Journey to the
Lord’s Table
Daily Reading:
Monday:
1 Thessalonians 4
Tuesday:
1 Corinthians 15
Wednesday:
Matthew 24
Thursday:
Acts 1:1-11
Friday:
Revelation 19-21
Notes:
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Well, we have come to the end of our Journey to the Lord's Table.
Over the last three weeks we have reflected on our lives, repented of
our sins and remembered the sacrifice the Lord made for us that we
might have this opportunity of communion with Him and each other. Today in
our worship service we come to the table for a “Love Feast”. We will reflect,
repent, and remember one more time as we take the Lord's Supper. As we
walk away from His table this morning we set our focus on a future event that
brings recurrent purification, anticipation, and above all hope. We look to our
soon coming King and the fulfillment of His promise to call His own to be with
Him forever. Today we rejoice!
Read 1 Corinthians 11:26
As stated each week in our lessons there are certain aspects that we observe
in taking the Lord’s Supper properly. Today we see clearly from the Scripture
a take away from the Supper given to us by the Lord. Every time we eat the
bread and drink the cup or in other words observe the Lord’s Supper, we are
showing the world that we believe in the promise that Jesus is coming back to
claim His own. The word “shew” in 1 Corinthians 11:26 is the Greek word
“καταγγελλω” which is an indicative (the mood of a verb used to express factual information) verb that means to announce, declare, promulgate, and to
make known. The same Greek word is translated 10 other times in the New
Testament as “preach.” The Word of God says that when we meet together as
a body of believers we “shew” or preach to the world that we believe that Jesus will keep His promise to come back for those who know Him as their Lord
and Saviour both dead and alive (1 Thessalonians 4:1-18). There is a looking
back to remember the Lord’s sacrifice, but there is also a looking ahead to our
blessed redemption. That hope is what keeps us going (Romans 5:23-25).
That hope is what burns in our hearts to make sure we are faithful and ready
for His coming (1 John 3:1-3, Titus 2:11-14). It is that hope that creates a
yearning to leave this world and be forever with our Lord (1 Peter 1:3-9).
Second Coming or Rapture
It would do us well to understand what “till he comes” means at this point. All
true Bible believers believe that Jesus Christ will one day come back as He
promised. The Bible is very clear that He will come back (Matthew 16:27, John
14:2-3, Acts 1:11, Matthew 24:30, Revelation 19:11-21, 1 Thessalonians 4:1318, to name a few references). Clarence Larkin in his commentary, The Second Coming says,
“Paul in all his epistles refers but 13 times to Baptism, while he speaks
Journey to the Lord’s Table: Lesson 4: March 22, 2015
Lessons provided by Pleasant Grove Baptist Church
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of the Lord’s return 50 times. One verse in every 30 in the New Testament refers to Christ’s Second Coming. There are 20 times as many
references in the Old Testament to Christ’s Second Coming as to His
First Coming.”
There is the time of the Second Coming where Christ will bodily descend from
Heaven and literally set up His kingdom from Jerusalem and rule the world for
1000 years and then there is what is called the Rapture. These two are different events that occur at different times. The Rapture is a time in the future
where Jesus will not physically come to earth but will come to the first heaven,
the clouds, (the three heavens: first heaven is our atmosphere, the second
heaven is what we call outer space, the third heaven is God’s abode, (2 Corinthians 12:2) and the saints dead and alive will meet the Lord in the air (1 Thessalonians 4:13-18).
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Jesus’ death on
the cross 30 AD
Jesus’
Birth 4 BC
Jesus’ ascension
40 days after the
resurrection
Jesus’
resurrection
3 days later
Rapture of
the church
(The
Church Age)
Approx. 2000
years
Pentecost—giving
of the Holy Spirit
and start of the
church 10 days
after ascension
Judgment Seat of Christ
Second Coming
of Christ
Beginning of
7 years of
tribulation
Beginning of 1000
year reign of Christ
known as Millennial
Reign (follows Armageddon)
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The word Rapture is not found in the Bible but is clearly taught in the Scripture
(1 Corinthians 15:51-58). Another word that is not found in the Bible is the
word trinity. However, it is clearly taught in the Bible in many passages and
has been believed since the early church was founded. Such is the case with
the doctrine of the Rapture. The doctrine of the Rapture of the church is the
snatching away of all the saved both dead and alive to meet the Lord and go
to their Judgment (Judgment Seat of Christ, 2 Corinthians 5:9-10, Romans
10:11-12, 1 Corinthians 3:11-17). This will hasten the beginning of a time that
is called the tribulation in which God will prepare His chosen people, the Jews
for the second coming of Christ seven years later. The word Rapture means to
be snatched away. The Bible uses the term “caught up” in 1 Thessalonians
4:17.
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Journey to the Lord’s Table: Lesson 4: March 22, 2015
Lessons provided by Pleasant Grove Baptist Church
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Notes:
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The ordinance of the Lord’s Supper is to be observed until that time
comes. The word “comes or coming,” in the Scriptures never refers to
the Rapture of the church but to the Second Coming. Therefore, all of
us who know Jesus Christ as our personal Lord and Saviour will keep
the Lord’s Supper until the Rapture that will happen seven years before the
Second Advent or Second Coming. As Paul commanded in the Scripture, the
Lord’s Supper will continue to be observed by those tribulation saints (those
saved during the tribulation) during that seven year period of tribulation. At the
time of the Second Advent we will be coming with the Lord to rule and reign
over the nations (Revelation 20:4).
Looking to His Promise
Most Scriptures that record the promise of Jesus coming back refer to His
Second Coming. Although there are many shadows or types and pictures of
the Rapture in Scripture, the teaching is found primarily in 1 Thessalonians 4
and 1 Corinthians 15. For us today, looking for the Rapture to occur, we find
just as much hope in the Scriptures that speak of the Second Coming even
though those Scriptures speak of a time after our reunion with the Lord. We
can find great hope in those Scriptures because the closer we are to His Second Coming the closer we are to our blessed hope (Titus 2:13). It will do the
Christian in this church age well to know the Scripture concerning the Second
Coming and be sure in them on its teaching. There are those who would call
themselves Christian who deny this teaching. To do that would take away any
hope that we have. However, the Scriptures are very clear.
The Testimony of Jesus
Jesus spoke many times about His coming again. Many times He speaks
about it to help those who listened to understand that there are many prophecies that will be fulfilled in His coming again. That was hard for the Jew of His
day. They did not have the spiritual senses to discern the difference between
the prophecies of His first and second coming. When they read the prophecies
concerning His Second Coming in the Old Testament they read about the
power and glory of the Messiah. Yet they confused that prophecy with the first
coming. That is why they missed Him and rejected Him. “He that hath ears to
hear, let him hear.” Peter tells us that the prophets, themselves, did not clearly
perceive the difference between the “sufferings” and the “glory” of Christ (1
Peter 1:10-11). No matter what was not seen by them in the Old Testament
Jesus made very clear what was to happen during His time on earth (Matthew
16:27, 25:31-32, John 14:2-3, John 21:22).
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Journey to the Lord’s Table: Lesson 4: March 22, 2015
Lessons provided by Pleasant Grove Baptist Church
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The Testimony of Angelic Beings
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Jesus walked the earth for 40 days after His death, burial and resurrection to prove to the world that He had risen (Acts 1:3, 13:31). During
that time He was seen by over 500 people, James his brother and all the
apostles (1 Corinthians 15:1-7). After that he spent time with His disciples and
prepared to ascend back to His Father. At the ascension as He went out of
their sight, the disciples stood gazing up at the sky. It was at that time that angelic beings appeared and made a prophetic statement to them that He would
one day come back just as He left (Acts 1:10-11).
The Testimony of the Apostles
One of the remarkable things about the life of Paul (born 5 AD) is that he was
alive and present before Jesus’ crucifixion. He was Christ’s contemporary.
And, yet, he never followed Christ even though he would have known of Him
and His miracles. On the contrary, he despised everything that had to do with
Christ, especially His followers. It was not until after the ascension of Christ
that he met Him face to face and got saved (Acts 9:1-9). After his salvation,
Paul was convinced of the imminent return of Christ and testified to the fact
(Philippians 3:20-21, Titus 2:13).
James, the brother of our Lord, also after his conversion testified of Christ’s
second coming (James 5:7), as well as did Jude 1:14-15, and John (1 John
2:28, Revelation 1:7).
The Testimony of the Lord’s Supper
Yes, the Lord’s Supper bears a testimony of the Second Coming (1 Corinthians 11:26). The Lord’s Supper will not always be taken. It is a “Memorial
Feast” that looks back at the cross and forward to His coming. Once He
comes again there will be no more need to look back or forward to see Christ
because He will be in front of us, 1 John 3:2). That brings tremendous Biblical
significance to what we do at the Lord’s Supper. That is the take away. That is
why we do not hang crucifixes in our church. Our Lord is not on the cross, but
He is alive and preparing a place for us to one day come and get us and take
us to our eternal home. We may look back and remember the suffering of our
Saviour at the Table, but when we leave the Lord’s Table we are to look forward to our soon coming King!
The Imminency of Christ’s Return
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Journey to the Lord’s Table: Lesson 4: March 22, 2015
Lessons provided by Pleasant Grove Baptist Church
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Notes:
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After seeing the testimonies of Scripture there is no doubt of the Second Coming. However, the time of His coming has been debated and
guessed at for centuries. The time of the Rapture is not told in the
Scripture just as the time of the Second Coming is not told. However,
we are told that it is imminent. The word imminent means, may happen at any
time. This is a doctrine that has been taught by the early church, but has in
these last days been refuted. There are some that believe that since Jesus did
not come back during the apostles’ lifetime that they were wrong in their writings and that His return would be some far off future event. The major fallacy
with that argument is that it was not the apostles’ writing. It was not their mistake to make. They made no mistake because they were not speaking. It was
the Holy Spirit that spoke and moved upon them to write every word (2 Peter
1:21, 2 Timothy 3:16). In Matthew 24:42-44 Jesus was not saying that He
would return in the lifetime of those He was speaking to. As a matter of fact He
clears that up when He gives the Parable of the Talents in Matthew 25:19
where He said, “ After a long time the lord of those servants cometh, and reckoneth with them.” What Jesus was teaching was the sudden and unexpected
character of His return. Imminency does not mean immediateness. The teaching of the apostles is clear that Christ’s followers should be ready at any time
(Matt 24:27, 42-44).
Clarence Larkin states in his book The Second Coming of Christ,
It was clearly known to our Lord that certain events must come to pass
before His return, but to have disclosed that fact would have nullified
the command to “Watch,” therefore He in “mystery form,” as in the seven parables of Matthew 13, hid the fact that His return would be delayed. It would take time for the “Sowing of the Seed, “ the growth of
the “Wheat” and “Tares,” the growth of the “Mustard Tree,” and the
“Leavening of the Meal.” So rapid was the spread of the gospel in the
first century that the followers of Christ were warranted in looking for
the speedy return of the Lord, but it was true then, as in every century
since, that we do not know what the extent of the “Harvest” is to be,
and when it will be ripe, so the Lord can return (Matthew 13:30). Uncertainty then as to the time of the Lord’s return is necessary to promote the “watchful” spirit. If the early church had known that the Lord’s
return would have been delayed for 20 centuries, the incentive to
watchfulness would have been wanting.”
We may not know the day, the time, or the hour of our Lord’s return, but we do
know that it is imminent. It could happen at any moment. All the prophecies
have been fulfilled. There is nothing undone to impede our Lord’s coming. And
Journey to the Lord’s Table: Lesson 4: March 22, 2015
Lessons provided by Pleasant Grove Baptist Church
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so we are admonished to live in this life for our Lord and be ready (1
Thessalonians 5:1-10).
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Are you Ready for that Day?
There are few things that are certain in this life. Death is truly certain. We will
all go that way. There is nothing we can do about it. The Bible says in Hebrews 9:27, “And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the
judgment.” The reason for death according to the Scripture is sin. Romans
3:23 says, “For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God.” And
again in Romans 6:23, “For the wages of sin is death.” We have all sinned
therefore we will all die. There is only one other alternative and that is to be
ready for the Rapture. So either by rapture or by death, one has to be ready to
meet God and face judgment. That is what is coming after death for everyone.
Just as all these things are certain, there is one more thing certain and that is
the fact that you can be ready. There is only one way for that certainty. The
Bible says in Romans 10:9-10, “That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the
Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the
dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.” The only way to
be ready to meet the Lord is to accept His sacrifice on the cross for your sin by
trusting and believing in His death, burial, and resurrection. The Bible says in
Ephesians 2:8-9, “For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of
yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast.”
There is nothing else to do to receive salvation but to accept Jesus Christ and
His grace as a gift from God by faith. That is it. There is no other way. Are you
trusting in Him at this very hour. It could be this very hour that He comes. Are
you ready to meet Him?
As we approach the Lord’s Table we cannot approach as an unsaved man,
woman or child. You must be saved to take the Lord’s Supper. There is no
other way. To do so would be to take it in an unworthy manner. If you are
trusting in anything other than His sacrifice and take the Lord’s Supper it
would be a sin against His body and blood (1 Corinthians 11:27-31). Are you
ready to take the Supper? If you are not 100% sure of your salvation then
make sure right now by simply bowing your head and praying to the Lord and
saying, “God I realize that I am a sinner and I need You to save me. I believe
that only You can. I believe that Jesus Christ is Your Son and You have raised
Him from the dead to bring me salvation and eternal life. I receive You Lord
Jesus right now as my personal Lord and Saviour. Thank You for saving me.
In Jesus name, Amen.” Now you’re ready.
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Journey to the Lord’s Table: Lesson 4: March 22, 2015
Lessons provided by Pleasant Grove Baptist Church
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Lesson Questions:
Notes:
1. Discuss the difference in the Rapture and the Second Coming.
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2. Discuss the undeniable proof that Jesus Christ will return.
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3. What does it mean when we say the Lord’s return is imminent? What is the
significance to this teaching of scripture?
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4. Why is it important to leave the Lord’s Table rejoicing in His coming?
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5. Are you ready for his coming? Take the remaining space and the back of
this page to write out your testimony. Who you were before Christ, what did
you do to receive Christ, when was it, where were you, and how has your life
changed since that glorious day.
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Journey to the Lord’s Table: Lesson 4: March 22, 2015
Lessons provided by Pleasant Grove Baptist Church
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