Participants:
Series Code: ARSS
Program Code: ARSS190008S
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00:15 Well, welcome to the last session for today.
00:19 We're advancing very well. 00:22 You know, I actually thought that we were going to have to 00:24 come back tomorrow to talk a little bit more about 00:27 the 24 elders. 00:28 But I believe that we're going to finish this afternoon, 00:31 and so tomorrow in our first session we will begin 00:35 to study the first seal. 00:37 Because this is about the seven seals. 00:39 But of course, you can't deal with the seven seals 00:43 without the introductory vision, right? 00:45 So we had to deal with Revelation 4 and 5. 00:48 It's part of the context of the seven seals. 00:51 So let's have a word of prayer. 00:53 And then we'll pick up where we left off in our last class. 00:56 Father in heaven, once again we come before You 01:00 realizing our insufficiency. 01:02 Your ways are higher than our ways. 01:05 You're all wise. 01:07 We are limited human beings who need constant help 01:10 in order to even understand Your Word. 01:12 So we ask for Your presence, give us understanding, 01:16 give us willing hearts, give us open minds. 01:20 We especially ask that You will bless those who are 01:22 watching the live stream, those who are watching 01:25 through our television stations, particularly those who have 01:27 never studied these things before. 01:29 Give them more than human wisdom so that they might understand. 01:34 Thank You, Lord, for hearing our prayer. 01:36 We ask it in the precious name of Jesus, our Lord and Savior. 01:39 Amen. 01:42 Alright, as we drew our last session to a close, 01:45 we were discussing the second coming of Christ. 01:49 And we want to pick up where we left off. 01:52 We noticed that at the second coming, this earth will return 01:55 to the condition it was in before creation. 01:59 Without form, void or empty, and no light in the skies. 02:06 There will be a few left. 02:08 Who are the ones that will be left when this 02:10 catastrophe hits the earth? 02:12 The righteous will be the ones who are left. 02:15 That is a remnant word. 02:18 Those are the ones who survived the catastrophe 02:21 or the cataclysm. 02:24 Now I want us to go to Isaiah 24:21. 02:28 Isaiah 24:21 02:32 This comes immediately after a passage that we already read. 02:36 So we want to read the context. 02:38 Let's go to verse 18, and then we'll continue with verse 21. 02:44 Verse 18 of Isaiah 24 says... 03:21 There you find a vivid description of what will happen 03:24 at the second coming of Christ. 03:26 And then we have verse 21, a very interesting verse. 03:30 "It shall come to pass in that day..." 03:32 Which day? 03:34 According to the context, which day? 03:37 The day in which Jesus utters His voice 03:39 and these things happen that we just read about. 03:55 How many groups are going to be punished? 03:57 Two. 03:58 The first group is, "on high the host of exalted ones," 04:02 and the second one is, "on the earth the kings of the earth." 04:06 Now I like the translation of the Revised Standard Version 04:11 of Isaiah 24:21 where it says, "In that day the Lord will 04:15 punish the powers in the heavens above 04:19 and the kings on the earth below." 04:22 So there's a group of heavenly beings that are going to 04:24 be punished, and there's a group of earthly beings 04:27 that are going to be punished, 04:29 which are called the kings of the earth. 04:32 So God will punish two groups when Jesus comes. 04:36 The first is the heavenly group, the second is the earthly group. 04:41 Now we can understand the expression "kings of the earth." 04:44 That's quite simple. 04:45 But what is meant by, as it reads in the New King James, 04:50 He will punish "on high the host of the exalted ones," 04:53 or as Isaiah 24:21 in the RSV reads, 04:58 "the powers in the heavens above." 05:01 What are the powers in the heavens above 05:03 that will be punished when Jesus comes? 05:05 Okay, the kings, we know that earthly kings who are apostate 05:08 are going to be punished. 05:09 But who are these beings in the heavens 05:11 that are going to be punished? 05:13 Well, let's read Ephesians 6:12. 05:16 Ephesians 6:12 05:20 "For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood..." 05:23 What would that mean, "We do not wrestle 05:24 against flesh and blood"? 05:26 Human beings. 05:28 Because we have flesh and blood, Jesus took the same, 05:30 according to the book of Hebrews. 05:32 So it's a euphemism for human beings. 05:51 So who would be the ones, the exalted ones, 05:54 are the ones in the heavens that are going to be punished 05:57 when Jesus comes? 05:59 It would be Satan and his angels. 06:01 Now let's read the note. 06:03 In Scripture, the expression, "flesh and blood," 06:06 refers to human beings, Hebrew 2:14, 06:09 and the heavenly hosts are angels. 06:12 2 Chronicles 18:18 and Luke 2:13-14 06:16 refer to the hosts of heaven. 06:19 The apostle Paul wrote that we are not warring against 06:22 human beings, but against spiritual hosts of wickedness 06:26 in heavenly realms. 06:28 Elsewhere, the apostle Paul calls Satan what? 06:32 The prince of the power of the air. 06:37 So the hosts of heaven in Isaiah 24 refers to 06:42 Satan and his angels. 06:45 So there's a heavenly group that's going to be punished, 06:47 Satan and his angels, and there's an earthly group that is 06:51 going to be punished, which is described as the 06:55 kings of the earth. 06:58 Now notice Revelation 19:19. 07:02 Here, Revelation confirms that the kings 07:04 are going to be punished. 07:06 It says there, "And I saw the beast, 07:08 the kings of the earth," same expression... 07:18 And then verse 21 says that the sword that comes out of the 07:22 mouth of Jesus destroys the wicked, 07:25 the wicked kings. 07:27 Now the punishment of Satan and his angels 07:30 and the wicked has two stages. 07:34 You say, "What? 07:35 Two stages to the punishment of Satan and his angels 07:38 and the wicked kings of the earth?" 07:40 Absolutely. 07:42 Notice Isaiah 24:22, the first half of the verse. 07:51 It says there... 07:53 Remember, God is going to punish these two groups. 08:08 What is the first stage of the punishment? 08:12 The first stage of the punishment is that 08:15 both the heavenly angels and the kings of the earth 08:22 will be prisoners, according to this. 08:27 They will be shut up in where? 08:29 Prison. 08:31 Now that word, pit, is very interesting. 08:36 The pit. 08:37 That word is used both as a place where people are 08:42 retained as prisoners while they are alive 08:45 and it's also used to describe a place where the dead 08:50 are kept in prison in a dead state. 08:53 Let's notice the verses. 08:55 First of all, Genesis 37:24. 08:59 Here, it's speaking about Joseph's brothers 09:03 casting Joseph into a pit. 09:07 The very same word that appears in Isaiah 24:22. 09:12 It says there in Genesis 37:24... 09:21 The word, pit, refers to a what? 09:24 To a cistern or a water well. 09:27 But it was dry. 09:29 But it's the identical word of Isaiah 24:22, 09:34 the first half of the verse. 09:36 So they cast Joseph into a pit, and the pit was empty. 09:41 There was no water in it. 09:43 Was Joseph retained in this place alive? 09:47 Yes. 09:48 Until they could decide what they were going to do with him. 09:50 Right? 09:52 So the word, pit, in Isaiah 24:22 09:56 can refer to a place of retention of an individual 10:00 for a period of time until a decision is going to be made 10:04 about the final punishment or the final thing that is 10:09 going to be done with that individual. 10:11 Jeremiah was also cast into a pit. 10:15 The same word of Isaiah 24. 10:17 It says in Jeremiah 38:6, this is the next page, 10:23 "So they took Jeremiah and cast him into the dungeon..." 10:26 That word, dungeon, is the identical word in Isaiah 24:22. 10:42 "And in the dungeon..." 10:43 Once again, the same word that we find in Isaiah 24. 10:46 "And in the dungeon there was no water..." 10:48 So once again, it's a cistern. 10:55 So the question is, was Jeremiah alive when he was retained 11:00 in this place? 11:02 He was alive. 11:03 So the word, pit, can refer to a place 11:06 where people are retained alive until a final decision is made 11:11 about what is going to be done with them. 11:14 But the word, pit, is also used to describe a place 11:18 where people are retained in death. 11:20 In other words, it's a synonym of the grave. 11:24 Notice what we find in Isaiah 38:18; 11:29 the very same word. 11:31 "For Sheol cannot thank You..." 11:36 This is a synonymous parallelism, by the way. 11:39 "For Sheol cannot thank You..." 11:42 That means the grave. Sheol is the grave. 11:45 And the New King James Version usually transliterates 11:48 the word, Sheol. 11:49 In other words, it writes it in English 11:52 just like it appears in Hebrew. 12:06 So the pit, is that a place where people are 12:10 retained in a dead state? 12:13 Yes, because the verse says, "Sheol," which is the grave, 12:16 "cannot thank You, death cannot praise You; 12:20 those who go down to the pit," which is a synonym, 12:23 "cannot hope for Your truth." 12:28 Now let me ask you this. 12:30 Is God going to imprison Satan and his angels 12:36 in a living state when Jesus comes? 12:41 Are they going to be retained in prison? 12:43 Yes. 12:45 Let's notice Revelation 20:2-3. 12:49 Revelation 20:2-3 12:53 This is the mighty angel that descends from heaven 12:55 with a chain in his hand. 13:09 The word, abussos. 13:12 It's the same word that appears in the Greek translation 13:15 of the Old Testament in Genesis chapter 1 13:18 where it says, the deep. 13:20 The abussos, the abyss. 13:22 It's not a good translation, "the bottomless pit." 13:26 Really, it's the abyss. 13:28 It's the abussos. 13:29 And what happens when he's thrown into the pit? 13:32 It says, "...and shut him up..." 13:36 Is he living when he's shut up? 13:38 Is he in a living state? 13:40 Satan and his angels, the powers that are on high? 13:42 Yes. 13:55 So is Satan going to be retained with his angels, 14:00 when Jesus comes the second time, on this earth 14:03 as a prison house? 14:05 Yes he is. 14:06 That is the prison of the powers on high. 14:11 Now, what's going to happen with the kings of the earth? 14:14 And not only the kings of the earth, but all of the wicked. 14:16 What's going to happen with them during the thousand years? 14:19 Are they going to also be retained here on earth 14:22 in a dead state? 14:23 Absolutely. 14:25 Notice Revelation 20:5. 14:27 "But the rest of the dead..." 14:35 So are the wicked alive during the period of the millennium? 14:39 No. But are they prisoners during the millennium? 14:43 Yes. They're prisoners of the grave. 14:47 Now how long does this first stage of punishment last? 14:52 This is the big question. 14:53 Are you seeing the first stage of the punishment? 14:56 The first stage of the punishment is that 14:59 Satan and his angels are thrown into prison in a living state. 15:02 The wicked are thrown into the prison in a dead state. 15:07 And they're here. 15:09 The question is, how long are they going to be here? 15:11 Well, notice Isaiah 24:22, the second part of the verse. 15:18 Let's read the entire verse. 15:20 "They will be gathered together as prisoners are gathered 15:23 in the pit and will be shut up in the prison. 15:27 After many days they will be punished." 15:31 Now wait a minute. 15:34 Weren't they already punished before that? 15:38 They weren't? 15:40 Well, it says here in Isaiah 24:21, it says, 15:45 "In that day the Lord will punish the powers in the 15:49 heavens above and the kings of the earth below." 15:53 So are they punished when they are thrown into prison? 15:55 Yeah. 15:57 But is that their final punishment? 15:59 No. Because it says, "After many days..." 16:02 After they're thrown into prison. 16:05 "After many days they will be..." What? 16:08 "...they will be punished." 16:10 Now have you ever wondered why Seventh-day Adventists 16:15 apply the year/day principle to the 1260 days, 16:20 the 42 months, the time, times, dividing of time, 16:24 the 2300 days, the 10 days of persecution under 16:28 the church of Smyrna. 16:31 You know, we apply the year/day principle 16:33 that a day is equal to a year. 16:35 Why don't we do the same with the 1000 years? 16:39 Because the Bible itself interprets 16:43 the many days as years. 16:46 You see, in the book of Isaiah it says that they're 16:49 going to be imprisoned how long? 16:51 They will be imprisoned or they will be punished many days. 16:57 How many days are those? 16:59 How does Revelation interpret that? 17:01 Revelation interprets that, the many days, as what? 17:06 A thousand years. 17:07 So in Isaiah it's days, in Revelation it's years. 17:12 In other words, days are equal to what? 17:14 To years. 17:16 So when you compare Isaiah and Revelation, 17:19 those two books, the Bible itself applies the year/day 17:23 principle to the thousand years. 17:25 Because the text in Isaiah says, days, 17:28 and Revelation interprets that as years. 17:32 And then what happens after the many days, 17:36 or after the thousand years? 17:37 What's going to happen with those powers of the heavens, 17:43 and the kings of the earth, and all the wicked? 17:45 Well, the New Jerusalem is going to descend. 17:48 Right? 17:51 Now I want you to notice Revelation 21:2. 17:56 "Then I, John, saw the holy city..." 18:08 So what's going to happen when after many days, 18:12 it says, after many days, the powers in the heavens 18:15 and the kings of the earth are going to be punished? 18:18 What is going to happen? 18:20 The New Jerusalem is going to what? 18:22 It's going to descend. 18:24 It says, "I, John, saw the holy city..." 18:26 By the way, is that what Isaiah says as well? 18:30 Notice Isaiah 24:23. 18:33 This is on page 102 of your syllabus. 18:37 It says, "Then the moon will be disgraced..." 18:52 Interesting. 18:54 So what's going to happen after the punishment 18:57 of the powers of the heavens and the kings of the earth?" 19:01 It says here that "the Lord will reign on Mount Zion 19:06 and in Jerusalem and before His elders gloriously." 19:11 And we are told that the moon will be disgraced 19:14 and the sun shall be ashamed. 19:17 Now is there a parallel with that in the book of Revelation? 19:21 There most certainly is. 19:23 What happens after the many days? 19:24 What happens after the thousand years? 19:26 Does the holy city, New Jerusalem, descend from heaven? 19:29 Yes. 19:30 Is Satan released from his prison? Yes. 19:33 Are the kings of the earth released from 19:34 the prison of death? 19:35 Yes. 19:37 And what descends from heaven? 19:40 The holy city, the New Jerusalem. 19:42 And is there any need of sun or moon? 19:46 No. Notice Revelation 21:23. 19:49 And many people misunderstand this. 20:07 So some people say, "Well, when the New Jerusalem descends, 20:10 no more day and no more night. 20:13 There's not going to be any sun and any moon." 20:16 Then we have a serious problem. 20:17 If there's no sun or moon, there's no months. 20:22 Right? 20:23 There's no week. 20:25 Because the day is marked by the sun, 20:26 the rising and setting of the sun. 20:28 So if there's no sun and no moon when everything is finished, 20:32 then that means, what happens with the Sabbath? 20:37 You have to have the weekly cycle of days to have a Sabbath. 20:40 What happens with going to eat from the tree of life 20:42 from month to month, or from one new moon to another? 20:45 It disappears as well. 20:47 Notice that this text does not say 20:50 that there will not be any sun or moon. 20:54 All over the world. 20:57 It says the city has no need of sun or moon. 21:02 Because Isaiah tells us that the moon will be disgraced 21:06 and the sun will be ashamed. 21:08 Let me give you an illustration. 21:11 In Fresno in July it's very hot. 21:15 The sun beats down, not a cloud in the sky. 21:20 It's not like home on the range, by the way. 21:23 Where seldom is heard a discouraging word, 21:25 and the skies are not cloudy all day. 21:28 It's boiling hot here. 21:30 So I want you to imagine me on a very bright sunny day. 21:36 I go out the front door of my house and I have a flashlight. 21:40 And I have the flashlight on and I'm shining 21:42 the flashlight on the ground. 21:46 I believe that some people would say, 21:47 "Let's take this guy to the nut house." 21:51 The flashlight is on. 21:53 Can you see the beam of the flashlight? 21:56 Why not? 21:58 Because the light of the sun outshines 22:00 the light of the flashlight. 22:01 But the flashlight is on. 22:04 Is there going to be a sun and is there going to be a moon? 22:08 Yes, there will be. 22:09 But the light in the city will be so bright 22:14 that it will eclipse the light of the sun 22:18 and the light of the moon. 22:21 Are you with me? 22:23 So now, what is stage two of the punishment? 22:28 I want you to get the picture. 22:31 The first stage of the punishment, 22:33 the powers in the heavens, what happens with them? 22:37 They're thrown into prison. 22:39 Those individuals, those kings of the earth that are alive, 22:43 are destroyed at the second coming. 22:45 They're in the prison of death. 22:48 How long do they remain there? 22:50 A thousand years. The many days. 22:53 After the many days, what comes down from heaven? 22:57 The New Jerusalem. 22:58 No need of sun, no need of moon. 23:01 And now comes the second stage of the punishment. 23:06 What is the second stage of the punishment? 23:09 Revelation 20:7-9 23:18 Who else will be released from their prison. 23:22 The wicked. 23:23 Remember, the rest of the dead did not live again 23:27 until the thousand years were ended. 23:29 Who are the rest of the dead? 23:32 The wicked, that's right. 23:34 So are the wicked released from their prison? 23:36 Oh yeah. 23:38 Is Satan and his angels released from prison? 23:40 Oh yeah. 23:42 They're going to go among all of the wicked. 23:44 Notice what it continues saying. 23:45 "Now when the thousand years have expired, 23:47 Satan will be released from his prison 23:50 and will go out to deceive the nations..." 23:53 Now wait a minute, didn't all the nations die 23:55 at the second coming? 23:59 They must have resurrected. Hello. 24:01 In order for him to deceive the nations, the nations that died 24:04 at the second coming must have come forth from the grave. 24:24 And now comes the second stage of the punishment. 24:27 This is the final stage of the punishment. 24:40 This is what the Bible calls what? 24:43 It calls it, second death. 24:49 Now let's unpack that for a moment, second death. 24:52 It's final, the second stage. 24:53 Are you seeing the two stages? 24:55 This is the second and final stage. 24:58 Second death. 24:59 Now in order to have second death, you have to have a... 25:02 First death. Of course. 25:04 Now let's look at it this way. 25:06 Everyone in this world has had a first birth. 25:13 Right? 25:14 Come to life the first time. 25:17 If you die before Jesus comes, that will be your first death. 25:25 Right? 25:26 That will be the first death. 25:27 Is that final death? 25:29 No. 25:31 If you were righteous, if you accepted Jesus 25:35 as your Savior and His righteousness covered you, 25:40 then you will die no more. 25:44 You suffer only first death. 25:46 But if you were unrighteous, you will also resurrect, 25:51 according to what we just noticed in Revelation 20:5, 25:54 but those individuals who rejected Jesus 25:58 will now suffer second death. 26:02 They will die for the second time. 26:04 The first time was physical death. 26:06 The last time is eternal death. 26:09 Death from which there is no resurrection. 26:13 They will sleep an eternal sleep. 26:16 Jeremiah says in chapter 21, "And they shall not awake." 26:22 The final stage of punishment. 26:25 Then God will create a new heavens and a new earth. 26:29 Let me just read you this very interesting passage 26:34 that Ellen White wrote. 26:35 I referred to it in the last class. 26:37 Early Writings, page 41. 26:39 But before I do, let me read you what we find in Genesis 1:16-18. 26:47 It's speaking about the sun and the moon. 26:51 It says, "Then God made two great lights, 26:53 the greater light to rule the day..." 26:57 So the sun rules, right? 27:00 "...to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night. 27:05 Hey made the stars also. 27:07 God set them in the firmament of the heavens to give light 27:10 on the earth and to rule over the day and over the night, 27:15 and to divide the light from darkness. 27:16 And God saw that it was good." 27:19 So what are the rulers of the heavens, literally speaking? 27:23 The sun and the moon. 27:26 Now during the thousand years, according to Jeremiah chapter 4, 27:29 this world is going to be without form and void, 27:33 and the heavens are going to be dark. 27:36 There will be no light on the planet. 27:39 Now when the New Jerusalem descends there will be. 27:42 But before the New Jerusalem descends, 27:44 this planet will be in darkness. 27:45 Why? 27:47 Well, now I want to read, Early Writings, page 41. 27:51 "December 16, 1848, the Lord gave me a view..." 27:55 The word, view, means a vision. 27:57 "...of the shaking of the powers of the heavens. 28:01 I saw that when the Lord said, 'heaven,' 28:04 in giving the signs recorded by Matthew, Mark, and Luke, 28:07 He meant heaven, and when he said, 'earth,' 28:10 He meant earth. 28:12 The powers of heaven are the sun, moon, and stars. 28:17 They rule in the heavens. 28:19 The powers of earth are those that rule on the earth." 28:24 And then she states this: 28:25 "The powers of heaven will be shaken at the voice of God. 28:29 Then the sun, moon, and stars will be moved 28:35 out of their places. 28:37 They will not pass away, but be shaken by the voice of God." 28:44 So that's why the planet is going to be dark. 28:45 Because the sun, moon, and stars are moved out of their places. 28:49 There will no longer be any lights on this earth 28:51 until God creates a new heavens and a new earth. 28:54 And then he's going to bring the sun, moon, and stars 28:58 once again and place them where they can benefit the earth 29:02 like at the beginning at creation. 29:05 Now, what is life going to be like 29:07 after the second stage of punishment? 29:10 What is life with God going to be like? 29:13 Well, let's notice the next section in our syllabus, 29:16 page 103. 29:18 Revelation 21:1. 29:29 Then you have this beautiful promise in verse 4 29:32 that is read many times at funerals. 29:56 Notice Isaiah 25:8. 29:59 "He will swallow up death forever, 30:02 and the Lord God will wipe away tears from all faces; 30:06 the rebuke of His people He will take away 30:09 from all the earth; for the Lord has spoken." 30:14 And then comes this interesting verse, Isaiah 24:23, 30:21 where the word, elders, is used. 30:24 It says, "Then the moon will be disgraced and the sun ashamed; 30:29 for the Lord of hosts will reign on Mount Zion 30:32 and in Jerusalem and before His elders gloriously." 30:39 God is going to rule before His what? 30:42 He's going to rule before His elders. 30:46 Who would those elders be? 30:49 We've already found them in the book of Revelation. 30:56 Not only when Jesus ascended, but also when Jesus comes. 31:00 The great multitude is there. 31:02 The elders will be there, the representatives of the worlds 31:05 that never sinned. 31:07 In fact, on the very next page, Review and Herald, 31:09 September 25, 1900, Ellen White wrote, 31:13 "God has worlds upon worlds that are obedient to His law." 31:19 It's not only 24. 31:21 "These worlds are conducted with reference 31:24 to the glory of the Creator. 31:26 As the inhabitants of these worlds see the great price 31:29 that has been paid to ransom man, 31:31 they are filled with amazement. 31:33 With intense interest they watch the controversy 31:36 between Christ and Satan; and as this controversy 31:39 progresses, and the glory of God shines brighter and brighter, 31:43 they give praise to God." 31:47 So there are worlds upon worlds in the universe 31:51 that are observing what is happening here on this earth. 31:54 Now the next point that I want us to notice, 31:56 because we're talking about the elders, 31:58 God is going to reign before His elders gloriously. 32:03 We've already identified the elders as the representatives 32:06 of the worlds that gather together in heavenly counsel 32:09 at business meetings to discuss certain issues 32:12 relating to the universe. 32:15 Now the church below is a reflection of the church above. 32:22 Let me ask you, does the church below have elders? 32:27 The church below has elders. 32:29 So is it just perhaps possible that if we see what the role 32:32 of the elders on earth is, we might understand a little better 32:37 what the role of the elders in heaven is? 32:40 Let's read this statement. 32:42 Counsels to the Church, page 240-241. 32:46 "The church of God below is one with the church of God above. 32:52 Believers on the earth and the beings in heaven 32:55 who have never fallen constitute one church. 32:59 Every heavenly intelligence is interested in the assemblies 33:03 of the saints who on earth meet to worship God. 33:07 In the inner court of heaven they listen to the testimony 33:10 of the witnesses for Christ in the outer court on earth, 33:14 and the praise and thanksgiving from the worshipers below 33:17 is taken up in the heavenly anthem, and praise and rejoicing 33:21 sound through the heavenly courts because Christ has not 33:24 died in vain for the fallen sons of Adam. 33:28 While angels drink from the fountainhead, the saints 33:31 on earth drink of the pure streams flowing from the throne, 33:36 the streams that make glad the city of our God." 33:39 So is the earthly church a reflection 33:42 of the heavenly church? 33:45 Absolutely. 33:46 So must the organization of the earthly church 33:49 reflect the organization of God's kingdom in heaven? 33:55 Absolutely. 33:57 Now let's notice that God is not a dictator. 34:02 He has a heavenly council, as we've noticed, that meets 34:05 on a regular basis to make decisions 34:07 concerning the administration of the universe. 34:10 God runs the universe as a republic 34:14 with representatives from different regions 34:18 having voice and vote. 34:21 Would you agree with that? 34:24 That the heavenly council people, the heavenly members, 34:27 have voice and vote? 34:29 Remember the passage in Chronicles where God said, 34:33 "Who's going to tell Ahab to go to battle 34:36 so that he gets killed?" 34:37 It says one member of the council said this 34:40 and the other member of the council said this. 34:42 And they could not reach a consensus. 34:45 So then Satan, who loses his position at the cross, 34:47 says, "I'll do it." 34:50 So are there deliberations in heaven? 34:53 There are deliberations in heaven. 34:55 Are there deliberations on earth 34:58 where you also have a meeting where all the representatives 35:01 of the world come together. 35:03 Absolutely. 35:04 Now, you need to read all these quotations 35:08 in this paragraph here at the end of the paragraph. 35:12 In the heavenly hosts there are ranks. 35:16 There are Michael the archangel, cherubim, seraphim, 35:21 tall commanding angels, strong angels, 35:23 the highest of angels, and common angels. 35:26 Colossians 1 describes these orders of being 35:29 in the heavenly universe. 35:30 So are there different responsibilities and ranks 35:33 and offices in the heavenly economy? 35:37 Yes. Would we expect the same on earth? 35:40 By the way, who is it that revealed gospel order? 35:47 Who is it that revealed the plan that the church 35:50 should have deacons, the church should have elders, 35:53 the church should have departmental leaders, 35:56 the church should have a president that presides? 35:59 Who came up with that? 36:00 Did the apostles come up with that? 36:01 They said, "Oh, let's just invent this organization." 36:04 No. 36:05 Who revealed gospel order? 36:08 God revealed Gospel order. 36:11 And what is God doing? 36:12 He's simply structuring the gospel order on earth 36:15 as a miniature of the way that heaven functions. 36:20 Notice Colossians 1:16. 36:27 And now notice the different ranks. 36:37 Are there different categories, or gifts, you might say, 36:41 in the heavenly economy? 36:43 Absolutely. 36:44 Notice, when Jesus ascended to heaven 36:46 there were different groups. 36:48 It says, "With joy unutterable, rulers and principalities 36:53 and powers acknowledge the supremacy 36:57 of the Prince of life." 37:00 So when Jesus ascended to heaven, 37:02 these rulers, rulers sit on thrones, 37:06 were present to receive Him. 37:08 It is interesting that while Colossians 1:16 uses the word, 37:12 "thrones", Ellen White refers to those who occupy 37:16 the thrones as what? 37:19 Rulers. 37:20 Interestingly enough. 37:22 It is clear that the rulers who sat on the thrones 37:25 when Jesus ascended were not human because they were 37:29 already there when Jesus arrived. 37:31 Clearly, the resurrected saints who ascended with Jesus 37:35 cannot be the 24 elders who sit on thrones. 37:39 By the way, does Satan also have an organizational system? 37:42 Does Satan know how God's kingdom in heaven is organized? 37:47 Do you think maybe he's patterned it after that? 37:51 He had the inside scoop. 37:54 He was there closest to the throne. 37:56 Jesus was sitting next to the Father, 37:58 but Lucifer was next right there. 38:01 He knows how the heavenly economy functions. 38:04 So he says, "Let's go ahead and copy it." 38:07 Satan not only copied God's organizational system, 38:10 he also has a council of angels that meet on a regular basis 38:16 to lay out plans to counteract God. 38:21 And you can read all those statements there 38:23 where Ellen White talks about Satan's earthly council. 38:27 Ephesians 6:12 38:30 This is page 106. 38:32 "For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, 38:36 but against principalities..." 38:37 Notice the categories again. 38:38 "...principalities, against powers, against the rulers 38:43 of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of 38:46 wickedness in the heavenly places." 38:49 Once again, Colossians 2:15. 38:52 "Having disarmed principalities and powers, 38:55 He made a public spectacle of them, 38:57 triumphing over them in it." 38:59 Then Ellen White makes this very interesting comment 39:02 that we find in, Great Controversy, page 513, 39:05 on the way in which Satan's kingdom is organized. 39:10 She wrote, "Evil spirits, in the beginning created sinless, 39:14 were equal in nature, power, and glory with the holy beings 39:19 that are now God's messengers. 39:22 But fallen through sin, they are leagued together 39:25 for the dishonor of God and the destruction of men. 39:29 United with Satan in his rebellion, and with him cast out 39:34 from heaven, they have, through all succeeding ages, 39:38 cooperated with him in his warfare against 39:43 the divine authority." 39:44 And now comes the key portion. 39:46 "We are told in Scripture of their confederacy and..." 39:51 What else? 39:52 "...government, of their various..." What? 39:56 "...orders, of their intelligence and subtlety, 40:00 and of their malicious designs against the peace 40:04 and happiness of men." 40:07 So let me ask you, does Satan have a government? 40:11 Yes. Does he have orders in his government? 40:14 Speaking about the angels that he leads. 40:16 They're intelligent, they're subtle, 40:18 and they also gather in council 40:21 to decide what to do in certain cases. 40:24 In fact, Ellen White says that there was a council 40:27 where Satan gathered his angels together, 40:30 and he says, "You know, as far as tempting Adam and Eve 40:34 is concerned, you folks are not going to do it. 40:36 I'm going to go personally and I'm going to do that." 40:39 And Satan was on the track of Jesus personally 40:43 all during the ministry of Christ. 40:46 So basically, Satan has an organizational system 40:50 with different orders, and he has a council. 40:55 God also has an organizational system, 40:59 which is basically the system of organization of the 41:01 Seventh-day Adventist Church. 41:04 How is the Seventh-day Adventist Church organized? 41:07 We have a General Conference, we have Divisions, 41:10 we have Unions, we have Conferences, 41:14 we have districts, and we have local churches. 41:18 Do we have heads over each one of those levels of organization? 41:23 Do we have within that organization 41:26 elders and deacons, 41:28 and different functions in the church? 41:29 Of course. 41:31 Is this dictated by God? 41:34 God says, "You occupy this position, 41:36 you occupy this position." 41:37 Or is this a republic where people have a vote? 41:42 Are you catching my point? 41:44 So basically, what I'm saying is that the elders on earth 41:51 are a reflection of the functions of the elders 41:54 in the heavenly economy. 41:57 Let's notice what the roles of the elders are. 42:00 At the bottom of page 106. 42:03 Titus 1:5, here Paul commands Titus to appoint elders 42:09 in some of the cities. 42:12 Thank you very much. You're still awake. 42:15 In every city of the Roman Empire. 42:20 Would these elders be a representative council 42:25 of everything that happened in the empire? 42:27 Yes. 42:29 It says, "For this reason I left you in Crete," 42:31 writes Paul to Titus, "that you should..." Do what? 42:36 Ah. "...that you should set in order the things 42:40 that are lacking, and appoint..." What? 42:43 "...elders in every city as I commanded you." 42:47 So are the elders in all of the places of the empire 42:53 to represent the church of God? 42:57 Absolutely. 42:59 Now, were the elders also rulers? 43:04 Yes they were. 43:06 Notice Numbers 11:16-17. 43:08 And then we'll go to the New Testament. 43:17 Were they representatives of the entire congregation? 43:21 Yes they were. 43:42 And what is one of the responsibilities? 43:43 They shall what? 43:52 Ellen White amplifies this point by stating in, 43:57 Acts of the Apostles, page 94, 43:59 "Later, when choosing seventy elders to share with him 44:04 the responsibilities of..." What? 44:06 "...leadership..." 44:08 So what are the elders? 44:09 They're leaders. 44:11 And in a moment we're going to see that they're rulers. 44:13 They set the house in order. 44:15 They represent the church in different regions. 44:20 Are you catching the picture or not? 44:22 "Later, when choosing seventy elders to share with him the 44:25 responsibilities of the leadership, Moses was 44:28 careful to select as his helpers men possessing dignity, 44:32 sound judgment, and experience. 44:34 In his charge to these elders at the time of their ordination, 44:39 he outlined some of the qualifications that fit a man 44:43 to be a wise ruler in the church." 44:49 Are the elders in the heavenly economy rulers? 44:53 They wear crowns. 44:56 Where do they rule? 44:58 One of them rules the entire universe, right? 45:00 No. 45:02 They rule over regions. 45:03 They keep it in order. 45:05 They're representatives before the council. 45:08 Is this reflected in the church on earth? 45:12 It should be, anyway. 45:14 Or are the angels at the next constituency session 45:17 saying, "Boy, I sure hope that I'm named 45:20 president of that conference." 45:23 No. 45:26 Maybe there's an election. 45:28 Everybody's happy with whatever decision God makes. 45:32 Notice 1 Timothy 5:17. 45:54 1 Timothy 3:4-5 basically has the same idea. 45:59 The bishop or overseer must be "one who rules 46:05 his own house well, having his children..." How? 46:09 "...in submission with all reverence; 46:12 for if a man does not know how to rule his own house, 46:17 how will he take care of..." What? 46:20 "...of the church of God?" 46:23 Now let me ask you, these elders that were named all over the 46:27 Roman Empire, did they gather now and then 46:31 to deal with the world business of the church? 46:36 Did they gather in council to deal with the 46:38 business of the church? 46:40 Is that true of the heavenly council too? 46:43 Are you seeing the parallel? 46:46 Notice what we find in Acts 15:6. 46:49 The first general conference of history. 47:00 It was the issue of circumcision. 47:03 In other words the idea was, do the Gentiles need to be 47:06 circumcised like the Jews in order to be saved? 47:10 And so, it became a real problem. 47:13 And so, what decision was made? 47:16 Well, let's bring all of the elders, all of the 47:19 representatives in the whole Roman Empire... 47:23 By the way, not all of the church members, 47:26 but the elders who represent individual churches. 47:28 Let's bring them and discuss this issue and reach a decision 47:34 that applies to the entire church. 47:37 And so it says in Acts 16:4-5, 47:40 "And as they went through the cities, 47:42 they delivered to them the decrees..." 47:46 Ah, so was there a decree made at the general conference? 47:50 And what did everybody say? 47:52 Everybody was super happy with the decision that was made 47:54 by all the delegates at the general conference. 47:58 No. You can continue reading the book of Acts. 48:00 There were rabble-rousers that didn't like the decision. 48:03 And they caused all sorts of problems. 48:05 Maybe this has something to say about what's happening 48:07 in the church today where people are not willing to abide 48:11 by a decision that was reached three times by the 48:13 General Conference session, by the representatives 48:16 that came together. 48:17 I mean, how many times does the Holy Spirit have to speak? 48:21 The Bible says, in the voice of two or three witnesses 48:24 every word is confirmed. 48:26 So there's not only two, there's three. 48:28 Just in case. 48:30 But there's all kinds of problems now. 48:32 Because there are people who do not want to abide 48:34 by the decision that was made by the world church. 48:40 Let's not get into that. 48:43 "And as they went through the cities, 48:45 they delivered to them the decrees to keep..." 48:56 Were the elders the representatives 48:58 from all over the empire? Yes. 49:09 Notice this comment from Ellen White. 49:12 "The order that was maintained in the early Christian church 49:16 made it possible for them to move forward solidly 49:20 as a well-disciplined army clad with the armor of God. 49:25 The companies of believers, though scattered," 49:28 listen carefully, "over a large territory, 49:30 were all members of one body; all moved in concert 49:35 and in harmony with one another. 49:37 When dissension arose in a local church, 49:41 as later it did in Antioch and elsewhere, 49:46 and the believers were unable to come to an agreement 49:49 among themselves, such matters were not permitted to create 49:52 a division in the church..." 49:54 Is this true of what happened in heaven, the council that 49:57 God established in heaven when there was this discordant 50:00 note of Lucifer? 50:02 Did God gather the heavenly council together 50:05 to say, "Let's discuss this." 50:07 Yes. 50:09 So it says here, once again, "When dissension arose 50:12 in a local church, as later it did arise in Antioch 50:16 and elsewhere, and the believers were unable to 50:18 come to an agreement among themselves, 50:19 such matters were not permitted to create a division 50:22 in the church, but were referred to a..." What? 50:26 "...to a general council of the entire body of believers, 50:30 made up of appointed delegates from the various 50:35 local churches, with the apostles and elders 50:38 in positions of leading responsibility." 50:41 Wow! 50:45 "Thus the efforts of Satan to attack the church in isolated 50:49 places were met by concerted action on the part of all, 50:53 and the plans of the enemy to disrupt 50:56 and destroy were thwarted." 51:00 Does God want the church to run like His heavenly council? 51:05 Does He have representatives from the entire universe 51:08 that come to deliberate in heaven? 51:10 They're called elders. 51:12 Who are the representatives on earth? 51:15 They're called elders. 51:17 So let's summarize. 51:20 The elders are what? 51:22 Rulers and overseers. 51:25 Supervisors, if you please. 51:28 They are what else? 51:30 Representatives. 51:33 God runs a representative style of government. 51:36 God does not run a dictatorship. 51:41 Let me ask you, could God run the universe all by Himself? 51:45 Of course He could. 51:47 Absolutely. 51:49 But God is a delegator. 51:52 God does not need indispensably to organize His kingdom 52:00 where He delegates responsibility to different 52:03 levels of beings with different gifts 52:05 and different responsibilities. 52:08 But God enjoys delegating responsibility 52:12 to the beings from His kingdom. 52:14 Isn't that wonderful? 52:16 That God doesn't say, "Do it this way." 52:18 "Why, Lord." "Because I say so." 52:20 No. God runs a republican style of government. 52:25 I'm not talking about the Republican party, by the way. 52:27 I'm talking about a republic, 52:30 where the government is run by representatives 52:33 elected by the people and who come together 52:37 and never agree on anything in the United States. 52:42 So they're rulers and overseers. 52:44 They are representatives. 52:46 They attend and deliberate in council. 52:49 They are administrators of a section of the church. 52:55 By the way, are the elders supposed to offer prayers 52:58 for the saints? 53:00 You think? 53:03 How about the elders in heaven? 53:04 Do they present the prayers of God's people? 53:08 Yes. They're spiritual leaders. 53:11 Just like the angels are spiritual leaders. 53:14 Notice this beautiful statement. 53:16 By the way, the angels have a much more important function 53:20 than we generally realize. 53:24 My personal opinion is that the church needs a thirty-third, 53:28 no, a thirtieth fundamental belief. 53:32 I believe there's twenty-nine now. 53:34 Or are there twenty-eight? 53:36 Are there twenty-eight. 53:37 So we need a twenty-ninth fundamental belief. 53:41 And that is regarding angels. 53:45 Angels are critically important 53:47 in the way that God runs the universe. 53:50 As you can tell by the dream that Jacob had, 53:53 and the fact that the veil of the Sanctuary 53:57 that divided the Holy from the Most Holy Place 53:59 was embroidered with angels ascending and descending. 54:03 So when the incense was mingled with the fire, 54:07 with the coals of the fire, and the smoke ascended 54:10 over the veil into the presence of God, 54:16 what you have represented is the prayers of the saints 54:18 taken by the angels to Jesus Christ 54:22 for Jesus Christ to intercede with the Father. 54:26 And by the way, the Roman Catholic church 54:28 establishes another level. 54:31 They say you have to plea to the saints. 54:34 That the saints are the ones that take the prayers 54:36 to Jesus, and then Jesus presents them to the Father. 54:39 No. What happens is the Roman Catholic church 54:42 is leaving the angels without a job. 54:47 Because it's the job of the angels to take our prayers 54:50 to Jesus. 54:51 And for Jesus to mingle them with the merits 54:54 of His sacrifice before the Father so that our prayers 54:58 are acceptable in His sight. 55:00 It's not the saints. 55:03 Notice this beautiful statement. 55:05 "Let the members of every family bear in mind that 55:08 they are closely allied to heaven. 55:11 The Lord has a special interest in the families 55:14 of His children here below. 55:16 Angels offer the smoke of the fragrant incense 55:20 for the praying saints." 55:21 And we notice that the highest of angels are the 55:23 ones that do this. 55:25 "Then in every family let prayer ascend to heaven 55:27 both in the morning and at the cool sunset hour, 55:31 in our behalf presenting before God the Savior's merits. 55:35 Morning and evening the heavenly universe take notice 55:38 of every praying household." 55:42 One final comment, because time has run out, 55:45 on the number twenty-four. 55:47 There were twenty-four courses of priests in the Sanctuary. 55:51 In other words, twice a year there were groups of priests 55:56 that for two weeks in the year they served in the Sanctuary. 56:02 So the question is, do the angels perform 56:06 a work in the Sanctuary of burning incense 56:09 and presenting it before the Lord? 56:11 Yes. So I believe the twenty-four courses 56:14 on earth are really a reflection of the turns that the elders 56:23 take in heaven to present the prayers of the saints 56:27 before God. 56:29 So basically, the elders, when it comes to the future, 56:36 are going to be what they have been all throughout history. 56:42 That is, that they are going to be representatives 56:46 of the entire universe before the heavenly council. 56:50 And God will have business meetings now and then 56:53 where He will call the leaders or the elders 56:57 to come to the meeting. 56:59 This means that not all of us are going to 57:02 come to the meetings. 57:03 We will do it through our representatives 57:07 that God chooses according to the abilities 57:11 that they have received. 57:13 And there will be people with greater abilities 57:15 and lesser abilities in the kingdom. 57:17 But we will all grow, we'll continue to grow 57:20 in our relationship with the Lord. 57:22 So I hope that what we've studied has at least jogged 57:26 our thinking processes as to why the elders 57:31 are called elders in these passages of the 57:35 book of Revelation. 57:36 That what happens on earth is really a reflection 57:41 of the way in which God runs the universe in the heavenly realm. 57:46 And if we're not good leaders here, 57:49 we will never be good leaders there. 57:51 If we don't set things in order here, 57:53 we would never set them in order there. 57:55 If we aspire to someone else's position, 57:58 we're never going to make it there. 58:00 So I trust that what we've studied has been useful 58:03 in our walk with the Lord. |
Revised 2022-08-15