Jesus & The Sword of the Spirit

The second I saw these clouds above the lake where I was walking, Revelation 19:15 came to my spirit; I immediately and distinctly saw the face of our LORD with a sword coming out of His mouth. I knew the time would come when I would write about it, though it wouldn't be a typical post. You see, since 2020, I've mainly posted about God's loving kindness, His grace, mercy and longsuffering. It's the consistent message the LORD put on my heart all those years ago, to give to others like me, to combat the lies of the enemy that God was mad at them, gave up on them, and didn't love them.

But ever since I saw this image, as well as other cloud images which symbolize scenes from the book of Revelation, I have been sensing an urgency to teach about Jesus's Second Coming. And though we don't know the exact time, based on the signs Jesus told us to watch for in Matthew 24, it doesn't seem too far away!

The Apostle John (the writer of the book of Revelation) depicts Jesus riding a white horse with a sword coming out of His mouth to show God's justice and judgment. Talking about God's judgement and wrath doesn't make us comfortable, but our discomfort cannot deny it's veracity. God is holy and righteous, and has promised us that He will not tolerate sin; He will in fact, punish it as a just judge must. Here's where the Gospel, or Good News comes in though. Instead of condemning us, He offers us a free gift of salvation through the finished work of Jesus, His Son, on the cross. All we need to do to be forgiven, made righteous and know that heaven is our forever home, is believe in and love Jesus the Messiah, who took a cross, bled, died and rose again to pay the price for our sins.

"For God so loved the world that he gave his

one and only Son, that whoever believes in

him shall not perish but have eternal life."

- John 3:16

"If you declare with your mouth, 'Jesus is Lord,'

and believe in your heart that God raised him

from the dead, you will be saved." -Romans 10:9

God our Father loves us and has been holding back on Jesus's Second Coming, for which I am incredibly grateful. I absolutely love this verse from 2 Peter 3:9

"The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise,

as some understand slowness. Instead he is

patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish,

but everyone to come to repentance."

Yes, God loves us and is patient with us, but as in the days of Noah, eventually, judgment will come and so I write this post as a warning, written in LOVE, to those who have not asked Jesus to save them. Sadly, and for a variety of misinformed or prideful reasons, some people will reject this free and unconditional gift of Jesus's sacrifice.

Maybe they don't think they need a Savior. "I'm not a bad person," they say. Well, the Bible tells us that lying, even a tiny, white one, is still breaking God's law (see the 9th Commandment). And Jesus took the 7th Commandment even farther:

"27 You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall not
commit adultery.’ 28 But I tell you that anyone who
looks at a woman lustfully has already committed.
adultery with her in his heart."

And then there is the reverse, "I'm a good person. I go to church, donate to the needy, volunteer at the local shelter, don't swear and have never been unfaithful to my spouse." Well, the Word of God talks about that too. In Isaiah 64:6 we read that even our good and positive thoughts and deeds can't stand up to God's standard of holiness:

"...and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags;

we all shrivel up like a leaf, and like the wind

our sins sweep us away."

Finally and maybe most importantly, these slightly terrifying verses from Jesus in Matthew 7:21-24 should give us pause:

"21 “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’

will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the

one who does the will of my Father who is in

heaven. 22 Many will say to me on that day,

‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name

and in your name drive out demons and in

your name perform many miracles?’ 23 Then

I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you.

Away from me, you evildoers!’

So what is the will of the Father? Jesus makes that really clear too, in John 6:40:

"40 For my Father’s will is that everyone who

looks to the Son and believes in him shall have
eternal life, and I will raise them up at the last day.”

Friend, God made a way for us to have our sins forgiven and erased through His only begotten Son. He told us about it throughout every book in the Bible and made it so even a child could understand. I pray that if you have not done so already, you accept The Way, Jesus, and be saved from judgment and Hell. Here's a small prayer of salvation you can say if you'd like to ask Him to save you. You can say it wherever you are, silently or aloud, to our Heavenly Father.

Dear God, I’m a sinner. I know that, and I also know that I am completely helpless to forgive my own sin and get myself into heaven. So right now, I confess that Jesus is THE Son of God, who willingly died on the cross to save me from sin and death and to restore me to You, God. Thank You, Jesus. I choose now to repent, or turn away from my sins, and ask You to please be not only my Savior but the LORD of my life. Holy Spirit, I welcome you into my heart and life; LIVE in me and help me to become more and more like Jesus. In Jesus’ name I pray. Amen.

I'm praying for you, Friend. Cindy