Is the Return of Jesus a Reality for You?

Well, as you know, we are clearly celebrating the glorious Feast of Trumpets today. A day that for many of us, we have observed this festival for years and years and years. For a few of you, this may be new. It may be new, and certainly we want to be enlightening to be able to point out what this festival is about. And yet, actually, this festival is described in a distinctive way, as we've already had explained, by the blowing of trumpets.

And sometimes, that sound is an alarm of war. And clearly, that has great significance within the plan of God, within the way that God is working out salvation, not only for us, but for many, many millions and billions of people, as He reveals Himself to them. I'd like for us to begin with here in Numbers chapter 10, because it's describing, we had some information earlier about a shofar being blown, and that clearly is a different type of horn, not one that I think we've had a few horns around at times, and people have tried to blow them.

Most of us are not proficient on the shofar. Very difficult to blow. And yet, I also want to point out how that trumpets were used, and Numbers 10 points this out. Numbers chapter 10, verse 1, says, the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, make two silver trumpets. So in this case, this was not a lamb's horn, but this was a metal trumpet, maybe more like we would see today or think today of a modern day trumpet. Make two silver trumpets that you shall make them of hammered work, and you shall use them for...

And so here was the reason why they were to have these trumpets. It says they were to be used for summoning the congregation and for breaking camp. And so there were going to be different signals, different sounds, different music that would actually cause people to respond. It goes on in verse 3, when both of these trumpets are blown, and so I would guess you could distinctly tell whether both of them were blowing or just one of them, the whole congregation shall assemble before you at the entrance of the tent of meeting.

But if only one is blown, so a singular blast or a sound of a trumpet, then the leaders, the heads of the tribes of Israel, should assemble before you. When you blow, and so in verse 5 it talks about a different kind of a melodic sound, apparently, from these trumpets. When you blow an alarm, the camps on the east side shall set out, and when you blow a second alarm, the camps on the south shall set out, and alarm is to be blown whenever they are to set out.

And in verse 7, when the assembly is to be gathered, you shall blow, but you shall not sound the alarm. And so different sounds were to be used to kind of direct the camp, in some cases directing them as far as who's supposed to go next, where are they supposed to head? In verse 9, verse 9 points out something a little different, though. It says, when you go to war, and so there would be times when Israel, as the people of God, would be asked to overthrow a nation around them, would be directed from God to participate in this type of warfare, when you go to war, in your land against the adversary who opposes you, you shall sound an alarm with the trumpets.

And so again, even a different sound, I believe, that you would find, so that they may be, or so that you may be, remembered before the Lord your God, and be saved from your enemies. There was a reason why this alarm, and actually, I think that that's the type of alarm that Jeremiah wrote about in Jeremiah 4. We went over Jeremiah not too long ago. You may have read up through chapter 4. And there's a couple of verses there in Jeremiah chapter 4. I don't know if I wrote those down.

Jeremiah chapter 4, I think it's verses 19 through 22 or so. You don't have to go there. I'm just going to mention that Jeremiah is mentioning this horn being blown as an alarm of war. And he is saying that his heart is just fluttering. He is just almost terribly excited and maybe even distressed, because he says, well, how long is that? I guess I could have had Mr.

Brannon blow his car horn out here at this time. Because whenever we hear that, we wonder, how long will that go on? And that's what Jeremiah says. He says, oh, well, how long is that going to happen? He was deeply distressed in those few verses that I mentioned in Jeremiah 4. And yet here we see in verse 9 of Numbers 10, Now, when you go to war against your adversary, you sound an alarm so that God will remember you and that he will save you.

And so there was clearly an intent of being reminded of God and asking for God's help, asking for his protection, asking for his direction, and asking that he will cause you to be victorious, cause you to be saved. And in verse 10, On your days of rejoicing, at the appointed festivals, and at the beginning of the months, you shall blow the trumpets over your burnt offerings and over your sacrifices. You shall serve as a reminder, or they shall serve as a reminder on your behalf before the Lord, I am the Lord your God.

And so here you have a whole array of different notes or sounds that were trumpet sounds that were used for different things, and clearly one of them was a call to war. And clearly that is what we most often perhaps think about whenever we come to the day of trumpets. We know the time that we are living in. We know even having gone through the holy days in the spring and in the summer, and now beginning in the fall and looking toward the glorious kingdom of God being established on earth, which is pictured by the Feast of Tabernacles, the Feast of Trumpets, in many ways is a pivotal event, or it pictures a pivotal event with Jesus Christ intervening in world affairs.

We also find in Leviticus 23, Leviticus 23, you see of course all of the holy days listed, but here in Leviticus 23, verse 23, the Lord said to Moses, speak to the people of Israel, saying in the seventh month and the first day of the month, you shall observe a day of complete rest, a holy convocation commemorated with trumpet blasts, and you shall not work at your occupation, you shall present the Lord's offering on that day. See, again, these are different instructions that I know we're familiar with, and yet these are scriptures that in some ways we need to have noted, maybe we need to have memorized, and certainly I know I make a lot of marks in my Bible.

Sometimes I can figure out what they mean whenever I go back and try to reinterpret why did I write this down or why did I put this down, but all of us, if we're going to serve in the way that God wants us to serve, if we're going to serve as servants in the kingdom of God, He's partly going to want us to be teachers.

He's partly going to want us, He says that we'll be kings and priests and teachers and servants, different descriptions for different responsibilities, perhaps, and yet all of us need to be able to take a look and know whenever you want to, if you were going to give a talk about the piece of trumpets, we should be able to know where to go.

It should be something that in some way we have noted, and I'm pretty sure many of you have that, as I do, but I ask that you be mindful of that. You also find in 1 Kings 1, verse 39 and 40, that the trumpets were blown whenever King Solomon was coronated. Now, that's another use of the trumpet. You know, you have many different kind of signals that are given there, but primarily an alarm of war, and blowing them on the Feast of Trumpets as commemorating the day, and as the king was coronated.

Now, these are all what we find here in the law. We find this information written down for us today, and clearly, you know, we see the other holy days in the New Testament being observed, and of course we observe this festival as well because it has such great meaning. The ultimate fulfillment of what is pictured by this holy day is, of course, Jesus' return. His intervention in this earth as the King of Kings, and he's going to do that at the sound of a great trumpet.

And we've again mentioned this already. It needs to be mindful to us. I think that we should all think. I mean, all of us know that this is, you know, what the Feast of Trumpets is about, and we certainly talk about it. And if you read the Bible at all, you know that it's about, or at least it's leading up to, the time when Jesus returns, when he comes back, and when he intervenes in world affairs, and when he establishes a completely different government. That is an event that is easily spoken of in the Bible. You can go to almost any book of the Bible, and you can find something that refers to that. But I want to ask the question, is the return of Jesus a reality for you? Is that, I guess, a signal event that you are looking forward to, that you pray for? We're told to pray, thy kingdom come. You know, in the model of prayer, we have those three words, thy kingdom come, thy will be done. But is our prayer really that thy kingdom come? You know, if things are going relatively well for us right at this point, sometimes we don't think about it that way. Sometimes we're just thinking about how we can function this week. What do we need to do? What are the things that have to be done, maybe even right now, looking for the feast, trying to get ready, trying to get things prepared?

Do we really see the return of Jesus as a reality? And do we love His appearing? See, that's one of the verses. I don't have that written down, or I would give it to you. But it talks about, you know, that the Christians that are written about by Paul, people that he was writing to, he says you need to be loving the appearance, the appearing of Jesus Christ. And of course, that was going to be a long time from when Paul wrote it down. And whenever he spoke to the people in the different congregations that he in many ways started, or that he wrote to, at least, to encourage them. And so we ought to consider, you know, how much are we really seeking the return of Jesus? Is that a focal point of our prayers every day? Not just something to say, but clearly something that we see as the only answer, the only solution. Now, if you look around the world, you find, you know, warfare, we find battling, we find conflict, we find indifference, we find injury, we find illness, you know, you can go on and on and describe all the ills of this world.

And yet, do we really sigh and cry over those things? Because I know, as I watch television, as I seems like, you know, certainly anymore with the, you know, the news networks, they just run news all day long. And if any time you happen to see it, it's just, you know, more bad news, more of the same thing. And yet, that can become just kind of a blur. That can become just so commonplace.

I wanted to read another prayer request that I did send to you this morning, but it's one that, in many ways, is very sad. Because it does directly affect someone in our congregation, at least in the United Church of God. But this is a prayer request. It's from John Miller, who is an associate pastor in North Canton, Ohio. But he says in this prayer request, it is with great sadness that I must inform you that Michaela Deemer, the daughter of Andy Deemer, is believed to have been a victim of a homicide. And she has been missing since August the 20th, although I was not aware of this until just yesterday. Apparently, this 31-year-old lady has been missing for almost a month. I know, surely, the people in that area were aware of that, and I had not seen it until yesterday. But this is simply reporting that it appears that she has been found and that she's a victim of a homicide. John says, I have been in touch with Andy, her father. Her father Andy is an elder there in North Canton. I've been in touch with him several times during this tragic day, being yesterday, and they're doing as well as can be expected under the circumstances. Andy and Willa and their entire family would appreciate your prayers during this difficult time. It says, here's a link to the Fox station that's covering this story. I would provide more information as it becomes available, but funeral arrangements are pending.

It gives an address here. Now, we see this type of thing not uncommonly. Usually, it's not someone that we know. And so, it doesn't have the kind of impact. It doesn't have the type of strain.

It's something that's reported often enough that it kind of becomes commonplace.

But I mention this and point this out right now as we think about the wonderful festival that we're observing and what it pictures that Jesus Christ needs to come back. There is not only warfare, but violence and anger and hatred. And, as was mentioned earlier today, we don't know what we're going to yet go through. Between now, we need to be prepared spiritually. We need to be on guard against Satan's attempts to confuse or to distract or to ruin our anticipated being a part of the kingdom of God when Christ returns. See, that's clearly something we have to be thinking about. I'd like for us to look at 2 Peter chapter 3, because this points out that in the end time, a time that we certainly believe that we live in. We're living at the end of 6,000 years of human history. It's been 2,000 years since Jesus walked the earth. We are anticipating his intervention. But it says in verse 1 of chapter 3 of 2 Peter, this is now beloved the second letter that I'm writing to you.

In them, I'm trying to arouse your sincere intention. See, he wanted, Peter was writing this to stir people up. He's going to later say a number of things we ought to be doing, and I'm not going to read those right now. But I'm going to tell you, or I want you to see, why it was he thought that was important. Why it was it was needful to say that.

He says, I'm trying to arouse your sincere intention by reminding you that you should remember the words spoken in the past by the prophets, the holy prophets, and you should remember the commandment of the Lord and Savior spoken through the apostles.

He says you need to be continually reminded of what we're studying as we read in the Old Testament and what we read in the New Testament. And in verse 3 he says, first of all, you must understand this, that in the last days, scoffers, scoffers are going to come scoffing and indulging their own lusts. That's clearly the description of what we find in not only this country but in many countries around the world. People scratching out a living, people taking advantage of everybody else, pretty much creating difficulty for others. But he says, in the last days, scoffers are going to come scoffing and indulging their own lusts, saying, where is the promise of his coming? You know, is Jesus really going to come back?

You know, there are many, many people. I actually mentioned that to one man I was talking to on the phone the other day about how I mean it's something I'm pretty sure you take for granted.

I take it for granted. I have thought about it enough over 50 years to believe that that's going to happen, and the sooner it happens, the better. But I mentioned that to someone the other day, and they seemed somewhat puzzled by that. It was surprising to me because I didn't think that that person would probably respond that way, but he somewhat responded in an uncomfortable, kind of odd way that made me think, well, surely everybody's not anticipating Christ's return.

People often are just simply looking at everything that happened. Oh, it's just been that way forever.

It's been that way forever. And yet, that's what Peter goes ahead to say here in verse 4.

Scopters say, where is the promise of his coming? For ever since our ancestors died, all things continue as they were from the beginning of creation. See, everything's just like it was since Adam and Eve. I can't imagine those people who were scoffing really believe in creation. I can't imagine, you know, that's been torn down enough where they wouldn't even admit or acknowledge that the Bible gives an instruction of the beginning and how it was that God placed man on the earth and how he did that for a reason. You know, if Satan can undermine that thought, then they don't even know, they don't even care if God or if he is what he could possibly be doing with man. Everything's just been going on. We just seem to have more and more people. Everything is somewhat, you know, lawless.

People just manage to in some way, you know, procreate whether they understand anything about marriage at all, anything about how it is that God would like for nations to work together.

Unknown. It says in verse 5, in explanation of this, they deliberately, deliberately ignore this fact that by the Word of God, heavens existed long ago and an earth was formed out of water, and by means of water through which the world of that time was deluged with water and perished.

So that's another thing that people tend not to believe. I know that you all believe, Genesis 6 and Noah and the flood, but see, after about 1500 years, you know, God started over.

He saw that evil in the heart of man was so continual that, you know, this is progressing in the wrong direction way too quickly. So I'll just slow it down, which he did.

And again, sat Noah and his wife and his three sons and their wives to start over.

And since that time, we've had about 4,500 years. And so you can see why people would say, oh, well, everything has just been going on as it always has. And yet that's clearly not the case.

It says in verse 7, by the same word, the present heavens and earth have been reserved for fire, being kept until the day of judgment and the destruction of the godless.

See, we live in a time today that the Bible calls this present evil age.

Galatians 1, verse 4, talks about the age that we live in. There was the age for the world that was before the flood. There is a present evil age, as Satan continues to infect his poison and venom into people, and certainly deceiving and causing them to continue to decline in their respect or concern for each other, and clearly for God. And yet there's going to come a time, as it says in verse 7, that this present heavens and earth is going to have a big transition.

There's going to be a big, a big, big transition, deliberately ignoring the world that was inundated in the past, and the fact that this present evil world is also going to end.

See, that is a worldview. That is a perception that you and I have, you know, because we believe the Bible. We believe what the Word of God says, and we believe that 2,000 years ago Jesus was sent to the earth, a unique visitor. He was extremely unique, because he not only was God, but he had existed with the Father for all eternity, and he came as a human being in order to help us, in order to rescue us, in order to redeem us, in order to draw us out of the evil that this world really is in. So here, when we read in 2 Peter 3, as Peter makes a mention of the end time and the scoffing that people will do, we don't want to be confused by people who say things and do things that are counter to what the Bible says, because God's plan reveals that inevitably Jesus is going to return. He's going to come back to save the world. He's going to come back to stop Satan's destruction. See, Satan's destruction is on this earth today. His deception is on the earth today, and it needs to be turned around.

Thankfully, that's going to happen, and we see this written throughout the pages of the Bible.

I might just ask you for a little exercise here, so you don't doze off too quickly here.

Why don't you write down three scriptures that you believe would indicate Jesus is going to establish the kingdom. That would be in connection with the Feast of Trumpets.

There are many. I'm not going to say that there's three that would be even highlighted, because there are so many. But I ask you to think about, well, if you were to prove or try to prove to someone that Jesus is going to return, and of course we've read a number of them this morning, actually in each of the messages that we've had so far. We've had verses that could be applicable, but how would you teach that Jesus is inevitably going to intervene?

So you might think of the book of Daniel. That gives you one indication it talks about. And, of course, Daniel was given an understanding of the visions or the dreams that Nebuchadnezzar had.

And he told him what they were about. He told him about a stone that was going to come and then smash the human systems. That would be one place. I'm not going there today, but I'm just pointing out that there are hundreds of these that you could go to. I would hope that you could clearly think of three easily that would even be in your memory to think about them, even if you don't remember exactly where they are. I know my wife and I play these games because we talk about what it is that God says or what it is that the Bible is... well, mostly it's talking about an article that we just read, both of us, and I can't remember half of it, and she remembers all of it.

And she remembers what so-and-so said about this or what it is that this verse said, but she won't remember exactly where it is. And then she's so glad that I can tell her where it is, because I often can figure out, maybe by trying to narrow it down a little bit, where it is.

And it's not terribly important to have to do that, but it is helpful to be able to discuss those things in your home. It's helpful to be able to think about how inevitable it is that Jesus is going to return, and how much I desire for that to happen. How much I want!

See, we might go to a verse here in Ezekiel chapter 9. This has been referred to Ezekiel chapter 9. And we haven't got to Ezekiel in our study of the prophets, but maybe some of you have been reading ahead anyway. Or maybe you're still trying to catch up as I am, trying to go through Isaiah or Jeremiah, because they're lengthy books.

But here in Isaiah, or excuse me, Ezekiel 9, it says in verse 3, The glory of the Lord, or the God of Israel, had gone up from the carob, on which it rested to the threshold of the house, and the Lord called to the man clothed in linen.

And so this is a part of what Ezekiel saw, and he is writing this down as a reminder for us.

And it says, The Lord called for the man clothed in linen, who had the writing case in his side, and he said to him, I want you to go through the city. I want you to go through Jerusalem, and I want you to put a mark on the foreheads of those who sigh and cry, who sigh and groan.

Over all of the abominations that are committed in the city.

At that time, Ezekiel was looking at a city, the city of Jerusalem, the capital of the people of Judah. And yet, clearly not obeying, clearly disregarding God, clearly forgetting, or ignoring, everything that God has said. And yet, he saw this vision. Go through the city and put a mark on the foreheads of those who sigh and cry over all the abominations that are committed in the city. And then he said to the others, pass through the city after him and kill. Your eyes shall not spare, nor shall there be no pity cut down, old men, young men, young women, little children and women, but touch no one who has this mark.

Begin at my sanctuary. He was pointing out that there were very few people, very few people who really sigh over the distress that is happening in this world. And as I read this prayer request from a family in the United Church of God, that is suffering today. Suffering because of learning. I mean, they've surely realized that this is a high probability, if this girl had been gone for a month, that she may not return alive. And yet, certainly to find that out is not something anyone would like to see or hear. And yet, I point this out because all of us clearly need to have, our hearts need to reach out in obedience to God, in respect for God, in respect for each other, for all of us, because we all have a need to be showing love for one another.

But then I have a love for others. Even where we see catastrophe after debacle, after warfare and confusion happening, we can sigh and cry over that type of thing.

So what scriptures did you write down? Again, there are many.

I'm going to read a few that are here in the book of Psalms.

I don't know if any of you wrote down the book of Psalms, but the book of Psalms is an interesting book in many ways. But I was thinking that we had a song. Now, we have a song. I'll have to get Mr. Keener's keen eye on this.

And we have a song that's Psalm 2. I thought we did. At least it seems like we seem white of the heathen rage. Maybe that's in some song, I think, that we sing.

But let's go to Psalm 2 and just read this.

See, this is stating the inevitable. This is not just stating the inevitable in the last few hundred years or two thousand years ago. This is written three thousand years ago, inspired by a God who's working out a plan. Who's working out a plan that's going to come to pass.

It says in verse 1, why do the nations conspire? Why do the people plot in vain?

The kings of the earth set themselves and the rulers take counsel together against the Lord and against His anointed, saying, let us burst their bonds asunder and cast their cords from us. See, this Psalm is talking about people opposing God. And clearly that's the world that we live in today.

But it says in verse 4, He who sits in the heavens just laughs.

God simply laughs. He says, the Lord has them in derision.

When He will speak to them in His wrath and terrify them in His fury, saying, I, in verse 6, have set My King on Zion, on My holy hill.

See, that's a prophetic statement of what's going to happen, of what we see. Jesus is going to do as He returns. And He says in verse 7, I will tell of the decree of the Lord. He said to Me, You are My Son, and today I have begotten You ask of Me, and I will make the nations Your heritage and the ends of the earth Your possession. You shall break them with a rod of iron. You shall dash them in pieces like a potter's vessel. See, again, this was the prediction 3,000 years ago. And, of course, Daniel was writing after that time, and he was writing about the coming stone that will break the human rule on earth. It says in verse 10, Therefore, O kings, be wise, be warned, O rulers of the earth, serve the Lord with fear and gladness, with trembling kisses, His feet, or He will be angry, and you will perish in His way, for His wrath is quickly kindled, but happy are all those who take refuge in Him. That's where our refuge is. That's where our divine protection is as we look into the end of this age. Let's turn over to Psalm 47. Psalm 47 is another one that has implications of Christ returning and establishing His kingdom on earth. It says in verse 1, Clap your hands, all you people, shout to God with wild songs of joy, for the Lord, the Most High, is awesome. The awesome is a word. Some, probably younger people use some anymore. It's exciting to see that this is really awesome here in verse 2. The Lord, the Most High, He is awesome. He is the King over all the earth. He subdued peoples under us, and nations under our feet. He chose our heritage for us, the pride of Jacob, whom He loves. God has gone up with a shout. The Lord with the sound of a trumpet. Sing praises to God. Sing praises to our King. Sing praises for verse 7. God is the King over all the earth. Sing praises with the psalm. God is King over the nations, and He sits on His holy throne. These are prophetic chapters. These are chapters that God wrote long ago through David or others of the writers of the psalms. He points out how that... I guess we could even drop down to chapter 48. Great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised from the city of our God, is holy mountain, beautiful in elation. It is the joy of all the earth. Mount Zion in the far north, the city of the great King. See, that's talking of Jerusalem. It's talking of where? Jesus is going to its area where He left, and it's an area where He's going to return. Let's jump over to Psalm 96. Psalm 96, the whole thing is about the great God becoming our King. O come, let us sing to the Lord. Let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation. Let us come into His presence with thanksgiving. Let us make a joyful noise to Him with songs of praise, for the Lord is a great God.

And a great King above all gods, in His hands are the depths of the earth, and the heights of the mountains are His also. The sea is His as well, and the dry land which His hands have formed. O come, let us worship, and let us bow down. Let us kneel before the Lord our Maker, for He is our God, and we are the people of His pasture, the sheep of His hand.

Again, these are all prophetic psalms, talking about a time when Jesus is going to be King over all the earth, and when the day of trumpets will be ultimately fulfilled, and a massive transition will take place where this world will no longer just continue as it has been, and continue to struggle with the disease, and the illness, and the financial disarray, and the distress, the warfare, the fighting that we all know is so common. See, I think it's beautiful to see what it says in verse 6 here. Everyone's going to come to worship. Everyone's going to come to bow before the great God. They're going to kneel before the Creator.

So, brethren, Satan absolutely hates that concept. He hates that concept because clearly he not only didn't want to do it, he refused to do it. He would not submit to the one who created him. And, of course, if we're going to be there, if we're going to be a part of his divine family, then we're going to willingly yield. We're going to willingly bow and kneel before God, as everyone else is going to be learning the same thing. Everyone else is going to learn that I need to be yielded and in respect to the great God.

See, we've read a few verses here in Psalms. I think you would probably say that the most likely place that you would go to picture what's going to happen on the day of Trumpets is in the book of Revelation. See, some of you may have written down different chapters in Revelation. Revelation 19 is clearly a specific chapter that talks about Jesus returning and setting up his kingdom on earth. But let's go to some others here in Revelation 11. Revelation 11 points out, actually, in a sense, we see the book of Revelation, a book that was written 1900 years ago. John was given this vision from Jesus. He was told to write it down. I know it's existed since that time. I don't know how widely it was distributed. I would assume the churches at that time were shared with them. And yet, how much sharing was it possible to do in 100 or 200 or 300 after the death of Jesus? I would say here in the last 400 or 500 years, because we've had such proliferation of the ability to communicate and to write, and for the Bible to be available, then clearly in the last few hundred years people have been more aware of the book of Revelation than at any time prior to that. But here in the book of Revelation, you see numerous different references to the conclusion of the opening of the seals and of the trumpet plagues that are going to come upon the earth, and then the ultimate last plague, or the last trumpet, that's going to sound when Jesus returns. Here in chapter 11, verse 15, it says, The seventh angel blew his trumpet, and there were loud voices in heaven, saying, The kingdoms of this world have become the kingdoms of our Lord and of His Christ. All of the kingdoms. This is a fulfillment of what we can read in Daniel 2 and 7. Here he's talking about it again in vision, and it's written long before it's ever going to happen, but brethren, it's going to happen in our lifetime. It's going to happen if we live to that time. It's going to happen during our days. And it says that 24 elders who sit and froam before God fell on their faces and worshiped God, singing, We give you thanks, Lord God Almighty, who are and were, for you have taken your great power, and you have begun to reign. Fabulous. Absolutely wonderful. See, that's what everyone is going to have to decide. I agree with God. I agree that Jesus needs to be ruler over the whole earth. The nation's raised, as we read in Psalm 2, but your wrath has come, and the time for judging the dead, for rewarding your servants. So your time come when what Mr. Johnson spoke of earlier today, a time when the servants of God will be rewarded. The prophets and the saints and all who fear your name, both small and great, and for destroying those who destroy the earth. See, that's a description of Jesus intervening. It's very specific, I think, in how it is that he describes that, if we turn the drop down to chapter 12. In chapter 12, you see another allusion to this. In verse 10, it says, "...unheard a voice in heaven, a loud voice proclaiming, Now have come the salvation and power in the kingdom of our God, and the authority of his Messiah, his Christ, for the accuser of our brethren, has been thrown down." He's been accusing them day and night before our God. But it says in verse 11, "...they have conquered him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony, and they did not cling to life even in the face of death." See, again, this was alluded to earlier. See, this is what we all should be able, if we're going to teach, and even if we teach in the world to come, what has already happened on earth?

Well, we can easily read some of these same verses and teach people those. Of course, in chapter 19, you see, in a sense, kind of a summary chapter. You see earlier, in the first part of this chapter, the wedding of the Lamb, which is an entirely different topic and subject that could easily be covered in this type of a holy day. And yet, I'm not wanting to cover that today. But it says in verse 11, "...I saw heaven opened, and there was a white horse, and the rider was called Faithful, and true, and in righteousness he judges, and he makes war. His eyes are like a flame of fire, and on his head are many diadems, and he has a name inscribed that no one knows but himself, and he is clothed in a robe dipped in blood, and his name is called the Word of God. And the armies of heaven, wearing fine linen white and pure, were following him on white horses, and from his mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations, and he will rule them with a rod of iron." See, people don't want to believe that a powerful creator God is going to intervene in world affairs. For the most part, people don't want to accept that. Maybe they kind of have an idea that that might happen, because this is written throughout the pages of the Bible, but we should have a far clearer appreciation of not only what he's going to do, but why. Why? He's going to do this. Why he's going to come, and he's going to stop the nations from raging. He's going to stop them as Satan causes them. See, the description that we find is that Satan causes humans to be affected as the prince of the power of the air. And in Ephesians 2, it talks about that as being the wavelength or the way that he guides people or that he affects people. I guess it's the way to say it, that he affects or he poisons people, all people, in a deception. And he says, it goes on a little further in Ephesians 2, that this is the spirit that's now at work, and the children of what? The children of disobedience. Clearly, that's the way all of us were before God started working with us. And it's clearly the way the whole world has been deceived. From his mouth a sharp sword to which to strike the nations. He will rule them with a rod of iron. He will tread the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God Almighty. And on his robe and on his thighs he has a name inscribed, the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords. How much does that king need to return? How much does he need to set things right? How much does he need to stop? Well, the abominations that go on on this earth today. See, that's what he's called us to be a recipient of. As we understand the Word of God, as we're inspired by that Word, and as we are directed, as we are able to put it together, we're able to enjoy a peace, a security, a refuge. That was actually one of those Psalms that we read, I think, Chapter 2, the very end of it. The Lord is the refuge. He's the one who can give us peace. Yes, the world's going to be chaotic, and it's clearly going to be chaotic when Christ returns. Because if we turn over here to Zechariah 14, that would be another place that you might have written down. The book of Zechariah has a number of references to the time when Jesus will intervene in world affairs.

And it says in Chapter 14 of Zechariah, verse 1, A day is coming, a day is coming for the Lord. In verse 2, I'm going to gather all the nations against Jerusalem to battle. See, whenever we watch, and of course, every time you see any of the map imaging that they do on television, they almost always are just showing you the Middle East. They rarely show you Africa, rarely show you South America. Often, no reason to show America. We're kind of familiar with that. But every time you see one, it's a big, huge graphic of the Middle East with Israel right in the middle of all these hostile countries around it.

And you don't know which one is flaring up even more at that time. And then, of course, a couple of months later, it's somebody else. And yet, ultimately, God is going to gather the nations against Jerusalem to battle, and the city shall be taken, and the house is looted. Verse 3, then the door will go forth and fight against those nations, as when He fights on a day of battle.

See, that's what we're praying for. We're praying that Christ is going to come, and yet, when He does, it's going to be a war. That's why you've got the loud trumpet blasts that are in connection with this. The loud trumpet blasts that we think about on this day of trumpets. And it says, on that day, in verse 4, His feet are going to stand on the Mount of Olives, which lies before Jerusalem on the east.

The Mount of Olives is going to split in two, from east to west, by a very wide valley. And so the one half of the mountain will withdraw northward, and the other half southward. See, I walked on the Mount of Olives several decades ago. I didn't have near the appreciation that I should have had. And yet, whenever you kind of understand somewhat the geography there, and it is in a mountainous area, and of course it's right outside of where the Temple Mount is, and where some of the religious activity goes on there in the city of Jerusalem.

And yet, in this mountain, called the Mount of Olives, of course, I guess it's probably one of the biggest graveyards anywhere, because many people want to be buried there on the Mount of Olives. And yet, what it says is that it's going to split in two. And there's going to be a huge valley. And in verse 5, "...you shall flee by the valley of the Lord's mountain, for the valley between the mountains will reach to His ale.

And you shall flee as you fled from the earthquake in the days of King Usyah. And the Lord my God will come, and all the holy ones with Him." See, we read this same thing in Revelation. So you can read it in Psalms, you can read it in Revelation, and we will read it in 1 Thessalonians, you can read it here in Zechariah, many places. We had some very good references this morning to Matthew. And what Jesus says is going to happen as He intervenes in world affairs. It says in verse 8, "...on that day living water is going to flow out from Jerusalem, half of them to the eastern sea, which I guess would be toward the Dead Sea, and half of them toward the western sea, the Mediterranean Sea.

It will continue in summer as it is in winter." Clearly, a reference to the rivers of living water that need to be extended to all people, which of course is what God is going to do as He fulfills verse 9, "...the Lord will become king over all the earth.

On that day the Lord will be one, and His name will be one." It won't simply be that He's ruling. As we had earlier in the sermon, David's going to be ruling with Him. He's going to have a prominent role, and so are the apostles and the other prophets. And clearly, we hope all of us, because we have been granted the mercy of God, because we've been given an understanding of what is happening on this earth and in our lives. And we have been encouraged to overcome the society around us, and to overcome the sins that so easily beset us, and to overcome our own selfish, rotten nature.

The one that Satan has injected into this world and into us, and yet thankfully we've been given the power of the Holy Spirit to be able to overcome that and to change that. And amazingly, here in verse 11, it says, it shall be inhabited, talking about Jerusalem, for never again will it be doomed to destruction. See, Jerusalem is one of the most fought-over pieces of property in the world today and has been for millennia. Amazing that Zechariah would say, a time is coming when it's no longer going to be fought over. It's going to be a place of peace.

It's going to be a place that will be inhabited and never again be doomed to destruction. Jerusalem shall abide in security. That's clearly not. If you're in Jerusalem today, you think security, because of all of the armed guards that are all over, even 40 years ago when I was there. Armed guards everywhere. That didn't seem very secure. I mean, I guess they were trying to provide security. And yet, ultimately, it is truly going to be secure. Now, you also could have turned to 1 Thessalonians 4, which I do want to refer to here before we conclude.

1 Thessalonians 4 directly ties into what we know this day pictures with Jesus returning and setting up the kingdom of God, but just His intervention, just His need to stop the raging nations. See, that's what we find here. 1 Thessalonians 4, verse 13.

1 Thessalonians 4, verse 13. He says, We don't want you to be uninformed brethren or ignorant brethren about the things or those who have died, so that you may not grieve as others do who have no hope. For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again even so, through Jesus God will bring within those who have died. For this we declare to you, by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive and who are left until the coming of the Lord will by no means precede those who have died.

So here He's talking about, and of course, not only could another session be given on a wedding that we read about in Revelation 19, but you could talk about the resurrection and what it is that the resurrection, the first resurrection that's going to happen, that is what is being defined here. It's not talking about a second resurrection or any time beyond that, it's talking about a first resurrection.

For it says in verse 16, The Lord Himself with a cry of command, and with the archangel's call, and with the sound of God's trumpet, with the sound of God's trumpet, Christ is going to descend from heaven and the dead in Christ are going to rise first. And then when we which are alive and who are left will be caught up in the clouds together with them to meet the Lord in the air, and so will we always be with the Lord.

And of course, as we've already read in Zechariah 14, where He's going is to Jerusalem, where He's going to set up His rule, His kingdom on earth. Now, there are hundreds of references to the return of Jesus and all of us should be able to teach. These different scriptures we should be familiar with, at least many of them, because often, as we said, there are so many, you couldn't even enumerate all of them.

But they're all throughout the Bible in the Old and in the New Testament. And yet, in conclusion, let's go back to what it says here in 2 Peter. Because in 2 Peter, we read about the scoffers and people who think that this is not going to happen, that think Jesus is not going to intervene.

Well, they're going to find out that they were wrong on that topic. They're going to find out that, well, God was working out a plan after all. And I'm excited to learn about it and to be a part of it. That's what they're going to conclude.

If they're going to be a part of the divine family of God, and all of us, of course, desire to be, then everyone is going to come to worship the Creator in a similar way. We're all going to come to understand how it is that honoring God, loving God, serving God is what He is interested in from His creation. He's created us for a purpose. That purpose is to serve others, to serve God.

But ultimately, we're going to have to do that with His help, with His power, with His Spirit. And so here in 2 Peter 3, the first part of it is where we read about the scoffers. But I want to drop down to verse 11, because it says, since all these things are to be dissolved in this way, it asks, what sort of people ought you to be? What should we be like since we know these things? We know, and Peter was even saying at that time, I'm just reminding you of what you already know, that God has called you for a tremendous purpose, and to be a part of a first resurrection, to be a part of a divine, ruling family that will be leading and following Christ, but leading others into the kingdom of God.

So since all these things are going to happen, what sort of people should you be in leading lives of holiness and godliness? See, that should be a description of the way each of us are. Living lives of holiness and godliness, verse 12, waiting for and hastening the coming of the day of God. See, we're waiting for it, and I guess we don't really have any other option.

We have to wait for it, but, see, this is talking about, you know, really excitedly looking forward to it. Really anticipating the coming of Jesus as an answer to man's destructive ways, and a way of peace, a way of service set up, waiting for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be set ablaze and dissolved, and the elements will melt with fire. That's, of course, a future time, but in accordance with His promise, we wait for a new heavens and a new earth where righteousness dwells or is at home.

See, we read that in the very last chapters of the book of Revelation, even beyond. Chapter 20, that talks about a resurrection and another resurrection and a white-prone judgment. Then you get into chapter 21 and 22, and it talks about that new heaven and that new earth. Therefore, in verse 14, beloved, while you are waiting for these things, strive to be found by Him at peace. You know, that's really hard to do in this age. It's hard to do with the hectic lives that we lead. It's hard to do with the pressure that we have to be here and be there and back and forth.

But He says, since you know what's going to happen, since you know what the plan is, since you are in agreement with God, therefore, beloved, as you wait for these things, strive to be found by Him at peace, without spot or blemish. The only way that any of us, certainly the only way I could ever feel like I was that way, would be to be thanking God that He's the one who is able to cause me to be purified, to cause me to be cleansed. And He does that. He cleanses us by the washing of the water of the Word. He washes us off with His Word.

Whenever we study the Word of God, as we have all day today, which is really great, we're being washed. And we want to be without spot and without blemish. And we want to feed on the Word of God. So it says, strive to be found by Him at peace, without spot or blemish, and regard the patience of our Lord as salvation. He's got a lot of patience. He's been waiting some thousands of years to accomplish this great purpose.

And all of us only have been around a few decades. And yet, we're going to wait patiently for God. So also, He says, our beloved Brother Paul wrote to you, according to the wisdom given to him, speaking of this as he does in all of his letters. Peter affirms that Paul was inspired by God, as he wrote about this in 1 Thessalonians and in 1 Corinthians. And in many other places, where he alludes to the coming of Jesus, actually in 1 Thessalonians, in every chapter. He talks about at the end of each chapter, how we need to look forward to the appearing of Jesus Christ.

And he says Paul, in verse 16, there are some things that Paul has written that are hard to understand, which the ignorant and the unstable twist to their own destruction, as they do the other Scriptures. But you, therefore, brethren, you, therefore, beloved, since you are forewarned, and that's in a sense what we are able to understand today, since we have been now forewarned, we are aware of what's going to happen. We, on a yearn for the establishment of this kingdom on earth in Christ's return, therefore, beloved, since you are forewarned, we are aware that you are not carried away with the error of the lawless.

He mentioned the scoffers earlier, people who think, Christ, are you going to return? Everything's going to go on like it's always been going on. People don't really have to follow any rules. He says, don't be carried away with the error of the lawless, and then lose your own stability. See, we have a fabulous privilege of being very, very stable, very stable and very secure in an amazingly evil world.

And unfortunately, that's going to increase. It's going to increase before Christ intervenes and before He returns to establish His great kingdom. But He says, I want you to be aware, not carried away with the error of the lawless, and lose your own stability, but He says what He wants you to do in verse 18. I want you to grow. Grow in the grace and in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

And to Him be glory both now and into the day of eternity, for both now and forever. See, we have been drawn, brethren, to have an understanding of a great plan, a great purpose for human life, a great opportunity to serve the Creator God. And we can be a part of His divine family. And thankfully, the Holy Days picture, what's going to happen. We could easily have just read Revelation 19 and gotten out early today. But you can read this all through the Bible. And of course, chapter 20 is going to show what's going to happen shortly hereafter in the plan of God. A deposing will take place of Satan, at least a restraining, I guess we could say, and ultimately a thousand years of a glorious rule of the one that we are to grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and our Creator. We have so much to be thankful for, so much to be excited about, so much to be thrilled about as far as God's purpose for us.

So I hope that we can go about sharing that love and sharing that joy. Because that's exactly what God wishes to see in His people who have peace and who have a security that there's no other way of getting except from Jesus Christ. So I certainly wish all of you a very wonderful Feast of Prophets. And as we go forward, ten days from now, a day of atonement, and ultimately then the Feast of Tabernacles, because God's great plan is what we have been illuminated by. And so we want to be able to benefit from that great plan of salvation.