The Biggest Gambling Racket

THE BIGGEST GAMBLING RACKET IN THE WORLD

Text: Acts 24: 24,25

Introduction: Gambling is one of the biggest operations in the world. More than all money spent on Cars, Medicine, Education, and Churches! --- The word Gamble means: To play games of chance for money or other valuable stakes - To take a great risk!

It is a terrible thing for the Dad of the home to go out and Gamble away his pay check and neglect his family --- BUT THE BIGGEST GAMBLE THAT A MAN WILL EVER TAKE, IS TO GAMBLE WITH HIS SOUL!

OUR TEXT TELLS US THAT PAUL REASONED WITH FELIX ABOUT HIS SOUL:

Felix trembled, and answered, "Go thy way for this time; when I have a convenient season, I will call for thee. --- Felix Gambled, He turned God’s Voice away and we never read in the Bible where Felix found that convenient season.

LET US NOTE IN THIS MESSAGE, FOUR THINGS A PERSON GAMBLES WITH, WHEN HE IS NOT READY TO MEET GOD:

I. YOU ARE GAMBLING WITH THE MOST VALUABLE POSSESION YOU

HAVE…. YOUR SOUL (MARK 8: 36,37)

WHAT IS A SOUL? Gen. 2:7 - And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life and man became A Living Soul!

"A SOUL IS A PART OF GOD, AND IT WILL NEVER DIE! The body will return back to dust from which is came but the soul will live on forever in Heaven or Hell! ---- God placed such a value on a soul, that He gave his only begotten Son Jesus to die on the cruel cross of Calvary that your Soul might be saved from an eternal burning Hell! --- You can loose you eyes, arms, legs, and still go to heaven… But if you loose your soul………

II. YOU ARE GAMBLING WITH THE POSSIBLITY OF HARDENING YOUR

HEART.

Proverbs 29:1 - "He that often being reproved, hardeneth his neck, shall suddenly be destroyed, and that without remedy. --- There is only one way to be saved and that is when the Spirit of God draws you… Jn.6:44….! Hebrews 3: 7,8 - "Today if ye will hear his voice, harden not your hearts! When the Holy Spirit calls you and you turn him away…. You are Gambling with the possibility of hardening your heart and being lost forever! --- Gen. 6:3 - "My Spirit will not always strive with man."

Man at Cole’s Chapel FWB ….. He wanted to know when was He to be saved and the pastor told him when he felt the Holy Spirit drawing him, go right then! --- It was told that right in the middle of the service, He began to push pews out of his way and got down right beside his pew and prayed and asked Jesus to come into his heart! --- When asked why did you do it in the middle of the church… He said I felt the Holy Spirit and I didn’t want to chance loosing it between the pew and the altar so I fell down right here!

TODAY IS THE DAY OF SALVATION, TOMORROW MAY BE TOO LATE!

III. YOU ARE GAMBLING WITH THE POSSIBILITY OF NOT BEING READY

WHEN JESUS COMES.

We know Jesus will come again! Jn. 14:3; Acts 1:11; I Th. 4…. We know he is coming again as sure as we know we are going to die… (Heb. 9:27) --- 318 times in the N.T.

1 0ut of every 25 verses --- 20 times more than the first time and we know Jesus came the first time! --- In a moment, twinkling of an eye……

IV. YOU ARE GAMBLING WITH THE POSSIBLILITY OF NOT BEING

READY AT DEATH

There is one thing for sure that we are going to die! BUT WHEN WILL WE DIE?

When God commissions the death angel to come and lay claims on you… You will go… Prepared or Unprepared!

ARE YOU READY TO DIE? ARE YOU PREPARED TO MEET GOD?

I’ll never forget the story told of the man in a Church who under deep conviction left and as he was leaving the Church parking lot … He was hit by a big truck

and killed… He went out of this world to face God… Unprepared!

PLEASE LISTEN TO ME TODAY, DO NOT GAMBLE WITH YOUR SOUL,

DO NOT GAMBLE WITH HARDENING YOUR HEART, DO NOT GAMBLE WITH BEING LEFT AT THE SECOND COMING OF JESUS, DO NOT GAMBLE WITH NOT BEING READY AT DEATH!

COME TO JESUS