According to I Th. 4: 16 three things will take place at the actual return of the Lord: 1) the shout2) the voice of the archangel3) the trumpet of God. This will all happen as the Lord descends from heaven to take the redeemed into glory.

In Jn. 11 one can read about His cry being a command. It happened in His earthly ministry: “And when he thus had spoken, he cried with a loud voice, Lazarus, come forth. And he that was dead came forth” (vv. 43-44).

When our Lord was dying, He cried with a loud voice, “And, be-hold, the veil of the temple was torn in two … and the earth did quake, and the rocks were split; and the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints that slept were raised” (Mt. 27: 50-52).

In Jn. 5: 25 He said, “Verily, verily, I say unto you, The hour is coming, and now is, when the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God; and they that hear shall live.”

The word of our Lord is a command; it is the word of the Almighty. Whatever He says happens, and what He commands appears. His Word never returns void, but accomplishes that which it is sent for. In fact, He is upholding all things by the word of His power (Heb. 1: 3). The Greek word shout (χελευσματι) which is found in I Th. 4: 16, comes from the military language and denotes a commanding order. This happens as He starts descending from heaven. The word “shout” is also translated as a “commanding cry”; those who are asleep will be called forth by this shout. After this the bodily change of those who live in Christ will take place. In this the Lord of Lords shows His sovereignty and authority, as He is Lord over the living and the dead.

In Heb. 12: 26 we read, “… whose voice then shook the earth; but now he hath promised, saying, Yet once more I shake not the earth only, but also heaven.”

In Mt. 25 we are told about a cry which goes forth at midnight just before the coming of the bridegroom, “Behold, the bridegroom cometh; go ye out to meet him.” This is the last and mighty cry on earth to awaken those who are spiritually asleep at the time of the return of Christ. Those who wake up, prepare their lamps and get ready for the coming of the Bridegroom. The impact of this cry will catch the wise and the foolish virgins alike: “Then all those virgins arose and trimmed their lamps” (Mt. 25: 7). The foolish, of course, will be on their way to meet the Bridegroom as well, but then realize that they do not have enough oil to carry them through, and therefore cannot go in to the Wedding Supper.

With an open mind we need to compare the word “cry” (χραυγη) of Mt. 25: 6, which in the Greek signifies the awakening call of the living who sleep spiritually, with the word “shout” (χελευσματι) used in I Th. 4: 16. One can easily see that two totally different words are being used. The “cry” of Mt. 25 signifies the urgency of a message which will be among the believers living at that time on earth, and the “shout” of I Th. 4 will be the command as the Lord descends from heaven to call out those who are asleep in Christ.

Without any shadow of doubt the cry of Mt. 25 is now going forth. It is the last message through which the believers are awakened before the return of Christ. They hear the living Word of God and receive the fresh manna — the promised Word for today. God’s message is the Word for this hour which contains all the promises for the endtime. Only those who now believe according to Scripture and thereby take their stand with God, will also experience the completion of the promises.

With regard to the messenger who was sent before the first coming of Christ, we read, “The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness …” (Isa. 40: 3). Every Bible reader knows that this prophetic utterance was accomplished through the ministry of John the Baptist. He testified of himself, saying, “I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness, Make straight the way of the Lord, as said the prophet, Isaiah” (Jn. 1: 23).

Now, before the return of Jesus Christ, the message of the revealed Word (which was preached through the messenger of the last church age of Laodicea) is still sounding forth. The cry is going forth and those who take heed are waking up from their sleep and cleaning their lamps. The wise virgins are filling their vessels with oil. They have both Word and Spirit. They come to the realization that God is now completing His work, and take heed to the actual message, the prophetic Word for this time. In this way they are being prepared for that glorious day.

John the Baptist, who was the forerunner at the first coming of our Lord, said, “He that hath the bride is the bridegroom; but the friend of the bridegroom, who standeth and heareth him, rejoiceth greatly because of the bridegroom’s voice; this my joy, therefore, is fulfilled” (Jn. 3: 29). In the same way the Bride now must hear the voice of the Bridegroom, which is the Word with all the promises for this time. Just as there was a prophetic message at the first coming of Christ, so now, before His second coming, there is a prophetic message. That is the cry which is going forth at this present time — the promised Word of the hour, the message of this day by which all the hidden mysteries in the Word of God needed for the Bride are made known.

The cry to awaken those who are spiritually asleep, the calling out and the preparation must take place before the coming of the Lord. The apos-tle John, while on the isle of Patmos, saw the Bride in a preview and wrote, “Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honor to him; for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and his wife hath made herself ready” (Rev. 19: 7).

According to I Th. 4: 16 three things will take place at the actual return of the Lord: 1) the shout  2) the voice of the archangel  3) the trumpet of God. This will all happen as the Lord descends from heaven to take the redeemed into glory.

In Jn. 11 one can read about His cry being a command. It happened in His earthly ministry: “And when he thus had spoken, he cried with a loud voice, Lazarus, come forth. And he that was dead came forth” (vv. 43-44).

When our Lord was dying, He cried with a loud voice, “And, be-hold, the veil of the temple was torn in two … and the earth did quake, and the rocks were split; and the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints that slept were raised” (Mt. 27: 50-52).

In Jn. 5: 25 He said, “Verily, verily, I say unto you, The hour is coming, and now is, when the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God; and they that hear shall live.”

The word of our Lord is a command; it is the word of the Almighty. Whatever He says happens, and what He commands appears. His Word never returns void, but accomplishes that which it is sent for. In fact, He is upholding all things by the word of His power (Heb. 1: 3). The Greek word shout (χελευσματι) which is found in I Th. 4: 16, comes from the military language and denotes a commanding order. This happens as He starts descending from heaven. The word “shout” is also translated as a “commanding cry”; those who are asleep will be called forth by this shout. After this the bodily change of those who live in Christ will take place. In this the Lord of Lords shows His sovereignty and authority, as He is Lord over the living and the dead.

In Heb. 12: 26 we read, “… whose voice then shook the earth; but now he hath promised, saying, Yet once more I shake not the earth only, but also heaven.”

In Mt. 25 we are told about a cry which goes forth at midnight just before the coming of the bridegroom, “Behold, the bridegroom cometh; go ye out to meet him.” This is the last and mighty cry on earth to awaken those who are spiritually asleep at the time of the return of Christ. Those who wake up, prepare their lamps and get ready for the coming of the Bridegroom. The impact of this cry will catch the wise and the foolish virgins alike: “Then all those virgins arose and trimmed their lamps” (Mt. 25: 7). The foolish, of course, will be on their way to meet the Bridegroom as well, but then realize that they do not have enough oil to carry them through, and therefore cannot go in to the Wedding Supper.

With an open mind we need to compare the word “cry” (χραυγη) of Mt. 25: 6, which in the Greek signifies the awakening call of the living who sleep spiritually, with the word “shout” (χελευσματι) used in I Th. 4: 16. One can easily see that two totally different words are being used. The “cry” of Mt. 25 signifies the urgency of a message which will be among the believers living at that time on earth, and the “shout” of I Th. 4 will be the command as the Lord descends from heaven to call out those who are asleep in Christ.

Without any shadow of doubt the cry of Mt. 25 is now going forth. It is the last message through which the believers are awakened before the return of Christ. They hear the living Word of God and receive the fresh manna — the promised Word for today. God’s message is the Word for this hour which contains all the promises for the endtime. Only those who now believe according to Scripture and thereby take their stand with God, will also experience the completion of the promises.

With regard to the messenger who was sent before the first coming of Christ, we read, “The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness …” (Isa. 40: 3). Every Bible reader knows that this prophetic utterance was accomplished through the ministry of John the Baptist. He testified of himself, saying, “I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness, Make straight the way of the Lord, as said the prophet, Isaiah” (Jn. 1: 23).

Now, before the return of Jesus Christ, the message of the revealed Word (which was preached through the messenger of the last church age of Laodicea) is still sounding forth. The cry is going forth and those who take heed are waking up from their sleep and cleaning their lamps. The wise virgins are filling their vessels with oil. They have both Word and Spirit. They come to the realization that God is now completing His work, and take heed to the actual message, the prophetic Word for this time. In this way they are being prepared for that glorious day.

John the Baptist, who was the forerunner at the first coming of our Lord, said, “He that hath the bride is the bridegroom; but the friend of the bridegroom, who standeth and heareth him, rejoiceth greatly because of the bridegroom’s voice; this my joy, therefore, is fulfilled” (Jn. 3: 29). In the same way the Bride now must hear the voice of the Bridegroom, which is the Word with all the promises for this time. Just as there was a prophetic message at the first coming of Christ, so now, before His second coming, there is a prophetic message. That is the cry which is going forth at this present time — the promised Word of the hour, the message of this day by which all the hidden mysteries in the Word of God needed for the Bride are made known.

The cry to awaken those who are spiritually asleep, the calling out and the preparation must take place before the coming of the Lord. The apos-tle John, while on the isle of Patmos, saw the Bride in a preview and wrote, “Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honor to him; for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and his wife hath made herself ready” (Rev. 19: 7).