Hi, Pastor Bob here. Welcome back to the Men of Valor podcast. The verse for today is from the book of Colossians chapter 2 verse 15 and it states, “And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross.”

Wow, big weekend coming up! Super Bowl weekend. According to the media, this is such an important event. I read the average ticket price is about $14,000 and commercials are over $5 million for 30 seconds. Obviously, this is a super important event for the world. For the next several days, hours upon hours will be spent talking and listening to reporters about what's gonna happen as these two opposing forces meet each other. How much passing, how much running, defensive strategy, point spread, all the yada yada yada stuff with the game. All the hype. This must be a life-changing super important event for the millions of people that’ll watch it. It's gotta be, if it's worth over $5 million for the advertisers to pay for 30 seconds.

I just have a few questions for you. What was the score of the 2018 Super Bowl and who played in it? How about even the 2019 Super Bowl? -And how much more importantly is this question- How did those games affect your life? My guess, not at all. But now let me tell you about this future meeting of two opposing forces that will impact your life big time.

Matthew chapter 24 verse 27 says, “As the lightning comes from the east and shines as far as the west, so will the coming of the Son of Man Jesus Christ.”

And 2 Thessalonians chapter 2 verse 8 says, “And when the lawless one Satan will be revealed, when the Lord Jesus will overthrow with the breath of his mouth and destroy by the splendor of his coming.”

“But for the good fish, the righteous followers of Christ, they will be saved!”

Jesus will destroy His and our opponent Satan by the breath of His mouth. How overpowering is Jesus Christ when matched up against Satan? This isn't even going to be a contest. The end result is already written in the book! So what I just described in the Bible is the beginning and the end of the contest but importantly, what does Jesus say about the contest and how it will affect you drastically depends on what team you are on.

In Matthew 13, Jesus says the End Time, (the end of the game) will be like fishermen that bring in a large net full of fish. They separate the good fish (those people who live for Christ, the righteous people) from the bad fish, (the wicked people, those who never lived for Jesus or just went through religious actions such as going to church because it's Sunday) and He says the angels will throw the bad fish into a blazing furnace (sounds like hell) where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth for eternity. But for the good fish, the righteous followers of Christ, they will be saved!

“But to those who are believers, we are anxiously waiting for Him.”

In another area in the Bible, Jesus said it would be like pulling weeds in a field at harvest time. The weeds (the people that don't follow Jesus Christ and His Word) they’re tossed into a fire and burned again (once again sounds like hell). However, those who are righteous completely through the blood Jesus Christ shed on the cross, will shine like the sun in the Kingdom of God for eternity.

So you may be asking -just as people have for 2000 years- “When’s this kick off time for this? When exactly will this return take place?” Well, the Word says that only the Father knows that date. However, with the warning signs given in the Bible and the state of the world today, it sure seems like it's going to be soon, very soon. The Bible says when He returns, He will come like a thief in the night, totally unexpected to those who don't know Jesus or believe what He said in His Word. But to those who are believers, we are anxiously waiting for Him. We will be extremely excited and doing a victory dance and having a victory party that continues for eternity.

After this event, we aren’t going to Disney World, we're going to Heaven, praise God! Heaven! If you're not sure if you're a good fish or a bad fish or if you’re a weed or a good crop, just ask yourself this question: “If Jesus was going to return in an hour, would I be joyfully excited and celebrating the victory because I know Him and He knows me or would I be scared?” If you're excited about His return because the Lord knows you, praise God! If you're scared in one sense, congratulations to you also, because the Holy Spirit is showing you that you are a sinner and you need a savior. He does not show that to everyone. Many people think they're so good, they don't need a savior because they often compare themselves to people who are worse in their eyes like the killers or the rapists.

“...you will also be celebrating when this glorious return takes place.”

If He's touching you now, cry out to Him, like a drowning person cries out for help, “Jesus Christ help me, I need you! Save me! Save me from my sins! Save me from myself who has always liked to sin!” Then repent. Ask for forgiveness for your sins. Tell him how sorry you are for what you've done against Him. Then ask Him to touch you, and give you the Holy Spirit to reveal deeper and deeper who Jesus Christ is and who you are. Then, give Jesus Christ your life by following what He commands by seeing those commands in His Word. Obey Him, since now He has become your Lord and you will also be celebrating when this glorious return takes place. If you do this, it will become the most important event ever in your life.

Father, thank You so much for giving us such a great picture of what the return of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ will be like and what will take place on that day. I ask that You grace everyone who hears this message so they cry out to You and learn to become one of Your children. What an amazing God we serve. God bless you all.