Participants: Pr. Kenneth Cox
Series Code: RJC
Program Code: RJC000007
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00:19 And good evening.
00:21 We're very happy to welcome all of you tonight 00:24 to another session of The Revelation of Jesus Christ. 00:29 And we're continuing our study of the book of Revelation 00:33 chapter by chapter. 00:36 And this session we've been going through the 00:38 seven churches of Asia Minor. 00:41 Tonight we're taking a look at the church of Philadelphia. 00:46 And so we hope that you will join us. 00:49 Those of you that are tuning in 00:52 we just invite you to come and sit down and take your Bible 00:55 and join us. If you're watching by television 00:58 or listening by radio or on the Internet 01:02 be sure and have your Bible there so you can 01:05 underline and write some notes 01:07 and go through it as we study this particular chapter. 01:12 We hope it will be helpful to you 01:14 as we study it chapter by chapter. 01:18 We're thankful for the opportunity 01:21 to take a look at the book of Revelation 01:24 because Revelation is God's book for today. 01:30 That's what it is. To people who are living today 01:33 this book tells you what is happening, 01:36 what is taking place, what's going on. 01:39 So very important that you understand and know 01:43 what the book of Revelation's talking about. 01:45 And it's not something that's secret. 01:48 It's not something that you can't understand. 01:51 You CAN understand it. 01:53 Just like anything else, it takes some study. 01:55 But if you'll study it, it will open up and you can understand. 01:59 And great are the lessons and all that's there 02:03 in the book of Revelation. 02:05 So we're very glad that you're joining us 02:07 as we take a look at it. 02:09 Uh, our next presentation will be on the church of Laodicea... 02:14 which is the seventh church. 02:19 What God has to say about this church 02:22 This - as far as the church age is concerned - 02:26 this is the one in which we are living today. 02:29 And so the message to the church of Laodicea 02:33 has very, very strong teachings in it for you and for me 02:38 to know where we are, what's happening, what's going on 02:42 and how we need to relate to the Lord Jesus Christ. 02:46 But this presentation we're talking about the church 02:50 of Philadelphia which is the church of brotherly love. 02:56 That's what it's about... brotherly love. 02:59 And so we're going to take a look at what it says 03:01 about this particular church and how you and I can gain 03:06 information spiritually from this and what happened there. 03:11 I hope you've been blessed by the music 03:15 from evening to evening. 03:17 Also, we try to make it so that you can get a picture 03:23 of the whole thing, and that's the reason we have 03:26 Chuck Allgaier come out and read to you 03:30 the scripture that deals with that particular church 03:33 that we're studying that evening. 03:36 And uh... so that you can follow on the screen 03:40 if you want to or you can read it in your Bible... 03:44 however you would like to. 03:46 But tonight we're very favored to have Dona Klein 03:50 playing for us tonight. Dona is a very, very talented 03:56 person. When it comes to music, 04:01 I... I don't even understand... 04:04 I'll just be honest with you, folks... 04:06 I don't understand at all because music is not 04:11 something that I was blessed with at all. 04:14 I... I can't... If you were to ask me... 04:18 She's play something; you'd say: 04:20 "What time was that written in? " 04:22 I don't have the foggiest idea what time it was written in. 04:26 I just... doesn't... but she 04:28 seems to know all this about music and stuff 04:34 and she writes it and plays it and all. 04:38 And I stand amazed at what she does. 04:41 And we appreciate her music, and I know you'll be blessed 04:45 by it tonight as she plays a song: 04:48 When The Shadows Flee Away. 04:50 But before she does, Chuck Allgaier is going to come 04:53 and he's going to share the scripture with you at this time. 05:04 Our desire during these meetings 05:07 is that you might become more acquainted with the Bible. 05:11 But more so, that you might be more acquainted 05:15 with God the Father and Jesus Christ, His Son, 05:19 and the Holy Spirit. 05:21 So at this time, we'll take God's Holy Word 05:24 and read the scripture tonight. 05:27 It's found in Revelation chapter 3 verses 7 through 13. 10:38 Our Heavenly Father, 10:41 we come before You this evening, 10:45 Lord, just to take the time to thank you... 10:48 to thank you for giving us Your Word. 10:55 For giving us hope. 10:58 For giving us direction. 11:00 Lord, may we tonight 11:05 understand about the church of Philadelphia. 11:10 May our hearts be open to the working of the Holy Spirit. 11:15 May it give us wisdom, 11:18 insight, and faith that we might hold on, 11:24 be faithful to the coming of our Lord. 11:28 For this we ask in Christ's name, Amen. 11:38 Well, we are down to the sixth church. 11:43 We've gone through five of them; 11:47 tonight we're looking at the sixth one 11:49 which is Philadelphia: 11:52 the church of brotherly love. 11:55 And so we want to see what God has to say 11:59 as Christ walks among these churches... 12:03 seven golden candlesticks. 12:06 They are under His care, under His guidance, 12:09 under His direction. 12:11 So we hope that as we read about this church 12:14 we will see what the Lord is doing 12:17 for the church of Philadelphia. 12:25 He addresses them. As I've told you, these are personal letters 12:29 that Jesus wrote. That's what they are. 12:32 They were letters that Christ gave to His angel. 12:38 The angel took and gave them to John, 12:40 and John gave them to the seven churches. 12:43 So they're personal letters from Jesus. 12:46 What would you think if you had a personal letter 12:48 from Jesus Christ? 12:50 That'd be something, wouldn't it? 12:51 Have a letter addressing you particularly as 12:55 He did to these churches and saying: 12:57 "Listen, these... is My counsel. 12:59 This is what I'm telling you. " 13:01 And so tonight He addresses us 13:05 to listen and to follow. 13:09 Brotherly love. This church or this city - Philadelphia - 13:15 was named after Adelus Philadelphus. 13:20 And he... his brother was the king of Lydia, 13:24 and there was a very, very strong bond of loyalty 13:31 and love between those two brothers. 13:34 And that's the reason this was called Philadelphia. 13:37 It was named after this man because there was brotherly love 13:42 between him and his brother. 13:44 And so it has carried that name. 13:47 This is the other church - 13:53 Smyrna was the other one - 13:55 this is the other one that there is no reproof. 13:59 God doesn't say anything that they were doing wrong. 14:04 He talks about and commends them and all. 14:07 And this is basically, folks, what has to happen - 14:13 which we'll talk about in our next presentation - 14:16 but what has to happen to the church of Laodicea. 14:20 They have to come back to this experience of this church. 14:24 That's what has to happen. 14:26 And so it's very important that you and I understand 14:30 what is taking place here at the church of brotherly love. 14:36 Uh, as we have kind of traced where these churches are 14:40 along the coast of Asia Minor, 14:44 Aegean Sea, until we got to Pergamos... and then we moved 14:48 east to Thyatira and then to Sardis. If you go 28 miles 14:53 further southeast or almost direct east from Sardis 14:58 you come to Philadelphia. 15:01 Church - city - of Philadelphia: 15:05 city of brotherly love. 15:07 This city 15:11 was strategically located, folks, 15:15 because it actually controlled 15:19 a very narrow pass that opened between the 15:24 Hermus and the Maender Valleys. 15:27 Maender Valley. And in order to get to this 15:31 you had to go through this pass. 15:33 And this was the way that the mail came, 15:38 the trade came, commerce came. 15:40 And the officials that lived here in Philadelphia 15:43 controlled who went through that pass. 15:47 They had the key that opened into that... into 15:51 the rest of Asia Minor. 15:53 And so they held a very secure place. 15:56 But Mount Tmolus... 16:02 they still are connected somewhat with that. 16:07 And of all the cities that we've looked at 16:11 this is the one that constantly has a problem with earthquakes. 16:17 I mean, this place has been destroyed time and time 16:22 and time again by earthquakes. 16:24 In fact, history reads where these people 16:29 would go out and live in tents because they were afraid 16:33 of the aftershocks and all that were taking place here. 16:36 And very, very important to find something that was stable, 16:41 something that didn't move 16:43 because of the earthquakes that took place. 16:46 And that's the reason it speaks of pellers in here. 16:51 And here are some pellers right there in Philadelphia. 16:56 And they looked upon them as something that couldn't be moved 17:01 that was solid and stood. And therefore 17:04 a peller to them had great, great significance 17:08 as far as they were concerned. 17:09 And they understood what Christ was talking about 17:12 when He spoke of the church and talked about the people 17:16 being pellers. OK, let's see how He identifies Himself 17:20 as He talks to this church: 17:37 Are you catching some things? 17:39 You see this was the pass. They controlled who went through it. 17:43 And He is the One who has the key that opens 17:48 and lets them pass through and He can also shut it. 17:52 He controls that. 17:53 So this is... They related very well 17:58 to what He was saying as He addressed them. 18:00 That He was the One that controlled that. 18:04 The condition of the church of Philadelphia: 18:22 OK, interesting. It says: "I have set before you an open door 18:27 and no one can shut it. " 18:31 OK. "But you have little strength. " 18:36 There's a reason for that. 18:38 "You've kept My Word and have not denied My name. " 18:43 I need to give you some infor- mation about the church age 18:47 because there's a lot here, folks. 18:50 And as I have told you on one presentation after another, 18:54 don't let the dates tie you in too much. 18:59 Those dates just give you an idea of when it was 19:03 because these overlap from one to another. 19:07 I've got to give you some background so you understand 19:09 what is happening here with this particular church 19:13 at this particular time in church history. 19:16 As we talked about the Reformation... 19:21 as we talked about in Sardis how the Reformation 19:23 had been there, what had happened. 19:26 And we talked about how the counter-Reformation had come in 19:29 and had actually brought the Reformation to a stop 19:33 and the influence that it had upon the world at that time. 19:37 Not only was the counter- Reformation taking place 19:41 and people had lost their fervor, they had lost their 19:45 witness, they had lost what they had gotten in the Reformation 19:48 and they now as a body... as a movement... 19:54 was dead. They had lost their witness. 19:57 They were no longer going out and standing up 20:01 for what they believed and preaching 20:02 and living the life that they were to live. 20:05 All that had come to an end. 20:07 Their churches now... they had become stagnant 20:10 and there wasn't much happening in them. 20:12 The people had forgotten what it was all about. 20:17 Godliness was something they had forgotten, 20:19 no longer followed. 20:21 At the same time this is going on, 20:24 something is happening because many of these people 20:28 through the Dark Ages were suppressed. 20:31 They had a very rough time. 20:34 They had been slaughtered. 20:37 They had been actually killed by the hundreds and thousands 20:43 of them that had lost their lives. 20:45 And many of these people had forsaken religion and all. 20:50 At this time you have a rise in Europe of what is called 20:56 intellectualism, 20:57 and this began to come to the forefront. 21:01 And you find a man by the name of Thomas Paine 21:06 has written a book. And in this book 21:11 he talks about God because at that time 21:17 people believed in God. But he took the scripture to task, 21:23 and he wrote a book called The Age of Reason. 21:28 And he attacked the scripture and what it had to say. 21:33 And that book began to gain ascendency 21:37 across all of Europe and people gave up their belief. 21:44 And France was the country that led out in this. 21:49 In fact, because of his book 21:53 France decided to forsake religion all together 21:57 and became a godless country. 21:59 They took the Bible... threw it out. 22:01 Threw it in the streets 22:02 and said: "We will no longer believe in the Word of God. " 22:06 And they established in the place of it 22:08 the Age of Reason. 22:11 They said: "We will think it through. 22:13 The Age of Reason... this is how we will live. " 22:16 And as they threw out the scripture 22:19 they threw out a lot of other things... 22:23 because with the scripture went morality. 22:26 And they tossed it out. 22:28 And all the things that they warred against... 22:32 If you were a believer in God you were in danger. 22:36 In fact, they went out and gathered up 22:39 people who believed in God 22:41 and they took them downtown Paris and they guillotined them. 22:46 And they killed so many of them 22:49 that blood ran down the gutters of the streets of Paris. 22:53 It was a horrible time. 22:56 And this was what was going on 23:00 1796 AD and in that period of time and all. 23:05 It became so bad because the people that believed in God 23:10 they fled the country. 23:12 They... they put to death thousands and thousands 23:17 of people... and so they fled the country. 23:20 And with them they took the intelligenci and all that 23:24 of the country. And all of a sudden France 23:27 realized that she had to do something. 23:31 And so she voted back in religion into the country 23:38 because they had wrecked the whole... whole country. 23:41 This is the end of the 1700s, 23:45 so you have religion isn't doing anything. 23:49 It's basically dead. 23:51 The intelligenci of the world has decided 23:56 they don't need God. 23:58 That they are able to think things through 24:02 and establish it. So this is the condition you find it in. 24:06 This is the reason in this church it says 24:09 "we know you are weak... you don't have much strength. " 24:13 There's not much here in the church of Philadelphia. 24:17 There's just not much. 24:19 But this is the condition, and you need to understand that 24:23 as we move in because we will find certain things 24:26 that are happening. All of a sudden 24:31 because of the Lord and His moving, 24:35 uh, things begin to take place. 24:38 When France voted back in religion 24:41 then all of a sudden in different places of the world 24:44 the religion begins to come back. And you'll find 24:47 in 1804 AD the British Bible Society was established. 24:52 And for the first time now the people begin to have access 24:57 to the Word of God. 24:59 They've been able to... were able to get hold of it 25:01 and read it and understand it. 25:03 This was something they could do. 25:05 And also you have in 1816 AD 25:08 the American Bible Society was established. 25:11 And so all of a sudden there began to be an interest 25:15 in the Word of God and people began to find access 25:19 to it and read it and trying to find out 25:21 what it was talking about and understand it. 25:24 At the same time, with this movement of the scripture 25:29 there are men that begin to stand up and preach. 25:34 And they began to have an effect upon the people. 25:38 And this is where you find in history 25:41 all of a sudden that foreign missions 25:45 all of a sudden becomes available. 25:47 You have individuals like Livingston going to Africa. 25:51 Moffett, Miller, Judson, Carey, 25:55 Wesley: all these are men that began to stand up 26:00 and preach the Word of God. 26:01 You take it in the time of John Wesley 26:04 the churches were basically dead. 26:07 I mean, that's... they just were dead, 26:10 and they wouldn't even accept what John Wesley preached. 26:13 In fact, when he went back to the hometown where his father 26:18 had been a minister and all 26:20 they wouldn't let him preach in his father's church. 26:23 In fact, he went out to the cemetery and stood 26:26 on his father's grave and preached. 26:28 Because the thing had died so much, 26:32 there wasn't anything there. 26:34 But these men began to preach the Word of God. 26:38 And as they preached it, it began to grow 26:40 and foreign missions began to move around the world 26:45 in different places. And all of a sudden, 26:47 because of the preaching of these men 26:50 there was a revival. 26:52 A revival began to take place and move across the world... 26:57 a revival of the Word of God. 27:14 God said: "OK, I've set before you an open door. 27:20 Go out, witness, tell the people what is happening, 27:24 what's taking place. " 27:25 And they went out to preach the Word of God. 27:28 At this time, something begins to happen 27:33 because as men like Miller, 27:39 Wolf, Carey, 27:46 Manuel de Lacunza... 27:49 they began to study God's Word. 27:51 And as they were studying they got into the prophecies. 27:56 And as they got into the prophecies, 27:59 they got to the book of Daniel. 28:01 And they began to read and try to understand 28:05 the book of Daniel. And as they got to the 8th chapter 28:09 they began to read it there and they found a prophecy 28:13 in the 8th chapter where it said in verse 14 28:16 "Unto 2300 days and then shall the sanctuary be cleansed. " 28:20 And as they tried to figure out what that was talking about 28:24 they moved into the 9th chapter and there they found 28:28 the angel Gabriel beginning to explain it to them 28:31 and understand what it says. 28:32 And from that the idea was born 28:38 because they said: "Jesus is coming back. " 28:42 They believed that the cleansing of the sanctuary 28:46 meant the cleansing of this earth by fire. 28:50 And so they preached that Jesus Christ was coming back, 28:54 and that moved across this country and across Europe 28:58 like a revival that hadn't been seen since the days 29:01 of the Reformation. 29:04 But out of that came a great disappointment 29:07 because Jesus didn't come back 29:10 when they thought He was going to come back. 29:12 And as they got the Bible and began to study it 29:16 they began to find out that Jesus 29:19 had gone from the holy place of the sanctuary 29:23 up in heaven into the most holy place. 29:26 And they began to read here in Daniel 7 and 9 where it says: 29:56 So here they see the court scene. 29:58 They see the Ancient of Days coming. 30:01 They see the books opened. 30:10 Ten thousand stood before Him; the court was seated. 30:14 Right at that time, folks, 30:17 when the judgment is set 30:19 then you find something happening. 30:22 And dear friend, if you don't understand this, 30:24 I plead with you: get into it and read this 30:27 because this to me offers you and I hope 30:31 like nothing else that I know. 30:33 Because it says: 30:43 Told you something about Revelation, didn't I? 30:46 That that phrase Son of Man... 30:49 used only one time in the book of Revelation. 30:52 Here it's used in Daniel. 31:00 So here Christ is coming in before His Father. 31:06 He's coming there as your Mediator, 31:11 as your High Priest. And He's going to plead 31:17 our case before His Father. 31:19 He has moved out of the holy place 31:24 into the most holy place. 31:26 This is the door that He has opened. 31:30 And you and I as individuals must walk through 31:36 that door into the most holy place because that's where He 31:40 ministers in your behalf and mine. 31:43 That's where He is with His Father is in the most holy place 31:48 and that's where we need to come and approach Him 31:51 because He's there to make intercession for you and for me. 31:55 So this is very important when He says: "I open the door; 31:59 no man can shut it. " 32:01 "I have set before you an open door. " 32:03 He has moved from that. 32:05 If you stay with Him in the holy place, 32:09 then you're missing... you're missing an important part 32:13 of His ministry... because this is what is going on 32:17 in the most holy place: 32:42 In other words, when Christ moved out of the holy place 32:46 into the most holy place then judgment began. 32:54 Each one of us... each one of us - every individual - 32:59 must give an answer for what we have done. 33:04 Fortunately, you and I can run... 33:09 you and I can seek the Lord Jesus Christ 33:15 and He is willing to stand in your place 33:19 in the judgment. 33:21 He is willing to be there for you and for me. 33:34 He's going to judge this old world. 33:37 You and I tonight are living at that time. 33:53 So He says that He's going to judge the earth. 33:56 That is happening at the present time up in heaven. 34:00 That is the door that was opened, 34:02 and they walked through that door. 34:05 OK: 34:26 Now, Christ says He has the keys. 34:32 He opens and nobody can shut it. 34:39 Have you ever thought of the keys that He has? 34:43 Huh? Do you know what other keys He has? 34:47 He says He holds the keys of life 34:52 and death... He holds those keys and all. 34:56 Paul said: "He has opened a door before me. " 35:00 He opens the door for you and for me. 35:03 And we can walk through that door and come to Him 35:07 as our Mediator up in heaven 35:10 and place our lives in His hands 35:13 and He will plead our case in our behalf. 35:18 He will stand in our place in the judgment. 35:21 Most important that we walk through that door. 35:24 OK, let's see where the problem lies. 35:43 So He said these people who "claim to be Jews 35:48 and are not. " Now when He uses the word Jew there 35:52 it's talking about someone who is a true follower of Christ. 35:57 That's what it's talking about: 35:59 somebody who is a true follower of Christ... 36:02 because it simply says: 36:12 You see, God enters into a covenant 36:16 with you and with me and with each of His people 36:20 and He tells us: "If you will keep My commands, 36:24 obey My voice, walk with Me, 36:27 I will be your God; you shall be My people. " 36:33 Are you God's people tonight? 36:35 Huh? 36:37 Have you given your heart to the Lord? 36:41 He says: "If you will give your heart to Me, 36:45 if you will obey Me, 36:47 if you will listen to what I say... 36:49 then I will be your God; you shall be My people. " 36:54 This is what He does for us. 37:11 So if you have accepted Christ, 37:15 given your heart to Him, 37:18 then you are an Israelite. 37:21 This is the true Jew. 37:25 Understand that... not by flesh or blood. 37:28 Flesh and blood is not the situation today, folks. 37:32 It's those who belong to spiritual Israel... 37:35 they are God's people 37:37 and they are the ones that will be there. 37:40 And all the promises that He made to Israel of old 37:43 have been passed on to spiritual Israel 37:47 so you and I can receive those promises that He's given to us. 37:52 OK: 38:03 OK? 38:13 So what counts is what you are inwardly not outwardly. 38:19 So make sure that you enter into this covenant 38:25 with Him... heirs to the promise... 38:28 because it says that if you enter into this covenant 38:32 with the Lord, it says you will be a special treasure to Him. 38:38 And He says: "It will be well with you" 38:41 if you walk with the Lord and follow Him. 38:50 OK, in other words, I have to be willing to walk the talk. 38:57 I cannot say: "Yes, I believe in Christ. 39:02 I've given my heart to Him; I'm a Christian" 39:05 and not walk it. I have to walk the talk. 39:10 And that means, folks, 39:12 that means more - How should I put this? - 39:17 that means more than just following and believing. 39:23 I believe. Don't misunderstand me. 39:26 But there are Biblical beliefs in this book that you and I 39:32 must study and we must follow and we must walk 39:36 in accordance to what that book says. 39:39 I believe that with all my heart. 39:40 But I also believe that I am to be 39:47 a Christian in character as well as in belief. 39:53 I believe that's part of walking the talk. 39:57 I think as a Christian I must be kind, 40:02 I must be gentle, I must be compassionate. 40:07 I must love my brethren. 40:14 Did you hear me? 40:15 I must love my brother. 40:19 I cannot say that I am a follower of Jesus Christ 40:27 and not love my brother. 40:29 Can't do that! 40:30 These people - the church of Philadelphia... 40:34 that's the church of brotherly love. 40:38 You and I MUST love one another. 40:43 That means that I must consider you 40:48 a Christian. I must give you the benefit of the doubt. 40:57 Did you hear me? 41:00 I must give you the benefit of the doubt. 41:05 And if you do something that is wrong 41:10 then I must forgive you. 41:16 That is walking what God wants us to do. 41:21 That's part of it 41:23 if I'm going to be what God desires me to be. 41:38 He promised those... because they were faithful, 41:42 because they persevered... 41:44 that He would keep them from the hour of trial. 41:48 Now I mentioned this the other night. 41:50 We live in an age where Christians today 41:56 are such fair-weathered Christians. 41:59 They don't want to face anything... any hard times. 42:03 They don't want to consider that there might be 42:05 any kind of trouble at all. 42:09 God is perfectly capable of keeping you, folks. 42:13 He's able to look after you and care for you, 42:17 and as He says here: 42:18 "Because you observed or cared, 42:20 kept My commands; you persevered... 42:24 I will keep you from the hour of trial. " 42:26 He promises that. 42:27 And you can turn over and read Psalm 91 42:30 and there He makes the promise 42:32 that "A thousand shall fall at thy side 42:35 and ten thousand at thy right hand 42:36 but it shall not come nigh thee. " 42:40 But dear friend, how? How? Tell me... 42:46 how can you appreciate, how can you understand, 42:53 how can you sympathize, 42:56 how can you enter into our Lord's 43:02 agony and suffering and all that He went through 43:07 if you never suffer? 43:10 How can you understand it? 43:13 If you don't have any suffering, if you don't have any hard times 43:18 how can you appreciate what He did? 43:22 You and I must be willing to enter in 43:27 to the suffering of our Lord. 43:29 And if it is required 43:32 that I must pass through trials, 43:35 then dear friend, bear it. Bear it joyfully... 43:39 because it only helps you to understand what Jesus did 43:45 for you. He suffered more than you'll ever suffer, 43:49 I'll assure you. 43:52 Never, never will you face temptation like He faced. 43:57 Never will you suffer the things that He suffered. 44:01 But in His kindness and in His mercy 44:04 He said: "I'll keep you... 44:07 I'll keep you in the hour of trial. " 44:09 He's more than capable of caring for you and for me. 44:14 All right, let's take a look at the counsel that He gives. 44:34 Now as we have studied these seven churches 44:37 there has been reference - different churches - 44:40 about Him coming back. 44:42 He says that He's coming back. 44:45 But when we get to Philadelphia He says He's coming what? 44:49 Quickly. 44:51 In other words, time is running out 44:54 and we are approaching the church of Laodicea 44:59 at which time He DOES come back - 45:02 that's what the scripture says as we look at it. 45:04 And so time is running out. He said: "Behold, 45:08 I am coming quickly. " 45:10 And dear friend, you and I should realize and understand 45:15 that the Lord is coming. 45:19 If you... you know... 45:23 I have never seen in my lifetime 45:29 things like that are happening today. 45:32 I've never seen that before. 45:36 I've never seen where we have tsunamis 45:42 that kill a quarter of a million people. 45:45 Earthquakes that kill a quarter of a million. 45:49 Uh, I never saw that in my lifetime before. 45:52 I mean one earthquake of 7.0 magnitude 45:57 and above after another. 46:00 Uh, do you understand? 46:03 He says: "Behold, I am coming quickly. " 46:07 Said: "Hang on, hold fast, don't give up. " 46:12 You're living today? Hang on! 46:17 He's coming back... get yourself ready to meet Him. 46:23 Dear friend, put yourself in a position 46:26 where you spend time with the Lord. 46:29 You talk to Him and you read His Word and you understand 46:32 what He's saying. 46:34 That the Word of God will grow in you and bubble out 46:37 to all the people around you. 46:40 Said: "Hold on, hold fast to what you have 46:43 that no one may take your crown. " 46:48 That'd be bad, wouldn't it? 46:52 To have somebody else wear your crown. 47:00 Esau... oldest... 47:07 didn't want to follow the Lord. 47:10 Didn't have an interest in spiritual things 47:13 and therefore Jacob took his crown. 47:19 He had every right; he was the oldest son. 47:24 Had the birthright; had the blessings. 47:29 That was all his 47:32 and all he had to do was claim it. 47:37 And yet he didn't... spurned it 47:42 and Jacob took his place. 47:47 Reuben... eldest son. 47:51 He was to be the one that the blessing was to pass to. 47:57 Reuben was to be the head, 48:01 and yet he didn't follow 48:05 and Judah took his place. 48:11 Someone else took his crown. 48:17 Saul... first king. 48:21 God called him; sent Samuel to anoint him. 48:26 He was to be the king of Israel. 48:29 God said to him: "Never, never will the kingdom 48:33 pass from you and your household always 48:37 if you'll just follow Me and obey Me. " 48:42 But he didn't... 48:45 and David took his place. 48:50 David received the promise. 48:55 Christ came from that lineage 49:02 where he could have come from Saul's. 49:09 Judas, one of the twelve... 49:13 Probably the one that had the greatest natural 49:19 ability of leadership was Judas. 49:24 Special in every way. 49:28 Lost it, and Matthias took his place. 49:35 Somebody? Somebody going to take your crown? 49:43 Somebody else going to be in the kingdom in your place? 49:49 Doesn't have to be, folks. 49:51 Doesn't have to be. 49:53 You're the one... you can make that decision whether 49:57 you're going to stand and put yourself on the Lord's side 50:02 and walk with Him and follow Him. 50:05 The promise is given to you. 50:21 "He who overcomes 50:24 I will make a pillar in the temple of My God. " 50:30 You see, in many of the temples 50:35 and many of the buildings they would write people's names 50:41 on the pillars. 50:43 Particularly individuals who donated a large amount of money 50:48 they would write their name. 50:50 Or if they were an emperor, if they were a leader, 50:53 they wrote their name on pillars in the temple. 50:57 Said: "He that overcomes I will make a pillar 51:00 in the temple of My God and He shall go out no more. " 51:12 You know we have... we hold meetings 51:19 and we have special meetings for the children and all. 51:25 And the adults are in here 51:26 and the children are in another place. 51:28 And we have the children labeled... 51:30 we have their name put on them 51:33 and their parents name put on them 51:35 so we know who they belong to. 51:37 That there's no question who that child belongs to. 51:40 God here is putting His name on you. 51:44 He's not only putting your name, the city of His God. 51:48 He's labeling you and said "This belongs to Me. 51:51 These are My people. " 51:53 And you and I can belong to Him. 51:56 "And this is the city of My God, 51:58 the New Jerusalem, 51:59 and these are the people that are to be in that city. " 52:02 Oh dear friend, the great blessing that He gives to you 52:06 and to me: 52:16 So, He's taking no chances. 52:20 In the first place, He gives you a white stone. 52:25 And on that white stone is a name written 52:28 that is a name that He has given you. 52:33 So you have a special name that has to do with you 52:36 and your character and you as an individual. 52:40 But He goes farther than that and puts on you the name 52:43 of His city. He also gives you a name, 52:49 His name, and says: "These are My people. 52:53 I care for them; they belong to Me. " 52:57 And you are to be a pillar 53:01 in the temple of God. 53:05 You and I are to be pillars in the temple of God. 53:11 Oh dear friend, all of those are promises that He gives to us 53:15 as individuals. I hope that you will walk through the door 53:21 as He opens it. 53:24 That you will follow Him, that you will obey Him. 53:28 That you will give your heart to Him 53:31 and follow Him as He leads us into the kingdom. 53:36 Now is the time when we need to be preparing our hearts 53:41 to meet God. Let us pray. 53:44 Father in Heaven, 53:46 we thank you... thank you that 53:50 You make all the provisions. 53:53 That You write upon us Your name, 53:59 the name of Your city, that we belong to You. 54:05 That You care about us. 54:08 That we're not going to get lost. 54:11 That You will look after us, 54:14 lead us all the way into the kingdom. 54:16 Bless each one here. 54:20 May they purpose in their hearts to be true to You 54:24 and to follow You and to prepare their lives 54:28 for the coming of our Lord. 54:31 For these things we thank you 54:33 in the name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, 54:36 Amen. 54:38 Well, our next presentation is on the church of Laodicea: 54:43 the last of the seven churches. 54:47 Very, very vital to you and to me 54:51 that we understand the church of Laodicea 54:55 because it's a message directly to you and to me 55:00 that we might be prepared 55:03 for the soon return of our Lord and Savior. 55:06 So God bless you. Glad you're joining us. 55:09 Please stay tuned. 55:10 Have a good evening; God bless you. 55:14 Hello, folks. 55:16 One of my favorite things to do in the springtime 55:19 is to take a walk and look at all the new growth. 55:22 The earth seems so fresh, 55:24 and each tree bursts forth with buds and flowers. 55:27 That reminds me of a parable that Jesus told His followers 55:31 in Luke 21. 55:33 You see, He had just described the events which will happen 55:37 immediately before His second coming. 55:52 But in verse 29 Jesus turns their attention 55:57 to the fig tree. 55:58 And ever since then the budding trees have served as a permanent 56:02 reminder that our time here is very short 56:05 and the second coming is very near. 56:23 Folks, many of these signs are already upon us. 56:27 The earth groans from the greed of those who have 56:30 exploited her resources, ravaged her land 56:34 and destroyed plants and animals and atmosphere alike 56:37 in a selfish pursuit of wealth. 56:40 Have you seen the signs? 56:42 Have you seen men's hearts failing with fear? 56:44 If you haven't, then I'm afraid you're not watching 56:47 very closely. However, the Holy Spirit is hard at work 56:51 and so are many Christians who long for an end to sin 56:55 and look forward to their soon-coming Savior. 56:58 That's why we continue to preach the gospel 57:01 to as many as we can through any means that we can 57:05 as often as we can. 57:08 Our ministry team is supported solely 57:10 by your contributions... and we thank you for your 57:14 faithful prayers and financial support. 57:17 May God richly bless you. 57:20 Please consider what you can do for those who still don't know 57:23 about Jesus. As the Holy Spirit impresses, 57:26 please send your tax-deductible gifts to: 57:40 Thank you for helping us spread the light of God's Word 57:43 through television and radio. 57:44 Your gifts help bring the blessed hope of salvation 57:47 to millions around the world. |
Revised 2014-12-17