Participants: David Down
Series Code: DUTP
Program Code: DUTP000006
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00:01 Jesus Christ promise to return to this earth.
00:03 So, let's read what it says in John Chapter 14, 00:06 Verses 1 to 3. Let not your heart be troubled, 00:11 you believe in God, believe also in me. 00:14 In my fathers house are many mansions; 00:17 if it were not so, I would have told you. 00:19 I go to prepare a place for you. 00:22 And if I go and prepare a place for you, 00:24 I will come again, and receive you unto myself; 00:28 that where I am, there you maybe also. 00:31 We'll read too in Acts Chapter 1, Verse 11. 00:35 This same Jesus, who was taken up from you into 00:37 heaven will shall come in like manner 00:40 as you saw him go into heaven. 00:43 Well, that's a great promise, 00:45 but many are going to be unprepared. 00:47 The best illustration we've really of what 00:50 Jesus was talking about happened in 79 AD 00:54 in the town of Pompeii in Italy. 00:57 And, that's why the title of today's program 01:00 is The Doom of Pompeii. 01:41 Well, Pompeii was a truly magnificent Roman city. 01:46 Of course it's become pretty well over ground 01:48 with weeds. It's a long time since it was excavated, 01:50 you see many of these places, 01:52 but Pompeii was just 200 kilometers from Roman 01:56 and to this place came the affluent 02:00 and wealthy Roman nobles. 02:02 Well, pave straights, beautiful shops 02:05 stuck with all the lightest commodities 02:07 and this is where the Roman's could come 02:09 and have the time of their lives. 02:56 And, you may be sure that the Romans have 02:59 the latest model chariots. 03:00 You can see lot of marks here where they went 03:03 along the roads. And, there were places too, 03:06 where the pedestrians could step over, 03:08 so that they wouldn't get their feet wet. 03:24 But of course with all these the Romans 03:25 did not neglect their Gods. 03:27 And, so there were temples here in Pompeii including 03:30 this temple to Apollo. 03:33 But all this came to an abrupt end. 03:36 Life was going on as usual until one day in AD 79, 03:42 when an ominous rumble came from the mountain 03:45 and smoke began to pull it down the side. 04:14 People panic some jumped into their church 04:16 and galloped away. 04:23 And this rain down to the seashore 04:25 and got on the ships. 04:29 Other state behind filleting 04:31 or just hoping that don't go away. 04:38 But it didn't, 04:42 a tide of poisonous gas poured down the side of 04:45 the mountain into the houses 04:47 and people were asphyxiated, 04:49 died in agony, contorted. 04:51 Not only the human beings, but also the animals, 04:54 dogs, and other creatures were asphyxiated 04:57 and died in agony. 05:07 I think all of this has a message for us today. 05:11 I think it's a solemn warning that the end of 05:14 the world is coming. 05:16 And I think we should take note of it. In Matthew 24, 05:20 Jesus Christ said, in Verse 37. 05:24 As the days of Noe were, so also will be the 05:28 coming of the Son of Man. 05:29 For as in the days before the flood though eating, 05:32 drinking, marrying and giving in marriage 05:34 until the day that Noe end at the ark and did not know, 05:38 until the flood came and took them all away. 05:40 So, also well the coming of the son of man 05:43 they unexpectedly. Just as unexpected 05:47 as was the Doom of Pompeii. 05:50 And, so Jesus Christ says, in Verse 42. 05:54 Watch therefore for you do not know 05:58 what hour your Lord is coming? 06:00 Now, we didn't know the exact hour, 06:02 we don't know the exact date, 06:04 but I will tell you what we can know. 06:07 In Verse 32, Jesus said, 06:10 "Now learn this parable from the fig tree; 06:13 When his branch has already become tender, 06:15 and put forth leaves, you know that summer is near". 06:18 So, you also when you see all these things 06:23 know that it is near, at the very doors. 06:27 So, we don't know the exact hour. 06:28 We don't know the exact date. 06:31 But we should know when the end of the world is near. 06:36 And, how can we know. 06:39 I think we will find the answer in Jerusalem. 06:55 On standing outside the Western wall, 06:58 which was part of the world that one surrounded 07:01 the enclosure in which the temple stood 07:03 in the day of Jesus Christ. 07:05 It is a beautiful temple 07:06 and a very strong wall around it. 07:09 And, so it was here that the disciples came to Jesus 07:12 as recorded in Matthew 24. 07:14 As Jesus went out and departed from the temple, 07:16 his disciples came to him to show him the buildings 07:19 of the temple. And Jesus said to them, 07:21 do you not see all these things? 07:24 Assuredly, I say to you, not one stone shall be lift 07:28 here upon another that show not be throne down. 07:32 The disciples must have been absolutely 07:34 staggered at this statement not one stone 07:38 at the beautiful temple and it was God's temple 07:41 surely God wouldn't allow the temple to be destroyed, 07:44 but absolutely fun the staggered Jesus statement, 07:47 but it all happened. In the year 70 AD, 07:51 the Roman General Titus came here and 07:54 be seized the city, terrible scenes of 07:56 suffering followed and finally the city was 07:59 conquered and the whole city was destroyed 08:03 and burned put up in the flames. 08:05 If you go to Rome, there was an arch 08:08 that Titus left their and on the only inside of 08:10 that arch you see some men carrying the seven golden 08:14 candle sticks that have taken out of this temple 08:16 as a trophy. Some of these stones were 08:19 ending up to eight meters in length enormous stones 08:23 and the height of the temple wall. 08:25 Well, the archaeologies have dug down some 08:28 20 meters below the level of the ground, 08:31 as you see at the present time. 08:33 And, so this was a terrible thing that 08:36 happened as far as the disciples was concerned 08:39 and naturally they were completely dumb 08:41 founded wanted no more about it. 08:45 Jesus went on to say, in Verse 12, 08:48 And because lawlessness will abound, 08:51 the love of many will grow cold. 08:54 We are living in the lawless world today 08:56 and if you don't realize that, 08:58 you just pick up a newspaper or 08:59 tune it to your TV news. 09:02 This is a very lawless world. 09:04 And, Paul gave a run down on the sort of thing 09:08 we can expect in second Timothy Chapter 3, 09:11 and in Verse 1. But now this that in 09:15 the last days paralyse times will come. 09:19 It's dangerous living today you know. 09:21 For men will be lovers of themselves, 09:23 lovers of money, boasters, proud, 09:26 blaspheme, disobedient to parents, 09:28 without self control, brutal, despises of good, 09:32 lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God. 09:36 That's what we find today lovers of money, 09:38 lovers of pleasure, mad fuel of excitement, 09:42 you know, in the days of our grandparents 09:43 they just went out off to the local dance for 09:46 once in a month and that was their pleasure. 09:48 Today, people wanted every night of the week, 09:50 mad whelming pleasure, putting pleasure before God. 09:54 It also says here disobedience to parents 09:57 ever heard of youthful delinquency, 10:02 we live in an age when children just don't listen 10:05 to their parents anymore. So, it's quite obvious that 10:10 this is the world we are living in today, 10:12 and Paul describes it's the last days. 10:16 And, Jesus goes on to say and this gospel of the 10:19 kingdom will be preached in all the world for a 10:22 witness to all nations and then will the end come. 10:26 So, God wants everyone to have a chance 10:28 to know that Christ is coming. 10:31 Have you stopped to think just how extensively 10:34 the gospel has been preaching all the world 10:36 since 200 years ago. Nobody ever thought of 10:39 going anyway. Except in their own country 10:42 and then the foreign mission program 10:43 started and look at Christians missions that 10:46 are going all over the world today, 10:47 it's dramatic. And I will tell you 10:49 what's helping it too. There was another prophecy 10:52 very relevant to this and that's in Daniel 12 10:54 and in Verse 4, where the angel said, 10:57 you Daniel shut up the words and seal the book 11:00 until the time of the end. 11:03 Many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall increase. 11:06 What would the dramatic amount of knowledge 11:09 we've today. How it proliferated 11:12 all the techniques, all the technology 11:15 it is just incredible, it states mind bogging 11:17 all the things that we know today 11:19 that we didn't know 50 years ago, 11:21 even 10 years ago. And, so this increase of 11:24 knowledge and the proliferation of the 11:27 media is enabling the gospel 11:30 and the knowledge of Christ coming to be 11:32 preached all over the world. 11:33 And of course the running to and fro helps. 11:36 You see, today the roads are filled with vehicles, 11:40 the skies are filled with jets winding over the head 11:44 and men have learned to go to the moon in their rockets. 11:47 All these things that happening today, 11:49 but this is a great help to the preaching of the gospel. 11:53 The missionary can go to places that otherwise 11:55 would not have been able to go to before. 11:58 And, so these look to be the last days 12:01 of this world's history. Well, what is Jesus say 12:04 here in Matthew Chapter 24 and in Verse 32? 12:08 "Now learn this parable from the fig tree: 12:11 when its branches already become tender 12:14 and puts forth leaves, you know that summer is near 12:17 " There are fig trees on this amount of all leaves 12:19 and when you see the leaves coming, 12:20 you know, that summer is on the way. 12:22 Show you also, when you see all these things know 12:26 that it is near at the very doors and some people say, 12:30 oh! Yes, we've heard these prophecies before. 12:32 The world is still going on, 12:33 could go on for another thousand years, 12:35 but listen when it's at the very doors, 12:38 I can't see a thousand years in there, 12:40 I can't even see a hundred years. 12:41 And, who knows just how soon the last great 12:44 dramatic event of this world's 12:46 history could take place. 12:48 And, so Jesus tells us to be ready and prepare 12:53 for his coming. Now, do you feel perhaps 12:56 little uneasy about this? Do you feel perhaps that 13:00 you're not quite ready? What can you do? 13:03 An incident took place down at Jericho that 13:05 2000 years ago that I think throw some 13:09 helpful light on this. 13:20 I don't know how Hare the great who filled 13:23 all the babies in Bethlehem would feel about this, 13:26 but I'm actually standing on top of the ruins of 13:28 one of his Jericho palaces. 13:31 Actually there were three Jericho's. 13:33 Away over their on the distance is the city 13:37 that was conquered by Joshua 13:39 and that today is just a deserted ruins. 13:45 And, then over in this direction here 13:47 is the modern Arab settlement. 13:57 But down here in the valley is the city that was 14:01 occupied in Roman times in other words 14:04 at the time Jesus Christ. Now, way over there to 14:06 the left was the western gate, 14:09 where the road led up to Jerusalem and then 14:11 you come down, you can see some residential 14:13 quarters there and then in the foreground here is 14:17 a beautiful palace, another palace that Hare had. 14:19 It was a lovely pool of water there and then way 14:22 over there on the right was the entrance gate. 14:25 And this city must have been adorned with palm trees 14:28 and date palms, sycamore trees 14:30 it must have been a very beautiful city. 14:35 Well, it was in this Jericho that a very interesting 14:37 incident is recorded in the New Testament. 14:40 You see, Jesus Christ came through 14:42 this Roman Jericho on his way up to Jerusalem 14:45 for the last time. And as he entered the city 14:48 you might be sure lot of people came out to see 14:50 the great teacher and Hiala. 14:53 And as he passed through, he no doubt heal the sick. 14:57 And then he finally reached that gate up 14:59 at the other end there. And, everyone was anxious 15:02 to see him including a little man called Zacchaeus. 15:07 Now, he was one of these despites text gatherers 15:10 and I think he was gonna make room for him and 15:12 being a small stature he couldn't see 15:14 over the heads of the crowd. 15:16 So, he decided that he would run ahead 15:20 of Jesus Christ and climb up a sycamore tree 15:23 and as Christ went underneath he would be 15:25 able to look down and get a good look at them. 15:28 And, that's what he did? And, can you imagine his 15:31 astonishment as the crowd went by Jesus Christ 15:34 looked up and he said, Zacchaeus come down 15:37 out of that tree, I want to go and dine at 15:40 your place tonight and how, I guarantee, 15:42 he just about fell out of the tree. 15:45 And of course you know, how the Pharisees are, 15:47 they said, he is going to dine with a man 15:50 that is a sinner and that's when Jesus Christ 15:54 made a statement that it's a very wonderful 15:56 thing, I think over here in Luke 19 and in Verse 10. 16:00 He said the son of man has come to seek 16:03 and to save that which was lost. 16:07 Have you ever felt to just want good enough to 16:10 live forever in God's kingdom. 16:12 You won't ready to meet Christ when he comes. 16:14 Well, Jesus Christ came to seek and save that 16:17 which was lost that which was not good enough. 16:20 In fact, their here in Isaiah 118 it says, 16:22 come down and let us reason together said 16:24 the Lord thou your sins are like scarlet they 16:27 shall be as white as snow. 16:29 Your sins may be like scarlet. 16:32 But if you just believe in Jesus Christ 16:35 you will stand in front of him and you will just 16:36 look like that purest whitest snow, 16:39 you can't be ready to make Jesus Christ when he comes, 16:42 if you just believe in him as your savior. 16:46 Personally, I shall welcome the second 16:48 coming of Christ. I think this whole world 16:51 with all its pain and hunger and human suffering 16:55 has gone on long enough, 16:57 but that does lead us to a number of questions. 17:00 What will the immortal life be like? 17:03 Will we eat there? Will we recognize each other? 17:07 And what will we do with all that spare time. 17:10 To answer to these questions we take 17:12 you in our next program to the Acropolis in Athens. 17:16 The ruins are spectacular and I'm sure you will find 17:19 it's a really interesting program. |
Revised 2014-12-17