Faith and Your Future in these 7 Passages of Scripture

Where is your faith pointing you?

The Scriptures tell us
to set our minds on things above,
to remember that
our citizenship is in heaven,
and to patiently endure
as we wait for the coming of the Lord.

Allow me to share this word of encouragement,
by quoting seven passages of Scripture together.

Ephesians 2:8-9 - For by grace you have been saved through faith

Colossians 3:1-4 - If then you have been raised up with Christ

Philippians 3:20-21 - For our citizenship is in heaven

Hebrews 13:14 - For here we have no lasting city

James 5:7-8 - Be patient, therefore, brethren

Romans 12:12 - Rejoice in Hope, Persevere in tribulation, be constant in prayer

Ephesians 3:20-21 - Now to Him who is able to do 

Short Video = https://youtube.com/shorts/xgoCjPYFcxM?feature=share

Do you have a hunger for the kingdom of God? A thirst for the day when everything wrong is made right?

Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied. — Matthew 5:6

The word translated “righteousness” here carries more than personal morality. Dikaiosyne (δικαιοσύνη) holds together two things at once:
the right ordering of our own hearts before God,
and the right ordering of the world.
Justice.
For all things to be as God intends them to be.
In a word: the kingdom,
the world God dreamed of before creation itself.

The prophet Amos saw it:
 “Let justice roll down like waters, and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream” (Amos 5:24).
Not a trickle.
Not an occasional rain.
A river.
Unstoppable,
uncontainable,
reshaping everything in its path.

This is what Jesus calls His people to long for:
not just their own personal holiness,
but the coming of a world where
the poor are not crushed,
the oppressed go free,
and God’s order is fully restored. 
A hunger for the kingdom of God.
A thirst for the day when everything wrong is made right.

“As a deer pants for flowing streams, so pants my soul for you, O God” (Psalm 42:1). 
“O God, you are my God; earnestly I seek you; my soul thirsts for you; my flesh faints for you, as in a dry and weary land where there is no water” (Psalm 63:1).

This is the mark of a true citizen of the kingdom:
not someone who has checked all the religious boxes,
but someone who cannot stop wanting what God wants.
Someone whose deepest hunger is for the world to become what God always meant it to be.

Is the Kingdom of God part of the Gospel we are to be preaching?

What is the gospel—the "good news"? 

Should it include proclaiming His future Kingdom?

We see that was an important part of the Apostle Paul's message.

Reference: Acts 28:31.

 preaching the kingdom of God
and teaching the things which concern the Lord Jesus Christ
with all confidence, no one forbidding him.

"Just believe on the name of Jesus, and you will be saved" is a common message from many preachers.
Others proclaim that the gospel is that Jesus came to die for our sins.
Still others preach a rather insipid and saccharine "Jesus loves you" message.
All of those catchy phrases have relevance to Jesus' message—
We certainly must believe in Jesus,
He did die for our sins,
and He surely loves us—

What is Jesus' own testimony about the subject of His preaching?
Notice these verses:

» Matthew 4:23: "And Jesus went about all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues,
preaching the gospel of the kingdom,
and healing all kinds of sickness and all kinds of disease among the people."

» Matthew 24:14: "And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world 
as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come."

» Luke 4:43: "[Jesus] said to them, 'I must preach the kingdom of God to the other cities also,
because for this purpose I have been sent.'"

» Luke 16:16: "The law and the prophets were until John.
Since that time, the Kingdom of God has been preached,
and everyone is pressing into it."

Jesus' announcement of the good news is that the Father will establish His Kingdom and His capital city on earth.
He Himself will be here,
no longer separated from His children—
no longer unseen
and ruling indirectly through agents from His present location in heaven
but ruling directly on earth.
It is to this awesome, mind-boggling future that we,
as a part of His Family,
are being summoned to prepare for and to participate directly in.

Jesus is certainly mankind's Savior,
having died for our sins,
but to be properly understood,
that event must be seen within the context of
preparation for and the establishment of the Kingdom of God on earth.
A kingdom has four basic elements:
a king, ( JESUS )
a territory it occupies, (The world with Jerusalem as the Center of it all),
subjects within that territory, ( Those who are chosen )
and laws through which the ruler's will is exercised.
Each of these elements is part of the gospel.

Luke 11:2

So He said to them, 
“When you pray, say:

Our Father in heaven,
Hallowed be Your name.
Your kingdom come.
Your will be done
On earth as it is in heaven."

Zechariah 14:4-9

And in that day His feet will stand on the Mount of Olives,

Which faces Jerusalem on the east.
And the Mount of Olives shall be split in two,
From east to west,
Making a very large valley;
Half of the mountain shall move toward the north
And half of it toward the south.

5 Then you shall flee through My mountain valley,
For the mountain valley shall reach to Azal.
Yes, you shall flee
As you fled from the earthquake
In the days of Uzziah king of Judah.

Thus the Lord my God will come,
And all the saints with [c]You.

6 It shall come to pass in that day
That there will be no light;
The [d]lights will diminish.
7 It shall be one day
Which is known to the Lord—
Neither day nor night.
But at evening time it shall happen
That it will be light.

8 And in that day it shall be
That living waters shall flow from Jerusalem,
Half of them toward [e]the eastern sea
And half of them toward [f]the western sea;
In both summer and winter it shall occur.
9 And the Lord shall be King over all the earth.
In that day it shall be—
“The Lord is one,”
And His name one.

YouTube channel = We belong to the Day

Does Jude 14 and Revelation 5 together show the church already in heaven before the judgments?

Reason 4 - Absence of the Church in Revelation Chapters 4 - 19

Viewer Comment

The argument in this video breaks down because it ignores the two passages that make the identity of the armies in Revelation 19 unmistakable. 1. Jude 14 explicitly says the Lord returns with His saints. If “saints = the church,” as the presenter insists, then Jude shows the church already in heaven before the return. You can’t claim “saints are the church” and then deny Jude’s statement that the Lord comes with tens of thousands of His saints.
* Jude verses 14 and 15 does state the Lord comes back with the Saints ( literally "holy ones" ),But this does not mean the Saints were already in heaven.We read: Now Enoch, the seventh from Adam, prophesied about these men also, saying,
 “Behold, the Lord comes with ten thousands of His saints, to execute judgment on all, to convict all who are ungodly among them of all their ungodly deeds which they have committed in an ungodly way, and of all the harsh things which ungodly sinners have spoken against Him.”
The return of the Lord and the gathering of the Saints occurs at the same time. Referencing 1st Thessalonians 4:13-18, the Lord resurrects believers who have died ( asleep ) and transforms living believers at the time of His Return.We all meet Him in the air on His way back down to earth(at the Mount of Olives). This same resurrection and transformation of believers is referenced in 1st Corinthians 15:50-52, and Philippians 3:20-21.
There is no reference to the Lord returning to the Earth TWICE. He does not return before the Great Tribulation. He only returns once at the end ( to execute judgement and to rule here on Earth ).

2. Revelation 5 shows the redeemed in heaven before any seals or judgments open.
Chapter 5 of Revelation is about Jesus, the Lamb of God, being worthy to open the 7 Seals.There is no mention of the saints being in heaven at that time.We see 3 groups singing and praising the Lord.1) The four living creatures and the 24 elders each having a harp, sing a new song ( Revelation 5:8-10 )2 ) A multitude of angels (Revelation 5:11-12)3 ) Every living creature in heaven and earth. ( Revelation 5:13 )
The only reference to the saints is their prayers in golden bowls full of incense.
Let's read this portion of the Chapter,

Now when He had taken the scroll,
the four living creatures,
and the twenty-four eldersfell down before the Lambeach having a harp,and golden bowls full of incense,which are the prayers of the saints.And they sang a new song, saying:
“You are worthy to take the scroll,And to open its seals;For You were slain,And have redeemed us to God by Your bloodOut of every tribe and tongue and people and nation,And have made us kings and priests to our God;And we shall reign on the earth.”
These things are already true of the saints.We are redeemed by the blood of Jesus.Ephesians 1:7, Colossians 1:14
We have been made kings and priests to our God.Revelation 1:6, I Peter 2:9

We shall reign on the earth with the Lord Jesus Christ upon His return.2 Timothy 2:12, Revelation 20:6
The 3 clear passages in scripture concerning the return of Jesus Christ are:Matthew 24:29-31I Corinthians 15:50-52I Thessalonians 4:13-18
All three passages reference the gathering of the believers occurring at the same time as Jesus physically returns at the Last Trumpet.
3. Revelation 19’s armies wear the same clothing given to the redeemed in Revelation 19:8. “Fine linen, bright and clean” is explicitly identified as the righteous acts of the saints. Angels are never described this way, never called redeemed, and never called kings or priests. So the presenter’s claim that Revelation 19 shows “only angels” is contradicted by Jude, contradicted by Revelation 5, and contradicted by Revelation 19:8 itself. If “saints = the church,” then Jude and Revelation 5 together show the church already in heaven before the judgments — which is exactly what the pre‑trib view has always argued.

The phrase "Fine linen, bright and clean"

This imagery is used 3 times in Revelation.

It can refer to redeemed believers or angels.

Angels are clearly referenced in Revelation 15:6

which says,

And out of the ]temple came the seven angels

having the seven plagues,

clothed in pure bright linen, 

and having their chests girded with golden bands.

The imagery of the linen is referring to the saints in

Revelation 19:7-8

And could refer to saints, Angels, 

or both in Revelation 19:14,

even though all references to the Army of God 

seem to point to the Angels in other scriptures. 

We must be careful not to "build" doctrine from imagery, parables, and allegories found in scripture.

Especially on topics where there are clear and direct passages on the subject.

None of the referenced passages,

Jude verse 14, Revelation chapter 5, or Revelation chapter 19

prove the believers are to be gathered before the Great Tribulation.

And while some have used these passages to try to prove the "Church" being gathered before the tribulation

and sitting in heaven for 7 years 

( or 3 1/2 years since that is how long the tribulation actually lasts ),

This interpretation is not supported by any clear passages.

And it is contrary to the clear passages about 

what we are to be expecting and waiting for.

For our citizenship is in heaven, 

from which we also eagerly wait for the Savior, 

the Lord Jesus Christ,

who will transform our lowly body 

that it may be conformed 

to His glorious body, 

according to the working 

by which He is able 

even to subdue all things to Himself.

Again, this all occurs at the Last Trumpet,

and not before the Great Tribulation.

Reference:

Matthew 24:29-31I Corinthians 15:50-52I Thessalonians 4:13-18

--

Saved by Grace,

Andrew Cross

"Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful. 

And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works, 

not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, 

but exhorting one another, 

and so much the more as you see the Day approaching.

Hebrews 10:23-25

YouTube channel = We belong to the Day