Participants: Pr. Stephen Bohr
Series Code: SMTF
Program Code: SMTF000010
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00:34 Shall we bow our heads for prayer?
00:37 Our Father and our God, we thank you so much 00:41 for the privilege of being Your children. 00:44 We thank you, Father, for Your word 00:47 which is a guidance book for Your people, 00:51 especially in these last days. 00:54 We ask, Father, that as we open the word 00:56 that You've given us, 00:58 that Your Holy Spirit will come and teach us. 01:01 Give us clarity of thought and give us willing hearts 01:06 to receive the seed of truth. 01:08 And we thank you, Father, 01:10 for hearing and answering our prayer. 01:12 For we ask it in the precious name of Jesus. Amen. 01:18 The title of our study today is "As a Thief in the Night." 01:24 And I would like to begin by reading a passage 01:27 that we find in the Gospel of Matthew 24:37-39. 01:35 Matthew 24:37-39. 01:42 "But as the days of Noah were, 01:46 so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. 01:50 For as in the days before the flood, 01:54 they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, 01:59 until the day that Noah entered the ark, 02:03 and did not know until the flood came 02:06 and took them all away, 02:09 so also will the coming of the Son of Man be." 02:13 Now there are two things that I want us to notice 02:16 about this passage as we begin our study. 02:19 Number one, in these verses, 02:22 Jesus is comparing two great events. 02:27 He's comparing what happened in the days of Noah, 02:31 with what is going to take place 02:33 in connection with His second coming. 02:37 So the first thing that I want us to notice is that is-- 02:40 there is a parallel between 02:41 the days of Noah and the end time. 02:46 The second thing that I want us to notice about this passage 02:49 is that there are four key points of time in these verses. 02:56 Four points of time. 02:59 Now I'm gonna mention what they are 03:01 and then we're going to take them one by one. 03:05 Let's go back to the passage again. 03:08 "But as the days of Noah were 03:10 so also will the coming of Son of Man be." 03:13 Now notice verse 38, "For as in the days before the flood." 03:19 That's the first point of time, before the flood comes. 03:21 "Before the flood they were eating and drinking, 03:25 marrying and giving in marriage." 03:28 Now comes the second point, 03:30 "Until the day that Noah entered the ark." 03:34 So you have the days before the flood, 03:37 you have the moment when Noah entered the ark, 03:41 and then I want you to notice verse 39. 03:44 "And they did not know until the flood came 03:49 and took them all away." 03:51 So there's a period during which they did not know something 03:56 until the flood came. 03:58 And, of course, we know that 03:59 that was the period of seven days 04:01 between the closing of the door 04:03 and when it actually began to rain. 04:06 So we have four key time periods here. 04:10 We have the days before the flood, 04:12 we have the moment of the closing of the door, 04:15 we have the seven days after the closing of the door, 04:18 and then we have the water that comes from above and below 04:23 and fills the earth. 04:25 Now as we begin, I would like us 04:27 to take these points of time one by one. 04:33 Let's begin with the days before the flood. 04:37 We all know from Genesis Chapter 6 04:40 that God gave the pre-flood race a period of 120 years to repent. 04:47 Let's read that in Genesis 6:3. 04:51 Genesis 6:3. 04:54 It says there, "And the Lord said, 04:58 'My Spirit shall not strive with man forever, 05:03 for he is indeed flesh, 05:05 yet his days shall be 120 years.'" 05:11 I want you to notice that the Spirit of God was striving 05:16 with those people before the door of the ark closed, 05:21 during those 120 years. 05:24 Not only was the Spirit working with them, 05:27 but we know from the New Testament 05:29 that Noah was preaching about the coming flood. 05:33 In fact, 2 Peter 2:5 tells us 05:36 that Noah was a preacher of righteousness. 05:40 And so basically, during this period, 05:43 you have the people outside the ark, 05:46 listening to the message of Noah that a flood is coming 05:50 and the message of Noah is accompanied by the striving 05:54 or by the power of the Holy Spirit 05:57 upon the pre-flood race. 06:02 Now it's interesting to notice a few things 06:04 about the message of Noah. 06:08 You know, it would have been absolutely ridiculous for Noah 06:13 to preach this message in the society that he lived in. 06:16 Let me explain the reason why. 06:19 We know from the Book of Genesis that at creation, 06:21 the planet was filled with water. 06:24 In other words, there was no dry land. 06:26 That's what we're told in Genesis 1:2. 06:29 We also know that on the second day of creation, 06:32 according to Genesis 1:7, 06:34 God took part of the water that covered the earth 06:37 and He put it above the earth and He took part of the water 06:40 and He placed it under the earth. 06:43 And, of course, the purpose for this was 06:46 the water above formed kind of a canopy. 06:49 And as a result, in the earth you had a uniform climate. 06:53 And the purpose of putting the water under the earth 06:56 was so that the earth could be watered 06:58 by an automatic sprinkler system. 07:02 It says in Genesis Chapter 2, 07:03 that at certain times during the day, 07:06 a mist came up from the earth to water the earth. 07:10 Now at the flood, God did not have to invent water. 07:14 At the flood, God simply took the water 07:18 that He had placed above, 07:19 and He took the water that He had placed below, 07:22 and He brought the water up and down, 07:24 and He filled the planet 07:26 like it was before the week of creation. 07:30 So it's very important to realize 07:32 that before the flood, there was no rain. 07:35 The earth was watered from below, not from above. 07:40 And so you can imagine Noah trying to get across 07:43 to that pre-flood race that a flood was going to come, 07:47 that water was going to fall from the heavens, 07:50 and water was going to come from below, 07:52 and the planet was going to be filled with water 07:55 as it was before creation week. 07:58 In fact, if I can use my imagination just a little bit. 08:03 I would like us to visit 08:05 the classrooms of the universities of the day. 08:10 You know, if you visited classes 08:13 of those who taught the natural sciences, 08:16 you would probably hear things such as this. 08:19 It has never rained before. 08:22 Everything has continued as from the beginning. 08:26 It would be unscientific for water to come from above. 08:31 Nobody has ever seen anything like that before. 08:36 Perhaps, if you visited the theology department 08:39 of the university, they would say, 08:41 "God loves the world too much to destroy 08:44 the world with a flood." 08:46 "Besides, Noah's truth does not necessarily mean 08:50 that it's the same truth for everybody else 08:53 because truth ultimately is relative." 08:58 I can imagine visiting the history department. 09:01 And the history professor saying, 09:03 "There is no historical record of any flood, of any such thing. 09:07 So why should we expect a flood now, 09:10 when it's never happened in the course of history?" 09:14 I can imagine what it must have been like 09:16 in the department of behavioral sciences. 09:19 "Noah is suffering from an imaginary mental delusion. 09:24 He is confusing reality and fantasy. 09:27 He is mentally deranged. He needs psychiatric care." 09:33 I can imagine what was probably being said 09:36 in the sociology department of the university. 09:39 "We must not allow a lunatic like Noah 09:42 to interrupt the stable order of society. 09:47 He has all of the characteristics of a cult 09:50 and we need to make sure 09:51 that he does not destabilize society." 09:55 I can imagine what must have been said 09:57 in the philosophy department. 09:59 "Noah is suffering because he has 10:02 an existential void in his life. 10:05 And what's truth for Noah 10:07 is not necessarily truth for everyone else." 10:11 Everybody was sure that it was impossible 10:14 for a flood to come. 10:16 And yet Noah under the power of the Holy Spirit 10:19 continued preaching that God was going to destroy 10:24 the world by a flood. 10:27 Now we reach the second point of time, 10:30 the closing of the door. 10:33 Notice Genesis 7:16. 10:36 Genesis 7:16. At this point the Holy Spirit ceases to strive 10:44 with that corrupt Antediluvian race. 10:48 The Holy Spirit has finished His work. 10:50 Noah has concluded his preaching. 10:53 And now the door of mercy is going to close. 10:58 It says there in Genesis 7:16, 11:01 "So those that entered male and female of all flesh 11:09 went in as God had commanded him 11:13 and the Lord shut him in." 11:18 So now the human race has been divided 11:22 into the saved and the lost. 11:25 The saved are inside. 11:28 The door has been shut and sealed by God. 11:32 The lost are outside. 11:34 Although, they don't know that they're lost. 11:38 Now let's go to our third point of time 11:40 which is very, very interesting. 11:43 You've probably noticed from the story in Genesis 11:46 that the rain did not begin to fall immediately 11:50 when the door closed. 11:52 This is very, very important because we're going to notice 11:56 that what happened before the flood is going to happen 11:59 at the close of the history of the world. 12:01 Jesus said this. 12:03 So you're going to have these same four stages of time 12:07 they were discussing from the Book of Genesis. 12:10 Now the third moment of time is, actually, the seven days 12:15 that Noah and his family spent in the ark 12:18 before it began to rain. 12:21 Let me ask you, do you think 12:22 that the faith of Noah and his family 12:25 was severely tested during this period? 12:28 Obviously, yes. 12:30 Why would God keep them in that ark 12:33 filled with animals for seven days? 12:36 Why didn't He send rain immediately? 12:39 I believe it's because God wanted to test their faith 12:43 and God also wanted to show something 12:45 that was going to happen in connection with the end of time. 12:50 Not only was the faith of Noah tested, 12:53 but also undoubtedly, every day that passed, 12:57 those who were outside became more and more hardened 13:02 and more daring against those who were in the ark. 13:06 They became more abusive 13:08 and they became more violent outside. 13:11 And Noah and his family inside, their faith is being tested. 13:17 Now the fourth moment of time is mentioned 13:20 in Genesis 7:11. 13:23 That's an easy text to remember 7:11. Genesis 7:11. 13:28 It's the moment when it actually began to rain. 13:32 It says there in verse 11 13:35 "In the six hundredth year of Noah's life, 13:39 in the second month, 13:41 the seventeenth day of the month, 13:44 on that day all the fountains of the great deep 13:49 were broken up and the windows of heaven were opened." 13:53 You see, God shut water 13:55 beyond the windows of heaven at creation 13:59 and He placed an abundance of water under the earth. 14:02 Those were the fountains of the great deep. 14:05 And the windows of heaven opened. 14:07 And once again, the planet was filled with water. 14:13 Now I want you to notice a very interesting 14:15 little expression that we find here 14:18 in Matthew 24:37-39. 14:23 I'm going to read the passage again 14:25 and then I'm going to dwell on this particular point. 14:28 It says there, "But as the days of Noah were, 14:31 so also will the coming of the Son of Man be." 14:36 Let me ask you, what coming is that referring to? 14:38 The coming of the Son of Man. 14:41 You know, most people, 14:42 when I ask them that question they say, 14:43 "Well, that's referring to the second coming of Jesus." 14:46 And what I tell them is, 14:48 that it does refer to the second coming of Jesus, 14:52 but it refers to two aspects having to do 14:55 with the coming of Jesus. 14:58 It has to do with the closing of the door, a probation. 15:03 And then also has to do with the second coming of Jesus. 15:08 In other words, the door of probation for the world 15:12 is going to close before Jesus actually comes. 15:17 Notice once again, "But as the days of Noah were, 15:19 so also will the coming of the Son of Man be." 15:22 So there's a parallel between then and the end. 15:26 Notice this, "For as in the days before the flood, 15:30 they were eating and drinking, 15:32 marrying and giving in marriage, 15:33 until the day that Noah entered the ark." 15:35 Let me ask you, is that going to be parallel 15:36 at the end of time also? 15:38 Yes, the two events are being made parallel. 15:40 The entering of the ark, 15:42 the closing of the door is parallel as well. 15:44 So it says, "The day that Noah entered the ark 15:46 and did not know--" What didn't they know? 15:50 They didn't know that they were what? 15:52 That they were lost until the flood came 15:54 and took them all away. 15:56 Are you seeing here that there is a closing of the door 15:58 and all cases are decided when the door closes? 16:01 Actually before the rain begins to fall. 16:04 So when Jesus says, 16:06 so will the coming of the Son of Man be, 16:08 it must mean that there's gonna be a closing of the door 16:11 before Jesus actually comes from heaven 16:15 and pours out from heaven 16:17 and from the earth not water, but what? 16:20 According to 2 Peter, Not water but fire. 16:25 In actual fact, Matthew 24:37-41 16:31 are actually illustrating Matthew 24:14 16:38 all the way to verse 36. 16:40 In other words, what I'm saying is that 16:42 Matthew 24:14-36 is illustrated in verses 37-39. 16:49 Now let me explain how this is 16:51 and I'll do it as quickly as I can. 16:55 Matthew 24:14 speaks about what? 16:59 It speaks about preaching the gospel and then what? 17:04 And then the end will come. 17:06 Let me ask you, is that what Noah did? 17:09 Did Noah preach the gospel? 17:10 Yes, he did. 17:12 So you notice here that we have the gospel preached 17:16 to all nations and then the end will come. 17:19 Noah preached the gospel and then the end came. 17:22 By the way, in Revelation 14:6 it says that, 17:24 "Before the end comes, 17:26 the gospel will go to every nation, 17:29 kindred, tongue, and people, 17:31 just like in the days of Noah." 17:34 Now you remember, also in Matthew Chapter 24 17:37 immediately after it speaks about 17:38 the preaching of the gospel, 17:39 you have the abomination of desolation. 17:42 You remember that in verse 15? 17:44 Does the abomination of desolation separate two groups? 17:48 We studied this before, absolutely. 17:51 There's one group that remains where? 17:54 In the city and they are the lost. 17:59 You have another group that flees 18:02 when they see the sign of the abomination of desolation, 18:05 and their life is what? 18:07 Their life is spared. 18:09 So you have one group destroyed 18:11 and the other group is destroyed, 18:14 and one is spared when they see 18:16 the abomination of desolation. 18:18 Let me ask you, before Jesus comes, 18:21 is there going to be a separating of God's people? 18:24 Yes. What will God's people receive? 18:27 They will receive the seal of God. 18:31 And what will the wicked receive? 18:33 They will receive the mark of the beast 18:36 which we've already shown 18:37 is parallel with the abomination of desolation. 18:41 Are you following me or not? 18:42 In other words, as the abomination of desolation 18:45 divided Jerusalem into two groups, 18:48 so in the same way at the end of time 18:51 there are going to be two groups. 18:53 Let me ask you, were there two groups 18:55 in the days of Noah when the door of probation closed 18:59 and the gospel was finished preaching? 19:02 Absolutely, yes. 19:04 Now what came immediately 19:06 after the abomination of desolation 19:09 and the separation of the righteous 19:11 from the unrighteous? 19:13 You actually have the great tribulation. 19:16 You remember this in Matthew Chapter 24? 19:18 Let me ask you, in the days of Noah, 19:21 after the door closed, 19:23 after the two groups had been separated, 19:25 do you have a period of tribulation 19:27 for Noah and his family in the ark? Absolutely. 19:31 Do the wicked become more and more daring? Yes. 19:34 Is the faith of Noah and his family tested? Absolutely. 19:39 Let me ask you, at the end of time 19:41 after the mark of the beast is given 19:43 and the seal of God and humanity 19:45 is separated into two groups. 19:47 Are the wicked going to arise to try 19:49 and destroy God's people? Yes. 19:52 Is the faith of God's people going to be tested severely 19:55 during the time of trouble 19:57 such as no one has ever seen? 19:59 Yes. Daniel 12:1 speaks speaks about that. 20:04 And then interestingly enough in Matthew Chapter 24, 20:09 after the tribulation you have the second coming of Jesus 20:12 and the destruction of the world 20:14 and the picking up of God's elect by the angels. 20:18 Let me ask you, what happened 20:20 after the period of tribulation that Noah and his family 20:23 sent in the ark when the wicked became more and more daring 20:26 and the faith of those inside was tested? 20:29 What happened? Destruction came upon the world. 20:33 Are you seeing the parallel? You have an exact parallel. 20:36 You have the preaching of the gospel, 20:39 the abomination of desolation 20:40 would be the closing of the door, 20:42 God's people have been separated from the wicked, 20:45 and then you have the great tribulation 20:47 in the days of Noah, also in the end time 20:50 and then destruction comes in both cases. 20:54 So Matthew 24:37-39 is actually amplifying 21:00 what we find in the previous verses of Matthew Chapter 24. 21:06 Now by the way, 21:08 we need to also say something about verses 40 and 41. 21:13 I only read till verse 39, 21:16 but we need to read also verses 40 and 41. 21:20 These are the famous verses 21:21 that are used to try and prove the rapture. 21:24 One will be taken and the other will be what? 21:27 The other will be left. 21:29 And most people assume that the taken ones 21:32 are taken to heaven 21:33 and the left ones are left behind. 21:36 There's where that series comes from, 21:38 the series of books "Left Behind." 21:40 But a careful study, folks, of these verses indicates 21:45 that those that are taken are actually 21:47 those who are destroyed. 21:49 And those who are left, it doesn't say left behind, 21:52 those who are left are the ones who are actually saved. 21:55 And you say, "Well, how is that pastor?" 21:58 Well, Matthew 24 is drawing from Genesis. 22:02 So maybe it'd be a good idea to go back to Genesis. 22:05 Go back to Genesis Chapter 7. 22:06 And I want you to notice 22:08 something very interesting there. 22:09 Genesis 7:22-23. 22:15 Genesis 7:22-23. 22:20 It says there, in verse, let me see here, verse 22 22:26 that God destroyed what? 22:30 Come on, help me, God destroyed what? 22:33 He destroyed everything on the earth that was what? 22:38 That had the breath of life. 22:41 And verse 23 says that, Only whom? Only Noah, 22:48 and those who were in the ark with him, what? 22:53 Remained alive. 22:55 Now do you know that most Bible versions say, 22:59 and only Noah and his family were left? 23:07 You know, when a great big flood comes and washes away a town, 23:14 we say, "Did the flood take everyone away?" 23:18 "Wasn't anyone left?" 23:21 You see, the word left is a remnant word in Scripture. 23:24 I'm not going to get into all of the details, 23:26 but it's a remnant word. 23:28 In other words, it's what's left behind after a great calamity. 23:31 It's what's left alive after a great calamity. 23:35 The calamity takes with destruction one group, 23:40 but another group is left or the other group remains. 23:46 And so in the days of Noah, we have those who are destroyed 23:50 and those who are left. 23:52 The ones who are left are the saved. 23:54 Are they not, according to Genesis 7:22-23? Absolutely. 23:58 Now those who believe in the rapture 24:00 have a serious problem here. 24:02 Because what they say is that 24:03 when the rapture takes place, 24:06 many people in the world are going to die 24:09 at the rapture because, you know planes are gonna crash 24:12 and automobiles are gonna crash. 24:14 So it's gonna be a lot of dead people. 24:16 But they say that there's still going to be a lot of people 24:19 alive on planet earth after the rapture. 24:23 Have you ever heard that before? 24:25 So in other words, there's one group 24:27 that's going to be destroyed at the rapture, 24:29 there's another group that is going to remain 24:32 on planet earth, alive. 24:34 Now let me ask you, does that parallel 24:36 what we find at the time of the flood? 24:39 At the time of the flood, when Noah and his family 24:41 were left alive in the ark, you had outside, 24:44 part of the people were destroyed by the flood 24:47 and another part survived and kept on living on planet earth? 24:50 No, you only had two groups. 24:53 You had one group those outside, all of them were destroyed. 24:56 And those inside all of them were what? 25:00 All of them were spared. 25:02 Are you with me or are you not with me? 25:05 Praise the Lord. 25:06 Now I want you to notice that there is a period of time 25:12 between when the door closes and when the flood comes. 25:18 The same thing is gonna happen, folks, at the end of time. 25:21 The door of probation for the world is gonna close 25:25 before the tribulation before Jesus comes. 25:28 God's people are gonna go through the tribulation, 25:31 it's gonna be a time of severe testing. 25:34 The wicked are not going to know that they're lost. 25:38 And they are gonna come after 25:39 God's people according to Scripture. 25:42 But God's people are gonna be shielded. 25:44 You see, it's interesting that in Genesis Chapter 7 it says 25:48 that "God shut him in." 25:51 What that means is that Noah and his family 25:54 were shut in the ark 25:56 and they were spared from two things. 25:58 They were spared from the rage of the wicked 26:01 and they were also spared when the destruction came. 26:04 In other words, they were spared during the tribulation 26:07 and they were also spared when the destruction came. 26:11 By the way, in other places in Matthew actually, 26:14 a little later on in Matthew Chapter 24, 26:17 Jesus compares His coming to the coming of a thief. 26:22 Now let's dwell on that for a moment, 26:24 "The coming of the thief." 26:27 Do you know that a coming of a thief has two stages? 26:31 You say how's that? Well, let me explain it. 26:33 By the way, He says, Jesus-- 26:36 His coming will be like a thief in the night. 26:38 Not while you're at work, 26:40 but while people are at home, what? 26:42 Sleeping. That's why Jesus said stay awake. 26:47 Don't go to sleep He says, 26:49 stay awake because I'm coming like a thief, 26:52 when you least expect Me. 26:55 And so you imagine, you know, you lock your doors 26:58 and your windows for a thousand nights, the thief never comes. 27:04 So you say, what's the use? 27:05 I can leave my windows open. 27:07 The thief's not gonna come tonight. 27:10 And so that night you go to sleep 27:12 and you left the window open. 27:14 And lo and behold, the thief comes. 27:17 Comes--gets through the window, steals your DVD player, 27:24 steals your microwave, 27:27 steals your television set, hallelujah? 27:31 Steals all your--all the movies that you have on DVD 27:34 that you shouldn't watch, anyway. 27:38 And everybody in the house is what? 27:40 Everybody in the house is sleeping. 27:43 Unaware that the thief has come. 27:46 And so the thief goes back out the window, 27:49 he leaves and everybody is asleep in the house. 27:54 When do they find out that the thief has come and visited them? 27:59 The next morning when they wake up 28:01 and they start roaming around the house 28:04 they see that all of their stuff is missing. 28:08 How many stages did the coming of the thief have? Two. 28:12 One, when he came and two when you found out that he came. 28:18 But in between you did not know that the thief had come. 28:24 Are you following me or not? 28:26 Jesus says, My coming is gonna be just like that. 28:29 The people before the flood, 28:31 they didn't have the foggiest idea 28:32 that their probation had closed, 28:34 when the door of the ark closed. 28:36 They didn't know. 28:37 For seven whole days they carried on business as usual. 28:40 They bought, they sold, they planted, 28:43 you know, they married and got, 28:45 you know, they married and they carried on with life. 28:50 Unawares that what? 28:53 Unawares that their door of mercy had closed. 28:57 When did they actually find out that they were lost? 29:02 When it began to what? To rain. 29:05 Jesus says, "So also will the coming of the Son of Man be." 29:11 You see, the Christian world today 29:13 is totally oblivious to this reality. 29:16 They're expecting the rapture 29:19 when really what they should be expecting 29:21 is the close of probation. 29:23 You see, there is a certain sense 29:25 in which Jesus comes as a thief before His glorious coming. 29:29 But He doesn't come personally. 29:31 He actually comes to His Father 29:33 and He closes the door of probation. 29:36 And then after the tribulation, 29:39 He actually comes on the clouds of heaven, 29:42 but the world is going to find out 29:45 that they're lost, too late. 29:46 By the way, have you ever noticed in Scripture 29:48 that the door always closes before the destruction? 29:53 Let me give you some examples, the Jewish nation. 29:56 When did the door of mercy close for the Jewish nation? 29:59 In the year '34 with the stoning of Stephen. 30:02 When did the destruction take place? 30:04 Between the year '66 and the year '70. That's right. 30:07 It was only the execution of the sentence. 30:10 Let me ask you, before Babylon fell in the days of Belshazzar, 30:14 did God already say, 30:15 "You have been weighed in the balances 30:17 and you have been found wanting," 30:18 before Belshazzar was destroyed, 30:21 or anybody was killed in the city? 30:22 Yes. He had already been weighed. 30:26 Let me ask you, Sodom and Gomorrah, was there 30:28 a closing of the door before the cities were destroyed? 30:31 Yes. The Bible says that the angels pulled them in 30:34 and they shut the door. 30:36 That was it for the inhabitants of Sodom and Gomorrah. 30:39 You see, they had been judged and the door closed 30:41 before the destruction came. 30:44 By the way, also before Jerusalem was destroyed 30:48 by Nebuchadnezzar we notice in Ezekiel Chapter 8, 30:51 that there was a process of placing a seal 30:53 on the forehead of those who sighed and cried 30:56 because of the abominations 30:57 that were being committed in the city, 30:59 and after they were sealed, 31:00 then God said, "Go and destroy." 31:03 And so this is the way that God operates. 31:06 You see, at the end of time it's the same way. 31:09 The first angel's message says, 31:10 "Fear God, and give glory to Him, 31:12 for the hour of His judgment is come." 31:16 Notice that the judgment takes place 31:18 before Jesus comes on the clouds 31:21 because the preaching of the Gospel 31:23 and the preaching of the judgment 31:24 is Revelation 14:6-7. 31:27 The coming of Jesus on the cloud isn't until Revelation 14:14, 31:32 when He's on a cloud with a sickle in His hand 31:34 and He's coming to harvest the earth. 31:36 But before that the judgment has been preached 31:39 and humanity has been separated into two groups. 31:43 This is Biblical proof that there is always 31:46 a pre-advent investigative judgment 31:49 before the destruction is actually poured out. 31:56 Now allow me to read you a statement, 31:59 from the book "Patriarchs and Prophets" pages 98 and 99. 32:05 You know, this author that I'm reading from Ellen White, 32:10 this book, "Patriarchs and Prophets" 32:11 is one of my favorites. 32:13 It is a tremendous commentary on the first portion 32:16 of Holy Scripture all the way up to Solomon. 32:20 I mean, it's a classic. If you really want to learn 32:23 the meaning of Scripture up from before creation, 32:27 from the fall of Lucifer in heaven, 32:29 all the way to the time of Solomon, 32:31 you know, this is a book that you need to read 32:33 because she has some profound insights. 32:36 By the way, she only had 32:37 two and a half years of primary education. 32:40 So she had more than human wisdom. 32:43 Notice what she says. 32:45 "So," she's spoken about the flood, 32:50 the closing of the door and them not knowing 32:52 that they were lost until the flood came. 32:54 "So when Christ shall cease His intercession for guilty men, 33:01 before His coming in the clouds of heaven, 33:06 the door of mercy will be shut. 33:10 Then divine grace will no longer restrain the wicked 33:15 and Satan will have full control 33:18 of those who have rejected mercy. 33:22 They will endeavor to destroy God's people, 33:25 but as Noah was shut into the ark, 33:29 so the righteous will be shielded by divine power. 33:34 For seven days after Noah and his family entered the ark, 33:39 there appeared no sign of the coming storm. 33:42 During this period, their faith was tested. 33:48 It was a time of triumph to the world without." 33:54 A time of triumph for who? 33:56 For those who were outside the ark. 33:58 They said, "See, we told you he was crazy." 34:01 She continues saying, 34:03 "The apparent delay confirmed them in the belief 34:08 that Noah's message was a delusion, 34:10 and that the flood would never come. 34:13 Notwithstanding the solemn scenes 34:15 which they had witnessed, the beasts 34:17 and birds entering the ark, 34:19 and the angel of God closing the door, 34:21 they still continued their sport and revelry, 34:26 even making a jest of these signal 34:29 manifestations of God's power. 34:32 They gathered in crowds about the ark, 34:35 deriding its inmates with a daring violence 34:40 which they had never ventured upon before." 34:44 This is speaking about the period 34:46 between when the door closed and it would begin to rain. 34:49 Their faith was tested. 34:51 And the wicked became more and more violent each day outside. 34:58 By the way, I believe that the seven days 35:01 would probably represent 35:03 the period of the seven last plagues 35:05 that begin to fall when the door of mercy is closed. 35:09 Also the number seven is connected 35:11 with the three young men who were thrown 35:13 into the tribulation of the fiery furnace. 35:16 In fact, the furnace experience in the Bible 35:20 is connected with testing or with tribulation. 35:24 You know, you can read Psalm 12:6 where it says that, 35:27 "silver was refined seven times." 35:31 You can also read Isaiah 48:10, 35:34 where the prophet says that God's people 35:37 are tested in the furnace of affliction. 35:41 So God's people-- the faith of God's people 35:44 is gonna be severely tested during this period. 35:49 In another very interesting comment in "Great Controversy," 35:52 page 491 we have an amplification 35:57 of what I read from "Patriarchs and Prophets." 36:01 "When the work of the investigative judgment closes, 36:05 the destiny of all will have been decided for life or death." 36:13 You know, when you really think about it, 36:16 if we should die tonight that would close our probation. 36:21 There's gonna be a close of probation for the world, 36:24 but there is also a personal closing of probation. 36:27 So we need to be ready at each moment. 36:31 She continues saying, "Probation is ended a short time 36:37 before the appearing of the Lord 36:39 in the clouds of heaven. Christ--" 36:42 Now she's gonna show where this is found in Scripture. 36:45 "Christ in the Revelation, 36:46 looking forward to that time, declares, 36:49 'He that is unjust, let him be unjust still, 36:52 and he which is filthy, let him be filthy still, 36:56 and he that is righteous let him be righteous still, 36:59 and he that is holy, let him be holy still.'" 37:02 And then he, Notice this text, 37:07 immediately after, "And, behold, I come quickly, 37:10 and My reward is with Me, 37:13 to give every man according as his work shall be." 37:16 Do you see there that the coming of Jesus 37:18 takes place after this declaration 37:21 from the sanctuary, 37:22 that the righteous will continue to be righteous, 37:24 the holy will continue to be holy, 37:26 the filthy will continue to be filthy, 37:28 the unrighteous will continue to be unrighteous? 37:30 Then it says, "Behold, I come quickly 37:33 and My reward is with Me, 37:35 to give every man according as his work shall be." 37:39 She continues saying, 37:41 "The righteous and the wicked will still be living 37:45 upon the earth in their mortal state. 37:49 Men will be planting and building, 37:51 eating and drinking, all unconscious that the final, 37:57 irrevocable decision has been 38:00 pronounced in the sanctuary above." 38:03 Then she goes to another biblical basis for this. 38:07 "Before the flood, after Noah entered the ark, 38:11 God shut him in and shut the ungodly out. 38:16 But for seven days the people, 38:18 knowing not that their doom was fixed, 38:22 continued their careless, pleasure-loving life 38:26 and mocked the warnings of impending judgment. 38:29 'So,' says the Savior, 38:31 'shall also the coming of the Son of man be.'" 38:35 Now notice this. 38:37 "Silently, unnoticed as the midnight thief, 38:44 will come the decisive hour which marks 38:47 the fixing of every man's destiny, 38:51 the final withdrawal of mercy's offer to guilty men." 38:56 "Watch therefore, 38:58 lest coming suddenly He find you sleeping. 39:02 Perilous is the condition of those who 39:05 growing weary of their watch, 39:08 turn to the attractions of the world. 39:11 While the man of business is absorbed in the pursuit of gain, 39:15 while the pleasure lover is seeking indulgence, 39:18 while the daughter of fashion is arranging her adornments, 39:22 it may be in that hour the Judge of all the earth 39:26 will pronounce the sentence, 39:28 'Thou art weighed in the balances, 39:32 and art found wanting.'" 39:36 That is an awesome statement. 39:38 And she's not just getting this from the top of her head. 39:42 She uses two avenues to prove it. 39:44 Revelation 22:11 and 12, 39:47 and also the parallel of the times of the flood, 39:50 where Jesus said, "As it was then, so it will be." 39:55 There's a time between the closing of the door 39:58 and when the destruction comes, when people will not know 40:02 that their destiny has been fixed. 40:07 Now the big question is, must the close of the door 40:12 of probation catch us by surprise? 40:17 Is there anyway that we can be sure 40:19 that closing of the door does not catch us by surprise? 40:25 And how can we be sure? 40:27 Well, allow me to share with you something 40:29 that happened in the country 40:31 where I lived for many years, the country of Colombia. 40:35 November 13, 1985 the city of Armero in Colombia 40:42 was buried by an avalanche of mud 40:47 as a result of the eruption of the volcano, 40:52 El Nevado del Ruiz. Perhaps, some of you remember that. 40:57 Twenty two thousand people were buried alive 41:03 in a matter of just a few minutes. 41:06 The question is couldn't this loss of life 41:11 have been prevented? 41:13 Weren't there an abundance of signs 41:15 that a disaster was about to take place? 41:19 Did they really need to be caught by surprise? 41:23 The answer is a resounding no. 41:28 In fact, in an article published in the newspaper El Espectador, 41:35 there was an article the very next day 41:37 and the title of it was "Un desastre anunciado." 41:41 In other words, An Announced Disaster. 41:45 You know, if there's a disaster 41:46 that is announced before it happens, 41:48 you certainly would have a chance to escape. 41:51 By the way, the author of this article 41:53 was Rodolfo Rodriguez Calderon. 41:57 What he said in that article was simply amazing. 42:00 No one in that city should have lost their lives 42:04 if they had just paid attention to the signs. 42:08 Allow me to share with you some of the information 42:11 that this author wrote in that newspaper the following day. 42:17 He said, "11 months before the disaster 42:20 the mountain began spewing out smoke. 42:26 The fluffy snow on the mountain had become 42:30 a solid sheet of ice because of the intense heat 42:36 that was coming from the mountain itself. 42:39 The water level in the rivers grew immensely, 42:43 flooding out some small towns in the area. 42:47 The cloud of gases and ash which had been 42:51 about 15 feet high the first day, 42:54 grew to 750 feet the second day, 42:57 and was 16,000 feet high, the day before the disaster." 43:05 On September 11, interesting. 43:08 On September 11, the earth began 43:11 to shake 3 on the Richter scale. 43:17 On occasions, people said 43:19 that they could hear the mountain roar inside. 43:24 The authorities had to close the roads 43:26 that let to the ski resort at the top of the mountain 43:29 because of the mudslides. 43:32 It was impossible for people 43:33 to keep their furniture clean because their furniture 43:37 was constantly filled with volcanic ash. 43:41 The day before the disaster 43:43 people could smell sulfur in the air. 43:46 In fact, the very night before the mountain erupted, 43:51 there was a torrential rain, according to some 43:53 who escaped with their lives. 43:56 And this torrential rain began to fall at about 9 p.m. 43:59 And they said, witnesses said 44:01 that it was unusually dark. 44:03 It was like a supernatural darkness. 44:07 People had all these signs 44:10 that a major disaster was going to take place. 44:14 And yet 22,000 people were buried alive. 44:20 Let me ask you, did they have plenty of signs 44:23 to have escaped from this disaster? 44:26 Of course, they did. 44:27 Do you know what the problem was? 44:29 They chose to ignore the signs 44:32 because of what the experts had to say. 44:38 In that same article the author explained the reason 44:44 why people were so comfortable in the city and had no fear. 44:49 Allow me to share with you, 44:51 what these authorities had to say. 44:56 The town priest Edgar Efrain Toros 45:00 came over the radio at 7 p.m. 45:03 And he said, "There is no reason to panic, 45:07 please keep calm." 45:10 The civil defense which is supposed to actually help 45:14 in case of a potential disaster or in case other disaster 45:19 had a special radio release that said, 45:22 "There is no reason to be concerned." 45:26 The bishop of the town Augusto Osorio 45:31 warned on the radio against fanatics 45:34 who were making it appear like a major disaster was imminent. 45:40 The mayor of the town said, 45:42 "Don't worry," and then he skipped town. 45:45 The governor of the state of Tolima 45:48 where this city was, said, after the disaster, 45:52 he said, "The disaster could not have been predicted in advance." 45:58 Colombian scientist, Jaime Viegas Velasquez 46:01 affirmed before the disaster, 46:04 "This volcano is not going to erupt. 46:06 Nothing is going to happen. 46:08 Beware of speculations and exaggerations." 46:14 The Secretary of mines, Ivan Duque Escobar said, 46:19 "Nothing will happen." 46:22 Even United States geologist 46:24 Darrell Herd had said before the disaster, 46:28 "It is very unlikely that the cities 46:32 could be buried by rocks, lava, or mud." 46:36 And the regional emergency sent out-- 46:39 committee sent out a message, 46:42 "Don't expect your windows to shatter, 46:45 don't expect darkness, 46:46 don't expect lava to rundown the mountain, 46:50 don't expect large layers of ash among other things." 46:54 In fact, the message said, 46:56 "Go out and enjoy the spectacle." 47:04 Why were all of those people buried? 47:06 Why did all of those people perish? 47:09 They had an abundance of signs, 47:13 that a disaster was imminent. 47:16 But instead of paying attention to the signs 47:19 and believing the signs, they chose to believe the experts. 47:26 And, you know, the Bible tells us 47:28 that in the end time it's gonna be the same thing. 47:31 You know, when I listen to the radio, 47:33 to the radical left wing on radio. 47:38 They seem to think that anybody 47:40 who believes that the world was created in seven days 47:44 is some sort of ignorant animal. 47:48 They seem to believe that anybody 47:50 who doesn't accept the theory of evolution 47:54 is naive and uneducated. 48:00 That's exactly what 2 Peter has to say. 48:04 It says that in the end time there were people-- 48:06 be people that will come and they'll say, 48:09 "Where is the promise of His coming? 48:11 Everything has continued as from the beginning, 48:14 there is nothing to worry about." 48:17 And Peter says, "They willingly ignore this. 48:22 That once upon a time in the days of Noah 48:26 the world was destroyed by a flood." 48:30 And he says, "At the end of the history of the world, 48:33 the world will once again be destroyed by a flood." 48:36 But it will not be destroyed by a flood of water, 48:39 it will be destroyed by a flood of what? 48:42 By a flood of fire. 48:46 Allow me to read you another statement, 48:48 this is rather extensive. 48:51 It's actually a comment of Ellen White 48:53 on Mark 13:33-37. 48:56 I'm gonna read that passage first 48:57 and then I'm going to read her statement 48:59 which is very significant. 49:02 Here Jesus is speaking and He says this. 49:04 "Take heed, watch and pray, 49:08 for you do not know when the time is." 49:11 By the way when Jesus says 49:12 you don't know what the time is, 49:14 that's not the time of the second coming. 49:15 It's the time of the close of probation. 49:18 Notice what it says in verse 34. 49:20 "It is like a man going to a far country, 49:22 who left his house and gave authority to his servants, 49:26 and to each his work, 49:27 and commanded the doorkeeper to watch. 49:29 Watch therefore, for you do not know 49:32 when the master of the house is coming." 49:34 That's not the second coming, folks. 49:36 "You do not know when the master of the house 49:38 is coming-in the evening, at midnight, 49:41 at the crowing of the rooster, 49:42 or in the morning- lest, coming suddenly, 49:45 he find you sleeping." 49:47 Notice, it's when he comes and finds you what? 49:51 Sleeping, not when you wake up. 49:53 "And what I say to you, I say to all, watch!" 49:58 Now notice her comment, 50:00 Ellen White's comment on this passage. 50:02 Jesus-- By the way, if you want 50:04 the reference to this, it's found 50:06 in volume 2 of the Testimonies pages 190 and 191. 50:11 Jesus has left us word, "Watch ye therefore, 50:16 for ye know not when the master of the house cometh, 50:20 at even, or at midnight, 50:22 or at the cock crowing, or in the morning. 50:25 Lest coming suddenly he find you sleeping. 50:29 And what I say unto you I say unto all, "Watch." 50:33 She is quoting Mark 13, right? 50:35 Now notice her remark on this. 50:38 "We are waiting and watching for the return of the Master, 50:42 who is to bring the morning, 50:45 lest coming suddenly He find us sleeping." 50:49 Now here comes the remarkable part of the statement. 50:52 "Lest coming suddenly He find us," what? 50:55 Sleeping. 50:57 She says this, "What time is here referred to?" 51:04 When it says, "lest coming suddenly He find us sleeping." 51:07 She says, "What time is here referred to?" 51:11 Now notice her categorical answer. 51:13 "Not to the revelation of Christ 51:16 in the clouds of heaven to find a people asleep. 51:20 No, but to His return from His ministration 51:25 in the most holy place of the heavenly sanctuary, 51:28 when He lays off His priestly attire 51:30 and clothes Himself with garments of vengeance, 51:34 and when the mandate goes forth, 51:36 'He that is unjust, let him be unjust still, 51:38 he which is filthy, let him be filthy still, 51:41 he that is righteous, let him be righteous still, 51:43 and he that is holy, let him be holy still.' 51:47 When Jesus ceases to plead for man, 51:51 the cases of all are forever decided. 51:55 This is the time of reckoning with His servants." 51:59 Now I want you to notice, some very interesting terms 52:01 that she used because she's gonna say 52:03 that most of those who were surprised are church people. 52:09 "To those who have neglected 52:14 the preparation of purity and holiness, 52:18 which fits them to be waiting ones to welcome their Lord, 52:24 the sun sets in gloom and darkness, 52:27 and rises not again. 52:31 Probation closes, Christ's intercessions cease in heaven. 52:37 This time finally comes suddenly upon all, 52:41 and those who have neglected," 52:44 there's the word again, neglected, not rejected, 52:48 "those who have neglected to purify their souls 52:53 by obeying the truth are found sleeping. 52:58 They became weary of waiting and watching." 53:03 Are these believers? Sure. 53:06 "They became weary of waiting and watching. 53:11 They became indifferent." 53:13 Do you notice neglectful, indifferent, weary? 53:17 This isn't a rejection. 53:19 "They became indifferent in regard 53:21 to the coming of their Master. 53:23 They longed not for His appearing." 53:27 They maybe believed it, but they didn't long for it. 53:32 "And thought there was not need 53:36 of such continued, perseverant watching. 53:40 They had been disappointed 53:41 in their expectations and might be again. 53:44 They concluded that there was time enough yet to arouse. 53:48 They would be sure to not lose the opportunity 53:52 of securing an earthly treasure. 53:56 It would be safe to get, all of this world they could. 54:00 And in securing this object, 54:02 they lost all anxiety and interest 54:06 in the appearing of the Master. 54:09 They became indifferent and careless, 54:12 as though His coming were yet in the distance. 54:16 But while their interest 54:17 was buried up in their worldly gains, 54:20 the work closed in the heavenly sanctuary, 54:25 and they were unprepared." 54:28 Solemn words, aren't they? 54:33 I believe that Jesus is gonna close the door very soon, 54:37 by what we're watching, out in the world. 54:41 And I believe that Jesus is gonna come very soon. 54:45 How about us? 54:46 Are we anxious for His coming to take place? 54:50 Or have we grown weary, indifferent, careless, 54:56 tired of waiting and watching? 54:58 We say, "Oh, my parents talked about the second coming, 55:01 and my grandparents talked about the second coming, 55:04 and their parents talked about the second coming. 55:07 It's been talked about for since 1844. 55:12 And still Jesus hasn't come. 55:15 His coming a still a way's off." 55:18 Those who express it this way 55:21 are the ones who are going to be caught by surprise, 55:24 when the door of probation actually closes. 55:29 You know what we need to be doing, while we're waiting? 55:31 We need to do the same thing that Noah did. 55:35 Preach and work. See words are cheap. 55:41 If Noah had said, "There's a flood coming, 55:44 everybody get ready." 55:46 And the people say, "What are we gonna do about it?" 55:50 Noah says, "The Lord will provide." 55:53 No, his words were backed up by his actions. 55:57 He had a faith that worked. 55:59 That's what needs to happen with God's people. 56:02 By the way, do you know that Ellen White says that 56:05 everything that Noah possessed, he invested in the ark? 56:13 Everything that he possessed, he invested in the ark. 56:17 Everybody else was saving for a rainy day. 56:22 And what happened, when the rain came? 56:25 Everything that they had saved was washed away. 56:32 You know, God's people today are probably, 56:34 the most prosperous of any generation 56:38 of Seventh-day Adventists. 56:41 And as a result, we become like Revelation says, 56:43 "Rich and increased with goods, and in need of nothing." 56:48 We've lost all anxiety that longing for the coming of Jesus. 56:54 We need to get that back because only those 56:57 who long for His coming, who love His coming, 57:00 according to the apostle Paul will be prepared, 57:04 when the door of mercy closes, 57:06 and when Jesus comes on the clouds of heaven. 57:09 I pray to God that we will re-consecrate 57:12 our lives to Jesus. 57:14 And that that fire might burn in our bones 57:16 and in our hearts again. 57:18 That glorious hope, that blessed hope 57:21 that the Bible speaks about, 57:23 the second coming of Jesus Christ, 57:26 our Savior and our Lord. |
Revised 2014-12-17