Greg Laurie - What in the World Is Happening? (10/30/2017)
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Pastor Greg Laurie addresses the escalating global chaos, terrorism, and Middle East tensions as signs of the last days from 1 Thessalonians 5. He urges believers to wake up spiritually, stay sober-minded, suit up with faith, love, and hope, and live ready for Christ's sudden return while praying for revival and sharing the gospel urgently.
Opening Prayer and Perspective on Current Events
Lord, that is the cry of our heart. Even so, come, Lord Jesus, come. We look at this crazy, upside-down, violent world and how we need you to return. How we need a spiritual awakening in our country. How we need God. And Lord, we understand that as your followers here. And I pray more people will understand it really soon. So we commit this time of Bible study right now to you. And I ask that you will help us get a biblical perspective on all that is happening around us. Speak to us from your word, we would ask in Jesus' name. Amen.
Well, good morning to everybody. Good to see you all. Let's grab our Bibles, as we always do. And let's turn to 1 Thessalonians chapter 5. 1 Thessalonians chapter 5. And the title of my message is, What in the World is Happening? Hashtag World War III? Question Mark? I'll explain that in a moment.
I think it's pretty safe to assume, friends, that we are living in the last days. How many of you believe that? Raise your hand up. Yeah, I believe it too. All of them around us right now are signs of the times that is coming as near, even at the door.
The World in Upheaval as Foretold
In the book of Revelation, we read of the world in the end times. And it's a world in upheaval. A world of violence. A world of crime. A world of terrorism. Just a horrible world. And Jesus said, As it was in the days of Noah, So also shall it be when the Son of Man returns. And if you recall, one of the characteristic sins of Noah's time was extreme violence. And it was so bad that God said, I'm sorry, I even made man.
We were all horrified by the terrorist attack in Paris, killing 130 people. But now it has come to our doorstep in America, and it's come to our community. San Bernardino has experienced the largest terrorist attack since 9-11. Just nine miles from our door. Terrorists, Saeed Farouk and Tashfeen Malik, killed 14 people. Another 21 wounded. San Bernardino law enforcement responded quickly and efficiently and killed these two wicked people. It's said that she may have actually radicalized Saeed.
And we've never faced a terrorist group like Isis before. There's a man named Sebastian Gorka. He's an expert on Isis. He works very closely with the government. And he made the following statements. He proposes that Isis is far more dangerous than Al-Qaeda. And you remember Al-Qaeda, of course, was responsible for bringing down the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center. He said Isis is the richest group of its type in human history. They have the equivalent in cash of 1,600 9-11s. He describes their ability to recruit as mind-boggling. They've recruited 19,000 foreign fighters in the last nine months alone. And this is done through social media.
A CNN report pointed out, and I quote, quote, Isis has the most sophisticated propaganda machine of any terrorist organization. A global communication strategy that has stumped counterterrorism officials while making significant inroads among U.S. sympathizers, end quote. Another article pointed out the digital age has helped terrorists do a better job of not only recruiting members, but inspiring sympathizers to carry out attacks on their own. They're thinking globally, but they're acting locally.
So what this means is people, largely young, are being radicalized through social media. They leave no digital footprint. It's not necessary for them to travel to somewhere in the Middle East where they could be radicalized or trained. It can happen right here because they use encrypted technologies that hinder the ability of authorities to intercept and analyze the information. Thus, they go to a dedicated link, learn how to engage in a terrorist attack, and this is something we have never seen before. In fact, this wouldn't even be possible 10 years ago. And friends, this is a sign of the times.
The Threat of ISIS and Radical Islam
And if that wasn't bad enough, Isis is pursuing chemical weapons. It's set up a branch dedicated to research and experiments with the help of scientists from Iraq, Syria, and elsewhere. Australian intelligence just warned that Isis has enough material to build a weapon of mass destruction. They've seized enough radioactive material to build a dirty bomb. And we've already seen their viciousness on display as they behead people and film it and post it in sophisticated videos online. Or they crucify people or they murder children. I guess Isis isn't the JV team anymore. Maybe Al-Qaeda is the JV team in comparison.
What is the objective of Isis? And what is the objective of radical Islam? It's very simple. They've stated it openly. They want to produce a global caliphate. Now, radical Islam has their own version of the end times. It somewhat mirrors ours, but is quite different. They, too, believe in the return of a Messiah, but they call their Messiah the Mahdi. In fact, they also believe that Jesus will come back with more and more of a supporting role to the Mahdi. And they believe the way to prepare the ground for the return of their Messiah is to create an apocalyptic situation of chaos and bloodshed and terrorism. And that is why they continue on with this agenda.
By the way, more than half or more of Muslims believe they will see the return of the Mahdi. As my friend Joel Rosenberg has written, the way to serve Mahdi is to annihilate Judeo-Christian civilization and in doing so establish God's kingdom on earth known as the Caliphate. So they do this through jihad. And they want to establish Sharia law. Sharia law basically is a rule by the Koran, which is the Bible of Islam. They're either going to do this through conquest or infiltration. It's the Islamification of the West. And again, as I said, it's a global caliphate.
Sunni, Shia, and Emerging Alliances
Well, they're at war with themselves as well. There's two main branches of Islam that exist today, Sunni and Shia. Sunnis comprise about 90% of Muslims and Shia make up of the remaining population. Isis is Sunni. Iran is a majority of Shia Muslims. And listen to this. If Isis is dangerous, Iran is even more dangerous. See, Iran is taking a longer view to accomplish their objectives. And thus, they're developing nuclear weapons. And they are preparing for what they will do next. And they've stated that very clearly. They want to annihilate Israel and the United States.
You know you don't have a good negotiating partner when they like to get together regularly and chant, Death to America. Is that a clue? That maybe they don't like us. And yet, we've entered into this agreement with them and we're going to release billions of dollars to them. This is unbelievable. This is why Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said to defeat Isis and not disarm Iran is to win the battle and lose the war.
Listen, Iran makes no secret of their desire to destroy Israel, who happens to be our ally. In fact, Iran's supreme leader said, tweeted as a matter of fact, Israel must be annihilated. Hmm. I wonder what he means by that. Maybe he's just plainly stating his views. One of Iran's leaders says, the destruction of Israel is the idea of the Islamic revolution in Iran and one of the pillars of the Iranian Islamic regime. We cannot claim that we have no intention of going to war with Israel. General Ayatollah Saliji, commander-in-chief of the Iranian army, said, the army of Iran can by itself destroy Israel.
So you're going, oh man, Greg, I did not come to church to hear this kind of thing. I was worried, and now I'm really worried. I came to church today to hear a message of hope, a message of perspective. Okay, I've got one of those for you right now. Listen, God is in control. God is in control.
God's Control and the Signs of the Times
Now I have to warn you, the Daily News does not agree with the statement I just made. In fact, they put out a cover story with these words, God isn't fixing this. What a thing to say. And you know why they wrote this article? Because different people were tweeting that they were praying for the families of the victims in San Bernardino. So their response is, God isn't fixing this. Oh, is that true? Actually, he has fixed it, and he will fix it. Listen, no politician is going to fix it. A new law is not going to fix it. God will ultimately fix it when Christ returns and establishes his kingdom on earth. And that is our hope. That's what we just sang about. But we sang, even so come, Lord Jesus come. That's exactly what we were talking about.
And yet this is happening when, at Christmas, we're remembering the message of the angels to the Shepherds 2,000 years ago when they said, Glory to God in the highest and peace on earth among men. That is a bit of a hollow ring, doesn't it? Where is the peace on earth? All I see is violence and mayhem and war. But wait a second. We need to understand what the angels were actually saying. A better translation clears this up. It would be better translated, Glory to God in the highest and peace on earth among men with whom God is well pleased.
See, the reason we have all of these things happening today are because man is living in sin. Why is this happening? As though it's God's fault. Man is doing almost all of the things that we see happening today because of his sinfulness. One day it will be rectified. One day there will be peace on earth. But the day is not here yet. But our job as Christians, in the meantime, is to introduce people to the Prince of Peace.
But know this. Everything is going according to plan. God's plan. This is what's amazing. The things we're seeing happening today were foretold hundreds of years ago by the Hebrew prophets. They laid it out quite clearly for us what we are facing and what is coming.
So let's pull the camera back now and try to get the big picture here of what is going on in the world. Until the prophet Ezekiel was told to go to a valley of dry bones. Essentially, a graveyard. And God said, preach to the valley. Now, I've spoke to some dead audiences but that would take the cake for sure. By the way, that's what first service is like. They're unbelievable. No, I'm joking. I'm kidding. Some of you are like, I went to first service once. No, but seriously, he's called to preach to a valley of dry bones. And this is what the Lord says. God asks Ezekiel a question. Can these bones live? Then, in the story, the bones come together. Flesh returns to the bones and they come alive.
In Ezekiel 37, 11 to 12, God says, Son of man, these bones are the whole house of Israel. They indeed say our bones are dry, our hope is lost, and we ourselves are cut off. Then God says, prophesy to them and say, Thus says the Lord, Behold my people, I'll open your graves and cause you to come out of your graves and bring you to the land of Israel.
Very specific prophecy. There in Ezekiel 37. God is saying that Israel will be scattered to the four corners of the earth. Then he says, as a sign of the end times, and by the way, that's emphasized many times there in Ezekiel 37. This will be in the latter days or the last days of the end times. That they'll be regathered together as a nation. And then that they'll be ultimately isolated from the rest of the world. And that's exactly what we're watching happen around us now.
Israel's Regathering as a Sign
Those dry bones came together amazingly after the Holocaust. Who would have thought the nation Israel would be born in the aftermath of six million Jewish people being put to death by the Nazis. But there was really a cause and effect there in a way. As horrible as the Holocaust was, many Jews realized if we're going to survive as a people, we need to return to our homeland and learn to fend for ourselves. And that's exactly what they did. And against all odds, on May 14, 1948, Israel became a nation again. And the prophetic time clock started ticking. And the dry bones were alive again.
Israeli Prime Minister David Ben-Gurion stated in 1950, quote, Ezekiel 37 has been fulfilled and the nation Israel is hearing the footsteps of the Messiah, end quote. Indeed. Existing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on January 27, 2010, on Holocaust Remembrance Day in Auschwitz, Poland, these words, We've returned to the homeland from every corner of the earth. The Jewish people Rose from ashes. Dry bones became covered with flesh. A spirit filled them and they lived and they stood on their own as Ezekiel prophesied. And then the Prime Minister went on to quote Ezekiel 37.
This is all taking place. They were scattered. They've been regathered. They're there as a nation. They're isolated from the world. And listen to this. They are the epicenter of end times events. Anytime you see the word Israel or Jerusalem pop up in your news stories, pay careful attention.
And it's so amazing because Israel is such a small, little country. They have a population of 8 million. They're about the size of New Jersey. Listen to this. You could fit 32 Israels in the state of Texas. That's how small they are. Why is there so much interest? Why all these disputes? Why all this concern over this tiny little sliver of land in the Middle East? Answer, Israel is the eye of the hurricane of the great events of the last days. She occupies center stage in God's drama of the ages. She and other players are behind the prophetic curtain, so to speak, hitting their marks. And soon the curtain will be drawn and the final chain of events will transpire.
And this was all foretold hundreds of years ago by the Hebrew prophets. And it's happening before our very eyes. And God has promised a blessing on those that bless Israel and the Jewish people. And he's promised a curse on those that oppose them. God said to Abraham and his descendants in Genesis 12:3, I will bless those that bless you and I will curse those that curse you.
Look at the ash bin of human history and all the nations who have dared to oppose the Jewish people or try to wipe them out. The great kingdoms of the world like Egypt and Assyria and Babylon. In the more recent times, Germany. And soon, I believe, Iran. And maybe even Russia.
And there in Israel is this tiny little city that's a focus of so much attention called Jerusalem that ironically means city of peace. Yet more battles have been fought at the gates of Jerusalem and any other city on the face of the earth. And she's been attacked again and again. But there she is at the very epicenter. And God says that the final events of mankind will happen in the Middle East and they'll happen around Jerusalem.
Luke 21:20, Jesus says, when you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, know that the time of its destruction has arrived, Zechariah 12:3, I'll make Jerusalem and Judah like an intoxicating drink to all the nearby nations that send their armies to besiege Jerusalem. On that day, I'll make Jerusalem a heavy stone of burden for the world.
Yet Iran says, we're gonna destroy Israel and we're gonna take over Jerusalem again. We're gonna drive the Jewish people into the sea. Why do they care about Jerusalem? Because in Jerusalem is a spot known as the Temple Mount. There are the Temple Mount somewhere below are the ruins of the first and second temple that the Jews had to worship God that has not been rebuilt but will be rebuilt in the future by the Antichrist. That's another message for another time. But also on that Temple Mount is something called the Dome of the Rock and they believe that is the place where Muhammad ascended. So it's one of the holy places of Islam. And they want that back and it enrages them that the Jews have control of it.
Ezekiel 38: The Northern Invasion
Okay, so we've talked a little bit about Ezekiel 37. Now let's think about the chapter that follows. Ezekiel 38 which tells us that after Israel is gathered together in her land and is isolated from the nations of the world a large force from her north will attack her. Now if you take out a map and look to the north of Israel you'll find the nation of Russia. And it's interesting to consider that this force coming against Israel identified as Gog from the land of Magog has allies with her. One of those allies is Persia. Who's Persia? Iran. In fact, Iran was called Persia until 1935. That's when they changed their name. You'll even meet folks from Iran today that will identify themselves still as Persians.
So one of the allies that marches with Gog against Israel is Iran. Now is Gog Russia? I think you can make a good case for it. I don't think you can say absolutely 100% but you can make a very good case for it. But I think you can pretty safely say that Persia is Persia. And here's an interesting development that's happened just really in the last few months. We have an alliance that has formed between Russia and Iran that did not previously exist. This was predicted 2,500 years ago and now this alliance has come together.
Now it's all done in the name of defending Syria because Russia has stepped in to prop up the Assad regime and Iran has stepped in with them. So now we have what could be described as a nightmare scenario. a military powerhouse with a massive nuclear arsenal Russia aligning herself with Islamic terrorists who are hostile to America and Israel. There are now 2,000 Iranian and Iranian-backed fighters in Syria backed by Russian air power.
I mean, listen to some of these headlines that are only two weeks old. Actual headlines. Headline number one, Russian ground troops arrive in Syria in unprecedented military action. Headline number two, first Iranian fighter jets over Syria alongside Russian bombers. Headline number three, Iran guard simulates capture of the Temple Mount from Israeli control. They're going through training exercises to take over the Temple Mount.
Now here's a question. What would happen if Israel struck Iran's nuclear reactors? Israel realized that America is not coming to her rescue. And so for her own existence, she says, you know, we actually kind of take these words seriously. Last time someone said they wanted to eradicate us, they really tried hard. That would be the Nazis. And now here's this regime potentially with nuclear weapons saying the same thing. So let's say they struck the nuclear reactor. Now here's what's interesting. The Bible tells us that Gog and Magog are pulled into Israel with a hook in her jaw. That would imply they don't necessarily want to go but they have to go. If Russia and Iran stand together as allies and Iran were attacked in this manner, would Russia be forced to step in to defend her ally? I don't know. Just throwing stuff out there. I'm not guaranteeing that Ezekiel 37 and 38 is going to happen in real time because of the events happening right now. Nor am I saying Ezekiel 37 and 38 could not happen as a result of events that are happening right now. We don't know. But we know this much. It's all going to happen exactly as God has said.
Why the Subtitle "Hashtag World War III"?
Now why did I subtitle this hashtag World War 3? Because that was trending on Twitter just the other day. Could this lead to something like that? Every time we turn around there's another terrorist attack. There's another catastrophic event. There's another development in the Middle East. And I know some of you are thinking give me a break Greg really? You've been preaching this for 40 years. and you're still talking about this stuff and we've always had upheaval we've always had conflict in the Middle East we've always had violence so I don't dispute that but I want you to notice one. And in the same way as we see these events happening more often and closer together, Jesus says, you know that my coming is near.
So what did Jesus say we should do? He said, when you see these things begin to happen, freak out. Right? No. He said, when you see these things begin to happen, do what? Look up. That's right. For your redemption is drawing near.
Oh, here's the question. What should we be doing in light of all of this? How should we be living? I think we need an eternal perspective. I think we need to see the big picture. And there are certain things the Bible tells us we should do as Christians living in the last days, which I believe we're in.
So that brings us to our text. That was the introduction, by the way. A little long. 1 Thessalonians 5. Turn over there with me if you would now. You're probably there. 1 Thessalonians 5. Let's read verses 2 to 8 together.
You know quite well that the day of the Lord's return will come unexpectedly, like a thief in the night. When people are saying, oh, everything's peaceful and secure, then disaster will fall on them as suddenly as a pregnant woman's labor pains, and there'll be no escape. So in light of that, here's what we ought to be doing. Notice verse 6 starts with therefore. Whenever you read the word therefore in the Bible, find out what it's there for. It's always drawing upon what has been previously said. So Paul's saying, the Lord is coming back soon. He's coming back suddenly. Therefore, what should we do?
Verse 6. Therefore, let us not sleep as others do, but let us watch and be sober. For those who sleep, sleep at night. Those who get drunk, get drunk at night. But let those who are of the day be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love, and as a helmet, the hope of salvation. We'll stop there.
What to Do in the Last Days
Listen. The teaching of Christ's return is a real litmus test of where you are spiritually. When we deal with a topic like this, if your heart leaps a little bit, and you're kind of excited, and you look forward to this, I would say to me, you're walking with the Lord as you ought to. If there's a sense of dread or a sense of fear, hearing a message like this, that would indicate to me, maybe you're not walking with the Lord as you ought to. And I'll tell you how to get right with God in a few moments at the end of this message.
But if your life is right, you'll be able to say with the Apostle John, even so, come, Lord Jesus, come. So what are we to do? According to what Paul just wrote, three things. We need to wake up, we need to sober up, and we need to suit up. Let's break those down.
Number one, we need to wake up. Verse six says, let us not sleep as others do. The Encyclopedia Britannica... Wait, let me first explain what an encyclopedia is. That's a book, which was part of a set of beautifully bound books, usually, that you would purchase. I had a set many years ago, and there would be information and history and such, and they would update the encyclopedias every year, or every few years or so. Well, now we just Google stuff, right? Or go to Wikipedia, which we think is always reliable, when it isn't. But, because people can just jump in there and say whatever they want.
But to the point, the Encyclopedia Britannica, this ancient book, defines sleep this way, and I quote, It's a state of inactivity with a loss of consciousness and a decrease in responsiveness to events taking place. That's a good description.
Years ago, I was asked to go speak in Australia. And my schedule was very tight, so I decided that I was going to fly in, speak on the day I arrived, and leave the next day. Now it's a 14-hour flight to Australia. That's a long flight. So we got in the car, and we were driving to where I was going to speak at this meeting. I was doing a radio interview right after I got off the plane, which was really stupid, because I was so exhausted. I was so jet-lagged. And as that evening service came, I was just going into almost a state of delirium from jet-lag.
And so I had my notes and message prepared, and I said to John Collins, who was with me, John, get me a triple Espresso and give it to me right before I go up. So there was the triple Espresso. I drank it. I walked up. And as I began to speak, I almost felt like I was hallucinating. I was having almost an out-of-body experience, a combination of severe jet-lag with too much Espresso. And as I'm looking at my notes, and I'm saying these words, they're not making sense to me. It makes no sense. I think I'm going to start ad-libbing it. No. And then I said to myself these words, Greg, you were in your right mind when you wrote the notes. Just say what the notes say. So I just... I was in a state of delirium. I was in a state of severe sleep deprivation. Excuse me. Shouldn't have done that in the mic. Horrible thing. Sorry. Sound man just fell over. You know. Because he has headphones.
But here's the thing. When you're in a state of sleep, or we could use jet-lag as the illustration, you're not thinking straight. It's almost as though you're a little bit drunk, or when you're starting to fade out, you know, maybe you're watching television, and all of a sudden you're watching, and their words make no sense. You're right on the brink of sleep.
There are people in the church like that today. You sit here, you listen to the words, and I might as well stand up here and say, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. Okay, I did my church time. Off I go. Now, instead of walking in the Spirit, you're sleepwalking. By the way, this can be literal. You can fall asleep in church, and I do know when you do that. I mean, my eyesight is fairly good for a guy of the age of 40. Plus a few more years. But I can pretty much see all of you. And if you nod off, I know you're nodding off, and I'm not buying the whole I'm in prayer deal. I know.
So you can literally fall asleep in church, but in another way, you can be asleep spiritually, just sort of sleepwalking through life. I don't know about you, but I often get really sleepy after a big meal, right? Like Thanksgiving, you know, we eat all that Turkey and stuffing and mashed potatoes with gravy and collard Greens maybe or green beans, and then we have pumpkin pie, and then we go into a food coma, right? Everyone is asleep, and then we wake up and we say, well, let's have some Turkey sandwiches. Don't you want to be good stewards of the Turkey, right? So a big meal makes you sleepy.
Sometimes some of the best-fed Christians are the most spiritually asleep. You know, your Bible study after Bible study, and you become more of a sermon connoisseur than a Fisher of men, and you just acquire information, and you acquire knowledge, but you need to be doing something with it. You need to wake up and be ready for the Lord's return. Wake up and be ready.
Remember when you were a little kid and it was so hard to fall asleep on Christmas Eve? Excitement. Oh, am I going to get the present I wanted? You searched everywhere for it. And maybe you believed in Santa Claus. How many of you still believe in Santa Claus? Okay, good. Great. You know, they say there's four phases to life. I've told you before. Phase number one, you believe in Santa Claus. Phase number two, you don't believe in Santa Claus. Phase number three, you become Santa Claus. And then number four, you look like Santa Claus. So I'm somewhere between three and four, maybe solidly in four at this point.
But you know, you maybe believe that good old Saint Nick, though he was morbidly obese, would somehow manage to get down your chimney while Rudolph and the reindeer were waiting up in the sleigh up on top. And so you put cookies out and you came in the morning and the cookies were gone. And it was so exciting. But then you woke up one night and you saw Dad and his PJs eating your cookies. It was disillusioning. But my point is there was an excitement. Oh, Christmas morning is coming. I can hardly wait. That is how we ought to be as we await the coming of the Lord, like little children. Awaiting the return of Christ. It's joyful. It's happy. It's good. It's a hopeful way to live.
So we need to wake up. Number two, sober up. Sober up, verse eight. Let those who are of the day be sober. Those who are drunk are drunk at night. Now here's the obvious interpretation. Don't get drunk. Duh. Some people miss this. You know, and they think that's okay to come under the influence of alcohol or come under the influence of drugs. Listen, I don't want to be under the influence of anyone or anything but Jesus Christ. We need to be sober and clear thinking.
The Bible says, don't be drunk with wine. We're in a success. But be filled with the Holy Spirit, speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs. Don't be under the influence of the spirits. Be under the control of the spirits. So sober up.
But listen, there's other things you can be under the influence of besides alcohol and drugs. Jesus said in Luke 21:34, speaking of the end times, he said, take heed to yourselves lest your hearts be weighed down with carousing drunkenness. Listen to this. And the cares of this life and that day would come upon you unexpectedly.
The cares of this life. See, it's not always sinful things. It can just be, well, things. Just stuff we're engaged in. You know, we have to make a living. We have responsibilities. We have things to tend to. We have hobbies. We have activities. There's nothing wrong with that. There's nothing wrong to work hard and make a good living and enjoy what God has blessed you with. The Bible even says he has given us all these things richly to enjoy. So enjoy it. But don't become obsessed with it. Don't become so distracted by these things that you forget God and your heart is weighed down with the cares of this life.
You are to wake up. You are to sober up. And lastly, you are to suit up. Suit up. Look at verse 8. Put on a breastplate of faith and love and as a helmet, the hope of salvation. This talks about a soldier getting ready for battle. The picture is of a Roman soldier putting on his breastplate, getting his shield out, getting his sword ready and sharp on the anvil, strapping on his helmet, being ready for battle. And we are in a battle. The moment you put your faith in Jesus Christ, you entered in to the spiritual battle. So you just have a choice now. You're either going to be defeated or victorious on the battlefield. You're either going to gain ground or lose ground.
That's why Paul said in Ephesians 6, put on the whole armor of God that you may be able to fight in that evil day. So we need to not just hold the ground we have. Let's go after new ground. See, at times like this, with all the fear in the air and all the things going on, we might want to kind of recoil. And I don't know. I don't even want to go outside. And I'm just going to like stay inside with Netflix and drink hot cocoa with my Teddy bear. No, no. Wake up. Sober up. Suit up. You're a follower of Jesus Christ. There's work to be done. There's people to be one. by the gospel.
That's why we want to move forward. I don't want to just hold ground. Listen, at Harvest, I mentioned we've been around here for 40 years. That's great, isn't it? But that was then and this is now. I don't want to live in the past. I want to do what is set before me and take new ground for the kingdom of God as long as I have breath. And that's why we're going to AT&T Stadium next year. That's a bold move, by the way. That crazy stadium seats upwards of 100,000 people. Why are we doing that? Because we're insane. No, really. Maybe a little of that. But because we think, hey, let's go for this. If we're going to do it, let's do it. Because, listen, America needs to hear the gospel. And America needs God. And that's our job as a church.
Listen, every nation has a lifespan. A beginning, middle, and end. Many nations have lasted for many years. Well, the United States of America is going to have a middle and an end. We don't know where we're at. But we would be fools to think. that our great nation, as wonderful as it is, with a heritage that we built upon, could not face the judgment of God.
You know, God warned Israel over and over again. Don't turn to these idols. Or I'll let another nation overtake you. He warned them. He warned them. They ignored him. They ignored him. And one day, the Babylonians marched in and took the Jewish people as captives to Babylon for 70 long years. You don't think the same could happen to America? You don't think that an enemy could come to our shores and overtake us? Think again.
Listen to this. America is not found in the last day scenario. We're not there. You can find Israel. You can find Iran. Possibly you can find Russia, perhaps even China. But there is no mention of the greatest superpower on the face of the earth at the moment, the United States of America. Where are we? Well, that's another message for another day. But just very quickly, maybe we're just destroyed in a war. that we lose. Option number two, maybe we just sort of collapse economically, militarily, morally, and fall in line with the nations of the Antichrist who will be supported by those 10 nations. Or maybe we have a spiritual awakening and so many Americans come to Jesus Christ that when the rapture happens, a good portion of our country is in heaven. I don't know how it's going to happen. I don't know.
But we need to be praying for revival. I believe our country has two choices before us. One is judgment, the other is revival. We need to pray that America turns back to God. You know, the greatest revival in human history happened in the city of Nineveh. And you want to talk about a wicked place. Nineveh was renowned for their wickedness. And yet, they repented at the preaching of Jonah and turned to God and God spared them. And we can see our revival here if we pray for it.
Living Ready for Christ's Return
What do we need to do? Number one, we need to wake up. Number two, we need to sober up. Number three, we need to suit up. Let me close with a parallel set of verses from Romans 13. Don't turn there. I'll just read them to you. This is from the Phillips. Expanded Translation. Why all this stress on behavior? Because as I think you've realized, the present time is of the highest importance. It's time to wake up to reality. Every day brings God's salvation closer. The night is nearly over. The day is almost on. Therefore, let us fling away the things that men do in the dark. Let us arm ourselves to the fight of the day. Let us live cleanly as in the daylight. Not in getting drunk or in playing with sex. Not in quarreling or jealousies. Let us be Christ's men from head to foot and give no chances for the flesh to have its fling.
I love that translation. God wants you to be his man from head to foot. He wants you to be his woman from head to foot. The time of playing games with sin is over. The time to get right with God is here. Jesus is coming for those who are watching and waiting.
What if Jesus came back tonight? Would you be ready? The Bible says that we'll be caught up to meet the Lord in a moment in the twinkling of an eye. That's not the second coming by the way. That's often called the rapture. The second coming is at the end of the tribulation period. So that's in our future. That's when Christ comes back to judge the world and establish his kingdom. But before that Jesus said that he'll come for his church. Before he comes with his church at the second coming he'll come for his church. This mortal will put on immortality will be caught up to meet the Lord in a moment in the twinkling of an eye.
The Bible says what if that event were to happen today or tonight? Would you be one of the ones who would be caught up to heaven? Or would you be one of the ones who would be left? Listen the Lord could come back at any moment. There is no. prediction in scripture that stands in the way of the return of Christ for his church. It can happen at any moment. It may be 10 years from now. It may be 20 years from now. It may not be in my lifetime. It may be 10 hours from now. It may be 10 minutes from now. God knows. All I know is I need to watch and be ready.
And then listen to this. We never know when death could come. We don't know that our life could not end. Those people attacked by those horrible terrorists who lost their lives. How could they have known such a thing would happen when they went to a Christmas party that day. But for those that put their faith in Christ we know even if death comes unexpectedly we'll go immediately into the presence of the Lord.
And I ask you are you sure you'll go to heaven when you die? Do you know that with certainty? You see you need to be born again Jesus said. What does that mean? It means you need to have a spiritual rebirth. You have to say Jesus I'm sorry for my sin and I ask you to come into my life and be my savior and Lord I choose to follow you. Have you done that yet? Are you sure you're ready to meet God?
Invitation to Get Right with God
If not I'm going to give you an opportunity to get right with him right now. We're going to close in a moment in prayer and I'm going to invite you to say yes to Jesus. That article in that newspaper said God won't fix this. Really? God did fix it. 2,000 years ago Jesus Christ was born in that manger of Bethlehem that he lived a perfect life and died on a Roman cross at the age of 33 and suffered for our sins and then he Rose again from the dead three days later and he is here and he is alive and friend he's coming back but he wants to come into your heart right now and be your savior and Lord.
He says he stands at the door of our lives and he knocks and if we'll hear his voice and open the door he will come in. So as we pray if you've never asked Jesus to come into your life do it right now and if you have been sort of living a compromised life and doing some of those things that we read about that you should not be doing getting drunk playing with sex. being taken over with the cares of this life maybe some of you need to make a recommitment to Christ. You're a bit like a mugwump. You know what a mugwump is don't you? Someone who sits on a fence and their mug is on one end and their wump is on the other. It's time to get off the fence. It's time to wake up sober up and suit up.
If you need to get right with God here's an opportunity to do it. Let's all pray. Father now I pray that your Holy Spirit will work in the heart of every person here every person listening every person watching help them to see their need for Jesus and help them to come to you now.
While our heads are bowed and our eyes are closed and we're praying together how many of you would say. right now Greg I need Jesus Christ in my life I want to go to heaven when I die I want my sin forgiven. I want to be ready for his return I want Jesus right now if that's your desire if you want Jesus to come into your life if you want him to forgive you of your sin. if you want to go to heaven when you die wherever you're sitting I want you to raise your hand up and I'm going to pray for you raise your hand up higher I can see it God bless you I see your hands God bless each one of you raise your hand up. Anybody else? You want his forgiveness. You want him in your life. Raise your hand up. Let me pray for you. God bless. While our heads are still bowed, there might be a few more that would say, man, I've been that fence sitter, that mugwump. That's me trying to live in two worlds, and I'm just sick of it. I want to get right with God. I need to make a recommitment to him. Pray for me. If that's your need, if you want to come back to Jesus Christ, raise your hand up, and let me pray for you right now. You need to come back to Jesus Christ. Raise your hand up. God bless. Anybody else? God bless you. God bless each one of you.
Now, Father, I pray you will give these that have taken this first step the strength to take the next one, that they will get right with you, and that they will follow you. We commit them to you now in Jesus' name. Amen.
I'm going to ask the worship band to come back out here. Listen, everyone that Jesus calls, he calls openly and publicly, and we're going to do the same right now. In a moment, when the worship group gets here, here they come, I'm going to ask that when this song begins, that you that just raised your hand, saying that you want your sin forgiven, saying that you want to go to heaven when you die, saying you want to be ready for the Lord's return, I'm going to ask that you would get up out of your seat, walk forward, and stand in front of this platform, and when you all get here, I'll lead you in a prayer.
You guys watching on the satellite campuses, you get up and walk forward to the platform as well. You guys at Harvest Orange County, you get up and walk to the front where the platform is. Now, why do I ask you to come forward publicly? Because Jesus said, if you will confess me before people, I'll confess you before the Father and the angels in heaven. But then he said, if you deny me before people, I'll deny you before the Father and the angels.
This is your chance to make that public stand. So if you raise your hand, even if you did not, you want your sin forgiven? You want to know that you'll go to heaven when you die? You want to be ready for the Lord's return? You want your guilt taken away? Or you want to come back to the Lord again? Right now, wherever you are, get up out of your seat, step into the aisle, come on down to the front, stand here in front of the platform, and when you all get here, I'll lead you in prayer.
Up at the balcony, come down the stairs, outside in the amphitheater. We're going to open those doors up. You come to the doors on the side. You up in the court building, go to the front where the screen is. Harvest Orange County, go to the front where the stage is. Satellites, go to the front. Come and make your public stand for Jesus Christ right here, right now.