Dear Brethren,

The end-time is fast approaching.  Time is short, and Jesus Christ is returning soon to establish the Kingdom of God.  How is all of this going to be worked out?  God’s people are not of one mind on this particular subject.  Some of the brethren are putting their faith in the wrong places.

Why does Jesus specifically tell the end-time Laodiceans to be zealous and repent?  The answer is that He does not want them to miss out.  He wishes for them to partake of the wonderful promises He has made to the Church.  “As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent.”  (Revelation 3:19)

Repenting has to do with overcoming sin and turning to the law of God. Those who overcome Satan and his evil ways will be the recipients of Christ’s seven promises in the Book of Revelation.  Each of the seven promises is prefaced with this statement: “To him that overcomes.”

“…To him that overcomes will I give to eat of the tree of life, which is in the midst of the paradise of God.  …He that overcomes shall not be hurt of the second death.  …To him that overcomes will I give to eat of the hidden manna, and will give him a white stone, and in the stone a new name written.  …He that overcomes, and keeps my works unto the end, to him will I give power over the nations:  He that overcomes, the same shall be clothed in white raiment; and I will not blot out his name out of the book of life, but I will confess his name before my Father, and before his angels. Him that overcomes will I make a pillar in the temple of my God, and he shall go no more out: and I will write upon him the name of my God… and I will write upon him my new name.  He that overcomes shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son.”  (Revelation 2:7, 11, 17, 26; 3:5, 12; 21:7)

Brethren, how many of those promises do you desire?  Do you have the zeal to overcome?  How do we overcome Satan, the accuser of our brethren?  We are given the answer:  They overcame [Satan] by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony; and they loved not their lives unto the death.”  (Revelation 12:11)  Jesus enumerated three things that are necessary to overcome Satan:

1.  The blood of the Lamb becomes effectual only after repenting of breaking the Ten Commandments. That is when our sins are covered by the blood of Christ.

2.  The word of their testimony is the testimony of Jesus Christ.

3.  They loved not their lives unto the death.

We know that a small number of the saints – those who have already overcome Satan – will be protected by God from Satan and his agents during the duration of the tribulation in a place of safety.  Somehow, in God’s great providence, He will protect that little flock from the horrors of the tribulation.  From their protected place, this small body of saints will be a light and an example to their Christian brethren who have been left behind.  Jesus says:  “Because you have kept the word of my patience, I also will keep [protect] thee from the hour of temptation [tribulation and adversity], which shall come upon all the world, to try [tribulation and testing] them that dwell upon the earth.”  (Revelation 3:10)

When Satan is unable to attack the saints in the place of safety, he turns his attack on the remaining saints who have been caught in the tribulation.  “The dragon was wroth with the woman, and went to make war with the remnant of her seed, which keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.”  (Revelation 12:17)

Did you notice the lack of zeal in those Christians who did not make it into the place of safety?  They are apathetic slackers in that they come short.

1.  Keep the commandments of God.

2.  Have the testimony of Jesus Christ.

These saints are missing the third component for overcoming Satan.

3.  They loved not their lives unto the death.

That is why they must be tested in the tribulation.  God will graciously present one last opportunity to those saints – Church brethren – who have not yet learned to lay down their lives, to do so.  Those in the tribulation will physically lay their lives down in death for having neglected to be spiritual sacrifices prior to that time (Romans 12:1, Revelation 12:11).  Look at how Jesus describes the spiritual condition of the last era of the Church.  “Thou art lukewarm… wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked… be zealous therefore, and repent.”  (Revelation 3:16-19)

We can choose to be zealously serving one another with a brotherly love, and avoid the tribulation – or we can set aside zealousness for complacency.

The choice is ours.  During the tribulation, those church members who find themselves caught in the wrath of Satan will have one last opportunity to exhibit the love of God - just as Jesus did.  It will become abundantly clear to them that they have not yet met the criteria for God's deliverance and protection. 

They will finally realize that God wanted them to show that they believed Him by laying down their lives as Jesus gave us example.  Those brethren in the place of safety will be a witness that God has a certain level of performance that must be met.  The rest of the brethren will finally learn that true Christianity is no “gravy train.”  Those who are not willing to spiritually lay their life down as living sacrifices – now – will have the opportunity to lay their life down physically in the tribulation.  “… These are they which came out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.”  (Revelation 7:14)

During the tribulation, physical death will be the only way to overcome Satan and to gain eternal life.  For those brethren caught in the tribulation it will be too late to escape with their lives because they had been unwilling to lay their lives down for the brethren the way God intended.  They will have never truly learned to be their brother’s keeper.  They had not yet done the third thing necessary to overcome Satan – so they must face him again.  If we have not learned what it means to lay down our lives for all the brethren we will go through the tribulation.  Many seem to think that we are more privileged than the other church eras – and that we will just breeze into the Kingdom of God without learning to put God’s Will into our lives. 

When Christ returns – there will be a people whose consideration for their brethren with a true Christian concern – distinguishes them from those who confuse their social life for Godly service.

***

Sermon:

"Be Zealous and Repent"