HopeLives365

Mark Finley: This is a time of decision. God has not given you yesterday. God does not guarantee tomorrow. This moment is yours. This moment is yours. Make your eternal decision for Christ.

Guest (Male): This is Hope Lives 365 with Pastor Mark Finley. Today's message: A Date with Destiny. Enjoy and remember you can always catch up with past messages and stay up to date with Hope Lives 365 and Pastor Mark by going to hopelives365.com. And now, Pastor Mark Finley.

Mark Finley: I read a fascinating story some time ago. A young boy was sitting in an old country store in Vermont. Little country town, very hot summer day. Not much was happening in that town; occasionally, a person walked down the street. The boy was sitting there in an old rocking chair with a penknife just whittling away.

As he sat there, the old grandfather clock began to chime. It chimed one, two, three, four; it kept chiming and chiming and chiming. Twelve, thirteen, fourteen, fifteen. And the boy was so amazed, his eyes got bigger. He threw his stick one way, ran out into the street, and began to shout, "People, people! It's never been this late before!"

You know, as I read that story, I thought what an apt illustration of our time. It's really never been this late before. When you look around the world, you see international conflict. You see global upheaval, natural disasters, famines, people going to bed hungry in countries around the world. You look at what's going on in Africa, some places in India.

You have world hunger; one in every three people go to bed hungry every night in our world. When you look at what's taking place with thermonuclear weaponry and you see rogue states developing thermonuclear warfare, there's never been a weapon that's been made that's not been used. C.M. Joad, the atomic scientist, put it this way.

He said, "I'm a frightened man. All scientists I know are frightened men, frightened for their lives and frightened for your lives. With thermonuclear weapons, we can make a bonfire of all of our works and scrape life off the planet." When you look at what's going on in our world, the uncertainty in our world, you ask yourself, where is this world headed?

The atomic scientists have a bulletin; it's called the Atomic Scientists Bulletin. It's been published for decades now, and in that bulletin, they actually have an atomic clock on the front of the bulletin with the hands moving up to midnight. As the events of this world become more catastrophic, these atomic scientists move the hands up closer and closer to midnight.

Those hands are closer to midnight than they ever have been before. And when they hit midnight, the idea is that we've come to a time when this world is going to be plunged into chaos, catastrophe, and disaster. It's never been this late before. God has always sent a message to prepare for events of supreme importance upon our world.

When you look, for example, at the flood, Noah preached for 120 years before the flood came to give people adequate warning of the flood. You look at the first coming of Jesus, when you had John the Baptist preaching to prepare people for the first coming of Jesus. And so wouldn't it be unusual if there was not a message to prepare people for the second coming of Christ?

We're going to begin a series here on Salem Radio Broadcast with a series of messages that focus on preparation for the second coming of Christ. These messages are found in Revelation, the 14th chapter. Now, in Revelation chapter 14, the chapter is divided into three parts. The first five verses picture a group of people standing with Jesus on what's called the Sea of Glass or in eternity.

Often in the Bible, you have the end pictured and then later the beginning. Then from verses six to 12 in Revelation 14, you have the message that prepares this group to be in eternity. Then from chapter 14, verse 13 onward, you have the event for which they're prepared. So you have a people, a message, and an event.

We're going to look in this broadcast at the event, the event that is soon to take place in our world, and see what we can discover regarding that event. We begin with Revelation chapter 14, starting with verse 14. John says, "And I looked, and behold a white cloud, and on the cloud one sat like the Son of Man, having on his head a golden crown, and in his hand a sharp sickle."

Now notice, there's this Son of Man. Who is that? Jesus Christ, of course. And he has a golden crown on. This is not the crown of thorns, but this is the diadem of glory. In his hand a sharp sickle, that indicates reaping. Another angel came out of the temple, crying with a loud voice to him who sat on the cloud.

"Thrust in your sickle and reap, for the time has come for you to reap, for the harvest of the earth is ripe." So he who sat on the cloud thrust in his sickle on the earth, and the earth was reaped. Here the scripture says the time has come for you to reap. Why? Because the harvest of the earth is ripe.

In Revelation chapter 14, verses 14 to 20, there are two harvests: the harvest of golden grain and the harvest of gory grapes. The harvest that is gathered into eternity with Christ and the harvest of those who are trodden out in the winepress of his wrath. The saved and the lost. Now when you look at the symbolism of the harvest in the Bible, what does that represent?

Now, there are many symbols in the book of Revelation, but these symbols are explained in other parts of the Bible. As one writer said, all the books of the Bible meet and end in the book of Revelation. So in Matthew chapter 13, Jesus tells the story of the grain of mustard seed, and then he follows that with the parable of the leaven.

As you look through the parables of the harvest, you come to Jesus' explanation of these parables, the parable of the wheat and tares, for example. In Matthew 13, verse 39, it's talking about the fact that in the field there was good seed that was sown, and also in that field there were tares.

And so in Matthew 13, verse 39, it says the enemy who sowed them is the devil. That's the one who sows the tares, the evil, the wickedness. The harvest is the end of the age or the end of the world, and the reapers are the angels. So when you read the harvest symbolism in the book of Revelation, you ask yourself, what does the harvest represent?

Well, Matthew 13, in the parable, Jesus clearly tells us: the harvest represents the end of the world. So here is a message to prepare men and women for end time. Here's a message to prepare men and women for the last days. We read about this one harvest of golden grain. What does the harvest represent?

It represents the end of the world, at which time there will be a people that are so committed to Christ that all they want to do is His will. John 8, verse 29, Jesus said, "I do always those things that please Him." Hebrews 10, verse seven, "I come in the volume of the book to do thy will, O God."

So here you have a group of people at end time that all they want to do is please God. And they represent God before the whole universe. They represent His love, His kindness, His mercy, His compassion. They are obedient, and their lives reflect His goodness and His grace. But there is a second harvest as well pictured here in Revelation chapter 14.

And that second harvest is not pictured as golden grain, but rather gory grapes. We look at Revelation 14, verse 17: "And another angel came out of the temple which is in heaven, he also having a sharp sickle." And another angel came from the altar who had power over fire, and he cried with a loud cry to him who had the sharp sickle.

Saying, "Thrust in your sharp sickle and gather the clusters of the vine of the earth, for her grapes are fully ripe." So the angel thrust his sickle into the earth and gathered the vine of the earth and threw it into the great winepress of the wrath of God. Now when you read about the wrath of God, what are you reading about?

The wrath of God is the judgment of God against sin. So here sin and sinners will be destroyed. The winepress was trampled outside the city; blood came out of the winepress up to the horses' bridles for 1,600 furlongs. How much is 1,600 furlongs? Well, a furlong's about an eighth of a mile, so this is between 180 and 200 miles.

What significance does this have? It seems to me that if you look from the north of Israel to the south, you've got about 180, 190 miles. So this is talking about devastation in the whole land, not simply the land of Israel, but it's a symbolic picture of total absolute destruction. So you have two harvests that are developed in Revelation 14.

The harvest of golden grain: the saved, the redeemed, those will be caught up with Jesus to meet Him in the sky, those who've accepted His end-time message and accepted His last-day warning message. Just like there was a time in Noah's day when the door of the ark was open and Noah in preaching for 120 years invited people to come into the ark.

So there'll be a time today when probation's door is open, when the door of mercy is open, and God appeals to people to come in. So that's the harvest of golden grain, the redeemed. But there'll be those who reject that invitation. They turn their back on Jesus' love, they spurn His mercy, and their hearts become hardened. And they are lost, lost eternally.

Now the book of Revelation describes these two groups in Revelation chapter 22. Revelation chapter 22 describes these groups. If you look at Revelation chapter 22, notice what it says.

Guest (Male): You're listening to Hope Lives 365 with Pastor Mark Finley. We'll be right back. And if you like what you're hearing, we invite you to check out our website, hopelives365.com. There you can find many ministry resources, encouraging messages, and even a link to our Hope Lives 365 YouTube ministry. And of course, an opportunity to sow into this valuable ministry. Find out more by going to hopelives365.com. That's hopelives365.com. And now, back to Pastor Mark Finley.

Mark Finley: Here starting with verse 11: "He who is unjust, let him be unjust still; he who is filthy, let him be filthy still; he who is righteous, let him be righteous still; and he who is holy, let him be holy still. And behold, I'm coming quickly, and my reward is with me, to give every man according to his work."

So Jesus is coming to give out the rewards. He says in verse 12, "Behold, I'm coming quickly to give out my reward." But in verse 11, it tells you there'll only be two classes. This is like the golden grain, the saved, the redeemed, and the gory grapes, the lost. He who was unjust, let him be what? Unjust still.

He who was filthy, let him be what? Filthy still. And he who was righteous, let him be righteous still. So the Bible points out that in the end time, God will have a message that goes to the ends of the earth. That message will be for the specific purpose to prepare a people for the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ.

As people respond to that message, they'll either be saved or they'll be lost. They'll either live with Christ forever, eternally, or they will turn their back on Him, spurn His love, reject His mercy, walk away from His invitation for salvation. This, my friend, at the second coming of Christ is a date with destiny.

There is no second chance when Jesus Christ comes again. The Bible does not teach this concept that there'll be a second chance. Somebody said, "Well, Pastor Mark, why won't God give us a second chance?" Well, He's given us so many chances in this life. Every time you wake up, that's another chance, another opportunity to serve Jesus.

Every time you wake up and you live and breathe and can choose, that's another chance. God doesn't have to give us a second chance because He's given us a million chances in this life. In Matthew chapter 13, the Bible is very clear that when Christ comes again, it will be a date with destiny.

The righteous will be caught up to meet Jesus in the sky; the wicked will be destroyed by the brightness of Christ's coming. In Matthew chapter 13, it talks about the wheat and the tares, the two harvests. It says, "Let both grow together until the harvest, and at the time of the harvest, I will say to the reapers, First gather the tares and bind them in bundles to burn them, but gather the wheat into my barn."

In other words, wheat and tares, golden grain, gory grapes, two classes that are developed. In fact, all through the Bible, there's not this idea that when Christ comes, some will be left alive on the earth. But somebody says, "Wait a minute, Pastor Mark, doesn't it say that there'll be two in the field, one taken, the other left?

Doesn't it say two be at the mill grinding, and one taken and the other left?" Doesn't the Bible say something like that? It does, but let's read carefully what scripture says. We're going to go to Luke chapter 17. Luke chapter 17. What I want you to see in this presentation is that we are living right now in a day of destiny.

That every one of us has a date with destiny. What I want you to see in this presentation is that the decisions we make every single day either lead to eternal salvation or eternal damnation. They either lead to eternal salvation or eternal loss. That there is no second chance. Now let's look at Luke chapter 17; these are the words of Christ.

"For as lightning that flashes out of the east to one part of heaven shines to the other part of heaven, so also shall the Son of Man be. But He must first suffer many things. As it was in the days of Noah, so it'll be in the days of the Son of Man. They ate, they drank, they married wives, they were given in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark and the flood came and destroyed them all."

How many classes were there in Noah's day? That's right, there were two classes. What happened to those two classes? One class entered the ark and they were saved; one class rejected the message of Noah and they ultimately were destroyed. Two classes, either eternal life or eternal loss.

"Likewise also as it was in the days of Lot: they ate, they drank, they bought, they sold, they planted, they built; but on that day that Lot went out of Sodom, it rained fire and brimstone from heaven and destroyed them all." What happened in Noah's day? The unsaved were destroyed. What happened in Lot's day? The unsaved were destroyed.

Two classes again. Even so, the Bible says, verse 30, "shall it be when the Son of Man is revealed." Now listen, "In that day, he who is on the housetop and his goods are in the house, let him not come down to take them away. And likewise, the one who is in the field, let him not turn back. Remember Lot's wife."

What happened to her? She turned back. "Whoever seeks to save his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life will preserve it." So you either save your life or you do what? Lose your life. "I tell you in that night, there'll be two men in one bed, one will be taken, the other left."

What does it mean one will be taken, one left? One will be left destroyed, the other taken by Jesus and caught up to meet Christ in the sky. Two women will be grinding together, the one will be taken, the other left. Does it say the one that's left is left alive? Certainly not. Taken with Jesus in the sky, the one that is saved; the one that's left is destroyed.

Two men will be in the field, the one will be taken, the other left. Does it say they're going to be left alive? Now notice what verse 37 says; it explains what happens to those people that are left. They said and answered Him, "Where, Lord?" In other words, what happens to these people?

He said to them, "Wherever the body is, there the eagles will be gathered together." So wherever the body is, the eagles will be gathered together. In other words, there's only going to be two classes: the saved and the lost. There's only going to be two classes: those that are totally committed to Christ and those that reject the claims of God's love.

Therefore, God has given to you and me an amazing chance right now. This is a day of destiny. Do you remember how it's put in the book of Joel? Joel chapter two. This is a time of destiny. This is a time to make eternal decisions for Christ. This is not a time for playing around with religion.

This is not a time for fooling with eternal things. Joel chapter two, and we're looking there at Joel two as the Lord describes this great appeal. He says this is a call to repentance. "Now therefore," says the Lord, "turn to me with all of your heart." And then you go to Joel chapter three, verse 13: "Put in the sickle, for the harvest is ripe."

Haven't we been talking about the harvest? Harvest of golden grain, harvest of gory grapes. Two harvests. Put in the sickle, for the harvest is ripe. See, what's going to happen at end time is the righteous are going to become more righteous and the wicked are going to become more wicked.

Right now in the world, you have those people that are committed to Christ, desiring to follow His truth, and you have the people that are totally against Christ and they couldn't care less. But then you have this great middle ground, people that haven't yet made up their minds. At end time, there'll be no middle ground.

Everybody will either be for Christ, living in harmony with His will, following the truth of His word, or they will be against Christ, rebelling against Him. And what is happening right now in our world is there's a polarization. The righteous are becoming more committed, and the wicked are becoming more committed.

The righteous are becoming more dedicated to their cause, and the wicked are becoming more dedicated to their cause. Here it says, "Put in the sickle, for the harvest is ripe. Come, go down, for the winepress is full, the vats overflow, for their wickedness is great. Multitudes, multitudes in the valley of decision."

That's exactly what's happening right now, my friend. Multitudes are in the valley of decision. "For the day of the Lord is near in the valley of decision." So we are right now at that point where God is inviting men and women to make eternal decisions. Have you made your decision for Christ?

Have you made your decision total, absolute, complete for Christ? You know, I remember I was holding evangelistic meetings in one of the great eastern cities of America, and there was a man whose wife had become a committed Christian, but he would never, ever, ever make his decision for Christ. She prayed for him, she sought God for him.

She was a faithful, godly woman for many, many years. I decided on one Friday night in my meetings, because this man was coming—he came out of deference to his wife—and I decided to preach a very powerful decision sermon. Early in the morning that Friday morning, it began to snow.

And I got our little team together; we prayed, "God, hold back the snow." But it continued to snow and snow. And although I went to the meeting that night, I was very disappointed. That man couldn't be there; very few people came. And I decided to schedule an extra meeting on a Sunday night—we typically didn't have meetings on Sunday night.

Then I preached a sermon called, "Why are there so many different denominations?" and God's call for the truth and God's call for people to stand for God, stand for Jesus at any cost. Made an appeal, and this man got up, walked down the aisle, and he said, "Pastor Mark, I couldn't be here on Friday night.

I was away traveling on business, but I came tonight, and I can no longer be in the valley of decision. I can no longer hold back from Christ." I have seen God work so many powerful ways throughout my evangelistic meetings. Another time I was holding meetings in a small city in Massachusetts, Pittsfield, Massachusetts.

There was an old, hardened, crusty old guy who came, and I would pass out response cards and ask people to respond for Christ; he'd pass them by, never, never, never respond. And I'd ask people to raise their hand for Christ; he would never do it. And as the meetings went on, I could see he was interested, but no response, no visible response at all.

His son was a committed Christian, in fact a deacon in that church. His daughter was just coming back to the Lord, and she had made her recommitment to Christ. One night I made an appeal, and I said something like this: "This is a time of decision. God has not given you yesterday. God does not guarantee tomorrow."

"All of your yesterdays are but a dream. All of your tomorrows are but a hope. This moment is yours. This moment is yours. Make your eternal decision for Christ." And I invited them to come forward. That man got up out of his seat, began to move down the aisle. His son, who was a deacon, saw his father coming, came down the aisle behind him, put his arm around him.

And this man's daughter, who'd just become a Christian again, recommitted her life to Christ, put her arm around her dad. There the three of them at that altar stood, wept in the name of Jesus because the Holy Spirit had touched his heart. This is a day of destiny.

Guest (Male): You've been listening to Hope Lives 365 with Pastor Mark Finley. We hope you've enjoyed today's message and remind you that you can find more in our many ministry resources at hopelives365.com. And you can support this ministry by going to hopelives365.com/donate. And now, a final thought from Pastor Mark.

Mark Finley: What did Paul say in 2 Corinthians 6:2? He said, "This is the day of salvation." This is your day, friend. If you've not made your decision for Christ, if you've not opened your heart to Christ, why not do it right now as we pray? Father in heaven, we thank you with all of our hearts for the appeal before it's too late to come to Jesus.

His loving arms are open for us. He longs to save us in His kingdom. So we, Lord, want to be there. Fill us with your grace, your goodness, your mercy, and save us, I pray, in Christ's name. Amen.