A Look Ahead, 2007 Series

2007 - A Look Ahead

3 John 4; Revelation 1:1-3

Turn to the 3rd book of John and hold your place there

Introduction

Today we are going to look ahead at the coming year, and begin the understanding and study of the greatest promise yet to come, and that is the revealing of Jesus Christ not as a sacrificial lamb, but as the Lion of the Tribe of Judah and Savior of humanity.

Read 3 John 4

I. There is no greater joy than living the life

- Where should we be now?

We have each traveled a road to get where we are, and miraculously through the Spirit, we really all ought to be at a similar place of spiritual walks – same Spirit! Here is the important tip: If you have Jesus as your Savior, you have all you will ever need to get anywhere in life.

However, there are some things that each of us should be doing right now:

- We should be looking up in anticipation

Jesus said He would return like a thief in the night – we should not be caught off guard

- We should be living the life of Jesus in us

We have a standard to live by (bible) – if you are ever in doubt of how to live, have you sought out guidance from God’s Word? From your own prayer life; to your own biblical concordance; to faithful Christians around you; to thousands of books at Lifeway or Family Christian, there is plenty of guidance for you to seek.

Note: I said ‘faithful Christians’ – discern who to talk to through the Spirit – not everyone needs to know everything. A man ought to have a trusted male friend he can talk to, and a woman ought to have a trusted female friend she can talk to – this builds accountability.

But we have a standard to follow, and that standard is Jesus Christ

- We should be Mission Oriented

The fields are white – the harvest is plenty – and the people outside the church need Jesus

NGL – Perfect opportunity for men to be involved in Kingdom business

- Why do we need to have Prophecy Study and Preparation?

1. We study to prepare

2. We prepare so we can understand

3. We understand so that we may disciple

Making disciples for Jesus Christ ought to be the foundation of our lives. This is our mission, and this is where we need to be focused on for the future

II. Where we are going?

Read Revelation 1:1-3

- We are going to be looking ahead

There is nothing left to happen but for Jesus to return, and we ought to be anxiously awaiting that prophecy. Each day is another chance to get right with Christ, but only the Father knows how many days we have left – do not waste them.

- We are going to study to be prepared to give an answer

2 Tim 4:2 says “Preach the Word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage—with great patience and careful instruction.”

- Today, you need to be about preparing your heart and house

Matthew 25 talks about being prepared (Parable of the 10 Virgins) – 5 went out to get oil because they did not fill their lamps (they were not prepared), and when they came back they were shut out of the house because the bridegroom had arrived and those who were prepared went into the house with them.

1. The house, is heaven

2. The bridegroom, is Jesus

3. And the virgins, those represent us

- We are going to be blessed for reading and understanding

John tells us here that by reading and understand prophecy we will be blessed, and I believe this is because we will have knowledge in our minds about being prepared, and will have knowledge in our hearts (if we allow it to penetrate) to give the eternal hope of looking forward in expectation to others.

If you are a Christian today – you have hope of a future – and your mission is to give that hope to others.

Pray