Nothing to say, yet
Transcription
The speaker discusses the question of whether Jesus will find faith on Earth when he returns. Jesus reassured his disciples that he would come back and take them to himself, but expressed doubt about the fate of those he leaves behind. The speaker explains that Jesus is referring to true Christians, not the people of the world. It is predicted that in the end times, there will be a decline of faith among Christians, leading to widespread apostasy. This will be followed by the rise of a character called the man of sin, who will cause disruption and demand worship. The speaker emphasizes that it is possible for a Christian to lose their salvation and warns against resisting this truth. The message concludes with a reminder to remain faithful and guard the treasure of salvation. Welcome to our weekly exhortation. Thank you for joining me. Thank you for your precious time. My name is Gila Meola, Servant of God, Servant of Jesus Christ. Our Lord Jesus addressed his disciples saying, When the Son of Man cometh, shall he find faith on earth? What lesson does Jesus want to teach us? The return of the Son of Man is certain. It will happen as surely as the first time. Jesus reassured his disciples about his goodness and his mercy saying, I will come back again and I will take you to myself, so that where I am, you may be also. John chapter 14 verse 3 Yet, in spite of this, Jesus had a doubt. His concern was about the fate of those he is going to leave behind. His disciples, would they all persevere to the end keeping the faith? He says, Nevertheless, when the Son of Man cometh, shall he find faith on earth? What lesson does Jesus want to teach us? When the Son of Man cometh, shall he find faith on earth? Luke chapter 18 verse 8 First, we would note that the phrase Son of Man is the title that Jesus constantly uses in connection with his mission and to affirm his solidarity with the humanity he came to save. In this passage, Luke chapter 18 verse 8, we see that the answer is contained in the question. It is important to highlight that, in this verse, our Lord Jesus is not talking about the people in the world. He obviously does not expect to find faith in the world. The people of the world do not recognize his authority and do not seek justice in him. However, his question is aimed at those who cry out to him. Notice that, in Luke chapter 18 verse 7, Jesus is talking about true Christians, those who have received the grace of God. The Bible calls them the elect. So this question concerns Christians and presupposes a negative answer. In fact, the word of Jesus alludes to a tragic future. In the tribulation of the end times, only a few will remain truly faithful to him. So Jesus refers to them as little flock. You will find this in Luke chapter 12 verse 32. As an answer to Jesus' question, we would say no. When the Son of Man cometh, he will not find faith, but rather unbelief on earth among Christians. Why? Well, caught up in the afflictions that will precede the coming of Christ, most of those who have professed to be Christians will have abandoned faith and prayer. In Matthew chapter 24 verse 12 through 13, the Lord Jesus warns his disciples of the decline of faith that will occur at the end time. This passage is about the disciples themselves in the context of the tribulation of the last time. He announces that the love of the great number of Christians shall work cause. Christians will work cause in their love as much for God as for men. Here as in Luke chapter 18 verse 8, the word of God foretells a general reversal of faith in Jesus at the end time. You know, the Bible says that before the return of Jesus, there will be widespread apostasy and spiritual decline. During this time, there will be an abandonment in faith on a very large scale, a rejection of the Christian faith unheard of. This is called apostasy. This apostasy will be followed by the appearance of a very particular character that the Apostle Paul calls the man of sin in 2 Thessalonians chapter 2 verse 3 to 4 or the beast by John in Revelation chapter 13. This person will rise in the last days and will cause a major disruption in the world and among the people of God. According to the scripture, the man of sin will want to claim to be God and will even give the impression of having dethroned God. He will exalt his own person. He will settle in the temple and demand that all worship him. And many believers will follow by worshiping this man, praise the Lord. On the basis of the above, can a Christian lose his Christian qualities? Of course, the Bible is abundantly clear. In many places, the Lord Jesus warns us that the possibility of losing our Christian character exists and is great. I want to remind you that losing salvation refers to the fact that the Christian can lose the privilege of being a child of God. I will give you one example out of me. In Matthew chapter 5 verse 13, Jesus says something. He says, you are the salt of the earth. Hallelujah! Jesus says, you who is listening to me, you are the salt of the earth. In some ways, it is a compliment to know that we are the salt of the earth. Jesus is not comparing us to the salt. He didn't say we are like the salt, but he says we are the salt of the earth. He continues saying that, but if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? Remember, we are talking about the possibility for a believer to lose his Christian quality. If the salt can lose its quality, if the salt can lose its saltiness, then the true Christian can lose, by his own force, the grace that God gives him, the salvation he received. Praise the Lord! Listen, Jesus did not stop here. He says, if the salt loses its saltiness, it is good for nothing and has to be thrown away. It is then good for nothing but to be thrown out and trampled underfoot by men. Can you all see this? What's your understanding of that, friend? Luke chapter 14 verse 34 added, salt is good, but if the salt has lost its savor, wherewith shall it be seasoned? This means, if salt loses its savor, there's nothing to season it with again. It will be impossible to recover its saltiness. Again, for half-Christians, this means that there will be no more second beginning to bring a believer back to faith. The author in Hebrews says, there remains no sacrifice for sin, but a certain fearful looking for judgment and a fiery indignation which shall devour the adversaries. Hebrews chapter 10 verse 26 to 27, he that hath fears, let him hear. Friend, I know there are some truths that are hard to accept. It is the case with this message, the message regarding the possibility of losing one's salvation. This truth is certain and is found in many places in the Bible. It is hidden from some Christians because of their unbelief. And the same happened with the apostles of Jesus. They did not understand the prediction that Jesus made to them concerning his death and resurrection. The Bible says, they, meaning the apostles, they understood none of these things, and the words Jesus spoke were hidden from them, and they understood not the things that were said. Why, then, did the apostles not understand? Well, because this prediction of Jesus did not fit with their preconceived ideas. They understood only what they wanted to believe and resisted what went against their belief, even if it was the truth. You know, any time we resist the truth, we fail our understanding of the scripture. The same is true for us today regarding the message of the loss of salvation. We notice that many believers resist this truth. Our thinking is only limited to the fact that God's grace is perfect and cannot do any harm. It is absolutely true, but I would really like to reassure you and tell you that the grace of God is so powerful and is a promise to everyone who comes to God through faith in Jesus. This promise is absolute and assures us that saving grace is within the reach of all who will forsake sin and accept salvation through Jesus. But, but, it must also be understood that there is no mean of saving sinners other than by the same truth which will condemn those who stubbornly refuse to believe. Like the Apostle Paul says, the gospel of salvation is both the aroma of death leading to death and the aroma of life leading to life. 2 Corinthians chapter 2 verse 16. Hallelujah. You give the healing and grace our hearts always hunger for. Oh, our hearts always hunger for. In conclusion, let's answer to this question, shall Jesus find faith on earth on his return? In fact, Jesus hoped to find on his return disciples who will have kept their commitment to him. But, no, Jesus will not find faith because the majority of the elect will build on and will make flesh his arm. Their heart will depart from the Lord. As a result, they will, through their own force, let go of their inheritance. The inheritance that God gave them. Remember what Jeremiah says, Jeremiah chapter 17 verse 4. To give you an insight of what we are saying, let's go back and see what happened in Exodus chapter 32. Remember, Moses had gone to Mount Sinai to receive God's love. The Hebrew people had seen him disappear amidst lightning and thunder. The Jewish people started getting impatient as Moses' return was taking time. For them, Moses would never come back among them again. So, they decided to create an idol from their golden rings which Aaron molded. They offered sacrifice to this idol thereby denying their commitment to God. Forty days later, Moses came down from the mountain. Hallelujah! This is my question. Did Moses find faith among the people of God when he came down from the mountain? No, he didn't. When he returned, he found only rebellious people who worshipped the golden calf. Exodus chapter 32 verse 9. It will be the same when our Lord Jesus returns. Because it is written that all those things have been written for us as an example. Friend, will you still keep your rope of righteousness on when Jesus returns? Or, are you going to be among those who turn their back on him? Let's keep on praying so that this doesn't happen to us. Let's keep the faith. May God help us to remain faithful to him. I would say like the Apostle Paul told Timothy, guard and keep unchanged the treasure which has been entrusted to you through the Holy Spirit who dwells in us. That treasure is the good news about salvation through personal faith in Jesus Christ. First Timothy chapter 1 verse 14. Friend, this is the end of today's message. I hope you learned something from this message. But remember, the grace that God has given us has to be cherished, has to be taken care of. Otherwise, you will lose it. May God bless your understanding. If God wills it, I will talk to you next week. God bless. The Lord is clean, enduring forever. The judgments of the Lord are true and righteous all together. More to be desired are they than gold, yea, than much fine gold. Sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb. Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in thy sight, O Lord, my strength and my redeemer.
