The Urgency of the Second Coming
End-Time Evangelism • Sermon • Submitted • Presented
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· 1 viewThe sun rises and the sun sets each day the same. It's easy to become lackadaisical toward our Christian journey. But one important characteristic of all the New Testiment leaders of Christianity is that they believed in the urgency of the Second Coming. How can we develop that same urgency?
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Training Harder Than Necessary
Training Harder Than Necessary
The story of a Scottish discus thrower from the nineteenth century. He lived in the days before professional trainers and developed his skills alone in the highlands of his native village. He even made his own discus from the description he read in a book. What he didn’t know was the discus used in competition was made of wood with an outer rim of iron.
His was solid metal and weighed three or four times as much as those being used by his would-be challengers. This committed Scotsman marked out his field the distance of the current record throw and trained day and night to be able to match it.
For nearly a year, he labored under the self-imposed burden of the extra weight, becoming very, very good. He reached the point at which he could throw his iron discus the record distance, maybe farther. He was ready.
The highlander traveled south to England for his first competition. When he arrived at the games, he was handed the wooden discus—which he promptly threw like a tea saucer. He set a record, a distance so far beyond those of his competitors one could touch him. For many years he remained the uncontested champion.
John Eldredge, The Sacred Romance, Nelson, 1997.
Jesus gave two
main warning about
the last days:
Don’t be deceived
Don’t be asleep.
Be on guard, keep awake. For you do not know when the time will come.
On the one hand,
Jesus says
Christians will be
caught off guard.
On the other hand,
He says we won’t.
Unexpected:
Unexpected:
Therefore you also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.
Jesus gives this
impression that we
are caught off guard.
Church of Sardis:
Remember, then, what you received and heard. Keep it, and repent. If you will not wake up, I will come like a thief, and you will not know at what hour I will come against you.
There is a condition:
“If you will not wake up.”
Verse says,
waking up is
connected with
repentance.
If we don’t wake
then He comes
“as a thief!”
Expected
Expected
1 Thessalonians 5:1–4 (ESV)
Now concerning the times and the seasons, brothers, you have no need to have anything written to you. For you yourselves are fully aware that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. While people are saying, “There is peace and security,” then sudden destruction will come upon them as labor pains come upon a pregnant woman, and they will not escape. But you are not in darkness, brothers, for that day to surprise you like a thief.
For Some,
Jesus coming will be
like a thief
For others
it won’t!
Two Groups
Two Groups
Jesus gives warning to
believers.
Some teach
two groups:
Believers
Unbelievers...
No,
warning is repeatedly
given to Christians!
(“Behold, I am coming like a thief! Blessed is the one who stays awake, keeping his garments on, that he may not go about naked and be seen exposed!”)
Both groups are:
“believers”
Christians
“active in the faith”
Some are unprepared
Other are prepared.
By that we
can only assume
those unready
are unsaved.
visa versa.
(A true story)
Bob and Betty were married for 45 year, a strong, loving example of what a married couple should be. However, this couple was always at least 15 minutes late for everything: church, fellowship dinners, or parties. Eventually, Bob contracted cancer and died. The funeral was to be in the church sanctuary. That afternoon, the funeral director came to my office all upset. Betty was outside in the limo and would not get out. I went out to the limo expecting Betty to be upset not wanting to accept the reality and finality of Bob’s death. I pleaded with Betty to get out of the limo. She insisted she was NOT getting out. Finally, clinching her teeth, she looked at me and said, “That man made me late for everything for 45 years because he waited to the last minute to prepare I refuse to be on time!”
Ten Virgins
Ten Virgins
“Then the kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went to meet the bridegroom.
Wedding
bride maids
groom comes at evening
bridal party wait
walk together
candle light
Five of them were foolish, and five were wise. For when the foolish took their lamps, they took no oil with them, but the wise took flasks of oil with their lamps.
Virgins =
believers
Christians
part of body
Virginity = purity
all have faith
pure faith in God.
Groom =
Jesus
2nd Coming
All Virgins
“waiting for Jesus”
have a lamp (truth)
have oil (Spirit)
As the bridegroom was delayed, they all became drowsy and slept.
All of them
fell asleep
Are you asleep
today?
spiritually?
distracted.
All Virgins
“waiting for Jesus”
have a lamp (truth)
have oil (Spirit)
fell asleep
all let lamps go out
Two groups
extra oil
no extra oil
Zech 4 says
Oil = Spirit
They all have
“some Holy Spirit”
Half have
“double portion of Spirit”
come back to this...
As the bridegroom was delayed, they all became drowsy and slept.
Groom (Jesus)
didn’t come at dusk
came at midnight
It seems as though
Lords delays his coming
NKJV
Habakkuk 2:3 (NKJV)
For the vision is yet for an appointed time;
But at the end it will speak, and it will not lie.
Though it tarries, wait for it;
Because it will surely come,
It will not tarry.
NKJV
Habakkuk 2:3 (HCSB)
For the vision is yet for the appointed time;
it testifies about the end and will not lie.
Though it delays, wait for it,
since it will certainly come and not be late.
Which one is it?
He is delayed
Or not?
From our view
Lord seems delayed...
But...
He will not delay
But at midnight there was a cry, ‘Here is the bridegroom! Come out to meet him.’
However you view it
delayed or not
He will come!!!
Then all those virgins rose and trimmed their lamps. And the foolish said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.’ But the wise answered, saying, ‘Since there will not be enough for us and for you, go rather to the dealers and buy for yourselves.’
Let lamp burning
fell asleep
lamp went out
burn wick
Trimmed wick
add oil
Oh no,
no extra oil.
Give us some...
not enough
Oil = Holy Spirit
Lessons on Oil
Lessons on Oil
1. You can’t give others your spirituality.
1. You can’t give others your spirituality.
You can
witness
encourage
support
pray
The Judgment individual!
How did I spend:
time
talents
opportunities
Spiritual Grandma
won’t save me!
2. Some May Not Be Enough
2. Some May Not Be Enough
All virgins had some...
Romans 12:3 (NKJV)
… God has dealt to each one a measure of faith.
The Holy Spirit
comes to all of us.
That portion
is not enough.
Elisha wanted
more Spirit:
When they had crossed, Elijah said to Elisha, “Ask what I shall do for you, before I am taken from you.” And Elisha said, “Please let there be a double portion of your spirit on me.”
What made the foolish virgins foolish?
What made the foolish virgins foolish?
They had insufficient supply
of the Holy Spirit.
Some spirituality
Some conversion
Some prayer
Some Bible study
Half-hearted!
Super Bowl XLI. It was a rainy night, and the ball was slippery. Rex Grossman, the quarterback for the losing team, fumbled the ball several times. But Peyton Manning never fumbled. A few weeks after the Super Bowl a reporter discovered that every few weeks during the year Manning had his center (the one who snaps him the ball), Jeff Saturday, snap him water-soaked footballs.
He practices handling wet footballs so he will be ready in case it rains-even though his team plays half of their games in a dome. Manning did what he could do (practice handling wet footballs over and over) to enable him to do what he could not without this preparation (play great in the rain). We cannot change simply by saying, “I want to change. We have to examine what we think (our narratives) and how we practice (the spiritual disciplines) and who we are interacting with (our social context). If we change those things-and we can-than change will come naturally to us.
James Bryan Smith, The Good and Beautiful God: Falling in Love with the God Jesus Knows (The Apprentice Series)
We must know
room for improvement
Continue Story
Matthew 25:10–12 (ESV)
And while they were going to buy, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the marriage feast, and the door was shut. Afterward the other virgins came also, saying, ‘Lord, lord, open to us.’ But he answered, ‘Truly, I say to you, I do not know you.’
Foolish are
left out
marriage (heaven)
Those who were ready
went in
The unready
left out.
Unready knock...
They are told:
‘Truly, I say to you, I do not know you.’
Weird,
if asked:
“do you know groom?”
Foolish virgins
would say:
emphatic “YES,
I’m in the wedding!!!
(heaven)
Yet, they don’t realize
they are lost.
Caught off guard
Thief in night.
Jesus finishes parable
with these words:
Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour.
Question:
Are you a wise or foolish virgin?
Hard to answer
foolish thought
they were wise...
Better question:
How Can I Get More Oil?
Conversion
Not just
prayer
study
praise
Conversion
life of repentance
Conversion is
live for God.
prioritize God
follow convictions
Allow HS to reign
Is that you?
are you
am I
hearer only?
Jesus says:
I am coming soon. Hold fast what you have, so that no one may seize your crown.
He is coming
I want to be ready.
Don’t you?
We are told that when John Huss was arrested and informed that he would be burned to death for his faith, he purposely practiced holding his hand over fire to prepare for his final test. He burned himself in preparation. He wanted to be faithful to the end.
Appeal
Appeal
Go home
take inventory
of your life.
Where are you
surrendered
not surrendered
give to Jesus.