Participants: Shawn Boonstra (Host), Melissa Bradshaw, John Bradshaw
Series Code: 17ASIC
Program Code: 17ASIC000013A
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00:20 If you were to kindly turn in your Bibles
00:23 with me to Jeremiah 10, 00:26 we're going to read verses 10 and 11. 00:29 Jeremiah 10:10-11, 00:35 "But the Lord is the true God, 00:38 he is the living God, and an everlasting king. 00:42 At his wrath, the earth shall tremble, 00:45 and the nations shall not be able to abide his indignation. 00:51 Thus shall ye say unto them, the gods that have not made 00:55 the heavens and the earth, 00:57 even they shall perish from the earth, 01:00 and from under these heavens. 01:03 He hath made the earth by his power, 01:06 he hath established the world by his wisdom, 01:10 and hath stretched out the heavens by his discretion." 01:20 Good morning, everyone. 01:23 It is my pleasure, my distinct pleasure 01:24 to introduce to you the speaker of the hour. 01:28 It was perhaps longer ago than he would care to admit, 01:33 while as a student at the University of Victoria, 01:36 a public university in British Columbia, Canada 01:41 that Shawn Boonstra's life was changed. 01:46 Having watched a television program 01:48 hosted by It Is Written's George Vandeman, 01:51 he became anxious to learn more 01:54 about this thing called the Bible. 01:56 Raised in a church family, he by this stage of his life 01:59 was not what he would describe as a Christian. 02:03 After watching the It Is Written broadcast, 02:05 he attended an evangelistic series, 02:07 there he met Jesus and his life was changed. 02:11 Changed to a degree that he had to do 02:14 something about 02:16 and something with this Jesus he had met. 02:20 Not content to be a pew warmer, 02:23 not content to be a casual cultural Christian. 02:27 Shawn Boonstra was touched by God 02:31 and moved by God to enter a life of ministry. 02:34 He's dedicated his life 02:36 to preaching the three angels' messages 02:39 on every continent on the planet 02:42 with the exception of Antarctica, 02:45 and it might be that he has plans 02:48 for Antarctica. 02:50 He has held evangelistic meetings 02:51 in every corner of the globe. 02:52 Under his ministry God has led many, thousands. 02:56 The number is frankly is immaterial 02:57 but a large number of people to faith in Jesus Christ. 03:01 He believes in sharing Jesus with all of his heart 03:03 and in empowering others to do the same, 03:06 which is why now 03:07 as the speaker and director of It is... 03:11 I beg your pardon, of Voice of Prophecy. 03:15 Too many TV programs. 03:17 I couldn't have done that if I tried. 03:18 I'm so sorry. 03:20 As the speaker, director of Voice of Prophecy, 03:24 a media evangelism ministry based in Loveland, Colorado, 03:28 Shawn is active in not only proclaiming 03:30 the risen Christ 03:32 but in also resourcing others and training others 03:35 that they too can be heralds of the everlasting gospel. 03:39 So in just a moment I ask you to be prayerful for 03:42 and expecting that God will speak through 03:44 this morning's speaker 03:46 Voice of Prophecy's Pastor Shawn Boonstra. 03:49 Let's pray. 03:51 Why don't we bow our heads for prayer? 03:53 Loving heavenly Father, 03:54 we have come and gathered in Your presence. 03:57 I pray that Your Holy Spirit will rest upon us 04:00 and attend Shawn as he speaks to us Your words. 04:03 In Jesus' name, amen. 04:12 Let not your heart be troubled 04:18 Ye believe in God and in me 04:25 In my Father's house are many mansions 04:32 I'll go to prepare a place for thee 04:39 The Lord is coming 04:42 Are you ready? 04:46 The Lord is coming 04:49 Are you ready? 04:53 Would your heart be right 04:58 If he came tonight? 05:03 The Lord is coming 05:06 Are you ready? 05:11 Why will you wait my brother? 05:16 Promises of God all are true 05:23 Jesus bought your life on Calvary's mountain 05:30 And soon He will come again for you 05:37 The Lord is coming 05:40 Are you ready? 05:44 The Lord is coming 05:47 Are you ready? 05:51 Would your heart be right 05:56 If he came tonight? 06:01 The Lord is coming 06:04 Are you ready? 06:08 The Lord is coming 06:11 Are you ready? 06:16 Would your heart be right 06:21 If he came tonight? 06:25 The Lord is coming 06:32 Are you ready? 06:44 Amen! 06:50 I love that song. 06:53 It's one of the first songs I heard after becoming 06:55 a part of the Seventh-day Adventist movement. 06:59 I was so excited, 07:00 I asked if they'd let me join the chorus 07:02 but for 25 years 07:04 I've been getting a "no" to that question. 07:08 Our theme this year at ASI is Called, 07:11 Chosen, Committed and so I think this morning, 07:15 I want to spend a few minutes with you talking about 07:17 one key aspect of what that means, 07:19 just one little sliver of it. 07:22 Our text in the moment is going to be 07:24 2 Thessalonians 2. 07:28 I know a few of you noticed on the way 07:29 and, "Shawn, you're wearing a tie." 07:31 Yes, I am. Don't get used to it. 07:37 If they hand out ties in heaven gentlemen, 07:41 would that be disappointing, yes or no? 07:45 2 Thessalonians 2, let's pray. 07:47 Father in heaven, we believe that the Bible 07:49 is not like every other book. 07:52 This is the voice of our creator, our God. 07:57 Reaching through to our sinful world 07:59 and asking us to take a step in your direction, 08:02 and I ask this morning that the world 08:04 would fade away for a moment, 08:05 and we would recognize Your voice in these words. 08:09 And that when we are done, 08:11 the direction you would have us go would be clear. 08:15 I ask that You forgive my sins 08:17 and that you make me fit to speak this morning. 08:19 I beg that You would take a call from heaven's altar 08:23 and anoint my lips with it 08:24 so that what we hear is not human opinion 08:27 but truth from the throne of God. 08:30 And it is our covenant with you this morning as always that 08:33 when You speak, 08:36 we will follow the Lamb wherever He goes. 08:39 For that is our prayer in Jesus' name, amen. 08:43 2 Thessalonians 2:3, Paul writes, 08:47 "Let no one deceive you by any means, for that day..." 08:51 The second coming of Christ 08:53 "Will not come unless the falling away comes first, 08:57 and the man of sin is revealed." 09:00 He's writing in advance about the great apostasy 09:03 that would begin very early on in the Christian Church. 09:07 "The son of perdition, he writes, 09:08 who opposes and exalts himself 09:11 above all that is called God or that is worshiped, 09:13 so that he sits as God in the temple of God, 09:18 showing himself that he is God." 09:22 I am convinced this morning that that passage 09:24 that we have just read describes the greatest threat 09:27 that you face between this moment, this morning, 09:30 in this auditorium, 09:31 and the moment that Jesus comes again, 09:33 but maybe not the way that you think. 09:37 We're very used to reading that passage 09:38 with an external set of eyes. 09:40 We have no problem identifying the son of perdition. 09:42 There he is, we know who that is. 09:45 But I want you to look at it through new eyes this morning 09:47 and you might recognize an even greater threat 09:50 buried in what Paul has just written, 09:52 and to do that I want to take you back 09:54 to the pages of the Old Testament 09:56 and I want you to look at the story of Saul, 09:58 the son of Kish. 10:00 He was a very ordinary average young man, 10:02 doing something very ordinary and average. 10:03 The first time that you meet him, 10:05 he's out looking for his father's missing donkeys. 10:08 He's like every other farm boy who's ever had to go 10:11 and chase some livestock that broke through the fence, 10:13 he's ordinary and he's average. 10:15 But when you start to read 10:16 the story of Saul very carefully, 10:18 you notice very quickly he is not like every other boy, 10:22 not even close. 10:24 In some regards, 10:25 you might want to think about this, 10:27 this coming week, in some regard 10:28 Saul is a lot like Lucifer just before he fell. 10:31 The Bible says, "He's gifted, he's choice, 10:33 and he's very attractive, easy on the eyes." 10:37 It's a kind of guy who turns the head of every young lady 10:39 when he walks into the room. 10:40 The kind of guy I hate it 10:42 when I was out shopping for a wife 10:43 because you can't get the attention of everybody 10:45 when Saul, the son of Kish walks into the room. 10:48 1 Samuel 9:2, "And he..." 10:51 That's Kish. 10:53 "Had a choice and handsome son whose name was Saul." 10:56 How handsome was he? 10:58 The Bible says, "There was not a more handsome person than he 11:01 among the children of Israel." 11:03 This is literally the best-looking guy 11:05 in the whole country. 11:07 He's the Brad Pitt of his day, Pierce Brosnan, the Cary Grant, 11:12 the Ryan Gosling, the Shawn Boonstra, 11:14 no, I'm kidding about that. 11:17 He's the best looking guy in the country 11:19 and in addition to being good looking, 11:20 the Bible says from his shoulders upward 11:22 he was taller than any other people. 11:24 He's got the whole package, he's so amazing, 11:27 he probably doesn't even have hair growing 11:29 out of his ears this guy. 11:30 I mean, not that I'm bitter about the way 11:32 that middle ages turned out but this guy's amazing. 11:36 And one day, according to the story 11:37 the best looking man in the whole country goes out 11:39 to find some missing donkeys. 11:42 What stud muffin Saul doesn't realize 11:44 at least at the beginning of the story, 11:46 is that those donkeys are not missing by accident. 11:49 There's a divine appointment, he's supposed to be somewhere. 11:51 God wants him in a little village 11:53 called Ramah of Benjamin 11:55 because the elders of Israel have just called 11:57 a meeting with the aging prophet Samuel 11:59 who shuffles into that meeting. 12:01 Fellows, why would you call a meeting 12:04 on a Wednesday afternoon at 2 pm? 12:06 I know you think that all I do is preach on Sabbath 12:09 but I've got a full agenda, 12:11 I'm very, I hope this is important. 12:13 And he know something's up because everybody falls quiet. 12:16 And finally, somebody working up 12:18 some courage begins to speak nervously, 12:20 "Well, Samuel, we have all been talking 12:27 and well, we really think that you're the best prophet 12:30 we've ever had, we really, really do. 12:33 And you may even be the best prophet 12:36 since the days of Moses." 12:37 I mean, guys what do you think? 12:38 Do you think anybody has ever been better than Sam... 12:40 We're so convinced of it that we actually went down 12:43 to the trophy hut 12:45 right there by the post office in Ramah 12:46 and we made you this plaque. 12:48 Look at what it says, Samuel. 12:49 It says, "For 50 years of faithful service 12:51 and you can hang this in your study 12:53 and every time you look at it 12:54 you'll know how much we love you." 12:56 Guys really, you called me in the middle of the week 12:58 to give me a trophy that couldn't wait for potluck. 13:01 You could have done that at potluck, I'm busy. 13:04 What is really on your mind? 13:06 Because anybody with experience knows that 13:09 when the world butters you up for no reason, 13:11 the axe is about to fall. 13:14 Well, Samuel, there is this one other thing. 13:17 And this is not easy to say but we kind of notice that 13:20 you're not the same as you used to be, Samuel, 13:21 things have changed. 13:23 We have noticed that a church board meeting 13:25 the other night, 13:26 after the meeting you went looking for the keys 13:28 to your ox cart 13:30 and it took you 30 minutes to find them 13:31 even though they were in your hand the whole time. 13:34 And we noticed that even when you are 13:36 sort of able to find your keys, 13:37 you fall asleep in board meeting 13:39 and when you're awake, 13:40 you can't hear what we're saying 13:41 and we see that things are changing. 13:43 And so we're just kind of thinking, 13:45 you know, what's going to happen 13:47 when Samuel the prophet is gone? 13:49 We think that while you're here with us 13:51 it might be time to draft some kind of a succession plan. 13:55 Oh, a succession plan. 13:56 Guys, ah, if that's all this is, 13:58 you think I don't realize I'm getting up there in years, 14:01 I've got a plan, I've already been training 14:03 my two boys Abijah and Joel. 14:05 I'm sure you've noticed these two boys, 14:07 I've been training them 14:08 and they're going to take my place. 14:11 More awkward silence, 14:14 well, Samuel that's the thing. 14:18 We don't want your boys. 14:21 We're not comfortable with Abijah and Joel. 14:24 And according to the Bible they kind of had a point 14:26 at that moment. 14:27 1 Samuel 8:3 says 14:29 that those two boys Abijah and Joel 14:31 did not walk in the ways of their father. 14:33 In fact, it says they turned aside 14:34 after dishonest gain, they took bribes, 14:37 and they perverted justice. 14:40 Now that might be perfectly acceptable 14:42 in 21st century North American politics 14:45 but that is completely unacceptable 14:47 in the Camp of Israel. 14:48 Completely, because leadership in Israel 14:52 at its very beginning 14:53 didn't actually legislate anything, 14:55 they didn't pass any laws. 14:57 Samuel didn't write new laws, 14:59 he didn't really make any decisions. 15:01 The only role of human leadership 15:02 in the Camp of Israel was kind of a coaching role. 15:05 They were there to direct the people 15:08 back to the one true ruler they had, 15:10 the God of Israel, that was it. 15:13 It's a coaching role and if Samuel's boys 15:15 were morally compromised in any way, 15:18 they could never have their father's job. 15:21 So the old prophet has to think for a minute 15:24 just like you would if you discovered that 15:26 you've outlived your usefulness 15:27 and your one legacy, your children, 15:30 nobody wants that, it's a disaster. 15:33 What do you guys suggesting? 15:37 Well, here's what we think, Samuel, just hear us out. 15:39 We've been thinking about this for quite a while. 15:42 I mean, here we are now, 15:43 we're living in the land of Canaan, 15:44 we're no longer slaves, that's a long time ago, 15:47 and we're free and respectable people. 15:49 And we have culture now, and we have industry now, 15:51 and we have college degrees, and we hear 15:53 they're even gonna get a symphony orchestra 15:55 down in the city of Jerusalem. 15:57 We are completely different than we used to be. 15:59 And we think that now it's been so long 16:02 and we've grown so much that maybe it's time to grow up 16:04 and become a real country. 16:07 What do you mean a real country? 16:08 You are a real country, 16:10 you are better than a real country. 16:11 You are God's chosen nation. 16:13 No, no, Samuel, that's the point, 16:14 that's what you're missing. 16:16 You haven't been paying attention, 16:17 we're not a real country. 16:18 Have you not noticed Samuel that every other country 16:22 without exception has a king, 16:24 and every other respectable religion, 16:26 every other church has a responsible human being, 16:30 a highly trained professional at the top of the organization? 16:33 And we're just starting to get a little bit embarrassed 16:35 because after all this time, 16:36 we still look like a nation of peasants. 16:38 And we want to graduate, 16:40 we want to graduate from prophet to king. 16:44 Oh, gentleman, that is not a good idea. 16:47 That is not what God wants. 16:49 Oh, listen, Samuel, you don't understand 16:50 because you're just from another generation. 16:53 You don't get it. 16:54 You're out of touch with the times. 16:55 You should probably watch a little more CNN. 16:58 Maybe Samuel, you ought to get a Twitter account 17:00 so you can keep up with what's going on. 17:02 Talk to a few millennial focus groups 17:04 because they all know that here in the 12 century, 17:07 good professional leadership absolutely requires a king. 17:11 That's how things are done 17:12 and that's how everybody else is doing it, 17:15 and they were right. 17:17 There it is how everybody else was doing it. 17:21 But everybody else, folks, was not the kingdom of God. 17:24 Everybody else was not the chosen people. 17:27 Everybody else was not God's remnant church, 17:30 and God's people have never been like 17:33 everybody else nor should they be. 17:36 Shouldn't happen. 17:38 God's people have always swum upstream. 17:39 God's people have always been countercultural, 17:41 and that's why it ought to bother us 17:43 when people are forever looking outside 17:46 the walls of our own movement 17:47 and coveting what everybody else has. 17:50 It doesn't make sense. 17:52 Oh, sure it makes sense 17:53 to pay attention to the culture. 17:55 Yes, it does. It's not what I'm preaching. 17:56 Yes, it makes sense to make friends 17:58 with other churches and know what's going on, 18:00 but that's not what I'm talking about. 18:02 When we covet what others have, we're missing the boat. 18:05 "Pastor have you seen, there's a new church in town? 18:07 Have you seen what they do? 18:08 They have 30 trained professionals on staff, 18:11 including a staff psychiatrist. 18:12 They write a bestselling book every six months, 18:16 they put a Starbucks in the lobby 18:18 because everybody wants Starbucks 18:21 and they get 20,000 people every week. 18:22 Have you seen it, Pastor?" 18:24 Yeah, I have. 18:26 And my reply to that is, 18:27 "So what? 18:29 Is that what God asked his remnant church to be?" 18:32 Now when we always, always, and forever talk about 18:35 what other churches have, and what other churches do, 18:37 what other churches teach, 18:38 and we wish we could be like them, 18:40 and we behave like God. 18:41 Somehow forgot about the Seventh-day Adventist Church 18:43 and shortchanged us, then it is high time 18:46 for God's people to open their Bibles 18:47 and remember that this is not another denomination, 18:50 this is the prophetic movement of God, 18:52 the remnant church of Bible prophecy. 18:54 We were not called to be like everybody else. 18:56 We were called because we were not to be like 18:59 everybody else. 19:00 So, Samuel, we want a king. 19:04 1 Samuel 8:6 says that Samuel is displeased 19:07 so he prays 19:08 and he gets a shocking answer from God. 19:11 Verse 7, "Lord said to Samuel, 19:15 "Heed the voice of the people in all that they say to you. 19:18 Give them what they want." 19:20 What? 19:21 They have not rejected you but they rejected me 19:23 that I should not reign over them. 19:26 There it is again, I don't know if you caught it 19:28 but that was our opening verse again, 19:29 it's a different context, in a different age, 19:32 in a different situation but it's still there. 19:34 There it is the biggest problem you face between now 19:37 and the second coming of Christ. 19:38 It's a different generation 19:39 but it's the man of sin problem, 19:41 it's still about the throne of God. 19:42 It's still about the throne of God. 19:45 Lord, how could You tell me to give them what they want? 19:48 I don't like it. 19:49 Samuel, I don't like it either, it hurts. 19:53 But I'm not gonna force these people into My kingdom, 19:55 that's not who I am, I don't make slaves. 19:58 If they want slavery, 20:00 if they want to go back to pharaoh, 20:01 they want another round of slavery, 20:02 I'll let them go, 20:04 but I'm not going to make them slaves. 20:07 You realize that's exactly what Israel is asking for, 20:09 they're asking to go back to slavery. 20:11 They want another pharaoh. 20:13 It's amazing to me what people are willing to do, 20:15 what they're willing to lose, 20:16 what they're willing to compromise, 20:17 because they cannot bring themselves to believe 20:20 that God might actually know what He's doing 20:22 and He's going to keep His promises 20:23 even on the days when it doesn't look like it. 20:26 These people in this story have a direct relationship 20:30 with the creator, God of Heaven. 20:31 They have the Spirit of Prophecy in their midst 20:35 and what do they want? 20:37 More slavery under a new pharaoh. 20:39 Before we cluck our tongues 20:41 and say, "Oh, what a bunch of dummies." 20:44 We should probably remember that it is the story 20:46 of the entire human race right down to this day. 20:50 Garden of Eden, the ideal situation, 20:53 have everything you need, what do we do? 20:55 Hand the keys to a fallen angel 20:56 who makes slaves out of us for thousands of years. 20:59 Moses has been up the mountain Aaron for so long, 21:03 we don't know if he's ever coming back. 21:04 Relax guys, you do understand the cloud on that mountain 21:07 is actually the presence of God, 21:09 I don't think there's anything to worry about at all. 21:11 I know but we don't know if he's ever going to come down 21:14 and that's the problem. 21:15 We don't know how to relate to that cloud. 21:16 We don't know how to go up that mountain, 21:18 we're not allowed near that, that seems so intangible 21:21 and we don't know if we have direct leadership anymore. 21:23 Moses have been missing so long. 21:25 What do you guys suggest? 21:26 Okay, well, listen, Aaron, here's the thing 21:28 and listen, just hear the whole thing out, 21:32 we would like to have 21:33 and we understand it's not really God, 21:35 but we really would like to have 21:36 one of those calves we used to see in Egypt. 21:38 We won't treat it exactly the same, 21:40 but we can relate to that 21:42 that's what we've known for generations 21:43 and it's relatable and we want... 21:45 God actually brings that story up in here 21:47 when they ask for a king in 1 Samuel 8. 21:50 He says in 1 Samuel 8:8 that the request for a king 21:54 is according to all the works which they have done 21:56 since the day I brought them out of Egypt. 21:57 Even to this day, 21:59 which with they have forsaken Me 22:01 and served other gods. 22:03 My people have done this again and again and again. 22:09 This is the biggest problem you face 22:14 before the second coming of Christ. 22:16 It happens when we stop believing, 22:19 and we personally behave exactly like the man of sin, 22:22 and we climb up on the throne of God 22:24 and we try to second-guess what he says 22:26 and what he promises. 22:27 This is what happens 22:29 and sometimes we don't do it permanently, 22:30 "Look, Lord, I'll just get up here 22:32 and make one or two decisions then I'll get off the throne 22:34 and you'll be God again but I'll just make..." 22:36 That's what happens. 22:38 We can't trust God to be the real king in our lives 22:42 and, you know, it never works when you take control. 22:44 The Old Testament is the story of people 22:46 who climb on the throne for five minutes. 22:48 Jacob, I know how to get my inheritance. 22:51 Abraham, I know how to get a baby 22:53 leads to huge disasters every time 22:55 and believe me this morning the man of sin is the flagship 23:00 but he's not the only one who does it. 23:03 The biggest problem you face between now 23:05 and the second coming of Christ. 23:06 Listen to me carefully and don't misunderstand 23:08 what I'm about to say, 23:10 but the biggest problem you face personally 23:12 is not the little horn power of Daniel 7. 23:14 What are you saying Pastor, that's a... 23:15 Yes, it's a real problem 23:17 and you should be paying attention 23:18 but it's not your biggest problem personally. 23:20 Your biggest problem isn't the rapid decline 23:22 of western civilization 23:24 even though that should probably concern you 23:25 if you're trying to raise a family in this day and age, 23:27 it's not your biggest personal problem. 23:30 Your biggest personal problem is not another bad decision 23:32 coming out of Supreme Court, it's not an executive order 23:35 from the White House, it's not another decision 23:37 coming out of the Congress, your biggest problem 23:39 is not the people who sit beside you in church. 23:41 Your biggest problem is not your wife, 23:43 it's not your husband, it's not your kids, 23:44 it's not your boss, it's not your parole officer, 23:47 gentleman, it is not even your mother-in-law. 23:52 The biggest problem you face between this moment 23:55 and when Jesus comes again is sitting in the very seat 23:58 you occupy at this moment. 24:01 It's you, it's this tendency 24:03 you have to try and take control, 24:05 behave exactly like the man of sin. 24:07 Climb up on the throne of God and pretend you're in charge 24:09 even for a minute. 24:11 And if you can't get that impulse under control, 24:13 if you can't let God be the king of your heart 24:15 then you're headed for a world of hurt. 24:18 Really where do you think is going to happen 24:20 when everything that's going on around you 24:22 finally comes to a head. 24:23 I hope you've been paying attention to the world. 24:26 People driving trucks through the crowds 24:28 of pedestrians in Europe, bombs in the airport, 24:31 shootings in public places, 24:34 the economy ballooning to an all time high 24:36 and yet the debt levels the same as it was in 2008. 24:40 NATO started to pile up, 24:41 armies against the Polish border with Russia, 24:44 NATO launched a missile this week 24:46 over the Sea of Japan, people getting beheaded 24:50 and burned alive on YouTube. 24:52 We're finally figuring out that 24:53 our highest public officials have been lying to us 24:55 and the system actually might be rotten to the core. 24:57 When all of that comes to ahead and it will. 25:00 When it finally blows up and it feels like 25:02 the Spirit of God has been lifted from the earth 25:04 and Moses might never come back down 25:06 from that mountain, then at that moment 25:08 when this earth is plunged into midnight, 25:10 how are you going to react? 25:12 Because if you have not yet given up 25:13 your claim to God's throne, 25:15 you're going to find it very hard to resist. 25:16 The first person who comes along 25:18 and offers a little bit of peace and security 25:20 and he's going to be very convincing 25:21 because the Bible says, "He will bring fire down 25:25 from heaven in the side of men." 25:28 And if you're still trying to run the show at that point 25:30 you're going to stumble. 25:33 Listen carefully, because the next few verses 25:35 in this story have shaped world history 25:38 since the moment it happened 25:39 and it's one of the most important keys 25:41 to understanding the Book of Daniel, 25:42 what's about to happen. 25:44 Now before we read it, 25:45 I want to give you a refresher course 25:47 from high school history because if you are like me, 25:49 you slept through some of high school history 25:51 or maybe were even absent. 25:54 My kids aren't here, 1517 Luther nails the 95 Theses 25:59 to the church door, roll over them. 26:03 And then the reformers begin to think about 26:05 everything that happened since that awful moment 26:06 in the fourth century when we invited 26:08 the Roman Emperor Constantine to be the king of the church. 26:11 What we did in the fourth century 26:12 is a direct parallel with what Israel did 26:14 with Samuel in 1 Samuel 8, 26:16 we invited a king into the church. 26:18 So Constantine brings peace, 26:20 he ends the Diocletian persecution, 26:21 just brings it to an end. 26:23 And he looks at the Christians, he said, 26:24 "This will be the glue that holds my empire together, 26:26 they were so united under persecution, 26:29 they will hold my empire together." 26:31 You should have gone to a church board meeting 26:33 before he came to that conclusion. 26:36 Because two crises emerged immediately, 26:39 the Donatist controversy North Africa 26:41 over readmitting apostates, 26:43 the Arian controversy on the nature of Christ, 26:46 and the church can't solve those disputes themselves. 26:48 Did you know what they did? 26:50 They made a direct appeal to Constantine, 26:51 "Hey you like Christians, solve this for us." 26:53 But he's so busy with the affairs of the empire 26:55 that he appoints the bishop of Rome 26:57 to take over the whole matter 26:59 and for the first time in history the bishop of Rome 27:01 becomes first among equals. 27:03 He rises in influence. Are you with me this morning? 27:06 What we did, 27:08 it wasn't the outside pushing its way in, 27:09 it was the inside asking the outside to come. 27:12 We begged the emperor to take over the church, 27:16 that's what we did. 27:18 And once the government sets foot in your church, 27:22 you will never get rid of it. 27:25 That model was not what Jesus established. 27:27 He expected us to live directly beneath God the way 27:29 Israel was supposed to. 27:30 How do I know? 27:32 Luke 22 he says to His disciples, 27:33 "The kings of the gentiles exercise lordship over them 27:36 but not so among you." 27:38 I don't want a king for the church but we did it, 27:40 we married Roman politics and Christian faith 27:42 that gave us more than a thousand years of darkness, 27:46 complete with burning people at the stake. 27:50 The reformers opened their Bibles, 27:54 and they realized what we had done 27:56 in the fourth century, 27:57 and so they set about the work of freeing themselves 27:59 from the biggest mistake we have ever made. 28:02 Now the Reformation was about all kinds of things. 28:04 Yes, it was doctrinal, sola fide, sola scriptura, 28:07 it was very doctrinal but at the very core of it, 28:09 the Reformation was really an attempt to undo the king 28:13 we brought into the church, that's what it was. 28:15 Suddenly over in England, Henry VIII is watching 28:18 what's going on, he thinks, 28:19 "I like this, the German princes are free 28:21 from the bishop of Rome. 28:23 I would like to be free from the bishop of Rome 28:25 that would be great because he can't get agnomen." 28:28 So he establishes the Church of England 28:30 in the course all across Britain 28:34 faithful Bible believing Christians are saying, 28:35 "Whoa, we're going to be free." 28:37 They weren't... 28:39 Doesn't happen because Henry's church 28:40 was built for the wrong reasons by the 1600's it's in trouble. 28:43 By the 1600's the church is telling the British, 28:45 "Look, you can believe in your head 28:47 whatever you want. Go ahead believe the Sabbath." 28:49 That was there in the 1600's. 28:51 Believe up here in an immersion baptism go ahead, 28:54 but when it comes time to worship, 28:55 everybody does the same thing, 28:56 you will be following the Book of Common Prayer. 28:59 By 1600 there's no real freedom anymore 29:01 and so to avoid going to jail some of the dissenters, 29:04 the British dissenters 29:05 actually start to leave the country. 29:07 People like the early Baptists, and the barrowists, 29:09 and the fifth monarchists, and the Puritans, 29:11 and the Quakers, and the Sabbath keepers 29:13 all these people who eventually hand down their beliefs 29:16 to God's last day remnant church. 29:17 These are our spiritual grandparents 29:19 that's who they are. 29:20 Where do they go? 29:21 Some of them flee, I'm proud to say 29:23 as a Dutch kid fleet to the Dutch Republic 29:25 which was the freest nation of its day. 29:27 And when they get there they run into another group 29:29 that's fleeing persecution too. 29:31 The Jews are fleeing Spain 29:33 to get away from the inquisition 29:34 and they meet up in the Netherlands, 29:36 and they begin to talk to each other 29:38 and study together, 29:39 and Christians begin to read the Old Testament 29:41 in the original Hebrew 29:43 for the first time in centuries. 29:45 And they'd have access to some very old Hebrew commentaries 29:48 and they suddenly stumble across our story for today. 29:51 1 Samuel 8:11, 29:53 "This will be the behavior of the king 29:55 who will reign over you. 29:56 He will take your sons and appoint them 29:58 for his own chariots." 30:00 King going to make you work for him it says. 30:03 Verse 12, "He will appoint captains over his thousands." 30:05 There'll be military conscription. 30:06 Verse 14, "He'll take the best of your fields." 30:09 There'll be confiscation and taxes to pay 30:12 and the reformers are reading this, 30:13 the dissenters are reading this and they say, 30:15 "Ah, this might be the trouble we still have. 30:17 This might be the reason we still have trouble 30:19 with human kings 2900 years later." 30:22 And based on this story they begin to dream of a place 30:24 that wouldn't have a king. 30:27 Begin to dream of a place you could live 30:28 directly beneath God, 30:29 it's the hottest topic of debate 30:31 in the 17th and 18th centuries. 30:32 William Blake, Thomas Hobbes, John Milton, 30:34 John Locke, John Bunyan 30:36 who's in prison for his beliefs, 30:37 they're all discussing this. 30:39 We got rid of the bishop of Rome 30:40 maybe we could get rid of the king, 30:41 and they pray for a place, 30:43 and while they're praying over this issue 30:44 they suddenly discover Deuteronomy 17 30:47 where God anticipates the request for a king. 30:50 And he says, "Okay, one day you'll ask for a king 30:52 when you get to the promised land." 30:54 But here are the conditions, Deuteronomy 7:15, 30:58 "He shall be one from among your brethren." 31:00 He has to be a commoner, 31:02 "You may not set a foreigner over you." 31:03 It can't be foreign born, 31:05 neither shall he multiply silver and gold for himself. 31:08 Verse 17, there were checks and balances 31:10 to prevent corruption. 31:11 I'm hoping this is starting to ring some bells. 31:14 Also which shall be, here's the big one, 31:16 when he sits on the throne of His kingdom, 31:18 he shall write for himself a copy of this law in this book 31:22 and be careful to observe all the words of this law, 31:25 a supreme written law. 31:28 Let me ask you question. 31:30 We're now in the 1700's. 31:32 You ever heard of a republic where the chief executive 31:34 has to be a commoner 31:36 is not allowed to be foreign born, 31:38 not allowed to get rich off the public purse, 31:39 and must be subject 31:41 to the supreme written law of the land? 31:42 Ever heard of such a place emerging in the 1700's? 31:46 It is not a coincidence that the American Constitution 31:50 describes a republic without a king 31:52 and then it guarantee things like religious liberty 31:54 under a supreme written law. 31:55 Where did they get that idea? 31:57 Every single one of those founding fathers 31:59 even though they were not all Christian 32:01 had been reading the works 32:02 of the English political philosophers 32:04 and the English dissenters 32:06 and they used those writings to literally build 32:08 the United States of America. 32:11 But they did not, I mean, 32:12 they weren't all, some were deists 32:14 but they got the building blocks 32:16 from the Reformation. 32:17 That's why Ellen White in Testimonies, volume five 32:19 calls the American Constitution a Protestant document. 32:23 Because there's an unbroken chain 32:24 of thought leading directly 32:26 from the reformation to the birth of America, 32:28 that's why the Bible describes America 32:30 the way that it does. 32:32 Revelation 12 says, "The earth would open up 32:33 to give the persecuted masses a place to go." 32:36 Revelation 13 says, this brand new nation 32:38 would be Christ like, Lamb like and it doesn't even have 32:42 crowns on its horns like the first beast 32:44 because there wouldn't be a king. 32:47 The founding fathers of this nation knew 32:49 exactly what they were building. 32:51 I can prove it. 32:53 Seventeen eighty seven, Constitutional Convention, 32:55 big debate on the floor over state representation. 32:58 I know, saints, it's hard to imagine a convention 33:00 where the delegates disagree but it happened. 33:04 And it nearly broke apart. 33:05 This nation came this close to not being a nation. 33:09 When suddenly Ben Franklin stands up 33:13 and suggests that everybody takes a break 33:14 and go spend a day with someone they disagree with, 33:18 then he quotes the Bible by memory for two minutes off 33:20 top of his head even though he's a deist. 33:23 Fourteen references, 33:24 something like that in two minutes 33:25 and then he makes a radical suggestion. 33:27 Before I sit down he said, "I suggest Mr. President, 33:29 the chair of that meeting, that propriety of nominating 33:33 and appointing before we separate a chaplain 33:35 to the convention whose duty it shall be uniformly 33:37 to introduce the business of each day 33:39 by an address to the creator of the universe 33:41 and the governor of all nations." 33:44 You tell me who did these people believe 33:46 was the real king of all nations? 33:49 If America wasn't going to have a human king, 33:51 it's because those founding fathers knew 33:53 there was already one in this universe 33:55 and they wanted people to account directly to Him. 33:59 Newport Rhode Island 1790, a Jewish synagogue is panicking 34:03 because they know that America 34:04 has been born as a Christian nation, 34:06 not the way that Christians in this century think of it 34:08 but in the original sense and they panic, 34:11 "What's going to happen to us? 34:12 In the old world we were persecuted 34:14 because we're in a Christian nation 34:15 and George Washington hears about it 34:17 and he writes them a reassuring letter, 34:19 "Listen..." He says, "You can rest in peace. 34:20 You're going to be fine, 34:22 you're going to be free in this nation." 34:23 And then he says this, this is his letter, 34:26 "May the children of the stock of Abraham 34:28 who dwell in this land continue to merit 34:30 and enjoy the good will of the other inhabitants. 34:33 Well, everyone shall sit in safety 34:35 under his own vine and fig tree 34:36 and there should be none to make him afraid." 34:39 That's a direct quote from Micah 4 34:41 where God describes His ideal Kingdom. 34:44 That's what it is. 34:45 Listen to me carefully, the founding fathers 34:47 were building a Christian nation 34:49 in the original biblical sense. 34:50 What they were trying to do is, 34:52 rewind the clock to one day before Saul, 34:55 before the biggest mistake we've ever made. 34:58 What's really interesting 34:59 is the way that Saul kind of foreshadows 35:01 the whole fate of America. 35:03 I mean, in the beginning, he's Christ like, 35:04 he's Lamb like, look at the story. 35:06 The Bible says, "Samuel anoints him in private 35:09 and he doesn't get the crown till he proves himself 35:11 on the battlefield." 35:12 Jesus is anointed the day He goes to heaven, Acts 2:33. 35:15 But he doesn't really will get His inheritance 35:17 until after the judgment is complete. 35:19 There's a parallel. 35:21 The Bible says, "Saul was filled 35:22 with the Holy Spirit became another man." 35:24 1 Samuel 10, and of course Jesus was anointed 35:27 by the Spirit at the beginning of His ministry 35:29 and He also became someone else. 35:31 He became one of us. 35:32 There's no question in the beginning Saul 35:34 is Lamb like but you know he's not a type of Christ. 35:38 Because as he continues down the story, 35:40 you'll discover he's really a type 35:41 of the United States of America. 35:43 He even is ultimately replaced by a messianic king 35:46 who sits on David's throne. 35:48 Two years into his reign, 35:51 Saul wants to go to the battlefield 35:52 against the Philistines 35:54 and he wants to have a sacrifice 35:55 but Samuel is delayed seven days, 35:57 the perfect delay it's the language 35:59 of the second coming and he decides, 36:03 "I'll bring fire on the altar myself 36:05 if Samuel doesn't come." 36:08 Which is exactly what the second beast does, 36:11 brings fire down from heaven on the earth 36:13 in the sight of men. 36:15 This nation here was born exactly on time 36:19 for the appearance of the remnant church 36:21 lamblike in the beginning. 36:22 But over the course of the 20th century 36:24 as we rejected the light of the third angel's message, 36:26 the whole character of America began to change, 36:29 all through the 20th century 36:31 and now we sit a heartbeat from midnight 36:34 and the Constitution is under attack. 36:36 Why should that matter to Adventist? 36:38 Testimonies, volume five. 36:40 Ellen White says, "When our country 36:41 shall repudiate every principle of its constitution 36:44 as a Protestant a Republican government, 36:46 then we may know that the time has come 36:48 for the marvelous working of Satan 36:49 and the end is near." 36:51 You've been paying attention to the last 15 years? 36:55 You know, the government listens 36:57 to your phone calls because I know 37:00 what I say things to see 37:01 if I can hear a click on the line. 37:04 They force people to participate 37:05 in religious ceremonies, take your business if you want, 37:09 forcing people to buy things they don't want to buy, 37:11 silencing people who say 37:12 the wrong things on a college campus 37:14 or on YouTube that's just the last 15 years. 37:17 And that's just a warm up. 37:20 We have already seen Caesar 37:23 stand in the American Congress invited over to speak 37:27 because we've run out of human answers. 37:31 The bishop of Rome at the podium 37:33 of God's last day republic. 37:37 Let me say this. 37:39 Everybody had an opinion last year in 2016, 37:42 rough year at the ballot box, 37:45 but it didn't matter who won that election. 37:49 Doesn't matter, because no human being 37:52 is the answer you're looking for. 37:55 At the end of his life, Saul has to kill himself 37:57 because if you want to run the show 37:59 you have to provide your own problems. 38:00 The Philistines find his body, cut his head off. 38:02 He's no longer head and shoulders 38:03 taller than anybody else. 38:05 Because in the end, he is not your king 38:07 and nobody like Saul as your king 38:08 but you move forward 1200 years in history, 38:10 you will find your king writhing in agony 38:13 on the cross we made for Him. 38:14 We spit in His face, and we mock His dignity, 38:17 and yet He pleads for you, "Father, forgive them 38:20 for they don't know what they're doing." 38:23 That's your king. 38:27 When I was a younger man 18, I used to hang out 38:32 at the Legislative Assembly in British Columbia 38:35 because it was so much more fun than going to school. 38:38 Two o'clock in the afternoon 38:40 they had a question answer period. 38:41 Question Time they call it, 38:43 question period where the loyal opposition, 38:45 the Majesty's loyal opposition got to ask questions 38:46 of the government and embarrass them 38:48 and you weren't allowed to insult each other 38:50 but they made an art form out of it. 38:51 "Mr. Speaker, would it be okay if I called 38:53 my loyal appointment an idiot?" 38:54 "No, that's not okay." But he got it done anyway. 38:59 I came down one day out of the visitor's gallery 39:02 and I walked out into the rotunda 39:04 and there in a scrum of hostile reporters 39:07 is the premier of British Columbia, 39:09 Bill Vander Zalm at that time. 39:11 Some of you know who Bill Vander Zalm was. 39:13 Now if you're just, you know, if you're American 39:16 he's kind of like the governor but not really 39:18 because we have a fused executive 39:19 and legislative function, different matter. 39:22 He looks up and sees me, I've got ripped jeans 39:24 in a tattered t-shirt and he says, 39:26 "Hey, it's good to see you." 39:27 I know he doesn't know me but he's trying to use me 39:30 to get away from those reporters 39:32 and he comes over and puts his arm around me, 39:33 "Let's go for a walk." 39:35 We walked down the hallway 39:36 with the premier of British Columbia. 39:38 I'm walking down the hallway, out the door, 39:39 out into a breezeway, into his executive office 39:42 as if we step into his offices there are people sitting there 39:45 that I have only ever seen on the news. 39:47 And they rise to their feet, 39:49 "Mr. Premier, so good to see you." 39:50 "Gentlemen, sit down I'll be with you in a minute." 39:52 He walks me into his office closes the door 39:55 has me take a seat, he says, 39:57 "Just hang out with me for a minute, 39:59 I don't want to talk to those guys." 40:05 He asked me, "What do you do?" 40:07 "I go to school up at the University of Victoria." 40:08 "What are you taking?" "Political science." 40:10 "Oh, that's a good degree." 40:11 Only a politician ever says that's a good degree. 40:15 So we talked a little bit, he asked me about my dreams 40:18 and hopes and fears. 40:20 And then 10 minutes later, he escorts me up the door 40:21 and sends me on my way. 40:24 And I slaved for that guy until he left office for free. 40:29 Why? 40:30 Because he took an absolute nobody, 40:34 and walked me into the halls of power and sat me down 40:37 like I mattered. 40:40 I slaved for him. 40:45 So here we are. 40:48 I'm not 18 anymore, neither are you. 40:54 If you're not sure, look around. 40:59 But at this moment 41:03 in the last gasp of this world's history, 41:07 God has let us try everything on. 41:10 You want kings, okay. 41:13 The kings of Israel became so wicked that they caused 41:16 the abomination of desolation, temple desolated. 41:21 They were offering babies to Moloch. 41:25 We've never had self-government again, 41:26 we've never been back. 41:28 After that Babylon, Medo-Persia, Greece, Rome, 41:35 little horn power, and then something that almost, 41:38 almost got it right. 41:41 Second beast but it fails too. 41:50 And in this moment, 41:53 the rightful king of this universe 41:54 has just slipped his arm around your shoulder 41:56 and said let's go for a walk. 42:00 Here's what he says, Revelation 3:20. 42:02 Listen carefully to this, 42:03 "If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, 42:07 I will come in to him and dine with him, 42:10 and he with Me, to him who overcomes..." 42:12 Here it comes, listen, "To him who overcomes 42:14 I will grant to sit with Me on My throne." 42:21 All this time, you've been trying to seize it 42:23 just for a minute here, just for a minute there. 42:25 All this time you've been trying 42:26 to plan your own life and run your own world 42:28 and all this time 42:30 the Son of God has been planning 42:32 to share His throne with you anyway. 42:35 Are we gonna trust Him? 42:38 The only thing that stands in the way between now 42:40 this moment right here and that moment then, is you. 42:47 So when are you gonna let go? 42:51 What are you still clinging to? 42:54 I'll be honest this morning, I'm concerned about 42:57 a lot of things we let distract us as a church. 43:03 We were only asked to do one thing, one thing, 43:10 God says, "Get down off that throne. 43:15 Never belong to you in the first place, 43:18 I asked you to go get my children 43:22 and bring them home." 43:25 I've searched my Bible for years now. 43:29 It's the only job he gave us. 43:33 Testimonies, volume five after she describes that, 43:37 undoing of the American Constitution 43:38 how it's a warning, she writes this, 43:42 "It is no time now to allow our minds 43:46 to be engrossed with things of minor importance. 43:50 While men are sleeping, 43:53 Satan is actively arranging matters 43:55 so that the Lord's people may not have mercy or justice. 44:00 Sunny movement is now making its way in darkness." 44:04 That was a long time ago 44:06 and they went through a whole cycle and... 44:09 But if I'm looking at the prophetic landscape 44:11 and I'm watching the news correctly, 44:13 the cycle is repeating and we are there again. 44:17 I know it's fun to get caught up 44:18 in all kinds of things, 44:21 but we do not have time to get distracted 44:27 and it is time to get off the throne 44:31 and believe the promises of God and get back to the one 44:38 and only thing He ever asked us to do. 44:44 And His promise to you is, 44:48 "I will share 44:52 My throne with you." 44:56 It's His, let Him have it. 45:01 Maybe you've tried to run your life your own way. 45:04 I have, I'll admit, 45:06 I pull an Abraham once in a while, 45:08 who I know how to make this happen. 45:11 God's promises are good. 45:14 Now if I read my Bible correctly, 45:15 he says that the crowd that makes it is so big 45:17 no man could number it. 45:19 Our work does not peter out, it does not fizzle out, 45:22 it does not whimper and go into the darkness, 45:24 it ends Revelation 18 45:26 with the whole world lighting up 45:28 with the glory of Jesus Christ with a mighty shout, 45:34 but until we let go and believe God's promise, 45:40 that's not going to happen. 45:42 Father, it's Your throne and we believe 45:47 we don't belong on it and You do. 45:51 And we will trust Your promises and get the work done, 45:55 so that we can stand in glory with the one 45:57 who gave His life to buy us eternity. 46:01 In Jesus' name, amen. 46:24 All to Jesus 46:29 I surrender 46:34 All to Him 46:37 I freely give 46:43 I will ever love 46:50 And trust Him 46:52 In His presence 46:57 Daily live 47:02 I surrender 47:06 All 47:11 I surrender 47:15 All 47:20 All to Thee 47:24 My blessed Savior 47:30 I surrender 47:34 All 47:39 All to Jesus 47:44 I surrender 47:49 Make me, Savior 47:53 Wholly Thine 47:58 Fill me with Thy love 48:04 And power 48:07 Know that Thou art 48:11 Truly mine 48:16 I surrender 48:21 All 48:25 I surrender 48:30 All 48:35 All to Thee 48:38 My blessed Savior 48:44 I surrender 48:49 All 48:54 All to Jesus 48:58 I surrender 49:03 Now I feel 49:07 The sacred flame 49:12 Oh 49:13 The joy of full salvation! 49:21 Glory, glory 49:25 To His Name! 49:30 I surrender 49:35 All 49:39 I surrender 49:44 All 49:49 All to Thee 49:52 My blessed Savior 49:58 I surrender 50:03 All 50:07 All to Thee 50:11 My blessed Savior 50:18 I surrender 50:24 All 50:33 Let's bow our heads for prayer. 50:36 Our Father in heaven, 50:39 we pray in a special sense for Your Holy Spirit 50:45 to fill our hearts, and to prepare our lives 50:50 for the very soon coming of Jesus, 50:53 and for the events that are soon to take place 50:56 upon the earth that we will be prepared, 51:00 but that we will not only be prepared, 51:04 but that we will have a great company of others 51:08 that will be prepared. 51:11 Lord, Father, we believe that Jesus is coming soon. 51:18 The world is in darkness, the world needs 51:23 only that which You can give. 51:26 And we pray that You will help us. 51:30 You've told us that a revival, 51:32 a primitive godliness is our greatest 51:37 and most urgent of all needs. 51:39 Lord, help us I pray. |
Revised 2022-08-05