DISCERNING THE TIMES : A CALL TO ACTION
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INTRODUCTION
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WE MUST RECOGNISE THE SIGNIFICANCE OF THE DAYS WE ARE LIVING IN AND RESPOND TO THE CALL OF GOD IN THIS HOUR . WE MUST DISCERN WHAT THE LORD IS DOING IN THESE LAST DAYS AND JOIN WITH HIM TO FULFILL OUR PART. WE MUST NOT MISS THE TIME OF GOD’S VISITATION. WE MUST MAKE OUR LIFE COUNT FOR GOD. WE MUST RISE UP TO THE CHALLENGE AND DO WHAT GOD WANTS US TO DO AT THIS TIME.
ECCLESIASTES 3:11
" He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the hearts of men; yet they cannot fathom what God has done from beginning to end. "
I CHRONICLES 12:32
" men of Issachar, who understood the times and knew what Israel should do , 200 chiefs, with all their relatives under their command; "
ESTHER 4:14
" For if you remain silent at this time, relief and deliverance for the Jews will arise from another place, but you and your father’s family will perish. And who knows but that you have come to royal position for such a time as this?"
MARK 13:33
" Be on guard! Be alert and pray! You do not know when that time will come. "
MATTHEW 16:2-3
" He replied, "When evening comes, you say, ’It will be fair weather, for the sky is red,’
and in the morning, ’Today it will be stormy, for the sky is red and overcast.’ You know how to interpret the appearance of the sky, but you cannot interpret the signs of the times. "
LUKE 12:54-56
"He said to the crowd: "When you see a cloud rising in the west, immediately you say, ’It’s going to rain,’ and it does.
And when the south wind blows, you say, ’It’s going to be hot,’ and it is.
Hypocrites! You know how to interpret the appearance of the earth and the sky. How is it that you don’t know how to interpret this present time? "
LUKE 19:41-44
" As he approached Jerusalem and saw the city, he wept over it
and said, "If you, even you, had only known on this day what would bring you peace , but now it is hidden from your eyes.
The days will come upon you when your enemies will build an embankment against you and encircle you and hem you in on every side.
They will dash you to the ground, you and the children within your walls. They will not leave one stone on another, because you did not recognize the time of God’s coming to you."
PSALM 90:12
" Teach us to number our days aright, that we may gain a heart of wisdom. "
THE MESSAGE
DISCERNING THE TIMES : A CALL TO ACTION
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1. IT IS TIME TO ARISE AND SHINE FOR THE LORD
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ISAIAH 60:1,22
" Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the LORD rises upon you. "
" The least of you will become a thousand, the smallest a mighty nation. I am the LORD; in its time I will do this swiftly."
ROMANS 13:11
" And do this, understanding the present time. The hour has come for you to wake up from your slumber, because our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed. "
EPHESIANS 5:14
" for it is light that makes everything visible. This is why it is said: "Wake up, O sleeper, rise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you."
2. IT IS TIME TO BE WISE AND MAKE USE OF EVERY OPPORTUNITY
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EPHESIANS 5:15-16
" Be very careful, then, how you live—not as unwise but as wise,
making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil. "
COLOSSIANS 4:5
" Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; make the most of every opportunity. "
3. IT IS TIME TO SEEK THE LORD FOR THE LATTER RAIN
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HOSEA 10:12
" Sow for yourselves righteousness, reap the fruit of unfailing love, and break up your unplowed ground; for it is time to seek the LORD, until he comes and showers righteousness on you. "
ZECHARIAH 10:1
" Ask the LORD for rain in the springtime; it is the LORD who makes the storm clouds. He gives showers of rain to men, and plants of the field to everyone. "
JOEL 2:23
" Be glad, O people of Zion, rejoice in the LORD your God, for he has given you the autumn rains in righteousness. He sends you abundant showers, both autumn and spring rains, as before. "
4. IT IS TIME TO RECEIVE THE FAVOUR OF GOD
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PSALM 102:13
" You will arise and have compassion on Zion, for it is time to show favor to her; the appointed time has come. "
ISAIAH 49:8
" This is what the LORD says: "In the time of my favor I will answer you, and in the day of salvation I will help you; I will keep you and will make you to be a covenant for the people, to restore the land and to reassign its desolate inheritances, "
5. IT IS THE END TIMES AND THE TIME OF THE ANTI CHRIST
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I JOHN 2:18
" Dear children, this is the last hour; and as you have heard that the antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have come. This is how we know it is the last hour. "
II TIMOTHY 4:1-4
" In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who will judge the living and the dead, and in view of his appearing and his kingdom, I give you this charge:
Preach the Word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage—with great patience and careful instruction.
For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear.
They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths. "
II TIMOTHY 3:1-5
" But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days.
People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy,
without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good,
treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God—
having a form of godliness but denying its power. Have nothing to do with them.
6. IT IS TIME FOR JUDGEMENT WITHIN THE FAMILY OF GOD
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I PETER 4:17-18
" For it is time for judgment to begin with the family of God; and if it begins with us, what will the outcome be for those who do not obey the gospel of God?
And,"If it is hard for the righteous to be saved, what will become of the ungodly and the sinner?"
MATTHEW 7:21-23
"Not everyone who says to me, ’Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.
Many will say to me on that day, ’Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?’
Then I will tell them plainly, ’I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’"
HEBREWS 12:28-29
" Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be thankful, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe,
for our "God is a consuming fire."
7. IT IS TIME TO PRAISE AND TRUST AND OBEY THE LORD
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PSALM 34:1
" I will extol the LORD at all times; his praise will always be on my lips. "
PSALM 62:8
" Trust in him at all times, O people; pour out your hearts to him, for God is our refuge. "
PSALM 119:20
" My soul is consumed with longing for your laws at all times. "
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