Scripture Reference: Matthew 24:1-3, 32-39, 40-44 (NKJV); Matthew 25:2-13 (NKJV)
Men choose to put their will above the will of God and in effect choose themselves to be God and equal to God. Satan influences man through their own desires and their own passions to create idols or false gods or other gods that they choose to worship. The world that we live in is full of god worship/idolatry (sport, money, entertainment, power, prestige, work, and self-achievement). It is therefore important for us to make decisions, and continually make decisions for our lives, that are for the Most High God. The enemy has been able to fool humanity into saying there is no consequence. That is the reason why credit and immoral lifestyles are so popular. God is not mocked. It is important to remember that that the Word clearly says that if you sow to the flesh, you will reap death and destruction. But if you sow to the Spirit you will from the Spirit reap Life.
The advent of technology makes it easier for sin to be everywhere all at once. Whatever control there is on the earth is because the church is here, and the Holy Spirit uses the prayers of the church to hold back the absolute complete takeover of evil and sin on the earth. The devil is not going to stop until there is no more church on the earth. Until the time comes when it is the end of the time of the church, people are not actually going to take God seriously.
The devil doesn’t worry about people that do church on the side, who make their own way in life and behave like everybody else behaves. They are already making themselves gods. The devil is most concerned and tries to stop those that have decided to follow God with everything.
Read Matthew chapters 24 and 25 as one sermon. Part of the prophecy in chapter 24 has been fulfilled, but the rest has not yet occurred. The time is not yet. Theological perspective and doctrine don’t really matter if you are living your life every day as one that is expecting and fully living for Jesus.
This is a season where we got to live for Him and not ourselves. Our job is to be wise and not be foolish, to stay prepared and ready and to have our Holy Ghost oil filled up. Only when you have got too little oil, in other words too little intimate, meaningful relationship with the Holy Spirit that you will run out and find yourself in a place of fatigue/asleep.
Your walk with God is a personal individual walk. You cannot piggyback your way into heaven and you cannot grandfather your way into the grace of God. You have to apply the grace of God for yourself. You have to live in faith and the love of God for yourself. You have to make decisions for your life based on the church God has called you to and not based on education, work and geographical location. If you blatantly disobey God as to who you are called to and consequently who you are called with, you are out of the will of God, which allows the devil to come in and to steal, kill and destroy.
I say: I am a modern day wise Christian. I am ready. I am living in a state of readiness in my walk with God. I am focused on the Word. I am living daily for the will of God to be done in my life. I am living on assignment, ready every day for Him to say anything to me.
It will be prudent for you to prepare your heart and spirit and be available to receive and participate in what God is bringing through Brother Jerry at the beginning of February.
I say: I am prepared to put everything on hold and go after God. I do not serve any other gods. Nothing is more important to me than what God says I should be doing.
How do you prepare yourself to be ready for God? One day at a time.
I say: I am determined to be in a state of readiness. I live in faith now. Every day I live in the Word now. I make God-based decisions every day. I do not go ahead with my plans; I wait until God speaks. I make time for God and give Him extra to be ready in my spirit to face what He has got coming.
Do not be deceived. There is more to this than just being a born-again Christian (one of the virgins). What does this deception look like? Like in the days of Noah thinking that we can live like everybody else lives, thinking we don’t have to change anything, thinking we can just continue our lives as normal. Patting ourselves on the back, thinking we made it happen, we did it, we are so smart, or we are getting it right. Who do we give glory to? God or self? Lukewarm Christians are spit out; those kinds of virgins get left behind; they don’t make it.
Thank God that we have the uncompromising Truth of God’s Word that we can live by. This is not a time in our lives to play games. Our lives are at stake, our children and grandchildren’s lives are at stake. There is a lot at stake here because God has got us positioned here in this nation, in this time, connected the way that we are connected, because we are a people that God has called to make a difference.
I say: I am ready. I will always be ready for the moment when You call me and whatever that time is, I will be ready in Jesus’ name. Until then I live as a son of God in the Kingdom of God for the Kingdom of God on this earth. I have peace and I have joy and I hear from God what He has for my future.
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