Participants:
Series Code: SSH
Program Code: SSH021821A
|
00:34 Good morning, friends,
00:35 welcome again to Sabbath School Study Hour 00:38 here at the Granite Bay Seventh-day Adventist Church. 00:40 Very warm welcome to those who are joining us online 00:43 across the country and around the world, 00:44 part of our extended lesson study class 00:47 and also our members 00:48 and visitors right here at the Granite Bay Church. 00:51 It's good to see you this morning 00:52 as we continue our study in our lesson quarterly 00:55 entitled "Preparation for the End Times." 00:58 Today, we're looking at lesson number eight, 01:00 that's entitled Worship the Creator. 01:03 You'll find that 01:04 in the first angel's message in Revelation 14. 01:07 So we're gonna be studying Revelation 14, 01:10 the first angel's message 01:11 in a special way during our time today. 01:14 But before we get to all of that, 01:16 we want to let our friends know about a free offer 01:18 that we have for those who are joining us. 01:20 We do have a DVD download that's available 01:24 to those who are willing to text the following code, 01:28 it's "SH022" to the number 40544, 01:35 and you'll be able to receive 01:36 a download of the Ultimate Purpose DVD, 01:39 one of the sermons in that series. 01:41 And again that code is "SH022" text that to 40544. 01:48 If you'd like to receive actual DVD copy of our free offer, 01:53 just give us a call at 866-788-3966, 01:57 and you can ask for offer number 846. 02:00 We'll be happy to send that to anybody who calls and asks. 02:04 Well, before we get to our lesson again, 02:06 I'd like to invite our song leaders to come, 02:08 and they will lead us in our song this morning. 04:01 Dear Father in heaven, 04:02 we thank You once again that we have this opportunity 04:04 to open up Your Word and study this very important message, 04:08 part of the everlasting gospel that is to go to all the world. 04:11 Lord, we ask for the Holy Spirit to come 04:12 and guide our hearts as we take a look 04:14 at this important passage of scripture. 04:16 And we pray, Lord, 04:17 that You'd lead us into a clear understanding of truth, 04:20 for we ask this in Jesus' name. 04:22 Amen. 04:23 Our lesson this morning 04:24 is going to be brought to us by Pastor Doug. 04:28 Good morning, friends. 04:30 Welcome to Sabbath School Study Hour. 04:33 Very thankful to see each of you here, 04:35 some who may be visiting, 04:36 some who are watching from around the world. 04:39 And that became very tangible for Karen and I this last month 04:44 because we were in Africa, 04:46 and I thought maybe before we get into the lesson, 04:49 if it's okay with you, 04:50 I'm just going to give you a little mission update. 04:53 And we've got some slides that will appear, 04:55 it might be on my monitor also 04:57 or it can be up there on the screen. 05:00 We were in Kampala, Uganda. 05:02 And we were there for just about two weeks. 05:06 That is the middle of kind of East Africa. 05:10 I've never been to this country before, 05:12 and it's right on the lake... 05:13 It's right on the borders of the biggest lake in Africa, 05:16 second biggest freshwater lake in the world, 05:18 which is Lake Victoria. 05:20 There's still quite a bit of unemployment 05:22 and poverty in the country, 05:24 but nobody's like starving 05:25 because it is right on the equator 05:27 and there's a lot of food everywhere. 05:29 People may not have any money 05:30 but most people are able to find food. 05:33 And part of what we were doing is we work together with our... 05:38 We have an AFCOE-Africa, 05:39 and evangelism training program there in Africa. 05:42 It's been based in Kenya for the last couple of years, 05:45 but in preparation for these meetings, 05:47 our director, Lowell Hargreaves and Sandra, his family. 05:51 They had done some meetings in Kampala, 05:53 which is the capital there of Uganda, 05:56 and they had trained a number of people in evangelism, 05:59 but there was ten of them they thought 06:01 they could send out as evangelists. 06:03 So a few weeks before we arrived, 06:06 we had ten evangelists, 06:07 I think we got eight or nine of them there, 06:09 that went out around the city 06:11 and they begin to conduct meetings, 06:12 and then we brought 06:13 all of the people from their meetings 06:15 to the final ten meetings that Karen and I presented. 06:19 And we spent some time with the evangelist, 06:22 this was just a great roundtable time 06:24 asking all kinds of Bible questions 06:26 and each one of them has an incredible testimony. 06:30 So one of them was a Pentecostal pastor 06:32 and another one was into Satanic worship, 06:34 and now they're all working for the Lord. 06:37 Yeah, this is the whole team, 06:38 they're also singing during our series, 06:40 the men and the ladies. 06:42 We met outdoors, now this was really a miracle. 06:45 The only time that I could squeeze this meeting in 06:48 was in the raining season. 06:51 They really got two seasons in this part of Africa, 06:54 you know, the sun goes down pretty much 06:55 the same time all year long, it's on the equator. 06:58 And it's either sunny or raining. 07:00 The temperature doesn't fluctuate a lot, it, 07:03 you know, it gets up to 75, 80, maybe 85 07:07 during the day, it's pretty hot then cause it's really humid. 07:13 But it was very pleasant, scattered clouds. 07:15 We saw rain every day, but we were meeting outdoors, 07:18 and we prayed that it wouldn't rain 07:19 during our meetings. 07:20 The chances that it would not rain 07:22 during our meetings, we knew, were very remote. 07:28 But we prayed and the people prayed, 07:30 and it was a miracle, 07:31 it would start raining after the meetings, 07:33 it would rain before the meetings, 07:35 but it didn't rain during the meetings. 07:37 And that was especially difficult Sabbath 07:40 we prayed because sometimes it rain in the morning 07:43 and not at night, 07:44 or rain at night not in the morning. 07:45 Sabbath, we needed to be good all day long and it was. 07:50 And so, the Lord has really blessed. 07:52 Next picture. 07:54 Because they've had some issues with terrorism, 07:57 we had armed guards and metal detectors. 08:00 Everybody that came to this outdoor arena 08:02 had to go through a metal detector 08:04 and not just where they walked through a door, 08:06 they were also frisked. 08:08 And so there was a sense of heightened security. 08:11 Traffic in Kampala is just epic. 08:15 Karen and I at one point, because of the traffic 08:17 we weren't getting to the meeting that time... 08:19 in time and we could see where the meeting hall was, 08:23 and so we told the driver to just let us out. 08:25 And we jumped out, and we ran to the meeting 08:28 and they had this berm, 08:29 and we knew our meeting was in the other side of this berm, 08:31 but that was not the normal entrance. 08:33 And there's an armed guard there. 08:35 And he said, "You can't come in here." 08:37 I said, "But I'm supposed to speak in a few minutes." 08:40 And so I told him through a little bit of English, 08:44 a little bit of sign language, "I'm the speaker." 08:46 He said, "Okay, come on in." 08:47 So we kind of literally 08:48 climbed over the wall to get in, 08:50 everyone's watching us come in. 08:52 Telling, here's the speaker 08:53 just getting in at the last minute. 08:54 I think that they were singing a little longer, 08:56 and doing a longer health program 08:58 so we can get there. 08:59 We had members of parliament and the military 09:02 that were coming to our meetings, 09:03 and so it was well attended. 09:06 Yeah, and we also did a program 09:08 where we were teaching the area pastors. 09:10 There are like 25 churches around the city, 09:13 it's a big city. 09:14 There are 43 million people in Uganda. 09:18 And so it is a big country. 09:20 And so I did some training with pastors. 09:22 Next picture. 09:24 Oh, the food was really good. 09:26 Every day we would eat almost all... 09:28 Every day we would eat lunch 09:29 with the AFCOE evangelists and our AFCOE team, 09:32 and they prepared it right there 09:34 at the union compound, 09:36 and it was my kind of food. 09:38 Lots of fruit, all the avocado you could eat. 09:42 I mean, yeah, that's an amen. 09:45 That was really good. 09:47 And yeah, there's papayas, and mangoes, and jackfruit, 09:50 and so a lot of fruit, and then I like, 09:52 you know, all the different kinds of beans and vegetables 09:55 and the sweet potatoes and stuff 09:56 so, ate really good, so don't feel sorry for me. 10:00 We took a trip, it was about an hour and a half, 10:02 two hours out 10:03 to the biggest university in the country, 10:06 Adventist University called Bugema. 10:09 I was supposed to just talk to the seminary students, 10:12 but we were dribbled out, 10:14 and they shut down the whole college, 10:16 and everybody came to our presentations, 10:18 and they treated us very well. 10:20 It's a beautiful campus, beautiful location. 10:23 Next picture. 10:24 So during the meetings, this is Pastor Lowell, 10:26 he's been with Amazing Facts for about 22 years. 10:30 He's doing the health talk 10:31 right here through his translator. 10:33 Most of the people speak some English 10:36 'cause it's English occupied Uganda. 10:40 It was a colony at one point so they're very proper. 10:42 And every time you preach, they want you to wear a suit, 10:45 and when you preach outdoors on the equator 10:48 and you have to wear a suit, it's not always practical, 10:51 but they felt strongly about that. 10:54 Mrs. Batchelor and I would do Bible questions, 10:56 then people started out very slow, 10:58 and eventually we just had pages of Bible questions 11:00 that came in. 11:02 And started out, we only had 2,000 people 11:05 and it just continued to build. 11:07 So by the final meeting, 11:08 we had 7,000 people on the final meeting, 11:12 on the final Sabbath. 11:13 And we were just really pleased. 11:14 And there is just one of the shots 11:16 of one of the evening meetings, 11:18 sun kind of went down during the meetings, 11:21 and they're great choirs... 11:23 Next picture. 11:25 That was a picture of Karen and I at the Nile before. 11:27 Ryan, who is maybe in the back, 11:29 he, one of the Amazing Facts media team. 11:31 He was there, 11:32 and a little interesting point on this picture, 11:35 Ryan had a photograph of his grandmother 11:38 at this very place 70 years ago. 11:41 So he enjoyed taking this picture 11:42 and then showing his grandma that the Nile 11:46 is indeed still running out of Lake Victoria. 11:49 And this is the point actually where the Nile runs out. 11:52 At the conclusion of the meetings, 11:54 we praised the Lord 11:55 because of the work the Amazing Facts evangelists 11:57 did as well as our meetings, 11:58 we had 335 baptisms. 12:02 And so that was a real joy 12:04 to be part of the baptism that day. 12:07 So there's a lot more I can tell you, 12:08 and maybe we will share more later, 12:09 but we just wanted to give you a little mission update 12:12 on where we were. 12:13 And we do a lot of trips like that, 12:15 we come back and Granite Bay goes, 12:16 "We just know Pastor Doug was gone. 12:18 Where were you? What were you doing?" 12:20 And so, Karen and I had a great experience. 12:22 Thank you for keeping us in your prayers. 12:24 And you know what was really fun 12:25 is after our meetings at night 12:27 on the two Sabbaths we were there, 12:29 we come back to our room, 12:30 and when the Internet was working, 12:32 we would stream, some of you heard, 12:34 Pastor Ross greet you from us in Africa, 12:37 we were there watching. 12:38 We took a picture of us watching you watching us, 12:41 watching you. 12:43 So that was pretty neat. 12:44 And a lot of people there in Africa, 12:47 as everywhere we've been, they said, 12:48 "Oh, we are members online, we watch every week." 12:52 Okay, into our lesson, an important lesson, 12:54 going in lesson number eight 12:56 on Preparation for the End Time. 12:58 And we're talking about worshipping the Creator. 13:01 And so... 13:03 We have a memory verse, 13:04 and the memory verse is from Revelation. 13:06 This is in your lesson in New King James Version. 13:09 Revelation 14:6, 13:11 this would be the first angel's message. 13:12 So if you have it, 13:13 I always like it if you could say this out loud with me, 13:16 are you ready? 13:17 Revelation 14:6, 13:19 "Then I saw another angel flying in the midst of heaven, 13:24 having the everlasting gospel 13:26 to preach to those who dwell on the earth, 13:28 to every nation, tribe, tongue, and people." 13:32 Now, this will be a special focus of our study. 13:35 Now, lesson makes an important point 13:37 in the beginning. 13:38 We talk about present truth. 13:40 Have you ever heard that phrase before? 13:41 Present truth, what does that mean? 13:46 As opposed to truth that is not present. 13:48 A present truth is a message 13:50 you would find in the Bible that is true, 13:53 but it's especially applicable to a specific time. 13:59 For example, Noah had a message that said, 14:03 "Get on the ark, a flood is coming." 14:05 That was a true message, but is that our message today? 14:09 No, God said, 14:10 "I'll never destroy the world again with a flood." 14:13 Jeremiah had a message, 14:15 "Surrender to the Babylonians and live." 14:19 Well, that was a message 14:20 during the time of King Zedekiah, 14:22 because of people's disobedience 14:24 the only way they would have peace 14:25 and survive is to surrender. 14:27 They did not listen, 14:28 but that was a present truth message. 14:31 And the message, "Babylon has fallen, come out of her." 14:36 That was a message 14:37 that happened after the Babylonian captivity, 14:40 and it is a message today. 14:42 It is present truth today, 14:43 "Babylon has fallen, come out of her." 14:46 And so, knowing what present truth is. 14:49 What is the message that we give to the world? 14:53 The gospel. 14:55 When has the gospel not been present truth. 15:00 Never since the fall. 15:02 It has always been present truth 15:03 that we tell people, 15:05 "Repent from your sins, confess your sins, 15:07 turn to God, accept His sacrifice." 15:09 Even in the Old Testament, 15:11 they were looking to the sacrifice of God 15:13 for forgiveness. 15:16 So that's always been present truth, 15:17 but what is a specific present truth message 15:21 for our day now? 15:23 Right, if you go to Revelation 14, real quick, 15:28 and let's do that together. 15:30 Go to Revelation 14, 15:31 I just want you to see something. 15:34 And if you look in Revelation 14:14. 15:38 "I looked, and behold, a white cloud, 15:41 and on the cloud sat One like the Son of Man, 15:44 having on His head a golden crown, 15:46 and in His hand a sharp sickle. 15:48 And another angel came out of the temple, 15:50 crying with a loud voice to Him who sat on the cloud, 15:52 'Thrust in Your sickle and reap, 15:54 for the time has come for You to reap, 15:56 for the harvest of the earth is ripe.'" 15:59 What is this a picture of? 16:01 Second coming. 16:02 Jesus is left in the cloud, He's coming in the clouds, 16:05 He's the one with the crown, He's harvesting. 16:08 His parables often talked about separating the wheat 16:10 from the tares in a great harvest, 16:12 and He said, "I'm sowing the seed of the gospel." 16:15 And so here's a picture of Jesus coming. 16:17 Now what happens immediately prior to Christ's coming? 16:21 Looked earlier in Revelation 14, 16:23 go to verse 6, a verse we just read. 16:26 "The gospel to preach to every creature saying, 16:29 'Fear God, give glory to Him. 16:32 The hour of His judgment is coming and worship Him.'" 16:35 A special call to worship the Creator, 16:38 a call that says a judgment 16:40 has come happens prior to the second coming. 16:43 So the message of worshipping the Creator 16:46 and an hour of judgment is a present truth message 16:50 that applies now. 16:52 We are living in the last age and phase of the church. 16:55 There are seven phases or ages of the church. 16:58 You get Ephesus, and Smyrna, and Philadelphia, 17:02 and Sardis, and Thyatira, and so forth. 17:05 We are now living in the last one 17:07 which is Laodicea. 17:10 The very phrase "Laodicea" means a judging of the people. 17:15 It should make sense to us that there's a judgment 17:18 that happens before Jesus comes 17:20 because the Lord says, 17:22 "Behold, I come, and My reward is with Me." 17:25 So He knows who is getting what when He comes, 17:28 of course, God knows everything. 17:30 But some determination, 17:31 some investigation takes place before He comes 17:33 because He knows 17:34 what He's giving when He comes, right? 17:36 And so, we're going to talk a little bit about 17:38 that in our first section here. 17:41 First of all, let's talk about the universality of the gospel. 17:45 Who does the gospel go to? 17:47 It says to every creature, 17:49 we just read that in Revelation, 17:51 "To preach to those who dwell on the earth, 17:52 every nation, tribe, tongue, and people." 17:56 That's Revelation 14:6. 17:58 Someone in a moment is going to look at Acts 1:8. 18:01 Hofstede, you have that? 18:03 You go to Matthew 24:14. 18:05 "And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached," 18:07 how far? 18:09 "In all the world." 18:10 Now for you, you're thinking, 18:11 "Pastor Doug, why are you even reading that? 18:13 That's just such an obvious, self evident truth." 18:16 It didn't used to be. 18:18 Do you remember that Jesus had a hard time convincing 18:21 the apostles that gospel was not just for Jews. 18:25 And He had to give Peter a vision of this sheet 18:28 coming down from heaven full of unclean creatures. 18:30 And He said, "Arise and eat." 18:32 Peter said, "Not so, Lord, 18:33 I've never eaten anything common or unclean." 18:36 God said, "Don't call common or unclean what I've cleansed." 18:39 And everybody thinks He's talking about food 18:42 that we could eat anything now, 18:44 that God has cleaned vultures and cockroaches 18:46 for us to eat now, 18:48 that's not what that's about. 18:49 Peter never eats from the sheet, 18:51 Peter tells us what the vision means, 18:54 right when he's saying, "What does this mean?" 18:56 Gentiles show up at his door. 18:58 He's waiting for lunch, he's hungry, 19:00 so God gives him a food vision to impress it on him. 19:02 The gentiles come up and they said, 19:04 "Come, talk to us." 19:05 Said, "You're unclean, I can't come in to you." 19:08 And God told him not to call any man unclean. 19:12 Okay. 19:14 And so they finally, 19:15 slowly got the idea that the gospel 19:17 was to go everywhere, 19:18 to the Jew and the gentile. 19:21 And so, you know, Paul even says to the Jew first. 19:24 So when they went to a town, 19:25 they go to the synagogues first if there were any 19:28 because it was a pretty short learning curve 19:32 for a gentile to accept Jesus. 19:34 They already had the other biblical foundation. 19:36 When you went... 19:37 Now I mean for a Jew to accept Jesus. 19:39 When you went to a gentile, you had to tell him, 19:42 "No, there's only one God." 19:44 And tell him about the Ten Commandments, 19:45 the Jews knew all that. 19:47 So they'd first start with obviously the children, 19:52 then they go to the highways and the byways 19:54 and tell everyone else. 19:55 So, Matthew 28:19, "Go ye therefore 19:59 and make disciples of all nations, 20:02 baptizing them in the name of the Father, 20:03 Son, and Holy Spirit," to go everywhere. 20:06 Mark 16:15, it's a little different from Matthew, 20:09 the great commission here. 20:10 "He says, 'Go into all the world 20:11 and preach the gospel to every creature.'" 20:14 So even if you thought that the gentiles were unclean 20:18 or if they were dogs, can you ever think of a place 20:21 where the gentiles were called dogs. 20:24 Did Jesus even say to the Syrophoenician woman, 20:27 "It is not appropriate 20:28 to give the children's food to the dogs." 20:31 'Cause that's what they called the gentiles. 20:34 And He was trying to teach them a lesson 20:36 about their own discrimination when He said that 20:39 because He ended up answering that lady's prayer, 20:42 blessed her persistence. 20:45 But lest you even think the gentiles were animals, 20:49 Jesus said preach to every creature, 20:52 that would mean everything, right? 20:54 Every living being is a creature. 20:57 Every creation is a creature. 21:00 And so it was to go everywhere. 21:02 Please read for us Acts 1:8. 21:06 "But you shall receive power 21:08 when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, 21:10 and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, 21:13 and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth." 21:18 Now this is great 'cause it shows a widening circle. 21:21 And if you look at those... 21:24 the sequence here, it said in Jerusalem, 21:26 Holy Spirit is poured out in Jerusalem. 21:28 In Judea, then they went preaching in Judea. 21:32 In Samaria, you go to... 21:33 After the persecution of Stephan, 21:37 Saul was converted. 21:38 Then it talks about Philip, and Peter, 21:41 and the others going to Samaria. 21:42 And then the uttermost ends of the earth. 21:45 After the stoning of Stephen, 21:47 it says, "A great persecution arose 21:49 and the disciples went everywhere 21:50 preaching the gospel." 21:52 And so you see this exact sequence 21:54 of what Jesus is in Acts 1 is filled, 21:56 is fulfilled later in Acts. 21:58 Acts 10:34, "Then Peter opened his mouth 22:01 and said, 'In truth I perceive God shows no partiality. 22:05 But in every nation, whoever fears Him 22:09 and works righteousness is accepted by Him." 22:12 Now, you and I think, "Yeah, of course." 22:14 Well, that was quite a hurdle for the Jews to realize 22:18 that it's not just us because keep in mind, 22:21 for 2,000 years from the time of Abraham 22:24 till the time of Christ, 22:27 the Lord kept communicating truth only to 22:29 and through the Jews. 22:31 And they thought, "We are it. 22:32 We are the frozen chosen." 22:35 And it took a while for them to realize, 22:37 it's not just us, and that it goes beyond. 22:42 Colossians 1:23, "If indeed you continue in the faith, 22:46 grounded and steadfast, 22:47 and are not moved away from the hope of the gospel 22:49 which you heard, which was preached 22:52 to every creature under heaven, 22:54 of which I, Paul, became a minister." 22:57 So even in Paul's time, he's seen the gospel is gone. 23:00 And when he said every creature, 23:01 again he's speaking in kind of an expletive there. 23:06 Hey, how was that, hyperboreally, 23:08 he's talking about everywhere in the known Roman Empire, 23:12 they'd seen it go everywhere back then. 23:15 It doesn't mean that it gotten all the way 23:16 around the world yet. 23:18 Galatians 3:22, 23:21 "But the Scripture has confined all under sin, 23:23 that the promise by faith in Jesus Christ 23:26 might be given to those who believe." 23:27 Everybody, one more, I'll give you Romans 10:14, 23:31 "How then shall they call on Him 23:33 in whom they have not believed? 23:34 And how shall they believe in Him 23:35 in whom they have not heard? 23:37 And how shall they hear without a preacher? 23:39 And how shall they preach unless they are sent? 23:43 How beautiful are the feet of those 23:44 who preach the gospel of peace, 23:46 who bring glad tidings of good things!" 23:48 And so, they were to be sent. 23:50 They were sent everywhere. 23:51 All right, the next section, 23:52 we're talking about the everlasting gospel. 23:55 It not only reaches those who had known, 23:58 that were in the church with the details 24:01 of Christ's mission and the gentiles. 24:03 It reached the lowest of the low. 24:06 And the example given here is the thief on the cross 24:09 about what the everlasting gospel is. 24:11 It is a very simple message. 24:14 Now for a person to be saved, 24:16 do they need six months of indoctrination? 24:20 For them to be grounded they might, 24:23 but to be saved, how much do you need to be saved? 24:28 If you can only be with a person for ten minutes, 24:31 can you lead them to Christ? 24:34 Yeah. 24:35 And what's an example of the simple everlasting gospel? 24:39 It's the thief on the cross. 24:41 It's a very short conversation, 24:43 but he goes through all the steps of salvation. 24:46 You find this in Luke 23, when Christ was crucified, 24:49 it says, there were two other criminals. 24:52 Luke 23:32, "Two others criminals were led with Him 24:57 to be put to death." 24:58 Originally, there were three, 25:00 Barabbas and his two associates. 25:03 Barabbas is pardoned, 25:05 he, basically, Jesus takes his cross, 25:09 and just a little note, what does a word "abba" mean? 25:16 Father. 25:17 What does the word "bar" mean? 25:20 Son of, yeah, Bartimaeus, Barnabas. 25:24 And here you've got Barabbas means son of the father. 25:30 They asked that they be given a thief, a murderer, 25:35 and a rebel, a counterfeit Messiah, 25:40 a counterfeit son of the father in place of Jesus. 25:42 Jesus said, "This man was condemned to die, 25:46 you are free, I will take your cross." 25:48 So there's acquaint substitution 25:50 that happens here with Barabbas anyway. 25:53 But his other friends weren't so lucky. 25:55 They... 25:56 oh, sorry, luck's the wrong word. 25:58 They were executed. 26:00 "Two other criminals were put to death with Him. 26:02 When they come to the place called Calvary, 26:05 they crucified Him, and the criminals, 26:06 one on the right hand and the other on the left." 26:09 Now that I think is significant. 26:10 You know, the Parable of the Sheep and the Goats? 26:13 He says, the ones on the right are saved, 26:15 the ones on the left are lost? 26:16 Right hand is sort of a symbol for favor in the Bible. 26:19 Now I can't prove that the thief 26:21 that was saved was on His right hand, 26:24 but you can't prove he wasn't. 26:25 So it's worth at least thinking about, right? 26:27 It doesn't tell us exactly what it was. 26:30 And someone is going to read for me now Mark 15:32. 26:34 And just before you read that, I want you to think about this. 26:39 So you've got two great classes of people here 26:42 in the two thieves. 26:45 They are condemned, 26:46 there's nothing they can do to save themselves, 26:50 they're guilty, murder, rebellion, 26:53 three things are mentioned, 26:54 murder, insurrection or rebellion, 26:57 and they're called thieves. 26:59 We are all represented by those two thieves. 27:03 They're helpless to save themselves, 27:04 they're condemned, they're dying, 27:05 they're under a death sentence, 27:08 and they're crucified within the reach of Christ, 27:12 but what can they do? 27:14 They must pray. 27:15 The only thing they can do is to pray, right? 27:18 With that in mind, go ahead, read Mark 15:32. 27:21 Okay. 27:22 Mark 15:32, "Let the Christ, the King of Israel, 27:26 descend now from the cross, that we may see and believe. 27:30 Even those who were crucified with Him reviled Him." 27:33 So when He is first crucified between them both, 27:36 do they both engage in reviling Him? 27:40 Isn't that what we said. 27:42 But how long is Jesus on the cross? 27:45 About six hours. 27:47 Can you have a change of attitude in six hours? 27:50 Yeah. 27:51 So it tells us here that as the time went by, 27:55 something happened 27:57 to illuminate the mind of this one thief. 28:01 And for instance, first of all, 28:04 He sees Jesus lifted up as the spotless lamb, 28:10 reads the sign above his head when Christ is crucified, 28:13 "This is the king of the Jews." 28:15 He hears Jesus say, "My God, My God, 28:18 why have you forsaken Me?" 28:20 Now why did Jesus say that? 28:24 Did Jesus get discouraged? 28:28 I don't think so. 28:30 Did Jesus not know why He was dying on the cross? 28:34 I don't think so. 28:36 Why did Jesus say that? 28:38 Ten percent of everything Jesus said in His life, 28:40 He's quoting from the Bible. 28:42 Christ, there on the cross, is quoting from Psalm 22. 28:46 It is the first verse in Psalm 22. 28:48 Have you read Psalm 22? 28:52 Get your Bible. 28:54 Go to Psalm 22 real quick. 28:58 I just want to show you something. 29:00 Psalm 22:1, "My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me? 29:04 Why are You so far from helping me, 29:06 and the words of my groaning?" 29:08 This is called a messianic Psalm. 29:10 It was a Psalm about the Messiah. 29:12 And you read the whole thing, we don't have time. 29:15 You read in verse 8, I'll read verse 7, 29:19 "All those who see Me ridicule Me, 29:21 they shoot out the lip, 29:22 they shake the head, saying, 29:23 'He trusted in the Lord, let Him rescue Him, 29:26 let Him deliver Him, since He delights in Him!'" 29:29 This is exactly what they said to Jesus on the cross. 29:31 If you're the Christ, 29:32 if you're the Son of God, let Him save you. 29:36 Go to verse 14, "I am poured out like water, 29:39 and all My bones are out of joint, My heart like wax, 29:42 it has melted within me. 29:44 My tongue cleaves to the roof of my mouth." 29:47 Was He thirsty? 29:49 Go to verse 16, "Dogs have surrounded Me, 29:52 the congregation of the wicked has enclosed me. 29:54 They pierced my hands and my feet, 29:57 I can count all of my bones. 30:00 They look and they stare at me. 30:01 They divide my garments among them, 30:03 for my clothing they cast lots." 30:05 When Jesus is being crucified, the thief can see 30:08 the Roman soldiers are gambling for his clothing, 30:10 they are casting lots. 30:11 And may be as a young man, he had known these verses. 30:15 And all of a sudden he hears 30:16 Jesus start quoting from Psalm 22 30:18 and he thinks about the rest of that messianic Psalm, 30:21 "They pierced My hands and feet. 30:22 They gambled for My clothing." 30:24 The whole Psalm is describing 30:27 what is happening right then and there. 30:30 Christ is calling the attention of all of them saying, 30:33 "I am the fulfillment of all of this." 30:36 So, no I don't think Jesus got discouraged, 30:38 discouragement's a sin and He never sinned. 30:40 Jesus did not lose faith 30:43 because His clothing remark His Father, 30:44 "Into Your hands I commend my spirit." 30:46 It's a statement of faith. Amen? 30:50 So let me read you a quote here from the book, 30:53 Desire of Ages, page 749, 30:57 "To Jesus in His agony on the cross 30:59 there came one gleam of comfort. 31:02 It was the prayer of the penitent thief. 31:06 Both men who were crucified with Jesus 31:08 had first railed upon Him..." 31:10 See both did. 31:11 "One under his suffering 31:14 only became more despondent and defiant 31:16 but not so with his companion. 31:18 This man was not a hardened criminal, 31:21 He had been led astray by evil associations, 31:24 but He was less guilty than many of those 31:26 who stood beside the cross reviling the Savior." 31:29 He gotten into the wrong crowd 31:31 and got caught up in at the wrong time 31:34 and now He was being executed. 31:37 And so, I thought this story, 31:39 let's look at it real quick, 31:41 the exchange that takes place. 31:43 You read in Luke 23:39, 31:47 "Then one of the criminals were hanged, 31:49 he blasphemed Him, saying, 31:50 'If You are the Christ, save Yourself and us.' 31:53 But the other, answering, rebuked him, saying, 31:57 'Do you not even fear God, 31:58 seeing you are under the same condemnation? 32:01 And we indeed justly, 32:03 for we receive the due rewards of our deeds.'" 32:06 That's cold confession and repentance, 32:10 "'But this Man has done nothing wrong." 32:12 That's declaring the innocence of Christ, 32:14 and he turns and he says to Jesus, 32:16 "Lord," That's really important. 32:20 Who was calling Lord around? 32:21 Who was calling Jesus Lord around the cross that day? 32:25 Not even the apostles. 32:27 Did Jesus look like a Lord that day? 32:30 He looked like anything but a Lord. 32:32 I mean, just think about it, He's dying. 32:35 He's at least semi naked and He's bleeding. 32:41 It doesn't look like He's master of anything. 32:43 He says, "Lord, remember me 32:47 when You come into Your kingdom." 32:49 Did He look like He had a kingdom? 32:52 That takes incredible faith. 32:53 He somehow saw the sign above Jesus head. 32:57 He thought about the Psalm. 32:59 He heard Jesus say, "Father, forgive them. 33:00 They don't know what they do." 33:03 And all of the information begins to add up 33:05 and he realizes, this is the Messiah, 33:08 and he realizes he must repent. 33:10 He repents, he confesses publicly 33:12 and he says, "Will You save me?" 33:14 Now isn't this amazing. 33:16 Even though Satan had nailed Jesus' hands to the cross, 33:20 the devil could not keep the Savior from saving. 33:23 And when Jesus heard him say, 33:25 "Lord, remember me when You come into Your kingdom." 33:29 Jesus was encouraged. 33:30 He thought, "This is why I came into the world 33:32 to save sinners." 33:33 This is the gospel. Very simple. 33:35 He asked in faith, He prayed, and Jesus said, 33:39 "Assuredly, I say to you today, 33:42 you will be with me in paradise 33:43 if you can behave for the next six hours." 33:47 Did He say that? 33:49 Upon what was he forgiven and accepted? 33:53 Simple request. 33:55 You know the Bible, 33:56 you can read there in Galatians 2:20, 33:58 it says, "I am crucified with Christ, yet I live." 34:01 Who was actually crucified with Christ? 34:04 This man, but he sort of represents us. 34:08 We're like that man. 34:09 We're rebels. 34:11 We're thieves. We're murderers. 34:13 The Bible says if you are angry 34:15 with your brother, sister without a cause, 34:16 you're guilty of murder. 34:18 We're guilty of the blood of Jesus. 34:20 Amen. 34:21 And so we're all in that man's position. 34:23 We're helpless to save ourselves, 34:24 so how does he find salvation? 34:27 He repents, he confesses, he asks. 34:32 He says, "Lord, remember me." 34:34 And like the prodigal son when he came home, 34:36 he said, "I'm not worthy." 34:37 The Father said, "You're completely forgiven." 34:39 This is the everlasting gospel. 34:41 He is saved by asking through faith 34:44 and Jesus promises on eternal life. 34:48 Now, was this thief saved based on his good works? 34:52 What was he saved based on? 34:55 Faith in the sacrifice of Jesus 34:57 that he saw very vividly that day, 34:59 he saw the love of God. 35:02 Are we saved base on good works? 35:05 Are we saved by praying 35:06 and trusting in the mercy of God? 35:08 But here's the question. 35:10 If by some quirk, 35:13 someone had come along with a crowbar and said, 35:16 "You know, we just got a pardon from Pilate 35:17 to the thief on the right hand. 35:19 You're being forgiven. 35:20 We're gonna pull out these nails. 35:22 We're gonna bind up your wounds. 35:24 And you're gonna maybe recover and live and..." 35:27 Now here's the question. 35:28 Would he have had different works 35:33 after being saved by faith? 35:36 Yes. You'd certainly hope so. 35:39 Would he have gone back to his life of rebellion, 35:41 and murder, and stealing? 35:44 No. 35:45 Because his heart had been changed by grace. 35:50 And so we're not saved by works, 35:52 but if you are saved by grace, 35:54 you're gonna see a transformation in the works. 35:57 That's so important to understand 35:58 because Revelation tells us, 36:00 we are saved by faith but every man is rewarded 36:03 and judged according to the works. 36:06 That's extremely clear. 36:08 So the works demonstrate, if you've been saved by faith. 36:13 But don't get the two upside down 36:15 because, otherwise 36:16 you'll always be thinking about your works 36:18 and you'll not be thinking about 36:20 rejoicing in the promise of God, 36:22 and that then begets the good works. 36:24 That's so important not to get the cart before the horse. 36:27 Anyway... 36:30 It looks to me like someone has sent in a question. 36:32 You know, we often ask if you've got some question 36:36 and here's the question, it says, 36:38 "When is the third angel coming to proclaim His message?" 36:43 Third angel's message is, 36:45 "If any man worships the beast 36:46 and his image and receives his mark 36:47 in his right hand or his forehead, 36:49 the same will drink the wine of the wrath of God, 36:51 which is poured out without 36:52 mixture into the cup of his indignation." 36:54 That message is going out now. 36:56 People need to understand what the issues are 36:59 about the beast and Babylon, 37:02 and the image of the beast, 37:03 and so that message is going out. 37:05 Now people don't have the mark of the beast yet. 37:07 But the warning should go out before 37:10 that becomes an issue 37:11 so people will understand it when it does come. 37:13 Is that right? Yes. 37:15 Okay, got a second question, I see. 37:17 Now these are first time I am seeing these. 37:20 Who does the Bible say... 37:21 Now we got a lot of people, this is a Facebook question. 37:23 Lot of people are watching on Facebook or the internet. 37:26 Who does the Bible say will come to give 37:28 a "present truth" message 37:30 before the great day of the Lord? 37:32 Well, it's given by those who'd come in the spirit 37:34 and power of Elijah, right? 37:38 And you've heard them all, Elijah message? 37:41 And Bible says, "I will send my messenger 37:43 before the great dreadful day of the Lord." 37:45 That's in Malachi 4. 37:47 Jesus said, "Elijah has come and Elijah will come." 37:51 Elijah has come in John the Baptist. 37:54 And he said Elijah will come. 37:56 There will be an Elijah message. 37:57 Now some believe it's not one person, 38:00 but it's the 144,000 38:02 that are giving the Elijah message 38:03 in the last days. 38:04 But it's a message of revival 38:07 that comes to the people of God. 38:09 There's going to be a great shaking 38:10 that will come in to the people of God. 38:13 I sometimes wonder, that's beginning now. 38:16 All right. 38:17 And, now there's six things this thief does 38:19 before we leave the thief. 38:21 Six things that he does. 38:24 He believes, no, first he beheld, 38:27 he saw Christ lifted up. 38:29 Jesus said, "If I am lifted up, I will draw all men." 38:31 He saw Christ lifted up 38:33 as Moses lifted up the serpent, right? 38:35 He beheld, he believed, he broadcast, he beseeched, 38:41 he became and he was blessed. 38:44 All that happened to him in such a short time. 38:47 And that's what everybody experiences when we accept 38:50 the simple good news of the everlasting gospel. 38:54 That message does not change. 38:55 That's the same gospel that saved Adam, 38:58 same gospel that saved Abraham, and the apostles. 39:02 All right. 39:03 Going on to the next part of this important message, 39:06 it says, "Fear God and give glory to Him." 39:09 And that's Revelation 14:7, "Saying with a loud voice, 39:13 'Fear God and give glory to Him.'" 39:15 Now, what does that mean 39:17 to fear God and give glory to Him? 39:21 Does it mean be afraid of God? 39:24 In a sense but it's different kind of word 39:29 and definition from the fear 39:30 that would make you run from something. 39:33 Because true fear of God, 39:35 if you understand a love for God 39:37 and then a respect for His awesomeness, 39:40 it draws you to Him. 39:42 It doesn't make you want to run from Him. 39:44 Let me give you a verse that helps illustrate that. 39:46 Go to Exodus 20:20, if you want 20-20 vision, 39:51 go to Exodus 20:20, 39:54 "And Moses said to the people, 39:55 'Do not fear, for God has come to test you, 39:59 that His fear may be before you, 40:02 so that you may not sin.'" 40:04 First he says don't fear, 40:05 he says because God is testing you that His fear... 40:10 Now, there must be different kinds of fear, 40:11 otherwise, he's saying don't fear 40:12 so you can be afraid. 40:14 See what I am saying. 40:16 True fear of God is a reverence for God, 40:20 feeling, understanding the awesomeness of God. 40:23 Amen? 40:25 All right, Wesley used to say, "The fear of God means 40:28 you don't fear anything but God. 40:30 If you don't have the fear of God, 40:32 you fear everything but God." 40:35 So when you really fear God, you fear God, 40:38 nothing else makes you afraid. 40:40 When you don't fear God, 40:42 everything else makes you afraid. 40:45 And Wesley used to say if I had 300 men 40:48 that fear nothing but God, I could change the world. 40:52 And then you see in Job 1:9, "So Satan answered and said, 40:57 'Does Job fear God for nothing?'" 40:59 You remember the Book of Job begins with the words, 41:01 "There was a man in the land of Uz named Job, 41:04 one who feared God and he did evil." 41:07 He had this great reverence for God. 41:10 He wanted to live ever. 41:11 Ever heard the expression, "This is a God fearing man." 41:14 It means the word of God. 41:16 Bible talks about the word of God, 41:17 they tremble at His Word, 41:20 and it means you've got to listen to the Word of God. 41:23 There's nothing more important. 41:24 That's what it means to be God fearing. 41:28 In Genesis 22:12, 41:31 "God said to Abraham, 41:32 'Do not lay your hand upon the lad," 41:34 he's about to offer Isaac, "or do anything to him, 41:37 for now I know that you fear God, 41:40 seeing you have not withheld your son, 41:42 your only son from Me." 41:44 God is saying to Abraham, "I know that you fear Me 41:47 because My Word is so important to you, 41:50 that you respect Me." 41:52 Let's go on to the next section. 41:53 It says the hour of His judgment has come, 41:56 and this is the second part of this first angel's message. 41:59 When it says the hour of His Judgment, 42:02 will come or has come? 42:04 Has come. 42:05 So there is a time just before Jesus' coming, 42:08 that God's people enter 42:10 the last phase of the atonement of Christ 42:13 in the heavenly sanctuary, is the hour of judgment. 42:16 Now, someone's gonna read for me, 42:19 1 Peter 4:17. 42:22 And while you're getting that 1 Peter 4:17, 42:24 I'm gonna read the last words in Ecclesiastes. 42:28 You know what that says? 42:29 Ecclesiastes 12, 42:31 after Solomon pontificates about the vanity of life, 42:35 how does he sum everything up? 42:38 "Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: 42:40 Fear God and keep His commandments." 42:43 So what does it mean to fear God? 42:44 The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. 42:46 Someone was asking about fear, 42:48 I will give you little more on that, 42:51 "Fear God and keep His commandments, 42:52 for this is man's duty," 42:54 this is the whole duty of man, 42:56 "For God will bring every work into judgment," 42:59 it says God will, future tense, 43:01 "bring every work into judgment, 43:03 including every secret thing, whether it be good or evil." 43:06 So where does this judgment begin? 43:08 Go ahead. Dan, please read that for us. 43:10 1 Peter 4:17, 43:12 "For the time has come for judgment 43:15 to begin at the house of God, and if it begins with us first, 43:19 what will be the end of those 43:20 who do not obey the gospel of God?" 43:23 All right. 43:24 In the days of Peter, the people of God were, 43:27 in particular, the Jews. 43:30 They've been the guardians of the Word. 43:32 That sort of transitioned during the time of Christ 43:35 to the spiritual Jews or the church at large. 43:38 And there was a judgment that was gonna happen, 43:40 and that judgment came on the Jewish nations. 43:43 So judgment began with the house of God. 43:45 The veil in the temple was torn. 43:48 Ultimately, the temple was destroyed. 43:51 Now you are the temple of God. 43:52 The church is the temple of God, right? 43:55 That evil one sits in the temple of God 43:57 showing himself that he is God, 43:58 that's talking about someone in Rome, 44:01 he says he is in charge of the church of God. 44:04 That's judgment. 44:05 So now when it says, 44:06 judgment begins at the house of God, 44:07 there's a judgment that begins with the church. 44:11 In the last days, 44:12 those who have claimed to be followers of the Lord, 44:15 we're in the last day, Day of Atonement. 44:18 Now what happened at the Day of Atonement? 44:20 Look in Leviticus 16:29. 44:23 We're living in the last stage of the church began 44:27 with the church of Laodicea. 44:28 Most believe that was 1844 44:31 is when we entered that 44:32 last phase of the church history. 44:36 And you see, read in Leviticus 16:29, 44:39 "This shall be a statute forever for you: 44:42 In the seventh month, on the tenth day of the month, 44:45 you will afflict your souls, and do no work at all, 44:48 whether a native of your own country 44:50 or a stranger who dwells among you. 44:52 For on that day the priest will make atonement for you," 44:54 call Day of Atonement or Yom Kippur, we call it, 44:57 "to cleanse you, that you may be cleansed 44:59 from all of your sins before the Lord." 45:02 There is a final refinement that happens to the bride 45:06 before the bridegroom comes. 45:08 "It is a Sabbath of solemn rest for you, 45:11 and you will afflict your souls. 45:12 It's a statute forever. 45:13 And the priest, who is anointed and consecrated to minister 45:16 as a priest in his father's place, 45:19 shall make atonement, 45:21 and will put on the linen clothes 45:22 and the holy garments, 45:23 then he will make atonement for the Holy Sanctuary." 45:26 The sanctuary shall be cleansed. 45:27 Have you read that prophecy in Daniel 8:14? 45:31 For nearly 2000 years, 45:36 the place of the sanctuary, for around 1260 years, 45:40 the sanctuary was defiled. 45:43 The truth, have you read Daniel 8? 45:44 The truth was cast to the ground 45:46 by the beast in the Dark Ages. 45:48 The truth was corrupted. 45:49 The truth about salvation, the truth about the Sabbath, 45:52 the truth about baptism, 45:53 the truth about spiritual gifts, 45:55 I mean, you name it, the truth was corrupted. 45:58 And Daniel says how long until the sanctuary is cleansed? 46:00 In 1844, God raised up a new movement. 46:03 Not only did Christ begin 46:05 cleansing the sanctuary in heaven, 46:06 but God began cleansing the sanctuary on earth 46:10 from all the false teachings of the Dark Ages. 46:12 Amen? 46:14 And so, this movement is now the guardians of that truth 46:19 are restoration of biblical Christianity. 46:22 The faith that was once returned to the saints 46:25 is a revival of that. 46:28 And that all began, actually in 1844 46:31 with the great advent movement. 46:33 We were not organized church until 1863, 46:35 but the movement really began in 1844. 46:39 So the hour of His judgment has come. 46:42 What would the people do during the Day of Atonement? 46:44 They'd afflict their souls. What does that mean? 46:46 Are we to walk around 46:48 with little whips and flog ourselves? 46:50 Or does it mean it's the time of special holiness? 46:55 As some say, 46:57 I've heard people argue and say, 46:58 "There's nothing wrong with drinking a little wine." 47:01 And I don't believe there's any good biblical reason 47:04 for doing that. 47:05 But sometimes if I can't persuade people, 47:07 they insist that the wine in the Bible is alcoholic 47:09 and you could drink it, I'll say okay. 47:11 If you're going to take that approach, 47:13 you know, the priests were never to drink alcohol 47:16 before they ministered. 47:17 Look what happened to the sons of Aaron when that happened. 47:21 And I said we're living in the day of atonement 47:23 right now, we are a nation of kings and priests. 47:25 And if there ever was a time in history 47:27 when God's people should be sober 47:28 and afflict their souls before God, 47:31 this would be that time. 47:33 And so whenever people start making excuses, 47:36 I say, well, even if you could argue for that 47:38 at any other time in church history, 47:39 this is the time in church history 47:41 that God is calling for a people 47:44 who will humble themselves 47:46 that there'll be holiness and humility. 47:49 So this is what it means to afflict your souls and say, 47:52 you know, we are going to turn from our sins. 47:54 We want to live holy lives, especially during this age, 47:57 just prior to the second coming, 47:59 we are to be a nation of kings and priests. 48:02 Amen? 48:04 I got time just for the last section here. 48:06 The last part of the message, 48:08 "And worship the one that made heaven and the earth." 48:12 That's also part of Revelation 14:7. 48:16 Now why is that especially important to us? 48:19 Well, where else in the Bible do you find that phrase, 48:22 "worship Him that made the heaven and the earth"? 48:27 Exodus 20:11, 48:31 "For in six days 48:32 the Lord made the heavens 48:33 and the earth, and the sea, and all that is in them, 48:36 and He rested the seventh day. 48:38 Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day." 48:40 That commandment calls us back to remember 48:43 and to worship the Creator. 48:45 Amen? 48:47 And who is that Creator? 48:48 That's Jesus. 48:50 All things that were made, were made by Him. 48:53 You know, if you read in Revelation 4:11, 48:56 Revelation 4:11, "You are worthy, O Lord, 48:58 to receive glory and honor and power, 49:00 For You created all things, 49:03 and by Your will they exist and were created." 49:05 So if there is no other good reason, 49:07 because God is the creator. 49:09 All the truths that we share 49:11 rise out of a foundational truth. 49:13 What is the foundational truth? 49:14 He's in charge. 49:17 As they used to say, He is large and in charge. 49:20 God is the maker of all things. 49:22 Look at Nehemiah 9:6, 49:25 "You alone are the Lord, 49:27 You have made heaven, 49:29 and the heavens of heavens, 49:30 will all of their host. 49:32 The earth and everything in it, 49:33 the seas and all that is in it." 49:35 You notice that Nehemiah is quoting 49:36 from that commandment too, 49:37 heaven, earth, sea, saying the same thing. 49:41 And so in the last days, there's a special message 49:44 that's to go back to the world that God is the creator, 49:48 the Sabbath is a sign of that. 49:50 Neglect of the Sabbath 49:52 has contributed to the evolution conspiracy. 49:58 Now I don't believe, most conspiracies 49:59 I think are nonsense. 50:01 I could tell you about all kinds of crazy conspiracies 50:03 but I better not because some of you 50:04 probably believe in some of them. 50:07 But one conspiracy I do believe in is, 50:12 there is a conspiracy 50:14 to try to put over a hoax 50:18 that believing in evolution is scientific. 50:21 The idea that all of the organization, 50:24 and design, and interworking systems, 50:27 and symbiotic relationships 50:28 that you see in the world around you 50:31 all happened by accident 50:33 without intelligence over millions of years 50:36 is the most absurd thing 50:37 that has ever been put over 50:39 on what should be an intelligent educated people. 50:42 Amen. It is ridiculous. 50:44 And every Sabbath we're reminded, 50:46 "No, we were created by the Word of God, 50:48 by divine fiat." 50:50 And one reason the devil has tried 50:52 to get rid of the Sabbath 50:54 is to get rid of the concept that he is a creator. 50:56 Now why do people cling so tenaciously to evolution? 51:00 Because if God created us, 51:02 that means He's God, He's in charge, 51:04 He makes the rules and you should obey them. 51:06 People don't want to obey God's rules, 51:08 so they try to eliminate the evidence that He created us 51:11 so that they feel like, "I'm just an animal. 51:13 I can fulfill all of my animalistic tendencies 51:16 and desires. 51:17 And there's no repercussions when I die, that's it." 51:20 So it lends itself to a hedonistic life. 51:23 Eat and drink, tomorrow we die. 51:28 So we're called to be a people 51:32 that will worship the Creator, 51:33 and I think we're called to remind people 51:35 that He is the Creator. 51:39 And, you know, 51:40 just coming back from Africa. 51:42 I told you, we took that little trip around the Nile. 51:44 We got in the boat actually, just went around a little bit 51:46 and saw some things. 51:48 The variety of animals 51:50 and the inter relationships 51:53 between the animals that we saw, 51:55 that could never evolve. 51:57 As I'm riding around in the boat, 51:58 I'm hanging out with Karen and Ryan and our driver, 52:02 I'm going, "Look, it only took 50 million years 52:04 for that to evolve." 52:06 Which was absurd, it would never happen. 52:10 And such variety of color and species, 52:15 all in the same environment. 52:18 If everything evolved by accident, 52:20 why didn't it all come out the same? 52:23 And the foods that we eat. 52:25 I think I was teasing our AFCOE evangelists back then when... 52:29 The color and the texture. 52:31 There was, you know, there's food, 52:33 they got fruit that's got snakeskin, 52:35 called snakeskin fruit. 52:36 Any of you ever eaten? 52:38 Skin looks like a snake. 52:40 You think, I wouldn't need that. 52:41 No, it's really good. 52:42 Because the skin looks like a snake. 52:44 They call it snakeskin fruit. 52:46 And then they get the jackfruit, 52:48 they get the bananas, 52:50 you know, there were no bananas in the Garden of Eden, 52:52 did you know that? 52:53 A banana is a hybrid between two Asian foods. 52:56 The bananas don't have seeds. 52:58 Anyway, amazing fact. 53:00 But just the incredible variety 53:04 that you see, 53:05 and the idea that it all evolved is preposterous. 53:09 That these particular flowers that could not exist 53:11 without particular hummingbirds 53:13 that pollinate them 53:15 or moss that pollinate them. 53:18 Anyway, we're people, 53:20 we've got a message to call people 53:22 back to the Creator because... 53:26 So many people in the world, you know, 53:28 the number of people that believe 53:30 in a God that created is constantly on the decline. 53:35 How often do we hear in the news and on the media, 53:38 "Millions of years ago, 53:40 are monkeys, they are ancestors," 53:42 they call them. 53:44 And that just is not true. 53:46 The scientific doesn't support it. 53:48 The geologic evidence doesn't support it. 53:51 It is preposterous. 53:54 And I used to believe it so I get very agitated. 53:56 Because I knew as soon as I realized there was a Creator, 54:00 I suddenly realized 54:01 I am accountable to the Creator. 54:04 And that's a message, there need to be 54:05 a revival of people realizing that 54:07 they will all someday stand before the Creator 54:10 because the hour of His judgment has come 54:13 and we are called to worship Him. 54:14 Thank you very much for your questions and participation. 54:18 We're out of time for today's lesson. 54:19 I want to remind you about our closing offer. 54:21 It's on Ultimate Purpose, one of our messages, 54:27 and you ask for offer number 846, 54:29 when you call 866-788-3966. 54:34 And if you want to download, 54:36 you can download it by texting the code, 54:39 and here's a code you text "SH022", 54:43 and you text that code to 40544, 54:48 and then you can download it. 54:49 God bless you, friends. 54:50 Look forward to studying the Word with you again 54:52 next week. 55:05 I'm here in the beautiful island nation of Fiji 55:07 that's filled with exotic animals, 55:09 beautiful vegetation, and spectacular scenery. 55:13 The people here are some of the nicest in the world 55:15 but it hasn't always been that way. 55:17 This was once known as the Cannibal Island. 55:22 The Fijian warriors were some of the fiercest 55:24 in the South Pacific, greatly feared. 55:26 You can understand why. 55:27 This is one of the weapons 55:29 that they used for breaking the neck 55:31 of their adversaries. 55:32 And long before they were killing any missionaries, 55:35 they were fighting with and killing 55:36 and eating each other. 55:38 In fact, as you go to the different 55:39 tourist locations on the island, 55:41 they will sell you remakes of some of the forks 55:44 they used for eating human brains. 55:49 In fact, there was one cannibal chief, 55:51 Ratu Udre Udre, during the 1800's, 55:53 that is in the Guinness Book of World Records 55:55 for having killed and eaten the most victims. 55:58 He brags it every time he killed someone. 56:00 He set a stone aside. 56:02 By the end of his life, 56:03 he had a pretty big pile of stones. 56:05 It's estimated he ate somewhere 56:06 in the neighborhood of 900 people. 56:09 Oh, my! 56:12 You know, the Fijians were not the only ones 56:14 that had a monopoly on cannibalism. 56:16 In fact, the Bible says 56:17 that we are all capable of being cannibals. 56:20 Galatians 5:15 says, 56:22 "If we bite and devour one another, 56:24 we may end up consuming one another." 56:26 That's talking about destroying people's reputation 56:28 by mean gossip. 56:30 One famous missionary named Paton, 56:32 when he was preparing to go to cannibal isles, 56:35 his friends and family begged him not to go. 56:37 They said, "You'll be eaten." 56:38 He said, "It doesn't matter to me 56:40 if I die and I'm eaten by worms 56:42 or of God's will that I'm eaten by cannibals, 56:44 as long as I'm doing the will of God." 56:46 Well, he went to the cannibal isles 56:48 and brought many to Christ, 56:49 and died peacefully in his old age. 56:52 Some of the ancient cannibal cultures believe that 56:54 when you killed and when you devoured your enemy, 56:56 you would somehow take within you 56:58 their spiritual strengths or powers, 57:00 but that's really absurd. 57:02 But there is a kind of cannibalism 57:04 endorsed in scripture, that's right. 57:06 Jesus said in John 6:53, 57:09 "Except you eat My flesh and drink My blood, 57:12 you have no life in you." 57:13 And you don't need these tools to do it. 57:16 What you need is to read His Word 57:18 and learn about His life. 57:19 Accept by faith His sacrifice in your place, 57:21 and you can have a new heart and be a new creature. 57:24 You can even do it right now. 57:33 Let's face it, it's not always easy to understand 57:36 everything you read in the Bible. 57:38 With over 700,000 words contained in 66 books, 57:42 the Bible can generate a lot of questions. 57:44 To get biblical straightforward answers, 57:47 call into Bible Answers Live, 57:49 a live nationwide call-in radio program 57:52 where you can talk to Pastor Doug Batchelor 57:54 and ask him your most difficult Bible questions. 57:56 For times and stations in your area 57:59 or to listen to answers online, 58:00 visit bal.amazingfacts.org. |
Revised 2018-05-30