IN CHRIST...WE REJOICE IN VICTORY
John 14: 1 – 6
A couple walked into a pet store and while they were there looking around, they saw a parrot. The parrot looked at the man and said, “Hey, mister!”. The guy said, “Hey, what?”. And the parrot replied, “You’re stupid and your wife’s ugly.”. The two nervously chuckled and walked to another aisle.
A few minutes later, they came in sight of the bird again and the parrot called out, “Hey, mister!”. The agitated husband yelled back, “Hey, what?”. And once again the parrot said, “You’re stupid and your wife’s ugly.”.
At this the other customers gasped in disbelief. The angry husband had had enough and went to the manager to report the rudeness of his pets. The manager went directly to the parrot reached into the cage, slapped him around a little bit and said to the terrified bird, “Promise me you will never say that again!”. The trembling parrot said, “I promise, I won’t!”.
So, after the “come to Jesus meeting” between the manager and parrot the embarrassed manager apologized to the couple and headed back to his office. But as the husband and wife started to walk out of the pet store the parrot hollered at the man, “Hey, mister!”. The man looked back and muttered, “Hey, what?”. And the parrot said, “You know what!”.
That’s kind of how I feel about my sermon this morning… “We Rejoice in Our Victory.”. No news flash there. I mean, who wouldn’t rejoice over a prepared place called Heaven and a promised return by our Lord?
I doubt if any of you were on the fence this morning on whether to come to church today and then you saw in the bulletin my sermon title and said, “I’ve always had a hard time getting excited about Heaven and Christ’s return; I think I’ll stay and listen to Chris’ message.”.
And yet while I know that’s not the case, if the truth were known there are probably a few of us who are here because we need to have our faith renewed and our hope restored. When it comes to the Christian’s victory even though — you know what — you might not know why. God wanted there to be an incentive, or reward for both the living and the dead, so that either way they had hope and victory.
When long time Christians see a title that we have victory, on the surface it appears to be old news… “You know what.”.
The “Law of Familiarity” reads, “No matter how valuable, given enough time, everything will be taken for granted.”. There’s a danger for faithful Christians, and church leaders who are constantly doing the “work of the Lord”, and that is forgetting the “Lord of the work”. You’re around the messages so often that you begin to take them for granted. It was C.S. Lewis who said, “Sometimes rather than hearing new ideas, we need to be reminded of old truths.”.
Some people are under the misconception that you commit your life to Jesus Christ and then you graduate on to something better. But folks I’m here to tell you that you START with Jesus, you STAY with Jesus, and you FINISH with Jesus. It doesn’t get any better than Jesus. And He is the reason we can rejoice in victory.
My friends…it’s in Christ and in Him alone that we place our trust. Acts 4:12 says, “Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved.”. If you believe that this morning say, “AMEN.”.
So this morning, I want us to dwell upon two certainties which assure us and every single Christian in this world that WE ARE VICTORIOUS. The first certainty is this…
#1: Our home has been prepared because of. . .
? A New Relation:
Nowadays, a lot of people have bought into the popular but false notion that we’re ALL headed for heaven. But if you don’t have a companionship with Christ prior to eternity, you can’t expect a new relationship with Him in eternity.
You may recall that the reason many of the Bible characters got in trouble wasn’t because they believed in Jehovah God, people could accept that. They were persecuted because they claimed He was the ONLY God. Rulers and religious leaders couldn’t stomach that. They thought, “How exclusive! How intolerant to say that He is the ONLY way.”.
Sound familiar? Ever had someone challenge your beliefs with the convenient fall- back position of “all roads lead to Heaven”? Don’t get me wrong, it’s a great concept, it’s very reassuring. There’s only one problem with it. It’s in direct opposition to the teachings of the one whom death could not keep. For Jesus said, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”.
So, the theory of “believe what you want, we’re all heading to the same place.”, may be a true statement, if Heaven isn’t the place that you’re talking about! While it may be convenient and comforting and a way to avoid conflict, it isn’t the truth; and love compels us to inform people on how to get to Heaven.
Just as marriage is different than dating, in Heaven, your relationship with Christ will be new and fresh. God's Word confirms that by comparing it to one of the most beautiful sights you can picture. He speaks of a bride on her wedding day. Now my wife looks great all the time, but on the day we got married, she was even more beautiful!
There are two reasons why: preparation and anticipation. When a woman gets married she spends hours preparing her hair and her face and her dress. She wants to look her best. I've been to plenty of weddings in my life and have participated in quite a few, and I have yet to see an ugly bride.
What type of bride would rush into the church ten minutes before the wedding, toss on a dress, comb her hair with her fingers, and say, "I don't need to brush my teeth, I already did this week!"
No, that's not what happens. There are months of conversations and dates. There are weeks of counseling, and planning for the ceremony, reception and the honeymoon. Hours are spent improving her appearance. Manicures are scheduled, banquet rooms reserved, hair stylists are hired. Why all the fuss? Because something is about to change. It's no longer a dating relationship, now it's marriage. It is a new companionship.
But it's not just the preparation, it's also the anticipation. The organ strikes a chord and everyone stands.
rec 1 h in r This is the moment theyve been waiting for.
And as the bride moves down closer to the groom she sees that he is grinning from ear to ear. And he whispers to her, "You are beautiful, I've waited a long time for this moment." She is the picture of purity because she has prepared and waited for this day.
Johnsays, "I saw a holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband." Our home has been prepared with a new relation, but also with . . .
B. A New Location:
Heaven is a repared place, for prepared people. Stephen Brown says, "You take the first' then God takes the next step, and pretty soon you realize it was God who took the first step."
In John 15:16 Jesus said, "You did not choose me, but I chose you to go and bear fruit, fruit that will last." Heaven is possible because as Paul says in
Ephesians 1:7, "In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins.
Comedian Jerry Clower once told about a lady from Amyte County who had 16 kids. Some construction workers were putting a tar roof on a building nearby, and one-day the woman realized that one of her sons was missing. (With 16 kids, I wonder how she noticed.) She got to looking for him and discovered that he had fallen into a 55 gallon drum of black roofing tar at the construction site.
She reached down hauled him up, took one good look at him, and shoved him back into the drum and said, "Boy, it'd be a lot easier to have another ong than to clean you up!"
God not only chose us, He cleaned us up. He not only adopted us, He redeemed us. The only way that we can enter into the new location is because of the blood of Jesus Christ. That is the only way that we can be in heaven. It is only because of Christ's victory over the grave that those who believe in Him can have the hope of Heaven.
Anything less than Heaven for eternity with Jesus Christ is not victory but can only be described as defeat. Jesus said, "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."
Our home has been prepared with a new relation, a new location and C New Creation:
When you move into eternity the apostle Paul assures the Christian that you can have a new glorified body. He writes, "But our citizenship is in Heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, who, by the power that enables Him to bring everything under His control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like His glorious body." (Philippians 3:20-21)
2 years ago the entire sports world took notice of a spectacular event.
Baltimore Oriole Cal Ripken played in his 2,131St consecutive game. His streak spanned over 13 years. Ripken's mom related a story on television which I will always remember, because it epitomizes his preparation and devotion to the game.
She said, "iAThen Cal was very young it was the night before his very first Little League baseball game. I tucked him in and he was wearing his baseball uniform." So I told him, "You don't need to do that, you'll have plenty of time in the morning." So I made him get up and change into his pajamas. But several hours later when she was going to sleep, she checked on the kids one more time, and Cal was sound asleep; but he had changed back into his uniform!
Mrs. Ripken said, "He had anticipated that game, for so long that he wanted to be prepared."
Our purpose on earth is to prepare ourselves and others for eternity. Heaven is a prepared place for prepared people.
But the Christian is victorious because of another certainty.
RET MPÖJ
This message is not about different millennial views. Satan enjoys trying to divide the church over secondary issues. Our focus as Christians is upon the fact of Christ's resurrection and His promised return.
The fact is that instead of arguing over the unknown, we would be better to focus on the reality of the resurrection. A people brought together by a fact of the past, in order to be in fellowship in the present, should not divide themselves over a question of the future.
I believe that God in His wisdom has kept those specifics somewhat veiled in order to heighten the interest and to deepen our study of His word. Whenever Tony Compolo is asked about his dispensational views on the second coming he always says, "I'm not on the planning committee, I'm on the welcoming committee. "
Knowing that He is coming is more important than knowing when He is coming or how He is coming.
Since Christ's return has been promised we as
A. Christians Must be Encouraged:
The second coming will be a time of worship and celebration for the Christian. We will fall on our knees and acknowledge what the angels have been saying for centuries, "Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty, He was, and is, and is to come."
Paul says in I Thessalonians 5:2, "the coming of the Lord will be like a thief in the night." He says that so as to suggest that if we're alert our expectancy will keep us from being caught off guard by His arrival. For you see, for the Christian if won't be terrifying like the appearance of a thief. It will be an exciting experience, like the anticipated arrival of a long awaited friend.
The Biblesays, "We who are still alive and are left will be caught up with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air." Does that excite you? It should. But also since Christ's return has been promised . . . B. Non-Believers Must be Warned:
Jesus said "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."
On November 11, 1974 in Los Angeles, Mrs. Hollis Sharpe took her poodle for their usual evening walk. Beingtconscientious citizen she always carried with her a plastic bag so that she could clean up after the dog had relieved himself. That night they were returning home from their walk when a man jumped out from behind some shrubs. He knocked Hollis Sharpe to the ground, grabbed her plastic bag from out of her hand and went running off with the spoils of his crime.
Even though she sustained a broken arm, Mrs. Sharpe still maintained her sense of humor. She told the police, "I only wish I would have had more for him in the bag!"
You reap what you sow! The truth must always come out in the end. When Christ returns, the truth will be evident. There will be many who find that they were in pursuit of the wrong thing. Their priorities were upside down. Their financial portfolios, their titles, their money and their diamonds will be as meaningless as manure.
(And the bags they think are so valuable are really nothing more than waste . . . a waste of time and energy.)
There is coming a payday, an eternal accounting for the lives that we have lived. When Christ returns the trial begins for the non-believer. "God is just: He will pay back trouble to those who trouble you 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." (2 Thess. 1:6-7)
While we were in Georgia for the SCYC, several of us spent one afternoon touring the city of Atlanta. I dropped the teens off with Kendall and Denise so that they could go get our tickets for the World of Coke. While I was driving the van looking for a parking space, I noticed a sign on a warehouse right dovmtown which read: "Warning! Attack Dogs on the Premises, 3 out of 5 nightsYou guess which nights."
Eternity is nothing to guess about. Choice not chance will determine your eternal destination.
Also, because Christ's return has been promised. . .
C. Everyone Must be Ready:
Over the dome of the Capitol Building in Washington D.C. is the following inscription: "One God, one law, one element, and one far-off divine event toward which the whole creation moves." Each day we move closer to the second coming. That's why it is imperative that we share with everyone the good news that salvation is available through Jesus Christ.
Some of you probably recall in September of 1988 a man by the name of Edgar Whisenant who was convinced that he had calculated when Christ was going to return. He even printed a booklet called, "88 Reasons the Rapture will Occur in '88". Many disillusioned followers sold their belongings because of his prediction that Jesus would return on September 10, 11 or 120 Well guess what? Jesus didn't come back. On September 13th Whisenant held a press conference and said his calculations were a little off and that Christ would return between 10:00am & 11:00am Eastern Standard Time. Well, guess what? 10 years has passed and Christ is still waiting patiently to return.
My point is that we need to be skeptical of date setters. Knowing that He is coming is more important than when He is coming. But there is coming a day when the victory will be realized, and regardless of the opposition no one can rain on your parade. That's why we must be ready at all times.
While on one of his expeditions to the Antarctic, Sir Ernest Shackleton left some of his men on Elephant Island with the intent of returning for them and carrying them back to England. But he was delayed. By the time he could go back for them the sea had frozen and he had no access to the island. Three times he tried to reach them, but was prevented by the ice. Finally, on his fourth try, he broke through and found a narrow channel.
Much to his surprise, he found the crewman waiting for him, supplies packed and ready to board. They were soon on their way back to England. He asked them how they knew to be ready for him. They told him they didn't know when he would return, but they were sure he would. So every morning, the leader rolled up his bag and packed his gear and told the crew to do the same saying, "Get your things ready, boys, the boss come today."
That crew leader did his crew a favor by keeping them prepared. Jesus has done us a service by urging us to do the same: Be ready.
A number of years ago Billy Graham was Johnny Carson's guest on the Tonight Show. At one point Carson asked Billy, "What do you think would happen if Jesus came to earth again? I'd bet we'd do Him in again."
Billy Graham leaned forward in his seat and said, "You know, Johnny, Jesus predicted that He would return to earth. But the first time He came in love, the next time He'll come in power . . . no one will do Him in."
What's the world coming to? The world is coming to the day when every knee shall bow and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord.
A father walked past his son's bedroom late one night and saw a ray of light from beneath the door. The dad cracked the door and saw his son reading a wild west novel. The boy kept saying over and over again, "You're gonna get it, you're gonna get it."
His dad stepped into the room and asked, "What are you doing?" The boy explained, "I was reading this novel and the villain kept getting the best of the hero. So I skipped to the end of the book and read the last chapter. So now whenever the villain is getting the best of the hero I just laugh and say, 'You're gonna get it."'
Folks, when the present looks bleak, then remember you have hope for the future. There is a big difference between what is temporary and what is eternal. The boy is right. For if you know the end of the story, then you're not overly concerned with the development of the plot. Like him, I have read the end of The Book, and guess what? WE WIN!! Whether it's in life that you experience the second coming or in death that you are ushered into Heaven, the Christian can rejoice in our victory.
My friends, our task on earth is singular . . . to choose our eternal home. You can afford many wrong choices in life. You can choose the wrong job and survive. You can choose the wrong place to live and survive. You can choose the wrong mate and survive. But there is one choice that must be made correctly and that is your eternal destiny.
It's interesting that Jesus' first sermon and last sermon have the same message. In His first sermon, Jesus calls you and me to choose between the rock and the sand, the wide gate and the narrow gate, the wide road and the narrow road, the big crowd and the small crowd, the certainty of hell and the joy of Heaven. In His last sermon he calls us to do the same. He calls us to choose between victory and defeat. To be ready for His return.
You see, for those of us who have committed our life to Jesus Christ, there is no tomb tight enough, no shroud secure enough, no grave that can be dug deep enough to keep us from our everlasting destination in Heaven. And with the ApostlePaulwe can say, "Where O death is your sting? Where O death is your victory? Thanks be to God. He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. "
The world can't understand that type of rationale, for to them death is defeat. But I can confidently say to you that when we, as Christians cross that uncertain bridge of death. I can say with total confidence that WE HAVE WON! You see, the Christian really can rejoice in the victory.
And because we have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, in spite of our pain, we can honestly say: "Victory. Victory. Victory in Jesus."
