{"id":19212,"date":"2018-01-24T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2018-01-24T06:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sugar-land-bible-church.local\/sermon\/the-coming-kingdom-032\/"},"modified":"2018-01-24T00:00:00","modified_gmt":"2018-01-24T06:00:00","slug":"the-coming-kingdom-032","status":"publish","type":"sermon","link":"https:\/\/slbc.org\/es\/sermon\/the-coming-kingdom-032\/","title":{"rendered":"The Coming Kingdom 032"},"content":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"featured_media":0,"template":"","book":[85],"series_event":[470],"sermon_service_type":[474],"speaker":[6],"class_list":["post-19212","sermon","type-sermon","status-publish","hentry","book-matthew","series_event-the-coming-kingdom","sermon_service_type-wednesday-evenings","speaker-dr-andy-woods","no-post-thumbnail"],"acf":{"sermon_title":"The Coming Kingdom 032","sermon_date":"20180124","sermon_month":"1","sermon_year":"2018","sermon_notes":5361,"sermon_slides":5363,"sermon_mp3":5364,"sermon_id":"124181622419","series_or_event":470,"service_type":[474],"speaker":6,"books_of_the_bible":85,"chapter_and_verse":"24:14","sermon_transcript":"Andy Woods\n\nThe Coming Kingdom\n\n1-24-18\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Matthew 24:14\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Lesson 32\n\nLet\u2019s open our Bibles to Matthew\u2019s Gospel, chapter 24 and verse 14 and as you\u2019re turning there let me make a fast announcement.\u00a0 This comes from Pastor Robert Dean at West Houston Bible Church, and he says I would like to invite the men of your church to join our men\u2019s breakfast next Saturday morning (which would be this coming Saturday).\u00a0 We will have as a special speaker Lt. Commander Retired Dan Crenshaw, a former Navy Seal who is running for congressman Ted Poe\u2019s seat in the house of Representatives.\u00a0 Congressman Poe is retiring, nine candidates will run for his seat in the March primaries.\u00a0 I think that\u2019s just a men\u2019s group so that would be gender discrimination right there.\u00a0 But I know we have a lot of political people here and so if you\u2019re interested in going to that men\u2019s breakfast, West Houston Bible Church, 7:30 a.m.\u00a0 Wow, they start early over there.\u00a0 And then you could hear from this aspiring politician that Robby, Pastor Dean, said is a pretty good guy, conservative guy.\u00a0 I was supposed to announce that on Sunday and I plain forgot so I\u2019m trying to do my penance.\n\nLet\u2019s open our Bibles if we could to Matthew\u2019s Gospel, chapter 24 and verse 14.\u00a0 As you all know we have been studying on Wednesday nights the doctrine of the kingdom.\u00a0 And we\u2019re really looking at what does the Bible say about the kingdom.\u00a0 I hope and pray what\u2019s happening is the Bible is starting to come together for you rather than seeing a bunch of fragmented pieces everywhere I hope what\u2019s happening is you\u2019re seeing the thread of the Bible connected.\u00a0 That\u2019s one of the goals of continuous study,\u00a0 because we are going over the dominant theme of the Bible which is the kingdom.\n\nWe have traced very carefully what the Old Testament says about the kingdom and how that kingdom was offered to Israel on a silver platter, rejected by the first century leadership leading to the kingdom\u2019s postponement.\u00a0 And yet God does not leave the earth without a witness of Himself so God is clearly doing something on the earth despite the kingdom\u2019s postponement.\u00a0\u00a0 And we talked about that, we talked about how the church fits in, but you see, we\u2019re living in a time period where God is starting to wind up the age of the church I believe.\u00a0 I\u2019m not a date setter nor the son of a date setter but the key thing that God is going to use to bring His kingdom to the earth is the nation of Israel.\u00a0 So the last couple of sessions we\u2019ve talked about Israel\u2019s discipline, under number 13, and restoration.\u00a0 So the fact that the Spirit of God is moving again amongst the Jewish people, regathering them into their own land we would see preparatory for the manifestation of the kingdom.\n\nAnd one of these days, and this takes us to number 14 and 15, we\u2019re going to have the reoffer of the kingdom to Israel and then what will happen is the transfer of kingdom authority from the devil\u2019s grasp back to the grasp of Jesus Christ.\u00a0 So that\u2019s where we are in our outline, we\u2019re on numbers 14 1and 15, we\u2019re really coming to the apex of our study, how this long awaited kingdom is actually going to come to the earth.\u00a0 So the chapter that I tried to cover this in my book is chapter 13.\n\nPaul, the apostle, in the Book of Romans, chapter 11, verses 25 writes, \u201cFor I do not want you, brethren, to be uninformed of this mystery -- so that you will not be wise in your own estimation that a partial hardening has happened to Israel\u2026.\u201d\u00a0 So Israel today, as a nation, primarily is in unbelief; you get a few saved Jews every once in a while but that\u2019s not the norm.\u00a0 The nation, although it\u2019s regathered it remains in unbelief.\u00a0 But you\u2019ll notice that Paul clearly tells us there in Romans 11 that that hardening that Israel is under is \u201cpartial\u201d and it will only last \u201cuntil,\u201d see the word \u201cuntil\u201d there, that\u2019s a really important word, \u201cuntil the fullness of the Gentiles has come in.\u201d\n\nSo my interpretation of this prophecy is that there\u2019s a set number, known only to God, of Gentiles who will get saved in the age of the church.\u00a0 And once that number is reached the bride will be full, the body of Christ will be complete and you\u2019ll have the rapture of the church once that number is reached.\u00a0 And this kind of shows you why Satan doesn\u2019t want you to do personal evangelism, because maybe the person you\u2019re sharing with, Satan is not omniscient, he doesn\u2019t know everything so he thinks maybe the person you\u2019re sharing with could be the last one to come in and then the rapture will happen and Satan doesn\u2019t want that because he doesn\u2019t want the end times program to go forward because as it goes forward his days are numbered.\u00a0 So that\u2019s why he\u2019s so anti-presentation of the gospel and so anti personal evangelism, and he\u2019s working so hard to confuse the gospel by mixing it with works that no one can get saved at all.\u00a0\u00a0 And he\u2019s doing that because he\u2019s trying to stop God\u2019s end time program.\u00a0 He\u2019s trying to prevent the full number of Gentiles from coming in.\n\nSo that\u2019s why when you share your faith there\u2019s so much warfare and you have so much doubt in yourself and all that.\u00a0 And you\u2019re so worried about what are they going to think of me and dah, dah, dah, dah, dah.\u00a0 But in reality it\u2019s not you that saves people because the gospel is the power of God unto salvation.\u00a0 Amen.\u00a0 [Romans 1:16, \u201cFor I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.\u201d]\u00a0 The word \u201cpower\u201d that Paul uses is dunamis<\/em>, from which we the word dynamite, dynamic.\u00a0 The gospel is not found in\u00a0 your presentation style; we strive for accuracy in the gospel gut the gospel is dynamic, dynamite power in and of itself.\u00a0 So Satan would have you do anything other than share that with people because he\u2019s trying to prevent this number from being reached.\u00a0 But prophetically it will be reached and the rapture will occur.\u00a0 And once that happens God is not senile, amen; God remembers His commitments to Israel which interpreted literally, as we have studied, remain unfulfilled.\u00a0 And God can\u2019t what?\u00a0 Can\u2019t lie!\n\nSo one of the best things that ever happened to me really in my life was studying under J. Dwight Pentecost at Dallas Seminary because he taught a class called Kingdom and Covenants.\u00a0 And what he convinced me of is really what the Bible teaches, that if you can understand the covenants that God has made to Israel you can understand the Bible, and you can understand the direction of human history because once God covenants Himself to do something He has to move heaven and earth for those promises to be realized or else He\u2019s the one with egg on His face, which He won\u2019t allow to happen.\n\nFor example, the whole Exodus event that we study in the Book of Exodus, I mean, why did the Exodus happen exactly?\u00a0 Did God feel sorry for His people?\u00a0 I\u2019m sure He did but when\u00a0 you look at Exodus 2:24 it gives you the reason why the Exodus happened.\u00a0 Other than the crucifixion the Exodus is probably the greatest redemptive act in history.\u00a0 Why did it happen.\u00a0 It says, 2:24, \u201cSo God heard their groaning; and God remembered His\u201d what? \u201ccovenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.\u201d\u00a0 Now you back up about six centuries to the life of Abraham and you\u2019ll find right there in Genesis 15:13-16, when God made the unilateral Abrahamic Covenant with Abram and his descendants, and we\u2019ve studied that in this series, that one of the things He promised is\u00a0 you all are going to go into a foreign land for 400 years and you\u2019re going to come back out of that land into this land (the land then was known as Canaan) with great possessions.\n\n[Genesis 15:13-16, \u201cGod<\/em> said to Abram, \u201cKnow for certain that your descendants will be strangers in a land that is not theirs, where they will be enslaved and oppressed four hundred years. [14] But I will also judge the nation whom they will serve, and afterward they will come out with many possessions. [15] As for you, you shall go to your fathers in peace; you will be buried at a good old age. [16] Then in the fourth generation they will return here, for the iniquity of the Amorite is not yet complete.\u201d]\n\nSo Abraham dies and passes off the scene, the nation of Israel, around the time of Jacob and Joseph goes down into Egypt and you know the story, there arose a Pharaoh who did not know Joseph or what God had done for Israel so the nation of Israel is there for four hundred years of slavery.\u00a0 And finally in history God moves His hand and says it\u2019s time to come out.\u00a0 Why is that?\u00a0 It tells you right there in Exodus 2:24, God remembered His berith<\/em>, which is the Hebrew word for covenant, or contract.\u00a0 So God moves His hand in history consistent with the covenant that he has made.\u00a0 See that?\n\nAnd we have been talking about the kingdom that\u2019s coming to the earth and how God is going to regather the Jewish people physically and bring them to faith as His instrument of bringing the king\u00addom to the earth.\u00a0 And Ezekiel 36, a prophecy given much later in history, about the sixth century B.C., is one of the key chapters that talks about it.\u00a0 It\u2019s probably the key chapter that predicts the future regathering of Israel and the coming of God\u2019s kingdom.\u00a0 And yet why is God going to do this?\u00a0 When you look at Exodus 36:22 it tells you exactly why.\u00a0 \u201cTherefore say to the house of Israel thus says the Lord God, it is not for your sake, Oh house of Israel, that I\u2019m about to act.\u201d\n\nn other words, I\u2019m not doing this for your comfort, I\u2019m not doing this because a board voted one way or the other.\u00a0 It\u2019s not because of you that I\u2019m doing this.\u00a0 But what does He say, \u201cBut for my \u201c what? \u201cHoly name,\u201d which by the way you all have \u201cprofaned among the nations\u201d wherever\u00a0 you went, \u00a0you don\u2019t really care much about My name, but I care about My name so I\u2019m going to move in history, I\u2019m going to regather the nation of Israel physically and spiritually and use that as my instrument to bring the kingdom to the earth.\u00a0 And I\u2019m not doing it for you, I\u2019m doing it for Me because of My covenant that I made with Abraham all the way back in 2000 B.C.\n\nAnd if God didn\u2019t make good on what He said he was going to do then His holy\u00a0 name would be not worth the paper it\u2019s written on.\u00a0 Right?\u00a0 Because God would be a liar.\u00a0 So this is really important to understand, that God is working in history, whether it be the Exodus or the end time program because His reputation is at stake and Paul connected to His covenants.\u00a0 If you can understand His covenants you can understand what\u2019s going to happen and why things are going to happen the way they\u2019re supposed to happen.\n\nSo God is going to bring His kingdom to the earth because of His name and His covenants, which He\u2019s promised.\u00a0 And if those covenants are unconditional and unfulfilled, and they are, we\u2019ve studied that, we\u2019re on lesson 32 so we\u2019ve done a lot of groundwork on this, then there has to be a time in history where He moves His hand and accomplishes His goal and fulfills His promises.\n\nSo how, then, is He going to bring His kingdom to the earth exactly.\u00a0 And there\u2019s four things we want to look at.\u00a0 I doubt we\u2019ll finish all four tonight, we might not even finish one of them tonight.\u00a0 My goal by 8:00 o\u2019clock is to finish at least two of them, but you know how that goes.\u00a0 So there are four things under this\u2026 and if we don\u2019t finish tonight we\u2019ll just pick it up the following weeks, but the four things we want to talk about are: Number 1, the reoffer of the kingdom to Israel; Number 2, the transfer of earthly authority from the devil\u2019s grip back to God\u2019s grip.\u00a0 Number 3, the actual establishment of the kingdom on the earth.\u00a0 And then we want to also make some remarks about the duration of the kingdom, exactly how long is this kingdom going to last.\u00a0 So that\u2019s sort of the direction we\u2019re going.\n\nSo let\u2019s go ahead and start here with number 1, the reoffer of the kingdom to Israel and all of these things are happening after the body of Christ has been made complete and translated into heaven.\u00a0 You all remember the offer of the kingdom to Israel, right?\u00a0 This was something that was preached by John the Baptist, Matthew 3:2; Jesus Christ, Matthew 4:17, the disciples, the twelve apostles, Matthew 10:5-7, and then the 70, Luke 10:1, 9.\n\n[Matthew 3:2, \u201cRepent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.\u201d\u00a0 Matthew 4:17, \u201cFrom that time Jesus began to preach and say, \u2018Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.\u201d\u2019\u00a0 Matthew 10:5-7, \u201cThese twelve Jesus sent out after instructing them: \u201cDo not go in the<\/em> way of the<\/em> Gentiles, and do not enter any<\/em> city of the Samaritans; [6] but rather go to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. [7] And as you go, preach, saying, \u2018The kingdom of heaven is at hand.\u2019\u201d Luke 10:1, \u201cNow after this the Lord appointed seventy others, and sent them in pairs ahead of Him to every city and place where He Himself was going to come.\u201d\u00a0 [9] \u201cand heal those in it who are sick, and say to them, 'The kingdom of God has come near to you.\u2019\u201d]\n\nSo what was that message?\u00a0 It\u2019s a message that we don\u2019t really preach today and we\u2019re not supposed to because we\u2019re not Israel.\u00a0 But the message that was preached to first century Israel was \u201cRepent, for the kingdom of heaven is\u201d what? \u201cat hand,\u201d and we showed you when we went through that that it had drawn near in the person of Christ.\u00a0 So all Israel had to do was enthrone the King on the King\u2019s terms and the kingdom would have come upon the earth.\n\nAnd it wasn\u2019t just John the Baptist who preached this, it was Christ Himself who preached it; Matthew 4:17, \u201cRepent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.\u201d\u00a0 And if that weren\u2019t enough He sent out the twelve to preach the exact same thing, \u201c\u00a0 [Matthew 10:7] \u201cAnd as you go, preach, saying, \u2018The kingdom of heaven is at hand.\u2019\u201d\u00a0 And if you look back at verse 6 it\u2019s very clear that\u2026 actually verse 5 also, and this is why we know we\u2019re not to preach this today because He says, [5] \u201cDo not go in the<\/em> way of the<\/em> Gentiles, and do not enter any<\/em> city of the Samaritans; [6] but rather go to the\u201d what? \u201clost sheep of the house of Israel. [7] And as you go, preach, saying, \u2018The kingdom of heaven is at hand.\u2019\u201d\n\nSo this was not a mission task that they were given; they were told exclusively to give this only to the nation of Israel because they are the covenanted people and their response to the King is what is either going to bring in the kingdom or it\u2019s going to hold back the kingdom.\u00a0 And after Israel, as we\u2019ve studied, rejected this then God raised up the church and gave us the task of world evangel-ization.\u00a0 But this is not something that you use in a missions conference, right?\u00a0 This is something that was exclusively given to Israel.\n\nWe know the sad story of this, don\u2019t we?\u00a0 Matthew 12:24, \u201cBut when the Pharisees heard this, they said, \u2018\"This man casts out demons only by Beelzebul the ruler of the demons.\u2019\u201d\u00a0 So Christ gave them all the evidence they needed to receive Him as their King, through miracles and fulfilled prophecy and you name it.\u00a0 And they instead tribute His miracles, which they couldn\u2019t explain away because they were happening right there in their midst, and if you can\u2019t explain away a miracle you just say well, the devil did that.\u00a0 And that is the turning point of Matthew\u2019s Gospel; once they do that it\u2019s over for first century Israel.\u00a0 They are not going to have the opportunity to receive the kingdom.\n\nSo as we have studied very carefully, and I won\u2019t re-talk you through charts we\u2019ve already gone through, there\u2019s a huge shift in Christ\u2019s ministry at that point, from Israel publicly, to a private ministry of raising up the disciples who are going to be the foundation of the new building project, which began in Acts 2 called the church, which is where we fit in.\n\nAnd I really like this chart here because it shows you how the whole Gospel of Matthew is chiastically structured.\u00a0 And you know a little bit about chiasms, right?\u00a0 Because we\u2019ve been studying Daniel on Sunday mornings and Daniel 2-7, if you recall, is organized like a chiastic structure.\u00a0 So the outer edges of the chiasm basically agree with each other, and you work inward and those two points basically agree thematically with each other and the center of the chiasm is that thing right in the middle, sticking out, it\u2019s right there, it\u2019s the progressive rejection of the King, Matthew 11 and 12.\n\nAnd that\u2019s the centerpiece of Matthew\u2019s Gospel because once they reject the offer of the kingdom by saying His miracles were done by the devil is the moment the whole gospel shifts.\u00a0 And the reason the whole gospel at that point shifts is because the offer of the kingdom is withdrawn and never again in Matthew\u2019s Gospel, until Matthew describes the tribulation period, do you find the expression \u201cRepent, the kingdom of heaven is at hand.\u201d\u00a0 Instead what you find is Jesus talking about a church, He says that\u2019s something they\u2019ve never heard of before, \u201cI will build My church,\u201d Matthew 16:18, \u201cand the gates of Hades will not prevail against it.\u201d\n\nSo He\u2019s talking about an interim period of time that\u2019s been going on for the last 2,000 years, that we\u2019re part of today, while the offer of the kingdom is off the table and the nation of Israel is under the disciplinary hand of God.\u00a0 And yet one of these days, as we\u2019ve studied, God is going to be finished with the church in terms of her earthly mission; it will be over and we\u2019ll be translated to heaven and God\u2026 has He forgotten about His commitments to Israel?\u00a0 He has not!\u00a0 I showed you some passages, Exodus, Ezekiel, where He can\u2019t forget about His promises to Israel.\u00a0 So what we believe is once the church is gone in the tribulation period the offer of the kingdom will be re-extended to Israel and that\u2019s why I had you open up to Matthew 24:14, this is the Olivet Discourse when Jesus is discussing with His disciples what\u2019s going to happen at the end of the age. And He says, \u201cThis gospel of the kingdom\u201d now what\u2019s the \u201cgospel of the kingdom\u201d?\u00a0 It\u2019s the phrase, \u201cRepent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.\u201d\u00a0 It\u2019s called \u201cthe gospel of the kingdom\u201d I think back in Matthew 4:23.\u00a0\u00a0 [Matthew 4:23, \u201cJesus was going throughout all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every kind of disease and every kind of sickness among the people.\u201d]\n\nThe opportunity to receive the King and the kingdom, and that message finally, once the church is gone, will be reproached to the nation of Israel.\u00a0\u00a0 It says, \u201cThis gospel of the kingdom\u201d and that\u2019s the only time\u00a0 you see the expression after Matthew 12, \u201cThis gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all the nations,\u201d and what does it say, \u201cand then <\/u>the end will come.\u201d\n\nThis is where a lot of missions groups get very confused, you hear them say this all the time, we\u2019ve got to reach the whole world with the gospel for Jesus Christ to come back.\u00a0 Ever heard them say that?\u00a0 And you wonder where they\u2019re getting that from; they\u2019re getting it from this passage here but the reality of the situation is that\u2019s not talking about church age evangelism, the church is gone at this point.\u00a0 Matthew 24 is very Jewish; that\u2019s why Jesus tells the Jews in this time period to pray that their flight would not take place on the what?\u00a0 The sabbath.\u00a0 [Matthew 24:20, \u201cBut pray that your flight will not be in the winter, or on a Sabbath.\u201d]\n\nWe don\u2019t worship the Lord in the church age on the Sabbath, you can if you want to but our normal worship pattern is the first day of the week.\u00a0 Right?\u00a0 The Sabbath or Saturday is the last day of the week.\u00a0 So this is not talking about gosh, we\u2019ve got to get out there and support missionaries, and get the gospel out there so Jesus can come back.\u00a0 Now having said that, we\u2019re very pro evangelistic, we\u2019re very pro missionaries, we want to get out there and share the gospel because that\u2019s our task, but we don\u2019t believe that getting the gospel into the whole world as members of the church is some kind of\u2026 we want to do that but it\u2019s not some prerequisite for Christ to come back.\n\nThe prerequisite for Christ to rapture the church is the fullness of the Gentiles.\u00a0 Once the very last Gentile comes into the body of Christ then the rapture happens; then there\u2019s an end time program, that I\u2019m talking about here, kicks into gear.\u00a0 So this passage really is, I believe, talking about the preaching ministry of the 144,000 Jewish evangelists that you\u2019ll see in Revelation 7.\u00a0 And there\u2019s 12,000 from each tribe, each tribe of who?\u00a0 Israel, it looks kind of Jewish to me.\u00a0 This is the preaching of the 144,000 Jewish evangelists and included in this is the reoffer of the kingdom to Israel after the church has already been raptured.\n\nSo whatever the church leaves unfinished in terms of world evangelization the nation of Israel, or the 144,000 Jewish evangelists will complete.\u00a0 I think sometimes in the age of the church we have sort of an elevated view of our own importance, we think we\u2019ve got to get it all done so Christ can come back and many, many missionary organizations will tell you that.\u00a0 And don\u2019t misunderstand, I\u2019m, we\u2019re very pro missionary activity, very pro evangelization but we don\u2019t have such an elevated view of our importance that we think we\u2019ve got to do it all for Jesus to come back.\u00a0 Whatever the church leaves incomplete will be finished very nicely by the 144,000 Jewish evangelists and part of that will be the offer of the kingdom being re-extended to Israel in the tribulation period.\u00a0 You say well, the pastor sure has some strange ideas, where is he getting all this stuff from?\u00a0 And this is why I kind of like to quote scholars that are of greater reputation that little old me because I want you to see that what I\u2019m teaching is not some bizarre doctrine, it\u2019s very consistent with our heritage.\n\nHere is Charles Ryrie in his book, So Great Salvation<\/em>, page 37.\u00a0 He says exactly what I\u2019m saying, or better, I\u2019m saying exactly what he\u2019s saying.\u00a0 He said: \u201cSo the kingdom did not arrive because the people would not prepare properly for it.\u201d\u00a0 You\u2019ve got to understand this about first century Israel, they wanted a King and the kingdom on their own terms.\u00a0 They loved the miracles that Jesus performed in terms of feeding the masses with a few fish and a few loaves, and you\u2019ll see this in John 6:15 and John 6:26. [John 6:15, \u201cSo Jesus, perceiving that they were intending to come and take Him by force to make Him king, withdrew again to the mountain by Himself alone.\u201d\u00a0 John 6:26, \u201cJesus answered them and said, \u2018Truly, truly, I say to you, you seek Me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate of the loaves and were filled.\u201d\u2019]\n\nThey were actually going to take Him by force and make Him the King.\u00a0 And Jesus says in that chapter, verse 15 and verse 26, Truly, truly I say to you, you want Me because I just filled your stomach with food.\u00a0 So they wanted Him to come and bring in all this prosperity and they wanted Him to get rid of Rome which they hated because Rome was taxing them excessively.\u00a0 And as long as Jesus was talking that game plan everybody liked Him but the moment He gets to the Sermon on the Mount, which is the moral and ethical dimensions of the kingdom, you know, righteousness, you can\u2019t get into it unless you have the transferred righteousness of Christ because you all are guilty according to the Law because the Law doesn\u2019t just sit in judgment on your actions but on your heart and your thought life.\u00a0 Because the Sermon on the Mount tells me that my heart has committed sins that my hands haven\u2019t gotten around to yet; we\u2019re all murderers and adulterers according to the Sermon on the Mount.\n\nThe moment He started talking like that and stopped just talking about politics is the moment they got uninterested in the kingdom.\u00a0 And Jewish people today are like that; they want a Messiah to come in and fix their problems in the United Nations and the fact that the nations are bullying them into giving up land and they want that fixed.\u00a0 They want political peace, they don\u2019t really under\u00adstand that you have to have peace with God in terms of your sin debt being paid before you can have lasing political peace.\u00a0 So the Jews in the first century and the nation of Israel today, they basically wanted what they call shalom, peace.\n\nAsk a Jewish person why don\u2019t you think Jesus is the Messiah?\u00a0 They said there\u2019s no shalom.\u00a0 Now when they say shalom, peace, they\u2019re not defining it the way you are as a Christian.\u00a0 When you use the word shalom or peace, you\u2019re talking about peace with God because your sin debt has been paid for.\u00a0 When they use the word peace or shalom they\u2019re talking about politics and world peace.\u00a0 So this is what the nation of Israel wants, political peace without spiritual peace with God.\u00a0 That\u2019s what first century Israel wanted and that\u2019s why the kingdom was postponed.\u00a0 See that?\n\nSo Ryrie says, \u201cSo the kingdom did not arrive because the people would not prepare properly for it.\u201d\u00a0 Watch this: \u201cBut this did not mean that there would never be a Davidic, millennial kingdom. The Lord taught that it would not appear immediately (Luke 19:11),\u201d talks about it, talks about the King going away for a long time and in His extended absence He gives to His servants certain monetary sums, minas<\/em>, that they\u2019re supposed to invest while He\u2019s gone.\u00a0 So His extended absence, because they thought, Luke 19:11, the kingdom was going to appear immediately.\u00a0 He\u2019s saying no it\u2019s not, there\u2019s going to be an extended absence.\u00a0 The Lord taught that it would not appear immediately.\u00a0 Why wouldn\u2019t it appear immediately?\u00a0 Because they wanted it on their own terms.\u00a0 God doesn\u2019t work that way.\u00a0 If you want something from God you get it on His terms.\n\n\u201cThe Lord taught that it would not appear immediately but He also predicted that the gospel, the good news of the kingdom, would be preached yet again in the future period of the Great Tribulation\u201d and what verses is Dr. Ryrie quoting to prove that point? Matthew 24:14, the verse we opened up to.\u00a0 \u201cAnd in that wicked time when Satan and the forces of evil will have almost total free reign, it will be very good news to know that the Messiah will soon rule on the earth.\u201d [So Great a Salvation<\/em>, page 37]\n\nSo God knocks us down so that we what?\u00a0 Look up, and that\u2019s what\u2019s going to have to happen for Israel to come to their senses and to understand that they don\u2019t just need a political savior, they need that but they need a spiritual savior first.\u00a0 And this is why the nation of Israel today in this condition is a sitting duck for the antichrist because the antichrist will come into power and he\u2019ll start to fix the political problems and he\u2019ll put a chicken in every pot, so to speak.\u00a0 And world hunger and all these things get solved and the Jews think this is our guy because he\u2019s giving them what they\u2019ve always wanted.\u00a0 And it\u2019s going to take smack down, a betrayal by the antichrist to awaken them that the antichrist is not their savior; their savior came 2,000 years ago and they\u2019re going to need a spiritual peace from Him before they can have their political peace.\u00a0 And that\u2019s where Zechariah 12:10 says they\u2019re going to start to mourn \u201cas one mourns for an only son.\u201d\u00a0 [Zechariah 12:10, \u201cI will pour out on the house of David and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the Spirit of grace and of supplication, so that they will look on Me whom they have pierced; and they will mourn for Him, as one mourns for an only son, and they will weep bitterly over Him like the bitter weeping over a firstborn.\u201d]\n\nAnd there\u2019s going to be great weeping amongst the Jewish people and it\u2019s going to take some catastrophic circumstances to bring that to pass.\u00a0 So when you look at verse 15 it gives\u00a0 you the betrayal of the antichrist.\u00a0 It says, \u201cTherefore when you see the ABOMINATION OF DESOLATION which was spoken of through Daniel the prophet, standing in the holy place (let the reader understand),\u201d and we\u2019ve been studying this, haven\u2019t we, on Sunday mornings.\u00a0 He is going to, on Sunday mornings he\u2019s going to replicate, antichrist is, what Antiochus IV did.\u00a0 Remember how Antiochus IV betrayed the Jewish people, by desecrating their temple?\u00a0 What Yogi Bear say?\u00a0 It\u2019s deja vu<\/em> all over again.\n\nAntichrist is going to take what one of their villains did in history and redo it in a much grander scale and yet a shaking of this magnitude is what is going to bring Israel to her senses.\u00a0 And once she comes to her senses, if you drop down to verse 31, it says, \u201cAnd He will send forth His angels with a great trumpet,\u201d not the rapture, the rapture is for the church.\u00a0 This is an earthly gathering of Israel after she\u2019s in faith. \u201cAnd He will send forth His angels with A GREAT TRUMPET and THEY WILL GATHER TOGETHER His elect\u201d study that in the Bible, it\u2019s Israel, now we\u2019re elect too in a sense, we\u2019re chosen by God but that\u2019s not the context here; this is not church age truth here, this is Israel truth, \u201c from the four winds, from one end of the sky to the other.\u00a0 \u201cAnd He will send forth His angels with A GREAT TRUMPET and THEY WILL GATHER TOGETHER His elect from the four winds, from one end of the sky to the other.\u201d\u00a0 So this is the regathering that Jesus wanted to do with Israel when He was with them in the First Coming but they wouldn\u2019t have Him.\n\nAnd part of this shakedown is verses 21 and 22, \u201cFor then there will be great tribulation such as has not occurred since the beginning of the world until no, nor never will.\u00a0 [22] \u00a0\u00a0Unless those days had been cut short, no life would have been saved; but for the sake of the elect those days will be cut short.\u201d\u00a0 It\u2019s a time of such intense judgment that if God allowed it to go one second beyond its allotted seven year time period every Jew on planet earth would probably have been killed, which is something God cannot allow to happen because He has to make good on His what? Covenants, so there has to be Jewish people on the earth to fulfill those covenants through.\u00a0 And this is just describing the circumstances through which they come to faith.\n\nSo what is the end product?\u00a0 Well if you go one chapter to the right and you look at Matthew 25:31 once Israel is in faith then you have on the earth the establishment of the kingdom.\u00a0 It says, \u201cBut when the Son of Man comes in His glory,\u201d now again this is not the rapture for the church, it\u2019s already happened over seven years earlier, this is the Second Advent at the end of the tribulation period, \u201cBut when the Son of Man comes in His glory and all the angels with Him, then He will sit on His glorious throne.\u201d\u00a0 Now take a wild guess what throne do you think that\u2019s talking about?\u00a0 That\u2019s the Davidic throne.\u00a0 Why the Davidic throne?\u00a0 Because that\u2019s what\u2019s promised in the Davidic Covenant.\u00a0 Can anybody name the book and chapter where we find that covenant in?\u00a0 I have some extra Hershey bars\u2026 I really don\u2019t because I\u2019m trying to cut down on sugar, I should have brought in some prizes of some kind, I could kind of toss them out\u2026 but anybody remember the chapter and book where we find the Davidic Covenant in in the Bible.\u00a0 2 Samuel chapter\u00a0 7 verses 12-16.\n\n[2 Samuel 7:12, \u201cWhen your days are complete and you lie down with your fathers, I will raise up your descendant after you, who will come forth from you, and I will establish his kingdom. [13] He shall build a house for My name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. [14] I will be a father to him and he will be a son to Me; when he commits iniquity, I will correct him with the rod of men and the strokes of the sons of men, [15] but My lovingkindness shall not depart from him, as I took it<\/em> away from Saul, whom I removed from before you. [16]\u00a0 \u201cYour house and your kingdom shall endure before Me forever; your throne shall be established forever.\u201d\u2019]\n\nThat\u2019s where there\u2019s a promise that Jesus is going to reign one day on\u00a0 the forever throne in the kingdom.\u00a0 And that\u2019s what\u2019s coming into existence here in verse 31, and this is the manifestation of the kingdom when this happens.\u00a0 Do you see that?\u00a0 How do I know that?\u00a0 If you go down to verse 34 it says, \u201cThen the King will say to those on His right, 'Come, you who are blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom\u201d that\u2019s the Greek word basiliea<\/em>, \u201cprepared for you from the foundation of the world.\u00a0 So when He comes back there\u2019s going to be believers on the earth, they are called sheep, and then they enter the kingdom.\n\nSo when you look at this whole thing you\u2019re going to have a reoffer of the kingdom and this time Israel gets it right.\u00a0 They did not get it right in the first century but they\u2019re going to get it right this time.\u00a0 And this is something that you need to know about the nation of Israel.\u00a0 The nation of Israel is a nation that always gets it right the second time.\u00a0 They do not get it right the first time; they get it right the second time.\u00a0 And I know that because of Stephen\u2019s speech.\u00a0 Remember who Stephen was?\u00a0 The first martyr of the age of the church.\u00a0 Stephen, in Acts 7, gives a speech and you can see why at the end of the speech they\u2019re sort of grinding their teeth, or gnashing their teeth and they picked up rocks to throw at him till he was dead, because the speech is there to condemn what first century Israel just did with Christ by turning Him over to the Romans for execution.\n\nNow there are about six parts to this speech and it\u2019s just a wonderful section of the Bible to go through.\u00a0 I wish we could go through all of it.\u00a0 I just want to call your attention to part 2 of the speech which is verses 6-38 where Stephen says just what I just said, you guys get it right the second time; you never get it right the first time.\u00a0 And to get his point across he uses two historical figures and this is what bothered them so much, he\u2019s using their own history against them.\u00a0 The first historical figure he uses is in verses 6-17, it\u2019s the story of Joseph.\u00a0 Remember the story of Joseph?\u00a0 What did Joseph\u2019s brothers do with Joseph when he announced to them God\u2019s plans.\u00a0 They left him for dead and ultimately sold him down to Egypt, and then lied to Jacob, their father, and told him that Joseph was dead.\u00a0 And that was when Joseph was about the age of 17.\u00a0 You read all about this in the book of Genesis.\n\nThen 13 years passed, God providentially works in history where Joseph is now the second in command over all of Egypt and Jacob and his sons, beginning around Genesis 46 sojourned to the land of Egypt to receive grain in the midst of famine and you know the story there from the Book of Genesis that when they finally realized who Joseph is\u2026 it\u2019s funny, Joseph recognized them before they recognized him.\u00a0 And when they finally see who the identity of Joseph is they finally submit to him.\n\nNotice what Stephen is saying here in verses 6-17, they got it right, not the first time, the second time.\u00a0 They rejected him at age 17, they accepted him at age 30.\u00a0 They got it right the second time.\u00a0 And if that weren\u2019t enough Stephen\u2026 by the way, Stephen was\u00a0 a deacon.\u00a0 Did you all know that?\u00a0 People think being a deacon is some kind of low level position.\u00a0 You read this speech, the Holy Spirit was all over this guy.\u00a0 I mean, could we stand up and preach this today under pressure?\u00a0 I mean, it was incredible what God did here with Stephen and he\u2019s our first martyr in the age of the church.\n\nWell, then you get to part 2, verses 13-38 he gives the second example, the example of Moses.\u00a0 You remember the story, how Moses killed the Egyptian, this is around Exodus 2, and Moses sort of announces that he\u2019s the redeemer and the Jews say to him, well are you going to kill us like you killed the Egyptian the other day?\u00a0 And so they reject him, and Moses, because of this flees into Midian for forty years.\u00a0 So he comes back forty years later, at the age of 80, announces himself as the redeemer, and this time around the nation of Israel submitted to his role.\u00a0 See that?\n\nSo they rejected him at age 40, they accepted him at age 80.\u00a0 It\u2019s the same with Joseph, they rejected him at age 17, they accept him at age 30.\u00a0 So obviously what\u2019s Stephen saying?\u00a0 Stephen is saying you guys, this nation that we\u2019re all a part of as Hebrews, this is a nation that gets it right the second time.\u00a0 And therefore, Stephen says, history is repeating itself.\u00a0 You\u2019re rejecting Christ just like you rejected Joseph, just like you rejected Moses.\u00a0 But don\u2019t worry, one of these days you\u2019re going to get it right the second time.\n\nNow when he weaves all of this Scripture together from their own history as a Jew you can see why they begin to grind their teeth and they came under severe condemnation, they began to grind their teeth or gnash their teeth and they began to throw so many rocks at him that he died, which means his material and immaterial separated, Acts 7:59.\u00a0\u00a0 [Acts 7:59, \u201cThey went on stoning Stephen as he called on the Lord and said, \"Lord Jesus, receive my spirit!\u201d]\u00a0 But this is just one part of the speech that made them so angry; his point there in part two of the speech is you get it right the second time, you don\u2019t get it right the first time.\u00a0 This nation never gets it right the first time, they always get it right the second time.\n\nNow if I was preaching,\u00a0 you guys know how long I preach, I would have even added something, can\u00a0 you believe that?\u00a0 I would have added Numbers 13 and 14 where the nation of Israel got to Kadesh-barnea, they saw giants in the land, and God basically brought discipline on that whole generation and started working with their kids.\u00a0 And He allowed the next generation forty years later to enter the land under Joshua and Caleb, the only two that believed God forty years earlier.\n\nSo with the conquest of Canaan they got it right the second time.\u00a0 With Moses they got it right the second time.\u00a0 With Joseph they got it right the second time.\u00a0 And that\u2019s how it is with Jesus Christ.\u00a0 You see how this is all rich typology?\u00a0 They rejected Him in His first coming, but guess what?\u00a0 They\u2019re going to get it right the second time around.\u00a0 And that is what Israel\u2019s destiny is and that\u2019s why God is not finished with Israel because they have to fit into this pattern of getting it right the second time.\n\nSo the\u00a0 second time the kingdom is offered to Israel she will accept it. The first time around she rejected it because they wanted the kingdom on their own terms so the offer of the kingdom was rejected at that point.\u00a0 The second time around, after they had gone through the whole turmoil of the tribulation period and the betrayal of the antichrist, now they\u2019re ready to accept things on God\u2019s terms rather than their own terms and they\u2019re going to get it right the second time.\n\nAnd before you sit too strongly in judgment on Israel look at your own life.\u00a0 I mean, isn\u2019t it true with you a lot of the time, in almost every area, including salvation.\u00a0 Someone offers you the gospel and you just think that\u2019s the dumbest thing you\u2019ve ever heard and what do you mean there\u2019s nothing for me to contribute, doesn\u2019t God know how wonderful I am.\u00a0 And you push it down and push it away and so God says okay, let\u2019s just see how you feel a few\u00a0 years down the road.\u00a0 And He starts kicking out the props from under your life and suddenly you realize, wow, I really need Christ and so\u00a0 you hear the gospel again and this time\u00a0 you receive it.\u00a0 Or even as a Christian you\u2019re so confident, we\u2019re so confident in ourselves and all the things we can accomplish for God that we step out in the flesh and we fall flat on our faces and God says okay, you ready to try it My way this time?\u00a0 So we get it right the second time.\u00a0 I don\u2019t think it\u2019s just an Israel thing, I think it\u2019s an Adamic sinful tendency in us that we have a tendency to get things right the second time.\n\nSo Israel will receive the offer of the kingdom the second time, which takes us into part two.\u00a0 When they receive that offer of the kingdom then you\u2019re going to have the transfer of earthly authority because who currently possesses authority over the earth?\u00a0 The devil does; the Bible is very clear on this.\u00a0 And you have all the verses there where you could look them all up.\n\n[Job 1:7, \u201cThe LORD said to Satan, \u2018From where do you come?\u2019 Then Satan answered the LORD and said, \u2018From roaming about on the earth and walking around on it.\u2019\u201d\u00a0 \u00a0Job 2:2, \u201cThe LORD said to Satan, \u2018Where have you come from?\u2019 Then Satan answered the LORD and said, \u2018From roaming about on the earth and walking around on it.\u2019\u201d\u00a0 Luke 4:5-8, \u201cAnd he led Him up and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time.\u00a0 [6] And the devil said to Him, \u201cI will give You all this domain and its glory; for it has been handed over to me, and I give it to whomever I wish. [7] Therefore if You worship before me, it shall all be Yours.\u201d [8] Jesus answered him, \u2018It is written, \u2018YOU SHALL WORSHIP THE LORD YOUR GOD AND SERVE HIM ONLY.\u2019\u201d\u00a0 Romans 8:19-22, \u201cFor the anxious longing of the creation waits eagerly for the revealing of the sons of God. [20] For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it, in hope [21] that the creation itself also will be set free from its slavery to corruption into the freedom of the glory of the children of God. [22] For we know that the whole creation groans and suffers the pains of childbirth together until now. \u201c]\n\nHe\u2019s called the prince of this world, Satan is, the god of this world, he\u2019s called the prince and power of the air, he is the one we wrestle with, he is like a roaring lion seeking someone to devour.\u00a0 1 John 5:19 says the whole world lies in the lap of the wicked one.\u00a0 \u00a0[1 John 5:19, \u201cWe know that we are of God, and that the whole world lies in the power of the evil one.\u201d]\n\nAnd I love how Lewis Sperry Chafer describes this, like Satan is rocking the world, just like a mother rocks a child.\u00a0 That\u2019s how much control Satan has over this planet.\u00a0 It wasn\u2019t God\u2019s design but that came about because of the fall.\u00a0 And you know this because in the temptations, remember the three temptations that Jesus faced?\u00a0 In the middle temptation, as recorded in Luke\u2019s Gospel, Satan said to Jesus you can have the whole world.\u00a0 Why?\u00a0 Satan says because it\u2019s been given to me and I can give it to whoever I want, it\u2019ll just cost you a little bit of time\u00a0 of worshipping me and I\u2019ll give you the whole thing.\u00a0 And you\u2019ll notice that Jesus never said that\u2019s not true Satan, because it is true.\u00a0 Ever since the fall in the Garden of Eden the authority of this world is under Satan\u2019s grip; not that God is not working, not that God cannot work but this is what the Scripture reveals concerning the present earth.\n\nIn fact, remember early Job, Job 1 God asks Satan where he\u2019s come from; remember what he said?\u00a0 From roaming the earth, going back to and fro over it. [Job 1:7, \u201c Why is he able to just roam the earth and to back to and fro over it.\u201d ] Why is he able to just roam the earth and go back to and fro over it?\u00a0 Because he owns it currently.\u00a0 So the world, as we like to describe it, is in bondage.\u00a0 And that\u2019s why Romans 8:19-22 is so significant, it describes his current bondage.\u00a0 It says, \u201cFor the anxious longing of the creation waits eagerly for the revealing of the sons of God.\u201d\u00a0 Creation itself can\u2019t wait for Jesus and His angels to come back and start the kingdom and take this planet out of the bondage that it\u2019s in.\u00a0 Why is that?\u00a0 Verse 20, \u201cFor the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it, in hope,\u201d who got us into the trouble that we\u2019re in?\u00a0 The first Adam.\u00a0 The creation didn\u2019t have anything to do with it, Adam did it.\u00a0 And that\u2019s why Genesis 3 describes the curse on the ground and death and all these things that happened in our world.\u00a0 Verses 21, \u201cthat the creation itself also will be set free from its slavery to corruption into the freedom of the glory of the children of God.\u201d\u00a0 So creation is in a state of slavery and corruption and it can\u2019t wait to break out of these chains because of the satanic grip that it\u2019s in.\n\nVerse 22, \u201cFor we know that the whole creation groans\u201d that\u2019s a personification to describe the condition creation is in, \u201cFor the whole creation groans and suffers the pains of childbirth together until now.\u201d So we\u2019re living in a world that\u2019s in a state of bondage and it\u2019s been that way ever since the fall of man.\u00a0 And which chapter of the Bible describes the fall of man?\u00a0 Genesis 3.\u00a0 When you understand this, let\u2019s just slip over to Revelation and I\u2019m going to stop in exactly six minutes so don\u2019t panic, and I interpret numbers literally here (most of the time anyway).\n\nIf you look Revelation 5:1 you start to see what the big deal is about this seven sealed scroll.\u00a0 Look at Revelation 5:1, it says, \u201cI saw in the right hand of Him who sat on the throne a book written inside and on the back, sealed up with seven seals.\u201d\u00a0 A seven sealed scroll! What is that seven sealed scroll?\u00a0 It\u2019s the title deed to the earth.\u00a0 Once this seal is opened God reclaims the earth from the bondage that it\u2019s been in ever since Genesis 3.\n\nAs you go down to verses 2-4, Revelation 5, \u201cAnd I saw a strong angel proclaiming with a loud voice, \u2018Who is worthy to open the book and to break its seals?\u2019\u00a0 [3] And no one in heaven or on the earth or under the earth was able to open the book or to look into it. [4] Then I\u201d that\u2019s John, \u201cbegan<\/em> to weep greatly because no one was found worthy to open the book or to look into it;\u201d if this scroll remains sealed the earth continues on in Satan\u2019s power.\u00a0 See that?\u00a0 If no one can open this this condition is a forever reality.\u00a0 And this is why John starts to cry, describes himself as weeping.\u00a0 But then he stops weeping because he realizes someone is qualified to open this book.\u00a0 It says in verses 5 and 6, \u201cand one of the elders said to me, \u2018Stop weeping; behold, the Lion that is from the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has overcome so as to open the book and its seven seals. [6] And I saw between the throne (with the four living creatures) and the elders a Lamb standing, as if slain, having seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven Spirits of God, sent out into all the earth.\u201d\n\nSuddenly we discover there is someone qualified to open the scroll.\u00a0 Well who\u2019s qualified?\u00a0 Only one person is qualified, the Creator and the Redeemer.\u00a0 And that\u2019s only one guy, right?\u00a0 That\u2019s Jesus Christ.\u00a0 So what begins to happen is Christ, verse 7, takes the scroll.\u00a0 Verse 7 says, \u201cAnd He came and took the book out of the right hand of Him who sat on the throne.\u201d\u00a0 And then what happens is heaven itself, and you can read about it in verses 8-14, explodes into worship.\n\n[Revelation 5:8-14, \u201cWhen He had taken the book, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb, each one holding a harp and golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints.\u00a0 [9] And they sang a new song, saying, \u201cWorthy are You to take the book and to break its seals; for You were slain, and purchased for God with Your blood men from every tribe and tongue and people and nation.\u00a0 [10] You have made them to be<\/em> a kingdom and priests to our God; and they will reign upon the earth.\u201d\u00a0 [11] Then I looked, and I heard the voice of many angels around the throne and the living creatures and the elders; and the number of them was myriads of myriads, and thousands of thousands, [12] saying with a loud voice, Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power and riches and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing.\u00a0 [13] And every created thing which is in heaven and on the earth and under the earth and on the sea, and all things in them, I heard saying, \u201cTo Him who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb, be<\/em> blessing and honor and glory and dominion forever and ever.\u201d\u00a0 [14] And the four living creatures kept saying, \u201cAmen.\u201d And the elders fell down and worshiped.\u201d]\n\nThe church which has been raptured that\u2019s in heaven, along with the angels is exploding into worship and why are they worshipping Christ?\u00a0 Because He\u2019s worthy to open this scroll to retrieve the earth from its chains.\u00a0 See that?\u00a0 And if you go back to verse 11 of chapter 4 it says, \u201cWorthy are You, O LORD our GOD to receive glory and honor and power, for You\u201d what? \u201ccreated all things,\u201d John 1, the Book of Colossians also says Jesus is the Creator, so He is worthy of worship.\u00a0 That\u2019s why it says \u201cWorthy are You,\u201d that\u2019s why they are worshipping Him.\n\nAnd then you go over to chapter 5 and verse 9, it says:\u00a0 \u201cAnd they sang a new song, saying, \"Worthy are You\u201d see how they\u2019re worshipping Him, \u201cto take the book and to break its seals; for You were slain, and purchased for God with Your blood men from every tribe and tongue and people and nation.\u201d\u00a0 See heaven itself is worshipping Jesus because He is qualified to open the scroll.\u00a0 Why is that?\u00a0 Because He\u2019s the world\u2019s Creator, chapter 4 verse 11.\u00a0 [Revelation 4:11, \u201cWorthy are You, our Lord and our God, to receive glory and honor and power; for You created all things, and because of Your will they existed, and were created.\u201d]\n\nAnd if that weren\u2019t enough He\u2019s the world\u2019s what?\u00a0 It starts with an R, He\u2019s the world\u2019s Redeemer, chapter 5, verse 11.\u00a0 [Revelation 5:11, \u201csaying with a loud voice, \u2018Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power and riches and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing.\u2019\u201d]\u00a0 That\u2019s why the world is worshipping Christ because He\u2019s qualified to open the scroll and reclaim the title deed to the earth.\u00a0 And the seventh seal will launch the trumpets and the seventh trumpet will launch the bowls, telescoping.\n\nAnd by the time you get to the end of that cycle the earth is going to be redeemed from Satan\u2019s grasp and the glorious kingdom will come to the earth, Revelation 20:1-10, I won\u2019t go into detail here but that\u2019s why so many of the judgments in the Book of Exodus mirror the judgments of the Book of Revelation, because in the Book of Exodus God is taking His nation out of Egyptian bondage.\u00a0 In the Book of Revelation He\u2019s taking the whole world out of the bondage that it\u2019s been in since the fall in Genesis 3.\n\n[Revelation 20:1-10, \u201cThen I saw an angel coming down from heaven, holding the key of the abyss and a great chain in his hand. [2] And he laid hold of the dragon, the serpent of old, who is the devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years; [3] and he threw him into the abyss, and shut it<\/em> and sealed it<\/em> over him, so that he would not deceive the nations any longer, until the thousand years were completed; after these things he must be released for a short time.\u00a0 [4] Then I saw thrones, and they sat on them, and judgment was given to them. And I saw<\/em> the souls of those who had been beheaded because of their testimony of Jesus and because of the word of God, and those who had not worshiped the beast or his image, and had not received the mark on their forehead and on their hand; and they came to life and reigned with Christ for a thousand years. [5] The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were completed. This is the first resurrection. [6] Blessed and holy is the one who has a part in the first resurrection; over these the second death has no power, but they will be priests of God and of Christ and will reign with Him for a thousand years.\u00a0 [7]\u00a0 When the thousand years are completed, Satan will be released from his prison, [8] and will come out to deceive the nations which are in the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together for the war; the number of them is like the sand of the seashore. [9] And they came up on the broad plain of the earth and surrounded the camp of the saints and the beloved city, and fire came down from heaven and devoured them. [10] And the devil who deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are also; and they will be tormented day and night forever and ever.\u201d]\n\nAnd you see, this is the mechanism, the seven sealed scroll is the mechanism through which the kingdom is going to come to the earth as the nation of Israel is receiving a second time the offer of the kingdom.\u00a0 And this is exciting stuff to me.\u00a0 Is this exciting to you?\n\nSee, we come to church, we\u2019re kind of dragging in, oh, do I have to worship the Lord today?\u00a0 Have I had my coffee?\u00a0 Is that band singing my favorite song?\u00a0 And we just don\u2019t really know what we\u2019re doing as a church many times, in terms of worship.\u00a0\u00a0 You worship the Lord because He\u2019s the Creator and the Redeemer and the world is not going to continue on like it is.\u00a0 I would cry too if I just thought that what is will always be.\u00a0 Because he\u2019s the Creator and the Redeemer He\u2019s qualified to take the scroll and then He\u2019s qualified to open it which is going to liberate planet earth.\n\nSo we\u2019ll cut if off right there and I\u2019ll try to rehearse some of that next week and take\u00a0 you a little bit further.\u00a0 So praise the Lord, I\u2019ve got goosebumps just talking about it.","series_sermon_number":""},"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t