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00:06 CC by Aberdeen Captioning 1-800-688-6621 abercap.com 00:11 ♪♪♪ 00:21 ♪♪♪ 00:35 Luccas Rodor: Hi, friends, and welcome to our 00:37 "Sabbath School Study Hour." 00:38 It's so good to have you all here. 00:40 It's good to be back home. 00:42 I was traveling for a while so it's good to be home. 00:44 And I'd like to welcome you here to our Granite Bay Seventh Day 00:48 Adventist Church in partnership with Amazing Facts Ministries. 00:51 We have people here in our local audience so I'd like to welcome 00:54 you and I'd also like to welcome those who are coming--who are 00:58 watching from afar, be that on the Internet or on Facebook. 01:02 God bless you and I'm sure that you're going to have a great 01:05 study today here with us. 01:06 Today we're going to be studying the second lesson of this new 01:09 quarterly and the lesson title is "Nehemiah." 01:11 If you don't have the quarterly at home and you'd like to read 01:15 along with us, you can find it at lesson.aftv.org. 01:20 But before we go into the lesson per se I'd like to give you our 01:24 special offer of the day and that is this book--this booklet, 01:28 "Teach Us to Pray." 01:29 And so if you want--this is a very important lesson. 01:31 If you want to have this booklet and you'd like to learn more 01:34 about how to pray, you can text "SH065" to the number "40544." 01:39 Of course, that's if you're in North America so 01:44 the United States and in Canada and its territories. 01:47 If not, you can go online to study.aftv.org/SH065 01:55 and you can also find this booklet over there. 02:00 Today we have this interesting lesson. 02:01 Pastor Shawn is going to be teaching for us and I'm sure 02:04 that we're going to have a blessed study today. 02:06 Pastor Shawn, may God bless you. 02:07 But before Pastor Shawn comes up, I'd like to call our 02:10 song--our music ministry, and they're going to be singing for 02:14 us a beautiful song. 02:15 May God bless you as you study the Bible today. 02:20 ♪ Take time to be holy, speak oft with thy Lord; ♪ 02:28 ♪ abide in H im always, and feed on His Word. ♪ 02:36 ♪ Make friends of God's children, ♪ 02:40 ♪ help those who are weak, ♪ 02:44 ♪ forgetting in nothing His blessing to seek. ♪ 02:52 ♪ Take time to be holy, the world rushes on; ♪ 03:00 ♪ spend much time in secret, with Jesus alone. ♪ 03:08 ♪ By looking to Jesus, like Him thou shalt be; ♪ 03:16 ♪ thy friends in thy conduct His likeness shall see. ♪ 03:24 ♪ Take time to be holy, let Him be thy Guide; ♪ 03:32 ♪ and run not before Him, whatever betide. ♪ 03:40 ♪ In joy or in sorrow, still follow thy Lord, ♪ 03:49 ♪ and, looking to Jesus, still trust in His Word. ♪ 03:57 ♪ Take time to be holy, be calm in thy soul, ♪ 04:05 ♪ each thought and each motive beneath His control. ♪ 04:13 ♪ Thus led by His Spirit to fountains of love, ♪ 04:21 ♪ thou soon shalt be fitted for service above. ♪ 04:36 Shawn Brummund: Father in heaven, we are just so thankful 04:38 to be able to find ourselves here in this church worshiping 04:42 You, glorifying You, God, coming close to You, drawing towards 04:47 You, Lord, even as we know and pray and trust that You will 04:50 draw towards us. 04:52 God, we want to pray that Your Holy Spirit will guide us and 04:54 that You will lead us as we open Your Word, as we look at some of 04:57 the grand themes in which Ezra and Nehemiah is found in. 05:01 Father, we want to pray that You will help us to be able to 05:03 establish our faith that much more, to understand Your 05:06 workings and Your plan of salvation. 05:08 In Jesus's name I pray these things, amen. 05:13 Well, we are looking at lesson number 2 in a very exciting and 05:16 very milestone study in two of the milestone books, really. 05:20 It's a turning stone or a turn in the history of God's people 05:23 of ancient Israel and so these are no small books. 05:28 They're small in number, as far as chapters and size, but they 05:33 are not small in regards to their historical importance. 05:38 These books are absolutely vital. 05:40 We're going to look at the bigger picture but before we do 05:42 that, I want to go to lesson number 2 which is where we're at 05:44 this week and look at our memory verse which is found in Nehemiah 05:49 chapter 1 and verses 4 through 5. 05:53 It says: "So it was, when I heard these words, that I sat 05:56 down and wept, and mourned for many days; I was fasting and 06:00 praying before the God of heaven. 06:02 And I said: 'I pray, Lord God of heaven, O great and awesome God, 06:06 You who keep Your covenant and mercy with those who love You 06:10 and observe Your commandments.'" And so here we have this 06:15 beautiful response, these beautiful, powerful words of the 06:18 second important figure in the second book which we're studying 06:21 this quarter. 06:22 And so last week we kind of had an intro to Ezra. 06:25 This week we're going to have a very brief intro to Nehemiah and 06:30 then next week we're going to actually look at the call of 06:32 both of them again and so, really, the first three weeks 06:35 are intros to these key figures and these two key books. 06:38 Now, because next week we're going to look and intro Nehemiah 06:44 again and also because as I look through the whole quarterly 06:47 there's one theme that just did really pop out for me that I 06:51 just--the Lord has just cried out through me and wants me to 06:55 be able to share. 06:57 And so we're going to come back to Nehemiah. 06:59 We're going to look at some of the highlights of what the 07:00 quarterly actually points out. 07:02 But I want to spend the bulk of our time actually looking at the 07:05 bigger picture in Israel's history, looking at the bigger 07:08 picture in the light of prophecy in concern to the time and the 07:13 events that surround the two figures of Ezra and Nehemiah. 07:19 Now, last week, of course, Pastor Doug as he intro'd this 07:22 particular study, these two books, he talked about the 07:25 70-year prophecy that God had given through Jeremiah. 07:29 Now, Jeremiah was the one that was living for the few decades 07:32 up to the captivity and the conquering of Israel by Babylon. 07:37 And he lived a few years beyond and stayed in Israel. 07:43 And he's the one that God had actually called to give hope to 07:46 the Israelites, to give hope to those of Israel. 07:50 And so when we pick up in Ezra and Nehemiah, we find that 70 07:55 long years had now passed between the time that Israel 07:59 lost its sovereignty, lost its holy capital, lost its holy 08:03 temple, and they are finding themselves for decades now in an 08:08 ancient far-off pagan land, really. 08:13 And so it's been a long time since Judah and Jerusalem had 08:19 been conquered and destroyed. 08:21 Several thousand of the Jews were taken captive into Babylon, 08:28 the ones that were lucky enough to survive, if some of them 08:31 counted themselves lucky and weren't slain by the Babylonians 08:36 when they came in. 08:38 And so we're looking at the bigger picture. 08:41 How did that all take place? 08:42 Well, we have to back up just a little bit, even further than 08:44 that. 08:45 We find that, indeed, from the time of David in about 1000 AD, 08:52 the beginning of the first faithful king at least, until 08:55 the time that Nebuchadnezzar, the ancient Babylonian king and 08:59 his armies came in from Babylon and conquered Israel, there was 09:03 about a 400-year period and so from 1000 BC, I should say, 09:07 until about--and I'm talking in round numbers, 600 BC, we find 09:12 that there was 400 years that, for the most part, Israel had 09:16 enjoyed not only autonomy, sovereignty as a nation, 09:21 independence as a nation, but they also kept the ceremonial 09:26 services going, the feasts, the daily sacrifices that surrounded 09:30 the holy temple of God that was a 3D proclamation of the message 09:35 of God's plan of salvation, bringing hope not only to their 09:38 generations but all those who were going through the 09:41 crossroads of the known world back then which Israel was the 09:44 crossroads. 09:45 And so many other nations and peoples were exposed to this 09:48 holy temple of the Jews in Jerusalem and they were exposed 09:52 to the sacrificial system and the guilt that could be 09:54 transferred symbolically from the sinner to the innocent lamb 09:58 or to the innocent sacrificial animal. 10:01 And so we have this great period, this 400-year period, in 10:06 which Israel had enjoyed its sovereignty. 10:09 Sadly, history tells us both in the Bible and outside that after 10:13 Babylon came in and conquered them, Israel would never enjoy 10:17 its sovereignty again. 10:19 Not until at least modern times in which Israel now, of course, 10:22 is a sovereign nation in the Middle East today. 10:25 And so that's a long time, isn't it? 10:26 Hundreds and hundreds, in fact, thousands of years, I think, if 10:29 we add it up, that Israel had lost its sovereignty. 10:33 And so looking at the bigger picture again, what led up to 10:34 the captivity? 10:35 Well, of course, as God had pointed out through his first 10:37 prophet that led the Israelites into the Promised Land, is that 10:42 if they were faithful God would bless them, God would prosper 10:48 them, God would protect them, and they would be the light to 10:53 the world, to the Gentiles, to the non-Jewish world, and draw 10:57 all peoples to Jesus and to the temple as a house of prayer for 11:00 all nations. 11:02 And sometimes they fulfilled that but, sadly, when we look at 11:06 the history of Israel, we find that more times than not, 11:10 they were not so faithful. 11:12 And so, because of that, they kept declining more and more 11:17 morally and, even though a couple of good kings came in in 11:20 the last few decades just before Babylon came in, we have some 11:23 real wicked kings that find themselves on the throne doing 11:26 evil in the sight of the Lord and they're listening to all the 11:30 wrong voices including false prophets and such and--'til 11:34 finally, the Bible tells us that even though God had compassion 11:37 on them, He did everything He possibly could to be able to 11:41 prevent this captivity, He was left with no other choice. 11:44 And so we find that history tells us, the Bible tells us, 11:47 that God used not a righteous nation, 11:50 but another wicked nation. 11:51 So Israel had become wicked and God uses another wicked nation 11:55 to come in and discipline His people Israel. 11:58 And so He draws in a people. 12:01 He opens the door and removes His protection. 12:03 The Babylonian army comes in. 12:05 They take away captive many of the Jews, all the royal family 12:07 and such, and Daniel, of course, is one of the most outstanding 12:12 famous individuals that was found in those numbers 12:17 of the captives. 12:21 And so here we find that, starting at about 605 BC, the 12:25 first time that Nebuchadnezzar and the Babylonians came in and 12:29 conquered Israel, conquered Jerusalem, took its captive, we 12:33 find that Israel now, for 70 years, is captive to the most 12:36 notorious, most known enemy of God and His truth: Babylon. 12:42 Babylon is the arch-enemy, the historical arch-enemy of God. 12:47 Is it the only city that was an enemy of God, the only one 12:50 rebellious against God? 12:52 No, we have Nineveh, we have a number of other cities: Tyre, 12:55 Sidon, there's all kinds of ancient cities that were also in 12:58 rebellion but Babylon was kind of the mother of harlots. 13:01 Babylon was the ultimate rebellious city and symbolic 13:07 enemy of God and His people. 13:11 Now, sometimes, we can assume, wrongfully and it's naturally 13:15 that the original founders of the city of Babylon kind of sat 13:20 down, you know, the mayor and his city council, and said, 13:23 "What are we going to name our city?" 13:24 And they said, "Well, let's name it 'Confusion'," which Babylon 13:28 means, doesn't it? 13:30 Confusion is actually a Greek word that means to confuse or 13:33 confusion. 13:35 Now, that really doesn't make a whole lot of sense, does it? 13:38 That's what the Bible prophets called that city but that's not 13:41 what its originators and its leaders and Nebuchadnezzar 13:43 referred it to. 13:44 It actually is called and referred to as Bab-ilu. 13:47 We see it on the screen here, Bab-ilu. 13:50 And so this was an ancient term that actually literally meant, 13:53 most scholars agree, it means "Gate of the gods." 13:56 And this is a fitting title in the eyes of its founders, in the 14:02 eyes of its leaders, because as Babylon established itself and 14:05 grew more and more powerful and more and more notorious as a 14:09 city of not only of religion but in rebellion to the true God, we 14:14 find that it was the center of religion in its day. 14:18 And so in the heyday when it conquered Israel, it was the--it 14:21 was the center of the known world in regards to religion. 14:25 If you were a study and a scholar religion the ultimate 14:28 place to go and study religion would be Babylon, or Bab-ilu as 14:31 they would call it. 14:32 The Gate of the gods, all these gods. 14:34 They had more gods, more idols, more priests and so on than any 14:37 other city in ancient times. 14:39 And so it was the golden city, not only of power and 14:44 prosperity, but also of false religion. 14:47 And then, of course, for many of us that have read Genesis and 14:51 some of the earlier chapters of the Bible, we have discovered 14:53 that indeed Babylon has a very long heritage that stretches far 14:59 back further than the time in which Nebuchadnezzar lived and 15:03 Israel was taken captive. 15:06 In fact, Babylon finds its heritage in the very first years 15:10 right after the flood in Noah's day. 15:12 Noah is still alive. 15:13 God had said after the flood: "Be fruitful and go and 15:16 multiply." 15:18 And when He said that, He wanted the people to spread out to the 15:23 different parts of the planet and of the known world. 15:26 But did they do that? 15:28 No, the Bible record tells us that instead, they find 15:30 themselves all congregated into one spot. 15:33 They produced this great city and at the centerpiece of that 15:37 city was the Tower of Babel, okay? 15:40 Many of you know the story. 15:42 Now, it was called Babel which is the Hebrew term that means 15:46 confusion, and rightly so. Why? 15:48 Because as they were making this great project to glorify not God 15:52 but to glorify themselves and to glorify false religion and 15:56 rebellion and independence from God, we find that God stymied 16:01 their languages and that's--we find the origins of multi 16:04 languages in nations around the world. 16:07 And that stymied the project, the Tower of Babylon and its 16:10 project was come to its completion but when we come to 16:14 Genesis 10 we find that that city was not complete in regards 16:17 to Satan's work because we find that there is a individual--we 16:23 find that there is a individual by the name of Nimrod. 16:27 Now many of you have heard the term "Nimrod" before. 16:29 Now, Nimrod is the great-grandson of--anybody know? 16:35 The great-grandson of Noah, yeah. 16:40 So Noah had Ham, Ham had Cush, and then Cush gave birth to 16:44 Nimrod. 16:45 And was Ham the rebellious son of Nebuchadnezzar? 16:49 Yes, he was, wasn't he? 16:52 And so Ham we found is--kind of becomes the new Cain of the new 16:56 generations that developed through Noah and his wife after 17:00 the flood. 17:01 And so, sadly, we find that Nimrod leads this city and he 17:05 founds this city and he continues to carry it forward 17:08 and establish its many different false religious practices and 17:12 beliefs and rebellion against God. 17:16 And so that's the heritage of the city. 17:19 And now in the empire that extends from that city, that was 17:22 really that part of the world when Nebuchadnezzar came in, it 17:24 was establishing this new-found world empire with Babylon as its 17:28 capital. 17:30 And so Satan was busy at work back in those ancient days. 17:34 God understood everything that was taking place but He had a 17:37 problem even while Satan was doing his work through Babylon 17:40 and that is that God's city, Jerusalem, which representative 17:43 was to--intended to represent everything the opposite of which 17:47 Babylon was to represent and was founding itself on, was actually 17:50 starting to represent more the beliefs and practices of ancient 17:55 Babylon than what God intended for Jerusalem. 17:59 And so God had to do something about it. 18:00 He brought in the Babylonians and He conquered--had Israel and 18:06 Jerusalem conquered, destroyed, many of its captives were taken 18:11 over to a long, faraway place and so that's the bigger 18:15 picture, historically, of Ezra and Nehemiah. 18:19 Israel is now found captive to this powerful longstanding enemy 18:24 of God, but does God leave him without hope? 18:28 No, He doesn't leave him without hope at all, does He? 18:30 No, in fact, He gives some very powerful prophecies through the 18:35 prophet that was living in Jerusalem and appealing to the 18:38 leadership and the people of Israel when Babylon came in and 18:42 took them captive. 18:43 Now, we have a volunteer here this morning that's going to 18:46 read Jeremiah chapter 29 and verses 10 through 11, and so if 18:51 you have your Bibles, let's open to Jeremiah chapter 29, verses 18:55 10 through 11, and we'll invite her down. 19:01 Thank you. 19:03 female: "Thus says the Lord: After 70 years are completed at 19:06 Babylon, I will visit you and perform My good word toward you, 19:12 and cause you to return to this place. 19:15 For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, 19:19 thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a 19:24 hope." 19:26 Shawn: Okay, thank you. 19:27 So there we find one of the times. 19:29 Now, Jeremiah two or three times, actually, wrote in his 19:32 book and gave that prophecy, that 70-year prophecy. 19:35 Why? 19:36 Because it was vital for God to be able to give the Israelites 19:40 hope that even when the whole world was falling apart, that 19:45 there was an end that was to come, that this was not the 19:47 final end of Jerusalem and God's plan of salvation through it. 19:51 That the Messiah still would arrive in a nation that would be 19:55 able to receive Him in the city of Jerusalem. 19:57 And so we find that God gave hope even while their world was 20:02 falling apart. 20:03 And so that's a powerful thing and I'd--you know, the second 20:06 verse is actually more famous, isn't it? 20:08 The one that was just read which is verse 11: "For I know the 20:12 thoughts that I have towards you, plans, you know, thoughts 20:13 to prosper you and give you peace and such," you know, and 20:15 we apply that to our lives. 20:17 And that principle does apply to us, doesn't it, if we have faith 20:21 in God. 20:22 But even while Israel was in rebellion during their worst 20:26 point in their lives and in their existence, we find here 20:29 that God says, "I know the thoughts that I have towards 20:33 you." 20:35 And so even when we're in a bad state of mind, even if--and one 20:39 of us might be in rebellion against God right now, and God 20:41 is using this message and this study to be able to appeal to 20:45 you. 20:47 And He is saying, "Listen, even though you may not be in the 20:50 right mindset, in the right mindframe right now, I know the 20:55 thoughts that I have towards you, thoughts to prosper you and 20:58 give you peace and a future." 21:00 And so that's the God we serve, amen? 21:03 Even when we're rebelling against God, God has a plan and 21:07 He has a great desire to give us a better future and to help our 21:10 lives and turn them around and so that's a powerful thing. 21:13 I hope you're still in Jeremiah. 21:15 I want to go to Jeremiah chapter 50 and verses 18 through 19, and 21:20 read that together. 21:23 So we're going just a few chapters ahead now to Jeremiah 21:26 chapter 50, verse 18. 21:28 It says: "Therefore thus says the Lord God of hosts, the God 21:31 of Israel: 'Behold, I will punish the king of Babylon and 21:35 his land, as I have punished the king of Assyria. 21:38 But I will bring back Israel to his--to his home--'" and so here 21:42 we find it repeated again and so through the prophecies of 21:45 judgment that is the predominant words of the prophet Jeremiah, 21:49 because of the decisions of the Israelites, God is still giving 21:53 seeds of hope not only to that generation as they are pulled 21:56 out from their homeland, but to the further generations that 21:59 find themselves growing up in a foreign land, needing to learn a 22:03 new language, a new culture, a new people, a new way of doing 22:06 things, and all these other things that were in this ancient 22:10 Babylon--Babylonian empire. 22:12 And so that's the greater context as the Israelites find 22:17 themselves pulled out of Israel and planted in this foreign 22:20 land. 22:21 Now, I want to share something that is one of the most 22:23 fascinating faith-building prophecies that we can find in 22:26 all the Bible, and I am just so glad that I may have the time 22:30 and the opportunity here to be able to bring us through it 22:33 'cause it relates directly to our study of Ezra and Nehemiah 22:36 and the context there. 22:37 Let's go to Isaiah chapter 44 and verse 24, okay? 22:42 We're going to go to Isaiah chapter 44 and start reading in 22:49 verse 24. 22:52 Now, here we have Isaiah. 22:53 Now, let's put the context--even before I start to read it, this 22:55 is just so exciting. 22:56 When we get to the book of Isaiah, Isaiah is living and 22:59 prophesied up until about 700 BC. 23:03 Now, he prophesied for several decades but he ends his ministry 23:07 at 700 BC. 23:08 So the very latest that these words were written would be 700 23:13 BC and so let's keep that in mind as we read it, okay? 23:18 Now, of course, this is 100 years before Babylon came in and 23:22 took Israel away captive. 23:24 Hundred years before. 23:25 It says: "Thus says the Lord your God, your Redeemer, and He 23:28 who has formed you from the womb: 'I am the Lord, who makes 23:34 all things, who stretches out the heavens all alone, who 23:37 spreads abroad the earth by Myself; who frustrates the signs 23:41 of the babblers, and drives diviners mad; who turns wise men 23:45 backward, and makes their knowledge foolishness,'" I just 23:49 love this context, you know, this passage here because it 23:52 talks about how God stymies and frustrates and puzzles those who 23:56 believe in these different channels that the devil develops 23:59 that he was supposed to give us connected to the higher powers 24:02 of the universe and so on. 24:03 And He says, "Listen, I drive them crazy." 24:07 In verse 26 He says, "Who confirms the word of His 24:09 servant." 24:11 Now, He's contrasting those who are working through Satan's 24:16 channels and now those who are working with God as their 24:19 channel. 24:20 Verse 26, it says: "Who confirms the word of His servant," that 24:22 would be His prophet, in this case Isaiah, "And performs the 24:27 counsel of His messengers; who says to Jerusalem," now, that's 24:31 God's city, not Babylon, "'You shall be inhabited,' to the 24:35 cities of Judah, 'You shall be built,' and I will raise up her 24:39 waste places." 24:41 Now, the irony is that Jerusalem was up and doing--it was alive 24:44 and well, that city, when he prophesied this. 24:47 And so at first the Babyl--I mean, the Israelites must have 24:51 scratched their head and said, "What do you mean, 'He's going 24:53 to rebuild Jerusalem and lift up its walls again,' and such? 24:56 We're doing well," okay? 24:57 But Isaiah is prophetically looking far into the future, 25:01 isn't he? 25:02 He's looking over 100 years into the future when Nebuchadnezzar 25:05 and the Babylonians come in. 25:07 And then verse 27, it says: "Who says to the deep, 'Be dry! 25:13 And I will dry up your rivers'; who says of Cyrus, 'He is My 25:17 shepherd, and he shall perform all My pleasure, saying to 25:21 Jerusalem, "You shall be built," and to the temple, "Your 25:24 foundation shall be laid."'" And so again, God is giving some of 25:30 the details, even historically, 100 years before, and we're 25:33 going to touch on that a little bit, on how Babylon was 25:35 conquered and how Israel was delivered. 25:39 Then we come into verse--chapter 25. 25:42 Verse 1, it says: "For thus says the Lord to His anointed, to 25:47 Cyrus, whose right hand I have held--to subdue nations 25:51 before him." Now, isn't this fascinating? 25:54 There's only one person, one individual, in all of Scripture, 25:56 outside of Christ, that God refers to in His Scriptures as 26:00 the anointed one. 26:02 Now, some of you already have learned in past times in Sabbath 26:04 School, other times, that Messiah is the Hebrew term that 26:09 literally means the anointed one. 26:11 If you didn't know that, you should know it, okay? 26:14 So the Hebrew term for Messiah literally means the anointed 26:17 one. 26:18 What does "Christ" mean? 26:19 It's a trick question. Same thing. 26:25 It means the anointed one. 26:26 Christ is the Heb--I mean, the Greek equivalent of the Hebrew 26:31 title "Messiah." 26:32 And so both of them literally mean the anointed one, okay? 26:38 Jesus is the ultimate anointed one, isn't He? 26:40 Here we have Cyrus who is also the only individual that is 26:44 referred to as the anointed one. 26:47 Now, this is big when it comes to studying the prophecies of 26:49 Revelation, in particular, to be able to understand this, all 26:53 right? 26:54 So Cyrus is going to be God's deliverer for ancient Israel and 26:57 its people. 26:59 Okay, so we pick it up again: "To Cyrus, whose right hand I 27:01 have held--to subdue nations before him. 27:04 And to loose the armor of kings, to open before him the double 27:07 doors, so that the gates will not be shut: 'I will go before 27:11 you and make the crooked places straight; I will break in pieces 27:14 the gates of bronze and cut the bars of iron. 27:16 I will give you the treasures of darkness and the hidden riches 27:19 of secret places, that you may know that I am the Lord, who 27:24 call you by your name, am the God of Israel. 27:30 For Jacob My servant's sake, and Israel My elect, I have called 27:33 you by your name; and have named you, though you have not known 27:37 Me. 27:38 I am the Lord, and there is no other; there is no God besides 27:42 Me--'" and that's powerful stuff, isn't it? 27:45 Let's go just a little bit further to verse 13. 27:47 Again, it's on the same subject: "'I have raised him,'" that's 27:49 Cyrus, "'up in righteousness, and I will direct all his ways; 27:52 he shall build My city and let My exiles go free, not for price 27:57 nor reward,' says the Lord of hosts." 28:00 Now, one of the fascinating--there's two 28:02 fascinating points on this particular prophecy. 28:04 Number one, God wrote it 100 years before Cyrus was even 28:07 conceived in the womb of his mother, okay? 28:11 So God names this Persian king far before he ever came to 28:14 exist. 28:16 And so this is one of God's prime exhibit A as He says more 28:22 often in the book of Isaiah than anywhere else that "I am God and 28:25 one of the greatest, most powerful ways that I demonstrate 28:28 that I am God of the universe is that I declare the end from the 28:31 beginning. 28:32 That I declare to you things that have not yet taken place." 28:35 He says, "Here's one prime example, boom, Cyrus, 100 years 28:39 before he ever comes along. 28:40 He's going to be the Persian king that will conquer the 28:42 unconquerable city of Babylon," and did history 28:43 actually fulfill that? 28:47 Yes, it did. 28:50 It perfectly fulfilled that even as God had prophesied it so long 28:52 beforehand. 28:55 And so this is a powerful thing. 28:57 Now, listen to this. 28:58 After Cyrus had actually conquered Babylon, we're going 29:00 to back up a little bit to that. 29:04 But after he had conquered it, Josephus, one of the most 29:07 reliable ancient Jewish historians that lived during the 29:09 time of Christ, actually writes in his books of history that the 29:14 Israelites that were living in Babylonian captivity and in the 29:16 city of Babylon, came and approached this newfound 29:18 conquering King Cyrus and presented to him the scrolls of 29:25 Isaiah. 29:27 And as they presented the scrolls of Isaiah, he said, 29:30 "This prophet Isaiah lived 100 years before you were ever born, 29:34 and this is what he wrote." 29:37 And he showed--they showed Cyrus, word for word, this 29:40 message that God had written to Cyrus 100 years beforehand, over 29:45 100 years beforehand. 29:46 Is that powerful, friends? 29:48 This is exciting stuff, friends. 29:50 This is the stuff that really builds our faith and understands 29:53 that we are serving the true God. 29:56 And it is said that this is the number one influence that God 29:59 had used to be able to convince Cyrus to let His people go. 30:03 And he didn't do it for reward, as verse 13 says or for price, 30:08 for money. 30:09 In fact, it was the opposite. 30:11 He actually contributed to the cause, and he was one of the 30:14 ones that actually contributed to a fundraising methodology 30:19 that took place across the land of Babylon, to be able to fund 30:21 this exile and return of God's people. 30:24 And so, exciting stuff. 30:27 Faith-building, powerful stuff that God gives to us. 30:31 Now, in addition to the Jeremiah 70-year prophecy, God gives them 30:35 a very strong, clear call to get out of Babylon. 30:39 He says, "Okay, now you're in Babylon and this is the reason 30:41 why. 30:43 Jeremiah told you beforehand, Ezekiel and Daniel are telling 30:44 you afterhand, and such, so you know why you're here but don't 30:48 get too comfortable because this is not your home. 30:52 Israel is your home. Jerusalem is your capital. 30:56 Babylon is not your capital. 30:58 Babylon is the capital of Satan, okay? 31:02 So you need to be able to get out as soon as you can, asap." 31:07 Very clear. 31:08 God makes it very clear that Babylon is not a safe place to 31:11 say--to stay and if you have any kind of opportunity, the first 31:15 opportunity that rises up before you to get out, get out 31:17 immediately. 31:19 And we find that in Jeremiah's writings. 31:22 Jeremiah chapter 51. 31:23 Let's go to it. 31:25 Okay, so we're in Isaiah, if you still have your Bibles open or 31:27 your tablets, phones, we're going to Jeremiah chapter 51. 31:40 Okay, and we have a volunteer that's going to read verses 6 31:42 through 7. 31:44 Jeremiah 6 through 7--51. 31:46 Jeremiah chapter 51, verses 6 through 7. 31:50 male: Yes. 31:52 "Flee from the midst of Babylon, and every one saves his life! 31:55 Do not be cut off in her iniquity, for this is the time 31:58 of the Lord's vengeance; He shall recompense her. 32:01 Babylon was a golden cup in the Lord's hand, 32:05 that made all the earth drunk. 32:08 The nations drank her wine; 32:10 therefore the nations are deranged." 32:13 Shawn: Right, thank you. 32:15 So what's the message to God's people even before they find 32:17 themselves in Babylon, as they're being taken captive? 32:20 "Flee. 32:22 Flee from the midst of Babylon, every one save his life!" 32:25 And so even as they're on the way over, he says, "Listen, you 32:28 need to flee as soon as possible once you get there. 32:30 So don't get comfortable." 32:32 Don't get comfortable. 32:33 You know, you need to be able to provide for your family and 32:36 obviously have a house and so on, 70 years is a long time. 32:39 And by the way, there were some very faithful Jews in that 32:43 company that heard the words of Jeremiah and read them when they 32:46 were first penned that were still alive at the end of the 32:50 70-year period. 32:51 Now, friends, we don't have to do math for very long to be able 32:53 to find out that these are very elderly people, okay? 32:56 Because they were in Babylon for 70 years so let's say that some 33:01 of them were 10 years old when they were taken captive. 33:05 Now they're 80 years old. 33:07 Friends, there were some 80-plus-year-old 33:09 Jerusalem--Israelites in Babylon that took this to heart, "Flee 33:14 from Babylon," and they did not get too comfortable and they 33:18 fled at the very first opportunity that they had under 33:21 Zerubbabel. 33:23 Zerubbabel. 33:25 As Pastor Doug had said last week, it's hard to pronounce. 33:28 Zerubbabel. 33:29 And so we find that there's some that are 80-plus years old when 33:33 they go. 33:33 How do I know that? 33:35 Because the historical records in the Scriptures tell us that 33:37 once they had laid the foundation under--in Jerusalem 33:41 once again, it was nothing compared to that of Solomon's 33:44 temple and it tells us that there was this great cacophony 33:47 of sound and noise that rose up that day when they dedicated the 33:51 temple's foundation to the Lord because there was this mix of 33:54 those who were with--full of joy and praise and shouting before 33:58 the Lord and it was mixed with those who were wailing and 34:02 crying and mourning before the Lord. 34:04 Why? 34:06 Because the generation that was taken captive and knew and saw 34:09 with their eyes the former temple, knew that the new temple 34:12 didn't even compare to the glory of the first one. 34:16 And so, friends, that tells us that there were some that were 34:18 faithful for 70 years and at 80-plus years of age made that 34:23 multi-month journey, thousands of miles by foot and camel and 34:29 donkey to make their way to the Promised Land. 34:34 Amazing history. 34:35 Amazing history. 34:38 Now, we read Jeremiah chapter 51, didn't we? 34:40 Yeah, okay, so let's go to verse 45. 34:42 I'm going to read verse 45 here as well because we're in the 34:44 chapter already, and by the way, when you came to Jeremiah 51, 34:49 verse 7, did that sound familiar if you've been a student of 34:51 Revelation? 34:52 Do you see where Revelation's picking up the language in 34:55 modern spiritual Babylon, in Revelation? 34:57 Isaiah and Jeremiah's just jam-packed with the language 35:01 that Revelation then uses for spiritual modern Babylon and 35:05 modern Israel. 35:07 And so we're looking at verse 45. 35:09 Again, God says, "My people." Whose people? 35:12 "My people," that's God speaking, "go out of the midst 35:16 of her!" 35:19 Again, God speaks very clearly, "Get out as soon as you can. 35:23 This is not your home." This is not your home. 35:25 Well, the first wholesale opportunity for any and all of 35:30 the Jews to be able to find themselves leaving Babylon to 35:32 fulfill that call that God get--said, "Get out," is when 35:36 Babylon itself is conquered and it falls as, not only as a city, 35:41 but also as an empire. 35:43 And so we go back to the book of Isaiah. 35:46 Isaiah chapter 13. 35:48 Let's go back to Isaiah chapter 13, verse 19. 35:54 Isaiah 13, okay, and verse 19 through 20 and we have 36:04 a volunteer that's going to kindly read that for us. 36:06 female: "And Babylon, the glory of kingdoms, the beauty of 36:10 the Chaldeans' pride, will be as when God overthrew Sodom and 36:15 Gomorrah. 36:17 It will never be inhabited, nor will it be settled from 36:20 generation to generation; nor will the Arabian pitch tents 36:24 there, nor will the shepherds make their sheepfolds there." 36:29 Shawn: Thank you. 36:30 So here we have Isaiah proclaiming that, "Hey, listen, 36:32 Babylon will be the arch-enemy of God, rebelling against God. 36:34 It will be the captors of God's people in Judah and Jerusalem, 36:36 but it will have its end." 36:42 God declares its end and He said the end will be so sure and so 36:45 complete and so fulfilled that, indeed, no one will ever live 36:49 there again. 36:50 Now, this particular view that you see on the screen here 36:52 today, is actually from the porch of Saddam Hussein. 36:56 Saddam Hussein had built a palace right beside what the 37:02 archeologists call a tel or what we would call the archeological 37:06 site of ancient Babylon. 37:07 And so he built this extravagant multi-million-dollar palace 37:10 right next to it because he had this delusioned dream of 37:15 rebuilding the ancient city of Babylon and recapturing the 37:18 glory of Nebuchadnezzar and becoming a world emperor and, 37:22 of course, it was all just a big delusion as we know by history. 37:25 And--but the fascinating thing is that this is a great view of 37:29 the site where ancient Babylon existed, where Daniel himself 37:32 lived and, of course, Queen Esther and others and such. 37:35 No, actually, Queen Esther lived in Shushan but Daniel, for 37:38 certain, you know, Mordecai and--no, he was in Shushan as 37:41 well. 37:42 I've got to make sure I get my facts right. 37:44 And so here we have Babylon, ancient Babylon, the tel, and so 37:49 do you see anybody living there? 37:51 Okay, Saddam Hussein and his posse, you know, lived there off 37:56 and on as he made his way there but he didn't live in Babylon. 37:59 It's not a operating, functioning city, is it? 38:02 Why? 38:03 Because God said no one would ever inhabit it ever again. 38:06 Now, let's go to the next slide, the Cyrus cylinder. 38:08 Now, this is exciting because the question is how did God 38:11 conquer Israel? 38:13 How did He fulfill this prophecy that He gave in 700 AD through 38:16 Isaiah, some 150 years later, around 535, 536 BC? 38:21 And so here we find the Cyrus cylinder. 38:25 This is no small archeological find. 38:29 It was found in the site that you just saw, ancient Babylon. 38:32 The archeologists had dug it up. 38:33 The British had found it in the late 1800s and named it the 38:37 Cyrus cylinder because it actually recorded and gives us a 38:40 play-by-play on how Cyrus was able to successfully conquer the 38:44 unconquerable city. 38:45 Let's go to the next slide. 38:48 Why was it unconquerable? 38:49 Well, here's a bit of a blueprint of ancient Babylon 38:52 and, as it turns out, one of the greatest, largest rivers of the 38:55 area, the Euphrates, ran right through it. 38:58 And so they had this endless vast supply of water. 39:01 Now, why was that important? 39:03 Because the number one way that ancients would--enemies would 39:06 conquer an ancient city is not to knock down the walls which 39:09 sometimes they did successfully, but not very often. 39:13 And the mortality rate was so high because they would pour hot 39:17 oil and throw spears down and such. 39:19 So they would just stand at a safe distance and they would 39:22 just blockade the whole city in and they would besiege it, as 39:25 they call it. 39:26 And so they would bring out their lawn chairs and order in 39:28 pizza and just watch the people inside start to starve to death 39:32 as month after month went by. 39:33 And then eventually, they would be so starved they would give up 39:38 and--or they'd be so weak that the enemy could go in and 39:40 conquer it. 39:41 Well, in this case the Euphrates River ran through it and so they 39:44 had this endless supply of water, they had all the water 39:47 they needed for their laundry, to be able to bathe, to be able 39:50 to drink and to cook with and, not only that, but also to 39:53 irrigate the gardens that they had inside to give them a 39:56 continual supply of food. 39:58 And so they had that whole thing covered. 40:00 It was impossible in the mind of the ancients to be able to 40:05 conquer Babylon 'cause besieging it was a lost cause. 40:08 And not only that, if you tried to conquer down--if you tried to 40:12 break down its wall, why, they had said to themselves, "Well, 40:14 instead of one wall as traditionally cities do, let's 40:17 build three walls." 40:19 And so, if you got through the first wall, you still had two 40:21 more walls to break through and these were larger and thicker 40:26 than ever--in fact, it is said that three chariots could race 40:29 one--parallel to each other along the top of one of those 40:32 walls. 40:33 And then they put a moat around the outside of that outside 40:35 wall. 40:36 It was the unconquerable city. 40:39 All the traditional methods of taking an ancient city was a 40:43 lost cause when it came to Israel. 40:44 I mean, to Babylon. 40:47 And so it was known as the unconquerable city and so, of 40:49 course, the pride of Babylon started to rise higher and 40:52 higher and we have different quotes of the prophets 40:55 indicating that. 40:57 So how did Cyrus do it? 40:59 How did the Lord help him fulfill that which we just read 41:01 in Isaiah 44 and 45? 41:04 Well, as it turns out, the Cyrus cylinder gives us a 41:06 play-by-play. 41:07 Once again, let's go to the next slide. 41:10 We find there that Cyrus had said to himself as he scratched 41:13 his head and he looked at the city and he said, "You know 41:15 what? 41:17 All the traditional ways aren't going to work so I've got to 41:18 think outside the box." 41:19 And I'm trusting that the Lord put in his head and put in his 41:22 mind and said, "Listen, you need to be able to go under the 41:25 walls, not through it, not over it, not around it, but under 41:30 the wall." "How do I do that?" 41:31 "You need to be able to divert--temporarily divert the 41:35 waters of the Euphrates that are running towards the city, dry up 41:38 that Euphrates River temporarily, and then your army 41:42 and its soldiers can just march right underneath the walls and 41:47 conquer the city." And that's exactly what he did. 41:50 I don't know, I forget how long it took him to be able to have 41:52 his soldiers, you know, have the army, you know, digging away, 41:56 digging these channels in the night, these secret channels and 41:58 then he, of course, they all would release the very front of 41:59 them where the side of the river was and then all the river 42:01 temporarily diverted into these channels, into these canals. 42:07 And sure enough, the--you know, of course, he had his best 42:12 soldiers of combat waiting at the actual wall of the city and 42:16 ready to be able to go under and, sure enough, they're 42:20 scratching their head, saying, "Boy, I sure hope Cyrus knows 42:22 what he's doing. 42:23 I hope he can pull this off." 42:25 And lo and behold, they look at the water and foot by foot they 42:26 see the water of the Euphrates River decrease until it's right 42:32 down to the very bottom. 42:34 Now, they only have probably a few minutes, maybe ten minutes 42:37 at the most, because it's a big river and it's a lot of water to 42:39 divert. 42:40 And so they know that time is of the essence. 42:42 They march underneath and, of course, in Daniel chapter 5 we 42:44 find the inside details. 42:46 God records what's going on inside, the king Belshazzar of 42:49 Babylon is in a drunken feast, he's got the temple--the 42:51 Israelite temple vessels that he's pouring alcoholic wine in 42:56 and they're all drunk and all the soldiers, the guards, are 42:58 not in their right mind because they'd been drinking all night 43:02 and so very easily, very quickly, Belshazzar and all the 43:06 key men and soldiers and guards of the city are slain in one 43:08 night. 43:10 And now, the very unconquerable city, the center of the known 43:14 world and empire, is conquered in one night. 43:16 And Cyrus, the anointed one, the deliverer of God's people, is 43:20 now on the throne. In one night. 43:22 Powerful stuff. 43:23 2 Chronicles chapter 36. 43:29 Let's go to 2 Chronicles chapter 36. 43:36 We're going back to the last chapter and I know that Pastor 43:38 Doug read this last week as an intro and he touched on the 43:41 theme that we're looking at here but I know he had such a 43:43 wonderful mission report that he ran out of time and wasn't able 43:50 to be able to give it the full attention that we're giving here 43:53 today. 43:54 And so I just count it a privilege to be able to unpack 43:55 that a little bit more and be able to look at this as we look 43:57 now for the next three months at the context of Nehemiah and 44:01 Ezra. 44:03 Nehemiah--not Nehemiah, but we're looking at 2 Chronicles 44:06 chapter 36 and verse 22. 44:10 2 Chronicles 36, verse 22. 44:11 The last two verses. 44:12 It says: "Now in the first year," what year? 44:15 "The first year of Cyrus king of Persia, that the word of the 44:19 Lord by the mouth of Jeremiah might be fulfilled, the Lord 44:22 stretched--or stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia, 44:26 so that he made a proclamation throughout all his kingdom, and 44:28 also put in writing, saying, Thus says Cyrus king of Persia: 44:32 All the kingdoms of the earth the Lord God of heaven has 44:35 given me. 44:36 And He has commanded me," he has what? 44:39 "He has commanded me." 44:40 Now, this goes perfect with the traditional history that 44:44 Josephus records in which Cyrus actually read the message that 44:47 God had inspired Isaiah to record 100 years beforehand, 44:51 over 100 years. 44:53 "He has commanded me to build Him a house at Jerusalem which 44:55 is in Judah. 44:56 Who is among you all His people? 44:58 May the Lord his God be with him, and let him go up!" 45:01 And so here Cyrus is actually reflecting the words that we 45:05 read in Isaiah, sorry, in Jeremiah where God twice in the 45:08 last chapter of Jeremiah, the last chapters of Jeremiah, said, 45:12 "Get out of Babylon. 45:14 Flee it before you also share in the very destruction and 45:18 judgment that is coming upon it." 45:22 And so here we have in the very first year, one of the first 45:26 tasks that this newfound king and empire takes upon himself is 45:30 this vast and huge exodus of the Israelites that they may go back 45:36 to their homeland and rebuild Jerusalem and the temple. 45:39 Now, the question, the million-dollar question is, how 45:41 many of God's people respond? 45:47 Very, very small. 45:48 Very, very small amount actually respond. 45:52 Okay, now, the Bible record tells us that, you know, there's 45:57 about 50,000 on the first one. 45:59 That was the largest exodus under Zerubbabel and Joshua. 46:04 Very small remnant, and the word "remnant" is used by the 46:08 prophets itself as they describe these events. 46:12 A small remnant is willing to step out in faith and leave the 46:15 comfort and familiarity of Babylon. 46:19 In Ezra chapter 2 and verses 65 to--64 to 65, it tells us about 46:23 50,000 had left Babylon's false religions, its false moral 46:27 beliefs, and they went to worship the only true God, to 46:30 restore his gospel message and plan of salvation played out in 46:33 the sacrifices, in the temple ceremonies, in the annual feast. 46:37 All pointing forward to the ultimate deliverer, the anointed 46:40 one, Jesus Christ Himself, the Savior of the world, the only 46:44 solution to happiness, the only true solution to salvation for 46:48 eternity. 46:50 Now, God gives more than one opportunity and this reveals a 46:53 God of grace. 46:54 You know, He could have said to the rest of the Jewish people, 46:57 said, "Listen, I told you to get out. 46:58 I told you to get out and flee as soon as possible and most of 47:02 you didn't. Too bad." 47:03 Is that what He said? 47:06 No, okay, several years later He raises up a man by the name of 47:10 Ezra and He says, "Now I want you to lead the second batch." 47:14 Now, sadly, the second batch only amounted to about 47:16 6000 people. 47:17 But they still had another opportunity and 6000 more souls 47:22 found themselves in the Promised Land, amen? 47:24 Okay, so that's the good news. 47:27 And then we find that there is another man by the name of 47:31 Nehemiah that leads a third group that leaves with him. 47:34 And again, a smaller group, much smaller than the first group 47:37 but, nevertheless, there's a few hundred or a thousand, I forget 47:40 what the number is, that left with him. 47:42 And so God gives three opportunities. 47:44 He gives a second chance and He gives a third chance for God's 47:46 people to go back to the Promised Land, back to the holy 47:50 capital which is Jerusalem, rather than the throne of Satan 47:54 himself which is found in ancient Babylon and the empire 47:59 that had been surrounding there for so many years beforehand. 48:03 Now, the lesson points out that Jeremiah--Nehemiah hears the bad 48:06 news, that the remnant is not progressing very well with their 48:09 mission, the walls are still not built around the city and it's 48:12 not functioning the way that God intends. 48:14 And so he mourns, he cries, and then he falls on his knees and 48:18 he fasts for four straight months. 48:20 Now, I don't know if he fasted for four straight months but he 48:23 is in a spirit of fasting off and on, in deep prayer, asking 48:28 God to be able to open up an opportunity to release him as 48:31 the cupbearer of the king and go back to Jerusalem and help 48:35 rebuild the walls. 48:36 God put it upon him heart--his heart. 48:39 And so he found that opportunity in a private audience with the 48:41 queen and the king, when the king was able to ask him some 48:44 personal questions, "You're not looking the same, you're not 48:47 looking as happy as you usually are." 48:49 And he shares his heart and his burden, and the Lord moves upon 48:52 the king and says, "Go back. 48:54 And again, take it from my--I'm going to pay the bill and I'm 48:58 going to give you an escort, a military escort. 49:00 I'm going to give you the funds that you need, and you go back 49:03 and rebuild the city of your heritage." 49:05 And so, powerful, powerful thing. 49:08 It's a great example for us as the lesson study points out. 49:11 But as we close and we're running out of time here now, 49:14 we're coming back to the big picture. 49:15 There's a parallel that Pastor Doug had pointed out last week. 49:19 Again, we want to be able to pick that up today. 49:21 We don't have time to study it but in Revelation chapter 14 on, 49:24 God speaks about a Babylon. 49:26 Now, we know it's not ancient Babylon 'cause history tells us 49:29 that ancient Babylon started to be buried by the sand around 49:32 100 AD. 49:34 100 AD there was just a few straggling people, just a few 49:37 dozen, that were living in the city of Babylon and then it 49:42 started to be buried by the sand as we saw it in Iraq today. 49:47 And so we know that when Revelation is being penned, God 49:50 is not talking about literal ancient Babylon but He's talking 49:53 about a spiritual modern Babylon. 49:56 And in chapter 17, Babylon is referred to as a woman. 50:01 Now in prophecy, symbolic prophecy, a woman always 50:03 represents a church. 50:05 And so, very sadly, God here is pointing to religious confusion, 50:09 not in a pagan city and empire called ancient Babylon, but in a 50:13 modern spiritual Babylon that is including that of the Catholic 50:18 and Protestant traditions that sadly compromise the Word of 50:21 God, the truth of the--the truth and they replace it with age-old 50:26 traditions, beliefs that are produced instead by men. 50:29 And God declared that there would be an end to Babylon in 50:31 Revelation: Revelation chapter 18, verse 8 and verse 21. 50:36 Twice God says modern Babylon will find its end even as 50:39 ancient Babylon did. 50:40 And He also calls God's people out. 50:42 In Revelation 18, verse 4, He says, "Come out of her, My 50:46 people, lest you share in her judgment and you drink of her 50:49 plagues." 50:51 And so, friends, we find here that God gives the same warning, 50:55 the same appeal, "Come out of Babylon. 50:57 Don't make yourself comfortable. 50:59 Leave the familiarity of what you know in Babylon and come 51:02 into the truth and the Promised Land." 51:05 Sadly, only a small remnant come out, but it's there, it's 51:08 available, and I believe that indeed the Seventh Day Adventist 51:11 Church is a fulfillment of that prophecy in the largest, 51:14 clearest way. 51:16 Thank God for that, amen? 51:18 Now, I want to recommend something for further study on 51:21 Israel, modern Israel, modern Babylon, and the modern remnant. 51:24 And you can find it in "Amazing Facts" Study Guides, number 22 51:26 and 23. 51:27 They're entitled "The Other Woman" and 51:31 "The Bride of Christ." 51:32 And you can go to amazingfacts.org, 51:34 amazingfacts.org, and you can find at the very--if you scroll 51:38 down to the very bottom of the web page, you'll find there a 51:40 link to Study Guides. 51:42 Click on Study Guides, look for number 22 and number 23, "The 51:46 Other Woman" and "The Bride of Christ," and you can study that 51:48 in its fullness. 51:50 I strongly recommend it. 51:51 We have a free gift that we want to offer to you, again, as we 51:54 did at the beginning: "Teach Us to Pray," even as Nehemiah was 51:57 a man of prayer. 51:58 Ask for number 717 as far as the Study Guide or gift code, and 52:05 then you can dial 1-866-788-3966, as you see on 52:09 the screen, and you can also text to the information that you 52:12 find on the screen to 40544 and find yourself with a digital 52:17 download. 52:18 Until next week, God bless you, and don't forget that not only 52:20 do we love you, but God loves you too. 52:25 male announcer: Don't forget to request today's life-changing 52:27 free resource. 52:29 Not only can you receive this free gift in the mail, you can 52:31 download a digital copy straight to your computer or 52:33 mobile device. 52:34 To get your digital copy of today's free gift, simply text 52:37 the key word on your screen to 40544 or visit the web address 52:42 shown on your screen, and be sure to select the digital 52:45 download option on the request page. 52:48 It's now easier than ever for you to study God's Word with 52:50 "Amazing Facts," wherever and whenever you want 52:54 and most important, to share it with others. 52:58 female announcer: Let's face it. 53:00 It's not always easy to understand everything you read 53:02 in the Bible. 53:03 With over 700,000 words contained in 66 books, the Bible 53:07 can generate a lot of questions. 53:09 To get biblical straightforward answers, call into "Bible 53:13 Answers Live," a live nationwide call-in radio program where you 53:17 can talk to Pastor Doug Batchelor and ask him your most 53:20 difficult Bible questions. 53:21 For times and stations in your area or to listen to answers 53:24 online, visit bal.amazingfacts.org. 53:34 ♪♪♪ 54:15 Doug Batchelor: The heavens were parted for you. 54:17 The Holy Spirit came down. 54:19 This is what God wants you to experience. 54:20 You come to Christ, your sins are washed away, 54:24 you become a new creature. 54:25 It's a land of beginning again and how many of you wish you 54:28 could get a new start? 54:31 male: "For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat. 54:36 Inasmuch as you do it to one of the least of these, my brethren, 54:39 you did it to me." 54:43 ♪♪♪ 54:51 announcer: Can't get enough "Amazing Facts" Bible study? 54:54 You don't have to wait until next week to enjoy more 54:56 truth-filled programming. 54:58 Visit the "Amazing Facts" media library at AFTV.ORG. 55:03 At AFTV.ORG you can enjoy video and audio presentations as well 55:08 as printed material all free of charge, 24 hours a day, 55:12 7 days a week, right from your computer or mobile device. 55:16 Visit AFTV.ORG. 55:22 ♪♪♪ 55:29 Doug: Hello, friends. 55:30 We all know a marathon is one of the longest and hardest races 55:33 a person can run. 55:34 But did you hear about the ultra-marathon they used to have 55:38 in Australia? 55:39 It was 544 miles from Melbourne to Sydney. 55:43 It attracted as many as 150 world-class athletes. 55:47 But then something happened that no one would ever forget. 55:49 In 1983 a 61-year-old potato farmer named Cliff Young decided 55:54 to enter the race. 55:56 People were very amused because he had on rubber galoshes over 55:59 his boots and when the race began and all the runners took 56:03 off, sure enough, old Cliff was left behind shuffling along 56:07 very slowly but he was shuffling very persistently. 56:10 Normally, during this seven-day race, the runners would go about 56:13 18 hours running and then they'd sleep for 6 hours. 56:17 But nobody ever told Cliff that. 56:19 When the other runners stopped to rest during the night, Cliff 56:22 just kept on running. 56:24 Some people were afraid old Cliff was going to have a heart 56:27 attack and they were asking the race organizers to show mercy 56:30 and stop the crazy old man. 56:31 But he would have none of it. 56:33 Each day, he was gaining on the pack because when they were 56:36 sleeping, he was plodding along. 56:38 During the last night of the race, Cliff passed all of these 56:41 world-class athletes. 56:44 Not only was Cliff able to run that 544-mile race without 56:48 dying, he won, beating all the other racers by nine hours, 56:52 breaking the record and becoming a national hero in the process. 56:57 What's really amazing is when they told him that he had won 56:59 the $10,000 prize he looked confused and said he didn't know 57:02 there was a prize and he decided to share it with the other 57:05 runners. 57:06 When asked how he was able to run all night long, Cliff 57:09 responded that he grew up on a farm where they had about 2000 57:12 head of cattle and because they couldn't afford horses, he used 57:15 to have to round them up on foot, sometimes running two and 57:18 three days nonstop so, throughout the race, he just 57:21 imagined he was chasing after the cows and trying to outrun 57:24 a storm. 57:25 Old Cliff's secret was to keep on running while others were 57:29 sleeping. 57:30 You know, the Bible tells us that the race is not necessarily 57:33 to the swift, something like Aesop's parable of "The Tortoise 57:36 and the Hare," the tortoise just kept on plodding along. 57:39 That's why Jesus tells us in Matthew 24:13: "He that endures 57:42 unto the end, the same will be saved." 57:45 Now, you might slip and fall during the race, you might even 57:49 get off to a bad start, but in the Christian race that we run 57:52 the main thing is you want to finish well. 57:55 Keep on running, friends, and don't give up. 57:58 ♪♪♪ 58:08 ♪♪♪ |
Revised 2019-10-07