Three Points to Remember as We Approach the Day of Trumpets

As I mentioned a little earlier on, I really appreciated Mr. Gravy's sermonette and how it fitted in with the message I have today. And in a lighter vein as an introductory, as a way of an introduction into the sermon, I'd like to mention to you something that I saw and my wife saw and she reminded me. In a South African film, which is like a comedian-type film which plays on human nature, particularly South African human nature. So some of the things you don't fully understand. But this one, it's a humorous one. And it basically goes like this on that film. There's this man driving and the next thing you have a traffic officer stops and comes to the car. It's very different in South Africa, the way the traffic officer stops. One of the elders came to South Africa and I'm deviating from the story. So one of the elders came to South Africa and they're coming from the States. In the States, if there is some whatever, something you maybe go too fast or whatever it is, the next thing you see lights behind you and you know you've got to push to the side and stop. And it's kind of normal. Well, in South Africa it's not like that. They have two little lines or a laser gun, a couple of yards ahead and the traffic officer stopped ahead. So if they see you speeding, they jump in the front of the road and stop and tell you to stop. And then you stop and then you get out of the car. Well, in this country you don't get out of the car. There you get out of the car and you talk to them and maybe you negotiate. Not that I would do that, but that's the way people are doing it. That's the way it goes. But anyway, there's this couple. They were, I guess, they went through an area and they were going above the speed limit. So next thing there's this man in the middle of the road jumping and trying to stop them. So he says, what's up? Are we being hijacked? We're carjacked. We're terrified. Anyway, get it back to the story that I was thinking of starting with, which is this story in this film is the man had stopped, passed a stop street and then the traffic officer stops in and he says, what's going on? And traffic officer says, don't you see that it was a stop street? And the man said, yes, I saw it was a stop street. And then he says, did you see the sign there that says stop? And he says, yeah, I saw the sign that says stop. Well, did you see the line where it says you've got to stop before that line on the floor? Yes, I saw the line before there it says stop. Then the traffic officer has to say, why don't you stop? He said, sir, because I didn't see you.

That's kind of a play on human nature. But the point is, life is a series of choices.

Life is a series of choices and there are consequences, good and bad, when we have choices.

A child was mentioning in the story about Adam and Eve. They had some choices and there were some consequences based on those choices. They made the wrong choice and we'll talk a little bit more about that in a moment because of certain things that attracted them. But today, my purpose to talk to you is about three things to keep in mind as we look forward to this fall season, as we heard in opening prayer, and as we look forward towards it. There are three things that we need to keep in mind. And I'll tell you what the three things are so that you'll remember. And as I go through it, you can see how I'm emphasizing those three points. But basically, we've got choices. That's point number one. We've got choices. God gives us choices. Point number two, as a result of those choices, there are consequences. And mankind, typically because of it, is or her human nature typically takes the wrong choice. And therefore, there are bad consequences, like cause and effect. And because of certain causes, there are the consequences which are bad.

So that's the second point. There are bad consequences. And the third point is that we do have good news that God is going to intervene to change those consequences and change us to bring good news. And that is the meaning of the Day of Trumpets, as we look forward to the Day of Trumpets. So those are the three points that are going to talk about today. They are choices. They are consequences because of those choices which are bad, which we as mankind, as human beings, suffer because of bad choices. But there is a hope that there will be good news because Jesus Christ, our Savior, is coming back to save the world. Otherwise, we would be in the end of the world. We are on the verge of the end of the world, but it will not be the end of the world because God is going to save mankind. And that is the good news about that we have. So those are the three points that I want to emphasize today. So let's start with the first one that we have choices and go back to the very point where Mr. Graby started in Genesis second chapter. So we're going to go back a little earlier than where Mr. Graby went earlier on. And we're going to start with the second chapter of Genesis. Genesis 2 verse 8 and 9. And now we read, after God had formed a man and Eve, and created man and Eve, he planted a garden and he put them in a garden. And on verse 8, he says, he put there the man whom he had formed, and out of the ground the Lord God made every tree grow that is pleasant to the sight and good in for food. And the tree of life was also in the midst of the garden and the tree of knowledge of good and evil. Now it's very interesting how God puts things. Maybe it's also part of the poetry of Proverbs. You will see in Proverbs always things like this and then that. Quite a lot of Proverbs you look, it's this and then that. Like the fool and then like we saw some of the Proverbs and then wise in your own art. And usually you take that first point and then emphasizes something else. And then it brings on the next line the same sort of thing but flipped around in another way. Let me give you an example. For instance, the tree of life is the tree of the knowledge of good and evil inspired by God. The tree of life is us listening to God's instruction of what is right and wrong. It's God's teachings. It's God's education to us and that is life. It's God's way that is life. That's the tree of life. But the tree of man's own self-human reasoning, self-owned deductions of what is good and right is the tree of death. And so God put two trees there, a tree of life and a tree of death. But by just calling it the tree of life left you to think it out that it actually means is the tree of God's own teaching that its result is life. The alternative way is the way of death, which is man's human reasoning that leads to death.

So it's very clear that God gave Adam and Eve a choice. Now, in this book of Genesis, the first few chapters, it's a short history of what happened over a number of thousands of years. Therefore, it's very brief, the information we have there. So there's a lot more things that happened that sometimes we have to wonder. And one day we will know when we'll see some of these people and we can ask them. And it'll be interesting to know exactly what happens. But we can see God gave Adam and Eve a choice. So this is the first point. It's choices. God first gave mankind choices. And look a little bit further in verse 16 and 17.

But basically, God has given mankind things to eat.

So God first gave mankind choices. Then mankind chose to follow by the example of Adam and Eve. And we all are following. We all are following our own human reasoning decisions of right and wrong. And obviously, our consequences of that. But then there was a man that made the right choice. His name was Abraham. And then his son did the right choice as well, Isaac. And his son made the right choice as well, Jacob. And therefore these three, as a family unit, made the right choices. Jacob became known as Israel. Israel, from there the Israelites people came. And God gave the Israelites people choices. Look at it now in Deuteronomy 30, verse 15 to 19. Deuteronomy 30.

Verses 15 through 19. God has always given us a choice. We are free moral agents and we have a choice. And in verses 15 through 19 of Deuteronomy 30 says, See, I've set before you today life and good, death and evil. The two trees are set before you the tree of life and good. And I've set before you the tree of death and evil. That's what is done to all of us. You and I have the same choices of life or of death. In that I command you today, I'm not just giving you a choice. I'm giving you an instruction. Choose life. Choose the tree of life. I'm instructing you. Choose, I command you today to love the Lord your God, to walk in his ways, to keep his commandments and his statutes and his judgments. Why? It was to eat the fruit of the tree of life. Why? That you may love. God wants us to obey him for his own good. God wants us to obey him for his own good. And the Lord your God will bless you in the land which you will go to possess. The consequences, the consequences, there is cause and effect. The consequences will be you will be blessed. But, verse 17, if your heart turns away so that you do not hear, you know what's your heart? You want to do your own thing. You want to make your own decisions of what is right and wrong. You want to believe that, oh, if I do this, it doesn't affect anybody because I'm a free moral agent and I can do whatever I want. Nobody's going to tell me what to do.

Well, God tells us what to do. But if we follow that way, it says that you don't want to hear God and you are drawn away and worship other gods and serve them. Brethren, when we follow our own human reasoning, we are putting our human reasoning in front of God's teaching. And therefore, our human reasoning becomes another God, becomes an idol. It's idolatry. Our own human reasoning is idolatry. So, if you're following other gods, for instance, your own decision of what's right and wrong, and serve them, I announce to you today the consequences, the end result, that you shall surely perish. You will die. Doesn't say you live in in hell forever in eternity. No, it says you will perish, shall surely perish. You shall not prolong your days in the land which you cross over the Jordan to go and possess. 19. I call heaven and earth as witnessed against you.

God says, just as the planet earth and the moon and the stars and heavens are there, they are my witness. That if they there, my word stands. He says, you shall not prolong the days in the land which you cross over the Jordan to go and possess. I call against you that I have set before you life and death. I've set before you the tree of life and the tree of death. I've set before you the consequences of blessing and the consequences of curses. Therefore, God says, please, for your own good, choose life that both you and your children may live and your descendants may live.

God gives us choices and it commands us to follow the tree of life. Now, we may disobey him because we free moral agents, but he gives us that choice.

And we know, you and I know, that Israel disobeyed. And you and I know that because of that, Israel got punished. They went to slavery, the Jews and the house of Israel, the house of Israel, the house of the north, and the house of Judah, the house of south. They both went to slavery. The house of the north was dispersed into different nations. The house of Judah then was able to come back and became what's known today to Jewish people. But nowadays, God said, I will make a people out of people that are not a people.

It says, I'll make a nation out of people that are not a nation. And that's what the Church of God is the embryo of what it will be in the future. God is making a people out of people that are not a people. He's making a nation out of people that are not a people. In other words, there are a few in the states here. There are a few in Italy. There are a few in Portugal. There are a few in Japan that we might not even know or we know. There are a few people there and so on. And out of these people that are not a people, they're not a nation, He's making a nation, which would be God's nation, God's spiritual Israel. And He's making that. And to that spiritual nation, He says the same thing.

Turn with me to Revelation chapter 1. Revelation chapter 1.

Yes, Christ talking. You can see that in verse 5 and the beginning of the chapter. But let's read in verse 8 and 9. And it says, I am the Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, says the Lord, who is and who was and who is to come be Almighty. In other words, Jesus Christ is talking and He says He's the beginning and He's the end. Christ is the very beginning. A lot of us don't fully understand that Christ is the beginning and the end. In other words, He's the one that started everything in the beginning. And He's the one that will finish everything. Who is and who was and who is to come be Almighty. He calls Himself the Almighty. Interesting what Christ says here. So then He says in verse 9, I joined both your brother and companion in tribulation and kingdom and patience of Jesus Christ, who was on the island that is called Patmos for the word of God and for the testimony of Jesus. I was in the Spirit on the Lord's day and I heard behind me a voice as of a trumpet. So He was in a vision taken into the future to a time period called the Lord's day, which we'll talk a little bit more about in a moment. But so He was taken into this time period called the Lord's day and therefore He could now see certain things that had already happened, which for us are still future. And He could see and then He can see that it's Christ talking. And then we see towards the end of this chapter, we see Christ talking towards the end of verse 17. Do not be afraid, for I'm the first and the last. And then reading in verse 20, Christ talking, He's talking about the mystery of the seven stars, which you saw in my right hand, and the seven golden stamps, and the seven stars are the angels of the seven churches. So He says, and He's now talking about the seven churches. In other words, there are seven eras or seven type of prevalent attitudes in the Church of God that will live through the years ahead from the time of Christ through to the end of time. And He's saying to these people, He's giving certain messages.

And then you can see, for instance, in chapter 2, verse 1, it says, to the angel of the Church of Ephesus. It was to God's Church with the Ephesus era, but also of the attitude of Ephesus, He's saying certain messages. And so you can see He's actually talking to the churches. So those messages are to the church. And at the end of each one of these messages, you will see He that has a year listened to what He says to the church. So it applies to us. And so let's read one or two of these messages here. The first one that I want to look at is in Revelation 3, verse 3. Revelation 3, verse 3. It says, this is part of the messages to the churches. And it says, Remember therefore how you have received and heard, hold fast and repent. So He's saying, you have heard some things, now you've got a choice that you need to hold on to the truth.

But not only that, you need to repent of your ways, because there are certain things that you have not yet changed, and you need to change to the way of the Tree of Life. Therefore, if you will not watch, so it's telling them, you've got to watch. And you know, there are scriptures that say, watch, you know, so that it may not come as a thief in the night. And it says, if you do not watch, I'll come upon you as a thief, and you will not know what hour I will come upon you. We have to be watching. Anybody is telling the people, God's people, the Church, to repent. So He's giving us again, listen, watch, repent. Now, we look at the situation in the world today.

Brethren, there are many things happening. Many things happening. You just have to open your eyes. For instance, this week alone, what did we see? Well, we see more crises in Europe with Greece and things like that. We saw the Pope saying interesting things in Germany. I don't know if you watch that, but he was saying things in the parliament there for the unification of Europe.

He also went and talked about the Muslims there, and he also talked about Martin Luther. So interesting things that he's saying. So we see things happening, and then we see the financial crisis keeps going.

I mean, was it Thursday? He dropped nearly another 400 points. And therefore, there's this uneasiness. Things are happening. Oh yes, and we saw this whole thing on Friday about the Palestinian Authority trying to make that area a proper country in the United Nations. And what repercussions? They won't be from that. We don't know. But things are definitely happening. Now, when we watch these things, if we are watching, and if we keep in mind what the Bible says about prophecy, so if we are watching these things with the right check and balance, then we will be able to be careful against false prophets.

Not for instance. There were false prophets saying that the world was going to end in May this year, and it come and gone. And I think now they say that, well, they shouldn't have altered that to October or something like that. Well, that will also come and go. And then others are saying, like you heard, there's the Maya calendar that is ending somewhere in December next year. Some people are saying, well, the world will end in December next year. Well, that will come and go, because we know there's going to be at least three and a half years of tribulation that we still know.

So the world won't end by then. So, as you keep these things, but then there are other people now talking about this comment. Now, I don't know if you've seen, but there's a big thing of people now saying there's this comment called Helienno, whatever it's called, the name of the comment. And they say that it's gonna, the tile is gonna, whatever, come across us, and there'll be heavenly signs, run about the feast this year, and then there'll be a gang seven years later, and this and that, and therefore this means that, and that means the wind crash is coming back.

So people are coming out of all these prophets, like this comment Heliennino, whatever it's called, and others. The point is, brethren, if we are not watching, we're going to be deceived, because it says there will be many. You read Matthew 24, and it says, I think it's verse 11, and it says, there'll be many, they'll come in my name to deceive, and many will be deceived.

It doesn't say a few will be deceived. Many, many. That means the majority, that means probably 99 percent of the world will be deceived. Brethren, you and I have to be watching, because these things are going to happen. Look at the further warning on Revelation 3, verse 15 to 19. It says, I know your works, that you are not a cold, no hot. I wish you were cold or hot. There's another possible attitude that people could have in the church, that a kind of like a diesel, oh well, this has happened before, well that's okay, we'll just go on, you know.

You know, they're not a cold or hot. They know the truth, they know they need to do certain things, but they just kind of look warm. And it goes on, I wish you are the cold or hot. So then, because you look warm, another hot, no cold or another cold, no hot, I will vomit you out of my mouth. Imagine God vomiting. If you've ever vomited, I'm sure we all have experienced that in our lives one day or another, that is a terrible, bad tasting sensation.

It's terrible. Now imagine what God thinks of us if we are look warm, and he wants to get thrown out of his mouth. Imagine what God thinks of us if we are look warm. And then he goes on and he says, and you say, I'm rich, and if we become wealthy and have need of nothing. In other words, it's not necessarily physical wealth, it's rich in this knowledge, in this wisdom that was so clearly highlighted, for instance, in the sermon, that I know all this thing, I've got all this knowledge, I know it all.

And you do not know that you're rich, that you're miserable, that you're poor, poor spiritually, that you're blind, you cannot actually see yourself.

And you're naked. You're really, before God, we all, they're not, they are naked because they are just not clothed in righteousness. And that is what God wants us to be clothed in righteousness. So God is giving a warning to the church. God has given a warning to mankind, choose the tree of life. God gave it to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Choose life, they chose. God gave his realites a choice. And God gives the church a choice. But he's always saying, repent, choose life, choose what's good. So, brethren, first, the first point that I leave with you to think about as we prepare for trumpets is we have to be in a repentant attitude. We have to choose ourselves, look at ourselves, look inwardly, analyze ourselves, and be in a repentant attitude. And particularly as we are approaching, for instance, the Day of Atonement and the Day of Atonement, as we fast during the Day of Atonement, we look at ourselves and why do we fast? We fast so that we get closer to God. It's not fast to, like a hunger strike, to demand things from God. No! You fast because we humble ourselves before God so that God can show us how we can become better people. And when we become better people, then we grow. And yes, in the process, we may make some requests. Sure, nobody's dying and we cannot make some requests. But the point is, when we are becoming better people and when we are pleasing God, then He will honor those requests. So, we need to repent. We need to be in a repentant attitude as we look forwards to the fall festivals, and particularly the Day of Trumpets. Then the second point is there are consequences. Mankind has consequences of what they've done. Mankind has done wrong things and there are consequences. Let's give an example of Israel. You remember God's state to Israel, choose life. I, heaven and earth, is a witness and I put before you life and death. We read that a little earlier in the Ptolemy 30 and choose life. Now, let's look at another example of what He said in more detail about that in Leviticus 26, because there we can see the consequences in more detail. Leviticus 26.

Leviticus 26 is talking to Israel, but applies to us as well. In fact, applies to modern Israel.

And modern Israel, as we know, the tribe, the north and the house of Israel, was dispersed and went into various nations and they scattered amongst different nations, like Reuben, as we know, as you study. And you do study, Reuben is France, Ephraim is England, Manasseh is the state, and for instance, there's different nations like Norway and Holland. There are also Israelite nations. So, it's interesting to do a study on that, but that's fine. It's interesting. The point is God gave some instructions here.

And as we read a little bit more about Bible prophecy, we know that God said, I will bless Israel. And he withheld those blessings for a number of years. When you study that, you find out that those blessings, that period, ended around about the 1800s. And after the 1800s, his promise was that he would bless those nations and he did. And you can see how the English-speaking nations were blessed from the 1800s onwards till today. And these are very applicable to that, because in Leviticus 26, he says, you shall not make idols for yourselves. In other words, yes, in that era, they thought of carved images, sacred pillars, and stones, and things like that. And some religions today do have that. You can go to some of those churches, church buildings, and you see those carved images and people worshipping to them, and things like that. But it goes beyond that, because, as I mentioned, time and the use of time, for instance, can be an idol. If we use the time incorrectly, it actually can be an idol. But the use of time properly, for instance, putting God first in our lives and putting time to prayer and Bible study instead of entertainment, when we should do that and putting those priorities first, if we misuse time, that could be an idol. So, idol does not just have to be carved images and things like that. Idol could be anything that you put before God, like the use of time. Or, could be an idol, could be, like I said earlier on, your own human reasoning. That could be an idol, because you put that in front of God's teachings. And so, that could be an idol.

And then continuing in verse 2, you shall keep my Sabbath. Now, it's interesting. It's in the plural.

So, God has different Sabbaths. There is the weekly Sabbath, which is today, which is a point and order in time. So, it does not say, you shall keep my Sabbath. It says, you shall keep my Sabbath. So, God has other Sabbaths besides the weekly Sabbath, such as the annual Holy Days. And reference my sanctuary. In other words, reference God's way of doing things and the sanctuary of God. So, it says, this is what you do. Very simple. It's basically saying, you will follow the tree of life. Please follow the tree of life. That's what God says. Verse 3, it says, if... and now, he has the consequences. He has the effect. If you walk in my statutes and keep my commandments and perform them. If you follow the tree of life, you are the end result. And then he lists them from verse 4 to verse 13. He lists all the blessings that you'll give the nations and the people as they obey them. And you see that after the 1800s, a lot of these blessings happened to America, for instance. But, after God fulfilled his promise that he said he would do because of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob's fightfulness. And he said he would do that. Then, verse 14 comes in, which is another consequence that says, but if you do not obey me. Yah is, you have a choice. If you walk or if you do not walk, if you follow the tree of life, or if you follow the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, which is basically the tree of death.

So, if you do not obey me, and you do not observe all these commandments, and if you despise my statutes, or if your soul abodes my judgments, so that you do not perform our commandments, but break my covenant, then Yah is the consequences. Number one, first consequence.

I'll do this to you, and I'll take note of what he says to us, what he'll do to us. I will even appoint terror over you. Do, have we been inflicted with terrorism of likely?

Yes or no? Has it happened or no?

Wasting disease. Is there an increase of wasting diseases like cancer, like lung cancer? Is there an increase of that? We shall consume your eyes and cause sorrow of your heart. Basically, just drains your life away. And it shall sow your seed in vain, for your enemies shall eat it.

I'll set against your cycles on. But that's the first curse. If you do so by me, has this curse started to happen? And when did it start to happen?

I'm not setting dates, but it's just interesting. Then verse 18, it says, now, if after this, now he's giving us a sequence of events. And if after this, if you still don't obey me, I'll punish you even more. It's like you tell your children, Johnny, do this, and dot, dot, bang, bang, bang, a little smack. Then he goes out and he still doesn't do it. He comes back and he says, all right, now I'm going to smack you again, but I'm going to smack you harder.

Johnny, it's going to be harder. So it says, I'll punish you seven times more for you since.

How? I will break the pride of your power. What is breaking the pride of a country's power? It's the money. It's the currency. You break the financial strength of a country, and that goes down. When did the market crash like never before?

September 2008. How after? How much was it after September 11? It's interesting. It might be coincidence, might not, but God is saying, I will break the pride of a power. I will make your heavens like iron and your earth like bronze. What have we seen in Texas, I mean, in the in the bread basket area of this country this summer? What have we seen? I mean, we just have to open our eyes. I will make the heavens like iron and your earth like bronze. So that's kind of a punishment that's happening on us. Then in verse 21 says, just the third punishment, like say, Johnny, go, and then Johnny still doesn't obey. So he says, okay, come to that. Now I'm going to give you a third hiding, an even stronger hiding. And he says, and this is, it's very sad to read brethren, and really it's very sobering to read, because you and I know how we've been affected by the previous things. And look at the next one.

Then if you walk contrary to me and are not willing to obey me, I'll bring upon you seven times more plagues. Brethren, this means serious diseases that will be worse than the previous two in how it will impact our lives.

It is frightening. It's no joy for me to read this. And it's time for us in the church to really be alert to this, because he says, I'll send wild beasts among you. Well, surely it's not elephants and tigers and lions, yeah, because there's none. Or there might be a few in the zoo, but not many.

And they won't breed enough in the next few years for... So what sort of wild beasts are those? You think about these viruses. They are wild beasts. Some of the viruses that are coming out, they are real wild. Some of the diseases that they're kind of containing. They're containing.

But, you know, I mean, we've had bird flu and you had some other flu about two years ago. I can't remember now the name and all these things. And they're kind of containing them with vaccinations and this and that. But all along, the immune system is getting weaker and weaker. And then what will happen? There'll be some other outbreak that all the antibiotics and all the things just won't work and will spread like a flame on grass that is dead and dry and just burn everywhere.

It's sobering because it says, we shall rob you of your children, destroy your livestock, and make you few in number. Brethren, it's no joy to read this. And it says, your highways will be desolate because maybe they'll set up some quarantine in some of the cities and people will not be able to travel. They'll be quarantined and the highways will be desert. I don't know. I don't know why it will happen. But brethren, this is kind of what's on the edge of the knife coming next. It appears. Not setting times, but it appears that that's it. And then in verse 23, and if by these things you still not reform to me, but walk contrary to me, then I'll walk contrary to you and I'll punish you seven times for your sins and I'll bring you sword against you. It'll be war. Either in writing war or silver war or whatever it will be. I don't know.

And that is the fourth. And then the first, if you still don't know by me, but walk contrary to me, and then it says, I'll chastise you seven times more for your sins.

I'll destroy your high places. I'll lay waste your cities, desolation, and look at it. It says in verse 33, I will scatter you among the nations. That's slavery. That is the great revelation. That is the great revelation. So we see what's ahead for us. I'm not setting times, because no man knows the day of the time. But Christ, our very Bible God the Father, not even Christ himself knows, he said. So we don't know. But it does appear there is a sequence of punishments here. That's what I read from the Bible. I might be wrong, but that's what I read from the Bible. And therefore, there's bad news coming. There are consequences for mankind's terms, for the national terms, and what is our duty? What is our duty? Turn with me to Ezekiel 33.

Ezekiel 33.

1 Again, the word of the Lord came to me saying, Son of man, speak to the children of your people and say to them, When I bring the sword upon the land, and the people of the land take a man from their territory and make him their watchman, when he sees the sword coming upon the land, if he blows a trumpet and warns the people, then it's up to the people to take the warning. And then verse 6, But if the watchman sees the sword coming and does not blow the trumpet, then the people are not warned. And then I'll require the blood on the watchman's hand.

And verse 7, So you, son of man, I've made your watchman for the house of Israel.

I've made a watchman for the Israelite nations. Before he shall hear a sword from my mouth and wander, God will appoint a watchman. I don't know who. Maybe it's the church. Maybe it's not.

We don't know. But God will point a watchman and somebody will give a warning to Israel.

And God will do it. And that will be done, because God wants the warning to go out. Now, we as a church have a job to do. We have a job to do. How can we warn if we're not repentant, if we're not in a repentant attitude? Because you and I have a job to do as a church. And so we have to ask God to show us, to help us to be repentant. And brethren, you and I cannot do it individually. We just can't. We've got a job to do, which is a team effort. You will see that in the first video. I've done the translation of the first video into Portuguese as well. And you will see some of the people sitting here today on the first video. Clue, clue, hint, hint.

Watch my eyes. But anyway, it will be... You will enjoy that. You will enjoy that, because you see we are doing a work. And we have to do a work. Interesting, the last week and the week before, we had meetings at our office. God is blessing the work financially. God is opening up doors for the work to preach the gospel more powerfully. We are now running short of space, so they're going to make some more space, because one of the key things they want to do is do a bigger TV studio so that they can actually do better the pictures. Currently, the TV studio is in a room which is about this height, the ceiling. And so when they put the pictures and the cameras, they have limited angle to be able to do that. And when you see it on TV, you'll see it tomorrow or beyond today, at X30 on WGN. You don't notice that these are constraints, but they need more space to give more capability for the speakers, because currently they're confined. They have to be in an area. Otherwise, they're going to go outside the studio and do some things in the street, but they need more space. So they're making a few operations to accommodate that, and therefore at the same time, because that impacts other spaces, etc. You know, it's like a domino effect, and they've got to do other things. So they might as well just do a lot of those things all at the same time. So they have architects there looking at it. They discuss it with the home office employees. They've got input. They've got ideas. Then once the architect draws it, they're going to discuss it against the employees so that everybody can provide input. And I really appreciate the spirit in the way they're doing it, which is right, which getting everybody's input and ideas into it. But the point is, we cannot do it individually, brethren. For instance, I could not do what I do for the Portuguese work if I did not have the people doing the video. So they don't have people doing things on the internet. They say, I just could not do it. I'm just a little bit. But God, through all of us together, we have a job to do. And you have a job to do. And you and I, we all need to ask God, what is my part in the job? Because maybe I'm sick. Maybe I've got arthritis. Maybe I've got a problem. I'm very limited in what I can do. And maybe I'm a widow. I'm stuck in a little place. What can I do? Well, you can ask God what you can do. God will inspire you. But one thing, ask the minister as well what you can help. The minister sometimes has some ideas. For instance, there might be some certain things that you can pray about that you want to ask you can. And the minister may be able to think, well, there's these needs. And for instance, I have a very tight schedule. I'll be, for about in a week, I'll be three nights without sleep because of flying to go these people. That's dangerous. I don't like because that's playing with health. I didn't like to, but the pressure before the feast, etc., I have to do that.

And so there's a thing that you can pray to help doing the work that God will provide health and provide me the clear mind as I meet different people and things like that so that we can help those people. And again, as a widow, what one can do is, for instance, pray. You know, the prayers of the saints is like incense, beaten small, into God's throne. And God prizes that very highly. You read about that in, I think it's Leviticus 16, where the incense was brought. And when that incense was brought, nobody else could go there because that was very precious to God that incense into the throne of God, into the, into the, into the high, holiest of allists. And those prayers of God's people don't underestimate the power of prayer. It is amazing. We've seen many people being healed through prayer. And again, God doesn't always heal because sometimes God wants us to learn some lessons, you know, and that's part of God's, God knows, but God is powerful. Don't underestimate the power of prayer. So there are many things one can do. Turn with me to Jeremiah chapter 6, Jeremiah chapter 6.

Just to look at one other point here, Jeremiah chapter 6. And we're going to read verse 17 through 19. Jeremiah 6, 17 through 19.

Also, I'll say to watchmen, not just one, but watchmen over you saying, listen to the sound of the trumpet. Listen to the warning sign. That's why I'm saying, as we're preparing to the day of trumpets, as we think ahead of the meaning of these days, it's good to think about these points. Listen to the sound of trumpet. But they said, we'll not listen. Wow! You know, there's a trumpet and it says, we'll not listen. Therefore, hear your nations and know a congregation that is who is amongst them, hear of earth. Behold, I'll certainly bring calamity to those people.

God will punish the nations and the world very strongly because mankind is not listening.

Because, it says, the fruit of their thoughts. Now, think about what I said. The knowledge of good and evil, which is your own human reasoning of what is right and wrong, that's the fruit of mankind's thoughts, the fruit of their thoughts. Because they've not heeded to my words. What's God's words? It's God's words he is telling us what is right and wrong. It's not our own thoughts telling us what's right and wrong. It's God's words telling us what's right and wrong. And he says, because they've not heeded my words nor my law, but rejected it. Oh yeah, in this world, most religions say, how well that law is done away. All you have to believe is in the Lord. Brethren, God's law is not done away. God is sustained yesterday, today, and forever.

And he says, I'll bring calamity to those people. Why? Because they've not heeded to God's teaching and they've not heeded to God's law, but rejected it. So, brethren, we must help one another do God's work. Look at Joel chapter 2 verse 1, please.

Joel chapter 2 verse 1. Joel chapter 2 verse 1 says, blow the trumpet in Zion. What is Zion?

Oh yeah, Zion is a place in Israel, basically in Jerusalem. But you know, blow the trumpet in Zion. Zion is the church. Quite often when God in the Bible talks about Zion is talking about the church. Blow the trumpet in the church. Tell the church, let's get going and we've got to do a job now. Brethren, if you, for instance, wear, you've ever had military training, for instance, before I came into the church, I went to the South African Air Force, and every morning they blew the trumpet. And that trumpet, depending on the sound of the trumpet, how they had different meanings and basically told you to get ready to do something. The trumpet blew something. It's like a certain sign that says get ready to go for breakfast or to get ready to go and do exercises out in the morning in the field or to get ready to go for lunch or to get ready to assemble to to go march and whatever it is. The trumpet was like a message to say go out and do something. So they blow the trumpet in Zion, his blessing, telling us, giving us an alarm. It says, and sound alarm in my holy mountain, which is amongst God's people. That's God's nation, God's holy mountain. They're all the inhabitants of the land tremble, for the day of the Lord is coming, for it is at hand. The day of the Lord is coming. It is near. Look in chapter 1, verse 15. Joel 1, verse 15. Alice, for the day, for the day of the Lord is at hand.

Do we know what is the day of the Lord? Now, remember earlier on I read Revelation 1, and I said John was in Patmos, and he has an eviction, and he was taken to the Lord's day, to the day of the Lord. Do you know when is the day of the Lord? Well, turn with me to chapter 2, verse 31 of the same book, chapter 2, verse 31. The sun shall be turned into darkness, the moon into blood, before the coming of the great and awesome day of the Lord. There it tells you exactly when is the day of the Lord. The day of the Lord is immediately after the heavenly signs. So now you go and study the book of Revelation, and you've got the four seals, the four horsemen. The first seal is the great tribulation, which we talked about, and the sixth seal is the heavenly signs, and the seventh seal, which is after the heavenly signs, that's what it says here, is the day of the Lord. The day of the Lord is there.

That's the day of God's wrath.

So we need to understand when is the day of the Lord.

At that time, it's when God is going to bring really the punishments on the earth.

And if you read that section of the seventh seal in the book of Revelation, that is the period of seven trumpets. And that's why we say, as we approach to the day of trumpets, we need to look at this and understand that and get this back into our mind.

Before God punishes mankind, before those seven trumpets are described in the book of Revelation, you can read that in the book of Revelation, you're on time. In the chapter before, it talks about sealing of God's servants, first 144,000 and then a great multitude. 144,000 of the tribes of Israel and a great multitude of the rest of the nations. So God is not discrimination, discriminating people. You will seal both of Israel and of the other nations.

How come there will be a great multitude repenting? How come?

Because we have blown the trumpet.

We blew the trumpet before the calamity came. The trumpet will be blown.

The nations will be warned. And the bulk of the people will not believe it until the great tribulation. Then when they end the great tribulation, they said, Aha! We should have heard it! And then they repent. And then God will protect them and will seal them. And then when the day of the Lord comes, then those people will be protected.

Will be sealed, protected. So brethren, we have a job to do. There are consequences on mankind. We have a job to do. So that's the consequences of mankind's wrong choices, all the way from the day of Adam and Eve. But they are good news. They are good news. And that's the third point, and that which will year extensively during the day of trumpets and during the feast. They are good news. And the good news after the day of the Lord is that Jesus Christ is coming back. Turn with me to Revelation 11. Revelation 11.

And we'll read, starting from verse 15 through verse 18. Revelation 11, 15. Then the seventh angel sounded. That's the seventh trumpet. That's the last trumpet that you can read in Thessalonians 4, 16 to 17. And you can read also in Corinthians 15 verses 15 onwards. That's the seventh angel, the seventh trumpet, the last trumpet. And it says, And there were loud voices in heaven, saying, The kingdoms of this world have become the kingdoms of our Lord and his Christ. In other words, Christ is going to come to earth, and is going to be the world government. He'll replace the United Nations. There will be a new, quote-unquote, rulership will be God's kingdom, replacing United Nations, governing over all the other nations. They become the kingdoms of our God and of his Christ, and he shall reign forevermore.

God's kingdom will reign on mankind forevermore. Yes, initially, for a thousand years, which will be the millennium, to actually execute certain things part of God's plan. And then other things will happen after that, which you'll hear described clearly during the Feast of Tabernacles and the eighth day, the last great day. And then heaven, there'll be a new heaven and new earth on planet earth, and will be remodeled, and you'll rule forever. So there'll be a rulership, you'll reign forever. And then we jump to verse 18. However, when Christ comes back, the nations were angry, and your wrath has come, and the time of the dead, that they shall be judged. So the first thing is the dead are going to be judged. Yes. Why? Because some of the dead will be resurrected, and some of the dead will be made spirit beings. That's the judgment. That's the judgment of the dead, because the other dead remained until later. So because we're talking about the first resurrection. So that's the first resurrection. The time of the dead should be judged. They will be made spirit beings. They will receive eternal life. And that is a gift. That is a gift. There's nothing that you and I can do to inherit eternal life. It is a gift from God the Father, through Jesus Christ's suffering, and death for you and I. It's a gift. But in addition to that, says, and that you should reward your servants, the prophets, and the saints, and those who fear your name, small and great. And so there's a second thing. There's a reward. There's not just a gift, but there's also reward. A reward according to your works.

And then it says, third, and you should destroy those who destroyed earth. In other words, those that are there, destroying earth will be, will, Christ will fight them. They will be fought. They'll be wiped out. There's other scriptures that cover that. Not my purpose today to cover that, but it's just saying there's good news because Christ's coming to rule and to establish the kingdom of God to reign on planet earth over mankind and to make out of this earth a paradise. This earth will become a garden of Eden. This earth will become a new paradise.

But let's go back a little bit about the second point here on verse 18 that says that you should reward your servants, the prophets. Brethren, you and I today can affect that reward.

You see, the gift of eternal life is a gift because of Jesus Christ's death and sacrifice and through his blood. There's nothing that you and I can do to earn eternal life. It's a gift.

But there is a reward. There is a reward. Turn with me, please, to 1 Corinthians chapter 3. 1 Corinthians chapter 3.

It's a very interesting scripture, yeah? And sometimes we don't read it with this full understanding, but let's read what it says. Don't believe me. Believe the Bible. Believe what the Bible says. 1 Corinthians 3 verse 11.

No one else can lay at the foundation. It's lay. But we can build upon it.

You and I can build upon it, and that is through our works.

Read here. Now, if anyone builds on this foundation, so you and I can build on this foundation. You and I have been put into God's church, God has called us, and it's now up to us. It's our choice of how to build.

It's our choice, and there are consequences you will see.

You see, you can build with two basic types of materials. One type is gold, silver, and precious stones.

We can build on that foundation with gold, silver, and precious stones. You know, if you put fire onto gold, silver, and precious stones, after you let the fire go, you still have gold, silver, and precious stones.

They withstand the fire. So you can build with gold, silver, and precious stones. But then you can also lay on the foundation with other types of materials, like wood, hay, and straw.

That's how it works. That's how it works.

So we can have works of gold or of silver or of precious stones, different levels of works that will stand fire. Or we can have works that are wood, hay, and straw, that you put fire on them. Afterwards, you don't have the wood, you don't have the hay, and you don't have the straw. It's gone. It's gone. So what works are we building upon the foundation? Are we building gold, silver, and precious stones? Are we building wood, hay, and straw? Verse 13. Each one's work. You see, they are works.

Will become clear. For the day will be cleared because it will be revealed by fire. And the fire will test each one's work.

Of what sort it is, whether it is of this chapter who stands fire or of the other chapter does not withstand fire. Now, if anyone's work, which he has built on, endures, if anyone's work is the one that withstands fire, he will receive a reward. When Christ comes, you'll provide that reward, as we saw in Revelation 11.

Verse 15. If however you have the other work, which is wood, and hay, and straw, and if that work is burnt by the fire, he will suffer loss.

In other words, you'll not have the same reward. You'll have a lower reward. But he himself will be saved. You will not lose eternal life, because eternal life is a gift. He's trying to please God. He's trying to do the right things. So you won't lose eternal life. Eternal life is a gift, but his reward will be much lower. He'll have a loss.

Yet, so is through fire. Do you know, do you not know, brethren, that you're the temple of God, and the Spirit of God dwells in you? And we are building the temple of God. We are the sanctuary. When it talks about the sanctuary, we are the sanctuary. We are that. We are the sanctuary. So, brethren, there are consequences. There are choices that you and I have to do.

God's given mankind choices, the tree of life or the tree of death. God has given Abraham choices. God gave Israel choices. God gives the church choices, and he says to us, repent. And God gives us choices of doing different types of work. He's merciful, because he says, yeah, he says, but he himself will still be saved. So, yes, we'll still have an eternal life, but our work will be rewarded accordingly. So, brethren, trumpets reminds us of these three things. They are choices and are consequences. Bad, but there is also a good reward from God the Father. He's going to come and save the world. There's some good news that trumpets gives us. There are some good news. You know, it reminds me of the story of that son that found dad at work and said, dad, I've got some good news and bad news for you. And dad said, listen, I'm in a meeting. Just be quick. Give me the good news. So he said, dad, the good news is that the airbag works perfectly.

Well, they are consequences. They are consequences in life. Brethren, we have choices to do.

And they are bad consequences or they are good consequences. We can do a point, but we are affected by the world around. We suffer from consequences that might not even be of our own cause because we live in the world. And indeed, because of that, we suffer. Turn with me to Revelation 8, verse 14, to conclude Revelation 8, Romans 8, Romans 8, verse 14. As a concluding scripture, Romans 8, verse 14. This is a C, yeah, in verse 14. For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God. So if we've got God's Spirit and we're living according to that, we are the children of God. And therefore, we do not receive the Spirit of bondage, but the Spirit of sonship, by whom we cry out, daddy, daddy, in other words, father, Abba, father, which basically means daddy. The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are the children of God. And if children then hares, hares of God and joint heirs with Christ. Daddy is such wonderful good news. If, you see, it's a big word, but it's only two letters. If we suffer with Him.

We are going to be part of the body of Christ, of the wife that Christ's going to marry. And the wife that Christ's going to marry has to suffer like Christ suffered for the world, for mankind.

And therefore, if we indeed, indeed, we suffer with Him, we have to go through sufferings in this world. We have to go through consequences because of the sins of mankind. Brethren, you and I, when we ask for anointing, we healed because Christ suffered for us. We can ask for healing. It's a blessing. Mankind will have a healing in the world tomorrow, not just because of Christ's suffering, but because the Church, as the rest of the body of Christ, has suffered for mankind.

And it says, therefore, if we suffer with Him, then we may also be glorified together. For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the joy, the glory, the reward, the eternal life that you will have, which shall be revealed in us. Verse 19, For the earnest expectation of creation eagerly waits for the revealing of the sons of God. The earnest expectation of creation. Yes, you could say it's the planet earth and the other planets are eagerly waiting for the revelation of the sons of God for the rebuilding into a new heaven and a new earth and all that. But you know what? That's not all of God's creation.

Part of God's creation is the angelic beings. The angelic beings are part of the creation. And it says, for the earnest expectation of creation, it was the angelic beings are eagerly waiting for the revealing of the sons of God. Wow! Wow, brethren!

There will be a wonderful paradise on earth. There will be a wonderful world tomorrow. There will be Christ coming to bring us peace and good news. But as you and I look forward to Trumpets, let's remember these three points. Choices, we have choices. There are consequences, bad because of our bad choices. But we have a Savior, Christ. We have good news because He's going to come and give us eternal life and rewards and going to fix this world up for us. Thank God that He's going to do it. Brethren, enjoy Trumpets, enjoy the feast, and see you after the feast.