It has stood the test of time.
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God's book, The Bible
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Still relevant in
today's complex world
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It Is Written
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Sharing messages of
hope around the world!
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I'd like to ask you a question.
Let's say it's your wedding day.
I want you to imagine that
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everyone gathers together,
everybody dresses really, really
nice. And let's just say, for
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example, that you got married
and there were six bridesmaids -
seven ladies all together. And
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after the ceremony, after the
pastor says, "What God has
joined together, let no man put
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asunder," all of that comes to
the end, and after the wedding,
you go to the reception, you
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have wonderful cake, wonderful
food, then it comes time to go
home. And instead of taking your
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bride, you take one of the
bridesmaids home with you.
Here's the question: How is your
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new wife going to feel? She's
probably not going to be your
wife anymore! And how would your
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new wife feel if, when she asked
you, "Why did you go home with
her?" And you said, "Well, I
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mean, it's just one in seven. I
mean, you all were there." I
know this all sounds ridiculous,
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but today in Christianity many
are making these same arguments
about a very special gift from
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God to humanity. That gift was
given at the beginning of time.
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God reminded us of that gift, by
writing it in His law. God's
desire is that His law - His
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desire is that we would have the
law written in our hearts,
because His law endures forever,
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and He wants it to be in us
forever. The fourth commandment,
in Exodus chapter 20 verses 8 to
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11, God begins the fourth
commandment with what
word.Remember God wrote the
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word "remember." Why? Because
looking down the centuries, he
saw that man would forget the
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Sabbath, and in particular,
forget Him. You see, the
instruction of God in Exodus 20
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was:
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The seventh day is the Sabbath.
Now this may be a new idea or
understanding for you. It was
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new for me 20 years ago. And
I'll tell you, as soon as I
began to speak about the
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Sabbath, for some people, flags
go up. So if the flags have gone
up in your mind, just bring them
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down, and let's study together.
What I will hear from many
people is that we just need to
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worship God one day in seven, it
doesn't matter which one." Is
that really what the Bible says?
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The Bible
continues on in Exodus 20:
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Remember Revelation
chapter 14, says this:
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Exodus 20:8 through 11:
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Revelation 14:7 says
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Revelation chapter 14:7 is a
direct quotation from Exodus
chapter 20 verses 8 through 11.
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The angel of Revelation 14 is
pointing us back to the book of
Exodus. And then, Exodus 20:8 to
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11 is pointing us back to where?
Genesis chapter 2. You see how
the Bible works? We don't have
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to go out looking around and
researching and reading
commentaries; the Bible makes
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sense when we let the Bible
interpret itself. You see,
Revelation, the last book of the
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Bible, points us back to Exodus,
the second book of the Bible,
and Exodus points us back to
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Genesis, the first book of the
Bible. From Genesis to
Revelation, the Bible's message
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is the same all the way through.
Although written over 1500 years
apart, Moses and John were both
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on the same page. Because they
were inspired by the same Holy
Spirit.Both testify to the
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origin of the Seventh-day
Sabbath as to the Creator
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Himself. Some will say to me
"But Sabbath is a Jewish thing."
How many Jews were there in the
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beginning when God rested,
blessed, and sanctified the
seventh day Sabbath? None. It
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wasn't until centuries later
that Abraham, the father of the
Jews was born Who did God create
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the Sabbath for? In
Mark 2:27 Jesus says,
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"Man" is translated from the
Greek word "Anthropos" which
also means "people". It does not
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reference Jews in particular.
The Bible speaks of the Sabbath
in other places. Isaiah 58,
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says?
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Everyone is the operative word.
It includes all people for all
time. God promises a blessing on
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all who keep the Sabbath.
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The Sabbath is the seventh day
of the week, given to Adam and
Eve at creation, reminded to
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Moses at the Ten Commandments.
But what about Jesus? There are
some people who have the idea
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that Jesus changed the Sabbath.
But, let's see. What did Jesus
do? Luke 4:16 says:
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Jesus gave additional insights
into the Sabbath throughout His
life and even in His death. By
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studying a little deeper, we see
that there are two components to
Sabbath Rest: We rest in a
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completed creation and we rest
in a completed redemption. What
do I mean by that? Remember,
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Exodus 20 is a part of the
fourth commandment which says:
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God says, "Remember the Sabbath
day," and then tells us why.
Why? Because God created the
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earth in six days. But then
later in Deuteronomy chapter 5,
God says something a little
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different. Deuteronomy chapter
5, also the Sabbath commandment,
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says this: Now, sometimes when
people read those two
commandments, they say, "Oh,
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well, God changed the
commandment." Did God change the
commandment? No. Because see, in
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Exodus, God called them back to
creation. But in Deuteronomy
chapter 5, God calls them back
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to reflect upon what? Their
redemption to come out of Egypt.
Throughout the Scriptures,
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especially in the book of
Revelation, Egypt is
representative of sin. God wants
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us to remember the Sabbath both
because He created us, and
because He redeemed us. And
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Jesus Himself said
these words in John 14:15
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We don't keep the commandments
of God to be saved; we keep the
commandments of God because we
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are saved. In the signs of the
times given by Jesus and
referring to the destruction of
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Jerusalem, in Matthew
24:20, Jesus says these words,
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Why is this important? Jerusalem
wasn't destroyed until 70 A.D.
Which was approximately
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40 years after Jesus was
crucified. And so here's the
question. If Jesus came to this
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world to change the
commandments, and in particular,
change the Sabbath commandment,
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why would He tell His disciples
to specifically pray about not
fleeing on the Sabbath if He was
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going to change it?
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When we go to the story of
Jesus' crucifixion, we find
something extraordinary, that
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even in His death, Jesus kept
the Sabbath. Luke 23 verse 54
through Luke 24 verse 1,
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speaking of the day in which
Jesus was crucified, The Bible
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says, The women came to anoint
the body of Jesus, but he
Sabbath drew near and they would
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not have time to anoint His
body, so they waited until the
Sabbath was over. They rested on
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the Sabbath according to what?
The commandment. The Bible goes
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on to say: But did they find
Jesus in the tomb? No, because
He had risen from the dead.
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Resurrection is commonly called
Easter. And Easter is on Sunday,
which is the first day of the
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week. The Bible clearly outlines
the week, you have Friday, the
preparation day. We call that
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Good Friday. That is the day in
which Jesus was crucified. Then
Jesus rests in the tomb on the
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Sabbath day, or what we would
call modern-day Saturday. And
then Sunday, the first day of
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the week, Jesus resurrected.
Sixth day of the week, Friday,
The preparation day.Seventh day
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of the week, Saturday, the
Sabbath day.Sunday, the first
day of the week. Now, here's now
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what some people will begin to
talk to me about. They'll say,
"But pastor, you don't
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understand. Jesus changed the
worship day from Saturday to
Sunday."." The word "Sunday,"
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actually never appears in the
Bible, because they didn't use
those names. They used "first
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day," "second day," "third day,"
so on and so forth. There are
eight texts in the New Testament
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that mention the first day of
the week, which is Sunday, and
not one of them - not one of
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them - tells us to worship on
Sunday, in honour of the
resurrection. But that doesn't
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mean that we ignore the
resurrection and that we are not
to celebrate it. Paul has given
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us a beautiful picture of how we
are to celebrate and actually
live out the resurrection in our
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own lives in Romans 6. We do not
honour the resurrection by
worshipping on Sunday. We honour
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the resurrection by baptism.
When someone is baptized, they
are placed under the water. When
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they are placed under the water,
they are symbolically buried
with Christ in death. Then when
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they are raised, they are
resurrected with Him to walk in
the newness of life. You see,
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the Bible gives a very clear
path to how we honour the
resurrection. We honour the
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resurrection every time someone
is baptized to walk in the
newness of life with Jesus.
00:14:08.18\00:14:15.45
But here's another interesting
point. In over 140 languages of
the world, the word for the
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seventh day is the word
"Sabbath." Some will ask about a
change in calendar. The Royal
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Greenwich Observatory in
Greenwich, England, wrote this:
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Was the calendar changed in
history? It was. We went from
the Julian to the Gregorian
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calendar, and here's what
happened. October 1582,
Thursday, October the 4th then
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became Friday, October the 15th.
Was there any change in the
weekly cycle? There was no
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change in the weekly cycle
because we still went Sunday,
Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday,
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Thursday, and Friday, and then
Saturday, or the Sabbath. We
didn't lose any days. The weekly
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cycle was maintained. Friend,
the Bible is quite clear. From
creation to Moses, there was no
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change in the Sabbath. From
Moses to Jesus, there was no
change in the Sabbath. And from
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Jesus to the disciples and Jesus
in His death, there was no
change in the Sabbath. But then
00:15:43.54\00:15:51.01
in the early church there was no
change, notice the apostle Paul
in Acts 17:1 and 2:
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Paul was preaching on
Sabbaths. Acts 13:42 emphasizes
00:16:14.60\00:16:22.04
Just as it was the custom of
Jesus to worship on the Sabbath
day, to remember the Creator of
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the heavens and the earth, so it
was Paul's custom to also
worship on the Sabbath day. Acts
00:16:35.29\00:16:41.06
13:44 records, on the next
Sabbath, almost the whole city
came together to hear the Word
00:16:41.16\00:16:47.34
of God. Notice these words from
the apostolic constitutions:
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Even the early church kept the
Sabbath. The book of Revelation
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says, Does it say, "Here are
those that keep the nine
commandments, the eight
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commandments"? No, it says,
"Here are they that keep the
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commandments." Friends all of
the commandments were inspired
by God. All of those
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commandments were written by God
in stone. All of those
commandments -Bible says that
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God has written in our hearts.
The Bible tells us that we'll
keep the Sabbath in heaven.
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Notice what the
Bible says in Isaiah 66:
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The Sabbath was given at
creation. The Sabbath was
reminded at the giving of the
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Ten Commandments. Jesus kept the
Sabbath. The apostles kept the
Sabbath. And the Bible tells us
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in Isaiah 66 that in heaven, we
will keep the Sabbath as well.
Jesus peering down time, knew
00:18:28.10\00:18:39.21
that His people would need a
time to rest. He gave us the
Sabbath not as a restriction,
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but He gave us the Sabbath as
something that we could look
forward to. Matthew 12 says:
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The son of man is also Lord of
the Sabbath. Matthew, Mark, and
Luke all testify that what day
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is the Lord's day? The Sabbath
day is the Lord's day. You see,
even in the giving of the final
00:19:01.84\00:19:10.48
book of the Bible, God visits
John on the Sabbath. Archelaus
of Cascar in Mesopotamia wrote
00:19:10.58\00:19:18.29
these words:
00:19:18.39\00:19:19.79
The Sabbath of the creator God
in Genesis is the Lord's day of
Revelation. From Genesis to
00:19:30.53\00:19:35.27
Revelation, we don't need to
wonder what day is God's day;
the Bible is clear that the
00:19:35.37\00:19:42.01
Sabbath is God's day, because
the Sabbath was given at
creation. The Sabbath was given
00:19:42.11\00:19:47.98
at Sinai. The Sabbath was kept
by his people throughout time.
The Sabbath was kept by Jesus.
00:19:48.08\00:19:53.32
The Sabbath was honoured by the
disciples. The Sabbath is a sign
of God's power in our life, and
00:19:53.42\00:20:02.00
the Sabbath will be
kept on the new earth.
00:20:02.10\00:20:05.97
And so as we explore these
things, the question we must ask
ourselves is this: If God's day
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is the Sabbath, what's happening
in the world? What's going on
all around us?. "What about the
00:20:14.41\00:20:21.35
church I go to? Well, what about
my parents, what about my
grandparents?" And those are all
00:20:21.45\00:20:27.86
very important questions, and
they're hard questions. But
today, Jesus appeals to us and
00:20:27.96\00:20:35.70
He says, "I understand human
tradition. But today, I want to
call to you to move beyond human
00:20:35.80\00:20:43.27
tradition and explore what God's
Word says and accept what God's
Word says," because here is the
00:20:43.37\00:20:51.31
key piece. The greatest hoax of
history is this: craftily,
through time, the Sabbath was
00:20:51.41\00:21:02.32
slowly transitioned. And it was
slowly transitioned away from
God's day, the seventh-day
00:21:02.42\00:21:07.73
Sabbath, and done often in
sincerity. We read in history,
the early Christians, some of
00:21:07.83\00:21:15.54
them began transitioning away
from worshipping on the Sabbath.
And why did they reason to do
00:21:15.64\00:21:23.65
that? Because the Jews were
suffering severe persecution
under the Romans. And if you're
00:21:23.75\00:21:28.18
worshipping on the seventh-day
Sabbath, that means you're
worshipping on the same day as
00:21:28.28\00:21:31.39
the Jews. In fact, Christianity
early on was considered a sect
of Judaism. The Romans could
00:21:31.49\00:21:38.33
easily identify the Jews because
they went to synagogue on the
Sabbath. But the Christians also
00:21:38.43\00:21:43.53
went to the churches, to the
synagogues, on Sabbath. And so
under persecution, early
00:21:43.63\00:21:47.77
Christians began to worship on
different days. And they did it
in sincerity. But Jesus in the
00:21:47.87\00:21:56.61
Jerusalem factor is looking for
more than just sincerity. He is
looking for a people who are
00:21:56.71\00:22:05.82
looking up to heaven where He
ministers on our behalf in the
sanctuary. In the sanctuary they
00:22:05.92\00:22:11.39
see the One who loves them. They
see the holy law of God in the
ark located in the most holy
00:22:11.49\00:22:18.20
place of the sanctuary. And
while the world has forgotten
the Sabbath and forgotten the
00:22:18.30\00:22:24.57
Creator of the Sabbath and the
Creator of humankind, moral
decay is on the rise, society
00:22:24.67\00:22:31.71
has become more fractured and
the love of many is growing
cold. Today, Jesus stretches out
00:22:31.81\00:22:38.65
his hand and says it doesn't
have to be that way. The
solution to the problem is found
00:22:38.75\00:22:45.86
in the Jerusalem factor,
as written in Hebrews 8:1-2,
00:22:45.96\00:22:49.26
And out of their love for this
High Priest Jesus, they desire
to be obedient to Him. God's
00:23:05.15\00:23:14.62
moral standard has never
changed. The Sabbath isn't about
working for our salvation, it's
00:23:14.72\00:23:21.80
about resting from our work,
because we are saved. The
Jerusalem Factor is this, Jesus
00:23:21.90\00:23:30.47
is in his Holy temple in heaven,
we don't need to look to literal
Jerusalem, but to the heavenly
00:23:30.57\00:23:37.61
Jerusalem. Jesus has gone to
prepare a place for you in that
Holy City. And by inviting Him
00:23:37.71\00:23:45.65
in your heart today, you can by
faith, with the power of the
Holy Spirit, you will be enabled
00:23:45.75\00:23:53.80
to live a life full of joy even
now. Despite the challenges you
may be going through today,
00:23:53.90\00:24:01.47
despite the upheaval of the
world around you, you can have a
calm assurance and a peace that
00:24:01.57\00:24:07.24
passes all understanding. Today,
I invite you to experience the
00:24:07.34\00:24:14.85
freedom and love of God's law
and to rest in the salvation
that Jesus freely offers.
00:24:14.95\00:24:24.86
Heavenly father we are so
grateful that you care for us so
much that you've given us your
00:24:24.96\00:24:33.23
law, that you have given us your
Sabbath, that you've given us
Jesus. Today, dear Lord, I pray
00:24:33.34\00:24:41.44
that you would accept us as we
draw near to you that we might
enjoy your full presence and
00:24:41.54\00:24:51.02
experience your full joy and
rest fully in you. We pray this
in Jesus name, Amen.
00:24:51.12\00:24:55.86
The amazing blessing of God's
Sabbath day. This may have been
a new topic for you today maybe
00:25:08.60\00:25:14.74
you have a lot of questions,
maybe you're feeling like you
just don't quite understand. I
00:25:14.84\00:25:20.48
would like to give three offers
to you today to help you in your
understanding of not only the
00:25:20.58\00:25:25.52
Sabbath but what a deeper
relationship with Jesus looks
like. The first of those offers,
00:25:25.62\00:25:31.09
which is absolutely free, is the
book "A bridge across time". In
that book you'll be able to
00:25:31.19\00:25:36.97
answer questions about God's
law, about God's Sabbath and
about a more abundant
00:25:37.07\00:25:42.77
relationship with Jesus. The
second I'd like to give to you
for absolutely free is the
00:25:42.87\00:25:49.04
"Discover Bible Guides". The
"Discover Bible Guides" will
help you on your journey with
00:25:49.14\00:25:54.78
Jesus. There are several guides
that speak about God's law,
about God's Sabbath as well as
00:25:54.88\00:26:00.26
an abundance of other topics.
And lastly I would like to offer
you the full DVD set of the
00:26:00.36\00:26:08.00
"Jerusalem Factor" for any size
donation. We will be able to
review through all 8 of the
00:26:08.10\00:26:16.07
episodes and see how God in the
Jerusalem Factor invites us to
look to heaven to find our
00:26:16.17\00:26:23.45
answers. Here is the information
that you need to receive today's
00:26:23.55\00:26:29.32
offers. Dear friend, God loves
you so much that in eternity
past he set aside an entire day
00:27:30.01\00:27:36.99
- 24 hours - that you can spend
in complete devotion with him,
that you can rest completely in
00:27:37.09\00:27:44.89
his salvation for you. I hope
you find that rest in Jesus.
Maybe you have questions and
00:27:44.99\00:27:53.13
you're looking to further your
relationship with Jesus Christ -
I invite you to go to our
00:27:53.23\00:27:56.81
website www.ItIsWrittenCanada.ca
and there you'll find resources
to develop your spiritual
00:27:56.91\00:28:02.94
library. You can also like us on
Facebook, you can also follow us
on Twitter if you'd like to keep
00:28:03.04\00:28:10.29
up with me as I travel across
this great nation and around the
world - you can follow me
00:28:10.39\00:28:15.09
@Pastor Holland on Twitter. Dear
friend I hope you have found joy
in Jesus. I pray that you would
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join us again next week. Until
then remember, It Is Written man
shall not live by bread
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alone but by every word that
proceeds from the mouth of God.
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