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ARE YOU READY FOR OUR LORD'S SECOND COMING?


₦Sermon 37

            ARE YOU READY FOR OUR LORD’S SECOND COMING?
 “Watch therefore, for ye know neither the day nor the hour wherein the son of man cometh” – Matt. 25:13KJV.
               
_                                                Text: Matt. 25:1-1
        A photo displaying the coming of Jesus Christ by Msgr. Charles Pope


Brethren, I would use this time to tender my sincere greetings in the mighty name of Our Lord Jesus Christ. I thank God and laud Him so much for His love for mankind, salvation of our ruined souls and the establishment of his spiritual kingdom here on earth. May His name be adored and glorified.
       
It is a great opportunity for me to share this message of the coming of Our Lord Jesus with you in form of a question for us to brood over with great willingness on how ready we are. We need to be careful and more zealous in the way we wait for the coming of our Great King.
_
A man was asked: “Would you like to go to heaven now?”
He replied: “No!” Then the minister of God became so furious and asked “why?” The man said he doesn’t want to die now because a person must die first before going to heaven.

O yes! The man was right, I think, to some extent. His answer may be metaphorically taken that before a person would go to heaven, his old nature must be dead first. Thus, it seems that he has not yet crucified his old man, that sinful nature in mankind and so is not ready for the second coming of Jesus Christ.
       
The kingdom of God is, although, compared with marriage ceremony where ten virgins are selected to welcome the bride groom who seems to tarry long. The scripture says the ten virgins chosen to welcome the bridegroom, five of them are wise while the other five are foolish. Why? Because the five wise virgins know not whether the bridegroom would return quickly or tarry long and so, they take extra oil for their lamps while the so called foolish virgins care not whether they have oil for their lamps or not. Probably they believe that it does not matter whether there is oil or not at that moment and that at any time the bridegroom returns they would beg from the wise virgins or go out to the near village to buy. However, at midnight the bridegroom returns unexpectedly and those wise virgins who are ready with their oil in the lamp burning follow him to the marriage banquet and the door is locked leaving the foolish five virgins who are not ready outside the gate.
       
The bridegroom here represents our Lord Jesus Christ whom the believers are now betrothed to (Hosea 2:19) in righteousness, in judgment and in loving kindness and in mercies. He will come back unexpectedly to every man on earth and those who are ready in spirit and in truth will follow him to his heavenly kingdom. The sinners will cry out in anguish: “Lord! Lord!! Open the door for us and He will say to them; I do not know you — Matt. 25:11-12.
       
While the bridegroom from the parable represents Christ, the ten virgins represent believers. They are the professors of Christian religion, members of the church who wait expectantly for the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. This parable pictures out the two kinds or groups of people in the community of faith. One group is made up of people whose faith in Jesus Christ is strong. They endure hardship, sufferings and persecutions and yet wait for the coming of Christ. James records: “Blessed is the man that endureth temptation; for when he is tried, he shall receive the crown of life, which the Lord hath promised to them that love him (1:12).
       
The other group of people in the community of believers is not too strong in their faith. They are weak and live their lives in a way that does not please God. They are weary in waiting for the second coming of Christ and so, their faith dwindled. The sleeping of the foolish virgins implies that they are spiritually dead. When one is dead one has no opportunity again to praise God.
       
Therefore, brethren, let us keep on waiting for the second coming of Our Lord Jesus Christ. May God be with you!

————Meditation Point——————
 O LORD! “Indeed, no one who waits on you will be ashamed, but those who offend for no reason will be put to shame”— Psalm 25:3.


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