My dear reader, are you one of those who know the love of Christ? Is this glorious One the treasure of your soul? Have you believed on Him? Are you a Christian? Such alone can enter into these things with joy. But if you are a mere nominal professor, wake up ere it be too late! come as a guilty sinner to the Savior. He will in no wise cast you out (John 6:37); and all your soul needs you will find in Him. Come, oh, come to Him now! and peace with God shall be yours, and you with us will joy in God, and rejoice in hope of His glory (Rom. 5:1-11).
Having thus briefly sought to show what a Christian is, let us now dwell upon the hope that God has given him as a stay to his heart, as he passes along through this scene, that he may be encouraged and sustained as he copes with the difficulties of the way, and as an incentive to faithfulness and devotedness to his Lord. This hope is twofold. We are taught to look both for the personal return of our Lord Jesus Christ in the air for His saints, and also for His manifestation in power and great glory with His saints. These are two events which, though both form part of His second coming (the one being preliminary to the other, with a certain interval between), are carefully distinguished by the Spirit of God, and must in no way be confounded together. I shall seek to clearly show the difference between them from the Word. Many have mixed up the two, and therefore marred both, by making Scriptures to clash which harmonize most perfectly, and misled thousands by causing them to look for things coming on the earth instead of waiting for the Lord from heaven, as well as for His appearing in glory. Hence they have helped greatly to lower the whole tone of the Christian’s walk and character.
If we turn to the Old Testament, and trace through its pages, we find a repeated testimony to the sufferings and rejection of the Messiah, and His return in power to judge His enemies, take His throne, and set up His kingdom over all the earth (Isa. 53, for the former, and Isa. 11, for the latter.) It is then that He will appear in glory (and, as we find in Colossians 3:4, we shall appear with Him); but not a single word about His coming FOR His people, which is brought out in 1 Thessalonians 4:15-18; and referred to in several other passages in the New Testament. Distinct mention of it is made by the Lord Himself, in the familiar passage in the opening of the fourteenth chapter of John’s gospel, “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” (John 14:1-3) The Lord Jesus is about to leave this scene; He is going to the cross and the glory, leaving His beloved disciples in this sinful world. He cheers and encourages their troubled and drooping hearts by telling them of His Father’s house, the many mansions (or abodes, see JND trans.); and, precious thought! He Himself is going to prepare a place for them. He Who was about to give Himself for them on the cross, to atone for their sins by the shedding of His own precious blood (Rev. 1:5, 6), will Himself prepare a place in virtue of His own work. And not only so, but He will come again, and receive them to Himself, that where He is, there they may be also. Nothing short of this will satisfy His heart; He delights to do everything for them Himself. Blessed Lord Jesus! He does not say He will receive them into heaven, but to Himself. It is all for the joy of His own heart of love. And it is not the place, but His own blessed, glorious Person, that He keeps before the hearts of His disciples. Hence Scripture nowhere speaks of the believer going to heaven in so many words, but always to be with Christ, unless in the case of the dying thief, and then it is, “Today shalt thou be with Me in paradise” (Luke 23:43). Perfectly true, it is heaven, but what would it be without Him? He does not occupy us with a place, but with Himself.
(To be continued.)