Participants: Pr. Lyle Albrecht
Series Code: RIN
Program Code: RIN000016
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00:59 Thank you.
01:00 Good evening and welcome. 01:02 So good to see so many here. 01:05 Our journey tonight is one of my favorites. 01:09 I think you'll agree it's one of yours by the 01:11 time we've concluded. 01:12 Let's fasten, fasten tightly our seatbelts 01:15 and we shall go to Egypt tonight. 01:19 We're going to go inside the great pyramid. 01:21 Egypt is a curious place. 01:25 Fascinating place. 01:27 It's a strange mixture of the old and the new, 01:29 the ancient and the modern. 01:31 It's where the east and the west are married together. 01:34 In the city of Cairo, this by the way, happens to be 01:36 the University of Cairo. 01:38 And our guide will be a professor of antiquities here. 01:43 The city of Cairo is a city of nearly 11 million people. 01:47 And of those 11 million, almost all who have a faith 01:51 are followers of Islam. 01:54 The very few who are Christians are mostly Coptic, 02:00 Egyptian Coptic, which is similar to Roman Catholic 02:03 in many, many ways. 02:04 But they make up a very small percentage of the population, 02:09 not only in the city of Cairo, but throughout Egypt as well. 02:14 We were going down the highway in a bus at about 45 or 50 mph, 02:18 a tour bus, and here streaking by us on the right side 02:24 is this motorcycle being driven by a man 02:27 with three children behind him. 02:29 And they're all waving at us. 02:31 And I was able to focus and shoot this picture. 02:33 I thought, that's a record. 02:34 I have never seen four on a motorcycle before. 02:38 The next day, similar situation. 02:41 But riding on the motorcycle was a man; in front of him 02:44 was a child, behind him was a child, behind that child 02:46 was the mother, and behind the mother still another child. 02:49 Five on a motorcycle and I couldn't get the picture 02:52 quickly enough. 02:53 Here's a guy that's on the way to the market place 02:56 to pick up a couple of chickens for dinner. 02:57 Now I want you to think about it for a moment. 02:59 I don't think I'd care to carry the chickens on my head 03:02 in a little cage like that. 03:04 You get the picture, now don't you. 03:06 Well, there are others on the way to market. 03:08 Look at this guy. 03:10 Now, be reminded. 03:12 There are cars and trucks and buses, and horns are blowing, 03:16 and there are people everywhere. 03:18 And here's this guy on the apron of the freeway 03:21 in his own little world. 03:23 A little cart, and notice down in the bottom of that cart 03:26 there is a little hemp hammock, a little rope hammock. 03:30 There's not one in this one, but I have seen often 03:34 a little child in there asleep swinging back and forth. 03:37 And it's like they're in their own world. 03:39 They're already really very relaxed. 03:41 But if you think they're relaxed, take a look at this. 03:44 As the kids would say, kicked back and cooled out, chilled. 03:49 The horse knows the way to carry the wagon, I guess. 03:52 Here's a lady who's been to market and bringing the 03:54 groceries back on her head and her child in her arms. 03:58 But notice this one. 04:00 Here's a lady out in the countryside carrying atop 04:04 her head the bottom quarter of a 55 gallon barrel. 04:12 And I don't know what's in it, maybe nothing is in it. 04:15 But I couldn't carry that much steel in my arms, 04:18 let alone on the top of my head that way. 04:20 I want to show you the area of the Gypsy farmers. 04:24 The growing season is such that they can grow 04:26 three different crops here. 04:29 The growing season is long, all they need to do is put down 04:32 fertilizer and water and three separate crops. 04:35 Consequently then, the farmers live out here during the 04:40 growing season and then go to their homes, 04:43 perhaps in the city of Cairo, perhaps some other village, 04:46 to spend the off months, the 3 months of non-growing season. 04:50 And here, they're caring for some farm animals. 04:53 And just down the road a ways, there are their summer or their 04:57 working homes I should better say. 04:59 Their growing season homes. 05:01 The roofs are made of corn stalks. 05:03 It wouldn't keep out the rain, but there's very, very little 05:06 rain ever here at all anyway. 05:08 Next to them were a couple of ladies building an addition 05:11 onto their home. 05:13 Maybe it's a bedroom for another child who's coming. 05:17 I don't know. 05:18 What I do know very well is their building material 05:21 has been freshly scooped from the barnyard. 05:25 They smell terribly. 05:28 And they're in it, you can see, up to their necks. 05:30 You just wonder how they keep from getting 05:33 really, really very ill. 05:34 I don't know. 05:36 We had been warned not to get in the water, 05:39 don't get any water in your mouth or your eyes. 05:42 And yet, here are the little native boys in the canal 05:45 swimming with the caribou and just having the best time 05:48 in all of the world. 05:50 And I discovered that the little boys in Egypt are not unlike 05:54 little American boys in the heat of summer. 05:56 They'll go skinny dipping. 05:58 And as we went by, here was this little guy running along side 06:02 our bus with his hand out. 06:04 "Baksheesh," he was shouting. "Baksheesh. " 06:06 Traveling with me was a young man by the name of Joe Kreger. 06:12 And Joe was holding out a dime. 06:15 And this little guy ran for about half a block and Joe just 06:19 held the dime, so he gave up. 06:20 And when he stopped running, Joe dropped the dime for him. 06:23 And he caught it on the second bounce and when he looked up, 06:26 Joe was holding another dime. 06:28 After about a mile, I had to bring it to an end. 06:31 I could see the headlines in the Cairo paper, 06:33 American preachers run naked native boy to death, you know. 06:38 So I put an end to it. 06:40 We were coming out here to see the great pyramids. 06:44 There were dozens and dozens of them. 06:48 Many of them date back thousands of years. 06:50 We're going to go inside the great, the largest 06:53 of all of the pyramids. 06:54 The pyramid of King Cheops, or Khufu. 06:57 Either name is correct. 06:59 One is his Greek name and the other is his Egyptian name. 07:04 Every pagan religion has held within it at least two major 07:10 non-Biblical doctrines. 07:13 One of them is the idea of sun worship 07:16 and worshipping the sun on the day of the sun, 07:18 the first day of the week, Sunday. 07:20 And the second non-Biblical doctrine; 07:23 the idea that when you die, you don't really die. 07:26 But a soul, or a spirit, or a ghost of some sort, lives on 07:33 and goes on to other realms. 07:35 Some add to that, reincarnation. 07:38 You conquer this world, this life, and then come back 07:40 as another and another and another. 07:43 But they all have this false teaching, 07:45 the pagan religions do. 07:47 And particularly was it exemplified here amongst 07:51 the ancient pharaohs or kings who believed that when you died, 07:56 your soul or spirit was released from the body and would go 08:00 to enjoy other things, wonderful things. 08:03 They would bury with them, all kinds of treasures; 08:06 toys, games, seeds that they could plant in the after world 08:12 to grow their favorite foods. 08:14 And gold and treasures of all kinds. 08:18 And that was the reason for the building of the great pyramids. 08:21 Now, the pharaoh was buried right in the very center 08:27 of the pyramid. 08:28 Equal distance from top to bottom and vertically, 08:31 and equal distance horizontally. 08:34 Right in the very center. 08:35 It was a part of their religion, you see, 08:38 this idea of equilibrium, and yin and yang is not so 08:43 terribly far removed from it when you go out to China. 08:45 But at any event, the queens were not so regarded. 08:51 Their burial chambers were way down beneath 08:54 these great pyramids. 08:56 They didn't have equality in life and they didn't have 08:59 equality in death even though they sat upon 09:02 the throne as the queen. 09:04 And so we're going to, after we take a moment to look 09:07 at the Sphinx, go inside the great pyramid. 09:10 For years I would ask the folks, "Find out for me tomorrow night 09:15 what happened to the nose of the Sphinx for it is missing. " 09:18 And almost without exception, someone or several would 09:21 come back with the answer, "Well, Napoleon's 09:23 soldiers blew it off there when they were 09:27 training in their big guns. " 09:28 And I had heard that and learned that in history. 09:30 But guess what? 09:32 Recently, pictures or drawings of the Sphinx that pre-date 09:36 Napoleon by at least 100 years are found and his 09:39 nose is already gone. 09:41 What happened to his nose, I don't know. 09:43 Maybe he had a bad cold and went "kachew", I just don't know. 09:49 Well, we're going to go inside this great pyramid 09:51 with this little guy here. 09:55 He had picked up a little bit of the English language 10:00 during the World War II years. 10:03 I suppose he was just a little child. 10:05 But he knew a few words of language, and our professor 10:09 who teaches at the university has been inside so many times. 10:12 And so he turns us over to this gentleman, 10:15 and he would say to us, "Follow me closely now. 10:18 Okey dokey? 10:19 Okey dokey, follow Sam. " 10:20 He called himself Sam. 10:21 "Follow Sam, okey dokey? Okey dokey. " 10:24 And we got back inside and he began to sing to us, 10:29 "Yankee doodle went to town. " 10:31 "Oh," he said, "I must be fair. " 10:33 "Are you from Dixie? I say, from Dixie?" 10:36 You know, the Yanks and the folks below the Mason-Dixon, 10:39 he wanted to treat fairly. 10:41 And so we found our way back through this force part 10:44 of the tunnel and eventually we would come to the natural shaft 10:49 that goes up to the burial chamber. 10:51 Now you must get down on hands and knees 10:53 for the shaft is only about 4 feet square. 10:56 And you have to climb at an angle that I suppose 10:59 to have been between 18 and 20 degrees, fairly steep. 11:02 And here, about half of my tour group turned and went back. 11:06 They said it's too dark with tons and tons of stone over us 11:10 and it's claustrophobic. 11:12 And tons of stone indeed. 11:13 There are 5 million stones that make up the pyramid. 11:17 I'm sorry, I should have said there are 3 million stones. 11:20 And they believe that the stones average in weight about 11:23 30 thousand pounds. 11:25 That means the ones way up at the top are smaller 11:27 but those at the base are much, much heavier than that. 11:32 And so, we had to crawl on hands and knees until we got 11:35 in the very center of the place and then it all opened out. 11:39 Here is a good picture of the way the big stones fit together. 11:43 Where you see that white line, that is the joint. 11:47 There is no mortar. 11:48 And those stones, tons and tons each, fit so tightly 11:53 that you couldn't slip a paper in between them. 11:56 That's some real engineering, it seems to me. 11:59 Now suddenly, the place has opened up. 12:02 The shaft overhead is 30 feet high and it's an inverted "V". 12:05 And we're just steps from the entry to the burial chamber. 12:08 There it is. 12:10 We again must get down on hands and knees to go inside. 12:13 And when we step inside, our first lighted scene 12:18 is the sarcophagus or the stone tomb of King Cheops. 12:23 Long, long ago vandalized. 12:25 All of the treasures and the gems, whatever, 12:27 taken and stolen away. 12:29 And after we had been here for a little while, 12:33 Sam our guide said to us, "Shhh, shhh. " 12:41 "Be very quiet. " 12:43 "Shhh. " 12:50 And when it became as hushed as it is now, 12:55 Sam turned off the lights. 12:58 Now I've been in some dark places, folks. 13:00 I've been in the bottom of the Carlsbad Caverns when they 13:02 turned the lights out. 13:04 And I've been in other places. 13:06 But nothing seemed as dark as this place. 13:09 I mean, it seemed so oppressive, you could cut 13:12 the darkness with scissors. 13:14 "Shhh," Sam continued. "Shhh, quiet. " 13:18 And in a little bit, this is what you could hear. 13:22 Thump, thump. Thump, thump. 13:27 Thump, thump. Thump, thump. 13:28 But Lyle heard this... 13:30 Thump, thump, thump, thump, thump, thump, thump, thump. 13:32 Oh I was thankful when they turned the lights on. 13:35 I felt so very, very good. 13:37 Sam allowed us to have our pictures taken with him. 13:40 And then he said, "Let's get out of here. " 13:41 I said, "That's a good idea. " 13:42 And I suggest that we conclude here tonight. 13:44 Thank you so very much for traveling with me. 13:50 Recently, I was channel surfing when I came across 13:53 America's foremost psychic. 13:56 That's the way he's titled these days. 13:59 And it went something like this. 14:05 There was an audience much larger than this one. 14:10 "There's a lady here who's just lost her husband. 14:15 Yes, I understand ma'am. you're in great grief. 14:18 I understand that. 14:20 But your husband is right here with me. 14:22 He's standing right here beside me. 14:24 Your dead husband is right here. 14:26 He's telling me to tell you that he's in a much better place. 14:31 Please don't worry about him, he's fine, 14:33 and that you'll be fine. 14:37 Oh he's laughing. 14:38 He's telling me that... 14:42 He's telling me that you've been trying to find your red shoes, 14:45 your red heels. " 14:47 And the lady's jaw drops almost to the floor. 14:53 "He's telling me to tell you that shortly before his 14:56 sudden death, he, as a prank, hid your shoes 15:00 in the garage on a shelf. 15:03 And if you'll go to that shelf and pull some boxes aside, 15:07 you'll find the box with your red high heels. " 15:12 And the lady did. 15:16 And she did. 15:18 And chalk up hundreds more then, if not thousands or perhaps 15:21 multiplied millions as they watch television, believers, 15:24 that there is no such thing as death. 15:26 That death is just a graduation to another plane. 15:28 That it's just a moving on. 15:33 It seems that the world, including largely the church, 15:37 has forgotten the truth, the sad truth, 15:40 that the devil has assigned to us evil agents. 15:44 It's true that when we're born, we have a guardian angel 15:46 that's placed beside us to guide our feet in paths of 15:49 righteousness and to speak to us with a still small voice. 15:52 Our guarding angel is also our recording angel, of course. 15:56 But the devil himself has put beside us evil angels 16:00 to take record of every single thing that we do 16:02 and encourage us to walk in paths of unrighteousness. 16:05 And evil angels are a party to every little conversation that 16:11 seemed to have been private. 16:12 Every little action that you thought no one else knew 16:15 anything about. 16:16 And so the devil whispers into the ear of the channeler, 16:19 the spirit medium. 16:20 And he comes across looking as if he's speaking 16:23 for God Almighty. 16:24 And again, underlining this idea that there is no death. 16:28 It's only just a graduation ceremony. 16:30 I get a magazine, I don't know why. 16:33 It's called "AARP". 16:35 Perhaps some of you folks get it. 16:36 That's for the association of retired people, they tell me. 16:40 Why they send it to me, I have no idea. 16:41 It's for old folks, as I've said. 16:43 But on the front cover it says, 16:45 "Life After Death. What Do You Believe?" 16:48 And then it says, if you read inside, there is a poll. 16:51 And I'm going to read you just a couple of sentences 16:53 from the poll. 16:54 "We found that people 50 years of age and older 16:57 tend to be down right conventional 16:59 in their basic beliefs. 17:01 73% agree with this statement, quote, 17:05 'I believe that there is life after death. '" 17:09 Immediately at death, moreover. 17:13 And then it goes on to say that women are more likely 17:16 to believe in that idea than men. 17:20 And not I'm exactly sure about how true that is or 17:25 how important that it is. 17:28 I want you now, please, to open your Bibles 17:30 to our first scripture for this evening. 17:33 We're going to go to the writing of the apostle Paul to a 17:35 young preacher by the name of Timothy. 17:38 1 Timothy chapter 4, please turn there with me. 17:41 And by the way, I'm just going to say as we begin tonight 17:44 that I'm going to cover a lot of ground, 17:46 I'm going to cover a lot of scripture, 17:48 and we won't be able to turn to everyone. 17:50 But I know that you "A" students will take notes. 17:52 And we will make available, by recording also, the information. 17:57 And I want again to encourage everybody to go home 18:00 and check it out. 18:01 You check out every preacher that you hear on television. 18:03 You check out every preacher that comes through town 18:07 and every revival. 18:08 And you check out Lyle. 18:09 Be certain you check everyone by the Word. 18:12 As we've said before, don't go to the preacher and 18:15 check the Bible out by the preacher. 18:16 But rather, you check the preacher out by the Bible. 18:19 And then you'll always be safe. 18:20 Now we're ready to read together 1 Timothy chapter 4 18:24 and the first 3 verses. 18:26 Listen very carefully and notice the end time context. 18:30 "Now the Spirit speaks expressly that in the last days 18:35 many are going to depart from the faith giving heed to... " 18:38 Now you tell me what it says next. 18:41 What kinds of spirits? What kind? 18:43 "Deceiving spirits. " 18:45 Would that be the work of the Holy Spirit? 18:46 Absolutely not. 18:48 Would that be the work of the evil spirit, the devil spirit? 18:51 Certainly it is. 18:52 "Giving heed to seducing spirits and the doctrines of devils, 18:58 speaking lies in hypocrisy, having their conscience 19:01 seared with a hot iron, they'll forbid some to marry, 19:04 and to tell some that they're to abstain from certain food. " 19:13 Now, let me just give you a thumbnail sketch 19:16 of what I believe God is saying here. 19:18 God is saying that there is a religious power in the last day. 19:24 A power that is prominent, maybe that's a better way to say it. 19:27 A religious power, or denomination if you please. 19:30 You may put it that way if you don't mind. 19:33 There is a power that forbids some to marry 19:37 and disallows some to eat certain things at certain 19:40 times of the year. 19:41 And a power that promotes spiritism. 19:43 Now I don't know how that part, at least, 19:44 could be more clear. 19:45 How could that possibly be more clear. 19:48 From there, we're going to go without transition 19:51 to Revelation chapter 16. 19:52 The last book for those who live in the very last days. 19:55 And I'm going to begin now, to read at verse 13. 19:58 Revelation 16 verses 13-15. 20:05 Revelation chapter 16 beginning with verse 13. 20:09 Here in vision, John over viewing the last days said, 20:13 "I saw three unclean spirits like... " 20:15 Now you tell me what they were like. 20:17 They were like frogs. 20:18 It's not an accident, I think, that God through John 20:21 uses that symbol, for in many pagan cultures 20:23 the frog was an object of veneration. 20:26 He was an object of worship. 20:27 And certainly that was the way it was in Egypt. 20:30 There would come a plague of frogs. 20:31 The Bible speaks about that. 20:32 The Exodus is clear about it. 20:34 The plagues of Revelation speak about it. 20:36 Frogs everywhere. 20:37 Frogs under foot. 20:39 Hardly could you cross the street without walking 20:41 on some or many. 20:43 And then one day, this plague of frogs would almost 20:46 suddenly disappear. 20:47 They would hop down to the river bank or to the lake shore, 20:51 to the sea bed, and dig themselves a grave 20:53 and pull it in behind them and die. 20:55 That's what the pagans believed. 20:57 And then a few days later, they would come out of their grave 21:00 with a new suit of clothes. 21:02 Proof, they believed, that the frog was the evidence 21:05 that there was no death. 21:07 Death was only just a transition. 21:09 And so here in the symbolism, John says, 21:12 "I saw three unclean spirits like frogs. 21:14 One came out of the mouth of the dragon, 21:16 one from the mouth of the beast, 21:17 one out of the mouth of the false prophet. " 21:18 And then he identifies them for us. 21:21 "These are the spirits of devils that are working miracles 21:24 that go to the kings of the earth and the whole world, 21:26 to gather them to the battle of the great day of God Almighty. " 21:28 And then the 15th verse. 21:30 "Behold, I come as a thief. " 21:31 Jesus says, when you see occultism and spiritism 21:34 and demon worship and this idea of occultism everywhere, 21:40 not only in the East, not only out in India somewhere, 21:43 but flooding the universities of the West and being taught 21:47 from kindergarten through the highest level of the 21:49 graduate school, when you see that happen, 21:51 "then know that I'm near, even at the door. " 21:54 Ladies and gentlemen, tonight I believe that the rapid expansion 21:58 of spiritism throughout the whole world, particularly 22:00 in this Christian segment of the world, is one of the most 22:03 certain signs of the imminent coming of Jesus. 22:06 He must come again. And come He shall. 22:10 Spiritism. 22:12 Where did it begin? 22:13 Well we've read from the last book, the Revelation, 22:15 there's going to be a big problem to the 22:17 terminal generation and everyone alive to meet Jesus 22:20 is going to be tested in this area. 22:22 Now let's go back to the beginning, shall we. 22:24 Let's go back to the book of Genesis chapter 3. 22:26 And in the word Genesis, of course, we have the word 22:29 genes and genetics and origins. 22:31 Alright? 22:33 Genesis chapter 3 and I shall begin here at the first verse. 22:36 Genesis chapter 3 beginning at verse 1 and reading down 22:40 through the end of verse 5. 22:43 "Now the serpent was more subtle than the other beast 22:45 of the field that the Lord had made. 22:46 And the serpent said to the woman, 'Ye, has God said 22:49 you're not to eat of every tree in the garden?' 22:51 The woman said to the serpent, 'We may eat of the fruit 22:53 of the trees of the garden except for the fruit of the 22:55 tree in the middle of the garden. 22:56 God has said, 'Don't eat it, don't touch it, lest you die. '" 23:01 Now by the way, my Bible with a center Hebrew margin 23:03 reference says, "dying, thou shalt die. " 23:06 In other words, what God wasn't saying, "As soon as you 23:08 touch the fruit the fruit, you're going to drop dead. " 23:10 What He was saying is, "As soon as you disobey Me 23:12 in this area, the death process is going to begin. 23:15 The wrinkles are going to begin. 23:17 Your hair is going to begin to turn gray 23:20 and you're going to die. " 23:22 Death, He's saying, is a total and complete cessation of life. 23:30 "God has told us, 'Don't eat from it, 23:32 don't touch it, lest we die. ' 23:34 And the serpent said to the woman, 23:36 'No, you won't die. You won't surely die. '" 23:46 By the way, there is the hint here of a question, 23:48 "Well, it may seem like you're dead, 23:50 but you're not really dead. 23:52 You won't surely, no you won't completely die. " 24:01 "For God knows," verse 5, "God knows that in the day 24:03 you eat the fruit thereof, your eyes will be opened 24:05 and you shall be... " 24:07 What? Help me now please. 24:08 "You shall be God, knowing both good and evil. " 24:12 The original lie; there is no death and you are God. 24:17 Now there comes then this question and its basic 24:19 to Christianity. 24:22 Are you really dead when you die? 24:26 You ask most of the Christian world and they'll say, 24:28 "No, you're not dead when you die. 24:30 For there's a soul or a spirit or some such thing 24:33 that lives on. " 24:34 And I have news for you. 24:35 The psychics have made multiplied millions 24:38 in the last decade by sharing that idea, as we alluded 24:41 with our illustration when we began a little bit ago. 24:44 The idea of talking with the dead whether it's through 24:46 Jonathan Edward or J. Z. Knight, to whose place I've been 24:48 over in Yelm Washington recently. 24:50 Mediums and channelers are everywhere today. 24:53 I'll talk to you basically and briefly about Halloween. 24:56 Halloween, originally, was based totally and completely 24:59 in spiritism. 25:00 The Druid people who lived largely in England and 25:02 Scotland and Ireland, believed that in the fall of the year, 25:05 the evil, the ugly dead things, the monstrous sort of things, 25:10 would come back and they would torment you and they 25:12 would taunt you and they would haunt you 25:14 unless you treated them. 25:15 Thus then came trick or treat. 25:17 Now let me take one step from there. 25:20 There was a guy by the name of Harry Houdini 25:23 who did magical tricks that seemed to defy science. 25:29 And if you've not read a book or two about him, 25:31 it might not be a bad idea. 25:33 Harry Houdini died on Halloween of 1926. 25:38 Every Halloween since his death, there has been a gathering 25:44 beside his grave because he promised to come back. 25:46 His family members have been there year in and year out, 25:50 and now to the 3rd and 4th generation 25:53 to see if he would return. 25:55 He hasn't made it. Not yet. 25:59 The first séance happened in the Garden of Eden, 26:02 as we've just read from Genesis chapter 3. 26:05 The first medium was a snake. 26:07 And the first possession was the devil taking and speaking, 26:11 taking hold of and speaking through the body of this snake. 26:15 And we also find there, the first lie. 26:17 First medium, first possession. 26:19 The first lie; there is no such thing as death. 26:23 He deceived Eve, she flunked the test. 26:26 John chapter 8 and verse 44 says that the devil, 26:29 who told Eve that original lie, there is no such thing as death, 26:32 John 8:44 says that he is a liar, and he is not only just 26:38 a liar, he is the father of it. 26:40 He's the originator of it. 26:41 And indeed he is. 26:43 The whole idea of an immortal soul, not subject to death; 26:48 that's the basic interpretation of the idea of an immortal soul. 26:52 And we've had in the church, many, many hymns that 26:55 carry that idea. 26:57 "Where The Soul Never Dies," for instance. 27:00 I've heard it in many churches. 27:01 "Where The Soul Never Dies" 27:04 Now look, folks. 27:06 If there is no such thing as death, and I mean the total 27:09 cessation of life, then we are now immortal. 27:15 A man out on the battlefield receives a mortal wound. 27:18 What does that mean? 27:20 That means he died as a result of the wound. 27:22 It was a fatality. 27:23 We use that phrase synonymously with mortality. 27:28 It was a fatality, a mortal wound. 27:30 Now, I want you folks to turn with me to 1 Timothy, please. 27:35 We were back in Timothy a bit ago and must of necessity 27:38 go there again tonight. 27:39 1 Timothy chapter 6. 27:43 This is the apostle Paul writing to the young preacher 27:46 his first letter. 27:48 And we're going to begin to read down at verse 15. 27:54 1 Timothy 6 verses 15 and 16. 27:58 "Which in His time He shall show, He who is the blessed 28:02 and the only Potentate, the King of kings 28:04 and the Lord of lords. " 28:05 Now whom do you think it's speaking about here? 28:07 It's speaking about God Almighty, isn't it. 28:10 Of course, the context is quite clear. 28:11 And then in verse 16 it says, "Who only hath immortality, 28:16 dwelling in the light which no man can approach unto. " 28:19 And so here, God through the apostle Paul, is telling us 28:22 that at this point now, God only, God alone, 28:26 the God family only has immortality. 28:31 In 2 Timothy chapter 1 verse 10, there the same apostle Paul 28:35 in the second letter says and I quote, 28:38 "Jesus' appearing will abolish death, it brought life 28:43 and immortality to light through the gospel. " 28:46 The death of Jesus, the second coming of Jesus will bright 28:49 to us immortality. 28:51 From here, we're going to go to 1 Corinthians chapter 15. 28:54 You remember that when we talked about heaven, 28:56 I said to you ladies and gentlemen that this had become 28:59 my favorite passage in all of the Bible. 29:03 1 Corinthians chapter 15 verses 51- 53. 29:10 1 Corinthians 15:51 29:12 Here, God through Paul says, "Look, I'll show you a mystery. 29:17 We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed; 29:20 in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump. 29:22 For the trumpet shall sound and the dead shall be raised 29:26 incorruptible and we shall be changed. 29:28 This corruptible must put on incorruption, 29:31 and then this mortal will put on... " 29:34 There it is. 29:36 When do we become immortal? 29:38 As soon as we die? 29:40 No, when Jesus comes and we are changed. 29:43 Changed in an instant and given life eternal. 29:47 Given by grace, immortality, instantly and immediately 29:50 at the second coming of Jesus. 29:52 Put in your notes there, if you will please, Romans chapter 2 29:54 verse 7 where it says, the same apostle Paul, 29:58 it says now that man seeks immortality. 30:01 We have a longing for, we're tired and we're sick of death. 30:05 We're so tired of going to the grave yard. 30:08 We're so tired of burying there our hopes and our dreams 30:11 and our babies. 30:13 We're sick of it. 30:17 Man, therefore, seeks immortality. 30:20 Now listen to me. 30:24 Why would I seek for something that I already have, huh? 30:35 "Come now, let us reason together," said God. 30:41 Now let me take your mind back not so very many days 30:47 as we step back to the future. 30:50 Our Lord Jesus is on a missionary journey 30:52 with the disciples when word comes that their dear friend, 30:55 Lazarus, is gravely ill. 30:57 And you read this, by the way, in John chapter 11. 31:00 Instead of turning immediately around and going back, 31:03 Jesus continues on and then the really bad news arrives 31:07 that Lazarus has died. 31:11 I'm going to have you read with me, if you will please, 31:13 John 11 and verse 11. 31:20 John chapter 11 and beginning, well let's see. 31:24 Maybe we shall begin to read, yeah at verse 11. 31:28 That'll work just very well. 31:31 "These things Jesus said, and after that He said to them, 31:33 'Our friend Lazarus sleeps but I go that I might wake him 31:36 out of sleep. ' 31:37 Then His disciples said, 'Lord, if he sleeps he shall do well. ' 31:40 Howbeit, Jesus had spoken of his dying, but they thought 31:44 He was speaking of taking rest in sleep. 31:46 So Jesus said unto them plainly, 'Lazarus is dead. '" 31:53 And He turned around, you remember, went back to Bethany 31:55 and tried to comfort the girls. 31:57 And He said, "I'm going to go to his grave. " 31:59 And the girls said, "Oh no, Lord, don't do that. 32:00 No, please don't. Don't. 32:03 He's been in there days now and his body is decomposing. 32:06 It's going to be very unpleasant. 32:07 Don't even go. " 32:09 But Jesus went to the grave, you remember. 32:12 And in front of the grave, He called out, didn't he huh, 32:14 "Hey Lazarus, come on back from heaven, My best friend. 32:17 Come on now. " 32:18 Is that the way it goes? 32:20 No, Jesus called, "Lazarus, come forth. " 32:25 Wake up. 32:27 Many of the new translations say, "Wake up. " 32:30 And Lazarus came up out of the grave. 32:34 David is not in heaven. 32:35 Lazarus didn't go to heaven. 32:37 The key word in all of the Bible to describe death 32:40 is the word "sleep". 32:41 You find it again and again and again. 32:43 Dozens, yes many dozens of times. 32:46 Martin Luther, one of my great indoor sports, 32:49 one of my great heroes, Martin Luther, whom I believe to be 32:52 not only one of the greatest Christians, but certainly 32:54 one of the greatest New Testament scholars 32:56 since the time of the apostle Paul, said this shortly before 33:00 his own death. 33:02 He gathered his wife and his children around his bedside 33:05 and he said, "I'm about to fall into a deep sleep. 33:10 And the very next voice that I hear will be the voice of Jesus 33:13 on resurrection morning. 33:16 He shall be knocking on the door of my little grave 33:18 and saying to me, 'Brother Martin, brother Martin. 33:22 It's time to get up. '" 33:25 How often times, I've fallen asleep as a kid on the farm 33:30 after working 10, 12, 14 hours putting up hay or irrigating 33:34 or milking or a combination of all of those. 33:37 It seemed I'd barely put my head to the pillow and 33:39 Dad would be calling, "Lyle, son, it's time to milk. 33:42 Time to get up. " 33:43 It seemed I'd hardly closed my eyes. 33:44 You've had that experience. I know you have. 33:46 And the rest of you have as well. 33:49 You know folks, death is only painful to those 33:54 that are left behind. 33:55 And Peggy and I have learned that again recently. 33:59 Death is not a problem for those who die with a faith in Jesus. 34:03 It shall be to them just an instant. 34:05 The very next voice I hear, the very next thing that'll happen, 34:08 I'll hear the voice of Jesus calling, "It's time to get up. " 34:11 But for those that are left behind to grieve 34:14 and to weep and to see the empty place at the table 34:18 and the clothes that hang unused, 34:22 for those it's most painful. 34:28 I've mentioned it before and I'm going to do it again tonight, 34:31 ladies and gentlemen, don't let your kids watch Harry Potter 34:34 and don't let your kids read Harry Potter. 34:37 And if you have the books in the house or in the garage, 34:39 get them out, get them out. 34:41 They are filled shot through, absolutely saturated with 34:45 spiritism and demonism. 34:47 And we teach the kids, not only at church, we teach them 34:49 at school and we teach them through the movies 34:51 and we teach them in every way possible. 34:53 I was out in the Philippines when I learned this story. 34:56 Now let me ask you to think through this scenario 35:00 and ask your own heart, "Would I have the courage 35:04 that this family had?" 35:05 They were only recent Christians and recently had adopted 35:09 the truth that when you die, your soul is dead. 35:12 Your spirit, your breath, goes back to God. 35:15 And there's nothing that lives until resurrection. 35:17 Our Lord Jesus said, "I am the resurrection and the life. " 35:21 And there is no life for the dead until first 35:23 there is a resurrection. 35:28 This young Philippino family had two beautiful 35:30 little girls, pre-schoolers. 35:33 And they went on a ride with some friends. 35:35 And a bus hit them and they were instantly killed. 35:40 You can imagine the breaking hearts, only just imagine. 35:44 That's all we can do. 35:47 I use to go to visit the grieving and those that had 35:49 lost children and their spouses and I could 35:52 sympathize with them. 35:53 But now I'm able to empathize. 35:56 And I've had some who've said, 35:57 "Well I know what you're going through. " 35:59 And they don't have any idea unless they've been there. 36:07 And one night at the worship hour, this husband and wife 36:10 were together and through the front door of their house 36:14 came those two little girls. 36:16 And one walked in and sat on mother's lap 36:18 and the other went over and threw her arms around 36:20 daddy's neck, got on his lap. 36:23 Would you have the courage which that family had, 36:26 that mother and dad had to say, "Get thee behind me, Satan. " 36:32 And instantly, the apparitions were gone. 36:35 Instantly, they were gone. 36:42 Revelation 16, as we read a while ago says 36:46 that each one of us is going to be tested and tempted. 36:49 Each one who's alive, every member of the 36:51 terminal generation is going to be tested and 36:54 tempted in this area. 36:55 Are you ready? 36:56 In medieval times during the dark ages, 37:01 heathenism flooded the church. 37:03 Standards of the church were lowered. 37:05 And we've talked about that again and again and again. 37:07 And the Bibles were taken away from the people and 37:09 what few Bibles were left from the burnings were chained to 37:12 monastery desks and they were for the interpretation 37:15 only of the priests and the prelates. 37:17 And the folks would go and ask the priests, 37:19 "What does the Bible say?" 37:20 And the priests would tell them, well the Bible says 37:22 this and this and this. 37:23 And it didn't necessarily say that at all. 37:26 I'm going to tell you folks something tonight. 37:28 You take away folks Bibles, you disallow them having Bibles, 37:35 and pretty soon you're going to see the result. 37:37 And we've taken away the Bibles to the large degree, 37:39 not by force and not by law, not by the church, 37:41 but by personal choice. 37:43 We've taken away the Bibles. They've taken away my Lord. 37:46 I think I mentioned to you on another night, Mary cried 37:48 at the tomb, "And I don't know what they've done with Him. " 37:50 And sometimes I feel that same way. 37:52 You take away the Bible and you soon have paganism. 37:56 You take away the Bible and you soon have ignorance. 37:58 And you take away the Bible and you soon have poor health 38:01 and you have poor hygiene and you have death. 38:03 And you also, when you take away the Bible, 38:06 have spiritism and paganism. 38:08 No doubt about it. 38:11 As a result of the teaching that when you die, you don't die, 38:14 the church became fabulously and quickly very wealthy. 38:18 You see, there came into the church when the Bibles were 38:22 done away with, a doctrine called purgatory. 38:25 Purgatory. 38:28 That when one dies, one doesn't really die. 38:29 But there's a spirit or a soul that goes on somewhere. 38:32 Goes, perhaps, to eternal torment. 38:33 And then you had guys like Dante, of whom we spoke on 38:36 another evening, who embellished it 38:38 and described the torment of the fires of hell. 38:41 And then they began to sell indulgences so that folks 38:44 could be brought out of the purging or out of the 38:46 fire more quickly. 38:48 Can you imagine, peace was promised for money. 38:53 The never dying soul could roast and fry and 38:56 burn and burn and burn and burn forever and ever and ever. 38:58 And folks would mortgage the farm, they would give up 39:01 anything to have their loved ones prayed out of the fire, 39:04 prayed out of purgatory. 39:07 Saints immediately going to heaven. 39:11 It's taught tonight just like it was back then. 39:14 Now listen folks. 39:16 If it's true that when we die, we instantly go to heaven, 39:21 then my suggestion is that we do away with all of the doctors 39:24 and all of the hospitals, huh. 39:26 Why do you go and pay those high hospital bills 39:29 when if you died, you'd immediately go to heaven. 39:31 Why would I preach to you here from night after night when 39:33 really, probably what I ought to do is have someone set off 39:36 a bomb and send us all to heaven, huh. 39:42 When they caught finally, Charles Manson, I was 39:44 working down in Southern California about the time 39:46 that it happened, I'll tell you. 39:48 And when they brought him to trial and Vincent Bugliosi 39:50 looked him in the eye and said to him, 39:52 "Charlie, in God's name, why did you do it? 39:55 Why?" 39:58 And with that demonic grin and with those devilish eyes, 40:02 he laughed and said, "Hey man, you ought to 40:05 give me a trophy, man. 40:06 You ought to give me a reward, man. 40:08 I just sent her to be with Jesus a little early, man. 40:11 I just sent them to heaven a little early, man. " 40:14 Son of Sam, David, Son of Sam from New York City 40:17 said the very same thing. 40:19 And the terrorists who blow up our buildings are promised 40:21 immediately at death, 70 virgins. 40:23 And I can't see how that would be heaven, 40:25 but some evidently do. 40:32 By the way, I'm going to speak tomorrow morning on the 40:36 importance of the home in these end times. 40:37 I pray all of you will be here. 40:40 And in case one of you can't be, I'm going to tell you 40:42 right now, the test of manhood is not seeing how many 40:48 women you can score with. 40:49 But rather, the real test is to see if you can make one woman 40:53 happy for a lifetime. 40:54 Try that one. 41:00 When my boy died, there were scores and scores who sent 41:05 cards or letters or phone calls or in person. 41:08 They said, "But Terry is in a better place. " 41:12 Terry is asleep in Jesus waiting the call of the life giver. 41:17 And that's why the apostle Paul in 1 Corinthians 15:20 41:21 would say, the last enemy to be destroyed is death. 41:25 Those who believe that when you die you go 41:27 immediately into heaven; death isn't an enemy for them. 41:29 Those who believe that there will be 70 virgins; 41:31 death isn't an enemy to them. 41:32 To Charlie Manson's; death is not an enemy to them. 41:36 Socrates; death was not an enemy. 41:38 Therefore then, drink gladly the hemlock. 41:40 Let me have it. Bring it on, man. 41:42 You contrast that with the death of Jesus who in the garden 41:45 agonized, "If it's possible, let this cup pass from Me. " 41:55 Please. 41:59 Ecclesiastes 9:5-6, and I'd plan for us to turn there to read, 42:04 but there's not time. 42:05 "The living know that they're going to die, but the dead 42:07 know not anything. " 42:08 Nothing, nothing. 42:10 Verse 10, the same passage, "Whatsoever your hand findeth 42:13 to do, do it with your might. 42:15 For there is no death or knowledge or wisdom 42:17 in the grave where you go. " 42:20 Job chapter 7 verses 9 and 10. 42:22 It says there, the one who dies cannot go back to his house, 42:26 can't return home. 42:27 He's asleep, there's no way he can go back home. 42:30 And therefore, the ghost busters; and you see them 42:33 on television with all of their scientific machinery, 42:35 don't you now. 42:36 And they test the light and they test the darkness 42:38 and they test the sound waves and they test with ultraviolet 42:41 and they test in all kinds of ways, 42:43 see if there's some kind of a spirit out there. 42:45 And the ghost busters and the dead seekers 42:47 are all a part of a cruel hoax. 42:50 And the channelers and the mediums are joining it as well. 42:54 Now someone says, "But I read in the Bible from 42:57 our Lord Jesus Himself, 'Today, you'll be 43:00 with Me in paradise. '" 43:01 Let's turn, if you will please, Luke chapter 23. 43:05 Luke chapter 23. 43:06 And we're going to have to hurry now. 43:08 Luke chapter 23 finds our Lord Jesus on the cross 43:13 and He's between two thieves. 43:18 They are there because of what they have done. 43:20 They're paying for their sins. 43:21 Jesus is there to pay for mine. 43:29 Luke chapter 23. 43:32 I'm going to begin at the 39th verse. 43:34 "Then one of the thieves which was hanged railed upon 43:37 Jesus and said, 'If You're the Christ, save Yourself and us. ' 43:40 But the other answering, rebuked the first and said, 43:42 'Don't you fear God, seeing that we're in the 43:44 same condemnation? 43:45 We deserve it for we receive the due reward of our deeds. 43:48 But this man has done nothing wrong. ' 43:53 And then Jesus said to him... " 43:56 No, I'm sorry, let me back up to verse 42. 43:58 "And he said to Jesus, 'Lord, remember me when You 44:01 come in Your kingdom. ' 44:03 And Jesus said unto him, 'Verily I say today 44:06 shalt thou be with Me in Paradise. '" 44:08 Now you read it like it's punctuated in most Bibles 44:11 and you have Jesus saying, "You're going to be with Me 44:14 instantly in Paradise. " 44:16 But I've got news for you, my dears. 44:18 The punctuation in the Bible is not inspired. 44:21 It is not. 44:22 It was placed there in modern times by translators. 44:26 And I use to preach a sermon where I began here, 44:28 preaching on this subject. 44:29 I called it, "The Case of the Misplaced Comma. " 44:32 Kind of a Perry Mason sort of approach, you know. 44:34 "The Case of the Misplaced Comma" 44:36 You can take that text and move the comma just 44:40 one word and you have Jesus saying 44:42 something quite different. 44:44 "I say to you today, in this bleak hour, 44:46 today when we have nails in our hands and our feet 44:49 and it seems so helpless and so hopeless, 44:51 I tell you in this situation, you will be 44:54 with Me in Paradise. " 44:55 Now there's much more than just that idea. 44:58 I have as much right to put the comma there as the man who 45:00 put it on the other side. 45:02 But that doesn't make it right. 45:03 But there is further information. 45:05 When did the thief expect Jesus to save him? 45:09 Did he expect Him to take him to heaven that day? 45:11 No, "Lord, remember me when You come as King. " 45:15 When does Jesus come as King? 45:17 He comes as King with a crown on His head at the 45:19 second coming, of course. 45:20 And that's when the thief expected Jesus to save him. 45:23 But there is further information. 45:25 By the way, if you want a scripture that proves 45:28 that there are mistakes in punctuation, 45:30 put this down in your notes, you may have a smile. 45:32 Acts chapter 19 verse 12 where it says they brought 45:35 to the apostle Paul, sick handkerchiefs and aprons. 45:48 John 19, John chapter 19 verses 31-34 45:53 tells the rest of the story. 45:54 At the end of that Friday, they came to break the legs 45:58 of the thieves. 45:59 Now in the Bible, one day begins and the other ends when? 46:03 When the sun set here in the western sky this evening, 46:06 according to the Bible, it is now Saturday. 46:09 Alright? 46:10 So when the sun set on that Friday, in other words, 46:13 for Jesus to have taken the thief to heaven, 46:15 he would have had to have been dead by sundown. 46:17 But the record of the Bible is abundantly clear 46:20 that when they came to the thieves, they were still 46:22 very much alive and they broke their legs 46:25 so they wouldn't run off and they'd be able to put them back 46:28 on the cross on Saturday night after the sun had gone down. 46:30 And then in John chapter 20 verse 17. 46:33 John 20:17, Mary Magdalene, the last at the cross 46:36 is first at the open tomb. 46:38 And at first, she thinks that they have vandalized His tomb 46:41 and taken away His body. 46:43 And then she sees Him. He speaks her name, "Mary. " 46:45 And she runs to throw her arms around Him and never let Him 46:49 out of her sight. 46:50 And He says, "You can't hold Me here. 46:51 I have not yet ascended to My Father. " 46:55 We have, not only the proof from John 19 that the two thieves 46:59 were still alive there when Saturday came, 47:02 we have the evidence by the word of God Almighty, 47:05 Jesus Himself said on Sunday morning, 47:08 "I have not yet been to heaven. " 47:09 Couldn't have taken the thief there on Friday 47:10 because He was not there on Sunday yet even. 47:20 Well, say. 47:24 Then there's that parable from Luke 16, 47:26 the rich man and Lazarus. 47:27 And that's exactly what it is, ladies and gentlemen. 47:29 You try to take a teaching of death from that parable and 47:32 you have some serious, serious problems. 47:35 That parable was given, and by the way, 47:37 I studied for 2 years, parables. 47:38 And for about 6 months, I preached on worship morning, 47:40 nothing but the parables. 47:43 A parable was given to make one point, 47:46 to teach one idea. 47:48 It was never a shotgun blast. 47:49 It was to teach one thing. 47:52 And when the verses preceding speak to the problem, 47:57 it's about money. 47:58 And you probably remember that. 48:00 Jesus Himself said, "You can't worship both God and mammon. " 48:03 Alright. 48:04 So that's the context of Luke 16. 48:06 The Jews had the mistaken notion that if you were poor, 48:10 God didn't like you. 48:11 If you were poor and sick with some horrible disease, 48:13 God really disliked you. 48:15 And so, God takes that whole idea and turns it around. 48:18 He takes the poorest guy, and he's not only poor, 48:20 he has sores all over him. 48:22 And He takes him to Abraham's bosom. 48:25 And the rich man goes to the fire. 48:27 Now, it says that he went there with eyes, 48:29 the rich man, he could see. 48:30 No one who believes that when you die a soul or spirit 48:33 lives on, believes that the body lives on. 48:35 For you can exhume that a week or two later. 48:37 But in this parable, he had a body, had eyes. 48:40 "Oh, and tell him to bring some water and put it on 48:42 the tip of my tongue. 48:44 Tip his finger in water. " 48:45 He had a tongue. 48:48 You see, it's a parable. 48:49 To try to use it as a teaching of what happens at death 48:52 is to twist the scripture terribly and horribly. 48:56 "Ah," someone says, "but you're forgetting, you're trying to 48:59 duck by 2 Corinthians chapter 5." 49:01 No I'm not. 49:02 Let's go there right now. 49:03 2 Corinthians chapter 5. 49:06 I can't begin to tell you how many times I have been 49:11 confronted by this one. 49:12 And folks say, "Ah, ha. " 49:15 2 Corinthians chapter 5 beginning at the first verse. 49:17 "For we know that if our earthly house, this tabernacle, 49:20 were destroyed, we have a building of God, 49:22 a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. 49:24 For in this we groan, earnestly desiring to be clothed 49:27 with our house which is from heaven. 49:29 If so being clothed, we'll not be found naked. 49:33 We are in this tabernacle, and while in this tabernacle, 49:36 we groan, being burdened. 49:40 Not to be unclothed, but rather to be clothed upon, 49:43 that mortality might be swallowed up, life. " 49:46 In that we might, you know, not long be subject to death 49:50 but have immortality. 49:51 That's the context. 49:53 "Now He hath wrought in us the self same thing, God has. 49:57 He's given us the guarantee by the Holy Spirit. " 50:00 Verse 6, "Therefore then, I have confidence 50:04 to be absent from the body is present with the Lord. " 50:07 Now what is he saying here? 50:08 He's putting together a contrast and the third part of it, 50:13 everyone who uses this to try to teach that when you die 50:16 you go to heaven, misses. 50:17 Every single person misses. 50:18 Oh, and for your information sake, Philippians 1:23 50:22 is saying the same thing. 50:23 You "A" students will note it down. 50:25 Now here's what God, through the apostle Paul, is saying. 50:28 While you're here on the earth, you have this earthly body. 50:32 But one day you're going to have a heavenly body. 50:35 While you're in this earthly body, you're absent from God. 50:39 When you're absent from this body, you'll be 50:42 present with the Lord. 50:43 But what folks fail to see and to recognize, 50:46 or if they recognize it, they fail to share, at least, 50:49 that there is this intermediate stage that is referred to 50:53 as the dissolved tabernacle, the dust to dust idea, 50:56 the naked state, the unclothed state. 50:57 Death. 50:59 The same apostle Paul in 2 Corinthians chapter 5 51:02 verse 10 said we must all appear before where? 51:07 Before the judgment seat. 51:08 When do we appear before the judgment seat? 51:10 At the end of all things. 51:12 What if at death, one was sent immediately to hell 51:15 and at the end of the age there comes a final great judgment 51:19 maybe 500 years later and they study the records and say, 51:21 "Oh, I'm afraid we sent Bill to the wrong place. " 51:23 "Say, I'm sorry Bill. " 51:30 Let us reason together. 51:31 We must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ 51:34 that everyone receive the things done to the body, 51:37 whether that be good or evil. 51:41 1 Corinthians 15:51-52, note it down. 51:45 "We shall not all sleep but we shall all be changed. " 51:48 The same apostle Paul that talked about being 51:50 absent from the body. 51:51 And in 2 Timothy chapter 4, oh we've got to read this one. 51:54 It's an absolute necessity. 51:57 The last letter from the prison just before the apostle dies. 52:03 Chapter 4 beginning at verse 6. 52:08 He's writing to the young preacher and he's saying 52:10 goodbye, he's signing off. 52:11 He's saying, "I hope that I get to see you, but if you 52:13 don't make it before the winter storms, I'll never see you 52:16 again in this life. " 52:18 2 Timothy 4 verses 6 and following. 52:21 "I am ready now to be offered, the time of my 52:24 leaving is at hand. 52:25 I fought a good fight and I finished the course 52:27 and I kept the faith. 52:28 Henceforth, there's laid up for me a crown of righteousness 52:30 which the Lord, the righteous Judge, shall give me at 52:33 that Day, and not to me only but to all 52:35 those who love His... " 52:36 What now? 52:38 He's talking about the second coming of Jesus, of course. 52:41 The context is abundantly clear. 52:43 The apostle Paul said he's going to be given his final reward 52:48 when Jesus comes in His second coming. 52:51 You read, by the way if you will please, 52:53 Titus chapter 3 and verse 13. 52:57 Peggy wants me to be sure to include this little thing 52:59 that she found when our boy died a few weeks ago. 53:03 "Looking forward in faith to the eventual reunion," 53:06 is the subtitle. 53:07 "The thought of never again seeing a loved one in the flesh 53:10 it difficult to accept. 53:11 But just as all matter is transformed into new life, 53:14 the unique spirit of your loved one is preserved forever 53:17 in the very heart of God. " 53:23 That memory will never be gone from the heart of God. 53:30 "With the promise of resurrection, we can look 53:33 forward to a future reunion in which all of our 53:36 relationships are restored. 53:39 All sorrows are ended. 53:42 Therefore, we await the resurrection with 53:44 hope and joy. " 53:47 Someone says, "Well that which you're sharing tonight, 53:49 that when you die you don't go to heaven, 53:51 it seems so cruel. " 53:52 Well now wait a minute, think it through with me. 53:55 Our Lord Jesus said, "Broad is the way and wide is the gate 53:58 that leads to hell. " 54:00 And the majority go down that road and through that gate 54:02 to the wrong place. 54:03 While on the other hand He said, "Narrow is the gate 54:06 and narrower still the road that leads to eternal life, 54:08 and few there be that find it. " 54:10 You put that truth of Jesus with the lie of the devil 54:13 that when you die, you don't really die 54:14 but a soul or a spirit goes somewhere. 54:16 Where have most of our loved ones gone? 54:18 They've gone to hell. 54:22 To roast and fry? 54:23 I'd rather believe that my loved ones, whether they died 54:25 in a saved or lost condition, are sleeping awaiting 54:28 the final judgment than to believe that the majority 54:32 of them roasting and burning. 54:35 Anything cruel about that? 54:37 I don't think so. 54:39 I don't think so. 54:40 I want to recommend something to you as I move to my conclusion. 54:43 A buddy of mine has written a little book. 54:46 It's not so very big, but I want to tell you it's 54:48 worth its weight in gold, and more. 54:50 It's called, "The Search for the Eternal Soul" 54:53 and the author is my classmate and my fellow pastor 54:58 and my buddy through the years. 54:59 His name is Daniel Knoft and you can find his little book, 55:02 I looked it up; Torch Light Intelligence. 55:05 Torch Light Intelligence PO Box 135 55:09 Falls City, WA 98024 55:13 Or you can phone 1-208-371-2908 55:19 "The Search for the Immortal Soul" 55:21 It covers the history of heathenism coming into 55:25 the church with this idea that when you die, you don't die. 55:27 And it covers all of these texts that seem to teach 55:30 something different. 55:31 And it does a far better job than I have done tonight. 55:37 1 Thessalonians chapter 4 and verse 16. 55:40 We've said before, these are the scriptures that 55:42 save us from antichrist. 55:44 1 Thessalonians 4:16-18 55:47 "For the Lord Himself shall descend from heaven 55:49 with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, 55:51 and the trump of God. 55:53 And the dead in Christ shall rise first. 55:56 Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up 55:59 together with them to meet our Lord in the air 56:02 and so shall we ever be with the Lord. 56:04 Wherefore, comfort one another with these words. " 56:07 My boy, Terry, is asleep in Jesus. 56:10 He's resting beside his grandfather, whom in this life 56:13 he loved so very much, Peggy's daddy. 56:14 One of the greatest guys I ever knew in my life. 56:17 And they're sleeping together, side by side until Jesus comes. 56:21 And Peggy's daddy, who was killed in a logging accident 56:24 40 plus years ago, didn't go to heaven ahead of us. 56:27 And Terry didn't go to heaven ahead of us. 56:29 But one day, we're all going to go together. 56:32 All of us together. 56:35 And we'll see Jesus together. 56:38 We'll meet Him together at the same time, together. 56:42 And we'll build new homes together. 56:46 "Wherefore, comfort one another. " 56:53 Let's pray. 56:59 We thank You, Lord, for this truth that saves us 57:05 from the deceptions of the devil. 57:12 You're clear, both Old and New Testaments, 57:14 every chapter every verse, that death is a sleep, 57:17 a peaceful sleep until resurrection. 57:23 None of our loved ones have gone before us, 57:27 preceded us. 57:30 None of our loved ones are burning in hell fire. 57:33 They're all awaiting one of two resurrections. 57:37 Hasten the day, Lord. 57:39 We so long to be caught up together as family units 57:43 to meet You in the air, and then bask in the 57:46 sunlight of Your face. 57:50 Hurry home, Lord, we need You. In Jesus' name, amen. |
Revised 2014-12-17