Gospel Dynamite with J. Allen Mashburn

The Invitation of Conversion | Revelation 22:17 | J. Allen Mashburn

Beginning in Genesis 7:1 with God’s invitation for Noah and his family to “come” in to the Ark, the Bible is literally filled with invitations for people to come to God. It would seem from this evidence that God is interested in calling people to come to Him.
Even on the last page of the last chapter in the last book of the Bible, God is still inviting men, women, boys and girls to come to Him. In this verse the Spirit of God takes one last opportunity to swing open the door of salvation so that He might invite lost people to enter.
You see, God is interested in your salvation. He cares about you and where you will spend eternity. How do we know God cares? We know God cares because of His Words – John 3:16. We also know God cares because of His Works – Rom. 5:8. God proved His love for you and me when He sent His Son Jesus into this world to die for us on the cross.
But, God knows that just because He cares does not mean that you will be saved. He knows that you must respond to Him by repenting of your sins and believing on the Lord Jesus Christ. Jesus died on the cross to pay for man’s sin. He rose from the dead to guarantee us everlasting life. He even went back to Heaven to pray for you. But, if you refuse the Lord’s invitation to come to God, you will still not be saved.
This invitation is vitally important. In the words of our text we have one of the clearest calls to salvation that can be found anywhere in the word of God. I would like to take the time today to look into the words of this text and point out a few details of The Invitation Of Conversion.

The Conclusion of the Book | Revelation 22:6-21 | J. Allen Mashburn

Our study of the book of the Revelation has taken us from the days of the early church in the past all the way into eternity in the future. John has been faithfully fulfilling the divine purpose he shared in the first verse of the book, “The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave unto him, to shew unto his servants things which must shortly come to pass; and he sent and signified it by his angel unto his servant John,” Rev. 1:1.
John has been used of the Lord to reveal to God’s people the God’s plan for the future. We have seen the words of Rev. 1:19, where it says, “Write the things which thou hast seen, and the things which are, and the things which shall be hereafter,” fulfilled in the pages of this amazing book.
The Lord has shown us how the church age will end. It will end with the church in apostasy, cold and dead, with Jesus on the outside. We are steadily moving in that direction today.
He has shown us what will follow after the church is removed from the world. There will be a terrible tribulation period that will engulf the world. Billions will die from war, disease and the tragedy of divine judgment. This age will also end with the Antichrist and Satan judged and sentenced to an eternity in the Lake of Fire.
We have even been given a glimpse of our own future. We have seen a place called Heaven, where death, disease, sin and Satan will be prohibited. We have been given a small foretaste of that wonderful place we will call home some day.
In our text today, we have arrived at the end of the book. The verses we have read today serve as the Lord’s conclusion to the book of Revelation. So, let’s move through these verses together and bring to a close our study of the book of Revelation.

Some Call It Heaven, But I Call It Home | Revelation 21:5–22:5 | J. Allen Mashburn

In our last study we began a survey of a place called Heaven. Of course, we all know that Heaven is more than just a place. Heaven is the home of Almighty God. It is the home of the Lord Jesus Christ. It is the glorious land where the redeemed of the ages spend eternity. It is the place where we all long to go.
        Of course, if you listen to most folks talk, you will find that we aren’t as anxious to get to Heaven as we sometimes claim. When sickness comes, we try everything we can to stay here as long as we can. We call on the doctor. We call on the church to pray. We call on the Lord to help us get better. We love this life and we want to stay here. That is understandable but Heaven will be beyond our wildest dreams!

Our Future Home & Things That Can’t Follow Us There | Revelation 21:1-8 | J. Allen Mashburn

Join us as we explore our future home and the things that can never invade that glorious place!

The Great White Throne Judgment | Revelation 20:11-15 | J. Allen Mashburn

Some time ago there was a young foreign student who flunked out at the University of Michigan. In shame he decided to disappear. For the next four years he hid in the unused attic of an Ann Arbor church. Taking great pains to conceal himself, he quietly prowled around only at night, living off food and water from the kitchen. He never left the building or spoke to a soul. No one ever suspected he was there. Then one day a slight mistake gave him away. Accidentally the young recluse made some noise, the police were called, and he was finally discovered.
How foolish this young man was to try to hide from his failure. Still, he is not as foolish as that person who thinks they can hide from God! The world is filled with people who live as though they have no sin. They live as though God did not exist. They live as though they will never face God in judgment.
What they hope for will never come to pass. These verses tell us about judgment day. They speak about that terrible day when every lost sinner will face the Lord in judgment. There will be nowhere to hide on that day. No one will hide behind excuses, ignorance, false professions, etc. Everyone will face Jesus Christ as Lord and Judge and they will all receive a just sentence for their sins.
Today, I want to examine the facts concerning an event that is known as The Great White Throne Judgment. Before I begin, I want you to know that there will not be one single born again individual that will stand in judgment here.
This is a judgment seat for the lost.

The Millennial Reign of Christ | Revelation 20:1-10 | J. Allen Mashburn

This chapter is surrounded by controversy. The controversy swirls around the use of the words “thousand years” in verses 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7. The controversy concerns the 1,000 year period we call the Millennium.
      There are three dominant views concerning the nature of the Millennium.
1.)  Postmillennialism - This view says that the world will get better and better and when the world has reached the proper stage of perfection, Jesus will return and establish His kingdom on earth. This was a very popular view prior to World War II.  Nearly anyone can look at this world and all the wickedness and evil and see that the world is getting worse and not better. This is a false view of the Millennium. 
2.)  Amillennialism – There are several variations of this view. The primary version says that there is no literal millennial kingdom. The kingdom of God is spiritual in nature and we are really in the kingdom age right now. Many who hold this view believe that Satan is bound right now. The Amillennial view spiritualizes these verses. This is also a false view of the Millennium. (Ill. A branch of Amillennialism known as Preterism believes the Tribulation has already occurred and that Jesus has already returned. The Preterist believes that Jesus returned in 70 AD and established His kingdom then. Their belief system is far more complex than that, but that is the gist of it.)
3.)  Premillennialism - This view holds that humanity will continue to degenerate; the world will go through a literal Tribulation; Jesus will return and defeat the Antichrist and establish a literal kingdom on the earth and reign here for 1,000 years. This is the only view that takes these verses literally. It is my opinion that this is the only true view of the millennium. 
      It is my belief that these verses comprise the fulfillment of many great Old and New Testament promises and prophecies. It is my belief that these verses tell us about a literal 1,000 kingdom that will exist on this earth. It is my belief that these verses describe the final kingdom that will exist in time.
      Why is there even a need for the millennium? Why not just wind it all up, judge sin and sinners and let the redeemed enter into eternity? The millennium will allow the Lord to accomplish some much needed goals. Among other things, the millennium will allow the Lord to:
·         To fulfill His Old Testament promises of a kingdom to Israel.
·         To put Jesus, in all His glory, on public display.
·         To answer the prayer, “Thy Kingdom come.”
·         To fulfill the promise that the saints will reign.
·         To bring about the complete redemption of nature.
·         To give man one final test under the sovereign rule of the Lord Jesus Christ.
While there are many great truths associated with the millennial kingdom, too many to share in one message, let me share a few of the things that will be a reality then.
·         Peace – All wars will cease. (Isa.2:4; 9:4-7; 32:17-18; 33:5-6; 55:12; 60:18; Eze.28:26; 34:25, 28; Hos.2:18; Micah 4:2-3; Zech.9:10)
·         Joy – The King’s subjects will be happy. (Isa.12:3-6; 14:7-8; 25:8-9; 61:7,10; 65:18-19; 66:10-14; Jer.31:18-19; Zeph.3:14-17; Zech.10:6-7)
·         Holiness - This kingdom will be a holy kingdom. There will be rebellion, but King Jesus will rule with a rod of iron, Rev. 19:15. Capital punishment will be enforced. (Isa. 31:6-7; 35:8-9; 60:21; 61:10; Eze.36:24-31; 37:23-24; Zech.8:3; 14:20-21)
·         Glory - This kingdom will be a glorious kingdom, with the glory of God in full display. All the citizens of the world will be able to travel to Jerusalem and see the glorified Savior face to face! (Isa. 4:2; 35:2; 40:5; 60:1-9)
·         Comfort - Jesus will fully minister to every need, so that there will be no want anywhere on the earth. (Isa 12:1-2; 30:26; 40:1-2; 49:13; 51:3; 66:21-23; Jer.31:23-25; Zeph.3:18-20)
·         Justice - Perfect justice will be administered to every individual. (Isa. 9:7; 32:16; 42:1-4; 65:21-23; Jer.23:5.)
·         Fullness Of Knowledge - An increase in the teaching ministry of the Holy Ghost  will result in enhanced mental capabilities. (Isa. 11:1-2, 9; Isa. 41:19-20; *54:13*; Hab.2:14)
·         Instruction – King Jesus will instruct His people in the ways of God. (Isa. 2:2-3; 29:17-24; 32:3-4; Jer.3:14-15; Micah 4:2)
·         The Removal of the Curse - In Gen. 3:17-19, God placed a curse upon the earth. This curse will be removed; resulting in an increase in the productivity of the earth, and in wild animals will losing their ferocity and ability to injure or kill. (Isa 11:6-9; 65:25).
·         Sickness Removed - The King will be a healer, so that sickness and death will vanish from the earth. Death will only exist as a punishment for extreme sin. (Isa 33:24; Jer.30:17; 33:6)
·         Healing of the deformed - All deformity will be healed. (Isa.29:17-19; 35:3-6)
·         Protection - There will be a supernatural preservation of life during the millennium. (Isa.41:8-14; 62:8-9; Jer. 23:6; Joel 3:16-17; Amos 9:15; Zech.9:8; 14:10-11)
·         No Oppression - There will be no social, political, racial or religious oppression in that day. (Isa.14:3-6; 42:6-7; 49:8-9; Zech.9:11-12)
·         No Immaturity - It seems that there will be no mental retardation or dwarfed bodies, extreme longevity will also be restored. (Isa.65:20)
·         Reproduction by the Living People - The living Tribulation saints and believing Jews who enter the millennium will reproduce. The population of the earth will soar. Yet, all children will be born with a sin nature, and will therefore need salvation. (Jer.30:20; 31:29; Eze.47:22)
·         Labor - A perfect economic system, in which all needs will be met by the labor of men under direction of the King. It will be a fully industrialized world. (Isa. 62:8-9; 65:21-23; Jer.31:5)
·         Economic Prosperity - The perfect labor situation will produce economic abundance, so that there will be no want. (Isa.35:1-2, 7; 30:23-25; Jer.31:5; 12; Eze 34:26; 36:29-30; *Joel 2:21-27* *Amos 9:13-14*; Zech.8:11-12)
·         Increase of Light - The will be an increase in solar and lunar light, this will produce longer growing seasons, accounting for the increase in productivity. (Isa.30:26)
·         Unified Language - All language barriers will be removed. (Zeph.3:9)
·         Unified Worship - The entire world will worship God through the Lord Jesus Christ. (Isa.45:23; 66:17-23; Zeph.3:9; Zech.14:16; 8:23; Mal.1:11)
·         The fullness of the Spirit - All who are subject to the King will experience divine enablement and presence. (Isa.44:3; Eze.36:26-27; 37:14; Joel 2:28-29)
      Those are just a few of the glories of that future kingdom. Let’s take a few minutes to study these verses today.

The King is Coming | Revelation 19:11-21 | J. Allen Mashburn

The opening chapter of Revelation sets the tone for everything else that will happen in the book. Rev. 1:1 tells us that this book is “The revelation of Jesus Christ.” Rev. 1:7-8 says, “Behold, he cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see him, and they also which pierced him: and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of him. Even so, Amen. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty.” This book is about Jesus and about His return to this earth to rule and reign.
Revelation chapter 5 takes us into Heaven. God is shown holding a book that is sealed with seven seals, 5:1. A search is made in heaven and in earth to find someone worthy to open the book, but no one is found, 5:2-3. John weeps at this news, because he desperately wants to know what is written in the book, 5:4. John is told not to weep because the Lamb of God is worthy to take the book, Rev. 5:5-7. When the Lord takes the book from the hand of God, Heaven erupts into praise and worship because the Lord Jesus has been found worthy to take the book and to open the seals, Rev. 5:8.
When we studied that chapter we discovered that the seven sealed book was the title deed of the planet earth. You see, Satan is called “the god of this world”, 2 Cor. 4:4. He may be the “little g” god of this world today, but he is not worthy to retain his grip on the world. This world belongs to Jesus, and to Jesus alone! The day will come when He will take possession of this world away from Satan.
        This world is belongs to Jesus because of three great truths.
·         It is His by right of Creation – He made it!
·         It is His by right of Calvary – He redeemed it!
·         It is His by right of Conquest – He will retake it!
The entire book of Revelation has been leading us to this great moment we will consider together today. The whole purpose of the Tribulation Period, chapters 6-18, is to prepare the world for the coming of the King. The passage we are about to study today speaks of that great moment in the future when Jesus will return to this earth is power and glory to claim what is rightfully His. The first time Jesus came to this world, He came as a Redeemer. The next time He comes, He is coming as a Ruler! The first time He faced a Cross; the next time, He will wear a Crown. The first time He came there was a Tomb; the next time He comes there will be a Throne.

A Marriage Made in Heaven | Revelation 19:1-9 | J. Allen Mashburn

We all know that weddings can be spectacular. Thousands of dollars are spent trying to produce a perfect moment in time that will join a couple together in marital bliss. Typically, the church is decorated to the hilt; the bride is resplendent in her pure white wedding dress; and the groom stands nervously at the front of the church. It is a special moment in the lives of those two individuals and for the people who know and love them. Weddings, here on earth, are a special thing!
Sometimes, weddings can simply be a spectacle! I could tell you some horror stories about some of the weddings I have seen. And, who can forget the twisted tale of Jennifer Wilbanks, the runaway bride from Duluth, GA. She faked a kidnapping and was found in Albuquerque, NM. Thankfully, most weddings turn out better than that!
Everyone who has a wedding is looking for one thing: a marriage made in heaven! I just want you to know that while some marriages may have been made in heaven, they still have to be lived out here on earth. That tends to make most of them less than perfect. (Ill. Not ours dear!)
We have arrived at an exciting portion of the Bible. After the dark, dreary passages we have been enduring these verses gleam with the glory of Heaven. We are going to talk about a wedding today. Not just any wedding, but the marriage super of the Lamb. This wedding will be a time of great joy for all the redeemed people of God!
You see, for the church, the end times shape up like this: In the Rapture, we will be Caught Up; at the Judgment Seat of Christ, we will be Cleaned Up; and at the marriage supper of the Lamb, we will be Cheered Up! It is this event that we want to park on for a while today. I want to preach about A Marriage Made In Heaven.
If you are saved I want you to know that there are some blessed days ahead for you. If you are lost, I want you to know that you need to get ready to meet the Lord. He is coming and He is coming for His people. The rest will be left behind to endure the Tribulation and face the fires of Hell.
Let’s take a journey to glory today and look in on our future. I want to point out the blessings contained in this passage as I try to preach on A Marriage Made In Heaven.