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00:35 Welcome, friends, to Sabbath School Study Hour.
00:37 My name is Pastor Doug Batchelor. 00:39 And we're so thankful 00:40 that you are tuning in this morning 00:42 for our Sabbath School Study Hour time. 00:44 We know we have people 00:45 that are not only here in our local congregation 00:47 but there are folks who are watching 00:49 via the Internet, or Facebook, 00:51 or one of the satellite stations. 00:53 And we're just so glad that you've tuned in. 00:56 As we do each week, we have a free offer. 00:59 And the offer today is a book called, it's actually a DVD, 01:02 and it's called the Challenge of Self Denial. 01:05 If you get this right, 01:06 you will get everything else right. 01:08 It's a free offer. 01:09 And it's offer number 858. 01:12 You can get that by calling 01:14 866-788-3966. 01:19 That's just 866-Study-More. 01:21 You can also go to a link so you can download it, 01:24 if you text SH111 01:28 to the number 40544, 01:31 you'll receive a free digital download 01:34 of this audio message called 01:36 The Challenge of Self Denial, 01:38 something I think we all grapple with. 01:40 Well, in just a moment, 01:41 we're going to get to our study for today. 01:43 But as we always do, we'd like to prepare our hearts 01:45 with song. 01:47 And so we'd like to invite our singers to come out 01:49 and lead us as we get ready for our study. 04:09 Thank you for joining us. Happy Sabbath. 04:13 Loving, Lord, we want to thank You so much 04:15 for Your Word 04:16 that is a lamp to our feet and a light to our path. 04:20 Lord, we want to thank You 04:21 for the promise of the Holy Spirit 04:23 that will help us to rightly divide 04:25 and understand these principles of truth 04:28 and apply them to our lives. 04:29 Be with us in our study today. 04:31 We thank You and we ask in Jesus' name, amen. 04:35 Amen. 04:36 Once again, welcome to our class here 04:39 in the sanctuary. 04:40 I want to tell our friends, who are watching, 04:42 that this is not the only class, 04:44 we of course have all the children's classes 04:46 and there's some other adult classes 04:49 that take place here in the sanctuary. 04:51 This is an unusual Sabbath 04:54 in that a good percentage of our men 04:57 are at an annual men's retreat. 05:00 And I was not able to join them in this morning 05:02 because I'm kind of holding down the fort here 05:04 and I fly out for Washington early in the morning. 05:07 So that's just the way the stars lined up. 05:09 And there's some other big events 05:11 that are happening in the area today. 05:13 And so but we're still thankful for the faithful that are here 05:16 because we have an important lesson, 05:18 we're going through our new quarterly now 05:20 dealing with the subject of oneness in Christ. 05:25 I'll be talking about unity. 05:27 And we're on lesson 2, 05:29 talking about the subject of causes of disunity 05:34 or division, 05:35 isn't it the same thing as disunity. 05:38 We have a memory verse. 05:40 And the memory verse is from Proverbs 9... 05:43 I'm sorry, yeah, Proverbs 9:10. 05:46 And if you say that with me that'd be great. 05:48 This is the New King James Version, Proverbs 9:10. 05:52 You ready? 05:54 "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, 05:58 and the knowledge of the Holy One 06:00 is understanding." 06:02 How many of you have heard or read that verse before? 06:05 You're acquainted with that one. 06:07 Now when we talk about disunity, 06:09 we're talking about two aspects. 06:11 Now let me back up and say it this way. 06:14 The Great Commandment, what's the great commandment? 06:19 The first Great Commandment is love the Lord your God 06:22 with all your heart, mind, soul, and strength. 06:24 What's the second? 06:26 Love your neighbor. Love your neighbor. 06:28 Disunity addresses those two ideals. 06:33 It's talking about disunity with God 06:36 and disunity with each other. 06:39 Now I was not able to hear the study 06:41 last week actually I heard a little bit of it. 06:43 I think Dr. DeRose was doing it, 06:45 but I saw in the lesson, I got a confession to make. 06:49 When I knew I was teaching 06:50 the Sabbath school lesson this week 06:51 because I travel, I get mixed up, 06:53 and because we teach the lesson three weeks in advance, 06:58 Sunday, I start getting for the next week's study 07:01 in the next week's sermons. 07:03 So Sunday, I thought, "Oh new quarterly on oneness." 07:05 And I spent the whole morning 07:07 getting the lesson number 1 ready. 07:10 And then I got to the office and Diane said, 07:12 "Don't forget you have Lesson number 2 this week." 07:15 So I studied all of lesson number 1 07:17 which is a good thing to do. 07:19 But then I realized I've studied the wrong lesson. 07:23 But I did learn in that lesson 07:25 right after Adam and Eve sinned, what happened? 07:29 First, they began to blame God, it's the serpent you made, 07:34 you know, it's the woman you made, 07:36 and they're blaming each other. 07:38 Yes, with sin brings the disunity. 07:41 Sin brings disunity between us and God, 07:44 and it brings disunity on a horizontal level. 07:48 So in the first section here, 07:51 it's talking about returning the old backsliding Israel. 07:55 Now one of the things you notice, unfortunately, 07:58 is the Bible is filled 08:00 with examples of strife 08:06 among God's people. 08:08 Some people say, "I don't want to join the church 08:11 because there's problems in the church, 08:15 there's the visions," 08:17 that's like saying, "I'm never going to get married 08:18 'cause some people get divorced." 08:22 One reason that we need to be part of the church 08:24 is because that's how we learn to love 08:27 is being put in a position 08:28 where your love muscles are challenged. 08:31 You know, God's people were given 08:33 great and beautiful laws. 08:35 And you can look at Deuteronomy 4 for example. 08:37 Deuteronomy 4, I'll read verse 5 and 6. 08:41 Moses said... 08:42 Deuteronomy is a last book of Moses. 08:44 He's given all the laws of God's people, 08:47 he said, "Surely, I have taught you 08:49 statutes and judgments 08:51 just as the Lord my God commanded me." 08:53 They're not from Moses, they're from God, 08:56 "That you should act according to them 08:57 in the land that you possess." 08:59 He's saying if you do this, 09:01 you will have a strong relationship with God 09:03 and with each other. 09:05 "Therefore, be careful to observe them 09:08 for this is your wisdom and your understanding 09:12 in the sight of the peoples who hear all these statutes 09:15 and they'll say, 'Surely, this is a great nation 09:19 and a wise and understanding people 09:21 because of the great laws that they've got.'" 09:24 Now then Moses also gave them warning 09:27 of the opposite would happen if they neglected his laws. 09:31 Now before I even read this to you... 09:35 When you look at the Old Testament, 09:36 what do you see? 09:38 What's the history of the Old Testament? 09:41 All right, traces God once you get to Genesis 9 09:47 or actually 11, 09:48 it starts identifying a particular people, 09:50 Abraham is called out, Genesis 12, 09:54 and from that time on, 09:56 it's God communicating to the world 10:00 through the people. 10:01 First it's Israel, then it's spiritual Israel of the church. 10:04 What is the history? 10:05 They always loved the Lord, and they're always faithful, 10:07 and they always got along, that's the history. 10:10 What is the history? 10:13 Division. 10:15 Problems. 10:17 Do you know a lot of the problems 10:19 were not the enemies on the outside, 10:21 it was the enemy on the inside. 10:26 During the Gulf War, 10:27 the first Gulf War was Saddam Hussein. 10:31 I think there were about 80 US soldiers that perished. 10:37 Over 100 soldiers died from friendly fire. 10:41 It's one of the only wars in history 10:44 where more soldiers died from firing on their allies 10:48 than firing on the enemies. 10:51 It was largely due to friendly fire. 10:55 In the Bible, what caused most of the casualties? 10:59 Friendly fire. 11:01 Who sold Joseph to the Egyptians? 11:05 His own brothers. 11:08 Who tried to kill David after he killed Goliath? 11:12 King Saul. 11:14 Who tried to kill David after he became king? 11:17 His own son. 11:20 And who killed Adonijah? 11:24 His brother Solomon. 11:28 And as you see now as you go through the history of Israel, 11:31 whenever they were unfaithful, 11:32 it seem like they just turned inward. 11:36 Somebody said that 11:38 when threatened by wolves 11:40 thoroughbred horses will form a circle 11:43 with their heads towards the middle 11:45 and their legs on the outside, 11:48 and they will kick at the enemy. 11:50 On the other hand, donkeys when threatened by wolves, 11:54 will form a circle with their legs on the inside 11:58 and their heads on the outside, 11:59 and they will kick each other. 12:05 God's people need to keep their heads together 12:07 and kick at the enemy. 12:09 When you're trying to do it independently, 12:11 we kick each other. 12:14 So there are a lot of the damage 12:16 was done through friendly fire. 12:19 All right, so let's get to Deuteronomy, 12:21 and I'm not going to read all of this. 12:22 Deuteronomy 28 is a famous chapter, 12:24 just before Moses dies. 12:26 Get your Bibles, you may want to turn there. 12:27 Just before Moses dies, 12:29 it's that chapter of blessing and cursing. 12:33 Now I love this chapter and I dread this chapter. 12:37 I love the part where it says you're going to be blessed 12:39 because it's such a blessed section. 12:42 And I don't like the other section 12:43 because actually the cursed section 12:45 is longer than the blessed section, 12:48 it's three times as long, and it's very frightening. 12:53 But you know what? 12:54 It's in the Word of God as a warning to us. 12:56 So let's look at this, Deuteronomy 28: 1, 12:59 this is in your lesson. 13:02 Now will come to pass that, 13:03 "If you diligently obey the voice of the Lord your God 13:06 and observe carefully all of his commandments 13:08 that I command you today 13:10 that the Lord your God will set you high 13:12 above all the nations of the earth. 13:14 And all of these blessings will come upon you 13:16 and overtake you 13:17 because you will be the voice of the Lord your God. 13:21 Blessed you will be in the city, 13:23 blessed you will be in the country." 13:25 So you get the city ministry, the country ministry, 13:27 you're blessed in both. 13:28 "Blessed will be the fruit of your body 13:30 and the produce of the ground and your herds 13:34 and the increase of your cattle 13:35 in the offspring of your flocks. 13:37 Your family, your fields, your flocks will be blessed. 13:41 Blessed will be your basket and your kneading bowl. 13:45 Blessed you will be when you come in 13:47 and blessed will you be when you go out." 13:49 And by the way, and of the Lord said 13:50 these words I command you today 13:52 shall be on the gates of your house, 13:54 gates of your city. 13:56 So you see them when you go out, 13:57 you come in 13:59 and you suppose to be blessed as you come in as you go. 14:01 God says, "I'll protect you." 14:06 The Lord, I'm in verse 7. 14:07 "The Lord will cause your enemies 14:08 who rise up against you 14:09 to be defeated before your face." 14:11 Did He say, "If you're blessed, you'll have no enemies"? 14:14 Or did He say that, 14:15 "I will protect you against your enemies." 14:18 "They will come out against you one way 14:20 and they will flee before you seven ways. 14:23 The Lord will command the blessing 14:25 on your storehouse, 14:26 your provisions will be safe 14:28 and won't be eaten by rats and varmints. 14:31 And all that you set your hand to 14:33 and He will bless you in the land 14:35 that your God has given you, 14:37 the Lord will establish you as a holy people do himself 14:40 just as he's sworn to you, 14:42 if you keep the commandments of the Lord your God 14:44 and walk in His ways." 14:45 And as ambiguous as it is pretty clear, 14:48 what is the criteria for this blessing? 14:50 You obey or walk in the ways of the Lord. 14:54 "Then all the people of the earth 14:55 will see that you are called by the name of the Lord, 14:58 they'll be afraid of you. 14:59 And the Lord will grant you plenty of goods 15:02 in the fruit of your body 15:03 in the increase of your livestock 15:05 in the produce of your ground 15:06 in the land that the Lord God 15:08 swore to your fathers to give you. 15:10 The Lord will open you his good treasure, the heavens, 15:13 and give you rain on the land, in that season 15:16 to bless all the work of your hand, 15:18 you will lend many nations and you will not borrow. 15:21 And the Lord will make you the head, and not the tail. 15:23 You will be above only and not beneath 15:25 if you listen to the commandments 15:27 of the Lord your God, I've commanded you today. 15:30 And be careful to observe them 15:32 and you shall not turn aside 15:34 from any of the words that I command you this day 15:36 to the right, or to the left, or to go after other gods." 15:38 And what did He mean about disobedience? 15:40 Do not go after other gods and serve them. 15:43 I'm emphasizing that 'cause it comes up later. 15:46 Or that's the blessing. 15:47 I'd like to stop there. 15:49 I'm not going to read all the cursing, 15:51 but I just want you to notice 15:52 that it's the antithesis of the blessing 15:54 and it's rather frightening. 15:56 "But it will come to pass 15:57 that if you do not obey the voice of the Lord your God 16:00 to observe His commandments, 16:02 to observe all of His commandments 16:04 in the statute, 16:05 what I command you today 16:06 that all these curses will come upon you 16:08 and overtake you." 16:10 It's like they don't happen at once, 16:11 they catch up with you. 16:13 "Cursed you'll be in the city, 16:14 and cursed you'll be in the country, 16:16 cursed will be your basket in your kneading bowl, 16:18 cursed will be the food of your body 16:20 in the produce of your land, the increase of your cattle, 16:22 the offspring of your flocks, 16:24 cursed shall you be when you come in 16:26 and curse you will be when you go out. 16:29 The Lord will send on you confusion and rebuke 16:31 and all that you set your hand to until you're destroyed, 16:35 until you perish quickly 16:36 because of the wickedness of your doings 16:39 because you have forsaken me." 16:40 And if you ever have a day? 16:42 Well, he said, "What is day?" 16:43 Just for one of those days where everything went right. 16:46 You ever had like a blessed day? 16:48 You thought, "Wow! 16:49 The lights all turned green when I pulled up to him, 16:52 and the parts I bought were the right parts 16:55 and they all fit, 16:56 and everything I needed at the store was there, 16:59 and I felt good." 17:00 And you just had one every one of those days, 17:03 like everything goes right. 17:05 And you have a hand, son, and raising your hands. 17:07 You know, you not have any blessed days. 17:10 I mean I've had days were just, 17:11 you know, for the days even over thought, 17:13 "This has been a good day, 17:15 everything I put my hand to worked out." 17:19 Have you ever had the other days 17:23 where it just seemed like someone put a whammy on you 17:26 and just everything went wrong. 17:29 You know, the Bible tells a story about... 17:32 And I forget it maybe Hosea or Amos where it says, 17:36 "It would be as if a man is fleeing from a lion, 17:40 and he runs into a bear, 17:42 and then he runs into his house from the bear, 17:44 and he leans against the wall, and the serpent bites him." 17:48 It's like you can run, but you can't hide, 17:50 but everything goes wrong. 17:53 Well, you know, the people of God 17:56 had both experiences. 17:58 They had the blessing and the curse. 18:01 When did the cursing come? 18:02 When they became separated from God. 18:05 The vision happened, 18:06 there was disunity between them and God. 18:09 They backslid. 18:10 And this is our first section, 18:12 "Return, O, backsliding children." 18:14 Now before I delve into these verses 18:17 on backsliding, 18:18 let me just help you remember, 18:21 it does not call it back hopping, 18:25 back skipping, or back jumping. 18:28 You really need to be conscious and make an effort 18:30 if you're going to hop back, or skip back, or jump back. 18:36 But sliding, you can stand still 18:38 and if you're on the wrong ground you can slide, 18:41 you don't even know you're sliding. 18:43 You've been in a car on a slippery road, 18:45 your brakes are on, the car's still moving? 18:47 Kind of frightening, frightening experience. 18:50 That'll make you pray. 18:53 Sliding is different. 18:55 And there's a lot of people who are sliding. 18:58 It's like glaciers speed, 19:00 you know, you don't know what's happening, 19:02 but it's happening little by little. 19:05 Now would you like me to tell you 19:07 how you can backslide in three easy steps? 19:10 My sermon today is about 19:12 how to be lost in seven steps about Pontius Pilot, 19:14 I'll tell you how to backslide. 19:16 Three things, if you show me a Christian 19:18 who is not reading the Bible on a regular basis. 19:22 Show me a Christian who is not praying, 19:25 they're not sharing their faith in some way. 19:28 I could have a friend not attending church regularly, 19:32 that is a backslidden Christian. 19:35 That's the step to backsliding. 19:37 If you want to see a Christian that is experiencing growth 19:39 and revival someone who has regular devotions, 19:44 they're engaged in sharing their faith, 19:47 they spend regular time in prayer like Daniel, 19:50 they get set time where they pray, real prayer, 19:54 and they're involved in church fellowship. 19:56 I know that sounds so standard, but it's true, 20:00 those things work. 20:02 And so he gives this warning to backsliding Israel. 20:06 Look in Jeremiah, 20:08 you see God's people have a history of backsliding. 20:12 Jeremiah 3:12, 20:14 "Go and proclaim these words towards the north, 20:17 and say, 'Return backsliding Israel,' says the Lord, 20:21 'And I will not cause my anger to fall on you 20:24 for I am merciful,' says the Lord, 20:27 'And I will not remain angry forever. 20:29 Only acknowledge your iniquity.'" 20:31 Now have you ever wondered why did He say, 20:32 "Go, pronounce these words against the north"? 20:36 When Jeremiah makes this prophecy, 20:37 Nebuchadnezzar has already come 20:40 and he's carried away some of the people of God 20:42 because of their disobedience, 20:44 north to Babylon, 20:45 to get to Babylon that was sort of north east, 20:48 but he had to go directly north to get around the desert. 20:50 And so he's saying, "Look, if you repent, 20:53 God will restore you. 20:56 But if you don't repent, you'll all be carried off," 20:58 which is what ended up happening. 21:01 What was the formula for restoration? 21:03 "Acknowledge your iniquity 21:05 that you have transgressed against the Lord 21:07 because of your disunity with the Lord 21:10 you're going to be separated from the land. 21:13 You've transgressed against the Lord your God, 21:15 and you've scattered your charms to alien deities 21:20 under every green tree, 21:22 and you've not obeyed my voice." 21:24 They started worshipping other gods. 21:27 And you jump to Jeremiah, it's actually the next verses, 21:30 verse 14 and 15. 21:31 Jeremiah 3, "Return, O backsliding children." 21:36 Now doesn't that sound kind of like a parent 21:39 saying to their child, "Come back to me." 21:41 You're wondering, don't you see it happening, 21:44 it's not too late. 21:46 And he's pleading with the nation to turn back. 21:48 "Return, O, backsliding children, says the Lord, 21:51 for I'm married to you. 21:53 And I'll take you, 21:55 one from the city, two from a family. 21:57 I'll bring you to Zion, I'll bring you back. 22:00 And I'll give you shepherds according to my heart, 22:02 who will feed you with knowledge 22:03 and understanding." 22:05 He's pleading with them. 22:06 Go down and you read verse 22. 22:09 I think someone, you're supposed to read verse 22. 22:12 Hang on, I'll tell you it before you do. 22:13 I'll give them a chance to get you on camera. 22:16 You notice what he says here in chapter 3, 22:18 "For I am married to you." 22:21 How does God talk about 22:22 His relationship with His people, His church? 22:27 It's in the context of a marriage. 22:29 And have you read the story of Hosea? 22:31 He said, "My bride, the church is my bride, 22:35 but she's played the harlot." 22:37 I mean, not just fell in love with someone else, 22:39 just kind of selling herself. 22:41 It's a very bad picture of what the church has done. 22:45 Hosea uses the same language. 22:48 He says, "I will heal their backslidings. 22:50 I will love them freely 22:52 even though they've been unfaithful to me. 22:54 For my anger has turned away from him." 22:57 Okay, go ahead, please read the verse 22. 23:00 Jeremiah 3:22, 23:02 "Return, you backsliding children, 23:05 And I will heal your backslidings. 23:08 Indeed we do come to You, For you are the Lord our God." 23:13 Does Jesus tell a parable in the New Testament 23:15 about a backslidden son who returns. 23:20 What'd they call? 23:22 Prodigal Son. 23:23 How does the father receive that backslidden son? 23:28 Does he browbeat him with his hands on his hip 23:30 and say, "I told you so, 23:32 where is all that money you left with?" 23:34 Or does he freely embrace and forgive. 23:38 And does that first happen in the New Testament 23:40 or even now we read in the Old Testament. 23:42 God says, "I'll forgive you, my children, come back." 23:45 And he not only appeals on them as His children, 23:47 He appeals to them as His spouse. 23:49 I'll tell you, 23:50 one of the hardest things I've seen 23:52 is you know when you do marriage counseling 23:55 and it's discovered that there's been unfaithfulness 23:59 on the part of the husband or wife, 24:00 one has violated the marriage vows, 24:03 there's been some cheating happening, 24:05 and there's usually a period of shock 24:07 and sometimes there's remorse 24:09 and they say, "I'm sorry, it'll never happen again. 24:11 I slipped, you know." 24:12 And maybe it was the man, and he was on a business trip, 24:15 and it's nobody special, it's not an ongoing affair, 24:17 it just he fell, "Would you please forgive me? 24:19 Don't destroy the marriage. 24:20 What about the children?" 24:22 And, boy, the pain, there's so much pain, 24:26 the wife struggles to forgive and to forget, 24:28 and to trust again. 24:30 And for them to say, "All right, 24:31 I'm going to forgive you 24:32 and I'll act like it never happened." 24:33 That's hard. 24:35 I'll tell you, that's really hard to forgive and forget. 24:38 This is what God says that He'll do with us. 24:40 God told Hosea, 24:41 He marries a harlot, and she runs off, 24:43 and he goes back, and he gets here again. 24:46 And you would have thought right away 24:47 if you marry a harlot, there could be problems. 24:50 But God says, "This is what I did with you 24:53 when I called you as a nation." 24:55 And He's offering to forgive and says, "Come back to Me." 24:58 Read in Hosea 5:5, 25:01 "The pride of Israel testifies through his face. 25:03 Therefore, Israel and Ephraim stumble in their iniquity. 25:06 Judah also stumbles with them." 25:10 Now this is, 25:11 you notice he talks about Judah in Israel 25:13 because later on when Hosea writes, 25:17 "The Kingdom of the north and the south is split." 25:20 They'd have a division. 25:21 We'll get to that in just a minute. 25:24 So one of the... 25:25 Some of the things that cause disunity, 25:27 well, disobedience to God. 25:33 Gossip causes disunity. 25:37 Look in Proverbs 26:20. 25:41 "Where there's no wood, the fire goes out. 25:43 And where there is no talebearer..." 25:47 It's not talking about a person that has a tale, 25:49 it's talking about a gossip. 25:51 "Where there's no talebearer, stripes ceases." 25:55 1 Timothy 5:13. 25:57 "And besides they learn to be idle, 25:59 wandering about from house to house, 26:01 not only idle but also gossips and busy bodies, 26:05 saying things they ought not." 26:07 How many of you have known 26:08 that division is caused even among chief friends 26:11 because somebody is telling stories. 26:14 And they create suspicion. 26:17 A talebearer tries to separate the chiefest of friends. 26:21 And so people need to be very careful 26:25 and if you ever heard the expression, 26:26 "If you can't say something nice about a person, 26:28 don't say anything." 26:30 That's good advice, not too many people live by it. 26:33 But it's a really good advice. 26:35 So one of the things that causes division, 26:38 Satan is called the accuser of the brethren, 26:42 where do you find that? 26:45 Revelation 12. 26:48 How many of you remember the story in the Bible? 26:50 It's a vision of Joshua the high priest, 26:53 and he's standing before the Lord, 26:54 and he's got filthy garments on. 26:56 And Satan is there 26:57 and he's pointing at the filthy garments 26:59 that the priest is wearing. 27:01 The priest's garments are filthy 27:02 because he's interceding for the people, 27:04 and he's burying their sins 27:06 that represent the people of God and Satan. 27:09 And the Lord says to Satan, "The Lord rebuked you, Satan." 27:13 Is not this a brand plucked from the burning, 27:15 I'm going to forgive them. 27:16 But Satan is the accuser of the brethren. 27:19 Even with Eve, he says, "Has God said..." 27:21 God, he's talking about God, didn't say that right away. 27:25 Can you think of other examples in the Bible 27:27 where people telling stories have brought about division? 27:33 Through rumors and gossip, 27:35 and that's one of the things that happens, 27:38 people giving an evil report. 27:42 Then you go to the Book of Judges, 27:43 we talk a little bit about the time of Moses. 27:45 And we're going to jump ahead to the Book of Judges. 27:47 Judges 17, this was a time when they had no king, 27:51 they were led by judges, but in between the judges, 27:55 you read in Judges 17:6, 27:57 "In those days, there was no king in Israel, 28:00 everyone did what was right in his own eyes." 28:02 What was the result of that? 28:05 There is no shepherd, the sheep scatter. 28:08 You look in Judges 2, what does it mean? 28:10 They did what was right in their own eyes. 28:14 Then the children of Israel did evil 28:15 in the sight of the Lord 28:16 and they serve the Baals." 28:18 Is it the gods of the surrounding nations? 28:20 "And they foresook the Lord God of their fathers 28:23 who had brought them out of the land of Egypt 28:25 and they followed other gods." 28:28 This caused a separation between them and God. 28:31 "From among the gods of the people 28:33 who were all around they began to worship." 28:36 Now what was God's instruction to Israel 28:39 when they first came into the land 28:41 regarding the other nations? 28:43 He said "Just Leave them alone, let them be okay." 28:47 Or did God tell them chase them out 28:50 those who will not leave or eradicate? 28:54 God gave them... 28:55 I know this sounds really brutal 28:57 and people write questions about it. 28:59 "You mean, God told them 29:00 to annihilate these other nations?" 29:02 Yeah, they either had to leave or die. 29:07 Now some of them said, "We'll accept your god 29:09 and they were allowed to stay," 29:10 'cause they did end up, you know, Ruth was a Moabite, 29:13 so some of them were sort of assimilated. 29:16 But the nations that would not submit, 29:19 that would not cooperate, they were annihilated. 29:22 Why did God say that? 29:25 Do not let any of them stay 29:27 if you don't completely drive them out, drive them out. 29:29 The message of Joshua was, 29:31 "Drive them out, drive them out." 29:32 He said, "They'll be thorns in your sides. 29:36 They'll be stickers in your eyes. 29:38 They're going to be a pain to you," why? 29:40 Because you will observe their customs and their ways 29:42 and you will start to imitate the culture around you. 29:47 Now could that happen to the church today? 29:50 Through constant exposure to a corrupt culture, 29:53 we start becoming corrupt. 29:55 Things that God says are absolutely wrong 29:57 through constantly being exposed 30:00 through unrelenting bombardment, 30:03 pretty soon the thing we once uphold, 30:06 we embrace. 30:07 It doesn't happen overnight. 30:09 This was what happened to Israel, 30:10 didn't happen overnight. 30:12 Sometimes it will say, "Well, when the generation died off 30:14 they saw all the miracles of the Lord in the wilderness." 30:16 The children, they hadn't seen those things and they started, 30:20 you know, wondering, "Well maybe those are just legends 30:22 that can't really believe the Word of God," 30:24 and they started hanging out with the locals and... 30:27 How did Samson get in trouble? 30:30 He got a little too close to the Philistines, didn't he? 30:34 And does that still happen with God's people today. 30:38 Doesn't mean you're not supposed to witness to him, 30:40 but he got romantically involved. 30:42 That's the next thing that happened, Judges 3:5. 30:45 "Thus the..." 30:46 I'm still talking about the Judges 30:47 "The children of Israel dwelt among the Canaanites, 30:50 and the Hittites, and the Amorites, 30:52 and the Perizzites, and the Hivites, 30:53 and Jebusites." 30:54 And notice, "And they took their daughters 30:57 to be their wives, 30:59 and they gave their daughters to their sons, 31:02 and they served their gods." 31:03 How did they start serving their gods? 31:06 Gradually, it didn't happen overnight, 31:08 through intermarriage. 31:10 I've been sometimes called dogmatic 31:13 and Pharisaical and legalistic 31:15 because I will not marry a believer to an unbeliever. 31:20 But isn't that what the Bible says?" 31:23 How can a pastor... 31:25 Oh, but they love each other 31:26 and, you know, they're living together, 31:27 you may as well help them do the right thing. 31:29 I'm not going to marry... that's in the arguments I hear. 31:32 I'm not going to marry, 31:34 someone who's supposed to be a believer 31:36 to an unbeliever 31:38 'cause God condemns that. 31:40 And, you know, what ends up happening, 31:43 and they have children. 31:44 And the unbeliever says, 31:45 "Although, we're going to let them decide 31:46 what they want to believe for themselves. 31:48 We're not pushing them into church, 31:49 and we're not forcing them to go to a Christian school." 31:53 And in the distinctive beliefs of Christianity 31:55 are lost from the family. 31:57 So this is one of the things the devil does 31:58 to divide us from God is through... 32:01 That's a very important statement, 32:02 I want to make sure you caught it. 32:04 Talking about division, 32:05 one of the ways that devil gets division from God 32:10 is by getting us into romantic alliance 32:13 with unbelievers. 32:15 It takes away our hearts. 32:16 This is going to come out a little later. 32:18 Happen to God's people many times in the Bible. 32:21 So they begin to intermarry, 32:24 "They forgot the Lord their God, 32:26 and they serve the Baals and the Asherahs. 32:29 Paul says 2 Corinthians, you all know this. 32:32 2 Corinthians 4:15, "Do not be..." 32:35 What's the rest of it? 32:37 "Unequally yoked together with unbelievers." 32:42 Now you all understand 32:43 when you yoke two animals together, 32:45 you might have one oxen 32:47 that would help you pull a plow, 32:48 two oxen, you know, a lot more horse power. 32:52 But if you get an oxen yoked to a donkey, 32:57 that just doesn't work, they don't pull the same, 33:00 they don't move the same, they're not at the same level. 33:03 And it's like, you know, you're going in circles. 33:05 You just get an oxen and the donkey, 33:08 now two donkeys, two mules that might work, 33:11 two oxen that might work, 33:12 but Paul is painting a picture here 33:14 of you get a believer and an unbeliever, 33:17 that's just a really dumb match. 33:21 Have you ever heard this argument? 33:25 "Well, you know, I went and married a Christian, 33:28 and she turned out to be just a total unbeliever, 33:31 it was a miserable marriage. 33:32 And now I have found somebody online 33:35 and yeah, they don't believe in God, 33:36 but they're such a wonderful person." 33:39 I can't tell you how many times I've heard that. 33:41 I know they're not a believer, 33:42 but they're just a wonderful person. 33:44 "And so I know I believe in Jesus, 33:47 maybe I'll convert them later." 33:49 The Bible says, "Do not be unequally yoked together." 33:53 I know a family that did that, they said, 33:54 "I married in the church and it ended so badly. 33:59 I'm getting on this dating website." 34:00 They said, "Go to a Christian website." 34:02 "Oh, they're all ugly there." 34:04 Somebody told me that last week really, honest to goodness. 34:08 And so there are on a non-Christian website. 34:11 He said, "What in the world are you doing?" 34:14 I will all convert them later. 34:15 Well, you know what happened? 34:17 The unbeliever converted the believer. 34:21 I know there are some rare occasions, God's merciful, 34:23 and maybe the believer will reach 34:24 finally the unbeliever. 34:26 But, boy, you're just walking on thin ice when you do that. 34:29 All right, say amen. 34:31 Amen. 34:32 I want to read a quote this in your lesson, 34:34 Prophets and Kings page 20. 34:37 "The Lord had through Moses set up for his people 34:39 the result of unfaithfulness 34:40 by refusing to keep his covenant, 34:42 they would cut themselves off from the life of God, 34:45 and His blessings could not come upon them. 34:48 At these times, warnings were heated, 34:50 at these times, warnings were heated 34:52 rich blessings were bestowed upon the Jewish nation 34:55 and through them the surrounding people. 34:57 But more often in their history they forgot God, 35:00 lost sight of their high privileges 35:02 as his representatives." 35:04 Look at the history of God's people, 35:06 it's a roller coaster. 35:08 They reach the trough 35:09 because of their disobedience, they go down, 35:11 finally in their humiliation, they repent, 35:13 they turn back to God, God shows them mercy, 35:16 He would send them a judge who would deliver them 35:17 from their enemies and they'd be blessed again. 35:20 They want to be blessed for very long 35:22 and they'd forget about God, 35:23 they'd intermarry and worship other gods, and they'd go down, 35:26 they'd be held captive by their enemies, 35:28 they'd be subjugated, they'd be paying tribute, 35:31 they'd be enslaved, they'd cry out to the Lord. 35:33 The Lord will forgive them, He'd send them a deliverer, 35:36 and they'd be victorious, 35:39 but they'd pretty soon forget the bad days, 35:41 and they'd turn back to the world again 35:43 and they'd down. 35:44 What happened to the nation of Israel 35:47 over millennia? 35:48 I've seen it happen in Christian lives 35:51 in a matter of months. 35:54 You ever had a rollercoaster month 35:57 with the Lord spiritually 35:59 where He blesses you and you're real happy, 36:01 but then you forget, you disobeyed, things go badly, 36:04 and then you repent, and then you come back, 36:06 and it's like... 36:07 Is that way it's supposed to be up and down? 36:10 Or does God want us to have a consistently faithful walk? 36:13 Notice this about Daniel. 36:15 "Your God who you serve continually, 36:19 He will deliver you." 36:21 It's in Daniel 6. 36:23 All right, now the division of the Hebrew nation. 36:27 Now we're talking about division. 36:29 What brought it about? 36:31 Go to 1 Kings 11:1. 36:34 It's interesting, you go to 1 Kings 3, 36:37 and it says, "Solomon loved the Lord," 36:40 starts with Solomon loved the Lord. 36:44 And God blessed Solomon, and the nation became great, 36:49 and they were going up, up, up, up, up. 36:52 And if you look in Deuteronomy 28, you say, 36:55 "Was there a time in the history of Israel 36:57 where they actually experienced all of the blessings 37:00 that God had promised?" 37:02 Briefly yes, the close as they came. 37:05 It wasn't maybe perfect, but as the close as they came 37:07 to fulfilling God's plan for them 37:09 was during the reign of Solomon. 37:13 They had peace on all their sides, 37:15 even Solomon's name Shalom means peace. 37:19 And they had great riches, economically doing fantastic, 37:25 they were close to the Lord, 37:27 the temple was operating full steam, 37:29 the people were trusting the Lord, 37:31 the priests were doing their job, 37:32 they had people singing in the temple 37:34 24 hours a day. 37:36 All the other nations were coming to Israel 37:39 to hear about the wisdom of Solomon. 37:42 That's what God wanted, He said, 37:43 "I want you to be a nation of kings and priests 37:45 where everybody comes." 37:47 The Bible says there were so much gold in the kingdom, 37:49 silver was counted as nothing. 37:51 Beautiful valuable trees, 37:53 animals from all over the world, 37:54 exotic plants were adorning its gardens. 37:57 I mean, it was the closest thing 37:59 to Eden on earth the world had ever seen 38:04 since the time of the fall. 38:06 During the time of Solomon, Jesus points, 38:08 this is even Solomon in all of his glory 38:10 was not a raid like a flower. 38:12 He points to Solomon as the pinnacle of human glory. 38:15 So during this time 38:17 that whole section begins with the words 38:19 Solomon loved the Lord, but then what happens, 38:22 it's very interesting. 38:23 Just before chapter 11, it says in that year, 38:27 666 talents of gold 38:31 came to Solomon in one year. 38:34 And after it says 666, 38:36 the other time in the Bible you find the number 666... 38:38 Listen to what it says next, 38:40 "But King Solomon loved many foreign women." 38:46 When it starts out Solomon loving the Lord 38:48 and walking in all the commandments of the Lord, 38:50 up, up, up, up, up, up. 38:53 And then it says six, six, six. 38:55 And the next thing it says, 38:56 "But he loved many foreign women," 38:57 down, down, down. 39:00 I mean it continues to go down. Kingdom ultimately splits. 39:03 I'm going to read it to you. 39:04 "Solomon loved many foreign women 39:06 as well as the daughter of Pharaoh. 39:08 Women of the Moabites, and the Ammonites, 39:10 and the Edomites and Zidonians and the Hivites 39:13 from the nations whom the Lord said 39:15 to the children of his own, 39:16 'You shall not intermarry with them, nor they with you, 39:19 surely they will turn away your heart after their gods.'" 39:23 Did we just read about that? 39:24 It's what happened during Judges. 39:26 Solomon clung to these in love, he said, "But I love them." 39:29 How many of you have heard the argument 39:30 that love is supposed to be the excuse for everything? 39:34 I know we are from Bahal, but we love each other. 39:39 I know there are two women or two men, 39:41 but they love each other. 39:43 Love is supposed to cover all kinds of things, right. 39:47 "And as he clung to in love and he had 700 wives," 39:51 or would you think if you really love one of them, 39:53 that would be good. 39:54 No, he had to love lots of them. 39:56 "He had 700 wives, princesses, and 300 concubines. 40:00 And his wives turned his heart away." 40:05 God later... Go to verse 11. 40:06 I mean, 1 Kings 11:11, 40:10 "Therefore, the Lord said to Solomon," 40:11 notice, "because you have done this 40:13 and have not kept my covenant and my statutes 40:16 that I have commanded you, 40:17 I will surely tear the kingdom away from you 40:21 and give it to your servants." 40:24 Did a big division come into the kingdom? 40:27 What caused the division? 40:30 Solomon's unfaithfulness is disobedience. 40:34 Some of you remember later the prophet Ahijah, 40:36 he came to Jeroboam. 40:37 Jeroboam was a servant, 40:38 he was rebellious servant of Solomon's 40:41 who had fled to Egypt. 40:43 And Ahijah the prophet met him, and he took his garment, 40:47 and he tore it into twelve pieces, 40:49 and he gave ten pieces to Jeroboam, and he said, 40:53 "The other two pieces..." 40:55 Maybe I'm getting this little mixed up. 40:56 He said, "Do you have pieces for the house of David?" 40:59 And 10 of the tribes were torn away 41:02 and went to Jeroboam. 41:05 Finally, after Solomon died, Solomon repented by the way. 41:10 And that's when you read the book of Ecclesiastes, 41:12 this prophet after he spoke of Solomon, 41:14 he realized the foolishness of what he did, 41:16 he repented of his sin. 41:17 But he said because you've repented, 41:19 I'm not going to do this in your day, 41:20 but when Solomon died, 41:22 Rehoboam wasn't quite as smart as his father. 41:26 And when they came to make him king, they said, 41:30 "Look are you going to ease the tax burden of your father?" 41:33 The last few years of Solomon's reign, 41:35 his wives wanted all these exotic palaces, 41:38 he heavily taxed the people. 41:39 And he got to be a real burden, very unfair. 41:43 And Rehoboam, he went to his father's counselors 41:46 and he said, "What do you think I should do?" 41:48 They said, "Look, if you serve these people now, 41:50 they'll serve you forever. 41:51 Humble yourself, tell them you'll lighten the load 41:53 and win their hearts." 41:55 And he went to his friends, his young friends, he said, 41:56 "What do you think?" 41:57 "You've got to show him you're the boss. 41:59 You put down your foot, you've got to lay down the law, 42:02 tell them 'My father chastised you with whips, 42:05 we're going to chastise you with scorpions. 42:08 My father's little fingers not... 42:11 My little finger is going to be bigger 42:12 than my father's thighs.'" 42:14 Something like that. 42:16 And he said, "Yeah, I'll show them who's the boss," 42:18 Rehoboam, young and inexperienced, 42:20 he didn't listen to Solomon's counsels. 42:23 That's a really dumb thing. 42:24 I mean, Solomon's the wisest King who ever lived. 42:27 How would you qualify to be a counselor for Solomon? 42:30 What test would you take? 42:32 So here why would you ever reject 42:34 the council of Solomon's counselors? 42:38 But he did. 42:41 And he answered the people roughly, 42:43 he says, "I'm going to show you I'm king." 42:45 They said fine. 42:47 The people of Judah, 42:48 you can serve the House of David, 42:50 but what lot does Israel have in David, 42:53 we're not from your tribe, 42:54 you're not going to tell us what to do. 42:55 They went, they made Jeroboam King 42:57 and they fled to the north. 42:59 And from that day, the kingdom was never united again. 43:04 It caused a great division. 43:06 What began that division? 43:09 Not being faithful to the Lord, intermarrying with others. 43:13 Could that happen to the church again today? 43:17 Is this what we're talking about ancient history here 43:19 or do these things still happen today? 43:22 You know, this disobedience still brings in division. 43:28 And so that by the way whatever is sharing with you 43:30 was 1 Kings 12:3-6. 43:33 All right, now we're going to talk about a schism 43:34 or division in Corinth. 43:37 Someone's going to read for me John 13:35. 43:40 Okay, Dan, before you do that, I'm going to read 43:42 1 Corinthians 1:10-13. 43:48 "Now I plead with your brethren, 43:50 by the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, 43:52 that you all speak the same thing, 43:55 that there be no divisions among you, 43:58 that you be perfectly joined together 44:00 in the same mind and in the same judgment, 44:04 for it's been declared to me concerning you brethren, 44:07 by those are Chloe's household 44:09 that there are contentions among you," 44:11 divisions among you. 44:13 "Now I say that each of you says, 44:14 'I am of Paul or I am of Apollos, 44:16 or I am of Peter, or I am of Christ.' 44:19 Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? 44:22 Were you baptized in the name of Paul?" 44:24 They did different fractions and divisions came in. 44:27 And now when Paul commands them 44:28 that they should all speak the same thing, 44:31 is God a cookie cutter? 44:32 Does He want us all to be identical? 44:35 No. 44:36 Are you allowed to be different from others sitting around you 44:38 and still be a faithful Christian? 44:40 Yeah. 44:41 Bible's very clear, we all have different personalities, 44:43 we all have different gifts. 44:45 The high priest had a breastplate 44:47 with 12 different stones 44:48 in different facets on the stones, 44:51 all precious, all close to the heart, 44:52 all God's people are different, 44:55 but we are to be speaking the same thing in our truth. 45:01 The Bible, we should all be united on our beliefs. 45:05 If we're not united in our fundamental beliefs 45:08 and, you know, it is going to be differences. 45:09 And I sometimes hear people, you know, 45:11 argue about who's the king of the north 45:13 and, you know, what does this prophecy mean, 45:16 and there are obscure things that we're all still studying, 45:18 nobody knows everything about the Bible, right? 45:20 But there are foundational things. 45:24 It really causes division 45:25 if I believe God created the world 45:28 in six literal days, I take Genesis 1:11 literally. 45:32 And you say, "No, we came from evolution," 45:35 we're on a different page, 45:36 there's going to be a division there. 45:38 That's a major thing. 45:39 You can't be united being that divided 45:42 on such a fundamental. 45:44 Or if you say that you don't believe 45:47 that Jesus is divine. 45:49 You know, we're going to have a problem. 45:51 There are some things that are foundational truths. 45:55 See what I'm saying? So when God says... 45:58 When Paul is saying here, 45:59 I want you all to speak the same thing, 46:01 he's not saying that God is a cookie cutter, 46:03 but we must be united on His Word. 46:06 All right, please read for me from John. 46:09 John 13:35, 46:11 "By this, all will know that you are my disciples 46:14 if you have love for one another." 46:17 All right, the title of our lesson 46:18 is what causes division or disunity. 46:21 What causes disunity? 46:24 The devil. 46:25 The devil tries to divide us. Why? 46:29 Because Jesus said, "All people will know 46:31 that you are My followers by your love." 46:33 So He tries to create not love so nobody will believe. 46:38 Did that make sense? 46:40 If the world is going to believe because of our love, 46:42 then they would disbelieve because of our division 46:45 and our disunity. 46:47 And so one of the most important things 46:48 is that we do have that love for one another. 46:51 And you're going to read for me Romans, 46:53 in just a moment, Romans 16:17. 46:56 But I'm going to first read 2 Timothy 2:23. 47:01 "Avoid foolish and ignorant disputes 47:04 knowing they generate strife." 47:06 Now we may disagree on some things. 47:09 Don't be engaged in arguing about minor things, 47:13 he's saying. 47:14 Avoid those things. 47:15 Look at Titus 3:10. 47:19 "Reject a divisive man 47:22 after the first and second admonition." 47:24 If you got somebody in the church, 47:25 and they're going around, they're causing division... 47:29 I heard of a church not too long ago. 47:31 They dropped a person's name from membership, 47:34 and it wasn't just because he believed some things 47:37 that were a little bit off, 47:39 they probably would have winked at that, 47:41 but he insisted that everybody agree with him, 47:44 and he went around, he was just creating all this division. 47:47 And that was grounds. 47:48 They gave him one warning, they gave him two warnings. 47:50 They said, "Look, like baseball. 47:51 Three strikes, you're out." 47:53 And they said, "You know, 47:54 you just won't listen to the elders, 47:55 you won't listen to the church. 47:56 You're just bringing in division. 47:58 Sometimes you've got to throw Jonah overboard 48:00 if you want to have smooth sailing." 48:03 Isn't that what the Bible teaches? 48:05 There comes that time. All right, please read for us. 48:08 Romans 16:17-18. 48:15 "Now I urge you, brethren, 48:17 note those who cause divisions and offenses, 48:20 contrary to the doctrine which you learned, 48:23 and avoid them. 48:24 For those who are such 48:26 do not serve our Lord Jesus Christ, 48:29 but their own belly, and by smooth words 48:31 and flattering speech 48:33 deceive the hearts of the simple." 48:35 Amen. 48:36 That ties in with the last thing 48:38 we're going to look at, 48:39 where he says, "Wolves will come in." 48:42 Paul, just as he was departing 48:43 from some other church there in Asia, 48:45 one of the last times you would see him. 48:47 Acts 20:28. 48:49 He said, "Take heed to yourselves and to the flock 48:52 among whom the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, 48:55 the shepherd of the church," and he goes and says, 48:57 "For I know this, that after my departure 49:01 savage wolves will come in among you, 49:03 not sparing the flock. 49:05 Also from among your own selves, 49:07 men will rise up, speaking perverse things 49:10 to draw away the disciples after themselves. 49:12 Therefore watch and remember. 49:14 For three years, I did not cease to warn everyone 49:16 day and night with tears." 49:18 When the wolf wants to get the sheep, what does it do? 49:23 Scatter them. 49:25 They're easy to take down, 49:27 separate them from the shepherd, 49:29 break them off into little groups. 49:31 You've heard the expression, 49:32 "United we stand, divided we fall." 49:34 The devil will send in representatives to divide. 49:37 And if the church sees 49:38 there's somebody that has come in, 49:40 and they're doing the work of the wolf, 49:42 what's the responsibility of the pastors and the elders? 49:46 Warn them. 49:47 And they will not listen, get them away from the flock 49:51 because the devil, he hasn't changed his tactics, 49:53 he still tries to do that, doesn't he? 49:56 All right, there's are lot more I could say about this. 49:57 Hopefully, we've learned some things. 49:59 I want to remind you about the free offer. 50:02 It's called The Challenge of Self Denial. 50:07 If you like this free DVD, just ask for offer number 858, 50:11 we'll send it to you. 50:12 And the number if you'd like to call 50:14 is 866-788-3966 to get the DVD. 50:19 That's 866-STUDY-More. 50:22 Well, I want to thank you for joining us, friends, 50:25 for Sabbath School Study Hour. 50:26 And we look forward to seeing you again next week. 50:30 Let's face it. 50:31 It's not always easy to understand 50:33 everything you read in the Bible. 50:35 With over 700,000 words contained in 66 books, 50:39 the Bible can generate a lot of questions. 50:41 To get biblical straightforward answers, 50:44 call into the Bible Answers Live, 50:46 a live-nationwide call in radio program 50:48 where you can talk to Pastor Doug Batchelor 50:51 and ask him your most difficult Bible questions. 50:53 For times in stations in your area 50:55 or to listen to answers on line, 50:57 visit bal.amazingfacts.org. 51:15 Hi, friends. This is Pastor Doug Batchelor. 51:18 Would you like to hear an amazing fact? 51:20 More and more of the world is turning now 51:22 to natural forms of energy to try and find their power, 51:25 and they're resorting to things like the wind farm 51:27 that we have here in Jamaica at Wigton. 51:30 You know, I remember years ago, my wife and I going to visit 51:32 the big island of Hawaii, 51:34 and we were amazed at all the potential there 51:36 for natural power, 51:38 but they weren't using it. 51:39 There at the south part of the island, 51:41 there was volcanic activity. 51:43 You can make geothermal power there. 51:46 If you went to Waimea, 51:47 the wind was constantly blowing, 51:49 but they had no windmills there. 51:51 If you went over to Kona, sun always shines, 51:54 solar electric, 51:55 but they didn't have very much solar electric there. 51:58 And if you went to Hilo, it was always raining, 52:00 hydroelectric. 52:02 And in spite of all that potential for power 52:04 there on the big island of Hawaii, 52:06 they were powering the island back then 52:08 with dirty diesel generators. 52:10 It made me think about 52:11 how we, sometimes, waste the power of God's Spirit 52:13 that He's making available to us. 52:15 And each of us can have that spirit 52:17 if we simply ask. 52:18 You can read in Zachariah 10, what do we do, 52:22 "Ask of the Lord rain in the time of the latter rain, 52:24 and He will send flashing clouds." 52:27 Jesus also said in the book of Luke, 52:29 "If you then, being evil, 52:31 know how to give good gifts to your children, 52:33 how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit 52:36 to them that ask?" 52:38 When you look in the book of Acts, 52:40 when the Holy Spirit was poured out, 52:42 it says there was a sound of a mighty rushing wind. 52:45 And that power that launched the church back then 52:47 can still power your life today, friends. 52:50 So why don't you ask Him? 53:11 Amazing Facts, Changed Lives. 53:19 It wasn't my choice to be a Catholic. 53:21 It was my parent's choice. 53:23 My mom, she's very, very religious. 53:28 My father, he was made the presidential troubleshooter 53:33 during the Martial Law. 53:36 I guess having seven kids 53:39 would not be able to make my mother to, 53:41 you know, be there for each and every one of us. 53:44 But what is really very hard for me was 53:47 I was always told to be the ugliest, to be the darkest. 53:51 You know here in the Philippines, 53:53 you're beautiful if you're white. 53:55 But if you're brown or a little bit darker, 53:58 which I was, 54:01 you're ugly. 54:02 All of us had about seven maids, 54:05 one for each child. 54:07 The maids would say, "My baby," the one she's taking care of, 54:11 "is a lot better than yours," referring to me. 54:16 I believed that I was ugly. 54:17 I believed I was stupid, 54:19 I believe I was good for nothing, 54:22 so I attracted all the bad things in my life. 54:26 I had to believe that God is fair, so I said, 54:30 "Maybe it's because I was bad in my previous lives." 54:36 So I believed in, of course, reincarnation. 54:40 And when I was young, my mom told me 54:43 that I could really see ghosts. 54:45 I went into a lab of saints 54:50 and there was even a time when we did the ouija board. 54:54 And then, in front of me, really... 54:56 It really happened in front of four of us, 54:59 the glass, which is a wine glass, 55:01 just, you know, it just went up. 55:07 So because this is my life, 55:08 I do believe that I was attracted to the wrong man. 55:12 There's anything that really happened very good 55:15 is to have my two adorable children, 55:18 but I was really abused in all areas, 55:22 physically, emotionally, of course spiritually. 55:27 And you will think, "Where is God?" 55:36 I began to search, and unfortunately, 55:38 my church doesn't have a Bible study. 55:41 So I was able to go to Baptist Bible study. 55:45 And there I had a classmate, her name is Lou, 55:49 she gave me the DVDs. 55:52 And that is where I learned about Pastor Doug 55:56 and Amazing Facts. 55:59 That Baptist Church saw my eagerness. 56:02 So when I started asking for the Sabbath worship 56:09 on a Saturday, 56:10 they took me out, they even got a meeting, 56:15 and they said I was a stumbling block, me and Lou. 56:18 And that is how we left. 56:21 Our friends are all from the Baptist 56:23 and we love them dearly, 56:26 but the truth cannot be compromised. 56:32 So that is when we started having Bible Study 56:37 every 4 o'clock at Club Filipino, 56:39 and I invited all my friends. 56:44 It pains me to think that I was really lost. 56:48 If I say that I find teaching through a foreigner, 56:53 through Pastor Doug, 56:55 what if nobody gave me the message 56:59 because my growth happened? 57:03 Because of the DVDs that I watch every night, 57:09 every morning. 57:11 And even my friends 57:12 who happened to have master's degree, 57:15 they say, "Why are you so much better, 57:18 maybe your teachers are good." 57:21 Yes, my teachers are from the Amazing Facts. 57:25 I owe my salvation really to all teachers. 57:29 I've learned from their DVDs and from their books. 57:45 Can't get enough Amazing Facts Bible Study? 57:48 You don't have to wait until next week 57:50 to enjoy more truth-filled programming. 57:53 Visit the Amazing Facts Media Library at AFTV.org. 57:58 At AFTV.org, 58:00 you can enjoy video and audio presentations 58:03 as well as printed material, all free of charge, 58:06 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 58:08 right from your computer or mobile device, 58:11 visit AFTV.org. |
Revised 2018-10-08