Peter Tan-Chi - The Best Day of Your Life
Greetings in the wonderful name of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. I want to begin by asking all of us, those of you who love history, a question: who said, "I shall return"? Who made this promise to the Filipino people? Can you guess? General Douglas MacArthur. He made that promise in 1942. He was reluctant to leave the Philippines, especially Corregidor. Why? There were around 80,000 soldiers, Americans and Filipinos, who were together with him in that island. And for him to leave them is not what a good general will do, but he had no choice. His superior ordered him "Vacate"! And reluctantly, he had no choice.
Why did general MacArthur promise "I shall return"? He promised "I shall return" to boost the morale of the people, to encourage them to keep fighting, because he does not want them to surrender. When he came back in 1944, October 20, he landed in Leyte and he said "I have returned". Then he also said the following: "I'm sorry. I was a bit late". Why did he say "I'm sorry"? Because by the time he arrived, one third of his men had died. I don't know if you are aware of the Bataan Death March. Filipinos and Americans, many died. Jesus made a similar promise. Jesus said, "I shall return". The only difference is this: Jesus will never be too late. His timing will be perfect.
When Jesus comes back, He will reign and God's people will reign with Him. When Jesus returns, there will be complete victory and God's people will triumph. Evil will be vanquished. Today is the conclusion of our series, End Game. Are you ready for the best day of your life? What do we mean, best day of your life? If I were to ask you a question, "What is the best day of your life"?, what will you say? For some people, they will say, "The best day of my life: when I met my wife", "When I met my husband". For some people, they will say, "The best day of my life is when I divorced my husband (or my wife)". what's my point? Sometimes, the very best day of your life on earth that you think is the best may not always be the best. Why? Because everything in this life, the quality of joy, the quality of happiness, is nothing compared to what God has prepared for us.
The main idea is this: Jesus is coming again. Are you ready for the best day of your life? What do we mean by "the best day of your life"? In 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18, six verses, I want to highlight the following: number one: the return. The best day of your life will happen when Jesus returns. The best day of your life will happen when the rapture happens. The best day of your life will happen when you experience God's reward. And this is all contained in 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18. 1 Thessalonians 4:13 and 14. Notice, Paul writes the following: He begins by saying, "You know what? I do not want you to be uninformed". In other words, the knowledge of truth is crucial.
What you think, what you believe, what you know will impact your emotions. The people were grieving, "so that you will not grieve as do the rest who have no hope". What do we mean by the word "grieve"? The word "grieve" comes from this word: "Lype" means deep grief. It's a mental, emotional distress caused by loss or regret. Many times the worst kind of grief is the death of a loved one. And the Thessalonians are experiencing the death of their loved ones. They were mourning. They were lamenting. Perhaps some of you are experiencing grief. There are many reasons why we grieve. I do not know your particular reason. For many, you are disappointed with life. Perhaps you are disappointed with what's happening, or you have lost loved ones. It is not wrong to grieve. It is not wrong to be sad. But how do you process grieving?
My friend, God loves you so much that He wants you to be informed. Notice what the Bible is saying: Don't be ignorant. He's now talking about believers who have died. The word "asleep" describes death. It only refers to believers in the New Testament. When believers die, he is saying, they are asleep. You see for people who don't have Jesus, what is the hope? After you die, it's the end! That is why the return of Jesus is so basic, is so central, because it has to do with the reality that death is not the end. Death is not final. The early church believed that Jesus can come anytime. Not only do they believe He can come anytime, they greet one another with the word, "maranatha". "Maranatha" means what? Literally it means, "Come, Lord".
You see, the return of Jesus, believing in His return, expecting His return, and welcoming His return will impact your value system, it will impact the way you think, it will help you process disappointments in life. In 1 Thessalonians 1:9 and 10, let me read for you what was their mindset. Do you notice? The early believers, it is their focus on the return of Jesus. And that is what motivated them to serve Him. You see if you are conscious that Jesus will come anytime, what will happen? You will want to serve Him. Not only will you want to serve Him, notice the motivation: to wait (grammatically, it is the present tense). They kept waiting as if Jesus can come anytime. Always waiting "for His Son from heaven". To wait for the coming of Jesus has a sanctifying effect in your life. It will help you live a life that is set apart to serve God. It has a strengthening effect in your life. It will strengthen you to want to serve Him.
Are you ready for the best day of your life, the return of Jesus? But can I tell you something? The truth is some of us do not want Jesus to return. I remember this pastor from the States, he told me, "Peter, can I be honest with you? I still don't want Jesus to return". I said, "Why"? He said, "I'm enjoying my life". And you know what hit me? I realize there are many of us who are probably like this pastor, enjoying our earthly life now. Do you know what is the antidote? This is the antidote: nothing wrong to learn to enjoy what God has blessed you with.
Just remember, if you are enjoying life now, heaven, what Jesus' promised, is something even better. In other words, I praise God I enjoy my family, I enjoy the material blessings, but I'm careful I don't fall in love with this word. I hold things loosely. You know why I hold things loosely? My family, possessions, everything? Because I know when Jesus comes, He has something better. And that's why you need to know the Bible truth and to realize what the Bible says: Psalm 16 talks about, Do you notice: the psalmist is making an amazing statement that his body will not be left just to rot forever, but there's going to be an encounter. "In Your presence is fullness of joy, in Your presence is fullness of pleasure forevermore".
So my friend, praise God you're enjoying life on earth. Enjoy your family. Enjoy your blessings. But don't fall in love because what God has in store is much better. Be ready for the best day of your life. Guard your heart. I don't know if you remember the story of Fanny Crosby. She became blind when she was only six weeks old. Careless mistake of a healthcare giver. But you know how she processed her blindness? Because she met Jesus while she was blind, at eight years old, she said the following...
You see, Fanny Crosby understood that life is not just about life on earth. She had this amazing heavenly perspective. She knew that one day she will see Jesus. And that's why when she was almost 90 years old, somebody approached her and said, "If only you were born later, science could have caught up and operated on you and perhaps help you see". You know what she said? She said, "Don't feel sorry for me, because the first face I'm gonna see someday will be the face of Jesus".
My friend, that is what I call perspective. How is your perspective? Are you aware that Jesus is coming again, and the return of Jesus is going to transform everything? The best day of your life is when Jesus returns. The next word I'd like you to focus on is rapture. What do we mean by rapture? He is now stating authoritatively by the word of the Lord... You know what he's saying? When Jesus comes again, the following will happen: there will be a shout, and who will do the shouting? The voice of the archangel. The Bible identifies in the book of Jude the archangel. He is called Michael. That's the only angel with a name, Michael. You have another angel with the name Gabriel, but the archangel is called Michael.
What happens? Then there will be a trumpet, and then what will happen? "The dead in Christ will rise first", notice the sequence? When Jesus comes, resurrection first. And then what happens? That's where you have the word "rapture"... Now, Paul was expecting Jesus to return in His lifetime. And he's saying when Jesus comes again, the dead in Christ will rise first, and we who are alive and remain will be caught up. That word "caught up" is translated as rapturo in Latin. In Greek, it's "harpazō". In English, it is called "caught up", "together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in air". Who is this "them"? The believers who were resurrected, and we who are alive will be caught up.
That's where you have the word "rapture". Paul explained this in another passage: 1 Corinthians 15. Let me read for you. Notice, all of us will be changed. Now, look at the sequence: Faster than a second, the resurrection, (those who are still alive), that's the rapture. And what happens? Why is it the best day of your life when the rapture happens? You know why? You will be caught up together, you'll be given a supernatural body, and you will meet the Lord. The issue that many times people ask me is when will the rapture take place? Is it during the tribulation? Is it before the tribulation? Is it after the tribulation? Now I'm going to teach you theology. When it comes to certain issues in the Bible, it is not essential, meaning it is not worth dying for.
One of those issues is rapture. What is sure is the second coming of Jesus. What is sure is the idea of rapture, we will be caught up. But it is not essential to debate to death when the rapture will take place. This is the timeline. Jesus died and rose again from the dead, and then He tells us before He comes there will be signs, wars, earthquakes, famines, plagues, look at the nation of Israel. And then you have tribulation. When will the rapture take place? Many sincere Bible scholars have the following positions, three possible positions, and they're all sincere.
The first one is pre-trib, before tribulation. Another position: mid-trib, in the middle of tribulation. Another position: post-trib. I just want to warn you, don't be dogmatic. But let me share with you from a biblical perspective what happens so that you will know and you will have a basis. At the end of tribulation, the Bible tells us there will be a resurrection of the saints, there will be a 1,000 year reign, that's in the book of Revelation, and then there'll be a judgment day. So when will the rapture take place? So the sequence: the dead in Christ will rise first, So the rapture takes place after the resurrection. The book of Revelation tells us when is the resurrection. At the end of the tribulation period, in Revelation 20, the Bible tells us: In short, are these believers or not? Yes, they are believers. They were beheaded because of their testimony about Jesus and because of the word of God. And what else can you learn about these believers?
Now it's uncanny. When they mentioned the mark of the beast on the forehead and on the hand, I am surprised. Today, technology has now made it possible to have a microchip on your hand. And this microchip will identify you, it will allow you to buy and sell. Is it because we are now living in the end times? Notice Revelation 20:4, the Bible tells us Revelation 20:5 and 6, I want you to notice something: In other words, the rest of the people were not part of the resurrection. So the Bible talks about there's going to be the first resurrection. Who are those in the first resurrection? Believers. And then the Bible talks about there will be another resurrection after the thousand years. What do I mean? Let's read.
Revelation 20:11 and 12: What does it mean that death and Hades gave up the dead? That, my friend, is the second resurrection, when they are brought before the judgment seat of God, the great white throne. And then the Bible tells us What do you notice? So the Bible talks about two kinds of death. Physical death, that's the first death; and spiritual death, eternally separated from God. So who are the people who will go into the lake of fire? People whose names are not written in the book of life. Why? Because people whose names are written in the book of life are believers. They've been forgiven, and their names are recorded in the book of life. They are not judged based on what?
Notice, the other people are judged based on their deeds, and the Bible says we are all sinners. In John 5:24, the Bible tells us, Do you notice: "does not come into judgment, but has passed from death to life". Many people don't understand what it means, death. The Bible talks about two kinds of death. Death literally means separation. It is not cessation. It is not annihilation. Death simply means separation. When you die physically (physical death), the body is separated from the spirit. When you go to a funeral parlor, you look at the body, you will notice the spirit is not there. Physical death means what? Your spirit, your soul is separated from the body. That's why the Bible says, He's talking about physical death, The Bible is very clear: absent from the body, you are present with the Lord.
What happens with the physical body? Asleep! Soul, spirit in God's presence. Spiritual death means what? Spirit is eternally separated from God, and that is the second death. The Bible talks about the second death is when you are eternally, soul and body and spirit, eternally separated from God. And my friend, the rapture will be the best day of anybody's life if you are in Christ, because you have a new body and you are brought into the presence of God. But it's going to be the worst day of your life if you are not ready, why? Because on that day, the Bible tells us, Are you ready for the best day of your life? The best day of your life: His return, rapture, and reward. What do we mean by reward?
The Bible tells us, Underline that word "together", You will meet the Lord in the air... Do you notice the grammar? Forever! You will always be in the presence of the Lord. And he tells us, How do we encourage people? Remind them that the best day of their life is going to happen when Jesus returns. Revelation 22:12 tells us, Notice that expression: "I am coming soon". Why is Jesus repeating this amazing promise, "I'm coming soon"? To encourage us, to strengthen us not to give up. You see, God knows how to motivate us. We are to be motivated by love. That's good, but He's saying, "I also want to reward you". And therefore He talks about rewards and here are examples of rewards that Jesus promised us. Example: the Bible talks about five different crowns. Imperishable crown: how do you get this crown? If you live a holy life, if you live a disciplined life.
For example, 1 Corinthians 9:24-27. The second crown is called the crown of exaltation. It's given to soul winners, if you evangelize, you are bring people to Jesus. See 1 Thessalonians 2:19-20. The third crown is called the crown of righteousness. It's because you love the Lord appearing, you'll long for His return. This is found in 2 Timothy 4:8. The crown of life: you persevere in the midst of suffering, you are faithful to the end. Why? Because you love the Lord. That is James 1:12; example, Revelation 2:10. And you have the crown of glory. Now this is a special crown given to pastors, elders, and believe it or not in our CCF structure is given to Dgroup leaders. Why? A Dgroup leader is a shepherd of a group of people. It's like a house church.
And this is found in 1 Peter 5:1-4. So I want to encourage all of you that our Master, our Lord promises to reward us. Let me give you an example of what we meant by rewards. I want to turn to 1 Corinthians 9:24-27. Let me read. Look at the metaphor. The Christian life is compared to a marathon, to a race. And then here's the command: It's present tense. You run in such a way, don't be careless, that you may win. How do you win? Look at the next verse. What he's saying is this: in the time of the apostle Paul, those who were running in the game at Corinth, if you win, they give you a wreath, it's made of flowers! In a few days' time, it will wilt, it's nothing. He's saying these are perishable, and yet they work so hard for that kind of crown. What in the world is Paul talking about? Paul is talking about, "Because of this reality, that one day I will stand before the Lord, I run my life in a very disciplined manner.
Why? I look forward to the crown that the Lord will give me". Another example: James 1:12, the crown of life, notice what it says: Do you love the Lord? The emphasis is love the Lord, then you will be faithful to the end. 2 Timothy 4:8... What do you notice? This crown is given to people who love the Lord, who long for His appearing. Let me ask you a question: if God is going to reward His people with all kinds of crowns, with all kinds of rewards, and they are not exhaustive, how should that impact your life?
Recently, the Philippines won its first gold medal. This is in the history of Philippine Olympics. It's won by none other than Hidilyn Diaz. She won the 55-kilogram category; she lifted 127 kilograms. My goodness! She can lift me. Because she brought honor to the Philippines, what was her reward? She was given from various sources, almost 35 million pesos. She was given free flights, for life! She was given free food by many restaurants, for life! Free fuel, house and lot, free car! I do not know if Hidilyn really understood what kind of reward she will be getting. I can almost predict it was beyond her wildest imagination. If earthly rewards can be so amazing, how much more heavenly rewards?
My friend, the Bible is very clear: If our country will offer such amazing rewards, how much more will our Lord and Savior reward His faithful servant who will bring Him honor and glory? Why do I say bring him glory and honor? Because if you look at Revelation 4, the Bible tells us what do we do with the crown? In other words, whatever crowns we receive, the Bible tells us on that day, we will give it back to our Lord and Savior. We cast our crowns on Him. In other words, we exist to glorify Him.
Will you have any crowns to give back to our Lord and Savior? Have you done your best for Jesus? Remember, crowns are different. Salvation is a gift, but what we do for Jesus is another story. You'll be rewarded. What will make you faithful to the end? What will help you so that you will be faithful and receive a crown? It's all about the heart. You need to love the Lord. If you don't love the Lord, everything will become legalism. If you don't love the Lord, what will happen? What you do for Him becomes ritualistic. What you do for Him will become a chore, it becomes a duty. However, if you are motivated by love, that, my friend, is the key to receiving the rewards of the Lord.
The Bible tells us in 2 Timothy 3:1 and 5, notice what the Bible says:t In the last days, the end times. Do you notice: the enemy of the Christian life is our love for something else. You see, whether you like it or not, we were made to love. The only question is: where are you directing your love? And the antidote is make sure you love the Lord. The best way to be ready for the best day of your life is to guard your heart. What do you love most? Love God, if not, you will love something else. Christianity is all or nothing. It's either you follow Jesus a hundred percent or you don't, because to follow Jesus ninety percent is not to follow Him.
And many times we deceive ourselves. We think it's okay not to love the Lord. A true Christian will understand it is not optional. He loved me, He died for me, and how should be my response? A hundred percent. It's all or nothing. Trust God completely, or you don't trust Him. Love Him completely or you're not loving Him at all. And to be ready, the answer is love God. That's why it says, Come, Lord. Why? Because you love Him. I want to share with you the story of an amazing dog. His name is Hachiko. Hachiko is a Japanese dog. The breed is called Akita. His master was a professor, professor of Tokyo University. This professor and his dog Hachiko would walk every day from his house to the train station. And he would board at the train station to teach at the Tokyo University.
And then at 3:00 PM, he will come back. And this went on for five years. One day, the master did not come home because the master died while he was away from home. What happened to the dog? And this is most amazing: every day, the dog would go back at 3:00 PM to wait for the master. This went on not just for one week, not just for one month, not just for one year, this went on every day for 10 years. People were amazed. When the dog died, what did they do? To commemorate the faithfulness of the dog, The Japanese government, the Japanese people made a statue and they placed it at the train station. In fact, it is one of the most iconic, most popular spot for meeting people; right underneath that statue.
Friends, if a dog can show such devotion to an earthly master, how much should we show our devotion to our Master, our Lord and Savior? That devotion can only happen if you love the Lord. Are you ready for the best day of your life, and how do you do it? Daily. When I wake up in the morning, I talk to Jesus. I say, "Lord, if this is the last day of my life, I don't want to mess it up. I want to live a life pleasing to You". And once you do that day by day, it will become week by week. And once you do it week by week, it will become month by month.
And before you know it, it will be one year, two years, and at the end of your life, you will hear Jesus say, "Well done, good and faithful servant". My prayer is not only will you be ready, but you help your loved ones be ready, because at the end of your life, there are only two possibilities: you're ready or you're not ready. Only two possibilities: you will experience the best day of your life or you'll experience the worst regret of your life. But if you live for Him, if you long for His coming, you will never regret it. Let's pray:
Lord Jesus, I want to be ready when You come again. I want to be ready for the best day of my life. Today, I surrender my life to You. I come to You as my Lord and my Savior. I will stop playing games. I will take You seriously. Help me to love You with all my heart. Help me to trust You with all my heart. Thank You for dying on the cross for my sins. Thank You for the grace that You have given me. I now commit to You my life. I accept Your gift of forgiveness, I accept your gift of eternal life. And thank You for giving me the strength to live a life that's pleasing to You. Day by day, Lord, I want to live for You. In Jesus' name, I pray. Amen.