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The Daily Word of Righteousness
Participation in the Parousia, #7
And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven [of the heavens] to the other. (Matthew 24:30,31)
Notice the order.
But isn't it true that the Lord Jesus will come suddenly as a surprise? Yes, but to the wicked, not to the elect who are serving Him. The trumpets and torches of the 300 did not come as a surprise to Gideon's army but to the Midianites. The Day of the Lord will not come as a surprise to the saints who are walking in the light of God's will.
But ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief. (I Thessalonians 5:4)
Some professing Christians shall be caught unprepared, as we read in the latter verses of Matthew, Chapter 24.
The lord of that servant shall come in a day when he looketh not for him, and in an hour that he is not aware of, and shall cut him asunder, and appoint him his portion with the hypocrites: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth. (Matthew 24:50,51)
The parousia is the appearing in glory of the most powerful of all kings, and His princes who will rule with Him. The parousia will be announced and attended by appropriate fanfare. It will be a testimony to the whole earth, giving hope to the righteous but enraging the wicked who then will assemble themselves for the Battle of Armageddon.
Contrast this glorious, victorious, scriptural parousia with the currently taught "secret rapture," which is nothing more than a pitiful retreat of the believers from the earth so they can escape tribulation.
First the blowing of the trumpets, and then the "breaking" of the mortal bodies of the saints so the Light of Christ can shine from within them. This is the coming, the parousia of the Lord and His saints.
The type of Gideon and his 300, as well as the doctrine of the Apostles and the visions of the Prophets of Israel, points toward a worldwide parousia, a presence, a manifestation of Christ and His saints, not toward a secret evacuation. The trumpet of God will sound attack, not retreat.
Let us consider the following aspects of the parousia of the Lord Jesus Christ with His saints:
We shall be revealed with Him, and He in us, at His parousia.
Many nations will benefit greatly by the coming of the sons of God.
We must become life-giving spirits if we are to benefit the nations. We cannot help them if we are living "in the flesh."
The parousia will come as a thief to the wicked and to worldly believers.
Only a fraction of Israel will participate in the first stage of the parousia.
We must attain life and live in victory if we hope to participate in the parousia.
To be continued.