Knowing Your Road Map
Jeff Horn
Midland SDA Church
September 21, 2013
Introduction
Happy Sabbath friends! Isn’t it awesome that the creator of the Universe has blessed and sanctified this 24 hour period each week for us to rest and worship Him? What a blessing!
You know, we are living at a time in earth’s existence where all we have to do is look at the news to learn about the great variety of terrible things that are going on – both man-made and natural disasters. The state of the world is unsettling to many people, and many live in fear for their security both now and in the future. People realize that this world cannot continue indefinitely.
Once upon a time during the early stages of my years at Andrews University, I decided to head home for the weekend. I had driven the route a number of times, and didn’t believe that using my GPS was necessary this time. My drive was going fine as I headed across 94 and then up 69. In my opinion, my drive was still going quite well until I began to notice signs that seemed to indicate I was approaching Grand Rapids. I had ended up on 96 West around Lansing instead of 127 North. I was a bit frustrated as I turned around to get back on the right path and headed home. It didn’t matter how confident I was that I was headed in the right direction, the longer I stayed on West 96, the further I strayed from my destination.
The title of my sermon today is called “Knowing Your Road Map.” I want to talk to you about the signs that God has placed along the way that enable us to know our location on the road of earth’s existence, as well as the instructions that He has provided that tell us how to stay on course and complete our journey so that we may arrive safely at home. The Bible makes it clear that we are living in the last days of earth’s history, and also provides plain instruction of what we are to be doing as disciples of Christ. God has left us many landmarks and road signs, along with a perfectly designed map. It is up to us to follow His navigation system and reach our destination safely, or end up lost while perhaps believing all the while that we are on the right track – like I did on my way to Midland.
Failed Predictions
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Transition: Throughout the centuries, there have been hundreds of people that have tried to predict when earth’s road end. There have been many radical theories and charismatic leaders that have gained the trust of countless numbers of deceived followers.
· The Great Disappointment
o Through his study of Biblical prophecy, specifically Daniel 8, William Miller and about 100,000 followers, including at least 200 Protestant ministers, were expelled from their churches for their belief that Christ would return on October 22, 1844. When this failed to come true, many left the movement in despair, but some returned to the Bible to study it even more carefully. We can be thankful today to those who stayed faithful after the Great Disappointment, and helped bring to light many Biblical truths that had been squelched during the Dark Ages.
· Jehovah’s Witnesses Predictions
o Predicted that Armageddon would take place and that the world would end many times during the 20th century.
· Harold Camping
o Received millions of dollars of donations to spread his message that Christ would return on May 21, 2011.
· Mayan Calendar
o December 21, 2012 marked the end of a significant era on the Mayan calendar. Some believed that this would be doomsday.
Signs of the Times
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Transition: The individuals that developed these predictions and those that believed in them all had the sense that the world will not last forever. However, they could have saved themselves the heartache, embarrassment, and devastation that they experienced had they simply trusted in what God tells us in Matthew 24:36: “No one knows the day nor the hour except the Father.”
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We don’t know when God will return, but God has given us prophecies so that we can know when the end is near, and so that we do not need to be surprised or afraid of the future.
· Daniel’s Image
o Daniel received his vision in Babylon and gave this prediction hundreds of years before Christ, and the succession of kingdoms has come to fruition exactly as predicted. The head of gold, Babylon; the chest of silver, Medo-Persia; thighs of bronze, Greece; legs of iron, Rome; and the Iron and Clay feet representing divided Europe, which, like iron and clay, cannot be joined together despite numerous attempts to do so by historical figures such as Charlemagne, Napoleon, and Hitler. We are now living in the time of the toes, or even the toe nails, of the statue – divided Europe. The next event to take place is the second coming of Christ, which is the rock cut without hands that will smash the image of earthly rulers.
§ The discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls within the last century has proven Daniel to have been written well before the time of Christ.
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· End-time Events
o Further signs of the times provided by God include a great earthquake, a dark day, and the stars falling from the sky.
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· A great earthquake predicted in Revelation 6:12, to come at the end of the time of tribulation.
· Discuss points on slide
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· Point out area that felt the Great Lisbon Earthquake
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· A dark day, where neither the sun nor moon would give their light is predicted in multiple places in the Bible including Matthew 24:29, which says…(read text)
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· Discuss points on slide
o John Herschel, a noted Astronomer of the era described the event by saying, "The dark day in North America was one of those wonderful phenomena of nature which philosophy is at a loss to explain. The extent of the darkness was also very remarkable. It was observed at the most easterly regions of New England, westward to the farthest part of Connecticut, and at Albany, N. Y., to the southward, it was observed all along the sea coast, and to the north as far as the American settlements extended. It probably far exceeded those boundaries, but the exact limits were never positively known. With regard to its duration, it continued in the neighborhood of Boston for at least fourteen or fifteen hours.”
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· The stars falling from the sky is predicted in Matthew as well as Revelation 6:12, which says “…and the stars in the sky fell to earth, as figs drop from a fig-tree when shaken by a strong wind.”
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· Discuss points on slide
o “Never did the rain fall much thicker than the meteors fell toward the earth; east, west, north, and south, it was the same.”
§ -Professor Silliman
o "No language indeed can come up to the splendor of that magnificent display; no one who did not witness it can form an adequate conception of its glory. It seemed as if the whole starry heavens had congregated at one point near the zenith, and were simultaneously shooting forth, with the velocity of lightning, to every part of the horizon; and yet they were not exhausted--thousands swiftly followed in the track of thousands, as if created for the occasion." "A more correct picture of a fig-tree casting its figs when blown by a mighty wind, it is not possible to behold."
§ Henry Data Ward
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· Matthew 24:24 warns of false Christs: (read text)
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· We have seen a number of individuals claim to be Christ within the last century.
· David Koresh
o In 1993 in Waco, Texas, David Koresh convinced his followers that he was Christ, and they should wait for the end of the world at the Mount Carmel Center. When the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives attempted to search the compound on reports of abuse of women and children among other things, the Branch Davidians fought back. After a 50-day stand-off, the FBI stormed the compound resulting in a fire and the death of dozens of Davidians including Koresh.
· Jim Jones
o Jim Jones founded the Peoples Temple, which was a communist community type church, and finally settled on a compound in the jungle of Guyana in 1977. Jones demanded complete loyalty from his followers, and required them to call him “Father” or “Dad”, and claimed that he was indeed the Christ. It was in Guyana that over 900 of his followers drank grape Flavor-Aid mixed with cyanide and valium in a mass suicide after Jones had ordered the killing of U.S. Congressman Ryan and other members of Ryan’s entourage, when Ryan had visited the compound to ensure the safety of the Jonestown members.
· Recent individuals claiming to be Christ include Sung Myung Moon, a Korean leader, and Jose Luis deJesus Miranda, a Miami pastor, among others.
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· Matthew 24:6-8 gives us a list of three particular occurrences that will increase in intensity and frequency as Christ’s return approaches, as do birth pains for an expectant mother as the time of delivery draws near. These events are wars and rumors of wars, famines, and earthquakes.
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· This graph shows the number of deaths due to war by millions per century. While keeping in mind that this is in part due to an overall population boom on the planet, the trend of deaths due to war is quite clear. 200 million people lost their lives because of man’s inability to peacefully cohabitate this planet with his fellow man in the last century.
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· Hunger is extremely widespread today – give statistics
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· This graph shows the frequency of earthquakes over a magnitude of by decade. Notice the drastic spike in the last two decades.
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· 2 Timothy 3:1-4 offers a harsh description of the condition of humanity prior to Christ’s return. Sadly, isn’t it fair to say that these characteristics are all too prevalent in society today?
o How many rich and famous athletes and actors humble themselves in the sight of the Lord? Not many. Most are proud and boastful.
o It’s not “cool” to obey parents anymore. Society encourages us to be “independent.”
o Lack of self-control is seen in mental health problems, physical health problems, and violent crimes.
o Most people today “just want to have fun.” Seeking pleasure and self-gratification is top on the priority list of many.
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· Other signs foretold in the Bible that are world is nearing its conclusion include: (read slide)
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· Can the signs be any more clear that Jesus is coming soon?
Transition: Studying prophecy and all of the fulfilled predictions that we have are mentally stimulating and enable us to clearly identify that Jesus is coming soon. These facts are useful in that they may gain the interest of those that do not know God, and give us assurance in our faith. But experiencing and seeing the work of God today is the key to finding, and sustaining, a saving relationship with Him. I can speak from experience to this point.
· As I left childhood and began to gain more and more independence, something extremely dangerous began to take root inside of me. It really was the same thing in fact that caused sin in the first place, and has led to the terrible things that we see today in the world…..it was pride. Everyone has a litany of excuses as to why they make certain mistakes or things turn out certain ways, but the bottom line is that I allowed pride to grow inside of me, which turned my focus in life to be increasingly self-centered. School came easily for me for the most part, I had plenty of friends, and I had every material thing that I needed. Life was easy. The devil is certainly dangerous when things are easy. It is much more difficult to depend on God when we are comfortable and have so many material things. It is easy to become self-reliant and allow our pride to be exalted.
As my pride was exalted, God was pushed from my life. Light and darkness do not mix, and there is no middle ground in where our spiritual allegiances lie. My main focus in life was really on having fun. I may have been “successful” in the eyes of the world, but the Holy Spirit kept whispering to me that God had a different plan for my life. I would try to ignore it, and fill my life with more sports, entertainment, or other worldly things - but nothing satisfied. I finally reached the point where I decided to take a stand for myself. I began studying and reviewing different things, and the various prophecies and other excellent proofs that I summarized this morning played a great role in persuading me that the Bible is to be fully trusted, and in surrendering my life to God. I have certainly had struggles and made mistakes since that time, but praise God for forgiveness! I have such peace in my life now that was completely lacking before. I know that I can’t control many things in my life, but I also know who can and who does. What a relief to allow Jesus to bear our burdens! God has, and continues to help me overcome obstacles that I know there is no way I could have conquered on my own. I have had to humble myself and ask for forgiveness, and the peace that comes when forgiveness is received when we by no means deserve it indeed surpasses all understanding. Experiencing His work in my life is what leads me into a daily surrender to His will. Certainly we all make mistakes, but God:
o He sent His only Son to die in our place so that each of us would have the opportunity to spend eternity with Him.
o He pleads with us in Hebrews 3:15 that “Today, if you will hear His voice, do not harden your hearts…” Time is short friends – don’t harden your hearts when He is speaking to you.
Transition: Once we have made the decision to accept Jesus, our lives will show it.
· If we love Him, we will keep His commandments, as we are told in 1 John 14:15.
o That means even when it’s not the popular or the easy thing to do.
· We will deny ourselves, take up our cross, and follow Him. –Matthew 16:24
· We will carry forward His work as He has called us to do, which is known as the Great Commission. In Matthew 28:19-20, Jesus gives instruction to His disciples: “Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world.”
Transition to discussion of sharing the gospel
· Our PRIMARY purpose in life is to spread the news about Jesus and His return.
i. The word “Gospel” means good news. When we have good news, we want to share it with others. In fact, if Christ is living in our heart, we can’t help but share Him with others.
ii. Some people think that they aren’t called to witness – they may say it isn’t their spiritual gift. Check the list of spiritual gifts in the Bible. It isn’t a spiritual gift! Christians witness about Jesus because we are His followers, and that is what He has instructed us to do.
iii. We say “Not me, not yet,” and have different reasons to not step out of our comfort zones. But when will we be ready? Like anything in life, we get better with practice. It was uncomfortable for me to give this sermon, but that is how we grow in God and learn. Consider the imperfect and limited people that God used in might ways in the Bible:
i.
Noah was a drunk
Abraham was too old
Jacob was a liar
Leah was ugly
Joseph was abused
Moses had a stuttering problem
Gideon was afraid
Samson was a womanizer
Jeremiah and Timothy were too young
David had an affair and was a murderer
Elijah was suicidal
Jonah ran from God
Naomi was a widow
Job went bankrupt
Peter denied Christ
The Disciples fell asleep while praying
Martha worried about everything
The Samaritan woman was divorced, more than once
Zaccheus was too small ..AND
Lazarus was dead!
· So don’t think that God cannot use you!
· When we look at how God wants to use us, specifically in terms of the Great Commission, we see the word “therefore” right at the beginning of the command. David Asscherick has a saying: “Whenever the Bible says ‘therefore’, ask yourself, what is it there for?” Therefore basically means “because”, so the word is summarizing, or concluding, previous statements. In this case, if we look at Matthew 28:18, we see Jesus telling the disciples that “All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth….Go ye therefore…”
o Jesus has ALL power. What do we have to be afraid of? If God is for us, who can stand against us?
Transition: Considering the Great Commission, along with 1 Peter 3:15 which instructs us to “Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But [to] do this with gentleness and respect,” I’d like for us to think about a few questions:
· Does everyone in your sphere of influence know you’re a Christian?
o Think about people in your life (friends/family) that you can reach out to.
· Do you actively seek opportunities to share your faith?
o Or are you even prepared to share when opportunities present themselves?
§ Sadly, most Christians rarely or never share their faith with others.
· In life, we essentially have two resources that we determine how to allocate: our time and money
o Do the way we spend our time and our money clearly show that we understand that our treasure is not on this earth, and that we believe Jesus is coming soon?
Transition: Let’s consider steps that we can take that will allow us to answer “yes” to the questions we just discussed. How we can be ready to share our faith, and fulfill the Great Commission so that we can go home.
· The first step is of course giving our lives to God. If He is not living in our heart as demonstrated by our conduct, our words will not mean anything.
· Spend focused time in Bible study and prayer so that our knowledge is increasing, and the line of communication is open between God and us.
· Opportunities in crisis
o Drew Weaver’s manager hit on a motorcycle and killed a couple of weeks ago – co-workers open to spiritual things.
· Let people know that you will be praying for them during tough times, and praise God for His blessings during the good times.
· Share how God has helped you with similar situations when someone confides a given situation with you.
· Talk about what God is doing in your life.
· Invite friends to events such as the upcoming Evangelism series. Personal invitations have by far the best success rate.
· Coordinate with friends in the church to go door-to-door in the community. The “Community Religious Survey” is one good approach to begin discussions with people. The questions begin with “Do you believe in God?”, and progress until the last question, which is, “Would you be interested in Bible studies?” During my time at the Emmanuel Institute we spent just over an hour each Sabbath going door-to-door, and found many people interested in Bible studies.
· When a guest comes to church, especially multiple times, be sure that someone is asking him/her if they are interested in studying the Bible. It’s great to have them over for Sabbath lunch, but let’s not miss the opportunities that are right in front of us in terms of potential Bible study interests.
· Be faithful with tithe, and generous with offerings.
o Consider worthy projects to support such as:
§ Strong Tower Radio
§ Supporting a mission family
§ Providing resources for underprivileged families and children overseas, or even locally
§ Maranatha
§ AFM
Conclusion
· God has given us a road map to guide us through all of the distractions in the world today. He has given us prophecies that have been perfectly fulfilled that give us confidence that Jesus is coming soon! Today is the day to make a decision for Him – we are not guaranteed tomorrow. Jesus has called us to spread the gospel and finish the work. Our main priority in life should be to do exactly this. The task that God has given us has eternal implications, and can seem overwhelming at times. But when the going gets rough, and we face tribulations, let us keep in mind where the road leads if we follow the road map that God has given us. Ellen White concludes the Great Controversy by detailing her vision of the heavenly city: (read underlined parts)
Friends, I want to spend eternity with each and every one of you in heaven, and I want as many people as possible to be there! The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few. Go ye therefore.