Revelation 19:6-9 “Then I heard what seemed to be the voice of a great multitude, like the roar of many waters and like the sound of mighty peals of thunder, crying out, “Hallelujah! For the Lord our God the Almighty reigns.  Let us rejoice and exult and give him the glory, for the marriage of the Lamb has come, and his Bride has made herself ready; it was granted her to clothe herself with fine linen, bright and pure”—for the fine linen is the righteous deeds of the saints. And the angel said to me, “Write this: Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb.”

Matthew 25:1-13

1 “Then the kingdom of heaven shall be likened to ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom.‍ ‍2-3 Now five of them were wise, and five were foolish.  Those who were foolish took their lamps and took no oil with them, 4 but the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps.5 But while the bridegroom was delayed, they all slumbered and slept.‍ ‍6 “And at midnight a cry was heard: ‘Behold, the bridegroom is coming; go out to meet him!’7 Then all those virgins arose and trimmed their lamps. 8 And the foolish said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.’ 9 But the wise answered, saying, ‘No, lest there should not be enough for us and you; but go rather to those who sell, and buy for yourselves.’ 10 And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the wedding; and the door was shut. 11 “Afterward the other virgins came also, saying, ‘Lord, Lord, open to us!’ 12 But he answered and said, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, I do not know you.’‍ ‍13“Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour in which the Son of Man is coming.

1. THE REALITY OF HIS COMING

Rev 1:7 Behold, He is coming with clouds, and every eye will see Him, even they who pierced Him. And all the tribes of the earth will mourn because of Him. Even so, Amen.

Mark 4:26-29— 26 And He said, “The kingdom of God is as if a man should scatter seed on the ground, 27 and should sleep by night and rise by day, and the seed should sprout and grow, he himself does not know how. 28 For the earth yields crops by itself: first the blade, then the head, after that the full grain in the head. 29 But when the grain ripens, immediately he puts in the sickle, because the harvest has come.”

Genesis 1:28—Then God blessed them, and God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it; have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over every living thing that moves on the earth.”

I. Process #1: REAPING — Release from the Field

• The Sickle Announces That Your Season Has Changed

• The Sickle Separates You from the Place that Produced You

Genesis 12:1—Now the LORD had said to Abram: “Get out of your country, from your family and from your father’s house, to a land that I will show you.”

THE 1ST DECISION OF THE HARVEST: You must release what God has finished using in your growth.

John 15:1-2 – 1“I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser. 2Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit He prunes, that it may bear more fruit.”

John 15:8 – “By this My Father is GLORIFIED, that you bear MUCH FRUIT; so you will be My disciples.”

John 10:10 – “The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it MORE ABUNDANTLY.”

John 15:2 – “Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit He prunes, that it may bear MORE FRUIT.”

Psalm 90:12 – So, teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom.

I. What You Refuse to CONFRONT You Choose to CARRY – Don’t Complain

• Most of what you must Confront was UNCHOSEN and RANDOM.

Ecclesiastes 9:11 – I returned and saw under the sun that— The race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong, nor bread to the wise, nor riches to men of understanding, nor favor to men of skill; but Tme and chance happen to them all.

1. PEOPLE God is trying to cut from your life

Mark 4:26-29 – 26And He said, “The kingdom of God is as if a man should scatter seed on the ground, 27and should sleep by night and rise by day, and the seed should sprout and grow, he himself does not know how. 28For the earth yields crops by itself: first the blade, then the head, after that the full grain in the head. 29But when the grain ripens, immediately he puts in the sickle, because the harvest has come.”

I. TIME — THE WAITING PROCESS

James 5:7 – “Therefore, be patient brethren, until the coming of the Lord. See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, waiting patiently for it until it receives the early and latter rain.”

Genesis 8:22 – “While the earth remains, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, winter and summer, and day and night shall not cease.”

Ecclesiastes 3:1-2 – 1“To everything there is a season, a time for every purpose under heaven: 2a time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck what is planted.”

• How to Wait: PATIENTLY

Jeremiah 17:7-8 – 7“Blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD, and whose hope is the LORD. 8For he shall be like a tree planted by the waters, which spreads out its roots by the river, and will not fear when heat comes; but its leaf will be green,and will not be anxious in the year of drought, nor will cease from yielding fruit.

• Cutting the wait short can cost you the thing itself, not just time

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are

endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are

Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.

That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, DERIVING

THEIR JUST POWERS “FROM THE CONSENT OF THE GOVERNED.”

1. The loss of God as The Moral Center

2. Extremism, Polarization, and the Destruction of the Reasonable Center

3. The replacement of Personal Responsibility with Government Dependence

I. We failed to learn the lesson from the Garden — The Pattern is Established.

• Authority – Dominion: not muscle, power, or a throne — The Right to Decide.

Genesis 1:26 – Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, OVER ALL THE EARTH and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.”

1 Corinthians 14:12 – Even so you, since you are zealous for spiritual gifts, let it be for the edification of the church that you seek to excel.

Habakkuk 2:2 – Then the LORD answered me and said: “Write the vision And make it plain on tablets, That he may run who reads it.”

I. THE PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED — COMPREHENSION

1 Corinthians 14:13 – Therefore let him who speaks in a tongue pray that he may interpret.

1) The Message is Released, But Not Received.

1 Corinthians 14:5 – I wish you all spoke with tongues, but even more that you prophesied; for he who prophesies is greater than he who speaks with tongues, unless indeed he interprets, that the church may RECEIVE edification.

2) The Message is Spoken, But Not Understood.

1 Corinthians 14:9 – So likewise you, unless you utter by the tongue words easy to understand, how will it be known what is spoken? For you will be speaking into the air.

3) The Message is Claimed, But Not Tested

Malachi 4:5-6– 5“Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the LORD. 6And he will turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the hearts of the children to their fathers, lest I come and strike the earth with a curse.”

I. The Target – One Clear Bullseye to Aim At

• Fathers Are Fixers

− The Perceived Targets: Provision, protection, college, sports, behavior, grades are all good. But none of those are THE target. You can hit all of them and still lose your child.

− The Right Target — The Father’s Heart Turned

II. The Filter — One Question for Every Decision

The One Question: “Will this turn our hearts together, or pull them apart?”

III. The Four Non-Negotiables

Ephesians 6:4—And you, fathers, do not provoke your children to wrath, but bring them up in the training and admonition of the Lord.

I. God Measures Gifts by Outcome, Not Expression

• Outcome Is Prioritized

1 Corinthians 14:1 – Pursue love, and desire spiritual gifts, BUT ESPECIALLY that you may prophesy.

• Outcome Is Contrasted

1 Corinthians 14:2 – For he who speaks in a tongue does not speak to men but to God, for no one understands him; however, in the spirit he speaks mysteries.

1 Corinthians 14:3 – But he who prophesies speaks edification and exhortation and comfort to men.

− The Outcome: Edification, Exhortation, and Comfort TO MEN

1 Corinthians 14:4 – He who speaks in a tongue edifies himself, but he who prophesies edifies the church.

− The Outcome: One Builds Himself, the Other Builds the Church

• The Desired Outcome – The Edified Church Body

1 Corinthians 14:5 – I wish you all spoke with tongues, but even more that you prophesied; for he who prophesies is greater than he who speaks with tongues, unless indeed he interprets, that the church may receive edification.

II. God Measures Gifts by the Understanding Not by the Instrument

• God Seeks Our Profit

Romans 8:9-11 – 9But you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. Now if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he is not His. 10And if Christ is in you, the body is dead because of sin, but the Spirit is life because of righteousness. 11But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you.

1 Corinthians 12:1-7 – 1Now concerning spiritual gifts, brethren, I do not want you to be ignorant: 2You know that you were Gentiles, carried away to these dumb idols, however you were led. 3Therefore I make known to you that no one speaking by the Spirit of God calls Jesus accursed, and no one can say that Jesus is Lord except by the Holy Spirit. 4There are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit. 5There are differences of ministries, but the same Lord. 6And there are diversities of activities, but it is the same God who works all in all. 7But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to each one for the profit of all:

I. The New Nature of The Body – Spirit Filled

Acts 1:4-5 – 4And being assembled together with them, He commanded them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the Promise of the Father, “which,” He said, “you have heard from Me; 5for John truly baptized with water, but you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.”

• The Occasion for the Gifting – Pentecost

Acts 2:1-2 – 1When the Day of Pentecost had fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. 2And suddenly there came a sound from heaven, as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting.

• The Transformation of the People – The Holy Spirit

Acts 2:3-4 – 3Then there appeared to them divided tongues, as of fire, and one sat upon each of them. 4And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.

I. The Gifts are Partial and Temporary.

1 Corinthians 13:8-9 – 8Love never fails. But whether there are prophecies, they will fail; whether there are tongues, they will cease; whether there is knowledge, it will vanish away. 9For we know in part and we prophesy in part.

• Love NEVER fails – does not fall apart, does not wither, is never used up.

• Prophecy and knowledge FAIL – eclipsed by something greater.

− Fail and Vanish Away (katargeo) – abolished, nullified, made of no effect. It is passive, meaning something outside them does it to them.

• Tongues stands alone (pausontai; future middle) – cease.

• Prophecy and knowledge end when the perfect comes — a fixed point; tongues end by need, not by a date.

− Prophecy and knowledge are Revelation Gifts: when full sight comes, they are eclipsed.

− Tongues is a Communication Gift: the need for a communication gift is Situational.

II. The Partial Ends When the Perfect Comes.

1 Corinthians 13:10-12 – 10But when that which is perfect has come, then that which is in part will be done away. 11When I was a child, I spoke as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child; but when I became a man, I put away childish things. 12For now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part, but then I shall know just as I also am known.

• That which is Perfect

− The Completed Bible

− Our Completed Spiritual Maturity

− The Return of Christ Himself

III. The Last Man Standing.

I. AGAPE — A Different Kind of Love

1 Corinthians 13:4-7 – 4 Love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not puffed up; 5does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoked, thinks no evil; 6does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth; 7bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.

● Agape Suffers Long — It stays when every natural impulse is screaming to leave.

● Agape Is Kind — It gives good when the flesh is demanding revenge.

● Agape Does Not Envy — It can celebrate someone else without needing to diminish them.

● Agape Does Not Parade Itself — It does not need an audience in order to feel valuable.

● Agape Is Not Puffed Up — It is secure enough to stay low.

John 13:34-35 – 34A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another. 35By this all will know that you are My disciples, If You Have Love for One Another.”

I. The Wrong Way – Ranking and Comparison

Romans 12:3-4 – 3For I say, through the grace given to me, to everyone who is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think soberly, as God has dealt to each one a measure of faith. 4For as we have many members in one body, but all the members do not have the same function…

1 Corinthians 12:31-13:3 – 31But earnestly desire the best gifts. And yet I show you A MORE EXCELLENT WAY. 13:1Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I have become sounding brass or a clanging cymbal. 2And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, but

have not love, I am nothing. 3And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, but have not love, it profits me nothing.

• The Verdict on Tongues — White Noise: “I Say Nothing.”

1 Corinthians 13:1 – Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I HAVE BECOME sounding brass or a clanging cymbal.

• The Verdict on Prophecy, Knowledge, and Faith — Identity Loss: “I Am Nothing.”

1 Corinthians 13:2 – And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, but have not love, I AM NOTHING.

• The Verdict on Self-Sacrifice — I Gain Nothing: “I Profit Nothing.”

1 Corinthians 13:3 – And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, but have not love, IT PROFITS ME NOTHING.

I. Motherhood Is More than Birth — It’s a Life Rhythm

• Raising Children requires a Daily Rhythm.

Deuteronomy 6:7 – You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up.

• Raising Children requires a Devoted Parent.

Deuteronomy 6:6 – And these words which I command you today shall be in your heart.

II. Motherhood Takes More than You – It Takes a Family

• The greatest protégé Paul ever had was discipled at a kitchen table.

1 Corinthians 12:14-22 – 14For in fact the body is not one member but many. 15If the foot should say, “Because I am not a hand, I am not of the body,” is it therefore not of the body? 16And if the ear should say, “Because I am not an eye, I am not of the body,” is it therefore not of the body? 17If the whole body were an eye, where would be the hearing? If the whole were hearing, where would be the smelling? 18But now God has set the members, each one of them, in the body just as He pleased. 19And if they were all one member, where would the body be? 20But now indeed there are many members, yet one body. 21And the eye cannot say to the hand, “I have no need of you”; nor again the head to the feet, “I have no need of you.” 22No, much rather, those members of the body which seem to be weaker are necessary.

I. The Autoimmune Mechanism

• A healthy body attacks what’s foreign; an autoimmune body attacks what’s natural.

Galatians 5:15 – But if you bite and devour one another, beware lest you be consumed by one another!

• The church's Autoimmune Disease is an “Anti-Body Ideology” — the deeply embedded theology of individualism that has taught us to function as isolated units rather than connected members.

Matthew 16:18 – “And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I WILL BUILD MY CHURCH, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it.”

1 Peter 2:9 – But YOU ARE a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, THAT YOU MAY proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light.

I. We Have an Identity Problem

• What is a community? A group of people organized around something they share in common.

• What is a Body? A single organism with many parts held together by shared life.

Romans 12:4-5 – 4For as we have many members in one body, but all the members do

not have the same function, 5so we, being many, are one body in Christ, and individually MEMBERS OF ONE ANOTHER.

II. The Holy Spirit Didn't Come Just to Live in YOU – He came to live through US.

1 Corinthians 12:12-14 – 12For as the body is one and has many members, but all the members of that one body, being many, are one body, so also is Christ. 13For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body — whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free — and have all been made to drink into one Spirit. 14For in fact the body is not one member but many.

19 After a long time the lord of those servants came and settled accounts with them.

20 “So he who had received five talents came and brought five other talents, saying, ‘Lord, you delivered to me five talents; look, I have gained five more talents besides them.’

I. He Became Flesh

John 1:14 – And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.

II. He Humbled Himself

Philippians 2:7-8 – 7He made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men. 8And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross.

III. He Suffered Innocently

1 Peter 2:22 – Who committed no sin, nor was deceit found in His mouth.

I. Eternal Life Is Not Merely Believing in Jesus — It Is Knowing Jesus

John 17:3 – And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent.

II. The Holy Spirit Makes Jesus Personal, Not Merely Historical

1 Peter 1:6-9 – In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while, if need be, you have been grieved by various trials, 7that the genuineness of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ, whom having not seen you love. Though now you do not see Him, yet believing, you rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory, 9receiving the end of your faith—the salvation of your souls.