The Great Tribulation and Place of Safety

   Greetings, everyone. When the Bible talks about a time so horrible that it will be worse than any time before and any time after, that's hard to comprehend with a human mind. Worse than the Dark Ages, the bubonic plague, all the world wars that have gone before, pandemic disease, diseases.

   Hitler's death camps, Stalin's death camps, Popat's murder of millions of people in Cambodia, worse than Hiroshima and Nagasaki, worse than all of that, much, much worse. It's very hard to comprehend such a time. And yet the Bible talks of such a time.

   And when the Bible talks about a little flock, a small church, that will be supernaturally delivered. From all of that, simply extricated before it all really gets up a full head of steam and protected somewhere, somehow. That's hard to fathom as well.

   I mean, in reality, that's hard to fathom. And when the Bible shows that that little church must be storing up and preparing for that time so it'll be ready, what does that mean? What does that mean?

   You know, in the Bible, we find a good part of the Bible is prophecy. And when we start studying those prophecies, we find quite a bit of the Bible about a time called the Great Tribulation and then an event describing when the church will be taken to the place of safety. Should we ignore those parts of the prophecies of the Bible?

   Some people say that if you preach about the Great Tribulation, you're just preaching, you know, you're preaching a fear religion. So you should ignore that. Others say when you talk about the place of safety, you're just talking about saving your own skin.

   So you should ignore that. And yet the Bible is inspired by God, and we're going to see here this afternoon that there are numerous scriptures that talk about the Great Tribulation, and numerous scriptures that talk about the place of safety, and numerous scriptures that talk about what we ought to be doing now to prepare for those times in the future. So this afternoon, let's look at some of those scriptures.

   Let's go through this subject of the Great Tribulation and the place of safety. First, the Great Tribulation.

   Let's start by turning to Matthew chapter 24. It's just so difficult in a peaceful community, in a peaceful neighborhood living a peaceful life, which we're all thankful to God for, to take time to look into and to understand to the point where it becomes real that there's a time coming called the Great Tribulation. And yet, we must do that.

   We must understand and do that. And that time must be something that is real to us. Now, of course, that's not the most important thing we study.

   That's not the most important thing the church teaches. But it's a very important part of the Bible, and it's a very important part of the truth. So there's a balance here.

   We don't want to ignore this while we take time to study about Christian living and family and repentance and overcoming and growing and doing the work. All of that's very, very important. But we don't want to ignore this part of the Bible, either, because it has its place in balance with all of the prophecies and with all of the truth. Otherwise, why is it here? Look who said it: Jesus Christ Himself.

   It says here in Matthew 24:21: For then shall be great tribulation. He calls it great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world or to this time no nor ever shall be. Now, the word unique is overused, because unique just means one time.

   This is truly a unique time, the Great Tribulation. It's going to be so horrendous, it's going to be so horrible, it's going to be so incomprehensible to fully, totally fathom it. It will be a time that is much worse than anything that's ever happened in all of history up to that time.

   It will be the worst time before, and there will never be a time that bad after. Such as was not since the beginning of the world or to this time, no, nor ever shall be. And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved alive, but for the elect's sake, those days shall be shortened. That's how bad it's going to be. If it were not cut short, there would be no flesh, no life saved on this planet.

   Now, there's never been a time on earth, never been a time in history, where all flesh would be totally destroyed except God intervened, except in the Noation deluge, and He did intervene. When not only will all flesh be destroyed, but leading up to that time, it's the most horrendous period of history. Past, present, and future.

   It's called the Great Tribulation. Now, it's mentioned in the Old Testament as well. Let's turn to Daniel chapter 12.

   Daniel chapter 12. We want to make sure that we balance out our understanding, balance out our Bible study, balance out our spiritual diet, and include the warnings that are in the Bible. Include the admonitions that are in the Bible.

   The prophecies foretelling the future that's going to affect every man, woman, and child on earth, including us. It says here in Daniel 12:1, at that time shall Michael stand up, the great prince which stands for the children of your people, and there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation, even to that time. And at that time your people shall be delivered, everyone that shall be found written in the book.

   A time of trouble, such as never was. Since there was a nation, even to that time, a time of big trouble. In fact, it's called Jacob's trouble.

   Let's turn to Jeremiah chapter 30. Jeremiah 30:7. You can see this time beginning to loom large.

   Jeremiah chapter 30 and verse 7, alas, for that day is great, so that None is like it. Now, once again, that's talking about the Great Tribulation, a unique time, a time such as has never occurred before and never will occur again. A time of trouble, a time of great trouble.

   Alas, for that time is great, so that none is like it. It is even the time of Jacob's trouble, but he shall be saved out of it. There will be a remnant left.

   The time of trouble on the descendants of Jacob, the tribes of Israel, and they're here on this earth today. The descendants of Jacob. And as you stay on top of the news about the various nations where the descendants of Jacob are located, you see that those nations are in a steep decline.

   Their moral base is crumbling. Therefore, they are rotting from within. Ethics and standards and values are being buried by unbridled filth and garbage.

   It's much worse than we understand and know because we don't wallow in it. But occasionally, we'll read articles or we'll see glimpses of just how bad it's getting. And it's escalating.

   It's escalating this rot and this decline and this crumbling within and to a degree without of the United States and Britain and Australia and New Zealand and Northwestern Europe. Those nations. And at the same time, we see a powerful superstate on the rise in Europe.

   It's like a giant that's been laying asleep and now he's kind of moving around and breathing and shaking himself and stretching and maybe has even set up and looked around to survey what's going on and what he might be planning to do. And later on, he will stand up, and then you'll see what Daniel 2 and Daniel 7 is talking about regarding this great image that has a head of gold and feet that are like clay and iron mixed together and tin toes.

   This powerful superstate is on the rise in Europe. They're on the move diplomatically. Have you noticed in the news how diplomats from Europe are just popping up everywhere?

   There was a delegation popped up over in Iran and got involved in terms of trying to neutralize their nuclear program. Right now, Chancellor Schroeder has been taking a six-day tour through various nations in Africa, ending up in South Africa and he received, you know, a warm welcome wherever he went.

   What's he doing over in Africa? They're on the move. Diplomatically and politically and militarily and economically.

   They are surging into a prominent place on the world scene without ever even being noticed by most people. Most people are caught up in news that's actually entertainment, and what do they hear day after day? Well, it's about Iraq, and then it's about the presidential election, and which candidate made the biggest faux pas.

   It's about the latest movie and how much money it brought in, and which rock star has been arrested. It's about the trials of Scott Peterson, and Michael Jackson, and Toby Bryan.

   It's about who's going to win the Super Bowl, and golf. The golf season is underway, and pretty soon spring training for baseball will be started. What do you hear when you turn on the news?

   You don't hear about a surging Europe. Occasionally, you'll get a snippet here, and you'll get a little bit there. But it’s not really developed into a full story, there's got to be something jazzy and sensational.

   There's got to be something that will hold your attention, some scandal so they can hold your attention. Then they can sell soap and shampoo and pills and cars. It's entertainment.

   It's all about the commercial aspect of a business. But as far as accurate news, informed news, news that will keep you in touch with what's really happening around the world and what's really going on in the important parts of the world, you really have to dig for that.

   And so, this surging giant in Europe, occupying more and more a prominent place on the world scene, has moved forward without even being noticed. Or if it is being noticed, the spin is there our allies. That's great.

   We're glad they're getting strong. I heard recently about a constitutional conference that's going on over there, and the Pope has gotten involved. I also heard that there are secret talks going on where the U.S. would like to pull back our military out of Europe and turn those military bases over to the European Union. If we do that, here are military installations and airfields.

   I mean, just there they sit, waiting for them to move in with their air force and with their army. And we say, that's great. Now we don't have to be in Europe.

   We can save that money, and our allies will take care of Europe. All of this spells trouble now, big trouble, and devastation of the coming years for the U.S. and her closest allies, the descendants of Israel around the world today.

   There's a lot that you can find by digging a bit regarding this growth of this giant in Europe and growth of other places like Japan. You know, it's interesting when you dig a bit, you'll find that there are conferences going on between China and India and Europe, that there are treaties being signed and agreements being made.

   And negotiations going on regarding economic matters, political matters, and military matters. There's a growing web of countries getting involved in the space race. The U.S. is not the only one involved in going into outer space. The Germans are deeply involved in space exploration. You know, they recently put an unmanned space probe on Mars.

   They put one there before we did. The name of it is the Beetle, Beetle 2. And they landed on Mars, that little gadget, on Christmas Day, December the 25th.

   Now, it has not really sent back signals, but they know it landed, and they know that the mother craft that circled has seen enough, and they said they can now prove that there have been ice at one of the poles, etc. But the point is, they have developed enough technology and know-how. To put a space probe on the end of a rocket and fire it all the way out into deep space and land it on Mars.

   Now, we put a space probe on Mars, and that's the only one we've really heard that much about, isn't it? It was the Rover Spirit. It landed January the 3rd.

   It began to send signals back, but now it stopped, and then it starts again, etc., etc. So, before we smirk and laugh and point fingers at the European Space Agency about their probe that didn't do much in terms of sending data back, we got to remember that ours didn't do much either. It did for a while and then it sputtered and then it started back again, etc., etc.

   And that's not the point. The point I want to make is: if Europe, and in particular, Germany, has the technological know-how to put a probe all the way out to Mars, what can they do if they decide to use that for purposes other than peaceful purposes? Quote, unquote.

   Japan also is developing the ability to probe out into space and has launched several space satellites into space. Once again, the technology and know-how to do that can be turned quickly into military use. I mean, if you can develop a rocket that is powerful enough and accurate enough to launch a satellite or to land something on Mars, you can just multiply that know-how and carry a military payload on top of it.

   And if you have these terrorist groups able to develop weapons and even threaten to develop nuclear weapons. Are we to believe that such an advanced society such as Germany or Japan can't do that? They were only six months away from having an atomic bomb in World War II, we're told.

   Have they forgotten that? Amnesia set in all over Germany, I guess. Japan, also, history shows, was beginning to develop nuclear or an atomic weapon in World War II.

   It wouldn't surprise me at all if, behind closed doors and in secret, there were plans already drawn up that if they decide to go nuclear, including delivery systems, Europe can do it very, very quickly. Almost unnoticed, they have developed a pretty powerful army, a pretty powerful air force, and a pretty powerful navy both in Europe and in Japan.

   They now have military in Iraq, both countries do, and it's a growing military presence. In Europe now, they have a Euro fighter, second to none. Frontline fighter airplane.

   They have a heavy lift airplane that can lift troops and cargo developed by Airbus. They have a Leopard 2 tank that's second to none. It wasn't too long ago in, well, several decades ago in Canada, one of the ministers there and I went out to Brandon, Manitoba.

   We knew there was a training base just outside of Brandon, Manitoba, which is about in the center of the country. And we knew there were Leopard 1 and Leopard 2 tanks out there, big installations and big squads of Leopard 2 and Leopard 1 tanks and so as we were driving along, kind of circling the base, we pulled off the road and kind of parked over here in the woods.

   And here came a column of Leopard 2 tanks rolling down that road in the country of Manitoba. They stopped, the hatches flipped out, soldiers got out, and they spoke nothing but German. Made my hair stand right on end.

   Here are these tremendous tanks and these Germans walking around on this soil just speaking German, like something out of a movie. That was 30 years ago. They've been training.

   They've been training for a long time. You know, they've had a rocket launching center in French Guiana for years. Here's a little note.

   By the mid-1970s, the launch site had become inactive. The site resumed activity in 1977 with the first launch of the Aryan rocket. Notice the name, Aryan rocket.

   It's spelled different, but it's still pronounced Aryan, you know, like the Aryan super race. With the first launch of the Aryan rocket by the European Space Agency since December 1990. A total of 125 Aryan rockets, 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 versions, and their launches have been carried out from that site in French Guiana with a success rate of 94%.

   But, you know, so what? That's our ally. The Euro, you've been keeping up with the Euro, I hope.

   The Euro is now becoming the leading currency in the world, in the eyes of many. The dollar keeps falling, falling, the Euro keeps getting stronger and stronger. And I know that fluctuations.

   And some people say, well, that's a good thing because as the dollar goes down, then we'll be able to greatly reduce our trade imbalance. And so they just look at the quick fix and the temporary fix, not realizing that if the dollar keeps going down against the euro, then the nations that produce our oil, which is our economic lifeline, will begin to want Euro dollars, not American dollars. And then what are we going to do?

   We're going to have to take the undervalued-valued dollar and buy the overvalued Euro to purchase. Oil, and that's going to hit us economically very, very bad. It came home to me a week or two ago when one of our ministers in Trinidad called or sent an email and said he's looking forward to come to the conference.

   He checked out an airplane ticket and he found out that it was such and such in Euro dollars. Not in Trinidad currency and not in U.S. currency, but he was going to pay for it with Euro currency.

   The Euro has gone many places in the world that we don't even know about, even down into the Caribbean. And as far as the military might and power, that's becoming a well-known thing for those who are well-informed, but not a well-known thing to those who don't know what to look for.

   I hope we know what to look for. And of course, you know that diplomatically there's more and more resentment building between Europe and the U.S. And they're making it known that they don't consider us a part of the U.S., they're independent of the U.S.

   We think, oh, Well, you know, they'll always be our friends, but there's a generation coming along they don't think that way. They want to go in on their own. They want to be a powerful superstate, and they're heading in that direction.

   And then they'll negotiate with the U.S. and approve or disapprove based on what they want to do, not based on what we want. There was almost a trade war recently between Europe and the U.S. that's always hovering, hovering, hovering. I hope we understand this. I hope we're keeping in tune.

   And keeping informed about this because it all feeds into a time called the Great Tribulation. Now, of course, there are people who also believe: well, you know, the past history, that's just propaganda, that's just indoctrination. Those things didn't really happen.

   Those death camps and all those hard times that the Nazi Third Reich poured out on various people. But it's documented in history, it's documented in movies, and it certainly came to home in the first person to my wife and I when we went to Canada in 1966. We had an apartment in Buffalo, New York, and one in Toronto.

   And so we got to know people in Toronto, and then later on, over in the prairies of the U.S. We found that Canada was kind of a melting pot right after World War II for people in Europe who escaped or moved from the devastation of Europe. Many of them came to Canada, and then some of them came into the church.

   We would get a visit request and go up and go out into the country and pull into a village, and it was like pulling into a Ukrainian village or a Russian village. Everybody spoke Russian or Ukrainian. The farming methods were the same.

   The houses and barns were the same. The milking of cows were the same, etc. Just a little Russia sitting right there in Canada.

   And the same is true with people who had been part of the Nazi apparatus or had been subjected to the Nazi regime. There was a man I came personally acquainted, became personally acquainted with in Toronto who was in charge of one-third of Hitler's youth in Berlin. The way I became acquainted with him is when we got up there in Toronto, we had two spokesman's clubs, and I was made director of one just fresh out of college, 26, right out of college, and 25.

   And the first night I was there, this man was sitting there with an iron jaw and a quivering lip, and he looked pretty mean. And so, during table topics, he got up and just took over. He marched around the room and he gestured, and it was just like a Nazi speaking on film.

   And he just took over. When he got done, he sat down. And we took a break.

   Then we had a speaking portion. Then, after that, I came up to evaluate it. And when I got to him, and I know his name, I looked at him and I said, No, Mr. So-and-so, you took over tonight and you had your way, but that won't ever happen again. Because if you ever do that again, I will personally throw you out that door. Do you understand?

   And he said, Yes, sir. I thought, Well, he's going to be so mad he won't have anything to do with me.

   You know what? I became, he just came to me for everything after that. When I was ordained in Jekyll Island that fall, I was the one he called for anointing.

   He respected power. That's it. He had my wife and I over to dinner one night, and he showed us pictures and documents.

   He had pictures of Hitler and being at dinner with Hitler. Now he said, I reject all that, I despise all that, I hate all that, I've repented, I'm baptized, but I want you to know I know what went on. In that regime, and he did.

   And he and his wife talked about it, and it was horrible. And he gave us a painting, and I think we still have it somewhere today, which he painted. When we moved to Regina, we got a letter requesting a visit.

   So we went out to this man's house in Regina, and I know his name. He's dead now. Knocked on the door.

   He had us come in. He had a thick German accent. And as we got to talking, turned out he was on Herman Gordon general staff, knew him personally. He said he was a homosexual and said he was hooked on heroin, and he knew it from personal experience. He saw him that way.

   And he too had rejected that. But he said it was hideous, horrible, and disgusting. And frankly, referred to demons being a part of the whole operation.

   This man was baptized in Worldwide, later came into Global, and died in Living. He was a very sincere man. But that's first-hand accounts.

   While we were out there in the prairies, there was a lady who talked about her experiences in Europe in one of the countries where Germany invaded. And she said it was terrible what the German soldiers, the Nazi soldiers, I should say, did to people in that neighborhood.

   But she said what was much, much worse is when the Russian soldiers came in. And she was able to escape out the back door as a young woman and work her way through Europe over to Britain and come into Canada. Still had the accent.

   I believe it was from Poland, is where she came from. There was a couple in the Toronto church who were actual in concentration camps, and they had the tattoos, they had the numbers right in their skin.

   They'd pull their sleeve up and they would show you. And if people think that didn't happen, they could make it plain that it did happen. There are people right now in Canada who are alive and alert who will tell you about occupations that came into their country during World War II and how soldiers would roll up in front of their house, truckloads of them, and they would get off and bang on their door and walk in and say, we're taking over your house.

   We're going to take over your bedroom, your kitchen. You're going to feed us. You're going to polish our boots and you're going to wash our clothes.

   And if you do well, you might live. And if you don't, when you get done, you will die. And by the way, where's your wife and where's your daughter?

   And one family told me that it was so bad they had a special place where they would hide their beautiful young daughter because they knew what would happen when their country and their neighborhood and their home was invaded and occupied. No, what we read in history took place in World War II and in other wars, and in this Roman Empire type of power that has risen and fallen and risen and fallen over the years and is about to rise again.

   But having said all of that, what's going to happen in the future, which is beginning to generate right now in Europe, is going to be worse. Much worse. Let's read about it.

   It's called the Great Tribulation. Let's turn to Ezekiel. Chapter 5. Ezekiel chapter 5. Israel was chosen to be a special people, not God's favorite. God doesn't have favorites.

   But they were chosen people to carry out a special mission. And because they rebelled, they're going to come under special punishment. Jacob's trouble.

   The great tribulation. Ezekiel 5:1. And thou, son of man, take you a sharp knife, take you a barber's razor, and cause it to pass upon your head and upon your beard, then take you balances to weigh and divide the hair.

   You shall burn with fire a third part in the midst of the city. And when the days of the siege are fulfilled, you shall take a third part and smite about it with a knife, and a third part you shall scatter in the wind, and I will draw out a sword after them. Now, in the last part of verse 4, it says, This is the whole house of Israel, into all the house of Israel.

   So, this is talking about Israel, even though it mentions Jerusalem in the next verse, that's representative of Israel, just like Washington is representative of the U.S. and London is representative of Britain.

   But it's talking about what's going to come on the house of Israel, Jacob's trouble. Verse 5: Thus says the Lord God: This is Jerusalem. I set it in the midst of the nations and countries that are round about her, and she has changed my judgments into wickedness more than the nations, and my statutes more than the countries that are round about her.

   For they have refused my judgments and my statutes. They have not walked in them. God is not in the middle of the U.S. society at all, or the Canadian society, or any of the other Western world societies that are allied to the U.S., he's not a part of it. The Bible is not important. Well, there are a few people who see it that way, and there are a few people who try to be religious, but in terms of the overall makeup of our society today and actions and conduct of the people in our society today, God does not occupy any part of that, and certainly not a primary part.

   We have walked away from God. And even the churches that claim they want to know about God and claim they want to obey the Bible don't do what it says, they twist everything in there and come up with their own set of doctrines, and they come up with, they tailor the Bible so they'll feel comfortable, so they can go ahead and be the way they are and do what they want, still feel good about it.

   That is not acceptable to God, and so the time has come that He now is going to get their attention. Therefore, thus says the Lord God: Because you multiplied more than the nations that are around about you, and you have not walked in my statutes, neither have kept my judgments, neither have done according to the judgments of the nations that are around about you, therefore, thus says the Lord God, verse 8: Behold, I, even I am against you.

   That's not a position anybody ever wants to be in for God to say, I'm against you. I will execute judgments in the midst of you in the sight of the nations. I will do in you that which I've not done, a unique time.

   And whereunto I will not do any more the like. That's the great tribulation. Why?

   Because of all of your abomination. There are so many things going on. Right now, I'm not approved.

   I'm not afraid to say things, but I'm embarrassed to mention it. There's a verse in the Bible that says it's so horrible it's improper to even speak of them. And God calls them abominations.

   Therefore, the fathers, verse 10, shall eat the sons in the midst of you, and the sons shall eat their fathers, and I will execute judgments in you, and the whole remnant of you will I scatter into all the winds. Does that mean what it says? Do we read those verses or shall we skip over them?

   That's talking about cannibalism. Verse 10. That's not a figure, a speech, or a metaphor, or an analogy, or an allegory.

   That's literal. And of course, cannibalism has taken place before. You can read in Josephus about the various sieges of Jerusalem, and it took place there.

   You can read other sieges of various cities like Leningrad, and you will see that people went without food so long there that they began to practice cannibalism. There was one example where if you got out on the street, you had to be careful because they had developed a hook where they would drop it out of the window and just put anybody that walked by and pulled them up. You think nobody would do that?

   You think I could never be brought to that point. I don't think you could either because you have God's Spirit, but one who doesn't have God's Spirit could be brought to that point, and they have been brought to that point before. See, hunger takes over, and after a while, a person doesn't think straight.

   And then they're capable of doing things they would never do otherwise. You remember this airplane crash was it in the Andes of that soccer team?

   And a book was written about it, and how the longer it went, the hungrier they got, and the more they fought it, but the more they began to think about it. And finally, according to the record that is published, cannibalism was practiced. Well, that's disgusting.

   I know it's not pleasant to talk about, but it's right here in the Bible, and it's here more than once. And it has to do with what's going to happen in the future in this classid community around here, relatively speaking. These highways and byways and shopping centers and streets and peaceful yards and peaceful parks are not going to always be that way.

   What we're reading about here is going to happen here. Verse 11: Wherefore, as I live, says the Lord God, surely because you have defiled my sanctuary with all of your detestable things, God does not take this lightly. He hates evil, he despises it and what it does to people.

   And when he starts to move on, it's going to be a horrendous thing. You have defiled my sanctuary with all of your detestable things, with all of your abominations.

   Therefore, will I also diminish you? Neither shall my eyes spare, neither will I have any pity. A third part of you, the Bible interprets the Bible.

   Here we find out in verse 12 what verse 2 meant of Ezekiel 5. A third part of you shall die with a pestilence and with famine. Shall they be consumed in the midst of you, and a third part shall fall by the sword round about you.

   In other words, there's going to be famine, and there's going to be disease epidemics, and then there's going to be war. And I will scatter a third part of you into the winds, and I will draw out a sword after you. Then there's going to be captivity, and it's going to be hideous concentration camps, like it's happened before, but even worse.

   These things have happened to a degree before, but not nearly to the degree that it's going to happen one more time in a time called the Great Tribulation. Notice Deuteronomy chapter 28.

   There's so many places we could go. I'll have to leave a lot of those places to you. But you can read through Leviticus 26 and Deuteronomy 28, and you will see the blessings and cursings chapter.

   And you will see God say, if you will obey me and keep my commandments, I will bless you so much you won't even have room to receive it all. But if you do not keep my commandments, I will curse you so much you have no idea how bad it's going to get. What have we done?

   We have not kept his commandments. We say they're done away. We say they're bondage.

   One judge tries to put them in the court in Alabama, and you know all of the trouble that that caused. God is not a part of our society. Therefore, what we're reading about is going to happen because the Bible says it is.

   Deuteronomy 28:15 It shall come to pass, if you will not hearken unto the voice of the Lord your God to observe to do all his commandments and his statutes which I command you this day, that all these curses shall come upon you and overtake you. And then he begins to outline them in great detail.

   Notice verse 32. Your sons and your daughters shall be given unto another people, and your eyes shall look and fail with longing for them all the day long, and there shall be no might in your hand, and there's nothing a man can do. I mean what's worse for a man than to see his wife and daughter and son, children began to be ravished and began to be beaten on and drug off. And he can't do anything about it. I was visiting a man in Louisiana one time.

   He was tough. And he was asking about this, and I was explaining it. He said, you see that rifle? You see that pistol up there? They come for me, boy. They'll find out.

   They won't get anything about it. I said, How many of you think is going to be coming? If ten won't do it, twenty will be.

   And if 20 won't be here, 100 will be. And if a Jeep and trucks won't do it, they'll bring tanks. And you're going to defend yourself with that pee shooter and that pee shooter.

   What are you talking about? Nobody will be a match for this. They weren't before.

   What a horrible thing. On street after street, and in town after town, and in house after house. Verse 32 starts coming to pass, and it will. Notice verse 66 of Deuteronomy 28 (Deuteronomy 28:66): Your life shall hang in doubt before you, and you shall fear day and night, and shall have no assurance of your life. It will be total anarchy.

   911 will mean nothing. There will be no ambulances. There will be no police patrol or national guard.

   The hospitals will be closed. The stores will be closed. Society will be shut down.

   This is coming. The Bible says so. It's going to happen here.

   Your life shall hang in doubt before you, and you shall fear day and night, and shall have none assurance of your life. In the morning you shall say, would to God it was even, and at evening you shall say, would to God it was morning, for the fear of your heart wherewith you shall fear, and for the sight of your eyes, which you shall see. Notice Leviticus chapter 26.

   Leviticus chapter 26. Brethren, we ought to balance our understanding and our study and our discussions and our meditation out and include what we're reading here in our study and in our prayer and in our meditation because God put it here so we would know and so we would respond and so we would take action as a result of this. So we would be stimulated and moved, not to save our skin and not based on a fear religion but based on what God's word says and based on taking warning and heed and based on getting the warning out to others so they can take heed.

   Leviticus 26:31. I will make your cities waste. Leviticus 26:31, In other words, the time is coming when whole cities will be totally devastated and just laid flat, complete waste, like Nagasaki and Hiroshima, but even more so and even bigger cities.

   What will we do then? Some people will be running around. The President ought to do something.

   Congress ought to do something. The government ought to do something. Where is the mayor?

   Where is the governor? Nothing can be done. And bring your sanctuaries unto desolation, and I will not smell the savior of your sweet odors.

   And I will bring the land into desolation, and your enemies which dwell therein shall be astonished at it. Our nuclear submarines, our long-range bombers, our nuclear-tipped missiles, all of these military gadgets and all of this military hardware will absolutely do us no good at all at this time. You know what's happening?

   We're being surrounded by the rest of the world. We can't take on the whole world, we can't destroy the whole world, we can't defeat the whole world. All of these alliances now are coming together and looking to Europe as the future for commerce, for politics, for diplomacy, and for military.

   And here's the U.S. with dwindling support even from their own allies. How can we fight that?

   We can't. When the whole world turns against us, that starts shutting off our oil supply. That starts shutting off vital goods and services that we need to function.

   And how can we guard against the whole world? We can't. I will scatter you, verse 33, among the heathen.

   I will draw out a sword after you, and your land shall be desolate, and your cities waste. This is a time called the Great Tribulation. The Bible shows this is Satan's wrath.

   He's pouring his wrath out on mankind, and he especially tries to pour it out on the church. Let's turn to Revelation chapter 6. Revelation chapter 6.

   You can read through Revelation chapter. 6 and tied in with Matthew 24. You'll see some of these things are already taking place, although not full-blown yet.

   They're already in motion. They're already moving forward. How often do we hear about earthquakes and spots of famine and spots of disease epidemics popping up here or there?

   We hear about it often. How often do we hear about wars and rumors of wars every day almost? But this is talking about the time when they will blossom into full potential and intensify to the point to where it's going to be beyond human comprehension in terms of just fully grasping.

   You read down through chapter 6, you see the first seal talks about false prophets, the second seal talks about war, the third seal talks about famine, and the fourth seal talks about pestilence. And now we come to the fifth seal.

   And when he had opened the fifth seal, I saw into the altar the souls of them that were slain for the Word of God and for the testimony which they held. John saw this in vision, and he saw people who obeyed God and who were martyred because of that.

   And they cried with a loud voice, saying, How long, O Lord, holy and true, do you not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth? And white robes were given unto every one of them, and it was said unto them that they should rest a little season until their fellow servants also and their brethren that should be killed as they were should be fulfilled. There's going to be a martyrdom of the saints in the tribulation.

   There's also going to be martyrs among people who are religious. I am absolutely convinced that there are some people who are so strong in the various Protestant churches around that they won't bow to the beast and the false prophet and they will die, but there will be those who know the truth who will not be protected and be martyred as well because this is talking about Satan's wrath being poured out on this earth and in particular being poured out if he can possibly do it and wherever he can do it on the church.

   Well, there's much more that we could go into in this matter of the Great Tribulation. But I hope that we will look into it enough and not become obsessed with it, of course, as some do.

   But I hope we'll look into it enough just to be reminded, just to kind of, you know, kickstart the engine here a little bit and just to reorient and inject into our thinking a good dose of reality and realize: no, this is absolutely real. We're closer now to this than we've ever been. This is going to happen.

   There's no stopping this. It's going to take place. It's going to be.

   Where I grew up, it's going to be where I live. It's going to be all over this country, and Canada, and Australia, and New Zealand, all the countries of northwestern Europe. Now, what about the place of safety?

   The Bible also outlines a way of escape for God's church. It's here, it's in the book. He's not going to leave His dedicated, zealous, totally committed brethren who are watching with him on a day-by-day basis to be drawn into this horrible time that we've been reading about. Notice what the Bible says about the place of safety in conjunction with the great tribulation. Let's turn to Revelation chapter 3 and verse 7.

   Revelation 3:7. And to the angel of the church in Philadelphia, write these things says, He that is holy, he that is true, he that has the key of David, he that opens and no man shuts, and shuts and no man opens. In other words, they're doing the work.

   I know your works. Behold, I've set before you an open door, and no man can shut it. For you have a little strength.

   You've kept my word. You've not denied my name. Look at those qualities there that God's people have.

   Those are the qualities that the people that God will protect must have. You have a little strength. You've kept my word.

   You've not denied my name. Behold, I will make them of the synagogue of Satan which say they are Jews and are not, but do lie. Behold, I will make them to come and worship before your feet and to know that I have loved you. Verse 10, because you've kept the word of my patience. You've kept my command to persevere.

   You've not given up. You've not backed off. You've not rolled over.

   No, you've hung in there. And you've kept my word through thick and thin, no matter what. And no matter what takes place, you land on your feet in the church where the truth is being taught and the work is being done.

   You've kept the word of my patience. And because of that, with what he says, I also will keep you from the hour of temptation or the hour of trial or tribulation which shall come upon all the world to try them that dwell upon the earth. I'm talking about being protected from the great tribulation.

   Behold, I come quickly. Hold that fast which you have, that no man take your crown. God has given us a crown, He wants us to aspire to that crown, not back off from it, and that crown must be given to someone else.

   Did you see what? What verse 10 said. There's a promise to those who are doing the work, to those who kept his word, to those who were overcoming and growing.

   A promise of protection from the great tribulation. Let's notice Luke chapter 21. Luke 21:31.

   Once again, should we avoid this because it's scary? Should we avoid this because it has to do with protection, so therefore it's just selfish? No.

   It can be selfish, it can be out of balance, it can be just based on self-preservation, or it can be what God wants it to be: taking the warning and not only taking heed to it ourselves, but putting it out there for others to know about. Our main thing is our relationship with God. But as we get closer and closer to Him, we know the tribulation is coming, therefore, we can be protected from that.

   Well, what a wonderful blessing! That's what the Bible says, that's what Jesus Christ offers. Notice here in Luke chapter 1.

   21 and verse 31. What's the time setting here? Verse 31 of Luke 21.

   So, likewise, you, when you see these things come to pass, know you that the kingdom of God is near at hand. There's the time setting, the time when the kingdom is going to be near. And then it goes on down here in verse 34 and says, Take heed to yourself.

   Should we do that? Yes, we should. We should examine ourselves. We can take a look. We should be honest with what we see, honest with what we need to overcome, honest with what we're doing well. We ought not put Games.

   Take heed to yourself. Lest at any time your heart be overcharged with serpentine and drunkenness and cares of this life. Some people think that says cares of this world.

   So just stay out of the world and you'll be fine. It doesn't say that. Of course, we do have to stay out of the world.

   Yes, we're warned about that in other verses. But what this says here is cares of this life. And so that day come upon you unawares.

   Now, keep your finger there and let's just go over here and let the Bible interpret the Bible. And let's see what Luke 8:14 says about. Cares of this life.

   Luke chapter 8 and verse 14. Here are the parable of the seeds that were sown and fell on different types of ground. So break into a thought here in Luke 8 and verse 14.

   And that which fell among thorns are they which, when they have heard, go forth and are choked. Now, obviously, it's talking spiritually with cares and riches and pleasures of this life and bring no fruit to perfection or maturity.

   They get caught up in things. They get caught up in stuff. They get caught up in responsibilities of this life.

   They get caught up in aspirations and plans. They get caught up in the around instead of setting their affection on the above and they choke spiritual and they get caught unaware. Back to Luke 21 now and verse 35.

   For as a snare shall it come on all of them that dwell on the face of the whole earth. See that? The whole earth.

   Watch you therefore and pray always. That you may be accounted worthy to escape all these things that shall come to pass and to stand before the Son of Man. We ought to take heed to that.

   We ought to step up to that. We ought to say, Thank you very much, God, and thank you very much, Jesus Christ, for offering that to us. So help me to watch, help me to pray, help me to draw close to you, so I can overcome and grow and escape all these things that will come to pass and help others escape all these things that will come to pass.

   There is a way of escape, there is a place of safety. Let's turn to Matthew chapter 24.

   Matthew chapter 24 and verse 15. Matthew 24:15. When you therefore shall see the abomination of desolation spoken of by Daniel the prophet stand in the holy place, whoso reads, let him understand.

   That's happened before, it's going to happen again. We ought to be watching for that. When it does happen, then let them which be in Judea flee into the mountains, and let him which is on the housetop not come down to take anything out of his house.

   Neither let him which is in the field return back to take his clothes. Got to move out.

   And woe unto them, verse 19, that are with child, and to them that give suck in those days. And there probably will be some who are mothers who are nursing, and it could be somewhat difficult. Verse 20, but pray that your flight be not in the winter, neither on the Sabbath day.

   It will be a journey. It will be fleeing. It will be going from one place to another place.

   And it would be a lot easier if it's not in the winter. And it would be a lot better if it's not on the Sabbath, because that's a rest day. And so he says, pray that your flight be not in the winter, neither on the Sabbath day.

   How could anyone really read these verses and say, well, there's not going to be a place of safety? Well, what do these things mean then? Well, you know, let's just scare stuff.

   We're just going to stay in our house. Really? I don't want to stay in my house when this stuff starts.

   I don't see how anyone can truly look at these verses that we are now going through and reach the conclusion that this teaching of the place of safety is bogus, that there is no place of safety. What do we do with this one? Let's notice Revelation chapter 12 Revelation chapter 12 and verse 12 Revelation 12:12 therefore rejoice you heavens and you that dwell in them woe to the inhabitants of the earth and of the sea for the devil has come down unto you having great, wrath Great tribulation, because he knows that he has but a short time and when the dragon saw that he was cast under the earth what did he do His main focus, his main target.

   He persecuted the woman which brought forth the man-child, the church, the work, you and I. And so, what does God do? Does he just turn us over to him and let him do what he will with his wonderful sons and daughters and beautiful, wonderful church?

   No, here's what he does: Revelation 12:14: To the woman were given two wings of a great eagle, that she might fly into the wilderness, into her place, where she is nourished for a time, times, and half a time from the face of the serpent. I have never understood, I don't understand now, and I won't ever understand in the future how anyone could read Revelation 12 and verse 14 and conclude there is no place of safety. Where is the place that she's going to be taken to into the wilderness and nourished for a time, times and half a time, three and a half years from the face of this surface?

   Is it your home? Is your home a wilderness? What do we do with these verses. What do we do with these words? I hope we read them, understand them, and believe them.

   There is a place of safety which God is going to take his church to. And the serpent cast out of his mouth water as a flood after the woman, that he might cause her to be carried away of the flood. We know that we can look up other verses and let the Bible interpret the Bible.

   This is an army. And the earth helped the woman, and the earth opened her mouth and swallowed up the army which the dragon cast out of his mouth. And the dragon was wroth with the church and went to make war with the remnant of her seed, which keep the commandments of God and have the testimony of Jesus Christ, but they were not zealous, so therefore they were not taken to the place of safety but left behind. And now they must suffer Satan's wrath. Hopefully, repent and be in the kingdom.

   But if they don't, then they're in big trouble. Now, where is this place of safety? Well, we don't know, do we?

   Here's some speculation from the past. Let's notice Daniel chapter 11, Daniel 11. Where is it?

   Daniel 11:40. Is it Petra? Is it Petra?

   I've talked to a number of you who have been there. My wife and I and family went there. I think it was in 1989.

   And it certainly is the wilderness, I'll say that. Never will forget walking up through Petra with a lady from Queens, New York, and she looked around and said, I sure do hope this is not the place of safety. And I said, well, I understand that, but think of the alternative. Well, that's right. And you've got to remember: God said that He would nourish His church.

   So, if this is a place of safety, He's got it all figured out to take care of us and nourish us and be with us and look after us. Is it? I don't know, but look here: Daniel 11:40.

   Interesting chapter. Mr. Ames wrote an excellent book where he goes through this chapter.

   Hope you've read it. If you haven't, I hope you'll read it because it's very important. Helpful, and it says here in verse 40, speaking of the king of the north and king of the south: At the time of the end, so there's the time frame, shall the king of the south push at the king of the north, and the king of the north shall come against him like a whirlwind with chariots and with horsemen, and with many ships, and he shall enter into the countries and shall overflow and pass over.

   King of the north being the beast power, king of the south being an Arab confederation led by a king. But they're no match for this superpower that is now rising in Europe. And he shall enter also into the glorious land, meaning Palestine.

   And Jerusalem, a little nation called Israel today, and many countries shall be overthrown, and these shall escape out of his hand. Even Edom and Moab and the chief of the city of the children of Ammon. If you look on a map of the Bible, you will see that these names right here are found in a country that is now called Jordan.

   Ammon Jordan is its capital. And as you run down, you know, kind of east of the Jordan River and east of the Dead Sea, on some Bible maps, you'll see to the south and east of the Salt Sea or Dead Sea in the country of Jordan, you will find a place called Petra or Petra. So those parts of the Middle East escaped this invasion.

   Why do they escape? Why does Jordan escape being rolled over by this superpower from the north? And why is Petra in this country?

   Well, could it be that God's people are there or could it be that they ally with this superpower and therefore the superpower doesn't destroy them? We don't know. We don't know.

   I just thought of something. Here's kind of a sobering point about the place of safety. Let's turn to Ezekiel, back to Ezekiel chapter 5.

   Because some people think, well, if I can just make it to the place of safety, I got it made in the shade. Well, first of all, the place of safety might not be in the shade. But anyway, they think, well, I've got it made in the shade.

   You know, nobody ever has it made until we are spirit beings, because as long as human nature is there, we've got a battle on our hands. Notice here in Ezekiel 5:3.

   This is in the middle of what we've already read. And look what it says here in verse 3 of Ezekiel 5. You shall also take thereof a few in number and bind them in your skirts.

   One translation has a Hebrew word meaning wings. Then take of them which you bound in safety. Then take of them again and cast them into the midst of the fire, the tribulation, and burn them in the fire, for thereof shall be a fire come forth into all the house of Israel.

   Does this mean that there will be people who will actually be taken to the place of safety, and during the three and a half years there drift away from God, their attitude deteriorates, and their actions begin to cross the line, and they get into such a horrible state that they have to be expelled from the place of safety. That's what it looked like to me.

   If you just read it carefully, take them and bind them up, and then take of them, take of them, some of them, and cast them out. Wouldn't that be a horrible thing? And yet, if we, and I hope we all do, make it to the place of safety, that'll be a time to get closer to God than ever.

   That'll be a time to grow more than ever, not to let up and get in a sorry spiritual state and lose out after having made it to the place of safety. Well, when it comes to the place of safety, we don't know when, how, or where. I'll tell you one thing: when you read about it, it always mentions wilderness.

   It doesn't mention a sprawling resort in the Rockies with hot tubs and heated pools. Wilderness. And when Christ went into the wilderness to fast 40 days and 40 nights, it was in a desolate, rugged area.

   Desert, really. So we don't know when we're going to flee, how we're going to flee, and where we're going to go to. We just know it's going to happen.

   And we just know that if we're walking and talking and yielding and submitting to and obeying God and we're close to Him on a regular basis. Basis, daily basis, those are the ones that will be taken, and he'll work out all the details. Now, with all of that in mind, the great tribulation, the place of safety, how does that fit with us here and now today?

   One time in spokesman's club at Ambassador College, a man got up and gave a speech, and he talked about some of this. He said, I'm not going to get all stirred up about this till I hear about a leopard, column of leopard tanks landing on the east coast of the U.S. and heading down the interstate toward California.

   Then I'll get serious. Now, let's face it, there are people like that. If we're not careful, we think that way.

   We read this, we think about it, we look at it academically, it stirs us, but does it get right down to our gut? Does it stir us emotionally? Do we, I mean, is this something that, boy, I value what?

   This is, I've got to get serious about this. Or do we say, oh, when the time comes, I'll get serious. Right now, I've got a window of time to do other things.

   Well, that's not true. And the Bible makes that plain.

   Let's turn to I Timothy chapter 6. It talks about storing up now and preparing for that time ahead of time. You know, Mr. Meredith has mentioned before that because of unforeseen floods and disasters that can hit any time, it might be a good thing to have two or three weeks of water and food on hand so that if the lights go out and you can't get out the shop, and if you do, it's not available, you'll be able to kind of get over that week or two or three period of time. But we're not talking about storing up staples to get you through the Great Tribulation. It wouldn't get you through anyway.

   My brother was a member of a big church that teaches that they should have a year's supply of food and staples on hand to keep them going for a whole year. And if they're really dedicated members of that church, they have it in their basement. He took me down and showed me, man, he had barrels of flour and wheat and he had.

   Jars of fruits, and he had five children. He said, All seven of us, we calculated it out, could live from this right here for a whole year. And he said, People up and down this street as you drive by these houses, they all have this down there, too.

   Well, you know, other people know that church teaches that. And when the rough time comes, what do you think they're going to do? I mean, think about it: you're on a street, and you know, somebody in that church lives right down there, and they've got that in their basement, and there's no food anywhere, and your baby is wanting milk, and you're wanting milk, and your wife's wanting milk, and everybody's wanting food, and there's no food, but especially the baby needs milk. You can't go to the store and get milk, there's none there. You can't borrow from the neighbor, there's none there.

   But down the street and around the corner, there's milk there. Now, we're talking about carnal people who have come to the point to where it's survival or not. And my baby dies or he doesn't, and he's got a gun and he's got bullets, and so he goes down to get milk.

   And probably when he gets there, there's 20 other people with guns looking for the milk. And the guy inside, if he's got a gun, it mayhem.

   But if not, it still mayhem. They go in and get the milk. Now, you might think, oh, people wouldn't be that bad.

   Oh, yes, they would. One time when we were in Canada, I saw the news when there was a gas shortage down here in the U.S. It was in the 70s, and there was a column of cars lined up to get gas in California.

   We were watching it. Just far as the eye could see, they were lined up to take their turn to get into the gas station to pump their car full of gas. And right on my television, a guy came out of the column, went roaring up there, cut in, pulled a pistol out, and held everybody at bay while he pumped his car full of gas.

   Cowboy put his pistol back in and roared off just for gas. So I'm not recommending that you store up food for a year. You'll have a lot of visitors.

   I'm not talking about that, and the Bible isn't either. Here's what the Bible is talking about when it comes to preparing. For this time ahead of time, notice I Timothy chapter 6.

   I Timothy chapter 6 and verse 17. We read about an admonition from Paul to Timothy. I Timothy 6:17: Charge them that are rich in this world that they be not high-minded, don't take their riches to seriously, nor trust in uncertain riches, but trust in the living God who gives us richly all things to enjoy.

   Verse 18: that they do good, and that they be rich in good works, ready to distribute or share, willing are ready to share and willing to communicate, ready to give and willing to share. Now, notice verse 19: laying up in store for themselves a good foundation against the time to come that they may lay hold on eternal life. You see that? Laying up in store for themselves a good foundation.

   That's speaking spiritually against the time to come. So, you know what? There's a direct connection with what we do right now in the place of safety that's coming and the great tribulation that's coming.

   It has to do with our day-by-day-by-day walk with God. It has to do with how we live our lives, how we build character, how we put one layer of character on top of another layer of character on top of another layer of character by making right choices and right decisions by repenting and changing and yielding by being involved in the work by praying and studying and drawing close to God.

   And that's storing up for the time to come. And those will be the ones that are taken to the place of safety when that momentous occasion arrives. Notice Matthew chapter 25. Matthew 25. This is famous. We know about this.

   This is a ten virgins. Matthew 25:1. Then shall the kingdom of heaven be likened unto ten virgins which took their lamps and went forth to meet the bridegroom.

   (Matthew) 25:2. Five of them were wise and five were foolish. They that were foolish took their lamps and took no oil with them.

   They were not prepared. They waited till the last minute. But the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps, and while the bridegroom tarried, they all slumbered and slept.

   And at midnight, there was a cry made: Behold, the bridegroom comes. He's coming. The time is here.

   Go you out to meet him. Then all those virgins arose and trimmed their lamps. And the foolish said unto the wise, Give us over your oil, for our lamps are gone out.

   But the wise answered, saying, not so, lest there be not enough for us in you. You go. Rather to them that sell and buy for yourselves.

   And while they went to buy, verse 10, the bridegroom came, and they that were ready, see that word? They that were ready, they that were prepared, they that had been living ready and prepared for a long time, went in with him to the marriage, and the door was shut. And afterward came also the other virgins, saying, Lord, Lord, open to us.

   And he answered and said, Verily I say unto you, I know you not. Brethren, you and I both know the way you get to know people has to do with time, it has to do with a relationship, it has to do with give and take, it has to do with discovering and sharing.

   It has to do with discussion. It has to do with finding out about the person and letting them find out about you. And over a long period of time, you begin to really get to know one another.

   The same thing is true with our relationship with God. As we study the Bible, we get to know Him more and more. As we get on our knees and pray, He gets to know us more and more.

   As He watches the pattern, as He watches the pattern of our lives, He begins to realize this person is trying to do the right thing, and therefore, He's going to say to us, You come on in. I know you. I'm well acquainted with you.

   You're my friend. But if we're not doing that and then at the last minute, boy, we want to get right with God like deathbed repentance. He's going to say, I don't know who you are.

   You haven't taken any time to devote to me. You've gone your own way, and now you want me to save your hide. Now here's some promises.

   Notice here in Psalms chapter 37. Some tremendous promises. Promises we can believe.

   God inspired David to write these words and they are true and they apply to this day. Psalms 37:18.

   The Lord knows the days of the upright. You see that? Little old women, elderly men, and teenagers, and middle-aged people, and well-to-do people, and not so well-to-do people, and tall and short people, and pretty people, and not so pretty people, and well-educated, and not so well-educated, and a lot in between.

   It doesn't matter. He knows all of us, and He knows who are the upright ones. And no matter who we are, we can be upright through the power of God.

   The Lord knows the days of the upright, and their inheritance shall be forever, verse 19. They shall not be ashamed in the evil time. And in the days of famine, they shall be satisfied.

   That's the promise. You don't get upright right overnight. It's a lifetime of growing and overcoming and repenting and changing and yielding and moving forward.

   And then uprightness begins to emerge in our lives. And the upright one and their families will not suffer famine in the days of famine, is what David said. You know, I read something somebody wrote one time and said, When a famine strikes, and you get to where you don't have anything to eat or drink, and tomorrow there's nothing to eat and drink, and finally you realize I'm not going to get anything to eat and drink.

   All I want is just something to drink, first of all, and something to eat. All of the agendas, the issues, the heart feelings, the grudges, and the attitude of vengeance just melts away. And everything that was so important and so you were so absorbed with my possessions, my status, my elitism, all of it just melts away.

   And the only thing that counts is where can I get something to drink, a glass of water to drink, and a little bit of food eat. I believe that. The hoity-toities are not so hoity-toity when famine says it.

   All human beings are reduced right down to the same level. We're just so hungry, if we could only have something to eat and something to drink. And yet it says here, in the days of famine, the upright shall be satisfied.

   And notice verse 25 of Psalm 37 (Psalm 37:25). I've been young, David says, and now I'm old, yet have I not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his seed, his descendants, begging bread. Now is the time to get right with God.

   Now is the time to seek God. Now is the time to renew our relationship with God. Now is the time to strengthen our walk with God.

   Day in and day out, day in and day out. And if we die before the end comes, then we're going to be in the kingdom. And if we don't die before the end comes, then we're going to be protected and be in the kingdom.

   And along the way, we're going to be blessed and we'll be able to help others. Here's something else. Let's notice I Corinthians 15:58.

   I Corinthians 15. See, I think we all ought to ask ourselves, what's it going to take for me to really get going spiritually? What am I waiting for?

   What's in the way? You know, when it comes to prayer and study, it's just a matter of going in and kneeling down and starting to pray. When it comes to study, it's just a matter of taking this book and opening it and starting to read it.

   What keeps us from doing that? And in this case, we're reading about being a part of the work. Notice here in I Corinthians 15 and verse 58: Therefore, my beloved brethren, be you steadfast, and you are unmovable, and you are always abounding in the work of the Lord, and you are.

   For as much as you know that your labor is not in vain in the Lord, you saw in the Sermonette the growth that God is giving. We're all on the team, we've all got to recommit ourselves to the work with passion and with zeal. And as we do, that labor is not going to be in vain.

   Mr. Armstrong often said, To the degree that you're involved in the work, to that degree you'll grow spiritually, because that also involves walking with God so we can be effective in the work. So keep the good work up and examine this verse and see how it applies to you. I know I've been doing this. Notice here in James chapter 4 and verse 6.

   This is storing up. This is preparing ahead of time. This is getting ready and along the way, this is becoming much more effective as clay in the great master potter's hands, pliable, resilient clay that he can form into the vessel and tool that he wants to use any way he wants to, anywhere he wants to. That's what this attitude produces in our lives. James 4:6.

   He gives more grace wherewith he says, God resists the proud. But gives grace unto the humble. That's a whole sermon in itself. That'll be another time. Resist the proud gives grace unto the humble. Submit yourselves, therefore, to God.

   Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Draw near to God. Another thing, Mr. Armstrong said one time: he said, There's no feeling that matches the tremendous feeling of being close to God, and there's no feeling that matches the horrible feeling of being cut off from God. We can be close to God, and we can get close. And closer all the time.

   And as we do, it says, Here, He will draw closer and closer to us. And we do that through prayer. We do that through Bible study.

   You know, when I read the Bible in the morning, I lay it down, I think, I sure am glad I read the Bible. Look what I would have missed if I hadn't done that. I would have cheated myself if I hadn't opened up the Bible and read that this morning.

   Haven't you felt that when you got down to pray and you know God was hearing you, and you just poured out your heart to Him, and you prayed for others, you prayed for the work, and you asked Him to help you overcome. And you got up, what a wonderful time. And, you know, as we do that every day, and you might not pray for an hour and study for an hour, but start, just start, and then it will develop more, and it will develop more, and your conversation will get longer and deeper, and your study will get broader and bigger and deeper.

   It'll get to where that's the most precious time of the day for you. And as you and I do that, Brethren, and as we help others do that, and as a church we do that, fantastic things are going to happen in terms of getting the work done. And we are going to be abounding in the work, and I'll tell you something else: we are building the character and the attitude and the humility that God's going to be looking for to protect through the Great Tribulation and to take to the place of safety. That's called being upright. And that's who He's going to look after.

   Let's conclude by turning to Luke chapter 12. Luke chapter 12. I mean, we have time to do something about preparing for the future, but you know, how much sand does the hourglass has in it.

   Here are a few grains falling out. It's not being put back in. So here are some more grains falling out.

   It's not being put back in. You can see the hourglass just going down, going down. How long are we going to let it go?

   I remember Mr. Meredith giving a sermon one time at Ambassador College about redeeming the time. And he said, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick.

   With every tick of the clock, time moves on. How much time do we have left? We don't know, but time is of the essence.

   Time is, it's not a renewable resource. It's not elastic. It won't give.

   It's one of the most precious commodities we have. How much of it do we have left, and how are we using it? Are we devoting the premier kind of heart of the watermelon time to Almighty God and our relationship with Him?

   I hope so. Luke 12:32. Fear not, little flock, for it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom.

   See, we don't need to fear. This is not about fear. This is not about Savior skin.

   This is about responding to God and giving Him our full attention and bearing down and getting serious and pressing toward the kingdom and abounding in the work. That's what this is about. And if we need to be jolted and if we need to be warned and if we need to be pushed a bit by these verses about the great tribulation of the place of safety, then great.

   Sometimes we need a jump start. Sometimes we need to be pushed off of the inertia that has set in. I hope we can be responsive to what God said in His Word.

   Verse 35: Let your loins be girded about and your lights burning. He's talking to the little flock. Be prepared.

   Keep your lights burning. And you yourselves, like unto men that wait for their Lord, when he will return from the wedding, that when he comes and knocks, they may open unto him immediately, because they are ready. Blessed are those servants whom the Lord, when he comes, shall find watching.

   Verily I say unto you, that he shall gird himself and make them to sit down to meet, and will come forth and serve them. See, this is full engagement. This is full involvement in God's way of life, relentlessly and with tremendous endurance, always moving forward every day, always getting closer, always pressing forward, always involved in living God's way in a balanced way of course.

   Walking with him, never neglecting our relationship with him, never taking a vacation from him, never taking a break, keeping your lights burning, continuing to watch. Blessed are those servants whom the Lord, when he comes, shall find watching. And notice verse 43: Blessed is that servant whom his Lord, when he comes, shall find so doing, not letting up, not pulling the oars out of the water, but fervently and zealously tracking on in our relationship with God and in our service to others. If we do that, as His little flock, we have nothing to fear. If we don't do that, then as His people, we've got trouble ahead of us.

   So let's make sure that we are watching that we are doing, that we are drawing close to God, and that we are being inspired, and that we've got a prod on us when we understand the prophecies, and in particular, the prophecies about the Great Tribulation and the place of safety. We are human beings. We need a prod from time to time.

   Let's respond to that prod. Let's respond to that pressing from God and keep our lights burning and keep on doing the work and keep on walking with Him. And then He will do what He's promised to do for the upright one who do those things.