Participants: Pastor John Lomacang
Series Code: TWH
Program Code: TWH000028A
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00:31 Earlier this week, when I...
00:35 When people found out about my sermon title, 00:38 they said, "Are you serious?" 00:41 I said, "Yeah, I'm serious." 00:45 They said, "Is that really your sermon title?" 00:48 "Yeah, it is." 00:55 And even on Facebook, 00:57 it received quite a bit of responses, 00:59 I didn't put it there. 01:04 But in this... 01:08 politically-charged generation that we have found ourselves... 01:15 there's something we can learn from everything. 01:18 So this morning, before I get into the sermon, 01:20 I would like to invite you to stand with me 01:22 and we're going to read the scripture reading together 01:25 so that you can reset. 01:27 Some of you have been all comfortable 01:29 and you look all tired and ready to settle in 01:31 for a long winter's nap, 01:33 and winter's not even here yet. 01:36 Now the blood is flowing. 01:38 And I like us read together this scripture 01:40 that is on the screen, after which I will pray, 01:43 and then we would enter the Word of God. 01:46 Let's read together, 01:47 "Then they said to one another, 'We are not doing right. 01:52 This day is a day of good news, and we remain silent. 01:58 If we wait until morning light, 02:01 some punishment will come upon us. 02:04 Now therefore, come, let us go 02:07 and tell the king's household.'" 02:10 Father in heaven, as we open Your Word, 02:13 we pray that You will open our hearts 02:16 and speak to us today in this day of good news, 02:21 in Jesus name I pray. 02:24 Amen. 02:26 You may be seated. 02:31 We live undeniably 02:35 in one of the most politically charged climates 02:39 in US history. 02:42 And this hasn't just started 02:45 under this recent administration. 02:46 You go back about three administrations 02:49 you find that there was a trend building in America... 02:55 where religion... 02:59 in an inadvertent way 03:02 had become a litmus test for whoever would occupy 03:08 the office of president in the United States. 03:11 And to some degree, whenever we decide 03:14 to veer away from God's prescription 03:19 and begin to lean on man's prescription, 03:24 we tend to inevitably begin to receive the results 03:30 of entering into something that God never intended 03:34 for this nation to experience. 03:38 What I've been praying for, 03:40 and I'm sure that many of you have, 03:45 is that we will not forget 03:46 that this nation is not our final home, 03:50 but heaven is our final home. 03:52 Amen. 03:55 And regardless of your affiliation, 03:58 it is an undeniable fact 04:00 that we are in a politically unstable environment. 04:04 The reasons for our political instability 04:07 vary depending on who you ask. 04:10 But when you hear children running around 04:13 with the phrase fake news 04:16 tumbling from their lips, 04:20 and then seeing controversy 04:22 between brother and brother, or sister and brother, 04:25 or sister and sister 04:27 because of what's happening in the political arena, 04:31 I must say we are losing focus 04:35 when earthly things gain more attention 04:38 than our heavenly calling. 04:42 Even now many of you are holding your breath 04:43 and wondering where this message is going to go. 04:46 And so let me calm you from the very beginning 04:49 to say that this sermon will be anything but political, 04:54 but, as Pastor CA knows, for a preacher 04:57 whose mind is guided by the Word of God, 05:00 we can glean a lesson from anything 05:04 that society allows us to be exposed to. 05:07 If this is going to be a monologue, 05:10 a soliloquy, if I could use that word, 05:13 revealing Satan's attempt 05:17 to distract us from the good news of the hour, 05:21 which is the gospel 05:22 of the salvation of Jesus Christ. 05:26 The church.. 05:30 in these last days regardless of denomination, 05:33 evangelical or Catholic 05:35 or protestant or non-protestant, 05:38 the church has become so infected and distracted 05:43 that we have become more enemies of each other 05:48 than enemies of Satan. 05:50 And politics 05:52 has played a major role in influencing us both 05:55 in our church and in our daily lives. 06:00 And so let me make it very clear 06:01 from the very beginning, 06:02 this message will also make it abundantly clear... 06:08 You know, they say to preachers, 06:09 "State what you're going to say. 06:11 Say it, and then state what you just said." 06:15 I don't want you to miss the message. 06:16 This message will make it abundantly clear 06:20 that if the good news of the gospel 06:23 has not positively affected the way we live, 06:27 then our lives 06:29 is an advertisement for fake news. 06:35 I believe that still today, 06:37 the good news is still the good news. 06:38 Can you say amen? Amen. 06:41 But the world needs a demonstration, 06:44 and the world cannot look at Washington, 06:47 and it cannot look at the news, 06:49 it cannot look at CNN, ABC, NBC, CBS, 06:53 MSNBC, or Fox to find the good news, 06:56 we've got to look to the Word of God 06:58 where the good news is always the good news. 07:03 In this day and age, 07:05 the drama that is being played out 07:06 on a global scale is no surprise to God. 07:10 God knows the end from the beginning. 07:13 Look at the words of Isaiah the Prophet in Isaiah 46:9-10, 07:16 look at what he says. 07:17 What we are today in America, where we are today in America, 07:21 where we are in the world 07:23 is no surprise to the God that we serve. 07:25 Isaiah the Prophet says these words, 07:27 he says, "Remember the former things of old, 07:29 for I am God, and there is no other. 07:33 I am God and there is none like Me," 07:36 and then verse 10, 07:38 "Declaring the end from the beginning, 07:43 and from ancient times things that are not yet done, 07:47 saying, 'My counsel shall stand, 07:51 and I will do all My pleasure.'" 07:52 Let me begin by saying this morning, 07:54 God's plans will never be defeated, 08:00 will never be postponed by anything 08:03 that happens on planet earth. 08:05 Amen. 08:06 The prophecies of God are coming 08:08 to pass as He said they would. 08:11 The climate is being developed as He said it would be. 08:15 The United States is playing its role, 08:16 the Vatican is playing its role, 08:18 politics is playing its role, and if you think 08:22 that Korean leader Kim Jong-un 08:25 or Russian President Vladimir Putin 08:27 or ISIS or the LGBT agenda or the US presidency 08:32 or any major concern to God, 08:35 you are missing the big picture. 08:38 God is still in charge. 08:40 Amen somebody? Amen. 08:42 And if you've been around long enough, 08:44 like I'm beginning to admit I have, 08:48 you know that the climate of our world changes 08:51 from political leader to political leader, 08:54 but I want to say this morning, 08:56 but the God we serve never changes. 08:59 Amen. 09:01 The writer of Hebrews said, 09:02 "Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today," 09:07 and what else? 09:09 "And forever." 09:10 So it behooves us 09:12 in this politically charged climate 09:16 to not allow fake news 09:22 to postpone us 09:23 proclaiming good news and reflecting good news. 09:27 So the second thing that this message 09:28 is going to be is an attempt 09:30 to break our fixation on fake news. 09:37 The worst thing to do when Jesus is trying to show us 09:40 how this great controversy is going to play out 09:43 is to be a people that are talking 09:45 above His voice 09:47 and choosing to sleep at a time 09:49 when we each need to be wide awake. 09:52 The Apostle Paul says, "Knowing the time, 09:54 that now it is high time that we awake out of our sleep. 09:57 For now our salvation is nearer than when we first believed." 10:01 2017 brings us that much closer to the coming of Jesus. 10:05 Amen. 10:08 But what I love about Jesus is this, 10:11 when we serve Him, we don't have to wait 10:13 and guess what happens next. 10:15 Amos 3:7 speaks of this about our Lord, 10:18 and the prophet says, 10:20 "Surely" what word did I just say? 10:22 "Surely the Lord God does nothing 10:24 unless He reveals His secrets to His servants the prophets." 10:28 Amos 3:7, and then John 13:19, this is the words of Jesus, 10:33 here's what He says to us, 10:37 "Now I tell you before it comes," 10:40 when, church? 10:42 "Before it comes, that when it does come to pass, 10:46 you may believe that I am He," you may believe that I am He. 10:51 When we are tuned into God's Word, 10:53 when we study prophecy, 10:55 when we are furnishing our minds 10:56 with the information that we need every day... 10:58 And by the way, it's not just information. 11:00 Let me make it very clear, 11:01 it is God writing His love letter to us every day. 11:06 If He has taken the time to preserve this letter... 11:08 I've heard of the phrase or the word heirlooms, 11:11 anybody know what an heirloom is? 11:13 Something passed on 11:14 from generation to generation to generation, 11:16 and we tend to take a very respectful approach 11:18 to an heirloom because we say 11:19 this belonged to my grandmother, 11:22 and to her mother, and to her mother 11:24 or to my father, and his father, 11:26 and has gone back many generations, 11:28 and when people look it, 11:29 "Don't touch it. It is very delicate. 11:30 It's very, very, very valuable. 11:32 It holds a lot of sentimental value to me." 11:37 But think about God's Word, how many generations 11:40 God has preserved His Word for us to read it today. 11:45 God's Word is more valuable than any heirloom 11:48 that can be passed down from generation to generation. 11:52 Therefore, it requires of us to handle it delicately, 11:57 and to trust it, and to apply to our lives 12:00 because this movie called The Great Controversy, 12:06 this longest running saga is soon, one day, 12:11 to come to a close, 12:13 and I am excited about the end of sin. 12:16 What do you say? 12:20 Let's go ahead and set the climate 12:23 for the sermon. 12:26 In Isaiah 14:13, 12:30 this great controversy sets the scene 12:32 following the opening credits. 12:36 These vein-popping sentiments 12:37 of the main character are revealed to us 12:41 by Isaiah the Prophet 12:42 set against the dark cinematic background of rebellion, 12:46 and we read the following manifesto 12:49 of an angel gone rogue. 12:52 Isaiah says, speaking of Lucifer, 12:56 "For you have said in your heart," 13:00 what did he say, let's read this together, 13:01 "I will," what? 13:03 "Ascend into heaven, 13:04 I will exalt my throne above the stars of God, 13:10 I will also sit on the mount of the congregation 13:14 on the farthest sides of the north, 13:16 I will ascend above the heights of the clouds, I will," what? 13:20 "Be like the Most High." 13:23 When I began to study for this message, 13:26 and the sermon title came to me earlier this week, 13:29 but when I began to study for the message, 13:31 I thought, "Lord, well, 13:32 how can I get the clearest picture 13:34 of how the great controversy is unfolding before me?" 13:37 Now somebody would say, "Read The Great Controversy." 13:39 And that's a big book. 13:41 And I've done that before, 13:42 but how can I get the most condensed version, 13:44 and the Lord led me to a book called Darkness Before Dawn, 13:49 one of Ellen White's, 13:52 praise the Lord for her insights... 14:00 where she unfolds the blueprint 14:05 from in heaven 14:07 to the great controversy extending to earth, 14:10 from the Garden of Eden through the time of the antediluvians, 14:15 to the call of Abraham, to the call of the prophets, 14:19 to the call of the disciples, 14:22 to the development of a New Testament church, 14:23 to the Dark Age, she has shown through inspiration, 14:27 and I praise God for the way 14:29 that the Lord has given her this message, 14:32 she has shown through inspiration 14:34 the many ways that Satan has sought to defeat the church 14:39 from proclaiming the good news. 14:43 And she starts by unfolding to us 14:46 how it began in heaven. 14:48 You see, when Satan made the declaration that, 14:51 "I will ascend, I will exalt, 14:53 I will sit, I will ascend, I will be like..." 14:56 she said he focused himself 15:00 in accomplishing 15:03 against the will of God 15:05 because the news that was spread throughout 15:07 all the unfallen worlds is that God is love. 15:10 Is that God is what? 15:12 That was the good news. 15:13 But Satan asserted that God is not love, 15:15 that God is exacting, God is mean, 15:18 God is vindictive, God is not just. 15:21 And so from the very beginning, 15:23 this rogue angel called Lucifer, now known as Satan... 15:29 he began to advance the assertion 15:32 that although God said He is love, 15:35 the good news, He's not really love, 15:37 and you know the story. 15:38 But Ellen White says in Darkness Before Dawn, 15:41 speaking of his mindset, she says, after he grabbed on 15:45 to the goal of distorting the news 15:48 about the character of God, 15:50 she says in Darkness Before Dawn, 15:52 page 2 and paragraph 3, 15:54 she says, this is powerful, 15:57 "All the powers of his mastermind 16:00 were now bent to the work of deception, 16:04 to secure the sympathy of the angels 16:09 that had been under his command." 16:13 To begin to lay the foundation, he began to amass an army, 16:18 and he began with those angels that were under his command. 16:21 He began to influence them by saying to them 16:24 that what God has said is not really what God is, 16:28 what God has revealed 16:29 is not really the truth about God's character, 16:31 the very same thing he did in the Garden of Eden, 16:33 has God said... 16:35 He asserted the idea that the good news 16:38 about God is not really good news 16:40 but if you just simply listen to me, 16:43 I've got more information about what the news really is. 16:46 And so he sought to amass 16:49 a proclamation that slowly but surely 16:52 began to infect the minds of those 16:57 that were under his command. 17:01 She goes on to say 17:05 the way he did it... 17:07 Listen carefully, this morning you'll be listening 17:09 more than you'll be saying amen. 17:12 Satan had represented that he was wrongly judged 17:17 and that his position was not respected, 17:20 and that his liberty was to be a bridge. 17:22 In other words, 17:23 in other words, 17:24 "Because I've been falsely accused 17:27 and my position disrespected, 17:28 my freedom has been limited," 17:30 I want to say this morning, 17:31 this is something I want to say amen about, 17:33 I am so glad that God limits Satan's activity 17:37 because if He didn't, we wouldn't be here. 17:40 We wouldn't be alive, 17:41 we wouldn't make it to church alive, 17:42 we wouldn't make it through the day alive. 17:44 If God did not have restraints 17:47 on Satan's ability and his desires, 17:49 we would not make it through the day. 17:52 But seeing and understanding the heart of this rogue angel, 17:55 God began to place limits on him. 17:57 And Satan began to poison the minds of the angels 18:00 by saying to them, "I've been falsely accused, 18:03 my position has been disrespected, 18:05 therefore my freedom is being limited by God." 18:09 But what he did not know 18:10 is that the sketchings of his success would become 18:13 the design of his demise. 18:16 He thought he had the mind above God, 18:18 but I want to praise the Lord today 18:19 that there is no mind greater than the mind of God. 18:24 But bear with me this morning as I continue to reveal to you 18:28 as God gave inspiration to this dear saint 18:34 as she unfolded so cleverly 18:36 the way that Satan was able to weave the thought 18:40 that the good news is really fake news. 18:45 She says continuing in Darkness Before Dawn, 18:47 the same page, paragraph three, page two, paragraph three, 18:50 she said, 18:52 "He sought also to make a false issue 18:55 between himself and the loyal angels." 18:59 In other words, those angels that were loyal to God, 19:04 he began to create a tension between Him and them 19:07 because of their loyalty to God. 19:09 And she goes on by saying, 19:11 "All that he could not undermine 19:14 and bring fully to his side, he accused of indifference 19:18 to the interests of heavenly beings." 19:21 In other words, he says, 19:23 "By not following my assertions, 19:25 then you're really not concerned 19:26 about the well-being of all of us. 19:29 If you follow my assertions, 19:30 then my plan would become 19:32 more important than God's plan." 19:39 But she goes on to say, 19:41 "The very work which he himself was doing, 19:44 he charged upon those who remained true to God. 19:48 And to sustain his charge of God's injustice toward him, 19:53 he resorted to misrepresentation 19:55 of the words and acts of the Creator." 20:00 Follow me carefully 20:03 because when you get 20:06 the picture as it is being unfolded to us 20:09 about how artful Satan is, 20:13 you will see even more 20:14 the need for there to be unity among us, 20:19 because if he can get us to be ununified, 20:24 if he can get us to be divided on issues 20:26 that do not amount to eternity, 20:29 he can bring into us 20:32 an atmosphere of division that is, 20:34 in fact, welcomed... 20:40 rather than denounced. 20:44 What God's people need to be today 20:46 more than ever before 20:48 is we need to be a people of unity. 20:51 Amen. 20:53 But we will never be a people of unity 20:54 if we're focusing on politics, 20:56 but we will be a people of unity 20:58 if we're focusing on spirituality. 20:59 Come on, say amen, somebody? 21:01 We will be a people of unity 21:03 if we're focusing on lifting up Christ, 21:06 if we're focusing on presenting the news 21:07 to those who are in darkness. 21:09 There are people all around us. 21:11 We don't have to go to Carbondale. 21:12 We've got thousands of books left, if somebody... 21:16 If you guys said, "After fellowship lunch, 21:18 next Sabbath, Donald, Janelle, 21:20 we're going to go to Thompsonville 21:22 and we're going to saturate Thompsonville 21:24 with material for the kingdom of God." 21:26 Do you know that 21:28 Satan's kingdom will be pushed back 21:30 and the light of God will grow 21:31 brighter and brighter even in this local community? 21:34 Amen. 21:36 Pastor CA was out there, I think Abel was out there, 21:40 Donald, Janelle was out there, Marlena was out there, 21:43 my wife and I were out there. 21:45 When I got to Carbondale, 21:47 I got so excited when I walked into SIU Stadium, 21:49 saw all these people walking around and I thought, 21:51 "Lord, how can I get these books to these people? 21:54 What can I do to get it into their hands?" 21:55 And I start getting excited about it, and I said, 21:57 "You know, 21:59 okay, Lord, give me a different statement 22:00 other than would you like a book." 22:03 "Would you like a book?" 22:05 "Nah." 22:06 "Would you like a book?" 22:08 "What's it about?" "Would you like a book?" 22:09 So the Lord said, 22:11 "John, that approaches does not work." 22:13 So I said, "Okay, Lord, what should I do?" 22:15 And the Lord gave me this, the Lord gave me this, 22:17 Nancy, the Lord gave me this approach, 22:19 He said... 22:21 And so I walked up, 22:22 they had a presentation on science, and astronomy, 22:26 and all the other things 22:27 that were part of the whole weekend. 22:29 And as soon as it was done 22:30 there in the SIU basketball arena, 22:32 people began to file out of the stands 22:35 like water pouring down from a cascading waterfall. 22:39 I mean, people. 22:41 And I said, "Honey, give me your bag of books." 22:44 And I went to the end of the steps, and I said, 22:46 "Did you get your free gift for attending this event? 22:48 Did you get your free gift for attending this event? 22:50 Did you get your free gift? 22:51 Did you get your free gift for attending the event? 22:53 Did you get yours?" 22:54 You know, when you say free gift 22:56 for attending an event, everybody wants one. 22:58 Amen somebody? 22:59 And I finished my bag, I said, "Honey, give me your bag. 23:01 And, Marlena, where can I get more books? 23:03 Give me your bag." 23:04 And Marlena said, "Pastor is on fire." 23:08 And all of a sudden, 23:09 I got excited about being out there 23:11 because when I went out there... 23:12 I'd be very honest with you. 23:14 The devil has a way of making us 23:16 more afraid of people than more in love with Jesus. 23:21 But that spirit is not from God. 23:22 God has not given us the spirit of fear. 23:24 But if you go out there, knowing 23:26 that what you have in your hand 23:27 is the seed of eternal life for somebody 23:30 who is exposed to it. 23:33 But somebody tried to get smart on me. 23:36 They said, "Okay," I said, "Have you seen the book? 23:38 Have you seen the movie 23:39 Hacksaw Ridge produced by Mel Gibson? 23:40 A powerful story." 23:42 He said, "Okay, but why are you giving out the books?" 23:46 And my response was... 23:47 he wasn't going to pull me into that one, 23:49 I said, "A good story is a good story. 23:52 That's why I'm giving it out." 23:55 He said, "All right, I want one. 23:56 Give me another one for somebody I might meet." 24:00 And when I left Carbondale, 24:04 I said, "Lord..." 24:06 Praise God that we got people at Moonstock, 24:10 we got people in Carbondale, 24:12 we have people in this place and that place, 24:16 and the people of God, 24:18 if the people of God 24:23 would draw near to God, 24:25 God will draw near to us. 24:27 If we would resist the devil 24:29 even in politics..." 24:35 Can I get an amen? Amen. 24:37 "Even in politics, if we would resist the devil, 24:43 and resist darkness, and resist politics, 24:47 if we would get excited about spirituality and about Jesus, 24:52 there would be nothing to stop us 24:54 'cause, you know what, the Bible says, 24:55 "When you taste it for yourself and it's good, 24:57 you taste and see that the Lord is good, 24:59 you want somebody else to taste it too." 25:01 Amen. Amen. 25:03 But this... 25:06 I don't know if you got it yet, 25:09 I'm sick of politics. 25:13 I don't care who the former president was 25:15 and who the next president's going to be, 25:18 I got my mind set on Jesus, 25:20 not the White House but the right house 25:24 'cause nobody's going to vote Him out, 25:27 and nobody is going to prevent Him 25:30 from doing all His pleasure. 25:36 But this arch enemy called Lucifer 25:40 kicked out of heaven, renamed Satan, 25:43 that serpent of old called the devil, and Satan, 25:46 his aim from the very beginning is to misrepresent, 25:50 and to thwart, and to skew 25:55 the beauty of the gospel so much so, 25:58 so much so... 26:05 that it is not only not heard from us 26:10 but it's not even seen in the way we live. 26:27 If Satan could deceive 26:29 perfectly royal angels... 26:36 who had not known sin, 26:40 who are in the very presence of Almighty God, 26:44 how much more do we need 26:47 to be in the presence of God every day? 26:51 There's no safety for a moment 26:54 outside of the presence of God. 26:56 When Satan sought to destabilize 26:58 God's government, 26:59 he began to establish new policies. 27:02 Listen, in the book Darkness Before Dawn, 27:04 I was amazed how God used His servants 27:09 to so clearly delineate and articulate 27:12 the movements of the one 27:13 who is seeking to prevent the gospel 27:15 from being reflected in our lives. 27:17 And in just a moment, 27:18 we're going to flip the script in a direction 27:20 that you're not seeing coming. 27:21 But follow me carefully as I continue to unfold 27:24 how Satan works 27:26 to cause the good news 27:30 to be fake news. 27:33 You're going to get so sick of hearing 27:34 the word fake news today, 27:37 you ain't going to want to hear it anymore. 27:39 Amen somebody? 27:41 Darkness Before Dawn, 27:44 listen what Ellen White says about Satan, 27:47 "It was his policy to perplex or confuse the angels 27:52 with subtle arguments concerning the purposes of God. 27:57 Everything that was simple, 27:59 he shrouded or cloaked in mystery, 28:01 and by artful perversion, he cast doubt 28:05 upon the very plainest statements of Jehovah." 28:10 Now let's broaden that. 28:12 Let's broaden that for a moment. 28:14 We know the end of the result. 28:15 We know the result, 28:17 and then I'm going to go to that in a moment, 28:18 but just think about that, 28:20 do you know that that has been happening 28:21 in Christianity ever since the inception of Christianity? 28:25 The truth of God's Word has been perverted, 28:28 has been enshrouded in mystery, has been perplexed 28:32 because the plainest, 28:34 simple teachings of God's Word had been distorted 28:38 to accomplish the intention of kings, 28:41 and leaders, and prelates, and governors, and popes, 28:45 and people that have opposed 28:47 the advance of the gospel in every age. 28:52 That's why even still today, 28:54 when you try to talk to somebody about a doctrine 28:56 that they may not hold in common with you, 28:58 immediately, you're met with suspicion. 29:00 Have you ever noticed that, Donna? 29:03 Almost immediately people threw up their guards. 29:06 They ask, "What church are you a member of?" 29:11 You know, I've been asking now 29:12 instead of what church are you a member of, 29:14 why are you a member of that church. 29:17 It's a different question altogether. 29:19 "Why do you believe that?" 29:23 Whenever the truth of God's Word 29:24 is being labeled as the reason for confusion, 29:27 Satan is behind it. 29:30 But the fact of the matter is there's nothing wrong 29:32 with the Ten Commandments of God. 29:34 What do you say? Nothing wrong with it. 29:36 But when you have churches, listen carefully, 29:38 when you have churches that claim to be connected 29:41 to the good news, 29:43 teaching that the commandments of God are done away with, 29:47 that's fake news. 29:50 But there are millions of Christians today 29:52 that have embraced fake news. 29:54 There are some that even teach the commandments of God. 29:56 Now get this, 29:57 if the commandments of God are done away with, 30:00 nailed to the cross, been taken out of the way, 30:02 then that church that proclaims that message 30:05 has no reason to exist 30:09 because if there's no law, there's no sin. 30:11 If there's no sin, there's no need of a savior. 30:15 So why are you proclaiming salvation 30:16 from something that doesn't even exist? 30:19 It doesn't even make sense. 30:22 There's nothing wrong with the immutability 30:24 of God's Ten Commandments. 30:25 In other words, 30:27 the unchangeable nature of God's commandments 30:29 is founded upon the fact 30:31 that it is a revelation of His very character. 30:35 Nothing wrong with it. 30:37 There's nothing wrong with about... 30:39 There's nothing fake about the Seventh-day Sabbath. 30:42 Amen, Adventists? Amen. 30:48 But almost all the popular TV preachers, 30:51 when they get to the Sabbath command, 30:52 they belittle it. 30:56 They minimize it. 30:58 And then they claim to be 30:59 connected to a government of God 31:01 that does not minimize it, that does not belittle it. 31:05 How can they be connected to good news 31:08 and minimize the good news? 31:10 That's fake news. 31:11 There's nothing wrong 31:13 with the Seventh-day Sabbath of God, 31:14 there's nothing wrong with the truth 31:15 that when we die we are asleep. 31:18 As a matter of fact, to me, 31:19 that's a comforting thing to know that when we die, 31:21 we're sleeping, nobody looking down on me. 31:30 There's nothing fake about the sanctity of marriage, 31:34 but our society has done a job with it. 31:37 There's nothing fake 31:39 about God uniting man and woman of the Garden of Eden. 31:43 There's nothing fake about the truth that God 31:45 only created two genders. 31:49 But today, 31:51 if you look on the Internet, 31:52 they say there's more than 120 different types of genders. 31:58 Don't look. 32:00 If you don't know the truth about that yet, 32:02 please don't go looking. 32:05 There's only two genders. Can the church say, amen? 32:08 Amen. 32:09 But the world in which we live today, 32:10 and the sad fact of that is there are churches 32:13 that are embracing that ideology 32:15 and proclaiming it from their pulpits in America. 32:22 There's nothing fake 32:23 about the literal visible return of Jesus. 32:27 But we all know 32:30 that when this news began to permeate heaven, 32:32 God did not allow the devil to remain there. 32:36 Revelation 12:7, this is good news, 32:39 the Bible says, "And war broke out in heaven, 32:42 Michael and his angels fought with the dragon, 32:45 and the dragon and his angels fought." 32:46 Now when I said see that as good news, 32:49 I read that verse many years ago 32:50 and it says, "The dragon and his angels fought", 32:53 what that meant was even among the angels 32:56 that Satan had chose to bring on his side, 32:59 there was division even among them. 33:03 There's no unity among those that 33:05 refuse to stand firm on good news. 33:10 Every teaching that has ever been advanced 33:13 to undermine the truth of God's Word is fake news. 33:18 When the errors of any position are pointed out 33:21 and the culprits refused to change course, 33:25 he or she is standing on the side of Satan. 33:30 Listen to this, Darkness Before Dawn, 33:32 once again, 33:35 page two, paragraph three, a very short statement, 33:39 "To the very close of the controversy in heaven, 33:42 the great usurper continued to justify himself." 33:47 And we all know too well the result of Satan 33:49 trying to justify himself. 33:51 says it this way, 33:54 "So the great dragon was cast out, 33:58 that serpent of old, called the Devil and Satan, 34:00 who deceives the whole world, he was cast out to the earth, 34:06 and his angels were cast out with him." 34:09 So today, where is Satan and his angels? 34:13 Right here on the earth, 34:15 not in some hole somewhere in Washington D.C., 34:17 or some hole somewhere in the Midwest, 34:18 not in some cavern in South America, 34:21 he is right here and his angels are roaming the earth, 34:24 peppering the minds of leaders of every hue 34:28 in every standing of society, 34:30 whether political or educational. 34:31 That's why today, what's troubling me 34:33 is you have atheism on one side, 34:38 you have Hinduism, Buddhism, Islam, Judaism, 34:41 all these isms that all eject Jesus from the scenario... 34:49 and people entertain these isms. 34:53 You cannot find light in darkness. 34:56 People entertain these isms, 34:58 and then they look at Christianity 35:00 and wonder what's wrong. 35:02 Let me say something you hear, 35:04 in a world where there's so much darkness, 35:07 the church ought to be the place 35:09 where the light of God is continuing 35:11 to shine brighter and brighter, 35:13 through the lives of those claiming 35:16 to be connected to Jesus who is the light of the world. 35:21 But it's hard to find that. 35:24 That's why I'm no longer... 35:25 When I meet people, 35:26 I'm no longer ashamed to tell them, 35:28 I carry my booklet with me, 35:30 your friends at Seventh-day Adventist, 35:31 I want people... 35:32 "You know, if I don't meet you again, 35:34 if I don't meet you again, 35:35 I'm going to make sure my single meeting with you... 35:37 If I don't meet you again, 35:39 I'm going to make sure my single meeting with you 35:41 will give you what you need to hopefully find the truth 35:46 and find Jesus." 35:49 When I used to travel on the road... 35:55 Now it's full-time 35:58 in traveling music with the heritage singers, 36:01 I used to cause trouble. 36:05 I go to Sunday churches 36:07 and pass out the Great Controversy 36:09 after the concert. 36:15 It would have been nice if you said amen, 36:16 but that's okay. 36:19 Somebody pulled me aside and said, 36:20 "Now do you know that that book teaches everything 36:23 that this church is against?" 36:25 I said, "That's why I gave it to the pastor." 36:30 Amen? Amen. 36:32 Because he needs the truth too. 36:34 Why do we fear people more than we fear darkness? 36:39 It's almost like we're saying, 36:40 "Okay, Lord, I'm not going to bother him. 36:44 He's comfortable in his religion. 36:46 I'm not going to take time to give the truth to him. 36:48 I'll let the devil have him. 36:50 I don't want to upset his church." 36:51 No, I want to upset everybody's church, 36:56 including ours. 36:57 Amen. 37:01 Because in the final analysis, we need to see that the work 37:04 that God has called us to do will lead somebody, 37:08 not just by television and by radio 37:12 but by one-to-one contact, 37:15 we will allow the Lord to use us 37:17 to lead somebody, unashamedly, 37:20 to the light of the Word of God, 37:22 to the good news in a terrible generation. 37:30 Now let me transition. 37:35 I got 16 minutes. 37:38 Don't time me. 37:46 The distortion of good news began with one angel. 37:49 How many did I say? One. 37:51 And the other angels, 37:56 the other angels, 37:57 if they had only chosen to investigate 38:03 what Satan had suggested, 38:06 they would not have become victims of his fake news, 38:11 if they'd only chosen to investigate. 38:15 And so if that's not disturbing enough, 38:18 the fact of the matter is, 38:20 good news doesn't cease to be good news 38:23 because one person said it. 38:26 But the Angels chose not to investigate 38:31 what was being said, 38:32 and the alarming reality is 38:35 the one that claims that the good news is fake news 38:37 and the one that believes that the good news is fake news 38:40 does not remove the culpability of either party. 38:44 Both parties, 38:48 Satan and his angels, 38:53 are not only guilty 38:55 but they both share the same fate, 38:57 one for the development of the lie 39:00 and the other one for the acceptance of the lie. 39:05 Let me show you how I know that. 39:06 Luke 6:39, look at that very quickly with me. 39:10 The verdict is unmistakable, the verdict is unmistakable. 39:15 I can tell you how many controversies I've had. 39:18 I don't want to tell you the different denominations. 39:20 I don't want to do that. 39:21 But I've had people that would argue with me 39:24 to the chickens go to sleep, 39:26 is it the chickens that go to sleep, 39:28 which ones go to sleep? 39:30 Any whichever ones go to sleep, 39:32 going to have them in New York anyway, 39:33 but they'll argue with me till the sun goes down, 39:36 as they're looking at the plain statements in God's Word, 39:39 they'll argue what's clearly being revealed in God's Word. 39:42 But whether you call it fake news 39:45 or whether you accept it as fake news, 39:47 notice the unmistakable verdict that Jesus points out. 39:52 He said in Luke 6:39, 39:55 "And He spoke a parable to them," 39:57 and He said this, 39:59 "Can the blind lead the blind? 40:03 Will they not both fall into the ditch?" 40:07 Can the blind lead the blind? Yes or no? 40:10 Yes? 40:14 Of course, they can. 40:17 But if they both can't see, 40:18 what's going to happen to both of them? 40:22 The last person you'd cross the street with you 40:26 when you can't see is a person that can't see. 40:28 Come on. 40:31 Am I right? 40:33 So can the blind lead the blind? 40:34 Yes. 40:36 Of course, they can. 40:37 But can they lead them safely? 40:39 No. 40:41 That's the suggestion of Jesus, they cannot lead them safely. 40:43 But blind folk are leading blind folk, 40:45 there is pompous all over America 40:47 with blind preachers. 40:49 Can I tell it like it is? 40:52 You got to be blind to look at God's Word 40:56 and preach something completely different 40:58 and have 30,000 people saying amen every week. 41:07 But the fact of the matter is no one can be made blind 41:12 apart from his or her own choice. 41:15 Matthew 13:15, 41:17 Matthew 13:15, look very carefully with me. 41:24 And by the way, it took centuries 41:26 and millennia to get this world where it is today. 41:30 People today... 41:31 What frustrates me, 41:33 and I'm going to peek into this little valley very quickly, 41:35 what frustrates me more than anything else 41:37 about this present climate in which America finds itself 41:41 is people have buckled down in one camp or the other, 41:45 and all I have to do is let my leaders say it, 41:48 on this side of my leader, they say it on that side, 41:50 and we swallow it hook, line, and sinker 41:53 without studying for ourselves. 41:56 But I was raised in grade school, 41:59 and I remember the story of the Sky is Falling. 42:02 You remember that? 42:04 The lion said what? 42:06 "The sky is falling." 42:09 And because the lion said the sky is falling, 42:10 what everybody think? 42:12 The sky was... And they all ran. 42:13 I forgot what the chicken or whatever duck 42:15 or whatever animal it was, 42:16 it said, "The sky is not falling." 42:18 If we would only investigate for ourselves, 42:20 we will discover. 42:21 But you cannot be made blind without your choice. 42:23 Matthew 13:15, the Bible says, "For the hearts of this people 42:26 have grown dull. 42:29 Their ears are hard of hearing, and their eyes," 42:33 what, "they have closed, 42:37 lest they should see with their eyes 42:40 and hear with their ears, 42:42 lest they should," what, 42:44 "understand with their hearts and turn, 42:46 so that I should heal them." 42:50 People that have been led to investigate the Word of God 42:55 have come out free, 42:59 have come out joyful, 43:02 have come out delivered, 43:04 have come out excited, 43:06 and some of you are here today. 43:09 Can you say amen? Amen. 43:11 There are some of you that would not be here 43:14 had you not investigated the Word of God. 43:17 There's some of you that were raised 43:19 where the leaders were blind and did not even know it. 43:22 There were some of you that were raised, 43:23 that were continually blind until the Lord and His mercy 43:26 chose not to let you go until He opened your eyes, 43:30 and you're here today. 43:33 But don't let being here today 43:36 make you comfortable 43:39 with the status quo. 43:40 If God led you out, let me rephrase that, 43:43 because God led you out of darkness 43:46 into this marvelous light, 43:48 pray that God could use you to lead somebody else 43:51 out of darkness into this marvelous light. 43:54 Amen? Amen. 43:55 It is this settlement. 44:00 See, the thing that makes my skin itch, 44:05 it is this comfort with the status quo, 44:09 with this idea that we got the message, 44:11 that we got the truth. 44:12 What I want is for the truth to get us, 44:17 that we know the Sabbath, and the commandments, 44:19 and the 28 fundamentals, and we got the right diet 44:21 and right day of worship. 44:23 O brethren, what I want more than anything else 44:25 is for us to be so right with Jesus 44:27 that we cannot wait to tell somebody else 44:31 about how good it is. 44:34 Don't get settled in the restaurant, 44:36 go out and pass out flyers, and say to the people, 44:38 "This is the place you want to come and eat. 44:39 This is where the good news is. 44:41 This is where the good food is." 44:42 Don't be comfortable as an Adventist, 44:44 be uncomfortable that there's somebody 44:46 who does not know the good news that Jesus has revealed to you. 44:53 And when we don't do that... 44:59 we lose the qualities of the New Testament church. 45:03 Acts 17:11, 45:05 notice the qualities of a person 45:07 whose mind is led by God, 45:09 the qualities of a person whose mind is led by God... 45:17 the Bible says, "These were more fair-minded 45:20 than those in Thessalonica," why? 45:22 Those in Thessalonica didn't search the scriptures, 45:26 they accepted whatever they heard, 45:29 "in that they received the Word of God with all," what, 45:32 "readiness," 45:33 and what did they do, church? 45:35 "They searched the scriptures," how often? 45:37 "Daily to find out whether these things were so." 45:43 They didn't say, 45:44 "The preacher said it, so I believe it." 45:47 They said, "Let's check out the preacher to see 45:50 whether what he says is believable." 45:54 And that's how the New Testament church grew, 45:56 what has happened 45:57 to cause the development of the New Testament church 46:00 is what needs to happen today. 46:02 The people of God need to be 46:03 searching the scriptures of God daily 46:06 to see whether the things that are being said 46:09 are in fact founded on the reliable Word of God. 46:14 But now I wind up. 46:16 What does this have to do 46:20 with the opening scripture? 46:27 The opening scripture, we saw four leprous men, 46:31 four leprous men, 46:33 halted between life and death. 46:40 They were in famine, before them was certain death. 46:46 But in summary of the story, God not only delivered them 46:51 from the sentence of death 46:54 but at the point of their lowest hopelessness, 46:58 the Lord furnished everything that they needed. 47:04 When I read this story, 47:05 I saw myself in it. 47:07 I had done a sermon about the four leprous 47:09 before but I saw it differently this time 47:11 because, you know what, 47:12 when God delivers you 47:13 from the certainty of death 47:16 and God begins to provide everything 47:18 that you are in need of, that's the kind of God 47:21 that you can fall in love with. 47:22 Can somebody say amen? Amen. 47:25 Four leprous men can't go back, there's nothing there, 47:28 can't go forward, I'm going to die, 47:30 so why sit here, they said, 47:32 "Why do we sit here till we die? 47:34 Let's do something." 47:36 So they decided, church, they decided to stop sitting. 47:41 They decided to stop sitting. 47:45 So here they are, leprous, cannot feel anything, 47:48 numb fingers, flesh fallen off, 47:50 don't even know when it falls off, 47:52 have no feeling whatsoever, 47:53 but they decided to get up and start moving. 47:55 And when they decided to get up and start moving, 48:01 then God moved in their behalf. 48:06 And their bad news became good news 48:09 because the Bible made it clear, 48:11 when they got up to move, 48:13 the Lord says, "Okay, now that you're going to move, 48:15 I'm going to move." 48:16 You see, God doesn't move when we don't move. 48:24 God caused there to be a noise, and the army of the Syrians, 48:27 and the camp of the Syrians, and they heard horses 48:30 and chariots, and they thought 48:31 that outside of the walls of their camp 48:33 was a massive army ready to devour them. 48:36 But I want to tell you, 48:37 God can create any scenario 48:39 to defeat the enemy 48:41 that comes up against His people. 48:43 So there they are, only four leprous men, 48:46 no great army, 48:47 four leprous men, 48:48 and they went into the camp of the Syrians, 48:50 and they found gold, and silver, and food, 48:53 and garments, and changes of clothing, 48:56 everything they needed, God supplied. 48:58 But here's the key, 49:00 God only moved when they decided to move. 49:08 Up until that point, they had accepted the fake news 49:10 that they can't do anything to change their situation. 49:13 Let me tell you something, it's fake news. 49:15 We can do something to change our situation. 49:19 We got to move and let God move in our behalf. 49:21 And the Bible says, they got... 49:23 But then what happened, all of a sudden, 49:24 in the midst of God providing their needs, 49:26 they became so absorbed, 49:28 they became so absorbed, in all their blessings, 49:33 they became so absorbed in all their blessings, 49:35 you got to read the story 49:36 for yourself in 2 Kings chapter 7, 49:38 they became so absorbed, Pastor CA, 49:41 that they hid the good news. 49:47 Put all of my veggie, meat in this tent, 49:51 put all my Sabbath school lessons in this tent, 49:54 put my Spirit of Prophecy writings 49:56 in this tent. 49:58 They began to hide everything God gave them, 50:02 and somebody said, 50:03 "Wait a minute, wait a minute, wait a minute. 50:06 We are not doing what's right." 50:10 Brothers and sisters, as I close this morning, 50:14 if we hide what God has given to us, 50:20 we ain't doing right. 50:24 This is a day of good news. 50:27 We cannot hold our peace, we cannot remain silent, 50:30 if we wait until the morning light, 50:32 punishment will come upon us. 50:34 Now therefore, come let us go and tell the king's house, 50:37 let's go and tell the king's household, 50:40 they got up, and they turned 50:43 from the sediment of their own lives, 50:47 from the sedentary practices 50:48 of their daily inability to move, 50:51 God covered them with His glory, 50:53 and all He wanted them to do 50:55 is go reflect that glory, 50:58 but they began to hide it. 51:00 It is too late for us to hide the Advent message. 51:03 Amen. 51:05 If we hide it, it becomes fake news. 51:07 If we reveal it, it becomes good news, 51:08 but even more than just the good news that is revealed. 51:14 My last three quotations... 51:19 In 1911, Ellen White wrote in letter number 44, 51:22 she said, 51:24 "The world is waiting," 51:26 listen, "The world is waiting to hear 51:30 the last message of warning to be given to man." 51:36 They're waiting. 51:37 Who's going to share it? 51:40 Those to whom it's been given, us. 51:44 The world is waiting 51:45 but what is the last message of warning? 51:48 Christ's Object Lessons, page 415, paragraph 5, 51:52 "The last rays of merciful light, 51:56 the last message to be given to the world 51:59 that they're waiting to hear 52:01 is a revelation of His character of love. 52:05 The children of God are to manifest His glory. 52:10 In their own life and character, 52:13 they are to reveal what the grace of God 52:16 has done for them." 52:18 Amen. 52:22 So now let me hit you, and I'm a duck. 52:25 If the good news is not being reflected in our lives, 52:29 we are declaring fake news. 52:33 If we are not searching the scriptures, 52:36 we will never know the good news. 52:37 If we are talking it but not walking it, 52:40 our religion is fake news. 52:41 If we are studying it but not living it, 52:44 it's fake news. 52:45 If we are singing it but not showing it, 52:47 it is fake news. 52:49 If we are saying it and not practicing it, 52:51 it is fake news. 52:53 We have got to get to the place as a people 52:57 that we have to not allow the enemy 52:59 to keep us sidetracked and divided 53:03 and enamored with the things of this world 53:05 while the world is waiting to see 53:07 what the good news of Christ has done in our lives. 53:11 Now why is that important? 53:14 Here's the last quote, 53:15 Christ's Object Lessons, page 69, paragraph 1, 53:18 I don't have sermons with a ton of quotes from Ellen White, 53:21 but this is very important today, 53:24 servant of God says, 53:25 "Christ is waiting with longing desire 53:28 for the manifestation of Himself and His church. 53:31 When the character of Christ 53:34 shall be perfectly reproduced in His people, 53:37 then He will come to claim them as His own." 53:42 Amen. 53:44 You're wasting your time in fake news, 53:46 let's get together 53:47 and start sharing the good news. 53:49 Come on, somebody, say amen. Amen. 53:50 The good news, Jesus is coming again. 53:52 The good news, He forgives our sins 53:55 and cleanses us from all unrighteousness. 53:57 The good news, 53:58 He is a God that still delivers. 54:00 The good news, 54:01 He will provide all of our need according to His riches. 54:04 The good news, He'll fight our battles for us. 54:07 The good news, that even though you may get sick and may die, 54:10 there is a resurrection. 54:12 The good news, 54:14 that's what this world needs, 54:15 got enough fake news, 54:18 got enough politicizing, 54:20 let's get back to the call 54:21 that God has placed on our lives. 54:22 Forget about all that junk in Washington, 54:26 and talk about what's happening in the New Jerusalem, 54:28 talk about what's taking place in heaven, 54:29 the angels are hastening back and forth, 54:31 finishing the work that God has appointed for them, 54:34 and soon He will come, we cannot be caught off guard 54:37 with bad news, fake news. 54:40 We've got to be busy proclaiming 54:42 the good news of Jesus. 54:45 And so, Heavenly Father, this morning, 54:47 Your people are standing in this confusing, divided, 54:53 in this quagmire of politics 54:57 and diluted religion, 55:00 there is a people called to reflect the good news, 55:05 to proclaim the good news, 55:08 to tell the good news. 55:12 But, Lord, the enemy has come in even to our camp. 55:17 And he's put a wall before us 55:20 and a depressing situation behind us, 55:22 and he's made us 55:24 and our sin feel that there is no hope. 55:26 But, Lord Jesus, You've told us this morning, 55:28 if we move, You will move. 55:32 So, Father, help us to move that 55:34 You may move in our behalf, 55:36 that You will show Yourself strong 55:39 in behalf of those whose hearts are loyal to You. 55:43 May the only party we choose be a righteous party, 55:47 a godly party, a heavenly party, 55:53 the party where the cross of Christ still abides, 55:57 where the blood of Jesus was shed, 56:00 where salvation is still available 56:02 for hopeless and fallen humanity. 56:05 May we go forth to unashamedly proclaim that 56:09 to our neighbors and friends, 56:11 but even more than just the hand movements 56:13 and our voice, 56:15 may the good news be reflected in 56:17 and through our lives. 56:19 This is our prayer and we ask this for Your glory. 56:24 In Jesus' name, we pray, and all of God's people said... 56:27 Amen. Amen and amen. |
Revised 2018-07-16