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The
Towers of 9/11
(Sermons/List6)
Are we living in “the last
days? Look for the possibility in my text, verses eight, nine, and twenty-five
of Isaiah, Chapter 30: ¶Now go, write it before
them in a table, And note it in a book, that it may be for the time to come for
ever and ever: 9. That this is a rebellious people, lying children,
children that will not hear the law of the LORD: 25. And there shall be upon
every high mountain, and upon every high hill, rivers and streams of waters in
the day of the great slaughter, when the
towers fall.
Introduction.
Before
I get into my text, let me say this: My sermon is directed, primarily, to
people who claim to be born-again-Christians. The problems I want to address
are serious but they apply to the church rather than to the world. Those
problems exist in lots of church congregations and, perhaps, in most of them.
I have no need to invent something to worry
about. The problems I address are painfully apparent to anyone who bothers to
look. The institutional church, as a whole, is simply not doing the job for
which it claims to exist. Evangelism, which should be its primary goal, seldom
happens within or without its walls. Many church congregations do not function
as effective lights to the world. In fact, they fail to light up even the
neighborhoods in which they are located.
Although the churches must be faulted, for
failing to project their influence directly into their communities, the problem
actually stems from members who hide their light in one way or another. Most of
us are asleep spiritually, seemingly unaware of our pitiful condition. Our
Christian influence, if we actually have any, does not reach beyond the church
walls. We seem oblivious to the need of neighbors who may be headed for hell,
which makes us, and the congregations we attend, practically worthless to them.
This criticism is, in fact,
a sad commentary on the church. However, it is not meant to condemn as much as
it represents a proposal for change. We who claim to be Christians must begin
to act as if we really are - not only within our congregations but also in the
world where we live, work, and play. Lost sinners must hear the gospel preached
before they realize they need the Savior. What are you doing, in your
neighborhood, to help them hear it?
Some people must see Jesus in the lives of
Christians before they can even begin to believe His claims. Can He be seen in
you, by your words and by your lifestyle? Unfortunately, some of us look too
much like the people we want to reach. We must awake to righteousness and quit
sinning (1st Corinthians 15:34) before we can help them.
Judgment is coming. Escape requires our names to be written in the “Lamb’s Book of Life” (Revelation 21:27). Have you informed your friends, relatives and neighbors concerning their need? If not, are you prepared to face your Savior with the sin of neglect on your conscience? He may, in fact, call you into account if they remain lost. (Ezekiel 33:6).
09/11/01
Now for the text: On 7/15/2004 I heard Bill Cloud, a guest on
the 700 Club (TBN), say Isaiah 30 prophesied a
judgment meant for our day. In case you’re interested, Bill heads “Shoreshim
Resources,” in Cleveland, TN, and maintains a web site at www.billcloud.org. Anyway, Bill said, in
effect, the phrase “the time to come for ever and ever,” in verse 8, means now,
at the end of the age in which we live (at the beginning of the 21st Century).
I cannot say Bill Cloud was
right. I do suspect the truth of his statement sufficiently to alert other
people to the possibility. I have no doubt that the warning of
judgment applied to an age far beyond the one in which it was first
spoken. And it could very well have been meant for us. If you would like a more
recent indication concerning the urgency of the hour, look to the news media.
Israel is surrounded by bitter enemies. Syria, for one, is preparing for a war
of annihilation they expect to initiate within the next three months. (Jerusalem Post
Article “Syrian MP confirms preparation for war,” Updated 5 June 2007).
Look at Strong’s concordance for a definition of the
two words translated to “ever” in verse eight of Isaiah 25. Strong identifies
the first one as the Hebrew word ‘ad.’ (Strong’s 5703). ‘Ad’ means “terminus.” (Possibly either the end of the Christian dispensation or the beginning
of eternity – which, for us, would be essentially the same).
The second ‘ever,’ in verse 8 of Isaiah 25, is the Hebrew word ‘owlam’ or ‘olam.’ (Strong’s 5769). Olam means “properly concealed, i.e. the vanishing point.” The timing of the prophesied event was hidden until now, just before the time for repentance would vanish – along with the end of the Christian dispensation.
Note: Where Revelation 10:6 said, “there should be time no
longer” it did
not mean the end of time as we know it. Timing is, and always will be, crucial
to every event that occurs in our universe.
On track
If the timing for the
judgment of Isaiah 30 was confirmed by the falling towers of the World Trade
Center on 9/11/01, I believe we will see that judgment fulfilled soon. Which
means, of course, that very little time remains for the effective proclamation
of the gospel to our lost and dying world. Will Jesus return today?
It's always wise
to keep Bible texts in context. In fact, it's dangerous to attempt to build
doctrines on isolated verses of Scripture. That's one of the reasons why we
have so many cults wrongfully professing Christianity today. But it's also
foolish to deny the truth when the message of a specific text appears to be
meant for us.
The Bible is a living Book.
Many prophecies were meant for fulfillment at more than one time in history.
Several have realized only partial fulfillment in bygone eras. I won't try to
enumerate them. I imagine you can find examples for yourself. I can say, from
experience, that God still speaks to people through His word. He does so to
provide us with directions for dealing with situations we face. And He
sometimes uses Scripture that appears, in context, to have been intended for
another time and place. He can do that, easily, because He has all
knowledge; He is all-powerful; and He is everywhere present positionally,
both with-in time and space and beyond.
It’s time
I am convinced
that we are in the last days before Christ returns. I don’t know exactly when
He is coming; I do expect Him soon. The trumpet could sound before this year
ends. But our country, which was founded by Godly men who determined to serve
God in good conscience, simply isn’t ready.
We are becoming increasingly
amoral, with the result that it is more and more difficult to distinguish
professing Christians from lost sinners. In fact, some of us are
practical atheists (acknowledging God only in church on Sunday mornings and
ignoring Him the rest of the week). God wants our attention during the
week too. He needs it in order to give us His best. (Proverbs 3:1-6). “Perfect peace” comes to those
whose minds are “stayed” on Him. (Isaiah 26:3).
Is God’s written Word your guide for living?
It should be. Every time He said either "thou shalt," or thou shalt
not," He meant it. Of course, we are not subject to Moses Law but we must
obey Jesus’ commands, and we must repent quickly when we fail Him. Thank God
for His mercy, His grace, and His long-suffering nature - but don’t presume on
them. We are obligated to put His desires ahead of our own continually. No
doubt, His reluctance to see anyone perish has contributed to our longevity. (2nd
Peter 3:9). But how long can He ignore our indifference?
I believe America has been spared
until now partly because she has been worth something to God - as a source
of both evangelists and supporters of evangelism. Unfortunately, we are as
much in need of evangelism today as is any other part of the world. Three observations:
1. We are a rebellious people.
Consider how this nation, which was founded by Christians on Christian principles, has flouted God’s laws, especially in this generation. We have eliminated mention of Him in our public schools and are in the process of eliminating all references to His Ten Commandments from the public forum. We refuse to acknowledge the works of our Creator, choosing rather to believe the nonsense that His magnificent creation evolved from primordial slime. Consider, too, how we murder innocent babies daily through abortion and call it pro choice, and how the practice of sodomy has moved into the mainstream of our society.
2.
One
prominent set of towers has fallen. That event shook our foundations and we can
expect more of the same. Remember, God uses the enemies of His people to
chastise them.
3. We are directly in position to bring more
judgment on ourselves, and we will, unless we: a. Wrest control of our national
future from ungodly liberals bent on our destruction. b. Recognize (and deal
with) with the threat of totalitarianism posed by the people who destroyed the
World Trade Center.
Don’t sleep through the daily warnings that confront us. The Muslims fully intend to destroy both Israel and the United States of America. That fact is painfully obvious, not only from what they say repeatedly but also from their actions in the many places where they kill people daily.
Suggestion:
Get your “Christian” act
together. Repent, for your personal sins (2nd Chronicles 7:14) and
begin to serve God as if you meant it. Pray for our nation. It is more than
obvious that all of us need to get things right with God. But don’t stop there.
Work at electing conservative men to public office, men who have proven they
can be trusted to serve both our God (Jehovah Jesus) and our country (The
United States of America).
David Beneze
Revised, 06/05/2007
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