Torch, Spring 1995

like Him when we see Him, then we should live for Him and be like Hirn today. We ought to walk "just as He walked" (1 John 2:6). Third, we wait when we endure trials. James wrote: "Therefore, be patient, brethren, until the coming of the Lord" (James 5:7) . Just as the farmer must patiently wait for the harvest through seasons of rain and drought, so must believers wait for Christ as they endure the tests of life. Those trials can involve persecution for the sake of righteousness, loss of income, misunderstanding, and physical weakness. Again, he added : "You also be patient. Establish your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is at hand" (James 5:8). Paul wrote: " ...even we ourselves groan within ourselves, eagerly waiting for the adoption, the redemption of our body...if we hope for what we do not see, we eagerly wait for it with perseverance" (Romans 8:23 ,25) . Christ endured the cross to achieve the victory of the resurrection and 8 Torch the glory of His return. God likewise calls us to endure sufferings in order to stimulate our anticipation of Christ's coming and our subsequent release from all afflictions. Paul's testimony of hope should be internalized by all of us: "For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us" (Romans 8:18). In active waiting, we face the uncertainties of life with positive optimism. We focus on Him and eternity, not on self and time. When we wait for Hirn, we affirm that He is sovereign, that He is in control, and that we are not alone. Fourth, we wait when we trust Him. On the night before His crucifixion, Christ assured His disciples : "Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me. In My Father's house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am there you may be also" (John 14:1-3). Do we really take God at His word? Do we truly believe Him? Trust Hirn? Do we have confidence that Jesus Christ will do what He said? Christ once said to Nicodemus: "If I have told you earthly things and you do not believe, how will you believe if I tell you heavenly things?" (John 3:12) The truth of Christ's imminent return and the truth of the rapture of believers are heavenly things. They cannot be proved by human reasoning or by scientific experimentation. They are either believed or rejected. Thus a genuine test of a true Christian is his faith in the second coming of Jesus Christ. Do we really believe in it and in Him? Do you? Do I? If so, let us manifest that faith in our life choices. The last words that Jesus Christ ever said to any person were these: "Surely I am coming quickly" (Revelation 22:20). We must never allow time or experience to dull our faith in His promise. We must believe Hirn and we must pray: "Amen. Even so, come Lord Jesus!" (Revelation 22:20). Dr. Robert Gromacki , Distinguished Professor of Bible and Greek, joined the faculty of Cedarville College in 1960. He holds degrees from Baptist Bible Seminary, Dallas Theological Seminary, and Grace Theological Seminary. The author of 14 books, over 100 articles on biblical themes, and numerous Sunday School materials, Dr.Gromacki is in great demand as a speaker for Bible conferences and lectureships. He currently pastors Grace Community Baptist Church in Washington Court House, Ohio.