VIDEO
Why Will You Weep When Jesus Returns? (Revelation 1:7)
Homecoming 2021— 190 Years!
GIST: Jesus is coming back; it will be unmistakably holy, and you will either be shedding tears of joy or despair.
Today, we’re excited to celebrate our 190th Homecoming. Guys, that’s exciting! For 190 years, God has been moving in this place, and we’ve been blessed to be part of it!
Since we started our “sermon time” with a video interview with Brother John Garland— and since some of you are probably starting to think about fried chicken ☺️— I’m going to try and keep it short this morning. We’re going to keep with our study in Revelation, but we’re only looking at one verse that carries a truth this church has clung to for 190 years, and it’s a truth with eternal implications. That’s not just me being dramatic to distract you from the chicken either ☺️. Let’s look at Revelation 1:7→
“7 Behold, He is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see Him, even those who pierced Him, and all tribes of the earth will wail on account of Him. Even so. Amen.”
Here’s our gist for this morning: Jesus is coming back; it will be unmistakably holy, and you will either be shedding tears of joy or despair. Ok, so let’s just dive into that. First, let’s not miss the central truth→
I. JESUS IS COMING BACK
This verse starts by directing us to→
Behold. This means look, pay attention, don’t miss this. I know it’s easy to just skim over this because Jesus’ return is so often something we take for granted in the church… or at least we claim to. We know it’s not really taken seriously by the world, but even with the church, even within my own heart, it’s easy to live like He’s never coming back. However→
He Is Coming. There is certainty in these words. He is coming back— yet so many doubt. Why? Because for 2,000 years, we’ve been waiting. It’s easy to look at that fact He hasn’t yet returned and interpret that to mean He never will. Look at what Peter says about this in 2 Peter 3:9-10:
“9 The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance. 10 But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, and then the heavens will pass away with a roar, and the heavenly bodies will be burned up and dissolved, and the earth and the works that are done on it will be exposed.”
Guys, He’s not delayed. He’s just not done yet! As we read through this letter and see what has been and will continue to be happening from the time Jesus ascended until He returns is Jesus reaching into brokenness and saving souls. He knows everyone who will come to Him. If you’re reading these words and you haven’t let Him rescue you from your sin yet, rejoice that He’s waited because He’s still working in your heart. Come to Him today. Don’t delay. He is coming back.
Ok, I promised brevity today, so we’ll have to keep trucking. We need to remember this truth. He’ll be back when the last soul is saved, and when He returns→
II. IT WILL BE UNMISTAKABLY HOLY
Ok, I want to break the next part of the verse into three parts. First, let’s break down this→
With The Clouds statement. This doesn’t imply that Heaven is somehow physically “above” us. When the first Russian cosmonaut went to space, he allegedly said, though I have now read articles that assert this was propaganda and not something he actually said, ‘I have now been to space, and I did not encounter God.’ Even if he didn’t actually say this, it does bring up a question sometimes posed because we speak of Heaven in terms of being “up there” and Hell as “down there”. These are figures of speech we use, but they don’t actually have anything to do with Heaven’s actual location. Heaven exist in the spiritual realm, so we could travel to the edge of the universe and not find it there. Referring to it as “in the clouds” is a way of expressing it’s seperateness and holiness. When Jesus ascending to Heaven, He first rose up “into the clouds”. He’ll come back the same way. Both pointed to Him doing what no normal human could do, so His divinity wouldn’t be questioned. So this “with the clouds” doesn’t refer to Heaven’s physical location but to the fact that when He returns→
Every Eye Will See Him. That’s where I got the title for this point ☺️. His return will be unmistakable holy. No one will question what’s happening. You won’t somehow miss out on it. That’s why when people claim Jesus has returned and is hiding in some cabin in the woods, we know it’s not true. When He comes back, it’s going to be in startling fashion. No one’s going to mistake Jesus literally coming from the sky. That’s not an everyday event ☺️. Everyone will know→
Even Those Who Pierced Him. It’s easy to read this portion of the verse and start assuming it’s talking about other people. In fact, I’ve heard several sermons recently where pastors will just say this verse is talking about Jewish people. I really don’t think that’s a fair or healthy way to look at this passage at all. Who crucified Christ? Well, I guess we could take the straight forward response and say Roman soldiers. But, I don’t think this verse is singling them out...especially when we see the whole world crying in a second ☺️. Look at what Isaiah 53:4-6 says, “5 But he was pierced for our transgressions; He was crushed for our iniquities; upon Him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with His wounds we are healed. 6 All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned—every one—to His own way; and the Lord has laid on Him the iniquity of us all.” He was pierced because of our sin. When He returns, it will be incredible and no one will miss it, even those who are still rejecting Him. That’s why we see→
III. TEARS WILL BE SHED FOR JOY OR DESPAIR
If I’m going to hold to my “keeping it quick” promise, we’ll have to hit the rest of this verse fast ☺️.
All Tribes Of The Earth. Means this isn’t limited to just our part of the world. Jesus is the savior of the whole world, and the whole world will witness His return. And when that happens people for every tribe and tongue→
Will Wail On Account Of Him. Whoa! Wait. This seems like a sharp turn, right? Jesus is coming back. Isn’t that good news? Why are people crying? I think there are at least two reasons, but immediately following this reference to “those who pierced Him”, we can’t ignore this group includes those who have rejected Jesus and see Him coming back. He died for them, but they have refused to accept His forgiveness… because they don’t want it. Living under the lie that this world was all about them, they will be faced with the truth they resisted, and they will wail. Of course, this also implies judgment since Hell is often described as a place of weeping and gnashing of teeth. Nonetheless, we have to remember this is not a wailing of remorse but of guilt and bitterness. It is important to remember, people do not go to Hell because they wanted Jesus but some how messed up. People go to Hell because they willingly rejected Him. On that day, people in that position will weep in despair. In fact, this verse ends with→
Even So. Amen. This little phrase might seem thrown in here, but it is significant. Because of modern usage, I think the ESV is a little confusing here. When we say "even so", we mean despite whatever else might have been said or done. However, the Greek word being used here has the same meaning as the Hebrew, Amen: It is True. (Holman: This is Certain., NASB: So it is to be.) Therefore, to both the Jew and the gentile, the whole world, this is true. Jesus is coming, and the world will weep.
So… where’s the→
Joy? All these tears don’t have to be tears of bitterness. There will also be tears of those overwhelmed by the sight of the one who died for them. The One who didn’t come back until He had rescued the last lost sheep. So, as we close today’s service and look back on 190 years of Jesus working in this place, let’s consider these→
TAKEAWAYS
Are you living like Jesus is coming back?
When He does, why will you be crying?
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