Hello and welcome to one on one. We are so pleased that you've chosen Christian programming to be in your homes and we are honored and blessed that you have chosen us, Buddy and Veronica McLaughlin, to come and to break the bread of life with you and bring the good news. And yes, it is the good news of the gospel, this wonderful technology and wherever you're hearing this from. Just thank you for carving out the time.
We do respect the fact that you are carving this time out of your busy days to let us share with you some beautiful nuggets that God gives us through our days and through our nights to come and to hopefully make your walk on this earth much more pleasurable, much more enjoyable, and just get to drink in the beautiful word of God. It's a we have to have it each and every day. If we didn't eat food, of course we'd weigh a lot less, but we would be emaciated. I can't imagine going through a day with not listening to Christian ministers and programming, not listening or reading the word of God, not praying.
I mean, it sustains us. God's word sustains us through this journey. So I love also listening and watching Christian programming and it encourages me. It lifts me up.
It makes me, gives me sermons that I get passionate about. I'm like, I'm ready to go out there and preach again. I'm not hearing with our friends who are also ministry and are prophetic ministers. They're all saying that the best is yet to come, that we're getting ready to go into some of the greatest times that the church has ever seen.
That's why we've gone through these hard things. The church is praying. I know like never before. I mean, we've gone through some hard trials.
But God has been shaping and molding us and making us into the men and women for his children so he can use us for this time because we're going to wind this thing up soon. We know that Jesus is coming soon and we know that there's going to be a great harvest to happen before that happens. He's gotten us already for the harvest. But we know that we're going to, as my grandfather would preach, it's winding down, times winding down and there's going to be a conclusion.
There's going to be an end for all good things we've always heard. All good things are has to come in and well, there will be a time that this world will be no more. There will be a time that we are in heaven. There will be a time and that's what we are preparing for.
That's why you're watching Christian television. That's why we are preparing ourselves for this great harvest because there is a great conclusion at hand. Well, you know, this should be titled Veronica because Veronica is all about the conclusion. I am last chapter the book first.
It is. Into the movie first. I need to know. If you ever want to be a spoiler, you cannot be a spoiler to Veronica.
You are her best friend because you'll give her the conclusion. Yes, I want to know. I don't like surprises. Even at Christmas, I sneak in and I used to.
I don't do that anymore. She buys her own presents now. I do. I do.
I don't like to be disappointed. But as a kid, we'd always celebrate Christmas on Christmas Eve and so the presents were out there. I mean, it was too tempting. So I would go in and very carefully unwrap and I'd look at it, sometimes even play with it and then I would wrap it back up and then really act surprised when I opened it.
So, you know, I kind of, I'm a spoiler. But I'm telling you that the end of the book is really good. We know what's going to happen and we win. You know, in our life is that we love to know how it's going to wind up and we've heard all of our lives that you know, this thing is going to wind up and we do believe from everything that we're being told, we're reading, we're seeing that, you know, it is.
It really is. Yes. Recently, I had to preach a funeral, unfortunately. And thank goodness it was at a time when we could get together again.
That I'm telling you, it's been a, the enemy has really tried to steal everything from God's people and not even letting us fellowship when we, when goes on home to share the memories and the, and the treasures about those beautiful people. But, but when I was there, you know, I talked about the conclusion of life and a new beginning. You know, with every ending, there's a new beginning. When something ends, something else begins and our life is no different.
And if you've got your vibles, we're going to lead off in, in Revelations chapter 21. And God's Word tells us now I saw a new heaven and a new earth. For the first heaven and the first earth had passed away. And there was no more sea than I, John saw the holy city, New Jerusalem coming down out of heaven from God prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.
And I heard a loud voice from heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men and he will dwell with them and they shall be his people and God himself will be with them and be their God. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There should be no more pain for the former things have passed away than he who said on the throne, said, Behold, I make all things new.
He said to me right for these words are true and faithful. And he said to me, it is done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give the fountain of waters of life freely to him who thirsts.
He who overcomes, shall inherit all things and I will be his God and he will be my son. You know, that's very comforting to hear this beautiful revelation of New Jerusalem coming down, replacing all this mess that we have we deal with each and every day. But there'll be no more sorrow, no more pain, no more crying. You know, it's wonderful to be assured of these things.
But you know, we're on the journey. The rest of us that remain, you know, we were all there around that gravesite, all that remained and we had to move on from there and fight the good fight of faith each and every day. You know, Veronica, it's the conclusion of this day leads right into a next day. And for all of us who were there at that gravesite, there was a next day and that next day brought all the challenges that we had before.
None of the debt was wiped away there at the gravesite. None of the diseases that people came with, they left with, you know, all the things that happened to us or we were engaged in or we're dealing with were the same and we walked away from that gravesite. The only one who really didn't have to carry that back was the one who went on to be with Lord. I'm going to tell you that was one of the most beautiful funerals I've ever had to preach because the life that that person lived was truly a life of giving, of sharing, of loving, really a beautiful thing to be able to stand there.
But we all had to face the next day because we were still going toward the conclusion of our lives. Right. So my best friend, Jackie Hiss, went on to be with the Lord about a year ago and I remember preaching her funeral standing at that gravesite knowing I had the hope of knowing how I was going to see her again, even though I was so hurt, I was so broken. I knew that she was in her glorified body.
I knew that she was smiling down on us. And you know, the good thing buddy, there will be a day that you nor I will have to preach another funeral, that we will have a new heaven and we will have a new earth. There will be no more tears. There will be no pain.
There will be no suffering. We will be in the presence of the Lord forever and we will be able to enjoy that forever. But we have to keep going in this life. Our conclusion isn't finished.
Our story isn't written. And when it's written and the book is closed, then we'll be on to be with the Lord. The Bible says to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord. That's when we believe and we're believers in Jesus Christ that we will be in His presence, that the last breath we take here, the next breath will actually be in His presence.
Oh, and what a joy to know. What a joy to know that when we live this life that we have something to look forward to. Now I'm a person that I have to have something to look forward to. I love to plan.
I love to look forward to trips. I love to look forward to to anniversaries and birthdays. I mean, I celebrate birthday all month long. I love to have something to look forward to.
Well, we know that we're going to have something grand to look forward to, to be in the presence of God. And John said, I saw a new city coming down Jerusalem. I saw all of this. And he said it was prepared like a bride adorned for her husband.
It was perfect. Everything that God has prepared for us is perfect. I remember having a dream about heaven. I had prayed for a dear lady whom I loved.
She was a pastor's wife and she had cancer. And we just prayed for her healing. And then she was not healed here in this earth. God took her home.
And I remember praying and crying out to the Lord and really questioning some things. And I remember that night that God gave me a beautiful dream. And I was in a beautiful land. And I was standing there.
And there was an angel standing beside of me. And I was looking at this beautiful city that was in a meadow with grass. The grass was too green to even tell you the colors there that my dream I can't even explain to you. But the city was so tall.
And it was gold. And the city was translucent gold. It was like you could see through it. And I was looking on and I was looking all around.
And I knew that God had prepared this place for us. It was a new city, Jerusalem coming down. And he said, look what I have prepared for you and for everyone who loves me. Look and I didn't travel into the city.
I was just gazing there. The angel didn't allow me to travel into certain parts. I saw the streams. I saw trees.
I saw animals. Animal lovers. I want you to know yes, all dogs do go to heaven. God loves his creatures.
God loves animals. God loves everything that he has created here for us to enjoy. And when I woke up the next morning, I was so uplifted. I was so encouraged knowing that my friend was there and she was enjoying the presence of God and being in that beautiful city.
So buddy, when you read the scripture and what John had a revelation, that's what revelation is all about. God gave him the revelation on the Isle of Patmos of what was getting ready to happen. And he said, you know, I saw this new Jerusalem. Well, I think I had a revelation in that dream that I saw this beautiful city, Jerusalem, the beautiful tall buildings, bigger than New York City, but more beautiful and translucent that God has prepared for us.
And even Jesus told his disciples, he said, listen, I've gone to when I leave this place, I'm going to go to prepare a place for you. And my father's house are many places, are many mansions. You know, we're going to live there with him. We're going to enjoy the same things here that we are enjoying there.
What a great conclusion. You know, really, when my grandmother went home to be with the Lord, we called it a life celebration. Even though our hearts were broken that she wasn't here, we were celebrating her life and celebrating that she had made it all into that beautiful place. You know, when we're standing there and we're preaching those funerals and we're standing at that grape side, it's hard to celebrate.
But oh, if we could just tear back the curtain and we can just see them and they are celebrating in the presence of the Lord. No more illness, no more cancer, no more arthritis, no more diabetes, no more of those illnesses that the enemy has plagued us with, that's not going to be in heaven. And we can enjoy that forever and ever. What a great beginning of an ending.
You know, the conclusion is a beautiful thing. When you look at what Jesus has in store for each and every one of us, and yes, you know, we're talking about funeral, we're also talking about life. Because everyone that attends that funeral, they walk away and they go to their homes and I hope that each person has a purpose in their life. Because we all are going to find that conclusion at one time or another.
It's going to happen. We are going to make this journey and this journey is going to draw down. And we have so many opportunities along the way to give encouragement, to give hope, to give everyone to understand that they have a purpose in life. They have a beautiful destiny in store for them.
If they've come to know the Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior as their personal Lord and Savior. And that was a hard thing for me to understand because I was on a little different journey. My journey was pretty much a pleasure field journey, one that I was making up as I went, trying to find what it was that would make me the happiest and would make me have the most enjoyment in life. You know, Solomon was a whole book in Ecclesiastes dedicated to Solomon's journey in life.
And his journey in life was filled with everything. I mean, he tried it all. And not just tried it all. He really embellished each and everything, the pleasure, the power, the wealth, all the things that we think we can enjoy.
You know, mine was more along the lines of pure self-indulge me and overindulge me. I mean, I was pretty much, I thought the conclusion of my life that I was driving each and every day was to find this utopia of personal happiness. And I didn't know what was involved. It was going to make me happy, but I was going to search it out along the way until I figured it out.
And it was kind of an arguous journey. And thank goodness there were people who loved me and guided me, even when I didn't want to be loved and guided along the way to try to explain to me what the difference of that type of journey is versus a fulfilling type of a journey. And once I realized that there was a difference, and I found that in Jesus Christ, that was the difference that it made in my life, to get me to turn my life around, literally, literally to turn my life around because I was driving myself hard down the road knowing there's going to be a conclusion at some point in time. I wouldn't look for the grand conclusion.
I was living kind of for the weekend. We've heard that song, living for the weekend, and that was kind of my life. And if that weekend didn't give me the satisfaction that I felt like I was looking for, then I just conclude that week and be living for the next weekend and the next weekend and the next weekend. And this went on for years, literally for years in my life.
And many of you are starting to pick up your life and my life being very similar. It's not my life now, but it was my life for many years. And Jesus stepped in at one time because people led me down that road. They loved me down that road.
And I finally, you finally clicked. It finally hit. And I found fulfillment. I found being made whole.
Understanding that the conclusion of life is really a beautiful thing, that we can find our way there with Jesus as our God, with Jesus leading us along the way. Solomon found that same thing. Solomon was the wisest man that ever lived. You know, sometimes we need to take our lessons from people who have done it before, have done it the right way and have recorded it.
We can learn from that and not have to make the same mistakes. Well, I wasn't quite that intelligent. I guess the wisdom part of Solomon's journey, I didn't get very well because I did a lot of dumb things over and over and over again. But Solomon, when he went through this entire chapter, and I encourage you to get in Ecclesiastes and read it because it's really interesting.
It'll take you through that journey that comes to a conclusion. And he comes to a conclusion that is so beautiful, is so simple and so true that I want you to understand that if you'll just let this encapsulate your life, let you be a part of this, of what he concludes that life is really all about. All the vanities that he pulled out of the air, that he wanted to try, be engaged, be involved and do. And it's literally everything that you can think of.
He tried it and he draws a conclusion which is very interesting. In the very last chapter, Ecclesiastes 12 verse 13 and 14 says, let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter. After God, keep his commandments for this is man's all. And it goes on to say, for God will bring every work into judgment, including everything, whether good or evil.
Now that's a conclusion I want you to stop and think about right now. We'll bring everything into judgment, not Buddy McLaughlin, not the local pastor at the church, not your best friend, not your mother, not your father, not your wife, not your children, not your employer, not the IRS or the government. The part is going to be brought into judgment. It's going to be your life, the conclusion of your life with the Lord.
Everything that we do, either good or evil, we brought into judgment. And that judgment seat has two sides to it. One will be that he says, welcome in my good and faithful servant. Or he will say, I don't know you.
That's it. It's that simple and it's that clean. That's the conclusion will be one or the other. And yes, we've got this great journey to get to the conclusion, but that conclusion will be one or the other.
We can be in heaven or we can be in hell. We can stop right now and we can say, God, I don't want to go down that road. Yes, I'm driving my life to the wrong conclusion. I see it now.
And all you have to do to correct this, to get on the right road to get you to a conclusion that you'll be so pleased with. And people will help you along the journey. It's not a solo journey. Yes, when we stand before God, it's us, just me and God, you and God.
That's it. The longest journey, there are good God. The people will want to help us along the way. But the first thing you have to do is receive him into your heart, allowing to be the Lord of your life.
And say, God, forgive me of my sins. Forgive me Lord. I know I'm a sinner. I know you died on the cross for my sins.
You were buried in your rose from the third day. Forgive me and make me new. It's really that easy. And now you're stopping.
You're putting your life on pause for one moment, getting rid of all the baggage, all the garbage, all the ugly stuff, all the self-fulfilling, self-indulging things that are not good. And you're letting those go. And you're picking yourself up and you're heading down this path to fulfillment, to a beautiful, beautiful tomorrow, to a beautiful, not only tomorrow, but eternity. That's what we're living for.
That conclusion that John the Revelator talked about is where I want to be. Where I want to be. That's where I always wanted to be. I just didn't understand how to get there.
I thought I had to fish my way through all these other things, just as Solomon didn't acclesiastes. He had to wind his way through this crazy journey of fishing and looking and searching and trying to find. And when he finally found it, I want to repeat it to you one more time. Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter.
Fear God. Keep his commandments. For this is man's all. And it goes on to say, for God will bring every work into judgment, including everything good or evil.
And I just praise God now that you've chosen that path. I praise God that you've made that choice, that you haven't been foolish any longer with your life. It's a great life. It's a great way to live.
Yes, every good thing must end. But you know what? When you live for God, when you live for the Lord, when this good life ends, we have a better way to live. It just gets good or in good or it's what?
And before John saw that Holy City in Revelation 2011 said, then I saw a great white throne and him who said on it, from whose face the earth and heaven fled away. And there was found no place for them. And I saw the dead, both small and great, standing before God. And the books were opened.
And another book was opened, which is the Book of Life. And the dead were judged according to their works by the things which were written in those books. The sea gave up the dead who were in it and death and Hades were delivered up and were cast into them. And they were judged each and every one of him according to his works.
Then death and Hades were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death and anyone not found, and let me reiterate that, anyone not found in the Book of Life was cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. It is all appointed in demand once to die.
And then when we die, we will be judged according to our works and according to what God has placed in our hearts. And if our name is not written in the Book of Life, if you have not accepted Jesus as your Lord and Savior, it says, not me. I'm not saying this, but the Bible says they were cast into the lake of fire. And then in chapter 21 and verse 6, God from his throne said it is done.
Now that's the conclusion. It's over. The matter is settled. It doesn't, there's no second chance.
It's over. It's done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give the fountain of the water of life freely to him who thirsts and he will overcome, shall inherit all things and I will be his God and he shall be my son.
Conclusion, end of story. If you've accepted Jesus Christ into your life, it's done. He's the beginning and the end. He will give the water of life freely.
If you're hungry, if you thirst after him, all you have to do is receive him and the great thing is he is our God and we are his children forever and ever. And the matter is settled. Isn't it good to know that when you've accepted Jesus into your heart that it's done? God says it's over.
Your name is written into the Lamb's Book of Life. Oh, how important it is. And I'm telling you, when we preach those sermons and we're at those funerals and we're standing by the graveside and we know the ones who have given their hearts to Jesus Christ, we can rejoice. It has been sad times for each of us and we have questioned, did they really know God?
We're not their judge, only God is, but did they accept Jesus into their hearts? It's not so pleasant standing there, but there's something great. There is another world that's waiting for us and those who love him, those who have believed him, those who have stood upon his word given their lives for him. It goes on to say, you know, even in revelations, the martyrs are there.
They overcame by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony. Let's have a testimony today. The conclusion of the matter is is that he lives in our hearts. It's been an honor to come into your homes.
We look forward to joining you this time again next week. Until then, remember, God is always faithful. Hello everyone. Veronica and I would like to thank you so much for partnering with Deaf Song Ministries through these many years.
We appreciate your support, your love. We look forward each week to coming and being a part of your life in your homes. Bring you God's Word. We are so humbled to receive your praise reports of salvation, of healing and restoration.
We are excited to take this gospel across the world. We know this next season is bringing great harvest for his glory. Thank you and remember, the best is yet to come.