A Spiritual Huddle Before the Fall Festivals

I look forward to speaking to you some here this afternoon. What I would like to do this afternoon as your pastor, as I'll probably be bringing this message to the other congregations, is simply this. That's to be able to have a spiritual huddle with you as we move into the fall festivals.

That's what you do when you are in the midst of moving forward, that you get together in the middle of the field. You're guys, and these days, are ladies. You're in sports, and you get together to make sure that we're all going the same direction. Of course, the quarterback that we're talking about is none other than the one that God the Father has given us, and that's Jesus Christ.

But I'm allowed to be able to share some of that message with you this afternoon. I know that all of us are looking forward to the fall festivals. We cannot help but be human to be looking forward to the Feast of Tabernacles. We often just call that the Feast. So we say, are you going to the Feast? The Feast has many thoughts of wonderment, memories, and excitement for all of us. I know it's always interesting when we've talked to people that have never been to the Feast. You hear everybody talking about, as Mr. Star Wars brought out, Feast fever.

You say, oh, can't wait to go to the Feast. Everybody's saying, what's the Feast? What's the Feast? What's the Feast? Finally, when you're able to go to the Feast, what we call the Feast of Tabernacles in the 8th day festival, you begin to understand the excitement that is amongst the churches of God and being able to observe that. And we look forward to that time. It's a time of joy. Let's open up our Bibles.

Join me, if you would, in Revelation 5. Revelation 5, because it's a wonderful time. It's a time of pronouncement. It's a time of announcement. It's a time of Jesus Christ coming back to this earth. In Revelation 5 and verse 11, we think of these words, Worthy is the Lamb who was slain to receive power and riches and wisdom and strength and honor, glory and blessing. You can almost hear the music of Handel's Messiah coming forth. And every creature which is in heaven and on the earth and under the earth and such that earth and the sea and all that are in them, I heard saying, blessed and honor and glory and power, but to him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb forever and ever.

And what an incredible day this is going to be when it's not only spoken in heaven or written in the Word of God, but when every living thing below the heavens as well proclaims these thoughts and these words. It's an incredible time, picturing the kingdom of God coming to this earth in all of its power, in all of its glory. And we think of the verses that come out of Isaiah. I've actually got a picture up here of when the, as we so often know in our own church culture, where we talk about the lion and the lamb lying down together, that the curse is going to be gone.

That creation is once again going to be in harmony. And especially that one part of creation that has always been out of harmony since the Garden of Eden, which is humanity. But that is then, and that is now. And while we've made maybe all of our plans for the feast, we've made our physical plans. We know where we're staying. We want to stay somewhere nice with the blessings that God has given us.

We've planned to see this person and that person and this person and perhaps do this thing or do that thing along the way or on the side. I want to remind you of something, friends. God has plans for you during this Feast of Tabernacles that you're not even aware of yet. God has His designs upon you now. And that's what I want to talk about. Because the Feast of Tabernacles and the Eighth Day and those festivals that lie out there ahead, at times we focus on those rather than recognizing.

We kind of leapfrog, as it were, not purposefully, but just because of the expanse of those days of the Feast of Trumpets and or the Day of Atonement. And I'm here to remind you today I would be remiss if I did not, that there are things that we have to confront. There are things that we have to deal with before that wonderful world tomorrow comes.

And why do I say that? I've mentioned about Christ being in all power and all glory and one day coming to this earth. I've also mentioned about the Lion and the Lamb. And that's a beautiful picture. It's a wonderful picture. But we've also got to recognize that for every cause there is an effect.

And that's the ultimate effect. That's the ultimate act of God of what He's going to do this earth. But there's something that needs to come about to bring that about. There's a reason why Christ is coming to this earth. And the Feast of Trumpets, the Day of Atonement, remind us of why. Join me if you would in Matthew 24. In Matthew 24, for these feasts that are coming upon us are filled with joy, gladness, rejoicing, wonderment. But there is a sober part to it that we must look at and understand.

In Matthew 24, in the midst of the Olivet Prophecy, Matthew 24, in picking up the thought in verse 21, For then there will be great tribulation, such as not been since the beginning of the world until this time. No, nor ever shall be. And unless those days were shortened, no flesh should be saved. But for the elect's sake, those days will be shortened. I remember when I first read this as a boy growing up in La Mesa.

I was age 11. Didn't know that there was a Church of God at that time. Was listening to a preacher on the radio with my mother. But he would read these scriptures. And that was in the height of the Cold War. And we were living in San Diego. And there was the Cuban Missile Crisis. For those of you that are older and will remember. And all of America and all of the world held its breath.

But we knew that the end was not yet. We knew that humanity was not moving towards doom. But that God had a destiny for every human being. That is made in his image and after his likeness. And so it gave great encouragement. Prophecy is not just simply quote-unquote doom and gloom as some people want to look at it. It's a promise that as we heard in the message from Mr.

Star Wars. What God has started, he is going to finish. And nothing is going to get in the way. And you'll be hearing more about that on the day of Feaster Trumpets with Mr. Smith. Nothing is going to get in the way of God's purpose for his creation. And so we see all of this. And we have to understand why Jesus Christ is coming back. Allow me to be blunt. May I? Jesus Christ is coming back to save humanity from itself. Just like Humpty Dumpty. All the king's horses, all the king's men, cannot put Humpty Dumpty back together.

Again, all 7.6 billion people that live today do not have the answers. We hear and have heard recently in the weeks that, oh, we are now not going to have to worry about war in the Middle East immediately. We'll just postpone it for 15 years. Not quite sure how that works.

And back in the days of Isaiah, 2800 years ago, he said that men will cry out, peace, peace. But there is no peace. The word goes on to say that they want peace, but the way thereof they know not. And so God brings us into alignment with the feast and the fall of recognizing what is yet to occur. Realizing that there are hundreds of prophecies about the coming and the incarnation of the Word known as Jesus of Nazareth.

But there are hundreds of other prophecies dealing with that Second Coming. And so in the course of the year, we are girded and we are reminded that humanity does not have the solutions to itself. That there has to be that strong arm, that long reach from Heaven alone and Heaven above to fulfill God's purpose, because He loves everybody that's made in His image and after His likeness.

Brother, and I'm here to give you a State of the World address today. It's not better. It's worse than last time I saw you just a couple of weeks ago. When we think about the State of the World and where it is at, it is incredible. Now, let's understand something. It didn't just happen in the 21st century. Are you with me? It didn't just happen in the 21st century. The world in that sense has been dysfunctional since the Garden of Eden.

When you don't have your father in place and you don't have your elder brother in place, when you don't have God in place and you make your own decisions and then show them the exit, you know that there are not going to be good results. So sometimes people say, well, you know, things aren't quite like they used to be. We've all used that expression before, especially as you get older. You say, I'm not going to use that expression like my parents or my grandparents. Then you get that age and guess what you do? Oh, things aren't like they used to be. Things have always been off course since Eden.

And God made a promise. He said that the seed of the woman would ultimately overcome the seed of the serpent. Oh, yes, it would bite. It would bite the foot of the Son of Man. But ultimately, the Son of Man would crush the head of the Satan. And that's what these days are about. I want to share a verse with you. I'm going to be very blunt today about the state of the world. And then at the end, this is going to become very encouraging. That's my goal.

That's my hope. Join me if you would in Romans 1 of where we are today. Brethren, we are no longer a Bible-based nation, a Bible-based people. More than ever, we are taught and we learn on the steps of the Academy of Athens. We are in that post-Biblical, post-Christian age in the United States of America. It's not going to get easier. Frankly, it's going to become more challenging for people of faith.

God said it would be that way. He took a temperature test to the world nearly 2,000 years ago through the words of Paul. When we notice in Romans 1, if you'll join me there, in Romans 1. And we pick up the thought here in verse 16.

We will live by faith and have that belief that Mr. Star Wars brought out that if God has begun a good work in us, He will see it to the end. For the wrath and or the anger of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men who suppresses the truth in unrighteousness. Because what may be made known of God is manifest in them, for God has shown it to them. For since the creation of the world is invisible, attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even the eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse. Every night when you look up in the heavens and you see the stars, when you see that city of God that shines bright every night across that canopy of darkness and is illuminated by a universe that runs in our order, God is proved and God is praised. Because although they knew God, they did not glorify Him as God, nor were thankful, but became futile in their thoughts and their foolish hearts were darkened. And professing to be wise, they became fools and changed the glory of the incorruptible God into an image made like corruptible man and birds and four-footed animals and creeping things. They began worshipping the creation rather than the Creator.

Therefore, God gave them up to their uncleanliness, not the zyrus. When we talk about the wrath of God, that anger of God, you can almost say the disappointment of God. God always wanted humanity to follow His way. Just as we as parents or grandparents, we try to teach our children, we try to teach our grandchildren. We show them, hopefully, the right, the wrong, the values. But at times, as we know, they go another way. And you talk and you talk and you teach and you teach until you're blue in the face. And you give them to God. You commit them to God, but at the same time, they make a choice. I'm not saying all children always make wrong choices. We all have choices, but I'm saying many will stay trained in the way. But let's just say they're going to go their own way. It comes a time when you just have to take your hands off. Okay, that's what you want to do. That's what you're about. That's where you're headed. Then you're going to have to face the consequences of your choices. All choices have consequences. And so God took his hands off of Adam and Eve. Okay, that's what you want to do? Fine. And today, this is where the world is going. They want to reject the word. They want to reject the Bible. They want to reject the basic values that came into our nation. Well, then you're going to find out for every cause there is an effect. They rejected God. They rejected the Lord of Life. Is there any reason why, then, today we see in our nation we will not deal with Lichtenstein? We will not deal with Lusotho? We'll deal with our nation right now. That we have a horrible problem, and it's a disgrace before God. When you recognize how man has manipulated the values and the core instruction of God, when it comes just first and foremost to the sanctity of life, when it comes to those that need the most protection, those that are in the comfort and security of their mother's womb are violated and destroyed and given names like fetal tissue, as if you're dealing with 10th grade biology and you're dissecting a frog.

And yet this is very progressive. This is very liberating. This is so very mature.

And it's about people's rights.

What does our own Declaration of Independence say? About God being the author of liberty. That every individual has the opportunity towards life. We look at the sanctity of marriage. We see and have rejected what God clearly stated in His divine word, that marriage is between a man and a woman for a purpose and for a reason. God in His grace, God in His design, God in His wisdom, made the human body so and the human spirit so for a purpose and for a cause. We look today in America and we see a world around us that our grandparents wouldn't recognize. Immorality run all over the place. Interesting, in the old days they called it immorality. Today they call it entertainment. On stage. In theaters. People used to go to back alleys and slide in a back door to see and to experience what they see on the big screen collectively as a group today. In which God says there are things that are done in darkness that we ought to avoid. That people today say, well, I'm so progressive. I'm so mature. Perhaps even sometimes in the church. Oh, brethren, we have... this is a world that is unfortunately headed for oblivion. Morally. Financially. People not abiding by the word of God when it says to, oh, no man anything. Always thinking that tomorrow will be another day. And the church of God, the people of God cannot help but be affected by that which is around us. It has been that way since Goshen and Israel and Egypt. Israel surrounded by the Baal worshippers. To Christians and Asia minus they were affected by the culture that was around them. God says something about this in Ezekiel. Join me if you would for a moment. In Ezekiel 9 and verse 4.

I'm here to remind you today as a fellow Christian that these words have not gone away. They're still in the Bible. I remember first reading them when I was a boy of 11 years of age.

But, as it is often said, the poem that is read by the man of 20 reads differently when he's 80 because you have more experience. And perhaps that's the same today. The man that is in his seventh decade sees something about this that maybe I didn't see when I was in my age 11 category. Ezekiel 9 and verse 4. Notice what it says. And the Lord said to him, Go through the midst of the city, through the midst of Jerusalem, and put a mark on the foreheads of men who sigh and cry over all the abominations that are done within it. This was not speaking of Babylon. This was speaking of the people of God at that time. That a man of God was to go out and search those that sigh and cry. And not just huff and puff, but that you and I as the people of God today, a covenant people, when we pray, Thy kingdom come. See, sighing is, in a sense, just letting out air. God has a solution. God told us through Jesus Christ, Thy kingdom come. And that is the solution for all of humanity. That God, not just for you, not just for me, but for all of humanity, every person, every individual, that God's kingdom come to this earth.

And we have a role. And we have a job, both personally and collectively today. I want to share a verse with you here. Join me, if you would, in Jeremiah, in the book of Jeremiah 4. I was going to actually use it later, but I'll use it right now while it's on my heart. Jeremiah 4. O my soul, my soul, I am pained in my very heart. My heart makes a noise in me. I cannot hold my peace because you have heard my soul, O my soul. The sound of the trumpet, the alarm of war. And that's what I want to really encourage you about during these upcoming fall festivals, is that we respond to the trumpet that sounds forth in our heart. That we respond to the Spirit of God, that it wakes us up, that it makes us realize that we are in His army, that we are in a time of spiritual warfare, a time of alertness, a time of soberness about the calling. See, the interesting thing about the fall festivals is there is great joy at the end. Fantastic! Wonderful! But there is also soberness, steadiness, dedication, being alert, which I'll describe in a few minutes from now. So we need to understand that. And we have that responsibility today to look after ourselves. We also have a responsibility as a church. We have a responsibility as a church to understand as a people, the people of God, this instrument within the body of Christ, that we have not just simply been called for personal salvation. Have we been called for personal salvation? Yes! Individually. But we have also been collectively to be a watchman. The aspect and the understanding of the watchman goes all the way back to before the times of Noah, to Enoch, who prophesied about God coming back with his thousands of saints. It goes back to the time of Elijah. It goes to the message of Jesus Christ and the Olivet prophecy. It goes to the words of Paul. Speaking of the son of Perdition, talking about Satan ultimately being crushed, it goes to the time of John. There is always that aspect of the watchman. Why is that important? Join me if you would in Ezekiel 3. We cannot shy away from that responsibility. In Ezekiel 3, the watchman blows a verbal trumpet. In Ezekiel 3, verse 16, let's notice what it says. Now it came to pass. At the end of the seven days, that the word of the Lord came to me, saying, Son of man, I have made you a watchman for the house of Israel. Therefore, hear a word from my mouth and give them warning from me. When I say to the wicked, you shall surely die, and you give him no warning, nor speak to warn the wicked from the wicked way, to save his life, that same wicked man shall die in his iniquity. But his blood I will not require at your hand. Yet, if you warn the wicked, and he does not turn from his wickedness, nor from his wicked way, he shall die in his iniquity. But you have delivered your soul. Now again, when a righteous man turns from his righteousness and commits iniquity, and I lay a stumbling block before him, he shall die, because you did not give him warning. He shall die because you did not give him warning. He shall die in his sin. He shall die in his sin, and his righteousness, which he has done, shall not be remembered, but his blood I will require notice at your hand. Nevertheless, if you warn the righteous man that the righteous should not sin, and he does not sin, he shall surely live, because he took warning, and also you will have delivered your soul.

Now, brethren, why do I mention this to you? Let's understand something. That you and I have the high privilege and the wonderful opportunity together, both individually when we talk to people, but also collectively as a body, to preach the gospel of Jesus Christ and the kingdom of God, of what we're talking about coming to this earth. And we have an opportunity to speak about the beauty and the wonderment of God's greatest gift to humanity, which is his Son.

Our Savior, our High Priest, our Elder Brother, our Comforter, our Guide. But at the same time, brethren, we have a responsibility to also proclaim that the kingdom of God is coming to this earth. And there's a reason and there's a purpose for it. It's not by an accident that God bumped into the earth. There's a reality and there's a purpose of saving humanity from itself.

And we need to recognize that. Well, you say, well, how can we do that? We are so small and the problems are so great.

Brethren, let's understand something. God will get his message across one way or the other, always has. From the time of Noah as a preacher of righteousness, to the time of the apostles, to those that wandered the valleys and the mountains of Bosnia and the Alps in days gone by. He can do it through one man. He can do it through many men and women together, joined together in a great cause. Will we cover it all ourselves? That's God's business. Our responsibility is to do what we can with what we have. You know, within the Body of Christ there are different instruments that have different gifts, different opportunities, different ways of doing things. But I believe that in our lifetime, in my lifetime, the mission of this church is to continue to preach the gospel of the kingdom of God. And also to share what the king of that wonderful world tomorrow is like for you and me today. That is our commission. That is our mission. That is why you pray about the church. That is why you give your tithes and your offerings. That we might be able to get on a message like this. God's message. The time is now. The time is now for people to make decisions. Our time is now as Christians. The Feast of Trumpets in type is now in our lives. The Feast of Trumpets, which pictures the return of Jesus Christ to share Himself with the world, depicts in a sense a future event. But it is also now in our lives. Now you know, and I realize, that Jesus Christ is going to land on the Mount of Olives one day. That's what the book of Zechariah tells us, right? Last time I looked. He's landing His feet. They're going to land on the top of the Mount of Olives. But God Almighty has sent His Son into our lives now, and has already landed in our lives, has landed in our hearts, landed in our minds. And we have the responsibility now that the people in the wonderful world tomorrow are going to have then. And we have got to be able to practice what we preach. How hollow is our witness?

How shy is our testimony? If we, as a people, do not practice what we preach, and practice the values, honor the moral base of what that wonderful world is like, and emulate the example of Jesus Christ, that is the responsibility that has been placed on us during this time. You know, when you think of what you and I are about to enter, let's just rehearse it for a moment. I don't want to steal anybody's thunder. I want to try to avoid what our trumpet speaker is going to talk about. But let's just rehearse it for a moment. What are we going to be observing as we come up to the fall festivals? Let's just think about it for a moment, because, again, we don't want to just leap to the Feast of Tabernacles in the eighth day. Every festival should be individually wrapped, anticipated for, studied, prayed about, excited about, trumpets. So often we think of the blowing of a horn, but really, when you go back into the commentaries, the people were shouting at the Feast of Trumpets. The word blowing actually describes shouting. They were excited. They were thrilled. They were, to use a phrase out of the 1960s being a baby boomer, is that they were turned on. They were excited about following the God that had brought them out of the land of Egypt. So it's a time of shouting. It's a time of renewal. It's a time of new beginnings. By tradition, Adam and Eve, it's thought that they were created during this time period. It is thought that this was the time that Jesus Christ was born in the autumn season. We also recognize that it's a time of judgment. There are so many different facets that are surrounding this, the Feast of Trumpets. It's exciting. It's about new beginnings. A beginning for man with Adam. A beginning, a new start for man when God fulfilled His promise to send His Son, that second Adam. That would be the first of a spiritual creation. It's going to ultimately be a new beginning when God comes back and Jesus Christ lands, that the earth is going to have its first opportunity to succeed in over 6,000 years. That's something to get excited about. I want you to think about it a moment. Just like I thought about it when I was an 11-year-old boy, when there was a run on all of the food in San Diego, for those of you that were in San Diego at the time, there was nothing in the shelves. People were expecting the worst. The Soviet Union and its vessels were headed for Cuba. We had decided to blockade. JFK had made his stand. And the world stood still for 72 hours, not knowing what the outcome was going to be.

And yet, as a young person of God, I knew the outcome. Not all the details, but the outcome before it happened. Because I understood at that time, I'm not saying I had some secret, no, I'm just saying reading the Scriptures. It was not the time. And God says in His Scripture that He's coming back to save humanity alive. Maybe that does not resonate the same with today's generation as it does with us that grew up during the Cold War. And the one vegetable that we knew the best was the nuclear mushroom cloud.

That was our life growing up. Assured, remember the words? Assured, mutual destruction.

And that's what we lived under for 50 years during the Cold War, for those of you that weren't there.

And yet, God's Word said, humanity is going to survive better than this pulpit. That'll wake you up.

Now that's good. I'm going to tell you something. I will tell you something. In all seriousness. Would you want me to whisper this to you? Do you want a pastor and a spiritual leader that is on fire for God's Word, believes in His promises, knows His truths, looks forward to His coming? We're not here, brethren. We're not here just to be amused. We're not just here to hear platitudes. We are here to be molded and shaped by the Spirit of God. And this is serious business. We're not a social society. We are the Church of God. We are the people of God. And it's high time that we wake up and take this calling serious. We are that much closer to the Kingdom of God. And we need to take stock of that. We need to understand that. We are headed for challenging times. But also the Holy Days bring us into, again, alignment with that. When we think of the Day of Atonement. A Day of Atonement. And some of you are going to be fasting for the first time this year on the Day of Atonement. Why do we fast? Why do we stop all work, more than any of the other Sabbaths? Because we step back. We move away, and we are in awe of what God is doing through His Son, Jesus Christ. It is His work. It is the effort of God the Father and Jesus Christ. There is no amount of what we might be able to do with human hands or human arms to obtain salvation. And thus we stop. No work. No work. No work, which is more magnified than any other of the festivals about no work. Why? We don't let our children know why. They're just going to go hungry. If you don't know why, you're just going to have a headache by the end of the day. We stop and behold the work of God. He's given us the perfect Savior, and He's also given us a high priest that never stops, never stops moving back and forth with our prayers and our petitions before His Father as the eternal high priest. That's why we keep the Day of Atonement. We are not alone, as Dennis was bringing out in the message. We have the greatest advocate of all, Jesus the Christ. Then we're going to keep the Feast of Tabernacles, which represents the one thousand year reign of Jesus Christ on earth. And then after that, we move away from the world of time and space. And we come to understand that God's grace, as Adam sang about, is so wonderful and so great, and spreads over all that He's going to give opportunity to every human being that has ever lived. To be able to honor God the Father and bend the knee and bend their heart to Jesus Christ.

And then eternity. And then the realm of God. And that most, and I'll leave the rest to God, but He chooses to do, are going to be the immortal children of God. And they are invited into eternity to be with Him forever. Brethren, that's what we're about. That's what the Holy Days are about. That's why we are going to expend the effort to hear the wonderful, wonderful things of God. That's why, brethren, we've got to, as we move towards these these days, do something very special and to ask a prayer. Join me if you would in Proverbs 25. Proverbs 25.

I would hope that this could be our prayer during these days. Proverbs 25 verse 4.

Not Proverbs 25, it would be Psalms 25. Psalms 25. Show me your ways, O Eternal. Teach me your paths. Lead me in your truth and teach me. For you are the God of my salvation. On you I will wait all the day. There are three ways to teach me your paths. On you I will wait all the day. There are three specific aspects, three takeaways that I'd like you to write down. If you really want to be serious about receiving God's most and best during these holy days, number one, ask God to reveal and to show you what you need yet to understand. Become more like Him and His Son during these holy days. Have Him reveal to you during these days that have such great purpose about the overall sketch of God and what He's doing. Or are we just going to go and we'll go to trumpets and we'll look at our watches, or we'll think about what we're going to eat during the lunch hour, or we'll think about what we're doing that night. You know what? You might as well just stay home. Stay home. Please, just stay home if that's going to be your attitude.

Because, brethren, the time is short. The time is now. You ask God to reveal to you, to show you what you need yet towards the completion of Jesus Christ in you. This particular instrument of these holy days to shape and emote you. Then you ask Him, number two, to teach me. Break it down. Flush it out. Father above, I'm just a human being. Make it practical. Give me some takeaway. Give me some takeaway. Yes, I know the Feast of Trumpets is about the blowing of horns or the shouting. I've been in the church for 50 years. God never gets tired of thinking about what He's going to do for humanity. He does never tire about it. He thinks about it day and night. Without hesitation. Without reservation. He is so excited. I want to share something with you. I wasn't going to turn to it. I say 62. Join me if you would in Isaiah 62 for a moment.

Verse 1. Brethren, it's time to gear up. Fall festivals are coming. God is excited. For Zion's sake, I will not hold my peace. And for Jerusalem's sake, I will not rest. These scriptures reveal a God that is restless.

Restless to fulfill His purpose until her righteousness goes forth as brightness and her salvation as a lamp that burns. So you ask the Restless God to show you something to stir you up, to teach you, to make it practical, to come in that are going to be speaking to us on trumpets and atonement. And then to ask God, as it says here, point number three out of this verse in Psalms, to lead me. To lead me. That we're not alone.

And in doing this, to understand that the time is now. There are three anthems that have come down through the Church of God over the last 30 or 40 years. They're the same today as they were yesterday. They are very biblically based. Number one, you might want to jot it down. We are to come out of the world. Revelation 18.4. How much have you come out of the world this past year between the Feast of Trumpets 2014 and the Feast of Trumpets 2015? Or are you satisfied with the world? Just like it is. Hunkie Dory.

When I read the Olivet prophecy, when I read the book of Revelation, I think God has a different opinion. In fact, he says in the book of Peter, therefore, seeing all of these things are going to be dissolved. Therefore, what manner of man or person ought we be? Number one, we are to come out of the world. Number two, we are to simplify our lives. Because you cannot come out of the world until you begin to simplify your life.

When I look up here, here's the PowerPoint. If you do not strive to simplify your life based upon where you are right now, you will not be able to come out of the world. It does not compute. Satan is just so happy. He's got everybody so busy, so active, so many distractions, and so many things coming at us. When do the people of God have time to hear the Word of God, to read the Word of God, to share the Word of God, to talk up the Word of God, to pray for others that Dennis talked about, or what we talked about with dear Jan and Nancy? When do we have time?

We have to simplify our lives in a world that is becoming more and more complicated. Now, please understand, some of you that are new here, I'm not saying that there aren't some very nice things that need to enjoy life too. That's not what I'm talking about. But we have to recognize what the world is. It's not the world. The world is cosmos with a K. It means the culture. And Satan wants to keep... Are you with me? Are you hearing? He wants to keep the people of God so busy, with busy work and things that don't amount to a hill of beans sometimes, that then we can't think about the wonderful things of God. I think of Thoreau, New England philosopher. I'm not saying to be as drastic as Thoreau, please. Thoreau was the guy that went out to the bean hut on Walton's Pond. Walton's Pond. One chair for solitude, two chairs for company, three chairs for society. Now you say, that's pretty extreme. It is pretty extreme, but I'm making a point. The people of God, to be able to walk with God, have got to slow down. Have got to take the world that we're in and examine it thoroughly and those things that are not of God put away so that you can have the things of God. Point number three. After we have made our focus on coming out of the world, number two is to simplify our lives because it says in 2 Corinthians 11 and verse 3, there is a simplicity which is in Christ Jesus. Number three, we are now to learn to become teachers. Revelation 5 verse 10, and you'll be hearing this during the Feast of Trumpets Atonement, Feast of Tabernacles. Let's get a head start. Remember, this is our huddle just to get us ready for these days coming up. Revelation 5 verse 10. Notice what it says here. And has made us kings and priests. Other translations say a kingdom of priests to our God and we shall reign on the earth. We are now man and woman learning to become teachers so that we might be able to instruct others. And teach them not only to know what we know, but what we are. You know what the biggest challenge has been for Christians for 2,000 years? You know it. I know it. Oh yeah, lofty principles. Oh yeah, you know, goody two-shoes. But just look, they don't practice what they preach. Brethren, you and I have been called to model Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ is whom we are to follow. Of all man that has ever existed, it was the Son of Man that practiced what he preached. He was the real deal. He was genuine. There was a beauty in him that makes all of us ugly. And that's our model. And that's our example. The one that led ancient Israel through the wilderness and the one that leads his body today. With some of these thoughts that I've shared with you today, join me if you would. Let's conclude in Deuteronomy 31. The one thing that we want to remember as we go into this fall festival season is one of the most wonderful things I can share with a fellow believer. We are not alone. In Deuteronomy 31.

I want to leave you with the Scripture. I just want you to think about it. Wherever you are today, wherever you came here today, whatever you brought with you today on your heart and in your mind. And maybe some of the challenges that you experienced today that have drug you down and pulled you back into the world or complicated your life or said, what's the sense? What's the reason? What's the purpose? Is to recognize that you are here for a day. You have heard the Word of God opened up. You've heard it expounded. You have heard what is coming. And beyond that, which is going to be troubling for mankind in the future, the sure solution is going to come. And that is God the Father and Jesus Christ are ultimately going to bring everything all in all into their realm and into their midst. Humanity is not moving towards ultimate destruction, but the ultimate destiny that God desired from the beginning of time. Deuteronomy 31, verse 8. And the Lord, He is the One who goes before you. He will be with you. He will not leave you nor forsake you. Do not fear nor be dismayed. We're going to conclude by playing a song. I want to share something with you about this song. I'm going to frame it at Adam. This is how we'll frame next time you come up. Just so you'll kind of know that this is how I begin my day and this is how I end my day. As a Christian, as a pastor, Susan always hears this upstairs. She knows that with all the challenges that we have, and sometimes my own personal challenges, much less the tasks that are put upon me this day as a man of God. Sometimes you know your knees are shaking, but you want your heart to be firm. And this song always reminds me, in the morning as I begin to serve God, to serve my wife, to serve all of you, and to serve all of Southern California and Nevada and my other responsibilities in the church at large. Sometimes it just seems humanly impossible. It seems a task that cannot be completed. Then I listen to this and I am deeply encouraged. And then when I go to bed at night, I think, I've got to do this, I've got to do this, I've got to do this, and it's just too much to put in my mind before I go to bed, I listen to this. So you'll know what I'm doing on Monday, Tuesdays and Wednesdays and Saturdays and tonight before I go to bed. Because I listen to this, I just turn off the lights. I stop thinking about myself. Isn't that novel for a Christian? To stop thinking about yourself and hearing about the promises of God that He will never leave us or forsake us. And I hope that this will be as meaningful to you as it is to me.