(Read Part 1)
- Christ and His church, upon that glorious return, will deliver the nation of Israel from the dread clutches of the Antichrist. Yes, the church will save Israel. At that time, the Antichrist will be thrown into the lake of fire and the devil put into the bottomless pit.
- With those events there will be initiated the greatest period of peace and righteousness that the world has ever known. It is the millennial reign of Christ. Yes, the Messiah will rule from the city of Jerusalem and re-establish the throne of David.
- Finally, when time is no more, eternity will be the portion for all who have come to know the Lord. About that period the Scripture says,
Eye has not seen, nor ear heard,
Nor have entered into the heart of man
The things which God has prepared for those who love Him (1 Cor. 2:9).So, there lies before us a heaven that is indescribably wonderful. It will bring a thousand delights that will be beautiful beyond description. It is then that we will fully learn that to have chosen Christ in this world was to initiate a marvelous life in the joys of eternity that will never end.
In briefly reviewing these things, we Christians ought to “rejoice with joy inexpressible” (1 Pet. 1:8) at the things that we have in the Lord Jesus. When we are Christians, there is no cause for sadness or dark foreboding. Rather, we should, “Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I will say, rejoice!” (Phil. 4:4) as the Apostle Paul admonished us.
We also do well to remember that the thousand delights that come to us because we know Christ are ours by grace. We did not merit them, earn them or anything like this. Rather, we have come to know the Lord because “by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast” (Eph. 2:8-9). How pitiful it is that the sad doctrine of salvation by works still lingers like an incubus in so many of our churches. Many Christians need to read again that “if righteousness comes through the law, then Christ died in vain” (Gal. 2:21).
Interesting, is it not, that the world is always forced to remember by one development or another the truth of Scripture. Our Lord Jesus was certainly speaking about everything when He said, “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God” (Matt. 4:4). By this He meant, of course, that physical food is necessary for life, but without that which is spiritual, man simply cannot live. Millions in today’s world are in the process of dying from cosmic loneliness, whereby they feel detached from everything. For them, life begins to pale, and then soon seems not worth living. The result is alcoholism in the workplace and a mounting number who commit the great insanity—suicide. The workplace is not merely mechanical things, but human hearts and human lives which are looking for the answer to mounting desolation. The aforesaid principle is still true: Nothing really works without the gospel.
I hope that we really believe this! Christianity is not simply a small, measured piece of life, but it is life itself. To know Jesus Christ as personal Savior is the absolute foundation of reality—and there is no other. The world lives on nonsense and is beginning to discover that. It is dying of a hidden hunger. Recognizing this, we Christians must redouble our labors to bring people to faith in Christ while there is still time.
This is a time to be very excited about the possibilities of the work of God across the world. The upsets and confusions of our time have caused more people than ever to ask what the Bible might have to say about these things. In our time, there is a mounting concern about national leadership, economics, morality, the purpose of life and even the dangers of living. The world of our time has no answers concerning these issues in which we can be confident. Consequently, people are looking to us Christians for a word about these prophetic days.
Despite the many voices of our time, only the Bible can adequately answer these questions. The Word of Life, therefore, becomes a more strategic source of information than ever. It tells us about this passing world, about heaven that is to come and—especially—informs us of the gospel, the way to get to heaven. Yes, we Christians have a corner on the market when it comes to the questions of life that really matter. Because of this, in the ministry of Christian Destiny, we face increasing numbers of concerned and curious people who wonder about spiritual things. With the wonderful help of God, we are responding.
Dr. Dave Breese (1926-2002) was an internationally known speaker, teacher and author. He founded the ministry of Christian Destiny in 1963, and through it proclaimed the gospel on weekly radio and television programs and in numerous books and booklets. In 1987, he also became the president and Bible teacher on The King Is Coming telecast, a role that he filled until his death in 2002. Other organizations that Dr. Breese served during his distinguished ministry career included Youth For Christ, Awana, Back to the Bible, National Religious Broadcasters and National Association of Evangelicals. A frequent conference speaker and a master at explaining the relevance of Bible prophecy, he was also known for his wisdom and wit. It is a great honor to include him as part of the inaugural class of Revived Classics authors for Dispensational Publishing House.
This article originally appeared in the February 2009 issue of Destiny Bulletin.
Copyright © 2009 Christian Destiny, Inc. All rights reserved.
The article is reprinted here by permission of Christian Destiny.
For more information regarding Christian Destiny, go to www.ChristianDestiny.org.
Other material copyright © 2016 Dispensational Publishing House, Inc.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®.
Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
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