4 Changes that Jesus’ Second Coming Produces in Us ~ by J.D. Greer

I grew up in a church that talked about the return of Jesus a lot—about every week or so. I remember posters with dragons on them. Each year we hosted a prophecy conference, naming specific politicians as the antichrist (sorry, Jimmy Carter). We had our bumper stickers, “In case of rapture, this car will be unmanned.” It was such a big deal for us that, as a kid, I had recurring nightmares about my parents being raptured while I was left behind.

It’s easy to make fun of all that now, and I think that a lot of evangelical churches today downplay the topic of Jesus’ return because they’re afraid of looking like fundamentalists. But there are 318 references to Jesus’ second coming in the New Testament—roughly 1 out of every 13 verses mentions it. And nearly every moral command in the NT is tied to the second coming. It’s not an embarrassing, uneducated uncle of Christian theology; it’s essential to our faith.

Here are four changes that the imminent return of Jesus should produce in us:

1. Spiritual Alertness

Amidst the many ways my home church went wrong, they were absolutely right about one thing—the earnest expectation of Jesus’ return. The New Testament writers all eagerly wait for Jesus to come back. They are straining forward to that day, almost on tiptoes as they yearn for his return. They lived with spiritual alertness, as if Jesus could back at any moment.

Wouldn’t you live differently if you knew Jesus were coming back tonight? Wouldn’t it make you ask the question, Am I ready? Am I living today in a way that I’d be happy to see him tonight?

At my church we would often end our services with the pastor saying, “Maranatha,” which means, “The Lord is coming.” And we would respond, “And it could be today.” I think we could use some more of that attitude. It could be today, and this may be your last chance to repent, last chance to forgive, last chance to share the gospel.

2. Mission urgency

If you know the world has an end—and that it could be soon—that rearranges your priorities. It makes no sense to go around rearranging deck chairs if you’re on the sinking Titanic. And yet that’s what many of us are doing with our lives. We are so consumed by vacations, hobbies, possessions, and bucket lists, that our actions tell the world that the end is not soon and the mission is not urgent.

I’m not a guy who believes God never wants us to have or enjoy nice things. But I also know that life is painfully short, and when the Master returns, I want to have invested my talents to the fullest for his kingdom…not be found sitting on them. Sadly, there are many in the church that will hear the chilling words of Jesus on that day, “Why didn’t you invest what I gave you for my kingdom? Away with you, you worthless servant, to the outer darkness.” (cf. Matt 25:26-30)

3. Power to forgive

Tim Keller points out that believing in the return of Jesus gives us the power to forgive. When someone wrongs us, we want justice. So we run to the judgment seat of the world, hop on it, and help God mete out their due. But here’s the problem: we weren’t meant for that seat. It’s too big for us. And like the ring in Lord of the Rings, it distorts us. It makes us assume the worst in others, causes us to paint large groups with negative stereotypes, and blinds us to our own sin.

Apart from the doctrine of the second coming, we have no power to keep ourselves from running to that judgment seat. Only by knowing that Jesus is coming back, and his return means true justice, can I be content to stay off of it. I can endure injustice for the time being, because he’ll set things right.

4. Hope in suffering

Depictions of Jesus’ return often have him coming through the clouds or riding on top of them, but Jesus says that he’ll be coming back “in the clouds” (Mark 13:26). This is an important distinction, because it points back to the glory of the God in the Old Testament. Frequently, when God appeared to his people, it was in the form of a powerful cloud—when God led his people out of Egypt (Exod 13:21), when he gave them the Law (Exod 24:16), when the temple was dedicated (2 Chron 5:14).

This “glory cloud” was a sign that God was coming to dwell with his people, to undo all of the terror and pain caused by the fall. What Jesus says in Mark 13:26 is that his return means the permanent return of the glory of God. It is a promise that all of the pain and suffering in our lives can’t last forever. Or, as Cornelius Plantinga says, “The return of Christ is good news for people whose lives are filled with bad news.”

So if your son just died of cancer, if your marriage just dissolved, if you’re lonely, if you’re body is wracked with chronic pain, then Jesus is saying to you: Lift up your eyes! I’m coming back, and it might be today! There is reason to hope even in the midst of the darkest valley. As one author puts it, “The promise of the second coming shows us the ‘good ole days’ are always ahead of us.”


Posted by Pastor J.D. on June 11, 2014

The Closer ~ by Tim Challies

The Closer

Mariano Rivera has never been one of my favorite people. After all, for many years he was a fixture for the New York Yankees, divisional rivals of my own Toronto Blue Jays. When a game came to the final inning and the Jays were down by a run or two, Rivera would jog onto the field and shut it down. Once he came onto the field, the outcome was rarely in doubt.

But he has retired now, and I like him a lot better. No sooner did he retire than he got to work penning his memoir, The Closer. It’s quite a story. Born in abject poverty in Panama, Rivera grew up in, on and around fishing boats, working with his father to scrape together a living. When the tides were out, he and his friends would play baseball on the beach, improvising the equipment they needed: wadded up fishing nets for balls, rocks for bases, tree branches for bats, and milk cartons for gloves. It was an unlikely start to one of the great baseball careers.

When he was in his late teens, Rivera began playing shortstop for a nearby amateur baseball team. One day the pitcher played so badly that Rivera was asked to take over for a couple of innings. The results were so impressive that friends contacted a scout for the New York Yankees. Rivera gained a try-out, then a minor league contract. And the rest, as they say, is history. He went on to become the most dominant closer in the history of the game, earning 652 saves in the biggest baseball market in the world. He was an All-Star 13 times, won 5 World Series, and was once the World SeriesMVP. He had a storybook career and through it became world famous and fantastically wealthy, with his earnings topping $150 million. He has come a long way from that fishing boat in Panama.

But there is more to his story than baseball. In his early twenties Rivera was exposed to the gospel and became a Christian—an unashamedly outspoken Christian. While the book describes his life, it also describes his faith and, to borrow a sport’s metaphor, he leaves it all on the field. He tells how important his faith has been, how it has sustained him, and how the Bible has given him guidance throughout his life.

The Bible can’t tell you the story of my walk with the Lord, but it can tell you everything about how I try to live, and why the love of the Lord is the foundation of my whole life. For me, the Bible is not just the word of God, but a life road map that is packed with wisdom that you cannot beat even if you spent the next hundred years reading spiritual books and self-help books. It is the best kind of wisdom: Simple wisdom. This sort of wisdom, from the twenty-third chapter of Matthew, verse twelve: Whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted.

When it comes to his faith, Rivera describes just what he believes and why he believes it. While it becomes clear that he loves the Lord, it also becomes clear that he is not a theologian. Unfortunately, a few of the things he says are unclear or confusing and probably owe more to Pentecostalism than to the historic Christian faith. And yet, again, it is clear that he is passionate about the Lord and the spread of the gospel. In the aftermath of his storied career he has both moved on and stayed just the same. “For the last nineteen seasons, the Lord has blessed me with the opportunity to play professional baseball for the New York Yankees. My job was to save games, and I loved every part of it. Now I have a new job—probably better described as a calling—and that is to glorify the Lord and praise His name, and show the wonders that await those who seek Him and want to experience His grace and peace and mercy.” To do this, he and his wife have co-founded a church where they serve as pastors.

As is the case with most sports memoirs, this one is dominated by descriptions of games and plays. Those who love sports, and who love the Yankees in particular, will find it riveting. Those who are a little less enthusiastic about sports may find themselves skimming over certain sections. And if you’re like me, you may find yourself silently finding yourself hoping he’ll lose the games, just because he’s pitching for New York. In any case, Rivera’s story is a good one and well worth reading.

Porn users have 'structural brain damage' - By Dr. Jim Dennison

Porn users have 'structural brain damage'

A research study published in the latest Journal of American Medical Association: Psychiatry concludes that the more pornography a person watches, the less gray matter, connectivity and activity they have in their brain.

Numerous negative effects of pornography are already well documented. For instance, boys who consume pornography daily show more interest in deviant and illegal types of porn. Frequent Internet pornography consumption among couples leads to a decrease in sexual satisfaction and a tendency to adopt pornography scripts. Accessing porn online leads to compulsive computer use. But this new research is the first to show that pornography is also linked directly to negative physical capacities within the brain.

Dr. Donald Hilton, a neurosurgeon and professor at the University of Texas Health Sciences Center calls this study "the real deal." According to Dr. Hilton, "the study shows that heavy porn users have structural brain shrinkage." So, what can we do to combat pornography in our culture?

I believe that behavior is the result of a three-step process: our actions are 

the product of our values, which are shaped by our worldview (our beliefs about the world). We can legislate morality with regard to actions, and often should. For instance, child pornography should be illegal, whatever our beliefs and values on the subject.

We can try to change values, but our principles are often in conflict with each other. For instance, 67 percent of Americans told the latest Gallup poll that they disapprove of pornography use. However, 66 percent of men and 41 percent of women consume pornography every month. Apparently a majority of us value telling researchers that we oppose pornography, but also value consuming it in private.

It's on the level of beliefs, our basic worldview, that systemic change begins. Imagine a society which agreed with Scripture that humans are intrinsically sacred as God's creation, our bodies are his temple, lust corrupts our lives, and sex is intended only for heterosexual marriage. How would our values and actions change as a result?

Now comes the dilemma. Human words cannot change human hearts. Nothing I say in this Cultural Commentary can convince our fallen world that God is right on the subject of sex and pornography. However, God's ambassadors in Scripture frequently seek to reason with their hearers, citing authorities and evidence accepted by their culture (cf. Acts 17). And we are called to declare God's word to the world by speaking the truth in love (Ephesians 4:15) and "with gentleness and respect" (1 Peter 3:15).

I conclude that when we reason biblically with others, the Spirit works through us to do what we cannot. He changes hearts and worldviews in ways we cannot see or measure. As we work, he works.

God called you to serve him where you are, and when you are. It was his providential plan that you are alive today and not a century ago. You have gifts and influence his Spirit can use to change your world. So don't be discouraged about the moral trajectory of our day, but do be urgent. Carl F. H. Henry was right: "The gospel is only good news if it gets there in time."