TITLE: Time to Wake Up: Living in Light of Christ’s Return
TEXT: ROMANS 13:11-14 LB
11 Another reason for right living is this: you know how late it is; time is running out. Wake up, for the coming of the Lord is nearer now than when we first believed. 12-13 The night is far gone, the day of his return will soon be here. So quit the evil deeds of darkness and put on the armor of right living, as we who live in the daylight should! Be decent and true in everything you do so that all can approve your behavior. Don’t spend your time in wild parties and getting drunk or in adultery and lust or fighting or jealousy. 14 But ask the Lord Jesus Christ to help you live as you should, and don’t make plans to enjoy evil.
OVERVIEW:
No matter the era we are in, there is a reality that rarely sinks in our mind: a time will come when human history will end. The culmination of this will be the second coming of Jesus. This event will be preceded by what the Bible calls the “last days.” The early church believed that they were already in the last days and anytime Jesus returned, which produced a supernatural hope in them. This enabled them to persevere in the faith, continue gathering, refuting false doctrines, intentionally walking righteously, proclaiming the gospel, and live as a distinct community of the Lord Jesus Christ. If they had this mindset, how much more must we, the church, do in the modern era? Days, months, years, and decades have passed, and the imminent coming of Jesus is nearer than ever. The call of discerning the times and walking by the Spirit is still the same.
This September's series, “Time to Wake Up: Living in Light of Christ’s Return,” will teach and mobilize us to be the church the Bible expects. If two words summarize this series, that would be “ETERNAL MINDSET”; we will learn how to adopt that because, after all, time belongs to God Himself. Our text of focus for this series will be our guiding exhortation and command as we build the church to her glorious destiny in these last days. Our goals for this series are as follows:
· Anticipate the second coming of the Lord Jesus;
· Understand and discern the signs that come with His coming;
· Be awakened from spiritual slumber;
· Be filled by the Spirit, holding fast to the truth;
· Walk in hopeful expectation, never defeated in the mind;
· Become a beacon of light in this fallen, ending world by preaching the gospel;
· Live in godly conduct, set apart from the world, and
· Fight the kingdom of darkness as children of light!
May this series bring revival in our church and enable us to usher in the glory of God as the Spirit empowers us!
TOPICS:
KICK OFF WEEK (September 3):
Time to Wake Up: Living in Light of Christ’s Return
ROMANS 13:11-14 LB
11 Another reason for right living is this: you know how late it is; time is running out. Wake up, for the coming of the Lord is nearer now than when we first believed. 12-13 The night is far gone, the day of his return will soon be here. So quit the evil deeds of darkness and put on the armor of right living, as we who live in the daylight should! Be decent and true in everything you do so that all can approve your behavior. Don’t spend your time in wild parties and getting drunk or in adultery and lust or fighting or jealousy. 14 But ask the Lord Jesus Christ to help you live as you should, and don’t make plans to enjoy evil.
SYNOPSIS:
The book of Romans details the doctrine of salvation (Romans 1-11) and the practical application of it concerning the world we live in (Romans 12-16). Chapter 13 follows through with the tone of Romans 12:1, which is to offer ourselves—saved people—as a living sacrifice before the Lord, set apart for His purposes. That’s how the world will know that we are of Christ. One of the things emphasized in chapter 13 is living in light of the return of Christ. Conforming to the world means that either we are spiritually dead (not saved at all, for the acts of darkness are the very reason why the wrath of God is revealed; see Romans 1:18) or spiritually asleep (not becoming an effective witness to the world because the acts of darkness suppress the truth, see Romans 1:18). Hence, the urgency to wake up, because anytime the Lord can come. What will be our state when that time comes?
WEEK 1 (September 10):
Time to Watch Vigilantly!
ROMANS 13:11 LB
11 Another reason for right living is this: you know how late it is; time is running out. Wake up, for the coming of the Lord is nearer now than when we first believed.
SYNOPSIS:
Discerning the times is especially encouraged in the Bible. A tribe in Israel was dedicated to that (1 Chronicles 12:32), and Jesus even rebuked the Pharisees and Sadducees for not correctly interpreting the times of His first coming (Matthew 16:1-4). To put things into perspective, more than 500 prophecies in the Old Testament are dedicated to the second coming of Jesus, and 1 out of every 25 verses in the New Testament also speaks of this event
(https://christinprophecy.org/articles/recognizing-signs-of-the-times/). This tells us that we are to take this seriously and importantly. Discerning the times will help us to be hopeful of the promises of God in the context of our future inheritance in Jesus, to guard ourselves against the schemes of the enemy, and to be effective in our witness to the world!
WEEK 2 (September 17):
Time to Walk Valiantly!
ROMANS 13:12-13 LB
12-13 The night is far gone, the day of his return will soon be here. So quit the evil deeds of darkness and put on the armor of right living, as we who live in the daylight should! Be decent and true in everything you do so that all can approve your behavior. Don’t spend your time in wild parties and getting drunk or in adultery and lust or fighting or jealousy.
SYNOPSIS:
As children of the light, we must always walk in the light. The last days will always be filled with darkness, and Christians are always in danger of conforming to this! That’s why the Bible always encourages us to be on guard, strong in the Lord, pursue holiness, watch our lives closely, and walk in power and victory. Walking valiantly (marked with determination) in the last days helps us to discern what’s from God and what’s not, to shine as salt and light in this world, and to be a believable and compelling representative of Jesus Christ as we bring the gospel.
WEEK 3 (September 24):
Time to Wait Victoriously!
ROMANS 13:14 LB
14 But ask the Lord Jesus Christ to help you live as you should, and don’t make plans to enjoy evil.
SYNOPSIS:
The NIV translates this verse as, “Rather, clothe yourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ, and do not think about how to gratify the desires of the flesh.” Clothing is a necessity in our everyday life. Similarly, clothing ourselves with Christ is to abide in Him every time! In Him is our protection from the lies and schemes of the enemy, provision for our needs, peace in mind and heart, and passion for His kingdom agenda! As we wait for His return, we must tap into His resources because that is the blessing of being reconciled to God through Him. If we only knew of and understood our spiritual blessings in the heavenlies (Ephesians 1)! One mark of the last days is the increased ungodliness in the world. By intentionally clothing ourselves with Christ, we make no provision for the desires of our flesh. We must not give in to the temptation of the devil! Giving in to our flesh dulls our awareness of God in our lives, leading to a defeated Christian life and ineffective as witnesses of Jesus.
REFERENCE:
● Recognizing Signs of the Times by Lamb and Lion Ministries (https://christinprophecy.org/articles/recognizing-signs-of-the-times/)
● Living with Confidence in a Chaotic World by David Jeremiah (https://youtu.be/-jz4DEljlVw)
STUDY ON THE BOOK OF ROMANS:
● Book of Romans Summary Part 1 by Bible Project (https://youtu.be/ej_6dVdJSIU)
● Book of Romans Summary Part 2 by Bible Project (https://youtu.be/0SVTl4Xa5fY)
● Survey of Romans by BibleRef (https://www.bibleref.com/Romans/index.html)
● The Wiersbe Bible Commentary: New Testament by Warren W. Wiersbe
No comments:
Post a Comment