What is This World Coming To? Part 2

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Scripture references are from the King James Version Bible.
(This message is also included in the hardback book, The Best of J. Vernon McGee, Volume 1,
Copyright 1988 by J. Vernon McGee.)

What is This World Coming To?

Camera Focus: God the Father

The question arises, how does God feel about this? Do you suppose that God as He looks down at this little earth has moved over to the edge of His throne, is biting His fingernails, and saying, "Oh, my, look down there. They‟ve slipped away from Me completely"? Is there that kind of disturbance today in heaven? Of course not. May I say to you, there is perfect calm around the throne of God. God is not disturbed today. God is not biting His fingernails. He has not developed an ulcer. God is going on with His plan and program.
Notice now the fourth verse of the second psalm. The camera on earth goes off; the camera in heaven comes on: "He that sitteth in the heavens shall laugh: the Lord shall have them in derision." What kind of laughter is this? Let me say at the outset that it is not the laughter of humor. He is not being funny.

Do not misunderstand me there is humor in the Bible. The devil has really hit a home run by making people think that going to church is quite an ordeal. We are living in a day when folk think you can‟t have fun in church. I think the Bible is full of humor. Those of you who study with us through the Bible know we find a lot of it. There used to be a dear maiden lady at a church I served who never found any humor in the Bible. When I gave a message which cited some humorous incident, she used to come down, shake a bony finger under my nose, and say, Dr. McGee, you are being irreverent to find humor in the Bible. I said to her, Don‟t you wish you could? She‟s gone now to be with the Lord, and I certainly hope she‟s had a good laugh since she has been there, because she has gone to the place where she can have a good time. She needs to have a good time she never had one down here. There are too many Christians like that today. My friend, it is going to be thrilling to be with Him some day. We‟re going to have a wonderful time with Him. It‟s going to be fun, and I‟m looking forward to that. God has a sense of humor, and there is humor in His Word.

By the way, have you ever gone to a zoo with the thought of God‟s humor in mind? Look at the animals He has made. He had to have a sense of humor to make some of them as He‟s made them. God has a sense of humor. And if you still doubt me, stand on a busy street corner and watch the folk go by. My friend, God has a sense of humor! Then if you still have doubts, close the door to your room and look in the mirror, and you‟ll see what I mean. God has a sense of humor. He made the lot of us, my friend.

However, God‟s laughter in the second psalm is not that of humor. "He that sitteth in the heavens shall laugh." What is it? Well, look at it from God‟s viewpoint – little man down there parading up and down, shaking his midget fist in heaven‟s face and saying, "Come on out and fight me! I‟m against You." God looks down at the puny little creature. It‟s utterly preposterous. It is so ridiculous! He looks down and laughs. "He that sitteth in the heavens shall laugh: the Lord shall have them in derision."

My friend, it is insane to oppose the living and true God! A man must be mad who would do a thing like that. "Then shall he speak unto them in his wrath, and vex them in his sore displeasure" (v. 5). This is the judgment that is coming upon this earth.

God is going forward to the accomplishment of His purpose. What little man does down here won‟t deter Him, detour Him, or defer Him at all. God did not read something in the morning paper that He didn‟t already know about. There is nothing that has surprised Him at all. He is moving according to His purpose. He has, I believe, a twofold purpose in this world. I think He has a heavenly purpose; I think He has an earthly purpose. Right now He is working on His heavenly purpose. The writer to the Hebrews (in 2:10) expresses this: He is "bringing many sons unto glory." God today is calling out of this world a people to His name. That is His present purpose.

However, God has another purpose, and it is stated here: "Yet have I set my king upon my holy hill of Zion" (v. 6). God is moving forward today undeviatingly, unhesitatingly, uncompromisingly to the establishment of that throne on which Jesus Christ will sit on this earth. When I hear folk say, "If the Lord delay His coming." Where in the world did that get in? He is not delaying anything. He is going to come on schedule, His schedule, not mine, because I don‟t know when He is coming. He is running on schedule and nothing will stop Him; nothing can cause Him to change His plan.

Camera Focus: God the Son

Now the camera in heaven shifts to God the Son on His right hand. "I will declare the decree…" Those of you who have studied theology know that the Lord Jesus executes all the decrees of God. "I will declare the decree: the LORD hath said unto me, Thou art my Son; this day have I begotten thee" (v. 7).

This is a verse that the Jehovah Witnesses use a great deal. I wish they would listen long enough to find out what it means. It would help them to find it has no reference to the birth of the Lord Jesus Christ, which they would see if only they would turn to the New Testament and let the Spirit of God interpret. This verse was quoted by the apostle Paul when he preached in Antioch of Pisidia. This is, I believe, one of his greatest sermons, and he is talking about the resurrection of Jesus Christ:

God hath fulfilled the same unto us their children, in that he hath raised up Jesus again; as it is also written in the second psalm, Thou art my Son, this day have I begotten thee. (Acts 13:33)

The reference in the second psalm is not to the birth of Jesus. He never was begotten in the sense of having a beginning. He is the eternal Son of God, and God the Father is the eternal Father. They had no beginning; they were this throughout eternity. This is their position in the Trinity. It hasn‟t anything to do with someone being born, but it does have something to do with someone being begotten from the dead. It has to do with resurrection. I‟m afraid the Jehovah Witnesses have not heard this, but they could find with a little honest searching that the New Testament makes it very clear Jesus Christ is not a creature. He is the theanthropic person. He is the God-man. Psalm 2:7 sustains this doctrine.

God the Father continues: "Ask of me, and I shall give thee the heathen for thine inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth for thy possession" (v. 8). The scepter of this universe will be held by a Man with nail-pierced hands. He is the One who is yet to rule.

This verse is often used in missionary conferences. I suppose I have heard a dozen sermons on missions using this verse of Scripture – and probably you have too. But it ought never to go to a missionary conference. It hasn‟t anything to do with missions. I remember listening to a graduate of Union Theological Seminary in New York City bring a missionary message using this verse. I was then a student in seminary.

As a student I did something that was very impolite, very rude. I think I‟ve got more sense than to do it today. I went up to him after he had preached the message, and I asked, Doctor, why didn‟t you use the next verse? He acted as if he didn‟t hear me, although I am sure he did, and began talking with somebody there. I said to him the second time, Doctor, why didn‟t you use the next verse? This time he turned his back on me, and just ignored me. Well, I should have left, but I didn‟t. I walked around in front, and I said to him, Doctor, why didn‟t you use the next verse? He looked me right straight in the eye and said, Because it would have ruined a missionary sermon. And it sure would have!

Notice the next verse, the verse that follows it: "Thou shalt break them with a rod of iron; thou shalt dash them in pieces like a potter‟s vessel" (v. 9). Do you think this is the gospel of the grace of God we are to preach today? It is not. This passage hasn‟t any reference to Christ‟s first coming. This speaks of His second coming, when He comes to this earth to judge.

This is the way He will come the second time – to judge the earth. He has not asked me to apologize for Him, so I won‟t apologize. He says that He intends to come to this little planet and put down the rebellion that has broken out – and He will break them with the rod of iron. Maybe you don‟t like that. Well, you take it up with Him. He said it, and He is going to do it just that way.

Now I have a question to ask you, if you think He ought to do it the way some of our political leaders are suggesting. Suppose Jesus came back to this earth tomorrow like He came over 1900 years ago, the man of Galilee, the carpenter of Nazareth, the gentle Jesus. Suppose He were here. Suppose He went to the Kremlin and knocked at the door. Whoever keeps the store over there would come and say, "Yes?" He would say, "I‟m Jesus. I‟m here to take over." Do you think they would say, "My, we have been waiting for You"? No, they‟d put Him before a firing squad in the morning. My friend, how do you think He could take over if He came to Russia today? He would have to break them with a rod of iron, would He not? Apparently that is what He is going to do.

Now suppose He goes to France. DeGaulle is not there anymore, but some ambitious men are there. They don‟t want Him. Suppose He went down to Rome. I was there just a few weeks ago. I went over the Tiber and listened to a man speak. Although I could not understand what he was saying, I was told that he was telling the world how it ought to act. He would like to take over. Suppose our Lord would go and knock on the door of the Vatican. The man with the long garment would come to the door, and the Lord Jesus would say, I‟m here to take over. What do you think he would say? I think he would say, Now look, You‟ve come a little too soon. I‟m having trouble with some of my priests; they want to get married, but I‟m going to work that out. I don‟t need You. I don‟t think he would want Him.

Suppose He came to this country. Suppose He went to the Democratic headquarters or the Republican headquarters and said, I‟m here to take over. They would say, We‟re getting ready for a presidential campaign; we‟ve already got our candidates; we don‟t need You. Now maybe you think their reaction would be different. Maybe you are saying, Oh, they would take Him. Then why don‟t they take Him? They do not because they won‟t have Him! Suppose He went to the World Council of Churches today, and He said to Protestantism, I‟m here. Would they receive Him? Then why don‟t they receive Him today?

My friend, when He comes the second time, He will come exactly as God said, "Thou shalt break them with a rod of iron; thou shalt dash them in pieces like a potter‟s vessel." He intends to put down the rebellion when He comes to this earth the next time. Oh, my friend, this namby-pamby way of thinking that our God is not going to judge! You and I are living in a world that is moving to judgment day, and God is going to judge.

Camera Focus: God the Holy Spirit

The camera in heaven goes off. The camera on earth comes on. Now God the Holy Spirit speaks: "Be wise now therefore, O ye kings: be instructed, ye judges of the earth. Serve the LORD with fear, and rejoice with trembling" (vv. 10, 11).

One of the most startling things I have encountered in studying the Bible the past few years is a little thing like this: God in the history of this world has always gotten a message to the rulers of this world. Always. No exception. Down yonder in the land of Egypt, ancient Egypt, there was a Pharaoh on the throne; there was a boy in prison. God kept him in prison so that at the right moment He could bring him out to make him the prime minister of Pharaoh at one of the most crucial periods in the history of the world. That is the way God does it.

Down yonder when the first great world power came into existence, Babylon, God put at the side of Nebuchadnezzar the man Daniel. He not only became his prime minister, but he also brought him to a saving knowledge of the living God. And God kept him there until Cyrus, the Persian, came to the throne. And Cyrus even made his decree in the name of the living God. Napoleon said that he was a man of destiny, that he was told God had raised him up. It is interesting how God has gotten His Word to the rulers of this earth.

In passing let me just mention a more contemporary example of this. I had heard that before the late John F. Kennedy went to Texas he‟d had an interview with Billy Graham for about three hours. I had not been with Billy nor seen any member of the team for two or three years until I was in Florida at a banquet where I was seated next to Grady Wilson. I said, "Grady, I‟ve been waiting to ask some of you who know about this. Is it true that Billy had an interview with Jack Kennedy for three hours?" He said, "It is true that he had an interview, but the time is wrong. He was with him for eight hours." Some of the questions they discussed were these:

What is the difference between my church and your church? What is this that you preach about Jesus coming back again?

God has a way of getting the message in to the rulers of the world, those who are in high places. God the Holy Spirit says to the rulers: "Serve the LORD with fear, and rejoice with trembling." Also He says: "Kiss the Son, lest he be angry, and ye perish from the way, when his wrath is kindled but a little. Blessed are all they that put their trust in him" (v. 12).

Dr. George Gill used to tell us in class, "„Kiss the Son‟ is the Old Testament way of saying, „Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved‟ (Acts 16:31)."

Do you remember who kissed Him? Have you ever noted what our Lord said to Judas after he kissed Him? The theologians today argue about predestination, election, predetermination, and foreknowledge, and that this man Judas could not help what he did since it had been prophesied he would do it. Now I‟m going to let the theologians handle that. I‟m just a poor preacher who doesn‟t know very much, so I stay away from those problems and let the theologians solve them. However, after I listen to them a while, I have a sneaking feeling they haven‟t solved them.

Notice what the Bible says, and it is well to listen to the Bible rather than to the theologians. Remember at Jesus‟ betrayal when Judas led the mob out to apprehend Jesus in the garden, he said, "I‟ll identify Him for you by kissing Him." So he came to Jesus and kissed Him. Have you noted what Jesus said to him? "And Jesus said unto him, Friend, wherefore art thou come?" (Matthew 26:50).

Why did He say that? Didn‟t He know why Judas had kissed Him? Of course He did. Then why did He call him friend? What does He mean? Let me suggest this: "Judas, you have just kissed Me, which has fulfilled prophecy and has satisfied all the theologians who are going to come along. Now you are free to turn and accept Me, free to turn that kiss of betrayal into a kiss of acceptance. You can do that, Judas. You are a free moral agent." And the Spirit of God says, "Kiss the Son. Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved."

My friend, the Spirit of God today is in the world saying to mankind, "Kiss the Son before it is too late. Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ before it is too late. He is coming some day, and He is going to establish His kingdom here upon this earth. He is going to rule, and He is going to put down all rebellion. He will bring peace and harmony to this little earth."

An Illustration From Life

When I first went to Nashville, Tennessee, as a pastor, some friends, thinking they were doing me a favor, called me and said, "We have tickets for the Philadelphia Symphony Orchestra (I think it was) that‟s coming to town, and we want to take you as our guest." Well, I love music, but I know nothing about it, and I can‟t sing it – I always help congregational singing by keeping quiet. Frankly, I can‟t think of anything more boring than a whole evening of symphony! But I had to go because they were polite and I wanted to be polite, so I accepted graciously and went along.

I had never been to a thing like that before, and I was impressed by what I saw. We went in, took our seats, and in a few moments there began to drift out from the sides the musicians. They were in shirt sleeves for the most part, and each man went up to his instrument and started tuning it. The fellows with the fiddles too big to put under their chins sawed back and forth – oh, it sounded terrible. The fellows with the little ones they put under their chins squeaked up and down with those. The ones with the horns – oh my, nothing was in harmony. It was a medley of discordant, confused noise. Then after they got through with that kind of a disturbance, they all disappeared again, went out through the wings.

Another five minutes went by when all of a sudden the lights in the auditorium went off, the lights on the platform came on, and the musicians walked out. This time they had on their coats. My, they looked so nice. Each one came out and stood or sat at his instrument. Then there was a hush in the auditorium, a spotlight was focused on the wings, and the conductor stepped out.

When he did, there was thunderous applause for him. He bowed. Then he came up to the podium and picked up a thin little stick. He turned around again to the audience and bowed, then turned his back to the audience, lifted that little stick – total silence came over that auditorium, you could have heard a pin drop – then he brought that little stick down. And, my friend, there were goose pimples all over me. I never heard such music in all my life. Oh, what harmony, what wonderful harmony there was!

Today I live in a world where every man is tooting his own little horn. Every little group wants to be heard. Everybody wants to tell you what he thinks. Everybody is playing his own little fiddle; and I want to tell you, it‟s a medley of discord. Everything is out of tune. But one of these days the spotlight is going on, and the Lord Jesus Christ will come. When He comes to this universe, He is going to lift His scepter, and everything that is out of tune with Him is going to be removed. Then when He comes down with that scepter – oh, the harmony that will be in this universe! I‟m thankful today that I do live in a universe where I can bow to Him; I can bring this little instrument of my body, my life, into tune with Him. I can bow to Him; I can acknowledge Him; I can make Him my Savior and Lord.

I said to a young fellow one summer at Mount Hermon, a hippie type, but a very sweet boy, Why in the world do you dress like that?
I want you to know I‟m in rebellion, and I‟m living my own life and doing as I please, he said.
I want to ask you something. If you took off that garb and dressed like a straight fellow would dress, would your crowd accept you?
No.
Then you‟re not free, are you? You can‟t dress like you want to. You have to dress like they want you to. Look at me. I can dress like you or dress as I do. I‟m free! You say you are free. I‟m free. I have bowed to Jesus Christ. That is freedom.

I live in a world where He is rejected. I live in a world where the majority is not going with Him. I‟m going with Him, and I‟m going to bow to Him. He is my Savior and He is my Lord.
How about you?