great prophet of the Old Testament times, spoke about the return of Jesus.  Psalm 50:3,4 says: "Our God shall come, and shall not keep silence: a fire shall devour before him and it shall be very tempestuous round about him. He shall call to the heavens from above and to the earth, that he may judge his people."

David assures us that when Jesus returns to this earth it will not be silent. There will be nothing secret about it, for he will be surrounded by fire, the Bible says tempestuous fire.
 

Second Coming of Jesus

There is prophecy after prophecy speaking of that joyous event. The whole Bible is full of it. Without question the second coming of Jesus is the hope of all the ages.

We ought to notice what the apostle Paul writes in Hebrews 9:28, "So Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many; and unto them that look for him shall he appear, the second time without sin unto salvation."

The first time Jesus appeared, he came as a Saviour, as our sin bearer to die upon the cross for our sins. But the second time he will come as Lords of Lords and King of Kings to set up His everlasting kingdom.

The second coming of Christ has given thousands of Christians the courage to suffer persecution and trial. We think of the time when Christians were marched to their death to the Colosseum in Rome. If it were not for the burning hope of the Saviour’s return, these Christians would never had the courage to suffer so terribly.

There are scores upon scores of people lying - waiting in their graves for the life giving call of the Saviour when He appears in glory. They are resting in the promise given in Isaiah 33:17, "Thine eyes shall see the king in his beauty: they shall behold the land that is very far off."

No other event can compare with this one. Jesus himself said in Luke 21:27, "And then shall they see the Son of man coming in a cloud with power and great Glory."

There is no question that God’s people will see the Saviour as he returns in majesty. For this is mentioned a number of times in the Holy Scriptures. It also mentions in the text that He comes in power amidst tempestuous fire.  Then it says great glory.
 

Great Glory

Great glory, now what could that be? Jesus speaking of his coming, says that He will be surrounded by great glory.  In Luke 9:26, "For whosoever shall be ashamed of me and of my words, of him shall the Son of man be ashamed, when he shall come in his own glory and in his Father’s, and of the holy angels."

Now just imagine that! Not only does he come in his own glory, and that must be indescribable, but he comes in his Father’s glory. Isaiah the prophet was given a glimpse of that, and he was overwhelmed with the splendour of it.
 

Glory of Angels

Then it tells us that He also comes in the glory of the angels. The Holy Scriptures give us an indication of what that would be like.  Matthew 28:2-4 says:
"And, behold, there was a great earthquake: for the angel of the Lord descended from heaven, and came and rolled back the stone from the door, and sat upon it. His countenance was like lightning, and raiment white as snow. And for fear of him the keepers did shake and became as dead men."

If one angel had such an effect upon these hardened soldiers, what would it be like when thousands appear in all their glory. In Matthew 25:31, it mentions that all of the angels will be with Jesus as he returns in glory.

In Revelation 5:11, speaking of the angels, it tells us that there are ten thousand times ten thousand and thousands of thousands.  And how many is that? It means that there will be countless numbers of dazzling glorious Angels.


Every eye shall see him

Now I would like you to notice another text in Revelation 1:7, "Behold, he cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see him, and they also which pierced him: and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of him. Even so. Amen."

I am sure that you noticed it said every eye shall see him. There are some who say that it is the spiritual eye, that this meant in a spiritual sense.  It isn’t meant to be taken literally. If that is the case, why does it say that those who see the Saviour "Shall wail"?  My dictionary says for "wail", "to moan", "to cry through grief."

In the Book of Revelation in chapter 6 we are told that those who "wail" at the coming of Jesus, cry for the mountains and rocks to fall on them and they say in verse 17, "For the great day of his wrath is come; and who shall be able to stand?"

This is speaking of those who "wail" at his appearing. Yes every living person will see Jesus when He comes the second time, the good and the bad.
 

They also which pierced Him

We are told that God will resurrect certain wicked people, "they also which pierced him."

the wicked priests
the accusing Sadducees
the Roman executioners
Caiaphas the high priest, the one most responsible for Jesus' unjust trial, condemnation and crucifixion.

Jesus had a confrontation with Caiaphas and told him in Matthew 26:64, "Hereafter shall ye see the Son of man sitting on the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of heaven."

Those who took part in the crucifixion will be raised for a time to see the coming of Jesus. "They also which pierced him."  Then they will slip back into their graves.

As we have looked at several passages of Scripture, it is very clear that when Jesus comes the second time it will be a tremendous event. For the Scriptures speak of tempestuous fire, that Jesus will be manifested in threefold glory: that of the Father’s, and the Son's, and that of the angels. It also tells of the rejectors of God’s salvation "wailing or crying out" for there own destruction.



False Christs and False Prophets

However Jesus knew that there would be those who would try to confuse people regarding the manner in which he would return to this earth. So he gives this warning in Matthew 24:24, "There shall arise false Christs, and false Prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect."
 

Nothing secret about Christ's return

There have been many false Christs and there have been many false prophets. One of the great deceptions of these false prophets is that which is known as the secret rapture, which teaches that God’s people are swept up to heaven in a mysterious and secret way. Jesus warned about this deception in Matthew 24: 26, 27: "Wherefore if they shall say unto you, behold, he is in the desert: go not forth; behold he is in the secret chambers; believe it not. For as the lightning cometh out of the east, and shineth even unto the west; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be."

There will be nothing secret about Christ’s return.  And just as you cannot miss the lightning as it flashes across the sky, so it will be impossible to miss the Saviour’s return when He comes in majesty and power and great glory.

The Bible also assures us that there was nothing secret about the ascension of Jesus. You will find it recorded in Acts 1:9-11: "While the beheld, he was taken up; and a cloud received him out of their sight. And while they looked steadfastly toward heaven as he went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel; Which also said, Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven? this same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven."

The angels assured the disciples that as they actually saw Jesus go back to heaven so he will return.

"As he went up."

"He disappeared out of their sight."

He will return in like manner "as ye have seen him go."
 

Great sound of trumpets

And now turn with me to Matthew 24:31: "He shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other."

You will notice that the angels gather His elect, that there is a great sound of a trumpet, it says a great sound. This suggests that there could be many trumpets. Whether all the angels will be blowing trumpets I am not sure. Possibly the trumpet blast will come from a special group of angels. For if all the angels were to blow trumpets, the earth would crumble and collapse as did the walls of Jericho.


A mighty shout

St Paul mentions something else that will take place at that time. 
1 Thessalonians 4:16 says:
"For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first."

With a mighty shout the Saviour gives the call to His people to come forth from their graves. Yes, there is plenty of noise at this time and plenty of dramatic action also.  1 Thessalonians 4:17 says: "Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them (the ones who have died in Christ) in the clouds, to meet the Lord (in the air) and so shall we ever be with the Lord."
 

Silence in Heaven

The living people of God, along with those who have been raised from the graves, will join Jesus in the air and take their last look at the earth, then they begin their journey to Heaven, a distance of approximately 7 and one half days.  Revelation 8:1, says: "And when he had opened the seventh seal, there was silence in Heaven about the space of half an hour."

The Bible students recognise that half an hour in prophetic time is about 7 and one half days. The text goes on to say that Heaven will be silent for that length of time. Seeing that all the Angels are with Jesus, it is easy to understand the silence in Heaven.
 

Why is Jesus coming again?

There are some people who ask, "Why does Jesus come the second time?"  They do not realise that Jesus made a promise that He would do this in John 14:3.  Jesus says, "…I will come again."  He assures us that the first and foremost reason for His return is to take us to our heavenly home, and that is natural enough, for we desire to be with Him as much as He desires our company.

I am sure that you are looking forward to being with Jesus, as Jesus is looking forward to having you with him.

 

  Sermons
The Bible in Song Sermons category is expected to be enlarged over time as hard copy sermon notes are scanned, typed and edited in webpage format. Visit Sermons Page for the complete list of sermons and Bible Commentaries
 

 
  PDF Sermon Files
Click image for sample. The Complete Sermon Collection is available at the Store Page. It includes 169 sermons which are listed on the Sermons Page, plus several audio visual sermonettes and a number of incomplete sermons. Original typed sermon notes have been scanned in PDF files on a DVD.

 

 
  PDF Revelation Files
Easy access to all the uploaded Revelation Bible Commentaries written by Brian Pepper. Also a CD of the complete Book of Revelation consisting of 22 PDF files scanned from original typed documents. These files can be downloaded by Adobe Acrobat to view on computer screen, or printed in booklet or other format.

 

 
  SDA Prophecy Chart
Bible in Song Sermons and Commentaries pages have exposed flaws in the "2300 day" prophecy chart most notably used by Seventh-day Adventists. Seventh-day Adventists in their biblical interpretation have favored the tradition of their founding fathers over Scripture and the "divine revelation" of their own prophet Ellen White. Read more.

 

 
 
  Testimonials
Thank you for posting some of (Brian Pepper's) sermons. It's like reading the very words Jesus has spoken to me and is a great encouragement. I cannot say that about many Pastors but I can say that about (Pr Pepper). Thank you. Robert @yeshuaskingdom.org (USA) ... more testimonials.

 

 
 

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