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Vox Sunday Sermon – How to Prepare for the End of the World

Written by

Jay Downes

in

Sermon by – Lead Pastor Justin Kendrick – Vox Church

My Personal Sermon Notes …

📖 Key Text: 1 Thessalonians 4:13 – 5:6

Believers Who Have Died

13 Brothers and sisters, we do not want you to be uninformed about those who sleep in death, so that you do not grieve like the rest of mankind, who have no hope. 14 For we believe that Jesus died and rose again, and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him. 15 According to the Lord’s word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep. 16 For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. 17 After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever. 18 Therefore encourage one another with these words.

The Day of the Lord

5 Now, brothers and sisters, about times and dates we do not need to write to you, 2 for you know very well that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. 3 While people are saying, “Peace and safety,” destruction will come on them suddenly, as labor pains on a pregnant woman, and they will not escape.

4 But you, brothers and sisters, are not in darkness so that this day should surprise you like a thief. 5 You are all children of the light and children of the day. We do not belong to the night or to the darkness. 6 So then, let us not be like others, who are asleep, but let us be awake and sober.

🎬 Our Culture and the End of the World

  • The end of the world is a prominent theme in movies, music, and media
  • It’s more than just entertainment — it reflects our real fears and desire for control
  • People build bunkers, become preppers, or spiral into irrational fear
  • But in all this, we often lose sight of what the church is called to live in — love, hope, and peace

What is your hope level, and what is it hoping in?

  • Deep down, our fear of death and the unknown drives our anxiety

✝️ How Should Christians Respond?

  • For many believers, end times theology is confusing

Two Common (and Misguided) Responses:

  1. Hyper-focused Christians who are certain of every detail
  2. Ignoring Christians who find it fanatical and avoid the topic

➡️ Neither approach is correct

The return of Jesus Christ is central to our faith. Without His return, His promises remain unfulfilled.

🌌 Symbolism in Scripture

  • The Bible uses imagery and metaphor not because it’s fantasy, but because it reveals that we are more than just flesh and blood — there’s a spiritual realm
  • God often communicates in pictures to help us see eternal truths

📖 Matthew 24:36

“But concerning that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father only.”

  • Christ will return — we just don’t know exactly when
  • “The Day of the Lord”
    • When Paul calls Christ’s return “the Day of the Lord,” he’s linking it to the Exodus 14 moment — when God rescued Israel through the Red Sea and judged Egypt. It’s a pattern: deliverance for God’s people, judgment for evil. The future return of Jesus mirrors that same dramatic intervention.
    • Old Testament references:
  • 📖 Zephaniah 1:14–16 (ESV)
    “The great day of the Lord is near, near and hastening fast;
    the sound of the day of the Lord is bitter; the mighty man cries aloud there.
    A day of wrath is that day,
    a day of distress and anguish,
    a day of ruin and devastation,
    a day of darkness and gloom,
    a day of clouds and thick darkness,
    a day of trumpet blast and battle cry
    against the fortified cities
    and against the lofty battlements.”

    📖 Joel 2:31 (ESV)
    “The sun shall be turned to darkness, and the moon to blood,
    before the great and awesome day of the Lord comes.”

    📖 Isaiah 2:12 (ESV)
    “For the Lord of hosts has a day
    against all that is proud and lofty,
    against all that is lifted up—and it shall be brought low.”

    📖 Obadiah 1:15 (ESV)
    “For the day of the Lord is near upon all the nations.
    As you have done, it shall be done to you;
    your deeds shall return on your own head.”

    📖 Zephaniah 3:15–17 (ESV)
    “The Lord has taken away the judgments against you;
    he has cleared away your enemies.
    The King of Israel, the Lord, is in your midst;
    you shall never again fear evil.
    On that day it shall be said to Jerusalem:
    ‘Fear not, O Zion;
    let not your hands grow weak.
    The Lord your God is in your midst,
    a mighty one who will save;
    he will rejoice over you with gladness;
    he will quiet you by his love;
    he will exult over you with loud singing.’”

📜 Timeline & Rapture Clarity

  • Regardless of differing views, the end result is the same:
    ➡️ Jesus will return and make all things new

📖 1 Thessalonians 4:14–16

  • The Greek word for “meet” used here refers to welcoming a dignitary and escorting them back
  • Also see:
    • Matthew 25 – the parable of the bridegroom
    • Acts 28 – Paul being welcomed by fellow believers

We can’t know the day or hour, but we can know the season

Paul encourages us to be informed, to anchor our hope, and not to live in fear

🪨 The Foundation of Our Hope

If Christ is not returning:

  • Loved ones don’t return
  • There is no justice
  • Life becomes meaningless

But:

If Christ rose from the dead, then His words are true, and our hope is alive

  • His return will come like a thief in the night (1 Thessalonians 5:2)
  • Look for birth pains — Jesus said:

📖 Matthew 24:4–14

  • Wars, famines, natural disasters, deception… and the gospel will be preached to all nations

👁️ Signs to Watch

📖 2 Thessalonians 2:1–3

  • Paul describes:
    • A great uprising
    • The rise of the man of lawlessness

➡️ Then Jesus returns

But Scripture tells us not to obsess over predictions, but to allow these truths to shape us spiritually

Jesus’ words are intentionally ambiguous to keep us vigilant

Other Key Verses:

  • Matthew 24:33 – “You know that He is near”
  • James 5:8–9 – “Be patient; the Lord’s coming is near”
  • Romans 13:11 – “Wake from sleep; salvation is nearer now”
  • 2 Peter 3:8–10 – “The Lord is not slow… but patient”

The question is not just, “Is this story true?” but: “Is this reality?”

🛠️ How Then Should We Live?

  • The truth of His return should wake us up immediately
  • We are to live culturally engaged lives — not hiding, but being agents of transformation
  • Anchor hope in the reality of His return

Jesus is at the gate — live like that matters

Why aren’t we excited for the end?

Maybe it’s because it will lay us bare — our true selves exposed

How can we be sure He will accept us?

➡️ This is the power of the gospel:

At the cross, Judgment Day has already come for all who place their trust in the work of Jesus at the cross…The Judge punished the Judge on our behalf

📖 Matthew 27:50–52

  • When Jesus died, the earth shook, the temple curtain tore, and graves opened — signs of end times happened at the cross

If your hope is in Christ, there is no judgment left — it already fell on Him

Only this can turn the future Day of the Lord from fear into hope

🕊️ Final Word

📖 1 Thessalonians 4:13

  • If this is real to us, our lives must reflect that reality

We prepare for the end not by guessing timelines — but by:

  1. Staying spiritually awake
  2. Engaging the world
  3. Feeding our souls on hope

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