Excerpted from: The Word Above All by Oliver B. Green 1971.
If the man in the pulpit is God’s man, a preacher of the Word, his message will be well seasoned with the Second Coming of the Lord Jesus Christ. The hope of this age is the return of the Lord to catch away His church. I declare unto you on the authority of the Word that a man who does not believe in the return of the Lord is not saved! No, I am not judging. I am simply inspecting fruit in the light of the Bible: “For by grace are you saved through faith” (Ephesians 2:8).
“For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men, Teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world; Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Savior Jesus Christ” (Titus 2:11-13).
We are saved by grace, we are taught by grace taught to deny the world, taught to live righteous lives, taught to look for Jesus. Therefore I declare under you that the person who is not looking for Jesus does not possess the grace of God.
The hope of this age, the hope of mankind, is the coming of the Lord Jesus. We will never have peace; we will never have lasting world order until Jesus comes. Man has tried everything in his power to bring about peace and world success; but as I write these lines, the world is in terrible chaos. Why? Sin is the answer…and sin will never be put down to stay until the Lord Jesus comes.
“Preach the Word!” My prayer today is that the Lord will help me to remain true to His Word and preach it in all its fullness and power until Jesus comes. God forbid that I should ever compromise with the world and the devil in my preaching. I trust as I send out this message that if you dear reader, have not met the Lord in a born-again experience you will do so today. Do not gamble with “religion.” Religion is no good unless it is the blood bought religion of the Lord Jesus Christ.
If you have been attending a church where the pastor is a blood-denying preacher, then search the Scriptures and see if what I have told you in this message is not true. God has not changed His mind about sin. The wages of sin is death, as it always has been and always will be. The sins which damned men centuries ago will damn men today. Do not be led astray by every wind of doctrine, but stand for the blood-bought redemption of Calvary. Stand by the Bible, live by the Bible, make sure you have had a born-again experience.
If you are not a Christian, I beg you to bow your head right now and let the Lord Jesus come into your heart. He is the way, the truth, and the life. There is no other way, no other door to heaven. “Neither is there salvation in any other; for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved” (Acts 4:12).
“If thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shall be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation” (Romans 10:9, 10).
“Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the Word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever” (1 Peter 1:23).
Claim this promise made by our Savior: “Verily, verily, I say unto you, he that heareth My Word, and believeth on Him that sent Me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation, but is passed from death unto life” (John 5:24).
Words of Grace for Strength
What more can be said? What more should be said? As we continue to post these excerpts from the writings of great teachers and preachers of the Word from the past, we are continually amazed at the relevance of their words today. Truly as the Word of God itself says, There is nothing new under the sun (Ecclesiastes 1:9). Just as the Word of God is relevant for today, so is the understanding and teaching of the prophetic Word from these authors.
The amazing truth, so simple and yet so deeply profound is that the never-changing Word of God is always relevant, always as if freshly written, for an ever-changing world. These authors have grasped that truth, and have held to it steadily. And so, their words live for us today.
In these last days, we need to be continually reminded that our Blessed Hope is the return of Jesus Christ for the redeemed—His church. Unfortunately, for many, “religion” has taken the place of true Christianity. The “prosperity gospel” or the “self-help gospel” or the “papal gospel” or one of a myriad of other cultic systems of religiosity has replaced the gospel of Jesus Christ.
These false religions focus on worldly pursuits and personal satisfaction in this life and not the eternal rewards to be gained by living a life in Christ; seeking to come up with something new and exciting, while all the time ignoring the eternal truth as written in the Word of God.
We would do well to remember the words of the apostle Paul in Philippians 1:21: “For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain.” Simply put, while we remain on this earth our lives should serve Jesus Christ, and should we face death before Jesus raptures His church, we get to go be with Him. As Jesus has won the victory over sin, we cannot lose as we stand by His side.
Just as Oliver B. Green has done in his writing; if you truly have a relationship with Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, we implore you to examine the “church” you attend to see if it is truly one which preaches and teaches the gospel of Jesus Christ. And, if you have never accepted Christ’s free gift of salvation through His shed blood at Calvary, there has never been a better time than now to make Him Lord of your life.
If you need more information, or would like to talk to someone, about accepting Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, please send us a message at the email address below. And if you’re looking for a church to attend in your area which is still teaching the true gospel of Jesus Christ, we may be able to help with that as well. We will make every effort to help you find a place to worship and grow in Christ Jesus, because:
Jesus is Coming Soon!
Even So Come.
Dr. Tuck Whitaker and Andy Coticchio
Rafter Cross Ministries
jesusplus0@gmail.com