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Philippians
2:14-16;
14Do
all things without grumbling or disputing; 15so
that you will prove yourselves to be blameless and innocent, children of
God above reproach in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation,
among whom you appear as lights in the world, 16holding
fast the word of life, so that in the day of Christ I will have reason to
glory because I did not run in vain nor toil in vain.
A.
The Essence
of the Day of Christ
1.
It is Distinct From the Day of the Lord
The
Day of the Lord is unique to the Nation of Israel and the Nations at the
end time. It is always
associated with judgment and purification. The term itself occurs in the
following verses; Isaiah
2:12, 13:6,9; Ezekiel 13:5, 30:3; Joel 1:15, 2:1,11,31, & 3:14; Amos
5:18, 20; Obadiah 15;
Zephaniah 1:7,14; Zechariah 14:1; Malachi 4:5; Acts 2:20; 1st
Thessalonians 5:2; and 2nd Thessalonians 2:2 and 2 Peter 3:10.
In
addition, the phrase, the
day or
that
day or
the great day occurs
more than 75 times! Dwight
Pentecost asserts correctly, I believe, that . . .
“These
passages reveal that the idea of judgment is paramount in all of them.
This is so clearly brought out in Zephaniah
1:14-18. This
judgment includes not only the specific judgments upon Israel and the
nations at the end the tribulation that are associated with the second
advent, but, from a consideration of the passages themselves, includes
judgments that extend over a period of time prior to the second advent.
Thus, it is concluded that the day of the Lord will include the
time of the tribulation. Zachariah
14:1-4
makes it clear that the events of the second advent are included in the
program of the Day of the Lord. Second
Peter 3:10 gives
authority for including the entire millennial age within this period.
Second
Peter 3:10 But
the day of the Lord will come like a thief, in which the heavens will pass
away with a roar and the elements will be destroyed with intense heat, and
the earth and its works will be burned up.
2.
It is Unique to the Age of the Church
The
phrases “the day of Christ,” Philippians
1:10; 2:16;
“the day of Jesus Christ,” 1:6;
“the day of the Lord Jesus,” 1
Corinthians 5:5; 2 Corinthians 1:14;
“the day of our Lord Jesus Christ,” 1
Corinthians 1:8,
denote the time of the Parousia of Christ with His saints, subsequent to
the Rapture, 1st
Thessalonians 4:16, 17. In
2 Peter 1:19 this
is spoken of simply as “the day,” Notice
the difference between the Rapture and the Revelation of Jesus Christ.
& Rapture:
1st
Thessalonians 4:16-17 16For
the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the
archangel and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will rise
first. 17Then
we who are alive and remain will be caught up together with them in the
clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we shall always be with the
Lord.
& Revelation:
2nd
Thessalonians 1:6-10; 6For
after all it is only
just for God to repay with affliction those who afflict you, 7and to
give
relief to you who are afflicted and to us as well when the Lord Jesus will
be revealed from heaven with His mighty angels in flaming fire, 8dealing
out retribution to those who do not know God and to those who do not obey
the gospel of our Lord Jesus. 9These
will pay the penalty of eternal destruction, away from the presence of the
Lord and from the glory of His power, 10when
He comes to be glorified in His saints on that day, and to be marveled at
among all who have believed—for our testimony to you was believed.
B.
The Essentials of
the Day of Christ
The
Day of Christ is composed of three essential occurrences.
1.
Rapture of the Church; (ἁρπάζω,
harpazo)
to
catch up, take by force, catch away or pluck.
1st
Thessalonians 4:16-17
It
is a complete transformation! 1
Corinthians 15:51-53; 51Behold,
I tell you a mystery; we will not all sleep, but we will all be changed, 52in
a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet; for the trumpet
will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be
changed. 53For
this perishable must put on the imperishable, and this mortal must put on
immortality.
2.
Bema Seat of Christ
Paul’s
use is modeled after the term used in the Greek games. The bema was a
raised platform where the umpire of the games sat.
From there, the contestants were rewarded for their achievements in
the games. Every believer’s
work will be tested. 2nd
Corinthians 5:10; For
we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one
may be recompensed for his deeds in the body, according to what he has
done, whether good or bad.
It
is not about salvation, but rather service.
See 1
Corinthians 3:14,15 14If
any man’s work which he has built on it remains, he will receive a
reward. |
