Participants: Shelley Quinn (Host), Jill Morikone, Molly Steenson, Pr. Tom Ferguson, Pr. John Dinzey
Series Code: SSP
Program Code: SSP000022S
|
00:01 The Bible tells us,
00:02 "In the beginning was the word, 00:04 and the word was with God, and the word was God." 00:07 It says, "To receive with meekness 00:09 the implanted word, 00:11 which is able to save your souls, 00:13 and to be diligent to present yourself approved to God 00:17 rightly dividing the word of truth. 00:20 Join us now for the 3ABN Sabbath School Panel." 00:24 Our study today is, 00:26 "Feed My Sheep," I and II Peter. 00:32 Hello, I'm Shelley Quinn 00:34 and we welcome you to 3ABN Sabbath School Panel 00:36 where we are studying 00:38 the adult Bible study guide 00:41 from the Seventh-day Adventist General Conference, 00:44 and it's called Feed My Sheep. 00:46 This is the second quarter's studies 00:50 and we want you, 00:52 if you don't have one of these Sabbath School study guides, 00:55 to go to the website absg 01:00 that's for adult Bible study guide, 01:02 absg.adventist.org 01:05 and download these lessons 01:07 but you can study along with us. 01:09 At least, get your Bibles, pens, 01:11 and some paper, and take notes. 01:13 We're so glad that you're joining us 01:14 and this is going to be a wonderful study. 01:17 Today, we're doing lesson ten on prophecy and scripture. 01:21 Let me introduce the rest of the panel 01:23 because we have some wonderful folk here, 01:25 who have been studying hard to share with you. 01:28 Next to me, I've Pastor Tom Ferguson, 01:31 then Mollie Steenson, 01:33 John Dinzey, and Jill Morikone. 01:35 And I'm just so glad that you all are here today 01:38 because it's so much fun to hear 01:40 everyone's perspective on their day. 01:43 What I'd like to do is, let's start off with prayer. 01:46 Tom, would you like to have a prayer for us? 01:48 Dear heavenly Father, thank You so much 01:50 for the opportunity to study Your Word today. 01:53 We thank You for the lessons 01:54 that we read from the pen of Peter 01:57 that when the Holy Spirit spoke through this humble instrument. 02:01 And, Father, I just pray that, once again, 02:03 Your Holy Spirit will inspire these words 02:05 that we will hear from Your voice, 02:08 speak to those that are watching, 02:11 those that are listening, 02:12 and also speak through 02:14 into each one of us here on the panel. 02:16 Lord, may this be a time and hour with You, 02:18 we pray in Jesus' name. 02:20 Amen. Amen. 02:21 Before we go to the memory verse, 02:23 I want to back up a couple of scriptures 02:25 from the memory verse and read something 02:27 that Peter wrote in 2 Peter 1:16. 02:32 In 2 Peter 1:16, he said, 02:34 "For we did not follow cunningly devised fables, 02:37 when we made known to you the power 02:39 and the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, 02:41 but we were eyewitnesses of His glory." 02:44 Peter had walked with Jesus, he'd seen the miracles, 02:48 he had seen everything that Jesus was doing 02:52 and fulfilling prophecy over and over. 02:55 But he saw Jesus transfigured, 02:59 transformed on the Mount of Transfiguration. 03:03 And so he saw the glory of the Lord 03:05 and he was speaking from eyewitness experience. 03:10 But then he goes on 03:12 and he says in the memory text 03:14 which is 2 Peter 1:19. 03:18 It's important to be an eyewitness 03:19 but because he knows 03:21 that not everybody can be an eyewitness, 03:23 at this time Jesus had already ascended into heaven 03:28 after His resurrection. 03:29 So now he is telling us something 03:31 that's even more important. 03:33 He says, "We have also a more sure word of prophecy, 03:37 whereunto you do well that you take heed, 03:39 as unto a light that shineth in a dark place." 03:43 So the word of prophecy is shining forth God's truths. 03:47 And he says, "Until the day dawn, 03:50 and the day star arise in your hearts." 03:54 We can have absolute confidence 03:57 is what Peter is saying in the Word of God. 04:00 Because this is not man's thoughts about God, 04:04 this is actually the Word of God. 04:08 All scripture Paul says 04:09 was given by inspiration of the Holy Spirit. 04:13 And when we think about this, 04:15 in the Bible there is archeological proof, 04:17 historical proof, scientific proof, 04:20 but the predictive, 04:23 prophetic accuracy is so amazing, 04:26 30% of the Bible is predictive prophecy, 04:30 telling the future. 04:31 And to foretell the future, what you have to do, Mollie? 04:35 You have to know the future. You have to know the future. 04:38 And God said in Isaiah 46:9-10, He says, 04:42 "I'm God there is none like me, 04:44 I know the end from the beginning, 04:45 and I foretell the end from the beginning." 04:48 So that's what we're seeing in this prophet, in the Bible. 04:52 And I just wanna to point out that in Daniel, 04:55 just in Daniel alone, 04:57 it predicted with absolute accuracy 05:01 the rise and fall of Babylon, 05:03 Medo-Persia, Greece, 05:05 Rome, the division of Rome, 05:08 and in the rise and resurgence of the papacy. 05:11 So there's been enough Bible prophecy that has come to pass 05:15 to make us have absolute assurance and trust 05:20 that the rest of what God has prophesied 05:22 is going to happen. 05:24 So let's look at Sunday's lesson 05:28 'cause God knows the future, 05:30 he including our future and so we can trust Him. 05:33 Because in the end of the book what happens? 05:36 God wins, doesn't He? 05:37 Sunday, Peter is talking in 1 Peter 10:12. 05:42 He's saying that the prophets have all received 05:45 from the Holy Spirit 05:47 the promises that pointed to... 05:49 1 Peter 1:2? 05:51 This is 1 Peter, 1-10:12. Thank you. 05:54 He is saying that these, 05:57 the Holy Spirit gave them these prophecies 06:01 that pointed to Christ in His sufferings, 06:04 in His subsequent glories, and His salvation by grace. 06:09 Now in Hebrews, you don't have to turn there, 06:11 I'll just read this to you. 06:12 In Hebrews 11:13, the writer says that, 06:16 "These all died in the faith, 06:20 not having received the promise 06:22 but having seen them afar off, 06:26 they were assured of them, they embraced them, 06:29 they confess that they were strangers 06:32 and pilgrims in the earth." 06:34 The Old Testament believers 06:37 knew that Christ coming was in the future. 06:41 And now when Peter is writing, 06:44 these promises have already been fulfilled. 06:46 You know, Peter trusted the Word of God so much. 06:49 That's how he recognized Christ was the Messiah. 06:52 He knew the Word of God, 06:54 and when he was walking with the living word, 06:56 he knew He was the one. 06:59 In Acts, which is the record of the first 30 years 07:02 of the early church, 07:05 there is a Jew who is named Apollos, 07:08 and what the scripture says is that he was an eloquent man, 07:11 and that he was mighty in the scriptures. 07:14 So let's look at Acts 18:28, 07:17 "He is a mighty eloquent person 07:21 knowing the scriptures 07:22 and he'd accepted Christ as the Messiah. 07:25 He's defending the faith, 07:26 and greatly encouraging 07:28 those who have believe through grace." 07:29 So, Mollie, or, Jill, do you have Acts 18:28, 07:33 what does it say? 07:35 "For he vigorously refuted the Jews publicly, 07:37 showing from the Scriptures that Jesus is the Christ." 07:42 And then someone lets turn to Luke 24 07:47 and we're gonna read verses 25-27. 07:50 We see this picture of Apollos, who is eloquent in speech, 07:54 he is mighty in the scriptures. 07:55 And how is he convincing people of Christ? 07:59 He is going to the scriptures of the Old Testament 08:02 to show that Jesus was the Christ. 08:04 Now let's look Luke 24:25-27. 08:07 Tom, why don't you read that? 08:09 "Then He said to them, 'O foolish ones, 08:11 and slow to heart to believe it 08:13 all that the prophets have spoken.' 08:14 Ought not the Christ to have suffered these things 08:17 and to enter into His glory? 08:20 And beginning at Moses and all the prophets, 08:22 He expounded to them in all the scriptures 08:24 the things concerning Himself." 08:26 Now who is Jesus speaking to here? 08:29 There is two disciples 08:30 that are walking along the path 08:32 on resurrection Sunday, and they are so dejected, 08:36 they were disciples of Christ, and they had seen Him crucified 08:39 but they did not yet know that He was risen. 08:44 So they're walking the seven miles 08:46 from Jerusalem back to Emmaus 08:48 and all of the sudden Christ comes alongside side of them, 08:50 they don't recognize Him. 08:52 But He opens up the scriptures 08:55 and He begins to expound to them 08:58 and He says that, 09:00 "Beginning at Moses and all the prophets, 09:02 He expounded to them on the Scriptures." 09:05 The things that concerned him, 09:07 when you think about this the, 09:09 in Jesus day, 09:11 they subdivided the Bible into three sections. 09:13 The first five books 09:15 were called the law of Moses 09:17 and then there were the prophets, 09:19 the minor and the major prophets, 09:20 and then the wisdom books, they call the Psalms, 09:23 they were the wisdom books of Psalms, 09:26 Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and the song of Solomon. 09:29 So what is Jesus saying here? 09:31 He is affirming 09:33 the authenticity of the entire Old Testament here. 09:37 And He says, 09:38 that these things testified of me. 09:41 We find Christ throughout the Old Testament. 09:44 It's interesting to me, 09:46 Jesus could have performed a miracle 09:47 to prove He was Him, that He had risen. 09:51 Why didn't He perform a miracle? 09:53 You know what I think? 09:55 The devil, can he not perform false miracles? 09:59 I think Christ didn't want them 10:01 to have their trust in a miracle, 10:03 but rather He wanted them 10:05 to have their trust in the Word of God, 10:08 the more sure word of prophecy. 10:11 The Old Testament contains 10:12 more than a 125 prophecies of Jesus Christ 10:17 that He fulfilled during His lifetime. 10:20 So it's an amazing thing 10:22 that must have been some Bible study, 10:24 don't you know? 10:25 So then we see Jesus, 10:28 after these disciples 10:31 they run back to Jerusalem, 10:33 we've got the rest of the disciples 10:35 still hiding behind closed doors in Jerusalem 10:38 for fear of the Jews. 10:40 And the women had come to say, "He is risen." 10:43 And they are not quite sure what's going on. 10:46 Now these two disciples come back to tell them, 10:49 "We've seen Him." 10:51 And in Luke 24-44:49. 10:57 Mollie, I'm gonna ask you to read Luke 22:44, 11:00 but what happens in this passage 11:03 is that Jesus appears to these 11 disciples, 11:07 that are gathered behind the closed doors 11:09 and those who are with Him. 11:11 And then he says to them Luke 24:44. 11:16 "And being in an agony, 11:19 He prayed more earnestly..." 11:21 Luke 24:44? 11:23 I thought you said, 22:44. No. 24:44. 11:26 24:44. 11:30 "And He said unto them, 11:32 'These are the words which I spake unto you 11:34 while I was yet with you, 11:36 that all things must be fulfilled 11:38 which were written in the law of Moses, 11:40 and in the Prophets, 11:42 and in the Psalms concerning me." 11:44 So I imagine that he probably took them 11:47 through the same Bible study, 11:49 but what we've got here is the Old Testament 11:52 predictions of the Messiah were so specific, 11:55 and so clearly fulfilled by Jesus' life. 11:59 And that they knew that these things were of God, 12:04 that He was the Messiah. 12:07 I want to read something to you, 12:09 Dr. Peter Stoner, 12:11 who was the former chairman 12:13 of the department of mathematics 12:15 and astronomy and engineering 12:16 at Pasadena College in California, 12:19 chose just 8 of these 125 prophecies, 12:24 just 8 of them. 12:25 And then working with students, 12:28 over 600 students, 12:30 in his class for several years, 12:32 they applied the principle of probability. 12:36 Now, I took probability in college. 12:42 But, anyway, the principle of probability 12:44 to just those eight prophecies, 12:49 they found out that for eight prophecies, 12:52 just eight to be fulfilled in one man's lifetime 12:57 the odds were one. 13:00 And I can't even say it. 13:01 I don't even know if there is a name for this number, 13:04 1 with 330's 13:08 behind it. 13:10 How many zeros does a billion have behind it? 13:14 I guess nine. 13:16 A billion has... 13:19 Yeah, nine, that's right. 13:20 And a trillion... Good job, Brother John. 13:22 Is a billion nine or six? 13:26 A million has six zeros. A billion has nine. 13:28 A million has six zeros, you are right. 13:30 So you just think it would be like 13:33 taking a billion times a trillion 13:36 to come up with all of the zeros. 13:38 So if that, 13:41 what would if that's the odds for eight only, 13:45 what would the odds be 13:47 that any one man could fulfill 125 prophecies? 13:51 I've got a list here 13:53 and I don't have time to go over it. 13:55 But let me just tell you some of the things 13:57 that were prophesied about Jesus. 14:00 Micah 5:2, "That He born in Jerusalem." 14:03 Daniel 9:25 tells the time of His birth 14:06 and that's what convinced Sir Isaac Newton 14:08 to become a Christian 14:10 that the Bible was absolutely accurate. 14:12 It was when he looked at history 14:13 and looked at these prophecies. 14:15 Isaiah 7:14, "That He be born of a virgin." 14:19 Isaiah 53:3, "That He would be rejected 14:22 by His own people, the Jews." 14:24 Psalm 41:9, "That He would be betrayed by a close friend." 14:28 Zechariah 11:12, 14:29 "Betrayed for 30 pieces of silver." 14:32 "He would be accused," he Psalms tell us in 35 14:35 that "He would be accused by false witnesses." 14:38 And then it goes on, 14:39 there's different prophecies 14:41 throughout Isaiah, Zechariah, and Psalms. 14:45 He'd be silent to His accusers. 14:47 He's be spat on and struck, hated without reason, 14:50 crucified with malefactors. 14:52 He'd be pierced through His hands and feet. 14:55 He would pray for His enemies, 14:56 the soldiers would gamble for his clothing. 14:58 No bones would be broken, His side would be pierced, 15:02 buried with a rich. 15:03 It just goes on and on. 15:07 And if the odds are 1 with 330's 15:12 behind it to 1 for just eight prophecies, 15:16 it is absolutely impossible 15:18 that any man could have fulfilled 125 prophecies, 15:23 unless he was the Son of God. 15:25 Amen. Amazing. 15:27 I think that no one would want to fulfill 15:29 all of those prophecies... 15:31 I think you're right. 15:32 When you look at Isaiah 53, for example. 15:34 Absolutely. 15:35 Absolutely. Yeah. 15:37 And to think that the people at large 15:38 had rejected that fulfillment 15:41 and only those who were listening 15:42 with the voice of God accepted it. 15:46 Somebody who is an earnest seeker 15:48 for Him and for His truth will find it 15:50 by looking at scriptures. 15:54 Well, eyewitnesses of majesty... 15:55 I invite us to turn together to... 15:58 Let's go to 2 Peter 1... 16:05 Yeah, that's definitely proves or refutes the idea 16:08 that these were cunningly devised fables. 16:13 2 Peter 1 says, 16:14 "For we did not follow cunningly devised fables, 16:17 when we made known to you 16:18 the power of the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ." 16:20 You know, cunningly devised fables are something 16:22 that were very common in that day. 16:25 It is something that different philosophers 16:29 or success... 16:30 If you've been to success seminar, 16:32 they go out, they raise funds for this. 16:34 They're actually trying to gain followers, 16:36 it's the strategy also was with the philosophers 16:39 to control others when they did this. 16:42 But they were eyewitness to Jesus' majesty. 16:46 In verse 17, "For he received from God 16:48 the Father honor and glory, 16:51 when such a voice came to him from the excellent glory, 16:53 'This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.'" 16:57 And in verse 18, it says, 16:59 "And we heard this voice which came from heaven 17:02 when we were with him on the Holy Mountain." 17:07 I want us to turn now to Luke 9, 17:11 where we actually see this experience. 17:18 Luke 9. 17:20 We're gonna begin with verse 27. 17:25 Luke 9 beginning with verse 27. 17:29 "But I tell you truly, there is some standing here, 17:33 who shall not taste death, 17:36 till they see the kingdom of God." 17:38 You know, I think that 17:39 the ones that were hearing that... 17:42 We're dealing with the time in Jesus' ministry 17:45 where the popular view is turning against Him, 17:48 He was actually... 17:51 People were expecting Him to set up His kingdom, 17:53 He hadn't set up His kingdom. 17:56 It was the... 17:57 The church leaders were leading a charge 17:59 against Him at this time. 18:01 And when he said these words, "You will not taste death, 18:06 until they see the kingdom of God." 18:10 What does that really mean? 18:11 What does that really mean? 18:13 If you go into the next verse, 18:14 they came to pass about eight days after these sayings. 18:16 If you go to Matthew's Gospel, you'll see that it was, 18:19 they mentioned six days, 18:21 but about a week 18:22 this is where Luke is being approximating 18:26 how long it's going to be, 18:28 "That He took Peter, John, and James 18:31 and went up to the mountain to pray." 18:32 We all know that Jesus had His disciples, 18:35 His 12 disciples. 18:36 He also had other disciples, 18:38 who are not part of that inner circle. 18:39 But then He had those three that were the closest to Him. 18:43 And those three disciples 18:44 went with him to the mountain to... 18:49 In verse 29, this is what they see, 18:51 "As He prayed, 18:52 the appearance of His face was altered, 18:54 and His robe became white and glistening. 18:57 And behold, two men talk with Him, 19:00 who were Moses and Elijah, 19:02 who appeared in the glory and spoke of his decease, 19:05 which He was about to accomplish at Jerusalem." 19:08 You know, when you look at these two men, 19:11 we have Moses representing... 19:13 Well, there is two ways to look at this, 19:15 one of them is that Moses represents those 19:17 who have died and been raised again. 19:19 We have Elijah, 19:20 who, are those that were taken to heaven 19:22 without seeing death. 19:23 But there is also the angle of this is Moses 19:26 the law and Elijah representing the prophets. 19:31 They're standing there with Jesus, 19:34 as He is being glorified, and they're speaking of what? 19:37 What are they speaking of in verse 31? 19:41 "His decease." His decease. 19:42 Yes. 19:43 Did you know that the disciples really didn't get this? 19:46 They just did not get this, 19:48 even though this was going on at this time. 19:50 As a matter of fact if you go to verse 32, 19:52 "But Peter and those with him were heavy with sleep. 19:57 And when they were fully awake, they saw His glory, 19:59 and the two men who stood with Him. 20:02 Then it happened, as they were parting from Him, 20:04 that Peter said to Jesus, 20:06 'Master, it is good for us to be here 20:09 and let us make three tabernacles 20:11 one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.' 20:16 Not knowing what he had said." 20:19 And let me ask you, 20:21 do you think this was a kosher thing 20:23 for them to make a tent for Moses, and for Elijah, 20:29 as well as for Jesus? 20:32 What is this telling us? 20:34 When they are, you know, 20:36 up until the time of Jesus everyone... 20:40 It was Moses, Abraham, Elijah, 20:41 those are the ones that the Israelites 20:44 looked up to as their leaders. 20:47 And they were actually, as you look at this text, 20:50 they were an object of worship by the people. 20:55 And what they're really saying in this text is, you know what, 21:00 along with Moses, and along with Elijah, 21:03 we want you to stand among them. 21:07 You don't get it that way. 21:09 And making three tabernacles one for you, one for Moses, 21:12 and one for Elijah, not knowing what he said, 21:14 he is really referring to the fact 21:16 that Moses and Elijah were not to be worshiped. 21:20 They were not to receive worship. 21:23 Can I give you my interpretation of verse 35? 21:25 Sure, go ahead. Sure. 21:26 Verse 35, "And there came a voice 21:29 out of the cloud, saying, 'Shut up, Peter." 21:33 Yeah. 21:35 Here is an interpretation. And hear Him. 21:36 That's just my interpretation. 21:38 That's absolutely right. 21:40 That's absolutely right. 21:41 You know, it just shows that as they were eye witnesses 21:44 of the majesty of the Christ. 21:47 And really, what they're really seeing here 21:49 is His divinity flashed through His humanity. 21:53 They'd have been veiled. 21:54 And Jesus had called these three 21:56 to this special meeting with two others, 21:59 when you think about Moses and Elijah, 22:00 if Jesus failed, who would be the faith there? 22:04 Yes. Okay? 22:05 Because we know that Moses... 22:08 It talks about in Jude... 22:12 The body of Moses was argued over 22:14 and Moses was resurrected. 22:16 Right. 22:17 And that's why they never found his grave. 22:18 So he is the one we know that's up there that was, 22:21 as you said, part of the resurrection. 22:23 But then Elijah was translated. 22:25 But if Jesus wasn't praised... 22:28 If he didn't succeed... 22:29 If he didn't succeed that would be it for them. 22:33 We have for all of us by the way. 22:34 Oh, that's true. Amen. 22:36 And so here we have verse 34 where "He was saying this, 22:41 the cloud came and overshadowed them, 22:44 and they were fearful as they enter the cloud, 22:47 then this voice came as..." 22:50 Mollie's version is... 22:52 and "But the voice came out of the cloud saying, 22:56 'This is my chosen Son.'" 23:01 If you go back to the original language, 23:02 "This is the one I have chosen." 23:05 You have chosen Elijah, you've chosen Moses. 23:09 I have chosen Christ. 23:11 Like Jesus said, "You search the scriptures 23:12 for in them ye think ye have eternal life: 23:14 and these are they which testify of me." 23:16 And it was Moses saying Elijah 23:18 and the other along the prophets 23:19 where it would all testified of Him. 23:24 Now listen to what happens in verse 36, 23:25 "When the voice had seized, Jesus was found alone. 23:28 But they kept quite, and told no one in those days 23:31 as they think of the things which they had seen." 23:34 So here God is doing several things. 23:37 Christ is being glorified in their mix, 23:40 it's actually encouraging... 23:43 Can you imagine being in that inner circle 23:45 and hearing that Jesus is going to die? 23:50 Everything that's happening politically 23:52 on the outside is going to come to fruition. 23:55 He is going to die. 23:57 "But this is my chosen vessel," the Father is saying 24:01 and Moses and Elijah are supporting... 24:06 Have a supportive roll in the picture 24:08 that these disciples needed, 24:10 but also this was encouraging for Jesus. 24:14 The one who, by choice, 24:17 submitted His divinity to His humanity 24:19 and had victory the way you and I have to have victory. 24:23 For a brief moment, 24:24 His divinity was flashing through. 24:28 They needed more of Christ and less of Moses and Elijah. 24:32 We need more of Christ and less of maybe that special speaker 24:37 that happens to be our favorite. 24:39 Yeah. Yeah. 24:42 We need more of Christ 24:43 rather than watching someone else's journey 24:46 and respecting that. 24:47 We need more of Christ ourselves. 24:50 It's good. 24:51 See, sometimes when we do worship church leaders, 24:54 and Christ must increase but they must decrease. 24:57 Amen. 24:58 See, every day is to be an opportunity, 25:02 to be an eyewitness of majesty, every day is an opportunity. 25:07 You know, I think about some of the things 25:09 that happen in life. 25:11 What about that job that the Lord provided for you 25:13 when you needed it, you've been praying? 25:15 That to me is an eyewitness of majesty 25:17 that He indeed is Lord of my life. 25:19 What about when you have the birth of that first child? 25:23 If you were a parent, you know what that feels like. 25:26 That is an eyewitness of majesty. 25:29 What about watching a transformed life? 25:32 Someone that you have been praying for, 25:34 it could be your child, it could be your loved one, 25:36 or spouse, that is when you see that transformed life. 25:39 It's an eyewitness of majesty. 25:40 What about when you receive a call 25:43 and you see God opening and closing doors saying, 25:46 "This is the way, walk ye in it"? 25:48 And every time you have your devotional life, 25:51 and every time the church comes to worship 25:53 is an opportunity to be an eyewitness 25:56 to the majesty of Christ. 25:58 Amen. Amen. 25:59 Amen. Beautiful. Beautiful. 26:03 An eyewitness to the majesty of Christ, 26:05 an eyewitness to the morning star 26:07 rising in your arm. 26:09 That's right. That's what it is. 26:10 And that is what I'm going to look at, 26:13 my portion of scripture is on Tuesday, 26:17 The Morning Star in Our Hearts. 26:19 And in 2 Peter 1:19 we've read it several times, 26:25 but let's read it one more time. 26:28 And so we have the prophetic word confirmed 26:31 and this is the New King James version, 26:33 in the King James Version we were saying earlier 26:36 it says that, "We have a more sure word of prophecy, 26:39 which you do well to heed, as a light" that does what? 26:44 "A light that shines in a dark place." 26:46 Now, what is this more sure word of prophecy? 26:49 What is this prophetic word confirmed 26:51 that we have determined already? 26:53 It's the Bible. 26:55 This is what it is, 26:57 "Which we do well to heed as a light," 27:00 this word, "that shines in a dark place, 27:03 until the day star and the morning, 27:06 until the day dawns 27:08 and the morning star rises in our heart." 27:11 So where does the morning star rise? 27:14 It rises in our hearts. 27:16 So where is this word going to shine? 27:21 It's going to shine in our hearts. 27:23 Now I want to go ahead and just right of the bat, 27:28 go to Revelation 22:16, 27:30 I want to confirm 27:33 who the Word of God 27:35 refers to as the bright and morning star. 27:39 As a matter of fact, 27:40 in my Bible it's written in red. 27:42 So when it's written in red, who's doing the talking? 27:45 Jesus. That would be Jesus. 27:47 Revelation 22:16, "I, Jesus, 27:51 have sent my angel to testify to you 27:55 these things in the churches. 27:57 I am the root and the offspring of David, 28:01 the Bright and Morning Star." 28:05 Now there is something very unique 28:07 about the Morning Star. 28:11 Is in... 28:13 The star in the sky 28:16 that we refer to as the Morning Star, 28:19 is it actually a star? 28:21 What is it? 28:23 Planet. It's the planet. 28:24 It's the planet Venus. 28:26 Now in the morning, the planet Venus, 28:29 referred to as the Morning Star, 28:32 is situated in such a place on the eastern horizon 28:38 that the reflection of the sun 28:43 that hasn't arisen yet it's in such a place 28:48 that that Morning Star shines brightly 28:53 and you know what it's telling us, 28:55 it's announcing to those who are still in darkness 29:00 that light is just about to come. 29:02 Now, isn't that exciting? 29:04 That's what the Morning Star does. 29:06 It lets us know that there is hope, 29:10 that the darkness is going to be dispelled. 29:12 Amen. 29:15 And Peter speaks up the Morning Star 29:19 rising in the hearts of God's people. 29:22 Now remember the significance. 29:24 The significance is that the morning star 29:28 rises as a hero to that which is to come. 29:32 And for Peter, 29:35 the Word of God shone like a light in dark places 29:39 until darkness was dispelled. 29:42 And we determine that the word 29:45 is what shines in the dark places. 29:48 And there is the scripture Psalms 119:130. 29:51 And I think I've shared this with you all before. 29:54 I was... 29:56 There was a little Baptist church 29:58 on a winding road going from the inner state 30:02 into Clarksville, Tennessee. 30:04 This was years ago, at least 30 years ago. 30:09 My husband and I were right going up there. 30:12 And as we came round at a corner, 30:15 there this little Baptist church was. 30:18 And over its door was this big sign that says, 30:22 "The entrance of God's Word gives light." 30:26 When have you ever had a scripture 30:29 just grab you and as I read that... 30:33 I mean, it just, it grabbed me. 30:35 The entrance of God's Word gives light. 30:38 Hal and I had been Christians very long. 30:41 And all we were just still so in love with Jesus 30:45 and in the shame I stood still. 30:47 But remember when you first met Jesus Christ, 30:49 the Lord of your life. 30:51 Oh, it's so quick to repent 30:53 and everything was so new and refreshing 30:57 and good to you. 30:58 And so as I saw that scripture it just quickened to my heart 31:03 and I, to this day, I have studied that 31:08 and done more teachings on that scripture. 31:10 I know it was the Lord by the power of the Spirit 31:13 quickening that to me, 31:14 the entrance of God's Word gives light. 31:17 The rest of that scripture 31:19 as it gives understanding to the simple 31:22 and that tells us 31:24 that you don't have to be a great scholar 31:27 or a great theologian. 31:28 God's Word is for everybody, 31:31 the entrance of that word gives light. 31:33 Now I think about that and particularly at that time, 31:37 and as we grow and as we mature, 31:39 as we sing so beautifully in the life of Peter 31:42 that we do darkness does... 31:47 is dispelled around us. 31:49 But the way darkness is dispelled 31:52 is by the entrance of that word. 31:54 And so I look into my own life and see areas... 31:59 See, it doesn't matter how much I know, 32:02 there is still things I don't know. 32:04 No matter how deep you go in the Word of God, 32:07 there is depths you haven't attained to. 32:09 No matter, how high you go in the things of the Spirit, 32:12 there are heights you haven't attained to. 32:15 And so we want... 32:17 How many of you want clean hands and a pure heart? 32:20 That's really what you want. 32:21 And so we have to admit, 32:24 acknowledge that there is still error in our lives. 32:28 I don't want error to be in my life 32:30 and that was one of the prayers 32:31 that Hal and I prayed for years. 32:34 Oh, Father, show us that error that's in our lives 32:37 because we know we don't have it all right. 32:39 And I truly believe that the, an answer to that prayer 32:43 is why the Lord drew us the way He has drawn us 32:47 into what I consider a church 32:48 that's got more truth than any other church. 32:51 I know God honored that prayer 32:53 by bringing me to a church that has so much light, 32:58 that God has entrusted so much light to. 33:01 But as we read God's Word, just think about this, 33:04 as you read God's Word, study God's Word, 33:06 allow that light into you 33:09 areas of darkness in your light. 33:11 The power of that word will overshadow that darkness 33:16 and bring light to it. 33:17 And it's the example that I love to use, 33:20 Pastor Tom, is the rising of the sun. 33:24 So on... 33:27 In the mornings, here is the question, 33:30 does the sun get to come up 33:33 because darkness recedes or does darkness leave 33:39 because the sun comes up? 33:40 See darkness leaves because the power, 33:44 the light overshadows it. 33:46 And so as we read God's Word, 33:48 as we allow that Morning Star to arise in our heart, 33:53 darkness is dispelled, 33:54 it's called the road of sanctification. 33:57 As we... 33:58 Darkness is dispelled and as we are sanctified. 34:02 Oh, that's one of those fied words, 34:05 purified, justified, 34:06 you know, glorified, well, we have to be sanctified. 34:10 And what does that sanctification do? 34:12 It purifies your character. 34:15 And what is the only thing, 34:17 you mentioned that earlier I know today. 34:19 The only thing we can take into the presence of almighty God 34:22 is our character. 34:24 Oh, and we can't be shortsighted. 34:26 This is not all there is. 34:28 There is an eternity, 34:30 and it's what we do on this side of eternity 34:33 that determines the other side of our eternity. 34:37 And so we must allow that Morning Star 34:41 to arise in our heart, 34:42 and my goodness, I'm so forth... 34:46 I haven't even started good. 34:47 Colossians 1:13, "He has delivered us..." 34:51 Who is He? 34:53 Jesus has delivered, that's you and me. 34:55 "He has delivered us from the power of darkness..." 34:59 You've been delivered from that power of darkness 35:02 and He has conveyed you 35:04 into the kingdom of His dear Son. 35:06 We are not where we used to be, we're not who we used to be. 35:09 We meet Jesus Christ the Lord of our life 35:12 and everything changes. 35:14 We're placed on a road for you were once in darkness, 35:18 but now you are in light in the Lord, 35:20 walk as children of the light. 35:24 His rising in our heart is getting to know Him better. 35:27 And I just want to finish with this, 35:29 this is from Ellen White, 35:31 it says, "The whole earth is to be illuminated 35:34 with the glory of God's truth. 35:36 The light is to shine to all lands and all peoples. 35:40 And it is from those who have received the light 35:43 that it is to shine forth from, that's you and that's me. 35:46 The day-star has risen upon us, 35:49 and we are to flash its light on to the pathway 35:53 of those in darkness." 35:55 We've been given a great responsibility 35:58 and we've got to be the ones to shine that light. 36:01 Pastor John. Amen. 36:03 I think I don't want you to stop. 36:05 Yeah. 36:06 She is preaching over here. 36:08 Praise the Lord. Amen. 36:10 This is... 36:11 What a treat, what a blessing 36:12 to be in this panel to hear all these wonderful thoughts 36:16 from God's Word. 36:17 And I know all of you can continue sharing 36:21 even from the portion that you have already shared. 36:23 And it is just a marvelous thing 36:26 to see how much there is in God's Word. 36:31 So much is packed in there. 36:33 You know, you sometimes, I don't know if you've been to, 36:36 I'm sure you've seen these little things 36:38 that I guess you had these little things 36:40 you add a little bit of water to it 36:42 and it keeps growing and growing. 36:43 Yes. 36:44 So it's just like that, 36:46 in every verse there is so much there for us 36:48 to comprehend. 36:50 Well, as we continue in 2 Peter, 36:54 I'm going read verses 2 Peter 1:19-21 again, 37:00 and it says, "We have also a more sure word of prophecy, 37:05 whereunto you do well that you take heed, 37:09 as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, 37:13 until the day dawn, 37:14 and the day-star arise in your hearts. 37:16 Knowing this first, 37:18 this is first that no prophecy of the scripture 37:21 is of any private interpretation. 37:24 For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man, 37:29 but holy men of God spake as they were moved 37:33 by the Holy Ghost or the Holy Spirit." 37:36 What a wonderful set of verses are even in these. 37:41 And as we look at these scriptures, 37:44 again, we come back to the idea "A more sure word of prophecy." 37:49 And it is true we have not follow 37:53 these cunningly devised fables, 37:54 we have to admit that even in these days... 37:58 You know, Jesus when He was speaking with His disciples 38:03 said something that shocked the disciples. 38:05 He said, you... 38:07 The disciples came to show Him the buildings, and the stones, 38:11 and Jesus said something that shocked them. 38:13 "You see all these stones, these buildings, 38:16 there shall not be one stone left upon another." 38:17 They were shocked to hear this. 38:20 And Jesus warned them because they came to ask, 38:23 "Lord, when is this going to be? 38:26 And what shall be the sign of the end of the world, 38:28 and of Your coming?" 38:30 And Jesus began to express to them things 38:34 that they were so anxious to know 38:35 and He blended these things together, 38:38 but He said... 38:39 One of the things He says, 38:41 "Take heed that no man deceive you." 38:43 And sure enough, 38:45 the backdrop of all these things that we've read, 38:48 here that these verses I've read. 38:50 Peter is saying something to them 38:52 that is due to the fact that in... 38:54 As you see in 2 Peter 2:1, he says, 38:58 "But there were false prophets also among the people, 39:03 even as there shall be false teachers among you, 39:07 who privily shall bring in damnable heresies, 39:10 even denying the Lord that brought them, 39:13 and bring upon themselves swift destruction." 39:16 So Peter saw false prophets in his day, 39:21 Jesus warned that false prophets would come, 39:22 Peter saw them, but Peter continues to warn us 39:26 that there will be false prophets 39:27 in the later days, 39:29 in the days that we are living in. 39:31 And so that's why he is telling us 39:35 that we have a sure word of prophecy, 39:37 the Holy Scriptures, 39:38 or God's Word that we can study with assurance 39:42 that what He has given us is the truth. 39:45 And so there are wonderful things to find here 39:48 and He says, "Knowing this first 39:50 that no prophecy of the scripture 39:52 is of any private interpretation." 39:54 And here is what we find some ground for some thoughts 40:00 and that is that from time to time, 40:04 you'll hear of somebody they came up with this idea, 40:06 somebody would came up with that idea. 40:08 Mollie, I'm sure throughout the years 40:10 you've seen and may be this year 40:12 you've already seen 40:13 that sometimes we get some studies 40:14 that come to 3ABN. 40:16 Have you seen any of those? 40:18 Oh, yes. 40:19 And through the years and now Jill gets some. 40:22 Oh, we get quite a few. 40:24 We get some studies and there are some people 40:26 that are doing some wonderful things. 40:28 But there are some studies that come to us and we say, 40:30 "How in the world did they come to these conclusions?" 40:34 And so we have to look at scriptures, 40:36 and compare scripture with scripture, 40:38 and see what the Bible is truly saying. 40:43 And we have seen in our days. 40:46 Just if you wind the clock a few years back, 40:49 some people have predicted the second coming of Christ. 40:53 Some have appeared to say they are Christ. 40:55 And I remember one that died, I think, within two years ago, 40:59 within the last two years, they said he could not die. 41:02 I remember him being interviewed by somebody 41:04 from one of the news channels. 41:06 And they said, "If you try to kill me, 41:08 I will not die." 41:09 But he died less than two years later 41:11 of some disease, 41:12 I don't remember if it was the kidneys 41:14 but he died. 41:15 And so we have here that they are false prophets 41:19 came up in the old days, 41:20 false prophets are coming up in these days. 41:22 And so for these reasons, 41:25 I want to ask for somebody to read for us 41:29 in 2 Timothy 2:15. 41:33 And whoever finds it first, 41:35 would you say amen 41:36 and read that for us 2 Timothy 2:15? 41:40 Well, taking into account that I've misread so many times, 41:42 let me make sure, I'm reading the right one. 41:45 2 Timothy 2:15. 41:47 "Study to shew thyself approved unto God, 41:50 a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, 41:52 but rightly dividing the word of truth." 41:55 Amen. 41:56 So we have here 41:57 that we are instructed that we are to study, 42:01 to show ourselves approved unto God. 42:03 And we have to be like those people, 42:06 the Bereans were they called? 42:08 That they heard the Word of God gladly, 42:10 but what did they do afterwards, Sister Jill? 42:12 Search the scripture. 42:13 They went back home, 42:15 and they went and searched the scripture to see 42:17 if these things were true. 42:18 And so today, even as you are hearing us, 42:22 study, go to the scriptures and see 42:25 what we're saying is true. 42:26 We believe they are true. 42:27 Because we're looking at the scriptures 42:29 and we have studied these things, 42:32 and compared scripture with scripture. 42:35 And so we encourage you 42:36 to compare scripture with scripture. 42:37 And study to show yourself approved unto God, 42:41 rightly dividing the word of truth. 42:43 And so going back to 2 Peter 1:20, 42:47 "Knowing this first, 42:49 that no prophecy of the scriptures 42:50 of any private interpretation." 42:53 Here I want to bring out something 42:55 that the church as a body of believers, 42:59 are to work together 43:01 for a unity of understanding of the truth. 43:04 And speaking of the Seventh-day Adventist Church, 43:06 to which I'm a member. 43:08 We believe we have a body of doctrines and truth 43:14 that are founded on the scripture, 43:16 solid truth that the body of believers 43:21 have studied and agreed 43:23 this is the truth of God's Word. 43:25 And so that's why when you say any private interpretation, 43:31 we have to be united in what we believe as a people. 43:36 So this brings me to this scripture 43:41 that I would to like read, 43:43 and I think I have it written down here, 43:45 and that will be in Ephesians. 43:47 Ephesians 4. 43:49 In Ephesians 4 43:52 we have some scriptures that, 43:55 I think, I'll have to select maybe just two or three. 44:01 Let's see which ones we should read. 44:04 How about the Ephesians 4, chapter 4 did I say 4? 44:08 Four. Yes. 44:09 Okay. Chapter 4 lets begin in verse 12. 44:12 No, no, we have to start in verse 11, 44:14 "And He gave some apostles, and some prophets, 44:17 and some evangelists, 44:19 and some pastors, and teachers." 44:21 Why? 44:22 "For the perfecting of the saints, 44:25 for the work of the ministry, 44:27 and for the edifying of the body of Christ." 44:30 None of this is private interpretation, 44:32 "Till we all come into the unity of the faith, 44:36 and of the knowledge of the Son of God, 44:38 unto a perfect man, 44:40 unto the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ. 44:44 That we henceforth be no more children, 44:47 tossed to and fro, 44:48 and carried above with every wind of doctrine, 44:52 by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, 44:54 whereby they lie and wait to deceive. 44:57 But speaking the truth," how? 45:00 "In love, we may grow up onto him in all things, 45:04 which is the head even Christ." 45:07 And so we can keep reading 45:08 but here we see that 45:12 we have to come to a unity of the faith 45:14 and the knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ. 45:17 And it is true. 45:18 Jesus warned that there will be doctrines and false prophets. 45:22 Every wind of doctrine is even blowing today. 45:25 So we have to be founded on the sure word of prophecy. 45:29 And so I want to encourage our people, our believers, 45:32 our family, our friends that are watching us 45:34 to, "Study to shew thyself approved unto God, 45:37 a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, 45:40 rightly dividing the word of truth." 45:42 And the wonderful thing is 45:45 that Jesus promised the Holy Spirit. 45:48 The Jesus said 45:49 that the Holy Spirit will guide us into all truth. 45:53 So we must come with humility, come to the Lord and say, 45:58 "Lord, here I am, teach me, 46:00 instruct me that I may know 46:02 what is the truth of that scriptures." 46:04 And I believe we'll be on safe ground 46:06 when we ask the Lord to be our guide, our teacher, 46:08 and ask the Holy Spirit to guide us into doctrine. 46:11 Amen. Amen. 46:12 That was beautiful, Brother Johnny. 46:13 I'm so enjoying the study this week. 46:17 The primacy of the Word of God. Amen. 46:19 No prophecy is by private interpretation 46:22 but holy men of God spoke 46:24 as they were moved by the Holy Ghost. 46:26 Thursday's lesson is the Word in Our Lives. 46:30 And I wanna jump to 2 Timothy 3. 46:33 So if you wanna turn there with me, 46:35 we're going to 2 Timothy 3. 46:37 2 Peter, it was written just before Peter was killed, 46:44 just before his death, 46:45 and 2 Timothy was written just before the death of Paul. 46:50 You can consider this would be like 46:51 his last will in testament. 46:53 And we see that Paul encourages Timothy 46:57 to get into the Word of God 46:58 and to study the Word of God. 47:00 We're going to look at five purposes 47:02 for the Word of God in our lives. 47:05 We'll see all of these in 2 Timothy 3. 47:09 We're going to begin with verse 15, 47:12 he is writing to Timothy, 47:14 "And that from childhood 47:15 you have known the Holy scriptures, 47:17 which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith, 47:21 which is in Christ Jesus." 47:24 All scripture is given by inspiration of God. 47:29 Now I wanna stop just a moment, 47:30 there is two Greek words that we wanna look at here. 47:34 This is the first time, 47:35 I have really studied this passage 47:38 and I got so excited, 47:39 I ran back to the study and I told Greg, 47:41 you've got to hear 47:43 what this really means in the Word of God. 47:45 And I knew it meant 47:46 all scriptures given by inspiration of God. 47:48 And to me that means all of it. 47:51 But the word for all, 47:53 if you look back and you investigate it, 47:55 it means each and every scripture, singular. 48:00 So, of course, 48:01 it encompasses everything that's in the Word of God. 48:04 But to me that means, 48:05 nothing in this book is unimportant for our study. 48:08 Amen. That's right. 48:09 Every single scripture is given by inspiration of God. 48:14 Now inspiration of God literally is God breathe. 48:19 Now you think by the word of the Lord, 48:21 where the heaven is made, right? 48:23 That tells us in Psalm 48:24 "And all the host to them by the breath of his mouth". 48:27 And we know that God spake and it was created, 48:30 He spake and it was done. 48:32 And when at the beginning 48:34 let there be light and instantly it appeared. 48:37 And you think every word, each and every word, 48:41 in the Word of God is God breathe. 48:45 That same creative energy 48:49 that we see at the beginning of creation 48:51 is inherent in the Word of God. 48:53 So I just got so excited. 48:54 I just couldn't even sit still, it's wonderful. 48:57 So now let's look we are in 16, 49:00 "All of scripture, 49:01 each and every scripture is God breathe, 49:05 and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, 49:09 for instruction in righteousness, 49:11 that the man of God may be perfect." 49:14 New King James says complete. 49:16 I think King James says perfect. 49:17 "Thoroughly equipped for every good work." 49:20 Now we're gonna look at the five purposes 49:23 for the Word of God in our lives. 49:24 And the first one is actually in verse 15, 49:27 "The Holy scriptures 49:28 are able to make you wise for salvation." 49:32 So the first purpose is that, 49:34 this Word of God points us to Jesus, 49:37 shows us the plan of salvation. 49:40 Let's turn to John 5:39, 49:43 if you want to turn with me keep your finger in 2 Timothy, 49:46 we'll comeback to that. 49:47 But John 5:39, 49:53 do you have that, Pastor Tom? 49:55 Yes. Do you wanna read that? 49:56 "You search the scriptures, 49:57 for in them you think you have eternal life, 49:59 and these are they which testify of me." 50:01 So the scriptures show us, point us to the Word of God. 50:05 It says all scripture is able to make us wise to salvation, 50:09 but really this scripture is all about Jesus. 50:11 Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life, 50:13 He is salvation to me. 50:15 When we read the Word of God, it's like a love letter, 50:19 finding out who Jesus really is. 50:23 You know, I have a whole box of letters from Greg 50:27 that I had saved during our friendship, 50:30 and courtship, our engagement. 50:32 And these are letters 50:34 I actually pulled them out of the box this morning. 50:36 I have them right here on the set. 50:37 This one was sent to me 50:39 when he first came to 3ABN, Mollie, this is in 1999. 50:44 And he tells me about coming to work at the ministry here 50:48 and it's my first week and I'm not really sure... 50:52 And we were just friends at this time. 50:54 Now that showed me a little glimpse into his life, 50:57 into his work, into, who he was as a person. 51:00 Now a couple of years later this is 2001, 51:03 this letter is him asking, if I would be his girlfriend. 51:08 Bless his heart. 51:10 That's right. Bless his heart. 51:11 This is in 2001 and we were just, 51:14 we had been friends 51:15 and he was just asking, you know, 51:17 may I have the permission to be your girlfriend. 51:20 And showing me more of who his heart is, who he is. 51:23 And this note... 51:24 He writes me notes all the time, 51:26 this note he left today on the breakfast table. 51:28 And it just says, "Love you, baby." 51:31 So that's precious, you know, that's a short little note. 51:33 But the notes, what did they do? 51:34 They show me who he is. 51:37 And the Word of God reveals to us 51:39 the character of Jesus, who God is. 51:43 If you wanna find out who he is, 51:44 if you want to become wise into salvation, 51:47 get into the Word of God, that's purpose number one, 51:49 number two, is doctrine. 51:53 Verse 16. 51:54 "All scripture is given by inspiration of God, 51:57 or its God breathe, 51:58 and is profitable for doctrine." 52:02 John 17:17, Jesus said, 52:05 "Sanctify them through thy truth, 52:07 thy word is truth." 52:10 We know that 52:11 the word became flesh and dwelt among us, 52:13 Jesus is the Word of God. 52:14 And so all doctrine, in essence, 52:17 points us back to Jesus, 52:19 all doctrine is centered 52:21 around the person of Jesus Christ. 52:23 Number three is guidance. 52:26 Still on verse 16, 52:28 "It's profitable for doctrine after that as reproof, 52:32 correction, instruction in righteousness." 52:35 I kind of combine those three, the reproof, correction, 52:38 instruction in righteousness 52:40 underneath the heading guidance. 52:42 The scripture gives us guidance. 52:44 That word for correction in the Greek means reformation. 52:48 Setting straight again, 52:52 bringing it back straight. 52:53 2 Peter 1, let's look at just a couple of scriptures, 52:56 2 Peter 1:19 and I know we've read this scripture 52:59 over and over here on the panel. 53:02 "We have the prophetic word confirmed, 53:05 which you do well to heed 53:06 as a light that shines in a dark place." 53:10 When you're walking in a dark place 53:12 you need guidance, you need a light. 53:16 Psalm 119:105, 53:17 "Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, 53:20 and a light to my path." 53:22 The Word of God gives us guidance, 53:25 gives us direction, gives us even that correction. 53:30 I remember, I received a letter from a woman in the office 53:34 and I'm not a woman in the office, 53:36 I was in the office 53:37 and I received a letter from a woman. 53:39 And she wrote about some issues 53:43 she saw in my life. 53:46 And I remember it was an eight-page handwritten letter, 53:49 and I thought... 53:53 "Ouch, it hurts." 53:57 And I didn't know her and I thought, 53:59 "Oh, but, God, I want to grow, I want to change, 54:03 I want to grow in the areas that you want me to 54:07 but I need help here." 54:09 And I was having my devotions, 54:11 just a couple days later, in my morning devotion. 54:14 I ran across Romans 15, 54:17 this is where the Word of God can correct us. 54:20 Romans 15. 54:24 Then I was just, I was not looking it up special, 54:26 I was just going through Romans, 54:28 and I happened to be in that chapter. 54:30 Romans 15:5-7, it says, 54:33 "May the God of patience and comfort 54:36 grant you to be likeminded 54:38 toward one and another according to Christ Jesus, 54:40 that you may with one mind and one mouth glorify God, 54:45 and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ." 54:47 Verse 7 is where the Holy Spirit convicted me. 54:50 "Therefore receive one another, 54:53 just as Christ also received us to the glory of God." 54:57 And as soon as I read that scripture, 54:58 it was like the Lord spoke to me and said, 55:00 "I have received your sister, 55:02 this woman who wrote you the letter, 55:04 do you not think you can receive her, 55:06 as your sister in Christ." 55:08 And so I said, "Father, forgive me for my attitude." 55:11 That's where the Word of God corrected me. 55:13 Where I was at fault and said, "Jill, 55:15 you need to pull this is out and read it again, 55:17 and see where you need to grow." 55:19 So the word of God gives us knowledge of Jesus, 55:23 makes us wise to salvation. 55:24 The Word of God shows us doctrine 55:26 which leads us back to Jesus. 55:28 The Word of God gives us guidance, reproof, correction, 55:31 instruction in righteousness. 55:33 The Word of God gives us spiritual maturity. 55:36 I went back to 1 Peter instead of 2 Timothy, I'm sorry here. 55:42 Spiritual maturity, verse 17, 55:44 "That the man of God may be complete or perfect..." 55:48 It symbolizes that we are to grow up 55:51 to be complete in Him. 55:55 And finally, the Word of God equips us, 55:58 prepares us for the times ahead 56:01 thoroughly equipped for every good work. 56:05 Amen. 56:06 A quote from Great Controversy, page 598, 56:09 "It is the first and highest duty of every rational being 56:13 to learn from the scriptures what is truth, 56:16 and then to walk in the light 56:18 and encourage others to follow by example." 56:22 So day-by-day get in the Word of God 56:24 and let it change you. 56:25 Amen. Amen. 56:26 This has just been such a beautiful study, 56:29 I love the fact that it is the "more sure" 56:33 word that convinces us. 56:35 And for some of you out there, maybe you're saying, 56:38 maybe you're like me 56:39 and I would read prophetic books 56:41 and I would think especially when it came to Revelation. 56:44 Where does anyone agree? Let me tell you the secret. 56:47 The secret is that God's Word interprets itself 56:50 and Daniel is the key that unlocks Revelation. 56:54 And don't ever think, 56:55 I had to come before the Lord and say, 56:58 "Okay, Lord, teach me." 57:00 Don't ever think that we know sometimes we... 57:04 I think that sometimes preconceived opinions 57:07 will effectively insulate our mind against truth. 57:10 So we have to put down our preconceived opinions, 57:13 don't think you know it all because Proverbs 4:18 says, 57:16 "But the path of the just is like the shining sun, 57:20 that shines ever brighter until the perfect day." 57:24 So that day started 57:25 you were talking about rising in our heart. 57:28 When we think about what God's Word can do for us, 57:32 and when it's implanted in our heart, 57:34 it has the power to save our soul. 57:36 But you can trust the Word of God 57:39 because it is God's Word, 57:41 not just man's thought about God, 57:43 but it is the Word of God. 57:46 Well, we wanna thank you so much for joining us. 57:48 And we hope that you'll comeback 57:50 with us next week. 57:52 We're going to be studying... Ta-da! 57:56 False teachers. False teachers. 57:59 1 Peter was persecution without, 58:02 2 Peter's persecution within. 58:04 May the God 58:06 of our Lord Jesus Christ bless you abundantly. 58:08 Bye-bye. |
Revised 2024-06-03