John Chapter 16:1-7

I know some people are taking kind of a laid-back laissez-faire kind of attitude, well he'll come one day but you know I'm just gonna kind of be on cruise mode until then and then you know when when that happens then I'll get ready. What do you mean when that happens you'll get ready?

It's called the twinkling of an eye and we can estimate somewhere about one three hundredths or maybe even one three thousandths of a second. You're not gonna have time to get ready friend. Oh yeah yeah I'll pray that prayer that you always are telling us to pray to get the forgiveness of sins. When that when the rapture happens I'm gonna pray that prayer right then and there. Oh you won't have time.

I mean that's pretty quick. Welcome to Cross the Bridge with David McGee. David is a senior pastor of The Bridge in Kernersville, North Carolina. One of David McGee's associate pastors is D.A.

Brown who we're blessed to have with us in the studio today. Bob it's good to be here. Let's teach him. Oh get ready for it. Did you know that Jesus has told us the future? Today Pastor David explains how we can be ready for his return as he continues in the Gospel of John chapter 16.

Sounds good so let's listen as David McGee teaches don't be offended. Turn with me to John 16. We finished up chapter 15 last week speaking about love and persecution. How we should love one another in part because the world is going to hate us and when we talked about the world we talked about it that it was the world system in the that it's a culture that wants to reject God and reject the truth of God's word and so now we pick it up in chapter 16 verse 1. These things I have spoken to you that you should not be made to stumble. Now if you're I'm in the New King James if you're in the King James the word is offended if you're if you're reading in a Greek Bible it's scandalon but you're probably not.

The scandalon we're actually where we get our word for scandalize or scandal. Now he says and this is an amazing thing especially when you consider what he's about to say he's about to say look these guys are going to kick you out of church they're going to kill you and think that they're doing me a service. Now if you want some reasons maybe even legitimate reasons for being being offended boy those are those are a couple good ones aren't they but you know you see what he's saying here don't be offended at that what don't be offended at the fact they want to kick you out of church and they want to kill you oh see we got to spend some time with this verse and you know why because we get offended a lot quicker than that don't we oh somebody can look at us wrong I'm offended somebody can say the wrong thing maybe accidentally I'm offended can't believe they said that to me. Wait a minute Jesus is saying these two reasons that they want to kick you out of church and kill you aren't grounds for being offended so what do you think he would look at you being offended at somebody looking at you wrong or saying the wrong thing I don't think he would clear I don't think he would consider that as good grounds for being offended. Now here's the thing all of us tend to get offended every single person in here every single person has probably been offended somewhere in the last month or week or today or some of you will be offended before the end of the service in case you've been missing that out but is it legitimate grounds for offense? See and even think about the word offense if you'll allow me a little enunciation slight here a fence you build a fence around yourself with offenses and and then what do we do we pick them up and and here's here's where we slip off track guys and you know picking up an offense it's kind of like a rattlesnake's rattle or you know the hair on a cat's back or the way a skunk will back up to you you know hopefully you've not had that experience personally but when somebody gets offended and they're like oh I'm going to offend it that's what it's like and then what happens when we get offended do we take it to God oh not usually should we take it to God you bet you first and foremost but then we we carry the offense around see we have to pick it up and carry it around with us and then what do we do we begin to tell others about it look I'm offended look what happened can't believe they did that can't believe they said that I'm offended you're not responding properly I'm going to go share with somebody else look I'm offended I'm going to find somebody that will respond properly to my offense feel the convicting power of the Holy Spirit in here right now how should we handle it when we get offended the Bible tells us plainly Matthew 18 tells us moreover if your brother sins against you go and tell him his fault between you and him alone if he hears you you have gained your brother that is the biblical way of handling an offense now let me ask you a question how many people in here know somebody that's in here or goes here that's offended don't raise your hand think about it for a second how do you know they're offended because you sat and talked with them you weren't the one they should be talking to guys help me out with this when somebody comes to you in that situation says you know I'm offended at so and so they no no no wait a minute stop man if you're offended with them if they've done something against you go to them don't come to me with that and shut them down in doing that you are caring for that person because I can't tell you the number of times I've had somebody come to me and go let me talk to you about this guy this this guy did this this guy said that and I go whoa have you gone to him no no okay I don't want to hear this you need to go to him you need to go to him so so many times they come back to me later and go we got it all worked out we got it all worked out because I challenged them to speak to that person now what if I had given them sympathy oh I can't believe he said that's not right he shouldn't treat you like that oh I knew there was something wrong with him you know and and I and I lead them on I'm actually hurting them and see this is one of the ways the body of Christ grows when we get offended at each other and we resolve our differences that's what's supposed to happen biblically and biblically because of that verse if you go to somebody else other than that person you're in sin plainly it's what the bible says now if they don't receive it the Matthew continues on and says look if they don't receive it get somebody else and take them to go with you and talk to them about it but this is the proper grounds for dealing with offenses within the body of Christ and it's not often that it goes like this but it's an opportunity to teach and train if somebody comes to you and tries to enlist you in their offense because again this is the way we grow this is an amazing thing to me because here we are you know we're in the fourth chapter of the upper room discourse and this whole when I say upper room discourse what I mean by that is it begins in this upper room with you know the washing of the feet and then now they're they're down in the garden close to the garden we believe but Jesus it's an amazing thing because when you stop and consider you know this is it he's been training these guys for three years they were hand-picked they were kind of you know we've spoken about they were kind of yeshiva school dropouts they weren't chosen by the rabbis out of Jerusalem to to follow them but chosen by Jesus reflecting back on the last chapters of the things that have been said and done and and you know what it's it's it's a little short study and what all goes wrong because the disciples miss what Jesus is telling them at every turn he starts out if you remember in in 13 where you know Jesus is washing their feet and Peter goes you're not going to wash my feet and Jesus says well if I don't wash your feet then you're no part of me well then wash my whole body I'm not going to wash your whole body I want to wash your feet you know and it's like Peter missed the point and then Jesus is trying to hint them of that Judas is going to betray him he said okay he dips in the sop and they dipped in the sop and then Judas leaves and they go well I wonder who it is you know and they miss it again John 14 he goes look you know where I'm going I'm going on the way the truth of life and they go I don't know where you're going it's amazing the patience of Jesus with him that he didn't look at him and go you know what you're all fired this is not working out the disciple thing is just beyond you but he doesn't he sits and patiently walks them through this why do I point it out because understand that's his heart towards you some of you here this morning may have had some problems get in your mind your heart around things that the Lord is teaching you maybe he's had to teach you the same thing several times and you still hadn't got it know this the Lord is going to be patient with you he loves you he wants to teach you and if that doesn't describe you this morning I bet it describes somebody that you know maybe family maybe friends maybe people that you work with and you sit there and go why don't they have it why aren't they getting this I keep telling them what to do and they keep not doing it remember the heart of Jesus on the evening before he as he was betrayed as he was turned over was exercising great patience and great care and great love for these guys who still really weren't getting it verse 2 says they will put you out of the synagogue yes the time is coming that whoever kills you will think that he offers God's service what an incredible prophetic statement and again he's saying look they're going to try to kill you don't be offended what an amazing statement again you know as I read this I'm like I get so convicted because I think of the little things I get offended about I mean it's been a while since somebody tried to kill me so you know but I tend to get offended at the little things and and the Lord's going hey when they try to kill you don't get offended pretty challenging isn't it is it just me or is I mean that's pretty challenging so now they're talking about they're going to kick them out of the the Jewish synagogue and and you know really when you think about this verse every religious group has done this every one of them I used to defend the history of the Christian church I don't I don't do that anymore because the more I dig and the more I research the more that I hang my head on some stuff and it's not really worth defending here's what I say when people start talking about the middle ages or the crusades and stuff like that I'll go wow you know what that looks like people who need a messiah that looks like people who need Jesus that looks like people who need that forgiveness that he so graciously offers rather than going well what they really did was right now I understand there's there's many people that you know obviously the Jewish leaders and then the Romans persecuted the Christians and and then later the Christians persecuted the the Jewish people and um and then you had the whole Catholic protestant thing where Catholics wiped out whole cities 70,000 people in one night why because they possessed the bible and they were saying you could be saved outside the church it's called the inquisition it's not much we we don't learn about that much in our history books but hundreds of thousands of people were killed for either owning a bible or reading a bible John Wycliffe who they they his nickname was the morning star of the reformation they actually after he translated the bible into English and after his death well 30 I think 35 years after his death they excommunicated him 21 years after that they dug up his bones and burned them and threw them in the river for the crime of translating the bible we'll be right back with more from David McGee on Cross the Bridge right now here's a word from associate pastor D.A. Brown we want to take just a minute to pray for seven cities in our listening audience Walker, Michigan, Brainerd, Fergus Falls, and Grand Rapids, Minnesota, Biloxi, Friars Point, and Meridian, Mississippi. Lord thank you that we're able to broadcast in these cities thank you for your good news which will not return void Lord I pray for everyone listening right now that they would be encouraged that they would recognize that you love them greatly and you have a good plan Lord I pray for anyone in their lives who they've been trying to reach out to or they've been trying to share the gospel with we lift those up to you now we pray that you would convince and convict and even encourage them to put their trust in you and Lord we pray for protection and safety in these cities give the police officers wisdom the fire department wisdom the town councils the mayors everyone in leadership give them wisdom help them to love one another and Lord we trust you that you're going to do a great work in these cities in Jesus name amen amen thank you brother and now let's get back to David McGee as he continues teaching verse by verse verse three says in these things they will do to you because they have not known the father nor me he's saying look because you know me this is what's going to happen there's a cost to following the Lord and again he's saying you know what they're doing these things because they don't know me just like in last chapter said they're doing these things because they don't remember when you see somebody that's heavy into drugs heavy in the alcohol or same-sex relationships or whatever all that stuff they're doing because they don't know him either they don't have a full knowledge or they don't know him at all understand that it's an interesting thing here if you think about this verse here is a man if you'll allow me the use of the term he's 100 god 100 man but let me here is a man who never traveled more than a couple hundred miles from his home never held political office was not a rich man contrary to what you might hear or see when they ask him for you know you got money to pay taxes he said go get some money out of a fish's mouth and he's saying that at some point in the future the whole world is going to be divided into those who know him and those who don't know him what an incredible statement to make and prophetically it comes to that now there's there's a line between those who know jesus and those who don't verse four but these things i have told you that when the times come you may remember that i told you of them and these things i did not say to you at the beginning because i was with you now it's an amazing thing to me the way that jesus is caring for them because he's getting ready to endure agony and pain and beyond belief in the next 24 hours but what's he doing who's he concerned with he's not saying to the disciples guys i really need you to pray for me because you know they're this is going to be tough as a matter of fact when he did ask his first string if you will to pray for him they fell asleep but in this moment he's not spending the time going hey i need you guys to pray for me he's ministering to them that friend is the biblical model of christianity it's not all egocentric focused on self and me but focused on others and sure you'll go through hard times where you you don't want to do that or you don't feel like doing that but jesus is the example and all that he was getting ready to face he was still willing to pour out upon others and be concerned with others and not himself how challenging that is now in his love for them i want you to notice this in his love for them he is telling them what is getting ready to happen not just the next 24 hours but in the next few years that's interesting why because it's an expression of his love to tell them what is about to happen that's an interesting thing considering how much prophecy is in this book so he has told us a great deal about what's going to happen not just today but in the next few years why because he loves you and he wants you to be ready interesting story with sodom and gomorrah before the destruction of sodom and gomorrah the lord said this in genesis 1817 and the lord said shall i hide from abraham what i am doing since abraham shall surely become a great mighty nation and all the nations of the earth shall be blessed in him the lord is deciding to tell abraham what's about to happen in sodom and gomorrah why did he do that well we're actually told in in james in a roundabout way james chapter 2 verses verse 23 says and the scripture was fulfilled which says abraham believed god and it was counted to him for righteousness and he was called the friend of god if you've been here for a couple weeks last chapter jesus called us his friends if we know him and we're following him so why has he revealed the future to us because we're his friends and he loves us and he's saying look this is what's going to happen this is what is coming down now i'm talking about the rapture of the church now i know some people are taking kind of a laid-back laissez-faire kind of attitude yeah well he'll come one day but you know i'm just going to kind of be on cruise mode until then and then you know when when that happens then i'll get ready what do you mean when that happens you'll get ready it's called the twinkling of an eye of an eye and we can estimate somewhere about one three hundredths or maybe even one three thousandths of a second you're not gonna have time to get ready friend oh yeah yeah i'll pray that prayer that you always are telling us to pray to to get the forgiveness of sins when that when the rapture happens i'm gonna pray that prayer right then and there well you won't have time i mean that's pretty quick lord i ask you that's too long lord i no too long lord too long no that's too long you're not gonna have that's it's it it's over man so what you have to do is be prepared now today and understand something why is jesus waiting and he is waiting i get the picture you know that that jesus is up there going oh now now father can i go not yet not yet not yet not yet not yet but one day soon the father's going to look at him and go that's it bring him home and the door is going to be closed why is jesus waiting for that moment we're told we don't have to wonder we're told second peter chapter 3 verse 9 says the lord isn't being slow about his promise to return as some people think no he's being patient for your sake he does not want anyone to perish so he is giving more time for everyone to repent when you really stop and consider this verse there's a staggering implication so jesus is waiting for people to repent well yes and no yes because he is waiting for them to repent no because well let me ask you a question how will they repent romans tells us how they gonna know unless we tell them so conceptually jesus is waiting on them to repent but you know what's really going on he's waiting for us to tell them oh now pastor david i think you're taking some liberty with that scripture i don't think i am because of other scriptures john chapter 4 verse 35 says do not do you not say there are still four months and then comes the harvest behold i say to you lift up your eyes and look at the fields for they are already white for harvest in matthew 9 37 and 38 says then he said to his disciples the harvest truly is plentiful but the laborers are few therefore pray the lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest so we think that we're waiting on the return of jesus actuality he's waiting on us to fulfill the great commission and he's told us the future because he loves us and he wants us to be ready that's the life lesson here jesus has told us the future because he loves us and so we can be ready because he loves us and so we can be ready he even told parables about people who after being told we're not ready like the bridesmaids and some other parables why did he tell us that to to communicate to us look this is going to happen and you need to be ready for that and in a more personal way understand this god is also trying to prepare you what's coming next in your life there's people in here they're going to have deaths and their families there's people in here that are going to go through hard times at work god knows that and even right now he's trying to prepare you for that time why because he knows what's next verse five but now i go away to him who sent me and none of you ask me where are you going but because i've said these things to you sorrow has filled your heart jesus is saying you know what you're sorry but you should be glad and he's getting ready to explain to them why that is verse seven nevertheless i tell you the truth it is to your advantage that i go away for if i do not go away the helper will not come to you but if i depart i will send him to you he's talking about the holy spirit and remember before jesus died and was resurrected the holy spirit could only come upon people he couldn't indwell and fill people because there was the sin issue see in the hebrew scriptures in the old testament the the word there for atone is the hebrew word kophir or go far depending on how the usage it's where we get our word for cover see but under the blood of jesus the sins are washed away completely so now that our sins can be washed away we can receive the holy spirit and power and and so because of the death of jesus and the resurrection of jesus the holy spirit can indwell us and you know what really is jesus is saying here is you know what this is what i came for is what i came for when he came this was part of the package and he knew it and he still came understand he lived to die that was his purpose it didn't catch him by surprise as a matter of fact he sped up the timetable the leadership in Jerusalem said let's don't take him during the feast there'll be an uproar and jesus looked at judas and said judas what you're about to do go do it quickly go do it now let's get the thing going what an amazing thing jesus didn't come here to shed a little light on the subject he doesn't come here to communicate a few truths so we could get along a little better he didn't come to share a few things so we could just feel a little better about ourselves he came to die let me make it a little personal he came to die for you friend do you know for sure that your sins have been forgiven you can know right now i want to lead you in a short simple prayer simply telling god you're sorry and asking him to help you to live for him now god wants you to pray this prayer so much that he died to give you the opportunity and the ability to ask him to forgive you please pray this prayer with me out loud right now dear jesus i believe you died for me that i could be forgiven and i believe you were raised from the dead that i could have a new life and i've done wrong things i have sinned and i'm sorry please forgive me of all those things please give me the power to live for you all of my days in jesus name amen friend if you prayed that prayer according to the bible you've been forgiven you've been born again so congratulations friend you just made the greatest prayer ever the greatest decision that you will ever make god bless you if you prayed that prayer with david for the first time we'd love to hear from you you can visit crossthebridge.com to receive our first steps package with helpful resources to help you begin your walk with christ or you can write to cross the bridge at p.o box 12 515 winston salem north carolina 27117 and share how working in your life you know the bible tells us that the free gift of god is eternal life in jesus christ our lord but it does cost for us to come and bring that message to you and to others in your neighborhood through radio through the internet and through the mobile technologies that god has gifted us to be able to use so if you'd like to support this ministry please go to crossthebridge.com click on the donate button and ask god how much he would have you give either on a one-time basis or a continuing basis each month to help ensure that the teaching of god's word continues to go out through cross the bridge thank you so much well da before we go what are some ways that we can bless our listeners each day you can wake up with encouragement from pastor david through the word of god with his email devotional life lessons to consider a daily reading plan and a thought to meditate on throughout your day from the heart of david mcgee those are terrific and it's easy and it's free so folks sign up today at cross the bridge dot com thanks again for listening and join us next time as david mcgee continues teaching verse by verse in the gospel of john you