What the Lord’s Return Means to You · While We Wait

1:59 Let's grab our Bibles now and turn to James chapter five. James chapter five. And the title of my message is What the Lord's Return Means to You. I don't know if you heard this recently. The doomsday clock. You ever heard of the doomsday clock? Top scientists and security experts moved it to 90 seconds to midnight. By the way, this is the closest this clock has ever been. And it's a reminder that even non-believers know we're living in scary times. Things are shifting. Things are moving quickly. Things are moving at a rapid pace as the Bible said they would in the last days. Because Jesus compared it to labor pains when a woman is getting ready to deliver her child. The labor pains get closer and closer together until the baby is born.

2:57 And that's how Jesus said it would be in the end times. These events would compress and be closer. And doesn't it seem like that's happening right now? Every time you turn around, you're like, wait, what's going on? It's a simple message that everyone seems to be getting collectively. Jesus is coming again. And I know that stresses people out. not that Jesus is coming, but when we see so many things going wrong. And they've even coined a phrase for it. It's called doomsday anxiety, which includes, according to an article, the fear or worry about the end of the world or life as we know it. Symptoms include chronic nightmares, an underlying feeling of fear, an obsession with the news, or doom scrolling, doom scrolling through online media. So you get a buzz on your phone. you look at it and you read something that startles you and that causes you to be alarmed. So what should we do? Well the Bible says when you see these things begin to happen, freak out. Right? No that's not what it says. Jesus said when you see these things begin to happen, look up for your redemption is drawing near. You know it's really important for us as Christians to understand Bible prophecy. Bible prophecy is basically what the Bible says about the end times. And not only is it important for us to know about it, but there's a blessing attached to the person who studies Bible prophecy. And specifically in the book of Revelation, it says, blessed is the person who reads and hears the words of this prophecy and keeps the things that are written in it for the time is at hand. Now I know some would say, well it's really hard to understand Bible prophecy. Well I don't know that that's true. Because it's not God's desire to conceal. It's His desire to reveal. And to the point the very word revelation means the unveiling. And that's why Jesus when speaking of the abomination of desolation in Matthew 24. He says, let the reader understand. Why? Because we need to understand these things

5:08 and what they mean to us today. And it should impact us in the way that we live. When we study Bible prophecy, it's not there to tantalize or entertain us. It should motivate us to personal godliness and bold evangelism. Verse John 3, 2 says, beloved, now we're the children of God. It's not yet been revealed what we shall be, but we know that when He is revealed, we shall be like Him, for we will see Him as He is. But then it goes on to say this, and everyone that has his hope in Him purifies himself, even as He is pure. So if I understand Bible prophecy as I ought to, it will have a spiritually purifying effect on me. In other words, it will cause me to want to live a more godly life. You know some people love to study Bible prophecy. They are almost fanatical about it. They bring out all their charts and here is what is going to happen next. And that is fine to have an interest in it. But some people think everything is a fulfillment of Bible prophecy.

6:10 Well maybe you are kind of going overboard. But then I look at some people. It is almost like their hobby to study Bible prophecy. But I see their life is falling apart or their marriage just unraveling or they're living immorally. And as far as I'm concerned, you're missing the point. The point of the study of end times events is to cause us to want to live a more godly life. Heard about an old man that was out fishing. And he heard a voice say to him, hey you, pick me up and kiss me and I'll turn into a beautiful princess. He's like, who said that? Again, he hears his voice, hey you, pick me up and kiss me and I'll turn into a beautiful princess. he hears it a third time and now he realizes it's a frog saying this to him. Hey, true story. And I'm the old man in the story. This happened yesterday. Not really. So the third time the frog says to the old man, pick me up and kiss me, I'll become a beautiful princess.

7:05 He picks up the frog and puts it in his pocket. The frog says, I said kiss me and I'll become a beautiful princess. The old man said, at my age, I'd rather have a talking frog. Thank you. kind of cool right See, he missed the point. And if we don't have this impact us in the way that we live, we too are missing the point. Okay, so here we have James now telling us how we should be impacted by end times events, how we should live as we wait for the return of the Lord. James 5 verse 7. Dear brothers and sisters, writes James, be patient as you wait for the Lord's return. Consider the farmers who patiently wait for the rains in the fall and in the spring. They eagerly look for the valuable harvest to reap.

7:59 You too must be patient. Take courage. For the coming of the Lord is near. Don't grumble about each other, brothers and sisters, or you will be judged. For look, the judge is standing at the door. For examples of patience and suffering, dear brothers and sisters, look at the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord. We give honor to those who endure under suffering. For instance, you know about Job, a man of great endurance. You can see how the Lord was kind to him in the end, for the Lord is full of tenderness and mercy. Stop there. How should we live as we await the Lord's return? Point number one, be patient. Be patient. Verse seven, dear brothers and sisters, be patient as you wait for the Lord's return. By the way, the word used here for patience is not speaking of a passive resignation, but rather an expectancy as one waits on the Lord.

8:58 Sort of an excitement. Living in a state of readiness. The Bible says, for those that look for him, Christ shall appear the second time. Look for him. And so the idea here is looking forward to it. Sort of like a kid on Christmas Eve. Remember when you were a little boy or girl and you were hoping your parents got you what you told them you wanted for Christmas and you ran down the stairs and there it was and you tore the package open? That's how we should be living as we await the Lord's return with excitement, not some laissez-faire attitude. In fact, Paul in Romans 13 verse 11 says, understanding the present time, the hour has come to wake up from your slumber because our salvation is nearer than when we first believed. The night is nearly over. The day is almost here.

9:50 And then Paul goes on to say this. So therefore, let us put aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light. Let us behave decently as in the daytime, not in orgies and drunkenness, not in sexual immorality and debauchery, not in dissension and jealousy. Right. So wake up and live a life that is honoring God. Notice the farmer waits. It's hard for us today. We don't like to wait for anything. By nature I am an impatient person. How about you? You know I'm the person who if I buy a pizza and I bring it home one third of it will probably be gone. Because I will eat it in the car. And it's not easy to eat pizza when you're driving. That's not a good travel food, is it? But we like to get things now. We live in a time of instant gratification. Why wait to buy it? Charge it. You don't have to go down to the mall and shop anymore. Just go to Amazon Prime. You might even get same day delivery. Hungry? Call Uber Eats. I heard about some kid that charged up $1,000 on Grubhub. So all of a sudden there's a knock at the door and all this food starts arriving. Package after package of food that dad's thinking, what is going on? Why is this food coming? He thought his kid was playing with some game and he was on the Grubhub app ordering, ordering, ordering, ordering. So watch your kids with those Fs, right? But we have to be patient. Pastor Greg Laurie will have the second half of his message in just a moment. We love to hear stories of how lives have been impacted through the teaching of God's Word, like this one. Thank you, Pastor Greg, for teaching the Bible so clearly and breaking the Bible down for me to understand it better. I also like the humor you add to your sermons. I signed up to receive your daily devotionals, and they're so encouraging to me. I've also shared them with a close family member who gets very anxious about life. Your

12:01 studies have helped us both. Thank you again. When we hear from you, it's not only a blessing, it also confirms that the program is making an impact. If you have a story to share, would you email Pastor Greg? Send your email to greg at harvest.org. That's greg at harvest.org.

12:24 Well, Pastor Greg is reinforcing the value of patience as we await the Lord's return. Glad you're joining us for today's message, what the Lord's return means to you. Sometimes it may seem to us as though God is late. You know, the people of Israel were impatient. It had been 400 years since they had heard from a single prophet. 400 years since they'd seen a miracle. 400 years and they had not had a single angelic appearance. But Galatians 5 says when the time was just right, God sent forth his son made of a woman born under the law to redeem those that are under the law. And Jesus, the Messiah, fulfilled prophecy and was born in the manger of Bethlehem. When the time is right. And when the time is right, the Messiah will return again. No one knows the day or the hour, the Bible says, but we need to wait patiently.

13:20 And sometimes, if it seems to you as though the Lord is late, here's this word for you from Scripture, 1 Peter 3. The Lord is not slow in keeping His promise, as some understand slowness. He's patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance. Why has Jesus not come back yet? He's waiting for more people to believe. And my prayer is that we will have a minimum of one more spiritual awakening before the Lord comes for His church. One more. Maybe more.

13:57 I think you can make a pretty good scriptural case for there being a spiritual awakening before the Lord's return. But that's what we should be praying for. That's why we've asked you all to be praying for revival and pray that God will send a spiritual awakening. It will come at the right moment. Martin Luther once said, and he said this to me personally, not really. He said, quote, there are two days on my calendar, this day and that day. That day, the day of the Lord. And we can grow impatient. Lord, come on, return. I'm so tired of this horrible world. Come for us. Okay, yes, but you have a job to do. We have a job to do. We need to reach more people with the gospel. Is it possible that there is walking this earth the one person that Jesus is waiting for to believe before the rapture?

14:51 You guys said rapture twice. What is a rapture? I have no idea. I just like the word. No, the rapture is the event the Bible talks about. From the Greek, it's the Greek word harpazo, which means to be taken away quickly. Latin translation rapturus, we get our word rapture from it. But the event of being caught up to meet the Lord is spoken of in 1 Thessalonians 4 when it says, The Lord himself with a sin from heaven with a shout, the dead in Christ arise first, and we which are alive and remaining will be caught up, harpazo, that word, together with them in the air, and so shall we ever be with the Lord. Therefore comfort one another with these words. So what if the Lord is waiting for that one last person? And what if you somehow knew who that one last person was and they were sitting next to you in church. Would you be tempted to turn to them and say, hello, can we get on with this right now? Could you just accept Christ?

15:48 Imagine if we led some people in prayer and we asked this in Jesus' name, amen, boom, we're in heaven. Okay, the Lord's waiting. He's waiting. There's more souls to be saved. Have you ever seen that movie Schindler's List? Powerful film, true story, based on the life of Oskar Schindler, who was a German businessman who hired some Jewish people. He saw some Nazis shoot one of the Jews in cold blood, and he was deeply moved. And he decided to spend the rest of his life saving Jewish people from Nazis. He said, and he was played by Liam Neeson in the film, he said, I have a particular set of skills. No, that's a wrong movie, excuse me. That's from Taken, another character he played. Anyway, but Oscar Schindler, played by Liam Neeson, was having a conversation with his accountant, It Shock Stern, and he says in the film, I could have gotten more out.

16:50 I don't know, I could have gotten more. Stern says, Oscar, there are 1,100 people alive because of you. And Schindler replies, but I could have gotten one more person, and I didn't. How powerful. Would we say that one day? Oh man, I could have reached one more person. I could have shared my faith with one more person. Why didn't I do that? This is the attitude we are to have. Point number two, as much as possible, stand in unity with fellow Christians. As much as it's possible as we await the Lord's return, stand in unity with fellow Christians. Look at verse nine. Don't grumble about each other, brothers and sisters, or you will be judged. Look, the judge is standing at the door. Don't complain about other believers. Go to them and try to help them.

17:44 To grumble about means to groan within oneself. It's a description of a person with a bitter attitude who is always criticizing and complaining. Someone might say, I have this spiritual gift of criticism. No, you don't. There's no gift like that. Well, I just see everything that's wrong. Well, that's part of the problem. Don't be that person. The problem with bitter people is they generally can't keep their bitterness to themselves. That's what the Bible warns about, a root of bitterness springing up and defiling many. Don't be that person, tearing others down. You have a disagreement with someone, go to them nowadays with social media, especially Twitter. People will just attack one another. Christians will attack one another without even understanding the other person's position.

18:38 And this goes against what Jesus says. In Matthew 18, 15, when he says, if another believer sins against you, go privately to them and point out the offense. And if they listen and confess, you've won that person back. Listen, never tear others down to lift yourself up. Never make yourself look better at the expense of someone else. Oh, well, they don't do this, but I do it. You know, don't do that. The Bible actually says you should not engage in that. Why? Point number three, be aware of the afterlife. Meaning you're going to be judged, verse nine. For look, the judge is standing at the door. Christians will be judged, but let's explain that. There are different judgments in the Bible. There's the great white throne judgment spoken of in Revelation 20.

19:32 where the small and the great stand before God. And the books are open and a book is open, which is the book of life. And we read, whoever does not have their name written in the book of life is cast into the lake of fire. That judgment is for non-believers only. No Christian will stand at the great white throne judgment. I don't even think we'll be present at the great white throne judgment. But then there's another judgment the Bible speaks of called the judgment seat of Christ. And that's not a judgment as to whether or not you will get to heaven. As a matter of fact, that particular judgment takes place in heaven. And Paul writing about it in 2 Corinthians 5 says, we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive the things done in the body according to what he has done, whether good or bad. So this is not, are you going to get to heaven? You're in heaven.

20:27 but this is about rewards. You see, rewards are gonna be given in heaven. You know, the Bible says, your father who sees you in secret will one day reward you openly. And the Bible talks about different crowns that are given. There's a crown of life. There's a crown of rejoicing and other crowns listed in scripture that God will give out. So here's when you will be rewarded. Think of sort of like the Oscars or the Emmys or the Grammys. You're receiving an award for what you did on earth. And we might be surprised by some of these awards go to. We think, oh, you know, Billy Graham is gonna get every award. Well, maybe he will. But maybe we'll be up in heaven. And the award goes to Maude Frikenbinder. Who?

21:16 Don't Google that name. I made it up. There is no Maude Frikenbinder. It's sort of like Bobby Buzzkill. These are fictitious characters. Maude Firkenbinder. Who was Maude Firkenbinder? Did she ever write a book? No. Was she in a Christian band? No. Was she some kind of a preacher? No. Who was she? She was a faithful old lady that was immobilized in her home and stayed and prayed for people all around the world and she was faithful to what God called her to do and she'll be rewarded because her father who sees her in secret will reward her openly. Listen, you will not be judged for what God has called me to do. I will not be judged for what God has called you to do. We will each be judged for what God has called us individually to do. So live the way you ought to be living and make your life count. Good encouragement from Pastor Greg Laurie today here on A New Beginning.

22:25 His message title, What the Lord's Return Means to You. We're getting some important insight in Pastor Greg's current series called Walk This Way. If you're enjoying this series, why not drop Pastor Greg a note? and let them know. Our mission statement here at Harvest Ministries and A New Beginning is knowing God and making Him known. Our focus is bringing people into a personal relationship with God through His Son, Jesus Christ. Have you ever made that kind of decision in your life? Pastor Greg, somebody can enter into that kind of relationship today, can't they? They can, and it's so simple. And I think because it's so simple, people think, oh, it can't be that easy. Well, look, Jesus did all the heavy lifting. He carried the cross for you. He died on that cross that he carried. This isn't about what you do. It's about what he's done. But here's what the Bible says. Whoever will call upon the name of the Lord will be saved. So let's just say that you're caught in a riptide out in the ocean and you need help and there's a lifeguard at the stand and they see you. You've got to call out to them and let them know you need saving. And the same is true when it comes to eternal life. Jesus is ready to save you. Will you call out to him?

23:42 You say, well, okay, how do I do that? You do it through prayer. And prayer is just talking to God. So listen, I'd like to lead you in a simple prayer. And if you pray this prayer after me, I believe God will hear it and answer it, and Christ will come to live inside of you. Thousands of people have prayed a prayer like this over the years that we've been doing this radio broadcast and have seen their life change. There's no power or magic in a prayer. It's all about your commitment to Christ. But this is a way to call on the name of the Lord in this prayer. So if you want Jesus to come into your life and forgive you of your sin, if you want to know that you'll go to heaven when you die, if you want to fill that big hole in your heart, just pray this prayer after me. You could pray it out loud if you like. Pray it in the quietness of your heart, but pray these words if you would. Lord Jesus, I know that I'm a sinner, but I know that you're the Savior who died on the cross for my sin. I am sorry for my sin, and I turn from it now, and I choose to follow you from this moment forward. Be my Savior and my Lord. Be my God and my friend. Thanks for hearing this prayer and answering this prayer. In Jesus' name, I pray.

25:03 Amen. Listen, if you just prayed that prayer, I want you to know that God has heard you and has answered it. The Bible says, these things we write to you that believe on the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life, that you may know. It's yours now. God has given it to you because it's the gift of eternal life through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Congratulations, and welcome to the family of God.

26:28 Absolutely. You know, when people come up to me and say, I pray for you all the time. Some have even said, we pray for you every day. Wow, I'm humbled. I'm blessed. I'm thankful. And I need your prayers more than you know. So if you do pray for me and our family and our ministry, thank you so much for that. And as you pray, I would ask you to pray about one other thing, if you would, please. would you pray about giving to our ministry? You know, giving of our finances is a very spiritual thing. You know, Jesus said, where your treasure is, there will your heart be also. If you want to see where a person's priorities are, look at where they spend their money. And when we invest in the work of the kingdom of God, we're laying up for ourself treasure in heaven. So we have this really cool program we put together called Harvest Partners.

27:25 And what it means is these are folks that simply not only give to our ministry, but they give on a monthly basis so we can depend on their gifts. And that helps us to respond to new opportunities to bring the Word of God and to preach the life-changing message of the gospel. So pray about that, if you would. Keep praying for us. And if the Lord directs you, become a Harvest Partner as well. And in advance, let me say thank you so much. Yes.