Gtcotr/ss090918
Revelation 20 NKJV
11 ¶ Then I saw a great white
throne and Him who sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled
away. And there was found no place for them.
12 And I saw the dead, small
and great, standing before God, and books were opened. And another book was
opened, which is the Book of Life. And the dead were judged according to
their works, by the things which were written in the books.
13 The sea gave up the dead
who were in it, and Death and Hades delivered up the dead who were in them. And
they were judged, each one according to his works.
14 Then Death and Hades were
cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death.
15 And anyone not found written
in the Book of Life was cast into the lake of fire.
Allow
me a few minutes this morning to refresh us all concerning the calendar God
gave His children. He told them to observe certain days and weeks each year.
God still works off of His calendar and He has pre-scheduled every major event
on the earth to coincide with the times He has prescribed. It would be remis to
imagine dates are not important to God. He gave us an eternal calendar and
clock in the Bible. Jesus was born, lived, died and is coming again according
to the predetermined dates written beforehand in the Bible. Jesus did not
consider Himself too important to participate in God’s plan for mankind. Today is
one of those predetermined, special days listed in the Bible. Today is a Holy
Day.
Today
is Rosh Hashanah,
the Jewish New
Year 5779. This day is also known in the
scriptures as Judgment
Day.
2 Corinthians 5:10 For we
must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive
the things done in the body, according to what he has done, whether good
or bad.
The
fall season is especially important to us and to God because of the Fall Feasts
which have yet to be fulfilled in the earth by Christ. Each year is but a dress
rehearsal aimed at keeping us mindful of a day which is yet to come. So today,
at sundown in Israel and all around the world, the Bible instructs God’s
Children to observe this very important holy day:
Rosh
Hashanah
o
Sundown
today - Marks the 1st Day of Tishri 5779
o
New
Year’s Day on God’s Calendar
o
This
is the day we believe God created Adam and Eve
o
It
is the day that the Ark of the Covenant was brought into the Temple of Solomon
at the dedication of the First Temple.
o
The
Second Temple was also dedicated on this day.
o
This
is the day of the year we believe Jesus was born
o
This
is the day of the year we believe Jesus will return for His Bride which is also
known as the Rapture of the Church.
o
It
is the Judgment Day we have all read
about in the scriptures
§ Judaism teaches that
today is the day that God decides the fate of every person currently living on
the earth
·
The
day on which God writes the names of the righteous in the Book of Life and
writes the names of the wicked in the Book of Death.
·
Then,
everyone on earth is given the next 10 days in which to repent and change their
fate before God makes His final decision on Yom Kippur - The Day of Atonement.
These
10 Days between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, sundown September 9th
through sundown, September 19th, are called:
·
The 10 Days
of Awe
o
Remember
– These are the days between Judgment Day and The Day of Atonement.
o
For
thousands of years Jewish Rabbis have been teaching that these 10 days are
given to mankind by a merciful God so that we can:
§ Take inventory of
our lives
§ Repent of our sins
§ Offer ourselves to
God
§ Begin living a life
pleasing to Him
o
All
of these things are done in hopes that God will forgive our sins and save us
from the punishment we deserve.
Of
course, we know that Jesus was born of a virgin, lived a sinless life, died an
atoning death, was raised to life again victorious over sin, death, hell and
the grave and that He is coming again to gather the righteous to heaven and to
judge all those who refuse to submit themselves to His Lordship. Jesus is the
Son of God and the Savior of the World!
·
His
birth represents God creating man without sin in the Garden of Eden.
·
His
life shows us the goodness and grace of a loving God towards humanity.
·
His
death fulfills the Passover promise of a spotless Lamb who would be sacrificed
to pay for the sins of all who receive the blood of Christ.
·
His
burial carried our sins to an eternal grave.
·
His
resurrection granted us the power of immortal life.
·
The
time between our birth and our death are our Days of Awe.
·
But
one day we will all stand before God on Judgment
Day.
·
Will
you be right with God?
What does it take to be right with God? (Saved or Lost …)
1.
Recognize your need of a Savior.
2.
Repent of your sins and turn your heart towards God.
3.
Receive Jesus by faith as you pray and ask Him into your heart.
Just
because we are saved and are living in the New Testament era of grace, and on
our way to heaven, does not mean that we should shirk our responsibility or disregard
our daily opportunity to clean our lives up and draw closer to God each day.
This
year the 10 Days of Awe will begin tomorrow morning. In consideration of this
opportunity and our responsibility, I want to encourage you to do something
with me.
·
Today
I am asking you to consider joining me in a personal time of devotion each
morning for the next 10 mornings as we observe the Days of Awe together. We
will use this time to draw closer to God. I am going to add an Early Morning Daily
Devotional to my regular morning routine. It will include an extra
Bible Reading and a brief time of Personal Prayer. I will do this at my home
and I’m asking you to do this at your home as well. Here is what I will do:
o
Daily Bible Reading for the next 10 days
§ Monday
the 10th – Genesis 1
§ Tuesday
the 11th – Psalms 23
§ Wednesday
the 12th – Ecclesiastes 3
§ Thursday
the 13th – Isaiah 53
§ Friday
the 14th – John 14
§ Saturday
the 15th – Acts 3
§ Sunday
the 16th – 1 Corinthians 13
§ Monday
the 17th – James 4
§ Tuesday
the 18th – 2 Peter 1
§ Wednesday
the 19th – Revelation 22
Note: (You will find this list on our website
at cotr.com)
o
Daily Time of Prayer and Personal Dedication
§ A time of seeking God for me – that I might know Him
better and walk in His will for my life.
Don’t
forget, “We shall all stand before the judgment seat of Christ.” And, Judgment
Day is today!
Join
with me if you can … and I wish you L’shanah Tova! Have
a good year!
