Are You Prepared for the Day of the Lord Part 1

Pastor Mike will be speaking on Are You Prepared for the Day of the Lord Part 1. He will be reading out of Amos 5:1-27.

But here’s what I want you to know. We gotta be good witnesses because you know what? When God calls us out of here and there are gonna be many of our family and friends that are left behind and they’re gonna say, you know what?

I guess Grandma was right. I guess Grandpa was right. And I am convinced that many will come to Christ. Hello this is Pastor Mike Sanders. I’m delighted to welcome you to Hope Worth Having radio program this week.

Today we’re gonna be in the book of Amos, Amos chapter 5. You know as we’ve been studying the book of Amos, it’s like we are witnessing some of the similarities that the nation of Israel had with America.

But really what’s most important is not that we try to condemn our nation, but rather that we look at our own lives and make sure that each one of us are prepared for the day of the Lord. When Christ comes, are you ready to meet Him?

So let’s get right into our study this morning. If you have your Bible this morning, I want you to join me in the book of Amos. We’re in Amos chapter 5. Amos chapter 5. Now while you’re turning there, how many of you are very familiar with the Andy Griffith Show?

A few of you? All right. I’m looking over here at these young men. Any of you guys know Andy Griffith? No, never heard of him in your life. Well Grandpa, you’re in charge of teaching them about Andy Griffith.

So I’m going to tell a story about Andy Griffith Show, and they’re not going to know a clue about what I’m talking about. Grandpa will take care of that. But there was an episode on the Andy Griffith Show where Sheriff Andy Taylor and Deputy Barney Fife, you guys remember Barney Fife, he had his one bullet, his one bullet.

He was going to protect him. But they were concerned about everyone’s safety when they heard that Otis, the town drunk, had purchased an automobile. And they were sure that Otis would eventually drive while he was intoxicated.

they were going to keep an eye on him. And one night they found Otis passed out. And he was drunk, and he was in his new vehicle, and so they devised a plan. Andy and Barney put this plan together that they were going to scare Otis so that he would never consider drinking and driving again.

And they brought Otis to the jailhouse, and they put him in the cell, and Otis there, he was laying on the bed in the jailhouse, and they splashed water on him to wake up Otis, and then pretended that they did not hear him as he was speaking to them.

Andy and Barney discussed between themselves how Otis had a tragic accident and how he had died while he was drunk, and they began to play the guitar. And Barney sang a song lamenting and mourning that Otis was no longer with them.

Otis even joined them as they were singing. He was overwhelmed by the news of his own death. And all of a sudden he passed out again. And when Andy and Barney woke him up, Otis began to tell them about the nightmare that he had had and that he had decided that he would never drink and drive again.

Andy and Barney obviously were pleased to hear the news. But like Otis, the nation of Israel is hearing about its own tragic death in Amos chapter 5. There is Amos the prophet declaring that the nation of Israel has already died.

He is standing before the people, delivering the message of God. And they are listening as he is articulating to them how they as a nation have already died. We see in verse 1, it says, Hear this, which I take up against you, a lamentation, O house of Israel.

The virgin of Israel has fallen. She will rise no more. She lies forsaken on her land, and there is no one to raise her up. In this amazing declaration from Amos from God to give to the people, they are listening literally to their own funeral service or they are reading their own obituary.

I want you to jump down to verse 18. The prophet says to them in chapter Chapter five, woe to you who desire the day of the Lord, for what good is the day of the Lord to you? And I’ve entitled my message this morning, are you prepared for the day of the Lord?

Are you really prepared for the day of the Lord? Now let’s understand a little bit and do a topical study on the day of the Lord. When we use the phrase the day of the Lord that is used often throughout the scriptures, we are referring to God’s final intervention in human affairs in which He will punish sin and He will restore His faithful people and establish His rule over the nations.

It is linked, this special day, the day of the Lord is linked to the return of the Messiah. and the fulfilling of the promises and prophecies of the scriptures. This great historical act that is taught in the Word of God is accompanied by signs and great upheavals of nature.

Now, the day of the Lord is a day of judgment. When we understand the day of the Lord, we see it as a day of judgment. I want you to see that, first of all, there is universal judgment. Then I want you to see that there is judgment of the nations.

Take your Bible and go to Revelations, chapter 6. It’s important for us to understand this. We’re not going to comprehend what Amos is talking about. If we don’t see the big context of what God is doing and how things are unfolding in this world, and it’s all working according to His perfect time, and in Revelation, chapter 6, verse 15, you just want to read to the end of the chapter.

The Bible says that the kings of the earth, the great men, the rich men, the commanders, the mighty men, every slave and every free man hid themselves in the caves and the rocks of the mountains. And said to the mountains, the rocks fall on us and hide us from the face of Him who sits on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb.

For the great day of His wrath has come who is able to stand. That is the question. Who is able to stand? Judgment will come upon all nations. The day of the Lord will be preceded by great natural upheavals and signs of the times that we are already seeing manifested in the days that we are living.

Some think, well, it’s no… big deal that Jesus is going to return someday. It’s no big deal that we’re going to enter into a tribulation period. I’ll just get saved during the tribulation period. The Bible says it’s going to be so horrible during the tribulation period that people will hide themselves in caves, in the rocks of the mountains, and they would rather the rocks to fall on them than endure the wrath of God that is being poured out upon them.

During the tribulation period, the vials, the bowls, the trumpets, which represent the wrath of God being poured out upon the nations that have rejected God, that it’s going to be so horrendous that people are not going to want to even live.

And so the Bible reminds us that it is a judgment upon the nation. The tribulation period is not only about the judgment of God falling on those who have rejected God, but it is about the judgment of hell, the Antichrist, Satan, the devil, working together to bring great chaos and wrath upon this earth.

So hell, all of satanic forces are bringing their wrath and chaos upon the world. It’s gonna be a time that is unprecedented. This day of the Lord is not only a day of judgment in relation to the nations, but it’s a judgment upon the nation of Israel that has been faithless.

We come back to Amos chapter five. Don’t lose your spot. Go to verse 18, and I want you to note again. He says, woe to you who desire the day of the Lord, for what good is the day of the Lord to you?

And now let me just help you understand why he’s asking that question. If you have been faithless to God, if you have rejected God, if you have refused to worship God, why would the day of the Lord be something that you’re looking forward to?

Because it is a day of judgment. Look what he says in verse 18. It will be darkness and not light. It will be as though a man fled from a lion and a bear met him, or as though he went into the house and leaned his hand on the wall and a serpent bit him.

Is not the day of the Lord darkness and not light? Is it not very dark with no brightness in it? The day of the Lord. judgment upon the people of God. In Joel chapter 1 verse 15 the Bible says alas for the day for the day of the Lord is at hand and it shall come as destruction from the Almighty.

Every person that has rejected God will face the judgment of God. That’s why our time of response to him today is important. Because if we reject the Lord then we are under the condemnation of the Lord and we are under the judgment of God and the wrath of God.

But if we come to the Lord Jesus Christ and we receive him as our Savior and we seek him and love him and live for him then my friends we are protected through the grace of God from the wrath of God.

This is why it’s important for us to understand the day of the Lord. For those who do not know God, who do not believe in Jesus Christ, the day of the Lord is judgment, but for those who believe in Christ.

And here’s what I want you to know. For those who trust in Christ, for their salvation, the day of the Lord is a day of hope. It is a day of hope. Why is it a day of hope? Because first of all, it’s a day of restoration.

For God’s people, it is a day of restoration that during this tribulation period, yes, God is working on the nation of Israel. I’ve shared with you before that the tribulation period is not about us as much as we like things to be about us, but it’s really about the nation of Israel.

That’s why God raptures the church out before the tribulation period. The tribulation period will be for how long, church? Seven years. During that seven years, God will be pouring out His wrath upon a nation called Israel that needs to turn back to Him.

And we have this promise that during this time, and at the culmination of the return of Christ, that the nation of Israel will return back to God. I want you to take your Bible and go to Romans chapter 11 to understand this.

Very important. Again, as Paul is teaching the gospel, salvation that not only extends to the Jewish people but extends to all Gentiles, to every person on the planet, that the Jews are wondering have we been forgotten?

Are we on the back burner? Are we no longer important to God as His chosen people? The apostle has said, God forbid. That is not what God is doing, but He teaches us here. I’m sorry I told you Romans 11, but it’s Romans chapter 10 is where I want you to be.

Romans chapter 10. So Paul says, brethren, my desire. my heart’s desire, in verse one, prayer to God for Israel is that they might be saved. This is what the Apostle is passionate about. He wants to see the nation of Israel to come and to receive him and to trust him.

Now go to chapter 11 and verse 25. Paul reminds the Israelites that it’s not only his passion, it’s not only God’s passion that they be saved, but God has a plan for them. In verse 25, he has not forgotten them, for I do not desire, brethren, that you should be ignorant of this mystery.

Whenever you see the word mystery in the Bible, the Apostle is revealing something that has not been revealed up to this time. And so he is teaching us something that is helping us to connect the dots of God’s plan for the future.

And he says, Lest you should be wise in your own opinion that blindness in part has happened to Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in. So there is a blindness upon the nation of Israel, and this is upon them because they do not receive the gospel of Jesus Christ, because they do not believe in Christ as their Lord and Savior.

This will continue until the fullness of the Gentiles comes in. The fullness of the Gentiles, what is that? Jesus referred to that phrase. Jesus used that phrase. The fullness of the Gentiles is the fullness of all of man’s kingdoms on this earth.

And so when that finally comes to completion in the antichrist who will establish a kingdom on this earth with a one -world government, one -world currency, and a one -world religious system, when all that comes to its final completion, notice what he says in verse 26, and so all Israel shall be what?

As it is written, the deliverer will come out of Zion, and he will turn away ungodliness from Jacob, for this is my covenant with them when I take away their sins. God has not forgotten the nation of Israel.

He has not put them on the back burner, but he is allowing things to unfold in a way that brings him the most glory. Man will make every effort to try to do it their way, believing they have all the solutions when we know that the true answer is only in the Lord Jesus Christ.

But when Jesus Christ finally comes that second time, which is referred to as the day of the Lord, it’ll be a day of hope because it’ll be a day of restoration for God’s people. God will gather His people.

Now take your Bible and go to the Gospel of Mark. I hope you brought your Bible this morning. If you did not bring your Bible, get your device out. But you need to be a student of the Bible, and you need to know the Word of God.

You can’t just say, well, the pastor said so. That isn’t going to carry any weight beyond these four walls. You have got to know what you believe and why you believe it, and you need to be in the Word of God and let God speak into your life so that you can respond to Him.

In the Gospel of Mark chapter 13, verse 26 through 27, Jesus is teaching about the signs of the times, and He says in verse 26, Then they will see the Son of Man coming in the clouds with great power and glory.

And then He will send His angels and gather together His elect from the four winds, from the farthest part of the earth to the farthest part of heaven. When we say to you that God will gather His people, what we are saying is that when Jesus comes He will gather His people from all the four corners of the earth and all the four corners of heaven, He will gather them together.

You might say to me, Pastor, why would He gather them from the earth? Because we’ve already been raptured out of here before the tribulation, right? But I want you to remember that during the tribulation people will come to Christ.

People will receive Jesus Christ. This is why, first of all, that our witness now is so important. Because if you can’t see the tea leaves of the signs of the times, then I guess you’re just completely blind.

But friends, His calling home, His people through the rapture is imminent upon us and it can happen at any moment, at any time. Would you be okay if it was today? But it’s going to be better in heaven, amen?

But here’s what I want you to know. We got to be good witnesses because you know what? When God calls us out of here and there are going to be many of our family and friends that are left behind and they’re going to say, you know what, I guess Grandma was right.

I guess Grandpa, every time I went over there and he preached to me, I guess he was right. And I am convinced that many will come to Christ and many will be looking for the truth in Jesus Christ. That’s why it’s important that we print Bibles and that we have these things available so people can turn to the Lord.

The Bible tells us that in the times of the tribulation in the book of Daniel, he says that knowledge will increase. Now, we’re not just talking about technology, we’re not just talking about information, but it’s really talking about the understanding of what the Bible teaches, what the book of Daniel teaches, and what the Scriptures teach about the signs of the times and the tribulation period.

That knowledge is going to increase, and it’s going to bring many to Christ. But not only is because this knowledge of the Scripture is going to increase, will it bring many to salvation, but because God will raise up during the tribulation 144 ,000 evangelists.

Notice I did not say Jehovah Witnesses. As much as they want to be, they’re not because they do not believe in the same Jesus we believe in. They like to use our terminology, but they do not believe in the true Jesus Christ, who was sent from the Father, who lived a sinless life, and who went to the cross and died for our sins, and on the third day he rose again, and for 40 days taught his people about the church and the kingdom of God, and then he ascended to heaven, and before he ascended, he commissioned us to take the gospel to every person on the planet.

Now that’s the Jesus I believe in. He is sinless, he is the suffering Savior, and he is the soon returning King. That’s the Jesus I believe in. And that’s why when I tell people, when they talk about Jesus, do you mean the Jesus of the Bible, or the Jesus that’s in your mind, or the Jesus of a cult, or the Jesus of some religion?

Let’s believe in the Jesus that is revealed to us in his word. God will raise up 144 ,000 evangelists who will crisscross the world and finish the task of reaching every person, every home with the gospel of Jesus Christ, and many will come, some of the greatest revivals will happen during the tribulation period.

You say, how do you know this, Mike? The Bible tells us in Revelation chapter six that the martyrs stand before the throne of God. These are martyrs from the tribulation period, and they say to God, how long will it be before you avenge our blood?

Well, how did these people come to God? And how is it that they were martyred? They were martyred because they would not receive the mark of the beast on their forehead or their left hand? Now, some of you are concerned, and some have said to me, pastor, is the vaccine the mark of the beast?

Absolutely not, my friends. And listen, I’m not putting down your question, and I’m glad for your questions, but let’s be smart about it, and let’s understand that the mark of the beast is something that’ll be on your left hand or your forehead.

It’s not… going to be a vaccine. Now I’m not saying take the vaccine and I’m not saying don’t take the vaccine, I’m saying consult your doctor. Don’t come to Pastor Mike because he’s not a physician.

And I want you to know that the mark of the beast will come and that we even see a world that is being conditioned for that even now and that you will not be able to buy, you will not be able to sell, you cannot be a businessman without the mark of the beast, you will not be able to run to Walmart without the mark of the beast, and then those who reject and refuse to partake of the mark of the beast will be martyred for God because the only ones that refuse to take the mark of the beast will be those who believe in the Lord Jesus Christ.

Now how did these people believe? They came to Christ during the tribulation after the rapture. and they will face some of the toughest times to be a believer in the Lord Jesus Christ. That’s why I encourage people, get saved now, amen?

I wanna get on the first train that’s heading out of this world so that we can be with Jesus Christ forever and ever at the rapture. I don’t wanna wait. The day of the Lord is gonna be a day of hope because of restoration and because the gathering of His people, God will gather them from heaven, God will gather them from earth, He will bring them all together and we will worship and praise Him and we will be in His constant presence forever and ever and ever.

God will save His people. Particularly we’re talking about His chosen people, the nation of Israel. Joel two verse 32 says it will come about that everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved for on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem there will be those who escape just as the Lord had said even among survivors whom the Lord calls.

And so when we come to Matthew chapter 24, Jesus, I hope you’re taking notes because this is good Bible study for you that you can reflect upon later, but in Matthew 24, Jesus teaches us again the signs of the times.

The disciples says what will be the signs of your coming. Jesus lays it out in Matthew chapter 24. He teaches you the first three and a half years of what it’ll be like of the tribulation and the last three and a half years of what it’ll be like in the tribulation.

Then we jump over to Matthew chapter 25. And Jesus teaches us that those who reach out and feed His people, those who show kindness to strangers, those who visit people in prison, they will be blessed of God.

Now in its context, He is referring to the tribulation period. We use it. to refer to today and certainly it is true that we should do all these things. We should love people, show kindness to strangers.

We should help those who are imprisoned. We should reach everybody that we can with the gospel of Jesus Christ. But here’s what Jesus is really talking about in Matthew chapter 25, that my people, the nation of Israel, will run to the hills and they will run to the caves and they will refuse to believe in the antichrist and they will refuse to worship the antichrist and they will be thrown into prison and they will be left to starve and they will not have any clothing and anyone who helps them, God is going to bless them.

He’s going to bless them. And that’s the way it’s going to operate in the tribulation period. But when Jesus finally comes, He will save all His people and all of Israel shall be saved because they called upon the name.

of the Lord. The day of the Lord is a day of hope also because God will purify His people. Now take your Bible and you’re in the book of Amos hopefully and just keep tracking backwards and go to Zephaniah.

Zephaniah is in the Old Testament just beyond Amos right after Habakkah and you can just get to Zephaniah and I want you to read chapter 3. I want you to see what God is promising to His people. Zephaniah chapter 3 and verse 11.

Keep looking, it’ll get there. It’s those two pages stuck together. I hear you. Zephaniah chapter 3 and verse 11. In that day you shall not be shamed for any of your deeds in which you transgress against me.

For then I will take away from your midst those who rejoice in your pride and you shall no longer be haughty in my holy mountain. I will leave in your midst a meek and humble people and they shall trust in the name of the Lord.

The remnant of Israel shall do no unrighteousness and speak no lies nor shall a deceitful tongue be found in their mouth for they shall feed their flocks and lie down and no one shall make them afraid.

As Amos is really being straightforward with God’s people the challenge before them is are you ready and that is a really important question because some people are not ready but yet God has been speaking into your life through His truth and yet you have kind of ignored it and I want to encourage you to take this moment.

to be ready and to be humble enough to call upon the Lord and to make things right with God and if you’re not saved to really be drawn to the Lord and to receive Him as your Lord and Savior by believing, repenting, turning towards Christ and committing your heart completely and fully to Him.

These are the things that help us to be ready to meet the Lord. You might be someone who is carrying a heavy burden or maybe you have prayer requests for those that you know are not ready for the Lord.

Well, I want to encourage you to go to our website, hopeworthhaving .com, and go to the contact button up in the far right corner of the website and let us know what your prayer requests are. We want to take the moment and opportunity to be able to pray for you.

The Bible teaches us to pray for one another and so let us have that privilege to pray for you, whatever your prayer request is. We’d love to hear from you. This is Pastor Mike Sanders reminding you that in Christ there is hope worth having.