Second Coming Saints

This message is one of the Times Square Pulpit series. It was recorded in the sanctuary of Times Square Church in Manhattan, New York City. Other tapes are available by writing to World Challenge P.O. Box 260, Lindale, TX 75771 or calling 214-963-8626.

None of these messages are copyrighted, and you are welcome to make copies for free distribution to your friends. It's fading once in a while. Second coming saints.

Now, let me just clarify the word saints. Some of you may only be familiar with the word referred to people who are dead, and maybe have lived a good life, and you call them a saint. But the Bible calls, refers to living people as saints, refers to the church.

Paul wrote to the church. He said to the saints at Philippi, to the saints here. And so you and I tonight are saints, and I want to share with you the fact that we are also supposed to be second coming saints.

Now, Jesus made a very clear and sure promise when he left the earth that he would return. And now we await the day of his soon coming. In Acts 1.11, you don't need to turn to that there, but it says this Jesus who has taken up from you into heaven will come in just the same way as you have watched him go into heaven.

Now, I don't know about you, but I expect to meet the Lord either by the rapture special or the resurrection express. Now, other people can argue or can talk about when all of this is going to happen. That's not my point tonight.

All I know is that it's going to happen. Jesus is coming soon. He promised that he would.

This is called the great or the blessed hope of the church. And when he returns, as it says in 1 Thessalonians 4.17, it says, so we will be with the Lord forever. Forever is a long time.

The verse I read to you was taken from the ascension of our Lord. After having showed himself alive, the Bible says, for 40 days with many infallible proofs. And during those 40 days, he appeared a number of times to his disciples.

And as Bob said Sunday morning, when he appeared, he didn't knock on the door. He just appeared. He was there.

Suddenly he was there. And it was a sign to those disciples as well as to you and I that one of these days he's coming back the same way. And he will suddenly appear.

And while he was gathered together there with his disciples, suddenly a cloud came down and received him out of their sight. And that's when the angel said this same Jesus who was taken up from you into heaven will come in just the same way as you have watched him go into heaven. In other words, what the angel was saying is that when Jesus went into heaven, that the Father took out a round trip ticket for him in the celestial space program.

And only the Father knows the exact date and the time what is stamped on the return ticket. But it's stamped there. And this could be the year.

Hallelujah. Now Jesus is as anxious to come back as we ought to be to have him come back. Listen to his prayer in John 17, 24.

He said, Father, I want those that you have given me to be with me where I am. And see my glory, the glory you have given me because you loved me before the creation of the world. Now Jesus will come back at exactly the right moment in history.

We do not know when, but the characteristic of the church through the ages has always been the cry, even so, come quickly, Lord Jesus. And it's very interesting that always in the period of history, whenever the church has gotten overemphasized on the present age, which we are living in now with a me gospel or talking about the fact that there's some people that believe that the world's going to get better, it's getting better and better and better, and all of a sudden we're going to go into a millennial reign. And whenever that happens, there's always a de-emphasis on the second coming of Jesus Christ.

And my friends, this is the great truth in the scripture. In fact, the early church, think of it, the early church and those disciples who saw Jesus go up in the cloud, they expected that he was going to come back in their lifetime. Now, if they had that anxiousness, if they had that awareness of his imminent soon return back then, how much more ought we today, 2,000 years, ought to have the same expectancy and cry in our hearts as the scripture said, the spirit as well as the bride say, Come, Lord Jesus.

You see, the early church was not looking for the undertaker. They were looking for the upper taker, hallelujah. And the question tonight, of course, is are you ready? Are you a second coming saint? Now, I can remember when I decided that I was going to become a second coming saint, that I was going to live my life so that I never had to fear the return of Jesus Christ, never had to fear death, of course, but never fear the return of Christ.

And I remember an incident that took place in my young life. This was probably 35, 38 years ago. I had a dream.

Now, I don't know what precipitated the dream. Partly it was because my father was a pastor and he preached often on the coming of the Lord. In fact, he made it so real.

I was just sure he was going to come that night or the next day or whenever very, very soon. And on the other hand, when you're young, your conscience is tender. And so maybe I had done something wrong that day or whatever.

I don't know. Under a little conviction and this young tender heart, and I had a dream. I'll never forget it.

He says it's vivid to me now as it took place some 35, 38 years ago on the third floor of our house on Elbert Street in western Pennsylvania in the suburb of Pittsburgh, a little town called Turtle Creek, where my father was a pastor there on Elbert Street, up on the third floor. I had a dream. And I woke out of the dream believing that Jesus had come back.

And there I was in flesh and blood, still on Elbert Street. And my little heart pounded. I thought that my heart would come out of my chest.

And I slowly made my way out of bed and made my way to the top of the stairs and I hollered out. And I said, Mom. And I didn't get an answer.

And so I hollered out again and I said, Mother. And finally, after what seemed to be an eternity, finally my mother appeared at the bottom of the stairs and she said, Son, what's wrong? And I said, Oh, nothing, Mother. Everything's all right.

Everything's all right. Because I knew that Jesus had come back, that Mother had been one of the first ones that he'd come to get. So everything was all right.

But I determined from that day on that I would become a second coming saint, that I could so live my life that everything would be all right so that I would be ready to meet the Lord when he comes. Hallelujah. Are you a second coming saint? Now I want you to note three or four things about the second coming of Christ and what it teaches us how to live in preparation for his coming.

Turn with me, if you will, to Matthew, the 26th chapter. And while you're turning there, let me say this to you if you can turn and still listen. A second coming saint is, first of all, a first coming Christian.

A second coming saint is, first of all, a first coming Christian. Now the second coming of Christ will be of little interest to you if you do not understand the meaning of his first coming. And let's read this in the 26th chapter of Matthew, beginning to read at the 59th verse.

It says, Now the chief priests and the whole council kept trying to obtain false testimony against Jesus in order that they might put him to death. Matthew 26, 59, verse 60, And they did not find any, even though many false witnesses came forward, but later on two came forward. And said, This man stated, I am able to destroy the temple of God and to rebuild it in three days.

And the high priest stood up and said to him, Do you make no answer? What is it that these men are testifying against you? But Jesus kept silent. And the high priest said, or finally said to him, I adjure you by the living God that you tell us whether you are the son of God, whether you are Christ, the Christ, the son of God. And Jesus said to him, And what he said in this next verse gives us an answer relative to his first coming and relative to his second coming.

He said, You have said it yourself who I am. Nevertheless, I tell you, Hereafter you shall see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of power and coming on the clouds of heaven. Now, you'll note here that this is a time when the high priest is seeking proof from Jesus as to who he is in order to indict him.

And Jesus was asked the question. In verse 63, he said, I adjure you by the living God that you tell us whether you are the Christ, the Son of God. In other words, who are you in respect to your coming? This is a question that relates to his first coming.

And this is also a question that all men ought to be asking and you ought to be asking tonight regarding Jesus. Have you been asking this question? Do you know who Jesus is in his first coming? Because you must. Every man, every woman, every teenager has to deal with this question.

Who is Jesus? Is he the Son of God? Is he the Christ, the Son of the living God? Now, Jesus was before the high priest. He was before the Jewish court. But in a sense, every one, every one of us holds court and is judge and jury having to render a verdict on who Jesus is and whether we will acknowledge him as the Son of God and the Lord of our lives.

And let me ask you tonight, where do you stand regarding the first coming of Jesus? Because neutral you cannot be. Jesus said, he that is not with me is against me. And the truth of the second coming of Jesus will mean nothing to you unless you acknowledge Jesus for who he is and what he has done to do in your life at his first coming and what he wants to do right now and even tonight in this meeting.

Now, know Jesus' answer to the high priest who asked if he was the Son of God. He said, you have said it yourself. Now, the confession of Jesus was in the mouth of the high priest.

But this did not mean that he was accepting Jesus as Messiah. But the very fact that he questioned him about the matter was evidence that he might be what he claimed to be. And listen to me.

It's a dangerous thing to say by your words, Jesus is the Son of God, but not follow him as the Son of God. You see, there are many people who will inquire about Jesus. They'll get close to the things of God enough to inquire as to who Jesus is, but they reject him.

And this is sad and dangerous. But listen to me. It's even more dangerous to keep, as they were doing, to keep demanding more and more proof from Jesus as to whether he is the Son of God before you accept him and do nothing with the evidence already at hand.

Look at verse 61. They said, this man states, I am able to destroy the temple of God and to rebuild it in three days. This, of course, refers to his death and resurrection.

And you see, they did not know this, but the very things that they were using to condemn Jesus were the very things that could have saved them. And I ask you tonight, have you settled the question regarding how you're going to deal with the first coming of Jesus? That's what this was all about. That's what this trial was all about.

And are you like them? Do you keep demanding more and more evidence? Do you keep asking more and more questions? There is probably enough gospel in the questions that many people have about Jesus that will save them if they'll just come to him. You see, the high priest and the Jews of Jesus' day took the same attitude that many take today. Don't confuse me with any more facts about Jesus.

My mind is already made up to reject him. And you see, if some people hear more of the gospel, it is a dangerous thing. Because the more they hear and yet turn away from him, the more they'll have to come under judgment for what they have rejected.

Now, if you don't accept, and what Jesus is saying here, that if you don't accept him in his first coming as Savior, then you're going to have to deal with him at another occasion. Look again at verse 64. They ask him, Are you the Christ, the Son of the living God? And Jesus said, I didn't say it.

You said it. Thou hast said well. You have said it yourself, yes.

But then notice, he said, Nevertheless, I tell you, Hereafter you shall see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of power. Now, Jesus says to the high priest before whose court he stands, in essence, this is what he's saying. He said, One day I am going to be holding court.

That's the meaning when Jesus said, You will see me sitting at the right hand of power. He said, I'm in your courtroom right now, but one of these days you're going to be in my courtroom. And although you see me sitting in this lowest state under investigation by your court, and although you may think it a ridiculous thing for me to call myself the Savior, nevertheless, there is coming a day when you will see me in another court, the courtroom of heaven.

And then the tables will be turned because hereafter you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of power to judge the world. And the point is this, my friend. You've got to make up your mind.

Either come to Jesus now in his first coming as Savior, or you have to meet him hereafter when he is at the right hand of power, and there he may be your judge to seal your doom. And that's what he said to them on this occasion as he ties in together the first and the second coming. What a clear warning.

Acts 10.42 says, He commanded us to preach to the people and to testify that he is the one whom God appointed as judge of the living and the dead. Now when you think about seeing the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of power, meaning the Father in heaven, does it bring comfort or does it bring distress? The second coming of Christ is a comfort to every true believer walking in holiness, but it's a warning to every sinner. John 5.28 and 29 says, Do not be amazed at this, for a time is coming when all who are in their graves will hear his voice and come out.

Those who have done good will rise to live and those who have done evil will rise to be condemned. And then you see Jesus, he says, verse 64, look at it again. You have said to yourselves, nevertheless I tell you hereafter you shall see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of power and coming on the clouds of heaven.

Now I repeat, what a glorious day it's going to be for every overcomer and for the one who is walking in righteousness. No wonder the songwriter says, What a day that will be when my Jesus I shall see. No wonder we want to sing, Soon and Very Soon.

What a day that will be when I shall look upon his face, the one who saved me by his grace. Matthew 6.27 says, For the Son of Man is going to come in his Father's glory with his angels and then he will reward every person according to what he has done. Now that doesn't scare me.

That rejoices me because I have a crown and I'm waiting for him to turn it over. But while the second coming is the church's blessed hope, it's the unbeliever's day of wrath. Listen to 2 Thessalonians.

You don't need to turn to it. 2 Thessalonians 1.8 in the New American, in the NIV. It says, He will punish those who do not know God and do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ.

They will be punished with everlasting destruction and shut out from the presence of the Lord and from the majesty of his power on the day he comes to glorify in his holy people and to be marveled at among all those who believe. But verse 7 that precedes this tells us exactly when this will happen. He said, This will happen when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven in blazing fire with his powerful angels.

Now I said before that those who have no interest in what Christ's first coming means will have no interest in his second coming. And yet it is his second coming that will seal their doom. This is why the Bible says now is the day of salvation.

Now is when we meet the Savior. If not now, you'll have to meet him one day as a flaming fire. It'll be too late then.

But how different is the attitude of the true believer towards the coming of Christ. 1 Thessalonians 2.19 says, For who is our hope or joy or crown of exultation? Is it not even you in the presence of our Lord at his coming? Hallelujah. Alright, so first of all, first coming saint.

A second coming saint is one who has first of all dealt with the first coming. He's ready to meet the Lord. He's met the Lord as a Savior.

Now if that's happened to you, then let me give you a second characteristic of a second coming saint. Second coming saints are good groaners. They know how to groan.

Turn with me to Romans chapter 8. Romans chapter 8. And when you're turning there, let me tell you that I didn't say that second coming saints are good moaners or complainers. But they know how to groan. And in fact, they do groan.

And I want to tell you, the Lord showed me this some years ago. And I've been groaning ever since. Romans chapter 8, verse 17 through verse 23.

It says, and if we're children, then we're heirs also, heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ. If indeed we suffer with him, in order that we may also be glorified with him, I consider that the suffering of this present time or sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that is to be revealed in us. It is coming.

For the anxious longing of the creation waits eagerly for the revealing of the sons of God. For the creation was subjected to futility, not of its own will, but because of him who subjected it in hope that the creation itself also will be set free from its slavery to corruption into the freedom of the glory of the children of God. For we know that the whole creation groans and suffers the pangs of childhood together until now.

And not only this, and here it is, but also we ourselves having the first fruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves eagerly waiting for our adoption as sons, the redemption of our body. Now this is explaining what groaners are. It is one who is eagerly, who is waiting eagerly for our adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies which takes place at the second coming of Christ.

You see, right now we have only the first fruits of our salvation, but we anxiously await his coming for only then will we possess the final and full rites of sonship, including the glorious transformation of our bodies. Beloved, we are children of God and it has not yet appeared, it has not appeared as yet what we shall be. We know that when he appears we shall be like him because we shall see him just as he is.

Hallelujah. When Christ, who is our life, is revealed then you also will be revealed with him in glory. Behold, I tell you a mystery.

We shall not all sleep, but we shall be changed in a moment in the twinkling of an eye at the last trumpet, for the trumpet will sound and the dead will be raised imperishably and we shall be changed. Hallelujah. But let me tell you something, that's such marvelous news that in the meantime all we can do is groan within ourselves in anticipation of such a day.

And there is something wrong with a Christian who does not groan waiting for the redemption of our bodies at the appearing of Jesus Christ. Now, note the reference in this truth to what we have now and yet what we do not have now. It says that we have now the first fruits of our inheritance.

Now, that term, first fruit, comes from the Old Testament principle that when the harvest was gathered in they would take the first sheaf of wheat or produce and offer it as an expression of thanksgiving to the Lord who produced the harvest and also they would offer it in anticipation of the ingathering of the full harvest. Now, right now you and I should have the first fruits that we offer to God. The first fruit consists of repentance, it consists of faith, it consists of obedience, it consists of our walking with the Lord in holiness.

And just as the first fruits of the harvest was offered to God, so we as believers are to walk in holiness as the first gifts of God of what He has produced in our hearts. But the first fruit was also the pledge of what was yet to come of the harvest. As soon as the Israelite had plucked the first handful of ripe ears, they were proof that the harvest had already come and yet there was so much more yet to come.

And no Jew was ever content just with the first fruits anymore that you and I are content to sit down to a delicious meal and eat only the appetizer. You see, when we get the first fruits of the Spirit of God, we are not to say, I've already attained, I'm already perfect. No, the first fruit simply excites us and wets our appetite for more.

No farmer would be satisfied with one sheaf but would rejoice in the first knowing it was just that, the first of much more to come. And that's what it means when we groan within ourselves. We groan because of what the Lord has done.

We are thankful on one hand for what He has done in the first fruit and yet we groan for more and more and more of Him which will finally be climaxed when we see Him face to face. Hallelujah. Now you see, there are some people that are always groaning because they have not even produced the first fruits in their life.

They're groaning because they're still struggling with sin. They're still struggling with repentance or they come to the altar again and again. And they're still groaning to just produce the first fruits.

But my friend, the Lord wants to produce the first fruits in your life. And when He does, He wants you to know that that's the earnest of your inheritance. That's the down payment He gives to you that's finally going to be cultivated one day.

Hallelujah. In the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ when we receive our new glorified bodies. Hallelujah.

I have had two times in my life the kind of experience that I didn't know what it was until later I saw this verse and I realized it was a groaning. Once when I was a teenager where I had a tremendous overwhelming desire to want to be with the Lord. To want to see the Lord.

To want Him to come. It was a feeling of homesickness. I don't know, maybe it was precipitated by a message that I had heard.

I don't know what it was but a tremendous homesickness in my soul. And then it happened to me again maybe a dozen years ago when I was married. And it came over me and it was so strong.

I said, Oh Lord, there was just a cry in my heart. Lord, come. Lord, I want to see you.

And this is really the first time I've ever shared it. Never shared it. This is the end of side one.

You may now turn the tape over to side two. I was scared to share it with her because I was afraid that she might think the Lord was going to take me to heaven. To tell you the truth, I was scared.

You know, it's amazing. We all want to go to heaven but nobody wants to die to get there. Well, to tell you the truth, I want to meet the Lord.

If I die, well, I die in the Lord. That's alright. But I prefer to be alive when He comes.

But I had such a desire to want to meet Him and then I realized what it is that there was a groaning within my soul as we think of what God has done for us as He blesses us now. This is still just the first fruits. It's just a down payment, my friend.

And one of these days we're going to see Him face to face. Hallelujah. Now, some people can call that a cop-out doctrine.

Some people can call that escapism or whatever. I call it turning your eyes on Jesus. I call it Bible.

I call it believing what God has said. I call it groaning within yourself to want to be with the Lord face to face. If it's so beautiful now by the Spirit, how much more beautiful it will be when we come into His very physical, His presence.

Hallelujah. Groan. You've got a right to groan.

Hallelujah. As long as it's a groaning to see the Lord. And then let me give you another characteristic.

Another characteristic is Second Coming saints keep their belts tightened. Now turn with me to Exodus chapter 28. And while you're turning there, I got to read to you another verse.

Let me find it, but then I'm going to read to you another verse from Luke 12, 35. Jesus gave us a parable and He preceded it by this. He said, Let your loins be girded about and your lamps burning.

And ye yourselves like unto men who wait for their Lord when He will return from the wedding. Let me read it again. You just hold to Exodus 28.

This is Luke 12, 35 and 36 in the King James. It says, Let your loins be girded about and your lamps burning and ye yourselves like men that wait for their Lord who will return from the wedding. Now the term, let your loins be girded, another translation says, keep your belts tight.

We also could say, keep your girdle tight. Now the reference to loins or belt goes back to the institution of the priesthood under Aaron and his sons and look at it in Genesis 28. Excuse me.

I turned to Genesis. Exodus 28, verse 4. And these are the instruments which they shall make a breast piece and an ephod and a robe and a tunic of checkered work, a turban and a sash. And they shall make holy garments for Aaron, your brothers and his sons, and he may minister as priest to me.

And they shall take the gold and the blue and the purple and the scarlet material and the fine linen. They shall also make the ephod of gold, of blue and purple and scarlet material and fine twisted linen, the work of a skillful workman. It shall have two shoulder pieces joined at its ends that it may be joined.

Now notice verse 8. And the skillfully woven band which is on it shall be like its workmanship of the same material and also the same color of gold, of blue, of purple, and scarlet material and fine twisted linen. Now, get the picture. This is the issuing of the priestly robes, the ephod.

And notice also at verse 8 it says, and the skillfully woven band. And what does it say in the King James? Curious girdle. It means the same thing.

The reference to the skillfully woven band is called in King James a curious girdle. It was a part of a priest robe. It was an undergarment worn around the loins.

Now you see the girdle or this belt was a typical garment that men wore to strengthen their loins. It equipped a man to fight better in warfare. It equipped him better to do strenuous work.

If he was to go on a long walk then he would tighten his loins about him with his belt or this girdle. You remember on the night of the Passover that Israel was told to eat the Passover with your loins girded. In other words, get your belt tightened, get your girdle on, and your shoes on your feet because you're about to make a trip, a long trip.

Paul refers to the whole armor of God in saying put on the whole armor of God, stand there for having your loins gird about with truth. Now it's very interesting that the priest was also told to wear this girdle, especially when you consider the dignified position of a high priest robed in all of this beautiful vestment. Gold.

He gave the colors there, gold and blue and scarlet and purple. And he was told also this other attachment, this curious gold girdle, which actually was a part of the robe itself, that he was to wear it. And that was very strange because when the priest would put on all those robes, he couldn't do strenuous work.

He was not even called to do strenuous work. He was not called to go to warfare. He was not, you couldn't even take a long walk in that robe.

And yet, God commanded the priest to have his loins gird about with this material. And the question is why? And let me tell you why. And it relates to the coming of the Lord.

The high priest is a type of a believer who is also to have his loins gird about with truth, walking in holiness, walking in truth, walking in likeness and the character of Jesus Christ. You see, the girdle, though it was an undergarment, it was of the same color and texture as the robe. Actually, it was a part of the robe, though you couldn't see it.

Literally, it was a part of the robe. And the girdle, like the robe, we are told was to be of the following colors. Note what it says there in the verses I read to you.

What was it to be? It was to be gold. It was to be blue. It was to be purple.

It was to be scarlet. And each of those colors worn around the loins is a type of truth as revealed in Jesus Christ. You see, gold is a picture of the purity of the character of Christ.

Gold means genuine, not phony. And of course, Christ is our example of the purity of character. Blue speaks of His divine nature.

Every time you see a blue scarf, you know why there's so much blue in the heavens, why God made it blue? It's a type of the loveliness and the beauty of Jesus Christ in His divine nature. Scarlet is a type of the Son of Man coming to identify with sinful humanity, and it also speaks of obedience. Purple is a type of our reconciliation to Christ as He stands as a mediator between God and man.

And when the high priest wore the robe with this curious girdle of gold, blue, scarlet, and purple around his loins, it meant that he was to be, everywhere he went, he was to be walking in truth. He was to be walking as exemplified in those colors in the likeness of Jesus Christ wherever he went. Gird up your loins.

Tighten your belt. Be like Jesus. And you see, this is what second coming saints are all about.

They tighten their belts. They are not loose in their living. They are not letting truth fall to the ground, but they have it as a part of their vestment.

They have it a part of their loins, and wherever they walk, they walk in truth waiting for the coming of the Lord Jesus. Hallelujah. Isaiah 11 5 says, Also righteousness will be the belt about his loins, and faithfulness about his waist.

Jeremiah, when he was called to go preach to the people in their rebellion, this is what God said to him, Jeremiah, Now gird up your loins and arise and speak of them all that I have commanded you. And Peter says, Therefore gird your minds for action. Keep sober in spirit.

Fix your hope completely on the grace to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ at his second coming. The Bible also says, Seeing that all of these things are going to come to pass, what manner of persons ought we to be? In other words, tighten your belt. Get truth around you.

Walk in the character of Jesus Christ, and you will be a second coming saint. Oh, that's been happening. I've been watching some of you tighten your belts.

A brother came to me Sunday morning. He knows who he is. He won't mind me repeating this.

He said, Oh, the Word's getting in me. The Word's producing something in me. He said, You know, every once in a while, he said, I have a battle in my mind or with lust, and every time I do, he said, I quote the verse.

The verse comes immediately to my mind. Be ye holy, even as I am holy. And he says, and it goes right away.

I deal with it right away. It goes. Hallelujah.

That's tighten the belt. Hallelujah. Another sister told me last Thursday, no, last Tuesday, service.

We gave her testimony over at Town Hall. This happened earlier on in the beginning of our church where the Lord convicted her one night. She's a believer.

She's a Christian. But the Lord convicted her of something that she was stealing. She was stealing from her husband.

She would take money and she would give it to the poor. She would give it to needs of other people, but it was her husband. She wouldn't ask her husband.

She'd just take it. And I guess she figured, well, I'm giving it to the poor. It must be all right to take it from the rich.

Well, I don't know if he was rich or not, but, you know, it's all right. Take it. He's just my husband.

And the Word of the Lord came forth and she was convicted. And the Lord told her that night, steal no more. And she told me last Tuesday, she said, I haven't done it again.

I haven't done it ever again. I haven't stolen another dime, another penny, because she tightened her girdle, if you please. She tightened the belt, hallelujah, of truth around her.

I had a fellow who told me one time, a young convert, a teen challenge, came to me. He said, Brother Don, he said, what's going on in me? Would you please explain this to me? He said, I've been out on the street. I've robbed people.

I've mugged people. I've done things and not even given it a thought. Just do those things and go away.

But he said, now that I've become a Christian, he said, something's bugging me. Can you explain this to me? He said, the other night, I was laying down and I was reading my Bible before I went to bed. He said, and I looked up on my dresser and I saw a can of shaving cream and I got under great conviction because, he said, I had borrowed it about five days ago.

But he said, to tell you the truth, I didn't borrow it. He said, I just took it. I stole it.

And I looked up at that and I saw that can of shaving cream and it got so big. And I said, I can't go to sleep. It started bugging me.

He said, I had to go up and give, he said, can you think of that? He said, think of that. He said, a can of shaving cream? And he said, I had to get that can of shaving cream and take it back. And he said, what's going on? I said, well, you're just, you know, that's what it was.

He was, the belt was being tightened. Hallelujah. He's starting to walk in truth.

He was starting to walk in righteousness. And that's what second coming saints do. And finally, and I close with this, second coming saints are those who won't go back where they came from.

They won't go back where they came from. Go with me to Hebrews 11th chapter and I want you to consider with me the testimony of Abraham. Hebrews chapter 11 verses 8 and 9. And I'm going to close with this.

Hebrews 11. By faith Abraham, when he was called, obeyed by going out to a place which he was to receive for an inheritance, and he went out not knowing where he was going. By faith he lived as an alien in the land of promise as in a foreign land dwelling in tents with Isaac and Jacob, fellow heirs of the same promise.

Now listen. You and I are to be like Abraham. We too are sojourners.

We're pilgrims looking for a better country that is a heavenly one. And in a sense, we're like Abraham. We dwell in tents.

Now the word tent is interesting because you know what the word tent meant? And when you take it from its literal language, it means to be a permanent resident alien. A permanent resident alien. And this is how we're to live.

You know, a permanent resident alien, that's a contradiction in terms. How can you be a permanent resident alien? But you see, a Christian in this world is a contradiction of terms. We are in this world, but we're not of this world.

We are unwanted aliens. And bless your heart, we're the spiritually homeless. This does not belong to us.

Listen to what it says of Abraham. All these, verse 13, all these died in faith without receiving the promise, but having seen them and having welcomed them from a distance and have confessed, they have confessed that they were strangers and exiles on the earth. In other words, Abraham did not consider himself to be a part of this scene.

His eye was on another place, another land. He was a tent dweller here, a permanent resident alien. He never belonged here.

He never fit in. In fact, for a hundred years, he lived as a permanent resident alien. And you know how he was able to do it? This is how he was able to do it.

Look at verse 16. But as it is, they desire a better country that is a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for He hath prepared a city for them.

Hallelujah. This city ever gets to you. Start reading this about Abraham.

Start thinking about this other city. Hallelujah. You don't live here, praise God.

God has another city prepared for you. Jesus is coming back to take us to that city. Hallelujah.

That's what it means. And listen, this confession of Abraham's that he was a stranger and exile on the earth was also a confession that he couldn't go back from where he came from, although he had opportunity to do so. Look at it.

Go back to verse 13 again. Having confessed that they were strangers and aliens on the earth, for those who say such things make it clear that they are seeking a country of their own. And indeed, if they had been thinking of that country from which they went out of, they would have opportunity to return.

But as it is, they desire a better country that is a heavenly one. Abraham had his eyes on the prize. He didn't look back.

He said, I have opportunity. It said they had opportunity to go back, but he said, I can't go back because I've seen too much. Hallelujah.

I've come too far. God's done too much for me. I've tasted and seen that the Lord is good, and now I can't go back even though I have opportunity to go back.

And listen, my friend. Every single day that you get up, you have opportunity to go back. You've got opportunity no matter where you turn, on the right or to the left.

You go to the job. You go to school. You go to work.

Everywhere you go, you've got opportunity to go back. The tempter is there giving you other opportunities to go back, but the testimony of a Christian is that I can't go back. Hallelujah.

Because I'm going forward. Glory to God. I've seen the Lord, and I've seen the city that He has prepared for me.

I'm an alien. Hallelujah. I want to tell you, you know that God's done something for you.

When you had the opportunity to go back, and you didn't go back. When you came to the crossroads of temptation and decision, and an old friend was there to lure you back, or an old habit was there to lure you back, or an old fleshly thing was there to lure you back. Whatever it is, it says they had confessed that they were strangers and exiles on the earth.

Hear it again as I close. For those who say such things make it clear. They make it... Oh, hey, do you got your Bibles? Look at that again.

Does that say that in your Bible? For those who say such things make it clear. When you get up in the morning, make it clear. I heard one of the Teen Challenge fellows say one time, he said, I'm a nacho man.

He said all my life I wanted to be a nacho man. And, you know, I got involved in drugs and the devil beat me up. And now I came to the Lord.

He said, I wake up every morning and I say to the devil, I'm not your man. I'm not your man. That's what Abraham said.

He said, For those who say such things make it clear that they are seeking a country of their own. Hallelujah. I can't go back.

They had opportunity. But they said, I can't go back. I've come too far.

Hallelujah. Oh, may that be your testimony. Now, that's a testimony of a second coming Christian, a second coming saint.

Praise the Lord. Let's bow in a word of prayer. Oh Lord.

This is the conclusion of the tape. She deceived him with her mouth and lied to him with her tongue. For their heart was not steadfast.