God Encounters #4: Jesus The Soon Coming King Series

CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE GOD KIND #4

– JESUS THE SOON COMING KING

OPENING TEXT:

“Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever.” (Hebrews 13:8).

• For the past month, we have been considering the Foursquare Gospel, and looking at Jesus the Saviour, Healer, Baptiser in the Holy Spirit, and today we come to Jesus the Soon Coming King.

OPENING: Why do kids love playing kings and queens? Rev. 1:6 – “He has made us kings”

I. THE NATURE OF JESUS – THE SOON COMING KING:

KEY TEXT:

“And as it is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgment, so Christ was offered once to bear the sins of many. To those who eagerly wait for Him He will appear a second time, apart from sin, for salvation.” (Heb. 9:27-28).

Jesus is the King who is returning soon!

II. A BIBLE STORY THAT ILLUSTRATES THIS TRUTH: The Kingdom of God

1. GOD’S SOVEREIGNTY:

“In the beginning, God created the Heavens and the Earth.” (Genesis 1:1).

• In the Apostle’s Creed, we declare that, “We believe in God the Father Almighty, Creator of Heaven and Earth.”

• Before we can talk about Jesus as the Coming King, we must establish that God has been ruling and reigning as supreme King for all of eternity.

2. MAN’S DESIGNATED AUTHORITY:

“Then God said, "Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” (Genesis 1:26).

• God delegated authority to mankind “on the earth.”

3. BEFORE THE FALL:

“Then God saw everything that He had made, and indeed it was very good.” (Genesis 1:31).

• God had placed Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden (paradise/delights)

4. THE IMPACT OF THE FALL:

“Now the serpent was more cunning than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made. And he said to the woman, "Has God indeed said, ’You shall not eat of every tree of the garden’?" And the woman said to the serpent, "We may eat the fruit of the trees of the garden; but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God has said, ’You shall not eat it, nor shall you touch it, lest you die.’ "Then the serpent said to the woman, "You will not surely die. For God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil." So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree desirable to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate. She also gave to her husband with her, and he ate.” (Genesis 3:1-6).

• Note the temptation: “You will be like God.” You don’t have to have God as your King, you can rule your own life!

• The reality is, Adam and Eve lost their right to rule in the Earth, and handed it over to Satan.

• v.24: The impact of the fall: “So He drove out the man; and He placed cherubim at the east of the garden of Eden, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to guard the way to the tree of life.”

• V.15: Thank God for the promise! God said to the serpent: “And I will put enmity Between you and the woman, And between your seed and her Seed; He shall bruise your head, And you shall bruise His heel.”

5. THE GOSPEL OF THE KINGDOM:

“Now after John was put in prison, Jesus came to Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God, and saying, "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel.” (Mark 1:14-15).

• In the NT, there are 137 references to the Kingdom of God.

• QUOTE: “To what does the Kingdom refer? It refers to God’s sovereign rule in the universe – He is the King of the Heavens. But more specifically, here it refers to the entry of God’s long anticipated Anointed One – the prophesied Messiah, who would not only be the Saviour and King of Israel, but of all mankind… Declaring the Kingdom “at hand.” … John was announcing that the rule of God’s King was about to overthrow the power and rule of all evil.” (Jack Hayford, The Spirit-filled Life Bible).

• How do we enter the Kingdom? Repent (turn from sin) & believe (faith in Jesus).

• “He has delivered us from the power of darkness and translated us into the kingdom of the Son of His love.” (Colossians 1:13).