Participants: Pr. John Lomacang
Series Code: ASHF
Program Code: ASHF000065
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00:19 Hello, friends, welcome to another A Sharper Focus,
00:22 Wednesday Night Bible Study. 00:25 Here at the 3ABN Worship Center, 00:26 we have a wonderful audience tonight. 00:28 And they all want to welcome you 00:29 with a hearty amen. 00:31 Amen! 00:32 And if you're tuning in from here locally, 00:35 we'd like to encourage you to come, 00:37 if you're in the 00:38 Southern Illinois area, whether... 00:39 We're in Thompsonville, if you're in Franklin County, 00:43 we'd like to invite you to come down and join us. 00:45 We've had guests come periodically, 00:47 and know that you are invited anytime you arrive. 00:50 We believe in studying the Bible 00:52 and tonight is no exception as we continue 00:55 studying the Word of God together. 00:57 So get your Bible, get your families, 00:59 sit down and join us for this thoughtful hour 01:02 through the Word of God. 01:04 After we have our opening prayer, 01:05 I'll give you some more information 01:07 about how you can get a copy of the lesson 01:09 and how you can follow us along tonight. 01:11 But let's begin with a word of prayer. 01:12 Let's do that tonight. Are you ready? 01:14 Our heavenly Father, we thank You for Your goodness, 01:16 we thank You for Your Word. 01:19 We know that Your Spirit will teach us and guide us, 01:21 and open our hearts and minds 01:23 to understand the truth as it is revealed in Your Word. 01:27 In this day and age where tradition has largely replaced 01:31 what you've said in the Bible, we pray that we can 01:33 get back to the root of our faith. 01:35 That is the Word of God. 01:37 So help us to settle for nothing but the truth, 01:40 the whole truth and nothing but that truth 01:42 revealed through Your Holy Spirit. 01:44 Speak to us tonight, Lord, 01:46 and bring us into an understanding of 01:48 what You will have us to do. 01:49 In Jesus' name I pray. Amen. 01:53 Now, lesson number 20 is what we're discussing tonight. 01:56 Lesson number 20 is, "The Resurrection." 01:59 What is the title, friends? "The Resurrection." 02:01 If you'd like a copy of that, go to this website. 02:03 Don't put www, just go asf.3abn.org 02:10 and download lesson number 20, 02:12 "The Truth about the Resurrection." 02:15 The Truth about the Resurrection. 02:17 And we have started well into the lesson, 02:20 it is 21 questions. 02:22 Tonight we're going to begin at question number 11. 02:25 But first, what are we going to do? 02:28 What are we going to do? Sing. 02:29 And what's our theme song? 02:31 "Victory in Jesus," 02:32 let's sing that together tonight. 02:34 I've heard an old, old story, 02:36 we're going to talk about the victory that all of us has 02:39 in Jesus Christ. 02:40 Let's sing that song together. It'll play on our screen. 02:49 I heard an old, old story 02:53 How the Savior came from glory 02:56 How He gave His life on Calvary 03:00 To save a wretch like me 03:04 I heard about His groaning 03:08 Of His precious blood's atoning 03:11 Then I repented of my sin 03:16 And won the victory 03:19 O victory in Jesus 03:23 My Savior, forever 03:27 He sought me and bought me 03:30 With His redeeming blood 03:34 He loved me ere I knew Him 03:38 And all my love is due Him 03:42 He plunged me to victory 03:46 Beneath the cleansing flood 03:49 I heard about a mansion 03:53 He has built for me in glory 03:57 And I heard about the streets of gold 04:01 Beyond the crystal sea 04:04 About the angels singing 04:08 And the old redemption story 04:12 And some sweet day I'll sing up there 04:16 The song of victory 04:20 O victory in Jesus 04:23 My Savior, forever 04:27 He sought me and bought me 04:31 With His redeeming blood 04:35 He loved me ere I knew Him 04:38 And all my love is due Him 04:42 He plunged me to victory 04:46 Beneath the cleansing flood 04:50 He plunged me to victory 04:54 Beneath the cleansing flood 05:00 And all the people said... 05:01 Amen. That's our song. 05:03 That's our theme song, and we have been singing 05:05 that from week to week because truly 05:07 there is no victory outside of victory in Jesus. 05:11 Now tonight, we're going to dive into a topic, 05:14 how to know the truth about the truth, 05:16 or more specifically, 05:17 the truth about the resurrection. 05:19 The truth about the resurrection. 05:22 You know, there's so much that is being taught about 05:24 what happens when a person dies. 05:26 Let me give you some examples. 05:27 Just recently, I attended a funeral 05:30 and funerals are often the place 05:35 where error is admissible. 05:38 Where you can tell an untruth, 05:43 my mama used to raise me, 05:44 she said, "Don't say the word lie. 05:45 It sounds too harsh." 05:47 You can tell a lie 05:50 and it seems okay at a funeral. 05:53 You can frankly misrepresent what the Bible teaches. 05:58 And people have no choice 05:59 but to sit there and just digest, 06:03 have you noticed that? 06:04 And I've been to so many funerals, 06:05 just recently the one that I was sitting at 06:08 and somebody said to me, you know, I came a little... 06:10 We gauged our timing 06:12 and got there about 10 or 11 minutes 06:14 after the funeral started. 06:16 And I was kind of... 06:17 I became like kind of sick after hearing all the things 06:21 that were said by the preacher that we're not in the Bible. 06:26 And somebody said, "If you feel sick now, 06:28 you should have been here in the beginning." 06:30 And I thought, man, 06:31 I'm glad I wasn't there in the beginning. 06:33 Because it was just, oh, it's just, 06:36 the things that were said and the favorite scripture 06:39 in the Bible that many of those who believe that you die 06:41 and go straight to heaven. 06:42 The favorite verse they use is, 06:44 "To be absent from the body is..." to be what?" 06:46 Present with the Lord." And I thought, 06:49 "Please, read the whole story." 06:51 Has nothing to do with death at all. 06:55 And then... 06:57 then their favorite scripture in John Chapter 11 07:00 without reading the whole context, you know, 07:02 "He who lives and believes in me shall never die." 07:05 And without reading the verses 07:07 before that and the verses after that, and I'm thinking, 07:08 will somebody please tell the truth. 07:11 Those of you who are old enough, 07:13 you may remember, years ago 07:14 there was a show on television called, 07:16 "To Tell the Truth." Anybody remember that? 07:19 I wish that there would be a bulletin sent out 07:22 from on high that God would send an email 07:25 to all earthly pastors and simply say this, 07:28 "Tell the Truth," 07:29 because the truth is not being told at all. 07:32 And so, you know, he cited a text in Revelation, 07:35 he cited a text in 1 Thessalonians Chapter 4, 07:38 you know, "The dead in Christ will rise first." 07:41 And so I thought about that and I said, 07:45 "Yes, yes." 07:46 "And then we which are alive and remain 07:48 shall be caught up together to meet the Lord in the air." 07:50 "Yes, yes, I'm thinking finally..." 07:54 Then he paused. 07:56 And when the resurrection takes place, 07:57 the soul is going to come down from heaven and join the body, 08:02 and the body and the soul are going to go back together. 08:05 And I'm thinking, "No, no, 08:08 please don't say that." 08:11 And I left out of there with vertigo. 08:13 I had to just sit down 08:15 and think about it for a moment. 08:17 But you know, in reality, many Christians don't know 08:20 where this thought came from. 08:22 Many Christians wonder, 08:23 how did this ideology get injected into Christianity. 08:27 Because it didn't just come from nowhere, 08:28 everything that is embraced by Christianity 08:31 has come from somewhere. 08:32 Do you know that? 08:33 It didn't just float along 08:35 and become an ethereal belief in the Christian world? 08:37 It was actually inserted. 08:40 It was actually delivered to the Christian world, 08:42 it was actually borrowed 08:44 from paganistic philosophies and views. 08:46 Let me give you an example. 08:48 Go with me to the Book of John Chapter 11. 08:50 I want to show you, John Chapter 11. 08:53 All right? 08:55 And I want to show you one of the stories in the Bible 08:58 that really establishes 09:02 one of the most beautiful illustrations 09:05 of the fact that, 09:09 the fact that the Lord does not support the belief 09:14 in the immortality of the soul. 09:18 The Lord does not support the belief 09:20 in the immortality of the soul. 09:23 Now, 09:25 this story of the raising of Lazarus, 09:29 the raising of whom? 09:30 Lazarus. 09:31 It has in its content a very significant belief 09:37 that an action Jesus took in order to debunk a philosophy 09:42 called Neoplatonism. 09:46 Say that with me, what is it? 09:47 Neoplatonism. 09:50 You write that down and do some research 09:51 on the internet. 09:53 You'll discover one of the great resources 09:54 is Wikipedia, but so much is taught on. 09:57 So much information can be found on the internet 09:59 about this particular beliefs, this particular belief. 10:02 Now in the word, in the phrase Neoplatonism, 10:07 what word do you hear that identifies a person? 10:09 Plato. Plato. 10:11 Plato was a philosopher, 10:15 and there was a group of individuals 10:18 that followed him called Platonists. 10:21 You know, like Lutherans followed Martin Luther. 10:27 Well, those who embraced the teachings of Plato 10:29 in the third century became Platonists. 10:33 But what he did was, 10:35 Plato embraced the belief that was taught in Egyptology. 10:39 And what he did, he mixed his teachings, 10:42 the immortal soul, a transcendent soul, 10:46 he mixed Platonism with Egyptology 10:50 and inserted it into Jewish into Jewish theology. 10:55 So by the time of Jesus, 10:58 there was a belief that was embraced 10:59 by the Jews of his day, 11:01 it was taught in the schools 11:03 of philosophy and theology in the days of Christ. 11:07 Later on, it was expanded by the Greeks. 11:10 Matter of fact, when Paul the Apostle 11:11 spoke to Christians, 11:13 he never spoke to Romans about the body, 11:15 soul and spirit, 11:17 because they were affected by the idea 11:20 that these were three separate entities. 11:22 But Neoplatonism simply taught that there were three worlds, 11:28 the invisible world, what world did I say? 11:31 The invisible world, the phenomenal world, 11:35 and the eternal world. 11:38 And the belief was when a person died, 11:42 his or her soul left the body and had a choice. 11:46 They could go to the invisible world, 11:48 they actually inhabited the invisible world, 11:51 but they could go to something called a phenomenal world. 11:55 And then they also can choose to inhabit the eternal world. 11:59 Now when you look at these three aspects, 12:02 each of them, if you were to summarize all of them, 12:04 each of them were ethereal, and what I mean by that is, 12:06 they had no time nor space, 12:08 they just simply meant anywhere. 12:10 So when Lazarus died and Jesus heard about it, 12:16 how many days did Jesus stay away 12:20 before He came to raise Lazarus? 12:21 Say it again. Four. 12:22 Say it together, four. 12:24 The reason why He stayed for four days 12:26 is because in Neoplatonism, 12:27 they believed and they taught that the soul 12:33 having this soul ability to continue to exist, 12:36 they believe that the soul continue to exist, 12:39 and for three days in a row, 12:41 the soul made repeated attempts 12:44 to come back and unite with the body. 12:46 And if it were successful, Mike, 12:47 the body would come back to life. 12:50 So Jesus did not stay away because He didn't care about 12:54 Lazarus, or Mary, or Martha. 12:56 He stayed away to let everyone know 12:58 that life is only possible after death 13:02 by the power that exists in Jesus. 13:04 Can you say amen? 13:06 He wanted to make it clear 13:07 that I am the resurrection and the life. 13:10 So that phrase was not just, 13:11 "Hey, you know, I create people." 13:13 That phrase was, "If that soul... 13:15 If that body is ever going to come back to life, 13:17 it is only because I have the power 13:20 to allow it to come back to life." 13:21 Not because the soul was successful. 13:23 That's why Martha was so concerned 13:25 and Mary was so concerned and they said, 13:27 "Lord, 13:31 you want us to take the stone away by now?" 13:34 Our brother, he's stinking, he's starting to decay, 13:39 and the danger with that was Neoplatonists 13:42 taught Karen that, 13:44 "If decay began, it was not possible 13:48 for that soul to get back in the body." 13:50 So that's why funerals were often 13:52 conducted right away. 13:54 And still today in many Jewish cultures, 13:57 they bury the very next day. 13:59 So as was the case with Lazarus, when he died, 14:02 he was buried, immediately. 14:05 And for three days, this belief inhabited the minds 14:08 of all those who existed during the time of Christ, 14:11 except this family, 14:14 this family knew the truth about it. 14:15 So let's pick up the story and where it becomes obvious 14:21 that Jesus finally arrives. 14:23 And in the journey, 14:26 Jesus is kind of meandering with His disciples 14:29 and they're wondering, "Hey, how's Lazarus doing?" 14:31 And Jesus, let's pick up the conversation 14:33 between Jesus and His disciples. 14:35 In John Chapter 11, 14:37 and let's start with verse 11. 14:43 Start with verse 11. 14:44 John 11:11. 14:47 Okay, matter of fact, let's go to verse 5, verse 5. 14:56 Let's go to verse 4. 14:58 Okay, right there. Okay. 15:00 Some of you guys, 15:01 you want to get the context, right? 15:03 Okay, verse 4, When Jesus heard that he... 15:06 "When Jesus heard that he said, 'This sickness," 15:10 speaking of the sickness of Lazarus is not unto what? 15:14 "Not unto death, but for the glory of God, 15:17 that the Son of God may be glorified through it." 15:21 How was he going to be glorified? 15:23 He's gonna let them know, wait a minute, 15:26 there's no soul that's going to accomplish 15:27 the resurrection, 15:29 I am the one that's going to accomplish it. 15:30 So what happens? Look at verse 5. 15:32 Now, Jesus loved Martha and her sister, 15:36 Jesus loved Martha, and her sister, and Lazarus. 15:42 So when he heard that he was sick, 15:44 he stayed how many more days? 15:46 Two more days in the place where He was. 15:50 Then after this, He said to His disciples, 15:53 or to the disciples, let us go to Judea again. 15:57 The disciples said to Him, 15:58 "Rabbi, lately the Jews sought to stone you 16:02 and You are going there again?" 16:05 That's not where you need to go. 16:07 Now it continues, in verse 9, "Jesus answered, 16:11 'Are there not 12 hours in a day, 16:13 if anyone walks in the day, he does not stumble, 16:16 because he sees the light of the world. 16:19 But if one walks in the night, he stumbles, 16:22 because the light is not in him." 16:25 Speaking of Himself, these things, He said, 16:27 and after that, He said to them, 16:29 let's read this together, "Our friend Lazarus," what? 16:33 "Sleeps, but I go, that I may wake him." 16:36 Now, this is beautiful. 16:37 Jesus illustrated right there, 16:39 He knew what was the condition of Lazarus. 16:41 But He called death what? 16:43 Sleep. 16:45 That's why when the Lord comes back, 16:46 all those who sleep in Christ, that's why... 16:49 The reason why it's called sleep 16:51 is because it's not the final death. 16:53 He's going to wake up those who are sleeping in Jesus. 16:54 But let's go on further 16:56 because they didn't understand yet 16:57 what the situation was. 17:00 And then verse 12. 17:02 Then His disciples said, "Lord, if he sleeps, 17:05 he will get well." 17:06 However, Jesus spoke of his death, 17:08 but they thought that 17:10 He was speaking about taking rest, in what? 17:12 In sleep. 17:13 Then Jesus said to them plainly, what? 17:16 Lazarus is dead. 17:19 Okay, now, so he's on his way to meet Mary and Martha. 17:24 He finally makes up his mind that, 17:25 "Okay, now the time is right, let me go ahead," 17:28 and go to this family in their distress. 17:31 Let's pick it up, verse 20. 17:35 Then Martha, as soon as she heard 17:36 that Jesus was coming, went and met him, 17:39 but Mary was sitting in the house. 17:41 "Then Martha said to Jesus, 'Lord, if you had been here, 17:44 my brother would not have," what? 17:46 "My brother would not have died." 17:48 But even now I know that whatever you ask of God, 17:51 God will give it, Jesus said to her, 17:54 "Your brother will," what? "Rise again." 17:56 This is why this topic is so vitally important. 17:59 She understood the topic of the resurrection. 18:01 And she said in the very next verse, 18:02 Martha said to him, 18:04 "I know that he will rise again in the," what my friends? 18:07 "In the resurrection," at the what day? 18:09 "At the last day." 18:11 Then Jesus said to her in verse 25, 18:14 "I am the resurrection and the life. 18:17 He who believes in me, though he may die, 18:21 yet he shall live." So do people die? 18:24 Yes or no? Yes. 18:25 So this text is not saying that people don't die, 18:27 it says even if they die, 18:29 I'm the one that can bring them back to life. 18:31 And then he added the other injunction, 18:32 "And whoever lives and believes in me 18:34 shall never die." 18:35 Do you believe this? 18:37 He dealt with two topics, 18:39 the physical death and the eternal death. 18:42 Lazarus physically died, that was a fact. 18:45 She said he died. 18:46 So the physical death is a reality, 18:48 but the death that each one of us 18:50 wants to avoid is the second death. 18:51 What do you say? 18:53 We don't want to be affected by the second death. 18:55 Revelation 20:6. 18:58 "Blessed and holy is he 18:59 who is part in the first resurrection 19:01 over such the second death has no power." 19:03 So what we're going to pick up tonight here is the fact that, 19:07 as they are tussling and wondering what to do... 19:11 What to do, 19:14 Jesus comes to the place where Lazarus has died 19:17 and then he makes this command. 19:19 Let's go down to verse 38. 19:22 Let's go down to verse 39. 19:24 Jesus said... 19:26 What did he say? 19:28 "Take away the," what? 19:29 "Stone, Martha." 19:30 The sister, Martha, 19:33 the sister of him who was dead, said to him, 19:36 "Lord, by this time there is a," what? 19:40 "Stench, for he had been dead for" how long? 19:43 "Four days." 19:44 So this whole philosophy of Neoplatonism 19:46 was about to be upset by Jesus. 19:47 And here's one of the things that I want you not to miss 19:50 in the story. 19:52 It was after the raising of Lazarus 19:53 that something happened in the mind 19:55 of the Jewish leaders. 19:56 From that moment, they determined 20:00 that because of what Jesus just did, he's got to die. 20:06 Now you know why? 20:07 Because this act completely upset the theology 20:11 that was being taught in their schools. 20:15 Oh no, he just, and I'm going to... 20:17 I'm going to use a completely disconnected philosophy. 20:20 It's like teaching heresy in the... 20:22 In Andrews University. 20:24 "Oh no, we got to get rid of him." 20:26 Not kill him. Amen. 20:27 But he's got to get, "Oh, forget it. 20:29 He'll not ever teach here ever again." 20:32 From that day on, they determined 20:34 that Jesus must die 20:37 because He completely obliterated the idea 20:39 that they had come to embrace 20:41 that the soul continued to exist, 20:43 for four, for three days 20:45 and attempt to get into the body 20:47 for that particular time. 20:48 So that's why tonight as we go into the lesson, 20:51 we will understand something very important. 20:54 In order for the resurrection, 20:56 in order for us to be ready to go to heaven, 20:58 something must occur in the resurrection 21:00 that prepares us for existing 21:05 in the kingdom of heaven. 21:07 So tonight, let's catapult ourselves 21:09 and we will cover it. 21:10 I'm pretty sure of that. 21:12 Let's catapult ourselves to question number 11, 21:15 keeping in mind that the only way 21:18 that we will ever have a resurrection 21:21 that is through the power resident 21:23 only in Christ. 21:25 Here's the question for tonight, 21:27 question number 11. 21:28 In what way does the Bible teach 21:31 we will be changed? 21:32 In what way does the Bible teach 21:34 we will be changed? 21:36 We're going to go to the Book of Philippians Chapter 3 21:40 verse 20 and 21. 21:44 Philippians 3:20 and 21. 21:50 All right? 21:51 And I'm going to show it on the screen here 21:53 for those of you who are here, but here's the answer. 21:57 The Bible reads as follows. 21:58 Let's read this first one together. 22:00 Are you ready? It says, "For our," what? 22:03 "Citizenship," is where? 22:05 "In heaven, from which we also eagerly wait for the Savior, 22:10 the Lord Jesus, who will," do what? 22:12 "Transform our lowly body, 22:15 that it may be conformed to His," what? 22:18 "Glorious body according to the working 22:21 by which He is able even to subdue all things," what? 22:25 "To Himself." 22:27 There's a transformation that has to take place 22:28 before we even enter the kingdom of heaven, 22:30 that does not take place at death. 22:33 This transformation is called, 22:35 it's called being conformed to His glorious body. 22:38 Let me go back on the former screen. 22:41 "Christ will transform our lowly body." 22:44 Now there's something about us is in heaven. 22:48 Something about us is in heaven. 22:50 Can somebody tell me what about us is in heaven? 22:52 Look on the board. 22:55 Come on, say it together. Our what? 22:57 Our citizenship, we are citizens of heaven. 23:00 Amen. 23:02 Heavenly citizens, 23:03 that's where our citizenship is. 23:05 Our names are written there, 23:07 but our bodies are not there yet. 23:09 When I went over to Africa, 23:10 when my wife and I were over overseas, 23:13 we were in India, but our passport says, 23:15 we are citizens of the United States. 23:17 The Word of God, 23:18 although we are down here on earth, 23:20 the Word of God says 23:21 we are strangers and pilgrims, where? 23:23 On the earth, because what? 23:25 Our citizenship is where? 23:27 In heaven, but our bodies are not there yet. 23:30 In order for us to get from India 23:32 back to the United States, 23:33 we had to get on an airplane 23:35 and fly back to the United States. 23:37 That flight that we're going to take 23:40 as 1 Thessalonians describes it, Chapter 4. 23:42 When we meet the Lord in the air 23:44 and thus shall we ever be... 23:46 That's the flight that we all must take 23:48 in order for us to get to heaven. 23:49 Amen? So here's the question. 23:51 In what way does the Bible teach, 23:53 we will be changed? 23:54 We will be transformed, 23:57 we will be conformed to His glorious body. 24:00 Write that down. We will be what? 24:03 Conformed to His glorious body. 24:05 That means the body that Jesus had when He rose 24:09 is the body that each of us is going to possess 24:11 before we ascend to meet the Lord in the air. 24:17 And so we're going to see that in the very next passage, 24:19 we're going to see that in the very next passage 24:21 under question number 12, 24:23 the Bible makes it very, very clear. 24:25 And Paul the Apostle leaves no room for doubt. 24:29 I feel bad for the Apostle Paul. 24:31 I actually wish he was still alive. 24:32 You know why? 24:33 Because Paul would be able to defend himself, 24:36 he has been so lied about, it's a travesty. 24:39 Have you noticed that? 24:40 Paul has been used to debunk the Sabbath. 24:45 Paul has been used 24:46 to change the teaching on the resurrection, 24:48 to be absent from the body is to be present in the lord. 24:50 Paul has been cited in so many instances 24:53 for things that he is not guilty of. 24:58 That's why if Paul was alive today, 25:00 he would say, "Can I answer for myself?" 25:03 Because Paul made it very, very clear 25:04 that the coming of the Lord is very necessary, 25:06 we cannot go to heaven until we are changed. 25:09 What words did I just use until we are what? 25:11 Changed. 25:12 You got to be changed, you can't go like this. 25:15 Can't exist in the presence of an immortal God this way. 25:18 Question number 12. Question number 12. 25:20 How does the Apostle Paul 25:22 describe the details of the change? 25:26 How has this change come about? 25:28 How does he describe the details of this change? 25:31 We got to be changed, right? 25:35 We must be changed, but how? 25:37 1 Corinthians Chapter 15 25:39 verse 53 and 54. 25:43 1 Corinthians Chapter 15 25:47 verse 53 and 54. 25:53 People really get upset 25:54 when you mess with their beliefs. 25:56 Let me just say this right away. 25:57 The Jews, in verse 53 of John Chapter 11, it says, 26:01 "Then from that day on, 26:03 they plotted to put Him to death." 26:05 When Jesus completely destroyed 26:07 a key element of their theology, 26:09 let's look at the verse here. 26:10 1 Corinthians 15:53 and 54. 26:13 Here's what the Bible says, 26:14 this is the change that's talked about. 26:16 "For this," what? 26:18 "Corruptible must put on," what? 26:21 "Incorruption, 26:22 and this mortal must put on," what? 26:25 "Immortality. 26:27 So when this corruptible has put on," what? 26:30 "Incorruption, and this mortal has" what? 26:33 "Put on immortality, 26:35 then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written. 26:39 'Death is," what? 26:40 "Swallowed up in victory.'" 26:44 Death is what? 26:46 Swallowed up in victory. 26:48 So who beats who? 26:53 Death loses, come on, say amen. 26:56 Death has been winning for millennia, 26:59 but death itself is gonna lose the final battle. 27:02 Death is going to be swallowed up in victory. 27:04 And when you read the passage, 27:05 when Paul talked about to be absent from the body 27:07 is to be present with the Lord. 27:08 If you continue reading that, you'll see that Paul said, 27:11 "Oh, my greatest desire is that mortality 27:14 might be swallowed up by life." 27:16 My greatest desire 27:18 is that mortality will be swallowed up by life, 27:21 and in the very same way, 27:22 death is swallowed up in victory. 27:25 Mortality is death. 27:27 Victory is life. Amen? 27:30 Mortality... 27:31 What's the mortality rate? Somebody tell me. 27:33 What percentage of people die? 27:35 One hundred percent. 27:36 That's why funeral parlors are going to be in business 27:38 until it all comes crashing down. 27:42 Funeral parlors, if you are a funeral director, 27:45 you got a solid career. 27:47 We lived in a small... 27:49 I got to tell the story. 27:51 Angie and I lived in a small town up 27:52 in northern California a number of years ago, 27:54 small town called Weaverville, 27:55 if you're watching from Weaverville, 27:57 I want to say hello to you. 27:59 And there was a funeral parlor there, and this is small town, 28:03 so unless people are dying in that small town 28:05 then the funeral doesn't have very much business. 28:08 And so there's a guy that came to town. 28:11 This black guy came to town 28:12 and the reason I use that description is because 28:14 in that mountain community of Weaverville, 28:17 they were only four minorities. 28:19 Angie and I were two of them. 28:21 There're only two others, 28:22 and there's a gentleman that came down, 28:25 he moved up to Weaverville to work at the funeral parlor, 28:29 and we got to meet him 28:31 and Angie's mother-in-law invited him over dinner 28:33 and all and was having conversation. 28:35 And we said, "How's business?" 28:36 He says, "Man, unless somebody die, 28:37 we ain't making no money." 28:40 He said, "Business is slow. 28:41 We're gonna have to put a hit out on somebody 28:43 to makes some money. 28:45 Now obviously they wouldn't do that, 28:46 but he's just illustrating the fact that, unless people... 28:49 If people keep on dying, 28:51 funeral parlors stay in business. 28:52 That's right. Am I right? 28:53 But if people don't die, they are out of business. 28:56 I'm always exciting... 28:57 I'm always excited 28:58 when I drive through West Frankfort 29:00 coming back to Thompsonville, 29:01 and I don't see anybody's name on the marquee. 29:03 Amen. 29:04 I'm always glad. 29:06 But the people they're worthy or not? 29:08 I can imagine. 29:09 "Man, nobody died this week." 29:12 It's a sad. 29:13 It's a sad occupation to have. 29:15 Isn't that right? 29:16 They wait for people to die. 29:17 That's how they make their business. 29:19 But one day 29:20 death will be swallowed up in victory. 29:22 Praise the Lord for that. 29:23 So what's the answer? 29:24 What does the apostle describe? 29:26 How does he describe the details of the change? 29:28 Here it is, 29:29 corruptible puts on incorruption, 29:32 and moral puts on, what? 29:34 Immortality. 29:36 Then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written. 29:41 Praise the Lord for that. 29:43 Now let's go on over to question number 13. 29:46 Question number 13. 29:49 "In what way does the Bible describe 29:52 the blessing of the change?" 29:54 Oh, this is a great scripture. 29:56 There's a blessing, 29:57 whenever the Lord builds anything into His Word, 29:59 a blessing comes along with it, isn't that right? 30:02 There's a blessing. Why... 30:05 Why are we all waiting for this change? 30:07 There's a blessing connected with that. 30:09 Revelation 20:6. 30:12 Revelation 20:6 30:16 is where the answer is buried, 30:19 no pun intended. 30:22 The answer is buried in Revelation 20:6. 30:26 Okay, 30:27 you all there? 30:30 Here it is. 30:35 "Blessed and holy 30:38 is He who has part 30:40 in the first resurrection. 30:44 Over such the second death has," what? 30:48 "No power, 30:50 but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, 30:54 and shall do," what? 30:56 "Reign with him," how long? 30:58 "A thousand years." I want to pause. 31:01 We've read that scripture so many times, 31:03 but just imagine, one day we're going to experience 31:05 what it means to live for 1000 years. 31:07 Come on, say amen. 31:10 And we're not going to get old, 31:12 we're not going to have aches in our elbow. 31:15 We're not going to be walking around saying, 31:16 "How old are you? I'm 650." 31:18 You know, we're not going to have 31:19 anything that's connected to this life. 31:21 Amen? 31:22 You ought to be more excited about that. 31:23 I mean, I can't imagine after 500 years, 31:25 I'm like, "How are you doing? I'm just fine." 31:28 Vigor, no sign of death, no sign of rickets. 31:32 No sign of needing contact lenses, 31:34 isn't that right, Mark? 31:35 Just perfect health. 31:37 Do you remember my name? 31:39 I remember your name and her name, 31:40 and his name and her name and that, 31:41 no diminishing of the mind. 31:43 So when the Bible says, 31:45 we shall live and reign with Christ a 1000 years, 31:47 we ought to say hallelujah. 31:48 I'm looking forward to reigning with Christ, 31:50 and for that matter a 1000 years, brother. 31:52 Isn't that great? 31:54 To be in heaven for a 1000 years. 31:58 How many of you would like to be on a cruise 31:59 for 1000 years. 32:01 Come on, somebody. 32:02 Identify with me on that. 32:04 How many of you like to relax 32:05 and not work another day in your life, 32:07 and not have to worry about a thing? 32:09 Amen? 32:10 Let me just make this real to you. 32:12 How many of you would like to go to the bank 32:13 and just ask for any amount of money and get it? 32:17 I'm not even touching heaven yet. 32:19 You see, you see, there's a gold standard. 32:21 At least we used to have one, 32:23 and they say, in America, 32:26 our government is shutdown right now, we're in trouble, 32:29 but there will be no government shutdown 32:30 in heaven, what do you say? 32:32 So we're talking about being in heaven for a 1000 years, 32:35 no pain, there'll be no hospitals. 32:38 Nobody will have funerals, nobody will be driving by, 32:40 there'll be no hearse in heaven. 32:44 There'll be no chickens running away from us 32:45 in heaven either. 32:47 There'll be no more death. 32:49 There'll be no thanksgiving turkeys. 32:52 Even the turkeys will be glad that eternity has ruled. 32:56 It's going to be a beautiful thing. 32:58 We're going to be in heaven for a 1000 years. 33:00 Come on, say amen somebody. 33:02 I don't know what I've experienced. 33:04 I can't even live long enough down here 33:06 to experience anything good for a 1000 years. 33:09 Can you imagine, 33:10 nothing but a 1000 years of good. 33:13 And that's just the beginning. 33:15 I remember years ago when Pastor Batchelor 33:16 was talking about this, 33:18 and he and I were in evangelism together. 33:19 And one evening, it just, he just, 33:21 he put forth this illustration 33:23 that almost made my brain explode 33:25 as I was sitting down. 33:27 He said, he said... 33:31 "If a bird went to the beach, 33:37 and with his beak picked up a single grain of sand, 33:40 and flew that grain of sand all the way to the sun, 33:43 93 million miles one way, and 93 million miles back, 33:48 and came and picked up another grain 33:50 and flew that one 93 million miles to the sun 33:53 and 93 million miles back, 33:55 and each grain represented a 1000 years 33:57 and that bird did not stop 33:59 until there was no more sand left on earth. 34:01 He said, "If each of those represent the time 34:03 we will live, we've just begun to live." 34:08 And I thought, "No, he didn't just say that." 34:13 All the grains of sand 34:15 on all the beaches of the world, 34:18 93 million miles one way and back, 34:21 gets another grain, goes and comes back. 34:23 And he does nothing but that throughout his existence, 34:26 after he's removed 34:27 all the grains of sand carrying, 34:29 and each one of them represent a 1000 years, 34:30 we've just begun to live, what do you say? 34:33 So I can't run past this when it says, 34:35 we will only be in heaven a 1000 years, is that it? 34:40 Is that it? 34:41 And then heaven is going to come down to earth. 34:43 I know that's not the topic tonight. 34:45 But I'm pausing just to think 34:47 of how beautiful it's going to be. 34:48 No more of the things down here. 34:50 So when it says, we shall be priests of God and of Christ 34:53 and shall reign with Him a 1000 years. 34:55 What a day of rejoicing that's going to be. 34:58 Well, okay, let's go back to the study tonight. 35:01 Come back to earth, 35:02 we've been in heaven for a long time, 35:04 come back to earth. 35:05 Here we are. Question number 14. 35:08 How does the Bible... 35:09 And by the way the answer there in number 13, 35:11 in what way does the Bible describe 35:12 the blessing of the change? 35:15 Second death has no power, that's the answer. 35:18 Thank you, Karen. 35:19 Number 14, How does the Bible teach 35:21 that we finally take on the character of Christ? 35:25 How does it teach that we finally take 35:27 on the character of Christ? 35:29 It's a beautiful illustration that Paul the Apostle 35:31 in Romans 6:8 and 9, you find the answer there. 35:36 This illustrates it so wonderfully. 35:38 This text has a dual meaning by the way, 35:40 it doesn't just have an eternal application 35:42 but it has a spiritual application. 35:45 Okay? Romans 6:8 and 9. 35:49 Here it is on the screen, all right? 35:53 "Now if we died with Christ, 35:56 we believe that we shall also," what? 35:59 "Live with Him," died with him, 36:01 that's what the Bible says, those who sleep in Jesus, 36:04 "Knowing that Christ, 36:05 having been raised from the dead, 36:08 dies no more." 36:10 Say that word. No more. 36:12 That's why there's no more sorrow, no more death, 36:14 no more crying, no more. 36:15 And then finally, "Death no longer has," what? 36:20 "Dominion over Him." 36:22 Here's the answer. 36:24 How does the Bible teach that we finally take 36:25 on the character of Christ? 36:27 Death no longer has dominion over us, 36:32 will not be heard of the second death, 36:34 will not be... 36:35 Death no longer has dominion over us. 36:38 There won't be any more death. 36:40 Death itself will be put out of business. 36:42 Death won't have any power over us. 36:44 As a matter of fact, you know what? 36:47 Not only will death not have any power, 36:49 but death won't even exist anymore. 36:51 That means flowers won't die, right? 36:55 That means that fragrance, 36:56 if you are a botanist or love roses, 36:58 or love that fragrance 36:59 that God has placed in the gardens. 37:01 We cannot imagine or fathom the beauty of a flower 37:05 that just blossoms and blossoms and blossoms. 37:08 And by the way, thank you, my wife, my honey said, 37:11 there'll be no more allergies. 37:13 Come on, amen, somebody. 37:14 You'd be able to go like this. 37:18 What a beautiful smelling rose. 37:20 And there'll be no sneezing in heaven either. 37:22 Man, there's so much look forward to, 37:24 I can't imagine it. 37:25 But here's the answer to number 14. 37:28 Death no longer has dominion over Him, 37:31 if we take on the character of Christ, 37:34 and are we made in His likeness, 37:36 death will no longer have dominion over us. 37:39 No more funerals, no more goodbyes, 37:41 no more I wonder whatever happened to so and so. 37:44 Praise the Lord for that. 37:46 He knows exactly how to fix this thing. 37:47 And I'm excited about it. 37:49 Right? 37:50 Number 15, moving right along. 37:52 Moving right along. 37:54 What great privilege 37:56 does the resurrection present to the righteous? 37:59 What great privilege 38:01 does the resurrection present to the righteous? 38:04 Number 15. 38:05 All right, let's turn to 1 Thessalonians 4:16 and 17. 38:10 I know your brains are already there, 38:12 but get your fingers there too. 38:14 1 Thessalonians 4:16 and 17. 38:18 Look at this beautiful illustration. 38:20 What wonderful privilege, 38:22 what great privilege does the resurrection 38:23 present to the righteous? 38:26 You know, a lot of times when you get something, 38:28 you want to know what the benefits are. 38:30 Well, the resurrection has benefits, 38:32 it is going to allow us to do something 38:33 that we've never done before. 38:36 Okay, here it is. 38:38 Are you ready? 38:39 Here we are on the screen. 38:41 "For the Lord Himself 38:42 will descend from heaven with a shout, 38:46 with the voice of an archangel, with the trumpet of God. 38:49 And the dead in Christ will rise," when? 38:52 "First. 38:53 Then we who are alive 38:56 and remain shall be caught up," how? 39:00 "Together with them in the clouds," 39:04 and here comes the privilege, to do what? 39:05 Let's say it together, "To meet the Lord in the air. 39:10 And thus we shall always be with the Lord." 39:13 Now the focus is... 39:15 Praise the Lord for the amen. 39:17 The focus is... 39:19 What's the privilege? 39:20 Will be caught up in the clouds, to do what? 39:22 To meet. 39:24 To do what? To meet. 39:26 He's not coming down here to meet us, 39:28 we're going to meet Him up there. 39:31 This ideology is, 39:32 that people meet Him when they die... 39:34 No, they don't. 39:35 As the kids we used to say when we were growing up, 39:37 "Uh-uh." 39:38 You know, or as the little kids speak, "Uh-uh." 39:41 No, we don't meet Him when we die. 39:44 We meet Him in the resurrection. 39:47 And this is the beautiful thing about it. 39:49 Those who never die are caught up with those 39:52 who are resurrected 39:53 and together in this beautiful union. 39:55 The resurrected saints meet the living saints 39:58 and we are caught up... 40:00 What's the next word? 40:01 Together with them to meet the Lord in the air. 40:07 Jesus is going to say, "How are you doing, Richard? 40:10 How are you doing, Yannick? 40:11 Good to see you. 40:12 Buckle up, we got a seven-day flight." 40:15 Amen somebody. 40:17 "Buckle up, we got a seven-day flight. 40:18 Good to see you, Lorraine. 40:20 Oh, you look fine. 40:22 I guess I took care of all those ailments 40:24 you struggled with down on earth." 40:25 Amen. 40:27 "Lorraine, no more doctors." 40:28 Amen. Amen, Lorraine? 40:29 No more doctors. 40:31 That would be the biggest blessing I could ever have 40:33 is no more surgeries and no more doctors. 40:37 Praise the Lord. No more. 40:39 No more surgeries, no more doctors. 40:40 We could add to that. 40:41 No more pain, no more suffering, 40:43 no more death. 40:44 Oh, what a wonderful thing it's going to be. 40:46 "Hannah. Good to see you, Hannah. 40:47 I'm Jesus. 40:49 I was looking forward to meeting you." 40:50 Amen, Hannah? 40:51 What a wonderful day that's going to be. 40:53 We're going to meet the Lord, and people are going to say, 40:55 "I never imagined. He looks so wonderful. 40:59 Look at Him, our Savior." 41:01 But have you noticed 41:04 there's that mark that they talked about, 41:06 the thorn, there's the mark that they talked about. 41:09 When He shakes our hand, 41:10 we're gonna say, "Hey, don't forget. 41:12 Look at His hand. 41:13 There it is. There it is. 41:15 He's going to forever be the mark of our redemption." 41:17 Oh, what a humbling thought. 41:18 But how beautiful it's going to be, 41:20 and then we're going to hear these words, 41:22 "Come, ye blessed of My Father, 41:25 inherit the kingdom prepared for you 41:27 from the foundation of the world." 41:29 And then Isaiah says there's a declaration 41:32 that's going to be made, "Open wide the gates, 41:34 that the nation that keepeth the truth may enter in." 41:37 Amen, somebody? Amen! 41:39 Oh, how wonderful it is. 41:40 And as we're entering the city, 41:42 I'm on a totally different topic right now. 41:44 As we're approaching the city, 41:46 Jesus is going to send a shout to the angel at the gate. 41:50 He says, "Lift up your heads, O ye gates, 41:53 and be ye lifted up the everlasting doors, 41:56 and the King of glory shall come in." 41:58 And he's going to echo back, "Who is the King of glory? 42:00 Lord is going to echo back, "The Lord. 42:02 He is the King, the Lord, strong and mighty, 42:04 the Lord, mighty in battle. 42:06 Lift up your heads, O ye gates." 42:08 And Ellen White says... 42:09 This is powerful. Let's go behind the scenes. 42:11 Ellen White says when we get to the gate, 42:13 there's going to be a golden card 42:15 that each of the saints are going to have 42:16 to allow them entrance into the Golden City. 42:18 You know what that golden card is going to be? 42:20 The righteousness of Jesus. What do you say? 42:22 I'll tell you how wonderful it's going to be 42:24 when we finally make it there, when we meet the Lord, 42:26 and then we look behind us for the last time. 42:30 He said, "Just take a peek at that. 42:32 Remember that 42:33 'cause what I'm going to show you next 42:35 is going to blow your mind." 42:37 That's one of the reasons why you got to be immortal 42:39 because what you see 42:40 is going to completely mess up your thought. 42:42 You have never seen anything like this ever. 42:45 You're going to be four days into flight 42:47 and God is going to say, "Put on your divine sunglasses, 42:50 it's going to get bright from here onward 42:52 'cause it's going to get bright." 42:54 As the songwriter said, 42:55 "I see the gleams of the golden morning 42:59 piercing through this night of gloom." 43:02 And then somebody else is going to sing. 43:03 "O it must the breaking of the day 43:05 that night is almost gone, the day is coming on. 43:08 O it must be the breaking of the day. 43:10 And then the angel is going to join us and sing. 43:12 Lift up the trumpet loud let it ring." 43:15 What a day it's going to be. 43:16 See, this is more than a topic to me. 43:18 This is a reality. 43:20 This is why I live and thrive and breathe 43:22 to teach a message 43:23 that I want people that are misunderstanding this 43:27 to be delivered into this beautiful truth. 43:31 The mom is not up there crying because her husband's missing 43:34 or crying that a baby is going through pain. 43:36 No. No. 43:37 She's waiting in the grave 43:39 waiting for that glorious reunion. 43:40 Mom is going to come forth and say, 43:43 "Look forward to seeing you." 43:44 "Mama, welcome. 43:45 Look forward to seeing you." 43:47 Celestine is going to be united with her mom. 43:48 She's going to be like, "Mom, let's go." 43:50 And they're going to all sing together. 43:51 And you know what? 43:52 Everybody's going to be able to sing then. 43:54 What do you say? 43:55 We're going to all have wonderful voices 43:57 as we all ascend singing the song of Moses 43:59 and the song of the lamb. 44:00 What a day that's going to be. 44:02 Caught up to meet the Lord in the air, 44:03 and thus shall we always be with the Lord. 44:07 Okay. Question number 16. 44:09 I don't know if I gave you the answer for number 15, 44:11 but the privilege of the righteous 44:13 is meeting the Lord. 44:14 Say that together. 44:16 Meeting the Lord. 44:17 That's the privilege of the righteous. 44:19 Number 16. Number 16. 44:23 David the Psalmist ask and I pose the question. 44:26 What great hope 44:28 did the Patriarch David hold on to? 44:31 What great hope 44:33 did the Patriarch David hold on to? 44:36 You know, when you read the Bible, 44:37 in the Old Testament and the New Testament, 44:39 you find this phrase repeated several times. 44:42 It's repeated over and over and over again. 44:45 David died and was buried and he rested with his fathers. 44:50 All the prophets of old died and were buried, 44:54 and you see that repeated over and over and over and over. 44:58 Slept, slept, slept, slept, died, slept with his fathers, 45:01 that he is placed in the grave 45:03 waiting for the coming of the Lord, 45:05 waiting for the Resurrection Day. 45:06 But what did David say? 45:08 What great hope did he hold on to? 45:10 Psalms 17:15. 45:12 Here it is. 45:13 He says, "As for me... 45:15 As for me, I will see Your face," in what? 45:19 "Righteousness." 45:21 Now get this, 45:22 "I shall be satisfied when I," what? 45:25 "Awake in Your likeness." 45:28 Is that clear? Yes. 45:30 When I awake, which means, what's he doing now? 45:32 Somebody, tell me. 45:34 He's sleeping. He's sleeping. David knew it. 45:37 David knew the teaching. 45:39 By the way, go with me very quickly 45:41 to the Book of Acts. 45:42 That's why Dr. Luke wrote 45:44 what he did in the Book of Acts. 45:46 He wrote what he did in the Book of Acts 45:48 because of this very text. 45:50 Okay. Acts. 45:52 Okay, I'm almost there now. 45:55 Okay, John, slow your fingers down. 45:58 Here they are. 46:00 Okay. 46:02 Acts 2:29. 46:05 David the Psalmist said, 46:07 "I will be satisfied when I awake in your likeness." 46:10 He knows he's not going to come out of the grave 46:12 the same way he went in. 46:13 Praise the Lord for that. 46:15 That's why Dr. Luke was able to write what he did 46:16 in Acts 2:29. 46:18 Notice what he said. Notice what he said. 46:22 He said, "Men and brethren, 46:24 let me speak freely to you of the patriarch," who? 46:29 "David that he is both," together, 46:32 "dead and buried and his tomb is with us to," what? 46:36 "This day." 46:38 So somebody may read that. 46:40 Those people, nowadays, that read that say, 46:41 "Well, his body is dead and buried, 46:44 but he's in heaven." 46:45 Oh, no. The Bible didn't stop reading. 46:46 The Bible didn't stop writing. Amen for that. 46:48 Let's go to verse 34. Let's go to verse 34. 46:52 You see, the Bible is so complete, 46:53 it doesn't leave any room for doubt. 46:55 Look at verse 34, verse 34. 46:57 "For David did not," what's the next word? 47:01 "David did not ascend into the heavens," 47:04 but he says," The Lord said to my Lord, 47:07 'Sit at My right hand 47:08 till I make your enemies your footstool.'" 47:11 So has David ascended, yes or no? 47:14 No. What's the truth about David? 47:15 He is both dead and buried. 47:18 And his sepulcher or his tomb is with us to this very day. 47:23 If you want to find out what David... 47:24 Now it may be tougher now, thousands of years later, 47:27 to find the exact spot. 47:29 But when this was written, when this entry was written, 47:33 they could point out where David was buried. 47:35 He's both dead and buried and his sepulcher is with us 47:38 to this day. 47:39 And they said, "But wait a minute." 47:41 The reason why the apostles were careful 47:43 to continue to reiterate this 47:45 is because still it took some time 47:47 to completely dispel the ideology 47:49 that men died and went to heaven. 47:51 They were still battling with it that day. 47:53 Even go to the Book of Corinthians 47:55 and there was an argument. 47:56 Some of the Pharisees and scribe 47:58 said the resurrection already passed, 47:59 and Paul had to deal with it again. 48:01 So David is dead and buried, 48:03 and David did not ascend to heaven. 48:04 That's why he said, 48:06 "I will be satisfied when I awake in Your likeness." 48:09 Praise the Lord for that. 48:10 Moving right along, moving right along. 48:13 Number 17, number 17. 48:15 We're doing a lot tonight. Ain't that amazing? 48:17 Number 17. Here's the next one. 48:20 Okay. 48:21 How does Paul the Apostle describe 48:24 the divine likeness we will receive? 48:29 How does he describe it, 48:32 that divine likeness that we shall receive? 48:36 1 Corinthians 15:49. 1 Corinthians 15:49. 48:44 This Bible, a catalog of books, 48:47 all harmoniously weaved together. 48:51 1 Corinthians 15:49. 48:54 You always wonder what we're going to look like. 48:55 You know, the other thing I want to also point out. 48:57 No matter how much you read, 48:59 we're still going be blown away when we see what we look like. 49:02 Ain't that right? 49:03 I mean... 49:05 You know, I consider myself in pretty good shape now, 49:07 but, you know, I'm frail still. 49:08 I got hit in my chest last week and it still hurt. 49:12 Right there, it's still in pain. 49:15 However, we're not going to have to worry about that. 49:17 We are going to be so physically fit 49:20 when we get to have no more pains anywhere. 49:23 So this beautiful analogy, this beautiful representation, 49:26 this beautiful description of how we're going to be 49:28 when the Lord comes, it just amazes me as I see 49:31 what the Bible reveals to my mind. 49:33 Let's look at 1 Corinthians 15:49. 49:36 Here it is on the screen. 49:38 How does he describe the likeness? 49:41 "As we have borne the image of the man of dust, 49:47 we shall also bear the image of the," what man? 49:51 "Heavenly Man." 49:52 Who's the man of dust? 49:54 Adam. 49:56 We right now have the first Adam's body. 50:00 Even though we are made over in the righteousness of Christ, 50:03 even though we've accepted 50:05 and are partakers of His divine nature, 50:07 we still have this whole body to mess with. 50:09 When you wake up in the morning, 50:11 "Oh, what is that? 50:12 Adam's body is defective," right? 50:15 "Oh, what happened? 50:16 Adam's shoulder is defective." 50:18 "Are you okay?" "Adam's legs are defective." 50:21 When we wake up, 50:22 we're not going to have any of that, right? 50:24 We will bear the image of the heavenly Man. 50:27 And I want you to know, when Jesus rose, 50:29 when Jesus rose, it's like, 50:32 "Whoo, this feels good." 50:35 Not that He didn't know what that was, 50:36 but I want to let you know something. 50:38 When Jesus was in heaven, 50:41 He had no dimensions of... 50:43 He had no human body. 50:45 He was purely, totally, only divine. 50:48 But when he condescended, the Bible says, 50:50 "A body thou has prepared for me." 50:53 He came in the likeness of sinful flesh. 50:57 He took on the role that we all wear every day. 51:00 But He was victorious over sin in that robe. 51:02 And when He came forth, 51:04 He represented a body that each of us will have 51:07 when we come forth from the grave 51:08 and reflect His glory. 51:11 We shall also bear the image of the heavenly Man. 51:15 But I want to go ahead and insert something there 51:17 very quickly. 51:18 Write that down. 51:20 How does Paul the Apostle describe the divine likeness? 51:21 We receive the image of the heavenly Man, 51:25 the image of the heavenly Man, Jesus. 51:27 If you put that down, "The image of Jesus," 51:29 that's good enough for me. 51:32 All right. 51:33 Now this next one... 51:35 Oh, I love it. 51:36 You know, there's not any I don't love really. 51:38 But... 51:40 Let's go to question number 18. 51:42 I think we can do. We have six minutes. 51:44 If not, we'll go ahead and do it again 51:46 on the next program. 51:48 But number 18. 51:49 What promise has the Lord made through the Apostle John? 51:54 This is so beautiful. 51:56 What promise has the Lord made through the Apostle John. 51:59 He's made a promise to us. 52:01 Let's go ahead and see that promise 52:03 because the Bible says, "We shall bear the image," 52:05 but let's go ahead and see that promise being fulfilled. 52:07 1 John 3:2. 52:09 It's on the screen now. 52:10 Here it is. 52:11 "Beloved, now we are the children of," who? 52:15 "God." Now that's... 52:17 When are we the children of God? 52:18 When? Now. 52:19 "And it has not yet been revealed 52:23 what we shall be..." 52:26 We don't know what that image is going to look like, 52:28 "But we know that when He is revealed, 52:31 we shall be," what? 52:33 "Like Him, for we shall see Him as He is." 52:41 We're going to say, "Angie, you look like Christ. 52:44 She's gonna say, "John, you look like Christ." 52:46 Perfect bodies. 52:48 We're not going to be photocopies of Christ. 52:50 Each of us is going to have our own description. 52:52 Matter of fact, Jesus was so changed 52:54 that Mary couldn't recognize Him. 52:56 But His voice... 52:57 His voice "Hey, that sounds like Yannick's voice, 53:03 but he doesn't look like Yannick." 53:05 Yannick's gonna say, "It's me." 53:08 I'll tell you how beautiful it's going to be. 53:09 We're going to all look like Jesus finally. 53:11 We're going to bear that beautiful image 53:14 that can only be given to us by the divine Son of Man. 53:18 Praise God for that. Amen. 53:19 Let's try to make this. 53:21 We've got a few more. 53:22 So the answer to that is... 53:24 What promise has the Lord made through the Apostle John? 53:28 We shall be like Him. Okay? 53:31 We, at the bottom, shall be like Him. 53:34 That's the answer. 53:35 We shall be like Him. 53:37 That's why that song The Heritage Singers 53:39 sang years ago. 53:40 We shall be like Him 53:42 Any day now 53:45 We'll be goin' home 53:48 Okay, that was extra credit. 53:49 No payment required for that. 53:52 Number 19. 53:53 Moving right along at a wonderful pace. 53:55 Here it is. 53:56 How does the Apostle Paul 53:58 compare mortality and immortality? 54:02 How does he compare the two? 54:04 Romans 6:5. 54:06 How does he compare the two? 54:08 Let's look at that together. 54:10 All right. On the screen. 54:12 I'm going to put that there just for the benefit of time. 54:14 I know many of you are still turning, 54:16 and I appreciate all the pages. 54:17 Keep doing that. 54:18 But here's what the Apostle says, 54:20 "For if we have been united together 54:22 in the likeness of His death," what is the very next word? 54:26 "Certainly we also shall be in the likeness of His," what? 54:31 "Of His resurrection." 54:33 Now are we in the likeness of His death? 54:35 Yes. 54:37 That's what that whole new birth experience is all about. 54:40 Since you went through that, 54:42 you will also be in the likeness 54:43 of His resurrection. 54:45 Amen. 54:46 Death to self, burial, 54:47 come forth in the newness of life, 54:49 one day that qualifies us 54:50 to be in the likeness of His resurrection. 54:52 That's the beauty of that. We shall have that experience. 54:56 So the answer, how does the apostle 54:58 compare mortality and immortality? 55:00 We shall be in the likeness of His resurrection. 55:03 We shall be in the likeness of His resurrection. 55:06 Now let's look at the next one. 55:07 I think we're going to make it. 55:08 I almost think we're going to make it. 55:10 Number 20. Here we are. 55:12 Number 20. 55:14 All right. 55:15 What assurance have we received... 55:19 What assurance have we received 55:22 if we remain faithful? 55:24 If we remain faithful. 55:26 That word is supposed to be if. 55:27 I got excited and my hands 55:29 got crossed on there, but that's okay. 55:30 You know what I mean? 55:32 What assurance have we received 55:33 if we remain faithful? 55:35 And the text is 1 Corinthians 15:42, 55:38 1 Corinthians 15:42. 55:42 What verse did I say? 55:44 Forty two. 55:46 Paul keeps us in that book. 55:47 What a powerful... 55:49 What a powerful section of the Bible, 1 Corinthians 15, 55:51 very amazing. 55:53 The whole issue is dealt with there. 55:54 Here's what he says. 55:56 "So also is the resurrection of the dead. 56:00 The body is sown in," what? 56:02 "Corruption, it is raised in," what? 56:05 "Incorruption." 56:07 Those are all the things that don't happen when you die. 56:10 They happen when you are raised. 56:12 What I want you to notice, 56:14 there's a constant thread in all of these passages. 56:18 And they are all about the what? 56:20 Resurrection. 56:21 "So also is the resurrection of the dead. 56:23 The body is sown in corruption, 56:25 it is raised..." 56:26 We're talking about the resurrection, 56:28 something that doesn't happen when you die. 56:30 Okay? 56:31 So let's go to the very last one. 56:32 We can make it. 56:34 Here it is. 56:35 What has the Apostle Paul 56:36 held out as the greatest blessing to us? 56:39 What has he held out as the greatest blessing to us? 56:43 And I'm going to go right there 56:45 since we have a little bit more than a minute. 56:47 All right, here's the answer. 56:50 This is beautiful, 56:51 and I want to end with this one. 56:52 "That I may know Him and the power of His," what? 56:56 "Resurrection, 56:57 and the fellowship of His," what? 56:59 "Suffering, being conformed to His," what? 57:02 "Death. 57:03 If, by any means," I like this, 57:05 "I may attain to the," what? 57:08 "Resurrection of the dead." 57:12 Paul is saying, "What I want more than anything else 57:15 is to attain to the resurrection of the dead." 57:19 Did Paul teach that 57:20 you're dying and going straight to heaven? 57:21 No. 57:23 He taught that we are all going to be changed 57:25 in the resurrection. 57:26 And Paul's greatest desire 57:28 is to know the power of His resurrection 57:30 so that one day he may attain 57:32 to the resurrection from the dead. 57:35 So where's the Apostle Paul right now? 57:37 Somebody tell me. Grave. 57:39 He's in the grave. 57:40 David's in the grave. 57:42 All the faithful prophets are in the grave. 57:44 All those who serve Jesus, the disciples are in the grave. 57:47 All of our loved ones who have been laid to rest 57:49 are in the grave. 57:50 And, friends, what's so wonderful about this 57:52 is the Lord has something wonderful 57:54 in store for all of us. 57:55 So keep studying. 57:56 It may not make sense, 57:58 but if you trust the Word of God, 57:59 what does not make sense will come into A Sharper Focus. 58:03 God bless you. |
Revised 2019-01-28