Welcome to Anchors Of Truth,
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from the 3ABN Worship Center
and the Fresno Central Church.
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Truths That
Matter with Stephen Bohr.
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Well good morning, and
welcome to Anchors Of Truth.
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This fourth in the series
is being presented on this
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beautiful Sabbath morning.
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And it's about
the state of the dead.
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Danny, I think
the title of it is,
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The Inward Outworking, part 1.
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Part 2 will be this
afternoon, so make sure that
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you want to tune in and be a
part of part 2 this afternoon.
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But Danny, the
state of the dead.
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You know, more people
are interested in death
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and what happens when
a person dies, right now
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than I've ever seen
anywhere in the world.
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Well we ought to be
because the Bible says that
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there's once appointed a
time for every man to die.
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And then we need to
know what happens after that.
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Right?
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But I'm so amazed, in
1982, Melody and her mother
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were going into town.
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And just a few blocks from the
house, they were hit by a car.
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And her mother was
killed in the accident.
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And I had well meaning
people call me immediately,
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people from other denominations,
called me and said,
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"You know, we're sorry to
hear about your wife's death,
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but we know that God needed
another beautiful angel voice
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for the angel
choir, so He took her."
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And, you know,
that always amazed me.
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I said, do people really
think God is in the business of
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reaching down and taking out a
mother of an 11 year old child,
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and a wife, and
taking them to heaven because
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He's bored with His angel choir?
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There has to be some truth,
there has to be something solid
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that we can anchor in Jesus.
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Because I don't want to
serve a God like that if
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He's that kind of God.
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I want to know
what is life all about
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and what happens when you die.
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You know, this teaching
may have caused more children
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to absolutely hate God
than any other teaching.
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Because people get the
wrong idea about what happens
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when a person dies.
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Danny, we've seen a great deal
of things that are taking place
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involving the supernatural,
a lot of literature
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that's being written.
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Recently, a lady wrote a book
that is one of the best sellers.
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And I heard from one of
my friends that this person,
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the writer of this
book, began coming to the
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Seventh-day Adventist Church
and began studying the Sabbath,
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the state of the dead,
what happens when a person dies.
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And they have gone back
now, and in the later edition
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they have changed
the theology in the book
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that they have written.
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It was one of the best
sellers on the internet,
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this particular book has been.
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So truth is important.
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People want to know the truth.
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They need an
anchor, an anchor of truth.
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And thus your series.
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They really want to
know, what happens when I die?
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Do I go immediately to heaven?
Do I go immediately to hell?
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Is there a period of
time in which we're asleep?
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What is the real
truth about death?
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And tonight, we are
going to be really, I believe,
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or this morning, privileged
to listen as Pastor Stephen Bohr
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brings us the truth about
what happens when a person dies.
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And people deserve
to know the truth, Jim.
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And that's what
I love about 3ABN.
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We have an opportunity to reach
the world with Bible truth.
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You can argue with
Jim, you can argue me,
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you can argue with
Pastor Stephen Bohr.
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But do you really want
to argue with the Bible?
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So what we're praying is
that no matter what you believe,
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in your past, and
what you think you believe,
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just be open, listen to
Pastor Bohr as he's teaching us,
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bringing us the word of God.
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And allow, all of us,
to allow the Holy Spirit
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to really work and
rule and reign in our lives.
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And if there's truth
we need to accept today,
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we're praying if you need
that truth, you'll find it.
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Right now, I'm going to ask
you if you'll sing that song
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I love so much that you
wrote, Heaven Means Home To Me.
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I'm longing for a
place I've never been,
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but it's a place
that I call my home,
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where the Son is the
light in the midst of the night.
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Heaven means home to me.
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Heaven means home to me.
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Where Jesus is, I want to be.
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There's no dying up there,
this old earth can't compare.
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That's why
heaven means home to me.
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Well I've heard of a
beautiful city above,
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with streets that
are paved with pure gold.
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But my eyes are
fixed on Jesus, my King.
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That's why
heaven means home to me.
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Heaven means home to me.
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Where Jesus is, I want to be.
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There's no dying up there,
this old earth can't compare.
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That's why
heaven means home to me.
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What a day that will be
when my Jesus I shall see,
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and I look upon His face, the
One who saved me by His grace.
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When He takes me by the hand
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and leads me
through that Promise Land,
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what a day,
glorious day that will be.
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There's no dying up there,
this old earth can't compare.
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That's why
heaven means home to me.
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Shall we pray.
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Wonderful
loving heavenly Father,
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what a privilege it
is to call You Father.
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We thank You today for
the privilege of coming boldly
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to the throne of grace
to ask for understanding,
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to ask for the willingness
to hear Your voice speaking
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through Holy Scripture.
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I ask Lord, that You
will through Your power,
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remove any preconceived idea,
any preconceived notion that
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we have, that You will
help us to hear Your voice
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speaking through Scripture.
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We thank You Father
for hearing our prayer,
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for we ask it in
Jesus' name, amen.
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A few years ago, I held a
series of evangelistic meetings
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in a small town in
the state of New Mexico.
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One evening, as I usually do
during an evangelistic series,
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I preached a sermon
on the state of the dead.
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I argued from the Scriptures
that when a person dies,
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they remain unconscious in
the grave totally and completely
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until Jesus returns to call them
forth from the tomb unto life.
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After the meeting,
an elderly gentleman
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very dignified looking came
up to me and very respectfully
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said something like this, "Sir,
the problem with you Adventists
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is that you choose a
text here and a text there
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that seem to
prove your doctrines.
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But you ignore
passages that openly contradict
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your point of view."
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And then he mentioned several of
the texts that are usually used
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to try and prove that
the soul of man leaves
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at the moment of death.
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Among those texts that
he used was the story of the
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rich man and
Lazarus in Luke chapter 16.
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He mentioned the
passage of the apostle Paul in
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2 Corinthians 5 where
the apostle Paul speaks about
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being absent from the
body and present with the Lord.
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He also used the text
that speaks about the dead
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standing before God.
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Now that is found in
Revelation 20 and verse 12.
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He referred to the souls
crying from under the altar,
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which is found in Revelation
6 verses 9 through 11.
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And of course, he
mentioned the thief on the cross
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where Jesus apparently said,
"Verily, verily I say to you,
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today you will be
with Me in paradise."
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That's Luke 23 verse 43.
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He also mentioned the
experience of the witch of Endor
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as evidence that it is
possible for the dead to
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communicate with the living.
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And of course, that story
is in 1 Samuel chapter 28.
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He also referred to Philippians
chapter 1 verses 21 to 24
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where the apostle Paul
had the desire to depart and
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to be with Christ.
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Now of course, he mentioned
also the texts that speak of
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everlasting fire as well
as Christ preaching to the
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spirits in prison.
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This man knew his Bible.
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He might have brought up other
texts that I don't remember
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at this moment, but I do
remember that he mentioned
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these texts that I brought
to view, probably among others.
00:11:55.33\00:11:59.93
So then and there at
that very moment, I decided
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that it was not sufficient
to use the texts that Adventists
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usually use to prove the
state of the dead doctrine.
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Not that they're bad
texts, they're very good texts.
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Like for example,
Ecclesiastes 9 verse 5
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where it says, "The
living know that they will die,
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but the dead know not anything."
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That's an excellent verse.
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And the verses that
we use in our evangelism
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are excellent verses.
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But we have to come to grips
with these difficult texts.
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Because people that come to
our meetings are going to ask
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about these difficult verses.
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And so in the course
of many years, prayerfully
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and very carefully, I decided
that I would study each one
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of these passages or
each one of these verses
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to try and determine what these
verses were truly teaching.
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I decided to come to
grips with the difficult texts
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on the state of the dead
as well as the difficult texts
00:12:59.98\00:13:03.51
on the doctrine of hell.
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As I studied these, I discovered
something very interesting.
00:13:05.16\00:13:09.15
And it is, that none of
these passages or verses
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are actually teaching
what most Christians think
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that these passages
or verses are teaching.
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In fact, I discovered
after a careful study of these
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passages and verses that
not one single verse or passage
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teaches a conscious
existence of the soul during
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the interim of death.
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After many many years,
I decided that it would be
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good to document these
studies that I had done in the
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course of several years.
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And so I prepared a
series of lectures which are
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available on DVD.
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And the title of that series is,
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Misunderstood Texts
On The State Of The Dead.
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There in 12 lectures, I deal
extensively and meticulously
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with these passages and
verses that people bring to view
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to try and prove
that when a person dies,
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their soul or their
spirit leaves the body
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and goes to exist in
heaven or in a different sphere.
00:14:10.41\00:14:14.68
Now in our next two
studies together, today and the
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next one tomorrow, we
are going to actually study
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one passage that I did
not cover in that series,
00:14:23.97\00:14:29.01
Misunderstood Texts
On The State Of The Dead.
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There are several that I
didn't cover in that series
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that I've still
been studying on.
00:14:33.34\00:14:34.85
I'm referring to the
passage that we find in
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Hebrews chapter 12
and verses 22 to 24.
00:14:37.98\00:14:42.04
And so I invite you
with me to turn to Hebrews 12
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verses 22 to 24.
00:14:45.17\00:14:48.16
And we'll read the passage
and then what I want to do is
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talk a little bit about
the historical context of the
00:14:52.87\00:14:55.78
book of Hebrews, what the
writer of the book of Hebrews is
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wanting to say to those who
are the recipients of his book.
00:15:01.45\00:15:05.15
It says there in
Hebrews 12 verse 22,
00:15:05.98\00:15:08.64
"But you," that is the Hebrews,
"have come to Mount Zion
00:15:08.67\00:15:13.70
to the heavenly Jerusalem,
the city of the living God.
00:15:13.73\00:15:18.34
You have come to
thousands upon thousands
00:15:18.37\00:15:22.87
of angels in joyful assembly,
to the church of the firstborn,
00:15:22.90\00:15:28.19
whose names are
written in heaven.
00:15:28.22\00:15:30.69
You have come to
God, the judge of all men,
00:15:30.72\00:15:34.32
to the spirits of
righteous men made perfect,
00:15:34.35\00:15:38.94
to Jesus the mediator of
a new covenant, and to the
00:15:38.97\00:15:43.48
sprinkled blood
that speaks a better word
00:15:43.51\00:15:47.05
than the blood of Abel."
00:15:47.08\00:15:49.29
This is the passage that we want
to carefully take a look at,
00:15:49.87\00:15:53.77
particularly the part of
the passage that speaks about
00:15:53.80\00:15:57.31
"the spirits of
righteous men made perfect."
00:15:57.34\00:16:02.12
What is meant
by that expression,
00:16:02.15\00:16:04.02
"the spirits of
righteous men made perfect."
00:16:04.05\00:16:07.32
Now before we can understand
what that expression means,
00:16:07.35\00:16:10.92
and on a larger scale,
what this entire passage means,
00:16:10.95\00:16:14.54
we have to comprehend why the
author of the book of Hebrews
00:16:14.57\00:16:19.68
wrote this book to the Hebrews.
00:16:19.71\00:16:22.62
Now I personally believe that
the apostle Paul is behind the
00:16:22.65\00:16:26.36
writing of the book of Hebrews.
00:16:26.39\00:16:27.86
There's a debate in
the scholarly world whether
00:16:27.89\00:16:30.44
it was Paul or
whether it wasn't Paul.
00:16:30.47\00:16:32.58
In my talk today, I'm going
to refer to the book of Hebrews
00:16:32.61\00:16:36.34
as having been
written by the apostle Paul.
00:16:36.37\00:16:40.31
Now what problem was the
apostle Paul dealing with
00:16:40.81\00:16:44.64
in the book of Hebrews?
00:16:44.67\00:16:46.52
The fact is that if you
read the book carefully,
00:16:46.55\00:16:50.64
you discover that the
Hebrews, were Jews of course,
00:16:50.67\00:16:55.57
and they were about
to give up Christianity.
00:16:55.60\00:16:59.03
They had accepted Christianity,
but they were at the point
00:16:59.06\00:17:02.18
of giving it all up.
00:17:02.21\00:17:04.24
Basically, as you examine the
book, the Hebrews or the Jews
00:17:04.54\00:17:10.11
who had become
Christians were saying this,
00:17:10.14\00:17:12.85
"Before becoming Christians,
we had the glorious city of
00:17:12.88\00:17:17.16
Jerusalem with its resplendent
temple, the priesthood,
00:17:17.19\00:17:23.31
the fathers, the
covenants, the promises.
00:17:23.34\00:17:27.65
We had all of these
blessings, all of these things.
00:17:27.68\00:17:30.69
And what do we have now
since we became Christians?
00:17:30.72\00:17:34.46
All we have is nothing but
opposition and persecution.
00:17:34.49\00:17:40.12
So is it really worthwhile?"
00:17:40.15\00:17:43.12
So the apostle Paul decided
that he would write this book
00:17:43.52\00:17:46.73
to encourage them not
to give up Christianity
00:17:46.76\00:17:49.80
and to return to
Judaism, but to persevere
00:17:49.83\00:17:53.06
in the Christian faith.
00:17:53.09\00:17:56.25
He explained to them
that what they had when
00:17:56.28\00:17:59.52
they were Jews was good.
00:17:59.55\00:18:01.56
But he also explained that
what they had now as Christians
00:18:01.86\00:18:06.29
was actually
better than what they had.
00:18:06.32\00:18:08.92
In other words, the conquest was
not that back there it was bad
00:18:08.95\00:18:12.56
and now it was good.
00:18:12.59\00:18:13.62
No, what they had was good.
00:18:13.65\00:18:15.47
But what they have now as
Christians was much better.
00:18:15.50\00:18:19.57
And the basic argument of the
book is that the Old Testament
00:18:19.60\00:18:24.17
system could not save the
sinner because it dealt with the
00:18:24.20\00:18:28.91
blood of animals and it had
only mere human intercessors.
00:18:28.94\00:18:33.97
But he says, the new
system actually has the blood of
00:18:34.00\00:18:38.42
Jesus Christ and the
God-man who bridges the gap
00:18:38.45\00:18:43.72
between heaven and earth.
00:18:43.75\00:18:45.59
In other words he's saying,
"Don't go back to the shadows.
00:18:45.62\00:18:48.19
We have the reality now.
00:18:48.22\00:18:49.99
Don't go back to
the blood of animals.
00:18:50.02\00:18:52.07
We have the blood of Christ.
00:18:52.10\00:18:53.54
Don't go back to
mere human intercessors.
00:18:53.57\00:18:56.42
Now you have a religion
of an individual who is God
00:18:56.45\00:19:01.12
and man who can
represent you before God."
00:19:01.15\00:19:04.43
Now we want to take, in
the light of this historical
00:19:05.26\00:19:08.10
background, we want to
take a look at this passage
00:19:08.13\00:19:11.41
in Hebrews 12 and
verses 22 through 24.
00:19:11.44\00:19:14.59
However, before we do, I
need to say something about the
00:19:14.62\00:19:19.16
language in which the
book of Hebrews was written.
00:19:19.19\00:19:21.50
Of course, probably all of
us know that the book of Hebrews
00:19:21.53\00:19:26.15
was written in Greek.
00:19:26.18\00:19:27.80
It was not originally
written in English, obviously.
00:19:27.83\00:19:31.04
And because it was written
in Greek, we're going to have to
00:19:31.07\00:19:34.59
take into account
certain aspects of the grammar
00:19:34.62\00:19:38.37
of this passage in
the original language;
00:19:38.40\00:19:41.13
in the Greek language.
00:19:41.16\00:19:43.12
We're also going to have to
take into account the context
00:19:43.15\00:19:47.48
of this passage
within the book of Hebrews.
00:19:47.51\00:19:50.49
In other words, where does this
passage fit within the argument
00:19:50.52\00:19:54.51
of the book of Hebrews.
00:19:54.54\00:19:55.72
And so we're going to have
to take into account the context
00:19:55.75\00:19:58.68
and certain elements of
the grammar that we find
00:19:58.71\00:20:02.25
in these verses.
00:20:02.28\00:20:03.31
Now go with me
once again to Hebrews 12
00:20:03.81\00:20:06.22
and verses 22 to 24.
00:20:06.25\00:20:08.06
And I'm going to read through
this and stop at certain points
00:20:08.09\00:20:12.72
to underline the grammar
that we find in these verses.
00:20:12.75\00:20:19.16
And by the way, I'm reading from
the New International Version
00:20:19.19\00:20:22.95
which is a better
translation than the King James.
00:20:22.98\00:20:26.79
I didn't say
it's a better version.
00:20:26.82\00:20:28.58
I said it's a better
translation in this passage.
00:20:28.61\00:20:31.86
Now it says there in verse 22,
"But you," that is the Hebrews,
00:20:31.89\00:20:36.57
"have come to Mount Zion."
00:20:36.60\00:20:41.34
Now that verb, "have come," is
what is called a perfect tense.
00:20:41.37\00:20:47.22
Do you know what
a perfect tense is?
00:20:47.25\00:20:49.55
Basically it means an
action that began in the past
00:20:49.93\00:20:53.51
and it endures in the present.
00:20:53.54\00:20:55.54
"You have come" means that
they came at a certain point
00:20:55.57\00:20:59.69
and they are still there.
00:20:59.72\00:21:02.50
So we need to remember
that this is a perfect tense.
00:21:03.46\00:21:06.98
It's an action that began
in the past and that endures
00:21:07.01\00:21:10.30
and continues in the present.
00:21:10.33\00:21:12.36
And so it says, "But you,"
that is the Hebrews, "have come
00:21:12.39\00:21:15.77
to Mount Zion, to
the heavenly Jerusalem,
00:21:15.80\00:21:19.64
to the city of the living God."
00:21:19.96\00:21:22.57
So notice, the apostle Paul here
is speaking about the Hebrews
00:21:22.60\00:21:26.18
and he's not
saying, "you will come."
00:21:26.21\00:21:28.45
He's not saying
simply that you came.
00:21:29.29\00:21:31.67
He says, "you have come."
00:21:31.70\00:21:33.68
You came at a certain
point and you are still, what?
00:21:33.71\00:21:36.35
And you are still there.
00:21:36.38\00:21:38.17
Now notice once again, "But
you have come to Mount Zion,
00:21:38.72\00:21:43.31
to the heavenly Jerusalem,
the city of the living God.
00:21:43.34\00:21:46.68
You have come..."
00:21:46.71\00:21:48.89
By the way, that's not
actually in the original.
00:21:48.92\00:21:52.07
The NIV adds it but it's
understood that really it is
00:21:52.10\00:21:55.64
a continuation of
the perfect tense.
00:21:55.67\00:21:57.67
"You have come to thousands
upon thousands of angels
00:21:57.70\00:22:02.25
in joyful assembly..."
00:22:02.28\00:22:03.70
So notice that they've come
into the presence of angels,
00:22:04.10\00:22:07.63
of thousands upon
thousands of angels.
00:22:07.66\00:22:09.87
Then it says, "...to
the church of the firstborn,
00:22:10.07\00:22:13.74
whose names are
written in heaven."
00:22:13.77\00:22:16.81
Now there, the New International
Version does not capture
00:22:16.84\00:22:20.36
the tense of the verb.
00:22:20.39\00:22:22.45
Because really, the verb
in Greek says, and this is
00:22:22.48\00:22:26.47
very important, "You have come
to the church of the firstborn,
00:22:26.50\00:22:29.69
whose names have
been written in heaven."
00:22:29.72\00:22:34.28
That's an important nuance.
00:22:34.31\00:22:35.99
It's not that they
are written in heaven.
00:22:36.02\00:22:38.51
But at some point in the
past, their names were written
00:22:38.54\00:22:41.85
in heaven and they
still are written in heaven.
00:22:41.88\00:22:45.20
Are you with me?
00:22:45.23\00:22:46.26
Very very important point.
00:22:46.29\00:22:47.85
It's not translated
correctly in most versions.
00:22:47.88\00:22:50.59
But it is in the perfect tense.
00:22:50.62\00:22:52.95
It's the same tense as we found
at the beginning of verse 22,
00:22:52.98\00:22:57.29
expect at the
beginning of verse 22,
00:22:57.32\00:22:59.44
it's an active
perfect tense and here it is a
00:22:59.47\00:23:02.61
passive perfect tense.
00:23:02.64\00:23:03.92
But it is still a perfect tense.
00:23:03.95\00:23:05.93
So once again, "But you
have come to Mount Zion,
00:23:05.96\00:23:10.58
to the heavenly Jerusalem,
to the city of the living God.
00:23:10.61\00:23:13.60
You have come to thousands
upon thousands of angels
00:23:14.42\00:23:18.48
in joyful assembly, to
the church of the firstborn,
00:23:18.51\00:23:21.89
whose names 'have
been' written in heaven."
00:23:21.92\00:23:25.61
They were written at a certain
point and they are still written
00:23:25.64\00:23:28.11
when the
apostle Paul is writing.
00:23:28.14\00:23:29.65
He continues saying,
"You have come to God,
00:23:29.68\00:23:33.60
the judge of all men, to
the spirits of righteous men..."
00:23:33.63\00:23:39.92
And then once again, for
some reason, the NIV and most
00:23:39.95\00:23:43.79
modern version don't
translate the verb properly.
00:23:43.82\00:23:46.63
Really what it
says in the Greek is,
00:23:46.66\00:23:49.07
"To the spirits of righteous
men who have been made perfect."
00:23:49.10\00:23:55.26
Once again, it
is a perfect tense.
00:23:55.66\00:23:57.74
It's something that took place
in the past and the results
00:23:57.77\00:24:02.12
endure unto the present.
00:24:02.15\00:24:04.15
Are you understanding
what a perfect tense is?
00:24:04.18\00:24:06.02
In other words, at some
point their names were, what?
00:24:06.05\00:24:08.42
Their names were
written in heaven, and when the
00:24:08.45\00:24:10.93
apostle Paul is writing,
their names are still, what?
00:24:10.96\00:24:13.92
Their names are
still written there.
00:24:13.95\00:24:16.52
And so he says, "You have come
to God, the judge of all men,
00:24:16.92\00:24:21.60
to the spirits of
righteous men made perfect..."
00:24:21.63\00:24:26.97
Which a better translation
is, "have been made perfect."
00:24:27.00\00:24:30.40
"...to Jesus the
mediator of a new covenant,
00:24:30.43\00:24:34.16
and to the sprinkled
blood that speaks a better word
00:24:34.19\00:24:38.82
than the blood of Abel."
00:24:38.85\00:24:40.43
Now I need to
explain that the expression,
00:24:40.46\00:24:42.78
"than the blood of Abel,"
is not in the original Greek.
00:24:42.81\00:24:48.94
It's an assumption on
the basis of the translators.
00:24:48.97\00:24:51.97
We'll come back to
that in our second lecture,
00:24:52.00\00:24:54.73
lecture number
three in this series.
00:24:54.76\00:24:57.28
Now there are certain things we
need to notice about this then.
00:24:57.31\00:25:01.38
This passage is saying
that these individuals,
00:25:01.41\00:25:04.06
at some point in the
past, came to Mount Zion.
00:25:04.09\00:25:07.90
Their names, at some point
past, were registered in heaven.
00:25:07.93\00:25:13.18
And the spirits of just men
made perfect were made perfect
00:25:13.21\00:25:17.59
at some point, and
that endures in the present.
00:25:17.62\00:25:21.51
It's very important to study
the grammar of this passage
00:25:21.54\00:25:24.56
because it determines
the meaning of the passage.
00:25:24.59\00:25:27.96
Now, you'll notice here
that when it speaks about the
00:25:28.36\00:25:32.71
church of the firstborn,
it's not saying that the
00:25:32.74\00:25:36.32
church of the
firstborn is in heaven.
00:25:36.35\00:25:38.45
It says that the church of the
firstborn, what is in heaven?
00:25:39.36\00:25:44.00
This is very important.
00:25:44.40\00:25:45.88
Their names are what?
00:25:45.91\00:25:48.34
Their names are
written in heaven.
00:25:48.37\00:25:50.70
In other words, it's not that
they are personally in heaven.
00:25:50.73\00:25:53.02
Their names are
written in heaven.
00:25:53.05\00:25:55.54
Let me ask you, is it possible
for a person to be on earth
00:25:56.32\00:25:59.95
and to have their
name written in heaven?
00:25:59.98\00:26:02.30
Absolutely.
00:26:02.50\00:26:03.54
In fact, this identical
word is used, for example,
00:26:03.57\00:26:08.09
in Luke 2 verses 3 and 5
when Jesus and His parents
00:26:08.12\00:26:13.65
went to Bethlehem where
their names were written
00:26:13.68\00:26:18.09
in the books of record of Rome.
00:26:18.12\00:26:20.83
In other words, it has to do
with names written in a book.
00:26:20.86\00:26:24.95
Not with individuals
being present there personally.
00:26:24.98\00:26:28.13
Notice also Luke chapter
10 and verse 20 where this
00:26:28.44\00:26:31.62
same word is used.
00:26:31.65\00:26:32.92
It's referring to names.
00:26:32.95\00:26:34.26
The church of the firstborn
is not in heaven at this point.
00:26:34.29\00:26:37.32
The church of the firstborn have
come to the heavenly kingdom,
00:26:37.35\00:26:42.63
but they are not
personally there.
00:26:42.66\00:26:44.26
They are there
because they are, what?
00:26:44.29\00:26:46.08
Because their names are
written in the heavenly book.
00:26:46.28\00:26:49.91
Notice Luke
chapter 10 and verse 20.
00:26:49.94\00:26:52.08
"Nevertheless do not rejoice
in this, that the spirits
00:26:52.48\00:26:58.16
are subject to you."
00:26:58.19\00:26:59.22
Jesus is speaking
about the evil spirits.
00:26:59.25\00:27:01.58
He says to the disciples,
"Don't boast or rejoice that
00:27:01.61\00:27:05.24
the spirits are subject to you."
00:27:05.27\00:27:06.77
"But rather rejoice
because your names..." What?
00:27:06.80\00:27:10.37
"...are written in heaven."
00:27:10.40\00:27:12.54
Question, were the disciples
on earth at that point?
00:27:12.57\00:27:15.03
Yes they were.
00:27:15.24\00:27:16.27
What was in heaven?
00:27:16.30\00:27:17.39
It was only their
names that were in heaven.
00:27:17.59\00:27:19.95
So was there a certain sense
in which they were in heaven?
00:27:19.98\00:27:22.94
Yes or no? Absolutely.
00:27:22.97\00:27:24.56
Their names were there, but
they were not personally there.
00:27:24.59\00:27:28.36
And that's what
Hebrews 12:22-24 is saying.
00:27:28.39\00:27:31.34
It's telling us that the church
of the firstborn were written
00:27:31.37\00:27:35.63
in heaven, not that they
were physically present there.
00:27:35.66\00:27:39.38
Now there's this
interesting phenomenon
00:27:40.39\00:27:42.76
in Hebrews chapter 12.
00:27:42.79\00:27:44.43
And that is, that the people
of the Old Testament period
00:27:44.46\00:27:48.68
dwelt in old Jerusalem
with its literal temple
00:27:48.71\00:27:53.92
and it's animal blood
with mere human intercessors.
00:27:53.95\00:27:58.65
But the apostle Paul is saying
that in the New Testament period
00:27:59.34\00:28:02.64
the citizens are
citizens of the New Jerusalem.
00:28:02.67\00:28:06.27
They focus on the heavenly
temple, they have the blood
00:28:06.30\00:28:10.36
of Jesus, and they have Jesus
as an everlasting intercessor.
00:28:10.39\00:28:16.51
Now how is it that the church
of the firstborn can be in
00:28:17.37\00:28:21.29
heaven and yet at the
same time be on earth?
00:28:21.32\00:28:25.41
It's very simple.
00:28:25.78\00:28:27.01
Go with me to Philippians
chapter 3 and verses 20 and 21.
00:28:27.04\00:28:31.79
Philippians chapter
3 and verses 20 and 21.
00:28:31.82\00:28:35.42
You say, "You can't
be in two places at the
00:28:35.45\00:28:37.20
same time, can you?"
00:28:37.23\00:28:38.38
Of course you can.
00:28:38.41\00:28:39.47
You say, "Well,
are we omnipresent?"
00:28:40.29\00:28:42.69
No, there is a certain
sense in which we are in heaven
00:28:42.72\00:28:45.87
and there's another
sense in which we are on earth.
00:28:45.90\00:28:48.10
Now notice Philippians
chapter 3 verses 20 and 21.
00:28:48.13\00:28:50.80
Here the apostle Paul says, "For
our citizenship is in heaven."
00:28:50.83\00:28:57.38
Let me ask you something.
00:28:59.44\00:29:00.63
Do you suppose that
it's recorded here in the
00:29:00.66\00:29:03.40
United States that I'm a
citizen of the United States?
00:29:03.43\00:29:05.85
Yes.
00:29:06.05\00:29:07.12
What happens when I travel,
for example, to South Africa?
00:29:07.15\00:29:09.95
Is my name written here?
00:29:09.98\00:29:11.31
I'm not physically here,
but am I here in a certain sense
00:29:11.61\00:29:14.95
because my name is here?
00:29:14.98\00:29:16.06
Absolutely.
00:29:16.09\00:29:17.12
So he says, "For our
citizenship is in heaven,
00:29:17.15\00:29:19.65
from which we also
eagerly wait for the Savior,
00:29:19.68\00:29:22.85
the Lord Jesus Christ, who
will transform our lowly body
00:29:22.88\00:29:26.32
that it may be
conformed to His glorious body,
00:29:26.35\00:29:28.88
according to the working by
which He is able even to subdue
00:29:28.91\00:29:32.57
all things to Himself."
00:29:32.67\00:29:34.39
Let me ask you, can we drink
of the water of life even today?
00:29:35.47\00:29:39.35
Does the Bible say that we
can come and drink from the
00:29:39.79\00:29:42.22
river of the water of life?
00:29:42.25\00:29:43.96
Absolutely.
00:29:44.06\00:29:45.12
Does the Bible say that
we can now partake of the
00:29:45.15\00:29:47.48
manna in heaven
while we're on earth?
00:29:47.51\00:29:50.15
Yes, but in a spiritual sense
and not in a physical sense.
00:29:50.18\00:29:53.84
Later on we'll do it physically
when we're there in person.
00:29:53.87\00:29:56.71
But now we do it spiritually.
00:29:56.74\00:29:58.96
Notice also Ephesians chapter
2 and verses 4 through 6.
00:29:58.99\00:30:02.97
Here the apostle Paul is going
to say that we are in heaven.
00:30:03.00\00:30:05.66
Now notice how the apostle Paul
explains that we are in heaven.
00:30:05.69\00:30:09.14
Ephesians chapter 2
and verses 4 through 6.
00:30:09.17\00:30:13.23
Here the apostle Paul says,
"But God, who is rich in mercy,
00:30:13.26\00:30:17.66
because of His great
love with which He loved us,
00:30:17.69\00:30:22.57
even when we were dead
in trespasses, made us alive
00:30:22.60\00:30:26.80
together with Christ, by
grace you have been saved..."
00:30:26.83\00:30:30.30
And now notice, "...and raised
us up together, and made us
00:30:30.33\00:30:35.88
sit together in the heavenly
places in Christ Jesus."
00:30:35.91\00:30:41.21
Are we sitting in heaven today?
00:30:41.66\00:30:43.39
According to the apostle Paul,
are we sitting in heaven today?
00:30:43.97\00:30:46.96
Of course.
00:30:47.33\00:30:48.48
But not physically.
00:30:48.73\00:30:50.37
Where are we physically?
00:30:50.77\00:30:52.29
Well, I think
you're here tonight.
00:30:52.72\00:30:54.78
I can see you,
your body is here.
00:30:54.81\00:30:56.82
But is there a sense in
which you are in heaven?
00:30:56.85\00:30:59.31
Yes, because if you are
in Christ, in Jesus you are
00:30:59.67\00:31:04.20
seated where?
00:31:04.23\00:31:05.43
You are seated in heaven.
00:31:05.46\00:31:07.75
In other words, what
the apostle Paul is saying
00:31:07.78\00:31:10.72
in Hebrews chapter 12 is that
the Hebrews have come to the
00:31:10.75\00:31:14.17
heavenly Jerusalem, the Hebrews
have come to the joyful assembly
00:31:14.20\00:31:18.43
of the angels, they have come
to the place where the names of
00:31:18.46\00:31:22.07
righteous people are written.
00:31:22.10\00:31:23.55
They are there spiritually,
but they're here, what?
00:31:23.58\00:31:27.05
But they're here physically.
00:31:27.08\00:31:28.85
Let me read you an interesting
statement from Ellen White
00:31:28.88\00:31:31.58
where she relates the church on
earth with the church in heaven.
00:31:31.61\00:31:36.73
This is Counsels To The
Church pages 240 and 241.
00:31:36.76\00:31:40.90
This is a beautiful statement.
00:31:40.93\00:31:41.96
She says:
00:31:41.99\00:31:43.02
And so can we be in two
places at the same time?
00:32:41.76\00:32:44.88
Certainly.
00:32:44.91\00:32:46.08
Our names are written where?
00:32:46.11\00:32:48.21
In heaven.
00:32:48.24\00:32:49.27
We are in Jesus. In
Him we are in heaven.
00:32:49.30\00:32:52.44
Spiritually speaking.
00:32:52.47\00:32:53.81
But on earth, we are physically
here, we are personally here.
00:32:53.84\00:32:58.44
Are you understanding that
the Hebrews were not actually
00:32:58.64\00:33:01.42
physically in heaven?
00:33:01.45\00:33:02.60
That's obviously clear because
the apostle Paul is writing
00:33:02.63\00:33:05.33
this book to them on earth.
00:33:05.36\00:33:07.30
Now with this background
in mind, we can answer
00:33:07.60\00:33:11.43
three very important questions.
00:33:11.46\00:33:13.31
Two of these questions
we're going to answer tonight.
00:33:13.83\00:33:17.57
And the other question we
are going to leave to answer
00:33:17.60\00:33:21.68
in our next study.
00:33:21.71\00:33:23.39
These are the three questions.
00:33:23.42\00:33:25.17
Who are these spirits?
00:33:26.01\00:33:28.74
I'm talking about the
"spirits of righteous men."
00:33:28.77\00:33:31.47
Who are these
spirits of righteous men?
00:33:31.50\00:33:35.50
Secondly, who are
these righteous men
00:33:36.12\00:33:39.90
that are spoken of here?
00:33:39.93\00:33:41.61
And number three, what is meant
by the fact that these spirits
00:33:41.64\00:33:46.75
of righteous men
were made perfect?
00:33:46.78\00:33:49.85
So three questions
that we're try and answer.
00:33:49.88\00:33:52.20
Number one, who
are these spirits
00:33:52.23\00:33:55.10
or what are these spirits?
00:33:55.13\00:33:56.54
Number two, what does it mean
that they are righteous men?
00:33:56.57\00:34:00.30
And number three, what
is meant by the expression
00:34:00.33\00:34:03.93
that these spirits of
righteous men were made perfect?
00:34:03.96\00:34:09.17
Let me share with you, before we
answer the first two questions,
00:34:10.03\00:34:13.92
what the classic
Protestant view is?
00:34:13.95\00:34:17.09
You see, most Protestants
will use this passage
00:34:17.12\00:34:19.66
and they'll say that the
"spirits of righteous men
00:34:19.69\00:34:23.38
made perfect" are the souls of
the departed that are in heaven
00:34:23.41\00:34:27.12
and they're
singing anthems to God.
00:34:27.15\00:34:29.27
That's the
classic Protestant view.
00:34:29.69\00:34:32.91
And I don't believe that
view does honor to the context,
00:34:32.94\00:34:36.42
to the grammar, or the
meaning of the passage,
00:34:36.45\00:34:38.65
as we'll study it together.
00:34:38.68\00:34:39.95
Now I found a book
that expresses the classic
00:34:39.98\00:34:43.64
Protestant view in a succinct
very easy to understand way.
00:34:43.67\00:34:47.80
I'm quoting from
Robert Morey in his book,
00:34:47.83\00:34:51.23
Death And The
Afterlife, page 213.
00:34:51.26\00:34:54.71
This is what he
says about this passage.
00:34:54.74\00:34:56.52
"In this glorious
picture described by the author,
00:34:56.55\00:35:01.52
the earthly saints join
in the worship which resounds
00:35:01.55\00:35:06.66
from the myriad of
angels and disembodied spirits
00:35:06.69\00:35:10.76
of fellow saints who
have departed this life.
00:35:10.79\00:35:13.75
These saints were justified
through faith while on earth
00:35:14.15\00:35:17.39
and are now perfected
and completed in heaven.
00:35:17.69\00:35:21.00
That the author is describing
the blessed condition of
00:35:21.47\00:35:24.42
departed saints who now
worship God before the throne
00:35:24.45\00:35:27.71
is so clear that we must
agree with the commentators
00:35:27.74\00:35:31.67
that it cannot be
questioned or doubted."
00:35:31.70\00:35:33.68
I beg his pardon.
00:35:33.71\00:35:34.92
It can be
questioned and doubted.
00:35:34.95\00:35:36.95
He continues saying,
"The conditionalists..."
00:35:36.98\00:35:39.55
Which are Adventists, we
believe in the conditional
00:35:39.58\00:35:41.38
immortality of the soul.
00:35:41.41\00:35:42.83
He says, "The conditionalists
have never adequately
00:35:42.86\00:35:45.97
dealt with the grammar
and syntax of this passage."
00:35:46.00\00:35:49.30
And that's why I decided that
I would deal with the grammar
00:35:49.33\00:35:52.08
and the syntax.
00:35:52.11\00:35:53.15
So he continues saying,
"The conditionalists have
00:35:53.62\00:35:55.76
never adequately
dealt with the grammar
00:35:55.79\00:35:57.68
and syntax of this
passage, because the spirits of
00:35:57.71\00:36:01.40
justified men now perfected who
are worshiping at God's throne
00:36:01.43\00:36:05.51
are obviously
conscious souls of believers
00:36:05.54\00:36:09.74
during the intermediate state."
00:36:09.77\00:36:13.07
Is the classic Protestant
view clear in your mind?
00:36:13.62\00:36:16.85
The idea is that these are the
souls of the departed that are
00:36:16.88\00:36:20.65
in heaven and are worshiping
and they're praising God
00:36:20.68\00:36:23.67
in the presence of the angels.
00:36:23.70\00:36:25.66
Now we want to ask first of
all, the question and try to
00:36:25.99\00:36:29.02
answer it; what are
these spirits of righteous men?
00:36:29.05\00:36:32.62
As I mentioned, it is generally
believed that the spirit of man
00:36:33.36\00:36:37.23
is an invisible entity
inside man that leaves the body
00:36:37.26\00:36:42.58
at the moment of
death and continues living
00:36:42.61\00:36:45.44
independently of the body.
00:36:45.47\00:36:47.37
But the question is, is
this a biblical reality?
00:36:47.68\00:36:52.71
You see, folks, we need
to understand a little bit
00:36:53.56\00:36:57.62
in a more broader sense what
it meant by the word "spirit".
00:36:57.65\00:37:01.70
As I mentioned
before, we are here personally
00:37:02.29\00:37:06.10
and physically on earth.
00:37:06.13\00:37:07.54
But in another
sense, we are in heaven.
00:37:07.57\00:37:10.16
Our names are written in heaven.
00:37:10.19\00:37:11.90
And does God keep a
record of our self identity
00:37:11.93\00:37:16.65
and a record of our
lives in the heavenly books?
00:37:16.68\00:37:19.03
He most certainly does.
00:37:19.06\00:37:20.26
So we are in two places.
00:37:20.29\00:37:21.58
We are personally on earth,
but in heaven we are contained
00:37:21.61\00:37:25.89
in a written
biography, if you please.
00:37:25.92\00:37:29.97
Now why is this important?
00:37:30.27\00:37:32.01
Because I believe, and I'm going
to prove it from Scripture,
00:37:32.42\00:37:35.10
that really what the
"spirit" means in this case
00:37:35.13\00:37:39.72
is the life record of the
individual that is contained
00:37:39.75\00:37:43.87
in the heavenly records or is
contained in the heavenly books.
00:37:43.90\00:37:47.07
In other words, it
is the character or the
00:37:47.10\00:37:49.18
self identity of the person who
is walking and living on earth
00:37:49.21\00:37:53.32
that is preserved in
heaven in the heavenly books.
00:37:53.35\00:37:56.87
That is what is
meant by the word "spirit".
00:37:56.90\00:38:00.60
In other words, the spirit
is not some invisible entity
00:38:00.63\00:38:03.92
that can live
independently of the body.
00:38:03.95\00:38:06.13
The spirit is simply, God gives
the body the ability to function
00:38:06.16\00:38:10.43
through the breath of
life or the spirit of life.
00:38:10.46\00:38:12.48
And with that
spirit, we form our character
00:38:12.51\00:38:15.35
or we form our self
identity which God preserves
00:38:15.38\00:38:18.80
in the heavenly records.
00:38:18.83\00:38:19.86
Are you understanding me?
00:38:19.89\00:38:20.94
Now let's notice three biblical
passages and then I want to
00:38:20.97\00:38:24.17
read you an
amazing statement from the
00:38:24.20\00:38:26.09
writings of Ellen White.
00:38:26.12\00:38:27.39
The first example,
Luke 8 verses 52 to 55.
00:38:27.42\00:38:31.36
Luke 8 verses 52 through 55.
00:38:31.39\00:38:34.69
This is speaking about
the daughter of Jairus.
00:38:34.72\00:38:37.37
Jairus had a
daughter and she had died.
00:38:37.40\00:38:39.82
And let's pick up the
story beginning at verse 52.
00:38:39.85\00:38:43.17
Jesus comes to the home and He's
going to resurrect this girl.
00:38:43.20\00:38:45.97
It says, "Now all wept and
mourned for her; but He said,
00:38:46.78\00:38:51.77
'Do not weep; she is
not dead, but sleeping.'
00:38:51.80\00:38:55.62
And they ridiculed Him,
knowing that she was dead."
00:38:55.65\00:38:59.46
Was this girl dead, yes or no?
00:38:59.49\00:39:01.11
She was absolutely dead.
00:39:01.14\00:39:02.74
Verse 54, "But He put them all
outside, took her by the hand
00:39:02.77\00:39:07.30
and called, saying..."
00:39:07.33\00:39:08.49
And I want you to
notice, if I read wrongly,
00:39:08.52\00:39:11.39
please correct me, okay.
00:39:11.42\00:39:12.51
Because you know, I
need glasses at this point.
00:39:12.54\00:39:15.62
And I don't have my glasses on.
00:39:15.65\00:39:17.06
So if I read wrongly,
please correct me, okay.
00:39:17.09\00:39:19.60
So verse 54, "But He
put them all outside,
00:39:19.63\00:39:22.62
took her by the hand and called
saying, 'Little girl, arise.'
00:39:22.65\00:39:26.99
Then the spirit returned..."
00:39:27.02\00:39:30.43
Is that correct?
00:39:33.91\00:39:34.98
It doesn't say,
"the spirit returned."
00:39:36.02\00:39:38.37
It says, "her spirit returned."
00:39:38.40\00:39:42.13
Do you know what a
possessive pronoun is?
00:39:43.57\00:39:45.46
It means, the spirit
that belonged to her.
00:39:45.49\00:39:48.66
Not just the breath
of life, but her spirit.
00:39:49.69\00:39:52.54
And so it says in verse
55, "Then her spirit returned,
00:39:52.57\00:39:56.17
and she arose immediately.
00:39:56.20\00:39:57.85
And He commanded that she
be given something to eat."
00:39:57.88\00:40:01.72
Notice also Acts
chapter 7 verses 59 and 60.
00:40:02.15\00:40:06.25
This is referring to
the stoning of Stephen.
00:40:06.28\00:40:08.48
Acts 7 verses 59 and 60.
00:40:08.51\00:40:12.06
It says here, "And they stoned
Stephen as he was calling on
00:40:12.09\00:40:17.21
God and saying, 'Lord
Jesus, receive the spirit.'"
00:40:17.24\00:40:22.70
Yea, it doesn't say,
"receive the spirit."
00:40:26.01\00:40:28.46
He's not says,
"just receive my breath."
00:40:28.49\00:40:30.95
He's saying,
receive what? "My spirit."
00:40:31.81\00:40:35.53
Once again, a
possessive pronoun.
00:40:35.56\00:40:38.12
Did Stephen have a spirit?
00:40:38.15\00:40:39.68
He most certainly did.
00:40:40.10\00:40:41.46
What was that spirit?
00:40:41.49\00:40:42.74
It was the record of his life.
00:40:43.04\00:40:44.93
Let me ask you,
when Stephen resurrects,
00:40:44.96\00:40:46.87
who's going to resurrect?
00:40:47.17\00:40:48.49
Is God simply going to
give him the breath of life
00:40:48.52\00:40:52.17
or is he going to
give him his self identity
00:40:52.20\00:40:54.53
while he was alive?
00:40:54.56\00:40:55.68
He's going to return to
him who he was during his life.
00:40:56.19\00:40:59.22
It's going to be Stephen
who resurrects, because with the
00:40:59.25\00:41:01.72
breath, God is going to
return the record of his life.
00:41:01.75\00:41:05.03
So it says in verse 60, "Then
he knelt down and cried out
00:41:05.60\00:41:08.87
with a loud voice, 'Lord, do
not charge them with this sin.'
00:41:08.90\00:41:12.69
And when he had said
this, he fell asleep."
00:41:12.72\00:41:16.05
Let's notice our third
example, Luke 23 and verse 46.
00:41:16.08\00:41:20.62
This is speaking about
the death of Jesus Christ.
00:41:20.65\00:41:23.47
Luke 23 and verse 46.
00:41:23.50\00:41:27.03
Jesus is on the
cross, He's about to die.
00:41:27.93\00:41:30.62
And it says there
in Luke 23 verse 46,
00:41:31.63\00:41:35.19
"And when Jesus had cried
out with a loud voice, He said,
00:41:35.22\00:41:39.37
'Father, into Your
hands I commend the spirit.'"
00:41:39.40\00:41:44.07
No, He doesn't say "the spirit."
00:41:44.10\00:41:46.50
He says, "I
commend," what? "My spirit."
00:41:46.53\00:41:49.67
"Having said this,
He breathed His last."
00:41:49.70\00:41:52.34
When Jesus
resurrected, was He still Jesus?
00:41:52.37\00:41:55.16
Did He remember His disciples?
00:41:55.85\00:41:57.68
Did He remember all
of the experiences that
00:41:57.71\00:42:00.18
He'd had with His disciples?
00:42:00.21\00:42:01.67
So let me ask you, what
was it that God returned to
00:42:01.97\00:42:04.28
Jesus Christ when
He resurrected Him?
00:42:04.31\00:42:06.21
He returned to Him, not only the
ability or capacity to breathe,
00:42:06.61\00:42:11.09
but He also returned with
His breath, who He had been
00:42:11.12\00:42:14.43
during His life because a record
of His life had been preserved.
00:42:14.46\00:42:17.98
Now let me read you an amazing
statement from Ellen White,
00:42:18.39\00:42:20.69
this woman who had
only two and a half years
00:42:20.72\00:42:22.59
of primary education.
00:42:22.62\00:42:24.02
But she was
instructed by the Holy Spirit.
00:42:24.77\00:42:26.88
This is from
the book, Maranatha,
00:42:27.90\00:42:29.90
a devotional book, page 301.
00:42:29.93\00:42:32.04
She says:
00:42:32.07\00:42:33.10
God doesn't have to rescue
every little particle of matter
00:42:42.44\00:42:44.65
to make us all over again.
00:42:44.68\00:42:45.80
She continues saying:
00:42:46.50\00:42:47.53
What is the spirit?
00:43:03.43\00:43:04.52
"The character of man,"
she says, "returns to God
00:43:05.54\00:43:09.20
and there is preserved."
00:43:09.23\00:43:11.34
Then she says:
00:43:11.37\00:43:12.40
So does God keep a
record of the character
00:43:18.69\00:43:20.40
in the heavenly books?
00:43:20.43\00:43:21.58
What is He going to
return with the breath of life?
00:43:21.78\00:43:24.30
He's going to return the
self identity that He has
00:43:24.33\00:43:27.08
kept in the books.
00:43:27.11\00:43:28.66
She continues saying:
00:43:29.16\00:43:30.19
Isn't that a
remarkable statement?
00:44:04.04\00:44:05.54
She understood very
well what the spirit was.
00:44:05.84\00:44:08.04
The spirit is simply the
life record of the person.
00:44:08.07\00:44:11.49
And by the way, when
you have the breath of life,
00:44:11.52\00:44:13.48
you're still writing
your character, aren't you.
00:44:13.51\00:44:15.88
But when you breathe
your last, what happens?
00:44:15.91\00:44:18.81
Your record is complete.
00:44:18.84\00:44:20.41
And God keeps the
record of your life.
00:44:20.44\00:44:22.71
When He comes to resurrect
you, if you should die before
00:44:22.74\00:44:25.51
Jesus comes, what
is He going to do?
00:44:25.54\00:44:27.41
He's going to give you
the ability to breathe again.
00:44:27.44\00:44:29.80
But not only the
ability to breathe.
00:44:29.83\00:44:32.00
Along with that, He's going
to give to you who you were
00:44:32.03\00:44:35.82
while you were, what?
00:44:35.85\00:44:37.41
While you were alive.
00:44:37.44\00:44:39.63
Now let me read you
another remarkable statement
00:44:39.66\00:44:41.77
from Ellen White.
00:44:41.80\00:44:42.83
In this case, she's
speaking about the wicked
00:44:42.86\00:44:45.10
after the millennium.
00:44:45.13\00:44:46.64
She's not talking about the
righteous who will come forth
00:44:47.97\00:44:50.33
from the grave
when Jesus returns.
00:44:50.36\00:44:52.08
She's speaking about the wicked
who will come from the graves
00:44:52.60\00:44:55.23
after the thousand years.
00:44:55.26\00:44:57.14
But in principle, she's
dealing with the same idea that
00:44:57.17\00:45:01.13
God preserves our
identity in the heavenly books.
00:45:01.16\00:45:04.09
This statement is from The
Great Controversy, page 664.
00:45:04.12\00:45:08.38
The Great Controversy, page
664; a remarkable statement.
00:45:08.41\00:45:11.90
Speaking about those
outside the Holy City, she says:
00:45:12.71\00:45:15.69
So what happens in
death with your character?
00:45:39.38\00:45:41.50
Does God transforms
your character after death?
00:45:41.53\00:45:43.92
No, she says, "In death
these experienced no change."
00:45:43.95\00:45:49.77
She continues:
00:45:49.80\00:45:50.83
Are you
understanding what she's saying?
00:46:01.63\00:46:03.24
In other words, when you
died, you had a certain thought
00:46:03.76\00:46:07.09
about a certain individual.
00:46:07.12\00:46:08.25
You know, you're thinking maybe
about going to steal something
00:46:08.28\00:46:13.97
from somebody and in the
process, you know, you had
00:46:14.00\00:46:16.72
a heart attack and you died.
00:46:16.75\00:46:17.78
You know what's going to happen
when the wicked person wakes up?
00:46:17.81\00:46:20.76
He's going to be thinking
about stealing that thing,
00:46:20.79\00:46:23.89
because he picks up
exactly where he left off.
00:46:23.92\00:46:27.89
Why? Because when
God returns the breath,
00:46:27.92\00:46:30.37
He returns also, what?
00:46:30.40\00:46:31.86
He returns the record
of the life that He keeps
00:46:31.89\00:46:34.74
in the heavenly books.
00:46:34.77\00:46:35.98
Now don't misunderstand me.
00:46:36.01\00:46:38.17
There is nothing
that is living in heaven.
00:46:38.20\00:46:39.98
There's no spirit that's roaming
around singing praises to God.
00:46:40.01\00:46:43.41
It's simply the, dare I say, the
electronic record of our lives
00:46:43.44\00:46:48.65
that God is going to input into
a new body when He resurrects
00:46:48.68\00:46:52.42
us from the dead.
00:46:52.45\00:46:53.54
Are you
understanding what I'm saying?
00:46:53.64\00:46:55.18
So the spirit simply
is the breath of life
00:46:55.58\00:46:59.57
that we use to form our
character while we are alive.
00:46:59.60\00:47:03.18
And at the moment of
death, the record is complete
00:47:03.21\00:47:07.02
and God saves our spirit, or our
record, in the heavenly books.
00:47:07.05\00:47:11.86
So I hope that you understand
what the word "spirits" means.
00:47:12.63\00:47:16.54
It means, the characters.
It means, the life record.
00:47:16.84\00:47:20.49
And you're saying, "Well
why would the life record
00:47:20.52\00:47:22.99
of the righteous
have to be made perfect?"
00:47:23.02\00:47:26.15
Doesn't it say, "the spirits
of righteous men made perfect?"
00:47:26.92\00:47:31.20
Why would the spirits
of righteous men have to
00:47:31.23\00:47:34.68
be made perfect?
00:47:34.71\00:47:35.87
If the spirit is the character,
why would their character,
00:47:36.32\00:47:39.94
why would the record of their
life have to be made perfect?
00:47:39.97\00:47:43.11
Well, you won't
understand this unless you come
00:47:43.51\00:47:45.34
to the next lecture.
00:47:45.37\00:47:46.48
But now we have to
deal with one final thing
00:47:46.51\00:47:48.83
in our lecture today.
00:47:48.86\00:47:49.97
And that is the question
of who the righteous are.
00:47:50.00\00:47:54.90
Incidentally, it
does not say in Greek,
00:47:54.93\00:47:58.55
"the spirits of righteous men."
00:47:58.58\00:48:00.80
The word "men" is
added by the translators.
00:48:02.11\00:48:04.30
Really it says, "the spirits
of the righteous made perfect."
00:48:04.33\00:48:08.03
And the translators
simply assumed that the word
00:48:08.06\00:48:10.39
"men" belongs there.
00:48:10.42\00:48:11.65
But it includes men
and it includes women.
00:48:11.68\00:48:14.79
And we're going to
find why that is important.
00:48:14.82\00:48:17.09
Now, who are these righteous?
00:48:17.63\00:48:20.88
Well all we have to do is
look at the previous chapter
00:48:21.44\00:48:24.86
in the book of Hebrews.
00:48:24.89\00:48:27.22
All we have to do is
go back to chapter 11.
00:48:27.25\00:48:29.34
And chapter 11 tells us
who these righteous beings are,
00:48:29.37\00:48:32.54
who these righteous persons are.
00:48:32.57\00:48:34.44
You see, Hebrews chapter
11 is called the "honor roll"
00:48:35.25\00:48:38.68
of the Old Testament.
00:48:38.71\00:48:39.82
It has all of the Old
Testament heroes in it.
00:48:40.27\00:48:43.48
For example, it has Abel,
it has Enoch, it has Noah,
00:48:43.51\00:48:48.45
it has Abraham, Sarah, Isaac,
Jacob, Joseph, Moses, Rahab,
00:48:48.48\00:48:54.77
Gideon, Barack, Samson,
Jephthah, David, Samuel,
00:48:54.80\00:48:59.82
and also the prophets.
00:48:59.85\00:49:01.21
In other words, the righteous
that are being spoken of in
00:49:01.24\00:49:04.40
chapter 12 whose
spirits need to be made perfect
00:49:04.43\00:49:07.72
are the heroes
that are mentioned
00:49:07.75\00:49:10.28
in Hebrews chapter 11.
00:49:10.31\00:49:11.53
Is that clear in your mind?
00:49:11.56\00:49:13.07
It's very very important that we
realize this, that the spirits
00:49:13.42\00:49:16.87
of the righteous are the
spirits of Old Testament people.
00:49:16.90\00:49:23.38
The previous
chapter tells us that.
00:49:24.14\00:49:26.75
It's not talking about
New Testament Christians.
00:49:26.78\00:49:29.82
In fact, the apostle Paul
is saying that the Hebrews
00:49:29.85\00:49:32.83
who are alive at that
time, they have come to where
00:49:32.86\00:49:35.91
the spirits of righteous
men have been made perfect.
00:49:35.94\00:49:39.32
So are they a separate group?
00:49:39.35\00:49:41.11
Obviously, they
are a separate group.
00:49:41.90\00:49:43.69
Now the question is,
how were these heroes
00:49:43.91\00:49:48.68
actually made righteous?
00:49:48.71\00:49:50.73
How are we made righteous?
00:49:51.51\00:49:53.30
Well the fact is that
we're made righteous by, what?
00:49:54.04\00:49:56.81
By faith.
00:49:57.41\00:49:58.91
Hebrews 11 verse 4 tells
us that Abel was righteous
00:50:00.84\00:50:08.41
because he offered
a better sacrifice.
00:50:08.84\00:50:11.17
Hebrews 11 verse 7 tells
us that Noah became the heir
00:50:11.88\00:50:17.17
of righteousness by faith.
00:50:17.20\00:50:20.27
In fact, the word faith is used
24 times in the book of Hebrews
00:50:20.30\00:50:24.46
to describe the heroes that
you have from the Old Testament.
00:50:24.49\00:50:27.88
So how were these
heroes made righteous?
00:50:27.91\00:50:30.44
They were made
righteous by what?
00:50:30.47\00:50:32.33
By faith.
00:50:32.36\00:50:33.41
That's where we
get the expression,
00:50:33.44\00:50:34.83
righteousness by faith.
00:50:34.86\00:50:37.19
In other words, all of
these Old Testament heroes
00:50:37.22\00:50:39.54
were made righteous by faith.
00:50:39.57\00:50:43.82
Now we need to ask the question.
00:50:45.21\00:50:47.05
What is meant by the need
to make the spirits, or the
00:50:49.01\00:50:54.95
characters or the life record,
of these individuals perfect?
00:50:54.98\00:51:00.07
We know that this list of
honorable citizens from the
00:51:00.47\00:51:06.03
Old Testament were
made righteous by faith.
00:51:06.06\00:51:09.25
But at the same time, we know
that their life record somehow
00:51:09.28\00:51:14.27
needed to be made, what?
00:51:14.30\00:51:16.40
Needed to be made perfect.
00:51:16.43\00:51:19.25
Now if you read
Hebrews 11 verses 33 to 38,
00:51:19.28\00:51:23.36
you're going to notice the
emphasis on the word faith.
00:51:23.39\00:51:27.65
All of these Old
Testament heroes, they were made
00:51:27.68\00:51:30.39
righteous by faith.
00:51:30.42\00:51:31.45
They did all of
these great feats by faith.
00:51:31.48\00:51:34.03
So summarizing what
we've studied so far.
00:51:34.33\00:51:36.94
The apostle Paul is contrasting
the Old Testament religion
00:51:38.27\00:51:43.85
with the New Testament religion.
00:51:43.88\00:51:45.56
He's saying the Old
Testament religion was good.
00:51:45.86\00:51:48.81
It had the blood of animals,
it had mere human intercessors.
00:51:49.91\00:51:54.25
But could this
system really forgive sin?
00:51:54.78\00:51:57.25
Could it really cleanse
the record of sin in the
00:51:57.65\00:52:01.22
lives of the people legally?
00:52:01.25\00:52:03.21
No, because the blood of
bulls and goats cannot, what?
00:52:03.24\00:52:06.51
Cannot take away sin.
00:52:06.54\00:52:09.10
And so the apostle Paul says,
but the New Testament system,
00:52:10.31\00:52:13.54
the Christian
system is so much better.
00:52:13.57\00:52:15.60
Because it has the
blood of Jesus Christ
00:52:16.10\00:52:20.14
that can remove sin.
00:52:20.17\00:52:21.58
And it has Jesus
Christ as the intercessor.
00:52:21.61\00:52:24.91
He's God and He's man,
and He can bridge the gap
00:52:24.94\00:52:28.06
between heaven and earth.
00:52:28.09\00:52:30.50
In other words, He is a
powerful eternal intercessor.
00:52:30.53\00:52:34.26
That's the contrast that
the apostle Paul is drawing.
00:52:34.29\00:52:37.67
And then he says in Hebrews
chapter 12 that there's a
00:52:38.27\00:52:42.74
group of individuals who are
righteous, because they're the
00:52:42.77\00:52:46.89
spirits of righteous people,
that need to be made, what?
00:52:46.92\00:52:51.14
That need to be made perfect.
00:52:51.17\00:52:54.32
Now immediately the question
is, why would the spirits
00:52:54.62\00:52:58.66
or why would the life record
of the Old Testament saints
00:52:58.69\00:53:01.95
need to be made perfect?
00:53:01.98\00:53:06.32
Or need to be
perfected, if you wish.
00:53:06.35\00:53:10.90
You say, "Well, I sure
would like to know that.
00:53:11.62\00:53:13.76
I sure would like to know
why the Old Testament saints
00:53:13.79\00:53:16.48
needed to be made perfect."
00:53:16.51\00:53:17.73
Now let me give you a
little inkling about what we're
00:53:19.39\00:53:21.24
going to study in our next
lecture so that you're appetite
00:53:21.27\00:53:24.31
is wetted and you will come
to listen to the next lecture.
00:53:24.34\00:53:27.22
We're going to talk about what
it means to be made perfect.
00:53:27.25\00:53:30.23
That word or that expression,
"to be made perfect,"
00:53:31.25\00:53:34.18
is not speaking
about moral perfection.
00:53:34.21\00:53:36.95
It's not speaking about, you
know, being morally blameless
00:53:37.25\00:53:41.80
before the law of God.
00:53:41.83\00:53:43.07
The expression, "made perfect,"
in the books of Hebrews,
00:53:43.95\00:53:46.92
is used many many
times with regards to Christ.
00:53:46.95\00:53:50.14
And it's also used many
many times with regards to
00:53:50.17\00:53:53.79
the heroes from the Old
Testament, as well as the
00:53:53.82\00:53:57.80
people who were
living in the days when
00:53:57.83\00:53:59.50
the apostle Paul wrote.
00:53:59.53\00:54:00.63
And basically, the expression,
"made perfect," means,
00:54:01.03\00:54:05.60
to be qualified or to
be able to do something
00:54:05.63\00:54:11.36
which that person was
not able to do before.
00:54:11.39\00:54:14.96
Do you realize that
in the book of Hebrews,
00:54:15.49\00:54:17.65
the expression, "made perfect,"
is used even of Jesus Christ?
00:54:17.68\00:54:21.48
It says there in Hebrews
that Jesus was made perfect
00:54:22.09\00:54:25.73
through His sufferings.
00:54:25.76\00:54:26.79
It's not talking
about moral perfection,
00:54:26.82\00:54:28.66
because Jesus did not
need to be morally perfect.
00:54:28.69\00:54:31.16
Because He was
already morally perfect.
00:54:31.19\00:54:33.27
What it means is that
through His sufferings
00:54:33.30\00:54:35.90
and through His
death, He was made qualified
00:54:35.93\00:54:39.74
to be able to save human beings.
00:54:39.77\00:54:41.45
Did Jesus have to die, did He
have to shed His blood in order
00:54:41.48\00:54:44.02
to be qualified
to save human beings?
00:54:44.05\00:54:46.10
Absolutely.
00:54:46.13\00:54:47.30
Let me ask you.
00:54:47.33\00:54:48.59
Was anyone during the
Old Testament legally saved?
00:54:48.62\00:54:53.00
I said legally saved.
00:54:55.74\00:54:57.40
We're going to find in our
next study that no one in the
00:54:57.96\00:55:00.27
Old Testament
period was legally saved.
00:55:00.30\00:55:02.15
Because the blood of
bulls and goats cannot what?
00:55:03.03\00:55:08.44
Cannot take away sin.
00:55:08.47\00:55:10.53
And so in the Old Testament
period, you have all of these
00:55:10.56\00:55:13.31
sacrifices that could not
make the believer perfect.
00:55:13.34\00:55:17.49
The apostle Paul is going
to say, "What does that mean,
00:55:18.10\00:55:20.20
that these sacrifices could
not make the believer perfect?"
00:55:20.23\00:55:23.27
Not talking
about moral perfection.
00:55:23.30\00:55:25.63
What he's saying is,
that these sacrifices
00:55:25.66\00:55:28.13
could not really wipe out, what?
00:55:28.16\00:55:31.06
The record of sin.
00:55:31.09\00:55:32.69
In other words, all of the sins
were registered in the books.
00:55:34.77\00:55:38.62
Yes, they were forgiven
on the basis of the promise.
00:55:38.65\00:55:41.69
They believe in Jesus
Christ, they trusted in Him.
00:55:41.72\00:55:44.67
And Jesus said, "I will come
someday to pay for those sins."
00:55:44.70\00:55:48.17
But those sins during
the Old Testament, were not
00:55:48.20\00:55:51.52
legally paid for, because
only the blood of Jesus could
00:55:51.55\00:55:54.71
pay for those sins.
00:55:54.74\00:55:55.77
Are you following me?
00:55:55.80\00:55:56.83
And so, to be made
perfect means that the record
00:55:56.98\00:56:00.37
is going to be, what?
00:56:00.40\00:56:01.74
Now the record, that
which happened by faith
00:56:02.04\00:56:05.57
as the Old Testament
saints looked forward
00:56:05.60\00:56:07.73
to the sacrifice of
Christ, when Jesus dies,
00:56:07.76\00:56:10.44
Jesus says, "Now
your record is clean
00:56:10.47\00:56:14.85
because My
blood can remove sin."
00:56:14.88\00:56:18.62
Are you with me?
00:56:18.65\00:56:19.68
And so really what the
apostle Paul is saying, not that
00:56:19.95\00:56:23.09
there are these disembodies
spirits that are hovering
00:56:23.12\00:56:26.86
around in heaven
singing with the angels.
00:56:26.89\00:56:28.95
There's no reference to
that in this passage at all.
00:56:28.98\00:56:31.73
It's simply saying that the
life record of these individuals
00:56:31.76\00:56:36.33
which had the record of
sin, because the blood of
00:56:36.43\00:56:39.42
bulls and goats cannot
take away sin, was actually
00:56:39.45\00:56:42.84
legally wiped away and cleaned
when Jesus died on the cross.
00:56:42.87\00:56:47.54
Because that which pointed to
Jesus had already taken place.
00:56:47.57\00:56:52.65
The shadows had
given way to the reality.
00:56:52.68\00:56:55.87
How many of you are
understanding what I'm saying?
00:56:55.90\00:56:57.95
Now in our next lecture,
I'm going to prove that to you.
00:56:57.98\00:57:01.16
We're going to go through all of
the references that's in Hebrews
00:57:01.19\00:57:03.63
that speak about
being made perfect;
00:57:03.66\00:57:05.37
as they apply to Jesus and as
they apply to believers as well.
00:57:05.40\00:57:09.57
And we'll see that this passage
is not teaching what most
00:57:09.60\00:57:12.94
Protestants think that
this passage is teaching.
00:57:12.97\00:57:15.42
You see, we have not believed
in cunningly devised fables.
00:57:15.45\00:57:19.47
We are founded firmly upon
the solid rock of God's word.
00:57:19.50\00:57:23.60
Let's pray.
00:57:24.96\00:57:26.00
Father, we thank You
for this magnificent passage
00:57:26.03\00:57:31.80
that shows what the hope of
the Old Testament believers was,
00:57:32.40\00:57:35.85
who set it in
Christ just like our hope,
00:57:36.25\00:57:38.34
only they looked
forward and we look backwards.
00:57:38.37\00:57:40.46
They were saved by the
blood of Jesus in expectancy,
00:57:41.38\00:57:45.48
while we are saved
by the blood of Jesus
00:57:45.51\00:57:47.86
that has already
been shed on the cross.
00:57:47.89\00:57:50.10
We ask, Lord, that You
will use this presentation
00:57:50.77\00:57:53.65
and the one tomorrow to
reach out to those millions
00:57:53.68\00:57:57.33
of Protestants and Catholics
who perhaps have looked
00:57:57.36\00:58:00.27
at this passage superficially
and don't understand it,
00:58:00.30\00:58:03.13
that they might see that this
passage is not talking about
00:58:03.16\00:58:06.38
spirits of the departed,
it's really speaking about
00:58:06.41\00:58:09.65
the life record that is
dealt with once and for all
00:58:09.68\00:58:12.83
because Jesus has
died on the cross.
00:58:12.86\00:58:15.14
We thank You, Father, for having
been with us this evening.
00:58:15.17\00:58:18.05
We thank You for
hearing our prayer.
00:58:18.08\00:58:19.70
For we ask it in
Jesus' name, amen.
00:58:19.73\00:58:22.25