Israel: The Key to the End Times | Sunday Message

Hey there. Thanks for listening to the Greg Laurie Podcast, a ministry supported by Harvest Partners. I'm Greg Laurie, encouraging you.

If you want to find out more about Harvest Ministries and learn more about how to become a Harvest Partner, just go to harvest.org. All right. Well, let's grab our Bibles. We're in a brand new series that we're doing together on the end times. And the title of my message is Israel, the key to understanding the end times. And we're going to be in Ezekiel 37 and Romans 11. Ezekiel 37 and Romans 11.

Israel, the key to understanding the end times. Okay. So I've told you this before, but sometimes when my wife are out walking, I'll say, hey, Kathy, it's starting to rain. She'll say, no, it isn't.

I'll say, no, it is. She'll say, no, it isn't. But her hair is so thick, she would know it's raining for a day. She has so much hair. If you've ever seen my wife's beautiful hair, I could take what's left on her hairbrush after one day and have a revival on my head. It'd just be like the second coming of hair. But anyway, I'll say, no, it's starting to rain because bald men always know when it's raining first. And that's true. You know, when I first started losing my hair, I went to my doctor and I said, doc, my hair keeps falling out.

Can you give me anything to keep it in? He said, sure. And he gave me a paper back. I did not appreciate that. So listen, I want to tell you a couple of things about bald people that you need to know. Number one, we will accept mockery from other bald people. So a bald person can mock.

Am I right? How many of you are bald? Raise your hand. It's okay when a bald person mocks you, right? It's cool. Hey, you're bald. You're bald too.

Fine. You cannot mock us if you have hair. You do not have the right to mock us and we don't want to hear your mockery.

Here's what's even worse. Don't mock us if you're wearing a hairpiece. I actually had a guy come up to me and say, hey, man, you're bald. And I looked at his head. He had the worst looking toupee I've ever seen.

It looked like a bird nest. And I thought, dude, I could pull that off your head and it would be a whole new conversation. I just rolled with it. Okay, I'll turn the other cheek, whatever, but just don't mock bald people. It's hard enough, okay?

But here's my point. You know, when it rains sometimes it's a few drops here, it's a few drops there. I have a surefire way to get it to rain, which of course is wash my car. But sometimes it's a downpour out of nowhere. But I feel right now as we look out at our world where we're just seeing the rain begin. And by the rain I mean we're seeing things that are indicating to us that we are in the last days. And I am seeing these things intensify, which is exactly what Jesus said would happen. It would be like labor pains for a woman ready to give birth. The closer they are together, the closer now is the arrival of the child.

In the same way, when we see these signs of the times amplified and closer together, it says to us Jesus is coming. I heard about a town in South Dakota, New Place. Go visit South Dakota. And this little town there is called Wall. And in the tiny little town of Wall is a drug store called Wall Drug, started by a guy named Ted Husted. And he knew he wasn't going to get much traffic in the little town of Wall, the population 300 for his little drug store.

So he came up with a very clever plan. He decided to put signs up everywhere telling you how far you were from Wall Drug. So in Memphis, Tennessee, which is a long ways from South Dakota, there's a sign that says Wall Drug, 1,192 miles. There's another sign for it in Paris, France. Wall Drug, 5,961 miles.

He got a sign up in Moscow, even one in Kenya in front of the Taj Mahal. And then when you're in Interstate 90 in South Dakota for the last 45 minutes before you hit the town of Wall, the signs get bigger and brighter. And then the biggest one is saved for last.

Wall Drug. In the same way Jesus told us to look for the signs of his return. As they get bigger and brighter, it's saying one thing. Jesus Christ is coming again. And we're seeing that right now. Now when we talk about the end times, we hear words like Armageddon, Second Coming, Antichrist, Abomination of Desolation, Rapture, Millennium. The list goes on. And sometimes it's confusing, right? And you don't know what happens when. But as I've said before, God wants us to understand Bible prophecy.

It's not his desire to conceal but to reveal. And so here's a map on the screen. And also there was a handout given to you today.

Did you all get that little handout? So that's a bookmark. Keep that in your Bible.

It will help you. But this is a chronology of events. What happens when? So let's look at this together. Right now we're over here to the far left. The church today.

That's us. These events have not happened. In many ways the events of the end times are like dominoes closely stacked together. Once the first domino falls, the others will fall in rapid succession. So we're waiting for the next event on the prophetic calendar, which I believe is the rapture of the church. The rapture of the church is that moment when Christ comes for his church like a thief in the night. We're caught up to meet the Lord in the air.

And we're going to talk about that in more detail next time. We're together next Sunday. So the rapture of the church. Next event on the prophetic calendar. Sometime after that the antichrist emerges. Now the antichrist is going to be a charismatic world leader. He'll come as a peacemaker. But in reality he's a troublemaker. If the devil ever had a son, this is him. Anti can actually be translated against.

But it can also be translated instead of. That's what he is. A false Christ. Many will think he is Christ. But he is a false Christ with political solutions. He'll rebuild the temple in Jerusalem.

Appear initially as a friend to the Jewish people and turn on them and reveal his wicked agenda. That inaugurates a seven year period called the great tribulation period. It is my firm conviction that we as Christians will not go through the tribulation period. Because the Bible says God has not appointed us to wrath but to attain mercy from our Lord Jesus Christ. Now some will say, but wait. Jesus said in this world he will have tribulation. True. There is a difference between personal tribulation and trials and the great tribulation period.

So this is a seven year period. The first half of the tribulation starts off peacefully. The anti-Christ initially comes with overtures of peace.

In fact the Bible says through peace he will deceive many. But then he reveals his true agenda and the abomination of desolation happens. That's when anti-Christ directs an image of himself in the temple and commands people to worship it. Now for the rest of the tribulation period we see various plagues coming upon the world. We see two witnesses that God raises up who many believe will be Moses and Elijah.

We see 144,000 converted Jews who have embraced Jesus as the Messiah, combing the planet, preaching the gospel. So the tribulation period culminates with the battle of Armageddon. The word Armageddon comes from the root word Megiddo.

So it is talking about the location of the battle. It will be in the valley of Megiddo in Israel. Then during the battle of Armageddon Christ returns the second coming. There is a difference between the rapture and the second coming. In the rapture he comes for his church. In the second coming he returns with his church.

So every eye will see him in the second coming. Jesus said as the lightning shines from the east to the west so will the coming of the Son of Man be. So when we hear Jesus say he will come like a thief in the night then he says every eye will see him.

We just have to understand what he is referring to. When he says he will come like a thief that is the rapture. When he says every eye will see him that is the second coming.

All right. So the second coming now begins the great millennial period. The word millennium means one thousand.

That is the length. This is when the lion lies down with the lamb and we have global peace and they beat their swords into plowshares. And then the new Jerusalem like a bride adorned for her husband comes down from heaven and heaven and earth effectively become one. So that is a quick flyover of prophetic events. Now let's come back and talk about Israel.

And here is point number one if you are taking notes. The nation Israel is the key to understanding the end times. The nation Israel is the key to understanding the end times.

And the Bible makes bold and very specific predictions about her. And Israel and the Middle East in general have really been in the headlines a lot lately haven't they? On October 7th the people of Israel were attacked by Hamas terrorists. These militants slaughtered 1300 people.

Men women and children and did unspeakable things. Plus they took into captivity 250 more people. Many of whom are still in captivity. Now this is in a nation with a population of less than 10 million. So if we were to compare it to here. Let's just say this happened in America and let's extrapolate the number proportionally so we can understand what it would be like. This would be like waking up one morning and opening the paper or going to your favorite news site and reading that Hamas came in and murdered 40,000 Americans.

So you could see how significant and horrific that would be. That is comparably what it was like for Israel to have 1300 of their people murdered. Now you would think in the wake of something this awful and unspeakable that there would be sympathy extended to Israel and the Jewish people.

But instead the very opposite happened. Anti-Semitism exploded around the globe in the aftermath of October 7th. Protests happening.

Huge protests in Europe and in America and on our Ivy League universities. People supporting Hamas and calling for violence and death for the Jews. One of the slogans of the signs is from the river to the sea Palestine will be free. And that is just another way of saying we don't want Jews in the Middle East. We don't want a nation Israel in the Middle East because the Jordan River at the sea would be the Mediterranean. And so anti-Semitism, which is hatred of Jewish people, has risen 80 percent in Germany since October 7th.

Can you imagine it? Germany. Germany which was responsible for the Holocaust under Adolf Hitler resulting in the loss of the lives of six million Jewish people. Even in a synagogue in Los Angeles this week pro-Hamas terrorists were blocking Jewish people from going into their own synagogue. So the question arises why is there such a hatred for the Jews and for their homeland of Israel? Well by the way anti-Semitism is not unique to our time.

It goes all the way back to the book of Exodus. Well we see the Pharaoh giving the order to kill all the Jewish baby boys. Then fast forward to the book of Esther there in ancient Persia. We see Haman and his wicked plot to have all of the Jewish people exterminated. Interestingly in both of those situations courageous women stepped into the gap and saved the Jews. In the case of Pharaoh the Jewish midwives refused to obey that order and would not kill those little Jewish baby boys.

And in the case of the book of Esther it was Esther herself who was the queen that put it all on the line and spoke up for her fellow Jews. But why this hatred for the Jews? Simple answer. They are God's chosen people and Satan hates what God loves. Simple as that.

There it is. Why does Satan hate Christians? Because we too have been crafted in to the promises of God and Satan hates what God loves. God describes the Jewish people as the apple of his eye.

He says of them whoever touches you touches the apple of my eye. Now let's talk for a few moments about why there is a nation Israel to begin with. How could such a thing even happen?

It really seemed impossible. Especially in the aftermath of the Holocaust. But Jews began to return to their homeland as if on cue. And I think it was on cue because the Lord was prompting them to do so.

And they regathered there in the land bringing me to point number two. A sign of the end times is the regathering of the Jews in Israel. Again a sign of the end times is the regathering of the Jews in Israel. It was to alert us specifically that we are in the last days. In Matthew 24 Jesus foretold the destruction of the temple and the dispersion of the Jews. Remember the disciples said, what will be the sign of your coming? And he points to the temple and he says, I tell you there will not be one stone left upon another that will not be taken down.

What do they want? Do you see the size of this temple? What are you talking about? Well he was foretelling the destruction of the temple. Which happened in 70 A.D. when Titus and the Roman troops came in and set it all on fire. And it was dismantled stone by stone and many, many Jewish people were slaughtered. And they dispersed from the land of Israel. Fast forward throughout human history and we come to the Holocaust. But then in the aftermath of that a modern day miracle happened and the prophetic clock began to tick. On May 14, 1948 Israel against all odds became a nation again. And I am proud to announce that the United States was the first nation to recognize them as a nation.

So this is very significant. But here is what we need to understand because there are all kinds of false narratives out there. People say, well the Jews are colonizers.

Give me a break. The Jews are indigenous to the land. They are the original occupants of the land that God specifically gave to them. To the Jewish people God said in Deuteronomy 1a, look I am giving all this land to you.

Go in and occupy it for it is the land the Lord swore to give to your ancestors Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob and all their descendants. Ok so that brings us now to Ezekiel 37 where he predicts the return of the Jews. Are you there at Ezekiel 37? It is right after Ezekiel 36 if that helps.

Let's read it together. I am reading from the New Living Translation. The Lord took hold of me and I was carried away by the Spirit of the Lord to a valley filled with bones. He led me around the old dry bones that covered the valley floor.

They were scattered everywhere across the ground. Then He asked me, son of man can these bones become living people again? Oh sovereign Lord I replied, you alone know the answer to that. Then He said, speak to these bones and say, dry bones listen to the word of the Lord. This is what the sovereign Lord says. Look I am going to breathe into you and make you live again. I am going to put flesh and muscles on you and cover you with skin. I will put breath on you and you will come to life and you will know that I am the Lord.

We will stop there. Now I have spoken to some pretty dead audiences before but this takes the cake. God says to Ezekiel, go to the graveyard and preach to the bones. And that is exactly what Ezekiel does.

But what does this mean? What do these dry bones represent? Drop down to verse 17 of Ezekiel 37.

Excuse me. Down to verse 11 of Ezekiel 37. He said to me, son of man these bones represent the people of Israel.

They are saying we become old dry bones. All hope is gone. Now give this message from the sovereign Lord to my people. I will open your graves of exile and cause you to rise again.

Look at this. I will bring you back to the land of Israel. Now verse 13. When this happens oh people know that I am the Lord. I will put My Spirit in you and you will return. You will live and return home to your own land.

It is their land. You will return to your own land and you will know that I am the Lord. You will see how I have done everything as I promised. I the Lord have spoken. Stop there. This was written 2,500 years ago.

Very specific. So what is Ezekiel telling us? He is telling us a sign of the end times. Israel will be scattered. That has happened. Israel will be regathered. That too has happened. Israel will regain Jerusalem. That also has happened. Israel will be isolated. That is happening. And the Bible tells us in the last days the final conflict of man would be centered on Jerusalem. Not in Paris or Rome or London or any other city. On Jerusalem. Bringing me to point number three. The city of Jerusalem will be a focal point of the end times.

The city of Jerusalem will be a focal point of the end times. One of the greatest things that President Trump did was moving the American embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. Very good thing to do.

Why is that a good thing to do? Well because we put an embassy in the capital of a nation. That is what we do and other nations do as well. That is why there are so many embassies in Washington DC because that is our capital. But inexplicably we put our embassy in Tel Aviv which is not the capital of Israel. Jerusalem is and that was done and that was a very important thing to do.

But why does this tiny little city create such a stir? Why this hostility toward Jerusalem? Because she plays a key role in the last days. The Bible says she will be an intoxicating drink. A heavy stone and a burden for the whole world. Zechariah 12 2 says, God speaking, I will make Jerusalem and Judah like an intoxicating drink to the nearby nations that send their armies to besiege Jerusalem. On that day I will make Jerusalem a heavy stone, a burden of the world or for the world.

None of the nations who try will be able to lift it. I mean this tiny little country. And in this tiny little country called Israel is this little city called Jerusalem. Did you know that at one point the nation of Israel is only nine miles wide.

It is incredible. But yet this little sliver of land plays such a key role in the end times. Now here is where it gets interesting. After Ezekiel 37 is Ezekiel 38. Isn't that a profound insight? But what we read about in Ezekiel 38 is significant. This chapter speaks of a large force from the north of Israel attacking her in the end times. After she has been regathered this large force will attack Israel along with her allies.

And so this is very specific bringing me to point number four. After being regathered in her land Israel will be attacked. After being regathered in their land Israel will be attacked. Let's go to Ezekiel 38 now. I am speaking from the New King James Version. Son of man, God says, set your face against Gog or the land of Magog. You might underline Gog and Magog.

We will come back to those. The prince of Rosh, Meshach, and Tubal. And prophesy against him and say, that says the Lord God. Behold I am against you Gog, the prince of Rosh, Meshach, and Tubal. I will turn you around and put hooks in your jaws and lead you out with all of your armies, horses, horsemen, all splendidly clothed. Persia, Ethiopia, and Libya are with them along with shield and helmet. Gomer and all of his troops. The house of Togarmah from the far north and all of its troops.

Many people are with you. Drop down to verse 10 of Ezekiel 38. This is what the sovereign Lord says. At that time evil thoughts will come into your mind. You will devise a wicked scheme. You will say Israel is an unprotected land with unwalled villages. I will march against her and destroy those people who live in such confidence.

Ok we will stop there. Alright so who is Magog? And the allies that marched with her mentioned here in Ezekiel 38.

So these tribes intermarried and became known as Magog. They settled to the north of Israel. If you go to the north of Israel any map will show you that is where modern day Russia sits. Magog today may represent the former underbelly of the Soviet Union. Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Stan the Man.

No I don't know Stan the Man. Afghanistan and other parts. So Rosh is the remote part of the north. So a direct reference to Russia. Most prophecy experts believe Magog is Russia. Now I don't think anyone can say with 100% certainty that Magog is Russia. But I think it is a really good educated guess.

Now having said that I think you can say with absolute certainty who some of these allies that marched with Russia are. We have Gomer. And we all remember Gomer from the Andy Griffith Show. Remember Gomer? How many of you got that joke?

All the old people. I remember Gomer. Yeah. So there was a character. Remember Gomer?

Shazam he would say. This is not that Gomer. The Bible is not prophesying Gomer of that show. Gomer is modern day Turkey. So we have to ask the question is Turkey hostile toward Israel?

Well it hasn't always been hostile. But as recently as 2017 the state run Turkish newspaper called for a united army of Islam to invade Israel. So in recent days in fact Turkey has become hostile toward Israel. Ethiopia is mentioned and Libya is mentioned. Persia is modern Iran. Now all of these nations are Islamic.

Okay. And so Persia was Persia until 1935 and they changed their name to Iran. Now if Russia. If Magog is Russia and the Bible is specifically saying an ally of Magog is Persia. And it is saying that of course. That is a pretty remarkable statement.

I mean that is really going out on a limb. Historically Russia and Persia slash Iran have had no real relationship for the last 2,500 years. But Russia now has signed a billion dollar deal to some missiles and other weapons to Iran. Iran has provided drones for Russia to use in their war with Ukraine. And so an alliance that was prophesied 2,500 years ago has happened before our very eyes. One expert on the Middle East made this statement and I quote, Iran clearly knows how to unlock the doors to a nuclear armageddon. There is a growing sense in Israel that Jerusalem is quickly running out of time.

End quote. So Iran. And let me say this about Iran. There are many wonderful Persian people.

We have some in our church. Many who have fled Iran for freedom. And many of them are followers of Jesus Christ. And I hear many stories about people in Iran today coming to Christ.

And there is like an underground spiritual movement. So when I say Iran I am not talking of the people of Iran. But I am talking about the evil regime that is in charge of Iran. And this group of people they are funding terrorism around the world. And I can't think of one reason why we would send one dollar to fund terrorism around the world to Iran.

It makes no sense. And Iran works with these proxy organizations Hamas and Hezbollah. And so when you see Hamas attack Israel, when you see Hezbollah fire missiles into Israel, they are being told to do so or cooperating with Iran. So this is what is happening and they all hate Israel. And if that is not blatant enough Iran recently attacked Israel herself. Remember it was not long ago they fired 300 drones and missiles into Israel. But thankfully technology that America provided for Israel called the Iron Dome, which is a sophisticated missile system that shoots these incoming missiles and drones out of the air. And another weapon system we helped them with called the Sling of David.

So this technology has helped them and it has been very significant. But the Iranian leaders make no secret of their dislike and hatred of Israel and what their ultimate agenda is. One leader of Iran made this statement and I quote, Is it possible for us to witness a world without America and Zionism?

You best know that this slogan and this goal is attainable and can be achieved. The regime that is occupying Jerusalem must be wiped off the map. Pretty clear. So when we hear of a two state solution, sounds good on paper, what does it mean? It means that two states live in peace with each other. Israel would love to live at peace with Iran. They would love to live at peace with the Palestinians. The problem is how can you live at peace with someone who says, I want you wiped off the map. It is like saying to someone, can we be friends? And they say, if you cease to exist we can be.

How does that work, right? That is literally what they are saying. So in Jerusalem of all things as mentioned specifically there is that heavy stone again. Now here comes the United States. We have been a strong and staunch ally of Israel historically.

But more recently we have backed off from that. Why should we support the nation Israel? Well one would say because they are the only real democracy in the Middle East and that is true. But that is not the reason, the primary reason we should support them. I think the primary reason we should support Israel is because God has placed them in the land.

And we want to stand with that, right. So may God, maybe Russia and our allies, we know Persia is one of those allies, will march against Israel. What happens next? Ezekiel 38, 18. This is what will happen in that day when God attacks the land of Israel. God says, my hot anger will be aroused declares the sovereign Lord. Don't tick off God.

You don't want to get on His bad side. He says, you are going to attack my people. Notice how the Lord takes it personally.

Why? Because Israel, the Jewish people, His chosen people are the apple of His eye. And so now God decimates the armies of Magog along with their allies.

And there are so many weapons there it takes seven years to destroy them. And then God promises to pour His Spirit out on Israel in Ezekiel 39, 29. So a national revival takes place in Israel. Now when will this happen?

Let's go back to our map again. When will this happen chronologically? Here is the answer. Ready? I don't know. Okay. But I will take a guess.

Okay. So if they are going to burn the weapons for seven years it seems likely to me that this attack of Magog against Israel could happen before the rapture. It could happen right after the rapture. Perhaps a little bit later.

I don't know the answer to that. But now let's go to our second passage. Romans 11. Are you bored? Okay.

Good. I am waiting for one person to say. Romans 11. Verse 25.

The Apostle Paul. I want you to understand the mystery dear brothers and sisters. Which brings me back to my point. God wants us to understand Bible prophecy. Right. Here is Paul saying I want you to understand this mystery.

So you won't feel proud about yourselves. Blindness in part has happened to Israel. But this will only last until the full number of the Gentiles come to Christ. And so all Israel will be saved.

Okay. Point number five. A spiritual awakening is going to happen to the Jewish people. A spiritual awakening is going to happen to the Jewish people. There is a spiritual blindness among many Jews when it comes to Jesus.

There is a resistance. But actually there has been a dramatic change even recently. I read just the other day that requests for Bibles in Israel have risen dramatically since October 7. I can think of many conversations that I have had with Jewish people who have thanked me personally for speaking up for them at this critical juncture.

I told you about the opportunity I had on October 8 I believe it was. Where I went to the Museum of Tolerance in Los Angeles. Which is a museum dedicated to fight anti-Semitism. And it was pretty much a Jewish audience. And I had the privilege of speaking to them and telling them that we love them as Christians. And that we are praying for them.

But I didn't stop there. I told them how Jesus Christ had changed my life. I am not going to hide that part of it. This is why I love the Jewish people. This is why I care about them because their Messiah came to me as a Jew. The Bible was given to me by the Jews. I am a Gentile. I am not Jewish. But at the same time my love for them comes from my study of Scripture. Because effectively I am studying Jewish history. Just like you are.

Right? So it was a beautiful opportunity to say as a Christian. We care about you. We love you. And the reason we do is because of Jesus and what He has done for us. And they are listening like they have never listened before.

They are listening like they have never listened before. There is a rabbi who lives in Jerusalem and saw me in Fox News defending Israel. And he wrote me a beautiful letter. And invited me to Shabbat dinner next time I am in Jerusalem. And said, quote, You are a great friend of those who cherish the word of God and the society. It is growing more contemptuous of it all the time.

Our communities are the last holdouts. You see they are recognizing that these Christians. These evangelicals. These people of the Bible are our true friends. They are not against us. They are for us. So I think that is a beautiful thing.

We love them because they are God's chosen people. But Corrie Ten Boom wrote this book, The Hiding Place. Which is the amazing and harrowing story of what her family did for Jews in her hometown there in Holland. And they had a little watch shop.

They repaired clocks and watches and such. And they were Dutch Christians. And they saw the Nazis coming in and arresting Jews. First forcing them to wear the Star of David.

That yellow patch on their arm and then arresting them. And she writes this in her book. One day as Father and I were returning from our walk. We found the groat market cordoned off by a double ring of police and soldiers.

A truck was parked in front of the fish market. She writes, into the back were climbing men, women, and children. All wearing the yellow star. I cried, Father. These poor people.

These poor people. Father replied. But to my surprise he was not looking at the Jewish people.

He was looking at the soldiers forming into ranks. He said, I pity the poor Germans Corrie. They have touched the apple of God's eye. Don't mess with God's people. Every nation that has sought to destroy the Jewish people have paid big time for it.

And this is going to happen again when Magog attacks her. Listen. God made a promise to Israel and God keeps his promises. And I want to bring this up because there is something called replacement theology that has gained some popularity in the church. So replacement theology basically says that all the promises given to the Jews have now been transferred to the church. And the promises given to the Jews are no longer operative.

They are all given to us. That is wrong and incorrect and is refuted many times in scripture. God is a promise keeper. He is not a promise breaker. And He has made promises to Israel that He will keep. Here is a promise He made to the Jewish people in Jeremiah 33.

You can't get any plainer than this. The Lord gave another message to Jeremiah. He said, have you noticed what people are saying? They are saying the Lord chose Judah and Israel and then abandoned them. They are sneering and saying Israel is not worthy to be counted as a nation. And this is what the Lord says. I would no more reject My people than I would change My laws that govern night and day, earth and sky.

How is that for clarity? It is so current. People are saying, oh God has broken His covenant with the Jews and He doesn't care about the nation of Israel. God is saying, are you kidding me? I will never abandon My covenant with them.

Ok. So this is the way it is. You see I am a Gentile as most of you are. And the Bible says we have been grafted into the promises of God. It means He made the promises to them. But through Jesus our Messiah we have been brought into these promises with the Lord.

Not replacing them but grafted in. That is what the Bible says. God promises of course in Genesis 12 to Abraham and his descendants, the Jews. It says I will bless those that bless you. I will curse those that curse you. So that is why we want to bless the Jewish people.

Number six. God wants to use us to bless the people who have blessed us. God wants to use you to bless the people who have blessed us. Verse 14. I want somehow to make the people of Israel jealous of what the Gentiles have so I might save some of them.

Make them jealous. Ok. So this is very interesting. So years ago I was in Israel and we were doing a little tour. And I had a tour guide I used quite frequently.

His name was David. Great guy. We became very good friends. But we didn't agree on much. And he loved to debate me. And so we would have these extended debates. And he is a very intelligent guy and was challenging and interesting to talk to. So one day we are having one of our debates.

He is pushing back on what I believe. And on it went. And then at the end of our little journey. I never felt like I made a lot of progress with David honestly. But at the end of our little journey we are getting off the bus and the driver says to me, You know I was listening to your conversation with David and I was wondering if you would come to my home for Shabbat dinner.

Sabbath dinner. And I said, Well I would be honored. Thank you. And so I didn't realize but he had been listening to all these conversations. I didn't even think of him.

He was right there. And then he said this statement to me, I have been listening to you talk about God and I am jealous of your relationship with God. And I thought, Wow. Wait. Haven't I read that somewhere?

The Bible says that God uses us Gentiles who know Jesus to make the Jewish people who have this covenant relationship with Him jealous of this relationship. So I went to his home. They gave me a fantastic meal. I mean I was very hungry and we ate it and we thought that was fantastic. That was just the first course. Course after course came and it just went on and on.

And I was going into a food coma. And then he gathers all of his family. A couple of his sons serving in the Israeli army.

All of his family. And he says, Please tell them what you were saying earlier in the bus. Ok. I shall. And I preached the gospel to his whole family.

See but that is what it is. God keeps His promises. He will keep His promise to them. He will keep His promise to us as well.

God will not break His promises. I heard about a man who was getting married. He made an unusual offer to the pastor who would be officiating. He said, Pastor I would like to ask you to delete part of the vows that we will be doing together. You know that part where I say I promise to forsake all others only unto myself as long as we both shall live. I don't want to say that to my wife.

So don't ask me to say that. And here is $100. Pastor took the money.

Ok. So the wedding day came and the man is standing up with the groom with his wife. His bride. And the pastor is going through the vows and he turns to the groom and says, Do you promise to obey her every wish and command and make her breakfast in bed every morning and promise to God and your lovely wife that you will not even look at another woman as long as you both shall live. The guy is, you know, he is under pressure.

He gulps and says, I do. Then after the ceremony is over the groom goes to the pastor and says, I thought we had a deal. And then the pastor put the $100 back in his hand and said, She made me a better offer.

Laughter. God keeps His promises. And He has made a lot of promises to us.

So many I could spend the next 20 minutes listing them for you. But we will have to do that at another time. Bringing me to point number seven. God is waiting for the complete number of Gentiles to come to Christ. God is waiting for the complete number of Gentiles to come to Christ. Romans 11 26. Blindness in part has happened to Israel but this will only last until the full number of Gentiles come to Christ and then all Israel will be saved.

Listen. Every soul matters to God and the Lord is waiting for the last one to believe. Now when the Bible says all Israel will be saved that does not mean literally every Jewish person will believe but what it is saying is He will keep His promises to them and He is waiting for the last one to come.

The way I see this is God is saying that there is walking around on this planet of ours the last person He is waiting for. Can you imagine if you knew who that person was? Like this person right here is the holdout. And when this guy comes to Christ we are all going to heaven. Would you be tempted to apply some pressure on him or her?

Come on man. What if you were that last person and the Lord was just waiting on you and then we go to heaven. You know there is a prototype if you will of someone in the Bible that is a bit like us. His name was Enoch. And you know the story of Enoch. The Bible says he walked with God and was not for God took him.

It is a very interesting story. No one quite like him. He is walking with God. Walk with him every day. Maybe one day the Lord said you know what buddy we are closer to my house than we are to yours.

Why don't you come home with me? The word took him means he translated him. He carried him across. Enoch was like a solo rapture. What will happen to a whole generation if it happened to one single man. But prior to that he walked with God.

And that is what we all should be doing. Walking with God and be ready to meet God. Look let me just put a little bow on it now. We are done. Jesus is coming again. The signs are getting bigger and they are getting brighter. And they are getting closer together. And he could come at any time. Oh Greg I have been hearing this forever.

Yeah I know. The Bible even says a sign of the end times will be people saying oh we have heard this forever. But one of these days it is going to be the day. And we will be caught up to meet the Lord in a moment in the twinkling of an eye. My question for you is are you ready? Are you ready to meet the Lord? Are you? I hope so.

You might ask well how do I get ready? I don't have a relationship with God. Like Enoch you walk with God. You are right with God. And if this is the day great.

If it isn't the day great. And look we may die. We may not be raptured before we die. Or we may be raptured before we die. Whatever. Look all I know is I am going to heaven.

If I go on a taxi or an Uber I am getting there. Okay. Now honestly I would prefer the rapture. I will say that. And if the Lord would be so gracious to allow that to happen I would be thrilled along with you. But if not I won't be disappointed. My hope is in the Lord.

And I know I will see Him again. I just had a conversation with a friend of many years whose wife just passed on to heaven. And she wrote this letter that was even funny at times. Like it says don't open until I die. So he didn't open it.

Now she has gone to be with the Lord. He opens it up. First thing she says. Make sure the cats are fed.

And then there are some other very specific instructions like clean up after yourself and you know these things. He is a guy. He needs help.

Right. But then she says I am good. I am okay.

Don't worry about me. I am safely at home in heaven. And then she gives all these scriptures. All these scriptures. And he said he looked up every one of those verses.

And it ministered to his heart so much. And she laid out this is what I want at my service. I don't want anyone wearing black.

I want them to wear bright colors. And I want them to celebrate the fact that I am with the Lord. She had such clarity of mind you know. And I think if we really think clearly for a moment people in heaven are better off than us. Right. I know we miss them. I know we wish they were here with us. And there is nothing wrong with that. That is just our love for them. But at the same time if given a choice no one in heaven would ever want to come back here.

But we should want to go there. And the only way to know is have a relationship with God. Through Jesus Christ who died on the cross for our sin and rose again from the dead and stands at the door of your life and He knocks. And if you will hear His voice and open the door He will come in.

You can do that right here. Right now. And you will be rapture ready. Let's pray. Father I pray that you will speak to everyone here. Everyone watching. Everyone listening.

Lord you know where they are and you know what they need. And if they don't know you yet let this be the moment they put their faith in Jesus Christ as their Savior and Lord. While our heads are bowed and our eyes are closed. If you want Christ to come into your life. If you want Him to forgive you of your sin.

If you want to know with certainty that you will go to heaven when you die. If you want to be ready for the Lord's return wherever you are lift your hand up. And let me pray for you right now. Lift your hand up high where I can see it. God bless you and you and you. Anybody else wherever you are lift your hand up saying I want Jesus today.

God bless you. Raise your hand up where I can see it. If you're watching on a screen at one of our campuses raise your hand up saying I need Jesus today.

This is between you and God. Alright everyone of you raise your hand. Stand up and I'm gonna lead you in a prayer right now. Stand up. Stand up to your feet.

Even if you didn't raise your hand. You need to get right with God. You want Christ in your life.

You want to be ready for His return. Stand to your feet. And I'm gonna lead you in prayer. Others are standing. If you need to stand do it right now. God bless all of you standing. And I'll wait one more moment. You want to put your faith in Jesus and be ready for His return. Let me lead you in this prayer.

God bless you. Others are standing. A lot of guys are standing. I love that. Any ladies? Anybody else? Younger people?

Older people? Stand up. I'll wait one more moment then we'll pray.

Anybody else? Stand now. Alright God bless all of you. You that are standing pray this prayer out loud right where you stand. Again pray this out loud after me.

Pray these words. Lord Jesus. I know that I'm a sinner. But I know that you're the savior. Who died on the cross for my sin.

And rose from the dead. I turn from my sin. I put my faith in you. I want to know your will for my life.

And walk in it. I want to be ready for your return. I commit my life to you now Jesus. Thank you for hearing this prayer. And answering this prayer.

In Jesus name I pray. Amen. Amen. Amen.