(inspirational theme music)
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>>Welcome to "Sabbath School,"
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bought to you by It Is Written.
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We're delighted to
have you with us once again
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as we continue our journey
through this quarter's lessons.
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We are looking at "Death,
Dying, and the Future Hope,"
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and this week
we're on lesson number 9.
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We've laid a
pretty firm foundation.
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We've got a pretty
solid picture, I think,
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through the last eight lessons
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of what happens
when a person dies
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and what the
future hope looks like.
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But, what about
those problem passages?
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Well, we're
delighted to have the author
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of this quarter
Sabbath school lesson with us,
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Dr. Alberto Timm, who
is an associate director
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of the Ellen G. White
Estate, and he is here
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to help us work our way through
some of those problem texts.
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Alberto, welcome back.
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>>It's a joy for me to join you.
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>>So let's look at these.
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We've got a lot of
'em to look at this week,
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and we're probably
not gonna be able to
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look in great detail at
each and every one of them,
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but we are going to at least,
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at least crack them all.
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Now, if you wanna dig
more deeply into these,
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if you're still
trying to figure out
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and pull some pieces together
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and you've got this
question, "Well, what about...?"
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I wanna encourage
you: Make sure you pick up
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the companion book to
this quarter's lesson.
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It is available
at itiswritten.shop.
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If you've read the
study guide already,
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if you're watching the
program, you've got some of it,
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but pick this up, and it
will go into greater detail
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on how to
answer these questions.
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It is called "On Death,
Dying and the Future Hope."
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The author, of
course, is Dr. Alberto Timm,
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itiswritten.shop.
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But, let's dive into these
and unpack as much as we can.
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The first one is
found in Luke, chapter 16.
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Luke, chapter
16, and in verse 19
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this problem passage
begins with these words:
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"There was a certain rich man
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"who was clothed in
purple and fine linen
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and fared
sumptuously every day."
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And this story continues
down through verse number 31.
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Alberto, why is the story
of the rich man and Lazarus
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a so-called problem text,
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and how do we make
it less problematic?
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>>The text is considered
or used by many people
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to prove the afterlife,
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or when somebody
dies, does not die,
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the soul continues to live.
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And in this case you
have the dialogue between
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a rich man and Lazarus.
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And then in the
so-called afterlife,
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they are dialoguing or they
are in a conversation there.
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And finally, they
come with some kind of--
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the rich man was
regretting and asking even
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some mercy from Lazarus.
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So, things really reversed.
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It seems that the rich
man that was enjoying life
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very much in this
life then was suffering.
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And Lazarus, who was
suffering in this life, later on
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was rejoicing in
paradise, supposedly.
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But this passage
has several implications
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that we cannot really consider
it as a literal statement.
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It is just allegory or
has a symbolic meaning,
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or, you know, as
we say, a parable.
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And I quote in the book
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in a few theologians
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that really show why
this cannot be considered
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as a literal text.
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But basically, in a few words,
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if this was really a
portrait of the afterlife,
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and one went to
heaven or paradise,
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to "the bosom of Abraham,"
and the other one went to hell,
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or if even, if you
want to call it purgatory,
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whatever you want, the thing is
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in that
communication between them,
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there was just
a valley or a hole
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where one could not go
from one place to the other one,
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but was clear enough, without
any cell phone or whatsoever,
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they could speak to each other.
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So, I guess that in such
a case, let's suppose that
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a mother would be saved,
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and the son would be lost.
They would not rejoice, I mean,
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the mother seeing
the suffering of his son.
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So it would be too
close to each other.
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And in addition, there
is reference in the case of
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Abraham-- I mean the
rich man--of having eyes,
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fingers, and tongue,
and so on and so forth.
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In this case, the soul,
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if this would be a literal
portrait of the afterlife,
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then the soul would
need to have a physical body.
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And having a
physical body able to suffer,
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as described in this
text, then it would be,
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I mean, the resurrection
would have no sense,
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make no sense at all,
because there was already a body
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for the soul in the afterlife.
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So, in this case,
there are several evidences
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that really this cannot be used
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because the
implications of taking it
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as a literal
description would be far worse
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than just to leave it
aside and saying this is what,
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this is just a
parable that Jesus used.
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And there are
evidences, I think, that we have
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enough that they were
some kind of teachings,
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a parable used at that
time that Jesus just picked up
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to teach that whatever decision
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we make in this life
has eternal consequences,
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and our destiny is decided here
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during this life, and there
is no chance of reversing it
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in the so-called afterlife.
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>>It's a very important
lesson for us to learn,
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for all of us to
learn, to understand.
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I like the last few
verses of this chapter
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that really--where
Jesus ties it all together,
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just exactly what
you're talking about.
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In verse number 27, he says,
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"I beg you therefore"--speaking
to Abraham--"father,
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"that you would send
him to my father's house,
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"for I have five brothers,
that he may testify to them,
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lest they also come to
this place of torment."
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And "Abraham said to him,
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'They have Moses and the
prophets; let them hear them.'"
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Now look at verses 30 and 31:
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"And he said,
'No, father Abraham;
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"but if one goes to them from
the dead, they will repent.'
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"But he said to him,
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"'If they do not hear
Moses and the prophets,
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"'neither will they be persuaded
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though one rose from the dead.'"
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So here Jesus
makes it very plain.
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He says even if
someone rose from the dead
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and went back and told them,
they still wouldn't believe,
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because they don't
believe Moses and the prophets.
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Or in other words, they
don't believe the Bible.
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And if they're
not going to believe
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the clear
teachings of the Bible,
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somebody going back and
telling them from the dead
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isn't going to
change their mind as well.
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And it's interesting
with these Jewish leaders;
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they didn't believe Jesus,
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they didn't believe
that He was the Messiah,
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and even when someone
came back from the dead,
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who not coincidentally
was named Lazarus,
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even when he came back,
they still didn't believe.
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So, just an
incredible picture here
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of not what literally
happens when a person dies,
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but a powerful
lesson for us to learn.
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There's another
problem text here.
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Oh, go right ahead. >>Eric?
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>>Yes, please. >>Yeah...
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I think that you brought up
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these passages that
are very significant.
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In this case it
calls the attention
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to Moses and the prophets.
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I think that the
same thing applies
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to the state of the
dead. Why should we not go
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to Moses and the prophets
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and to learn from
them what they have to say
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about the human nature
and the state of the dead?
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And even these
very same passages
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confirms that a condition
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for somebody to come
back to life is resurrection.
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This is the very last
sentence of the passage.
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>>Absolutely.
Well put, well put.
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Let's take a look at
the second problem text,
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and this one is found
over in Luke, chapter 23,
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Luke, chapter 23
and verse number 43.
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Let me see if I can
pull this one up real quick.
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Luke, chapter
23, verse number 43,
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this is one that's caused
some challenges for some people,
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but I think it doesn't need
to. In Luke 23, verse number 43,
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it's talking about
Jesus' crucifixion,
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and He's in His
last moments, as it were.
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He's speaking to
the repentant thief.
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He's got two thieves, one on
His left and one on His right,
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the repentant thief.
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"And Jesus [says] to
him, 'Assuredly, I say to you,
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today you will be
with me in Paradise.'"
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Now, it really does sound
like Jesus is telling that thief
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that he's gonna be with Him
in paradise, in heaven that day.
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But that's not
really what it says,
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even though it might
look like that on the surface.
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Help us through that, Alberto.
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>>First of all,
we have to remember
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that the original Greek text
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did not have commas,
or punctuation, so to say;
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they were added later on.
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In this case, the question,
really, the crucial question is
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if the comma should go
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after the word "today"--
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"semeron" in Greek--or before.
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And it changes significantly
the meaning. It could say,
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"I"--"Truly I say to you today,
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you will be
with me in Paradise,"
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or "I"--"Truly I say to you,
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today you will be
with me in Paradise."
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Well, from the text itself,
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it's very difficult
to decide which way to go
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because the text is
not clear in itself.
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But I think that we
have other evidences
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where to place the
comma, and especially from--
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I have--there is a
Anglican biblical scholar,
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E. W. Bullinger, and he says
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that this pattern
of putting the word--
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I mean "today"--is
a matter of emphasis,
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very common for
the Hebrew mentality.
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In other words, it's a
Hebrew idiom, so to say.
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And in the book of Deuteronomy,
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and I am not
providing the passages here,
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you'll find it in the book,
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but you will
have several instances
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where the text actually says,
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"And I say unto thee this day."
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So, the idea of
putting "this day"
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is a matter of emphasis.
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And going back to
the passage of John--
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a friend even stated this;
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his name is Wilson
Paroschi; he mentions death
00:12:09.49\00:12:14.20
in all the cases
that you have in the book,
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or better, say,
in the writings of...
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of Luke, not only his gospel,
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but also the
Acts of the Apostles,
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in the vast
majority of those passages,
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it always comes
connected with the verb
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that precedes
the word "semeron,"
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or "today," and not
the one that comes after.
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You have a few
instances that it goes after,
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but the tendency,
the style of John,
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is to connect
earlier with the verb.
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So, we understand that
this passage is based--really,
00:12:52.87\00:12:57.47
it should read,
"I say to you today,
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you will be
with me in Paradise."
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And this interpretation
is confirmed by the fact
00:13:03.71\00:13:06.75
that later on when Jesus
appeared to Mary Magdalene,
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He even
stated--and this you'll find
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in Matthew 20:64--
00:13:14.89\00:13:19.26
saying that "I have
not yet gone to my Father."
00:13:19.26\00:13:24.20
>>Absolutely. I was
just thinking of over in John
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it's exactly the same
thing. In John 20, verse 17,
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Jesus says to her,
"Do not cling to me,
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"for I have not yet
ascended to my Father,
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"but go to my
brethren and say to them,
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"'I am ascending to my
Father and your Father,
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and to my God and your God.'"
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>>You are right.
That's the right passage.
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I was referring to
another one, sorry.
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>>It's a good passage
too. They're all good passages.
00:13:46.72\00:13:49.59
But one thing that encourages me
00:13:49.59\00:13:51.06
in looking at that
passage in John, chapter 20,
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where Jesus says, "I
haven't yet ascended"--
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if Jesus told the
thief on the cross,
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"Today you will be
with me in paradise,"
00:13:59.80\00:14:02.60
we accept that Jesus
was crucified on a Friday,
00:14:02.60\00:14:06.21
He rose on Sunday, and
on Sunday He tells Mary,
00:14:06.21\00:14:10.35
"I haven't gone to paradise yet.
00:14:10.35\00:14:12.75
I haven't gone to heaven yet."
00:14:12.75\00:14:14.58
If that's true,
then Jesus is either
00:14:14.58\00:14:17.62
lying to the thief on Friday,
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or He is lying to Mary
on Sunday, one of the two.
00:14:19.85\00:14:24.93
And we have to decide
who Jesus is lying to.
00:14:26.06\00:14:27.76
Now, I don't know if that
makes you uncomfortable or not,
00:14:27.76\00:14:30.87
but it does
make me uncomfortable
00:14:30.87\00:14:34.00
because as far as I
know, Jesus doesn't lie.
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And the truth is He doesn't.
00:14:37.07\00:14:38.21
If we get that
comma in the right place,
00:14:38.21\00:14:40.44
Jesus says to the
thief on the cross,
00:14:40.44\00:14:42.11
"I tell you today, you
will be with me in Paradise."
00:14:42.11\00:14:46.28
There Jesus is telling the
truth to the thief on Friday,
00:14:46.28\00:14:48.85
He's telling the
truth to Mary on Sunday,
00:14:48.85\00:14:50.95
and He's in complete agreement
00:14:50.95\00:14:52.32
with all the other verses
in the Bible on the subject.
00:14:52.32\00:14:56.46
Don't base your
faith on a comma, friends.
00:14:56.46\00:14:58.73
If you wanna dig
into this more deeply,
00:14:58.73\00:15:00.53
make sure that you do
pick up the companion book
00:15:00.53\00:15:02.73
to this quarter's study.
00:15:02.73\00:15:04.03
It is "On Death,
Dying, and the Future Hope."
00:15:04.03\00:15:07.60
Again, that is by Dr.
Alberto Timm, our guest today.
00:15:07.60\00:15:10.84
You can pick it up
at itiswritten.shop.
00:15:10.84\00:15:14.01
We're going to be
back in just a moment
00:15:14.01\00:15:15.38
as we continue our journey
through these problem texts.
00:15:15.38\00:15:20.08
We'll make it easy.
We'll be right back.
00:15:20.08\00:15:21.95
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music swells and ends)
00:15:21.95\00:15:25.19
(upbeat music)
00:15:26.12\00:15:28.56
>>[Announcer] Planning
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00:15:28.56\00:15:30.16
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00:15:30.16\00:15:32.89
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>>[John Bradshaw] More
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00:16:22.68\00:16:27.28
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00:16:27.28\00:16:30.52
>>[Eric] Welcome
back to "Sabbath School,"
00:16:32.15\00:16:33.66
brought to you by It Is Written.
00:16:33.66\00:16:35.62
We are continuing to look
through these problem passages,
00:16:35.62\00:16:38.96
these contrary texts,
00:16:38.96\00:16:40.50
to see if we can
find answers for them.
00:16:40.50\00:16:42.60
The beauty of the Bible
is it's not going to teach
00:16:42.60\00:16:45.17
two different
things on one subject
00:16:45.17\00:16:47.57
because God doesn't teach
00:16:47.57\00:16:49.14
two different
things on one subject.
00:16:49.14\00:16:50.67
So, if we're looking
at what the Bible teaches
00:16:50.67\00:16:52.71
about what happens when
you die and the future hope,
00:16:52.71\00:16:55.11
we can know that it's
going to be in agreement
00:16:55.11\00:16:57.28
from Genesis to Revelation.
00:16:57.28\00:16:59.08
So our next text that
we're going to look at
00:16:59.08\00:17:00.75
is Philippians,
chapter 1 and verse number 23.
00:17:00.75\00:17:04.52
And here in verse 23, Paul says,
00:17:04.52\00:17:07.39
"For I am
hard-pressed between the two,
00:17:07.39\00:17:09.99
"having a desire to
depart and be with Christ,
00:17:09.99\00:17:14.00
which is far better."
00:17:14.00\00:17:16.46
Alberto, help us to understand
00:17:16.46\00:17:18.30
what Paul meant
when he said that,
00:17:18.30\00:17:20.37
'cause it sounds like
he's saying when he dies,
00:17:20.37\00:17:23.24
he's going to
immediately be with Jesus.
00:17:23.24\00:17:25.47
>>We have to take into
consideration the context.
00:17:26.81\00:17:29.61
Actually, Paul
was suffering a lot,
00:17:29.61\00:17:33.72
and not only from the Jews
00:17:33.72\00:17:37.02
that did not accept him very
well, but even some Christians.
00:17:37.02\00:17:41.82
So his life was
quite a cross, so to say.
00:17:41.82\00:17:45.03
His cross was very
heavy to be carried.
00:17:45.03\00:17:49.70
And it came to a
point when he actually said,
00:17:49.70\00:17:52.87
"Well, I think that the
better for me is to rest,
00:17:52.87\00:17:57.14
to depart and be with Christ."
00:17:57.14\00:18:00.21
Some people believe
that this was a reference
00:18:00.21\00:18:04.35
that he would be
immediately with the Lord.
00:18:05.58\00:18:08.98
But I don't think that this is
00:18:08.98\00:18:10.72
the best
interpretation of the passage
00:18:10.72\00:18:13.19
because we have other evidences.
00:18:13.19\00:18:16.16
First of all, in
his early writings,
00:18:16.16\00:18:19.79
he spoke of the
resurrection as the only hope
00:18:19.79\00:18:23.87
for dead people to be
with the Lord consciously.
00:18:23.87\00:18:28.04
He spoke about the dead being
00:18:28.04\00:18:32.17
unconsciously waiting for
the resurrection to take place,
00:18:32.17\00:18:37.25
and that you have, for
instance, in 1 Thessalonians.
00:18:38.51\00:18:42.08
But some authors argue that in,
00:18:42.88\00:18:47.96
meanwhile, in the time later on,
00:18:48.76\00:18:51.59
he changed his mind
00:18:51.59\00:18:54.03
and started to
believe that the person,
00:18:54.03\00:18:57.80
when the person dies,
immediately goes to heaven.
00:18:57.80\00:19:01.17
But this is not the
case because in his final,
00:19:01.17\00:19:05.41
his last epistle,
00:19:05.41\00:19:07.51
2 Timothy, chapter 4, verse 8,
00:19:07.51\00:19:11.71
he actually speaks about
00:19:11.71\00:19:14.78
the crown of righteousness
00:19:14.78\00:19:17.39
that he will receive, or
his reward he will receive,
00:19:17.39\00:19:21.46
only at the Second Coming and
not immediately after he dies.
00:19:21.46\00:19:26.53
So in this case, we
would understand this passage.
00:19:27.86\00:19:29.76
And there are other evidences
that you can read later on,
00:19:29.76\00:19:33.64
that it simply meant,
00:19:33.64\00:19:36.24
as he stated elsewhere,
00:19:36.24\00:19:39.24
that not life nor death
can separate us for Christ.
00:19:39.24\00:19:44.21
Because even in
grave, the treasury
00:19:44.21\00:19:48.12
of his salvation
would be assured;
00:19:48.12\00:19:51.49
he had assurance of salvation
00:19:51.49\00:19:54.42
and the reward he would receive
00:19:54.42\00:19:57.63
at the second coming of Christ.
00:19:57.63\00:19:59.83
>>And Paul was constantly
looking forward to that.
00:19:59.83\00:20:03.13
He hoped that he
would be able to live
00:20:03.13\00:20:05.37
and see Christ
come in the clouds.
00:20:05.37\00:20:07.40
He didn't. But he
can one day look forward
00:20:07.40\00:20:10.01
to receiving that
crown of righteousness
00:20:10.01\00:20:11.87
that he describes
there in his valedictory,
00:20:11.87\00:20:14.88
a beautiful passage. Let's
take a look at another one here.
00:20:14.88\00:20:17.78
This one can be
a...a difficult one
00:20:17.78\00:20:22.58
for some people to look
at, but it becomes very easy
00:20:22.58\00:20:26.62
once you unpack
it just a little bit.
00:20:26.62\00:20:28.32
We're looking at 1
Peter, chapter 3, verses 18-20.
00:20:28.32\00:20:33.09
And I'm gonna read these
00:20:33.09\00:20:34.40
because it's
important to take a look
00:20:34.40\00:20:35.83
at some of the tenses
that are described here.
00:20:35.83\00:20:39.00
They'll help us
out a little bit.
00:20:39.00\00:20:40.50
First Peter 3, verses 18-20,
00:20:40.50\00:20:43.37
Peter writes, "For Christ
also suffered once for sins,
00:20:43.37\00:20:47.98
"the just for the unjust,
that He might bring us to God,
00:20:47.98\00:20:51.85
"being put to death in the flesh
00:20:51.85\00:20:54.02
"but made alive by the Spirit,
00:20:54.02\00:20:56.28
"by whom also He went and
preached to the spirits in
00:20:56.28\00:21:00.79
prison, "who
formerly were disobedient,
00:21:00.79\00:21:03.39
"when once the
Divine longsuffering waited
00:21:03.39\00:21:06.23
"in the days of Noah, while
the ark was being prepared,
00:21:06.23\00:21:10.33
"in which a few, that is,
00:21:10.33\00:21:12.60
eight souls, were
saved [by] water."
00:21:12.60\00:21:16.04
So, what, who are
these "spirits in prison"?
00:21:16.04\00:21:19.07
When did they live?
What's their significance?
00:21:19.07\00:21:22.08
Help us out with that, Alberto.
00:21:22.08\00:21:24.68
>>Well, some
people who believe in
00:21:24.68\00:21:26.21
the natural
immortality of the soul
00:21:26.21\00:21:29.22
would say that
actually those were the spirits
00:21:29.22\00:21:33.19
of the antediluvians
who really remained,
00:21:33.19\00:21:38.26
whether in hell or
in, probably in purgatory,
00:21:39.39\00:21:43.20
waiting for
whatever would take place.
00:21:43.20\00:21:47.57
And then Jesus went there
and really preached to them,
00:21:47.57\00:21:51.61
like, a message of judgment.
00:21:52.54\00:21:55.64
But now we face a contradiction,
00:21:55.64\00:21:58.65
those who use the
passage of Luke that says,
00:21:58.65\00:22:02.75
"You will be
with me in Paradise,"
00:22:02.75\00:22:05.42
and now you have this one.
00:22:05.42\00:22:07.22
Actually, when Jesus
died, did He go to paradise
00:22:07.22\00:22:10.76
or really went to
hell? Or both of them?
00:22:10.76\00:22:15.10
We have plenty of evidences
that Jesus remained in the tomb,
00:22:15.10\00:22:18.63
who did not go in
any of those places.
00:22:18.63\00:22:21.44
So the meaning of
this passage is really
00:22:21.44\00:22:24.51
that Christ, through
the work of the Holy Spirit,
00:22:24.51\00:22:29.28
preached to the
rebellious generation
00:22:29.28\00:22:33.92
prior to the
Flood. That was the case.
00:22:33.92\00:22:36.92
And they were not
literally in prison;
00:22:36.92\00:22:41.06
they were in the prison of sin.
00:22:41.06\00:22:44.49
That's the
meaning of this passage.
00:22:44.49\00:22:46.26
And I quote a few others here;
00:22:46.26\00:22:48.16
then you can unpack
it a little bit more.
00:22:48.16\00:22:52.13
>>Excellent, so this is not
Jesus going down into purgatory
00:22:52.13\00:22:56.17
or hell to preach to
people to get them to repent.
00:22:56.17\00:22:59.11
But as it says, when
the Spirit was working
00:22:59.11\00:23:02.08
back in the days of Noah,
Christ was speaking to them,
00:23:02.08\00:23:05.91
trying to encourage them
outta the prison house of sin
00:23:05.91\00:23:09.12
and to, well, really,
to make good decisions.
00:23:09.12\00:23:12.65
>>Yeah, and using Noah as
the preacher of righteousness.
00:23:12.65\00:23:16.52
He was the human instrument
00:23:16.52\00:23:18.79
of the Holy
Spirit in those days.
00:23:18.79\00:23:21.70
>>Very good. Excellent.
00:23:21.70\00:23:23.23
All right, we've got one more.
00:23:23.23\00:23:24.57
And this one can be a challenge
(chuckling) to some people.
00:23:24.57\00:23:27.87
Again, it doesn't have to be,
00:23:27.87\00:23:28.97
and we're gonna
try to make it simple,
00:23:28.97\00:23:31.01
but we're over in
Revelation, chapter 6 now,
00:23:31.01\00:23:33.14
looking at verses 9 through,
oh, we'll say, verse 11.
00:23:33.14\00:23:37.08
Verse 9 says, and "when
He"--Jesus--"opened the fifth
00:23:37.08\00:23:42.15
seal, "I saw under the
altar the souls of those
00:23:43.22\00:23:45.35
"who had been
slain for the word of God
00:23:45.35\00:23:47.36
"and for the
testimony which they held.
00:23:47.36\00:23:49.72
"And they cried with
a loud voice, saying,
00:23:49.72\00:23:51.59
"'How long, O Lord, holy
and true, until You judge
00:23:51.59\00:23:55.96
"and avenge our blood on
those who dwell on the earth?'
00:23:55.96\00:23:59.80
"Then a white robe
was given to each of them;
00:23:59.80\00:24:02.10
"and it was said to
them that they should rest
00:24:02.10\00:24:04.11
"a little while longer,
00:24:04.11\00:24:05.61
"until both the number
of their fellow servants
00:24:05.61\00:24:08.41
"and their
brethren, who would be killed
00:24:08.41\00:24:10.68
as they were,
was [accomplished]."
00:24:10.68\00:24:12.78
So there are a few
problems here, I think,
00:24:12.78\00:24:15.45
and I'm gonna let
you solve them for us,
00:24:15.45\00:24:17.05
but, it sounds like we've
got some righteous people.
00:24:17.05\00:24:21.12
They've been slain
for the word of God,
00:24:22.22\00:24:24.76
but they're in misery.
00:24:24.76\00:24:26.39
So one would think
that if they were in heaven,
00:24:26.39\00:24:28.30
they would be rejoicing.
00:24:28.30\00:24:30.27
And not only are
they apparently in misery,
00:24:30.27\00:24:32.97
but they're
calling for vengeance.
00:24:32.97\00:24:35.37
Now, usually when we
think of the righteous,
00:24:35.37\00:24:37.51
they're not the ones who
are calling out for vengeance;
00:24:37.51\00:24:40.44
they have more of a
forgiving character.
00:24:40.44\00:24:42.44
So help us to
understand what's going on here.
00:24:42.44\00:24:45.88
>>Actually, this
passage is a symbolic passage,
00:24:45.88\00:24:49.15
apocalyptic language, definitely
so, that employs symbols.
00:24:49.15\00:24:53.12
And here you have the souls
00:24:53.12\00:24:57.03
of the
righteous--or better saying,
00:24:57.03\00:25:00.26
of the martyrs, actually--
00:25:00.26\00:25:03.80
crying under the altar.
00:25:03.80\00:25:06.37
What altar would be this?
00:25:07.57\00:25:10.41
This is the altar
of burnt offerings,
00:25:10.41\00:25:13.74
where sacrifices were offered.
00:25:13.74\00:25:17.11
At the same time,
00:25:17.11\00:25:19.21
they sacrificed,
00:25:19.21\00:25:22.38
or their life
was sacrificed there,
00:25:22.38\00:25:24.99
and the evidence for
being the altar of sacrifice,
00:25:24.99\00:25:28.52
because there is a
reference of blood,
00:25:28.52\00:25:30.53
and there where blood
sacrifices were offered.
00:25:30.53\00:25:34.20
But this is, again, a
metaphorical language,
00:25:34.20\00:25:37.77
because even a
Lutheran theologian, Lenski,
00:25:37.77\00:25:42.74
he says, "If this
would be taken literally,
00:25:42.74\00:25:46.47
"what a huge opening
should be under the altar,
00:25:46.47\00:25:50.91
"so that all the souls
00:25:50.91\00:25:54.62
of the righteous
people could fit into it."
00:25:54.62\00:25:58.02
But this is not
actually the case.
00:25:58.02\00:26:00.92
It's interesting that Jesus
00:26:00.92\00:26:04.36
actually made a reference
00:26:04.36\00:26:07.03
to the blood of Abel.
00:26:07.03\00:26:11.13
And even God,
when God spoke to Cain,
00:26:11.13\00:26:14.34
you remember there in
Genesis, chapter 4, He said
00:26:14.34\00:26:17.77
that the blood of
Abel was crying to Him.
00:26:17.77\00:26:22.21
And at the same
time you have Jesus
00:26:22.21\00:26:25.81
referring to the blood
as well. And in Hebrews,
00:26:25.81\00:26:30.89
and this is Hebrews 11:4,
00:26:32.32\00:26:35.32
it says through faith the
blood of Abel "still speaks."
00:26:35.32\00:26:40.40
So this is a metaphoric language
00:26:41.16\00:26:42.50
where the blood is
speaking for justice,
00:26:42.50\00:26:47.57
not only of Abel,
but also of the martyrs,
00:26:48.67\00:26:52.94
and speaking to God,
00:26:52.94\00:26:55.74
asking God to make justice.
00:26:55.74\00:26:59.08
>>Beautifully put. So God is
one day going to bring justice.
00:26:59.08\00:27:03.15
In this world right now,
there is a lot of injustice.
00:27:03.15\00:27:06.22
And a lot of people pay
for their Christian faith,
00:27:06.22\00:27:08.86
many of them with their lives.
00:27:08.86\00:27:10.39
But one day God is going
to make everything right,
00:27:10.39\00:27:14.36
and that day is not in
the very distant future.
00:27:14.36\00:27:17.90
Want to encourage you,
00:27:17.90\00:27:18.97
if you want to dig
more into these texts,
00:27:18.97\00:27:20.90
make sure that you do
pick up that companion book.
00:27:20.90\00:27:23.47
It is a wonderful resource
00:27:23.47\00:27:25.11
that will help you to
understand those texts
00:27:25.11\00:27:27.54
and a whole lot
more much, much better.
00:27:27.54\00:27:30.65
It has been a delight
to have you with us again
00:27:30.65\00:27:33.38
this week on "Sabbath School,"
00:27:33.38\00:27:34.98
brought to you by It Is Written,
00:27:34.98\00:27:36.55
and I want to invite you
to join us again next week
00:27:36.55\00:27:39.32
as we take a look
at lesson number 10.
00:27:39.32\00:27:43.12
We are rapidly reaching the end
00:27:43.12\00:27:45.43
of our time
together in this lesson,
00:27:45.43\00:27:47.30
but there is much more to come,
00:27:47.30\00:27:49.00
and you don't
want to miss any of it.
00:27:49.00\00:27:51.37
God bless you. Thank you
once again for joining us,
00:27:51.37\00:27:53.40
and we will see you next time.
00:27:53.40\00:27:55.57
(inspirational theme music)
00:27:55.57\00:27:58.47
(music ends)
00:28:26.60\00:28:28.70