Participants:
Series Code: SSP
Program Code: SSP180047A
|
00:32 Hello and welcome to the 3ABN Sabbath School Panel.
00:34 I'm Jill Morikone and we are so happy that you have taken 00:37 time from your day to join us as we go through our 00:40 study of the word of God. 00:42 We are in the middle of our quarter on "Oneness in Christ" 00:46 Last week, we looked at the early Christian Church, 00:49 the believers and how they dealt with disunity, 00:52 how they handled conflict. 00:54 This week our study is: "Unity in Faith" 00:58 I want to introduce our panel to you at this time; 01:00 to my left is Pastor Kenny Shelton - it's always a 01:02 privilege to sit with you and to hear 01:04 what God has to share through you. 01:06 Oh, it's such a blessing to be here, thank you. 01:08 And to your left, Pastor John Lomacang, my pastor, 01:10 the pastor of the Thompsonville Church here... 01:12 Good to be here always. It's a privilege to have you. 01:13 To your left is Ryan Day - we are so excited 01:17 to have Ryan here. 01:18 You are a brand new employee here or sort of brand new 01:24 here at 3ABN - he came from "Amazing Facts" and he was 01:27 an evangelist with them, and it's a privilege to have 01:29 you here on the panel. Thank you. 01:31 And to your left is my Sister Shelley Quinn and thank you 01:34 so much for being here as well. Lovely to be here. 01:36 I want to encourage you to go to the website where you can 01:40 download your own copy of the Quarterly and follow along 01:44 with us from week-to-week. 01:45 That website is: ABSG.Adventist.org 01:50 That stands for "Adult Bible Study Guide.Adventist.org 01:55 or we always encourage you to go visit your local 01:58 Seventh-day Adventist Church; they would give you a copy 02:01 of a Quarterly and you could join a body of believers 02:04 and study together. 02:05 Before we go any further in our study, 02:07 we want to go to the Lord in prayer. 02:09 Pastor Kenny, would you open up in prayer for us? 02:11 Absolutely! Let's pray together, shall we? 02:13 Merciful Father in Heaven, Truly, we are thankful 02:15 that we can come before Thee this Thy Sabbath day, 02:18 that we can worship Thee in Spirit and in truth. 02:20 We can study the word, we ask for the anointing 02:23 of thy Holy Spirit. Lord, how desperately 02:26 we need the Spirit of the living God to come into 02:28 our hearts, into our minds that we might be able 02:30 to, by the grace of God, decipher what is truth. 02:33 and then the ability to walk in that truth, 02:35 Thank you for each one that's here today. 02:37 Open our hearts, open our minds and each one who 02:39 views, those who listen. Lord, may this truly 02:42 be a blessing that will bring honor and glory to You, 02:44 and to You alone today. For heavenly wisdom 02:47 we plead and we thank You. In Jesus name... Amen, Amen! 02:50 As we look at the concept of unity in the church, 02:53 I believe that often, in many churches, 02:56 and probably the Seventh-day Adventist Church would 02:58 be no exception, there are two polar opposites, as it were, 03:02 when we look at unity. 03:04 One concept is built on truth and it says there is no 03:08 unity apart from truth. 03:10 And it says... we need to hold our doctrines pure, 03:13 and hold on to the truth once delivered to the saints. 03:18 The other concept is a concept built on relationships. 03:22 It says relationships are more important than truth. 03:27 The truth concept says that I need to preserve the truth 03:31 at all costs. 03:33 The relationship concept says that I need to hold on to 03:36 relationships at all cost. 03:39 The truth concept says that it doesn't matter who you hurt. 03:43 The relationship concept says it doesn't 03:46 matter who you believe. 03:47 The truth concept says it doesn't matter 03:50 who you step on. 03:52 The relationship concept says it doesn't matter what you teach. 03:56 The truth concept says it doesn't matter 03:59 how you preserve the truth, just do it. 04:03 The relationship concept says it doesn't matter 04:05 how you compromise, just do it. 04:08 Now I would submit to you at home and to us here, 04:11 that there's a third concept. 04:13 The third concept is to hold the truth in love, in humility, 04:21 in relationship with other people 04:25 Authentic Christian unity is not found in diversity, 04:29 it's not found despite diversity - it's rather found 04:33 through diversity. 04:35 Our unity is made evident by how we treat other people. 04:40 I love Philippians 2... I think Philippians is one of my 04:43 favorite books of the Bible. 04:45 Philippians 2:1-3, Paul says... "Therefore if there is any 04:49 consolation in Christ, if any comfort of love, 04:52 if any fellowship of the Spirit, if any affection 04:56 and mercy, fulfill my joy... how? by being likeminded, 05:01 having the same love being of one accord, of one mind. 05:05 Let nothing be done through strife or vainglory; 05:08 but in lowliness of mind let each esteem the other 05:12 as better than themselves." 05:14 I think in every healthy church there is a danger of 05:17 disunity because when our beliefs matter to us, 05:20 it's easy to let the beliefs supersede the relationship 05:24 of the person. 05:25 The relationship is important, but the belief 05:28 is just as important. 05:30 We're not saying we cast away the truth; 05:32 we're just saying how we hold on to the truth in love 05:36 and in humility is important. 05:39 You know the church in 1888, when I say "the church," 05:42 I'm talking about the Seventh- day Adventist Church. 05:44 In 1888, they had some doctrinal debates regarding 05:47 the ten horns, prophecy in Daniel 7 regarding 05:50 what the law really meant in Galatians 3:24 05:53 and they missed entirely that their attitudes toward 05:57 other people were hostile and they missed the message of 06:00 righteousness by faith, that God wanted to give to the 06:04 church at that time. 06:06 So this week, we're going to look at some key beliefs 06:09 within the Seventh-day Adventist Church, 06:11 and how that shapes our unity. 06:14 My day, on Sunday, we get to talk about "Salvation in Jesus." 06:18 We're talking about the second coming - the high priestly 06:20 ministry of Jesus in the Heavenly Sanctuary; 06:23 the truth of the Sabbath, and the truth 06:25 about the state of the dead. 06:26 So our memory text is Acts 4:12, it says, "Nor is there salvation 06:33 in any other, for there is no other name under heaven 06:36 given among men by which we must be saved." 06:41 Now when you think about this doctrine of salvation, 06:44 I believe salvation in Jesus alone all other doctrines 06:48 find their center and circumference 06:51 in the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen! 06:53 And then the fact that we are saved by grace 06:56 through faith, that not of ourselves, 06:58 it's a gift of God, not of works lest anyone should boast... 07:01 That's Ephesians 2:8-9. 07:03 We often say, "What is the gift?" 07:05 The gift is salvation. 07:06 The gift is the grace that God bestows upon us, 07:11 in order to receive that salvation. 07:13 The gift is the faith by which I reach out by faith and 07:17 accept the grace, accept the blood of Jesus to cover my sins. 07:21 When we think about this concept of salvation, 07:24 it's really a doctrine of salvation. 07:26 We know, in the Garden of Eden, Adam and Eve 07:28 walked in perfect harmony... Right Pastor Kenny? Absolutely! 07:32 with each other and with their Maker 07:34 every day and in the cool of the day. 07:36 Sin brought separation from God. 07:40 Sin always brings fear and guilt. 07:42 I think of Genesis 3:10, Remember God said... 07:46 "Where are you?" because they always 07:47 met in the cool of the day. "Where are you?" 07:50 And Adam said, "I heard your voice in the garden 07:53 and I was afraid, and I realized I was naked, 07:57 and I hid myself." 07:59 In Hebrew, the word for "hid" is to hide oneself in fear. 08:03 So he said, "I was afraid and I hid myself in fear." 08:06 I was really afraid. 08:08 Sin brought fear, sin brought guilt, 08:11 sin separation from God. 08:13 We know that sin brings death. Romans 6:23... "The wages 08:17 of sin is death." 08:19 Are you thankful that the Bible doesn't stop there? Amen! 08:21 But, "The wages of sin is death, BUT, the gift of God 08:26 is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord." 08:29 We know that all have sinned; Adam and Eve first sinned and 08:33 we are all guilty by association but we're all guilty by choice 08:37 because every single person following Adam made a choice 08:40 to step into sin at one point or another in their life. 08:45 Romans 1, talks about the sins, as it were, of the Gentile 08:50 world - there's a great list of sins listed there in 08:52 Romans 1 and it's a pretty heavy list if you read that list. 08:56 Romans 2 is the sins of the Jewish world, 09:01 and that's a pretty heavy list too. 09:03 But now we get down to Romans 3:23- I want to invite 09:06 you to turn there with us. 09:08 We're going to spend the rest of our time in Romans 3. 09:10 Romans 3:23... We come to this statement - "All have sinned 09:16 and fallen short of the glory of God." 09:20 So all of us are under that condemnation, as it were, 09:25 and that curse from the law. 09:27 We are all separated from God. 09:30 Aren't you thankful it doesn't stop there? Halleluiah! 09:33 The very next verse, Romans 3:24- what does it say? 09:38 "Being justified freely by His grace." 09:42 So, first of all, in Romans 3:23, we were all declared 09:46 wicked, right? We were all under the curse 09:49 and condemnation of sin. 09:51 What does the word "justified" mean? 09:54 Dikaioo - it means, in Greek, to show to be righteous, 09:57 to declare righteous. 10:00 So we were all declared wicked in the previous verse, 10:03 and all of a sudden, we're declared righteous. 10:06 What took place? John 3:16 took place. 10:10 "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten 10:13 Son that whoever believes in Him should not perish, 10:16 but have eternal or everlasting life." That's right. 10:19 What took place was the death of Jesus - our perfect 10:24 substitute, perfect life... He died the 10:27 death that we deserved. 10:28 He took our sin and our punishment so that we 10:33 could have the life that He gives us. 10:36 What an incredible exchange! 10:38 So we are all sinners; God sent Jesus to give us 10:42 the gift of eternal life. 10:44 And what does He do? He justifies us. 10:47 He redeems us. 10:48 He became the propitiation. Praise God. 10:51 He justifies us. 10:53 1 John 1:7... "If we walk in the light as He is in the light, 10:56 we have fellowship with one another, and the blood 10:59 of Jesus Christ, his Son cleanses us from all sin." 11:04 He declares us to be righteous. How does he do this? 11:08 I always call it the double imputation, I don't even 11:11 know if that's a theological term, but in 2 Corinthians 5:21, 11:16 Pastor Kenny, it says, "For He made Him (that was God 11:19 made Jesus) who knew no sin to become sin for us 11:24 that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him." 11:29 So my sin was imputed to His account - God... 11:33 Jesus took my sin and His righteousness was 11:37 credited or imputed to my account. 11:40 So He justifies us. He redeems us. 11:43 We're in Romans 3:24 (the second half), "We're justified freely 11:47 by His grace through the redemption that is 11:50 in Christ Jesus! 11:52 The word for "redemption" really means a release 11:55 effected by payment of a ransom. 12:00 It means to buy back, to win back what was 12:04 previously lost. 12:06 That's all of us - we're all lost under the penalty of sin, 12:10 and Satan claimed dominion of this world - did he not? 12:13 God gave to Adam dominion of the world, but Satan 12:16 claimed dominion when Adam and Eve stepped into sin. 12:19 He thought, "I'm the ruler of the world," 12:21 but God bought us back by the death and the blood 12:24 of Jesus on the cross. Amen! 12:26 And then He became our propitiation, 12:29 that's the next verse. 12:31 Verse 25... "...Whom God sent forth as a propitiation 12:36 by His blood, through faith, to demonstrate His 12:39 righteousness, because in His forbearance God had passed 12:42 over the sins that were previously committed..." 12:44 He set Jesus forth as the propitiation. 12:47 Now that word in Greek is literally "mercy seat." 12:50 You know, in the Old Testament, in the Ark of the 12:52 Covenant, they had what? The Ten Commandments, right, 12:56 the law of God, and the mercy seat was like the lid, 13:00 you could say - the covering over the Ark of God. 13:03 Every year on the Day of Atonement, 13:06 the high priest went in and sprinkled the blood over 13:09 the Ark of the Covenant, over the mercy seat; 13:13 that symbolized, as it were, that the blood was covering 13:17 or appeasing God's wrath. 13:19 Now God doesn't have wrath against sinners, 13:21 but definitely against sin because sin cannot 13:24 stand in the presence of a Holy God. 13:26 So type met antitype when Jesus came as our sacrifice. 13:31 So I just want, in my remaining moments here, 13:35 to make an appeal to you right now - if you have never 13:38 asked the Lord Jesus Christ into your life to accept 13:42 Jesus as your Savior today. Yes 13:44 You might be saying... "But I've been too far, 13:47 and I've gone too far, I've been through too much, 13:50 I've done too much..." 13:52 I love John 6:37, I think it's one of my favorite Scriptures. 13:56 Jesus says, "Whoever comes to me, I will never cast away." 14:02 Come to Jesus just now as you are, know that He will 14:05 accept and cleanse and forgive you. 14:07 1 John 1:9... "If we confess our sins, He is faithful 14:10 and just to forgive our sins and to cleanses us 14:13 from all unrighteousness." 14:15 Know that you can receive His righteousness 14:17 in place of your sin. 14:19 Know that He will work in you, both to will and to do 14:23 of His good pleasure and enable you to walk in victory. 14:26 And then sometimes I think we begin this process and 14:30 know it's all by Jesus and then we think, "But I gotta work 14:33 pretty hard to complete the process." 14:36 The work that He began, He will carry forward to completion. 14:40 Our job is to surrender. 14:41 Our job is to spend time in His word. 14:43 Our job is to behold Jesus and as we do that, 14:47 we're changed into His likeness. 14:49 A closing quote - "Desire of Ages," p.25: 14:53 "Christ was treated as we deserve, that we might be 14:56 treated as He deserves. He was condemned 15:00 for our sins in which He had no share, that we might be 15:04 justified by His righteousness, in which we had no share. 15:08 He suffered the death which was ours, that we might receive 15:12 the life which was His." 15:14 What a glorious exchange! Pastor Kenny... 15:17 Amen, Amen! Covered well, thank you! 15:19 You know, how that really just sets up for the rest 15:22 of us here as we move along because, really, I just kept 15:24 hearing righteousness by faith and righteous by faith 15:27 in Christ - you know, it's part of the "Third Angels' Message." 15:29 I praise God for that and then how can we preach and teach 15:33 on that until you think about the second coming. 15:35 So I have Monday's lesson, "Second Coming of Christ" 15:39 and this is the one that always thrills my heart when I talk 15:43 about it - get a little excited Pastor, so if I get too excited, 15:46 you calm me down because I can't help it, when I say calm me down 15:48 just join in with me because, you know, righteous by faith, 15:52 I get excited and sometimes my feet want to stomp 15:53 a little bit and I want to stand up and shout a little bit, 15:56 and then the second coming of Christ it's a unifying effort, 16:01 a unifying topic, a unifying truth is the second coming of 16:05 Jesus Christ that should bond us and stick us together, 16:08 maybe like no other the second coming of Christ. 16:10 And it's taught strongly in Scripture, the coming of Jesus 16:15 Christ which the Bible talks about here... 16:17 repeats over and over and over and then it says it's the what? 16:20 Titus 2:13, "The blessed hope." I don't know what I would 16:26 really do and I'm not sure most of us feel this way, 16:28 at least as Christians... what will we do if this was it? 16:31 If there was nothing after this, I mean there are good 16:35 things here, praise God - I mean that's nice... 16:37 we have loved ones and different things, 16:38 but I'm talking about looking beyond that. 16:40 If this is all that this world has to offer; we just come, 16:43 we live and we die, I don't know 16:45 if I'd be interested to be honest with you. 16:47 There might be some of us, "Well, I... 16:49 Each one of us has to think to himself because 16:52 all we see is you come and you live and a lot of 16:53 misery, suffering, death, dying, disease and so on... 16:56 but He's promised there is a second coming, 16:58 and to be ready for that second coming is wonderful. 17:00 Jesus, Himself, stated it, that He's going to come 17:03 about the second coming. 17:05 I like what He said... sometimes there's controversy 17:07 but I'm not sure why... in Matthew 24:36: 17:11 Matthew 24:36, it says, "But the day (you'll know it), 17:14 but the day and the hour knoweth no man, no not the 17:18 angels of heaven, but My Father only." That's right. 17:21 Very interesting because people will come and say, 17:23 "See, even Jesus doesn't know." 17:26 I said, "You know, we must consider (this is my opinion) 17:28 we must consider that Jesus, when He was here on earth, 17:31 Jesus was a man and He left that knowledge that He had 17:35 in heaven up there," you see, so in the human 17:38 flesh, when He walked this earth, He did not know 17:41 (my opinion) the day nor the hour." 17:43 But you see, think about it because that's heavenly 17:46 wisdom, but now can we say just for argument's sake, 17:49 can we say, if people say, "No He's in heaven now, 17:51 but He doesn't even know." 17:52 Well that's kinda hard for me to get that through my mind 17:55 because, you know, the One who paid the penalty for my sin; 17:59 the One who went to Calvary's cross and shed His blood; 18:03 the One who the Bible said sits on the right hand of the Father; 18:07 The one who said, "I'm coming back to claim My own;" 18:10 the one who said, "I went to prepare mansions for those... 18:13 preparing and getting ready to come, (you know, sitting on 18:17 the right hand in heaven now" and they say, "Well He still 18:19 doesn't know." I believe He knows. 18:21 I believe He knows! He's been preparing, 18:24 this is what it's all about. 18:25 It's to receive us unto Himself. 18:27 He said, "That where I am, there ye may be also." 18:29 We are to ever be, I think our lesson brings out... 18:32 to ever be prepared for the coming of Jesus. 18:35 While we don't know the day or the hour, 18:39 we can be preparing for that, and that's something I heard 18:42 from youth up - always be prepared... you know, 18:44 "Such an hour as you think not, the Son of Man cometh," 18:46 anything can happen in your life. 18:48 And so 1 Thessalonians 5:5-6, tells us... "We are to be 18:52 the children of light," and this movement right here 18:56 is a movement like no other in the history of the world, 18:59 this movement, and we need to be involved in this because 19:02 the light has to go into the world. 19:04 We are children of the light... I think that's very important. 19:08 Therefore, we're not going to sleep - this text goes on to say 19:11 as others are sleeping. Yes 19:12 Too many people are asleep; too many people are 19:14 self-satisfied in the religious experience. 19:17 They're not looking for anything else. 19:18 They don't want anything else and when you try to 19:20 give them something else, they don't want you around. 19:23 This is sometimes true, as you well know. 19:25 But it says, "We are to watch and to be what? Sober." 19:28 These are sobering times. 19:30 It doesn't mean you can't chuckle 19:32 once in a while and laugh, I like to do that - "A merry 19:35 heart doeth good like a medicine." 19:36 And sometimes we need that... we need the balance, 19:39 and there's time to be sober. 19:40 When someone is talking about giving their life to Christ 19:43 they're talking about and never receiving it. 19:44 You made the call a while ago. 19:46 It's not a time to be laughing and joking around. 19:48 That's serious, we're talking about eternal life. 19:50 But there's a time that we could put our arm around 19:52 one another and maybe smile and go on, 19:54 but we can pray together and work together and be sober. 19:57 We're not only to look for, our lesson brings out, 19:59 but we are to hasten the second coming of Jesus Christ. 20:02 You know, how do we do that? 20:04 I want you to think with me, if we really believe that Jesus 20:07 is coming, how would our lives really be today? 20:10 Really, how are they today? 20:12 If we really believe that He's coming... and I thought 20:14 one way to look back possibly would be - How did those 20:18 who were giving the First Angels' Message in 1843 20:21 and 1844- what was their attitude when they really 20:25 thought.. Woo! that He was coming? 20:27 I mean when they really, I mean they believed it 20:29 with all of their heart - what was their attitude? 20:31 And I found something in "Early Writings," p.233... 20:34 And I'm saying, "Lord, help me to embrace this, 20:37 help me to embrace this more than I've ever embraced 20:39 it before," and I want to throw this out to you as a challenge. 20:42 "Early Writings," p.233, quickly says, "Parents felt 20:46 the deepest solicitude for their children." 20:49 The first thing is for your family and for your friends; 20:51 those that are out of the Ark, those that are not 20:53 in a saving relationship with Christ 20:55 and your heart begins to go out. 20:57 It says, "Those who receive the message, labored with 21:00 their... in other words with the unconverted friends 21:03 and relatives, with their soul bowed with the weight of 21:07 the solemn message - warn and entreated them to prepare 21:11 for the coming of the Son of Man." That's right. 21:14 If we believe it... it's not, the Pastor just sitting 21:16 listening to a good sermon that he will preach on Sabbath. 21:19 It's more than that and I know when you preach, 21:21 you encourage them to get up and do something. 21:23 And to me, this is what it's about - to inspire people 21:25 to say - there's a world to be won... my grandma, my grandpa; 21:31 my children, my grandchildren to be won and we can't be 21:34 indifferent to that and so we want to go out and tell 21:37 them just like they did when they really believed 21:39 that Jesus was coming in the clouds of glory. 21:42 Jesus told us a parable - we won't go too much into that, 21:44 we know it, but to me it underlines about the 21:48 parable of the "Ten Virgins." 21:50 It is just two classes always, we realize that. 21:52 One that's prepared and one that's not prepared; 21:56 they both kind of, you know, look alike and both of them 21:58 say, "We are prepared." 22:00 But when the tarrying time came, there was a group 22:03 that was not prepared because they were not staying 22:05 in the word of God. That's right. 22:07 They were NOT witnessing, they were not praying... 22:10 Oh they might pray once in a while but they weren't laboring. 22:12 If we want our children, our grandchildren, each other 22:14 to be saved in the kingdom, we're going to have to labor 22:17 with God on our knees and cry out to God... 22:20 Oh GOD, save these children, SAVE these grandchildren. 22:24 It breaks your heart sometimes when you look around, 22:26 and I cry the same thing for my own life, "Oh Lord, 22:28 save me, only Your grace and mercy can do that, 22:31 but Your grace is sufficient." Amen! 22:34 Ellen White said one time, she said, "There's no sin 22:36 so big that God cannot forgive." 22:38 That gives me encouragement to say... 22:40 "Oh thank You God for that." 22:42 You know, one group continued to believe and I want to 22:45 encourage you today - you're believing that Jesus 22:47 is soon to come; you know that He is soon to come; 22:50 continue believing it; continue to preach the word 22:52 of God; continue to make the spiritual preparation 22:56 for that time - we need to do that. 22:58 Delay may come - don't get discouraged. 23:02 Don't get discouraged, keep right on keeping on 23:05 because the devil loves to throw discouragement in there. 23:08 But you know, if you've made no preparation, guarantee 23:10 you're going to fall before it's over. 23:12 Jesus said, "Kenny, watch and be ready - watch and be ready." 23:17 He tells the world to watch and be ready. 23:19 That's sound teaching as far as I'm concerned. 23:22 The others who lost hope, what were they doing? 23:24 Man, you talk about - they were living on 23:26 emotions, they were living on feelings. 23:27 They were living on some kind of a high, maybe it's 23:29 something they heard or they had seen, 23:31 but, you know, they weren't waiting for the fulfillment. 23:34 I'm waiting for the fulfillment of the promises. 23:37 Someone mentioned in one of our lessons or even last week 23:39 the lesson, John 14:3 wasn't it? 23:41 Where He says, bottom line, "I will come again." 23:44 I will come again... 23:45 But I'm a little bit discouraged and I think a 23:47 preacher can get a little bit discouraged once in a while. 23:49 You're not down, you're not out, you're not out cold, 23:51 you're not laying down, you're not giving up. 23:53 They haven't taken the gloves off, somebody just needs to 23:55 fan me once in a while or throw a little water on me; 23:58 I'll revive and get up again because I KNOW this passes 24:02 away - it was written in Scripture as though it had 24:04 it had already taken place. 24:05 That's how sure it is! Amen! 24:07 That's an encouragement to me 24:09 and Jesus simply said, "Kenny, watch and be ready." 24:11 Pastor, we gotta watch and be ready for in such an hour 24:14 as you think not... 24:15 I jotted this down, I thought it was a very 24:17 interesting closing thought... 24:18 It said, "A union with Christ," this is what we need, 24:21 that is what I need and you know what, Pastor, 24:23 I found that I can tell when that union might be slipping 24:26 just a little bit, I can tell! 24:29 Because of the way that my attitude, the way I talk, 24:32 the way I respond, the way that I love, 24:35 it's different and, right quick, that catches my attention. 24:40 I don't want it to wane right now. 24:41 Union with Christ by living faith is enduring. 24:45 Every other union must perish. Amen! 24:50 Every other union, everything else has to go in the world. 24:53 The only thing we need to concentrate on now is our 24:54 union with Christ that is enduring and I beg and plead 24:58 with you today - get a hold of the hand of Jesus, 25:01 don't let go - He's going to bless you, 25:03 and He's going to save you. Pastor John. AMEN! 25:06 I don't even want to cut in right here because we're having 25:08 church! Thank you so much, Pastor Kenny. 25:10 We're going to a short break, we'll be right back. 25:17 Ever wish you could watch the 3ABN Sabbath School Panel again, 25:20 or share it on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter. 25:23 Well, you can - by visiting 3ABN Sabbath School Panel.com 25:28 A clean design makes it easy to find the program 25:32 you're looking for. 25:33 There are also links to the Adult Bible Study Guide 25:36 so you can follow along. 25:38 Sharing is easy, just click share and choose 25:41 your favorite social media. 25:43 Share a link, save a life for eternity! 25:48 Welcome back to our study on 25:50 "Unity in Faith," Pastor John, you have: 25:52 "Jesus' Ministry in the Heavenly Sanctuary" 25:54 Thank you Jill. 25:56 This is, I believe, one of the apex teachings to help us 26:01 know that we are not living on a planet that 26:04 is on autopilot and that God is still in control. Amen! 26:09 When Jesus ascended to return to the Father, 26:14 He made it clear that He will come again... 26:16 Thank you Pastor Kenny. Amen! 26:18 But He is not in heaven. 26:19 Some people will say, "Well, the reason why 26:21 it has taken so long is because He's building us 26:24 mansions" and some people even try to embellish that and said, 26:29 "Well, they're short on materials, 26:31 they're waiting for delivery," all kinds of ridiculous things, 26:35 but he is involved in a priestly ministry. Yes! Amen! 26:40 You know, the reason why He hasn't come... 26:42 the Apostle Peter said, "He is not willing that any 26:45 should perish, but that all should come to repentance." 26:48 And in Psalm 77:13, David the Patriarch says, "Your way, 26:54 O God, is in the sanctuary." Yes. 26:56 So we're going to spend a little time today just peeking 26:59 into the work that the Lord is doing right now. 27:01 And everything about the sanctuary, which was a shadow 27:04 of the actual ministry of Christ, everything that pertains 27:09 to the sanctuary work shows us the way. 27:12 Jesus said, "I am the way, the truth and the life." 27:15 And so when you understand the actual working of the sanctuary, 27:20 you begin to see Jesus and His life in components. 27:24 You have pictures such as the outer court... 27:28 well Jesus was crucified outside the gates of Jerusalem. 27:32 You have the "altar of burnt offerings" which is in fact 27:35 a symbol of the cross. 27:36 You have the "high priest" which Jesus has become 27:39 our high priest according to the order of Melchizedek 27:43 not the Levitical priesthood which the Melchizedek 27:46 priesthood - there is no spoken of as the beginning; 27:49 therefore, there is no speaking of as an end. 27:51 But the Levitical priesthood had a beginning and an end. 27:53 The Aaronic Priesthood had a beginning and an end. 27:55 But Jesus is, as the Father said to Him here 28:00 in Hebrews 1... let's go there very quickly and look at that. 28:03 How beautiful it is when the Lord speaks to His Son... 28:07 He says, in Hebrew 1:8... "But to the Son, He says, 28:15 Your throne, O God, is forever and ever; 28:19 a scepter of righteousness 28:21 is the scepter of Your kingdom." 28:22 And so Jesus - the preexisting One, the Self-existing One, 28:28 He didn't borrow His life, it didn't come from anyone else. 28:34 "In Him was life and that life was the light of men." 28:36 So we have a high priest now actively involved in the 28:40 working of the sanctuary, and the Bible says 28:43 the reason why the sanctuary is there, Exodus 25:8-9... 28:46 The Bible says, "And let them make Me a sanctuary that 28:49 I may dwell among them." 28:51 And then when the sanctuary was built, it says in verse 9, 28:55 "According to all that I show you, that is the 29:00 pattern of the tabernacle, and the pattern of 29:03 all its furnishings, just so you shall make it." 29:07 You know, one of the saddest stories to me about the whole 29:09 sanctuary services is the fact that the Lord entrusted 29:12 this very sacred service to the children of Israel; 29:16 to the leaders of Israel; to the Aaronic priesthood; 29:19 to those who are involved in the actual functions 29:22 of the service, but as time went on, they became 29:25 more dedicated to the service than to the God of the service. 29:30 And so by the time the Lamb... Behold the Lamb of God 29:33 that taketh away the sins of the world... 29:34 but by the time He came, they couldn't even recognize Him. 29:38 And the lamb was the central figure in the functioning 29:41 of the temple services; taking the life of the lamb 29:45 and, you know, the bulls and goats and calves 29:47 and doves, we understand that. 29:48 But when the Apostle John introduced Jesus, 29:51 he didn't say, behold the dove, but behold the lamb, 29:55 because the lamb is the symbol of the calmest, 29:58 not the sheep, but the lamb, the tenderest picture 30:01 of the heart of God, the lamb, tender without 30:05 blemish and without spot. 30:07 And so there are particular aspects that the Bible 30:09 brings out about the ministry of Christ that, in fact, 30:12 is encompassed in the lamb and we know at the 30:15 second coming of Jesus, it's amazing to me whenever I 30:17 hear the passage, "Hide us from the face of the Lamb." 30:20 You know, who runs from a lamb? 30:23 But the tender pity of Christ becomes a rebuke to those 30:27 who never accepted the propitiation and the sacrifice 30:31 that the Lamb has extended to us. 30:33 But here's a question in the lesson... "What do these 30:36 passages teach concerning Jesus' priestly ministry in heaven? 30:40 Let's look at three of them: Hebrews 8:6... because 30:46 in my Bible - I mentioned this in one of the former programs, 30:49 I had my old Bible, now I have a new Bible back... 30:51 Sorry, I had my new Bible, but I have my old Bible back, 30:54 but my fingerprints are everywhere. 30:57 Hebrews 8:6... "But now He has obtained a more excellent 31:02 ministry inasmuch as He is also mediator of a 31:06 what kind of covenant? Of a better covenant 31:09 which was established on what? Better promises." 31:12 Now the old covenant was established on a priesthood 31:17 where the priest had to sacrifice for his own sin. Yes. 31:21 Now the better promise is we have a priesthood 31:24 established where Jesus never sinned. Amen! 31:29 There is no fault, there is no blemish, there's no spot, 31:32 and that's why the promise is better - a better mediator. 31:38 We don't have a high priest in the most holy place with a 31:41 rope around His ankles! Yes. Amen! Thank you! 31:44 Right, but we could tell He's there because the bells 31:47 are being sounded - the bells of our redemption 31:49 are being heard. 31:50 The other one, Hebrews 9:11-12, "But Christ came as high priest 31:55 of the good things to come, with the greater and more 31:58 perfect tabernacle, not made with hands that is, not of this 32:02 creation; not with the blood of goats and calves, 32:05 but with His own blood, He entered the most Holy place 32:09 once for all, having obtained eternal redemption and that 32:14 eternal redemption is metered out to us in a promise 32:18 but will be experienced by us at the return of Christ. 32:21 Praise God! Eternal redemption. 32:23 And one more, verse 23-28 of Hebrews 9... 32:28 "Therefore it was necessary that the copies of the things 32:31 in the heavens should be purified by these 32:34 that's by the precious blood of Christ. 32:36 But the heavenly things themselves with better 32:39 sacrifices than these... that is the 32:41 blood of Christ, more specifically. 32:42 For Christ does not enter the Holy place made with hands 32:46 which are copies of the true, but into heaven itself, 32:49 now to appear in the presence of God for us; 32:52 not that He should offer Himself often as the high priest 32:56 enters the Most Holy Place every year with blood 33:00 of another - He then would have had to 33:03 suffer often since the foundation of the world; 33:07 but now, once at the end of the ages, He has appeared 33:11 to put away sin by the sacrifice of Himself." 33:15 That perfect sacrifice! Wow... 33:18 "And as it is appointed for men once to die, but after this 33:22 the judgment: So Christ was offered 33:24 once to bear the sins of many. 33:26 To those who eagerly wait for Him (the second coming) 33:29 He will appear a second time, apart from sin, for salvation." 33:33 So let me just put four very important points about the 33:36 ministry of Christ and why we're so excited. 33:38 First of all, He is our intercessor. Amen! 33:41 Romans 8:34... "Who is He who condemns? It is Christ who died 33:47 and furthermore, is also risen, who is ever at the right hand 33:52 of God who also makes intercession for us." 33:56 Secondly, forgiveness. Not only intercession, 34:00 but forgiveness. 1 John 2:1... "My little 34:03 children, these things I write to you so that you may not sin, 34:07 and if anyone sins, we have an advocate with the Father, 34:11 Jesus Christ, the righteous. I must add this... He is not 34:14 just our lawyer, He is our judge! Amen! 34:17 What a court! 34:18 You know the judge is not fighting the lawyer, 34:20 and the lawyer is not fighting the judge. 34:21 And I gotta pause here and give a picture because 34:23 there's also reconciliation, and there's also restoration. 34:26 I'll just plug those in very quickly... 34:28 Reconciliation - He reconciles us to the Father. 34:31 And restoration - He doesn't leave us broken, 34:33 He brings us back to wholeness. Amen! 34:35 But I gotta end with this picture that I found in the 34:37 Roman Court... When the sinner stood before the court 34:40 and there was no verdict, there was a bag that had 34:44 two stones - a white and a black stone. 34:47 And the accused was told to put his hand in the bag 34:50 and pick a stone - if it was white, he was free; 34:53 if it was black, he was going to face death. 34:56 Can you imagine the fear? And Jesus steps up 34:59 as the lawyer and says in Revelation... "Wait a minute, 35:02 I'm going to give you a white stone with a new name. 35:05 I'm going to give you a way out and give you anonymity. 35:08 You'll no longer be identified by your old name. 35:12 So when he put his hand in the bag, he already had 35:15 the stone of intercession, forgiveness, reconciliation, 35:19 and restoration. He walked away free 35:21 not because HE decided his fate, but the white stone 35:25 given by the Advocate guaranteed 35:27 his redemption and his freedom. 35:29 So we have a high priest who guarantees our redemption 35:32 by His pure character. Praise God! Amen! 35:36 Praise the Lord! Wow! 35:38 Well, I'm gonna have to build off that! Go for it! 35:40 And for those of you who know, my study this evening 35:45 or this morning is Wednesday's lesson which is "The Sabbath." 35:48 That's right! And so unity in faith and we're 35:51 talking about the faith of our Adventist heritage and what God 35:56 has revealed to us - you cannot leave out the Sabbath! 36:00 And so I just want to start by bringing about the fact that 36:04 we see the Sabbath very clearly, as everyone knows, 36:06 right there in the beginning at Creation. 36:08 Two things, as we know, were established in Creation, 36:11 and that would be, of course, the Sabbath and marriage 36:14 institution before Adam and Eve fell. 36:17 And so we know that Sabbath is very, very important. 36:20 It's in our very name - "Seventh-day Adventist," 36:23 the seventh day pointing us back to the fact 36:25 that God wants us to rest as He did rest from all His work. 36:31 And so there were three things we know that God had done 36:34 on the Sabbath day that He did not do to any of the other days, 36:37 and, of course, we know that He rested obviously; 36:39 He blessed the Sabbath day and, of course, He sanctified it. 36:43 He made that day Holy. 36:45 And we see this carry through even into the relationship 36:50 that God begins to establish with His church with Israel. 36:53 And I'm going to start with a text and I told you I was 36:56 going to build off this sanctuary theme because 36:59 many people, when they think about the sanctuary, 37:02 they don't see the Sabbath in the sanctuary, but the Sabbath 37:05 is in the sanctuary message. That's right! 37:07 And so we know there that as you look at the sanctuary, 37:11 you have the courtyard, and of course, as you continue 37:14 to progress forward, you go into the Holy Place, 37:16 and then of course, we end up in the Most Holy Place 37:19 where, Jill, you were talking about the Ark of the Covenant. 37:22 Now I want to read this text here because the next time 37:26 we really see the Sabbath brought about or emphasized 37:29 in the Scripture, after creation, would be in Exodus 16 37:33 which most of us may not realize this but the Ten 37:37 Commandments, the first record of the Ten Commandments 37:40 are given to us in Exodus 20, and most people think that 37:43 that's where God first initiates the Sabbath 37:47 commandment or the commandment keeping Sabbath 37:50 or resting, but we know that 37:51 that's not the case because we find an interesting text 37:54 or interesting passage in Exodus 16. 37:58 Just to kind of set this up, I'm not going to read it all, 38:00 but basically the children of Israel were out in 38:02 the wilderness and they're groaning and they're 38:04 complaining about... you know, "The Lord has brought us 38:06 out here to starve to death, and to die and they're 38:09 complaining... well God hears their murmurings. 38:11 He hears their complainings, and of course, we know that He 38:14 goes to Moses and He says, as it says here in verse 4... 38:17 "And the Lord said unto Moses, "Behold I will rain bread 38:19 from heaven for you, and the people shall go out 38:22 and gather a certain quota every day (and then notice 38:25 this next part) that I may test them (notice God is 38:29 testing them) that I may test them whether they 38:32 will walk in my law or not." 38:35 Now, you know, when we think of 38:37 the law, we think of the whole law, right? 38:38 We think of all of the Ten Commandments 38:40 that God gave us, but it's interesting that 38:42 as you continue reading this, God says, "Look, I'm 38:44 going to rain bread for manna on the first day, 38:46 the second day, the third day, the fourth day, 38:48 the fifth day, but on the sixth day - I want you to 38:51 go out early and I want you to gather a double portion 38:54 because on the seventh day, I'm not going to rain any bread. 38:58 You're going to have to rest, but not go out and 39:01 gather that bread because that is My Sabbath, 39:03 I want you to rest on My Sabbath. 39:05 And, of course, we know the story, it's interesting because 39:08 many of the people got it; they understood that, 39:11 but there were some that even went out on the seventh day 39:14 ... you might say that they weren't really unified 39:17 in the faith because they did go out 39:19 on the seventh day, and they violated that. 39:21 In verse 28 of Exodus 16, God says, "How long will you 39:27 refuse to keep My commandments and My laws?" 39:31 That was the test. 39:33 And as many of us know... and we're going to get to this 39:35 in just a few moments if I have time... 39:37 Most of us know that test is going to repeat itself 39:41 here at the end of time. That's right. 39:43 The end time message that we have been given tells us 39:46 that that Sabbath issue will rise up again; 39:48 it will be the test, but God did not 39:51 give us the Sabbath as a burden. 39:53 He didn't give us the Sabbath as something to 39:55 ruin our lives, but of course, as we're going to find out, 39:58 to unify the faith - that's what our lesson is entitled, 40:01 "Unity in Faith." 40:02 In the faith that we can, indeed, rest with Christ 40:06 on the Sabbath. 40:07 I just want to consider Exodus 20:8-11, 40:10 this is the commandment itself, most of us know it, 40:12 could probably quote it, but it says. It's starts here... 40:15 "Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy. (and then you read 40:18 there verses 9 through 10 there, God tells us how we 40:23 keep it holy) Six days you shall labor and do all your work, 40:26 but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord thy God: 40:28 in it you shall do not do any work. (He says) nor your son, 40:32 nor your daughter, nor your male servant, nor your 40:34 female servant, nor your cattle, 40:35 nor your stranger that is within your gates." 40:37 And then of course, He gives us the reason why we keep Sabbath 40:41 here) He says, "For in six days the Lord made heaven 40:44 and earth and (of course) the sea and all that is in them is, 40:47 and He rested the seventh day. Therefore, the Lord blessed 40:50 the Sabbath day and (of course) He hallowed it." 40:52 He made it holy. 40:54 We see another mentioning of the commandment here in 40:58 Deuteronomy 5:12-15, but I find something interesting here 41:03 that most people might look over and that is that 41:07 the commandment is basically repeated but if you look towards 41:11 the latter portion of verse 14, where He's going through this 41:14 list of "nor your donkey, nor your cattle, nor your stranger 41:17 who is within your gates, notice what He says here... 41:19 "That your male servant and your female servant may 41:22 rest as well as you." That's right. 41:26 You know, God wants us to rest as Christians, but He also 41:29 wants others to rest as well. 41:30 We need to allow others within our vicinity, within our homes, 41:34 within our churches, within our families, within our every day 41:36 lives, of course, on Sabbath to be able to rest as well. 41:40 That's relational and that's where I'm kinda going with this. 41:42 God gives the Sabbath - yes, to give us rest but also 41:47 for relationship. Amen! 41:49 It's really, really all about a relationship with God. 41:52 Notice here in Ezekiel 20:12,20, I love this passage here, 41:58 these couple of Scriptures in this passage because it 42:02 reminds us of the major significance of Sabbath-keeping. 42:07 This is God, Himself, speaking and He says... 42:09 "Moreover I also gave them my Sabbaths to be a 42:12 sign between them and Me that they might know I 42:16 am the Lord who sanctifies them." 42:18 So God sanctified the seventh day; He made the seventh day 42:21 holy - when we accept that sign, when we accept the Sabbath 42:25 for what it is, God sanctifies us. 42:27 He sees us as a Holy sanctified people and of course, 42:30 He repeats it again in verse 20, "Hallow My Sabbaths, (notice) 42:34 that they may be a SIGN between Me and you, 42:36 that you may know that I am 42:38 the Lord your God (that's relational). 42:39 God is saying, I'm your God, I want you to be My people. 42:42 When you keep my Sabbath, I know that you're My people, 42:44 and you may know that I'm your God. 42:46 We also see this in the example; Christ gave us the example 42:49 of Sabbath-keeping. 42:51 He is our ultimate example, as it says in Luke 4:16... 42:55 It says, "So He came to Nazareth where He had been brought up, 43:00 and as His custom was, He went into the synagogue 43:04 on the Sabbath day and stood up to read." 43:07 Christ is our example, and you know what? 43:09 Jesus would know better than anyone because He is the Lord 43:12 of the Sabbath - He was the Creator, He created the Sabbath. 43:15 So what better example would you want to follow 43:17 than that of the Creator, right? Right! Makes perfect sense. 43:20 You know, there's another aspect that I want to bring out here 43:23 before we close because I have just a few minutes left... 43:25 We know that there are examples of the apostles 43:28 keeping the Sabbath after the death of Christ - that's a big 43:30 contention among the Christian world and many people 43:33 believe that when Christ died on the cross, 43:35 that canceled out or done away with Sabbath-keeping. 43:38 But there are many examples that we see in Scripture, 43:41 in the New Testament, more specifically 43:42 the Book of Acts 17:2, I'm reading... "Then Paul, 43:46 as his custom was, (remember Christ, as His custom was) 43:50 Paul also - as his custom was, went in unto them for 43:53 three Sabbath days, reasoned with them 43:54 from Scripture and, of course, in Acts 18:4..."And he 43:58 reasoned in the synagogue every Sabbath and persuaded both 44:01 the Jews and the Greeks." 44:04 Notice Jews and Greeks, this is not just a Jewish thing. 44:06 Jesus said, "The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the 44:09 Sabbath," so we know that that was made for all mankind. 44:13 It's important that we recognize here in the concept 44:16 of unity in the faith, and when I think of 44:17 Sabbath-keeping, I think of it as a time to bring God's 44:20 people together. Amen! 44:21 What better time to unify God's people than 44:23 on the seventh day Sabbath of the Lord. 44:25 And so the Sabbath is a relational 44:27 blessing that God has given to us. 44:28 Not only can we take the time to worship our Savior and to 44:34 spend time with Him in a relationship, but we also 44:36 can spend time with our brethren in the unity 44:39 of the faith. That's right. Amen! 44:40 We have a rest for God's people here in the last days. 44:43 It has never changed. That's right. 44:45 Hebrews 4:9-10 confirms that, it says... "There remains 44:50 therefore a rest for the people of God; for he who has 44:54 entered into his rest has himself also ceased from his 44:57 works as God did from His." Amen! 45:00 And I just want to end with this... 45:02 This beautiful Scripture from Matthew 11, as we all 45:05 may know, Jesus says in verse 28-30... 45:08 "Come to Me all you who labor and are heavy-laden, 45:11 and I will give you rest." Amen! 45:13 Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me for I am 45:15 gentle and lowly in heart and you will find rest 45:18 for your souls." 45:19 May we find rest for our souls as we remember 45:23 and keep that Sabbath holy! Amen! Amen! 45:25 Thank you, Ryan, what a great addition to the team 45:28 you are and we're just so glad 45:30 to have you here. Praise the Lord! 45:32 Well, my day is Thursday and it is on 45:34 the doctrine of "Death and Resurrection" 45:38 You know, there's so many people, so many 45:39 sincere-hearted Christians who teach that when we 45:42 die, we immediately either go to hell or go to heaven, 45:45 and this is a pagan belief; Socrates taught it, 45:50 Plato taught it. 45:52 It entered the Christian Church through Tertullian 45:56 and he was a pagan philosopher, he was converted to Christianity 46:02 in 197 A.D. and he became an ecclesiastical writer, 46:06 and that's how it got into the Christian Church. 46:08 But let's look at 1 Timothy 6:15-16, 46:14 because this kind of puts the whole idea to rest 46:19 about the idea that our soul is immortal. 46:23 The Bible says, 1 Timothy 6:15-16: 46:26 "... Which He will manifest in His own time, He who is the 46:30 blessed and only Potentate, the King of kings 46:33 and Lord of lords, who alone has immortality, 46:40 dwelling in unapproachable light whom no man 46:44 has seen or can see, to whom be honor 46:48 and everlasting power. Amen! Amen! 46:51 So the Bible tells us that the One who is infinite without 46:57 beginning, without end is self-existent, 46:59 at this time, He is the ONLY ONE who has immortality. 47:06 The Bible mentions the soul or the Spirit of man 1,600 times; 47:13 not one time EVER is that associated with immortality... 47:19 there is not a single verse there. 47:21 Actually, if you'll turn please, to 1 Corinthians 15, 47:26 and we're going to look at verses 51-54. 47:30 Paul is speaking to Christians here and he is saying, 47:34 Hey, you get to put on immortality at the last trumpet 47:38 at the close of earth's history when Christ returns. 47:41 1 Corinthians 15:51-54... He says, "Behold I tell you 47:46 a mystery, we shall not all sleep (now that's a Bible 47:50 metaphor for death - we'll look at that in just a moment) 47:53 but we shall (but what He's saying is - not everybody is 47:56 going to die before Christ returns - there will be some 47:59 who are alive at His return) but we shall all be changed 48:03 in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye... when? 48:07 at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, 48:11 and the dead will be raised incorruptible, 48:14 and we shall be changed. (now look at verse 53) 48:18 For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this 48:22 mortal must put on immortality." 48:26 So when this corruption has put on incorruption and the mortal 48:29 has put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass 48:34 the saying that is written: 48:36 "Death is swallowed up in victory." 48:38 So when do believers... see, we get the promise 48:42 of eternal life as soon as we accept Christ - the promise. 48:46 But when do we put on eternal life immortality? 48:50 At the last trumpet. 48:52 So what happens when we die? 48:56 Death is the reverse process of creation. 49:00 When God created man, Genesis 2:7 says... 49:03 "He formed man from the dust of the earth. 49:05 He breathed into his nostrils. Man became, it says, a 49:11 living being." 49:13 God imparted life, His breath, the ruach, into man's nostril. 49:19 Man became a living being or a living soul. 49:22 Man doesn't have a living soul, he became a living soul. 49:28 That is the indivisible union of body and breath. 49:33 Adam didn't receive a soul, he became a soul. 49:36 And so the breath is not an intelligence, the breath is 49:42 not... when we talk about spirit, it is not a separate 49:46 intelligence - it is how God ignited life in us. 49:52 Same spark of life God gave to animals - we find in 49:56 Genesis 7:21-22... It says in verse 22, "... in whose nostrils 50:01 (it's talking about the animals) was the spirit... 50:04 the breath of the spirit of life." 50:07 But then in Genesis 3:19, what does God say? 50:10 "Dust you are, to dust you will return." 50:14 So when we die, it's the reverse process. 50:18 The breath goes from us and then we decompose 50:23 and we're back to the dust of the earth. 50:26 How did Jesus describe death? 50:27 Let's look at John 11:11-14. I love this because it makes 50:33 it pretty clear. John 11:11...John writes 50:40 "These things He (Jesus) said, and after that He said to them, 50:46 "Our friend Lazarus sleeps." He is talking about Mary and 50:51 Martha's brother who had died and was in the tomb, 50:55 but what Jesus said to His disciples is, "Our friend 50:59 Lazarus sleeps." 51:00 You know in the Greek, the word that they use 51:03 for sleep is "koimao," and it can mean asleep; 51:08 it can mean sleep, die or to be dead. 51:11 So He says, "Our friend, Lazarus, sleeps, and we know 51:15 that they took it for this kind of sleep because the disciples 51:21 said to him, "Lord, if he sleeps, he'll get well." 51:25 However, verse 13 says, "Jesus spoke of his death, 51:29 but they thought that He was speaking about 51:31 taking rest in sleep. 51:33 And then Jesus said to them plainly, "Lazarus is dead." 51:38 So what does the Bible say happens when we die? 51:41 I'm going to just really whiz through these. 51:45 You might want to just take down 51:47 the Scripture references here. 51:50 Ecclesiastes 9:5-6... I may get it out... 51:58 Ecclesiastes 9:5-6... 52:02 It says, "Like sleep, the dead are unconscious that they 52:06 know nothing. For the living know that they shall die, 52:10 but the dead know nothing." 52:13 Ecclesiastes 9:10 says... "Like sleep, we are resting 52:19 when we're dead. 52:20 It says..."Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all 52:22 your might for there is no work or device, or knowledge, 52:25 or wisdom in the grave where you're going." 52:27 Psalm 146:4 says... "Like sleep, there's no conscious thoughts 52:33 that we lie unconscious in the grave. 52:35 And it says, "The spirit departs, the man returns 52:38 to the earth, dust to dust, in that day, his plans perish." 52:43 Psalm 115:17 says... "The dead do not praise the Lord, 52:48 nor any who go down into silence." 52:50 Job 14:12 says... "We sleep until we are awakened." 52:54 So man lies down and does not rise until when? 52:58 "Until the heavens are no more, they will not awake 53:03 nor be roused from their sleep." That's right. 53:05 So not until Christ returns. 53:08 And Daniel 12:1-2, Daniel is prophesying a time of trouble, 53:14 right before Christ returns, he says, "At that time, 53:18 your people shall be delivered, everyone who is found written 53:22 in the book... (he is talking about the Book of Life) 53:25 and he says, "And many of those who sleep in the dust of the 53:30 earth shall awake - some to everlasting life, some to 53:33 shame and everlasting contempt." 53:35 So death is a sleep from which there will be an awakening. 53:40 In 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18, Paul writes and says... 53:45 "I did not want you to be ignorant, brethren, 53:48 concerning those who have fallen asleep." 53:51 He's talking about the dead. 53:52 "Lest you sorrow as those who have no hope. 53:56 For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, 53:59 even so God will bring with Him those 54:03 who sleep in Jesus. For this we say to you 54:07 by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive and 54:10 remain until the coming of the Lord, will by no means 54:15 precede those who are asleep." 54:18 He goes on, he's saying... Hey, the Lord is going to 54:20 return with a shout with the voice of the archangel 54:23 and we're all caught up together. 54:26 We who are alive and remaining don't precede into His 54:30 presence before the dead. 54:33 So that shows you the dead are in their graves. 54:36 And then, in just these last few seconds... 54:39 Jesus in John 5:28-29 said... "Don't marvel at this, 54:43 for the hour is coming in which all who are in the graves 54:48 will hear My voice. They will come forth and 54:52 those who have done good come forth to the resurrection 54:55 of life, but those who have done evil, to the 54:58 resurrection of condemnation." 55:01 We want you to be ready to rest in Jesus until He returns 55:05 and come forth from the grave. 55:08 Amen, what an incredible job each one of you 55:11 have done - I feel as if we need another hour to talk 55:15 more about the unity of the faith and the doctrines 55:18 that we find in the word of God and those doctrines unite 55:22 us in love. 55:24 I want to give each one of you a moment to share 55:26 a closing thought maybe about your day 55:28 or about something else. Pastor Kenny... 55:30 It just really hit me hard here, we need to be careful 55:32 not to try to pull down those beautiful teachings of God 55:34 or the truths in Scripture. 55:37 We need to elevate them, hold them up. 55:38 They've been attacked from the very beginning. 55:40 They'll be attacked in the end and our only 55:42 safety is knowing what is truth. That's right! 55:45 Very simply, the ministry of Jesus has brought the end 55:48 of sin to an end and not a continuing possibility, 55:51 not a chance that it will rise up again. 55:53 Nahum 1:9... "Affliction will not rise up a second time." 55:57 We won't need another Redeemer. 55:59 We won't need another Calvary. 56:00 The blood of Christ will not just forgive sin, 56:03 but eternally blot it out. Amen! Amen! 56:06 Yeah, you know, the title of our lesson today, 56:09 "Unity in Faith," I can't think of anything 56:12 better to describe this unity in faith than that 56:14 of the faith of Christ. 56:16 The Third Angels' Message... "Here is the patience 56:17 of the saints; here are they that keep the commandments 56:20 of God and have the faith of Jesus." 56:22 So that's what I'm praying for.. Lord, give me, help me to 56:26 reflect that of the faith of Jesus. Amen! 56:28 I just want to share John 11:25-26 when Jesus 56:32 said to Martha... "I am the resurrection and the life, 56:36 and he who believes in Me, though that he may die, 56:41 he shall live." And he goes on to tell her... Whoever lives 56:44 and believes in Me shall never die." Do you believe this? 56:47 And in the Greek, it's a strong double negative and He's saying, 56:51 "You shall not die forever." Yes! Amen! 56:56 Thank you all so much for your study of the word of God, 56:59 Pastor Kenny, Pastor John, Pastor Ryan and Shelley 57:03 thank you so much for sharing. 57:04 And we're just so delighted that you have joined us today 57:07 for our study of "Unity and Faith," what a blessing 57:11 to be able to be united on the word of God, 57:15 and to be able to be united in love and in humility 57:18 with each other as brothers and sisters. 57:21 I want to encourage you to join us next week. 57:24 Our study next week is: "The Most Convincing Proof" 57:27 Until then, God bless you. |
Revised 2018-11-20