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Sacramento Central SDA Church

The Great Harvest

Chris Buttery

2015, The End of the World, and You

Available, Or Not

Christ’s Method Alone

Our Hardest Lesson

I Saw Satan Fall

For millennia, people from different countries, cultures, and backgrounds have found direction and encouragement in the inspired pages of the Bible.

In his day, Jesus directed listeners to search the prophecies of Scripture to find Him, the only way of salvation.

2, 000 years later, as we stand on the break of eternity, we no less need the purpose and hope God's Word provides.

Sacramento Central Church brings you Receiving the Word, timely Bible messages presented by pastors Chris Buttery and Mike Thompson.

Amazing Revelations await you in God's holy word, the Bible.

The title of my message this morning, as we enter into a brand new year, is 2015, the end of the world and you.

Someone quipped that they had hoped that the end of the world will come in 2015, that way they would not be held accountable for their New Year's resolutions.

But you know as well as I do, you can have a new start in Jesus anytime.

You don't have to wait for a new year to come along.

It was during the early morning of April 15 of the previous year, 2014, the first of 4 lunar eclipses of the moon occurred and they were visible in the Americas.

Astronomers call this a lunar tetrad and define it as 4 successive total lunar eclipses with no partial lunar eclipses in between, each of which is separated from the other by 6 lunar months or 6 full months.

When the Earth falls directly between the sun and the moon, the light from the sun passes through the Earth's atmosphere and it creates a coppery red hue on the moon.

What is interested, some prophecy teaches about this astronomical phenomena is not just the number of the lunar eclipses, but the timing of them.

In 2014, a full lunar eclipse occurred on the day of Passover and the first day of Sukkot, the Feast of Tabernacles.

And it's supposed to happen again this year in April and in September.

In addition to the 2 lunar eclipses of 2015, 2 solar eclipses are supposed to take place as well.

Similar to the lunar eclipse back in the back-to-back years have happened 7 times since the time of Jesus.

And some of those have occurred in years that are significant to Jewish history, such as 1948 when Israel granted statehood, and then in 1967 when the Six-Day War was fought.

Now, because the Bible refers to the moon turning to the colour of blood in several places, 1 in the book of Joel, another in Revelation chapter 6, and these are referenced with the, mentioned in reference to the second coming of Jesus and because that these things occur or fall at the time of certain Jewish feasts the lunar tetrad of 2014 and 15 has high significance among some Bible teachers.

For 1 popular Christian writer, it was so significant that he declared in 2008 that Jesus was going to come in the fall of 2015, the end of the world would come.

When certain things he predicted leading up to the end of the world didn't happen as he had predicted, He pulled the statement from his website.

But he and another prominent minister still teach that the 4 blood moons have significant implications for our world and we should expect to see some earth-shaking events that take place over in the land of Israel.

Now think just recently about some failed predictions that gained nearly universal attention.

May 21, 2011, according to the president of Family Radio, Judgment Day and the Rapture were supposed to take place then.

December 2012 was, according to the Mayan calendar, supposed to be the end of the world.

Setting a date for the return of Jesus Christ has never gotten anyone anywhere, but we are still interested in knowing what the future holds.

As a matter of fact, in the Scriptures, the disciples of Jesus were also interested in knowing what the future held.

Turn with me to Matthew chapter 24 and you'll notice a question that they asked the Lord.

Matthew 24 and we'll read verse 3, The disciples were interested in knowing how the end was going to come about and they're also interested in knowing when it was going to happen.

Matthew chapter 24, and we'll read verse 3.

They came to him, now as they sat upon the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to him, that is Jesus, privately, saying, tell us, when will these things be, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age.

They were interested in knowing when the end of all things would be.

How soon, Lord, until the end of the world?

And what will be the signs of your coming in the end of the world?

And what did the Lord of creation, the 1 who knows the end from the beginning, tell them?

First of all in verse 4 he warned them, do not be what?

In other words, deception is going to be rampant in the last days.

The enemy of souls isn't going to walk around and hand out his business card, telling you he's a master deceiver.

No Christian will be deceived by an open opposer, so he comes secretly and quietly and stealthily.

Specifically though, Christ warned about being deceived in 4 areas pertaining to his return, his, the second coming.

Those areas are the manner of his coming, number 1, number 2, the timing of his coming, number 3, the Christian's attitude toward his coming, and then number 4, the Christian's responsibility while waiting for his coming.

With respect to the manner of his coming, Jesus plainly told his disciples, and he tells you and I, that when He appears, He's going to appear personally, He's going to appear visibly, He's going to appear audibly, He's going to appear powerfully, not secretly as the promoters of the blood-red-moon theory purport.

With regard to the timing, the promoters of the blood red moon theory suggest that there will be a 7 year tribulation.

Jesus will come secretly to rapture out His people ahead of time, and in the middle of those 7 years, the Antichrist is going to appear, or something like that.

And then all of these things written in Matthew chapter 24 and Revelation chapter 4 and onward will take place during the tribulation.

But talking about the signs of Jesus' return, notice what Jesus said in verse 32 and 33.

He says something very important for us to understand.

Jesus said, now learn this parable from the fig tree.

When its branch has already become tender and puts forth leaves, you know that summer is where?

Verse 33, so you also know when you shall see all these things, what things?

All these things he mentioned before, the ever-increasing earthquakes and natural disasters and the love of many waxing cold and iniquity abounding.

When you see all of these things take place, know that it is what?

Near, not that it is here, but that it is near.

Promoters of the seven-year tribulation theory suggest that Jesus has already come and then all of these things mentioned in Matthew 24 will take place.

But Jesus said, no, no, no, no, no, that they are not here, but that they are, not that I am here, but that it is near, my coming is near, you see, even at the doors.

As for 2015, we don't know whether this will be the last year, for in verse 36, Jesus said, but of that day and hour, no 1 knows, not even the angels of heaven, but My Father only.

Now with regard to attitude, with regard to attitude, many times the end of the world is viewed with dread and horror, something to be completely avoided.

You look at most of the Christian world today, there is, as I mentioned, there's a secret rapture before the tribulation.

Christians wanna get out of here as well.

They don't wanna be around for what's coming.

Jesus, however, directly countered this thinking when he said in verse 13, notice, he said, but he who what?

Saved, you're not gonna be raptured out of here, but if you endure to the end, if you trust in my grace, if you know that My angels are there to protect you and guide you and lead you and I'll be right by your side.

If you endure to the end, you can be saved.

He said, and unless those days were shortened, no flesh would be saved.

But for the elect's sake, those days will be shortened.

Jesus has promised that He will shorten those days.

Now, not that we should be looking forward to what's coming with a kind of bring it on kind of attitude either.

For the lost, yes, it will be a day of horror for sure, But the end of the world, Christ's coming, provides incredible hope for humanity.

Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, those that are lost, and they, they shall see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.

And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they will do what?

Gather together his elect, The saved from the 4 winds, the 4 corners, from all over the world, from 1 end of heaven to the other.

For the Christian, the coming of Jesus is not a doom and gloom message, it is a hopeful message.

He's coming back in power and great glory.

To gather the saved, to gather the elect.

This is a time of rejoicing, happiness and joy and hope for God's people.

The saved will be rescued when Jesus comes.

And in Luke's rendition, in Luke chapter 21, verse 27 and 28, Jesus said, Then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory.

Now when these things begin to happen, look up, lift up your heads, not hang your face down, don't let your chin drag on the ground, but lift up your head.

Jesus is coming to rescue and redeem his people.

Sure, wonderful news that Jesus is coming back.

We're not to be biting our nails, panicking, hopelessly fearful during these last days, but hopeful because if we have made Jesus Christ our Lord and our Savior, not just 20 years ago, not just 10 years ago, not just 5 years ago, but if you've made Him Lord and Savior today, then you can and you must have hope because He will save you when He comes back.

Series

The Great Harvest

2015, The End of the World, and You

Transcript

Parent Series

Sponsor

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