Get Ready

Rev Gideon Lee

One day there was a pastor who visited his member at the hospital. He was quite sick and was in ICU. The member was sleeping so the pastor knelt and prayed for him so as not to disturb the member. As he was praying, the member just stood up from the bed with all the tubes on him so he couldn't say anything.

So the pastor gave him a piece of paper and the member wrote something then fell back on the bed and died. At the funeral the pastor remembered that piece of paper in his pocket and he wondered what it said. So he took out the paper and read "pastor, you are standing on my tubes". Of course this is only a story.

Sometimes it is hard to get our message across. We have difficulty communicating. Even when I talked to my children sometimes I have to say "are you listening?"

But God never had a problem getting his message across. He spoke personally to Adam. He used a donkey to rebuke Balaam. God speaks to his people and had no problem in conveying what he wanted to say. It is us who cannot comprehend.

Jesus delivered the most important message to us. Unbelievers. It's about salvation. To the believers, it's about surrender. He wants to use us for the extension of his kingdom.

It's about surrender. As we look at this passage of scripture he is speaking to the churches today. It is for us today.

1 Corinthians 15:58

Therefore, my dear brothers, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.

From here I want us to notice that:

1. This message is an urgent message
2. It's a specific message
3. This is an important message
4. It is an encouraging message

This is an urgent message.

Why? Paul came to this verse and said therefore. Therefore is a conclusion of the previous statements. The conclusion is very important. We need to know what exactly was Paul talking about before he came to this conclusion. He was talking about the resurrection. About his second coming. It is urgent because in light of his soon return it has become very important for us to do this.

When we send a parcel out we stamp urgent when it is. This verse is urgent in light of his second coming. Look at from verse 51.

1 Corinthians 15:51-57

51 Listen, I tell you a mystery: We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed– 52 in a flash, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed. 53 For the perishable must clothe itself with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality. 54 When the perishable has been clothed with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality, then the saying that is written will come true: “Death has been swallowed up in victory.”

55 “Where, O death, is your victory?

Where, O death, is your sting?”

56 The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. 57 But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

The second coming, nobody knows the exact time or date. But we can judge the season and anticipate. This message is urgent because of the suddenness of his coming. We will never know. Sometimes we think it's over 2,000 years so we are unprepared. He will keep his promise.

It's urgent because this message is to the Christians. If he is coming back soon, what must we do. We must be ready and to get others ready as well. It's for our Church and the saved.

It's urgent also because it's sad. There will be millions that will be lost and not join us in heaven. We have to do our part to share the good news. What if your husband who is not a Christian, when Jesus comes he's not in heaven? Or your children are not in heaven? This makes it urgent for us. We cannot ignore it.

Many times we are caught unaware. When we see the traffic light turns yellow, we think we have enough time and can just scrape through. We think we are in the yellow light time. Actually when we see the yellow light we know the red light is coming. So when yellow light comes do we brake or accelerate?

Are we ready to meet Jesus? Are our relatives ready? When I get to heaven, I want to see them. If not what's the point? It's going to be selective. He will make a distinction between the sheep and the goats.

It is a specific message.

My dear brothers. He's not talking to some obscure person. Paul is addressing the church. The Christians. It is for you. What Paul is saying is that we have a responsibility as children of God. We have a responsibility.

What is that, which brings me to the next point.

It's an important message.

1. To stand firm.

Be steadfast, unmovable. Give an example? Like the palace guard at Buckingham. They will not move. He stands firm. In his position he stands firm. We have to stand firm. As a child of God. Are you standing firm? It means no compromise. I shared with the youth on Daniel chapter 3. Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego stood firm. They refused to comply and compromise but stood firm. They refused to bow down to this idol. When they were thrown into the fire, the King saw a fourth man in the fire. Non of them was singed or the smell of burning on their clothes. Stand firm.

2. To be focused.

Always give yourself fully to the work of God. What is that work? Go and make disciples. We are to share the gospel but we are also to go and make disciples. Are we doing that as Christians?  Be focused in what we are doing. We want to focus on evangelism and in making disciples.

3. To be unmovable

How many of you saw the movie "God is not dead". And another movie "Heaven is for real". We don't need all these things to believe him. Do you need some movie to tell you Jesus is real? We have to be firm and unmovable in what we believe in. Are you sure that you are saved? How do you know? Your faith. The bible says so. How do you know?  You know that you know you're saved. It's inside you.

4. To be faithful

Give yourself fully to the work of God. If God comes back and asked if you have been faithful doing what he called you to what will your answer be? Will he say well done my good and faithful servant?

It is an encouraging message.

All that we labour are not in vain. All that we do is never in vain when it's for the Lord. If we labour for our own benefit it will be disappointing and it will be in vain. If we press on and persevere we will receive our reward.

How many of you heard the story of the devil with his garage sale? So he wanted to sell all the things he used in his ministry. The items had different prices. So when a demon saw a small item right at the back which don't look much and looked so worn out, yet the price is so much higher than the other items. He asked the devil why it cost so much. The devil explained why it's so high. He said "because that's my prized item as I have used it many times". The demon asked what is this item? And the devil told the demon it's called discouragement. It is very effective.

Do you know what's the remedy for discouragement? Its encouragement. How many of you have encouraged someone when you came to church this morning? I pray that we do.

Let's get ready. It's urgent.