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Bibleline, Bibleline, here God’s word on Bibleline, everywhere, every time. Here God’s truth on Bibleline. Welcome to Bibleline with Dr. Ralph Yankee Arnold, pastor of Calvary Community Church in Tampa, Florida. Clearly declaring the Gospel of Jesus Christ through the radio and the internet. Your regular prayers and monthly support make it possible for Bibleline to continue on the air. which is toll free at 1-800-576-3771. Online donations may be made through the Bibleline website at calbryoftampa.org. We pray that you will enjoy our commitment to the clear gospel of Jesus Christ and that today’s first part of this two-part message will be a blessing to you and your family.

Turn in your Bible to the book of Revelation, the book of Revelation. There’s a time coming in the future called the Judgment Seat of Christ. And it won’t matter too much about what we think of each other. It’s going to all matter about what he thinks of us and what he knows we really did. But in the book of Revelation and chapter 4, we covered last week about the scene in heaven when John was caught up. Immediately he was in the presence of the Lord.

And he saw the rainbow and he saw the person sitting on the throne and saw the four living creatures and 24 elders. I believe that this is the next thing in line. It’s what’s going to happen when we get to heaven. And then it talks about some of the things that’s going to happen there, what he saw and what some of them did. And if you’ll notice that verse nine, he says, and when those living creatures, the beast, give glory and honor and thanks to him that sat on the throne, who live it forever and ever.

The four and 20 elders fall down before him that sat on the throne and worshiped him, that live it forever and ever, and cast their crowns before the throne. Say, in thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honor and power, for thou hath created all things, and for thy pleasure, they are, and were created.” So this is what they’re going to say and what they’re going to do, and John saw this when he was caught up into heaven, which I believe one day, if the Lord comes back soon, whilst we’re still alive, we’re going to be changed in a moment, the twinkling of an eye, would be caught up to meet the Lord in the air.

And we’re gonna go to the judgment seat of Christ. And we’re gonna see what they saw. And it seems like it’s almost impossible to put it into print, the glory of the Lord. There’s never been somebody’s description of the person sitting on the throne, except by saying bright light, the glory and so forth. or rainbow, like a sardustone or jasper, and so forth. But no description, you know, what they actually saw there, or they didn’t see it. I don’t know.

But I sure would like to know, and I’d like to say, I have an inquiring mind. But the part that I like is where he says, and the elders, the 24 elders, cast down their crowns. Now this little old lady, Bushy, I had a dream one night and She dreamed she went to heaven and when she got to heaven She got her a crown But everybody was walking around and everybody stared at her So she says well, what why is everybody staring at me?

She says because there’s no stars in your crown Thought there’s no stars in my crown. Where are the stars for it? She says, the stars in your crown is because you were a soul winner. And she says, oh my goodness, everybody’s got stars in their crown mind. And she pleaded to let her go back to the earth and be a soul winner. And said, I’m sorry, once you’re here, you can’t ever leave. And then she woke up and became a soul winner.

Now, I don’t know what it would take for you or for me to realize the importance of made to realize the importance of. But I want you to hold your place right here and turn over there to the book of Daniel in chapter 12. The book of Daniel in the Old Testament and chapter 12. Right after the book of Jeremiah and Ezekiel, and of course the Lamentations, I can never worry about that, and go over there to the book of Daniel in chapter 12 and look in verse 1.

This is in the Old Testament, but it’s pretty good. It’s written about 2500 years ago. And look what God said, the Reservant. And in verse one, this is, and at that time shall Michael stand up, the great prince which standethapons the children of thy people Israel. For they shall be, there shall be a time of trouble. Now this time of trouble, that’s the tribulation period. Such as never was, since there was a nation even to that same time, at that time thy people shall be delivered, which is at the end of the tribulation period.

Everyone that shall be found written in the book. In verse 2, and many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth, that’s the bodies that are in the graves, shall awake, some everlasting life, some to shame and everlasting contempt, and get this day that be wise shall shine as the brightness of the firmament. And they that turn many to righteousness as the stars forever and ever. Now we don’t really know what a starless crown would look like or a crown with stars would look like.

I don’t know if there’s stars in the crown, but I know that God talks about the soul winner, the soul winner’s crown, and that there’s something more to it than what we can see and understand, but it must be worth it because the day is coming, that we’re going to wish we had done as much as we possibly can. Now go back to the book of Revelation and whether or not this is symbolic of what all of us will do if we have any rewards at all or any crowns and whether or not the crowns is the reward, Oh, there’s a lot more to it than what we know.

But we do know this that these four and twenty elders, which I believe represent the period of the church age because we’re at the judgment of Christ here, I believe. Of then their representatives of the church and the book of Revelation is written to the church. So these are things that you and I are supposed to he take heart. And did they all, Or is it something that all of us do is cast our crowns before the Lord? If it is, would it be a shame to be at the jedness of the Christ and everybody has something to place at his feet except you because you didn’t serve him?

Because you didn’t have any rewards. In Revelation chapter 19 talks about the righteous acts of the saints that will be dressed in the righteous acts of the saints that kind of gives the appearance that we whatever we’re going to wear, whether it’s the robe or the shoes or the crown on our head or star, whatever it is, it’s a result of the righteous acts of the saints because of what we’ve done for the Lord. Now no one can make us serve the Lord, nobody can make us love God, but he does say that he is going to reward us when we get to heaven for the service that we have rendered on behalf of Christ, for the cause of Christ.

Let me just show you something else real quick. Look there in Revelation chapter 1. Revelation chapter 1, and you’ll notice he says that these are some things that he wants to show his servants, which is to take place in a short period of time. Looking verse 1, the revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave to him to show unto his servants things which must shortly come to pass. Now it seemed like it’s only been 2000 years, but in God’s eyes it’s just a short period of time.

But look what else he says in verse 2, who bear record of the word of God and of the testimony of Jesus Christ and of all things that he saw. Blessed is he that read it, and they that hear the word of this prophecy and keep or guard those things which are written therein for the time is at hand. So the book is actually written, it seems like, to the churches. It’s written to us. And therefore we’re supposed to read this and study it in something.

And this book is supposed to challenge and motivate us to serve the Lord and see the importance of it. So he says, blessed are those that read, that hear, that guard, the things that are written in this book. Now take your Bible and turn all the way over there to the book of Revelation and chapter 21. You’ll notice they talking about after the Great White Throne Judgment. And it says in verse 1, chapter 21, and I saw a new heaven and a new earth.

Well, the first heaven and the first earth were passed away and there was no more sea. And I John saw the Holy City, new Jerusalem coming down from God, prepared as a bride, adorn for her husband. And then he makes the statement there in verse 9. And there came unto me one of the seven angels which had the seven biles full of the seven last plagues and talked with me saying, come hither, I will show thee the bride, the land’s wife.

I’m going to show you the bride, the land’s wife. Well, who in the world is that? That’s us. We are the bride of Christ and we are going to be married to the Lord and wear his wife. But look in verse 10, He carried me away in the spirit to a great and a high mountain. Showed me that great city, the Holy Jerusalem descending out of heaven from God. He says, Now come here and I’ll show you the bride of the land’s wife.

And so he showed them the holy city, New Jerusalem coming down from God out of heaven. That’s where the bride is going to live. Upon the earth, the kingdom upon the earth, well, God promised that to the nation of Israel. So when Christ comes, He comes as the king of Israel, but He’s the head of the church. He’s not referred to generally as the king of the church, or it’s not the head of Israel. He is the king of Israel.

He’s the head of the church. They’re two different things. The church is made up of the people from Pentecost to the rapture. So one of these days, we’re gonna be all taken out of here and we go to the judgments of the Christ. He’s gonna reward us, means he’s gonna dress us. Look here in chapter 19. Looking verse seven. Revelation chapter 19, looking verse seven. Let us be glad and rejoice and give honor to him for the marriage of the Lamb is come.

And his wife had made herself ready. We just came from the judgment seat of Christ. We have been dressed in the righteousness. Yes, of Christ is what got us there. But what we’re wearing is a result of what we did for him. Look what he says. His wife has made herself ready. And to her was granted that she should be arrayed buying linen clean and white for the buying linen is the righteousness of saints. See, there is the righteousness of Christ, the righteousness of God that when you trust Christ as your Savior, He gives you His righteousness, His perfection.

That’s what gets us to heaven. But that’s not what it’s talking about here, talking about the righteousness of the saints. So there’s going to be a rewarding stand. For example, 50 years ago, a little old 18 year old boy heard the gospel for the first time. Me. My daddy was a bootlegger, spent half his life in the chain gain running from the law. I never saw my mom and dad in her church, never saw them read her Bible, never saw them, have prayer.

And I wasn’t sure about what I was going to go to heaven or go to hell. until one day I met a man named Raymond Jackson and he talked to me, he explained it to me and that was the beginning of the greatest thing that’s ever happened to me in my life because that night when I was 18 years old I trusted Christ as my Savior. That moment that I trusted Christ as my Savior God saved me from hell means I can’t go to hell.

I can never go to hell. Couldn’t then can’t now. He gave me eternal life. I became his child. He became my father. He had dwelt me by the Holy Spirit. And little by little, my love for the Lord began to grow. And I began to learn a little bit of Bible here and a little bit of Bible there. And I was told that I should witness and talk to people about the Lord. Only reason I wasn’t going to Bible college, or the wife and two kids, is because I wanted to know how to tell people how to make the gospel clear, how to go to heaven when they die.

I just didn’t want people to go to hell. I never planned on being a preacher, a evangelist, nothing. I just wanted to learn the Bible. I didn’t know all that other stuff. I wasn’t that in a lovely church. It never was. But as I began to learn the word God and grow a little bit, I saw the importance of it. And I knew I could not know the will of God unless I knew the word of God. So it is the will of God to know the word of God so you can know the will of God.

So that’s why you studied the Bible. And as I began to study the Bible, I wanted to do whatever God wanted me to do. I didn’t hear what it was, where it was, how? I didn’t hear. Nothing mattered. Whatever it was. Open up whatever doors close whatever door do anything you want to do. I am all yours Whatever I’m worth you get it and I have been blessed enough to see that God honors his word. I Want to be able to stand here after 50 years and tell you look it’s true God keeps his promises Just serve them put him first.

Don’t try to figure everything out. You never will don’t figure how God’s gonna do some I don’t know how God’s gonna do anything. I don’t have no clue today what he’s gonna do tomorrow. No more than I did 50 years ago. I don’t know what’s coming down the road. I don’t care what’s coming down the road. I just know that whatever’s coming down the road, I know he’s going with me. I know that the one that I walk with knows what’s coming tomorrow and I don’t have to worry about him.

And that I believe that it is worth the serve the Lord and God is going to reward you. Now, I want you to see this. look there in chapter 22, chapter 22. Now we know that we’re gonna live in this holy city, but just look up here in chapter 21, first of all, chapter 21 verse 27. And there shall in no wise enter into it, this holy city, anything that they follow, neither whatsoever, work in the pomination or make it a lie, not even a lie.

In other words, it can be no sin in this place. No sin. It means that for you and I to go there to this place, God gonna have to change us. Well, He gave me my new birth 50 years ago. Well, what’s he gonna change? He coulda do away with the old one. If he did away with my old birth, my old nature, all that’s left is perfection. You ever wanna see somebody that’s perfect? Look up here at me.

You say you’re not perfect. Oh, yeah, but you can’t see the real me. You see this old flesh I got. Now, if you could see beyond this flesh, inside of this flesh is a 17 year old teenager struggling to get out. Now, inside of it, there’s a person in here, my new birth, that when I trust the Christ is my savior, this one is going to die. The worms can have this whole body. I’ll be through with it. Won’t need it anymore.

anymore. Not today though, not right. I want to wait to the rapture. I just go up without dying. But what I want you to see was this. He says down here in chapter 22, look in verse 7, now it’s kind of like he’s told his whole story. Well, all the stuff that’s going on up there, down here the thousand year reign the great white throne judgment the Holy City and like a conclusion to the book because in the last part of verse 6 he made the statement looking verse 6 and he said unto me these sayings are faithful and true and the Lord God of the Holy Prophet sent his angel to show unto his servants the things which must shortly be done.

Now this is at the end of the book, but it’s kind of like wrapping it all up and says, now these are things that must shortly be done, 2000 years ago. And then get what he said, look at in verse 7, Behold and Yara on the line, this, I come quickly. You’d be surprised how quickly this thing’s going to happen. How quickly our lines are going going to be over. But after everything that it said, all the things that are going to happen through the seven churches and then the seven year tribulation period and the thousand year reign upon the year from the great white throne judgment and the holy city coming down.

He said, now, come on back here to reality. He said, this is where we are. He says, behold, I come quickly. I’m coming. And when I come, I’m coming quickly. But look what else he says. See the last part of verse 7. This is similar to what we read in verse 3 of chapter 1. Blessed is he that keepeth the sayings of the prophecy of this book. Now it’s written to believers. It’s written to the church. It’s written to you and me.

And so he says, now I want you to read it. I want you to believe it. And I want you to guard it and let it challenging motivate you. This is for real. This is for real. This shows us the end of the book and we win. We win. And because of this… It will be worth whatever it is he calls upon us to do. And some things might might get rough. It might even require you to die, but be faithful regardless.

Now look what he says. In verse eight he said, and I John saw these things and heard them. Now remember he said, write the things which style has seen. And that’s chapter one, the things which are chapter two and chapter three and the things which shall be here after. Now he didn’t roll all of that. So he’s kind of like rapping it all up and he says, I fell down to worship before the feet of the angel which showed me these things and then said, he unto me, see thou doeth it not, for I am thy fellow servant and of the brethren the prophets and of them which keep the sayings of this book.

Now you’re the underlining which keep the sayings of this book. This word keep is to guard to defend, to really believe it because it has to be inside of of you. Not that I got me a Bible and I, well, I’m guarding my Bible and I’m protecting my Bible and I’m guarding. Anybody’s talking about it? Believing it, heaven and inside of you where it challenges and motivates you because you know it’s true. And then what he says, he says in verse 10, and he said unto me, seal not the sayings of the prophecy of this book for the time at the time.

Now, when you read the book of Daniel, I told Daniel, seal up this book until the time of the end. So when this book was written, this is the knowledge they were waiting for. This is the book that unlocks the book of Daniel. So because of the book of Revelation we can understand the book of Daniel and the more we read it the more we can understand. And yet there’s still parts of it that I don’t know if I’ll ever understand.

There are parts in the in the book of Revelation. I don’t know if I’ll ever get it on. See, like there’s a lot of pieces of a puzzle that I can’t make it fit yet, and I want to. I like to understand everything there is to understand. But I wanna know so bad, and I don’t know if you’ve ever done that or not, where you want to know something so bad, and you don’t understand why God doesn’t reveal it to you.

Maybe it’s not ready yet. Maybe there’s some truth that if we knew it, we wouldn’t know how to handle it. What would I do? I mean, if God was to call me tonight of my cell phone and say, is Yankee, I’m coming this Sunday at 12 o’clock. I said, no, wait a minute, Lord, we got dinner on the ground. We want to have dinner first. Can you come as soon as we get through, we make it one o’clock. Now, if I knew it for sure, what would I do?

What would I do? Would I have the courage, the boldest, to announce it in church on Sunday morning at 10.30? Hey, it’s today at one o’clock. or say, well, no, Lord, I need a sign. How do I know you’re gonna keep your word? I don’t know if it’s real. I don’t know why I didn’t have too many onions on my hamburger. But maybe I didn’t sleep good last night. How do I know that what you just told me was really you?

I never met you before. And I never had a phone call for me before. I’m gonna check the idea, heaven. Now, he says, the day’s coming. Behold, I come quickly. And I believe he will. And so he says that when he does come, it’s all over. If you’re saved, you’re saved. If you’re just, if you’re unjust, you’re as the tree ball, so shall it light. Look what he says in verse 11, he that is unjust, let him be unjust, still.

He that is filthy, let him be filthy, still. He that is righteous, let him be righteous, still. He that is holy, Let him be holy still in other words the day will come when it’s all she wrote and however you are At that moment when you die That’s that’s it No other chances If you don’t trust christ is your savior and you die that way it’s forever that way They’ll never be changed You died lost you’re lost You die saved you’re saved So when should you make the decision should you wait till you die to find out?

I don’t think so. That’s why it behooves every man. Make sure you trust a crisis, your Savior, because when it’s over, there are no more chances. But look what he says. Verse 12, he says, and behold, and you are on the line these three words, I come quickly. but not just that he comes quickly. Look what else he says. And my what? Reward is with me. To give every man according as his work shall be. Rewards, remember, are earned.

Salvation, that’s free. You see, Christ came into the world and did a work. He lived a perfect life. Why? Because I couldn’t. Well, what was the value of that? Because he didn’t sin. It means that he wasn’t condemned. It means that he could die for somebody else. But if he had sinned, he’d had to pay for his own sin. Well, he had to pay for his own sin. He couldn’t pay for mine. So he was able to win that battle and he had victory.

And he went to the cross and paid for the sins of the whole world, came back from the dead. All we have to accept what he did for us salvation being saved from help. That’s a gift. That’s free. You don’t earn it don’t work for gift But we’re not talking about salvation. We’re talking about service When you decide I’m going to serve the Lord do what God wants me to do with my life now nobody can make you do it But if you do God says I want to know I’m going to reward you and when I reward you these rewards are forever the rewards are forever.

And I’m coming quickly with my rewards to give to every man, according to his works. I told you a place right here, and look all the way over there in the book of 1 Corinthians chapter 3, 1 Corinthians and chapter 3. Once you have trusted Christ as your Savior. You are His child. You are on the foundation, which is Christ. Look up here in verse 11. For other foundation can no man lay, then that is laid, which is Christ Jesus.

So you’re on the foundation, but understand there’s something about your labor that God is going to reward. So you see there in verse 8, in verse 8, he said, Now he that planted and he that water or one. And you ought to underline this because this is what he said over there in the book of Revelation. Every man shall receive his own reward according to his own labor. Now what we just read over there in the book of Revelation?

Yes. He’s going to come quickly and one of these days, pew them, it’s all over it. All your chances are gone. You won’t get no more. Now is the time to do what you’re going to do for the Lord. You can be as bold as you want, or as cowardly as you want. You can be shy or timid, but when you get there, nobody cares. Don’t let the way you are. Keep you from being obedient to the Lord. You can use it as an excuse if you want.

I’m afraid, scared, whatever the reason, or do you want there to be stars in your crown? not this that you have a crown, but do you want some stars? I don’t know what all it’s going to be, but whatever it is, it must be something. It must be worth it all. You’ve been listening to Bibleline, a teaching ministry of Calvary Community Church in Tampa, Florida with Dr. Ralph Arnold. We pray that you were blessed by today’s message. Part two of this teaching will conclude with tomorrow’s broadcast.

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The address for Calvary Community Church is 4811 George Road, Tampa, Florida, 33634. Our Sunday morning services begin at 10.30 and at 6 o’clock on Sunday evening. Live broadcast of our services may be seen by going to our church website, calvaryoftampa.org. Thanks for joining us on Bibleline and now a closing thought from Pastor Arnold. Friend, one day it will happen. The trumpet will sound. We will be changed. Caught up to meet the Lord in the air. So live today and every day, believing that the Lord is coming soon.

And just keep looking up.