Copyright © 2014 Enoch Adejare Adeboye This eBook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. It may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please go to ChristianLivingBooks.com and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author. Published by Christian Living Books, Inc. Largo, Maryland United States of America ISBN Electronic Version 978-1-56229-957-6 Printed Version ISBN 9780971176003 Unless otherwise markets, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version ®. NIV®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved.
PREFACE We are already in the End Times that will ultimately climax in the end of the world. There is no more likely time to expect the return of Jesus Christ than now. Jesus, the bridegroom, is coming to take His bride away. This bride will be without spots, wrinkles or blemishes. There will be a marriage feast for the Bride and crowns will be distributed. To qualify as Jesus’ bride, you must be a born-again Christian and live a holy life. Anything short of that will quicken your flight to hell. We believe that after reading this book, you will be able to make up your mind where you want to go—Heaven or hell. You have a choice between eternal joy and eternal pain. Of course, we prefer that you choose Heaven. It will be our joy to meet you there. — Pastor E. A. Adeboye
CHAPTER ONE “BEHOLD, HE COMETH…” Let’s start by defining our terms of reference. “Behold” means “watch out,” “pay attention” and “be alert.” It is a warning, one that is often shouted. "Behold, He cometh...” Who is He? Of course, the answer is Jesus—the Lion of Judah, the King of kings, Lord of lords, the Great Judge, the I Am That I Am. He is Emmanuel, the Prince of Peace. If we were to ask Jesus, "Who is He that cometh?” he would give us a strange answer. At midnight the cry rang out: “Here’s the bridegroom! Come out to meet him!” (Matthew 25:6)
Now there are all kinds of bridegrooms. They can be found anywhere. But the one who is coming is the Bridegroom or, better still, my Bridegroom! Let’s check two passages of Scripture. No, we speak of God’s wisdom, a wisdom that has been hidden and that God destined for our glory before time began. None of the rulers of this age understood it, for if they had they would not have crucified the Lord of glory. However, as it is written: No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love him. But God has revealed it to us by his Spirit. The Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God. (1 Corinthians 2:7-10) Look he is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see him, even those who pierced him; and all the peoples of the earth will mourn because of him. So shall it be! Amen. (Revelation 1:7)
There is a difference between coming with the clouds and coming in the clouds. Let us link these passages with I Thessalonians: According to the Lord’s own word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left till the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep. For the Lord himself will come down from heaven with a loud command with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God and the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will be with the Lord forever. (I Thessalonians 4:15-17)
We are made in the image of God, who said, “Let us make man in our image.” So we, like God, have a triune or three-part nature. God gave man body, soul and spirit. The body is what we can see on the outside. Inside is the spirit, which is enveloped by the soul. When a man dies, the body, made of dust, will go back to the dust and the spirit enveloped by the soul will go to one of two places. If you are a born-again Christian, the moment you die and your body goes to the dust, your soul and spirit will go to a place called Paradise. If you are not born-again, you will go to a place that the Bible describes in the story of the rich man and Lazarus: a place of fire and unquenchable thirst. It’s also referred to as a place of weeping and wailing and gnashing of teeth. Paradise is not Heaven, just as Lagos is not Nigeria and Washington D.C. is not America. However, Paradise is in Heaven. You will remain in Paradise until the Lord returns to the Earth. When the Lord is ready to return, something will happen. This is unveiled in Revelations: And I saw heaven standing open and there before me was a white horse: whose rider is called Faithful and True. With justice he judges and makes war. His eyes are like blazing fire, and on his head are many crowns. He has a name written on him that no one knows but he himself. He is dressed in a robe dipped in blood and his name is The Word of God. The armies of heaven were following him, riding on white horses and dressed in fine linen, white and clean. (Revelation 19:11-14)
If you pass on from this world before the Lord returns, you will be part of that army. You will be dressed in white, on your own white horse. Christ, the Captain, will be in front with the entire army of Heaven in tow. The perspective from the earth will be of the Captain leading millions of people dressed in white, riding white horses, in a scene that would look like moving clouds. This is what the Bible describes as “He is coming with the clouds.” Once in the air, the Lord will wait and His armies will be dispatched to the earth, to pick up the bodies of saints who had slept in the Lord from their graves. Meanwhile, those of us who are alive and well will not even know what is happening. When the dead pick up their bodies, they will become complete again—body, soul and spirit. Then they will join Jesus Christ in the air. For those of us who remain, our bodies will also change and we will go and meet Jesus Christ.
CHAPTER TWO FOR THINE MAKER IS THY HUSBAND Before human history began, somewhere in the distant past, the Trinity-in-Council held a meeting. God the Father was the Chairman. The Legal Adviser that day was God the Son. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. (Isaiah 9:6)
The advice He gave is recorded in Genesis: Let us make man in our image. (Genesis 1:26)
Those were the very first lines in the history book of the human race. Man was made in the image of God Almighty. You may want to ask some questions like, “Why were we created at all? Why are we here on earth? What exactly are we doing here? Why did God bother to create us?” The simple answer is, God wants to be married. (Isaiah 54:5) God the Father decided to choose a wife for Himself among men and He chose the nation Israel. He even paid a bride price. But now, this is what the Lord says—he who formed you, O Jacob, he who formed you; O Israel; Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze. For I am the Lord, your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior. I give Egypt for your ransom, Cush and Seba in your stead. Since you are precious and honored in my sight and because I love you, I will give men in exchange for your life. (Isaiah 43:1-4)
God paid a price. Why is it that God drowned the army of Egypt in the Red Sea? He was paying a bride price for Israel. Why did He kill all the first-born in Egypt? Part of the bride price. The destruction of Syria and Seba? Also part of the bride price. And each time Israel offended God, the Bible said that Israel was a whore. At that meeting of the Trinity-in-Council, it was also decided that God the Son would select His own wife from all the nations of the world. Not just Israel, but from all the nations. When we get to Heaven, we are going to meet with those people who make up the bride of Christ. The Bible tells us in Revelations: After this I looked and there before me was a great multitude, that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and in front of the Lamb. They were wearing white robes and were holding palm branches in their hands. And they cried out in a loud voice; “Salvation belongs to our God, who sits on the throne and to the Lamb.”( Revelation 7:9-10)
It was agreed that Jesus Christ would marry. He would pick people from each tribe, every tongue, and every nation. It was also agreed that anyone who would be the bride of Christ must be approved by God the Father. Jesus Christ confirms this: No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him and I will raise him up on the last day. (John 6:44)
The Trinity-in-Council agreed that if God the Father were to pay a bride price, then God the Son must also pay a bride price—with His own blood. This was why He came.
You know it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your forefathers. But with the precious blood of Christ, a Lamb without blemish or defect. He was chosen before the creation of the world but was revealed in these last times for your sake. (I Peter 1:18-20) Do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own. You were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your body. (I Corinthians 6:19-20)
So when Jesus came here the first time He came to be introduced to His bride and to pay the bride price. The Bible tells us: How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and power and how he went around doing good and healing all who were under the power of the devil because God was with him. (Acts 10:38)
This was His way of introducing Himself. When He comes the second time, He will be coming for the full marriage ceremony and consummation. We human beings have our own calendar. We talk of months, weeks and days. God has His own calendar, too, which is a bit different from ours. The Bible tells us that a day in God's calendar is the equivalent of one thousand years in our calendar. So when Jesus Christ came the first time, there began, in the calendar of God, what we now call the End Times or the Last Days. The End Times consist of three days in God’s calendar. One is called the Present Day, which started from the day Jesus Christ ascended into Heaven and when the Holy Spirit fell on the Apostles. This day has not yet ended. Next will come the Day of Jesus Christ, and this will be approximately one thousand years. This is the millennium. Then will come the third day, which is the Day of God—the “Forever” day. Another name for it is Eternity. It is that day when there will be no night. All three days are crucial. Let’s take a closer look at the Present Day. After Jesus Christ had introduced Himself to His bride and paid the bride price, He went home. He sent the Holy Spirit to act as a go-between and to glorify Jesus as He got busy in Heaven preparing the perfect mansions for His bride. The Holy Spirit keeps Jesus Christ keenly on our minds so that we never forget Him—something typical of an earthly go-between in a matchmaking for marriage. If you are wise, as soon as you have given your life to Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, as soon as you are married to Jesus Christ, if you want to ask anything from Him, you had better ask the gobetween, the Holy Spirit. The Bible tells us that we do not know how to pray as we ought to, but the Holy Spirit helps us. Let’s apply this analogy. Any time you want something from your husband Jesus Christ, send the go-between. The Holy Spirit will go to Jesus Christ and say something like this: "Do you know that every girl is thinking of buying something beautiful for Christmas? The only one who has no money to shop is your wife, and I have already told her that you are the greatest, the richest, that the earth is yours and everything in it." (Psalm 24:1)
Jesus Christ is going to say, “Tell me what the others are buying." The Holy Spirit will reply, "They have been buying gowns, hats and bags to match." Jesus Christ will ask, "How many do you think I should buy for my wife?" The Holy Spirit will reply, "Well, because of what I have said about you, maybe half a dozen will be all right." And the dialogue goes on and on. The Holy Spirit, right now, is branding the brides of Jesus Christ. He comes to you and whispers to you to give your life to the Lord. He tells you Jesus Christ is wonderful and kind, and that He
can do all things. The moment you say “Yes,” He puts a mark on you. That’s the seal the Bible talks about in Ephesians 1:13. This is a mark that every opposing power is able to see very clearly. You may not see it but demons can. This is why the Bible says we are more than conquerors. Meanwhile, Jesus Christ is in Heaven preparing for His wedding. He is preparing the wedding chamber. Do not let your hearts be troubled, Trust in God, trust also in me. In my Father’s house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. (John 14:1-3)
If there are many rooms or mansions in Heaven, why does He have to go and prepare a place? There will be no admission without reservations because there will be too many people. So He has to go and reserve a place for you. If He has not, it is probably because you have not given your life to Him. He says that when He has finished the preparation, He will come back again for us. Why must the bridegroom Himself come back for us? Why can’t He send Gabriel or Michael or any of the other angels? Why must He come Himself? The Bible tells us that God dwells in a glory that no man can approach. There are categories of angels. There are angels and there are angels. There are angels that stand in the presence of God. However, they are not very close to the presence of God. They dare not get very close. The glory of God will wipe them out in a jiffy if they get too close. There was a man of God that has now gone to be with the Lord. He said that God gave him a glimpse of what the throne-room setting is like. The nearest any angel can get to God is about one thousand miles. Even at that distance, he has to cover his face with his two wings or else his eyes will be blinded by the blazing radiance of God. If Jesus Christ were to send an angel to bring you, he would take you as far as one thousand miles from God and leave you. This is why Jesus Christ has to come Himself. Another reason is that certain doors into Heaven—the everlasting doors—do not open to anybody except Jesus Christ. David refers to this in Psalms: Yet I am always with you; you hold me by my right hand. You guide me with your counsel and afterward you will take into glory. (Psalm 73:23-24)
If you die here on earth and Jesus is not standing by your side to hold your hand and lead you home, I assure you—you are going to hell. But if you are one of His before you leave here, He will come and stand by your side, and you will just sail through the valley of the shadow of death. When you get to the everlasting doors, the King of glory will go in, holding you by the right hand and, of course, no angel can stop you. Where He is, you will always be. The moment you understand that Jesus Christ is your Husband, and the moment it becomes clear to you that you are His wife, the question of sanctification becomes easy. A sanctified person is just a favorite wife. If I am the favorite wife of the King, or the wife of the President, I cannot imagine indulging in adultery. It’s unthinkable. How can I be the wife of the President and engage in any unbecoming acts in public, or even in private? The moment you know who you are, how you behave will fall into place accordingly. Only God the Father knows the number of the brides of Jesus Christ. When this number is complete, there will be a trumpet call. But this is not an ordinary instrument; it is the trumpet of God. If you want to know how big the trumpet of God is, then you need to imagine how big the
hands of God must be. If you want to know how big the hands of God are, you can start by checking out how big His legs are. The Bible tells us that when God wants to put his feet up, He uses the whole earth as His footstool. This will give you a rough idea of how big His hands must be. If He touches a mountain with His fingers, the mountain melts. So the trumpet of God is awesome; it is not a trivial thing. It is the trumpet an ordinary angel cannot blow, and angels are strong. The cherubims are supposed to be super strong. In fact, the Bible says one of the cherubims can carry God as a horse will carry a man. One of His archangels will blow the trumpet because it must be heard all over the universe when it sounds. I wish it would sound today, so that we can be gone. But because some people are not yet ready to go, maybe we should wait a little while longer.