Participants: John Lomacang (Host), John Stanton
Series Code: HCL
Program Code: HCL100013
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00:01 Hello, friends, grab your Bible and a friend and sit back
00:03 as we explore God's word together 00:05 on this edition of House Calls. 00:22 Friends, welcome to the most exciting program 00:24 anywhere on the planet at this present moment. 00:28 That's why we're here, we believe that 00:30 and we are convicted and we thank you for tuning in 00:32 because I think that you believe the same thing 00:35 and you know what, I'm not by myself. 00:38 I have my good friend John Stanton. 00:40 Hey, it's good to be here and we say it's the best program 00:43 not because we're bias in anyway. 00:45 No, we're not bias, we are completely unbias. 00:48 But honestly we are saying that because this is a program 00:50 where we talk about the word of God. 00:51 And it makes a difference, it really does make a difference 00:54 when we talk about God's word we are in a book that never, 00:57 never will lose its popularity, it is still no matter 01:02 what comes out next month 01:03 on the New York Times bestseller list, 01:05 it's still the best-selling book in the world. 01:08 It's actually a volume of 66 books and so, 01:12 if you want to be blessed, you stay tuned to the program, 01:14 hit record and we're gonna continue today on our topic 01:19 of "Dressing up for God" and we also have 01:22 some good questions and comments. 01:23 But, first things first. 01:25 Let's have prayer, John. Let's do that. 01:26 Dear Father in heaven, so such a blessing 01:29 here to come before Your throne here 01:31 and seeking your blessing and especially as we start 01:34 our program where we talk about Your word. 01:37 And so Lord, we just thank you for what you're about to give 01:39 because we know that when two or three are gathered, 01:42 you're always here and we just pray that 01:44 as You are here in our midst. 01:46 You give us clear understanding 01:47 and direction, instruction in the word. 01:49 In Jesus name, amen. Thank you, John. 01:53 You know, your questions and comments 01:55 makes this program available every time you tune in, 01:59 anytime you call us, anytime you write us, 02:01 we download them and try to do our best 02:03 to answer them based on God's word 02:04 and today we do have questions. 02:06 And so John, I'm gonna let you go ahead 02:08 and dive into it today and tell us 02:09 what is our first questions going to be. 02:13 Good question here coming from, 02:16 boy, it doesn't actually say on this one. 02:18 But it's along the lines of the topic. 02:19 So that I thought I would share this question here today. 02:22 Greetings from the Lord, brethren, 02:24 indeed we have a mammoth task to tell the world 02:26 of the coming redeemer and the Lord Jesus Christ. 02:30 I have the following questions. 02:32 What is the work that Christ is doing in the heavenly sanctuary? 02:37 Good question, and then he also gives this other question 02:41 which we will answer it later today. 02:42 Is there any difference between American and African Adventism? 02:46 The reason I'm asking is because I've seen 02:48 some of things like Christmas and its connection 02:51 with paganism being observed in America, 02:54 not where I am in Africa, 02:55 also putting on of jewelry other things like that. 02:58 I wouldn't equate Christmas to jewelry, 03:01 but at the same time, I understand his point, 03:04 there seems to be a breaking down 03:06 of the standards within America. 03:10 But anyway, let's answer this first question, all right. 03:12 What is Jesus doing in the heavenly sanctuary 03:15 in the sanctuary, the heavenly sanctuary? 03:18 Turn with us to Hebrews Chapter 9, 03:23 and I'm gonna read starting with verse, 03:26 let's see here, 22, 9:22. 03:33 Okay, Hebrews 9 verse 22. Go forward. 03:36 "And according to the law almost 03:38 all things are purified with blood, 03:41 and without the shedding of blood there is no remission." 03:44 Remission of what? Sin, sin. 03:46 Verse 23, "Therefore it was necessary 03:49 that the copies of the things in the heavens 03:52 should be purified with these, but the heavenly things 03:55 themselves with better sacrifices than these." 03:58 And the "these" he's talking about 03:59 the blood of bulls and goats and animals 04:01 that were part of the, the Earthly sanctuary service. 04:05 "For Christ," verse 24, "has not entered the Holy Places 04:09 made with hands, which are copies of the true, 04:12 but into heaven itself, now to appear 04:15 in the presence of God for us." 04:17 And if you want to know what he's talking about into heaven 04:19 itself that's more specific in verse 11 of that same Chapter, 04:23 saying "Christ has become the high priest of good things 04:26 to come with a greater and more perfect tabernacle, 04:29 not made with hands, that is not of this creation, 04:32 "speaking of the tabernacle in heaven, the heavenly sanctuary. 04:36 And then it says here in verse 25, 04:38 "Not that He should offer Himself often, 04:41 as the high priest enters the Most Holy Place 04:43 every year with blood of another." 04:46 He then would have had to suffer often 04:48 since the foundation of the world, 04:50 but now once-- how many times? 04:53 Once. Once. 04:54 "At the end of the ages, He has appeared 04:56 to put away sin by the sacrifice of Himself. 05:00 And as it is appointed for men to die once, 05:03 but after this the judgment, so Christ was offered 05:05 once to bear the sins of many, 05:08 to those who eagerly wait for Him, 05:09 He will appear a second time, apart from sin, for salvation." 05:14 That's right. Okay, now to sum that up 05:15 in other words, Jesus came the first time to offer himself 05:18 as a sacrifice for us, that's right. 05:21 The next time He appears, He's gonna come for salvation, 05:24 for the redemption of all on this Earth that are waiting 05:27 for Him to take us to heaven to live with Him forever. 05:29 That's right, now the first time He came, 05:33 it says clearly here that he offered himself, 05:36 shed his own blood in place of the blood 05:39 of bulls and goats and lambs and the other things 05:41 that were offered in the old sanctuary service, 05:45 in the Earthly sanctuary and if we recognize, 05:48 if we look, read Exodus, 05:50 if we read Leviticus, we see that, 05:52 that blood was offered every year on a cycle. 05:57 Each time someone presented a sacrifice, 06:00 brought a sacrifice to the sanctuary, 06:03 they entered into the courtyard 06:04 where they were met by a priest, 06:06 where the lamb, for instance, 06:09 was--the throat was slit after they by laying their 06:12 hands on the head of that animal or that lamb 06:16 transferred in symbol, in type II that animal 06:21 their sins that have recently occurred. 06:25 And then the blood that was spilled from that animal 06:28 as it died, the blood was then taken into the sanctuary, 06:32 the Holy Place and sprinkled before the veil, 06:35 on the altar there as well. 06:37 Also that animal was sacrificed by burning it on the altar, 06:42 the brazen altar out in the courtyard. 06:44 Now several things are happening there 06:46 that are in type that Jesus fulfilled. 06:49 He on the cross sacrificed himself and shed his blood, 06:54 which is the altar of burnt offering, that brazen altar, 06:58 the bronze altar that was in the courtyard. 07:00 But now what this is saying here is that as Christ 07:03 ascended into heaven, He went to appear 07:07 in the Holy Place to take his blood, 07:10 not the blood of bulls and goats but his own blood 07:13 to offer that for us, for our sins and he did it just once. 07:18 That's right, so what this is saying here 07:19 is that the services of the old that happened once a year 07:22 on a cycle was a picture of what happens 07:26 on a grand full one time cycle in this Earth's history. 07:32 So really that Earthly sanctuary service is a picture 07:36 of the plan of salvation that God had instituted with Jesus 07:41 for the redemption of mankind. 07:43 So when Jesus gave his life on the cross, 07:45 He was not finished with the atonement, no. 07:49 He only began the atonement process by offering his, 07:52 his body and shedding his blood 07:56 and then He entered into heaven itself, 07:58 to then continue the process of atonement to ministering, 08:02 to interceding in our behalf. 08:04 So that when we sin down here, that sin has been transferred 08:09 to is transferred to Jesus, and then by his shedding blood 08:13 to the sanctuary in heaven. 08:15 Where then needs to be cleansed finally 08:18 at the end of time from sin. 08:20 Now that cleansing process is the connection 08:23 to the Most Holy Place, that's right. 08:25 Which we see, within scripture, within prophecy, 08:29 that period of time that He ministered 08:31 in the Most Holy Place began in 1844. 08:34 So now He's not in the Holy Place, 08:37 which is where He began, He has transitioned 08:39 to the Most Holy Place as described in 18-- 08:43 that we're saying happened in 1844, 08:45 to begin or continue his intercession, 08:48 but also to engage in the process of judgment. 08:53 So that the record books or those who profess Christ name, 08:58 those records are seen as to whether or not 08:59 they truly are following Christ, 09:02 and have committed themselves to Christ. 09:04 So atonement can be completed. That's right. 09:07 So atonement just doesn't involve the shedding of blood, 09:10 it involves the application of blood, 09:12 the intercessory aspect of Jesus and His work for us 09:17 and also the completion of that atonement 09:19 which is the acknowledgment when all of a sudden done 09:24 when he's finished, the that those 09:27 who are filthy remain filthy. 09:28 That those who are, who are righteous remain righteous 09:31 as described in Revelation Chapter 22 verse 15, is it? 09:36 Eleven. Eleven, okay good. 09:38 You're much better at the numbers than I am. 09:41 Anyways, so that's, that's really a brief synopsis 09:44 of what Jesus is doing in the heavenly sanctuary, 09:47 and you probably have some things to add to that. 09:48 But it's about as quick as I can do it 09:50 and succinctly as I can come up with. 09:52 And something else on that note, 09:54 He made a promise and that was very well put together, 09:57 He made a promise to the disciples in John Chapter 14, 09:59 He says "In my Father's house are many mansions, 10:02 if it were not so, I would have told you. 10:04 I go to prepare a place for you." 10:06 And the preparation of that place for us 10:09 is something broader than just building mansions, 10:11 a lot of times people think that He's building mansions, 10:13 while the preparation is in fact the atonement work, 10:17 this work of atonement He ever lives. 10:20 Hebrews 7:25, "He ever lives to make intercession for us." 10:24 So this place that He's preparing for us 10:27 is broader than just a mansion being built, 10:29 but in fact He's looking at our lives, 10:32 He's making sure that each of us who professes 10:35 to be his children as the Bible says in First Peter 4:17, 10:39 "The time has come for judgment to begin at the house of God, 10:42 if it begins with us first," and so that's where it starts, 10:46 now what's the purpose of that? 10:48 You know, we look at the work of Jesus, 10:50 His sacrifice that was made on the cross was ratified, 10:58 and He came forth from the grave victoriously, 11:01 now qualifies him as our High Priest forever, He ever lives. 11:07 And I think in one of the programs we mentioned this, 11:10 Jesus is not a priest after the Levitical priesthood, 11:15 but He is a priest after the Melchizedek priest, 11:18 as a matter of fact that's here in 11:20 Hebrews Chapter 7 and verse 21, 11:23 "You are a priest forever according 11:25 to the order of Melchizedek." 11:28 So He's alive and ministering for us today 11:32 and when the Bible says, "If we confess our sins, 11:35 he is faithful and just to forgive us of our sins 11:38 and cleanse us from all unrighteousness." 11:40 That's the work that He's involved in now, 11:42 the mediatorial work, yeah. 11:44 You know, John I think the, 11:46 his work in the Most Holy Place that we described 11:49 his work of investigative judgment is the term 11:52 that Adventist use, but it's a work of judgment 11:54 to determine whether or not those who profess 11:56 Christ's name or followers of Christ. 11:59 That process is really described by Jesus himself in a parable. 12:04 And I'm gonna read this from Matthew Chapter 22. 12:06 Okay, Matthew 22. Let's go there. 12:08 And it says here that, "This king had a son 12:13 who was going to be part of a wedding," 12:19 and many were sent out to offer or to invite those 12:25 to the wedding, in fact, the first two calls were not 12:27 to those who are being invited for the first time 12:30 it actually describes those who have already been invited 12:32 really the house of Israel is really descriptive of. 12:35 To call them back into that relationship, 12:39 that full relationship with him, so that they can be in faith 12:42 or by faith present at this wedding. 12:45 And then it gets to the third call, 12:47 which is okay, they weren't willing they, 12:48 they ended up killing my servants sent to them. 12:51 I'm going to now invite everyone bad and good, 12:54 all of all people to come in and be part of this wedding 12:57 and I picked that up here in verse 10. 13:00 "So those servants went out into the highways, 13:02 and gathered together all whom they found, both bad and good, 13:05 and the wedding hall was filled with guests. 13:08 So as the gospel invitation goes out 13:11 and as people respond to that, if they respond yes, I, this is, 13:16 this is something that I would want to be part of, 13:19 and they accept Jesus as their Savior, 13:21 they then enter into this wedding hall as guests by faith. 13:26 But then you'll notice something happens after that, verse 11. 13:30 "But when the king came in to see the guests, 13:32 he saw a man there who did not have on what?" 13:35 A wedding garment, "So he said to him, friend, 13:38 how did you come in here without a wedding garment 13:42 and he was speechless. 13:45 Then the king said to his servants, 13:46 Bind him hand and foot, take him away 13:48 and cast him into outer darkness, 13:49 there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. 13:51 For many are called, and few are chosen." 13:53 Now if you read Matthew Chapter 25, 13:55 there is also description of a wedding. 13:58 It says there that only those who are ready 14:01 go into the wedding. 14:03 So you have to by faith come into the wedding. 14:05 That's right, in other words when they were asking, 14:08 I keep saying another words, because I want to be 14:10 more descriptive but when he was asking, 14:13 how did you getting here without a wedding garment, 14:15 and he was speechless, he wasn't thinking 14:17 how did I get in here without one, 14:18 he had come in with one and he was speechless 14:21 because he no longer had one, right. 14:24 This really, this parable helps to--help us to see 14:27 that once saved always saved 14:28 is not a Bible doctrine, it's not a truth. 14:32 Because you must, you must be ready, 14:36 you must by faith accept Jesus as your savior to come 14:38 into the wedding, but while you are there 14:42 and this inspection is going on 14:43 there are some who will not have that wedding garment on, 14:46 they will lose it and there are others 14:48 who will keep that wedding garment on, 14:51 that the Book of Revelation says that we should are you there? 14:55 Behold, Revelation 16:15, "Behold, I come as a thief. 14:59 Blessed is he who watches, and keeps his garment, 15:02 lest he walk naked, and they see his shame." 15:05 Okay. Blessed is he who keeps his garments. 15:08 So you can come in by faith, 15:10 but the keeping is the part that we were talking 15:13 in our last program, the following of God's truth. 15:17 The faith and works together, 15:18 the part that is evidence of your salvation in Jesus 15:22 is what keeps you in the wedding feast, 15:24 it's what keeps you saved. 15:26 And so what we're saying, when Jesus is doing this 15:30 inspection, this investigating of the guests there, 15:32 He's interceding for those who are by faith 15:36 keeping their faith in him 15:38 and following and walking with him. 15:40 Well, those who lose their garment 15:42 who aren't following Him are judged to be found unworthy. 15:49 They're put out of the, out of the wedding hall. 15:53 They're not followers of God anymore 15:55 and they determine that. 15:56 They only await the second judgment 15:59 which is after the second death 16:00 which is eternal condemnation. 16:03 So Jesus is going through that process right now, 16:06 which is why we know, John, that we are 16:07 very, very close to the return of Christ 16:10 because when He's finished, there's no more intercessory 16:12 work to do, He's coming back to take his saints home. 16:15 You covered a number of things here that, I mean, 16:19 I was going in all these different directions here 16:21 in the sense that a door kept opening up 16:23 to each of the point you made. 16:25 One of the ones that I want to point out is that 16:27 when you talked about the mediatorial work, 16:31 the garment is so vitally important. 16:33 If you look at that, if you look at that theme 16:36 in the Garden of Eden, what did Adam and Eve lose? 16:38 They lost the garment. 16:40 If you look at the entire sin issue, 16:45 it's about the sin stained garment. 16:49 What happened when Jesus is on the cross? 16:52 They gambled over his robe, his garment, 16:56 you find that when Jesus was born, 16:58 He was wrapped in swaddling clothes, 17:00 He was wrapped in a garment. 17:02 All these, the garment theme is all through the Bible, 17:04 and then the church is the bride of Christ 17:07 and her garment is described in Revelation Chapter 12, 17:10 The New Jerusalem is the bride of Christ, 17:14 matter of fact, in Revelation 12, 17:16 it shows the picture of the church 17:17 and the glorious woman, but in Revelation Chapter 20 17:20 and 21, you see the bride of Christ, her adornment. 17:24 But then you also see the righteousness of Jesus 17:27 in Revelation Chapter 16 verse 15, 17:29 blessed to see who keeps his garment. 17:32 And so the entire whole issue of salvation 17:34 is not our garment, because our garment is as filthy rags. 17:41 So we cannot in our own selves ever qualify 17:45 for being fit enough and righteous enough to be saved. 17:49 All our righteousness is as filthy rags. 17:53 Now I've got to say this too, 17:55 because of the topic we're talking about today. 17:57 You know, dressing up for Jesus, you know, 17:59 dressing the way that we should, 18:01 adornment and the other things that are associated with that. 18:04 Look at this, James 5 Chapter 5 verse 1. 18:08 James 5:1, "Come now, you rich, 18:12 weep and howl for your miseries 18:14 that are coming upon you." 18:15 Speaking of the last days. I see where you're going. 18:17 "Your riches are corrupted, 18:19 and your garments are moth-eaten. 18:22 Your gold and silver are corroded, 18:25 and their corrosion will be a witness against you, 18:27 and will eat your flesh like fire. 18:29 You have heaped up treasure in the last days." 18:33 Interesting here, the connection of the last day 18:36 lives of those who are living who call themselves 18:41 Christians, again this letter is to the church. 18:44 So he's writing to the church and he's saying 18:46 you're letting all these riches, these treasures, 18:48 all these other things eat away at your garment. 18:52 There the world is coming in, 18:53 is creeping in and it's putting holes in it, 18:56 to the point where you'll find in the end, 18:58 you have no garment as this man who was caught 19:01 in the wedding guests without one. 19:03 You know, and I always reference that 19:05 it speaks of a garment, a garment being moth-eaten. 19:08 You know, if you think about it when you have, 19:11 you know, we understand how much how much it costs, 19:13 John, to buy a nice wool suit. 19:17 $700 at least. In New York $99. 19:20 Well, but still 99 bucks. Right. 19:22 Okay, it costs money to do that. 19:24 There's nothing more irritating 19:26 than opening up a suit that you've had in the place that, 19:30 you know, in your closet, 19:31 you haven't worn in maybe several months 19:34 and seeing a hole right there in the front of it. 19:37 Yeah, I don't know, I don't know why moths like suits. 19:39 They just they love to put these little holes 19:42 and they wear the material and they get this hole in it. 19:45 But it is so similar to sometimes our walk of faith. 19:49 It's when we're not paying attention. 19:50 You know what I'm saying, 19:51 that the moth eats the garment. 19:53 Sometimes we don't pay attention 19:54 to the responsibility of being a Christian 19:58 that causes us to realize one day, you know what? 20:00 I'm losing my faith and a good, 20:04 I think a very well, very appropriate analogy here 20:07 being moth-eaten, the garment being moth-eaten, 20:10 to sometimes our life. 20:11 Right and so we have to keep, 20:12 we have to get away from our moth-eaten garments 20:15 to the whole armor of God. 20:18 When you put on armor, moths are not going 20:20 to eat through armor. No. 20:22 But when it's your own garment 20:24 and it's not covered with the armor of God, 20:28 then moths will eat it away. 20:29 And, you know, John, that, that 20:31 very picture, I hadn't talked about, 20:32 that's a great sermon title moth-eaten. 20:35 Because you know sometimes we just, 20:37 we just get this garment and we just kind of 20:39 handle it like it's just no garment of great value, 20:43 but the moth has begun to eat away 20:44 and when you go back and you look at the picture 20:47 of the man that was in the wedding feast 20:49 without a garment, you could almost say well, 20:52 it came to the point where was it moth-eaten, 20:55 the things of life ate it away and he no longer was 20:57 able to keep that garment. 20:58 It was no longer there. 21:00 And so we begin to look at that and say okay, 21:03 we have to keep ourselves focused on Christ 21:05 because only as we focus on his righteousness, 21:08 are we gonna have any kind of foundation to 21:10 keep us through the days that are ahead of us. 21:13 And so it's a powerful topic what is the Lord doing? 21:15 He's preserving our garments. What are we doing? 21:18 We're looking to the one who alone is our righteousness. 21:20 That's right, amen. Wow! 21:22 I have a quick question here from a gentleman, 21:24 I have a question on the topic to eat or not to eat. 21:29 If our body is mortal and God is going to change it anyway. 21:34 Why bother about it now? 21:38 Let me give it my car anyway. 21:39 Let's just go and beat it up. Why me? 21:42 Why worry about the car? 21:44 Well, you made a point there 21:46 and we've been talking about this. 21:48 You see the accountability that we have 21:51 is what we do with this body here now 21:54 is not well, let's go ahead and abuse it, 21:56 it's not gonna matter anyway. 21:58 Let's stop for a moment and not apply that to our bodies. 22:01 Let's apply that to our houses. 22:05 Well, I'm not gonna live on the Earth forever, 22:07 I am not gonna be on this Earth indefinitely. 22:09 So let me just go ahead and just destroy my house, 22:11 let me trash it, let me just-- if it starts fall-- 22:13 I won't clean it, I won't fix it, nothing. 22:15 Not gonna clean it, not gonna fix it, 22:16 it doesn't matter what I put in it. 22:18 I could have goats in the living room, 22:20 I have cows in there, I could have a 100 cats, 22:23 dogs, you name it, I'm gonna let the whole world come in. 22:26 'Cause this is not really gonna be my abiding place forever. 22:28 I mean, why deal with it now. 22:30 If the window breaks, doesn't really matter, 22:31 my car broke down, doesn't really matter 22:33 I'm gonna get a new one anyway. 22:35 I am losing it and I am going to. 22:36 I'm going to heaven, I'm not going to take it with me. 22:38 That principle doesn't measure up 22:41 when it comes to Earthly things, 22:44 how could we even assume that that principle applies 22:49 when it comes to things that God made. 22:51 Now we're talking about houses, cars, wood, 22:53 stone, brick, paint, those are the things that we made. 22:57 God values everything that He made. 23:00 And by the way, here is the text. 23:02 Second Corinthians 5 and verse 10. 23:04 This is the broad text. 23:05 Well, I'll share another one with you in a moment. 23:08 But Second Corinthians 5:10 says, 23:09 For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, 23:13 that each one may receive the things 23:16 done in the body, according to 23:18 what he has done, whether good or bad." 23:21 And in First Corinthians 10:31, it says, 23:23 "whether therefore you eat, or drink, 23:25 or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God." 23:28 First Corinthians 6 verse 18 and 19, 23:32 verse 19 and 20. 23:34 Do you not know that your body is the temple of God, 23:37 and the Spirit of God dwells in you, 23:39 if anyone defiles his temple him will 23:41 God destroy for the temple of God is Holy 23:43 which temple you are. 23:44 Yes, as your body is not your own. 23:46 Your body is not your own, 23:47 you are bought with a price. 23:48 First Corinthians 3 verse 16 and 17, 23:51 "we are bought with a price, 23:52 therefore glorify God in your body 23:55 and in your spirit, which are God's." 23:57 God is not just looking for spiritual worship, 24:00 He's looking for physical spiritual worship. 24:03 This is the temple, so we serve him best 24:06 with what we do with his temple. 24:08 There is another analogy of a car. 24:11 You know there's some cars that run on premium fuel only. 24:16 And if you put 87 octane fuel or low-grade fuel, 24:20 you know, I actually found that when I was going to Montana, 24:23 they have 85 octane, didn't know that. 24:26 That's low. Yeah, really low. 24:28 Anyway but just hear me. 24:30 But octane fuel whether 85, 87, 24:33 if you put that in the in the car, 24:35 it's not gonna run right. 24:37 It'll run, it'll run, but it won't run very well. 24:41 And similarly in our own lives, 24:44 in our Christian lives, in the way we're in tune 24:46 with God every day, and I believe that our daily 24:48 walk should be in the spirit as Paul describes in Romans 8. 24:52 Not so that we don't fulfill the lust of the flesh. 24:56 So we need to feed our mind or feed our body 24:59 which would feed our mind with things 25:01 that are going to make it run at a premium level, 25:04 because if we don't it'll default to its base level. 25:10 Its flesh level, and we know 25:12 the flesh is going to draw us to sin. 25:16 Where as the mind, if it's right, 25:17 it's gonna draw us to God. 25:20 And so when it comes to feeding our body 25:23 with what we eat and, you know, 25:25 what we drink and all the other things. 25:27 We got to remember this there is a spiritual need 25:30 that our body has to operate at a premium level, 25:34 so that God can speak with us through His word 25:38 through songs through whatever we partake in. 25:41 Our body's got to be in tune with that, 25:42 and when we don't treat it right, 25:43 we are sluggish, we cannot do those things 25:47 that God would ask us to do. 25:50 How many stories have you heard, John, miracles. 25:53 People felt so impressed to give a certain amount 25:56 to somebody at a certain time. 26:00 And how can we assume 26:02 that we would be in tune to hear that voice. 26:04 Hear God's voice tell us to do things like that, 26:07 if we're sluggish and tired and just barely hanging on. 26:11 If we don't have a connection with God 26:12 that's lively and vibrant. 26:14 No, you can't really. Yeah. 26:15 God can't get through to that. 26:17 So there are so many levels we can come 26:19 at this at I know that we can't believe it this question 26:21 but it just doesn't make sense 26:23 that we can just treat our bodies in whatever way we want 26:25 and expect that we're gonna get the same result. 26:27 No, if your body is mortal and God is going 26:31 to change it anyway, why bother about it anyhow. 26:34 I tell you, you don't want your house to fall apart. 26:36 You don't want your body to fall apart. 26:37 I can guarantee you that when if ever 26:41 you're laying on a hospital bed and your life is ebbing away, 26:45 I don't think you'll feel that way. 26:46 No, I would say it's because our life 26:48 is mortal that we need to treat it so much better 26:52 to be in tune with God's will. 26:53 That's right, well friends, 26:55 thank you for your comments and your questions. 26:57 We're gonna transition to our program, 26:59 but if you have any comments and questions 27:01 that you like to send to us, 27:02 you can send them to housecalls@3abn.org, 27:07 that's housecalls@3abn.org. 27:11 And that's where we have access to the questions 27:13 you sent to us and we do appreciate everything 27:16 you do to continue to carry this network. 27:19 Going forward via prayers and also all your support, 27:22 whether you're volunteering or whether 27:24 you're sending your finances to keep the work of God 27:26 going forward, we do appreciate it 27:28 very much, thank you. 27:31 We're continuing in our topic today "Dressing up for God." 27:34 And, John, I want you to -- you had a text, 27:38 I think it was First John 2:15, we're gonna dive into 27:40 that program today by using this text. 27:43 You have your Bibles, go with us to 27:45 First John 2 verse 15, and if you're remember 27:48 on our last program, we laid the foundation 27:51 with talking about the Midianite and the Chaldean, 27:56 we talked about Abraham and his servant 27:59 going looking for a wife for Isaac. 28:01 We talked about Rebekah, who accepted 28:04 these gifts the dowry, we talked about 28:07 the wealth that Abraham had 28:09 and how he gave her jewels of gold. 28:12 And how when God called Jacob and Rachel, 28:15 God was about to revolutionize 28:18 man's approach to these things 28:21 and what they actually meant to him. 28:23 But there is a principle underlying all of this. 28:26 And, John, I'd like you to read that for us as 28:27 we're going into the program. 28:28 Yeah, it's from First John 2:15. 28:31 And in fact it extends through 17. 28:34 "Do not love the world, or the things in the world. 28:38 If anyone loves the world, 28:39 the love of the Father is not in him. 28:42 For all that is in the world, 28:43 the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, 28:46 the pride of life, is not of the Father, 28:48 but is of the world. 28:50 And the world is passing away, and the lust of it, 28:53 but he who does the will of God abides forever." 28:57 And then it gets into a subject about the last days. 29:00 So this is the real, this is the last day 29:02 application here that I think is intended by John. 29:07 And so I think it very well said, 29:09 when our focus is accumulating the things 29:12 of the world, whatever they may be, 29:14 and we're talking about dressing 29:15 and adornment and things here. 29:17 But it includes those, when we're looking for attention. 29:21 Or when we're looking to accumulate things 29:24 of the world that are for not only our attention 29:28 but the attention of others, it really is not God's way. 29:32 And so God's way is a simple, pure, Holy life, 29:38 undefiled and one that, that is wholly dedicated 29:43 on what He would and how this be. 29:46 And so that's where we're gonna get in here today 29:47 and as we're -- 'cause I think we are leaving off 29:49 in the way in that respect, 29:51 in the last program where we talked about 29:53 how Rebekah was now being married to Isaac. 30:00 And a big dowry was paid for Rebekah 30:03 in the world's terms and we're talking about prior to Israel, 30:07 the calling out of Israel, through Jacob who is now, 30:11 who is Rebekah's son to be. 30:14 But here we are talking about them giving a dowry 30:17 and Laban accumulating goods, 30:19 I think there was an indication probably there 30:21 in that story of Laban's desire for wealth. 30:25 Oh, yeah, exactly, we talked about that. 30:28 And so you know, we're talking about 30:29 desire for wealth and goods and other things 30:31 usually what comes along with that is 30:32 accumulation of jewelry and precious metals, jewels things. 30:37 So anyway, so now we have her marrying Isaac 30:41 and as Isaac and Rebekah have children. 30:45 They have Jacob and Esau, 30:46 we're going to get into that aspect of story 30:48 and you're gonna see clearly two different paths. 30:51 Esau, taking the path of the world 30:55 and Jacob being called out to become one of God's 30:59 or the Father of God's children, really, Israel. 31:02 And we're also gonna see some of the things 31:04 that he talks to them that they should leave behind, 31:08 in their calling, being called by God to serve him. 31:10 Good foundation, I appreciate that very much. 31:13 Because you know in every society, 31:14 there are two classes, those who are following God's will 31:17 those who are not following God's will. 31:19 Those who are being molded by God, 31:21 those who are being molded by Satan. 31:23 We're just gonna make it black and white, 31:24 those who are following the road to eternal life 31:26 and those who are following a road away from eternal life. 31:29 It's called the Broadway path. 31:31 The path that's broad, that leads to destruction 31:34 and the Bible says, many there be that go there in. 31:36 But the way to eternal life is a path so narrow, 31:39 that is a path not of restriction, 31:42 but a path of narrowing down. 31:47 My wife and I had a chance to go to 31:49 one of the most beautiful islands of Virgin Gorda, 31:52 it's a British Virgin Island, beautiful, guess why? 31:55 The honeymoon, that's right. 31:56 And you guys did that catam, was not catam, but a sail boat. 32:00 It's a sail boat. Yeah, big sail boat. 32:02 We spent the whole week on that. 32:03 Yeah, we sailed it ourselves. That's amazing. 32:05 I mean, that's more than I would do, I mean believe me. 32:09 But in the Virgin Islands, beautiful, 32:11 very, very beautiful place, 32:12 but on the island of Virgin Gorda, 32:17 at the beach there are monumental stones, 32:21 sorry, boulders. 32:22 A stone is something probably you can pick up and roll, 32:24 you couldn't roll these. 32:26 These are rocks that will not roll, 32:28 but as you go through the walkway down to the beach, 32:32 you walk through these cave like caverns. 32:35 And in some places that, 32:37 if you don't narrow down what you have on your back, 32:39 you're not going through. 32:40 Matter of fact there are some place 32:42 where the backpack wouldn't fit. 32:44 So what you have do, you have to take it off 32:46 and scooted through first and then you go out, 32:48 go after it, almost walking sideways. 32:51 One of the very same way, God is calling his people 32:54 to take the things of the world off, 32:56 and if they have to scoot sideways 32:58 and get on that narrow path to eternal life. 33:01 We can't take the world with us and that's why John 33:03 began in the story with First John 2 verse 15. 33:07 But let's go back to Genesis Chapter 35 now 33:10 because I'm gonna lay the foundation very quickly. 33:14 Rachel, Jacob marries Rachel. 33:23 And Jacob marry-- And this is right after. 33:27 This is right after being deceived 33:28 in marrying Leah, first, right, right. 33:30 By the deception of Laban, 33:32 Laban comes back into the story. 33:33 So but now we get, he has both of them now. 33:37 He has both of them now, but they have their own home. 33:39 Jacob marries Rachel, 33:40 and Lord now calls Jacob to dedicate his family. 33:44 You remember the story very well. 33:45 I did a sermon called "Lentils" 33:47 about the battle between Jacob and Esau. 33:52 How Esau despised his birthright 33:54 and Jacob stole, stole the blessing later on. 33:57 And this so angered Esau that he ran after his brother Jacob 34:01 and Jacob hid at Bethel called, "the house of God." 34:05 And there God wrestled, there he wrestled with God. 34:09 He prevailed and the Lord blessed him, 34:11 and he changed his name from Jacob to Israel. 34:16 Which means, when you say the sons of Israel, 34:18 you definitely mean, 34:19 the son of Israel, who was formerly Jacob. 34:23 But now God is about to bless this family 34:25 before they have any children, 34:28 before any of their sons come into the world, 34:30 He is gonna bless them 34:31 and cause their, their family to multiply 34:36 and to bring forth children to the glory of God. 34:40 But notice what he says, 34:41 they must do in preparation for this dedication. 34:44 And this is called the devotion at Bethel. 34:46 Genesis Chapter 35 verse 1 to 4, read that for us, John. 34:50 "Then God said to Jacob, arise go up to Bethel, 34:53 and dwell there, and make an altar there to God, 34:56 who appeared to you 34:57 when you fled from the face of Esau your brother. 34:59 And Jacob said to his household, 35:01 and to all who were with him, 35:03 put away your foreign gods that are among you, 35:06 purify yourselves and change your garments. 35:10 Then let us arise and go up to Bethel, 35:12 and I will make an altar there to God, 35:14 who answered me in the day of my distress, 35:16 and has been with me in the way which I had gone. 35:21 So they gave Jacob all the foreign gods 35:23 which were in their hands 35:25 and the earrings which were in their ears. 35:27 Jacob hid them under the terebinth tree at Shechem." 35:32 All right, okay. Notice where it says, 35:33 "And all their earrings which were in their ears." 35:36 Did you have that in your translation there? 35:38 Yes, and no, it says and the earrings. 35:41 And so you see what happened is, in this particular story, 35:47 as they were dedicating themselves to Christ, 35:48 they did something as they dedicated themselves 35:51 to the call of God in their lives. 35:53 They did three things, notice they're outlined in verse 2, 35:56 "Put away the foreign gods, purify yourselves, 36:03 change your garments." 36:04 Now, if you remember the story well, 36:07 where did they get these foreign gods from? 36:09 Laban, exactly, Laban sold foreign gods, 36:13 when Rachel left the house, she took them with her, 36:17 she stole them thinking that 36:18 this is this is the way to preserve her inheritance. 36:22 But the Lord said, no, foreign gods are not 36:24 a part of your inheritance. 36:26 These articles of gold and silver 36:28 these precious stones, these jewels, 36:29 these earrings are not a part of your inheritance. 36:31 Your inheritance is to be a peculiar person, 36:34 is to reflect the glory of God. 36:36 And so this is the first injunction 36:38 you find in the Bible, where the Lord said to them 36:40 "Put away these foreign gods, change your garments," 36:42 and notice what they understood that to mean 36:44 and this is the same call that God places in our lives. 36:47 When he says, put away the foreign gods, 36:49 change your garments, they understood that to mean 36:52 and so they removed their earrings, 36:55 they change their garments. 36:57 And by the way John, this is amazing what they did. 37:00 It says in verse 4 again, 37:02 "So they gave Jacob all the foreign gods 37:04 which were in their hands 37:05 and all the earrings which were in their ears, 37:07 and Jacob hid them under the terebinth tree 37:10 which was by Shechem." 37:12 The terebinth tree is the oak tree. 37:14 He buried them, so that when they got home, 37:16 it wouldn't be a temptation any longer, right. 37:19 You know, in this injunction, 37:21 this request by Jacob to his family was not a -- 37:28 it wasn't some temporary thing, no. 37:30 This is a full on dedication that from this day forward 37:34 we serve the God, we serve God and God alone, 37:38 the God of creation, and so this here, 37:40 when they're talking about putting away gods 37:43 and then they take out their earrings and so forth. 37:45 This is something that is a commitment. 37:48 It's an expression of commitment to their God, 37:52 that they will serve him 37:53 and follow him for the rest of their life. 37:55 You know, if you say that this is just temporary, 37:56 which you are in fact saying is that 37:58 not only if they put earrings back on. 38:00 But then they started to worship the gods again they had. 38:02 And that's not right, 38:04 that's not a right application here, 38:06 putting away idols 38:09 and taking out your earrings and other things 38:11 are part of the total package of commitment. 38:13 Good, I mean, I'm glad that, that's a very good application 38:16 because if we say that from this point 38:18 they decided to go ahead and put their jewelry back on, 38:21 then we can also suffice to say 38:23 they decided to put back on the clothing 38:25 that they used to wear. 38:26 And then they also brought the foreign gods 38:28 back in their house, but they didn't. 38:30 So this is an entire cleaning package. 38:32 Entire cleansing process, get it all out 38:35 because I'm about to do something revolutionary 38:37 in your life and that's what the Lord was doing for them, 38:40 He was changing their lives in a very real and definite way. 38:44 And by the way, when I talked about foreign gods, 38:46 I just, I need to give some foundation here. 38:50 I need to slow it down because I'm thinking 38:51 like a New Yorker right now. 38:52 I need to give some foundation here. 38:56 The foreign gods that existed among the Babylonians, 39:00 among the Egyptians, among the Canaanites, the Chaldeans, 39:07 the foreign gods existed for one very important reason. 39:10 They believed that when a person died, 39:13 that their spirit or their soul 39:15 would continue roaming the Earth. 39:18 And as a result, the chances were great 39:21 that they would be possessed by these souls 39:24 roaming the Earth, and so what they did was, 39:26 these gods that they had what means whereby 39:29 they would protect themselves, John, 39:32 they would put the gods of, if they serve the sun, 39:36 it would be gold, the moon and the stars, silver, 39:39 the planets various precious metals. 39:41 And they would fashion those things into a particular God, 39:45 and they would hang it by their ear 39:46 to block the opening of the ear, 39:48 by the nose to block the opening of the nose, 39:50 by the mouth of the lip or the tongue 39:52 to block or guard the opening of the mouth. 39:55 So that these spirits-- 39:58 The eyebrow and earring? 39:59 To block the opening of the eye, 40:01 because they believe all these places 40:03 were where the spirits can come in. 40:06 And that's why when the Bible gave the Second Commandment, 40:09 "Thou shall have no other gods before me." 40:13 That's what it included, it didn't just include gods 40:16 that are made outside of temples of false gods. 40:19 It said simply, God did not want any foreign gods 40:23 hanging on the temple that belonged to God. 40:28 That was the real injunction for the Second Commandment, 40:30 that's where it really grew. 40:31 And so when you look at Deuteronomy 32 verse 16, 40:34 and notice what the Lord says here 40:36 and I'll read that very quickly. 40:38 Deuteronomy 32:16 the Bible says, 40:41 "They provoked him to jealousy with foreign gods, 40:44 with abominations they provoked him to anger. 40:48 They sacrificed demons not to God, 40:51 to gods they did not know, 40:53 to new gods, new arrivals that your fathers did not know." 40:58 Notice what he's talking about. 41:00 All these gods were part of their worship and God says, 41:03 "Thou shalt have no other gods before me." 41:05 So when they remove their foreign gods as Jacob said, 41:08 "It was not just the things in their hands, 41:10 but the earrings also in their ears 41:12 and the clothing that they wore," 41:13 that was synonymous with false worship. 41:16 Yeah, I agree. 41:19 But this is a pattern, John, now. 41:22 This is a pattern of what God did with each, 41:26 you know, each time he called his children, 41:29 he called Israel into a full experience, 41:31 a fuller experience at times with him. 41:34 He seemed to go about this cleansing process, 41:38 because it's repeated with the children of Israel 41:40 after their captivity in Egypt, that is right. 41:45 And so I think we're going there next to Exodus. 41:48 Yes, and let's lay some foundation here, 41:50 as they were in Egypt for 400 years, 41:52 if we count the time that, 41:55 that Joseph was sold into slavery 41:57 and became one of the governors in the house of Potiphar, 42:03 you would add about 30 more years to that. 42:05 So he was in Egypt, the whole sojourn 42:07 of the Israelites were 430 years. 42:11 But then the Bible begins "The Book of Exodus" by saying, 42:14 "There arose a Pharaoh, who did not know Joseph." 42:17 And as a result they were made slaves 42:19 and they were slaves for 400 years in the land of Egypt. 42:24 Well, God did two things, 42:25 when he was setting them free 42:26 as they prayed to be set free, he did two things. 42:30 He provided all the remuneration and the money they needed. 42:35 And secondly, He provided all the articles that He would need 42:38 to build and furnish the sanctuary, 42:41 that temple that they traveled with 42:43 as they walked from Egypt to Canaan. 42:46 And so the story picks up in Genesis Chapter, 42:49 sorry in Exodus Chapter 3, where the Lord tells them 42:51 how to get these things, 42:54 how to get all the money that you really are worth, 42:57 how to get all the pay that you never received, 42:59 and how to get all the articles 43:00 that you need to build the temple. 43:02 So begin with verse 22 for us there, John. 43:05 Well, actually verse 21. Verse 21, Exodus 3. 43:09 "And I will give this people favor 43:12 in the sight of the Egyptians, and it shall be when you go, 43:16 in other words when you're delivered from captivity, 43:18 "That you shall not go empty-handed. 43:21 But every woman shall ask of her neighbor, 43:23 namely of her who dwells near her house, 43:26 articles of silver, articles of gold, and clothing, 43:30 and you shall put them on your sons and on your daughters. 43:33 So you shall plunder the Egyptians." 43:35 The word plunder there means simply to wipe them out. 43:40 It was amazing about that, John. 43:41 When they left Egypt, they left Egypt broke. 43:47 Now I want to say this, 43:48 and I'm gonna go to Exodus Chapter 11, 43:50 because it was not just, it was not just the, 43:54 the women that we're told to do this. 43:56 But God also told the men to do this. 43:59 God said to the men now, 44:02 and I want you to get this picture, 44:03 can you imagine, can you imagine, 44:05 let's just pick a neighborhood, pick any neighborhood. 44:09 Pick our community in L.A, and the Lord says okay, 44:12 I want you guys to go from Florida to go to L.A, 44:16 and I want all the ladies 44:17 to knock on the doors of all the women in L.A 44:19 that have expensive jewelry and expensive clothing 44:21 and say this to them. 44:23 Could I have all your jewelry, give me all your clothing. 44:28 And every woman in Beverly Hills 44:31 a day after this occurs comes to the realization 44:34 that they have been plundered that they are broke, 44:37 that they have no clothing, no expensive jewelry, 44:41 none of these articles that they spent elaborate money on. 44:45 And then the next day, 44:46 the men come to do the very same thing 44:47 and take all the expensive articles of clothing 44:49 from the men of Beverly Hills. 44:51 And by the time all these people 44:53 on the way back to Florida, they realize that, 44:55 we're all broke, Beverly Hills is broke, 44:58 because God took all of our wealth 44:59 and gave it to somebody else. 45:01 That's what was happening here in the land of Egypt. 45:04 And look at Chapter 11 verse 2, read that for us-- 45:06 And someone say, 45:07 out of the hand that over so easily, but they feared, 45:11 I mean there was a outright fear 45:13 of the Israelites at this time. 45:15 Because God made his-- 45:17 Yes, God had delivered them in such a miraculous way 45:20 that they felt, hey, if we don't honor their request, 45:23 something even worse is gonna happen to us. 45:25 So they just wanted to get rid of them, 45:27 it wasn't or at times we read this is just Pharaoh, 45:30 you know, hardening his heart, 45:31 but the people went through a drastic change as well, 45:36 because of their experience 45:37 with the plagues and other things. 45:38 They wanted these people just to be out 45:40 and this request was met. 45:43 And by the way just before God began to deal with Pharaoh 45:46 in his situation, God said, 45:48 let's start with the people of Egypt, 45:49 let's begin with those who have all these articles. 45:52 And Chapter 11 and verse 2, notice there again, 45:54 God repeated the same thing. Read that for us, John. 45:58 Speak now in the hearing of the people, 46:00 and let every man asked from his neighbor 46:01 and every woman from her neighbor, 46:03 articles of silver, and articles and gold. 46:06 And so it says in verse 3, "And the Lord gave the people 46:10 favorin the sight of the Egyptians. 46:11 Moreover, the man Moses was great in the land of Egypt, 46:14 in the sight of Pharaoh's servants, 46:16 and in the sight of the peoples." 46:18 And so you see clearly God moved in a strong way 46:22 and in Chapter 12, the end result in verse 35. 46:26 It says that "They did according 46:28 to the word of Moses, 46:30 they asked the Egyptians, articles of silver, 46:32 and articles, articles of gold." 46:34 And the Lord, verse 36 had given 46:35 "the people favor in the sight of the Egyptians, 46:37 so that they granted them what they requested. 46:40 Thus they plundered the Egyptians, 46:44 man Egypt was broke, huge, big time." 46:47 But something happened, while they were in the land of-- 46:54 while they were in the wilderness, 46:57 something happened, something changed, 47:02 they took on-- 47:05 while they had already been influenced by the Egyptians 47:08 living in Egypt for as long as they did. 47:10 But as they were surrounded by these articles of gold, 47:13 these precious stones, these pearls, 47:15 these you name the articles, 47:18 they had a desire that was born in the land of Egypt 47:23 and we find this struggle taking place 47:25 when Moses went up 47:26 and by the way, John, I'm going down the point F. 47:29 You notice, you see where I am? 47:33 Yeah. Israel in the wilderness. 47:35 This, when Israel was in the wilderness 47:37 now beginning their journey to the Land of Canaan, 47:40 Moses was called to go to the mountain 47:43 to receive the Ten Commandments 47:44 and while he was there, he was there for 40 days 47:49 and 40 is the number of a generation. 47:51 He was there for a long time, and the people wondered 47:54 whether or not Moses would come back. 47:56 So the story is picked up here now 47:57 in Exodus Chapter 32 verse 1 to 8. 48:01 Exodus Chapter 32, and turn your Bibles with us there. 48:04 Exodus Chapter 32 verse 1 to 8. Okay. 48:09 "Now when the people saw that Moses delayed 48:11 coming down from the mountain, 48:12 the people gathered together to Aaron, said to him, 48:15 come make us gods, that which that shall go before us, 48:18 for as for this Moses, 48:20 the man who brought us out of the land of Egypt, 48:22 we do not know what has become of him. 48:25 And Aaron said to them, break off the golden earrings, 48:27 which are in the ears of your wives, your sons, 48:30 and of your daughters, and bring them to me. 48:33 So all the people broke off the golden earrings 48:35 which were in their ears, and brought them to Aaron. 48:38 And Aaron received the gold from their hand, 48:40 and he fashioned it with an engraving tool 48:42 and made a molten calf. 48:45 Then they said, this is our God, O Israel, 48:48 that brought you out of the land of Egypt. 48:51 So when Aaron saw it, he built an altar before it, 48:54 and Aaron made a proclamation, 48:55 and said, tomorrow is a feast to the Lord." 48:58 Interesting, isn't that amazing, 49:00 with these false gods. It was with false gods. 49:02 "Then they rose early on the next day, 49:05 offered burnt offerings, and brought peace offerings, 49:08 and the people sat down 49:09 to eat and drink, and rose up to play." 49:11 They went from solemn to party, in one in two days. 49:16 The building of this God of gold, 49:19 and then--can you-- a feast to the Lord, 49:24 through this God of gold. 49:26 And this story actually extends from Chapter 32. 49:31 all the way to Chapter 35. 49:33 So now Moses is in the mountain 49:35 receiving the Commandments from God, 49:37 and the Lord appraises Moses 49:40 of what's happening in the valley. 49:42 Look down to verse, we're down to verse 21 to 24, 49:45 and since you read that, I'll go ahead 49:46 and read these verses here. Verse 21 to 24. 49:50 And okay, and here we are. 49:56 "And Moses said to Aaron, What did this people do to you 50:01 that you have brought so great a sin upon them? 50:04 So Aaron said, do not let the anger of my Lord 50:07 become hot, you know the people, 50:11 that they are set or set on evil." 50:13 I mean this is amazing, 50:15 And what he said was just really crazy. 50:18 "So they said to me, 50:19 make us gods that shall go before us 50:21 as for this Moses, the man who 50:23 brought us out of the land of Egypt, 50:24 we do not know what has become of him." 50:27 Read verse 24 John, I mean just after pause 50:29 and think about what he said here. 50:31 "And I said to them, Whoever has any gold, 50:33 let them break it off. 50:35 So they gave it to me, and I cast it into the fire, 50:38 and this calf came out." 50:40 Isn't that ridiculous or what? Yeah. 50:43 I don't know where it came from Moses, 50:45 I mean come on he is talking to his brother. 50:48 He knows the skills of his brother, Aaron. He's lying. 50:51 He says, I mean, really. Give me a break. 50:55 "So now when Moses saw that the people 50:57 were unrestrained for Aaron had not restrained them 51:02 to their shame among their enemies. 51:05 Then Moses stood in the entrance of the camp, 51:08 and said, whoever is on the Lord's side, 51:11 let him come to me. 51:12 And all the sons of Levi gathered together, 51:15 gathered themselves together to him." 51:18 And so now, what happens 51:20 is that the Lord gives them an injunction, 51:22 let's go through the story quickly, 51:23 we're gonna cover this one here." 51:25 And it came to pass on the next day," verse 30, 51:28 that the "Moses said to the people, 51:30 'You have sinned a great sin. 51:31 So now I will go up to the Lord, 51:34 perhaps I can make an atonement for your sin.' 51:36 Then Moses returned to the Lord, and said, 51:39 these people have sinned a great sin, 51:41 and they have made themselves a god of gold." 51:44 And the Lord, Moses says, either forgive them 51:48 or blot my name out of the book, 51:49 And the Lord said not to do that, 51:51 but notice what the Lord tells them to do. 51:53 Let's start with the verse, 51:55 Oh, let's start with verse 3 of Chapter 33. 52:03 Can you read that? Yes. 52:04 "Go up to a land flowing with milk and honey, 52:07 for I will not go up in your midst, 52:09 lest I consume you on the way 52:11 for you are a stiff-necked people." 52:13 Okay, and verse 4. 52:15 "And when the people heard this bad news, they mourned, 52:18 and no one put on his ornaments." 52:21 And verse 5. 52:23 "For the Lord had said to Moses, 52:25 "Say to the children of Israel you are a stiff-necked people, 52:29 I could come up into your midst 52:30 in one moment and consume you. 52:33 Now therefore, take off your ornaments, 52:35 that I may know what to do with you." 52:37 Okay, now you're gonna get this here. 52:39 The word ornaments, if you look at the sidebar there 52:41 is the word jewelry. 52:43 So to take off your jewelry, 52:44 that I may know what to do with you. 52:46 Now you have to follow this very carefully 52:47 because what it happened was the Bible says 52:50 As we read verse 25 of Chapter 32, 52:53 that Aaron caused the people 52:55 To be ashamed in the presence of their enemies. 52:59 They had lost their identity, 53:00 there was no use of the Israelites 53:02 once they looked like they were not Israelites, 53:04 they look more like Egyptians. 53:06 And so when he says here, 53:08 that I may know what to do with you, 53:09 what kind of response 53:11 did the Lord get from the Israelites. 53:13 I'll read verse 6, 53:15 "so the children of Israel stripped themselves 53:18 of their ornaments by mount Horeb." 53:20 Notice they didn't just take off a few things, 53:24 they stripped themselves of all the articles of gold 53:28 that they had. 53:29 Now let's go to the end of the story, Chapter 35. 53:31 It's a long story, but we're jumping through that 53:35 and you can read this in its entirety. 53:37 But what did they do Chapter 35 and verse 22, 53:41 read that for us, John. 53:45 "They came, both men and women, 53:47 as many as had a willing heart, 53:49 and brought earrings and nose rings, 53:51 rings and necklaces, all jewelry of gold, that is, 53:55 every man who made an offering of gold to the Lord." Okay. 53:58 Notice that, notice the articles 54:00 they brought, Earrings nose rings. 54:03 Are they prevalent today? 54:04 Rings and you'll find in another translation says, 54:07 signet rings, and necklaces, all jewelry of gold, 54:11 that is everyone who made an offering of gold to the Lord. 54:14 And when you follow the story further on, 54:16 there were those who made other offerings 54:18 and by the way John, I want to add this here. 54:21 Their articles of jewelry, 54:22 was not just made of gold and silver. 54:24 It was made of wood and stone 54:26 and emeralds and diamonds, other articles. 54:30 But those who brought an offering of gold to the Lord, 54:34 why bring this offering of gold? 54:36 Because there was one of the elements needed 54:38 for the building of the furniture 54:39 in the sanctuary, the Golden Altar, 54:42 the Ark of the Covenant, the Laver, 54:46 the Table of Shewbread, 54:47 all these articles were needed for the building 54:49 and so to get back to God's business. 54:52 They gave all these articles of gold and silver, 54:54 all these precious stones, they gave them away. 54:56 Because God did not want the Israelites 54:59 to be dressed like the Egyptians, and he says, 55:04 "the difference would be If your heart is willing, 55:07 you'll remove these articles of gold and silver, 55:09 and that's exactly what they did." 55:11 Yeah and I think you have a key there is that 55:14 He wants his people to be different. 55:17 Right. Than the world. 55:20 And today when I would suggest that the world is probably 55:23 at its peak with its offerings to us, 55:27 to entice us to be most like it, 55:29 is a time that we have to be very careful 55:31 of what we are making into our own gods. 55:35 Because you know, while we're talking about earrings 55:38 and nose rings and piercings and all the other stuff, 55:42 you know, you can fit a lot of other things 55:43 into this as well. That's right. 55:46 And we can get so caught up 55:47 with consuming the world's goods 55:50 and, you know, we end up, 55:54 you know, all the money can not only go to that 55:56 but it can take away from finishing God's work. 55:59 Now not just financially though here 56:01 because it wasn't just a financial reason. 56:03 No, it wasn't financial-- 56:04 It was for the Lord's work here. That's right. 56:07 But the other reason was, and we already said it was 56:09 because he wanted them to look different, 56:11 to be different as a people. 56:14 And I find that very interesting in respect to, 56:17 you know, 'cause some would say well, you know, 56:19 these things these earrings that I wear, 56:21 or some of the stuff that I put on, I adorn myself with. 56:24 It's not expensive stuff, 56:25 I just buy costume kind of jewelry, 56:27 so it's not a big deal, right. 56:29 What I would say, well, you've solved half the problem, 56:33 because you're not taking away from the Lord's work 56:35 necessarily, but are you appearing or are you like 56:39 the Lord wants you to appear 56:41 as one of His finishing the work. 56:43 Now I want to give this text just before we end. 56:45 Numbers 31:50, "Therefore we have brought an offering 56:49 for the Lord, what every man 56:51 found of ornaments of gold, armlets, 56:55 bracelets, signet rings, earrings, necklaces, 56:59 to make atonement for ourselves before the Lord." 57:02 They brought all those ornaments, 57:04 and those ornaments existed 57:07 in the life and the way of the Egyptians, 57:11 but all of those who had used them 57:12 and misused them for the wrong reason. 57:15 God reclaimed those articles, One, 57:18 that they may reflect his glory. 57:19 Two, that they may build a temple to the glory of God. 57:23 And you know, we have just touched the tip of the iceberg 57:25 we haven't gone to Isaiah or anything else. 57:27 But God is gonna make a House Call begin today 57:30 by desiring to reflect the Glory of God. 57:33 God bless you. |
Revised 2014-12-17