Dedicated To The Men of God
Who Preach the Word of God As It Is To Men As They Are
"Preach The Word"
An Invasion From Another World
Texts:
Rev. 19:11-21
11 ¶ And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and he that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he doth judge and make war.
12 His eyes were as a flame of fire, and on his head were many crowns; and he had a name written, that no man knew, but he himself.
13 And he was clothed with a vesture dipped in blood: and his name is called The Word of God.
14 And the armies which were in heaven followed him upon white horses, clothed in fine linen, white and clean.
15 And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite the nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of iron: and he treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God.
16 And he hath on his vesture and on his thigh a name written, KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS.
17 And I saw an angel standing in the sun; and he cried with a loud voice, saying to all the fowls that fly in the midst of heaven, Come and gather yourselves together unto the supper of the great God;
18 That ye may eat the flesh of kings, and the flesh of captains, and the flesh of mighty men, and the flesh of horses, and of them that sit on them, and the flesh of all men, both free and bond, both small and great.
19 And I saw the beast, and the kings of the earth, and their armies, gathered together to make war against him that sat on the horse, and against his army.
20 And the beast was taken, and with him the false prophet that wrought miracles before him, with which he deceived them that had received the mark of the beast, and them that worshiped his image. These both were cast alive into a lake of fire burning with brimstone.
21 And the remnant were slain with the sword of him that sat upon the horse, which sword proceeded out of his mouth: and all the fowls were filled with their flesh.
2 Thess. 1:7-9
7 And to you who are troubled rest with us, when the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with his mighty angels,
8 In flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ:
9 Who shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord, and from the glory of his power;
Jude 1:14-15
14 And Enoch also, the seventh from Adam, prophesied of these, saying, Behold, the Lord cometh with ten thousands of his saints,
15 ¶ To execute judgment upon all, and to convince all that are ungodly among them of all their ungodly deeds which they have ungodly committed, and of all their hard speeches which ungodly sinners have spoken against him.
Introduction:
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When most people think of an invasion from another world, they do think of it in the sense of the verses that we just read. They think of flying saucers, space crafts, and weird looking alien creatures.
Today there is so much in the news, in magazines and newspapers about flying saucers and aliens.
Some Oct. 14,1997 headlines read:
U.S. ASTRONAUT BELIEVES ALIENS
HAVE LANDED ON EARTH
"The sixth man to walk on the moon, Edgar Mitchell, it is reported believes that aliens have crash landed on earth and the incident was covered up by the U.S. government. At a conference in Phoenix, he is supposed to have said that the U.S. military is using alien technology recovered from a crashed alien spacecraft. He urged Congress to begin hearings on the cover-up."
In August of this year, there were mystery lights over Arizona. There were bizarre lights that hoovered over the city of Phoenix on March 13. Hundreds of people from all walks of life--including policemen, air traffic controllers, and just ordinary citizens- witnessed a celestial show they will not soon forget. It started around 8:15 p.m. when a V-shaped formation between 1,000 and 5,000 feet wide and up to a mile long was seen entering the valley. At the same time, a triangle shaped object was reported north of Scottsdale, Arizona. A formation of bright lights near South Mountain were video-taped. A truck driver reported seeing two orbs near Luke Air Force Base. One of the objects see that night was reportedly bigger than a football field.
Jesus said in Luke 21:11:
"Fearful sights and great signs shall there be from heaven."
The Son of God said in Luke 11:25-26:
25 And there shall be signs in the sun, and in the moon, and in the stars; and upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity; the sea and the waves roaring;
26 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.
A former U.S Air Force intelligence officer has predicted that before the end of this year that there will be a publicly witnessed alien spacecraft landing. He says that world leaders, including President Clinton, are involved in preparations for the event.
There are reports given of alien abductions and alien landings.
Are there real aliens invading this world? I personally do not think so. I believe that these thing originate from the darkest of the demonic forces. The devil and his demons are deceivers.
1. He is endeavoring now to deceive men into refusing salvation, thus sealing their doom for all eternity.
2. He has his trinity, seeking to imitate God. This is one God but He is revealed in three persons, Father, Son and Holy Spirit.Satan has his trinity, Anti-Christ, Beast and the False Prophet.
3. He will seek to deceive men to the point that people on the earth during the 7 year coming tribulation period, will believe that the Anti-Christ is God and many will worship his image.
We are told in the Bible that Satan will send lying wonders in the air. Do you know that over 8 million Americans are claiming at one time or another they have been abducted by UFO’s? If you think about the description of the creatures that abduct them, it sounds like demonology to me. Those so called beings have weird eyes, they are little, mean looking, and leave bad effects. They leave odors a lot of time, they can go through walls, and they haunt you for the rest of your life. DOES THAT NOT SOUND LIKE DEMON CREATURES? I have no doubt that we are dealing with demonic phenomenon. There are actual manifestations and materializations of forces of good and evil in direct combat.
World events signal that the end is near and that the Lord Jesus Christ is nigh, even at the door.
Remember this invasion I am speaking to you about will come at the end of the Tribulation Period of seven years. The first 3 ½ years will be a time of peace. The Jews will have their temple rebuilt and The Man of Sin will allow them to offer their sacrifices in the temple once again. But, in the midst of the 7 year tribulation time, the Anti-Christ breaks his covenant or promise with the Jew and sets up idol worship in the Jewish temple.
By the way, this is not something that is in the past but something that is in the future. If you recall a man from history by the name of Antiochus Epiphanes desecrated the Jewish temple in Jerusalem in about 70 AD, when he ordered an alter to false gods Jupiter and Olympus to be erected over Jehovah’s alter of burnt offering in the temple.
We need to understand that Daniel 9 has not yet been fulfilled , so Epiphanes could not have committed the temple abomination spoken of in Daniel 9. It is yet to be fulfilled by the coming Anti-christ, the Man of Sin, during the tribulation period.
After the broken covenant by the Anti-christ with the Jews, the trumpet judgments, the seal judgments, and the vial judgments, the Battle of Armageddon will occur, and Jesus will come with His saints that He raptured or had snatched out of this world seven years earlier.
I am going to speak with you this evening about this invasion from another world. It involves the Savior, the saints, and sinners. The previously raptured saints come with the Savior, down to the earth, to deal with sinners.
I. THE SETTING OF THIS INVASION
During the coming tribulation period of seven years, in the last three and one half years of that time, there will be attempts to invade and over-run Jerusalem and the Land of Israel.
Ezek. 38 refers to several nations that will come down upon Israel. Listen are Gog and Mag (or Russia), Persia (Iran), Ethiopia, Libya, Gamer(which may be Turkey) and other.
Then later the Euphrates River dries up and more armies come in, probably led by Asian nation such as China (Rev.16.)
The Battle of Armageddon will then take place as the armies of the earth defy the Lord Jesus and His chosen people, but then Jesus comes with his saints and destroys his enemies in the brightness of His Coming and with the Word of God. With the Word of God Jesus, who is the Word Made Flesh, destroys his enemies. Millions will die in that dreadful Day of the Lord.
II. THE SURENESS OF THIS INVASION
A. What I am preaching about today is not some man’s idea or some kind of here-say handed down from generation to generation.
It is based on the sure, certain, infallible, inerrant Word of the Living God.
B. Jesus came the first time as the prophets had predicted, and when He comes the second time, it will be as predicted also.
1. Jesus Himself spoke about His coming
2. Paul spoke of it often
3. Other O.T. and NT writes spoke of His coming.
If He did it once like the prophets said He would, He can surely do it again, for his power and authority has not diminished.
Note:
Years ago mens minds imagined Martians and some feared
there would be group of beings from the planet of Mars,
would come and take over the earth. Ever heard the old
expression, "The Martians are coming?" Well, I
just wouldn’t hold my breath to wait for it to
happen, because it won’t. But, thank God Jesus will
do just what he said He would do in the Bible.
There are two parts or phases to one coming.
Illustration:
You can have one coin but it is actually in two parts. Each coin has a heads side and a tails side. There is one second coming but there are two parts to that coming.
THERE ARE TWO PARTS TO ONE COMING:
1st Rapture- Take place when Jesus comes for his church or His bride. Only the saved will go up at that time. The church of Jesus Christ will exit planet earth for a while. But it is not a ONE WAY TRIP. We are leaving with the Lord and then seven years later coming back with the Lord. Saints will leave and then come back with Jesus.
2nd will be Revelation- Remember it will occur 7 years after the rapture. It is when,as the Bible says in Rev. 1:7 "Behold, he cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see him, and they [also] which pierced him: and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of him."
I DO NOT BELIEVE THE BIBLE TEACHES ONE BIG MASSIVE COMING, A GENERAL JUDGMENT AND A GENERAL RESURRECTION.
III. THE SIGNS OF THIS INVASION
Turn to Matt. 24:4-12
The Lord Jesus in the Olivet Discourse gives several signs of the Revelation part or Revelation phase of the second coming. These are not direct signs of the Rapture but if the Revelation is getting close, the Rapture is 7 years sooner. Look in Matt. 24 for a few minutes and let’s see some of the signs Jesus warned us about. Christ answers the question of the disciples when they asked, "When shall these things be ? And what will be the sin of thy coming, and of the end of the world?" Let’s glance for a few minutes at this list of signs that Jesus gave to His disciples.
A. False Christs (v.4-"I am Christ)
Men will claim to be Jesus incarnate.
Today we want to deify man ( man a god out of man) and humanize God. That indicates Jesus’ coming is near.
There have been many people down through the years who have done this. We could make a long list of those characters but I am going to mention just a couple:
.1. Lord Maytria- according to the New York times in a newspaper article made this claim.
2. Koresh believed he was the Messiah.
In the 7 year tribulation period, the Anti-christ will set Himself up to be worshiped as the Christ. The reason I know that the abomination of desolation was not Antioch us Epiphanes desecrating the Jewish temple around 70 A.D. is because of the wording here of what Jesus said. Christ declared, "When ye shall see(it had obviously not happened yet), the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place" (Matt. 24:15). Thus, Christ spoke of a future event on God’s time calendar.
B. "Wars and Rumors of Wars" (v.6)
1. There are wars around the world.
There may not be a "world war" now but there are wars going on all around the world. We do not have time to begin to name them this evening. As we meet this evening, wars are being fought in various place around planet earth. As we get closer to Jesus’ coming, there will be more war and bloodshed than every before.
2. There are rumors of wars.
By the year 2,000 some experts say as many as 24 Third World Nations will have long range ballistic missles . Probably one half of those will have nuclear capability. That is alarming! Now it is Russian and China that threatens the free world. That will worsen in the next few years. We may face 11 or 12 nuclear foes by the year 2,000. We live in an even increasingly dangerous world, with nuclear proliferation all around us.
In Russian, many are concerned that nuclear bombs may fall into the hands of the Russian maffia. They could sell them to anyone they wished on the black market.
There will probably be the day in the near future when Saddam Hussein or Momar Gadhaphy will be able to strike us with a nuclear weapon.
One intelligence expert has said that practically all the people in Russia, China, and Switzerland have nuclear shelters. Do they know something we are failing to see?
In light of what the Bible says, it is a shame our nation is reducing its military strength. We used to have 2.2 million troops now we have probably a little less than 1.6 million. The army of China is many times the size of our Armed Forces.
C. National Conflict- "nation shall rise against nation" (v.7) kingdom against kingdom
That is more evident in the Asian countries and the Holy Land than any other places.
There is continual conflict with North and South Korea.
Tension between Japan and Taiwan.
China has problems with its Asian neighbors.
The Arab world sees to want to constantly fight the little Nation of Israel in many more ways than one.
Syria has threatened to make another attempt to take back the Golan Heights.
On and on the list could go.
D. Famines
Every year even now 13 to 18 million people die from
hunger and starvation around the world. Every 24 hours,
35,000 people die from lack of food and hunger related
diseases. The number of people who die every two days
from starvation is about the same as the number of those
who were killed when we dropped the atomic bomb on
Hiroshima, Japan.
Experts say that hunger plagues one billion people around the world. Malnutrition claims the lives of multiplied thousands of children each week. Sixty million people in Africa are about to die out because of starvation. Over 300 million people are chronically hunger throughout Asia.
Around the world, up toward 1.2 billion people live in absolute poverty, which is largely due to hunger, famine, sickness, and disease.
Note:
I wish I could stop the starvation of people around the world by the snap of my fingers, but you and I cannot stop what is going on--the problem is too great for you and for me.
E. Pestilence - v.7
That simply means disease. Disease will run rampant in the last days. There are new diseases diagnosed all the time and anti-biotics are not able to stop them all. Some form of bacteria that exists now is resistant to the strongest of our antibiotics.
The World Health organization says bacteria, resistant to common antibiotics, represent the most serious threat to the global medical community for the future.
When God inspired his Word to men, we did not know terms like cancer, aids, and many others that we know today. Over a period of time, man’s sin has brought havoc upon the human race.
Some experts say that "the nation will lose far more people from those already infected with the HIV, than were lost in the Revolutionary War, the Civil War, the Spanish-American War, World War I, World War II, Korea, Vietnam, and the Gulf War combined.
IT IS A SOBERING HOUR IN WHICH WE LIVE!
Years ago, when vaccinations were first developed, some scientists predicted the end of infectious diseases. Not only have they not gone away, they have increased.
Illustration:
I know you have read or heard of the bubonic plague that nearly wiped from 1/4 to ½ of the population of Europe. The Bible tells us that the "worst is yet to come."
F. Earthquakes (in divers places)
Because the word "divers" is used, a man once told me that it meant earthquakes under the ocean. No, "divers" means "various." They will occur in many places around the world.
Just a few days ago there have been earthquakes.
1. There was a series of earthquakes in Italy Oct. 16,1997, just a few days ago that cause some excitement. Many are paying heed to rumors circulating that "the Big One" will strike today based on an interpretation of the prophecies of Nostradamus. The newspaper La Stampa reported "An obsessions without end" in a headline and said people near the epicenter of the last quake were "awaiting the end of the world." Bookstores are reported to have sold out their stocks of book on the prophecies of Nostradamus who supposedly predicted the end of the world after tremendous earthquakes.
2. Chile had a power earthquake on Oct.14,1997.
Chile, resting on the earth's "ring of fire"
where tectonic plates rub and cause a great deal of
geologic events, experienced a 6.8 magnitude earthquake
last night. At least 7 people have been confirmed dead
and many building were destroyed. The epicenter was 300
miles north of the capital, Santigo.
Volcanic activity will increase in FREQUENCY and in INTENSITY before Jesus returns in power and great glory, when every eye shall see Him.
God can cause the earths plates to shift any time He chooses, because He created them.
G. Intense Persecution (Matt.25:14)
It will be harder and harder as your profess your faith
in Christ to live in this world.
In some Islamic nations Christians are being put to death for their faith in the Lord Jesus. Middle East terrorists are killing in the name of their god Allah. Jews and Christians to them are infidels and of no worth.
China, the world’s largest nation has become a "killing field" for Christians. The government seems to be determined to bring Christianity to the ash heap. Government authorities interrupt their church services often in China. They are arrested, tortured, and can be killed for having church.
The Jews of course have been persecuted for years. The Bible says, "All that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution." You might say, preacher, I am not being persecuted. Then according to Jesus, you are not living as godly as you should in your daily life.
H. Knowledge explosion
Da 12:4 "But thou, O Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book, [even] to the time of the end: many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall be increased."
Illustration:
What a explosion of knowledge has been seen today! You
can sit with your computer in a room, and with it, the
proper software, and the right connection, you can
communicate instantly with people on the other side of
the earth.
If you want to study a subject you can type a word or series of words, and can go to hundreds or thousands of places to get information. That is staggers my mind!
Just the other day, some Englishmen took a car with jet engines and went so fast, they broke the sound barrier on the ground.
That is amazing!
The French Concorde jet that flies across the Atlantic, goes at speeds more than 2,000 miles per hour.
NOTE:
IT IS EASY TO RUN TO AND FRO WHEN YOU CAN GO AT THAT FAST OF PACE.
Spaceships move along by rocket engines at 24,000 miles per hour.
These are a few signs of the time when He invades this world with the armies of heaven, riding on white horses
IV. THE SUDDENNESS OF THE INVASION
The armies of the earth will gather in the Holy Land to
come down upon Jerusalem, and then without warning and
suddenly Jesus will appear with his saints on white horse
and with white robes. They will be destroyed suddenly.
\Rev. 14:20 says that blood will flow even unto the horses’ bridles. That is blood about 3 feet deep in the Valley of Jezreel, just a few miles away from Jerusalem for a great distance. It will frtilize the ground for the millennial reign of Jesus Christ upon this earth. What crops will be grown then? The lemons will probably be as large as grapefruits!!!
V. THE SAINTS AND THIS INVASION
Jude 1:14 And Enoch also, the seventh from Adam, prophesied of these, saying, Behold, the Lord cometh with ten thousands of his saints,
Rev. 19:14 says, "And the armies which were in heaven followed Him." Who? The rider on the white horse- none other than the Lord Jesus Christ. What a grand and glorious sight that will be!
We’re coming back with the Lord Jesus Christ and will see Him execute judgment upon the earth. This makes me glad I am a saint rather than a sinner.
CONCLUSION:
1- Things are not going to get better, the reality is they are going to get worse. The Bible says, "Evil men and seducers shall wax worse and worse."
2- When you see these signs I have mentioned, know that it signals that Jesus is going to come in power and glory one day to judge sinners upon this earth. The cup of His wrath will one day be full.
3- If it shows the nearness of Christ’s coming at the end of the tribulation, from what we can see now, we must be getting close to the rapture, or catching out of the church.
4- Many Jewish scholars believe that the world will last some 6,000 years from its creation or 85 jubilees from the times of Elias the prophet. Then the Son of David will come and begin the world’s rest. Six thousands years of human history has almost rolled around, surely His coming is soon. Are you ready?
SERMON FROM DR. TOM WALKER
ZION HILL BAPTIST- MARION, NC- USA
