12/23/20

Atheism’s Real Agenda: Censure and Termination by Kyle Butt, M.Div.

 

https://apologeticspress.org/APContent.aspx?category=12&article=825

Atheism’s Real Agenda: Censure and Termination

by  Kyle Butt, M.Div.

In 2004, Sam Harris published his New York Times bestseller The End of Faith. In that book, Harris supports atheism as the only rational view of the world. He condemns all forms of religious faith, including and especially Christianity, as detrimental and potentially dangerous. He goes so far as to suggest that some beliefs are so serious that simply holding such should be a punishable offense. He stated:

The link between belief and behavior raises the stakes considerably. Some propositions are so dangerous that it may even be ethical to kill people for believing them. This may seem an extraordinary claim, but it merely enunciates an ordinary fact about the world in which we live. Certain beliefs place their adherents beyond the reach of every peaceful means of persuasion, while inspiring them to commit acts of extraordinary violence against others (2004, pp. 52-53, emp. added).

In the immediate context, Harris is referring to militant Muslims whose religious beliefs lead them to kill infidels. Later in the book, however, we see another belief that Harris considers to be a punishable offense. On page 156, Harris discussed his view of political leaders who espouse Christian sentiments. He opined:

Men eager to do the Lord’s work have been elected to other branches of federal government as well. The House majority lead, Tom Delay, is given to profundities like “Only Christianity offers a way to live in response to the realities that we find in this world. Only Christianity.” He claims to have gone into politics “to promote a Biblical worldview.” Apparently feeling that it is impossible to say anything stupid while in the service of this worldview, he attributed the shootings at Columbine High School in Colorado to the fact that our schools teach the theory of evolution (2004, p. 156).

 

What, then, does Harris believe should happen to a person who openly claims that Christianity is the global solution to the world’s ills? Harris quipped: “We might wonder how it is that pronouncements this floridly irrational do not lead to immediate censure and removal from office” (p. 156, emp. added).

In this brief article we will not go into the facts that the Columbine shootings were inspired by evolution, that atheism is completely irrational, and that Christianity can be shown to be the only solution to the realities of this world. The sole purpose of this article is to show that atheism’s ultimate agenda is to censure those who espouse Christianity and to persecute the belief to extinction. The atheistic community is not a “live and let live” market place of ideas. Harris vividly manifests the fact that atheism views Christianity as a dangerous belief that should be quelled at all cost, including punishing those who espouse it. The “freethought” community’s idea of “freethought” is that all people are “free” to think how they like, as long as that thought process is atheistic at its core and excludes Christianity.

With atheism being one of the fastest growing beliefs in our country, it is time that Christians recognize the agenda of those leading the atheistic charge. If atheism has its way, according to bestselling atheist Sam Harris, it should be a punishable offense to publicly proclaim that Christianity is the only solution to humanity’s problems. Rue the day that atheism and its leaders become prominent enough to enforce such an agenda. For Christians, “now it is high time to awake out of sleep” (Romans 13:11) and stand up for the Truth while we have opportunity.

REFERENCE

Harris, Sam (2004), The End of Faith (New York: W.W. Norton).

Suggested Resources

Atheism’s Contradictory Supernatural “Natural” Explanations by Eric Lyons, M.Min.

 

https://apologeticspress.org/APContent.aspx?category=12&article=529

Atheism’s Contradictory Supernatural “Natural” Explanations

by  Eric Lyons, M.Min.

Atheism contends that a supernatural Creator does not exist. Allegedly, a supernatural Being is unnecessary in our material Universe. Everything can be explained purely naturally through a study of the natural world. In short, nature exists “naturally,” not supernaturally.

If such is the case, however, then how did nature get here to begin with? In nature, matter and energy do not appear from nothing (so says the First Law of Thermodynamics).1 In nature, nothing always comes from nothing and something always comes from something. So from whence came the first “something”? That is, where did nature itself come from? According to some of the world’s foremost atheistic evolutionists, something came from nothing. Atheistic cosmologist Stephen Hawking stated on national television in 2011, “Nothing caused the Big Bang.”2 In the book The Grand Design that Dr. Hawking co-authored, he and Leonard Mlodinow asserted: “Bodies such as stars and black holes cannot just appear out of nothing. But a whole universe can.”3 So, although it is not natural for something to come from nothing, many atheists assume that it did “in the beginning.”

And what about the first life form? From whence did it arrive? According to atheistic evolution, life was not created supernaturally by a supernatural Creator, rather life came from non-life; it spontaneously generated “naturally.” But does life ever come from non-life naturally? Never. As evolutionist Martin Moe observed, “[A] century of sensational discoveries in the biological sciences has taught us that life arises only from life.”4 It would take a miracle for life to come from non-life, yet atheists contend that no God exists to work in such a supernatural manner. So how did the first life get here? Atheists (who have “refused to have God in their knowledge”—Romans 1:28, ASV), contend that it must have arisen naturally, yet it did so in a way that breaks the natural Law of Biogenesis.5

Atheism can continue to deny the existence of a supernatural Creator, but it does so in the only way possible—illogically and self-contradictorily. Rather than irrationally endowing nature with the ability to act supernaturally while alleging nothing supernatural exists, the reasonable person should conclude that what happened supernaturally must be the effect of a supernatural Being at work.

In truth, both Heaven and Earth reveal that “the things which are seen were not made of things which are visible” (Hebrews 11:3). Rather, the supernatural “God created the heavens and the earth” (Genesis 1:1).

Endnotes

1 See Jeff Miller (2013), “Evolution and the Laws of Science: The Laws of Thermodynamics,” Apologetics Press, http://apologeticspress.org/apcontent.aspx?category=9&article=2786.

2 See “Curiosity: Did God Create the Universe?” (2011), Discovery Channel, August 7, emp. added.

3 2010, New York: Bantam Books, p. 180.

4 “Genes on Ice” (1981), Science Digest, 89[11]:36, emp. added.

5 For more information on the Law of Biogenesis, see Jeff Miller (2013), “The Law of Biogenesis—Parts 1 & 2,” Apologetics Press, http://apologeticspress.org/APContent.aspx?category=9&article=4165&topic=93.

Atheism: Contradictory at Best, Hideous at Worst by Eric Lyons, M.Min.

 

https://apologeticspress.org/APContent.aspx?category=12&article=3657

Atheism: Contradictory at Best, Hideous at Worst

by  Eric Lyons, M.Min.

Many atheists often describe certain things as being “deplorable,” “atrocious,” or “wicked.” Arguably the most famous atheist in the world in 1976, atheistic philosopher Antony Flew, confessed that the Nazis committed real, objective moral atrocities during the 1930s and 1940s when they slaughtered six million Jews (Warren and Flew, 1976, p. 248). Many atheists admit that it would be morally wrong to rape a woman or to sexually abuse and torture a four-year-old child. Richard Dawkins, the most recognized atheist in the world today, has even boasted that someone who does not believe in evolution may be “wicked” (1989).

Such recognition by atheists of anything being morally wrong begs the question: How can an atheist logically call something atrocious, deplorable, wicked, or morally wrong? According to atheism, we are nothing but matter in motion. We allegedly evolved from rocks and slime over billions of years. We supposedly arose from animals—living organisms that have no sense of morality. Animals eat their young, kill their mates, and steal the food of any animal from which they can successfully take it—whether friend, foe, or family member. Atheists allege that “we are animals…. We like to think of ourselves as elevated above other creatures. But the human body evolved” from animals (Marchant, 2008, 200[2678]:44, emp. added). Thus, the fact is, as Dr. Thomas B. Warren concluded in his debate with Antony Flew, “[T]he basic implication of the atheistic system does not allow objective moral right or objective moral wrong” (1976, p. 49).

Atheistic philosopher Jean Paul Sartre summarized godlessness well when he said, “Everything is indeed permitted if God does not exist” (1961, p. 485, emp. added). If atheists refuse to admit that real moral objectivity exists, then they are forced to admit that when the Jews were starved, gassed, and experimented on “like the animals” they supposedly were (cf. Marchant, 2008), the Nazis did nothing wrong. If human life really is as worthless as bacteria (as atheist Eric Pianka said naturalism demands), then there would be nothing truly wrong with systematically spreading the ebola virus for the purpose of eliminating 90% of the human population, which Dr. Pianka suggested needed to happen in order to save the Earth (see Mims, 2006). Atheists who theoretically take atheistic evolution to its logical conclusion, are forced to admit what Dan Barker acknowledged in his debate with Kyle Butt in February 2009: that, if need be, he would rape millions of girls to save the rest of humanity (Butt and Barker, 2009, pp. 33-36). After all, if we are nothing but advanced ape-like creatures, and “our male ancestors became ancestors in part because they conditionally used rape,” then, as evolutionist Randy Thornhill confessed, “rape is evolutionary, biological, and natural” (2001; cf. Thornhill and Palmer, 2000)—a sickening thought.

Atheists can say, “We don’t like that,” or “We would never do that,” but they can never logically say that something is objectively wrong or right. If they do, they are making a self-defeating statement. They would be contradicting the very naturalism they espouse. If they actually admit that for atheism no objective standards for “good” and “evil” can exist, then rape could just as well be right, while a virtue like bravery could be bad. Either way, atheism loses. It is either contradictory, and thus self-defeating, or it is too horrible for even the most contemptible to contemplate.

“The fool has said in his heart, ‘There is no God.’ They are corrupt, they have done abominable works, there is none who does good” (Psalm 14:1).

REFERENCES

Butt, Kyle and Dan Barker (2009), The Butt/Barker Debate: Does the God of the Bible Exist? (Montgomery, AL: Apologetics Press).

Dawkins, Richard (1989), “Book Review,” The New York Times, section 7, April 9.

Marchant, Jo (2008), “We Should Act Like the Animals We Are,” New Scientist, 200[2678]:44-45, October 18-24.

Mims, Forrest (2006), “Dealing With Doctor Doom,” The Citizen Scientist, www.sas.org/tcs/weeklyIssues_2006/2006-04-07/feature1p/ index.html.

Sartre, Jean Paul, (1961), “Existentialism and Humanism,” French Philosophers from Descartes to Sartre, ed. Leonard M. Marsak (New York: Meridian).

Thornhill, Randy (2001), “A Natural History of Rape,” Lecture delivered at Simon Fraser University, March 16, http://www.d.umn.edu/cla/faculty/jhamlin/3925/Readings/ Thornhill_on_rape.pdf.

Thornhill, Randy and Craig T. Palmer (2000), A Natural History of Rape (Cambridge: MIT Press).

Warren, Thomas B. and Antony Flew (1976), The Warren-Flew Debate (Jonesboro, AR: National Christian Press).

"THE GOSPEL OF MARK" Take Heed What You Hear (4:21-25) by Mark Copeland

 

                          "THE GOSPEL OF MARK"

                   Take Heed What You Hear (4:21-25)

INTRODUCTION

1. When we have opportunities to hear or read the Word of God...
   a. Are we aware that we will be judged by we how give heed?
   b. That the blessings we receive are proportionate to how we hear?

2. During His ministry, Jesus began teaching in parables...
   a. To the public He would tell the parables - Mk 4:1-2
   b. In private He would explain them to His disciples - Mk 4:10-12,33-34

3. In "The Parable Of The Four Soils" Jesus...
   a. Illustrated how not all receive the Word as they should
   b. Ended with the cry, "He who has ears to hear, let him hear!" - Mk 4:9

[After explaining the parable, Jesus exhorted His disciples to "Take
Heed What You Hear" (Mk 4:21-25).  Let's first consider Jesus' words...]

I. AS CHARGED TO THE DISCIPLES

   A. THAT WHICH IS HIDDEN IS TO BE MADE KNOWN...
      1. Jesus asked rhetorical questions involving a lamp - Mk 4:21
      2. What was hidden would be revealed, what was secret should come
         to light - Mk 4:22
      3. The context regards His use of parables and the ultimate
         intention of His teaching
         a. Jesus spoke publicly in parables at the time - Mk 4:11
         b. The meaning was explained privately - Mk 4:33-34
         c. But His teaching was meant one day to be proclaimed abroad
         d. His disciples would be involved in publicly proclaiming it - cf. Mt 10:27
      4. Thus they were to pay close attention to what He was saying - Mk 4:23
      -- Jesus intended one day for all to hear and know His teaching

   B. TAKE HEED WHAT YOU HEAR...
      1. Jesus charged His disciples to take heed what they hear - Mk 4:24a
      2. The importance of taking heed is repeatedly stressed - Mk 4:24b-25
         a. "With the same measure you use, it will be measured to you"
         b. "To you who hear, more will be given"
         c. "For whoever has, to him more will be given"
         d. "But whoever does not have, even what he has will be take
            away from him"
      3. This is illustrated in the parable of The Talents
         a. Talents given according to each person's ability - Mt 25:15
         b. Those who utilized their talents received more responsibility - Mt 25:20-23
         c. The one talent man lost that which he did not utilize - Mt 25:24-28
         d. "For to everyone who has, more will be given, and he will
            have abundance; but from him who does not have, even what he
            has will be taken away." - Mt 25:29
      -- Jesus promised more for those who take heed to what they hear,
         utilize what they have

[Jesus spoke these words to prepare and motivate His disciples for their
future service.  Let's now reflect on His words...]

II. AS APPLIED TO US TODAY

   A. THAT WHICH WAS HIDDEN HAS BEEN MADE KNOWN...
      1. Things kept private were to be made public after His resurrection - cf. Mk 9:9
      2. The Spirit would be given to guide the apostles into all the truth - Jn 16:12-13
      3. They were to proclaim the gospel and His commandments to all - Mk 16:15; Mt 28:19-20
      4. The apostles (including Paul) were faithful to their charge - Ac 20:27
      5. What was once a "mystery" has now been revealed - Ro 16:25-26;Ep 3:3-5,8-9
      -- In the New Testament, that which was hidden can now be known by all!

   B. TAKE HEED WHAT YOU HEAR...
      1. The need to take heed to what we hear is still the same
      2. Consider the importance of listening carefully:
         a. To be blessed - cf. Mt 13:16-17
         b. To have faith - cf. Ro 1:16-17; 10:17
         c. To bear fruit - cf. Lk 8:15; Col 1:6
         d. To prevent apostasy - cf. He 2:1-3
         e. To avoid rejection and condemnation - cf. Mt 10:14-15; Ac 13:44-49; Mt 12:41-42
         -- For more, see "How Well Do You Listen?"
      3. The principle of measure remains the same - Mk 4:24-25
         a. "With the same measure you use, it will be measured to you"
         b. "To you who hear, more will be given"
         c. "For whoever has, to him more will be given"
         d. "But whoever does not have, even what he has will be take away from him"
      -- For those willing give careful heed to the Word of God, they
         will be richly blessed!

CONCLUSION

1. There is a well known maxim:  "You get out of something what you put into it."

2. Does this not explain why many get little out of religion and the Bible in particular...?
   a. They have little interest in spiritual matters
   b. They make little effort to learn what the Bible says
   c. Their interest in spiritual things declines with time

3. Yet Jesus promises for those willing to "Take Heed What You Hear"...
   a. "With the same measure you use, it will be measured to you"
   b. "To you who hear, more will be given"
   c. "For whoever has, to him more will be given"

That is why some never stagnate in their spiritual growth, why their
faith is refreshed and renewed daily (cf. 2Co 4:16).  And so together
with Jesus we offer the following admonition:

              "If anyone has ears to hear, let him hear."
                               (Mk 4:23)      
 
Executable Outlines, Copyright © Mark A. Copeland, 2016

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3 Essentials of A Good Sermon by Ken Weliever, The Preacherman

 https://thepreachersword.com/2016/02/12/3-essentials-of-a-good-sermon/

3 Essentials of A Good Sermon

Preaching2 

A preacher was greeting folks at the door after the service. A woman said, “Preacher, that was a very good sermon.”

Modestly the preacher replied “Thank you, but I have to give the credit to the LORD.”

“Well, It wasn’t THAT good!” she responded.

What is a good sermon?

One sage defined a good sermon this way: “It should have a good beginning. A good ending. And they should be as close together as possible.”

Famed expositor and Bible teacher G. Campbell Morgan provided one of most succinct summaries of what constitutes a good sermon. “If I am asked to condense into words the essentials of a sermon, I do it with these three: Truth, Clarity, Passion.”

(1) A good sermon is based on Truth

Truth is objective. Not subjective. Truth is the sum total of God’s revealed Word (Ps 119:160).

Jesus said, “Sanctify them through thy Word, thy Word is truth” (Jn. 17:17). Jesus is the epitome and essence of truth (Jn. 14:6) It was the truth into which the Holy Spirit guided the apostles (Jn 16:13). Paul based his preaching on the truth of Christ (1 Tim. 2:7). So should preachers today.

Any sermon today that is of benefit to its hearers must be Bible-based and Christ-centered. We must give book, chapter and verse for all we say. The old adage “speak where the Scriptures speak and be silent where the Scriptures are silent” is still relevant in the 21st century.

(2) A good sermon is understandable.

Truth needs to be preached in clear, concise, and concrete terms. Sermons filled with theological jargon, big words or ambiguous explanations are not a compliment to a preacher and do an injustice to the hearer.

Homer Hailey used to tell us preacher boys, “Jesus said to feed my sheep, not feed my giraffes.” Let’s put it down where the people can understand what we are saying.

When Peter preached on Pentecost, his pointed sermon pricked the hearts of those who cried, “Men and brethren what shall we do?” (Acts 2:37) There was no misunderstanding Paul in Philippi when he was put in prison for preaching Christ (Acts 16). Today we need more plain and pointed preaching that will penetrate and pierce the hearts of our hearers.

Paul wrote and preached in a way “where when you read, ye can understand my knowledge in the mystery of Christ” (Eph. 3:4). The preacher’s job is to help people “understand what the will of the Lord is” (Eph. 5:17). Preachers should follow the example of Ezra who “read distinctly, give the sense and cause them to understand” (Neh. 8:8).

Truth should be presented with a correct exposition, clear explanation and a practical application to our daily lives.

(3) A good sermon is presented with passion.

While every preacher possesses a different style and manner of presentation, we need proclaimers who are passionate and persuasive in their preaching.

An old-time preacher once said, “I preach as if I never should preach again, and as a dying man to dying men.” Or as William McPhail put it, “The best cure for sleeping sickness in the pew is some soul-stirring preaching from the pulpit.”

A study of the Old Testament prophets and the New Testament preachers reveals an urgency to their message. Boldness in their manner. And fervor in their presentation.

Time, circumstance, moral problems, local situations and the pressing needs of the hour will determine what I will preach this Sunday. The same is true for all preachers. Everywhere. And little by little and week by week, I will “declare the whole counsel of God” and give the audience not what they want, but what they need at this precious moment.

But regardless of the topic or the text, Morgan’s three word exhortation should define our preaching: Truth. Clarity. Passion.

–Ken Weliever, The Preacherman

GAY MARRIAGE IS LEGAL by steve finnell

 

https://steve-finnell.blogspot.com/2017/01/

GAY MARRIAGE IS LEGAL by steve finnell

According to the Supreme Court gay marriage is legal in the United States of America. The problem is being legal does not make it any less sinful. Being a homosexual is legal. Being an adulterer is legal. Having children out of wedlock is legal. Rejecting Jesus as the Son of God is legal. Being a liar is legal. Perverting the gospel by denying that water baptism is essential to the forgiveness of sins is legal.

Because men keep the laws of man is no guarantee they are free from sin.

SCRIPTURES ABOUT HOMOSEXUAL SIN

Marriage is between a man and a woman. Matthew 19:4-6 (NASB)

Homosexuality was a sin under the old covenant and is a sin under the new covenant. Leviticus 18:22 You shall not lie with a male as one lies with a female; it is an abomination. (NASB)  1 Corinthians 6:9-10 Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived; neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor homosexuals, 10 nor thieves, nor the covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers, will inherit the kingdom of God.s (NASB)

HEBREWS by Paul Southern

 

https://www.oldpaths.com/Archive/Southern/Paul/1901/heb.html

HEBREWS

  1. THE TITLE
  2. This book is titled Hebrews because it is thought to have been addressed to Hebrew Christians.

  3. THE WRITER
  4. The writer's name is nowhere mentioned in the epistle, and scholars disagree concerning its authorship. However, the weight of evidence favors Paul. Others sometimes named as the writer include Luke, Apollos, Barnabas, Clement, and Priscilla. Concerning the authorship Origen said: "Who wrote the Epistle God only knows certainly." It is not within the province of this survey to discuss such a controversial issue. Suffice it to say that the Holy Spirit inspired the materials for the Christian's admonition and learning.

  5. THE ONES ADDRESSED
  6. The epistle is addressed to Hebrew Christians. Whether they constituted one local congregation, or lived in a special locality, or were Jews of the "Dispersion" living in Gentile lands is a matter of dispute. Some scholars believe that they were Hebrew Christians scattered over the old Jewish settlement of Judea. Others hold that the writer is addressing Jewish Christians in a more definite locality.

  7. TIME AND PLACE OF WRITING
  8. When and where this epistle was written cannot be definitely determined. That it was written before the destruction of Jerusalem in A.D. 70 is evident, and some place the date A.D. 62-64. It was probably written in Rome, Italy, though some name Jerusalem and others Alexandria as the point of origin.

  9. THE CONTENTS
  10. The theme of this book is the superiority of Christianity over Judaism. It begins with the beginning, "sweeps across the prophetic centuries to 'these last days,' and passes beyond the races run by men to the judgment of God." Here we see the prophets of the past, an interpretation of the present, and a prediction of the future. No informed person can read this epistle with an unbiased mind and fail to see that Christianity with the gospel of Christ has superseded Judaism with the law of Moses. A formal treatise on Christian doctrine, its practical aim was to encourage Hebrew Christians to renounce the shadows of Judaism for the realities of the gospel. Warnings against apostasy are constantly stressed.

  11. TOPICS FOR STUDY
    1. Concerning the writer.
      1. There is no proof that someone besides Paul was the writer.
      2. The style, contents and argument are Pauline.
      3. Personal allusions coincide with the known history of Paul.
      4. Paul was thoroughly familiar with the Jewish system discussed.
      5. Scholars of the second century named Paul as the writer.
      6. It was written during Paul's lifetime, for the temple was standing.
      7. It was written by a friend of Timothy (13:23).
      8. The writer was or had been in Italy (13:23,24).
      9. Peter speaks of an epistle by Paul to Hebrews (I Pt 1:1; II Pt 3:1,15).
      10. The epistle closes with the usual Pauline benediction.

    2. Concerning the ones addressed
      1. They were Hebrew Christians (2:1; 3:1; 4:1; 6:1f).
      2. They had been Christians for some time (5:12-14).
      3. They were acquainted with the writer (13:18,19).
      4. They also knew Timothy who intended to visit them (13:23).
      5. They were in danger of returning to Judaism (12:1-4; 5:11; Chs. 6-9).
      6. They were suffering intense persecutions (12;3,4; 4:15,16).
      7. Apparently they lived in some particular region (13:23).
      8. Apparently they constituted a church with recognized leaders (13:17).
      9. They had been sympathetic toward other Christians (6:10; 10:32f).
      10. They had a tendency to disbelieve Christ (12:1-3; 3:12).

    3. Concerning other matters
      1. Outline the epistle under the general theme, "The Superiority of Christianity over Judaism."
      2. Make a list of all the terms of comparison.
      3. Summarize the teaching of the epistle concerning the high-priesthood of Christ.
      4. Contrast the Levitical priesthood with the Aaronic.
      5. Study closely the writer's use of the typical character of the Old Covenant institutions and ordinances.
      6. Why is the tabernacle used instead of the temple throughout the discussion?
      7. Consider carefully the danger of rejecting the sacrifice of Christ.
      8. What does Hebrews teach concerning salvation by faith?
      9. Discuss the benefits of affliction.
      10. What sources were likely involved in causing the Hebrew Christians to consider returning to Judaism?

Published in The Old Paths Archive
(http://www.oldpaths.com)

A rainbow with surprise by Gary Rose

 

If you have read many of my posts, then you know I like rainbows. Rainbows of different complexity, size and intensity. This rainbow is a little bit surprising to me as occurs when the stars are beginning to appear. (Note the stars beginning to appear in the upper right of the picture. )


For Christians, there is one major surprise yet to be revealed – The second coming of Jesus. The Bible says…



Acts 1 ( World English Bible )

1 The first book I wrote, Theophilus, concerned all that Jesus began both to do and to teach,

2 until the day in which he was received up, after he had given commandment through the Holy Spirit to the apostles whom he had chosen.

3 To these he also showed himself alive after he suffered, by many proofs, appearing to them over a period of forty days, and speaking about God’s Kingdom.

4 Being assembled together with them, he commanded them, “Don’t depart from Jerusalem, but wait for the promise of the Father, which you heard from me.

5 For John indeed baptized in water, but you will be baptized in the Holy Spirit not many days from now.”

6 Therefore, when they had come together, they asked him, “Lord, are you now restoring the kingdom to Israel?”

7 He said to them, “It isn’t for you to know times or seasons which the Father has set within his own authority.

8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you. You will be witnesses to me in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the uttermost parts of the earth.”

9 When he had said these things, as they were looking, he was taken up, and a cloud received him out of their sight.

10 While they were looking steadfastly into the sky as he went, behold, two men stood by them in white clothing,

11 who also said, “You men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into the sky? This Jesus, who was received up from you into the sky will come back in the same way as you saw him going into the sky.”

Note: see also… Mk 16:19; Lk 24.51


1 Thessalonians 4 ( WEB )

13 But we don’t want you to be ignorant, brothers, concerning those who have fallen asleep, so that you don’t grieve like the rest, who have no hope.

14 For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so God will bring with him those who have fallen asleep in Jesus.

15 For this we tell you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive, who are left to the coming of the Lord, will in no way precede those who have fallen asleep.

16 For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with God’s trumpet. The dead in Christ will rise first,

17 then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air. So we will be with the Lord forever.

18 Therefore comfort one another with these words.

Note: see also… Dan. 7:13; Matt.24:30; Mk 13:26; Lk 21:27; 1 Thess. 1:10 and Rev.1:7


Yes, Jesus will come again. He will bless those who truly follow him and dispense judgment on those who don’t. Be smart, seek out Jesus while you still have time, become a Christian and await with expectation Jesus’ return. You will be glad you did!