does anybody really know what time it is? “we study the end times so that we will live each day as...
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Does Anybody Really Know What Time it Is?
“WE STUDY THE END TIMES SO THAT WE WILL LIVE EACH DAY AS IF IT IS OUR
LAST”
Howard Buck
DO YOU KNOW WHAT TIME IT IS? It is time for His return!!!
God has made it very clear that He will not tell us the time of His return, for the
church (rapture)
Yet everyone wants to know!!The disciples, they asked before the cross:
Matt. 24:3 As He was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to Him privately, saying, “Tell us, when will these things happen, and what will be the
sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age?”His Response:
24:36 “But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the
Father alone..
And, they asked after the cross:
Acts 1:6 So when they had come together, they were asking Him, saying, “Lord, is it at this time You are
restoring the kingdom to Israel?”
7 He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or epochs which the Father has fixed by His own
authority;
Plainly, it is a God thing and we just aren’t to know the actual date!!
But, what we can know, and are
encouraged to know is the season:
Matt. 24:32 “Now learn the parable from the fig tree: when its branch has already become tender and puts forth its leaves, you know that summer is near;
33 So, you too, when you see all these things, recognize that He is near, right at the door
34 “Truly I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all these things take place
In this study your teachers have concluded that
the branch is tender and the tree is putting
forth its leaves marks the 7 year period,
Daniel’s 70th week
Building up to that is the signs:People claiming to be Christ
Wars and rumors of wars
Nation against nation
Famine and earthquakes
Then comes tribulation which we believe
marks the time of the 7 year tribulation period
Jesus called these signs “birth pangs” and we
have stated that while present since the days
of the disciples, they will increase in
intensity and frequency as the
branches become tender (start of the trib.)
We also stated that there are two very key
signs that will come about during the birth pangs:
The re-gathering of the Jews to Israel
The reclaiming of Jerusalem
As we have stated, these signs are the
most significant and clearly point to
what should be an imminent return
of Christ for His church and the
beginning of the 7 year tribulation
period
The generation alive at that time will
see all of the signs fulfilled..
In relation to the charts and teachings, what
age are we living in today?
The “church age”
What comes next?
The rapture
What event happens on earth after the rapture?
The tribulation
Where is the church during this time?
HEAVEN..
How many signs need to be fulfilled before
the rapture?
NONE, NADA, ZERO
We should all have this down pat by now!!!
Since we believe that we are probably living in
the last days, with the rapture around the
corner let’s discuss what needs to happen in
our lives in the meantime
In his book The Second Coming,
John MacArthur suggests four
“essential virtues” that Christians need to
“cultivate, while we wait”..
Humility
Alertness
Readiness
Faithfulness
HUMILITY: It takes humility to admit we don’t know the date and time of His return (plus, what would the world be like
IF we know exactly when He was to return)
It takes humility to live as if His return is today
Jesus is our example:
Mark 13:32 “Of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son but only
the Father”
He submitted to the Fathers will blocking the date from
His mind..
In all things, Jesus submitted to God the Father’s will
John 5:30 “I can do nothing on My own initiative. As I hear, I judge; and My judgment is just, because I do not seek My own will, but the will of Him who
sent Me.
6:38 “For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me.
8:29 “And He who sent Me is with Me; He has not left Me alone, for I always do the things that are
pleasing to Him.”
Shall we do any less??
Jesus is our example but what is humility anyway?
Humility: modesty or respectfulness; the quality of being modest
or respectful
Quality:a characteristic of somebody or something
Characteristic:a feature that makes somebody or something
recognizable
If we put this all together:
J-MAC is suggesting that we are to be recognized as a people possessing a characteristic which
causes us to display modesty and respectability as we wait for His return
Notice the key, we are not only to possess HUMILITY, we are to be recognized for it!!
ALERTNESS:
Matt. 24:36 “But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father alone.
37 “For the coming of the Son of Man will be just like the days of Noah.
38 “For as in those days before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark,
39 and they did not understand until the flood came and took them all away; so will the coming of the Son of Man be..
eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage
Why do you think Jesus mentions these things, are they sinful? After all this was the most sinful and wicked
people ever on the earth
No, His point is that they were not paying attention and were therefore caught off guard
They lived in “spiritual apathy” (JM)
The entire time Noah was building the ark he preached repentance but no one listened..
It will be this way prior to the rapture and again prior to Christ’s return
Apathetic Christians will be caught off guard when the rapture happens
The unbelievers will be left behind in bewilderment
At the end of the tribulation, Christ will gather His elect and again the unbelievers will stand utterly bewildered
Don’t be caught apathetic:
Matt. 24:42 “Therefore be on the alert, for you do not know which day your Lord is coming..
READINESS:
Matt. 24:43 “But be sure of this, that if the head of the house had known at what time of the night the thief was coming, he would have been on the alert and would not have allowed his house to be broken into.
Why do you think Jesus uses this comparison of a thief to the return of the Messiah?
His return is secret and it will be sudden, just like a thief..
he would have been on the alert and would not have allowed his house to be broken into.
Here Jesus clearly states that the wise householder is ALERT, READY and PREPARED
For us we need:• To be in the word to draw closer and obtain a better
understanding of our God• To watch the signs as they are unfolding• To warn believers to be ready• To witness to nonbelievers before it is to late..
FAITHFULNESS:
Matt. 24:45 “Who then is the faithful and sensible slave whom his master put in charge of his household to give them their food at the proper time?
46 “Blessed is that slave whom his master finds so doing when he comes.
47 “Truly I say to you that he will put him in charge of all his possessions..
The “master” is Jesus
“Servants” are faithful believers
“Possessions” are those things God entrusts us with such as time and talent
And, when He comes for us we will give an account of how we handled what He gave us:
Rom. 14:10 But you, why do you judge your brother? Or you again, why do you regard your brother with contempt? For we will all stand before the judgment seat of God.
11 For it is written, “As I live, says the Lord, every knee shall bow to Me, And every tongue shall give praise to God.”
12 So then each one of us will give an account of himself to God.
Since we are held accountable, why wouldn’t we live each day as if it were the last??
Would you agree that if we live:
Humbly
Alert
Ready
Faithfully..
That God will be pleased with us
And our lives will be a witness to the lost
Then why not be humble, alert, ready, and faithful EVERY DAY??
Jan. 17, 2012: These loop structures are made of superheated plasma, just one of which is the size of several Earths. With its ability to capture the Sun in amazing detail, NASA's SDO spacecraft observed it all in extreme ultraviolet light
Speaking of signs in the heavens
DOES ANYBODY REALLY KNOW WHAT TIME IT IS???
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