Jesus Is Coming Soon

Introduction

This church believes in the God of the Bible—the living, true, and only triune God, one God in three Persons, the God of creation, the God of providence, the God of redemption, the Savior of the elect, the Judge of the living and the dead, and the Lord of history.

We are living in the last days, which began with the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, the perfect God/man, the Savior and the Judge. This period will end with the second coming of Christ. We read in the scriptures, “And do this, understanding the present time. The hour has come for you to wake up from your slumber, because our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed” (Rom. 13:11). We also read, “Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many people; and he will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for him” (Heb. 9:28).

Peter saw Jesus going up into heaven (Acts 1:10–11). Each generation of true believers must live their lives in expectation of Christ’s second coming while living holy lives. We are to watch and pray while we wait for him. Jesus himself said, “At that time the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, and all the nations of the earth will mourn. They will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky, with power and great glory. And he will send his angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of the heavens to the other. . . . Therefore keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come” (Matt. 24:30–31, 42). He also warned, “Be careful, or your hearts will be weighed down with dissipation, drunkenness and the anxieties of life, and that day will close on you unexpectedly like a trap. For it will come upon all those who live on the face of the whole earth. Be always on the watch, and pray that you may be able to escape all that is about to happen, and that you may be able to stand before the Son of Man” (Luke 21: 34–36).

The End Is at Hand

Peter begins this passage, “The end of all things is near” (v. 7). History, as we know it, is coming to an end. Jesus is coming soon to put an end to history. He has not come for two thousand years, so many believers have died and gone to him. The reason he has not yet come is that all the elect have not yet been saved. Some still need to be born and hear the gospel and be saved. But Jesus is coming. He will come with all believers who have died and whose spirits are with him in heaven.

This sure hope of the second coming of Christ must regulate our lives now. Peter writes, “You ought to live holy and godly lives as you look forward to the day of God and speed its coming” (2 Pet. 3:11b–12a). Speaking of the wicked, Peter also said, “They will have to give account to him who is ready to judge the living and the dead” (1 Pet. 4:5). Wicked sinners who slander and persecute true believers will have to give an account to Jesus, who is ready to judge the living and the dead. He is coming soon to judge. In light of these truths, Peter is telling us how then we must live.

We Must Give Ourselves to Prayers

Peter writes, “Therefore be clear minded and self-controlled so that you can pray” (v. 7). We must give ourselves “to prayers” (in the Greek), as Daniel did. He prayed three times daily and was thrown in the lions’ den because of it. We must pray with fasting. We must pray intercessory prayers.

In order to pray effectually, we must have sound minds and self-control. We must be regenerate, as described in Ezekiel 36:25–27, which speaks about regeneration. Without regeneration, we cannot have a clear mind and a correct view of reality. Paul says, “We have not received the spirit of the world but the Spirit who is from God, that we may understand what God has freely given us. . . . The man without the Spirit [the unregenerate man] does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually [interpreted]” (1 Cor. 2:12, 14).

In regeneration, God gives us a new heart, a new spirit. Our heart of stubborn rebellion is taken out by spiritual surgery, and we are given a heart of flesh, an obedient heart. A disobedient person is not born again. Christ is coming to judge such a person and will send him to eternal hell unless he repents.

In regeneration, God gives us a new mind to think God’s thoughts, a new will to will God’s will, a new set of feelings by which we may rejoice even in tribulations, and new power, the power of the Holy Spirit, so that we can obey God with great joy.

The unregenerate man can only sin. He is dead toward God; thus, he hates the Bible and cannot pray. He is always serving his father the devil. He is like the legion demon man we read about in Mark 5.  He was restless, naked, and had a wicked mind. But when Christ regenerated him, he received a sound mind, and we read, “When they came to Jesus, they saw the man who had been possessed by the legion of demons, sitting there, dressed and in his right mind” (Mark 5:15).

An unbeliever does not understand reality correctly (1 Cor. 2:14). But the regenerate man has the mind of Christ and understands truth. Paul writes, “For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline” (2 Tim. 1:7). And a true believer will not get drunk; rather, he will exercise self-control. Paul writes, “Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit” (Eph. 5:18).

Such a regenerate person will pray in the will of God. John writes, “This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. And if we know that he hears us—whatever we ask—we know that we have what we asked of him” (1 John 5:14–15). Jesus said, “And when you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive him, so that your Father in heaven may forgive you your sins” (Mark 11:25). We are to pray with a good conscience, having confessed our sins and being cleansed by the blood of Christ so that we may understand reality and especially the will of God.

We do all these things so that we may spend time “in prayers.” Paul says, “I thank my God every time I remember you. In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy” (Phil. 1:3–4). He also writes, “And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints. Pray also for me, that whenever I open my mouth, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I may declare it fearlessly, as I should” (Eph. 6:18–20).

In the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus rebuked his disciples: “Why are you sleeping? Get up and pray so that you will not fall into temptation” (Luke 22:46). But Peter slept, and later denied Jesus.

Why do people sin? They sin because they do not pray. Their minds are disordered. They do not know what reality is. They do not know what the will of God is, and so they do not pray.

True believers are clear-headed people. They have clear minds; they are not stupid. But those who do not believe in Jesus will always make decisions that are wrong because they are always deciding for the broad way life.

We are clear-minded, Spirit-filled, Scripture-controlled people. Paul writes, “Be being filled with the Spirit” (Eph. 5:18). He also says, “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly” (Col. 3:16). When the Scripture controls our minds, we will see reality correctly. People may even come and lie to us, but because we have the Holy Spirit and the holy Scripture, we can see through what they are saying.

As believers, we love God and his people, not the world and its lusts. A true believer will never love this world or money or fame. John writes, “Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For everything in the world—the cravings of sinful man, the lust of his eyes and the boasting of what he has and does—comes not from the Father but from the world. The world and its desires pass away, but the man who does the will of God lives forever” (1 John 2:15–17).

Love One Another Deeply

Peter continues: “Above all things,” meaning it is of supreme importance, “love one another deeply” (v. 8). He already said this in chapter 1: “Now that you have purified yourselves by obeying the truth so that you have sincere love for your brothers, love one another deeply, from the heart” (1 Pet. 1:22). So Peter is repeating himself in 1 Peter 4:8.

Only regenerate people can love truly because love is the first fruit the Holy Spirit produces in a regenerate believer. The Bible tells us the following truths about love:

1. Love fulfills the law—that means the word of God, the will of God. Jesus said, “If you love me, keep my commandments.”
2. Love is the greatest.
3. God is love.
4. Love abides.
5. Love forgives, not seven times, but seven times seventy. That means we are to forgive without limit. Jesus said so. Peter asked, “What about seven times? Is that all right?” Jesus said, “No. You need forgiveness from God without limit. And so you are to forgive others without limit.”
6. Love never fails.
7. Love dies that the loved ones may live. When the Titanic sank, the fathers and husbands went down with the sinking ship so that their wives and children might live. Jesus Christ loved us and died for us. That is Titanic

Jesus spoke about true love: “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another” (John 13:34–35). So later John wrote, “This is the message you heard from the beginning: We should love one another” (1 John 3:11).

Jesus also taught us how to love. John says, “This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers. If anyone has material possessions and sees his brother in need but has no pity on him, how can the love of God be in him? Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth” (1 John 3:16–18). John also says, “Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. . . . And he has given us this command: Whoever loves God must also love his brother” (1 John 4:11, 21).

God commands us to love. John writes, “This is his command: to believe in the name of his Son, Jesus Christ, and to love one another as he commanded us” (1 John 3:23). Listen to what Paul says, “Here there is no Greek or Jew, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave or free, but Christ is all, and is in all” (Col. 3:11).

We must have fervent love, especially for God’s people. The Holy Spirit distributes the love of God to all his people in abundance. Paul writes, “And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts [in abundance] by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us” (Rom. 5:5). This is a love that even dies for your brothers.

With this abundant love of God, we love God, who first loved us, and we love all God’s people deeply. I witnessed such deep love during the revival in South India, which began in 1925 and lasted until the 1950s. Every distinction and discrimination was wiped out instantly. I still remember two sisters who belonged to the lowest class, Martha and Mary. They were not supposed to come into our house. But when the revival came, we treated them as our mothers.

Consider what Jesus said about the church of Ephesus: “Yet I hold this against you: You have forsaken your first love” (Rev. 2:4). About the church of Laodicea he said, “I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other!” (Rev. 3:15). Such will be spit out of his mouth.

Then Peter says, “because love covers over a multitude of sins” (v. 8). Fervent, deep love will forgive and cover over a multitude of sins that our brothers and sisters may have committed against us, and which God has forgiven in Christ. Peter was speaking from Proverbs 10:12: “Hatred stirs up dissension, but love covers over all wrongs.”

Jesus said, “If you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins” (Matt. 6:14–15). When people sin, they are sinning against God and against others. They must repent, confess, and ask forgiveness, and our job is to forgive them. Paul writes, “Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you” (Eph. 4:32). We are to love as Christ loved us, and we are to forgive as God forgave us in Christ. In fact, we have no right not to forgive, and if we do not forgive, a root of bitterness can grow in us and destroy us. Those who die without forgiving others are proving that they are not born again.

Practice Hospitality

Then Peter writes, “Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling” (v. 9). I also saw this in the revival. We are to practice hospitality, especially to God’s people. Paul writes, “Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers” (Gal. 6:9–10). We also read, “Do not forget to entertain strangers, for by so doing some people have entertained angels without knowing it” (Heb. 13:2; see also Gen. 18). Paul says, “Share with God’s people who are in need. Practice hospitality” (Rom. 12:13).

Consider what Jesus said: “For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in. . . . The King will reply, ‘I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me’” (Matt. 25:35, 40). These people were practicing hospitality in Christ’s name.

Hospitality was necessary for God’s people because some of them were very poor, some were suffering persecution, some had experienced confiscation of their properties, and some were missionaries, so they traveled frequently. Others were business people who also had to travel frequently (Rom. 16:1–2). Additionally, in those days, inns were like brothels; Christians would not want to stay in them.

So Peter says, “Practice hospitality without murmuring” (v. 9). When we murmur, we are murmuring against God. Paul asks, “What do you have that you did not receive?” (1 Cor. 4:7). Murmuring shows there is no love for God and no love for God’s people.

The early church practiced hospitality. In Acts 2:45 we read, “Selling their possessions and goods, they gave to anyone as he had need.”  In Acts 4:34–35 we read, “There were no needy persons among them. For from time to time those who owned lands or houses sold them, brought the money from the sales and put it at the apostles’ feet, and it was distributed to anyone as he had need.” Yet soon discrimination came: “In those days when the number of disciples was increasing, the Grecian Jews among them complained against the Hebraic Jews because their widows were being overlooked in the daily distribution of food” (Acts 6:1). Notice how quickly love can cool down.

So Paul writes, “Do everything without complaining or arguing” (Phil. 2:14). Where there is complaining and arguing, there is no Holy Spirit and there is no love. If you are tempted to grumble and complain, consider 1 Corinthians 10:10: “And do not grumble, as some of them did—and were killed by the destroying angel.” God may kill the complaining person.

When we practice hospitality, we are doing so in Jesus’ name. Practicing hospitality is a great privilege for a Christian. We do it with joy, with thankful hearts, for God’s glory.

Serve One Another

Then Peter says, “Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God’s grace in its various forms” (v. 10). We are to serve one another with the grace gift we received freely from God.

In ourselves, we have nothing. Our very existence came to us from God, as well as any gifts that we have. So we are to serve one another with the grace gift we have received (“in the past,” according to the Greek) from God. (PGM) Different people have different gifts, just as in the human body, there are different parts such as eyes and feet. Yet my feet need my eyes, and my eyes need my feet.

We are to use the gifts God gives us to serve one another. Jesus said, “Freely you have received, freely give” (Matt. 10:8). There are many scriptures that speak of this:

• Romans 12:6–8: “We have different gifts, according to the grace given us. If a man’s gift is prophesying, let him use it in proportion to his faith. If it is serving, let him serve; if it is teaching, let him teach; if it is encouraging, let him encourage; if it is contributing to the needs of others, let him give generously; if it is leadership, let him govern diligently; if it is showing mercy, let him do it cheerfully.”
• 1 Corinthians 7:7–11: “Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good. To one there is given through the Spirit the message of wisdom, to another the message of knowledge by means of the same Spirit, to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by that one Spirit, to another miraculous powers, to another prophecy, to another distinguishing between spirits, to another speaking in different kinds of tongues, and to still another the interpretation of tongues. All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, and he gives them to each one, just as he determines.”
• 1 Corinthians 12:28–30: “And in the church God has appointed first of all apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then workers of miracles, also those having gifts of healing, those able to help others, those with gifts of administration, and those speaking in different kinds of tongues. Are all apostles? Are all prophets? Are all teachers? Do all work miracles? Do all have gifts of healing? Do all speak in tongues? Do all interpret?”
• 1 Peter 4:10–11: “Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God’s grace in its various forms. If anyone speaks, he should do it as one speaking the very words of God. If anyone serves, he should do it with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ. To him be the glory and the power for ever and ever. Amen.”
• Ephesians 4:7: “But to each one of us grace has been given as Christ apportioned it.”
• Ephesians 4:11–13: “It was he who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, to prepare God’s people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.”
• 1 Corinthians 7:7: “I wish that all men were as I am. But each man has his own gift from God; one has this gift, another has that.”

In a body, the eyes need the feet and the feet need the eyes, and the members of the human body are not proud, envious, or jealous of each other. They serve one another with their God-given gifts. In the same way, the members of the church of Jesus Christ are to serve one another with their gifts so “that there should be no division in the body, but that its parts should have equal concern for each other. If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honored, every part rejoices with it” (1 Cor. 12:25–26).  What are we to do with the grace gifts we have freely received from God? “[We are to] prepare God’s people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up” (Eph. 4:12). We do so as good stewards as God’s varied grace.

We are given these grace gifts freely, which means we are not the proprietors, the owners. We are merely stewards, appointed to minister to God’s people faithfully, knowing that we will have to give an account to God for the use of these God-given gifts. They are given to us for distribution to God’s people. Paul writes, “So then, men ought to regard us as servants of Christ and as those entrusted with the secret things of God. Now it is required that those who have been given a trust must prove faithful” (1 Cor. 4:1–2). Paul also says, “For who makes you different from anyone else? What do you have that you did not receive? And if you did receive it, why do you boast as though you did not?” (1 Cor. 4:7).

Friends, we can even pray for God to give us a grace gift (charisma, Greek). Paul admonishes, “Follow the way of love and eagerly desire spiritual gifts, especially the gift of prophecy” (1 Cor. 14:1). These gifts are available to God’s church until Christ returns. They are available according to God’s sovereign will.

The gifts will exist until Christ comes again. Paul writes, “Therefore you do not lack any spiritual gift as you eagerly wait for our Lord Jesus Christ to be revealed” (1 Cor. 1:7). He speaks of the same idea in 1 Corinthians 13:

Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away. For we know in part and we prophesy in part, but when perfection comes, the imperfect disappears. When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put childish ways behind me. Now we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known. (1 Cor. 13:8–12)

We use our different grace gifts to serve God’s people and edify them for God’s glory. In verse 11, Peter deals with two classes of grace gifts: preaching and serving.

First he says, “If anyone speaks, he must speak as the word of God” (v. 11). We must not add or subtract from the Scripture; rather, we must interpret correctly by the Spirit so that we might declare the word of God for the blessing of others. Paul refers to those with speaking gifts—pastors and teachers—in Ephesians 4:11. Elsewhere he writes, “How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? And how can they preach unless they are sent? As it is written, ‘How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!’” (Rom. 10:14–15).

Paul also says, “But thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumphal procession in Christ and through us spreads everywhere the fragrance of the knowledge of him. For we are to God the aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing. To the one we are the smell of death; to the other, the fragrance of life. And who is equal to such a task? Unlike so many, we do not peddle the word of God for profit. On the contrary, in Christ we speak before God with sincerity, like men sent from God” (2 Cor. 2:14–17).

“If anyone speaks, let him speak as the oracles of God.” The Second Helvetic Confession says in chapter 1, “The preaching of the word of God is the word of God.” Martin Luther said, “Every honest pastor’s and preacher’s mouth is Christ’s mouth . . . and the Word, which he preacheth is likewise not the pastor’s and preacher’s [word] but God’s.”[1] If a person does not respect the word, he is damned, and God ordained his damnation. He does not want to believe because God ordained that he would not believe, from an infralapsarian point of view. All have sinned, yet God saves some. Can we fight against him? No. The word of God “is profitable for teaching, rebuking, correcting, and training in righteousness, that the man of God may be thoroughly furnished for every good work” (2 Tim 3:16–17).

John Calvin said, “When a man has climbed up into the pulpit . . . it is [so] that God may speak to us by the mouth of a man.”[2] So when Peter says, “If anyone speaks as the oracles of God,” he is referring to the ministries of preaching, teaching, counseling, and evangelism. God will help us in these ministries. Jesus said, “When they arrest you, do not worry about what to say or how to say it. At that time you will be given what to say, for it will not be you speaking, but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you” (Matt. 10:19–20).

Speaking ministry requires that a preacher be called by God, sent by God, and gifted by God. He will not peddle the word for money. He must be pious and learned, able to interpret the word correctly and declare the word in the power of the Holy Spirit.

The second class of gifts is diaconal, gifts of helps. “If anyone serves, serve God’s people with the grace gifts received” (v. 11). Grace gifts include money. Remember the rich young ruler? He refused to give away his money. But when Zacchaeus, the great sinner, was regenerated, he said, “Look, Lord! Here and now I give half of my possessions to the poor, and if I have cheated anybody out of anything, I will pay back four times the amount.” Jesus declared, “Today salvation has come to this house” (Luke 19:8–9).

We must serve one another not in our human strength but with the supernatural, divine strength God will give us in abundance. Jesus said, “You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses” (Acts 1:8). Paul said, “I can do all things through him who gives me strength” (Phil. 4:13).

In John 13, we read that Jesus washed the feet of his apostles, doing the work of a slave, and we should do the same. In this church, almost everyone serves God’s people in God’s power. They daily fulfill Ephesians 2:10: “For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” People are serving all the time in this church because it is a church born out of revival. We find a list of such good works in 1 Timothy 5:9–10: “No widow may be put on the list of widows unless she is over sixty, has been faithful to her husband, and is well known for her good deeds, such as bringing up [godly] children, showing hospitality, washing the feet of the saints, helping those in trouble and devoting herself to all kinds of good deeds.” This is diaconal service. And God will reward us for every good work we do. Paul writes, “You know that the Lord will reward everyone for whatever good he does, whether he is slave or free” (Eph. 6:8). God does not have to reward us, but he does. May God help us to be rich in good works! God will reward us when Jesus comes again to judge his people.

Finally, Peter says we are to serve “so that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ. To him be the glory and the power for ever and ever. Amen” (v. 11). In whatever capacity we serve, the ultimate purpose is the glory of God and his Son Jesus Christ, not our own glory, fame, and power. The Shorter Catechism asks, “What is the chief end of man?” The answer is, “To glorify God and to enjoy him forever.”

Our purpose is to glorify God. Paul admonishes, “So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God” (1 Cor. 10:31). John writes, “In a loud voice they sang: ‘Worthy is the Lamb, who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and strength and honor and glory and praise!’ Then I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and under the earth and on the sea, and all that is in them, singing: ‘To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb be praise and honor and glory and power, for ever and ever!’” (Rev. 5:12–13).

Application

Consider, then, these questions:

1. Do you realize that Jesus is coming soon, or that you will to him by death? Either he will come back, or you will go to him.
2. Do you realize that Jesus Christ is ready to judge the living and the dead? Do you realize that you must give him an account of your life?
3. Have you experienced regeneration by the word and the Spirit?
4. Do you pray as Daniel did with sound mind, in the Holy Spirit’s power, with clear understanding of the will of God, in reference to all things, or do you lean onto your own understanding? When we pray, we want to hear what God has to say.
5. Do you love God’s people deeply and sacrificially, just as Christ loved us and was crucified for our sins in our place? If not, you are not regenerate.
6. Do you forgive others who sinned against you, without limit?
7. Do you practice hospitality, especially to God’s people, without murmuring?
8. Do you serve others with the grace gift God has endowed you with, including money?
9. Do you hear and do the word preached by God-sent pastors?
10. Do you do all things not for self-promotion but only for the glory of God and his Son, our Lord Jesus Christ?

May God help us to love him and his people deeply! And may we recognize that if we do not love, we are not regenerate, because the first fruit of the Spirit is love. May God pour out his Spirit upon us and revive us, redeem us, save us, and fill us with the Holy Spirit, so that we may live our lives for God’s glory. Amen.

[1] Daniel M. Doriani, 1 Peter, Reformed Expository Commentary series (Phillipsburg, NJ: P&R, 2014), 174.

[2] Ibid.