Voice of the Nazarene 5-21-23

I'm coming to you from North Central Ohio, we share with you the voice of the Nazarene, a week by week venture into the Word of God sponsored by the Bucyrus, Ohio Church of the Nazarene. We joined our Pastor Ray LaSalle, and the voice of the Nazarene.

It's really chapter 19, beginning in verse 12. And then verse 13, he said, Therefore, a certain noble man went into a far country, that's what Jesus did when he left heaven, he came to Earth. For to receive unto Himself a kingdom and to return.

He called his 10 servants delivered under them 10 pounds and said to them occupy until I come. Not getting preoccupied, but occupy until I come, because he said, I'm coming again. And since the end is near, what should we be doing? I've been trying to give you sign after sign after sign and in the light of the fact that he is coming. I think maybe we need to do more than look for signs we need to start listening for the sound of the trumpet. I want to give you real quick like four things that the Bible admonishes us to do.

First of all, the Bible admonishes us to learn of His coming. There in First

13, He said, I don't want you to be ignorant concerning my coming. That word ignorant means to be unlearned, I don't want you to be unlearned. I want you to learn about my coming, and I commend you, you've been here for the series. And you're interested in the coming, the return of Christ back to Earth and, thank you for that. But we're not only to learn of His coming, but we're to look for His coming second

12, Looking for and hasting unto the coming of the day of God, where the heavens being on fire shall be dissolved and the elements shall melt with a fervent heat. So we're gonna realize that any day could be that day, it could be today. And by the way, there's nothing in the Bible prohibiting Christ from returning right now. And it could happen before I finish the sermon. And it could be you'll go to sleep before I finish the sermon too. But we're gonna look for His coming, we're gonna learn about His coming. And third, we're long for his coming. And I believe as we get older, that we start thinking about heaven more. I've wondered why older folks just seem to think about heaven and sing about heaven and want to talk about heaven. We get heaven on our mind. Life is like a bath, the longer you stay, the more wrinkled you become. People will say, Well, I'm 42. But I look 26 no, no, you look 42. And some folks think you're older than that. I mean, life is kind of digress. We were not to live forever. Don't get hung up on this thing of living forever.

Long for His coming. Do you know what the last recorded words of Christ were in the Scripture?

It's over there in the book of Revelation, chapter 22, verse 20. And Jesus said, Surely I come quickly. I come quickly.

Revelation 22:20

That's what was on his mind. I'm coming back. I come quickly. I love what old John the Revelator said, Bring it on, brother.

Bring it on. In other words, even so come quickly. In other words, John was saying I'm fine, if you want to come, just come right on back, right now. So we learned of his coming, we look for His coming, we long for His coming. And another thing we need to do is to live each day for His coming. Adrian Rogers said, We ought to live as though Jesus died yesterday, He arose this morning, and He's coming back this afternoon. So I've been thinking about the coming of Christ over these last few weeks. What should we do in light of the fact that Jesus is arranging soon for his return?

And I thought of six things the Bible is very clear about.

They're clear to you, they're clear to me. And there are six things in the Bible that God tells us to do, while we're waiting for his coming. Occupy, these are the things that we're to do while we're occupying. In the light of His coming, the first thing we're to do is refrain from judging. Before I dig into that, I want you to understand, I still believe in Christian standards. I still believe in holiness. I'm convinced without holiness, no man shall see the Lord. And while we're in this world in contact, we're not in this world in conduct. And we'll never make a difference until we become different. I just wanted to establish that fact. Now, why do you say that we should refrain from judgment? I didn't say that. Here's what the Bible says. First Corinthians four, five, therefore judge nothing before the time until the Lord come, who both will bring to light the hidden things of darkness, and will make manifest the counsels of the heart. And then shall ever man have praise of God. What's he saying? He's saying, don't you worry about judging, when I get back, that's my business. And I'll take care of it. Don't you like what Mother Teresa said in regards to that? She said, if you judge people, you will have no time to love people. If you're busy judging people, you will have no time to love them. And if we're not careful, we judge somebody for 30 years over something they did, in just 30 minutes, way back yonder. We let that bear on our mind, and it took place years ago, but we always peg him, we locate him over here because of that one moment when they failed. And we never let him be forgiven in our thinking.

And in the area of pushing them with our influence, we always count them as a fake. Hey, quit judging, that's what He's saying. I heard about a young pastor. A guy that I know something about and he and his wife got in the car to go see an older preacher that he admired greatly. And they pulled into the yard with their car and got out. He and his wife started towards the house and there sat the pastor's wife in a lawn chair. And she said sister, better get those pants off And her lower lip was so jammed with snuff, she couldn't talk plain, and telling the other lady and judging her about her pants. What do you think about that preacher? Can I tell you what I think? I think why don't we agree that I hate my sin and you hate your sin? And in the meantime, lets love one another.

That's what I think about it.

Why don't we realize that when Jesus comes back, he'll set everything in order. He'll settle all the accounts, and it's his business to judge.

Billy Graham, Dr. Billy Graham, his daughter said to him, Daddy, why in the world would you go and pray at that man's inauguration? And he turned and he looked at her and he said, Well, daughter, It's God's job to judge that man, it's the Holy Spirit's job to convict that man, it's my job to love that man. I wish we could realize it's our job to love people. So he said while you're waiting, just refrain from judging. The second thing he said we ought to do is remind yourself of God's faithfulness. You realize the first time that Jesus was prophesied that He would come was all the way back in the early beginnings in Genesis 3:15. I will put enmity between the in the woman and between thy seed and her seed. The seed of course, talking about the birth.

Genesis 3:15

That's why at Christmas time, some old preacher will get up and he'll use for a text that little passage over there in Isaiah 7:14, Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and shall bear a son and shall call his name Emmanuel. That's a great verse, is it not? Some other preacher across town, he'll get up and he'll use the book of Isaiah out of that ninth chapter, verse six. On thus a child is born, talking about the humanity of Christ. And as his son has given, talking about the divinity of Christ, shall be upon his shoulders, the government, and his name shall be wonderful and Counselor, Mighty God, and cetera. Now these are the prophecies of the coming of Christ. And for every time on that first coming, one thing is mentioned, multiplied eight times for everyone is mentioning, the Second Coming.

Isaiah 7:14

Do you believe the Lord's coming again? Well, he said he come the first time, and he did. Why would I not, believe that he'll come a second time? So the end times teaches us the faithfulness of God, God's faithful. You need to remember that, remind yourself that God is faithful. I was reading this week about the 144,000 the Bible talks about in the book of Revelation. There, chapter seven, verse three and four saying hurt not the earth, neither the sea nor the trees, till we have sealed the servants of our God and their forehead, and I heard the number of them that were sealed, 144,000. Tell us about the 144,000. Let me tell you about first of all, they were saved. It says in Revelation 14:3, they have been redeemed from the earth.

Revelation 14:3

Pastor, Are you talking about the 144,000 are Jehovah Witnesses? No, not knocking them but that's not what it said. It's talking about 144,000 Jews, for if you read right on down, it says here in verse four of chapter seven, they're out of the tribes of the children of Israel, and they will be witnesses in that final hour during that awful time.

144,000 Apostle Paul's witnessing, and the Antichrist cannot stop them, because not only are they saved, but they'd been sealed. That means that the antichrist cannot overcome and he cannot put their lights up, they had been sealed by the Spirit, instead of having the mark of the beast. And I've stopped by just to tell you that our power according to Ephesians, 4:30, we've been sealed by the Holy Spirit, meaning your strength is not in you, it's in the Holy Spirit.

And so 144,000. Now you need to understand that if you accept the mark of the beast, it's needed to do any buying or selling. And if you're left here, if you go to a hospital, you can't get any health care.

It means that you need a gallon of gas, if you don't have a mark, you can't get it. It means that you can't buy a loaf of bread if you don't have the mark. And again, I'm just going over it from a few weeks ago, is it a tattoo, is it a chip implanted? Is it a vaccination?

Honest to God, I really don't know. But I can tell you, there has to be a cashless society come into play before it can happen. And we're about 90% today into a cashless society.

It's falling into place. And when John wrote that in 90 ad, chapter 13, verse 18, of Revelation, here's wisdom, let him that have understanding, count the number of beast, for it's the number of man, and his number is 603 scored six, the beast number 666. I was intrigued there at the Capital of the World Trade Center, that they they'd set up a computer some years back that was as big as a room before they could computerize and make them smaller and smaller. Until now our cell phone can do about as much as that big computer. And when they ask it what its name was it kicked out 666, makes you really wonder what in the world, but they're getting us down to where we're a number and not a name. Everything's about a number. We don't care, don't mention your name, give us that social security number. Give us your ID number. Give us your Birth Number. Everything about a number, 666. You say, Well, I have a little problem believing that? I don't. I travel a little bit you probably didn't know that. I leave town occasionally. And I'm amazed as I travel first thing they ask, Have you got proof of the vaccination? Do what? Do you have proof? Who said you have to have it? You're not coming in. I went into OfficeMax here not but a few months ago, and I walked up to the counter and the guy said, Do you have vaccination and you got any proof of it? I said no, I didn't take it. He said, Get away, get out of the store, I'm not waiting on you and he turned and left and went across the building. Airlines saying you can't fly with us, if you don't have proof of the vaccination.

I'm simply saying, it's easy for me to believe there will come a mark. And if you don't have that mark, I didn't say it's a vaccination. So don't walk out of here and start your own tale.

I'll tell mine. You've got to accept the mark. If you're going to do business, you say that's a little far fetched. If you think that's far fetched, think about 90 ad when it was written, that's really far fetched. And this is John writing way, way back there. And the computer age had to come into play for the mark of the beast to happen. The internet age had to come into play. Worldwide, global communication has to come into

4, he sealed 144,000. Seven years later,

3, the Bible said they were in heaven. There wasn't 143,999, there was 144,000. God's faithful down to the last person. Now while we are waiting, on God, we need to remind ourselves of God's faithfulness. But here's the third thing revisit the cross.

Calvary was actually Golgotha the skull, the place of the skull. It's here that Christ was crucified. You say well, how can I revisit it? How can I go back?

I have no way to go, you can in your heart and in your mind.

First Corinthians chapter 11, verse 26, for as oft as you eat this bread, and drink this cup, you do show the Lord's death till he comes. May not go there literally but in your heart, you can be thankful and be reminded every time you take communion that on a hill far away, stood an old rugged cross, believe in the cross, testify about the cross, preach the cross. While we wait, refrain from judging remind yourself of God's faithfulness, revisit the cross and then refuse to neglect the

1 Corinthians 11:26

25, Not forsaking assembling of ourselves together as the manner of some but exhorting one another so much the more as you see the day approaching. And in light of His soon coming, I'm talking about the church. You need to attend it and you need to defend it and commend it and extend it. He's saying I want you to be in church if you really believe I'm coming back I want you in church. Now we've digressed.

Used to be you can be a back row Christian. But now we got bathrobe Christian's, bathrobe Baptist and bathrobe Methodist and bathrobe Episcopalians and bathrobe Lutherans and bathrobe Pentecostals and bathrobed Nazarenes. This is not about health, it's about a habit, we've gotten into a habit. And if you really believe in Jesus, that he is coming. May I urge you, if you got enough health, seriously, get into church. Are you talking to me? Well, if your phone's, ringing pick it up.

Here's a fifth thing renounce sin in your life first John

28. Now little children abide in Him. What does that mean? It means to get close to him.

That's what we used to do. My brother and I when we get a spanking, we'd wrap our arms around dad and hang on for dear life. It was the ride of life but as if you got close enough and didn't hurt so bad. Little children abide in him, that when he shall appear we may have confidence and not be ashamed before him at his coming. And the older I get the more I'm concerned about what he's gonna say to me, more than I am about people, what they say about me.

You see, I'm not seeing what I can do and still get away with it. No as Christ's coming is near, I want to be totally sold out totally committed, without any question marks. Patrick Morley said we think that we can add Christ or our lives but not subtract sin. You can't have a change in belief without a change in behavior. And I'm not talking about do's and don'ts.

Preacher that I have seen and listened to and like very much.

He said that, before he got saved, he had the foulest mouth of any man in the United States, dirty foul mouth. And I got saved and called to preach and preached in some little church.

A lady came up with her nose turned up so high if it rained she would've drowned. And she said, I listened to you and you have 13 grammatical errors. He said, Ma'am, if you'd heard my language before I got saved, I lost 50% of my vocabulary. I'm working with what I have left. I don't know who I'm saying that too but be careful of your language. Jesus is coming. You don't want a dirty mind and you don't want a dirty mouth. I didn't mean to get off on that.

But, I did. And here's the sixth thing reach the lost at all cost. You said well, I don't want to sound too aggressive pastor, I might run them off.

Where you're going to run them to if they're lost? They're already on the road to hell where they're gonna go hell number two?

We ought to say I wanted to do everything short of sin to reach people for Jesus. What's going to happen to people when Jesus comes? You want me to go down through the list, take just a moment is that okay with you?

I'll just hit it, I'm not trying to scare anybody. But it breaks out into seven years of Tribulation, three and a half years and then catch this three and a half of Great Tribulation.

And when the Antichrist goes to the temple mount there comes that moment when he's gonna say everybody's gonna fall down and worship me or, you'll be slain.

You're gonna take my mark.

Without that mark, you can't do anything. You're gonna die.

Millions will starve to death.

Read down through Revelation, war beyond your mind. And you've got the Holy Spirit is no longer here restraining sin and he's gone, and that restraints gone and all hell breaks loose, on Emmmarth. I was reading this week how hailstones will fall from the sky according to Revelation 16:21. And there fell upon men a great hail out of heaven, every stone about the

Revelation 16:21

men blasphemed God because of the plague of the hail; for the plague thereof exceeding great.

Weighing somewhere between 100 and 150 pounds. I've never seen hail quite like that. Revelation 16 verse two, verse 10, verse 11, talks about sores on the body, and their fellow noisome and grievous sore upon the men which had the mark of the beast, and upon them that worshipped his image, and verse 10, they gnawed their tongue in pain.

Revelation 16:18 says that there'll be great earthquakes, such as not since men were up on the earth, so mighty an earthquake, and so great. Fact of the matter, verse 20, says that even the islands of the sea

Revelation 16:18

5 says, and to them it was given that they should not kill them, but that they should be tormented. And their torment was a torment of a scorpion, which striketh a man. Now, people get this thing of the bottomless pit and hell and the lake of fire, they all lump it into one, it really isn't quite that way. You need to study it again. Remember those demons that Jesus cast into the hogs? And they screamed, they said, don't send us there. And during the End Times, the demons were literally come out of the bottomless pit and sting men and women. Let me read it to you, verse 10, and they had tails like unto scorpions, and there were stings in their tails, and their power was to hurt men. And they had a king over them, which is the angel of a bottomless pit whose name is Apollyon. Verse six, and in those days men seek death, and not find it; shall desire to die, death flees from him. Why would anybody want to be left here? Why would anybody want to go through this? October 7, 2022, the president of the United States stood before the cameras. And here's what he said. Putin is not joking, when he talks about the use of tactical nuclear weapons. It's going to lead to global destruction. Then the President said these words, we will end up with Armageddon, just like God said, would happen. All right, Pastor, you're not doom and gloom. Most of the time you're positive. What's our hope? Let me give you our hope. And I'll close found over here in Acts two, verse 17. It should come to pass, When? It said in the last days. Say of God, I will pour out my Spirit upon all flesh and your sons and your daughters will prophesy. Your young men will see visions, I'm still having visions. Okay. And the old man shall dream dreams. Did you know that visions and dreams are the language of Heaven? Do you hang around the dream king.

You get into the dream stream.

Soon you'll join the dream team and do God's thing. February 8th in Wilmore, Kentucky, 20 students met together around the altar of the chapel service.

Nobody even knows their names who they were any of that. But they begin praying and praying and praying. And suddenly the presence of God began to come and other students joined him and faculty joined them and soon, the chapel was jammed.

Next thing you knew 1000s upon 1000s upon 1000s begin to come from everywhere across the United States and up in Canada and Singapore and begin to crowd into little Wilmore, Kentucky until you couldn't find parking spaces. Lines almost three or four blocks long, as people stood waiting their turn to even get into the chapel day and night to sense and to feel and to see the presence of God. And then it started spreading. He goes from Asbury college to Lee University and on to Ohio Christian University. Then it started down in Texas A&M and on to Baylor and on to Auburn, went to Harvard and even to Yale. I'll pour out my spirit on all flesh in your sons and your daughters. Last days. There was a football player that died, his name was Damar Hamlin, died right out in the field. And suddenly those players said, Hey, it's not about play or about pay. It's about pray and those big ol boys got down and nailed around the while the medics were working with him trying to bring him back and he was out for minutes, dead. And boy did they ever pray. 32 NFL teams sent word out, We're all praying, a pour out my spirit on all flesh and your sons and your daughters. I'm afraid things are happening and we're not even seeing it. I want you to see it.

And the ESPN announcer named Dan Orlovsky, he said I can't help it. I know that we're on the air and I know this is live, but I believe I need to lead us in prayer. I believe we all need to pray. Now pour out my spirit on all flesh. New series came out called Chosen. They thought it'd be a flop, 440 million people watched as young people came to Christ the Chosen. Another movie came out called Jesus Revolution, another flop. That thing is exploded and is going to town people all over watching. They came out with a scene of a guy coming down into the water to be baptized, and I thought just another camera like teaching here going on. They stopped him and said have you put your faith in Jesus Christ repented of your sins? He said no. But I want to, right there on the screen lead him to Jesus Christ. I'll pour out my spirit on all flesh, your sons and your daughters. Kelsey Grammer was live on Kelly and Ryan and he said, Jesus made a difference in my life. And I'm not going to apologize to anyone. I was in my office this morning. And suddenly just seemed like God began to ask me what about your family? And I begin to think about family members those that I have, that need God.

If I don't start really getting serious and begin to beg and plead and ask the Holy Spirit, go deal with them, and do what I can. They're gonna go through what I've been talking to you about this morning. And here we are. We're over here praying about grandma, she's going to have cataract surgery. I'm not against her having cataract surgery. It'd be nice for the old gal to see. But we're praying about grandmother's cataracts. And she's got grandsons on the road to hell.

And they're going to be left behind in the middle of all of this. And it's about time we start praying for the lost and got serious about souls, like we've never done before. I've been here for 30 years and cannot get away without spending some time preaching to you about the end times. What you need to do to be ready. He said, Occupy, until I come. I've tried to give you the six things I believe the Bible's teaching us.

If you're in the judging business, get out of it quick.

If you haven't visited the cross for awhile you better have a visit. If you forgot about how faithful God is, I remind you he keeps his word down to the last person. Our hope is his spirit being poured out on all flesh.

Churches, so divided across the country. People tattling on each other. People don't like this, they don't like that. And one of the end time prophecies and I've not preached on it. Easily offended, easily offended. And folk get so bent out of shape, they can't look you in the eye.

They're offended, some little something, some little that.

They don't have their life together, but they get offended about everything going on. It's time for revival. And I'm saying God, The Spirit, you sent to Wilmore, let it hit my home.

Let it flood my heart. And as a pastor, I say God, come to this ministry and give us an outpouring of your presence, and get us ready for your coming.

And for all of those that are part of our families and our acquaintances and people that we touch, help us to have an impact and influence on them like we never have.

Thanks for being a part of the voice of the Nazarene visit us every Sunday at 9am with BNC's pastor Ray LaSalle. For more information regarding BNC visit Bucyrus nazarene.org.