(Paul to Timothy): I solemnly charge you to keep all his precepts unsullied and flawless, unreproachable, until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ (the Anointed One). 

Which (appearing) will be shown forth in His own proper time by the blessed, only Sovereign (AV: Potentate, Ruler), the King of kings and Lord of lords, who only has immortality (in the sense of exemption from every kind of death) and lives in unapproachable light. Whom no man has ever seen or can see. Unto Him be honour and everlasting power and dominion. Amen (so be it). (1 Timothy 6:13-16, Amplified Bible).

Would you believe me if I told you that very soon, if not imminently, a man with absolute authority and irresistible power is going to seize and rule not only this world but the unseen spiritual realm as well?

What’s more, the power with which this Person will rule will be greater than anything yet seen by mankind. So all-pervasive is his rule that his title, according to the King James Bible, is “the blessed and only Potentate”. Here “blessed” translated the Greek word Makarios which means “happy”. The Potentate is happy in Himself and blesses, that is “makes happy” all who trust and follow Him.

As the verses quoted above assert, when this soon-to-be “Supreme Ruler of the universe” shows the world who He is and takes full control, He will brook no rival, for only He will reign. His unbridled authority and power will control all creatures. None will be able to resist or deny his sway.

 At present this “Lord over all” is hid from our eyes because He (and we chosen and grace-saved believers with Him) are hid in God (Colossians 3:3-4). But already He is “our life” and when He does appear “we shall also appear with Him in glory”.

Though presently hid from human sight this omnipotent (all powerful) ruler is already sat upon a throne at the right hand the “Father of glory” in the “heavenlies” who even now is extending the “exceeding greatness of his power to us-ward who believe” (Ephesians 19-23) and are saved by his grace.

And when He appears fully as Himself, dazzling the world with his glory, men will experience for the first time what it is to come fully under the real and absolute ruler of the universe. For until now other gods have held sway over humanity, principally the “father of lies” (John 8:44), the “prince of the power of the air” who at present controls “the course of this world” (Ephesians 2:2). In other words, Satan and his hordes of evil spirits.

I’m sure that already you know who this Supreme Being, who created all things and for Whom all things were created, is. Ephesians 1:21-23 declares that “all things” have been under his feet and that He has been made “Head over all things to the church, which is his body, the fullness of Him that filleth all in all.

His name, of course, is Christ Jesus. Now Christ means “the Anointed One” and Jesus means the “only One who saves”. And in case you thought as, sadly, some Christians do, that Jesus was but a man until his baptism by John, then realise his very name speaks of Him being Almighty God, the One who “was and is and is to come”.

You see, He was Yahweh to the ancient Israelites and in Hebrew Jehoshua (Yahweh saves). When the Hebrew scriptures were translated into Greek Jehoshua became Iesous, and in English Iesous became Jesus. So, our Lord’s very name means that He is the “only true God” (John 17:3) and as He says Himself in Isaiah 46:9 and 45:22:

Remember the former things of old: for I AM God, and there is none else: I AM God and there is none beside Me. Look unto me and be ye saved, all the ends of the earth: for I AM God and there is none else.

As King (Nebuchadnezzar) said (to Daniel), Of a truth it is, that your God is a God of gods, and a Lord of kings and, and a revealer of secrets, seeing thou couldest reveal this secret (Daniel 2:47).

THE GREAT SHOWDOWN

Satan is the “prince of the power of the air”, “the prince of this world” (Ephesians 2:2, John 12:31) but he should watch out, for there’s a high noon showdown about to come for him. This will occur at the APPEARING of the Lord Jesus Christ (Titus 2:13, 2 Timothy 4:1).

Sadly, the huge importance of the Lord’s appearing in glory is overlooked by most Christians but if you want to see Satan knocked off his throne and put in his place it should be of great interest to you. For now, please notice the verb “shew” or “show” in 1 Timothy 6:14-15:

…until the APPEARING of our Lord Jesus Christ which [or who] shall SHEW [who is the boss, i.e. Himself] the blessed [Greek: makarios, meaning happy] POTENTATE, the King of kings and Lord of lords.

More simply put, the Lord Jesus Christ at his APPEARING will SHOW that He is indeed “God Almighty” (Isaiah 9:6) and for all eternity will be the absolute ruler over all things in the created universe. As Paul writes in 1 Timothy 1:17:       

Now unto the King Eternal, Immortal, Invisible, the ONLY wise God, be honour and glory for ever and ever [literally, “throughout the ages of the ages”].

The defeat of mankind’s arch enemy at the hands of the Lord Jesus Christ at his APPEARING will be very painful and absolutely crushing for the devil. As the Lord prophesied long ago:

In that day [namely the Day of Christ which begins with his APPEARING, 2 Timothy 4:1] the Lord with his sore and great and strong sword shall punish leviathan the piercing serpent, even leviathan that crooked serpent; and He shall slay the dragon that is in the sea (Isaiah 27:1).

So, who is the “piercing serpent”? Why surely Satan himself who appeared as a beguiling snake to Adam and Eve and has bedeviled humanity ever since. Who is the dragon in the sea? Why, Satan again as he is pictured in Revelation 13:1-8 as a “beast rising up out of the sea” and “…power was given unto him to make war with the saints and over all kindreds, tongues and nations”.

The good news is that suffering, sin-cursed mankind will not have to wait until the Lord’s “second coming”, as many call it, to see Him destroy the devil and his works; He will displace and crush him at his APPEARING. For it is at his APPEARING that He will publicly SHEW [show] that only He is the real and eternal ruler of heaven and earth, indeed the POTENTATE of all creation. The curse of sin and death that has held humanity in thrall for millennia will be banished, the physical creation renewed and restored to its original glory, and men’s hearts turned back to God.

Christians should ask themselves (and their churches and pastors) why little or no attention is paid to this glorious truth that at the APPEARING of the Supreme Ruler of the universe, the Lord Jesus Christ, Satan will get his comeuppance and a new world of peace and restoration will be brought in under the Lord’s kingdom rule.

Those wanting to know more about how the Lord will show Himself as the eternal king and bring in a whole better world in doing so, should study 2 Timothy 4:1, Titus 2:13, 1Timothy 6:14-16, Numbers 14:2, Philippians 2:10, Isaiah 29:18, 40:5, 49:26, 52:10 and the many other scriptures that also set out this truth.

John Dudley Aldworth

Email: johndaldworth42@gmail.com

Website: https://www.dayofchristmnistries.com›