Monday, April 17, 2017

The Secret Coming of The Son of Man

There is a large group of people out there who like to preach "there is no secret rapture."  Maybe they are right maybe they are wrong but what we can say as a matter of absolute fact is there is a secret coming of the Son of Man.  If that secret coming is not the rapture then like the problems they have with Luke 21:36 they have to explain what this other coming of the Lord is.

One of the greatest, most top secret, secrets of heaven is this secret coming of the Lord.  What does our Lord say about it?

Matt 24:36But about that day or hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son,f but only the Father. 37As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. 38For in the days before the flood, people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, up to the day Noah entered the ark; 39and they knew nothing about what would happen until the flood came and took them all away. That is how it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. 40Two men will be in the field; one will be taken and the other left. 41Two women will be grinding with a hand mill; one will be taken and the other left.

When a secret is so great that not even the Son of God knows it, its a quite a secret.  What is this great secret?  The secret coming of our Lord back for those who belong to Him:

That is how it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. 40Two men will be in the field; one will be taken and the other left. 41Two women will be grinding with a hand mill; one will be taken and the other left.

I've heard them try to explain their non-sense and it remains just that: non-sense.  The Spirit of the Lord within this writer has been insisting vehemently for years that we take His Word deadly serious exactly, precisely as it is written.  How many times does He tell us to watch and be ready for His secret return?  He tells us over:

Matt 24:42“Therefore keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come. 43But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what time of night the thief was coming, he would have kept watch and would not have let his house be broken into. 44So you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him.

and over:

Matt 25:10“But while they were on their way to buy the oil, the bridegroom arrived. The virgins who were ready went in with him to the wedding banquet. And the door was shut.
11“Later the others also came. ‘Lord, Lord,’ they said, ‘open the door for us!’
12“But he replied, ‘Truly I tell you, I don’t know you.’
13“Therefore keep watch, because you do not know the day or the hour.

and over again:

Mark 13:32“But about that day or hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. 33Be on guard! Be alerte ! You do not know when that time will come. 34It’s like a man going away: He leaves his house and puts his servants in charge, each with their assigned task, and tells the one at the door to keep watch.
35“Therefore keep watch because you do not know when the owner of the house will come back—whether in the evening, or at midnight, or when the rooster crows, or at dawn. 36If he comes suddenly, do not let him find you sleeping. 37What I say to you, I say to everyone: ‘Watch!’ ”

Watch for what?  For His unexpected coming.  Every single one of the preachers and teachers who have told us we can know the time of our Lord's coming have been proven wrong.  If the Son of God does not know, you don't know-period.

Matt 24:36But about that day or hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son,f but only the Father.

What we do know is He told us to watch, over and over and over again.  Almost as if He is trying to get our attention on this point (Gee, ya think?).

Be watching and be ready, Be watching and be ready, Be watching and be ready-for what?  His secret, unannounced return.  What is the Spirit of the Lord saying to us today?  Be watching and ready for the secret return of the Lord Jesus Christ.  That is not the opinion of man, it is the Word of God repeated to man over and over and over again so we have zero excuse if we disregard it.  Some things in the Bible you can read over and not catch it the first time, this is altogether different.  You cannot read the gospels without getting slapped in the face with this command over and over again.  Watch and be ready for His return!

Yes, it will be a secret.  Yes, many if not most will be caught entirely unprepared for it.  The Lord's unprepared virgin number is 50%, that's a lot of people who will be told:

Matt 25:11“Later the others also came. ‘Lord, Lord,’ they said, ‘open the door for us!’
12“But he replied, ‘Truly I tell you, I don’t know you.’

Most people have to be wrong.  Over and over again we see it in Biblical history.  Did most people escape the flood in Noah's day?  No most people died in it.  Did most people escape Sodom when the Lord rained fire on it?  No most died there.  Did most Israelites enter the promised land after Israel left Egypt?  No, most died in the desert and few went in.  The theme repeats over and over again which explains why the Lord told us this:

Matt 7:13“Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. 14But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.

Contrary to popular belief today, most people do not make it into heaven-few do

14But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.

This writer would not keep most people out of heaven, but this writer did not write the Bible.  God is God because He alone is all powerful and all knowing and the one who is all powerful and all knowing gets to set the rules.  What we need is the truth, unvarnished, unaltered, undiluted.  It is the truth that sets mankind free, not lies that tickle his ears. 

The Lord is going to do precisely what He told us He was going to do-He will arrive in secret and it will shock and dismay the world.  Watch for His secret return.  Be ready for His secret return.  Those who mock the secret return of the Lord only mock themselves.  There will be precious little mocking done by these people after the Lord executes His promise exactly as it is written and the unfaithful are left to deal with the aftermath.

We were told to watch and be ready for a return of the Lord that even our Lord Jesus Christ does not know the timing of.  We would be wise to take His command on this seriously.

grace and peace