Participants: Pr. Stephen Bohr
Series Code: LLD
Program Code: LLD000004
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00:37 Shall we bow our heads for prayer.
00:40 Father in heaven, we thank You for the awesome privilege of 00:43 being in Your house of worship on Your holy Sabbath. 00:47 We thank You, Father, that we are able to take advantage 00:51 of this oasis in time, so to speak. 00:55 Where there's so much turmoil and confusion in the world, 01:00 we can get away to this place and just spend 01:04 three hours together in worship and in study and in prayer. 01:09 We ask, Father, that as we open Your holy Word this morning 01:12 that Your Spirit will be present here to speak to our minds 01:16 and our hearts. 01:17 We want to do Your will. 01:20 We want to serve as instruments in Your cause. 01:24 And we ask that You will speak to us, and that this might be a 01:27 reality in our lives. 01:30 We thank You, Father, for the privilege of prayer. 01:32 And thank You for hearing and answering us, 01:35 for we ask it in the precious name of Jesus. 01:38 Amen. 01:42 I would like us to go back in our minds to the period 01:48 before the history of this world. 01:52 Actually, I would like us to go back to the first chapter 01:57 of the book, Patriarchs And Prophets. 02:01 The title of that chapter is, Why Was Evil Permitted. 02:05 In other words, we're going to go back and we're going to study 02:08 about a majestic being, the first being which was 02:13 created by God. 02:14 His name was Lucifer. 02:18 And what I would like to do as we begin our study this morning 02:23 is to highlight four characteristics 02:28 which this being had. 02:32 All of these characteristics are found in Ezekiel chapter 28, 02:37 as well as in Isaiah chapter 14. 02:42 The first characteristic of this majestic being 02:47 which God created was that he was full of wisdom. 02:54 Notice the book of Ezekiel chapter 28 and verse 12. 02:59 Ezekiel chapter 28 and verse 12. 03:05 It says there... 03:15 Now it's speaking about the king of Tyre, but the person 03:18 behind the king of Tyre is this majestic being called Lucifer. 03:24 It continues saying... 03:33 And now comes the phrase that I want to underline. 03:36 "...full of wisdom and perfect in beauty." 03:41 So the first characteristic that we notice about this 03:43 majestic being is that he was full of wisdom. 03:50 Now the second characteristic we also find in verse 12, 03:54 the last part of the verse. 03:56 Once again, I'm going to read the whole verse. 03:58 "Son of man, take up a lamentation for the 04:01 king of Tyre, and say to him, 'Thus says the Lord God, 04:06 "You were the seal of perfection, 04:09 full of wisdom and perfect in beauty."'" 04:15 The second trait of this being is that he was 04:19 perfect in beauty. 04:21 Full of wisdom and perfect in beauty. 04:27 But then I want us to notice a third characteristic 04:30 of this being. 04:31 It's found in Ezekiel chapter 28 and verse 13. 04:36 Ezekiel 28 and verse 13. 04:40 Here we're told, speaking about this being... 05:06 We notice that God clothed Lucifer with a series 05:10 of precious stones. 05:12 In other words, this being was incredibly rich. 05:18 Now the fourth characteristic that I would like us to notice 05:22 is found in Ezekiel 28 and verses 13 and 14. 05:26 Particularly the last part of verse 13. 05:30 It says there in the second half of verse 13... 05:44 Now, we have the mention of two musical instruments here. 05:48 Timbrels, which are like a tambourine. 05:51 And pipes, which is a flute like instrument. 05:56 In other words, this being was created to be a musician. 06:00 In fact, we're told in the spirit of prophecy 06:02 that he was not any old musician. 06:04 He was actually the leader of the heavenly choirs. 06:08 In other words, he had a high position of leadership 06:13 and authority. 06:16 Notice verse 14, the position which he held. 06:19 It says... 06:34 Notice that his position was that of a covering cherub. 06:38 Now if you back to Exodus chapter 25 you'll notice 06:40 that covering cherubs were the two angels 06:43 that were at either end of the ark. 06:46 In other words, they were the closest to God 06:48 of any being in the Sanctuary. 06:52 In other words, he had a very high position 06:54 of leadership and authority. 06:57 And so we find this majestic glorious being 07:01 with these four traits, these four characteristics. 07:06 Number one; full of wisdom. 07:09 Number two; absolutely glorious and beautiful. 07:14 Number three; incredibly rich. 07:17 And number four; incredibly powerful. 07:23 Now as we examine the story of the Bible, 07:25 we discover that these traits were not inherent with Lucifer. 07:31 In other words, they did not belong to him by nature. 07:36 The Bible tells us that these traits were actually 07:40 derived from God because God was his Creator. 07:44 In fact, notice Ezekiel chapter 28 and verse 15. 07:49 And I'm going to read only the first part of the verse. 07:51 Ezekiel 28 and verse 15. 07:55 It says, "You were perfect in all your ways 07:59 from the day you were..." What? 08:02 "...from the day you were created." 08:05 In other words, all of these things were given to Lucifer. 08:08 They did not belong to him. 08:10 They were not inherent, they were derived. 08:13 He was full of wisdom because the Creator gave him wisdom. 08:17 He was beautiful because the Creator made him beautiful. 08:20 He was rich because the Creator gave him riches. 08:23 He was powerful because God gave him a position 08:26 of authority and power. 08:28 None of these things existed within himself. 08:32 And of course, we know that the Creator of Lucifer 08:36 was none other than Jesus Christ. 08:40 We're told that in several texts in the New Testament. 08:43 For example, John chapter 1 and verse 3 tells us 08:46 that all things were created by Him. 08:50 And without Him, nothing was made that was made. 08:53 Colossians 1:16-17 tells us that everything in heaven, 08:57 on earth, whether principalities or powers, 09:00 or whatever, were made or were created by Jesus Christ. 09:04 Which means that these traits were given to Lucifer 09:08 by none other than Jesus Christ Himself. 09:14 Now would you agree with me that all of these 09:16 qualities were good? 09:19 Of course. 09:20 Is there anything wrong with being full of wisdom? 09:24 No. 09:25 Is there anything wrong with being beautiful? 09:28 Absolutely not. 09:30 Is there anything wrong with being rich? 09:33 No. 09:35 Is there anything wrong with occupying a position, 09:38 a high position, of authority and power? 09:41 Not necessarily. 09:43 But we're told in Scripture that this being, Lucifer, 09:48 developed a bitter root in his nature. 09:53 And that bitter root is what we may call, pride. 10:00 That was the root; pride. 10:02 But that bitter root grew four other roots from it. 10:08 And these are what I call, the four sins of pride. 10:14 Basically, whereas Lucifer before lived for others 10:20 and lived for the glory of God, now he appropriated 10:26 these things to himself. 10:28 He came to the point where he thought that his beauty 10:33 was inherent to himself. 10:36 He came to the point of considering that his riches 10:40 belonged to himself. 10:42 He came to the point of believing that he had a 10:44 position of power because of himself. 10:48 And he came to the conclusion that because he was so 10:53 wonderful and wise, this wisdom had come from his own heart, 10:59 from his own self. 11:01 In other words, his center of gravity was changed 11:05 from God and towards others to himself. 11:11 And the four qualities which God had given for a blessing 11:16 now with Lucifer became a curse. 11:22 Let's read about each one of these qualities 11:25 and how they were perverted by Lucifer because he no longer 11:29 used them to focus on others and for the glory of God, 11:32 but he used them to focus upon himself. 11:35 Notice Ezekiel 28 and verse 17. 11:39 Ezekiel 28 and verse 17. 11:43 It says here... 11:59 Now notice that we're told here that his heart was lifted up 12:03 because of his beauty. 12:04 The question is, who had given him the beauty? 12:08 His Creator. 12:09 Jesus had given him his beauty. 12:11 But he came to the point of believing that his beauty 12:14 belonged to himself, it was inherent. 12:17 It was to bring honor and praise to himself. 12:21 So the first thing that he did was he became proud 12:25 because of his beauty. 12:27 That same verse tells us that he also corrupted his wisdom. 12:32 Notice once again verse 17. 12:34 It says, "Your heart was lifted up because of your beauty, 12:39 you corrupted your wisdom for the sake of your splendor." 12:43 So he focuses on his own beauty and he corrupts his wisdom. 12:49 Now the question is, what is wisdom, according to the Bible? 12:54 Well, in Proverbs 9 and verse 10 we're given 12:57 the best definition that I found in the Bible 13:00 on what wisdom is. 13:02 It says there, "The fear of the Lord..." 13:06 Finish it for me, "The fear of the Lord is... 13:09 ...the beginning of wisdom." 13:11 Which means that if you don't have the fear of the Lord, 13:13 you're not even starting to be wise. 13:16 Because the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. 13:18 In other words, Lucifer lost his fear of the Lord. 13:24 And that led him to choose iniquity. 13:27 Notice Job, or actually Proverbs chapter 8 and verse 13. 13:32 Proverbs chapter 8 and verse 13. 13:37 Here we're told that the fear of the Lord is to hate what? 13:42 Is to hate evil. 13:44 And God hates arrogance and what? 13:48 And pride, he says there. 13:50 So let me ask you, what is true wisdom? 13:53 True wisdom is to hate what? 13:56 Evil. 13:57 And God hates those who are arrogant and proud. 14:02 What was the problem with Lucifer? 14:05 At first he feared God. 14:08 At first he hated evil. 14:11 But now he loses his respect for God and he comes to the 14:16 point of loving evil. 14:17 And he's filled with arrogance and with pride. 14:20 He thinks that his wisdom is due to some inherent quality 14:25 within himself. 14:27 And so he's lifted up because of his beauty, 14:30 and he corrupts his wisdom. 14:33 But there's more. 14:35 The Bible tells us that suddenly the riches with which God had 14:39 endowed him, all those precious stones, 14:41 he came to the conclusion that this was all because of himself, 14:46 because of his greatness. 14:48 Notice Ezekiel chapter 28 and verse 2. 14:51 Ezekiel 28 and verse 2 where this same being 14:54 is being spoken about. 14:56 It says there... 15:07 Notice this upward mobility that we've been talking about. 15:21 "Seas" means multitudes, nations, tongues, and peoples. 15:35 And then you continue reading the next verses; 5 and 6. 15:38 It says that he was very, very rich. 15:41 But he became lifted up because of his riches. 15:46 In other words, he came to believe that his riches 15:49 belonged to himself and that he had accumulated these 15:53 through his intelligence and through his power. 15:57 And then comes the matter of the position of authority 16:00 and power which he held. 16:03 Notice Isaiah chapter 14 and verses 12 through 14. 16:07 Isaiah chapter 14 and verses 12 through 14. 16:11 Notice that he was not satisfied with the position of authority 16:14 which God has given him. 16:17 He actually comes to the point where he wants to occupy 16:20 the place of God himself. 16:23 It says there in Isaiah chapter 14 and verse 12... 17:05 Obviously, his position of power and authority went to his head. 17:09 He thought that he was the greatest because he 17:12 occupied this position. 17:14 He didn't realize that he was placed there as the 17:16 covering cherub by God. 17:18 It wasn't because of some special power or wisdom 17:22 or authority that he had in himself. 17:24 It was because God, his Creator, had placed him there. 17:29 And so we find these four sins of pride. 17:34 The devil takes what God had given him, which was 17:38 good in itself, and he perverted these four things. 17:43 He perverted his wisdom because it became self focused. 17:47 He perverted his beauty because it became self focused. 17:51 He perverted his riches. 17:53 In fact, we're told that he accumulated riches for himself 17:57 there in the first few verses of Ezekiel 28. 18:00 And he came to focus upon himself 18:03 and his position of authority. 18:08 Now Jesus, the Creator, manifested the opposite spirit 18:13 of Lucifer. 18:15 In fact, we're going to notice the perspective that Jesus had 18:19 toward these four qualities that God had 18:23 originally given to Lucifer. 18:26 Notice John chapter 5 and verse 30. 18:29 Do you know Jesus never, during His ministry, said, 18:33 "You know, I'm so wise, I'm so intelligent, 18:36 I'm so smart, aren't you dazzled by My wisdom?" 18:40 Never did Jesus say that. 18:41 He always projected the honor and glory upon His Father. 18:45 He realized that it was not inherently His own. 18:49 John chapter 5 and verse 30, Jesus says... 19:09 Once again, this same thought is repeated in John chapter 7 19:12 and verse 16. 19:15 John chapter 7 and verse 16. 19:27 You know, we look at the gospels and we're amazed at the 19:29 teachings of Jesus, the wisdom that He had. 19:32 Never on planet earth has a wiser being ever walked. 19:38 And yet Jesus did not boast of His own wisdom. 19:42 Jesus said, "My wisdom, My teaching, and My authority 19:47 comes from My Father. 19:49 I have not come to do My will, I have come to do His will." 19:54 In other words, Jesus showed the true perspective of wisdom. 19:58 And that is that wisdom is other focused. 20:02 It is not focused upon ourselves. 20:06 Now what about physical beauty. 20:08 Did Jesus emphasize greatly the importance of physical beauty? 20:12 Not really. 20:14 In fact, we find in Isaiah 53, if you go with me there, 20:17 Isaiah 53 and verses 2 and 3, an interesting description 20:23 of the physical nature of Jesus. 20:27 Actually, I'm going to start reading at verse 2. 20:33 It says... 20:53 This is a Messianic prophecy. 20:55 It says, like a root out of dry ground. 20:58 No form, no comeliness. 21:01 "When we see Him, there is no beauty that we 21:04 should desire Him." 21:05 In fact, we're told... 21:19 You know, the Lord Jesus did not come to this earth 21:24 in any particular attractiveness when it 21:26 comes to physical beauty. 21:29 Do you find it interesting, I do anyway, 21:32 that in the gospels we have no physical description of Jesus? 21:36 Have you ever noticed that? 21:38 Nothing is told about the color of His eyes. 21:41 Nothing is said about the color of His hair. 21:43 Nothing is said about His height. 21:46 Nothing is said about His build. 21:49 The gospels are silent when it comes to the physical 21:52 appearance of Jesus. 21:54 And yet the gospels are filled with the description of 21:58 the beautiful character of Jesus. 22:00 The qualities of His character; His goodness, His love, 22:03 His kindness, His mercy. 22:05 The gospels ooze these things about Jesus. 22:09 I guess the gospel writers did not consider 22:12 the physical attractiveness of Jesus as something 22:16 particularly important. 22:19 In fact, Jesus didn't highlight it either. 22:22 He wore a simple robe, a seamless robe, we're told. 22:27 He never wore anything other than that. 22:30 Because He was not here to attract attention to Himself 22:33 in His physical nature. 22:35 In fact, Isaiah is not saying that Jesus was ugly. 22:39 What it's saying is that Jesus was an ordinary person 22:42 just like the people of His day and age. 22:45 He did not dress with designer clothing, 22:49 if I might put it in the context of our day and age. 22:53 You know, it's very interesting that the Sanctuary 22:58 is actually a symbol of Jesus and the different aspects 23:01 of the ministry of Jesus. 23:03 You know, you read about the Sanctuary in the Old Testament. 23:06 Outside it was made out of badger skins. 23:10 Any of you ever seen a badger? 23:12 I have. 23:13 I'm from Wisconsin, the badger state. 23:18 And you know, the skin is just brown. 23:22 I mean, it's not attractive. 23:24 You know, it's like looking at a tent. 23:28 Nothing attractive about it. 23:29 But let me ask you this. 23:32 What did the Sanctuary look like inside? 23:35 Oh, inside was the gold and the silver 23:40 and the precious material. 23:41 And everything beautiful was inside. 23:45 In other words, the beauty of Jesus was not outside. 23:47 The beauty of Jesus was inside. 23:50 And by the way, you've heard the expression, 23:53 "Beauty is skin deep." 23:56 Well I want to change that. 23:57 External beauty is skin deep. 24:02 Because true beauty is not skin deep. 24:05 True beauty goes to the heart itself. 24:08 It goes to the innermost parts of the human being. 24:14 And so Jesus first of all said, "My wisdom isn't Mine. 24:17 I got it from My Father." 24:18 He didn't come in a physical nature to wow people, 24:23 if you please. 24:24 Now what about riches? 24:25 Did Jesus come to this world with great riches 24:28 to impress people about what He had? 24:29 Absolutely not. 24:31 Notice 2 Corinthians chapter 8 and verse 9. 24:34 2 Corinthians chapter 8 and verse 9. 24:36 Here, the apostle Paul expresses the philosophy 24:40 of Jesus towards riches. 24:42 2 Corinthians 8 and verse 9. 24:46 Here, the apostle Paul says concerning Jesus... 25:08 How did Jesus look upon riches? 25:10 He looked upon riches as something to bless other people. 25:15 See, He became poor so that we could be made what? 25:19 Rich. 25:20 He gave His riches so that the poor people 25:23 could become rich. 25:26 And so Jesus had a different perspective of riches 25:29 than Lucifer had. 25:30 Lucifer wanted to accumulate riches for himself. 25:33 He wanted everybody to see how rich and great he was. 25:37 But Jesus, even though He was the richest being in 25:40 the universe, decided to set aside His riches. 25:44 He had the true perspective of what material possessions 25:49 really should mean in life. 25:52 And what would we say about the position of power 25:54 that Jesus had? 25:55 Lucifer was focused on self. 25:57 He said, "Oh, I want to be exalted, I want to ascend. 26:00 I want to occupy the number one place in the universe." 26:03 How did Jesus look at the issue of power? 26:06 Notice Philippians chapter 2. 26:07 We've read this passage before, but I want to read it again. 26:10 Philippians chapter 2 and verses 5 through 11. 26:13 The apostle Paul here expresses in majestic language 26:17 the perspective that Jesus had of power. 26:20 It says there... 26:35 A better translation is, He did not consider His Godhood 26:39 as something to be hung on to, as something to be grasped. 26:45 It continues saying in verse 7... 26:57 See, He came down from His position of power, 27:00 from His throne. 27:02 He left His crown in heaven. 27:15 You see, Jesus did not consider His position of power 27:19 as something to be hung on to. 27:21 He actually got down from the throne, left His crown, 27:24 and came down to this world to serve the human race, 27:28 which was lost without Him. 27:32 And so Jesus had a very different perspective 27:34 of these four qualities that Lucifer had. 27:37 You see, Lucifer focused on self. 27:40 Jesus focused on others and on the glory of His Father. 27:46 Now the question is, what does this have to say to us? 27:52 Well, we've been talking about two mysteries. 27:55 How do we look at wisdom? 27:58 How do we look at physical beauty? 28:02 How do we look at a position of power? 28:06 What is our perspective of riches? 28:10 Is it the perspective that Lucifer had after he sinned? 28:15 Or is it the perspective that Jesus had when He 28:19 came to this world? 28:21 You know, we've been dealing with two mysteries. 28:23 The mystery of godliness and the mystery of iniquity. 28:26 The mystery of godliness is when the God who is 28:29 up here comes down. 28:31 The mystery of iniquity is when a creature who is down here 28:34 wants to come up and wants to ascend and be exalted. 28:40 So these four sins of pride, we need to see how 28:44 we approach them. 28:46 Do we approach them from the perspective of Jesus, 28:48 or do we approach them from the perspective of Lucifer 28:53 or of Satan? 28:55 Let's talk first of all about wisdom. 28:59 We look at the worldly universities today. 29:03 Universities which at one time were actually 29:08 Christian universities. 29:10 Like Yale, and Harvard, and Princeton. 29:16 They have become actually citadels of arrogance. 29:22 People think that the more education they have 29:25 the wiser they are, the more intelligent they are, 29:29 and the less they need of God. 29:33 Even within the Seventh-day Adventist Church 29:36 we have some of our scholars who are starting to question, 29:41 for example, a creation of this world in six literal days 29:45 and God resting on the seventh day. 29:49 And when you bring out the spirit of prophecy, they say, 29:51 "Well, you know, she only had two and a half years 29:54 of primary education. 29:57 What did she really know." 29:59 And when you bring to view Moses, they say, 30:03 "Well you know, Moses, he wrote in the pre-scientific age. 30:07 He wasn't a scientist. 30:09 Today we have science." 30:11 It's what the Bible calls science falsely so-called. 30:16 Because it is an idea that the Bible and the spirit of prophecy 30:20 are wrong, whereas our scholarship and our own 30:26 human wisdom is right. 30:29 You know, the more degrees that we have, 30:32 the more humble we should be. 30:36 The more we know, the more we should admit that 30:39 we don't know much. 30:41 Because the more I study the more I learn, I say, 30:43 "I didn't know that before." 30:45 So we're always learning. 30:48 And so we should know that our wisdom does not come from 30:51 ourselves because we have a great mind. 30:55 But because God has given us the ability to acquire 30:58 knowledge and wisdom. 31:00 And it exists not for pride. 31:03 It exists for blessing others. 31:06 In Romans 1 and verse 22, the apostle Paul spoke 31:10 about these individuals who had perverted wisdom. 31:13 He said, "Professing to be wise they became fools, 31:17 and changed the glory of the incorruptible God into an image 31:22 made like corruptible man and birds and four-footed animals 31:27 and creeping things." 31:28 In other words, they became idolatrous. 31:32 They professed to be wise, but they became fools. 31:35 That was the problem with Lucifer. 31:37 He had wisdom, but he corrupted and perverted his wisdom. 31:42 Notice Job 28 and verse 28. 31:46 It's so succinct and so simple. 31:48 It says, "And to man He said, 'Behold, the fear of the Lord, 31:54 that is wisdom, and to depart from evil is understanding.'" 32:01 So if we don't have the fear of the Lord, 32:04 we might have three Ph.D.'s, and in the sight of God 32:08 it is nothing. 32:10 Because education and wisdom, it should be God focused. 32:14 And the more education we have, the more efficient we should be 32:19 in blessing other people and serving other people. 32:23 What about beauty? 32:24 External beauty? 32:28 I'm going to deal with a little touchy issue right now. 32:31 The issue of personal attire. 32:35 You know, I've developed a little reputation that 32:37 Pastor Bohr is conservative when it comes to the issue of 32:40 dress and music, and things like that. 32:45 I get the question all the time, "Is it wrong to use jewelry?" 32:53 Well, I like to ask a follow-up question. 32:57 And that is, "Why do you use it?" 33:01 See, that's a big question, "Why do you use it?" 33:04 Is it because you want to make God look good? 33:07 Is it because you want the name of God 33:09 to be honored and glorified? 33:12 Or is it because you want to attract attention to yourself? 33:17 Now, I can't judge you. 33:20 Maybe somebody does use it because they 33:24 want to make God look good. 33:26 Or they want to bring glory to God. 33:28 That's something that you have to deal with in your own heart. 33:32 What is the motivation? 33:35 The apostle Paul is very clear on this issue 33:37 of external adornment. 33:39 Just like Jesus, he says the adornment should be inside, 33:42 not outside. 33:44 People should be attracted to us by our character, 33:47 not by our external beauty. 33:50 Notice 1 Peter chapter 3, 1 Peter chapter 3. 33:55 Here, the apostle Peter says this, 33:58 "Do not let your adornment be merely outward..." 34:01 By the way, that word, "merely," is added by the translators. 34:06 That word, "merely," isn't there. 34:09 It really says, "Do not let your adornment be outward; 34:14 arranging the hair, wearing gold, 34:17 or putting on fine apparel. 34:20 Rather let it be the hidden person of the heart..." 34:24 What is it that needs to be emphasized? 34:26 The hidden person of the heart. 34:28 "...with the incorruptible beauty of a gentle 34:31 and quiet spirit, which is very precious in the sight of God." 34:35 Do you see what the emphasis is? 34:37 It's not on the outside. 34:39 It's on what? 34:40 On the inside. 34:41 Notice what the apostle Paul has to say in 34:43 1 Timothy chapter 2 and beginning with verse 8. 34:46 1 Timothy chapter 2 and verse 8. 34:49 The apostle Paul says this. 34:51 "I desire therefore that the men pray everywhere, 34:54 lifting up holy hands, without wrath and doubting. 34:58 In like manner also, that the women..." 35:00 And I would say men today also. 35:03 Because it's become an issue among men. 35:06 "In like manner also, that the women adorn themselves 35:09 in modest apparel, with propriety and moderation, 35:15 not with braided hair or gold or pearls or costly clothing, 35:22 but which is proper for women professing 35:25 godliness with..." What? 35:27 "...with good works." 35:30 You see, that's enduring beauty. 35:32 The physical beauty actually eventually will leave, will go. 35:39 But the inside beauty, internal beauty, 35:42 would last forever. 35:44 Let me ask you this. 35:47 If time should linger, our bodies are going to look 35:51 younger and younger every day, right? 35:54 Listen, no matter how many face lifts we have, 36:00 eventually we're going to have so many wrinkles 36:02 we can't cover them up. 36:05 And eventually, we're going to shrivel up 36:08 and we're going to die. 36:10 So if the beauty is only external, what is left? 36:15 Nothing. 36:17 But if we've developed a character of good works, 36:21 if we have acquired a sweet spirit like the Bible says, 36:24 God is writing that in heaven and He's going to give that back 36:27 in the day of the resurrection. 36:29 Our character is the only thing which we are going to 36:33 take to heaven, as the spirit of prophecy says. 36:37 I'd like to read a statement that we find in volume 1 36:40 of the Testimonies, page 136. 36:45 "I saw that the outside appearance is an index 36:49 to the heart." 36:52 Did you catch that? 36:54 "I saw that the outside appearance is an index 36:57 to the heart. 36:59 When the exterior is hung with ribbons, collars, 37:05 and needless things, it plainly shows that the love for all this 37:12 is in the heart. 37:14 Unless such persons are cleansed from their corruption, 37:18 they can never see God, for only the pure 37:22 in heart will see Him." 37:26 Physical beauty. 37:29 Wisdom. 37:31 Riches. 37:33 What is our perspective? 37:36 You know, we live in a day and age when everybody is 37:38 concerned about image. 37:40 We want to wear designer clothes. 37:42 You look at the Oscars, everybody wants to see what 37:44 the actors are wearing. 37:46 Who are our heroes today? 37:50 God loves beauty. 37:52 Doesn't God love beauty? 37:55 But He gives us beauty to bring glory to Him. 37:58 Not to bring glory to us. 38:00 By the way, do you know that God decked Lucifer with jewels? 38:04 We just read it. 38:07 And Lucifer wasn't able to handle it. 38:09 He became proud because of it. 38:12 You see, in this sinful world God knows that we can't handle 38:14 things like this, because they bring pride to our heart. 38:17 They lead us to be filled with conceit. 38:21 And so God says, "You know, some day I'm going to 38:24 deck you with My jewels." 38:26 He says, "But now, don't do it." 38:31 In fact, some people use those text in Scripture 38:33 where it says that God is going to deck His people with jewels, 38:38 and so they say, "See, God, you know, He's going to put 38:40 jewelry on His people." 38:42 You know, in the Bible whenever people themselves put on 38:46 jewelry, it's a sign of apostasy. 38:49 When God puts the jewels on people, 38:51 it's a sign of holiness. 38:54 So you better pray that the Lord send you a lot from heaven. 39:00 You see, when God puts it on, it's going to be because 39:02 we are in the earth made new. 39:05 And He knows that all these things will not be put on 39:08 to bring glory to ourselves, but to bring glory to God. 39:13 What about riches, what is our perspective of riches? 39:16 The early church, we're told that they sold everything 39:19 they had and they used it in common for people 39:21 who were in need. 39:23 You see, they had the perspective that riches 39:24 were to bless other people. 39:26 Jesus had that same perspective Himself. 39:31 You know, we're anxious to accumulate houses and cars 39:34 and toys and stocks and bonds and money in the money market 39:38 far more than what we need when we could really take this 39:42 and invest it in the cause of God to help finish His work 39:46 on this earth. 39:48 What about power, a position of power? 39:54 You know, the higher the position we have, 39:57 the greater should be our service. 39:59 If we follow the example of Jesus, Jesus washed the 40:02 feet of His disciples. 40:04 You know, you think of Nebuchadnezzar. 40:06 You know, he thought he was so great, 40:07 "Isn't this great Babylon which I built. 40:09 Look at all my riches and all my power." 40:11 And so God says, "Oh, is that the case? 40:14 Go eat grass." 40:15 He took away the pearl of reason. 40:17 How many riches did Nebuchadnezzar have after that? 40:20 How much power did he have after that? 40:22 None. 40:24 Because as long as God gives us the gift of reason, 40:29 we have. 40:31 When it's removed, we don't have. 40:34 In other words, all the honor and the glory belongs to God, 40:37 not to us. 40:41 And so our self image should be based, not on how we look, 40:46 not on what car we drive, not on what house we have, 40:52 not on how many degrees we have procured, 40:56 not on the clothes we wear, or the many toys which we possess. 41:02 Because all of these things could be lost in an instant 41:06 in this life, and everything will be lost when Jesus comes. 41:11 The focus should be on bringing glory to God 41:16 in these four areas of our lives. 41:18 I would like to end by reading... 41:22 And actually, I won't even have to read it. 41:24 ...that one verse in 1 Corinthians 10:31, 41:27 which we all know. 41:28 "Therefore, if you eat or you drink, or whatever you do, 41:34 do all to..." What? 41:37 "...to the glory of God." 41:40 So we must all examine ourselves and see how we're looking at 41:44 these four blessings that God gave to Lucifer. 41:47 Are we using them for self, or are we using them 41:50 for the glory of God? 41:52 I pray to God that He will help us to use these elements 41:56 for His honor and for His glory. 42:00 Father in heaven, we thank You for the way in which 42:04 You've spoken in Your holy Word. 42:06 We thank You because You've shown the wonderful endowments 42:10 which You gave to Lucifer. 42:13 We thank You because You gave him wisdom, 42:15 and You gave him beauty, You gave him riches, 42:18 and a position of power. 42:21 We're saddened to see that he abused these blessings 42:24 that You gave him. 42:25 And most of the people in the world are abusing these 42:28 blessings which You give them. 42:29 They're filled with conceit because of their wisdom 42:31 and their beauty and their power and their riches. 42:34 I ask, Father, that You will plant Your Holy Spirit 42:37 in our hearts and You will help us to put these things 42:39 in the right perspective. 42:41 That everything we do and everything we say, 42:44 that everything we possess, might be placed on the 42:48 altar of sacrifice and might be used for 42:52 Your honor and Your glory. 42:54 We thank You, Father, for hearing our prayer. 42:57 For we ask it in Jesus' name, amen. |
Revised 2014-12-17