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He's Coming, Part 1
Jesus is coming back, and that changes everything about how we live today. In this opening message of a new series, Pastor Linda Hufton unpacks the biblical reality of Christ's return, why we need to be watching and ready, and what it means to live each day with eternity in view.
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Small Group Guide
Small Group Discussion Guide
"He's Coming, Part 1" — Pastor Linda Hufton
1. SERMON RECAP
Pastor Linda Hufton opened with the joyful declaration that Jesus is coming again, grounding her message in Acts 1:7-11, where angels reminded the disciples that the same Jesus who ascended into heaven will return in like manner. She drew on vivid imagery from a Galilean wedding tradition to illustrate how the church, like a bride, must stay dressed and ready because the Father alone knows the hour. Pastor Linda challenged the congregation to take seriously both the nearness of Christ's return and the weight of how each day lived now will matter on that day.
2. KEY SCRIPTURE
Revelation 22:12 "And behold, I am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me, to give to every one according to his work."
3. ICE BREAKER
What is one event in your life you prepared for a long time in advance, and how did that preparation change the way the day itself felt when it finally arrived?
4. DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
Point 1 — Go to Church Hebrews 10:25 tells us to meet together more and more as we see the day approaching. Pastor Linda pointed to regular, committed gathering as one of the primary ways believers stay ready for Christ's return. Why do you think gathering together becomes more important, not less, as the world grows more uncertain? What tends to pull people away from consistent church attendance, and how can a small group like this one help counteract that drift?
Point 2 — Don't Get Impatient and Give Up Pastor Linda reminded the group that James 5:7-9 calls believers to patience and steadfastness until the Lord's coming. Christians across many generations believed Jesus could return in their lifetime, and yet he had not come. In what areas of your faith life does impatience most tempt you to give up? How does keeping the return of Christ in view help you press through those moments of discouragement?
Point 3 — Stay Happy and Keep Rejoicing Drawing on Philippians 4:5, Pastor Linda emphasized that rejoicing is not just an emotional response but a posture we are instructed to maintain because the Lord is near. What is the difference between happiness that depends on circumstances and the kind of joy Philippians describes? What practices or habits help your group members maintain genuine rejoicing during difficult seasons?
Point 4 — Look Forward to and Long for His Coming Pastor Linda highlighted 2 Timothy 4:8, which promises the crown of righteousness not only to Paul but to all who have longed for Christ's appearing. She described watching those rapture videos and said she wanted to be the woman whose face lights up with recognition rather than shock. What does it look like practically for a person to genuinely long for Jesus to return? Is that longing something you feel naturally, or is it something that has to be cultivated, and if so, how?
Point 5 — Be Confident of God's Grace Pastor Linda closed her list of instructions by pointing to Philippians 1:6, assuring believers that God, who began a good work in them, will carry it through to completion on the day of Jesus Christ. She noted that this confidence is not about human performance but about trusting that God finishes what he starts. How does resting in God's faithfulness free a person to serve wholeheartedly rather than anxiously? Where in your own walk do you most need to receive this confidence right now?
5. APPLICATION CHALLENGE
This week, choose one specific, intentional act of preparation for Christ's return from Pastor Linda's five instructions and put it into practice every single day for seven days. For example, if attending church more consistently is the area you most need to address, commit to attending every service offered this week and block it on your calendar before the week begins. If rejoicing is the area, set a daily alarm with a reminder to pause, speak a sentence of genuine thankfulness aloud, and reflect briefly on the hope of Christ's return. Come back next week ready to share what you chose and what you noticed.
6. PRAYER POINTS
- Pray that each group member would develop a genuine, daily longing for the return of Jesus rather than growing comfortable or distracted by the things of this world.
- Pray for patience and steadfastness for anyone in the group who is in a season of waiting on God and is tempted toward discouragement or giving up.
- Pray for those in each member's life who are not yet ready to meet Christ, that God would open doors for honest conversation and that hearts would be soft to receive the gospel.
7. MEMORY VERSE
Philippians 1:6 "Being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ."
Daily Devotional
Show Up, Keep Showing Up
Hebrews 10:25 — "Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another — and all the more as you see the Day approaching."
On Thursday I told you that we can see the day approaching. That is not a reason to pull back from one another — it is the greatest reason to lean in. The writer of Hebrews is not giving us a suggestion here. He is giving us a lifeline. When we gather, we remind each other that this world is not the end of the story. We remind each other that He is coming. I have watched people drift away from the church when life gets hard or complicated, and I understand the temptation. But isolation is not preparation. Community is preparation. The closer we get to that day, the more we need each other's voices, prayers, and presence. Come together. Keep coming together. The day is getting closer, and we do not want to face it alone.
Lord, help me to value the gathering of your people the way you do. When life tempts me to pull away, draw me back into community. Thank you for every person you have placed beside me for this season.
Stand Firm, He Has Not Forgotten
James 5:7-8 — "Be patient, then, brothers and sisters, until the Lord's coming. See how the farmer waits for the land to yield its valuable crop, patiently waiting for the autumn and spring rains. You too, be patient and stand firm, because the Lord's coming is near."
I want to be honest with you — patience is one of the hardest things God asks of us. We pray and wait. We believe and wait. We serve and wait. Sometimes it feels like nothing is moving and the answer is never coming. James gives us the image of a farmer, and I love that picture because a farmer never digs up the seed to check on it every morning. He trusts the process because he knows the harvest is real. The Lord's coming is real. Your answered prayer is real. The breakthrough you have been believing for is real. Do not give up the week before the harvest. Do not walk away from what God has asked you to do simply because it has taken longer than you expected. Stand firm. Stay steady. He is not slow — He is faithful, and His timing is perfect.
Father, when I feel like giving up, remind me that you are still working. Give me the patience of a farmer who trusts that the harvest is coming. I choose to stand firm today.
Joy Is Your Preparation
Philippians 4:5 — "Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near."
On Thursday I told you that we need to stay happy and keep rejoicing because the Lord is near. I know that might sound simple, even a little too easy given everything going on in the world right now. But Paul wrote those words from a prison cell. He was not writing from a comfortable place of ease — he was writing from chains. And still he said rejoice, be gentle, the Lord is near. There is something about genuine joy that is one of the most powerful witnesses we have. When the world is anxious and afraid and people are doing the best they can without knowing what we know, our joy stands out. Our gentleness stands out. The fact that we are not falling apart is a testimony. We have the inside scoop. We know how the story ends. That knowledge should produce joy in us every single day, and that joy should be visible to everyone around us.
Lord, let my joy be real and visible today, not performed. Remind me throughout this day that you are near, and let that nearness change the way I carry myself. I want people to see something different in me.
Long for His Return
2 Timothy 4:8 — "Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day — and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing."
I think about the return of Jesus every single day. I look up at the sky and I think, today could be the day. And I want you to notice something beautiful in this verse — Paul says the crown of righteousness is not just for him. It is for all who have longed for His appearing. Longing for His return is not passive wishful thinking. It is an act of faith. It is a declaration that this world is not your final home, that you are watching, you are waiting, you are ready. The bride who longs for the groom does not get tired of expecting him. She stays dressed. She stays ready. She keeps her lamp full. I want to be the kind of Christian who looks up at the sky with anticipation, not dread. I want to meet Him with joy, not surprise. And I want you to go with me.
Jesus, I am longing for your return today. Stir that anticipation in my heart and keep it burning. Help me to live each day with my eyes lifted and my life ready.
He Will Finish What He Started in You
Philippians 1:6 — "Being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus."
On Thursday I told you that He is coming with His reward in His hand, and that the judgment seat of Christ is for the church — for us. That can feel weighty, even intimidating. But I want you to hear this verse the way Paul intended it — as encouragement, not pressure. God started something in you. He is not going to abandon it. He is not going to walk away mid-project and leave you unfinished. He committed to you. He is at work in you right now, on an ordinary Friday, in the middle of your regular life. The confidence we carry into that coming day is not confidence in our own perfection. It is confidence in his faithfulness. He began it, and He will complete it. Your job is to stay surrendered, stay willing, and trust that the one who called you is also the one who will bring you all the way through.
Lord, I am grateful that my hope is not in my own strength but in your faithfulness. Thank you for not giving up on me. Finish the work you started in me, right up to the day you come.