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Wake-up Call

Opening Hymn: - “We Know Not the Hour” - #604

Scripture Reading: Mark 13:33-37

Closing Hymn: “Hold Fast Till I Come” - #600

On Thursday, September 25th (exactly 3 months before Christmas) we received the first warning about Hurricane Juan heading in the direction of Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. As the hurricane came closer the warnings continued saying that the hurricane was gaining more speed and would hit either as a Category 1 or a Category 2 hurricane. The problem is that there were those, ourselves included, who thought it would either miss us or wouldn’t be as bad as they said it would be. We stayed in the hurricane zone when we could have gone to the safety of our home here in New Brunswick. We heard the howling of the wind outside and wondered whether the roof over us would withstand the wind. Fortunately, we were far enough to the west that we missed the full brunt of it.

Those who took the warning seriously, prepared for it. Some removed their boats out of the water, whereas others left them there, tying them down more securely, but not securely enough.

Another hurricane, a category 2 hurricane named Hurricane Kate, may be heading in our direction. Right now they are forcasting it to hit somewhere in Newfoundland. I expect more are anxiously listening to the warnings this time, than they were the last time.

What about us? How are we reacting to all the signs around us?

1. Are we, like they, either ignoring or downplaying the warnings or signs that the Bible is full of?

2. Have we reached the place where we are saying we heard it all many times before, and thus now are either ignoring them or downplaying them, and saying that our focus should be on studying and talking about the love of Jesus, the love of Jesus?

What does Jesus say about this?

Turn with me to Mark 13:33 (READ)

Mark 13:33 Take ye heed, watch and pray: for ye know not when the time is.
Mark 13:34 For the Son of man is as a man taking a far journey, who left his house, and gave authority to his servants, and to every man his work, and commanded the porter to watch.
Mark 13:35 Watch ye therefore: for ye know not when the master of the house cometh, at even, or at midnight, or at the cockcrowing, or in the morning:
Mark 13:36 Lest coming suddenly he find you sleeping.
Mark 13:37 And what I say unto you I say unto all, Watch.

Jesus is giving us a Wake-up Call here!

As Hurricane Juan was a surprise to many, so the 2nd coming will be a surprise to many of us. Why? Because we stopped watching, saying that
we heard it, and heard it, and heard it, and have grown tired of hearing it, and want to hear only about the love of Jesus now.

I want to hear more of the love of Jesus too, but not to the neglect of no longer watching and heeding His warnings to us, which according to Jesus, many of us will be doing, and probably are doing as I speak.

Let us turn to John 14:23 (READ)

John 14:23 Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him.

“If a man love me, he will keep my words.” That is what Jesus said.

I see the love of Jesus in His warnings. I see the love of Jesus in the prophecies, whether spoken directly by Him, or spoken to us through the books of Daniel, Revelation, and others. The people of Israel rejected and missed the benefits of His 1st Coming as they knew not the time of His visitation, and they knew not the purpose of His visitation, they knew not the prophecies relating to His 1st Coming. Even His own disciples, who loved Him, knew not the purpose of His visitation. He told them, but they understood Him not, otherwise, they would not have scattered as a flock without a shepherd.

There was one person who, when he saw how bad Hurricane Juan really was, risked his life by crawling on his knees on the wharf to tie his boat even more securely. His boat survived the hurricane, whereas other boats there, didn’t.

Are we willing to risk or lose our life for Jesus Christ?

Romans 8:35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?

Do we love Him that much, that neither tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or whatever will separate us from the love of Christ?

This is a matter of love, isn’t it!

Those people may have loved their boats, as we should love our Jesus, but by not heeding the warning and moving their boats to safety, they lost their boats, and by not heeding the warning and the signs all around us and soon to come upon us, we could lose our Jesus.

Do we love our Jesus ?

Do we want to be ready when Jesus comes?

Are you watching the signs, or do you need a Wake-Up Call?

What do the warning signs mean to you?

First of all, what really are the warning signs?

What were the warning signs of Hurricane Juan? We heard the warning well in advance, but when did we actually see the warning signs ourselves? I guess Beth and I can both speak to that from our own experience at the Pugwash Campgrounds. Sunday afternoon was sunny and mild. It was a beautiful and calm afternoon. You could call it the calm before the storm.

Doesn’t that sound familiar? Turn with me to 1 Thess. 5:1-6 (READ)

1 Thessalonians 5:1 But of the times and the seasons, brethren, ye have no need that I write unto you.
1 Thessalonians 5:2 For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night.
1 Thessalonians 5:3 For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape.
1 Thessalonians 5:4 But ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief.
1 Thessalonians 5:5 Ye are all the children of light, and the children of the day: we are not of the night, nor of darkness.
1 Thessalonians 5:6 Therefore let us not sleep, as do others; but let us watch and be sober.

In other words, let us be awake and sober. You've got to be awake. If you are not awake, you may be the five virgins who were destitute of the Holy Spirit and didn’t make it through the last days.

The calm of Sunday afternoon and part of the evening was our peace and safety period where it didn’t look like anything was coming. All we had were the verbal warnings from both the radio and the TV.

Then came the first real sign of the coming hurricane; the stars disappeared and the cloud covered the whole sky!

It still seemed though like nothing was coming. We had cloudy days before, so what did that prove? We went to bed in a calm and cloudy atmosphere, and we fell asleep.

At about midnight we awoke to the sound of the second sign of the coming hurricane; the rain! And did it ever come down! And what a noise it made on the roof of our cabin!

Then shortly after that came the third sign and trumpeting of the coming hurricane; the wind! And did it ever blow….loud and clear….and threatening! It sounded like the roof was going to come off our cabin, but it didn’t!

We knew then that Hurricane Juan had truly arrived!

“Peace and safety” (Calm and peaceful) and then came the hurricane, and with it, sudden destruction as we later saw on the television.

Do you have the love for Jesus that will carry you through the hurricane leading up to the 2nd Coming of Jesus Christ?

We saw what the hurricane did. What will be the real signs of the 2nd Coming?

Let us look at what it says in Luke 21, beginning at verse 7: (READ)

Luke 21:7 And they asked him, saying, Master, but when shall these things be? and what sign will there be when these things shall come to pass?
Luke 21:8 And he said, Take heed that ye be not deceived: for many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and the time draweth near: go ye not therefore after them.
Luke 21:9 But when ye shall hear of wars and commotions, be not terrified: for these things must first come to pass; but the end is not by and by.
Luke 21:10 Then said he unto them, Nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom:
Luke 21:11 And great earthquakes shall be in divers places, and famines, and pestilences; and fearful sights and great signs shall there be from heaven.

Now here’s the one to watch out for:

Luke 21:12 But before all these, they shall lay their hands on you, and persecute you, delivering you up to the synagogues, and into prisons, being brought before kings and rulers for my name's sake.

Before all these other signs they shall lay their hands on you, and persecute you, delivering you up to the apostate churches, and into the
prisons, being brought before the court system or the military system for my name's sake. What the USA did to the those they considered as terrorists will be what they will most likely do to us.

Will you be ready for that, or will you be shaken out by all of this?

Are you heeding the warnings and watching the signs, or are you ignoring the warnings and also missing the signs, until it is too late!

Only your steadfast love for Jesus will carry you through and keep you from being shaken out.

You might say that Hurricane Juan was the wake-up call for those who either ignored or downplayed the warnings and the signs. They had their rude awakening.

I believe their experience is the wake-up call for us to be awake and watching for the warnings and signs, so that we will not be caught unaware as many people in Halifax, NS, Canada were.

How do we know whether or not we are awake or asleep?

The answer is found in Mark 16:20 (READ)

Mark 16:20 And they went forth, and preached every where, the Lord working with them, and confirming the word with signs following.

Are we sounding the warning like both the radio and TV were?

Or do we only want to talk about the love of Jesus?

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Originally posted by Daryl Fawcett:
I also ask everybody here:
What's more important, simply loving Jesus and telling people only about His love, or loving Jesus, telling others about His love, and giving the warning with the sound of the trumpet? [/QB]

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