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Bibleline Bibleline, here God’s word on Bibleline, here God’s truth on Bibleline. Welcome to Bibleline with Dr. Ralph Yankee Arnold, pastor of Calvary Community Church in Tampa, Florida. Clearly declaring the gospel of Jesus Christ through the radio and the internet. Your regular prayers and monthly support make it possible for Bibleline to continue on the You can reach us toll-free at 1-800-576-3771. Online donations may be made by clicking on the donations link on the BibleInemistries.org homepage. We pray that you will enjoy our commitment to the clear gospel of Jesus Christ and that today’s message will be a blessing to you and your family.

Take your Bible and turn to the book of 1 Thessalonians. The book of 1 Thessalonians. 1 Thessalonians. chapter 1. You’d be surprised how many times the Lord talks about, hey, I’m coming back. I’m coming back. He came the first time just like he said, and then he says, I’m coming back. And so he makes a statement here in the book of 1 Thessalonians in chapter 1, and he’s talking to those who have trusted Christ as Savior like he said in verse 6, and you became followers of us and of the Lord.

having received the word in much affliction with joy at the Holy Spirit so that we you were examples of all that belief so they believed and then they were good examples isn’t that the way it’s supposed to be you trust the Lord and become good examples so what is the one thing that they did that was a good example well you looked down there in verse 9 where he says for they themselves show of us what manner of entering in we had unto you and how ye none this is not for salvation, this was a good example.

They already believed this was not what they did to be saved. Turn to God from idol to serve. So when you see serve, you know, that’s not salvation. Salvation is always free, it’s always by just believing. But it says, to serve the living God, the living and true God. So that’s one of the things that God wants you and I to do after we trust the Lord to be good examples of those that serve the true and living God.

And then he says in verse 10, and to wait for his son from heaven, home he raised from the dead, even Jesus, which delivered us from the raft to come. Now look over there in chapter 2, in chapter 2. And you’ll notice in chapter 2, where he says in verse 18, Therefore, we would have come unto you, even I Paul, once and again. But join on in line these three little words, Satan hindered us. Now you may have a lot of things you want to do and places you want to go and things you want to accomplish enough.

But you’ve got an enemy that you can’t see and sometimes he hinders the work. That’s what I’ve said before, a lot of the time you’re trying to build a ministry on the temporary dedication of God’s people. Wouldn’t it be great if everybody could stay totally motivated all the time? No let downs, no burnouts, everybody always giving it all they got, all their life? But because we live in these old sinful bodies and they get tired and we get weary and we get stressed out on a lot of things.

In spite of all that you know, you still feel with grief and just a lot of things don’t seem to work out right and no devil is always after you. And he hinders you. So you do know that you have an enemy, an enemy out there that’s trying to hinder you. But look what he says, even though Satan tries to hinder you, there’s something that you need to always keep in mind. Now this verse is awesome. See there in verse 19, “‘For what is our hope or joy or crown of rejoicing?”

So we often talk about, Man, I can’t wait to get to heaven and get all my crowns. Well, you know, the crown of rejoition might be that when you get to heaven and you see the people, you’ve reached for the Lord, or you had a part in getting them there. When you see all of their faces, when you see the faces of the individuals and those people that you see, when you get to have an effort of all of your sacrifices, all of your work, all your hardships that you went through, Yeah, that’s gonna be your joyful moment.

And notice the last part of that verse. Are not even ye in the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ and see those three words at His coming. You see right now, even people that you’ve led to the Lord are challenged to serve the Lord. They may move on and do other things and forget all about you and forget that you let him to the Lord. And they may never tell anybody. And you may, you know, want a little credit and maybe nobody gives you any.

And you work behind the scenes and you’re laboring, you give, and you do what it takes to get people to trust the Lord. And God said, that is coming. There’s a time coming when it will be worth it all. And he says, are not ye in the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ, to see the people that have been reached. And Satan hindered you, but you went through it. All the problems he’s been in jail. All the heartache that Paul went through.

And yet you and I, we go through a lot of things the same way. And so it’s a very important thing. Chapter three, you’ll notice it says there in verse two. And sin, Timothy is, he said, our brother and minister of God and our fellow labor in the gospel of Christ to, in here’s a word, establish you. That’s the key word means to establish is mentioned in chapter two, verse 3, verse 8, verse 13, to get you grounded so that you know what you believe and where you stand.

And so as you go down through here you see right after that word, establish you and do comfort you concerning your faith. And then he says in verse 3 that no man should be moved by these afflictions because you know you’ve been appointed to these things. As long as you live in this world there’s a price to pay in serving God. And it can be very tiresome and weary. It’s one thing to be weary in the work, but don’t get weary of the work.

What God has for us is so important. And so He makes this statement in verse four, for very when we were with you, we told you before that you should suffer tribulations and it came to pass. You’re going to have a lot of problems. So you already know that. These college kids that come to college, they think it’s going to be a breeze, No problems. Nothing to worry about. And it’s not going to be that way. It’s not that way with anybody.

There’s always tribulations. Satan is always trying to hinder you, holding you back. So then he says in verse six, he talks about your faith. And then he talks about down in verse seven, about your faith. Then in verse eight, he says, for now we live, if we stand fast in the Lord. You see, you may have trusted Christ as your Savior, but you’re not living unless you’re standing fast in the faith. And the only way to stand fast in the faith and to keep the faith is to give it away.

Think about what I just said. The only way you can stand fast in the faith is by giving it away. When you go and you share what you know because of what God’s done for you, what He’s taught for you, it will be worth it all. Don’t stop. And now we live by the faith of the Son of God who loved us and gave Himself for us. And then look in verse 10 where it says, night and day of prayer and exceedingly day, we might see your face and might perfect that which is lacking in your faith.

See, not everybody’s arrived. Everybody needs help. Everybody needs encouragement. Sometimes a little rebuke. But because you love people, you want to help people. And the best way to help people is be a good example of the person who’s serving God. Show people how to live. Show people what it’s all about. You can criticize all you want, but are you doing what you’re supposed to do? And then you notice up there in verse 13. Look at this again. To the end, he may establish your heart’s unblamable and holiness before God, even our Father.

And here it is again at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ with all of his saints. Now the reason he keeps ending up each chapter with the second coming because of what you’ve got to go through in the beginning of the chapters. It’s not a piece of cake, it’s not a cake walk, but it is a walk. Now when you get to chapter four there’s an awful lot of things that God wants us to know and so he makes his statement there in chapter four and he’s talking about the walk that you and I are supposed to have in the Lord.

Number one, if you’ll notice there in verse one, from verse one down to verse eight it’s talking about your walk in holiness. As a child of God Christ is coming back. So he says, be holy. So he says, furthermore then we beseech you brethren and exhort you by the Lord Jesus. That is you have received of us how you, and here’s those three little word you ought to write down how you ought to walk. And to please God. So you’ve you’ve turned from idols to serve the living God, but when you don’t know how to serve God, you need a little help.

This is why studying the word of God is so important. This is why sometimes you need a preacher to try to point out a few things to you. I can’t point out everything. I’m I’m still learning myself. I’m still learning how to walk a little bit. But now notice what he says here. Let me say in verse three, for this is the will of God. This is the will of God. And of course, If you knew the will of God, why you would do that, wouldn’t you?

Well, of course you would. If you only knew it. So he says here, this is the will of God, your sanctification that ye should abstain from fornication. Your body belongs to the Lord. Your body belongs to the Lord. Do you understand that your body belongs to the Lord and you don’t take your body and join it together with a harlot and you don’t take and join together with men or women, only your husband or wife. That’s all the right you have.

Outside of that, it is sinful, it is wicked, and it is wrong. And you need to learn how to control the desires of the body. And so he says here in verse 4, that every one of you should know how to possess his body, keeping the body under subjection. This is what he’s talking about in 1 Corinthians in chapter 9. Let’s he be disqualified. Let’s he be set aside, set on a shelf, not used. This qualified for the race.

You want to serve the Lord, but it won’t take much. So you let the old sinful desires of the body lead you astray and it won’t take long. And you’ll be weeping and wailing and gnashing teeth and thinking about all the regrets of what you could have done for the Lord. But you can blow it very easy. So beware. that every one of you should know how to possess his vessel. Remember we said this before, you are a Trinity, you are a body soul in the spirit.

So you ought to keep your body healthy and your soul happy and your spirit holy. So body soul spirit and so God has something for every one of us and so you keep your body is what makes you world conscious and your soul makes you self conscious and your spirit is what makes you God conscious. So therefore you are a Trinity. Now look back in your scriptures here. Look down now in verse 6 that no man go beyond and defraud his brother in any manner because that the Lord is the avenger of all such as we have also forewarned you and testified.

In other words do not have a I’m going to get even with you if it’s the last thing I do. turn things over to the Lord. Let God deal with a lot of these situations and do right and God will bless you for it. So the second thing that I want you to see there at number two is in verse nine where it says walk in love but as touching brotherly love. So we talk about one thing. Now this is another thing.

The one talking about your body that kind of kind of concerns yourself because you got to keep yourself right then if you can keep yourself right now now what about other people? So Eden says in verse 9 but as touching brotherly love you need not that I write unto you for ye yourselves are taught of God to love one another you already know that you know you’re supposed to love other people you know you’re supposed to treat people right don’t you know that I mean if you got a husband don’t you know you’re supposed to treat him right if you got a wife don’t you know you’re you’re supposed to treat her right.

You got kids, you know you’re supposed to treat them right. You just know you’re supposed to do right, don’t you? That should be a natural thing. And yet a lot of people don’t seem to understand they don’t show kindness or being gracious or forgiven or compassion. They can just be la la la mean mean mean. There’s a lot of mean old people in this world. And the older they get sometimes the meaner they get. But anyway, it’s something to keep in mind and and knowing that you have a responsibility to love God and then to love one another.

And if you do these things, but you say, you have to take care of yourself too. Do you ever pray for yourself? Pray for everybody in the world, yeah, but you gotta pray for you too, because you don’t say right, you ain’t gonna keep doing long. Satan will hand you. Now look at number three down here. At verse 11, this is how to walk in honesty. In verse 11 and 12, and you read these, you’ll think of Job. Verse 11, and that you study to be quiet and to do your own business, not everybody else’s, and to work with your own hands as we commanded you, that you may walk honestly toward them that are without, and that you may have need or lack of nothing.

In other words, if you’re lacking something, maybe you need to get a job. Maybe you need to work. Maybe you need to find out a better way to do whatever it is, but don’t be a lazy individual. Whatever it is, you don’t become lazy. You read the book of Proverbs and it’ll tell you, sloughfulness is a wicked thing, just being lazy. And some people want everything to be done for them, you can’t have it that way. Learn to work, work, work.

Put in the hours, do whatever has to be done. And it says, there’s some that don’t have, and you might be able to help them if you had a little bit more. Then he says up there in verse 13, to walk in hope. But walk in in hope. This joyful anticipation, the Lord could come back at any time. You see, that’s kind of tying all this together. We often talk about the rapture and we go straight to these verses, but there’s a lot before these verses.

And so the child of God is to realize Paul says, I would not have you to be ignorant why? Because there’s a lot of ignorant brethren that I don’t want you to be ignorant concerning those which already died. Look what he says of in verse 13, that you sorrow not even as others which have no hope. Now there’s a lot of people that don’t have any hope and you have hope. You know where you’re going when you die. You know where your loved ones are if they’ve trusted Christ’s Savior.

Now you may grieve and you have sorrow but not like those who have no hope whatsoever. So he says in verse 14, For if we believe and keep the 10 commandments and go to Calvary community church to pay 50% At the everlasting life It didn’t say that you know I need to write a Yankee version No For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, you know that’s the only thing it says that you got to do Even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring them with him now He can’t bring them with them if they’re not up there with him.

So whenever you and I die in this whole world, we know that absent from the body present with the Lord and we’re going to be with the Lord. And so whenever the rapture takes place and the Lord comes back, we’re coming back with him. And the bodies that are in the grave will be raised from the dead. The dead shall be raised first and then we which are alive shall be caught up and done. Meet the Lord of the air.

And so shall we ever be with the Lord. Do you believe that? Do you believe that the Lord could come back at any time? That’s why I don’t like to really set a date on when I think He’s going to come back. I don’t really care. I would hate to think that I really knew the date and I would drag my feet and not get something done. You know what I had a man tell me one time he was running for office in Colorado for governor.

He told me he said, I hate you people, these Christians that believe in the rapture. I don’t really think he knew where I was coming from and what I believed. I said, would you explain that? He says, because they believe that the rapture could take place at any time, and therefore they don’t do anything to try to preserve our freedom. endorser they don’t do anything to change the course of our country, to fight for our country, to do anything about elections and get the right people in the place of all.

They don’t care because whatever will be will be. And they’re waiting for the Lord to take them out of here, and they won’t try to preserve our country. And I thought about what he said. And I wasn’t fair to any truth to what he said. Do you think there’s any truth to what he said? That some Christians just don’t think there’s any responsibility, because I’m just looking for the Lord to come back and eat. Go out and bar as much as you can in your house, in a car.

And don’t worry about paying it back because the Lord could come back at any moment. Would you follow that philosophy? I mean, Lord, you’re going to come back at any moment. Then you had to pay it back. You wouldn’t think people would do that, would you? Would anybody do something like that? I hope I haven’t given you an idea. Don’t blame it on me. I believe that I should look for the Lord to come back at any day, but also work and labor and prepare as though he may not come back for 100 years.

But I look for him every day. And the older I get, I’m looking a little bit more. I’ve got just about as many friends on the other side as I got on this side. I guess you get more treasure on the other side where you’re treasured there where your heart be also. You know your treasure is not just gonna be the rewards you’ve laid up. It’s gonna be the people that were precious to you. You know where they are.

And the older you get, you get more of those people up there in heaven. It should be a precious thing. Look back here to chapter four. And when he says here in verse 15, for this we say unto you by the word of Yankee. Know about the word of the Lord that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent or go before them which are asleep. You see he’s telling them this and every one of these chapters that ends with about the Lord coming back the Lord coming back the Lord coming back and then it makes.

He’s making them think they could happen at any time and we you’ve been including them. So for this we say unto you by the word of the Lord that we which are alive. We will. which are alive? Well, that’s given some good confidence shall not prevent ago before them, which were sleep for the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with a voice of the Archangel, with the Trump of God and the dead in Christ shall rise first.

Then we which are alive, see that we which are alive. So there’s a group of people that will be He’s living when this takes place. And those individuals that remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so shall we ever be with the Lord. Wherefore comfort one another with these words. Now, when he says comfort one another with these words, did you know that the more you believe the scriptures, The word of God is like medicine.

It’s medicine. And I believe that if you take these two pills, once a day, you’ll get the feeling better. And it can help your spiritual… A lot of people are spiritually ill. They’re not as strong as they ought to be. They’re weak in their faith. But you read the word of God and you can become spiritually strong. And a lot of things will happen. A lot of trials and tribulations. And so you’re standing in Christ, that’s okay, but your state changes from one moment to the next.

And it’s always that way. And so it’s just something to keep in mind that the Lord’s coming back. Now it might be today, it might be tomorrow, and then it may not be for a hundred years. But don’t you think as you go through and you read and you study this, every child of God should be looking for this. You know, He talks about not only to me, but also all them that love His appearance. You’re looking for Him.

Now, before we get out of here, I just want to let you see this. Over there in the book of Titus in chapter three, looking Titus in chapter three. Here we know in Titus in chapter three, in verse four, where it says, But after that, the kindness and the love of God, our Savior, toward man appeared. Jesus came. He appeared. Just like He said, He was going to appear. Now, in the chapter right before this, it talks about He’s going to appear again.

He talks about that we will disappear here and appear at the judgment seat of Christ. You know, that’s fast. disappear here and appear at the Genesis of Christ. That’s moving on. That’s pretty fast. Here in Titus in chapter 2, look there in verse 12, teaching us that denying ungodliness and worldly lust. See, there’s a lot of ungodliness in the world, and there’s a lot of worldly lust, but God says deny it. You say, you just don’t know the battle I have to go through.

You know, just about it for seven billion people on planet Earth, they all fight the same battle. Denying, ungodliness, and world-less, we should. See that? We should live. How? Soberly, righteributely, godly in this present world. See, God reveals in His Word how He wants us to live. But nobody can do this for you. We can help each other and encourage each other and pray for one another. But see, nobody else can walk with the Lord for you. I love it when I read the script that says, and Noah walked with God.

Noah walked with God, Enoch walked with God. Another saint, she talked about, walked with God. And say, the multitude walked with God, none. God blesses an individual. You want God to bless you, walk with God, walk with God. And he says up here in verse 13, look what he said. not looking for. The blessed tribulation period, no, looking for that blessed hope and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Savior Jesus Christ. So as we live, godly, in this present world, we are to look for the blessed hope, that glorious appearing of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

Verse 14, who gave himself for us that he might redeem us from all iniquity and purify unto himself a peculiar people. Zealous in your unlanded, zealous of good works. See everybody has to have a reason, a motive, zealous of good works. But see you don’t do these good works to get to heaven, but look we’re going to heaven. Heaven is our home. Strangers and pilgrims. Doesn’t mean that we have to be strange or we have to be a pill, but we’re strangers who are away from home, but pilgrims means you’re going on.

We’re going home one day. We’re just passing through. You ever heard that song, I’m just passing through? What’s that name? The world is not my home. We’ve sung it recently. This world is not my home. We’ve seen it, but do we really believe it? And that’s what we are supposed to believe. So he says, we’re zealous of good works. Christ is coming back, came the first time, just like He said. And I believe He’s going to come back again.

Just like He said. And isn’t something 2,000 years later, there’s people still anticipating Him coming. But you know that anticipation kind of makes you watch your step. Because it says in the book of 1 John 3 that every man that had this hope in him purified himself. For we know that we see him, we shall be like him. And it says, my little children abide in him that when he shall appear we may not be ashamed before him and his coming.

So you shouldn’t say things, you don’t want to be saying when the Lord comes. you don’t want to be somewhere you shouldn’t be when the Lord comes. You shouldn’t want to be doing something you shouldn’t be doing when the Lord comes. So I believe that looking for the Lord helps purify our Christian life because we don’t know how much time we have. Would it be a shame for you to wait for five years and then say, well, I’m going to serve the Lord next year or the year after that.

Right now I’ve got a lot of things that I want to do. And the Lord says, it’s over. Well I’m not ready yet. When the rapture takes place, ready or not, here I come. And however you’re dressed, here it goin’. Let’s pray, shall we? Father, we do thank You so much for the privilege that You’ve given to us. Just to have a Bible, just to read and understand these things, how terrible it would be not to know these truths that we just so easily and readily take for granted, or to be good to us, thank you for it.

In Christ name we pray. Hello, this is Peter Amato, and from all the staff at Bible line, we want to thank you for tuning in to today’s program. This month, we’d like to send to our listeners and supporters the book, The Declaration of the Gospel. This is yet another book authored by Dr. Arnold, and it addresses the concerns over what is called the Crossless Gospel. Is it enough to simply tell someone to believe in Jesus for them to be saved?

Does the topic of sin need to be addressed in order for someone to understand what the gospel really is? What are the essential points that a lost man must be told in order for him to be saved and what does believing in Jesus really mean? These are just a few of the topics that are covered in this book. So for the month of May, when you send a gift in any amount, we’re going to give you the book, The Declaration of the Gospel.

Our mailing address is 4811 George Road, Tampa, Florida, 33634, and don’t forget to include your mailing address as well. God bless you and thank you again for supporting Bible Army. Thanks for joining us on Bibleline. If you are in the area, we welcome you to visit us. The address for Calvary Community Church is 4811 George Road, Tampa, Florida, 33634. And now, a closing thought from Pastor Arnold. friend one day it will happen the trumpet will sound and we will be changed caught up to meet the Lord in the air so live today and every day believe in that the Lord is coming soon just keep looking up