Then Peter came to Him and said, “Lord, how often shall I forgive my brother who sins against me? Up to seven times?” Jesus said to him, “I do not say to you up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven.”

— Matthew 18:21-22

Not only do we have a great reward in Heaven when we forgive, but we present a great witness right here. Nothing witnesses so powerfully to the glory and truth of the Gospel as when a Christian forgives his enemy.

Some years ago there was a war between Muslim and Christian Turks. One of the Christian officers was captured and became a prisoner of a Turkish official. This Muslim officer treated the Christian with the utmost cruelty and hatred and tortured him.

Then the circumstances of the war changed. The Christian prisoner was released; the torturer was captured and placed before the Christian. The Turkish officer’s face and eyes showed the fear and dread that filled his heart. He knew this man was going to retaliate against him with great vengeance. However, the Christian man said to him, “You do not need to be afraid. I am a Christian and I will not return evil for evil. I forgive you for what you did to me.”

The Muslim was so astonished, he said, “I will not die a Muslim, but I will die a Christian, for there is no religion but that of Christ which teaches forgiveness of injuries.”

What a marvelous testimony it is to do good to them who have done evil to us. Remember my friends, “Forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors.”

Question to ponder:
Have you ever prayed, “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do?”

…do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion, on the day of temptation in the wilderness.

— Hebrews 3:8

I am sure that in the great day of the Second Coming, there will be millions who will cry, “Oh, God, have mercy upon me; oh, Lord, help me.” But my friends, it will be too late. It will be everlastingly too late for the door of grace will now be irrevocably shut. There will be no time for repentance then. There will be no tomorrow. There will only be the endless ages of eternity without God and without hope.

People will see that the Son of man has come to this earth, not as a lamb to be slain, but the Lamb in His wrath and anger. They will then cry out unto the hills and unto the mountains and rocks, “Fall on us, and hide us from the face of Him who sits on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb” (Revelation 6:16).

If you are a Christian, you can say with joy, “Even so, come, Lord Jesus. Come quickly,” and the very thought of His return brings rapturous joy. But those who are not followers of Christ will be filled with terror and awe.

Either we let the Lamb receive the wrath of God for our sins by trusting in Jesus and His finished work on the Cross, or we will face the wrath of the Lamb of God when He returns.

Question to ponder:
Does it sober you to think that Jesus Christ, who allowed Himself to be man-handled by sinful men, will one day execute the wrath of God against unrepentant sinners?

And I saw the dead, small and great, standing before God. Books were opened.

— Revelation 20:12

At the time of the Second Coming, many will wake up on that day ignoring Christ, as they have ignored Him for years, and then suddenly, without warning, unexpectedly, there shall come a sound that will chill the blood of every unbeliever, but will cause God’s own to leap with joy.

It will be the sound of a trumpet, as the Scripture says. It will be a sound that will be heard around the world. Then suddenly there shall appear in the heavens the sign of the Son of man, for the Lord, Himself, shall descend from heaven with great power and glory. His glory will eclipse the sun, and every eye will be lifted up to behold His great glory as He comes.

Then all around the world, graves will be opened and the dead in Christ shall rise first with their bodies reconstituted and glorified. And then we, which are alive, shall be caught up together with Him and we shall be changed in the twinkling of an eye. We shall be changed, and all that is corruptible will put on incorruption and all that is mortal will put on immortality. From homes, and kitchens, and cars, and planes, those who have trusted in Jesus will be taken up to be with the Lord in the air, who shall come with His angels and cherubim and seraphim and with ten thousand times ten thousand of His saints. In magnificent splendor and glory, He will come.

Question to ponder:
What difference does it make to you that history is marching toward its great climax, the return of Christ and the final judgment?

Concerning that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, but My Father only.

— 1 Matthew 24:36

It is unfortunately true that there have been some in the lunatic fringe who have dwelt continuously upon the doctrine of the Second Coming and brought it into disrepute. There have been others who have ignored it completely, and still more who have distorted and perverted it. And yet it remains an inescapable and ineluctable fact that Jesus Christ will come again. Over 300 passages in the New Testament alone testify that Christ will come again, this time as a conquering King.

John boldly declares in Revelation: “Look! He is coming with clouds, and every eye will see Him … And all tribes of the earth will mourn because of Him” (Revelation 1:7). The Bible even concludes with this same promise, “Surely I am coming soon. Amen” (Revelation 22:20). And Christians every week across the globe affirm their belief in this great fact of His return, found in the Apostles’ Creed: “From thence He shall come to judge the quick and the dead.”

When will Jesus return? This is the question that has puzzled the minds of innumerable people throughout the centuries. Our Lord said that no man knows the day or the hour of His coming. This is reserved for the Father alone. And yet He does tell us when it will be. He says that He will come in an hour that you think not.

Question to ponder:
Is there anything in your life you would do differently if you knew Jesus were coming tomorrow?

God is faithful, and by Him you were called to the fellowship of His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.

— 1 Corinthians 1:9

When I look back at my life, what amazes me is that, throughout all these long and sometimes difficult years, Christ has been with me, He has never forsaken me; He has kept me in the way everlasting. I am amazed, considering how weak I am, that I have not been totally overwhelmed by temptation and sin. I have seen others who have fallen by the wayside. I thank God that He has kept me through these years. Why? “I have prayed for you that your faith may not fail” (Luke 22:32). Jesus is our great intercessor with the Father.

By His grace, we are saved. By His grace, we are preserved. In this world, in this life, the temptations to stray will continue. We must be careful not to fall for the devil’s attempts to lure us away. Until Satan is restrained, he will continue to try. But know this: God’s ability to keep us is greater than any temptation. His hand is stronger than the tug from our enemy.

God’s faithfulness is greater than our frailty. His arm is strong enough; His counsel is wise enough to lead us all the way home.

Question to ponder:
How have you experienced God’s faithfulness?

My little children, I am writing these things to you, so that you do not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the Righteous One.

— 1 John 2:1

Satan is the accuser of the brethren. Even as he appeared before God accusing Job, he accuses us of all manner of sins. All our iniquities and all our transgressions are picked up by this malignant spirit and hurled against us in utter condemnation before God’s Throne.

Who shall plead our case? Where is the advocate for our defense? Not only does Satan accuse us, but all about us are unbelievers who claim we do not live up to the ideals we profess. They say that there are hypocrites in the Church, and that each believer is also a sinner. Our own sinfulness is used to vilify us. Furthermore, at times our own conscience condemns as well.

Who shall plead our case? Thank God, there is One who is at the right hand of God, acting as our advocate. His blood ever intercedes on our behalf. Jesus Christ is our sure defense against all these enemies: the world, the flesh, and the devil.

Question to ponder:
What comfort does it give you to know that Jesus is ever pleading your case before the Lord?

We know that we are of God, and the whole world lies in wickedness.

— 1 John 5:19

The ungodly world is energized, unknowingly in most cases, by Satan. Too often, the world under that energizing force accomplishes more than many Christians do. This has given rise to the belief among many, especially among some young people, that Satan is actually able to do more for them than God. This is a great shame. Christians have not believed enough and have not called upon God for great things nor have they demonstrated the might and power of God in this world. God is glorified by great things accomplished by Christians.

We know that Satan is the great mimic. He mimics God and he would try to destroy people by substitution. Satan substitutes everything that is Divine. On Christmas, we have the great ersatz savior, Santa Claus, the substitute for Christ. On Easter, we have the Easter Bunny and the Easter Egg—all to divert the thoughts of men away from that which is most significant.

We also know that Satan has been defeated by Christ in His death and resurrection. Christ came to destroy the works of the devil.

Question to ponder:
How do we know that good will triumph over evil?

Do not yield your members to sin as instruments of unrighteousness, but yield yourselves to God, as those who are alive from the dead, and your bodies to God as instruments of righteousness.

— Romans 6:13

There is a little couplet that I like so much, but it contains a good word—forgotten by many today—the word “mien” (pronounced “mean”). It means “countenance” or appearance. Listen to the couplet:

Vice is a monster of such horrible mien, that to be hated it needs but to be seen.

But too oft, grown familiar with its face, first we endure, then we embrace. Familiarity with the face of the monster of vice is the very essence of just about every talk show on television I have seen or know anything about (except the news or Christian-oriented ones). Christians, however, do not seek such familiarity. Instead, we should turn away from our old vices, our old habits, our old sinful nature.

The diminishing of our old nature is called mortification. The growing of our new nature is called vivification. Put the two together (mortification and vivification) and you get sanctification—one of the great glorious doctrines of the Christian faith.

Sanctification is a process that goes on and on throughout this life. It is never ever perfected in this life. It is not until we cross that river that there, in a final act of glorification, the final vestiges of sin are removed and we are declared to be perfect.

Question to ponder:
Is there any vice that you could possibly have grown too familiar with?

…choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a time.

— Hebrews 11:25

I believe the greatest deceit Satan has ever perpetrated upon the human race, the most successful lie he has ever used, and one that impinges upon our consciences from a thousand different directions, is simply this: We shall find happiness and fulfillment through sin and by disregarding the commandments and precepts of God; and it is by throwing off the chains that bind, letting ourselves go and following our own passions, ignoring Christ and His Word that we will find satisfaction and joy in this life. Satan’s most successful lie would have us believe that joy will be ours through sin. I am sure that most of us have believed this lie a thousand times or more in our lives.

Yet, the great truth of the Word of God is that at the right hand of God there is joy forevermore. There is happiness in holiness. It is through submission to the will of Christ that man will find his true joy and fulfillment. These are two totally and completely antithetical propositions. One is truth, the other a lie.

Question to ponder:
Can you think of a time in your life when you believed sinning would make you happy?

Now when He had spoken these things, while they looked, He was taken up. And a cloud received Him from their sight.

— Acts 1:9

When Christ Jesus was finished with all His work on earth, He ascended in triumph to heaven. The day of his ascension ought to be celebrated as the coronation day for the King of kings.

Christ, who was once despised and rejected of men, a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief, now occupies a most exalted position where there is joy forevermore. Jesus Christ, once derided by sinners, is now celebrated by saints. The scoffing and the hissing of the reprobate have given way to the panegyrics of angels. The flailing of whips and the pounding of hammers have been replaced by the flourish of trumpets, the beating of drums and the flying of colors. The Son of God has come home to sit at the right hand of His Father—until all His enemies are made a footstool for His feet and Christ becomes all in all.

It is this Christ in all His glory, and with all His authority and might, who will one day come back to earth—but not as He came the first time. Not in humility, but with all His splendor and glory.

Question to ponder:
How do you picture the exalted and glorified Christ?