Blessed Assurance
True believers in Jesus Christ will never be depressed. We will never face circumstances that can cause a loss of trust in our position within God’s family, if we are truly saved.
The above statements are not validated by God’s Word. On the contrary, they’re propagated by the father of lies—the wicked one who stalks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he might devour. And I must confess to myself—and to you—that I have sensed the tempter’s whisper into my own ear lately. It goes something like, “Look around you. In every direction, things are growing ever darker. Think on these things and believe these conditions will grow infinitely worse, as Heaven taking action just isn’t in sight.”
This is my thought, even though I write about all of the strangeness I observe that is transpiring at this time so near the end of the age. I then reason that our Lord wouldn’t charge me with the business of correlating issues and events with end-of-the-age prophecy if there wasn’t the best possible end to it all at some glorious point in the future.
One sentence from Scripture almost always emerges in my thinking to replace the depression begun by that whisper from the evil one: “Comfort one another with these words.”
The most prominent placement of this statement in God’s Holy Word is where the promise of the glorious end of these evil days for believers is presented. And what a presentation it is!
“For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive and 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. (1 Thessalonians 4:16-18).
So, it was the other morning when I began my day with a number of thoughts about the depressing things going on in the world. Paul’s great prophetic utterance above, ending with the comforting exhortation, finally emerged near the surface of my aging gray matter. Then the thought struck that obliterated the depression the minion whispering earlier intended to inflict to ruin my day.
The words of “Blessed Assurance” burst into my memory–melody and all.
The Holy Spirit brought to mind that great old hymn I’ve heard all my life. You may have heard and sung it, too. And what a remembrance it was; what a comforting truth it delivered! Depression from all the oppression that dark region of Satan’s realm could fling had no chance of surviving that burst of “Blessed Assurance”!
Here are the lyrics to remind all of us of the magnificent future we believers in Christ have as inheritors of all of the heavenly riches that belong to Jesus Himself.
Blessed assurance, Jesus is mine
Oh, what a foretaste of glory divine
Heir of salvation, purchase of God
Born of his Spirit, washed in His blood
This is my story, this is my song
Praising my Savior all the day long
This is my story, this is my song
Praising my Savior all the day long
Perfect submission, perfect delight
Visions of rapture now burst on my sight
Angels descending bring from above
Echoes of mercy, whispers of love
This is my story, this is my song
Praising my Savior all the day long
This is my story, this is my song
Praising my Savior all the day long
Praising my Savior all the day long
We can’t avoid the pure evil assaulting our eyes and ears–our spiritual senses—such as yet another attempt on the same presidential candidate’s life while he played golf on Sunday, September 15, in Florida. Yet all the wickedness we observe fades in the brightness of the Lord Jesus’ promise to call us into His presence at any moment. We have blessed assurance that we will not face the concluding seven hell-on-earth years marked by Antichrist’s regime or face the wrath and judgment of the righteous God of Heaven. We will be in Jesus’ Father’s house–which is our house, too (John 14:1–3), because of what Jesus did on that old rugged cross at Calvary.
As that old hymn, “Blessed Assurance,” says, we who are in God’s family are heirs… heirs of salvation and all of Heaven’s glory.
So, as we’re thinking about what Jesus has done for us, we can cast aside the depression–the oppression—Satan desires to inflict. All of this brings to mind another hymn with lines that express how Christ’s work on that cross and His Resurrection give us blessed assurance. This hymn tells us what we should be doing to do the work assigned us while we’re on Earth:
Turn your eyes upon Jesus,
Look full in His wonderful face,
And the things of earth will grow strangely dim,
In the light of His glory and grace.
If you don’t have that blessed assurance because you’ve never accepted God’s grace gift offer of salvation through belief in His Son, Jesus Christ, the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world, here is how to be part of God’s eternal family:
“That if you will confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus, and will believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart man believes unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation” (Romans 10:9-10).
—Terry
Kingdom Curiosity
Do you know that we are heirs to a kingdom with wonders far beyond what we can imagine? The Bible says that New Testament saints, that’s us, will someday inherit a kingdom (James 2:5; Ephesians 1:11-14). Paul tells us that in our current state, we can’t yet receive our inheritance. However, Jesus will make us fit to do so by giving us incorruptible and immortal bodies at His appearing (1 Corinthians 15:50-55).
Is this not the most wonderful news imaginable? As I look at the deteriorating conditions around me, I’m relieved in no small way to know that a much, much better day awaits. This current world is not our final destination! It’s not where Jesus is preparing a forever home for us.
The struggles and disappointments of life often drown our curiosity regarding our heritage. Even as watchers, we easily become consumed with the signs of the approaching Tribulation and forget about the wonders of what it will be like to reign with the Savior in His kingdom.
Even though Scripture doesn’t answer all the questions that come to our minds regarding this future realm, it reveals many details for those curious as to what our lives will be like during the Millennium.
The Apostle John tells us that Jesus’ reign over the nations will last one thousand years. However, in Revelation 20:1-10, we don’t see many details concerning this time, apart from the fact that an angel will put Satan in a pit for its duration. That alone tells us this coming time will be unlike anything we can picture in our minds.
The Old Testament prophets reveal much about the conditions of the millennial kingdom, such as the pristine conditions of nature, greatly increased lifespans, harmony in the animal world, the rule of a totally righteous King, and universal worship of Jesus. Despite all these wonderful things, those who enter this realm in their natural bodies will disobey, and at its end, their descendants will rebel against the Lord.
However, there’s another book that sparks immense joy within me as I read its many prophecies regarding the realm to which I am an heir.
Would it surprise you to learn that it’s the Psalms? It exalts Christ as the coming King and, as such, deepens our understanding of what the world will look like between the Tribulation and the eternal state. Of course, His reign will last forever, but the psalmists lift our hearts heavenward with depictions of His Second Coming and establishment of His rule before the eternal state.
Psalm 2 sets us on our journey with its description of a still future time when Jesus inherits the kingdoms of this world and rules over them with a “rod of iron.” As we leap forward to Revelation 19:11-16, we read how these words come to fruition at Christ’s return to the earth.
We find many references to kingdom conditions in Psalms, such as in 46-47. When the Lord assumes control of the world, He will put an end to all wars (46:10). Like the Old Testament prophets, in these Psalms, the sons of Korah assume a gloriously restored Israel as a key aspect of Jesus’ rule over all the nations.
The Psalms emphasize the fact that the entire earth will praise the Lord during this time. The psalmists repeatedly encourage the subjects of the Lord’s future rule to praise Him. The words of Psalm 47:6-7 are typical of how they encourage people to worship the reigning King:
Sing praises to God, sing praises!
Sing praises to our King, sing praises!
For God is the King of all the earth;
sing praises with a psalm!
We see the same invitations to praise the King all through Psalms 95-99. The verses below reflect their theme:
The Lord reigns; let the peoples tremble!
He sits enthroned upon the cherubim; let the earth quake!
The Lord is great in Zion;
he is exalted over all the peoples.
Let them praise your great and awesome name!
Holy is he! (Psalm 99:1-3)
There is coming a time when praise for our Savior will fill the earth. From Daniel 7:27, we learn that when Jesus reigns, “all dominions shall serve and obey him.” Today, the nations rage against Him and His people. When He rules, they will bow down before Him in worship.
The millennial kingdom is not just simply what we read about and seek to defend against those who diminish its splendor by saying the church is it or will someday rule over it rather than the Lord. Please know that we will fully experience its wonders, benefits, and over-the-top joys as we carry out the various tasks that the Lord assigns us in this glorious realm.
The kingdom is only a part of the paradise that awaits all of us as New Testament saints. Our lives in this broken-down world don’t in any way resemble the glories of our final destination, which we will enjoy with immortal bodies. Paul David Tripp, in His book New Morning Mercies, wrote:
If you’re God’s child, the final chapter of your story will take place in an eternal paradise beyond your wildest dreams…. As you face the hardships of today, remember that grace has purchased you a ticket for the paradise that is to come.
Don’t let the sorrows of the present age deter you from looking ahead to the details of your inheritance recorded in Scripture. I’m confident the Lord will bless such kingdom curiosity.
-Jonathan