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Luccas Rodor: Hi, friends,
welcome to our "Sabbath School
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Study Hour" here at the
Granite Bay Seventh-day Hilltop
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Seventh Adventist Church.
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So good to be here
with you and to have
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you spending this time with us.
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We're ready to dive deep into
the study of this week's lesson,
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and we have a very good
lesson prepared for you today.
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I hope that you've
been studying this lesson.
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The title of this
quarter's message is
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"The Message of Hebrews."
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And so, we're going to be
looking at the book of Hebrews
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and diving deep into
the beautiful messages
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that we find there.
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This day, today, we have Pastor
Shawn that's going to be leading
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out, and he'll be teaching
lesson five, and the title is,
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"Jesus, the Giver of Rest."
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And so, I'm
excited for that lesson.
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Jesus is our rest
giver, and I hope that you
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enjoy and learn a lot.
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Before that, I'd like to
ask you to take advantage
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of our free offer.
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Today's free
offer is "Why God Said
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Remember," and so, if
you'd like this free offer,
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you could call 866-788-3966.
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And you could ask
for offer number 185.
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If you're in continental
North America, you can ask
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for offer SH129, and you
can text to the number 40544.
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If you're
outside of North America,
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then you could go to
study.aftv.org/SH129.
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And you can also get a digital
download of this beautiful study
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right here, "Why
God Said Remember."
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Please bow your heads
and let us pray right now.
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Dear Lord, thank you so
much for your blessings.
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Thank you so much
for the Sabbath Day,
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and thank you so much for the
Sabbath school lessons where we
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can dive deeper
into your Word, Lord,
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and extract meaning and
truth for our lives today.
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Right now, as Pastor
Shawn leads out in this study,
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Father, I ask you
to imbue his lips,
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imbue his mind and his
heart with your Spirit,
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Lord, that he
may speak from above.
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And may we learn
what we need to learn
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and what you want
us to learn today.
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I ask you these
things in Jesus's name, amen.
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God bless, Pastor Shawn.
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Shawn Brummund: You know,
it's interesting when you look
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at research in
regards to mental health,
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that insomnia is
apparently a challenge for about
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35% of all adults in America.
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And so, with
those kind of stats,
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I know that some of you
that I'm speaking to here today,
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both in the Hilltop Church, as
well as those who are watching
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online on various networks, that
you're struggling and that you
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also have that
challenge in your life,
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either long term or short term.
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And some of us have
insomnia for short spurts.
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Even the Apostle Paul is on
record twice in 2 Corinthians.
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He talks about how he
struggled with sleeplessness.
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And so, this is a
challenge that goes
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back, and
you're in good company.
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Even the Apostle Paul sometimes
struggled with insomnia.
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One of the struggles
with insomnia is that
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you deal with sleep deprivation.
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And when you deal
with sleep deprivation,
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you increase your risk of being
involved in an auto accident.
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You increase your risk of making
a critical mistake on the job.
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If it's a long-term challenge
that we have in an extensive
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way, we can find ourselves
dealing with a lot of different
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health issues that can emerge
from struggling with insomnia.
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Some of us have a
hard time going to sleep.
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When we go to
sleep, we toss and turn.
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We're counting sheep, we're
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reading a book, we're praying.
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We're doing all kinds of things
to be able to find ourselves
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finally falling asleep.
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Some of us will be able
to get to sleep no problem,
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but then we find ourselves
getting up and periodically
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waking up multiple
times through the night
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and breaking that sleep cycle.
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Some of you are
nodding your head,
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perhaps you've experienced
that or are experiencing it.
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Some of us just find ourselves
with our eyes kind of popping
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open at 4 or 5 in the morning,
we just can't get back to sleep.
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And so, we don't sleep long
enough even though we know that
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we need more than that
five hours perhaps that we had
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before our eyes popped open.
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Whatever it is, we ended up
not having a good night's sleep.
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Now, another thing that
the researchers also have
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discovered, and many of us know
that by personal experience and
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when they look at the
different list of the different
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researchers and experts
in that particular field,
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they share with us that the
number-one cause of insomnia is
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stress, and not only
stress, but some of us
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that struggle with
anxiety, depression.
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Some of these
other different health,
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mental-health challenges that
are very real for some of us
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will contribute to
that struggle of insomnia.
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Irregular sleep patterns
is another cause of insomnia.
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Too much screen time,
maybe too much stimulus
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just before you go to bed.
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You know, there's a number of
different reasons why we might
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struggle and what
causes that insomnia.
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Why am I
calling--talking about insomnia
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during our Sabbath School Hour?
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Well, because, you know, life
tells us and experience tells
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us, research tells us that if we
don't get a good night's rest,
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our quality of life is
not as good as it could be.
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And as it turns out, the term
"rest" appears 11 times in the
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two chapters that we're going
to be looking at here today in
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Hebrews chapter 3
and in Hebrews chapter 4.
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Eleven times that
word comes up, why?
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Because that's the main theme
of this week's lesson study,
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"Jesus, the Giver of Rest."
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And so, not only do we
need a good night's sleep,
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a good night's rest to be able
to have the best quality of life
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during our waking hours,
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but even more importantly
that we need to be able to have
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spiritual rest, the rest that
comes by having faith in Jesus,
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knowing that Jesus is
with me and I am with Jesus,
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knowing that there is a living
God that is walking with me,
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that gives me mercy and grace
as I sincerely give Him my faith
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that we might be able
to walk together with Him.
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And so, that's the theme today.
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Hebrews chapter 3
and Hebrews chapter 4.
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And as we go to Monday's
lesson on this particular
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chapter--actually,
no, not Monday,
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Sunday's lesson, we find there
that it points us to Genesis
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chapter 15, verses 13 to 21.
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Now, this particular passage is
one of several places in Genesis
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where God promises to bring
Abraham's many descendants into
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the Promised Land of Canaan.
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It's one of the most powerful
times that God reconfirms,
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in the deepest way that He can,
this covenant that He cuts with
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Abraham, promising that one
day when Abraham's descendants
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become as multiplied and as
great as the sand of the sea,
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that indeed, God would reconfirm
and cut that covenant again
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through what we now
call the Old Testament,
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during the times of Moses.
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And so, if you haven't read
that passage, we won't take the
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time today because we
can't look at everything.
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But in that passage, we
find some of the most intriguing
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elements of that
covenant with Abraham,
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as well as the prophecies
that God had revealed there in
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concern to the several hundred
years into Abraham's future.
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And sure enough,
in that prophecy,
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we also find that God had
prophesied and told Abraham that
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when His
descendants do multiply,
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they won't actually
multiply in the Promised Land,
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but they will multiply in a
foreign land, that of Egypt.
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And then he reveals that,
indeed, after several hundred
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years of Israel's
residence there and, sadly,
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their slavery that they
experienced for many years
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before they were
delivered, that indeed,
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they would serve that nation
and that God would judge them,
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and God would bring them out,
and God would bring them back to
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the Promised Land where
Abraham himself lived and died.
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Now, did God bring them
out of Egypt to bring judgment
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on Egypt for Egypt's crimes?
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Well, yes.
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We find that answer in
the passage of Genesis 15.
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In verse 14, it tells us that,
quote, "Also the nation whom
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they serve," God
says, "I will judge."
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And so, we find here clearly
that God reveals that one of the
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reasons that God had
delivered Israel out of slavery,
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out of bondage, out of a
very difficult and very tragic
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situation that they found
themselves under the leadership
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and slavery of a very evil king
and Pharaoh, we find that God
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judges Egypt for its crimes
against the people of Israel.
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But is this the only reason?
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Well, no. This is
not the only reason.
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There are many other reasons,
but one of them was to allow
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them to freely worship God.
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God was revealing them so that
they might be able to freely
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sacrifice at the temple,
sacrifice at the sanctuary, on
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the altar, that God would be
able to establish the Israelites
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a priesthood, that God would be
able to reestablish what He had
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already established, many of
those elements, already through
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the first family of Adam and Eve
and the different families of
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the faithful, Noah's family and
extended family through Salah,
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Abraham and the like.
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And so, God was
delivering the Israelites
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that they might worship God.
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Moses told Pharaoh, when he
first went in to see him as well
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as some of the other visits
that he had with the Pharaoh,
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and he said, "Let God's people
go that they might worship Him,
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that they might
sacrifice before Him."
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God was inviting
Israel into a land of freedom,
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a Promised Land that was
flowing with milk and honey.
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There was prosperity
on a physical level there,
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on a material level so that
their quality of life would be
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far greater than that which was
when they were being victimized
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by an evil Pharaoh and nation.
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But again, God was delivering
them and inviting them into a
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full, free
religious experience with Him.
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And friends, that's what the
Bible reveals to us as we look
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at the book of Exodus.
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Of course, that follows Genesis.
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We come to the time of Moses.
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I want to read a quote
here from page 37 on Sunday
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because it's
just worded so well.
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Page 37 in your quarterlies,
if you have them with you.
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You can go along
and find that with me.
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It's the last
couple of three sentences
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there of the actual page.
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It says, "Creation and
redemption are both enshrined in
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the Sabbath commandment."
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What is the Sabbath commandment?
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"Remember the
sabbath day, to keep it holy.
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Six days you shall
labor, and do all your work,
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but the seventh day is the
sabbath of the Lord your God:
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in it you shall do no work, you,
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nor your son, nor your
daughter, nor your manservant,
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nor your
maidservant, nor your cattle,
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nor the stranger
who's within your gates:
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For in six days the
Lord created the heavens,
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the earth, the sea,
and all that is in them,
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but rested the seventh day.
00:12:01.25\00:12:05.05
And therefore the Lord
blessed the sabbath day and--"
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"And hallowed it."
00:12:08.79\00:12:10.96
Okay, so some of you are able
to share that with me by memory.
00:12:10.99\00:12:15.33
It's a great
commandment to memorize.
00:12:15.36\00:12:17.03
In fact, I would recommend
that you have it memorized,
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all of the Ten Commandments,
that you memorize it.
00:12:19.47\00:12:22.54
You know, when you
memorize the Ten Commandments,
00:12:22.57\00:12:24.51
including the fourth
commandment, God is much
00:12:24.54\00:12:26.98
more able and capable of writing
His law upon your hearts.
00:12:27.01\00:12:31.75
Okay, because remember, the
covenant that God cut through
00:12:31.78\00:12:34.58
Jesus, the New
Testament, He says,
00:12:34.62\00:12:36.55
"I will write My laws upon
your--upon your mind," okay.
00:12:36.58\00:12:42.59
"And I will put
My laws in your mind,
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and I will write
them on your heart."
00:12:46.06\00:12:47.86
And so, for God to be able
to write it upon your heart,
00:12:47.86\00:12:51.47
you have to make sure that it's
firmly planted in your mind.
00:12:51.50\00:12:56.20
Now, friends, I have to
say, and I just say this
00:12:56.24\00:12:58.41
as a friendly challenge to you:
00:12:58.44\00:13:02.21
go ahead and memorize
those Ten Commandments.
00:13:02.24\00:13:05.15
You know, there's too
many of us as Christians,
00:13:05.18\00:13:07.55
as Seventh-day Adventists,
as champions as much as we are
00:13:07.58\00:13:10.62
champions of the law of God,
that God has called us to be
00:13:10.65\00:13:14.69
able to help the world and
to those who are believers and
00:13:14.72\00:13:17.39
those who are
coming-- becoming believers,
00:13:17.43\00:13:19.39
to understand that the law
of God is very relevant and is
00:13:19.43\00:13:22.86
a very real element
that God has always intended
00:13:22.90\00:13:26.17
for a believer to follow.
00:13:26.20\00:13:29.34
But there's too many of
us that don't know those Ten
00:13:29.37\00:13:31.34
Commandments off my heart.
00:13:31.37\00:13:33.98
Even if you don't know the
full extensive commandment,
00:13:34.01\00:13:38.08
like the fourth commandment,
which is one of the wordiest
00:13:38.11\00:13:40.28
ones, that one and the
second one are really long.
00:13:40.32\00:13:43.08
I'm not sure, I
haven't counted the words,
00:13:43.12\00:13:44.42
but they're a close
first and second there.
00:13:44.45\00:13:47.26
Some of them are very short.
00:13:47.29\00:13:48.59
"Thou shall not kill.
Thou shall not commit adultery.
00:13:48.62\00:13:51.39
Thou shall not lie
or bear false witness
00:13:51.43\00:13:53.60
against your neighbor and--"
00:13:53.63\00:13:55.70
There's too many of
us that don't know those
00:13:55.73\00:13:57.70
Ten Commandments by memory.
00:13:57.73\00:14:01.24
But there's something about
the exercise of memorizing.
00:14:01.27\00:14:03.14
That's another thing we're going
to run out of time if I continue
00:14:03.17\00:14:05.31
to preach on that.
00:14:05.34\00:14:08.04
All right, so
that's Exodus chapter
00:14:08.08\00:14:09.38
20, verses 8 through 11.
00:14:09.41\00:14:10.71
What about the second time?
00:14:10.75\00:14:12.05
There's two
times that we find it.
00:14:12.08\00:14:13.38
Let's go to
Deuteronomy chapter 5.
00:14:13.42\00:14:15.95
Let's open our Bibles
to Deuteronomy chapter 5,
00:14:15.98\00:14:18.42
and we find there, as
we've studied our last quarter,
00:14:18.45\00:14:20.86
we looked extensively
at the book of Deuteronomy.
00:14:20.89\00:14:23.09
And now we revisit
it again in the light
00:14:23.12\00:14:25.19
of Moses's last speeches.
00:14:25.23\00:14:27.56
Moses knows that his life
is quickly coming to an end.
00:14:27.60\00:14:30.27
He knows that they're at
the border of the Promised Land.
00:14:30.30\00:14:32.67
He's giving his last words
as God works through him to
00:14:32.70\00:14:35.67
summarize the covenant and the
laws and the principles and the
00:14:35.70\00:14:38.81
plans that God has for
Israel when they are entering
00:14:38.84\00:14:41.44
into the Promised Land.
00:14:41.48\00:14:42.84
And, of course, naturally, one
of the things that Moses goes
00:14:42.88\00:14:45.65
and reiterates verbally is
that of the Ten commandments.
00:14:45.68\00:14:50.52
Now, Moses knew by
memory, I am certain,
00:14:50.55\00:14:53.69
I would bet my life on it, that
he knew it just as well as you
00:14:53.72\00:14:56.96
and I know it by
memory, as we just recited it,
00:14:56.99\00:14:59.53
from the wording that God
actually wrote with His own
00:14:59.56\00:15:02.73
finger on the tablet of stone.
00:15:02.76\00:15:05.80
But when Moses recites the
Ten Commandments before the
00:15:05.83\00:15:08.50
Israelites, he takes prophetic
liberty as God is inspiring him
00:15:08.54\00:15:13.81
to be able to alter a
couple--three of those
00:15:13.84\00:15:16.68
commandments, not to leave the
principles and the ways and the
00:15:16.71\00:15:20.95
truth that is at the bedrock
of each of those commandments,
00:15:20.98\00:15:25.72
but to be able to
get further insight
00:15:25.75\00:15:27.66
and further understanding.
00:15:27.69\00:15:28.99
And so, sometimes we get
discouraged or sometimes we get
00:15:29.02\00:15:33.63
confused when we read the
fourth commandment in Jesus--
00:15:33.66\00:15:37.03
or in Moses's speech.
00:15:37.07\00:15:39.20
And we say to ourselves,
"Well, was Moses confused?
00:15:39.23\00:15:42.37
In Exodus, he writes it
one way, and in Deuteronomy,
00:15:42.40\00:15:45.44
the same author
writes it a different way."
00:15:45.47\00:15:48.18
No, we have to remember this as
a verbal recitation that Moses
00:15:48.21\00:15:51.75
is sharing here, and
he's taking prophetic liberty
00:15:51.78\00:15:54.78
to further--give some insight.
00:15:54.82\00:15:57.39
It says, "Observe the
sabbath day to keep it holy,
00:15:57.42\00:15:59.85
as the Lord your
God commanded you.
00:15:59.89\00:16:01.32
Six days you shall
labor, and do all your work:
00:16:01.36\00:16:03.26
But the seventh day is the
sabbath of the Lord your God:
00:16:03.29\00:16:06.16
in it you shall do no work, you,
00:16:06.19\00:16:08.30
nor your son, nor your
daughter, nor your male servant,
00:16:08.33\00:16:10.77
nor your female
servant, nor your cattle--
00:16:10.80\00:16:13.13
or nor your ox, nor your
donkey, nor any of your cattle,
00:16:13.17\00:16:16.27
nor your stranger
who's within your gates;
00:16:16.30\00:16:19.01
that your male servant
and your female servant
00:16:19.04\00:16:22.21
may rest as well as you."
00:16:22.24\00:16:25.05
So, there's some additional
information that's not on the
00:16:25.08\00:16:27.35
tablets of stone, but certainly
is a commentary that God is
00:16:27.38\00:16:31.25
inspiring Moses to give in
further understanding, saying
00:16:31.29\00:16:34.82
that's the reason why God tells
you not only for you to rest,
00:16:34.86\00:16:37.46
but for your manservant
and maidservant to rest,
00:16:37.49\00:16:39.33
so they can rest.
00:16:39.36\00:16:41.00
That's a whole other lesson that
I was so tempted to go off in a
00:16:41.03\00:16:44.20
tangent and talk about going out
to the restaurants on Sabbath,
00:16:44.23\00:16:47.10
or, you know, going to a fair,
some of these other things where
00:16:47.14\00:16:51.01
we're soliciting
the services of other
00:16:51.04\00:16:53.31
manservants and maidservants.
00:16:53.34\00:16:55.31
And this is, of course, contrary
to the very principle and
00:16:55.34\00:16:58.71
direction that God
gives us in regards
00:16:58.75\00:17:00.62
to the Sabbath commandment.
00:17:00.65\00:17:01.95
He says, "That your male
servant in your female servant
00:17:01.98\00:17:04.09
may rest as well as you.
00:17:04.12\00:17:07.32
"And remember that you were
a slave in the land of Egypt,
00:17:07.36\00:17:09.59
and the Lord your God brought
you out of there by a mighty
00:17:09.62\00:17:12.63
hand and by an outstretched arm:
00:17:12.66\00:17:14.36
therefore the Lord
your God commanded you
00:17:14.40\00:17:16.33
to keep the sabbath day."
00:17:16.36\00:17:17.93
And so, when we come to the last
words of Moses's rendition of it
00:17:17.97\00:17:23.84
here, we find here that God
is inspiring him to also reveal,
00:17:23.87\00:17:27.41
under inspiration, that God
has now given the Sabbath to the
00:17:27.44\00:17:31.65
believing, the believers that
God is trying to establish as
00:17:31.68\00:17:34.98
believers in Israel, that they
were to keep the Sabbath both as
00:17:35.02\00:17:40.86
a commemoration and a memorial
of the fact that God had created
00:17:40.89\00:17:45.29
this planet and all its
beauty and amazing intricacies.
00:17:45.33\00:17:50.33
All the species or life forms
that we find upon the planet,
00:17:50.37\00:17:53.37
all of it was done by
God with power and with great
00:17:53.40\00:17:56.60
intelligence and design
within six powerful days.
00:17:56.64\00:18:01.78
And then He capped off
that seven--He capped off that
00:18:01.81\00:18:04.18
six-day week into a seven-day
week because then He looked at
00:18:04.21\00:18:08.02
all that He had made,
as Genesis chapter 2 says,
00:18:08.05\00:18:10.95
or at the end of
Genesis chapter 1, it says,
00:18:10.99\00:18:13.05
"He saw the all that He
had made indeed it was very--
00:18:13.09\00:18:16.69
it was very good."
00:18:16.73\00:18:19.76
Okay, and then He goes
on, but then God blessed
00:18:19.79\00:18:22.66
the Sabbath Day
and rested on it.
00:18:22.70\00:18:26.30
And not only that,
but it also says that he's
00:18:26.33\00:18:27.80
on record of making it holy.
00:18:27.84\00:18:32.21
God rested from all His
works and He made it holy.
00:18:32.24\00:18:37.65
And so, that's why we--when
we come to the bottom of page 37
00:18:37.68\00:18:41.45
here and it says, "Creation and
redemption are both enshrined
00:18:41.48\00:18:44.32
in the Sabbath commandment."
00:18:44.35\00:18:45.65
Did God redeem the
Israelites from in slavery
00:18:45.69\00:18:48.92
and bondage in Egypt?
00:18:48.96\00:18:50.26
Yes, He did.
Okay, He rescued them.
00:18:50.29\00:18:52.73
He bought them--he brought them
as His son out of Egypt into the
00:18:52.76\00:18:57.30
land of Canaan, into the
Promised Land of freedom.
00:18:57.33\00:19:01.70
And so, creation and redemption
are both enshrined in the
00:19:01.74\00:19:06.01
Sabbath commandment.
00:19:06.04\00:19:08.54
Now, of course, the rest of the
Bible and the Bible writers use
00:19:08.58\00:19:11.91
the Exodus, use this deliverance
from slavery and bondage.
00:19:11.95\00:19:15.48
Paul in particular really rode
this theme and this truth in the
00:19:15.52\00:19:19.35
fact that God was using Israel
and its deliverance from literal
00:19:19.39\00:19:23.99
slavery and bondage to represent
God's deliverance from--for us
00:19:24.03\00:19:28.80
from literal
slavage and bondage to sin,
00:19:28.83\00:19:32.87
to our selfishness,
to our self-centeredness,
00:19:32.90\00:19:36.64
and all these different
struggles that we are born with
00:19:36.67\00:19:39.44
that we come
into this world with.
00:19:39.47\00:19:41.54
And so, God delivers us
when we come to Jesus by faith.
00:19:41.58\00:19:45.51
He forgives us our
sins, justification.
00:19:45.55\00:19:49.72
He totally wipes our
slate clean, but then also He
00:19:49.75\00:19:53.59
delivers us from
sin as well, doesn't He?
00:19:53.62\00:19:57.06
Okay, "Behold, I am or God who
delivered you out of the slavery
00:19:57.09\00:20:00.20
in bondage of Egypt," as
God said in his--in the original
00:20:00.23\00:20:04.27
record of the Ten Commandments
and the time that God actually
00:20:04.30\00:20:07.67
gave the Ten Commandments
on the tablets of stone.
00:20:07.70\00:20:12.54
And then it goes on in page
37, "Just as we did not create
00:20:12.57\00:20:15.48
ourselves, we cannot
save ourselves," okay?
00:20:15.51\00:20:18.75
It says, "We cannot redeem
ourselves" in the quarterly.
00:20:18.78\00:20:21.85
But redeem is something
that we're not as familiar with.
00:20:21.88\00:20:24.59
And so, I'd like to
look at--you know, synonyms,
00:20:24.62\00:20:27.46
that help us to be able to--that
we're more familiar with.
00:20:27.49\00:20:29.76
It might make it clear for us.
00:20:29.79\00:20:31.73
He did not create ourselves--we
did not create ourselves,
00:20:31.76\00:20:35.03
and we cannot
redeem or save ourselves.
00:20:35.06\00:20:37.60
It's a work that only
God can do, and by resting,
00:20:37.63\00:20:39.93
we acknowledge our
dependence upon Him,
00:20:39.97\00:20:42.04
not only for existence,
but also for salvation.
00:20:42.07\00:20:45.51
Sabbath keeping is
a powerful expression
00:20:45.54\00:20:47.71
of salvation by faith alone.
00:20:47.74\00:20:51.08
And we're going to touch
on more on that as we continue
00:20:51.11\00:20:55.18
in our study here today.
00:20:55.22\00:21:01.02
All right, so the Israelites
are now free to observe the
00:21:01.06\00:21:03.29
universal seventh-day Sabbath.
00:21:03.32\00:21:05.83
God has delivered
them out of Egypt.
00:21:05.86\00:21:07.73
He's delivered to
them out of bondage.
00:21:07.76\00:21:09.43
And now they're free to
worship Him in all ways,
00:21:09.46\00:21:12.27
including that of observing
the seventh-day Sabbath,
00:21:12.30\00:21:15.84
the one that God had created for
mankind in the very beginning of
00:21:15.87\00:21:18.84
the first week of
history here on this earth.
00:21:18.87\00:21:25.05
Now, the original one that was
found on the tablets of stone
00:21:25.08\00:21:27.92
points Israel to that time
that God had delivered them.
00:21:27.95\00:21:33.49
But the verbal reference to it
by Moses includes something more
00:21:33.52\00:21:37.36
that God wants the
Israelites to know.
00:21:37.39\00:21:39.46
And this ultimately points to
the ultimate redemption that's
00:21:39.49\00:21:42.83
found through Christ as the
spiritual New Testament Israel.
00:21:42.86\00:21:48.30
And so, I think that's another
point that I just want to stop
00:21:48.34\00:21:51.24
and clarify for us because
I know that there's a lot of
00:21:51.27\00:21:55.01
confusion in
modern Christianity,
00:21:55.04\00:21:57.18
in Protestant Christianity,
evangelical Christianity,
00:21:57.21\00:22:00.38
in concern to, what
is Israel right now?
00:22:00.42\00:22:04.69
Where do we find
God's Israel today?
00:22:04.72\00:22:08.79
And many of us have been taught
and many of us have believed,
00:22:08.82\00:22:13.43
perhaps some of us even
taught, that Israel today,
00:22:13.46\00:22:16.50
God's Israel, is
found in the Middle East.
00:22:16.53\00:22:20.40
That's not true.
00:22:20.44\00:22:22.40
That's not true at all.
00:22:22.44\00:22:23.74
God reveals, both
through Jesus's teachings,
00:22:23.77\00:22:26.41
as well as later on
through His apostles,
00:22:26.44\00:22:29.04
that if you want
to find Israel today,
00:22:29.08\00:22:31.51
God's Israel, biblical
Israel, it's right here.
00:22:31.55\00:22:36.05
You're modern Israel.
00:22:36.08\00:22:38.89
You're God's Israel.
00:22:38.92\00:22:41.16
Israel today is Zion.
00:22:41.19\00:22:43.86
Israel today is the church.
00:22:43.89\00:22:46.80
We have to remember that
Christianity is not a religion
00:22:46.83\00:22:49.66
that is separate from Judaism.
00:22:49.70\00:22:52.40
Christianity is the
ultimate fulfillment
00:22:52.43\00:22:55.00
and extension of
biblical Judaism.
00:22:55.04\00:22:58.87
And so, true Judaism is found
fully and most completely in the
00:22:58.91\00:23:04.68
Christian church,
in the New Testament.
00:23:04.71\00:23:08.95
Now, friends, I
know that for some of us,
00:23:08.98\00:23:10.89
that will be revolutionary,
even as I'm saying it,
00:23:10.92\00:23:13.02
especially if you've been taught
that Israel is in the Middle
00:23:13.05\00:23:15.19
East, that God isn't
concerned, He has a plan,
00:23:15.22\00:23:17.73
and that His
main focus is on that
00:23:17.76\00:23:20.10
little country
in the Middle East.
00:23:20.13\00:23:21.40
It used to be, but Jesus says,
"I have removed the kingdom from
00:23:21.43\00:23:26.74
you, and I have
given to another nation
00:23:26.77\00:23:28.80
bearing the fruits thereof."
00:23:28.84\00:23:31.11
And then Peter later
on in 1 Peter chapter 2,
00:23:31.14\00:23:33.71
he says that you
are a holy nation,
00:23:33.74\00:23:36.98
a holy and royal priesthood.
00:23:37.01\00:23:39.08
You are modern Israel.
00:23:39.11\00:23:41.28
Paul comes along and says
if you have faith in Jesus,
00:23:41.32\00:23:43.69
you are of the seed of Abraham.
00:23:43.72\00:23:47.12
Now, friends, this is a truth
that has been totally buried
00:23:47.16\00:23:51.63
within Protestantism
just over the last 50 years.
00:23:51.66\00:23:54.86
If you back up 50
years in America to 19--well,
00:23:54.93\00:23:58.27
70 years now from--I can
safely say for 1950 backwards,
00:23:58.30\00:24:02.10
you can go to
any Baptist Church,
00:24:02.14\00:24:03.54
Methodist Church,
Pentecostal church,
00:24:03.57\00:24:05.27
almost any of those churches,
and it was regular chorus for
00:24:05.31\00:24:09.28
the pastors and the
Sunday school teachers,
00:24:09.31\00:24:11.58
the Sabbath school teachers,
to be able to share with their
00:24:11.61\00:24:14.28
members that indeed you
are Zion, you are Israel.
00:24:14.32\00:24:19.69
So, even though it's new coming
from this pulpit and other
00:24:19.72\00:24:22.69
Seventh-day Adventist pulpits,
if you've never been exposed to
00:24:22.72\00:24:25.86
it before, it
wasn't if you go back
00:24:25.89\00:24:28.30
70 plus years in this country.
00:24:28.33\00:24:30.90
Across the board, Protestants
understood that New Testament
00:24:30.93\00:24:33.97
Israel is the church.
00:24:34.00\00:24:39.17
And so, when we look at
ancient Israel and how God had
00:24:39.21\00:24:42.81
physically delivered them
out of bondage and slavery,
00:24:42.84\00:24:45.55
this is why Paul and the
other apostles were able to very
00:24:45.58\00:24:49.38
freely and confidently talk
about how that symbolized the
00:24:49.42\00:24:54.39
ultimate deliverance of all
believers within modern Israel,
00:24:54.42\00:24:57.73
within New Testament Israel,
which is the church when you put
00:24:57.76\00:25:00.26
your faith in Christ,
experience His sanctification,
00:25:00.30\00:25:03.50
as well as His justification
that comes from Christ alone
00:25:03.53\00:25:08.90
by faith in Christ alone.
00:25:08.94\00:25:12.37
And so, the rest of the
lesson study this week is
00:25:12.41\00:25:14.41
in Hebrews chapter 3 and 4.
00:25:14.44\00:25:16.28
Because these two chapters
lean so heavily upon Psalm 95,
00:25:16.31\00:25:19.91
I want to invite you
to come with me as we go
00:25:19.95\00:25:21.75
to Psalm 95 today.
00:25:21.78\00:25:23.39
We're going to the 95th Psalm.
00:25:23.42\00:25:30.03
And as we go to the 95th Psalm,
00:25:30.06\00:25:32.43
I want to read
it in its fullness.
00:25:32.46\00:25:34.56
Now, Hebrews 3 and 4
doesn't quote the whole thing,
00:25:34.56\00:25:36.56
but we're there and I'd like to
see it in its full context and
00:25:36.60\00:25:38.73
then be able to carry ourselves
forward such, about a thousand
00:25:38.77\00:25:42.54
years to Paul's day
where he wrote Hebrews.
00:25:42.57\00:25:46.71
So, we're back at
Psalm 95 written by David.
00:25:46.74\00:25:49.28
It doesn't say that in your
Bible here because the ancient
00:25:49.31\00:25:52.01
records in the Jewish
Psalms doesn't say that.
00:25:52.05\00:25:54.65
But when you come to Hebrews
chapter 3, in particular,
00:25:54.68\00:25:57.52
Hebrews chapter 4,
it tells us that David
00:25:57.55\00:26:00.22
is writing this psalm.
00:26:00.26\00:26:01.99
So, we know it was written about
3,000 years back from our day.
00:26:02.02\00:26:05.06
It says, "O come--"
00:26:05.09\00:26:06.39
And, in fact, let's go
ahead and read it together.
00:26:06.43\00:26:09.30
Okay, so let's go
ahead and read together.
00:26:09.33\00:26:10.63
Just read it softly, but
let's read it out loud together.
00:26:10.67\00:26:13.20
Let's see if we can
capture the Spirit and do
00:26:13.23\00:26:15.57
a little something different.
00:26:15.60\00:26:16.91
You ready?
00:26:16.94\00:26:19.01
It says, "O, come and
let us sing to the Lord.
00:26:19.04\00:26:22.94
Let us shout joyfully to
the God of our salvation,
00:26:22.98\00:26:27.55
let us come before His
presence with thanksgiving.
00:26:27.58\00:26:30.85
Let us shout
joyfully to Him with psalms.
00:26:30.89\00:26:34.39
For the Lord is the
great God and the great King
00:26:34.42\00:26:37.39
above all kings--above all gods.
00:26:37.43\00:26:40.46
In His hand are the
deep places of the earth.
00:26:40.50\00:26:43.33
The heights of the
hills are His also.
00:26:43.37\00:26:45.37
The sea is His, for
He made it, and His hands
00:26:45.40\00:26:48.60
formed the dry land.
00:26:48.64\00:26:50.47
O come, let us
worship and bow down.
00:26:50.51\00:26:53.91
Let us kneel
before the Lord our Maker,
00:26:53.94\00:26:56.81
for He is our God, and we are
the people of His pasture and
00:26:56.85\00:27:00.62
the sheep of His hand.
00:27:00.65\00:27:02.42
Today, if you will hear
His voice, do not harden your
00:27:02.45\00:27:06.25
hearts as in the rebellion,
as in the day of trial in the
00:27:06.29\00:27:09.46
wilderness when
the fathers tested me.
00:27:09.49\00:27:12.33
They tried me,
though they saw my work.
00:27:12.36\00:27:15.33
For 40 years, I was grieved
with that generation and said,
00:27:15.36\00:27:19.30
"It is a people who go
astray in their hearts,
00:27:19.33\00:27:21.44
and they do not know my ways.
00:27:21.47\00:27:24.01
For I swore in my wrath,
they shall not enter my rest."
00:27:24.04\00:27:30.28
And so, here we find
a very powerful psalm.
00:27:30.31\00:27:32.25
Now, of course, this was a song.
00:27:32.28\00:27:34.02
Psalm is an old English
term that simply means song
00:27:34.05\00:27:36.58
in our modern English.
00:27:36.62\00:27:38.92
And so, the songs
were all--had a tune.
00:27:38.95\00:27:41.02
I have no idea
how that tune goes,
00:27:41.06\00:27:42.69
I don't think any scholar does.
00:27:42.72\00:27:44.16
And it was all for the better
anyway because God gave me the
00:27:44.19\00:27:47.30
opposite of a
gifted singing voice.
00:27:47.30\00:27:50.33
And so, I wouldn't want
to dare to try to sing it
00:27:50.37\00:27:54.80
even if I knew the tune.
00:27:54.84\00:27:58.34
But clearly, when
we come to the Psalm,
00:27:58.37\00:28:01.34
God invited the generation
of Moses to enter His perfect
00:28:01.38\00:28:05.98
spiritual, gospel rest.
00:28:06.01\00:28:09.65
God was inviting Israel
into a gospel experience.
00:28:09.68\00:28:13.99
God was inviting
Moses's generation into a true
00:28:14.02\00:28:17.29
spiritual, perfect rest.
00:28:17.33\00:28:18.99
In fact, in Exodus chapter
33 and verse 14, it tells us,
00:28:19.03\00:28:22.76
"And He said, 'My
presence will go with you,
00:28:22.80\00:28:25.83
and I will give you rest.'"
00:28:25.87\00:28:30.14
Exodus 33, verse 14, He said,
"My presence will go with you,
00:28:30.17\00:28:33.48
and I will give you
rest," Jesus says to
00:28:33.51\00:28:36.58
Moses and to his generation.
00:28:36.61\00:28:40.78
All right, so Monday, it
turns us--it starts to direct
00:28:40.82\00:28:43.65
us to Hebrews chapter
3, and so that's where
00:28:43.69\00:28:45.69
we're going to spend the
rest of our time here today.
00:28:45.72\00:28:47.62
Hebrews chapter 3,
and we're going to pick it
00:28:47.66\00:28:49.36
up with verse 12.
00:28:49.39\00:28:51.49
Now, verses 7 through 11,
we find that--here we find Paul
00:28:51.53\00:28:58.73
quoting from Psalm
95 for the first time,
00:28:58.77\00:29:02.30
and then he basically unpacks
that through the rest of chapter
00:29:02.34\00:29:04.81
3 and through chapter 4.
00:29:04.84\00:29:06.68
And so, that's what
we're going to do over the next
00:29:06.71\00:29:08.41
few minutes here today.
00:29:08.44\00:29:09.81
So, we're just going to
take it verse by verse again.
00:29:09.84\00:29:11.48
Verses 7 through
10, verses 7 through 11,
00:29:11.51\00:29:14.28
we've already read
in its original context,
00:29:14.32\00:29:17.62
in its original
place in Psalm 95.
00:29:17.65\00:29:21.62
Verse 7 does say, "Therefore
as the Holy Spirit says
00:29:21.66\00:29:24.26
today if you'll hear His voice."
00:29:24.29\00:29:25.59
Now, of course, the
voice of God comes through
00:29:25.63\00:29:27.30
the Holy Spirit, doesn't it?
00:29:27.30\00:29:29.40
And so, there's a
perfect tie-in there.
00:29:29.43\00:29:33.97
Okay, but again
in verse 11, sadly,
00:29:34.00\00:29:35.87
Jesus, God the Father eventually
had to say to that generation,
00:29:35.90\00:29:39.74
"So I sworn in my wrath,
they shall not enter My rest."
00:29:39.77\00:29:45.91
"Beware, brethren," Paul
goes on to his generation.
00:29:45.95\00:29:48.75
You see, there's three
generations that are being
00:29:48.78\00:29:51.29
addressed here in
these two chapters.
00:29:51.32\00:29:53.46
One of them is
Moses's generation,
00:29:53.49\00:29:55.86
which again, we're finding as he
quotes from David's generation,
00:29:55.89\00:30:01.03
but also, as
we'll later on look at,
00:30:01.06\00:30:03.30
he's also
quoting from--well, no,
00:30:03.33\00:30:05.73
the psalm itself is reflecting
on Moses's generation.
00:30:05.77\00:30:08.94
But then later on
in Hebrews chapter 4,
00:30:08.97\00:30:11.01
we find that God is also--Paul
is--and in the Bible here is
00:30:11.04\00:30:14.78
also addressing David's
generation because David was the
00:30:14.81\00:30:17.75
one that was
prophetically inspired to give
00:30:17.78\00:30:19.91
the psalm to his generation.
00:30:19.95\00:30:21.35
"Today, if you hear His
voice, harden not your heart."
00:30:21.38\00:30:24.55
And then, of
course, Paul ultimately
00:30:24.59\00:30:26.55
is addressing his generation.
00:30:26.59\00:30:28.86
And then God made sure--saw fit
to be able to make sure that the
00:30:28.89\00:30:32.13
writings of Paul in--to the
Hebrew believers of his day was
00:30:32.16\00:30:35.46
recorded and preserved in
the Holy Scriptures of the New
00:30:35.50\00:30:38.07
Testament, which means that it's
also addressing our generation.
00:30:38.10\00:30:42.37
It's addressing you and I,
and that's why we're looking
00:30:42.40\00:30:44.17
at it here today as well.
00:30:44.21\00:30:47.51
By the way, when
it says, "Today, if
00:30:47.54\00:30:48.84
you will hear His voice, do
not harden your hearts," what's
00:30:48.88\00:30:51.25
the opposite of
hardening your hearts?
00:30:51.28\00:30:55.12
It's softening
your hearts, isn't it?
00:30:55.15\00:30:57.19
All right, okay.
00:30:57.22\00:30:58.79
So, when God says, "Today,
if you will hear His voice,
00:30:58.82\00:31:00.89
do not harden your hearts,"
another way of saying that is
00:31:00.92\00:31:03.99
today, if you hear His
voice, soften your hearts,
00:31:04.03\00:31:09.00
soften your
hearts to the Lord God.
00:31:09.03\00:31:13.60
You know, there's a
sinful, independent part of us,
00:31:13.64\00:31:16.67
you know, that wants
to harden our hearts.
00:31:16.71\00:31:18.31
And it's a
temptation for all human beings.
00:31:18.34\00:31:20.51
But God says don't fall for
it, soften your hearts instead.
00:31:20.54\00:31:25.28
Don't go that down that pathway.
00:31:25.31\00:31:27.65
Don't choose that choice
that you can make to be able to
00:31:27.68\00:31:31.35
harden your heart and to be
able to choose a way that is not
00:31:31.39\00:31:34.59
with God and not of God.
00:31:34.62\00:31:38.83
And so, Paul here is doing what
he does throughout the whole
00:31:38.86\00:31:41.00
book of Hebrews, as Pastor
Doug and others that have been
00:31:41.03\00:31:44.83
teaching this
lesson study so far.
00:31:44.87\00:31:46.47
You know, the book of Hebrews
was written predominantly to be
00:31:46.50\00:31:49.04
able to encourage, as well as to
warn Jewish believers in Paul's
00:31:49.07\00:31:53.21
day not to go into apostasy.
00:31:53.24\00:31:55.48
Apparently, there was a number
of different Jewish believers
00:31:55.51\00:31:58.18
that saw that Jesus was
the ultimate Jewish Messiah,
00:31:58.21\00:32:01.42
that He was the cap to Judaism,
and that the New Testament was
00:32:01.45\00:32:04.99
the ultimate
fulfillment of Judaism,
00:32:05.02\00:32:07.16
a transition and full
completion of Judaism.
00:32:07.19\00:32:09.92
And so, they
embraced Christianity
00:32:09.96\00:32:12.33
and they accepted Christ.
00:32:12.36\00:32:14.46
But that came with a high, high
price because there was great
00:32:14.50\00:32:19.13
pushback by their families,
by the Jewish community,
00:32:19.17\00:32:23.10
by their synagogues,
by their neighborhoods.
00:32:23.14\00:32:24.94
And so, there was
massive persecution.
00:32:24.97\00:32:27.84
Many of them were disowned
by their family completely.
00:32:27.88\00:32:32.15
And so, because of that, there
was a great temptation to be
00:32:32.18\00:32:35.08
able to go into
apostasy, to abandon this great,
00:32:35.12\00:32:38.12
powerful truth, and revert
back to what was a semi-Judaism.
00:32:38.15\00:32:44.56
The reason I say semi-Judaism,
and this is not to offend any of
00:32:44.59\00:32:47.60
my Jewish friends that might be
watching considering the things
00:32:47.60\00:32:50.40
of the New Testament Scriptures,
but rather because of the fact
00:32:50.43\00:32:53.67
that, just like Christianity
became semi-Christianity,
00:32:53.70\00:32:57.34
Judaism, also by Jesus's
generation, Paul's generation,
00:32:57.37\00:33:01.08
had become semi
Judaism, biblical Judaism, why?
00:33:01.11\00:33:04.75
Because, as we are so apt
to be able to do so often,
00:33:04.78\00:33:10.62
we want to start to create a lot
of our own religion and add to
00:33:10.65\00:33:15.26
the Scriptures, add to
Judaism, add to Christianity.
00:33:15.29\00:33:18.89
And we just start to develop
theologies and traditions and
00:33:18.93\00:33:22.23
religions and ceremonies that
aren't written in the Bible,
00:33:22.26\00:33:25.17
and sadly, quite often
are contrary to the original
00:33:25.20\00:33:27.64
Judaism, original Christianity.
00:33:27.67\00:33:30.87
And so, many Jewish believers
in the Christian church were
00:33:30.91\00:33:33.98
tempted to go back and
apostatize from this truth and
00:33:34.01\00:33:37.51
go back to their ways so that
they can reassemble it and be
00:33:37.55\00:33:39.95
accepted within their
families and the neighborhoods.
00:33:39.98\00:33:43.25
And so, when we
come to verse 12,
00:33:43.28\00:33:45.49
he says, "Beware, brethren, lest
there be any of you that have an
00:33:45.52\00:33:48.96
evil heart of unbelief in
departing from the living God.
00:33:48.99\00:33:51.89
But exhort one another daily
while it is still called today,
00:33:51.93\00:33:55.53
lest any of you
be hardened through
00:33:55.56\00:33:57.43
the deceitfulness of sin.
00:33:57.47\00:33:59.93
For we have become partakers of
Christ if we hold the beginning
00:34:00.04\00:34:03.74
of our confidence
steadfast in the end.
00:34:03.77\00:34:06.04
While it is said, today,
if you will hear His voice,
00:34:06.07\00:34:10.25
do not harden your
hearts as in the rebellion,
00:34:10.28\00:34:12.48
soften your hearts instead."
00:34:12.51\00:34:15.35
And so, we find here a warning.
00:34:15.38\00:34:17.99
And by the way, verse
14 and all through Hebrews,
00:34:18.02\00:34:21.46
you know, sometimes I
like to just know a book.
00:34:21.49\00:34:23.39
You know, some--I know a number
of different Scriptures that God
00:34:23.43\00:34:25.66
gives to me to be able to help
people see through different
00:34:25.69\00:34:28.13
lies, religious lies, that
have crept into Christianity.
00:34:28.16\00:34:31.90
And one of those religious lies
is that once you give your heart
00:34:31.93\00:34:35.64
to Jesus, you come into a
saving relationship with Him,
00:34:35.67\00:34:38.21
you cannot be lost.
00:34:38.24\00:34:41.81
Okay, now if you stay in
that relationship with Him,
00:34:41.84\00:34:43.81
you cannot be lost, it's true.
00:34:43.85\00:34:45.55
But you do have that
ability and capability.
00:34:45.58\00:34:49.58
And there were believers all
through history that demonstrate
00:34:49.62\00:34:52.45
that you can have a born-again,
saved relationship with Jesus
00:34:52.49\00:34:55.92
Christ and still find yourself
dying a lost man or woman, why?
00:34:55.96\00:35:00.46
Because you made choices later
on that started to bring you
00:35:00.50\00:35:03.67
away from Jesus and
you began to apostacize,
00:35:03.70\00:35:07.50
and you began to find yourself
outside of that salvation.
00:35:07.54\00:35:10.31
Now, there's a
number of different quotes,
00:35:10.34\00:35:12.17
you know, 1 Corinthians chapter
9 and later in that chapter,
00:35:12.21\00:35:15.38
you know, Paul says, "You know,
I discipline my body that I
00:35:15.41\00:35:18.01
might not lose that salvation
which I've preached to others."
00:35:18.05\00:35:21.55
You know, so very clearly,
we find some proof text.
00:35:21.58\00:35:23.69
But if you wanted
to go to a whole book,
00:35:23.72\00:35:25.45
the whole book of Hebrews is one
of the greatest answers to the
00:35:25.49\00:35:28.29
question, "If we're
saved, can we ever be lost?"
00:35:28.32\00:35:32.06
And so, Hebrews is warning and
encouraging the Hebrew believers
00:35:32.09\00:35:36.97
that, indeed, you may have
a saving relationship with him
00:35:37.00\00:35:39.23
now, but if you begin to
backslide and you begin to
00:35:39.27\00:35:41.60
apostacize, you can
lose that salvation.
00:35:41.64\00:35:47.91
Verse 14 says, "For if we
have become partakers of Christ,
00:35:47.94\00:35:50.65
if, if we hold the
beginning of our confidence
00:35:50.68\00:35:55.62
steadfast to the end."
00:35:55.65\00:35:57.09
Just as "if" is reiterated
dozens of times in the Old
00:35:57.12\00:36:01.49
Testament, so is "if"
also found, reiterated and
00:36:01.52\00:36:05.03
repeated throughout
the New Testament, why?
00:36:05.06\00:36:06.86
Because salvation
is conditional upon
00:36:06.90\00:36:09.20
a sincere, consistent faith.
00:36:09.23\00:36:14.64
And then we come to verse 16.
00:36:14.67\00:36:16.07
It says, "For who
having heard rebelled?"
00:36:16.10\00:36:19.51
Well, of course, sadly,
that was Moses's generation.
00:36:19.54\00:36:22.31
"Indeed, was it not all who
came out of Egypt led by Moses?"
00:36:22.34\00:36:27.58
Now, of course, many times when
the Bible uses the term "all,"
00:36:27.62\00:36:30.79
he doesn't intend, and
the Bible doesn't intend,
00:36:30.82\00:36:33.25
for us to take it to its
literal fullest end, meaning
00:36:33.29\00:36:36.06
every single
individual Israelite.
00:36:36.09\00:36:38.56
And this is one of those cases
because we have Joshua and Caleb
00:36:38.59\00:36:41.43
for certain were faithful to
God through that generation and
00:36:41.46\00:36:44.20
actually entered
the Promised Land.
00:36:44.23\00:36:46.40
But all as a whole who
came out of Egypt led by Moses,
00:36:46.43\00:36:50.11
sadly, chose to harden our
hearts rather than soften it,
00:36:50.14\00:36:53.64
chose to not believe and obey,
rather than to believe and obey.
00:36:53.68\00:36:59.21
And verse 17, it says, "Now
with whom was he angry 40 years?
00:36:59.25\00:37:04.42
Was it not with
those who sinned,
00:37:04.45\00:37:07.72
whose corpses
fell in the wilderness?
00:37:07.76\00:37:10.33
And to whom did he swear that
they would not enter his rest,
00:37:10.36\00:37:13.96
but to those who did not obey."
00:37:14.00\00:37:18.70
And verse 19, now
let's pick this up.
00:37:18.73\00:37:21.07
Verse 19, it says, "So we that
they could enter it--so we--so
00:37:21.10\00:37:29.34
we see that they
could not enter it because
00:37:29.38\00:37:31.45
of unbelief,"
because of unbelief.
00:37:31.48\00:37:35.68
Now, there's a parallelism here
that we'd want to pick up that I
00:37:35.72\00:37:38.49
don't want us to brush
over because again here,
00:37:38.52\00:37:41.06
it also reveals in these two
chapters another kernel of truth
00:37:41.09\00:37:44.76
that is very
critical for us to understand,
00:37:44.79\00:37:46.83
and that is true belief
always comes with obedience.
00:37:46.86\00:37:51.47
Okay, so Paul here could very
confidently and very freely go
00:37:51.50\00:37:55.07
back and forth between
obedience and unbelief,
00:37:55.10\00:37:57.64
between
disobedience and unbelief,
00:37:57.67\00:38:00.04
between
obedience and faith, why?
00:38:00.08\00:38:02.58
Because one always
comes with the other.
00:38:02.61\00:38:04.75
You cannot have a sincere faith
and not want to obey Jesus.
00:38:04.78\00:38:10.29
If someone comes to you and
says, "Listen, I'm a born-again
00:38:10.32\00:38:12.35
Christian, I love Jesus with all
my heart," but you start to talk
00:38:12.39\00:38:14.66
about the law and obedience to
them, and they start to turn off
00:38:14.69\00:38:17.13
immediately and tell
you how unimportant that is,
00:38:17.16\00:38:19.36
that person does not
have a sincere saving faith.
00:38:19.39\00:38:25.40
And so, God has called us to
be able to help our Christian
00:38:25.43\00:38:28.24
friends if they're in that place
to be able to understand that
00:38:28.27\00:38:30.74
true love and faith
in Jesus means a willing
00:38:30.77\00:38:34.08
and surrendered
obedience to Jesus.
00:38:34.11\00:38:38.25
Now, the book of
James unpacks that.
00:38:38.28\00:38:39.58
We find that reiterated here
throughout these two chapters in
00:38:39.61\00:38:42.65
a very powerful
way because, again,
00:38:42.68\00:38:44.39
Paul is going back and forth.
00:38:44.42\00:38:45.72
The Bible goes back and
forth between them being
00:38:45.75\00:38:47.82
unbelievers and
disobedient, why?
00:38:47.86\00:38:49.89
Because when you
believe, you obey.
00:38:49.92\00:38:52.96
When you don't
believe, you're disobey.
00:38:52.99\00:38:56.30
Okay, and the more you
believe, the more you will obey.
00:38:56.33\00:38:58.27
And the more you
obey, the more you believe.
00:38:58.30\00:39:01.10
It's a great life-giving cycle
that God gives to us that the
00:39:01.14\00:39:04.04
Bible reveals for you and me.
00:39:04.07\00:39:10.51
All right, so let's go to
Hebrews chapter 4, and we're
00:39:10.55\00:39:17.22
just going to commentate
through Hebrews chapter 4
00:39:17.25\00:39:19.45
because we're going to run
out of time very quickly here.
00:39:19.49\00:39:21.59
Verse 4, chapter 4
it says, "Therefore,
00:39:21.62\00:39:23.46
since a promise
remains of entering His rest,
00:39:23.49\00:39:26.23
let us fear lest any of us seem
to have come fall short of it."
00:39:26.26\00:39:29.33
Again, that conditionality
of their salvation very clear.
00:39:29.36\00:39:32.60
"For indeed the
gospel was preached to us
00:39:32.63\00:39:35.10
as well as to them."
00:39:35.14\00:39:36.44
Friends, the
first time I saw that,
00:39:36.47\00:39:37.81
I just about fell off my chair.
00:39:37.84\00:39:40.21
And now I've got it highlighted
in my most important color,
00:39:40.24\00:39:42.31
green, in my Bible, why?
00:39:42.34\00:39:43.65
Because it tells us very clearly
that God was inviting and had
00:39:43.68\00:39:48.25
revealed the gospel of Jesus
Christ to the first generation
00:39:48.28\00:39:50.99
of Israelites in which he cut a
covenant with--through Moses and
00:39:51.02\00:39:54.52
the leadership of Moses, just
as much as he did with the first
00:39:54.56\00:39:57.29
generation of Christian
believers and you and me.
00:39:57.33\00:40:01.83
It tells us that the gospel
was crystal clear to them.
00:40:01.86\00:40:04.10
God was inviting them to
the same experience that he is
00:40:04.13\00:40:07.64
inviting you and I
as Christians today.
00:40:07.67\00:40:10.91
And that's another lie
that God had--not that God,
00:40:10.94\00:40:13.01
but the devil has sold to
too many religious believers
00:40:13.04\00:40:16.71
throughout Christianity's
history, that somehow the Old
00:40:16.75\00:40:20.42
Testament was not gospel-based.
00:40:20.45\00:40:22.32
It was not based on
what Ephesians tells us.
00:40:22.35\00:40:25.52
Paul had been
inspired to summarize
00:40:25.55\00:40:27.16
in such a powerful way.
00:40:27.19\00:40:28.49
For by grace you
have been saved through?
00:40:28.52\00:40:31.53
Through faith.
It's not of yourselves.
00:40:31.56\00:40:33.26
It is a--it's a gift of God.
00:40:33.29\00:40:36.30
"It's not of works,
lest anyone should boast.
00:40:36.33\00:40:38.67
For we are His
workmanship, created
00:40:38.70\00:40:40.94
for good works in Christ Jesus.
00:40:40.97\00:40:43.97
"Ephesians chapter
2, verses 8 through 10,
00:40:44.01\00:40:47.11
that same gospel
was also preached to the
00:40:47.14\00:40:49.74
Israelites in
Moses's generation.
00:40:49.78\00:40:53.11
The Holy Spirit was offering
them the exact same experience,
00:40:53.15\00:40:56.08
to be born again and
saved by grace through faith.
00:40:56.12\00:40:59.82
Was the law important?
00:40:59.85\00:41:01.22
Was obedience
conditional to that faith?
00:41:01.26\00:41:03.43
Well, yes, even as it
is in the New Testament.
00:41:03.46\00:41:06.29
And so, these two chapters
are so powerful because it just
00:41:06.33\00:41:09.03
blows away so many
different lies that have
00:41:09.06\00:41:11.27
crept into Christianity today.
00:41:11.30\00:41:13.20
"For indeed, the gospel was
preached to us as well as to
00:41:13.23\00:41:15.47
them, but the word which
they heard did not profit them."
00:41:15.50\00:41:18.54
Why?
00:41:18.57\00:41:20.24
Because it was not mixed with
faith in those who heard it.
00:41:20.28\00:41:22.58
You see, you can hear the Word
and go away an unbeliever, why?
00:41:22.61\00:41:26.61
Because we choose to either
soften our hearts to the Word of
00:41:26.65\00:41:29.88
God and the invitation he brings
to us through the scriptures and
00:41:29.92\00:41:33.15
his invitations, or we can, we
can soften our hearts and we can
00:41:33.19\00:41:39.29
open our hearts and
say, "Lord Jesus, come in.
00:41:39.33\00:41:43.16
I embrace this truth
and this Word and the
00:41:43.20\00:41:45.37
voice that is coming with it."
00:41:45.40\00:41:46.70
The Holy Spirit always comes
and speaks to our hearts and our
00:41:46.74\00:41:50.04
minds when we
hear the Word of God,
00:41:50.07\00:41:52.61
when we read the Word of God.
00:41:52.64\00:41:54.14
What we do with it is
what makes all the difference.
00:41:54.18\00:41:58.15
And that's what God is
telling us again here today
00:41:58.18\00:42:00.18
in verse 2, sadly, that
generation heard the word,
00:42:00.22\00:42:03.18
they heard the voice, they
experienced the convictions that
00:42:03.22\00:42:07.09
came with it, but
they did not profit because
00:42:07.12\00:42:09.92
it was not mixed with faith.
00:42:09.96\00:42:11.26
Verse 3, "For we
who have believed do
00:42:11.29\00:42:14.83
enter that rest," he says.
00:42:14.83\00:42:16.13
But the good news is that
that rest is still available,
00:42:16.16\00:42:18.93
even as it said in
verse 1 of the same chapter.
00:42:18.97\00:42:21.20
And we have experienced it.
00:42:21.24\00:42:22.67
We have entered into the rest.
00:42:22.70\00:42:26.01
[sighing]
00:42:26.04\00:42:30.01
You take a deep breath sometimes
and just reflect on the rest
00:42:30.05\00:42:33.31
that God has
given to you and me.
00:42:33.35\00:42:36.89
Now, God uses the Sabbath to be
able to represent that rest in
00:42:36.92\00:42:39.62
the rest of this
chapter in a very powerful way.
00:42:39.65\00:42:41.49
We want to pick up because it's
not just where he quotes the
00:42:41.52\00:42:43.96
Sabbath commandment or actually
reflects on the seventh day as
00:42:43.99\00:42:47.36
first recorded in
Genesis chapter 2 and verse 2.
00:42:47.40\00:42:49.73
But he actually starts to
introduce it in the verse or two
00:42:49.76\00:42:52.97
before it, as well as
the verse or two after it.
00:42:53.00\00:42:55.17
And so, let's pick that
up because the Sabbath is a
00:42:55.20\00:42:57.61
beautiful representation of
the, [sighing], the rest that
00:42:57.64\00:43:03.65
we can find in Jesus.
00:43:03.68\00:43:05.95
Because even though obedience
is--willing obedience is
00:43:05.98\00:43:09.42
conditional upon our
salvation, it is not the way
00:43:09.45\00:43:12.39
in which we earn our salvation.
00:43:12.42\00:43:15.02
You see the
difference there, friends?
00:43:15.06\00:43:16.89
God requires a
willing obedience,
00:43:16.93\00:43:20.23
but that obedience does
not save us in of itself.
00:43:20.26\00:43:25.80
So, we rest in what
Jesus has done for us.
00:43:25.83\00:43:29.57
Thank you, Jesus, that you died
on the cross to be able to know
00:43:29.60\00:43:32.31
that my sins
have been wiped clean,
00:43:32.34\00:43:34.38
that my sins have
been made as white as snow.
00:43:34.41\00:43:38.15
Thank you, Jesus, for the
promise that when I confess my
00:43:38.18\00:43:40.55
sins, you are just and faithful
to forgive my sins and to
00:43:40.58\00:43:44.55
cleanse me from
all unrighteousness.
00:43:44.59\00:43:48.86
Thank You, Jesus, that
it's you that works in be,
00:43:48.89\00:43:50.99
both to will and to
do Your good pleasure,
00:43:51.03\00:43:53.76
that it's not my righteousness
that I must lean upon to find
00:43:53.80\00:43:56.90
victory in this life,
but I lean upon You and I
00:43:56.93\00:43:59.83
rest in Your righteousness.
00:43:59.87\00:44:02.70
I rest in Your holiness.
00:44:02.74\00:44:05.11
And then He makes
us holy with His power,
00:44:05.14\00:44:07.48
and not with mine.
00:44:07.51\00:44:10.95
And so, in verse 3, it
says, "For we who have believed,
00:44:10.98\00:44:12.81
do enter that rest as He said.
00:44:12.85\00:44:14.95
So I swear on My wrath,
they shall not enter My rest."
00:44:14.98\00:44:17.39
This is reverse deduction
as he's using the fact that God
00:44:17.42\00:44:20.89
said, "They shall not
enter My rest" to reveal that,
00:44:20.92\00:44:24.33
indeed, He offered it to them,
but they would not accept it.
00:44:24.36\00:44:26.70
And so He said,
"You will not enter it."
00:44:26.73\00:44:28.43
"Although the
works were finished
00:44:28.46\00:44:29.76
from the
foundation of the world--"
00:44:29.80\00:44:31.10
There's that first introduction
to the seventh-day Sabbath.
00:44:31.13\00:44:33.34
"Although the
works were finished from
00:44:33.37\00:44:34.80
the foundation of the world."
00:44:34.84\00:44:36.14
When God came to the end of his
creation activities at the end
00:44:36.17\00:44:40.08
of day six and that
he rested on the Sabbath,
00:44:40.11\00:44:42.48
is there an eighth date
on record which he says,
00:44:42.51\00:44:44.41
"Oh, you know what, there's
a couple of things I forgot.
00:44:44.45\00:44:47.82
I need to go back and
touch up a couple of things.
00:44:47.85\00:44:50.12
There's a couple of
species I forgot to put.
00:44:50.15\00:44:51.89
And boy, did I ever really
blew it with that elephant.
00:44:51.92\00:44:54.42
That nose is way too long.
00:44:54.46\00:44:55.76
I gotta be able
to shorten that."
00:44:55.79\00:44:58.13
No, it doesn't say that, right?
00:44:58.16\00:44:59.46
It says what He
came to the end of His
00:44:59.49\00:45:00.90
works, it was finished.
00:45:00.93\00:45:03.90
And then He rested.
00:45:03.93\00:45:06.87
He paused as a
symbol for you and me.
00:45:06.90\00:45:10.54
And so, that's why
we find in verse 4,
00:45:10.57\00:45:12.91
"And he spoke in a certain place
of the seventh day in this way,
00:45:12.94\00:45:15.14
and God rested on the
seventh day from all his works."
00:45:15.18\00:45:18.28
Genesis chapter 2
and verse 2 he's quoting.
00:45:18.31\00:45:20.65
"And again in this place,
they shall not into My rest.
00:45:20.68\00:45:23.52
Since therefore remains that
some must enter it and those to
00:45:23.55\00:45:26.92
whom it was
first preached did not
00:45:26.96\00:45:28.32
enter because of disobedience."
00:45:28.36\00:45:30.13
Again, he designates a
certain day saying in David,
00:45:30.16\00:45:33.43
"Today, after such a long
time, as it has been said,
00:45:33.46\00:45:36.26
today, if you
will hear His voice,
00:45:36.30\00:45:37.90
do not harden your hearts."
00:45:37.93\00:45:40.57
And then as we're
short for time, I'm
00:45:40.60\00:45:41.90
going to skip down to
verse 9 and 10 to close up.
00:45:41.94\00:45:44.41
It says, "There
remains therefore a rest
00:45:44.44\00:45:46.74
for the people of God.
00:45:46.78\00:45:48.54
For he who has entered His rest
has himself also ceased from his
00:45:48.58\00:45:52.35
works as God has from His."
00:45:52.38\00:45:56.08
And again,
verse 10 is reflecting
00:45:56.12\00:45:58.59
the seventh-day Sabbath.
00:45:58.62\00:46:00.72
And even as God
finished and rested His works,
00:46:00.76\00:46:04.06
God calls us to rest in His
works as well so that we can
00:46:04.09\00:46:07.66
know when we stand
at the Judgment Day,
00:46:07.66\00:46:10.50
when we stand at the border of
the heavenly eternal kingdom and
00:46:10.53\00:46:14.20
the Promised Land and he
says, "Why should I let you in?"
00:46:14.24\00:46:17.14
We can't say, "Well,
because I was good enough,
00:46:17.17\00:46:19.27
because I kept the
Sabbath long enough,
00:46:19.31\00:46:20.84
because I returned
tithe faithfully enough."
00:46:20.88\00:46:22.78
No, this was all
part of your sincere faith
00:46:22.81\00:46:25.48
experience and your salvation.
00:46:25.51\00:46:28.22
But that's not the reason that
you enter the Promised Land.
00:46:28.25\00:46:30.25
It's because what Christ has
done for you and what Christ is
00:46:30.29\00:46:34.96
still doing for you, even
right now as your high priest.
00:46:34.99\00:46:37.79
Thank God for that.
00:46:37.83\00:46:39.13
Thank you so much
for studying, folks.
00:46:39.16\00:46:40.46
For those of you that are
watching, it's nice to have you.
00:46:40.50\00:46:42.63
We look forward to having you
join us if you--in the future at
00:46:42.66\00:46:45.90
Sabbath School Study Hours.
00:46:45.93\00:46:47.24
Until then, God bless.
00:46:47.27\00:46:49.24
male announcer: Don't
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00:46:54.01\00:46:55.31
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And be sure to select
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on the request page.
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It's now easier than ever
for you to study God's Word with
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Amazing Facts wherever and
whenever you want, and most
00:47:20.00\00:47:23.74
important, to
share it with others.
00:47:23.77\00:47:26.04
announcer: Amazing
Facts Change Lives.
00:47:31.91\00:47:34.85
male: My greatest wish is
that my children will see me the
00:47:40.82\00:47:46.16
way I see my own father.
00:47:46.19\00:47:51.47
He's a very devoted man, and
that kind of framed my childhood
00:47:51.50\00:47:56.24
going forward from
there, where I was always
00:47:56.27\00:47:59.77
involved in church work.
00:47:59.81\00:48:01.84
And I had a very rich experience
with the Lord at a young age all
00:48:01.88\00:48:08.45
the way up through college.
00:48:08.48\00:48:09.98
Then after I got married, I got
into a company called Comcast,
00:48:10.02\00:48:15.22
and I spent the past,
roughly, eight-and-a-half years,
00:48:15.26\00:48:19.23
nine years at Comcast.
00:48:19.26\00:48:21.63
And I was actually
watching television with my son,
00:48:21.66\00:48:25.83
and a Comcast
commercial came on the air.
00:48:25.87\00:48:29.97
And he said, "Oh,
Daddy, that's Comcast.
00:48:30.01\00:48:33.14
That's where you work, Daddy."
00:48:33.17\00:48:36.11
And most fathers would be
proud of something like that,
00:48:36.14\00:48:39.41
but it really struck me that,
you know, my son's getting older
00:48:39.45\00:48:44.15
and he does not see me
as a servant of the Lord.
00:48:44.19\00:48:46.59
He sees me as a
servant of my company.
00:48:46.62\00:48:50.29
And I knew that I would have
to make some changes because I
00:48:50.33\00:48:55.80
wanted him to know
me as a man of God.
00:48:55.83\00:48:59.87
I never thought I would be a
preacher or anything like that,
00:48:59.90\00:49:03.51
but I knew that there
was room in the work for me
00:49:03.54\00:49:07.51
and for my talents.
00:49:07.54\00:49:11.08
And I wanted my son to
see me operating in the work.
00:49:11.11\00:49:17.52
That's when I knew that my
time there was coming to an end.
00:49:17.55\00:49:21.79
I was sitting in
my office one day,
00:49:21.82\00:49:23.73
and I was kneeling in prayer.
00:49:23.76\00:49:25.73
I said, "God, you know, show me
what you want me to do because,
00:49:25.76\00:49:30.83
you know, this seems
like a big move here.
00:49:30.87\00:49:33.90
And, you know,
everyone's thinking I'm crazy.
00:49:33.94\00:49:39.64
And I don't know
exactly how, you know,
00:49:39.67\00:49:44.48
things are going to go
if they don't go well."
00:49:44.51\00:49:48.95
That's a crazy thought
when you're thinking about God.
00:49:48.98\00:49:52.42
And I lifted my
head up in prayer,
00:49:52.45\00:49:56.69
and they were
just like a flock of,
00:49:56.73\00:50:00.33
I don't know, maybe 300
birds that were just flying,
00:50:00.36\00:50:04.47
and they were
swooping down over the water.
00:50:04.50\00:50:07.17
And they would fly
back up, and then they
00:50:07.20\00:50:10.11
would chase each other around.
00:50:10.14\00:50:11.84
And, you know, I was
just look at the pattern
00:50:11.87\00:50:13.58
of the giant flock.
00:50:13.61\00:50:15.44
And the promise of the Lord
came to me where he says that,
00:50:15.48\00:50:20.15
you know, He takes
care of the sparrows,
00:50:20.18\00:50:23.75
and you don't see them worrying
about how they are going to be
00:50:23.79\00:50:27.86
taken care of from day to day.
00:50:27.89\00:50:30.06
You know, they don't, you know,
wring their hands, wondering,
00:50:30.09\00:50:33.90
you know, "Will there be
any worms to eat tomorrow?"
00:50:33.93\00:50:36.70
And that promise
really stood out to me.
00:50:36.73\00:50:40.64
And He said, "How
much more do I love you?
00:50:40.67\00:50:44.01
You know, I'm not going to send
you on a mission to do My work
00:50:44.04\00:50:48.58
and leave you high and
dry because you claim to be My
00:50:48.61\00:50:51.85
child, you claim to be My
son, and everyone knows that."
00:50:51.88\00:50:57.59
That assurance allows me to
know that whatever happens here,
00:50:57.62\00:51:02.99
whatever happens after
here, we're sons of God.
00:51:03.02\00:51:07.73
And there are certain things
that we shouldn't worry about.
00:51:07.76\00:51:11.97
From the day we
arrived at AFCOE,
00:51:12.00\00:51:15.97
it's been obvious that God
has blessed the Amazing Facts
00:51:16.00\00:51:19.87
Ministry, the AFCOE program.
00:51:19.91\00:51:22.78
And I will be using
my AFCOE experience,
00:51:22.81\00:51:27.42
no matter where I
go, to reach people.
00:51:27.45\00:51:30.05
Because the personal touch
of face-to-face evangelism,
00:51:30.09\00:51:35.99
speaking and sharing the Word
of God out of your own mouth,
00:51:36.02\00:51:40.10
there's no replacement for that.
00:51:40.13\00:51:42.30
And Amazing Facts has been very
instrumental in helping me find
00:51:42.33\00:51:49.10
the area of the work
of God and showing me
00:51:49.14\00:51:52.77
how large and how broad it is.
00:51:52.81\00:51:55.61
It's been a tremendous blessing
to be in a place where we're
00:51:55.64\00:51:59.78
around people seeking to
do God's will and listening
00:51:59.81\00:52:03.82
for His voice in their life.
00:52:03.85\00:52:06.29
And that's very,
very important today.
00:52:06.32\00:52:08.96
announcer: Together,
we have spread the gospel
00:52:16.26\00:52:18.40
much farther than ever before.
00:52:18.43\00:52:21.44
Thank you for your support.
00:52:21.47\00:52:23.91
announcer: Amazing
Facts Changed Lives.
00:52:32.51\00:52:35.52
Nita Littlefield: I'm Tlingit
Indian from Sitka, Alaska.
00:52:40.92\00:52:44.89
My Tlingit name
is [speaking Tlingit]
00:52:44.93\00:52:48.10
It was a very depressing
time for the people of Alaska.
00:52:48.13\00:52:52.03
A lot of alcohol
abuse was taking place.
00:52:52.07\00:52:57.64
And unfortunately, my mother
got caught up in the alcohol.
00:52:57.67\00:53:03.41
It made myself and
my siblings grow up in
00:53:03.45\00:53:09.88
a pretty horrible environment.
00:53:09.92\00:53:15.19
It was really
hard to understand God.
00:53:15.22\00:53:19.76
It was really hard to
understand what love was.
00:53:19.79\00:53:23.87
I ended up having a child in
my 12th grade and leaving home
00:53:23.90\00:53:33.24
when I was 15 years old.
00:53:33.27\00:53:35.41
But somehow,
someway, we made it.
00:53:35.44\00:53:38.58
And I became a
loner, I became a hermit.
00:53:38.61\00:53:41.35
So, I went up to the
biggest marijuana county,
00:53:41.38\00:53:45.99
to Humboldt County,
and started my new career.
00:53:46.02\00:53:51.16
Things weren't right though.
00:53:51.19\00:53:52.79
No matter how nice I kept
thinking life was living up on
00:53:52.83\00:53:57.00
top of the mountain, not having
to worry about wearing clothing,
00:53:57.03\00:54:03.54
just waking up and
watching the plants grow,
00:54:03.57\00:54:07.24
searching still
for more and more.
00:54:07.28\00:54:10.68
I went to the post office, and
I was standing there by myself.
00:54:10.71\00:54:16.45
I looked down and here
was this, what is called
00:54:16.48\00:54:20.79
a handbill, a postcard.
00:54:20.82\00:54:23.59
And the letters on
it grabbed my attention
00:54:23.63\00:54:26.43
and it said, "Revelations."
00:54:26.46\00:54:28.70
I'd never heard Revelation
taught before, and I thought,
00:54:28.73\00:54:32.33
"Gosh, that would
have been so good."
00:54:32.37\00:54:35.57
I looked at the time and the day
and I said, "Wow, that's today."
00:54:35.60\00:54:42.78
And for six weeks, I sat
there in the front seat of that
00:54:42.81\00:54:49.28
building and could not
believe the things that I heard.
00:54:49.32\00:54:54.82
And I found this
hunger, that I had in my heart
00:54:54.86\00:54:59.66
for decades being filled.
00:54:59.69\00:55:02.30
I was actually
like a starving child,
00:55:02.33\00:55:05.30
you know, wanting to get into
learn more about Revelations.
00:55:05.33\00:55:09.84
And I chose to be
baptized on April 3.
00:55:09.87\00:55:15.78
Even though I chose to
serve God, I kept falling.
00:55:15.81\00:55:20.52
I was going to Bible studies
all--four times a week and just
00:55:20.55\00:55:25.99
so hungry to learn
as much as possible.
00:55:26.02\00:55:30.43
God, just overnight, had me
studying the Word of God through
00:55:30.46\00:55:35.63
AFCOE, and the
miracles that happened through
00:55:35.66\00:55:39.23
AFCOE is so incredible.
00:55:39.27\00:55:42.14
The only preacher I was
listening to was Pastor Doug
00:55:42.17\00:55:45.07
Batchelor, who I
didn't even call by his name.
00:55:45.11\00:55:48.94
I called him the caveman.
00:55:48.98\00:55:51.41
And then here, all of a sudden,
I'm sitting in front of him in
00:55:51.45\00:55:56.38
his classroom,
learning from him.
00:55:56.42\00:56:00.89
On October 11, I
sat there, though,
00:56:00.92\00:56:04.09
in my room saying, "Lord,
here I am studying Your Word.
00:56:04.13\00:56:09.73
But what, what am I doing here?
00:56:09.76\00:56:13.54
What do I need to do?
00:56:13.57\00:56:16.10
What is it you want me to do?"
00:56:16.14\00:56:18.21
And that night
about 1 in the morning,
00:56:18.24\00:56:20.91
God spoke to me and He said,
"I want you to write a note to
00:56:20.94\00:56:25.18
Pastor Doug and
tell him what you do."
00:56:25.21\00:56:27.55
I sat there and I says, "No,
I'm not going to write a note.
00:56:27.58\00:56:29.42
I'm not going to write a note."
00:56:29.45\00:56:31.15
And I said okay, so I
ripped off a piece of paper,
00:56:31.19\00:56:34.29
and I wrote on
the note and I said,
00:56:34.32\00:56:36.73
"I'm an
experienced fashion designer.
00:56:36.76\00:56:39.16
I can sew anything.
00:56:39.19\00:56:40.63
I could make any patterns.
00:56:40.66\00:56:42.26
If there's any way that I
can be of any service to you,
00:56:42.30\00:56:47.37
God told me to be
bold and tell you."
00:56:47.40\00:56:49.50
And I walked up and
I handed him the note,
00:56:49.54\00:56:51.74
and he didn't know what it
was, but he said, "Thank you."
00:56:51.77\00:56:54.24
And four hours later, I got a
phone call from Amazing Facts.
00:56:54.28\00:56:58.85
Pastor Doug told me that I
was an answer to their prayers.
00:56:58.88\00:57:02.82
They had been looking for a
wardrobe stylist for their new
00:57:02.85\00:57:06.76
film that they're producing.
00:57:06.79\00:57:09.12
male: Action, two, three.
00:57:09.16\00:57:12.89
female: Amazing Facts has
changed my life in the direction
00:57:12.93\00:57:17.10
that God wants me to go.
00:57:17.13\00:57:20.10
And now, out of all the
knowledge that was taught to me,
00:57:20.14\00:57:24.77
I'm able to go out into this
world and share the gospel and
00:57:24.81\00:57:29.81
finish the work
for Jesus Christ.
00:57:29.84\00:57:33.25
Doug Batchelor: Friends, it's
because of God's blessing and
00:57:34.45\00:57:36.85
your support that thousands
of others like Nita have found
00:57:36.89\00:57:40.66
Jesus and everlasting life.
00:57:40.69\00:57:43.43
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00:58:24.57\00:58:28.77