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Christ's Hopeful Promise |
Lesson 23 |
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| Let's pray together: |
| Lord Almighty, We are about to begin one of the most important lessons of this Bible course, which will reveal the reason for the glorious hope that animated the writers of the Bible, from Genesis to Revelation. May this hope also become ours, this is our prayer in Jesus Christ. Amen. |
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John 14:1-3 |
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| Let not your heart be troubled;
you 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 to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also. |
When Jesus told His disciples that He would depart
soon, they were grieved very much. However, Jesus gave them this incredible promise: one day, He will come a second time to gather His people! |
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Numbers 23:19 |
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| God is not a man, that He should
lie, nor a son a man, that He should repent. Has He said, and will He not do it? Or has He spoken, and will He not make it good? |
Indeed, as we have studied in the lesson «God's Solution», Christ's first coming happened
exactly as foretold by the Old Testament prophets. We can understand why the disciples never doubted the promise of their Master: the second coming of Jesus is as sure as the first one! |
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Luke 17:24,25 |
Comments |
| For as the lightning that
flashes out of one part under heaven shines to the other part under heaven, so also the
Son of Man will be in His day. But first He must suffer many things and be rejected by this generation. |
The Old Testament contains prophecies about Christ's
first coming, marked by His sufferings and His death, but also other prophecies about His
second coming, marked by His glorious appearance. The Jews did not understand this distinction, believing that at His first coming, Christ would free them from the Roman yoke. This partly explains why they rejected Him. |
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Job's testimony: |
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| For I know that my Redeemer lives, and He shall stand at last on the earth; and after my skin is destroyed, this I know, that in my flesh I shall see God. | First of all, let's study the testimony of some great
Old Testament figures about the end of the world and Christ's second coming. Here we see Job, overwhelmed by sickness, after having lost all his family and his wealth. His only hope was the resurrection on the last day, at the glorious return of his Redeemer, Jesus Christ. |
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Enoch's testimony: |
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| Now Enoch, the seventh from
Adam, prophesied about these men also, saying, «Behold, the Lord comes with ten thousands of His saints, to execute judgment on all, to convict all who are ungodly among them of all their ungodly deeds which they have committed in an ungodly way, and of all the harsh things which ungodly sinners have spoken against Him.» |
Enoch had a vision of the second advent of Christ.
Even more, he saw what will happen on that day. We will study these events in our next lesson. |
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The psalmist's testimony: |
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| Our God shall come, and shall
not keep silent; a fire shall devour before Him, and it shall be very tempestuous all
around Him. He shall call to the heavens from above, and to the earth, that He may judge His people: «Gather My saints together to Me, those who have made a covenant with Me by sacrifice.» |
The psalmist's words are in perfect harmony with the
message of the New Testament. Indeed, at the time of His return, Jesus will gather His people, those who have made a covenant with Him by accepting His sacrificial death on the cross. |
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Isaiah's testimony: |
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| He will swallow up death
forever, and the Lord God will wipe away tears from all faces; the rebuke of His people He
will take away from all the earth; for the Lord has spoken. And it will be said in that day: «Behold, this is our God; we have waited for Him, and He will save us. This is the Lord; we have waited for Him; we will be glad and rejoice in His salvation.» |
The prophet Isaiah saw in vision the reaction of those impatiently waiting for their Savior, as He finally comes back to take them with Him. |
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Isaiah's testimony: |
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| When you see this, your heart
shall rejoice, and your bones shall flourish like grass; the hand of the Lord shall be
known to His servants, and His indignation to His enemies. For behold, the Lord will come with fire and with His chariots, like a whirlwind, to render His anger with fury, and His rebuke with flames of fire. |
As we can see, Isaiah had many visions of Jesus'
return. This is a colorful description of this glorious event which will mark the end of the world. |
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Daniel's testimony: |
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| At that time Michael shall stand
up, the great prince who stands watch over the sons of your people; and there shall be a
time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation, even to that time. And at that time your people shall be delivered, every one who is found written in the book. |
The prophet Daniel too had a vision of Jesus' return. In fact, we find many visions of Jesus' return in the book of Daniel (please see the lesson «The Statue of Daniel» for an example). God really shows great single-mindedness in the inspiration of His prophets! |
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Jesus' testimony: |
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| Then the sign of the Son of Man
will appear in heaven, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see
the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. And He will send His angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they will gather together His elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other. |
Now, who is better than Christ Himself to speak about
His second coming? Jesus' description of His return corresponds exactly to that of the Old Testament prophets. |
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Jesus' testimony: |
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| Behold, I am coming quickly.
Blessed is he who keeps the words of the prophecy of this book. (...) And behold, I am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me, to give to every one according to his work. (...) He who testifies to these things says, «Surely I am coming quickly.» |
As if trying one last time to awaken the reader, Jesus
repeats three times in the last chapter of the last book of the Bible that He is coming
soon. We can't say we haven't been forewarned! |
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The angels' testimony: |
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| Now when He had spoken these
things, while they watched, 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, who also said: «Men of Galilee, why do you stand gazing up into heaven? This same Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will so come in like manner as you saw Him go into heaven.» |
These two angels came to confirm once more the reality
of Christ's promise. Now, let's look at the testimony of Jesus' disciples. |
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1 Corinthians 16:22,23 (KJV) |
Comments |
| Maranatha. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you! |
First of all, let's note that the return of Jesus was often a topic of conversation between Christians. Soon, they began to use the word «Maranatha!» as a greeting, which means: «O Lord, come!» |
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Paul's testimony: |
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| So Christ was offered once to
bear the sins of many. To those who eagerly wait for Him He will appear a second time, apart from sin, for salvation. |
The apostle Paul, an expert in the Scriptures,
understood that the Messiah had to come twice: - a first time to bear our iniquities on the cross; - a second time to gather those who believe in Him. |
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1 Thessalonians 4:16 |
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| For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. | Paul was another man for whom the return of Jesus was the unrivaled hope. |
2 Thessalonians 1:7,8,10 |
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| The Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with His mighty angels, in flaming fire (...) when He comes, in that Day, to be glorified in His saints and to be admired among all those who believe. |
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James' testimony: |
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| Therefore be patient, brethren,
until the coming of the Lord. See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, waiting patiently for it until it receives the early and latter rain. You also be patient. Establish your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is at hand. |
The apostle James, like all the others, desperately
wanted to see Christ return in his time. But the signs foretelling the second coming were not all present yet (see the previous lesson «The Signs of the Times»). |
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Peter's testimony: |
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| But the day of the Lord will
come as a thief in the night, in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise, and
the elements will melt with fervent heat; both the earth and the works that are in it will
be burned up. (...) Nevertheless we, according to His promise, look for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells. |
The apostle Peter was not an exception: like the others, he preached the message of hope concerning the second coming of Jesus Christ. |
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John's testimony: |
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| And now, little children, abide in Him, that when He appears, we may have confidence and not be ashamed before Him at His coming. | Finally, the apostle John revealed his faith in
Christ's second coming. In fact, the New Testament alone includes more than 300 passages referring to this event! |
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Revelation 1:7 |
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| Behold, He is coming with
clouds, and every eye will see Him, and they also who pierced Him. And all the tribes of
the earth will mourn because of Him. Even so, Amen. |
The last book of the Scriptures, Revelation, written
by John, gravitates round the second coming of Jesus. This event will be, for those waiting for Christ's return, a day of deliverance and the end of a world marked by corruption. And as we have already seen in our previous lesson about the signs of the times, this great day is coming very soon. Maranatha! |
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«I will come again.» (John 14:3) |
| Jesus Christ will return: it is an absolute certainty. «The Lord will come with fire», announced the patriarchs and the prophets. «I will come again», Jesus told His disciples. «He will so come», the two angels declared while Jesus was ascending to heaven. «He will appear a second time», proclaimed the Apostles. And the Church has repeated along with them: «Maranatha! O Lord, come!» Our next lesson will talk about the whys and wherefores of Christ's second coming. |
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| Let's thank God for His assistance: |
| O Lord, There could be many reasons to be discouraged when we see the events now happening in the world, but we thank You for the glorious promise You have given us. We desire to possess this hope the people of the Bible had. Please help us to be prepared for that great day, that we may shout with the apostolic Church: «Maranatha! O Lord, come!» In Jesus Christ, we pray. Amen. |
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The test of Lesson 23 is waiting for you!Source of the Pictures of this Lesson |
| Screen 1: Picture Collection «Corel Gallery Magic» by Corel, 1997, CD #7, Photo Library 1, 1022.PCD. Screen 2: In: «The Bible in Pictures for Little Eyes» (TAYLOR, Kenneth N.), Moody Press, Chicago, 1956, p.160. Screen 3: In: «Revelation Seminars», Seminars Unlimited, 1986, lesson #4 («La Merveilleuse Bonne Nouvelle de l'Apocalypse»), p.1. Screen 4: In: «The Watchtower» magazine (April 1, 1998), New York, Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society, p.17. Table of Screen 4: First picture: MICHELANGELO. «Isaiah», Sistine Chapel, Vatican, Rome. In: «Great Bible Stories and Master Paintings» (RACHLEFF, Owen S.), New York, Abradale Press Publishers, p.209. Second picture: STEEL, John. In: «The Triumph of God's Love, volume 1» (WHITE, Ellen G.), Pacific Press Publishing Association and Review and Herald Publishing Association, 1950, p.1. Third picture: In: MAXWELL, Arthur S. «The Bible Story, volume 8», p.82. Used by permission. Copyright ©1956, 1984 by Review and Herald® Publishing Association, USA. All Rights Reserved. Screen 5: In: «Prophecy Seminars», Seminars Unlimited, 1989, Daniel lesson #30 («Sharing Daniel's Message with the World»), p.5. Screen 6: In: «The Watchtower» magazine (March 1,1986), New York, Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society, p.10. Screen 7: HARLAN, Russell. In: «The Bible Story, volume 1» (MAXWELL, Arthur S.), p.94. Used by permission. Copyright ©1953, 1981 by Review and Herald® Publishing Association, USA. All Rights Reserved. Screen 8: In: «The Watchtower» magazine (September 15, 1990), New York, Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society, p.10. Screen 9: In: «The Bible in Pictures for Little Eyes» (TAYLOR, Kenneth N.), Moody Press, Chicago, 1956, p.106. Screen 10: In: «The Bible in Pictures for Little Eyes» (TAYLOR, Kenneth N.), Moody Press, Chicago, 1956, p.99. Picture edited by Cyberspace Ministry. Screen 11: In: «Prophecy Seminars», Seminars Unlimited, 1989, Daniel lesson #22 («Daniel's People Delivered»), p.1. Screen 12: STEEL, John. In: «L'Espoir de l'Humanité, volume 2» (WHITE, Ellen G.), Editions Le Monde Français, Pacific Press Publishing Association, 1972, p.310. Screen 13: JUSTINEN, Lars. In: «Questionnaire Adulte de l'Ecole du Sabbat», Pacific Press Publishing Association, Third Quarter, 1996, front cover. Screen 14: LAUNE, Paul. In: «The Living Bible Encyclopedia in Story and Pictures, volume 1», New York, H.S. Stuttman Co. Inc., 1968, p.136-a. Picture edited by Cyberspace Ministry. Screen 15: In: «The Watchtower» magazine (October 15, 1993), New York, Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society, p.17. Screen 16: SCHLAIKJER, Jes. In: «The Bible Story, volume 10» (MAXWELL, Arthur S.), p.124. Used by permission. Copyright ©1957, 1985 by Review and Herald® Publishing Association, USA. All Rights Reserved. Screen 17: HARPER. In: «The Bible Story, volume 10» (MAXWELL, Arthur S.), p.94. Picture edited by Cyberspace Ministry. Used by permission. Copyright ©1957, 1985 by Review and Herald® Publishing Association, USA. All Rights Reserved. Screen 18: REMBRANDT. «St. James». In: «The Compton's Interactive Bible CD», Zondervan Publishing House, 1996. Screen 19: PROCACCINI, Giulio Cesare. In: «The Living Bible Encyclopedia in Story and Pictures, volume 12», New York, H.S. Stuttman Co. Inc., 1968, p.1512-b. Screen 20: DOLCI, Carlo. In: «The Living Bible Encyclopedia in Story and Pictures, volume 8», New York, H.S. Stuttman Co. Inc., 1968, p.1012-c. Screen 21: MANISCALCO, Joe. In: «Images from the Bible and Sacred History CD», Chosen Works, MLI Software, JM240.BMP. Screen 22: STEEL, John. In: «God Cares, volume 2» (MAXWELL, C.Mervyn), Pacific Press Publishing Association, 1985, p.539. Screen 23: Picture Collection «Corel Gallery Magic» by Corel, 1997, CD #7, Photo Library 1, 1017.PCD. |
| Any copyrighted images not bearing a statement of permission, are used for the purpose of non-commercial scholarly commentary or criticism in accordance with section 107 of U.S. Copyright Law, and with article 29 of Canada Copyright Act (Chapter C-42), which by law can be without the consent or endorsement of the copyright holder. Images lacking attribution are either known or assumed to be in the public domain, or have an as yet undetermined status. Anyone having knowledge of proper attribution for an image is requested to contact us via email below so that it can be correctly noted. It is our intent to comply fully with applicable laws regarding intellectual property rights. |
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Christ's
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