The future of the kingdom

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The future of the kingdom

• Dr Adrian Warnock

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A possible World future..?

• Risk of economic deflation whilst gap between
  rich and poor grows- many now living on less than
  2 per day
• Clinical depression continuing to rise - the
  wealthier the country the greater the suicide
  rate
• The aging wealthy population- already over 65s
  own 75 of US wealth
• Feminisation of society- already, already more
  women gaining jobs, more men loosing jobs
• More anger at a strong USA intervening when it
  feels it needs to- leading to more terror groups,
  and mass protests

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The future of faith.?

• 1 billion Muslims worldwide 1 in 5 of world.
  Increasing _at_ 3 per year
• 1.7 billion Christians growing _at_ just under 3
  per year
• Meanwhile in the UK the church looks increasingly
  irrelevant, hypocritical and faces crippling
  lawsuits for its role in failing to report cases
  of child abuse by priests
• Many UK denominations might become bankrupt and
  close- the traditional church could all but
  disappear off the religious landscape in a
  generation

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Traditional UK Churches closing
1,000 more churches face closure in 10 years
(Times Dec 2002)
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The Future..

• 1953 in the UK
• 13 believe in Astrology
• 2003 in the UK
• 50 believe in Astrology
• 60-80 read their horoscopes.
• It is God who holds the future in his hands
• What's in my future?
• What's in the Kingdoms future?

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Jesus is coming again (Acts 11-11)
He appeared to them over a period of forty days
and spoke about the kingdom of GodSo when they
met together, they asked him, Lord, are you at
this time going to restore the kingdom to
Israel? He said to them It is not for you to
know the times or dates the Father has set by his
own authority. But you will receive power when
the Holy Spirit comes on you and you will be my
witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and
Samaria, and to the ends of the earth. After he
said this, he was taken up before their very
eyes, and a cloud hid him from their sight.
This same Jesus.will come back in the same way
you have seen him go into heaven.

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Jesus will be glorified on earth

• His intent was that now, through the church, the
  manifold wisdom of God should be made known to
  the rulers and authorities in the heavenly realms
  (Eph 310)

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A multinational Kingdom(Rev 59-10)

• Worthy are you to take the scroll and to open
  its seals,for you were slain, and by your blood
  you ransomed people for God from every tribe and
  language and people and nation, and you have made
  them a kingdom and priests to our God, and they
  shall reign on the earth.

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A LARGE Kingdom(Rev 78-17)

• After this I looked, and behold, a great
  multitude that no one could number, from every
  nation, from all tribes and peoples and
  languages, standing before the throne and before
  the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm
  branches in their hands, and crying out with a
  loud voice,
• Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the
  throne, and to the Lamb!

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I have a dream..
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(No Transcript)
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A Kingdom born in pain(Rev 7)

• .then one of the elders addressed me, saying,
  Who are these, clothed in white robes, and from
  where have they come? I said to him, Sir, you
  know. And he said to me, These are the ones
  coming out of the great tribulation. They have
  washed their robes and made them white in the
  blood of the Lamb.

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There may be trouble ahead

• Acts 1420-22 They returned to Lystra and to
  Iconium and to Antioch, strengthening the souls
  of the disciples, encouraging them to continue in
  the faith, and saying that through many
  tribulations we must enter the kingdom of God.
• 2 Timothy 312 In fact, everyone who wants to
  live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be
  persecuted,

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With great trouble comes great glory(Mt 246-14)

• You will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See
  that you are not alarmed, for this must take
  place, but the end is not yet..Then they will
  deliver you up to tribulation and put you to
  death, and you will be hated by all nations for
  my names sake.But the one who endures to the
  end will be saved. And this gospel of the kingdom
  will be proclaimed throughout the whole world as
  a testimony to all nations, and then the end will
  come.

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Where would you rather be?
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More in heaven than hell?

• Do you think that Christ will let the devil beat
  him? that he will let the devil have more in hell
  than there will be in heaven? No it is
  impossible. For then Satan would laugh at Christ.
  There will be more in heaven than there are among
  the lost. God says, that there will be a number
  that no man can number who will be saved but he
  never says that there will be a number that no
  man can number that will be lost. CHS

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A LARGE Kingdom(Rev 78-17)

• After this I looked, and behold, a great
  multitude that no one could number, from every
  nation, from all tribes and peoples and
  languages, standing before the throne and before
  the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm
  branches in their hands, and crying out with a
  loud voice,
• Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the
  throne, and to the Lamb!

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A Kingdom born in pain(Rev 7)

• .then one of the elders addressed me, saying,
  Who are these, clothed in white robes, and from
  where have they come? I said to him, Sir, you
  know. And he said to me, These are the ones
  coming out of the great tribulation. They have
  washed their robes and made them white in the
  blood of the Lamb.

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The End is nice for us!(Rev 7)

• Therefore they are before the throne of God, and
  serve him day and night in his temple and he who
  sits on the throne will shelter them with his
  presence.
• They shall hunger no more, neither thirst
  anymorethe sun shall not strike them, nor any
  scorching heat. For the Lamb in the midst of the
  throne will be their shepherd, and he will guide
  them to springs of living water, and God will
  wipe away every tear from their eyes.