THE HOUR BEFORE THE HOUR

"These words spake Jesus in the treasury, as he taught in the temple: and no man laid hands on him; for his HOUR was not yet come"....(John 8:20)

The story above is a very compelling one. Jesus was rebuking the religious leaders of Isreal for their evil plan to kill him. I love how Jesus comes straight to the heart of the matter and plainly, in front of many witnesses rebukes them so hard they wish to grab him then, to kill him. This is where our scripture above comes in, and the pint of our lesson today.

These leaders were so angry at Jesus they wished to grab him then and kill him, but could not, because Jesus' hour was not then. God's protective hand was on Jesus, and no power of man or demon could touch him, until the APPOINTED HOUR for Jesus to be taken and crucified. When the Bible speaks here of an hour, it is not meaning a literal 60 minute time period. It means a fixed point ahead, an event in the future pre-planned, that will come at the time appointed by God. Even though Jesus could pass thru crowds, raise the dead, and deliver many people, in the back of his mind, forever looming closer, was an event he knew he could not allow himself to escape. And that would be the suffering of the cross. All the lives of every human ever born would depend on that hour.

I praise God that he endured that hour. A time of tribulation and suffering so harsh you and I could never have endured it. But beloved, though it looked like Jesus was powerless in that hour, that was far from the case. He used two (2) powerful weapons all through his earthly life, and he left them for us to use!....let me explain.

First, I must warn you...... YOUR HOUR HAS NOT YET COME!

Now you must be saying; "but sir, I already have endured suffering!". I am not talking about the trials and troubles of normal living that this broken planet brings. There is coming an HOUR, on this earth, for the children of men living, that has never been before. Where the earth will reel and rock under the judgement of God. Where Christians will be killed, and their families, for their faith. Children will be killed for their faith in Christ. Earthquakes and disease spread like flies on a dead carcass, with no hope of cure or prediction in sight. Women and men and children starve because they refuse to accept the currency of a devil possessed world leader who would damn their souls to hell with it.

And in this very same HOUR, it follows an erie silence from God. No word coming from heaven, no "goose bumps" of his presence to feel....nothing. But, in reality, God has not relinquished command and has not left you without any weapons to survive. This hour is coming for every church, every pastor, teacher, and every person that warms a pew. Their is no escape for us alive today. But their is good news, for you have two very powerful weapons that our Lord left us. These weapons carried him thru the horror of the cross, and it will carry you thru your coming hour. One last thing, you must get and use these weapons for without them you will not stand.

WEAPON #1 = PRAISE AND PRAYER

WEAPON #2 = PRECEPT (THE WORD OF GOD)

Please understand this universal truth:.. YOU MUST HAVE BOTH. One will not work without having the other as well. You cannot have just one, both must be present. Think of a gun without any bullets, or having a box of shells without any weapon...USELESS! So is praise and prayer and no reading of the word. The same holds true for lots of devotion to reading the Bible, and very little to non-existant prayer life. Without both the imbalance of your walk with God will implode on you, causing you and your faith to fail. And that could cost you your life in the coming "HOUR".

We will brake down these weapons in the coming lessons to show you what they do exactly, and how to use them. I pray that you read and follow this series "THE COMING HOUR". I pray that you listen and do what is said. I pray you begin to use these weapons now, your life here, and after, depend on it.