do so if not if you have to leave we understand this is the portion of our
Sunday morning service that we set aside to talk about Bible prophecy and today I
want to talk about what seems to be on the horizon geopolitically particularly
as it relates to Israel usually the prophecy updates are centered around the
Middle East in particular Israel and the reason for that is we see Israel as
God's prophetic clock I would argue that the world like never before is being
readied even steadied for peace that will ultimately lead to war let me say
the same thing in a different way it does seem that the world today is being
prepared or readied for peace it'll be a false peace a pseudo peace and this
peace will be the catalyst that will lead to sudden destruction in the form
of a war and really wars it will ultimately lead to war I'll begin by
drawing your attention to two specific Bible prophecies one is in the Old
Testament one in the New and we'll start with a New it's in first Thessalonians
5:3 a verse I'm sure you're very familiar with the Apostle Paul is
writing to the church in Thessalonica and he says while people are saying
peace and safety or as some translations render it peace and security it's the
same word in the Greek aspháleia that is translated safety or security so while
people are saying peace and security destruction will come on them suddenly
as labor pains on a pregnant woman and they will not escape so in other words
this destruction is going to come in unison with people saying peace and
security and when not if it comes it will be like these labor pains which
come in greater frequency and intensity the Old Testament prophecy is in the
Book of Daniel chapter 8 verse 25 it says and through his policy his policy
that of the Antichrist's policy also he shall cause craft to prosper in his
hand and he shall magnify himself in his heart and listen by peace shall destroy
many peace he shall also stand up against the Prince of princes speaking
of Jesus Christ but he shall be broken without hand speaking of that time when
he is ultimately defeated by the King of kings and the Lord of lords the reason I
began with these specific prophecies is that they speak to how the ensuing
destruction comes by way of this peace in other words there will first be this
insatiable quest for peace and security but in the end it will ultimately lead
to sudden destruction I am personally of the belief that we are seeing these
things begin to come to pass which means that it's only a matter of time
and if you'll hear me out I want to explain how I get there and why it is
that I say that let's start with this Arutz Sheva report about US Secretary of
State Mike Pompeo saying that President Donald Trump's long-awaited Middle East
peace plan efforts will begin interesting word quote immediately
following the Israeli elections this April which is scheduled for April 9th
while I realized that this is not necessarily breaking news what is
interesting is that Pompeo also said ultimately the Israelis and the
Palestinians will have to come to an agreement in other words it is a
foregone conclusion that there will be an agreement well seems that the
pressure is on the Trump administration and it's mounting and it's evidenced by
this Jerusalem Post article about how Jared Kushner is planning Trump's peace
push before the heat of the 2020 presidential race according to The Post
Jared Kushner Trump's son-in-law who is leading the peace team will be a public
face of the effort while also leading the private push for a resumption of
talks he then reportedly plans on being involved in Trump's reelection bid once
the general campaign enters full swing in the spring of 2020 stay with me
notice the timeline
nothing's going to happen until April 9th but immediately after the elections in
Israel on April 9th peace plan and oh by the way they might have to because they
need enough time after April of this year and the beginning of next year when
the presidential campaign is in full swing so let's see if my math is right
April May June July August September October November December let's call it
January February so we got 11 months the better part of a year
something is going to have to happen and we're told that ultimately they will
have to accept something they may not like this but they're going to have to
accept something well the jury may be out on when the peace plan is unveiled
and certainly the jury may be out on whether or not said peace plan will be
successful but there's no question that the verdict is in concerning the threat
of war from Iran in Syria according to Al Arabiya the commander of Iran's Air
Force Brigadier Aziz Nasirzadeh said that Iran will quote eliminate Israel
from the earth this comes after Israel's military said
on Monday it struck Iranian Quds targets inside Syria and warned Syrian
forces not to attack Israeli territory or forces now I realized that any
breaking news concerning Israel and what is happening
its northern border there in the Golan with Syria with Iran with Russia Turkey
et al is eclipsed by virtue of what is happening here in America and please
don't misunderstand me I realize that it is a very serious
problem that we are facing in our country we are as one said in unchartered
territory with what is happening on the eve of the State of the Union and the
government shutdown and the all-out war sadly between the Democrats and the
Republicans I don't want to get into that but it does play into what we're
talking about today as you might imagine Israel will never sit idly by in the
face of any threat especially a threat coming from Iran Al Arabiya published
another report about how Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel's
airstrikes on Syria on Monday had mainly targeted military positions set up by
Iran which he warned would face consequences for threatening to destroy
Israel quoting Netanyahu we are operating both against Iran and against
the Syrian forces that are abetting the Iranian aggression we will strike at
anyone who tries to harm us whoever threatens to eliminate us bears full
responsibility make no mistake about it these are not just threats of war they
are to be taken very seriously and rightfully so on Thursday
Ynet news published a report based on an annual assessment of security
challenges done by the Institute for national security studies INSS in which
they conclude that Israel could face military conflicts on three different
fronts Syria Lebanon and the Gaza Strip at the
same time in 2019 that's this year we're on the cusp of February First this week
and the time line is already in place and the clock is already ticking and I
will liken it to this having a shelf life an expiration date if you will in
other words something has got to happen and it doesn't stand to reason as far as
I'm concerned that it's going to be delayed any longer because it cannot be
delayed any longer so if Israel is facing this three front war sometime
this year and it really comes first and foremost by way of Syria is that not
what we're told is Aziz Nasirzadeh happen in Isaiah 17 verse 1 about the complete and
total destruction of Damascus Syria and doesn't it also comport with what we
know about the prophecy in Ezekiel 38 that at the helm of this alliance of
nations are Russia Iran and Turkey but there's no mention of Syria could it be
that this three front war explains the absence of Syria Isaiah 17:1 Lebanon my
birthplace not mentioned in Ezekiel 38 it explains the absence of all the
surrounding people's if you will I
suppose we shouldn't be surprised by this Times of Israel article about
information warfare global warming and the danger of
nuclear war bringing us as close to destroying the planet as ever as the
symbolic Doomsday Clock stayed at two minutes to midnight
The Times quotes The Bulletin of Atomic Scientists as saying that humanity now
faces two simultaneous existential threats either of which would be cause
for extreme concern and immediate attention you know what's interesting to
me is almost like the world the unbeliever has a better grasp on the
urgency of the hour in which we live then does the believer what really
caught my attention about this article and this is why I wanted to share it is
that they quote Jerry Brown he's the executive chair of The Bulletin of the
Atomic Scientists and former governor of California
I'm quoting now the blindness and stupidity of the politicians and their
consultants is truly shocking in the face of nuclear catastrophe and danger
we are almost like travelers on the Titanic not seeing the iceberg up ahead
but enjoying the elegant dining and music Brown the article goes on also
took issue with journalists who report on every word the US president utters on
social media that my friend is a full-time job
journalists yes you love Trump's tweets you love the news of the day Brown says
you love the leads that get the clicks but the final click could be a nuclear
accident or mistake and that is what we all have to be worried about oh
my
sounds like sudden destruction to me sounds like it could happen suddenly
coming upon them and they will not escape dare I say that we may very well
be one click away I believe we are I
don't want to sound sensational or provocative but this is how I live my
life week in week out day in day out I am keenly aware and by the way I have no
unfinished business I'm living my life like the Lord could come back today
I will have no regrets if that trumpet sounds I am as ready today as I would be
if it's not 10 years from today that's how I want to live my life occupying
until He comes but it's living your life in such a way that you realize that it's
one click away do you believe that do you believe that
let me take it a step further and we'll bring it in for a close think this
through with me one click away from a strike on Damascus Syria that totally
destroys that city becoming a ruinous heap now subsequent to that strike
Russia Iran and Turkey invade Israel to take a spoil one click away you know how
you double click on the mouse you'll forgive the computer metaphor or the
trackpad or whatever your device is that
first click leads to the second click and then everything just opens up and
goes down that's how close we are we're one click away and this is why we do
these weekly prophecy updates because we're that close it's also why we end
with the gospel of Jesus Christ and the ABCs of salvation which is a childlike
simple explanation of how to be saved what do you mean saved from eternity in
hell what yeah for God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son
that whosoever would believe in Him would not perish in hell for all
eternity but would be saved and be in heaven with Him for all eternity instead
that's the gospel the good news of salvation in Jesus Christ the good news
is is that Jesus came and died on that cross
in our place he was buried and rose again on the third day and he's coming
back one day that's the good news that's the gospel how do you respond
it's so childlike simple please know that whenever we do these ABCs of
salvation we wish in no way to insult anybody's intelligence Jesus said unless
you become like a little child you cannot enter the kingdom of heaven and I
for one am so glad that the gospel was childlike simple because if it was
complicated I don't know that I would have ever gotten saved I mean think about
it aren't you glad that the gospel to get saved you have to know quantum
physics shoot me now I'm doomed man that's how I could be saved no it's so
simple the A is for admit or acknowledge that you've sinned against a righteous
and holy God that you're a sinner that you need a Savior Romans 3:10 says there
is no one righteous not even one no one's a good person Romans 3:23 says all
have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God that's what actually the
word sin means by the way it's an archery term an archery term you missed
the mark so if you were an archer in that day and it's your turn and you take
the arrow and you put it in the bow and you aim for the bull's eye and you miss
you've sinned how's that one you sinner you missed the mark you fell short of
the glory of God you didn't make the bullseye so what's the penalty oh it's
the death penalty that's bad news I know but the badder the bad news is the
gooder the good news will be I know that's not proper English please do not
email me for the wages Romans 6:23 says of sin is death that's the penalty but
here's the good news the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord
that's the A here's the B that B is for believe in your heart that Jesus Christ
is Lord and as Romans 10:9 and 10 says that if you believe in your heart that
God raised Jesus from the dead you will be saved
wow that's really simple I know so you're telling me that if I acknowledge
my sin turn to the Lord put my trust in the Lord believe in the Lord and that
God raised Jesus from the dead I will be saved yeah one more thing you need to
call upon His name and confess with your mouth
this is Romans 10:9 and 10 as well it says if you confess with your mouth
Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead you
will be saved and here's why for it is with your heart that you believe and are
justified I love that word justified it's just if I'd never sinned it's one
of those words that actually means how it sounds I am justified it's just if
I'd never sinned because He paid for my sin on the cross and though my sins were
as scarlet He has made them white as snow by the power of His blood that was
shed in my stead and He remembers them no more He removes them as far as the
East is from the West paid-in-full baby is it bad to say it like that that's not
very pastoral is it
it is with your heart that you believe and are justified and it is with your
mouth that you confess and are saved and Romans 10:13 lastly all who call upon
the name of the Lord will be saved one last thought and we'll close in
prayer
isn't it reasonable to conclude as you look at what's happening in the world
that all of these things were predicted in God's Word that everything we were
told would happen particularly in Israel to Israel against Israel isn't it
reasonable to conclude that it's happening now well pastor with all due
respect so many people throughout the generations have thought that the Lord
would return in their lifetime but he hasn't come yet I know aren't you glad
by the way I know I am I am so glad that Jesus did not come back and rapture the
church in 1981 because I didn't get saved till 1982 and this is what Peter
says about how God is slow seemingly because He's not willing that any should
perish but that all should come to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ so He's
giving you us more time but there is coming one time when that last Gentile
is going to get saved and when that last Gentile gets saved we're out of here
that trumpets going to sound and the dead in Christ are going to rise first it can
happen at any time again were one click away now here's the question if you've
never called on the name of the Lord wouldn't it also
be reasonable to conclude that you should not put off the most important
decision of your life for eternal life I make no assumptions I know I'm
quote/unquote preaching to the choir as it were but also online maybe there's
somebody watching this online and what I've shared today makes sense and the
Lord has spoken to your heart and He's knocked on the door of your heart I pray
that you would let Him in and you will call upon Him in Jesus name why don't you all
stand and we'll pray Father in heaven I am so grateful to You for Bible prophecy
the impact that it has on our life the urgency that it creates in our lives
Lord I pray for anyone here or anyone watching online that has never put their
trust in You believing in You acknowledging their sin before You and
calling upon You that today would be the day of their salvation and Lord
Maranatha come quickly in Jesus name Amen
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