Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my
words shall not, what?
Wait, God's words aren't going to go away.
But of that day, now what day is
he talking about?
The day of his return.
And if you have a red letter edition
of the word of God, these words are
in red, they're coming out of the mouth
of Jesus.
But of that day, an hour knoweth no
man, no, not the angels of heaven, but
my Father only.
If someone tells you they know the day
Jesus is coming back, they know the hour,
then they're misguided.
They don't understand the scriptures, because this book
says no one knows the day.
Verse 37, but as the days of Noah
were, so shall also the coming of the
Son of Man be.
For as in the days that were before
the flood, they were eating and drinking, marrying
and giving in marriage, until the day that
Noah entered into the ark.
And knew not until the flood came and
took them all away.
Now here's the key part, so shall also
the coming of the Son of Man be.
Now, according to Jesus, out of the mouth
of our Lord and Savior, do we believe
this morning that Jesus is the Son of
God?
Do we believe that Jesus is the Messiah,
the salvation of all mankind?
Do we believe that He's Lord and Savior
of all?
Do we believe that His word is truth,
let God be truth and every man a
liar?
Do we just not read that His words
will never pass away?
Alright, what did He say?
He said, Ralph, I tell you, I cannot
give you the day and hour of my
return.
The Father has tucked that away.
Because no man knows the day or the
hour that I'm coming back, you always watch
and be ready.
Why?
For in such an hour as you think
not, the Son of Man coming.
So He said, for all of us to
be watching and waiting, but I'm not going
to tell you the day or the hour.
But if you would like to know how
close we are to the coming of the
Lord Jesus Christ, I tell you what I
will do.
I'll tell you how you can know that
we're close.
Well, how can I know, Jesus?
Then you study the days of Noah.
And when you look at the days preceding
the flood, then if you'll look at those
events, you'll know that we're close.
Now, while your finger here is in Matthew
24, let's back up into the Old Testament.
Go to the very first book of the
Bible, Genesis.
And we're going to look at chapter 4,
chapter 5, and chapter 6.
If I own a Bible and I can
read Genesis 4, Genesis 5, and Genesis 6,
and Hector, and I don't read those verses
and I don't see what's happening, then God's
saying, then Ralph, you won't have an excuse
because I'm going to tell you how close
we are to the coming of the Lord.
And how close are we?
He said, when you see the days of
Noah appearing in your society.
Now, what are the elements?
There's eight different elements here, and I'll try
to bring these to you in a later
study.
But here's the things.
We're going to look at the economic kingdom
of Noah's days.
We'll look at the religious kingdom of Noah's
days.
And we'll look at the social development of
Noah's days.
What was their culture, their society saying of
that day?
And if we look at all those things,
then we can see parallels in our day.
Now, what are our headlines screaming across America
and around the world?
I believe the headlines of the news are
screaming to the fact that Noah's days are
the days and hours that we're living in.
I submit to you, church, that we should
pay attention to the day and hour that
we're living in because Jesus, not some theologian,
not some minister, not some Sunday school teacher,
but Jesus said, when you see the things
that are going on in Noah's day, when
you read Genesis 4, 5, and 6, and
then you see it happening in your day
and hour, then you should pay attention because
my coming draweth nigh.
The headlines scream of our sin-sick society.
I submit to you today as a minister
of the gospel, when I hear the stories
of Sarah Michelle Lundy, a little 13-year
-old that was kidnapped from her own home
and murdered in the same pattern of Jessica
and other teenage children and preteen children and
this epidemic of terror.
When I read about the events a few
years ago of Columbine High School and then
just last month about Red Lake High School
and Jeff Weiss, a 16-year-old boy
who took and killed a teacher and a
security guard and three other students and then
shot himself.
He's all caught up in gothic culture, gothic
dress.
He's all dressed in black.
He's listening to dark music.
He combs his hair into a hairstyle where
it appears that he has horns coming out
of the top of his head.
And he's going down a dark road and
down a dark path.
And all we've got to offer Jeff Weiss
is to take him into a church that
has a form of godliness, has the Church
of Cain in operation.
There's no life-changing, life-giving power there.
I think about U.S. News & World
Report in their April 4 article.
They talked about that 20 percent of all
of the children and teens of the United
States are suffering from psychological disorders, 20 percent,
20 percent of our children.
They estimate that 13 percent of all teens
and young adults are suffering from serious emotional
disorders.
Well, Ken, if our kids are being hammered
and crippled, what can we do?
Well, I submit to you, Mom and Dad,
the reason that our kids are such casualties
in today's society is that we fell in
love with the gods of materialism and the
pagan gods of this world and we got
our kids into the church of Cain rather
than into the church of Abel and we're
suffering the consequences by paying with the damaged
emotional lives of our own children.
I want to know where the church is
in today's world.
Where is the body of Christ?
Are we walking in a form of godliness?
Has the church that we're in today and
the churches of America, are we starting to
watch the mutation?
Are we witnessing the transformation?
Are we seeing the change?
You remember the children had a toy a
few years ago.
It was called a transformer and it looked
like a car.
It looked like a truck, but you just
move a few pieces and wheels and turn,
and the next thing you know, the car
would stand up.
The truck would stand up.
It became a being.
It became a monster.
It was transformed.
I am concerned today that organized religion in
America is now in that mutating stage.
We've been polluted by the gods of this
world.
Our spiritual DNA has been altered and now
we're seeing the transformation.
We're meeting on Sunday.
We're in our buildings, but we just have
a form of God.
We don't have the power that goes with
the things that belong to the living Lord
God Almighty.
I wonder if we're now seeing the birth
of the church of Cain in our society.
We see a much energy and push about
the church should be contemporary, that we should
have a contemporary worship or service.
Let me help you with something.
I have pastor friends that have a church
service they label as contemporary, and I love
them.
They are my friends.
But in consciousness before God, I believe that
my friends are taking a wrong step.
I am no man's judge.
How could I look at anyone and say,
I'm right and you're wrong?
I'm not even worthy to wash their feet,
let alone stand to proclaim the word of
God.
But I can tell you my spirit is
green.
My heart is broken as I see us
all excited to try to mutate the church
to look like the world, to see the
church mutated to sound like the world.
Why do we want God's house to be
another club?
Why do we want the church to be
another place that looks and sounds like the
mall?
There ought to be something special about the
holy house of God.
It ought to be special.
We're going to church on Sunday.
I've got my Sunday shirt and I've got
my Sunday blouse and I've got my Sunday
shoes.
I'm not trying to put on my garden
grubbies and my teeny pumps.
I'm going to God's house and I'm going
to go into the temple of God and
I'm going to worship him.
You say you're an antiquated piece of religious
past.
Well, I may be.
But I love your babies and your children
and your teenagers more than I love my
own life.
And I fear for their spiritual future.
When I read Genesis chapter 4 and verse
1, the word of God says, And Adam
knew Eve, his wife, and she conceived and
bare Cain and said, I've gotten a man
from the Lord.
And she again bare his brother Abel.
Abel was a keeper of sheep and Cain
was a tiller of the ground.
And in the process of time it came
to pass that Cain bought of the fruit
of the ground and offered unto the Lord.
And Abel he also brought of the firstlings
of his flock and of the fat thereof.
And the Lord had respect unto Abel to
his offering.
But unto Cain to his offering he had
no respect.
And Cain was very wroth and his countenance
fell.
And the Lord said unto Cain, Why art
thou wroth?
And why is thy countenance fallen?
If thou doest well, shalt thou not be
accepted?
And if thou doest not well, what?
Sin lieth at the door, and unto thee
shall be his desire.
And thou shalt rule over him.
Verse number 8 reads, And Cain talked with
Abel his brother.
And it came to pass when they were
in the field that Cain rose up against
Abel his brother and what?
Flew him.
I believe that if I study the story
of Cain and Abel, I have a comparison
of what services are today in our society.
I believe that if I study the life
of Cain here, that I have an example
of a modernist or a contemporarist who is
going to alter the worship that God ordained.
Here again, please be patient with the thought
process as I use some terms.
I believe Abel represents someone practicing the fundamentals
of the faith or a fundamentalist in his
interpretation of what God had instructed.
I believe that Cain represents religious but lost.
I believe Abel represents religious and sealed with
the Holy Spirit of promise into the day
of redemption.
I believe that Cain represents humanism at its
worst.
And I believe Abel represents sovereignty at its
best.
I believe that Cain represents it's all about
me.
It's my effort.
It's my praise production.
But Abel represents my lost condition, my depraved
heart, and God's holy provision.
Instead of man's hands, it's God's providing hands.
Someone that looks at this passage of scripture
might interpret these two twin sons as the
church of Cain and the church of Abel.
I ask the question to you that are
listening today.
What is our religious production in our heart?
Are we producing the children of Cain?
Are we producing the children of Abel?
You've got to remember this right here now.
Cain was not an atheist, Jackie.
He was not an atheist.
He believed in a God.
He believed in God.
Verse 3 proves that of chapter 4.
He believed in God.
It's his idea to take the offerings and
bring them to God.
It's not Abel's idea.
It's Cain's idea.
And Cain believes in a God.
But if you go over to the church
of Abel, Abel believes God.
He doesn't believe in a God.
He believes God.
And what Cain's doing, he's doing the same
thing that the serpent did when he came
and beguiled Eve.
And he's saying, Has not God said?
He believes in a God.
Satan believes in a God.
Devil believes in a God.
False prophet believes in a God.
Antichrist believes in a God.
Demons believe in God.
Demons believe in Jesus.
They believe that, but they don't believe what
God says.
Do you understand that connection?
And Abel saying, I believe God.
Cain believed in a God, but he did
not believe Him.
Now both of these boys were taught by
their mom and dad what real worship is.
Adam and Eve at family devotions, they taught
their children what real worship is.
And they said, Children, one day we were
walking with God and we were in full
fellowship.
The next day we sinned against God and
we disobeyed.
And we ate of the tree of knowledge.
And He told us not to do that.
And when we did that, we sinned.
And now we're hiding in the bushes because
the righteousness that we had has been removed.
And now we're revealed we do not have
clothes on.
And God stepped in to our disaster.
God invaded our darkness.
God walked in to where we were helpless
and hiding in the bushes.
And God stepped into the garden and He
killed an animal.
He shed blood and He put clothes on
us so we could look at Him again.
He could look on us again.
He made an intercession for us and provided
our salvation through a blood sacrifice.
And so we understand it's His salvation and
His sacrifice for the atonement of our sins.
And boys, if you ever serve God, it
will be by His salvation and His sacrifice.
And so they taught Adam and Eve, taught
Cain and Abel that this was the way
to worship.
Now what happened was that Cain was actually
more religious than Abel.
Cain was earnest.
And do you not know people that you
work with and family and friends that are
in religions and cults and false doctrines?
And they're earnest.
They're sincere.
They're dedicated.
They're determined.
They're very religious.
But it was actually Cain that suggested bringing
the sacrifice to God.
Genesis 4-3, he brings that sacrifice.
And in the process of time, it came
to pass that Cain brought of the fruit
of the ground an offering unto the Lord.
And in the Hebrew, that process of time
phrase, it means when they became responsible for
acting in personal faith.
In the coming seed of the woman who
was to bruise the serpent's head and restore
man's dominion.
We've got to go back to Genesis 3
-15 to connect that.
When they understood it's sort of like an
age of accountability.
I can't go to heaven because my daddy's
Adam.
And I can't go to heaven because my
mother's Eve.
I've got to do business with God.
I've got to have my own sins covered
by the blood.
So that process of time is sort of
like an age of accountability.
And it says when they got to that
awareness time, they knew they had to do
business with God.
Cain suggested, let's bring an offering to God.
Let's bring this offering to God.
And so he prepared his offering, a beautiful
offering.
It cost him much toil, much sweat, much
labor to produce fruit.
Remember, the ground's been cursed, so it took
more work and more effort.
Now what do we end up with?
We end up with two forms of worship.
Two styles of worship.
We have the church of Cain and the
church of Abel.
You say, well, pastor, how do you decide
or determine that?
Well, here's what I came up with.
You see if you follow the thought process
with me.
The church of Cain is built on unbelief.
He believes in a God, but he's not
obedient enough to believe God.
Abel, on the other hand, he said, I'm
your twin brother, but I just believe God.
God said, this is the way to do
it.
It's not me doing it.
It's God doing it.
So we had a church of unbelief and
a church of belief.
Under the church of Cain, we've got a
form of godliness.
Under the church of Abel, we've got godliness
in its entirety.
Under the church of Cain, we've got a
profession of faith.
Under the church of Abel, we've got the
possession of that faith.
Under the church of Cain, we've got spiritual
entertainment and activities.
Under the church of Abel, we've got spiritual
holiness and godly living.
Under the church of Cain, we've got concession.
We're going to make comfortable the house of
God for the sinner.
At the church of Abel, we've got compassion
for the lost man and the lost woman.
Not that they'd be comfortable in the house
of God, but that they would know that
God loves the sinner and hates the sin.
The church of Cain is built on the
sands of man.
Sands of emotion.
Sands of feeling.
The church of Abel is built upon the
rock of ages.
The inerrant infallible word of God.
The church of Cain is built on works.
The church of Abel is built on grace.
The church of Cain talks about, it's all
about us.
The church of Abel says, it's all about
Him.
Oh, Genesis 4-3, Cain says, it's a
beautiful offering.
It's the fruit of the ground.
Look how hard I've worked.
Look at the toil.
Look at the sweat.
Look at the labor.
Look at what I've brought.
Look at the different kinds of fruit.
Look at the flowers around the fruit.
Look at this, God.
Here's my offering.
And Abel walks up from his church, and
he's leading a little lamb.
And he's crying.
And he said, my God, I haven't done
a thing.
You gave me the sheep.
You gave me the pasture.
You gave me the water for the sheep
to drink.
You gave me the grass for them to
eat on.
You gave me a female lamb.
And now she's had a baby.
God, I haven't done one thing.
I don't deserve this.
But here's all I've got.
Here's what You gave me.
Here's the lamb.
And he cuts the throat on that little
lamb.
Lays it on the altar.
And he said, it's all about You, God.
You gave me the sheep.
You gave me the lamb.
Here's the blood.
And I'll worship You for who You are.
The church of Abel was broken with thanksgiving
and praise to what God.
And he worshiped Him, the firstling of the
flock, because Abel knew he had done nothing.
The church of Cain was attractive and appealing.
The church of Abel was unattractive and unappealing.
Cain's offering was beautiful in presentation.
Abel's offering was bloody and offensive.
Cain's offering was of man's production, man's plans,
and man's labor.
And Abel's offering was of the hand of
a holy God.
And he walked up and he said, God,
here's all I've got.
Everything I have, I bring it to You.
I lay it at Your feet.
I meet Your demands in Genesis 3 verse
21.
He looked at these days and he realized
that only the blood could feel the sacrifice.
How did he do all this?
What does Hebrews 11 verse 4 say?
It's all by faith.
Abel did it by faith.
God, I don't know how this works.
He's got ten times more than I've got.
Look how he's presented it.
Look at his flowers.
Look at all the different kinds of fruits.
Look how it's stacked up.
Look at the sheaves of corn.
God, look at all he's got.
God, all I've got is a lamb.
I don't have anything, God.
But this is what You said to do,
just to bring this lamb.
And in obedience to Your Word, I bring
my lamb.
Because it's not about me.
It's all about You.
God's lamb that takes away the sins of
the world.
I submit to you today, church family, that
we need to ask God to search our
hearts.
And we need to decide what kind of
worship is going on on the inside.
Is it my orchestration or is it orchestrated
by the Holy Spirit?
Is it my plans and my productions?
Is it all about me or is it
all about Him?