Welcome to Anchors Of Truth,
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live from the
3ABN Worship Center.
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Well it is right on time,
and tonight we are beginning
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a very special
series on the heritage of
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the Seventh-day
Adventist Church.
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It's a heritage
worth remembering.
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You happen to have two people,
and probably a whole lot more,
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who are very
interested in the church history
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of the Sabbath keeping people.
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And one of that person
is C.A. Murray, who will
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probably be your
host tomorrow night,
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and yours truly.
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Because we talk often
about this, we share books
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with each other, and we
believe that as we look at how
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God has led this
movement in the past,
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it inspires us to know that
He will lead us in the future.
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We'll sometimes
have rough waters.
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There's no question we are, as
far as the world is concerned,
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in pretty rough
waters right now.
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But we will see God's
leading with His people
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and leading with His church.
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We've got a series
with Pastor Jim Nix.
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Jim Nix is the
Executive Director
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of the Ellen G. White Estate.
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This is an
organization that is unique
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in the
Seventh-day Adventist Church.
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Offices at the
General Conference,
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it works very closely
with the General Conference.
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And yet this is an organization
that was set up by Ellen White
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that is actually independent so
that it protects the writings,
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and it also, in a very
real sense, shepherds the use
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of the spirit of prophecy.
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We're going to be looking
beyond the work of Ellen White
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at many of the pioneers.
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We're going to be
looking at the beginning
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of the Adventist movement.
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And we've got some subjects
that Jim Nix will be covering.
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"Right On Time" will be tonight.
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"Anticipating the
Advent," "The Little Flock,"
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"Ellen White the
Person," on Sabbath morning,
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and, "I Had the Privilege,"
on Sabbath afternoon.
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You are going to enjoy every
one of these presentations.
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You're going to be
blessed by these presentations.
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You're going to
be inspired by them.
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I've known Jim Nix
for many, many years.
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And Jim and his wife, Mindy,
live in the Washington DC area.
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She is a middle
school teacher at the
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Spencerville Adventist Academy.
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And this is a
couple that loves the Lord,
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and they're dedicated to
the finishing of the work
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and the spreading of
the gospel to all the world.
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Before Pastor Jim Nix
comes, Elder Nix comes,
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I want to have a word of prayer.
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And then right after
that we're going to really be
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blessed as John Lomacang
sings one of my favorite hymns,
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He Hideth My Soul.
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Shall we pray.
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Father in heaven, thank You
tonight that we can come to You
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in the name of
Jesus, knowing, Lord, that
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You are the one who has led and
guided throughout all eternity
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the truths of Your Word.
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You entrusted those
truths, Father, to those in the
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Garden of Eden,
and then onto Abraham,
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and then to the
New Testament church.
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And at the
crucifixion of Jesus Christ,
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the gospel then
went to all the world.
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And it has continued.
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When we come down here
to the end of time, Father,
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we find a special movement.
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A movement that is
proclaiming Your second coming,
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that is turning people
back to the truths of Your Word.
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We thank You that You gave
that movement to the world.
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And we thank You,
Father, that You've led us
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to be a part of it.
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And now we pray Your blessing
upon this meeting tonight.
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Bless those who are at
home, bless those who are here.
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And we pray that Your Holy
Spirit will speak to our hearts.
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Inspire us, we pray.
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In Jesus' name, amen.
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Brother John.
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A wonderful
Savior is Jesus my Lord,
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a wonderful Savior to me;
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He hideth my soul in
the cleft of the rock,
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where rivers of treasures I see.
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He hideth my soul in
the cleft of the rock
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that shadows a
dry, thirsty land;
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He hideth my life in
the depths of His love,
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and covers me
there with His hand,
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and covers me
there with His hand.
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A wonderful
Savior is Jesus my Lord,
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He taketh my burdens away;
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then He holdeth me up
and I shall not be moved,
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He giveth me
strength as the day.
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With numberless
blessings each moment He crowns
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and fills with
His fullness divine;
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now I sing in my
rapture, oh, glory to God,
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for such a Redeemer as mine.
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He hideth my soul in
the cleft of the rock
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that shadows the
dry, thirsty land;
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and He hideth my life
in the depths of His love,
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and covers me
there with His hand.
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Lord, You cover me
there with His hand.
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And He covers me there
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with His hand.
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Thank you for that
beautiful number, John.
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I appreciate it very much.
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Certainly, as we look at the
history of the Adventist Church,
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He has covered it with His hand
and blessed it many, many times.
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This evening what
we want to talk about,
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and through this
series, is a little bit about
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Adventist history.
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Some people think
history is boring and dull.
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And other people
find it enjoyable.
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I guess I'm in that second camp.
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I find it fascinating
when I look back at history.
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Now the pioneers of the
Seventh-day Adventist Church,
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what we want to do tonight
is to look at the setting
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of the church.
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Tomorrow night, we're going
to start with the Millerites.
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That's where most Adventists
think about William Miller
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and the beginning of
the Millerite movement,
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out of which our church began.
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But tonight we want
to look at the worldwide
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impact as God's Spirit
was moving on the world
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to bring people to a study,
especially of the books of
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Daniel and Revelation.
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Now there are other
series here at 3ABN that will
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talk about the theology.
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I'm not doing that tonight.
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We're talking about
the history, alright?
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But we do have to at
least refer to a few text
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and mention them, in
Revelation and Daniel,
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that talk about
these time prophecies
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ending in 1798 and 1844, etc.
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And it's that
setting, it's that time period
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in the world that we
want to look at this evening.
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Now it wasn't just
our Adventist pioneers
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who were interested
in prophetic history.
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It was also the
disciples of Christ.
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You remember, they,
in Matthew 24 verse 3,
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they asked, "Tell us,
when shall these things be?
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And what shall be
the signs of Thy coming?"
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And Christ, interestingly
later on in the chapter,
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verses 29 to 30 of Matthew
24, He talks about, "Immediately
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after the tribulation of those
days shall the sun be darkened,
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the moon shall
not give her light,
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the stars shall
fall from heaven..."
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And then He says, after
that then we'll see the sign of
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the Son of Man coming
in the clouds of heaven.
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Now those times that
we're thinking about;
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the earthquake, the sun being
dark, and the stars falling,
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these were not just Christ.
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Joel talks about them.
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John, the apostle John in
Revelation, talks about them.
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But they happened so long
ago that sometimes we forget
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the impact they had
on the people who were
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living at that time.
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So before we start
considering a few of the people,
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let's look back
on those three signs.
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The Lisbon
earthquake of November 1, 1755;
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the dark day of May 19, 1780;
00:11:23.34\00:11:26.01
and the falling of the
stars of November 13, 1833.
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Now if we think about
this platform being the history
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of the world, so
about 6000 years,
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why let's just do a
little mental calculation
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to see about where
those signs came into being.
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So we start over there
at this end of the platform
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and we would come
down the first 1000 years,
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in round figures,
the first 1000 years,
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where do we come down to?
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Well, we come down to
roughly the death of Adam.
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Alright, so now we come
over here another third,
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and we come to roughly what?
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The birth of King David.
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And then we
come on down again...
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Excuse me, I've forgotten one.
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We've got Abraham, then we've
got David here in the middle.
00:12:09.89\00:12:13.03
And then we come
over here to Christ.
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And then we come
on down to the fall of
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Constantinople, or whatever.
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And we come on over here
to the Protestant Reformation.
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And now we get over to where
these signs start appearing;
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1755, 1780, 1833,
and down to the present.
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And we realize that we're
not talking about very much time
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from God's perspective.
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We're just thinking
about it from our perspective
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as having been a long time ago.
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But what about those signs
and their impact at that time?
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Well let's look briefly at
the great Lisbon earthquake
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on November 1, 1755, which
happened on All Saints Day.
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Lisbon, Portugal.
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Three quakes; 9:40
am, 10 am, and 12 noon.
00:12:54.57\00:13:00.42
Now I grew up in California.
00:13:00.62\00:13:02.39
And any time the ground
begins to shake a little bit,
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you wonder is this
going to be a big one.
00:13:05.31\00:13:08.06
And let me tell you,
that was a big one when the
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ground began to shake there in
Lisbon at 9:40 in the morning.
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It is, according to
some sources, the largest,
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or one of the largest
recorded earthquakes in history.
00:13:18.73\00:13:21.69
It lasted, they say,
about 6 to 7 minutes.
00:13:21.98\00:13:26.13
Now if you can imagine
the ground shaking underneath
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your feet for 6 to 7 minutes.
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And it's estimated that
some 30,000 people were killed
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in the initial quake.
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It was felt over an area
of four million square miles.
00:13:36.31\00:13:40.88
It was felt a radius of 700
miles, the area was four times
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the size of Europe; all the
way from the Azores to Italy,
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England to North Africa.
00:13:49.86\00:13:51.60
With oscillations, that means a
little bit of shaking at least,
00:13:51.63\00:13:54.67
oscillations in lakes and
ponds were felt as far away
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as Finland and Sweden.
00:13:58.29\00:14:00.73
Now remember, in those days
there was no Fox News or CNN.
00:14:00.76\00:14:07.63
You wonder why in
the world all of a sudden
00:14:07.66\00:14:08.90
the water is shaking.
00:14:08.93\00:14:09.96
And it would be several
weeks, or days in some instances
00:14:09.99\00:14:12.53
at least, before you
heard about the earthquake
00:14:12.56\00:14:14.69
clear off down there in Lisbon.
00:14:14.72\00:14:16.84
In Morocco, according to
one source I was looking,
00:14:16.94\00:14:19.28
a village of 8000 to
10,000 people was swallowed up.
00:14:19.31\00:14:22.59
In Cadiz, Spain there
was a 60 foot tidal wave.
00:14:22.97\00:14:26.35
Tsunami's were as far
away as England, 6 to 9 feet.
00:14:26.61\00:14:30.86
Antigua, 3400 miles
from Lisbon, 12 foot tsunami.
00:14:30.89\00:14:35.66
An estimated 60,000
people perished in Lisbon.
00:14:36.27\00:14:39.99
But after the first quake,
00:14:40.02\00:14:41.40
everybody of course
runs out of the buildings.
00:14:41.43\00:14:42.81
The ones that weren't
killed in the first quake.
00:14:42.84\00:14:44.19
They're all running down and
they run out on this marble quay
00:14:44.22\00:14:46.79
out into the bay there, or
into the port, and it collapsed
00:14:46.82\00:14:54.86
when that 20 foot
tidal wave hit Lisbon.
00:14:55.22\00:14:58.06
So another 60,000
people probably perished then.
00:14:58.25\00:15:01.05
All together, they say as
many as 70,000 to 100,000 people
00:15:01.08\00:15:04.13
died in the Lisbon earthquake.
00:15:04.33\00:15:06.43
Now the total
population of Lisbon in 1755
00:15:06.64\00:15:09.61
was only estimated to
be about 230,000 people.
00:15:09.64\00:15:14.68
The headquarters of
the Portuguese Inquisition
00:15:14.71\00:15:16.79
was located in Lisbon.
00:15:16.82\00:15:18.63
Its building fell.
00:15:18.73\00:15:20.34
Though some people did notice
that the small Protestant church
00:15:20.70\00:15:23.65
in Lisbon remained
standing after the quake.
00:15:23.68\00:15:26.81
There were an estimated 12,000
buildings that were destroyed
00:15:26.84\00:15:30.18
either by the quake or by the
fire that followed afterwards.
00:15:30.21\00:15:34.40
Now it's the results of
the quake is why this quake
00:15:34.75\00:15:37.66
was interesting and
important to us in our study
00:15:37.69\00:15:40.42
looking back at the setting
00:15:40.45\00:15:41.82
for the
Seventh-day Adventist Church.
00:15:41.85\00:15:43.71
People started being good.
00:15:43.96\00:15:46.64
Frivolity was frowned upon.
00:15:47.25\00:15:49.78
The king of France was
so shook up, pardon the pun,
00:15:50.32\00:15:53.72
but he was so shook up by it
that he gave up his mistress.
00:15:53.75\00:15:57.32
She was not at all pleased,
so she gave up her rouge,
00:15:57.59\00:16:01.70
or her make-up, as
an offering to squelch
00:16:01.90\00:16:03.96
the demon of earthquakes.
00:16:03.99\00:16:06.63
The first
anniversary of the earthquake
00:16:07.02\00:16:09.67
was looked upon with dread.
00:16:09.87\00:16:12.00
The king and queen of
Portugal took part in a day of
00:16:12.56\00:16:15.55
national penitence.
00:16:15.58\00:16:17.52
The papal nuncio conducted
ceremonial feet washing service.
00:16:17.72\00:16:21.95
And the people felt,
quote, "that the Lord was in the
00:16:22.05\00:16:24.90
earthquake, and that it was His
angel that touched the waters."
00:16:24.93\00:16:28.91
In other words, it
had a spiritual impact.
00:16:29.24\00:16:32.41
Now let's go down a few years
to the dark day of May 19, 1780.
00:16:32.61\00:16:36.34
Another one of these
signs that Christ mentioned.
00:16:36.37\00:16:38.56
Well, it was centered in
the north eastern United States.
00:16:39.12\00:16:41.92
It came on somewhere
between 9 am and 3 pm
00:16:41.95\00:16:44.86
with the darkest between
about 11 am and 1 pm that day.
00:16:44.89\00:16:49.72
It is said that at half past 11,
in a room with three windows...
00:16:50.20\00:16:54.43
Now remember, they had
little windows in those days.
00:16:54.46\00:16:55.97
Not these great
big things like today.
00:16:56.00\00:16:57.91
But in a room with
three windows, 24 panes each,
00:16:57.94\00:17:00.88
all open towards the south and
east, that large print could not
00:17:00.91\00:17:05.01
be read, it was so dark,
if you didn't light a candle.
00:17:05.04\00:17:07.75
At 12 o'clock it was dark
enough so that the fluttering
00:17:08.05\00:17:11.96
of the candle, the
shadow that was cast by it,
00:17:11.99\00:17:15.08
you could cut a profile
because it was that dark.
00:17:15.11\00:17:18.96
We're told that the
fowls went to roost,
00:17:19.21\00:17:21.71
the birds ceased to
fly, the whippoorwill sang
00:17:21.74\00:17:24.88
their evening songs, the frogs
piped their accustomed concert,
00:17:24.91\00:17:28.72
and the cattle collected
about the barns as at night.
00:17:28.75\00:17:32.35
And what about humans?
00:17:32.38\00:17:33.93
Well, they went home.
00:17:33.96\00:17:35.46
The schools
closed, they broke up.
00:17:35.49\00:17:37.55
The children were
fearful of what was going on.
00:17:37.58\00:17:40.27
And there was Colonel Davenport
in the Connecticut state
00:17:40.38\00:17:45.31
legislature that was in session.
00:17:45.34\00:17:46.84
And the darkness came
on and everybody thinks,
00:17:46.87\00:17:48.87
"Well this must be
the great day of the Lord,
00:17:48.90\00:17:50.93
the judgment, and all that."
00:17:50.96\00:17:52.20
People were
accustomed to knowing
00:17:52.23\00:17:53.47
their Bibles in those days.
00:17:53.50\00:17:54.80
And this Colonel
Davenport is quoted as saying,
00:17:54.83\00:17:57.16
"I am against an adjournment."
00:17:57.19\00:17:58.46
So in other words,
"Let's keep in session here."
00:17:58.49\00:18:00.51
"The day of judgment
is either approaching
00:18:00.54\00:18:03.06
or it is not.
00:18:03.26\00:18:04.55
If it is not, there's no
cause for any adjournment.
00:18:04.78\00:18:07.98
If it is, I choose to
be found doing my duty.
00:18:08.35\00:18:11.72
I wish, therefore,
that candles be brought."
00:18:11.82\00:18:14.26
And apparently they continued.
00:18:14.29\00:18:15.86
Typical, as you
might expect, from a Yankee
00:18:16.27\00:18:18.97
to be that forthright.
00:18:19.00\00:18:20.52
Anyway, some people have
said that there was some ash
00:18:20.72\00:18:22.91
that was seen in
barrels and cisterns.
00:18:22.94\00:18:24.98
And that may be, it
may have a natural cause.
00:18:25.01\00:18:27.28
Nobody really knows exactly.
00:18:27.31\00:18:28.79
At least, I've not been able
to find a definite answer as to
00:18:28.82\00:18:31.42
what caused the dark day.
00:18:31.45\00:18:32.53
But God uses natural as
well as miraculous events
00:18:32.56\00:18:36.55
to move people.
00:18:36.58\00:18:37.61
And again, the reaction is
a spiritual and religious one.
00:18:37.64\00:18:41.72
People are going back
and looking at their Bibles
00:18:41.75\00:18:44.36
to see what may
be happening next.
00:18:44.46\00:18:47.39
Same with the falling of
the stars on November 13, 1833.
00:18:47.67\00:18:51.91
There are all kinds of
wild estimates as to how many
00:18:52.60\00:18:56.37
meteorites were seen per
hour that particular night.
00:18:56.40\00:19:00.06
The low figure that
I've read is 10,000 per hour.
00:19:00.48\00:19:04.42
The high figure, which is
hard for me to even believe,
00:19:04.82\00:19:07.47
is 100,000, estimate
of 100,000 meteorites
00:19:07.79\00:19:10.93
just flying through
the sky within an hour.
00:19:11.23\00:19:14.30
Some say that it's
250,000 or more all together.
00:19:14.33\00:19:19.10
One estimate is that it
was a billion meteorites
00:19:20.11\00:19:22.05
that fell over
the United States.
00:19:22.08\00:19:23.11
Who knows how
many there were between
00:19:23.14\00:19:25.19
especially 2 am
and 5 am that morning,
00:19:25.22\00:19:27.83
with the densest
concentration about 4 am.
00:19:28.07\00:19:31.51
Now again, from eye
witness accounts at that time,
00:19:31.83\00:19:34.77
the size was anywhere from
just like a pin prick of light
00:19:34.80\00:19:38.03
going across, to one report,
I don't know whether or not
00:19:38.06\00:19:41.37
how accurate it is, but
one report is that one of the
00:19:41.40\00:19:44.09
meteorites streaming
across the sky appeared to be
00:19:44.12\00:19:47.12
as large as the moon.
00:19:47.15\00:19:49.02
Now think about it.
00:19:50.23\00:19:51.26
This was really bright light
in the middle of the night,
00:19:52.04\00:19:55.59
back in a day when there were
no city lights particularly.
00:19:55.62\00:19:58.76
So people were being awakened
and going to the windows
00:19:58.79\00:20:01.30
to see why it is
so bright out there.
00:20:01.33\00:20:03.14
And that's when they
see this aerial display.
00:20:03.17\00:20:06.33
And they all seemed to be coming
from one place in the heavens.
00:20:07.02\00:20:09.21
In fact, if you look back
now in the study of meteorites
00:20:09.24\00:20:11.85
and all that, this particular
incident is one of the,
00:20:11.88\00:20:15.90
one of the things that
has caused scientists to begin
00:20:17.26\00:20:19.32
to really study meteorites.
00:20:19.35\00:20:20.69
Just like the Lisbon earthquake,
if you back on the history
00:20:20.79\00:20:23.20
of earthquakes, that's the
one that finally got scientists
00:20:23.23\00:20:25.52
looking at
earthquakes and all of that.
00:20:25.55\00:20:27.92
But from our perspective,
again people looked at this
00:20:28.12\00:20:32.27
very much in terms of the
signs that Christ had foretold
00:20:32.30\00:20:36.63
and began to study
their Bibles again to see what
00:20:36.66\00:20:39.71
was possibly happening.
00:20:40.11\00:20:41.56
I remember Daniel
said in Daniel 12:4,
00:20:41.85\00:20:44.39
"But thou, O Daniel, shut up
the words, and seal the book,
00:20:44.42\00:20:47.84
even to the time of the end.
00:20:48.14\00:20:49.40
Many shall run to and fro, and
knowledge shall be increased."
00:20:49.43\00:20:52.73
And so for the next few minutes,
what we want to do is to
00:20:52.76\00:20:55.00
look at some of the individuals
that God worked through
00:20:55.03\00:20:59.18
to bring back a renewed or
bring about a renewed interest
00:21:00.36\00:21:04.18
in the study of the
books, especially the study of
00:21:04.21\00:21:06.56
the books of
Daniel and Revelation.
00:21:06.59\00:21:09.06
These are not people that
probably you and I would have
00:21:09.16\00:21:11.92
focused on if we had
been looking around down here
00:21:11.95\00:21:14.89
on earth, if we had
been God looking over the
00:21:14.92\00:21:16.92
walls of heaven to say,
"Who can I get down there
00:21:16.95\00:21:19.28
to get excited about
studying Daniel and Revelation?"
00:21:19.31\00:21:22.19
My guess is we would not
have chosen these people.
00:21:22.30\00:21:24.71
I've chosen these particular
names that we'll be looking at
00:21:24.82\00:21:27.31
for the next few
minutes because Ellen White
00:21:27.34\00:21:29.29
mentions them in the
book, Great Controversy.
00:21:29.32\00:21:31.61
So I thought maybe we could
unpack a bit more of their story
00:21:31.64\00:21:34.81
as we look at them.
00:21:34.84\00:21:35.89
Now again, as I say,
we're looking at it from
00:21:35.92\00:21:38.19
God's perspective, but
He's going to have to have some
00:21:38.22\00:21:40.75
interesting twists and turns in
the lives of these individuals
00:21:40.78\00:21:44.47
to get them to where
they're willing to study
00:21:44.50\00:21:47.43
Daniel and Revelation.
00:21:47.46\00:21:49.14
Let's start with a man by
the name of Manuel Lacunza.
00:21:49.86\00:21:54.50
Now when I went to the seminary,
I kind of was taught that
00:21:54.55\00:21:58.37
all the great theologians,
especially back 100 or 200
00:21:58.40\00:22:01.08
years ago, they all
came out of Germany.
00:22:01.11\00:22:03.73
And a name like Lacunza
doesn't sound German to me.
00:22:03.76\00:22:06.52
And it's not.
00:22:06.55\00:22:07.72
But God, as I
said, has His surprises.
00:22:07.75\00:22:10.08
Manuel Lacunza, born in
1731 in Santiago, Chile.
00:22:10.11\00:22:14.43
Mentioned in, Great
Controversy, page 363.
00:22:14.46\00:22:17.14
At the age of 16, in 1747,
he was admitted on probation
00:22:17.47\00:22:24.18
to become a Jesuit.
00:22:24.28\00:22:25.92
Now I can hear you
already saying, "Jesuit?
00:22:26.15\00:22:28.63
Daniel and
Revelation? Now wait a minute."
00:22:28.66\00:22:30.78
Let's just say, God had some
interesting twists and turns
00:22:30.81\00:22:33.52
in this man's life to get him
to where He wanted him to be.
00:22:33.55\00:22:36.49
So Lacunza becomes a Jesuit.
00:22:36.69\00:22:40.21
He completes his two year vows.
00:22:40.24\00:22:42.02
He studies philosophy, theology.
00:22:42.05\00:22:44.27
He graduated with honors.
00:22:44.30\00:22:46.22
He was given the instruction of
supervision of younger students.
00:22:46.25\00:22:50.53
That wasn't enough to
keep him out of mischief,
00:22:50.56\00:22:52.20
so he also became
a professor of Latin,
00:22:52.23\00:22:55.08
and he pursued studies
in astronomy and geometry.
00:22:55.28\00:22:58.51
In 1766, he took the four vows
and became an actual Jesuit.
00:22:59.09\00:23:03.81
Interestingly, the following
year, 1767, King Charles III
00:23:04.22\00:23:09.06
of Spain expelled the
Jesuits from all of his
00:23:09.09\00:23:11.96
new world possessions.
00:23:12.00\00:23:13.03
So all the way from
Mexico clear down to the tip of
00:23:13.06\00:23:15.78
South America, all the
Jesuits were rounded up,
00:23:15.81\00:23:19.01
they were herded onto
vessels, and now those ships
00:23:19.31\00:23:22.46
made their way across
the Atlantic, first to Spain
00:23:22.49\00:23:25.34
and then to Italy.
00:23:25.37\00:23:27.20
So one of those that
went was Manuel Lacunza.
00:23:27.40\00:23:31.09
And he's first in Cadiz, Spain,
00:23:31.30\00:23:32.98
and then later
Imola, near Bologna, Italy.
00:23:33.01\00:23:35.71
In 1772, Lacunza became
a recluse in a monastery.
00:23:36.06\00:23:41.57
We're told that he had a
life of piety and prayer.
00:23:41.60\00:23:45.97
He would spend five hours
a day in study and praying.
00:23:46.00\00:23:49.70
In fact, for a total of
30 years Lacunza engaged
00:23:49.80\00:23:52.89
in the study of the
Bible and the writings
00:23:52.92\00:23:55.74
of the Catholic fathers.
00:23:55.77\00:23:57.15
And eventually he encompassed,
he read through all the
00:23:57.33\00:24:00.62
famous volumes of the fathers;
about a thousand large volumes.
00:24:00.65\00:24:04.28
By 1779 though,
Lacunza had abandoned his trips
00:24:04.45\00:24:08.03
to the libraries in
Venice and Bologna and Rome
00:24:08.06\00:24:11.37
as a waste of time.
00:24:11.40\00:24:13.02
They weren't any benefit.
00:24:13.05\00:24:14.33
And now he decides
to devote himself to the
00:24:14.36\00:24:17.12
study of the Bible.
00:24:17.15\00:24:20.10
But especially two
books in the book, the Bible.
00:24:20.45\00:24:23.44
And those are the books
of Daniel and Revelation.
00:24:23.62\00:24:26.87
Interesting. Right on time.
00:24:27.20\00:24:28.95
Just at the time that had been
predicted by Daniel the prophet
00:24:28.98\00:24:33.04
that there would be a renewed
interest in these things.
00:24:33.07\00:24:35.28
Here is a Jesuit priest in
Italy, almost in the shadow
00:24:35.31\00:24:40.81
of the Vatican itself, looking
at Daniel and Revelation.
00:24:40.84\00:24:44.64
It's incredible if we
didn't believe in the value
00:24:44.99\00:24:47.76
or the importance of prophecy.
00:24:47.79\00:24:49.77
Now Lacunza came to
some interesting conclusions
00:24:50.30\00:24:54.73
as he did his reading
and his writing and his...
00:24:54.76\00:24:57.49
Well it started with his
research, but later a writing.
00:24:57.70\00:25:00.64
And here are a few of his
00:25:00.85\00:25:01.88
conclusions that
we can agree with.
00:25:01.91\00:25:03.08
Now not everything
that Lacunza came up with
00:25:03.11\00:25:05.05
we would certainly agree with.
00:25:05.08\00:25:06.34
But there are some
things that I think we as
00:25:06.54\00:25:09.45
Seventh-day
Adventists would resonate with.
00:25:09.48\00:25:11.07
Here's one.
00:25:11.10\00:25:12.16
In any disagreement between
the teachings of Scripture
00:25:12.43\00:25:15.61
and the teachings
of the church fathers,
00:25:15.81\00:25:18.31
the Bible always
takes precedence.
00:25:18.41\00:25:21.07
Now of course, the
view of the church was
00:25:21.10\00:25:23.59
that if there's some
kind of a misunderstanding
00:25:23.62\00:25:25.43
or disagreement, why, you
look to the church fathers
00:25:25.46\00:25:28.30
and the
interpretation of the fathers.
00:25:28.51\00:25:30.39
And that tells you what it
is, and not to the Scriptures.
00:25:30.42\00:25:32.77
He said, "No, no," Lacunza said,
00:25:32.80\00:25:34.24
"I can't find that
anywhere in Scripture.
00:25:34.44\00:25:36.51
The Bible takes precedence
over everything else."
00:25:36.61\00:25:39.87
So that was one thing I think
we would be comfortable with
00:25:40.10\00:25:42.47
his discovery of.
00:25:42.50\00:25:43.82
Another discovery, that there
would be two comings of Christ;
00:25:44.04\00:25:48.17
one resurrection
before the millennium
00:25:48.67\00:25:50.81
when the righteous
dead would be raised,
00:25:50.84\00:25:52.76
and then another resurrection
at the end of the millennium.
00:25:52.86\00:25:55.53
Now this was not like the view
that was popular at that time,
00:25:55.56\00:25:58.60
a view that had been espoused
by a man named Daniel Whitby,
00:25:58.76\00:26:03.27
that most
Catholics and Protestants
00:26:03.30\00:26:05.09
thought at that time;
that the earth was going to get
00:26:05.12\00:26:06.70
better and better and
better for a thousand years,
00:26:06.73\00:26:08.73
and then Christ would come and
the saints would be resurrected.
00:26:08.76\00:26:11.87
That is, according
to what Lacunza found,
00:26:12.07\00:26:14.73
what we believe also,
but according to what Lacunza
00:26:14.76\00:26:16.70
found, that's not
what Scripture teaches.
00:26:16.73\00:26:18.90
And so he came to
that particular conclusion.
00:26:19.00\00:26:21.62
He discovered that
there are two judgments
00:26:21.65\00:26:23.40
depicted in Scripture, and
they are separated by much time.
00:26:23.43\00:26:26.75
Then he came to some other
conclusions that did not set
00:26:27.89\00:26:31.19
quite so well with
some of his superiors
00:26:32.09\00:26:34.35
there in the monastery.
00:26:34.38\00:26:35.73
He discovered
that the antichrist
00:26:36.00\00:26:38.36
was not an individual.
00:26:39.40\00:26:41.85
Now the Catholics at that
time, as near as I can tell,
00:26:42.05\00:26:45.35
they hadn't settled on
exactly who this individual was.
00:26:45.38\00:26:48.60
Some thought it was Wycliffe,
00:26:48.63\00:26:49.76
some thought it
was Martin Luther.
00:26:49.96\00:26:51.60
But they thought it was
some individual that would be
00:26:51.81\00:26:53.56
coming to harass the church.
00:26:53.59\00:26:55.35
But Lacunza said, "No, that's
not what Scripture teaches.
00:26:55.74\00:26:58.53
It's more like it's describing
a great moral body of apostasy."
00:26:58.80\00:27:03.83
Now that was bad enough,
00:27:03.86\00:27:04.89
and he probably should have
stopped there, but he didn't.
00:27:04.92\00:27:07.18
Because he was honest and
he said, actually this great
00:27:07.22\00:27:09.98
moral body of apostasy
displays characteristics of the
00:27:10.01\00:27:14.62
Roman Catholic Church,
of which he was a part.
00:27:14.65\00:27:17.10
Well, obviously that
didn't go over too well either
00:27:17.55\00:27:19.87
with his superiors.
00:27:19.90\00:27:21.36
He came to another conclusion.
00:27:21.56\00:27:23.08
And that is, as he
studied the book of Revelation,
00:27:23.11\00:27:27.04
he came to the conclusion
that the second beast of
00:27:27.14\00:27:29.85
Revelation 13 and the
harlot of Revelation 17
00:27:29.88\00:27:33.73
displayed characteristics of
the Roman Catholic priesthood,
00:27:33.76\00:27:37.30
of which he was a member.
00:27:37.33\00:27:39.71
Now needless to say,
Lacunza's conclusions
00:27:40.10\00:27:43.13
did not set well
with his superiors.
00:27:43.16\00:27:45.77
Even so, he wrote
it out in longhand.
00:27:45.80\00:27:48.20
That's all they had. No
computers in those days.
00:27:48.23\00:27:50.18
So he wrote out his
conclusions in longhand
00:27:50.28\00:27:53.66
in a manuscript
that he entitled,
00:27:54.16\00:27:56.34
The Coming of the
Messiah in Glory and Majesty.
00:27:56.54\00:28:00.06
He used a pseudonym.
00:28:00.71\00:28:01.74
He thought he might
have a better chance
00:28:01.77\00:28:03.43
of getting people to read it.
00:28:03.46\00:28:04.69
So he did not use
the name, Manuel Lacunza,
00:28:04.72\00:28:07.38
but rather he wrote under
the name, Juan Josafat Ben-Ezra.
00:28:07.41\00:28:11.21
Now he tells us the purpose
for writing this manuscript.
00:28:11.24\00:28:15.38
And that was because he
wanted Roman Catholic priests,
00:28:15.41\00:28:18.06
and others, to take their
Bibles from off the shelves,
00:28:18.09\00:28:22.40
"blow the dust off of
them," that was his expression,
00:28:22.78\00:28:25.27
the cobwebs, brush
the cobwebs off of them,
00:28:25.30\00:28:27.70
open up their Bibles, and
study to see whether or not
00:28:27.74\00:28:31.33
his conclusions were accurate.
00:28:31.36\00:28:33.65
Now Lacunza died in 1801.
00:28:34.00\00:28:36.30
You might think because
of what he had come up with,
00:28:36.33\00:28:38.80
what he discovered,
what he was teaching,
00:28:38.83\00:28:40.70
that he might
have been murdered.
00:28:40.73\00:28:43.18
No, it was natural causes.
00:28:43.21\00:28:44.88
And his manuscript at that point
had not yet been published.
00:28:45.83\00:28:49.86
It was just circulating
in hand written copies.
00:28:49.89\00:28:52.68
Can you imagine all the
hand writing that had to go on.
00:28:52.71\00:28:55.71
And copies of this had shown up
in Mexico and in South America,
00:28:55.88\00:28:59.57
in Cuba, as well as in
Spain and Italy in Europe.
00:28:59.60\00:29:02.78
This manuscript was
circulating and having an impact
00:29:02.88\00:29:06.92
already before Lacunza's
death, and certainly for the
00:29:07.02\00:29:09.35
next few years after his death.
00:29:09.38\00:29:11.47
And it was causing
discussion among many, including
00:29:11.57\00:29:15.32
members of the
Roman Catholic priesthood.
00:29:15.58\00:29:17.91
Now finally in 1811, the first
edition of Lacunza was printed
00:29:18.52\00:29:23.07
in Cadiz, Spain.
00:29:23.17\00:29:24.65
This was immediately after
the Inquisition had been lifted,
00:29:24.68\00:29:27.33
so there was
freedom of the press.
00:29:27.36\00:29:28.92
And so Lacunza was
now printed in Spanish.
00:29:28.95\00:29:32.33
The next year in Tolosa,
Spain there was another edition
00:29:32.60\00:29:35.80
that had several volumes.
00:29:35.83\00:29:36.88
I brought along just one.
00:29:36.91\00:29:38.23
This is volume three of
the 1812 edition of Lacunza's,
00:29:38.26\00:29:43.09
The Coming of the
Messiah in Glory and Majesty.
00:29:43.29\00:29:45.73
But it was
continued to be printed.
00:29:45.76\00:29:47.98
In 1816 there was a
Spanish edition printed
00:29:48.01\00:29:51.06
in London, England.
00:29:51.09\00:29:52.25
Now to give you some
idea of the impact of these
00:29:52.35\00:29:54.96
editions that were
coming out, this particular one,
00:29:55.48\00:29:58.59
the 1816 edition, it
was paid for by a man
00:29:58.62\00:30:02.90
by the name of Manuel Belgrano.
00:30:02.93\00:30:05.57
Now Manuel Belgrano doesn't mean
much to us in the United States,
00:30:05.60\00:30:09.42
but he was one of the founders
of the country of Argentina.
00:30:09.62\00:30:14.22
So these are high level
people that are reading Lacunza
00:30:14.32\00:30:18.64
and discussing
what Lacunza has to say.
00:30:18.67\00:30:21.70
It was causing quite a
stir, his concepts, his views,
00:30:21.73\00:30:25.39
as they were now
especially being published
00:30:25.42\00:30:27.59
and people could
have easier access.
00:30:27.62\00:30:29.70
In fact, it
became such a big problem
00:30:29.90\00:30:32.61
that Lacunza's book were
prohibited and people were
00:30:32.64\00:30:37.55
discouraged from
reading them or owning them.
00:30:37.58\00:30:40.09
In fact, on September 16, 1824,
the Congregation of the Index
00:30:40.29\00:30:45.34
prohibited Lacunza's book
from being printed or read.
00:30:45.37\00:30:49.62
And Pope Leo XII, nine days
later, posted it as the official
00:30:49.65\00:30:54.74
formal decree of the
Roman Catholic Church
00:30:54.77\00:30:57.24
that it was
forbidden to be published
00:30:57.34\00:30:59.47
in any language whatsoever.
00:30:59.50\00:31:01.69
Well back in those
days, of course Protestants
00:31:01.92\00:31:04.64
knew they were Protestants,
Roman Catholics knew
00:31:04.67\00:31:06.75
they were Roman Catholics.
00:31:06.78\00:31:07.84
Up to this point Lacunza had not
been translated into English.
00:31:07.87\00:31:11.64
But I guess once the pope
said you can't, well that was
00:31:11.74\00:31:14.28
just enough to get some
of the Protestants in England
00:31:14.31\00:31:16.38
to say, "Why not? We can."
00:31:16.41\00:31:18.05
So in 1826, there was an edition
of Lacunza published in London.
00:31:18.15\00:31:22.78
And on Christmas of
1825, another man who would
00:31:22.81\00:31:25.55
become interested in prophecy
and the proclaiming of the
00:31:25.58\00:31:29.35
soon return of
Jesus, we're not going to
00:31:29.38\00:31:30.91
have much time to
talk about tonight,
00:31:31.11\00:31:33.41
a man by the
name of Edward Irving,
00:31:33.59\00:31:35.63
a Scottish
Presbyterian minister.
00:31:35.66\00:31:37.48
He preached on the second
coming of Christ in his church.
00:31:37.83\00:31:41.36
Now just to say a
little bit about Edward Irving,
00:31:41.56\00:31:44.32
his churches, when he
was announced to preach,
00:31:44.52\00:31:48.75
they were so packed
that you had to have a ticket
00:31:48.95\00:31:52.23
to get into the
cathedral where he was speaking.
00:31:52.43\00:31:54.93
And he was so
moved by reading Lacunza
00:31:54.96\00:31:58.31
that he taught
himself to read enough Spanish
00:31:58.34\00:32:01.40
so he could
translate Lacunza into English.
00:32:01.43\00:32:03.80
And Irving's two volume
edition appeared in 1827.
00:32:03.83\00:32:08.10
Now what I'm trying to point out
is that God is working through
00:32:08.31\00:32:12.08
an unusual situation.
00:32:12.11\00:32:13.94
We would not probably have
picked a Roman Catholic priest
00:32:14.14\00:32:16.65
if we were trying to
impact the world with the news
00:32:16.85\00:32:20.14
of studying
Daniel and Revelation.
00:32:20.17\00:32:22.82
But God does
things in unusual ways.
00:32:23.20\00:32:26.03
And here it was at the
precise time in history,
00:32:26.06\00:32:29.26
predicted by God more
than 2000 years in advance,
00:32:29.29\00:32:32.93
that this unlikely
person was encouraging people
00:32:33.13\00:32:36.95
to study Daniel and Revelation.
00:32:36.98\00:32:39.89
We're going to move on to
another interesting fellow.
00:32:40.85\00:32:43.31
This person is not one
that probably any of us
00:32:44.23\00:32:47.25
would have chosen either for
studying Daniel and Revelation.
00:32:47.28\00:32:51.18
But he's mentioned in, Great
Controversy, by Ellen White.
00:32:51.27\00:32:53.62
Great
Controversy, pages 357 to 362.
00:32:53.65\00:32:57.62
His name is Joseph Wolff.
00:32:57.82\00:33:01.89
Now with a name like
Joseph, you can imagine
00:33:02.37\00:33:06.09
he's probably not a
German theologian either.
00:33:06.12\00:33:08.90
And you're right.
00:33:09.36\00:33:10.39
He was born in 1795 in Bavaria,
he was raised in Prussia.
00:33:10.72\00:33:15.59
His father, David Wolff,
was an Orthodox Jewish rabbi.
00:33:16.03\00:33:21.55
I can hear you once
again thinking, "What?
00:33:21.58\00:33:23.97
How does God move the son
of an Orthodox Jewish rabbi
00:33:24.17\00:33:28.05
over here to where
he's going to be studying
00:33:28.15\00:33:30.34
Daniel and Revelation?"
00:33:30.59\00:33:32.39
Well, just hang with
me for a minute or two
00:33:32.66\00:33:34.84
and we'll get there.
00:33:34.87\00:33:35.91
At the age of four, the
rabbi David Wolff began to teach
00:33:35.94\00:33:40.59
his young son all the
structures, all the regulations,
00:33:40.62\00:33:44.77
all that there was to know
about being an Orthodox Jew.
00:33:44.97\00:33:49.50
Now the Wolff family
did not have their own cow.
00:33:49.73\00:33:53.58
So when they needed milk
they would go to the neighbor,
00:33:53.78\00:33:57.41
a man by the name of
Dr. Spiess, who had a cow.
00:33:57.44\00:34:01.79
And that's where they would go.
00:34:01.89\00:34:03.76
And young Joseph was sent
by his mother to go while the
00:34:03.79\00:34:07.20
cow was being milked so
the family could get some milk.
00:34:07.23\00:34:10.30
Now Dr. Spiess
was a barber/surgeon.
00:34:10.48\00:34:13.89
You know, those two professions
went together for years.
00:34:13.92\00:34:16.54
I think if you cut him too close
then you could stitch him up.
00:34:16.57\00:34:19.40
I don't know.
Anyway, the barber/surgeon.
00:34:19.43\00:34:21.73
And he was a
Lutheran Protestant.
00:34:21.76\00:34:24.82
So he was a Lutheran.
00:34:24.85\00:34:26.13
He was not Jewish.
00:34:26.33\00:34:27.73
But he had a cow.
00:34:27.76\00:34:29.02
So here comes
this bright young boy.
00:34:29.22\00:34:31.24
His mother has sent
him down there to get milk.
00:34:31.27\00:34:34.01
And while the servant, or
whoever, was milking the cow,
00:34:34.11\00:34:36.89
Dr. Spiess is having
fun with this young boy,
00:34:36.99\00:34:40.03
the son of the local
Orthodox Jewish rabbi.
00:34:40.06\00:34:43.56
One time he asked him,
according to one of the stories
00:34:43.59\00:34:46.85
I was reading, he asked
him, "How come your people,
00:34:46.88\00:34:50.60
the Jews, do not
have a home land?"
00:34:50.63\00:34:52.50
Now remember,
this is about 1800.
00:34:52.53\00:34:53.96
So there's no
state of Israel then.
00:34:53.99\00:34:55.80
"How come the Jews,
your people, do not have
00:34:56.00\00:34:59.48
their own home land?"
00:34:59.51\00:35:00.86
"Hmmm," Joseph thought
to himself, "I don't know."
00:35:01.16\00:35:03.69
But you know, when
you're 4 or 5 years of age,
00:35:03.86\00:35:05.81
there's one person
that knows everything.
00:35:05.84\00:35:07.53
And that is your father.
00:35:07.56\00:35:08.73
So he goes home to
his father, the rabbi,
00:35:08.76\00:35:11.16
and he asked, "How come
our people are dispersed?
00:35:11.26\00:35:14.30
Why don't we have a home
land anymore like we use to?"
00:35:14.33\00:35:16.81
"Well," the rabbi
responded, "our people destroyed
00:35:16.91\00:35:22.44
the prophets that God sent.
00:35:22.47\00:35:24.34
And in His displeasure,
He has dispersed our people
00:35:24.57\00:35:28.19
all throughout the world."
00:35:28.22\00:35:29.81
"Hmmm," the young
boy thought to himself,
00:35:30.52\00:35:32.14
"okay, that makes sense."
00:35:32.17\00:35:33.95
Well another day, more
milk and more questions.
00:35:34.40\00:35:37.97
"Why did the Jews kill Jesus,"
Dr. Spiess wanted to know.
00:35:39.03\00:35:44.11
"Hmmm," Joseph
thinks to himself,
00:35:44.88\00:35:46.83
"Who is those Jesus?"
00:35:47.05\00:35:48.08
Well, he's heard
of Him, but who is He?
00:35:48.11\00:35:49.86
So he goes home and he
asked his father, the rabbi,
00:35:50.29\00:35:53.56
"What is this about
the Christians saying that
00:35:53.66\00:35:56.34
the Jews killed Jesus?
00:35:56.37\00:35:57.87
What's this all about?"
00:35:57.90\00:35:59.14
"Well," his father responded,
"nearly 2000 years ago,
00:35:59.65\00:36:03.71
there was a Rabbi.
00:36:04.09\00:36:05.79
This Rabbi
claimed to be the Messiah.
00:36:06.35\00:36:10.22
His name was Jesus.
00:36:10.25\00:36:11.81
Now He taught a
lot of good things.
00:36:12.01\00:36:14.61
But once He claimed to be
the Messiah, the Son of God,
00:36:14.85\00:36:18.98
that's blasphemy,
to be the Son of God,
00:36:19.24\00:36:21.41
to make that kind of claim.
00:36:21.44\00:36:22.76
And so He deserved to
die for blaspheming God."
00:36:23.37\00:36:28.33
"Oh," he thought to himself.
00:36:29.21\00:36:31.55
"That's interesting," the
young boy said to himself.
00:36:31.58\00:36:34.26
Well another day there's
more milk and more questions.
00:36:34.29\00:36:37.59
And Dr. Spiess asked the young
boy, "When the prophet Isaiah
00:36:37.94\00:36:44.04
is speaking in Isaiah 53, who
is he talking about in there?
00:36:44.23\00:36:49.55
Is he talking about himself?
00:36:49.75\00:36:51.46
Is he talking
about someone else?
00:36:51.67\00:36:53.63
Who is he talking about?"
00:36:54.03\00:36:56.22
And so young Joseph
thinks, "You know, my father
00:36:56.99\00:37:00.23
has taught me
all about the Bible."
00:37:00.43\00:37:02.54
Which had been the
Old Testament for him.
00:37:02.57\00:37:04.24
"Taught me all about the
Bible, but I don't remember
00:37:04.27\00:37:06.69
any in-depth
study of Isaiah 53."
00:37:06.72\00:37:09.04
So he goes home.
00:37:09.07\00:37:10.23
According to one
account I was reading,
00:37:10.26\00:37:11.95
he goes home and
he asked his father,
00:37:11.98\00:37:13.82
"Who is prophet
Isaiah talking about
00:37:14.02\00:37:16.65
in the 53rd chapter?
00:37:16.68\00:37:18.33
Is he talking about himself?
00:37:18.89\00:37:20.20
Is he talking
about someone else?
00:37:20.23\00:37:21.61
Who is he talking about?"
00:37:22.06\00:37:23.52
And this one source said
that the father got a scowl
00:37:23.62\00:37:26.30
on his face and
said, "Doesn't your mother
00:37:26.33\00:37:28.58
need you in the
kitchen about now?"
00:37:28.61\00:37:30.11
And it was obvious that
father didn't want to talk about
00:37:30.21\00:37:33.31
who the prophet
Isaiah is referring to
00:37:33.34\00:37:35.44
in the 53rd chapter.
00:37:35.47\00:37:37.33
But as a young boy, seven
years of age, Joseph Wolff is
00:37:37.76\00:37:42.35
beginning to put
the pieces together.
00:37:42.38\00:37:44.65
"We don't, as a
people, have a homeland
00:37:45.21\00:37:47.92
because when God sent
prophets, we despised and killed
00:37:48.02\00:37:52.71
the prophets that He sent.
00:37:52.74\00:37:54.25
And father says that this Jesus
that the Christians talk about
00:37:54.74\00:37:58.82
that claimed to be the Messiah,
claimed to be the Son of God,
00:37:58.92\00:38:02.44
that He was a good man.
00:38:02.84\00:38:03.95
But because of His
claims, He had to be killed.
00:38:03.98\00:38:08.55
And could it be
maybe," he thinks to himself,
00:38:09.69\00:38:12.36
"could it be that who is being
described here in Isaiah 53
00:38:12.46\00:38:17.10
is that Jesus?"
00:38:17.20\00:38:18.75
And as he puts the
pieces together, he comes to the
00:38:18.78\00:38:21.66
conclusion that Jesus
was the promised Messiah.
00:38:21.69\00:38:25.53
And so not being one to put
things off, at the age of seven,
00:38:25.56\00:38:29.72
he goes to the local
Lutheran pastor and announces
00:38:29.75\00:38:33.12
that he wishes to be baptized.
00:38:33.15\00:38:35.25
Now I don't know what any
ordained ministers in this crowd
00:38:36.58\00:38:39.76
would do, but you can maybe
relate to the minister who said,
00:38:39.79\00:38:44.67
"Now son, you know, your
father, he's the local rabbi,
00:38:44.70\00:38:50.56
Orthodox rabbi.
00:38:50.59\00:38:51.66
And besides, there's a law
that says that we can't baptize
00:38:51.69\00:38:55.54
Jews unless we have
the parents permission
00:38:55.95\00:38:58.62
if they're under the age of 18.
00:38:58.65\00:39:00.05
Why don't you come
back in a few years
00:39:00.08\00:39:01.95
and let's talk about all this."
00:39:01.98\00:39:03.50
Well needless to say,
Joseph was not interested
00:39:03.85\00:39:07.09
in talking about
it with anybody else.
00:39:07.12\00:39:08.55
He had made up his mind.
00:39:08.58\00:39:09.80
He's going to
become a Christian.
00:39:09.83\00:39:11.31
It's just a matter
of figuring out how he's
00:39:11.34\00:39:13.02
going to make it happen.
00:39:13.05\00:39:14.16
Well his father is getting
kind of nervous, thinking,
00:39:14.40\00:39:16.67
"What in the world
is happening to my son?
00:39:16.70\00:39:18.50
I think he's going
to become a Christian."
00:39:18.70\00:39:20.06
He doesn't know he's
already asked to be baptized.
00:39:20.09\00:39:22.22
He just thinks, "I think he's
going to become a Christian.
00:39:22.25\00:39:23.98
What am I going to do?
00:39:24.01\00:39:25.20
I had better
get him out of here.
00:39:25.31\00:39:26.47
I've got to get him
away from this influence."
00:39:26.50\00:39:28.27
And so he sent him
to his brother's house.
00:39:28.44\00:39:31.38
So Joseph goes off
to Uncle Asshur's house.
00:39:31.41\00:39:34.25
And there, because the
best school in town was the
00:39:34.35\00:39:37.97
Christian school, and
they needed this young boy,
00:39:38.00\00:39:40.55
this bright young boy, why, he
needs to get a good education.
00:39:40.58\00:39:44.30
So since he was a Jew, he wasn't
required to go to the religion
00:39:44.40\00:39:48.20
classes, but guess which
classes he wanted to go to.
00:39:48.23\00:39:51.32
That's the ones he
was most interested in.
00:39:51.55\00:39:53.20
He wanted to go to the
Bible or the religion classes.
00:39:53.30\00:39:56.42
And he's asking more
questions than all the rest
00:39:56.45\00:39:58.63
of the students all together.
00:39:58.66\00:40:00.16
And he's always
talking about Jesus.
00:40:00.19\00:40:02.17
And what about the Messiah?
00:40:02.20\00:40:03.76
And on, and on, and on.
00:40:03.79\00:40:04.92
And guess who gets
nervous? Uncle Asshur.
00:40:04.95\00:40:08.23
"What will happen?
00:40:08.60\00:40:09.77
What will my brother David,
the rabbi, think if his son
00:40:09.80\00:40:13.63
converts to
Christianity while living here?
00:40:13.66\00:40:16.45
I think we better
get rid of this kid."
00:40:16.55\00:40:18.17
And so Joseph is sent
off to another relative.
00:40:18.73\00:40:22.36
This is cousin Moses Cohen.
00:40:22.39\00:40:25.02
And there again, he's
put in the Christian school.
00:40:25.05\00:40:27.72
And again he's got
more questions about Jesus
00:40:27.75\00:40:30.31
than all the
other students combined.
00:40:30.34\00:40:32.07
And the teacher is wondering,
"Why in the world are you
00:40:32.37\00:40:35.43
so interested in this Jesus?
00:40:35.46\00:40:36.98
You know, He was just a
man like the rest of us."
00:40:38.05\00:40:41.41
But even with the put
down by the professor,
00:40:41.99\00:40:44.62
Joseph was undeterred
in his asking of questions.
00:40:44.72\00:40:48.19
And according to one account
again that I was looking at,
00:40:48.63\00:40:50.82
it said he decided
one day to buy a Bible.
00:40:50.85\00:40:53.26
He didn't have enough
money to buy an entire Bible,
00:40:53.29\00:40:55.21
but he didn't
need an Old Testament.
00:40:55.24\00:40:56.83
He already had that.
00:40:56.86\00:40:57.89
All he needed
was a New Testament.
00:40:57.92\00:40:59.92
And when he brought it home,
he's very pleased, you know.
00:41:00.21\00:41:03.27
He has this New Testament.
00:41:03.30\00:41:04.67
But cousin Moses Cohen's
wife was not quite so pleased.
00:41:04.77\00:41:08.31
She told him to get out
of there, and she threw the
00:41:08.41\00:41:10.68
stove poker at him and
kicked him out of the house.
00:41:10.71\00:41:12.81
And so he's out
on his own at the age
00:41:13.17\00:41:15.57
of 12 or 13 years of age.
00:41:15.60\00:41:17.31
His father having
died by this time.
00:41:17.47\00:41:19.97
He was turned off
to Protestantism by the
00:41:20.59\00:41:22.60
rationalist deist Protestant
professors that he had met.
00:41:22.63\00:41:25.73
And so he now starts
attending Catholic schools.
00:41:25.97\00:41:28.17
Again, we're looking at
how does God bring this guy
00:41:28.20\00:41:31.45
to where He wants him
to be studying about the
00:41:31.48\00:41:34.39
soon return of Jesus,
the biblical prophecies of
00:41:34.42\00:41:37.07
Daniel and Revelation.
00:41:37.10\00:41:38.13
Well there's many,
many different accounts
00:41:38.49\00:41:40.43
of where he went, this
guy was just incredible.
00:41:40.46\00:41:42.29
But he shows up at
a monastery one day,
00:41:42.49\00:41:45.17
and he wants to
attend school there.
00:41:45.20\00:41:47.35
And the rector, the guy
in charge of the monastery,
00:41:47.55\00:41:49.75
he was all pleased.
00:41:49.78\00:41:50.86
I suppose like
a school principle
00:41:50.89\00:41:52.00
today, there's more money.
00:41:52.03\00:41:53.06
"Sure, come on in.
00:41:53.09\00:41:54.12
Who's paying your
bill, by the way?"
00:41:54.15\00:41:55.38
And Joseph, again according to
the account I was reading, said,
00:41:55.86\00:41:58.89
"I don't have anybody."
00:41:59.50\00:42:01.07
Well I guess the smile
probably left the rector's face
00:42:01.54\00:42:03.97
when he heard that
nobody was going to be paying
00:42:04.00\00:42:05.80
for him to attend school.
00:42:05.83\00:42:07.15
And he said, "Well then how do
you plan on paying your bill?"
00:42:07.18\00:42:09.78
And Joseph responded,
"Well I can teach Hebrew."
00:42:09.81\00:42:12.39
"What do you
mean? You're just a kid.
00:42:12.89\00:42:13.92
How can you teach Hebrew?"
00:42:13.95\00:42:14.98
"Well bring me a
Bible and I'll show you."
00:42:15.01\00:42:16.44
Well I guess we can say, as
the rector picked his jaw up
00:42:16.97\00:42:20.44
from off the ground
when he realized this guy was
00:42:20.47\00:42:22.49
fluent in languages, he said,
"Not only will I give you free
00:42:22.52\00:42:25.49
tuition and boarding, but I'll
even give you a little money.
00:42:25.52\00:42:27.90
Just come right on
in, thank you very much."
00:42:27.93\00:42:29.88
And so Joseph was in.
00:42:29.91\00:42:31.39
And again, he's moving around
all over various countries
00:42:31.67\00:42:34.36
there in Europe where he lived.
00:42:34.39\00:42:36.77
And by 1812 at the
age of 17, he was baptized
00:42:36.80\00:42:41.64
as a Roman Catholic.
00:42:41.67\00:42:43.00
Now Joseph Wolff
had one big desire.
00:42:43.18\00:42:46.87
He wanted to
become a missionary.
00:42:46.90\00:42:48.81
He wanted to go to
his people, the Jews.
00:42:48.84\00:42:51.08
He wanted to tell them
that he had found the Messiah,
00:42:51.18\00:42:55.09
and the Messiah was Jesus.
00:42:55.12\00:42:57.10
The Jesus of the Christians.
00:42:57.13\00:42:58.76
Now I've already hinted
at the fact that Joseph had a
00:42:59.25\00:43:02.45
facility for languages.
00:43:02.48\00:43:04.06
I should tell you
that eventually he became
00:43:04.27\00:43:06.16
expert in six languages,
and he conversed freely
00:43:06.19\00:43:10.12
in an additional eight.
00:43:10.15\00:43:11.41
So that was fourteen
languages that he could make
00:43:11.51\00:43:14.14
his way around pretty well.
00:43:14.17\00:43:15.32
Which is kind of handy, you
know, for being a missionary.
00:43:15.35\00:43:19.12
And he's moving from
place to place still,
00:43:19.43\00:43:21.23
staying a little while
here, a little while there.
00:43:21.26\00:43:22.78
But he's on his
own trying to learn,
00:43:22.98\00:43:25.41
to make a little money, to be...
00:43:25.61\00:43:27.22
Well, he wasn't too
worried about money.
00:43:27.32\00:43:28.85
But have enough
to live on at least.
00:43:28.88\00:43:30.52
And people kept saying, "If
you want to be a missionary,
00:43:30.71\00:43:33.22
where you need to go is to Rome.
00:43:33.32\00:43:36.06
That's where the church
trains its missionaries."
00:43:36.77\00:43:39.67
So finally in 1816, Joseph
Wolff makes his way to Rome.
00:43:39.87\00:43:44.89
Now the word is out
that this flamboyant
00:43:44.92\00:43:47.13
brilliant young Jewish
convert to Christianity,
00:43:47.16\00:43:50.81
the Roman Catholic
church, has arrived in town.
00:43:50.84\00:43:53.63
And Pope Pius VII wanted
to meet Joseph, of course.
00:43:53.73\00:43:57.91
And so there was a
little interview arranged
00:43:57.94\00:44:00.07
with Joseph to meet the pope.
00:44:00.10\00:44:02.26
And while he is in there
with the pope, the pope asks him
00:44:02.36\00:44:05.75
to read something
from his Hebrew Bible.
00:44:05.78\00:44:08.03
Unfortunately, the
old story does not tell us
00:44:08.06\00:44:10.70
what the pope asked him to read.
00:44:11.00\00:44:12.59
I like to think it
was Isaiah 53, but I have
00:44:12.69\00:44:15.01
no idea what he really read.
00:44:15.04\00:44:16.55
Anyway, he read
something to the pope.
00:44:16.58\00:44:19.38
And the pope said,
"Thank you very much.
00:44:19.41\00:44:21.40
What are you wanting to do?"
00:44:21.43\00:44:22.46
"Well, I want to go to
the College of Propaganda."
00:44:22.49\00:44:25.66
That's what they
called their school
00:44:25.69\00:44:27.33
for training missionaries.
00:44:27.63\00:44:29.55
Now I just need to remind
you that the word, "propaganda,"
00:44:29.65\00:44:32.82
until Goebbels and
the Nazi's in the 1930's,
00:44:33.08\00:44:35.58
it was a perfectly good word.
00:44:35.61\00:44:36.88
It kind of changed, so
now we kind of question
00:44:37.02\00:44:39.10
calling something,
the College of Propaganda.
00:44:39.31\00:44:41.57
But it didn't have the
same meaning back then.
00:44:41.67\00:44:43.88
Well the pope said,
"Unfortunately the College
00:44:43.91\00:44:46.62
of Propaganda is closed
right now for renovations.
00:44:46.65\00:44:50.31
The reason for that is
because while Napoleons troops
00:44:50.51\00:44:53.72
were stationed here in
Rome, that's where they lived."
00:44:53.82\00:44:57.82
It was in the
building where the College of
00:44:57.85\00:44:59.22
Propaganda use to be.
00:44:59.25\00:45:01.46
And so he said, "Right now they
are gone, the troops are gone.
00:45:01.49\00:45:04.18
And we're restoring, remodeling,
renovating the building.
00:45:04.28\00:45:07.19
But we, right now,
don't have it open.
00:45:07.68\00:45:10.53
So you can't go there.
00:45:10.56\00:45:11.76
However, I am the
patron," the pope said,
00:45:11.79\00:45:14.54
"of the Collegio Romano.
00:45:14.57\00:45:16.18
And as the patron
of the Collegio Romano,
00:45:16.48\00:45:19.29
if you will go there,
I'll tell you what I'll do.
00:45:19.32\00:45:22.08
I will pay all your expenses.
00:45:22.75\00:45:27.25
I will pay your room and board.
00:45:27.66\00:45:29.82
I will give you
clothing to wear.
00:45:29.85\00:45:31.71
You go there until we get
the other building open again,
00:45:32.01\00:45:36.04
and then you can transfer over
to the College of Propaganda."
00:45:36.07\00:45:39.35
Wow, now nobody has
done this for Joseph.
00:45:39.45\00:45:41.37
He is so excited.
00:45:41.40\00:45:42.51
He pats the pope on
the shoulder and says,
00:45:42.54\00:45:45.88
"Thank you, thank you, thank you
00:45:45.91\00:45:47.35
for your kindness, sir."
00:45:47.45\00:45:48.93
And the little
interview was over.
00:45:48.96\00:45:50.47
And Joseph begins to
attend the Collegio Romano.
00:45:51.06\00:45:54.48
Now students have
not changed at all.
00:45:54.58\00:45:56.33
Guess what.
00:45:56.36\00:45:57.39
Rumors, whispers, start
going through the student body.
00:45:57.42\00:46:00.08
"Guess what happened."
00:46:00.50\00:46:01.88
"What? Really? Did he do that?
00:46:01.91\00:46:03.78
No, he couldn't have done that."
00:46:03.81\00:46:05.06
"Yes, guess
what happened." "No."
00:46:05.09\00:46:07.71
And finally somebody
said, "Is it true that when you
00:46:07.74\00:46:10.72
were in there with the
holy father, that you actually
00:46:10.75\00:46:14.57
patted him on the shoulder?"
00:46:14.77\00:46:17.11
"Well yes, "Joseph
said, "he's a nice man."
00:46:17.66\00:46:19.80
"Oh no, no, no.
00:46:20.43\00:46:21.80
Don't you understand,
don't you understand?
00:46:21.83\00:46:25.54
He is like God here on earth."
00:46:25.70\00:46:28.73
Now actually, the infallibility
of the pope had not yet
00:46:28.76\00:46:31.77
become dogma, but
that's where they were moving.
00:46:31.80\00:46:33.80
And that didn't
happen until 1870.
00:46:33.83\00:46:36.22
But here is this
whole discussion going on.
00:46:36.25\00:46:39.04
In fact, one day in
class they were talking about
00:46:39.07\00:46:41.82
the infallibility of the pope.
00:46:41.85\00:46:43.28
As I say, that hadn't
actually become dogma yet.
00:46:43.31\00:46:45.65
But they're talking about
this, and so Joseph is saying,
00:46:45.68\00:46:49.35
"Pardon me, but what
exactly does that mean?"
00:46:49.38\00:46:52.83
"Well you know, when the
theologians have all studied
00:46:53.10\00:46:56.26
everything, and they
finally can't decide,
00:46:56.29\00:47:00.76
and it's brought to
the holy father, the pope,
00:47:00.96\00:47:03.47
and he then tells
them what the text means.
00:47:03.50\00:47:06.55
And then it's settled."
00:47:06.98\00:47:08.19
"You don't say," Joseph said.
00:47:08.48\00:47:10.05
"The pope can do that?
00:47:10.08\00:47:11.72
How can he do that?
00:47:12.00\00:47:13.48
He can't even read
Hebrew, how would he know
00:47:13.51\00:47:15.43
what the text says?"
00:47:15.46\00:47:16.74
Well needless to say,
that didn't help him too much
00:47:16.99\00:47:20.34
in that school.
00:47:20.37\00:47:21.40
But before too long the
College of Propaganda reopened.
00:47:21.43\00:47:24.51
And that's where
he was transferred to,
00:47:24.54\00:47:26.19
because that's what he wanted.
00:47:26.22\00:47:27.25
He wanted to be a missionary
to go tell his people.
00:47:27.28\00:47:30.56
He wanted to tell them
that he found the Messiah.
00:47:30.66\00:47:33.71
Well he is always
mouthing off, as we would say.
00:47:34.10\00:47:37.49
He's always
shooting his mouth off
00:47:37.52\00:47:39.32
when it would have
been more to his advantage
00:47:39.35\00:47:41.60
to have kept his mouth shut.
00:47:41.63\00:47:42.72
There was an elderly cardinal,
Cardinal Lorenzo Litta,
00:47:42.75\00:47:47.80
who kind of befriended
this young Jew, and said,
00:47:47.83\00:47:52.65
"You know, Wolff..."
00:47:52.75\00:47:53.78
In fact, he
said, "Wolff, Wolff."
00:47:53.84\00:47:55.17
"...you must learn
to hold your tongue
00:47:55.20\00:47:57.07
or you will get into trouble.
00:47:57.17\00:47:58.60
Remember, even a fish
can keep out of danger
00:47:58.90\00:48:01.88
if it keeps its mouth shut."
00:48:01.91\00:48:03.51
But Wolff could not
keep his mouth shut.
00:48:03.76\00:48:06.20
Well one day in
1818, he was attending the
00:48:06.23\00:48:08.92
College of Propaganda,
and there was a cardinal,
00:48:08.95\00:48:11.71
venerable cardinal, who
was leading out in discussion.
00:48:11.74\00:48:14.53
And he was telling
these future missionaries
00:48:14.56\00:48:16.48
that it was alright
for them to burn heretics.
00:48:16.51\00:48:20.90
Joseph said, "What did you say?"
00:48:21.28\00:48:23.42
Now he was apparently a
short fellow with red hair.
00:48:23.45\00:48:25.71
And he's on his feet, and said,
"What was that you just said?
00:48:25.74\00:48:28.87
It's alright for us to
burn heretics when we're
00:48:28.90\00:48:31.22
out there as missionaries?
00:48:31.25\00:48:32.90
What about the violation of
the commandment not to kill?"
00:48:32.93\00:48:36.46
Well the cardinal was
ready for the argument.
00:48:36.91\00:48:39.09
He said, "When you have a
shepherd who is protecting
00:48:39.12\00:48:45.40
a flock of sheep, and
a wolf," no pun intended,
00:48:45.87\00:48:50.24
"a wolf gets into
the flock of sheep,
00:48:50.27\00:48:53.05
what does the shepherd do?
00:48:53.57\00:48:55.34
Well he kills the
wolf to protect the sheep.
00:48:56.00\00:48:58.88
That's the principle here."
00:48:59.18\00:49:00.92
Well Joseph was
not impressed at all.
00:49:01.20\00:49:02.78
He said, "Well, but
men are not brute animals.
00:49:02.81\00:49:06.97
We're not talking
about just animals,
00:49:07.07\00:49:09.01
we are talking about people."
00:49:09.04\00:49:10.67
And the cardinal could see that
the students were beginning to
00:49:11.21\00:49:15.19
side with young Joseph.
00:49:15.22\00:49:17.04
So he decided that he
would use the best argument
00:49:17.07\00:49:19.65
that he could think
of with this young man
00:49:19.68\00:49:21.39
and it would
silence him for sure.
00:49:21.59\00:49:23.39
He said, "Well, then let
me put it to you this way.
00:49:23.63\00:49:26.10
Seventeen popes have
declared that it's alright
00:49:26.13\00:49:30.23
to burn heretics."
00:49:30.53\00:49:31.98
Joseph was not
impressed one whit.
00:49:32.45\00:49:35.42
He said, "Then
obviously, sir, seventeen popes
00:49:35.62\00:49:38.94
have declared wrong."
00:49:39.14\00:49:40.44
Well shortly thereafter,
about three in the morning,
00:49:41.34\00:49:43.83
he was escorted out of
town by 25 of the pope's finest.
00:49:43.86\00:49:47.82
And away he goes again.
00:49:48.25\00:49:49.90
Well that's the
story of his life.
00:49:49.93\00:49:51.56
He first goes to Vienna,
then he went to Switzerland.
00:49:51.59\00:49:54.28
And there he was in a monastery,
and there was some infraction.
00:49:54.48\00:49:57.76
Actually, there's two different
accounts, and I'm not sure...
00:49:57.79\00:49:59.83
I like the one
I'm going to tell you,
00:49:59.86\00:50:01.01
but maybe it
happened a little differently
00:50:01.04\00:50:02.70
depending on which
source you're looking at.
00:50:02.73\00:50:04.55
But in any case, he
was suppose to show penance
00:50:04.66\00:50:09.24
one time and was
suppose to kiss the feet...
00:50:09.27\00:50:12.14
One story has him kissing the
feet or the toe of the rector,
00:50:12.24\00:50:15.27
others say they were kissing the
toes of their fellow students
00:50:15.30\00:50:18.94
to try to keep
humble, show their humility.
00:50:18.97\00:50:21.30
And well, Joseph decided
to carry it a little extra.
00:50:21.40\00:50:26.30
He not only kissed, but
he bit down hard on the toe.
00:50:26.51\00:50:30.34
And the one account is
he bolted for the door,
00:50:30.37\00:50:32.51
and that's when
he left Catholicism.
00:50:32.54\00:50:34.25
The other account is
that shortly thereafter,
00:50:34.28\00:50:36.88
he left Catholicism
and he became Protestant.
00:50:36.91\00:50:40.42
He became an
Anglican, went to England,
00:50:40.45\00:50:42.28
went to school at
Cambridge University,
00:50:42.58\00:50:44.22
still wants to
become a missionary.
00:50:44.25\00:50:45.86
Wants to tell his people
about Jesus being the Messiah.
00:50:45.89\00:50:49.19
However, he had some phobias.
00:50:49.22\00:50:50.48
He had a phobia of water.
00:50:50.58\00:50:52.02
He had a phobia
about riding horses.
00:50:52.05\00:50:54.00
He couldn't sit cross legged.
00:50:54.03\00:50:55.55
He couldn't fix his
own victuals or food.
00:50:55.58\00:50:58.41
He never learned
to shave himself.
00:50:58.44\00:50:59.87
But even so, away
he went. How did he go?
00:50:59.90\00:51:02.37
Well England, of course, was out
on an island, so how did he go?
00:51:02.40\00:51:04.97
Well he told us,
he left an account.
00:51:05.00\00:51:07.09
He just got a book, buried
his head in the book, and read.
00:51:07.12\00:51:10.22
And forgot there was water
all around his little boat.
00:51:10.25\00:51:12.15
And away he would go,
because he was determined
00:51:12.18\00:51:14.46
that he was going to
tell people about Jesus.
00:51:14.49\00:51:17.20
Well he had some interesting
methods of doing evangelism.
00:51:17.40\00:51:20.04
He would try to push people
to see how far they would go
00:51:20.07\00:51:22.91
before they decided to kill him.
00:51:22.94\00:51:26.26
Now it was an interesting
technique to get discussions
00:51:26.36\00:51:28.57
going to see how far you can go.
00:51:28.60\00:51:30.38
In Tabriz, Persia he
spoke one time in English at the
00:51:30.41\00:51:32.95
British Embassy at
ten in the morning.
00:51:32.98\00:51:34.66
At noon he gave a
sermon in Italian.
00:51:34.69\00:51:36.58
At 1 pm he preached a sermon
in German and then in French.
00:51:36.61\00:51:39.09
And from 3 pm to 4
pm he preached another
00:51:39.29\00:51:40.70
sermon in Arabic.
00:51:40.73\00:51:41.79
In 1826, he attended
the great Albury Park
00:51:42.00\00:51:44.84
prophetic conference in England
where a number of theologians
00:51:44.87\00:51:47.73
came together to study...
00:51:47.76\00:51:49.06
Guess what.
Daniel and Revelation.
00:51:49.09\00:51:51.63
Now he comes to the conclusion
that the Messiah, Jesus,
00:51:51.81\00:51:54.65
is about to return.
00:51:54.68\00:51:55.71
And he moves again
back into the Middle East.
00:51:56.03\00:51:58.82
He's all over the Middle East.
00:51:58.93\00:52:00.42
He's distributing Bibles.
00:52:00.45\00:52:01.58
He is preaching, not just
in the Middle East, but he goes
00:52:01.68\00:52:04.93
to various other countries;
00:52:05.03\00:52:06.28
India, and
Afghanistan, and other places.
00:52:06.31\00:52:08.53
In 1837, he comes
to the United States.
00:52:08.56\00:52:11.46
Former President John Quincy
Adams asked for permission
00:52:11.49\00:52:15.04
for Wolff to preach to
the United States congress,
00:52:15.07\00:52:17.58
which he was allowed
to do in December of 1837.
00:52:17.61\00:52:21.16
Interesting.
00:52:21.42\00:52:22.73
I have an
interesting letter here.
00:52:23.95\00:52:25.29
And I don't know, I'm watching
the clock, and I don't know if
00:52:25.32\00:52:26.98
I really have time
to tell you about this.
00:52:27.01\00:52:28.37
But here's an original
letter from Joseph Wolff
00:52:28.40\00:52:30.54
that he wrote from Washington
DC while he was here in 1837.
00:52:30.57\00:52:33.49
And he's writing to a
friend of his in New York.
00:52:33.52\00:52:37.32
And he tells the friend
up there in New York City
00:52:37.35\00:52:39.91
that he hasn't heard from his
wife for three or four months.
00:52:40.01\00:52:42.54
Remember, mail is a
little different than today.
00:52:42.74\00:52:44.75
And she's in
Switzerland somewhere, and he's
00:52:44.78\00:52:46.63
been trying to send letters.
00:52:46.66\00:52:47.74
And he says, "I'm going
from here down to the south,
00:52:47.94\00:52:50.98
and then I'm
going out to Cincinnati
00:52:51.01\00:52:52.55
and hold lectures there.
00:52:52.58\00:52:53.61
And then I'll go back home.
00:52:53.64\00:52:54.91
And then I'll probably...
00:52:54.94\00:52:57.05
I'll go back to New
York, I mean, then I'll
00:52:57.08\00:52:58.47
probably return home."
00:52:58.50\00:52:59.53
Well then there's a...
00:52:59.56\00:53:00.73
I didn't bring the
whole newspaper, but there's a
00:53:00.83\00:53:02.63
Xerox of a letter that he wrote
just nine days after that one.
00:53:02.66\00:53:06.45
And he says, "I've
heard from my wife.
00:53:06.51\00:53:08.20
And I'm leaving to go
back to New York City.
00:53:08.23\00:53:10.57
And I'm returning home."
00:53:10.60\00:53:11.63
No more about going
to lecture in the south.
00:53:11.66\00:53:13.67
No more in Cincinnati.
00:53:13.70\00:53:14.73
I think the letter, which
isn't extent, from his wife was,
00:53:14.76\00:53:18.65
"Joe, you've been gone too long.
00:53:19.05\00:53:20.31
Get yourself home."
00:53:20.34\00:53:21.37
And so he's all of a
sudden forgotten about
00:53:21.64\00:53:23.03
all this other stuff, and
he's headed back to England.
00:53:23.06\00:53:25.37
Anyway, he goes back
there and he's preaching
00:53:25.40\00:53:27.41
farther and wider
than any other individual.
00:53:27.44\00:53:29.88
This Jewish convert preaches
the first angel's message.
00:53:30.08\00:53:35.02
It's incredible.
00:53:35.05\00:53:36.08
A person that we
would not have picked.
00:53:36.11\00:53:38.65
Because he started the
2300 days a little differently,
00:53:38.68\00:53:41.57
he ended it in 1847.
00:53:41.60\00:53:43.45
And he thought
Jesus was coming in 1847.
00:53:43.48\00:53:45.44
Somebody asked him, "Well, what
if Jesus doesn't come in 1847?
00:53:45.47\00:53:49.15
Then what?"
00:53:49.18\00:53:50.21
He said, "Well,
He didn't come then."
00:53:50.24\00:53:51.58
He's coming, He
just didn't come in 1847.
00:53:53.26\00:53:55.94
I mean, you could
not get this guy down.
00:53:55.97\00:53:57.62
There were others
preaching at the same time.
00:53:57.86\00:53:59.54
Daniel Wilson, the
bishop of Calcutta out in India,
00:53:59.57\00:54:02.28
writing and preaching
at precisely this time
00:54:02.31\00:54:04.86
on the soon return of Christ.
00:54:04.96\00:54:06.55
Thomas Playford out
in Adelaide, Australia;
00:54:06.58\00:54:09.60
same thing, preaching.
00:54:09.80\00:54:11.19
In fact, his church followers
down there, his church was
00:54:11.22\00:54:13.64
too small and they had
to build a larger church
00:54:13.67\00:54:16.11
just to hold the crowds.
00:54:16.14\00:54:17.34
In Argentina there
was a man by the name of
00:54:17.59\00:54:19.63
Francisco Ramos Mejia
who also was interested
00:54:19.66\00:54:23.15
and been impacted
by Lacunza's writings.
00:54:23.18\00:54:25.14
And some sources say
he even eventually kept
00:54:25.25\00:54:27.41
the seventh day Sabbath.
00:54:27.44\00:54:28.56
He was a large
land owner down there.
00:54:28.59\00:54:30.66
What my point is, that when it
was time for the first angel's
00:54:30.69\00:54:33.86
message to be
preached, it's being preached
00:54:33.89\00:54:35.88
all around the world.
00:54:35.91\00:54:36.94
It's not just
here in North America.
00:54:36.97\00:54:39.08
And we come to an
interesting phenomena called,
00:54:39.11\00:54:41.23
the child preachers of Sweden.
00:54:41.26\00:54:42.88
Sometimes called,
Repentance Criers.
00:54:42.98\00:54:45.09
Ellen White mentions
them in, Great Controversy,
00:54:45.12\00:54:47.33
pages 366 and 367.
00:54:47.36\00:54:50.05
Predominantly in southern
Sweden where there was a
00:54:50.08\00:54:52.50
strong state church.
00:54:52.53\00:54:54.05
They knew, the leaders of
the church there in Sweden,
00:54:54.23\00:54:56.54
knew what was going
on, these discussions about
00:54:56.57\00:54:58.75
Daniel and Revelation.
00:54:58.78\00:54:59.81
They didn't want
anything to do with it.
00:54:59.95\00:55:02.03
But God's Spirit
was not to be thwarted.
00:55:03.51\00:55:05.54
When the time for the preaching
needed to occur, it happened.
00:55:05.57\00:55:09.26
Children as young as 6,
8, 10, 12, 16 years of age
00:55:09.36\00:55:12.46
began to preach.
00:55:12.49\00:55:13.56
Some too young even to read.
00:55:13.59\00:55:15.57
They came under the
influence of the Holy Spirit.
00:55:15.60\00:55:17.83
They spoke in a vocabulary,
according to the descriptions,
00:55:18.03\00:55:20.61
far beyond what you would
expect of children their age.
00:55:20.81\00:55:23.44
Their voices
and manners changed.
00:55:23.47\00:55:24.99
Some preached
with their eyes open,
00:55:25.02\00:55:26.54
others with their eyes closed.
00:55:26.57\00:55:28.14
Twice a day, 200 to
300 people came to hear
00:55:28.32\00:55:30.78
one teenage girl preach.
00:55:30.81\00:55:32.87
And what was the
message that they were giving?
00:55:33.12\00:55:34.62
"Fear God, and
give glory to Him;
00:55:34.65\00:55:36.82
for the hour of
His judgment is come."
00:55:36.85\00:55:39.33
The first angel's
message of Revelation 14.
00:55:39.36\00:55:42.20
When asked, "What is
your authority to preach,"
00:55:42.23\00:55:44.06
they cited Joel 2:28.
00:55:44.18\00:55:46.99
They said the
advent was imminent.
00:55:47.19\00:55:48.95
Though they stated that
no one, not even the angels,
00:55:49.12\00:55:51.10
know the exact time or
the day of the judgment.
00:55:51.13\00:55:53.06
But they
condemned sin and apostasy.
00:55:53.16\00:55:55.02
They uplifted the
standard of righteousness.
00:55:55.05\00:55:57.24
They reproved
drinking, theft, adultery,
00:55:57.34\00:55:59.26
swearing, and backbiting.
00:55:59.29\00:56:00.72
They told women to take
off some of the ornaments
00:56:00.75\00:56:02.87
they were wearing,
abstain from dancing and other
00:56:02.90\00:56:05.16
worldly pleasures,
avoid intoxicating beverages.
00:56:05.19\00:56:08.16
In fact, we're told that
70 distillers in one province
00:56:08.19\00:56:11.17
in southern Sweden said
they would stop distilling
00:56:11.20\00:56:14.33
as a result of the
child preachers of Sweden.
00:56:14.53\00:56:16.86
The point is, that when
it was time for the message
00:56:16.89\00:56:19.53
to be proclaimed, it was
proclaimed around the world,
00:56:19.56\00:56:22.35
not just here in America.
00:56:22.38\00:56:24.41
Though sometimes
we, as Americans, think
00:56:24.64\00:56:27.47
that's where it all happened.
00:56:27.67\00:56:28.91
And it all
happened right on time,
00:56:28.94\00:56:31.76
exactly as predicted by
God over 2000 years in advance.
00:56:32.03\00:56:37.02
And it's out of this
worldwide preaching...
00:56:37.22\00:56:38.80
Tomorrow night we will be
looking at William Miller.
00:56:38.83\00:56:41.20
Out of that worldwide
preaching eventually grew
00:56:41.23\00:56:43.84
the Seventh-day
Adventist Church.
00:56:43.87\00:56:45.83
And so in conclusion
this evening, if I had a wish
00:56:46.27\00:56:48.80
for my church, it would
be that we would have again
00:56:48.83\00:56:53.52
a love for the
Bible like Lacunza,
00:56:53.55\00:56:56.67
again finding our
way into Scripture.
00:56:57.18\00:56:59.73
That we would have a passion
for Christ and saving of souls
00:57:00.38\00:57:05.97
like Joseph Wolff had.
00:57:06.11\00:57:08.41
Everywhere someone to save.
00:57:09.14\00:57:10.73
And finally, that a revival
and reformation in our church
00:57:10.76\00:57:14.06
would break out
again, as called for by the
00:57:14.36\00:57:17.10
child preachers of Sweden.
00:57:17.13\00:57:19.73