Part 3
There is everything to rouse the attention in the way that the subject is introduced: Himself, the Lord, shall descend from heaven. When? Does it say? No! It is not made known when. But, O! to think of that One without whom nothing that has been created was made—that One into whose hands everything has been committed by God—to think of that Man about to descend again from heaven!
It is a wonderful thing, the stupidity of the mind of man! To think of people trying to make out that the death of saints is the coming of the Lord! If I die tonight, I go to the Lord; the Lord does not descend from heaven. When Stephen was dying, he looked up, and saw the Lord waiting for him in heaven; he did not see the Lord descend from heaven.
But the Lord will descend. He will come off that throne at the appointed time. He will come down out of that glory upon the cloud. He will descend out of heaven.
There is everything to arrest the soul in the way it is put, and to cause it to inquire; and then, besides, it is so guardedly put—"the Lord Himself." There is only one Lord.
And then see the glory! Ay, and the grace too! It is with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God.
I never read those clauses without certain thoughts waking up in my mind in one way or another. His voice was heard on earth before this. He was heard to pray by His disciples. In that hour when He asked them to watch with Him, His voice went up in prayer to His Father, and He was heard in that He feared. But He did not take upon Him then the regulating of anything. He let His Father do everything in His own way. What do you take your sword, and smite the servant's ear off, in that way, for, Peter? He laid His hand on it at once, and healed it. He would not be delivered, because He had to give His life for the sheep.
Of course, on the other hand, He did regulate, in a hidden way, as when He let Saul of Tarsus be at the death of Stephen, and when He spoke to Saul out of the glory. In a quiet way He spoke and regulated them, but He will speak in quite a different way in the day that is coming. The "shout" spoken of here is a regulating sound, such as a call to men to present arms; and its tones will be heard as announcing that the time is come. Ay, and the tones of that voice will be gladsome too! Himself will leave the throne! Himself will call His people! He is the One who regulates it all! He is the perfect servant. He does not leave the Father's throne a moment too soon; but when He does, it will be with a regulating shout.
And then there is "the voice of the archangel." The Lord takes it up. The time is come; and what angel in heaven would not gladly render up his place to the Lord!
And then there is "the trump of God." God takes it up. From the throne of His Father He is coming forth, the regulating introduction of blessing.
Then, besides this (no new thing to us here), there are two things that He brings in. He says,
"I am the resurrection and the life."
Now we are already associated with Him in resurrection-life in the heavenly places. He has given us to know that, but He is going to give us another exhibition of it.
Do you ever think how Christ is keeping the bodies of the dead? Do you never say, O, what a heart He has! How tenderly He is caring for them! How He knows that the dust of Stephen is there, and the dust of Paul here, and how He has His eye on very bit of it! And He is ready to bring it all forth when the moment comes. It is Himself that does it. He does not say, I will let any mighty power put the finishing stroke to it. No, it is Himself. He says, the dead in Christ shall rise first.
O! what a part of the hope is this to one who has had to battle with death—to one who has had to part with loved ones, and to lay them in the grave! It is "absent from the body, present with the Lord." O, death! I will be thy plagues, He says. He is coming to avenge the controversy, and the dead in Christ shall rise first. He is coming to make the display of His own glory as the resurrection. The Lord coming, and the dust giving up the dead that belong to Christ everywhere! Ah, yes! it is that which He is putting forward here!
Would you like to see the resurrection accomplished—every corner of this earth opening up to let out the dust that is sleeping in it? There is love supreme to the weakest and feeblest whose bodies are sleeping in the dust.
And then there is "the life!" There are you and I. If He appeared this very evening, He would so let the stream of life flow into us that there would be nothing but immortality left in us.
One often hears that text in Hebrews wrongly quoted. People say, "It is appointed unto all men once to die." It is "men," not "all men." If the Lord were to come tonight, we should not have to lay aside the body at all.
And then he shows what a comfort, too, it is. What is? The resurrection and the life? No! but the Lord who will be that!
Now, in the last chapter, he enters a little into the state of the world when Christ will do this. They have no idea of the Lord's coming. They are of the night; we are not of the night. His people are waiting for Him, but He shows us that the people of the world are not of that class.
And then He gives this as the desire of His own spirit, and the desire of the Holy Ghost also.
Here it is a very strong word, and a very simple word, and a very blessed word. The thoughts of the Spirit of God and the thoughts of the apostle were not that I should be brought to know the things of heaven, of God, and of Christ, and then mar my walk by intercourse with the things of Sodom and Gomorrah. But this was His thought:
"May your spirit, soul, and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ; and faithful is he that calleth you, who also will do it."
He does not speak of taking the law of sin and death out of my members. He does not say that He sets me in a place where I shall have no more conflict. He does not speak of taking me out of the wilderness. But He does speak of this grace which shall preserve me blameless. He does talk of God finding us blameless in that day.
As to his own walk, he was fully persuaded that Christ would be magnified in his body, whether by life or death. And when he thus said that he was positive that Christ would be magnified, he did not get the idea of being blameworthy in his own particular walk. No! This word is to strengthen the hearts of the children of God. It is He who has called them, and He will do it.
Is God going to keep you blameless? Then, mind, you are invincible! Mind, you are to overcome! Mind, you are not to flag! You will overcome, because He will keep you blameless. I see God putting Himself forward, saying, I am the Person who will keep you blameless unto that day.
(Concluded)