The Last Days

[0:00] I want to talk about the last days, the last days, and what can we expect in the days ahead. I have it on good authority, what is going to happen.

[0:11] What is going to happen? 2 Timothy 3 verse 1. Paul writes about the end of the age, the end of the world, the last days of planet earth.

[0:22] And he says this in 2 Timothy 3 from verse 1. This note also that in the last days perilous times shall come.

[0:37] In the last days perilous times shall come. For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, without natural affection, truce breakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good, traitors, heady, high-minded, lovers of pleasure, more than lovers of God, having a form of godliness but denying the power thereof.

[1:09] From such turn away. Know this, that in the last days perilous times shall come. Our Lord tells us what to expect, what's just ahead of us, or even present time.

[1:25] It's certainly perilous times. Times of trouble and terror. Dangerous, difficult days. Days that are hopeless, fierce, filled with wars and conflict and hatred and religious confusion.

[1:41] They are going to come. Our Lord tells us through Paul here. Perhaps they are already upon us. We see certainly the trend, don't we?

[1:55] It's escalating. How are we going to be able to get through such perilous times? How can we face such uncertain times? Thankfully there's sunshine for the shadow.

[2:07] Thankfully there's someone standing ready to help us. And I'd like to put the emphasis on that. As much as we could dwell on all the perilous times.

[2:21] It's about how we can get through such perilous times. This message today. Because there's someone with a capital S. Standing by. Ready to hear our cry.

[2:35] As an old gospel song says. Standing somewhere in the shadows. You'll find Jesus. He's the one. Who always cares.

[2:46] And understands. Standing somewhere in the shadows. You will find him. And you'll know him. By the nail prints. In his hands. He's standing. Somewhere in the shadows.

[2:58] Just out of sight. But he's standing by. Even in the midst of raging chaos. And a world in turmoil. This hope. Holds us.

[3:10] Steady. We know. He is coming back. Amen. The Lord Jesus Christ. Is coming back. Do you believe it? He is coming back.

[3:22] He's promised to. And even in this present time. In these darkening days. In times of peril. Peril. In times of perilous times. In times of despair.

[3:34] We know him. And we who know him. Have hope. We have hope. Let me look at some of the positives in a perilous time.

[3:46] If you like. Number one. Hope. Hope. In the midst of a world in despair. You have hope. But no Christ. You have hope. With a capital H.

[3:57] You have hope today. He says to us in Matthew 24 verse 6. See that. Ye be not troubled. Matthew 24 verse 6. Matthew 24.

[4:08] Talks about these end days. In that context. And our Lord says. See that. Ye be not troubled. His voice speaks. Hope. There is hope.

[4:20] For us. Even for the utterly hopeless. And helpless. Even for those. That others would discount. And say they're beyond redemption. They're beyond help.

[4:31] They're hopeless. You know. Some people. They use the phrase. To describe. Other human beings. They're a hopeless case. There is no hopeless case.

[4:42] With Christ. Amen. There is no hopeless case. With Christ. No one is beyond his. This hope. If they will but receive it. He is the one.

[4:54] Who says. Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in me. He says. John 14. Let not your heart be troubled. We see trouble all around us.

[5:04] But our heart doesn't have to be troubled. Our heart doesn't have to be. When all around is turmoil. And it seems like all hope is lost. When it seems like all hope is gone. There's someone.

[5:16] Standing. Somewhere. In the shadows. The Lord Jesus Christ. He's standing somewhere nearby. And he. He is someone we can believe in. He's someone we can put our hearts trust in.

[5:26] And he is the one who will see us through. And this is our great and joyful hope. It sustains us. Doesn't it? This hope. This blessed hope. This hope sustains us.

[5:37] Through whatever life throws our way. Whatever. Faces us next. Whatever's just around the corner. That might. Naturally just knock us off. Our feet. And knock us for six.

[5:48] And you know. We know. Our word. The word tells us. That the rain falls on the just. And the unjust. Just because we're a Christian. Doesn't mean. We're not going to have some tough things.

[6:00] But we've got. Something. That keeps us strong. Amen. Something that keeps us strong. You know. I love it when. When some Christians.

[6:12] Raise a concern that they've got. I love to encourage them with the scripture. That says that God is our strength. He is your strength.

[6:23] So when you're feeling weak. And powerless. And overwhelmed. And just. Like it's. Too hard. He is your strength. He. Is your strength.

[6:34] And. God is our strength. God is our refuge. God is our very present help. In time of trouble. And the word urges us. That we can look with.

[6:45] This hope. In mind. At these perilous times. That. That are coming. Thick and fast. Thicker and faster. These perilous times. We can look. And we can go through.

[6:57] However. Much of the. Tribulation. We have to go through. Whatever. Whether it's seven years. Three and a half. Or. Or who knows what. Whatever it is.

[7:09] We have. His hand. To hold. As he will hold us. And take us through. Whatever faces us. Whatever. Lies ahead. And the.

[7:19] The word urges us. In these perilous times. Of this hope that we have. Says in Titus 2.13. Really. A very. Glad verse.

[7:31] A good one to memorize. It's Titus 2.13. Looking for. That blessed hope. That blessed hope. And the glorious appearing. Of the great God.

[7:42] And our saviour. Jesus Christ. So in perilous times. What do we have? We have. The. Blessed hope. We have this. Blessed hope. In contrast to. The world.

[7:53] Who knows him not. As Ephesians 2.12. Describes of them. Those people. Who are without. The Lord. It describes them. As having. No. Hope. No hope.

[8:05] They are. Without hope. But as someone. Has put it. Hopelessness. Is the result. Of godlessness. You know.

[8:16] When someone. Gets to that. Place of hopelessness. Is that. They have. A godlessness. That's what's lacking. As some writer. Has said. The person. Who is. Hopeless.

[8:27] Either does not. Know God. Or has been. Duked into believing. That God cannot. Or will not. Touch their situation. We have. A blessed hope. A blessed hope.

[8:39] Many people. Are overcome. By depression. And disappointments. Crushed. By fears. And hurts. By let downs. Stepped on. Ignored. Hurt.

[8:50] In all manner. Of ways. But for. All who will. Heed it. There is a message. Of hope. In this book. There is a. Blessed hope. The glorious. Appearing.

[9:01] Of the great. God. And our saviour. Jesus Christ. This is what. Sustains us. There is a message. Of hope. Between the covers. Of your. Bible. Hope. Is referred to.

[9:12] One hundred and fifty. Times. In the Bible. That's a lot. God. God emphasises. Hope. He puts an emphasis on it. He puts it in bold. In capital letters. If you like.

[9:23] One hundred and fifty. Times. Through the scriptures. And Colossians 1. 5. Promises believers. A hope. Laid up for us. In heaven. This hope. That we have.

[9:34] Is laid up for us. In heaven. It's. It's as if. God's kind of. Wrapped it up. And got it sitting there. Ready for us. When we get there. To unwrap it. It's. It's laid up for us.

[9:44] It's promised to us. It's held. In store for us. Laid up for us. In heaven. Colossians 1. Verse 5. So friends. Believers. Take courage.

[9:55] Do not lose hope. The future. Is. Out of our control. But God. Is there. But God. But God. You were dead. In trespasses.

[10:05] And sins. But God. Who. Is rich. In mercy. For his great love. Wherewith he loved us. Has made us alive. In Christ. You were.

[10:16] Dead. In trespasses. And sins. But God. Who is rich. In mercy. For his great love. Wherewith he loved us. Has made us alive.

[10:27] In Christ. Ephesians 2. 4. Who. We who know. God's mercy. Can. Absolutely. And surely. Have this abundant.

[10:38] Living. Everlasting. Hope. And we can testify. Of that. This hope. That we have. Is. Very. Real. So.

[10:48] Number one. You've got hope. In perilous times. In perilous times. In time of escalating. War. And conflict. And terror. We also have.

[11:00] Peace. We have peace. Number two. We have peace. You know. Isn't it. Getting. More.

[11:11] Worrisome. And more. Stressful. As you think. You that might be. Blessed enough. To be able to take a plane ride somewhere. Are going to be.

[11:22] Standing at that airport. Thinking. Am I going to get to my destination. Am I even going to leave the airport. Because of the world that we live in. It's just. The opposite of peace.

[11:34] Isn't it. What our world is at. Where. You know. Even. Should you go to some. Sporting event. Maybe next time you come to church. Who knows. Whether you're going to get blown up.

[11:45] This is the world. We're living in people. Isn't it. A lack of peace. Matthew 24. Verse 6. Our Lord tells us. And you shall hear of wars. And rumors of wars. See that.

[11:56] You be not troubled. Be not. Be not. Be not. Troubled. For all these things. Must come to pass. But the end is not yet. Again. That context.

[12:07] Matthew 24. Talks about the end. Of the age. You might want to read the whole chapter. Matthew 24. But it's the context of wars. Of rumors of wars. A context of a terror stricken planet.

[12:19] And people are searching in these days. For that elusive peace. Peace. Peace. And as much as our politicians might.

[12:31] Talk of peace. And talk of. Peace. And of accords. And of. Of agreements. Of peace treaties. And. Ceasefires.

[12:42] And. Control of weapons. And such. We know there is no peace. On this planet. At this time. For the wicked. And as much as some will try in all kinds of ways.

[12:55] By eastern mysticism. By blanking out their minds. By. By drugs. Maybe they can just. Get a high enough. That they can't notice. How they really feel deep down inside.

[13:08] Or. You know. Glug. Glug. Glug. Try to drink it away. Try to. Take it out of their. Thinking. Yet their lives are still filled with ruin and despair. Because peace is not found there.

[13:20] It just leaves you with a hangover. With a headache. With a heartache. And friends. This world. For the lost. They struggle. To find. That escape.

[13:32] That escape. From stress. Or disappointment. Yet. Without ever finding that deep. Deep. Deep down peace within. That they desperately.

[13:43] So desperately need. But the scriptures assure us that. There is one. There is one. Who will take over this war torn planet. There is one. There is one who will take over and bring ultimate peace.

[13:55] When he restores his rightful reign. Over this planet. And brings peace in the conflict. The prince of peace is his name. One of his names.

[14:06] And he is preparing. To take up residency. To take up his throne. Peace. Peace. Peace. Our world. Lacks peace.

[14:17] Doesn't it? But in perilous times. You can know peace. Peace within. There is a story told about a young soldier. In time of World War II.

[14:30] He left. His native shores. To go and fight the Japanese. In World War II. And his father waved him away.

[14:41] As he boarded the train. He waved him goodbye. And he turned. With bitter tears. And said. If my son is killed. I hope every Jap in the world is killed.

[14:53] He was filled with hate. A year later. The son was killed. And soon. Ten thousand dollars. In life insurance. Money arrived.

[15:06] And the father did a most surprising thing. With the money. He sent it to the. Foreign mission board. And dedicated it. For missions.

[15:16] To the Japanese. Grace and peace. Had filled that man's heart. Since he had uttered those first words. How could the father do this?

[15:27] He had got the peace of God in his life. The peace of God had taken over. And it had replaced that hatred. And that hurt. And that bitterness.

[15:39] With God's peace. You know. The scriptures themselves. Are filled with promises of soul peace. It says in Psalm 119. 165. Great peace. Have they which love.

[15:50] Thy law. And nothing shall offend them. Great peace. For those who will love. The scriptures. The word of God. And our Lord grants true peace. To the struggling soul.

[16:02] Great peace. It says. Great peace. Abundant. Overflowing peace. And we can know such a peace. Brother. Sister. You can know that peace today.

[16:12] Peace. Even in a war torn world. Peace in the midst of terrorism. And conflict. And his peace. Speaks. As a voice speaks.

[16:24] Peace in the storm. He is the God of hope. He beckons to a hopeless world. And he can heal the hurting hearts. All around. If they will but heed.

[16:35] And respond. Perilous times shall come. Perilous times. No wonder we live in a world filled with violence. Stress. And error.

[16:46] Apostasy. A falling away. People all about us are tormented. Troubled. And torn. And people are as victims. Injured. Abused.

[16:57] Rejected. Even by the church. God forbid. Crying out for answers. For truth. For love. For help. Peace. Where is it?

[17:08] Many cry. And to the disciples. They were storm tossed on the lake. Here comes the prince of peace. Walking towards them. And he speaks peace to them. And he does speak peace to us too.

[17:20] In our storms. The word tells of the days ahead. Days of turmoil. Of distress. Of fear. Of instability. That the earth itself will be shaken.

[17:34] And I've heard recent reports about. Yellowstone National Park. They're thinking what? It's going to. The old faithful is going to. Really blow.

[17:44] And bang. What next? What's going to happen? If that should happen? The earth will be shaken. It tells us. In Luke 21. 26. Another chapter that talks much about.

[17:55] The end of the age. Our Lord says in Luke 21. Another chapter to maybe have a look at. As your homework today. Luke 21. 26. It says. Of men's hearts.

[18:05] Failing them for fear. And for looking after those things. Which are coming on the earth. For the powers of heaven. Shall be shaken. It says this. Planet.

[18:16] Is getting rocked. It's going to get shaken. We hear of. Increasing earthquakes. We hear. Of escalating. Concerns. About the planet. Some. Maybe imagined.

[18:27] To some degree. But some very real. Very. Very real. So we may face such days ahead. Where the earth is shaken. Where everything is going to be shaken loose.

[18:40] And we are going to have to really find some foundations. For our lives. And we are facing such days. Where there is going to be conflict. And violence. The days ahead.

[18:51] Could be darker. And so in such a world. In such a place. In such a time. We need to find the one. Who offers peace. Beyond our understanding.

[19:03] To calm our fears. And still our hectic lies. And bring his presence and assurance. And in a time. Such as this. We need God's peace. Amen.

[19:14] His peace. It's real. His hope. His peace. Thirdly. In a time where. Many are wounded and hurting. We can find. God's healing. His voice speaks healing.

[19:26] As we see. When Jesus stepped on the scene. He spoke healing. This world is sick. Desperately sick. It's broken. You know. The politicians that govern us.

[19:37] Many of them are sick. The world that we're living in. The. The. The. The age that we're in. The media. And it's bias. It's sick. It's sick.

[19:48] And sickening. And our world is broken. It desperately needs healing. All around us. We see the sickness of society. You know. There is healing. There is healing for you.

[20:00] There is healing after abortion. There is healing. God can give healing. God can give healing. There is recovery from agony. There is recovery from abuse.

[20:11] There is healing for you. In Christ today. You know. We know. In perilous times. We know. That. There is a great need.

[20:22] Of God's healing. Because many people are hurting. And many people are. Are weighed down. And grieved. And there has been much sadness.

[20:32] Much hurt. That the church has caused. And when I say the church. I mean the church loosely. As the world would call the church. Because it's not the true church of God. It's the imposter.

[20:43] The imposter church. In Proverbs 18. 14. It says. The spirit of a man. Will sustain his infirmity. But a wounded spirit. Who can bear.

[20:54] Perilous times. Who knows. There's some wounded spirits. Wounded people. Wounded people. It's so sad. And. It's sad. It's sad. When the church. Hurts people.

[21:05] It's sad. When preachers. Hurt people. We need God's grace. More than ever before. We need the. Word of God. To bring healing. Despairing people.

[21:21] Hurting. Wounded people. I can tell you. If you're feeling wounded. If you have ever been hurt. If you've ever been wounded. There is one. Who was wounded for you.

[21:33] Amen. There is one. Who was wounded for you. Who was bruised for you. And your spirit. Can be made whole. He can restore. What the devil's taken away.

[21:46] He can. He can put us all back together again. All the shattered pieces. Can't he? He does. He wants to. He can heal the broken heart. If we'll give him all the pieces.

[21:57] Give him all the pieces. He can repair it. Replace it. Make it as good as it ever was. And ever will be. And he is the restorer. In Proverbs 17.22.

[22:09] It says. A merry heart. Doeth good like a medicine. But a broken spirit. Dryeth the bones. You know. We don't have to be broken. We don't have to have a broken spirit.

[22:19] We can have a merry heart. And it's not meaning putting on a face. And putting on a. You know. A mask. Of a smiling face. When really we're not. Like that.

[22:31] But. It's a merry heart. Our very heart can be made. Whole. Healed. Jesus can do that for you today. And some people suffer from a broken spirit.

[22:44] They've been downtrodden. Downcast. A broken spirit. It can be crushing. Exhausting. We can all get downcast.

[22:56] Even. Even preachers can get. You know. Like. Oh. It's a bit hard today. You know. We can all feel those days. Can't we? And yet. We know. That our Lord.

[23:06] Is our healer. He will heal us. God says. Expect it. Perilous times shall come. We don't know all the. Argy bargy. All the.

[23:18] It. It. It. It. It. Blows my mind. Just thinking about the end times. And. You know. All the different views and opinions. And. And. All the different schools of thought. All we can say is what the scriptures tell us.

[23:33] Perilous times shall come. That's what it says. But. It's saying Jesus is coming. Jesus is coming. So God says. Expect it. Perilous times will come.

[23:44] And in such a time. This old world. Is going to be filled with people that are bruised. Shattered. Battered. Broken people. And more than. Ever before.

[23:55] We need to have a heart for them. We need to have a heart for those. In our world. We're not here to bash people. Into. Trusting Christ. We're here to. Draw them.

[24:08] As the Holy Spirit would draw. As. As. Channels of his blessing. Because. Broken people need. The message. Broken people need.

[24:19] The message. They don't need to be bashed up anymore. By. By. Bible bashers. They need Jesus. We need to be. Messengers of him. And so.

[24:31] Maybe we're feeling broken. I love this. I know. I've used this. Little. Saying before. But. There's much truth to it. I know. I've rather talked about. The alabaster. Box.

[24:41] The alabaster. Vessel. That was broken. And God uses. Broken things. You might think. You're not. You might be a Christian. You're saying. Preacher. I'm feeling like I'm broken. Well.

[24:53] There's hope still. There's hope still. Because here's what it says. And we can take heart in this. God uses broken things. God uses broken things. It takes the broken soil.

[25:04] To produce a crop. Broken clouds. To give rain. Broken grain. To give bread. Broken bread. To give strength. It's the broken alabaster box.

[25:16] That gives forth the perfume. It is Peter weeping. Bitterly. Who returns to greater power. Than ever. God uses broken things. Amen.

[25:27] So even if you're feeling broken. It's not the end. He will restore. He will repair. He will restore the joy of our salvation. I think it's kind of sad.

[25:42] When we let. The heaviness overwhelm us. And we don't just give it all to Jesus. Just give it all to him. You know we've all got baggage.

[25:55] We've all got. Chips on our shoulders. We've all got. Bruises and. Hurts. Sometimes. Self. Caused. But.

[26:06] Sometimes. Inflicted by others. But give him your brokenness this morning. Give him your heart. And he will restore. It says in Psalm 30 verse 2 to 5.

[26:19] Oh Lord my God. I cried unto thee. And thou hast healed me. Oh Lord thou hast brought up my soul from the grave. Thou hast kept me alive.

[26:30] That I should not go down to the pit. Sing unto the Lord. O ye saints of his. And give thanks. At the remembrance of his holiness. For his anger endureth. For a moment.

[26:41] In his favour. His life. Weeping may endure. For a night. But. But. But. Joy. Cometh in the morning.

[26:52] Oh Lord my God. I cried unto thee. And thou hast healed me. We don't have to stay. Hurt. We can confess.

[27:05] Oh Lord my God. I cried unto thee. And thou hast healed me. Weeping may endure for a night. But joy cometh in the morning. There's much hope in the scriptures.

[27:17] There's much. There's blessing. There's much healing. There's much restoring. Sometimes we. We don't see the sunshine for the shadow.

[27:30] We don't see. For the perilous times. The blessed hope. What a contrast. In a time of terror. We don't see his peace.

[27:42] In time. Of grief. We don't see his joy. In times of our weakness. We don't see his strength. There was a pastor.

[27:54] Of Texas. Who tells a story. Of a young man. His wife had died. And this man.

[28:05] Was left with a small son. To raise on his own. And that morning that. They went home. From the cemetery. That evening.

[28:16] They went to bed early. Because there was nothing else. That this young man. Could bear to do. Grief stricken. He lost his wife. Heartbroken. He lay there in the darkness. And.

[28:26] The little boy. In his little bed. Nearby. Asked this disturbing question. Daddy. Where is mummy? Daddy. The father went to the little boy.

[28:38] And sought to calm him. But the child was still disturbed. And restless. And. Occasionally asking questions like. Why isn't she here? When is she coming back?

[28:50] And finally. The little boy said. Daddy. If your face is toward me. I think I can go to sleep now. And his daddy was next to. Next to him there. And.

[29:02] The little boy said. Daddy. If your face. Is towards me. I think I can go to sleep now. And in a little while. He was quiet. And the father lay there. In the darkness.

[29:12] And then. In childlike faith. He prayed. This prayer. Oh God. I don't see how I can survive this. The future looks so miserable. But if your face.

[29:24] Is toward me. Somehow. I think. I can make it. If your face. Is toward me. Somehow. I think. I can make it. His face is towards you.

[29:35] His face is towards you. And you can know. His healing power. Over the troubles of your life and soul. If you know this truth. And sometimes they hang on to us. Don't they? The troubles hang on to us.

[29:47] The hurts. They hang on to us. You know. I've got sad memories. I've got bad memories. And sometimes. It just. It's easy to dwell on that. To think back. And a heart back.

[29:58] But give it all to him. Lay it at his feet. You can know his healing power. Over the troubles of your heart. God is for you. He is for you. And in a time of God's outpoured wrath.

[30:10] And judgment. We can also find grace. Grace. God's grace. You know. I love the word grace. Don't you? God's grace. You know.

[30:20] To the woman caught in the very act of adultery. In the disgrace. The embarrassment. The guilt. The horrible shame. And the rightful condemnation of it.

[30:34] He extends grace. He still extends grace. He offers a second chance. He extends forgiveness and pardon. And compassion. And mercy.

[30:47] Wonderful. Matchless. Infinite grace. Undeserved grace. Romans 5.8. But God. But God. Commendeth his love towards us.

[30:58] In that. While we were yet sinners. Christ. Died for us. Much more than being now justified. By his blood. We shall be saved.

[31:10] From wrath. Through him. Perilous times. God's outpoured wrath. And judgment. It's going to pour down. Like a.

[31:20] Thunderstorm. That we've never seen. Before. God's wrath. His outpoured judgment. But there's grace. There's grace for you.

[31:31] That believe. His boundless love and mercy. Has made it all possible. That the downcast. The disheartened. The downtrodden. The downhearted. The desperate. Can find that grace.

[31:43] You know. In church history. There was five solas. Phrases. Or slogans. Five. Mottos.

[31:54] Or. Sayings. If you like. Slogans. Five things. That the early church. Held. As. Fundamental. By grace alone.

[32:07] By grace alone. God's undeserved. Gift. Unearned. Grace. By faith alone. Justification.

[32:19] That we. Who were. Guilty. Can be declared. Guiltless. Before God. That's stunning. Isn't it? By faith. Alone. Trust him. By faith alone.

[32:30] By scripture. Alone. The only. Authoritative. And inspired. Word of God. By. Scripture alone. Not by man's.

[32:41] Mantra. Or. Wisdom. Or church. Declaration. Or statement. But by scripture alone. By Christ. Alone. The one mediator.

[32:52] Between God and man. The only saviour. By Christ. Alone. Not man. Or religion. By Christ. Alone.

[33:03] And. Fifthly. All glory. Be to. God alone. To God alone. Be the glory. For his work. Of atonement for sin.

[33:14] By grace alone. By faith alone. By scripture alone. By Christ alone. All glory. Be to God alone. By grace alone. It starts and ends with grace.

[33:24] Doesn't it? It starts and ends with grace. That his grace received us. And his grace sustains us. Grace. Grace. Full and free.

[33:36] Full and complete. His arm is extended. Reaching out. His hand does not shorten. That account save. His grace will reach the gutter most.

[33:47] The uttermost. The absolute furthest. And unworthiest. If there's such a word. In a time when the world unleashes its venom. And hatred.

[34:00] Especially against Bible believing Christians. There's another thing we can find in perilous times. We can find love. We can find love. We're not talking as the world.

[34:10] Would use the word love. As a kind of throw away line. We're talking about love. God's kind of love. And God's love comes and it cares for the abused.

[34:22] For the used. For the lonely. To the confused woman at the well he comes. In love. To the confused woman at the well. Going from one relationship to another. He speaks love.

[34:33] Real love. Love that she's never known. Love that he extends and she receives. Love. Real love. And he gives us love today.

[34:44] His love. That's beyond human description. Love to the fatherless. Love to the forsaken. Love to the friendless. And he sees the bitter.

[34:55] The grieving. The tormented. He hears the cry. The anguish. He feels the pain. The grief. The heartache. Of hurting men and women. Across this planet. And he reaches out in love.

[35:07] He extends love still. To those who even hate him. That while we were yet sinners. Christ died for us. That we as enemies.

[35:18] He's made us his friends. And to people at breaking point. To broken homes and breaking hearts. He comes in love. And his love knows no bounds.

[35:31] There's no limit. He brings restoration. And harmony. And order. And that love. Goes beyond. Human. Understanding.

[35:43] And for we that believe. Even in the midst of great trial. We can find his great salvation. His great redemption. You know. To me. Redemption.

[35:54] You could boil it down. That redemption. Basically means rescue. It means rescue. It's almost like. As I kind of picture it. That we're. You know.

[36:04] As it were. A downed airliner. And we're there. In the Atlantic Ocean. And. Paddling away.

[36:16] With. The inevitable. About to happen to us. And then. The chopper comes. And. A man comes down.

[36:32] The lion. And. Takes. Us to safety. Rescue. Our Lord's. Redemption. Is such that we need to lift up.

[36:44] Our. Our heads. In Luke 21. Again. About. The. Context. Again. Of the end of days. And when these things. Begin to come to pass. These perilous times.

[36:55] When these things. Begun to pass. Begin to come to pass. As you can read. The context of Luke 21. Matthew 24. Our Lord says. Then. Look up. And lift up your heads.

[37:07] For your redemption. Dwarf nigh. We know that. He brings rescue. Our Lord has mounted. A great rescue. Operation. Operation. For planet earth. And it's not climate change. That he saves us from.

[37:19] It's something much much worse. It's the sin crisis. It grips our planet. This dread. Destructive. Diabolical. Damnable. Soul affliction. And he has wrought.

[37:30] A work that saves. That saves us. And he has taken. Drastic measures. To deliver the remedy. For man's dreadful plight. Start. That chopper comes.

[37:41] When all hope is gone. It's this. It's hopeless. He comes. And our redemption. And our redemption. Draws nigh. He's come to rescue. He's come to bring hope. To.

[37:53] Save. As I. Just to reflect on. Where we've travelled. This morning. About the perilous times. And.

[38:04] How are we going to make it? How are we going to get through? And. Whatever our. End time view is. The scriptures are clear.

[38:18] Perilous times shall come. That's. There's no. There's no argument about that. And it's saying that. Our Lord shall come. That's. There's no argument about that.

[38:28] And. In the perilous times. We see those things that I touched on. Just to recap. In perilous times. We can have hope. The blessed hope.

[38:41] We can have peace. From the one who. Entirely grants peace. We can have healing. In. A time of hurting. We can have grace. From the one who is grace. Personified.

[38:52] In the flesh. Grace. In the person. Christ. Christ. And he has personally mounted. The great rescue operation. For planet earth. To bring release. To the prisoners.

[39:03] To imprison ones. To people tormented. By memories. Torn by tragedies. And he still looks. Upon us with grace. And compassion. Perilous times.

[39:13] They will come. And so. Friends. Yeah. As much as we could. Dwell on the doom and gloom. And the perilous. Aspects. There's much positive.

[39:24] In this time. Because we have a saviour. Who's beckoning. Who's truly. Reaching. Through us. To us. To all who will receive. His offer.

[39:35] Of hope. Peace. Healing. Grace. Love. And we have a part to play. To share this message. Let me. Close with. Something that's.

[39:46] Likely familiar. To many of us. And. We can find. All manner of. Sources. For different things.

[39:57] And I'm not necessarily. Saying this is a good source. But I think the words. Speak. Truth here. So I'm going to say it anyway. Because I think there's truth. To these words. And.

[40:08] It's a prayer. Someone. Penned. Again. It's about the words. Here. And the meaning.

[40:19] Behind the words. That I want to. Get across today. And you might want to. Pray this prayer. As it were. As I say these words. Lord.

[40:30] Make me. A channel. Of thy peace. That where there is hatred. I may bring love. That where there is wrong. I may bring the spirit.

[40:41] Of forgiveness. That where there is discord. I may bring harmony. That where there is error. I may bring truth. That where there is doubt. I may bring faith. That where there is despair.

[40:52] I may bring hope. That where there are shadows. I may bring light. That where there is sadness. I may bring joy. Lord. Grant. That I may seek. Rather to comfort.

[41:03] Than to be comforted. To understand. Than to be understood. To love. Than to be loved. For it is by self forgetting. That one finds. It is by forgiving.

[41:14] That one is forgiven. It is by dying. That one awakens. To. The eternal life. Amen. Perilous times.

[41:24] The question is. Are you saved? Are you still in that choppy sea? Paddling like mad. But knowing the inevitable. Will happen.

[41:36] Or will you see? Look up. The rescue. Plan. Of God. And receive. The rescue.

[41:48] The redemption. Are you rescued? Are you in the lifeboat? Are you in the chopper as it were? Have you been saved? In perilous times.

[41:58] What matters most. Is that you're saved. And friends. We know. Perilous times will come. And it's very very important. This morning. That you know. Crystal clear. 100% guaranteed.

[42:11] That you're saved. Not by any doing. Of your own. But entirely. Of his saving. And I urge you. This morning. To see. That Christ. Has died. Died on the cross.

[42:21] For your sin. While you are still a sinner. That you as an enemy of God. Can be made his friend. Because of. Him.

[42:32] Because of him. Let us pray. Lord we thank you for your word. We thank you Lord that. As we see this planet. Torn apart.

[42:45] In times of trouble. That we can have. Hearts that are not troubled. As you tell us to. As you command us to. To let not our hearts be troubled. But to have that peace within.

[42:57] To have that joy. That hope. That healing. That grace. That love. To know that rescue plan. Was affected. For each one here.

[43:08] That believes. That you've made it all possible. Lord we can't thank you. Enough for that grace. That we can't. That.

[43:20] We can't define. We can only. Be amazed. And wonder. At your mighty love.

[43:32] Lord we pray. If there's any here today. That. Are hurting. And struggling. That they'll find. Your. Wonderful presence. Can.

[43:42] Work a miracle. Of salvation. And Lord. You can. Bring healing. And hope.

[43:55] And that we. That believe. Know this blessed hope. It's a joyful. Glad. And. Certainty. That you're coming back. For a church. For a people who know you.

[44:07] And we pray. Lord we'll be ready. Help us to be. A channel. Of your peace. To others. Lord. That each one here. Would be a channel.

[44:19] That. You will flow through us. That. Your message. We will. Communicate. You'll use.

[44:29] Everyone. Who's willing to. To be. A channel. Of your peace. To be a. Minister. Of your blessings. So that. We'll be messengers.

[44:41] Of this. Glad hope. That we have. That our world. Desperately needs. In Jesus name. We pray. Amen. Amen.