Second Coming Hope

The King is Coming | Jim Howard, Adventist World Radio, President

Estimated read time: 1:20

Summary

In this sermon, Jim Howard shares his personal conversion story and uses it as a launch point to explain the Bible’s teaching on the second coming of Jesus. He emphasizes that Christ’s return will be literal, visible, audible, and glorious—not secret—and warns listeners about deception, false signs, and the popular rapture teaching. The message also walks through the millennium, the final judgment, the fate of the wicked, and the promise of a new heaven and new earth. Howard repeatedly returns to the central invitation: be ready, choose Jesus now, and live in hope because the King is coming soon.

Highlights

A personal testimony turns into a big-picture Bible message about eternity 🙏📖
The sermon lays out four questions: warnings, what the coming is like, what happens after, and how to prepare 🧭
Matthew 24 and Revelation are used to show that deception is one of the biggest end-time dangers ⚠️
The coming of Jesus is described as visible like lightning and glorious with all the holy angels ⚡👼
The speaker explains why he believes the secret rapture idea doesn’t fit the full biblical picture 🚪
A detailed walkthrough of Revelation 20 covers the millennium, the binding of Satan, and the first resurrection ⏱️
The final judgment scene features the holy city descending and fire consuming the wicked after the thousand years 🏙️🔥
The sermon closes with a heartfelt invitation to come to Jesus just as you are and prepare for baptism ❤️🕊️

Key Takeaways

Jesus’ return will be unmistakable: everyone will see, hear, and experience it 📣✨
Don’t get fooled by flashy supernatural claims—always test them by the Bible 🔍📖
The sermon rejects a secret rapture and teaches one public, glorious second coming 🚫👀
Believers are raised or transformed at Christ’s coming and meet Him in the air 🕊️☁️
The millennium is presented as a time of judgment review and Satan’s isolation on an empty earth ⏳🌍
The wicked are judged at the end of the thousand years, not immediately at death ⚖️🔥
Hellfire is described as final destruction, not endless torment, and the final end is ashes 🌋🪔
God’s goal is to end sin and suffering and restore peace forever 🌈🏡

Overview

The sermon opens with Jim Howard’s conversion story: a young man raised around Christianity, drifting away from God, then reading the Bible for the first time and having his life transformed. That personal journey sets the tone for the rest of the message, which is built around one big idea: the King is coming, and people need to be ready.

From there, Howard moves through a Bible-based outline of the second coming. He stresses that Jesus warned about deception, false prophets, and supernatural signs that can mislead people. He argues that Christ’s return will be a single, public event—visible to all, audible with trumpet and shout, and glorious with all the angels—not a secret rapture with a later second chance.

The final part of the sermon covers the millennium, the judgment of the wicked, the destruction of sin, and the promise of a new heaven and new earth. Howard rejects eternal torment in hell, describing the wicked as ultimately consumed and destroyed. He ends with a strong appeal for listeners to choose Jesus now, come to Him as they are, and prepare for baptism and a life of discipleship.

Chapters

00:00 - 05:00: Opening Testimony and the Call to Listen The speaker introduces the message, sharing a personal testimony of growing up without real faith, reading the Bible at age 22, and having his life transformed. He connects that turning point to his conviction in Jesus’ words about the seriousness of the soul and the reality that the King is coming.
05:00 - 15:00: The Certainty of Christ’s Visible Second Coming The speaker warns that the end-time final deception will mirror the deceptive signs and wonders used by the beast and false prophet, so believers must test every supernatural claim by Scripture rather than by its spectacle.
15:00 - 22:30: Rejecting the Secret Rapture and False Expectations The speaker explains that Christ’s second coming will bring no second chances: true believers who have died will be raised with glorified bodies, living believers will be transformed, and both groups will meet the Lord in the air and go to heaven together. By contrast, the unrighteous who are alive at Christ’s return will be destroyed by his brightness, while the dead wicked remain dead.
22:30 - 32:30: The Millennium, the Righteous, and the Fate of the Dead The passage explains that the righteous are in heaven during the 1,000 years, reigning with Christ while the dead are unable to act, and that the saints participate in understanding and affirming God’s judgments by reviewing the books of record. It emphasizes that God’s judgments are just and true, even when outcomes are surprising to humans.
32:30 - 42:30: Judgment, Hellfire, and the End of Sin This chapter explains the biblical teaching that the wicked are not eternally tormented in hellfire but are fully destroyed, consumed, and reduced to ashes. It argues that the Bible presents the result of sin as death, perishing, and destruction, not ceaseless burning, and that only the saved receive immortality and eternal life. The speaker also emphasizes God's justice and fairness, asking whether endless punishment would fit a loving God, and says such a view misrepresents God's character.
42:30 - 55:00: God’s Love, New Creation, and the Invitation to Surrender The speaker emphasizes the certainty of Christ’s return and the joy of the righteous versus the deep regret of those unprepared. He reassures listeners that Jesus is preparing a place for believers and will come again so they can be with him, urging everyone to be ready for that day.
55:00 - 57:30: Appeal, Commitment, and Closing Prayer The speaker offers an appeal for listeners who have felt the Holy Spirit’s prompting, asking God to make this a lasting commitment rather than a temporary decision. The prayer emphasizes that those choosing baptism are also choosing discipleship and a life of following Jesus, and it includes those listening beyond the auditorium through radio and other settings. It closes by asking God to secure these decisions, lead people to connect with their nearest Adventist church, and bless the gathering with peace, grace, and protection.

The King is Coming | Jim Howard, Adventist World Radio, President Transcription

Segment 1: 00:00 - 02:30 Today's message is the king is coming. Now we're here in a university setting and so I might I thought it just took me back to when I was in university. But it was a little bit different time for me. This is a picture of me while in university. That's me on the right. Those are my two older brothers, one on the left, one in the middle. And uh I have a a t-shirt with a message on it that is really not relating in any way to the gospel but instead to the years in which I didn't know God. My parents were Christians when I was a little boy but they left the church when I was 9 years old. And I grew up in my teen years and as an uh in my early 20s without any real thought of God except the occasional tug that the Lord placed on my heart, that the spirit of God would speak to my heart. And so I was very much living for the world. Very much living for the world until I was 22 years old. I was going to a university but I was in a place where I wanted I just a little bit of curiosity. I wanted to know something about what the Bible taught. You see my parents were Christian when I was little and so I still referred to myself as a Christian but I did not know one verse in the Bible. And I was always afraid that if I said I was a Christian and someone began to ask me something about it that I would be embarrassed because I didn't know a single verse in the Bible. So I thought one of these days I'm going to read just a little bit. And so when I was 22 years old I opened my Bible and just just to read enough to have something to say in case somebody asked. And in 3 weeks I'm here to tell you that
Segment 2: 00:00 - 02:30 the Bible changed my life. My life was turned upside down and shortly after that is this picture where I'm writing wearing my new t-shirt, fishers of men. That's what that t-shirt says because between 22 years old before I read my Bible and 22 years old after I read my Bible, everything had changed. Friends, I'm here because I believe the words of Jesus.
Segment 3: 02:30 - 05:00 What will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and loses his own soul? This is the message that was brought home to my heart as I was studying my Bible in those early days. The Lord Jesus kept whispering it to me. What would it matter if I gained the whole world but lost my own soul? What about eternity? My message for you today is simple. We can avoid it. We can deny it. We can ignore it, but we cannot change the fact, the absolute certainty that the king is coming. The Lord Jesus will come and he will come soon. Now, when we talk about the second coming of Jesus, there are many things that we could focus on. And I'd like to focus on four areas with you today. Number one, what are the warnings that Jesus gave about his return? Number two, what will his return to this earth be like? Number three, what will happen after he returns? And number four, how can we be ready? So, let's first look at the warnings that Jesus gave about his coming. In Matthew 24 verse 3, the disciples of Jesus asked him, "Master, what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?" And Jesus answered and said to them, "Take heed that no one what?" "Deceives you." Take heed. The first thing that Jesus said after they asked him about the sign of his coming is, "Be careful that no one deceives you." Later in the same chapter, Jesus said false Christs and false prophets will rise and grow shape show great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect. And later in the last book of the Bible
Segment 4: 02:30 - 05:00 in Revelation chapter 16 verse 14, it speaks about how the spirits of demons perform signs. The devil knows that mankind is amazed by things that are supernatural, and he tries to awe people through supernatural
Segment 5: 05:00 - 07:30 phenomenon. In Revelation 19 verse 20, it tells us that the final test that will come upon humanity will have the same source of deception. It says, "Then the beast was captured." This is a symbolic beast. "And with him the false prophet who worked signs in his presence by which he did what?" "Deceived those who received the mark of the beast and those who worshipped his image." Jesus tells us that we should not be deceived by false teachings about his second coming. He warns us, "Do not be deceived." And secondly, both Jesus and the authors of New Testament said that we should not assume that signs and wonders, supernatural end time signs and wonders are from God. Because the devil will use supernatural activity and cause people to think that just because it's supernatural, it's from God. But it's only supernatural if it agrees with the Bible. This is what Jesus was telling us. Now, what will his return be like? The Bible gives us three clear facts to describe what it will be like in Earth's final hour when Jesus comes. And if we understand these facts, it will help prevent the deception that Jesus warned about. Number one, the return of Jesus will be clearly visible to all. Revelation 1:7 says, "Behold, he is coming with clouds and every eye will see him." In Matthew 24, Jesus warns. He says, "Therefore, if they say to you, 'Look, he's in the desert, do not go out. Or look, he's in the inner rooms, do not believe it.' For as the lightning comes from the east and flashes to the west, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. In
Segment 6: 05:00 - 07:30 other words, if someone has to tell you that Jesus has appeared somewhere on the earth, then it wasn't Jesus. Because just like when the lightning flashes across the sky, everyone sees it, so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. He goes on to say, "Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven, and
Segment 7: 07:30 - 10:00 then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory." In Revelation, it describes this incredible event with words that are vivid in describing the power that will be seen in that day. The sky it says receded as a scroll when it is rolled up. Every mountain and island was moved out of its place. And the kings of the earth, the great men, the rich men, the commanders, the mighty men, every slave and every free man hid themselves in the caves and in the rocks of the mountains and said to 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. For the great day of his wrath has come and who is able to stand?" Do you notice how Revelation describes the coming of Jesus? It says the sky will come apart like a scroll. Mountains and islands will be moved out of their places. There'll be groups of people that are running away, running to the mountains, calling on the rocks, asking them to hide them from the face of Jesus. You see there's going to be two groups of people looking at the same event. One group is rejoicing to see the face of Jesus. And the other group is watching the same exact event and to them it's a day of wrath. You see when Jesus comes there are only two reactions. Either I'm going to be rejoicing or I'm going to be mourning. And so the big question comes, what will be my reaction when Jesus comes? This is the question for every one of us today. The second characteristic I'd like to share about the coming of Jesus is that
Segment 8: 07:30 - 10:00 it will be audible, audible. The Apostle Paul makes this clear. But first Jesus who says that he will send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet. And they will gather together his elect from the four winds from one end of heaven to the other. Now Paul in 1 Thessalonians 4:16 says the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first.
Segment 9: 10:00 - 12:30 Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. Will everyone hear when Jesus comes? Yes, there'll be a trumpet. There'll be the voice of an archangel. There'll be a shout so loud that the dead in Christ will rise. And I love that verse. It says the Lord himself will descend from heaven. In other words, Jesus is not going to assign this job to anybody else. He's been waiting too long to see you. Too long to meet you. Too long to have that sweet union. And so the Bible says the Lord himself will descend from heaven to come and claim us as his own. And it will be audible, friends. And finally, it will be glorious. Matthew 16:27 says the Son of Man will come in the glory of his father with his angels. And then he will reward each according to his works. When an angel appeared at the tomb of Jesus, it was so bright and glorious that it knocked down 100 Roman soldiers as if they were dead men. But how many angels are coming with Jesus when he returns? The Bible tells us. Matthew 25:31 says when the Son of Man comes in his glory and all the holy angels with him. Then he will sit on the throne of his glory. All the holy angels, millions, billions of angels flooding the sky. This will be a glorious event. The return of Jesus will be literal. It will be visible, audible, and glorious. Now, perhaps you've heard about the secret rapture theory. Has anybody here heard of this? The secret rapture theory takes phrases from the Bible such as being
Segment 10: 10:00 - 12:30 caught up to heaven, the twinkling of an eye, uh one will be taken and the other left, a thief in the night, these different phrases in the Bible and it comes up with a theory. And the theory that is taught by many people today, many Christians today, is that Jesus will not return in a visible event to everyone, not
Segment 11: 12:30 - 15:00 initially, but instead there will be a rapture and that rapture means being caught up. And what will happen is Jesus will secretly catch up the saints and then everybody else who's not a believer will stay behind and they'll have 7 years of tribulation, but this will be another chance, another opportunity they have in order to get things right in their life so that they'll be ready for Jesus to come in a glorious way 7 years later. A secret rapture teaches that Jesus will ultimately come twice. First, he'll come secretly and then he'll come gloriously. And because it gives that second warning, many people are lulled into sleep. They think, "Oh, when my Christian wife or my Christian husband is raptured away and disappears, then I'll know that it's time for me to get serious. The problem is there will be no second chances, friends. When Jesus comes, it's in one literal, visible, audible, and glorious event. And when he comes, the decision that every person, every man, woman, and child in this earth makes will be sealed. There will be no second chance. The Bible does teach that we'll be caught up, but it happens in a visible, single event. The Bible does teach that those who are alive when Jesus comes and who are believers will have their bodies transformed in the twinkling of an eye. But then they will visibly go up and meet Jesus in the air. The Bible does describe how there'll be two classes when he comes. One will go to heaven and the other will be left on this earth, but they will not be left alive on the earth, but rather, as we'll see in a moment, they'll be destroyed by the brightness of his coming. And you can see this by reading the
Segment 12: 12:30 - 15:00 context of the verses that are sometimes taken out of context to teach a secret rapture. And Jesus will not secretly take people away. No, the idea of a thief in the night means that he will come suddenly when we do not expect it. That's all the Bible is saying. It's describing what we've already read. The real question is, are we ready? Jesus warned, "Therefore, you also be ready, for the Son of Man is
Segment 13: 15:00 - 17:30 coming at an hour you do not expect." The truth about the second coming is that we need to be ready because on that day there will be no second chances. So, what happens to true believers at Christ's coming? Those who are in the graves now, who are true believers, when Jesus comes, they will be raised from the dead with glorious bodies. Those who are alive when Jesus comes will have their bodies transformed into glorious new bodies, according to Paul in 1 Corinthians 15. And both groups will ascend to heaven together. They'll meet the Lord in the air, and thus they will always be with the Lord. But what happens to the unrighteous? I alluded to it a moment ago, but let's look at the Bible. 2 Thessalonians chapter 1, verse 7 and 8 says that the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with mighty angels in flaming fire taking vengeance on those who do not know God and on those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. When Jesus comes back, it will not be good for those who have not taken time to know him when they had opportunity. Jeremiah 25 describes that day and says, "At that day, the slain of the Lord shall be from one end of the earth even to the other end of the earth. They shall not be lamented or gathered or buried. They shall become refuse on the ground." So, the final events at Christ's coming, yes, the first three are what happens to believers, but the wicked, those who do not believe in Christ, who are alive when Jesus comes, according to the Bible, they'll be slain by his brightness.
Segment 14: 15:00 - 17:30 And those who are dead will remain dead for the time. Now, let's talk about what will happen after he returns. What happens after he returns? In Revelation chapter 20, it describes He says, "I saw an angel." This is John the Apostle writing the book of Revelation. Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven having the key to the
Segment 15: 17:30 - 20:00 bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand. This is symbolic language being used in Revelation. He laid hold of the dragon, that serpent of old who is the devil and Satan, and bound him for how long? For 1,000 years. And he cast him into the bottomless pit and shut him up and set a seal on him so that he should deceive the nations no more till the 1,000 years were finished. But after these things, he must be released for a little while. This description is the beginning of a period that Christian scholars refer to as the millennium or the 1,000 years. What we've just read in Revelation describes how at the beginning of the 1,000 years. Now, let's make sure you understand. When Jesus comes, the righteous ascend into the air, their bodies are transformed, and they go with Jesus to heaven. But at that same time begins a period of 1,000 years. An angel descends from heaven, casts Satan into this symbolic bottomless pit, binds him with a chain so that he can deceive the nations no more. Now, this word bottomless pit in the Greek is abussos. And when you look at the Greek version of the New of the Old Testament called the Septuagint, in Genesis chapter 1, we see the same word used. And it's used when describing the condition of the earth before the full creation by God. It says the earth was without form and void and darkness was on the face of the deep, the abussos. This idea of the abussos, the bottomless pit, is talking about the earth when it's
Segment 16: 17:30 - 20:00 totally desolate, without form and void. Let me show you another place in Jeremiah chapter 4 where it says something similar. Jeremiah says he's writing a prophetic passage here looking into the future and he says, "I beheld the earth and indeed it was without form and void." Now, those of us who have read the book
Segment 17: 20:00 - 22:30 of Genesis, we remember those words, without form and void. So, we immediately think, "Oh, Jeremiah is talking about the condition of the earth at the time of creation." But, notice what he goes on to say. He says, "And the heavens, they had no light. I beheld the mountains and indeed they trembled and all the hills moved back and forth. I beheld and indeed there was no man and all the birds of the heavens had fled." That means this is not talking about the condition of the earth before the creation of the animals, before the creation of mankind. This is talking about the same condition that the earth will now be in after the birds of the heavens have fled and after the destruction that comes when Jesus returns. It says, "I beheld and indeed the fruitful land was a wilderness. All its cities" Notice there used to be cities there, "but now they're broken down at the presence of the Lord by his fierce anger." But, thus says the Lord, the whole land shall be desolate, yet I will not make a full end. Notice Jeremiah's summary, the earth is without form and void. It had no light. The mountains and hills were moved. The land is a wilderness. The cities are destroyed and there's no more life on the earth. Friends, this is the condition of the earth after Jesus returns and great destruction happens on the earth, the righteous are taken to heaven and the devil is trapped on the earth. He's chained to this earth. Not with literal chains, but with a chain of circumstances in which God will not allow him to tempt anyone else. In fact, even the unrighteous are not alive at that time. They're either
Segment 18: 20:00 - 22:30 dead on the ground or dead under the ground. There's no one for the devil to tempt. Now, what are the righteous going to be doing in heaven during these thousand years after the coming of Jesus? Well, the Bible says in Revelation chapter 20, I saw thrones and they sat on them and judgment was committed to them. Talking about God's people, the saints. Then I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for their witness to Jesus
Segment 19: 22:30 - 25:00 and for the word of God, who had not worshipped the beast or his image and had not received his mark on their foreheads or on their hands and they lived and reigned with Christ for a thousand years. So, the righteous will be in heaven and will reign with Christ. And this phrase is used that judgment will be committed to us. Paul referred to this same thing, the Apostle Paul. He said, "Do you not know that the saints will judge the world? Do you not know that we shall judge angels? Now, this doesn't mean that true believers are determining which people are going to be saved into heaven eternally and which will be lost. Thank you, Pastor Emmanuel. It does not mean that they will determine which angels will live for eternity and which will in the end be lost. No, but it does mean that they will have a part in understanding and agreeing to the judgments of heaven before the final judgment is executed upon the unrighteous. Remember, during the 1,000 years, where are the righteous? They're dead. They're dead. But during the millennium, every question will be answered. Every wrong will be made right. I assume that there will be some people in heaven that it will be a surprise to see. And there will be other people in heaven who or other people who we're looking for who are not in heaven because God knows the inner life and we don't. And in the millennium, during that 1,000 years, we'll be able to understand. God will show us the books of record. We'll be able to understand and agree with all of the judgments that God has made. We'll be able to declare, as it says in Revelation 15, "Just and true are your ways, O King of the saints." God is just.
Segment 20: 22:30 - 25:00 Now, at the end of the 1,000 years, something happens. Says, "The rest of the dead, that's the unrighteous, did not live again until the 1,000 years were finished." So, this means that those who are unrighteous, even those that were slain by the brightness of Jesus coming, 1,000 years later, they will be raised from the dead.
Segment 21: 25:00 - 27:30 Jesus spoke of this in John chapter 5. He said, "Do not marvel at this, for the hour is coming in which all who are in the graves will hear his voice and come forth. Those who have done good to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil to the resurrection of condemnation." There are two resurrections the Bible teaches, and those resurrections are 1,000 years apart. The first resurrection is when Jesus comes, and the righteous are raised from their graves to immortal life. The second resurrection is at the end of the 1,000 years, and this is the unrighteous, the resurrection of condemnation, where they're raised for a final judgment. And the Bible tells us exactly what that final judgment will be. It says in Revelation chapter 20, "Now when the 1,000 years have expired, Satan will be released from his prison, and will go out to deceive the nations." Wait a minute. I thought Satan was chained to the bottomless pit, to this desolate earth after the coming of Jesus. I thought he was chained here, and he couldn't deceive anyone. Well, the reason he couldn't deceive anyone was because they were dead. The unrighteous were dead. But now, at the end of the 1,000 years, the unrighteous are resurrected. And now the devil can go out to deceive them. And that's exactly what he does. He goes out to deceive the nations which are in the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to battle, whose number is as the sand of the sea. Now that the wicked have been raised, Revelation says that Satan immediately goes to deceive them. They're numerous, as thick as the sa- the sand of the sea. Friends, what is popular is not always right. And what is right is not always popular.
Segment 22: 25:00 - 27:30 And we learn from the words of Jesus that the way to eternal life is narrow, but the way to destruction is broad. Friends, the people that Satan is seeking to deceive in this picture at the end of the 1,000 years are not a small little group. They're billions of people, the majority of those who have lived
Segment 23: 27:30 - 30:00 on the earth. And you don't want to be one of them, friends. You want to be among those that the Lord Jesus says, "Well done, good and faithful servant. Enter into the joy of thy Lord." The Bible says in Revelation 20, verse 9, if They went up on the breadth of the earth and surrounded the camp of the saints and the beloved city. Where did this city come from? Revelation chapter 21, verse 2 describes a time when the holy city descends out of God from heaven and comes down to this earth. The saints are inside the city as it comes down. And then, when the right the unrighteous are raised from the dead, the devil deceives them into going and surrounding the city as if they could take it. And notice what happens next. And fire came down from God out of heaven and devoured them. This is the narrative account of the final judgment of the wicked, what the Bible in other places refers to as the fires of hell. But when we read this description, it raises immediate questions about the commonly taught ideas of what happens to the wicked in hell. And before we conclude the final events associated with the end of time and the second coming of Jesus, we need to be sure that we understand the answer to these very important questions. So, when does hellfire burn? Is this description that we've just heard an accurate one? Well, it's in the Bible, isn't it? It's telling us the true picture of when hellfire burns. Where does hell burn? How long do the fires of hell burn? Well, let's answer the question, when?
Segment 24: 27:30 - 30:00 Well, we just read it, at the end of the 1,000 years, when the unrighteous are raised and they surround the camp of the saints. At that time, fire comes down from God out of heaven and devours them. It happens at the end of the 1,000 years. Jesus said it this way in Matthew 13 when he was telling a parable of wheat and tares. He says, as the tares are gathered and burned in the fire, so it will be at the end of this age. Friends, those who teach that hell is a
Segment 25: 30:00 - 32:30 place that burns through the ceaseless ages of eternity, where there will never be relief, where there will never be an end to suffering for the unrighteous, those who teach this teach that the moment that you die, you begin burning in hell. If you are unrighteous. But according to the Bible, when does hell burn? At the end of the age. It's not burning now. It burns at the end of the 1,000 years. The Son of Man will send out his angels and they will gather out of his kingdom all things that offend and those who practice lawlessness and will cast them into the furnace of fire and there will be wailing and gnashing of teeth. This fire will burn at the end of the thousand years and not now. Notice 2 Peter 2 verse 9, then the Lord knows how to deliver the godly out of temptations and to what's that word? Reserve the unjust under punishment for the day of judgment. There's a day reserved for the unrighteous. Friends, I can't tell you how many people have a loved one, a son, a daughter who is rebellious and they were they died or were killed at a young age and perhaps their Christian mother or father is in torment every day because they believe that their son or their daughter is in torment that very moment. But that's not what the Bible teaches. The Bible teaches that the end of the wicked does not come until the end of the thousand years, that the unrighteous are reserved for that day of judgment. Where does hell burn? Is it at the center of the core of the earth? Is that where it's happening? According to the Bible, as we read, it says they went up on the breadth of the earth. That's the surface of the earth and surrounded the camp of the saints
Segment 26: 30:00 - 32:30 and fire came down from God out of heaven and devoured them on the surface of the earth. Friends, if hell is on the surface of the earth, that means it cannot be burning right now. 2 Peter 3 verse 7 says the heavens and the earth which are now preserved by the same word are reserved for fire. That day's coming later and when this describes the heavens, in this case, it's talking about our atmosphere. This atmosphere, this earth are reserved for that day at the end of the thousand
Segment 27: 32:30 - 35:00 years, the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men. Because remember, the Bible promises in 2 Peter 3:13 that we look for a new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells. A new heaven and a new earth. So, how long will hellfire burn? This point, friends, is the one where many people misunderstand what happens at the end of time with the coming of Jesus and what happens afterward. Many people are confused and as a result, they paint a picture of God that causes many people to never want to believe in a vicious God. And the loving character of God is maligned. What did we already read happens to the unrighteous? It says fire came down from God out of heaven and did what? Devoured them. This doesn't mean that they continue to burn, it means it totally consumed them. It devoured them. Let me give you a few reasons why the popular teaching of a ceaseless burning hell is not biblical. You see, the Bible says that man is not naturally immortal. Only the saved have eternal life. Only the saved are immortal. So, if the wicked burn forever, that means that technically they're immortal. They live forever. This is contrary to what the Bible teaches. The Bible says in Romans 6:23, "The wages of sin is death, not ceaseless burning." The Bible says that those who do not believe will perish. That means come to an end. The Bible says that the wicked shall perish. The enemies of the Lord, like the splendor of the meadows shall vanish into smoke they shall vanish away. The Bible says that we should fear him
Segment 28: 32:30 - 35:00 who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell. We're destroyed by the fires of hell. It doesn't somehow keep us burning through the ceaseless ages of eternity. That's not what the Bible teaches. Malachi chapter 4 says, "Behold the day
Segment 29: 35:00 - 37:30 is coming burning like an oven and all the proud, yes, all who do wickedly will be stubble in the day which is coming shall burn them up." That word up is an important one. They will It will not The fires of hell will not just burn the wicked. It will burn them up. He describes what that means. It will leave them neither root nor branch. You shall trample the wicked for they shall be what? Ashes under the soles of your feet on the day that I do this. The Bible teaches that the final outcome of the wicked is that they will be devoured. They'll receive death or the second death. They will perish. They'll vanish away or be consumed. They'll be destroyed. They'll be burned up with nothing left but ashes. The Bible does not teach that the wicked receive eternal life in hell. Think about it. If God creates a new heavens and a new earth, how can hellfire be burning on this earth for eternity? We have a new heavens and a new earth. And that new heavens and new earth is going to be glorious and there will be no suffering anymore. And I want you to think about this. God is both just and fair. Would it be just for God to take someone who sinned for 70 or 80 years and then burn them for eternity? Imagine that you were a mother, a father. You had an 18-year-old boy who was rebellious. He was given his life to rebellion. He was a seeking the pleasures of this world. And he gets drunk one night and he drives his vehicle into a tree and he dies suddenly at 18 years old. Could you imagine the idea that that boy would wake up to the suffering and punishment of fire
Segment 30: 35:00 - 37:30 for not 1 year, not a 100 years, not a 1,000 or a million or a billion years, but more than a CENTILLION YEARS? THIS BOY would never, ever stop suffering. Does this make sense of a loving God? Friends, this is what the devil would have people to believe. He has painted his own character onto God and caused many to fail of believing in Jesus Christ because they have had a wrong view of the loving and merciful character of their savior.
Segment 31: 37:30 - 40:00 There are multiple verses in the Bible where the word forever is used to describe things that have already ended. Such as when Hannah takes Samuel to the temple, says, "I will take him that he may appear before the Lord and remain there forever." But then later says, "As long as he lives, he shall be lent to the Lord." Many times forever, that word in the Bible is referring to as long as something shall last. It was like when Jonah said he would be in the belly of the whale forever. Its bars closed behind me forever, which ended up being 3 days and 3 nights. It's a finite amount of time. There are many misunderstood terms in the Bible, such as eternal fire. Sodom and Gomorrah, we learn in the New Testament in Jude 1:7, suffered eternal fire. But in 2 Peter, we learn that means that they came to ashes. That's what it means. The results of the destruction were permanent. Eternal punishment is a phrase used in the Bible, but it's not eternal punishing, but the punishment of death is will be eternal. There'll be no resurrection from the fires of hell. An unquenchable fire is a phrase used, but this simply means that no man will be able to put out the fires of hell. It will completely consume and bring to ashes the wicked. But the most important thing you need to know about hell is that hell is not for you. Matthew 25:41 says, "Depart from me, you cursed, into the everlasting fire." Prepared for who? For the devil and his angels. They've gone too far. It's too late for them. We know that their final end is sure. But yours and mine are not. We live in the days of mercy,
Segment 32: 37:30 - 40:00 in the days of grace. Jesus told us through the prophet Ezekiel, "I have no pleasure in the death of the one who dies. Therefore, turn and live." God wants us to live. His hands are outstretched yet today.
Segment 33: 40:00 - 42:30 God's purpose is to bring an end to sin and suffering. When Jesus comes, it will start out the beginning of the final events that will bring an end to sin and suffering. Revelation 21 tells us, "I saw a new heaven and a new earth, and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes. There shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain. How could somebody teach a ceaseless suffering of hell when the Bible tells us there's coming a day when there will be no more pain. This day is coming, friends. I told you that there's a picture given in the Bible in Revelation 21 where the holy city comes down from God out of heaven. All the saints, the believers, those who are of the saved, who when Jesus came, remember they were caught up to meet him in the air, they spent a thousand years with him there understanding what's happened in the judgment and being prepared for the final execution of the judgment upon the wicked, and then they come down with the holy city in this city. And remember, the unrighteous are raised, the devil deceives them, they surround the city thinking, "Ah, we can take the city still." But it's a fascinating moment in time. It's a day that we can imagine in our mind's eye. The Bible says some peculiar things about this city. It says the construction of its wall was of What is that? Jasper. The walls of the city were made of jasper, and the city was pure gold like clear glass. In another verse, it describes this jasper as clear as crystal. This means that when the holy city comes
Segment 34: 40:00 - 42:30 down and the righteous are on the inside and the unrighteous of all ages are surrounding the city on the outside that the righteous will be able to see the wicked through the walls. And the wicked will be able to see the righteous, the joy on their face, the eternity that they realized that they lost out on because they refused to commit their life to Jesus during this short probationary life, and now there's
Segment 35: 42:30 - 45:00 no turning back. Friends, the joy on the faces of the righteous will be a joy that's marked for eternity. But the regret on the faces of those outside the city walls as they look into what might have been. That regret, the whole world could not hold the regret that will be in that day. Jesus promised us, he said, "Let not your heart be troubled. You believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father's house are how many mansions? Many mansions. If it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you, and if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to myself, that where I am, there you may be also." Jesus says, "The reason I'm coming back is so that where I am, you can be with me." That's why he's coming back. And he promises, he says, "I will come again. If it wasn't that way, I would have told you. But I will come again." It's a certain hope that we have, friends. All of the things I have shared from the word of God are certain. They are sure to happen. So, how can we be ready? Don't you want to be ready for that day? Friends, I don't know where I'd be if I had not been inspired by the spirit of God prompting my heart to open up the Bible. And I don't know who you are watching this program, listening over the radio.
Segment 36: 42:30 - 45:00 But I want to give you some assurance today. I can assure you, no matter what you have done in your life, no matter where you have been in your life, that the almighty God when you open the Bible, he will change your life. There is no life that has gone so far that God will not transform it
Segment 37: 45:00 - 47:30 by the creator's almighty power. Just like he took and made something out of nothing, he spoke and it was, he will speak forgiveness into your heart. He will speak transformation into your heart. But friends, he cannot do it unless you spend time with him. Unless you come to him and expose yourself, read the Bible, pray to the God of heaven, ask him to reveal himself to you, and he will. I promise you. And friend Friends, I want to tell you something. The devil, he has a singular plan, and that is to prevent you from turning to Jesus. He'll do anything he can to prevent you from turning to Jesus. He'll use your cares of this life. He'll use the pleasures of this world. And he'll use procrastination, putting it off for a future day. But do not procrastinate in giving your life to Jesus, friends. You do not want to hear Jesus say, "I never knew you." You want to hear him say, "Well done, good and faithful servant. Enter into the joy of thy Lord." Friends, I'd like to ask yourself a couple of questions today. Are you ready for Jesus to come? Have you chosen to live your life for him? I want to encourage you today to make a decision to take your relationship with God seriously before it's too late. Because, friend, the king is coming. You can deny it. We can ignore it, but nothing is going to change it. The king is coming, and he's coming soon.
Segment 38: 45:00 - 47:30 So, come to Jesus just as you are. Say, "Lord, if there's anything keeping me right now from choosing you, I want to surrender it to you right now. Help me give my heart fully to you." I want to read you some words of encouragement from one of my favorite books. It's a little book called Steps to Christ.
Segment 39: 47:30 - 50:00 It says, "Jesus loves to have us come to him just as we are, sinful, helpless, dependent. We may come with all our weakness, our folly, our sinfulness, and fall at his feet in penitence. It is his glory to encircle us in the arms of his love and to bind up our wounds and to cleanse us from all impurity." Friends, come to him just as you are. Don't try to clean up. Just come to him just as you are. Sinful and helpless and dependent. With addictions and with problems, come to him just as you are. And we are told it is his glory to encircle you in the arms of what? You mean he can love a rebellious man? You mean he can love a stubborn woman? Someone who has resisted his will? Someone who has hurt others? Yes, he can. Yes, he does. He will encircle you in the arms of his love, bind up your wounds and cleanse you from all impurity. So, today I want to invite you to make a response to Jesus. If you want to today choose to place your affections upon Christ rather than the things of this world, to start taking your relationship with Jesus seriously, so that you can be ready for his appearing when every eye will see him. If that's you, I'm going to invite you to stand where you are. If you want to take this seriously and commit your life to Jesus in a new way and place your affections upon Christ and be ready when he returns, I'm going to invite you to stand. Praise God for each one of you. I know that some of you might be standing and perhaps in part it's because we've asked you to stand
Segment 40: 47:30 - 50:00 because it would be too awkward not to stand because your neighbor is standing. But make no mistake, friends, you're standing. And heaven registers it. And heaven knows it. And heaven is on your side. And heaven is ready because of the stand you're taking today
Segment 41: 50:00 - 52:30 to help guide you in being ready for the return of Jesus. >> [snorts] >> And now I want to make a special invitation. A special invitation that goes out to those who may have been listening these last few weeks on the radio. Those who may have been watching the messages each day through the broadcasts. And those of you who are here in the auditorium in Bugema University. This invitation goes to anyone whose heart has been touched by the spirit of God and you want to either begin preparing for baptism or be baptized, I want you to wherever you are, if you are at home, if you're listening, I want you to pause and bow your head and commit your life to God to be baptized and to go and find a Seventh-day Adventist Church where you can ask to be baptized. And if you are in this place and you would like to take a stand today and choose to be baptized, I'm going to invite you to come and walk all the way down to the front. And I'm going to stand here at the front and I'm going to ask you to join me at the front where I can pray for you. I'm going to give opportunity for those who would like to come forward. I praise God for the reports, the testimonies that I've heard today of those who have already made that decision. Of those who have recently been listening, those whose lives have been transformed by the word of God. I want you to come down and join me right down here. Come, brothers. You want to be ready for the coming of Jesus. You want to know that your eternity is secure. You want
Segment 42: 50:00 - 52:30 to hear the words of Jesus, "Well done, good and faithful servant. Enter into the joy of your Lord." Praise God for each one of you. I wish I could take time to get to know each one of you. I know that someday in heaven, I'm going to be able to do that. And we're going to be able to talk. We're going to be able to talk about each other's lives and our stories and how the Lord Jesus have been working [music] upon our lives, touching our lives, causing us to see that all through our life he had been working to bless us. He had given us times and opportunities in our life
Segment 43: 52:30 - 55:00 where he touched our life. Where we saw without a a doubt that we were loved by God, that we were chosen by God. >> [singing and music] >> Each one of you is loved by God. >> [singing] >> When I went through my own conversion experience and the Lord Jesus spoke to my heart from the Bible, I had a hard time believing that that God could love someone like me. But the Lord Jesus just made it too clear. And I knew that I was contending with one that I could not win with. That his love was going to melt my heart and that's exactly what it did. Friends, today God is going to melt your heart for time and eternity, I believe. And I pray that each one of you will take the time in his word. You will take the time to pray every day. If you've been listening to messages on the radio, if you've been listening to messages or watching them being broadcast, remember that may not last forever. You have to feed yourself with the word of God. Spend time in the Bible yourself. Begin to talk to Jesus yourself, and begin to know him for eternity. >> [singing] >> And may God bless every one of you for the incredible life-changing decision that you're making today. I'd like to take opportunity now. Please, as we're speaking, you can keep coming, but I'm going to pause now, and I'm going to pray for each one of you, and ask God's special blessing on the rest of your lives. Let us bow our heads for prayer. Our Father in heaven, we were reminded from your word today that not one of us is beyond your reach. We were reminded today that God is love. We were reminded
Segment 44: 52:30 - 55:00 that even when we leave you and live a rebellious life, that while we are still a great way off, you come to us. You speak to our hearts. You embrace us. And you explain to us that you have been
Segment 45: 55:00 - 57:30 loving us through it all. And I thank you for each person here who has felt the tug of the Holy Spirit upon their heart, who has known and felt the love of their savior speaking to them. And I pray in this moment, Lord, that you would speak to them. Help this to be a special moment, one that will ensure that this is not just a commitment for a day, but a commitment for a lifetime. These here, Lord, they have chosen not just to to baptized, but to become disciples of Jesus Christ. To become followers of Jesus, to represent you, to begin to learn what that means. So, Father, I pray for each one. I pray for our dear leaders here, and I pray for each one who's made a decision, not only here in this auditorium, but I pray for those who are in their homes, in their vehicles, in their fields, who are listening on the radio, Adventist World Radio, and they're hearing this message, and they hear the voice of Jesus speaking to their hearts. And I pray that you will secure this decision in their heart, and let nothing prevent them from connecting with their nearest Adventist church for baptism. And now, Lord, thank you for the great blessings you have offered us. We ask that you would bless and keep us, that you would cause your face to shine upon us and be gracious to us, that you would lift up your countenance upon us and give us your peace in Jesus' name. Amen. Amen.