Participants: Stephen Bohr
Series Code: ASTPP
Program Code: ASTPP000009
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00:15 Alright, welcome again to Anchor Bible school.
00:18 We're glad you're here. 00:19 Has it been a blessing? 00:21 Praise the Lord. 00:22 I'm glad to hear that hearty amen. 00:24 It's very encouraging. 00:26 It makes it all worthwhile. 00:28 We are going to look now at the document that is titled, 00:32 A Providential Election. 00:34 You should have that in your materials, 00:37 A Providential Election. 00:39 And basically, we are going to study about the election 00:45 of the successor of Judas. 00:48 And there's a lot of important principles involved there 00:51 that we're going to bring to view. 00:53 Like the importance of biblical numbers, 00:56 the importance of sola scriptura, 00:58 the importance of finding Jesus Christ in prophecy. 01:02 All of those will be illustrated in this particular presentation. 01:06 We're going to follow the material quite closely. 01:09 You have it before you. That's my PowerPoint. 01:12 See, this is much better PowerPoint than projecting 01:15 it on the wall, because you can't take the wall home. 01:19 But you can take this written material home. 01:22 In the future, what we'll do is we'll probably do this 01:24 electronically to save a lot of trees. 01:27 Because several of you mentioned that you would like to have 01:30 this in electronic form. 01:32 And if you would like to, please make sure that you 01:34 give Aileen your email address. 01:38 And we'll make sure that you get it in an electronic form 01:40 so that you can use it for preaching and speaking. 01:42 I hope that you'll share these things. 01:44 Go back to your churches and you share this stuff, 01:46 and other people can get excited about studying the Bible 01:49 and studying Bible prophecy. 01:51 That's what it's all about. Not only for us. 01:53 You know, television audiences are going to be watching 01:55 this series, but you know, it can go a lot farther than that 01:58 if you go home and you share what you've learned here 02:01 and inspire other people. 02:04 The Sanctuary begins in the camp where sinners live. 02:09 Jesus came and camped with us and lived a life without sin 02:15 in our place. 02:17 In this way, He wove a spotless robe of righteousness 02:21 by His perfect life in the camp. 02:24 So Jesus wove the robe of righteousness by His obedience. 02:29 The law demands absolute sinlessness. 02:34 And we cannot offer this to the law. 02:37 So Jesus came to live in our midst a perfect life 02:41 in our place. 02:42 So His work begins in the camp by His perfect life 02:46 that can stand in place of our life. 02:50 Then we find the work of Jesus in the court. 02:54 The law demands our death, 02:57 because the wages of sin is death. 03:00 And all have sinned and come short of the glory of God. 03:05 In the court of the Sanctuary, Jesus suffered the death 03:09 that we should all suffer. 03:11 So on earth Jesus lived for us and died for us. 03:16 Lived in our place and died in our place. 03:20 Those are the benefits of His atonement. 03:23 And then Jesus resurrected at the laver. 03:28 We've already mentioned that. 03:29 And when did that happen? 03:32 That happened very early on the first day of the week. 03:35 So He lived in the camp for three and a half years. 03:38 Actually, longer than that. His whole lifetime. 03:40 But His ministry lasted three and a half years. 03:43 Jesus performed the work of the court. 03:46 In the court, in the... 03:51 I want to say, on Thursday in the garden 03:53 and on Friday on the cross... 03:55 And I might make a little parenthesis here. 03:58 Somebody was asking about the three days and three nights. 04:02 You know, most people think that the three days and three nights 04:05 begin from the time that Jesus was buried. 04:08 And the chronology doesn't work. 04:10 Even the inclusive reckoning does not work. 04:14 Because three days and three nights, if you believe that 04:16 it's from the time that He was put in the grave, 04:19 you only have, actually you only have Friday night 04:23 and you have Saturday night. 04:25 And as far as days, you have Friday, Sabbath, 04:27 and Sunday as days. 04:28 You only have three days and two nights. 04:31 So you have to include Thursday night. 04:33 Because that's when the passion of Jesus begins. 04:36 You see, the expression, "in the heart of the earth," 04:39 is a symbolic expression. 04:40 The heart of the earth is the furthest place from God 04:44 that you could go. 04:47 Jesus did not literally go to the heart of the earth. 04:50 He was buried above the earth in a cave. 04:53 So it's a symbolic expression that means the furthest 04:56 and darkest place that you can be away from God. 04:59 The darkest place would certainly be 05:00 the center of the earth, or the heart of the earth. 05:03 And the furthest place from God as well. 05:06 Now in the Sanctuary service, the lamb was alive 05:11 while the sins were placed upon him. 05:15 True or false? 05:16 True. 05:17 The lamb was brought alive, the sins were placed upon his head, 05:21 then he was slain for sin. 05:24 In the same way, Jesus in Gethsemane, 05:27 the sins were placed upon Him while He was alive. 05:30 Read the chapter, Gethsemane, in Desire Of Ages. 05:34 He could not see beyond the portals of the tomb. 05:37 He felt that separation from God was going to be eternal. 05:41 Ellen White, several times, says that He was 05:43 drinking the cup of the wrath of God. 05:47 He felt separation from His Father. 05:49 That happened while He was alive in the garden. 05:51 And then the next day He went to the cross and He died, 05:54 like the lamb died. 05:55 Are you with me or not? 05:56 So the three days and three nights include Thursday night, 06:00 which is when the sins of the world were placed upon Him. 06:03 In fact, Ellen White says that when He left the garden, 06:05 He was at peace. 06:07 The struggle was basically over 06:09 when He left the garden of Gethsemane. 06:11 Okay, back to the material. 06:12 That was just a little extra. That's a bonus. 06:17 So Jesus resurrected on Sunday morning. 06:20 And then after Jesus resurrected, He spent 06:22 40 days on planet earth. 06:27 Now have you ever wondered why Jesus spent 40 days 06:30 on planet earth between His resurrection and His ascension? 06:35 Two reasons. 06:36 They're given in Acts chapter 1 and verse 3. 06:40 I'm not going to read the verse. 06:42 But basically it says that, first of all, Jesus needed 06:45 to appear to different groups of people to give indubitable 06:50 proofs that He had resurrected. 06:52 In other words, it was proof that He had resurrected 06:55 by the post resurrection appearances. 06:58 But secondly, He stayed here because He had to 07:02 teach His disciples the things concerning the kingdom of God. 07:06 In other words, Jesus had to explain to His disciples 07:10 the prophecies that had been fulfilled in Him. 07:14 And He had to explain to them the prophecies that would be 07:18 fulfilled just a few days later on the day of Pentecost. 07:22 He had to explain prophecy to them. 07:25 He talked to them about the things concerning 07:28 the kingdom of God. 07:30 And then Jesus ascended to heaven. 07:35 John 14 verses 1 to 3 tells us why Jesus left. 07:41 It says there, Jesus is speaking, 07:44 "Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, 07:48 believe also in Me. 07:50 In My Father's house are many mansions; 07:54 if it were not so, I would have told you. 07:56 I go to prepare a place for you. 07:58 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again 08:02 and receive you to Myself; that where I am, 08:05 there you may be also." 08:08 And so Jesus went to heaven. 08:09 What did He go to heaven for? 08:11 To prepare a place for us. 08:13 How does Jesus prepare a place for us in heaven? 08:16 He prepares a place in heaven for us by His work 08:18 in the heavenly Sanctuary. 08:21 Just read the book of Hebrews. 08:23 There you have a full description of what 08:24 Jesus does in heaven. 08:26 Read the Sanctuary scenes in the book of Revelation. 08:29 It tells us what Jesus went to heaven to do. 08:32 He prepares a place by His work in the Holy and Most Holy places 08:38 of the heavenly Sanctuary. 08:41 And then when the 40 days ended, Jesus ascended. 08:45 Let's read about it in our material 08:47 in Acts 1 and verses 9 through 11. 08:53 It says there, "Now when He had spoken these things, 08:57 while they watched, He was taken up, 09:00 and a cloud received Him out of their sight. 09:03 And while they looked steadfastly toward heaven 09:06 as He went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel, 09:10 who also said, 'Men of Galilee, why do you stand 09:14 gazing up into heaven? 09:16 This same Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, 09:21 will so come in like manner as you saw Him go into heaven.'" 09:26 And so now Jesus leaves, He goes to heaven 09:29 to prepare a place for His people. 09:34 Now after the ascension, the apostles returned 09:36 to the upper room from the Mount of Olives 09:40 and waited for the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. 09:44 During those ten days, we know that the disciples prayed, 09:49 they studied the prophecies, 09:52 they ironed out their differences, 09:54 they emptied themselves of self. 09:57 And in this way, they prepared for the outpouring 10:01 of the Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost. 10:04 We know what the disciples were doing in the upper room. 10:08 But the big question is, what was Jesus doing 10:11 during those ten days? 10:13 We know what the disciples were doing. 10:15 But what was happening with Jesus during those ten days? 10:20 This is the central theme of the study that we're doing 10:24 right now. 10:25 Now let's take a look at who was present in the upper room. 10:29 The names are given in Acts chapter 1 and verse 13. 10:34 Let's read that verse to see who was present. 10:37 They're mentioned by name. 10:39 "And when they had entered," that is when they came back 10:43 from the Mount of Olives, "they went up into the upper room 10:46 where they were staying." 10:47 And now I'm going to innumerate them. 10:50 Number one, Peter; number two, James; 10:53 number three, John; number four, Andrew; 10:57 number five, Philip; number six, Thomas; 11:00 number seven, Bartholomew; number eight, Matthew; 11:04 number nine, James the son of Alphaeus; 11:07 number ten, Simon the Zealot; 11:09 and number eleven, Judas the son of James. 11:14 What strikes you as strange about this list? 11:18 There are only eleven apostles. 11:23 And so Peter feels that it is necessary to stand up 11:27 and explain what happened with the missing disciple. 11:31 Because there were individuals present there 11:34 besides the twelve. 11:35 Actually, Mary the mother of Jesus was there. 11:38 And there were others present there that perhaps didn't 11:40 know what had happened to Judas. 11:42 And so Peter now stands in the upper room 11:45 and he's going to explain what happened 11:47 to apostle number twelve. 11:49 And that's found in verses 18 and 19. 11:54 "Now this man purchased a field with the wages of iniquity; 11:59 and falling headlong, he burst open in the middle 12:03 and all his entrails gushed out." 12:06 Very vivid description. 12:08 "And it became known to all those dwelling in Jerusalem; 12:11 so that field is called in their own language, Akel Dama, 12:15 that is, Field of Blood." 12:18 Now as I mentioned, this might appear to contradict 12:21 the account in the gospels where it says that Judas 12:24 went and he committed suicide; he hung himself. 12:27 I want to read the explanation that is given by Ellen White 12:30 in, Desire Of Ages, page 722, where she reconciles 12:33 beautifully the story that is found in the gospels 12:36 and the story that is found in the book of Acts. 12:40 She says this, "Later that same day, on the road from 12:44 Pilate's hall to Calvary, there came an interruption to the 12:49 shouts and jeers of the wicked throng who were leading Jesus 12:54 to the place of crucifixion. 12:56 As they passed a retired spot, they saw at the foot of a 13:01 lifeless tree, the body of Judas. 13:04 It was a most revolting sight. 13:07 His weight had broken the cord by which he had 13:11 hanged himself to the tree. 13:13 In falling, his body had been horribly mangled, 13:17 and dogs were now devouring it." 13:21 And so he fell headlong, his stomach burst open, 13:26 and his entrails came out. 13:29 And elsewhere, Ellen White says that Judas was the largest 13:34 of the apostles, physically speaking. 13:37 He stood above all of the disciples. 13:40 And of course, they thought that he would be a great 13:42 asset to the church. 13:44 Even till the very end they thought he would be an 13:47 asset to the church. 13:49 Now after Peter explained what had happened 13:52 to apostle number twelve, he now says, "We need to elect 13:58 a successor for Judas. 14:01 We need to elect apostle number twelve." 14:06 And you know, I always wondered why they felt 14:08 it was necessary to elect apostle number twelve, 14:13 and why it had to happen before the outpouring 14:17 of the Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost. 14:19 Those were questions that I asked of the passage. 14:21 You know, it would have been beautiful to start in 14:24 Acts chapter 2 with the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. 14:27 And then having the Holy Spirit, now you have the story of 14:30 how they elect the successor of Judas. 14:31 Because now they have divine wisdom. 14:33 They have the Holy Spirit. 14:34 But why did they elect the successor before 14:39 the outpouring of the Holy Spirit? 14:41 Why was there an urgency to elect the successor? 14:45 Well, I discovered by reading the passage carefully 14:49 that the reason why they felt they needed to elect 14:51 a successor was because Bible prophecy required it. 14:57 Bible prophecy required that a successor be elected. 15:02 You see, there were two prophecies in the Old Testament 15:05 that made it absolutely imperative to elect 15:09 a successor for Judas. 15:11 Those two prophecies are mentioned by Peter in 15:14 Acts chapter 1 and verses 16 and 20. 15:17 Acts chapter 1 verses 16 and 20. 15:20 And we're going to skip verses 17 through 19, 15:23 because that is where Peter described what happened 15:26 to the apostle that was missing. 15:28 And so verse 16 says, "Men and brethren, 15:31 this Scripture had to be fulfilled, which the Holy Spirit 15:37 spoke before by the mouth of David concerning Judas..." 15:40 So there was a prophecy spoken by David concerning Judas. 15:44 "...who became a guide to those who arrested Jesus." 15:49 And now let's go to verse 20, because it mentions 15:51 the two prophecies. 15:52 Both of them are from David. 15:55 Verse 20, "For it is written in the Book of Psalms: 16:00 'Let his dwelling place be desolate, 16:04 and let no one live in it.'" 16:07 In other words, Judas was not going to return to his home. 16:10 His house would be left desolate. 16:13 And that's Psalm 69 and verse 25. 16:16 And then Peter quotes Psalm 109 verses 7 and 8 when he said, 16:21 "And, 'Let another take his office.'" 16:27 So you see very clearly, prophecy predicted that 16:29 Judas would not return to his home, 16:31 his house would be desolate. 16:33 And prophecy predicted that it was necessary 16:36 to elect a successor. 16:38 I wonder, how did Peter know that these prophecies 16:42 applied specifically to this situation? 16:45 Jesus spent what? 16:47 Jesus spent 40 days teaching His disciples about the things 16:53 concerning the kingdom of God. 16:55 Jesus had explained to the apostles the meaning 16:59 of these specific prophecies from the book of Psalms. 17:04 Now sometimes in the Adventist church, we develop these 17:07 myths that are passed on from generation to generation 17:12 as gospel truths. 17:14 I'm not talking about the large doctrines of the church. 17:16 I'm talking about some smaller things. 17:20 Smaller details like, you know, the one that I mentioned 17:24 yesterday from Daniel chapter 12 and verse 4 where it says, 17:28 "Knowledge shall be increased." 17:30 And other minor things. 17:32 And one of those myths that is passed along 17:34 is that it was God's intention that Saul of Tarsus 17:38 be apostle number twelve. 17:40 But that the disciples jumped the gun. 17:43 In other words, the disciples were so anxious to elect 17:46 a successor that they elected the wrong individual. 17:50 That if they had waited a while, God would have shown 17:53 that He wanted Saul of Tarsus to be apostle number twelve. 17:58 Well folks, this is an unfounded myth. 18:05 And it has no biblical foundation. 18:07 I made up my mind a few years ago that I am not 18:10 going to simply repeat what is said or what I read. 18:17 I'm going to go to Scripture and I'm going to 18:18 study it out for myself to see if it is so. 18:22 Because even within the church, we pass on sometimes 18:25 these traditions as gospel truth. 18:28 And really they have no basis in Scripture, 18:31 or even in the spirit of prophecy. 18:33 Now there are four reasons that I want to share at this moment 18:37 why Paul could not have been apostle number twelve. 18:42 And towards the end of our study, I'm going to give you 18:45 an additional reason, a reason number five. 18:49 Reason number 1 is found in Acts chapter 1 verses 21 and 22. 18:55 Very clearly, the qualifications of the successor are given. 19:00 It says there in Acts 1 verses 21 and 22, 19:04 "Therefore, of these men who have accompanied us 19:08 all the time that the Lord Jesus went in and out among us, 19:14 beginning from the baptism of John to that day when He 19:19 was taken up from us, one of these must become 19:23 a witness with us of His resurrection." 19:26 Question, would the apostle Paul fit in with this qualification? 19:32 Absolutely not. 19:33 The successor had to be with the apostles 19:37 from the time of the baptism of John the Baptist 19:41 until the ascension of Jesus Christ. 19:43 Saul of Tarsus was converted three and a half years 19:46 after the death and the resurrection of Jesus Christ. 19:50 So Saul, or Paul, is disqualified by this one point. 19:56 There's a second point. 19:57 And it's found in Acts chapter 1 verses 24 to 26. 20:01 Acts 1:24-26 20:04 Did the apostles follow the correct procedure 20:08 in electing the successor? 20:10 Yes they did. 20:12 It says there in verse 24, "And they prayed, 20:16 and said, 'You, O Lord, who know the hearts of all, 20:21 show which of these two You have chosen..." 20:26 What are they praying? 20:28 "Lord, show us whom You have chosen, 20:31 to take part in this ministry, and apostleship, 20:34 from which Judas by transgression fell, 20:37 that he might go to his own place. 20:39 And they cast their lots, and the lot fell upon Matthias; 20:43 and he was numbered with the eleven apostles." 20:47 So did they follow the right procedure? 20:49 Yes they did. 20:51 Did they ask the Lord that He should show 20:53 which the successor should be? 20:56 Absolutely. 20:57 Now let's notice reason number three. 20:59 Ellen White has this comment in the book, Spirit Of Prophecy, 21:02 volume 3, page 264. 21:07 Very clearly, this statement indicates that they 21:09 followed the right process, and that the apostle 21:11 that was chosen was God's choice. 21:14 It says, "Two men were selected who, in the careful judgment 21:21 of the believers, were best qualified for the place. 21:25 But the disciples, distrusting their ability to decide 21:31 the question further, referred it to One that knew all hearts. 21:36 They sought the Lord in prayer to ascertain which of the 21:40 two men was more suitable for the important position of trust 21:44 as an apostle of Christ." 21:46 Now listen carefully. 21:47 "The Spirit of God selected Matthias for the office." 21:54 Was it the apostles who selected? 21:56 No. 21:57 The Spirit of God selected the successor of Judas. 22:02 First of all, Paul is disqualified because 22:05 he does not fit the characteristic of being 22:08 with the apostles from the times of John the Baptist 22:10 until the ascension of Christ. 22:12 Secondly, we're told that they prayed to the Lord 22:16 for the Lord to show which He had chosen. 22:19 Ellen White, in the third place, clearly says that 22:22 the Holy Spirit made the choice. 22:24 And the disciples were careful, they used careful judgment, 22:27 and they distrusted their own ability to decide. 22:31 There's a fourth reason. 22:33 And the fourth reason is that Saul was not to take 22:37 the place of Judas. 22:39 He was to take the place of Stephen. 22:42 Notice this statement from, Acts Of The Apostles, page 102. 22:47 See, you know, my name is Stephen Paul. 22:51 Isn't that interesting? 22:52 I have the name of the martyr and the martyrizer. 22:57 My parents wanted me to be like the martyrizer 22:59 after his conversion. 23:03 And I want you to notice, Ellen White is clear on this. 23:08 "A Mightier than Satan had chosen Saul to take the place 23:13 of the martyred Stephen, to preach and suffer for His name, 23:17 and spread far and wide the tidings of salvation 23:21 through His blood." 23:22 So was it God's plan that Saul of Tarsus 23:25 be the successor of Judas? 23:27 Absolutely not. 23:28 And the fifth reason is going to be the most definitive of all. 23:32 But we still ask the question, why the urgency 23:36 to elect the successor of Judas before the day of Pentecost? 23:41 Why not wait until the Holy Spirit was poured out 23:44 and maybe they had more discernment? 23:47 Why did they even need to elect apostle number twelve? 23:51 Well, the answer is in the significance 23:55 of the number twelve. 23:56 One of the principles that we're going to study later one 23:58 when we deal with biblical symbols is that numbers 24:01 in the Bible are extremely important. 24:05 Numbers have symbolic value. 24:08 The number 4 has symbolic value. 24:10 The number 40, the number 3. 24:13 We all know the number 666, the number 144,000. 24:18 Numbers have important symbolic significance in Scripture. 24:21 And we need to know what these numbers represent 24:24 in the totality of Scripture. 24:26 So the question is, why was it necessary 24:29 to have twelve apostles? 24:31 The reason is simple. 24:32 We have to understand the importance and meaning 24:34 of the symbolic number 12. 24:37 Now let's go to Revelation chapter 12 and verse 1. 24:41 Let me ask you, how do you suppose I found 24:44 this verse that we're going to now? 24:48 Sola scriptura. 24:51 You look up the number 12 in the concordance, 24:54 and then you see if they're dealing with the same themes. 24:57 And if they're dealing with the same themes, 24:59 you can connect the verses. 25:01 Are you with me? 25:02 Now, you're not going to connect two verses 25:04 that don't have anything to do with each other. 25:06 They have to deal with the same subject 25:09 in order to be able to connect them. 25:11 Now, the number 12 is very important. 25:15 Because you will notice that in Acts chapter 1, 25:18 it says that Judas was numbered with the apostles. 25:22 And then when Matthias was elected, 25:25 it says that he was numbered with the apostles. 25:29 So is the number significant? 25:31 The number is extremely significant. 25:34 There's something special about the number 12. 25:37 And let's go to Revelation chapter 12 and verse 1 25:40 to find out what the number 12 means symbolically. 25:44 It says, "Now a great sign appeared in heaven; 25:47 a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, 25:54 and on her head a garland of twelve stars." 26:00 Or a crown of twelve stars. 26:04 Now what does a woman represent? 26:06 The woman represents the church; 26:08 I'll give you half credit for that. 26:11 Because the woman represents the church, 26:13 but it really represents the faithful church. 26:17 It represents the faithful church. 26:20 Now how do we know that the woman represents 26:22 the saints, or the faithful church? 26:24 Usually what we do is we use, say, Ephesians chapter 5 26:28 where it says, "Husbands love your wives 26:30 as Christ loved the church." 26:31 And we say, "Well, see, as the husband, 26:35 the relationship between the husband and the wife 26:37 is illustrative of the relationship between 26:39 Christ and His church. 26:40 Christ, the husband; the church, the wife. 26:42 Just like you have the literal husband and his literal wife. 26:45 And so we say, "See, here the woman represents the church." 26:49 But we don't really need to go outside of Daniel and Revelation 26:52 to discover what the woman represents. 26:55 Let's compare two verses. 26:56 Daniel chapter 7 verse 25, 26:58 and then let's go to Revelation 12 verse 14. 27:01 Daniel 7:25 and Revelation 12 verse 14. 27:05 Daniel 7:25 is speaking of the little horn. 27:07 Which represents what power? 27:10 It represents the Roman Catholic Papacy. 27:12 "He shall speak pompous words against the Most High, 27:15 shall persecute the saints of the Most High..." 27:18 Remember that expression, 27:19 "...he shall persecute the saints of the Most High, 27:23 shall intend to change times and laws." 27:25 And then it tells us how long the saints will 27:27 be under his power. 27:28 "The saints shall be given into his hand 27:31 for a time, times, and half a time." 27:33 So what I want you to remember is, you have a little horn, 27:36 the little horn persecutes the saints of the Most High, 27:40 and he does it for time, times, and the dividing of time. 27:44 Now let's go to Revelation chapter 12 and verse 14. 27:48 And we'll read verses I think it's 13 and 14. 27:51 Revelation chapter 12. 27:53 Notice it says, "Now when the dragon saw that he had been 27:58 cast to the earth, he persecuted the woman." 28:03 Hmmm. 28:05 Who did the little horn persecute? 28:08 The saints. 28:09 So who does the dragon persecute? 28:12 The woman. So who's the woman? 28:14 The saints. 28:16 You say, "But how do you know this is the same time period?" 28:18 Well let's continue reading. 28:20 "Now when the dragon saw that he had been cast to the earth, 28:22 he persecuted the woman who gave birth to the male child. 28:25 But the woman was given two wings of a great eagle 28:28 that she might fly into the wilderness to her place 28:30 where she is nourished for a time, and times, and half a time 28:34 from the presence of the serpent." 28:36 Same time period as Daniel 7:25? 28:39 Yes, but if you notice, in Daniel 7:25 28:42 it is the little horn that persecutes the saints. 28:45 In Revelation 12, it is the dragon that persecutes 28:48 the woman. 28:49 So the woman is equal to the saints. 28:53 And incidentally, when you connect the two, 28:55 there's a very important truth. 28:56 And that is, that the little horn is the emissary 29:00 of the dragon. 29:02 It is really the dragon who's persecuting the saints. 29:05 Because Daniel 7 speaks of the earthly power, 29:08 Revelation 12 speaks of the power behind 29:10 the earthly power. 29:11 Are you following me or not? 29:13 Now, so do Daniel and Revelation interpret 29:17 what is meant by the woman? 29:18 Yeah, the woman are the saints of the Most High. 29:21 The woman represents Christ's faithful church. 29:25 But now the question comes up, in Revelation 12 verse 1, 29:28 this woman who has a crown of twelve stars 29:30 when John see her in Revelation 12 verse 1, 29:33 is this the Old Testament church 29:34 or is this the New Testament church? 29:37 It's the Old Testament church when John see her 29:40 in Revelation 12 verse 1. 29:42 I'm not talking about later in the chapter. 29:43 But in Revelation 12 verse 1, it represents 29:46 the Old Testament church. 29:47 Because the child hasn't been born yet. 29:50 You can't have a New Testament church before the child is born. 29:52 Because the child is Jesus. 29:54 Are you with me or not? 29:55 And so you have the Old Testament church 29:58 who is crying out in anguish because 30:00 she wants the Deliverer to be born. 30:03 The Old Testament church longing for the coming of the Messiah. 30:08 And then, of course, later on the woman represents 30:12 the New Testament church. 30:13 By the way, it's just an extension of the same church, 30:16 because it's the same woman. 30:17 Right? 30:18 Because she flees to the wilderness for 1260 years. 30:22 Which means that's after the child is born. 30:25 And so the woman represents both the Old Testament church 30:28 and the New Testament church. 30:30 Now, what is represented by the fact that this woman 30:34 has twelve stars on her crown. 30:35 Does she have twelve stars on her crown 30:37 during the Old Testament period? 30:40 Before the child is born? Yes. 30:41 Does she still have the crown with twelve stars 30:43 after the child is born? 30:45 Yes, so she has twelve stars before and after. 30:48 Now the question is, what is represented 30:50 by the twelve stars? 30:52 Well, let's see what it represents. 30:57 Go with me to Genesis 37 verses 9 and 10. 31:00 We're going forward a little bit in the material. 31:02 Genesis 37 verses 9 and 10. 31:04 The top of the next page. 31:06 This is a dream that Joseph had. 31:09 Remember that Joseph was a dreamer? 31:12 Joseph had a dream. 31:14 And in that dream he saw sun, moon, and stars. 31:18 Does that ring a bell? 31:21 That's what you find in Revelation 12 verse 1. 31:23 See, you have to apply the sola scriptura principle. 31:27 So it says there in Genesis 37 verse 9, 31:30 "Then he," that is Joseph, "dreamed still another dream 31:34 and told it to his brothers, and said, 31:36 'Look, I have dreamed another dream. 31:39 And this time the sun, the moon, and the eleven stars 31:43 bowed down to me.'" 31:46 And you say, "It doesn't say twelve stars there. 31:48 It says eleven stars." 31:49 Let me ask you, who was star number twelve? 31:51 Joseph. 31:53 Joseph. 31:54 So what do the twelve stars represent? 31:56 They represent the sons of Jacob. 32:00 So let's finish reading. 32:01 It becomes clear in verse 10. 32:03 "So he told it to his father and his brothers. 32:06 And his father rebuked him and said to him, 32:08 'What is this dream that you have dreamed? 32:11 Shall your mother and I and your brothers 32:15 indeed come to bow down to the earth before you?'" 32:20 So the twelve stars represent the twelve sons of Jacob. 32:23 But the interesting thing is, that the twelve sons of Jacob 32:26 then multiplied and became a great nation. 32:30 The twelve tribes. 32:32 Let's read Genesis 49 and verse 28. 32:34 Genesis 49 and verse 28. 32:37 Here you have the twelve founders multiplying 32:40 into a great nation. 32:42 It says there in Genesis 49:28... 32:44 And incidentally, the context of this is that Jacob has 32:48 called all of his sons before him, he's about to die. 32:51 And he's going to give the characteristics of each 32:53 of his sons, the character manifestation of 32:56 each of his sons in the future. 32:58 And I want you to notice that after mentioning all of his 33:02 twelve sons and their characteristics, 33:04 we have this summary statement. 33:05 "All these are the twelve tribes of Israel, 33:10 and this is what their father spoke to them. 33:13 And he blessed them, and he blessed each one 33:16 according to his own blessing." 33:20 And so, the twelve stars, with regards to the 33:24 Old Testament church, represent the twelve founders 33:29 of God's godly nation in the Old Testament. 33:32 Twelve individuals that then multiply 33:36 and become a great nation. 33:39 Now let's go to the New Testament. 33:41 How many apostles did Jesus appoint? 33:45 Jesus appointed twelve apostles. 33:49 Notice I didn't say He chose twelve apostles. 33:52 Because Judas offered his services. 33:55 But Jesus appointed twelve. 33:57 Why would Jesus appoint twelve? 33:59 Do you think Jesus said, "Now let Me think. 34:01 Uh, what number can I choose? 34:02 Seven; perfection? No, no, I don't like that one. 34:06 Uh, four; universality? No. 34:08 Um, definitely not six. 34:12 Um, three for the Godhead? 34:15 I think I'll choose twelve." 34:16 Is that the way that He decided? 34:18 No, No. He's purposely choosing twelve. 34:22 Because they are going to be the founders of the 34:24 New Testament church. 34:27 Go with me to Mark chapter 3 verses 14 through 19. 34:30 Mark chapter 3 verses 14 through 19. 34:33 Very important. 34:35 It says here, "Then He appointed twelve 34:38 that they might be with Him, and that He might send them 34:42 out to preach, and to have power to heal sicknesses, 34:46 and to cast out demons." 34:47 And then notice, they're listed. 34:49 "Simon, to whom He gave the name Peter; 34:52 James the son of Zebedee and John the brother of James, 34:56 to whom He gave the name, Boanerges, that is, 34:59 sons of thunder." 35:00 They must have had a violent temper. 35:05 "Andrew, Philip, Bartholomew, Matthew, Thomas, 35:10 James the son of Alphaeus, Thaddaeus, 35:14 Simon the Canaanite, 35:15 and Judas Iscariot, who also betrayed Him." 35:21 How many apostles? 35:23 Twelve. 35:25 Did the twelve apostles become the foundations 35:27 of the Christian church? 35:29 Did they go out and preach, and then multiply 35:32 and become a great nation? 35:33 Twelve spiritual tribes, so to speak. 35:36 Because we're dealing with spiritual Israel now. 35:39 Twelve spiritual tribes now multiplied from the twelve 35:43 individual founders. 35:45 Now you say, "Pastor Bohr, are you on the right track here?" 35:49 Well, let's see what the prophet had to say. 35:52 Go with me to, Acts Of The Apostles, page 19. 35:54 Listen carefully. 35:56 "As in the Old Testament the twelve patriarchs 36:00 stood as representatives of Israel, so the twelve apostles 36:06 stood as representatives of..." What? 36:09 "...representatives of the gospel church." 36:13 See, there it is clear. 36:15 So what is represented by the number 12? 36:18 The number 12 is the number of God's people. 36:22 It's the number of God's church. 36:24 Twelve individual founders, twelve persons, 36:28 then multiply and become the Old Testament church; 36:32 a great nation. 36:33 And then the twelve founders in the New Testament 36:36 multiply through their preaching and they form a large 36:41 nation, or New Testament church, which is a continuation of 36:44 God's plan for the Old Testament church. 36:47 So the number 12 is the number that is used 36:51 in connection with the church. 36:53 There had to be twelve, because the number 12 36:57 is the number of God's church. 37:00 If there were twelve founders in the Old Testament, 37:02 there had to be twelve founders in the New, 37:05 because the New Testament church is a continuation 37:08 of the legacy of the Old Testament church. 37:12 Now you'll notice, this is at the top of the next page 37:15 where it says, "Only One Woman." 37:17 It is important to remember that there is only one woman 37:21 before Jesus was born. 37:23 Right? 37:24 When Jesus was born, when the church was persecuted 37:29 for 1260 years, and when the final remnant is persecuted; 37:33 is it only one woman during all those stages? 37:35 Yes. 37:36 God has only one true church. 37:39 He does not have two separable peoples 37:41 with two different plans. 37:43 That's contrary to Daniel and Revelation. 37:45 There is no such thing as one plan for literal Israel 37:48 and another for the Christian church. 37:50 They form an indivisible unity. 37:53 Dispensationalists are totally wrong when they say that 37:57 God has two mutually separable peoples; 38:00 literal Israel and the Christian church. 38:03 Revelation 12 tells us that there is only one Messiah, 38:07 and there is only one people of the Messiah, 38:09 and there is only one dragon who is active in all of 38:12 the stages against the Messiah and the people of the Messiah. 38:17 And now we need to ask the question... 38:18 We know now why it had to be twelve. 38:20 You understand why it had to be twelve? 38:22 The significance of this symbolic number? 38:24 But now we need to return to our original question. 38:27 Why before the day of Pentecost? 38:29 Okay, they needed to have twelve. 38:31 Fine, that's alright. 38:32 But why did they need to elect a successor before 38:35 the outpouring of the Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost? 38:38 The answer is found in what was taking place with Jesus 38:43 in heaven during the ten days that the disciples 38:46 were in the upper room. 38:48 Now we're going to take a peak into the heavenly throne room. 38:51 And we're going to find out that something was happening 38:54 during those ten days with Jesus. 38:57 You say, "What was happening during those ten days?" 39:00 Well, we need to go to Leviticus chapter 8. 39:04 Leviticus chapter 8 and verses 6 through 12. 39:09 Three things happened. 39:11 And I want you to notice what the three things 39:13 that took place... 39:15 I want you to notice the three things that took place 39:17 here in Leviticus chapter 8 verses 6 through 12. 39:21 Now Leviticus 8 has the type. 39:25 It has the Old Testament scenario, the Old Testament 39:27 picture, that is fulfilled during those ten days by Jesus. 39:31 In other words, we're going to study now the type, 39:33 or the shadow. 39:35 But if we understand the shadow, we're going to understand 39:39 what it represents in the future on a broader and larger scale. 39:43 What happened in the little tent in the wilderness 39:45 is going to happen with the heavenly Sanctuary, 39:48 which is huge. 39:50 You know the earthly Sanctuary was made to scale. 39:53 We don't know how large the heavenly Sanctuary is. 39:56 It's huge. 39:57 It fits millions and millions of angels, 39:59 so it has to be a huge place. 40:03 But we have the small scale model that we're 40:05 going to look at now. 40:06 And then we are going to look at what it represents symbolically. 40:10 So let's go to Leviticus 8 verses 6 through 12. 40:13 "Then Moses..." 40:14 This is before the Sanctuary in the wilderness 40:17 began its services. 40:18 This is before the inauguration. 40:20 This is the inauguration service. 40:22 It says, "Then Moses brought Aaron and his sons, 40:25 and washed them with water." 40:28 And now he's going to do something very interesting 40:30 with Aaron. 40:32 "And he put the tunic on him, girded him with the sash, 40:38 clothed him with the robe, and put the ephod on him. 40:43 And he girded him with the intricately woven band 40:46 of the ephod, and with it tied the ephod on him. 40:50 Then he put the breastplate on him. 40:53 And he put the Urim and the Thummim in the breastplate. 40:57 And he put the turban on his head. 41:00 Also on the turban, on its front, he put the golden plate, 41:04 the holy crown; as the Lord had commanded Moses. 41:08 Also Moses took the anointing oil..." 41:11 Now notice there's a second function that's 41:13 going to take place here, right? 41:15 What was the first function? 41:17 Moses clothed Aaron as the what? 41:23 The high priest. 41:25 The first task before the Sanctuary services could begin, 41:29 in the tent, Aaron had to be clothed as the high priest. 41:36 But then something else happens. Verse 10. 41:38 "And Moses took the anointing oil and anointed the tabernacle, 41:42 and all that was in it, and consecrated them." 41:45 Did he anoint the entire tabernacle? 41:48 Yes. Why? 41:49 It had to be set apart because Aaron was 41:51 going to serve in there. 41:53 Not only did Aaron have to be set apart, 41:55 the Sanctuary had to be sanctified or set apart. 41:59 And so it says in verse 11, "He sprinkled some of it 42:02 on the altar seven times, anointed the altar 42:05 and all its utensils, and the laver and its base, 42:07 to consecrate them." 42:09 And now notice the third function. 42:11 "And he poured some of the anointing oil on Aaron's head, 42:18 and anointed him, to consecrate him." 42:21 Three things. 42:22 Number one, clothe the high priest. 42:25 Number two, anoint the Sanctuary where the 42:27 high priest was going to serve. 42:29 And number three, anoint the high priest with oil. 42:34 Now you say, what does this symbolize? 42:38 Well let's go to Psalm 133. 42:41 It's a very short psalm. 42:43 Psalm 133. 42:46 And let's notice something very interesting here. 42:50 This is what I call, a Pentecostal psalm. 42:53 Not because it belongs to the Pentecostals, 42:55 but because it has to do with Pentecost. 42:59 And immediately you're going to see. 43:01 When we read the first verse, another verse is 43:03 going to come to mind immediately. 43:05 "Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren 43:09 to dwell together in unity." 43:11 What verse comes to mind? 43:14 Is there any verse that comes to mind? 43:17 When the day of Pentecost had fully come, 43:20 they were all in one accord. 43:24 Brethren meeting together or dwelling together in what? 43:30 In unity. 43:31 Now notice verse two. 43:32 "It is like the precious oil upon the head..." 43:37 And I want you to notice, this is not just a little 43:39 trickling of oil like when we anoint sick people. 43:43 "...the precious oil upon the head, running down the beard, 43:48 the beard of Aaron." 43:49 Ah, now we know that this is reminiscent 43:51 of Leviticus 8, don't we. 43:53 "...the beard of Aaron, running down on the 43:56 edge of his garments." 43:57 Wow, this is a lot of oil to have it run down your face, 44:01 down your beard, onto your garments. 44:03 Even to the bottom of the border of the garments. 44:05 This is an abundance of oil. 44:08 And so it says, "...running down on the beard, 44:10 the beard of Aaron, running down on the edge of his garments." 44:13 And it not only runs down onto the edge of his garments, 44:16 but it says, "It is like the dew of Hermon 44:19 descending upon the mountains of Zion. 44:22 For there the Lord commanded the blessing, 44:24 life forever more." 44:25 Let me ask you, who was gathered on the mountains of Zion? 44:30 The twelve apostles in the upper room. 44:34 And so you have this picture of the oil being poured on the head 44:38 going down the beard, going down to the border of the garments. 44:42 And it's so abundant that some of the trickle 44:45 falls on the mountains of Zion, where the apostles 44:48 are gathered together in unity. 44:53 What am I saying, folks? 44:54 What I'm simply saying is that the Holy Spirit 44:57 that fell on earth was just a little trickling of the 45:01 gift that Jesus had received from His Father in heaven. 45:04 During those ten days, God the Father was clothing Jesus 45:09 as the High Priest. 45:11 Piece by piece, God the Father clothed Jesus 45:15 as the High Priest to serve as the High Priest of His people. 45:19 Not only was Jesus clothed, but then the Sanctuary 45:24 was set apart, or was sanctified, because that 45:27 is where Jesus was going to serve as the High Priest. 45:32 And then Jesus received from His Father... 45:35 You can read it in Acts 2 verse 33. 45:37 He received the promise of the Spirit of His Father. 45:40 And it was so abundant that it dripped down into the upper room 45:45 where the disciples were gathered together 45:47 on the day of Pentecost. 45:51 So where was the significant event? 45:54 The significant event was not on earth at all. 45:58 The earthly event was an announcement 46:01 that Jesus, the sacrifice of Jesus, had been 46:04 accepted by the Father. 46:06 He had presented Himself before His Father. 46:08 And He said, "Father, is My sacrifice sufficient?" 46:11 Jesus says, "Yes, it is sufficient." 46:13 And so now, the Holy Spirit, the Father gives Jesus 46:16 the promise of the Holy Spirit to pour out upon His disciples 46:20 so that they would have the power to proclaim 46:23 what Jesus had done and what He was willing to do 46:26 for each individual that comes to Him in faith. 46:29 Wow. 46:31 So is Jesus the High Priest? 46:34 Notice what it says in Hebrews chapter 8 verses 1 and 2. 46:37 "Now this is the main point of the things we are saying: 46:40 We have such a High Priest who is seated at the right hand 46:45 of the throne of the majesty in the heavens; 46:47 a minister of the Sanctuary and of the true tabernacle, 46:51 which the Lord erected and not man." 46:53 You see, that little tabernacle in the wilderness 46:55 was only a little scale model of what Jesus went to do 47:00 in heaven in the Holy Place. 47:02 Of course, we still haven't answered the question, 47:05 why did they have to elect a successor before 47:08 the outpouring of the Holy Spirit? 47:10 Now we're ready for the answer. 47:12 And we're going to have reason number five, 47:14 why it could not be Saul of Tarsus. 47:17 One of the pieces of clothing that the high priest wore, 47:22 and which undoubtedly Jesus wears in heaven 47:25 because He is clothed as the High Priest, 47:28 was what is called, the breastplate. 47:32 Now let's read in Exodus chapter 28 verse 21, 47:35 and then we'll jump to verses 29 and 30, 47:40 about the breastplate. 47:42 It covered the heart of the high priest. 47:45 It says there in Exodus 28 verse 21, 47:48 "And the stones shall have the names of the sons of Israel." 47:55 So what did the stones have, the twelve stones? 47:59 They had the names of the sons of Israel; 48:01 the founders of the Old Testament church. 48:04 "Twelve, according to their names, 48:06 like the engravings of a signet; each one with its own name. 48:11 They shall be according to the twelve tribes." 48:14 Do you notice that it goes from the names of individuals 48:17 to the tribes? 48:18 In other words, in the individuals is represented 48:21 the entire people. 48:23 And then notice verses 29 and 30. 48:26 "So Aaron..." Listen to this. 48:28 "So Aaron shall bear the names of the sons of Israel 48:32 on the breastplate of judgment..." 48:34 Notice, it's called the breastplate of judgment. 48:36 That's significant. 48:37 "...over his heart when he goes into the Holy Place 48:41 as a memorial before the Lord continually. 48:44 And you shall put in the breastplate of judgment 48:48 the Urim and Thummim. 48:50 And they shall be over Aaron's heart when he 48:52 goes in before the Lord." 48:54 Now here comes an important point. 48:56 "So Aaron shall bear the judgment of the children 49:00 of Israel over his heart before the Lord continually." 49:05 What does Aaron bear on his heart? 49:07 The judgment of the children of Israel. 49:11 Now what does that mean? 49:14 It means, folks, that when we come to Jesus Christ 49:17 and claim what Jesus did for us, we claim His life and His death 49:22 as our own. 49:24 The breastplate of judgment says, "I bore the judgment 49:29 that you deserve." 49:32 Jesus bears the judgment of His people upon His heart. 49:37 "If anyone sins, we have..." What? 49:40 "...an advocate with the Father." 49:42 When we repent of our sins and we confess our sins, 49:44 and we come to Jesus and say, "Jesus, I'm sorry I did this. 49:48 And I recognize I'm a sinner, and I confess my sin to You. 49:51 But Jesus, You bore the punishment, 49:55 You bore the judgment that I deserve. 49:58 Please, Jesus, take Your life and Your death 50:00 and place them to my account." 50:02 Then Jesus, with His breastplate, says, 50:05 "I bear your judgment." 50:09 What an amazing truth we find in the Most Holy Place. 50:14 Notice Isaiah 53 where we find this idea of Jesus bearing 50:18 the judgment of His people. 50:19 The very same word, "bear," that is used here in Exodus 28. 50:25 It says in Isaiah 53 verses 4 and 5, 50:27 a Messianic prophecy, "Surely he has..." What? 50:32 "...born..." That's the same Hebrew word. 50:35 "He has born..." 50:36 Where did He bear it? 50:37 On His heart. 50:38 His heart exploded on the cross, did it not? 50:42 When they, you know, pierced His side with the spear, 50:47 blood and water came out. 50:49 Because they pierced His heart. 50:52 And so it says, "Surely he has born our griefs 50:54 and carried our sorrows. 50:57 Yet we esteemed him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted." 51:01 Did He bear our judgment, yes or no? 51:03 He sure did. 51:04 "But he was wounded for our transgressions, 51:07 he was bruised for our iniquities. 51:10 The chastisement for our peace was upon him. 51:13 And by his stripes we are healed. 51:17 All we like sheep have gone astray; 51:20 we have turned every one to his own way. 51:22 And the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all." 51:26 He bore our judgment. 51:28 And when He comes before the Father, He says, 51:30 "Father, don't look at Pastor Bohr. 51:32 Look at Me. Because I bore his judgment." 51:35 Wow. 51:37 No reason to be depressed. 51:40 We have to be happy people. 51:42 No reason to feel guilt if we have come and met 51:45 the conditions, and we've come to Christ. 51:47 We can have peace with God. 51:49 There's no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. 51:52 You know, as Adventists we say, "Well, you know, I have to 51:54 wait until my name goes through a process in the judgment." 51:59 And we're always scared, you know, because our name 52:00 might appear before the judgment. 52:02 Well, we wouldn't be scared if we are in Christ. 52:06 If we constantly, through the power of God, are repenting 52:09 of sin and confessing our sin and recognizing our 52:12 need of Christ, we wouldn't have any problems. 52:14 And you know, there's some people who say, 52:16 like Desmond Ford, they say, "Well, you know, believing 52:18 that Christ takes the sins and puts them in the Sanctuary, 52:21 that takes away our security of salvation. 52:24 Because, you know, they're taken from us 52:26 and they're put in there." 52:27 But let me tell you something; my greatest assurance of 52:29 salvation is to have my sins in the Sanctuary, 52:32 and going in there through the blood. 52:34 Because if they're not there, they're here. 52:38 So you better make sure you put them in there, 52:39 covered with the blood of Jesus. 52:41 Our greatest assurance is to have our sins in the Sanctuary 52:45 covered by the blood of Jesus. 52:46 Because if they're not there, they're here. 52:51 Now... Thank you, brother. 52:54 I was wondering when you were going to warm up. 52:58 Now, let's finish this up. 53:04 How many stones did the breastplate have? 53:06 It had twelve stones. 53:09 Representing the twelve sons of Jacob. 53:13 But also the what? 53:15 The twelve apostles. 53:17 Remember the number twelve of the crown of the woman? 53:20 The twelve apostles from where a great nation grows. 53:25 Now, how many apostles were there on earth 53:30 when the disciples first met in the upper room? 53:33 Eleven. 53:37 But Jesus was going to be clothed with what? 53:40 He was going to be clothed with the breastplate 53:42 that had twelve stones. 53:44 So the question is, how could Jesus be clothed 53:47 with the breastplate that had twelve stones 53:50 if there were only eleven apostles? 53:53 It was necessary first to elect apostle number twelve. 53:59 And then Jesus could wear the breastplate 54:02 with the twelve stones. 54:04 There is a reason for everything in Scripture. 54:07 Every detail is important. 54:09 Nothing is wasted. 54:11 Nothing is a filler. 54:15 You know, every little detail has some nuance 54:19 connected with Jesus Christ. 54:20 Is this Christ centered what we've studied? 54:23 It all revolves around Jesus, folks. 54:25 All of these prophecies of the Old Testament. 54:27 Psalm 133, Leviticus chapter 8. 54:32 They find their fulfillment and their beauty in Jesus Christ. 54:36 Without Jesus Christ, they are totally meaningless. 54:40 Now one final point. 54:43 This is a beautiful thing. 54:48 The New Jerusalem is going to have people 54:52 from the Old Testament church 54:54 and from the New Testament church all together... 54:58 ...in one city. 55:00 Like you have one woman, you have one city. 55:03 You say, "How do you know that?" 55:05 Go with me to the book of Revelation. 55:08 Revelation chapter 21 and verse 12. 55:11 And then we'll read verse 14 as we close. 55:14 Revelation chapter 21 and verse 12. 55:19 Speaking about the city, the new, the holy city Jerusalem. 55:23 It says, "Also she had a great and high wall..." 55:28 And then what does it say? 55:30 "...with twelve gates, 55:33 and twelve angels at the gates, and names written on them; 55:38 which are the names of the twelve tribes 55:41 of the children of Israel." 55:43 So is the Old Testament church represented in the city? 55:46 Absolutely. 55:47 They're represented where? 55:49 They're represented on the foundations of the walls. 55:53 What about the New Testament church? 55:55 Let's go to verse 14. 55:57 "Now the wall of the city..." 56:00 By the way, previously it was the gates, not the walls. 56:03 But notice, Revelation 21 verse 14, "Now the wall 56:07 of the city had twelve foundations, and on them 56:11 where the names of..." What? 56:13 "...of the twelve apostles of the Lamb." 56:18 So the gates have the names of the tribes, 56:21 and the foundations have the names of the apostles. 56:26 So in one city you have all of God's people represented. 56:32 One city that gathers all of God's people from all ages. 56:37 The Old Testament church and the New Testament church. 56:39 God does not have one plan for Israel 56:43 and another plan for the church. 56:47 He just had one plan, and that one plan centers 56:50 on Jesus Christ. 56:52 In the Old Testament it was Jesus Christ predicted, 56:55 foreshadowed, announced beforehand 56:58 through symbols, through ceremonies. 57:01 In the New Testament, those ceremonies 57:03 find their fulfillment and their meaning. 57:07 And so do we have a message for the Jews today particularly? 57:10 They don't understand their own religion. 57:12 They're still waiting for the Messiah. 57:15 We have a message to say, "Folks, He's already here. 57:18 He already came. 57:20 Receive Him, and then you'll understand 57:22 what your religion is all about." 57:25 So the Scriptures are centered in Jesus Christ. 57:30 Not only the New Testament Scriptures, 57:32 but the Old Testament Scriptures as well. 57:35 What an incredible book the Holy Scripture is. 57:39 May we enjoy studying it and living it in our lives. |
Revised 2015-02-12