God's Got A Suddenly For You
Notes
Transcript
Introduction
Introduction
I announced a few weeks ago that God was leading me to preach on the idea of ‘Suddenly.’ But, I didn’t get to preach on it ‘suddenly,’ lol: I had to wait a while, but, here we are.
How many of you have gone through some tough situations in life and it seemed it would never end? Maybe some of you are there now. It’s gone on and on and seems to be unending. Now you can make a sudden choice that will change things, but if you do that and it’s not God’s will, you’ll suddenly be in an even bigger mess than you were when you started. I want to highlight some situations in the bible where God came through suddenly for his people.
Some ‘Suddenlies’ in the Bible
Some ‘Suddenlies’ in the Bible
Numbers 12
Numbers 12
Mariam and Aaron spoke against Moses. When you’re doing God’s will, when you’re acting in Obedience to God and others speak against you, God doesn’t take kindly to that. He came to Moses defense suddenly and notice Moses didn’t defend himself. Had He done that perhaps God may not have responded the way he did. Nonetheless, God suddenly responded when His servant was being verbally attacked. The scripture says the Lord doesn’t play favorites which tells me if we walk in God’s will and we remain meek an humble like Moses, when people come against us for walking with God, God will rise to our defense just as He did for Moses.
Passages Where You’re on the ‘wrong side’ of God’s Suddenly
Passages Where You’re on the ‘wrong side’ of God’s Suddenly
In Psalm 64 (Read Psalm) we find the enemy attacks suddenly. Everything’s going great and suddenly it all falls apart. But I’ve got news for you. God’s suddenly is more powerful than the enemies suddenly!
(By the way, you don’t want to be on the wrong side of God’s Suddenly! Listen to what Solomon wrote in Proverbs.
A naughty person, a wicked man,
Walketh with a froward mouth.
He winketh with his eyes,
He speaketh with his feet,
He teacheth with his fingers;
Frowardness is in his heart,
He deviseth mischief continually;
He soweth discord.
Therefore shall his calamity come suddenly;
Suddenly shall he be broken without remedy.
He, that being often reproved hardeneth his neck,
Shall suddenly be destroyed, and that without remedy.
God prophesied to Babylon they would be destroyed. They were a world power and thought their military strength and their economy and their relationships with other nations would save them, but notice what God said:
Therefore shall evil come upon thee; thou shalt not know from whence it riseth:
And mischief shall fall upon thee; thou shalt not be able to put it off:
And desolation shall come upon thee suddenly, which thou shalt not know.
By the way, this sounds strikingly similar to what we see in Revelation about Mystery Babylon. John wrote in Revelation 18 of the destruction of the city and he said all the kings and merchants and sailors were amazed because this great city was destroyed in one hour! It is almost impossible to destroy a world class city in one hour. Hitlers forces blitzed London for months in WWII but never destroyed it. In WWII the United States dropped an atomic bomb on Hiroshima Japan and Nagasaki Japan but they weren’t totally destroyed. Today Hiroshima is a city of 2 million people and Nagasaki has about 500,000. But, when God gets ready to do business with this city called Mystery Babylon, it’ll be made desolate in one hour.
Prophecy & Birth of Jesus
Prophecy & Birth of Jesus
Behold, I will send my messenger, and he shall prepare the way before me:
And the Lord, whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to his temple,
Even the messenger of the covenant, whom ye delight in:
Behold, he shall come, saith the Lord of hosts.
God prophesies that He will suddenly break into history and send His Son to save the world. Look at this now by going forward to something Paul says about Jesus’ birth and then we’ll look at what the gospels say.
But when the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law,
And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid. And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord. And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger. And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying,
Glory to God in the highest,
And on earth peace,
Good will toward men.
When they had heard the king, they departed; and, lo, the star, which they saw in the east, went before them, till it came and stood over where the young child was. When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceeding great joy. And when they were come into the house, they saw the young child with Mary his mother, and fell down, and worshipped him: and when they had opened their treasures, they presented unto him gifts; gold, and frankincense, and myrrh.
The people of Israel heard prophecies of a coming savior for generations. They’d passed them down from one generation to the next. A savior is coming. Messiah is coming. Problem is, they’ve been defeated by the babylonians. They’ve been conquered by the Syrians. They drove out the Syrians, and now the Romans have come in and control Israel. Where is this Savior? Where is this Messiah? You might understand how they’re getting discouraged. They’re beginning to ask those questions: are those prophecies really true? Is the Messiah really coming to save us? Is there any hope? Is it possible we missed it somewhere? Is it possible this is all just a religious sham?
They’ve been defeated. They’re dejected. They’re discouraged. They’re depressed. But God hadn’t toppled off the throne. He hadn’t gone out of business. They couldn’t vote Him out; He couldn’t be impeached and He won’t resign. God hadn’t forgotten about His people, His plan, and His promise. At the fullness of time, at the right time, at the appropriate time, God suddenly sent His son!
They thought it was too late! They thought there was no hope. They thought it was all over. Remember Lazarus? Martha told Jesus He’s dead. If you’d only been here! But can I tell you the most hopeless situation in life is simply a good starting point for God to show up and show out. They had no hope. They thought it was all over. There’s not gonna be a Savior. It’s too late, but in the scales of history, suddenly an angel showed up and talked to the least likely of all people, a 14 year old teen girl telling her should would bear the Christ child. Suddenly an angel appeared to a young man getting ready to divorce his bride because she’s with child and he’s not the father. Suddenly the cry of a baby was heard from a manger in Bethlehem, Israel. Suddenly an angel appeared to shepherds watching their flocks… Quick aside. The sheep in Bethlehem were the flocks from which the high priest would choose the Passover lamb every year at passover. This angel suddenly appears to the shepherds in effect to tell them you think you’re here to raise the Passover lamb, but God has provided His own lamb. He’s right over there. At this moment, suddenly the veil between heaven and earth was ripped apart and the shepherds in their amazement see the heavenly hosts praising God saying Glory to God in the Highest, and on earth, peace, good will toward men.
Suddenly a star that hadn’t been on any of the astronomical charts appeared in the heavens and the Persian astronomy club decided to do some further examination. It appeared this star was moving so they decided to follow the star. That star stopped over Bethlehem where the young child was, and when these wise men saw the star they rejoiced with exceeding great joy. When they came into the house (you’re not going to find your answer outside the house — your answer is in the house — Why do I always tell people to come to God’s house? Because you only find your answer in the house, not outside the house!) - When they came into the house, they worshipped Him and presented Him with gifts of Gold, Frankincense and Myrrh. By the way Joseph and Mary weren’t wealthy. God knew what Herod would do to stop this king’s life. How were Joseph, Mary and Jesus going to travel and live in Egypt for two years to escape Herod’s wrath? I’ll tell you how. Gold, Frankincense, and Myrrh. God is Jehovah Jireh. He’s our provider. God knows what we need before we even ask, and He’s already setting aside provisions to meet our needs for the journey ahead.
Can I also just address the problems we’re facing as a nation here in America? Just as the Shepherds found their answer when they went in the house it is still the same today. The answers to the problems we face in society, problems of racial distress, poor policing, criminal behavior of looters, and rioters, anarchy, and the like; the answers to these and the many other problems we face are not found in the white house, it’s not found in the supreme court house, it’s not found in Congress’ house, it’s only found in one place and that’s in God’s House!
Let me get back to the wise men. They follow the star sign and go to the house where Jesus is and bring gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh.
Joseph and Mary weren’t wealthy. God knew what Herod would do to stop this king’s life. How were Joseph, Mary and Jesus going to travel and live in Egypt for two years to escape Herod’s wrath? I’ll tell you how. Gold, Frankincense, and Myrrh. God is Jehovah Jireh. He’s our provider. God knows what we need before we even ask, and He’s already setting aside provisions to meet our needs for the journey ahead. And He’ll give them to you suddenly just as he did with Joseph and Mary and you’ll experience the blessing and favor of God.
Resurrection/Rapture of Church
Resurrection/Rapture of Church
There’s another suddenly that God has promised us.
For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep. For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord. Wherefore comfort one another with these words.
Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.
I’ve got an announcement for you. There’s a suddenly on the way. I don’t know if you saw the news of the peace agreement Israel signed with two Arab countries this past week, but I want you to know the wheels of prophetic fulfillment are turning. There’s no stopping or slowing down God’s plan. Soon and very soon, the cup of man’s wickedness will be full. Soon and very soon, we will come to that moment when God will say I’ve given every person an adequate witness of the gospel. Many have rejected, some have accepted, but it is now time to bring this era to a close. Son, go get your bride. And, with the sound of trumpets and the shout of the archangel, Jesus will suddenly come to catch His bride away. It could be today. We don’t know the day or hour and Jesus implores us to be ready whenever He comes. He said to occupy till I come! The truth about suddenly is if we knew about it, if we knew when it would come, it wouldn’t be suddenly.
Conclusion - Altar Call
Conclusion - Altar Call
I don’t know what you’re going through. What I do know is that God has a Suddenly for You. It looked like there was no hope. It looked like it was over. They were defeated, disheartened, discouraged, and depressed. All hope was gone. Then suddenly… I believe there are some here today who need to experience God’s suddenly in your life this morning. If you haven’t been saved, if God is not in your life and you know you need him to be, He has given you His perfect gift. He wants to change your life, and He want’s to do it now. He wants to do it suddenly. Maybe you’re a believer. You’re saved. But you’ve gone through some rough places. You’ve gone through some hard knocks. You’re struggling. You’re discouraged. You’re wondering why. Can I tell you its not over? God is for you not against you. God want’s you to experience His suddenly this morning. Suddenly He can wash away the pain, the heartache, the discouragement, the defeat. With the shepherds it said the angel of the Lord came and the glory of the Lord shone round about them and He said Fear Not. I bring to you good tidings of great joy. You may fear getting back on your feet and stepping boldly into the plan God has for you. God says to you this morning Fear Not. I’ve got good news! You need to rejoice! You’re about to encounter a suddenly from God in your life…
This season of the year we’re encountering an election cycle that seems like its never going to end. We’ve encountered hurricanes, murder hornets, earthquakes, floods, COVID-19, riots, and cities burning and the hits just keep on coming. But just like when God suddenly broke into History through His son Jesus Christ to be with the people, Immanuel, God with us, I believe HE can still break through the wickedness of our society today and bring revival. Just like in Jesus day, the light came and the darkness couldn’t overcome it.
What better time than today to allow God to suddenly break through in your life, your family, your job, your relationships, your finances and demonstrate that He is Immanuel, God with you. He is Jehovah Jireh, God your provider. He is Jehovah Shammah, God your healer. He is Jehovah Tsidkenu, God your Righteousness. He is Jehova Sabaoth, the God of Hosts. He is El Shaddai, God Almighty. He is Jehovah Nissi, God your banner. He is Jehovah Rohi, God your Shepherd. He is Jehovah Shalom, God your peace.
His name is Immanuel, God with us. The same Jesus who suddenly broke in on history 2000 years ago is here this morning. God has a suddenly for you this morning. The altars are open. If it seems hope is lost, if it seems like it is over, if it your discouraged, dejected, disheartened, or depressed, Jesus Christ is here and He has a suddenly for you. He suddenly will break through in your heart and life, wash away the pain, and give you a fresh start. Come find a place to pray if you need God’s Suddenly to break through in your life!