Participants: John Lomacang
Series Code: AOT
Program Code: AOT000035
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00:12 Welcome to Anchors Of Truth
00:14 live from the 3ABN Worship Center. 00:17 Last Day Events with John Lomacang. 00:23 Hello friends and welcome to the final meeting of our series 00:26 entitled, Last Day Events. 00:28 Thank you for tuning in again here to southern Illinois 00:31 to the 3ABN Worship Center, also the church that I pastor. 00:35 And so I'm doubly blessed to be able to be in my own pulpit 00:38 and have my congregation here. 00:40 And we thank you that you are a part of our extended 00:43 congregation, as either by internet, by radio, 00:46 by satellite, whatever medium you tune in to hear what 00:49 God has to say to your heart. 00:51 This final message is entitled, The Final Act. 00:54 A few nights ago on Wednesday, we began with 00:56 The Final Countdown. 00:57 Then Thursday, The Final Stage. Friday, The Final Coalition. 01:01 This morning, The Final Apostasy. 01:04 And this afternoon, combining the remainder of that, 01:07 The Final Act. 01:09 And we thank the Lord for how He has led. 01:11 We pray that you'll invite your friends. 01:13 If there's someone running around the living room 01:15 or in your space, just pull them aside and 01:18 invite them to sit down. 01:20 And if you've missed any of the presentations, very soon 01:22 the entire series will be available through 3abn.org, 01:26 all five presentations packaged on a DVD. 01:30 We encourage you to get those, along with others. 01:32 Pastor Jim Gilley did a series. 01:35 We have a number of others that if you'd like to look at 01:36 our library and see how God is using this ministry to get 01:40 the gospel forward to the world. 01:42 As we believe Jesus is soon to come. 01:44 But right now, I'd like to invite you to bow your heads 01:46 with me as we ask for the Lord's presence and His Holy Spirit 01:49 to lead in this message. 01:51 Let us pray. 01:53 Our heavenly Father, thank You so much that the Word 01:58 that You've entrusted to us and have preserved 02:00 to this day and age, is a reliable Word. 02:04 We thank You for the inspiration we receive from it, 02:07 and we thank You so much for the guidance 02:10 it has given to our lives. 02:12 We pray for those that are tuning in to this program, 02:15 whatever the medium may be. 02:16 Cause their ears to hear and their eyes to see 02:20 and their hearts to listen for the voice of Your Holy Spirit. 02:24 We know the content sometimes can be strong, 02:27 but Father, it's done in love that someone may find the truth, 02:32 may find Jesus and walk in the path leading to eternal life. 02:37 So bless these messages. 02:38 We pray in Christ's name, amen. 02:45 My wife gave me a really really good lunch today. 02:50 It doesn't seem like a very beginning story, 02:52 but it fits in a wonderful way. 02:54 I was so tired and my energy level was low. 02:58 But there's nothing like a really good meal when 03:00 you need nourishment. 03:02 And in the very same way, there are many in our world 03:07 that are hungry, that are undernourished spiritually. 03:13 But in this day and age, the bread of life 03:15 is still available. 03:17 And so what I've been using every meeting, and I continue 03:20 to use for our foundation, is the Word of God. 03:23 There is no better food than the food you find 03:25 in the Word of God. 03:27 And so I want to encourage you to open your Bibles, 03:30 if you have it. 03:31 If you don't have your Bibles, you can look to the screen. 03:33 I thank the Lord for a faithful crew that has made sure 03:37 that everything you need to see and hear is brought your way. 03:41 A very powerful passage in the book of Matthew. 03:45 It's amazing that right before Matthew 24:14 is a passage 03:49 that kind of fits into the way that the Lord has blessed me 03:52 through my wife's very good cooking today. 03:54 It says, "He that shall endure to the end shall be..." 03:58 What's the next word? "...shall be saved." 04:00 We need spiritual nourishment to endure to the end, 04:05 to make it across the finish line, 04:08 to make it to the goal line, 04:10 to get that last shot off in the basketball game. 04:13 We need endurance to run that last mile. 04:16 As one of my faithful elders, Dick Hutchinson, who was my 04:19 elder in California and also for a time here in Thompsonville. 04:22 One day he called me and he said, "I'll be running 04:24 over to your house, I have something for you to sign." 04:26 And I went to the front door and there he was. 04:28 He ran to the house and ran all the way back. 04:32 And I think he's circled the globe about 4 or 5 times, 04:35 all the running he's done. 04:36 But you know, friends, all that running is of no value 04:38 unless we endure to the end. 04:39 Can you say amen. 04:40 So we are at the end, the finish line in these last days. 04:44 And the Lord is saying, "He that shall endure 04:47 to the end shall be saved." 04:49 But He follows that with a very profound scripture. 04:53 The world is not going to end with a nuclear explosion 04:56 or a massive extinction level event earthquake. 05:01 It's going to end on the highest and most positive 05:04 note of the ages. 05:06 Matthew 24:14 reads as follows. 05:28 Jesus is going to have the last word. 05:33 The message that He has given us will be delivered 05:38 before His return. 05:40 Jesus is the winner. 05:43 He's going to have the final say. 05:44 The world is not going to end on Satan's terms. 05:47 It's going to end on Christ's terms. 05:49 Can you say amen to that. 05:51 But also, this is an hour where Satan has really 05:54 turned up the heat. 05:56 Everybody is feeling it. 05:58 Whether you are wealthy or whether you are poor. 06:01 Just recently, I think during this week, more than 1600 homes 06:05 were destroyed in Texas. 06:08 The fires didn't care what the person's financial status was. 06:12 Destruction comes to the wealthy and to the poor. 06:15 When earthquakes come and wipe out homes, 06:17 and tornados come and wipe out people's life savings 06:19 and their life work, when stock markets because of a financial 06:23 earthquake wipe out the very thing people are hoping to 06:25 one day collect on, it doesn't really care what 06:28 category you fall in. 06:29 That's why this is the age where we have to trust the Lord 06:33 and look to Him as the author and the finisher of our faith. 06:35 Jesus will have the last word. 06:37 But it is in this hour He says these words to us 06:40 from a man who knows what it's like to be sifted by the devil. 06:45 Listen to what Peter says. 1 Peter 5 and verse 8. 06:49 I think this is kind of personal for Peter 06:51 because it happened to him. 06:53 He begins with two words. 07:09 We were down in Botswana two years in a row; 07:13 earlier this year and also last year. 07:16 And we had a chance to see a lioness 07:19 and her two baby lions. 07:21 It was the most exciting thing because it was the 07:23 first time I saw a lion that was not in a cage. 07:26 As a matter of fact, I was in the cage. 07:30 I was the one that needed protection from her. 07:34 But the person doing the tour said, "Don't worry about it, 07:36 her stomach is full. 07:37 And lions don't kill unless they're hungry, 07:40 or they feel that they're being threatened 07:42 and that their safety is in jeopardy, 07:44 or that you may be between them and their cubs." 07:49 And so we had a chance. 07:50 I trained my Canon on her, that is, my camera, 07:53 and put it on high speed mode and took about 35 or 40 shots. 07:58 And I could almost paste them together to make somewhat of an 08:01 old fashioned movie of the continued strides of that lion. 08:05 But I had to respect the ability which that lion has. 08:08 Because it may be quiet, but it's still a man eater. 08:11 You may not hear Satan in your life, you may not directly 08:15 feel the heat of what's happening in these last days, 08:17 but we cannot forget that he is a roaring lion 08:20 seeking whom he may devour. 08:21 And the reason why she didn't bother us is because she 08:24 devoured something before she saw us. 08:27 But Daniel makes it clear. 08:31 And the question is not whether or not Satan is devouring. 08:34 The real question is, what is he devouring? 08:37 Listen to the words of Daniel the prophet 08:39 in Daniel 8 and verse 12. 08:41 Speaking of the enemy, he says: 08:52 In other words, Satan put a lot of good jabs in there. 08:57 He may have hit Christ and he may have wounded Christ. 09:00 But in the very end, Jesus is going to win the match. 09:03 Throughout the ages, Satan fights as a warrior 09:07 committed to a plan. 09:09 He cast the truth down to the ground 09:12 and for a short time it seemed as though he prospered. 09:14 But in the end, Jesus always comes out victoriously. 09:20 We're living in the day and age where truth is being 09:22 cast to the ground. 09:23 It's not being cast to the ground unintentionally. 09:25 It's being cast to the ground intentionally. 09:28 A lot of churches don't want to teach the truth. 09:32 You go to YouTube and just type in the word "Sabbath" 09:35 and you will see the plethora of videos that come up. 09:38 Many of them mocking and belittling the Bible Sabbath. 09:43 Many of them laughing at those who keep the Sabbath. 09:47 And then pastors stand in their pulpit and say, 09:50 "I honor the seventh day of the week. 09:52 I keep it holy and I keep Sunday holy. 09:55 And I keep Monday holy, and I keep Tuesday holy." 09:58 And the thousands of their church members 10:00 to the glee of their foolishness begin to applaud them 10:03 in their determination to resist the truth of God's word. 10:07 Truth is being cast to the ground. 10:09 Truth is not being preferred. 10:11 People want to feel good. 10:12 They want great choirs and great programs 10:14 and great community outreach. 10:15 Those are good things, nothing bad about that. 10:17 But when they are preferred over the truth of God's word, 10:20 that's where the danger comes in. 10:22 Truth is being cast to the ground. 10:25 It is this age that the Lord says to us; 10:27 the dark age for the world, but this should be a bright age 10:31 for the church. 10:32 And here's the reason why. 10:34 1 Thessalonians chapter 5 verse 1 to verse 6. 10:39 The Lord says to us: 10:53 We've got so much knowledge. 10:55 You know if you study the Bible, all these things happening 10:58 in the world are not coming to you by surprise. 11:01 If you read prophecy, all these things are not a shock. 11:03 I think one song writer says, "It may be another earthquake 11:07 or just another war. 11:09 But to every child of God, it's something more. 11:12 When you hear the sound of marching, 11:14 hear the sound of the battle cry, 11:16 we know our Lord is coming, even now it may be nigh." 11:20 So when we see all these things in the world, 11:22 it's saying to us, "Jesus is on His way." 11:24 Just like when you see a dust cloud in the distance 11:26 in the desert, you know something is coming your way. 11:28 In the very same way, Paul the apostle says 11:31 "I don't really have any reason to write to you. 11:33 You are the church. You should know. 11:35 It's the world that's in darkness." 11:36 Look at verse 2. 11:46 Not to the Christian, but to the world. 11:49 And this is not the secret rapture. 11:51 But it comes upon them because they're not prepared for it. 12:13 All those books we have on the shelf; The Great Controversy, 12:16 Conflict series, Bible commentaries, 12:18 all the books we have, we are not in darkness. 12:20 We know what's coming. 12:21 As a matter of fact, I said this to my wife just 12:23 I think a day or so ago. 12:25 I said, "Seventh-day Adventists could literally publish in the 12:27 newspaper predictions of what's going to happen in the future. 12:30 And it will happen exactly as we say." 12:34 Because God has given us a glimpse, an understanding 12:39 of Bible prophecy that no other denomination has. 12:44 So we could publish something and say, "Here's what's going to 12:46 happen in the government. 12:48 Here's what's going to happen in the Protestant world. 12:50 Here's what's going to happen as it relates to the Sunday law." 12:53 And it will occur as we've said it. 12:55 And you know what? 12:56 We ought to do that because every now and then 12:58 when something happens, evangelicals come out 13:01 of the woodwork, "This is the battle of Armageddon." 13:02 I remember that very well, 1990, when the Gulf War began. 13:06 They all said, "This is the battle of Armageddon." 13:07 And one news reporter said... 13:09 I think I used this story in my first meeting. 13:11 But one news reporter said, "If you knew that the battle of 13:14 Armageddon was coming, why didn't you tell us 13:17 before it came so that we could be ready?" 13:21 We can honestly, as a church, write pages upon pages 13:26 of events that will unfold in the future 13:28 and be exactly accurate. 13:31 Not all the details, but the end result. 13:34 Amen. 13:36 But he continues. 13:58 Another phrase, "Watch and be ready," is another way. 14:02 Satan opposes the truth. 14:03 And the reason he does that, friends, is because it is the 14:06 means whereby his hold is broken. 14:10 Satan creates a diversion so that he can keep people 14:13 in his grip, so that he can keep them shackled. 14:16 He fights against the truth because it is the means 14:19 whereby his hold is broken. 14:22 Satan has established strongholds. 14:26 And I go so far as saying he's established many strongholds 14:29 even in the Christian world. 14:31 The Bible predicted that he would do that. 14:34 The Bible said that there will be those who feel that they are 14:38 rich and increased with goods and have need of nothing, 14:40 but they don't understand their own condition; 14:42 wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked. 14:44 That's not the world. 14:45 Do you know that the world doesn't have to change? 14:47 The world is already on the course to be lost. 14:52 But the danger is in the church, the place where light is. 14:56 The devil is not concerned about somebody 14:58 that's not shooting at him. 14:59 He's not concerned about those who are sitting as a fan 15:01 at a baseball game. 15:03 He's concerned about the opposing team. 15:04 We are the opposing team. 15:06 And once you get on the Lord's side, 15:08 the devil is always against you. 15:09 And Jesus said, "He that is not with Me..." is what? 15:12 ...against Me." 15:13 "He that's not gathering with Me is scattering abroad." 15:18 So wherever there is darkness, the truth is, 15:22 the prince of darkness is at work. 15:25 He resists the truth. 15:28 And even those who resist the truth, the reason is clearly 15:31 outlined by Paul the apostle. 15:33 Look what Timothy wrote in 2 Timothy 3 verses 7 to 9. 15:37 This is one of those passages that we often ignore 15:40 because it doesn't fit into the... 15:43 You know, "Unthankful, unholy, without natural affection, 15:45 disobedient to parents." 15:46 It doesn't fit into that category. 15:48 It fits into one that we often overlook. 15:51 But it pulls us back to a story in the old testament. 15:56 When Moses was resisted by two magicians 15:59 in the courts of Egypt. 16:01 How they were able to turn two rods into snakes 16:04 right in the presence of Moses. 16:07 And although it's not mentioned in detail in the Old Testament, 16:13 Timothy now brings it to our mind again in the New. 16:16 Notice what he says. 16:17 He begins in verse 7 by saying, "Always learning." 16:28 You know, you can study the Bible for the rest of your life 16:30 and ignore all the things that lead you to truth. 16:33 You can read the book of Psalms everyday 16:36 and ignore the things that are critical issues 16:37 in the Christian walk. 16:39 He says in verse 8: 17:05 Ellen White says in the book, Patriot And Prophets, 17:07 she says Jannes and Jambres did not possess the ability 17:12 to give life to sticks. 17:15 And Satan does not have the ability to turn sticks into 17:20 something that is alive. 17:21 Only God can give life. 17:23 But she said this, and this is powerful. 17:26 She says, but he's the master illusionist 17:29 and he creates in the minds of those who yield to him 17:33 things that only they can see. 17:37 He created in the minds of those that he had captive, 17:42 they saw his illusions. 17:45 It pulled them in, it didn't pull Moses in. 17:47 He didn't get fooled by it because he was protected 17:50 by the truth of God's word. 17:51 So he was able to create an illusion. 17:53 And what's happening in the Christian world today; 17:55 people can look at error, and through illusions 17:59 it looks like the truth. 18:03 That's why they pull those text out, "to be absent from the body 18:05 is to be present with the Lord." 18:07 What about all the other verses that say, 18:08 "the dead know not anything." 18:11 "They're in the grave waiting for the second resurrection." 18:12 What about all those text? 18:13 They pull out one little verse and build an 18:16 entire cathedral around that. 18:17 And people look at that every time somebody dies, 18:19 "Well, they're present with the Lord." 18:22 Have you heard that a billion times? 18:23 "They're in heaven now." 18:25 And I always say, "On what verse, can you give me 18:27 one text outside of Elijah and all those special ones 18:30 that God called to heaven?" 18:31 There's not any passage in the Bible that says, 18:33 "Well now, he's in heaven now." 18:39 But the reason why it says their progress will go no further 18:42 is they will succeed for a time, but because of their corrupt 18:47 minds, sooner or later who they are will really be seen. 18:51 That's why there are so many Christian leaders that 18:53 are being unmasked. 18:54 So many of them are falling because their minds are corrupt. 18:57 And when you are not protected by the grace of God, 18:59 you will fall eventually. 19:01 And all will see, as it says, "Their folly will be 19:04 manifest for all." 19:05 Everybody will see who they really were, 19:09 what was really behind the messages that they preached. 19:12 But if you think about it, the final condition 19:15 of the final piece brings the final act into focus. 19:19 But the final piece to the final coalition took time to develop. 19:24 Corrupt leaders were able to hide the light 19:26 during the dark ages. 19:28 Light that is hidden does not add up to light 19:31 that is extinguished. 19:35 There's a passage in the Bible, 19:36 "What is hidden in the dark shall... 19:44 ...shall come to light." 19:45 If it's in the dark, it's going to come to light. 19:47 What was hidden during the dark ages came to light. 19:52 Look at Revelation 12 verses 13 and 14, 19:54 what God did to preserve the truth. 19:56 During the dark ages, God preserved the light. 19:59 How did He do it? 20:00 The devil went after His woman and God protected His woman; 20:04 that is, the church. 20:05 Revelation 12 verse 13. 20:27 If you read European history, you'll find the Waldensians 20:30 found their security in the mountains and in the rocks 20:33 of Europe; in the Alps of the Swiss 20:36 and the Austrian portions of Northern Europe. 20:39 They found their safety there. 20:41 God hid them in the dens and the rocks of the mountains 20:44 and the truth was preserved. 20:46 They would duplicate passages of the Bible 20:48 and they would come to the towns and walk past other people and 20:51 just simply slide them the page that was 20:53 completed the night before. 20:54 And the truth of God continued to grow. 20:56 The Waldensians. 20:57 That was the beginning stages of what was looked back on as 21:01 the Protestant Reformation. 21:02 Although it did not begin until the 1500's. 21:04 God always had a people in every age that stood up against error. 21:09 And the reason why they succeeded, 21:11 the reason why they survived, is Matthew 16 and verse 18. 21:15 Look there with me. 21:16 The Lord guaranteed the survival of His church. 21:19 He said: 21:24 "Peter" is a word that means "pebble." 21:36 I am so glad that the church is not built on Peter. 21:38 Anybody else? 21:40 A lot of people say that the church is built on Peter, 21:41 and Peter was the first Pope. 21:43 No, that's not the case. 21:44 If the church was built on Peter, the church would have 21:46 fallen a long time ago. 21:47 It's not built on Peter, it's built on Christ. 21:49 Just look in your Bibles, 1 Corinthians 10 and verse 4. 21:52 That rock was Christ, not a man. 21:54 David said, "Lead me to the rock that is higher than I," 21:56 which is Christ Jesus. 21:57 Not built on a man, it's built on Christ. 22:01 The church of the dark ages found refuge in a new world, 22:03 not just in the mountains of Europe. 22:05 But God found a place outside of Europe for the church to go. 22:09 Revelation 12 and verse 16. 22:23 Many people don't know, but that's the very place, 22:25 when the Bible talks about a lamb like beast, 22:28 that's the very place where the United States gets its identity. 22:31 This godly nation, this Protestant nation. 22:35 This nation where pilgrims came and found freedom to worship, 22:39 freedom from tyranny, freedom from fear, 22:42 freedom from persecution. 22:44 God opened up this nation for a special reason. 22:46 That's why this nation, even in this shaky economy, 22:51 we're like 212 on the list when it comes to how far down 22:56 of debt we're in, we are still a nation admired by the world. 23:01 People from all walks of life, if you gave them a choice of 23:04 a nation, they want to live here in the United States 23:08 because of all the advantages, a free nation. 23:11 It gives every person the right to worship 23:14 according to their dictates. 23:15 Well the founding fathers, not only signed the 23:19 Declaration of Independence to their own risk, but they also 23:25 framed the Constitution. 23:26 And when you look at that, I used a graphic here. 23:28 I want you to see this. 23:29 When the Constitution was framed, there were 55 signers. 23:32 Of that, 49 were Protestants, three were Catholics. 23:36 Thomas Jefferson was an anti-clerical Christian, 23:39 meaning he believed in unorganized religion. 23:41 Meaning, no religion that's connected to a denomination. 23:44 And there were two deists. 23:45 Deist simply means, they believe that God created the world 23:48 and left it to its own natural course after that. 23:51 But notice what the framers did. 23:53 They had 49 Protestants. 23:57 What does a Protestant mean at that time in history? 24:00 A person that's safe from the tyranny of Rome. 24:05 1775, safe; 1785, safe. 24:10 Rome could not have a foothold. 24:12 They only allowed three that were Catholics. 24:15 And they had a particular creed. 24:17 They made sure that they prevented Rome from 24:19 gaining a foothold, 24:20 re-establishing itself in America. 24:22 So they carefully chose who could be a part of 24:24 that Constitution; three. 24:27 But now, if you look at our Supreme Court, 24:28 the majority of our Supreme Court judges are Catholic. 24:32 The majority in critical leadership positions 24:34 are Catholic. 24:35 You know what, I don't even fear that because I know 24:37 that God is still in charge. 24:38 Can you say amen. 24:39 I'm not fearful of a person's political persuasions. 24:42 But their political persuasions contribute to the decisions 24:45 that they make. 24:46 There's no way that your religion does not 24:48 affect your decisions. 24:49 It surely does. 24:51 You also see that the pillars of the Protestant framers 24:56 was sola scripture, look at that. 25:00 49 believed in sola scriptura; the Bible and the Bible only, 25:04 and sola fide; justification by faith alone. 25:08 But three of the framers believed in the sacred scripture 25:11 and sacred tradition. 25:12 Sacred tradition, I talked about that today. 25:15 In other words, they believed traditions handed down 25:17 combined with what the Bible says will equal 25:21 what we believe doctrinally. 25:23 That's how the Catholics did it. 25:25 They only had three people out of those 55 that had 25:28 those kinds of convictions. 25:29 All the other 49 said, "I'm sorry, in this nation; 25:33 Bible and the Bible only, justification by faith only." 25:37 And that's how the nation began. 25:38 So when people say they want to go back to their 25:40 founding fathers, I agree to that to a certain degree. 25:45 Because our founding fathers were so terrified of what 25:49 happened in Europe, they created somewhat of their own tyranny 25:51 right here and established another colony 25:53 of religious persecution. 25:55 They didn't want people that did not agree with them 25:57 to exercise their own religious beliefs. 26:00 So a man by the name of Roger Williams said that 26:03 we ought to be religious libertarians. 26:05 And they said absolutely not. 26:07 And he continued to insist. 26:08 And they put him out of the colonies. 26:10 And Roger Williams went and lived among the Indians. 26:14 They refused to allow him to remain among the colonists. 26:17 And Roger Williams established the first truly religious colony 26:21 in America called Rhode Island. 26:25 So when they say, "We're going to go back to our 26:27 founding fathers," I agree to a certain degree. 26:30 Not all the way. 26:32 Even though the fathers of our Constitution were predominately 26:35 Protestant, something else that was pretty unique. 26:37 They still held to the two most binding beliefs in common 26:43 with the three Catholic framers. 26:46 Now I want you to hear me carefully, because 26:47 this will go by you like a jet. 26:50 49 believed in the Bible and the Bible only. 26:52 49 believed in justification by faith only. 26:55 But all 52 believed in the sacredness of Sunday 27:00 and the immortality of the soul 27:06 from the very outset. 27:07 The only two that really didn't chime in very much 27:10 were the deists, "I could care less." 27:12 And Thomas Jefferson really didn't paddle in their direction 27:17 because he didn't believe in anything organized at all, 27:20 strangely enough with all the impact he had in history. 27:23 The Great Controversy says this, page 588. 27:45 I've heard the evangelicals say that. 27:47 They say, "Well you know, the Rome of the past is not 27:50 the Rome of today. 27:51 Surely she's changed." 27:57 You read the records, you read the decrees they've made 28:00 just in the last 15 to 20 years and you'll see 28:02 whether or not she's changed. 28:05 But you also discover, when we talk about spiritualism 28:07 and the immortality of the soul; spiritualism and the immortality 28:12 of the soul are on the same platform. 28:15 Sunday sacredness is the second one. 28:18 Ellen White refers to these as the two great errors. 28:22 Nuclear missile number one and nuclear missile number two. 28:25 Both can do the same amount of damage. 28:28 Both, not based on sola scriptura, amazingly enough. 28:32 Protestants who declare sola scriptura embrace that, 28:35 because they were victims of what they came out of. 28:37 That's what they believed when they escaped from Europe. 28:40 They had that already in their minds. 28:42 And at that early stage of the reformation of doctrinal 28:45 teachings, they did not yet discover all the truths about 28:48 what the Bible taught concerning the immortality of the soul. 28:52 And even though the centuries have passed, 28:55 those Protestant reformers, those who came from their 28:59 lineage continue to embrace the sacredness of Sunday. 29:03 Spiritualism is the oldest of the seven systems, 29:05 and Sunday sacredness is upheld as the most religious 29:09 weekday in America. 29:13 Bu the reason why we still have religious freedom 29:15 is because God is preserving it until His work is done 29:20 here in America. 29:23 So whether we like it or not... 29:25 Let me just say something. 29:26 Whether we like it or not, people can teach and believe 29:29 what they want in America. 29:31 The moment we say, they don't have the right to say 29:33 what they want to say, they can turn it around and say 29:36 we don't have the right to say what we want to say. 29:38 This Constitution guarantees freedom of speech, 29:41 although there are some messed up folk that are using it 29:45 for the wrong reason; 29:48 to bring tyranny and fear to the citizens of this country. 29:52 But The Great Controversy goes on to chime in again 29:55 on page 542. 29:57 Rome hasn't changed. 30:16 They're not giving up an inch of ground. 30:17 Absolutely not. 30:19 And let me say something in a declarative way. 30:21 Protestants who stand on the Bible should not give up an 30:24 inch of ground either. 30:25 Can you say amen. 30:27 Have you followed through the years up in Northern Ireland? 30:30 You always hear about the Protestants and Catholics 30:32 always fighting. 30:33 Why Northern Ireland? 30:35 Because the northern territory is where Protestants 30:37 had the greatest foothold during the reformation. 30:40 And Rome is still fighting to regain access 30:44 to those who refuse to budge. 30:46 The Protestants don't want to budge and the Catholics don't 30:49 want to stop trying to get them to budge. 30:52 Still fighting to this very day. 30:55 The Serbs and the Croatians also went head to head 30:58 on the same issues of religious freedom. 31:02 What's happening in America that is pushing us in the direction 31:05 of what happened in Europe? 31:07 Look at this slide. 31:08 It's called Keep Sunday Special. 31:10 You can go to keepsundayspecial.org 31:12 and read all the detail for yourself. 31:16 But listen to what they say on that particular website. 31:21 And this slide pertains to the United Kingdom. 31:44 keepsundayspecial.org 31:47 You know what, I respect anyone for anything 31:49 they choose, religiously. 31:52 I respect them. 31:53 I don't have to believe it or support it, but I respect it. 31:57 We've got to respect each other. 32:00 But we don't have to believe it. 32:06 The push that is taking place in Europe is beginning to 32:08 dribble here into America. 32:11 Listen to what Pope John Paul II said in 1998. 32:15 He said: 33:01 The third commandment? 33:02 Come on, which one is missing? Somebody tell me. 33:05 The second commandment has been abrogated, deleted, whiteout. 33:11 Because it forbids the very practice of image worship. 33:13 We talked about that this morning. 33:15 So you begin to see that what's happening is not arbitrary. 33:18 And what's happening in Europe is happening here. 33:20 I remember coming home one day from... 33:23 I forgot what I was doing. 33:24 We lived in Florida at the time and my aunt, 33:26 that is, Angie's aunt had on the radio. 33:28 She always listened to family radio. 33:31 And there was a guy by the name of Oliver B. Greene. 33:34 Kind of like the dearly laid to rest Joe Crews. 33:37 They continued playing his sermons long after 33:39 he had passed away. 33:41 But this particular day, there was an advertisement. 33:43 And as I walked into the living room, it happened 33:46 in a timely manner, it said, "We'd like to talk to you about 33:48 keeping Sunday special." 33:51 And I said, "Huh, Sunday?" 33:54 And I froze because I had read about it in the 33:56 Great Controversy, but I thought, "Not in America." 33:59 And I kept listening and listening and listening. 34:01 And you know what, I didn't hear about it again until I 34:03 moved to northern California and began to pastor there. 34:06 And unfortunately, I heard it on one of our radio stations, 34:08 Pacific Union College, "Keeping Sunday special. 34:11 Write to this website to get the letter, the materials." 34:13 And I surely did that. 34:15 But I did not hesitate to call our church radio station 34:17 and say, "How on earth..." 34:19 It's like 3ABN advertising how to keep Sunday special. 34:23 I said, "Don't you edit, don't you listen to what 34:25 you put on the air? 34:27 How can you put that on an Adventist radio station; 34:29 how to keep Sunday special?" 34:31 I have the materials in my possession today. 34:32 I laminated them just so that they won't age. 34:36 But listen to what was a part of that, or watch. 34:38 These cards were a part of that package. 34:42 One Sunday challenge card was for the church leaders. 34:45 I could actually read that. 34:47 "Joining with God's people throughout North America, 34:49 I will choose to make Sunday the high point of my week, 34:52 begin my Sunday preparation by Saturday at the latest, 34:55 promise to set aside a regular weekly time of prayer for 34:58 my church leaders, and expect God to honor my obedience 35:02 with the reality of His wonderful presence 35:05 when our church gathers." 35:07 That's a good vision. Can you say amen. 35:09 That's the card that the people sign. 35:12 But there's a card that the clergy sign. 35:14 Here is this one. 35:16 "I will diligently teach that Sunday is a unique 35:19 holy celebration." 35:20 As a matter of fact, we'll go to the next slide. 35:22 I put it in larger print so they can see it. 35:28 This is in America. 35:42 Oh by the way, did you see the reference? 35:48 In this very state. 35:49 There's also a website. 35:51 There's a book with a chart that comes along with that. 35:54 The book is called, Making Sunday Special. 35:56 Karen Burton Mains, the wife of the owner of 35:59 that particular station. 36:00 And that Keeping Sunday Special, you can go to their website 36:02 and order that book nowadays. 36:03 You can go, and what you'll find out on that chart 36:06 is everything the Bible espouses on how to make Sabbath special. 36:10 They just pushed it one day forward to make Sunday special. 36:14 They prepare for Sunday by getting everything ready 36:16 on Saturday night. 36:19 They do all their cooking on Saturday evening. 36:21 They say they're going to get their housework done 36:23 on Saturday evening, 36:24 or their clothes ironed on Saturday evening. 36:26 Everything that we should do on Friday, they do on Sabbath. 36:29 And you know how they get away with it? 36:31 They quote the fourth commandment. 36:34 But they say, "We follow the fourth commandment's principle." 36:37 Not the fourth commandment. 36:39 That's the only one broken down to them in principle. 36:42 Everything else is, "Thou shalt not kill." 36:44 They take that as it says. 36:46 But they use the principles of this. 36:49 There's also the website. Here's a picture of the website. 36:51 This making Sunday special website. 36:54 So it's still there today. 36:55 You can go there if you want to get the materials. 36:57 But the reason why I bring this to your attention 37:00 is because I asked the question; 37:01 Whatever happened to the fourth commandment in Christianity? 37:08 Let's do something a little different today. 37:10 If you're joining us, you can follow along. 37:11 Let's read the fourth commandment together, shall we. 37:14 And I'm going to do it from the King James Version. 37:16 It's on the screen, but I know it by heart. 37:18 I was raised with this text. 37:19 Every Sabbath in our church, we stood up and said, 37:21 "Let us together read." 37:25 And they called it, the confession of our faith. 37:30 Or something to that effect. 37:31 And the entire church would read it. 37:33 After a while, 1200 people reading together 37:35 sounds like one voice. 37:36 And here is how it reads. Together. 38:14 He blessed it, He rested, He hallowed that. 38:17 It's like when I got married. 38:18 I married my wife on May 22nd. 38:20 She married her husband on May 22nd. 38:23 Anybody else with May 22nd as an anniversary in here, 38:25 raise your hand. 38:26 Praise the Lord, the lady with May 22nd has an anniversary 38:30 is my wife. 38:32 Blessed, hallowed, and we are sanctified, 38:35 set apart for each other. 38:36 It's not like any other day. 38:37 You can't even pick another day and make it our anniversary, 38:41 because we didn't get married on that day; 38:43 anymore than you can pick another day and make it blessed 38:45 when God doesn't bless it. 38:48 But the real issue surrounding the fourth commandment 38:50 is not just which day. 38:52 But the real issue is, who is you God. 38:54 Because particularly in verse 10 it says, 38:57 "but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord your God." 39:03 So the question today is just like it was 39:05 in the days of Elijah. 39:06 "If God be God, then serve Him." 39:08 If you believe in the God of creation, 39:10 He's got the day set aside. 39:12 There was a book written, and in an article about things 39:16 Catholics are asked about, very interesting, 39:18 a man by the name of Martin Scott registered his response. 39:22 As a Catholic, he was asked questions about his faith. 39:25 And listen to what his response was. 39:27 This was written in 1927, page 136, 39:31 "Things Catholics Are Asked About." 39:33 He said: 40:03 What's the authority? 40:05 Tradition. 40:07 A man, not God's word. 40:10 But since Sunday worship is uniquely a Catholic institution, 40:14 how could Protestants honor an institution 40:16 made by its arch rivals? 40:18 The answer is, they are no longer arch rivals. 40:23 In 1995, an evangelical and Catholic together document 40:28 was signed as leading leaders of both sects of Christendom 40:34 joined together, major leaders in both, 40:37 Catholicism and evangelicalism, signed a document 40:40 that from this day forward, we will be one. 40:43 Here's a quotation from it. 40:44 Evangelicals and Catholics Together, January 1995. 40:51 ECT is abbreviation for, 40:53 Evangelicals and Catholics Together. 41:15 Elucidate means, to specify or clarify. 41:19 In other words, we are all concerned about where 41:21 the world is going, so we're joining together. 41:23 And together we're going to fix the world. 41:25 But what they don't know, in the document, there are 41:27 some Protestant leaders that opposed that document after 41:30 they signed it, because in the details forty-two pages long, 41:34 they discovered that the Roman Catholic Church 41:36 included this line, "We believe our doctrinal 41:41 clarities are the same. 41:42 We both believe in the holy Eucharist and the 41:44 holy Roman Catholic Church, and the holy masses." 41:47 They said, "No, we do not support that." 41:49 And so now there's some back tracking, back peddling, 41:51 by those evangelical leaders that signed the document. 41:54 But the fact of the matter is, and the record is, 41:56 once it's signed, it's irreversible. 41:58 So they're now voicing their disdain for how they feel 42:02 they were tricked into signing this document. 42:09 But the reality of it is, the true issue is not the economy, 42:12 or decline in morality, or hunger, or disease. 42:15 The issue is not being talked about. 42:17 Look at Review And Herald, December 11, 1888. 42:20 They're not telling you the real issue. 43:03 That's what is happening in America. 43:05 Getting ready to go down the very road of persecution. 43:07 And if you could look behind the scenes, 43:10 there is Satan right there, "Ah, got them." 43:16 The real issue is not economics. 43:19 You can solve that without joining together 43:21 and throwing your doctrinal differences out the window. 43:24 Stand on the Word of God. 43:26 I'll go back to Chapel Of The Air, Wheaton Illinois. 43:28 Listen to what they say. 43:29 This was amazing. 43:30 I showed you the Sunday challenge card. 43:31 Listen to this quotation. 43:32 It's amazing, America is moving rapidly in the direction 43:36 of exalting a national Sunday law. 44:07 This is not by Catholics, this is by Protestant leaders 44:13 who are not Protesting anything anymore. 44:16 Matter of fact, religion and politics recognize 44:20 the authority of Rome. 44:22 That's why September 11th was such a pivotal day. 44:25 My wife and I were traveling back from London that day. 44:28 She chose to come back on September 11th, by the way. 44:30 Just for the record. 44:33 Her uncle lived there and family lived there, so we 44:35 just spent a few days after going to the Stanborough Press. 44:37 I think where Pastor C.A. is now out there in London. 44:40 And she said, "Let's just go to London and enjoy ourselves 44:43 and go back on the 11th of September." 44:46 That morning when we got on the plane, 44:48 there was such a relaxation at the airport. 44:51 They even allowed us to check extra luggage 44:53 without even charging us. 44:54 We had no status with the airlines at the time. 44:56 They said, "Oh, it's a very light flight. 44:58 Just go ahead if you want to put extra bags. 45:00 No problem, no extra charge." 45:02 When we got on that plane, the world was one way. 45:05 When we got off, it was forever changed. 45:09 Two and a half hours outside of arriving in San Francisco 45:12 California, we got the message. 45:14 We got the message that the World Trade Centers and 45:18 Washington had been attacked, and there were 45:20 other coordinated attacks. 45:21 They said it could be Chicago Towers. 45:23 And they began to point out all these other places that 45:25 could be possibly in danger. 45:27 And I stood to my feet and I said to my wife as she 45:29 listened to the in-flight entertainment, I said, 45:30 "Did you hear what they just said?" 45:33 People began to fall apart on the plane. 45:34 A lady sat in front of us who had family members that 45:37 worked at the World Trade Center. 45:38 And as a pastor, I introduced myself as a pastor and I had to 45:41 console her as she cried profusely. 45:43 We were the first plane to land in Edmonton, Alberta Canada, 45:48 to realize that our world had been forever changed. 45:51 My sister, working for the fire department, was the 45:53 instant concern on my mind, knowing she would 45:55 be at ground zero. 45:56 And today, ten years later, all the things that she's suffering 45:59 medically; kidneys failed, respiratory problems, 46:03 all kinds of issues, health issues, directly relating 46:07 to what happened down there on September 11th. 46:10 Here's a book that was written as a result of it, though. 46:12 September 11, 2001; the turning point in America. 46:26 What a day it was. 46:28 I took a picture of an airplane, a United Airlines jet, 46:32 and I super imposed that on the background 46:35 of the atrocities of September 11th. 46:37 We're going to talk about that tonight after the meeting, 46:39 by the way. 46:40 But what a day it was. 46:41 I was down in New York City, my wife and I were there 46:43 just a month before this event occurred. 46:45 This is a picture of the World Trade Center, 46:47 both World Trace Centers I and II. 46:49 I took that picture on the left a month before this event. 46:53 On the right is a picture my sister sent to me 46:55 on September 11, 2001 as she took it with her own camera 46:59 down there at ground zero. 47:00 What a difference. 47:01 Strong towers brought to their knees, so to speak, 47:05 in one singular event. 47:07 That one singular event catapulted the entire world 47:11 into two categories, one or the other. 47:13 Everybody was either for what happened 47:15 or everybody was against it. 47:17 Everyone was in one religious position or the other. 47:21 Notice how one single event can polarize the entire 47:25 world together instantly. 47:26 There was not a third category. 47:28 There was not a single person saying, 47:29 "I don't even really care." 47:31 Everybody was in one group or the other. 47:35 But the concerns were amazing to me. 47:37 There were four particular concerns. 47:38 Look at them. 47:40 The concerns were: 47:49 It's amazing how that one made the top four reasons 47:51 that September 11th was an earth shattering event. 47:56 What happened on that particular day? 47:57 All faiths gathered together at St. Patrick's Cathedral 48:01 there in New York City. 48:02 Every faith, every faith, police, all religious leaders. 48:06 It was broadcast on international television. 48:09 And there was not a person in that congregation 48:11 that whatever they believed doctrinally didn't matter. 48:15 They got together on a different cause; 48:18 national security. 48:20 They had a different push that brought them together; 48:22 the concern for terrorism. 48:24 All their doctrinal beliefs evaporated. 48:27 In an instant, it didn't really matter what they believed. 48:30 And let me tell you where that's headed. 48:31 There are those who will do anything to preserve 48:34 their way of life. 48:36 And that's what happened in America. 48:37 On the heels of September 11th, people were willing to give up 48:41 anything just to preserve their way of life. 48:44 They were pushing for a constitutional change 48:47 if it could secure the way they lived. 48:50 But notice what Ellen White says about how dangerous 48:54 it is to tamper with the Constitution. 48:56 Testimonies, volume 5, look at the reference here. 49:16 Change the Constitution. Why? 49:18 We didn't change the Constitution in World War I, 49:20 World War II, Vietnam war. 49:22 We didn't change the Constitution then. 49:24 But there's a reason why the Constitution is the attack. 49:28 There's a reason why they want to change that. 49:29 Because it, right now, is the bulwark, it's the marble stone 49:33 that refuses to budge. 49:35 It is our security. 49:36 Change it, let's open up Pandora's Box and 49:39 begin to tinker with it. 49:40 And then we can make it say what we want it to say. 49:42 And because it's not being changed, there's a new 49:44 approach now they have called, constitutional interpretation. 49:49 In other words, that's not really what it says. 49:51 Let us interpret what it really means. 49:54 And Rome is trying to find anyway it possibly can 49:56 to bring in a false day of worship. 49:59 Now I believe in a literal six day creation week. 50:02 What about you? 50:05 But not even the Pope does any longer. 50:09 He says he believes in creation and evolution. 50:13 The moral leader of the world that doesn't keep the moral law. 50:17 The moral majority that doesn't keep the moral law. 50:19 The Christian coalition that pushes out the commandments 50:21 and teach that they were nailed to the cross. 50:23 What kind of morality do we have when the very document 50:26 of morality is pushed aside in favor of something that is 50:29 not supported by scripture? 50:31 But Testimonies, volume 7, tells us where we're headed. 50:34 Look at this again. 50:56 Thus my title, The Final Act. 51:01 The final act. 51:03 The final act; when Sunday is substituted for the 51:07 Bible Sabbath in our nation. 51:10 The final act. 51:12 I still believe that when God finished creation, 51:16 He finished it completely. 51:18 Genesis 2 verse 1 to 3, He says it this way. 51:46 I want to encourage you, if you're listening and watching, 51:50 that even though that says the last act is the 51:52 substitution of Sunday in place of the Bible Sabbath, 51:55 let me tell you, the last act really is something a whole 51:59 lot better than that. 52:02 Matthew 24:14 tells us the last act. 52:06 What's encouraging me about this is, 3ABN is involved 52:10 in the last act. 52:11 Those preaching the three angels messages 52:13 are involved in the last act. 52:15 In English and Latino and Portuguese and Russian, 52:19 and all other languages, they are involved. 52:21 If they're preaching the gospel, they are involved 52:23 in the last act. 52:27 Matthew 24:14. 52:42 Somebody say amen for that. 52:43 God will have the final say. 52:45 The message that Jesus has given to us will be preached. 52:48 Satan is not going to have the last act. 52:52 Jesus will tap him on his shoulder and say, 52:54 "It's My turn now." 52:56 He's going to have the final say. 52:58 He's going to look for people that have never heard 53:00 this message and find a place in their hearts. 53:02 People that are worshipping on all different days of the week, 53:04 whether they're Christian or Muslim or Buddhist or 53:07 not Christian at all, the Lord is going to turn the fire on. 53:10 He's going to pour out His Holy Spirit on this congregation, 53:13 on this nation. 53:14 There's going to be a Pentecost unmatched 53:17 like the Pentecost in former years. 53:18 And God is going to ignite this world and this gospel 53:21 will go forward with such power that Satan is going to hide 53:25 for fear of his life when the Lord is done. 53:30 Ellen White says, where there is now one conversion, 53:33 there will be thousands. 53:35 Hallelujah, somebody. 53:37 Don't worry about your family members. 53:39 God has got that all put together. 53:40 He knows how to work that out. 53:41 He's going to bring a crisis so much so that everything we 53:43 trust in is going to bottom out, and somebody is going to say, 53:46 "Show me the Lord that's keeping you. 53:48 Show me the God that is holding you through these tough times." 53:51 Oh, the conversions are going to be great. 53:54 But there's one thing we have to do in the mean while. 53:58 The last quotation, this is powerful. 54:00 If we are the ones that God has chosen, and I believe He has, 54:03 this is something we have to do. 54:05 Christ Object Lessons, page 415 and paragraph 5. 54:09 How beautiful are the words. 54:31 Not the mark of the beast, not Sunday worship. 54:34 The revelation of the character of God's love, 54:36 that's the last message of mercy. 54:39 But here's our part. 54:44 Isaiah 60, "Arise and shine, for your light has come." 54:55 The last act. 54:58 God is waiting for us to say to the world by the way we live, 55:01 by the way we treat each other, by the way we love each other. 55:04 The last act. 55:06 There are some folk that don't just believe the Sabbath, 55:08 they love each other. 55:09 There are some people that don't just have the 28 55:11 fundamentals, they've got the fruit of the Spirit. 55:12 They've got love, joy, peace. 55:14 There are some people that don't just believe in the Sabbath day, 55:17 they believe in righteousness by faith and they love each other 55:20 as they proclaim the message. 55:21 Amen, somebody. 55:23 This is the day and age that God is calling us, 55:25 not to just believe a message, but to live a message. 55:28 Not just to preach it, but to be an example of it. 55:32 And Satan works hard on this church. 55:34 He works hard on the Adventist church and all those 55:36 who proclaim the truth. 55:37 He wants us to be recalcitrant and hard and unforgiving 55:42 and lazy and complacent. 55:45 He says, "Don't look like a people excited to leave here." 55:48 But this is the day and age that those who are praying 55:51 for the infilling and the outpouring of God's Spirit, 55:53 He's going to set this church on fire. 55:55 And like a worldwide birthday candle, somebody is going to 55:58 see the light and they're going to come and taste 56:00 and see the Lord is good. 56:01 Can you say amen to that. 56:02 I'm excited to be a part of this. 56:03 I'm honored to preach this message. 56:07 I'm humbled that the Lord would even give us this much light. 56:11 And I'm going to appeal to you today 56:12 that have heard this message. 56:13 If you've heard this for the first time, 56:15 I'm going to encourage you, get a copy of this. 56:17 Contact 3ABN, 3abn.org. 56:20 Contact them and get a copy. 56:21 Share this with your family and your friends. 56:23 Share this with your neighbor, your pastor. 56:26 Share this with your friends at work. 56:27 Because one day, both of you are going to be on 56:30 either the same side or on opposing sides altogether. 56:33 Everyone that is hearing this message will be on the road 56:36 to life or on the road to death. 56:38 I want to be on the road to life. 56:40 What about you? 56:41 This is the hour. 56:42 Choose you this day whom you will serve. 56:44 But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord. 56:47 The Lord loves you, friend. Don't forget that. 56:49 And the reason the messages had to be as clear and straight 56:52 as I've preached them is because God has to unmask 56:55 the enemy for who he is before you see when it's ever too late 57:00 what he has done to you. 57:01 I want to pray that God will give you wisdom 57:03 and direction and understanding and the fortitude to say, 57:07 "I want to be in a nation and a kingdom that will never be a 57:11 place of war and violence and crime and dissatisfaction 57:15 and death any more. 57:16 That's what Jesus is offering to those of you 57:18 watching this program, those of you listening. 57:20 I pray by God's grace, if we never see you in this life, 57:25 that when we stand together on the sea of glass, 57:27 we will know that Jesus has made the difference. 57:29 God bless you until then. |
Revised 2014-12-17