The age-herald., 1900-10-15
CHRIST'S COMING
 A SECOND TIME This Same Jesus Who Was
 Taken Up WILL RE TURN IN GOOD TIME He Will Come to Meet Christians and Will be Present at the First Resurrection = Rev. pr.
 Steele's Sermon
WILL RETURN IN GOOD TIME

At the First Cumberland Presbyterian church yesterday morning. Rev. l. D. Steele preached an able sermon to a large gregation. on the second coming of Christ, taking his text from Act Ill:
 This same Jesus which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like man. ner, as ye have seen him go into heaven"
 Dr. Steele spoke in part as follows:
 The second coming of Christ is given very little thought by the majority of church people. It has conspicuous place in the Bible, there being about three hundred places where it is mentioned.
 Tt is q doctrine greatly abused by cranks and fanatics, who so man3 times have set the day for his coming and staked their faith on their ignorance as to the time he should come. Christ told his disciples in no uncertain language that he would come again. The angels declared at his ascension that he would come. Paul says. The Lord himself shall descend from heav-n with shout, with the voice of the archangel.' The holy angels and redeemed saints will be with him when he comes
 The gospel must first be preached in all the world for witness to all nations, and then shall come the end of this age.
 ''He who desires the coming of the Lord should push the spread of the gospel. It will be union of Christ and the church, the marriage of the bride and the lamb. The church must by his help make herself ready, and make the world ready to re- ceye him.
 "The world was ready for the spread of the gospel when Christ was cruciied. The Roman Empire had unified the world by language and communication as it had never been before. The Roman highway led to every nation.
 "The world today is getting unified to receive a new dispensation at the advent of the Lord. His coming will not be to close up the affairs of the world and ut terly destroy it.. But it will be to gather His believing followers under His personal presence. The Christians living when He comes will not die, but will be changed in the twinkling of an eye. Then will occur the resurrection of all the righteous, call ed the first resurrection. They shall live and reign with the Lord for a thousand years This is scriptural expression of time; we do not know how long that thous- and years will be. It will be period of the full fruitage of the gospel of redemp-
 
 in that period, no mortal man knows; God has not revealed It. This old worlds greatest days are in the future; the great est days of grace for the church are yet to come. This will be the period when the kingdoms of this world shall become those of our Lord and His Christ Daniel said blessed is the man who lives to see this period. As t"-,when He will come. there are many who point out the time, but there are none who know. The reason Paul did not tell us when Christ was com ing he did not know. The reason the an- gels did not tell the disciples, they had not found out themselves God has not re- vealed 1t in heaven in earth. Strange that any man will presume to set the day of His coming, when Christ did not know 1t himself.
 But it will be sudden. utterly unexpect- ed to the whole world; Christ told that much He said it will be as a snare on the whole world. The busy world will be in a rush as it today; the buzz of wheels, the clash of machinery, the scream of whistles, the gay festivals, the men and women in sin, the church service will all go on until startled by the voice that shall call the dead to life. Watch and pray for ye know not the hour your Lord cometh."