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230.
We wonder at thy lowly mind and fame would likely be and all our rest and pleasure find in learning Lord of the 230.
Oh Lord, when we love a three trains, which I wonder.
As cold.
As I'm grace God.
Grateful.
Good.
We wander.
Out of the light.
And they would like.
Me.
We didn't get too far in our chapter. We talked a lot in general terms, but.
I suppose we.
Talk pretty much about chapter correction verse 26 set for the last phrase in it so.
We could read from verse 27 perhaps, but maybe say a word about the expression The powers of heaven shall be shaken. Before we go on to verse 26, verse 27, I suggest we read from 25 to get the connection. Well, it's all one sentence, so yeah, I guess I'll be all right.
Luke's Gospel chapter 21 and verse 25.
There should be signs in the sun, and in the moon, and in the stars, and upon the earth, distress of nations with perplexity to see, and the waves roaring, men's hearts failing them for fear and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth. For the powers of heaven shall be shaken. They shall see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power.
And great glory.
When these things begin to come to pass, then look up.
00:05:00
Lift up your heads for your redemption. Draw at 9. Can you speak to them a parable? Behold the fig tree and all the trees, and they now shoot forth. You see and know of your own selves. That summer is now nigh at hand. Like why he when you see these things come to pass, know ye that the Kingdom of God.
Is not at hand.
Early I say unto you, This generation shall not pass away.
To all be fulfilled.
Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away.
Take heed to yourselves, lest at anytime your hearts be overcharged with surfeiting and drunkenness and cares of this life, and so that day come upon you unaware.
As a snare shall it come on all them that dwell on the face of the whole earth. Watch ye therefore, and pray always, that you may be accounted worthy to escape all these things.
That shall come to pass, and to stand before the Son of Man.
In the daytime he was teaching in the temple, and at night he went out and abode in the mountains called the Mount of Olives. All the people came early in the morning to him in the temple for to hear him.
You know, the first time that I guess I had enough courage to stand up and read the chapter.
For the Lawrenceville reading meeting, that was when it was in Bridgeport school. I read it and sat down and when Buchanan asked me to stand back up and read some other verses that related to it, I don't know what the portion was.
Oh, I read those, sat down, and he asked me to read some more. Well, I'm going to do that to myself this time, although I talked to the brother that suggested this portion.
I'd like to read a few verses in Romans 11. One verse there was.
Mentioned the 25th verse this morning and I just thought that it fit in so well with what was being said. And I know we're not going to cover everything and I'm sorry to take this extra time, but I would like to read there in Romans 11 from verse 16.
For if the first fruit be holy, the lump is also holy, and if the root be holy, so are the branches. And if some of the branches be broken off, and thou being a wild olive tree, where graft in among them, and with them partake of the root and fatness of the olive tree, boast not thyself against the branches.
But if thou boast, thou bearest not the root, but the root thee.
I'll say then the branches were broken off, that I might be grafted in. Well, because of unbelief they were broken off, and thou stand us by faith. Be not high minded, but fear where God spared not the natural branches. Take heed lest He also spare not thee. You hold therefore the goodness and severity of God.
On them, which fell 70.
Toward the goodness.
Thou continue in His goodness, otherwise thou also shalt be cut off. And they also, if they abide not, still in unbelief, shall be graft in. For God is able to graft them in again, where thou Wert cut out of the olive tree, which is wild by nature, and work graft contrary to nature into a good olive tree.
How much more shall these, which be the natural branches, be graft into their own olive trees? For I would not rather that you should be ignorant of this mystery, lest you should be wise in your own conceit. That blindness in part has happened to Israel, until the fullness of the Gentiles become in.
That didn't get expressed from Luke 21 This morning, and I don't want to.
00:10:05
U rail the train.
Well, just to make a comment or two, I believe we should go on with Luke 21, but.
What we read in Romans 11 explains a bit how that.
After the church is called home, God is going to bring Israel back into blessing.
And of course, the olive tree speaks of God's testimony in the earth.
And we all know that Israel was not a good testimony to the Lord.
But the church in what it has represented for the Lord on earth has not been any better, in fact probably in many ways worse than Israel, considering the far greater blessing and revelations that we have had. And so eventually God will take the church up to heaven, but He will remove them as a testimony in the earth.
And as it says in Romans 11, bring Israel back into blessing by.
Grafting them back in again.
But there seems to have been a little confusion about the expression the times of the Gentiles and the fullness of the Gentiles, judging by the number of questions that arose over the noon hour. And I don't think we need to spend a lot of time on it, except just to explain once again that the expression the times of the Gentiles.
Which is contained here in Luke 21.
I believe our brother Bruce brought it out pretty clearly, and brother Bob did too.
It started with Nebuchadnezzar after God took Israel out of the way as being his testimony in the earth and turn things over to the Gentiles. And so you had a series of a number of kingdoms recorded for us, but the times of the Gentiles really continue right on.
Until the Lord Jesus Christ appears and brings Israel back into blessing.
And so the times of the Gentiles refer to this world, and they refer to the rule of the Gentiles in this world, beginning with Nebuchadnezzar and going right on to the time when the Lord Jesus comes into this world and executes judgment.
But the fullness of the Gentiles in Romans 11 is a different term that refers to the bringing of the Gentiles into blessing when Israel was set aside. And so it really represents the church. Or I would suggest, if you want to be, shall we say, technical about it.
The fullness of the Gentiles begins with the stoning of Stephen.
Because that was really, you might say.
The last call for Israel in that blessing that could have been theirs through the preaching of the gospel by the apostles and others in the early church. But when Steven was stoned, that was the messenger sent up, as it were to heaven, saying we will not have this Mandarin over us. And so that began.
The turning to the Gentiles, Saul of Tarsus is saved.
He becomes the apostle to the Gentiles. You don't hear anymore of Peter after the 12Th of Acts and essentially while Jew and Gentile, it's true, according to Ephesians 2 are brought together in one body by the cross. Yet the church has been largely Gentile and the blessing has been largely going out to the Gentiles during this dispensation.
And that fullness of the Gentiles will not end.
Until the Lord comes and calls us home. After that, then the Lord once again begins to take up His earthly people, Israel, working toward bringing them back into blessing.
00:15:08
And.
I hope that's clear, maybe others have a comment or two to make on it, but I would suggest that we not get too sidetracked on that or we will miss out on much that we have here in Luke chapter 21.
Mm-hmm.
Well, if everyone is OK with that.
I'd suggest we go back to the end of verse 26 in Luke 21.
Because we didn't talk about the powers of heaven shall be shaken.
And I hope this is OK, but.
We were kicking that subject around at the lunch table, some of us, and rather Don Rule gave what I thought was a good explanation of it and I would like him if he would repeat that for everyone's benefit.
The general travel trend or thoughts of this chapter is that.
Man left to himself.
Situation gets worse and worse and worse, and so in the world today it's getting worse and worse and worse.
At the time of the flood, after Noah came out of the ark, God established government, as we call it, to restrain man.
Because without government.
Earth was filled with violence and corruption.
And now there is government in the earth.
But because of what man is, it is getting again, in spite of government being filled with violence and corruption to the point where people are afraid to live daily life. And it's becoming more and more dangerous and more and more parts of the world, including the United States.
To live daily life without fear of what man will do and.
Hear the chapter shows that.
This condition gets worse and worse until the point that even.
The administration affairs from heaven by angels is not even.
That which is restraining to the need of what man is. And God has used the angelic host to administer his government behind the scenes on the earth to correct, to restrain, to control what's going on on the earth. And the whole picture here is to show us.
And to show to mankind.
That there is only one possible solution.
So the problem of today.
Absolutely only one.
Angels aren't going to correct it.
Government's not going to correct it. Great leaders are not going to correct it. It's gotten to the point where there's only one and that is the Lord Jesus Christ. He is absolutely the only answer to the need of this world today as to not just salvation.
But to live daily life under control?
Of one sort and another and so what's looked for is in immediately following the powers of heaven be shaken verse 27 they shall see the son of man and that's what's to be looked for we don't look for government to get better we don't look for countries to become more stable the light of Christianity has been brought to the.
Once when I was a kid they talked about dark Africa, but that's not true anymore.
00:20:03
The light of the gospel has gone, generally speaking, throughout the whole world, and there's a harvest for the Lord Jesus in grace, but at the same time, when it's looked at in its primary look, if you will, that is coming to the point where it's recognized that.
Only the Lord Jesus Christ can set it right.
But I want to add this solemn point to it. Though the heart of man being what it is, the world still says, no matter what, we will not have.
And so he will have to take it by force.
And he will the Lord Jesus and power will establish as creator rights and as Redeemer rights the claim the earth for himself. But he will have to take it in power because no matter how bad the world gets, it's still true as in Romans one it says did not want to retain God.
In their knowledge. And so the heart of man is so.
Opposed to all that God is that even when the Lord comes.
To set things right, there will be a large number who will oppose it and end up coming under his judgment at the time of his coming.
We know, of course, that when the Antichrist appears.
The godly ones in Israel in a coming day will be able to recognize him, as we read in Matthew, The Abomination of desolation. When you see the abomination of desolation, stand in the holy place, and I believe they'll be able to recognize the beginning of the great Tribulation.
And know that they have 3 1/2 years to go until.
The Lord appears for them, but here the Lord appears.
And they immediately know that their redemption draws nigh. Some of the judgment will have fallen on Israel by that time. The King of the North will have come down and wreaked his havoc on Israel, and so on. We don't need to go into those details now, but ultimately, when they see the Lord appear, what a wonderful thing it will be for them.
Well.
I suggest that the application that you and I can make, we are not seeing the Lord appear. We will not in that way at the appearing from the vantage point of being on earth. We will see it, of course, from the heavenly side. We'll be with Him, but at the same time we will not be here to see the rise of the Antichrist.
But what we are seeing now, as we said earlier.
Is the whole stage being set for all of these things to take place?
Men's hearts failing them for fear. Everything being set for what will happen in that tribulation week.
And I suggest that the joy for our hearts ought to be We too can lift up our heads. We too can look up and say our redemption draw.
Now we know that there are no clear and definite signs that we look for that tell us that the Lord is coming. If there were such, it would take away, in years gone by from the present hope of every believer, to expect the church at any, or expect the Lord's coming at any moment for His children, for His church.
So God never gives the believer any definite signs that have to happen.
Before the Lord comes to take us home.
00:25:01
But we are entitled.
Quoting Hebrews 10 and 25 that we are not too. Well, let's read it together. Hebrews 10 and 25.
Because it's a very good verse for what we're talking about.
Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is, but exhorting one another, and so much the more.
As you see the day approaching.
I suggest that that is the day of judgment and we are entitled to see that day approaching.
And we're seeing we are entitled to say we are in the last days because the character of the last days is given to us. We are entitled to look around us and say we're here, this is where we are. But then we are also very much entitled to, as it says in our chapter.
To look up and lift up our heads.
And know that our redemption draweth nigh. It's not a day to be discouraged, not a day to be cast down.
Yes, circumstances may be difficult.
The condition of God's people may burden our hearts. It ought to.
Do we care about the condition of this world? We ought to care. That is totally different from being discouraged.
So we are told in the scriptures of the New Testament that are written to us.
That our expectation is for the Lord to come for us.
People call that the rapture, the snatching away.
And that is brought before us in many places in the New Testament for the comfort of our hearts.
The appearing of the Lord Jesus, which will be at least seven years later.
As you say, we will be with the Lord Jesus when he comes triumphant out of heaven. He comes with 10 thousands of his Saints.
And he will put down all that is opposed to him. As Brother Don has mentioned, we'll go out to battle with him, but we'll be clothed in white garments. It's kind of a funny, funny outfit to wear to battle. But the Lord is the one who, with the with the sword of his mouth, will accomplish all that needs to be accomplished in power. And it doesn't speak of us that I'm aware of, having the sword we are.
Along as accompanying him.
But I remember brother Bill your wife's uncle speaking years ago, he was lived in Ontario and he used to talk about driving down SW Ontario towards Windsor and Windsor is on the Ontario side and across the rivers Detroit for those of you not familiar with the geography. And he used to make that he I heard him at least once make this comment. He said when I Windsor.
Much smaller city, he say. When I see the lights of Detroit, I know I'm getting near Windsor.
And his point was that Detroit, being a bigger city, brighter, was beyond Windsor. But that's what he was seeing, the lights of Detroit, and he knew his destination was Windsor. And so as believers, when we see things starting to take shape and the rumblings and the preparations that seem to be apparent all around of what's going to happen after we're gone, it does strike us that though we're not looking for signs ourselves.
That the coming of the Lord draws near for us.
The blessed hope of being extracted from this world, it says in our verse.
28 when these things begin to come to pass.
Because there's a process that will unfold, and they will be.
Through the Word of God and their teachers in those days, these intelligent, faithful Jews will be more or less instructive in the sequence of things. And it's not going to be a moment for them. It's going to be quite the thing to go through 12160 days or 42 months and plus some time at the end. And so it says when these things begin to come to pass. But for you and me.
00:30:02
A blessed be God that it's going to be.
We're going to be changed in the twinkling of an eye. It's not going to be a begin to happen.
Will we go up into heaven in a twinkling of an eye? I don't know that and I don't know that the Scriptures say so, but we'll be changed in a twinkling of an eye to be like Christ. You'll be glorified and we shall join him in the cloud. So the distinction between these godly ones that are primarily in view here in this chapter versus the portion of the of the believing.
Christian.
It's interesting we've been reading My wife and I say recently, and how often.
Uses that term in that day.
Which of course, is the day of the Lord.
And that day of the Lord begins.
When the Lord Jesus comes to exercise his authority and take back.
The kingdoms of the world and reign supreme. O brethren, that is the focus of the believer. Nothing down here should attract us or distract us. We need to be focused on that day, thinking of what Timothy says or Paul says.
In Second Timothy 4 and verse 8.
Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness the Lord, the righteous judge, will give me at that day. Of course, I think that's with the judgment seat of Christ, isn't it? But it's that day when everything is going to be set according to God's standard. Oh brethren, let's not.
Lose the focus of that day. Young people don't get distracted with this world's.
Objectives. Keep your focus on that day.
Day of his appearing, as I said this morning, I don't think, brethren.
That will there will ever be a day of such glory.
As that day when the Lord Jesus comes back in with his people.
To reign supreme in this world. Often think of Enoch and he lived before the flood. He lived when there was no Bible to read. But Enoch walked with God, and God must have told them, because Enoch prophesied. Behold, the Lord cometh with 10 thousands of his things. It's in the plural, isn't it?
It's myriads.
Just think of it, Oh brother, in the glory of it, how many of the redeemed will there be?
I think we can easily say there will be billions of the redeemed that will accompany him. But not only that, Second Thessalonians chapter one says that he will be accompanied by His mighty angels. How many angels are there? It will be 1 huge mighty.
Invasion from outer space into this world.
And that's the way God will vindicate the glory of His Son. Oh Lord. Lord, help us to not lose sight of that day.
Is the powers shaken?
Powers of heaven shaken at the end of verse 26 refer to warfare in heaven that will occur between Michael and and Satan and his angels. Or what? Am I too specific on that?
I think that will be part of it, but I would say that it includes more because Satan is going to do all he possibly can to avoid the confrontation and the powers of heaven will be shaken and that will be the time when Satan will be cast out.
Woe to the earth.
00:35:14
Well, then, in verse 29, we see something that.
We can all relate to.
Behold the fig tree and all the trees.
Israel got its independence in 1948 and became a sovereign state once more.
An amazing fact when you consider as we had brought before us this morning.
That they ceased being a sovereign nation over 600 years before Christ.
And now they are a sovereign nation again.
They have their problems, they have those that are trying to get rid of them. But behold, the fig tree. You and I have beheld the fig tree, and it's there. Yes, they're throwing their weight around a bit now, and it would seem with some justification. We know, of course, that many things have to happen before they will.
Be brought back in the fullness of blessing that God intends for them.
But the fig tree in Scripture generally represents Israel nationally.
The vine, perhaps more Israel spiritually. And so behold the fig tree and all the trees.
All the trees, that is something we've seen too, just to give a little bit of an idea of how far things have come.
I was always a bit of a history buff and.
In the year 1900, I think we could safely say.
There were maybe 50 recognized sovereign nations in the world today.
In the world of that day, I mean fifty nations who may be in 1900.
When I started university in 1962.
There were about 120 or 121.
How many are there today?
Over 190? Am I right in that 193 maybe or something along that line?
Between 1900 and 1962.
There were seventy nations added.
Between 1962 and 2024, there have been another 70 added.
Every little group, every little ethnic group, every little tribe, every little place in the earth.
Wants its own sovereign state, wants to have its own say, wants to be able to operate on their own and have a place in the earth to be recognized. And that's one of the signs that God gives us here, not just the fig tree, but all the trees.
And that, I suppose, is part of the reason why back a few verses.
In verse 25, we find the sea and the waves roaring because every little nation wants to have its voice, wants to have it say.
Who would have thought, even a few years ago?
That North Korea would be giving ammunition to the Russians.
To try and use against the West or that North Korea would have the capability of firing.
Nuclear rockets that could hit the United States.
Unbelievable, and yet there it is.
All of these things are a sign of this 29th verse coming to pass.
Behold the fig tree and all the trees.
I.
Force. The Lord's parable was talking about the coming of spring, but when they shoot forth, it says in verse 30, See and know of your own selves, that summer is now nigh at hand.
So likewise ye, when you see these things come to pass, know ye that what?
War is about to break out.
00:40:00
That's true. That's not what God's mind is looking at. That's not what the eye of God is on. The eye of God is on the ultimate coming of the Kingdom of God.
Beautiful.
Small comment about the Kingdom of God.
It's an expression that gives emphasis to moral.
Behavior.
The fig tree and all the trees has already been well explained. Has to do with individual nations having their own identity and characteristics and government and so on.
But God, when he looks at the earth, looks at it far more with the intent that it be as it says elsewhere in Romans, the Kingdom of God is righteousness.
And peace and joy in the Holy Ghost is that it be a place.
That is morally consistent with what God is.
And so his intent in establishing the Kingdom of God.
In that character, when the Lord Jesus comes, it will establish all the kingdoms of the earth under one supreme head. He will be supreme. There will be nations, they will have individual governments, but all will be under His.
Direct authority throughout the world, and there will be, if you will, insisted upon by God.
That the governments operate in righteousness.
Morally, not just restraint of evil itself.
But that the mankind be governed in a morally upright and righteous way, and the consequence of such will be peace, and as a result the earth will enjoy 1000 years of peace as long as the Lord reigns in that way, and so there will be a joy.
That is not experience. It won't be meant hearts failing for fear, but there will be an order to all things such that man will not be afraid anymore. And Luke, particularly in his gospel, maintains the thought of when it's the Kingdom of God, it's a Kingdom of.
Righteousness in contrast to the kingdoms today.
Which are anything but righteous.
How do we?
Understand this generation's on that pass away. They'll all be fulfilled by.
Was mentioned earlier that if all these things were 8070, it wasn't long enough.
We tend to think of the word generation as, you know, a.
Have children and that's a generation, and maybe it's 40 or 50 years of time.
My take I miss my sense is that it's really referring to the nation of Israel or the the family of.
Of Israel, the race, if you will, but I'd like to hear somebody's comment about this generation so that pass away.
It speaks some place of this unbelieving generation. So it's not only.
A lot of measurement of time. That's the characteristic of the generation. It will be that unbelieving generation that will last until the Lord comes and puts things right. That's the way I have looked at it.
Can you get an expression in Psalm 12? It's like that.
Psalm 12.
Thou shall keep them, O Lord, Thou shall presume them from this generation forever.
00:45:05
And there can't really mean the generation of time.
It's speaking about something else.
So essentially the character.
Will be no different from what it was when they rejected the Lord Jesus.
And when they rejected the preaching of the apostles and the message of the gospel that they obtained in that day.
The character of the nation, morally speaking, will be no different. They will.
In a large measure.
Still, as Dawn has brought out.
Antagonistic so that the Lord Jesus, as Dawn has been saying.
We'll have to take that Kingdom by force. Yes, there will be some godly ones that we'll be looking for him.
But they will be savagely persecuted during the Tribulation, driven out.
Martyred in many cases and ultimately driven away, having to leave the land of Israel. They'll have to.
Get right out of the worship of God in Israel, because the Antichrist will be there.
And the bulk of the nation, sad to say, will not in any way be looking for the Lord to come, but rather will have put their faith in the Antichrist. And as the Lord says, the.
Lord said when he was on earth that the.
Evil spirit, departing from the man would walk through dry places, seeking rest and finding none.
And he says, I will go back to my house from whence I came out. And he findeth it empty, and swept, and garnished. And he takes to himself 7 spirits more wicked than himself. In the last state of that man is worse than the 1St. So essentially the moral character of Israel will be no different, even though thousands of years have gone by.
That's Matthew chapter 12 and verse 45, and it's interesting right at the end it says, Even so shall it be also unto this wicked generation?
So it's a moral characteristic in the character of the generation.
Isaiah 3310 Now will I rise, saith the Lord. Now will I be adulted, Now will I lift up myself. You shall conceive trap, you shall bring forth stubble. Your breath and fire shall devour you. The people shall be as burnings of lime as thorns cut up. They are burned in the fire here, either far off what I have done, but you might need ye that are near acknowledge my might.
The sinners in Zion are afraid. Carefulness has surprised the hypocrites. Hypocrites.
Full of us shall dwell with the devouring fire. Fool among us shall dwell with everlasting burnings.
So there's there's that fear in that moral generation inversion, the first part of the verse.
And.
The righteous remnant who can dwell in everlasting burnings.
Hebrews 12 ends our God of the eternal fire.
He that walketh up, that walketh righteously and speaketh uprightly, He that despiseth again of oppressions, that shaketh his hands from the holding of bribes, that stopeth his ears from the hearing of blood, and shutteth his eyes from seeing evil, he shall dwell on high. His place shall be a defense of defense shall be the munitions of Robbins. His bread shall be given him, his water shall be sure.
By Nice you'll see the King in his beauty.
It shall behold the land that's very far off. What a wonder for the godly remnant.
Awaiting that moment.
00:50:01
What a contrast with those centers in science.
It's really a secular nation that's fighting, isn't it?
Know there's godly remnant somewhere. We know there's many deer Jews that have turned to faith in Christ.
They're in Israel at this time.
One group called one for Israel, reaching out.
With the gospel by Internet.
Umm, And yet they're in great contrast to those who pursuing this war in the midst of it all. Here's.
Saints redeemed to God by the blood of Christ, Suffering in Gaza and in Israel from the countries roundabout.
God is going to bring His purpose out of all of it, isn't it?
It will be a wonderful day when that Kingdom of God appears and.
It's an interesting study. We don't have time for it this afternoon, but to see how the Kingdom of God is brought out in Scripture and the far reaching impact that it will have. We see anything but the Kingdom of God gradually being exhibited in this world. Rather, instead, every man is doing that which is right in his own eyes.
And not even that in many cases.
But men deliberately and willfully doing wrong because he'll do whatever he can get away with. And so men are committing fraud, committing crimes, telling lies, doing things morally wrong in everyday life which some of us that are older never dreamed we would see in our lifetime.
When some of us were growing up, the world, at least in which we lived and moved, was relatively.
Morally upright and if.
Someone was willfully and deliberately doing something morally wrong.
And it was exposed, it was, it was dealt with and we can be thankful for the extent to which it is still being dealt with today.
But it happens so frequently now that men are, just as I say, doing what they think they can get away with. But there will come a day, as dawn was bringing out during the millennial day, when all that will change and when the Lord will rule in righteousness and governments will have to operate in keeping with the Kingdom of God.
But I would just suggest the thought too that the Kingdom of God.
It even goes beyond the Millennium, that vast moral Kingdom.
That will begin in the Millennium, will extend right on into the eternal state.
Forever there will be that vast moral Kingdom with Christ at its head.
That would exist for all eternity, when evil will never rear its head again, when sin will never exist again.
Never see it again after the end of the Great White Throne Judgment.
For that vast moral Kingdom, where everything is according to God's mind, will continue to exist.
Our late brother Harry Hajo used to make the comment. I thought it was rather a good way of putting it. He said the Millennium will be a wonderful time, but it is really only the front porch to the eternal state.
And that is not what is before us in this chapter particularly, but I just mentioned that for completeness.
It will be a wonderful time. The Millennium will introduce it. Righteousness will dwell.
Or will reign rather in the Millennium, in the eternal state. Righteousness will dwell. Righteousness will be insisted upon during the Millennium. Righteousness will dwell in the eternal state. There will be nothing to oppose it ever.
00:55:07
Papa, you had mentioned generations.
The characteristic? Well, isn't it sometimes used like we when we speak of baby boomers?
We are Speaking of a Democrat demographic cohort of people that were born in 1946.
And up until 1964. So if we refer to them referring to a specific group of people that lived at a specific period of time, if if that's what it means in this chapter, then I've heard the thought suggested that those who see the trees budding and shooting poor will not pass away.
In the sense that die off until all of these things are fulfilled.
Heard in these years.
Wait for the microphone. Sorry. Oh, thank you. And so we see that right now, never as we have seen it before. And today, truth is under attack. Christianity is under attack. What is being held as right and true by Christians as being attacked, as being evil and hate and all these things. And so this is all a picture of what we've been talking about. And what does this mean for us as we sit here?
In this setting.
Is some of what Bruce brought out earlier this morning that we need to be careful what we take in today? It said that there is about 200 more times pieces of information brought before us in these days than at 25 years ago. And so we're encouraging Timothy to rightly divide the word of truth study to show thyself approved. Approved of who?
Approved of God.
And we see Christianity, sadly, in some cases setting aside truth and compromising, but we need to study to show ourselves approved of God. And we can take courage too, as was talked about in the open meeting, that the word, the lamp into our feet and light unto our path and to direct us through these dark times. And so young families do take courage. You see what's going on around us, but we see that we have a hope set before us.
And in the meantime, if we stay the course, the Lord promises us in Peter, right, That he will give us all things that pertain to life and godliness. And every time you look around and consider the path of the world and the path of darkness, I have, I'm an old person now. I have never seen anyone who's followed an earthly path, who's resulted in a life that they look back and say, this has been amazing.
Instead, you see strife.
Over inheritances you see terrible things happening you see suicides of rich and famous people Why because the thief comes but to steal to kill and destroy. John 10 but I am come that they might have life and have it more abundantly so we can take courage as we consider these things. There's a great portion that's been set before us but there are some very practical things that we can take into our hearts here too because James.
A double minded man is unstable in all his ways and so we need to really adhere to the truth of the word of God, not let all this noise around us take us down because Satan's goal is to steal, to kill and destroy. But we have a very blessed path we can take courage. You fortify your home, you fill your heart with the word of God and you'll be amazed at the joy that goes into your.
Compared to the sadness, strife and darkness in the world I work in healthcare, we are so overwhelmed with with behavioral health issues because there's never been depression in in existence like there is in the world today. So that is the path of the world today. We are not missing anything. We're blessed beyond measure. We have the instruction manuals have been talked about everything that pertains to life and godliness. And so we can really take courage.
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Verse 33 It says heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away. A wonderful brethren, we have something that is solid and upon which we can base our confidence, the precious living.
Word of God, they will not pass away.
We can be short of it.
Sam, you didn't get an answer to your question really, but.
I would suggest that that viewpoint is really.
A misapplication of what we have in this chapter. I don't believe it's saying that the generation that sees these things starting to the stage being set for them.
Will necessarily be here for the Lord's well for all this to be fulfilled. I because how long has it been now since the nation of Israel appeared 75 years or more and.
Many have gone to be with the Lord or many have passed away in that time, so I would suggest that's not really what it means.
Sure you would agree with that. I've thought about it because somebody writing about it was suggesting the thought and said that the passing of a generation is 120 year. When they die off, people don't live. You know, every now and then you'll hear about some person just died, that's 118 or 120. But I don't know that I've heard anybody dying away.
At much older than that, but Even so.
Of generation passing away about 120 years. That still leaves some time.
I believe if you trace the term this generation through the gospels.
At least in the Gospels, you'll see that, as the brothers have been saying, it's a moral generation.
For example, in Luke Chapter 11.
Verse 49. I will send them prophets and apostles, and some of them they shall slay and persecute.
That's future that the blood of all the prophets, which was shed from the foundation of the world, may be required of this generation.
From the blood of Abel unto the blood of Zechariah, which perish between the altar and the temple.
Clearly, I say unto you, it shall be required of this generation, so he's not going to heap on one particular generation that was alive at that time.
All the, all the, the punishment are the results of that kind of moral failure. But it's a moral generation that the Lord points to. Similarly, you see when the Lord was on trial before the Jewish leaders.
They they pressed him and said, Tell us clearly, are you the Christ? And he said, hereafter you shall see the Son of Man sitting on the right hand and coming in the clouds of glory.
Would they see it in their lifetime? No, but that generation is going to see it.
On the other side, it's helpful to see that when the Lord spoke to his disciples and you picture him there sitting on the bank overlooking the city of Jerusalem in Matthew, it's presented that way, I believe also here in Luke 21.
And he says to them they and he says to them, ye, you all, in other words, English you plural. And so it's clear that those particular disciples wouldn't be the ones that would be discerning, you know, the abomination of desolation set up or pray that your flight is not in the Sabbath, because those things are yet future. But the disciples in a sense represented the men and women of faith.
Who will be in that experience in the coming days? What we often call the Jewish remnant? And so the Lord looks upon those disciples who were men of faith in that day and looks upon them as morally the same entity, the same people that will have to respond. And we'll do so by faith on His word in the coming day from their intelligent Jewish teachers.
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1.
Attending.
From the trial.
Of history.
Comes and comes to rain.
Israel's strange shall now be holding.
And told him it's the building.
To the country.
Now glory.
Show Merry Christmas.