Be Ready for you know not the Hour

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John 4: 23: But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him.

I always find that things happened when you least expect it. And if you are waiting on something, especially if you are watching it as you wait, it can take forever.

When you lease expect it, something like a Fire Drill can through you right off balance, why because we are not prepared.

On the Ships we are forever having drills, drills of all kind. The reason is to make sure you are ready at all times and prepared at all times in case of a real Emergency.

Because if you are prepared when the trouble comes you will know just what to do to be SAVED.

Matthew:24: 42: Watch therefore: for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come.

Jesus is telling us the same thing, be ready, be prepared because we know not the hour when the Lord shall return for those who are ready

Rev:14:12: Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus.

Let us Pray!
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I have a message today for every individual. I wish everyone in Lafayette could gather around and hear what we’re going to talk about today— because today we are going to talk about the last night on Earth.

That night that finally comes to every person who ever lives on this planet. Today we are going to talk about making decisions.

STORY: The City of city of Pompeii

Many of you have heard about the city of Pompeii which was in Italy long ago. It was in the year 79 AD that the mountain called Vesuvius literally exploded and millions of tons of ash and molten lava came down from that volcano to completely destroy the inhabitants of that city.

That day was like another day, they were Partying, Drinking, Getting Married, some others were properly out in the field Working, some were Grinding at the Mill, It was like any normal day that is “Until”.

If the stones of that city could speak, what a story they would tell us of that last night for the people of that city. The tale of a whole city who were overwhelmed in one night

Apparently there was a time when those people saw the mountain exploding and many had the chance to escape. The city was filled with many wicked people who cared nothing about God. We know this because the city had a terrible reputation.

They lived a lavish comfortable lifestyle, maybe too comfortable. Yet before the volcano erupted, the people of Pompeii had plenty of evidence that something was wrong, something was about to happen.

Small tremors could be felt on a regular basis throughout the city, wells and streams had dried up, the animals began to act strangely as they could sense the soon coming danger.

The Spirit of God was there pleading with them to repent of their sins and get ready for what was coming. But the people kept on with their pleasure seeking until their doom was sealed.

They didn’t know when they went to bed that night that it would be their last night alive on planet earth.

Then on August 24 the volcano exploded. Some died instantly, yet others lingered to see what would happen. Rather than flee, they made a decision which would cost them their lives.

The Bible gives us another illustration of the last night on Earth in the book of Genesis. It’s the story of a man named Lot who lived in the city of Sodom—another very wicked city.

When the destroying Angles came they found only Lot was ready and prepared

Lot tried to warn some of his daughters and sons-in-law but they mocked him and he finally had to leave them knowing they would be destroyed and lost forever.

The inhabitants of those cities pushed away the pleading voice of the Holy Spirit. They, too, didn’t realize that by morning, their life would be over.

People today think, “If I knew that I only had one day or one month or even one year left to live, I could get ready for Jesus. I’d make things right and prepare myself. I’d pay my debts and confess my sins”

Of course we would. But, my friends, most people will never ever know when they will enter into that last 24 hours of their life on this Earth. Because death comes very suddenly upon us

Matthew: 25:13: Watch therefore, for ye know neither the day nor the hour wherein the Son of man cometh.

The awful tsunami disaster that struck on Dec. 26th of 2004. An event so powerful and devastating and yet so sudden that many tens of thousands in Indonesia were caught unawares.

For those people caught and killed in the large wave, the last thing on their minds when they went to bed the night before was death.

They didn’t think that it would be their last night to make things right with God and so most would just carry on with their normal lives.

The devil knows that death can come suddenly and he takes advantage of our procrastination. That sin of neglecting salvation turns into the sin of rejecting salvation.

If we say “no” to God, before long it turns into a habit and becomes addicting. If a person waits one day, he’ll wait another day. If he’ll wait one week, he’ll wait another week. And those weeks stretch into months and even years and finally his time is over.

There is never a better time to get things right and get ready for eternity than today!
“Today is the day of salvation.” 2 Cor. 6:2

I wonder how many of you are aware of the devil’s favorite word. The devil’s favorite word is “Tomorrow.” The devil will tell you, “Don’t make a decision now. Make it tomorrow.

Don’t follow that Bible teaching today or tonight. Do it tomorrow. Tomorrow, tomorrow, tomorrow.” Because tomorrow turns into weeks, and weeks into months and then years and finally the day will come suddenly—perhaps much more suddenly than we even think—and there will be no more tomorrows!

The human heart that is so touched by God’s Holy Spirit tonight can become hardened if we wait for tomorrow.

Jesus knew that. And so He warned us. In John 12: 35“Walk while you have the light lest that light turn to darkness.” You see friend, if we walk away from God’s truth, all there is left is darkness.

When people keep on lingering and putting off the call of God and the invitation of the Holy Spirit, they actually harden themselves and seal themselves against the convictions of truth and after a while those truths don’t make an impression anymore on them.

What a tragedy! If we are one step outside the door of the ark when it closes, we might as well be a thousand miles away.

When the angel hand came to close that door of Noah’s ark, there were people no doubt only inches from the ark; only inches away from making the decision that would have saved there life’s.

When Noah made his last appeal to the people, there were many who probably helped at some time in the building of the ark and never got on; but just waited and watched.

If you’re lost by an inch, you might as well be lost by a mile or a million miles.

There are some just like that today. They may have worked for the church, and they said they agreed with the teachings of the church, but they never made a firm decision to get on board with the church!

Friends, we must be willing to move in our lives and get on board the ark of today—which is to submit our lives to the truth of God’s final warning message.

Story: Remember the story of Paul preaching in Act 26: 28:

Governor Felix “When I have a more convenient season I’ll call for thee.”

King Agrippa Then Agrippa said unto Paul, Almost thou persuadest me to be a Christian.

*Friends, an “almost” Christian is not a Christian at all.

I’ve watched people tremble with conviction as the Holy Spirit pleads with them but they are only almost persuaded. But friend, if we sit and sit as the call of God comes to us, and do nothing, we are just as lost as the person is down at the bar drinking.

There were two thieves who died with Jesus. One asked for and received salvation. The one on the other side was just as physically close to Jesus and yet he didn’t turn to him and cry out for help. He didn’t say the words that could have brought salvation to him. Many are going to be lost exactly like that.

In Matthew 12:30 Jesus says, “He that is not with me is against me; and he that gathereth not with me scattereth abroad.

Sometimes the most profound statements in the Bible just slip by us. Here Jesus is taking away all neutral groundall fence sitting, and He says, “You’re either with me or you are against Me.”

There’s no neutral ground with Jesus. And then in the next two verses He tells us about the one and only sin that He cannot forgive.

Matthew 12: 31,32 “Wherefore I say unto you, All manner of sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven unto men: but the blasphemy against the Holy Ghost shall not be forgiven unto men, And whosoever speaketh a word against the Son of man, it shall be forgiven him: but whosoever speaketh against the Holy Ghost, it shall not be forgiven him, neither in this world, neither in the world to come.”

The Bible says all manner of sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven unto men. What is another word for manner? All kinds! Every kind of sin can be forgiven.

So is the unpardonable sin a kind of sin? Any sin you name, whether it’s adultery, murder, lying, any kind of sin, if we sincerely confess it, and forsake it, God will forgive it. Isn’t that good news?

No matter what kind of sin we commit we serve a God who is open-armed with forgiveness just as the father was in the Bible with his prodigal son.

We serve a God of mercy. The Bible says, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive them.”

 

If you are tormented with a guilty conscience, come to Jesus and let Him forgive you. Come to Jesus and let that great big guilty burden roll off your back and He will give you peace and take those accusing voices away.

According to Matthew 12:31 the unpardonable sin is the sin against the Holy Spirit of God, the third member of the Godhead. When you sin against the Holy Spirit it can’t be forgiven. It’s a very serious sin. Now why is this?

Why is this sin against the Holy Spirit so serious that it would jeopardize our eternal life?

In order to understand this simple truth, we must go and study the work of the Holy Spirit in the human heart, and the delicate mechanisms by which the Holy Spirit works.

We’re going to study in the Bible just how the Spirit works so that we can be sensitive to the Spirit’s voice. So we can hear the Spirit’s voice as He works in our heart and mind.

John 16:13
The Bible says, “Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into (what?) all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come.”

The first work of the Holy Spirit upon every human heart is to lead them to truth so the truth can set them free.

It is the Holy Spirit that inspired this Bible that we’re reading here today, and the Bible says that “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever.” (Heb.13:8)

So the same Holy Spirit that inspired the Bible writers to write Scriptures, leads you and I today to understand what the Bible writers wrote down.

For example, if I study the Bible truth regarding death, and realize the Bible doesn’t teach purgatory, and there is no such thing as an immortal soul, but because of my past cultural or traditional background, I reject the clear teachings of the Bible, I am not only rejecting a Bible truth, I am also resisting the Holy Spirit that wants to lead me to understand that truth.

Why? Because the same Holy Spirit that caused that truth to be written in the Bible, now desires to lead us to understand it.

There are some folks that say, “Well, Tim, I hear the truth, and I know the Holy Spirit is saying ‘this is sin, this is wrong,’ etc., but I’ll tell you what I’m going to do, I’m going to go home, and I’m going to pray about it. And I’m going to wait on the Holy Ghost and see what the Holy Ghost has to say.”

Friends, if we can see plainly what the Bible is saying, then we don’t need to wait on the Holy Ghost. The Holy Ghost is waiting on us.

And every impression we get does not mean that it’s the impression of God’s Spirit. I’ve had people say to me, “I know what I ought to do, but I’m not going to do it unless I feel convicted by the Spirit that I should.”

Luke 16:31 “And he said unto him, If they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded, though one rose form the dead.”

In other words—the Scriptures are enough! They are sufficient proof of what is truth!!

Isaiah 20: To the law and to the testimony: if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them.

So whatever God has said in the Bible, by faith, step out and do it. Move ahead and do it. Don’t wait for a special feeling, or a sign from heaven.

(Man in Harrisburg who prayed to see shooting stars to know if the Sabbath was true or not.)

When God shows us something plainly in the Scripture, there is no need to ask for shooting stars!

We must make an intelligent choice to act on the Word of God. And when we choose to act on that which is right, our feelings then will follow.

If I have a feeling which harmonizes with God’s Word, praise the Lord! But if I don’t have any feeling at all, I still act based on what God says in the Bible.

The Bible tells us God never condemns sincere people that are in darkness.

John 3:19
He says, “And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.”

God is telling us that in the Judgment, Men and Woman will not be condemned because they believe a lie, But rather because they would not believe the truth.

Why because when the opportunity came to know and accept the truth they refused to accept it

There must come a point in our hearts and lives where we love and embrace that truth enough to follow it no matter the cost.

Satan will work, and is working amazing deceptions in these last days. The only safety is to have a mind open to accept and to obey Gods truth.

 

Let’s go to 2 Thessalonians 2:9-12 in the New Testament also to establish this fact. “What shall it profit you if you gain the whole world and lose your own soul?”

What is your job going to mean to you and your family and your friends: all on the outside of the walls of the city will be forever lost?

If you’re waiting for truth to be popular—it will never happen. If you’re waiting for all the popular speakers in the country to follow Bible truth—you’ll wait too long.

*Was it a popular thing to get on the ark in Noah’s day? No
*Was it the right thing though? Yes

*Was it a popular thing to be a follower of Jesus when He was there at Calvary? No
*Will it be popular to be a faithful Christian during the Mark of the Beast crisis?  What do you think?

The same Holy Spirit that speaks to you speaks also to the popular people of the day. My friend they will have to give an account to the Creator God in the judgment with what they did with truth just like we will.

John 3:16
16: For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
17: For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.
18: He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.

Roman 8:
39: Nothing can separate us from the Love on God that is in Christ Jesus except your willingness to not be saved.

God is poring out his Love and Truth to all people everyday, saying follow me for if you love me do the things I told you to do and you will have everlasting life.

So that when the time comes and when the clock strikes that hour in your life you will have no worry or fear. John 4:23: The true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth, why because they have made the Lord the Ark of safety in there lives.

My friend please be Ready for you know not the Hour or how close we really are, but I tell you a truth it could happen at any time.

God Bless each and everyone of you today

Elder Tim McNab
Restoring Gods Truth Ministries
www.restoringgodstruth.org

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