God’s Stamp On America

Sermon Summary

God’s Stamp On America

Today’s sermon is more of a history lesson that I hope provokes thought as to the thought process in the founding of our country and the direction we are going today.  This is not meant to be any kind of political statement.  Everything said here today is based on History.

The U.S. Constitution never explicitly mentions God or the divine, but the same cannot be said of the nation’s state constitutions. In fact, God or the divine is mentioned at least once in each of the 50 state constitutions 

There are currently   8    states that requires by their State constitution that in order to hold public office you must believe in God or a supreme being.  That means that a self-proclaimed atheist cannot hold office.  

Arkansas

Article 19, section 1: “No person who denies the being of a God shall hold any office in the civil departments of this State, nor be competent to testify as a witness in any Court.”

Maryland

Article 37: “That no religious test ought ever to be required as a qualification for any office of profit or trust in this State, other than a declaration of belief in the existence of God; nor shall the Legislature prescribe any other oath of office than the oath prescribed by this Constitution.”

Mississippi

Article 14, section 265: “No person who denies the existence of a Supreme Being shall hold any office in this State.”

North Carolina

Article VI, section 8: “The following persons shall be disqualified for office: First, any person who shall deny the being of Almighty God.”

Pennsylvania

Article 1, section 4: “No person who acknowledges the being of a God and a future state of rewards and punishments shall, on account of his religious sentiments, be disqualified to hold any office or place of trust or profit under this Commonwealth.”

Note: Pennsylvania differs from the other states in that it says believers cannot be disqualified from holding office for his or her religious sentiments, but that is not extended to atheists.

South Carolina

Article XVII, section 4: “No person who denies the existence of a Supreme Being shall hold any office under this Constitution.”

Tennessee

Article IX, section 2: “No person who denies the being of God, or a future state of rewards and punishment, shall hold any office in the civil department of this state.”

Note: Ministers are also barred from holding office, because they “ought not to be diverted from the great duties of their functions; therefore, no minister of the Gospel, or priest of any denomination whatever, shall be eligible to a seat in either House of the Legislature,” according to article IX, section 1.

**Texas

Article 1, section 4: “No religious test shall ever be required as a qualification to any office, or public trust, in this State; nor shall anyone be excluded from holding office on account of his religious sentiments, provided he acknowledge the existence of a Supreme Being.”

But This requirement that is not being enforced today because in  1961 the Supreme Court ruled it unconstitutional.  The Court considered these requirements as a religious test.

• As a society we are at a crossroads. We are living in a time of confusion and a time of misinformation.  If you have been following the news, you have to be concerned about what is happening around you today in the United States of America.

• What is happening to America?

How many of you recited the Lord’s Prayer and the Pledge of Allegiance at the beginning of each school day?

• WE can spend all day talking about the bad things that are happening, but until we get at the root of the problem all the talk in the world will not change anything because we will be dealing with symptoms and not the real problem.

• What has caused America to slide down a dangerous path?

• It is because we are confused about where and if God belongs in our nation. As time goes by, we are pushing God further and further out of our society. Has it always been that way?

• What did our founding fathers fight and die for? What did they lay their lives on the line for?

• It is easy for us to look back on history and say that it was easy for these people to do what they did because we see that they won the war. But remember they took on the strongest nation in the world at the time; victory was not a sure thing.  It was considered a very slim chance of victory.  Each of our founding fathers risk everything, their wealth, their property, prison and even their lives

• Is it important to see what our founding fathers believed and fought for?

• Yes, it is. These men had a vision for the nation that they shed their blood for, it was a vision that was so strong they were willing to pay the ultimate sacrifice in the face of overwhelming odds to make it happen.

• Today we are going to see if our Founding Father’s intended for God to place his stamp on various aspects of our great Nation!

• Because of time I will only be scratching the surface in each area we will examine.

• The founding fathers wrote volumes and volumes of things, it is sad to see supposed educators making accusations without looking at primary source documents.

• If you want more information I would encourage you to go to www.wallbuilders.com.

• Much of the historical information for this message comes from the work of David Barton the founder of Wall builders. We have just shown his video “America’s Godly Heritage.” It is available to check out in our library.

• By the way, this information is not FICTION, it is all facts of history anyone can research what I am going to share with you this morning. LITTLE DIFFERENT THAN USUAL MESSAGE.

• I want to read Deuteronomy 11:13-25 with you this morning because this has application to God and His dealings. In the context this is written to the Israelites concerning the Promised Land.  

13 ‘And it shall be that if you earnestly obey My commandments which I command you today, to love the Lord your God and serve Him with all your heart and with all your soul, 

14 then I will give you the rain for your land in its season, the early rain and the latter rain, that you may gather in your grain, your new wine, and your oil. 

15 And I will send grass in your fields for your livestock, that you may eat and be filled.’ 

16 Take heed to yourselves, lest your heart be deceived, and you turn aside and serve other gods and worship them, 

17 lest the Lord’s anger be aroused against you, and He shut up the heavens so that there be no rain, and the land yield no produce, and you perish quickly from the good land which the Lord is giving you.

18 “Therefore you shall lay up these words of mine in your heart and in your soul, and bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. 

19 You shall teach them to your children, speaking of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up. 

20 And you shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates, 

21 that your days and the days of your children may be multiplied in the land of which the Lord swore to your fathers to give them, like the days of the heavens above the earth.

22 “For if you carefully keep all these commandments which I command you to do—to love the Lord your God, to walk in all His ways, and to hold fast to Him— 

23 then the Lord will drive out all these nations from before you, and you will dispossess greater and mightier nations than yourselves. 

24 Every place on which the sole of your foot treads shall be yours: from the wilderness and Lebanon, from the river, the River Euphrates, even to the Western Sea, shall be your territory. 

25 No man shall be able to stand against you; the Lord your God will put the dread of you and the fear of you upon all the land where you tread, just as He has said to you.

• God has either put His stamp on America or He has not, let us see what our Founder’s thought concerning this important issue as we celebrate Independence Day!

I. GOD’S STAMP ON AMERICA’S HERITAGE.

• There is much confusion over our nation’s heritage. There is much confusion over the beliefs of the founding fathers.

• Today it is popular for uninformed people to say that the founders were not Christians. They say that Thomas Jefferson wrote a bible that had no references to miracles.

• This is not true; he wrote two books that were written to the Indians so that they could learn something about Jesus. Thomas Jefferson would not have liked these books being called bibles.

• Jefferson called HIMSELF a Christian in his own writings.  He would even preach Sunday service in the Capital Building when he was President of the United States

• One of the first acts of the United States Congress was to authorize the printing of 20,000 Bibles for the Indians.

• Further, "When our first President, under the new Constitution, received the request of both Houses of Congress concerning a national declaration of a public day of Thanksgiving and Prayer, ’George Washington...issued a National Thanksgiving Proclamation without any apparent concern that he might be mixing government and religion."

• The men who founded our country clearly tied it to Christian principles. "By today’s standards," "the founding fathers were the religious right."

• Tim LaHaye says that "This Christian consensus is easily verified by the fact that prior to 1789 (the year that eleven of the thirteen states ratified the Constitution), many of the states still had constitutional requirements that a man must be a Christian in order to hold public office."

• This Christian consensus was understood by leaders long after the American Revolution, as well. Abraham Lincoln, in 1863, called for a "National Fast Day," citing the fact that "We have been the recipients of the choicest bounties of Heaven ...But we have forgotten God."

• 52 of the 55 Founding Fathers who worked on the constitution were members of orthodox churches.

• In a report delivered by the House and Senate Judiciary committees on March 27, 1854, they said that if the founders would have known that there would be an attack against Christianity, they would have strangled the revolution in the cradle.

• In 1779 after the First Amendment (The Establishment clause)was written, the Supreme Court stated the following:

• By our form the Christian religion is the established religion; and all sects and denominations of Christians are placed on the same equal footing.

• John Quincy Adams said The highest glory of the American Revolution was this: it connected, in one indissoluble bond, the principles of civil government with the principles of Christianity. – 

• John Adams stated:  The general principles on which the fathers achieved independence were the general principles of Christianity. I will avow that I then believed, and now believe, that those general principles of Christianity are as eternal and immutable as the existence and attributes of God.

II. GOD’S STAMP ON AMERICA’S GOVERNMENT.

• Does God have a place in our government? If you listen to people today they will tell you no.  Just read and listen to the news.  In Canada the government authorities are arresting preachers for have Church service.  Pastor Tim Stevens was holding service in a field and the authorities found him by helicopter and arrested him.  He was later released due to international pressure.

• I am going to make a statement and if you think it is in the constitution, I want you to raise your hand. THE SEPARATION OF CHURCH AND STATE.

• This is NO WHERE in the constitution that states there will be a separation of church and state.  Read it, you will not find it.

• What you find is the 1st Amendment, which we call the Establishment clause. It says,” Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion or prohibiting the free exercise thereof.

• The statement, “Separation of Church and state does not appear in ANY of the founding documents.

• So Where did this statement come from?

• When Thomas Jefferson was president in 1801, the Danbury Baptist Association of Connecticut had heard a rumor that the Congregationalist denomination was going to be made the national denomination.

• On January 1, 1802 Jefferson responded with a letter back to them explaining that the “First Amendment has erected a wall of separation between the church and state.”

• He went on to explain that the wall of the 1st Amendment would protect the church from interference from government control.

♣ The government would only interfere if the religious activities of a said church would involve activity that was a direct menace to the government. (Later the courts defined such activities- human sacrifice, bigamy etc.)

♣ Today we hear the phrase from Jefferson’s letter without reference to the context of the letter.

♣ In 1853 a group tried to use the statement out of context in a court case with no success.

♣ In 1947 for the first time in a case Everson v. Board of Education, the court did not cite the entire Jefferson letter, just the following statement:

♣ The 1st Amendment has erected ‘a wall of separation between the church and state.’ That wall must be kept high and impregnable.

♣ The court from that time forward continued to repeat the mantra from the 1947 case. In a 1958 case one of the justices was so tired of hearing the phrase and wrote a dissent warning that if the court did not stop talking about the “separation of church and state’” people were going to think it was part of the constitution. That was in 1958!

• In a 10 year study the Political Science Professors at the University of Houston researched over 15,000 writing of the founders, they isolated 3154 direct quotes in these writings, of these direct quotes, 34% of them come directly from the Bible, another 60% were quotes from people like John Locke (Famous philosopher) and Sir William Blackstone (Famous & influential Legal Mind) , who directly quoted the Bible. Over 94% of the quotes found in the writings of the founders came from the Bible.

• Let’s briefly look at a couple of statements from our founders pertaining to God in Government. 

• John Adams stated the following:

♣ We have no government armed with power capable of contending with human passions unbridled by morality and religion. Our constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other.

• John Quincy Adams said:

♣ The law given from Sinai was a civil and municipal as well as a moral and religious code... laws essential to the existence of men in society and most of which have been enacted by every nation which ever professed any code of laws."

• Notice this ruling by the Illinois Supreme Court Richmond Vs. Moore in 1883:

♣ "Our laws and our institutions must necessarily be based upon and embody the teachings of the Redeemer of mankind. It is impossible that it should be otherwise. In this sense and to this extent, our civilizations and our institutions are emphatically Christian." 26

• In 1811 The Supreme Court stated in People V Ruggles:

♣ Whatever strikes at the root of Christianity tends manifestly to the dissolution of civil government

• The founding fathers based our system of government in the Bible.

♣ For example, the concept for three branches of government can be found in Isaiah 33:22  22 (For the Lord is our Judge, The Lord is our Lawgiver, The Lord is our King; He will save us;

; the logic for the separation of powers was based on       Jeremiah 17:9  9 “The heart is deceitful above all things, And [a]desperately wicked; Who can know it?

the basis of tax exemptions for churches was found in 

Ezra 7:24  24 Also we inform you that it shall not be lawful to impose tax, tribute, or custom on any of the priests, Levites, singers, gatekeepers, Nethinim, or servants of this house of God.

and there are many other examples.

III. GOD’S STAMP ON AMERICA’S EDUCATIONAL SYSTEM.

• Does God belong in the school? It does not seem so today.

• The New England Primer that was the standard textbook in schools for over 200 years beginning in Boston in 1690. It is FULL of Bible facts and teachings.

• Our educational institutions were founded with God as the center. Look at these statements of philosophy of our major colleges in the United States.

♣ Yale- Seeing God is the giver of all wisdom, every scholar, besides private or secret prayer... shall be present morning and evening at public prayer

♣ Princeton- Cursed be all that learning that is contrary to the cross of Christ.

♣ Harvard- Let every student be plainly instructed and earnestly pressed to consider well the main end of his life and studies is to know God and Jesus which is eternal life, and therefore to lay Christ in the bottom as the only foundation of all sound knowledge and learning.  This was based on John 17:3 3 And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent.

♣ Everyone shall so exercise himself in reading the Scriptures twice a day that he shall be ready to give such an account of his proficiency therein.

♣ John Quincy Adams went through this system of education and when he was 14, he received a Congressional diplomatic appointment overseas to the court of Catherine the Great in Russia.

♣ Just weeks after his 1st inauguration President George Washington signed his first federal bill, the Northwest Ordinance.

♣ The Northwest Ordinance, drafted concurrently with the creation of the First Amendment. That act stipulated that for a territory to become a State, the "schools and the means of education" in that territory must encourage the "religion, morality, and knowledge" that was "necessary to good government and the happiness of mankind."

♣ Each of the state constitutions mandated that Christian teachings would be included in a child’s education

• November 1, 1802 The Ohio State constitution said:

♣ Religion, morality, and knowledge, being essentially necessary to the good government and the happiness of mankind, schools and the means of instruction shall forever be encouraged by legislative provision.

• 106 of the first 108 colleges formed in America and 123 of the first 126 were formed on Christian principles

• By 1900. It was extremely rare to find a university president who was not an ordained clergyman.

• Since the 1960’s when the systematic removal of God from the schools took place, things have gotten worse and worse.

CONCLUSION

Where does God fit into America? The founding Fathers who gave us this great nation made it clear. Jesus belongs front and center in our society.

Don’t be fooled by the so-called enlightened people. The founders knew that when you take God out of something, that something will fail. As Christians, educate yourself and let people know about our Godly heritage.

Christians should be the one who are carrying the truth to the world. Let’s work to get America back on track.  

We can start by being Kingdom Builders, by being true Disciples of God by spreading his word to any and all that will listen.  Always remember We do not fight a physical battle, but a spiritual one.

Let Us Pray

Lord… remind us today that You have shown us what is good in what You require of us; to do justly, to love mercy and to walk humbly with you God. We ask that as a people, we may humble ourselves before You and seek Your will for our lives and for this great nation. 

Thank you that in our nation today, we are free to worship. We are free to pray. We are free to read, speak and spread your Word.  

For this, we are incredibly grateful. Yet, help us all understand how quickly these freedoms can be taken away.

Help us in our nation to work as never before to strengthen our families and to give our children hope and a moral foundation for the future. So may our desire be to serve You, and in so doing, serve one another. Give us an increased awareness of the spiritual battle we’re in. Help us to stand strong in you and for your purposes.

Thank you that as believers, we can be assured, you will never leave us, and are with us always

Thru Jesus Christ we Pray

AMEN

• Verse List  “God’s Stamp On America”

Deuteronomy 11:13-25
Isaiah 33:22 
Jeremiah 17:9 
Ezra 7:24
John 17:3

Looking For A Place to Find Peace in a Crazy World 

Sermon Summary

How do we get people who are unbelievers or are on the fence about confessing their sins and asking for forgiveness from God?  A couple of weeks age the sermon was about Faith and Works.  I think that sermon was more about setting the example for others to see and follow.  Todays sermon expands further on this subject of how do we be a Kingdom Builder for God.  How do I get people to listen and follow God.

The only way I know is To Set the Example by our Faith and Good Works and the hard part, Share With Others how God has effected you, how God has helped you. 

Let Us Pray

Dear Lord, in Heaven, The creator of all

We look forward to the joys of heaven.

Where there is no more pain, No suffering, No Sickness

God remind us that our actions matter here in this world.

Our actions here on this earth will pave our way to live in your house

Here on earth Each and every day is a struggle against sin and temptation.  Give us the strength to overcome cruelty with grace 

and hatred with love.  Remind us Lord We do not fight a physical battle, 

but a spiritual one and with each act of compassion here on earth

We build your kingdom.

Help to guide us to be kingdom builders today and everyday.

As a Kingdom builder we will try to plant your seed Lord in the hearts of any and all that will listen

Then we will help nourish that seed so it can grow and they too can receive your greatest gift of Love     Everlasting Life

Soon We will be done with the troubles of the world

and will be walking down the path we paved with our actions

As Kingdom Builders To live in the house of the Lord forever

Thru Jesus Christ we pray

AMEN

Now for todays Sermon, Now is the Time To Share

Do you know how to scare a Christians? Tell them one of their purposes in life is to become evangelists!!

Todays sermon will be based on Acts 1:1-9

1 The former account I made, O Theophilus, of all that Jesus began both to do and teach, 2 until the day in which He was taken up, after He through the Holy Spirit had given commandments to the apostles whom He had chosen, 3 to whom He also presented Himself alive after His suffering by many [b]infallible proofs, being seen by them during forty days and speaking of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God.4 And being assembled together with them, He commanded them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the Promise of the Father, “which,” He said, “you have heard from Me; 5 for John truly baptized with water, but you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.” 6 Therefore, when they had come together, they asked Him, saying, “Lord, will You at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?” 7 And He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or seasons which the Father has put in His own authority.8 But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be [c]witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” 9 Now when He had spoken these things, while they watched, He was taken up, and a cloud received Him out of their sight.

When you were a child, your mother or father probably told you more than once to SHARE!

You may remember playing in the park with your favorite toys – your best friend would come up and want to play with your toys, but you wanted to keep those toys to yourself. After all, those were your favorite toys.

And more than likely your mother or father would intervene with the very clear instruction – “Share your toys!”

Hopefully, you grew up with a sharing attitude.

You share your income with the church and with charities.

You share books with friends who enjoy the same sort of literature as you enjoy.

You share your home with family and friends who come to visit.

You share your political opinions.

Big things – small things – you share with others.

Today we are going to talk about our purpose in life, today we will discover that sharing is one of our purposes.

Our purpose is to Worship – or to give pleasure to God.

Our purpose is to Fellowship – we were formed for God’s family.

Our purpose is Discipleship – we were created to be like Christ.

Our purpose is Ministry – we were shaped to serve God.

As Christians sharing mean Evangelism!

Evangelism is our mission!!

If you want to scare a Christian you don’t have to say “boo.” Say “Evangelism”.

I don’t know why, but the word “evangelism” is a scary word to many.

But the word “sharing” is a good word – a comforting word. We like to share with others and we love it when people share with us!

Evangelism is nothing more than sharing!

Specifically, we need to share the love and salvation of Jesus Christ!

Now, where am I supposed to share it? Well, let’s look at Acts 1:8: 

8 But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be [c]witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”

Now, when Jesus told this to his followers, do you know where they were? They were in Jerusalem. So here’s the point. He is saying, first, I want you to start at home. I want you to start with the people closest to you, right there in your own city, your own community, your own neighbor and with any and all you meet.

Then he says I want you to go to Judea and Samaria, that’s like the county next door, and Samaritans happen to be different culturally and different racially. So He said, “I want you to go to people nearby, but they are different from you.”

Then He says, “I want you to go to the ends of the earth. I want you to go reach everybody.”

Imagine this verse saying, “You will be my witnesses in Ingleside on the Bay, and in all of Texas with all of the Hispanics, Immigrants, and people of other races, and even to the ends of the earth.”

Also notice not only where you are to do this mission, but notice specifically what Jesus calls you to be in this mission.

He does not say, “You will be my defense attorney.”

He doesn’t say, “You will be my prosecutor.”

He didn’t say, “You will be my salesman.”

You don’t have to defend God. You don’t have to be a salesman for God. All God wants you to do is to be a witness for God.

What is a witness?

Have you ever seen an episode of Law and Order?

In a courtroom, a witness is called to take the stand. Then they put their hand on a Bible and they have to take an oath to “tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth.”

And then they say what they saw.

If they say something like, “Fred told me he saw an accident and Fred said, ‘the blue car hit the red car,” then the defense attorney will stand up and say, “Objection – your honor, that’s heresay,”

The judge and jury don’t want to hear gossip, they want the witness to give first hand testimony.

A good witness will say, “I was at the corner. I saw the blue car. I saw the red car. I saw the blue car hit the red car.”

A witness is somebody who just tells what they have seen.

I saw this, and then I saw this; and this is what happened.

And a witness tells what happened to them.

You see, you are the expert on your life. Nobody can be a better witness on your life than you. Nobody can be a better witness of what God has done in your life than you, because you are the expert on your life, not some pastor, not some priest, not anybody else.

So God says, “I just want you to tell other people what’s happened to you, what’s happened in your life.” And He says, “I want you to go all over; the people close to you, the people who are near, but also go to those who are different, and then to everybody else.

Why does He say this?

Because God is building a family. God is building a family of people who love and trust Him, that are going to spend eternity with Him. So how does God build this family?  God builds this family by using us to share with others how God has helped us in our daily lives.  How God has helped to prosper and also helped us in our times of need. The whole point of God having us share our experiences of God is help build a family that’s going to live with Him forever and love Him just as much as we do.

God says I want family members from every nation, of every race, of every color. I want them from all over. And one day all believers are going to be gathered together in heaven. This is not Mission Impossible. This is Mission Inevitable. It is going to happen. And it has been God’s plan all along.

Here’s the amazing part: God has chosen you, us to complete the mission. The mission that Jesus Christ started when He came to earth, He says, “I want you guys to finish it.” God puts the future of his Kingdom in our hands.

So how do you become a history maker? How do you get on God’s agenda and how do you let God use you and bless you so that you can be completing your mission? Well, you do three things.

One: Share with those in your own world.

That’s the starting point. I must share with those in my world.

In Luke Chapter 8, Jesus healed A Demon-Possessed Man , and after Jesus healed him, the man wanted to travel with Jesus and Jesus said In Luke 8:39  “Return to your own house, and tell what great things God has done for you.” And he went his way and proclaimed throughout the whole city what great things Jesus had done for him.

Jesus says the same thing to you.

You know where your mission starts?

Right at home, starts in your own neighborhood, in your own community. With your family, your friends, your coworkers, your neighbors, anybody who crosses your path, the person who delivers the paper, helps you at the grocery store.  God says, "I want you to share the Good News with the people first in your Jerusalem, with the people in your home.”

Are we doing this?

Probably not.

Why not? Why don’t we do this?

Well, a couple reasons.

One reason is because we believe the myth that people aren’t interested in spiritual issues. Nothing could be further from the truth. Every single poll and every single survey says Americans are more interested in spiritual things now than they were ten years ago. Not less, but more interested in spiritual issues.

I read that George Gallup did a survey and discovered that 65 million Americans have no church home, but 34 million of them said they would attend if somebody would just invite them. 34 million just waiting for an invitation!

You see, opportunities to share the Good News really are all around you.

They are staring us in the face every single day. You just have to be ready for them.

Here in Texas, we strike up conversations with strangers we meet in the check out line of Wal Mart. We have never met these people before, and we will never meet them again. But there we are. Life has thrown us together and for 10 minutes we find ourselves telling one another about what a horrible job we have – or what a wonderful one we have. We tell that person about our child’s report card. We tell that person about who we are voting for in the next election. 

We are witnesses about what is happening to us and God wants us to also be a witness about our relationship with him!

Whenever I tell people that we need to share the news of Jesus Christ, many times people will say to me, “You know preacher, I’m no evangelist. I just don’t like talking about God to strangers.”

But we will talk to friends about our job. We talk to our family about our feelings. We talk to people we just naturally strike up conversations with in the check out line of the grocery stores about our political leaning.

And those are the same people, the same strangers we need to be telling, “I want to tell you about what a the great God I serve!”

And there are so many ways you can share this news.

Invite people to come to church.  Invite a someone to join you in your small group bible study.   Have you all seen the original TV show Mission Impossible?  Each show opened with Mr Phelps listening to a tape recording in a secret place.  The message would begin with Your mission if you accept it is, I am hear today telling you need to accept this mission, your mission is to share the Good News of God with the people in your corner of the world.

But that’s not enough.

It is not enough to just care about the people who are around you.

Step Two! Reach just beyond your corner of the world.

Love demands I move beyond my comfort zone to people with different background, different education, different language, different economics and different colors.

You see, our mission has such eternal consequences, eternal life in heaven or eternal suffering in hell, that we must be willing to risk anything to get the message out. If I had the cure for COVID, believe me, I’d be shouting it on the streets.  It would be criminal to keep it a secret. But I have something even more important than that to share, and that is the way to eternal life. It has been given. Somebody cared enough to tell me, I’ve got to be caring enough to tell others.

Time and again we are told in the Bible to reach out to others.

Galatians 6:2 tells us, “Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ.”

Another version of this verse says "Stoop down and reach out to those who were oppressed. Share their burdens, and so complete Christ’s commandment."

What is Christ’s commandment? Love your neighbor as yourself. He says, “Stoop down and reach out to those who are oppressed.”

You know, when you read the Bible and you read about Jesus, you read that Jesus always rooted for the underdog that people in that society wanted to ignore; the powerless, the poor, the left behind, the imprisoned, the orphaned, the widowed, the aged, the mentally ill, the social outcasts, the sick, the lepers. If Jesus were alive today, do you know who He would be hanging out with -- AIDS patients, Drug addicts, Prostitutes, The Mentally Challenged, the Covid victums. He’d probably be walking down the streets of our cities talking to the drug addicts, the homeless, the very poor and the disenfranchised people of our socity.  You know the people we all seem to turn our backs on.

 You always have the opportunity to be witnesses for the Lord, and to share the Good News with those who are in your corner of the world, and with those who are just beyond your world.

The Bible says in Matthew 25:32-36

32 All the nations will be gathered before Him, and He will separate them one from another, as a shepherd divides his sheep from the goats. 33 And He will set the sheep on His right hand, but the goats on the left. 34 Then the King will say to those on His right hand, ‘Come, you blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: 35 for I was hungry and you gave Me food; I was thirsty and you gave Me drink; I was a stranger and you took Me in; 36 I was naked and you clothed Me; I was sick and you visited Me; I was in prison and you came to Me.’

God loves us and we are to share that news with others.

Here in your neighborhood, and on to the people who are just beyond your little corner of the world – and even to the entire world.

So how can we share with others?

Step one – share with our neighbors

Step two – share with those just beyond your neighborhood, Strangers

Step three – share with the entire world!!!! Any and all that will listen

We don’t ever say, “Well, I’m not going to share the news of God’s love with others because they are a different race, or they are from a different country, or they dress differently.” Nor can you ever say, “I’m not going to share the news of God’s love with people who live too far away.”

And I know that sometimes we wonder if we are doing any good 

But the work of God is never done in vain.

God’s Word tells us in I Corinthians 15:58 

58 Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord.

A lady name Marge Carpenter used to work in the Christian Church’s office for World Wide Ministries. She recalls that she often runs into people who talk about how much money has been wasted on missions.

China is a prefect example.

For years they were sending missionaries to China.

They poured thousands of dollars into the work in China.

They built homes for children, hospitals, churches.

And one day China threw out all of the missionaries. The hospitals were taken over by the Communist government. The homes for children were closed. The churches were bulldozed.

And people in America grieved – all that money wasted. All that effort for nothing.

Years later China began to relax its stand against the Christian Churches and Marge Carpenter said she and several other Christians went to China. During their visit, they were able to worship with Chinese Christians. They had been there all along. They had been meeting in homes. Marge picked up one of the ragged old hymnals the Chinese were using. She said she couldn’t make out anything in the hymnal. It was all in Chinese. But she could make out one little line of English on the front page. It read, “Printed by the Church Mission Board, 1928.”

Our work is never in vain.

If I am going to be like Jesus Christ, I must care about the whole world. I share with my world. I dare to reach beyond my world. And then I care about the whole world. And we have to care because God cares about the whole world. This is going to take you to a new level of spiritual maturity.

Jesus said in Mark 16:15, “15 And He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature.” 

Now, I want you to notice a couple things about that verse. Look at the verse. Was Jesus talking to pastors there? No. 

Was he talking to missionaries there? No. 

He’s talking to just normal followers. 

If you’re a Christian, Jesus said, “Follow Me, and I’ll make you a fisher of men.” If you’re not fishing, you’re not following. He says to His followers, go everywhere, because everybody deserves to hear the Good News of God.

Is anybody going to be in heaven because of you? When you get to heaven, is anybody going to say thank you, thank you for telling me the Good News of God? You knew it and you didn’t keep it a secret. You made the effort to passed it on to me.

In the next 365 days, 2.4 million Americans will die, and most of them will go into eternity without knowing Jesus Christ. In the next 365 days, 54 million people in the world will die; most of them will go into eternity without knowing Jesus Christ. Those numbers are staggering, almost too difficult for me to comprehend, for me to bare.

If we care, we must share.

God calls us to a mission – a mission of sharing his love and forgiveness with others. A mission of being his witnesses in the courtroom of life.

How do you respond to that call to a mission?

I think there are only four choices you have.

You can be like Moses.

When God called him, Moses didn’t say, “Yes, send me!” He looked at the burning bush and said, “Who, me?” Then he pointed to his brother and suggested that God should send him.

Or you can say like Jonah.

When God called Jonah to go to the Ninevites and share the Gospel, Jonah didn’t jump up and say, “Yes, Lord I’m on my way !” No. Instead he said, "Not me." Then he got in a boat and headed in the opposite direction that God wanted Jonah to go to.

Or you can say it like Habakkuk. 

When God called the Old Testament prophet, his response was “Lord, why me?"

And the only other response is to be like Isaiah. 

Isiah 6:8 "And I heard the voice of the Lord saying whom shall I send and who will go for us? Then I said, here am I, send me." 

Are you going to be like Moses, like Jonah or like Isaiah?

If you have not yet repented, confessed your sins, and trusted in Christ to save you from God’s wrath, then you don’t know the full extent of Gods’ love yet.  John 3:36 says that “Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him” because “Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God” (John 3:18). I pray that is not you.

I encourage you to pray this prayer with me, but I caution you that saying words alone will not save you. Prayer alone doesn’t save. Only Christ can save. But prayer can be a means of reaching out to the Lord in true saving faith. If you pray these words in faith, Christ will save you. You can be sure of that.

Prayer:  Lord Jesus, for too long I’ve kept you out of my life. I know that I am a sinner and that I cannot save myself. No longer will I close the door of my heart when I hear you knocking. By faith I gratefully receive your gift of salvation. I am ready to trust you as my Lord and Savior. Thank you, Lord Jesus, for coming to earth. I believe you are the Son of God who died on the cross for my sins and rose from the dead on the third day. Thank you for bearing my sins and giving me the gift of eternal life. I believe your word and desire the Holy Spirit to come into my heart and give me guidance to walk your path to salvation and everlasting life. In Jesus Name I Pray Amen.

Getting Serious with God

Sermon Summary

The purpose of Barefoot Ministry is to Spread the word of God to all that will listen.  I will try very hard to plant the seed of God in your hearts, provide you with the knowledge to nurture that seed thru prayer, Bible Study and fellowship so that it can grow, so that in time that seed will mature and you will be saved and re-born so that you can have the greatest gift of God’s Love, Everlasting Life.

Let Us Pray

Dear Lord, in Heaven, The creator of all

We look forward to the joys of heaven.

Where there is no more pain, No suffering, No Sickness

God remind us that our actions matter here in this world.

Our actions here on this earth will pave our way to live in your house

Here on earth Each and every day is a struggle against sin and temptation.  Give us the strength to overcome cruelty with grace 

and hatred with love.  Remind us Lord We do not fight a physical battle, 

but a spiritual one and with each act of compassion here on earth

We build your kingdom.

Help to guide us to be kingdom builders today and every day.

As a Kingdom builder we will try to plant your seed Lord in the hearts of any and all that will listen

Then we will help nourish that seed so it can grow and they too can receive your greatest gift of Love     Everlasting Life

Soon We will be done with the troubles of the world

and will be walking down the path we paved with our actions

As Kingdom Builders To live in the house of the Lord forever

Thru Jesus Christ we pray

AMEN

As I put this weeks sermon together I got more and more excited about God.  My purpose this week is to grab you by the shoulders and shake you to emphasis that time is running out on us each and every passing day to become true followers, believers in GOD and real Kingdom Builders.

I hope this message touches you as it has me.

America is in the midst of a spiritual famine today, and, unless our country turns back to God soon, and experiences a great spiritual revival in our nation, it is just a matter of time before God pours out His anger and wrath on our nation.

Todays sermon is called Getting Serious With God

We will be looking at the book of Jeremiah 14:1-12

1 The word of the Lord that came to Jeremiah concerning the droughts.

2 “Judah mourns, And her gates languish; They mourn for the land,

And the cry of Jerusalem has gone up.

3 Their nobles have sent their lads for water; They went to the cisterns and found no water. They returned with their vessels empty; They were ashamed and confounded And covered their heads.

4 Because the ground is parched, For there was no rain in the land, The plowmen were ashamed; They covered their heads.

5 Yes, the deer also gave birth in the field, But [a]left because there was no grass.

6 And the wild donkeys stood in the desolate heights; They sniffed at the wind like jackals; Their eyes failed because there was no grass.”

7 O Lord, though our iniquities testify against us, Do it for Your name’s sake; For our backslidings are many, We have sinned against You.

8 O the Hope of Israel, his Savior in time of trouble, Why should You be like a stranger in the land, And like a traveler who turns aside to tarry for a night?

9 Why should You be like a man astonished, Like a mighty one who cannot save?

Yet You, O Lord, are in our midst, And we are called by Your name; Do not leave us!

10 Thus says the Lord to this people: “Thus they have loved to wander; They have not restrained their feet. Therefore the Lord does not accept them;

He will remember their iniquity now, And punish their sins.”

11 Then the Lord said to me, “Do not pray for this people, for their good. 

12 When they fast, I will not hear their cry; and when they offer burnt offering and grain offering, I will not accept them. But I will consume them by the sword, by the famine, and by the pestilence.”

 Several years ago, in an effort to earn some extra Christmas money, I worked a temporary job at the airport in Nashville Tennessee over the Christmas holidays. It was a manual labor job where several us would unload tractor-trailers full of Christmas mail.

We’d take it off the 18-wheeler, separate it by destination, and reload it into large bins that would be taken to the different airlines and loaded as cargo onto the appropriate planes.

Many of the packages were quite heavy, and in order to work this job a person had to be able to lift over their heads up to 70 pounds. Another requirement of the position was that you had to wear steel-toed boots.

If a package fell or dropped on your feet, the pain was intense and would severely bruise your toes. I said all that just to say this – I hope that you wore your steel-toed boots this morning because God’s going to step all over your toes!

The land of Judah was in the midst of a great famine, and the scripture we read this morning gave us a description of what life was like during this terrible time.

The prophet Jeremiah described the city and its inhabitants as though they were in mourning. The people had been put to shame and were humiliated, and the country was languishing in sorrow. Conditions in the land of Judah were so bad that even the animals were suffering.

In verses 7 and 8 we are given the reason for this suffering:

7 O Lord, though our iniquities testify against us, Do it for Your name’s sake; For our backslidings are many, We have sinned against You.

8 O the Hope of Israel, his Savior in time of trouble, Why should You be like a stranger in the land, And like a traveler who turns aside to tarry for a night?

God had turned his back on the land of Judah because of the sin of its people. Their sin as a country had become so great that God had become a stranger in their land. It was as if He had turned his back on them.

I sent this to you to deliver God’s message to you, the message that God is fast becoming a stranger in the land of America. We have yet to experience a famine of the scale that Judah was going through, but I do believe with all my heart that if things do not change in this country, it is coming. We are in for severe problems in America.

America is in the midst of a spiritual famine today, and, unless our country turns back to God and experiences a great spiritual revival in our nation, it is just a matter of time before God pours out His anger and wrath on our nation.

Our country has fallen to the lowest depths of immorality. Make no mistake about it, we cannot continue down this road of perdition without provoking the wrath and judgment of God!

Destruction and death have become the norm for our everyday lives. Very few people in this country today are truly spiritual in nature, and when I say spiritual I mean the things of God.

Yes, there are countless numbers of people in America today who consider themselves spiritual. Unfortunately, these people are talking about the occult, the new age movement, or scientology just to name a few.

Too many people today think that they are spiritual just because their name appears on a church roll, even though they never seem to be found sitting on the church pew.

God’s message to us today is simple – His patience with America is running out! When that happens it will include the churches in America too!

You see, when God becomes a stranger in the land, four things begin to happen. First and foremost, the churches grow cold and indifferent. Second, the preachers become silent. Third, homes are divided, and fourth, the future becomes uncertain.

Let’s take a few moments and think about these things and see if they are happening in America today.

First, the churches grow cold and become filled with scandal. The busier people get the less we see them in church. The wealthier they get the less they seem to find need for God. The doctrines upon which the churches were founded get changed. There becomes a new acceptance of sin. The rules get changed so as to not offend the minorities. Old rules are considered no longer appropriate for the church. A blind eye is turned away from the sins being committed.  

All across the nation churches have split over changes in doctrine and in acceptance. Well, make no mistake about it; this is God’s message to all churches about doctrinal issues. God has not changed! God’s Word, the Bible, has not changed! The same rules and the same doctrine that applied 50 years ago, 100 years ago and 2000 years ago still apply today! Yesterday, today, forever, Jesus is the same! All else may change, but Jesus will never change, glory to His name!

In recent years we have learned that the Catholic Church has covered up sexual abuse of children for years. Those in the highest positions of leadership – those given the greatest opportunity to positively affect the lives of the youth of America, have taken advantage of their positions, and they are just as guilty as the very priests that have defiled their religion and preyed on young children.

Scandal is not unique to only the Catholic Church. It is everywhere! Satan has infiltrated some of the best, God-loving churches in all of America. We must always be on guard against the forces of Satan.

Secondly I said that preachers are silent. You say, now wait just a minute there Bobby, there are preachers all over the place running their mouths everywhere, in local churches, on the radio and on tv.

Well I’ll tell you what – they may be running their mouths but that’s all that’s happening. Very few who are supposed to be about proclaiming God’s Word tell it like it is. I mean if they did, most congregations in America today would run them off.

There are way too many preachers in the pulpits today preaching goody goody messages, messages that are pleasing to their congregations. You know Feel Good Messages.  You know feel good psychology.  What happens when a preacher stands in the pulpit and preaches a nice, warm message to his congregation telling them how good they are doing?

The congregation leaves the church smiling and happy, content that their lives are in tip top shape and that all is well with their soul. Preachers need to preach the Word of God, as written. Sometimes we just have to step on people’s toes to get God’s message across, and don’t you doubt for one minute that I’m also stepping on my own toes too! For I’m not perfect and other preachers aren’t perfect and none of us are without sin in their lives.

If the preacher happens to preach a message that step all over your toes, then you have to be like Cinderella – if the shoe fits, wear it! Then, realize the error of your ways and ask God to help you overcome the shortcomings in your life, for God still answers prayer.

How many TV evangelists do you see today that still preach it like it is? I watched TBN the other night and at times I wanted to throw my shoe through the TV set. They preach a prosperity gospel, that all God’s children should be prosperous, and never have a need of any kind. They preach a feel good gospel with messages filled with what the people in the pews want to hear.

That kind of gospel is caffeine free. They need to preach it like it is! Let me tell you here right now that a caffeine free gospel won’t wake you up! It won’t shake you up! And it won’t take you up either!!! Heaven is very real folks, but so is hell. When our days here on earth are over, we are all going to one or the other. There is no in-between place. There is no other option. There are no do-overs.

Then these goody two shoes preachers always close their services asking you for your money, and you look at them in their thousand dollar suits, with rings on many fingers and expensive jewelry being worn and you wonder – is this where the money goes? They fly all over the world in their private jets and live luxuriously. Be on guard people, for God has warned us in His Word, beware of wolves in sheep’s clothing.

We need less of these false prophets and more Billy Grahams in this world. Billy and his wife lived in the same North Carolina home they lived in when he first began his evangelistic ministry. His salary did not change in 40 years. I was watching the Billy Graham Network and saw him interviewed on TV and he was asked, “What do you hope to get when you get to Heaven?” His answer was quick, simple and humble. “I hope to hear the words, well done thou good and faithful servant.” We need more people of God like Billy.

I don’t know of anyone that truly got saved after listening to what they wanted to hear, do you? A person gets saved by hearing the complete and unaltered Word of God.

A person gets saved by realizing that they are lost without God, and doomed to spend an eternity in hell.

A person doesn’t get saved by listening to someone tell them that the Christian life is just peachy, and that everything is going to fall into place and that they’ll never want for anything again.

The Christian life is not an easy life. Satan will do everything he can to humiliate you, bring down your spirits and to steal your joy. He will wreak all the havoc he can on your life and on your family, and on your job. But Satan’s days are numbered. The good news for us is if we keep to the things of God and stay on that straight and narrow path, we will spend eternity with our Creator.

What a day that will be, when we all see Jesus – when we look upon His face, the one who saved us by His grace, and He takes us by the hand and leads you and me to the promised land, – what a day, a glorious day, that shall be.

When God is a stranger in the land, its homes are divided. Close to Fifty percent of all marriages in the United States end in divorce, both Christian and non-Christian.

Too many children are living in single parent homes, and it’s all the result of sin and Satan’s attack on God’s institution of the family and marriage that was created some 6000 years ago in the Garden of Eden.

Teenage crime and pregnancy rates have skyrocketed as a result of so many homes being divided. Children need a mother and a father in the home if they are to receive the upbringing that they need to become successful adults in today’s society.

And yes, I know that there are times when circumstances in people’s lives are unavoidable, but that is the time that the church has to step up to the plate and help those parents in need of support, to help raise those children. And the church can help in many ways, and through this type of ministry, reach many people for the cause of Christ.

When God is a stranger in the land, the future is uncertain. Who knows what the future holds for America, only God does, but for us the future becomes more uncertain all the time.

The possibility of war looms over our heads more and more each and every day. The distant drums can be heard all over the world

I want you to listen very closely to what I am about to say: The only way to be certain of anything is to know Christ as your personal Lord and Savior. This is the only way to know for sure that you will make it no matter what happens.

We all are in a spiritual famine in this country right now. If Christians do not take a stand for what is right, if we do not get down on our knees and pray for revival in our land, America stands on the brink of God becoming a stranger in our land.

Today You need to pray for a spiritual revival in your home and in our land for a turning back to God. If we think things are bad now, just wait and see what will happen without a spiritual revival in America.

God’s patience with us will soon be exhausted, the same as it was with the people of Judah. Every day, America gets a day closer to the point of no return.

There will come a day when we He will no longer hear our prayers, hear our cries or accept our offerings. Barring a spiritual revival in the hearts of our people, God will one day say enough is enough.

Out of all the history of God’s chosen people. He had always heard the prayers of His people, or at least the prophet of the times.

He heard Abraham’s prayer for Lot before destroying Sodom and Gomorrah; he kept Joseph’s family alive during the famine in Egypt. He kept 8 people as a remnant during the great flood of Noah’s time.

Nowhere in the Bible did God refuse to listen to the prayers of His prophet, or even instruct him not to pray for his people.

Listen again to verses 11 and 12:

11 Then the Lord said to me, “Do not pray for this people, for their good. 

12 When they fast, I will not hear their cry; and when they offer burnt offering and grain offering, I will not accept them. But I will consume them by the sword, by the famine, and by the pestilence.”

God was done with them! He was no longer going to listen to their prayers or accept their offerings. So what makes us think that God won’t get tired of our immorality as a nation?

Look at the signs, they are all around us, we could be on the verge of a situation just like this in our country. We Christians need to come out of the pews and stand firm and pray like we’ve never prayed before, and we need to do so before God becomes a stranger in our land.

Things were so bad that God told Jeremiah that it would not matter if Samuel and Moses stood before Him and pleaded on behalf of the people of Judah. He was done with them and He would not change His mind.

Jeremiah 15:1 Then the Lord said to me, “Even if Moses and Samuel stood before Me, My mind would not be favorable toward this people. Cast them out of My sight, and let them go forth.

Read that again and take a minute to really think about what God is saying.

Things are getting worse in our country every day. Our country needs to repent and to repent quickly. It is up to we Christians to pray for revival of the church and for the repentance of our nation.

It is up to us to get God’s message out to the people of our land, no matter what the cost, because the cost of not delivering God’s message is even higher.

WE MUST  ALL get serious about God! we must be about God’s business instead of our own. We need to be watchmen for our country and not fall asleep and become stumbling blocks.

We need to pray without ceasing that God will send revival instead of becoming a stranger in our land. We need to pray that progress towards Him becoming a stranger in our land will stop where it is and turn around.

Folks, we need to get on fire for Jesus, right here, right NOW. We need to live what we believe and spread the word while there is still time, because time is running out.

This country needs to stop publishing the slogan “God Bless America.” We need to change it to “America Bless God!”

God gave us our freedom and He can take it away.

God gave us our prosperity and He can take it away.

God gave us our power and He can take it away.

God gave us His presence and He can take it away.

Dwight L. Moody once said, “We ought to see the face of God every morning before we see the face of man.”

What is your ambition in life today? Is it to get rich? Is it to make a name for ourself? The highest desire that can possess any human heart is a longing to see God.

Don’t quit praying just because the answer hasn’t come yet. Keep on praying until God hears your prayer and speaks to you.

We treat God like we’re going thru the drive-thru at Burger King. They say, “Have it your way” and that’s how we seem to want it with God. But God says to us, “Have it my way.”

I don’t want to meddle in people’s lives, but how can folks be renewed on a daily basis without picking up God’s Word and reading it on a daily basis, and praying on a daily basis?

What I am going to say next is to you, to YOU not the church down the street or the one across town.

I send these sermons out each week in an effort to get you excited about hearing the word of God.  Is it that we only need an hour a week of God? Are our lives in such good shape that we don’t need a daily dose of God? 

I know for me this is not enough.  We all need to her the word of God not just on Sunday when we read these sermons.  We need to hear the word of God each and everyday.

I ask that we all examine our own hearts and lives. It’s time to get serious about God. It’s time to pray for the fires of revival in our lives and for a spiritual awakening in our country.

At the end of each sermon I call any and all who have not been saved to pray with me for their salvation.  This week I want to ask each and every one of you to pray your own prayer for not only your salvation, your families salvation, the wellbeing for your family and friends, but pray for the all those people I just mentioned and add to your prayer the salvation of our country.

Remember to tell God not to bless our nation but we as a nation bless God.

Leave the Light On

Sermon Summary

The purpose of Barefoot Ministry is to Spread the word of God to any and all that will listen.  I will try very hard to plant the seed of God in your hearts, provide you with the knowledge to nurture that seed thru prayer, Bible Study and fellowship so that it can grow, so that in time that seed will mature and you will be saved and re-born so that you can have the greatest gift of God’s Love, Everlasting Life.

Since I have had the privilege of preaching to each and every one of you these last couple of years you have heard sermons about 

Who is a disciple and what does it cost? Loving Your Neighbor, The Enemy is Real,

Marriage, 10 Verses about Love, Psalms 23 Gods how it gives us the Answer to Worry, Busyness, Disturbed Emotions, Indecision, Dark Valleys, our Hurts and the Future

How Jesus taught the Disciples how to Pray using the Lord’s Prayer as a model to show us Prayer Nots, Who’s the Boss, What I want or What I Need, Forgiveness and Last week Don’t Let Me Fail.

And there have been other topics I have preached on but these I mentioned have meant so much to me and I hope you too

Today though I am going to talk about Good Works which will also explain why and how we are to be Kingdom Builder

Today’s Sermon is Called  We'll Leave The Light On

The light that a Christian shines is so that others might see good works and give God the glory.

Motel 6 has a slogan that says “We’ll leave a light on for you.” Very Clever and successful advertising.

That should be the slogan for every Christian and for every church. We should say to all of the lost and dying world in the darkness of sin, “We’ll leave a light on for you.” We will let Jesus shine. Our Christianity is of no value if it is not shining out in our daily lives.

Matthew 5:16 16 Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.

Let’s break down this seemingly simple verse

There are three points in this verse I want to point out:

1.Leave a light on. “Let your light so shine before men”. That means that you personally have a light to shine. 

That Light is YOUR INFLUENCE.

2.Leave a light on “that they may see your good works”. That means that you have a task to do. 

That Light is YOUR ACTIONS.

3. Leave a light on as men are to see your “good works” and “glorify your Father in heaven”. That means that what you do has eternal consequences. That Light is YOUR MOTIVE.

In your community of influence there are many people. There are many people for whom we can leave a light on.

Today church growth analysts say that a church should be able to normally reach out about 25 miles. People will travel that far to find a church that suits and meets their needs. Over Half of those people are lost and without Christ. Many of them would find that church maybe even this church suits and meets their needs. How can a Christian effectively find them and witness to them and enlist them?

Consider these three points as you ponder that question. They are about you.

I. We‘ll leave a light on! YOUR INFLUENCE. We will let our light shine. “Let your light so shine before men”

Your light represents the presence of God within you and among those with whom you come in contact. You have something to offer, something that the world cannot offer, the Gospel. You have light to shine in the darkness of their sin. “Let your light so shine”.

Remember this is not a spotlight to reveal the sins of others it is a beacon to guide others. Rekindle the beacon of light Jesus had for His disciples and for you. Make a difference in the world in which you live. The Great Commission will be fulfilled when we light up the world with Christ, one person at a time, beginning in our Jerusalem Ingleside on the Bay and extending to the ends of the earth.

George Barna, in his book, “Grow Your Church from the Outside”, speaks of the power of influence.  When Jesus spoke of the light that was to be shining he was talking about our influence.

We should make every effort to offer people the same thing that we have experienced in Jesus. We offer people a new relationship with God the Father through His Son Jesus Christ. We should be able to say to people, “follow me.” But, to do that we have to show them the way.

When was the last time you were excited about inviting someone to come and worship with you? You have something to get excited about. Are you as excited about worship in your church as you are about sports, recreation or leisure, or even your work? We need to “get all excited and tell everybody that Jesus Christ is King?” Get excited and leave a light on.

II. We‘ll leave a light on! YOUR ACTIONS. We are going to do the right thing. “That they may see your good works.“

When Jesus spoke of the light that was to shine He was talking about our good works. Doing good works is not an option. Doing what is right is not an option. You have work to do. It is to do good works. This is the way to make your light shine. This is how you make the light real in the lives of others. You are to do what is right, visibly, before others. In this way you carry Jesus into the lives of others so that they might listen.

Never hide your faith. It is to be visible for all to see. It is to work itself out in everyday life in a thousand ways. You are to walk the walk.

Several years ago there was a movement started called “Pass it On”. One person would do a random act of kindness and that was to be passed on to another. Just being kind to one another just doing something good.

Eph 2:10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them. 

We were created to do good works.

Titus 3:8 This is a faithful saying, and these things I will that thou affirm constantly, that they which have believed in God might be careful to maintain good works. These things are good and profitable unto men. 

We are to be ongoing in doing good works.

 Titus 2:14 Who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works.

We are to be a different kind of people that seek to find ways to do good things.

Good works do not earn you salvation, but it is quite evident from Scriptures that salvation should produce good works. The idea is that the person who has experienced Christ should be the initiator of those good works. There should be an active desire to seek out ways to do good works.

The ways found will be as varied as the people who make up the church. Each one is unique in giftedness and each one can find a way to do something good each day. You can share the Gospel with others. There is no other work that would glorify God more than to bring others to Christ.

Those works are the light that others see. It is not to be put under a basket but placed high for all to see.

Matthew 5:14-15 “You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. 15 Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house.

III. We‘ll leave a light on! YOUR MOTIVE. So that people will glorify our Father. “That they may see your good works, and glorify (PRAISE) your Father which is in heaven.”

When Jesus was talking about our light that was to shine he was referring to our motives. There are eternal consequences to doing good works. When you do things that are good and right people will praise your Father, which is in heaven. God gets the glory. There are eternal consequences to bringing Christ to people and people to Christ.

You want others to “glorify your Father, which is in heaven”. This is important. This is the motive for good works. This is what makes the Christian different from the secular world in doing good works. The glory goes to God the Father.

This may very well be why people are not coming into the church any more. We have gotten so secular in our ways that we want all the credit and people do not see God in us anymore. It is a proven fact that people today are no less spiritual then they have ever been. They are looking for God. Are we showing Him to them?

There is no room for personal agendas when your Father gets the glory. Everything relates to kingdom work. One of the great themes of the Sermon on the Mount is found in Matthew 6:33, "But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you."

You cannot take someone where you have not been. You get this light by trusting in Jesus.

In conclusion let me share some applications.

Thom S. Rainer has written a book entitled “The Unchurched Next Door”. He wants people to understand the unchurched in order to better reach them. The premise is that we do not invite our neighbors for all the wrong reasons. He encourages Christians to make the effort to invite others to church that they might hear the Gospel and be saved. The number one reason unchurched people do not come to church is because they have not been invited. Do not quit inviting people because some refused your invitation.

Before you take this sermon and run with it let me give you some suggestions. Dr. Rainer lists several tough questions that we should ask ourselves before we go out. This is not to get us to stay home, but rather to get us to prepare.

I.  How is your prayer life? We will never be able to reach people seeking God or just Flat out Unbelievers unless we are a people of prayer.

II.  Whom did you tell about Jesus yesterday or today? The question is not how do you share, but, did you share your faith. The best way to share your faith is to just do it!

III.  How is your family life? Satan’s most effective tactic is to attack the Christian in his/her family life. Is your faith evident in and to your family life?

IV.  Do you need to reconcile with someone? We are called to a ministry of reconciliation. 2 Cor 5:18 “ Now all things are of God, who has reconciled us to Himself through Jesus Christ, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation,

” Jesus said in Matthew 6:12, And forgive us our debts,

As we forgive our debtors.  We cannot worship until reconciliation Forgiveness) is made.

V.  Are you committed to GOD? It is not “what can Jesus Christ do for me” but rather “what can I do for my Lord Jesus Christ?” He is the Head of the Church. Paul wrote many times thankful for the ministry and people of the churches.

VI.  Do you love others unconditionally? It is easy to write off people who are not like us. Love the unlovable.

VII.  Do you have an attitude of gratitude? God was gracious and extended his mercy to us. We should do the same by showing our  graciousness and extend mercy to others.

Will you invite and bring someone to God? Most of the weak believers or unbelievers you know are receptive and waiting for you to ask them to follow Jesus Christ. If one does not respond do not quit asking.

Extend the circle of fellowship and thus the circle of membership in the Kingdom of God. Go and get them.

Luke 14:23 And the lord said unto the servant, Go out into the highways and hedges, and compel them to come in, that my house may be filled. (KJV)

Jesus wants His house, to be filled. Jesus is pointing out that His disciple is to be selfless in the pursuit of that goal.

Be an influence. Leave a light on!

Be active. Do good works!

Be right in your motive. Give God the glory!

The whole world was lost in the darkness of sin,

The light of the world is Jesus;

Like sunshine at noonday His glory shone in,

The light of the world is Jesus.

Come to the light, ‘tis shining for thee; Sweetly the Light has dawned upon me, Once I was blind, but now I can see: The Light of the world is Jesus.

Let’s all go out and be kingdom builders Go out into the world and talk to our friends, family, co-workers and any how will listen and spread the Good News of God with the intent of planting Gods seed in their hearts so that one day they too will become a saved Christian by repenting and confessing their sins to Jesus Christ and making you a Kingdom Builder.

Remember that the Bible says in James 5:19-20  

19 Brethren if anyone among you wanders from the truth and someone turns him back 

20 let him know that he who turns a sinner from error of his way will save a soul from death and cover a multitude of sins

Let Us Pray

Lord, In Heaven Each and every day is a struggle against sin and temptation.

Give us the strength to overcome cruelty with grace and hatred with love. God remind us that our actions matter.  Our Action are what Shines Your Light.  Remind us We do not fight a physical battle, but a spiritual one and with each act of compassion We build your kingdom.

Help us be kingdom builders today and every day.

Thru Jesus Christ we pray

AMEN

Verse List

Matthew 5:16
Eph 2:10 

Titus 3:8 

Titus 2:14

Matthew 5:14-15

Matthew 6:33

2 Cor 5:18 

Matthew 6:12

Luke 14:23

James 5:19-20

Faith and Works

Sermon Summary

The purpose of Barefoot Ministry is to Spread the word of God to any and all that will listen.  I will try very hard to plant the seed of God in your hearts, provide you with the knowledge to nurture that seed thru prayer, Bible Study and fellowship so that it can grow, so that in time that seed will mature and you will be saved and re-born so that you can have the greatest gift of God’s Love, Everlasting Life.

Let Us Pray

Dear Lord, in Heaven, The creator of all

We look forward to the joys of heaven.

Where there is no more pain, No suffering, No Sickness

God remind us that our actions matter here in this world.

Our actions here on this earth will pave our way to live in your house

Here on earth Each and every day is a struggle against sin and temptation.  Give us the strength to overcome cruelty with grace 

and hatred with love.  Remind us Lord We do not fight a physical battle, 

but a spiritual one and with each act of compassion here on earth

We build your kingdom.

Help to guide us to be kingdom builders today and every day.

As a Kingdom builder we will try to plant your seed Lord in the hearts of any and all that will listen

Then we will help nourish that seed so it can grow and they too can receive your greatest gift of Love     Everlasting Life

Soon We will be done with the troubles of the world

and will be walking down the path we paved with our actions

As Kingdom Builders To live in the house of the Lord forever

Thru Jesus Christ we pray

AMEN

Todays sermon I call a Faith that Works.

We will be reading James 2:14-16, Matthew 25:14-30 & 34-46.  

There are probably a few other verses I have added

Let’s start with James 2:14:

" What does it profit, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can faith save him?"

A lot of people might use verses such as this to support their argument that the Bible is full of contradictions. In Romans for example (and in many other places), Paul says that salvation is of faith, yet here James is talking about works.

A friend of mine is always telling me that the Bible contradicts itself and I suppose he might quote this apparent difference in opinion between James and Paul in his defense.

The Bible contains no such contradictions and the writings of James and Paul do not prove any difference of opinion or doctrine.

James also preaches justification through faith. 

James 2:1 says, “My brethren, do not hold the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory, with partiality.”

and in James 2:18, "  But someone will say, “You have faith, and I have works.” Show me your faith without [a]your works, and I will show you my faith by my works."

Romans 10:17 says that " So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.”

So we can clearly see that both Paul and James preach salvation through faith and by hearing the word of Christ.

James says faith first and then works, not the other way around. Indeed he is saying that true faith is a faith that WORKS, it results in action, and if a man claims to have faith but his life points to the contrary then is it really true faith. People will know what kind of person we are by the fruit that is produced.

Matthew 7:16-20

16 You will know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes from thorn bushes or figs from thistles? 

17 Even so, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. 

18 A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit.

19 Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.

20 Therefore by their fruits you will know them.

True faith results in action. In 1 Thessalonians 1:3, Paul writes, "remembering without ceasing your work of faith, labor of love, and patience of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ in the sight of our God and Father.”

James 2:15-16:" 15 If a brother or sister is naked and destitute of daily food, 16 and one of you says to them, “Depart in peace, be warmed and filled,” but you do not give them the things which are needed for the body, what does it profit?

Actions speak louder than words is what James is saying. 

We find this same principle in James 2:17-18, " 17 Thus also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.

18 But someone will say, “You have faith, and I have works.” Show me your faith without [a]your works, and I will show you my faith by [b]my works."

Jesus loved with actions and in truth. He spent a considerable amount of time teaching and instructing the people but he didn’t stop there, he didn’t just love with words but he displayed his love by feeding the poor, healing the sick, giving sight to the blind and hearing to the deaf.

He didn’t just say to people, "I’ll be going to the cross soon to die for your sins, that’s all you really need so I am not going to help you here, right now, at this very moment." No, Jesus was filled with compassion when he saw suffering and he reached out to those in need.

In the same way it’s not enough for us to point people to the cross and tell them that’s all they need. We have to reach out to them in their suffering, in their pain. We need to be filled with compassion and reach out to those in need. We’ll find that people will be much more receptive to the message of the cross when they see God’s love working in our lives.

A good example of the compassion that Jesus had can be found in the feeding of the five thousand.

We read in the gospel of Mark 6-34, "When Jesus landed and saw a large crowd, he had compassion on them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd. So he began teaching them many things." 

The disciples wanted to send the people away, a bit like the person in James 2:15-16, 15 If a brother or sister is naked and destitute of daily food, 16 and one of you says to them, “Depart in peace, be warmed and filled,” but you do not give them the things which are needed for the body, what does it profit?"

Jesus however wasn’t just concerned with the people’s spiritual needs but he wanted to provide for their material needs too. This was a remote place and it was late in the day, the people were probably tired and weak, some had most likely traveled a long way to see and hear Jesus.

Jesus didn’t say, "... Go, I wish you well; keep warm and well fed..." He was going to help them. His divine love resulted in action.

Isn’t this exactly what James is saying in chapter 2, verse 17 as a conclusion to his argument in verses 15 and 16,

"  Thus also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead." 

Now Let’s quickly turn to Galatians 6:9 -10, " 9 And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart. 10 Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all, especially to those who are of the household of faith.”

Note that Paul says in verse 10, "Therefore as we have opportunity..." We have plenty here in our community, people who are crying out for help.

It’s so important that we reach out to those in our community in a practical way and there are so many different ways that we can do it.

In chapter 2, verse 18, James goes on to talk about two different kinds of people. The first has faith without works, the second has lot’s of works but no faith.

James contrasts himself with both saying, "...one of you has faith, the other works. I will show you my faith by the things I do."

When we first believed, God had already prepared good works for us to do, we can read this in Paul’s letter in Ephesians 2:8-10,

8 For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, 

9 not of works, lest anyone should boast. 

10 For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.

This is the starting point of our Christian lives, salvation through faith in the Lord Jesus-Christ and his finished work and not by works. However, we need to ask ourselves this question, "What was God’s purpose in saving us?" Well let’s look at Ephesians 2:10, and we find the answer, Paul says,  " For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them."

Are we seeking to do the works God has prepared for us in advance to do or are we too busy doing our own thing?

In the book of James it goes on to talk about Abraham and how he demonstrated his faith by what he did,

James 2: 20-21  20 But do you want to know, O foolish man, that faith without works is [a]dead? 21 Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered Isaac his son on the altar?

In Genesis 15:6, God declares Abraham as righteous because he believed God’s promise of a son. What James is saying here is that the kind of inward faith Abraham demonstrated inevitably results in an outward manifestation.

When Abraham’s faith was tested, he did not disobey God but he was prepared to offer Isaac as a sacrifice believing that God had the power to raise him up from the dead. His faith was not a dead faith but his was faith that was accompanied by action.

James says in chapter 2, verse 22, " Do you see that faith was working together with his works, and by works faith was made [a]perfect?" 

What an amazing statement, "...his faith was made complete by what he did."

James gives another example in the person of Rahab and sums everything up by saying,

James 2: 26. “For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also.”

That’s the statement to end all statements and it’s the point he’s been making throughout this passage of scripture that faith without results is dead.

Let’s turn our attention now to some verses from the Gospel of Matthew  25:14-30 and 34-46:

Matthew 25:14-30

The Parable of the Talents

14 “For the kingdom of heaven is like a man traveling to a far country, who called his own servants and delivered his goods to them. 15 And to one he gave five talents, to another two, and to another one, to each according to his own ability; and immediately he went on a journey. 16 Then he who had received the five talents went and traded with them, and made another five talents. 17 And likewise he who had received two gained two more also.18 But he who had received one went and dug in the ground, and hid his lord’s money. 19 After a long time the lord of those servants came and settled accounts with them.

20 “So he who had received five talents came and brought five other talents, saying, ‘Lord, you delivered to me five talents; look, I have gained five more talents besides them.’ 21 His lord said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant; you were faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord.’ 22 He also who had received two talents came and said, ‘Lord, you delivered to me two talents; look, I have gained two more talents besides them.’ 23 His lord said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant; you have been faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord.’

24 “Then he who had received the one talent came and said, ‘Lord, I knew you to be a hard man, reaping where you have not sown, and gathering where you have not scattered seed. 25 And I was afraid, and went and hid your talent in the ground. Look, there you have what is yours.’

26 “But his lord answered and said to him, ‘You wicked and lazy servant, you knew that I reap where I have not sown, and gather where I have not scattered seed. 27 So you ought to have deposited my money with the bankers, and at my coming I would have received back my own with interest.28 So take the talent from him, and give it to him who has ten talents.

29 ‘For to everyone who has, more will be given, and he will have abundance; but from him who does not have, even what he has will be taken away.30 And cast the unprofitable servant into the outer darkness. There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’

Matthew 25:34-46

34 Then the King will say to those on His right hand, ‘Come, you blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: 35 for I was hungry and you gave Me food; I was thirsty and you gave Me drink; I was a stranger and you took Me in; 36 I was naked and you clothed Me; I was sick and you visited Me; I was in prison and you came to Me.’

37 “Then the righteous will answer Him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry and feed You, or thirsty and give You drink? 38 When did we see You a stranger and take You in, or naked and clothe You? 39 Or when did we see You sick, or in prison, and come to You?’ 40 And the King will answer and say to them, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to Me.’

41 “Then He will also say to those on the left hand, ‘Depart from Me, you cursed, into the everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels: 42 for I was hungry and you gave Me no food; I was thirsty and you gave Me no drink; 43 I was a stranger and you did not take Me in, naked and you did not clothe Me, sick and in prison and you did not visit Me.’

44 “Then they also will answer [a]Him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to You?’ 45 Then He will answer them, saying, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to Me.’ 46 And these will go away into everlasting punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”

This is a well known passage of scripture. Many of us will be familiar with the story, how those with 5 and 2 talents went away and invested their talents so that they would earn more.

Do you often ask yourself how they invested their talents, what they actually did to make them grow? I believe the explanation can be found in verses 35 - 40.

I believe God is calling us to open our eyes to the needs and the suffering of the people around us, to reach out in whatever way we can both materially and spiritually.

This is from the book, ’God’s Heart For The Poor’ by Philippa Stroud,

"Christians often tell me they aren’t in touch with the poor and I’ll reply, ’Think of those who haunt the fringes of our churches - the lonely, the sick, the disabled, those with hidden eating disorders, those who don’t feel loved, those who are going nowhere!’ Once your eyes are opened it’s not difficult to find damaged and hurting people.

With many we know, from single mothers to single older men, their poverty of spirit far exceeds their material poverty. Sexual abuse victims and people with eating disorders live in their own dark prisons. Addictions and sin keep men and women captive. I pray for myself, and for those working with me, that God would give us salve to put on our eyes, so that we might see with his compassion.

Having seen we can’t escape. Jesus taught his disciples to care for the poor in the same way he did....This thing is not optional. You can’t escape the fact that God tells his people throughout the Bible to help the poor. His heart for them permeates the whole of Scripture."

I challenge myself and I challenge you, ’what will we do with the talents God has given us, will we bury them or will we go out and produce more?’ Put your faith to work today!!!

Go out and be a Kingdom Builder not only by your words, but also by your works.

Now I have to ask If you have not yet repented, confessed your sins, and trusted in Christ to save you from God’s wrath, then you don’t know the full extent of Gods’ love yet.  John 3:36 says that “Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him” because “Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God” (John 3:18). I pray that is not you.

I encourage you to pray this prayer with me, but I caution you that saying words alone will not save you. Prayer alone doesn’t save. Only Christ can save. But prayer can be a means of reaching out to the Lord in true saving faith. If you pray these words in faith, Christ will save you. You can be sure of that.

Prayer:  Lord Jesus, for too long I’ve kept you out of my life. I know that I am a sinner and that I cannot save myself. No longer will I close the door of my heart when I hear you knocking. By faith I gratefully receive your gift of salvation. I am ready to trust you as my Lord and Savior. Thank you, Lord Jesus, for coming to earth. I believe you are the Son of God who died on the cross for my sins and rose from the dead on the third day. Thank you for bearing my sins and giving me the gift of eternal life. I believe your word and desire the Holy Spirit to come into my heart and give me guidance to walk your path to salvation and everlasting life. In Jesus Name I Pray Amen.

Looking For A Place to Find Peace in a Crazy World 

Sermon Summary

The purpose of Barefoot Ministry is to Spread the word of God to any and all that will listen.  I will try very hard to plant the seed of God in your hearts, provide you with the knowledge to nurture that seed thru prayer, Bible Study and fellowship so that it can grow, so that in time that seed will mature and you will be saved and re-born so that you can have the greatest gift of God’s Love, Everlasting Life.

Dear Lord, in Heaven, The creator of all

We look forward to the joys of heaven.

Where there is no more pain, No suffering, No Sickness

God remind us that our actions matter here in this world.

Our actions here on this earth will pave our way to live in your house

Here on earth Each and every day is a struggle against sin and temptation.  Give us the strength to overcome cruelty with grace 

and hatred with love.  Remind us Lord We do not fight a physical battle, 

but a spiritual one and with each act of compassion here on earth

We build your kingdom.

Help to guide us to be kingdom builders today and everyday.

As a Kingdom builder we will try to plant your seed Lord in the hearts of any and all that will listen

Then we will help nourish that seed so it can grow and they too can receive your greatest gift of Love     Everlasting Life

Soon We will be done with the troubles of the world

and will be walking down the path we paved with our actions

As Kingdom Builders To live in the house of the Lord forever

Thru Jesus Christ we pray

AMEN

Todays Sermon is very near and dear to my heart.  I have lost several friends and comrades in arms fighting in our nations wars.

John 15:13 Jesus said, "Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends." 

Memorial Day, our nation mourns the loss of all Americans who died defending our country throughout the world since 1775. This remembrance is all-inclusive spanning 248 years and over 62 military actions that claimed 1.2 million lives. Most Americans are familiar with the major wars, the Revolutionary War, the War of 1812, the Mexican War, the Civil War, the Spanish-American War, WWI, WWII, Korea, Vietnam, the Persian Gulf, Iraq and Afghanistan, but few think of those killed in lesser-known engagements.

Examples of the lesser-known actions range from the Franco-American Naval War (1798-1800) to Grenada to the tragedy of the USS Cole (2000) to the recent death in The Philippines. No American death is too insignificant not to remember when a life was lost at the behest of society. GI's do not choose when or where they serve or what foreign policy they must enforce. The death of a soldier or sailor anywhere in the world is every bit as important as one killed in during WWII. All distinctions are irrelevant.

These men and women have remained mostly anonymous except to the families who loved them. Who were they? They were relatives, friends and neighbors melded together to perform a service for an entire society. They came from all walks of life and from all regions of our country. Nevertheless, they all had one thing in common, the love of and loyalty to country.

They were the nation’s defenders. Memorial Day, America commemorates those who made the greatest sacrifice possible, giving one’s own life selflessly. Far too often, the nation as a whole takes for granted the freedoms we enjoy. Freedoms paid for by the lives of others few of us knew. Today, we collectively remember those who gave their all.

Our passage this morning is John 15:13 and is fitting for this Sunday. Jesus said, “Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends.” In this verse our Lord spoke of the greatest expression of love: sacrificial love.

When a person has enlisted in the Armed Forces they repeat the following oath: I, _____, do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; and that I will obey the orders of the President of the United States and the orders of the officers appointed over me, according to regulations and the Uniform Code of Military Justice. So help me God.

These men and women volunteer to leave home and family to protect the freedoms we treasure. Our freedom of religion, speech, and the right to keep and bear arms (and many more) are defended and protected by our military. Former Senator Fred Thompson once said, “This wouldn’t be the land of the free if it were not the home of the brave.” It is good and proper for us to thank God for the men and women who have sacrificially loved each of us through military service.

Not only do Soldiers and Sailors have Sacrificial Love but the average in America does too.

My memory of January 2014 of Moore Oklahoma is my favorite example. Fred Rogers said concerning tragedies, “When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me, ‘Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.’” Do not focus on the devastation, but focus on those who are sacrificing themselves in order to help.

The courage shown by the teachers in the schools during a tornado in Moore, OK is inspiring. Second-grade teacher Tammy Glasgow got her children into bathrooms and a closet before taking shelter for herself.

Wayne Mayes, a first-grade teacher, distracted her students with songs and games.

Suzanne Haley was impaled by the leg of a desk protecting her children.

Another teacher, Cindy Lowe, had a wall fall on her back causing her to suffer a concussion. Her taking the hit saved the lives of the children in her care.

These brave teachers and others risked their own lives to protect the lives of the students under their care and demonstrated sacrificial love. We Americans are a brave and often selfless people.

The Sacrificial Love of Jesus Christ

Look again at our verse this morning, “Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends.” We have seen two examples of sacrificial love and now we reflect on the greatest act of sacrificial love provided by God on our behalf. Jesus laid down His life for His friends and sacrificed Himself for us.

Jesus led a life of sacrifice. John 1:14 tells us that “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.”

In Philippians 2:7-8, Paul wrote that God the Son, “7 but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bond servant, and coming in the likeness of men. 8 And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross.”

This love is sacrificial and undeserved. Paul writes in Romans 5:7-8, “7 For scarcely for a righteous man will one die; yet perhaps for a good man someone would even dare to die. 8 But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”

1 Peter 1:18-19 says, “18 knowing that you were not redeemed with corruptible things, like silver or gold, from your aimless conduct received by tradition from your fathers, 19 but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot.”

The greatest act of sacrificial love was when Jesus willingly sacrificed His life to free us from our bondage to sin 

Romans 6:6, “knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin.”

Jesus laid down His life for you and calls you friend.

Consider that for a moment, we who are Christians are friends with the Creator of this world. Jesus said in John 15:15, “No longer do I call you servants, for a servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all things that I heard from My Father I have made known to you.”

We rightly honor those who sacrifice themselves for their friends and their country.

The greatest gift ever made was by God himself in the person of His Son, Jesus Christ. We read of it in what is called the golden text of the Bible, 

John 3:16-17, 16 For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. 

17 For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.

Quite obviously, God is a giving God, a loving God, a God of mercy and grace. How marvelous indeed are His expressions to each of us!

Normally, in human terms, when we receive a little gift from some friend or loved one at Christmas or on a birthday, we like to show our appreciation. However, so glorious are God’s mercies that we overflow with thanksgiving and join the psalmist in our text, asking, "What shall I render unto the Lord for all his benefits?"

Our blessings from God are so numerous and so rich that we are made to testify as the Apostle Paul, 

Romans 11:33, " Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and His ways past finding out!"

What we can give to God is small, so very small, when compared to what He has given us; nevertheless, we must not fail in presenting our gifts to Christ. Let us now consider four gifts we can render unto Him.

Our love: Even in human terms, love is the greatest of gifts. More words are written on love, more stories are told about love, and more people are inspired by love than any other subject in human language is. It is the constant theme of our novels, our TV dramas, and our human aspirations.

It is surely significant that Paul lists love as the first manifestation of the fruit of the Spirit, 

Galatians 5:22, " But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,".

Important as well is the fact that love is twofold, reaching first toward God and then toward our neighbors. When asked of a lawyer, 

Matthew 22:36-37, 36 “Teacher, which is the great commandment in the law?”

37 Jesus said to him, “‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’

Adam Clarke puts it succinctly, "Our Lord shows us that the whole of true religion is comprised of us loving God and our neighbor."

All gifts are worthless and unacceptable unless accompanied by, and given from, a heart of love.

True love has no limitations, no boundaries. Love cannot be purchased; it is always freely given. No, wonder the Scriptures place so much emphasis upon our love for God.

Along with our love-in fact, in full confirmation of our love-we must give ourselves as a vessel for His use. Paul writes, Romans 12:1, "I beseech you therefore, brethren by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living’ sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God." 

In light of all His great gifts to us, how can we do less? Paul faced this question, adding the observation that such is our "reasonable service."

When a young man or woman enters Military Service, he or she is trained and schooled in the hardships of military life. He or she holds none of his strength in reserve.

He or she gives all. Our spiritual Commander, Jesus Christ, calls today for those who will bring all their powers into subjection and serve without reservation in the army of the Lord.

There has never been a time in history when the cause of righteousness needed consecrated people more than it does today. 

2 Chronicles 30:8, " Now do not be stiff-necked,[a] as your fathers were, but yield yourselves to the Lord; and enter His sanctuary, which He has sanctified forever, and serve the Lord your God, that the fierceness of His wrath may turn away from you."

What better gift to bring to Christ than a yielding of our total selves to His will, 

Acts 20:24, But none of these things move me; nor do I count my life dear to myself, so that I may finish my [b]race with joy, and the ministry which I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of the grace of God.

Our loyalty: The wise men who saw Christ’s star, upon the occasion of His birth present a lesson in loyalty worthy of note. Not only did they pursue their journey with diligence, against great odds, but also they refused the bribes of an earthly king, their loyalty firmly anchored in God himself. Others were unseeing, others refused to believe, but the wise men grasped a promise. They clung to God’s Word. We will never find Him, or serve Him, if we do not believe His Word.

The wise men were not satisfied just to find Him and leave. They recognized His divinity and they worshiped Him reverently, whom even angels bow before. Hebrews 16, "Let all the angels of God worship him" and of whom David wrote, Psalm 29:2, "Worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness."

What is more, they verified their love and worship through presentation of gifts-gold, frankincense, and myrrh, some of earth’s most valuable treasures. They gave to Christ their very best. We must do no less. Christ must be first in our life.

Our talents: In one form or another we each have special and unique talents. Our talents are not the same. They may not be equal in number or variety, but they are gifts, or graces, from the Creator and we must consecrate them to God.

When Henry Wadsworth Longfellow was a young man, he expressed himself in a letter to his father, "I am not sure as yet for what my talents fit me, but I am determined to be eminent in something."

I truly believe God has endowed each of us with capacity, with potential, with talent to become eminent in something. That eminence may not appear to men and women of this world but it will certainly register on God’s perfect scale of values. The beautiful thing about giving what we have, our talents, to God is seen in what they then become under His leading and the direction of His Holy Spirit. Every Christian soon discovers himself, in the power of Christ, doing more and becoming more than he is personally capable of doing or becoming.

Paul wrote to young Timothy, his son In the Lord, 1 Timothy 4:14, "Do not neglect the gift that is in you, which was given to you by prophecy with the laying on of the hands of the eldership."

Nor must we either neglect our gifts or use them selfishly. Life is more than earthly existence, more than that which is presently seen.

It is also the laying up of treasures in heaven.

we use our talents for His glory, we will hear Him say, 

Matthew 25:21, " His lord said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant; you were faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord."

Because our Country’s Armed Forces have been willing to give the last full measure, we are able to meet together and say, for in Him we live and move and have our being, as also some of your own poets have said, ‘For we are also His offspring (Acts 17:28)

Let Us Pray

Father in heaven, Monday we pause to remember the brave soldiers, sailors and airmen who gave their lives for our freedom. Father we are thankful for them all, all these courageous men and women. They fought on land, at sea and in the air sacrificing their lives that we may live in freedom and worship You in peace. We honor them now, their bravery we cannot ignore. Heroes of war, but they were so much more, fathers, mothers, brothers, sisters and friends. Our beautiful red, white and blue flies at half-mast for those of the past to whom our gratitude we send. We place flowers on the graves of those who were brave. We salute them, remembering proudly those who gave the last full measure of devotion. They fought not for glory, nor for wealth, nor honor but only and alone for freedom which no good man or woman surrenders but with his or her life. Father, let us not have on our conscience that they died in vain. Guide us to live with hatred toward none and love for all through freedom in Christ.

In Jesus Name We Pray  AMEN

If you have not yet repented, confessed your sins, and trusted in Christ to save you from God’s wrath, then you don’t know the full extent of Gods’ love yet.  John 3:36 says that “Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him” because “Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God” (John 3:18). I pray that is not you.

I encourage you to pray this prayer with me, but I caution you that saying words alone will not save you. Prayer alone doesn’t save. Only Christ can save. But prayer can be a means of reaching out to the Lord in true saving faith. If you pray these words in faith, Christ will save you. You can be sure of that.

Prayer:  Lord Jesus, for too long I’ve kept you out of my life. I know that I am a sinner and that I cannot save myself. No longer will I close the door of my heart when I hear you knocking. By faith I gratefully receive your gift of salvation. I am ready to trust you as my Lord and Savior. Thank you, Lord Jesus, for coming to earth. I believe you are the Son of God who died on the cross for my sins and rose from the dead on the third day. Thank you for bearing my sins and giving me the gift of eternal life. I believe your word and desire the Holy Spirit to come into my heart and give me guidance to walk your path to salvation and everlasting life. In Jesus Name I Pray Amen.

Help with Our Battle with Temptation 

Sermon Summary

I want to thank you for reading this sermon today and giving me the opportunity to spread the word of God with you.

The purpose of Barefoot Ministry is to Spread the word of God to any and all that will listen.  I will try very hard to plant the seed of God in your hearts, provide you with the knowledge to nurture that seed thru prayer, Bible Study and fellowship so that it can grow, so that in time that seed will mature and you will be saved and re-born so that you can have the greatest gift of God’s Love, Everlasting Life.

Let Us Pray

Dear Lord, in Heaven, The creator of all

We look forward to the joys of heaven.

Where there is no more pain, No suffering, No Sickness

God remind us that our actions matter here in this world.

Our actions here on this earth will pave our way to live in your house

Here on earth Each and every day is a struggle against sin and temptation.  Give us the strength to overcome cruelty with grace 

and hatred with love.  Remind us Lord We do not fight a physical battle, 

but a spiritual one and with each act of compassion here on earth

We build your kingdom.

Help to guide us to be kingdom builders today and every day.

As a Kingdom builder we will try to plant the Lord’s seed in the hearts of any and all that will listen

Then we will help nourish that seed so it can grow and they too can receive the Lord’s greatest gift of Love     Everlasting Life

Soon We will be done with the troubles of the world

and will be walking down the path we paved with our actions

As Kingdom Builders To live in the house of the Lord forever 

Thru Jesus Christ we pray

AMEN

Now for today’s message.  I am very excited about this sermon.  

Help with Our Battles Against Temptation

Helping us deal with our temptations learning from Simon Peter during the trial of Jesus

Luke 22:31-34 

31 [a]And the Lord said, “Simon, Simon! Indeed, Satan has asked for you, that he may sift you as wheat. 

32 But I have prayed for you, that your faith should not fail; and when you have returned to Me, strengthen your brethren.”

33 But he said to Him, “Lord, I am ready to go with You, both to prison and to death.”

34 Then He said, “I tell you, Peter, the rooster shall not crow this day before you will deny three times that you know Me.”

Luke 22:54-60

54 Having arrested Him, they led Him and brought Him into the high priest’s house. But Peter followed at a distance. 

55 Now when they had kindled a fire in the midst of the courtyard and sat down together, Peter sat among them. 

56 And a certain servant girl, seeing him as he sat by the fire, looked intently at him and said, “This man was also with Him.”

57 But he denied [a]Him, saying, “Woman, I do not know Him.”

58 And after a little while another saw him and said, “You also are of them.”

But Peter said, “Man, I am not!”

59 Then after about an hour had passed, another confidently affirmed, saying, “Surely this fellow also was with Him, for he is a Galilean.”

60 But Peter said, “Man, I do not know what you are saying!”

61 And the Lord turned and looked at Peter. Then Peter remembered the word of the Lord, how He had said to him, “Before the rooster [c]crows, you will deny Me three times.” 

62 So Peter went out and wept bitterly.

Did you ever wonder why the Holy Spirit led the Gospel writers to include this tragic chapter in the life of Peter in their Gospels? Had I been writing I would have left this out. The Bible is a book that lets it all hang out, so to speak. From King David to the Apostle Paul, the Bible airs the dirty laundry of even its greatest heroes. This is done, of course, to help us learn not to make the same mistakes they made. For example, there are several things in this text that we would do well to remember.

1. Remember Satan wants to sift you. 

Luke 22:31 And the Lord said, “Simon, Simon! Indeed, Satan has asked for you, that he may sift you as wheat.

Most of us here are too old and too worn out for Uncle Sam to want us, but Satan wants us. Jesus told Peter, “Satan hath desired to have you, that he may sift you as wheat.” I don’t know much about sifting wheat. I do remember Daddy use to pick his dried peas, put them in a tow sack, and beat them with a stick till they were all out of the hull. He would even let me have a turn beating them. Then he would put them in a washtub and shake them. All the hulls would come to the top and peas would settle at the bottom. Then he would scoop off the hulls and have pea seed for another year. The devil wants to take us and shake us until all the bad in us comes to the top. You see, if Satan can destroy our testimony, we become ineffective witnesses for Christ. This will enable him to drag more souls along with him down into the bottomless pit into which he is about to be cast.

The closer you get to Jesus the more Satan desires to have you. Remember Peter was not only a disciple; he was in that inner circle that was even closer to Jesus. The devil doesn’t bother the unsaved much because he already has them. He doesn’t even spend his time with lukewarm Christians. It’s those who are trying to walk with Jesus that he goes after.

I remember wading in the Oklahoma creeks when I was a boy. When you waded downstream, you hardly noticed the current. When you turned, and began walking up stream, the current began to push against you, sometimes making it hard to walk. When you turn around and start walking with Jesus, Satan releases his big guns on you. If you have been reading your Bible and praying this week, watch out, Satan is going to tempt you big time next week.

2. Remember that while the Spirit is indeed willing, the flesh is weak. 

Matt. 26:41

Watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.”

When Peter said to Jesus, “Lord, I am ready to go with thee, both into prison, and to death,” there’s no doubt in my mind that he meant every word he spoke. 

However, he forgot that, 

 Matt. 26:41 Watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.”

  I don’t know about you, but I’m in a battle with the flesh. 

The Bible says 

Rom. 6:6 knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin.

Paul had the same problem. 

Rom. 7:19-25 

19 For the good that I will to do, I do not do; but the evil I will not to do, that I practice.

 20 Now if I do what I will not to do, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells in me.

21 I find then a law, that evil is present with me, the one who wills to do good. 

22 For I delight in the law of God according to the inward man. 

23 But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members. 

24 O wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? 

25 I thank God—through Jesus Christ our Lord!

So then, with the mind I myself serve the law of God, but with the flesh the law of sin.

3.Remember stay close to Jesus; don’t try to follow at a distance. 

Luke 22:54 54 Having arrested Him, they led Him and brought Him into the high priest’s house. But Peter followed at a distance. 

Peter went to sleep in prayer meeting that night. 

Luke 22:45 When He rose up from prayer, and had come to His disciples, He found them sleeping from sorrow.

 Luke 22:40,46 I’ll bet he didn’t read the scripture much either. When things begin to get rough, Peter slipped into the shadows. He was still following Jesus but now it was at a distance, for fear of being associated with Jesus. Like Peter, a lot of people are trying to be Christian without letting everybody know it. They’re not totally committed and they’re careful not to let anyone know about what little commitment they do have. Let me ask you a question. Does everyone know that you are a Christian? Do they know what you stand for and which side you’re on?

 “Fear of being associated with Jesus, like Peter, some of us permit distance in our relationship because we prefer the approval of people more than the approval of God. We routinely follow Jesus at a distance and utilize him only when we have needs. ” Like a teenager embarrassed to shop with their parents, we maintain a safe distance behind Jesus and run to catch up only when we need something.” 

I don’t know much about shepherding, I know which sheep the wolf gets. (the devil) He gets those who are straying from the Shepherd. Those who are following behind. If we are going to survive the attacks of the devil, we must stay close to Jesus.

4. Remember not to get too close to the fire.”

“Bad company is to many an occasion of sin; and those who needlessly put themselves into it, go upon the devil’s ground” Peter joined the crowd that was cursing and mocking Jesus and before he knew it, he was doing the same, saying he never knew the man. (Matt 26:74)

He thought he could handle the pressure, but he couldn’t. He didn’t. Like it or not, we become like the company we keep.

Some of you are hanging out with people that you have no business hanging out with. Some of us are going places and doing things we ought not to be doing. Some of us are looking at things on our computer that are an abomination to God. Take this from one who knows, you are going to get burned, just like Peter did. Just like a million others who thought they could handle it.

Luke 22:62 is not the end of the event. Later Jesus met Peter on the seashore. Jesus forgave his failure, restored his joy and his ministry. (John 21:15-17) Peter had a greater ministry after he fell than he did before he fell.

Perhaps you are here and you have failed the Lord in some way. You need to come to this altar and repent. Let Jesus restore you to where you once were. Maybe you’ve been living too close to the devil’s flame. You need to come and ask Jesus to help you stay away from that temptation.

Now I have to ask

If you have not yet repented, confessed your sins, and trusted in Christ to save you from God’s wrath, then you don’t know the full extent of Gods’ love yet.  John 3:36 says that “Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him” because “Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God” (John 3:18). I pray that is not you.

I encourage you to pray this prayer with me, but I caution you that saying words alone will not save you. Prayer alone doesn’t save. Only Christ can save. But prayer can be a means of reaching out to the Lord in true saving faith. If you pray these words in faith, Christ will save you. You can be sure of that.

Prayer These Words:  Lord Jesus, for too long I’ve kept you out of my life. I know that I am a sinner and that I cannot save myself. No longer will I close the door of my heart when I hear you knocking. By faith I gratefully receive your gift of salvation. I am ready to trust you as my Lord and Savior. Thank you, Lord Jesus, for coming to earth. I believe you are the Son of God who died on the cross for my sins and rose from the dead on the third day. Thank you for bearing my sins and giving me the gift of eternal life. I believe your word and desire the Holy Spirit to come into my heart and give me guidance to walk your path to salvation and everlasting life. 

In Jesus Name I Pray Amen.

Now go forth and share the word of God with any and all that will listen and maybe you can pray this prayer with someone who is lost so that they too can find GOD and Everlasting Life.

The Enemy is Real

Sermon Summary

Good Morning I am Pastor Bobby of Bare Foot Ministries and I want to thank you all for coming today and giving me the opportunity to spread the word of God with you.

The purpose of Barefoot Ministry is to Spread the word of God to any and all that will listen.  I will try very hard to plant the seed of God in your hearts, provide you with the knowledge to nurture that seed thru prayer, Bible Study and fellowship so that it can grow, so that in time that seed will mature and you will be saved and re-born so that you can have the greatest gift of God’s Love, Everlasting Life.

Let us pray:

Lord, in Heaven, the creator of all Each and every day is a struggle against sin and temptation.

Give us the strength to overcome cruelty with grace and hatered with love.

God remind us that our actions matter.

We do not fight a physical battle, but a spiritual one and with each act of compassion

We build your kingdom.

Help us be kingdom builders today.

Thru Jesus Christ we pray

AMEN

The Enemy is Real

I am very excited about this sermon today.  This sermon is about fighting a WAR about being a Soldier in the fight against Satan.

I spent 20 years studying and fighting the enemies of this country.  I woke up one day and realized that even though I’m not a fighting man in the US Military any more, I am still at war.  Probably a war with more casualties more death than any battle or war I have ever been in.  A war that is being waged and directed right at Me and You every minute of the day and every minute of the night.  A war that is waged when we are at work at play and even when we are just relaxing on the front porch or in front of the TV.  

The war we fight is against SATAN a very cunning enemy who will use any and all of the weapons he has against you and me.

When I was in the US Army we had a saying  Know Your Enemy

So lets start right know to learn about our enemy

Have you ever noticed that when you set down to read the Bible you start to get distracted by other thoughts running thru your mind ? and when you finish reading that chapter or verse you really don’t remember what you read.  That is Satan at work

1 Peter 5:8… “Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.”  

Question…True or false…Do you believe Satan is real?

With the Current relationship you have with Christ…Does Satan think of you as a threat Let me define threat…In this case making a difference in Gods kingdom… your obedience is noticed…You try very hard to live a Christ-like Life?

Or when Satan hear’s your name… (He just chuckles because…) he’s not even concerned with you at all?

Which one are you?  Which one do you think you are?

If your answer is no…that Satan is not concerned with you at all…I ask why not, Lets change that as soon as we can RIGHT NOW.  It’s never too late and there is nothing that God will not forgive you of.  Don’t wait    for tomorrow may be to late.

If you answered Yes to this question…then Satan does think of you as a threat…

Just like the people who answered no…I want you all to realize that you are not alone fighting against Satan.

Every day that God allows you to wakeup…and you commit your life to Him…you become a target of Satan.   You become something of great value to Satan and Satan will try so very hard to claim you

Satan tries his best to tempt you into doing things that will disrupt God’s plan for you and for mankind.

In Matthew chapter 4…Jesus finds Himself being tempted 3 times by Satan…

1 Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.

 2 And when He had fasted forty days and forty nights, afterward He was hungry. 

***3 Now when the tempter came to Him, he said, “If You are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread.”

4 But He answered and said, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.’ ”

5 Then the devil took Him up into the holy city, set Him on the pinnacle of the temple,

*** 6 and said to Him, “If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down. For it is written:‘He shall give His angels charge over you,’and,‘In their hands they shall bear you up, Lest you dash your foot against a stone.’ ”

7 Jesus said to him, “It is written again, ‘You shall not [a]tempt the Lord your God.’ ”

8 Again, the devil took Him up on an exceedingly high mountain, and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory. 

***9 And he said to Him, “All these things I will give You if You will fall down and worship me.”

10 Then Jesus said to him, [b]“Away with you, Satan! For it is written, ‘You shall worship the Lord your God, and Him only you shall serve.’ ”

11 Then the devil left Him, and behold, angels came and ministered to Him.

Satan knew if he could make Jesus sin by tempting Him... that he would knock out the key player in his battle against God.

Of course by reading Matthew Chapter 4 we see that Satan failed in his efforts to tempt Jesus…

And as a result of failing to control Jesus through temptation…today…you and I are left facing the battle with Satan trying to control our lives by daily tempting us.

I’m not here today to scare you into surrendering your life over to God…

But I am here today to make you aware… make you aware that…

Satan is real…and whether or not you agree to fight or not…you are in a battle.

It is a battle that not only daily challenges the relationship you have with God…but it will even make you question if there is a God at all.

One of the most difficult challenges of finding out if God Does Care about people… is realizing that both Christians and non-Christians alike are in constant battle with the enemy of God.

The enemy’s number one concern in this life is to consume you…totally control you…to saturate your mind with lies and meaningless things.  Just look around at all the information that is available.  With a few key strokes we can watch or read about any topic you desire.  We have so much information in todays world that makes it easy for Satan to execute his battle plan and he can and does attack us on all sides at all times.

Satan loves to cause division within the church, within your marriage, your Family, with your friends, your business and work colleagues and even strangers you meet at the grocery store and even driving down the road.

Satan uses greed, jealousy, gossip, desires of the flesh, pride and every other thing you can think of to pull you away from God.

He loves to break up the unity that is being established in the church through the preaching and teaching of the Bible and fellowship.

He wants to keep you from focusing on Helping people…and sharing Jesus with the lost  what’s important in this life… 

I feel that it’s important for you to realize that you are not fighting this battle today alone.

Satan is real…and we all need to learn how to fight against him.

Stand with me as we read from God’s training manual…

Matthew chapter 4: beginning with verse 1

How does Satan tempt us today? Just like Jesus’ temptation.

I believe that there are 3 main areas where Satan tempts us today.

The first way that I see Satan tempt us today is….

He Physically Tempts You

I first need to share with you that…Satan hates Jesus 

Satan wants to turn the church and everyone in it against God.

Since Satan’s efforts failed against Jesus…He has redirected his fight by personally targeting each of you.  He knows when you’re at your weakest

Did you happen to catch from our reading that Jesus wasn’t tempted by Satan when He was in the Temple/Church or even when He was being baptized? 

Matthew 4: 1 Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.

No…Satan knew Jesus would be most vulnerable when he was all alone.

Just like we read in verse one…you too are most vulnerable when you are by yourself.

How effective would Satan be targeting you after you just get done sing praises to him?

Satan knows that he can penetrate you when you are under life’s emotional stresses…

-When you are exhausted from work…He tells you…you deserve a break…you don’t need to go to church…you don’t need to read your bible…you don’t need to pray…(just…flip on the TV and see who going to be the next American Idol is going to be)

-What about when your all alone? ...He plants thoughts in your mind like…if God truly did Love you…you wouldn’t be alone…He would have already given you a close friend…

-He clouds your minds with the uncertainties of life…When things are out of your hands and you cannot fix the problem.

He also knows that if he causes people inside the church to battle against each other...then their focus in not on the lost and he’s winning the battle

In Matthew 4: 2 & 3… 2 And when He had fasted forty days and forty nights, afterward He was hungry. ***3 Now when the tempter came to Him, he said, “If You are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread.”

when Satan tempted Jesus…He knew that Jesus was physically hungry.  40 days in the wilderness no food

You have to be prepared to battle this enemy in your own physical body.

He’ll hit you below the belt line…in areas of your life like…

(Kids)…Telling you its ok to cheat on a test in school…(Adults)… having sex before marriage is an acceptable practice today…or telling you it’s ok to have an affair after you are married…

He will physically beat you up if you let him…

Be prepared to fight him…(hold up the bible)…tell him you’ve been training for him and you’re ready to fight and he will flee  

The Bible says in James 4:7   Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you.

The Second way that I see Satan tempt us today is….He Spiritually Tempts You

Throughout the New Testament we see Satan revealed as a real vital power.

In Matthew 4: 6…we see where Satan Spiritually tempted Jesus by quoting scripture.

And weather you realize it or not…he is the ruler of a kingdom that has powers…He rules over Demons and rulers the darkness.

He is the prince of this world…and rules by controlling those who deny the name of Jesus.

And he is currently… still on the prowl seeking out those who oppose God the Father. 

I Peter 5:8 … “Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.”

He tries his best to make you believe that the bible is untrue…

He even tempts you through people...even some of the people you hang around with… they will try and convince you to try things or do things that you know the Bible says are wrong.

When sins like these happen in our personal lives…we try and cover them up by…looking for verses in the bible that prove in our own minds that what we did was right.

But truth being told…It is way too easy to take the bible out of context and just say we didn’t realize what we did was wrong.

This is the reason it is important for you to realize… it is important that you make time for God and the studying of His word.

If you are one here today that uses the excuse that you don’t have enough time or that your way too busy for God.

All you are doing is telling God that He is not important enough for you to take the time to invest in Him.

This is exactly what Satan wants you to say and do.

Satan will trick you into thinking you don’t have time for God.

Don’t become his next victim of control.

The Third way that I see Satan tempt us today is….

He Tempts us   Psy-cho-logically (In our minds)

In Matthew 4: 8 & 9 

The Devil offered the whole world to Jesus…if He would only kneel down and worship him.

Today the devil still offers us the world by offering us materialism and power.

Satan has the power to control the mind…keeping you from growing in Godly direction.

Satan is just like a weed that grows in the yard…it starts out small but when left unattended…it soon chocks out everything around it… stealing every bit of nutrition surrounding it.

Satan will tell you that missing one Sunday…or missing one Wednesday service will not harm you.

But this is where he is fooling you.

The service you choose to miss had valuable information that God personally needed you to hear.

There is nothing more God wants right now than to see this church grow physically.

But I also know that in order for the church to grow in number…you must be growing personally in your own life through Him…

You have got to be the one who steps up to the call and say…as Joshua 24:15 does… “But as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD.”

Read Matthew 4:10-11…again 10 Then Jesus said to him, [b]“Away with you, Satan! For it is written, ‘You shall worship the Lord your God, and Him only you shall serve.’ ”

11 Then the devil left Him, and behold, angels came and ministered to Him.

When you proclaim the name of Jesus…Satan is left with no other option but to leave.

It’s time for you…the individual, the church too step up and show Satan who’s in charge of your life.

Satan will never give up in his fight against God until the day that God himself returns to retrieve His children.

(Hold up Bible)

Until that time…it’s your responsibility to take up the armor of God and fight.

Ephesians 6:10-18 

10 Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. 

11 Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the [a]wiles of the devil. 

12 For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of [b]the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.

13 Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.

14 Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness, 

15 and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; 

16 above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one. 

17 And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God; 

18 praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints—

Let us Pray

Heavenly Father, Today I will be your warrior and prepare for battle.      Today I claim victory over Satan by putting on the whole armor of God!  May I stand firm in the truth of Your Word so I will not be a victim of Satan’s lies. May your word guard my heart from evil so I will remain pure and holy, protected under  the blood of Jesus Christ.  May I stand firm in the Good News of the Gospel so Your peace will shine through me and be a light to all I encounter.  May I be able to see Satan’s fiery darts for what they are   doubt, denial, and deceit so I will not be vulnerable to spiritual defeat.  May I keep my mind focused on You so Satan

will not have a stronghold on my thoughts.  May the two-edged sword of Your Word be ready in my hands so I can expose the tempting words of Satan.

By Truth, Righteousness, Peace, , Salvation, Spirit and Faith

I put on the whole armor of God!

I am prepared to live this day and everyday in spiritual victory

Thru Jesus Christ I Pray

Amen.

Verse List

1 Peter 5:8

Matthew chapter 4

James 4:7

I Peter 5:8

Joshua 24:15 

Ephesians 6:10-18

Mother's Day Sermon

Sermon Summary

I want to thank you for reading this sermon today and giving me the opportunity to spread the word of God with you.

The purpose of Barefoot Ministry is to Spread the word of God to any and all that will listen.  I will try very hard to plant the seed of God in your hearts, provide you with the knowledge to nurture that seed thru prayer, Bible Study and fellowship so that it can grow, so that in time that seed will mature and you will be saved and re-born so that you can have the greatest gift of God’s Love, Everlasting Life.

Let Us Pray

Dear Lord, in Heaven, The creator of all

We look forward to the joys of heaven.

Where there is no more pain, No suffering, No Sickness

God remind us that our actions matter here in this world.

Our actions here on this earth will pave our way to live in your house

Here on earth Each and every day is a struggle against sin and temptation.  Give us the strength to overcome cruelty with grace 

and hatred with love.  Remind us Lord We do not fight a physical battle, 

but a spiritual one and with each act of compassion here on earth

We build your kingdom.

Help to guide us to be kingdom builders today and every day.

As a Kingdom builder we will try to plant the Lord’s seed in the hearts of any and all that will listen

Then we will help nourish that seed so it can grow and they too can receive the Lord’s greatest gift of Love     Everlasting Life

Soon We will be done with the troubles of the world

and will be walking down the path we paved with our actions

As Kingdom Builders To live in the house of the Lord forever

Thru Jesus Christ we pray

AMEN

Now for today’s message.  I am very excited about this sermon.  

What greater Love between two Humans then the love between a mother and her child.

Scripture: 1 Corinthians 13:1-13

Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I have become sounding brass or a clanging cymbal. 

2 And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. 

3 And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body [a]to be burned, but have not love, it profits me nothing.

4 Love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not [b]puffed up; 

5 does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoked, [c]thinks no evil; 

6 does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth; 

7 bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.

8 Love never fails. But whether there are prophecies, they will fail; whether there are tongues, they will cease; whether there is knowledge, it will vanish away. 

9 For we know in part and we prophesy in part. 

10 But when that which is [d]perfect has come, then that which is in part will be done away.

11 When I was a child, I spoke as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child; but when I became a man, I put away childish things. 

12 For now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part, but then I shall know just as I also am known.

13 And now abide faith, hope, love, these three; but the greatest of these is love.

Lasting Love on Mother’s Day

I remember a Mother’s Day card I saw that was really cute. It was a great big card written in a little child’s printing—little first-grade printing. On the front was a little boy with untied sneakers. He had a wagon, and toys were everywhere. He had a little cut on his face and there were smudges all over this card. It read, “Mom, I remember that little prayer you used to say for me every day,” Inside was the prayer: “God help you if you ever do that again.”

What greater Love then the love of a mother?

Mother’s day is the day we honor mothers here in the United States.

What greater Love between two Humans then the love between a mother and her child.

To we are going to look in to the power of Love for one another.

Scripture: 1 Corinthians 13:1–13, especially verse 1: “Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I have become sounding brass or a clanging cymbal.”

You’re never too old for your mother to correct you.

When I remember this story about the Knoxville Police Chief who was in the middle of a city council meeting in Knoxville, Tennessee, when his phone beeped letting him know he had a call. Startled to see that the call was from his mother, he rushed to the press table and call her back. “Phil Keith, are you chewing gum?” demanded his mom, who had been watching the City Council Meeting on local TV. “Yes, ma’am.” “Well, it looks awful. Spit it out.” Keith dutifully removed the gum and went back to his meeting.

There’s no one like mothers! The words “mother” and “love” go together like left and right hands, and on this Mother’s Day,

There’s no better passage to study than the “Love Chapter” of the Bible which describes the agape love of God which is necessary for mothers, fathers, sons, daughters—and for all the rest of us.

The Place of Love (vv. 1–3). 

1 Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I have become sounding brass or a clanging cymbal. 

2 And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. 

3 And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body [a]to be burned, but have not love, it profits me nothing.

Love is superior to eloquent words (v. 1). Love is the vital principle, and without it all other endowments, including excellence in communication, is vain. 

Love is superior to wisdom (v. 2). If a person could unlock the mysteries of the entire universe and call forth faith to remove mountains, he would be zero without love.

Love is superior to work (v. 3). Albert Barnes notes, “If there is not true piety, there can be no benefit in this to my soul. It will not save me. If I have not true love to God, I must perish, after all. Love therefore, is more valuable and precious than all these endowments. Nothing can supply its place; naught can be connected with salvation without it.”

2. The Portrait of Love (vv. 4–7). 

4 Love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not [b]puffed up; 

5 does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoked, [c]thinks no evil; 

6 does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth; 

7 bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.

Love is patient (v. 4). It bears injustice without anger or despair.

Love may be practiced (v. 4). It is mild under all irritations and ill usage.

Love produces good manners and courtesy at all times.

Love is pure (v. 4), not jealous or displeased when others are successful.

Love never embarrasses the owner or recipient.

Love is peaceful (v. 4). It is not rash.

Love takes a back seat and is willing to work behind the scenes.

Love does not brag or boast or sing its own praises. Love is polite (v. 5), doing nothing to cause shame.

Love prefers others (v. 5). There is no selfishness in true love. It seeks the good of others.

Love is not easily provoked (v. 5). When love holds the reins of the soul, there is little danger of provocation to anger and spiteful action that leads to sin.

Love is preclusive (v. 5). It does not condemn on suspicion or without evidence, nor is it malicious nor disposed to find fault.

Love exhibits propriety (v. 6). It does not sympathize with evil, nor does it delight in anything that does not conform to the standard of right.

Love takes pleasure in truth (v. 6). Love rejoices in the virtues of others, not their vices.

Love is pleasant (v. 7). Love maintains a disposition that refuses to make public or to avenge the faults of others.

Love is not suspicious. It trusts others. Love brightens all things, bears all things and braves all things.

3. The Permanence of Love (vv. 8–13). 

8 Love never fails. But whether there are prophecies, they will fail; whether there are tongues, they will cease; whether there is knowledge, it will vanish away. 

9 For we know in part and we prophesy in part. 

10 But when that which is [d]perfect has come, then that which is in part will be done away.

11 When I was a child, I spoke as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child; but when I became a man, I put away childish things. 

12 For now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part, but then I shall know just as I also am known.

13 And now abide faith, hope, love, these three; but the greatest of these is love.

Love’s permanency is suggested by the phrase “love never fails” (v. 8).

Love will always abide, may always be exercised, and can be adapted to all circumstances in which we may be placed.

Love’s pre-eminence is suggested by the phrase “but the greatest of these is love” (v. 13).

Love is the greatest of all gifts, for love makes the rest of the gifts graceful. Love is the one needful thing—our priority.

We lose our goods or even our good names, but if we truly retain love, we have exchanged the temporary for the eternal.

For when the Bible has said all it will say about God, it is contained in the one statement: “God is love.”

There’s an old story that tells of some young pastors who paid a visit to one of the great ministers of the past generation.

They found him preparing to go to a meeting where a strong debate was expected.

He was reading the 13th chapter of 1 Corinthians and praying that its teaching might guide his conduct.

The aged minister felt the need of the restraining hand of divine grace and the calming power of love, lest he should be rash in his speech.

This is the kind of love that lasts.

May God give us loving moms, loving dads, and may He give all of us loving hearts like that.

There once was a wise old physician, who said to a young doctor,

“I’ve been practicing medicine for a long time. I’ve prescribed many things.

But in the long run, I’ve learned that the best medicine is love.”

“What if it doesn’t work?” asked the young doctor.

Then “Double the dose,” he said.

Lord please give us a double dose of your love

Let us Pray

Heavenly Father, You know that mothering, though a wonderful calling, is a demanding task, filled with anxious moments and wearisome days. We ask that You will restore and refresh every mother today so that they can continue to have the strength to continue to love us everyday.  That they may continue to show us that love by showing us the errors of our ways and loving us regardless of our many faults and failings. God continue to remind each of us that our mothers are to be loved by us each and everyday just as they unconditionally love us.

Thru Jesus Christ I Pray   Amen

Now go and visit your Mom or call her if you are not near and tell her

 Thank You Mom For Loving Me.

Not just today but everyday.

Who is God

Sermon Summary

Who Is God?

I want to thank you for reading this sermon today and giving me the opportunity to spread the word of God with you.

The purpose of Barefoot Ministry is to Spread the word of God to any and all that will listen.  I will try very hard to plant the seed of God in your hearts, provide you with the knowledge to nurture that seed thru prayer, Bible Study and fellowship so that it can grow, so that in time that seed will mature and you will be saved and re-born so that you can have the greatest gift of God’s Love, Everlasting Life.

Let Us Pray

Dear Lord, in Heaven, The creator of all

We look forward to the joys of heaven.

Where there is no more pain, No suffering, No Sickness

God remind us that our actions matter here in this world.

Our actions here on this earth will pave our way to live in your house

Here on earth Each and every day is a struggle against sin and temptation.  Give us the strength to overcome cruelty with grace 

and hatred with love.  Remind us Lord We do not fight a physical battle, 

but a spiritual one and with each act of compassion here on earth

We build your kingdom.

Help to guide us to be kingdom builders today and every day.

As a Kingdom builder we will try to plant the Lord’s seed in the hearts of any and all that will listen

Then we will help nourish that seed so it can grow and they too can receive the Lord’s greatest gift of Love     Everlasting Life

Soon We will be done with the troubles of the world

and will be walking down the path we paved with our actions

As Kingdom Builders To live in the house of the Lord forever

Thru Jesus Christ we pray

AMEN

Now for today’s message.  I am very excited about this sermon.  

Who Is God?

Scripture: John 1:1-3

1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 

2 He was in the beginning with God. 

3 All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made.

The Holy Trinity & You

Who are you? What makes you tick? What are you about? Why is it that you think the way you think and behave the way you do? What leads you to live the life you live?

Important questions. Questions about identity, character. Questions that start to get at the heart of

what makes us go...what motivates us.

There is a thrill about getting to know a new person. And those are the kind of things we often want to learn about people who are new to us. It’s only normal to ask these kinds of questions.

These very same questions are also ones we can ask of God...because God is a person.

For some that last statement may seem pretty odd. There are a lot of people who think of God as being impersonal...for many God is something very, very distant & very different from us - so different as to be unknowable, so beyond us that, many would say, "The best we can know about God is that he represents the best in all of us”.

And that probably is the most we can say about God...when we rely on our ability to figure God out. That is why most religions come down to this. Be good. And if you’re good enough, you might get to go to heaven. God is out there somewhere, pretty much unreachable, or to some he’s angry, to some he’s a judge waiting to determine how much we will submit to him.

But we don’t have to rely on our ability to figure God out. God knows that the best we could ever come up with on our own is a very, very pale imitation of who he is. And that’s what you find in many expression of religious faith. Christians aren’t exempt from this. For reasons that should become clear in a little while, it is strange but true that a lot of Christians settle with a notion of God that is also distant, fearful, unknowable. But we really don’t have to rely on our ability to figure God out. There’s a better way.

We have the revelation from God about who He is. We have the Holy Bible, and if we read it, we can hear what God has to say about who He is. That is what the Holy Bible is------------    God’s gift of revelation.

And what does the Bible reveal about God? That’s a big question but there is something in particular that I really believe is worth knowing about God, and if we know it already, there’s something worth probing a little bit deeper into.

The Bible tells us, through the passages that were read earlier as well as in many other passages, that God is One. That is the most important revelation that came to the Israelites in the Old Testament. Most people back then thought that there were many gods. Ancient Roman and Greek people worshiped many different gods and lived in dread, trying to appease the god.

But God revealed Himself to Israel as One. But the funny thing was, even though it was very, very clear that there was truly only one God, there were odd statements

Genesis 1:1 

 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. 

2 The earth was without form, and void; and darkness was on the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters.

Genesis 1:26 

26 Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over [a]all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.”

Proverbs 30:4

4 Who has ascended into heaven, or descended?

Who has gathered the wind in His fists?

Who has bound the waters in a garment?

Who has established all the ends of the earth?

What is His name, and what is His Son’s name,

If you know?

Tell me if you know! “Can you tell me?!?

There are many, many more such statements in the Old Testament, which was written,---------remember,------------ long before Jesus Christ walked the earth.

And then we have the New Testament passages that clearly refer to Jesus and the Holy Spirit as God. Again, there are a ton of passages that speak about this [See “The Divinity of Jesus Christ” or more details]. But let’s just look again at two. The first is from Matthew 3:16-16 where we see, together at one special occasion at the same moment in history, the Son and the Spirit and the Father

16 When He had been baptized, Jesus came up immediately from the water; and behold, the heavens were opened to Him, and He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting upon Him.

Now this is nothing fancy. It’s not any deep theology about the Trinity...it simply shows the Father and the Son and the Spirit, the Holy Spirit all together, all one, because there is only, of course, one God, and yet we see three distinct persons.

Again, there are lots of passages I could point to here to show that the Holy Spirit and the Son and the Father are God. Let’s just look at one more passage.

John 1:1-3 

1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 

2 He was in the beginning with God. 

3 All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made.

A little later in the same chapter it reads: 

John 1:14  And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.

So it’s clear that Jesus is God. It’s clear that the Holy Spirit is God. It’s clear that the Father is God. But there’s only one God. How can this be.

The church, needing to understand this revelation about God in the Bible said that this simply means that there is One God who is eternally existing in three persons: The Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Mathematics might help us a bit:1x1x1=1 That particular order of words for the Trinity comes directly from Jesus in Matthew 28:19: “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.”

That’s enough theology. That’s more detail than I normally go into, but it’s necessary to get to the next part of this message:

To sum it up, God is Three in One, or, God is a Community of Persons. There are three who dwell together in heaven, one in purpose, one in glory and majesty, one in power and divinity. This is what the Bible refers to as “the Godhead”. This is the identity of the God we worship. And this identity has a lot to do with what makes God tick, what makes Him think and act as he does.

Why does this matter? Firstly, because it’s normal to want to know as much about a person who we care for as possible. Christians have always been interested in WHO it is that they worship because, among other reasons, we are made in HIS image. We are like Him.

We are like him in that we bear his image as individuals, but...more importantly, we bear his image as a group, as a bunch of people who gather in His name, as a body.

Romans 12:4-5 For as we have many members in one body, but all the members do not have the same function, 

5 so we, being many, are one body in Christ, and individually members of one another.

1 Corinthians10:16 -17 The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not the communion of the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is it not the communion of the body of Christ?

17 For we, though many, are one bread and one body; for we all partake of that one bread.

What does this mean? How are we like God as a body? God is Three-in-one. The church is a plurality, or many-in-One. We best understand ourselves and our purpose and our nature when we get that we are a community of persons because we are made in God’s image, and we worship a god who is COMMUNAL in His very identity. That is why Jesus prayed, 

John 17:11 “Now I am no longer in the world, but these are in the world, and I come to You. Holy Father, keep[a] through Your name those whom You have given Me, that they may be one as We are.

John 17:20 “I do not pray for these alone, but also for those who [a]will believe in Me through their word; 

21 that they all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me. 

22 And the glory which You gave Me I have given them, that they may be one just as We are one: 

23 I in them, and You in Me; that they may be made perfect in one, and that the world may know that You have sent Me, and have loved them as You have loved Me.

Why did Jesus pray this? Why didn’t he pray that we would just be good people living good lives and contributing good things to the world? Why didn’t he pray that each of us would hear the gospel and believe the gospel and then huddle away in our own little worlds, untouched by the trouble of other people, set apart from the bother of having to get along with other people who think differently and act differently and have all kinds of different gifts and ways of doing things.

The reason is that we’re not made for that. We’re not made to live as islands unto ourselves. One major reason that there is so much loneliness and sorrow in the world is that human beings try to live as though they can be isolated, or very often, loneliness just happens to people. Friends leave or friendships end, loved ones depart. And we’re left to lead lives of quiet desperation.

What happens, then, if we decide to act on what we’ve heard today? After every time of worship, after every message we hear, there is always an opportunity...an opportunity to sleep sometimes, yes, I admit. But there is also an opportunity to say, “If this is so, and it sure seems like it is so, how shall we then live?”

So, how shall we then live?

If in Christ we who are many, form one body, and each member belongs to all the others, then I have a special connection to you.

There is a word in an African language - ‘‘ubuntu’’ - “ubuntu” says that I can only know myself as I see myself through your eyes - so the closer you stand to me, the better I can know myself. That is authentic New Testament community.

We are very much like family, in reality. If we are part of the same family, which in the local sense means the same church or mission, then we truly belong. What does belonging mean to you? When you belong to me and I belong to you and together we belong, in Christ Jesus, to one another, you are part of something bigger than yourself, and not just any old thing.

You are part of the living reality of the body of Christ on this earth. And you are here, right now, at just such a time as this, to give and receive.

If we really want to live as God intends us to live, which is the best kind of life - belonging to Him and belonging to each other, caring about what we are together and each of us taking us seriously as a spiritual family we need:

1. To make sure that we make decisions that are with the body of Christ in mind. Should I change jobs? What effect might that have on the body? That should be a consideration.

2. To know that we all belong and have a place here in the church and a way to contribute. That’s why I have encouraged each of you to help your neighbor whenever possible so that you can use the spiritual gifts that God has given each of you.

3. To think less about ourselves and Jesus...and more about yourself as being connected to

Christ’s body - the church; to see our lives as a blessing to the body, as accountable to the body; you are intended by God to be in relationships. So make sure you put a lot of hard work into establishing and strengthening your relationships.

That is how to live with purpose and meaning and belonging - that’s how to avoid the crippling loneliness that sometimes happens - which, by the way, is never God’s intention for us.

Let me close with a few passages of Scripture:

1 John 3:11 For this is the message that you heard from the beginning, that we should love one another,

1 John 3:14 We know that we have passed from death to life, because we love the brethren. He who does not love [a]his brother abides in death.

1 John 3:18 My little children, let us not love in word or in tongue, but in deed and in truth.

1 John 4:7 Beloved, let us love one another, for love is of God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God.

1 John 4:11 Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. Seeing God Through Love

12 No one has seen God at any time. If we love one another, God abides in us, and His love has been perfected in us.

When people seeing us belonging to one another, caring for one another, they will ask: “Who goes to Church at Barefoot Ministries? What are they about? What makes them tick? The answer, I pray, will be, “Barefoot Ministries is a place of belonging, a place to reach out and touch the living God. Barefoot Ministries is a place of love.

God is Three-in-one. That’s His identity. That’s who He is.

And He calls us to be one in Him.

Let’s pray.

God, thank you that you love each of us. Thank you that you reveal yourself to us as Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Yet you are, without a doubt, One. Cause us to be, without a doubt, One in You. Help to realign our priorities so that we might be the person you call us to be, in order that you would love and change the world through us.

In Jesus name, amen.

Now I have to ask

If you have not yet repented, confessed your sins, and trusted in Christ to save you from God’s wrath, then you don’t know the full extent of Gods’ love yet.  John 3:36 says that “Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him” because “Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God” (John 3:18). I pray that is not you.

I encourage you to pray this prayer with me, but I caution you that saying words alone will not save you. Prayer alone doesn’t save. Only Christ can save. But prayer can be a means of reaching out to the Lord in true saving faith. If you pray these words in faith, Christ will save you. You can be sure of that.

Prayer These Words:  Lord Jesus, for too long I’ve kept you out of my life. I know that I am a sinner and that I cannot save myself. No longer will I close the door of my heart when I hear you knocking. By faith I gratefully receive your gift of salvation. I am ready to trust you as my Lord and Savior. Thank you, Lord Jesus, for coming to earth. I believe you are the Son of God who died on the cross for my sins and rose from the dead on the third day. Thank you for bearing my sins and giving me the gift of eternal life. I believe your word and desire the Holy Spirit to come into my heart and give me guidance to walk your path to salvation and everlasting life. 

In Jesus Name I Pray Amen.

Now go forth and share the word of God with any and all that will listen and maybe you can pray this prayer with someone who is lost so that they too can find GOD and Everlasting Life.

The Enemy is Real

Sermon Summary

 The purpose of Barefoot Ministry is to spread the word of God to any and all that will listen.  I will try very hard to plant the seed of God in your hearts, provide you with the knowledge to nurture that seed through prayer, Bible Study and fellowship so that it can grow, so that in time that seed will mature and you will be saved and re-born so that you can have the greatest gift of God’s Love, Everlasting Life.

Let’s Pray

Dear Lord, in Heaven, The creator of all

We look forward to the joys of heaven.

Where there is no more pain, No suffering, No Sickness

God remind us that our actions matter here in this world.

Our actions here on this earth will pave our way to live in your house

Here on earth Each and every day is a struggle against sin and temptation.  Give us the strength to overcome cruelty with grace 

and hatred with love.  Remind us Lord We do not fight a physical battle, 

but a spiritual one and with each act of compassion here on earth

We build your kingdom.

Help to guide us to be kingdom builders today and every day.

As a Kingdom builder we will try to plant your seed Lord in the hearts of any and all that will listen

Then we will help nourish that seed so it can grow and they too can receive your greatest gift of Love     Everlasting Life

Soon We will be done with the troubles of the world

and will be walking down the path we paved with our actions

As Kingdom Builders To live in the house of the Lord forever

Through Jesus Christ we pray

AMEN

I am very excited about this sermon today.  This sermon is about fighting a WAR. About being a Soldier in Gods Army fighting against Satan.

The Enemy is Real

I spent 20 years studying and fighting the enemies of this country.  I woke up one day and realized that even though I’m not a fighting man in the US Military any more I am still at war, still fighting.  A war with more casualties, more death than any battle or war I have ever been in.  A war that is being waged and directed right at Me and You every day of the year, every minute of the day and every minute of the night.  A war that is waged when we are at work at play and even when we are just relaxing on the front porch or in front of the TV.  

The war we fight is against SATAN a very cunning enemy who will use any and all of the weapons he has against you and me.

When I was in the US Army we had a saying  Know Your Enemy

So let’s start right know to learn about our enemy

Have you ever noticed that when you set down to read the Bible you start to get distracted by other thoughts running through your mind ? and when you finish reading that chapter or verse you really don’t remember what you read.  That is Satan at work

1 Peter 5:8… “Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.”  

Question…True or false…Do you believe Satan is real?

With the Current relationship you have with Christ…Does Satan think of you as a threat Let me define threat…In this case making a difference in Gods kingdom… your obedience is noticed…You try very hard to live a Christ-like Life?

Or when Satan hears your name… (He just chuckles because…) he’s not even concerned with you at all?

Which one are you, which one do you think you are?

If your answer is no…that Satan is not concerned with you at all…I ask why not, Lets change that as soon as we can RIGHT NOW.  It’s never too late and there is nothing that God will not forgive you of.  Don’t wait    for tomorrow may be too late, tomorrow actually never comes.

If you answered Yes to this question…then Satan does think of you as a threat…

Just like the people who answered no…I want you all to realize that you are not alone fighting against Satan.

Every day that God allows you to wakeup…and you commit your life to Him…you become a target of Satan.   You become something of great value to Satan and Satan will try so very hard to claim you

Satan tries his best to tempt you into doing things that will disrupt God’s plan for you and for mankind.

In Matthew chapter 4…Jesus finds Himself being tempted 3 times by Satan…

1 Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.

 2 And when He had fasted forty days and forty nights, afterward He was hungry. 

***3 Now when the tempter came to Him, he said, “If You are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread.”

4 But He answered and said, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.’ ”

5 Then the devil took Him up into the holy city, set Him on the pinnacle of the temple,

*** 6 and said to Him, “If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down. For it is written: ‘He shall give His angels charge over you,’ and, ‘In their hands they shall bear you up, Lest you dash your foot against a stone.’ ”

7 Jesus said to him, “It is written again, ‘You shall not tempt the Lord your God.’ ”

8 Again, the devil took Him up on an exceedingly high mountain, and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory. 

***9 And he said to Him, “All these things I will give You if You will fall down and worship me.”

10 Then Jesus said to him, [b]“Away with you, Satan! For it is written, ‘You shall worship the Lord your God, and Him only you shall serve.’ ”

11 Then the devil left Him, and behold, angels came and ministered to Him.

Satan knew if he could make Jesus sin by tempting Him... that he would knock out the key player in his battle against God.

Of course by reading Matthew Chapter 4 we see that Satan failed in his efforts to tempt Jesus…

And as a result of failing to control Jesus through temptation…today…you and I are left facing the battle with Satan trying to control our lives by daily tempting us.

I’m not here today to scare you into surrendering your life over to God…

But I am here today to make you aware… make you aware that…

Satan is real…and whether or not you agree to fight or not…you are in a battle.

It is a battle that not only daily challenges the relationship you have with God…but it will even make you question if there is a God at all.

One of the most difficult challenges of finding out if God Does Care about people… is realizing that both Christians and non-Christians alike are in constant battle with the enemy of God.

The enemy’s number one concern in this life is to consume you…totally control you…to saturate your mind with lies and meaningless things.  Just look around at all the information that is available.  With a few key strokes we can watch or read about any topic you desire.  We have so much information in today’s world that makes it easy for Satan to execute his battle plan and he can and does attack us on all sides at all times.

Satan loves to cause division within the church, within your marriage, your Family, with your friends, your business and work colleagues and even strangers you meet at the grocery store and even driving down the road.

Satan uses greed, jealousy, gossip, desires of the flesh, pride and every other thing you can think of to pull you away from God.

He loves to break up the unity that is being established in the church through the preaching and teaching of the Bible and fellowship.

He wants to keep you from focusing on Helping people…and sharing Jesus with the lost  what’s important in this life… 

I feel that it’s important for you to realize that you are not fighting this battle today alone.

Satan is real…and we all need to learn how to fight against him.

Stand with me as we read from God’s training manual…

Matthew chapter 4: beginning with verse 1

How does Satan tempt us today? Just like Jesus’ temptation.

I believe that there are 3 main areas where Satan tempts us today.

The first way that I see Satan tempt us today is….

He Physically Tempts You

I first need to share with you that…Satan hates Jesus 

Satan wants to turn the church and everyone in it against God.

Since Satan’s efforts failed against Jesus…He has redirected his fight by personally targeting each of us.  He knows when we’re at your weakest

Did you happen to catch from our reading that Jesus wasn’t tempted by Satan when He was in the Temple/Church or even when He was being baptized? 

Matthew 4: 1 Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.

No…Satan knew Jesus would be most vulnerable when he was all alone.

Just like we read in verse one…you too are most vulnerable when you are by yourself.

How effective would Satan be targeting you after you just get done sing praises to God?

Satan knows that he can penetrate you when you are under life’s emotional stresses…

-When you are exhausted from work…He tells you…you deserve a break…you don’t need to go to church…you don’t need to read your bible…you don’t need to pray…(just…flip on the TV and see who’s going to be the next American Idol)

-What about when your all alone? ...He plants thoughts in your mind like…if God truly did Love you…you wouldn’t be alone…He would have already given you a close friend…

-He clouds your mind with the uncertainties of life…When things are out of your hands and you cannot fix the problem.

He also knows that if he causes people inside the church to battle against each other...then their focus in not on the lost and he’s winning the battle

In Matthew 4: 2 & 3… 2 And when He had fasted forty days and forty nights, afterward He was hungry. ***3 Now when the tempter came to Him, he said, “If You are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread.”

when Satan tempted Jesus…He knew that Jesus was physically hungry.  40 days in the wilderness with no food

You have to be prepared to battle this enemy in your own physical body.

He’ll hit you below the belt line…in areas of your life like…

(Kids)…Telling you its ok to cheat on a test in school…(Adults)… having sex before marriage is an acceptable practice today…or telling you it’s ok to have an affair after you are married…

He will physically beat you up if you let him…

Be prepared to fight him tell him you’ve been training for him and you’re ready to fight and he will flee  

The Bible says in James 4:7   Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you.

The Second way that I see Satan tempt us today is….He Spiritually Tempts You

Throughout the New Testament we see Satan revealed as a real vital power.

In Matthew 4: 6…we see where Satan Spiritually tempted Jesus by quoting scripture.

And weather you realize it or not…he is the ruler of a kingdom that has powers…He rules over Demons and rules the darkness.

He is the prince of this world…and rules by controlling those who deny the name of Jesus.

And he is currently… still on the prowl seeking out those who oppose God the Father. 

I Peter 5:8 … “Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.”

He tries his best to make you believe that the bible is untrue…

He even tempts you through people...even some of the people you hang around with… they will try and convince you to try things or do things that you know the Bible says are wrong.

When sins like these happen in our personal lives…we try and cover them up by…looking for verses in the bible that prove in our own minds that what we did was right.

But truth being told…It is way too easy to take the bible out of context and just say we didn’t realize what we did was wrong.

This is the reason it is important for you to realize… it is important that you make time for God and the studying of His word.

If you are one here today that uses the excuse that you don’t have enough time or that your way too busy for God.

All you are doing is telling God that He is not important enough for you to take the time to invest in Him.

This is exactly what Satan wants you to say and do.

Satan will trick you into thinking you don’t have time for God.

Don’t become his next victim of control.

The Third way that I see Satan tempt us today is….

He Tempts us   Psy-cho-logically (In our minds)

In Matthew 4: 8 & 9 

The Devil offered the whole world to Jesus…if He would only kneel down and worship him.

Today the devil still offers us the world by offering us materialism and power.

Satan has the power to control the mind…keeping you from growing in a Godly direction.

Satan is just like a weed that grows in the yard…it starts out small but when left unattended…it soon chokes out everything around it… stealing every bit of nutrition surrounding it.

Satan will tell you that missing one Sunday…or missing one Wednesday service will not harm you.

But this is where he is fooling you.

The service you choose to miss had valuable information that God personally needed you to hear.

There is nothing more God wants right now than to see this church grow physically.

But I also know that in order for the church to grow in number…you must be growing personally in your own life through Him…

You have got to be the one who steps up to the call and say…

 Joshua 24:15 does… “But as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD.”

 Matthew 4:10-11…again 10 Then Jesus said to him, [b]“Away with you, Satan! For it is written, ‘You shall worship the Lord your God, and Him only you shall serve.’ ”

11 Then the devil left Him, and behold, angels came and ministered to Him.

When you proclaim the name of Jesus…Satan is left with no other option but to leave.

It’s time for you…the individual, the church, to step up and show Satan who’s in charge of your life.

Satan will never give up in his fight against God until the day that God himself returns to retrieve His children.

Until that time…it’s your responsibility to take up the Armor of God and fight.  That Armor is the Bible, The Word of God

Ephesians 6:10-18 

10 Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. 

11 Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the [a]wiles of the devil. 

12 For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of [b]the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.

13 Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.

14 Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness, 

15 and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; 

16 above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one. 

17 And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God; 

18 praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints—

Let me end todays message with this.

This morning as I drank my coffee, I bowed my head.  Satan thought he had won , beat me, beat God concerning me.  I then looked up and said AMEN.

At that moment I defeated Satan.

Your weapons of choice are the Bible and Prayer

Use them both often, daily, several times daily.

Let us Pray

Heavenly Father, Today I will be your warrior and prepare for battle.      Today I claim victory over Satan by putting on the whole armor of God!                 May I stand firm in the truth of Your Word so I will not be a victim of Satan’s lies. May your word guard my heart from evil so I will remain pure and holy, protected under  the blood of Jesus Christ.  May I stand firm in the Good News of the Gospel so Your peace will shine through me and be a light to all I encounter.  May I be able to see Satan’s fiery darts for what they are   doubt, denial, and deceit so I will not be vulnerable to spiritual defeat.  May I keep my mind focused on You so Satan will not have a stronghold on my thoughts.  May the two-edged sword of Your Word be ready in my hands so I can expose the tempting words of Satan.

By Truth, Righteousness, Peace, Salvation, Spirit and Faith

I put on the whole armor of God!

I am prepared to live this day and every day in spiritual victory

Through Jesus Christ I Pray

Amen.

Verse List

1 Peter 5:8

Matthew chapter 4

James 4:7

I Peter 5:8

Joshua 24:15 

Ephesians 6:10-18

End Time

Sermon Summary

I have been trying to learn what the bible says about the end times.  I have learned one thing for sure, it is very confusing as to the chronologic order of the events that have been prophesied in the Bible.  I have learned that the End Times are found not only in Revelations, but in 159 different verses throughout the Bible.

I have also learned that the word Rapture does not exist in the Bible, but what we know as the Rapture is described in the Bible.

I also learned that there are at least 3 different views concerning the Rapture.  There are the Pre-Tribulation folks, There are the 3 & ½ year Tribulation folks, and there are the Post Tribulation folks.  There are also 4 different views concerning the End Times in general (See Different Views on the End Times at the end of this document)

Each of these different groups have and can use scripture to back up their beliefs (selected Scriptures).  But when you read each and every scripture concerning the Rapture and Second Coming it gets very confusing.  At least for me.  After all, I am just a simple minded type of person.

I found all of this on the internet and have copied it for you all to read.  The purpose of this message is to get you all to do your own research concerning this so you will not be fooled by false teachings.

Will the Rapture happen before or after the Tribulation?   That is one of the major topics that separate each of the different groups.

Whatever you think or believe the main thing to always remember is to be prepared each and every minute of every day by being saved, and by surrendering yourself to the Lord.  By doing that it really doesn’t matter the sequence of events

I really would like to sit down with you all so we can have a discussion about this topic.

***Jesus’s disciples asked, “Tell us,” they said, “when will this happen, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?”

For the longest time I believed as the majority of Christians, that the rapture was to take place before the tribulation based on verses in various parts of the bible. But now I am not so sure. I believe it could still go either way. It is important to look at all the scriptures to see what the bible says about when Jesus is returning. I think it’s important to test everything, not just automatically agree with the verses we like to hear and assume they mean what everyone else say they mean. The bible is the ultimate test of truth. John 17:17 says, “Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth.”

Will the Rapture happen before or after the Tribulation?

Depending on what you have read or heard about the rapture or the tribulation. You may agree there are four views or opinions. One is pre-tribulation. That is before the seven year tribulation period. One is mid-tribulation. Which is the three and a half year mark of the tribulation. Post-trib is at the end of the seven year period after the tribulation. Then there is the pan theory. And that is, it will all pan out in the end. 😀 Little humor…..

My concern about the Pre-tribulation Rapture teaching

When it comes to the rapture, believing it will happen one way or another, does not affect ones salvation. The key to salvation is remaining in Christ. My concern is about the pre tribulation rapture teaching among the people of the world, including many in the church and may cause some who are on the fence to fall away from the faith.  Because they thought  the rapture will happen first and instead we find ourselves in tribulation. Some people have a “wait and see attitude”. They say ‘well if it happens then I will just accept Jesus at that time.’ How sad! The truth is they want to live in sin. I don’t think they will have the option to repent when it comes down to the wire. 

What does Jesus say about the Rapture?

The first scripture I wanted to point out refers to the response Jesus gave to his disciples.  (Notice the underlined words). He said, “Immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken. Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. And He will send His angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they will gather together His elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.” Matthew 24:29-31

Is it possible there will be two raptures?

First, Jesus says Immediately after the tribulation. Then he mentions the sound of a trumpet and  lastly a gathering of the elect. Doesn’t a gathering sound to you like the rapture? How many raptures are there going to be? These are the signs for the end of the age.

Who is the elect in the bible?

The bible verse mentioned the gathering together of God’s elect. Many say the word elect refers to the Jewish people. Elect means to choose. God’s chosen people. Let’s look at a couple verses that talk about the elect in the bible. In Romans 8:33 it says, “Who shall bring a charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies.” This verse is addressed to the Christians in the church at Rome. Christians are called the elect. Again in the book of Colossians 3:12 it says, “Therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, put on tender mercies, kindness, humility, meekness, long suffering;” This verse is addressing the Christians at the church at Colosse not the Jews. Lastly Paul in Romans 11:7 says, “What then? Israel has not obtained what it seeks; but the elect have obtained it, and the rest were blinded.” Making it clear that the church is the elect not the Jewish people.

The fact is the bible refers to the elect as the believers. The Jews will believe in Jesus when they look upon him and will be saved. The bible says that all Israel will be saved when that happens. So it is possible the elect refers to the Jews in Matthew 24.

The First Resurrection

Revelation 20:4-5 “And I saw thrones, and they sat on them, and judgment was committed to them. Then I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for their witness to Jesus and for the word of God, who had not worshiped the beast or his image, and had not received his mark on their foreheads or on their hands. And they lived and reigned with Christ for a thousand years. But the rest of the dead did not live again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection.”  So here we have, our Jewish brothers that are beheaded during the tribulation period and then they are resurrected. What is significant about this passage is the very last sentence. It says this is the first resurrection. Does this mean there will not be a rapture before this. That’s significant.

Again in the next verse, Revelation 20:6 says, “Blessed and holy is he who has part in the first resurrection. Over such the second death has no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with Him a thousand years.” Since this is the first resurrection after the tribulation, wouldn’t it mean there wasn’t one seven years earlier before the tribulation? I don’t know!

The man of sin is revealed

Paul appears to have had some concerns 2000 years ago about falsehoods circulating throughout the church of Thessalonica. The Apostle Paul found out that people were teaching that Christ had already come back. So Paul wrote to the church of the Thessalonians to correct them. He said this, “Now, brethren, concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our gathering together to Him, we ask you, not to be soon shaken in mind or troubled, either by spirit or by word or by letter, as if from us, as though the day of Christ had come. Let no one deceive you by any means; for that Day will not come unless the falling away comes first, and the man of sin is revealed, the son of perdition, who opposes and exalts himself above all that is called God or that is worshiped, so that he sits as God in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God.”  2 Thessalonians 2:1

Paul warns that Jesus will not come until after a falling away and after the man of sin is revealed. 

The dead in Christ shall rise first

Here is one of the most popular passages on the rapture of the church. 

1 Thessalonians 4:15-18  “For this we say to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord will by no means precede those who are asleep. For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord. Therefore comfort one another with these words.” Doesn’t this verse sound a lot like Matthew 24, describing Jesus’s return and the gathering together? 

At the Last Trumpet Sound

1 Corinthians 15:50-54 says “Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; nor does corruption inherit incorruption. Behold, I tell you a mystery: We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed— in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality. So when this corruptible has put on incorruption, and this mortal has put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written: “Death is swallowed up in victory.” Again, this verse appears to indicate that Jesus will come, “At the last trumpet.” At the end of the tribulation.

The Prophets and the Saints

Here is a look at what happens at the last trumpet. Revelation 11:18 points out that God has plans for us and for the dead. It says, “The nations were angry, and Your wrath has come,  And the time of the dead, that they should be judged, And that You should reward Your servants the prophets and the saints, And those who fear Your name, small and great, And should destroy those who destroy the earth.” Quite a lot happens here. Christ returns, punishes the wicked, rewards the saints. But one thing happens for sure. There is a resurrection of God’s people that takes place. As the previous mentioned verses makes clear.

The Parable of the Wheat and Tares

This parable I think sums it all up. Jesus taught this parable in 

Matthew 13:24 about the wheat and the tares. “Another parable He put forth to them, saying: “The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field; but while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat and went his way. But when the grain had sprouted and produced a crop, then the tares also appeared. So the servants of the owner came and said to him, ‘Sir, did you not sow good seed in your field? How then does it have tares?’ He said to them, ‘An enemy has done this.’ The servants said to him, ‘Do you want us then to go and gather them up?’ But he said, ‘No, lest while you gather up the tares you also uproot the wheat with them. Let both grow together until the harvest, and at the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, “First gather together the tares and bind them in bundles to burn them, but gather the wheat into my barn.” Again we see in this passage that God is allowing us to grow along with the tares until the harvest. We don’t know when the rapture will happen

Conclusion

So is it set in stone? Absolutely not. Will we be raptured  after the tribulation? I honestly don’t know, but there will be a resurrection after the tribulation. God knows I want to be raptured next week. But God has a plan. God owns the entire world and He made it for his good purpose. He holds all the cards. We just have to trust him. Jesus mentions in 

Matthew 24:36 “But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, but My Father only.” When God is ready He will come for His church. I am glad to know that it can go either way and not just at the end of the tribulation. But at least we won’t be surprised if the tribulation begins and we are still here. If that happens, many people will be caught off guard. We need to prepare for the coming of the Lord and serve Him with all our hearts now! 

159 Bible Verses about the End Times

Here are 159 Bible verses about the end times from the Old and New Testaments of the Holy Bible, King James Version, sorted from the most relevant to the least relevant.

2 Timothy 3:1-5 KJV

This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come. For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, Without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good, Traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God; Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away.

Read full chapter

Joel 2:30-31 KJV

And I will shew wonders in the heavens and in the earth, blood, and fire, and pillars of smoke. The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and terrible day of the Lord come.

Read full chapter

Amos 5:18 KJV

Woe unto you that desire the day of the Lord! to what end is it for you? the day of the Lord is darkness, and not light.

Read full chapter

2 Peter 2:1-2 KJV

But there were false prophets also among the people, even as there shall be false teachers among you, who privily shall bring in damnable heresies, even denying the Lord that bought them, and bring upon themselves swift destruction. And many shall follow their pernicious ways; by reason of whom the way of truth shall be evil spoken of.

Read full chapter

2 Peter 3:3-4 KJV

Knowing this first, that there shall come in the last days scoffers, walking after their own lusts, And saying, Where is the promise of his coming? for since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation.

Read full chapter

Matthew 24:36 KJV

But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only.

Read full chapter

Revelation 11:9-10 KJV

And they of the people and kindreds and tongues and nations shall see their dead bodies three days and an half, and shall not suffer their dead bodies to be put in graves. And they that dwell upon the earth shall rejoice over them, and make merry, and shall send gifts one to another; because these two prophets tormented them that dwelt on the earth.

Read full chapter

Matthew 24:44 KJV

Therefore be ye also ready: for in such an hour as ye think not the Son of man cometh.

Read full chapter

Isaiah 66:8 KJV

Who hath heard such a thing? who hath seen such things? Shall the earth be made to bring forth in one day? or shall a nation be born at once? for as soon as Zion travailed, she brought forth her children.

Read full chapter

1 Corinthians 15:24 KJV

Then cometh the end, when he shall have delivered up the kingdom to God, even the Father; when he shall have put down all rule and all authority and power.

Read full chapter

Revelation 17:8 KJV

The beast that thou sawest was, and is not; and shall ascend out of the bottomless pit, and go into perdition: and they that dwell on the earth shall wonder, whose names were not written in the book of life from the foundation of the world, when they behold the beast that was, and is not, and yet is.

Read full chapter

1 Timothy 4:1 KJV

Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils;

Read full chapter

1 Corinthians 15:28 KJV

And when all things shall be subdued unto him, then shall the Son also himself be subject unto him that put all things under him, that God may be all in all.

Read full chapter

Matthew 24:21-22 KJV

For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be. And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect’s sake those days shall be shortened.

Read full chapter

Luke 21:36 KJV

Watch ye therefore, and pray always, that ye may be accounted worthy to escape all these things that shall come to pass, and to stand before the Son of man.

Read full chapter

Daniel 7:24 KJV

And the ten horns out of this kingdom are ten kings that shall arise: and another shall rise after them; and he shall be diverse from the first, and he shall subdue three kings.

Read full chapter

James 5:8 KJV

Be ye also patient; stablish your hearts: for the coming of the Lord draweth nigh.

Read full chapter

Zechariah 14:12 KJV

And this shall be the plague wherewith the Lord will smite all the people that have fought against Jerusalem; Their flesh shall consume away while they stand upon their feet, and their eyes shall consume away in their holes, and their tongue shall consume away in their mouth.

Read full chapter

Matthew 24:14 KJV

And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come.

Read full chapter

Daniel 8:23-25 KJV

And in the latter time of their kingdom, when the transgressors are come to the full, a king of fierce countenance, and understanding dark sentences, shall stand up. And his power shall be mighty, but not by his own power: and he shall destroy wonderfully, and shall prosper, and practise, and shall destroy the mighty and the holy people. And through his policy also he shall cause craft to prosper in his hand; and he shall magnify himself in his heart, and by peace shall destroy many: he shall also stand up against the Prince of princes; but he shall be broken without hand.

Read full chapter

1 Thessalonians 5:3 KJV

For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape.

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Daniel 12:4 KJV

But thou, O Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book, even to the time of the end: many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall be increased.

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Daniel 9:24-27 KJV

Seventy weeks are determined upon thy people and upon thy holy city, to finish the transgression, and to make an end of sins, and to make reconciliation for iniquity, and to bring in everlasting righteousness, and to seal up the vision and prophecy, and to anoint the most Holy. Know therefore and understand, that from the going forth of the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem unto the Messiah the Prince shall be seven weeks, and threescore and two weeks: the street shall be built again, and the wall, even in troublous times. And after threescore and two weeks shall Messiah be cut off, but not for himself: and the people of the prince that shall come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary; and the end thereof shall be with a flood, and unto the end of the war desolations are determined. And he shall confirm the covenant…

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Matthew 24:42 KJV

Watch therefore: for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come.

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Daniel 12:11 KJV

And from the time that the daily sacrifice shall be taken away, and the abomination that maketh desolate set up, there shall be a thousand two hundred and ninety days.

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Luke 21:25-26 KJV

And there shall be signs in the sun, and in the moon, and in the stars; and upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity; the sea and the waves roaring; Men’s hearts failing them for fear, and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth: for the powers of heaven shall be shaken.

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Matthew 24:8 KJV

All these are the beginning of sorrows.

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Mark 13:32 KJV

But of that day and that hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels which are in heaven, neither the Son, but the Father.

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Romans 8:21 KJV

Because the creature itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God.

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Romans 8:22 KJV

For we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now.

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2 Corinthians 11:13-15 KJV

For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ. And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light. Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also be transformed as the ministers of righteousness; whose end shall be according to their works.

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Matthew 25:1-13 KJV

Then shall the kingdom of heaven be likened unto ten virgins, which took their lamps, and went forth to meet the bridegroom. And five of them were wise, and five were foolish. They that were foolish took their lamps, and took no oil with them: But the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps. While the bridegroom tarried, they all slumbered and slept. And at midnight there was a cry made, Behold, the bridegroom cometh; go ye out to meet him. Then all those virgins arose, and trimmed their lamps. And the foolish said unto the wise, Give us of your oil; for our lamps are gone out. But the wise answered, saying, Not so; lest there be not enough for us and you: but go ye rather to them that sell, and buy for yourselves. And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came; and they that…

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Zechariah 5:11 KJV

And he said unto me, To build it an house in the land of Shinar: and it shall be established, and set there upon her own base.

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Revelation 1:1 KJV

The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave unto him, to shew unto his servants things which must shortly come to pass; and he sent and signified it by his angel unto his servant John:

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John 14:1-3 KJV

Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father’s house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.

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2 Peter 3:5-6 KJV

For this they willingly are ignorant of, that by the word of God the heavens were of old, and the earth standing out of the water and in the water: Whereby the world that then was, being overflowed with water, perished:

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Matthew 24:13 KJV

But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved.

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1 Corinthians 15:51-52 KJV

Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.

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1 Timothy 4:3-4 KJV

Forbidding to marry, and commanding to abstain from meats, which God hath created to be received with thanksgiving of them which believe and know the truth. For every creature of God is good, and nothing to be refused, if it be received with thanksgiving:

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1 Thessalonians 1:9-10 KJV

For they themselves shew of us what manner of entering in we had unto you, and how ye turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God; And to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, even Jesus, which delivered us from the wrath to come.

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Mark 13:7-8 KJV

And when ye shall hear of wars and rumours of wars, be ye not troubled: for such things must needs be; but the end shall not be yet. For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be earthquakes in divers places, and there shall be famines and troubles: these are the beginnings of sorrows.

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Matthew 24:7 KJV

For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places.

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1 Thessalonians 4:13-18 KJV

But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him. For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep. 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: 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. Wherefore comfort one another with these words.

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Acts 2:37-39 KJV

Now when they heard this, they were pricked in their heart, and said unto Peter and to the rest of the apostles, Men and brethren, what shall we do? Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. For the promise is unto you, and to your children, and to all that are afar off, even as many as the Lord our God shall call.

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Luke 21:10 KJV

Then said he unto them, Nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom:

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2 Peter 3:10-13 KJV

But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which 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. Seeing then that all these things shall be dissolved, what manner of persons ought ye to be in all holy conversation and godliness, 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? Nevertheless we, according to his promise, look for new heavens and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness.

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1 Thessalonians 5:9-10 KJV

For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ, Who died for us, that, whether we wake or sleep, we should live together with him.

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Luke 17:26 KJV

And as it was in the days of Noe, so shall it be also in the days of the Son of man.

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2 Corinthians 4:4 KJV

In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them.

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2 Thessalonians 2:1-5 KJV

Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him, That ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand. Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition; Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God. Remember ye not, that, when I was yet with you, I told you these things?

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Genesis 6:11-13 KJV

The earth also was corrupt before God, and the earth was filled with violence. And God looked upon the earth, and, behold, it was corrupt; for all flesh had corrupted his way upon the earth. And God said unto Noah, The end of all flesh is come before me; for the earth is filled with violence through them; and, behold, I will destroy them with the earth.

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Matthew 24:22 KJV

And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect’s sake those days shall be shortened.

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2 Thessalonians 2:6-10 KJV

And now ye know what withholdeth that he might be revealed in his time. For the mystery of iniquity doth already work: only he who now letteth will let, until he be taken out of the way. And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming: Even him, whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders, And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved.

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Luke 21:11 KJV

And great earthquakes shall be in divers places, and famines, and pestilences; and fearful sights and great signs shall there be from heaven.

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2 Thessalonians 2:11-12 KJV

And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie: That they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness.

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Matthew 24:6 KJV

And ye shall hear of wars and rumours of wars: see that ye be not troubled: for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet.

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Acts 17:30-31 KJV

And the times of this ignorance God winked at; but now commandeth all men every where to repent: Because he hath appointed a day, in the which he will judge the world in righteousness by that man whom he hath ordained; whereof he hath given assurance unto all men, in that he hath raised him from the dead.

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Revelation 12:9 KJV

And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.

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Revelation 13:16-17 KJV

And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads: And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name.

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Matthew 24:3 KJV

And as he sat upon the mount of Olives, the disciples came unto him privately, saying, Tell us, when shall these things be? and what shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world?

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Matthew 24:21 KJV

For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be.

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Matthew 24:11 KJV

And many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many.

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Acts 2:40 KJV

And with many other words did he testify and exhort, saying, Save yourselves from this untoward generation.

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Matthew 24:24 KJV

For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect.

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Romans 16:19-20 KJV

For your obedience is come abroad unto all men. I am glad therefore on your behalf: but yet I would have you wise unto that which is good, and simple concerning evil. And the God of peace shall bruise Satan under your feet shortly. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you. Amen.

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Matthew 18:10 KJV

Take heed that ye despise not one of these little ones; for I say unto you, That in heaven their angels do always behold the face of my Father which is in heaven.

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Romans 13:11 KJV

And that, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep: for now is our salvation nearer than when we believed.

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Matthew 24:12 KJV

And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold.

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Matthew 13:11 KJV

He answered and said unto them, Because it is given unto you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it is not given.

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Ephesians 6:12 KJV

For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.

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Daniel 2:1-49 KJV

And in the second year of the reign of Nebuchadnezzar Nebuchadnezzar dreamed dreams, wherewith his spirit was troubled, and his sleep brake from him. Then the king commanded to call the magicians, and the astrologers, and the sorcerers, and the Chaldeans, for to shew the king his dreams. So they came and stood before the king. And the king said unto them, I have dreamed a dream, and my spirit was troubled to know the dream. Then spake the Chaldeans to the king in Syriack, O king, live for ever: tell thy servants the dream, and we will shew the interpretation. The king answered and said to the Chaldeans, The thing is gone from me: if ye will not make known unto me the dream, with the interpretation thereof, ye shall be cut in pieces, and your houses shall be made a dunghill. But if ye shew the dream, and…

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Matthew 24:37 KJV

But as the days of Noah were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.

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Matthew 7:13-14 KJV

Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat: Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.

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John 3:16 KJV

For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

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Isaiah 8:21-22 KJV

And they shall pass through it, hardly bestead and hungry: and it shall come to pass, that when they shall be hungry, they shall fret themselves, and curse their king and their God, and look upward. And they shall look unto the earth; and behold trouble and darkness, dimness of anguish; and they shall be driven to darkness.

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Galatians 1:4 KJV

Who gave himself for our sins, that he might deliver us from this present evil world, according to the will of God and our Father:

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Matthew 24:15 KJV

When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, (whoso readeth, let him understand:)

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Matthew 24:9 KJV

Then shall they deliver you up to be afflicted, and shall kill you: and ye shall be hated of all nations for my name’s sake.

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Matthew 24:5 KJV

For many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many.

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Acts 3:19 KJV

Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord.

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Daniel 12:1 KJV

And at that time shall Michael stand up, the great prince which standeth for the children of thy people: and there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation even to that same time: and at that time thy people shall be delivered, every one that shall be found written in the book.

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Revelation 3:3 KJV

Remember therefore how thou hast received and heard, and hold fast, and repent. If therefore thou shalt not watch, I will come on thee as a thief, and thou shalt not know what hour I will come upon thee.

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2 Peter 3:3 KJV

Knowing this first, that there shall come in the last days scoffers, walking after their own lusts,

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1 John 5:19 KJV

And we know that we are of God, and the whole world lieth in wickedness.

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Matthew 24:33 KJV

So likewise ye, when ye shall see all these things, know that it is near, even at the doors.

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Matthew 24:29 KJV

Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken:

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Revelation 11:18 KJV

And the nations were angry, and thy wrath is come, and the time of the dead, that they should be judged, and that thou shouldest give reward unto thy servants the prophets, and to the saints, and them that fear thy name, small and great; and shouldest destroy them which destroy the earth.

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1 John 2:18 KJV

Little children, it is the last time: and as ye have heard that antichrist shall come, even now are there many antichrists; whereby we know that it is the last time.

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Revelation 3:10 KJV

Because thou hast kept the word of my patience, I also will keep thee from the hour of temptation, which shall come upon all the world, to try them that dwell upon the earth.

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2 Timothy 4:3-4 KJV

For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears; And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables.

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Matthew 24:31 KJV

And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.

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Isaiah 46:10 KJV

Declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times the things that are not yet done, saying, My counsel shall stand, and I will do all my pleasure:

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1 Corinthians 2:14 KJV

But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.

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Matthew 24:30 KJV

And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.

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Revelation 20:7-10 KJV

And when the thousand years are expired, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison, And shall go out to deceive the nations which are in the four quarters of the earth, Gog, and Magog, to gather them together to battle: the number of whom is as the sand of the sea. And they went up on the breadth of the earth, and compassed the camp of the saints about, and the beloved city: and fire came down from God out of heaven, and devoured them. And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever.

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1 Corinthians 6:9-10 KJV

Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God.

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Acts 1:7-8 KJV

And he said unto them, It is not for you to know the times or the seasons, which the Father hath put in his own power. But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.

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Matthew 24:6-7 KJV

And ye shall hear of wars and rumours of wars: see that ye be not troubled: for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places.

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Revelation 1:7 KJV

Behold, he cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see him, and they also which pierced him: and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of him. Even so, Amen.

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Matthew 24:9-10 KJV

Then shall they deliver you up to be afflicted, and shall kill you: and ye shall be hated of all nations for my name’s sake. And then shall many be offended, and shall betray one another, and shall hate one another.

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Psalm 119:175 KJV

Let my soul live, and it shall praise thee; and let thy judgments help me.

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Revelation 18:4 KJV

And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues.

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1 Corinthians 2:1-16 KJV

And when he had opened the third seal, I heard the third beast say, Come and see. And I beheld, and lo a black horse; and he that sat on him had a pair of balances in his hand. And I heard a voice in the midst of the four beasts say, A measure of wheat for a penny, and three measures of barley for a penny; and see thou hurt not the oil and the wine. And when he had opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth beast say, Come and see. And I looked, and behold a pale horse: and his name that sat on him was Death, and Hell followed with him. And power was given unto them over the fourth part of the earth, to kill with sword, and with hunger, and with death, and with the beasts of the earth.And I…

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Matthew 24:4-5 KJV

And Jesus answered and said unto them, Take heed that no man deceive you. For many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many.

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Matthew 12:32 KJV

And whosoever speaketh a word against the Son of man, it shall be forgiven him: but whosoever speaketh against the Holy Ghost, it shall not be forgiven him, neither in this world, neither in the world to come.

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Ephesians 1:21 KJV

Far above all principality, and power, and might, and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this world, but also in that which is to come:

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Isaiah 2:4 KJV

And he shall judge among the nations, and shall rebuke many people: and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruninghooks: nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more.

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Isaiah 2:2 KJV

And it shall come to pass in the last days, that the mountain of the Lord’s house shall be established in the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills; and all nations shall flow unto it.

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Revelation 6:5-8 KJV

And when he had opened the third seal, I heard the third beast say, Come and see. And I beheld, and lo a black horse; and he that sat on him had a pair of balances in his hand. And I heard a voice in the midst of the four beasts say, A measure of wheat for a penny, and three measures of barley for a penny; and see thou hurt not the oil and the wine. And when he had opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth beast say, Come and see. And I looked, and behold a pale horse: and his name that sat on him was Death, and Hell followed with him. And power was given unto them over the fourth part of the earth, to kill with sword, and with hunger, and with death, and with the beasts of the earth.

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Luke 21:26 KJV

Men’s hearts failing them for fear, and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth: for the powers of heaven shall be shaken.

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Zephaniah 3:10 KJV

From beyond the rivers of Ethiopia my suppliants, even the daughter of my dispersed, shall bring mine offering.

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Isaiah 27:6 KJV

He shall cause them that come of Jacob to take root: Israel shall blossom and bud, and fill the face of the world with fruit.

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Isaiah 35:1-2 KJV

The wilderness and the solitary place shall be glad for them; and the desert shall rejoice, and blossom as the rose. It shall blossom abundantly, and rejoice even with joy and singing: the glory of Lebanon shall be given unto it, the excellency of Carmel and Sharon, they shall see the glory of the Lord, and the excellency of our God.

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Ezekiel 36:34-36 KJV

And the desolate land shall be tilled, whereas it lay desolate in the sight of all that passed by. And they shall say, This land that was desolate is become like the garden of Eden; and the waste and desolate and ruined cities are become fenced, and are inhabited. Then the heathen that are left round about you shall know that I the Lord build the ruined places, and plant that that was desolate: I the Lord have spoken it, and I will do it.

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Ezekiel 38:12-13 KJV

To take a spoil, and to take a prey; to turn thine hand upon the desolate places that are now inhabited, and upon the people that are gathered out of the nations, which have gotten cattle and goods, that dwell in the midst of the land. Sheba, and Dedan, and the merchants of Tarshish, with all the young lions thereof, shall say unto thee, Art thou come to take a spoil? hast thou gathered thy company to take a prey? to carry away silver and gold, to take away cattle and goods, to take a great spoil?

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Joel 3:18 KJV

And it shall come to pass in that day, that the mountains shall drop down new wine, and the hills shall flow with milk, and all the rivers of Judah shall flow with waters, and a fountain shall come forth out of the house of the Lord, and shall water the valley of Shittim.

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Amos 9:13-15 KJV

Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that the plowman shall overtake the reaper, and the treader of grapes him that soweth seed; and the mountains shall drop sweet wine, and all the hills shall melt. And I will bring again the captivity of my people of Israel, and they shall build the waste cities, and inhabit them; and they shall plant vineyards, and drink the wine thereof; they shall also make gardens, and eat the fruit of them. And I will plant them upon their land, and they shall no more be pulled up out of their land which I have given them, saith the Lord thy God.

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Isaiah 41:18-20 KJV

I will open rivers in high places, and fountains in the midst of the valleys: I will make the wilderness a pool of water, and the dry land springs of water. I will plant in the wilderness the cedar, the shittah tree, and the myrtle, and the oil tree; I will set in the desert the fir tree, and the pine, and the box tree together: That they may see, and know, and consider, and understand together, that the hand of the Lord hath done this, and the Holy One of Israel hath created it.

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Zephaniah 3:9 KJV

For then will I turn to the people a pure language, that they may all call upon the name of the Lord, to serve him with one consent.

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Isaiah 19:18 KJV

In that day shall five cities in the land of Egypt speak the language of Canaan, and swear to the Lord of hosts; one shall be called, The city of destruction.

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Luke 21:24 KJV

And they shall fall by the edge of the sword, and shall be led away captive into all nations: and Jerusalem shall be trodden down of the Gentiles, until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled.

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Zechariah 12:3 KJV

And in that day will I make Jerusalem a burdensome stone for all people: all that burden themselves with it shall be cut in pieces, though all the people of the earth be gathered together against it.

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Genesis 15:18 KJV

In the same day the Lord made a covenant with Abram, saying, Unto thy seed have I given this land, from the river of Egypt unto the great river, the river Euphrates:

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Leviticus 25:23 KJV

The land shall not be sold for ever: for the land is mine, for ye are strangers and sojourners with me.

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2 Chronicles 6:6 KJV

But I have chosen Jerusalem, that my name might be there; and have chosen David to be over my people Israel.

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Zechariah 12:6-9 KJV

In that day will I make the governors of Judah like an hearth of fire among the wood, and like a torch of fire in a sheaf; and they shall devour all the people round about, on the right hand and on the left: and Jerusalem shall be inhabited again in her own place, even in Jerusalem. The Lord also shall save the tents of Judah first, that the glory of the house of David and the glory of the inhabitants of Jerusalem do not magnify themselves against Judah. In that day shall the Lord defend the inhabitants of Jerusalem; and he that is feeble among them at that day shall be as David; and the house of David shall be as God, as the angel of the Lord before them. And it shall come to pass in that day, that I will seek to destroy all the nations that…

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Mark 13:14-20 KJV

But when ye shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, standing where it ought not, (let him that readeth understand,) then let them that be in Judaea flee to the mountains: And let him that is on the housetop not go down into the house, neither enter therein, to take any thing out of his house: And let him that is in the field not turn back again for to take up his garment. But woe to them that are with child, and to them that give suck in those days! And pray ye that your flight be not in the winter. For in those days shall be affliction, such as was not from the beginning of the creation which God created unto this time, neither shall be. And except that the Lord had shortened those days, no flesh should be saved: but for the…

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Joel 3:2 KJV

I will also gather all nations, and will bring them down into the valley of Jehoshaphat, and will plead with them there for my people and for my heritage Israel, whom they have scattered among the nations, and parted my land.

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Daniel 11:39 KJV

Thus shall he do in the most strong holds with a strange god, whom he shall acknowledge and increase with glory: and he shall cause them to rule over many, and shall divide the land for gain.

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Ezekiel 44:1-3 KJV

Then he brought me back the way of the gate of the outward sanctuary which looketh toward the east; and it was shut. Then said the Lord unto me; This gate shall be shut, it shall not be opened, and no man shall enter in by it; because the Lord, the God of Israel, hath entered in by it, therefore it shall be shut. It is for the prince; the prince, he shall sit in it to eat bread before the Lord; he shall enter by the way of the porch of that gate, and shall go out by the way of the same.

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Ezekiel 37:15-22 KJV

The word of the Lord came again unto me, saying, Moreover, thou son of man, take thee one stick, and write upon it, For Judah, and for the children of Israel his companions: then take another stick, and write upon it, For Joseph, the stick of Ephraim and for all the house of Israel his companions: And join them one to another into one stick; and they shall become one in thine hand. And when the children of thy people shall speak unto thee, saying, Wilt thou not shew us what thou meanest by these? Say unto them, Thus saith the Lord God; Behold, I will take the stick of Joseph, which is in the hand of Ephraim, and the tribes of Israel his fellows, and will put them with him, even with the stick of Judah, and make them one stick, and they shall be one in mine hand…

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Numbers 19:2-9 KJV

This is the ordinance of the law which the Lord hath commanded, saying, Speak unto the children of Israel, that they bring thee a red heifer without spot, wherein is no blemish, and upon which never came yoke: And ye shall give her unto Eleazar the priest, that he may bring her forth without the camp, and one shall slay her before his face: And Eleazar the priest shall take of her blood with his finger, and sprinkle of her blood directly before the tabernacle of the congregation seven times: And one shall burn the heifer in his sight; her skin, and her flesh, and her blood, with her dung, shall he burn: And the priest shall take cedar wood, and hyssop, and scarlet, and cast it into the midst of the burning of the heifer. Then the priest shall wash his clothes, and he shall bathe his flesh in…

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Luke 19:41-42 KJV

And when he was come near, he beheld the city, and wept over it, Saying, If thou hadst known, even thou, at least in this thy day, the things which belong unto thy peace! but now they are hid from thine eyes.

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Luke 13:34-35 KJV

O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, which killest the prophets, and stonest them that are sent unto thee; how often would I have gathered thy children together, as a hen doth gather her brood under her wings, and ye would not! Behold, your house is left unto you desolate: and verily I say unto you, Ye shall not see me, until the time come when ye shall say, Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord.

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Romans 11:25-26 KJV

For I would not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye should be wise in your own conceits; that blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in. And so all Israel shall be saved: as it is written, There shall come out of Sion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob:

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Ezekiel 39:4 KJV

Thou shalt fall upon the mountains of Israel, thou, and all thy bands, and the people that is with thee: I will give thee unto the ravenous birds of every sort, and to the beasts of the field to be devoured.

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Ezekiel 39:17 KJV

And, thou son of man, thus saith the Lord God; Speak unto every feathered fowl, and to every beast of the field, Assemble yourselves, and come; gather yourselves on every side to my sacrifice that I do sacrifice for you, even a great sacrifice upon the mountains of Israel, that ye may eat flesh, and drink blood.

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Revelation 19:17-21 KJV

And I saw an angel standing in the sun; and he cried with a loud voice, saying to all the fowls that fly in the midst of heaven, Come and gather yourselves together unto the supper of the great God; That ye may eat the flesh of kings, and the flesh of captains, and the flesh of mighty men, and the flesh of horses, and of them that sit on them, and the flesh of all men, both free and bond, both small and great. And I saw the beast, and the kings of the earth, and their armies, gathered together to make war against him that sat on the horse, and against his army. And the beast was taken, and with him the false prophet that wrought miracles before him, with which he deceived them that had received the mark of the beast, and them that worshipped his image…

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Revelation 16:12 KJV

And the sixth angel poured out his vial upon the great river Euphrates; and the water thereof was dried up, that the way of the kings of the east might be prepared.

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Revelation 9:14-16 KJV

Saying to the sixth angel which had the trumpet, Loose the four angels which are bound in the great river Euphrates. And the four angels were loosed, which were prepared for an hour, and a day, and a month, and a year, for to slay the third part of men. And the number of the army of the horsemen were two hundred thousand thousand: and I heard the number of them.

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Revelation 7:9 KJV

After this I beheld, and, lo, a great multitude, which no man could number, of all nations, and kindreds, and people, and tongues, stood before the throne, and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes, and palms in their hands;

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Revelation 7:14 KJV

And I said unto him, Sir, thou knowest. And he said to me, These are they which came out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.

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Luke 21:29-32 KJV

And he spake to them a parable; Behold the fig tree, and all the trees; When they now shoot forth, ye see and know of your own selves that summer is now nigh at hand. So likewise ye, when ye see these things come to pass, know ye that the kingdom of God is nigh at hand. Verily I say unto you, This generation shall not pass away, till all be fulfilled.

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Ezekiel 31:3-6 KJV

Behold, the Assyrian was a cedar in Lebanon with fair branches, and with a shadowing shroud, and of an high stature; and his top was among the thick boughs. The waters made him great, the deep set him up on high with her rivers running round about his plants, and sent her little rivers unto all the trees of the field. Therefore his height was exalted above all the trees of the field, and his boughs were multiplied, and his branches became long because of the multitude of waters, when he shot forth. All the fowls of heaven made their nests in his boughs, and under his branches did all the beasts of the field bring forth their young, and under his shadow dwelt all great nations.

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Hebrews 13:4 KJV

Marriage is honourable in all, and the bed undefiled: but whoremongers and adulterers God will judge.

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Jude 7 KJV

Even as Sodom and Gomorrha, and the cities about them in like manner, giving themselves over to fornication, and going after strange flesh, are set forth for an example, suffering the vengeance of eternal fire.

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Matthew 24:23-27 KJV

Then if any man shall say unto you, Lo, here is Christ, or there; believe it not. For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect. Behold, I have told you before. Wherefore if they shall say unto you, Behold, he is in the desert; go not forth: behold, he is in the secret chambers; believe it not. For as the lightning cometh out of the east, and shineth even unto the west; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.

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Revelation 18:7 KJV

How much she hath glorified herself, and lived deliciously, so much torment and sorrow give her: for she saith in her heart, I sit a queen, and am no widow, and shall see no sorrow.

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Revelation 9:21 KJV

Neither repented they of their murders, nor of their sorceries, nor of their fornication, nor of their thefts.

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Revelation 13:13-14 KJV

And he doeth great wonders, so that he maketh fire come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men, And deceiveth them that dwell on the earth by the means of those miracles which he had power to do in the sight of the beast; saying to them that dwell on the earth, that they should make an image to the beast, which had the wound by a sword, and did live.

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Revelation 16:14 KJV

For they are the spirits of devils, working 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.

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Luke 21:33 KJV

Heaven and earth shall pass away: but my words shall not pass away.

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2 Thessalonians 2:9-12 KJV

Even him, whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders, And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved. And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie: That they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness.

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Deuteronomy 18:10-12 KJV

There shall not be found among you any one that maketh his son or his daughter to pass through the fire, or that useth divination, or an observer of times, or an enchanter, or a witch. Or a charmer, or a consulter with familiar spirits, or a wizard, or a necromancer. For all that do these things are an abomination unto the Lord: and because of these abominations the Lord thy God doth drive them out from before thee.

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Romans 1:18-25 KJV

For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness; Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath shewed it unto them. For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse: Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened. Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools, And changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and fourfooted beasts, and creeping things. Wherefore God also gave them up to uncleanness through the lusts of their own…

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Revelation 16:9 KJV

And men were scorched with great heat, and blasphemed the name of God, which hath power over these plagues: and they repented not to give him glory.

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Revelation 16:11 KJV

And blasphemed the God of heaven because of their pains and their sores, and repented not of their deeds.

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Revelation 16:21 KJV

And there fell upon men a great hail out of heaven, every stone about the weight of a talent: and men blasphemed God because of the plague of the hail; for the plague thereof was exceeding great.

Matthew 5:28 KJV

But I say unto you, That whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart.

Different Views on the End Times

January 2, 2017

• Bible Prophecy, End Times

Different Views on the End Times

By Chris Schang

One of the central questions asked in the last days is how will the world end? And when will it happen? Are there any end times signs that will show us that we are getting close to the end of the age? These questions have often stumped students of the Bible as they try to analyze what the Bible says about the end times. In fact, it is often said that many people simply skip reading the book of Revelation because they feel it is too hard to understand. Despite the confusion that surrounds Bible prophecy, the truth of the matter is that we can understand a general frame of reference about the last days and how they will be fulfilled. Revelation described many of the judgments that will be representative of God’s wrath on the Earth during the tribulation period. As we recall, the tribulation period is not for the church, but it is a time of punishment and judgment for unrepentant sinners and unbelieving Israel. The descriptions in Revelation includes wars, hailstones, earthquakes, supernatural judgments and other horrible images that just boggle the mind.

Despite the negative effects of the judgments of God, at the end of the tribulation period Jesus returns and defeats his enemies. The earth is renovated and a 1,000 year millennial rule is established. however, despite the clear cut explanations of how the end times will play out, like everything else, there are different views on how the end of the world as we know it will occur. We will attempt to cover the various views and explain the one we think best fits the overall picture from the Bible.

The four main views of the end times are dispensational premillennialism, historic premillennialism, postmillennialism, and amillennialism. Each of these views differ on major points of the end times. The most distinguishable differences in the various views is when Jesus will return in regards to the 1,000 year millennial reign that occurs at the end of the tribulation period. Some views even argue whether this reign is a literal one or not.

The primary scriptural reference for the Millennium, the 1,000 year reign of Christ, comes from Revelation 20:1-6.

Rev 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.

Rev 20:2 And he laid hold on the dragon, that old serpent, which is the Devil, and Satan, and bound him a thousand years,

Rev 20:3 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.

Rev 20:4 And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: and [I saw] the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received [his] mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years.

Rev 20:5 But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished. This [is] the first resurrection.

Rev 20:6 Blessed and holy [is] he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years.

Dispensational Premillennialism – this view is the predominant view that this writer takes and believes that it is the most accurate of the four end times views. The dispensational premillennialist believes that the rapture of the church takes place before the tribulation period as the Bible declares that the church is not destined to wrath, but to salvation through Jesus Christ. This view believes that Israel and the church have different destinies in the end times. The church is to be raptured to Heaven to the special place that Jesus has made for us, while Jews will occupy the land of Israel on the earth. The church is also said to be co-rulers with the Lord Jesus during the 1,000 year millennial reign. The dispensationalist premillennialist also believes that the future Antichrist will appear during the end times to make a seven year peace treaty with Israel and eventually break that treaty at the mid-point of the tribulation period. The Antichrist will be the most wicked and evil man to ever live. He will eventually be indwelt by Satan himself. In regards to the tribulation this view believes that the church is rapture to Heaven before the start of the seven year tribulation period, also referred to as the 70th week of Daniel or the Time of Jacob’s Trouble. This view sees Armageddon as the final rebellion against God before the Second Coming of Christ and that the church is absent from this conflict. The Second Coming is seen by the dispensational premillennialist as occurring at the end of the tribulation period or 70th week of Daniel. Regarding the resurrection it will occur in three stages with the first stage consisting of the resurrection of the dead believers at the rapture, the second stage will be the resurrection of the Old Testament saints as well as the tribulation martyrs at Jesus’ Second Coming. Finally the third stage of the resurrection will occur at the end of the millennium and will be the unbelieving dead from the history of mankind. The dispensational premillennialist believes in three distinct judgments with the first one happening at the rapture, the second happening at the Second Coming, and the third judgment at the end of the millennium. The 1,000 year millennium will occur at the end of the tribulation period and that Jesus rules literally from Jerusalem.

Historic Premillennialism – This view tends to see the rapture as happening as part of the Second Coming. The church is seen as “spiritual Israel” fulfilling the Old Testament prophecies concerning Israel. The antichrist is seen a person who will oppose Christ during the end times and persecute the Jews during the great tribulation period. This view also sees the Antichrist as a personification of satanic power. In regards to the tribulation the historic premillennialist sees the church going through the tribulation period. Armageddon is seen as the final conflict before Jesus establishes the Millennial Kingdom. They see the church as being present during Armageddon. The Second Coming is seen as establishing the Millennium. The resurrection of the dead is seen in only two stages, one occurring at Jesus’ Second Coming and the other at the end of the Millennium. Since the historic premillennialist sees the church going through the tribulation period they do not see a resurrection of the dead at the rapture, for they believe that will happen at the second coming. This is certainly not the case. Judgment of believers is though to occur in two stages, once at the Second Coming and the other at the end of the Millennium. The do not believe in a judgment at the pre-trib rapture, as the see the rapture happening at the Second Coming. In a final regards to the Millennium the historic premillennialist sees Jesus visibly reigning on the Earth from Jerusalem with both New and Old Testament believers. They believe that the curse will be lifted at this time as well.

Amillennialism – The Amillennialist views sees the rapture of the church as part of the Second Coming. Why the Lord would rapture people to Heaven to then immediately send them back to earth is beyond me. The church is seen as the “spiritual Israel” fulfilling the ancient Old Testament prophecies concerning Israel. They believe that the church has replaced Israel. In regards to the Antichrist they believe that he represents satanic activity through the history of mankind. The door is left open to a person assuming the role of the Antichrist at the end of the age though. This view also believes that the church will go through the tribulation period. The amillennialism views is similar to the historic premillennialism view in that they see Armageddon as the final conflict of good vs. evil at the end of this age and that the church will be present at this conflict. Fortunately, this is not so. The church is definitely raptured before the outpouring of God’s wrath which begins at the tribulation period. The Second Coming is seen as establishing a new heaven and a new earth, not a renovation of the existing earth as the scriptures describe. This view believes in only one general resurrection of the dead that will occur at the Second Coming. The amillennialism view believes that there will be only one judgment of mankind at the Second Coming. and as far as the Millennium is concerned the amillennialist believes that there is no literal 1,000 year rule of Jesus from Jerusalem.

Postmillennialism – This view pretty much ignores the rapture. The postmillennialist sees the church and Israel as having two distinct destinies in the last days. The view also tends to see the church as the “spiritual Israel” which is similar to the historic premillennialism and amillennialism views. They are likely to believe in replacement theology as well. Concerning the Antichrist they believe this has already been fulfilled. They also see the Antichrist as representing satanic power throughout the church age. The Bible does declare that there will be a “spirit” of antichrist in the world, the end times is clear that a man will rise up in the last days and declare himself to be God on earth. The postmillennialism view also sees the current church age as the tribulation period. While the Bible does indeed tell us that we will experience trials and tribulations on earth, the Bible is clear that there will be a literal seven year tribulation that will be the worst seven year in mankind’s history with unprecedented chaos and destruction as God pours out his wrath on unrepentant sinners and unbelieving Israel. Armageddon is as a picture of Christ leading his church to glorious victory over it’s enemies by preaching the Good News or the Gospel to everyone on Earth. The Second Coming is seen as happening after the Millennium. The resurrection of the dead postmillennialists believe will happen at the Second Coming. Judgment is seen as occurring at the end of the Millennium. They believe that there will only be one general judgment of all people. And finally, in regards to the Millennium the postmillennialists believe that the preaching of the Gospel or Good News will establish the Millennial Kingdom on Earth. The postmillennialists believe that we have to make the earth suitable for Christ’s return by converting everyone to Christianity. And they believe that until we do, Christ will not come back.

After looking at these various views of the end times, it is clear that the only view that is fully in harmony with what the Bible says about the end times is the dispensational premillennialist view that sees a literal fulfillment of Bible prophecy. Afterall, the First Coming of Jesus Christ was fulfilled literally as the Bible declared, so why should the Second Coming be any different? The answer is that it won’t be any different. We already see evidences of the literal fulfillment of Israel being reborn in the end times just as the Bible foretold as well as many other signs that indicate that the literal return of the Lord Jesus is verily at the door.

End Time

Sermon Summary

Good Morning I am Pastor Bobby of Barefoot Ministries and I want to thank you all for giving me the opportunity to spread the word of God with you.

The purpose of Barefoot Ministries is to spread the word of God to any and all that will listen.  I will try very hard to plant the seed of God in your hearts, provide you with the knowledge to nurture that seed thru prayer, Bible Study and fellowship so that it can grow, so that in time that seed will mature and you will be saved and re-born so that you can have the greatest gift of God’s Love, Everlasting Life.

Let Us Pray

Dear Lord, in Heaven, The creator of all

We look forward to the joys of heaven.

Where there is no more pain, No suffering, No Sickness

God remind us that our actions matter here in this world.

Our actions here on this earth will pave our way to live in your house

Here on earth Each and every day is a struggle against sin and temptation.  Give us the strength to overcome cruelty with grace and hatred with love.  Remind us Lord We do not fight a physical battle, but a spiritual one and with each act of compassion here on earth We build your kingdom.

Help to guide us to be Kingdom Builders today and every day.

As a Kingdom Builder we will try to plant your seed Lord in the hearts of any and all that will listen

Then we will help nourish that seed so it can grow and they too can receive your greatest gift of Love     Everlasting Life

Soon We will be done with the troubles of the world and will be walking down the path we paved with our actions  as Kingdom Builders to live in the house of the Lord forever

Thru Jesus Christ we pray

AMEN

Today’s Message is on responding to God’s invitation to an abundant life with Him.

Title: Don’t Miss God’s Party!

Today we will continue in Chapter 14 of the Book of Luke in our verse-by-verse teaching series out of that book.

Luke 14:15-24  The Parable of the Great Supper

15 Now when one of those who sat at the table with Him heard these things, he said to Him, “Blessed is he who shall eat [a]bread in the kingdom of God!”

16 Then He said to him, “A certain man gave a great supper and invited many,

17 and sent his servant at supper time to say to those who were invited, ‘Come, for all things are now ready.’

18 But they all with one accord began to make excuses. The first said to him, ‘I have bought a piece of ground, and I must go and see it. I ask you to have me excused.’

19 And another said, ‘I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I am going to test them. I ask you to have me excused.’

20 Still another said, ‘I have married a wife, and therefore I cannot come.’

21 So that servant came and reported these things to his master. Then the master of the house, being angry, said to his servant, ‘Go out quickly into the streets and lanes of the city, and bring in here the poor and the maimed and the lame and the blind.’

22 And the servant said, ‘Master, it is done as you commanded, and still there is room.’

23 Then the master said to the servant, ‘Go out into the highways and hedges, and compel them to come in, that my house may be filled.

24 For I say to you that none of those men who were invited shall taste my supper.’ ”

Probably everyone here today enjoys and looks forward to celebrations. Celebrations are a significant part of our lives. We celebrate growing another year older with birthday parties. We celebrate pregnancies and new births with baby showers. We celebrate wedding anniversaries, home purchases, New Year’s Day, Super Bowl contest, etc. We even celebrate good friends moving away by having a “going away party.”

Nearly everyone loves to celebrate; we all enjoy a good party. Since that is the case, every one of us should be interested in today’s Bible passage because it is about the greatest celebration or party of all. The banquet being referred to in this parable is figurative for what we would call a celebration or a party. In this illustrative story, Jesus gives us some insight into this greatest of all celebrations. We learn things such as the nature of the celebration, who is invited, who will be there and who won’t be there, and why this is the case.

There is much of the importance that I will discuss as I cover this passage verse by verse, but a summary of the main message of this parable to us would be:

1. You’re Invited to God’s Party, Don’t Miss it!

Verse 15   Now when one of those who sat at the table with Him heard these things, he said to Him, “Blessed is he who shall eat [a]bread in the kingdom of God!”

Last week in verses 1-14 we saw how Jesus was giving some serious instructions on attitudes that were unacceptable at God’s table. These were spiritual “bad manners” that were offensive to God and hindered a blessed relationship with him. At the conclusion of this tense segment, Jesus in verse 14 spoke about how the selfless person would be “blessed” by being “repaid at the resurrection of the righteous.”

The reference to being blessed, future resurrection, and inviting people to a banquet (vs. 12) caused one of those present to think about and publicly comment on the blessing of those who are invited to what is sometimes called “The Great Supper” or “The Messianic Banquet of God.” He was referring to a God ordained celebration that the Old Testament often spoke of and figuratively describes as a feast or banquet.

One reference is in Isaiah 25:6 which says, “On this mountain the Lord Almighty will prepare a feast of rich food for all peoples, a banquet of aged wine – the best of meats and the finest of wines.”

Jesus takes advantage of this opportunity to enlighten those present then and us today about this celebration. He uses a parable to do this; what we learn is exciting and encouraging, but also cautionary and serious. As I use the terms “party,” “celebration,” or “banquet” today I am figuratively referring to the present and future aspects of being one of God’s people. Let’s now take a look at Jesus’ words in verse 16

Verses 16-17 

16 Then He said to him, “A certain man gave a great supper and invited many,

17 and sent his servant at supper time to say to those who were invited, ‘Come, for all things are now ready.’

The “certain man” in this story represents God. This much is obvious and not usually debated. What is interesting and instructive is that this man, who represents God, is “preparing a great banquet. . .” In other words, God is preparing for a celebration or a party.

This is a rather shocking picture of God for many people today. God is usually perceived as the Heavenly Sheriff who’s ready to give you a ticket for the slightest infraction, or he is perceived like a miserly boss at work who you hope to please by enough hard work and sacrifice. Rarely is God perceived as one who would throw a party, yet in the Bible this is a regular theme and presentation.

For instance, in the story of the Prodigal Son, the father who represents God in the story throws a party for the son upon his return. In the Book of Revelation the Bible refers to God’s people participating in a great party known as the “Great Wedding Supper or Banquet of the Lamb.” In Isaiah 55 God invites everyone to freely come and share at his table where there is “wine and milk” and you can “eat what is good and delight in the richest of fare.” Even the religious life for the ancient Israelites revolved around seven feast or celebrations. Considering all these things it is very evident that God isn’t what some people perceive Him to be. He loves to celebrate and prepares for his people to experience his joyous celebrations.

I want you to understand what God is truly like! People constantly think that God wants to take something away from them. People think that following God means a joyless existence because God is stern and demanding. This understanding of God is a caricature of religion and not the reality of God’s character. This picture is a distortion from Satan who has from the beginning tried to malign the goodness of God!

You may be wondering to yourself, “Doesn’t being a Christian and following God’s ways mean giving up some of the pleasures of this world? Doesn’t it mean making sacrifices and living by a new standard?” The answer is “yes,” as Jesus said; we must take up our cross to follow him. These necessary sacrifices do not change the fact that God is a good God and that responding to his invitation results in a life of celebration. This does not change the fact or lessen the joy of life in the Kingdom of God anymore than the long lines at Disney world. He has invited us to a party, not a prison!!!

Life in the kingdom is like a party, even with the sacrifices. It is a life of joy, peace, purpose, fulfillment, and eternal life. This party is certainly a lot better than the parties of this world, which only end with hangovers, regrets, shameful conduct, and ultimately death.

Now some of the celebrations we have in our society are very lame and hardly worth considering or getting excited about. For instance, I knew a man who worked at Publix, he worked in the frozen food department. Believe it or not, every March is officially “National Frozen Food Month.” Under instructions from the boss, he would actually put up streamers, celebration signs, and have sales in “celebration” of this event. It is very difficult to get excited about frozen food - it’s just lame, but the same lack of enthusiasm shouldn’t be true for God’s Party. We should get very excited about it because Jesus describes it as a “great banquet.” Literally he is saying that this is a mega-party. This is not Lipton’s Onion Soup Mix dip, hot dogs and chips type party, but this is a mega-party with all that is the best. This is a party you do not want to miss and that is Jesus’ main point.

1. You’re Invited to God’s Party, Don’t Miss it!

In New Testament times, two invitations were usually given to a party or banquet. The first was given well in advance so that people could RSVP and then when everything was ready for the party to begin a second invitation was sent by servants to tell everybody to “come, for everything is now ready.” You’d think that receiving such a wonderful invitation and news would cause people to stop whatever they were engaged in and go to the party, but that is not what happened as we will see in verses 18-20. Of course even today people have been invited into a wonderful, joyous relationship with God but they often reject that invitation also.

Verses 18-20

18 But they all with one accord began to make excuses. The first said to him, ‘I have bought a piece of ground, and I must go and see it. I ask you to have me excused.’

19 And another said, ‘I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I am going to test them. I ask you to have me excused.’

20 Still another said, ‘I have married a wife, and therefore I cannot come.’

“They all alike began to make excuses. . .” The excuses were not completely illegitimate, though they seem so from our cultural perspective. Buying a field or plot of land in that day often required a post purchase inspection of the land before the deal was final, similar to the final inspection homeowners have today before the closing on a mortgage loan. The same was true of the major purchase of five teams of oxen. In ancient times a deal was agreed upon and then the oxen would have been tested or tried out to complete the purchase. The person who just got married also has a seemingly legitimate excuse for not coming to the party since a newly married couple was expected to have their own party and there were marital obligations to meet.

This invitation just came at a bad time. It would interfere with their business, possessions, relationships, and other concerns. They had other priorities. In each case the excuses were legitimate but not sufficient. They each expected to be excused but as we will see shortly they were not.

The point Jesus is making here is not that God will not accept lame excuses for rejecting his offer of celebration and abundant life. The point is that God will not accept any excuses, no matter how seemingly legitimate, for not accepting his invitation. He must have the priority in your life. This is a message for those who are not responding to his invitation to enter into a real relationship with him because doing so would interfere with their other interests. A choice must be made between worldly concerns and God’s party. If you miss God’s party it isn’t because you weren’t invited. It’s because you chose to make other things a priority over responding to his invitation.

1. You’re Invited to God’s Party, Don’t Miss it!

Verses 21-23

21 So that servant came and reported these things to his master. Then the master of the house, being angry, said to his servant, ‘Go out quickly into the streets and lanes of the city, and bring in here the poor and the maimed and the lame and the blind.’

22 And the servant said, ‘Master, it is done as you commanded, and still there is room.’

23 Then the master said to the servant, ‘Go out into the highways and hedges, and compel them to come in, that my house may be filled.

“The owner of the house (who represents God) became angry. . .” This tells how God feels about our excuses for rejecting his wonderful and costly offer of life. Hebrews 2:3 says “How shall we escape if we ignore such a great salvation?” God is wonderful, patient, and merciful. He will forgive every sin. He is amazingly patient and kind even when we keep messing up as Christians. But God will be angry with those who reject his offer of the real “good life.” I once saw a bumper sticker which all those who reject Jesus need to remember. The bumper sticker read like this: Jesus is coming back soon (and boy is he mad.)

As a teenager in high school, I didn’t seem to fit in with any group. I quit playing sports so I did not fit in with the jocks. I wasn’t rich so I did not fit in with the preppies. I wasn’t popular so I did not fit in with that group. I was a bad boy but didn’t fit in with the “bad boys” group. Because I did not fit into any of these groups I never was and never expected to be invited to any of their parties.

A similar feeling or attitude is sometimes held by people concerning God’s Party. They do not feel that they are invited or that they will fit in as far as a real relationship with God is concerned. Usually this is because of their lifestyle which may have been and still is sinful. The feeling among many is that they are not invited or welcome in a relationship with God because they’re not well-behaved enough, not religious enough, or not spiritually acceptable for one reason or another.

The good news is that you are on the guest list! No matter what you have done, where you have done it or how many times you have failed. You are invited to God’s party even though you may not consider yourself acceptable. This is the message of verses 21-23. The “poor, crippled, blind, and lame” were metaphors for those who were totally spiritually unworthy to come to God’s table but are invited and welcome anyways. The reference in verse 23 to those people in the “roads and country lanes. . .” could have been a reference to the Gentiles or to those who were so wicked they were even unwelcome in town. In either case the point is the same; everybody is welcome, everybody is invited to God’s Party! As was pointed out in the parable- “there is still room for more!” (vs. 22)

1. You’re Invited to God’s Party, Don’t Miss it!

Before moving on to verse 24, I want to point out two characteristics of the servant’s mission of bringing others in to the party, since we are now the servants of God who are inviting others to God’s Party. First, they are told to go “quickly into the street” (vs. 21) and invite others, which reminds us of the urgency of getting the message of the gospel out. Second, they’re also told to “make them come in. . .” (vs. 23) which does not mean to use physical force or threats but rather to an attitude that will not take “no” for answer. Keep asking, keep pleading, and keep encouraging people to respond to the gospel of Jesus Christ. This is not a party God wants anyone to miss, but as verse 24 points out, some will.

Verse 24  For I say to you that none of those men who were invited shall taste my supper.’ ”

The message is clear; if you reject God’s invitation, you will be rejected. If you refuse it, you will lose it. Don’t miss the limited opportunities you have in this life to respond to God’s invitation.

1. You’re Invited to God’s Party, Don’t Miss it!

Tony Campolla tells the story of a trip which he took to Hawaii. Jet lag kept him awake late into night and he went for a walk on the streets of Honolulu. At 2 in the morning, he found himself in a doughnut shop. Sitting at the counter, he overheard several prostitutes who were sharing a booth. One of the girls whose name was Agnes mentioned that it was her birthday.

After she had left, Tony turned to the cook and the other prostitutes and said, “Let’s throw a party for Agnes.” The other girls agreed to bring decorations and the cook said that he would bake a cake.

The next night, they all gathered at the shop and when Agnes walked in, they brought out the cake and began to sing, “Happy Birthday.” Tears streamed down Agnes’s face and, when it came time to cut the cake, she just stood there. Finally, she said, “Could I buy another cake and we eat that one? I want to take this one home and show it to my mother.”

With that, she took the cake and left. In the sudden silence that filled the shop after she left, Tony bowed his head and began to pray. “Lord, we thank you for Agnes and for your love for her. You loved her enough to send Your Son to die for her on the cross. We thank you for the best present of all - the present of your own Son. Amen.” When he raised his head, he saw that all of the prostitutes had their heads bowed and had been praying with him.

The cook looked at him and said, “You’re a preacher!” When Tony admitted that he was, the cook asked, “What kind of church do you have?” In a sudden flash of insight, Tony replied, “The kind that throws parties for prostitutes and gives invitations to sinners.” 

This is the kind of Church we need to have. A church that always invites sinners to attend.

If you have not yet repented, confessed your sins, and trusted in Christ to save you from God’s wrath, then you don’t know the full extent of Gods’ love yet.  John 3:36 says that “Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him” because “Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God” (John 3:18). I pray that is not you.

I encourage you to pray this prayer with me, but I caution you that saying words alone will not save you. Prayer alone doesn’t save. Only Christ can save. But prayer can be a means of reaching out to the Lord in true saving faith. If you pray these words in faith, Christ will save you. You can be sure of that.

Let Us Pray:  Lord Jesus, for too long I’ve kept you out of my life. I know that I am a sinner and that I cannot save myself. No longer will I close the door of my heart when I hear you knocking. By faith I gratefully receive your gift of salvation. I am ready to trust you as my Lord and Savior. Thank you, Lord Jesus, for coming to earth. I believe you are the Son of God who died on the cross for my sins and rose from the dead on the third day. Thank you for bearing my sins and giving me the gift of eternal life. I believe your word and desire the Holy Spirit to come into my heart and give me guidance to walk your path to salvation and everlasting life. 

In Jesus Name I Pray   Amen.

Guess Who is Coming to Dinner

Sermon Summary

The purpose of Barefoot Ministry is to Spread the word of God to any and all that will listen.  I will try very hard to plant the seed of God in your hearts, provide you with the knowledge to nurture that seed thru prayer, Bible Study and fellowship so that it can grow, so that in time that seed will mature and you will be saved and re-born so that you can have the greatest gift of God’s Love, Everlasting Life.

Let Us Pray

Dear Lord, in Heaven, The creator of all

We look forward to the joys of heaven.

Where there is no more pain, No suffering, No Sickness

God remind us that our actions matter here in this world.

Our actions here on this earth will pave our way to live in your house

Here on earth Each and every day is a struggle against sin and temptation.  Give us the strength to overcome cruelty with grace 

and hatred with love.  Remind us Lord We do not fight a physical battle, 

but a spiritual one and with each act of compassion here on earth

We build your kingdom.

Help to guide us to be kingdom builders today and everyday.

As a Kingdom builder we will try to plant your seed Lord in the hearts of any and all that will listen

Then we will help nourish that seed so it can grow and they too can receive your greatest gift of Love     Everlasting Life

Soon We will be done with the troubles of the world

and will be walking down the path we paved with our actions

As Kingdom Builders To live in the house of the Lord forever

Thru Jesus Christ we pray

AMEN

Today we will continue our study of Luke

Todays Sermon is a message on how judgmentalism, pride and selfishness are unwelcome at God’s table.

Guess Who's Coming To Dinner

Read Luke 14:1-14

Now it happened, as He went into the house of one of the rulers of the Pharisees to eat bread on the Sabbath, that they watched Him closely. 

2 And behold, there was a certain man before Him who had dropsy. 

3 And Jesus, answering, spoke to the lawyers and Pharisees, saying, “Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath?”

4 But they kept silent. And He took him and healed him, and let him go. 

5 Then He answered them, saying, “Which of you, having a donkey or an ox that has fallen into a pit, will not immediately pull him out on the Sabbath day?” 

6 And they could not answer Him regarding these things.

7 So He told a parable to those who were invited, when He noted how they chose the best places, saying to them: 

8 “When you are invited by anyone to a wedding feast, do not sit down in the best place, lest one more honorable than you be invited by him; 

9 and he who invited you and him come and say to you, ‘Give place to this man,’ and then you begin with shame to take the lowest place. 

10 But when you are invited, go and sit down in the lowest place, so that when he who invited you comes he may say to you, ‘Friend, go up higher.’ Then you will have glory in the presence of those who sit at the table with you. 

11 For whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.”

12 Then He also said to him who invited Him, “When you give a dinner or a supper, do not ask your friends, your brothers, your relatives, nor rich neighbors, lest they also invite you back, and you be repaid. 

13 But when you give a feast, invite the poor, the maimed, the lame, the blind. 

14 And you will be blessed, because they cannot repay you; for you shall be repaid at the resurrection of the just.”

In the 1967 movie “Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner,” a young woman named Joey Drayton brings home her fiancé, John Way Prentice to meet her parents. The parents had always thought of themselves as being without prejudice but are shocked to discover that their daughter’s fiancé is black, and that this disturbs them. This movie, which revolves around a dinner party, exposes the tendency to think that we are something that we are not. We often have flaws that go unnoticed until they are revealed in certain situations. This dinner reveals the parent’s character flaws and leads them to re-examine the condition and attitudes of their own hearts.

Something similar happens in our Bible text today. Jesus comes to dinner but instead of polite table talk, this dinner conversation probably causes those present to wish that they had brought more Rolaids.

Jesus actions, parable, and exhortation exposed the character flaws of those present. The Pharisees, who are what we would describe as “church-going people,” thought of themselves as spiritual and godly but like in the aforementioned movie, the truth will come out. Jesus exposed three serious character flaws at this dinner: judgmentalism, pride, and selfishness.

This incident was written down in the Bible so that Jesus followers today would be alert to the same faults in themselves. Speaking for myself, I found that as I thought on this passage of Scripture, that in many ways I am guilty of the very character traits that Jesus revealed as unacceptable at this dinner 2,000 years ago.

As I expound on this text verse by verse, I believe that some of you might find the same faults to be true of your own lives. If you have already determined that you are not guilty of these things, then you have overestimated yourself and are guilty of the second flaw, which is pride. What I have been diplomatically referring to as flaws, the Bible calls “sin.”

Before we look at the details of this text verse by verse, I need to explain the setting for this narrative. This is important because the setting or motif in which an event takes place is an essential part of the moral or spiritual truth being communicated. As I already noted, the setting for this teaching of Jesus was a formal dinner. The thematic element of a dinner is very prominent throughout the story. The healing takes place at dinner in verses 1-6, Jesus uses the parable of a wedding banquet or dinner in verses 7-11, and then Jesus talks about inviting others to a luncheon or dinner in verses 12-14. After this, in verses 15-24, which I will cover next week, Jesus gives the parable of the Great Banquet or dinner. This thematic element of a dinner is in itself important to the practical message that the story is communicating.

Why is the dinner or banquet theme so prominent? What is being communicated by this setting? To answer these questions one must understand the significance of eating together in Jesus’ day.

Marcus Borg, the New Testament scholar explains that eating together in Jesus’ day was very significant. Not only were there rules about what to eat and how to prepare it, but also rules stating with whom one could eat. Eating together meant mutual acceptance. The Jewish leaders, Pharisees, would not eat with someone who was impure. No decent person would eat with an outcast.

Remember how people complained because Jesus “ate with sinners?” Why did they get upset? Because to eat with someone was indicative of friendship or a healthy relationship, so by eating with sinners Jesus was showing himself to be a “friend of sinners.” This association between eating with someone and a healthy relationship with that person was true also of a healthy relationship with God. This is why in many of the parables and metaphors of the Bible, those who are in or have returned to a healthy relationship with God are said to be invited to his table or participants in his banquets.

In some sense, we still associate having dinner with someone with friendship or a healthy relationship. In a recent Candid Camera episode they would seat a complete stranger, who happened to be the candid actor, with an unsuspecting family eating dinner at a restaurant. Of course the family was very uncomfortable and often unwilling to continue with the dinner. Why? We have no problem with a stranger sitting next to us on a plane or at a ballgame, but at dinner they will not be welcome because they are not in a healthy relationship.

So the dinner setting or motif is important because it conveys the theme of a healthy relationship, especially with God. The character flaws or sins, which Jesus confronts then, are those that hinder and obstruct a healthy relationship with God. What would make us feel unwelcome or at least uncomfortable at God’s table? What character traits would interfere with a healthy, blessed relationship with God?

I. First, a healthy relationship with God is hindered by judgmentalism.

Read verses 1-6

Now it happened, as He went into the house of one of the rulers of the Pharisees to eat bread on the Sabbath, that they watched Him closely. 

2 And behold, there was a certain man before Him who had dropsy.

3 And Jesus, answering, spoke to the lawyers and Pharisees, saying, “Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath?”

4 But they kept silent. And He took him and healed him, and let him go. 

5 Then He answered them, saying, “Which of you, having a donkey or an ox that has fallen into a pit, will not immediately pull him out on the Sabbath day?” 

6 And they could not answer Him regarding these things.

 “Judgmentalism” is not a word you will find in a dictionary, though most people understand what is meant by the word. Judgmentalism is the act of judging others wrongly and self-righteously. In other words, condemning another without due cause, in an unloving manner, or when similar circumstances or situations exist in one’s own life. This is what was happening at the dinner that Jesus attended and one of the things that is most offensive to God.

The religious people (Pharisees) had invited Jesus to dinner but not with pure motives. They had chosen the Sabbath day (Saturday under Jewish law) and they had made sure that a very sick person suffering from Dropsy (swelling due to fluid retention typically from heart failure) was right in front of Jesus. We know that this was not coincidental because in verse 1 it says that Jesus was “being carefully watched.” They were carefully watching Jesus, looking for an opportunity to condemn or judge him for breaking one of their religious rules. Specifically they were waiting to see if Jesus would heal this man on the day that God has set aside as a day of rest.

The Sabbath was a day that was different from the other six days of the week in that it was primarily focused on spiritual rather than secular concerns. In their minds, if Jesus healed on the Sabbath day, he would have been working and thus they could condemn him for breaking the law of God. Jesus takes this opportunity to expose their judgmental attitudes as wrong and hypocritical. He does this by asking them two questions.

The first question is found in verse 3 in which Jesus asked, “Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath or not?” In other words the first question Jesus asks of those who would judge others is, “Do you have a genuine biblical basis for your judgment?” Jesus is talking to us who judge others for the clothes they wear, the music they listen to, the way they worship or pray, how they spend their money, the Bible translation they use, what they watch on television etc. Do we really have a biblical basis for our judgment? Is there any firm scriptural reason for considering that person less spiritual, disobedient, or sinful? Probably not in most cases! Since this is true we need to be alert to judgmentalism and repentant when we find it revealed in our own lives.

I. A healthy relationship with God is hindered by judgmentalism.

In verse 4 we are told that the religious people did not answer Jesus question but “remained silent.” They did not remain silent because they did not have a “proof text” to back up their claim that healing should not be done on the Sabbath. They had a Bible verse that they would use to back up their judgmental attitude, but they knew from experience that in 60 seconds Jesus could refute their questionable application of that verse to this situation. Our evaluation of others, which should always be done in love, should be based on strong biblical support, not questionable interpretations and applications.

 As a man was driving to work one morning he noticed the car in front of him weaving back and forth. As he pulled up even with it, he could see the driver’s face was almost touching the windshield as she was attempting to apply mascara. This, of course, made the man furious. He thought how wrong it was of her to try and operate a motor vehicle while being so distracted with her make up. He became even angrier when her car suddenly veered in his direction. It scared him so badly he dropped his cell-phone right into his cup of coffee.

Like the man in this story, our judgmental attitude of others is hypocritical because we ourselves are in principle also guilty of similar faults. This is the next thing that Jesus exposes as wrong with the judgmental attitudes of those at this dinner. Not only was their judgment without firm biblical support, it was also hypocritical. In verse 5 Jesus asks them, “If one of you has a son or an ox that falls into a well on the Sabbath day, will you not immediately pull him out?” They did not answer Jesus because they knew that the answer was “yes.”

Jesus is basically saying that they are guilty of the very thing that they are condemning him for. They may not heal a person on the Sabbath, but they are willing to “work” on the Sabbath by rescuing their son or animal immediately. The principle is the same even though the particulars are different. Two questions Jesus asks and we need to ask ourselves before being judgmental of others. First, “Is there a genuine biblical basis for your judgment?” Second, “Do you condemn others for what you yourself practice in principle?”

I have been in many situations where people judged others in a wrongful and hypocritical way. I have heard Christian’s condemn Christian Rock music while they themselves listen to country music with songs about drinking and cheating. I’ve heard Christian’s condemn the way others spend their money on indulgence but their own checkbooks would reveal that they also are prone to spending on themselves. I myself used to think how wrong it was for certain Christians to drive aggressively on the roadways until I myself received a ticket for purposely running a red light when I was in a hurry.

This passage does not mean that we are never to make judgments. They are necessary sometimes and can be helpful if done in the right way. Judging in the right way means judging based on firm biblical basis, with a loving attitude, and a personal adherence to the principles involved. Be careful of the kind of judgmentalism exemplified in these six verses because those with this condemning spirit will not be warmly welcomed at God’s table.

I. A healthy relationship with God is hindered by judgmentalism.

Celebrities tend to misbehave in tiresome and predictable ways--tantrums, affairs, addictions--and we tend to think they’re spoiled. But one psychiatrist, Cornell’s Robert B. Millman, says they’re not spoiled, they’re sick. The affliction is Acquired Situational Narcissism.

ASN develops when once-ordinary people achieve extra-ordinary success, such as winning an Oscar or being named rookie of the year. This double-dose of adulation loosens people’s grip on reality and they become (according to Millman) “unbelievably self-involved because of the attention from us. We make it so.” 

Now, there’s a unique twist: It’s OUR fault celebrities act that way! Even though most of us will never be at risk of getting Acquired Situational Narcissism--our lives are far too ordinary--we all struggle with the temptation of becoming overly self-focused. 

We all tend to overestimate our own self-importance and to think too highly of ourselves. This pride, as the Bible calls it, often leads to subtle and overt self-promotion. It is this attitude that Jesus exposes as unacceptable at God’s table in the next few verses.

Read Verses 7-11

7 So He told a parable to those who were invited, when He noted how they chose the best places, saying to them: 

8 “When you are invited by anyone to a wedding feast, do not sit down in the best place, lest one more honorable than you be invited by him; 

9 and he who invited you and him come and say to you, ‘Give place to this man,’ and then you begin with shame to take the lowest place. 

10 But when you are invited, go and sit down in the lowest place, so that when he who invited you comes he may say to you, ‘Friend, go up higher.’ Then you will have glory in the presence of those who sit at the table with you. 

11 For whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.”

II. Second, a healthy relationship with God is hindered by pride.

In Jesus time people were seated according to their prominence or importance. Those who were considered most important would be seated closest to the host of the dinner party, while those considered least important would be seated furthest from the host. Since most people thought highly of themselves, they sought the best seats.

Jesus uses the parable of a wedding feast to illustrate how foolish such pride is. He uses this imagery because a wedding feast or supper was often associated with God’s kingdom. He is telling us how to behave as members of God’s kingdom. Jesus is not giving us some advice on wise and good table manners. He is revealing the prideful tendency to promote and exalt ourselves, and what the results will be. He is telling us how we should act as people of the kingdom of God. We should seek the lowest seat; that is we should be humble in every aspect of our lives. Why?

II. A healthy relationship with God is hindered by pride.

Failure to be humble can be humiliating. When I was a young man, I went to a concert with some friends at a local fair. Seating was not assigned at this concert so you could decide where you would sit on a first-come, first-serve basis with the exception of the first ten rows, where no one was sitting at the time, but which were labeled “VIP only seating.” My friends decided that they qualified as VIPs so they just removed the signs and sat down. I decided not to do the same, not because I was humble, but because I was chicken! You can probably predict what happened next. About one minute before the concert started an official came onto the stage and over the speaker system told my friends that they were not VIPs and would have to leave their seats. How humiliating! They had to leave their seats in front of everybody, which was about 2,000 people, and worse yet there were now no seats available, so they had to stand in the rain outside the tent and listen to the concert. They would have been much better off to have humbled themselves!

Jesus used the seating at a wedding feast to express the same point. Let the host of the feast, who represents God, do the exalting rather than engaging in self-promotion.

In verse 11 Jesus summarizes the point he is making. “Everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.” This is one of the most repeated principles of Scripture, indicating that it is one we need to hear often and apply to our lives. Pride is a serious hindrance to our most important relationship. In Isaiah 57:15 God says that he will be with him who is “contrite and lowly in spirit.” In 1 Peter 5:5 it says, “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.”

We must be alert because we can be very blind to pride. 

Sometimes I have included stories or jokes in my sermons, not because they were necessary or helpful to the sermon, but because they were the type of stories or jokes that would go over well. That is pride! The Lord also reminded me of times that I’ve been angered by people disagreeing with my idea or my way of doing things. That is pride!

Before you are too quick to condemn me for pride, you need to remember that the first thing that Jesus said hinders a healthy relationship with God is judgmentalism.

It is not just me who is subject to pride. Each of us needs to look at our own lives. We each need to ask ourselves, “Do I have an exalted image of my own self-importance?” If you have a pride problem it will be revealed by your attitude, thinking, and actions. For instance, if you become angry or hurt when you are overlooked for recognition, it is because of pride. If you’re thinking in your mind how much better a job you could do than another person, it is because of pride. If you were unwilling to admit your faults because they make you look bad, it is because of pride. If you are hurt or offended when others disagree with you, it is because of pride. If you desire to display your talents, your appearance, or the sacrifices you make, it is because of pride. If your desires and your agenda are first and foremost, it is because of pride.

So far, we have seen two things that will hinder a healthy relationship with God. The first is judgmentalism, and the second is pride.

III. Third, a healthy relationship with God is hindered by selfishness.

Read Verses 12-14

12 Then He also said to him who invited Him, “When you give a dinner or a supper, do not ask your friends, your brothers, your relatives, nor rich neighbors, lest they also invite you back, and you be repaid. 

13 But when you give a feast, invite the poor, the maimed, the lame, the blind. 

14 And you will be blessed, because they cannot repay you; for you shall be repaid at the resurrection of the just.”

We all give of ourselves in one way or the other. We all made sacrifices in blessing others, serving others, and meeting others needs. We do this with our ministries, free time, money, talents, jobs, etc. How often do we do these things for those that cannot reward us or repay us in some way? That is the issue that Jesus is confronting here. He is concerned with the attitude of selfishness. Selfishness, in this case, refers to those times when we only serve or share with those that can return the favor or repay us in some fashion. He is not just talking about sharing your food. Jesus is talking about how we are to share our lives in giving to others.

We all give of our selves and resources, but it is often exclusively to the people like our friends, our families, and those who may help us in return. It is mutually beneficial for us to share and serve in this way and there’s nothing wrong with helping in this respect, unless these are the only people we usually help. If that is the case we are not really giving at all, but are rather self-seeking and selfish. I say this because when we give to our friends and families, we are usually repaid, whether through accolades, recognition, or a return favor.

In response to this, Jesus says in verses 13,14, “When you give a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, and you will be blessed. Although they cannot repay you, you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous.” This group of people was used literally, but also in a figurative sense to represent those who were outcast. This list represents those who are spiritually, financially, and physically unable to reward or repay you. Today this list would include people like: AID’s patients, homeless people, strangers, and people from other churches. God sees such selfless giving and will reward those who give in this manner at the “resurrection of the righteous.”

III. A healthy relationship with God is hindered by selfishness.

When I would go to the beach as a teenager, someone would inevitably warn me: Watch out for sharks! I’ve been warned to watch out for sharks, but no one has ever said to me, “Watch out for the jellyfish.” The fact is jellyfish are far more dangerous. Each year they kill more people than sharks do.

Sometimes we spend so much of our time watching for the big sharks of the Christian Life that we miss the more abundant and dangerous jellyfish. We watch out for the big sins of sexual immorality, idolatry, drug-abuse, occultism, hatred, etc. which can harm the Christians relationship with God, while we usually ignore the seemingly smaller issues of judgmentalism, pride, and selfishness which have harmed far more Christian’s relationships with God than the so-called big sins.

I hope this message from God’s word will make us all alert to the perils of judgmentalism, pride and selfishness.

I know as I prepared this sermon throughout last week I had to stop to think about the times I am Judgmental, prideful and selfish.  I stopped so many times to contemplate this that I almost didn’t finish preparing this weeks message.

I hope you will receive as much from this sermon I as have.  If you have thought about how these three things judgmentalism, pride and selfishness have hindered your relationship with God it is time repent and confess your sins.

If you have not yet repented, confessed your sins, and trusted in Christ to save you from God’s wrath, then you don’t know the full extent of Gods’ love yet.  John 3:36 says that “Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him” because “Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God” (John 3:18). I pray that is not you.

I encourage you to pray this prayer with me, but I caution you that saying words alone will not save you. Prayer alone doesn’t save. Only Christ can save. But prayer can be a means of reaching out to the Lord in true saving faith. If you pray these words in faith, Christ will save you. You can be sure of that.

Let Us Pray:  

Lord Jesus, for too long I’ve kept you out of my life. I know that I am a sinner and that I cannot save myself. No longer will I close the door of my heart when I hear you knocking. By faith I gratefully receive your gift of salvation. I am ready to trust you as my Lord and Savior. Thank you, Lord Jesus, for coming to earth. I believe you are the Son of God who died on the cross for my sins and rose from the dead on the third day. Thank you for bearing my sins and giving me the gift of eternal life. I believe your word and desire the Holy Spirit to come into my heart and give me guidance to walk your path to salvation and everlasting life. In Jesus Name I Pray Amen.

Will You Go To Heaven

Sermon Summary

 The purpose of Barefoot Ministry is to Spread the word of God to any and all that will listen.  I will try very hard to plant the seed of God in your hearts, provide you with the knowledge to nurture that seed thru prayer, Bible Study and fellowship so that it can grow, so that in time that seed will mature and you will be saved and re-born so that you can have the greatest gift of God’s Love, Everlasting Life.

Let Us Pray

Lord, in Heaven, the creator of all Each and every day is a struggle against sin and temptation.

Give us the strength to overcome cruelty with grace and hatered with love.

God remind us that our actions matter.

We do not fight a physical battle, but a spiritual one and with each act of compassion

We build your kingdom.

Help us be kingdom builders today.

Thru Jesus Christ we pray

AMEN

Todays sermon is a message on the conditions Jesus gave for going to heaven.

The question we must ask ourselves is Will I Go To Heaven?

 Luke 13:22-35

22 And He went through the cities and villages, teaching, and journeying toward Jerusalem. 

23 Then one said to Him, “Lord, are there few who are saved?” And He said to them, 

24 “Strive to enter through the narrow gate, for many, I say to you, will seek to enter and will not be able. 

25 When once the Master of the house has risen up and shut the door, and you begin to stand outside and knock at the door, saying, ‘Lord, Lord, open for us,’ and He will answer and say to you, ‘I do not know you, where you are from,’ 

26 then you will begin to say, ‘We ate and drank in Your presence, and You taught in our streets.’ 

27 But He will say, ‘I tell you I do not know you, where you are from. Depart from Me, all you workers of iniquity.’ 

28 There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth, when you see Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God, and yourselves thrust out. 

29 They will come from the east and the west, from the north and the south, and sit down in the kingdom of God. 

30 And indeed there are last who will be first, and there are first who will be last.”

31 [a]On that very day some Pharisees came, saying to Him, “Get out and depart from here, for Herod wants to kill You.”

32 And He said to them, “Go, tell that fox, ‘Behold, I cast out demons and perform cures today and tomorrow, and the third day I shall be perfected.’

33 Nevertheless I must journey today, tomorrow, and the day following; for it cannot be that a prophet should perish outside of Jerusalem.

34 “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the one who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, but you were not willing! 

35 See! Your house is left to you desolate; and assuredly, I say to you, you shall not see Me until the time comes when you say, ‘Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!’ ”

A certain lady died stood at the Gates of Heaven. She could look and see a beautiful banquet table set, with all her family members who had died before sitting and enjoying the feast. They all saw her and started waving and motioning her to come in. A saint appeared and said, “Hello. We’ve been waiting for you.” And she said, "This is such a wonderful place, how do I get in?" The gatekeeper smiled and said, “All you have to do is correctly spell one word.” “What is it?” She anxiously asked. “Spell love,” he said. The woman smiled and spelled “l.o.v.e.” and she was welcomed into heaven. About a year later, the same woman was on gate duty when her husband arrived unexpectedly. She said, “I am surprised to see you! How have you been doing?” He said, “Actually, I’ve been doing really well since you died. Do you remember that pretty nurse that took care of you? We fell in love and married a few weeks after you died. Then I won the lottery so we sold our little house and moved into a huge mansion. My new wife and I have been very happy and have been traveling all over the world. In fact we were just on a skiing trip to the Swiss Alps when I was caught in an avalanche, and that’s why I’m here. By the way, how do I get in?” His ex-wife said, “All you have to do is spell one word correctly and you can enter heaven.” He said, “OK, what’s the word?” She smiled wryly and said, “Czechoslovakia.”

I think all of us realize that this is not the way to get into heaven when we die, which is probably good news for all of us who depend on spell check! This humorous story does bring up a most serious question. How does a person get into heaven? Who will be there and who will not? Perhaps it would be best to ask this question in a more personal manner-not wondering who else or how many will go to heaven, but rather asking ourselves, “Will you go to heaven?” “Will I go to Heaven?”

I do not believe there is a more important issue than this one. It is important because it affects everyone. According to the Bible, everyone will either go to heaven forever or go to hell forever. Such an important issue as one dealing with our eternal destiny should not be taken lightly. We do not want to be ignorant, deceived or wrong about our future beyond the grave. You and I don’t have to be uncertain or wrong about going to heaven because in this passage is primarily about heaven and how to gain entrance into it. In this passage Jesus gives us the conditions for going to heaven.

I want you to understand that this passage is about entering into heaven. When the man in this story asks about people being “saved”, he is asking, “How many people will go to heaven?” When Jesus talks about entering through a “narrow door” and a door being shut, he is figuratively speaking of the entrance door to heaven. Even the reference to the “feast” in verse 29 was a well-known metaphor for eternal fellowship at God’s table in heaven. Having established that the subject matter of this passage of the Bible is heaven; let us now look at this passage verse by verse.

Verses 22,23

22 And He went through the cities and villages, teaching, and journeying toward Jerusalem. 

23 Then one said to Him, “Lord, are there few who are saved?” And He said to them, 

Luke once again notes that Jesus was on his “way to Jerusalem.” This was not just literary “filler” but was rather intentionally noted by Luke with the purpose of showing us that Jesus always kept focused and intent on following God’s will for his life, which was suffering and dying for our sins in Jerusalem. Jesus serves as an example to us who are his followers, in that above all things he pursued God’s will purposely and resolutely. We are to do the same. That determination to do the Father’s will, despite the personal cost, is also reflected in verses 31 through 35 where Jesus refuses to be dissuaded by fear or intimidation from following the Father’s will.

As Jesus travels, he also teaches and this presents an opportunity for someone to bring up a much-discussed question of the day. “Lord, are only a few people going to be saved?” In other words the man is asking, "Are only a small number of people going to heaven?" We do not know what prompted this person to ask this question; perhaps he wanted Jesus to join the current theological debate?

Jesus does not actually get drawn into this inconsequential debate. Rather than answer the man’s question directly about how many will go to heaven, Jesus puts the focus on the individual. Jesus’ response in the next few verses would make the questioner and all the people present think about their own destiny. In essence, Jesus response infers that instead of focusing on theological questions that pertain to the destiny of other people, you and I need to focus on our own entrance into heaven.

The people present and the person who asked the question were probably Jewish and therefore assumed that they were going to heaven. The average Jew took heaven for granted because most Jewish people of the day had a very broad understanding of who went into heaven when it came to their own race. Jesus wants them and us to rethink that assumption. He wants them to know that they might be wrong because there are conditions to going to heaven. Conditions that they were not meeting. Jesus speaks of these conditions in verse 24.

Verse 24  24 “Strive to enter through the narrow gate, for many, I say to you, will seek to enter and will not be able. 

Rather than taking heaven for granted, we should be “making every effort to enter in.” (Verse 24) This is a message we in America need to take to heart. According to recent polls, between 80-95% of all people expect to go to heaven. Is that expectation realistic and justified? Isn’t it more likely that some people are just taking heaven for granted? In my opinion, it does seem that many people are taking heaven for granted and without any biblical reason for doing so. Jesus implied that such an attitude was seriously wrong and dangerous because “many will try to enter heaven and will not be able to.” Because this is true, Jesus tells people to “make every effort to enter...”

People should not take heaven for granted; they should rather “strive” for heaven. The word that is translated as “make every effort” (NIV) or “strive” (KJV, NASB) is a word that was usually used to describe the mindset of an athlete in a contest or a soldier in a war. Each, whether soldier our athlete, must lay aside or sacrifice anything that hinders victory. Jesus is saying to us that we must be willing to sacrifice anything and to give anything to enter into heaven. Rather than taking heaven for granted, people should strive to enter into heaven’s door.

This verse can certainly raise some questions and concerns. Some may wonder if Jesus is saying that we should make every effort to be a good person because only those who were good enough will get into heaven. Certainly Jesus is not implying this. The whole Bible, including Jesus’ teaching, make clear that no one can be good enough to deserve heaven and that salvation,  going to heaven, is a free gift of God’s grace. If we could be good enough, Jesus would not have needed to die in our place.

What does this verse mean then? If heaven is a free gift, then what are we striving for? We have to strive to enter heaven because the door is “narrow.” The key to understanding this verse is to understand what is meant by the term “narrow.” The word "narrow" is a Greek word that meant restrictive. While a person cannot earn entrance into heaven, there are restrictions on who will go to heaven. Not everybody who wants to go to heaven will go but only those who come on God’s terms and those terms are narrow (restrictive), which means that many people are excluded.

What are God’s terms? Jesus mentions them in many passages, including earlier parts of Chapter 13. God’s terms for entering heaven are confession, repentance, and a genuine trust and commitment in Jesus alone. That commitment to Jesus will mean things like self–denial (taking up our cross), persecution, and humility. These are God’s terms for entering through heaven’s doors. In a sense, these terms are narrow because they do exclude a lot of people.

Many people want to go to heaven but are unwilling to do these things. Many people think they are going to heaven but they have not admitted they are sinners, turned from an ungodly life, trusted in Jesus alone for salvation and really put Jesus first in their lives. If this describes you, you need to rethink your assumption about going to heaven. You have a false hope! Jesus lovingly warns those with such false hopes that the door to heaven is narrow and that you cannot make it through without doing these things. Many people are offended by these restrictive and humbling terms.

Let me read a letter that was published in the Melbourne, Australia papers after a Billy Graham Crusade: "After hearing Dr. Billy Graham on the air, viewing him on television and reading reports and letters concerning him and his mission, I am heartily sick of the type of religion that insists my soul (and everyone else’s) needs saving--whatever that means. I have never felt that I was lost. Nor do I feel that I daily wallow in the mire of sin, although repetitive preaching insists that I do. Give me a practical religion that teaches gentleness and tolerance, that acknowledges no barriers of color or creed, that remembers the aged and teaches children of goodness and not sin. If in order to save my soul I must accept such a philosophy as I have recently heard preached, I prefer to remain forever damned".

You have the same choice as the writer of this letter. You can choose not to admit your sinful condition. You can choose not to leave your old way of living behind. You can choose not to trust and follow Jesus sincerely. You can make these choices but by doing so you are choosing to be forever damned! The choice is yours. Salvation or heaven is a free gift of God’s love, but you still must “make every effort to enter through the narrow door.”

Each year at the various parades in St. Lucie, candy is thrown out from the floats for anyone to take freely. It doesn’t matter that some of the kids grabbing the candy don’t deserve it, because it is a free, unmerited gift. All the kids understand that the candy is free, but they also understand that you can’t just sit and wait for the candy to land in your lap. They have to be willing to put down their sodas – leave them behind, sit on the edge of the hot pavement and act quickly when the free candy is tossed their way. It is the same with the offer of salvation. Heaven is free and unmerited but everyone must be willing to leave behind anything that keeps him or her from receiving this wonderful gift. This means leaving behind your pride, self-sufficiency, old life, and personal autonomy so you can take hold of heaven and eternal life.

The entrance to heaven is narrow. You must come through the one door, which is Jesus. These are God’s terms and his terms are the only ones that count. Being sincere in your belief is not enough. Being a good person is not enough. Being religious is not enough. Such restrictive ideas are considered narrow minded and they are, but keep in mind it is Jesus who said that you must come through the “narrow door.”

At the beginning of this message I asked the question, “Will you go to heaven?” The answer can be “yes” only if you come on God’s terms.

You will go to heaven only if you come on God’s terms and in God’s time.

Verse 25-27

25 When once the Master of the house has risen up and shut the door, and you begin to stand outside and knock at the door, saying, ‘Lord, Lord, open for us,’ and He will answer and say to you, ‘I do not know you, where you are from,’ 

26 then you will begin to say, ‘We ate and drank in Your presence, and You taught in our streets.’ 

27 But He will say, ‘I tell you I do not know you, where you are from. Depart from Me, all you workers of iniquity.’ 

In many commercials selling products you will hear the announcer say, “Act now-this is a limited time offer.” That, in essence, is what Jesus is saying to people today. You need to make a decision in your response to Jesus quickly because when that door to heaven is shut, it will not be reopened. There will be no more opportunities. You may knock and plead but it will be to no avail. The door is open now and now is the time to respond. One day that door to heaven will be closed. It may be closed by death. It may be closed by Jesus return. It may be closed by the hardening of your heart. We never know when the last opportunity to insure our entrance to heaven will be. What we do know is that today, March 6, 2022 the door is still open for you. Do not miss your opportunity! Do not procrastinate!  Remember Tomorrow Will Never Come ACT NOW

The people who are left “outside” of heaven and longing to be inside are those who have not entered into a personal relationship with Jesus through trust and commitment to him. When Jesus says to those on the outside, “I do not know you or where you come from” he is speaking of relational knowledge, not intellectual knowledge. There are two different ways of knowing someone. For example, in a sense I know the President, but not in the sense that will gain me entrance to a White House banquet. If I were to hit the buzzer at the White House Gate and say “let me in!” I am quite confident that the answer would be “No!” I may claim to know the president by making reference to having seen him at a political rally or shaking hands on the street during campaigning but this kind of superficial knowledge is not sufficient to gain me entrance to the White House banquet. The same is true with gaining entrance into heaven. We must truly know Jesus through a personal relationship with him. In verses 26 and 27 the people claim to know Jesus because they ate with him and because he taught in their streets. But this superficial familiarity with Jesus is not enough, which is why Jesus repeats in verse 27,  ‘I tell you I do not know you, where you are from. Depart from Me, all you workers of iniquity.’

Keep in mind that this is only a figurative story to illustrate a spiritual truth. The truth being that just going to church, reading the Bible, being religious and knowing about Jesus will not get you into heaven. You must enter into a personal relationship with him by trust and commitment!

Will you go to heaven? You will go to heaven only if you don’t miss your opportunity to come on God’s terms. If you do reject his terms or wait until it’s too late then the consequences are serious, as verse 28 makes clear.

"There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth...” for those who miss heaven. There will be an unending sorrow that cannot be described for everyone who misses the glories of Heaven and instead spends eternity in hell. Contrary to popular opinion, hell will not be a big sinful party with all the other sinful people. It will be a place where people are fully aware of what they have lost and will forever be in despair. Getting into heaven is vital; do not miss your opportunity.

These particular verses were spoken especially to the Jewish people. They were confident that they would be in heaven based on their heritage as descendants of the patriarchs, hence the mention of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Jesus says that those who reject him will not be in the kingdom of God no matter the family relationships or the expectations. At the same time many others from many nations i.e. the Gentiles who were not expected to be in heaven will be in heaven. This is who is being referred to in verse 29 where Jesus says, “people will come from the east and west, and north and south to take their places at the feast in the kingdom of God."

Verse 30 is a reminder that there will be a lot of surprises in heaven. When we get to heaven we will say like Gomer Pyle would say in the old TV show, “surprise, surprise, surprise.” There will be surprises in heaven because many who were religious and who thought that they would be “first” into heaven will actually be “last”, which means excluded. Those that thought of themselves as a sure thing because of their religion, good works, Bible knowledge, or spiritual position might not be there at all. Many who were thought of as “last”, as having no chance of making it into heaven, will be first,  they will be in heaven. “There are those who are last who will be first, and first, who will be last.”

Will you be there? Will you go to heaven? Or will you be surprised at being excluded? That depends on the choices you make today!

You will go to heaven only if you come on God’s terms and in God’s time.

I want to briefly cover vs. 31-35 because they are related to this section on going to heaven. They are related because they show us Jesus heart regarding judgment and blessing. This passage shows us that Jesus would much rather bless people but that people must make that decision. This passage shows us Jesus heart of love and desire for all people to come under his protection from judgment. These verses also illustrate for us and remind us that there is a price to pay for rejecting his offer of salvation.

In verse 31 Jesus is warned that he is in danger because Herod wants to kill him. Jesus uses this as an opportunity to point out who is in real danger. It is those who reject Him. In this case he is referring to the Jewish people who will experience judgment because they rejected his offer of blessings. In verse 35 he says "your house (land) is left to you desolate” referring to the judgment that was soon to come and result in the destruction of Jerusalem and the loss of many lives. Before speaking of judgment though, Jesus expresses his desire that it not be that way. In verse 34 he says that he wishes to protect the people in the same way as a mother hen would lovingly gather her chicks under her wings and protect them from danger. He willed or desired that to happen but they “were not willing.”

This is a message for people today also. Jesus does not will anyone to miss heaven and suffer hell but you must be willing to receive him by trusting and committing to him.

The last phrase in verse 35, “You will not see me again until you say ‘Blessed is he who comes in the name of Lord’ ” refers to a future time near the end, when many of the Jewish people will no longer reject Jesus but receive him. 

Will you go to heaven?

You will go to heaven only if you come on God’s terms and in God’s time.

If you have not yet repented, confessed your sins, and trusted in Christ to save you from God’s wrath, then you don’t know the full extent of Gods’ love yet.  John 3:36 says that “Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him” because “Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God” (John 3:18). I pray that is not you.

I encourage you to pray this prayer with me, but I caution you that saying words alone will not save you. Prayer alone doesn’t save. Only Christ can save. But prayer can be a means of reaching out to the Lord in true saving faith. If you pray these words in faith, Christ will save you. You can be sure of that.

Let Us Pray:  

Lord Jesus, for too long I’ve kept you out of my life. I know that I am a sinner and that I cannot save myself. No longer will I close the door of my heart when I hear you knocking. By faith I gratefully receive your gift of salvation. I am ready to trust you as my Lord and Savior. Thank you, Lord Jesus, for coming to earth. I believe you are the Son of God who died on the cross for my sins and rose from the dead on the third day. Thank you for bearing my sins and giving me the gift of eternal life. I believe your word and desire the Holy Spirit to come into my heart and give me guidance to walk your path to salvation and everlasting life. In Jesus Name I Pray Amen.

Looking for a Place to Find Peace in a Crazy World

Sermon Summary

The purpose of this Ministry is to Spread the word of God to any and all that will listen.  I will try very hard to plant the seed of God in your hearts, provide you with the knowledge to nurture that seed thru prayer, Bible Study and fellowship so that it can grow, so that in time that seed will mature and you will be saved and re-born so that you can have the greatest gift of God’s Love, Everlasting Life.

Before we start this weeks sermon I want to share with you all an explanation of what is a church.

Never forget that the church can be the gathering of 2 believers or 2000 believers.

It is not a fancy building with stain glass windows.

 “Church” is the translation of the Greek term ekklesia, and is used in the New Testament to identify the community of believers in Jesus Christ. It literally means “assembly,” “congregation,” or “meeting.” A similar term was used in the Old Testament referring to experiences such as “the day of the assembly,” “the Lord’s congregation,” or “meeting before the Lord.” 

Thus, when Jesus declares: (Matthew 16:18), “I will build my church” it did not come as something unfamiliar to the common listener. Shortly after, in the New Testament, the word is confined strictly to refer to the congregation of believers in Jesus Christ.

Also in the New Testament, no synagogue, temple, chapel, tabernacle, building or any other meeting place was ever called a “church.” The term always referred to the Christian assembly and, in the New Testament, it was used for both the local community of believers and the overall collection of Christians.

Let us Pray

Dear Lord, in Heaven, The creator of all

We look forward to the joys of heaven.

Where there is no more pain, No suffering, No Sickness

God remind us that our actions matter here in this world.

Our actions here on this earth will pave our way to live in your house

Here on earth Each and every day is a struggle against sin and temptation.  Give us the strength to overcome cruelty with grace 

and hatred with love.  Remind us Lord We do not fight a physical battle, 

but a spiritual one and with each act of compassion here on earth

We build your kingdom.

Help to guide us to be kingdom builders today and everyday.

As a Kingdom builder we will try to plant your seed Lord in the hearts of any and all that will listen

Then we will help nourish that seed so it can grow and they too can receive your greatest gift of Love     Everlasting Life

Soon We will be done with the troubles of the world

and will be walking down the path we paved with our actions

As Kingdom Builders To live in the house of the Lord forever

Thru Jesus Christ we pray

AMEN

Today’s sermon Is Bigger Really Better? will be from a very short passage, only three verses, but do not mistake the size of the passage for the important of the passage!

Luke 13:18-20

18 Then He said, “What is the kingdom of God like? And to what shall I compare it? 

19 It is like a mustard seed, which a man took and put in his garden; and it grew and became a [a]large tree, and the birds of the air nested in its branches.”

20 And again He said, “To what shall I liken the kingdom of God?

Let me start out this morning with a little quiz. What is the world’s biggest mountain? (Mt. Everest) What type of tree is the tallest? (Redwood) Who is the world’s richest man? (Elon Musk) What is the longest chapter of the Bible? (Psalm 119) Well you have done very well at the quiz so far but it is not quite over. 

What is the world’s smallest mountain? (Mt. Greylock) What type a tree is the shortest? (Dwarf Willow 5cm when full grown) Who is the world’s poorest man? (Jerome Kerviel has a net worth of NEGETIVE $6.7 billion) What is the shortest chapter of the Bible? (Psalm 117 with only 2 verses)

You didn’t do as well on the second half of our quiz, but I didn’t really expect you that you would. The quiz was obviously given to prove a point. The point being that people tend to recognize, respect and remember those things in life which are the largest, most grandiose, numerical, etc while we tend to give little thought to the small and seeming insignificant things.

In nearly every aspect of our lives we tend to adhere the motto: “Bigger is Better.” We now drive vehicles known as SUV’s (in the military we called them tanks) because bigger is better. We are not satisfied with Wal-Mart but look for a Super Wal-Mart because bigger is better. We can even Supersize our meal at McDonalds because bigger is better.

Is bigger always better? 

No, not when it comes to spiritual things. Jesus uses these 3 verses to correct our thinking about bigger being better in spiritual things and God’s work. He does this because we tend to hold to the thinking that bigger is better in spiritual things like we hold to that thinking about worldly things. We tend to believe that more people, more money, bigger ministries and buildings, more programs, and greater talent will result in greater effectiveness at God’s work. We often think that God is doing more and can do more where there is something going on that looks grand and marvelous.

At the same time we tend to think the opposite about smaller things. We act as though God is not working or could not work though smaller churches and ministries, lesser talent, and fewer programs. “If it isn’t big, God must not be in it” would be an accurate representation of some people’s thinking and feeling.

These types of thinking affect our attitude and our actions. Our zeal, confidence, evaluation, commitment and expectations are often based on size and significance! Therefore it is vital that we understand and accept by faith the message that these two illustrations are intended to convey. The main point that Jesus is making here is that God works mightily through small things.

In verse 18 Jesus asked, “What is the Kingdom of God like? What shall I compare it to?” The expression “Kingdom of God” is a broad concept that is difficult to define simply. In general it refers to the rule of God and the establishment of His purposes. It may be used in a spiritual sense where God is working in the hearts of people or in some cases the expression refers to a physical kingdom that God will establish in the end times. In this context I believe we could accurately paraphrase this question like this: “How can I describe to you how God works to establish His rule and purposes in the world?” The answer is that God uses small, insignificant things but with great and far reaching results.

God Works Mightily Through Small Things.  Basically one Person At A Time

In verse 19 Jesus says that God’s working is like a “mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his garden. It grew and became a tree, and the birds of the air perched in its branches.” The mustard seed, which produces leaves from which mustard is derived, was known for its minuteness. It is very, very small. In fact it would take 20,000 mustard seeds to weigh just one ounce. Because of its size the mustard seed was used proverbially for anything that was small and insignificant. Kids of that era probable called each other “mustard seed brain.”

Jesus proverbially used the mustard seed on another occasion when He said that if we had faith as a mustard seed we could move mountains. In this context the emphasis is not on our faith but on how God works in establishing His purposes. God works through small things. He doesn’t just work though small things – He works mightily through small things.

There is a second characteristic of the mustard seed that is important to this comparison besides its smallness. Despite its small seed size, the mustard plant actually grows to be the largest of the herbs grown in that area. It can reach 10-15 feet in height, and thus be large enough to provide a place for birds to rest in its branches as Jesus alludes to at the end of verse 19. (Some people think that the birds are allegorical and represent something. I believe that they just emphasize the large size of the tree.) The point of the comparison is that success doesn’t depend on size! Just like God can bring a significant tree out of an insignificant seed, He can do the same with you and me. We may not be a large church. We may not be the most talented people. We may not have lots of money to work with. We may not have a lot of people that the world sees as influential and important. Nevertheless we can be encouraged because…

God Works Mightily Through Small Things.

In verse 20 Jesus uses another illustration to make the same point. “Yeast”, which is also known as leaven, is sometimes used in the Bible as symbolic of sin but in this case it is used in a positive manner to show how God works mightily through small things. In that era, when a woman made bread, which was everyday since bread was a staple food, she would have to use yeast to make it rise, you know “poofy.” Now the yeast used then wasn’t like the dry yeast used today but rather it was a very small lump of dough taken from the previous days making of bread. She would take that lump of dough and kneed it in to the new flour mixture and eventually that yeast would permeate and influence the entire batch.

The most important aspect of this illustration is the amount of flour into which the small amount of yeast was mixed. In the NIV Bible it says, “a large amount” but the literal Greek Bible is more specific and says, “3 Satas” which is somewhere between 30 and 50 pounds of flour. This is a huge amount of flour! Could such a small insignificant lump of yeast leaven such a large amount of flour? It was so tiny that it just seemed impossible, but every women of that day knew that even a small lump of yeast could leaven a large amount of flour. Even though it was small it would also be significant in its influence. Again success doesn’t depend on size!

God Works Mightily Through Small Things.

Of course Jesus didn’t tell us these things to teach or encourage us about gardening or bread making. He wanted His disciples to recognize that things are not always as they appear. What men see as insignificant, unimportant and inconsequential, God would actually use to accomplish His purposes. He shared this with His disciples so that they would not evaluate their own or others accomplishments or abilities like those in the world who think bigger is better.

This was necessary because they would have looked at themselves and been looked at by others as unsuccessful and unimportant in God’s work. The disciples of Jesus were like that mustard seed, tiny and insignificant. Why would they have been thought of this way?

As hard as it is for us to conceive today, Jesus ministry was a major disappointment to many when He was on the earth. The Jewish people expected the Messiah to come like lightning! They expected that the Messiah would come and unite the people, gather a vast army, destroy the Roman enemy, and establish a kingdom of great magnificence. They were looking for something big to happen. They wanted glory and grandeur because they believed that this was the way God worked but instead they got Jesus.

Jesus who was born in a stable, raised in the no good town of Nazareth, resisted by the religious leaders and ignored by most of the political leaders. Jesus only had a small group of followers who were nothing more than uneducated fishermen, tax collectors and prostitutes. The Lowest of The Low.  This didn’t look like the Kingdom of God, as they understood it. To them it looked like it was doomed to failure and for many of the disciples the temptation was to “jump ship.” After all nobody wants to be a part of something small and insignificant because that means it is not successful. God couldn’t be in it because bigger is better. Jesus wanted to correct this erroneous understanding. It is a correction we need to hear and heed today because people still tend to gravitate toward that which is bigger while disparaging that which is smaller. To avoid this error we have to remember the lesson of these parables.

God Works Mightily Through Small Things.

Jesus didn’t give any particular application to His disciples from these illustrations and spiritual truth. He left that to us since the application is rather obvious once you’ve understood the spiritual principle being taught. This being the case, I want to briefly share with you two responses I believe we should have to this truth.

First: Since God works mightily through small things we should not be judgmental.

What I mean is that we must be careful not to evaluate the success or spirituality of a ministry, church or person based on size or significance. We often evaluate and judge these things based on numbers, apparent importance and influence, prominence, or seemingly notable and powerful things happening. We tend to think that God must be in these things because they are bigger and more significant and that God must not be in what is small and insignificant by man’s standards. The lesson from the mustard seed and yeast has taught us otherwise. Things are not always as they appear!

First: Since God Works Mightily Through Small Things We Should Not Be Judgmental.

The great prophet Elijah made this mistake in 1 Kings 19.

The Bible says in 1 Kings 19:10-13

10 So he said, “I have been very zealous for the Lord God of hosts; for the children of Israel have forsaken Your covenant, torn down Your altars, and killed Your prophets with the sword. I alone am left; and they seek to take my life.”

11 Then He said, “Go out, and stand on the mountain before the Lord.” And behold, the Lord passed by, and a great and strong wind tore into the mountains and broke the rocks in pieces before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind; and after the wind an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake; 

12 and after the earthquake a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire; and after the fire [a]a still small voice.

13 So it was, when Elijah heard it, that he wrapped his face in his mantle and went out and stood in the entrance of the cave. Suddenly a voice came to him, and said, “What are you doing here, Elijah?”

Elijah was discouraged and ready to quit because from his point of view nothing of significance had come from his ministry. He was looking for a mighty moving of God but he didn’t see it because he was only looking for big things, such as many people due today.

So God gave Elijah a spiritual lesson. He had Elijah go to a cave and then there was a powerful wind, but the “Lord was not in the wind” and then there was a mighty earthquake but the “Lord was not in the earthquake” and then there was a fire, but the “Lord was not in the fire.” The Lord wasn’t in any of these big things, but then there was a “gentle whisper”, a “still small voice” and Elijah went to the entrance of the cave because the Lord was in this small, insignificant thing. God was telling Elijah “I am working mightily but you haven’t seen it because you have only looked for me in the big things.” Elijah judged his ministry wrongly because he judged it based on size and significance. Do you see the message for the church today? If you hold to the philosophy that bigger is better you will be looking for God in the extraordinary and miss Him working mightily through the small things. You will also judge other ministries on man’s criteria rather than God’s.

First: Since God Works Mightily Through Small Things We Should Not Be Judgmental.

Second: Since God Works Mightily Through Small Things We Should Not Get Discouraged.

Christians often either abandon or give less than 100% to a ministry because they don’t see it as successful or believe that God could work mightily through something so small and insignificant. Size becomes a discouragement. This was the mistake the people of Israel and Zerubbabel their leader made when rebuilding the temple in the Old Testament. The Israelites returned to the land and began to rebuild the temple but quit in discouragement because they were such a small group that it seemed impossible and because the temple they were working on was so small and insignificant compared to Solomon’s temple.

God had a word for them and us about their attitude toward small things.

Zechariah 4:6-10, 

6 So he answered and said to me: “This is the word of the Lord to Zerubbabel:

‘Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit,’ Says the Lord of hosts.

7 ‘Who are you, O great mountain? Before Zerubbabel you shall become a plain!

And he shall bring forth the capstone With shouts of “Grace, grace to it!” ’ ”

8 Moreover the word of the Lord came to me, saying:

9 “The hands of Zerubbabel Have laid the foundation of this [a]temple;  His hands shall also finish it. Then you will know That the Lord of hosts has sent Me to you.

10 For who has despised the day of small things? For these seven rejoice to seen The [b]plumb line in the hand of Zerubbabel. They are the eyes of the Lord, Which scan to and fro throughout the whole earth.”

Haggai 2:3,9

3 ‘Who is left among you who saw this [a]temple in its former glory? And how do you see it now? In comparison with it, is this not in your eyes as nothing?

9 ‘The glory of this latter [a]temple shall be greater than the former,’ says the Lord of hosts. ‘And in this place I will give peace,’ says the Lord of hosts.”

In both of these passsages the people are rebuked for giving up because they didn’t think a small group could do anything significant and because they saw the work of God as small. God in essence says, “Do not despise the day of small things” because the “Glory of this latter house shall be greater than the glory of the former.” It may not look like much but God was working so the people should be encouraged!

God Works Mightily Through Small Things and you can do great thing in the name of the Lord.

In Closing We as Christians are not a people with great numbers but we have a great God so let us be encouraged and faithful because God is working thru each of us everyday so each of us can spread the seed of God to any and all that will listen.

If you have not yet repented, confessed your sins, and trusted in Christ to save you from God’s wrath, then you don’t know the full extent of Gods’ love yet.  John 3:36 says that “Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him” because “Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God” (John 3:18). I pray that is not you.

I encourage you to pray this prayer with me, but I caution you that saying words alone will not save you. Prayer alone doesn’t save. Only Christ can save. But prayer can be a means of reaching out to the Lord in true saving faith. If you pray these words in faith, Christ will save you. You can be sure of that.

Let Us Pray

  Lord Jesus, for too long I’ve kept you out of my life. I know that I am a sinner and that I cannot save myself. No longer will I close the door of my heart when I hear you knocking. By faith I gratefully receive your gift of salvation. I am ready to trust you as my Lord and Savior. Thank you, Lord Jesus, for coming to earth. I believe you are the Son of God who died on the cross for my sins and rose from the dead on the third day. Thank you for bearing my sins and giving me the gift of eternal life. I believe your word and desire the Holy Spirit to come into my heart and give me guidance to walk your path to salvation and everlasting life. In Jesus Name I Pray Amen.

Hope for the Hurting

Sermon Summary

The purpose of Barefoot Ministry is to Spread the word of God to any and all that will listen.  I will try very hard to plant the seed of God in your hearts, provide you with the knowledge to nurture that seed thru prayer, Bible Study and fellowship so that it can grow, so that in time that seed will mature and you will be saved and re-born so that you can have the greatest gift of God’s Love, Everlasting Life.

Let Us Pray

Dear Lord, in Heaven, The creator of all

We look forward to the joys of heaven.

Where there is no more pain, No suffering, No Sickness

God remind us that our actions matter here in this world.

Our actions here on this earth will pave our way to live in your house

Here on earth Each and every day is a struggle against sin and temptation.  Give us the strength to overcome cruelty with grace 

and hatred with love.  Remind us We do not fight a physical battle, 

but a spiritual one and with each act of compassion here on earth

We build your Kingdom.

Help us be kingdom builders today and every day.

As a Kingdom builder we will try to plant the seed of the Lord in the hearts of any and all that will listen

Then we will help nourish that seed so it can grow and they too can receive your greatest gift of Love     Everlasting Life

Soon We will be done with the troubles of the world

and will be walking down the path we paved with our actions

As Kingdom Builders To live in the house of the Lord forever

Thru Jesus Christ we pray

AMEN

Todays Message is From Luke 13:10-17 On Why Hurting People Can Have Hope. 

We are still in the Book of  Luke Chapter 13.

Luke 13:10-17

10 Now He was teaching in one of the synagogues on the Sabbath. 11 And behold, there was a woman who had a spirit of infirmity eighteen years, and was bent over and could in no way raise herself up. 12 But when Jesus saw her, He called her to Him and said to her, “Woman, you are loosed from your infirmity.” 13 And He laid His hands on her, and immediately she was made straight, and glorified God.

14 But the ruler of the synagogue answered with indignation, because Jesus had healed on the Sabbath; and he said to the crowd, “There are six days on which men ought to work; therefore come and be healed on them, and not on the Sabbath day.”

15 The Lord then answered him and said, “Hypocrite! Does not each one of you on the Sabbath loose his ox or donkey from the stall, and lead it away to water it? 16 So ought not this woman, being a daughter of Abraham, whom Satan has bound—think of it—for eighteen years, be loosed from this bond on the Sabbath?” 17 And when He said these things, all His adversaries were put to shame; and all the multitude rejoiced for all the glorious things that were done by Him.

Bum Phillips, former coach of the Houston Oilers once made the comment, "There are two types of coaches in the NFL: them that have been fired, and them that are gonna be fired." His statements applies to our topic today as well. There are two types of people in the world. Those who have been hurt, and those who will be hurt. We can’t escape it. Neither can we avoid it. At some time or another, we’ll all get hurt. When you make a commitment to follow Christ, you don’t receive an exemption from getting hurt.

Even though all of us will experience hurts, sometimes very deep hurts, in life, we do not have to lose hope. Jesus offers hope to the hurting. Why is there hope for the hurting? Why can you be encouraged even if you are currently enduring a seemingly hopeless situation? This narrative text in Luke shows of three reasons there is hope for the hurting.

I. Jesus Notices And Cares for Hurting People.

II. Jesus Is Powerful Enough To Heal Hurting People.

III. Jesus Explains That Satan, Not God, Is The Cause of Hurting People.

Before I begin to explain and expound these three reasons as they are found in our Scripture text today, I want to briefly explain this woman’s condition. In verse 11 the Bible says that she was crippled, bent over and could not straighten up at all and that she had been this way for eighteen years.

Medically, this disease is probably what physician’s today would call Marie-Strümpell Disease, a fusion of the spinal bones. Early in the course of the disease, sufferers often find that the pain is relieved somewhat when they lean forward. So they often go through the day leaning slightly forward, and gradually their spine begins to fuse. The more they lean in order to relieve the pain, the greater the angle, until a patient might be bent almost double, as the lady in our story.

What a terrible disease! Wreaking havoc on every aspect of her life: physically, emotionally, financially, spiritually, etc. Her hurts and bondage is symbolic of all of our hurts and needs. The way Jesus responded to her hurts is the way we can expect Him to respond to hurting people today. There is hope for the hurting because…

I. Jesus Notices And Cares for Hurting People.

Look at Verses 10-12

10 Now He was teaching in one of the synagogues on the Sabbath.

11 And behold, there was a woman who had a spirit of infirmity eighteen years, and was bent over and could in no way raise herself up.

12 But when Jesus saw her, He called her to Him and said to her, “Woman, you are loosed from your infirmity.”

One of the first things I want you to observe in these verses is that Jesus was not indifferent to the hurt, pain and despair this woman was going through. She did not go unnoticed by Jesus. He has an eye for the hurting. He noticed and called to her even though there is no record that she ever approached him. He reached out to her in the midst of her pain because He is aware and concerned with her hurts and all of our hurts.

This was not a typical way to conduct the synagogue service! Jesus response to her was not socially expected or even accepted. Women in that culture were generally thought little of and usually ignored. Why then did Jesus take notice of her and make a point to respond to her need immediately and publicly? 

Because Jesus notices and cares for hurting people! He has great compassion on those who are burdened, depressed, overwhelmed, and often ignored by people in general.

Yes, Jesus cares for all people but those who were hurting always seemed to receive special attention and responses from Him. In New Testament times women, lepers, prostitutes, tax collectors, and widows were the most oppressed, ignored, hurting, and hopeless of people yet these are the very people to whom Jesus ministered most often and most powerfully. 

Why?

I. Jesus Notices And Cares for Hurting People.

You do not ever need to think that Jesus is not aware of your situation or unmoved by your tears. Jesus is not indifferent to or willing to ignore your pain. Some people have an erroneous idea that God does not take personal and emotional interest in us petty humans. This just isn’t the truth. Jesus expressed compassion for the hurting on numerous occasions and He is the perfect expression of God the Father. Through His life we know that God cares deeply for hurting people. You may not understand many things that you are going through or why your prayers go unanswered but you can be confident that God notices and cares about your pain.

We have a Lord who notices the hurting and has compassion on the burdened. As His followers we have the responsibility to do the same! We should not be indifferent to the hurting or unresponsive to the sorrowful and troubled. When we gather we should take the time to give attention, help and sympathy toward those in need. When we pray we should care enough to genuinely pray for those who are hurting, confused, sick or in pain. Hurting people should not be an afterthought in our prayers or our daily lives rather they should be our first priority.

Look at Verses 14,15

14 But the ruler of the synagogue answered with indignation, because Jesus had healed on the Sabbath; and he said to the crowd, “There are six days on which men ought to work; therefore come and be healed on them, and not on the Sabbath day.”

15 The Lord then answered him and said, “Hypocrite! Does not each one of you on the Sabbath loose his ox or donkey from the stall, and lead it away to water it?

We will come back to verse 12 in a moment but first I want to point out that this text also teaches us that Jesus expects us to have the same attitude of compassion toward the hurting as He does. In these two verses we see that Jesus rebuked those who ignored hurting people. This religious leader was more focused on religious rules and maintaining the order of service than in ministering to hurting people. He had no joy, no praise, and no relief at this woman’s healing. Jesus was greatly angered by this uncaring, indifferent response.

There is a message for us in this text.  Jesus is saying, you can have your praise and worship, teachings, and communion but never forget that hurting people matter to God. Make sure you reach out to them. This religious leader basically said to this woman and to the crowd that now is not the time or the place for healing but to comeback at another time. What hypocrisy! She has been this way for eighteen years! You wouldn’t let your animal go without water one day because of religious tradition or scruples why should this "daughter of Abraham", an Israelite, wait another moment? Jesus expects hurting people to be the priority. Jesus cares for the hurting and He insists that we do so also.

Six young men were slated to compete against one another in Seattle, Washington. The event was the hundred-yard dash. The men lined up, waited for the starting gun and took off in a sprint. About halfway down the track the man in front stumbled and fell, skinning his hands and knees. The other five men stopped and helped him up. After they brushed him off they decided to finish the race together, holding hands. None of the judges could tell who won the blue ribbon; none of them could see through their tears. No one in the stands that day would ever forget this demonstration of compassion. As the race ended the crowd stood and cheered for 10 minutes. These young men were competing in the Special Olympics; and they showed that they cared more for a hurting friend than for winning a race.

We are to have the same attitude to those who may be hurting in life. We need to stop and help, not proceed with everyday life in hypocritical indifference.

There is hope for you if you are hurting today because God does not forget you and He is not in different to your pain.

I. Jesus Notices And Cares for Hurting People.

II. Jesus Is Powerful Enough To Heal Hurting People.

Look at Verses 12,13

12 But when Jesus saw her, He called her to Him and said to her, “Woman, you are loosed from your infirmity.”

 13 And He laid His hands on her, and immediately she was made straight, and glorified God.

Jesus compassion would be nice but of limited comfort and encouragement if that is all that He can offer us. If the only thing Jesus can do is sympathize with us then we are still hopeless. The good news is that Jesus is not only compassionate but He is also powerful! He can heal your hurts; He can undo your bondages, and He can change your situation.

As we see in this story, there is no situation, no matter how bad that is too great for Jesus. This was the worst kind of medical condition. A medical condition that to this day does not have a cure. Yet this did not pose a problem for Jesus. She had also been in this situation a long, long time but again that was not a problem for Jesus. I want you to understand that nothing you are going through or ever will go through is beyond the power of Jesus Christ to heal and restore.

You may have suffered for many years as this woman did but you can still be hopeful. There is hope because there is Jesus. He set this woman free from her infirmity and He can set you free from yours also. Never ever give up hope! No matter what type of problem, hurt, or bondage you may be facing you can be hopeful because...

II. Jesus Is Powerful Enough To Heal Hurting People.

If you are physically sick - He can heal you. If your marriage is troubled - He can restore it. If your ministry is a mess - He can repair it. There is nothing beyond the power of Jesus Christ. I know some of you may have been hurting for a long time and you have lost hope. I know some of you no longer really expect Jesus to supernaturally intervene in your situation or need. I can relate to that discouragement because I’ve been there. I know many of you have questions of God and I cannot answer every question you may have, nevertheless I do encourage you to look at this story and renew your faith and expectations. Let your faith be strengthened by God’s word. Keep your hopes up because Jesus still heals the hurting.

Psalm 40:1-3 “I waited patiently for the Lord; And He inclined to me, And heard my cry.

2 He also brought me up out of a horrible pit, Out of the miry clay, And set my feet upon a rock, And established my steps.

3 He has put a new song in my mouth—Praise to our God; Many will see it and fear,

And will trust in the Lord.

There are Christians today who no longer pray for healing because they have lost their faith and don’t think God will heal them. There are Christians today whose marriages are failing yet they have no real expectation for Jesus to restore their marriage because they think it is too late. There are people who have quit serving in ministry out of discouragement because they think their situation is beyond God’s help. Our thinking needs to change if it is like this. We should never lose hope because…

II. Jesus Is Powerful Enough To Heal Hurting People.

So if you have a belief system that excludes God’s power from working in your life, then you need to change your belief system--because it’s based on something other than his Word. God wants to work miracles in your life. 

I. Jesus Notices And Cares for Hurting People.

II. Jesus Is Powerful Enough To Heal Hurting People.

III. Jesus Explains That Satan, Not God, Is The Cause of Hurting People.

Look at Verses 15,16

15 The Lord then answered him and said, “Hypocrite! Does not each one of you on the Sabbath loose his ox or donkey from the stall, and lead it away to water it? 

16 So ought not this woman, being a daughter of Abraham, whom Satan has bound—think of it—for eighteen years, be loosed from this bond on the Sabbath?” 

We all often hear when people are going through hard times: 

Why is God putting me through this?

Why did God give me cancer? 

Why did God take my child? 

Why is God breaking apart my family? 

Many times people assume that God must be behind all of our hurting and that there must be some mysterious divine plan in all of this. How can we have hope if we believe that God is the cause of our hurting? 

You can’t!

Fortunately there is hope for their hurting because Jesus explains that our hurting is not God’s doing! He clearly says, “Satan (not God) has kept (this women) bound for eighteen long years.” (Vs. 16) In verse 11 Luke also explicitly notes that an evil spirit caused this woman’s physical infirmity.

It is wrong to blame God for all of the bad things in life. The Bible teaches us that Satan is the one who brought pain, suffering and sorrow into the world through sin. God created the world good!

Look at the ministry of Jesus. Much of his ministry was spent healing and easing the suffering of people. Jesus looked upon death and diseases as intruders and aliens in God’s world.

The next time something really bad happens to you, don’t be so sure to blame God for that. It might be worth asking “Could this be the work of Satan against me?” 

A couple of things should be noted here to prevent misunderstandings. First, I do believe, as the Bible teaches, that God uses the hurts and pains of life for good purposes. Satan may be behind the hurting but God can take what Satan intended for evil and use it for good. 

God only has good things in mind you and I

Second I want to point out that sometimes God uses the evils of this world in His punishment of sin. Miriam’s leprosy is one example of this truth.

Having said that, I want to emphasize that in the majority of cases the Bible tells us that Satan is directly or indirectly the explanation for the troubles, pains, and hurts of this world. This is good news and reason for those who are hurting to have hope because it means that God is not against us rather He is for us. There is reason to hope because Jesus is greater than Satan. There is hope for the hurting because…

III. Jesus Explains That Satan, Not God, Is The Cause of Hurting People.

I want to point out that nothing in this text indicates that this woman was demon possessed or demonized. No demon manifested itself, was rebuked or cast out for this reason. In fact in verse 14 the religious leader says that she was “healed” not delivered, and Jesus specifically says in verse 12 that she was “set free from her infirmity (sickness, disease)” I say all this to point out that while a genuine Christian cannot be possessed by a demon, they can be attacked by Satan in their bodies, marriages, ministries, finance etc. When these attacks come we need to recognize the source of them and go to Jesus for healing and strength in His mighty power.

In verse 17 it says that all Jesus opponents were humiliated but that the people were delighted with all the wonderful things He was doing. They were rejoicing because finally they had hope even though they were hurting. You also can rejoice because…

I. Jesus Notices And Cares for Hurting People.

II. Jesus Is Powerful Enough To Heal Hurting People.

III. Jesus Explains That Satan, Not God, Is The Cause of Hurting People.

If you have not yet repented, confessed your sins, and trusted in Christ to save you from God’s wrath, then you don’t know the full extent of Gods’ love yet.  John 3:36 says that “Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him” because “Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God” (John 3:18). I pray that is not you.

I encourage you to pray this prayer with me, but I caution you that saying words alone will not save you. Prayer alone doesn’t save. Only Christ can save. But prayer can be a means of reaching out to the Lord in true saving faith. If you pray these words in faith, Christ will save you. You can be sure of that.

Let Us Pray

Lord Jesus, for too long I’ve kept you out of my life. I know that I am a sinner and that I cannot save myself. No longer will I close the door of my heart when I hear you knocking. By faith I gratefully receive your gift of salvation. I am ready to trust you as my Lord and Savior. Thank you, Lord Jesus, for coming to earth. I believe you are the Son of God who died on the cross for my sins and rose from the dead on the third day. Thank you for bearing my sins and giving me the gift of eternal life. I believe your word and desire the Holy Spirit to come into my heart and give me guidance to walk your path to salvation and everlasting life. In Jesus Name I Pray Amen.

The Message Nobody Wants to Hear

Sermon Summary

The purpose of this Ministry is to Spread the word of God to any and all that will listen.  I will try very hard to plant the seed of God in your hearts, provide you with the knowledge to nurture that seed thru prayer, Bible Study and fellowship so that it can grow, so that in time that seed will mature and you will be saved and re-born so that you can have the greatest gift of God’s Love, Everlasting Life.

Let Us Pray

Lord, in Heaven, the creator of all Each and every day is a struggle against sin and temptation.

Give us the strength to overcome cruelty with grace and hatered with love.

God remind us that our actions matter.

We do not fight a physical battle, but a spiritual one and with each act of compassion

We build your kingdom.

Help us be kingdom builders today.

Thru Jesus Christ we pray

AMEN

Todays Message

The Message Nobody Wants To Hear Part 2

We have been looking at the Book of Luke

Last weeks message entitled, "The Message Nobody Wants To Hear." It is entitled this because in our text last week, which was Luke 12:49-56, and in our text this week Jesus speaks about the judgment of God i.e. the punishment for sins. This is a subject that many would rather not hear about and thus the title. Now let’s go to our text for today.

Make Peace with Your Adversary

Luke 12:57  “Yes, and why, even of yourselves, do you not judge what is right?58 When you go with your adversary to the magistrate, make every effort along the way to settle with him, lest he drag you to the judge, the judge deliver you to the officer, and the officer throw you into prison. 59 I tell you, you shall not depart from there till you have paid the very last mite.”

Luke 13-9  And if it bears fruit, well. But if not, after that you can cut it down.”

On May 18, 1902 a storm with devastating tornadoes ripped through Goliad, Texas taking 114 lives, 40 as they sat in a church service. Many other storms followed in the first half the century.

Things are better now because by the 1950’s, Air Force meteorologists began to understand how tornadoes were formed. Within a few years, warning systems were set up. Storm chasers, Doppler radar, television and radio crews warn us of approaching danger. Sirens blast. People have time to take cover.

Warnings are only good if they are responded too appropriately. Since the 1950’s there have been several killer tornadoes but with ample warning times, but many people have still died because they have chosen to ignore these warnings and continue life as usual, with tragic results.

Last week we saw that Jesus was very straightforward in warning us that judgment was coming. In fact this was one of the main message of Luke 12: 49-56.

I. We Need To Recognize That Judgment Is Coming.

I hope that all of us will accept and recognize that judgment is coming. It is a reality, but recognizing a warning is only the first thing that needs to be done. We must also respond to that warning appropriately if the warning is to do any good. The previous story concerning the tornadoes illustrates this truth. Warnings must be heeded to be effective! Jesus has given us a serious warning about the Judgment that is coming so now the question is, “How should we respond to this warning?” The answer to that question is what Luke 12:57 and 13:9 is about. The basic message of these verses is this:

II. We Need To Repent Because Judgment Is Coming.

In fact Jesus gives us three specific reasons why people need to repent in consideration of the coming Judgment. Before I begin to share and explain these three reasons for repentance, I need to explain what repentance is and is not.

Repent and repentance are words you find quite often in the Bible and hear in church services but not everyone understands the true meaning of repentance. Repentance just means to make an “about-face” or a U-turn. It means to stop going one way and start going another way. In biblical settings it means to stop doing wrong and start doing right. Repentance involves real change; a change in the way you think and a change in the way you live! Repentance is not just acknowledging wrongdoing or feeling remorse/sorrow and for your sins. This fall far short of genuine repentance, which is a real commitment to change and to go in another direction.

Several years ago the Peanuts comic strip had Lucy and Charlie Brown practicing football. Lucy would hold the ball for Charlie’s placekicking and then Charlie would kick the ball. But every time Lucy had ever held the ball for Charlie, he would approach the ball and kick with all his might. At the precise moment of the point of no return, Lucy would pick up the ball and Charlie would kick and his momentum unchecked by the ball, which was not there to kick, would cause him to fall flat on his back. This strip opened with Lucy holding the ball, but Charlie Brown would not kick the ball. Lucy begged him to kick the ball. But Charlie Brown said, "Every time I try to kick the ball you remove it and I fall on my back." They went back and forth for the longest time and finally Lucy broke down in tears and admitted, "Charlie Brown I have been so terrible to you over the years, picking up the football like I have. I have played so many cruel tricks on you, but I’ve seen the error of my ways! I’ve seen the hurt look in your eyes when I’ve deceived you. I’ve been wrong, so wrong. Won’t you give a poor penitent girl another chance?" Charlie Brown was moved by her display of grief and responded to her, "Of course, I’ll give you another chance." He stepped back as she held the ball, and he ran. At the last moment, Lucy picked up the ball and Charlie Brown fell flat on his back. Lucy’s last words were, "Recognizing your faults and actually changing your ways are two different things, Charlie Brown!"

Repentance isn’t just recognizing your faults; it is also changing your ways, with God’s help. This is an important distinction because Jesus said, "Unless you repent you too will perish."(Luke 13:3,5 3 I tell you, no; but unless you repent you will all likewise perish. 4 Or those eighteen on whom the tower in Siloam fell and killed them, do you think that they were worse sinners than all other men who dwelt in Jerusalem? 5 I tell you, no; but unless you repent you will all likewise perish.” 

Jesus was referring to more than sorrow or confession of wrongdoing. He was saying that there must be a commitment to change your direction or you will perish. Having established an accurate definition of repentance we can now look at the first reason Jesus gives us that we should repent of anything in our lives that is not right.

First: We Should Repent Today Because It Is A Wise Decision.

Luke 12:57-59  57 “Yes, and why, even of yourselves, do you not judge what is right?58 When you go with your adversary to the magistrate, make every effort along the way to settle with him, lest he drag you to the judge, the judge deliver you to the officer, and the officer throw you into prison. 59 I tell you, you shall not depart from there till you have paid the very last mite.”

Jesus is saying here that repenting is the smart thing to do. It is the wise choice to make. He starts off by saying, "Why don’t you judge for yourself what is right?" In other words, why don’t you decide what the best and wisest course of action is? When you consider that the signs already point to the fact that Judgment is coming, doesn’t it only makes sense to get things straight with God now! Isn’t the smart thing to do to be reconciled? Wouldn’t it be prudent to make your peace with God today?

When I was in the Army I was not living as a Christian. When you are not living as a Christian you do some pretty stupid things and I was no exception. Shortly before my discharge some friends and I decided to celebrate by having a few drinks. A few drinks soon turned into many drinks and I became drunk. You tend to do stupid things when you are drunk and again I was no exception. After using the men’s room facility in the barracks, I decided that it would be a good idea to punch the bathroom wall. Who knows why? So in front of several witnesses I punched the wall and, because it was dry wall, it left a huge hole!

When I sobered up the next morning I realized that I was in huge trouble because I was guilty of damaging Government property and eventually the First Sergeant was going to see that hole. The Day of Judgment was coming for me. I had a choice to make: I could do nothing and hope for the best, I could deny my culpability but it was soon become obvious that I was guilty or I could go to my First Sergeant and confess my wrong, lay out my plans for repairing the wall and commit to never doing that again i.e. I could repent. What would be the wise choice? To repent! That’s the decision I made and because of that I was forgiven and did not need to fear the day of my Sergeant’s judgment. This is what Jesus is saying to us in regard to the real Day of Judgment that is coming.

First: We Should Repent Today Because It Is A Wise Decision.

Jesus illustrates this point further in verses 58, 59 by using the analogy of a person being sued for unpaid debts in the Court. The magistrate is the judge and the adversary is the plaintiff. In that day and time you’d be placed in a debtor’s prison for unpaid debt and you have no possibility of release until the debt was paid. So if you had a legitimate debt you owed to another person the wise decision would be to "try hard to be reconciled to him on the way (to court)." (Luke 12:58) In other words the smart thing to do was to make every effort to set things straight before it was too late and you were dragged off to the judge and to prison!

First: We Should Repent Today Because It Is A Wise Decision.

In verse 59 Jesus again emphasizes the wisdom of repenting today because if we wait until the Judgment the debt we owe God will have to be paid in full. As Jesus says, we will have to pay every last penny! The price for sin, if you have not truly repented and committed yourself to Jesus Christ, is eternal separation from God. You can never pay the debt you owe if you wait but Jesus has paid that sin debt for you. His payment of your debt only counts if you repent and place your faith in Him. Now lets look at the second reason Jesus gives us for repenting.

Second: We Should Repent Today Because It Is A Serious Decision.

We see this point emphasized in the next few verses.

Luke 13:1-5  There were present at that season some who told Him about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices. 2 And Jesus answered and said to them, “Do you suppose that these Galileans were worse sinners than all other Galileans, because they suffered such things?3 I tell you, no; but unless you repent you will all likewise perish. 4 Or those eighteen on whom the tower in Siloam fell and killed them, do you think that they were worse sinners than all other men who dwelt in Jerusalem? 5 I tell you, no; but unless you repent you will all likewise perish.”

Now there were some in the audience that day that did not feel the personal need for repentance; so to them Jesus call to repentance and commitment to Him were not taken seriously. They felt that God looked at them differently and that He only judged those who were “serious sinners.” In fact they brought up one of the incidents in which they felt God had judged the really bad sinners. In verse 1 they brought up about how some worshippers from Galilee were killed by the Roman leader Pilate, as they were worshiping. They thought that such a terrible tragedy indicated that these Galileans must have been exceedingly guilty sinners.

Jesus knew their thoughts and so rhetorically asked, "Do you think that these Galileans were worse sinners...?" And he answers, "I tell you, No!" He then uses another tragedy of a tower that fell in Jerusalem to express the same point in verse 4. You should not see tragedy as indicative of the sufferers being guiltier than yourself, but rather you should recognize that you are just as guilty and that these things should therefore be a wake up call to each one of us.

Every tragedy should remind us of the need to maintain a right relationship with God and to repent of our sins if we are not right with God. We should treat every tragedy as a second and maybe final chance for us to get our lives in order. Each of us should ask ourselves, "What if it had been me? Would I have been ready to stand before God?”

Jesus went on to say, "Unless you repent you too will all perish!" This is a serious issue because Judgment is not limited to those that we consider to be greater sinners and more guilty than ourselves.

Second: We Should Repent Today Because It Is A Serious Decision.

The word "perish" in verses 3 and 5 does not mean to cease to exist but rather it means to come to complete ruin. In context Jesus is saying that your whole eternity will be ruined and devastated if you do not repent. This is the most serious of issues! But you do not have to perish. One of the best-known Bible verses tells us that specifically. John 3:16 says “For God so loved the world that he gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes (Places their trust and commitment) in Him shall not perish but have eternal life." The choice is yours.

First: We Should Repent Today Because It Is A Wise Decision.

Second: We Should Repent Today Because It Is A Serious Decision.

Third: We Should Repent Today Because It Is An Urgent Decision.

Luke 13:6-9

6 He also spoke this parable: “A certain man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard, and he came seeking fruit on it and found none. 7 Then he said to the keeper of his vineyard, ‘Look, for three years I have come seeking fruit on this fig tree and find none. Cut it down; why does it [a]use up the ground?’8 But he answered and said to him, ‘Sir, let it alone this year also, until I dig around it and fertilize it. 9 [b]And if it bears fruit, well. But if not, after that you can cut it down.’ ”

Jesus is using a parable here to illustrate that we do not have forever to make this decision. There will come a time when the words, "cut it down” (Vs. 9) will be spoken about our lives. The time of Judgment will come. Now is not the time to procrastinate or delay getting right with God. Repentance is an urgent issue!

In the parable of the fig tree planted in the vineyard, the owner of the fig tree is looking for fruit. “Fruit” in this context represents the changed life that comes about as a result of true repentance and a commitment to Jesus. John the Baptist used the same imagery when he said, "Produce fruit in keeping with repentance." (Luke 3:8) and Jesus used this same imagery in John 15:2 when He said, “ He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit.” The fig tree often represented Israel so Jesus may be specifically calling for Israel’s repentance and commitment to Him, although the principle applies to all of us.

Third: We Should Repent Today Because It Is An Urgent Decision.

The owner of the vineyard had waited patiently three years for signs of fruit and would not wait much longer. Judgment was very close at hand! God is very patient but you can wait too long even for God. Repentance is an urgent issue because you do not know how much time there is before judgment. If you have things in your life that are not right (Dishonesty, Impurity, Illicit Relationships, Thievery, etc.) then today is the day to repent and begin a changed life in God’s power. Repentance is not something you put on your list of things to do some day. Time is short!

In verse 8 the owner agreed to put some extra effort into the fig tree and to give it one more year but if there were no fruit at that time then they would "cut it down.”(Vs. 9) This is what God may be doing in your life today. He is giving you an opportunity to repent. You are in your" Grace Period " where there’s still time and God is still stirring your heart to get right with Him. He is still working on you but that “grace period” will end someday and Judgment will come if you still have not genuinely repented.

In conclusion over the last two weeks we have learned from God’s Word that …

I. We Need To Recognize That Judgment Is Coming.

II. You Need To Repent Because Judgment Is Coming.

We need to repent Today because that would be the wise choice about such a serious and urgent issue. I hope you will take God’s loving warnings seriously and respond appropriately.

I pray you have ask for God’s forgiveness Today and Everyday.

Because Tomorrow Never Comes.

If you have not yet repented, confessed your sins, and trusted in Christ to save you from God’s wrath, then you don’t know the full extent of Gods’ love yet.  John 3:36 says that “Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him” because “Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God” (John 3:18). I pray that is not you.

I encourage you to pray this prayer with me, but I caution you that saying words alone will not save you. Prayer alone doesn’t save. Only Christ can save. But prayer can be a means of reaching out to the Lord in true saving faith. If you pray these words in faith, Christ will save you. You can be sure of that.

Let Us Pray:  Lord Jesus, for too long I’ve kept you out of my life. I know that I am a sinner and that I cannot save myself. No longer will I close the door of my heart when I hear you knocking. By faith I gratefully receive your gift of salvation. I am ready to trust you as my Lord and Savior. Thank you, Lord Jesus, for coming to earth. I believe you are the Son of God who died on the cross for my sins and rose from the dead on the third day. Thank you for bearing my sins and giving me the gift of eternal life. I believe your word and desire the Holy Spirit to come into my heart and give me guidance to walk your path to salvation and everlasting life. In Jesus Name I Pray Amen.

The Message Nobody Wants To Hear  - Part 1

Sermon Summary

The purpose of this Ministry is to Spread the word of God to any and all that will listen.  I will try very hard to plant the seed of God in your hearts, provide you with the knowledge to nurture that seed thru prayer, Bible Study and fellowship so that it can grow, so that in time that seed will mature and you will be saved and re-born so that you can have the greatest gift of God’s Love, Everlasting Life.

Let Us Pray

Lord, in Heaven, the creator of all.  Each and every day is a struggle against sin and temptation.

Give us the strength to overcome cruelty with grace and hatred with love.

God remind us that our actions matter.  We do not fight a physical battle, but a spiritual one and with each act of compassion We build your kingdom.  Help us all to lead just one soul to you God so that we can be Kingdom Builder.  Make us be kingdom builders today.  Thru Jesus Christ we pray

AMEN

Todays sermon is “The Message Nobody Wants To Hear Part 1”

This is Part 1 of a 2 part sermon on Luke 12:49-13:9 concerning the Judgement of God and repentance

The big advantage of preaching sermons that come straight from the Bible is that we are able to learn everything the Bible says, even the unpleasant , unpopular or difficult passages and topics of Scripture.  After all, it is in the Bible and we desperately need to listen to everything God says to us. Today’s Scripture passage in Luke Chapter 12 and 13.  It is one of those passages we would sometimes rather avoid. In this section of the Bible, Jesus has some very strong words and warnings for us. These words and their message may not be to your liking but they can change your heart. I’ve entitled this message "The Message Nobody Wants To Hear." While very few people may want to hear this message that does not mean it is a message no one needs to hear.

Luke 12:49  “I came to send fire on the earth, and how I wish it were already kindled!

Luke 13:9  “And if it bears fruit, well. But if not, after that you can cut it down.”

At first glance these passages can seem rather cryptic and unrelated to each other, but a closer look reveals that they all have one common theme: Judgment. The reference to "fire on earth" in verse 49 is a clear reference to judgment. The parable involving the adversary and magistrate revolves around getting things straight before the judgment of God comes and the reference to the tragedies in Chapter 13 along with the final parable in which there’s a threat to "cut down" the fig tree are also fairly clear references to God’s judgment.

Now "judgment" refers to God’s punishment of sinners for wrongdoing (lying, cheating on taxes, unfaithfulness to your spouse, embezzlement, sexual impurity, etc.) Most people would rather not hear about judgment. They would rather hear about God’s love, forgiveness, etc. The popular conception of Jesus and God is not one that entails punishment. Nevertheless the Judgment of God is clearly taught in the Bible and people need to hear warnings about God’s Judgment today just as much as they did 2,000 years ago. To quote William Barclay, "However much we may wish to eliminate the element of judgment from the message of Jesus it remains stubbornly and unalterably there”.

While some may look at these passages on judgment negatively, I see these Bible passages positively because they are the result of God’s loving warnings. God warns us or tells us of judgment so that we can avoid it!

In our society we get all kinds of warnings, hurricane warnings, warnings from the Surgeon General, or safety warnings on medicines.  All these warnings are not considered negative but positive because of their purpose, which is to prevent tragedy. In the same sense, God’s warnings should be seen as positive because their purpose is to prevent spiritual tragedies.  Yours and My spiritual tragedy

In this passage Jesus tells us primarily two things about judgment.

First You need to recognize that judgment is coming. Verse 12:49-56

49 “I came to send fire on the earth, and how I wish it were already kindled!

50 But I have a baptism to be baptized with, and how distressed I am till it is accomplished!

51 Do you suppose that I came to give peace on earth? I tell you, not at all, but rather division.

52 For from now on five in one house will be divided: three against two, and two against three.

53 Father will be divided against son and son against father, mother against daughter and daughter against mother, mother-in-law against her daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law.”

54 Then He also said to the multitudes, “Whenever you see a cloud rising out of the west, immediately you say, ‘A shower is coming’; and so it is.

55 And when you see the south wind blow, you say, ‘There will be hot weather’; and there is.

56 Hypocrites! You can discern the face of the sky and of the earth, but how is it you do not discern this time?

Secondly You need to repent because judgment is coming. Verse 12:57

57 “Yes, and why, even of yourselves, do you not judge what is right?

Verse13:9

9 And if it bears fruit, well. But if not, after that you can cut it down.’ ”

The first thing Jesus speaks of is the reality of judgment. The day when God will punish every wicked evil thing is not going to be avoided. It is a reality that we need to fully accept and recognize if we are to be prepared. It is like that with the hurricane warnings here in the Gulf States; people do not usually pay attention or prepare until they realize the severity of the storm and accept the reality that it will hit the coast. In the same way people often ignore warnings about God’s Judgment until they recognize the reality and the severity of it.

I. You need to recognize that judgment is coming. Verses. 12:49-56

Verse 49  “I have come to bring fire on the earth...” 

Fire in the Bible is a symbol for many things including God’s Presence and Righteousness, but it is most often a symbol for judgment. The context prior to verse 49 and after it made clear that Jesus is referring to judgment when he uses the word "fire." Jesus is bringing and will bring the Judgment of God. That judgment is like a fire, which is nothing to play around with or to ignore. The Judgment is a very serious thing so we need to recognize that it is going to come. The point of this warning about the certainty of God’s Judgment is so that we all will listen closely to what Jesus says later in this passage about being prepared for the coming judgment and how to survive and prosper despite it.

I remember I use to like watching the news documentary television show “Dateline NBC.” This episode was a story about a large Jumbo Jet that left the United States on a trip to Europe. Three quarters of the way across the Atlantic Ocean the plane ran out of fuel, so in essence this Jumbo Jet was gliding, and it was only a matter of 15 to 30 minutes before the plane hit the earth. The people on that plane knew or recognized that disaster was going to come! They then listened carefully and responsively to the crew’s warnings and instructions. One comment from passengers that caught my attention was how careful they were to listen to the stewardess’s instructions about the life vest and the exits now even though they had ignored the same preflight instructions before take-off. They listened and responded because what had been thought of only as a remote possibility before now was recognized as a reality.

This is what Jesus is doing for us in this passage. He is waking us up to the reality of the Judgment so that we will listen attentively and respond appropriately.

The "fire" of judgment is a reality although I recognize that many people do not accept the likelihood of judgment. A Gallup Poll makes that very clear.

The poll wanted to find out The percentage of people who believe the Judgment Day will come within the next 100 years:

Very likely 23%
Somewhat likely 16%
Somewhat unlikely 16%
Very unlikely 41%
No opinion 4%

This poll was not taken yesterday or even last year

This poll was a USA Today /Gallup Poll, 1998

I. You need to recognize that judgment is coming. Verse 12:49-56

Jesus goes on to say how he wished that this "fire" judgment were "already kindled." Which is another way of saying that Jesus desired that the judgment had already begun. Now this seems very odd and inconsistent with Jesus’ love for people if it is not correctly understood. This statement does not mean that Jesus looked forward to people being punished for their sins but rather that he longs for judgment to be done with so that the positive aspects or results can begin. This statement is similar to the family of a heart transplant patient saying that they wished that the surgery were over with. They are not looking forward to the pain or risk of surgery but to the recovery. The Bible tells us that this world is a mess, which is pretty obvious to all of us anyway, and that it will continue to be in a mess (disease, death, hurts, pains) until the Judgment, which not only punishes sin but also purifies and prepares for a new Heaven and Earth without the mess.

2 Peter 3:10-13 

10 But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night, in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the elements will melt with fervent heat; both the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up.

11 Therefore, since all these things will be dissolved, what manner of person sought you to be in holy conduct and godliness,

12 looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be dissolved, being on fire, and the elements will melt with fervent heat?

13 Nevertheless we, according to His promise, look for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells.

Verse 50 “But I have a baptism to be baptized with, and how distressed I am till it is accomplished!”

The good news is that Jesus did not come only to bring judgment (which is still in the future) but he also came to bring salvation, which is deliverance or escape from the punishment for sins. This salvation is what he is referring to in this verse. The phrase, "I have a baptism to undergo" does not refer to water baptism but in this case to Jesus’ death on the cross.  When he died and then rose on the third day he provided each of us the ability to receive forgiveness i.e. baptized with the Wrath of God, that is the punishment for all people’s sins. You can also read Mark 10: 38 to see a parallel account of this saying in which it clearly refers to Jesus crucifixion.

Jesus is "distressed until it is completed" because Calvary involved real, indescribable suffering which in one sense Jesus did not want to go through but he was willing to go through it for our sakes. He was distressed as we might be distressed, on very much smaller scale, about an upcoming root canal. His mind was very much on the cross. He dreaded it but was also committed to it.

Verses 51-53

51 Do you suppose that I came to give peace on earth? I tell you, not at all, but rather division.

52 For from now on five in one house will be divided: three against two, and two against three.

53 Father will be divided against son and son against father, mother against daughter and daughter against mother, mother-in-law against her daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law.”

Now this talk about judgment in verse 49 may have been very confusing to people listening then and those hearing it now because they expected the Messiah or Jesus Christ to bring a time of peace and prosperity. In some ways this was an accurate expectation but the problem is that this understanding of Jesus was the only understanding people had of Jesus. He goes around healing the sick and encouraging the discouraged with everyone accepting him and he accepting everyone but never really disturbing anyone.

This simply is not the case. Jesus can bring peace but He can also bring judgment and division, even division among the closest of family relationships. This judgment, opposition and division come because not everyone will accept and respond to his radical demands. This is why He says in verse 51, "Do you think that I came to bring peace on the earth? No, I tell you, but division." He wants people to understand that He has a message of Peace and of Judgment. For this reason the person and message of Jesus can be very upsetting. It can shake the apple cart and upset the status quo because people must make a decision about Jesus. Either you are totally for him or you are totally against him. There is no in between. Those who have accepted him on his terms can look at verse 50 and be hopeful and experience peace because He took our penalty and therefore our fear of judgment but those who do not respond to him as he demands can look at verse 49 and realize the same Jesus who offers salvation also brings the "fire of judgment."

I. You need to recognize that judgment is coming. Verses 12:49-56

This is the main message of the text and Jesus speaks again of the need for recognizing that judgment is coming in verses 54-56.

Verses 54-56

54 Then He also said to the multitudes, “Whenever you see a cloud rising out of the west, immediately you say, ‘A shower is coming’; and so it is.

55 And when you see the south wind blow, you say, ‘There will be hot weather’; and there is.

56 Hypocrites! You can discern the face of the sky and of the earth, but how is it you do not discern this time?

In New Testament times there was no Doppler radar or television weatherman to tell you when a storm was on the horizon or to when to expect a sunny day. Most of the people were involved in professions (farming, fishing, etc.) which depended a great deal on the weather so they have learned to read the signs and come up with a fairly accurate forecast of the upcoming whether. They would of course then respond appropriately to whatever whether the signs were pointing too.

This is all well and good but Jesus rebuked them because they do not do the same in regard to spiritual signs. Jesus in essence says that the spiritual indicators or signs are pointing to a storm of massive proportions. A storm of judgment is on the horizon. Just like you would never ignore the physical signs of an impending hurricane you should not be ignorant of or unresponsive to the signs of upcoming judgment. Jesus does not mention here what the particular signs of spiritual judgment are, although in Chapter 13 he does indicate that even everyday tragedies can serve as warning signs to everyone that we all need to be prepared for judgment.

If that is the case shouldn’t the recent events in our nation get our attention? Or are we going to be unable to "interpret this present time" like the people Jesus was originally speaking to were? I hope that we will see the signs in regard to things like the current Israeli Conflicts, The Columbine Shooting, and the 911 Tragedy and the more recent events, violent protests that last for days, the increasing numbers of suicide by young people. These events should serve as signs to all of us of the spiritual storm of judgment that is coming. As Jesus will say later in Chapter 13, these specific events and tragedies are not punishment for specific sins but rather they are signs of the Judgment to come and remind us of our need to always be ready.

The May 1984 National Geographic showed color photos and drawings of the swift and terrible destruction that wiped out the Roman City of Pompeii in A.D. 79. The explosion of Mount Vesuvius was so sudden, the residents were killed while in their routine: men and women were at the market, the rich in their luxurious baths, and slaves at work. They died amid volcanic ash and superheated gasses. Even family pets suffered the same quick and final fate. It takes little imagination to picture the panic of that terrible day.

The saddest part is that these people did not have to die. Scientists confirm what ancient Roman writers record--weeks of rumblings and shakings preceded the actual explosion. Even an ominous plume of smoke was clearly visible from the mountain days before the eruption. If only they had been able to read and respond to Vesuvius’s warning!

There are similar "rumblings" in our world: warfare, earthquakes, the nuclear threat, economic woes, breakdown of the family and moral standards. While not exactly new, these things do point to a coming day of Judgment (Matthew 24). People need not be caught unprepared. God warns and provides an escape to those who will heed the rumblings.

I. You need to recognize that judgment is coming. Verses 12:49-56

I hope you will take seriously this message on the Judgment that is sure to come. The next question you should ask yourself is, "How can I be prepared for the coming Judgment?" Next week we will look more specifically at that question and the answer as I complete part two of this message in Chapter 12:57-13:9, but today is the day to get right with God if you are not prepared. You can do that by asking for forgiveness, trusting in Jesus and committing to following him with a changed life.

There is a storm of judgment coming but there is also a shelter of protection found only in Jesus. Why not take shelter in Jesus today?

Are you ready?  

If you have not yet repented, confessed your sins, and trusted in Christ to save you from God’s wrath, then you don’t know the full extent of Gods’ love yet.  John 3:36 says that “Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him” because “Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God” (John 3:18). I pray that is not you.

I encourage you to pray this prayer with me, but I caution you that saying words alone will not save you. Prayer alone doesn’t save. Only Christ can save. But prayer can be a means of reaching out to the Lord in true saving faith. If you pray these words in faith, Christ will save you. You can be sure of that.

Let Us Pray:  

Lord Jesus, for too long I’ve kept you out of my life. I know that I am a sinner and that I cannot save myself. No longer will I close the door of my heart when I hear you knocking. By faith I gratefully receive your gift of salvation. I am ready to trust you as my Lord and Savior. Thank you, Lord Jesus, for coming to earth. I believe you are the Son of God who died on the cross for my sins and rose from the dead on the third day. Thank you for bearing my sins and giving me the gift of eternal life. I believe your word and desire the Holy Spirit to come into my heart and give me guidance to walk your path to salvation and everlasting life. 

In Jesus Name I Pray Amen.