"What If It Were Today?"

June 9, 2024

FBC Baxley

am service

Welcome radio and online guests…

*It’s ok if you’re broken, unfaithful, lost, we are too and we are here seeking God’s will and way and plan.

We are all prodigals here…

Some rescued….Some Not..

All Loved…

*Acts 4:12 (repeat)

*John 3:16

Sermon Title: “What If It Were Today”

Scripture Passage: Revelation 3:19-22

19 Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline, so be zealous and repent.

20 Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me.

21 The one who conquers, I will grant him to sit with me on my throne, as I also conquered and sat down with my Father on his throne.

22 He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.’”

PRAY

Three Points:

What If My Story Could Change?

What If I Didn’t Have tomorrow?

What If Today, I Opened the Door?

Illus.

Pitch clocks, timers and three-batter minimums are relatively new ways to speed up baseball, but romantics of the sport have always embraced its timeless nature.

A Mike Hargrove at-bat never let them down.

Baseball is played until one team leads after nine or more innings, so who’s to say a team trailing by five, six, maybe seven runs after eight innings can’t be steadfast in Yogi Berra’s assessment, “It ain’t over ‘til it’s over.”

In short, don’t be quick to turn off the TV or try to beat the stadium traffic after the seventh-inning stretch. You never know when a rally will break out.

Following are some of the biggest comebacks in Major League Baseball history, with regular season information dating to the start of the modern era in 1901 and postseason information since the first one was held in 1903.

Cleveland 15, Seattle Mariners 14, 11 innings (Aug. 5, 2001)

Cleveland manager Charlie Manuel basically indicated a rally was impossible by removing four regulars from his starting lineup in the nationally televised Sunday night game, but the Mariners, who went on to collect the most wins (116) in a 162-game regular season, overlooked the signals. Trailing 14-2, Cleveland rallied with three runs in the bottom of the seventh inning, four in the eighth and five more with two outs in the ninth, capped by Omar Vizquel’s three-run triple to the right-field corner to force extras at 14-14.

In the 11th, little-known Jolbert Cabrera’s one-out, broken-bat single to left scored Kenny Lofton from second to complete the comeback win.

Philadelphia Athletics 17, Cleveland 15 (June 15, 1925)

Incredibly, the Athletics didn’t even need to bat in the ninth inning even though they trailed 15-3 entering the bottom of the seventh. They scored once that inning, then 13 times in the eighth. Jimmy Dykes got the crooked number going by lacing a three-run triple with one out and nine of the next 10 batters reached safely with small ball – seven singles and two walks – before Al Simmons unloaded on a three-run home run to left off Cleveland reliever George Uhle, reversing the Athletics’ 15-14 deficit.

Detroit Tigers 16, Chicago White Sox 15 (June 18, 1911)

That the Tigers secured the majors’ second-most comeback wins (42) in 1911 is noteworthy, but it still barely explains the unlikeliness of a team overcoming a 13-1 deficit for a win. It helped that the first team to do so had Ty Cobb. The Tigers scored four runs in the bottom of the fifth inning and three in the sixth before the White Sox tried to right themselves with two in the seventh to lead 15-8. The home team kept hitting, though, scoring five times in the eighth and three in the ninth. In the final at-bat, Cobb reached on an infield single, with an ill-advised throw to the first baseman getting away to allow Davy Jones and Donie Bush to score and knot the game at 15. Sam Crawford followed with a double over the center fielder to bring in Cobb from second. The Georgia Peach went 5 for 6 with five RBIs and three runs in the 28th game of his career-long 40-game hitting streak.

What If My Story Could Change?

Rev. 3:1-3

1“And to the angel of the church in Sardis write: ‘The words of him who has the seven spirits of God and the seven stars.

“‘I know your works. You have the reputation of being alive, but you are dead. 2 Wake up, and strengthen what remains and is about to die, for I have not found your works complete in the sight of my God. 3 Remember, then, what you received and heard. Keep it, and repent. If you will not wake up, I will come like a thief, and you will not know at what hour I will come against you.

What If I didn’t have tomorrow?

James 4:14

14 yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes.

We are not indispensable.

Look back at the beginning of the letter to the church at laodicea…

14 “And to the angel of the church in Laodicea write: ‘The words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of God's creation.

15 “‘I know your works: you are neither cold nor hot. Would that you were either cold or hot! 16 So, because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth.

17 For you say, I am rich, I have prospered, and I need nothing, not realizing that you are wretched, pitiable, poor, blind, and naked.

18 I counsel you to buy from me gold refined by fire, so that you may be rich, and white garments so that you may clothe yourself and the shame of your nakedness may not be seen, and salve to anoint your eyes, so that you may see.

III. What If Today, I opened the door?

Luke 23:42-43 42 And he said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.” 43 And he said to him, “Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in paradise.”

It’s not too late!!

God can rewrite your story, if you repent and confess Jesus as Lord.

Romans 10:9-10

9 because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved.

PRAY

Invitation

“Are you born again?”

Is your name written in the Lambs Book of Life?

“Have you surrendered/repented to Jesus?