This is the Truth Network. Faith is a powerful force. We are saved by faith. We walk with God by faith. Our prayers are answered by faith.
And faith, my friend, may just get you taken out of this world. Stay with us, listen, and learn. You're listening to Until He Comes, a blend of prophetic and practical biblical studies with Dr. Greg Hinnant, author of The Second Coming of Christ, His Appearing, His Return, Our Preparation. And now, author and teacher Greg Hinnant.
Welcome to the program today. I'm so glad that you're with us today. We have a great program because we're continuing our study of this amazing Old Testament character, Enoch. and how He walked with God and showed us the way. But before we do that, I want to remind you of the Triad Revelation Conference, which is coming up September 14th through 28th in Cartersville, North Carolina, for five evenings.
We're going to go over the book of Revelation in significant depth. It's going to be an amazing time: ten lessons in five nights. There will be QA after each evening's sessions so that you can sort together and put together the pieces of this amazing prophetic puzzle we call the book of Revelation. You know, Revelation ties up the ends of all the prophecy of Old Testament and New. It is so powerful.
Because it's allowing us to see certain things which shall be in the future, and it inspires us and gives us great assurance and hope. to persist in seeking God and walking closely with Him now Fulfilling the call on our life using the gifts he's given us and fulfilling our great commissions to be witnesses, to evangelize, and to teach the nations.
So we encourage you to come. Go to greghennettministries.org. You'll see all the information there. On every page, we have a tab that will take you to the landing page for the Triad Revelation Conference.
Now, if you're not able to come to the location, which is the First Baptist Church in Carnesville, then you can attend by live stream. Of Bazum. And you will be blessed significantly during this course by the content of that. I'm sure.
Now back to our subject, Enoch. He was a man of faith. He believed God. He believed in the faithfulness of God. Friends, our faith is not in our faith.
Our faith is in the unfailing, unchanging faithfulness of God. God is reliable. God's Word is not only true, but you can count on it. to come to pass in your life. Enoch believed God would translate him by faith alone, not reason.
This is a significant point. Enoch could not understand. how God would take him from earth to heaven. He had no clue. And to day, you know, we stand on the cusp of the rapt the rapture of the Church, literally the rapture is at hand.
And we're told by Paul about this amazing experience in 1 Thessalonians 4, 15 through 18. We're going to read about it in just a moment. But none of us understand how in the world We will be caught up in the in the twinkling of an eye, and suddenly be in heaven, But I believe it. One Because I believe in God. and when God says something, I believe Him.
I believe him because I believe in his integrity, his character, his nature. which cannot change. He is utterly faithful. we could say God is Yeah. Faithful love.
Now Hebrews 11, 5 says this, By faith Enoch was translated that he should not see death.
Now, that's a good translation of that verse. What does translated mean?
Well, it means you're taken from earth to heaven. In a moment You are changed from a mortal to an immortal state without experiencing death. This is the key. Every one else who has ever left this world other than Enoch and Elijah has died. Even Moses died.
and got buried him on Mount Nebo. But this experience that we're talking about in the rapture and the experience of Enoch before the flood is quite different. Translation.
Now how does that differ from transporting?
Well, transporting means you're gripped by the power of the Spirit and taken from one location to another. We know that Um Philip was transported. From the Get desert. to Aesodus. And there he continued his ministry.
So being transported is not being translated. But you and I, friends, have the hope, if we are evangelical Christians and we believe the end time teachings of the New Testament, we have a hope that one day we will be caught up by the power of the Holy Spirit. not one or two or ten or a thousand, but millions of Christians will suddenly be caught up. translated, taken from earth to heaven, changed from a mortal to an immortal state, without experiencing death. My goodness.
That, my friends, is a great privilege.
Some think and teach that it is a Covenant benefit. I don't see that in the New Testament. The benefit is that we will have a new body. Everyone will receive a new body. But not everyone has to go by translation.
It is a great privilege. As I said, only two people have been translated to heaven. Enoch, and Elijah. You can read about Elijah in Second Kings chapter two.
Now The Complete Jewish Bible says by trusting Hanukkah that's the Hebrew name for Enoch, was taken away from this life. Taken away from this life. Frant, are you ready to be taken away? from this life Now we should be busy. as bees.
about God's business in this life. But one day Suddenly Or one night. The bridegroom will appear. And we, as part of the bride church, will be suddenly taken away from this life. Friend, live this life as unto Christ, do your work as unto Christ.
Desire to achieve, to do your work with excellence, whatever you do. But remember, This world will be burned up one day and all the works in it. and all of our works should be for the eternal kingdom of God.
Now, Enoch did not understand how he would be translated. He had no scientific explanation. But he believed God would translate him, because God who cannot lie. Said so. That's simple.
Sounds like a child, doesn't it? He said so.
Well, that's the way we should believe. Every statement of the Bible, whether it's a promise, a prophecy, a vision, a warning. A judgment. We should believe it because God has said it That alone makes it eternal truth. He believed this just as his great-grandson Noah later believed.
A great flood was coming, and And he had no proof of this other than the fact that God had said so. Think about that. This man Noah.
Now we're shifting for a moment to examine Noah, the great grandson of Enoch. He also walked with God. And when he was informed by God, that the generation of which he was a member, was so corrupt it was unredeemable. And that God was going to save him and his children in an ark and a sampling of the Animals At that moment, he had a great decision to make. Did he believe God?
There was no proof of what was going to happen, there was no evidence. And so he believed God that a great flood was coming because God said so. I want to share with you something for a moment. You know, we are in a parallel period right now. The end times do parallel.
the beginning of time in many different ways. That's because um Jesus said he's the alpha and the omega. Alpha is the first letter in the Greek alphabet, and omega is the last. And he's saying, I'm the God of the beginning and God of the end. But there is a symmetry about the Bible story.
There is a symmetrical pattern that's too plain to miss in God's working out of His redemptive plan.
So Noah faced a flood and he'd never seen one, but because God said there was going to be a flood, he got about the business. of building an ark in the fear of the Lord. Today The book of Revelation is telling us another flood is coming, not by waters. but by sealed judgments trumpet judgments. bold judgments.
God will, in effect, attack his creation to save his great and his highest creature, man. who is alone made in his image. And so there will be a great desolation of this earth during the seven years of the tribulation period. You can read about it. In Revelation 6, you can read about it in Revelation 9.
You can read it in 8 and 9, and you can read about it in Revelation 16. These events are devastating. I don't understand how God's going to turn the waters of the oceans. First, one-third to blood, and then later entirely to blood, coagulated blood. I don't know how he's going to do it, but he said he's going to do it, and I believe it.
Now some see this as so preposterous that they have to interpret it allegorically.
Now, there are things in the Bible and in the book of Revelation which are interpreted allegorically, but these things are not.
So a great flood of judgments This great flood is coming again. not of water, But of the sealed trumpet and bold judgments recorded in the book of Revelation, Are we, like Noah, believe in God? And are we in the fear of God, in the awe of God, getting about the business of preparing and building an ark? What does that mean? It means building a walk with God.
At helping others build a walk with God, your loved ones, your family, your friends, your fellow churchmen, and whoever else you run into. helping them learn how to get close to God and stay close. and go through their testing now. in this church age, so they have no need of the tribulation period, which is a final test. for the untested.
So, do you have any faith then that God will translate you in the rapture? though you do not know How he will do it. Again, Ena and or of great types or examples or models. of this faith that believes something that has never been experienced. Because God said it.
First Thessalonians four Verses fifteen to eighteen. Let's read that because this is giving us the direct. compacted revelation straight from the man God chose to give it to. the Apostle Paul. He's writing to the Thessalonians, and by the way, 1 Thessalonians tells us about the appearing of Christ, which launches or rather turns the key to the lock that opens the door to the tribulation period, and then 2 Thessalonians focuses on the return of Christ at the end of the seven years.
So these two books, 1 Thessalonians and 2 Thessalonians, bookend the doctrine of the second coming of Christ, which is in two parts. His appearing to catch away his bride. Seven years later, he returns to earth to execute judgment on Antichrist and his followers and to establish his own kingdom. This month, for a gift of any amount, receive Dr. Hinnant's book, Revelation Notes: An inspirational commentary on the book of Revelation.
This 758-page, in-depth commentary walks the reader through John's apocalypse verse by verse. It explains its historical context and language and identifies many inspiring principles for Christian living. Every Bible student, pastor, and church leader will benefit greatly from its informational entries, thought-provoking footnotes, and inspirational additional gleanings and messages. Give and get your copy today. For a gift of $60 or more, we'll send you the complete four-volume Hinnant End Times Prophecy Collection: The Second Coming of Christ, The Tribulation Story, Revelation Notes, a verse-by-verse commentary on Revelation, and the Day of the Lord commentary, which interprets all Old Testament prophecies.
Foreshadowings of the end times. And if you are a Logos Bible software user, you may purchase all four of these books from the Logos Online Bookstore. You may give your gift today by visiting the donation page at greghinnantministries.org or sending your checks to Greg Hinnant Ministries, P.O. Box 788, High Point, North Carolina, 27260. Or by calling 336-882-1645.
Now, again, Dr. Hinnant.
Now, Paul, writing of the rapture of the church, said this. 1 Thessalonians 4. Yeah. For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord. That is, Jesus addressed this, and we're just expounding his doctrine.
That we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord, unto the parusia. shall not prevent them which are asleep, that them that are asleep are Christians who have gone to heaven before us.
Now they are not asleep or in a state of limbo they are fully conscious they never lost consciousness but their bodies seem to sleep. For the Lord Himself This is not an angel. This is not one of the saints or great figure from the biblical record in the past, the Lord Himself. shall descend from heaven we know he's at the right hand of the Father, now ever living, to make intercession for us. With a shout, and with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God.
Now this is not the angelic trumpets. of the Book of Revelation. Those are quite different. Those are war trumpets because God is declaring war on the world that is worshiping Antichrist. And his image.
Those are war trumpets. Here, this is the trump of God to gather the saints. Trumpets were used in Israel for several purposes. First of all, they were used to Signal. the gathering of the people on days of festival, Sabbaths, new moons, and they were also used to muster the people for war.
and also they were used for the coronation of the Mm-hmm.
So here God will blow his own trumpet. And the dead in Christ shall rise. First.
So The rapture experience is partly A great resurrection of the righteous. This is the first part of the first resurrection. The first resurrection is of the righteous. and the two parts to it. This event we call the rapture.
And then Seven years later, after Christ returns, the righteous Jews will be raised. Ezekiel speaks of this, and they will be examined by Christ.
Now The next verse says, Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up. The Greek word is harpazo. which means to suddenly seize or snatch, Caught up together with them in the clouds. to meet the Lord in the air.
Now this is really Hard to misunderstand. People may reject it, disbelieve it, but it's very plain. Paul is saying that Jesus is going to shout He's going to blow a trumpet. He's going to descend from heaven. And his people are going to be caught up.
Now, we know the timing of this from 1 Corinthians 15, which says it will be in the twinkling of an eye. And so At that moment, we will be caught up, but just before that, in a literally a nanosecond before that, the dead in Christ, their bodies are raised. I believe this means that graveyards all over the world Tombs where there are tombs. of the righteous. will suddenly be split.
and their bodies will come out. You know, after Jesus Uh Died. And uh and then after he rose from the dead The bodies of the saints in Jerusalem came out of their tombs, went into the city, and appeared unto many. This was, I think, a preview. God was giving us a little glimpse.
of what will happen at the rapture.
So here Paul is telling us that we who are alive and remain will be called up. We're going to meet the Lord in the air.
So the dead in Christ are raised first. then we are caught up, both happening in a nanosecond. And then we will be in the presence of the Lord in a new body. And this is the. This is the result of translation.
We're not just caught up. Our bodies are changed from mortal. to immortal. And then he adds this, So shall we ever be with the Lord. You know, I don't know where you are today and what's going on in your life.
You may be having a wonderful, easy time or something. But most Christians who are walking closely with God have something going on all the time. There's a pot boiling on the back burner. What do I mean by that?
Something's going on. Satan's trying to trip them up or stumble them. He's trying to turn them aside. He's trying to get them vexed.
So they're not thankful. And they don't Exhibit the fruit of the Spirit. He's always after us. That's his duty. He should be doing that.
He's our age-old adversary. He hates us because we love Jesus. because we're putting out the word of God. Because we're living the Word of God. We're living the gospel.
That's the biggest thing you can do to disturb. Satan And the Word of God is light. And we are called to be light. Barish to a sin darkened world And so not just the person of the devil himself, Lucifer, but all his minions, fallen angels, hate us. Paul in Ephesians six, verse twelve, calls these dark powers He calls them the rulers of the darkness of this world.
You see, they are assigned certain geographical areas. to try to keep Christians from gaining more light, or inject the darkness of heresy and sin in their lives and their churches. And he's trying to keep the unsafed, From the truth of the gospel. that there is salvation in Christ alone. Through faith alone, by grace alone.
And Christ's work on the cross alone, in His blood alone, in His death and resurrection alone. It was His work. That saved us not our own.
So These powers of darkness are against us all the time. And you know, when I read this verse, so shall we ever be with the Lord. Yeah. Ah, it's comforting just to read it. It's like a breath of fresh air.
it's like a drink of cold water on a hot North Carolina summer afternoon. Refreshing. Reinvigorating. And then he adds, Wherefore, Comfortable one another With these, So, you know, today I'm comforting you with these words that came by inspiration from Paul. That our Lord one day we don't know the day.
Nobody knows today Jesus said that. One day he will appear suddenly and take us from this earth. We will be taken out of this world, just like Enoch, as we said here in the complete Jewish Bible. Hanukk. was taken away from this life.
So live your life, my friend, in whatever profession, or job, or trade. that you are engaged in? Give yourself to it for Christ's sake. Do your very best for Christ's sake. But don't let it dominate you.
Don't let it dominate your hopes. Don't hope in a world that's going to go up in flames war one day. Hope in the kingdom of God. Hobbent the city which is built by God. Hebbish.
Twelve says us tells us that Abraham searched for such a city. whose founder and builder was Got.
So Enoch was a man of faith. He believed God would take him, though he knew not how.
Next, we want to see that Enoch was a God-pleasing man. He focused on seeking God's approval. Only, oh my goodness, he had He had tunnel vision, if you will, in a sense. His mind was fixed. unpleasing the Lord.
Every day he not only focussed, but he refocused as many times as he needed to. on pleasing the Lord. We know virtually nothing about his interaction with his generation. We do know his generation was very ungodly. That's plain from Genesis six.
Because Genesis 5 and 6 are connected. What we do not know is what kind of interaction he had with the antediluvian, that is the pre-flood, generation. But I know that every day Satan, the same devil that opposes us, our adversary, would have been his adversary also, and would have been trying day and night. To break. this godly man's focus on the God he was walking with.
But he was unsuccessful because he kept focusing and refocusing. on God's approval only, I don't know if he knew the words we now know in Matthew 25, 21 and 23. where Jesus was speaking in the parable of the talents, which is a Preview of our judgment seat experience with him But we know those words that were spoken to the two servants who used their talents well. and gained for the king and kingdom To them he said, Well done, thou good and faithful servant That's what I want to hear. I don't care about anything else.
You know, some people are going to like you, my friend.
Some people are going to take you with indifference.
Some people will take you seriously, others will smirk and laugh and turn away because of your simplistic faith, as they see it. You know? You cling to your Bible. as our former President said about ten or twelve years ago, in jest, but he was caught. And it was known what he said.
Well, that's exactly what we are. I cling to my Bible. I cling to the Word of God. It points me in the way of life. It corrects me when I turn this on.
It inspires me when I'm down. It gives me hope. when I live in a hopeless world. And that is what we're talking about.
Now, the hope of if you and I walk closely with God, and some people may say, oh, that's hard. You're preaching salvation by works, you're preaching deliverance by works. Not at all. The closer you walk with God, the easier. This walk is.
Very easy a child. could walk in this way. It's the will that must be broken. and once the wheel is broken Piece of cake. Piece of cake to walk closely with God.
Because we have the Holy Spirit's help, we have the help of the ministry, we have the help of the New Testament and the Old, which teaches us the vital principles of God and His values. We have every advantage in the world. and no excuse whatever, For not walking closely with God.
Now, Enoch was known as a person who pleased God. The New Living Translation said. He was seeking only to please God, and this set him free from trying to please everyone else. You know, one of the most frustrating things in life is to try to keep everybody happy. If you do that, please tell me your formula and send it to P.O.
Box 788, High Point, North Carolina, 27261. I will be delighted to read it. but I'll have to categorize it as fiction. You cannot keep everybody. happy.
Are you trying to please God, my friend, right now, while you're listening to me? in your life. Yeah, that situation you've gotten, you know what it is. You know what that situation is. I believe the Lord's talking to you through this message.
Are you trying futilely to keep someone happy with you? And you can't do it. Especially if they're not of the same spirit, if they're not of the if they're not a born-again child of God. They'll always find something to complain or find fault with you about. If they are Stubborn sinners, Who are inclined not to believe you or to respect your faith.
So are you trying to please God or trying to please these people of this person? Paul told the Galatians in Galatians 1, verse 10: If I were still trying to please men, I would not be a servant of Christ. We have to make up our minds. Are we going to serve Christ? or serve men.
Today I urge you, I implore you, as part of the spiritual preparation for being taken home in the translation. Mr. Zenit was translated by God. Seek to please your Savior only. Have one goal.
Jesus, what do you want? Today. If this message has blessed you, tell your friends and please consider helping us stay on the air by sending your tax-deductible donation to Greg Hennett Ministries. Also, remember, you may download the Until He Comes podcast from your preferred podcast app. May you walk closely with Christ and trust and obey Him in your daily tests of faith and patience until He Comes.
This is the Truth Network. Mm-hmm.
