Chapter Three
What Time Is It?
Matthew 16
2 "He answered and said unto them, When
it is evening, ye say, It will be fair weather: for the sky is
red."
3 "And in the morning, It will be foul weather to day: for
the sky is red and lowering. O ye hypocrites, ye can discern the
face of the sky; but can ye not discern the signs of the times?"
In the verse above, unbelieving leaders came to Jesus seeking
a sign from heaven. Jesus had shown many signs already in His
ministry. Instead of a sign being given, He refers to their ability
to discern the coming of weather by the sky and so implied they
should be able to discern of His coming also. The time had come
and the one they sought for stood before them and yet they did
not realize it or had simply chosen not to believe.
These who have chosen not to believe are much like many people
in the world today who have chosen not to follow Christ. Although
they have an understanding of who He is, they reject Him in their
own lives and choose to follow the course of this world that leads
to eternal destruction for life's short pleasures. Without Christ
in our life our destiny is already chosen and it is an eternal
lifetime of torment.
While some Christians today are waiting for Jesus to come back
to this earth in hopes the enemy will lose the war and the struggle
Christians have will be over, I feel we have forgotten that Christ
has come to this earth and was victorious over the enemy and has
given authority to all that believe in Him. It is time for believers
to assume their position of authority over the enemy. Christ will
return again to this earth after a glorious church and not to
a church that is weak and defeated. Let's assume our position
of authority and boldly proclaim His Word to a lost world.
Mark 13
33 Take ye heed, watch and pray:
for ye know not when the time is.
34 For the Son of
man is as a man taking a far journey, who left his house, and
gave authority to his servants, and to every man his work, and
commanded the porter to watch.
35 Watch ye therefore: for
ye know not when the master of the house cometh, at even, or at
midnight, or at the cockcrowing, or in the morning:
36 Lest coming suddenly he
find you sleeping.
37 And what I say unto you
I say unto all, Watch.
I often say that on God's heavenly clock, it is two minutes
until midnight. Every day and every year we are closer to the
end of all time. Someday, this life as we know it will end and
the clock will strike midnight. Knowing this, we should prepare
our lives and help to prepare others to meet their destiny. Life
as we know it is short and we need to be busy. Two-thirds of those
I meet in the streets say that if they died tonight, they would
go to hell. How can we ignore the opportunity to share Christ?
Romans 13
11 "And that, knowing the time, that now it is high
time to awake out of sleep: for now is our salvation nearer than
when we believed."
12 "The night is far spent, the day is at hand:
let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and let us put
on the armour of light."
One weekend I was on my way to Los Angeles, California and I
experienced a very interesting opportunity to see God's unique
timing. I had a short wait in the Dallas, Texas airport and a
young lady sat down beside me. There were seats open all over
the airport, yet she sat down where I could speak to her. I began
my witness and within minutes she was holding my hand and praying
to receive Christ. As we spoke and shared where we were going,
I found out that she lived two blocks from the very church in
LA that ordained me and where I was to minister that weekend.
How could this be that God had placed beside me someone that lived
beside the church where I was to speak? I gave her a tract from
the church that was in her neighborhood. She had never prayed
a prayer to receive Christ but thought about it on several occasions.
I was excited and I knew that our witness would be wonderful in
LA since we seemed to be witnessing to those who lived in LA already.
We were in the timing and leading of God with our witness. Although
this young lady had missed two earlier flights, she was on time
with what the Lord wanted to do in her life. I thank God for letting
me see this miracle of His divine timing on her life. If we were
to calculate the odds on us choosing that day to visit LA, her
flights beings canceled, where we sat in the airport, the number
of people in LA, and so many other variables, we can see it would
be impossible for us to know. It was indeed a miracle we had watched
as God in His infinite mercy chose to deal with her this day and
this time. As we closed our conversation she said, "I thought
I was late but I seemed to be on time." Indeed she was on
time for Christ had prepared an opportunity for her to come to
know Him. She had told us that she had thought about making a
decision to receive Christ but never did. What if she had caught
the earlier plane? What if I had scheduled a flight another day?
Only God knows!
This young lady's story reminds me when God spoke to the prophet
Samuel several times one night and finally Samuel came to know
it was God all along calling him and he responded to God. This
young lady knew on several occasions that she needed to get right
with God and had delayed it. God was speaking to her for some
time but she was not aware He was speaking. Finally, God had arranged
a series of circumstances to prepare an opportunity for her to
choose Christ in her life. Ironically, she recognized that the
circumstances were so unusual that surely God had prepared the
time to touch her heart.
There are so many interesting examples in the Bible where Christ
chose a certain time to deal with someone's heart. I love the
story where Christ found Zacchaeus in a tree and decided that
would be the day he would come to his house. Although Zacchaeus
was a sinner, Christ accepted him just as he was and brought salvation
to him. Zacchaeus had placed himself in a tree to be in a position
to hear from Christ. The condition of his heart and his soul had
brought him to this place to hear. It was his time and Jesus said,
"for today I must abide at thy house."
Luke 19
4 "And he ran before, and climbed up into a sycamore
tree to see him: for he was to pass that way."
5 "And when Jesus came to the place, he looked
up, and saw him, and said unto him, Zacchaeus,
make haste, and come down; for to day I must abide at thy house."
6 "And he made haste, and came down, and received
him joyfully."
7 "And when they saw it, they all murmured, saying,
That he was gone to be guest with a man that is a sinner."
9 "And Jesus said unto him,
This day is salvation come to this house, forsomuch as he also
is a son of Abraham."
Being a street evangelist, it excites me to see the ways in
which Christ ministered outside where the people were. Christ
had to go through Samaria and met a lady at a well. Since Christ
was a Jew it was customary for Jews to go around Samaria. However,
this day it was time for Him to change a life and thereby change
a city. So often we never know when we reach a life for Christ,
the effect it has upon others. It is an interesting concept of
time to think about how the future is often affected by one life
being changed. Even my own life was changed by a minister in a
small town in Texas. What would my life had been like if I had
not heard the message of Christ and walked the aisle that became
the walk of my life? That forty foot walk to the altar represented
the walk of my life. Would the thousands that I witnessed to had
been saved if I had remained lost myself or was God directing
all the time?
John 4
4 "And he must needs go through Samaria."
5 "Then cometh he to a city of Samaria, which
is called Sychar, near to the parcel of ground that Jacob gave
to his son Joseph."
6 "Now Jacob's well was there. Jesus therefore,
being wearied with his journey, sat thus on the well: and it was
about the sixth hour."
7 "There cometh a woman of Samaria to draw
water: Jesus saith unto her, Give me to
drink."
8 " (For his disciples were gone away unto the
city to buy meat.)"
9 "Then saith the woman of Samaria unto him, How
is it that thou, being a Jew, askest drink of me, which am a woman
of Samaria? for the Jews have no dealings with the Samaritans."
10 "Jesus answered and said unto her,
If thou knewest the gift of God, and who it is that saith to thee,
Give me to drink; thou wouldest have asked of him, and he would
have given thee living water."
The lady at the well received eternal life from a man that she
discovered was the Messiah. Christ placed in her heart eternal
life and changed her to such an extent that she had an overwhelming
drive to share the message that He shared with her. She shared
with those from her town and brought them to meet Christ. If our
experience with God does not motivate us to share with others,
then we should renew our relationship and study more of the life
of Christ. It is His life in us that should move us to care for
the lost and share our faith. If Christ is not dominate in our
lives, then we need to examine our relationship with Him.
Galatians 2
20 "I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live;
yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live
in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved
me, and gave himself for me."
I was in a hotel room in Ontario, California waiting until it
was time to speak at a men's retreat. I was standing there looking
outside my sliding glass door and saw a young man sweeping the
area around the outside garden area. I was prompted by the Holy
Spirit to minister to him. I looked at my watch and I did not
think I had time to speak to him. When I turned to leave the room,
I felt the Lord telling me again to witness to him. Finally, I
opened the door and went outside to meet him. It was one of the
easiest witnesses that I had ever seen. His heart was already
prepared. The young man said that recently a friend had spoken
to him several times about the need to come to Christ. He had
just thought about the need to come to Christ as he was sweeping
in the garden. He shared with me that he was in sin and was miserable.
He wanted to do what was right but did not have the strength.
It was his time to come to Christ. I was so glad that I listened
to God and stepped through the door to the garden to witness to
him. Jesus used my witness to open another door and it was the
door to his heart. How precious is the timing of God!
Copyright © 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001 Mercy
Street Ministries
All Rights Reserved Worldwide.
Disclaimer
|
Previous
Page 
Next
Page