Enjoying the Journey

(Revelation 22:20-21) Come with us to the last page of the Bible. This is how it all ends. Prophecy leads us beyond earth to a new heaven and new earth, beyond time to eternity. (0973250324) ----more----   The End of the World There's nothing quite as exciting as coming to the end of a book and seeing how it all ends. How the pieces all come together, how the story concludes the victory of the end. The same thing is true in scripture. When you come to the end of the book of the Revelation of Jesus Christ, you discover how it's all going to end. The Return of Christ and the Rapture And we know the next thing on God's agenda is the return of Christ in the air, the rapture of the church that sets in motion the tribulation period here on Earth. And while we're in heaven, we'll have the judgment seat of Christ and the marriage supper of the lamb. What a great celebration that will be, but that's not the end of it all. No, immediately after that, the Lord Jesus Christ is coming back to this planet. That's right. He's coming back to this earth and we are coming with Him. Listen to the words of Revelation 20:1, "1And I saw an angel come down from heaven, having the key of the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand. 2 And he laid hold on the dragon, that old serpent, which is the Devil, and Satan, and bound him a thousand years, 3 And cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up..." Won't that be a good day when the devil gets shut up? "...and set a seal upon him, that he should deceive the nations no more, till the thousand years should be fulfilled: and after that he must be loosed a little season." Did you catch the little expression there, "a thousand years,"? In fact, that expression, "a thousand years" is used six times in Revelation 20:1-10. The Millennial Reign of Christ It is commonly referred to in prophetic language as the millennium of the millennial reign of Christ. It's a reference to the thousand-year visible earthly reign of the Lord Jesus on this earth that follows the great tribulation. He returns from heaven. We come with him. He sets up his throne to rule and reign on this earth. If you read through Revelation 20, there's an amazing description of all that takes place during this time, or at least everything that God wants us to know at this point. And some people have questioned, do you really think that's gonna happen? Oh, yes, I do. Because when the Lord Jesus sets up his kingdom and rules and reigns here on the earth, then he is gonna have the opportunity to completely fulfill his unconditional covenant covenants that he made with the nation of Israel. He's going to free this world from the curse of sin. Think of that and reward the faithfulness of saints. I had a Bible teacher years ago that used to ask this question. He said, "Are you getting ready to rule?" According to scripture in the millennial kingdom, the saints are awarded positions of authority based on their faithfulness in this life. We're allowed to rule and reign with Christ. So let me ask you, "Are you getting ready to rule once and for all?" The Lord Jesus is going to rule and reign on this earth for that thousand year period, it's gonna be the most wonderful time. If the tribulation is the most awful time in world history, this is gonna be the most wonderful time this world has ever known. According to scripture, people are going to enjoy increased lifespans. Isaiah 65 tells us that. Isaiah 65 also tells us that the nature of animals will even be radically changed. The lion will lay down with the lamb. Somebody says that's not natural. No. That's what happens when the Lord brings peace. All of nature will be fruitful as it's never been before in this cursed world. Isaiah 35 tells us about that and the head of the government, who will that be? That's gonna be the King. The King of kings, the Lord Jesus Christ. It will be truly a theocracy. God's going to prove once and for all that only he is able to perfectly govern this earth. We believe according to the book of Isaiah, that he's gonna rule and reign from his throne in Jerusalem. It is the spiritual center of the whole Earth. Zechariah 8 tells us that, and we believe that God is going to rule and reign during that period.  Satan's Final Revolt and Judgment Now you'll notice when I read you from Revelation 20, the Bible says, "After that, Satan will be loosed for a little season." Can you imagine that? After a thousand years of perfect peace and harmony and the Lord's ruling reign, the devil's gonna be released for a short period of time and is gonna attempt one last revolt as described for us in Revelation 20:7-9, "7And when the thousand years are expired, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison, 8 And shall go out to deceive the nations which are in the four quarters of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to battle: the number of whom is as the sand of the sea. 9 And they went up on the breadth of the earth, and compassed the camp of the saints about, and the beloved city: and fire came down from God out of heaven, and devoured them." It's not really much of a battle. God's just gonna breathe fire from heaven and consume all of them. Once and for all. Satan is gonna meet his final judgment and be cast into the lake of fire forever. And all who follow him will be cast into the lake of fire forever. It's at that moment that God will bring the final judgment into this world that moment, the heavens and the earth are gonna be destroyed by fire. Revelation 20:11 tells us that everything is going to be gone, it's going to be consumed. Peter describes it also in 2nd Peter 3. Then there's going to be a resurrection and a judgment known as the great white throne. God is going to once and for all judge all of the unsaved dead. Those who've rejected him from all time are going to stand before God. They're going to be judged by holy God, and they're gonna be cast into the lake of fire forever with the devil. What a sad day that's going to be, but my friend, that's not the end. Here's how it's all gonna end.  The New Heaven and New Earth Once all of that is concluded and final judgment has come, God is going to create a new heaven and a new earth. Revelation 21, that's the next chapter. Verse 1 begins like this, "1And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea. 2And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband." God's going to create a new heaven, a new Earth, and a new Jerusalem. In fact, he goes on in Revelation chapter 22 to tell us He's going to make all things new. Listen to that expression. All things will be made new. We're going into eternity with the creator, God of the universe and the savior of our soul. And to borrow a phrase from scripture, and so shall we ever be with the Lord. That is how it's all going to end.  Where Will You Be At the End of Time? Now, my question to you is this, how's it going to end for you? If you're not a believer, your end is final judgment and hell separated from God forever. I wanna plead with you today, believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and be saved. Look to Jesus in simple faith now and receive Him as your Savior. And if you're a Christian, if you've believed on the Lord Jesus, you can take this by faith as God's promise to you, that it's not gonna end in defeat. It's gonna end in victory. It's not going to end with the devil. It's gonna end with the Lord. It's not going to end with earth. It's gonna end with eternity. I. It's going to end with us being with God forever. Years ago, I heard the story of a mother who asked her son to do some chore, and he was reading a book and kept putting it off and putting it off. And finally she said, "Son, lay the book down and do what I've told you to do." And just a moment, he came to the house grinning from ear to ear, and she said, "Why are you smiling?" And he said, "I found out how the story ends." And she said, "You read it all?" And he said, "No, but I flipped to the end of the book. And I found out who wins in the end." Can I tell you? You may not understand all of the details, but if you go to the end of the book, read the last page of scripture, Revelation 22, I'll tell you how it ends. The Lord is victorious. He is the conqueror, and we win with Him. Let's end what the Bible says about the end time with the last words of the Bible. "20 He which testifieth these things saith, Surely I come quickly. Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus. 21 The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen." Outro and Resources Repeating what other people have said about the Bible is not enough. We must know the biblical reason behind what we believe. We hope you will visit us at etj.bible to access our Library of Bible teaching resources, including book-by-book studies of scripture. You'll also find studies to watch, listen to, or read. We are so grateful for those who pray for us, who share the biblical content, and for those who invest to help us advance this ministry worldwide. Again, thank you for listening and we hope you'll join us next time on Enjoying the Journey.

(Revelation 5:1-7) It is not a sin to ask questions! The Bible is full of them, and even Jesus Himself asked them. Listen to today's episode to receive the answer to one of Scripture's supreme questions. (0972250322) 

(1 Corinthians 3:10-15) Soon we will see Jesus. There are two main events that believers in heaven will experience, after the rapture of the church, while the tribulation is taking place on earth. Each of us should be getting ready to meet God! (0971250321) ----more----  What Is Heaven? Do you ever think about what's going on in heaven? There's so many things we do know about heaven and there are many things frankly we don't know about heaven.  Heaven During the Tribulation One of the things that is very intriguing to me is what's going to go on in heaven while the tribulation is going on earth. The Lord is going to spare His church from that great tribulation. He has special things in store for us, great things planned. When we began our study most recently about the tribulation, we saw, really from an earthly perspective, what's going on with the Antichrist, here on this planet, but let's look at the same period of time, from Heaven's perspective. Basically there are two big things going on that you have to look forward to and should be thinking about. When it comes to the Lord Jesus returning for us, we're called away. We meet Him in the clouds, and then what, during that seven year period, what's going on?  The Judgment Seat of Christ The first thing that's gonna happen is you're going to stand before the Lord. It's commonly referred to in scripture as the judgment seat. Of Christ immediately after the rapture, we're going to be standing before the Lord, or should I say we're gonna be bowing before the Lord. As a matter of fact, in Revelation 4:1, the door opens in heaven and the voice says, "Come up hither." And in that very same chapter in (chapter four verse four and verse ten) the believers are seen casting their crowns at the feet of Jesus, kneeling before the throne. So we know that one of the first things that's going to  happen, though we don't know all the details of it, is we're going to stand before the Lord at what is called the judgment seat of Christ. Paul's Teachings on the Judgment Seat It's very interesting to me that the Apostle Paul seemed to talk more about this to the church at Corinth, than any other church. Let me share what I'm talking about. First Corinthians chapter three, beginning in verse number ten, says this, "10 According to the grace of God which is given unto me, as a wise masterbuilder, I have laid the foundation, and another buildeth thereon. But let every man take heed how he buildeth thereupon. 11 For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ." He said, we're in a spiritual building program. Be careful how you build. And then he says this in verse 12, "12 Now if any man build upon this foundation gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, stubble; 13 Every man’s work shall be made manifest: for the day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try every man’s work of what sort it is. 14 If any man’s work abide which he hath built thereupon, he shall receive a reward. 15 If any man’s work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss: but he himself shall be saved; yet so as by fire." He says that there's coming a day that is going to declare the truth about your life.I don't know about you, but that's thought-provoking to me. The day shall declare it. It's not about your salvation in this passage. You don't go into the fire, but your works do. You are spared the fire. Praise God. I'm not going to hell because I've trusted Christ as my personal Savior, but though my soul cannot be lost, I can lose rewards. On that day, anything that was not of eternal value was gonna be burned up. I wonder, when we stand before God someday, what will we have? I'm thinking now of the old hymn: must I go empty-handed? Must I meet my savior so? Not one soul, with which to greet Him? Must I empty-handed go?" I wonder if we'll have anything when we stand before the Lord on that day. He goes on in 1 Corinthians, listen to these words in chapter nine. He's speaking personally as far as a testimony and he says this in chapter 9 in verse number 25, "And every man that striveth for the mastery is temperate in all things. Now they do it to obtain a corruptible crown; but we an incorruptible. 26 I therefore so run, not as uncertainly; so fight I, not as one that beateth the air: 27 But I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway." He borrows from the Olympics of the day, the Greek games where the rewards were given, and the people would come before, before what was referred to as a bema seat, they were thrown like platforms where judges sat and there they were rewarded. He uses the same language, the same terminology for the judgment seat of Christ, the bema. Seat on that day. We're standing before the Lord for rewards. He continues to the church at Corinth and second Corinthians, his second letter to them, chapter five, listen to the words beginning in verse number nine. He says,"9 Wherefore we labour, that, whether present or absent, we may be accepted of him. 10 For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad." Basically, the judgment seat of Christ is a time of reward and loss of reward. Only believers will be there first. Are you going to be there? If you're not sure you're saved, you need to settle that first. Get that matter settled because if you don't know the Lord Jesus as your Savior, there's an awful judgment awaiting you called the Great White Throne Judgment. We'll talk about that soon in our study of what the Bible says about the end of time. Settle the matter of your soul's salvation. And then if you know the Lord Jesus as your personal Savior, determined by the grace of God that you're gonna live every day in light of the day, you're going to stand before Jesus Christ. Because I wanna submit to you on the authority of the Word of God. That could be any moment, any day Christ could come. Any day, we could be caught away, and any day, we could stand face to face with Almighty God to give an account of our lives. And I want to ask you, what if that were today? What if you knew that in the next four minutes, you were going to stand before the Lord in the next four minutes? Not that this study would end, that your life would end that time, as it would end. And in the next four minutes, you were gonna stand face to face with the Lord. What would you do differently then? Do that now. Because any moment Jesus could come, and this is a second thing that takes place during that seven-year period here on Earth. I'll remind you that there's no time in heaven. So it's hard to say seven years in heaven because there's no time there.  The Marriage Supper of the Lamb But during the period where the tribulation is expiring here on Earth, not only are we going, coming to the judgment seat of Christ to answer to the Lord, but then there's gonna be a great celebration it's referred to in scripture as the marriage supper of the lamb. Let me read to you from Revelation 19:6 says, "6 And I heard as it were the voice of a great multitude, and as the voice of many waters, and as the voice of mighty thunderings, saying, Alleluia: for the Lord God omnipotent reigneth. 7 Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honour to him: for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and his wife hath made herself ready. 8 And to her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white: for the fine linen is the righteousness of saints. 9 And he saith unto me, Write, Blessed are they which are called unto the marriage supper of the Lamb." We know in Ephesians chapter five that the church is represented as the bride and Christ as the bridegroom. Let me tell you, there's a wedding coming, and not only are we going to be presented to our bridegroom, but then we're going to celebrate together prior to returning with him to this earth. There's a wonderful supper, a marriage, supper. You've never attended a supper like that. And we're going to be there. We are the bride, and Christ is the groom. In Western culture, the wedding day really is all about the bride, but in eastern culture it was about the groom. Might I say to you that the day we're looking forward to is the day that the groom comes for us. Here comes the Groom. Can you see Him ready in all of His glory to catch us away? Yes, we're going to answer to Him, but then we're gonna celebrate with Him, and we're going to be with Him for all eternity.  Are You Ready to Go to Heaven? I hope you're getting ready to meet God, because I'm telling you, you're getting ready to meet God Soon we're gonna see Jesus Christ, face to face. What a time we're going to have. Whatever it is you need to do to get ready for that day, do it today. May the Lord help all of us to live in light of the soon return of Jesus Christ.  Outro and Resources Repeating what other people have said about the Bible is not enough. We must know the biblical reason behind what we believe. We hope you will visit us at etj.bible to access our Library of Bible teaching resources, including book-by-book studies of scripture. You'll also find studies to watch, listen to, or read. We are so grateful for those who pray for us, who share the biblical content and for those who invest to help us advance this ministry worldwide. Again, thank you for listening, and we hope you'll join us next time on Enjoying the Journey.

(Matthew 24:21) Our world has never seen tribulation like the tribulation that is coming on this planet at the end of the church age. God's Word explains the rise of anti-christ and the fall of civilization in graphic detail. Christ is our only hope. (0970250320) ----more----   The Tribulation Period You think the news is bad? Now wait. Just wait until the tribulation period that God says is coming on this earth. You wait. Because the news then is going to be the worst time this world has ever known. Now, thankfully, as a follower of Jesus Christ, a New Testament Christian, I don't believe we're going to be here during that period of time, and I want to pause and thank God for that. But I want to tell you, this world is about to face the worst time it's ever gone through.  The Rapture Triggers the Tribulation Period We've talked most recently as we look at what the Bible says about the end of time, about the rapture of the church, that Christ is coming in the clouds and the church is going to be carried away, caught away to be with him. What does that set in motion here on this earth? There's a period of time known in scripture as the tribulation period. It's a seven year period of time that immediately follows the church being taken out of here. Now we know that in our world today, we all have tribulation. Even now there's some tribulation. John 16:33, Jesus said, "In this world, ye shall have tribulation, but be of good cheer. I have overcome the world." So when we're talking here about the tribulation, we're not just talking about bad things happening. That happens in our present time. It doesn't mean we're in the seven-year tribulation, period. Now the tribulation taught in prophecy and scripture refers to a specific period of time at the end of this age, which is a worldwide tribulation. It literally is the worst time this world has ever seen. Jesus spoke of it in Matthew chapter 24. Here's the way he says it. Matthew 24:21, He says, "For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world, to this time, no, nor ever shall be." Pretty strong words, wouldn't you say? Literally the powers of hell get unleashed on this planet.  The Role of the Holy Spirit: God's Restraining Power There is something right now restraining Satan. Oh yes. Actually not something someone, his name is the Holy Spirit. He's the great restrainer. He's the damn holding back the flood tide of iniquity keeping men from just going off the cliff and the devil running rampant and doing whatever he wants to do, but that day is coming to an end. As a matter of fact, in 2nd Thessalonians 2, the Bible talks about it, he says In 2nd Thessalonians 2:1, "Now we beseech you brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him." Remember, we've talked about Christ comes, we're called away, we're gathered to be with him. He says, "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." Let me explain that verse. He says, there's something holding back. What withholds us? Something is restraining the antichrist from coming on the scene. Something is keeping him from being revealed. What is it he says in verse seven? For the mystery of iniquity to already work. Only he. Who now Lth will let, or he who prevents or hinders, will continue preventing and hindering 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. The Rise of the Antichrist He says, look, an Antichrist is coming. There is a man coming called the antichrist, called the man of lawlessness, called the Little Horn in. Daniel called the Beast. He's a political ruler, empowered by Satan, who's gonna receive worship and blaspheme the true God. He'll persecute believers that are present who believe on God during the tribulation period. He's going to dominate the world scene. He's gonna make a covenant with Israel and break it. Halfway through that seven-year period, he's gonna have a prophet helping him, a false prophet, referred to in scripture as the second beast, who'll come along and perform miracles and deceive lots of people. The Antichrist is going to be a powerful person. He's going to control world commerce and even use it to demand worship. I'm telling you the Antichrist is coming, but please don't miss what is taught in Second Thessalonians chapter two. And it is this: the reason the Antichrist is not revealed, has not come on the scene yet, is that there's someone holding that back from happening. And who is that person? None other than the Holy Spirit. Now, when will the Holy Spirit be removed? The only way the Holy Spirit can be removed is we have to be removed because where does the Holy Spirit live? He lives in believers, and God's promised he would never leave us and never forsake us. So the only way the Holy Spirit can be taken out is we have to be taken out. So when the Lord Jesus Christ comes, when the church is taken out, the restrainer is gone. The Holy Spirit in dwelling believers. That is removed and the salt and light of the church is removed. Imagine what this world would be like without any gospel preaching. Imagine what this world would be like if the devil had free reign, because that's what's gonna get set in motion at this period known here as the tribulation. The Antichrist will come on the scene. He's gonna promise peace and safety. Doesn't that sound nice? And everybody who's sick of war and sick of fighting is gonna sign on and say, oh, that's what we want. He's gonna make a covenant. A covenant that would even protect Israel, would take care of Israel. Surely anybody that can bring peace when it's connected to Israel in a world of war can be believed and can be trusted, and yet this person is a deceiver. I. He is going to set in motion a period known as the tribulation period.  The Great Tribulation and Armageddon He's going to lead an alliance of western nations to have this treaty with Israel, and then three and a half years in halfway through the tribulation period, he's going to break that covenant, and then that sets in motion the period that is commonly referred to in scripture as the great tribulation. As a matter of fact, if you take Revelation chapters six through nineteen and read them carefully, it describes the sequence of the tribulation events. There are judgments coming war and bloodshed and worldwide famine and death. There'll be martyrs. There'll be catastrophic events. The nations of the earth are gonna march against Israel. The Antichrist is going to just have his way. He is Satan's emissary. He is the devil's representative in this world. I. All kinds of judgment is coming during that tribulation period. And how will it end? It's gonna end in a great battle known as the Battle of Armageddon, when the Lord Jesus Christ is gonna come and put down the antichrist and all who followed him. In other words, we've read the end of the story and we know we're on the winning side. Aren't you glad for that? May I tell you, I'm not looking for the antichrist. I have no idea who the antichrist is. We have no idea who that person is, but that's not what I'm looking for. I'm not looking for him. I'm looking for Christ because the Lord Jesus Christ is coming to catch us away.  Providing Hope in a Hopeless World Friend, I hope you'll live today looking for the soon return of Jesus Christ, but also hope in a very serious vein. With a sober mind, you'll consider the great tribulation. What lost people will endure what's coming on this world to those who do not know Jesus Christ. As their personal Savior, may it be a motivation today to share the good news of Christ with someone. Friend, I not only want to go when he comes. I wanna take as many people with me as possible, and I hope you'll do the same thing. The worst time this world has ever seen is about to come. It's on the way. It's on the horizon. We have at this moment the greatest opportunity in the history of the world - to get the gospel of Jesus Christ to those who need it. Do your part today. Outro and Resources Repeating what other people have said about the Bible is not enough. We must know the biblical reason behind what we believe. We hope you will visit us at etj.bible to access our Library of Bible teaching resources, including book-by-book studies of Scripture. You'll also find studies to watch, listen to, or read. We are so grateful for those who pray for us, who share the biblical content, and for those who invest to help us advance this ministry worldwide. Again, thank you for listening and we hope you'll join us next time on Enjoying the Journey.

(1 Thessalonians 4:13-17) Someday soon God's people are going to get carried away! The next great event in the last days is the coming of Christ for His church. Are you ready to be caught away? (0969250319) ----more----   The Last Days Welcome to the last days. Second Timothy 3:1 says this, "Know also that in the last days perilous time shall come. For men should be lovers of their own selves. covetous, boasters, proud blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy without natural affection, truce breakers, false accusers, incontinent fiercce, despisers of those that are good, traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God, having a form of godliness but denying the power thereof." I repeat, "Welcome to the last days." We are living, my friends, in perilous times, and yet I'm afraid too often when we talk about the last days, it gives the connotation of some doom. Now, certainly those doomed for those who do not know God. It is a sad reality that people will be separated from God forever. But if you're a child of God, if you know the Lord Jesus Christ as your personal Savior, this is not a sad ending. Instead, it's a glorious beginning of eternity with God, of every good thing that God has planned for us. The Bible says, "Eye hath not seen, ear hath not heard, neither is entered into the heart of man, the things that God hath prepared for them that love him." Do you love the Lord Jesus Christ? If you do, I want you to know the Lord who loves you first, and loves you more than you could ever imagine. Has mighty things in store for you.  The Rapture of the Church We're talking about what the Bible says about the end of time and what it will be set in motion. Now we know that scripture teaches, we just read it in 2nd Timothy 3, that the last days describes that period between the first coming of Christ and the second coming of Christ, and we know that Christ came the first time and he's promised he will come again. So I believe that the next thing on God's agenda. The next thing on the divine calendar is what is commonly referred to as the rapture of the church. And we're gonna talk about that word in just a moment, but a simply put, we're referring to the moment when the Lord Jesus Christ comes again. I. For us when he comes to take his children out of this world. Now, the word rapture is not actually found in scripture, and yet the teaching of it certainly is. You see the word rapture comes from a word that means to, to catch away, to seize or carry away. The word is actually used in scripture. For example, 1 Thessalonians 4:17 says this, "We which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds." That's the exact meaning of the word rapture. That is exactly what we're talking about. We're gonna be caught away. It's used of Philip in Acts chapter eight. Remember when the Holy Spirit caught him away? It's used of the Apostle Paul in 2 Corinthians 12. He was caught up into the third heaven; and so we believe there's gonna be a definite moment when God catches away his children, when he removes us from this perilous world, this wicked age, and brings us into his presence forever. As a matter of fact, when you come to the last book of the Bible, the revelation of Jesus Christ. He talks to his churches in the New Testament age. In Revelation chapter two, revelation chapter three. When you come to Revelation chapter four, verse one, you read these words, "After this, I looked and behold a door was open in heaven, and the first voice, which I heard was, as it were, of a trumpet talking with me, which said, come up hither and I will show thee things which must be hereafter." It's my conviction that verse is representative of a shift from the church age into the things which shall be hereafter. Friend, there's about to be a door open in heaven. There's about to be a voice and a trumpet. There's about to be a word come up hither. That's the catching away of believers in this New Testament age to be with the Lord Jesus Christ forever. Scriptural Basis for the Rapture Now, the most definitive portion of scripture that deals with the rapture of the church is 1 Thessalonians chapter four. So let me read the portion of scripture and then we'll draw a few observations. First Thessalonians chapter four, beginning in verse thirteen says, "But I would not have you to be ignorant brethren concerning them which are asleep." That means those who've died. "That you sorrow not, even as others which have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again." May I pause and ask, Do you believe that's the only way? That you can truly know Christ as your Savior? Do you believe Jesus died and rose again? If you believe that the Bible says, "even them also, which sleep in Jesus will God bring with Him." In other words, as surely as Jesus didn't end at the cross and didn't stay in the tomb, he's not finished with us. There's more to come. The best is yet to come for the child of God. He goes on in verse fifteen to say, "For this, we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain under the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them, which are asleep. For the Lord himself," - not an angel, not a prophet - "the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with a 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." So what's the chain of events? What is set in motion? It begins with Christ returning. Christ himself is coming with a shout of victory. This is wonderful. God's gonna break his silence. Somebody said, I've never heard a booming voice from heaven. No, I haven't either, but God's going to break his silence. He descends from heaven, but He doesn't come all the way to the earth. Instead, the Bible says He comes in the air. Remember when He left in his ascension, the angel said, "This same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as you have seen him go." He went up in the clouds. He's coming back in the clouds. The Bible says that those who are asleep in Jesus, who have died in Christ, they are coming back with Him. Their bodies are going to be resurrected from the grave. Isn't that gonna be glorious? They're coming out first, and so the Lord is coming back accompanied with all the pomp and circumstance of a king because he is a king. He's the King of kings and the Lord of Lord. So you have his return. Then you have the resurrection. That's the dead in Christ. Those who've died during this church age, they're gonna rise. Then the rapture, the living believers, I hope we're in that group. Frankly, the living believers are called up with them into the clouds, and the Bible says then there's a great reunion. A reunion both with them and with the Lord. First Corinthians 15:52 says, it's going to happen in a moment in the twinkling of an eye. Though we may talk about the process of it, it's gonna be a momentous occasion. It's instantaneous and complete in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye.  The Imminent Return of Christ Now we know that this is happening because the Lord promised it was gonna happen and God doesn't lie. We also know that it could happen any moment the coming of Jesus Christ. Is imminent. Jesus said in John 14, "If I go away, I will come again and receive you unto myself that where I am there ye may be also." Let me just end today where the Lord ends. Let's let God have the final word here. Revelation 22:20 says, "He which testifieth these things saith. Surely I come. Quickly." Somebody said, What do you know about the coming of Christ? All I know is he's coming surely, and he's coming quickly. What should our response be? The rest of verse 20 says, "Amen. Even so, come Lord Jesus." Your Faith and the Rapture If you don't know Christ as your Savior, would you put your faith in Him right now? Would you call on Him and ask Him to be your Savior so you can look forward to going to be with Him forever? He'll come to live in your heart today, and if you know the Lord Jesus as your Savior, I hope you can live today with victory and joy saying, "Even so come, Lord Jesus." My closing prayer for you today is the closing prayer of the Bible. In light of the soon return of Christ in the rapture of the church, "The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen." Outro and Resources Repeating what other people have said about the Bible is not enough. We must know the biblical reason behind what we believe. We hope you will visit us at etj.bible to access our Library of Bible teaching resources, including book-by-book studies of scripture. You'll also find studies to watch, listen to, or read. We are so grateful for those who pray for us, who share the biblical content and for those who invest to help us advance this ministry worldwide. Again, thank you for listening, and we hope you'll join us next time on Enjoying the Journey.

(Isaiah 46:11) Scripture is full of prophecy and sincere Bible students must not neglect it. Today, we uncover five definite blessings connected to the study of prophecy. Our goal is to learn more than end time events; it is to know more deeply the eternal God. (0968250318)  ----more----  The World's Fascination with End Times Hollywood has made a small fortune imagining what the end of the world is going to look like. In fact, it seems every week. Something new in printed form or media comes out about the end of time, and yet I think it may be smarter if we ask the one who started time, how time is going to end. That is the eternal God, the creator of all things. What does God say? What does the Bible say? About the end of time, about last things.  Biblical Prophecy: An Overview As you read and study the word of God, you're gonna be shocked, I think, to see how much of the Bible is prophetic - I mean by that telling us about things to come. Sixteen Old Testament books are considered to be prophetic books. You have what is commonly referred to as the major prophets and the minor prophets. But prophecy's not restricted just to those books. In fact, prophetic elements are found all through the word of God. In the Psalms there are prophetic psalms. Moses was referred to as a prophet, so that's hearkening all the way back to the beginning of the Old Testament. When you come to the New Testament, about 1/20th of the New Testament is prophetic. Now, obviously the revelation of Jesus Christ the apocalypse the final revelation. That's prophetic, but there are prophetic elements in the teachings of Christ and the writings of Paul. You can't neglect scripture. When it comes to prophecy. I heard someone recently say, what gives us the right I. To pick and choose which verses we wanna believe. What gives us the right to pick and cho choose which verses we want to study and apply and live. No, all scripture is given by inspiration of God and is profitable. So what is the profit of us studying what the Bible says about the end of time? Lemme give you several profitable things that it'll do in your life.  The Sovereignty of God in Prophecy First of all, if you study what the Bible says about prophecy. It's going to reveal something to you about the sovereignty of our God, that He truly is on the throne. He has a plan. He's all wise and all powerful. He knows exactly what he's doing. Listen to the words of Isaiah 46, verse 11. The Bible says, "Calling a ravenous bird from the east, the man that executed with my counsel from a far country. Yay, I have spoken it. I will also bring it to pass. I have purposed it. I will also do it." Now, the context of this text is in a prophecy to the nation of Israel. But listen to the revelation of God himself, the one who's giving the prophecy, he said, I've spoken it. I'm gonna bring it to pass. I've purposed it. I'm going to do it. When you begin to study prophecy, one of the things immediately that is revealed is that our God is not arbitrary. He has an eternal purpose in the ages. This is not some emergency plan with our God. From the very beginning, before time started, God knew exactly how it was going to end. So his purpose is being fulfilled. That ought to help you not just to know events, but to know the God of the Bible in a greater way. Closely akin to that, let me give you a second profitable thing.  Faith in Bible Prophecy In the book of Acts chapter number 20, we're told this beginning in verse number 26, the Apostle Paul says, "Wherefore, I take you to record this day that I'm pure from the blood of all men, for I have not shunned to declare unto you all the counsel of God." One of the things that happens when you start seeing what the Bible says about prophecy is it increases your faith in the word of God itself. And the Apostle Paul said, Acts 20:27, "I've not shunned to declare all the counsel of God." May I say to you, we should not shun all the counsel of God. Study all of the Bible. Seek to understand all of scripture. Teach and preach all of the Bible. Why? Because God has a message for us in every part of scripture that includes prophecy, faith cometh by hearing by the word of God. Your faith is gonna grow as you see God fulfilling what he foretold and everything. God foretells, he fulfills. When you see all the prophecies that have been fulfilled to this point, do you know what it says? It says that the same God who never lies, who always tells the truth and always keeps his word, is going to fulfill the rest of the prophecies. So it reveals the sovereignty of God. It increases our faith in the word of God. How about this? This is a very practical thing.  Hope in Bible Prophecy When you begin studying what the Bible says about prophecy, it's gonna give you some hope and comfort. I'm talking about living through difficult days. It's gonna help you. Second Corinthians 4:17 says, "For our light affliction, which is, but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory. While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are eternal." What does prophecy do? Prophecy makes you get your eyes off of time and on eternity. It makes you go to the end and work your way backward to find out what truly matters in light of eternity. It brings both a challenge and a comfort at the same time. He repeats that emphasis when he writes to the church at Thessalonika. First Thessalonians chapter four, listen to the words beginning in verse thirteen. He says, "But I would not have you to be ignorant brethren concerning them which are asleep, that you sorrow not, even as others which have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him. 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." Did you notice the first verse we read in 1st Thessalonians 4:13 has the word "hope" in it, and the last verse we read, verse 18 has the word "comfort" in it? Studying prophecy is going to give you hope and comfort. It's not just about knowing the sequence of events. Or what to look for next. In fact, we're not looking for an ending. We're looking for a new beginning. I'm not looking for the world to end. I'm looking for Jesus to come. I'm looking for everything God has prepared for us. That gives me hope and comfort living in difficult days.  The Purifying Affect of Prophecy And then I would say this studying prophecy, what the Bible says about the end of time will purify the believer. Yeah, one John chapter three, beginning in verse number two says this, "Beloved, now are we the sons of God. And it does not yet appear what we shall be, but we know that when he shall appear, we shall be like him. For we shall see him as he is. And every man that hath this hope in him, purify himself even as he is pure." The hope is not just for us to feel better. The hope is for us to live today. In light of eternity, it's gonna help you make today count. If you realize today could be your last day on earth, today could be the greatest day you ever live, which is the day Jesus Christ face to face. Let me give you one more study.  Loving Jesus More Through Prophecy What the Bible says about last things is gonna help you love Jesus more. Listen to Revelation 19, verse 10, "And I fell at his feet to worship him and he said unto me, See thou to it. Not I'm thy fellow servant and of thy brethren that have the testimony of Jesus. Worship God for the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy." People who want to talk about prophecy in the end time, but they don't wanna talk more about loving Christ or winning souls or living holy, have missed the spirit of prophecy. The spirit of prophecy is not about having a head full of knowledge. It's about having a heart alive and on fire with passionate love for Christ and souls around you. It will make a difference in the way you live this day. So I'm excited about our studies. We begin to talk about what the Bible says about last things, but I wanna challenge you. Don't just study it, live it. Don't just consider considerate, apply the truth to your life today. Let what the Bible says affect what you give your energy and attention to this very day. Outro and Resources Repeating what other people have said about the Bible is not enough. We must know the biblical reason behind what we believe. We hope you will visit us at etj.bible to access our Library of Bible teaching resources, including book-by-book studies of Scripture. You'll also find studies to watch, listen to, or read. We are so grateful for those who pray for us, who share the biblical content, and for those who invest to help us advance this ministry worldwide. Again, thank you for listening and we hope you'll join us next time on Enjoying the Journey.

(1 Timothy 3:15) The church is not called to do everything—it is commanded to do one thing! His purpose must become ours! Every member must find their place in the wonderful work of God in this world. (0967250317) ----more----   The Mission of the Church We've taken a good bit of time to look at what the Bible says about the church, and here's why. Because this is what God is doing in this world right now. This is present tense. This is where we're living. This is not theory, this is practice. What is God doing in this world through the local New Testament church? And what are we to be doing? What's our mission? Let's begin with one verse today, 1 Timothy 3:15 Paul writes, "But if I tarry long that thou may know how thou oughtest to behave thyself in the house of God, which is the Church of the Living God, the pillar and ground of the truth." Understanding Our Role in the Church We find something here that's true of the institution, of the church and something that's true for the individual in the church. The truth for the institution is this. We have one mission and that mission as the Church of the Living God, is to be the pillar and ground of the truth, literally to uphold the truth, to lift up the truth in love. We've been given a body of doctrine. And it's our mission, not just to hold it. Did you hear the words, the pillar and ground of the truth? What's the pillar and ground do? That's the foundation. And then the pillars hold it up. It's not just our responsibility to hold the truth, it's our responsibility to uphold the truth. It, in other words, to show it to others, to share it with those around us, to lift it up in the midst of a world that is filled with error. That's the church's mission. Now individually, what's my part in that? The Bible says that we're to know how we're to behave ourself in the house of God. In other words, we're to find our place in that work. We're to find our mission in God's mission. The New Testament Church exists to accomplish Christ's purpose in this world, not our purpose. So when you identify the Lord's mission, you've identified the local church's mission, you've identified your own mission.  The Church's Mission: Unlike Any Other  Churches have not been called on to do everything in this world. Today churches are trying to offer services and programs for every possible need. But could I remind you, the church has been given a mission that no other organization on Earth can fulfill. Ours is eternal work. Ours is not simply to make this world a better place from which to go to hell. Ours is a mission to keep people out of hell. Do you remember when we began our study of what the Bible says about the church? Jesus said of the church, the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. We're to be on the offense. We're to be advancing against the gates of hell we're to be pulling people out of the fire. In the words of Jude we're to be rescuing the perishing. That was Fannie Crosby's famous hymn, rescue the perishing care for the dying. Snatch them in pity from sin in the grave. Our mission is to advance the cause of Jesus Christ in this world and to bring people to the Lord Jesus Christ. Our mission is Christ's mission.  The Church & the Great Commission In Matthew chapter 28, the Lord Jesus gave what is commonly referred to as the Great Commission. Some people have have said that the Great Commission has become the great omission. How true it is that the one thing God left us to do is the one thing we're most failing to do. Listen to the words of Jesus in Matthew 28:18, "All power is given unto me, in heaven and in earth. Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the son and of the Holy Ghost teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you. And lo, I am with you all way, even under the end of the world. Amen." I love this. The same one who founded the church is still with us. The same one that was with that first primitive church. Those first disciples that were the called out assembly is with us now and He is with us. Not so we can simply sit in a building and enjoy a good message, not so we can simply sit around in fellowship and talk to one another and think about how great it is. We're not going to hell, but to carry out his work in this world.  Active Faith and Influence It was Hudson Taylor, the founder of the China Inland Mission that famously said, God is always advancing. I wonder if God's always advancing, are we? Because if we're in step with God, that must mean we're supposed to be on the move, not passive. But active, not simply sitting around waiting on Jesus to come. That was the error of the church at Thessalonica at one point. They thought they'll just sit around and wait on the Lord to show up. When Jesus said, occupy till I come, he did not mean occupy church pew. He meant be busy. Be busy about the Lord's business, the work of the Lord and the tool that we use in this world. Is influence. It's not force. You can't make people believe on Christ. You we're not twisting people's arms to become Christians. Rather, we are giving the gospel in the power of the Holy Spirit. That's the work that every church is to be busy with, and that means that's the work every member of the local church is to be busy with. This is how we're to behave ourselves. In the House of God, the Church of the Living God, the pillar and ground of the truth. Personal and Practical Application of the Church's Mission So let's get real, personal and practical today. Are you doing that? What are you doing in and through your local assembly to get the gospel to your community? To reach the lost in your area? To advance the cause of the gospel around the world? That is the mission of every local New Testament church and not simply to belong and not simply to believe. But then to be busy getting the Gospel to other people. In the end, the objective is one thing.  Glorifying God Through the Church It's the glory of God. The church's duty is to carry on the work of Christ, to represent the one true and living God, so that one thing will happen. He will get the glory. And my pastor used to say that the measure of any church. Is one thing. It is its likeness to Jesus Christ. Why did Jesus come to glorify the Father to reveal God again? The measure of any church is not its buildings or its budgets. It's not its programs or the personality of the preacher. The measure of any church is one thing. Is it bringing glory and honor to the Lord Jesus Christ? Is it lifting up the truth in love? Is it pointing people to God? God's mission for the church is that we bring him glory. That's true now, and that's true for all eternity. In Ephesians 3:20, we read these words now, "Unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think according to the power that worketh in us." Listen to verse 21, "Unto him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end. Amen." I hope you'll lend your amen to that unto him. Be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end. Are you bringing Him glory today? Is your church bringing him glory? If we're not advancing his name, if we're not advancing his calls, if we're not advancing his gospel, then we are not bringing him glory. What do you think we're gonna do? For all eternity? For all eternity, we're gonna bring in glory.  Eternal Glory and Worship In fact, that's how the New Testament ends. In Revelation chapter four, we're given this little snapshot around the throne of the church, and the Bible says in Revelation 4:10, "The four and twenty elders fall down before him that sat on the throne and worship him that liveth forever and ever, and cast their crowns before the throne saying, Thou it worthy, oh Lord, to receive glory and honor and power. For thou has created all things and for thy pleasure they are and were created." He repeats it in Revelation 5:11, "And the voice of many angels round the throne and the beast and the elders. And the number of them was 10,000 times 10,000 and thousands of thousands." And what are they saying with a loud voice? "Worthy is the lamb that was slain to receive power and riches and wisdom, and strength and honor and glory and blessing." Friend, that's gonna be a church meeting like you've never been in before. But until we get to that day, we're to be bringing him glory now in every meeting and through every ministry that God has given us. Pray for Your Church Would you pray today for your church? Pray for your pastor. Pray for the deacons, pray for fellow members. Pray for the lost in your area to be saved and pray that you personally will do your part to bring in glory and to get the gospel to others because that my friends, that's what God says in his word. That's what the Bible says about the church.   Outro and Resources Repeating what other people have said about the Bible is not enough. We must know the biblical reason behind what we believe. We hope you will visit us at etj.bible to access our library of Bible teaching resources, including book-by-book studies of scripture. You'll also find studies to watch, listen to, or read. We are so grateful for those who pray for us, who share the biblical content and for those who invest to help us advance this ministry worldwide. Again, thank you for listening, and we hope you'll join us next time on enjoying the Journey.

(Revelation 4:1-11) One million years from this moment, you will be somewhere. Death is merely a door into eternity. You can know where you will be and what will occur after your death.  (0966250315) 

(Acts 4:23) Is church membership taught in Scripture? In our study of the New Testament the Lord reveals His purpose in belonging to a local church. Membership matters. (0965250314) ----more----  

(Hebrews 10:25) You can worship God in many places, but there are some things you can only do as you meet with God's people. Today we discover seven simple, plain Bible reasons to regularly assemble in a local church. (0964250313) ----more---- Why Go To Church? Why go to church? I mean, honestly, what’s the point? Why did the Lord intend that his people would meet together? You know, we’ve learned already that the word church means “a called out assembly.” Now, while the purpose of the church doesn’t stop with the assembly, it does start there. Some people have so emphasized the fact that the church works outside the walls (which I believe) that we’ve forgotten, that we’re still supposed to meet with God’s people. The assembly part is important because, in the meeting of the New Testament church, the ministry is set in motion. It is as we fellowship, as we come together, as we are edified, as we grow, that then we can function in this world. Hebrews 10:25 says this, “Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.” There’s a lot of truth wrapped up in Hebrews 10:25.  We Are Not To Forsake The Assembling Of Ourselves Together.  Do you remember the Lord Jesus said, “For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them” (18:20). There’s something precious to Christ about His followers assembling. When the Lord Jesus was on earth, He very often took His disciples aside, by themselves, so He could teach them. May I submit to you? He still wants to do that. And then the Bible says in this verse, as the manner of some is, boy, that describes the world we’re living in. Here we are, the end of the age when the assembling of God’s people ought to mean more and more, and instead, it seems it means less and less to many Christians. On the average Lord’s Day morning, you can drive through the community and see people doing almost everything except going to meet with God’s people. May I tell you that’s not the Lord’s way?  We Are To Exhort One Another. “Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is, but exhort one another.” This is one of the great keys that unlocks the purpose of why we should assemble together. In fact, the previous verse, verse 24 says, “And let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works.” We’ve come to the place in our world today where people even look at church selfishly. What can I get out of it? Are my children going to have a good time? How is this going to benefit us? We ought to turn the thing around. It should not be about “what I can get out of the church meeting?” but “what can I contribute?” “How can I be a blessing?” 1 Corinthians 12 tells us that all of the members are connected to the body. All of the members are under the head of the body, which is the Lord Jesus, but they all contribute to one another. We Are To Remember The Founder Is Coming Back. All are participants. None are dispensable. And so we ought to start looking at the local assembly and thinking, what can I do to make my church all God wants it to be? How can I be the kind of member of this called-out assembly that will help us move forward to the glory of God, and then listen to the powerful end of Hebrews 10:25, “and so much the more as ye see the day approaching.” What day is he talking about? He’s referring here to the day of the Lord’s return. Friend, Jesus is coming back. The Founder is about to return. The Head of the church is going to show up. And I don’t know about you. I’d be terribly ashamed for Him to find me totally disconnected from all the other members when He arrives I want Him to find me in my place, doing exactly what God wants me to do. So it brings us back to the question.  Why go to church? Why did the Lord establish that we should meet? Let’s see what says. Let’s study the example of the early church, in the New Testament.  Here Are Seven Bible Reasons We Go To Church 1. We Assemble To Pray.  This is very important. And we begin here. Maybe, perhaps not where you thought I would begin. Everybody wants to run to the preaching, and I love preaching, let me tell you, I love to do it. And I love to hear it. But why don’t we begin with prayer? Because that’s where God began. What did Jesus command his disciples to do? Go to the upper room and pray. Acts 1:13-14. We read these words: “And when they were come in, they went up into an upper room, where abode both Peter, and James, and John, and Andrew, Philip, and Thomas, Bartholomew, and Matthew, James the son of Alphaeus, and Simon Zelotes, and Judas the brother of James. These all continued with one accord in prayer and supplication, with the women, and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with his brethren.” The first meeting in the New Testament church after the Ascension was not an evangelistic crusade, not a revival meeting, not a Bible study. It was a prayer meeting. Why? Because prayer sets everything else in motion. When we meet together, we should come together to pray with and for one another and notice it’s something everybody can do. Not just the men were doing it. The women were praying. So we meet together to pray.  2. We Assemble To Hear The Word Of God 1 Thessalonians 5:20 says, “Despise not prophesying.” What’s your attitude towards the preaching and teaching of the Word of God? You see, the New Testament church didn’t have their own copies of the Scriptures when they came together. There was an expectation to hear the Bible read. They hear these inspired writings expounded. I wonder if there’s still that same hunger and thirst in us. When we come together, we ought to come together excited to hear the Word of God.  3. We Assemble To Sing Colossians 3:16 instructs us to speak to and encourage one another “in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs.” The Bible says, “speaking to one another.”  We speak to ourselves when we sing. We speak to God when we sing. However, we also speak to one another as we sing. We should sing from our hearts.  4. We Assemble To Give  Number four, the assembly met together to give. Oh yes, you knew that was going to be mentioned because it’s given in Scripture. 1 Corinthians 16:1-2, “Upon the first day of the week let every one of you lay by him in store, as God hath prospered him, that there be no gatherings when I come.” It’s powerful. On the Lord’s Day, bring your tithe and bring your offerings. Be a giver.  5. We Assemble To Exhort One Another.  It was all about edifying, building up each other. It’s not about me; it’s about us. It’s not about what I can gain, but what I can give. And here’s the beautiful secret. As you give and minister and exhort. Guess what the Lord does in you? He does the same building up in your heart in life.  6. We Assemble To Observe The Ordinances.  God left us with two ordinances: Baptism and the Lord’s Supper. You must have a visible local church to be able to physically baptize. You also must to have a local assembly to administer the Lord’s Table. These are church ordinances. They don’t belong to me as an individual. They belong to the local assembly.  7. We Assemble For Fellowship.  Come full circle back to the first principles in at the end of Acts 2 we have this beautiful little snapshot of the early New Testament church. Observe Acts 2:42, “And they continued stedfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, and in breaking of bread, and in prayers.”  That passage goes on to report on the ministry of the Word. Those assemblies of believers set in motion a chain reaction outside the assembly of the church. We carry our faith outside the church walls. But it all must begin by meeting together. From this, we minister to those who are outside our assembly. Could it be that we’re getting so little done in this world? Because the meeting of the New Testament church has gotten skewed by so many things. Perhaps we started thinking so selfishly about it. I remember asking a man one time to come to our church and he said, “Oh, I worship God in the woods.” And I said to him, “Wonderful, I worship God in the woods.” And he looked at me a little surprised, and I said, “I don’t go to church simply to worship. I want to worship when I go. I believe in corporate worship, but worship is not a group sport, worship is the individual heart attitude.” You can worship anywhere and everywhere. Yes, you can worship God in your living room, but no, you cannot exhort one another in your living room. Be Faithful You can’t be a blessing and help to the whole local church by never being there. I challenge you today. Belong and don’t just belong. Be there. When the church meets together. Let it mean something to you to be with God’s people. If the church was so important that Christ died for it, don’t you think our lives ought to be connected to it? Make up your mind this Lord’s Day, at the very next appointed meeting of your local assembly, by the grace of God, you’re going to be there. “Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.” You can worship God in many places, but there are some things you can only do as you meet with God's people. Today we discover seven simple, plain Bible reasons to regularly assemble in a local church.