URGENT NOTICE TO THE BRIDE OF YAHUSHUA MESSIAH/JESUS CHRIST

Hillsong United - Stay and Wait

Bride of Christ by Katherine Kehler

“Let us rejoice and be glad and give him glory! For the wedding of the Lamb has come, and his bride has made herself ready” (Revelation 19:7) I had never really thought much about the subject of the church being the bride of Christ. Oh sure, I heard sermons and even read about it – but didn’t stop to think about it.
Then I went to a bridal shower for a young friend of mine. We had been spending time together during her courtship and it was so satisfying to watch the love for her finance blossom. Driving to the shower, the bride was sewing beads on the bodice of her wedding dress – hundreds of beads. She was working hard at looking beautiful for the groom. She would never have thought of walking down the aisle in dirty, torn jeans and greasy hair. Brides buy everything new and beautiful – they want to look their best.
When Jesus, the Groom, comes to meet His bride (the people who are called by His name) we will be ready for Him – clean and dazzling. But our radiance comes from within – Jesus Christ in us.
David Hazard, in his book on The Writings of Teresa of Avila, quotes her regarding the brightness of Christ within us:
“It is true that the soul which has once rooted itself in Christ can never lose all the brightness of its King. Once the splendid Son of Righteousness has come into the central throne room (the throne of our heart), the castle can never lose it bright glory. And yet, by our foolish neglect, and by our willful sins, we drape the whole castle with a black pall.”
Think of the grimy film that develops on the windows of our house or car. Picture tarnished silver or brass, that is what sin does to our souls. It prevents the radiance of Christ from shining through. (Psalm 34:5)
But we can change that. We can become radiant again. 1 John 1:9 says: “If we confess our sin, He is faithful and just to forgive our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”
Notice the “all unrighteousness?” Do you need a good washing? Have you been negligent in keeping yourself squeaky clean? I encourage you to take the time to go through the Related Article link below.
Let us be radiant brides for our Lord!
Father, like any bride, we are looking forward to meeting our Groom. Give us the grace to keep ourselves shining like stars in the universe (Philippians 2:15) and radiant as we look to You (Psalm 34:5) Amen

Wait by Phil Ware

“Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord.” Psalm 27:14

Thoughts on today’s verse
If there is anything we don’t like to do, it’s wait. Maybe that is why God is so interested in us learning to do it! There is something purifying about remaining strong in tough times and remaining faithful when ill winds blow. So God gives us times of waiting to see if our search is really for him or merely for something new.
Prayer:
Loving Father, I know you have waited for me so many times — for me to show my faith, repent of my sins, grow in holiness, come to you in prayer, act more mature, give to those who cannot return my care… Help me as I wait for you to show me the way with my decisions, to meet my needs, and reveal your presence in my loneliness. I really do seek you with all my heart. Through Jesus I pray. Amen.
You can also follow Phil’s daily devotionals on http://www.verseoftheday.com

Show me Your face Lord

Show me Your face, Lord
Show me Your face
Then gird up my legs that I might stand in this holy place
Show me Your face, Lord
Your power and grace
I could make it to the end if I can just see Your face

Moses stood on the mountain
Waiting for You to pass by
You put Your hand over his face
So in Your presence he wouldnt die
All of Israel saw the glory
And it shines down through the age
Now Youve called me to boldly seek Your face

David knew there was something more
Than the ark of Your presence
And in a manger a baby was born
Among kings and peasants
All of Israel saw the glory
And it shines down through the age
And now You call us to boldly seek Your face

Show me Your face, Lord
Show me Your face
Then gird up my legs that I might stand in this holy place
Show me Your face, Lord
Your power and grace
I could make it to the end if I can just see Your face
Yes we can make it to the end if we can just see Your face.

Words and Music by Don Potter,

When the Savior Comes Again (Doug Walker / Sherry Marks Walker)Performed by: Jen Marco Handy

When the Savior comes again
Will He call me up to Him
And let me feel the nail prints in His hands
    and in His feet

When I look into His face
And am caught in His embrace
Will I finally understand my worth and what
    He sees in me
When the Savior comes again

When the Savior comes again
Will I remember every sin
Or will I look back and know that I have
    given Him my best

When that day finally arrives
Will there be loved ones by my side
Will we go on together there forever in His
    eternal rest
When the Savior comes again

When the Savior comes again

Christy Nockels - Waiting Here For You

If faith can move the mountains
Let the mountains move
We come with expectation
Waiting here for You, waiting here for You

You're the Lord of all creation
And still You know my heart
The Author of salvation
You've loved us from the start

Waiting here for You
With our hands lifted high in praise
And it's You we adore
Singing alleluia

You are everything You've promised
Your faithfulness is true
We're desperate for Your presence
All we need is You

We will wait for You, Lord
In step with You, Lord
We will sing alleluia

Singing alleluia, alleluia
Singing alleluia, alleluia

Jesus Is Coming Again (Loralee Thiessen)

Jesus is coming, He’s coming again
Jesus is coming again
Jesus is coming, He’s coming again
Jesus is coming again

Just as He went, He’ll come back in a cloud
(Jesus is coming again)
We’ll hear the sound of a trumpet loud
(Jesus is coming again)
Heavenly warriors and angels of praise
(Jesus is coming again)
Will sing of His glory that triumphant day
(Jesus is coming again)

The groom is preparing a place for His bride
(Jesus is coming again)
There for eternity close to His side
(Jesus is coming again)
Awaiting the words His Father will say
(Jesus is coming again)
Go get Your bride for the wedding’s today
(Jesus is coming again)

Copyright © 1996 Mercy/Vineyard Publishing. All rights reserved. International copyright secured.

Jesus Is Coming Back?

Matthew 24:36-44 declares, “No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father…Therefore keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come…So you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect Him.” At first glance, these verses would seem to provide a clear and explicit answer to the question. No, no one can know when Jesus is coming back. However, those verses do not say that no one will ever be able to know when Jesus will return. Most Bible scholars would say that Jesus, now glorified in Heaven, knows the timing of His return, indicating that the phrase “nor the Son” does not mean Jesus will never know when He will return. Similarly, it is possible that, while Matthew 24:36-44 indicates that no one at that time could know the timing of Jesus’ return, God could reveal the timing of Jesus’ return to someone in the future.

In addition, there is Acts 1:7, which states, "It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by His own authority." This was said by Jesus after the disciples asked Him if He was at that time going to restore the kingdom to Israel. This would seem to confirm the message of Matthew 24. It is not for us to know the timing of Jesus coming back. But, there is also the question of to which return these passages are referring. Are they speaking of the rapture or the second coming? Which return is unknowable—the rapture, the second coming, or both? While the rapture is presented as being imminent and mysterious, the timing of the second coming could potentially be pinpointed based on end-times prophecy.

With that said, let us be abundantly clear: we do not believe that God has revealed to anyone when Jesus is coming back, and we see nothing in Scripture which indicates that God will ever reveal to anyone when Jesus is coming back. Matthew 24:36-44, while spoken directly to the people in Jesus’ time, also contains a principle. The timing of Jesus’ return and the end of the age is not for us to know. Scripture nowhere encourages us to try to determine the date. Rather, we are to “keep watch, because we do not know on which day our Lord will come” (v. 42). We are to “be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when we do not expect Him” (v. 44). The force of Jesus’ words diminishes if at some point in the future someone will be able to determine when Jesus is coming back. If the date is discovered, we no longer need to “keep watch” or “be ready” until the date is approaching. So, with the principle of Matthew 24:36-44 is mind, no, it is not possible for anyone to know the date that Jesus is coming back.

Despite this clear biblical principle, many throughout Christian history have attempted to prophesy the date that Jesus is coming back. Many such dates have been proposed, and all of them have been wrong. Today, there are two popular proposed dates: May 21, 2011, and December 21, 2012. The December 21, 2012, date is related to the Mayan calendar, with no biblical data used as evidence. The May 21, 2011, date is proposed by Harold Camping of Family Radio. It should be noted that Harold Camping previously predicted that Jesus would come back in 1994. Obviously, Camping was wrong. This should give us yet another reason to doubt the validity of his prediction of May 21, 2011. Camping, does, however, claim to find evidence for the May 21, 2011, date in Scripture. By using a speculative date of 4990 B.C. for the Flood, and then applying the “with the Lord one day is as a thousand years” of 2 Peter 3:8 to the seven days of Genesis 7:4, and then counting down the 7000 years from 4990, the year 2011 results. Then, based on “the seventeenth day of the second month” from Genesis 7:11 and using the Hebrew calendar, the date of May 21 is determined. So, is there any validity to Camping’s methodology?

First, Camping conveniently ignores the second half of 2 Peter 3:8, “and a thousand years as one day.” Further, 2 Peter 3:8 is not providing a method for dating the end times. Rather, 2 Peter 3:8 is simply saying that God is above and beyond time. God is timeless, infinite, and eternal. Second, nothing in the context of Genesis 7:4-11 indicates that the “seven days” and “seventeenth day of the second month” are to be interpreted as applying to anything other than what God was specifically saying to Noah. Third, the Flood being dated to 4990 B.C. is speculative at best, with no explicit biblical evidence. Camping’s calculation of May 21, 2011, falls apart with even the most basic biblical scrutiny. Now, is it possible that Jesus is coming back on May 21, 2011? Yes, but it is just as possible that He will come back on any other date. Does Harold Camping’s particular dating methodology have any biblical validity? No, it does not. Assuming that Jesus does not return on or before May 21, 2011, Camping and others will surely calculate new future dates and will attempt to explain away mistakes by “errors in the formula” or something to that effect.

The key points are (1) the Bible nowhere encourages us to attempt to discover the timing of Jesus’ return, and (2) the Bible gives no explicit data by which the timing of Jesus’ return can be determined. Rather than developing wild and speculative calculations to determine when Jesus is coming back, the Bible encourages us to “keep watch” and “be ready” (Matthew 24:42-44). The fact that the day of Jesus’ return is unknown is what should motivate us to live every day in light of the imminence of Christ’s return.

Rushing Toward the End A Message From Billy Graham

by Billy Graham

When I appeared on a talk show years ago, one of America’s most famous personalities told me of the emptiness in her life. She said, “My beauty is gone. I am getting old. I am living on alcohol, and I really have nothing to live for.” This emptiness is typical of thousands of men and women throughout the world.
After that I visited a senior citizens’ home and talked with 10 or 15 people individually. One man asked, “Mr. Graham, what hope is there for a man who has lived a life of sin like I have?”
The Bible teaches that all of mankind is rushing toward death. C.S. Lewis once said that war does not increase death. I wondered what he meant until I thought it through. What he meant was that even though we have war, it does not increase death because death is total in every generation. Everybody dies.
The Bible says that “it is appointed for men to die once” (Hebrews 9:27). All of nature is in the process of dying. Yet most people are living as if they think that they will never die. Most people are living for today with barely a thought of eternity.
The Bible and nature both teach that everything that has a beginning also has an ending. The day begins with a sunrise; but the sun sets, the shadows gather, and that calendar day is crossed out, never to appear again. We will never be able to repeat today. It is gone forever.
Nations and civilizations rise, flourish for a time and then decay. Eventually, each comes to an end. This, because of sin, is the decree of history and the way of life on this planet. This is what prompted Henry F. Lyte to write, Change and decay in all around I see/O Thou who changest not, abide with me.
The Bible also teaches that the world system as we know it shall come to a close. We read in 1 John 2:17: “The world is passing away, and the lust of it.” And in 2 Peter 3:10 we read: “But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night, in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the elements will melt with fervent heat; both the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up.” Jesus said, in Matthew 24:35, “Heaven and earth will pass away.”
Christianity presents a Gospel of crisis. It is the Gospel of Good News, to be sure—that God has a plan for your life, that God loves you, that God is a God of mercy, that God will forgive you if you confess and forsake your sins and have faith in His Son, Jesus Christ—but as far as the world system is concerned, the Bible says that Christianity is a Gospel of crisis. It proclaims that the world’s days are numbered. Every cemetery testifies that the Bible is true. Our days on this planet are numbered. The Bible says that life is only a vapor that appears for a moment and then vanishes, that it is like the grass that withers and the flowers that fade.
There is another sense in which the world system will end. There will be an end of history. That doesn’t mean an end to life, but it means the end of a world that has been dominated by evil. The Bible speaks a great deal about the end of the world.
The Bible teaches that the present evil world system will pass away and come to a climactic, dramatic end. It also says that Jesus Christ will come again and that He will set up a Kingdom of righteousness and social justice where hatred, greed, jealousy, war and death will no longer be known. Jesus talked about the end of the present evil world system and the establishment of a new order, which is called the Kingdom of God.
Jesus Christ did not engage in fantasy. He was not given to terror tactics. He was Truth and Veracity personified. He indicated that when you see certain things come to pass, you can be assured that the end is near. He said, “You can read the signs of the weather in the sky, but because of spiritual blindness you cannot read the signs of the times” (Cf. Matthew 16:3). He indicated that only those who have spiritual illumination and discernment from the Holy Spirit can understand the trends and meanings of history.
The Bible plainly indicates that certain conditions will prevail just before the end. For example, the Bible says there will be knowledge without wisdom. The Scripture says, “For the wisdom of this world is foolishness with God. For it is written, ‘He catches the wise in their own craftiness’” (1 Corinthians 3:19). Daniel 12:4 tells us, “Until the time of the end … knowledge shall increase.”
Today there is more knowledge about everything than at any other time in history. Young people are graduating from schools and colleges and universities, and we have more knowledge crammed into our heads than at any time the world has ever known.
We are teaching thousands of young people knowledge, but we are not giving them wisdom to use that knowledge. In every area of life people are floundering, suffering from neuroses and psychological problems on a scale that we have never known before. Our heads are filled with knowledge, but many of our hearts are empty. We are confused, bewildered, frustrated and without moral moorings.
Another condition the Bible says will be present at the end of the world system is power without peace. Many little wars are taking place all over the world. And certainly a major war could break out at any time. Somebody may push the wrong button or miscalculate. We could be plunged into a third world war that nobody wants. Jesus said, “You will hear of wars and rumors of wars. … For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom” (Matthew 24:6-7).
The world today is like an armed camp. Billions are spent for weapons that soon become obsolete or are replaced with new ones that cost even more. The world atmosphere is one of belligerence and fear. Tempers are pushed to the limit; patience is running out.
Many people are asking, “Why is there so little peace in a world of unprecedented knowledge and unlimited potential?”
We are trying to build a peaceful world, but there is no peace within people’s hearts. We cannot build a new world on the old, unregenerate hearts of people. The new world will come about only when Jesus Christ, King of kings, Lord of lords, reigns supreme. He is the “Prince of Peace,” according to Isaiah 9:6.
The sigh of insecurity and the shouts of revolution heard across the world are perhaps the death rattle of an era in civilization, perhaps civilization as we have known it. We are reaching the human impasse. On the human level we are facing total crisis.
It is God’s turn to act, and Scripture promises that He will act dramatically. He will send his Son Jesus Christ back to this Earth. He is the Lord of history. Nothing is taking God by surprise. Events are moving rapidly toward some sort of climax, but it will be according to God’s time when Jesus Christ returns to be rightful Ruler of the world.
But before that time comes, God wants to rule in your heart. He has sent Jesus Christ into the world to be the Ruler of your heart. The Bible says that “sin shall not have dominion over you” (Romans 6:14) if Jesus Christ is in your heart as Lord and Master.
You see, there are two rulers. There is self, and there is Jesus Christ. Either self will reign and dominate, or Jesus Christ will reign and dominate. Who is your ruler? Is the Kingdom of God within you?
No matter what life you have lived, Jesus Christ can come into your heart right now if you will turn from your sins and receive Him as Savior. He loves you. He wants to forgive you. You can enter the new Kingdom, the new world that will be born under His leadership when He comes again. ©1972 BGEA
Scripture quotations are taken from The Holy Bible, New King James Version.
© 2011 BILLY GRAHAM EVANGELISTIC ASSOCIATION