Welcome to Anchors Of Truth
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live from the
3ABN Worship Center.
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Hello and welcome to
the opening night of our
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Anchors Of Truth series.
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We are so happy to have
you with us, those of you
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who are in our house here
and those who are watching
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from across the street,
and yea, around the world.
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I would have you know
that this particular Anchors
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takes us somewhere over
150 of these Anchors sermons
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that we have preached.
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And so if you have
been here for all of them,
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then you've been through
over 150, I think about 152,
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Christ filled messages.
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And I'm sure that you
have grown in faith and grace
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as you have listened
to these various speakers
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tell us of the things of God.
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We need to thank our
president Jim Gilley,
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because this
was his brain child.
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And when he brought it to
us, we didn't know where it
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was going to go or
how it was going to grow.
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But I think those of
you who have been here
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throughout this series can
say that it has been a blessing
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and it has been a
God inspired thing.
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Our speaker tonight
is Justin Torossian.
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He is a young man.
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I dare say at the very
beginning, he is still single.
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And a good looking young man.
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So I doubt that
will last very long.
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But he is a
native of California,
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the Central
California Conference.
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He spent some time
working with Pastor Stephen Bohr
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and the Secrets Unsealed group,
so he comes with good lineage.
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He is a graduate of
Pacific Union College
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with his degree in theology,
and is currently studying
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at Andrews University working
on his Masters of Divinity
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before he
returns to service at the
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Central California Conference.
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Easy guy to like.
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We've met him, he's actually
been on this stage before.
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Have not heard him
preach, but he comes with
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high recommendation.
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And so we expect
nothing but the Spirit of God
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to move in this house tonight
as he speaks on the subject,
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Laodicea's Sindrome,
which is an interesting title.
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And we are really
anxious to hear him speak.
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Easy guy to get
to know and like.
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The Spirit of God is with him.
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And we like him a lot.
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And we really expect God to
do a great blessing through him.
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Now I've got to get this
right, I've got to work on this,
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because he is
related to Ellen White.
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He is the...
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Let's see, I've
got to get this right.
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Ellen White's
youngest son was Willie White.
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Willie White's oldest
daughter had several children.
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Her youngest daughter
is his great grandmother.
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Now if that's not correct,
he will fix that up for us.
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I think it's,
great great great great,
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or great great great, or
great great great great great,
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grandmother was Ellen White.
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Now having said that, he
would be the first to tell you
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that
spirituality is not genetics.
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It doesn't come
through the genes.
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Each person must know
the Lord for themselves.
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So he gets no
spiritual unction because he's
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related to Ellen White.
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Ellen White's twin sister,
Elizabeth, there are some
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argument whether she
ever joined the church,
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but for many years did
not profess to love Christ.
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So you don't get into
heaven because your parents were
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good Christians, or
because your brother or sister
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was a good Christian, or even
because your husband or wife
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was a good Christian.
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My mom use to say, "Every tub
has to rest on its own laurels."
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Thus saying, if
God uses him tonight,
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and we know that the Lord
will, it will be because he
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has learned to make
Jesus his personal Savior,
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and he gets no credit
through any work of Ellen White
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even though they are related.
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So we ask God's blessing
on him as he talks to us
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about Laodicea and what
we can do to change that.
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Will you have a
word of prayer with me,
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and then we're going to
sing a song that talks about
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getting to heaven.
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We all want to get to heaven.
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And what a day of rejoicing
that will be when we do indeed
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get to heaven.
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And we look forward to
that day. Shall we pray.
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Father God, we do
love You and praise You.
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And we thank You so very
much for the privilege we have
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of hearing the Word of God.
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We thank You for
the power of preaching.
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We thank You for the
moving of the Holy Spirit.
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We ask that You might,
in a very powerful way,
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touch the lips of
Your manservant this night.
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Give him words that
will be meat in due season
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for our souls.
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And then enable us,
Father, to be doers of the Word,
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not just hearers of the Word.
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Because it is in the doing that
we are made like Christ Jesus.
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And so bless
each of us this night.
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May we sit even for a
little while in heavenly places
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and hear the Word of the Lord.
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And we thank You, dear
Father, in Jesus' name, amen.
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Sing the wondrous love of Jesus,
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sing His mercy and His grace.
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In the mansions
so bright and blessed
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He'll prepare for us a place.
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While we walk
the pilgrim's pathway
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clouds will overspread our sky.
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But when
traveling days are over,
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not a shadow, not a sigh.
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When we all get to heaven,
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what a day of
rejoicing that will be.
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For when we all see Jesus,
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we'll sing and
shout the victory.
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Let us then be
true and faithful;
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trusting Jesus,
serving Jesus, every day.
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Just one glimpse of Him in glory
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will the toils of life repay,
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repay.
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Onward to the prize before us,
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soon His beauty we'll behold.
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Soon the pearly
gates, they will open,
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and we shall tread
the streets of gold.
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So when we all get to heaven,
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what a day of
rejoicing that will be.
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For when we all see Jesus,
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we'll sing and
shout the victory.
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For when we all get to heaven,
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what a day of
rejoicing that will be.
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When we all see Jesus,
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we'll sing and
shout, we'll sing and shout,
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we'll sing and
shout the victory.
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Amen.
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When we all get to heaven we'll
sing and shout the victory.
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Amen?
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And when we do, it'll
be by the grace of Jesus.
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Thank you, Elder
Murray, for that beautiful song.
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And for the introduction.
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You did have it right.
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James and Ellen White are my
great great great grandparents.
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And I like to say it that
way because they're really the
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great ones, not me.
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I'm just your average Joe.
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And they're only great because
God used them in a great way.
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As He will with any of us when
we surrender our lives to Him.
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Amen?
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I'm privileged to be
here with you tonight,
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and looking forward to sharing
a message that the Lord has used
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to challenge me
to transform my life.
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And every time that I study
it, re-study it, and share it,
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He continues to
speak to my own heart.
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So I pray that as we examine
Jesus' message to the church
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of Laodicea this week together,
that you also will discover the
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good news in this
gospel message of Jesus' letter
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to the church of Laodicea.
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Before we begin together,
I just want to invite you
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wherever you are to bow
your heads as we ask the Lord's
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presence once again in prayer.
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Our Father in
heaven, Lord we thank You
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that You are here in our midst.
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We praise You
for Your Holy Spirit.
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We praise You for the ways
that You work in our lives.
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And Lord, thank You
for the power of Your Word.
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We pray that You would
speak to each of us tonight
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the message that You
know each of us need.
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Send Your Spirit to not only
help us understand Your Word,
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but to have the wisdom
to apply it to our lives.
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We thank You, in
Jesus' precious name, amen.
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It was the first century, under
the power of the Holy Spirit,
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God had explosively
grown the New Testament church,
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that fledgling movement,
into an unstoppable movement
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for His glory.
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Feeling threatened by
this movement, the Roman
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Emperor
Domitian issued a decree.
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The year was 95 AD.
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And Domitian, feeling threatened
by the talk of a king that was
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going to return, issued a
decree that no one could worship
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anyone but
himself, or else be killed.
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What were the
Christians going to do?
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They had been called by God.
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They had been chosen.
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But in this tough situation,
would they remain faithful?
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This was the question.
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Jesus knew that His
people needed His help.
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He knew that His followers
needed a message from on high.
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And Jesus sent them just the
encouragement that they needed.
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A message that
confirmed and affirmed that He,
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as the King of kings, was
seated on His heavenly throne
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and that they need not
fear this pompous pagan monarch,
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even in the face of death.
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Through the last living apostle,
John, Jesus sent a message
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to His people.
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John the revelator, that
walked and talked with Jesus,
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was the last living apostle.
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He had miraculously
had his life spared by God
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as he had been thrown
in a pot of boiling oil.
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But when Domitian
couldn't kill him that way,
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he exiled him to
the island of Patmos.
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Probably to work in the mines
until he would die of old age.
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But from the lonely isle
of Patmos, God sent a message
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to His people that
would not only bring comfort,
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encouragement, and hope
then in the first century,
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but that would be
a prophetic outline
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of the history of
humanity down through time
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until Jesus comes
again in the clouds of glory.
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We know it today as
the book of Revelation.
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The book of Revelation.
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And here is where we
find our passage that we'll be
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studying together for our series
called, Chosen and Faithful.
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And it is Jesus' message
to the church of Laodicea.
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Now, Revelation
is a book of sevens.
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In Revelation, we find
the seven last plagues,
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we find the seven
trumpets, the seven seals.
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John saw Jesus in vision
symbolized by a lamb that
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had seven horns and seven eyes.
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But before any of these
things, the first mention of the
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number seven in the book
of Revelation is in verse 4
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where John is writing
to the seven churches.
00:14:18.35\00:14:21.49
And this is where we
find our message tonight
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and for our series together.
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These letters were
written by John to the local
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literal churches of Asia
Minor, seven of the many local
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literal churches there.
00:14:35.34\00:14:36.67
But this message, or
these messages rather,
00:14:36.77\00:14:39.74
are written to God's
church down through time.
00:14:40.18\00:14:43.51
You see, each church is
representative of a time period
00:14:43.78\00:14:47.18
of church
history down through time
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until Jesus would come
back in the clouds of glory.
00:14:50.35\00:14:53.56
And by the way, the Seventh-day
Adventist Church is not
00:14:53.86\00:14:56.22
the first church to
believe and teach this.
00:14:56.26\00:14:59.83
Most of the Protestant reformers
believed that the churches
00:14:59.86\00:15:03.20
were representative of seven
time periods of church history.
00:15:03.23\00:15:07.90
In fact, it dates back to
an Italian theologian named,
00:15:08.00\00:15:11.47
Joachim Of Fiore,
back in the 12th century.
00:15:11.51\00:15:14.04
He's the first one who we have
record of believing and teaching
00:15:14.08\00:15:17.28
that the seven churches
were representative of seven
00:15:17.31\00:15:20.85
time periods of church history.
00:15:20.88\00:15:23.08
So friends, it makes
sense that if the seven churches
00:15:23.89\00:15:27.76
of Revelation symbolize seven
time periods of church history,
00:15:27.79\00:15:31.56
that the last church on the
list would be representative
00:15:31.93\00:15:35.66
of God's last day people.
00:15:35.70\00:15:37.57
The church at the end
of the list is symbolic of
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God's church at the end of time.
00:15:41.27\00:15:43.81
And this is our
focus for our series.
00:15:44.24\00:15:47.01
God's message to
the church of Laodicea.
00:15:47.28\00:15:50.68
Which is symbolic
of our church today,
00:15:50.81\00:15:54.72
God's last day people.
00:15:54.75\00:15:56.52
I invite you to turn
in your Bibles with me.
00:15:57.65\00:15:59.19
And I hope you
brought them with you.
00:15:59.22\00:16:00.62
If you're joining us from
home, we want to invite you
00:16:00.66\00:16:02.62
to go and grab your
Bible off the shelf.
00:16:02.66\00:16:04.63
You're going to be using it.
00:16:04.66\00:16:05.99
Some of our verses
will appear on the screen
00:16:06.23\00:16:08.80
for the sake of time.
00:16:08.83\00:16:10.17
But go ahead
and grab your Bible.
00:16:10.20\00:16:11.83
Our verse is in
Revelation chapter 3.
00:16:12.33\00:16:15.60
Revelation chapter 3.
00:16:16.27\00:16:17.87
And turn with me in
your Bibles to verse 14.
00:16:17.91\00:16:20.98
Revelation 3 verse 14.
00:16:21.74\00:16:24.01
I'll be reading from
the New King James Version.
00:16:24.05\00:16:26.11
Jesus said...
00:16:27.18\00:16:28.52
Now I want to point out
two things in this verse.
00:16:39.66\00:16:42.26
It's very easy to glaze
over very important details
00:16:42.30\00:16:46.84
that God wants to
communicate to us in the Bible.
00:16:46.87\00:16:49.04
Notice with me
the word, "Beginning."
00:16:49.34\00:16:52.41
"These things says the Amen,
00:16:52.44\00:16:54.34
the Faithful and True
Witness," that is Jesus,
00:16:54.38\00:16:56.78
"the Beginning of
the creation of God."
00:16:56.98\00:16:59.55
Now the word that is
translated, "Beginning," here
00:16:59.58\00:17:02.42
in the New King James
and most other versions,
00:17:02.45\00:17:04.92
is the Greek word, "arche."
00:17:04.95\00:17:07.09
Now this word does not
only have the ability to mean,
00:17:07.32\00:17:10.83
"the first," or, "beginning,"
but it can also mean,
00:17:10.86\00:17:14.56
"the active cause,"
or, "the originator."
00:17:14.60\00:17:17.63
So rather than the Bible saying
here that Jesus is the beginning
00:17:17.97\00:17:21.60
of the creation of
God, Jesus is the Beginner
00:17:21.64\00:17:24.74
of the creation of God.
00:17:24.77\00:17:26.54
And this is in line
with the Bible's picture.
00:17:26.71\00:17:28.98
In Colossians 1 verse
16 and John 1 verse 3,
00:17:29.28\00:17:32.85
the Bible makes it very clear
that everything that has been
00:17:32.88\00:17:35.75
created was created by Christ.
00:17:35.78\00:17:38.95
Christ is our Creator.
00:17:39.89\00:17:42.59
Now why would Jesus
communicate this here?
00:17:43.06\00:17:45.59
Why would He specify
that He's the Creator
00:17:45.86\00:17:49.06
in this message to
the church of Laodicea?
00:17:49.10\00:17:51.57
Now I want to share something
very interesting with you,
00:17:51.60\00:17:54.14
and stay with me here.
00:17:54.17\00:17:55.64
Did you know that the
precursor to Darwin's,
00:17:56.34\00:17:59.31
Origin of the Species,
was written in the year 1844?
00:17:59.34\00:18:03.75
The precursor to
Darwin's, Origin of the Species,
00:18:04.61\00:18:06.98
was written then.
00:18:07.02\00:18:08.35
The very year that the
Bible's longest time prophecy,
00:18:08.38\00:18:11.69
the 2300 day
prophecy, came to an end
00:18:11.72\00:18:15.02
and the time
period of Laodicea began.
00:18:15.22\00:18:17.79
In other words, God knew
that His people in the last days
00:18:18.19\00:18:22.36
would be surrounded by
supposedly scientific theories
00:18:22.40\00:18:25.97
that were striking at the
heart of the biblical truth
00:18:26.00\00:18:29.00
that God is the Creator.
00:18:29.04\00:18:31.14
And Jesus, in this
message to His last day people,
00:18:31.54\00:18:34.88
wanted them to know
that He was the Beginner
00:18:35.14\00:18:38.88
of the creation of God.
00:18:38.91\00:18:40.95
Jesus was the Beginner before
the beginning began to begin.
00:18:41.08\00:18:44.82
He wanted His people to
know that He made the earth
00:18:45.15\00:18:48.76
and everything on
it, that He breathed
00:18:48.79\00:18:51.59
the breath of life into man.
00:18:51.63\00:18:53.60
That He did all this in
six literal 24 hour days.
00:18:53.63\00:18:58.00
And that He keeps
every living thing living.
00:18:58.03\00:19:01.50
Jesus is our Creator;
00:19:02.54\00:19:06.01
the Beginner of
the creation of God.
00:19:06.51\00:19:09.94
And this message comes from Him.
00:19:10.25\00:19:13.21
The same one that
created you and created me.
00:19:13.82\00:19:17.52
He has a plan for our life.
00:19:18.02\00:19:20.06
He wants to re-create
us, to form us in His image,
00:19:20.09\00:19:24.46
to breathe the breath
of life into us again.
00:19:24.49\00:19:27.96
He wants to fill the
darkness of our minds
00:19:28.43\00:19:30.53
with the light of life.
00:19:30.57\00:19:32.60
Friends, this message is
a message from the Creator.
00:19:33.64\00:19:37.21
Now the second thing, I want us
to go back to verse 14 together.
00:19:37.61\00:19:41.31
Verse 14...
00:19:41.71\00:19:43.31
Revelation 3 verse 14.
00:19:48.88\00:19:50.59
The angel of the
church of the Laodiceans.
00:19:50.62\00:19:54.19
Now pop quiz.
00:19:54.82\00:19:56.93
What does the
name, Laodicea, mean?
00:19:57.33\00:20:00.36
No, it doesn't mean lukewarm.
00:20:01.63\00:20:03.53
Lukewarm is the description,
but not the definition.
00:20:03.57\00:20:06.97
The meaning of the
name, Laodicea, is actually,
00:20:07.47\00:20:10.97
"people of the judgment,"
or, "a people judged."
00:20:11.07\00:20:15.11
This is what the name,
Laodicea, actually means.
00:20:15.31\00:20:18.61
Now God knew that this
message would specifically
00:20:19.21\00:20:23.02
be for His people
living during the time of the
00:20:23.05\00:20:25.72
investigative judgment,
or His pre-advent judgment.
00:20:25.75\00:20:29.09
So here in Revelation 3 verse 14
we have a message, number one,
00:20:29.69\00:20:35.10
to the people living in
the time of the judgment;
00:20:35.30\00:20:37.47
and number two, a message
that is from the Creator.
00:20:37.50\00:20:41.30
Question, is there any
other place that comes to mind
00:20:41.74\00:20:45.74
in the book of Revelation
where God gave a message
00:20:45.77\00:20:52.31
about a time of
judgment, and He made clear that
00:20:52.35\00:20:55.12
He is the Creator?
00:20:55.15\00:20:56.48
That's right,
Revelation chapter 14.
00:20:57.49\00:21:00.02
The three angels' message.
00:21:00.06\00:21:01.79
Revelation 14, John
sees "an angel flying in the
00:21:01.99\00:21:05.33
midst of heaven with
the everlasting gospel
00:21:05.36\00:21:07.73
to preach unto them
that dwell on the earth,
00:21:07.76\00:21:09.86
and to every nation,
kindred, and tongue, and people,
00:21:09.90\00:21:12.60
saying with a loud voice,
'Fear God and give glory to Him,
00:21:12.63\00:21:16.64
for the hour of
His judgment has come;
00:21:16.67\00:21:19.27
and worship Him who made'"
or created, "heaven and earth,
00:21:19.57\00:21:24.75
the seas, and the
fountains of living water."
00:21:24.78\00:21:27.15
For the three angels' message
is a message to the people
00:21:27.55\00:21:31.72
in the time of the judgment,
00:21:31.75\00:21:33.29
the judgment hour
of earth's history,
00:21:33.62\00:21:35.16
and it's a message
from God as the Creator.
00:21:35.19\00:21:37.99
In other words, the three
angels' message of Revelation 14
00:21:38.19\00:21:41.90
and the Laodicean
message of Revelation 3
00:21:41.93\00:21:44.50
are intimately connected.
00:21:44.53\00:21:46.40
Even more than this, they're
actually the same message
00:21:46.70\00:21:50.47
when you boil it
down to the core.
00:21:50.51\00:21:52.41
The message in Revelation 3
is Jesus' message to His church.
00:21:52.97\00:21:59.81
In Revelation 14,
the three angels' message
00:22:00.08\00:22:02.78
is Jesus' message to
the world to be preached
00:22:02.98\00:22:05.65
through His church.
00:22:05.69\00:22:07.06
One is to wake up the world,
00:22:08.26\00:22:09.96
and the other is
to wake up His people.
00:22:10.16\00:22:12.66
But at their core,
they are the same message.
00:22:12.93\00:22:16.30
And it can be
encapsulated in the phrase,
00:22:16.50\00:22:19.13
"righteousness by faith."
00:22:19.17\00:22:21.64
I wish we had time to
unpack this some more tonight,
00:22:22.54\00:22:25.61
but you know, we'll be
building on it some more
00:22:25.91\00:22:28.54
in our fifth and final message
together this Sabbath afternoon.
00:22:28.58\00:22:32.11
The message is called, Overcome.
00:22:32.21\00:22:34.62
And you're not
going to want to miss it.
00:22:34.65\00:22:36.18
Friends, God will
use the Laodicean message
00:22:37.19\00:22:40.36
to revive His people.
00:22:40.39\00:22:42.12
The Laodicean
message is a revival message.
00:22:42.46\00:22:45.06
And if something
is a revival message,
00:22:45.29\00:22:47.16
I want to know about it.
00:22:47.20\00:22:48.53
How about you? Amen.
00:22:48.56\00:22:50.17
Why don't we take a
look at it together.
00:22:50.20\00:22:51.53
Revelation 3
starting in verse 14.
00:22:51.57\00:22:55.97
Half way through
verse 14 we'll begin.
00:22:56.91\00:22:58.94
As we saw, "...Beginner..."
00:23:04.95\00:23:06.35
As another version says,
"I discipline and correct."
00:23:48.49\00:23:51.59
Now in these nine
verses there is so much.
00:24:21.09\00:24:24.29
And I'm excited that
we have a couple of days
00:24:24.49\00:24:26.76
to dive into this message
and discover some powerful and
00:24:27.00\00:24:30.27
new things together therein.
00:24:30.30\00:24:31.93
Now you must be
wondering, why Laodicea?
00:24:32.77\00:24:36.30
God could have chosen
any of the churches in
00:24:36.81\00:24:39.74
Asia Minor to represent
His people in the last days.
00:24:39.77\00:24:43.65
So what is it about this city
that God drew parallels from
00:24:43.75\00:24:49.38
for His people
at the end of time?
00:24:49.42\00:24:52.09
Well I'm glad you asked.
00:24:52.52\00:24:53.92
The city of Laodicea was just 50
miles southeast of Philadelphia.
00:24:54.52\00:25:01.16
By the time of Jesus'
birth, Laodicea had about
00:25:01.60\00:25:04.03
50,000 inhabitants.
00:25:04.07\00:25:05.83
But at the height of its glory,
so to speak, or the height of
00:25:06.03\00:25:09.90
its growth, Laodicea
topped out at 150,000 people.
00:25:09.94\00:25:14.78
It was no small city.
00:25:14.98\00:25:16.98
Interestingly
enough, the Seleucid king,
00:25:17.61\00:25:20.52
Antiochus the Great,
moved over 2000 families
00:25:20.55\00:25:24.52
to inhabit Laodicea to
actually grow the city.
00:25:24.55\00:25:27.89
And fascinatingly
enough, Laodicea was primarily
00:25:28.22\00:25:32.03
populated with Jews and
Syrians who had been called
00:25:32.06\00:25:35.63
out of the land of Babylon to
move to Laodicea and live there.
00:25:35.66\00:25:40.34
Another striking parallel
for God's last day people
00:25:40.54\00:25:44.11
who have been called
out of spiritual Babylon.
00:25:44.14\00:25:46.68
Laodicea was
seated on a mountain range
00:25:47.91\00:25:50.35
on the south side of a valley.
00:25:50.38\00:25:52.85
The Lycus River
flowed through this valley.
00:25:53.18\00:25:55.92
And on the far north were
mountains actually reaching
00:25:56.18\00:25:59.99
heights of 8000 to 9000 feet.
00:26:00.02\00:26:02.62
Now I grew up
in the Napa Valley.
00:26:03.02\00:26:05.76
And the Napa Valley is
geographically situated
00:26:05.79\00:26:08.73
in a similar way to this valley,
although it's much smaller
00:26:08.76\00:26:12.13
than this one is.
00:26:12.17\00:26:13.50
Now on the north
side of the valley was
00:26:13.87\00:26:17.01
the city of Hierapolis.
00:26:17.04\00:26:19.54
Hierapolis is there
today in western Turkey,
00:26:20.21\00:26:22.61
and today they
call it, Pamukkale.
00:26:22.64\00:26:26.21
And it literally
means, cotton castle.
00:26:26.65\00:26:29.92
And you can see why if
you see pictures of it today,
00:26:30.12\00:26:34.09
or if you go there
today, because the city
00:26:34.12\00:26:36.73
looks like that, essentially.
00:26:36.76\00:26:38.66
It looks like a cotton castle.
00:26:38.69\00:26:41.46
The water there actually
had calcium carbonate in it.
00:26:41.90\00:26:46.87
And this calcium
carbonate, as it would flow down
00:26:47.20\00:26:50.21
the mountain side, would create
these beautiful formations
00:26:50.31\00:26:53.48
like the ones you see here.
00:26:53.51\00:26:54.94
The water also had
medicinal properties.
00:26:55.91\00:26:58.35
And besides being a site
for worship, people would
00:26:58.51\00:27:02.35
come there for the medicinal
properties in the water
00:27:02.55\00:27:04.99
to drink it, as well as
to soak in the naturally
00:27:05.02\00:27:08.92
95 degree Jacuzzis.
00:27:08.96\00:27:11.69
So people would
come from all over.
00:27:12.13\00:27:14.10
And it's still a
tourist attraction today.
00:27:14.13\00:27:16.26
People actually
still swim in those waters.
00:27:16.46\00:27:20.10
And they're still
the same temperature.
00:27:20.37\00:27:22.20
They range up to 100 degrees.
00:27:22.24\00:27:24.41
It's there in western Turkey.
00:27:25.01\00:27:26.64
So Hierapolis was on the
north side of this valley.
00:27:27.28\00:27:30.28
On the south side,
the same side as Laodicea,
00:27:30.75\00:27:33.62
but 12 miles southeast of
it, was the city of Colosse.
00:27:33.65\00:27:38.12
Now Colosse is familiar
to us because of the book of
00:27:38.49\00:27:41.52
Colossians, which Paul wrote
for the believers in Colosse.
00:27:41.56\00:27:45.53
Interestingly
enough, Colossians 4 verse 13
00:27:45.56\00:27:48.50
mentions that Paul
wanted the Christians in Colosse
00:27:48.53\00:27:52.43
to share this message with
the Christians in Hierapolis
00:27:52.47\00:27:55.90
and Laodicea.
00:27:55.94\00:27:57.27
Now unlike
Hierapolis further up north,
00:27:58.01\00:28:00.91
the water in
Colosse was icy cold.
00:28:01.14\00:28:05.31
Now Laodicea had a problem.
00:28:06.08\00:28:08.45
And it was a huge problem.
00:28:08.78\00:28:11.32
Laodicea's problem was
that they had no water.
00:28:11.69\00:28:14.52
No water source of its own.
00:28:14.86\00:28:16.73
No well, no spring, no
creeks, no rivers, nothing.
00:28:17.19\00:28:22.23
So being the rich city that
it was, they decided to build
00:28:23.06\00:28:26.70
an aqueduct to bring
water from Hierapolis
00:28:26.74\00:28:30.51
down to the city of Laodicea.
00:28:30.61\00:28:33.41
And this was a huge feat.
00:28:33.78\00:28:35.94
If you go there
today, to Laodicea there
00:28:36.14\00:28:38.91
in western Turkey, it's in
the Denizli province in Turkey.
00:28:38.95\00:28:42.45
And if you go there today,
you can actually see pictures
00:28:42.68\00:28:45.32
of these water pipes that
they have unearthed and dug up.
00:28:45.55\00:28:50.46
I haven't had the
chance to go there,
00:28:50.66\00:28:52.73
but some friends of
mine from Andrews University
00:28:52.76\00:28:54.93
actually went with a
group from Andrews University.
00:28:54.96\00:28:58.40
You can see this aqueduct.
00:28:58.43\00:29:00.47
Laodicea happens to be one
of the most excavated sites
00:29:00.50\00:29:05.34
out of any of the seven churches
in any of the areas in Turkey.
00:29:05.44\00:29:09.24
So these water pipes
you can still see today
00:29:09.68\00:29:12.31
if you're to go there.
00:29:12.41\00:29:13.95
And this was a very, very
expensive thing for them to do.
00:29:14.32\00:29:17.25
Now it sounds like a
great idea, doesn't it?
00:29:17.89\00:29:22.86
"Why don't we just build
an aqueduct and pipe in the
00:29:23.59\00:29:26.23
hot water from Hierapolis
and we'll be good to go,"
00:29:26.26\00:29:29.90
they must have thought.
00:29:29.93\00:29:31.27
It may have been good in
theory, but it proved to be
00:29:32.10\00:29:36.10
a terrible failure.
00:29:36.14\00:29:37.64
Because if anyone went
to Colosse to get cold water
00:29:38.01\00:29:42.04
from there, and by the time
the hot waters from Hierapolis
00:29:42.08\00:29:46.01
made their way down to Laodicea,
the hot water from Hierapolis
00:29:46.05\00:29:50.45
had cooled down and
the cold waters of Colosse
00:29:50.59\00:29:54.06
being carried back would heat
up in the Middle Eastern sun.
00:29:54.16\00:29:57.19
So Laodicea was
left with lukewarm water
00:29:57.66\00:30:00.70
from both places.
00:30:00.73\00:30:02.46
Now this may not sound
like a terrible thing to us,
00:30:02.96\00:30:07.24
but imagine with me that
we had no cold or hot water.
00:30:07.27\00:30:15.58
Imagine with me that
you're on a long walk.
00:30:15.94\00:30:18.95
And as you're walking, you
decide to jog a little bit.
00:30:19.25\00:30:23.15
Get a little more exercise.
00:30:23.18\00:30:24.62
And as the sun is
beating down on you,
00:30:25.05\00:30:27.09
you start to get thirsty.
00:30:27.12\00:30:28.79
You become dehydrated.
00:30:28.82\00:30:30.16
And as you're running
by a park, you see it;
00:30:30.23\00:30:33.80
your eyes land upon relief.
00:30:33.83\00:30:36.73
A nice looking
drinking fountain.
00:30:37.13\00:30:39.17
So you walk over to
the drinking fountain
00:30:39.43\00:30:41.24
and you wipe the sweat
from your forehead as you
00:30:41.27\00:30:43.94
bend down to get a drink.
00:30:43.97\00:30:45.71
You push the button, and
rather than cold water to
00:30:46.01\00:30:50.18
quench your thirst, your
mouth is filled with lukewarm,
00:30:50.21\00:30:54.85
tepid... yuck.
00:30:54.88\00:30:56.89
Has that
happened to anybody else?
00:30:57.35\00:30:58.82
There are few feelings
that are more disappointing
00:30:59.39\00:31:05.03
when it comes to
drinking water than that.
00:31:05.06\00:31:07.80
Laodicea had no cold
ponds, no pool to swim in
00:31:08.26\00:31:12.67
to cool off from
the summer's heat.
00:31:12.70\00:31:15.34
How frustrating would it
be if we didn't have cold
00:31:15.97\00:31:19.07
or hot water?
00:31:19.11\00:31:20.48
Jesus decided to speak
to the Laodicean church
00:31:21.34\00:31:24.85
in a way that they
would perfectly understand.
00:31:25.01\00:31:28.65
Let's read His words in
chapter 3 verses 15 and 16.
00:31:28.82\00:31:34.02
Revelation 3 verses 15 and 16.
00:31:34.62\00:31:37.93
Jesus says...
00:31:38.23\00:31:39.59
There wasn't a
single person in Laodicea
00:31:53.31\00:31:56.14
who hadn't been
disappointed by the nauseatingly
00:31:56.24\00:32:00.42
lukewarm water that was there.
00:32:00.45\00:32:02.25
And Jesus speaks to us in
a language we can understand.
00:32:02.38\00:32:06.55
You know, when He raised
the girl in Luke chapter 8
00:32:06.82\00:32:09.02
from the dead, He
said, "Talitha, cumi."
00:32:09.06\00:32:11.69
He spoke to her in Aramaic,
the language of her home.
00:32:11.73\00:32:14.36
And here, Jesus was speaking
to the Laodiceans in a language
00:32:14.63\00:32:18.00
to clear to be misunderstood.
00:32:18.10\00:32:20.37
He was saying, "You have not
made a solid decision for Me."
00:32:20.84\00:32:25.54
You are riding the
fence, so to speak.
00:32:25.57\00:32:28.84
Now the question comes,
there are a couple of questions.
00:32:29.71\00:32:32.25
First of all, what does it
mean to be spiritually hot?
00:32:32.28\00:32:36.89
To be spiritually hot
means to be passionately
00:32:37.85\00:32:43.02
sharing the gospel with others.
00:32:43.06\00:32:44.89
It means to be
intensely committed,
00:32:44.93\00:32:47.03
full of burning zeal.
00:32:47.06\00:32:48.90
Being consumed for a
passion to share the gospel
00:32:49.10\00:32:51.77
that has
transformed our own lives
00:32:51.80\00:32:53.67
with those whose
lives need transformation.
00:32:53.70\00:32:56.57
To be spiritually hot
means to be on fire for Jesus.
00:32:57.34\00:33:01.38
This is what it means
to be spiritually hot.
00:33:01.84\00:33:04.38
To be completely
sold out for Christ.
00:33:04.41\00:33:07.12
For Him to be your all in all.
00:33:07.22\00:33:09.62
Now what does it mean
to be spiritually cold?
00:33:10.19\00:33:14.59
Now what does it mean
to be spiritually cold?
00:33:15.19\00:33:16.79
One of my favorite things to do
is to go backpacking or camping.
00:33:17.39\00:33:21.36
Last summer I had the
chance to go backpacking
00:33:21.73\00:33:24.43
in Sequoia National Park
with some good friends of mine.
00:33:24.47\00:33:26.97
It was incredible.
00:33:27.24\00:33:28.94
And I want to share some
pictures with you from that.
00:33:28.97\00:33:32.57
Incredibly gorgeous.
00:33:32.87\00:33:34.21
We camped out at Lake Hamilton,
which is in the next picture.
00:33:34.24\00:33:37.61
That was at 9000
feet of elevation.
00:33:37.88\00:33:40.55
And the mountain peaks around it
rise to 12,000 and 13,000 feet.
00:33:40.72\00:33:44.75
Incredible.
00:33:45.15\00:33:46.49
Now if you've ever
been camping or backpacking,
00:33:46.65\00:33:48.99
you know that it just
isn't camping without a fire.
00:33:49.26\00:33:54.16
Friends, it's simple.
00:33:55.10\00:33:56.43
To be spiritually cold is
like being distant from the
00:33:56.46\00:34:00.24
fire of God's love.
00:34:00.27\00:34:02.07
Recognizing that you lack
warmth, that you need warmth,
00:34:02.10\00:34:05.47
but even lacking the strength
to make your way to that fire.
00:34:05.51\00:34:09.08
To be spiritually cold
means to be distant from God.
00:34:09.58\00:34:16.28
It means to be worldly.
00:34:16.48\00:34:18.25
To be caught up in the
passing pleasures of this world.
00:34:18.45\00:34:21.32
Matthew 24 verse 12 actually
gives us insight into this.
00:34:22.42\00:34:25.79
Jesus speaking to His disciples
about the last days said that...
00:34:25.83\00:34:29.90
So Jesus reflected
this language very clearly.
00:34:35.14\00:34:38.57
Now Jesus said something
very interesting about those
00:34:38.61\00:34:41.51
that are spiritually cold.
00:34:41.54\00:34:43.14
And I want you to
put it on a mental shelf
00:34:43.18\00:34:44.75
with me in your mind.
00:34:44.78\00:34:46.11
We're going to come back
to it in just a little bit.
00:34:46.15\00:34:48.15
Now what does it
mean to be lukewarm?
00:34:50.02\00:34:53.15
What did it mean to be lukewarm?
00:34:53.59\00:34:55.69
You know, in the
English language today
00:34:55.72\00:34:57.79
we still use the
word, "lukewarm," to signify
00:34:57.83\00:35:00.56
a half-hearted state of being.
00:35:00.60\00:35:02.80
Merriam Webster
dictionary, among other things,
00:35:03.16\00:35:05.10
defines lukewarm
as unenthusiastic,
00:35:05.13\00:35:08.40
lacking energy and excitement.
00:35:08.44\00:35:11.07
So it's still
reflected in our language today.
00:35:11.11\00:35:13.48
Lukewarm Christians are
those who want the best of
00:35:14.34\00:35:16.75
both worlds, and therefore
get the best of neither.
00:35:16.78\00:35:20.58
They're not willing to give up
their claim to heavenly things,
00:35:21.65\00:35:24.72
but they're not willing to
give up the things of this earth
00:35:24.82\00:35:27.99
and the passing pleasures
that the world offers us either.
00:35:28.02\00:35:31.59
The lukewarm
Christian deceives both parties.
00:35:33.33\00:35:36.20
He is neither a good
worldling, nor a good Christian.
00:35:36.40\00:35:40.14
Satan uses him to do a
work that no one else can do.
00:35:40.47\00:35:44.47
You know, it could be
said of Laodicean Christians
00:35:45.47\00:35:49.81
that they've got plenty of
talk, but they're short when it
00:35:50.01\00:35:53.38
comes to their Christian walk.
00:35:53.42\00:35:55.02
I love how the
Seventh-day Adventist
00:35:55.42\00:35:57.35
Bible Commentary put it.
00:35:57.39\00:35:59.05
It says...
00:35:59.59\00:36:00.92
Now friends, we should learn
to be content with what we have,
00:36:09.76\00:36:13.03
but never be
content with what we are.
00:36:13.20\00:36:15.50
Amen?
00:36:15.54\00:36:16.87
We should constantly be seeking
a deeper walk with Christ.
00:36:16.91\00:36:20.51
Praying and studying
our Bibles so that we can
00:36:20.54\00:36:22.91
rise to higher heights
and deeper depths with Him.
00:36:22.94\00:36:26.31
Peter, in His last letter
to the Christians that he was
00:36:26.92\00:36:30.15
writing to, said, "But grow
in grace and in the knowledge
00:36:30.19\00:36:34.19
of the Lord Jesus Christ."
00:36:34.22\00:36:36.16
There was a woman who
applied for a job at the
00:36:37.63\00:36:39.89
school that she was teaching at.
00:36:39.93\00:36:41.43
She had been
teaching there for 20 years
00:36:42.00\00:36:44.27
and she was sure that
she would get the position.
00:36:44.30\00:36:46.33
But word came in that a
teacher got the job who had been
00:36:46.97\00:36:51.07
teaching for just four years.
00:36:51.11\00:36:53.41
She was furious.
00:36:53.91\00:36:55.24
She stormed into the
principles office and she said,
00:36:55.28\00:36:58.21
"How is it that..."
00:36:58.95\00:37:00.28
And he said,
"Please have a seat."
00:37:00.32\00:37:01.65
And she said, "No, no,
no, no. I need an answer now."
00:37:01.68\00:37:03.18
And he said, "Okay."
00:37:03.89\00:37:05.22
And she said, "How is it that
you didn't give me this job?
00:37:05.45\00:37:08.46
I've been
teaching here for 20 years.
00:37:08.49\00:37:10.86
And you gave it to this
teacher who has only been
00:37:10.89\00:37:12.49
teaching for four."
00:37:12.53\00:37:13.86
The principle calmly
looked at her and said,
00:37:15.10\00:37:18.00
"This teacher has
four years of experience.
00:37:18.50\00:37:22.14
You have one year of
experience repeated 19 times."
00:37:22.70\00:37:27.48
Friends, many of us
are like this woman.
00:37:28.28\00:37:31.41
Many of us are like
this teacher who have had
00:37:31.45\00:37:36.45
one year of
experience with Christ.
00:37:36.48\00:37:38.65
Back a long time ago
we gave our lives to Him.
00:37:39.05\00:37:41.66
We've been in the church
for 10, 20, 40 plus years,
00:37:41.69\00:37:45.86
but we're living
off of old testimonies.
00:37:46.03\00:37:48.50
Friends, don't get me wrong.
00:37:48.93\00:37:50.27
We should look back to
the things God has done
00:37:50.30\00:37:52.13
in our lives, the
testimonies that have led us
00:37:52.17\00:37:54.57
along the way what God has done.
00:37:54.60\00:37:56.24
And we should praise God
for how He's led in our past.
00:37:56.27\00:37:58.94
But it should not end there.
00:37:58.97\00:38:00.74
It needs to continue.
00:38:00.88\00:38:02.44
And God wants to be
doing new things in our lives.
00:38:02.64\00:38:05.81
Friends, He wants us to be
Christians who are completely
00:38:06.48\00:38:10.39
sold out for Him.
00:38:10.85\00:38:12.45
But in truth, in
reality, we are lukewarm.
00:38:13.29\00:38:16.46
We're like this teacher
looking at our old experiences
00:38:16.99\00:38:20.83
and living off of those.
00:38:20.86\00:38:22.46
We, as God's
people, are lukewarm.
00:38:22.50\00:38:25.47
We're lukewarm
when we search Google
00:38:25.73\00:38:27.64
more than we search our Bible.
00:38:27.67\00:38:29.34
We're lukewarm when
we count down the hours
00:38:29.64\00:38:31.97
till the Sabbath is over
so we can do our own thing.
00:38:32.01\00:38:34.54
We're lukewarm when we
spend more time on our hair
00:38:34.98\00:38:38.95
than we do in prayer.
00:38:38.98\00:38:40.92
When we put our breakfast before
our Bibles, we are lukewarm.
00:38:41.85\00:38:46.12
And Jesus says,
"You're making Me sick."
00:38:47.09\00:38:50.53
Friends, I don't know about you,
but I want to be nothing but
00:38:51.66\00:38:54.96
refreshing to
my Lord and Savior.
00:38:55.00\00:38:57.33
I want God to be able
to look down at me and say,
00:38:57.80\00:39:00.00
"That's My boy. That's My boy.
00:39:00.20\00:39:02.34
He is giving His
everything for Me.
00:39:02.37\00:39:04.84
He's giving his all."
00:39:04.87\00:39:06.54
I want to be on fire
for Jesus. How about you?
00:39:06.88\00:39:09.68
Amen.
00:39:10.05\00:39:11.38
Now I asked you to mentally
shelf something in your mind,
00:39:11.41\00:39:13.82
and said that
we'd come back to it.
00:39:13.85\00:39:15.45
If being hot means
being spiritually healthy,
00:39:16.18\00:39:19.99
and being cold means
being distant from God,
00:39:20.16\00:39:23.43
then why would God say, "I would
that you were hot or cold."
00:39:23.73\00:39:27.26
Why wouldn't He just say,
"I wish that you were hot."
00:39:28.06\00:39:30.80
Would God ever want
someone to be distant from Him?
00:39:31.63\00:39:34.44
Now this is a powerful
point. Don't miss this.
00:39:34.87\00:39:37.41
It's not that God wants
anyone to be distant from Him.
00:39:38.17\00:39:41.74
The Bible says in 1
Peter 3 verse 9 that He wants
00:39:41.78\00:39:44.21
all to come to repentance.
00:39:44.25\00:39:45.91
That is God's desire.
00:39:45.95\00:39:47.28
But God is saying that He would
rather us be cold than lukewarm.
00:39:47.62\00:39:51.65
He's saying that it's
safer to be cold than lukewarm.
00:39:52.25\00:39:55.49
Now stay with me here. Follow.
00:39:55.69\00:39:57.16
Being distant from God
and being cut off from Him
00:39:57.96\00:40:02.03
is actually safer than when
we call ourselves a Christian
00:40:02.33\00:40:06.70
and we feel like we're
okay when we're really not.
00:40:06.74\00:40:10.27
Friends, to be partly saved
means to be completely lost.
00:40:12.34\00:40:16.24
Jesus says, "Give
Me all or nothing."
00:40:16.34\00:40:19.11
He wants us to give Him our all.
00:40:19.61\00:40:21.48
And friends, it's
safer for someone to be
00:40:21.52\00:40:23.85
distant from God,
because at least like the person
00:40:23.89\00:40:26.35
far from the fire, they
recognize their lack of warmth.
00:40:26.39\00:40:29.46
They recognize
their need for God.
00:40:29.49\00:40:31.56
And God can place a desire
in them to come close to Him.
00:40:32.46\00:40:36.77
A recognition of
their need of Jesus.
00:40:37.57\00:40:40.20
Now friends, from the stranger
in the street to the preacher
00:40:40.57\00:40:43.17
in the pulpit,
we all need Jesus.
00:40:43.20\00:40:45.81
I'm so glad that He
promises us in John 6 verse 37,
00:40:46.21\00:40:49.84
"Him who comes to Me, I
will by no means cast out."
00:40:50.71\00:40:54.78
Praise the Lord for that. Amen?
00:40:55.28\00:40:57.05
Our Savior is ready and willing
with open arms to receive us.
00:40:57.25\00:41:01.19
Now we've spoken at
length about this major problem,
00:41:01.62\00:41:04.76
but being lukewarm is not
Laodicea's greatest dilemma.
00:41:05.29\00:41:08.96
The news gets worse.
00:41:09.70\00:41:11.47
Let's look at verse 17 together.
00:41:11.67\00:41:13.50
Revelation 3 verse 17.
00:41:13.80\00:41:15.40
Now the city of
Laodicea was filthy rich.
00:41:26.61\00:41:29.68
They were the Wall
Street of the Middle East.
00:41:29.72\00:41:32.19
They were actually a
banking center in their day.
00:41:32.22\00:41:35.22
They exported gold coins
across the Mediterranean, and
00:41:35.32\00:41:38.29
even across the
rest of the world.
00:41:38.49\00:41:40.40
When a major earthquake
struck the city in AD 60,
00:41:40.60\00:41:44.17
the Roman government
said, "Why don't we help you."
00:41:44.77\00:41:48.54
And listen to what they said.
00:41:48.57\00:41:50.37
The Roman
historian, Tacitus, tells us
00:41:50.41\00:41:52.67
"Laodicea was in the same year
overthrown by an earthquake.
00:41:52.84\00:41:56.38
And without any relief
from us recovered itself
00:41:56.54\00:42:00.28
by its own resources."
00:42:00.32\00:42:02.28
In other words,
Laodicea, when the Roman Empire
00:42:02.55\00:42:05.89
came to them and said, "Hey,
we want to give you some money
00:42:05.92\00:42:07.62
to rebuild your city," they
said, "No, no, we've got it.
00:42:07.66\00:42:10.66
Don't worry
about it, we're good."
00:42:10.96\00:42:12.49
And Laodicea didn't do
any halfway job when they
00:42:12.83\00:42:15.50
rebuilt their city.
00:42:15.53\00:42:16.87
It was even more
beautiful than before.
00:42:16.97\00:42:19.50
There was a track
that was 900 feet long.
00:42:19.70\00:42:23.34
They had a stadium
and many other things.
00:42:23.37\00:42:25.81
It was more beautiful
after the reconstruction.
00:42:26.17\00:42:28.98
This is how
wealthy Laodicea was.
00:42:29.21\00:42:32.65
And Jesus gave this
wealthy Laodicean church
00:42:33.15\00:42:35.85
a shocking message.
00:42:35.88\00:42:37.42
He said, "In spite of the gold
that you hold in your hands,
00:42:37.85\00:42:40.99
you're spiritually bankrupt.
00:42:41.09\00:42:43.12
You pride
yourself in your riches,
00:42:43.59\00:42:45.53
but you're in dire poverty.
00:42:45.56\00:42:47.80
How about us today?
00:42:49.16\00:42:50.50
We are living in
probably the wealthiest time
00:42:51.20\00:42:54.24
in earth's history.
00:42:54.27\00:42:55.60
The average westerner
today lives more luxuriously
00:42:55.87\00:42:59.07
than many kings of the
past, in a physical sense.
00:42:59.11\00:43:02.51
But what about spiritually?
00:43:02.84\00:43:04.38
In Psalm 19 verse 10,
David says that God's word
00:43:05.01\00:43:08.42
is more valuable than gold.
00:43:08.45\00:43:10.49
But even in the midst of
a wealth of Bible knowledge,
00:43:10.95\00:43:14.26
we can be spiritually poor.
00:43:14.29\00:43:16.42
It's all too easy to
have a head full of knowledge
00:43:17.23\00:43:19.96
but to have a heart
void of the Spirit of God.
00:43:20.06\00:43:22.93
Well friends, God
wants our head knowledge
00:43:23.33\00:43:25.83
to translate into
a heart experience.
00:43:25.87\00:43:28.50
He wants the head
knowledge that we have
00:43:28.80\00:43:31.11
to translate into
actions, acts of faith and love.
00:43:31.14\00:43:34.74
His love working
through us to change the lives
00:43:34.78\00:43:37.65
of those around us.
00:43:37.68\00:43:39.01
This is the wealth that
He longs for us to have.
00:43:39.15\00:43:42.02
Otherwise, we're going
to be informationaly rich,
00:43:42.18\00:43:44.65
but spiritually poor.
00:43:44.85\00:43:46.42
Jesus tells Laodicea, "In the
midst of your monetary wealth
00:43:46.99\00:43:50.93
you're poor."
00:43:51.03\00:43:52.39
Next, Jesus
says, "You're blind."
00:43:52.69\00:43:56.33
The city of Laodicea was
renowned in the ancient world
00:43:56.87\00:43:59.63
for its medical school.
00:43:59.67\00:44:01.44
According to the
ancient Greek historian, Strabo,
00:44:01.67\00:44:04.51
there was a world
famous ophthalmologist there.
00:44:04.54\00:44:07.28
They manufactured different
types of medication, and
00:44:07.64\00:44:10.35
one of the most famous of these
was a medication for the eyes.
00:44:10.38\00:44:13.88
Available in tablet
form and powder form.
00:44:13.98\00:44:16.62
And it was exported all
over the then known world.
00:44:16.75\00:44:19.75
So Jesus here was saying,
"Can't you see the irony?
00:44:20.36\00:44:23.36
You have an
ophthalmologist in your midst,
00:44:23.63\00:44:26.29
but you're blind.
00:44:26.39\00:44:27.83
You're manufacturing
medicine for the world,
00:44:28.03\00:44:30.20
but you cannot see.
00:44:30.23\00:44:31.70
You don't need
that ophthalmologist,
00:44:32.27\00:44:33.74
you need Me, the
great Physician."
00:44:33.77\00:44:36.00
These were Jesus'
words to Laodicea.
00:44:36.54\00:44:39.77
The next and final description
Jesus gives in verse 17
00:44:40.41\00:44:43.35
is that Laodicea is naked.
00:44:43.85\00:44:46.48
Besides exporting gold coins
and manufacturing medicine,
00:44:47.12\00:44:50.82
Laodicea also supplied clothes.
00:44:51.05\00:44:54.06
It could be said that Laodicea
was like a combination of
00:44:54.32\00:44:57.59
Wells Fargo, Keiser Permanente,
and Gucci all combined.
00:44:57.63\00:45:02.10
The sheep of Laodicea
were actually famous for their
00:45:03.00\00:45:05.57
soft black wool.
00:45:05.60\00:45:07.57
And it was also glossy.
00:45:07.67\00:45:09.14
It was unique to Laodicea.
00:45:09.24\00:45:10.84
Nowhere else had wool like this.
00:45:10.87\00:45:12.54
And they made these
beautiful black garments that
00:45:12.74\00:45:14.74
especially the ladies liked.
00:45:14.78\00:45:16.54
And they would export
them all over the world.
00:45:16.58\00:45:18.81
So Jesus was
saying, "You, the very ones
00:45:19.71\00:45:23.42
who make garments to clothe the
world, are spiritually naked.
00:45:23.45\00:45:27.22
You may be in fashion, you
may look good on the outside,
00:45:27.76\00:45:31.46
but on the inside you're empty."
00:45:31.73\00:45:33.70
Jesus' message to
Laodicea, His message to them
00:45:34.73\00:45:39.50
was a big wake-up call.
00:45:39.53\00:45:42.07
But Laodicea's greatest
problem wasn't that they were
00:45:42.64\00:45:45.11
spiritually naked.
00:45:45.14\00:45:46.47
It wasn't that they were poor,
blind, wretched, miserable.
00:45:46.51\00:45:48.78
The greatest problem
was that they thought
00:45:49.31\00:45:52.25
that they were okay.
00:45:52.28\00:45:53.78
Laodicea didn't even know it.
00:45:54.88\00:45:56.28
Let's look at verse 17 together.
00:45:56.32\00:45:57.89
Jesus said, "Because
you say, 'I am rich,'
00:45:58.79\00:46:01.62
and have become wealthy
and have need of nothing,
00:46:01.82\00:46:04.36
yet you do not know that
you are wretched, miserable,
00:46:05.16\00:46:07.10
poor, blind, and naked..."
00:46:07.13\00:46:08.46
The problem with
Laodicea was that they
00:46:08.50\00:46:10.13
thought that they were okay.
00:46:10.17\00:46:11.80
And friends, the nature
of the disease of sin is that
00:46:12.33\00:46:15.34
we don't recognize
what it is doing to us.
00:46:15.37\00:46:18.07
We think that we're okay.
00:46:18.47\00:46:20.08
We feel like we're alright.
00:46:20.41\00:46:22.28
But we've been stricken
with a terminal disease.
00:46:22.31\00:46:26.38
Friends, the nature
of the syndrome of sin
00:46:29.62\00:46:33.22
is that we feel like we're okay
when it's slowly killing us.
00:46:33.86\00:46:38.43
In reference to this kind of
people, the kind of people who
00:46:38.96\00:46:43.60
think that they're
okay when they're not,
00:46:43.63\00:46:46.13
in Testimonies volume 1,
page 416, Ellen White says...
00:46:46.33\00:46:50.71
Brothers and sisters,
this message is not just
00:46:58.58\00:47:00.45
for a church far
away and long ago.
00:47:00.48\00:47:03.05
This message is for us.
00:47:03.08\00:47:05.09
God is speaking to His
people, His last day people,
00:47:05.49\00:47:08.26
through this message.
00:47:08.29\00:47:09.62
You know, we may be
thinking, "Oh, I sure hope
00:47:09.82\00:47:12.73
brother so and so is listening."
00:47:13.06\00:47:14.73
Or, "I sure hope my
husband is listening closely,"
00:47:14.93\00:47:17.77
or, "my wife is
listening closely,"
00:47:17.80\00:47:19.53
or, "You know, I need
to get a copy of this and
00:47:19.57\00:47:21.80
send it to so and so."
00:47:21.84\00:47:23.17
Friends, that is the
very attitude of a Laodicean.
00:47:23.57\00:47:27.58
That is the sign of
the Laodicean syndrome.
00:47:28.64\00:47:32.18
Thinking that a message applies
to someone else and not to us.
00:47:32.21\00:47:35.82
And that is human
nature; to think that a message
00:47:35.95\00:47:37.99
of correction applies
to others and not to us.
00:47:38.02\00:47:40.46
I had not been able to eat
breakfast at home that morning.
00:47:41.22\00:47:43.96
I was rushing to class and
I grabbed an apple on the way.
00:47:44.53\00:47:48.00
And I was eating my
breakfast as I went.
00:47:48.20\00:47:50.63
I sat down in class
and I was chewing my apple
00:47:51.10\00:47:54.20
as I was looking the
teacher right in the eyes,
00:47:54.24\00:47:56.74
and nodding and taking in
every word that he was saying.
00:47:56.77\00:47:59.51
And then about 10 minutes
after I finished my apple,
00:48:00.38\00:48:02.21
the teacher said, "Class, I
would just like to remind you
00:48:02.24\00:48:05.71
that the dean has
asked that we only eat in the
00:48:05.75\00:48:08.98
designated eating areas
here at Andrews University
00:48:09.02\00:48:11.95
in the Seminary.
00:48:11.99\00:48:13.32
Thank you very much."
00:48:13.36\00:48:14.69
And as he was
talking, I was thinking,
00:48:15.02\00:48:16.79
"Yeah, you tell them, Dr. D.
00:48:16.83\00:48:18.46
You tell these guys
bringing there granola bars and
00:48:18.86\00:48:21.23
getting crumbs everywhere."
00:48:21.26\00:48:22.90
And then in the last
sentence of his request,
00:48:23.40\00:48:26.84
he looked directly at me.
00:48:26.87\00:48:29.24
And I thought,
"Whoa, he's talking to me.
00:48:29.87\00:48:33.21
This message is for me."
00:48:33.44\00:48:35.08
Friends, it's human nature
to think that a strong message
00:48:35.71\00:48:38.98
or a message of
correction doesn't apply to us.
00:48:39.01\00:48:42.45
And this is the very
nature of the Laodicean message.
00:48:42.95\00:48:46.42
The nature of the message
is that if you don't think
00:48:46.59\00:48:49.76
it's for you, it's for you.
00:48:49.79\00:48:51.69
If you recognize that it applies
to you, then praise the Lord.
00:48:52.69\00:48:55.76
But if you don't
think it applies to you,
00:48:55.80\00:48:58.43
it applies to you.
00:48:58.53\00:48:59.93
Because the
message applies to those
00:49:00.04\00:49:02.14
who think that they're
okay, who think that it
00:49:02.17\00:49:04.37
doesn't apply to them.
00:49:04.41\00:49:05.81
Friends, this message is for us.
00:49:06.68\00:49:08.44
And let me tell you, as
a preacher this message is
00:49:08.48\00:49:10.85
for me too.
00:49:10.88\00:49:12.21
God has to speak a
message to you before He can
00:49:12.65\00:49:16.35
speak it through you.
00:49:16.38\00:49:17.72
And the Lord has been
convicting me of this repeatedly
00:49:17.89\00:49:20.79
that this message is for me.
00:49:20.82\00:49:23.49
This message is for us.
00:49:23.99\00:49:25.89
And Jesus wants us
to know that without Him
00:49:26.16\00:49:29.43
we're spiritually blind, poor,
naked, wretched, miserable.
00:49:29.46\00:49:32.60
We are in a
terrible state of being.
00:49:32.63\00:49:35.77
We're destitute.
00:49:36.10\00:49:37.57
What is the answer?
00:49:38.47\00:49:40.11
Is there any hope for us?
00:49:40.71\00:49:42.84
I love how John
Flavel put it, he said,
00:49:43.48\00:49:45.21
"Man's extremity
is God's opportunity."
00:49:45.25\00:49:49.12
Praise the Lord for that.
00:49:49.55\00:49:50.89
Our hope is in Christ.
00:49:50.92\00:49:52.65
Testimonies volume 4, page 87...
00:49:52.69\00:49:54.52
Friends, we have hope
in Jesus because He is
00:50:02.23\00:50:04.97
the heavenly Physician.
00:50:05.00\00:50:06.57
Our hope is
built on nothing less
00:50:07.57\00:50:09.67
than Jesus' blood
and righteousness.
00:50:09.70\00:50:12.61
Christ alone can help
us understand that although
00:50:12.91\00:50:15.61
we feel okay, we are stricken
with the disease of sin.
00:50:15.64\00:50:20.25
And the nature of the
disease is to struggle
00:50:20.35\00:50:22.45
to even recognize it.
00:50:22.48\00:50:23.82
But it doesn't just stop there.
00:50:24.65\00:50:26.25
And praise the
Lord that it doesn't.
00:50:26.79\00:50:28.32
The heavenly Physician,
Jesus Himself, who diagnoses
00:50:28.72\00:50:32.43
this disease is also
the heavenly Pharmacist
00:50:32.46\00:50:37.07
who offers us the
spiritual prescription.
00:50:37.10\00:50:39.90
And friends, He paid the
price for that prescription
00:50:40.77\00:50:42.77
with His own blood.
00:50:42.80\00:50:44.14
Praise the Lord that
Christ knows no disease that
00:50:44.57\00:50:47.71
He cannot heal.
00:50:47.74\00:50:49.08
Our Savior doesn't
just point out our problems.
00:50:49.61\00:50:52.05
He supplies us
with the solution.
00:50:52.48\00:50:54.62
And we can praise Him for that.
00:50:54.95\00:50:56.45
Tomorrow night in our message,
The Physician's Prescription,
00:50:56.89\00:50:59.39
we're going to be
examining Jesus' spiritual
00:50:59.42\00:51:01.86
prescription to Laodicea.
00:51:01.89\00:51:03.29
And I want to go
there now together
00:51:03.32\00:51:04.93
just to see the good news.
00:51:05.23\00:51:06.66
Friends, the Laodicean message
is a good news gospel message.
00:51:06.70\00:51:11.80
And the good news
is this: Jesus says...
00:51:13.64\00:51:16.44
Friends, we're going to
be examining this in detail
00:51:31.75\00:51:33.59
tomorrow night.
00:51:33.62\00:51:34.96
But know this, the Laodicean
message, Jesus' message
00:51:34.99\00:51:39.76
to the church of Laodicea,
is a good news gospel message.
00:51:39.79\00:51:43.67
It's intimately connected
with the three angels' message.
00:51:44.03\00:51:46.84
The same message
in a different form.
00:51:46.87\00:51:48.74
It's a gospel message.
00:51:49.27\00:51:50.81
Number two, for the
gospel to be good news,
00:51:51.07\00:51:54.41
we have to know the bad news.
00:51:54.44\00:51:56.24
And the bad news is
that we are all stricken with
00:51:56.44\00:51:59.28
the disease of sin.
00:51:59.31\00:52:01.25
And by the
nature of this disease,
00:52:01.85\00:52:03.62
we feel like we're okay.
00:52:03.65\00:52:05.39
The good news is that
the heavenly Physician
00:52:06.32\00:52:09.12
knows no disease
that He cannot cure.
00:52:09.16\00:52:11.86
Praise God that Christ knows
no disease that He cannot cure.
00:52:12.29\00:52:15.96
And He offers us the
solution to our problem.
00:52:16.00\00:52:19.63
The Faith I Live By, page 306,
has this beautiful statement.
00:52:20.30\00:52:23.54
"The counsel of the True
Witness is full of encouragement
00:52:23.57\00:52:26.91
and comfort.
00:52:26.94\00:52:28.28
The churches may yet obtain the
gold of truth, faith, and love,
00:52:28.31\00:52:32.65
and be rich in
heavenly treasure."
00:52:32.68\00:52:34.65
Friends, there's still time.
00:52:35.38\00:52:38.65
This is the good news
of the Laodicean message.
00:52:39.29\00:52:41.52
It's a strong message.
00:52:41.56\00:52:43.09
It's a bold message,
it's a pointed message.
00:52:43.36\00:52:46.19
In fact, of all the
messages to the seven churches,
00:52:46.39\00:52:49.63
the message to Laodicea
from Jesus is the only message
00:52:49.83\00:52:53.30
that has no
positive commendation in it
00:52:53.34\00:52:55.80
about the church.
00:52:55.84\00:52:57.17
This is the only one about which
Jesus says nothing positive.
00:52:57.51\00:53:01.58
But the good news is that Jesus
promises the Laodicean church,
00:53:02.61\00:53:06.95
along with all of
the other churches,
00:53:07.42\00:53:09.68
"You will overcome."
00:53:09.88\00:53:11.65
He says, "To him who overcomes,
I will grant to sit with Me
00:53:12.15\00:53:15.86
on My throne,
even as I also overcame
00:53:15.89\00:53:18.23
and sat down with the
Father on His throne."
00:53:18.26\00:53:21.26
Friends, we can overcome
by the grace of Jesus Christ.
00:53:21.60\00:53:25.23
Praise God for that.
00:53:25.80\00:53:27.14
That though there is nothing
positive said about Laodicea,
00:53:27.17\00:53:30.14
Christ, the perfect One
Himself, offers Himself to us.
00:53:30.37\00:53:35.04
That is the good news
of the message to Laodicea.
00:53:35.54\00:53:38.88
And friends,
there is still time.
00:53:38.91\00:53:41.32
There is still time to receive
the remedies of our Redeemer.
00:53:41.98\00:53:45.82
There's still time
to answer His call.
00:53:46.45\00:53:50.33
I'll never forget, I was
in the Philadelphia airport.
00:53:51.89\00:53:55.96
And I was making a connection
home from a friend's wedding
00:53:56.26\00:53:59.27
in Toronto, Canada.
00:53:59.30\00:54:01.04
I was flying back to
Sacramento, California.
00:54:01.57\00:54:04.01
And I had six
hours of a layover.
00:54:04.57\00:54:07.34
So I thought, "Okay, I can
do some work on my computer."
00:54:07.84\00:54:11.31
I got my laptop out,
I put my headphones on,
00:54:11.58\00:54:13.72
listening to some
beautiful Christian music,
00:54:13.75\00:54:15.85
working on emails
and typing people.
00:54:16.12\00:54:18.35
And after some time, I
think five hours had gone by,
00:54:19.69\00:54:22.79
and I said, "You know, I
need to use the restroom."
00:54:23.29\00:54:25.49
I asked someone to watch my
things and went to the restroom.
00:54:25.79\00:54:29.46
There were a number of
people around, so I knew I could
00:54:29.76\00:54:32.70
trust this person.
00:54:32.73\00:54:34.07
But as I went to the restroom,
I passed this restaurant.
00:54:34.10\00:54:37.11
And as I did, the aroma of
the food entered my nostrils
00:54:37.24\00:54:42.34
and I thought,
"Wow, that smells good."
00:54:42.38\00:54:44.41
But the Lord spoke to me through
my conscience and He said,
00:54:44.98\00:54:46.95
"Justin, you've eaten
already. You don't need food.
00:54:46.98\00:54:49.58
You ate two hours ago,
you don't need more food."
00:54:49.62\00:54:51.85
And I thought, "Yes
Lord, You're right."
00:54:51.99\00:54:53.42
And I kept walking.
00:54:53.86\00:54:55.49
I went to the
bathroom and I came back.
00:54:56.12\00:54:58.59
And when I passed the
restaurant the second time,
00:54:58.73\00:55:00.90
I lingered a
little bit too long.
00:55:01.40\00:55:03.50
And unfortunately, I went
in and I made the unnecessary
00:55:04.30\00:55:08.60
purchase of some
pasta and veggies.
00:55:08.64\00:55:10.91
I went and sat in my seat.
00:55:12.47\00:55:14.34
And as I did, I finished
my food and I was waiting,
00:55:14.64\00:55:18.41
and I looked at my boarding
time and I thought it strange
00:55:18.45\00:55:20.52
that nobody was boarding yet.
00:55:20.55\00:55:21.92
And I thought, well I
looked and I saw that I was
00:55:23.05\00:55:25.62
at the right gate, so
I didn't worry about it.
00:55:25.65\00:55:27.76
I thought, "If these
people are here, I'm not
00:55:27.79\00:55:29.56
going to get left behind."
00:55:29.59\00:55:30.93
So time continued to
go by, and by now it was
00:55:31.66\00:55:34.66
ten minutes after
the boarding time.
00:55:34.70\00:55:36.36
I finished my food.
00:55:37.57\00:55:38.97
Fifteen minutes
after the boarding time,
00:55:39.17\00:55:40.57
I thought, "This is strange."
00:55:40.60\00:55:42.04
I went up to the
desk and they said,
00:55:42.40\00:55:44.94
"Oh, that flight has been
changed to three gates down."
00:55:44.97\00:55:48.81
And I saw that the sign
said Daytona Beach, Florida.
00:55:48.84\00:55:51.58
I thought, "Oh no,
that's the wrong direction.
00:55:51.88\00:55:53.62
This is the wrong terminal."
00:55:53.65\00:55:55.02
So I ran, because the
terminal had been changed.
00:55:55.05\00:55:56.95
I grabbed my
backpack and sprinted.
00:55:56.99\00:55:59.19
I got to the corner,
I rounded the corner.
00:55:59.29\00:56:01.52
I saw the man at the desk
and I looked out the window
00:56:01.72\00:56:04.73
just in time to see
them closing the door.
00:56:04.76\00:56:08.00
And I asked
him, "Can't I just...
00:56:08.33\00:56:09.66
Isn't there
anything that can be done?"
00:56:09.76\00:56:11.37
And he said, "No, I'm sorry.
00:56:12.23\00:56:14.57
You're too late."
00:56:14.60\00:56:15.94
I hung my head.
00:56:16.50\00:56:17.84
And then he said, "Are you
Justin, coming from Toronto?"
00:56:18.01\00:56:20.94
And ashamed, I
said, "Yeah, that's me."
00:56:21.68\00:56:24.25
And he said, "We
were calling for you.
00:56:24.65\00:56:26.48
We were calling you by name.
00:56:27.25\00:56:29.08
Didn't you hear the final call?"
00:56:29.98\00:56:31.72
Friends, because I had given
in to a sin in some seemingly
00:56:33.22\00:56:37.43
small thing, I was not
in a place where I could
00:56:37.46\00:56:40.50
hear the final call.
00:56:40.53\00:56:42.13
Now friends, tonight God is
extending the final call to us.
00:56:42.93\00:56:47.57
He wants us to receive the
remedies that He has to offer.
00:56:47.74\00:56:51.41
And soon the Savior will
come in the clouds of glory.
00:56:51.94\00:56:55.11
And when He does, we
don't have to go to the airport
00:56:55.68\00:56:58.28
to catch that flight home.
00:56:58.31\00:56:59.78
Because every eye will see Him.
00:56:59.81\00:57:01.95
With the most frequent
flyers in the universe,
00:57:02.35\00:57:04.72
the heavenly
angels, we will wing our way
00:57:04.75\00:57:06.96
to our heavenly home.
00:57:06.99\00:57:08.32
And friends, there we will spend
eternity with our Redeemer.
00:57:08.59\00:57:12.59
And we can praise the Lord
that He has made it possible
00:57:12.79\00:57:16.00
by giving His own
life in our place.
00:57:16.03\00:57:18.83
Tonight, do you want to
say, "Lord, I recognize that
00:57:19.53\00:57:22.70
I need Your help.
00:57:22.74\00:57:24.07
I surrender
myself to You again."
00:57:24.24\00:57:26.98
Is that your desire tonight?
00:57:27.18\00:57:28.51
Amen. Let's pray.
00:57:28.68\00:57:30.18