End Time Expectations Part 3
Notes
Transcript
Matthew 24: 43-51
Who then is a faithful and wise servant, whom his lord hath made ruler over his household, to give them meat in due season?
Blessed is that servant, whom his lord when he cometh shall find so doing.
Introduction.
Expect some people to fall away from the truth in their actions, because in their heart they think His coming is delayed.
These do not fall away from the truth publicly, but in their hearts they have lost their faith, and it manifests in their actions.
The little things matter.
““For the want of a nail the shoe was lost,
For the want of a shoe the horse was lost,
For the want of a horse the rider was lost,
For the want of a rider the battle was lost,
For the want of a battle the kingdom was lost,
And all for the want of a horseshoe-nail.”
Benjamin Franklin
But know this, that if the goodman of the house had known in what watch the thief would come, he would have watched, and would not have suffered his house to be broken up.
The good man is the man responsible for the house. If he knew what watch he would be ready.
You can only be ready for the rapture by the Message of the Hour. Many others will be saved, but only those watching will go with him as the Bride.
62-0706 - Jehovah-Jireh 2
You’ve had speaking in tongues, dancing in the Spirit. You’ve had all these sensations you had, seen miracles of healing, and wheel chairs, and so forth. We’ve seen all of that.
But here, here’s the last sign done come up now. Abraham seen all kinds of things God did for him along the way, sure, but here comes the last sign, just before the promised son come. And now the royal Seed is looking for a promised Son. Hallelujah!
Are we, are we looking for a promised Son? The Son of God to return! Hallelujah! Oh, that makes me feel like shouting. Look! The royal Seed is looking for a promised Son. As Abraham did down through the years, watching, holding onto that Word, so has the royal Seed.
And the Seed watching for this coming Son, the coming of the Lord, through one watch, two watch, three watch, on to the seventh watch, and here we are still looking for the royal Seed. And what do we see just before the Coming of the Lord? What takes place?
God comes down in our midst, showing the royal Seed like He did Abraham’s seed; and Abraham, and Abraham’s seed, and here It is with the royal Seed. God dwelling among us in the form of the Holy Spirit, doing the same things He did back there, performing, showing it’s the same.
You know the watch, so you won’t be caught off guard.
Therefore be ye also ready: for in such an hour as ye think not the Son of man cometh.
The next few verses are to the ones who know the watch.
Who then is a faithful and wise servant, whom his lord hath made ruler over his household, to give them meat in due season?
Who then is a faithful and wise servant] The steward was generally a slave whom his master had chosen on account of his trustworthiness and intelligence to be the steward of his estate, his villicus or dispensator. The word “dispensation,” in such expressions as “the present dispensation,” “the Christian dispensation,” has passed into religious language from this and the parallel passages.
His household] all his other slaves, Lat. familia. To give them meat in due season] The daily (diarium) or monthly (menstruum) allowance; This imagery, drawn from a large Roman estate (latifundium), has given rise to the often-recurring thought of the Stewardship of the Apostles and Ministers of Christ.- Cambridge
1 Corinthians 4:1–5 (KJV 1900)
Let a man so account of us, as of the ministers of Christ, and stewards of the mysteries of God.
Moreover it is required in stewards, that a man be found faithful.
But with me it is a very small thing that I should be judged of you, or of man’s judgment: yea, I judge not mine own self.
For I know nothing by myself; yet am I not hereby justified: but he that judgeth me is the Lord.
Therefore judge nothing before the time, until the Lord come, who both will bring to light the hidden things of darkness, and will make manifest the counsels of the hearts: and then shall every man have praise of God.
As every man hath received the gift, even so minister the same one to another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God.
If any man speak, let him speak as the oracles of God; if any man minister, let him do it as of the ability which God giveth: that God in all things may be glorified through Jesus Christ, to whom be praise and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.
Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.
A Steward must be faithful.
Thayer Definition:
1) trusty, faithful
1a) of persons who show themselves faithful in the transaction of business, the execution of commands, or the discharge of official duties
1b) one who kept his plighted faith, worthy of trust
1c) that can be relied on
And Moses verily was faithful in all his house, as a servant, for a testimony of those things which were to be spoken after;
He that is faithful in that which is least is faithful also in much: and he that is unjust in the least is unjust also in much.
If therefore ye have not been faithful in the unrighteous mammon, who will commit to your trust the true riches?
And if ye have not been faithful in that which is another man’s, who shall give you that which is your own?
We don’t get to choose the things we are to be faithful in.
65-1128M - God's Only Provided Place Of Worship
93 Now notice verse 2. “Worship in the place that I have chosen.” The sacrifice, of course, where they worshipped over the sacrifice. “The place that I chose; not what you chose, what man chose.
But what I have chosen, you worship in this place.” There shows there’s then only one place, others is vain. It must be not of your choice, but it must be His choice.
94 “Well, I don’t have to go to the church.” Or, “You are so narrow-minded! Why, you’ll even fuss at women about preaching, and…or women about bobbing their hair, and men about these other things. Why, you’re so narrow-minded!”
95 All right, you don’t have to take God’s way about it, you go on out where they do that at. See? And you’ll find out it’s in the Scripture, so, “In vain do they worship Me.” Jesus spoke of the same thing. See?
96 That every little jot, everything, you must be faithful in. It’s always the little vine, the little fox that spoils the vine. Sometimes you leave…It’s not the big things you do, it’s the little things you leave undone.
Remember, a chain is only its strongest at its weakest link. “Blessed are they that do all the commandments of God, that they might have a right to enter in.” Do all God said.
97 If It said for women to have long hair, you say…a man told me not long ago, said, “I don’t preach a clothesline religion.”
98 I said, “Then you’re not preaching the Gospel.” Yeah.
99 God laid it out there, He said what to do. And you either do it…That’s your natural, reasonable thing. What little thing…what…the little insignificant. Jesus said, “Blessed are they that would take all the little things, do the little things.”
And a woman to let her hair grow, that’s just a…why, it’s just something she can do, and she won’t even do that. She won’t even do that.
100 “Oh, teach us the great things.” 101 How can you teach the great things, when you won’t do the simple, common thing? Because, you see, your motive and your objective is wrong.
102 It’s your love to God, “Lord, I don’t care what You want me to do, I’m willing to do it.”
Blessed is that servant, whom his lord when he cometh shall find so doing.
Verily I say unto you, That he shall make him ruler over all his goods.
But and if that evil servant shall say in his heart, My lord delayeth his coming;
But, and if that evil servant - Here are three characters of a bad minister.
1. He has little or no faith in the speedy coming of Christ, either to punish for wickedness, or to pardon and sanctify those who believe. It may be, he does not outwardly profess this, but he says it in his heart, and God searches his heart, and knows that he professes to teach what he does not believe.
2. He governs with an absolute dominion, oppressing his colleagues and doing violence to the followers of Christ. And shall begin to smite, etc.
3. He leads an irregular life does not love the company of the children of God, but eats and drinks with the drunkards, preferring the tables of the great and the rich, whose god is their belly, and thus feeds himself without fear.
Great God! save thine inheritance from being ravaged by such wolves!- Clark
And shall begin to smite his fellowservants, and to eat and drink with the drunken;
61 Now, notice. A new heart, a new spirit, and then I’ll put My Spirit within you. Now, and you’ll keep all my statutes and all my judgments.
When that mainspring begins to tick, when the Stone that’s rejected, when the love of God is brought back amongst the people of God, then you’re going to see the church of God all fellowshipping with one another without any friction at all.
Now, you remember when the servants in the Bible, they said, “Our Lord delays his coming.” They begin to devour one another and bite and fuss and stew. And the Lord come and caught them that way.
68 And, look, the church is lollying. The church has no conscience no more. You can hardly wake them up. The Bible said they would come in that condition when they’d say, “‘Lo, our Lord delays His Coming.’
And they’ll be devouring and biting one another, and so forth, and fighting around.” It’s just exactly that hour. Everything’s ready. The pages is turned, as it was like that, and it’s ready, the Coming of the Lord.
The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.
And sware by him that liveth for ever and ever, who created heaven, and the things that therein are, and the earth, and the things that therein are, and the sea, and the things which are therein, that there should be time no longer:
6 and swore by the one who lives forever and ever, who created heaven and the things in it, and the earth and the things in it, and the sea and the things in it, “There will be no more delay!
There is no more delay! We have passed from time into eternity in Christ.
It is the steward’s perception of a delay that caused him to smite his fellowservants.
The lord of that servant shall come in a day when he looketh not for him, and in an hour that he is not aware of,
55 Noah was building an ark. He was not only working a miracle, but he was preparing for a miracle. Now, the church today is not only having miracles, but it’s preparing for a miracle: the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ and the rapture of the church to be taken up.
Give me a church ready, visualized to see signs and to see the omnipotent God, the great power of God moving amongst the people. Which the rapture will be an easy thing when Jesus comes. They’ll be caught up, because they believe in such. Sure, we’re at the end time.
56-0122 - The Junction Time
23 Usually in the world today, that people think of the appearing of the Lord as a horrible, dreadful thing. Oh, the world might come to its…“Don’t talk to me about that,” they’ll say. They don’t want to know about those things. They don’t care about them; just for the present day living. But those who love the Lord, love His appearing.
24 What if one of your loved one, some of you older people, that your mother was gone on, or your father, or your baby, and they were been away for so many years, and you knowed that they might appear at any time? Why, you’d have the house all cleaned up. You would just be ready and watching down that road, for, every car light that turned in, you’d think it would be them.
25 Now that’s the way the Church ought to be watching for the Coming of the Lord. All in order, all ready, all packed up and ready to go as soon as He comes, because, “It’ll be in a moment, in a twinkling of an eye.” Just try to time how long it would take your eye to twinkle, that’s just how quick the Rapture of the Church will take place.
58-1012 - The Sudden, Secret Going Away Of The Church
During the time when it looks like the Lord is delaying His coming, there is a great falling away.
Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him,
That ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand.
Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition;
Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God.
Remember ye not, that, when I was yet with you, I told you these things?
And now ye know what withholdeth that he might be revealed in his time.
For the mystery of iniquity doth already work: only he who now letteth will let, until he be taken out of the way.
And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming:
Even him, whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders,
And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved.
And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie:
That they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness.
But we are bound to give thanks alway to God for you, brethren beloved of the Lord, because God hath from the beginning chosen you to salvation through sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth:
Lexham Theological Wordbook ἀποστασία
ἀποστασία (apostasia). n. rebellion, apostasy, abandonment. Refers to rebelling or abandoning a former authority.
Many have fallen away publicly, but the steward had fallen away in his heart, and it manifested in his life as unfaithfulness.
What happens to the unfaithful steward?
And shall cut him asunder, and appoint him his portion with the hypocrites: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
This is extreme capital punishment.
Conclusion.
How do I guard against inward apostasy? Put another way, how do I inspire faithfulness in my life? By allowing the faithful one to take possession.
And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and he that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he doth judge and make war.
Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering; (for he is faithful that promised;)
Faithful is he that calleth you, who also will do it.
What a consolation that is to us who hope to be in the last day bride, for it causes our hearts to leap for joy that He is faithful and will perform His every promise.
If He was faithful and true to those of the Sardisean Age, then He is just as true to this our age. If they by His grace and power will be received and commended by Him, then so will we. Let us go therefore, to perfection and meet the Lord in the air, and be forever with Him.
CAB 07 - Sardisean