Participants: Chris Holland
Series Code: IIWC
Program Code: IIWC201318
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00:12 >>Announcer: It has stood the test of time.
00:15 God's book, The Bible 00:18 Still relevant in today's complex world 00:23 It Is Written 00:26 Sharing messages of hope around the world! 00:40 >>Chris: In March of 2014, Paramount Pictures released the epic movie, 00:45 Noah. The movie is said to be a biblically inspired epic film. Some have 00:51 watched this film and it has raised questions about the character of God. How 00:56 could God, who the Bible says is loving, destroy the earth with a flood? 01:02 This week on It Is Written we will take a look at how this entire story was 01:06 started. 01:10 Noah is first mentioned in the Bible in Genesis 5:28-29, 01:39 In Genesis chapter five, the Bible gives the genealogy of the 01:42 generations from Adam, the first created man to the sons of Noah. At this 01:49 point there is only this brief mention of Noah and the comfort he will bring. 01:54 In Biblical times names had great meaning. And in the original Hebrew 01:59 language, Noah's name literally means resting, quietness, a soothing or a 02:06 resting place. We will soon see the significance of Noah's name. Noah was 02:12 the son of Lamech, and the grandson of Methuselah - the oldest man to ever 02:18 live. Noah lived at a time where humankind often lived for hundreds of 02:24 years. The Bible goes on to say this in Genesis chapter 5, 02:52 When Noah was five hundred and ninety-five his father passed away. Noah, had 02:57 three sons and he lived a life seeking God. 03:03 The question that is brought up is why is this story of some 4-5000 years 03:09 ago, important to us today? Jesus indicates this story, which the 03:15 Bible indicates was a literal event of history, as important. Listen to 03:21 Jesus' words of Matthew 24:37-39, 03:56 Jesus indicates one of the important features to understand about the flood 04:00 event is in reference to the second coming. The flood is a lesson to us 04:08 today about how the second coming will work. In one of the parallel gospels, 04:14 the gospel of Luke, the words of Jesus are recorded in Luke 17:26-27, 04:45 The story of Noah and the flood is an event of history that we should 04:50 look to in our preparations for the second coming of Jesus. 04:55 But Jesus wasn't the only one who counseled us to specifically study the 04:59 events surrounding Noah. The book of Hebrews says these words in reference 05:04 to Noah in chapter 11 and verse 7, 05:33 The events surrounding the life of Noah are a lesson of faith. As we study 05:38 about Noah we will see that Noah moved by faith and trusting in God 05:43 completely. As we live in these last days of earth's history we too can have 05:48 confidence in God. Are you distressed by the news today? Are you feeling 05:53 insecure about the future? We will study the life and Noah and find hope to have 05:59 faith and confidence in God today - because He will take care of us. 06:06 Peter also entreats us to study story of the worldwide flood of Noah's 06:13 day. In 1 Peter 3 and verse 20, 06:37 Noah serves as a reminder of the importance of baptism and the symbolic, 06:42 cleansing and saving powerof baptism by immersion and in his 06:48 second letter, 2 Peter 2 and verse 5, 07:15 Noah also serves as a lesson that is important for today. A day of 07:21 reckoning will come, their will be a judgment of this earth and God will make 07:27 all wrongs right. 07:31 The story of Noah is a literally event, that really happened in history 07:36 that should be studied as a lesson for us. It is a lesson that prepares us 07:42 for the second coming, it is a lesson of faith that we can have confidence in 07:46 God, and it is a lesson that there is a judgment that separates all that is 07:53 right from wrong. So, let's go back to the Bible and read about the story 07:56 of Noah and the flood. Let's go back to Genesis chapter 6, verses 1-8, 09:25 Now before we deal with this entire story, I want to take notice and 09:28 emphasize the very last verse: But Noah found grace in the eyes of the 09:35 Lord. We must remember all throughout this passage that the story of Noah is 09:40 a story of grace. It is the story of the grace of God. The grace of God is 09:47 the very undergirding of the whole story of Noah. What is grace? That would 09:54 probably take an entire show or series of shows to answer fully, but the 09:58 simple answer is this - God's unmerited or undeserved favor toward 10:04 humanity. The story of Noah is the demonstration of God's grace. 10:13 As we just read, the condition of Noah's day was one of great 10:17 depravity. In next weeks program we will study how that happened to humanity 10:22 but today, I want us to look at the very origin of the problems faced in 10:28 Noah's day. Verse 5 says that, 10:54 Do you hear the words being used to describe the conditions of Noah's day? 10:59 Wickedness, evil, corrupt and violence.How could such a condition exist? 11:06 The timing of the story of Noah is just over 1000 years after the creation 11:10 of the earth. The creation was perfect and harmonious, how could it 11:17 now, in such a short time be wicked, evil, corrupt and violent? Well, we need 11:25 to go back in time, back to that garden.that harmonious and perfect 11:30 garden.but something imperfect happened there. In Genesis chapter 3 we 11:40 are introduced to the most heinous villain of all time. We are introduced to 11:45 the archenemy of God and His people, the originator of evil and wickedness. In 11:57 Genesis chapter 3 and verse 1, the Bible says, 12:16 Who is this cunning serpent that is introduced into the perfect and 12:21 harmonious garden? Revelation 12:9 tells us specifically who this 12:27 serpent is. We go from that first book of Genesis to the l lt book 12:32 Revelation. Revelation chapter 12 tells us who this cunning serpent is. 12:51 The serpent is the devil or Satan. In order for us to understand the story of 12:56 Noah, we must understand whomthe originator of the evil and wickedness of his 13:03 day. Jesus spoke about the devil in John 8:44 when He said these words, 13:37 The devil is a murderer and the father of lies." Later after writing the 13:42 gospel, John wrote some letter in 1 John 3 he wrote these words about 13:49 the devil, 13:58 The devil has been a sinner from the beginning. A few verses before in 14:02 verse 4 John said this, 14:12 Sin is lawlessness or some versions say sin is the transgression of the law. 14:18 This is breaking the law of God - the ten commandments. The devil is 14:22 the originator of all evil, wrongdoing, wickedness and violence. 14:28 The story of Noah and the problems of society can be traced right to the devil 14:34 himself. 14:37 Some will say, but didn't God make the devil. The answer is no. God doesn't 14:43 create or do evil. God is good, He is love - He never makes anything bad. 14:50 But where did the devil come from then. We need to go a bit further back in 14:55 history. Some time in eternity's past - a being was made that was perfect 15:01 and beautiful. Ezekiel 28 tells the story, listen to these words in Ezekiel 15:15 28:12-15, 16:00 Lucifer was beautiful and perfect in beauty. Lucifer was covered in precious 16:07 stones. The Bible says that he was the anointed or covering cherub. Cherub 16:14 is a specific pe of angel. The covering cherub was an angel that stood 16:20 next to the very throne of God. Lucifer was the highest-ranking angel of 16:25 all of heaven, but something happened. This angel that was perfect 16:31 turned away from his perfection. I didn't finish verse 15. The end 16:38 of verse 15 says this, "Till iniquity was found in you." Iniquity is 16:45 another word for sin. Something happened. Lucifer the perfect angel, 16:52 the one perfect in beauty, the one who served next to the very throne of God 16:58 sinned. What could have happened that a perfect angel would sin? The book 17:07 of Isaiah paints a picture of the situation. In Isaiah 14:12-14, it says, 17:56 The story of Lucifer is tragic really. He was the highest ranking of angels, 18:03 he was perfect, and he had it all. But, he wanted something more. He wanted 18:09 a throne above Gods; He wanted to be the leader of the universe. In fact, He 18:16 wanted to take the place of God. He thought he could do things better. He 18:22 wanted to be in charge. And with such pride, he sinned in his own heart - 18:30 for he wanted to be God. Lucifer was a created being. He couldn't be God, 18:38 because he couldn't be worshipped. Revelation 4:11 tells us why God, why 18:45 Jesus can be worshipped, 19:10 We only worship the creator. The creation worships the creator. 19:16 Lucifer was created, yet he desired the place of God and undoubtedly 19:22 worship. 19:26 The Biblical record of what happened next is not very detailed. Undoubtedly 19:31 God would have labored with Lucifer to change his thoughts and ways. There 19:36 really is no question that Lucifer likely shared his doubts about God with 19:40 other angels around him. And like all matters, at some point, there came a 19:48 day of reckoning. Revelation 12 describes that day of reckoning. 20:21 War in heaven??? How is that possible? It seems that Lucifer through his 20:30 iniquity began to sow seeds of rebellion in heaven. Some of the angels 20:37 listen to him. And then war broke out in heaven. We don't know what kind of 20:42 war it was, but it was clearly over the supremacy of God. Who is supreme? 20:53 Ultimately Lucifer, who had now transformed himself into Satan, the 20:58 great dragon, the devil - ultimately he lost, along with his other angelic 21:03 followers. Earlier the Bible says that it was one third of the angels that 21:09 followed in Satan's rebellion. Finally, their punishment at that point 21:16 was banishment from heaven. 21:20 In order to understand the story of Noah, we need to understand the fall of 21:23 Lucifer. Lucifer was a perfect angel created by God, but he changed - he 21:31 rebelled, he sinned, he wouldn't back off of his position and was banished 21:36 from heaven and will ultimately be destroyed. God didn't make the devil, 21:43 God made a perfect angel that through his selfishness made himself 21:51 the devil. If God had destroyed him immediately, it would have raised 21:57 questions all throughout heaven about God's justice. Instead God has 22:04 allowed the devil to sow his seeds of wickedness that the universe would 22:10 know how evil the devil really is. 22:16 The story of Noah shows us the extent of evil that can develop. We will study 22:23 this further. Until that time, what can we learn from today? There is a 22:28 great war waging. It is behind the scenes. We cannot see it. But it is a 22:33 war between two beings, a war between Christ and Satan. A war for your 22:37 soul. A war asking which master will you serve. Satan is the author of 22:44 evil, wickedness and in justice. It is because of him that bad things happen 22:51 to good people. God loves you. He wants to save you. He wants to take you to 22:58 heaven where there is perfect peace and happiness. Do you want to 23:02 choose to follow Jesus today? Do you want to say today Jesus I only want to 23:09 serve you? If that is your desire, why don't you pray with me? Heavenly Father, 23:17 we desire to serve you. We know we cannot serve two masters. We know that 23:25 there is a war waging over our souls and we want to choose you. And so today 23:30 we come to you and we ask you to enter into our lives that we would serve 23:36 you forever, we pray in Jesus' name, amen. 24:05 >>Bev: Hi, everyone! May I ask, "What's in your medicine cabinet?" 24:09 Hopefully, you are eating a wonderful array of vegetables and fruits, as 24:13 they are protective of your good health. When we are eating well of God's 24:17 amazing plant bounty, we can expect to not get sick with colds and flu's as 24:22 often as other people do. But, every once in a while, we might succumb to 24:27 some virus or bacteria that's out there. That's when you need to have 24:31 really helpful, natural remedies on hand. Here are four of my 24:36 recommendations: Activated charcoal has been used for over 3000 24:41 years for health and healing. Made from wood, vegetables, and other 24:45 materials, it is able to attract and bind many harmful substances. It is 24:50 also amazing at filtering toxins. In some poisoning situations, activated 24:56 charcoal is highly beneficial. And then garlic is remarkable for 25:01 its antibacterial and anti-viral properties Feel a cold coming on? Nip 25:06 it in the bud by boiling 2 cloves of garlic in 2 cups of water for around 10 25:10 minutes. Drink this tea throughout the day. Ginger: has proven to be 25:15 very effective in alleviating the unsettling symptoms of motion and sea 25:20 sickness, including dizziness, nausea, vomiting, and cold 25:23 sweating. And lemons are famous for their strong antibacterial, antiviral, 25:30 and immune-boosting powers. Here is a recipe that can ease chills and 25:35 fever symptoms: add the juice of 1 lemon to a cup of hot water with honey 25:39 and drink at once, then every 2 hours until the fever or chill subsides. I 25:45 hope you'll add these suggested super heroes to your medicine cabinet, 25:49 along with fruits, vegetables, and especially the dark, leafy greens. 25:53 I'll see you next time! 26:01 >>Chris: Friends, the story of Noah is a story of the great controversy 26:05 between good and evil, a war waging between Christ and Satan. I want to offer 26:11 you a special edition of the magazine Signs of the Times. This magazine 26:16 called The Great Controversy will help increase your 26:21 understanding of this battle waging over your soul. It will be a 26:25 valuable resource for your spiritual library. I'm going to encourage you, 26:32 once you get this magazine, to read this magazine, to study this 26:35 magazine, compare it with scripture, and help it to prepare you. Jesus is 26:41 looking for a people who are prepared to meet him. This magazine, The Great 26:46 Controversy, will help you. Here's the information you need to 26:49 receive today's special offer. 27:28 >>Chris: Friends, I hope you enjoyed today's program. I'd like to 27:31 extend an invitation to you. On May the 31st at 11 a.m., the It Is Written 27:37 team will be in Winnipeg. We will be at the Henderson Highway Seventh 27:41 Day Adventist Church at 1314 Henderson Highway. That day, I'll be giving 27:47 an encouraging message on how we should live in these last days of earth's 27:52 history in preparation for the second coming of Jesus. Now, if you're not 27:58 in Winnipeg or you can't make it to Winnipeg that day, you can go to our 28:02 website, itiswrittencanada.ca and we'll be live streaming 28:07 the program. I encourage you to watch to be encouraged in these last 28:13 days. Friends, the story of Noah is a story of the great controversy between 28:19 good and evil. And it is a call for us to be faithful and to choose Jesus. I 28:25 hope you'll join us again next week for the program. Until then, remember, it 28:32 is written, "Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that 28:38 proceeds from the mouth of God." 28:42 $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$ |
Revised 2015-02-06