Participants: Pr. Jac Colon
Series Code: RN
Program Code: RN000019
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01:05 We want to know the truth! Amen.
01:10 We want to be sure That the bridge 01:13 that professes to take us on into eternity 01:16 is going to do just that. 01:19 How can we know the truth? 01:24 God has provided a means for us to know the truth 01:29 and that is through the scripture and his church. 01:36 The church is a safeguard for the truth. 01:40 So, the next question would be 01:42 what is the church and if we open our 01:46 Bible's to Colossians chapter 1 verse 18, 01:49 it says, he, speaking of Jesus, 01:51 he is the head of the body, the church. 01:57 So, what is the church? The church is the body 02:00 of Christ. Where is the church? wherever there is 02:03 someone who believes in Jesus Christ. 02:06 It doesn't matter what building you're in, 02:08 any building or no building, 02:10 it doesn't matter what country you live in, 02:13 it doesn't matter what color your skin, 02:15 it doesn't matter the blood flowing through your veins, 02:18 the only thing that matters is 02:19 do you know Jesus Christ? 02:23 And if you are in Christ then 02:24 you are part of his body, which is the church. 02:33 This is what Luther called 02:36 The invisible body of Christ. 02:41 Invisible because it's not located 02:44 in any one particular place, it's located in every place, 02:48 there is a believer in Jesus. 02:50 But the question is does the invisible body of Christ ever 02:58 become a visible organized structure in the world? 03:06 And to answer that question we turn to the Book of Acts, 03:09 in Acts chapter 13 verse 1, in the church, 03:15 he writes, in the church at Antioch 03:18 there were prophets and teachers, 03:20 and the Holy Spirit said set apart from me 03:23 Barnabas and Saul, and so they place 03:27 their hands on them and sent them off. 03:29 Now, notice he is speaking of the church at Antioch, 03:34 this is not the invisible body of Christ consisting of 03:37 all believers in everyplace, 03:39 everywhere, this is one local congregation 03:42 in a particular city just like here the church in Pasco. 03:49 So, not only is the church an invisible body 03:51 consisting of all believers now we see the church 03:55 referred to in the Bible as a local congregation, 03:59 this particular one located in Antioch. 04:01 Acts chapter 9 in verse 31, then. 04:04 "The Church" again the church throughout Judea, 04:08 Galilee and Samaria enjoyed a time of peace, 04:11 it was strengthened and encouraged 04:13 by the Holy Spirit and it grew in numbers, 04:17 living in the fear of the Lord. 04:18 So, now we see again "The Church" consisting 04:24 all around the area and it grew in numbers, 04:27 someone was counting 04:29 of various different congregations 04:30 all around the area and it grew in numbers, 04:31 someone was counting 04:32 how many people were a part of the church? 04:33 And as we read these texts, we can easily see that 04:36 the church is becoming more and more of a visible 04:40 organized structure in the world. 04:44 In Acts the 2nd chapter, we learn this morning 04:46 that Peter preached a Sermon on the Day of Pentecost 04:50 filled with the power of the Holy Spirit 04:51 and 3000 people were Baptized 04:54 and added to their number that day. 04:57 Again, added to their number means 04:59 that there were people who were in some way affiliated 05:03 with and belong to a body called "The Church" 05:07 and there were others who were not a part 05:09 of the body of the church. 05:10 One lady said do you mean to tell me 05:12 I need to be a card carrying member of the church? 05:16 I said well, I don't see anything about 05:18 carrying cards in here, 05:19 but I know one thing 05:21 if we want to be a part of the body of Christ, 05:23 if we want to be a part of the church 05:24 we need to be added to their number 05:27 just like they were in Bible times. 05:29 You can call it joining, you can call it membership, 05:32 you can call it adding to the number, 05:34 it doesn't matter what you call it, 05:35 what matters is that we're all a part 05:37 with some kind of a commitment to the church 05:40 of Jesus Christ! Amen. 05:42 And again the church is becoming more and more 05:45 of a visible and organized structure, 05:48 but all wasn't well with the church, 05:50 we find trouble in the camp. In Acts chapter 6 verse 1, 05:54 in those days a number of the disciples were increasing, 05:58 the Greek Jews among them complained against 06:02 the Hebrew speaking Jews 06:04 because their widows were being overlooked 06:07 in the daily distribution of the food. 06:09 Now, we find a kind of racial discrimination 06:13 Taking place in the church, problems in the church, 06:17 so what did they do? In verse 2, the 12 06:20 gathered all the disciples together and said 06:22 it would not be right for us to neglect 06:26 the ministry of the word of God 06:28 in order to wait on tables, brothers choose seven men 06:32 from among you who are 06:34 known to be full of the spirit and wisdom 06:36 and we will turn this responsibility 06:39 over to them and give our 06:41 attention to prayer and ministry of the word. 06:43 You see what was happening was that the leaders 06:45 of the church were having to spend so much time 06:49 putting out the fires 06:50 and dealing with administrative problems 06:52 and hurt feelings that they didn't have time 06:55 to preach the word. 06:57 And so they organized, they said appoint some men 07:00 to be deacons and those men would take care 07:02 of the administrative chores of the church 07:04 And set the pastors free to preach the word of God 07:07 and minister to the people. 07:10 Again the church is becoming more organized and visible 07:17 and the purpose was to facilitate 07:19 the preaching of the word of God, 07:22 which was the purpose of the church. 07:25 Another problem, in Acts chapter 15 arises, verse 1, 07:29 some men came down from Judea to Antioch 07:32 and they were teaching the brothers, 07:33 unless you are circumcised, 07:36 according to the custom taught by Moses 07:38 you cannot be saved. 07:43 Now, this didn't go down too well with Paul and some 07:47 of the others who have been preaching the Gospel 07:49 that we're saved by grace through faith 07:51 and not by works, it's the gift of God. 07:54 And so that brought 07:56 sharp dispute and debate to the church. 08:01 So, how did they handle it, now here is the church 08:04 being divided and disputing in debate 08:07 over doctrinal issues and the central issue 08:10 was the Gospel of Jesus Christ. 08:12 So, how did they solve the problem, 08:15 he tells us, Paul and Barnabas were appointed along with 08:19 some other believers to go up to Jerusalem 08:23 to see the apostles and the elders about this question. 08:28 So, Paul and Barnabas went to Jerusalem 08:31 there they met with the apostles and the elders, 08:34 they met with the leadership of the church 08:37 and they debated, they discussed the issue, 08:39 they prayed about it, they appealed 08:41 to the Holy Spirit. 08:43 In verse 8 it says, God who knows 08:45 the heart showed them, showed that by accepting 08:48 them by giving his Holy Spirit to the Gentiles. 08:51 So they were using the word of God and the Holy Spirit 08:55 as their guide in this debate. 08:58 Finally after the debate had finished, 09:02 James stood up and spoke in verse 13 and James said, 09:07 brothers listen to me Simon has described to us 09:13 how God has first showed his concern 09:15 by taking from the Gentiles 09:17 a people for himself and the words 09:19 of the prophet are in agreement 09:21 with this and he quoted the prophecy of Amos. 09:24 So, here we see James standing up and presiding 09:29 in this meeting over the church leaders, 09:31 they used the Holy Spirit, they used the scripture, 09:35 they made a decision. In verse 19, 09:37 James said it is my judgment 09:40 therefore that we should not make it difficult 09:43 for the Gentiles and then they all decided, 09:46 they all voted and decided 09:48 what the church should teach and that was that 09:50 the Gentiles should not need to be circumcised. 09:53 In verse 24, they sent a letter 09:55 out to all the churches requesting that they, 09:59 demanding that they preach the Gospel 10:02 that they stick to the word of God and then 10:05 in verse 24 he says we've heard 10:07 that someone out from us 10:09 without our authorization disturbing you. 10:12 So, this clearly shows that there was a leadership 10:16 group in Jerusalem and all of the rest 10:19 of the church was subject to the decisions 10:22 that this group of leaders made and they were 10:25 expected to abide by those decisions. 10:30 And this was God's way of safeguarding the truth. 10:35 Now, I know for a fact 10:38 the Bible makes it clear that there were some people 10:41 who went away from that meeting 10:44 convinced that the church had made a mistake. 10:49 Because they went out stirring up trouble, 10:52 but you see God expected them to abide by the 10:56 decisions made at the leadership level 10:59 of the church, whether they agreed to it or not, 11:04 this was God's way of safeguarding the truth. 11:09 And then in Matthew chapter 18, 11:12 in Matthew the 18th chapter, 11:14 Jesus gives us some wisdom that would be 11:16 good for us to follow today. 11:18 In verse 15, if your brother sins against you 11:23 get on the telephone and tell everybody in the church, 11:28 is that what it says, they guess 11:31 what we do sometimes, that isn't what it says, 11:34 what does he say, if your brother sins against 11:36 you go and show him his fault 11:39 just between the two of you. 11:43 But if you're not listened, 11:45 if he listens to you then you have won your brother over, 11:47 but if he'll not listen to you then take one or two others 11:51 along so that every matter maybe established 11:54 by the testimony of two or three witnesses. 11:58 If he refuses to listen to them, 12:00 tell it to the church. 12:04 Now, how do you tell it to the church? 12:06 The only way I know of to do 12:08 that is to have some kind of a meeting 12:11 for the whole church to deal with the problem 12:13 with his brother who refuses 12:15 to listen to the leaders of the church, 12:17 that's not very popular today. 12:20 But isn't that what Jesus said to do, 12:22 tell it to the church 12:25 and if he refuses to listen even to the church, 12:29 treat him as you would a pagan or a tax collector. 12:33 Pagans and tax collectors are not a part of the church. 12:38 So what is Jesus saying to do? 12:41 How do we treat pagans and tax collectors? 12:44 Did he expect them to be mean to them? 12:46 Did he expect them to be ugly to them? He expected 12:51 them to love them and to reach out to them and to 12:56 restore them back to the fold of the church again. 13:01 But the point is that Jesus gave the church 13:06 the local congregation, the authority to decide 13:10 who is and who is not to be a part of that congregation, 13:15 he went on to say I tell you the truth 13:17 whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven 13:19 and whatever you lose on earth 13:20 you'd be losing in heaven. 13:21 He gave the local church the authority to decide 13:24 who is and who is not to be added 13:27 to their number in that church. 13:30 Now, we may not like that, but he doesn't ask us to like 13:34 it he asks us to do it and he does it with wisdom. 13:39 Now, we are not saying that as some do that 13:43 Jesus gave the church the authority to decide 13:46 who is saved and who is lost. 13:49 No man decides that, that's God decision! Amen. 13:54 But he is absolutely giving the church the authority 13:57 to decide who is and who is not 13:59 to be a part of that congregation 14:02 and again the church is becoming more visible 14:05 and more of an organized structure. 14:09 In first Timothy, first Timothy the 3rd chapter, 14:13 he gives us instructions and qualifications 14:18 for a man who wants to be an elder of the church, 14:22 a leader or a pastor of the church 14:25 and he lists the requirements. 14:27 Now when he list the requirements 14:29 for the officers of the church then you can see that again 14:33 the church is becoming more organized 14:36 into a visible organized structure, 14:38 a institution on the earth. In verse 8, 14:40 he gives the requirements for deacons of the church again 14:43 more and more the church is becoming 14:46 a visible organized institution on this planet. 14:51 Then he addresses the issue in verse 14 of chapter 3, 14:55 although I hope to come to you soon, 14:57 I am writing you these instructions 15:00 so that if I am delayed you will know 15:03 how people ought to conduct themselves in 15:06 God's household which is the church of the living God, 15:10 the foundation and pillar of the truth 15:12 and now he is telling us I am giving you some rules, 15:15 I am giving you Some regulations, 15:17 I am giving you some instructions 15:18 and this is the way you ought to behave in God's church 15:23 and some of those instructions we saw last night 15:25 were even instructions concerning the way we ought 15:28 to dress if we want to be a part of God's church. 15:32 Now again today it's not popular to say 15:36 that here are rules, here are instructions, 15:38 here are regulations, 15:41 but the church gives instructions to people 15:44 as to how they ought to behave in the church, 15:46 which church, the church of the living God, 15:50 the pillar and foundation of the truth. 15:53 The problem is there is only one invisible body of Christ 15:59 consisting of all believers, but there are 16:05 many local visible institutions 16:09 all calling themselves The Church. 16:14 And they all teach something different from each other or 16:18 they would have no reason to exist separately. 16:22 So, how can we find the church that 16:27 God has especially preserved to safeguard the truth 16:32 for the last days, they cannot all be teaching 16:36 the truth because one says you should pray to Mary 16:39 and other says no don't pray to Mary, 16:42 one says Baptism by immersion 16:44 and another says a few drops will do, 16:45 one says that we should keep Sunday 16:49 another says no we should keep the seventh day holy 16:51 and on and on and on 16:53 the differences go between the churches. 16:55 So which church is safeguarding the truth? 16:59 Because the Bible says, the church of the living God 17:03 is the pillar and foundation of the truth. 17:08 Does this mean, that we have to look 17:10 at all of the churches and compare their teachings 17:14 to the scripture to find out which one teaches the truth, 17:17 that would take the work of a lifetime, 17:19 in fact you probably couldn't finish it in a lifetime. 17:24 But God has given us a shortcut. 17:27 When you understand the church in Revelation, 17:30 but first let's answer the question, 17:34 why are there so many churches today? 17:38 Why are there so many denominations 17:41 all claiming to have the truth and 17:44 all claiming practically to get their truth 17:47 from the scripture? Why are there so many? 17:51 The Book of Revelation answers that question for us, 17:54 let's begin our search 17:55 in the Book of Revelation with chapter 2, 17:57 Jesus issuing seven letters to the seven churches 18:02 and the first one is the church in Ephesus 18:05 and he says write these words, 18:07 if you go down to the middle of verse 2 in chapter 2, 18:10 he says I know that you cannot tolerate wicked men 18:13 and you have tested those who claim to be apostles, 18:16 but are not. So Jesus is commanding 18:20 the church at Ephesus because they cannot tolerate 18:23 wicked men and they test the words of those 18:27 who claim to be apostles, how did they test it? 18:29 With the word of God, that's the only way 18:31 you can test anyone. With the scripture 18:34 and then he goes so far as to say in verse 6, 18:37 you hate the practices of the Nicolaitans, 18:40 which I also hate. Now, they don't hate 18:42 the Nicolaitans and God doesn't hate the Nicolaitans, 18:46 but he hates their practices because they are false 18:49 and they turn people away from the truth. 18:52 He says therefore I'll give you 18:54 the right to eat from the tree of life 18:56 God commends the church at Ephesus because 19:03 they don't tolerate wicked men and they test those 19:07 who claim to be apostles and they shunned, 19:10 they abhor false doctrines and false teachings, 19:14 he commends them for that. 19:15 Then we go to the church at Smyrna 19:17 and he says don't be afraid in verse 10, 19:19 of what you're about to suffer. 19:21 Now, in the early stages of the church, 19:24 the church began to grow rapidly and the devil realized 19:28 that he had to do something to stop this growth 19:30 or he thought well I'll try persecution 19:33 and he begins persecuting the church, 19:35 and he says you're about to suffer, 19:37 you're be about to, you're about to 19:39 be put into prison and you'll be tested, 19:41 you'll suffer persecution for 10 days, 19:44 but hold on, don't be afraid and so here is the church 19:47 now plunged in to the mist of persecution. 19:51 Stay pure he says 19:53 and you'll not be hurt by the second death. 19:55 Then the church in Pergamum, 19:58 persecution seizes, the devil realized 20:00 that as he began to persecute the church 20:02 the more he persecuted it the faster it seemed to grow, 20:05 it was backfiring, his plans always backfire. 20:08 So now he'll try something else, he says, 20:10 I'll leave them alone, I let them prosper, 20:13 I may even help them a little bit, 20:14 may be they can handle persecution, 20:17 but they can't handle prosperity. 20:20 And he was right because in the church in Pergamum, 20:23 Jesus wrote in verse 14, Nevertheless 20:26 I have a few things against you, 20:28 you have people there 20:29 who hold to the teachings of Balaam, 20:32 repent of this otherwise I'll come and fight against them 20:36 with the sword of my mouth, in Revelation 19. 20:41 So, Jesus is saying hey you're doing some good things, 20:45 but you've got a problem what's the problem? 20:47 You've got people among you 20:49 who hold to the teachings of Balaam. 20:51 Remember in Ephesus 20:52 They did not tolerate false doctrines, 20:55 but now they have people there who teach false 20:58 doctrines and he condemns them for that. 21:01 In chapter 2 verse 29, now we're looking 21:05 at the church in Thyatira and the church is plunging 21:07 more and more into darkness here in verse 20, 21:10 I have this against you, you tolerate that woman 21:13 Jezebel who calls herself a prophet 21:15 and by her teaching she misleads my servants, 21:18 not only are there people there, 21:19 but now they tolerate false doctrines, 21:22 they tolerates false teachings. 21:24 It sounds like the church 21:25 Today people boast about being tolerant. 21:31 Oh! Whatever you believe is okay, 21:32 we're just all one and we love one another, 21:34 but Jesus said he abhors, 21:36 he hates false doctrine, why? 21:38 Because it leads people down the pathway to destruction, 21:42 the people that he loves, the people that he cares for, 21:45 the people that he died for. And he has a church 21:49 that boast about being tolerate. 21:52 The church is being plunged into the darkness 21:55 of the Dark Ages in the Thyatira. 21:57 The first of the Doctrines to go, 21:59 we've already seen, was the Gospel of Jesus 22:02 Christ and they began to teach that you are saved 22:04 by works and not by grace 22:06 alone and then once the Gospel went, 22:08 it was easy for the rest of the doctrines 22:10 to begin to tumble 22:11 like dominoes and they began to teach that Baptism 22:14 by sprinkling is enough, you don't need to be 22:17 immersed under the water, 22:18 when you die you go straight to heaven, 22:20 you don't sleep in the grave waiting for the resurrection. 22:23 All of the false doctrines 22:24 began to creep into the church. 22:26 The Sabbath was changed from the seventh day 22:28 to the first day in the year 364 at the council 22:31 of Laodicea and again the church is being plunged 22:34 into the depths of darkness and despair. 22:37 But God always has true believers on the earth. 22:41 The visible church had fallen, but there is always 22:45 an invisible body of Christ present, 22:48 the Waldensians and Albigensians 22:50 and others would hide in the mountains, 22:52 they'd hide in caves with the scripture 22:55 and they'd write little pieces of scripture 22:58 on little pieces of paper 23:00 and put it into the helms of their garments 23:02 and smuggle it out into the communities. 23:04 God has always had true believers, 23:06 the church was invisible, 23:08 the visible church was plunged into darkness, 23:11 but the invisible church was always present on this earth. 23:16 Amazingly some of the more recent discoveries 23:19 of those times are showing that 23:21 there were even people keeping the Sabbath, 23:24 even after it had become outlawed and banned. 23:30 Now we come to the Church in Sardis, 23:32 something special is beginning to happen. 23:35 In chapter 3 verse 4, he says 23:37 you have a few people in Sardis 23:38 who have not soiled their clothes, 23:40 they will walk with me dressed in white and 23:42 he who overcomes will like them be dressed in white. 23:47 The white robe of Christ 23:48 Righteousness is the Gospel of Jesus Christ. 23:52 And we've already discovered that Martin Luther 23:55 was a Roman Catholic priest who discovered that 23:57 we are saved by grace through faith 23:59 and not by works. So now we discover 24:01 that the church in the depths of the Dark Ages 24:04 is beginning to step by step restore 24:07 the truth that had been lost through the ages 24:10 and fallen into darkness, now it's coming back 24:13 and he begins with the Gospel of Luther, 24:15 but then Luther died and the church was afraid 24:22 that the false doctrines of Rome, 24:25 the false Gospel, that we're saved by grace 24:27 and works would begin to creep back into the church. 24:30 So, they establish a creed and they said this is 24:34 what we believe, this is the meaning of the church, 24:39 this is what we believe, no more no less, 24:41 the creed was intended to be a fence 24:44 to block out false doctrine, but it stunted their growth. 24:48 Because Luther as great a man a God as he was, 24:51 Luther had come out of incredible darkness and 24:53 we need to praise God for what he saw, 24:56 he saw the light of the Gospel, 24:58 but he didn't see everything. 25:01 Someone asked me 25:02 why didn't the Luther see the Sabbath? 25:04 Hey, he was doing good in the darkness 25:07 that he came from to see the Gospel, 25:09 but we need like one of my professors said, 25:11 we need to stand on Luther shoulders 25:13 and then we can see further than Luther saw. 25:16 But the church boxed themselves in, 25:19 they were afraid of false doctrine, 25:20 so they boxed themselves in 25:22 and they couldn't grow anymore. 25:24 John Calvin comes along and says, 25:25 yes Luther was right about the Gospel, 25:28 but not about the sacraments, not about the Lord's supper 25:31 and so the reformed tradition was established 25:33 and they boxed themselves in with a creed 25:36 and then the Wesley's come along and they say yeah, 25:39 Luther and Calvin were right as far as they saw, 25:41 but they didn't understand the importance of holy living. 25:44 And the Methodist church was established 25:46 and then there the Anabaptists who said, oh! 25:48 This is all good, but they are not baptizing right 25:51 and the Baptist church was established 25:53 and each one contributing one more piece of the truth 25:57 that had been lost in the Dark Ages. 25:59 Pentecostals come along and said well, 26:02 this is alright but we need the Holy Spirit 26:04 and the Pentecostal Church was established, 26:07 and then there was Alexander Campbell who said 26:09 look they are still locking themselves in with creeds, 26:12 we need to have a creed of the scripture and 26:14 the scripture only for the church and he was right. 26:17 But the problem was that he never saw it all and 26:20 they still never observed the Sabbath that the Bible taught 26:23 and that the apostles taught in Bible days 26:25 and finally in 1844 the hour of God's judgment has come. 26:30 God raised up a people to announce to the world 26:33 that God's judgment has began, fear God, give him glory, 26:38 worship God the creator of the heavens and the earth, 26:40 the God who made this world in 6 days and rested 26:44 on the seventh day and blessed it and made it holy, 26:47 and now finally the truth from the New Testament 26:52 and the Old Testament has been restored 26:56 and God has a beacon light shining 26:59 on this earth like never before. 27:01 But then there is another church in chapter 3 verse 14, 27:09 write to the church in Laodicea verse 15, 27:12 I know your deeds, you're neither hot nor cold, 27:16 I wish you are one of the other 27:17 because you are lukewarm neither hot or cold, 27:19 I am about to spit you out of my mouth 27:23 and there is the judgment. 27:25 God sifting and God judging and God determining those 27:32 who are faithful and those who are true 27:34 and those who are not 27:35 and the ones that are not are 27:37 spit out of the mouth of Jesus. 27:40 So, now the truth has been restored, 27:42 where can we find on this earth a church 27:48 that is the safeguard for the truth, 27:50 the same truth that was taught 27:52 in the New Testament by the disciples 27:55 and the apostles and Jesus himself. 27:58 God has given us a shortcut it's in the Book of 28:01 Revelation, chapter 12, in Revelation the 12th chapter, 28:05 I want to start with verse 13, remember this is the dragon, 28:09 the battle between the dragon and the woman, 28:11 the dragon is whom. 28:12 The devil or Satan, and the woman who is the woman, 28:17 the woman always symbolizes 28:19 God's people in the Old Testament, the woman 28:22 was the nation of Israel in the New Testament, 28:24 the woman is the church of Jesus Christ. 28:27 So here in verse 13, we see the dragon had been hurled 28:31 down to the earth and then he pursued the woman. 28:35 So, who is this woman? Let's compare 28:37 scripture with scripture, let the scripture, 28:40 let the prophecy interpret itself, who is the woman? 28:44 The woman before Christ was the nation of Israel, 28:48 the woman after Christ is the church, 28:50 so it's easy to ask the question is this woman 28:54 before Jesus or after Jesus 28:56 and the answer is right there in the same verse. 28:59 The dragon saw he had been hurled to the earth, 29:01 he pursued the woman who had given birth to the male child 29:07 that was Jesus Christ. 29:08 She had already given birth to Jesus. 29:11 So who is the woman, the woman symbolizes the church, 29:16 because the Jesus Christ had already come. 29:18 And so now we see the dragon is at war with the church. 29:22 Verse 14, the woman was given two wings of a great eagle, 29:25 so that she might fly off to the place prepared for her 29:28 in the desert where she would be taken care of for time, 29:31 times and half a time out of the serpent's reach, 29:33 1260 years, we've already looked at that prophecy, 29:36 the very same time that the beast or the 29:39 Antichrist is persecuting God's church trying to 29:42 stamp out God's truth on this earth, 29:45 the very same time we find God protecting 29:48 the woman by hiding her in the wilderness. 29:51 In other words now the church is invisible because 29:54 the visible body of Christ had fallen in to darkness. 30:00 But the woman is hidden in the wilderness. 30:02 God still had an invisible church present on this earth. 30:06 He always has and he will all the way through to the end. 30:13 In verse 15, things are beginning to change, 30:16 out of the serpent's mouth he spewed water like a river to 30:18 overtake the women and sweep her away with the torrent, 30:21 but the earth helped the woman by opening his mouth 30:23 and swallowing the river that the 30:26 dragon had spewed out of his mouth. 30:30 When did the earth helped the woman, 30:33 who was being persecuted by the Antichrist 30:37 taking place in Europe, as we've already 30:39 seen during the time of the Dark Ages, 30:42 when did the earth help the woman. 30:44 We've already learned that the false prophet 30:47 was that beast in Revelation 13, 30:50 that came up out of the earth. 30:51 The first one came up out of the water, 30:53 the false prophet comes out of the earth, 30:55 we identified it as Protestant America. 30:58 So now we see the earth helping the women by 31:01 opening his mouth, swallowing up the river, 31:05 the dragon had spewed, so the river, 31:06 the waters represent multitudes of people 31:09 persecuting God's church, 31:10 trying to wipe her off of the face of the earth, 31:13 but the earth helps the woman, swallows up the river. 31:16 That's when the puritans, that's when the pilgrims, 31:19 that's when the people came from Europe 31:21 over to this country to establish a nation 31:24 that would be free to worship God, 31:26 as they pleased and the earth helps the women. 31:31 Now watch, around this time, late 1700s and thereafter 31:39 the dragon in verse 17 was angry at the woman and went 31:44 off to make war against the remnant of her offspring, 31:49 those who obey God's commandments 31:51 and have the testimony of Jesus. 31:53 Once again the invisible church is becoming a visible 31:58 organized force in the world today. 32:01 When is it, after the earth helps the woman, 32:04 sometime in the late 17 or early 1800s, 32:08 we should be looking for a church to become visible, 32:12 to become organized, to be a force in the world today 32:14 and it's called the remnant church 32:17 because the word remnant means the last, the end. 32:21 Those of you ladies who have ever done a little sowing, 32:24 tell me if I'm right, they tell me that if you go to 32:26 the material store and buy some material and you get 32:29 a roll of the remnant that means there is no more left 32:32 after that, am I right? I see some nodding your heads, 32:36 when you buy the remnant, men, you need to understand 32:38 this, the ladies already do, when you buy the remnant 32:41 that means that's the end of the roll, 32:43 there is no more, that's it. 32:45 And so here we see the remnant, the rest, 32:47 the last of God's people on this earth, 32:50 there are no more after this. 32:52 No wonder the dragon is so angry, 32:55 no wonder he launches to make war 32:57 against the remnant of God seed, who are they? 33:01 Two identifying marks, that's all, 33:04 just two, you see God gives us a shortcut. 33:07 They obey the commandments of God 33:09 God and have the testimony of Jesus. 33:12 Now, I want you to listen to me carefully, if this church, 33:16 this remnant church that's becoming visible 33:19 for the last time in early 1800s, if this church 33:25 teaches obedience to God's commandments, 33:29 then any church on this earth that does not teach 33:35 obedience to God's commandments, all of them, 33:39 cannot be this church. 33:42 Are you with me now. 33:44 Any church that does not teach obedience to all of 33:47 God's commandments cannot be this remnant church 33:51 because here they're identified as obeying 33:54 the commandments of God and that means all of them 33:57 because if you break one, 33:59 you're guilty of breaking them all. 34:00 This is a shortcut folks, this allows us to 34:05 immediately eliminate a whole bunch of churches 34:08 all claiming to be the true church. 34:11 Some say, well we're the true church because 34:13 we're the biggest, 34:14 but the Bible says straight is the way that leads to life 34:18 and straight is the way, broad is the way that 34:22 leads to destruction and many are gonna go there, 34:24 but straight and narrow the way that leads to life 34:27 and only a few that are gonna find it. 34:28 So the biggest church can't be the one that's talked 34:31 about here as the remnant because the remnant 34:33 is gonna be a small group. 34:35 There are those who say, Wow! 34:37 The true church has to have a certain name, 34:39 the church of God, the church of the first born, the 34:42 church of Christ, the church of this, the church of that. 34:45 Well, if the Bible ever said the true church 34:47 has a certain name then everyone would put 34:50 their name on the church, 34:51 you don't find truth by looking 34:52 at science over church doors. 34:54 You find truth by the word of God. 34:58 And the Bible says, 35:00 the remnant is the one that teaches obedience 35:05 to the commands of God, some say, 35:06 well we need to be able to trace ourselves back all the 35:10 way to the beginning, 35:11 and then you'll know that's the true church. 35:13 But the Bible says that the organized church 35:15 was plunged into darkness and it becomes visible 35:18 again after 1798, after the infliction of the deadly 35:22 wound it becomes visible. So, you cant' trace it back 35:25 to the roots that way folks 35:26 there is only one way to trace it back 35:28 and that is does it teach everything 35:31 according to the scripture. 35:35 Does it teach obedience to the commandments of God? 35:38 Any church that does not teach obedience to 35:41 all of God's commandments, including the fourth one, 35:43 that says remember the Sabbath day 35:45 to keep it holy cannot be this church 35:46 In Revelation 12, verse 17. 35:50 Now, Seventh Day Adventists believe that 35:56 this prophecy identifies the Adventist movement 36:01 as the remnant that God raised up to preach the 36:05 Gospel to the world, 36:06 to announce the judgment hourhas begun in the 1844 36:11 as we learned last night and to teach obedience to all 36:14 of God's commandments, but don't say Amen, 36:18 very loud, that's strange coming from me, Amen. 36:22 Not too loud, why not? 36:26 Because Revelation chapter 3 says that the last church, 36:30 which is that remnant church that you would 36:33 think would be on fire for God is lukewarm. 36:39 And Jesus even said, I'm about to spit 36:41 some of you out of my mouth. 36:44 There is no room to boast, 36:46 the Seventh Adventist church is no better 36:49 than any other church, but in one sense 36:53 God raised up the Seventh Day Adventist 36:55 to proclaim the three angels messages 36:58 and folks I've never heard anyone else, 37:00 I've never heard any other church even claim to preach, 37:03 the three angels messages of Revelation, 37:05 God's last warning to a perishing world. 37:11 And, then what about the other identifying mark, 37:14 says they hold to the testimony of Jesus, 37:16 what's the testimony of Jesus comparing 37:18 scripture with scripture, 37:19 we go to Revelation chapter 19. 37:22 John had just seen a vision, an Angel was there, 37:25 he fell at the feet of the angel 37:26 and he went to worship the angel, 37:28 but the angel said in verse 10, do not do that, 37:31 I'm a fellow servant with you and with your brothers 37:34 who hold to the testimony of Jesus, 37:36 worship God for the testimony of Jesus 37:39 is the spirit of prophecy. 37:41 Now, we see the second identifying mark and that is 37:44 that God's true church would be identified as 37:46 as not only obeying all of God's commandments, 37:49 but it would have the testimony of Jesus, 37:51 which is the spirit of prophecy. 37:55 So, we should be looking for a church 37:57 coming visible in the late 18, in the mid 1800s, 38:01 just in time to announce the judgment hour 38:03 that taught obedience to all of God's commandments 38:06 and has the gift of prophecy manifest 38:08 in that church as it is becoming visible. 38:11 Now, some say, what a prophet in the last days, 38:14 no way, we don't need prophets. 38:17 The Bible says that we should not despise 38:19 prophecy. First Thessalonians chapter 5:19-22, 38:23 don't despise prophecy, 38:24 but test everything and hold on to the good. 38:27 How do you test it with the word of God, 38:29 don't despise it, test it. 38:31 In Joel 2, he said, I'll pour out my Spirit on 38:33 all flesh and many will prophecy in the last days. 38:36 We should be looking for an explosion 38:39 of the gift of prophecy in the last days, 38:41 and Jesus himself said, there will be many 38:43 false prophets coming in my name. 38:46 You don't have a false prophet, 38:47 if there is no true prophet, you don't 38:50 counterfeit something that it doesn't exist. 38:52 You don't make a counterfeit $11 bill, 38:54 the fact that there would be many false prophets, 38:57 Jesus is pointing to show that the devil 38:59 would make a smoke screen, 39:01 so that when the true prophet would appear 39:03 no one would wanna listen to it. 39:06 And, then Revelation says, that when 39:09 God's church is becoming visible for the last time, 39:12 it would teach obedience to the commandments of God 39:14 and it would have the spirit of prophecy 39:16 manifested in that church at that time and 39:18 the Seventh Day Adventist church does believe that 39:20 the gift of prophecy was manifest in the 39:23 ministry of a woman named Ellen G. White. 39:27 Have you ever heard about her yet, 39:29 at least most of you haven't 39:31 and there is a reason for that, 39:34 because we believe that all of our teachings 39:36 and all of our doctrines should come from the 39:38 scripture and the scripture alone. 39:41 In fact Ellen G. White herself said, 39:44 the writings of Ellen White should 39:47 not be carried to the front. 39:50 God's word is the un-airing standard. 39:53 Ellen White is not to take the place of the word of God. 39:57 Let everyone prove their point from scripture 39:59 never do we want anyone to put Ellen White 40:02 ahead of the Bible. 40:03 That's what I would expect a prophet to say, 40:07 you test the prophet by the scripture. 40:10 She said she is the lesser light to lead us 40:13 to the greater light which is the Bible. 40:15 One day, my door bell rang and I came to the door 40:19 and there was some really two handsome 40:21 looking young man dressed nicely, 40:23 that were out witnessing, sharing their faith 40:25 and they said we want to tell you about God, 40:28 I said, come right in. 40:29 Oh! I love for people to come in to tell me about God, 40:32 because I've good news for you too. 40:35 So, come in here and tell me, 40:37 and they said, did you know that God has prophets 40:40 in the last days, I said, yep, I know that, 40:42 they said you do. 40:44 I do, the Bible says it and I believe it, 40:47 I said then I've a question for you, 40:49 tell me, if the prophet says something 40:54 that contradicts the scripture, 40:56 which one would you believe the prophet or the scripture. 41:00 And, they said, Oh! Well, we believe the prophet. 41:04 I said, well why would you believe the prophet 41:07 over scripture, he says 41:09 because he is a prophet and he has to tell the truth 41:14 and I said, but just a minute, 41:18 if the Holy Spirit gave us the scripture 41:21 and someone shows up at my door claiming to be a prophet 41:25 and he contradicts the scripture, 41:27 how do you know that he is really a prophet. 41:31 Oh! You can feel it in your heart. 41:33 Well, I can feel it in my heart that he is not. 41:37 Now, where all we, your heart against mine, 41:41 is that how we find truth? 41:42 We find truth by the word of God, Amen. 41:47 And, I would expect a prophet 41:48 to say to the law and the testimonies, 41:51 if they speak not according to these, 41:52 there is no light in them. 41:54 Then why do we need to gift the prophecy, 41:56 if we have the scripture, because the world 41:58 had been plunged into the depths of darkness 42:01 and despair and God was finally letting that light 42:04 shine and establishing His remnant church and He 42:07 wanted to give it help with the gift of prophecy. 42:11 And, let me share with you 42:12 just a few things about Ellen White. 42:15 First of all, she only had a third grade education 42:18 because she was injured when she was a youngster 42:20 and in spite of that she wrote more pages of 42:23 manuscript then any women who has ever lived 42:25 on this earth, wrote a book called Steps of Christ. 42:28 It has been published more than any other book 42:30 expect the Bible in more different languages 42:32 than any other book except the Bible. 42:34 She wrote a book called Education, that 42:36 was used as a text book for years at universities 42:39 and colleges across the country and all she 42:41 had was a third grade education, but let me 42:44 show you how God used the gift of prophecy. 42:47 Last night, we discovered that there was a great 42:49 disappointment in 1844 and that many people following 42:52 the teachings of a baptist minister named William Miller 42:55 believed that Jesus was coming October 22 1844. 42:59 But he didn't come and what a bitter disappointment 43:02 it was and during that time a group of men got together, 43:05 they began to study and they began to pray 43:07 and they understood from scripture 43:08 that 1844 was indeed the correct date, but it 43:12 didn't refer to the return of Jesus to this earth, 43:14 it referred to Jesus into the presence of the father 43:17 to begin the judgment and we saw that 43:20 last night and that's when they discovered 43:22 that the standard of the judgment is the law, 43:24 the Ten Commandments and so God restored the law 43:28 as a part of the new covenant Gospel in 1844 43:32 in the judgment setting like it had never been before. 43:36 And then they discovered we're not keeping the law 43:40 because the fourth commandment said remember 43:42 the Sabbath Day to keep it holy. 43:44 Now, after all of this had been hammered out from 43:48 scripture and scripture alone then God gave his prophet 43:55 Ellen White a vision and she saw Jesus going into the 43:59 most holy place of the heavenly sanctuary, 44:02 she saw the Ark of the Covenant open, 44:04 the Ten Commandment tables of stone 44:06 with a ring of light around the fourth commandment. 44:10 Now, they had already, it's important to know 44:13 they had already hammered out their positions from 44:15 the scripture and God was using the gift of prophecy 44:20 to confirm and affirm that they were on the right track 44:24 because they had just gone 44:26 through the great disappointment, 44:27 the whole world was laughing at them 44:30 and now they've discovered that in spite of 44:32 what everyone else practically on earth is teaching 44:35 that Sunday is the first day, 44:37 they're discovering the Lord's day 44:39 is the Sabbath and not Sunday, 44:41 Saturday and not Sunday, 44:42 and God was saying with his stamp of 44:45 endorsement of the Holy Spirit, 44:46 you're on the right track, 44:48 you got it from scripture, keep your 44:50 nose in the Bible and out of the world. And 44:54 you'll always be safe, in other words follow the lamb. 44:57 So, he used the spirit of prophecy to endorse 45:01 the scripture not to give new doctrines, 45:04 come from the scripture and the scripture alone. 45:08 Another way he used the gift of prophecy, 45:10 Ellen White had a vision, 45:12 this little church was beginning to grow 45:16 and the message was going around the world 45:18 because the first angel said, to every nation, 45:20 tribe, language and people, but it wasn't going 45:22 fast enough and God gave her a vision. 45:25 She saw a printing press with streams of lights, 45:27 circling around the globe and she understood that 45:31 to mean that we need to establish a publishing house 45:34 and they did, they saved their money, they bought 45:37 a press and began to publish the messages of 45:39 the three angels and it began to go around the globe 45:42 and that is one of the largest Protestant publishing 45:44 houses in the world today. 45:48 Third way that God used to gift the prophecy 45:51 to help this fledgling church grow. 45:54 One day God gave her a vision that we needed to 45:57 be establish in the medical work in the healing arts, 46:02 and he showed her a little plot of land and said, 46:05 I want to see a medical college on that land 46:09 and shortly after that Ellen White traveled to California 46:13 and pointed out to some of the leaders in the area there 46:16 that was the very spot that God showed her in vision 46:20 and it was a little town called Loma Linda, 46:23 California and today Loma Linda University 46:26 is one of the foremost medical institutions 46:29 on this earth. 46:31 and the purpose was to train mena and women 46:34 in the medical arts. 46:35 So that they could reach out in the healing 46:38 and taking care of patients to do more 46:41 than just heal the body, 46:42 but heal their souls by leading them to the lamb 46:44 Jesus Christ 46:46 and in that way those things helped the church to grow, 46:50 to become one of the fastest growing bodies 46:53 today on this earth, going around the world, 46:56 preaching the three angels messages 46:58 like it has never happened before. 47:02 One thing, I do want to make it clear 47:04 is that we don't require Seventh Day Adventist 47:07 to testify that they believe that Ellen White was 47:09 a true prophet, 47:10 we just ask that people are open to the gift of prophecy 47:14 and to test it with the word of God, 47:16 if it squares up with scripture than hang-on, 47:19 if it doesn't square up with scripture 47:21 then let it go that's all we can do, Amen. 47:24 To the law and the testimonies that 47:26 they speak not according to these, 47:27 there is no light in them. 47:29 Well, if God raised up the Adventist church 47:34 to be that remnant church of Revelation 12:17, do 47:37 I have to join it, do I have to be a part of any church, 47:41 a lot of people ask that question and of course 47:44 we're not saved by joining a church, 47:47 we're saved by faith in Jesus Christ alone. 47:50 But should we become a part, 47:53 should we be added to the number 47:56 of an organized church, 47:58 I guess that would depend on the reason 48:00 people give for not wanting to be a part of the church. 48:03 There are some people say, 48:04 well, I won't join a church because I'm not good enough. 48:08 Well, Jesus said in Luke chapter 5, verse 31, 48:11 it's not the healthy who need a doctor it's the sick, 48:14 I've not come to call the righteous, 48:15 but sinners to repentance. 48:17 Did you know that the church is the only organization 48:21 on this earth where the requirement to be a part of 48:23 it is that you not be good enough, 48:25 did you know that? 48:26 If you're good enough, you wouldn't need the church. 48:29 So that's not a good enough excuse, 48:32 then there were those who take the opposite extreme 48:34 and they say, well, I would join the church, 48:37 but I'm too good to join the church. 48:40 Oh! I never heard anybody say that. 48:42 it doesn't come out that way, 48:44 it usually comes out like this. 48:47 I would join the church, 48:49 but there are hypocrites in the church. 48:54 Have you ever heard that, I would join, 48:57 what are they really saying, 48:58 what's a hypocrite, 48:59 hypocrite is somebody who knows what they ought to do, 49:00 but they don't do it. 49:04 I would join the church, 49:05 but look at those people in there, 49:06 they're no better than I am, 49:07 in fact I'm better than those people, 49:09 I don't need the church. 49:12 You know, I think there are more people on the outside 49:17 of the church that know that they ought to be inside 49:18 the church then they are hypocrites in the church. 49:22 But what about the hypocrites in the church. 49:25 What did Jesus have to say about them? 49:28 In Matthew chapter 13, verse 24, Jesus told 49:31 this parable the Kingdom of Heaven is like a man 49:33 who sowed good seed in his field, 49:34 but while everyone was sleeping, 49:36 the enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat, 49:38 he went away and when the wheat sprouted 49:41 and formed heads than the weeds also appeared. 49:44 In verse 27, the servant said, well where these 49:47 weeds come from, an enemy did this he replied, 49:50 servants said you want us to go and pull them up. 49:52 Oh! The church is always wanting the weed out, 49:55 the hypocrites, you want us to go pull them up, 49:59 Jesus said no, because while you're pulling out the weed, 50:04 Oh! The church is always wanting the weed out, 50:05 the hypocrites, you want us to go pull them 50:06 up, Jesus said no, 50:07 because while you're pulling up the weed, 50:08 you might pull out some of the wheat with them. 50:09 Let them grow together until the harvest 50:13 and then I'll decide who is the weed 50:16 and who is the wheat, 50:18 and he never makes a mistake. 50:21 So Jesus expected hypocrites to be there until the harvest. 50:28 It didn't bother him, so don't let it bother you. 50:32 There are hypocrites in the church, 50:34 in fact some say well if our church 50:36 was like the early church in the times of the disciples, 50:39 in the times of Christ 50:40 then I would really want to be a member of that church. 50:43 No you wouldn't, one of the 12 was Judas, 50:48 it wasn't perfect, 50:50 not even when there was just Jesus and the twelve 50:52 and what about the Greek widows getting discriminated 50:55 against the Greek speaking Jewish widows. 50:57 They were getting, there was racial discrimination 50:59 in the early church. Anais and Sapphira lied 51:02 to the Holy Spirit, there was financial scandal 51:05 in the early church and what about Peter. 51:07 Peter goes to the church in Galatia, 51:09 refused to sit at the same table with the Gentiles. 51:12 Paul comes and sees This happening, 51:14 calls him down to his face in front of the congregation, 51:17 imagine two Pastors going at it in front of the church 51:19 what would you do if that happened in your church. 51:24 The church is not perfect. The message is perfect, 51:32 the church is not perfect 51:34 The church consists of men and women 51:36 who are growing in the grace of our 51:38 Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. 51:40 Jesus knew that the church wasn't perfect. 51:43 Jesus knew that there would be hypocrites in the church 51:47 and yet the Bible says, Ephesians 5:25, 51:50 Christ loved the church and he gave himself up for her. 51:56 So, that's not a good enough excuse 51:58 either and there are others. 52:01 Charles Spurgeon had just preached a sermon 52:04 like this one time, a great preacher, 52:05 he preached his sermon on the church 52:07 and a man came up to him and said Pastor, 52:10 he said, I don't care what you say, 52:11 I'm gonna keep searching till I find the perfect church. 52:14 And when I find a perfect church, 52:16 I'm gonna join that one 52:18 and Spurgeon just smiled and he says you look, 52:22 but you'll never find the perfect church 52:26 and the even if you did find it, 52:28 when you join it, it wouldn't be perfect anymore. 52:33 The church isn't perfect, 52:34 the message is perfect not the church. 52:41 Then there are those who say well, 52:42 I'm not committing, I'm not joining, 52:45 I'm not adding to the number, 52:47 I'm not becoming a part of any organization, 52:50 I'm nondenominational, Nondenominational 52:53 was getting to be the biggest denomination today. 52:55 I'm nondenominational, I don't join anything, 52:59 you don't have to be a member 53:00 to enjoy the benefits of this church, 53:05 for example, you're welcome here. 53:07 One lady said, I'll never join the church pastor, 53:10 I'll come here after Revelation Now is over, 53:13 I'll come here, I'm even planning to send 53:15 my little girl to your church school, 53:16 and I'll come and attend and go to the Bible class 53:19 in Revelation Now, but I'll never join. 53:21 That's okay, you don't have to join to be here. 53:24 And, we hope you feel welcomed, 53:26 but you are a member here or not, 53:27 but what if everybody felt that way, 53:32 then there would be no church, 53:34 there would be no building, there would be no playschool 53:37 for you to send your girl to, she says you know, 53:40 I've really never thought about it like that before. 53:45 God needs the church, he choose to use the church. 53:50 Listen the church is God's idea, 53:55 as we can feeble as it maybe with members 53:58 who don't live up to everything 54:00 they ought to live up to, it's still God's idea 54:03 and to say I want to be baptized, 54:05 but I don't want to join the church is like saying, 54:08 I wanna go through your front door, 54:09 but I don't wanna be in your living room. 54:14 The church needs you, 54:16 we're gonna preach this Gospel to the world, 54:18 the church needs you, but you need the church, 54:25 forsake not the assembling together 54:28 for the encouragement of one another. 54:31 God needs you, the church needs you, 54:33 but you need the church, some say Oh! Not me, 54:35 I can handle it all on my own. 54:36 The church was God's idea because he knows, 54:39 he needed it, and he knows that you need it. 54:45 One day there was an elderly man 54:49 that had worked and slaved all of his life, 54:51 poor, didn't have hardly anything, 54:53 he saved every penny, 54:55 so that he could send his son to medical school, 54:57 he wanted his boy to be a doctor. 55:01 So, his son graduated from college 55:03 and went to medical school. 55:05 The old man just did without so many things 55:08 that you and I would never think of doing without, 55:10 but he didn't mind because his son was gonna 55:12 to be a doctor and the day for graduation came, 55:15 he didn't even have enough money to buy 55:16 a ticket to go and see his boy graduate, 55:20 but he didn't care because his son was a doctor now. 55:26 His boy came home from school and after a few days, 55:30 he said, dad I need to tell you something. 55:33 He said, dad, I'm not gonna 55:38 be going to church with you anymore. 55:43 And, the old man's heart was broken, 55:47 he knew that he couldn't argue with his son, 55:50 he was no match. He just put his arm 55:55 around his shoulder walked him over to the fireplace, 56:00 it's all he had for heat in his house, 56:03 he picked up the shovel next to the fireplace 56:07 and scooped out a beautiful white hot glowing coal, 56:11 put it on the heart and it wasn't long 56:15 until it was just grey and ugly and coaled. 56:18 Then he scooped it back up with that shovel again, 56:23 he put it back into the fire. It wasn't long until 56:27 it was white hot and glowing again. 56:31 We need each other, the church needs us, 56:37 Jesus needs us, he could have preached 56:41 the Gospel to the world all by himself, 56:43 but he choose you to do it and you need the church. 56:49 God's church is gonna march triumphantly 56:55 through the gates into that New Jerusalem City above. 57:00 God has a place for you there, the church is gonna 57:04 make it, doesn't matter what color your skin, 57:10 doesn't matter what blood flowing through your veins, 57:13 the only thing that matters is that you follow the lamb. 57:19 God raised up a church in the last days 57:23 just for the purpose of calling the world 57:26 to worship the creator and to follow the lamb. 57:31 Won't you follow the lamb wherever 57:35 he leads you, follow him. |
Revised 2014-12-17