Good evening everyone,
and welcome to "The Presence",
00:01:09.57\00:01:12.56
here with Pastor Shawn Boonstra
of the internationally acclaimed
00:01:12.59\00:01:16.22
"It is Written" TV program.
I don't know if you know this
00:01:16.25\00:01:18.84
or not, but in 1956 a man
by the name of George Vandeman
00:01:18.87\00:01:23.97
began a single TV program
out of Fresno, California.
00:01:24.00\00:01:28.38
This year internationally,
all over the world,
00:01:28.41\00:01:31.68
the "It is Written"
telecast is celebrating their
00:01:31.71\00:01:33.88
50th anniversary, and we
are very proud to be able
00:01:33.91\00:01:37.86
to bring to you tonight
"The Presence", and I'd like
00:01:37.89\00:01:40.17
for you right now to please
welcome Pastor Shawn Boonstra.
00:01:40.20\00:01:44.47
[Audience Claps]
00:01:44.50\00:01:47.47
Thank you so much
00:01:53.48\00:01:55.67
for coming to The Presence,
and those of you who are joining
00:01:56.00\00:01:58.98
us by satellite TV
around the world tonight,
00:01:59.01\00:02:02.88
I'm so glad that you've
joined us for this special
00:02:02.91\00:02:05.78
5 night presentation.
For 5 nights we are going
00:02:05.81\00:02:09.39
to unfold some of the
most profound mysteries
00:02:09.42\00:02:11.99
of the ancient world, and night
by night we're going to build
00:02:12.02\00:02:15.42
on the night that came before,
you're going to want to come
00:02:15.45\00:02:18.13
to all 5 nights. I'm
going to show you things
00:02:18.16\00:02:20.99
that many people may not have
noticed, and I'm going to show
00:02:21.02\00:02:24.11
you things that a lot of
the world today has missed
00:02:24.14\00:02:27.91
as they latch on to
theories that are very popular
00:02:27.94\00:02:31.41
about the ancient world.
In particular, I'm thinking
00:02:31.44\00:02:33.53
of things like the Da
Vinci Code phenomenon,
00:02:33.56\00:02:36.66
and other popular
movements that are afoot today.
00:02:36.69\00:02:40.09
We're going to open some
of the most ancient documents
00:02:40.12\00:02:42.70
in the world together, and look
at the truth about the roots
00:02:42.73\00:02:46.76
of the Christian movement,
we're going to look at the truth
00:02:46.79\00:02:50.01
about a lot of things that
a lot of people have simply
00:02:50.04\00:02:52.53
stopped talking
about in recent years.
00:02:52.56\00:02:55.07
Each night we're going to
delve a little bit deeper,
00:02:55.10\00:02:57.36
and you're going to want to
save your lessons and study them
00:02:57.39\00:03:00.71
so that you'll be ready
for the next nights meeting.
00:03:00.74\00:03:03.30
Now, tonight, because I
represent "It is Written",
00:03:03.33\00:03:07.25
a Bible based program, and
because I believe the Bible,
00:03:07.28\00:03:11.17
personally, to be the very
word of God to the human race,
00:03:11.20\00:03:14.95
I always like to have
a prayer before I examine
00:03:14.98\00:03:17.36
what it says, so I would invite
you here, in the studio audience
00:03:17.39\00:03:21.54
and around the world tonight,
to join me by bowing your heads
00:03:21.57\00:03:25.37
for just a moment.
00:03:25.40\00:03:27.16
Father in heaven,
tonight we're delighted
00:03:27.19\00:03:29.67
with the opportunity
of opening the Bible.
00:03:29.70\00:03:32.46
We believe in our hearts
that when we read the Bible
00:03:32.49\00:03:35.14
we hear the voice of
God, so it's my prayer tonight
00:03:35.17\00:03:39.01
that not only would we
hear Your voice, that You
00:03:39.04\00:03:41.65
would bless me also so
the things I say would be
00:03:41.68\00:03:45.17
a fitting representation of
what You would have us know.
00:03:45.20\00:03:48.51
Bless our study, I
ask in Jesus' name, amen.
00:03:48.54\00:03:53.09
You know, over the years
the spade of the archeologist
00:03:54.09\00:03:58.41
has often turned up as many
questions as it has answered.
00:03:58.44\00:04:02.74
Every time we find something
about ancient civilizations,
00:04:02.77\00:04:06.11
it turns out the more we
learn about that civilization,
00:04:06.14\00:04:09.72
the less we
actually know about them.
00:04:09.75\00:04:12.61
Let me give you some
examples of things that people
00:04:12.64\00:04:14.80
have discovered over
the last century that nobody
00:04:14.83\00:04:17.89
has an explanation
for. For example, since 1927
00:04:17.92\00:04:23.62
13 crystal skulls have
been unearthed, ranging from
00:04:23.65\00:04:27.56
Central America down to the
southern tip of South America.
00:04:27.59\00:04:32.50
Nobody knows who
made these crystal skulls,
00:04:32.53\00:04:35.87
they are accurate in size,
they are actually just like
00:04:35.90\00:04:39.66
a human skull, and they are so
finely crafted that one of them
00:04:39.69\00:04:43.23
even has a moving
jawbone that moves the way
00:04:43.26\00:04:46.64
an actual human jaw moves.
Nobody knows who made these,
00:04:46.67\00:04:51.12
13 have been discovered,
nobody knows why they were made,
00:04:51.15\00:04:54.69
were they a religious
object? We don't know.
00:04:54.72\00:04:57.75
Were they used as
decorations in people's homes
00:04:57.78\00:05:00.26
thousands of years ago?
We don't know that either.
00:05:00.29\00:05:03.37
Or were they used in a classroom
somewhere in the ancient world
00:05:03.40\00:05:06.50
as a science study
for students studying
00:05:06.53\00:05:09.02
human anatomy; the truth
is we haven't got a clue.
00:05:09.05\00:05:12.70
We don't know who made
them, we don't know why
00:05:12.73\00:05:15.32
they made them, but that's
not the only mystery that's come
00:05:15.35\00:05:18.36
to us from the
ancient world, there are more.
00:05:18.39\00:05:21.48
In the 1920's, when airplanes
started to go over the high
00:05:21.51\00:05:25.27
deserts of Peru, the passengers
of the plane started to look
00:05:25.30\00:05:29.11
out of the windows down at
the desert, and they noticed
00:05:29.14\00:05:32.39
something interesting: carved
into the sands of the desert,
00:05:32.42\00:05:35.83
in a place that doesn't have
much wind or rain, so things
00:05:35.86\00:05:38.92
stick around for a very
long time, people look out
00:05:38.95\00:05:41.94
the windows and they saw
these giant pictures etched
00:05:41.97\00:05:44.82
in the sand, some as
big as 900 ft across.
00:05:44.85\00:05:49.15
There are giant spiders
etched in the sand, giant birds
00:05:49.18\00:05:52.87
etched in the sand,
lizards, monkeys, human hands,
00:05:52.90\00:05:57.49
900 ft across. The
only place you can see
00:05:57.52\00:06:01.19
these drawing in the
sand is from the air,
00:06:01.22\00:06:04.61
they're that big. Now,
scientists have studied
00:06:04.64\00:06:07.24
these things and they've
noted as far as they can tell,
00:06:07.27\00:06:09.84
that they were probably
created between the years
00:06:09.87\00:06:12.27
200 B.C. and 600 A.D, I'm not
sure how they determined that's
00:06:12.30\00:06:17.59
when they were made, but
there's one thing they haven't
00:06:17.62\00:06:19.90
determined: who made
them? They've discovered
00:06:19.93\00:06:22.70
a city nearby, but that
city appears to have been
00:06:22.73\00:06:25.54
empty for the last 2000
years, so who are these people?
00:06:25.57\00:06:30.32
Why did they draw these giant
pictures out in the desert?
00:06:30.35\00:06:34.26
Were they religious
symbols? Was it just art?
00:06:34.29\00:06:37.50
Why were they so big?
Why is it that you can only
00:06:37.53\00:06:40.21
see them from the
air? Another giant mystery.
00:06:40.24\00:06:43.30
Nobody has an answer, and
again, it's not the only mystery
00:06:43.33\00:06:46.60
from the ancient world.
What about the giant stone balls
00:06:46.63\00:06:51.14
of Costa Rica. In the 1940's
00:06:51.17\00:06:54.10
the United Fruit
Company, as they were digging
00:06:54.13\00:06:55.97
in the earth, stumbled
across these perfect spherical
00:06:56.00\00:06:58.83
stone balls, some of them
only 2 ft across, some of them
00:06:58.86\00:07:02.28
as big as 6 ft
across. Who made them?
00:07:02.31\00:07:05.58
There's hundreds of
them, why did they make them?
00:07:05.61\00:07:07.98
Were they just decoration?
00:07:08.01\00:07:09.21
Did they serve a
religious purpose?
00:07:09.24\00:07:11.21
We're they a
scientific experiment?
00:07:11.24\00:07:13.02
We haven't got a
clue who made them or why,
00:07:13.05\00:07:16.08
it's just another big
mystery, and again, it's not
00:07:16.11\00:07:19.61
the only one. What
about Easter Island?
00:07:19.64\00:07:23.12
Here's this little
island out in the Pacific Ocean,
00:07:23.15\00:07:26.19
it's 2300 miles
from the nearest land,
00:07:26.22\00:07:29.99
it's closest neighbor is
South America, and this island
00:07:30.02\00:07:33.01
isn't very big across, to find
it on purpose is a hard thing
00:07:33.04\00:07:36.51
to do if you don't
have navigational equipment.
00:07:36.54\00:07:39.32
You have to go a long
way, 2300 miles in a canoe
00:07:39.35\00:07:43.31
in the ancient world, and land
on a little island our there
00:07:43.34\00:07:46.33
just a couple of miles
across. Yet in 1772 some sailors
00:07:46.36\00:07:50.90
did land there, and when
they got there they discovered
00:07:50.93\00:07:53.43
something remarkable
on this barren island:
00:07:53.46\00:07:55.79
somebody had erected
giant human head statues
00:07:55.82\00:07:59.45
all around the perimeter
of this island, some of them
00:07:59.48\00:08:02.57
as big as 10 tones of
stone. Then they discovered
00:08:02.60\00:08:06.34
they had been cut out of
a rock quarry in the middle
00:08:06.37\00:08:09.30
of the island.
Somebody had cut these stones
00:08:09.33\00:08:12.53
in the middle of the island,
there were still some stones
00:08:12.56\00:08:15.00
half carved in this quarry,
they had taken these 10 ton
00:08:15.03\00:08:18.49
statues, somehow moved
them to the edge of the island
00:08:18.52\00:08:22.62
and set them up. Who did that
00:08:22.65\00:08:25.00
out in the middle of
nowhere? How did they do it?
00:08:25.03\00:08:27.45
How did they move 10
ton stones without any tools
00:08:27.48\00:08:30.44
or equipment to the edge of the
island, and then set them up?
00:08:30.47\00:08:34.53
And furthermore,
why would they do it?
00:08:34.56\00:08:36.90
Were they a religious symbol?
Was this something that they
00:08:36.93\00:08:39.69
set up to scare
off evil spirits?
00:08:39.72\00:08:42.19
Or was it there to
discourage their enemies?
00:08:42.22\00:08:44.33
We haven't a
clue. We don't know what
00:08:44.36\00:08:48.20
they are, or why
they were put up,
00:08:48.23\00:08:50.25
it's another mystery
from the ancient world,
00:08:50.28\00:08:51.95
but it's not the only one.
00:08:51.98\00:08:54.55
What about the
the Piri Reis map?
00:08:54.58\00:08:57.01
How many of you have ever
heard of the Piri Reis map?
00:08:57.04\00:08:59.34
There's one or 2 of you.
00:08:59.37\00:09:00.84
This is really strange.
It's a map that's been painted
00:09:00.87\00:09:03.90
on a piece of gazelle skin,
and we discovered it in 1929.
00:09:03.93\00:09:09.46
What's really strange about
this map is that it's a map
00:09:09.49\00:09:13.48
that includes Antarctica.
00:09:13.51\00:09:16.20
Not only does it
include Antarctica, this map
00:09:16.23\00:09:19.10
of Antarctica is Antarctica
as it is without any ice on it.
00:09:19.13\00:09:23.61
Somehow, whoever painted
this map knew what Antarctica
00:09:23.64\00:09:26.52
looked like underneath the ice,
and tests that have been run
00:09:26.55\00:09:30.61
since reveal that they
were completely accurate.
00:09:30.64\00:09:34.37
We've done hydro-sounding
or whatever....don't take my
00:09:34.40\00:09:38.16
word for that, there's no
such thing as hydro-sounding,
00:09:38.19\00:09:41.05
whatever it is that
we've got down, we have seen
00:09:41.08\00:09:43.35
the stone under the ice.
This map is entirely accurate.
00:09:43.38\00:09:47.13
We've dug into its
history, we know that it was
00:09:47.16\00:09:49.40
composed by a
Turkish admiral in 1513.
00:09:49.43\00:09:54.40
When somebody asked him
where he got that map he said
00:09:54.43\00:09:56.66
"I compiled it
from different sources."
00:09:56.69\00:09:59.00
So let me ask you, in
1513 how did he get a hold
00:09:59.03\00:10:02.81
of maps of Antarctica
without any ice on it?
00:10:02.84\00:10:05.66
Where did he get
it? In 1953 the US Navy
00:10:05.69\00:10:09.91
Hydrographic Bureau took a
look at this map, and they said
00:10:09.94\00:10:13.21
it was absolutely
accurate, and more than that,
00:10:13.24\00:10:16.79
the only way you could
come up with a map like this
00:10:16.82\00:10:20.08
was through aerial surveillance.
00:10:20.11\00:10:22.38
How did they have
that back in 1513?
00:10:22.41\00:10:25.43
It's a giant mystery,
but it's not the only one.
00:10:25.46\00:10:28.62
What about the Mayan
Calendar? We might want to think
00:10:28.65\00:10:31.89
of the ancients as very
simple. primitive people,
00:10:31.92\00:10:34.55
and yet the Mayans composed
calendars carved in stone
00:10:34.58\00:10:38.36
that accurately predicted
the orbit of the planet Venus,
00:10:38.39\00:10:41.47
and also revealed
when the planet Venus
00:10:41.50\00:10:44.05
would be in
eclipse. How did they do that
00:10:44.08\00:10:46.96
all those
thousands of years ago?
00:10:46.99\00:10:48.70
Who taught them
that? Who made this stuff?
00:10:48.73\00:10:51.40
It's a huge mystery, and
it seems to me that every time
00:10:51.43\00:10:54.87
we dig into the soil we
come up with something else
00:10:54.90\00:10:58.43
we didn't know.
00:10:58.46\00:11:00.39
But you know what's more
interesting than stuff we find
00:11:00.42\00:11:03.35
and can't explain?
It's stuff we can explain,
00:11:03.38\00:11:06.93
but we can't find.
Stuff like one of the biggest
00:11:07.93\00:11:11.77
mysteries of the
ancient world - where is
00:11:11.80\00:11:15.81
the Ark of the Covenant?
This was the most sacred
00:11:15.84\00:11:19.32
object that the
ancient Jewish people had.
00:11:19.35\00:11:22.52
It was so sacred that they
kept it inside their temple,
00:11:22.55\00:11:25.94
inside their sanctuary, in
their innermost compartment,
00:11:25.97\00:11:28.95
known as the Most Holy
Place, where few mortal eyes
00:11:28.98\00:11:32.16
would ever see it, and no human
fingers would ever touch it.
00:11:32.19\00:11:36.05
It was just a simple
wooden box overlaid with gold.
00:11:36.08\00:11:40.02
It had a pure gold lid on
it, and then 2 angels on top
00:11:40.05\00:11:44.00
out of beaten gold,
whose wings touched above
00:11:44.03\00:11:46.76
the Ark of the Covenant.
00:11:46.79\00:11:48.70
This item was so sacred
that even the priests themselves
00:11:48.73\00:11:53.61
would not touch it. The
Israelites had this item
00:11:53.64\00:11:57.32
in their possession
for century after century,
00:11:57.35\00:12:01.89
and then all of a
sudden it disappears.
00:12:01.92\00:12:05.84
It is absolutely gone,
vanished without a trace.
00:12:05.87\00:12:09.03
The most important
artifact in the ancient world,
00:12:09.06\00:12:11.95
and today we haven't
got a clue where it is.
00:12:11.98\00:12:15.29
How does that
happen? The last we hear
00:12:15.32\00:12:19.05
of the Ark of the Covenant
is just before the Babylonian
00:12:19.08\00:12:23.50
invasion of Israel
about 600 years before Christ.
00:12:23.53\00:12:28.09
Nebuchadnezzar, the Babylonian
king, marches on Jerusalem,
00:12:28.12\00:12:31.69
he destroys the temple, he
sacks it, he takes the Israelite
00:12:31.72\00:12:35.95
people captive, and he
marches them some 1500 miles
00:12:35.98\00:12:39.46
back to Babylon,
and at the same time
00:12:39.49\00:12:44.06
the Ark of Covenant simply
disappears, and nobody says
00:12:44.09\00:12:48.68
a word about it; there is no
record, not even in the Bible,
00:12:48.71\00:12:51.94
of where it
went, or why it's gone.
00:12:51.97\00:12:54.75
The Bible simply stops talking
about it, and you don't see it
00:12:54.78\00:12:58.64
again after the
Babylonian invasion of Israel.
00:12:58.67\00:13:02.29
It's just gone.
00:13:02.32\00:13:05.51
And today, we haven't
got a clue where it is.
00:13:05.78\00:13:10.20
That doesn't mean
that people haven't come up
00:13:10.23\00:13:12.52
with some theories
about where the Ark went.
00:13:12.55\00:13:14.93
Some people say that the
Ark was destroyed or taken
00:13:14.96\00:13:18.28
away by the Babylonians
when they marched back
00:13:18.31\00:13:20.56
to Babylon. This
theory isn't very common,
00:13:20.59\00:13:23.86
and it's not very
common because it's frankly
00:13:23.89\00:13:25.95
not very likely. The
problem with the theory
00:13:25.98\00:13:28.48
is this: if the
Babylonians actually had
00:13:28.51\00:13:31.91
the Ark of the Covenant, they
would have told the whole world
00:13:31.94\00:13:34.79
about it. In the ancient world
00:13:34.82\00:13:36.55
if you captured a
religious relic from your enemy,
00:13:36.58\00:13:39.51
you bragged
about it day and night.
00:13:39.54\00:13:42.38
I can think of several
examples: in the Bible there was
00:13:42.41\00:13:45.86
an occasion where the
tribe of the Philistines
00:13:45.89\00:13:48.73
actually captures the Ark
of the Covenant, the Israelites
00:13:48.76\00:13:51.96
had foolishly taken it
into battle, and they'd done it
00:13:51.99\00:13:55.21
for the wrong reasons, and
the Philistines captured it
00:13:55.24\00:13:58.53
and they were so
delighted, they brought it back
00:13:58.56\00:14:00.95
to their own temple
to the Pagan god, Dagon.
00:14:00.98\00:14:05.05
Dagon was the fish
god. They believed,
00:14:05.25\00:14:08.04
some of the ancient tribes,
that when the sun set at night,
00:14:08.07\00:14:11.55
the sun became a giant fish
and it swam under the earth,
00:14:11.58\00:14:14.54
came up again in the
morning and became the sun.
00:14:14.57\00:14:17.26
Dagon was the fish God,
and they were so enamored
00:14:17.29\00:14:20.50
with the fact that they had
captured the Ark of the Covenant
00:14:20.53\00:14:23.18
they brought it
into the temple of Dagon
00:14:23.21\00:14:25.32
and presented it to their
god. They bragged about the fact
00:14:25.35\00:14:29.11
that they had actually captured
the Ark of the Covenant.
00:14:29.14\00:14:31.77
Anybody who captured something
that valuable would brag
00:14:31.80\00:14:34.80
about it. Another
example: the romans.
00:14:34.83\00:14:37.96
The Romans destroyed the
temple in 70 A.D. in the city
00:14:37.99\00:14:42.81
of Jerusalem, and they
bragged about the fact that they
00:14:42.84\00:14:45.80
did that, in fact, today
when you go to the city of Rome
00:14:45.83\00:14:49.88
and you visit the old
Roman Forum, the ancient city
00:14:49.91\00:14:52.68
of Rome, over on the
edge nearest to the Colosseum
00:14:52.71\00:14:56.64
is an arch built by Titus,
the man who conquered Jerusalem
00:14:56.67\00:15:00.62
in 70 A.D. And as
you step inside that arch
00:15:00.65\00:15:03.87
you look up over your
left shoulder, you see a fresco
00:15:03.90\00:15:07.26
carved into the stone of a bunch
of people carring a 7 branched
00:15:07.29\00:15:11.23
candle stick
away. Why is it there?
00:15:11.26\00:15:14.43
They're bragging about the
fact that they had conquered
00:15:14.46\00:15:16.53
the temple and they were leaving
with some of the furniture
00:15:16.56\00:15:19.48
out of the temple.
Everybody that caught
00:15:19.51\00:15:21.85
anything that is significant
in a battle, bragged about it
00:15:21.88\00:15:25.30
to the whole world.
They wanted the world to know
00:15:25.33\00:15:28.02
that their gods were
greater than the God of Israel,
00:15:28.05\00:15:30.84
or so they thought.
So, if the Babylonians had
00:15:30.87\00:15:34.72
actually captured the Ark
of the Covenant they would have
00:15:34.75\00:15:37.47
told the whole world about
it. We would have heard no end
00:15:37.50\00:15:40.16
of bragging about the fact
that Nebuchadnezzar had the Ark.
00:15:40.19\00:15:43.91
But there's nothing, there's
absolute silence in the Bible
00:15:43.94\00:15:47.48
about the Ark of the
Covenant, even in Daniel 5 where
00:15:47.51\00:15:51.57
the Babylonian king, Belshazzar,
throws a party showing
00:15:51.60\00:15:55.33
how powerful Babylon is,
he sends for all the vessels
00:15:55.36\00:15:58.96
and furniture and
things that have been taken
00:15:58.99\00:16:00.84
out of the Israelite temple, and
he brings them into the party,
00:16:00.87\00:16:04.34
and it tells you what
be brought into the party:
00:16:04.37\00:16:06.14
the vessels, the dishes, and
so on, but there's absolutely
00:16:06.17\00:16:09.71
no mention of the
Ark of the Covenant.
00:16:09.74\00:16:12.64
You can be sure that
if the Babylonians had it
00:16:12.67\00:16:15.34
they would have
bragged about it.
00:16:15.37\00:16:17.05
Theory #1 - the Babylonians
took it or destroyed it:
00:16:17.08\00:16:20.34
probably false. Theory #2:
00:16:20.37\00:16:23.58
a book came out some years ago
called "The Sign and The Seal"
00:16:23.61\00:16:26.84
by a man by the
name of Graham Hancock.
00:16:26.87\00:16:29.91
He tells the story
about how some years ago
00:16:29.94\00:16:32.58
as we explored in the
region of Africa, and we went
00:16:32.61\00:16:35.56
into Ethiopia, we
discovered a group of people
00:16:35.59\00:16:38.46
who lived the Jewish religion.
More so, they lived in ancient
00:16:38.49\00:16:42.40
form of the Jewish religion
with all of its holidays
00:16:42.43\00:16:45.87
and customs, they're
known as the Felashas.
00:16:45.90\00:16:49.01
Now, the Felashas
claim that they have the Ark
00:16:49.04\00:16:52.17
of the Covenant in
their possession in Ethiopia,
00:16:52.20\00:16:55.83
and how do they say they
got the Ark of the Covenant?
00:16:55.86\00:16:59.03
Very simple. The
Bible tells a story
00:16:59.06\00:17:01.29
in 1 Kings 10 of
Solomon, King of Israel,
00:17:01.32\00:17:05.34
meeting the Queen of
Sheba, from Ethiopia,
00:17:05.37\00:17:08.53
a beautiful woman.
That's where the Bible
00:17:08.56\00:17:11.18
leaves us with the story.
The Felashas fill in the details
00:17:11.21\00:17:14.05
for us, or what they
consider to be the details.
00:17:14.08\00:17:17.62
They say that Solomon
and the Queen of Sheba had
00:17:17.65\00:17:20.11
a son together, and the
son went back from Israel
00:17:20.14\00:17:23.59
to live in Ethiopia,
and because he was leaving
00:17:23.62\00:17:26.16
Solomon had a replica
of the Ark of the Covenant
00:17:26.19\00:17:29.15
made for him as a gift
so he could take it back
00:17:29.18\00:17:31.32
to Ethiopia. The
priests knew what Solomon
00:17:31.35\00:17:34.52
had done, and because they
were worried how the Israelites
00:17:34.55\00:17:37.97
were degrading in their
moral standards and becoming
00:17:38.00\00:17:41.13
more desperately
wicked with each passing year,
00:17:41.16\00:17:43.82
they, at a secret time, switched
the real Ark with the replica,
00:17:43.85\00:17:48.20
so that the Israelites had
the fake Ark, and the real one
00:17:48.23\00:17:51.68
went to Ethiopia.
Today, the Felashas will tell
00:17:51.71\00:17:54.48
you that the Ark is in
Ethiopia in a certain building,
00:17:54.51\00:17:57.97
the question is: do
they really have it?
00:17:58.00\00:18:01.32
We don't know.
00:18:01.35\00:18:03.00
On occasion, I've seen the
old black and white photos,
00:18:03.03\00:18:05.36
they don't do it any more,
on occasion they will parade
00:18:05.39\00:18:07.99
something, or used to parade
something through the streets
00:18:08.02\00:18:11.03
and claim it was
the Ark of the Covenant,
00:18:11.06\00:18:13.06
but it's always under some
big blanket so you can't see
00:18:13.09\00:18:16.57
what's underneath, and I
suspect there's a good reason
00:18:16.60\00:18:19.37
it's under a blanket so that
you can't see what's underneath.
00:18:19.40\00:18:22.33
I suspect it's
because they don't have
00:18:22.36\00:18:26.05
the Ark of the Covenant.
00:18:26.08\00:18:28.40
Theory #3 - this one
is the most likely one.
00:18:28.43\00:18:33.53
Some people say that Jeremiah
the Prophet took the Ark
00:18:33.56\00:18:36.80
and hid it on a
mountain, probably Mount Nebo,
00:18:36.83\00:18:40.11
which is the place
that Moses climbed to look
00:18:40.14\00:18:42.89
at the Promised Land
that he was about to inherit,
00:18:42.92\00:18:46.07
along with the
children of Israel.
00:18:46.10\00:18:47.26
Of course, we known that Moses
himself didn't inherit that.
00:18:47.29\00:18:50.77
Mount Nebo; Jeremiah
takes the Ark, he hides it
00:18:50.80\00:18:53.80
on Mount Nebo. Some people say
00:18:53.83\00:18:55.19
"No, not Mount Nebo, he
hid it under the temple mount",
00:18:55.22\00:18:58.88
the place where the
Dome of the Rock is today.
00:18:58.91\00:19:01.60
Other people say "No,
it's not the temple mount,"
00:19:01.63\00:19:03.86
"it's hidden
underneath Mount Calvary."
00:19:03.89\00:19:06.88
Now, this theory that it was
hidden in a cave in a mountain
00:19:06.91\00:19:09.89
is probably the most
likely, and it's the story
00:19:09.92\00:19:14.63
that Jewish history
actually substantiates.
00:19:14.66\00:19:18.39
We have a record of this
event in the old historical
00:19:18.42\00:19:21.39
Jewish book of the Maccabees.
The Maccabees, these books
00:19:21.42\00:19:25.32
are not Scripture, they
are what some people call
00:19:25.35\00:19:28.08
the deuterocanonical books, and
other call the Apocrypha books,
00:19:28.11\00:19:32.11
and they give us a
fairly reliable history
00:19:32.14\00:19:35.36
of the Jewish
people. Here's what they say
00:19:35.39\00:19:38.27
in 2 Maccabees 2,
here's what it says happened
00:19:38.30\00:19:41.79
to the Ark of the
Covenant. [text on screen]
00:19:41.82\00:19:45.04
That's the most likely theory.
00:20:36.42\00:20:37.93
Jeremiah hides the Ark in
a mountain, his friends try
00:20:37.96\00:20:41.26
to mark the way to
the mountain and he says:
00:20:41.29\00:20:43.92
"Nobody makes a note of
where we hid this thing,"
00:20:43.95\00:20:46.50
"it stays hidden until
God chooses to bring it back"
00:20:46.53\00:20:49.95
"out of hiding."
00:20:49.98\00:20:51.62
This is the most likely
theory, but you want to know
00:20:51.65\00:20:56.17
the truth? We haven't got a clue
00:20:56.20\00:21:01.20
where the Ark
of the Covenant is.
00:21:01.23\00:21:03.29
We don't know anything for sure,
and that's because frankly,
00:21:03.32\00:21:07.95
nobody has ever found it.
Would it be nice to find it?
00:21:07.98\00:21:13.49
Yes, it would be
very nice to find it.
00:21:13.52\00:21:16.15
But you know, the question
that worries me more tonight
00:21:16.18\00:21:18.20
is not where it the
Ark? The question I want you
00:21:18.23\00:21:21.19
to think about tonight is this
one: why is it so important?
00:21:21.22\00:21:26.44
Why do so many
people want to find the Ark?
00:21:26.47\00:21:29.63
What's so special about
this piece of furniture?
00:21:29.66\00:21:32.60
Are those who are looking
for it looking for it because
00:21:32.63\00:21:34.84
of all the gold on it?
Probably not because it would
00:21:34.87\00:21:38.71
cost you more to
mount an expedition to find
00:21:38.74\00:21:41.24
the Ark of the Covenant
than the gold itself on it
00:21:41.27\00:21:44.15
would be worth. It's
not just about the gold.
00:21:44.18\00:21:47.63
It's not just
about its antique value.
00:21:47.66\00:21:50.64
There is something about the
Ark that makes it very special.
00:21:50.67\00:21:54.58
People are fascinated
by it. What is so special
00:21:54.61\00:21:59.08
about the Ark? What
exactly was this piece
00:21:59.11\00:22:02.62
of furniture? Over
the years a lot of people
00:22:02.65\00:22:06.30
have tried to explain what
the Ark of the Covenant is,
00:22:06.33\00:22:09.16
and I have seen some of the
goofiest, whackiest theories
00:22:09.19\00:22:12.75
in the world about what
the Ark of the Covenant was.
00:22:12.78\00:22:15.60
Let me show you
some of those theories.
00:22:15.63\00:22:18.80
In the 1960's this book came
out called: [text on screen]
00:22:18.83\00:22:21.70
by Erich Von
Daniken, anyone ever heard
00:22:23.24\00:22:25.55
of the "Chariots of the Gods"?
You don't want to admit it
00:22:25.58\00:22:27.32
in front of all your friends,
but you read, didn't you?
00:22:27.35\00:22:30.22
I read this book
when I was a kid.
00:22:30.25\00:22:32.17
I found it in a used
book pile and I snuck it home,
00:22:32.20\00:22:35.14
and unbeknownst to my
parents I read this book.
00:22:35.17\00:22:37.81
I discovered that he
had an interesting premise.
00:22:37.84\00:22:39.93
He said we are not the product
of creation, human beings,
00:22:39.96\00:22:43.43
he also said we're not exactly
the product of evolution either,
00:22:43.46\00:22:46.58
do you know what he
said? He said that we are
00:22:46.61\00:22:49.11
the product of alien
experimentation thousands
00:22:49.14\00:22:52.15
of years ago, where
UFOs came down to this earth
00:22:52.18\00:22:55.31
and made human beings
as a genetic experiment.
00:22:55.34\00:22:58.60
Now, I took that book to
school, I had the good fortune
00:22:58.63\00:23:00.98
of going to a
Christian school as a boy,
00:23:01.01\00:23:02.63
and I waved it around
on time in show and tell:
00:23:02.66\00:23:04.67
"Teacher", I said, "guess what
I discovered: we're all aliens."
00:23:04.70\00:23:08.86
[Audience laughs]
00:23:08.89\00:23:10.10
Now, knowing
me, she believed it.
00:23:10.13\00:23:13.05
"We're all aliens teacher,
you know that flying saucer"
00:23:13.08\00:23:15.77
"in Ezekiel, that
wheel within a wheel..."
00:23:15.80\00:23:17.81
The teacher said:
"What did you call it?"
00:23:17.84\00:23:19.22
I said: "A flying
saucer, and it had eyes on it,"
00:23:19.25\00:23:21.60
"those were the landing lights."
I spent the whole afternoon
00:23:21.63\00:23:24.33
writing on the chalk
board: "I will not doubt"
00:23:24.36\00:23:26.63
"the book of Ezekiel. I will
not doubt the book of Ezekiel."
00:23:26.66\00:23:30.15
And I haven't doubted it
since, she made me write it out
00:23:30.18\00:23:32.23
500 times. Now, in this book,
00:23:32.26\00:23:35.42
Eric Von Daniken, with
his theory that we're all
00:23:35.45\00:23:37.42
the product of alien
experimentation said this
00:23:37.45\00:23:40.48
about the Ark of the Covenant,
page 40: [text on screen]
00:23:40.51\00:23:43.59
That's good advice, he
tells people "why don't you"
00:24:21.51\00:24:23.23
"check the Bible to see
how it was built", then notice
00:24:23.26\00:24:25.99
what he says: [text on screen]
00:24:26.02\00:24:28.45
He tells us "go check the
Bible" but at the same time
00:24:38.56\00:24:41.12
he says "I haven't actually
read what the Bible says,"
00:24:41.15\00:24:43.37
"but it was a 2 way
radio for Moses to communicate"
00:24:43.40\00:24:46.73
"with aliens."
Well, that's 1 theory.
00:24:46.76\00:24:50.02
Another theory came out in
the 1980s that, fortunately,
00:24:50.05\00:24:52.29
not a lot of people took
seriously because it was just
00:24:52.32\00:24:54.18
done in fun, there was a
movie that came out in the 1980s
00:24:54.21\00:24:56.89
by Steven Spielberg
called: [text on screen]
00:24:56.92\00:24:59.02
And he said that the Ark
was a mysterious power generator
00:25:00.38\00:25:03.50
that the Nazis were after
to help them win World War II,
00:25:03.53\00:25:07.42
and at the end of that
film somebody foolishly
00:25:07.45\00:25:09.72
opens the Ark and a
bunch of demons come out,
00:25:09.75\00:25:11.76
and there's this great
big nuclear type explosion.
00:25:11.79\00:25:14.60
Now, there's not a
stitch of truth to that,
00:25:14.63\00:25:16.20
that's just fantasy and
nobody really believed it,
00:25:16.23\00:25:19.55
and yet it tells me something:
people were fascinated
00:25:19.58\00:25:21.92
with the movie because
somewhere in our heart we know
00:25:21.95\00:25:24.53
there's something important
about that Ark of the Covenant.
00:25:24.56\00:25:28.50
Another theory came out a
couple of years ago, you find it
00:25:28.53\00:25:30.62
in Dan Brown's
book, "The Da Vinci Code".
00:25:30.65\00:25:33.35
Dan Brown says that the
Ark of the Covenant was this
00:25:33.38\00:25:36.78
mysterious place where
ancient Pagan fertility rituals
00:25:36.81\00:25:40.56
were carried out,
where ancient Pagan male gods
00:25:40.59\00:25:43.71
and female gods met and you
can put together what happened
00:25:43.74\00:25:47.21
after that. He made
that up in its entirety,
00:25:47.24\00:25:50.89
there is no basis in history
whatsoever for that theory,
00:25:50.92\00:25:54.83
and yet, the sad thing
is thousands upon thousands
00:25:54.86\00:25:58.00
of people are reading the
book and they're believing
00:25:58.03\00:26:00.12
what he says, even though he
doesn't have a scrap of ancient
00:26:00.15\00:26:02.49
evidence to back up any of it.
00:26:02.52\00:26:05.30
So, if all these whacky theories
about the Ark of the Covenant
00:26:05.33\00:26:09.07
aren't true, what is the truth?
00:26:09.10\00:26:12.52
What was the
ancient Ark of the Covenant?
00:26:12.55\00:26:15.40
This is easy to piece
together because the Bible
00:26:15.43\00:26:18.43
is crystal clear about what
the Ark of the Covenant was.
00:26:18.46\00:26:22.14
According to the pages
of the Bible, God told Moses
00:26:22.17\00:26:25.81
to build the Ark,
Exodus 25:10: [text on screen]
00:26:25.84\00:26:30.06
A cubit's about 18
inches. [continues to read text]
00:26:35.06\00:26:37.94
So it's about 3' 9"
long, it's about 27" high,
00:26:41.71\00:26:46.95
and about 27"
deep, [continues to read]
00:26:46.98\00:26:50.18
"...the Testimony" -
that's another name for
00:26:59.29\00:27:01.58
the 10 commandments, God's
moral law. [continues to read]
00:27:01.61\00:27:05.02
This is the lid that goes on top
of the Ark, [continues to read]
00:27:10.86\00:27:15.00
It was must have been
stunning, absolutely beautiful.
00:27:33.85\00:27:36.91
A wooden box overlaid
with gold, think about this:
00:27:36.94\00:27:39.92
it's a perishable substance
mixed with an imperishable
00:27:39.95\00:27:44.17
substance, and that will
prove important was me move on
00:27:44.20\00:27:46.65
night by night.
00:27:46.68\00:27:47.92
It's a wooden box overlaid with
gold, a pure gold lid on top,
00:27:47.95\00:27:52.23
and then angels of
beaten gold on top.
00:27:52.26\00:27:54.97
Absolutely stunning.
00:27:55.00\00:27:57.34
So, why did God
have Moses make it?
00:27:57.37\00:28:02.11
Was it just
decoration? Absolutely not!
00:28:02.14\00:28:06.78
It was a powerful object
and you find it showing up
00:28:06.81\00:28:09.67
all over the place in
the ancient Biblical record.
00:28:09.70\00:28:13.13
For example, as the
Israelites are about to go into
00:28:13.16\00:28:16.37
the Promised Land, the priests
carry the Ark of the Covenant
00:28:16.40\00:28:19.44
down into the Jordan River,
and as they step into the river
00:28:19.47\00:28:23.97
the water dries up and creates
a land bridge, pure dry land,
00:28:24.00\00:28:27.86
for the Israelites to
cross on, you read about it
00:28:27.89\00:28:29.80
in Joshua 3.
00:28:29.83\00:28:31.85
Then in Joshua 6 you
discover the Israelites took
00:28:31.88\00:28:35.93
the Ark of the
Covenant on a march each day.
00:28:35.96\00:28:38.55
Every day, once a day,
they went around the city
00:28:38.58\00:28:40.90
of Jericho carrying
the Ark of the Covenant.
00:28:40.93\00:28:43.42
On the 7th day they went around
7 times, blew their trumpets,
00:28:43.46\00:28:47.21
and the Bible tells us the
walls of Jericho fell down.
00:28:47.24\00:28:51.50
Today, archeology proves
beyond a shadow of a doubt
00:28:51.53\00:28:54.55
that the walls of Jericho
really were there, and something
00:28:54.58\00:28:57.17
really did knock
down those walls.
00:28:57.20\00:28:59.71
Why was the Ark of
the Covenant there?
00:28:59.74\00:29:02.07
Then there's that story I
told you about a moment ago
00:29:02.10\00:29:04.13
where the Philistines
stole the Ark of the Covenant
00:29:04.16\00:29:06.55
in battle, they brought it
back to their own Pagan temple,
00:29:06.58\00:29:09.84
and put it in
front of the god Dagon.
00:29:09.87\00:29:12.32
In the morning Dagon had fallen
over, so they put him back up,
00:29:12.35\00:29:15.78
and put the Ark there
again, and the next day
00:29:15.81\00:29:17.90
Dagon had fallen over
an smashed into pieces
00:29:17.93\00:29:20.20
and they thought "this
is bad news, let's get rid"
00:29:20.23\00:29:22.59
"of the Ark of the Covenant."
And they started sending it
00:29:22.62\00:29:25.52
from town to town, and as
they sent it from town to town
00:29:25.55\00:29:27.83
people got sick and they got
tumors, and finally they said
00:29:27.86\00:29:30.77
"this is it, we don't
want the Ark of the Covenant,"
00:29:30.80\00:29:33.00
"let's send it back to Israel."
00:29:33.03\00:29:34.73
So they put it on an ox cart and
with 2 cows pulling this cart,
00:29:34.76\00:29:39.02
cows that had calves, why?
Because they knew those cows
00:29:39.05\00:29:42.75
would want to go home to
their calves, and if it was
00:29:42.78\00:29:45.58
really something from
God, this Ark of the Covenant,
00:29:45.61\00:29:48.34
they would go to Israel instead
of going to their calves.
00:29:48.37\00:29:51.16
They load the Ark onto the
cart, they cross their fingers:
00:29:51.19\00:29:54.27
"Oh, please go home, we
don't want this thing any more",
00:29:54.30\00:29:57.23
and they watch with one
eye open as the cows head down
00:29:57.26\00:30:01.77
the road and take that
Ark all the way to Israel.
00:30:01.80\00:30:05.25
The sad part of the story
is when it gets back to Israel
00:30:05.28\00:30:07.85
in a place called Bethshemesh,
the Israelites get so excited
00:30:07.88\00:30:11.22
they drop their tools
in the field, they run over
00:30:11.25\00:30:13.11
and they touch and open
the Ark of the Covenant,
00:30:13.14\00:30:15.87
and start dropping dead.
Which is what always happened
00:30:15.90\00:30:18.94
if somebody touched
the Ark of the Covenant.
00:30:18.97\00:30:21.19
Years later as they were
moving it from that place
00:30:21.22\00:30:23.98
to a more permanent home,
there were great festivities
00:30:24.08\00:30:26.51
going on, they were singing
and dancing and leading the Ark
00:30:26.54\00:30:29.65
as it was in another ox
cart, and then the oxen stumbled
00:30:29.68\00:30:33.21
and the cart wobbled, and
a guy named Uzzah reaches out
00:30:33.24\00:30:36.61
and touches the Ark of the
Covenant just to make it stable,
00:30:36.64\00:30:40.83
and the Bible says
in 1 Chronicles 13:10:
00:30:40.86\00:30:43.87
[text on screen]
00:30:43.90\00:30:45.97
The question is: why?
Doesn't it seem just a little
00:30:53.26\00:30:59.13
bit severe?
00:30:59.16\00:31:01.21
Why is it when Uzzah
reaches out and touches the Ark,
00:31:01.24\00:31:04.27
all he's trying to do
is stabilize it, why is it
00:31:04.30\00:31:07.71
that he drops
dead for touching it?
00:31:07.74\00:31:10.62
It happened because of what the
Ark of the Covenant represented.
00:31:10.65\00:31:16.54
This was not just a piece of
furniture, I want you to notice
00:31:16.57\00:31:19.92
very carefully what the
Bible says about the role
00:31:19.95\00:31:23.04
the Ark of the Covenant played
in the lives of the children
00:31:23.07\00:31:26.28
of Israel; look at what
the Bible says in Exodus 25,
00:31:26.31\00:31:30.02
God speaking with
Moses says: [text on screen]
00:31:30.05\00:31:32.27
"mercy seat" - that's the lid
on the Ark, [continues to read]
00:31:37.13\00:31:40.18
"cherubim" - the
angels, [continues to read]
00:31:40.38\00:31:43.38
The spot above the Ark of the
Covenant was actually the spot
00:31:45.89\00:31:49.64
that God Himself would manifest
Himself among the Israelites.
00:31:49.67\00:31:54.68
The Bible tells us as the
Israelites were in journey
00:31:54.71\00:31:57.22
from Egypt to the land
of Canaan a cloud led them,
00:31:57.25\00:32:01.97
a pillar of fire by night,
and a pillar of cloud by day.
00:32:02.00\00:32:05.93
The presence of God, we
are told, was in that cloud.
00:32:05.96\00:32:08.74
And when the cloud
stopped they would set up camp,
00:32:08.77\00:32:11.75
put up the
travelling Tabernacle,
00:32:11.78\00:32:14.40
the one that was a tent
that could be easily taken down
00:32:14.43\00:32:17.48
and put back up,
they would set it up,
00:32:17.51\00:32:19.99
and after they set it up
the very presence of God would
00:32:20.02\00:32:22.72
come down out of the
cloud into the innermost chamber
00:32:22.75\00:32:25.66
of the Tabernacle, the
Most Holy Place, and God would
00:32:25.69\00:32:29.62
manifest His very presence
above the Ark of the Covenant.
00:32:29.65\00:32:34.90
Why?
00:32:34.93\00:32:36.20
Why there above the
Ark of the Covenant?
00:32:36.23\00:32:38.70
It's because the Ark of
the Covenant is a symbol
00:32:38.73\00:32:42.17
of God's throne in
heaven. There are several verses
00:32:42.20\00:32:46.26
in the Bible where people are
talking about where God exists
00:32:46.29\00:32:49.89
in the courts of heaven,
and it's very interesting
00:32:49.92\00:32:52.20
how they talk about
God. In Psalm 80:1 we read
00:32:52.23\00:32:56.33
about God in the second part
of this verse: [text on screen]
00:32:56.36\00:33:00.98
Where does God dwell
in heaven? The Bible says:
00:33:03.00\00:33:05.13
"between the cherubim". In
Psalm 99:1 it says it again:
00:33:05.16\00:33:09.88
[text on screen]
00:33:09.91\00:33:11.96
And again in the prayer
of Hezekiah in Isaiah 37.
00:33:14.31\00:33:18.07
[text on screen]
00:33:18.10\00:33:20.07
Again and again and
again the Bible describes God
00:33:22.02\00:33:25.09
as the one who dwells between
the Cherubim, the angels.
00:33:25.12\00:33:29.54
It describes God's throne
in heaven as being between
00:33:29.57\00:33:33.64
2 cherubim.
00:33:33.67\00:33:35.31
Here's something even more
interesting: the Bible also says
00:33:35.34\00:33:38.61
that the fallen angel, Lucifer,
used to be one of those cherubim
00:33:38.64\00:33:43.73
by the throne of God,
Ezekiel 28, speaking to Lucifer
00:33:43.76\00:33:47.08
it says: [text on screen]
00:33:47.11\00:33:49.13
There is a description
of God's throne in heaven
00:33:57.05\00:33:59.99
as being between the 2
cherubim. Is it possible that
00:34:00.02\00:34:05.14
the Ark of the Covenant on earth
was a picture of God's throne
00:34:05.17\00:34:08.42
in heaven? Absolutely.
00:34:08.45\00:34:11.80
That's why you
weren't allowed to touch it.
00:34:11.83\00:34:14.09
It was a symbol of God's throne.
00:34:14.12\00:34:17.15
Look at this carefully,
Hebrews 8:5 [text on screen],
00:34:17.18\00:34:20.25
"tabernacle" - that's that
portable sanctuary in the desert
00:34:22.58\00:34:26.10
[continues to read]
00:34:26.13\00:34:27.99
How did Moses make the Ark
of the Covenant, along with
00:34:33.54\00:34:37.46
everything else on the
Old Testament sanctuary.
00:34:37.49\00:34:40.31
How did he do it?
He followed a pattern
00:34:40.34\00:34:42.47
that God showed him,
and what was that pattern?
00:34:42.50\00:34:46.45
God's own throne in
the courts of heaven.
00:34:46.48\00:34:49.90
God gives Moses a glimpse
of His throne room in heaven,
00:34:49.93\00:34:52.62
and says to Moses: "build
something that looks like this."
00:34:52.65\00:34:58.88
Let's review everything
that we've gathered so far,
00:34:58.91\00:35:01.26
all of the evidence,
and look at what we've got.
00:35:01.29\00:35:03.94
We have studied
that: [text on screen]
00:35:03.97\00:35:06.62
...of the Tabernacle,
when they pitched camp.
00:35:09.21\00:35:11.93
His presence would come down
and dwell above the mercy seat
00:35:11.96\00:35:15.66
of the Ark of the
Covenant between the angels.
00:35:15.69\00:35:17.90
We read that
He: [text on screen]
00:35:17.93\00:35:20.62
So gathering the evidence,
what conclusion do we come to?
00:35:34.64\00:35:39.15
[text on screen]
00:35:39.18\00:35:41.15
Now how can that be?
00:35:46.55\00:35:48.75
The entire Old Testament
sanctuary, we are told,
00:35:48.78\00:35:52.41
was a picture of
something in heaven.
00:35:52.44\00:35:55.45
Notice what the Bible says
in the book of Hebrews 8:2,
00:35:55.48\00:35:58.99
it speaks of: [text on screen]
00:35:59.02\00:36:01.14
The true
Tabernacle that who erected?
00:36:05.52\00:36:08.32
The Lord built. The
Bible shows us there was
00:36:08.35\00:36:11.20
a sanctuary on earth
with an Ark of the Covenant
00:36:11.23\00:36:14.04
that Moses and the Israelites
built, but it also tells us
00:36:14.07\00:36:17.78
that there is a true
tabernacle, a true sanctuary,
00:36:17.81\00:36:20.98
that God himself built
and, in fact, the Bible shows us
00:36:21.01\00:36:24.48
that even that one in heaven
had an Ark of the Covenant
00:36:24.51\00:36:27.90
and still does.
00:36:27.93\00:36:29.16
In the book of Revelation
11, John the Prophet sees into
00:36:29.19\00:36:33.09
the temple in heaven and
he sees something interesting.
00:36:33.12\00:36:36.29
Revelation 11:19
says: [text on screen]
00:36:36.32\00:36:39.47
"covenant" - another word for
testament, [continues to read]
00:36:42.32\00:36:45.58
Where is this
temple? Is it on earth folks?
00:36:48.51\00:36:51.09
No, it's in heaven and there's
an Ark of the Covenant there.
00:36:51.12\00:36:55.33
It is the very throne of
God, Moses built a replica,
00:36:55.36\00:37:01.06
a duplicate of it,
and that, by studying it,
00:37:01.09\00:37:04.63
will give us information
about what God is like.
00:37:04.66\00:37:07.79
If it's His throne, it tells
us something about who He is.
00:37:07.82\00:37:11.27
We know the 10 commandments
were kept inside it,
00:37:11.30\00:37:14.09
so we know that God
is an entirely fair God.
00:37:14.12\00:37:17.28
He rules by law and you
can count on Him to stick
00:37:17.31\00:37:21.10
to His law no matter
what. "Thou shalt no kill"."
00:37:21.13\00:37:23.88
"Thou shalt not
steal." "Thou shalt not bear"
00:37:23.91\00:37:26.26
"false witness"; it tells us
something about what God is like
00:37:26.29\00:37:29.90
It also creates a problem
for us because the Bible says
00:37:30.90\00:37:33.66
that sin is the transgression
of God's moral law,
00:37:33.69\00:37:36.64
and it says that all of sin,
and it says the wages of sin
00:37:36.67\00:37:39.33
is death. Now,
"sin" today is not a very
00:37:39.36\00:37:42.41
popular word, but the throne
of God, the Ark of the Covenant,
00:37:42.44\00:37:46.37
teaches us how serious our
transgression of God's law is.
00:37:46.40\00:37:51.08
We have been separated from
God because we broke His law,
00:37:51.11\00:37:54.74
and the wages of sin,
the Bible says, is death,
00:37:54.77\00:37:57.41
and that makes sense,
we've cut ourselves off
00:37:57.44\00:37:59.98
from the Creator, we can
no longer step right into His
00:38:00.01\00:38:03.33
holy presence any more
because we have sinned.
00:38:03.36\00:38:07.12
We're not even
allowed to look at God's face.
00:38:07.15\00:38:09.33
Isaiah 59:2: [text on screen]
00:38:09.36\00:38:12.11
We've been separated
from God by our sins.
00:38:22.35\00:38:27.10
Now think about this: this
is why God's throne had to be
00:38:27.13\00:38:30.18
hidden inside the tabernacle,
this is why no sinful human
00:38:30.21\00:38:33.37
being could touch it,
it was a symbol of God's
00:38:33.40\00:38:35.64
perfect, holy throne, and we
are not allowed in the presence
00:38:35.67\00:38:38.97
of God as sinners. It
tells us God is perfectly
00:38:39.00\00:38:43.53
just, He lives by
law, He rules by law,
00:38:43.56\00:38:48.65
but it not only tells us
that God is perfectly just,
00:38:48.68\00:38:52.38
the lid on the Ark is
called the mercy seat.
00:38:53.23\00:38:58.85
Not only is God
fair, He's also merciful.
00:38:58.88\00:39:04.55
He covers His law, He covers
our sins, He dispenses mercy,
00:39:04.58\00:39:09.82
He forgives us.
00:39:09.85\00:39:12.20
Does that mean God just
sweeps our little mistakes
00:39:12.23\00:39:14.19
under the rug
and just ignores it?
00:39:14.22\00:39:16.57
Not at all. Leviticus 16:14 says
00:39:16.60\00:39:21.96
that in that Old Testament
sanctuary they would sacrifice
00:39:21.99\00:39:24.74
animals and they
would: [text on screen]
00:39:24.77\00:39:27.27
The Bible says the
wages of sin is death,
00:39:34.58\00:39:38.88
it also says that
without the shedding of blood
00:39:38.91\00:39:41.01
there can be no remission
of sin, no forgiveness,
00:39:41.04\00:39:43.87
sin is very serious, and yet
in the Old Testament sanctuary
00:39:43.90\00:39:49.44
they would sprinkle
blood on the mercy seat,
00:39:49.47\00:39:52.86
telling us that one day
somebody would die in our place.
00:39:52.89\00:39:59.16
Somebody would stand in for us,
and pay the wages of sin for us
00:39:59.19\00:40:03.66
so that we could be
again in the presence of God.
00:40:03.69\00:40:07.75
What is the Ark of
the Covenant telling us?
00:40:07.78\00:40:09.85
It is telling us that no
matter how dark our life gets,
00:40:09.88\00:40:13.80
God's face is
always turned our way.
00:40:13.83\00:40:16.60
Even though God's throne
had to be shielded from people
00:40:16.63\00:40:19.44
inside the tabernacle, you'll
notice that He still placed it
00:40:19.47\00:40:22.39
right there in the
center of the camp of Israel,
00:40:22.42\00:40:24.56
He wanted to be with His people.
00:40:24.59\00:40:26.75
The Ark of the Covenant
tells us something about God:
00:40:26.78\00:40:29.51
in the darkest moments of
our lives He is still with us.
00:40:29.54\00:40:34.51
A little girl was
forced to spend a night
00:40:34.54\00:40:36.48
in an air raid
shelter, it was World War II,
00:40:36.58\00:40:38.88
she was terribly
frightened, she couldn't sleep.
00:40:38.91\00:40:41.50
"Daddy" she called out in the
shelter, "Daddy! Are you there?"
00:40:41.53\00:40:45.63
"Yes honey, I'm
here." She tried to be brave
00:40:45.66\00:40:48.84
for a few more minutes...
"Daddy! Please, are you there?"
00:40:48.87\00:40:52.95
"Yes, I'm here,
get some sleep honey."
00:40:52.98\00:40:56.65
"But daddy, is your
face still turned my way?"
00:40:56.68\00:41:02.34
"Yes honey, it is." And
she fell completely asleep.
00:41:03.20\00:41:08.39
The Ark of the Covenant
tells us that no matter how dark
00:41:08.42\00:41:11.51
your life gets, God desires
to place His presence near you.
00:41:11.54\00:41:17.37
Even though, because of
sin, He's behind a veil,
00:41:17.40\00:41:20.71
His face is
still turned your way.
00:41:20.74\00:41:24.80
Those of you who are watching
from a location somewhere else
00:41:55.73\00:42:00.01
in the world tonight, welcome,
we're glad that you're here.
00:42:00.04\00:42:02.97
We're going to be going
down through, and going to start
00:42:03.00\00:42:04.91
with question
1: [text on screen]
00:42:04.94\00:42:07.59
Exodus 25:10-11, we're
going to just right to that:
00:42:16.06\00:42:21.45
[text on screen]
00:42:21.48\00:42:23.84
Okay, acacia wood. I
want to talk about acacia wood
00:42:25.18\00:42:28.07
for just a moment: a
friend of mine where I live
00:42:28.10\00:42:30.95
in Southern California, has
a lot of very large, old trees.
00:42:30.98\00:42:36.03
Several years ago he was
out and had a crew come in
00:42:36.06\00:42:38.96
and do some
trimming of those trees
00:42:38.99\00:42:41.11
and they were beautiful
when they were all trimmed up,
00:42:41.14\00:42:43.93
and they were nice, but
he had a big pile of wood.
00:42:43.96\00:42:47.38
Well, one of the trees that
he was trimming was acacia wood
00:42:47.41\00:42:52.75
and I was very fascinated
because I hadn't connected
00:42:52.78\00:42:55.84
the fact that it was an acacia
tree with what the Bible said,
00:42:55.87\00:42:59.27
but when I came and
saw the wood pile there,
00:42:59.30\00:43:01.37
I was amazed because it
looked like that wood that had
00:43:01.40\00:43:04.99
just been cut was bleeding.
I was astounded to learn
00:43:05.02\00:43:10.53
that acacia wood
has a sap that runs red
00:43:10.56\00:43:14.62
and looks like blood being shed,
I said isn't that something,
00:43:14.65\00:43:18.72
even down to the
little detail of telling Moses
00:43:18.75\00:43:22.45
what kind of wood to make that
out of, He made it out of wood,
00:43:22.48\00:43:26.86
acacia wood,
specifically, and gold.
00:43:26.89\00:43:29.91
You want to write that
down under 1(a) in your lesson.
00:43:29.94\00:43:33.97
[text on screen]
00:43:34.00\00:43:35.76
We're going to go to
Exodus 25:18: [text on screen]
00:43:46.88\00:43:50.47
Okay, notice what it
says: "at the 2 ends"
00:43:58.97\00:44:01.92
"of the mercy seat", so
you want to write down 1(b),
00:44:01.95\00:44:06.61
[text on screen]
00:44:06.64\00:44:08.34
I don't know about you,
but I'm sure glad to know
00:44:12.09\00:44:15.16
that the place of God's presence
is called the mercy seat.
00:44:15.19\00:44:20.04
[text on screen]
00:44:20.07\00:44:22.10
Exodus
25:18-21: [text on screen]
00:44:27.17\00:44:30.69
So what is the answer
to 1(c)? [text on screen]
00:45:00.11\00:45:03.71
Question 2 in your
lesson: [text on screen]
00:45:06.85\00:45:10.07
You know, you can't create
something beautiful like this
00:45:13.50\00:45:16.32
and just have it
sit in the living room.
00:45:16.35\00:45:18.43
This has got to be kept
in a very special place.
00:45:18.46\00:45:21.00
Hebrews 9:3,4, this is
talking about the temple,
00:45:21.03\00:45:27.52
the sanctuary that was
created there in the desert
00:45:27.55\00:45:30.48
[text on screen]
00:45:30.51\00:45:32.52
Question 3: [text on screen]
00:45:58.52\00:46:00.96
There's 3 texts we're
going to look up, and we want
00:46:02.54\00:46:04.80
to look at each one of these,
Psalm 80:1: [text on screen]
00:46:04.83\00:46:08.93
Notice, dwelling
between the cherubim.
00:46:18.95\00:46:23.50
Alright, I want to go to
the next one, Psalm 99:1:
00:46:23.53\00:46:27.60
[text on screen]
00:46:27.63\00:46:29.60
Again, the second
passage of scripture telling us
00:46:35.97\00:46:37.64
He dwells between the
Cherubim, okay, our last text
00:46:37.67\00:46:41.26
in this series, Isaiah
37:16: [text on screen]
00:46:41.29\00:46:45.09
The Creator, God,
wants to be with His people
00:46:56.82\00:46:59.91
and He sets up the mercy
seat, the Ark of the Covenant,
00:46:59.94\00:47:04.15
between the cherubim.
00:47:04.18\00:47:06.60
Question 3, what's the
answer? [text on screen]
00:47:07.70\00:47:11.26
Symbolically on this earth,
on the Ark of the Covenant
00:47:13.95\00:47:17.75
that was made here, but
that is only a representation
00:47:17.78\00:47:21.06
of the true that is in heaven,
where He dwells, His throne.
00:47:21.09\00:47:24.59
Okay, our next
question, #4: [text on screen]
00:47:24.62\00:47:27.28
We have 2 Bible verse
we're going to look at on this.
00:47:30.38\00:47:33.08
This first one is
Exodus 25:40: [text on screen]
00:47:33.11\00:47:36.62
I want to go to the next one,
Hebrews 8:5: [text on screen]
00:47:44.51\00:47:47.75
So, question 4, the
answer is: [text on screen]
00:48:02.53\00:48:06.69
There is no guesswork,
this was not something that...
00:48:09.70\00:48:12.41
"well, should it be this length?
Should it be this height?"
00:48:12.44\00:48:14.93
It was exactly according to
the pattern that Moses was shown
00:48:14.96\00:48:18.42
on the mountain.
00:48:18.45\00:48:19.42
We'll go to
question 5: [text on screen]
00:48:19.43\00:48:21.83
We're going to go
to Revelation 11:19:
00:48:25.22\00:48:29.01
[text on screen]
00:48:29.04\00:48:31.36
So where was the temple of God?
00:48:40.16\00:48:42.27
[text on screen]
00:48:42.30\00:48:44.27
Question 6: [text on screen]
00:48:49.48\00:48:52.10
Exodus 25:22: [text on screen]
00:48:55.67\00:48:59.09
So what was the answer to
this question? [text on screen]
00:49:13.08\00:49:15.88
Sin separated the
human family from God.
00:49:32.35\00:49:36.23
This is a place where God
is saying: "We can reconnect"
00:49:37.13\00:49:41.66
"in this symbolic
place where My presence is."
00:49:41.69\00:49:45.23
Question 7: [text on screen]
00:49:45.26\00:49:47.83
You heard Pastor Boonstra
talk about that a moment ago,
00:49:50.68\00:49:53.20
there were several instances
in scriptures where we see
00:49:53.23\00:49:56.41
that people
casually, carelessly, coming up
00:49:56.44\00:50:00.31
and touching, or in other
words, disrespecting the throne
00:50:00.34\00:50:06.30
of God, actually had a fairly
rough sentence to deal with.
00:50:06.33\00:50:12.40
Let's look at 2 Samuel
6:6-7: [text on screen]
00:50:12.43\00:50:16.66
The second passage of scripture,
Isaiah 59:2: [text on screen]
00:50:33.93\00:50:38.25
There's a really
little, interesting nuance
00:50:45.42\00:50:47.86
to this story; you see, God
had given them very specific
00:50:47.89\00:50:52.77
instructions: the Levites, the
priests, were to carry that Ark
00:50:52.80\00:50:57.31
on their shoulders, 4
Levites, one on each corner
00:50:57.34\00:51:00.57
of the poles that went through.
You'll see that if you read
00:51:00.60\00:51:02.92
in the book of Exodus.
00:51:02.95\00:51:05.23
They were moving it on an
ox cart, they weren't following
00:51:05.26\00:51:08.19
God's directions, they
were not honoring what He
00:51:08.22\00:51:10.82
had asked them to do.
00:51:10.85\00:51:12.67
Therefore, whenever you
separate yourself from God
00:51:12.70\00:51:16.10
by your iniquities
there is a price to pay.
00:51:16.13\00:51:18.98
So the answer to this
question is: [text on screen]
00:51:19.01\00:51:21.71
As a result of that, we
die, maybe not instantaneously
00:51:24.91\00:51:29.25
as it happened there,
but if, even today, our sins
00:51:29.28\00:51:33.65
separating us from God
will cause us ultimately
00:51:33.68\00:51:35.88
to be separated from
Him. I don't know about you,
00:51:35.91\00:51:38.75
but I don't want that to happen.
00:51:38.78\00:51:40.17
I want to be at that
mercy seat confessing my sins.
00:51:40.20\00:51:43.35
Question 8: [text on screen]
00:51:43.38\00:51:45.23
This is one of the most profound
passages in scripture for me.
00:51:51.94\00:51:56.14
Isaiah 6:1-5, I'm going to
read this and it just brings
00:51:56.17\00:52:01.10
a pathos in me when I think
about it, to imagine Isaiah
00:52:01.13\00:52:05.41
as a young man being taken
in vision, and actually getting
00:52:05.44\00:52:08.06
a chance to see the throne
room of God: [text on screen]
00:52:08.09\00:52:11.08
When brought into the presence
of God in a sinful condition,
00:52:59.57\00:53:03.25
what is it that happens to
us? Our answer: [text on screen]
00:53:03.28\00:53:06.96
Being in the presence of
God reminds us of how far
00:53:16.06\00:53:18.78
we are away from Him.
00:53:18.81\00:53:22.15
Question 9: [text on screen]
00:53:22.18\00:53:24.53
We're going to look at
several passages of scripture,
00:53:28.40\00:53:30.23
so stay with me on
this, Leviticus 16:15,16,
00:53:30.26\00:53:34.77
so that you get a feel for how
God was instructing His people
00:53:34.80\00:53:38.70
because we can learn from
that tonight: [text on screen]
00:53:38.73\00:53:41.75
God says: "I want to come
and be in the midst of you"
00:54:12.89\00:54:15.34
"even though you are
sinful, even though you've got"
00:54:15.37\00:54:18.97
"all these problems of listening
to me, and wanting to do things"
00:54:19.00\00:54:22.37
"your own way, instead
of wanting to do it the way"
00:54:22.40\00:54:24.46
"that I have
created you to do it."
00:54:24.49\00:54:27.31
Because of that uncleanness
we have a situation where God
00:54:27.34\00:54:32.88
is creating the blood,
we're starting to see that blood
00:54:32.91\00:54:35.87
plays a part in this,
we're going to expand on that
00:54:35.90\00:54:37.49
a little bit more with
our next text, Hebrews 9:22:
00:54:37.52\00:54:40.62
[text on screen]
00:54:40.65\00:54:42.69
What does the
word "remission" mean?
00:54:49.76\00:54:52.35
Forgiveness. Without
the shedding of blood
00:54:52.38\00:54:54.96
there's no way to bring
reconciliation, to put us back
00:54:54.99\00:54:58.98
into harmony with our God.
The next text, Romans 6:23:
00:54:59.01\00:55:04.69
[text on screen]
00:55:04.72\00:55:06.69
Even though we see the very
specific penalties played out,
00:55:13.69\00:55:18.35
we see what some people would
say are "kind of harsh" of God,
00:55:18.38\00:55:25.55
isn't it beautiful to know
that Jesus Christ came and shed
00:55:25.58\00:55:30.50
His blood; we see the
blood coming in there.
00:55:30.53\00:55:32.81
[text on screen]
00:55:35.30\00:55:37.52
Question 10: [text on screen]
00:55:44.80\00:55:47.48
We're going to go
to Romans 3:23-25.
00:55:49.99\00:55:54.29
[text on screen]
00:55:54.32\00:55:56.16
Can you say amen to
that? [Audience replies] Amen.
00:56:22.80\00:56:25.72
God has passed over the sins
that you and I have committed,
00:56:25.75\00:56:29.80
that all of humanity has
committed because of the blood
00:56:29.83\00:56:32.95
of Jesus Christ. The
blood of those sacrifices,
00:56:32.98\00:56:35.54
the blood of that goat
that we read about a minute ago
00:56:35.57\00:56:38.40
could not cleanse anyone of sin.
00:56:38.43\00:56:41.52
It was a symbol pointing
forward to what Jesus Christ
00:56:41.55\00:56:45.22
would do on Calvary's
cross, but just like that blood
00:56:45.25\00:56:48.99
was sprinkled on the
mercy seat, our answer
00:56:49.02\00:56:51.44
to this
question: [text on screen]
00:56:51.47\00:56:54.01
It's the blood of
Christ that is symbolized.
00:57:01.70\00:57:04.19
[text on screen]
00:57:04.22\00:57:06.24
Psalm 85:9-10: [text on screen]
00:57:16.20\00:57:18.91
The answer to this question
is very simple: [text on screen]
00:57:29.44\00:57:32.90
Our last
question: [text on screen]
00:57:43.97\00:57:46.55
Jeremiah
9:23-24: [text on screen]
00:57:56.72\00:58:00.01
So what is your
personal response?
00:58:24.65\00:58:27.05
[text on screen]
00:58:27.08\00:58:28.83
Wouldn't you like to get to
know him a little bit better
00:58:29.23\00:58:31.74
than maybe you do tonight?
00:58:31.77\00:58:34.00
I want to invite you
while I pray, if you would like
00:58:34.03\00:58:37.91
to say I want to get just a
little bit better acquainted
00:58:37.94\00:58:40.58
with this God, I'd like you
to just lift your hand with me
00:58:40.61\00:58:43.15
as I pray.
00:58:43.18\00:58:45.10
Holy Father in heaven I thank
you for this incredible picture
00:58:45.13\00:58:51.29
that you have
presented to us in Scripture.
00:58:51.47\00:58:54.00
I pray that each
one of us right now
00:58:54.03\00:58:56.28
would chose to
accept this beautiful gift
00:58:56.31\00:58:59.18
that you've given to
us, that you've shown us
00:58:59.21\00:59:00.72
all through
Scripture. Thank You Lord
00:59:00.75\00:59:04.37
for that incredible gift,
I pray in Jesus' name, amen.
00:59:04.40\00:59:08.39