our offences." Surely our offences include all, from first to last and therefore for all our sins, was He raised again for our justification." Do we enter into these things? Do we really believe God? Then we can truly say, "Therefore, being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ." Would you not now like to look at the offerings a little more closely in detail ?

THE SECOND COMING OF THE LORD.

II.

WILL THE SAINTS BE LEFT TO PASS THROUGH THE TRIBULATION, OR WILL

THEY BE TAKEN AWAY FIRST?

IT is evident the Lord did not refer to death, when He gave those assuring promises of His coming again to receive us to Himself in John xiv. 1, 2, for He marked a clear distinction between death and His coming again. He says, "If I will that he tarry till I come, what is that to thee? follow thou me. Then went this saying abroad among the brethren, that that disciple should not die," &c. (John xxi. 19–23.) And further, the disciples saw Jesus ascend up into heaven: "And a cloud received him out of their sight." This was not death, neither His spirit, but Jesus risen from the dead. And

this same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven." The coming of the Lord then cannot possibly mean death.

their tribulation. But is not that

Now mark, there is not a word here about our being in the great tribulation, either in the precious promise of Jesus to come and receive us to Himself, or in the testimony of these two men. And in neither case can it mean death. That He will come to the Jewish nation is also certain, and that immediately after (Matt. xxiv.), as we have seen. altogether different from His coming to receiveus to Himself in the heavenly mansions? When speaking about us to the Father He says, " Father, I will that they also, whom thou hast given me, be with me where I am, that they may behold my glory." (John xvii. 24.) Yes, we are the objects of His delight, and He must have us with Himself. And if we carefully examine every scripture addressed to us, in reference to. the coming of the Lord for us, it is never connected with the tribulation.

"Waiting for the Christ: who shall

coming of our Lord Jesus also confirm you unto the end, that ye may be blameless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ.” (1 Cor. i. 7.) So in chapter xv. The subject of the believer's resurrection, and the mystery, "We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, in

a moment," &c. But not a word in the chapter about our passing through the tribulation.

Still all is

So in Philippians. "For our conversation is in heaven, from whence also we look for the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ; who shall change our vile body, that it may be fashioned like unto his glorious body," &c. (Phil. iii. 20.) bright hope, no terror of tribulation. If we had to pass through it we could not be looking for Jesus as Saviour, but we must be looking first for the terrible day of wrath. But for us it is the very opposite, for "when Christ, who is our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with him in glory." (Col. iii. 4.) Now is not this most remarkable, that when He shall appear, and all tribes of men wail because of Him, then we shall appear with Him in glory? We cannot then, if we know the scriptures, be waiting for the day of wrath to come, though come it will to this rejecting world. The early Christians were "turned to God from idols, to serve the living and true God; and to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, even Jesus, which delivered us from the wrath to come." (1 Thess. i. 9, 10.) How then can we be looking for that day of wrath, when we are waiting for Jesus, who has delivered us from the wrath to come? "For what is our hope, or joy, or crown of rejoicing? Are not even ye in the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ at his coming?"

(1 Thess. ii. 19.) Oh yes, it is not the day of wrath that is our hope, but that day of unclouded brightness and joy in the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ at His coming.

But we now come to scriptures that speak expressly on the subject. "To the end he may stablish your hearts unblameable in holiness before God, even our Father, at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ WITH ALL HIS SAINTS." (1 Thess. iii. 13.) Now he certainly will not find us in the tribulation, if we come with Him when He comes, neither can He possibly come to judge us, since we come with Him. When He appears we shall appear with Him, when He comes we shall all come with Him. He comes with all His saints. In chapter iv. the Holy Ghost carefully enforces this. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God BRING WITH HIM." You may say, how can this be? Will not Jesus come to judge us as we have always been told? Indeed He will not, for when He comes in judgment His saints come with Him. "Behold the Lord cometh with ten thousands of his saints to execute judgment upon all." (Jude 14, 15.)

Does not this agree with His promise, that He will come and take us to Himself? (John xiv. 1, 2.) If we, all saints, come WITH HIM when He comes-and this is as certain as that He died and rose again-then He must first have come to take

us away to Himself. This is just the revelation or explanation given to Paul. "For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord, shall not prevent them which are asleep. For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: then we which are alive and remain, shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air; and so shall we ever be with the Lord." (1 Thess. iv. 15-17.) Yes, from that moment we are with Him, and therefore when He comes, we come with Him.

Now mark, up to this point, our being taken to be with the Lord, there is not one word about the day of the Lord, or the time of tribulation. Notice carefully there is nothing in this scripture to hinder the Lord from coming in the air at any moment to take us to be with Himself. But now see what immediately comes after: "But of the times and the seasons, brethren, ye have no need that I write unto you. For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night. For when they shall say, Peace and safety, then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape. But ye, brethren, are not in darkness that that day should overtake