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Hendersonville Seventh-day Adventist Church, NC

Preparing For the End Times

David Wright

Facing Crisis

True or False Revival

Shaken or Sealed

Crisis or Commitment

Close of Probation and the 7 Last Plagues

We hear it often, the Lord is coming soon.

But if it's true, the reality is that it's going to get worse before it gets better.

So my question for this morning for us is, do you have hope for these last days?

Are your thoughts filled with doom and gloom?

Does your stomach go into knots as you think about the coming crisis?

Do you hope you live to see it or die before it happens?

This week we were reading in a devotional book by Eric B.

I think it's been republished because it doesn't have an antique cover on it.

But we were looking at a story this week about how they escaped a war that was going on in Burma where they were and they had to get out.

The time was very apparent to them that they had to leave.

And so they packed up their car and they made their way.

And when they got to a river that they had to cross and go on a ferry and all that kind of thing, when they got there, the ferry had stopped running.

And so the Hare family was by the river there in Burma, knowing they needed to leave, but wondering how they were going to get their car packed with their few things across.

Are we gonna have to go by canoe to the other side and if so then we're on foot and you know we're limited in what we can carry which is probably not much of anything.

So they hired 2 boats and lashed them together and the plan was to drive their small little car on top and to have these boats ferry them across this river.

But their plan was thwarted when they went in search of lumber that they could drive their car onto and couldn't find any.

There was a mill there in town but the mill was closed.

It was all locked up and chained and all the rest and so they were left wondering what to do and so they prayed.

I should tell you the boat drivers were getting a little bit excited.

They were saying, they're gonna have to leave their car here.

I'm going to take a suitcase." And they were jeering and jesting.

Well it was at 04:00 in the morning that Eric woke up with a strong sense, go back to the lumber mill now." Okay.

And so he got 1 of the both drivers and they got a bullock and a cart and they went at 4 in the morning in the dark about 3 miles over to this mill.

And sure enough, just as they were there, there was somebody at the gate filling with the lock.

And they opened up the gate and they were going inside.

It was the son who owned the mill who was coming to get some papers in the middle of the night and sneak back to his refuge.

They got the lumber that they needed and they were on their way back and 1 of the boat drivers said, your God did speak to you tonight, didn't he?

Because just as they were leaving, he was locking up the gate, putting the chains around, perfect timing.

And sure enough, they drove their car on top and made it safely across the river.

I believe Jesus ever has his eye on us and he provides for us.

You see, we can have an understanding of the crisis without an understanding of the Christ and Not be able to go through the crisis and understanding the pain without understanding the promises only leaves you to struggle An understanding of doom without understanding deliverance only leaves you depressed And so we not only want to face what is coming, but we want to face it confidently and courageously in Jesus Christ.

And so today we're going to begin a series.

We're going to go for I think 6 Sabbaths here with hope in the last days is what we're going to call it is based Largely on a series that Mark Finley did at GYC years ago I believe it was back in 2007 and I have listened to that series so many times It's had a profound impact on me In fact when I was trained for this half marathon this last fall, my mind would not be helpful in that training process, so I would turn on Mark Finley in this series, and it would help me to keep going.

And so I'm gonna share some of that series with you.

But our goal is to focus on Jesus on every single sermon.

Focus on the things that God has chosen to clearly reveal to us through his word and through the spirit of prophecy that he has given to guide this church at this time.

And so there's several things we're gonna look at.

Today is the coming crisis, anticipated or dreaded.

And then next week we'll look at revival, genuine or counterfeit.

We're gonna look at Satan's strategy for the unconverted, the converted, and even Seventh Day Adventists.

We're going to look at Satan's false miracles, Satan's false religious revivals and spiritualism, When latter rain will be poured out and how to be a recipient of the latter rain.

Then the following Sabbath we're going to look at shaken or sealed.

What's the difference between the shaking and the sealing?

There are specific examples of those in scripture that were shaken.

What will cause the shaking and how will I be aware of that?

Then in the middle of March we're going to look at worship and the National Sunday Law.

We're going to look at some misapprehension that some world leader is going to come onto the scene and pass some kind of religious legislation but we will see how that is contrary to both the Bible and the writings of Ellen White.

Rather, the Sunday Law is going to come not from the top down, but from the bottom up.

It's going to be demanded by the people that you will keep us safe.

And so, to be elected, they will simply bow to the public favor of the people.

We've even seen that in the Supreme Court here recently, haven't we?

Also in March, we're going to look at the close of probation and the 7 last plagues.

We will look at the plagues and the promises and see how Christ is in every single plague.

Are these plagues arbitrary acts of God or do these plagues have something to do with the plan of salvation?

And then finally the first Sabbath in April, heaven and eternity.

As we begin our study I want to start in Revelation 1.1.

The book of Revelation is the revelation of Jesus Christ which God gave him to show his servants things which must shortly take place.

Of all the books in the Bible, Revelation outlines the events that will occur at end time.

Revelation has been written for a last day generation that would go through the end of earth's history.

And it's not just merely a book of signs and symbols, but it's a revelation of Jesus himself.

And in fact we see several contrasts in Revelation.

But in Revelation we see 2 leaders, the Lamb and the Dragon.

2 signs, the seal of God and the mark of the beast.

2 women, the bride of Christ and the harlot woman, 2 harvests, golden grain and gory grapes, 2 spirits, the Holy Spirit and the spirit of demons, and lastly, 2 choices, the righteous and the unrighteous.

7 contrasts, but virtually contrasting the same thing, aren't they?

At the end of time, everyone will identify with 1 of those 2 groups.

And at the end, every human being will line up under 1 of those 2 choices.

People will either follow the dragon or the lamb.

They'll either have the seal of God or the mark of the beast.

And we find also in Revelation that there are 2 great objectives.

And secondly, to unmask the plans of Satan.

If we distill it down, That's what we have in the book of Revelation.

And so, we're going to now open up our Bibles.

I may put a few texts on the screen at the end, but right now we're going to focus again on the 3 angels' messages of Revelation chapter 14 and I want you to see it and to read it out of your own Bible.

Back to Menu

Series

Preparing For the End Times

Facing Crisis

Transcript

Parent Series

Sponsor

Recorded

Cross-Check: Finding Your Personal Story At the Cross

2. Cross-Words: Lord, Speak to Me… Please!

51m

From Failure to Faith: Assurance of Salvation

54m

Why Most Church Members Won’t Make It Through the Shaking

43m

Morning Devotional

Devotional

34m

These Things We Know

These Things We Know: God is the Promise Keeper Part 2

1h 3m

Even at the Doors

55m

Jesus on Prophecy

55m

You Can Love Again

13 - From Frustrated Hate...

57m

“Stolen Valor”

38m

American Politics and Adventism

27m

The Shaking

1. The Shaking: Has it Begun?

56m

The Laodicean Dilemma

47m

Sound Doctrine