Bible Passage: Matthew 24
1. Jesus coming to get His bride
2. Jesus coming with His bride
Mathew 24:7-14 (Taken from the Message), “Famines and earthquakes will occur in various
places. This is nothing compared to what is coming.” (8) “They are going to throw you to the
wolves and kill you, everyone hating you because you carry my name. And then, going from
bad to worse, it will be dog-eat-dog, everyone at each other’s throat, everyone hating each
other.” (9) “In the confusion, lying preachers will come forward and deceive a lot of people. For
many others, the overwhelming spread of evil will do them in – nothing left of their love but a
mound of ashes.” (10) “Staying with it – that is what God requires. Stay with it to the end. You
won’t be sorry, and you’ll be saved. All during this time, the good news- message of the
Kingdom-will be preached all over the world, a witness staked in every country. And then the
end will come.”
1.I think we would all agree that we are living in difficult times. I mean all we have to do is to
look at Gas Prices?
2.The job market. 3. The building market. 4. Unemployment.
3.The number of wars we are in simultaneously.
4.And we could go on and on.
5.But we need to stop and ask ourselves the question, “What is happening?”
6.Well all we have to do is look at the words of Jesus given to his disciples in Matt. 24 in
answer to their question.”Tell us when shall these things be? and what shall be the sign of thy
coming, and of the end of the world?”
7.The truth is all we have to do is open the newspaper – any newspaper, and we will see a
reflection of these signs.
8.Religious tolerance is given to any group except Christians.
9.We have to understand that Anti-Christ, has a vested interest in keeping you from
participating in the catching away of the Church.
10As Jesus told Simon Peter just before the crucifixion, in Luke 22:31, “Simon, Simon, behold,
Satan hath desired to have you, that he might sift you as wheat.”
11Anti-Christ wants to keep as many as he can for his Tribulation kingdom as he can.
12But I have good news for you this evening, Jesus is praying for you right now at the right
hand of God the father. Matt. 22:32 says, “But I have prayed for you that you faith fail not.”
13Jesus is telling us that in the last day warfare you cannot afford to lose your faith. There is
nothing you get from God that you do not get except by faith. This is no time to lose the faith.
14It is obvious that we are coming into the time we are warned about in Matt. 24.
•Our own government refuses to recognize Jesus in public settings.
•The Ten Commandments are denied public setting and display.
•The public use of the Bible is prohibited everywhere expect Prisons, Jails and some courtroom
settings.
15And remember that the sword of the spirit is the Word of God. There is no battle to great for
the Sword of the Lord and the Shield of Faith. Amen
16The two most powerful weapons at our disposal we are denied: The Word of God and the
Name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth. Satan knows this and he trembles at the prospect of our
ability to use them against Him in these last days.
I. Satan thinks he has won the battle but Jesus has a secret weapon Satan hasn’t beaten yet.
A. Who is it? Hey, it is you and me.
1.Jesus says to his disciples in Matt. 24:14, “The Message of the kingdom-will be preached all
over the world, a witness staked out in every country. And then the end will come.”
2.Who is this witness? I say it is all of us in this room tonight and every Christian still alive
today.
3.You see back in 1915 the average life span in America was only 54.
4.In 1967 it went to 70
5.Now it is right at 80.
6.I heard one reporter say that now middle age is considered to be 60.
B. Why do you think God has allowed our life span to increase like that?
1.My personal theory is that God has been looking at what our politicians have been doing to
the moral values in our country, now they call them Family values, one step removed from
Moral values. But we remember our own fathers and their integrity and their devotion to God.
2. And we learned in school about how our Pilgrim fathers came over here on the Mayflower
and persevered through cold and deprivation to establish a nation whose Capitol is alive with
Scripture and pledges to Almighty God.
3. Do you think God has turned a deaf ear to those Godly patriots? No, I think not!
4. Just think, 20 years ago this room would be almost empty right now.
5. I believe you and I have been allowed to live 20 to 30 years longer to maintain and propagate
the Gospel message of Jesus Christ and to declare the salvation message to a generation that
has been deprived of its beauty and glory and satisfaction. Hey, they can’t get it from our
schools any longer ,but they can from us.
6. But you say, “pastor I am retired.” Well get over it. Our churches need you!! Many retired
men are going to mission fields as short term missionaries.
7.Think about it: You have insight. You have strength of Character. You have reasoning power.
You have connections. You have integrity. You have inside of you an appreciation for the word
of God. And there is a rich history of the moving of God you have seen and experienced that
this young generation has been deprived and the need for you to be the Sunday School
Teacher to in some way to hear from you. You have seen miracles. You have heard testimonies.
You have been in amazing revivals. And our churches need you and I as mentors
