The Daily Word of Righteousness

Being With the Lord, continued

For by these He has granted to us His precious and magnificent promises, in order that by them you might become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world by lust. (II Peter 1:4—NIV)

Grace is not a covering of sin. Grace is God in Christ forgiving people and then enabling them to escape the corruption that is in the world caused by evil desires.

In order to be with Jesus you have to be totally convinced that He alone has the words of Life; He alone is the Holy One of God. Many Christians today are not convinced of what they believe, and so when Jesus becomes unpopular they leave. They go with the majority. The majority will never ride with the Lord in the Day of the Lord, it is a Gideon's army. God will see to that.

"You do not want to leave too, do you?" Jesus asked the Twelve. Simon Peter answered him, "Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. We believe and know you are the Holy One of God." Then Jesus replied, "Have I not chosen you, the Twelve? Yet one of you is a devil!" (John 6:67-70)

Those who will be with Jesus dress themselves for the occasion.

But when the king came in to see the guests, he noticed a man there who was not wearing wedding clothes. "Friend," he asked, "how did you get in here without wedding clothes?" The man was speechless. Then the king told the attendants, "Tie him hand and foot, and throw him outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth."For many are invited, but few are chosen. (Matthew 22:11-14—NIV)

Those who descend with the Lord to deliver Jerusalem must be holy.

You will flee by my mountain valley, for it will extend to Azel. You will flee as you fled from the earthquake in the days of Uzziah king of Judah. Then the LORD my God will come, and all the holy ones with him. (Zechariah 14:5—NIV)

We have seen, then, that the coming of the Lord will not be a time of revelry. Rather the Lord's appearing will be marked by conflict, the Battle of Armageddon, the struggle of righteousness against wickedness. The spiritual darkness will be more intense than ever but the Sun of righteousness will rise with healing in His wings.

One important theme of the present article is that only those who have prepared themselves will be privileged to be with the Lord Jesus in this greatest of wars. They will have been proven beforehand as they have, through the Spirit of God and prayer, overcome worldliness, the lusts of the flesh, and their self-will and self-centeredness.

Yet you have a few people in Sardis who have not soiled their clothes. They will walk with me, dressed in white, for they are worthy. (Revelation 3:4—NIV)

They have kept their garments clean by confessing their sins, and then renouncing and resisting them with utmost vigor.

They live by eating the flesh of Christ and drinking His blood.

Their testimony is that the Scriptures are the true and faithful words of God Almighty and their lives are aligned with the commandments therein.

To be continued.