Bible Text: Mathew 24:37-51 | Preacher: Pastor Steve | Series: End Times
There IS going to be an end of the world!
2 Peter 3:4-13
Jesus is coming again
ungodly people will be destroyed
the earth will be remade
there will be a new heaven and new earth
The Day of the Lord
Matthew 24:37-41 When the Son of Man returns, it will be like it was in Noah’s day.  In those days before the flood, the people were enjoying banquets and parties and weddings right up to the time Noah entered his boat.  People didn’t realize what was going to happen until the flood came and swept them all away. That is the way it will be when the Son of Man comes. Two men will be working together in the field; one will be taken, the other left.  Two women will be grinding flour at the mill; one will be taken, the other left.
Judgment
Isaiah 13:6-9 Scream in terror, for the day of the Lord has arrived the time for the Almighty to destroy. Every arm is paralyzed with fear. Every heart melts, and people are terrified. Pangs of anguish grip them, like those of a woman in labor. They look helplessly at one another, their faces aflame with fear. For see, the day of the Lord is coming the terrible day of his fury and fierce anger…
Salvation
Joel 2:32: But everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved…
The REAL Question
ARE WE READY? The only way to truly be ready for Christ’s return is to give our lives to Jesus Christ, becoming believers, followers, and His disciples.
Peace and Safety
1 Thessalonians 5:2-4 For you yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so comes as a thief in the night. For when they say, Peace and safety! then sudden destruction comes upon them, as labor pains upon a pregnant woman. And they shall not escape.
Watchfulness
Matthew 24:42-43 …so you, too, must keep watch! For you don’t know what day your Lord is coming. 
Use Godly Discernment and Common Sense
Matthew 16:1-4 One day the Pharisees and Sadducees came to test Jesus’ claims by asking him to show them a miraculous sign from heaven.  He replied, You know the saying, Red sky at night means fair weather tomorrow, red sky in the morning means foul weather all day. You are good at reading the weather signs in the sky, but you can’t read the obvious signs of the times!   Only an evil, faithless generation would ask for a miraculous sign, but the only sign I will give them is the sign of the prophet Jonah. Then Jesus left them and went away.
Readiness
Matthew 24:43-44 Understand this: If a homeowner knew exactly when a burglar was coming, he would keep watch and not permit his house to be broken into. You also must be ready all the time, for the Son of Man will come when least expected.
EXPECT God to do the UNEXPECTED
Luke 12:35-40 Be dressed for service and keep your lamps burning, as though you were waiting for your master to return from the wedding feast. Then you will be ready to open the door and let him in the moment he arrives and knocks. The servants who are ready and waiting for his return will be rewarded…
Faithfulness
Matthew 24:45-51 A faithful, sensible servant is one to whom the master can give the responsibility of managing his other household servants and feeding them. If the master returns and finds that the servant has done a good job, there will be a reward. I tell you the truth, the master will put that servant in charge of all he owns. But what if the servant is evil and thinks, My master won’t be back for a while, and he begins beating the other servants, partying, and getting drunk? The master will return unannounced and unexpected, and he will cut the servant to pieces and assign him a place with the hypocrites. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
Every believer is a SERVANT of Jesus Christ and therefore obligated to SERVE Him in every way.
Our part is to live our lives:
Trusting –Turn to God – focus your eyes on Him
Submitting – Ask God, What do You want me to do?
Obeying – Do what God tells you to do
Stewardship
Every believer has been given a divine stewardship and responsibility in the work of Christ on earth.
We have all been given a “trust account.”
Spiritual procrastination is dangerous!
Revelation 14:15-16
Romans 11:25-26 …but this will last only until the full number of Gentiles comes to Christ. And so all Israel will be saved.
God is ALWAYS on time
2 Peter 3:8-10 But you must not forget this one thing, dear friends: A day is like a thousand years to the Lord, and a thousand years is like a day. The Lord isn’t really being slow about his promise, as some people think. No, he is being patient for your sake. He does not want anyone to be destroyed, but wants everyone to repent. But the day of the Lord will come as unexpectedly as a thief…
The Word of God teaches us a number of things about end times:
God will never abandon us even when there is a significant increase of evil and wickedness. It is always His plan to intervene!
The increasing presence of evil must not discourage us. The breakdown of moral standards is not a prelude to destruction but to re-creation.
God’s judgment is coming but so is God’s new creation. God’s plan is not obliteration of the world but the creation of a new Heaven and Earth.
Romans 13:11-14 And do this, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep; for now our salvation is nearer than when we first believed. The night is far spent, the day is at hand. Therefore let us cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armor of light. Let us walk properly, as in the day, not in revelry and drunkenness, not in lewdness and lust, not in strife and envy. But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to fulfill its lusts.