ANNOUNCER: It has
stood the test of time.
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God's book: the Bible, still
relevant in today's complex
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world. It Is Written
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Sharing the messages
of hope around the world.
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>>Chris: In 1962 David Bernays
and Charles Sawyer were on a
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mountain expedition
investigating the Cordillera
Blanco mountain range in Peru.
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Along their journey, they
decided to investigate glacier
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"511." Their findings were
absolutely frightening. They saw
that an enormous piece of the
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rock bed had been compromised
by the glacier and just the
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slightest disturbance would
release an avalanche that would
spell certain doom for the
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town of Yungay in the
valley below. Equipped with this
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ominous warning, the men
contacted the authorities and
newspaper Instead of being
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grateful for the warning,
Bernays and Sawyer were thrown
into jail and threatened
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because of the hysteria they
might cause. They were told to
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recant their story or face
lengthy prison sentences. The
men were able to escape the
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country and the authorities were
able to suppress any warnings
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that may have leaked. Everything
went back to normal and for
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several years nothing happened.
However, on May 31, 1970,
Bernays and Sawyer's worst
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fears became reality. An
undersea earthquake, named the
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Ancash earthquake, tipped the
scale at 7.9-8 on the Richter
scale. The short quake set off a
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most devastating turn of events.
The movement of the earth shook
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loose the damage to the rock bed
of the mountain sending a
colossal avalanche, which
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included an 800 meter section of
glacier down the mountain. There
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was so much debris that it
buried the entire city of
Yungay, killing 20,000 people
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instantly. It was a warning that
was ignored. The complacency and
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suppression of the truth by the
authorities led to tragedy. We
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are right now living in a time
of warning. Jesus warned us
almost 2000 years ago that
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this world was going to an end.
He gave signs to watch for that
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we might know how soon He is
coming. In Matthew 24 Jesus gave
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us signs of His return to give
hope to this helpless planet.
Jesus taught that there
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would be signs in the religious
world, the political world, the
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natural world and in the world
of soety. Last week we reviewed
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the signs we are seeing
fulfilled in the religious
world. We see a rise in false
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teachings and a general pulling
away from Biblical truth. We
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also studied the increasing
political tensions and wars in
our world today, knowing that
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those signs in the political
world point again to the coming
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of Jesus, but there are other
signs in the political world.
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There has been a dramatic rise
in the potential for world
destruction. The world's
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ability to destroy itself
is sobering. Revelation 11:18
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cautions, Humanity's
technological advances to have
weapons that can destroy the
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earth is much greater than it
ever has been. Just think of the
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countries with the known
capacity for nuclear weapons:
the United States, Russia,
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United Kingdom, France and
Japan. They have more nuclear
weapons on hand to destroy
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the earth many times over. And
countries like India, Pakistan,
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North Korea, Israel and Iran are
all suspected, by some, to be
capable of producing some
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type of nuclear weapon as well.
Walter Lippman's portentous
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words are a living reality,
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What hope is there for this
helplessly hopeless planet? Only
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the return of Jesus. He will
bring all of this turmoil and
suspicion to an end.
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William Ripley, a journalist
who covered the affects of the
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atomic bomb broadcast these
almost prophetic words as he
stood in the midst of the
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aftermath of Hiroshima,
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2000 years ago, Jesus shared
today's prevailing modern mind
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set when He spoke
these words in Luke 21:26,
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People wonder today, What do
things things mean for me? What
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does this mean for my family? Is
there any meaning at all? What
hope do I have for today?
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Is there any hope for tomorrow?
Jesus also warned that there
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would be signs in the
natural world, in Matthew 24:7,
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The study of things happening
on and to this earth shows an
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increasing intensity of natural
disasters. The increasing
frequency of tornados,
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earthquakes, hurricanes, floods
and fires point to this planet
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being in distress. Sadly,
Famines are happening all over
this earth. While we in
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the west are rarely plagued with
famine, many of us will never
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forget the tragic pictures of
Ethiopian small children and
youth emaciated and
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hungry. The United Nations
reports that there are over 35
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nations experiencing food
shortage. One-sixth of the
world's population is
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undernourished. 10,000 people
per day . over 3.5 million
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people year die of starvation.
In 2012, The Associated Press
reported that 80 percent of the
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people living in the conflict
of the Sudan were eating only 1
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meager meal per day.
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But famine wasn't the only sign
Jesus gave, He also said that
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there would be pestilences. What
is a pestilence? A pestilence is
a strange disease that
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afflicts human beings, crops and
the environment. In addition, a
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pestilence can be new diseases
that spring up around the world.
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Just think of some of those new
diseases that were unheard of in
previous generations: Lyme
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disease, Marrburg Virus,
HIV-AIDS, Mad Cow Disease, the
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Bird Flu, and H1N1 just to name
a few. Many medical experts
believe that our current
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antibiotics will no longer
be able to provide a defense
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against the strongest pathogens.
Diseases of the plant life have
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grown increasingly complex to
deal with. The loss of soil has
weakened plants natural
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resistance to pests and disease.
Resistance to pesticides and
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herbicides grows stronger and at
times requires more of these
chemicals potentially
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causing further damage to the
environment. Some have estimated
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that 50-120,000 premature deaths
are caused each year by the 2.4
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billion pounds of toxic
pollutants released into the
atmosphere. In 1992 1700
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scientists met together and
wrote a document entitled, "A
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warning to humanity".
They said the following,
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Did you hear those words? Human
beings and the natural world are
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on a collision course. In
almost prophetic language, these
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scientists confirm what Jesus
predicted would be a sign of His
soon return.They went on to
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say,
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While these signs can cause
great fear and distress, Jesus
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warned that they would happen.
All of these events should draw
us nearer and nearer
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to Jesus and rely on
him in this time of trouble.
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In Matthew 24:7, He also
cautioned that we would see
earthquakes in various
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places. The US geological survey
estimates that, worldwide, there
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are on average more than 40
earthquakes per day. That is
more than 14,000 per
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year. Luke 21:11 echoes
the words of Jesus in Mathew 24
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where it is recorded,
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The total chaos in the natural
world has led many to wonder
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what is going to happen to this
planet of ours. Describing this
state of uncertainty and
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anxiety, Luke 21:26 reveals,
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Is there any hope for the
future?Is there any hope for
today? Our only hope
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is in Jesus Christ. The natural
world continues to experience
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all types of turmoil . Tsunamis
seem to be on the rise and
occurring in various
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places such as Japan, Indonesia,
Sumatra, and Turkey. Many
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remember the tragic Christmas
Eve Asian Tsunami of 2004 in
which an estimated 230,000
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people died. This tsunami
was set off by a 9.1 magnitude
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earthquake under the ocean which
produced the destructive waves.
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Although in some parts of the
world, the 2013 hurricane season
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was one of the least active
in decades, hurricanes have in
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recent years been increasing in
numbers and intensity. The 2005
Atlantic hurricane season,
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with the most named storms
in history, culminated with
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Hurricane Katrina. The central
Gulf states of the United States
were impacted by this storm
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leaving behind over 100 billion
dollars in damage It had a 250
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billion dollar economic impact.
Romans 8:22 reflects this by
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saying, These natural phenomena
are like the labor pains of a
woman, revealing that
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something is about to happen.
Jesus has told us that, that
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something, is His soon coming.
Jesus also taught that there
would be signs in the
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world of society. In
Matthew 24:37-38, He says,
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In Noah's day, there was rampant
moral decay in the land. Genesis
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chapter 6 verses 5 and 6 tell us
what it was like in Noah's day,
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Man had reached a point of such
degradation that God was
actually sorry He had
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made mankind. Mankind was wicked
to the very core. Genesis 6
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verses 11 and 12
further emphasize,
00:14:51.93\00:14:54.00
Corruption, evil, and wickedness
were the words used to describe
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the time of Noah. Jesus said
that it would be the same way on
the earth just prior to
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His coming.
00:15:21.93\00:15:24.16
Over the last several decades
some of the greatest areas of
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moral decay in society has been
the break-up of the family unit,
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and complacent attitudes toward
spiritual things and moral
living. Over the last 25 years,
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the births of babies to unwed
mothers has increased almost 3
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fold in Canada. Depending on
what part of the world you are
00:15:45.06\00:15:50.36
in, 50-75% of all marriages end
in divorce Worldwide crime and
violence are on the rise
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in intensity and in numbers.
Author Scott Christiansen speaks
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of the problem of densification.
Densification is the general
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movement to city living. It is
the urbanization of society. As
humanity moves closer
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into urban centers, it places
more of the population in a
00:16:13.63\00:16:18.50
smaller area. This densification
has led to many problems, but
one of the greatest is
00:16:18.50\00:16:24.73
an increase of crime and
violence. The World Report on
00:16:24.73\00:16:30.53
violence and health states,
00:16:30.53\00:16:32.60
Jesus warned, " And because
lawlessness will abound, the
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love of many will grow cold."
This lawlessness and violence in
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society has many contributing
factors, but, no doubt, many
experts will point to the
00:17:05.03\00:17:10.60
increase of violence in the
media as a major factor. The
statistics are astounding.
00:17:10.60\00:17:16.76
On average children watch 3
hours of television per day. By
00:17:16.76\00:17:23.36
the age 12, through media,
they've witnessed 14,000
murders. In addition there has
00:17:23.36\00:17:29.53
been a large increase in the
allowable foul language and
sexual content in the
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media. It is no wonder that
there has been such moral decay.
00:17:34.53\00:17:41.50
Economic uncertainty is another
sign in the world of society
00:17:42.86\00:17:48.10
James 5 sums up our
situation well in verses 1-3,
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The banking crisis and collapse
of major financial institutions
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brought to the forefront the
greed that exists in our day. As
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one area in our world crumbles
it often has a domino effect on
other areas as well,
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creating a more catastrophic
situation. The Canadian Press
00:18:34.86\00:18:39.80
released an article entitled,
"Bank of Canada: Ukraine
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tensions adding to
economic uncertainty".
00:18:44.80\00:18:47.06
Friend the uncertainty is real.
The signs that Jesus gave almost
00:19:03.26\00:19:08.23
2000 years ago are being
fulfilled with increasing
intensity each day. We can see
00:19:08.23\00:19:14.23
the signs in the religious world
being fulfilled, the signs in
the political world are
00:19:14.23\00:19:19.26
all there, the natural world
is in turmoil, and society is in
00:19:19.26\00:19:25.20
total decay. All the signs are
pointing to the imminent return
of Christ. However, one of
00:19:25.20\00:19:30.83
the most powerful signs of
the return of Jesus is found in
00:19:30.83\00:19:41.63
Matthew 24:14, The gospel going
to all the world is one of the
most definitive signs that
00:19:52.70\00:19:56.73
Jesus is coming soon.
00:19:56.73\00:19:59.30
All around the world, people
are more receptive to the gospel
00:20:00.86\00:20:04.43
than ever before. Radio,
television and the Internet have
opened territories that
00:20:04.43\00:20:09.46
couldn't be entered just a
few years ago. Today you can see
00:20:09.46\00:20:13.86
that God is on the move.
Thousands are being baptized
each day. While there is a
00:20:13.86\00:20:18.26
tremendous amount of work still
to do, things are happening.
Some good friends of mine
00:20:18.26\00:20:22.96
led out in Bible prophecy
lectures that took place in
00:20:22.96\00:20:27.23
Angola, over 8,000 people were
baptized. Other friends have
been involved in outreach in
00:20:27.23\00:20:31.83
India where over the course
of 10 years 20,000 people have
00:20:31.83\00:20:36.80
become baptized followers of
Jesus. Even in the western
world, where society has
00:20:36.80\00:20:42.56
become disinterested in the
church, places like New York and
00:20:42.56\00:20:46.10
Chicago have seen explosive
growth as the gospel is shared.
God is on the move. His coming
00:20:46.10\00:20:52.66
is very near. Are you watching?
Will you be ready? It could be
00:20:52.66\00:20:59.70
that the signs of the times that
Jesus predicted that would
happen globally are
00:20:59.70\00:21:04.36
happening to you in a personal
way. Maybe in your life, right
00:21:04.36\00:21:09.36
now you are searching for truth.
Maybe you wonder if there even
is any truth. Maybe
00:21:09.36\00:21:15.90
you have found it difficult to
believe in the God you have been
00:21:15.90\00:21:19.46
taught or have heard about. You
owe it to yourself to come to
00:21:19.46\00:21:23.53
the Bible and discover its
truths. You can learn for
yourself, first hand, the
00:21:23.53\00:21:28.26
truth about a loving God and
His plan to give you an abundant
00:21:28.26\00:21:32.43
life, both now and eternally.
Maybe you are experiencing
political tension and war in
00:21:32.43\00:21:38.86
your family. I'm not talking
about differences in political
00:21:38.86\00:21:43.43
parties but the wars and
clashing of ideals that families
experience, particularly
00:21:43.43\00:21:47.76
between the parents and
children. Where the various
00:21:47.76\00:21:51.63
parties argue for their
particular agendas and words are
used like knives to cut and
00:21:51.63\00:21:55.83
sometimes kill the ones we
should love and care about the
most. Do others see
00:21:55.83\00:22:00.63
our families as being "perfect"
yet within the walls of our
00:22:00.63\00:22:04.43
homes, there is violence, abuse,
neglect? God has something so
much better in store
00:22:04.43\00:22:09.50
for you. In a prophecy
describing the days before Jesus
00:22:09.50\00:22:14.76
returns, Malachi 4:5,6 indicates
that there will be a call for
people to repent and that the
00:22:14.76\00:22:20.56
heart of the fathers will be
turned toward the children and
00:22:20.56\00:22:25.93
the heart of the children to
their fathers. Do want that for
00:22:25.93\00:22:30.10
your family? Jesus promises that
He can begin that work in your
family today. Maybe you see
00:22:30.10\00:22:35.96
signs in your life from the
natural world. Maybe you are
00:22:35.96\00:22:39.30
going through something right
now that is out of your control.
Suffering from a physical
00:22:39.30\00:22:44.06
illness, maybe from physical
hunger, maybe you feel like
00:22:44.06\00:22:50.00
there is a hurricane over your
head and it is leaving in its
path untold damage to you
00:22:50.00\00:22:56.40
physically, mentally. Jesus
invites you to look to Him who
00:22:56.40\00:23:03.20
can say to the storms of
your life, "Peace, be still."
00:23:03.20\00:23:07.66
The moral decay of society
is prevalent because of what is
00:23:09.80\00:23:14.10
happening in the lives of
individuals. If you are someone
who has witnessed either
00:23:14.10\00:23:18.73
personally or through the media,
acts of violence and crime, if
00:23:18.73\00:23:22.63
you have succumbed to societal
pressures to do what feels right
00:23:22.63\00:23:27.36
only to find out that it doesn't
always end up right, if what you
have been watching and
00:23:27.36\00:23:32.06
participating in has led
you in circles, or driven you to
00:23:32.06\00:23:37.76
despair, I invite you today to
accept the invitation of Jesus
to look unto Him who is the
00:23:37.76\00:23:42.43
author and finisher of our
faith, to look unto Him who has
00:23:42.43\00:23:47.46
promised to give you a future
and a hope. You could be
experiencing economic
00:23:47.46\00:23:51.90
uncertainty in your life today,
struggling just to make ends
meet. Jesus again has
00:23:51.90\00:23:56.66
the answer by asking us today
to seek Him first and in 1 Peter
00:23:56.66\00:24:03.43
5:7 He invites you to "cast all
your care upon Him for He cares
for you." In Matthew
00:24:03.43\00:24:10.63
24 the last sign that Jesus
talks about is the gospel going
00:24:10.63\00:24:16.30
to all the world. Today, the
gospel is not just going to all
the world, but it has come
00:24:16.30\00:24:21.80
to you personally. Today you
have seen the signs in world
around you, you have
00:24:21.80\00:24:27.83
seen the signs in your own life,
and today you have the
opportunity to heed
00:24:27.83\00:24:33.36
these warnings of Jesus. Maybe
you've been discouraged. Maybe
00:24:33.36\00:24:39.00
you have slipped in your
Christian walk. Maybe you've
00:24:39.00\00:24:44.40
never engaged in a personal walk
with Jesus. Why not take the
hand of Jesus and be encouraged
00:24:44.40\00:24:50.13
to watch and be ready today?
Maybe you're a faithful
Christian and needed this
00:24:50.13\00:24:56.53
encouragement to stay on the
course. Friends, no matter where
00:24:56.53\00:25:02.36
you are or who you are, Jesus
desires that we would watch and
be ready. Are you watching?
00:25:02.36\00:25:10.10
The signs are being fulfilled.
Why don't you today commit or
00:25:10.10\00:25:16.13
recommit yourself to following
Jesus all the way and watch to
00:25:16.13\00:25:22.33
the very end while we pray.
00:25:22.33\00:25:25.56
O heavenly Father, the signs of
the times are being experienced
00:25:26.10\00:25:30.20
globally. We see them with our
own eyes, we read about them. We
00:25:30.20\00:25:36.46
know your coming is soon. But
the signs of the times are
happening in our own
00:25:36.46\00:25:42.10
personal lives. We have been
affected and today we come to
00:25:42.10\00:25:48.36
you and we open up our heart and
we open up our arms and we say
Jesus please come and give us
00:25:48.36\00:25:56.90
the encouragement we need. Today
we give our lives to you Lord,
00:25:56.90\00:26:02.60
submit to you fully. Give us
the encouragement to continue to
00:26:02.60\00:26:09.56
watch and be ready until the
very end, we pray in Jesus name,
00:26:09.56\00:26:15.26
Amen. It Is Written Canada is
please to present
internationally acclaimed
00:26:35.23\00:26:38.16
Christian recording trio
"Selah" in 2 amazing concerts.
00:26:38.16\00:26:42.03
September 20 in
Surrey British Columbia
00:26:44.36\00:26:47.20
and October 11 in
Red Deer, Alberta.
00:26:47.20\00:26:50.06
For more information and to
purchase tickets log on to
ItIsWrittenCanada.ca
00:26:52.83\00:26:57.53
Or call 905-404-6510.
00:26:57.53\00:27:00.40
Friend we would like to offer
you the Discover Bible Lessons
00:27:02.36\00:27:06.20
to furthur your study on the
signs of Jesus' second coming
Right now, here is the
00:27:06.20\00:27:12.10
information you need
to get those lessons.
00:27:12.10\00:27:15.63
>>Chris: Thank you so much for
watching. I want to remind you
00:28:15.20\00:28:19.03
about our website,
ItIsWrittenCanada.ca There you
00:28:19.03\00:28:21.66
will find resources to help you
in your spiritual growth. I hope
to see you next week.
00:28:21.66\00:28:25.73
Until then remember, it is
written, man shall not live by
00:28:25.73\00:28:32.10
bread alone, but by every word
that proceeds from the mouth of
00:28:32.10\00:28:37.60
God. $$$$$$$$$$$$$
00:28:38.86\00:28:41.73