• Titus 2:13-14 (NIV)
[13] . . . We wait for the blessed hope—the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, [14] who gave himself for us to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for himself a people that are his very own, eager to do what is good.
INTRODUCTION:
Looking for the Lord’s personal return always gives people a great view of Jesus. We do not merely believe in the Christ of history; we believe in the Christ of glory! Those of us who wholeheartedly believe in Christ’s second coming and hold tightly to our blessed hope do not mumble about it. You can hear what we say; we have good news to tell. When a man or woman tells you good news of Christ’s return it is not mumbled. No we SHOUT about it!
Paul told Titus that we “wait for the blessed hope—the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ.” Our faith in God is an active faith; faith that is not active is a dead faith, which is no faith at all. Therefore, waiting is never passive; faith in God demands that WAITING IS ACTIVE. Waiting for Christ’s return means we have something to do—something to be excited about.
When it comes to our blessed hope of Christ’s second coming we’ve got a lot to SHOUT about!
S – we STICK WITH IT
H – we anticipate HONOR AND REWARD
O – we anticipate OUR WEDDING DAY
U – we are motivated to UPRIGHT LIVING
T – we are motivated to TAKE A CHANCE
I. STICK WITH IT.
1. The blessed hope of Christ’s second coming motivates us to stick with it!
a) Our blessed hope steadies our resolve to endure until the end. Regardless of what may happen to us or around us we won’t give up or abandon our faith in Christ. We will be faithful until the very end.
• John 16:33 (NIV)
"I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world."
b) Jesus told his disciples that they would have problems and difficulties, but to not give up because He had overcome the world. Jesus knew in advance that He would have victory over death, and that through His sacrifice upon the cross and resurrection from the dead His disciples could have peace, but the disciples endured watching their Lord be put to death without the inner assurance that Jesus would rise from the dead. The disciple through all was lost; that it was over. They didn’t understand what Jesus was telling them.
c) DO WE GET IT? We are on the other side of the cross; we know that Jesus has been raised from the dead. Jesus really had overcome the world. So take heart and don’t give up. Jesus will come again just as He promised. UNTIL THEN STICK WITH IT. Yes we will have problems, but Jesus has overcome the world, and He will come again just like He said he would.
2. It is not how you start the race that counts; it is how you finish!
a) Stick with it! Don’t let the circumstances of life get you down or make you want to throw in the towel! Persevere until the very end!
• Matthew 10:22 (NIV)
All men will hate you because of me, but he who stands firm to the end will be saved.
• Matthew 24:12-13 (NIV)
[12] Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold, [13] but he who stands firm to the end will be saved.
b) With an expectation of our Lord’s return we ought to have the confidence to face anything this life can throw at us. Our hope is greater than ‘jellin’ with Dr. Scholl’s or getting a perfect night’s sleep with a Select Comfort sleep number bed. Those who STICK WITH IT, who persevere until the very end will be saved no matter what difficulties or hardships they may face.
ILLUSTRATION: On a balmy October afternoon in 1982, Badger Stadium in Madison, Wisconsin, was packed with more than 60,000 die-hard University of Wisconsin supporters ready to shout! The Badgers were taking on the Michigan State Spartans. Unfortunately the Spartans were the better team. What seemed odd that day was that as the score became more lopsided the Badger fans broke out with loud cheers and unexpected bursts of applause. How could they cheer when their team was losing so badly? It turns out that seventy miles away the Milwaukee Brewers were beating the St. Louis Cardinals in game three of the 1982 World Series. Many of the Badger fans in the stands were listening to portable radios and responding to something other than their immediate circumstances.
c) STICK WITH IT! We have a hope that is greater and surer than anything this world can offer, and it is a hope that will take us through anything the world throws at us too!
• Ephesians 1:18-19 (NIV)
[18] I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, [19] and his incomparably great power for us who believe.
d) Our hope in Christ is sure! It is an absolute that we can hold onto no matter what may come our way.
• Hebrews 6:18-20 (NIV)
[18] God did this so that, by two unchangeable things in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled to take hold of the hope offered to us may be greatly encouraged. [19] We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure. It enters the inner sanctuary behind the curtain, [20] where Jesus, who went before us, has entered on our behalf. He has become a high priest forever, in the order of Melchizedek.
3. Our blessed hope is something we can SHOUT about. As we actively wait for His return we STICK WITH IT, and we anticipate:
II. HONOR AND REWARD.
1. Our blessed hope of Christ’s second coming gives us the assurance of HONOR AND REWARD. That’s something worth shouting about!
a) The greatest honor and reward that we can ever receive is to be welcomed into God’s presence, that God almighty will receive us into His presence and not turn us away or order our execution for daring to come before Him. That is an honor beyond anything I can imagine.
• Matthew 10:32-33 (NIV)
[32] "Whoever acknowledges me before men, I will also acknowledge him before my Father in heaven. [33] But whoever disowns me before men, I will disown him before my Father in heaven.
b) What is Jesus saying? Those who honor God before men, He will honor before God in heaven! However, those who dishonor God, not simply denying God through what they say but to also discredit God through their actions, these Jesus will dishonor or disown before God in heaven. Jesus will honor those who honor Him!
2. The American culture is all about INSTANT GRATIFICATION. We are a microwave society that wants immediate results.
ILLUSTRATION: Henry John Heinz the founder of Heinz foods liked to say, “To do a common thing uncommonly well brings success.” How many of you remember the old Heinz ketchup commercial with a bottle of ketchup turned upside down over a hotdog or french-fries and a little boy patiently waiting for the ketchup to come out of the bottle? Heinz wanted you to believe that their ketchup was worth the wait.
a) Good thing really do come to those who actively wait upon the Lord!
• Mark 8:34-35 (NIV)
[34] Then [Jesus] called the crowd to him along with his disciples and said: "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. [35] For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me and for the gospel will save it.
b) If you think that by being a Christian you can enjoy the sweet by and by in the nasty here and now you have missed it! Jesus didn’t promise instant gratification; Jesus said TAKE UP YOUR CROSS AND FOLLOW ME. Deny yourself now; stop seeking the pleasures of the world as you die to yourself. Those who lose their lives in this life will find it!
c) The honor and reward does not always come now, but when Christ comes He will come with His reward!
• Revelation 22:12 (NIV)
"Behold, I am coming soon! My reward is with me, and I will give to everyone according to what he has done.
d) The anticipation of HONOR AND REWARD should encourage us to actively wait for His coming, to live out our faith in what we say and do.
3. Our blessed hope is something to SHOUT about. Christ’s second coming will encourage us to STICK IT OUT, gives us an anticipation of HONOR AND GLORY, but that’s not all. Our blessed hope is also the anticipation of:
III. OUR WEDDING DAY.
1. At Christ’s coming we shall be united with our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
ILLUSTRATION: I don’t think there is anything quite like the anticipation and excitement of a bride and groom before their wedding. I’ve sat with many engaged couples and talked with them about their wedding plans and their lives together after the big day. No one knows all that life will bring their way, but together they dream being together as husband and wife; nothing can dampen their excitement of their love or extinguish their hope for a lifetime together. When their wedding day comes both the bride and groom are all smiles because their dreams have come true in the one that they love.
a) We are the bride of Christ, and He is our groom. Our love for each other overflows as we anticipate OUR WEDDING DAY, to be joined forever with the one who loves us most. It is a day we anticipate and look forward to.
• Revelation 22:17 (NIV)
The Spirit and the bride say, "Come!"
b) The desire of the bride is that the bridegroom will come and sweep her off her feet, so she can be united with her husband. OUR WEDDING DAY is coming!
• Revelation 19:7 (NIV)
Let us rejoice and be glad and give him glory! For the wedding of the Lamb has come, and his bride has made herself ready.
2. Jesus used strong words to describe the separation and longing that His followers would have for Him in the same way a bride would long for her bridegroom.
• John 14:1-3 (NIV)
[1] "Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in me. [2] In my Father’s house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. [3] And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am.
• John 16:6-7 (NIV)
[6] Because I have said these things, you are filled with grief. [7] But I tell you the truth: It is for your good that I am going away . . .
a) Let’s not be overcome by anxiety or fear; let’s not grieve as those with no hope. Yes Jesus has gone away, but He is preparing a place for us and will come to take us to be with Him
b) Let our hearts overflow with anticipation of OUR WEDDING DAY!
• Matthew 24:30-31 (NIV)
[30] "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. [31] 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.
• 1 Thessalonians 4:16-18 (NIV)
[16] For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. [17] After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever. [18] Therefore encourage each other with these words.
3. Our blessed hope is something to SHOUT about. Christ’s second coming will encourage us to STICK IT OUT, gives us an anticipation of HONOR AND GLORY together with the anticipation of OUR WEDDING DAY. But until the coming of that great and glorious day Christ’s second coming should also motivate us to:
IV. UPRIGHT LIVING.
1. The knowledge of Christ’s second coming gives us a powerful incentive to live a righteous life each and every day.
• Titus 2:12-14 (NIV)
[12] It [the grace of God] teaches us to say "No" to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age, [13] while we wait for the blessed hope—the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, [14] who gave himself for us to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for himself a people that are his very own, eager to do what is good.
a) The knowledge of Christ’s return should encourage us to be “eager to do what is good.” That is His desire for our lives; that by God’s grace we can be set free from sin and empowered to live a righteous life. SHOUT it aloud; we are to be a holy people as we wait for His coming.
• 2 Peter 3:10-12 (NIV)
[10] But the day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything in it will be laid bare.
[11] Since everything will be destroyed in this way, what kind of people ought you to be? You ought to live holy and godly lives [12] as you look forward to the day of God and speed its coming.
b) Peter takes it a step further. Living an UPRIGHT and godly life will actually hasten the day of the Lord and speed its coming. Now there is a motivation to live a holy life!
ILLUSTRATION: The boss caught an employee sitting at his desk staring out the window. “Why aren’t you working?” Without much thought the employee confessed to his boss, “Because I didn’t see you coming.” How much better to anticipate that your boss could walk in at any moment and let him catch you doing something good!
2. Time and again we are reminded that in view of His second coming we should be motivated to UPRIGHT LIVING, to live a righteous life!
• Matthew 7:21-23 (NIV)
[21] "Not everyone who says to me, ’Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. [22] Many will say to me on that day, ’Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?’ [23] Then I will tell them plainly, ’I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’
a) It’s not good enough just to claim that Jesus is your Lord, so you attend church every Sunday—big deal! Only those who do the will of the Father, who live a holy life will enter into the kingdom of heaven.
• Mark 13:35-37 (NIV)
[35] "Therefore keep watch because you do not know when the owner of the house will come back—whether in the evening, or at midnight, or when the rooster crows, or at dawn. [36] If he comes suddenly, do not let him find you sleeping. [37] What I say to you, I say to everyone: ’Watch!’ "
• Matthew 24:42 (NIV)
Therefore keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come.
b) Jesus warns us to be ready! We are not to be like the employee caught daydreaming and just looking out the window. Jesus clearly tells us that the hour of His coming will catch us unprepared unless we purpose to keep watch. UPRIGHT LIVING will keep you ready for Jesus second coming; let the Lord return and catch you doing something good!
3. Our blessed hope is something to SHOUT about. Christ’s second coming will encourage us to STICK IT OUT, gives us an anticipation of HONOR AND GLORY together with the anticipation of OUR WEDDING DAY. But until the coming of that great and glorious day Christ’s second coming should also motivate us to UPRIGHT LIVING and finally S-H-O-U-T, we are motivated to:
V. TAKE A CHANCE.
1. We are to wait for the coming of the Lord with an active faith. The awareness of Christ’s second coming should give us nerves of steal so that we are confident to take a risk for God to be glorified.
a) Jesus told the story of a man who was unwilling to take any risks. This man’s fear to take a chance eventually cost him everything. In Matthew 25 Jesus told a parable of a man going on a journey who entrusted his property to his servants; to one he gave 5 talents, to another 2 talents and to the last the man gave 1 talent. After the man left the first two servants went out and immediately doubled what had been entrusted to them by their master. How did they do that? They took a risk; with no guarantee of a return they went to work and did what they could. Their risk paid off as they double their master’s money. But the third man wasn’t willing to take a risk; instead he hid his master’s money digging a whole and burying it. Now look what Jesus said happened to this third servant when his master returned and settled accounts with him.
• Matthew 25:24-30 (NIV)
[24] "Then the man who had received the one talent came. ’Master,’ he said, ’I knew that you are a hard man, harvesting where you have not sown and gathering where you have not scattered seed. [25] So I was afraid and went out and hid your talent in the ground. See, here is what belongs to you.’
[26] "His master replied, ’You wicked, lazy servant! So you knew that I harvest where I have not sown and gather where I have not scattered seed? [27] Well then, you should have put my money on deposit with the bankers, so that when I returned I would have received it back with interest.
[28] " ’Take the talent from him and give it to the one who has the ten talents. [29] For everyone who has will be given more, and he will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken from him. [30] And throw that worthless servant outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’
b) This man’s unwillingness to TAKE A RISK cost him everything the master had given to him and more; this wicked lazy servant was taken out of the master’s presence with weeping and gnashing of teeth.
2. What risk has God challenged you to take? Are you willing to TAKE A CHANCE for God?
a) The believers in Thessalonica were anticipating the coming of the Lord. Paul wrote to them and encouraged them to know that they had something to SHOUT about as they waited for the coming of the Lord. Even as the people in this church endured hardship and persecution Paul wanted them to STICK IT OUT and not abandon their faith. That even in the midst of difficult people and trying circumstances they could continue to TAKE A CHANCE with the knowledge that God would help them.
• 2 Thessalonians 1:5-11 (NIV)
[5] All this [your persecution and hardship] is evidence that God’s judgment is right, and as a result you will be counted worthy of the kingdom of God, for which you are suffering. [6] God is just: He will pay back trouble to those who trouble you [7] and give relief to you who are troubled, and to us as well. This will happen when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven in blazing fire with his powerful angels. [8] He will punish those who do not know God and do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus. [9] They will be punished with everlasting destruction and shut out from the presence of the Lord and from the majesty of his power [10] on the day he comes to be glorified in his holy people and to be marveled at among all those who have believed. This includes you, because you believed our testimony to you.
[11] With this in mind, we constantly pray for you, that our God may count you worthy of his calling, and that by his power he may fulfill every good purpose of yours and every act prompted by your faith.
b) Paul prayed that God would accomplish every act of faith that the Thessalonian believers took and that every time they were willing to TAKE A CHANCE to accomplish something good God would reward their faith by doing for them what they were powerless to do for themselves.
• John 14:12-14 (NIV)
[12] I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing. He will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father. [13] And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Son may bring glory to the Father. [14] You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it.
c) Jesus assures us that we can dare to TAKE A CHANCE. We can step out in faith with full assurance that God will do whatever we ask in the name of Jesus. Let our blessed hope motivate you to be willing to TAKE A CHANCE so God can be glorified through what you do for God.
d) Will you be willing to TAKE A CHANCE that will yield an eternal dividend?
CONCLUSION:
When it comes to our blessed hope of Christ’s second coming we’ve got a lot to SHOUT about!
S – We STICK WITH IT; never give up but press on with faith.
H – We anticipate HONOR AND REWARD; we will be welcomed into God’s presence and rewarded for how we have lived our lives.
O – We anticipate OUR WEDDING DAY; we will be united with Jesus.
U – We are motivated to UPRIGHT LIVING; live a righteous life.
T – We are motivated to TAKE A CHANCE; be a risk taker for God.
