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Hendersonville Seventh-day Adventist Church, NC

Preparing For the End Times

David Wright

Facing Crisis

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.

True or False Revival

Currently, we are in a series that we are calling, Hope in These Last Days.

And last week we focused on how we don't need to fear the last days.

We focus not on the pain, but the promises.

Now we don't get depressed as we think about doom, but rather we focus on the deliverance in Jesus Christ.

So we can not only face what is coming, but we can face it confidently and courageously in Jesus Christ.

In fact, we looked last week at the coming crisis, anticipated or dreaded.

And we looked at these 4 key events, the proclamation of the gospel, the announcement of the judgment, the call to worship the Creator, and lastly a warning against false worship.

And today we're looking at a different piece, revival, genuine or counterfeit.

And next week we'll look at shaken or sealed.

Pathfinders, it's good to be prepared when you are out backpacking and camping and all the rest, but spiritually, Pathfinders is to prepare you as well.

You know, just as God used Romans in the Reformation period and God used Martin Luther to bring about revival, That was present truth for that hour.

So in these last days, I believe revelation is present truth for our time in this hour.

And we read in Revelation 1, verse 1, the revelation of Jesus Christ, who God gave him to show his servants things which must shortly take place.

And continuing on in verse 3, Blessed is he who does 3 things.

I don't know about you, but I want to be blessed.

Blessed is he who reads and those who hear the words of this prophecy and keep those things which are written in it, for the time is near.

God wants his end time people to also be prepared, not to be caught off guard, but to be ready for what is coming.

You know, we look at the news, every time you turn on the news, I can't help but see signs that say, be prepared, be prepared, be prepared.

We have never lived, I believe, in a time that's been quite this crazy, where the Pope is choosing to weigh in on our political process.

And as we jump into Revelation today, and we won't be in Revelation quite as much, but we'll be in it some.

I want to look at 2 principles when it comes to prophecy.

The first principle is repetition and enlargement.

We will never interpret prophecy wrongly if you understand this principle, which is rather simple and basic of repetition and enlargement.

And so if we look at Daniel 2 for an example, in Daniel 2 we have a basic outline of history that takes you from the days of Babylon, and then Medo-Persia, Greece, and Rome, and then the break of Roman Empire and the coming of Christ.

But then when we move to Daniel chapter 7, it covers the same ground, but then you add, That's the repetition, but then the enlargement, you add the judgment and the little horn.

Then when you get to Daniel chapter 8, covers the same ground, except it begins in Medo-Persia and it goes through Rome, the breaking up of the Roman empire, then the little horn, the papacy, then the judgment, and adds the cleansing of the sanctuary.

So again, this idea of repetition and enlargement.

And by the time you get to Daniel 11, in the conflict with the king of the north, and essentially does the same thing, but like chapter 8, it also leaves out Babylon because his vision is in the days of Medo-Persia and takes us all the way through We have a similar thing in Revelation Revelation chapter 1 we have the basic introduction And all time sequence prophecies begins right here in the time of the Prophet we'll look at that in just a minute.

Then we have the 7 churches, which gives us the basic outline, if you will.

Then we have the 7 seals, which amplifies and enlarges the 7 churches.

Followed by the 7 trumpets, which amplify even further, the 7 churches, and the 7 seals.

And by the time you get to Revelation 12, it's like a hinge in the book.

So the first principle is repetition and enlargement.

And the second principle is time sequence prophecies always begin where the prophet is.

It anchors us there because that's where the Prophet is.

By the time you get to Daniel chapter 8 and 11 it begins in Medo-Persia because at that time Babylon is already passed on and it's starting where the prophet is.

So in Revelation, well there's Daniel 2, Daniel 7, and then Daniel 8, it starts in Medo-Persia, and then 11 as well.

So in Revelation, where should the time prophecies begin?

According to this principle, it should happen in the days of John, or begin anyway, or the days of Rome.

So if you deal with the 7 churches, the 7 seals, the 7 trumpets in this way, it certainly helps.

You have all kinds of random interpretations starting at various times and on and on and on and it can lead to all kinds of confusion.

By the time you get to the trumpets everything is out of control.

So in Daniel chapters 1 to 6, we have the how to be ready in end times.

In Daniel chapters 7 through 12, it answers more the when end time events will occur.

In Revelation 1 to 11, again you have this idea of how the practical chapters of a church facing end time and how to prepare.

The different kinds of Christians in every age and how to prepare.

That's what we learn in the 7 churches, the different kinds of Christians in every age and how to prepare.

That's what we learn in the 7 seals, what the church would face and how to prepare.

So this is an entire purpose in the first 11 chapters.

So just like Daniel you have the how first in Revelation and then the when second.

But when you get to Revelation chapters 12 to 22 it's more of the when the unfolding in unique detail in time events that answers the when question.

Remember these 2 principles, repetition, enlargement, and time sequence prophecy always begins where the prophet is.

But now we're going to jump into this revival.

Braden did a wonderful job of reading us our scripture today.

For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against the spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places." The battle is going to be between Christ and Satan, good and evil.

I mean if the devil can deceive one-third of the angels in heaven, can we not expect him to pull out every stop at end time?

So we are entering a battle, and we need to know the battle plan.

But thank the Lord that we do not go forward blindly, but we can be prepared." You know, in every war, there is a war strategy.

And I'm thankful that in Revelation and the books of the Bible that also give us insight into Revelation, we can understand the devil's war strategy.

Isn't that what every war general would want?

And so we're going to look at the object of Satan's attack this morning, both for non-Christians but also for Christians and Seventh-day Adventists.

And so here we have Satan's 2 strategies for non-Christians.

Strategy number 1, war, conflict, and strife as a strategy for deception.

Matthew 24, verse 7, we read, For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and there will be famine and pestilence and earthquake in various places.

Now friends, wars happen not simply because political powers are in conflict.

Wars happen because the devil wants them to happen.

In Great Controversy 589, we read this, Satan delights in war, for it excites the worst passions of the soul, and then sweeps into eternity its victims steeped in vice and blood.

It is his object, the devil's object, to incite the nations to war against 1 another, for he can thus divert the minds of the people from the work of preparation to stand in the day of God." Isn't that an insightful quote?

It's the devil that incites war to distract us, To bring out the worst passions in us.

By the way, a little aside, some Seventh-day Adventists believe that when they sign up for the military, they automatically will get their Sabbath off, and they won't have to bear arms.

And when you're not in a time of draft, then you forfeit.

Shaken or Sealed

We've been going through a series called Hope in These Last Days.

We're going to continue with a piece today called Shaken or Sealed.

Einstein was traveling from Princeton on a train when the conductor came through, punching cards, click, click, click, click, click, click, click, getting everybody's tickets, click, click, click.

Got to Albert Einstein, and he did 1 of these.

And you're padding every pocket that you know, and you check again, and it's coming up short, and he just couldn't find it.

And the conductor says, don't worry, I know exactly who you are.

In fact, how could you not know who Albert Einstein was, right?

We're not worried about it, so it's okay.

And he kept going, click, click, click, click, click, click.

And the conductor looked back and saw Albert Einstein back in his seat on hands and knees trying to find desperately the ticket in anywhere it could possibly be.

And the conductor came back, he said, Albert Einstein, please don't worry about it, I trust you, it'll be okay.

And he says, well I appreciate that you know who I am, but the problem is, I don't know where I'm going.

Suppose we as a church are on a train, do we know where we're going?

Because where we're going has every, it impacts drastically and affects what we do, doesn't it?

If something's gonna happen to the train that we're on, we're gonna get off, or we're gonna walk, or we're gonna find some other transportation.

Or is it in fact going to get to the destination?

Sometimes the pilot comes on the airplane, he tells you exactly what he's going to do.

He's going to take it up to 50, 000 and then I'm going to take a left to Chicago and at the end of it all you don't really care as long as you end up where it says on the ticket, right?

You're not knocking on his cockpit door saying I'm eating the peanuts now.

I'm not eating them all now because that's a big bag.

No, as long as you get there where it says on the ticket.

But you know there's thoughts that circulate around in the Adventist church that the church is not going to get there, it's not going to make it through, it will splinter up, it will have some head-on collision, there will be fallout, there will be a remnant of the remnant that comes forth.

Does spirit prophecy in the Bible support this remnant of the remnant?

Because there are really 2 methods that we find in scripture that God uses to purify his church.

And so we're here, we've looked at the coming crisis, We've looked at revival, genuine or counterfeit.

Now we're at shaken or sealed is our piece today.

And then we'll look at a few of these other pieces in the coming weeks.

We're going to turn to Hebrews in a moment.

You can go ahead and turn there, but we see a method over and over in scripture that God calls out his faithful, his remnant.

You might think of Abraham, he was called out from the idolaters of his day as a friend of God.

We think of the nation of Israel being called out, if you will, of Egypt.

When we get to the New Testament, the word for church is ekklesia.

So it's another calling out, if you will, out of Judaism.

By the time time continues to go on though you still have this influence of pagan practices and Sunday worship and human ordinances and so on and so you have the Reformers again another calling out if you will and that's what we have Luther and Wycliffe and Hus and Jerome and Calvin.

And then God calls out Bible students out of Protestantism during the Advent movement.

Whenever the corporate body at large drifts away, God calls out, he calls out, he calls out of the body a new faithful group.

But we will find in this passage that God has a different means and a different method at end time, rather than calling out, he does something different.

Because if you stop and think about it, if there was a group called out of Adventism and if time would last, they eventually would apostatize and become corrupt and so he'd have to call out again and call out again and so at end time he does something different and we read about it here in Hebrews chapter 12 verse 25 and 26 it says See that you do not refuse him who speaks.

For if they do not escape who refused him who spoke on earth, how much more shall we not escape if we turn away from him who speaks from heaven, whose voice then shook the earth?

Well at Sinai when he gave the 10 Commandment law.

So this is talking about the law when the voice of God shook the earth.

And then verse 26 continuing on, but now he has promised saying, yet once more, I shake not only the earth, but also heaven.

So at Sinai, God shook the earth when he spoke and wrote the 10 commandments to Israel on tables of stone.

It was at that time that worldly Israel was brought to the test of obedience to the law of God.

And when Moses came off the mountain, they were dancing around the golden calf.

And so it was a test between what God had said and what they did.

A test between obedience and disobedience.

But then in verse 27 it says, Now this yet once more indicates the removal of those things that are being shaken as of things that are made.

That the things which cannot be shaken do what?

Series

Preparing For the End Times

Close of Probation and the 7 Last Plagues

Transcript

Parent Series

Sponsor

Recorded

Unlocking Prophecy

12- The Certain, Unavoidable Identity of the Antichrist

1h 8m

You’re Being Conditioned for a Lie

31m

Hebrews 11- Faith

21 The Faith of David

45m

When You Don’t Understand

57m

Going the Distance

8. Finishing Strong

50m

GYC SE 2011 Seminar: Relationships

Digging Out the Spiritual Roots of Depression and Anxiety

49m

Encounters With Jesus

Jesus’ Encounter with the Rich Young Ruler

42m

Morning Devotional

The Faithfulness of God

23m

Last Day Events

Armageddon and the Seven Last Plagues

1h 5m

Antichrist: The One You've Never Known

Antichrist, Episode 5: More

25m

Faith on Fire

30m

Breakout Session B

The Last Attack

56m

Sound Doctrine