Participants: Mark Finley
Series Code: 11HC
Program Code: 11HC000010
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00:58 I come
01:01 to the garden alone, 01:06 While the dew 01:09 is still on the roses; 01:16 And the voice I hear, 01:21 falling on my ear, 01:26 The Son of God 01:29 discloses. 01:36 He speaks, 01:39 and the sound of His voice 01:44 is so sweet 01:47 that the birds hush 01:50 their singing; 01:53 And the melody 01:58 that He gave to me 02:02 Within my heart 02:06 is ringing. 02:11 And He 02:16 walks with me, 02:19 and He talks with me, 02:24 And He tells me that I am 02:28 His own, 02:32 And the joy that we share 02:36 as we tarry there, 02:41 None other has ever 02:46 known. 02:51 Just a closer walk with Thee, 02:56 Grant it, Jesus, 03:01 is my plea, 03:06 I want to be daily walking 03:11 close to Thee, 03:16 Let it be, 03:19 dear Lord, 03:21 let it be... 03:27 Let it be, 03:30 dear Lord, 03:32 just let it be. 03:39 What... What a Friend we have 03:44 in Jesus, 03:49 For all our sins 03:53 and griefs to bear! 03:59 And what... 04:02 what a privilege 04:05 to carry 04:10 Ev'rything 04:14 to God in prayer! 04:20 O what peace 04:24 we often forfeit, 04:30 And O what needless pain 04:35 we bear, 04:40 It's all because we do not 04:46 carry 04:51 Ev'rything 04:54 to God in prayer! 05:01 Let's take it 05:05 to the Lord 05:11 in prayer. 05:24 Amen. 05:27 Mark Finley is just about to come to us. 05:30 Hew is a New Englander. 05:32 Comes from the same area of the country that produced 05:34 Ellen Gould Harmon and James Springer White 05:36 and J. N. Andrews and so many of our founding fathers. 05:40 There is something about that stern, staunch New England 05:44 stock that started this church and has kept this church going 05:49 for so many, many years. He, of course, is now the 05:51 assistant to our General Conference president 05:54 and as such goes around the world doing any number of things 05:59 and superintending any number of projects 06:01 for the General Conference. 06:03 We know him as the erstwhile Speaker/Director 06:07 for It Is Written. Evangelist, pastor, 06:10 preacher, teacher, author. 06:12 Has appeared certainly on this network 06:14 many many times and we are so very blessed to have him here. 06:18 Before he brings us the study for the morning 06:21 we have a lovely and very familiar face, 06:24 Melody Shelton Firestone, who is going to be singing. 06:27 We were talking about this song just a little bit ago, 06:30 God's Greatest Glory, and how it got to Melody... 06:33 The long and circuitous route that it made, but 06:35 she does a very, very fine job with this song. 06:38 I've heard other incarnations of this particular song 06:42 but none better than the way Melody does it. 06:45 And so after she shall have sung 06:47 the next voice you will hear then will be Mark Finley. 06:50 And we ask from you for him your prayerful 06:54 and undivided attention. 07:16 In the beginning 07:21 of creation 07:26 when the world 07:29 was formed 07:33 Though God in His splendor 07:38 this world He had rendered 07:43 still the best 07:46 was yet to come. 07:51 God's 07:55 greatest glory, 07:59 the world's 08:04 love story, 08:07 written just for me: 08:17 Jesus 08:21 is God's 08:25 greatest glory. 08:42 From this earth in a manger 08:47 to His death on Calvary, 08:52 He fulfilled 08:55 the Father's plan. 09:00 Jesus Christ 09:04 the sacrifice 09:09 giving hope 09:12 to every man. 09:17 God's 09:21 greatest glory, 09:26 the world's 09:30 love story, 09:33 written just for 09:36 me: 09:43 Jesus 09:47 is God's 09:51 greatest glory. 10:00 Jesus 10:04 is God's 10:08 greatest glory. 10:23 Amen. 10:26 Jesus the Creator is our Redeemer 10:30 and He is our coming King. Amen! 10:33 My topic in this hour 10:36 is Revelation's Triumphant Christ. 10:41 Revelation is the last book in the Bible 10:44 written for the last generation of men and women 10:47 that live on planet earth. 10:50 And you can summarize the entire theme of the book of Revelation 10:54 in four words: 10:57 Jesus wins; Satan loses. Amen! 11:01 As we open the Bible this morning hour, I invite you 11:04 to bow your heads with me. 11:06 Father in Heaven, we thank you 11:08 that the end of the book of Revelation 11:10 is one of glorious climax. 11:14 We thank you that the book of Revelation 11:16 is not filled with fear. 11:19 That its major focus is not on the beast - it's on the Lamb. 11:23 Its major focus is not on a time of trouble 11:26 it is on a time of glory. 11:28 That its major focus is not on imprisonment in death 11:33 it is on eternal life when Jesus comes. 11:35 So today grant us the hope 11:39 as we open the book and we discover 11:43 the triumphant Christ. In Jesus' name, Amen. Amen. 11:47 A number of years ago my wife and I 11:49 lived in St. Albans, England. 11:52 I was the ministerial secretary of the Trans-European Division. 11:56 We had 17 countries in our division. 11:58 And one day I walked into the division office in St. Albans. 12:02 I noticed the London Times and I had a few minutes, 12:04 so I began leafing through that newspaper 12:08 and saw an article in 1989 12:11 about a Seventh-day Adventist church in Bucharest, Romania. 12:15 The church had been destroyed 12:19 by the Communist dictator Nicolae Ceausescu. 12:25 And here's the story: 12:27 Ceausescu said "I need that church 12:31 for a new road that's going to be built. " 12:36 The Adventists said: "If you need the land, 12:39 we certainly are willing to give it to you. 12:41 But give us compensation and give us another location. " 12:47 The Communist dictator said: "Nothing doing! I'm going to 12:49 take your land. I'm going to destroy your church. " 12:51 They appealed again to a higher court. 12:54 "Give us another piece of property. 12:56 Give us some compensation. If the government really needs 12:58 the land, we want to cooperate with the government. " 13:00 Again they said: "We're going to take your church on 13:02 such and such a date. " 13:04 The Adventists, according to the newspaper article, 13:07 gathered in the church. 13:10 The government officials came 13:14 with their bulldozers and their wrecking cranes 13:17 to destroy the church. 13:19 The Adventists were inside of it; they would not leave. 13:21 They were singing hymns praising God. 13:24 And as the article stated, the wrecking cranes 13:28 approached the church but then they hesitated and pulled back. 13:33 Finally Ceausescu, the Communist dictator, 13:37 got dissident criminal elements from the prison. 13:41 They broke the windows of the church, 13:44 knocked down the doors of the church, 13:46 pulled out the Adventists from the church, 13:48 and totally destroyed it. 13:49 The next Sabbath the Adventists came to that site. 13:53 The road had not yet been built, of course. 13:56 Twisted metal; broken glass; smashed concrete. 14:01 And the Adventists sang praises to God and worshiped 14:04 on that site for two or three Sabbaths. 14:06 Finally the site was cleared. 14:08 A new road was built. 14:10 And the Adventists found a little spot 14:12 and worshiped in a tent. 14:14 Well all of this was in my mind in 1989. 14:18 About 10 years later I went to hold a satellite evangelistic 14:24 meeting in Bucharest, Romania. 14:27 We were in an auditorium called Sala Palatului 14:30 which was the Communist Party building. 14:34 I had the opportunity to prepare my sermons 14:37 at the very desk that the Communist dictator 14:40 Nicolae Ceausescu sat at. 14:43 And so when I was there I wanted to trace the story 14:48 of that church. So I began to ask around 14:51 and they said: "Pastor Mark, we have a new church 14:54 that was built after the old one was destroyed. 14:57 Would you like to go and see it? 14:59 It is the most beautiful church in all of Romania. " 15:02 Well that now kind of got my interest up 15:05 because here was a church that was destroyed 15:08 and I wanted to go and meet the members who were in there 15:11 ten years before and interview them. 15:13 And as I went to the church 15:16 I saw this magnificent beautiful edifice 15:19 that the Adventists had built 15:21 after the Communist government had destroyed the church. 15:24 Now here ten years later the Communist government was gone 15:27 but there's this beautiful new Adventist church. 15:29 Do you know what street that new Adventist church is 15:33 built on? A street called Winners Street. 15:37 Do you know what number of Winners Street it was? 15:40 Seven. The Seventh-day Adventists 15:45 were worshiping in a brand new building. 15:48 The Communist government had faded long into insignificance 15:53 and the Adventists were worship- ing on #7 Winners Street. 15:59 With Jesus there are no losers, only winners. 16:02 Take your Bible and turn to Revelation the 12th chapter. 16:05 Revelation chapter 12. 16:08 Revelation chapter 12 is the hinge upon which 16:11 the book of Revelation turns. 16:13 Up until Revelation chapter 12 you have three sequences: 16:17 the seven churches, the seven seals, the seven trumpets 16:20 from Revelation 2 to Revelation chapter 11. 16:23 From Revelation 13 to Revelation 22 16:27 there's a shift in the book of Revelation. 16:29 The first eleven chapters... Chapter 1 in Revelation 16:34 deals with Christ, the all- powerful, triumphant Christ. 16:37 Chapter 2 to chapter 11 deals with the manifestation 16:42 of God's work throughout history. 16:44 The cosmic view of Christ from the first century 16:47 to the last century revealed in three scenarios: 16:51 seven churches, seven seals, seven trumpets. 16:54 From Revelation chapter 13 to 22 we start with end time. 17:00 We look now at the last days of earth's history. 17:02 the mark of the beast. the three angels' message. 17:06 an introduction to the seven last plagues. 17:08 the seven last plagues. 17:10 the fall of Babylon. 17:12 the fall of Babylon. 17:13 the marriage supper of the Lamb and the coming of Christ. 17:16 the millennium. the New Earth 17:20 and 22: the New Earth. So from 13 onward 17:23 you have the last days. Chapter 12 is the hinge 17:26 that connects the first 11 chapters 17:30 and the chapters from 13 to 22. 17:32 Revelation chapter 12 covers four episodes of history 17:37 and I want to look at those four episodes of history. 17:40 If you are here in this local audience, I trust you have 17:43 your Bible. If you are watching on television, 17:45 if your Bible is handy please get it right now. 17:48 Take out a notepad and begin to take some notes. 17:52 Revelation chapter 12 has four great episodes. 17:56 In every episode Jesus wins and Satan loses. 17:59 Revelation chapter 12 takes us down the stream of time 18:02 and looks at the four great episodes of history. 18:05 We begin with Revelation chapter 12 verse 7. 18:09 Revelation chapter 12 verse 7. 18:12 "And the war broke out in heaven. 18:15 Michael and His angels fought against the dragon, 18:19 and the dragon and his angels fought 18:21 and war broke out in heaven. " 18:23 The reason there is war on earth is because there was first 18:26 war in heaven. The reason there is war on earth is because 18:29 there is war down here because there was war up there. 18:33 Isn't it rather strange to think there was war in heaven? 18:38 Usually you don't think of heaven as a place of war. 18:42 You think of heaven as a place of peace. 18:45 When God created heavenly beings 18:49 He gave them the power of choice. 18:51 Because if you take away the power of choice 18:55 you take away the opportunity to love. 18:57 If you take away the opportunity to love, 18:59 you take away the opportunity to be fully happy. 19:02 And so Jesus wanted His creatures and God wanted 19:06 every creature not to be cosmic robots... 19:08 not to be puppets manipulated by a string. 19:11 And so God didn't control the angels by a cosmic control 19:14 center in the center of the universe 19:16 where they had screws in their heads and He took out the screws 19:19 and He popped up the top of their head and He put a computer 19:22 chip in them so they were forced to serve. 19:24 But when you give the capacity of choice you run the risk 19:27 that your beings might make the wrong choice. 19:29 But to take away that capacity of choice 19:31 you deny the opportunity of love and the universe becomes 19:34 governed by an authoritarian dictator. 19:37 So God gave these beings in heaven the power of choice. 19:41 And Lucifer chose to rebel against God. 19:44 He wanted to sit on the throne. 19:46 He wanted to rule his... He began to develop egotistical 19:50 desires and longings, and war broke out in heaven. 19:52 And Michael and His angels fought against the dragon 19:55 and the dragon and His angels fought 19:57 but they did not prevail. " 20:00 The angels of hell did not prevail. 20:03 The rebellious angels that became the angels of hell... 20:07 more accurate to say the angels of heaven that became rebellious 20:10 who we cast down out of heaven... 20:12 these angels did not prevail. 20:14 Those words are critical. 20:16 The evil angels did not prevail in heaven 20:19 and they will not prevail in your life. 20:22 Jesus Christ, the almighty victor, has never lost one 20:27 battle with Satan yet. 20:30 Every time Jesus and Satan battle, Jesus wins 20:34 and Satan loses. They did not prevail. 20:37 "Nor was a place found for them in heaven any longer. " 20:39 Verse 9: "So the great dragon was cast out. " 20:42 The same Jesus who is all powerful, 20:45 who had victory over Satan in heaven, 20:46 will cast Satan out of your life. 20:50 "So the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent 20:53 called the devil and Satan who deceives the whole world. 20:56 He was cast to the earth. 20:59 and his angels were cast out with him. " 21:00 Satan is viewed with two symbols. 21:03 He is the serpent who deceives; he is the dragon who destroys. 21:08 He deceives those whom he's going to destroy 21:10 and destroys those whom he has deceived. 21:13 But here the Bible in verse 7 uses an interesting 21:18 expression. It says: "War broke out in heaven 21:21 and Michael and His angels fought against the dragon... 21:25 the dragon and his angels. 21:27 Let's for a moment meditate on Michael. 21:30 There are many expressions of Jesus in the Bible. 21:34 Jesus is the Lion and the Lamb. 21:37 Jesus is the Lily of the Valley and the Rose of Sharon. 21:41 Jesus is the Bright and Morning Star and the 21:44 Son of Righteousness. 21:45 Jesus is Savior and Christ. 21:48 Jesus is the Bread of Life and the Living Water. 21:51 Jesus is the Rock of Ages and a solid foundation. 21:54 Jesus is our Shepherd and in the Bible He's mentioned as 21:57 the Divine Harvester. 21:59 Why are there so many different titles of Jesus in the Bible? 22:02 Jesus is the Bread of Life because He satisfies our inner 22:06 spiritual longing and hunger. 22:08 Jesus is the Water of Life because He satisfies our thirst 22:11 for purpose and meaning. 22:13 Jesus is the Son of Righteous- ness because He brings warmth 22:16 to our cold hearts. 22:17 Jesus is the Rose of Sharon because He perfumes our life. 22:20 Jesus is the Door because He is the One that we can 22:23 enter into to the Father. 22:25 Jesus is the Good Shepherd because He comes and finds us 22:28 as the Good Shepherd and carries us as prodigals back 22:32 home. Jesus has multiple names given. 22:37 Jesus has so many names in the Bible because His function, 22:40 His work is infinite. 22:41 Now this term Michael is a fascinating term. 22:45 It's only used five times in the Bible. 22:47 Who is this Michael that battles against Satan? 22:51 The first thing we know in Revelation 12 verse 7 22:56 is that Michael has such power, 23:00 He has such strength, that whoever He is 23:03 He can cast Satan out of heaven. 23:06 So this Michael must be all powerful. 23:09 Another clue that we have is the last two letters of the name: 23:13 el. In the Hebrew language 23:16 when a name ends in el it's a derivative of God. 23:20 Elohim is a good example of that. 23:23 El Shaddai is a good example of that. 23:25 When you have El it links you some way to God. 23:29 So whoever Michael is He's linked to God. 23:31 He has all power to cast Lucifer out of heaven. 23:34 Let's look at the other references to Michael. 23:36 We go back and look at Jude - 23:39 the book of Jude - and we find there 23:42 in the book of Jude and verse 9 the second reference to Michael 23:47 in the Bible. Jude verse 9. 23:51 "Yet Michael the archangel in contending with the devil 23:54 when he disputed about the body of Moses dared not 23:57 bring against Him a revealing accusation" - Jude 9- 24:01 "but said: 'the Lord rebuke you. ' " 24:03 So the devil and whoever this Michael is 24:06 argued over the body of Moses. 24:09 You remember Moses died but was resurrected 24:13 from the dead and brought to heaven. 24:15 And in the transfiguration Elijah - who had never died - 24:19 and Moses - who was resurrected from the dead - 24:22 spoke to Jesus to give Him encouragement. 24:25 Who whoever Michael is He has the power to raise 24:28 Moses from the dead. 24:32 Well you say: "Michael is an archangel. The Bible says it. " 24:35 Does an archangel have the power to raise Moses from the dead? 24:38 Does an archangel have the power to cast Satan out of heaven? 24:41 What does the term archangel mean? 24:45 It simply means the Commander in Chief of all the angels. 24:51 Amen. We get a further clue in I Thessalonians chapter 4. 24:55 This is wonderful today. 24:57 I Thessalonians chapter 4... we get a further clue 25:00 about who this Michael is 25:03 and why this term Michael is used in the Revelation. 25:07 I Thessalonians the 4th chapter. 25:09 Do you have your Bible? Those watching on television: 25:10 do you have your Bible out? 25:12 I Thessalonians chapter 4... here we go. 25:14 Verse 16: "The Lord Himself will descend from heaven. " 25:19 Who's going to descend from heaven? 25:21 The Lord Himself. 25:22 Who is that Lord that descends from heaven? Jesus Christ. 25:25 "With the voice of the... " What? 25:27 "archangel and the dead in Christ shall rise first. " 25:30 So here you have the resurrection of the dead, 25:33 Jesus Christ, and the archangel listed together. 25:36 Jesus is not an angel. 25:39 Jesus is not a created being. 25:42 Jesus has existed from eternity past to eternity future. 25:46 But one of the titles of Jesus is the Commander in Chief 25:49 of all the angels because in Matthew chapter 16 verse 27 25:54 when Jesus Christ comes He comes as King of Kings 25:57 and Lord of Lords and He comes with His what everybody? 26:00 Angels. He comes with 10,000 angels. 26:03 Is Jesus an angel? No. 26:05 Is Jesus a created being? No. 26:07 Did Jesus exist from eternity? Yes. 26:09 But is Jesus termed Michael the archangel, meaning 26:14 Archangel, the Commander in Chief of all the angels? Yes! 26:17 Every time Michael is mentioned in the Bible 26:21 it is a war term. It is a war term. 26:24 It is a term to describe Jesus Christ in direct battle 26:29 with Satan as the mighty warrior who commands the angels, 26:34 who cast Satan out of heaven, who raises Moses from the dead. 26:37 Daniel the 10th chapter. 26:39 We have three mentions of Michael in the book of Daniel. 26:41 Three mentions. 26:42 Michael: the almighty warrior. 26:45 Michael: the One who battles Satan. 26:48 Michael: the One who has never lost a bout with Satan. 26:52 Michael: the great victor. Daniel prays. 26:56 The people of Daniel - the Israelites - are in captivity. 26:59 The Babylonian captivity is over. 27:01 The Medo-Persian captivity is continued. 27:03 Daniel prays. He know that the 70-year captivity is over, 27:06 Daniel chapter 10, and he prays 27:09 that the Israelites will go free. 27:13 He prays for three weeks. 27:14 There's no apparent answer to his prayer. 27:17 And as he prays, the angel Gabriel comes down 27:21 to explain to Daniel exactly why his prayer apparently has 27:25 not been answered. 27:26 And Gabriel explains that there has been a battle over the mind 27:29 of Cyrus to sign that decree. 27:32 And then Gabriel says to Daniel, 27:34 Daniel chapter 10 verse 12: 27:37 "Then he said: 'Do not fear, Daniel. 27:41 From the first day you set your heart to understand 27:44 and to humble your heart before your God 27:47 your words were heard, and I have come because of your words. 27:49 But the prince of the kingdom of Persia... ' " 27:51 Who is that? Satan. He's the prince of this world. 27:53 Not the king of Persia, the prince of Persia. 27:56 Jesus said the prince of this world comes but has nothing 27:58 in me. "Withstood me 21 days. " 28:00 So Gabriel said: "Look, you prayed but there was a battle. " 28:03 "We fight not against flesh and blood but against 28:06 principalities and powers of darkness. " Ephesians 6:12. 28:09 And so Gabriel is saying to Daniel: "You prayed. 28:12 Your prayers went up to heaven but there was a battle 28:14 between good and evil angels. " Then he says... 28:16 Here it is: "But the prince of the kingdom of Persia 28:19 withstood me 21 days. Michael... " 28:22 Now some translations say "one of the chief princes" 28:25 but it's better, a more accurate translation, to say 28:28 "the Chief Prince. " And that's what the Hebrew language says 28:31 of the Old Testament: "the Chief Prince. " 28:33 "But the Chief Prince, Michael, came to help me. " 28:36 Jesus... Michael the mighty warrior... 28:40 saw Satan battling over the mind of Cyrus. 28:43 And Jesus Himself came down and beat the angel of hell back. 28:47 He beat Satan back 28:49 and Cyrus signed the decree. 28:51 Notice Daniel chapter 10... 4th mention of Michael. 28:54 Verse 21: "But I tell you truth 28:57 I tell you what is noted in scripture of truth: 29:00 no one upholds against thee except Michael your prince. " 29:05 Michael is the Chief Prince of God. 29:08 The Christ that existed from eternity. 29:10 The One who's never lost a battle with Satan. 29:13 We come to that last days of earth's history 29:16 and earth comes to a climax. There is a time of trouble 29:19 greater than any time of trouble. 29:21 God's people are oppressed and persecuted. 29:23 It looks like they're going to be destroyed by Satan 29:26 but the Jesus that cast Satan out of heaven, 29:29 the almighty Michael, the Commander in Chief of the angels 29:32 the One who prompted Cyrus to sign a decree 29:35 to let Israel go free... this mighty warrior... 29:38 Daniel 12 verse 1: 29:40 "At that time... " at that time - the time of trouble - 29:43 "Michael shall stand up, the great Prince that stands 29:46 with the sons of your people. " Who is this Michael? 29:49 It is Jesus! 29:51 "And there shall be a time of trouble such as never was 29:54 since there was a nation, even to that same time, 29:57 and your people shall be delivered. " 30:00 At end time, in the last moments of time, 30:03 Michael stands up. That mighty prince. 30:08 That mighty warrior that's never lost a battle. 30:11 And He comes to deliver God's people. Amen. 30:15 You and I have a mighty warrior: Michael. 30:20 And when you are going through a struggle, 30:22 when you're going through a battle, 30:24 when the devil is battling for your soul 30:27 and you cry out, if necessary 30:30 Michael will come. 30:32 And the mighty warrior of heaven who commands 30:35 the angels of heaven will send His angels to deliver you. 30:41 Four episodes in the book of Revelation. 30:43 Episode #1: a battle in heaven 30:46 between Jesus, the mighty warrior, 30:50 and Satan and all his angels of hell. 30:54 And in that first battle Jesus wins and Satan loses 30:59 and the mighty warrior triumphs. 31:02 The ages of time go on. 31:05 Four thousand years of human history transpire 31:09 and millenniums pass. 31:13 And centuries roll on 31:16 and the Son of God is going to be born. 31:20 Jesus is going to come into this world as Redeemer 31:24 and Satan gathers together the angels of hell. 31:29 In a council meeting 31:32 in the darkness of the dark regions 31:37 Satan gathers his angels and says: 31:40 "We must destroy that baby. " 31:44 "We must destroy that baby. " 31:47 "This Christ, conceived of the Holy Spirit in the womb of Mary, 31:53 that tabernacles in human flesh, 31:57 must be destroyed. " 32:00 And so a plan was developed 32:05 in the laboratories of hell 32:10 in the council rooms of the evil one 32:13 at the heart of the center of wickedness. 32:17 We read about it... Revelation chapter 12. 32:22 Episode number 2: verse 13. 32:26 "And when the dragon saw that he had been cast 32:31 to the earth, he persecuted the woman who gave birth 32:35 to the male child. " 32:37 Let your eyes drop now to verse 5: 32:42 "And she... " Revelation 12 verse 5 32:45 "she bore a male child. " Who's the male child 32:48 that was to be born? Jesus. 32:51 "She bore a male child who was to rule all nations 32:53 with a rod of iron. And her child was caught up to God 32:57 and the throne. " Jesus was born 33:01 and Satan marshaled the angels of hell 33:04 to destroy this Christ. 33:08 And a decree was passed that all male children be killed. 33:14 But an angel of God appeared to Joseph and Mary, 33:18 the holy family, and said: "Go! Leave this place. " 33:23 And they took the gifts of the wise men: gold, frankincense, 33:26 and myrrh and financed a trip to Egypt. 33:29 And the devil's plan was frustrated. 33:34 And if the devil were a human being he would have pulled out 33:37 his hair! He would have gnashed his teeth 33:41 because he spent centuries developing a plan 33:45 to destroy the Christ child 33:48 and Jesus was preserved as He went to Egypt. 33:54 And the plans of the devil were foiled. 33:57 In episode #2 Jesus wins and Satan loses. 34:04 Jesus has never lost a battle with Satan. 34:08 And the scripture says, Revelation chapter 12, 34:12 that you and I now are in the midst of that battle. 34:16 You and I now are in the midst of that struggle. 34:18 You and I now are in the midst of that conflict. 34:21 Satan lost the battle in heaven. 34:24 Satan lost the battle to destroy Jesus. 34:27 Now the battle wages on earth. 34:29 It wages in your heart... it wages in mine. 34:33 It wages in your soul... it wages in mine. 34:36 But the Bible says good news: verse 11 Revelation 12. 34:39 "And they... " Did what everybody? 34:42 And they did what? 34:44 "overcame him by the blood of the Lamb 34:47 and by the word of their testimony 34:49 and they did not love their lives to death. " 34:51 They overcame him how? Three things. 34:53 One: by the blood of the Lamb. 34:55 Two: by the word of their testimony. 34:58 Three: they did not love their lives unto death. 35:00 They overcame him by the blood of the Lamb. 35:02 What does that mean? Is it a pious platitude? 35:06 Is it some phrase and we just say we overcome him 35:08 "by the blood of the Lamb? " 35:10 What does it mean to overcome by the blood of the Lamb? 35:13 Now notice the text does not say we were saved 35:17 by the blood of a lamb. 35:19 Are we saved by the blood of the Lamb? 35:21 There is no other way to be saved. 35:22 We are saved by the blood of the Lamb. 35:25 Ephesians 2:8. "It's not of works that you have done 35:29 but by grace are you saved through faith. 35:33 It is the gift of God. " 35:35 But the emphasis of this passage 35:37 is not necessarily justification by faith... 35:41 although it's included in the passage. 35:43 It is victory over the powers of hell 35:48 that torment us by the blood of the Lamb. 35:50 How does the sacrifice of Christ on the cross 35:56 provide for us motivation for victory in our lives today? 36:02 How does the shedding of the blood of Christ on the cross 36:06 provide for us victory? 36:10 In two ways. First, 36:13 when I come to the cross and see the divine Son of God dying. 36:19 When I see Jesus condemned for my sins 36:23 in which He had no share 36:24 so I can live His life in which I had no share, 36:28 when I see Him dying the death that was mine 36:31 so I can live the life that was His, 36:34 love breaks my heart. 36:37 And when my heart is broken 36:40 with the love of the cross I want to turn loose 36:43 from anything that breaks His heart. 36:47 I could not possibly think of breaking the heart 36:51 through rebellion of One that loves me so much. 36:55 "For the cross... " Education page 263 36:58 for those of you that have the book... 36:59 "the cross is a revelation... " and I quote 37:02 "to our dull senses of the pain that sin from its very inception 37:08 has brought to the heart of God. 37:10 Every deed of cruelty, 37:13 every departure from right brings grief to Him. " 37:18 How do we overcome through the blood of the Lamb? 37:21 The cross is a revelation to our dull senses 37:26 of the pain that sin from its very inception 37:29 has brought to the heart of God. 37:31 When I know that my critical tongue breaks His heart, 37:36 when I know that my indulgent appetite breaks His heart, 37:40 when I know that my Sabbath breaking or my lack of paying 37:45 tithe or my criticism, my greed, my lust, 37:49 when I know it breaks the heart of the One that loves me 37:51 there is no greater motivation to overcome sin in your life 37:55 than Jesus' love on the cross. 37:58 The joy of heaven and the fear of hell 38:02 are not strong enough to hold you... 38:04 but the cross is. 38:06 We overcome him by the blood of the Lamb. 38:09 The longer we look at Christ on the cross 38:12 the more sin loses its alluring attraction to us. 38:17 But there's something else about the blood. 38:20 We overcome him by the blood of the Lamb. 38:23 I love that old hymn Rock of Ages, cleft for me. 38:29 You know, that was written by Augustus Toplady. 38:32 It was written in 1753. 38:36 That hymn is over 38:40 250 years old. 38:43 You know, there are some ditties that are written today - 38:48 I'd better be careful here 38:50 but I've got myself into it so I'd better keep going - 38:52 they're called 7/11 songs. 38:55 You sing seven words eleven times in eleven verses. 39:01 They're here today and they're gone tomorrow. 39:04 But there are some hymns that endure generations. 39:10 There are some hymns that speak to your heart. 39:13 There's a depth to them. 39:16 There's spiritual meat there! 39:19 Rock of Ages is one of those hymns. 39:21 Old Augustus Toplady, the old preacher, 39:24 as Elder Bradford would say: "the old preacher... " 39:29 "There was an old preacher that once said... " 39:33 That's Bradford... classic Bradford. 39:36 He's sitting in my audience today. 39:37 See, I've got to chide him a little bit. 39:41 Toplady in 1753, he's going down one of those narrow 39:45 gorges in England 39:48 up in a place called Mendip Hills. 39:52 Narrow gorge. It begins to rain, thunder and lightning. 39:56 Water's rushing down the gorge. He thinks he's going to be 39:58 swept away. He sees the cleft of a rock. He hides in it. 40:02 The water is coming down and he's sitting there praying. 40:05 And all of a sudden he thinks of this rock that has stood there 40:09 for the ages that's protecting him. And he takes out a 40:11 piece of paper and these are the words he writes: 40:13 Rock of Ages, cleft for me, 40:16 Let me hide myself in Thee; 40:19 Let the water and the blood, 40:22 From Thy wounded side which flowed, 40:25 Be of sin the double cure... 40:29 The grace of Christ justifies me and the grace of Christ 40:32 sanctifies me. Save from wrath and make me pure. 40:36 Not the labors of my hands 40:39 Can fulfill the law's demands; 40:42 Could my zeal no respite know, 40:44 Could my tears forever flow, 40:47 All for sin could not atone; Thou must save 40:50 and Thou alone. Now listen: 40:52 Nothing in my hand I bring, 40:55 simply to Thy cross I cling; 40:58 Naked, come to Thee for dress, 41:02 Helpless, look to Thee for grace; 41:04 Foul, I to the fountain fly, 41:07 Wash me, Savior, or I die! 41:09 Why does the cross enable us to overcome? 41:14 Because as we come to Jesus His grace is sufficient. 41:18 His grace is not only sufficient to save us from the condemnation 41:21 of sin, His grace is sufficient to deliver us from the bondage 41:25 of sin. Coming to the cross we are immersed in His love. 41:28 Coming to the cross we receive His power. 41:30 Here's the text... Satan is a defeated foe. 41:34 When Jesus hung on the cross Satan was defeated. 41:37 His hold on us is broken. 41:39 In Christ we are victorious! Amen. 41:43 Revelation chapter 12... you look there. 41:45 "And they overcame... " verse 11 "by the blood of the Lamb 41:48 and by the word of their testimony. " 41:51 What does it mean they overcame by the word of their testimony? 41:54 The more you speak negative defeat in your life 41:58 the more you will be negatively defeated. 42:02 The more you speak negative defeat in your life 42:05 the more you will be negatively defeated. 42:08 You speak not only what you think 42:11 but you think what you speak. 42:15 Your speech not only is a reflection of your thought 42:20 patterns but it guides, governs, and shapes who you are. 42:25 We become who we think we are 42:29 and we become what we say. 42:33 Your words every day are shaping you. 42:36 They are making you. 42:37 "They overcame him by the blood of the lamb and the word 42:40 of their testimony. " As we speak of His grace, 42:43 as we speak of His power, 42:44 as we speak of His goodness, 42:46 as we praise Him we become spiritually stronger 42:51 and the devil is defeated in our lives. Amen! 42:55 They overcame him. How'd they overcome him? 42:57 "By the blood of the Lamb. " 42:58 There's only one way to overcome. It's through the cross 43:00 and grace. They overcome him by the what? 43:02 "Word of their testimony. " We speak out grace 43:05 and our hearts are filled with His strength. 43:07 "And they did not love their lives unto death. " 43:10 What does that mean they did not love their lives unto death? 43:13 It means that their allegiance was to Christ. 43:18 Jesus was the priority of their life. 43:22 Jesus was the center of their life. 43:25 "They loved their lives not unto death. " 43:27 A number of years ago a friend of mine who... 43:29 well I'll only give you his first name... 43:31 We'll call him Bob... Robert. 43:35 Robert was in his early 20's, a young preacher in China. 43:38 And I have to be a little careful... I'm going to China 43:40 shortly meeting with a number of our pastors. 43:44 You know we have 400,000 Adventists in China. 43:47 400,000. 43:49 I was in a church some time ago in China - 43:51 the largest Adventist church in the world: 43:53 it has 6,000 members. 43:56 They have 500 lay pastors in that church. 44:01 The preacher made a call, an appeal, the day I was there 44:04 and 400 people came forward for baptism in the church. 44:07 The Spirit of God is being poured out in China. 44:10 Robert was in his early 20's. He was leading a youth meeting. 44:15 He was a youth leader... an Adventist youth leader... 44:17 a young pastor a number of years ago and he was arrested. 44:19 And his prison sentence ultimately became 28 years. 44:24 He was in solitary confinement for the first eight years. 44:28 He was in a cell... At first they put him in a holding cell 44:32 but after four months they put him in solitary confinement. 44:36 He was in a cell 4'x8'. 44:40 For four years he had no communication with his family 44:43 and after solitary confinement for four years - he was in 44:45 solitary confinement as I mentioned eight years - 44:47 he could write 30 Chinese characters once a month 44:49 to his family. His story is absolutely incredible. 44:53 Incidentally, he was engaged to be married when he was 44:55 put in prison, and his wife-to-be waited 28 years 44:59 and married him when he came out of prison. 45:01 I mean that's love... that's love. 45:04 When he went into prison the first day he was in prison 45:08 they put him in a cell with three other prisoners. 45:12 And each of these other prisoners were shaved bald 45:15 and they were older men. And they said to this young man 45:18 "As long as they don't shave you, it's good news. 45:22 You'll probably be here a short period of time. 45:24 They'll hold you and intimidate you. 45:26 He had no idea he'd be there 28 years. 45:29 And so the first week he didn't get shaved. He was really happy. 45:32 Second week not shaved. Third week not shaved. 45:34 A month went by... he wasn't shaved. 45:36 Two months by... not shaved. Three months by, and it was 45:38 Christmas day, December 25th, 45:41 and they said: "The authorities want to see you. " 45:44 And he said: "This is fantastic. 45:45 I am going to be released today! " 45:49 And they put him in a barber's chair on Christmas day 45:52 and shaved him bald. 45:54 He said: "When I got up from my chair 45:57 I looked back at the chair 45:59 and there was hair all over the floor. " 46:02 And I thought: "This is Christmas day. 46:05 I will be here for decades. " 46:07 And he looked up and he said: "Jesus, I have nothing 46:11 to give You today except my hair. 46:15 And this hair is a gift to Jesus today. 46:19 That everything I have is Yours. " 46:23 He loved not his life unto death. 46:27 If there is anything in your life 46:30 that you are holding back from the living Christ, 46:34 anything... the devil will use that to destroy your soul. 46:40 Is there anything hidden, lurking in your heart? 46:44 Anything you have not given to Him? 46:46 Episode #1- Christ cast Satan out of heaven. 46:51 Episode #2- Christ is triumphant over Satan on earth. 46:56 Episode #3- the long ages go on. 46:59 And as these long ages go on the devil focuses attention 47:03 on the church and he tries to destroy it. 47:06 But they overcome him through the cross. 47:08 They overcome him because they speak of the grace and power 47:11 of God. They overcome him because they don't have secret 47:15 chambers in their heart. They're not living duplicity... 47:18 They're not living lives of duplicity. 47:20 They're not hypocrites saying one thing but having sin 47:24 and rebellion lurking in their hearts. 47:27 "They loved not their lives to death. " 47:29 They gave Him their lives. 47:32 Episode #3- down through the centuries these people are 47:35 victorious. Look here, please. Revelation chapter 12 verse 14: 47:41 "But the woman... " Throughout the Bible as you're 47:44 well aware the woman is the bride of Christ, the church. 47:47 Verse 14: "But the woman was given two wings of a great eagle 47:50 that she might fly into the wilderness 47:52 where she is nourished for time, times, and a half a time 47:55 from the face of the serpent. " 47:56 Verse 15: "So the serpent spewed water out of his mouth 48:01 like a flood after the woman 48:02 that he might cause her to be carried away by the flood. 48:06 But the earth helped the woman and the earth opened its mouth 48:09 and swallowed up the flood which the dragon spewed out 48:12 of its mouth. " Let your eyes go back now to verse 6... 48:15 verse 6. 48:17 "Then the woman fled into the wilderness... " 48:20 Who's the woman? The church. 48:21 "where she had a place prepared by God that they should feed her 48:25 there 1,260 days. " 48:28 1,260 days. In the Bible one prophetic day 48:32 equals a literal year. 48:34 So the devil turns his attention upon the church. 48:37 He was cast out of heaven. He couldn't destroy Jesus. 48:39 And during the Dark Ages, century after century 48:43 church and state unite. There is fierce persecution. 48:46 But here's what I'd like you to see in the text. 48:48 The Bible says the woman, the church, the bride of Christ 48:51 flees into the wilderness. 48:54 And there's a place prepared by God. 48:57 In persecution, in trial, in difficulty 49:02 there is always a place prepared by God. 49:05 Amen. 49:07 In the trauma of life, in the heartache of life, 49:10 when cancer afflicts your body, 49:13 when the finances go south and you're struggling, 49:17 when things in your life are not going well, 49:20 there is good news. The Christ that cast Satan out of heaven, 49:26 the Michael, the all-powerful Jesus, 49:30 the Jesus that was victorious over Satan in His life, 49:34 the Jesus that's been with His people down through the ages, 49:37 the Jesus that prepared a place for His people 49:42 through the Dark Ages, that Jesus has prepared 49:46 a place for you. Rock of Ages, cleft for ME. 49:51 Let me hide myself in THEE. 49:55 Thank God Jesus was victorious in heaven. 49:57 He's the mighty warrior. 49:59 Thank God Jesus was victorious there 50:04 at His birth when Herod tried to destroy Him. 50:06 He's the Mighty Conqueror. 50:08 Thank God that down through the ages 50:11 Jesus has been victorious. He's the Mighty Warrior. 50:16 Revelation 12 verse 17 comes to a climax. Here we are: 50:20 "The dragon... " Who's the dragon? Satan. 50:23 "was enraged with the woman... " Who's the woman? 50:25 The church. "and went to make war 50:27 with the rest of her seed or offspring 50:29 that keep the commandments of God 50:31 and have the testimony of Jesus Christ. " 50:33 What is the testimony of Jesus? 50:35 The word testimony is a witness. 50:36 So just as God's last-day church 50:39 would keep His commandments it would have a witness: 50:41 the prophetic gift for Jesus in the last days. 50:44 So Jesus would have a remnant, end-time people 50:47 characterized by keeping His commandments because they were 50:50 saved by grace so they overcame the temptations of Satan. 50:55 And they were guided by a prophetic witness 50:57 in the last days. But notice the text. 51:00 "The dragon was enraged with the woman 51:03 and went to make... " What? "war. " 51:05 We are entering into earth's last war. 51:10 But look! The good news is 51:13 we have read the last chapter of the book. 51:17 Amen. 51:18 Revelation 17. We already know the outcome. 51:22 We already know who's going to win. 51:25 We already know that down through the ages 51:28 Jesus has not lost one battle and He will not lose one battle. 51:34 Revelation chapter 17. 51:36 We look there at verse 14. Here it is: 51:40 Revelation 17 verse 14. 51:42 "These will make war with the Lamb. " 51:46 Who is the these that will make war with the Lamb? 51:48 Revelation 17: the woman riding on a scarlet-colored beast. 51:52 Church and state unite. 51:53 The Bible says that they have one mind. Verse 13: 51:57 "And they give their power and strength to the beast. " 51:59 So there is this one-mindedness. 52:03 Church and state unite in the last days of earth's history. 52:06 God's people cannot buy; they cannot sell. 52:09 A death decree hangs over their head. 52:12 But we're not looking at the time of trouble. 52:15 We're not looking at some death decree when human beings 52:18 cannot buy or sell. 52:19 We are looking beyond the trauma to the victory. 52:22 Revelation 17 verse 14: "These will make war 52:27 with the Lamb and the Lamb will overcome them 52:31 for He is Lord of Lords, He is King of Kings, 52:36 and those that are with Him are called and chosen 52:38 and faithful. " 52:39 A dragon and a Lamb fight and the Lamb wins! 52:44 Amen! The Lamb wins! 52:46 Revelation chapter 19. 52:48 Revelation chapter 19. 52:50 Here we have it... verse 11: 52:56 "Then I saw heaven opened 52:58 and behold the white horse. And He who sat on him 53:02 was called Faithful and True. " 53:04 Jesus Christ is faithful; Jesus Christ is true. 53:09 He is the triumphant Christ 53:12 that defeated Satan in heaven and cast him out. 53:15 He is the triumphant Christ who could not be touched 53:18 by Satan on earth. 53:19 He is the triumphant Christ who's guided His people 53:23 and prepared a place for them in the Dark Ages. 53:25 He is the triumphant Christ who will have victory at last! 53:30 Amen. 53:32 Revelation 19 verse 11: "Then I saw heaven 53:34 opened and behold a white horse and He who sat on him 53:37 was called Faithful and True 53:39 and in righteousness He judges and makes war. " 53:42 Verse 16: "And He has on His name... 53:46 on His robe and on His thigh a name written: 53:49 KING OF KINGS, LORD OF LORDS. " 53:54 We are on the winning side! Amen! Get your mind off defeat. 54:00 Get your mind off pessimism. 54:02 "Pastor Finley, troublous times are coming. " 54:07 "The mark of the beast is coming! " 54:09 "I am so frightened. " 54:12 You can look at all the beasts you want, 54:14 I'm looking at Jesus Christ. Amen! 54:16 My heart is filled with hope. 54:18 I've read the end of the book - Amen - 54:21 and it tells me Jesus wins! Satan loses. 54:26 Can you say that with me tonight? 54:27 Amen. Today, wherever you are in television, here. 54:31 Four words. What are they? Together: 54:33 Jesus wins; Satan loses. 54:37 Praise God! I want to be faithful, don't you? 54:40 Amen. I want to be faithful. 54:45 Jesus is going to win. 54:47 Satan is going to lose. 54:51 The only question is: will you be faithful? 54:56 Would you like to make that commitment right now 54:58 that you're going to be faithful to Jesus? 54:59 Wherever you are, you can raise your hand 55:01 and bow your head. Let's pray. Father in Heaven, 55:03 thank you that Jesus wins. 55:06 Thank you that Satan loses. 55:08 May those four words fill our hearts with hope. 55:10 In Christ's name, Amen. |
Revised 2014-12-17