A Farewell Tribute to Those Who Have Remained Strong, as We Prepare to Be Raptured (KJV)

Sept 10, 2026 | www.GospelofJesusChrist.blog | River Wilde

To those who have walked with Jesus Christ through the long years, who have endured disappointment, loss, loneliness, sickness, rejection, and uncertainty, yet have refused to abandon their faith—this is for you.

You have not walked an easy road. There were moments when you were tired. There were prayers that seemed unanswered. There were people you loved who did not understand you. There were times when heaven seemed silent and you wondered whether what you were doing mattered.

Yet through it all, you kept the faith.

And now, as those of us who believe in Christ’s appearing watch and wait for Him, perhaps these words of Paul mean more than they ever have before:

“I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith:
Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day: and not to me only, but unto all them also that love his appearing.”
— 2 Timothy 4:7–8 KJV

What a testimony.

Paul did not say, I understood everything.

He did not say, I never became discouraged.

He did not say, I never suffered.

He said simply:

“I have kept the faith.”

Perhaps that is what finishing strong really means.

You Ran the Race

The Christian life was never promised to be an easy walk. Scripture describes it as a race requiring patience:

“Let us run with patience the race that is set before us, Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith…”
— Hebrews 12:1–2 KJV

There were times when we stumbled.

There were times when we slowed down.

There may even have been moments when we wondered whether we could continue.

But the important thing was never how quickly we ran.

It was Who we kept looking toward.

Jesus Christ.

He was there at the beginning of our faith, and He will be there at the finish.

Your Labor Was Not in Vain

Perhaps you shared the Gospel with someone who never seemed to listen.

Perhaps you prayed for someone for years without seeing the answer you hoped for.

Perhaps you quietly served people who never thanked you.

Perhaps you tried to stand for truth when standing alone would have been easier than explaining yourself one more time.

God saw it.

Paul wrote:

“Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord.”
— 1 Corinthians 15:58 KJV

Not in vain.

Those words matter.

Every prayer offered sincerely to God. Every act of kindness. Every time you forgave when you could have retaliated. Every time you got back up after falling. Every time you chose Christ when the world pulled in another direction.

God knows.

Don’t Look Back Now

As the finish approaches—Scripture tells us where our attention belongs.

Not behind us.

Ahead.

Paul wrote:

“Forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.”
— Philippians 3:13–14 KJV

There are things behind us we wish we could change.

Leave them there.

There are mistakes we wish we had never made.

Leave them there.

There are people we wish we could have convinced.

Put them into God’s hands.

There are opportunities we missed and words we wish we could take back.

Christ did not tell us to spend the remainder of the race staring backward.

Keep looking toward Him.

Finish Your Course with Joy

Paul said something extraordinary in Acts:

“But none of these things move me, neither count I my life dear unto myself, so that I might finish my course with joy…”
— Acts 20:24 KJV

Notice that last word.

Joy.

Not terror.

Not despair.

Not bitterness.

Joy.

For the Christian, the finish line is not merely the end of something.

It is the beginning of something unimaginable.

The believer is not running toward darkness.

We are running toward Jesus Christ.

Hold Onto Your Confidence

If you are tired now, don’t surrender your confidence.

Hebrews tells us:

“Cast not away therefore your confidence, which hath great recompence of reward. For ye have need of patience…”
— Hebrews 10:35–36 KJV

And so, while we wait, there is really only one direction to go:

Forward.

One more day.

One more prayer.

One more opportunity to love someone.

One more opportunity to forgive.

One more opportunity to tell someone about Jesus.

One more opportunity to keep the faith.

There Is a Crown Waiting

Jesus said:

“Be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life.”
— Revelation 2:10 KJV

And Paul spoke of another crown:

“Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness… and not to me only, but unto all them also that love his appearing.”
— 2 Timothy 4:8 KJV

There is something incredibly touching about those final words:

“All them also that love his appearing.”

There are believers who aren’t merely interested in prophecy.

They aren’t merely interested in escaping trouble.

They want Jesus.

That is the heart of our hope.

And then, the Words We Long to Hear

After everything is finished—after the struggles, disappointments, tears and long nights—there are words from Jesus that surely every faithful servant longs to hear:

“Well done, thou good and faithful servant: thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord.”
— Matthew 25:21 KJV

“Well done.”

Imagine hearing those words from Jesus Christ.

Perhaps then we will understand that many of the things that seemed so important here really weren’t.

The arguments won’t matter.

The possessions won’t matter.

The recognition we did or didn’t receive won’t matter.

What will matter is that we belonged to Jesus Christ and kept trusting Him.

So, this is not really goodbye.

It is simply a farewell to one chapter while we wait for the next.

To those who have fought the good fight:

Keep fighting.

To those who have run the race:

Keep running.

To those who have become tired:

Keep looking unto Jesus.

To those longing for His appearing:

Keep the faith.

And when our course truly is finished—whenever and however God determines that finish—may we be able to say with Paul:

“I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith.”

And may the next words we hear be:

“Well done, thou good and faithful servant… enter thou into the joy of thy lord.”

Until then, we remain steadfast. We remain faithful. We keep looking unto Jesus.

Because for those who belong to Christ, farewell is never forever.