The Trumpet Sound

Good afternoon, everyone. Happy Sabbath. Sure appreciated the special music. Thanks, Courtney, for that. I was unexpected, actually. I heard rocket to the moon, and I thought we were going to be taken off. It must have been more like I'm drifting in space reflecting on everything. So it was really, really beautiful. Really appreciated that and definitely gets you reflecting on God's way and His purposes. So really appreciate that. Thanks for sharing your talents. If you had to identify the turning point in human history, what would it be?

What would be that moment, that pivotal point, that changes everything?

Well, God's accounted for that. It is the return of Jesus Christ. It will be the turning point of all human history. And when you think about how that's represented in the Holy Days, the Feast of Trumpets points to that great event, that the plan of salvation and the return of Jesus Christ, that will change everything. In fact, it is interesting that the Feast of Trumpets, within the Holy Days, is the pivot point. There are three Holy Days that fall before Trumpets, and there are three Holy Days that fall after Trumpets. And that pivotal point is the Feast of Trumpets and everything that it symbolizes and represents. Imagine this. On one side of the Feast of Trumpets is where we are right now. And the Bible predicts we are coming to a point of great difficulty, a time of great tribulation, a time of trouble, and spiritual darkness. I mean, we're already there out in this world that mankind lives in. We are in spiritual darkness. And literally, this day of Trumpets points to the time of tribulation. And at that specific time, Christ will intervene. And so on the other side of this pivot is a great time of peace, a time of love, a time of prosperity, a time of joy, a time of light for all of mankind.

And so that trumpet that will sound signifies all of those things. And really, when you begin to contemplate that, so much more. I mean, when you begin to think about the sound of the trumpet, what are the kinds of things that come to your mind? It is just a gigantic blast of a horn that signals this time is that the sound that will go forth. What about the significance of this? What about the nature of this trumpet call? Because here we are just before that great pivot point of history. And how does that impact us? Is it only to warn the world? Or is it more than just that? I know we're familiar with the sound of a shofar, the trumpet that the Bible talks about, as a symbol of war. And we know we are just on the horizon of these great difficult things. The day of the Lord, representing that time period before Christ returns, will be a time of war. There's no doubt about that. But ultimately, Christ returns and comes back as King of kings and Lord of lords. And that seventh trumpet will bring about that time period where Christ returns.

But there's also an interesting aspect that impacts us as God's people. It's reflected in a passage that I think we're familiar with. Matthew 24 is a section of Scripture that deals with this timeframe just before the return of Christ. And Christ was inspired to give us a little bit of information about that time that impacts you and I. Go to Matthew 24 verse 14.

Matthew 24 verse 14, Christ talks about trumpets. Maybe it doesn't seem as evident right here in this one little verse. But when we break it down, it certainly points to a responsibility that we have as His people. Let's notice it. Matthew 24 verse 14.

It says, "...this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations, and then the end shall come. Then Christ will return." And so we're familiar with this. Before Christ returns, the gospel has to be preached as a witness, as a warning to all the world. So the good news has to go out. And it's interesting how that word must be preached.

This word for preaching, the word that's used here in the Greek, is the word kerosos. That word must be preached. Now, when you think about that word, what comes to mind in the preaching of the gospel, the preaching of the good news? Well, we know we send out booklets. We send out a magazine. We have a program. We have a website. Certainly in all those ways, the word is preached.

But this word for preaching here is not just having a message about these things. It also entails how it goes out. A kerosos, especially as you look back at how the Greeks would have used this word, that goes back before Twitter. That goes back before the websites. It goes back before smartphones. Well, how did the word go out back in the day? Well, if you were going to hear the news of the day, you couldn't just turn on the TV. You couldn't open up your smartphone. You had to go to the center of town. If you were to hear the word, you had to go to the town square.

And this kerosos points to that. More specifically to an individual that would be at the town square, crying out the latest news. You wanted to hear what was going on. You go there and you listen to an individual who would cry out the latest information of what was happening in the area. That's where you got your news from the town crier.

And this word, kerosos, points to that. And how would he do this? Of course, if you go to the town square and there's a whole group of people there, you got to listen up. Because this word wasn't just simply spoken. They had to shout this word out so everyone would hear that word. And so this word, kerosos, points to that. Someone that lifts their voice like a trumpet. Because if you ever played in the band, one of the loudest instruments is the trumpet. And that trumpet call has to go out.

And so Christ talked about that. It has to be preached. It has to be cried out. It has to be voiced like a trumpet that the entire world will hear. And the church is to do just that. He's pointing to the mission of the church is like that of a trumpet that sounds out.

As a watchman, we proclaim the good news of the coming kingdom of God. We proclaim the good news of Jesus Christ as King of that coming kingdom. And that voice of a trumpet has to be brought forth and sounded to the entire world.

And so the feast of trumpets and that sound of a trumpet points to the mission of God's church. And so that voice, that trumpet, right now is being sounded to the entire world. And so God has certainly set us as that trumpeter, as that watchman, to call out the alarm, an alarm of war, to all the world. And so that gospel is being preached. The trumpet is being sounded. And it's something that the whole world has to heed.

It should hear that. And we have to be sure we're fulfilling that responsibility that God's called us to. Collectively, as God's people, as His church, we must be about our Father's business and preaching and teaching and calling out like the sound of a trumpet.

And Scripture reiterates this concept over and over and over again, because this is a serious responsibility that God's given us. Not just as an individual, but collectively all of us together have to be sounding the trumpet. In fact, there's a wonderful passage in Isaiah, chapter 40. If you'll turn there with me. Isaiah chapter 40, in verse 9, we see this responsibility given a little bit of detail about the responsibilities that are involved in being that carousel, being that public crier that sounds out like a trumpet to this world.

Notice how Isaiah the prophet writes about it. Now oftentimes when we turn back to Old Testament Scripture, we have this tendency to think, well, that applied to ancient Israel, or maybe that applied to ancient Judah, because they're eventually going to go into captivity. So they were being warned and they were being witnessed to. I mean, no doubt that's true.

But so oftentimes these passages not only applied back in that day, but they're dual. These are dual prophecies that also apply to us today. Let's see if that's the case here in Isaiah chapter 40. Look at verse 9. It says, "'O Zion, that bring us good tidings, get up to a high mountain.'" And of course, Zion is pointing to the land of Zion, the place of Zion, which is where God's people were. But it also points to the people themselves. And of course, when you think of the people of Zion at that day, that would have been Israel.

That would have been God's people. But what about today? Who are the people of Zion today? Well, that's us. That's God's church. God's church in a spiritual sense is being spoken of right here.

We are the Zion of God. We bring the gospel, the good news, the glad tidings, as it says in verse 9. And we better do it from a high mountain. Because if you're going to be heard, are you going to be under the water? You're going to be, oh, you've got to get up high where everyone can hear the alarm.

And so he says, you bring good tidings, glad tidings. It says, lift up your voice with strength.

Lift it up. Don't be afraid. Say to the cities of Judah, behold your God.

Yeah, Judah had to be prophesied to. Well, who did the prophesying to Judah before Christ came? Well, we know John did that. John brought the gospel. He prepared the way for Christ, for His first coming. And so he preached this very thing as we're to preach before Christ returned, before His second coming. So we see this duality in the nature of this prophecy. So he says, behold, the Lord will come with a strong hand. He will come with His arm, and it shall rule for Him. Behold, His reward is with Him, and His work before Him. He shall feed His flock like a shepherd. He'll gather the lambs with His arm, and carry them in His bosom, and shall gently lead those who are with young. And ultimately, Christ's return will change everything. And so John the Baptist sounded that trumpet, that alarm, before the return of Christ. And the trumpet is being sounded once again by God's church. We have that responsibility before the return of Christ to do just that. And so individually, we have a part to play in that, don't we? And so through our tithes and our offerings, we can help the caruso. We can help that sounding of the trumpet as a witness to all the world, because it takes money to do that. And so our tithes and offerings do produce booklets, and magazines, and websites. Certainly, that the word can go out. But that's not the only way, not just collectively, but individually, each of us has a part to supply. We know the vision statement of the church, which comes from Ephesians 4. It's very clear in verse 16, each and every one of us have a vital part to play. And it's not just tithes and offerings that do that. It's our example. It's our part that we have to supply. Because if that voice is going to go to the entire world, well, that's not where necessarily a magazine can go. It's not where a television program can go. It's where you are. It's where you live. It's with the people you come in contact with, that each one of us have to supply our share. And that's where you live. And you shine the light of God's way because you live God's way. And you are that living, breathing gospel that's preached to all of those around you. And so we have that mission, both individually and collectively, to sound the trumpet of the gospel of God's plan. In fact, many of the prophets spoke so much to this very point. Even the minor prophets spoke so much about this. Let's take an example and look to the book of Joel for a moment. The book of Joel certainly points to that time of the day of the Lord.

But it also points out the fact that trumpet should be sounding right now. That trumpet should be heard now. So in Joel, right at the very beginning of chapter 2, notice verse 1, notice the admonition that we're given here as God's people. It says, Blow the trumpet in Zion, sound an alarm in my holy mountain. Let all the inhabitants of the land tremble, for the day of the Lord is coming, for it's at hand. And so we sound that alarm.

We know where man's decisions are leading. Man doesn't know how to direct his steps. Man doesn't know how to govern himself. And so this world is falling apart. And so we are on the hinge of what verse 2 talks about, a day of darkness and gloominess, a day of clouds and thick darkness, like the morning clouds spread out over the mountains. And so the symbolism of the feast of trumpets certainly comes to mind. And it even says, a people come great and strong, the like of whom has never been, nor there ever be any such after them.

You see, that's not talking about what was going on in Judah, you know, thousands of years ago. That's pointing to the future. That's pointing to now. That's saying there's a great people, in other words, a great army that is on the horizon. And this world is going to be in the depths of tribulation. And there's never been anything like this in the past. And we better be sounding the trumpet to warn and witness of this very fact. And of course, this world may hear and they may not. We know most will not hear. They're listening to the wrong music, to the wrong trumpet sound. But that trumpet must go out nevertheless. Nevertheless, that word must go out like a trumpet. In fact, it brings to mind some of the great prophecies of the Bible, especially as you think about this time of the end, this day of the Lord. And where would you turn to learn even more about what will happen during that timeframe of the day of the Lord? Probably turn to the book of Revelation. Let's notice something interesting at the beginning of the book of Revelation. Revelation 1, verse 10. Revelation 1, verse 10. Here we have the apostle John. And he sees a great vision. And in that vision, he sees this timeframe of the Lord's day, the day of the Lord. Revelation chapter 1, verse 10. Here's what John records for us. He says, I was in the Spirit on the Lord's day, on the day of the Lord. So he's envisioning this by the power of God's Spirit. And as he envisions this timeframe that we are just before, we are on the verge of this day represented in the symbolism of trumpets. And notice what he hears. I heard behind me a loud voice. What was it like?

As of a trumpet. And it was saying, I am the Alpha, the Omega, the first and the last. What you see write in a book and send it to the seven churches which are in Asia. And he lists those churches, Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamos, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia, and Delia Deceia. And so we have a record of those messages to the churches. But we can quickly realize that's not just to the churches of John's day, because he turns to notice whose voice this is. Verse 12. I turned to see the voice that spoke with me and having turned, I saw seven golden lampstands. And in the midst of the seven lampstands, there he was, the one like the Son of Man. And it wasn't the Son of Man, because now he's been resurrected. Now he is, Jesus Christ, resurrected right there, speaking to John. And John wrote down those words of the voice that spoke like a trumpet. And these words or these trumpet sounds were sent to the churches. But we know it's not just to these churches, but that message applies to all ages. It applies to us. Because over and over again, following what John just recorded for us, he says time and time again, in fact, notice Revelation 2, verse 7. He who has an ear, let him hear. Do you hear the trumpet? Do you hear the voice? Verse 11, he who has an ear, let him hear. Verse 17, he who has an ear, let him hear. He who has an ear in verse 29, chapter 3, verse 6, verse 13, verse 23, verse 21, over and over again. Are you hearing the trumpet? Are you listening to the sound? You see, Christ is sounding that trumpet to us and through us, how? By His Word. The Word that has been recorded for us. That Word is sounding the trumpet. We have that mission. We've been given that God-given responsibility to sound the trumpet to the world and proclaim the plan and purpose of God. And every one of us has such a vital part to play in the broadcasting of that message, to be that living, breathing example of what God's way is all about. And in fact, as we recognize this trumpet that sounded through His Word, we see it's more than just proclaiming that Word. There's more of a responsibility that is spoken of. In fact, Christ intimates that here in Revelation. Do you hear that sound?

Do you hear the trumpet? Are you recognizing it? Would you understand it when you heard it?

You see, that's what Christ is saying here. Do you have an ear to really hear the trumpet words of God? We need to be able to hear. And I'm reminded of a story that I heard about a man who needed a hearing aid. Hearing wasn't good. If you think about that in relationship to what Christ writes, this man was so proud of his new hearing aid. I mean, it was an amazing device. He could not believe the difference once he finally got that thing in his ear. And he just had to show off about it. So he goes over to his best friend's house and he tells his best friend, you wouldn't believe the great deal I got on this beautiful hearing aid. I mean, it's got everything. It's got all the fancy features. It's got automatic sound adjustment. I mean, it's just amazing. You can even hook it up to the internet. It's got wired Wi-Fi built into this thing. And it's just an absolute technological wonder. His friend was just really amazed by all that. He said, that's just fantastic. He said, what kind is it? The man looked at his watch and said, oh, it's six o'clock. I think about that for a moment. That's a goofy joke. But think about it spiritually.

You need a hearing aid? I mean, God's given us a spiritual hearing aid through His Word.

And we better have that thing tuned to the right frequency because it's more than just sounding the trumpet of the message of God. Where was that trumpet to be sounded? I mean, we sounded throughout the land, no doubt. And there are plenty of prophecies that says we better be doing that. But here we begin to see there has to be a trumpet in the church. The trumpet is sounded within the church and it is sounding now. The apostle Paul wrote about that in Hebrews chapter 12.

Let's notice what he records for us and see if we can see this connection between not only having that trumpet sounding as the mission of the church and crying out to the world, but also recognizing that sound, having our spiritual hearing aids full blast. So we're recognizing its impact within the church. Within the church. Hebrews 12.22 certainly points to this fact of blowing the trumpet in Zion, in the church. Hebrews 12.22. It says, you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, to the heavenly Jerusalem, to an innumerable company of angels. And of course, that begins to bring many images to mind. When you think of a voice that's shouting out loud, coming to Mount Zion. I mean, think about that for a moment as Paul is bringing those images from the past to mind and how it applies to right now. He says, we've come to Mount Zion. We've come to verse 23, the general assembly and church of the firstborn. So now we're talking about the church. We're not talking about a physical mountain that the people came to in the past. We're talking about now. Right now, that's where God has called us to the church, to the general assembly and church of the firstborn. Verse 24, he says, to Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant. Because we remember when an old covenant, when the 10 commandments were given, they were given from a mountain. And how were they given? I mean, it was interesting, before they received the commandments, what did God tell His people?

He said, be ready, because in a couple days, I'm going to give you my law. So be prepared. Ready yourself for that. And so the people were supposed to do that. Well, what happened at the mountain? The mountain thundered, and it roared, and that trumpet sound of God went forth. And what was the reaction of the people who were supposed to be ready? They trembled, and they were fearful, and they cried out to Moses, you talk to, we don't want to hear from God, we want to hear from you. And the people were greatly afraid. They weren't ready to hear the trumpet. They weren't ready to hear the Word of God. And here's Paul bringing us to that very point, to say, are you ready?

Are you ready? Are you hearing it? Are you hearing it? Verse 25, see that you don't refuse Him who speaks. He spoke to me like a trumpet, John says in Revelation. He's speaking to us like a truck. Are we like the people of ancient Israel saying, oh no, we can't handle it. We're not ready for it. You see, God's telling us, we better get ready.

We better get ready because this trumpet is sounding within the church. For if they did not escape who refused Him who spoke on earth, much more shall we not escape if we turn away from Him who speaks from heaven, whose voice then shook the earth, but now has promised saying, yet more, or once more, I shake not only the earth, but also heaven. In other words, if you thought they were shaking back then, you haven't seen anything yet. Things will be shaking, and we better be prepared. So he says, yet once more indicates the removal of those things that are being shaken. As of things that are made, the things which cannot be shaken may remain.

And ancient Israel was shaking in their boots before God. He's reminding us, we better not be.

We better be ready. We better be listening to that sound so that we won't be shaken. And what is it that won't be shaken? It's the spiritual things. It's the character of Jesus Christ built within us. It's God's kingdom that cannot be shaken. And we better be living a part of that kingdom now. And that's the point. The trumpet is sounding within the church, so we make ourselves ready. And so over and over and over again, trumpets reminds us of that. That it's a warning for us as well as it's a warning for the world. It's going to come on the world unaware. They're not going to get it. The majority of mankind, they have no clue what's coming and they're not going to listen to the word of God. They're not going to listen to God's trumpet sound.

What's our excuse? You see, God's warning us as well. It's a warning saying, listen up. Listen up, my people. Amos recorded similar types of things for us as well. Look at what Amos was inspired by God to record, not just for Judah, because they were going to go into captivity. And certainly there were applications there. But in Amos chapter 6, we see a greater application for now, for us, for Zion, spiritual Zion, for the church, for you and me, for us today. Notice what Amos chapter 6 cries out to us. Listen to the trumpet sound that Amos was blowing strongly.

Amos chapter 6 verse 1. In fact, I'm going to read this in the message translation. It'll be a little bit different than your New King James or your King James version. See if you can follow along with this really modern translation. Amos chapter 6 verse 1. Woe to you who think you live on Easy Street in Zion. Oh, everybody in the church, you got it made. I'm in the church. I'm a part of the church. I know God's way. I'm on Easy Street. That's who he's talking to us.

He says, you assume you're at the top of the heap. Yeah, I know the truth. I'm in the church. It says, wake up, look around, get off your pedestal. Or verse 3. Woe to you who put far off the day of doom. That's New King James. The message says, woe to you who are rushing headlong to disaster. You think you're okay? You better take heed. Catastrophe is just around the corner. Woe to those who live in luxury. Boy, that sounds a lot like one of the messages to the churches in Revelation 3, doesn't it? You think you're spiritual? You think you've got it made? You think you've got everything under control? Maybe you better rethink things. You think you have the luxury of being spiritual? Maybe you think you're more spiritual than you really are. That's what he's saying here. Woe to those who live in luxury. Woe to those who live only for today. Woe to those who think life is a party just for them. Taking things pretty lightly. It's not that big a deal. Oh, the day of the Lord, that's way off. There's no big deal. I've heard this for years and years and years. But Amos goes on. Woe to those addicted to feeling good. Life without pain. Woe to those obsessed with looking good. Life without wrinkles.

They couldn't care less about their life going to ruin.

You see, that's not only a description of what's going on out there in the world, but woe to Zion. Be careful. Be careful. Verse 7, it says, here's what's really coming.

A forced march into exile. Yeah, that happened to Judah, didn't it? But this is looking forward.

It's looking ahead from where we are. New King James says, therefore they shall now go captive as the first of the captives. And so woe to the people of Zion. They don't even know they're the people of Zion out there. Many of them, they're going to learn who they really are. But we know who we are. And so we've got to ask ourselves, are we listening to this trumpet? And in fact, it's more than just listening, isn't it? We can't just listen to it. We better pick up that horn, and we better play it as well. We better all become trumpeters in that. Are we? And I think if we follow the words of Amos, we've got to ask ourselves, am I voicing the trumpet message in my mind, in my heart, in my thoughts? Do I have a trumpet's perspective? Do I have that kind of mindset? Is that what I talk about? Is that what I think about? Is that what's on my mind? Or is it whatever's today? What's the latest happening in the news? Or what's the latest score? Because we have a tendency to talk about the things that we think about. Are we talking about the things of God? Do we meditate on those things? Do we concentrate on those things? Do we think and talk about those things that impact the coming kingdom of God? Matthew's pretty special when he recorded that for us in Matthew 6.33. Christ's very words, seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness.

Yeah, sound the trumpet in your own life and recognize we should be seeking His righteousness, because that's the only thing that won't be shaken. The things that are His righteousness. All the other things? The things that are me and mine? That's going to be shaken, and that's going to be burnt up, and that's going to be gone. Will we stand then? So he'd say, be prepared. Prepare the way of the Lord. That's the trumpet sound that is reminding us to grow in grace and knowledge and the appropriate character of a wife who will marry Jesus Christ.

And so over and over again, we're reminded of that calling that we've been given.

Kind of a trumpet call in that way. And following God from the heart and expecting the kingdom of God. So much that we're not only praying diligently, thy kingdom come, but we're living under the laws and ways of that kingdom even today. And so we never want to fall into the trap of looking at some of these prophetic things and only think of who, what, when, and be locked in that kind of a mindset. When we read these prophecies, the Feast of Trumpets is such a great reminder to bring it home. I mean, because it's a warning. Get your spiritual house in order. Get out your spiritual hearing aid and really listen up. Because that trumpet is certainly being sounded today that the day of the Lord is near. It's at hand. And so it reminds us, not only is it our mission as a church collectively and individually, not only is that trumpet being sounded within the church, but that trumpet also reminds us of our responsibility to be ready.

To be ready as we read these passages, as we rehearse these prophecies, we apply them to ourselves. And in fact, over and over again, we see that personal responsibility come out within those prophecies. There's one in the book of Joel, I think, that really hits home and really brings it to mind that I have to get my house in order. I have to turn up my spiritual hearing. I thought I had it on, but I didn't hear things right. I wasn't applying it correctly. Well, Joel is certainly one that's reminding us by God's inspiration to listen up, to apply these things to our own lives. So Joel, chapter 2, notice verse 12.

Notice the reaction, if we are really hearing the trumpet sound, if we are really proclaiming it to the world, we can't miss the fact it has to be proclaimed in our own lives, because it's not good enough just to know the truth. It's not just good enough to proclaim the truth to everyone else. Well, boy, I can know all about God's way. I can understand everything about God's way.

But if I'm not living that way and applying it in my own life, it's all useless. It is useless.

And so when we hear that trumpet playing, we hear those words of God as a trumpet call, it has to impact us. And look at the way that Joel says, the impact should be. Notice it, Joel 2, verse 12. It says, yet even now says the Lord, return to me with all your heart.

That's about our hearts and our minds. Return, it says, with fasting, with weeping, and with mourning. And of course, that's not just talking about the day of the atonement that's just around the court. Yeah, there's going to be a fast, no doubt. This isn't just talking about that time. It says in verse 13, rend your hearts and not your garments. We know back in the day, they would tear their clothes because it was a sign of mourning. It was a sign of distress.

But for us, it goes right to the heart of things.

Rend your, recognize your own selves. And it says, when you really look inside, you look beyond the exterior, you're going to see some things that need to change.

If you don't, you're not hearing the trumpet. You're not really hearing the sound. He says, return to me, not with a part of your heart, not with most of your heart. How much? All of it? All of it. All of it. So what's missing? What's missing in your life? I mean, what's missing in my life that hasn't been rent? It says, return to the Lord, return to the Lord. And as we do this, we recognize, okay, we've got this meaning of all of the holy days and Trumpets is talking about the return of Christ. Yes, that's true, but that's just a part of the meaning. A significant part of this meaning is return to God with all your heart. Well, didn't we do that at Passover? Passover, I examined myself and I did that. Now I'm way past Passover. I'm in the middle here now. I'm far beyond. No, wait a second. You see, it's not just about examining yourself at Passover. This is something we do continually. This is an ongoing thing with all of our heart. And so Trumpets is a reminder of that, of our personal responsibility to look at our own lives and return with all your heart, not just at Trumpets, not just on the day of atonement, but we should be fasting throughout the year. And when we see sin for what it is, that's a serious thing. It's not something you laugh about. That's not something I just put off or say, oh, it's not that big a deal. It is a big deal. Habitual sin will keep us out of the kingdom.

That's just the way it is. 1 Corinthians 7 certainly reminds us of that. Chapter 6 in 1 Corinthians, it says, yeah, we can't act and live that way as our habit. We have to be returning to God with all our heart, with all our heart. And when we do that, I mean, the great thing is as serious as sin is, and it will keep us out of the kingdom. When we repent and we go before God with this kind of a heart, with all of our heart, and pleading for forgiveness of our sin from God, what's his reaction? I mean, this is the greatest part is there's hope. I mean, there's hope even for me.

There's hope for you. There's hope for all of us. And when we return to the Lord, look at what verse 13 says. It says, when we return, He is gracious and merciful. He's slow to anger. He's abounding in steadfast love. I mean, I don't deserve that. But when we go to God, in that kind of a mind frame, when we go to Him in repentance, asking for forgiveness, He doesn't give us what we deserve. I mean, we're saying to God, God, I heard the trumpet. I heard that sound. I heard your word. I put those words into practice in my life. And I don't want to be that old man. I don't want to be that old person. I want to be like Christ. I want to put on your character. And He is quick to forgive. He abounds in steadfast love. He loves us. And He relents from punishing. I mean, what an awesome God we have. And so this pivotal point in history is such a symbolic reminder that I want to get my spiritual house in order. And I have a God who's going to help me do that. And I have a God who's on my side. And I have a God who's going to help me to do just that because I'm listening to that trumpet sound. And so no wonder it says, He relents from punishing. And so He says, verse 15, blow the trumpet in Zion.

And personally, I need to sanctify a fast. I need to call a solemn assembly. Okay, I don't call God's people together as a solemn assembly. Yeah, we do that on trumpets. We do that on atonement. We do that on the Sabbath and the Holy Day. But I think the deeper meaning of that trumpet is blowing within the church. And for me personally, I better have a meeting with God. I better go before God. I better not just do that on the Sabbath and on the Holy Days, but I better do that every single day. Do I have a... Okay, it's not a holy convocation in that sense, but it's sacred time I spend with God, isn't it? That I go before Him on my knees, and I cry out to Him, and I call on Him, and I have a relationship with Him. And that relationship is growing, and it's becoming deeper day by day. That's what He's talking about here. Call that in your life.

Do we see our calling? Do we really see our amazing calling that we gather together with our great God? And He says here, sanctify the congregation, assemble. It's for everybody. It's for everybody. The agent, gather the children, even the nursing babies. Nobody's left out. Let the bridegroom leave His room, and the bride her canopy. Of course, that's an allusion to the marriage of the Lamb. The marriage of the Lamb. I mean, in a sense, are we living our life thinking at this point, Christ is on His way. The groom has left His room. He's coming out for the wedding. He's on His way, and I'm living my life that way, not thinking, well, the return of Christ is so far off, who knows when it's going to be. No, the bridegroom's on the way. In fact, the bride, her canopy. In other words, the church, me personally, I'm ready. I'm ready to go and meet Jesus Christ. But the only way that's happening is if I'm listening to that trumpet sound, and I'm throwing my life on the grace and mercy of God in repentance. That's what He says. And so, that trumpet should be sounding in our lives continually. And trumpets, the actual feast of trumpets that we observe, is such a great reminder to get our spiritual act together.

And this is one of the messages throughout the Bible. There's a beautiful passage that the apostle Paul wrote to God's people in Ephesus. I think he wrote it to us today as well. Ephesians chapter 5 verse 14. Look at the trumpet's significance, hearing that sound, living that sound, and sounding it forth in our own lives by the grace of God. Ephesians chapter 5 verse 14. Let's notice what Paul was inspired to record for us, as well as to Ephesus back in the day.

Imagine this scenario. I think what he's doing here, in a way, he's giving us an object lesson, because I don't physically hear that trumpet. But there is something I do hear every day.

Every day. Maybe you do too. Ephesians chapter 5 verse 14. Therefore, he says, Awake you who sleep. He's certainly talking about a spiritual sense there. If we've fallen asleep spiritually, or we think we're better than we really are, if we haven't really looked at our lives and noticed those areas where we don't measure up, he says we better wake up. Awake you who are sleeping spiritually. Arise from the dead, and Christ will give you light. There's that God again who is so gracious and so merciful. He's not holding back. He wants the best for us.

And I know for me, I'm not one of those who just wake up in the morning.

Are you like that? You just, your clock goes off in your head and you just get up?

I mean, good for you if you can do that. Great. Hopefully you're doing that spiritually as well. I know for me, I've got to set my phone and the alarm's got to go off and it's like, oh, I want to snooze. I want to snooze. But spiritually speaking, I think this is a great reminder. If you're like me and you need an alarm every morning, I need it. When that alarm goes off, think of this verse. Because every day we have a new opportunity to awake out of sleep and apply God's way more thoroughly today. And so tomorrow, well, maybe tomorrow you won't set your alarm. I don't know if you got to get up tomorrow or not. But when that alarm goes off, think of Ephesians 4.14, awake out of sleep. I'm going to dedicate my life today. Today's going to be a trumpet's day that I'm not going to do those things that I normally fall back into bad habits. I'm going to root those out of my life. I'm not going to treat people that way. I'm not going to act that way. I'm not going to get irritated so easily. I'm going to apply every aspect of God's spirit in my life so that I don't have to be that way. I can get up and get up out of sleep and arise from the dead because we know those works of the flesh lead to death. And so we want to put that old man, we want to let him sleep in bed, and we want to get up that new creation in Christ. And so every morning, in a way, we have a trumpet's responsibility to awake out of spiritual sleep and look to God, look to Christ. Christ will give you light. And so we can make that determination every single day. Because we know the Feast of Trumpets certainly points to the Day of the Lord. It points to the trumpet sounding in the world during this darkest hour of the Great Tribulation. We know the seven trumpets, and we know that seventh is going to trigger the return of Christ. And he will return. And under Christ, this world will be a whole new thing. We'll have a new government, the government of God on earth. The captives will go free. The amazing things that will come about when Christ returns, and ushering a time of hope and peace and love. I mean, it's an amazing thing. The question is, will we be ready? And I think when we awake out of sleep, we will be ready. And that's the kind of God we have who will help us to make ourselves ready. In fact, He reminds us of that very thing, that He who is in us is greater than He who is in the world. And so God is on our side and wants the best for us. So we don't have to fear. We don't have to worry, because we are listening. We have our spiritual hearing aid turned up. And we're hearing the trumpet. We're hearing the words of God, and not only hearing them, we recognize them. We know them, and we're applying them in our life. In fact, there's a beautiful Psalm that is such a great reminder of this very thought. It kind of summarizes this whole aspect of trumpets. Psalm 89, notice verse 15. Psalm 89 verse 15 may seem just a little hidden on the surface, but the depth of this particular passage is really amazing when we recognize what it's really talking about. Psalm 89 verse 15. We know the Feast of Trumpets is a memorial of blowing of trumpets. And we know that trumpet sound is going out to the world. It's being signaled in the church and in our lives as well. And when we recognize that, go to Psalm 89 verse 15. It says, how blessed, or in other words, how happy are the people who know the joyful sound.

That's talking about the trumpet, that joyful sound. We don't see it here in English, but the Hebrew word for sound is teruah. Teruah is the trumpet blast. That's the trumpet blast that will go out. That is the sound, the joy. And it's not a fearful shaking in your boot sound anymore. Why not? We recognize it. We know it. We've applied those principles in our life. And so we're waiting for that trumpet call of God. We're putting it into practice in our lives now. We know it. We recognize it. And we are committed to living it. And so trumpet should be that joyful sound, that awakening blast in our life that we hear every morning when the alarm goes off. And so when it does, let's listen. Let's listen and let's live trumpets. Let's do our part.

Do our part to sound the trumpet. Do our part in hearing the trumpet. But even more, live the trumpet. Change our lives so we are living, breathing representations of following God's great call. And if we do, that's when we can be absolutely sure that we've made ourselves ready and we'll be there when that great trumpet sounds.