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00:10 ♪♪♪ 00:20 ♪♪♪ 00:30 ♪♪♪ 00:35 Jëan Ross: Good morning, friends. 00:36 Welcome to "Sabbath School Study Hour," coming to you from the 00:39 Granite Bay Seventh-day Adventist Church 00:40 in Sacramento, California. 00:42 We'd like to welcome all of those joining us across the 00:45 country and around the world, 00:47 our extended Sabbath school class. 00:49 You know, a number of our regular Sabbath school members 00:52 here at Granite Bay are joining us online as well, 00:56 and we'd like to greet all of you, 00:57 and thank you for taking the time to study with us. 01:00 We have a very important lesson. 01:02 We've been studying through the book of Isaiah, 01:04 and we've just started our study. 01:06 Today we're on lesson number three. 01:08 It's entitled "When Your World is Falling Apart," very 01:11 appropriate lesson for what's happening in our world today. 01:15 So, again, if you don't have a copy of the lesson quarterly, 01:19 just go to the Amazing Facts website, 01:21 and you click on "Sabbath School," and you'll be able 01:23 to download a copy of the lesson and study with us. 01:27 We do have a free offer we'd like to tell you about, 01:29 a book entitled, "The Final Verdict," and this is free. 01:34 We'll send it to anyone in North America. 01:36 To receive the book, call the number 866-788-3966, 01:41 and just ask for Offer Number 162, 01:45 and we'll send that to you, or if you're outside of North 01:48 America and would like a digital copy of the book, 01:51 you'll want to text the code "SH078," to the number 40544, 01:58 and you'll be able to get a digital copy of the book, 02:00 and you'll enjoy reading it. 02:02 It's called "The Final Verdict," 02:03 and I think you'll find that very informative. 02:06 Let's bow our heads for prayer. 02:07 Dear Father in heaven, what a privilege to be able to come 02:10 before You on this special day, a day that You have set aside 02:13 where we can look back at Your work in Creation but not only 02:17 Creation of our world but re-creation of our hearts 02:20 and our lives, and, Father, we can rest in those everlasting 02:24 arms, fearing not the future, 02:26 for we know who has guided us thus far. 02:28 So, Lord, we want to invite Your presence to be with us 02:30 in a special way in our study today. 02:32 Be with Pastor Shawn as he opens the Word, 02:34 for we ask this in Jesus's name, amen. 02:37 Our lesson this morning is going to be brought to us by 02:39 our family life pastor here at Granite Bay: 02:42 Pastor Shawn Brummund. 02:45 Shawn Brummund: Well, good morning to you all. 02:47 It's nice to be able to come together to be able to continue 02:50 to study as the Lord has blessed us with one of the most powerful 02:55 chapters that we can find in the book of Isaiah, 02:57 and because time is short and we have lots to be able to cover 03:00 here this morning, I want to invite you to open your Bibles, 03:03 if you have it with you, to Isaiah, the 7th chapter. 03:05 We're going to start with the first two verses there. 03:08 We're going to the book of Isaiah, 7th chapter. 03:15 For those of you who were disciplined and diligent 03:21 enough to be able to go through this last Sabbath lesson study 03:24 throughout the week, you know that we are studying and have 03:27 been studying throughout the week Isaiah chapter 7, 03:30 verses 1 through 14, and so we're starting 03:33 with verses 1 and 2. 03:35 Isaiah chapter 7, in verse 1 and 2, 03:37 it says, "Now it came to pass in the days of Ahaz the son of 03:41 Jotham, the son of Uzziah, king of Judah, 03:46 that Rezin king of Syria and Pekah the son of Remaliah, 03:52 king of Israel, went up to Jerusalem to make war against 03:56 it, but could not prevail against it. 04:00 And it was told to the house of David," 04:03 that is, to the family of Ahaz, the great-, 04:05 great-, great-grandchild of King David, "it was 04:09 told to the house of David, 04:10 saying, 'Syria's forces are deployed in Ephraim.' 04:13 And so his heart and the heart of his people were moved as the 04:18 trees of the woods were moved with the wind." 04:22 And so in order for us to be able to understand both these 04:25 verses and the verses that are ahead of us here in our study 04:28 today, I want to share with you just some very helpful context 04:31 in history to be able to put it into its bigger picture. 04:34 We need to back up about 200 years, 04:36 and as we back up 200 years, 04:38 we come to one of the most famous kings of Israel. 04:40 His name was King Solomon. 04:43 And when King Solomon came to the end of his life and he left 04:45 the throne to his son Rehoboam, Rehoboam made some very 04:50 horrible, foolish decisions right from the get-go, 04:55 and because of those very foolish decisions, 04:57 he turns the bulk of Israel against him 05:00 and against David's dynasty. 05:02 And so we find that 10 of the 12 tribes of Israel turn 05:06 against him, and they make another gentleman, 05:10 by the name of Jeroboam, the king of what now has-- 05:14 had, at that point, I should say-- 05:16 had become the northern king of Israel. 05:19 And so Jeroboam, a former servant of King Solomon, 05:22 becomes this new king of, sadly, the 12 tribes of Israel that 05:28 made up the bulk of the geography of Israel as 05:32 well as obviously the bulk of the tribes of Israel. 05:34 And so there's Rehoboam, the son of Solomon, 05:38 sitting there on his throne with only his own tribe, 05:40 the tribe of Judah, and then we also find that Benjamin kind of 05:44 ended up siding on his kingdom's side as well, 05:48 and that makes up what we call the southern kingdom of Judah. 05:52 So we have the southern kingdom of Judah, 05:55 and now we also have the northern kingdom of Israel. 05:59 And sadly, Jeroboam, who made up the-- 06:01 who was the first king over the northern kingdom of Israel, 06:04 immediately turns his tribes to idolatry, just 06:07 outright, open idolatry, and whenever we turn to 06:11 idolatry--the ancients turned to idolatry-- 06:14 it always came with some very perverted principles and 06:17 practices that came with it, and so, because of that, the moral 06:22 and spiritual decline of the northern kingdom 06:24 was very rapid because of that. 06:29 Now, we fast-forward 200 years to the time of Isaiah, 06:32 the time of the chapter in which we're looking at, 06:34 which is Isaiah chapter 7, and we find that there is a very bad 06:39 apple that takes the throne in the kingdom of Judah, 06:42 and his name is Ahaz, and Ahaz is part of the Davidic lineage. 06:48 He is certainly a great-, great-, great-, great-grandchild 06:51 of King David, but sadly, he had made some horrible choices, 06:55 some choices that were very much in line with the previous king 06:59 of Israel that I just talked about, 07:00 which was Jeroboam of 200 years previous. 07:04 Now, by the way, 2 Kings chapter 16 is a key chapter. 07:09 If you haven't read it and you want to get further insight, 07:12 the most comprehensive biblical record of the life and the 07:15 character of King Ahaz is found in that chapter, 07:18 2 Kings chapters 16, and that's referenced in your lesson study 07:22 for this particular week. 07:25 Assyria is rising up as a new superpower of the known world 07:29 back then, and as superpowers like to do, 07:32 they began to expand their territory and began to conquer 07:35 the nations that were surrounding them, 07:38 and, of course, this was a very real and practical threat to the 07:42 security and to the well-being 07:44 of those nations that surrounded them. 07:47 As it turns out, and as we just read in chapter 7, 07:50 verses 1 and 2, the kings of Syria and Israel to the north, 07:53 they surmise that, if they are to find themselves in a 07:56 necessary partnership and they were to use both of 08:00 their military power to be able to conquer this southern kingdom 08:03 of Judah, remove King Ahaz from his throne and establish 08:08 a puppet ruler, why, then, they would be able to have a 08:11 three-kingdom coalition and have a substantial increase 08:16 in their military power to be able to resist this rising 08:20 superpower by the name of Assyria. 08:25 Well, they go ahead, and they try with some success to be able 08:28 to conquer the southern kingdom of Judah. 08:31 They conquer at least one city and take it, 08:34 and so on, but when they came to the capital city of Jerusalem, 08:37 as we have just read, we find that their attempt had failed. 08:41 They had failed in conquering both Jerusalem and removing King 08:45 Ahaz from his throne. 08:48 Ahaz must now make a key political decision, 08:52 a political and military decision. 08:54 Now, if Ahaz was a wise and righteous king as his great-, 08:59 great-grandfather David was, 09:03 he would've immediately consulted God. 09:06 He would've consulted God, and he would've taken advantage of 09:08 a man of God by the name of Isaiah that had already 09:11 established himself very clearly as a prophet of God. 09:15 And so Ahaz had all the spiritual and military 09:21 and political advantage that he needed to be able to resist this 09:27 power, not only in Assyria, but now also from many of 09:31 their fellow brethren, which is the northern kingdom of Israel, 09:35 who had partnered with Syria. 09:38 But the problem was this: 09:39 Ahaz had already rejected God as his counselor and embraced some 09:44 very foreign gods and idols, along with their wicked 09:47 principles and their wicked practices. 09:51 Now, we have to understand that, when I say that he had embraced 09:54 some very wicked, idolatrous practices, 09:57 this is far more wicked than we here in America 09:59 could ever imagine. 10:01 Now, many of us are Christians, 10:03 as well as the Lord, we know as well, 10:05 is very distressed over how readily we are to be able to 10:09 take the lives of our children while they're still in the womb. 10:13 Abortion is practiced according to our free will across this 10:16 country to the demise of many innocent children within the 10:20 womb of their mothers, but back then, 10:24 it was even worse than it is now. 10:27 You know, there's an organization, 10:28 a Christian organization, a charity that we have here in 10:31 America, and I forget what it's called, 10:32 but you can give, and they actually pay for ultrasounds 10:36 so that different young women that are finding themselves with 10:38 a baby in their womb and are considering abortion can go in 10:42 and get a free ultrasound, and what we found and what this 10:47 Christian organization has found is that, 10:48 when the young woman sees that child and they hear 10:53 the heartbeat of that child, almost all of the time that 10:57 they go through that experience, they end up deciding to keep the 11:00 child 'cause they realize, "Wait a minute, 11:02 this is not just an unfeeling, unliving blob inside of me. 11:09 No, this is already a precious child with a heartbeat." 11:15 Well, back in Ahaz's day, he had embraced the worship of an idol, 11:20 and I believe his name was Moloch, 11:22 and he was the idol of the Moabites, 11:24 if I remember correctly, and so King Ahaz, 11:28 just outside of the ancient city walls of Jerusalem, 11:31 in the Valley of the son of Hinnom, 11:33 as it came to be called, is where he would set up this 11:37 metal idol, this large, larger-than-life, 11:40 metal idol, this idol named Moloch, 11:43 and then he would take some of his sons and his daughters, 11:45 and he would encourage other citizens that wanted to worship 11:48 Moloch as well and to receive Moloch's blessing to take a 11:51 child that has already been born-- 11:54 so they didn't have to have an ultrasound to be able see this 11:56 precious life that God has given to them. 11:59 They are carrying this child. 12:00 They are nursing this child. 12:02 They are feeding--they are changing its diapers already, 12:06 and they take that same child, and as they heat up-- 12:09 as they called it "passing their children through the fire," 12:13 they would take that child, and they would bring it out to the 12:15 outstretched metallic, red-hot hands of this idol, 12:20 and they would lay the baby on there and let it sear to death 12:24 upon that idol. 12:27 Now, friends, I just want us to stop for a moment and just 12:29 recognize how wicked and hard your heart has to be to be able 12:36 to practice that. 12:38 So, friends, the only reason I'm sharing this, 12:40 as gruesome as it is, is to be able to help us to understand 12:42 the reality of how steeped into immorality and into wickedness 12:48 the kingdom of Judah, in particular, 12:50 its king and his influence upon the kingdom 12:53 was bringing upon his country. 12:55 This was not a man of God. 12:57 Ahaz did not have the heart of David. 13:00 He had the genes of David. 13:03 He possessed the genealogy of David, 13:05 but he did not have the heart of David. 13:08 He had the heart of wickedness. 13:11 By the way, this is where-- 13:12 the Valley of the son of Hinnom is where we get the term in 13:14 Greek in the New Testament "Gehenna," and many of you know 13:18 that "Gehenna" is translated into "hell," 13:21 and so Jesus was taking this valley of-- 13:26 with the heritage of wickedness, both in passing the children of 13:30 the different worshipers of Moloch through the fire and 13:32 searing and burning their different children in sacrifice 13:35 to the God, and then later on it was a dump of refuge in which 13:38 the different dead carcasses and garbage, and so on, would be 13:42 burned just outside of the walls of Jerusalem in Jesus's day. 13:49 Indeed, it was a place that was literally hell on Earth in 13:52 different ways throughout its history and rightly a fitting 13:55 symbol of the future judgment of hell that God has in store for 13:58 the devil and his angels and, sadly, 14:00 for any of us that reject the mercy and the graciousness and 14:04 the love that God has for us. 14:10 Now, because Ahaz had already rejected God as his counselor, 14:13 had embraced very deep and steeped wickedness in his life 14:17 and in his heart, he was already on the same page 14:20 as King Tiglath-Pileser. 14:23 Now, Tiglath-Pileser was the king of the Assyrian superpower 14:26 that was rising up and expanding his empire around him. 14:30 If you go to that key chapter that I talked about earlier, 14:33 2 Kings chapter 16, it reveals that King Ahaz obviously admired 14:37 Assyria, had admired this king of Assyria, 14:41 Tiglath-Pileser, for its great power, 14:44 for its great success in expanding its empire. 14:48 In fact, if you read that chapter, 14:50 it tells us that King Ahaz had imitated the Assyrian king's 14:54 altar of sacrifices, and he immediately had commissioned 14:57 the head priest in Jerusalem to make a replica of the exact same 15:01 altar that this pagan king had developed. 15:05 And now King Ahaz was bringing his sacrifices before the altar 15:09 and before the altar-- on the altar, 15:12 his newfound altar, before the temple, 15:14 the Jewish temple of Jerusalem. 15:25 And so we can only imagine that King Ahaz was more than happy to 15:29 approach this Assyrian king and ask him for help. 15:33 This was a great excuse, almost for certain, 15:35 in his mind, that he might be able to partner up with this 15:38 most powerful man in the world. 15:41 Well, even though Ahaz wanted nothing to do with the man of 15:44 God, he did not approach the man of God, 15:46 Isaiah, he did not want anything to do with God or the man of 15:48 God, the Bible tells us in the later verses of chapter 7, 15:52 in the book of Isaiah, that God had sent Isaiah to search out 15:55 for Ahaz with an offer to encourage him and to help him. 16:00 Now, God knew that this was critical for God's plan of 16:03 salvation and preserving the tribe of Judah and preserving 16:06 David's dynasty. 16:09 If Judah were conquered, even as the northern kingdom of Israel 16:13 eventually was by this foreign power called Assyria, 16:17 Assyria would've taken the tribe of Judah and did the same thing 16:20 that he did with the northern tribes of Israel. 16:23 He would resettle and assimilate them with foreigners even as 16:28 they did in the north. 16:30 This is why, even today, the ten tribes that made up the northern 16:34 kingdom of Israel are referred to as the "ten lost tribes." 16:38 Why? 16:39 Because they became so intermarried and so blended 16:43 with the other foreign powers that Assyria had purposely done 16:46 as they did with all conquered nations that, 16:48 indeed, they became the Samaritans. 16:51 Did they have Jewish blood? 16:52 Yes, but they also had the blood and the genes of all kinds of 16:55 other different foreign races and peoples. 16:57 And so there was no more purebreds, 17:00 if we could call it that. 17:02 There was no more pure Jews that remained by the time Jesus lived 17:05 on the earth. 17:08 Now, if this had taken place and Assyria had conquered Judah, 17:12 they would've done the same thing to Judah, 17:13 and, therefore, the lineage of Jesus Christ would be lost, 17:17 and the Son of David, the ultimate Son of David, 17:19 Jesus Christ Himself, would not be able to 17:22 arrive as God had planned. 17:25 And by the way, this is interesting. 17:27 This is the only reason that Jesus and His stepdad, 17:30 if we can call him that, Joseph, are the only ones in the New 17:34 Testament that can claim that they are a pure Jew coming from 17:38 the pure tribe of the tribe of Judah, why? 17:43 Because God had protected them from being conquered 17:45 and assimilated by the Assyrians. 17:47 They had protected them from that threat. 17:50 This is why Paul could claim that he was a purebred Jew, 17:55 a Hebrew of Hebrews, a descendant of the tribe 17:58 of Benjamin, as many of you know, okay? 18:02 The tribe of Benjamin. 18:03 And Benjamin was the only tribe that partnered up with Judah and 18:07 remained with the southern kingdom of Judah. 18:10 And so those were the only two tribes that were preserved in 18:13 regards to its lineage by the time Jesus 18:16 came along in this earth. 18:19 Now, it's true that Judah needed to be punished eventually, 18:22 sometime about 100 years after that of the northern kingdom of 18:25 Assyria--I mean, the northern kingdom of Israel-- 18:28 but they were taken captive by a different superpower that rose 18:31 up a hundred years later, 18:32 and that was the superpower of Babylon. 18:35 Now, Babylon handled its captive nations much different 18:38 than Assyria did. 18:40 Rather than forcing this assimilation between themselves, 18:43 these conquered peoples and the Assyrians as well as many other 18:46 foreign peoples, the Babylonians allowed you to become-- 18:50 to remain separate and preserve your particular lineage. 18:56 And so that's exactly what happened. 18:58 So they were punished, but God was still able to preserve the 19:02 lineage of David, the tribe of Judah, 19:04 as well as the tribe of Benjamin. 19:07 Well, Satan inevitably saw this, and he inevitably had worked 19:10 through the Assyrian power, hoping to be able to break 19:13 this pure lineage of the dynasty of David, 19:17 and not only is the Bible record very clear that Satan attempted 19:21 this during Ahaz's day, but he also did through the Assyrian 19:24 power in Hezekiah's day, the one that took the throne after King 19:28 Ahaz had died. 19:31 But Isaiah chapter 14, in verse 24, 19:33 it tells us that the Lord of hosts has sworn, 19:36 saying, "Surely, as I have thought, 19:39 so it shall come to pass and, as I have purposed, 19:42 so it shall stand." 19:46 And so when God makes a purpose, when He has a goal, 19:49 when He knew that Judah needed to be preserved, 19:52 He meant it, and that's where we come to verses 3 through 9, 19:56 of the passage that we're looking at here today. 19:58 Isaiah chapter 7, verse 3, it goes on and says, 20:00 "Then the Lord said to Isaiah, 'Go out now to meet Ahaz, 20:04 you and Shear-Jashub, your son--'" 20:08 what does "Shear-Jashub" mean? 20:09 It means "a remnant shall return." 20:13 And the lesson study pointed out some good insights on why God 20:16 had prophetically named this son, 20:18 this first prophetic son of Isaiah to be a sign to the 20:23 generation and to the tribe of Judah and that of Ahaz. 20:28 "So don't go alone, Isaiah, but bring your prophetic son," 20:31 this sign that declares through his name that a remnant shall 20:36 return, "at the end of the aqueduct from the upper pool, 20:39 on the highway to the Fuller's Field--" 20:41 apparently, the king was checking out and inspecting 20:43 the water source because he knew that there was an imminent siege 20:46 of the city of Jerusalem again, 20:49 and, of course, water sources 20:50 are key to being able to survive the siege. 20:55 Verse 4, God goes on and says, "and say to him, 20:57 'Take heed, and be quiet,'" 21:00 be calm, "do not fear or be fainthearted for these two 21:04 stubs of smoking firebrands, for the fierce anger of Rezin and 21:09 Syria, and also the son of Remaliah," 21:13 which is the king of Israel. 21:15 And so God doesn't refer to them as "smoking, 21:18 fiery, threatening volcanos." 21:21 No, he refers to them as "smoking firebrands." 21:24 In other words, they're on their last straw. 21:26 They're taking some of their last breaths. 21:28 There's just some smoke that's remaining, 21:30 but the strength of the fire and the burning power that they may 21:33 have had in the past is now very quickly burning out. 21:38 "Because Syria, Ephraim--" 21:41 and that's another term that was 21:42 used for the northern kingdom of Israel-- 21:45 "'and the son of Remaliah have plotted evil against you, 21:48 saying, "Let us go up against Judah and trouble it, 21:51 and let us make a gap in its wall for ourselves, 21:54 and set a king over them, the son of Tabel," and thus says 21:58 the Lord God, "It shall not stand, nor shall it come to 22:02 pass, for the head of Syria is Damascus, 22:04 and the head of Damascus is Rezin. 22:07 Within 65 years Ephraim will be broken, 22:11 so that it will not be a people."'" 22:14 Indeed, it was only 12 years later that Assyria came in and 22:17 conquered Israel and began to assimilate them and, 22:19 again, we find that, sadly, those ten tribes very quickly 22:23 in the years ahead became the lost ten tribes of Israel. 22:28 In verse 9, it says, "The head of Ephraim is Samaria, 22:31 and the head of Samaria is Remaliah's son. 22:34 If you will not believe," God says, 22:37 "surely you shall not be established." 22:41 And so here's this prophetic message that the man of God, 22:44 Isaiah, brings to this very wicked and rebellious king 22:49 by the name of Ahaz, and God has made it very clear, 22:53 "Listen, I have declared I am the sovereign one, 22:57 and I've declared, indeed, that Assyria will not be able 23:01 to conquer you, and both Syria and the coalition that they 23:05 entered in with the northern tribe of Israel will not succeed 23:09 in conquering Jerusalem and taking your throne." 23:16 Well, obviously, after the first message is given, 23:18 well, God must've seen that Ahaz was not convinced, because we 23:21 find that God continues on in trying to convince Ahaz, 23:25 indeed, that the Lord has spoken, 23:27 and, indeed, it will come to pass as He said. 23:30 And that's when we come to verses 10 through 12. 23:32 As we come to 10 through 12, it says, 23:34 "Moreover the Lord spoke again to Ahaz, 23:36 saying, 'Ask a sign for yourself from the Lord your God. 23:40 Ask it either in the depth or in the height above.' 23:45 But Ahaz said, 'I will not ask, nor will I test the Lord.'" 23:51 Now, friends, we could be tempted to be able to read 23:53 that and think, "Well, Ahaz was being, you know, pious. 23:56 He was being reverent and respectful of God and did 23:59 not want to test him." 24:01 But all we have to do is go on and read this very next verse, 24:03 and we realize that there was no good motive, 24:05 no good reason in which Ahaz was giving in his heart nor in his 24:08 words for such declining God's offer. 24:13 In verse 13, it says, "Then he said, 24:14 'Hear now, O house of David. 24:16 Is it a small thing for you to weary men, 24:18 that you will weary my God also?'" 24:24 Was Isaiah and God impressed 24:25 with the answer in which Ahaz had given? 24:28 No. 24:29 You see, we have to remember the heritage and the character and 24:32 the life of Ahaz, even as I gave you a small glimpse but very 24:36 needful glimpse of the fact that this man named Ahaz had 24:41 no respect or reverence for God. 24:44 This man had given himself fully and completely over to complete 24:48 idolatrous wickedness, and so we don't want to fall into any kind 24:52 of misunderstanding in regards to the response of which Ahaz 24:55 gives, and, again, verse 13 makes it very clear, 24:58 both the prophet Isaiah as well as God is not impressed at all. 25:05 In fact, I'd like to suggest that Ahaz could see the 25:07 possibility of a sign, a supernatural sign that God 25:10 could give as an absolute threat to his position of unbelief and 25:14 his love for sin. 25:17 He didn't want to threaten that. 25:20 The last thing King Ahaz wanted to do 25:22 was confirm God's existence. 25:25 He didn't want to confirm God's existence and ask 25:27 for a supernatural, miraculous sign. 25:29 No, not at all. 25:30 Not only would it confirm God's existence, 25:31 but a sign that is given supernaturally at the offer 25:34 of God and at the request of King Ahaz would also confirm 25:37 God's sovereignty. 25:40 And the last thing that somebody is in rebelling against God 25:43 wants is to confirm God's sovereignty because 25:46 if you go ahead and confirm God's sovereignty, 25:48 which a miraculous sign and miracle would do, 25:52 it would also then ultimately confirm that God is the ultimate 25:55 Judge, and the last thing that somebody that's in love with 26:00 sin and rebelling against God wants is to be able to be 26:02 confirmed that, one day, he will be held accountable 26:05 before the Almighty. 26:08 And so you can see why Ahaz so readily and so quickly, 26:12 without hesitation, had declined on this offer 26:15 that God had given to him. 26:21 Well, then we come to the punch line of our lesson study here 26:24 today which is chapter 7 and verse 14, 26:28 chapter 7 and verse 14. 26:33 And this is where I want to park for most 26:34 of our time here together. 26:36 And so we kind of moved pretty quickly through 26:38 the first verses, but that's okay. 26:39 The lesson study covers it very thoroughly and well. 26:44 We certainly looked at some additional insights and such 26:46 that, I think, help us to be able to understand the context 26:50 of what is taking place when we make our way 26:52 to this very famous prophecy. 26:54 It's a prophecy in which we are very familiar. 26:56 Some of us have written and, you know, 26:58 have bought Christmas cards in recent holiday season here, 27:01 and, you know, one of my favorites that we used 27:03 to give out, you know, said in big, nice gold letters, 27:05 "Immanuel, God with us." 27:11 Christ, the living Christ, the Son of God, 27:14 clothed Himself in humanity when He was conceived by the Holy 27:17 Spirit in the womb of a young virgin by the name of Mary. 27:22 Now, friends, this is the heart of the Christmas message and the 27:25 hope of the gospel and the beginning of the hope of the 27:27 gospel that Jesus, who had fulfilled His promise, 27:30 He had become one with humanity. 27:34 Verse 14, it says, "Therefore the Lord Himself 27:38 will give you a sign." 27:40 Ahaz declines because his heart and his motives are in a very 27:44 bad place, and so the Lord says, "Listen, 27:47 whether you want it or not, I'm going to give it to you. 27:50 I'm going to give you a sign. 27:52 I will decide what that sign is." 27:53 What is that sign, Lord? 27:55 The sign is this: "Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear 27:58 a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel." 28:05 Now, again, the Hebrew name and term "Immanuel" literally means 28:08 "God is with us." 28:15 Now, friends, again, this is likely the most famous, 28:17 well-known Old Testament prophecy concerning Christ's 28:20 death, and when we go to the gospel of record of Matthew 28:24 chapter 1, we find that Matthew was the only one that was 28:27 inspired by God to be able to record and confirm the ultimate, 28:32 the ultimate fulfillment of this powerful prophecy, 28:36 not only was it a prophecy but it was a promise. 28:40 In chapter 1, in verses 18 through 25, 28:42 I read it here together with you. 28:44 If you have your Bibles, I invite you to open as we look 28:46 at that together. 28:48 It's Matthew chapter 1, and verses 18 through 25. 28:51 It says, "Now the birth of Jesus Christ was as follows: 28:55 After His mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph, 28:58 before they came together, she was found with child of 29:02 the Holy Spirit, and then Joseph her husband, 29:07 being a just man, and not wanting to make her a public 29:09 example, was minded to put her away secretly." 29:13 Very obviously, Joseph was not as convinced as Mary and the 29:16 others were that that in which was conceived in her womb did 29:18 not come from having sexual relationships with another man. 29:24 "But while he thought about these things, 29:26 behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, 29:29 saying, 'Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take to you 29:34 Mary your wife, for that which 29:36 is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit,'" 29:41 not another man but of the Holy Spirit. 29:44 "And she will bring forth a Son, 29:46 and you shall call His name Jesus--" 29:49 "Jesus" literally means "Savior--" 29:52 "'for He will save His people from their sins.' 29:56 So all this was done that it might be fulfilled which was 29:58 spoken by the Lord through the prophet--" 30:00 what prophet, friends? 30:02 The prophet Isaiah-- 30:04 "which was spoken through the prophet saying, 30:06 'Behold, the virgin shall be with child, 30:09 and bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel,' 30:16 which is translated, 'God with us.'" 30:21 Now, friends, many people who read these verses, 30:26 coming back to Isaiah chapter 7, when we return back to Isaiah 30:29 chapter 7, even as we've looked at the first 14 verses, 30:32 particularly verses 1 through 13 that makes its way up to that of 30:36 verse 14, but also including the first half of verse 14, 30:41 many people are confused by why a prophecy that is clearly 30:45 fulfilled in Isaiah's time is now being applied 700 years 30:50 later to the arrival of Jesus. 30:54 Now, this is not unusual confusion. 30:55 These are not unusual questions that we ask when we first come 30:58 to read Isaiah. 30:59 When I first read through the book of Isaiah and came 31:01 to chapter 7, and read the verses that preceded that 31:04 of verse 14, as well as the last, the two verses that 31:08 followed up with verse 14, made it very clear to me that that 31:12 prophecy was fulfilled in the generation of Isaiah, 31:15 and, yet I'd already read the gospel of Matthew where God had 31:18 very clearly declared that it also applied, or did apply, 31:21 to the virgin Mary and the conception of Jesus. 31:26 Let's read verses 15 and 16. 31:30 Okay, we're going to Isaiah chapter 7, 31:32 and we're looking at the following verses. 31:34 Again, what is the most important thing in 31:36 understanding any particular verse in all of the Scripture? 31:40 Well, one of the most important rules of safe, 31:43 reliable interpretation of the Bible is context. 31:45 You know, in real estate, they say, 31:47 "The number one golden rule for real estate in choosing 31:50 real estate is location, location, and location." 31:55 I guess, no, what's the saying? 31:57 "The top three rules of real estate is location, 32:00 location, location." 32:01 And when it comes to Bible study, 32:04 "context, context, context." 32:08 Context means everything, friends. 32:10 Of course, the Holy Spirit is number one, 32:11 but the second number one rule that we have in reliable 32:14 interpretation is context. 32:17 Verse 15, goes on and says as Isaiah continues and the Lord 32:20 continues, he says to King Ahaz, "Curds and honey He," that is, 32:24 Immanuel, "shall eat, that He may know to refuse the evil and 32:29 choose the good. 32:31 For before the Child shall know to refuse the evil and choose 32:34 the good, the land that you dread will be forsaken by both 32:38 her kings," the kings of Israel and the king of Syria. 32:43 And so both the verses that come up to the great prophecy, 32:46 this Christmas prophecy, or prophecy of the birth of Christ, 32:48 as well as the verses that follow make it very clear 32:52 that God had brought a Son, a boy in the very near future of 32:56 Ahaz, that would be named Immanuel. 33:01 Now, this is in perfect harmony with the trend that God had 33:04 already began through the prophet Isaiah, 33:06 for there is already a son that Isaiah had given birth to, 33:08 and God had chosen his name as well, 33:10 "I want you to name it 'a remnant shall return.'" 33:15 And now God is saying to King Ahaz that there is another boy 33:19 that will be born. 33:20 His name will be Immanuel, "God is with us." 33:24 And before He grows old enough, in other words, 33:27 while He's still in His toddler years, 33:31 you will find that these great and threatening kingdoms from 33:33 the north will be squelched, and they will no longer be a threat. 33:38 In other words, God is saying, "Listen, 33:39 this is a sign to let you know that I'm in charge. 33:41 I've got you covered." 33:47 Now, this is what we need to understand. 33:49 We need to understand that the prophecy that is found in Isaiah 33:52 chapter 7 and verse 14, 33:53 is what we call a dual application prophecy. 33:57 And what do I mean by that? 33:58 Well, what I mean by that is that there are two applications 34:01 to that prophecy. 34:02 There is a one that is closer into the future. 34:06 They are both future prophecies. 34:07 For Immanuel, the Son, of Isaiah's time, 34:09 had not yet come, but there's two future-- 34:12 there's two applications. 34:13 The first one was in the more immediate future, 34:15 and then the next one was 700 years into the future in this 34:18 particular case, where it was fulfilled, ultimately, in the 34:21 conception of Jesus in the womb of Mary. 34:26 Now, this particular kind of dual application of prophecy 34:28 is not alone. 34:30 One of the most famous and well-known, 34:31 especially within the Adventist church is we are very prolific 34:34 studiers of the end-time prophesies that God has 34:37 given to us as this end-time movement of the Seventh-day 34:40 Adventist church is bringing the three angels' message to the 34:43 world, and the classic dual prophecy that we have studied 34:47 and that we preach and share with so many millions around 34:49 the world every single year is that found in Matthew chapter 34:52 24, because in Matthew chapter 24, Jesus had referenced to a 34:57 statement that Daniel had written some 500 years before 35:01 Jesus, in which he talked 35:02 about a coming abomination of desolation. 35:06 Now, the gospel of Luke tells us that the first application 35:09 of that abomination of desolation that Jesus 35:11 warned his people about took place in 70 A.D., when the pagan 35:15 Roman army surrounded the holy city of Jerusalem. 35:19 They sacked and completely leveled and burned the city, 35:22 but then, when they came to the temple, 35:24 they did the same thing. 35:25 They leveled the temple. 35:26 As Jesus said, "Not one stone will be left upon another." 35:31 Now, friends, that was the first application of that prophecy, 35:33 was it not? 35:35 But that wasn't the last application of the prophecy. 35:37 It was a dual application. 35:39 Now, the second application was much more international, 35:42 much more widespread, even as it is still being fulfilled today, 35:47 and that second application of the abomination of desolation 35:50 is not the pagan Roman armies that come in and trample around 35:54 a earthly temple, but it is the Roman Church that comes in and 35:58 tramples upon a heavenly sanctuary and temple where 36:02 Jesus is interceding for all believers as our High Priest, 36:09 applying his sacrifice that he made on the cross of Calvary for 36:14 the cleansing of our sins, that we might have of hope of sinners 36:17 of growing and accepting the salvation that comes through 36:20 Jesus Christ alone. 36:23 And so what happened was the ultimate fulfillment of this 36:26 particular prophecy, the abomination of desolation, 36:28 is that the Roman Church then removed Christ's daily 36:32 intercession for us as our High Priest and replaced it with an 36:36 earthly priesthood. 36:40 So rather than going to the heavenly sanctuary and to the 36:43 heavenly eternal priest, Jesus Christ Himself, 36:47 with my sins, for cleansing for my guilt, 36:49 now I am sent to my local church and my local priest, 36:54 and the Bible calls that the ultimate spiritual fulfillment, 36:57 the second fulfillment of this particular dual prophecy. 37:03 And so that's one of the classic, 37:04 largest dual prophecies that we find in the Bible. 37:10 Immanuel's first application 37:12 is found in the generation of Isaiah. 37:17 Now, the evidence for this is overwhelming in both chapter 7 37:20 and chapter 8, and the evidence is overwhelming in favor of this 37:25 particular first Immanuel, this first sign and prophetic child 37:30 to be born to a prophetess by the name of Mrs. Isaiah. 37:37 And you could find that in chapter 8, in verses 3 to 4. 37:39 Now, in verses 3 and 4, of the 8th chapter, 37:42 you'll find there that there is a third prophetic son now that 37:44 is now born, and his name is kind of long, 37:47 and if I spoke Aramaic or something like that, 37:49 I think I could pronounce it a whole lot better, 37:51 but when you go to those verses, you'll find that God then 37:53 instructed Isaiah to have a third prophetic child with a 37:58 prophetic name that was to be a sign to the nation and to the 38:03 generation of Ahaz. 38:06 Now, many of us can get very uncomfortable when 38:08 we are confronted with the idea that the original application of 38:11 this particular prophecy included a young married woman 38:14 of childbearing age but wasn't really a literal virgin. 38:20 In fact, if you go to the original Hebrew, 38:22 there are two words that are used to describe young women 38:24 of childbearing age that are also marriageable, 38:27 and one of them refers to one that is already married and has 38:31 been with a man, and the other refers to a woman that is a 38:33 virgin that has never been with a man. 38:35 As it turns out, the Hebrew that is used by Isaiah and by the 38:38 Lord in Isaiah chapter 7, in verse 14, 38:41 is the word that is not referred to a literal virgin but a woman 38:44 that is of childbearing age that is marriageable that is already 38:48 having sexual relations with a man. 38:52 Now, the Bible's commentary, as the Seventh-day Adventist 38:54 commentary as I found, explains this in a very first-class way, 38:58 and so I just don't have time to be able to run over all the 39:01 details of which they shared, but if you want to study this 39:05 more thoroughly, I highly recommend that you go to the 39:07 Seventh-day Adventist commentaries. 39:09 Look up this particular verse, and they spend several pages 39:13 explaining this in a very first-class way. 39:17 Now, of course, if this is a dual prophecy, 39:20 and the first prophecy is fulfilled through a boy named 39:22 Immanuel in Isaiah's day, we don't want that woman to be a 39:25 virgin because, if she is a virgin, 39:29 we run into some very quickly-- 39:31 we very quickly run into some very real theological 39:35 problems because, if she's a literal virgin that is 39:38 supernaturally conceived by the Holy Spirit, even as Jesus 39:40 was through Mary, now we have two divine beings 39:43 that arrived in history. 39:45 We have one that arrives in Isaiah's day and the second 39:47 one that arrives in Christ's day, in Mary's day, and, 39:51 of course, we don't want that, do we? 39:53 No, that raises a much larger problem 39:56 for us to be able to handle. 40:00 And so I know that this brings us to the million-dollar 40:02 question, and I know that I'm speaking if-- 40:06 to a number of different conservative, very sincere 40:08 Christians and some scholars in the different circles of very 40:13 sincere Christians have done all kinds of gymnastics trying to 40:16 demonstrate that the-- 40:17 and prove that the original virgin that's spoken 40:19 of in Isaiah's day was a literal virgin. 40:23 And friends, we get into a whole lot more problems. 40:25 We dig ourselves into a very big hole that actually makes 40:29 the Bible more illegitimate and more difficult for us to accept 40:33 as the infallible record of the Word of God because, 40:37 again, we don't want the first woman that bears Immanuel to be 40:40 a virgin that is conceived supernaturally because then 40:43 we get into some very real problems. 40:46 And so the million-dollar question is this: 40:48 "Does the first application and fulfillment of this prophecy 40:52 through a naturally born son in Isaiah's day negate its second 40:56 application to a marriageable virgin woman who has a 41:00 supernatural conception by the Holy Spirit? 41:05 No, not at all, friends. 41:07 It does not put itself at odds. 41:09 I think some of us have mistakenly come to believe 41:11 and understand somehow that it does. 41:15 God's infallible, inspired, prophetic Word declares in the 41:20 prophetic book of Matthew that, indeed, 41:24 Mary and Jesus found themselves being conceived supernaturally 41:30 by the Holy Spirit Himself within the very womb of the 41:35 woman named Mary. 41:38 Friends, it's absolutely completely clear when we 41:41 come to the Word of God in Matthew chapter 1, 41:43 even as we have just read. 41:46 And so God has made it crystal clear that the 41:48 ultimate application in terms and in the context of Mary is 41:52 that she was a literal woman that had never had sexual 41:55 relations with any man, both before she conceived Jesus in 41:59 her womb through the Holy Spirit, as well as 42:02 throughout her entire pregnancy. 42:06 Now, friends, we know that it's not unusual for a couple that 42:09 is married, even after the woman is married, 42:11 to continue to have sexual relations, 42:13 but as you read the gospel record of Matthew chapter 1, 42:17 we find that God had inspired and confirmed to that of Joseph 42:21 that he is to determine both with himself and with Mary 42:24 that they would not have sexual relationships even after they 42:28 went to the wedding altar until Jesus was born. 42:34 Now, of course, this confirmed without a doubt that 42:38 when Jesus was born, it was a miraculous birth. 42:42 It was a supernatural birth. 42:46 It was the birth that saved all of sinful mankind. 42:53 Now, this is most certainly why God had directed Isaiah not to 42:57 record the details of Immanuel's birth in his day. 42:59 It's fascinating, but I think it's also on purpose that we 43:02 can find the details of the first prophetic boy and son 43:06 of Isaiah being born, which means "a remnant shall return," 43:09 and God records the details of the third prophetic boy that is 43:13 named "speed the prey," and "speed the booty" or the loot, 43:18 and so on, again, referring to the eventual conquering and 43:21 judgment of Israel by Assyria and Judah if they're not 43:26 careful, which eventually it did 43:28 take place in the days of Babylon. 43:30 But God then purposely inspires Isaiah to leave out the details 43:36 concerning and surrounding the birth of what is most likely his 43:39 second prophetic Son, which is that of the boy named Immanuel, 43:43 "God is with us." 43:44 He will bring us through this hard time in Isaiah's day. 43:50 Now, this is not the first time that God had done this. 43:52 He inspired Moses not to record the details in the birth and the 43:55 life of an ancient king and priest in Abraham's time. 43:58 His name was Melchizedek. 44:00 Now, Melchizedek was a fascinating figure. 44:02 He was the king of Salem, which eventually became Jerusalem, 44:06 and he was also a priest of the Most High God. 44:10 It is confirmed for us in Hebrews chapter 7, 44:12 verses 1 through 3, where it says, 44:14 "This same Melchizedek, the king of Salem, 44:17 the priest of the Most High God," 44:19 who is without father-- later on, in verse 3, 44:21 it says, "without father, without mother, without 44:23 genealogy, having neither beginning of the days or end 44:26 of life, but made like the Son of God, remains a priest 44:29 continually." Now, friends, I ask the question, 44:34 "Did Melchizedek literally have no father or mother? 44:36 Did he literally have no beginning or end? 44:40 No, of course, he had a beginning. 44:42 Of course, he had an end. 44:43 Of course, he had a mother. 44:44 Of course, he had a father. 44:46 But what Paul is inspired to do when he is writing and penning 44:48 the words of Hebrews chapter 7, is he's trying to use that, 44:51 or God--he is purposely using something that God had inspired 44:54 Moses to leave out of these different details of 44:56 Melchizedek's life so that God can then use that as a fitting 45:00 figure and prophecy, a symbol through Melchizedek of the 45:05 coming King and Priest, Jesus Christ Himself. 45:09 Now, Paul understood that Jesus is the only being that has no 45:12 beginning or end, that has no earthly mother or father, 45:18 but God is using Melchizedek because those details are not 45:21 in the sacred record to be able to use him 45:23 in a very powerful way. 45:26 The lack of the details adds to the mystery of the 45:29 original Melchizedek, and it makes it more effective in using 45:33 him to prophetically point to the ultimate Melchizedek, 45:36 which is Jesus Christ. 45:40 Even Moses was used prophetically to represent 45:42 and prefigure Christ. 45:44 In Deuteronomy chapter 18, in verse 15-- 45:46 and this is our last verse for today-- 45:48 it says, "The Lord your God will raise up for you a Prophet," 45:51 with a capital "P," if you look in the New King James, 45:53 "a Prophet like me from your midst, from your brethren. 45:57 Him you shall hear." 45:59 And so, again, we find here that God is using Moses in a very 46:02 fitting way as a historical figure to symbolize the ultimate 46:07 Moses, which is Jesus Christ. 46:10 Now, did Moses have a beginning and an end? 46:13 Did he have a mother and a father? 46:15 Sure, he did. Was Moses perfect? 46:17 No. 46:19 Okay, so there's a lot of things that Moses didn't have that was 46:21 like Christ, but there was a lot of things that did, 46:23 and there was enough that did that God was able to use Moses 46:26 as a prefigure, as a prophetic figure to look forward to the 46:30 ultimate Moses, Jesus Christ. 46:32 And so he says, "There was going to be a Prophet that is much 46:35 greater and bigger than myself, but He is very much like me." 46:40 Did Moses lead God's people out of captivity and sin into the 46:43 liberty and Promised Land and righteousness of Jesus Christ 46:46 in the land of Canaan? 46:48 Sure, he did. 46:49 Did Jesus deliver you and I from sin and captivity and slavery 46:53 and to liberty and righteousness and holiness? 46:55 Sure He did. 46:57 See, you see the parallel there, friends? 46:58 There's a powerful parallel between the two, 47:00 and God is simply using the same 47:02 in Isaiah chapter 7 and verse 14. 47:05 So I hope that was enough time and enough words to be able to 47:07 help explain and navigate through what is most commonly 47:11 one of the most misunderstood prophecies in the Bible, 47:14 and understand that God knew what He was doing from the 47:16 very beginning, and He was using it in a very powerful way 47:19 for you and me. 47:21 All right, my friends, we need to be able to close. 47:23 Don't forget to take advantage of the free offer that we have 47:26 here today as Pastor Jëan earlier had offered. 47:28 It's "The Final Verdict," and you can go ahead and 47:31 ask for--you can go ahead and dial 1-866-788-3966. 47:36 Again, that's 1-866-788-3966, and ask for Offer Number 162, 47:42 and we'll be happy to be able to get that out to you, 47:45 and until then, let's close with prayer. 47:50 Father in heaven, we want to pray that you will bless us 47:52 and keep us, and help each and every one of us as we continue 47:54 to worship you and learn your Word, 47:56 in Jesus's name we pray, amen. 48:01 male announcer: Don't forget to request today's 48:02 life-changing free resource. 48:04 Not only can you receive this free gift in the mail, 48:06 you can download a digital copy straight to your computer 48:09 or mobile device. 48:10 To get your digital copy of today's free gift, 48:13 simply text the keyword on your screen to 40544, 48:17 or visit the web address shown on your screen, 48:20 and be sure to select the digital download option 48:22 on the request page. 48:23 It's now easier than ever for you to study God's Word with 48:27 Amazing Facts, wherever and whenever you want, 48:30 and most important, to share it with others. 48:34 ♪♪♪ 48:37 male announcer: Amazing Facts, Changed Lives. 48:45 Charlie Green: My life was in turmoil. 48:47 My wife and I were fighting all the time. 48:49 I got away from everything and everybody. 48:52 I don't know. 48:53 It just--I always had this emptiness in my heart. 48:55 I want it filled. 48:57 I just felt like I went my whole life, 48:59 you know, just searching for something. 49:02 And my father died, and that ruined me a lot. 49:05 My father didn't believe in suicide, 49:07 and I didn't want to live, but rather than disrespect him, 49:11 I decided I would just become so mean that someone else would do 49:14 it to me, and I wouldn't have to. 49:15 So I joined the Army, thinking, 49:17 "What better place to get killed than in the Army?" 49:19 And while I was in the Army, my daughter got injured. 49:22 She was in an accident, and she was blind and paraplegic, 49:28 and it's just like I felt the whole world 49:30 was coming down on me. 49:32 One morning, I just really got mad, 49:34 and I gave God a cussing like you wouldn't believe. 49:37 I said, "I'm not Moses. 49:39 I'm not Abraham." 49:40 You know, I don't-- 49:42 but I put my sandals on just like they do, and I'm a man. 49:45 I don't want to know why this is happening to me. 49:47 I just want to know that it's happening for a reason. 49:51 If You tell me right now that this is all for a reason and 49:53 You can stack it on me from here to the end of time-- 49:57 and I will never complain again." 50:00 And that little TV came on. 50:03 It'd been sitting there just static all night long, 50:06 and there was this minister. 50:07 Well, he pops up, and he says, 50:09 "Today's lesson is from the book of Job. 50:11 God only lets those suffer that He loves the most." 50:14 And I said, "Well, that's all you have to say, Lord. 50:16 I appreciate it greatly. 50:17 From that day forward, I knew that He was there and He was in 50:20 my life and that He would help me. 50:23 I went to prison just almost immediately after that. 50:27 I was in prison for aggravated assault. 50:30 I was in one of the worst prisons 50:32 in the state of Tennessee. 50:33 It was full of gang activity. 50:35 I got my throat cut-- 52 stitches. 50:39 Man, like, I could take those fingers and stick them all the 50:41 way through, out my mouth. 50:42 I'd gone to the library that day because it was really about the 50:46 only thing to do. 50:47 But I ran across this little book called 50:49 "The Richest Caveman." 50:51 This book is hilarious, but it is great. 50:55 I'm sitting there with this big beard. 50:56 I'm thinking, "Hey, I know what it's like to look like 50:58 a caveman, but--" 51:00 I'm not an educated person, I guess you'd say, 51:02 but I'm a simple guy. 51:04 I'm just really a simple guy. 51:06 That's what I loved about Doug Batchelor because this guy is 51:10 just straight out as you can get. 51:13 And my wife and I, we've kept contact through all these years, 51:17 and so much is going on, and I told her, 51:22 I said, "Listen, this is the center of my world right now," 51:27 and I said, "I really want you to be involved in it with me. 51:30 I need it," and I said, "You will too if you ever just take 51:34 hold of it." 51:35 I told my wife, I said, "Listen, I've got this Amazing Facts 51:37 Bible study going here, and this is the best way for you to get 51:42 this information, I think," I said, 51:45 "because it's broken down, and they give you questions and-- 51:51 to make you look for these things, you know. 51:54 So it's not anyone telling you. 51:56 You find it on your own, 51:57 and they teach you to actually use the Bible." 52:00 She was there faithfully every Wednesday until we decided, 52:05 you know, she wanted to be baptized also. 52:08 She saw it coming around. 52:10 The choice was made, and October the 4th, 52:14 2014, my wife and I, we were baptized in the water at the 52:18 same time, and we started our walk together, 52:23 I guess you'd say. 52:25 I went through everything that a man could possibly go through, 52:28 I guess, from marital trouble, loss of family members, 52:34 death in my family, my children were harmed, 52:37 and my daughter is handicapped for life. 52:40 I went to prison, but still, 52:43 I kept my word to God that He could stack it on me as much as 52:48 He wanted, and I'd never question Him again, 52:50 and I didn't. 52:52 But I can say this much: 52:54 He never put nothing on me that I couldn't handle, and He walked 52:58 with me through it all. 53:00 And I'd like to say that-- 53:02 to anyone who is in prison, not to give up. 53:07 Don't lose hope. 53:08 Put your faith in the Lord and study, 53:12 and seek Him, and He will seek you. 53:14 And my name is Charlie Green, and I want you to know that you 53:17 and Amazing Facts have changed my life. 53:21 ♪♪♪ 53:38 male announcer: Amazing Facts, Changed Lives. 53:42 ♪♪♪ 53:47 female: Well, my conversion story 53:49 is when I was in the Philippines. 53:52 I just graduated as a nurse, and afterwards, 53:56 I did not have any religion, and one time I found myself inside a 54:02 small church, Catholic Church in Manila and before a big cross, 54:10 and I was kneeling before, and I could hear Jesus telling me to 54:15 enter the convent, save myself and also my family, 54:20 and I said, "Lord, I would like to follow You all the way." 54:23 At that point, I seemed to be happy externally, 54:27 but because inside the convent we don't read the Bible, 54:31 we don't study about the Word of God, 54:34 we pray the rosaries, we also, at the same time, 54:37 study the lives of the saints and also our founders and the 54:42 encyclicals of the Pope and the Virgin Mary, 54:46 and so I do not know the truth, and I had this torture 54:49 of conscience, the guilty feelings that cannot be 54:53 resolved, so I will confess to the priests in the confessional 54:56 box, saying, "Father, forgive me. 55:00 Since my last confession was last week, since then, 55:03 I have committed the following sin, 55:06 including the root cause, why am I falling and falling in 55:10 that same sin over and over again?" 55:13 And still, for 21 long years, 55:16 I struggle and I struggle, and I struggle. 55:20 I realized that I was totally empty. 55:24 I was totally helpless and hopeless and so depressed 55:28 and so desperate that I would like already to end my life. 55:33 I was working for five years as dean of the University of San 55:38 Agustin College of Nursing in Iloilo City, 55:41 one of the islands in the Philippines. 55:44 After five years, I received a commission from my parents to 55:49 help my sister who was being a battered woman. 55:54 This is one of the reasons why I came over to United States. 55:59 It is because my sister needs my help. 56:03 As I was working in the hospital in New York, 56:06 my boss--a thing that was so gracious enough to give me 56:09 an invitation to the "Millennium Prophecy." 56:12 As I was listening to Pastor Doug Batchelor's presentation, 56:17 my heart really was beating so fast, and my mind-- 56:21 I'm able to grasp the truth that this is the truth 56:27 that I've been longing to hear all my life that I have been 56:31 seeking for so long. 56:34 My personal relationship with Jesus, 56:36 I can see Jesus as my personal Savior. 56:40 He is not only the Savior of the whole world, 56:43 but He is my personal Savior. 56:46 He was the one who delivered me mightily from the depths of sin 56:52 from the miry clay. 56:54 Pastor Doug Batchelor has been used by 56:57 the Lord in my conversion. 56:59 The Amazing Facts, I owe to them. 57:03 The Lord really blessed this ministry, 57:07 and I'm so proud that I was able to attend this 57:10 "Millennium Prophecy." 57:11 My life has never been the same. 57:14 It has given me that peace, the joy that never-- 57:19 I have never tasted in my life, and now I'm set free to be able 57:26 to work for him and to follow him. 57:28 ♪♪♪ 57:38 ♪♪♪ 57:48 ♪♪♪ 57:58 ♪♪♪ 58:08 ♪♪♪ 58:18 ♪♪♪ 58:23 CC by Aberdeen Captioning 800-688-6621 abercap.com |
Revised 2021-01-09