Dear Brethren and Friends,
As we approach the autumn festival season, we usually emphasize Christ’s return as King of kings, His Millennial rule and the Great White Throne Judgment. This is all well and good, and we certainly should focus on these awesome events. It is exciting and encouraging to read Revelation 11:15, "Then the seventh angel sounded: And there were loud voices in heaven, saying, ’The kingdoms of this world have become the kingdoms of our Lord and of His Christ, and He shall reign forever and ever!’" Remember, after describing the wars, great earthquakes, famines, disease epidemics and "great signs" at the time of the end, Jesus said: "Now when these things begin to happen, look up and lift up your heads, because your redemption draws near" (Luke 21:28).
So we, in the Church, should be encouraged as we see these things happen. Although the short-term effect of these events is very sad for those who are not walking with God, it does draw all of us—including those who are not walking with Him—closer to the time when a glorious new world will begin under Jesus Christ. Therefore, we can anticipate these events with faith and courage, can "watch" prophetic events with a positive attitude and certainly can look forward to Christ’s coming and His Millennial rule and all that follows.
Nevertheless, dear brethren, I would like to remind all of us that—as a Church—we have often tended to focus so much on biblical prophecy and the end-time events that we unwittingly de-emphasize or virtually leave out the profound feeling that we ought to have for Jesus Christ Himself—for His wonderful sacrifice, for His love and guidance as our faithful High Priest, and for how He will rule in the future as Prince of Peace.
It is not only at Passover time that we should think about Jesus Christ! All year long—certainly including the autumn festival season—we should pray, study and meditate about how Christ is to live His life within us! All year long, we should have the profound realization that—as I have often preached—we are "the Church of the forgiven." We ought to have a profound and humble realization that we need Jesus Christ’s saving blood, and God’s mercy on us, through Him, in order to be reconciled to God and be made qualified through His Spirit to be there in God’s coming Kingdom. All year long, we should meditate on Galatians 2:20, "I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me" (KJV).
Let us also constantly think about Jesus’ statement, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me" (John 14:6). For Jesus Christ—as our Savior and High Priest—is the only way we will ever enter into the Kingdom of God!
As the Church of God began, the Apostle Peter was inspired to spend that first sermon, on Pentecost, describing Christ as our Savior: "’Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly that God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ.’ Now when they heard this, they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, ’Men and brethren, what shall we do?’ Then Peter said to them, ’Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit’" (Acts 2:36–38).
All through the book of Acts, we find that the true apostles constantly emphasized—month in and month out—how Jesus was our Savior, High Priest and King. As Peter opened his mouth and gave the first sermon to Gentiles at the house of Cornelius, he stated, "The word which God sent to the children of Israel, preaching peace through Jesus Christ—He is Lord of all—that word you know, which was proclaimed throughout all Judea, and began from Galilee after the baptism which John preached: how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power, who went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with Him. And we are witnesses of all things which He did both in the land of the Jews and in Jerusalem, whom they killed by hanging on a tree. Him God raised up on the third day, and showed Him openly" (Acts 10:36–40).
This is the emphasis the early Christians had in their minds all through the year!
When Paul and Silas were released from prison through a supernatural earthquake God sent to break the prison doors open, they told the Philippian jailer, "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved, you and your household" (Acts 16:31). And in reasoning with the Jews for three Sabbaths, Paul was "explaining and demonstrating that the Christ had to suffer and rise again from the dead, and saying, ’This Jesus whom I preach to you is the Christ’" (Acts 17:3).
Meeting with the Ephesian elders—perhaps for his last time—Paul explained how he had "kept back nothing that was helpful" but was "testifying to Jews, and also to Greeks, repentance toward God and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ" (Acts 20:20–21).
Scripture describes that Paul, at the very end of his life, was "preaching the kingdom of God and teaching the things which concern the Lord Jesus Christ with all confidence, no one forbidding him" (Acts 28:31). Certainly the Kingdom of God and all that it involves must be preached and will be preached by us! But we must never forget that Christ Himself is the King of that coming Kingdom! We must never forget that we have no way to enter the Kingdom except through Jesus Christ’s shed blood, our heartfelt acceptance of His death in our stead—and our willingness to walk with Him and surrender to let Him live His life within us through the Holy Spirit. Only in this way will we be able to "grow in grace and knowledge" and allow God to prepare us to be those kings and priests serving under Christ in Tomorrow’s World. Only through Jesus Christ living within us will we be able to develop the genuine love, outflowing concern, wisdom and spiritual power to rule this world under Jesus Christ in the way God desires of us. So, we must humbly and steadfastly "walk with Christ" all year long—especially at these wonderful Holy Day seasons.
And let us never forget how God Himself—in inspiring the Bible—describes the "blood of Jesus" and the sacrifice of His Son, even when describing the glory of God at His throne in heaven. Always remember, dear brethren, what God’s word tells us in looking ahead toward the Kingdom—and how the "scroll" describing the coming seals and plagues of God was presented by pointing out that it was only through the "Lamb of God" that understanding was given. Notice what God inspired John to write: "But one of the elders said to me, ’Do not weep. Behold, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has prevailed to open the scroll and to loose its seven seals.’ And I looked, and behold, in the midst of the throne and of the four living creatures, and in the midst of the elders, stood a Lamb as though it had been slain, having seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven Spirits of God sent out into all the earth. Then He came and took the scroll out of the right hand of Him who sat on the throne" (Revelation 5:5–6).
Even in describing this heavenly scene with no human beings present—and the powerful "four living creatures" and 24 elders looking on—our Creator Himself focuses on "the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world" (John 1:29). When the Apostle Paul wrote to the Corinthians, he reminded them, "And I, brethren, when I came to you, did not come with excellence of speech or of wisdom declaring to you the testimony of God. For I determined not to know anything among you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified" (1 Corinthians 2:1–2). The heartfelt focus on the suffering and death of Jesus Christ in our stead was always at the front of Paul’s mind. So it must be with us!
As I have often reminded you, brethren, we are truly the "Church of the forgiven"! If we are profoundly and constantly aware of this fact, and if we sincerely humble ourselves as we grow toward God’s Kingdom, God can and will use us—and will eventually give us unusual power to finish the Work. Then, He will make us His full sons, with glory radiating from us as Jesus Himself! But it all goes "back to the beginning." The beginning fact is that we can only do any of this through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ, and through Him—as our living Head and High Priest—living His life in us through the Holy Spirit! As we approach the autumn festival season, please meditate on this profound truth and "walk with God with all your heart" as you, and I, and all of us approach the coming Kingdom of God.
