• 2/22/26

The Coming of the Lord

THE MAIN IDEA
As we wait for Jesus to return, let us live our lives daily in repentance.


JESUS REALLY IS RETURNING
The final word in the Old Testament was basically to wait for the coming of the “day of the LORD.” And that day came over 400 years later when Jesus came into the world. Jesus did not come to condemn the world, but to save the world by taking upon Himself the burden of all the world’s sins and nailing them to the cross. We are waiting for the “day of the Lord,” too, when Jesus returns. But this time, He will come as Righteous Judge and make all things right. Because Jesus is surely coming. As believers, do we really believe that? Also, whenever God sends a warning about the “day of the Lord,” the message comes with an offer of mercy, a mercy received through repentance. God’s kindness ought to lead us to repentance (Romans 2:4).


THE BIBLE REALLY IS UNERRING
The Bible “has God for its author, salvation for its end, and truth, without any mixture of error, for its matter” (SBC Faith and Message). The implications of that belief are profound and staggering. And so whenever it comes to defending the Christian faith, it must always begin and end and revolve around defending the inerrancy of the Bible. Believing in the inerrancy of the Bible takes a step of faith. But there are some very good, logical reasons for believing that the Bible is unerring. In particular, Christianity (as defined in the Bible) is the only faith that has God coming to save us from our self-destruction. And that makes so much more sense than a sinful, prideful, jealous, vindictive, selfish humanity saving itself. Nothing we do can save us. God must come and save us.


WAITING REALLY MEANS REPENTING
Waiting for the day of the Lord is an active exercise that involves living our lives in repentance daily. God’s final prophecy in the Old Testament calls His people to repent in six areas that dishonor God.

  1. “Blemished sacrifices” (1:8). God calls on us instead to “continually offer to God a sacrifice of praise—the fruit of lips that openly profess his name” (Hebrews 13:15).

  2. Faulty teachings (2:8-9). High profile Christian leaders continually fall, smearing the name of Christ.

  3. Breaking the marriage covenant (2:14). Healthy, covenantal marriages are the primary institution that God has established for fulfilling the great commission (Genesis 1:28). Violating covenant marriage directly opposes God’s purposes. Therefore, if we don’t put God and His purposes first in our marriages and Jesus Christ at the center of our families, then our marriages will suffer, and we will not bear spiritual offspring in direct disobedience to God’s purposes (2:15).

  4. Promoting injustice (3:5). The problem is not wealth, but that we idolize wealth. Should we not have compassion for the poor and stop idolizing the filthy rich?

  5. Neglecting to tithe (3:8-9). God is not trying to punish us by demanding we tithe. He wants to bless us! (3:10).

  6. Not serving God (3:14-15). Those who serve God are His “treasured possession” (317). When we come together in unity to serve the Lord, He will bless us so much!

DISCUSSION QUESTION:
Let’s say that you somehow knew that Jesus was coming back one year from now. What would you do to put your life in order for your face to face meeting with Him? Is that different from what you are already doing? Why is that?