C.A.C SUNDAY SCHOOL LESSON For  September 1st, 2019.. That the Scriptures Must be Fulfilled. UNIT I: THE SCRIPTURES ARE GIVEN : LESSON FOUR – IN RELATION TO THE END TIME EVENTS

Because the Omniscient and Omnipotent God has the earth in the hollow of His palm, He alone can rightly tell what would become of it in the nearest and farthest future. His Word is trustworthy.

MEMORY SCRIPTURE
An end has come, the end has come; It has Dawned for you; Behold, it has come!

(Ezekiel 7:6)

Anything that has beginning must have an end. Prophet Ezekiel prophesied the end that was coming upon the land of Israel. God would bring a definite end upon the land, because of the people due to their innumerable atrocities. The prophecy eventually came to pass as the people had to forcefully give up their inheritances to go to exile in the hands of tyrant nations.

Just as it was in Ezekiel’s days, so it would be in our time — the end will come, whether it pleases us or not. Jesus predicted an end, and some of His disciples also did. It is apparent that God’s Word shall not go unfulfilled, no matter what. The world shall definitely come to an abrupt end one day (2 Pet. 3:7). The world, sea, heaven, earth dwellers, and all things in the world will soon cease to exist, by the Word of God. A new chapter would then be opened; there shall be a new heaven and a new earth (2 Pet. 3:13).

The implication is, the end to this universe is the beginning of a new world, where there would be perfect utopia. Will you be there? The only key to not being forever doomed with the present world, like some people perished with the flood in Noah’s day, and so many sodomites were doomed by the conflagration, is to be one of God’s people, billed for the expected new world of God and His Christ. That is exactly what your lot shall be, in Jesus’ name, as you watch out for the end time saga. Amen.

Mon. Aug. 26: God would Favour Jerusalem and Judah (Zech. 12:1-5)
Tue. Aug. 27: God would Restore Israel’s Glory (Zech. 12:6-9)
Wed. Aug. 28: God’s People would Mourn for Him (Zech. 12:10-14)
Thur. Aug. 29: God would Finish Babylon’s King (Isa. 14:4-11)
Fri. Aug. 30: Great Babylon would Fall (Isa. 14:22-23)
Sat. Aug. 31: God would Destroy Assyria and Philistia (Isa. 14:24-32)

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHTS
1. The omniscient God has predicted the events of the end times; we shouldn’t be in the dark.
2. These predictions are God-given signs/marks that signal the much expected and inevitable end. Be sensitive and ready.

AIM: To let us know that God never left us in the dark as touching the inevitable end that would come upon the earth, He gave us the Scriptures to this effect.

OBJECTIVES: At the end of this two-week lesson, the learners should:
i. have begun to show signs of having better understood that the scriptures were given to keep us abreast of the end time events;
ii. be able to defend the need to watch our for end-time events as predicted in the scriptures, and be more prepared not to be caught unawares;
iii. be able to point out that some of these predictions are contained in the Old Testament, while others are found in the teachings of Jesus, and some of His disciples in New Testament; and
iv. have begun to work with these predictions and use them as warning signals to avoid been swept off at the end.

TEXTUAL SOURCE: ISAIAH 11; JEREMIAH 30; 46; 48-50; EZEKIEL 38; ZACHARIAH 12; 14; MATTHEW 24; 1 TIMOTHY 4; 2 TIMOTHY 3; 2 PETER 3

We give all glory and honour to the Ancient of Days for coming to us in a new dimension this time. Hallelujah! Our God is bringing us closer to Himself by making us go through this wonderful and inspirational series of the Sunday school, which boarders on the Scriptures and its fulfillment.

Jesus has said, Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will by no means pass away (Matt. 24:35). Last week, we examined the topic, IN PREPARATION FOR THE MESSAIAH’S COMING, under which we considered the sub-divisions, MESSAIAH WILL COME AND MESSAIAH’S LIFE AND DEATH.

This week, we shall be studying IN RELATION TO THE END TIME EVENTS, which will be dealt with under Old and New Testaments. Both the Old and New Testaments have lots of revelations, insights and information on the end-time. Many prophets were used of God to predict what would take place in the Old Testament. In the New Testament, Jesus foretold how the end of the age would be, and some of His disciples, by the inspiration of God, wrote about what we should expect in the end times. This is the focus of this two-weeks lesson. May the Holy Spirit help us to fully take the teachings of this powerful lesson, and adapt them to our Christian lives as we anticipate the second coming of Jesus Christ, the end of all forms of wickedness and ungodliness, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

This two-week lesson is divided into two parts, I and II, that are further divided into parts A and B, respectively.

DIVISION I: IN THE OLD TESTAMENT
This section is basically on scriptures which are given in relation to the end-times, particularly in the Old Testament. Some of these are given concerning Israel, while some are basically for the other nations, known as the gentiles. The writings of some of the Old Testament prophets, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel and Zechariah, were considered, and their predictions on the end time were gleaned.

DIVISION II: IN THE NEW TESTAMENT
This second division dwells on scriptures given in relation to the end times in the New Testament. The two broad subdivisions are In Jesus’ Words and In His Disciples Writings. Jesus cleared the coast for His disciples and those of us witnessing the end of this age, by predicting some of those things we are to watch out for in the end times. After Him, some of His disciples also gave predictions of the last days, by the Spirit of God.

I. IN THE OLD TESTAMENT
A. CONCERNING ISRAEL
B. CONCERNING THE OTHER NATIONS

I. IN THE OLD TESTAMENT (Isaiah 11:11,12; Jeremiah 30:1-10; 46:27,28; 48-50; Ezekiel 38:1ff; Ezekiel 38:1ff; Zechariah 12:2ff; 14:16-21)
The Bible contains both the Old and New Testaments. The Old Testament or Covenant is a compilation of the books of the law, known as Torah, the writings, the prophets, and the Psalms. The Old Testament has 39 books altogether, out of the 66 books of the entire canonised Scriptures. However, what is more important is that, these books have serious bearings on the end time events.

It shall come to pass in that day that the LORD shall set His hand again the second time to recover the remnant of His people who are left, from Assyria and Egypt, from Pathros and Cush, from Elam and Shinar, from Hamath and the islands of the sea (Isa. 11:11).
i. Israel was the beloved of God, the apple of His eyes (Zech. 2:8), but for her unfaithfulness, God released her into the hands of her enemies, who displaced her from her original inheritance (Ezk. 39:22-24).
ii. Isa. 11:11,12: God would not punish Israel forever. Therefore, He promised to re-gather a remnant of the people from among the nations of the earth. This confirms His love for His people (Jer. 16:14-16; 23:7,8; 29:14; 30:3).
iii. Israel would be re-gathered (cf. Jer. 46:27, 28). God’s love would bring a remnants back to their God-given inheritance. That would eventually happen when God restored their captivity after 70 years in exile. Further fulfillment would still come.
iv. Jer. 30:1-10: God promised to save Israel from all her troubles (Jacob’s time of trouble: v. 7; cf. Dan. 9:24-27).
v. Zech. 12:2ff: There shall be special attention on Jerusalem and Judea. The inhabitants shall enjoy supernatural strength (v. 8)and Spirit of grace and supplications (v. 10).
vi. The nations whose names were mentioned above were not mere imaginary nations. As at then, most of them were mighty nations. Very soon, God shall take His people out of this world of corruption, crime, shame, manipulation, brutality, etc. God’s people do not have an enduring city here on earth. How prepared are you?

B. CONCERNING THE OTHER NATIONS (Jer. 46:27,28; 48-50; Ezk. 38: 1ff; Zech. 14:16-21).
It shall be in that day that I will seek to destroy all the nations that come against Jerusalem (Zech 12:9).
i. Jer. 46:27,28: For I will make a complete end of all the nations… (v. 28a). God promised to bring back His people from the four corners of the earth safely, because He is jealous over His inheritance. So, He pronounced the end of the nations that plundered them.
ii. Chaps. 48-50: God’s judgment would fall upon the nations, one after the other: Philistia (47:1); Ammon (49:1); Edom (49:7ff); Damascus (49:23); and Kedar and Hazor also would face judgment as well as Elam.
iii. 50:1ff: God said it should be proclaimed… Babylon is taken (Babylon will be captured) (NCV). The mighty Babylon was also bidden for great fall.
iv. Ezk. 38:1ff: Since the restoration of Israel means the destruction of those nations, God mobilised against her; Gog and Magog would have their own share for attacking Israel.
v. Zech. 14:16-21: The remnants of the nations shall enjoy the salvation of God, provided they accept God as their Lord and King. They must also be ready to worship Him in Jerusalem and observe the feast (Rev. 21:24-27). This would eventually be full and ultimately fulfilled in Christ.
vi. Every nation that opposes the Son of God, the people of God and the gospel shall not be able to endure the wrath of God, sooner than later. Yet, on nations that acknowledge God, the word of prophecy in Revelations 21:24,26,shall come to pass.

LESSON DERIVED
1. God has sure promised in His Word for His people who are steadfast, to keep them from evil and corruption.
2. The judgment of God stands sure over all the ungodly nations and people of the earth. Don’t mess up with His holiness.

WORK TO DO
The Scripture governs the affairs of all the nations of the earth, godly and ungodly. Discuss.