The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1919-02-07

very many more prophecies concern.
ing His second coming than His first
and does not this mean that God
wants to give us the most favorable
opportunity possible to prepare for It !
II the humility and shame Of Christ al
His FIRST coming was literal and visible
should not Hie coming in power and
glory be also literal and visibie1
What right have we to say that the
words Judah. Zion. Israel and Jeru-
salem ever near anything but literal
r s>,>z Sa.,x,r. <.xs~sess Ya,ss 41.4--e.1-
r ss-ts; 'sat4.s ;ssx * t44sntjsr 10 &hn
threoA Places In the whole Now Tesla
ment whore such names are used In
what we may be called a spiritual or
eighty times, and in every case is
unquestfonabiy literal. except when
the opposite Ia clearly indicated by
qualifying terms as heavenly" "new''
or holy" Jew occurs hundred
times, and only four are ambiguous,
Israel and Tsraelite occur forty times.
and all lteraL Judah and Judea
about twenty times and literal in
every case,
!! FSce to Face.
While face to face with them, Jesus
taught His disciples to be In con-
slant expectation Of His early return,
and they so understood Him and lived
accordingly. They preached the doc
trine and taught 1t in their eplstles.
every one Of them. Certainly. II any
body ever understood the Lord cor
onal1y trained to do that very thing,
that they might hand the truth He
gave them down to us. II they failed
to understand Him. what hope 10 there
that anybody else may do so?
Jesus is going to come and reveal
Himself to the members of His body
at the very moment when the last
soul Ia saved necessary to complete
that body--for the body OF Christ must
consists Of certain number of souls.
or II never could be completed. II
II were an infinite number Il would
be an endless task and Jesus would
never return, for He can no more
come without His heavenly body than
He cocid come the frst time without
r. human body. II In the completion
of the body Of Christ. therefore. that
will bring Him. and this shows how
we may help and hasten His COM
the coming Of the day OF God where
In the heavens being on fire shall
be dissolved and the elements shall
melt with fervent heat. Gil. Peter
s:l2)
Let M consider. in the f1rst place
something OF what II may mean to
/ have a part In that meeting in the air
/ /. Well. the most glorious thing
. about 1t is that II we are there we
. shalt be members OF the body OF
, Jesus Christ. It will mean that we
} are members OF the royal family OF
I the universe; that we are kings and
| princes who are to sit on the throne
and reign with Jesus. and that we
shall be with him fos everscre, never
to be separated from Him again. And
? this will mean that we shall be the
. for who could be higher than the sons
OF God. or the bride Of our Lord. In
} talking to men God must of course
} use the language OF men. but He
. can only put Into our words just q
, little of what He would tell us
, A looking into the natter. how.
, ever. will show that He has nsed
, the most expressive words In our
r language TO show how near and precl-
Gus la to be our relationship to Him
? In fact, He has used about ali the
Q words we have that could be used foi
- that purpose, as members OF I'll,
a body" ~His BRIDE" and ''sons OF
= Cod"
v II we are so fortunate as TO have
y a part in that meeting in the air, I
e will mean that we arc among tn.
Z most fortunate OF all the sons OF men
d and that we have lived in the mos
. blessed Of all times for men to Iiv'
/: for only those are eligible to member
!. ship in the body OF Christ who fiv,
!. In the present dispensation. Mose
= and David and Isaiah and jeremiah
!. and no such chance as we have 10
4 tho body OF Christ had its beginnin,
a AZ Pentecost. Neither with those VIII,
: live after the Rapture have an oppor
- tunity. for the body win then b.
!; complete and the door closed forever
= as It was in the faces OF the fooIisi
0 virgins Jesus said Of John the Bap
u fist that ne was the greatest Of al
the prophets. but that the least fl
0 the Kingdom OF God was greater thar
y he.
J. What An awful thing it would he
Q then. &c have such a glorious oppor
:, tunity and miss It, Others will know
- the Joys OF great salvation for tn,
. world will be saved during the mil
: lennium (thc next dispense tion), ant
I the knowledge of the glory OF Coo
/. will cover the earth as the water
t cover the sea, but the people OF tina
b day will have no place In the body o
Christ: they cannot become mem ber,
a OF the royal family. They will b,
n loyal subjects OF the King. That II
a why Paul could say: For I reckon
t that the sufyerings Of this presen
q tlne are NOT worthy TO be com paret
Q with the glory which shall be revealed
}. in US" (Rom. S:i6) There Il 4
. vast difference between son o.
i King George and a subject Of Grea
q Britain. The smallest babe OF roya
. blood In greater than the creates
. man IN tho kingdom.
. Heart Yearning q Prophecy.
3. II we have . place in that meet
ing in the air. II will mean that w,
: are like Christ. for when He shall
D appear we shall be like Him. for W,
8 shall zee Him as He IT," The tru,
child of God In always longing I,
be like His Master. and this hear
> yearning Is the sure prophecy o.
what We shall then be. II will alst
o. mean that we shall nevermore b,
!, separated from Him. The devil will
! never again have power to separate
. De from Him for . single moment
4 and wherever He In. there shall We
D ne also The fact that Jesus is Il
: be here during the millennium woult
I be proof conclusive that we shall b.
: here with Him, even II there were
= no other scripture for II.
I ;. For some that meeting viii