Repent for the
A radical Christian Life: Repent for the
Adapted from a Don Gettys Sermon
Introduction:
It is great to be back with you from the
holidays. Last week
after board meeting some a couple of us stayed back and started talking about
the temptations that are out there in the world. We started sharing the amazing and terrible
signs that are happening all around us.
And someone made the comment, we need to watch more.
Turn to texts to watch and pray for such is the
kingdom of heaven.
Now we have openly gay TV stars. Over the years the
threshold of morality has been lowered so often that it is now a deep
chasm. The need is great for modern
folks to recognize that these things are a great sin in God's sight. But, Like any other temptation, God can give us the victory over
any tendency or inclination.
Since World War II there has not been one hour without
war. Battles, skirmishes and ambushes -- fighting rages day
and night. It happens on Belfast's streets, along Iran's and Iraq's
1,000-mile front, afganistan, in Central America's
mountainous jungles. "It's going to get worse" said Richard Staar, international studies director at the Hoover
Institution of War, Revolution and Peace, in Pal Alto, Calif.
Every day soldiers are firing guns in 30 to 40 nations. Wars of liberation. Territorial disputes. Religious wars. "One man's freedom fighter is another's terrorist". The common denominator is death. The Center for Defense Information, estimates the number killed since the early 1970's to 1986 at anywhere from a "conservative" 4.5 million to a more realistic 7.1 million. The bottom line: one in three of the world's 6 billion people -- live in armed conflict. -- USA Today, Oct. 27, 1986
-And according to statistics there 4 times have many
people have died from government mass murder in the last century, than on the
battle field.
Every day over 30,000 people die of starvation.
Earthquakes have doubled every decade since the
1950's. Many are in places never thought prone to earthquakes before.
Since 1900 as many as 1,300 false Christs have appeared in this world.
Murders are a daily fact. Turn on your TV for the
morning news and you will hear that someone shot or knifed another during the
night.
Wickedness is spreading so fast.
---Cable and Satellite TV and videocassettes, internet make pornography available to nearly everyone. The
recent book Vital Signs reports that of Christian households hooked into
cable television, 23 percent subscribe to porno channels -- the same percentage
as the nation as a whole! ----Law enforcement officials estimate that every
year as many as one million youngsters age 1-16 are sexually molested while
being filmed/photographed. (Ladies Home Journal, April
1983)
It aint no leave it to
beaver or the waltons
anymore!
Over half of all children today were conceived out
of marriage! Every day 54,493 teenagers come down with venereal disease; 3,231
kill their own unborn child...... Every Day! Adventist Christians must earnestly pray for a full measure of love
from Heaven in our marriages and our homes.
What is a form of Godliness? Perhaps churches that call themselves Christians but don’t
live it.
People who can sing the songs, and mouth the words,
but are not connected with Jesus. –Today We are seeing
a unity of churches. "The protestants of the
United States will be foremost in stretching their hands across the gulf to
grasp the hand of Spiritualism; they will reach over the abyss to clasp hands
with the Roman power, and under the influence of this three fold union, this
country will follow in the steps of Rome in trampling on the rights of
conscience..." Great Controversy (EG White) p. 588 This Pope is
even urging unity among Christians and Moslems!
God is looking for unselfish Christians. Those who are willing to share generously with the projects and
needs of God's work.
---Some of you people would be millionaires right
now if through the years you didn’t pay your tithes and offerings. Who do you think is greater in the eyes of
God? Someone living in
a beat-up house trailer faithful to God, or someone in a mansion who has robbed
him. People will love money more
than love God.
Every day in America almost 3,000 children run away
from home. One of the 10 commandments are honor your
parents.
-Young people don’t sneak around and disobey your
parents. Don’t lie to them, cheat them and go against them. If you do, Your only asking for pain!
Try to work with them. Try to
show them you love them. I can guarantee
that most of them love you. They want
what is best, your friends don’t really care! they won’t be there for you when you need them, your parents
will. What a blessing it is to see an
obedient young person.
I wonder how many would come to prayer meeting if we
offered free tickets to disney?
Those
Israelites were silly worshipping those Idols of stone and wood couldn’t they
see? But today the idol is pleasure,
forbidden pleasures and people love these more than they love GOD.
Do you know - There is no such thing as Self
Control! Unless God is in charge of our life we are out of control! I don’t care how much you know, how good of a
home you came from, or what theology degrees or how many Spiritual books you
read!!!! Without a living connection with Jesus we are like a car going 70 MPH
down a winding road without a steering wheel! I want to be controlled by the
Holy Spirit.
Did you know...
-France has twice as many Muslims as Protestants.
There are more spiritist healers in Paris than medical doctors, priests and pastors combined.
Did you hear about the human cloning this week? I guess they cloned the first human embrio.
14. CLONING: Scientists are getting deep into the very fabric of life. We are cloning sheep. Farmers might clone their best milk cows. Why not clone the best workers. We could create a new race of super humans with the mind of Einstein. We could clone perfect apples or trees. Just splice in the genes you want. Mix and match. How about dinosaurs? Will God step in and say: Gentlemen, it is closing time, you have gone far enough.
----
“But if there was one sin above another which
called for the destruction of the race by the flood,
it
was the base crime of amalgamation of man and
beast which defaced the image of God, and caused
confusion everywhere. God purposed to destroy
by
a flood that powerful, long-lived race that had
corrupted their ways before him.” SOP
Vol. 1 p. 69
Actually
don't worry too much about cloning yet. We could clone Abraham Lincoln but
there is a good chance he would be placed in a day care at the age of 8 weeks
and mesmerized by large doses of TV, & violence and soon join the crowd
going down the wide road that leads to oblivion.
15.
WILD MUSIC-- CD's- LYRICS LIKE "You're nobody/Till somebody kills
you" Death Rock. Gangsa Rap. Music reeks with
occultism, suicide, torture.
16.
WEIRD EVIL TOYS-- Not Barbae or Ken or G.I. Joe, but
evil alien dolls named kiss heavily tattooed. Mutant Ninja
Turtles. What is the world coming
to? The End!
Are
you ready?
My
bible reads that this when this gospel is preached to the end of the earth then
the end will come. I believe that could
happen in 6 months.
"The ONLY defense against evil is the
indwelling of Christ in the heart through faith in His righteousness." Last
Day Events, page 64.
We need a vital connection with Jesus: Dear friend
We need total surrender of ourselves to Jesus
We need a personal acquaintance with Christ
We need a continual communion with Jesus
We need the perfect robe of Jesus righteousness
We need a deep prayer experience with Jesus.
"No man is safe for an hour without prayer" GC530
We need meaningful Bible study. Feed on the Word.
"None but those who have fortified the mend with the truths of the Bible
will stand through the last great conflict". GC593
Are
you hungering and thirsting after righteousness? Do you want your life with Christ to be
abundant? Then take time, take time with
Jesus, don’t put it off, let this week be different. Jesus wants to speak to your soul. He wants to help you. TO GIVE YOU PEACE AND JOY!
Luke 21:
34 "Be careful, or your hearts will be weighed
down with dissipation, drunkenness and the anxieties of life, and that day will
close on you unexpectedly like a trap.
35 For it will come upon all those who live on the
face of the whole earth.
36 Be always on the watch, and pray that you may be
able to escape all that is about to happen, and that you may be able to stand
before the Son of Man."
1. Maybe you have come here
today and you have been beaten up by the enemy.
Maybe you haven’t walked with God, or talked with him in a while. <Maybe you haven’t been on the watch and
Satan and his temptations have gotten the best of you. Don’t be discouraged, Jesus died to save
you. He died to give you life. There is enough grace available in you come
to God and confess your need. Come to
God in Repentance. He will take you
back, even though you have failed Him.
He loves you with an everlasting love.
2. Maybe you realize that
you’ve been asleep to the danger. Asleep
to the times that we are living in.
Maybe God is calling you to seek him in a deeper way. Perhaps he is calling you to do ministry.
Start something, or support something that is going on. Jesus says to you “watch and pray, lest you
enter into temptation.” He says, “Go
forward I will help you I will uphold you with the right hand of my
righteousness.
3. Maybe you have come today
with a serious problem in your life.
Maybe you feel like your in a pit, or that
chains are binding you. God wants to set
you free. HE knows your need. He sees your case. Caste your burdens upon him. He will sustain you. He will help you! He will not caste
you away.
4. Maybe don’t think you have a
need. Maybe yours
saying when is this guy going to sit down. I’m hungry.
Oh dear friend the bible says if anyone thinks he stands, take heed lest
he fall.
Repent
for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. Acts 3:19 Repent ye therefore, and
be converted, that your sins may be
blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the
Lord. Surrender everything to God. Surrender all your secret sins, all your
pain, all your heartaches.
---After
I finish preaching and we sing the closing song, your
going to walk out of this church. But I
hope that things won’t be the same. I
pray that you will invite God to go with you and let Him be in control of your
life. I pray that in these last days you
will hear the voice of God speaking to your soul, and you will have a hunger to
know Jesus more, like you’ve never had before.
-God
is calling for an intense, radical faith in these last days. He is calling for disciples who can be filled with the love of Jesus, and an
intense hatred for the evil in this world.
Do not listen to Satan’s
lies that it is too hard. Do not listen
when he says that your too bad.
Jesus died for you. After 9-11 there was so much blood donated
they ended up destroying 1000’s of units of blood. Jesus precious blood is abundant, but don’t
waste it. Don’t throw it away. Accept his precious gift of life.
He
is calling you. Listen to his voice.