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Bibleline Bibleline, here God’s word on Bibleline, 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. You can reach us toll free at 1-800-576-3771. Online donations may be made by clicking on the donations link on the BibleLineMinistries.org homepage. We pray that you will enjoy our commitment to the clear gospel of Jesus Christ, and that today’s concluding message of this teaching will be a blessing to you and your family.

See, there’s people who don’t believe the Bible. And you read the book of Peter in chapter 3, they scoff at the Bible. They scoff at His coming. Where is He? He promised to come back, He ain’t come back yet. Been 2,000 years ago. Well, that means that we’re just 2,000 years closer, right? I heard this when I was saved and I was 18 years old. Well, that was 56 years ago. I’m 56 years closer. That might be the day.

be tomorrow. But whenever it is, I don’t really care, but I live every day believing that today could be the day when Jesus Christ comes back again. It’s an incentive for holy living because He says in the book of 1 John chapter 3 that this hope is a purifying hope because if I’m expecting the Lord to come back at any time, then I want to be found serving the Lord. And I don’t want Him to catch me doing something I shouldn’t do.

I don’t want the Lord to catch me saying something I shouldn’t say. I don’t want the Lord to catch me being someplace I shouldn’t be. Why? Because this here produces a desire for holy living. Who what are the signs? People are always looking for the signs. Well in our lifetime during here we don’t look for signs. There are signs, there are signs of the tribulation period. God tells us all about these things. They come in the tribulation period. There are signs of the second coming, but there are no signs for the rapture.

Now the second coming, we often talk about the two phases of the second coming, where he comes in the air for us and we’re caught up to meet the Lord. Then there is the day when he comes back to the earth, the second coming to the earth. He came to the earth back here and now he’s going to come back here. So yes, he’s coming back, but he’s coming back here to the earth and there’s a lot of finds that he talks about the signs of the Second Coming, but there are no signs for this, except when we see the things that are coming in the tribulation period, and we know that those things are going to happen and we can see them starting to show up.

It looks like it’s about 1159. This is why we should be so excited about all the things that are going on in the world, And so the next thing to happen is we shall behold him. One of these days, he’s gonna appear in the sky. And we’re gonna be changed in a moment, the twinkle of an eye, and we shall see him face to face in all of his glory. And we’re gonna be just like the Lord, for we shall see him as he is.

And the Bible says that when we’re caught up in the air to meet the Lord in the air, we’ll stand at the judgment seat of Christ. This is a rewarding stand for all of God’s children who came out of this period of time from Pentecost to the Rapture. We are going to stand at the Judgement City of Christ, and God is going to reward His children. Remember, salvation going to heaven, that’s free. But what you have when you get there, you have to earn.

Rewards are earned. And so when we get to heaven, lo and behold, we’re going to be caught out of this world. You say, am I going to be naked as a J-bird? I don’t know, and I don’t care. But you might be wishing you had clothes on. Okay, so we put the clothes on. But you’ll be caught up into the air. It’s called the rapture. Ready or not, here I come. Obedience or disobedience, if you trusted Christ as Savior, you’re gonna be caught up.

This is not a partial rapture. It’s a complete rapture of all of God’s children from this earth. That day could happen at any moment. Now, if all the other things that God told is true and it will happen. This has to happen also because there will be a generation of people living that will never see death. Wouldn’t that be wonderful if it was a large generation and will never see death? Now, I don’t mind dying, but I’d rather not.

You see why? Because I’ve never done it before. I don’t have to learn how to do everything. So I’m looking for the upper taker, not the undertaker. Now, when we get to heaven and we stand before the Lord, now some people as we go through this life, some are going to plant the seed. And some are going to come along and they’re going to water the seed. But it’s God that gives the increase. Only God can save the soul.

I’ve never saved anybody yet, neither of you. But when we trusted Christ as our Savior, He saved us. And then He makes the statement, every man shall receive his own reward according to his own labor. So the day is coming. When you and I get to heaven, God is gonna reward you for what you have done for Him. And nobody can make you do anything for Him. Nobody can make you serve the Lord. Nobody can make you do right.

Nobody can make you come and study the Word of God or witnessing like that. But there has to be something on the inside of you and it says, I want to do that. And God’s going to bless you and he’s going to reward you. See, if you don’t think, oh, this is true, then you’re going to waste your life. You shouldn’t want to waste your life. Time is so important. Time is so precious because that is what life is made out of.

Take away time, you take away life. Now when we talk about this tribulation period, the seven years upon the earth here, that little Seven year period of time. It’s called by a lot of things. Some people call it as the time of Jacob’s trouble. It’s the tribulation period. It’s Daniel 70th week. It’s the great tribulation. It’s the second coming. It’s the rapture. It’s the amillennial and post-millennial and pre-millennial. It’s revelation. It’s pre-trib. It’s post-trib. It’s mid-trib. It’s partial-rat. You’d be surprised how many different views there are on that seven year period of time.

I have never seen a seven year period of time. So-called, so many things and how so many people get it all balled up. And I’m the only one that’s got it right. No, but I’ve studied every position there is on this tribulation. And I believe that I have it down pretty good. Now, when you look up there and you see the words pre-millennial and post-millennial and all millennial, well, what do you mean? Some people believe that during this thousand years upon the year, Christ is going to come back before the millennium, pre-millennial.

And some people believe He’s going to be post. It come back afterwards. On millennial, they get it. They don’t know anything, where it may never happen. But we get to the tribulation period, and you see the words on our pre-trib, mid-trib, and post-trib. Pre-trib is Christ comes back before the tribulation. Some people believe he’s gonna come back mid-trib of the tribulation period. And then some believe he’ll come back afterwards. Well, wait, wait, wait, wait. It can’t do all these can’t be right.

So we believe here at Calvary Community Church, we are pre-trib. We believe Christ is coming back before the tribulation. We are pre-millennial. We believe he’s coming back here to the earth before the millennium. And so when we talk about partial rapture, some people believe that half of those will go and half of them won’t go because if you’re obedient, you get to go. And if you’re disobedient, you don’t get to go. No, if you’re saved, you all get to go.

We don’t believe in a partial rapture. We are the bride of Christ. So when the rapture takes place, he’s not taking an arm in a leg and leaving the rest. It’s the body and the whole body is going to go. Like it or not, that’s what I believe. And I believe I’m right. So you have all these things that you can call this, but it will happen, it is coming. And so there’s pre-wrapped. That means that you believe that halfway through mid-trib, that now the last half is the great tribulation, and that is true.

But they believe that that’s when Christ is gonna come back. No, he’s not. That’s when the end of Christ sets up his power up on the earth, and we get into all of that. So you can see that there’s a lot of things to study when you start talking about prophecy. Jesus is going to judge the earth. This whole world is going to be judged. The worst period of time the world has ever known is gonna happen right here.

And we are right here. And the world is taking shape. I mean, it’s looking like any day. Some nut could punch one little red button and all of a sudden a nuclear cloud over some city somewhere. And it wouldn’t take much to start another world war. Aren’t you excited? Because you know, hey, we’re going to be out of here, but we do not know how much suffering we could go through in this country before the Raptor ever takes place.

Now. We will return after the tribulation period. After this is all over with, Christ is going to return. He comes back in power and great glory. So He’s coming for us in the air. And we’re caught up to meet the Lord in the air. Here He comes to the earth. We’re not caught up to me. He comes to the earth and He stays here. He says in the book of Zechariah. He says, and His feet shall stand in that day upon the Mount of Oluh.

which is before Jerusalem on the east and the Mount of Olive shall cleave in the mist. It’s going to split. This is a prophecy about what’s going to take place in the future. Now he also says in Zechariah 14 and verse 9, and the Lord shall be king over all the earth. In that day there should be one Lord in his name one. His name is not Allah, it’s Jehovah. That’s his name. That’s who he is. There’s only one true and living God.

And just because somebody wants to believe in another God doesn’t change the fact this God is God. Behold, I saw heaven open and a white horse and he that set upon him was called faithful and true and in righteousness he dah judge and make war. Now this is in Revelation chapter 19. The day is coming at the end of the tribulation period. Jesus Christ is coming back. He’s the only thing that will keep the nation of Israel from being totally annihilated because he says in the book of Zachariah chapter 12, I will gather all nations against Jerusalem to battle.

And then he’s going to go after those nations who came against Jerusalem, which is all of them. And God says that he’s going to bring judgment. And this is why it is so important for you not to believe. Yes, we may not be able to change some things upon the earth. But while we’re here, we’re supposed to try to win as many people to Christ to get in the trust Christ is their Savior so they can know they’re going to heaven when they die.

I may not be able to change the elections or the world situation, but I can help change people’s destinies. And that’s more important. In verse 12 he says, his eyes were as a flame of fire, none his head were many crowns and he had a name written that no men knew but himself. Christ is coming back. And he also says, he was closed with a vester dipped in blood and his name is called the word of God. And the armies which were in heaven followed him upon white horses closing linen white inkling.

Now if you look closer you can see me I’m right behind him there on third one on the right. You can see that right. Now Peter’s way back here in the back about a mile. Just joking. That was prophecy. And out of his mouths go with a sharp sword that whether he should smite the nations and he shall rule them with a rod of iron and he treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God. And he hath on his vesture and on his thigh named King of Kings and Lord of Lords.

Now this is when these scriptures were written in the book of Revelation in chapter 19, but it’s referred about when he comes back in power and great glory and he says the light will be from the east is to the west and they’re going to behold him and Israel will see and ask you where you get your wounds in your hand. He said I got him in the house of my friend. See he got those when he came the first time.

See Israel was looking for him to come like this, but he came as a lamb because he came the first time to die for the sins of the world. He’s going to come back as the lion of the tribe of Judah. He’s coming back to rule and the rain in the Set of His Kingdom and if everything else He said is going to happen, happen just like He said. Then this is the next thing that’s going to happen after the tribulation period.

We are living in from very exciting days. We don’t have, I don’t believe a lot of time left but now get this. During this thousand year reign upon the year it’s called the millennium. Pre millennium we believe Christ comes back before the millennium is actually set up. And he says, and a child shall lead them when the lion and the lamb will be here. And this will be a totally new kind of a earth that will be for 1,000 years.

And then the Bible says there’ll be the Great White Throne judgment. And that this Great White Throne judgment God says the books are going to be opened. And he says they will be judged those people who have never trust the Lord. They will be judged according to their works because when God judges them, God knows they’re judging God about whether it’s right or wrong. He must be just when he makes his ruling and he’s going to prove he has a right to do what he’s going to do.

And those who do not believe on Christ will be cast into the lake of fire. Now if your name has been written down in the Lamb’s book of life, it is because you have trusted Christ as your Savior. So have you trusted Christ as your Savior? Do you know the certain you’re going to heaven when you die? This is so important. This is the part of the whole presentation that I really don’t like. But you see, if all this other stuff is true, this must be true.

That’s got to be true. Look what he says. Whosoever was not found written in the book of life was passed into the lake of fire. These are choices that we make. We can believe on Christ or not believe on Christ. But if we do believe our names are written in the Lamb’s Book of Life because you’re born into God’s family, the Book of Life is the family of God. I trusted Christ as my Savior when I was 18 years old and my name was written in the Lamb’s Book of Life.

But what about the people who never trust Christ as their Savior? They don’t know the Lord. If this going to heaven is true, then this thing about going to hell is also true. Because the one that told about hell is the one who told about heaven. You can’t pick and choose. I’ve had people tell me, so I believe in heaven, but I don’t believe in hell. I asked a man one time, I said, where are you going to go in your diet?

He says Tennessee. IRepublicans said, but what if you don’t go to Tennessee? He says, there’s nothing else. I said, have you died before? He said, well, no. I said, then you don’t know that’s true, do you? So you can believe a lot of things, but one day you will die. And when you die, where will you spend eternity? This is why it’s important. Now this picture you have there is the same picture I’ve got right down here. Because one of these days the Bible says there’ll be cast into a literal lake of fire.

I wrote this. I didn’t like it when I wrote it, but I got to thinking about it. We often say that in our country we have laws and when you break the law that the punishment should fit the crime. You ever heard that? The punishment should fit the crime. So we often look at how serious something is and then we have a penalty that’s supposed to take care of that. If the punishment must fit the crime, then hell must be telling us how bad sin really must be.

Just think about that statement. if a man dies, cast into a literal fire burning hell. Even for a minute would be bad, wouldn’t it? Wouldn’t it be terrible to die in a fire? And many people have. But have you ever burnt yourself on the fire or a hot poker or burner on the stove? What if you would cast into a literal lake of fire? If it was bad, even a hundred years, think of how terrible that would be. But what if it was 10,000 years?

How bad that would be? But how long does God say they’re going to be there? Forever and ever. And the smoke of their torment us and it’s up forever and ever. So I put the next statement down. If we don’t take hell seriously, then we don’t need to take the gospel seriously. But if this is true, and the only way people can escape this hell is by trusting Christ with their Savior. Wouldn’t that make this little period of time that God’s given us.

Very important to tell people how to go to heaven. This is why after 50-something years I still want to do camps. I want to get kids to make sure they understand how important it is to trust Christ as their Savior. Why? I just don’t want people to go to hell. If the punishment must fit the crime then hell must be telling us how bad sin really must be. In God’s eyes and in our eyes maybe we don’t see the same thing to the same degree.

The things that we do that’s called sin are wrong mistakes. We just fluff a lot like it’s nothing. It’s not that bad, not that serious. But to a righteous just and holy God. That sin has to be so bad. Do you realize that when Adam and Eve sinned against God by aiding the fruit they were commanded not to eat? One sin, one time they got kicked out of the garden and if they had never trusted the Lord they would have burned in hell for eternity.

Oh, one sin. Now how bad is that? You want to know how bad that sin is? Look at the punishment for the sin. The crime, the punishment should say you should fit the crime. This in God’s eyes is just. This is righteous. And God doesn’t make mistakes. Just think of how long and how serious the punishment is. for one sin. Now do you see why it was so important for Christ to die for you, to keep you from going to hell?

If there is no hell, we don’t need a Bible. There’s no hell. We don’t need a Savior. To save us from what? A place that doesn’t exist. But if hell exists, and it is true that somebody is going to be cast into hell, unless they believe the gospel. Do you think it’s important for us to find a way to maybe share it with somebody or that it’s all worth it? Otherwise, I wouldn’t spend my time taking a few college kids and teaching every day, spending 30 hours just on one class, and then another class, another 30, or in another class, I’ll spend 45 hours in one class teaching them.

And I don’t get paid for that. That’s not my job here at the church. I don’t have to do any of it. I don’t have to take kids to camp. But why? Because there’s a reason. Either we believe it or we don’t believe it. I can’t change anybody’s feelings about anything. This is what God’s Word said. Don’t add to it and don’t take away from it. Did He say if their names are not found written in the Lamb’s book of life, they will be cast into hell.

Does it say it or not? It says it. One day, there’ll be a new heavens and a new earth. And he says in Revelation, and I John saw the holy city new Jerusalem coming down from God out of heaven prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. One day there’s going to be this new heavens and a new earth. And the first heaven and the first earth will pass away and there was no mercy. Now we have an idea while we’re going to end up.

Praise the Lord. And there will be this holy city, 1500 miles high, 1500 miles wide, 1500 miles long, hovering above the earth. And God says that the bride will live in the holy city. It’s going to be awesome. All believers will enjoy the the new heaven, the new earth, and wherever Christ is, there will we be. We’re going to be with the Lord. Wherever He’s going to be, that’s where we’re going to be. If He’s in heaven, I’ll be with Him.

He’s going to come to the earth. I’m going to be here. I don’t get where He goes. I’m going to go with Him. He’s going to wear His bride. I am so glad that years ago, my father-in-law, 56 years ago, led me to Christ. That was the most important thing that’s ever happened in my life. And I’ve lived almost 75 years, but that’s the most important thing in my life is that I trust the Lord. And the older I get, and the more I read, and more I believe these things are true, the more thankful I am for the man who told me how to go to heaven.

My father-in-law, when I was 18 years old, what if he had missed me? Now if you’re here today and you’re not sure, you’re not positive that your name’s written in the Lamb’s Book of Life, you can take care of that this morning. You really can. You can sign on the dotted line. God so loved the word. Look up here. You said, we didn’t even open the Bible. You realize how much Bible we just read? This hand represents you and me.

The wallet represents sin. We all have sin on us. Now God, He loves us, but He hates our sin. And because we have all sin, we’re all condemned. We’re all in the same boat. To go to heaven, we have to be perfect as righteous as God. None of us are perfect. None of us are righteous. We’ve all come short of God’s perfection. So God says we can’t get in. And he says, none of us can earn our way to heaven.

Because if we could earn our way to heaven, we wouldn’t need a Savior. So God says, it’s something you can’t earn. It’s not of your works. This hand represents Jesus Christ. He’s the Lord God in the flesh. He came into the world because he loves us. He doesn’t want us to be eternally separated from Him. But He made a way that everybody in the whole world could go to heaven. And that was He would pay our sin debt. You know what we owe?

He paid for it. Came back from the dead. And He said that if we would believe He did it for us, He would put that payment to our account. And we get to go to heaven on what he did. We didn’t earn it, didn’t work for it. When you believe that he did it for you, he writes your name in the Lamb’s Book of Life. He that believed it, on behalf of our lasting life. You have our lasting life.

So that day, 56 years ago, I trusted Christ as my Savior. I have eternal life. I’m going to heaven when I die. And there’s a few people I like to take along with me. as many as I can to get the gospel to as many as people as possible. I don’t have it all figured out. I don’t know everything. I can’t convince everybody. But I want to be a few people. And so you work at it and work at it.

But you realize you’re getting older and you’re not going to last forever. And so you’ve got to have somebody else come along that’s younger than understand it and do the job. That’s why we’ve got to train some practition of the young people. This is why we have to have ranch to get the kids there to get saved. Then we’ve got to have pimp so they can dedicate their lives to the Lord. Then we’ve got to have the college so we can train them.

Some Christians are learning everything about everything in this world, but they’re not learning how to live for the Lord. That’s the most important thing. How to tell people how to have eternal life. Let’s pray, shall we? With the heavy bowled and the eyes closed, no one looking around. If you’ve never trusted Christ as your Savior, why not right now? Just talk to the Lord and say something simple like this. Lord, I know I’m a sinner. I don’t understand it all.

And friend, we never will. But Lord, I know I’ve done wrong and I want to go to heaven. And I believe you doubt on that cross and pay for my sins. And friend, right now, in the quietness of this moment, if you will accept Christ as your Savior, God will save you and give eternal life. So he knows who you are. He knows where you are. He knows if you believe it. Would you just tell him, Lord, I believe that you did it for me.

Would you make that decision? If you will, I’m going to ask you just a moment to raise your hand, raising your hand doesn’t save you. It just lets me know that what I said made sense to you. And you’re saying, preacher, that did make sense to me and I want you to pray for me in closing. Would you just slip in it very quickly and then right back down to the wall. Just God bless you, buddy. Just God bless you.

God bless you back in the back. Anyone else? This is something you want to be sure of. God bless you. Other others say, yes, that makes sense to me. I want to be positive. I’m going to heaven. I do not want to spend an eternity in a lake of fire. I want to know I have eternal life. Anyone else before we close? Our Father, we thank you again for your blessings. Thank you for all you do for us. We pray, Lord, that many people, not just those that are here, but those watching online that they would trust you as Savior.

You’re being so good to us, we’re thankful of what you’ve done for us. The Father, You gave us a responsibility to preach the gospel. Help us to reach as many as we can. Help us to train as many as we can. Give us a strength and the grace that we make. Then Christ, name me, Christ, name me. Amen. Are you a new listener to Bibleline? Do you enjoy the teachings of Dr. Arnold? Well, if you’ve never contacted us before, we want to give you Dr.

Arnold’s book, The Gospel Driven Man. Every day we receive many emails from folks who have questions about repentance and salvation, about faith in works, and about how to share the gospel with friends and loved ones. This book, The Gospel Driven Man, covers all those topics, and we want all new listeners of Bibleline to receive a free copy. There’s no obligation, no donation necessary, simply call us at 1-800-576-3771 or write to us and request your free copy of the Gospel-Driven Manual.

The mailing address is 4811 George Road, Tampa, Florida, 33634. Again, don’t forget to include your mailing address, and God bless you and thank you for listening to Bibleline. Thanks for joining us on Bibleline. If you are in the area, we welcome you to visit us. The address for Calvary Community Church is 4811 George Road, Tampa, Florida, 33634. And now, a closing thought from Pastor Arnold. Friend, one day it will happen. The trumpet will sound. And we will be changed.

God up to meet the Lord in the air. So live today and every day. Believing that the Lord is coming soon, just keep looking up.