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Sermon of the Week 
Monday, February 03 2020

A lot of things such as the world has never seen before will be set in motion in the earth and in heaven which has been the stuff which sci-fi has borrowed from in the live theater and movies. But it will all become very real and fall like dominos once Jesus Appears in the heavens!

My purpose here is to help us all line up our end time ducks in a row, so we will not only understand basic end time prophecy for ourselves, but be able to pass it on to others as an overview. Time will not allow me to be more extensive, so, let’s just look at this basic prophetic overview….

But First a speck of humor (I said a speck) Nate was in Arizona,when he came to a big lever in the middle of the road. It had a big sign next to it that read, “Pull this lever to end the world”Nate thought it was the perfect spot to preach from, and soon many people had gathered. It was great, until a big 18-wheel rig came flying down the highway, and couldn’t stop in time. The driver had a choice: run over Nate, or run over the Lever and end the world. When everything settled, the driver explained to the Highway Patrol, he had no choice. Pointing to Nate, laying in the road, he said, “Better Nate than Lever.” (And on we go)

When He appears, everything will be set in motion for the end of days….and He said He would be back for us soon, if you know scripture..

1 John 3:1 “See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God, and so we are. The reason why the world does not know us is the same reason that it did not know Him. v2 Beloved, we are God’s children now, and what we will be has yet to be seen, but we know that when He appears, we shall be like Him, because we shall see Him with the veil between us removed. v3 And everyone who has this hope in them, give themselves to His purposes, even as He gave Himselfto the Father.”

Mankind had a great beginning in the garden of Eden, until Adam and Eve got a craving for forbidden sugar fruit, and ate us all out of house and home. Home was supposed to be a world wide Eden, flowing out from that garden. But because of their craving for a taste of the forbidden (which was about pushing God out and doing their own thing) God evicted them and shut down the garden….and all of us were shut out with them….       But, Jesus came to destroy the works (the toxic effects and control) that the wicked one had over us, by taking it all for us on the cross in His own body…He became our exit door to freedom and liberty!

If you recall, last week we read Ephesians 2:10 "We are His workmanship, created (recreated in His likeness) in Christ Jesus for good works, which He has prepared in advance for us to do.”                                                                We also looked at 2 Corinthians 5:17 “If anyone is in Christ, the new creature has come, the old has gone, the new model is now here”! 

We no longer have Adam and Eve to blame, we have an option which didn’t exist before…. Jesus came to give us an amazing, eternal choice! We can live our lives looking back to the first Garden with an “if only” they hadn’t done that, mentality, or live by faith, excited that we can have the relationship with the Lord, which they had before the fall, and that wherever we are, can be beautiful and amazing, powerful and God centered. We can walk in Eden every day as we enjoy His presence and counsel!

The leader of a Bible study group asked everyone, what they would all do if they knew they only had 4 days left on earth.”

One man said, ” I would go out into my community and minister the Gospel to everyone I could that has not yet accepted the Lord into their lives.” and all the group members agreed, that would be a good way to spend the time.

A lady spoke up and said “I would dedicate all of my time to serving God, my family, my church, and my fellow man with a greater passion and conviction.” And all the group agreed, that would be a very good way to spend the time.

Then one gentleman spoke up and said, “I would go to my mother-in-laws house, because that would make it the longest 4 days of my life!”                         (I think this guy still has some issues to turn over to the Lord)…..   

Aren’t you glad Jesus came to redeem your time!

Getting back to the garden, have you ever wondered what happened to that perfect garden after the first man and woman were evicted? From the information we have in Genesis, the Garden was in Mesopotamia– in the present-day barren and desolate region of Iraq. The Genesis writer mentions that it was bounded by the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, which makes this biblical GPS location accurate. We can assume that the place where the Garden of Eden stood was wiped off the face of the earth by the flood God used to judge the world in Noah’s day. Today, there is no remnant of the original garden where the first humans lived.                             God has to remove the old to bring in the new…                                                       

The good news is that God is going to recreate the earth after Jesus, the rightful ruler appears, to conquer Satan, usher in the millennium, then cast Satan into the lake of fire for eternity, followed by the second rapture when those remaining on earth will be removed, (all those who came through the tribulation) and God cleanses the earth and turns it into a world-wide garden of Eden. And He’ll do it all with words…. Your words are powerful, when you’re speaking His words….they have creative power in the earth…

We will see this process ramping up with the rapture of the Christians…                                  1 Thessalonians 4:16 “For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: v17 Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord”. (well Hallelujah)

I read that as part of their evangelism program, one church went out witnessing, with change of address cards for all those who accepted Christ. The cards had on them the scripture in …                                                                                                          Colossians 1:12“We give thanks to the Father, who has qualified us to share in the inheritance of the saints in the light. v13 He has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and moved us into the kingdom of His beloved Son”. (Thanks to calvary, we don’t live under the enemies control and manipulation any more!) We’ve changed our address!

So, moving on, Paul tells us when the Anti-Christ will be revealed. You can see his rise to power coming together even now… He is manipulating world leaders, religious leaders, and the business and banking world.                                                                2 Thessalonians 2:6 “And now you know what is withholding (keeping him back) that he (the anti-Christ) cannotbe revealed until his time. v7 For the mystery of iniquity isalready working, only he (Christians) who now let (binding and loosing) will let, until he be taken out of the way (the rapture). v8 And then shall that wicked one be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming: v9 Even the man of iniquity, whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders, v10 And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved. v11 And for this cause God shall send them a strong delusion, that they should believe the lie”. (Did you get it, he can’t come into power until we are gone from the scene) ….                                                                                          The Great delusion….That’s how dictators and despots always take over, by promising Eden and giving captivity, slavery, and bondage instead. They prey upon our delusions, and it happens when anyone leaves Jesus out of everything and they want to serve a God that doesn’t have Jesus attached. A God who asks for no accountability. So they insert themselves in place of God….  

Revelation 13:16 And he shall cause all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads. v17 And no man will be able to buy or sell, except those that have the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name. v18 Here is wisdom. Let him that hasunderstanding count the number of the beast: for it is the number of a man; and his number is 666.

Take a Look at the map….Isaiah calls him “the Assyrian” The area of the old Assyrian empire. So be watching for the one who rises up in the leadership over these areas, and the one they all begin to follow….

Isaiah 10:23 “For the Lord GOD of hosts shall make a consumption, (termination, destruction, annihilation) evendetermined, in the midst of all the land. v24 Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD of hosts, O my people that dwellest in Zion, be not afraid of the Assyrian, (the head of modern Turkey, Iran, and Iraq). He shall smite you with a rod, and shall lift up his staff against you, after the manner of Egypt. v25 For yet a very little while, and the indignation (he will sit in the temple, declaring he is God) shall cease, and mine anger shall assure his destruction.”

Then we are shown the climax of the tribulation In Revelation 16:14 “For the spirits of devils, shall work miracles, which go forth unto the kings of the earth and of the whole world, to gather them to the battle of that great day of God Almighty. v15 Behold, I come as a thief. Blessed is he that watches, and keepshis garments, lest he walk naked, and they see his shame. v16 And he gathered them together into a valley called in the Hebrew tongue Armageddon”.

The Valley of Armageddon is a valley in Israel, located 56 milesnorth of Jerusalem referred as the Jezreel valley. It is known as the breadbasket of Israel…

When Jesus returns and touches the earth, an earthquake will split the Mt. of Olives and open the river underneath the temple and cause the waters to flow from the temple into the dead sea and it will be cleansed and healed. But don’t take my word for it….

Zechariah 14:3 “And his feet shall stand in that day upon the mount of Olives, which is before Jerusalem on the east, and the Mount of Olives shall cleave in the midst thereof toward the east and toward the west, and there shall be a very great valley and the half of the mountain shall remove toward the north, and half of it toward the south… Then shall the Lord go forth to fight against those nations, and He shall fight in the day of battle.”.

If you haven’t sorted it out, The difference in the appearing of Christ at the rapture and the coming of Christ is that… He appears in the clouds at the rapture to catch believers away, He shows up on earth at his coming and his feet touch the Mt. of Olives, and he comes with the saints, who have been with Him in heaven for 7 years, since the rapture, and they will wage war against the anti-Christ. Then He ushers in the Millennial reign with the glorified saints. The earth will be a virtual garden of Eden. All death and lawlessness will cease. No sickness, no sin, no evil or anti-God spirit anywhere to be found! Satan is bound. 

Look at it in Revelation 20:1 “And I saw an angel come down from heaven, having the key of the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand. v2 And he laid hold on the dragon, that old serpent, which is the Devil, and Satan, and bound him a thousand years, (no Devil for 1000 years)                                                                                                                            v3 And cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal upon him, that he should deceive the nations no more, till the thousand years should be fulfilled: and after that he must be loosed a little season”.

In the unfolding of events, this brings us to Gog and Magog, the final battle and the final defeat of Satan. Revelation 20:7-10“Now when the thousand years have expired, Satan will be released from his prison and will go out to deceive the nations which are in the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to battle, whose number is as the sand of the sea. They went up on the breadth of the earth and surrounded the camp of the saints and the beloved city.                                    And fire came down from God out of heaven and devoured them. And the devil, who deceived them, was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone where also the beast and the false prophet are. And they will be tormented day and night forever and ever”.

Ezekiel actually describes the battle….Ezekiel 38:15-16 “Then you will come from your place out of the far north, you and many peoples with you, all of them riding on horses, a great company and a mighty army. You will come up against my people Israel like a cloud, to cover the land. It will be in the latter days that I will bring you against my land, so that the nations may know me, when I am hallowed in you, O Gog, before their eyes”. 

Verses 22-23 “And I will bring him to judgment with pestilence and bloodshed; I will rain down on him, on his troops, and on the many peoples who are with him, flooding rain, great hailstones, fire, and brimstone. Thus I will magnify myself and sanctify myself, and I will be known in the eyes of many nations. Then they shall know that I am the LORD”.

(There are two streams of raptured folks) Gog and Magog sets in motion the final rapture of the righteous and the unrighteous who came through the final battle who will now receive their rewards or be judged with all the wicked, evil and ungodly throughout history. All the unrighteous dead, are now resurrected. Remember that no righteous person, before or after the cross will appear before the great white throne of judgment. (Jesus descended and preached to the righteous in paradise, the waiting place of O.T. dead, before He ascended to heaven to present His victory for those who have received Him)  

Revelation 20:11 “Then I saw a great white throne and him who sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away. And there was found no place for them. v12 And I saw the dead, small and great, standing before God’s throne and books were opened.                                           And another book was opened, which is the Book of Life. And the dead were judged according to the things which were written in the books. v13 The sea gave up the dead who were in it, and Death and Hades delivered up the dead who were in them. And they were judged, each one according to his works.” (faith without works is dead and                                                             works are never enough without receiving Jesus as savior).                                                                                                                     I can only imagine the sobering and fearful effect this will have on sinners who have died without Christ, as they are shown all their wicked words, thoughts and deeds committed during their lifetimes. Everyone who has been summoned to the Great White Throne judgment will be examined and meticulously evaluated in light of what is written in the book that are before them with no chance for do overs, or repentance.

Revelation 20 continues v14 “Then Death and Hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. v15 And anyone not found written in the Book of Life (who had not accepted Jesus) was cast into the lake of fire”.

We can’t imagine such a place where you burn but never burn up, where there is no let up of the torment. Where all light is extinguished and there is only darkness, where even the flames have no light. 

We’ve all fallen short, but when we repent now, and ask forgiveness, the blood of Jesus covers that, and the very remembrance of it is erased. (repentance is a change of direction)

When Satan and death and hell are cast into the lake of fire forever. It is then, that God will totally purge the earth and the very elements that have been affected by the curse of sin. His purging will be at a nuclear level, down to the very atoms which hold all things together….                                                2 Peter 3:10 In the day of the Lord, the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up. v11 Seeing then that all these things shall be dissolved, what manner of persons should we be in all holy conversation and Godliness. v12 Looking for and hasting unto the coming of the day of God, wherein the heavens being on fire shall be dissolved, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat”.

I am so looking forward to seeing the new Jerusalem which will come down out of heaven after the earth is renovated and purged. What a city! It’s called the city of the Lamb and the bride, which is the church.

Revelation 21:10 “And He carried me away in the spirit to a great and high mountain, and shewed me that great city, the holy Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God, v11 Having the glory of God: and her light was like unto a stone most precious, even like a jasper stone, clear as crystal. v12 And had a wall great and high, and had twelve gates, and at the gates twelve angels, and names were written thereon, which are the names of the twelve tribes of the children of Israel….                                                          v16 And the city was foursquare, and the length is as large as the breadth, and the angel measured the city with the reed, twelve thousand furlongs. The length and the breadth and the height of it are equal. v17 And he measured the wall thereof, an hundred and forty and four cubits, according to the measure of a man. v18 And the building of the wall of it was of jasper: and the city was pure gold, like clear glass. v19 And the foundations of the wall of the city were covered with all manner of precious stones. …..

One more scripture on this…Revelation 21:22 “And I saw no temple there, for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are the temple of it. v23 And the city had no need of the sun, neither of the moon, to shine, for the glory of God did lighten it, and the Lamb is the light of it. v24 And the nations of them which are saved shall walk in the light of it, and the kings of the earth willbring their glory and honor into it. v25 And the gates of it shall not be shut at all, for there shall be no night there”.

Think of it, 1,400 miles square and 1,400 miles high! Scripture says the shape will be a cube. Think about it! It can have 1,400 levels, each level will be a mile high. Streets of transparent gold, walls of jasper, gates of pearl. And at the center of it all and in the midst of it all and through it all, the glory of God!!! 

Make sure nothing, nothing, nothing, hinders you from being ready. Nothing, nothing, nothing, is that important or valuable to miss heaven for, and all God has in store for us….

How should we then live seeing that He shall soon appear…                                                      Luke 10:20 “Nevertheless do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rather rejoice because your names are written in heaven (The book of life)..

Ephesians 2:8-9 “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast”.

Are you ready, is it all covered by the blood. Are there things that you haven’t ask Him to cover through repentance and getting it settled with the Lord. Take a God moment right now and get it settled. 

(Prayer of commitment)

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