Sabtu, 30 Agustus 2008

THE BEST IS YET TO BE!

The best is yet to be!

Reading: Isaiah 11
"The earth shall be filled with the knowledge
of the Lord as the waters cover the sea" (Isa 11:9b)

At the Mount of Olives the disciples of Jesus asked Him, "What will be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age?" (Mt 24:3). He listed a number of endtime signs and then concluded, "The Good News about the Kingdom will be preached throughout the whole world, so that all nations will hear it; and then, finally, the end will come" (v14).
The Devil is more furious than ever because he knows that he has but a little time (Rev 12:12). He stirs up the powers of hell to work against soulwinners and evangelists. He instigates rulers to persecute missionaries. Persecution has always been there, but it will be intensified towards the end (Mt 24:9,10). The promises of Christ to the Church in Smyrna and the one in Philadelphia are for all missionary-minded Christians to claim: "Do not be afraid of what you are about to suffer... I have opened a door for you that no one can shut... Look, I am coming quickly!" (Rev 2:10a; 3:8a, 11a). A missionary evangelistic revival is widespread all over the world. Church growth has never been so rapid in all these twenty centuries. Over 75000 souls are added to the Church worldwide everyday. The Lord of the Harvest is recruiting workers even at five in the evening because the harvest is still plenty (Mt 20:6,7). If Pentecost is compared to former rain, we will have the latter rain now, just before the Return of Christ so that every field becomes a lush pasture (Zech 10:1). The Holy Spirit will manifest His power in an unusual manner at this last hour.
The primary motivating factor in the life of Paul for evangelism was the Return of Christ. He loved souls because he loved the appearing of the Saviour. He desired his spiritual son Timothy to imbibe the same spirit. When he reminded Timothy of the Great Commission, he oftentimes referred to the Second Coming (1 Tim 6:12-15; 2 Tim 4:1,2). Eventhough the Great Tribulation has not yet come, the troubles faced by nations of the world are already great! The future is bleak. Leaders are baffled. The Church of Christ alone has a valid reason to lift up its head in optimism. Nations are boasting emptily of their past glory, but the Church can boast expectantly of its future glory! The main reason is that the earth is going to be filled with the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea!
All over the world God's Spirit is moving;
All over the world as the Prophets said it would be;
All over the world there's a mighty revelation,
Of the glory of the Lord as the waters cover the sea!

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