A Prayer We Never Pray
by
Pastor Cornelius R. Stam
Down through the centuries many sincere believers have uttered
this prayer: “Come, Lord Jesus; come quickly,” but we have not
joined them in this.
Lest we be misunderstood, we hasten to explain that we,
personally, long to see and be with our blessed Lord, and did we
think only of ourselves we would have Him come now, without further
delay.
But this continued absence of our Lord in grace is the special
subject of Paul’s epistles, as Peter states:
“AND ACCOUNT THAT THE LONGSUFFERING OF OUR LORD IS SALVATION; EVEN AS OUR BELOVED BROTHER PAUL ALSO ACCORDING TO THE WISDOM GIVEN UNTO HIM HATH WRITTEN UNTO YOU;
“AS ALSO IN ALL HIS EPISTLES, SPEAKING IN THEM OF THESE THINGS…” (II Pet.3:15,16).
How gracious has our Lord been in delaying His return for His own
and the judgment to follow! How gracious to extend the day of grace
until now! Now that we are saved we would fain be with the One we
love and long for, but how grateful we should be that He waited for
us, and how eager we should be to win others to Him while He waits
still longer!
As we consider the lost about us, therefore, we cannot implore the
Lord to “come quickly,” though His coming for us is indeed a
“blessed hope,” and we remain on the alert for it to take place
at any time.
In this connection it is interesting to observe that the prayer,
“Come, Lord Jesus,” and its counterpart “How long!” are both
“tribulation” prayers, uttered by saints (not of the Body) who
will live during that dreadful time of God’s wrath. Both are found
in the Book of the Revelation and both in connection with our Lord’s
return to earth to judge and reign, and not in connection with the
rapture. In both Revelation 2:5 and 2:16 our Lord says: “Repent…or
else I will come unto thee quickly,” i.e., to judge. In Revelation
3:11 He writes to the church at Philadelphia, but again in warning:
“Behold, I come quickly: hold that fast which thou hast, that no
man take thy crown.” Revelation 22:7 and 12 are used in the same
way, indicating that in that day only those who are “overcomers”
will long for the Lord to come and put an end to the world’s
rebellion. Thus John closes the Revelation with the declaration: “He
which testifieth these things saith, Surely I come quickly”, and
the response: “Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus” (Verse 20).
How
God Saves Men
Believing
Christ DIED, that’s HISTORY.
Believing
Christ DIED for YOU SINS and Rose again that’s SALVATION.
Read
Acts 16L31 Romans 1:16, and 1. Corinthians 15:1-4
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