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Series Code: RAD
Program Code: RAD170004A
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00:01 What does the future hold?
00:02 Where can we find certainty in a world of uncertainty? 00:05 The book of Revelation provides hopeful answers for today, 00:09 tomorrow, and forever. 00:11 Join Mark Finley, author and world renowned speaker, 00:14 on a journey into the future with 00:22 I'm delighted that you've joined us again for 00:25 Revelation's Ancient Discoveries. 00:28 In this series we're exploring different prophecies 00:32 in the book of Revelation. 00:34 We're unfolding Revelation. 00:37 Many people come to the book of Revelation and they say it's a 00:40 book of mystic symbols. 00:41 It's a book of cryptic images. 00:43 It's a book of beasts. 00:45 But yet we're looking beyond simply the 00:49 externals in Revelation. 00:51 We're looking at the major theme of Revelation. 00:53 We've noted so far that the theme of Revelation is that 00:57 Jesus Christ wins and Satan loses. 01:00 Really, if you could summarize Revelation in one word 01:04 the word would be victory. 01:06 That is victory for Christ, victory for righteousness, 01:10 victory for the people of God, victory for the kingdom of God. 01:14 As we explore Revelation we see a great struggle, 01:19 a great conflict between good and evil. 01:21 I'd like you to bow your heads with me wherever you are, 01:25 and we're going to ask the Lord to come and give us divine 01:28 insight into this book, the book of Revelation. 01:31 Father in Heaven, thank You for the opportunity of knowing You. 01:37 Thank You for the prophetic word that gives us clarity, 01:44 and reveals light on the road ahead. 01:46 Thank You that Your word dispels darkness. 01:51 Thank You that Your word gives hope. 01:53 Thank You that the book of Revelation speaks with ever 01:58 increasing relevance to the world that we live in today, 02:02 about the fact that Jesus has this world in His hands, 02:06 so grant to us that hope as we study these prophecies tonight. 02:11 In Christ's name, Amen. 02:13 Our topic for this presentation is 02:21 Now when you look through the entire Bible, one thing that 02:26 becomes pretty obvious is that angels are present from the 02:30 first book of the Bible, Genesis, where an angel with 02:34 flaming sword guarded Eden after Adam and Eve were 02:37 cast out of the Garden. 02:39 Throughout the entire book of Genesis we see angels. 02:45 You go to the book of Exodus; we see angels. 02:48 Throughout the whole Old Testament there 02:50 is angelic presence. 02:52 David in the Psalms speaks about the angels. 02:55 He says, The angel of the Lord protects, stands near those 03:01 that fear God and delivers him. 03:03 When you look at Psalm 91 it talks about a thousand shall 03:08 fall by thy side, ten thousand at thy right hand, 03:11 but it will not come nigh thee. 03:13 The angels of the Lord, again become our protectors. 03:17 In the New Testament the angel brings a message to Mary about 03:22 the birth of the Christ child. 03:24 Angels guide and protect the Holy family 03:28 in their trip to Egypt. 03:30 So throughout the Old and New Testament, you go to the 03:33 book of Acts, and you see angels constantly there. 03:37 The Angel of the Lord delivers the Apostles from prison. 03:42 In the book of Revelation angels are present 03:46 in a very marked way. 03:48 Probably more than any other place in the Bible, we see 03:54 When we look at the message in Revelation we see angels 03:59 as actively involved in this conflict between good and evil, 04:04 bringing light to the mind, dispelling darkness. 04:08 We see angels beating back the forces of hell. 04:11 But particularly angels are the messengers of God 04:15 in the book of Revelation. 04:17 In Revelation 1, for example, the Bible says, 04:20 verse 1, we see an angel. 04:23 This is the Revelation of Jesus Christ. 04:25 I'm quoting Revelation 1:1. 04:27 The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave unto Him 04:30 to show His servants things that must shortly come to pass, 04:34 and sent and signified it by His angel to John. 04:37 So in Revelation 1 the angel brings the message to John. 04:41 Angels are messengers from heaven. 04:44 When you look, for example, at the entire book of Revelation, 04:50 you look at 04:51 You have the seven churches, and you have the angels of 04:55 these churches, or messengers to these churches. 04:59 Revelation is a book of angels; angels 05:04 bringing heavenly messages. 05:09 Angels are holding back the winds of destruction. 05:13 Holding back the winds of strife, and conflict to come 05:17 upon planet earth. 05:21 An exciting chapter. 05:23 We'll spend one presentation later in the 05:26 series on this chapter. But 05:29 The angel has one foot in the sea, one foot on the land. 05:32 He lifts his hand with a solemn oath, and he cries out, 05:37 Time will be no longer. 05:40 Angels again bringing heaven's message to men and women 05:44 on planet earth in Revelation 10. 05:47 In Revelation 14, you start there with verse 6. 05:51 I saw another angel flying in the midst of heaven, 05:55 having the everlasting gospel to preach to those that 06:03 dwell upon the earth. 06:04 And then in Revelation 14 you have three angels bringing 06:08 heaven's message to earth. 06:10 So angels all through the book of Revelation. 06:13 What are the angels flying in the middle of heaven? 06:15 They are heavenly messengers once again. In 06:21 again, an angel pours out the vial, so the judgments 06:25 of God upon the earth. 06:27 The angel brings the message of last day judgment, 06:30 and the return of Christ. In 06:35 verse 1, it says that another angel cries with a loud voice, 06:43 cries Babylon is fallen. 06:45 He calls all of God's people out of the fallen, confused, 06:50 apostate religious system of Babylon. 06:53 So, again you have angels, but notice their purpose, 06:56 notice their function. 06:57 They are representatives of ministers of, messengers of, 07:03 the eternal, everlasting God. Now 07:10 And we might call this the great Star Wars conflict of the ages. 07:15 The Star Wars trilogy captured the imagination of people around 07:20 the world with a fictitious drama of Star Wars out in space. 07:24 But that only, in a very faint way, would mirror the great 07:28 conflict between good and evil, the great Star Wars conflict. 07:32 Revelation 12 gives us the focal point of that conflict. 07:37 So let's go there to Revelation, the 12th chapter. 07:40 We see it in verses 7 to 9. 07:46 Now that's a strange place for war, isn't it? in heaven? 07:49 The reason there's war on earth is because there was 07:52 first war in heaven. 07:54 War broke out in heaven. 08:23 Now notice what Scripture says. 08:25 It says that there's this war in heaven; 08:28 this cosmic conflict up in heaven. 08:31 That Michael and his angels fight against the 08:34 dragon and his angels. 08:36 Now the Bible identifies the dragon as Satan. 08:40 It calls Satan the dragon, and it calls him a serpent. 08:43 He is the serpent because he deceives. 08:46 He is the dragon because he destroys. 08:49 So the Devil deceives those whom he's going to destroy, 08:54 and destroys those whom he has deceived. 08:57 So we see this war in heaven. 08:59 But that leads us to some questions. 09:09 What are the issues in this controversy 09:12 between good and evil? 09:14 What are the issues in this controversy 09:16 between Christ and Satan? 09:18 It leads us to some other questions. 09:20 Why would God ever allow this controversy to 09:23 take place in heaven? 09:24 We go to the book of Ezekiel, and Ezekiel helps us 09:29 to find some answers. 09:30 It really helps us to find an answer to the question, 09:33 Did God create Lucifer? 09:35 Did God create a demon? 09:37 Did God create this evil angel who battled against the good 09:41 angels up in heaven? 09:43 The prophet Ezekiel helps us to understand this. 09:58 Now notice, God did not create a demonic angel. 10:04 It says he was the seal of perfection. 10:06 In other words, God created a perfect being 10:09 of dazzling brightness. 10:10 He was full of wisdom. 10:13 He was perfect in beauty. 10:16 There was no flaw in this angel at all. 10:22 He was created perfect by God. 10:24 He was created as a shining being of 10:28 iridescent glory by God. 10:35 Now what does this anointed cherub that covers? 10:40 Cherub, again, is an angel. 10:42 Anointed means he was chosen. 10:44 So Lucifer was chosen. 10:46 Lucifer was anointed above the other angels 10:48 as a covering cherub. 10:50 If you were an ancient Israelite, 10:52 you would have understood that. 10:54 Because in the Jewish Sanctuary, in the Most Holy Place of the 10:59 Sanctuary, there was the Ark of the Covenant. 11:02 Over that Ark of the Covenant there were two angels that were 11:07 wrought out in gold. 11:08 So the anointed angel, or the angel that covered, 11:11 would have been one of the angels closest 11:14 to the throne of God. 11:15 Truth is stranger than fiction. 11:18 An angel, one of the angels closest to God betrayed Him. 11:23 One of the angels closest to God lied about Him. 11:27 One of the angels closest to God lied about His character, 11:33 claiming that God was unfair and unjust. 11:38 the Scripture says. 11:51 So God created a perfect angel. 11:55 God created this being of dazzling brightness, 11:58 full of wisdom, full of glory. 12:02 But yet God created him with the capacity to choose. 12:10 God did not create a devil. 12:13 God did not create Lucifer in the sense of creating a being 12:21 with some flaw, something wrong with the brain that caused him 12:27 to rebel. Not at all. 12:29 The Scripture teaches that God creates all of 12:31 these angels perfect. 12:33 One of them called Lucifer; Lucifer means lightbearer. 12:37 It comes from two Latin words, lux, meaning light, 12:41 ferre meaning bearer. 12:43 So Lucifer is the anointed cherub. 12:45 He's the lightbearer. 12:46 But the Bible tells us what happened. 12:57 How did Lucifer become this demonic being? 13:03 It says, you corrupted your wisdom. 13:06 In other words, Lucifer made a conscious choice. 13:11 God created him with the capacity to choose. 13:14 God created all His beings with the capacity to choose. 13:18 You know, let's suppose that you had a child, and you could, 13:24 every single evening program that child with a computer. 13:29 Let's suppose the child had, you know, maybe a couple of 13:33 screws in its head, and you could just unscrew those screws, 13:36 take them out, flip top of the head, and place a computer chip 13:39 in so that your child would always obey you. 13:42 That would be a pretty good idea some parents say. 13:45 How many would like a child like that? 13:46 Don't raise your hand too quickly. 13:48 And let's suppose that every night you'd program the child, 13:53 and the child would get up and say, Mother, 13:56 I do like my oatmeal. I will eat it all. 14:00 Mother, I will do my homework. 14:03 Mother, I will pick up my room, and not leave 14:05 one dirty sock around. 14:07 How'd you like a child like that? 14:09 Some of you say, Oh yeah, that's great! 14:11 I wish I had a child like that. 14:12 And how would you like that child to shake your hand 14:16 with his iron hand? 14:18 How would you like that child to kiss you on the cheek 14:22 with their iron cheek? 14:24 You see, the only way you can have a child like that 14:26 is if you had a robot. 14:27 And you don't want a robot child, and neither did God. 14:29 You don't want a... You love your kid. 14:31 When he gets up in the morning; you're ready to go to work, 14:34 and he jumps on your lap; this little five year old, 14:37 so happy to see Daddy, so happy to see Mommy. 14:40 Jumps on your lap, puts his arms around you, kisses you, 14:43 and at the same time spills the milk over your 14:45 dress or your pants, you see. 14:47 I mean, you don't have any robot child, you have a marvelous kid 14:53 that you wouldn't trade for the world. 14:55 But he has the power of choice. 14:58 You see, if you take away the power of choice, you take away 15:02 the capacity to love. 15:03 And if you take away the capacity to love, you take away 15:06 the opportunity to be happy. 15:08 So God in His far seeing wisdom, God in His amazing knowledge, 15:14 God does not want angelic beings that serve Him either because 15:19 they're programmed to, because that's the way He created them, 15:22 or because they're forced to. 15:26 There is no love without choice. 15:28 And there is no freedom without choice. 15:31 So God created free beings that could love Him 15:35 based on His character. 15:37 His character of goodness. 15:38 His character of righteousness. 15:40 His character of greatness. 15:42 His character of love. 15:44 And one of these beings, Lucifer, decided that he wanted 15:51 God's position, and God's authority. 15:54 And the book of Isaiah sweeps back the curtain. 15:58 The book of Isaiah helps us to understand what happened. 16:11 Now notice Lucifer, the lightbearer, 16:13 the son of the morning. We continue. 16:17 See, sin always begins in the heart. 16:21 Before the sinful act, there is the sinful thought. 16:26 Before the sinful act there is the corruption of the human 16:32 heart, the degradation of the human mind. Back to the text. 16:41 The center of pride is I. 16:44 And Lucifer had I problem. 16:47 Wasn't he already in heaven? 16:48 Certainly he was already in heaven. 16:50 But he wanted a higher position. 16:52 Because notice what he says. 16:57 The throne implies rulership. 17:00 The throne implies one who is in charge. 17:04 The throne implies kingly authority. 17:07 So Lucifer says, he's at the throne. 17:09 He's the anointed cherub that covers. 17:12 He has a responsible position. 17:13 But he wants something more. 17:15 He's not content with what he has. 17:17 He wants to usurp God's authority. 17:19 He wants to knock God off His throne. He says, 17:30 What's that all about? 17:31 The Mount of the Congregation, of course, was Mount Sinai. 17:34 And it's from there that God administered His law. 17:37 So North is a symbol of the law of God. 17:43 And so it's a symbol of the throne of God. 17:46 So Lucifer wants to sit on God's throne, administer God's law. 17:51 The creature wants to have the authority of the Creator. 17:55 The creature wants to ascend above his Creator. 17:59 He does not want to be worshipped. 18:01 He wants to... He does not want to worship, 18:05 he wants to be worshipped. 18:07 He does not want to be commanded, he wants to command. 18:12 He does not want to respect God's authority, 18:15 he wants to exhibit authority. 18:18 And so the Bible says that Lucifer declares 18:28 So his ambition to be like God, caused him to begin selling 18:33 lies throughout heaven. 18:35 Lies that might have gone like this: God doesn't have your 18:39 best interest in view. 18:41 God is not One who loves you. 18:44 God is a God, Lucifer said, of, a God of vindictive judgment. 18:50 He is a God that commands. 18:52 What has He given to us? 18:53 And as he began to sow that discord, 18:56 sow that dissatisfaction, sow that disaffection in heaven, 19:00 some of the angels began to buy that lie. 19:03 Some of the angels began to think that the law of God 19:06 indeed restricted them. 19:20 Lucifer desired to be like God. 19:24 Now God has only one weapon. 19:28 And the weapon that God has is love. 19:30 1 John 4:8. What does it say? 19:35 See, Lucifer can use lies. 19:37 Lucifer can use deception. 19:39 Lucifer can use force. 19:41 Lucifer can use coercion. 19:43 But the only thing that God has, the only weapon 19:47 that God has is love. 19:48 Now God could have stamped out Lucifer. 19:52 God could have destroyed Lucifer. 19:54 But if God would have done that the Universe would have served 19:57 Him from fear, and they wouldn't have served Him from love. So 20:05 If you do away with God's love, and you give God all power, 20:10 then He becomes a tyrant with power. 20:12 If you take away, of course, His power, and you only say that 20:16 God is merciful, then He has no ability to control evil. 20:19 So God is love. Part of that aspect of God's love is mercy. 20:24 The other aspect of that love is justice. 20:27 So there's a conflict in the Universe. 20:29 For the first time there's rebellion in heaven. 20:32 For the first time there is dissatisfaction. 20:36 Millennia's have gone by. 20:37 There's only been harmony, only joy, only gladness in heaven. 20:42 But now in a Star Wars conflict greater than any Star Wars 20:46 conflict, Lucifer rebels in heaven. 20:49 The whole Universe is thrown into disarray. 20:53 Lucifer wants rulership, and he's battling God over the 20:58 kingship of the world. 20:59 So what is at stake is the rulership of the Universe. 21:04 Well it's a battle for the throne of the Universe. 21:08 And notice what Ezekiel 28:6 says: 21:16 Lucifer wanted to be ruler and God. 21:20 As he shared his disaffection and evil with the angels, 21:25 and the other angels, they rebelled against God. 21:28 Every angel had to make a decision. 21:32 Every being in heaven had to make a decision. 21:36 Will we accept the lies of Lucifer, or will we accept the 21:42 truth that God is love, and has our best interest in view? 21:45 And you know the decision that those angels had to make 21:49 in heaven, that decision is one that every single one 21:53 of us have to make. 21:54 Because there's not only a battle in the Universe, 21:56 there's a battle in our hearts. 21:58 It's the battle between good and evil. 22:00 It's the battle between truth and error. 22:02 It's the battle between right and wrong. 22:05 It's the battle between what we want to do, asserting our own 22:09 authority, and accepting the authority of Jesus Christ. 22:14 You see, in every heart there is a throne. 22:17 In every heart there is a cross. 22:19 And if self is on the throne, then Jesus is on the cross. 22:26 If Jesus is on the throne of your heart, 22:29 then self is on the cross. 22:31 Lucifer did not want to go through that point in his life 22:37 where when these thoughts began to rise, that he denied 22:42 the selfish ambition, rather that was indulged. 22:50 What would God do? 22:56 I mean why not just take Lucifer, like a little mosquito 23:00 here, slap him, do away with him, destroy him, kill him? 23:03 That's over; it's it. 23:05 Why doesn't He just annihilate him? 23:07 Why doesn't He not just speak the word? 23:09 Why doesn't He by His brightness, 23:10 by God's brightness and light just zap him, and he's gone? 23:14 If God would have done that, the whole Universe would have 23:19 served God from fear and not from love. 23:24 The whole Universe would have felt that if they stepped out of 23:30 line at all that the sword of God would come, 23:33 and totally annihilate them. 23:34 How would you like to live in an eternal Universe of fear? 23:40 How would you like to live with a God that you perceived to be 23:44 all powerful, but not loving? 23:47 God knew that a challenge had come to His government. 23:51 God knew that Lucifer had raised questions about His character, 23:57 and so God made a decision. 23:59 Let evil play out before the whole Universe. 24:03 And if God allowed evil to play out before the whole Universe, 24:06 then the Universe could see the terrible effects of evil, 24:10 and as the result of that, they would serve Him forever as they 24:14 contrasted the results of evil, as they contrasted the effects 24:20 of evil with the marvelous gracious love of God. 24:25 And so, God allowed evil to play out. 24:34 God chose a course that would take time. 24:36 God chose a course that would require patience. 24:41 God would demonstrate His love to the whole Universe. Because 24:49 Love never can be coerced. 24:53 What if husband and wife were married, and he then said, 24:58 I will make you love me! 25:00 I will force you to love me! 25:02 Not at all! Husbands win the affections of their wives, 25:07 not by force, not by coercion, but by the marvelous 25:12 love to that woman. 25:13 And when she sees his love, and sees his unselfish kindness, 25:20 his graciousness, his goodness, her heart is 25:23 touched, and she loves. 25:24 Just like a husband and wife are brought together by love; 25:28 his love for her, and her love for him, 25:30 and just like love depends on free choice, and it can never be 25:34 coerced, never can be forced, so likewise our love to God 25:39 can never be coerced. 25:41 It can never be forced. 25:42 So a battle takes place in heaven. 25:43 And the Bible says in 25:55 So the dragon, the all powerful Satan, the deceiver who deceives 26:00 one third of the angels, there is war in heaven, 26:02 and God cast Satan out of heaven. 26:12 Now that leads us to another incredible question. 26:23 Did God create earth just as a dumping off place for Satan? 26:30 Did God have a problem? 26:31 And He said, You know what, I've got to solve My problem. 26:34 And so I'm going to cast Satan out of heaven into earth, 26:37 and I'm going to get rid of him. 26:38 Not at all. God had created a variety of worlds. 26:43 The Bible says 1 Corinthians, it says that we're a spectacle 26:49 unto the world, to angels, and to men. 26:53 In other words the Universal world, angels the heavenly 26:56 world, and men on planet earth. 26:59 Hebrews 1:1 talks about the God who created 27:03 the worlds, plural. 27:05 And so God creates these various worlds, 27:08 worlds that are not involved in sin. 27:11 And as God creates them, every one of these planets, 27:14 or worlds, have a choice. 27:15 God wouldn't force them to serve Him, any more than He would 27:19 force angels in heaven to serve Him. 27:21 And so God gave planet earth a choice. 27:25 God gave Adam and Eve a choice. 27:28 He warned them, of course, I'm certain, 27:31 of this conflict between good and evil. 27:33 He warned them of this Titanic struggle 27:36 between Christ and Satan. 27:37 He warned them of what the evil one had said. 27:42 And He told them, You can wander freely through this garden, 27:47 but there is one place that will be a test, 27:49 one place that will make... that is a choice for you. 27:53 Just like all, the whole Universe had a choice, 27:56 I'm going to give you a choice as well. 27:59 You, Adam and Eve, will have the freedom to choose. 28:02 But if you exercise that wrong choice, sickness and suffering, 28:09 and heartache and death are going to come upon you. 28:12 So God gave Adam and Eve that capacity to choose. 28:16 Eve wandered from her husband. 28:19 And there as she came to the tree, the voice of Lucifer 28:25 began to speak to her, and he began to sow that lie. 28:31 And God said to Adam and to Eve, You can eat of every 28:35 tree of the garden. 28:36 In other words, He gave them the easiest possible choice. 28:39 He didn't say you can eat of one tree, 28:40 and don't eat of all the rest. 28:42 He said, You can eat of every tree but this one tree. 28:45 This one tree is the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, 28:49 and if you eat of it, your nature's will be changed. 28:54 If you eat of it you'll open a door for evil to 28:57 come into the Universe. 28:59 Adam, Eve, listen to Me. 29:00 I love you! I want you to enjoy the garden forever. 29:05 Do not eat of that tree of knowledge of good and evil. 29:09 Eve, in her curiosity, wandered from the side of her husband. 29:14 And she came to that tree of knowledge of good and evil. 29:18 And she was surprised because there in the form of a beautiful 29:23 serpent... Now we don't think serpents are too beautiful. 29:26 We see a serpent we run the other way. 29:27 But evidentially in the garden serpents were created just 29:31 magnificently, beautifully. 29:33 We can't imagine that, but in fact it is true. 29:35 And in Genesis 3:4, 5, you know, Scripture says the 29:39 Devil begins to speak to her. 29:40 Has God said you will surely die? 29:43 You won't surely die if you eat of the tree. 29:46 Eve speaks, But, but, yes, that's what God said. 29:48 And the Devil says, You're not going to surely die. 29:51 Eat of it! Take it Eve, take it! 29:54 You'll enter into a higher sphere of existence. 29:57 Look at me, look at me. 29:59 Take this fruit. You'll enter into joy, and ecstasy, 30:03 and happiness that you've never known. 30:05 That was the first lie, but the Devil's been telling that lie 30:10 down through the centuries. 30:11 The Devil has been telling people that the way of Christ 30:15 is the way of narrow restriction that takes 30:18 away your happiness. 30:19 He's been telling people down through the centuries that the 30:22 way of sin is the way of joy, the way of pleasure. 30:27 And so people are involved in alcohol, 30:29 they're involved in tobacco. 30:31 They're involved in the stimulating pleasure that they 30:34 think is bringing them joy, when they're killing 30:36 themselves; the party life. 30:38 And then you have to go to one party, after another party, 30:41 after another party. 30:42 It has to be go greater, and greater, and greater. 30:44 Now there's nothing wrong with joy and fun, but when you get 30:48 your stimulation from the things of the world rather than the 30:54 things of eternity, it leaves you with a barrenness, 30:57 and emptiness of soul. 30:58 Some people think that sexual immorality, 31:02 and multiple partners will bring them joy, when they only end up 31:06 broken, and bruised, and barren, and empty. 31:12 At the tree Satan speaks and he says, You will not surely die. 31:17 And look at his argument. 31:31 If you eat of this tree you are going to be like God, Eve. 31:36 Take and eat it. Eve, listening to the voice of the evil one, 31:41 rather than listening to voice of God, 31:44 took of the tree and ate. 31:46 And when she did she opened a door, a door of suffering, 31:51 a door of heartache, a door of death on a planet called Earth. 31:57 Adam took of the fruit and he ate it. 32:01 And immediately their natures changed. 32:04 Immediately they sensed that something was different. 32:14 They had never had an experience like this before. 32:19 Never before in their lives had they felt so unclean. 32:24 Never before in their lives had they felt so guilty. 32:28 Never before in their lives had they felt this separation, 32:32 this abandonment from God. 32:34 Isaiah 59:1, 2 says, Your sins have separated you from God. 32:41 Sin separates us from God. 32:45 Adam and Eve, for the first time in their existence, 32:49 for the first time in their lives, had that sense that now 32:53 they were separated from God. 32:56 How come there's so much suffering in our world? 32:59 How come there's so much sickness in our world? 33:02 How come there's so much heartache in our world? 33:05 How come there's so much sorrow in our world? 33:07 Because we live in a planet in rebellion. 33:10 Not only did Adam and Eve sin, but all of us have partaken 33:14 of the tree of knowledge of good and evil. 33:16 Every single one of us have sinned. 33:18 The Bible says, in Romans 3:23, All have sinned and come short 33:23 of the glory of God. 33:24 Romans 6:23 says, The wages of sin are death. 33:28 So put this together: Adam and Eve partake of the tree of the 33:32 knowledge of good and evil. 33:33 They separate from God by their own choice. 33:37 The seeds of death enter into their body. 33:40 Every single one of us are born with a nature that is fallen. 33:44 Jeremiah 17:9 says, The heart is deceitful above all things, 33:49 and desperately wicked. Who can know it? 33:52 Isaiah 64:6 says, All of our righteousness is as filthy rags. 33:57 In other words, even at times without Christ our righteous 33:59 deeds are tainted with selfish motives. 34:02 When Adam and Eve sinned they opened the door of sickness, 34:06 and suffering, and death. 34:07 And what does sin produce? 34:16 And right there in that garden Adam and Eve begin to 34:20 argue the first time, and they begin to blame one another. 34:24 Adam blames Eve, Eve blames the serpent. 34:28 So they begin to play that blame game. 34:31 This earth is plunged into rebellion. 34:35 This earth is plunged into that sickness, sickness of sin. 34:40 It's plunged into anxiety, and fear, and suffering and death. 34:44 Disease now takes the place of health. 34:47 Anger takes the place of kindness. 34:50 Impurity takes the place of purity. 34:53 And we live in that planet. 34:55 What was God going to do? 34:57 Is God responsible for the suffering, the heartache, 35:02 the sorrow in our world? 35:03 Is God responsible for the war, the conflict and 35:07 strife in our world? Certainly not! 35:10 You remember Jesus told the parable about this. 35:13 Matthew 13:28, Jesus told the parable about the 35:19 wheat and the tares. 35:20 And He told the parable about a field, and there was only 35:24 good seed sown in it. 35:25 But then when it came harvest time there were weeds. 35:28 And the farmer says, Where did they come from? 35:31 What does Jesus say? 35:37 An enemy. So there's an enemy of God and man. 35:41 That enemy is Lucifer. 35:42 He led Adam and Eve into sin, and he has led every human 35:47 being into sin as well. 35:49 Why is it that there's so much natural disaster in our world? 35:53 Because we live in a planet separated from God. 35:57 So all of nature is out of control. 35:59 Why is it so much war? 36:02 Because selfishness reigns in the heart. 36:04 Why is it there is so much divorce? 36:07 Because rather than forgiveness, and kindness, and compassion 36:10 in a marriage, very often egotism reigns. 36:14 You can trace the conflict of this world back, back to that 36:20 rebellion in heaven with Satan, back to the fall of Adam 36:23 and Eve, back to fact that every single one of us have partaken 36:27 of that forbidden fruit. 36:29 There is an enemy of God and man. 36:32 He's called Satan. He's called the accuser. 36:35 He is called the Devil. 36:36 The Bible describes him with a variety of names. 36:41 You ask the question though, I thought the Devil was a little 36:46 imp with wings and a pitchfork with the red suit. 36:49 Not at all! That's not the picture that the Bible gives. 36:54 The Devil is a brilliant fallen angel that is bent on destroying 37:01 God's authority over the Universe. 37:04 The Devil has ushered in the sickness, the sorrow, 37:09 the heartache that we see, and he's done that by prompting 37:13 people to make selfish choices. 37:15 He's done that by polluting the entire environment 37:19 in a variety of ways. 37:21 And so we see a world, we see a conflict between good and evil. 37:25 We see a conflict between Christ and Satan. 37:29 We see a Star Wars epic odyssey that is far beyond what anything 37:35 we could possibly imagine. 37:45 Lucifer deceived Adam and Eve on earth. 37:49 And Lucifer is deceiving scores of people today. 37:52 You see, in this battle there's only one or two sides: 37:55 righteousness or unrighteousness. 37:58 Only one of two sides in this battle between good and evil: 38:03 sin or error, and truthfulness. 38:06 Sin on one side, truth on the other side. 38:08 Only one or two sides. 38:11 The side of Christ, or the side of Satan. 38:13 The side of Jesus, or the side of the dragon, and the evil one. 38:17 And every single one of us, every day are 38:20 making those choices. 38:22 Adam and Eve made that choice, and as the result of that 38:26 left the Garden of Eden. 38:28 They left filled with sorrow and grief. 38:30 They left filled with heartache. 38:32 But they turned again to their Redeemer. 38:35 Now you say, Why doesn't God do something about 38:38 the evil in the world? 38:39 If God is loving, why doesn't He step in? 38:42 If God is loving why does He not intervene? 38:47 Three things: 1. God has done something. 38:52 When Adam and Eve sinned, God didn't push this Universe 38:56 out into the far reaches of space. 38:59 When Adam and Eve sinned, God didn't say, You've sinned, 39:02 therefore I'm going to annihilate the race, 39:04 and I'm going to start all over again. 39:06 God came to the garden when Adam and Eve sinned. 39:10 And He said, in Genesis 3:15... 39:13 Here you have the first promise of the Messiah. 39:28 In other words, Jesus Christ would come. 39:31 He would pay the ransom price for Adam and Eve. 39:35 He would live the life that they should have lived. 39:38 Jesus would come as the second Adam, and there He would live 39:41 a perfect righteous life. 39:43 He would face all of the temptations of Satan, 39:46 and He would live and dwell in the flesh, trusting in the 39:50 Father's power and grace. 39:53 He would overcome Satan for you and me. 39:56 And He would go to that cross, and He would die the death 39:59 that we should have died. 40:00 Why hasn't God done something? 40:02 He has done something. 40:03 In the garden, when Adam and Eve sinned, He gave them the 40:07 promise of hope, the promise that He would come, 40:10 the promise that He would die on Calvary's cross, the promise 40:14 that He would send the death blow to Satan's head, 40:18 that He would crush Satan forever. 40:21 Jesus came and He hung on that cross, and He died the death 40:27 that we should have died. 40:28 Every drop of blood was for you. 40:31 And He rose from the dead, alive again to ascend to heaven. 40:38 The cross reveals the enormity of God's love. 40:42 You know, sometimes we talk about the cross of Calvary, 40:46 and sometimes I hear Christians talk about it quite flippantly. 40:51 A cross around their neck, a picture of Christ on the cross, 40:56 cross in churches, but what does that cross really represent? 41:01 The cross represents all of the sin of the Universe 41:09 heaped upon Christ. 41:11 All of the sin of this world heaped upon Christ. 41:16 It represents all of the guilt, all of the shame, 41:20 all of the condemnation upon Christ. 41:23 He who knew no sin, II Corinthians 5:21, 41:34 deserve, so we can live the life that He deserves. 41:38 Why doesn't God do something? He has! 41:41 He sent His Son Jesus Christ. 41:43 He has sent Christ to live the life we should have lived, 41:46 and die the death that we should have died. 41:50 The Bible teaches the most amazing love 41:54 story in all the world. 42:02 Jesus does not coerce. 42:04 He does not force. But before the whole Universe He reveals 42:09 His love on a cross of Calvary. 42:12 Christ came. He was born as a babe in Bethlehem's manger. 42:16 From the time He was born Satan wanted to destroy Him. 42:20 All through His childhood Satan wanted to get Him to sin. 42:23 He, Jesus fasted forty days in the wilderness, 42:27 and Satan threw his fiercest temptations at Jesus. 42:30 And on that cross the Devil was screaming in His ears, 42:34 Why don't You give up? 42:36 Why don't you go back to heaven? 42:38 He wanted hu... The Devil wanted humanity to be lost. 42:42 Why doesn't God do something? He has! 42:49 He has sent Jesus Christ to come. 42:54 He sent Jesus to this world. 42:57 When Adam and Eve sinned, He promised that the 43:00 Messiah would come. 43:01 And faithful to that promise, Jesus came, born as a babe 43:06 in Bethlehem's manger. 43:07 Faithful to that promise, Christ hung on that cross. 43:11 Ephesians 3:9 tells the larger reason for Christ's death. 43:20 What is the mystery? 43:22 It's the mystery of Christ's love, 43:23 the mystery of Christ's redeeming grace, 43:26 the mystery of Christ's goodness, 43:28 the mystery of Christ's desire to save us. 43:30 It is the mystery revealed. 43:37 That mystery of His love is revealed on Calvary's cross, 43:41 who created all things through Jesus Christ. 43:43 On the cross of Calvary God reveals how much He loves us. 43:48 Why doesn't God do something? He did! 43:50 He sent Jesus Christ to pay the ransom price for our sins, 43:55 to redeem us from the guilt and shame of sin. He sent Jesus. 44:03 And the answer to that challenge is Jesus Himself. 44:07 We find Jesus on every page of Scripture: 44:10 Jesus revealing God's goodness, Jesus revealing God's love, 44:14 Jesus touches the eyes of the blind and they're opened. 44:17 And that shouts, God loves you! 44:20 Jesus touches the arm of the withered man and it's healed. 44:24 That shouts, God loves you! 44:25 Jesus takes children in His arms. 44:29 That shouts, God loves you! 44:30 Jesus raises the dead, like Lazarus from the dead. 44:33 That shouts, God loves you! 44:35 God is not a vindictive judge. 44:36 God is not a wrathful tyrant. 44:38 The cross and the life of Christ reveals how much Jesus cares. 44:44 It was dark, dark Friday. 44:46 The birds stopped singing. 44:48 The sun stopped shining. 44:50 They put Him in the tomb that Friday. 44:52 But, Hallelujah, Sunday morning came, and Jesus came out alive, 44:58 resurrected from the dead. 45:00 Why doesn't God do something? 45:02 He not only has done something, He is doing something now. 45:05 Christ is alive! 45:20 What are you struggling with today? 45:22 Are you in the battle between good and evil? 45:24 Does darkness at times engulf your soul? 45:28 Do you feel that the journey is long, and the mountain is high? 45:31 The incredible good news is not only has God done something, 45:35 but the incredible good news is Christ is alive. 45:37 And He knows our weakness, He knows our frailty, 45:42 He knows what we are going through, 45:44 and He is there to strengthen, He is there to encourage, 45:47 He is there to give hope. 45:49 Jesus never lost a battle with Satan yet, and He's not going 45:53 to lose the battle in your life. 45:55 Look up! Let new joy fill your heart. 45:57 Let new courage fill your life. 45:58 The Bible says, Hebrews 4:15, 16. 46:04 Let us do what everybody? 46:05 Let us do what? Let us come. 46:13 I don't know what your time of need is. 46:15 Are you going through a time of need right now? 46:18 The brokenness of heart, your spirit's been crushed, 46:23 problems have overflown your life. 46:26 It seems like you're in a dark cave. 46:39 Do you have a time of need right now? 46:41 Come, come to this Christ. 46:44 See, God has done something. He sent Jesus. 46:47 God is doing something. 46:48 Christ is alive. His power is yours. 46:51 His strength is yours. His hope is yours. 46:55 He will lighten up your darkness, and put a new spring 46:58 in your step, and a sparkle in your eyes, 47:00 and a smile on your face. 47:02 Jesus never lost a battle with Satan, and He's not going to 47:06 lose the battle in your life either. 47:10 God has done something. He sent Jesus. 47:13 God is doing something now, and He will yet do something. 47:34 What does the Bible say? 47:36 God will yet do something. 47:39 Eventually Satan will be destroyed. 47:43 Eventually the evil angel that rebelled against God, 47:48 as the whole Universe sees God's love, as the whole Universe sees 47:51 God's graciousness and goodness Satan will be destroyed. 47:57 The Scripture says, 48:08 Evil will not have the last word, Jesus Christ will. 48:13 Wickedness will not have the last word, Jesus Christ will. 48:17 Sin will not have the last word, Jesus Christ will. 48:22 Jesus Christ, the One who came, the One who faced the wrath of 48:28 Satan, the One who faced all of the accumulated results 48:32 of evil, the One who took every temptation 48:34 and was victorious, the One who went to Calvary's cross for you 48:39 and me, the One who bore our sin and guilt and shame, 48:43 and took of sin to the cross, the One who in that most hideous 48:47 moment of the cross was victorious over Satan. 48:50 This One, Jesus Christ, this Christ who was resurrected 48:54 from the dead, this Christ who came out of the tomb in glory, 48:57 this Christ who rose to heaven, this Christ who is there for you 49:01 and me now to give us hope, and encouragement, and confidence, 49:05 and joy, this Christ is coming again. 49:08 This Christ, according to the book of Revelation, will put an 49:11 end of Satan forever, and ever, and ever, and ever. 49:15 One day the Universe will be clean. 49:17 One day one pulse of harmony and joy will beat throughout 49:22 the entire Universe. 49:24 And all things animate and inanimate will say, God is love! 49:28 One day Satan will be defeated forever. 49:31 One day Satan will be destroyed forever. 49:34 One day Satan will be burned up and consumed like ashes forever. 49:39 Right now Jesus Christ says to you my child, Whatever you are 49:46 going through grasp the reality of the fact that I love you. 49:50 Don't buy into Satan's lie. 49:53 Grasp the reality of the fact that I am there, 49:56 that I will never ever, ever, let you go. 49:59 A number of years ago, when I was a speaker for It Is Written 50:05 television program, International television 50:08 program often aired here on Three Angels Broadcasting. 50:11 Many, many years ago I received a letter. 50:14 It was probably the saddest letter that I ever received. 50:18 We used to get about 200,000 responses every year, 50:21 and my secretary, and Administrative Assistants would 50:23 read those letters. 50:25 But one day my Administrative Assistant came in to me and she 50:28 said, Pastor Mark, you need to see this letter. 50:31 And as I read this letter it went something like this: 50:35 Dear Pastor Mark, I've been watching you on television, 50:39 and I need to share with you an experience that I had. 50:42 It was a summer day, and I was cooking my 50:47 lunch for my children. 50:49 I had two children, five years old, and three years old. 50:53 Pastor Mark, I didn't hear the screen door open in the back. 50:57 And my little three year old crawled out onto the back deck, 51:01 and we had an in ground sunken swimming pool. 51:05 My little three year old tumbled into the pool. 51:08 My five year old went out to try to help, 51:11 and tumbled into the pool. 51:14 And, Pastor Mark, both of my children drowned. 51:18 I went through darkness and despair. 51:21 I cried out, God, where are you? 51:24 Where's a God that would let my kids drown? 51:27 I blamed myself. I felt guilt. 51:32 I felt so condemned. 51:34 Why did I ever do that? 51:36 Why wasn't I more attentive? 51:38 Why didn't I listen? 51:39 Through all of that I began to read the word of God. 51:44 I found that Christ never promises that we won't suffer. 51:49 We're in a world of evil. 51:52 We're in a world of wickedness. 51:54 We're in a world of sorrow. 51:56 We're in a world of tears. 51:58 He doesn't promise that we'll never suffer. 52:03 But He does promise that He'll never leave us. 52:07 He does promise that He'll never forsake us. 52:11 He does promise, Low, I am with you always, 52:15 even to the end of the world. 52:17 Pastor Mark, I found Christ in Scripture. 52:23 I now know what it's like to let Jesus hold me in His arms. 52:28 I now know what it's like to lean my head upon His breast. 52:32 I now know what it's like for Him to say, My child, 52:36 one day your tears will be gone. 52:41 Listen as Tim sings, Only Trust Him, Only Trust Him. 52:48 Only Trust Him Now. 52:55 Come every soul by sin oppressed. 53:00 There's mercy with the Lord. 53:05 And He will surely give you rest by trusting in His word. 53:19 Only trust Him, only trust Him, only trust Him now. 53:31 He will save you, He will save you, He will save you now. 53:43 For Jesus shed His precious blood, rich blessings to bestow. 53:55 Plunge now into the crimson flood that washes white as snow. 54:07 Oh Jesus is the truth, the way, that leads you into rest. 54:19 Believe in Him without delay and you are fully blessed. 54:31 Only trust Him, only trust Him, only trust Him now. 54:42 He will save you, He will save you, He will save you now. 54:54 So only trust Him now. 55:06 I don't know where you are friend, 55:08 in your spiritual journey. 55:11 You may be going through something that is extremely 55:15 difficult for you now. 55:16 The road that you're traveling on may be a road with 55:22 a lot of deep caverns, a lot of high mountains. 55:26 And you may feel engulfed with hurt, with pain, with sorrow, 55:34 with tears, with darkness. 55:36 But there is One who hung on a cross for you. 55:42 He wants you in heaven more than you can ever imagine. 55:45 He loves you more than you can possibly conceive. 55:50 There is One who's living for you right now. 55:54 He will give you strength, and courage, and hope. 55:58 And there is One that is coming again to destroy all of evil, 56:04 and all of sin, and all of wickedness. 56:09 You can trust Him, only trust Him, only trust Him, 56:14 only trust Him now. 56:16 As we pray give Him your burdens, give Him your 56:21 heartaches, and trust Jesus just now. 56:24 Let's pray. Father in Heaven, sometimes life kicks us in the 56:30 stomach, and knocks out our breath. 56:32 Sometimes life gives us a sword through our heart. 56:40 But we're thankful that Jesus is there. 56:44 We're thankful that we can trust Him today, 56:47 tomorrow, and forever. 56:49 We're thankful that He's there to strengthen us, 56:52 that He's there to empower us. 56:53 That when we're ready to fall, He'll hold us up. 56:56 When we stumble and fall, He picks us up. 56:59 We're thankful that one day evil will be over, 57:04 and that Satan will be destroyed, 57:06 and we can live with You forever. 57:08 Keep us trusting You until that day. 57:10 In Christ's name, Amen. 57:13 Thank you for joining us for this journey in 57:16 Revelation's Ancient Discoveries. 57:19 Continue with us on the journey as we unfold the book of 57:23 Revelation and reveal hope in God's End time plan. |
Revised 2018-03-07