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[Gary] The idea of a thief in your house is terrifying.
The Bible says that the Day of the Lord will come “as a thief in the night.” The Day of the Lord is described as destruction, famine, plagues and unbelievable natural disasters on a global scale culminating in the return of Jesus Christ.How could you be surprised by these events?On Beyond Today, we're going to show you how to prepare so that you are not caught unawares by the coming “Thief in the Night.”[Announcer] Join our host, Gary Petty and his guests, as they help you understand your future on Beyond Today ![Gary] It is a frightening experience to have a thief break into your house in the middle of the night. The sanctity of your home is violated. You fear for the lives of your children.Now, how would you prepare if you knew that a thief was planning to break into your house say, next Tuesday? Would you get a security system? Talk with the police? Make sure your family isn't home on that night?One thing is for sure; you wouldn't sit around and do nothing!Jesus told His disciples about the days before His second coming. He described a time when nations will crumble under the devastation of war. Disease epidemics will overwhelm medical facilities. Lack of food will cause starvation in countries throughout the world. Moral norms and civility will cease to exist as human beings are driven by the compulsion to survive.Then Jesus made this amazing statement, “But know this, that if the master of the house had known what hour the thief would come, he would have watched and not allowed his house to be broken into. Therefore you also be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect” (Matthew 24:43-44 43 But know this, that if the manager of the house had known in what watch the thief would come, he would have watched, and would not have suffered his house to be broken up. 44 Therefore be you also ready: for in such an hour as you think not the Son of man comes. ×).How can you follow Jesus' instructions to “be ready” so that you aren't caught off guard by the coming terrible time? Is it a matter of hoarding food or constructing maybe, a concrete bunker? Should you arm your family with automatic weapons like some doomsday prepper? Maybe burying gold in the backyard can prepare you for the Day of the Lord?On Beyond Today, we're going to explore how you can do what Jesus said and be ready for the horrifying events of the Day of the Lord so that it doesn't catch you as a thief in the night.So first, let's look at what the Bible means by the Day of the Lord. The biblical Day of the Lord denotes a time when God directly intervenes in human history against evil. In the fullest sense, the term applies to the time when God violently judges a rebellious humanity before the second coming of Jesus Christ. A time when Jesus, the Son of God who once came to this earth as a human baby, slays thousands of soldiers who fight against Him.Many people have - and I realize some of you - have a difficult time thinking of God as judging or punishing people.Let's look at it this way. Think about all the evil that is in our world - hatred, war, prejudice, crime, mass killings, governments that torture and starve their own citizens. The 18th century English statesman, Edmund Burke said, “The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.” This truism is even more profound when applied to God. You see, the only thing necessary for evil to destroy humanity is for God to do nothing.The Creator of humanity will only allow evil to flourish for a limited time before He intervenes. There is coming a time in the future when God will intercede in human history to stop the horrors of evil. Humanity, unfortunately, will resist their Creator and it will be a time of desolation like no other time in human history.Will this time come upon you as a shadowy, unknown thief in the night?A helpful way to understand the future Day of the Lord is to first understand a previous Day of the Lord. Now that Day of the Lord is explained in the mysterious Old Testament book of prophecy, simply known by the name of the author - the book of Joel. Judah was a wealthy and powerful nation blessed by God, but they had become morally complacent. Their heartfelt worship of God slid into empty ritual. Dishonesty and violence was commonplace. They traded the sanctity of their marriages for sexual perversions. The people of Judah took great pride in being believers in the true God, but their abundance led them to lifestyles that were really no different than their neighbors who didn't even know God.When Joel wrote this book they had suffered a devastating locust plague. Now Joel describes how the crops were eaten down to nubs. Fig trees, apple trees, even palm trees were void of fruit or leaves. The entire country was an apocalyptic scene of devastation reminiscent of the 1930s Dust Bowl here in the United States.Let's get an idea of what Joel described. How do we do that?Well there was a locust plague - a locust swarm across the entire Middle East back in 1915. John Whiting graphically described the plague in National Geographic . Hordes of insects darkened the sky. The ground looked like an undulating carpet. Trees were stripped of leaves, even their bark until they stood out like white skeletons. An Arab baby left in the field was literally eaten alive. The stench was unbearable and of course, the effects on the region's economy was catastrophic.This more modern event helps us see that ancient Judah, at the time of Joel, was a bleak wasteland. This locust plague, a Day of the Lord, according to Joel, wasn't God's final dealings with the people of Judah. It was just a warning. A warning of a more terrible judgment if they didn't repent. The prophet then told them, “For the day of the Lord is coming, for it is at hand;…A people come, great and strong, the like of whom has never been; nor will there ever be any such after them, even for many successive generations” (Joel 2:1-2 1 Blow you the trumpet in Zion, and sound an alarm in my holy mountain: let all the inhabitants of the land tremble: for the day of the LORD comes, for it is near at hand; 2 A day of darkness and of gloominess, a day of clouds and of thick darkness, as the morning spread on the mountains: a great people and a strong; there has not been ever the like, neither shall be any more after it, even to the years of many generations. ×).Here Joel isn't writing about locusts. He is warning the Jews of something even more terrible. The people of Judah did not respond to Joel's message or heed the warning of the locust plague. Eventually, God allowed the Babylonians to invade their land, destroy the temple, lay waste to Jerusalem and take the Jews into captivity. Even though they were warned; they weren't ready for their Day of the Lord. It came upon them as a thief in the night.Now this may be ancient history, but what is really amazing about this small book of prophecy of Joel - it is filled with predictions of a still future Day of the Lord. A time when you don't want to be caught unawares.Joel wrote, Proclaim this among the nations…”Beat you plowshares into swords and your pruning hooks into spears…” For the day of the Lord is near in the valley of decision. The sun and moon will grow dark, and the stars will diminish their brightness. The Lord also will roar from Zion, and utter His voice from Jerusalem” (Joel 3:9-16 9 Proclaim you this among the Gentiles; Prepare war, wake up the mighty men, let all the men of war draw near; let them come up: 10 Beat your plowshares into swords and your pruning hooks into spears: let the weak say, I am strong. 11 Assemble yourselves, and come, all you heathen, and gather yourselves together round about: thither cause your mighty ones to come down, O LORD. 12 Let the heathen be wakened, and come up to the valley of Jehoshaphat: for there will I sit to judge all the heathen round about. 13 Put you in the sickle, for the harvest is ripe: come, get you down; for the press is full, the fats overflow; for their wickedness is great. 14 Multitudes, multitudes in the valley of decision: for the day of the LORD is near in the valley of decision. 15 The sun and the moon shall be darkened, and the stars shall withdraw their shining. 16 The LORD also shall roar out of Zion, and utter his voice from Jerusalem; and the heavens and the earth shall shake: but the LORD will be the hope of his people, and the strength of the children of Israel. ×).The entire last chapter of Joel predicts a Day of the Lord when the Lord will reign from Jerusalem. You see, this is still a future event! This hasn't happened yet.God, through His biblical prophets, gives us warning of a future time when He will judge the nations. The people of ancient Judah didn't heed the message in the destruction of the locust plagues. Because people aren't heeding God's warning today, someday the judgment of God will come upon the entire world like a thief in the night. Will this day be a time of terror and plunder for you?Well, this is why it's so important that you get our free Bible study guide, The Book of Revelation Unveiled . You don't want to be caught unawares.With the right keys to understanding Revelation, you'll unlock the mysteries of this book. You'll understand the seven seals and the seven trumpets, and you'll see how Satan wages an all-out war against God's people. Like everything we offer on Beyond Today , this study is absolutely free. Call: 1-888-886-8632, or read it online at BeyondToday.tv .There is no more controversial segment of the entire Bible than the last book - Revelation. This book is filled with vivid images of heavenly signs, and beasts, and hailstorms, horsemen spreading war and disease, seas turning to blood, heavenly trumpets blasting, human beings crying out for death and then the return of Jesus Christ to establish God's Kingdom on this earth.In Revelation 1:10 I was in the Spirit on the Lord’s day, and heard behind me a great voice, as of a trumpet,×the apostle John wrote, “I was in the Spirit on the Lord's Day…” You know, most Christians believe that John was referring to Sunday. In traditional Christianity, Sunday is known as the Lord's Day. Well there's a problem - this is not what the Bible means by the Lord's Day. John isn't writing about Sunday as a day of worship. In fact, there isn't one instance in the Old or New Testaments where the Lord's Day or Day of the Lord refers to Sunday. John is writing about the future Day of the Lord predicted by Joel, many other Old Testament prophets, Jesus and New Testament writers like Paul and Peter.In John's vision, humanity is deceived by the power of Satan, and degenerates into a period of violence and destruction like no other time in history. God finally intervenes with a series of judgments, each announced by a heavenly trumpet blast heard around the globe. Now here's what Revelation reveals about the seven trumpets that herald the Day of the Lord - the time of God's judgment on evil, a time that will catch many people like a thief in the night.Well the First Trumpet (Revelation 8:6-7 6 And the seven angels which had the seven trumpets prepared themselves to sound. 7 The first angel sounded, and there followed hail and fire mingled with blood, and they were cast on the earth: and the third part of trees was burnt up, and all green grass was burnt up. ×): this heavenly trumpet blast announces hail and fire which destroys a third of all trees and green grass. And still, the vast majority of humanity doesn't respond and turn to God in humility or obedience.The Second Trumpet sounds (Revelation 8:8-9 8 And the second angel sounded, and as it were a great mountain burning with fire was cast into the sea: and the third part of the sea became blood; 9 And the third part of the creatures which were in the sea, and had life, died; and the third part of the ships were destroyed. ×) and one third of the seas become blood, one third of sea creatures die, and one third of ships are destroyed. Imagine watching this unfold on TV or the internet! Would you be surprised? Would you wonder why these events are happening?When the Third Trumpet sounds (Revelation 8:10-11 10 And the third angel sounded, and there fell a great star from heaven, burning as it were a lamp, and it fell on the third part of the rivers, and on the fountains of waters; 11 And the name of the star is called Wormwood: and the third part of the waters became wormwood; and many men died of the waters, because they were made bitter. ×) a third of fresh water turns bitter. What if you had no fresh water? I mean, water is something most of us take for granted. How long could you survive without water?Then the Fourth Trumpet (Revelation 8:12And the fourth angel sounded, and the third part of the sun was smitten, and the third part of the moon, and the third part of the stars; so as the third part of them was darkened, and the day shone not for a third part of it, and the night likewise.×): the atmosphere decays so that one third of light is filtered out. You live in a state of semi-darkness. Food won't grow. Every moment of the day and night is filled with anxiety.The Fifth Trumpet (Revelation 8:13And I beheld, and heard an angel flying through the middle of heaven, saying with a loud voice, Woe, woe, woe, to the inhabitants of the earth by reason of the other voices of the trumpet of the three angels, which are yet to sound!×; Revelation 9:1-12 1 And the fifth angel sounded, and I saw a star fall from heaven to the earth: and to him was given the key of the bottomless pit. 2 And he opened the bottomless pit; and there arose a smoke out of the pit, as the smoke of a great furnace; and the sun and the air were darkened by reason of the smoke of the pit. 3 And there came out of the smoke locusts on the earth: and to them was given power, as the scorpions of the earth have power. 4 And it was commanded them that they should not hurt the grass of the earth, neither any green thing, neither any tree; but only those men which have not the seal of God in their foreheads. 5 And to them it was given that they should not kill them, but that they should be tormented five months: and their torment was as the torment of a scorpion, when he strikes a man. 6 And in those days shall men seek death, and shall not find it; and shall desire to die, and death shall flee from them. 7 And the shapes of the locusts were like to horses prepared to battle; and on their heads were as it were crowns like gold, and their faces were as the faces of men. 8 And they had hair as the hair of women, and their teeth were as the teeth of lions. 9 And they had breastplates, as it were breastplates of iron; and the sound of their wings was as the sound of chariots of many horses running to battle. 10 And they had tails like to scorpions, and there were stings in their tails: and their power was to hurt men five months. 11 And they had a king over them, which is the angel of the bottomless pit, whose name in the Hebrew tongue is Abaddon, but in the Greek tongue has his name Apollyon. 12 One woe is past; and, behold, there come two woes more hereafter. ×) announces a terrible world war. This is one of our greatest fears, I mean not just bombs raining down from the sky or bullets filling the air, but nuclear and chemical weapons that leave us no place to hide.The Sixth Trumpet (Revelation 9:13-21 13 And the sixth angel sounded, and I heard a voice from the four horns of the golden altar which is before God, 14 Saying to the sixth angel which had the trumpet, Loose the four angels which are bound in the great river Euphrates. 15 And the four angels were loosed, which were prepared for an hour, and a day, and a month, and a year, for to slay the third part of men. 16 And the number of the army of the horsemen were two hundred thousand thousand: and I heard the number of them. 17 And thus I saw the horses in the vision, and them that sat on them, having breastplates of fire, and of jacinth, and brimstone: and the heads of the horses were as the heads of lions; and out of their mouths issued fire and smoke and brimstone. 18 By these three was the third part of men killed, by the fire, and by the smoke, and by the brimstone, which issued out of their mouths. 19 For their power is in their mouth, and in their tails: for their tails were like to serpents, and had heads, and with them they do hurt. 20 And the rest of the men which were not killed by these plagues yet repented not of the works of their hands, that they should not worship devils, and idols of gold, and silver, and brass, and stone, and of wood: which neither can see, nor hear, nor walk: 21 Neither repented they of their murders, nor of their sorceries, nor of their fornication, nor of their thefts. ×) and the war expands with the involvement of Asian powers from the East.Then sounds the most frightening of all the trumpet judgments of God. The Seventh Trumpet (Revelation 16:2-21 2 And the first went, and poured out his vial on the earth; and there fell a noisome and grievous sore on the men which had the mark of the beast, and on them which worshipped his image. 3 And the second angel poured out his vial on the sea; and it became as the blood of a dead man: and every living soul died in the sea. 4 And the third angel poured out his vial on the rivers and fountains of waters; and they became blood. 5 And I heard the angel of the waters say, You are righteous, O Lord, which are, and were, and shall be, because you have judged thus. 6 For they have shed the blood of saints and prophets, and you have given them blood to drink; for they are worthy. 7 And I heard another out of the altar say, Even so, Lord God Almighty, true and righteous are your judgments. 8 And the fourth angel poured out his vial on the sun; and power was given to him to scorch men with fire. 9 And men were scorched with great heat, and blasphemed the name of God, which has power over these plagues: and they repented not to give him glory. 10 And the fifth angel poured out his vial on the seat of the beast; and his kingdom was full of darkness; and they gnawed their tongues for pain, 11 And blasphemed the God of heaven because of their pains and their sores, and repented not of their deeds. 12 And the sixth angel poured out his vial on the great river Euphrates; and the water thereof was dried up, that the way of the kings of the east might be prepared. 13 And I saw three unclean spirits like frogs come out of the mouth of the dragon, and out of the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false prophet. 14 For they are the spirits of devils, working miracles, which go forth to the kings of the earth and of the whole world, to gather them to the battle of that great day of God Almighty. 15 Behold, I come as a thief. Blessed is he that watches, and keeps his garments, lest he walk naked, and they see his shame. 16 And he gathered them together into a place called in the Hebrew tongue Armageddon. 17 And the seventh angel poured out his vial into the air; and there came a great voice out of the temple of heaven, from the throne, saying, It is done. 18 And there were voices, and thunders, and lightning; and there was a great earthquake, such as was not since men were on the earth, so mighty an earthquake, and so great. 19 And the great city was divided into three parts, and the cities of the nations fell: and great Babylon came in remembrance before God, to give to her the cup of the wine of the fierceness of his wrath. 20 And every island fled away, and the mountains were not found. 21 And there fell on men a great hail out of heaven, every stone about the weight of a talent: and men blasphemed God because of the plague of the hail; for the plague thereof was exceeding great. ×) announces sores, mass death of sea creatures, fresh water turned to blood, the sun scorches the earth, there is a great earthquake and hail. And armies gather to bring about the final great battle that brings all of humanity to the very brink of extinction.Will these events come upon you like a thief in the night? Will you be spiritually prepared?Well there is some good news here. The good news is that these seven trumpets culminate in the return of Jesus Christ to stop humanity from self destruction. He establishes a new one world government that creates peace and prosperity. He brings healing for the environment. And thankfully, over time, war, crime, poverty and starvation will just become words children read about in history books.It is difficult to imagine that these trumpet blasts and judgments from God will catch most of humanity by surprise. How could people - people with Bibles - miss these warnings? Yet, Jesus said that for those who aren't ready, this time will come as a thief in the night (Matthew 24:43-44 43 But know this, that if the manager of the house had known in what watch the thief would come, he would have watched, and would not have suffered his house to be broken up. 44 Therefore be you also ready: for in such an hour as you think not the Son of man comes. ×). Of course, then again, if you believe that God would never judge or punish someone, then believe me these actions will come as a surprise.In 1 Thessalonians 5, Paul tells Christians about how to prepare for the Day of the Lord. He wrote, “For you yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so comes as a thief in the night…And they shall not escape. But you, brethren, are not in darkness, so that this Day should overtake you as a thief, You are all sons of light and sons of the day” (1 Thessalonians 5:2-5 2 For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so comes as a thief in the night. 3 For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction comes on them, as travail on a woman with child; and they shall not escape. 4 But you, brothers, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief. 5 You are all the children of light, and the children of the day: we are not of the night, nor of darkness. ×).Preparing for the Day of the Lord isn't about building a bomb shelter or stockpiling guns and ammunition. The Day of the Lord won't happen as a violent intruder to those who are children of light - those who are spiritually prepared.Now, Paul gives three ways here, this passage, to be spiritually prepared. Write these down:One: Be spiritually awake!Paul says to us: “Therefore let us not sleep, as others do, but let us watch and be sober. For those who sleep, sleep at night, and those who get drunk are drunk at night” (1 Thessalonians 5:6-7 6 Therefore let us not sleep, as do others; but let us watch and be sober. 7 For they that sleep sleep in the night; and they that be drunken are drunken in the night. ×).You must get control of the busyness of life, the intrusive obsession with social technologies, the mindless entertainment, and the discouragement of living in a failing society. Spend more time in prayer. Spend more time in this book - in the Bible. And spend more time in meaningful relationships with fellow “Day of the Lord preppers.”Paul said that “those who get drunk are drunk in the night.” It is time for Christians to stop being seduced by money, cars and clothing. God is warning people to turn from the lifestyles of sexual permissiveness, substance abuse and greed. These lifestyles cause the very spiritual stupor that will let us forget that the thief is coming.You also have to reject the counterfeit Christianity that encourages people to accept Jesus but ignores His teachings!Second point: Live by faith!Notice how the apostle Paul phrases it: “But let us who are of the day be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love…” (1 Thessalonians 5:8But let us, who are of the day, be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love; and for an helmet, the hope of salvation.×).You must trust in God to bless you when dishonesty seems like the only way to be successful and you decide to be honest. You must trust God to help you do what is right even when everyone else around you is doing wrong. You must trust in God to supply you a way of escape when the thief of the Day of the Lord breaks down your front door.And then. Number three: Turn to God!Those who turn to God no longer have an appointment with the wrath of the Day of the Lord.Paul wrote, “…and as helmet the hope of salvation. For God did not appoint us to wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Thessalonians 5:8-9 8 But let us, who are of the day, be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love; and for an helmet, the hope of salvation. 9 For God has not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ, ×).And salvation is more than physical escape. God is offering you the opportunity to escape this hopelessness of the human condition and receive eternal life as a child in His family.Pick up your Bible and study Paul's instructions in 1 Thessalonians 5. You can be prepared and escape the coming wrath of God.And, by the way, this is why you need to request your free copy of our helpful study guide: The Book of Revelation Unveiled . This study guide will aid you in answering so many of the questions you have about the book of Revelation.And when you order The Book of Revelation Unveiled we'll also send you a free subscription to The Good News . This special magazine will help you sort through the confusion of world events, give you insight into the practical teachings of the Bible and help you prepare for the future.Now to order your free copy of The Book of Revelation Unveiled and receive a free subscription to The Good News , call - remember this number: 1-888-886-8632. That's right, you've got to pick up the phone and call: 1-888-886-8632. Now if you live outside of North America, you can write to the address on your screen [Beyond Today, PO BOX 541027, Cincinnati, Ohio, 45254, USA]. You can also read The Good News online at BeyondToday.tv . There you will find many Beyond Today video programs, articles and booklets about end time prophecies. You can easily search through this wealth of information.And something new from Beyond Today . We now have a dedicated channel on Roku. With your busy schedule it is nice to be able to watch Beyond Today on demand, whenever it's most convenient for you.Well I'd like to welcome fellow Beyond Today hosts, Darris McNeely and Steve Myers. We've been talking about the Day of the Lord and how the apostle Paul warned that for many, surprisingly, this time will come as a thief in the night. Now God gives us all these prophetic warnings, yet, it is amazing to think that people will be caught unawares by this. Why?[Steve] Maybe part of it comes back to the fact that things in the book of Revelation are hard to understand at times. So what is reality and what's just a metaphor? And so often people try to say, well that's just a story. It's just, not what really is going to happen. But, boy this theme comes back over, and over, and over again throughout the Bible and so it is reality. And so, you've got to be ready for that and God says, be ready![Gary] You know I've actually had people ask me, can I be ready for this time by physically saving up food? Can I, whatever… build a bunker or something? We look at what this is - the Day of the Lord, there's no way to physically prepare for this is there?[Darris] No, there really isn't. We've been living in survivalist times for the last 50 or more years. I can remember going into my junior high school locker room - it was a civil defense fallout shelter - as I was getting ready for the physical education class. You had water, food, blankets all stored up the