Thank You.
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Good evening and welcome.
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We're going to go
to Jerusalem tonight
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if you'll fasten
you're seatbelts.
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One for my very
favorite journeys.
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I shall never forget my
first trip into the city.
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With me was my singing
evangelist and as our bus
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began to climb Mt. Zion, he
began to sing that wonderful
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song, that
thrilling song, The Holy City.
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"Jerusalem, Jerusalem.
Lift up your gates and sing. "
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We want to have a little
bit of the study of the map
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tonight as we begin.
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On the extreme left, of course,
the entirety of the Holy Land
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is bordered by
the Mediterranean Sea.
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In your Bible, it's probably
referred to as the Great Sea.
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And then, if you'll look up
toward the top of the screen,
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there you'll see the
Galilee Sea, kidney shaped
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body of water.
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We visited there
a few evenings ago.
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We come straight south down
the Jordon River and we come
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to the north of the Dead Sea.
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And then we go straight west and
we find the city of Jerusalem,
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right there, only about
18 milesfrom the Dead Sea.
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The city of
Jerusalem, ladies and gentlemen,
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is a curious mixture of
the ancient and the modern,
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the old and the new,
and the east and the west.
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And here on the western
side of the city of Jerusalem,
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we find town houses
and condominiums that are
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as beautiful as those we
might find around Central Park
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in New York City.
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But a stone's throw from here,
folks are living in conditions
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that date back to the
times of Isaiah and Jeremiah.
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And we're going to see
all of it as we move around
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through the city this evening.
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Here's a study
in contrast for you.
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Going down the highway is
a fairly new Mercedes Benz
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automobile and watching it go
by is an old Arab on his donkey.
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A Palestinian just
watching the traffic go by.
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This is an
interesting piece of art.
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It was given to the
Israeli government when it was
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formed in 1948 by the British
who'd been in charge, of course,
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of Palestine at that time.
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And it is a piece of black
marble that is chiseled to tell
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the history of the children
of Israel from Abraham's time
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on down to the time they
went into the Promise Land
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and beyond that.
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And it's a beautiful,
beautiful piece of art,
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marble art that is lovely.
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Now we're looking from the
opposite side, the eastern side
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of the city across the Kidron
Valley to the eastern gate,
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also known as the Golden Gate.
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And you can see
that it's been walled up.
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And we see, moreover, that there
is a cemetery in front of it.
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And I want to tell you a little
bit about why the gate has
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been closed up and
why the cemetery is there.
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In the Old
Testament book of Malachi,
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which is the last
book of the Old Testament,
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there's a prophecy that
said when Messiah would come
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He would be preceded by Elijah,
and Elijah would turn the
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hearts of the
children to the parents
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and parents to the children.
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When Islam took over
this part of the world,
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they decided they would prevent
the coming of the Messiah
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by preventing
Elijah preceding Him.
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And they believed that
Messiah would come through the
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eastern or the Golden Gate
on a great triumphal entry.
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And they further believed
that Elijah was a priest
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and priests could not
go through cemeteries.
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Now this is not a law from the
Bible, but it was a regulation
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among the Jewish people at
the time of Islam's majority.
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Back around, you know, the 8th
century, the early part of the
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8th century, 1720 or 30
and right in through there.
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And so the followers of
Islam began to bury their dead,
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after they had enclosed the
eastern gate, sealed it off.
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They began a cemetery
here that grew over the years
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with the idea that this would
prevent the coming of Messiah.
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Well the tragedy, of course, was
that Jesus had come and gone,
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you remember, and
they didn't recognize Him.
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"Whom do folks say that I am?"
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"Well, some think that
You're John the Baptist
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and others think that You're
a reincarnation of Elijah. "
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"And He came to His own
and His own received Him not. "
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We're going to move in here
for a little bit of a close-up
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and I want to point out
some of the graves to you.
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When you see a grave with
a headstone and a footstone,
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you know that this is a
grave of a man or a boy.
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A male person for sure.
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And when you see a grave
that has only just a headstone
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or maybe no headstone at
all, maybe no stone at all,
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you know that is the
grave of a woman or a girl.
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Because there is no
equality in life, nor is there
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equality in death.
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It's only the Christian
faith, ladies, where you're
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granted equality.
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For the apostle Paul,
God through Paul said,
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in Jesus Christ there's
neither male nor female,
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Jew or Greek,
but all are equals.
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And so we all, men and women,
owe Jesus a real debt, don't we.
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Because of His equality,
because of His righteousness,
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and His salvation.
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Now I, every time I look at this
picture, remember the original
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temptation of Jesus as
recorded in Matthew's gospel
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chapters 3 and 4.
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You remember?
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As soon as He was
baptized, it says He was lead
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into the wilderness and
was tempted by the devil.
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And among those temptations,
finds Jesus on the pinnacle
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of the temple and the devil
is testing Him and tempting Him
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to jump off, and the
devil quotes scripture.
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He knows the Bible
well, we're sure of that.
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He said, "go ahead and
jump off," and then he quoted
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an old promise, "Angels will
bear You up so that You don't
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even mash Your
toe when You land. "
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And Jesus responded, you recall,
by quoting scripture also.
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And He said
we're not to tempt God.
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Now had Jesus jumped from
the pinnacle of the temple,
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He would have not only
jumped down to the square
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of the temple but He would have
jumped clear off to the bottom
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of the Kidron Valley where we're
standing to take this picture.
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Another 100 plus feet
below the temple square.
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We also believe that it
was from somewhere in here,
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maybe over about the extreme
right hand of this picture
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on the screen,
somewhere in here that Judas
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hanged himself as is
described in Acts chapter 1.
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And the Bible, of course,
says that the cord with which
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he'd hanged himself
broke and his body fell
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on the rocks
below, it broke open.
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Now in the center of Temple
Square, there is the second
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most holy place in
all of the faith of Islam.
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It has two names.
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The Dome of the Rock
and the Mosque of Omar.
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The Mosque of Omar.
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You remember when we
mentioned the other evening,
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some really love Grape
Nuts and I mentioned to you
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Peggy is one such?
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And How I've looked
through the bowl of Grape Nuts
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and there are no
grapes and there are no nuts?
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And every time I see the
Mosque of Omar, I'm reminded of
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Grape Nuts,
strange association, huh.
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Well I'm from Idaho,
that explains most of it.
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But at any event, this is not
a mosque in the strictest since.
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It's not the tomb of Omar.
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But it is a very, very sacred
place for followers of Islam.
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The Dome of the Rock.
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And by the way, that dome that
you see that's covered over with
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gold was placed there, the
gold portion was placed there
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by the Hussein family
that still today rules just a
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few miles from here.
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King Hussein, the family
of Hussein over in Jordon.
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This beautiful, beautiful
place was built, again, in the
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7th century and it is
built over the presumed site
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of the ascension of the
prophet Muhammad into heaven
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on that black Wednesday.
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And we're going to go inside
there in just a little bit.
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But before we do that, we
walk around to the ascent.
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The Bible talks
about the Queen of Sheba
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coming to see Solomon's
temple and how greatly impressed
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she was by the staircase.
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And they say this is the
staircase, but once made much
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more beautiful with the imported
marbles that covered it all.
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We're going to climb that same
staircase and make ready to go
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inside, you and I.
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But before we're allowed to
go inside we must, here also,
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remove our shoes.
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You remember when we
were in Egypt the other night
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at the tomb of Muhammad Ali
Pasha and you have to remove
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your shoes before even you
can go into the courtyard there.
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Well the same
thing holds true here,
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everyone takes off their shoes.
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And out around the
entry door, there are probably
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100 to 150 pairs of shoes.
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Now, if you're a follower of
Islam, in addition to removing
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your shoes, you go
over to the fountain near by
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and you sit down on
one of those stone benches,
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open the spicket
and wash your feet.
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And it all goes back to
the time that Moses was at the
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burning bush and God
said, "Remove your shoes.
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You're standing
on holy ground. "
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This shrine, this mosque
if you please, is designed
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after the order
of God's holy temple
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where God said, "I want
you to make it holy place
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and most holy place. "
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And so we find
the same thing here.
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We're going to go in,
you and I, to the holy place.
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And it is as beautiful,
I believe, as any building
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perhaps I've ever been in.
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Persian rugs that make
you feel you're going to sink
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in to your knees.
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And gorgeous marble and
mosaics, the finest stones
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probably, that were available
when all of this was built.
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Now for years I had to say,
I am sorry I cannot take you
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in to the most holy, or
into the inner circle of it all
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because it is so sacred to the
folks that they'll not let you
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take a camera in, nor will
they sell you a picture of it.
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Well I had to say
that for a number of years,
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but a man was called to do
some repair on the interior
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of the dome and in his toolbox,
he smuggled in a 35mm camera.
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And when no one was looking,
evidently, he with his wide
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angle lens, looked right
down and shot a picture and
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then got it out and made copies
of it and sold those copies
00:12:06.06\00:12:09.94
for 75 dollars each.
00:12:09.97\00:12:11.51
This next picture, ladies
and gentlemen, cost me $75,
00:12:11.54\00:12:15.40
but I'd gladly do it again.
00:12:15.43\00:12:17.22
There it is, we're
looking right down on the rock.
00:12:17.25\00:12:20.18
On the rock from which the
followers of Islam believe that
00:12:20.21\00:12:23.48
Muhammad ascended on the
black Wednesday into heaven
00:12:23.51\00:12:26.29
and then, of course,
returned and died and was buried
00:12:26.32\00:12:29.50
in Medina in Arabia.
00:12:29.53\00:12:31.13
Moreover, they believe that it
was upon this rock that Abraham
00:12:31.16\00:12:36.09
brought his son Ishmael
to offer him as a sacrifice.
00:12:36.12\00:12:39.98
But of course, in Christianity
and Judaism, we believe that
00:12:40.01\00:12:43.69
it was the son
Isaac and not Ishmael.
00:12:43.72\00:12:46.58
But this, then, is what makes it
the very holy place that it is.
00:12:46.61\00:12:50.81
Considered to be second most
holy only to Medina in Arabia.
00:12:50.84\00:12:55.59
Now, the books that are the
best sellers on end time events
00:12:55.62\00:13:00.58
and tribulation times and
all, suggest, and some more than
00:13:00.61\00:13:05.23
suggest, almost insist,
that this place is going to be
00:13:05.26\00:13:08.49
knocked down so a
temple can be rebuilt.
00:13:08.52\00:13:10.99
You've heard that
idea, haven't you.
00:13:11.02\00:13:12.54
Going to rebuild a temple.
00:13:12.57\00:13:13.54
And sometimes I read in
the Enquirer and certain other
00:13:13.55\00:13:17.63
such rags, and I don't
mean that in an unkind way,
00:13:17.66\00:13:21.97
but scandal sheets, that they're
already starting to rebuild
00:13:22.00\00:13:26.30
the temple in Jerusalem.
00:13:26.33\00:13:27.83
Well listen to me,
ladies and gentlemen.
00:13:27.86\00:13:29.61
If anyone; Jew, Christian,
or a combination thereof,
00:13:29.64\00:13:33.84
so much as made one hammer
mark upon one of the tiles
00:13:33.87\00:13:39.75
of this place, Armageddon
would start that same day.
00:13:39.78\00:13:43.32
You can be sure of it.
00:13:43.73\00:13:45.26
And I don't think that we need
to wait until someone starts
00:13:45.74\00:13:49.22
to rebuild a temple
before Jesus can come back.
00:13:49.25\00:13:52.70
I think that's not
one of the signs at all.
00:13:52.73\00:13:55.78
But it is a very special
and very beautiful place.
00:13:55.81\00:13:58.26
Well we want to walk around
the old wall of this city.
00:13:58.29\00:14:00.96
At the time of Jesus,
and a long while before that,
00:14:00.99\00:14:03.67
it was a walled in city.
00:14:03.70\00:14:05.17
And where you see the
tower, ladies and gentlemen,
00:14:05.20\00:14:07.27
that is the Citadel, and
today we would liken it to the
00:14:07.30\00:14:11.67
police headquarters.
00:14:11.70\00:14:13.01
Alright.
00:14:13.04\00:14:14.01
That was the lookout
tower for the Citadel or the
00:14:14.02\00:14:16.40
police headquarter.
00:14:16.43\00:14:17.50
Our Lord Jesus talked
about the sheep and the goats
00:14:17.53\00:14:21.18
being together
until the end time.
00:14:21.21\00:14:23.27
And at the end, He
would separate them.
00:14:23.30\00:14:25.67
He used illustrations
that were so very every day,
00:14:26.26\00:14:29.00
so very practical.
00:14:29.03\00:14:30.51
This is the
livestock auction in Jerusalem.
00:14:30.54\00:14:33.55
And here, the sheep and the
goats co-mingle, and all of the
00:14:33.58\00:14:36.67
folks that you see
here are Palestinians.
00:14:36.70\00:14:39.75
Any time you see someone
wearing that kind of headgear,
00:14:39.78\00:14:42.90
you know that they are
Arabs born in the Holy Land,
00:14:42.93\00:14:46.06
or Arabs at least.
00:14:46.09\00:14:47.64
And most likely Palestinian
born in the Holy Land.
00:14:47.67\00:14:51.10
Sheep and the goats be
together until the end time.
00:14:51.13\00:14:55.01
I think it's not an
accident that Jesus used
00:14:55.04\00:14:57.73
that illustration.
00:14:57.76\00:14:59.07
Is it an accident that Jesus
is referred to as the lamb?
00:15:01.45\00:15:04.75
Not at all.
00:15:05.42\00:15:06.53
The lamb is one of the most
gentle of all of the animals
00:15:07.11\00:15:12.47
on God's created earth.
00:15:12.50\00:15:14.39
The lamb follows its
master right to the slaughter.
00:15:14.88\00:15:18.54
And at the time of slaughter,
they say, never even cries out.
00:15:18.57\00:15:22.11
The goat, on the
other hand, butts his way
00:15:22.84\00:15:26.89
everywhere he goes.
00:15:26.92\00:15:28.16
And I think about that when
sometimes I'm visiting with folk
00:15:28.19\00:15:31.65
and trying to encourage them
to follow the truths of Jesus
00:15:31.68\00:15:34.72
and they say, "Well I can
see it's in the Bible, but... "
00:15:34.75\00:15:37.96
"I can see that it's
the Sabbath, but... "
00:15:39.14\00:15:41.99
But...
00:15:42.02\00:15:43.36
And that kind of
reminds me of the goats,
00:15:43.74\00:15:45.81
and so we need to remember some
of these illustrations of Jesus.
00:15:45.84\00:15:49.45
The city was
build upon Mt. Zion.
00:15:49.48\00:15:52.90
Consequently, to get from
one elevation to the other,
00:15:52.93\00:15:56.16
there are steps, and everywhere
there are steps or stairs,
00:15:56.19\00:15:59.19
you find the children of
Abraham engaged in some kind of
00:15:59.22\00:16:03.24
business selling fruits and
vegetables, or maybe yard goods
00:16:03.27\00:16:07.16
or some other household item.
00:16:07.19\00:16:09.60
And here, we're climbing
up between the folks that are
00:16:09.63\00:16:12.80
selling fruits and vegetables.
00:16:12.83\00:16:15.04
There are very few places
in the old city, by the way,
00:16:15.07\00:16:17.54
where you can drive a motor car,
even motorcycle for that matter,
00:16:17.57\00:16:22.49
because of the various
elevations and the steps.
00:16:22.52\00:16:26.15
The city of Jerusalem gave birth
to three major world religions.
00:16:26.18\00:16:29.79
Judaism,
Christianity, and then Islam.
00:16:30.56\00:16:34.71
And that's why it's
referred to as the Holy City.
00:16:34.74\00:16:38.04
Holy, not only for Christians,
but for others as well.
00:16:38.07\00:16:40.48
Now these Palestinians are
sitting up against the wall
00:16:40.51\00:16:43.83
and they're selling tobacco.
00:16:43.86\00:16:46.44
This man is selling cigarettes
and cigars and his friend
00:16:46.47\00:16:50.71
is sampling the wares and
telling how wonderful they are.
00:16:50.74\00:16:54.42
See, he's smoking the tobacco
through a water pipe there.
00:16:54.45\00:16:57.95
Some of the younger generation
might call it the hookah pipe.
00:16:57.98\00:17:01.52
Doesn't matter what you call it.
00:17:01.55\00:17:02.96
They have a little cassette
player there, and guess what.
00:17:02.99\00:17:06.55
They're listening to some music.
00:17:06.58\00:17:08.31
Who do you suppose
they're listening to?
00:17:08.34\00:17:10.27
Frank Sinatra.
00:17:10.72\00:17:12.14
It seems to matter not
where I go in the world,
00:17:14.07\00:17:17.27
the people listen to the
music of the United States.
00:17:17.30\00:17:20.94
Really.
00:17:20.97\00:17:22.06
Our music dominates the
peoples of the world to a
00:17:22.09\00:17:24.80
very large degree.
00:17:24.83\00:17:25.81
Now we're on the
north side of the city
00:17:25.84\00:17:27.71
and we're looking
at the Damascus Gate.
00:17:27.74\00:17:29.66
And every time we
think of Damascus, of course,
00:17:29.69\00:17:31.69
we think of the
conversion of the apostle Paul.
00:17:31.72\00:17:34.24
He was leaving
Jerusalem on his way to Damascus
00:17:35.06\00:17:37.40
to do violence to the Christians
when he was knocked from the
00:17:37.43\00:17:39.56
back of his animal
and found conversion.
00:17:39.59\00:17:42.24
Is this the gate
that Paul came out of?
00:17:42.27\00:17:44.41
No, but rather the one down
toward the edge of the screen.
00:17:44.44\00:17:48.29
Let's bring it up, shall we.
00:17:48.32\00:17:49.63
There it is, now in
the center of the picture.
00:17:49.66\00:17:52.75
That is the Damascus Gate of
the time of the apostle Paul.
00:17:52.78\00:17:56.45
But it's much higher
today for the simple reason that
00:17:56.48\00:17:59.58
the city of Jerusalem has
been destroyed and rebuilt
00:17:59.61\00:18:02.23
on so many, many, many
occasions, 27 at least.
00:18:02.26\00:18:06.46
And every time they rebuild,
they rebuild on the ruins
00:18:06.49\00:18:08.82
of the city that
was there before it.
00:18:08.85\00:18:10.86
And so, it's gotten higher
and higher, and higher still.
00:18:10.89\00:18:14.58
Now we were just at
the second most holy place
00:18:14.61\00:18:17.08
for the followers of Islam.
00:18:17.11\00:18:18.54
This is the holy place
in Jerusalem for the Jew,
00:18:18.57\00:18:22.44
the Orthodox certainly.
00:18:22.47\00:18:23.94
This is the Wailing
Wall that you've heard of.
00:18:24.56\00:18:27.24
This is all that remains of
the temple that was placed here
00:18:27.27\00:18:32.76
by David, the
materials by David.
00:18:32.79\00:18:34.55
And those
stones, perhaps as well.
00:18:34.58\00:18:36.46
And then the construction was
overseen by his son, Solomon.
00:18:36.49\00:18:40.63
And here the Orthodox
come, write out little prayers,
00:18:40.66\00:18:44.08
fold them until they're
no bigger than a thumbnail,
00:18:44.11\00:18:47.07
and then stick them in
the cracks between the stones.
00:18:47.10\00:18:50.80
And for the next hour, perhaps,
they will bob and weave and
00:18:50.83\00:18:54.18
pray, "How long Lord, how long
until Jerusalem is restored?"
00:18:54.21\00:18:58.97
There's a sign here that
says, "Respect the sanctity and
00:18:59.00\00:19:02.08
don't take pictures or
smoke on the Sabbath. "
00:19:02.11\00:19:04.78
Rules like these, ideas
like these caused folks of the
00:19:06.71\00:19:10.31
3rd and 4th centuries,
particularly, to begin to
00:19:10.34\00:19:13.31
look down upon the Sabbath.
00:19:13.34\00:19:15.78
If this place is so sacred
that you ought not to smoke here
00:19:15.81\00:19:20.57
on Saturday, what
makes it okay on Tuesday?
00:19:20.60\00:19:24.38
You see.
00:19:24.41\00:19:25.38
Yea.
00:19:25.59\00:19:26.73
Well, we need to move on.
00:19:26.76\00:19:28.84
This is a gate in the old
wall also that has two names.
00:19:28.87\00:19:33.23
It's called the Lions Gate
and up on either side, you see
00:19:33.26\00:19:37.13
the stone lions
that are carved there.
00:19:37.16\00:19:39.56
Christians, though,
more often refer to it
00:19:39.59\00:19:42.17
as St. Stephen's Gate
because about where I'm standing
00:19:42.20\00:19:46.56
to shoot this picture,
Stephen was stoned to death.
00:19:46.59\00:19:50.59
And he said the same thing,
you remember, basically that
00:19:50.62\00:19:53.26
Jesus said on the cross, "Lay
not this sin to their charge.
00:19:53.29\00:19:56.87
Father, forgive them, they
don't know what they're doing. "
00:19:56.90\00:19:59.67
Well as we move on, we
come to the area of Bethany.
00:19:59.70\00:20:05.48
When Jesus was in the
area for several days,
00:20:06.53\00:20:10.33
he would go to the home
of Mary, Martha, and Lazarus
00:20:10.36\00:20:13.48
for a good meal and
for some good company.
00:20:13.51\00:20:17.15
And at the presumed site
of their home, there has been
00:20:17.18\00:20:20.78
a little chapel built.
00:20:20.81\00:20:22.22
We're not going to go inside,
but we're going to go up the
00:20:22.25\00:20:25.13
alley toward
the tomb of Lazarus.
00:20:25.16\00:20:27.93
And as we do so, we go by
the home of an Arab family.
00:20:27.96\00:20:31.83
A few years ago it was a
barn, ladies and gentlemen.
00:20:31.86\00:20:34.71
And they have no
indoor plumbing, they have
00:20:34.74\00:20:37.16
no bathroom facility.
00:20:37.19\00:20:38.72
They have to use
the corner of the yard
00:20:38.75\00:20:41.04
and it smells terribly, but
it's the best that they can do.
00:20:41.07\00:20:44.38
We turn around 180 degrees
and we're looking right down
00:20:44.41\00:20:47.59
into the tomb of
Lazarus where Jesus called,
00:20:47.62\00:20:50.85
"Lazarus, come forth. "
00:20:50.88\00:20:53.00
Jesus said to His disciples,
"Go and find a room and
00:20:54.73\00:20:59.02
rent that room.
00:20:59.05\00:21:00.34
And we'll celebrate
together the Passover.
00:21:00.37\00:21:02.96
And then Jesus instituted in
its place, the Lord's Supper.
00:21:02.99\00:21:06.90
And for hundreds and hundreds
of years, they've been saying
00:21:06.93\00:21:09.62
that this is that upper room.
00:21:09.65\00:21:11.82
Can we be
certain? No, not at all.
00:21:11.85\00:21:14.44
Is it possible? It is, it is.
00:21:14.47\00:21:17.47
It's the Roman style and it
goes back to the time of Jesus,
00:21:17.50\00:21:21.38
say the archaeologists.
00:21:21.41\00:21:23.09
It was here that Judas
got up from the table and
00:21:24.26\00:21:27.78
went out to betray Jesus.
00:21:27.81\00:21:29.55
And Jesus, a bit later with
the eleven, then left the room,
00:21:29.58\00:21:33.63
went through the
eastern or Golden Gate, crossed
00:21:33.66\00:21:37.38
the Kidron Valley, and over
into the garden of Gethsemane.
00:21:37.41\00:21:42.42
And He said to His disciples,
"Wait here and pray with Me.
00:21:42.45\00:21:47.07
Watch and pray. "
00:21:47.10\00:21:48.56
When you go into this
garden, a guide will show you
00:21:50.37\00:21:55.05
an old, old olive tree and tell
you that it was right beneath
00:21:55.08\00:21:59.97
that tree that Peter,
James, and John slept when they
00:22:00.00\00:22:04.16
should have been praying.
00:22:04.19\00:22:05.41
My son, Terry, was a lay
preacher and a really good one.
00:22:07.22\00:22:11.69
And the last sermon that
he preached, he took from this
00:22:12.19\00:22:15.66
story and this incident
when Jesus came back and He said
00:22:15.69\00:22:20.18
to them, "Sleep on
for it's too late now.
00:22:20.21\00:22:23.17
Go ahead and sleep. "
00:22:23.20\00:22:25.03
And my boy preached a
sermon, "Will you also sleep on?
00:22:25.44\00:22:28.78
Are we asleep when we see the
world caving in all around us?"
00:22:29.56\00:22:33.54
It was a powerful message and
it was so good that I'm going to
00:22:33.57\00:22:36.75
preach it one of these days.
00:22:36.78\00:22:38.29
Will you also sleep on?
00:22:38.83\00:22:40.55
Well can we be sure that this is
where the disciples were asleep?
00:22:40.58\00:22:44.35
No.
00:22:44.38\00:22:45.35
Is it possible? Yes.
00:22:45.36\00:22:47.10
And the reason that it's
possible is, the olive tree is
00:22:47.50\00:22:50.33
one of the oldest living
things in all of the world.
00:22:50.36\00:22:52.85
And those who know about
such things can count the rings
00:22:52.88\00:22:57.29
and say that these trees
date back to the time of Jesus.
00:22:57.32\00:23:01.17
Not all, but some of them
date back to the time of Jesus.
00:23:01.20\00:23:04.71
Well, where Jesus agonized
and where He sweat great drops
00:23:04.74\00:23:08.89
of blood, they've
again built a little church.
00:23:08.92\00:23:11.15
And it's called,
The Church of the Agony.
00:23:11.18\00:23:13.24
And we go inside and up
in the area of the altar
00:23:13.27\00:23:16.54
there is above it, a tapestry
that shows Jesus agonizing
00:23:16.57\00:23:20.89
upon a rock and praying,
"If possible, let this cup
00:23:20.92\00:23:24.49
pass from me. "
00:23:24.52\00:23:26.12
And they say, then, that
it was here that Judas came
00:23:26.15\00:23:28.99
leading the temple priest
and the Roman soldiers who
00:23:29.02\00:23:31.35
arrested Jesus and then dragged
Him over to the Sanhedrin
00:23:31.39\00:23:34.52
where He stood
trial before the Jews,
00:23:34.55\00:23:36.72
and then was
turned over to Pilate.
00:23:36.75\00:23:39.08
We're now going to go to
the court of Pontius Pilate.
00:23:40.16\00:23:43.76
And while we can't be
sure that was the tree or that
00:23:43.79\00:23:46.60
was the place, I think
when it comes to believing that
00:23:46.63\00:23:50.73
this is the place of
Pilate's judgment, there is good
00:23:50.76\00:23:53.67
historical and
archaeological reason behind it.
00:23:53.70\00:23:57.57
I think that we can
be at least 95% certain
00:23:57.60\00:24:00.62
that this is the place
of Pilate's judgment hall.
00:24:00.65\00:24:03.97
In the flooring, there are
games carved into the stone.
00:24:04.74\00:24:09.43
Not unlike tic tac toe where
the Roman soldiers would play
00:24:09.46\00:24:13.16
and pass the time
until the final verdict.
00:24:13.19\00:24:16.19
Then it says, Jesus bearing
His cross began to drag it
00:24:16.22\00:24:20.52
up Via Dolorosa.
00:24:20.55\00:24:22.14
It was not so named at
the time of Christ, but it's
00:24:22.17\00:24:24.97
named that today.
00:24:25.00\00:24:26.23
The road to the cross.
00:24:26.26\00:24:28.43
It was part of the punishment
of the man crucified that he
00:24:30.37\00:24:33.96
drag his cross, not the shortest
route, but the longest distance
00:24:33.99\00:24:38.50
so the largest number
of folks could abuse him
00:24:38.53\00:24:42.82
and throw rocks at him
and try to spit upon him
00:24:42.85\00:24:46.07
and maybe slap him
as he dragged the cross.
00:24:46.10\00:24:49.13
Christian people today come here
and they follow that same route,
00:24:49.16\00:24:54.48
some of them like this
lady carrying a small cross.
00:24:54.51\00:24:57.70
But some young men, I
have seen, carrying crosses,
00:24:57.73\00:25:00.93
dragging crosses that are
made out of timbers as large
00:25:00.96\00:25:04.35
as railroad ties.
00:25:04.38\00:25:06.03
You end, on Via Dolorosa, at the
Church of the Holy Sepulchre.
00:25:07.85\00:25:14.43
And at this point, I need to say
to you that there are two places
00:25:14.46\00:25:17.23
where it's said that Jesus was
buried, and this is one of them.
00:25:17.26\00:25:20.87
And we're going to go inside
and a priest will take you
00:25:20.90\00:25:25.02
to a certain place
where there's a little altar.
00:25:25.05\00:25:27.06
And with a lighted
candle, he will show you a hole
00:25:27.09\00:25:30.73
beneath that altar and tell
you that it was there that the
00:25:30.76\00:25:34.61
cross of Jesus was raised.
00:25:34.64\00:25:36.50
And you may spend as
much time here as you like.
00:25:36.53\00:25:39.27
And it is very ornate.
00:25:39.87\00:25:41.75
And then you follow another
priest into a basement area
00:25:41.78\00:25:46.15
and he tells you that
this is where Jesus was buried.
00:25:46.18\00:25:49.36
Now I need to be honest to say
to you that scholars who have
00:25:50.84\00:25:54.08
spent a lifetime studying
the place of the crucifixion
00:25:54.11\00:25:57.29
and the burial are
largely in agreement that this
00:25:57.32\00:26:00.49
was the place.
00:26:00.52\00:26:01.89
And while your mind
may say, "Alright, I can
00:26:01.92\00:26:03.97
deal with that, okay. "
00:26:04.00\00:26:05.90
Your heart wants to
believe something else.
00:26:05.93\00:26:08.62
And now I'll share with
you what the heart wants,
00:26:08.65\00:26:11.63
what the
feelings want to believe.
00:26:11.66\00:26:14.00
We're now going
to Gordon's Calvary.
00:26:14.03\00:26:16.53
There was a British officer,
an army officer, who spent
00:26:16.93\00:26:22.98
a lot of time here
and he'd gone into the
00:26:23.01\00:26:25.70
Church of the Holy Sepulchre
and studied it all and he said,
00:26:25.73\00:26:28.66
"I don't believe
that's the place. "
00:26:28.69\00:26:30.53
For the Bible says in John's
gospel, in the place where
00:26:30.56\00:26:33.88
He was crucified there was
the skull, the shape of a skull;
00:26:33.91\00:26:38.82
Skull Hill or Golgotha.
00:26:38.85\00:26:41.54
And so he began to look around
through the environs of the city
00:26:41.57\00:26:45.28
and over where today the
bus depot is, he found in the
00:26:45.31\00:26:49.84
hillside, the shape of a skull.
00:26:49.87\00:26:52.41
Now it doesn't take
a lot of imagination.
00:26:52.44\00:26:54.75
I will outline it
here with the pointer,
00:26:54.78\00:26:56.45
right in the very
center of the picture.
00:26:56.48\00:26:58.26
Here we go two
eyes, you see here?
00:26:58.29\00:27:00.71
And a nasal cavity and
like a mouth cavity down here.
00:27:01.39\00:27:04.69
The place of the skull.
00:27:07.02\00:27:08.68
Now he said, if this is
the place then near here there
00:27:10.48\00:27:13.81
must have been a garden.
00:27:13.84\00:27:15.21
And in the garden, a wine press.
00:27:15.24\00:27:16.79
For the old prophet
said He would tread the
00:27:16.82\00:27:19.61
wine press alone.
00:27:19.64\00:27:21.02
And so they began to dig
in the area and surely enough
00:27:21.05\00:27:24.01
they found the evidence of a
garden including a wine press.
00:27:24.04\00:27:28.11
And then he said if this is
the place, then over against
00:27:28.14\00:27:31.37
the mountain there
must have been a tomb.
00:27:31.40\00:27:34.03
And they began to excavate and
surely enough they found a tomb.
00:27:34.06\00:27:38.65
And originally, all of this
was the opening for the tomb
00:27:39.43\00:27:43.19
and these blocks
have enclosed most of it.
00:27:43.22\00:27:46.29
And now there's a
simple little door here.
00:27:46.32\00:27:48.44
But in front of it, there
is that trench that was dug
00:27:48.47\00:27:51.99
where a great stone
would be rolled in place
00:27:52.02\00:27:54.75
to enclose the whole thing.
00:27:54.78\00:27:57.26
And your heart wants to
think that this is the place
00:27:58.61\00:28:01.66
because it's still natural,
it's like it may have been
00:28:01.69\00:28:04.91
at the time of Jesus.
00:28:04.94\00:28:06.66
And there aren't the candles
and the incense and all of the
00:28:06.69\00:28:09.49
other things that are manmade.
00:28:09.52\00:28:11.59
Inside that tomb, there is
a little shelf where a body
00:28:12.42\00:28:16.83
would be placed and a
little niche that was carved
00:28:16.86\00:28:19.82
where a head would rest.
00:28:19.85\00:28:21.13
But on the backside of the
door that now closes the tomb,
00:28:21.73\00:28:25.67
there is a hand lettered sign,
a quotation from a holy angel
00:28:25.70\00:28:31.63
who said, "He is not
here, for Jesus has risen. "
00:28:31.66\00:28:36.90
Thank you for
traveling with me tonight.
00:28:37.20\00:28:39.15
And now to our
subject, "The Millennium. "
00:28:41.71\00:28:43.70
If we were to give a
subtitle, it might well be
00:28:44.20\00:28:47.33
something like this, "The
day the devil loses his job. "
00:28:47.36\00:28:51.89
Would you please open
your Bibles with me to
00:28:51.92\00:28:54.28
Revelation chapter 20.
00:28:54.31\00:28:58.21
And tonight as we begin, we're
going to be reminded once more
00:28:58.24\00:29:01.94
that the book of
Revelation is largely symbolic.
00:29:01.97\00:29:04.79
Not to be taken so terribly
literally in most places.
00:29:05.54\00:29:09.12
But to understand the
symbolism, it's vital to
00:29:09.15\00:29:12.68
the terminal generation.
00:29:12.71\00:29:14.32
Alright.
00:29:14.35\00:29:15.32
While you're
turning, I just might explain.
00:29:15.33\00:29:18.06
I've often been asked, "Why
did God speak through prophecy?
00:29:18.09\00:29:21.76
Was it just to
satisfy our curiosity?"
00:29:21.79\00:29:24.09
Of course not.
00:29:24.12\00:29:25.26
No, but rather it was
to give us faith and hope.
00:29:25.29\00:29:30.34
For you see, many of
the prophecies have already
00:29:30.37\00:29:32.70
been fulfilled.
00:29:32.73\00:29:33.83
Daniel chapter 2
being one of them.
00:29:33.86\00:29:36.00
And many others that
we have studied together,
00:29:36.03\00:29:37.98
they've already been fulfilled
in exact and precise detail.
00:29:38.01\00:29:41.59
And that gives us faith and
hope that those that are still
00:29:41.62\00:29:44.76
in the future, such as
this one, will also be fulfilled
00:29:44.79\00:29:47.79
with the same kind of detail.
00:29:47.82\00:29:50.99
Jesus has spoken
through predictive prophecy
00:29:51.02\00:29:54.68
for the purpose, among
others, of giving us peace.
00:29:54.71\00:29:58.19
"My peace give I unto you.
Not like the world gives. "
00:29:58.22\00:30:02.23
"My peace. "
00:30:02.26\00:30:03.33
And so we're going to find peace
as we study again this evening.
00:30:03.36\00:30:06.98
I'm going to begin at the
very first verse of Revelation
00:30:07.01\00:30:09.05
chapter 20 and ask you to
follow very, very carefully
00:30:09.08\00:30:12.31
while I read.
00:30:12.34\00:30:13.49
Revelation chapter 20 and
beginning at the first verse.
00:30:14.46\00:30:17.35
"I saw an angel come down from
heaven having the key to the
00:30:18.31\00:30:20.91
bottomless pit and he had
a great chain in his hand.
00:30:20.94\00:30:24.63
He took hold of the
dragon, the old serpent called
00:30:24.66\00:30:27.03
the Devil and Satan and he
bound him for a thousand years.
00:30:27.06\00:30:31.90
He put him into the bottomless
pit and shut him up and
00:30:32.47\00:30:34.76
placed a seal upon him so that
he should deceive the nations
00:30:34.79\00:30:37.62
no more until the
thousand years were fulfilled.
00:30:37.65\00:30:40.93
And then he would be
loosed a little season.
00:30:40.96\00:30:45.21
And then I saw thrones and
they, the saints, sat upon them
00:30:45.82\00:30:48.81
and judgment
was given unto them,
00:30:48.84\00:30:50.55
and those who'd been beheaded
for the witness of Jesus
00:30:50.85\00:30:53.53
and the word of God because they
had not worshipped the beast or
00:30:53.56\00:30:56.90
his image or received the
mark either in their foreheads
00:30:56.93\00:31:00.33
or in their hands.
00:31:00.36\00:31:01.69
And these lived and reigned with
Christ for one thousand years. "
00:31:01.72\00:31:07.77
Now I want you to leave a
bookmark here at Revelation 20
00:31:08.74\00:31:11.74
and go back with me to
that little letter of 1 John,
00:31:11.77\00:31:15.49
those three little letters, you
remember, before the Revelation.
00:31:15.52\00:31:18.06
We want to notice the
first one and the third chapter.
00:31:18.09\00:31:22.34
1 John chapter 3, and I'm
going to read for us verse 8.
00:31:22.37\00:31:28.11
And I ask you to follow along
very carefully, if you will.
00:31:28.14\00:31:31.20
1 John chapter 3 and verse 8.
00:31:33.64\00:31:35.85
"He that commiteth
sin is of the devil,
00:31:36.80\00:31:40.20
for the devil
sinneth from the beginning.
00:31:41.50\00:31:43.69
It was for this purpose
the Son of God was manifested,
00:31:44.29\00:31:47.53
that He might... "
00:31:47.56\00:31:48.54
Now you tell me
what it says next.
00:31:48.57\00:31:50.83
"... that He
might destroy the...
00:31:51.51\00:31:53.31
...works of the devil. "
00:31:53.78\00:31:54.94
There it is.
00:31:54.97\00:31:55.94
This is the day, then,
that the devil loses his job.
00:31:55.95\00:31:59.45
This study of the millennium,
the first day of the millennium,
00:31:59.48\00:32:02.24
ladies and gentlemen,
is the day that the devil
00:32:02.27\00:32:04.43
loses his job.
00:32:04.46\00:32:05.72
Now it's fair to ask,
then, "What is the devils work?"
00:32:05.75\00:32:09.55
What is his Job?
00:32:09.86\00:32:11.26
Well, devil, the old enemy, is
in charge of rape and riot and
00:32:11.29\00:32:17.15
murder and mayhem.
00:32:17.18\00:32:18.41
He's in charge of all kinds
of bad weather and tsunami's and
00:32:18.44\00:32:21.93
earthquakes and terrible
storms that come against
00:32:21.96\00:32:26.09
innocent people.
00:32:26.12\00:32:27.24
He's behind every bit of that.
00:32:27.27\00:32:29.05
He's behind the abusing
of little children and the
00:32:29.08\00:32:31.63
battering of wives.
00:32:31.66\00:32:32.89
That's his work
and that's his job.
00:32:32.92\00:32:34.94
But one day, by the grace
of God, one day soon I hope,
00:32:34.97\00:32:38.50
it's going to
forever come to an end.
00:32:38.53\00:32:40.77
And the work of the
devil is going to be destroyed,
00:32:40.80\00:32:44.35
forever destroyed.
00:32:44.38\00:32:45.94
Now, we've
raised a valid question.
00:32:45.97\00:32:49.24
When does the millennium begin?
00:32:49.27\00:32:51.54
And God doesn't give us a
date, I think for good reason.
00:32:51.57\00:32:54.42
But He does give us an event.
00:32:54.45\00:32:56.64
An event that initiates,
triggers, the 1000 year period.
00:32:56.67\00:33:00.64
So back to Revelation
chapter 20 we go, and we take up
00:33:00.67\00:33:04.08
the reading
then down at verse 6.
00:33:04.11\00:33:08.94
Revelation chapter 20 verse 6.
00:33:08.97\00:33:10.94
Here's the event that
initiates the 1000 years.
00:33:10.97\00:33:15.56
Revelation 20 verse 6.
00:33:16.25\00:33:17.73
"Blessed and holy is he that has
part in the 1st resurrection. "
00:33:17.76\00:33:24.33
There it is, my dears.
00:33:24.36\00:33:25.38
Underline that, if not in your
Bibles, certainly in your minds
00:33:25.41\00:33:28.65
and in your notes.
00:33:28.68\00:33:29.65
"Blessed and holy is he that has
part in the first resurrection.
00:33:29.66\00:33:33.51
On such the second death
has no part, or no power. "
00:33:33.54\00:33:37.74
Every man ever blessed
of God, every holy person,
00:33:39.11\00:33:42.77
is going to be made alive
at this time in order to live
00:33:42.80\00:33:45.98
and reign with Christ
during the 1000 years.
00:33:46.01\00:33:49.59
"Blessed and holy is he that has
part in the 1st resurrection. "
00:33:49.62\00:33:53.52
And by the way, it goes
on to say that during this
00:33:53.55\00:33:56.50
period of time, they're
going to act as priests.
00:33:56.53\00:33:59.21
And I want to leave
at this juncture, then,
00:33:59.24\00:34:01.51
a thought in your mind.
00:34:01.54\00:34:02.51
The job of a priest
was never condemnatory.
00:34:02.52\00:34:06.39
The prophet had to sometimes
spank the people a little bit
00:34:08.26\00:34:12.54
for God and give them a
little bit of a tongue lashing.
00:34:12.57\00:34:15.47
But never the priest.
00:34:15.50\00:34:16.49
The priest was always the
intercessor, he was always the
00:34:16.52\00:34:19.85
people's attorney.
00:34:19.88\00:34:20.85
When the folks were in
trouble, he pled their case.
00:34:20.86\00:34:23.43
So I want you to remember that.
00:34:23.46\00:34:25.31
During the 1000 years,
the saints of God are going to
00:34:25.34\00:34:28.53
act as priests.
00:34:28.56\00:34:29.53
They're going to be
given a work of judgment
00:34:29.54\00:34:31.48
and they're going
to act as priests.
00:34:31.51\00:34:34.10
Now, it is a matter of
simple logic that if there is a
00:34:34.13\00:34:39.46
first resurrection, of necessity
there must be at least a
00:34:39.49\00:34:43.42
second resurrection.
00:34:43.82\00:34:45.88
Okay, again leave a bookmark
at Revelation chapter 20
00:34:45.91\00:34:48.95
and go with me now,
though, to Acts chapter 24.
00:34:48.98\00:34:52.51
Acts chapter 24 find the apostle
Paul ministering and preaching,
00:34:52.54\00:34:57.72
and we're going
to read at verse 15.
00:34:57.75\00:35:01.13
Acts chapter 24 and verse 15.
00:35:01.16\00:35:04.87
"Have hope toward God," says
Paul, "which they themselves
00:35:04.90\00:35:08.81
also allow, for there shall
be a resurrection of the dead,
00:35:08.84\00:35:12.22
both of the just
and the unjust. "
00:35:12.25\00:35:16.86
Now I want you to note a
couple of things here folks.
00:35:16.89\00:35:19.27
I want you to notice that
there are two resurrections.
00:35:19.30\00:35:23.00
And I want you to notice
the order in which they happen.
00:35:23.03\00:35:26.14
The resurrection
of the saints firstly,
00:35:26.17\00:35:28.50
and the resurrection of the
lost or the unsaved secondly.
00:35:28.53\00:35:32.54
So we've had it from
John in Revelation chapter 20,
00:35:33.51\00:35:36.59
now we have it from the
apostle Paul in Acts chapter 24.
00:35:36.62\00:35:39.98
From here, we're going
to go to John chapter 5.
00:35:40.01\00:35:43.74
Whom could we better ask
about resurrections and their
00:35:44.39\00:35:46.82
number and their order
than our Lord Jesus Himself.
00:35:46.85\00:35:49.60
The Bible says of
Jesus that He is the
00:35:49.63\00:35:51.71
first fruit of resurrection.
00:35:51.74\00:35:53.54
That means that He is
the paradigm, that He is
00:35:53.57\00:35:56.95
the supreme example.
00:35:56.98\00:35:58.81
And so, at John
chapter 5 we're going to notice
00:35:58.84\00:36:02.33
verses 28 and 29.
00:36:02.36\00:36:04.32
Here's Jesus speaking,
John chapter 5 verses 28 and 29.
00:36:04.35\00:36:09.40
Jesus said, "Marvel not at this,
for the hour is coming in which
00:36:09.43\00:36:13.18
all that are in the
grave shall hear His voice
00:36:13.21\00:36:15.04
and they shall come forth.
00:36:15.07\00:36:16.32
They that have done good,
in the resurrection of... "
00:36:16.35\00:36:18.82
Now help me please.
00:36:18.85\00:36:20.01
"... the resurrection of life,
and they that have done evil,
00:36:20.70\00:36:23.24
in the
resurrection of damnation. "
00:36:23.34\00:36:27.01
And so here we have from
Jesus Himself the teaching
00:36:27.04\00:36:30.33
of two resurrections.
00:36:30.36\00:36:31.45
And the first one is for
the saints and the second one
00:36:31.48\00:36:35.06
is for the unsaved.
00:36:35.09\00:36:37.38
Now, I want you in
your minds to go with me,
00:36:37.41\00:36:40.88
we need not turn there again,
but I want you in your minds
00:36:40.91\00:36:44.08
because we've
memorized these verse,
00:36:44.11\00:36:45.94
1 Thessalonians
chapter 4 verses 16-18.
00:36:45.97\00:36:50.15
You remember when we talked
about the anti-christ, we said
00:36:50.18\00:36:52.33
these are the verses
that save us from anti-christ.
00:36:52.36\00:36:54.94
1 Thessalonians chapter
4 beginning with verse 16.
00:36:54.97\00:36:59.37
"For the Lord Himself... "
00:36:59.40\00:37:00.84
Why don't you say it
with me, you know the verses.
00:37:00.87\00:37:02.60
Come on, say it with me.
00:37:02.63\00:37:03.76
"For the Lord Himself
shall descend from heaven
00:37:03.79\00:37:07.00
with a shout, with the
voice of the archangel,
00:37:07.03\00:37:10.13
and the trump of God.
00:37:10.16\00:37:11.62
And the dead in
Christ rise first. "
00:37:11.65\00:37:15.83
There it is again.
00:37:15.86\00:37:17.40
"Then we which are alive
and remain, the generation alive
00:37:17.43\00:37:20.70
and ready to meet Jesus are
caught up together with them
00:37:20.73\00:37:23.88
to meet our Lord... "
00:37:23.91\00:37:25.14
The three words that
save us from anti-christ.
00:37:25.17\00:37:26.85
We meet Him where,
in Rome, in Jerusalem?
00:37:26.88\00:37:28.68
Where do we meet Him?
00:37:28.71\00:37:29.74
"In the air, and so
shall we ever be with the Lord.
00:37:30.14\00:37:32.51
Wherefore, comfort one
another with these words. "
00:37:32.54\00:37:35.61
So many have the mistaken notion
that when Jesus comes back
00:37:36.62\00:37:39.76
and the millennium begins
that He's going to rule here on
00:37:39.79\00:37:43.36
planet earth and a lot of
folks are going to get a second
00:37:43.39\00:37:45.74
chance to be saved.
00:37:45.77\00:37:47.12
But that's not the case.
00:37:47.15\00:37:48.33
Our Lord Jesus is not going
to touch a foot down to this sin
00:37:48.36\00:37:51.84
cursed earth for another 1000
years after the second coming.
00:37:51.87\00:37:56.32
"Blessed and holy is he that has
part in the 1st resurrection. "
00:37:56.72\00:37:59.82
"Marvel not at this, for
all that are in the grave
00:37:59.85\00:38:02.04
shall hear His voice.
00:38:02.07\00:38:03.04
Those that have done good,
in the resurrection of eternity.
00:38:03.05\00:38:06.66
And those that have done
evil, to the resurrection
00:38:06.69\00:38:08.58
of damnation. "
00:38:08.61\00:38:09.82
"Blessed and holy is he that has
part in the 1st resurrection. "
00:38:10.93\00:38:16.01
Our Lord Jesus is not
coming back, my dears,
00:38:16.04\00:38:18.89
to preach the gospel.
00:38:18.92\00:38:20.34
But rather, He's only going
to come back after the gospel
00:38:20.37\00:38:23.28
has gone to the whole world,
as He instructed the disciples
00:38:23.31\00:38:26.45
in His last words.
00:38:26.48\00:38:27.45
"Go into the whole
world and preach the gospel
00:38:27.46\00:38:29.58
and as soon as the job is
done, then I will come again. "
00:38:29.61\00:38:33.52
You see, He's not coming
to preach the gospel, but only
00:38:33.99\00:38:37.48
after the gospel has
been preached and everyone has
00:38:37.51\00:38:40.37
had the opportunity
to make up his mind.
00:38:40.40\00:38:43.30
When my boy died, a wise
Christian man, not a preacher,
00:38:43.33\00:38:47.12
but just a real wise Christian
man, a man very close to Jesus
00:38:47.16\00:38:51.70
I believe, said this to me.
00:38:51.73\00:38:53.08
He said, "Lyle, God
gives each of His children
00:38:53.11\00:38:57.11
all the time they
need to make the choices
00:38:58.20\00:39:02.80
either right or wrong. "
00:39:02.83\00:39:04.86
Now follow this idea very
carefully, ladies and gentlemen,
00:39:11.40\00:39:14.18
if you will please.
00:39:14.21\00:39:15.32
When Jesus comes
back in His second coming,
00:39:15.93\00:39:19.51
with a shout, with the
voice of the archangel,
00:39:19.54\00:39:21.71
there are going to be four
classes of people on this earth.
00:39:22.76\00:39:28.32
Only just four.
00:39:29.88\00:39:31.35
And today, we're
divided in so many ways and so
00:39:32.50\00:39:34.71
many different directions.
00:39:34.74\00:39:35.83
We have white and we have black,
00:39:35.86\00:39:37.52
and we have rich
and we have poor,
00:39:37.55\00:39:39.33
we have educated and uneducated.
00:39:39.36\00:39:41.62
And you could go
on down a long list.
00:39:41.65\00:39:43.51
But when Jesus comes
back, there are only going
00:39:43.54\00:39:45.85
be four classes.
00:39:45.88\00:39:47.64
And I'm going to go
down them just now with you.
00:39:47.67\00:39:50.38
There are going to
be the righteous dead.
00:39:50.41\00:39:52.72
That means those who have
died and gone into the grave
00:39:52.75\00:39:56.46
with their
faith in Jesus Christ.
00:39:56.49\00:39:58.33
There are also going to
be the righteous living.
00:39:59.54\00:40:02.70
Those who are alive
and ready to meet Jesus,
00:40:03.40\00:40:05.15
caught up together with
the righteous dead who's graves
00:40:05.18\00:40:07.09
have been opened.
00:40:07.12\00:40:08.09
And then there are
going to be the wicked dead.
00:40:08.49\00:40:12.00
Those who have died
with no faith in Jesus.
00:40:12.03\00:40:15.34
They've gone into a
Christless, Godless grave.
00:40:15.37\00:40:18.47
And finally, number four.
00:40:19.01\00:40:20.95
There are going to
be the wicked living.
00:40:20.98\00:40:23.35
The terminal generation that has
not given its heart to Jesus,
00:40:23.38\00:40:26.78
that has not listened to
the appeal of the Holy Spirit.
00:40:26.81\00:40:29.80
"Blessed and holy is he that has
part in the 1st resurrection. "
00:40:32.04\00:40:36.27
That means then, by
the abundance of evidence
00:40:36.30\00:40:39.13
that the unsaved, the
lost are raised again at the...
00:40:39.16\00:40:44.15
are raised, rather I
should have said, at the
00:40:44.83\00:40:47.09
second resurrection.
00:40:47.12\00:40:48.41
Now, it's not enough
for me to just suggest it.
00:40:48.44\00:40:51.92
Let's go back to
Revelation chapter 20 and we're
00:40:51.95\00:40:55.18
going to read it together.
00:40:55.21\00:40:56.60
Revelation chapter
20, this time at verse 5.
00:40:56.63\00:40:59.80
Revelation chapter
20 and now verse 5.
00:41:00.82\00:41:03.90
"The rest of the dead... "
00:41:06.05\00:41:07.50
Well let's pause
there for just a moment
00:41:07.53\00:41:09.37
and refresh our memories.
00:41:09.40\00:41:10.72
In verse 4, we find the
saints of God of all ages.
00:41:10.75\00:41:14.27
It says, "Blessed
and holy are they,"
00:41:14.30\00:41:16.30
of course down at verse 6.
00:41:16.33\00:41:17.86
But it says, "They sit
upon thrones and the work of
00:41:17.89\00:41:20.43
judgment is given unto them.
00:41:20.46\00:41:21.62
And I saw the souls of
those who had been martyred
00:41:21.65\00:41:24.20
for the witness of Jesus and
those who'd refused to worship
00:41:24.23\00:41:27.62
the beast or his image. "
00:41:27.65\00:41:28.68
Oh and by the way, by the way.
00:41:28.71\00:41:32.02
If this passage was all that
I had to know that there isn't
00:41:32.05\00:41:37.26
a second chance to get
saved, to know that the beast
00:41:37.29\00:41:41.37
and all of the rest, the mark
of the beast, comes before the
00:41:41.40\00:41:43.67
second coming of Jesus, if this
was all the information I had,
00:41:43.70\00:41:47.15
this would be enough.
00:41:47.18\00:41:48.69
It's abundantly clear in
this passage that before Jesus
00:41:48.72\00:41:52.46
comes back, His children have
gotten victory over the beast
00:41:52.49\00:41:56.14
and refused the
mark of the beast.
00:41:56.17\00:41:58.51
And they're made alive
in order to be with Christ
00:41:58.54\00:42:01.23
during the 1000 years.
00:42:01.26\00:42:03.37
And then verse 5, "But
the rest of the dead... "
00:42:03.40\00:42:05.61
That, of course,
means the unsaved.
00:42:05.64\00:42:07.83
"The rest of the dead
lived not until the 1000 years
00:42:07.86\00:42:11.08
are finished. "
00:42:11.11\00:42:12.33
Now, there is a
little addendum to that verse
00:42:12.36\00:42:15.57
that has caused a
problem in many minds
00:42:15.60\00:42:18.09
because it says, "This
is the first resurrection. "
00:42:18.12\00:42:22.20
And I'm going to lift
the cloud from your mind
00:42:22.90\00:42:25.32
if it's been a problem in yours.
00:42:25.35\00:42:27.47
Here it is.
00:42:27.67\00:42:28.86
In my Bible, for the
sake of my own understanding,
00:42:28.89\00:42:32.60
until it was abundantly clear to
me, as I'd study a lot of other
00:42:32.63\00:42:36.17
places, in my Bible, I
put the first half of verse 5
00:42:36.20\00:42:40.68
in brackets or parenthesis.
00:42:40.71\00:42:42.82
Alright?
00:42:42.85\00:42:44.10
Okay?
00:42:44.14\00:42:45.36
The first half, "The rest of
the dead, the unsaved lived not
00:42:46.94\00:42:49.33
again until the 1000
years are finished. "
00:42:49.36\00:42:50.68
That's in brackets.
00:42:50.71\00:42:52.40
And some of the newer
translations, by the way,
00:42:52.43\00:42:54.40
put it in just the reverse
order so that you don't need
00:42:54.43\00:42:57.10
to put the brackets there.
00:42:57.13\00:42:58.94
Not even in your mind.
00:42:58.97\00:43:00.43
Alright?
00:43:00.46\00:43:01.62
The unsaved, those that
aren't sitting upon thrones,
00:43:01.65\00:43:05.08
don't live again until
the 1000 years are over.
00:43:05.11\00:43:07.22
Brackets.
00:43:07.25\00:43:08.36
Now you remove the brackets
and the final phrase is,
00:43:08.39\00:43:11.77
"These are of the
first resurrection. "
00:43:11.80\00:43:14.06
That is a reference back
to verse 4 where the saints
00:43:14.09\00:43:17.27
are seated on the thrones.
00:43:17.30\00:43:19.05
Do you have that now, do
you have it in your minds?
00:43:19.08\00:43:21.31
Alright, we're
ready then to go on.
00:43:21.34\00:43:24.25
Our Lord Jesus, to His best
buddies in an upper room, said,
00:43:26.33\00:43:30.98
"I go to
prepare a place for you.
00:43:31.68\00:43:33.06
And if I go, I will come again
to receive you unto Myself,
00:43:33.09\00:43:36.23
that where I am,
there you may be also. "
00:43:36.26\00:43:40.06
"I'm going to have to
go now, but I'm going to
00:43:41.55\00:43:43.63
come back and get you. "
00:43:43.66\00:43:44.88
"In My Father's
house are many mansions. "
00:43:47.64\00:43:50.05
Ladies and
gentlemen, the Bible is a book
00:43:53.06\00:43:57.47
comprised of 66 separate
books that were all written
00:43:57.50\00:44:02.51
by Orientals.
00:44:02.54\00:44:04.24
Now that causes some
doubt in some minds because
00:44:04.66\00:44:06.88
traditionally, we think of the
Orient as being Japan and China
00:44:06.91\00:44:10.36
and somewhere way out
there in the Far East.
00:44:10.39\00:44:13.23
But the Orient begins on
the eastern shores of the
00:44:13.26\00:44:17.83
Mediterranean sea.
00:44:17.86\00:44:18.83
And that's why we talk about
the Holy Land as the Middle East
00:44:18.84\00:44:22.60
or the Near East, you see.
00:44:22.63\00:44:24.44
The Bible is
written by Orientals.
00:44:25.14\00:44:28.29
And my purpose for
saying that to you is
00:44:28.32\00:44:31.02
to point out that Orientals
in some ways think differently
00:44:31.05\00:44:35.89
from
Occidentals, or we Westerners.
00:44:35.92\00:44:37.99
And in many ways, they
have different customs.
00:44:38.02\00:44:41.05
For instance, in the
Middle East, in the Orient,
00:44:41.45\00:44:45.27
the Far East for that
matter, when there is a marriage
00:44:45.30\00:44:48.24
the marriage supper,
the celebration supper,
00:44:48.27\00:44:50.43
is without exception held
in the home of the bridegroom.
00:44:50.46\00:44:55.01
Not the bride, but in
the home of the bridegroom.
00:44:55.04\00:44:57.85
And I've noticed that
here in the United States
00:44:57.88\00:45:00.26
that often that special
meal is, if not held in the home
00:45:00.29\00:45:04.55
of the bridegroom, it is
paid for by the grooms family.
00:45:04.58\00:45:08.57
You've noticed that to if
you have a little boy that's
00:45:08.60\00:45:11.03
grown up and gotten
married, haven't you.
00:45:11.06\00:45:12.94
Alright.
00:45:12.97\00:45:13.98
And so, that's what
Jesus is talking about here
00:45:14.01\00:45:16.88
"I'm going to go
and prepare the supper,
00:45:16.91\00:45:19.72
I'm going to prepare the
mansions, and I'm going to
00:45:19.75\00:45:21.98
come back and take
you to the Father's house
00:45:22.01\00:45:24.57
for the marriage
supper of the Lamb. "
00:45:24.60\00:45:27.44
And we, you and I, all have
the privilege of being there
00:45:27.47\00:45:31.76
and being a part of it.
00:45:31.79\00:45:33.81
Now,
00:45:34.84\00:45:36.13
I must make a statement again
that I feel of great importance.
00:45:38.89\00:45:46.00
It does matter, ladies and
gentlemen, what you believe
00:45:46.79\00:45:49.16
in this area of the millennium.
00:45:49.19\00:45:50.76
I believe that it can be
a matter of life and death.
00:45:51.49\00:45:54.76
So many have this
mistaken notion that there is
00:45:55.97\00:45:58.68
a second chance.
00:45:58.71\00:45:59.97
That Jesus comes and
maybe secretly snatches away
00:46:00.00\00:46:02.18
the saints and then a
little bit later He'll come back
00:46:02.21\00:46:05.11
and everybody
gets another chance.
00:46:05.14\00:46:07.63
No, the Bible is
abundantly clear.
00:46:07.66\00:46:10.08
And I'm only going to
reference a couple of verses
00:46:10.11\00:46:12.16
for the want of time.
00:46:12.19\00:46:13.19
But in Revelation
chapter 22 verses 11 and 12,
00:46:13.22\00:46:16.19
there Jesus just before
He comes in the second coming
00:46:16.22\00:46:19.30
shouts out to the
universe, "He that is filthy,
00:46:19.33\00:46:22.72
let him remain filthy.
00:46:22.75\00:46:24.96
He that is righteous,
let him remain righteous.
00:46:24.99\00:46:29.23
He that is holy,
let him stay holy. "
00:46:29.26\00:46:32.58
In other words, at that
time, probation for all of
00:46:32.61\00:46:35.77
mankind closes and Jesus
comes on the rescue mission.
00:46:35.80\00:46:39.67
That's why the apostle Paul,
when he'd preach, would say,
00:46:39.70\00:46:42.14
"Behold, today if
you hear His voice,
00:46:42.17\00:46:44.36
today don't
harden your hearts. "
00:46:44.39\00:46:46.54
For this is our
chance, ladies and gentlemen,
00:46:46.57\00:46:49.14
this is our one and only
chance to do what is right.
00:46:49.17\00:46:54.55
And that's why I urge you, and
that's why I've taken the time
00:46:54.58\00:46:57.33
just now to enforce again
in your minds the importance
00:46:57.36\00:47:00.33
of following the
truth that you understand.
00:47:00.36\00:47:02.63
When Jesus comes back again, I
don't believe He's going to ask
00:47:02.93\00:47:05.38
what church you belong to.
00:47:05.41\00:47:06.83
He is going to ask,
"Did you follow the truths
00:47:06.86\00:47:09.18
that I sent to you?
00:47:09.21\00:47:10.33
Did you do it?"
00:47:10.36\00:47:11.86
Now, ladies and
gentlemen, I want to talk to you
00:47:19.00\00:47:21.04
a little bit about the
reason behind the millennium
00:47:23.87\00:47:29.20
and the things
that happen at its end.
00:47:30.94\00:47:35.28
In Revelation chapter 21,
and we've spent a lot of time
00:47:39.31\00:47:43.40
studying those
first 5 or 6 verses.
00:47:43.43\00:47:46.35
Revelation chapter 21
begins the story of what happens
00:47:46.38\00:47:51.24
at the end of the
millennium, which is chapter 20.
00:47:51.27\00:47:54.45
And those who've made the break
there have done the right thing,
00:47:54.48\00:47:57.37
theologically of course.
00:47:57.40\00:47:59.32
Chapter 21 verse 1, John, at
the end of the 1000 years said,
00:48:00.23\00:48:05.04
"I saw a new
heaven and a new earth.
00:48:05.07\00:48:07.58
The first heaven and the
first earth are passed away,
00:48:07.61\00:48:09.06
there was no more sea.
00:48:09.09\00:48:10.17
And I saw the New Jerusalem,
the holy city, coming down
00:48:10.20\00:48:13.21
from God out of
heaven prepared as a bride
00:48:13.24\00:48:15.67
adorned for her husband. "
00:48:15.70\00:48:17.58
And there's no more sorrow,
no more suffering, no more pain.
00:48:18.85\00:48:22.23
So now watch.
00:48:22.26\00:48:23.70
At the end of the
thousand years, the holy city
00:48:23.73\00:48:26.88
comes down from
God out of heaven.
00:48:26.91\00:48:28.45
The saints of all
time are inside the city.
00:48:28.48\00:48:32.12
For those that were
dead when Jesus came back
00:48:32.15\00:48:35.14
in His second coming
have been made alive.
00:48:35.17\00:48:37.53
They've heard the
call of the life-giver,
00:48:37.56\00:48:39.12
they've come
out of their graves.
00:48:39.15\00:48:40.46
And those that were alive and
saved and anxious to meet Jesus
00:48:41.23\00:48:45.88
are caught up together,
raptured if you please,
00:48:45.91\00:48:48.18
to meet the Lord in the
air and they've gone to the
00:48:48.21\00:48:49.89
Father's house for 1000 years.
00:48:49.92\00:48:52.37
On the other hand, the
unsaved who were dead when Jesus
00:48:52.83\00:48:57.23
came back, the wicked
dead didn't hear the call
00:48:57.26\00:49:00.59
of the life-giver.
00:49:00.62\00:49:01.59
They didn't hear the voice
of Jesus, they have slept on.
00:49:01.60\00:49:05.19
They've remain dead.
00:49:06.09\00:49:07.40
The rest of the dead
lived not again until the
00:49:07.43\00:49:09.22
1000 years are over.
00:49:09.25\00:49:10.73
That leaves us just one segment
of the four classes that we
00:49:10.76\00:49:14.91
mentioned at the outset.
00:49:14.94\00:49:16.13
And that is the wicked living.
00:49:16.16\00:49:18.98
What happens to them?
00:49:19.01\00:49:20.23
In 2 Thessalonians chapter 2
verse 8, it's abundantly clear.
00:49:21.15\00:49:25.06
And you "A"
students will note it down.
00:49:25.09\00:49:27.33
2 Thessalonians chapter 2
verse 8, it's very clear there
00:49:27.36\00:49:31.62
that they are destroyed by
the brightness of His coming.
00:49:31.65\00:49:36.78
And so, the wicked that are
alive when Jesus comes in the
00:49:36.81\00:49:39.52
second coming are killed by
the brightness of His coming.
00:49:39.55\00:49:43.20
And that, then,
leaves on planet earth, whom?
00:49:43.23\00:49:48.04
Who's here?
00:49:48.67\00:49:49.64
No one to tempt,
no one to deceive.
00:49:50.28\00:49:51.95
You see, from the very beginning
of his being cast out of heaven,
00:49:51.98\00:49:55.65
the devil has
been doing two things.
00:49:55.68\00:49:57.20
He's been running
around tempting the saints
00:49:57.23\00:49:59.26
and deceiving the lost.
00:49:59.29\00:50:00.62
Tempting the
saints, deceiving the lost.
00:50:00.65\00:50:02.89
But during the 1000
years, both classes are gone.
00:50:02.92\00:50:06.16
The saints, those who were
dead and heard the voice of the
00:50:06.19\00:50:08.69
life-giver, they were raised.
00:50:08.72\00:50:10.22
And those that were alive and
ready were caught up together
00:50:10.25\00:50:12.13
with them to meet
the Lord in the air.
00:50:12.16\00:50:13.38
They're taken to the Father's
house for the 1000 years.
00:50:13.41\00:50:15.78
And the unsaved that were dead,
didn't hear the voice of the
00:50:15.81\00:50:19.82
life-giver, they stay dead.
00:50:19.85\00:50:22.00
And those that were alive and
unsaved were destroyed by the
00:50:22.03\00:50:25.24
brightness of His coming.
00:50:25.27\00:50:26.26
And now the earth
becomes a great cemetery.
00:50:26.29\00:50:29.22
It says in the
Greek, the abussos.
00:50:29.25\00:50:31.45
And some translations say
it just that way, the abyss.
00:50:31.48\00:50:34.17
And that simply
means, a desolate place.
00:50:34.20\00:50:36.92
And the old prophet would
say, "I looked, and low I saw
00:50:38.31\00:50:41.28
no man and the place, the
earth, was made desolate. "
00:50:41.31\00:50:45.99
Jeremiah 25 verse 33 for
those of you "A" students.
00:50:46.02\00:50:49.27
Jeremiah 25:33
00:50:49.30\00:50:51.61
He said, the day of the
Lord, the earth was desolate
00:50:51.64\00:50:56.41
from one end to the other.
00:50:56.44\00:50:57.65
"They were not," the dead
he said, "were not lamented
00:50:58.12\00:51:01.49
nor were they
gathered or buried. "
00:51:01.52\00:51:02.75
Why not?
00:51:02.78\00:51:03.75
Because there was no
one left here to bury them
00:51:03.76\00:51:05.93
or to cry over them.
00:51:05.96\00:51:07.29
You see?
00:51:07.70\00:51:08.67
The unsaved are all dead and
the saints are all gone to the
00:51:08.95\00:51:12.86
Father's house
for the 1000 years.
00:51:12.89\00:51:15.23
And then, at the end of
the 1000 years, the holy city
00:51:15.26\00:51:17.33
comes down and there comes
the resurrection of the unsaved.
00:51:17.36\00:51:21.35
Revelation 20 verse 5, "The
rest of the dead live not again
00:51:21.38\00:51:24.27
until the 1000 years are over. "
00:51:24.30\00:51:26.68
The third thing that
happens now automatically,
00:51:26.71\00:51:28.98
the chains that have bound
the devil, not literal chains
00:51:29.01\00:51:32.47
of course, but symbolic,
chains of circumstances
00:51:32.50\00:51:34.92
as someone has
rightly said, are now removed.
00:51:34.95\00:51:37.31
For both classes are here again.
00:51:37.34\00:51:39.56
The saints of all
ages are inside the city.
00:51:39.59\00:51:42.32
And the unsaved
are made alive again.
00:51:42.35\00:51:45.42
And we're going to go to chapter
20 again to read what happens.
00:51:45.45\00:51:49.50
Revelation chapter 20,
we're going to take up the
00:51:49.53\00:51:52.52
reading now at verse 7.
00:51:52.55\00:51:54.11
Chapter 20 of
Revelation and verse 7.
00:51:54.14\00:51:57.42
"When the 1000 years were
over, Satan was loosed out of
00:52:05.65\00:52:08.67
his prison and he went out to
deceive the nations which were
00:52:08.70\00:52:11.17
in the four corners of
the earth, Gog and Magog,
00:52:11.20\00:52:13.31
to gather them to
battle, the number of whom
00:52:13.34\00:52:16.19
is like the sand of the sea.
00:52:16.22\00:52:17.88
And they went upon the breadth
of the earth and they circled
00:52:18.67\00:52:21.45
the camp of the saints
about and that beloved city.
00:52:21.48\00:52:23.74
And then fire came
down and devoured them. "
00:52:23.77\00:52:27.49
Burned them up.
00:52:27.52\00:52:28.49
And there, ladies and
gentlemen, is hellfire.
00:52:28.50\00:52:30.85
There it is.
00:52:30.88\00:52:31.85
There's no one
burning in hell tonight.
00:52:31.86\00:52:33.48
That then brings us to
the reason for the 1000 years.
00:52:34.28\00:52:39.48
It's not just a happy round
figure God pulls out of a hat.
00:52:39.51\00:52:42.97
But rather, there
is purpose for it.
00:52:43.76\00:52:46.14
I want you to imagine with me
that it's resurrection morning.
00:52:46.96\00:52:50.53
The first resurrection.
00:52:52.35\00:52:53.90
And the graves are opening,
the graves of the saved.
00:52:54.59\00:52:56.86
Here and there and everywhere.
00:52:56.89\00:52:58.05
And out comes a mother
and there's her husband.
00:52:58.08\00:53:01.62
And she throws here arms around
him, "Danny, I knew you were
00:53:01.65\00:53:04.52
saved too, I knew it. "
00:53:04.55\00:53:06.06
And then their daughter
runs to throw her arms around
00:53:06.09\00:53:08.30
both mom and dad.
00:53:08.33\00:53:09.50
"Mary, oh what
a day. What a day.
00:53:09.53\00:53:13.43
We filled our lungs with
the breath of eternal life.
00:53:13.46\00:53:16.03
Oh, thank you Jesus.
00:53:16.06\00:53:18.11
Son, Johnny, son?"
00:53:18.14\00:53:20.25
But John's grave didn't open.
00:53:22.77\00:53:24.50
And now you know
how mother feels.
00:53:26.06\00:53:28.21
"I can't leave you, son.
00:53:30.30\00:53:32.03
Wake up, Johnny.
00:53:33.57\00:53:34.86
It's time to be
caught up to meet Jesus.
00:53:34.89\00:53:37.11
Get up. "
00:53:37.14\00:53:38.51
And I believe, there are going
to be some tears shed during
00:53:44.40\00:53:46.70
that time, for the promise
of God to wipe away every tear
00:53:46.73\00:53:50.17
is found in chapter 21 at
the end of the millennium.
00:53:50.20\00:53:54.25
And now I see an angel with a
big book come to John's mother.
00:53:55.90\00:54:00.40
And I can see him saying,
"Mother, come with me to a
00:54:01.69\00:54:05.27
quiet place,
we've got to talk. "
00:54:05.30\00:54:07.05
And this is John's
guardian angel, but he's also
00:54:07.08\00:54:11.63
the recording angel assigned
to John the moment of his birth.
00:54:11.66\00:54:15.89
And he and the mother
sit down in a quiet place
00:54:17.24\00:54:19.88
and the angel opens
the book and asks mother,
00:54:19.91\00:54:22.56
"Do you remember this
day, do you remember?"
00:54:22.59\00:54:24.60
"Oh of course, he was
such a sweet pink little thing.
00:54:24.63\00:54:27.39
Looked just like his daddy.
I'll always remember, yes. "
00:54:27.42\00:54:30.53
"But do you
remember this day, mom?"
00:54:30.56\00:54:32.53
"Oh yes, I don't
know what got into him.
00:54:32.56\00:54:35.96
His dad begged him not
to. Yes, I remember that. "
00:54:35.99\00:54:40.37
"But mother, you
didn't know this. "
00:54:40.87\00:54:42.46
"Oh, not my boy. "
00:54:42.49\00:54:44.67
"Mother, you didn't
know about this, did you?"
00:54:50.39\00:54:52.53
What do you suppose it
is, what do you suppose it is,
00:54:57.33\00:55:00.11
my dears, that dries
the tears of the saints?
00:55:00.14\00:55:03.36
A magical surgery
performed on tear ducts?
00:55:03.39\00:55:06.65
No, but rather God, out
of His great heart of love,
00:55:06.68\00:55:10.93
has set aside 1000 years
to answer every question.
00:55:10.96\00:55:15.33
Revelation 20 is abundantly
clear that the books were opened
00:55:15.36\00:55:18.89
and the unsaved, during
the millennium, were judged
00:55:18.92\00:55:22.03
out of the
record of those books.
00:55:22.06\00:55:24.85
And at the end of that study,
the priestly work of folks
00:55:25.91\00:55:30.31
pleading the case of another,
little mother, "Oh, my boy John,
00:55:30.34\00:55:34.41
he should be alive.
00:55:34.44\00:55:35.54
Johnny should be alive. "
00:55:35.57\00:55:36.88
And at the end of the study,
at the last page of the record
00:55:38.37\00:55:43.05
of John's life, the
mother is going to say to Jesus,
00:55:43.08\00:55:46.36
to the Father, and
to the guardian angel,
00:55:46.39\00:55:48.73
"I understand now, John
would have never fit in here.
00:55:48.76\00:55:52.01
He would have been
so out of place here.
00:55:52.04\00:55:53.91
God was right by leaving
him out of the kingdom. "
00:55:53.94\00:55:57.47
Don't refuse the
pardon of Jesus, my dears.
00:56:01.02\00:56:03.67
There's going to be some
folks in heaven who wouldn't
00:56:04.69\00:56:06.71
be comfortable there.
00:56:06.74\00:56:07.71
They'd be out of place
there because they don't
00:56:07.72\00:56:10.16
want the pardon.
00:56:10.19\00:56:11.19
They're going to refuse it.
00:56:11.22\00:56:12.63
And after the
records have been studied
00:56:20.76\00:56:22.79
and the saints have
given their permission,
00:56:23.84\00:56:26.06
then there comes
the second resurrection,
00:56:27.03\00:56:30.20
the resurrection of the unsaved,
00:56:30.23\00:56:32.90
and the final obliteration or
the cleansing of planet earth.
00:56:34.50\00:56:38.09
The final fire.
00:56:38.12\00:56:39.65
Can you imagine what it
would be to hear the voice of
00:56:39.68\00:56:43.36
the life-giver, the
call that wakens the dead?
00:56:43.39\00:56:46.39
Can you imagine what it would
be to come out of the grave
00:56:46.42\00:56:49.02
only to discover that
you're 1000 years too late.
00:56:49.05\00:56:53.43
Said a poet, "I dreamed
that the great judgment morning
00:56:56.41\00:57:00.31
had dawned and
the trumpet had blown.
00:57:00.34\00:57:02.70
And I dreamed that the nations
had gathered for judgment
00:57:03.42\00:57:06.31
before the white throne.
00:57:07.12\00:57:08.96
At the throne, there
stood a bright shining angel.
00:57:09.99\00:57:13.10
He stood on the land and the sea
00:57:13.13\00:57:15.64
and swore with his hand
raised toward heaven that time
00:57:15.67\00:57:18.98
was no longer to be.
00:57:19.01\00:57:21.01
And, oh, what a weeping
and wailing as the lost were
00:57:21.97\00:57:25.64
told of their fate.
00:57:25.67\00:57:26.92
And they cried for the rocks and
the mountains and they prayed.
00:57:26.95\00:57:30.08
But their prayer was too late. "
00:57:30.49\00:57:32.64
Now let us pray.
00:57:34.74\00:57:36.07
Lord, tonight as we study Your
millennium, we see Your love
00:57:37.64\00:57:40.52
and Your mercy.
00:57:40.55\00:57:42.38
Not willing that any
should perish but that all
00:57:42.41\00:57:45.19
should accept Your
righteousness and Your grace.
00:57:46.36\00:57:49.05
We're quite sure,
Lord, that You've extended,
00:57:49.94\00:57:52.02
beyond reason, probation.
00:57:52.05\00:57:53.85
We're so thankful that these,
night after night after night,
00:57:55.05\00:57:57.69
have been making
the positive choices,
00:57:57.72\00:57:59.49
choosing Your
truths and following them.
00:57:59.52\00:58:02.21
And then, Lord, at
the same time, we want ask
00:58:02.95\00:58:05.39
that You hasten
the day of Your coming.
00:58:05.42\00:58:07.50
We need You so.
00:58:07.90\00:58:09.70
Please hurry back for us.
00:58:10.36\00:58:12.24
Please come to open the
graves of our loved ones
00:58:13.48\00:58:16.23
and catch us up together with
them to meet You in the air.
00:58:17.00\00:58:19.87
And so shall we ever
be with You, dear Lord.
00:58:20.39\00:58:22.79
In Jesus' name
we praise you, then.
00:58:23.59\00:58:26.03
Amen.
00:58:26.06\00:58:27.79