OUTLINES OF CHURCH TEACHING. The First Sunday in Advent. THE SECOND COMING OF OUR BLESSED LORD. Character and Purpose of the Second Coming. I. A glorious Coming. S. Mat. xxiv. 30. S. Mark xiii. 26. S. Luke xxi. 27. "He shall come again with Glory." "In His Glorious Majesty."2 In power and great Glory." 66 II. To judge the World.* Acts xvii. 31. 2 Tim. iv. I. S. Jude 15. Rev. xx. 12, 13. "He shall come to judge the quick and the dead." "We believe that Thou shalt come to be our Judge." III. Contrast with our Lord's First Coming. Nicene Creed. 2 Collect for the Day. 3 Collect, 6th Sunday fter the Epiphany. 4 See 6th Sunday after the Epiphany. Apostles' and Nicene Creeds. 6 Te Deum. B Certainty of the Second Coming. I. The Second Coming foretold. a. By CHRIST Himself. S. Mat. xxiv. 30; xxvi. 64. [See Parables, S. M Mark the words repeated in each Gospel a "Heaven and earth shall pass away, but My shall not pass away." S. Mat. xxiv. 35. S xiii. 31. S. Luke xxi. 33. b. By Angels. Acts i. II. c. By Apostles. d. By Prophets. I Thes. iv. 16. 2 Thes. i. 7. Heb S. Jude 14. Ps. 1. 3, 4. Dan. vii. 13. Zech. x II. Delay no sign of uncertainty. 2 S. Pet. iii. 3—8. a. GOD does not reckon time as man does. b. GOD waits in mercy to sinners. 2 S. Pet. iii. 9. Cf. 1 S. Pet. iii. 20. Gen. vi. Suddenness of the Second Coming. I. The day and hour unknown. S. Mat. xxiv. 36. a. It will be unexpected, unlooked for. b. All around will be going on as usual. S. Mat. xxiv. 37-40. S. Luke xvii. 26-31. 2 iii. 3, 4. c. It will come suddenly, as (1) “The lightning." S. Mat. xxiv. 27. 66 (2) A thief in the night." S. Mat. xxiv. 43. V. 2. (3) "A snare." S. Luke xxi. 35. II. Though coming suddenly there will be beforehand. S. Mat. xxiv. 3. Wars, rumours of wars. Famines, pestilences, earthquakes. False Prophets, false Christs. Iniquity abounding. Love waxing cold. Signs in the sun, and in the moon, and in the stars. S. Mat. xxiv. 5, 6, 7, 11, 12, 24, 29. See also S. Mark xiii. S. Luke xxi. Rev. vi. Cf. 1 Tim. iv. 1, 2. 2 Tim. iii. 1-6. III. These signs, unheeded by the world, will warn the faithful of their Lord's approach. 1 Thes. v. 4-7. S. Mat. xxiv. 32, 33. S. Luke xxi. 28–32. Watchfulness and Preparation. I. The duty of watchfulness. a. This duty urged upon us,- S. Mat. xxiv. 42; xxv. 13. S. Mark xiii. 33 to end. S. Luke xxi. 34-37. (2) By the Church. Each Advent Season. See proper Collects, Epistles, Gospels. S. Mat. iii. 2.1 Each Lent Season. See Commination Office. b. Not an idle, but an active duty. Watchfulness requires active preparation. Amos iv. 12. II. The work of preparation. a. Preparation is a two-fold work. Rom. xiii. 12. Isa. i. 16, 17. 1 S. Pet. iii. II. (1) "Cast off the works of darkness."2 Eph. iv. 22. Col. iii. 8. (2) "Put on the armour of light."2 b. It is the work of repentance.3 (1) "Whereby we forsake sin,"4 (2) "Steadfastly purposing to lead a new life." III. There must be no delay. a. We must begin to watch, to prepare, to repent now. Rom. xiii. II. 2 Cor. vi. 2. [S. Mat. viii. 21, 22.] "In the time of this mortal life."2 If our LORD's Return in glory is delayed, yet by Death He will come to each one of us, and we know not the day or the hour. S. Luke xii. 19, 20. S. John ix. 4. 1 Introductory Sentence; daily Office. See 2nd and 3rd Sundays in Lent. 2 Collect for the Day. 4 Catechism. b. Upon our use of this "Mortal Life" depends our State, the "Life Immortal." Dan. xii. 2, 3. S. Mat. xvi. 27; xxv. 31—46. "Give us grace that we may cast away the w darkness, and put upon us the armour of light, the time of this mortal life; that when He shal again we may rise to the life immortal." "They that have done good shall go into life everla and they that have done evil into everlasting fire IV. The spirit in which Christians should wat a. With fear and trembling. 2 S. Pet. iii. 11—14. b. With hope and holy expectation. Cf. i. S. Luke xxi. 28, 31. Rom. viii. 19-23. Phil. iii. Special Application. (1) Watchfulness against our besetting sin; against acts of sin. (2) To strive to make our lives better every day by acts of holiness. (3) To prepare for CHRIST'S Second Coming, by seeki live in His presence now. The Second Sunday in Advent. HOLY SCRIPTURE. Inspiration of Holy Scripture. I. Inspired of God.3 2 Tim. iii. 16. Cf. Isa. i. 2; Jer. i. 2, 4, 6, 7, 9. [See Bala 1 Collect for the Day. 2 Athanasian Creed. 3 Because Scrip is inspired, it is spoken of as holy; called also The Bible, i.e., The B II. A special work of God the Holy Ghost. I S. Pet. ii. 21. Cf. I Sam. x. 10; xix. 20. "I believe in the HOLY GHOST who spake by the Prophets.' III. All Holy Scripture inspired, not only some parts of it. 2 Tim. iii. 16. "Who hast caused all holy Scriptures to be written," &c.2 Our duty therefore to receive it in its integrity, with humility and faith. S. Mat. v. 18, 19. Rev. xxii. 19. Divine Purpose of Holy Scripture. I. "Written for our learning." 992 Rom. xv. 4. Ps. xix. 7, 11.3 a. Profitable for Doctrine. S. John v. 39. Reproof. Ps. cxix. 21. Heb. iv. 12. 104, 105. Ps. cxix. 98, 99, 100, b. That the man of GOD may be perfect. Ps. cxix. 101, 102. Cf. S. Mat. v. 48; 2 S. Pet. iii. 14. II. In them we have eternal life. S. John v. 39. a. The "learning" which Holy Scripture imparts is not of earthly, but of heavenly wisdom. I Cor. ii. 6, 7; iii. 18, 19. Heavenly wisdom is the knowledge of JESUS CHRIST, The Word of GOD. S. John i. I. The Wisdom of GOD. Prov. viii. 22, 23. Cf. v. 12. b. Contrast the wisdom of this world and the wisdom of GOD. Earthly wisdom ends with earthly things, heavenly wisdom, i.e., the knowledge of JESUS CHRIST is Salvation. 2 Tim. iii. 15. Eternal Life. S. John xvii. 3; v. 39. Cf. Prov. iii. 13, 16, 17, 18. c. The knowledge of JESUS CHRIST, the one all-sufficient knowledge. I Cor. ii. 2. Cf. i. 30. 1 Nicene Creed. 2 Collect for the Day. 3 References to the salms are from the Prayer Book version. |