Here He Comes, Ready or Not, Part 2

Bible prophecy is fascinating. The twists and turns in God's plan reminder riveting novel. But make no mistake. Bible prophecy is not fiction. It's a fact of life has serious implications for our times today on Insight for living. Chuck Swindoll teaches from Matthew chapter 24.

In this passage we read the words of Jesus, who spoke in alarming terms about the last days.

Be sure to stay with us through the end of the message Chuck proposed three very personal questions titled today's message here he comes ready or not, their father with our Bibles in our hands as we stand to our feet, we pause to give allegiance to you, our great God worthy of our deepest pre-'s we have something that you and now we say we lift up your name or God above all other names and all other God's. We know that your son is manually God with us. The God man who came to his own and his own refused. They are responsibly different. May we welcome you.

Maybe welcome your true though much of it is beyond our comprehension. May we embrace what you have given us, may we take by faith, even those portions we cannot explain with logical reasoning may they remind us that you are high and holy and above us and beyond us, your God, incomprehensible worthy of our heaviest words of glory because that is true we give without reluctance or reservation.

We give that others may be helped in hearing true and coming to terms with it.

We did by faith as we walk and not by sight. We will see those who will receive the benefits of these gifts, but they are many and they are scattered across this globe bring encouragement to those who will be encouraged by these gifts sustain this ministry.

Father by the generosity of your people, and may we without hesitation continued to live your message. Even when the sermon has been forgotten. Maybe do what is right may be love. What is kind maybe walk humbly with you are God. We pray this in the name of Emmanuelle, even Christ yourself. Everyone said the Reading the book of Matthew with Chuck Swindoll.

Be sure to download his searching the Scriptures by going to Insight world.org/study.

Now the message from chart titled here he comes ready or not, the time Jesus spoke these words, 24, 25 until he returns for his own will be centuries. Now we believe is closer than ever. Of course we believe it's an could be at any moment he can come for us and take us to be with him, leaving unbelievers on this earth 24, 36, again, no one knows the day or hour when these things will happen. Not even the angels, so the Lord's plan is just what he's ready to send his son Gilson.

Not until the second fact his return will be unexpected and sudden so the lesson we learn. Don't get too comfortable. Don't cling too tightly to anyone or anything. C 2437. My Bible is open to that verse, when the Son of Man returns look at this it will be like. That wasn't Noah's day. In those days before the flood, people were enjoying banquets and parties and weddings right up to the time Noah and the ark.

Why because they didn't realize what was going to happen to as an eloquent statement. You and I didn't realize 9/11 would occur till that morning and looking back we remember exactly where we were and what we were doing. Until then, wasn't a blip on our screen. Even among the bright minds in Washington DC, even among the military strategists talk vaguely of something like that.

No one predicted that day that out because we lived through 9/11.

You think people would take this kind of statement more seriously. His return is will be unexpected and when least expected people in Noah's day felt the rainfall. Most don't realize it had never rained until that moment on the earth.

The earth was water by a divine appointment to do that came on the earth during the civilization range didn't come until then. So they got the skipper skeptics know about that are for those years in the poke fun at him and slipped getting critically sarcastically. Nobody was ready. Here he was with his massive arc already believing God, but it came unexpectedly and suddenly here's 1/3 fact God's judgment will be irreversible's judgment will be irreversible lesson we learn from that. Learn to take him seriously. God doesn't waffle. And God doesn't start through the verses of chapters 24 and 25 or words related to being too late or not being ready or thinking there would be another opportunity when God arrives she doesn't grade on the curve you will be given a second chance after you die. I've never lied to you and I wouldn't start today. You have your opportunity to believe on your life. Once you breathe your last, your opportunity is over God's judgment will be irreversible. Take him seriously. He keeps his word. Fact number four. The truth will be revealed. 2511 and 12.

Referring to these who are ready for the wedding feast, then those who were ready went in with him to the marriage feast and the door was locked. Verse 11. Later, when the other five bridesmaids returned, they were the ones you want ready.

They didn't have their lamps ready. They stood outside calling the Lord opened the door for us and he called back. Believe me, I don't know you.

I don't know you the truth will be revealed. He will tell you he doesn't know you if you've never trusted his son so learn from this there will be no place to hide in there will be no way of escape.

Those who didn't get our drown was no exception. You'll currently as possible to live a life of a hypocrite get away with it happens every day. Some of you act one way in public.

But you're altogether different in private. Your hypocrite. You carry your life out as though it is this way so that people will think better of you, but truth is your own family privately behind the scenes.

Maybe those who work with you. They know the real truth. Your private life is something you're not really allowed to be invaded with the truth of God, but in that day there be no hypocrisy. Hopefully baloney. No masks worn.

All that's ripped off.

The truth will be revealed will be either in Christ or out five each life will standalone 24 versus 40 and 41 we read that earlier. Two men will be working together in the field. One will be taken that's taken the judgment and the other will be left left for the pleasures and joys of the kingdom to women will be grinding at the flower at the mill.

One will be taken judgment. The other will be left to go into the kingdom and the joys that the Lord has for them.

Each person will be individually accountable. That's the lesson we learned each life will standalone you will be able to stand behind your wife or husband. Your parents or your family name. You will be able to clean your partner's faith in your business world, it will be all on your own.

You will be accountable alone before God wants taken the others with please remember this is the second advent of Christ. This is not a reference to the rapture of the church which is taken place before the always keep those separate in your minds when we get the fact number six the future of the faithful will be joyful course.

Why, because God's promises will be fulfilled. He will never forget his own 2431 24 verse 31 he will send out his angels with a mighty blast of a trumpet, they will gather his chosen ones from all over the world, even the farthest ends of the earth.

He will lead no one out his chosen ones, he will find and he will reward drop down to verse 46 the master returns and finds that the servant he is as dumb a good job then there will be a reward. Listen to this I tell you the truth, the master will put that servant in charge of all the beautiful words, 24, 25, 34 then the King will say to those on his right, molested by my father and inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the creation of the world, for I was hungry and you fed me, I was thirsty and you gave me drink God's promises will be fulfilled. He will never forget his own say that to you who are faithfully serving Christ you may be helping one other person is there life is lingering in an illness that is irreversible and you were there you are taking care of them. Your lovingly showing them compassion and mercy that will be rewarded.

Others of you teach a small group maybe a group of special needs children who perhaps are not able to say thank you for your faithfulness. Through the God will never overlook one hour spent with them. Some teach thousands of people, and bless their lives. Some right books and the books distribute, and they help people grow in the faith God will reward all those efforts because he keeps his word, by the way there's an old song that used to be sung but will there be any stars in the stars and the crown when it evening, the sun goes down. What we don't know of anything in the scriptures that teach of stars in the crown sounds pretty written by songwriter with a little imagination, but we don't know stars of the crown, but we do know of cramps five separate crowns were mentioned in the New Testament. All five are based on specific acts of faithfulness done for the glory of God. You will if you are faithfully serving him in any one of those that we will be rewarded with crowns and will be getting the glory and the crowns were handed out. We placed them at his feet and worshiped always love that scene hypothyroid element in seminary when when we were required to do are called a baby thesis in our the end of our oh second year we were required to write a small thesis and I wrote the crowns underwriting about the crowns and I discovered in the Scriptures and found myself very motivated to crown for leading people to Christ as a crown for serving faithfully go under trial there's a crown for resisting temptation repeatedly crowns for that crowns that will be provided in the Lord will not forget. Write in the margin of your Bible. Hebrews 6 verse 10 listen to it. God is not unjust to forget your work and labor of love, which was shown toward his name and that you administered to the saints and continue to minister to the great faithfully minister God will not forget there will be a day when all curtains were closed and all of earth will pass and God will have you receiving rewards for your faithfulness and I think some of it will be beyond our ability on this earth to comprehend what it will happen now. The sad news is the flipside of that, the destiny of the lost will be drip.

That's a fact you read through this passage in your read of their being there. Being weeping and gnashing of teeth. The last verse of chapter 24 Gavin chapter 25 in verse 34 there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth in verse 46 chapter 25, 46, they will go away into eternal punishment. The righteous will go into eternal life. What we learned from that changing that destination must happen during your lifetime, not efforts of nothing in the word of God even hits and a second chance after you die. There is no purgatory. There is no such thing as being prayed out of torment.

There is no such thing as lightning, lightening the pain of punishment for a moment. Allow yourself to ponder the words eternal punishment beggars description doesn't your destiny is determined while your living. Not after you left. So this brings me to three questions that only you can answer and only I can answer for me.

One is begins with will I the second begins with July and the third one with MI.

The first is a question of decisiveness. Second is a question of assurance, and the third question of faithfulness. Question number one will I continue to ignore the truth or will I respond to it today will I believe what God has said about the future about my life and about eternity and about Christ and about his cross will I come to terms with that today.

God is looking for our being decisive is the second do I know for sure that I'm ready to meet my master that I'm eternally secure in any moment when I draw my breath is my last breath that I'm ready to step into eternity and face my Lord clothed in the righteousness of Christ mushroom that do I know that for sure. Only you can answer for you. I thought people in my lifetime knew the Lord only to find out later when they told me the truth it all been a sham until something occurred and they were brought face-to-face with the reality of eternity and then they gave life to Christ the vasa data take off the mask to cast aside the hypocrisy come to terms with. Do you know for sure have 1/3, living my life as if he were to call me home this day that subquestion regarding faithfulness again. I cannot answer for you.

Only you can answer that I said earlier there will be no theological question will be no Bible quiz. As we said before the Lord, but there will be the issue of what you done with my son Jesus. When you stand before the father. Your creator how we responded to Christ while we are able to stand before him and what kind of life we live as a result, that's it. Value hits please.

Are you absolutely certain that Jesus Christ lives in your life that you claim to measure own Lord you've dethroned yourself and you've ever thrown to him as the one who is to control your life.

Take charge of your motive cleanse you from sin prepare you for eternity.

If not, take care of that right now. Right now, to put that off, we're here to help you on your journey from earth to heaven, and if we can do that even this matter of trusting in Christ would love to do that our ministry is always active and available individuals who will talk with you privately and intelligently and calmly to assist you in answering your question, you may prefer just to write a singular hold of us and let us know your concern about your soul will help you find peace and a reason to go on, let's pray thank you father for opening our eyes to what you have written in your word.

We ask not that all of our questions be answered but we do ask that there be a piece within our lives because of Christ in his room is our master, may we all search our hearts and leave no question unanswered.

No issue ignored as we think about eternity may not brightness but may we welcome the pot standing before you are God clothed in the righteousness it's in his name we pray for his glory alone.

Everyone said amen. This in-depth study about the soon return of Jesus brings us to a pivotal point of decision. For that reason Chuck Swindoll assigned this title to our study in Matthew 24. Here he comes ready or not, and to learn more about the ministry of insight for living.

Please visit us online@insightworld.org now to help you spend every day living with the awareness that Jesus return could be at any moment. Let me remind you insight for living provides a number of helpful tools, each 1.2 to the person and work of Jesus Christ today were pleased to offer a devotional book.

Chuck is written for you. It's called God's word for you subtitled an invitation to find the nourishment your soul needs. This easy-to-read book is perfect for those who are just beginning their lifelong journey of studying God's word or for those who hope to rekindle their daily devotional times with Christ.

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