The Appointed Time

The title of the day is The Appointed Time. Is God Executing His Plan for Humankind on Time? Or does God sort of play it by ear? Two thousand years ago, in the model of prayer, Jesus instructed us to pray, Your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. And now we are two thousand years down the road from that, and the kingdom, the millennium, has not begun. But is there a way to know the appointed time? The only way to know is to search the scriptures for the answer. Some might say that God has left the time appointed open-ended based on Matthew 24. If you want to turn to Matthew 24 to the Olivet Prophecy. In Matthew 24 in verse 15, I've got to quit trusting these programs that I'm using. And I thought word was perfect, but it's not. In Matthew 24 in verse 15, we see in the Olivet Prophecy that the disciples had asked Jesus Christ the question, what is the sign of your coming in the end of the age? And one of the things that Jesus mentioned with regard to the time of the end is, when you therefore shall see the abomination of desolation spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place. And of course Daniel mentions the abomination of desolation in both Daniel 11 and Daniel 12. When you see the abomination of desolation, stand in the holy place, whosoever reads, let him understand. Then we come down to verse 21. For then, when the abomination of desolation is placed, then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, nor ever shall be. And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved, but for the elect's sake, those days shall be shortened.

So here we see even the timing is not left open. It clearly states that those days will be shortened. What are the days it will be shortened? Well, verse 29 states, let's look at Matthew 24 and verse 29, immediately after the tribulation of those days. So after the tribulation, immediately after the tribulation of those days, the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven. And really this parallels the opening of the sixth seal. And the powers of the heavens shall be shaken. And then shall appear the sign of the Son of Man in heaven, and then shall all the tribes on the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of Man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and with great glory. Now after the abomination of desolation is placed, there begins a countdown very clearly. So we go back to Daniel 11, and we'll also read a verse from Daniel 12, where the countdown begins. But in Daniel 11 verse 31 to begin with, which is parallels Matthew 24, 15, in Daniel chapter 11 verse 31, An arm shall stand on his part, the beast power, and they shall pollute the sanctuary of strength, shall take away the daily sacrifice, and they shall place the abomination that makes desolate. Now in chapter 12, beginning in verse 8, the abomination of desolation is once again mentioned. And of course this lends validity to the scriptures that Jesus Christ Himself verified the prophecies of Daniel. And in Daniel chapter 12 now in verse 8, And I heard, but I understood not, then said I, O my Lord, what shall be the end of these things? And He said, Go your way, Daniel, for the words are closed up and sealed to the time of the end. Many shall be purified and made white and tried, but the wicked shall do wickedly, and none of the wicked shall understand, but the wise shall understand. And from the time that the daily sacrifice shall be taken away, we read about in Daniel 11, 31, also Matthew 24, 15, taken away in the abomination that makes desolate set up, there shall be a thousand two hundred and ninety days, blessed is he that waits and comes to the thousand three hundred and thirty-five days. And note further the last verse, but go your way till the end. And we're going to be talking about that word. The Hebrew word there is it's spelled q-e-t-s in English, when it's translated from the Hebrew to English, q-e-t-s, and it is pronounced k-t-s, k-a-t-e-s, or k-t-s till the end. It literally means the end. Till the end, for you shall rest and stand in your lot at the end of the days. You'll stand in your lot at the end of the days. Now let's note in Revelation 1.5 how we'll begin in verse 5. Revelation 1.5, we'll read into this how it parallels what we've read from Matthew 24 with regard to the coming of Jesus Christ. In Revelation 1 and verse 5, and from Jesus unto the faithful witness and the firstborn of the dead. The Greek word is prototikos. It literally means firstborn of the dead. So therefore, resurrection is equated with birth into the kingdom of God.

And the prince of the kings of the earth unto him that loved us and washed us from our sins and his own blood hath made us kings and priests unto God, and his father to him be glory and dominion forever. And blessed is behold he comes with clouds, and every eye shall see him, and they that pierced him and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of him. And as we read from Matthew 24 that every eye shall see him. I am Alpha and Omega. The beginning and the ending says, the Lord which was and which is and which is to come the Almighty. Now we look at Revelation chapter 9 and verse 11, and here we'll see that this is the sixth trumpet plague. It is the second woe. The first trumpet plagues are basically poured out on the environment, and they are covered in Revelation chapter 8. The first part of Revelation chapter 9 deals with pouring out of the fifth trumpet plague, but here we want to note how precise God spells out the time of certain events in Revelation 9 and verse 11. Revelation 9 verse 11. They had a king over them, which is the angel of the bottomless pit, whose name is, in the Hebrew tongue, is Abaddon or Abadon, but in the Greek tongue has the name Apollyon, meaning destroyer. So that is the end of the first woe. Now verse 12. One woe is passed, and behold, there come two woes hereafter. And the sixth angel sounded, and I heard a voice from four horns of the golden altar, which is before God, saying to the sixth angel, which had the trumpet, Loose the four angels which are bound in the great river Euphrates. So here are apparently four demon spirits that are in a state of restraint. They are bound in the river Euphrates. Of course, the Euphrates is mentioned over and over in the Bible, and not much good comes from the river Euphrates. And the four angels were loose, which were prepared for an hour and a day and a month and a year, an exact time. I mean, how much more for an hour, a day, a month, and a year for to slay the third part of men? The four angels were loose, which were prepared for the hour. And the number of the army that these four demonic spirits led were 200,000 thousand, and I heard the number of them. The main point I'm showing here, the title of this sermon is the appointed time. See, the appointed time to that opening of the beginning of the sixth trumpet plague, an hour, a day, and a year. How exact can you be? I guess you could say, well, you can also include the minutes and the seconds or get down to the nanoseconds.

See, in these verses we see that the beginning of the sixth trumpet plague, which is the second woe, is specified down to the hour, the day, and the year. Now, let's look further as to how God specifies when certain events will occur. So now we want to go to Genesis 18 and verse 14, and this has to do with the promise made to Abraham. I suppose the greatest promise, most pivotal promise in all the Bible is Genesis 12.3, where it says that in your seed, in Abraham's seed, only one seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed, and that seed was Christ. Mr. Booty read that scripture last week in his sermon.

Here we see Abraham and Sarah being told that they are going to have a child, and they're both past the way of having children, at the appointed time. So in Genesis 18 verse 4, at the time appointed, now they had to wait a long time. After the promise was made, how long did they wait? I don't know exactly, but it was quite a time because they even came to the point where Sarah said to Abraham, why don't you go into Hagar, my handmaid, and beget a child by her, which he did, Ishmael, the father of the Arabs.

And it says about Ishmael in the scripture that his hand will be against every man. So Genesis 18 14, is anything too hard for the Lord? They were passed the way of childbearing. At the time appointed, at the time appointed, I will return unto you according to the time of life, and Sarah shall have a son.

The promise of the seed from Abraham was passed on to Isaac and Jacob, and fulfilled when Jesus was begotten, crucified, resurrected, and now sitting at the right hand of the Father, making intercessions for us. Now let's take a closer look at the Hebrew word that is translated time appointed. The Hebrew word for time appointed is moed, and it's spelled pretty much the way it's pronounced, M-O-W-E-D, moed. It means exactly what it states, a specific time or place, as we shall see from several verses. The next time that the word appointed time is used is in Exodus 9 and verse 5.

So if you'll turn to Exodus 9 and verse 5, we'll read this scripture of what it states here about the appointed time. In Exodus 9 and verse 5, the Lord appointed a set time, saying, tomorrow the Lord shall do this thing in the land. So Moses and Aaron appeared before Pharaoh several times, and God said at this appointed time tomorrow, this is what's going to happen.

And it happened. Once again, the word set time is translated from the Hebrew word moed. So how do we know when to keep the feast? God specifies the exact dates that each feast day is to be observed, including the weekly Sabbath. So now let's turn to Exodus 23 and verse 15. In Exodus 23 and verse 15, you shall keep the feast of unleavened bread. You shall eat unleavened bread seven days, as I commanded you in the time appointed. There's a certain time that you're supposed to do this.

In the time appointed of the month Abib, for in it, in that time, you came out from Egypt, and none shall appear before me empty. Now we go further to Leviticus 23, in which the seven annual holy days are spelled out, and they are to be observed at the appointed time. Leviticus 23 and verse 1.

Leviticus 23 and verse 1. And the Lord spoke unto Moses, saying, speaking to the children of Israel, and saying to them, concerning the feast of the eternal, not the feast of the Jews, not the feast of any nation, not the feast of any person, the feast of the eternal, which you shall proclaim to be holy convocations.

Even these are my feasts. Six days shall work be done, but the seventh day is the Sabbath of rest, a holy convocation you shall do no work therein, the Sabbath of the Lord in all your dwellings. These are the feasts of the Lord, even holy convocations which you shall observe in their seasons, in the 14th day of the first month, even at the Lord's Passover.

And at the 15th day of the same month is the feast of unleavened bread. Under the Lord's seven days you must eat unleavened bread. So it is specified, the seventh day is the day that you observe the weekly Sabbath. It is specified which days you are to keep the annual holy days, the annual feast. Now let's look at Joshua 8 and verse 14. Joshua 8 and verse 14. Now when I started this, I said, is God executing His plan for humankind on time?

Or does He sort of play it by ear? Two thousand years ago in the model of prayer, Jesus instructed us to pray, your kingdom come. So is there an appointed time for the kingdom to come? I said Joshua 8 and verse 14. Joshua judges, judges Joshua. Joshua 8 and verse 14. I will eventually get there. Joshua 8 and verse 14. And it came to pass when the king A.I.

saw it, that they hastened and rose up early, and the men of the city went out against Israel to battle. He and all his people at a time appointed before the plain, but he didn't know that there were liars in ambush against him behind the city. I'm just showing here that once again the word is Moed, the Hebrew word Moed, and it means an exact time or place.

In Esther 9 and verse 27, of course you know the story of Esther, how that the evil Haman had hashed the plot against the Jews to kill all of them, and of course if all the Jews had been killed, then prophecy would have been broken, and Jesus Christ would not have come on the scene. And so Esther's uncle went to Esther. Esther had been made queen, one of the queens of the emperor, and so Mordecai challenged Esther to go before the king and plead the case of the Jews, which she did. And to make a long story short, God delivered the Jews, and the evil Haman was killed. In Esther 9 and verse 27, the Jews ordained and took upon them, and upon their seed, and upon such as joins themselves unto them, so as it should not fail that they should keep these two days according to their writings, according to their appointed time every year. And the religious Jews to this day still observe Purim. But Scripture does not call for a solemn assembly on that day, and it was instituted long after God revealed the holy days that we read in Leviticus 23. Now let's note Job 7 in verse 1.

Job was being tried severely. It looked like he was going to die any moment. He had a severe affliction from his head to his feet. And in Job 7.1, he says, is there not an appointed time to man upon earth, or not his days also the day of an hireling? Of course, there's a place in Scripture that says that the time of man is three score and ten, 70 years. And once you pass 70, as I say, once you pass 70, you're living on borrowed time. Now a lot of people die before they get to 70, obviously, and I think a lot of longevity has to do with genetics and what your parents did. We were all shocked by the death of 50-year-old pastor here two weeks ago, Sean Cordelieu. Sean Cordelieu just died at age 50 and was buried this last Monday. Now in Job 14 verse 14, if a man die, this is Job speaking, Job 14.14, if a man die shall he live again? All the days of my appointed time will I wait till my change come? Well, Job died and he was buried. There's coming an appointed time in which he is going to be resurrected according to the Scripture. He says I will wait all of my appointed time till my change comes. The following Scriptures show the exactness of the Mo'ed, which is the appointed time. So we go now to 1 Samuel 13 and verse 8. 1 Samuel 13 and verse 8. And he tarried seven days according to the set time that Samuel had appointed. But Samuel came not to Yogel and the people were scattered from him. I don't know exactly how they kept time before the sundial was invented. There's a record of the sundial being used as early as 297 BC, and then it was greatly enhanced later on in the 100s BC. Now in 1 Samuel 20 and verse 35. 1 Samuel 20 and verse 35. And it came to pass in the morning that Jonathan went out into the field at the time appointed with David and a little lad with him.

In Psalm 81 and verse 3, there are other scriptures in Samuel I won't read that also have the phrase appointed time, a set time for such and such to happen. But now we want to read Psalm 81 and verse 3. In Psalm 81 and verse 3, blow up the trumpet in the new moon in the time appointed, Moed, on the solemn feast day. So now we note from scriptures what we've just seen is the exactness of the appointed time. Now we're going to note from scriptures concerning the end time. And we're going to go first to Daniel 8 and verse 19. Daniel 8 and verse 19. The background of Daniel 8 and verse 19 is the ego pushing toward the east and the other goat, two goats pushing, Medo-Persian Empire pushing toward the west. The ego is Alexander the Great.

So in Daniel 8 and 19, and he said, and this is Gabriel came to Daniel to make him understand the the vision, which I'm not going into with the appointed time. And he said, Behold, I will make you to know what shall be in the last end. In this case, it is not yet, but it is an end event. It is Akarthith, the last end, Akarthith. Akarthith, of the ending nation, for at the time appointed, the end, and it is Kate's Q-E-T-S, for at the time appointed, it is for the time appointed. And the time appointed is the end, Kate's. At the time appointed, the end shall be. Now in Daniel 8 and 23, and in the latter time of their kingdom. So after Alexander the Great died, his kingdom was divided into four divisions.

And it says, out of one of these divisions of the kingdom, it doesn't say it in just those exact words. Maybe I should read also the surrounding context of this. We'll start in verse 20, picking up on the interpretation of the vision. And the rough goat now is the king of Grisha, Alexander the Great. That's verse 21. And the great horn that is between his eyes is the first king. Now that being broken, whereas four stood up for it, four kingdoms shall stand up out of the nation, but not in his own power.

Four kingdoms shall stand up. So Alexander's empire was broken up into four kingdoms with his generals taking rule of those four kingdoms. The Bible deals more with the king of the north and the king of the south, the Seleucids to the north and the Ptolemies to the south.

So verse 23, and in the latter time of their kingdom, when the transgressors are come to the fool, a king of fierce countenance and understanding dark sentences shall stand up. When transgressors are come to the fool, how long is that? Well, it's for a time appointed. It's out there somewhere. When transgressors come to the fool, we think the world is evil today, but as the old saying goes, we ain't seen anything yet.

Verse 24, and his power shall be mighty, but not by his own power. Who will he be energized by? He'll be energized by Satan the devil. And he shall destroy wonderfully, and shall prosper and practice, and shall corrupt in the right translation, the mighty and the holy people.

So the Jews will be involved in this. And through his policy also, he shall cause craft to prosper in his hand, and he shall magnify himself in his heart, and by peace shall corrupt many. He shall also stand up against the prince of princes. Now, this parallels Revelation 1714, when Jesus Christ returns as the prince of princes, he will have him with him, those who are called chosen and faithful. So it's through coming in in a deceitful manner, feigning to be peaceful, feigning to probably love the Jews, and so on. You can get a further description of him in Daniel chapter 11. He shall corrupt the mighty and the holy people, and through his policy he shall cause craft to prosper in his hand. He shall magnify himself in his heart, and by peace, so some kind of peace treaty is coming, eventually, in the Middle East. Who knows how long that's going to be? It's not tomorrow. He shall also stand up against the prince of princes, but he shall be broken without hand. And, of course, God intervenes, and Christ speaks by the sword of his mouth. The bones fall off of the forces there at the battle of the great day of God Almighty, as described in Revelation 19. And the vision of the evening and the morning, which was told, is true, wherefore shut you up the vision for it should be for many days. And I, Daniel, fainted and was sick. Certain days afterward I was up and did the king's business, and I was astonished at the vision and none understood it. I wonder if we understand it today, because we talk many times as if we don't. Now let's look at Daniel 10, verse 1. In Daniel chapter 10 and verse 1, In the third year of Cyrus, king of Persia, a thing was revealed unto Daniel, whose name was called Belteshazzar, that was his Babylonian name. And the thing was true, but the time appointed was long. It was going to be a long time before it was fulfilled. And he understood the thing and had understanding of the vision. So at an appointed time, it is going to be fulfilled. Now we look at Daniel 11 and verse 29. Daniel 11 verse 29. At the time appointed, he shall return and come toward the south, but it shall not be as in the former or in the latter. Now the point I'm making, I'm not going into the explanation of the prophecies in each case, is that there is a time appointed that he is going to do this according to what the scripture says. Now in Daniel 11 and verse 35. Daniel 11 and verse 35. And some of them of understanding shall fall to try them, and to purge and to make them white, even to the time of the end, which literally means the end of the age, because it is yet for a time appointed. So it is out there somewhere. Now we go to Habakkuk chapter 2. You probably don't turn to Habakkuk every day. In Habakkuk chapter 2 and verse 1, it said a little bit of the stage of Habakkuk. Habakkuk came on the scene, and he was what you might call the questioning prophet. He saw all of the evil that was going on around about him, and he cried out to God saying, how long are you going to let this go on? How long? How long will it be before you do something about it? And sometimes, I think in my prayers and meditation at night, what is being accomplished by this current evil age going on? Well, God knows what he's doing, and I say, if I'm wrong in even asking a question, please forgive me. And I'm probably wrong, so.

So what? You're just wondering, God has a plan that he is working out here below, and it will climax at the time appointed. And many events are going to take place before the time appointed is fulfilled. Now we go to Habakkuk 2 and burst a little bit of the background of Habakkuk, a questioning prophet who said, you know, how long are you going to let this go on? You might be praying in where we're told to sigh and cry for the evil that's about us. That's in Ezekiel 9. So in Habakkuk 2 and verse 1, I will stand upon my watch and set me upon the tower and will watch to see what he will say unto me. So Habakkuk said, I've asked all these questions. I'm just going to see what I'm going to sit back and see what God's going to do. Is he going to do anything or will he not?

And what I shall answer when I am reproved. What am I going to say when God does do something? And the Lord answered me and said, write the vision and make it plain upon tables or tablets that he may run that reads it. For the vision is yet for a time appointed, for an appointed time, but at the end it shall speak and not lie, though it tarry. It tarry. Well, it's tarryed a long time since Habakkuk. It tries 2,700 years, more or less. Wait for it because it will surely come. It will not tarry. Well, we think, well, is God tarrying or is it we haven't arrived at the time appointed? So then my purpose here today is not to read the rest of the chapter. We'll look at 1st verse 2 in chapter 3. A prayer of Habakkuk, the prophet upon Shiganoth, O Lord, I have heard your speech and was afraid. O Lord, revive your work in the midst of the years, in the midst of the years, make known in wrath, remember mercy. And then it pictures, really, in poetic form God and Christ returning again in the chapter.

Based on what we have seen from Scripture, it seems perfectly logical to ask, has God the Father appointed certain times or certain events to occur? So now let's note the words now in the New Testament. Let's go to John chapter 7 and verse 8. John chapter 7 and verse 8, Jesus is speaking here, and notice how he words this. They were asking him, oh, you're going to go to the feast? Are you going to go to the feast? And he answers John 7 verse 8, Go you up unto this feast, talking to those who were questioning him. I go not up yet to the feast, for my time is not yet come. So there was a certain time he was to do it. According to Galatians 4.2, there was a set time for Jesus to take up his ministry. So we go to Galatians 4 and verse 2, and we see what it says. Galatians 4 and verse 2. Galatians 4 and 2, But it is under tutors and governors until the time appointed of the Father, a time appointed of the Father, that what would happen, and Galatians 4.4 tells us, that at the time appointed, Jesus appeared on the scene. So let's read Galatians 4.4. But when the fullness, and the word fullness is play-roma, it means that which has been fulfilled. So when that which has been fulfilled, of the time the Cronus was come, when the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law. There is no telling how many false prophecies have been proclaimed concerning the end time. How many altered calls have been given? Tomorrow, religious leaders all around the world will indicate, some of them at least, will indicate that Christ may come tomorrow night. So at the altar call, you come and give your heart to the Lord because Christ might come tomorrow night. There's just something about people wanting to know about the end times that opens them up for deception. It is difficult to know how many thousands of false proclamations concerning the end times that have been proclaimed. And one of the main things has to do with believing that certain people have a direct pipeline to God that you don't have. We have the the Word of God here. If any man adds to or takes away, God does not speak kindly about that person. And I would hesitate to write my name in the book because my name's not in the book, not this book. I hope it's in the book of life, but it's not in this one. So one of the main things has to do with believing that certain people have a direct pipeline to God that they don't have. And you watch the various religious channels and they'll say, and God spoke to me, and I have this revelation from God, and I'm going to share it with you here today. They might have heard a voice, but it wasn't God. Now there was a time we go to Zachariah chapter 3. Let's just note here, we had an evangelist going around in the Big Sandy area back in the early 80s, I guess it was, maybe sometime in the 70s, saying if Mr. Armstrong doesn't live to the end of the age, the Bible is a lie.

Because they said that he was the fulfillment of Zerubbabel. Now let's look at Zachariah 3 in verse 6. An angel of the Lord confirmed unto Joshua, saying, That says the Lord of hosts, if you will walk in my ways, if you will keep my charge, then you shall also judge my house, and shall also keep my courts, and I will give you places to walk among these that stand by. Here now, O Joshua, with a high priest, you and your fellows that are before you, for they are men of wonder. And that word wonder is the Hebrew word means symbolic. They are symbolic of what is to come. For behold, I will bring forth my servant, the branch. Now what is my servant, the branch, going to do? Well, as we shall see, my servant, the branch, is going to build the spiritual temple. Now at that time, they were building the second temple, or the restoration temple, and God had raised up Hagia and Zachariah to be on the scene to lead the people during this time. It was one of the few times that God's people did respond, and they did build the second temple. How did they, how does God accomplish his work? Look at verse 6, chapter 4, chapter 4, verse 6, cross page. Then he answered and spoken to me, saying, This is the word of the Lord unto the rub-a-bell. Now who is the ultimate fulfillment of the rub-a-bell? None other than Jesus Christ, no human. Now human beings through the ages have laid a foundation, like in 1 Corinthians, what is it, 3, that Paul says, I have laid the foundation. What other foundation can any man lay than that which is laid in that foundation is Christ. And there have been others through the centuries that have laid a foundation, raised up a work, and revived, as Habakkuk was told, revived the work through the ages. But they are not the ultimate fulfillment. Then we look at verse 9, The hands of the rub-a-bell have laid the foundation of this house, his hand shall also finish it. So that's why some said, well, if Mr. Armstrong doesn't live to the end of the age, Bible is not true, because he was the rub-a-bell. But 36 years later, we know differently. And you shall know that the Lord of hosts has sent me unto you. Now what does the branch do? We covered this in our Bible study on Wednesday night, chapter 6, verse 12. What does the branch do? Speak unto him, saying, Thou speakest the Lord of hosts, saying, Behold, the man whose name is the branch. He shall grow up out of his place, and he shall build the temple of the Lord. Even he shall build the temple of the Lord, and he shall bear the glory, and he shall sit and rule upon his throne. He'll be a king. We're going to be made kings and priests. Thrones were cast, and they that got the victory over the beast and the mark of the beast sat upon them. Revelation 12.4. And he shall be a priest upon his throne, and the counsel of peace shall be between them both. Church and state will be united. It will be a theocracy and the rule of God and Christ and the saints. Now if you go to Isaiah 11 and verse 1, you'll see who the the branch has identified clearly in Revelation, in Isaiah 11 and verse 1. Isaiah 11 and verse 1.

And there shall come forth a rod out of the stem of Jesse, and a branch shall grow up out of his roots. And the spirit of the Yahweh shall rest upon him, the spirit of wisdom, understanding the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge, and the fear of the Lord. That is, of course, the root of Jesse and the son of David, and Jesus Christ sprang from Jesse and David. Then we go to Matthew 16, 18. We read that the branch will build a temple. And in Matthew 16, 18, it says clearly, and I say unto you that you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church, and the gates of the grave shall not prevail against it. You see, the knowledge of these scriptures, if you just read these scriptures, you would know and know that you know certain things.

Not to mention the many fatal prophecies and proclamations of some other splinter groups who prophesied that certain evangelists were going to die, or this or that was going to happen within three years, or whatever. How can people be deceived by that? They haven't read the Bible. They haven't really studied. Whereas the Bible is clear as to what has to happen before the end time comes. For example, a temple or an altar has to be built in Jerusalem. Sacrifice is restored. A pretender sits in the holy place, proclaiming that he is God before the end of this age. Let's turn there and read that. Second Thessalonians, Second Thessalonians, chapter 2, and verse 1.

In Second Thessalonians 2, verse 1, Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and by our gathering together unto him. They had the same problem in Thessalonica that a lot of people had today. Back in the 80s, we had people talking about, well, I heard that they are purchasing an airplane, a big airplane, to carry people from the U.S. to Petra for a place of safety. I mean, come on!

That ye be not soon shaken in mine, or be troubled, neither by spirit nor by word, nor by letter as from us, that the day of Christ is at hand. Let no man deceive you by any means, for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition, who opens, who opposes, and exalts himself above all that is called God, or that is worship, so that he is God, sits in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God. And there's a parallel to this in Daniel 11, and a parallel to this in Revelation 13. The one who sits in the temple is the one who causes the sacrifice to cease, and he is the one who causes the abomination of desolation to be placed. Matthew 24, 15, which we read.

You know, at the present time, Jordan is in charge of the Temple Mount. They have the Arab word, I believe, is like waaf. They are in control of the Temple Mount. With regard to the religious part of it. And the Jews cannot hold any kind of services. No group can hold really any kind of services on the Temple Mount. And so the Temple Mount is evidently the place where the altar or the temple would be built, and can it be handed over to the Jews through diplomacy, or probably either through diplomacy or war? I would think it's probably through war and then diplomacy. The seals have not been opened. The sixth seal will be a notable event for all the world to see. So we go to Revelation 6, verse 12. How could anyone say Jesus Christ might return tonight? He's not returning tonight. He's not returning tomorrow night either.

In Revelation 6, verse 12, I beheld when He had opened the sixth seal, and lo, there was a great earthquake, and the sun became black as sackcloth, and the moon became His blood. And the stars of heaven fell unto the earth, even as a fig tree cast her untimely figs when she is shaken of a mighty wind. And heaven departed as a scroll when it was rolled together, and every mountain and island was moved out of the place. And the kings of the earth mourned, and the rich men tried to hide themselves. And so on it goes, we know that has not happened. The trumpet plagues have to be poured out with the seventh trumpet, and even after this sixth trumpet plague is poured out. That's not the end, because the seventh trumpet plague has the six, the seven vials of wrath. The trumpet plagues had to be poured out with the seventh trumpet plague consisting of the seven vials of wrath, not to mention other events. Depending on how one abused the events, we are a long ways from the fulfillment of second Thessalonians and the trumpet plagues. Now, for some people, that's a real downer.

Yes, Christ admonished us to pray, Your kingdom come, Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Now we get down to the nitty-gritty of why you are in the church, why you were called. What is it all about?

You've been called to the kingdom for such a time as this. Like Mordecai told Esther, who knows whether you've been called to the kingdom for such a time as this. God did not call you or me because we had all knowledge, or that we understood all prophecies, or that we have faith that we could remove mountains, He called us to become as He is. Become you therefore perfect even as your Father in heaven is perfect. And the first Corinthians 13 verses 1 through 3 that I'm so often referred to, if you're not becoming as God is, all of that profits nothing. Even if you did know, the second, the minute, the day, the hour, the year of the return of Christ, that knowledge in and of itself is not conversion. Paul writes in 1 Thessalonians 2.13, maybe it's 1.13, that God has translated us in the kingdom of His dear son. He's translated us in the kingdom of His dear son, which means that we are to show forth the praises of Him that He has called us out of darkness into His marvelous light. In short, we have been called to living the converted life now and be conformed to the image of Christ, who was a perfect reflection of the Father. We covered that recently. People are excited to think they have special knowledge, to think the end is near. But to live the converted life for 50 to 60 years or more was not a life they relished. That's not what they were thinking. Oh, it's about the time of the end. We better get with this church. They know something about it. It's hardly any of them left.

So they choose to live the life paved to hell instead of living the kingdom life now. We've been translated in the kingdom of His dear son. We've been translated there to show forth the praises of Him that called us out of darkness into His marvelous light. We have been called to become you therefore perfect even as your Father in heaven is perfect. We have been called to be conformed to the image of His dear Son, Jesus Christ. We're warned not to behave as if the Lord delays His coming. Now let's look at Matthew 24 and verse 42.

Watch there, for you know not the hour that the Lord has come. We don't know the hour.

But know this, that if the good men of the house had known in which watched the thief would come, we would have watched and would have suffered, not permitted, His house to be broken up. Therefore be you also ready, for in such an hour as you think not, Son of man comes. Who then is a faithful and wise servant whom the Lord hath made ruler over His household, to give them meat and do season? Blessed is that servant whom His Lord, when He comes, shall find so doing. He'll be made a king and a priest in the kingdom of God. He's she.

As we know from chapter 25, the parable of the ten virgins, at the time appointed, the knock comes on the door. Prepare to meet the boggart. See, now is the time to prepare for the time appointed. But you do not know the exact day or hour that the kingdom counts. Look at verse 36. But of the day and the hour knows no man. This is Matthew 24 36. Knows no man, know but the angels of heaven, know not the angels of heaven, but my Father only. He knows the day and the hour. He knows when the knock's going to come. We're to sigh and cry for the evil. We're to live the converted life now. We've been translated into the kingdom of His dear Son. We're to live the kingdom life in the flesh now.

Paul writes in 1 Thessalonians 5 4, But you brethren are not in darkness. Now whether you paid attention or not today, you should not be in darkness because you have heard. Because these events that we have mentioned, and there are many other events, have to take place. So that day should not overtake you as a thief. So the question is, will you and I be ready at the appointed time?