Be Ready Don

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Be ReadyDont Sleep in Your Walk!Chapter 81
Thessalonians 51-11
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• Jesus both unites and divides. He unites those
  who trusted in Jesus as Savior and Gods
  children. He also divides us spiritually from the
  rest of the world. John 1717 says They are not
  of the world, even as I am not of the world. His
  purpose is to encourage the believers to live
  holy lives in pagan surroundings.
• Contrast between the believers and unbelievers
• Knowledge and Ignorance
• Expectancy and Surprise
• Soberness and Drunkenness
• Salvation and Judgment

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• Knowledge and Ignorance (51-2)
• Times and Seasons
• 3 times in the whole Bible (Daniel 221, Acts
  17, and 1 Thess. 51) and those refer to Gods
  plan for Israel. Israel is the key nation.
  History is His story (Dr. A. T. Pierson). This
  leads to the Day of the Lord.
• The Day of the Lord
• Not a 24-hour period
• Its a time that God will judge the world and
  punish the nations while at the same time He
  prepares Israel for the return of Jesus Christ as
  the King to the earth to set up the millennial
  kingdom. (Amos 518ff, Joel 21ff, Zephaniah
  114-18, and Isaiah 212-21)
• Another terms the time of Jacobs trouble
  (Jeremiah 307) and Tribulation in Rev. 6-19

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• Thief in the Night (Matthew 24 42-43, Luke
  12 35-40)
• It explains the suddenness and surprise in the
  coming of the Day of the Lord (Rev. 33, 1615)
• We dont know when Jesus is coming, but we must
  watch and wait while we continue to serve Him and
  share the Good News to the lost world. Paul
  described Jesus coming for the church in 1 Thess.
  413-18. He then explained the seasons and times
  referring the events after the rapture of the
  church. Jesus will come in the Day of the Lord!
• The believers know while the unbelievers have no
  ideas of Gods plan for Israel and thats
  ignorance.
• Expectancy and Surprise (53-5)
• they refers to the unsaved, or unbelievers.
  They will say peace and safety which is false
  security while we say Judgment is coming and
  Jesus is coming!.
• God warned that flood was coming and only 8 were
  saved. The world was taken surprised (1 Peter
  320)

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• Lot warned his family that the city will be
  destroyed, but they werent listened (Gen.
  1912-14).
• Jesus warned his generation that Jerusalem will
  be destroyed, but they wouldnt listen. Jerusalem
  was destroyed in 70 AD and many perished in the
  siege.
• Jesus used those examples considering the coming
  judgment.
• No signs are to be fulfilled before the rapture.
• Christians are the sons of the light.
  Therefore, they are not in the darkness when it
  comes to the future events. The unbelievers scoff
  at the coming of Jesus Christ. Knowing the
  first, that there shall be some in the last days
  scoffers walking after their own lust, and
  saying. Where is the promise of His coming? (2
  Peter 33-4) God still keeps His promises for
  One day is with the Lord

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• as a thousand years, and thousand years as one
  day (2 Peter 38)
• Paul compared the coming judgment to travail
  upon the woman with a child (53). The
  beginning of sorrows by the Lord Jesus (Matt.
  248) relates to the early part of the Day of the
  Lord. Sorrows in Greek means birth pangs. Out of
  the Day of the Lord comes the birth of the
  millennial kingdom.
• Live expectantly. It mean to live in the light of
  his return knowing that our works will be judged
  and our opportunity to serve our Lord will end
  soon.
• Difference between being ready to go to heaven
  and being ready to meet the Lord at the Judgment
  Seat. I John 228

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• Soberness and Drunkenness (56-8)
• To be sober means to be alert, to live with your
  eyes open, and to be sane and steady
• The drunken sleepers were not aware of the danger
  while the sober group were ready and not afraid.
• The sons of the day should not live in darkness
  and should cast off the works of darkness.
• As the sons of the day its time to wake up,
  clean up, and dress up.
• Dress up put on breastplate of faith and love
  and for helmet the hope of salvation (58). The
  armor of light (Rom. 1312)
• The sober minded believer has calm and sane
  outlook. He isnt afraid. He may experience
  difficulties, but he doesnt give up for he knows
  he is secure in Gods hands.

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• The unsaved people are not alert.
• Armor to protect us in this evil world
• Faith and love are as a breastplate covering the
  heart faith toward god and love toward people
• Hope, a helmet that protects the mind for the
  believers set their minds on the things of God
  (Col. 31-3) The unbelievers fix their minds on
  the things of the worlds.
• Hope of salvation meaning the hope that
  salvation gives to us.
• Past I have been saved from the guilt and
  penalty of sin
• Present I am being saved from the power and
  pollution of sin
• Future I will be saved from the presence of sin
  when Christ returns.
• The blessed hope of our Lords return the hope of
  salvation.
• The unbelievers are without hope (Eph. 212)

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• Sleep
• In 1 Thess. 413-18 it means death
• In 56-7 it describes the attitude of the lost
  world moral indifference and carelessness about
  the spiritual things (Mark 13 32-37)
• We must be morning person when it comes to
  Christs return awake, alert, sober, and ready
  for the dawning of the new day
• Salvation and Judgment (59-11)
• Believers do not need to fear the future judgment
  for we are not part of Gods plan for us. (1
  Thess. 110, 59)
• Tribulation is appointed for the godless world
• Reasons the church will be raptured prior to the
  Tribulation period.

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• The nature of the church
• The church is the body of Christ and He is the
  head of the church (Col. 217-19) He bore the
  judgment for us for our salvation when He died
  on the cross.
• The Day of the Lord is the day of wrath
• The nature of the tribulation
• God will judge the Gentile nations and prepare
  Israel for the coming of the Messiah
• The earth-dwellers will taste of the wrath of god
  (Rev. 310)
• The promise of Christs imminent return
• Imminent means ready to happen at anytime
• Christ will not return until the church is
  raptured otherwise we will know when He will
  come for the sequence, signs, and times were
  revealed in Rev. 6-19
• The word church is not used in Rev. 413-2213
• Paul used we and us when discussing church
  rapture
• John closed with a prayer Even so, come, Lord
  Jesus (Rev. 2220)

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• The course of the seven churches in Revelation
• Each church represents the course of history
• Philadelphia represents the weak but faithful
  church of the period before Christ returns
• An evangelistic church
• Thou has kept the word of my patience meaning
  the deliverance from the day of judgment (Rev.
  310)
• I will also keep thee from the hour of
  temptation, which shall come upon all the world,
  to try them that dwell upon the earth (Rev. 310)
• This parallel to the promise in 2 Thess. 59 For
  God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain
  salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ
• The order of the events in 2 Thess. 2
• Encouragement and edification (511)
• Comfort 418 511
• The truth of Christs return encourages us to
  keep clean (1 John 31-3)

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• It encourages us to do the work faithfully
  whatever is before us (Luke 12 41-48)
• It encourages us to attend church and love the
  brethren (Heb. 1025)
• Knowing that we shall be with the lord strengthen
  us in difficult times ( 2 Cor. 51-8) and
  motivates us to win the lost to Christ (2 Cor.
  59-21)