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| Volume 25 Number 8 August 2023 |
Page 5 |
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| Volume 25 Number 8 August 2023 |
Page 5 |
Robert Johnson
“Behold, He is coming with clouds, and every eye will see Him, even they who pierced Him. And all the tribes of the earth will mourn because of Him. Even so, Amen” (Revelation 1:7 NKJV). This passage offers affirmation of what Paul wrote to the church in Thessalonica regarding the return of the Lord (1 Thessalonians 4:16). Sometimes, with the pace of living in our day and time, as well as with our level of involvement with the events of everyday living, we forget this great promise of Scripture. It is a promise, however, for which every Christian should long and desire. God will welcome faithful children of God into Heaven to enjoy eternal life. Paul wrote to the church in Corinth, “If anyone does not love the Lord Jesus Christ, let him be accursed. O Lord, come!” (1 Corinthians 16:22).
We don’t know when this event will take place, but we know that it will occur, having assurance of it by the resurrection of Christ from the dead (Acts 1:11). It will be a time when all will be raised from the dead, both righteous and unrighteous. “Do not marvel at this; for the hour is coming in which all who are in the graves will hear His voice and come forth – those who have done good, to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil, to the resurrection of condemnation” (John 5:28-29).
While the judgment will follow Christ’s return and the resurrection of the dead, it will be painfully obvious to many at His return what awaits them in the Judgment. As he wrote in the Book of Revelation, John stated that families of the earth will mourn over Him. The mourning will not be over Jesus having been pierced on the cross, shedding His blood, for the forgiveness of sins. It will come from those who wished this time would not come, who desired it not to be real. At His return, “…at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father” (Philippians 2:10-11). While this glorifies God, it will also be their condemnation. Why? Because of their rejection of Him and His will, they will be rejected. It cannot be a time of rejoicing for the condemned. The term “mourn” indicates to strike or to beat one’s body, particularly the breast, with the hands, to express oneself with loud expressions of grief, to lament and to wail. Homer Hailey, in his commentary on Revelation, says this suggests “a condition of utter hopelessness.” With this realization also will come the understanding that it is too late to make things right; the resurrection for their Judgment will have come.
I am fond of saying, “While there is breath, there is hope.” What this means is that while one still lives, there’s the opportunity to repent and to obey – to have the blood of Christ cleanse from sin and to live in submission to Christ as Lord. If one refuses to do this in life, then there is no hope for eternal life in the resurrection. The confession of Jesus at His return is to acknowledge the reality of His deity, but without the possibility for repentance and obedience, without the forgiveness of Christ and without the hope of eternal blessings. Such was the state of the rich man in torment (Luke 16:23-26), preceding an eternal condemnation at the Judgment. Scripture offers us so many warnings to avoid eternal punishment, as well as so many promises for the faithful. Why ignore it? We have no guarantee regarding the length of our days, and neither do we know that the Lord will delay His coming long enough to give one time to respond in faith. Why risk such spiritual jeopardy when we know better? Satan is the great deceiver, but this is the great reality. Don’t reject the joy of eternity for the short-lived pleasures of sin today (Hebrews 11:25).
We’re reminded by the apostle Paul’s exhortation, “We then, as workers together with Him also plead with you not to receive the grace of God in vain. For He says: ‘In an acceptable time I have heard you, And in the day of salvation I have helped you.’ Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation” (2 Corinthians 6:1-2). Don’t be one among the mournful on Judgement Day. Live in such a way as to rejoice at His return, after eternal life begins.
