Sermon Central
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"Suddenly" "Without Warning"
Contributed by Pastor Ben F Corley on Nov 26, 2006 (message contributor)
Summary: To many, the coming of the Lord is a confussing subject, and we had had two thousand years to study it. Can you imagine the many quetions the early believers must have had concerning the coming of the lord. They believed that He couold come at any moment,
“Suddenly”
“Without Warning”
Text; Mark 13: 3-10; & 28-37 (v. 36)
Introduction:
The year was 1963, the place, Dallas Texas. It was a hot and sunny day and thousands of people were gathered hoping to just get a glimpse of the President of the United States as he passed by, when all of a sudden a shot rang out, than another, and than another, and President Kennedy slumped over in his beautiful wife’s lap and was pronounce dead within an hour. Suddenly! Without warning.
The year was 2001, September 11 matter of fact. When four airplanes with destinations unknown, was suddenly hijacked. At the same time people was flooding into the Twin Towers of the World Trades Centers, going to work, just another ordinary fall day, no one expecting that anything could go wrong, no one expecting that this day could be the last day of their lives. The same holds true for the Pentagon, no one expecting to die, when all of a sudden these jet liners plunge into the Trade Centers and the Pentagon, causing over three thousand deaths. Suddenly! Without warning!
The year was 2004, December 26. The place is the tropical Islands surrounding the Indian Ocean, the sun shinning bright, people on the beaches having fun, people shopping the souvenir shops, many people working, playing, or doing just whatever they were doing. Suddenly, tidal waves 50 feet high or higher engulfed them. Nearly every building in it’s path tumbled, every life, human and animal in it’s path suddenly died.
The water went inland for miles and miles. To date; the last toll that I have is approximately 120,000 people have lost their lives, and it’s predicted that this many more will die from deceases. Suddenly! Without warning!
To many, the coming of the Lord is a confusing subject, and we have had two thousand years to study it. Can you imagine the questions the early believes must have had concerning the coming of the Lord. The early believers had a keen anticipation concerning the return of the Lord, they believed that He could come any moment, suddenly, without warning. Jesus Himself told them He was going away to build them mansions and that one day He would return to catch them away to be with Him for all eternity. They believed that He was coming at any moment, however; Something unexpected began to happen, People began to die.
Listen; I was thinking the other day; “This body that the Lord has given us was created in such a way that it should live forever, but we brought death into the world.” Death happens. The thing is, we don’t know when it is going to happen to us. A question about the righteous dead and their place in the plan of God came up to Paul in 1 Thessalonians Paul was asked; “Would they be lift out of the rapture, or would they be caught up?” The apostle Paul takes advantage of this opportunity to clear up their question, and at the same time it gives us that are alive today, a brief, but clear picture of what can be expected.
1). A Rapture:
Listen now; 1 Thessalonians 4:16 says; “ For the Lord Himself shall descend from Heaven with a shout, and with the voice of the Archangel, and with the trump of God…..”
There is no mistake about it, He is returning, He is coming back! The last picture the disciples had of Jesus was His triumphant ascension in the sky. With their eyes staring upward, and the mouths gapping open, they watch until Jesus was taken out of their sight.
Five hundred were there watching on that day. Jesus had just finished telling them to go back down into Jerusalem and tarry there until they filled with power from on high, He had just finished telling them teach and preach to all nations about repentance and the Kingdom of God. And now, He was starting to raise from their sight when all of a sudden the Bible says; “there stood by them two men dressed in white apparel which said; Ye men of Galilee, Why stand ye gazing up into heaven? This same Jesus which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen Him go into Heaven.”
The angels in white gave the promise that Jesus would come again. Jesus Himself gave the promise that He would come again.
Throughout the entire Bible both Old and New Testaments prophecy after prophecy has been given that Jesus is going to come back to catch His bride off the face of the earth, And Yet men still turn a deaf ear to that gentle call upon their hearts. There is no question about it church, Jesus Is Coming! We look at the world and can’t help but see all the sin that is going on, and not only in the world, but in the church also. People are turning a deal ear to the call of Jesus to return to the Old paths and Old ways. Satan, the great deceiver is still roaming around seeking whom he can devour, He is still deceiving all he can and telling them they have plenty of time, there is too much fun in the world to wholly give your life to Jesus.
