In the last days, it is our greatest hope to receive the return of the Lord Jesus Christ. To help all the people who yearn for God’s appearance to welcome the return of the Lord Jesus Christ soon, our blog will update the latest message on the return of the Lord.
Focus on God’s Names: Mystery Series of Jehovah, Jesus and the Almighty: Episode II-What Is the Significance of the Name of Jesus?
In the last fellowship, we shared the origin and meaning of God’s name “Jehovah.” Afterward, we received letters from some brothers and sisters in the Lord enquiring: “Since the name of Jehovah God will endure forever, it should be perpetuated onward. But, why did God’s name change to ‘Jesus’ in the Age of Grace? Is there any deeper significance that lies herein?” Presumably most brothers and sisters want to seek the truth of this question. So, today let’s fellowship about the reason why God took the name of Jesus instead of Jehovah in the Age of Grace and the meaning of the name of Jesus.
Yang Hou’en was a pastor of a house church in China. His father Yang Shoudao and he had always been waiting for the Lord Jesus to come upon a cloud and catch them up into the kingdom of heaven. For this reason, they worked diligently for the Lord and held onto His name, thinking that whoever claims to be the Lord Jesus but doesn’t come with a cloud is a false Christ. As to the news of the Lord’s return, they neither investigated nor accepted it, and they simply believed they were already “watching and waiting.” … Just when they were waiting passively, Li Jiayin, the cousin of Yang Hou’en, accepted Almighty God’s work of the last days and went to evangelize them. After several intense debates, Yang Hou’en finally understood what it truly meant to “watch and wait.” And he found that Almighty God’s word is the truth, the way, and the life, exactly the voice of the Lord, and he realized that Almighty God is the return of their long-awaited Lord Jesus….
We Christians all hope that we could change form and become holy in an instant, and be raptured into the kingdom of heaven when the Lord returns. However, the Lord Jesus said plainly, “Not every one that said to me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that does the will of my Father which is in heaven” (Mat 7:21). The word, said by Paul, that we will be changed immediately when the Lord returns, contradicts with what the Lord Jesus said. Then, is Paul’s viewpoint right on earth? Will we be raptured in an instant when the Lord returns? What is really the approach to entering into the kingdom of heaven?
A believer must have a normal spiritual life—this is the foundation for experiencing God’s words and entering into reality. Currently, can all of the prayers, the getting close to God, the singing, praising, meditation, and the trying to figure out God’s words that you practice meet the standards of a normal spiritual life? None of you are very clear on this. A normal spiritual life is not limited to prayer, song, church life, eating and drinking the words of God, and other such practices, but it means to live a spiritual life that is fresh and lively. It’s not about the method, but the result. Most people think that in order to have a normal spiritual life one must pray, sing, eat and drink the words of God, or try to figure out the words of God. No matter whether there is any result, or whether there is a true understanding, these people just focus on going through the motions on the outside, and do not focus on the result—they are people living within the rituals of religion, and are not people living within the church, and even less are they people of the kingdom. This kind of person’s prayers, songs, and eating and drinking of the words of God are all abiding by the rules, they are compelled to do them, and they are done in keeping with trends; they are not done willingly or done from the heart. No matter how much these people pray or sing, there will be no result at all, because all they practice are religious rules and rituals, and they are not practicing the word of God. By only focusing on the method, and taking the words of God as rules to keep, this kind of person is not practicing the word of God, but is satisfying the flesh, and is doing things to show off to others. This kind of religious ritual and rule comes from man, not from God. God does not keep rules, does not abide by any laws; He does new things every day and He does practical work. Like the people in the Three-Self Church who are limited to daily morning watch, evening prayers, giving thanks before meals, expressing thanks in everything, and other such practices, no matter how much these people do, or how long they practice, they will not have the work of the Holy Spirit. If people live within rules, with their hearts poured into practice, then the Holy Spirit has no way to work, because people’s hearts are taken up with rules, are taken up with human conceptions; therefore God has no way to do work; people will just always be living under control of the law, and this type of person will never be able to receive the praise of God.
More and more people are bearing witness online that the Lord has returned. Hearing this news, you may be puzzled: We haven’t seen the Lord descending upon clouds, how can you say that the Lord has returned?
In fact, through thoroughly studying the biblical scriptures of the Lord’s second advent, we can discover that the Bible includes not only the scriptures of the Lord’s advent with clouds but also the scriptures of the Lord’s secret coming as the Son of man. For example, “Behold, I come as a thief” (Revelation 16:15). “And at midnight there was a cry made, Behold, the bridegroom comes; go you out to meet him” (Matthew 25:6).. “Therefore be you also ready: for in such an hour as you think not the Son of man comes.” (Matthew 24:44). “For as the lightning comes out of the east, and shines even to the west; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be” (Matthew 24:27). The phrases “come as a thief” and “at midnight” mentioned here refer to the Lord coming quietly, which is not easy for people to perceive. That’s to say, God will come secretly. And these prophecies mention “the Son of man” and “the Son of man comes”. This phrase the Son of man refers to One who is born to a human and has normal humanity. So the Spirit or the spiritual body can’t be called the Son of man. Therefore, when the Lord Jesus prophesied the Son of man and the Son of man comes, He was referring to God’s coming through incarnation in the last days.
When it comes to God’s name, some brothers and sisters say that God’s name is Jehovah, for it is written in the Bible: “Jehovah … is My name for ever, and this is My memorial to all generations” (Exodus 3:15), and some say that God is called Jesus, because the Bible records: “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). Some, however, have recently seen a verse from the Book of Revelation, chapter 1, verse 8: “I am Alpha and Omega, the Beginning and the Ending, said the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty,” from which it can be seen that God will name Himself the Almighty. This confounds many people: Why does God’s name change? Why does God take these names? What’s the significance of God taking them?
One day, during my spiritual devotion, I saw the words of the Lord Jesus: “I am come a light into the world, that whoever believes on me should not abide in darkness. And if any man hear my words, and believe not, I judge him not: for I came not to judge the world, but to save the world. He that rejects me, and receives not my words, has one that judges him: the word that I have spoken, the same shall judge him in the last day” (John 12:46–48). Pondering over this passage of scripture, I saw that the Lord’s will and demands of us are to have us follow His words in everything and do as He asked. In my mind, since the Lord Jesus has absolved our sins, we have already been saved by grace when accepting His salvation, and will be directly taken into the kingdom of heaven when He returns. But here, why did the Lord say whoever disobeyed His words would be judged in the last days? Why would the Lord judge us? I knew Sister Xiangguang was devout and received scriptures purely. She had just returned home after studying in another place. So I wanted to seek from her.
Peace to you in the Lord! I’m very glad to receive your letter. In the letter, you mentioned that the Lord’s coming is near, so in order to be a wise virgin waiting for and welcoming the Lord’s return, you intentionally read the Bible and pray more, and work more for the Lord. But it doesn’t make you feel keen in spirit, or make your faith and love increase. You wonder whether you are a wise virgin by pursuing like this and are eager to know how to practice to welcome the coming of the Lord. Sister Muzhen, your question is very important for us Christians, because each and every one of us wants to be a wise virgin to welcome the Lord’s return, and finally attend the feast of the kingdom of heaven together with Him. None of us want to be a foolish virgin forsaken by the Lord. But, how should one practice to be a wise virgin? Regarding this issue, I’ll talk about my understanding. I hope it can be beneficial to you!
Question 1: The Bible says, “For with the heart man believes to righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made to salvation” (Rom 10:10). We have already been saved through our faith in Jesus. Once we’re saved, we’re eternally saved. When the Lord arrives we will definitely be able to enter the kingdom of heaven.
Welcome the Lord Jesus Christ's Return 