The Place (Matt. 25:31c)

 

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 3/25/2024 11:53 AM

 

My Worship Time                                                                                             Focus:  “The Place”

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                                                 Reference:  Matthew 25:31c

 

            Message of the verse:  “then He will sit on His glorious throne.”

 

            The question that is asked here is where will Christ’s judgment take place?  The answer is that it will happen on earth where He will sit on His glorious throne.  Isaiah 9:7 says “7 There will be no end to the increase of His government or of peace, On the throne of David and over his kingdom, To establish it and to uphold it with justice and righteousness From then on and forevermore.” This is another example of looking at both comings of Jesus Christ to the earth, as verse six is very often used as a “Christmas Verse” and now in verse seven Isaiah talks about what will happen at His second coming.  The reason that this is true is that the OT authors had no idea of the church age which is sandwiched between the two comings of Christ.

 

            The following is what the angel said to Mary before she became pregnant with Jesus:  “31 “And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall name Him Jesus. 32 “He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David; 33 and He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and His kingdom will have no end.’”

 

            The throne of David was in Jerusalem so therefore this is where Christ’s throne will be.  Zechariah tells us in 14:4 the following “In that day His feet will stand on the Mount of Olives, which is in front of Jerusalem on the east; and the Mount of Olives will be split in its middle from east to west by a very large valley, so that half of the mountain will move toward the north and the other half toward the south.”  MacArthur writes “From that passage it becomes obvious that the Jerusalem then in existence will be cataclysmically transformed to be made suitable as the place of Christ’s divine, glorious throne.”

 

            The following verses tells us what will happen when the Lord returns:  “12 Let the nations be aroused And come up to the valley of Jehoshaphat, For there I will sit to judge All the surrounding nations. 13 Put in the sickle, for the harvest is ripe. Come, tread, for the wine press is full; The vats overflow, for their wickedness is great. 14 Multitudes, multitudes in the valley of decision! For the day of the LORD is near in the valley of decision.”  These decisions will not be made by men in that day but will be made by God.  As Christ returns to planet earth as described in Revelation chapter 19 there will be no time left for a person to accept the forgiveness that He has to offer, as that will run out for those who will be alive at that time, the time when the Tribulation period will end.  Now we want to look at some more verses from Joel chapter three: 16 The LORD roars from Zion And utters His voice from Jerusalem, And the heavens and the earth tremble. But the LORD is a refuge for His people And a stronghold to the sons of Israel. 17 Then you will know that I am the LORD your God, Dwelling in Zion, My holy mountain. So Jerusalem will be holy, And strangers will pass through it no more.”

 

            MacArthur concludes this section by writing the following “At the ascension, an angel made clear that Jesus’ return would be bodily and historical, not figurative or merely spiritual.  He told the astonished disciples, ‘This Jesus, who had been taken up from you into heaven will come in just the same way as you have watched Him go into heaven’ (Acts 1:11).  When He returns to earth He will reign personally on a literal throne, in a literal Jerusalem, and over a literal people.”

 

Spiritual meaning for my life today:  I realize that this section is not talking about the church age, but living in the church age, and I believe that last part of the church age that I am to be ready for the return of the Lord Jesus Christ as He comes in the clouds to call His Bride home to be with Him, where we will ever be with the Lord. Those who are living in the Tribulation period, which is what we are looking at in these verses will have an idea of when He will return but they should still be looking out for His coming.  Be ready!

 

My Steps of Faith for Today:  Live my life like Jesus Christ will return today.

 

3/25/2024 12:24 PM