Participants:
Series Code: SSP
Program Code: SSP190004A
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00:30 Hello everyone and welcome to the 3ABN Sabbath School Panel.
00:34 We're so excited that each and every one of you 00:36 have been able to join us this week for another 00:39 incredible lesson as we are studying the Book of Revelation. 00:43 And so this actually gives me an opportunity to tell you 00:46 how you can get this wonderful Quarterly 00:48 if you do not have one, we are encouraging you 00:51 to go to: ABSG.Adventist.org 00:56 you can access the online Quarterly there for free, 00:59 and, of course, you can go to your local church as well. 01:03 I'm sure they would be more than willing to put one of those 01:06 in your hands. 01:07 Again, we are studying the Book of Revelation and we are so 01:09 excited to continue through this because, hasn't it been an 01:13 exciting study? Yes. Amen! 01:14 It's been a very exciting study. 01:16 We've made it through three chapters 01:18 of the Book of Revelation and now we're about to 01:20 jump into the fourth chapter of the Book of Revelation. 01:23 We're going to be going right 01:24 into the heavenly throne room of God. 01:27 But before we go any further, I would actually like to 01:29 introduce this incredible Sabbath School Panel... 01:32 to my left we'll start here with Brother Kenny Shelton, 01:35 Pastor Kenny Shelton, how are you doing brother? 01:37 Good and it's good to be here! 01:38 Amen and it's good to have you here. 01:40 And, of course, my pastor of the Thompsonville Seventh-day 01:42 Adventist Church, Pastor John Lomacang. 01:45 Always a blessing! Amen! 01:46 And of course, 3ABN General Manager, Ms. Jill Morikone... 01:50 privilege to be here. Amen! 01:52 And, of course, last but not least, the Program 01:55 Development Manager here for 3ABN, Ms. Shelley Quinn. 01:58 Lovely to be here. It's a blessing 01:59 to have each and every one of you. 02:01 We're going to have fun with this one, I believe. Amen! 02:03 Lots and lots to study and little time to study, 02:06 so we want to jump right into it. 02:08 But before we go any further, Jill, can you have 02:10 prayer for us this morning? Sure, absolutely! Thank you. 02:12 Holy Father... We come before You in the name of Jesus, 02:15 and we just thank You for the gift of Your Word. 02:17 We thank You for the gift of Your Holy Spirit, 02:20 and right now, would You anoint our minds and our 02:23 eyes and our ears as we hear from Your Word what You have 02:28 for us and that we would not just be hears, 02:30 but we would be doers. 02:31 And we thank You in Jesus name... Amen, Amen. 02:36 The Book of Revelation, a book of symbolism, deep thought, 02:43 incredible things to show us for these last days, 02:45 and as we said earlier, we have made it through 02:48 three chapters - we just came out of a series of studies 02:50 on the "Seven Churches of Asia Minor," 02:53 and now we're making our way into the "Throne Room of God," 02:58 and this week's lesson, Lesson #4 is entitled: 03:01 "Worthy Is the Lamb" 03:04 And I want to go right to our memory text which is going to be 03:07 found in Revelation 5 beginning with verse 5 and the Bible says: 03:12 "Do not weep, Behold, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, 03:17 the Root of David, has prevailed to open the scroll 03:21 and to loose its seven seals." 03:24 I praise the Lord for that Lion of the tribe of Judah, 03:27 and actually, we will see who that Lion is in just a few 03:30 moments as we progress through this study and we get into 03:33 Revelation 5. 03:34 But before we get into Revelation 5, we're going to 03:37 set up for Revelation 4 and I'm just going to 03:40 briefly mention a few things from Sabbath afternoon 03:43 because Sabbath afternoon's lesson is actually 03:46 helping us set up this scene for what we are about to see 03:50 in the throne room of God. 03:51 And so the scene of chapters 4 and 5 symbolically portray 03:56 God's control of history and of the plan of salvation... 04:00 And while we have been focusing on the Book of 04:03 Revelation from the earthly perspective through 04:06 chapters 1-3, it kind of seems like the attention, 04:09 the focus is brought down here to earth - what's happening 04:12 with God's people through the different church ages, 04:15 but now, we're going to kind of jump out of that scene 04:19 and now we're going to be re-focused into 04:21 the heavenly sanctuary. 04:22 And it's interesting because it seems like the symbolic 04:25 language picks up a little thicker as you start in 04:28 Revelation 4, go on to chapter 5, especially as you get into 04:31 seals and the trumpets which we will cover 04:34 in the near future. 04:35 But I want us to go ahead and launch us right into 04:38 Sunday's lesson because there's so much to talk about here, 04:42 and I have made some notes here that I wish I could cover 04:45 each and every one of them; there's probably not going 04:47 be enough time, but we're going to highlight the most 04:49 important parts. 04:51 I want to start with Revelation 4:1. 04:55 Notice what the Bible says... "After these things I looked, 04:59 and behold, a door standing open in heaven. And the 05:04 first voice which I heard was like a trumpet speaking 05:07 with me saying, "Come up here (so notice the "come 05:13 UP here," not just "come up here, so his attention is 05:15 being drawn upward) and I will show you things which 05:18 must take place after this." 05:21 I love this verse, it kind of really sets the tone because 05:24 now we can see kind of in a directional sense that John's 05:27 attention as said earlier, has been focused on what's going 05:30 on here on earth through the different churches right here 05:33 on planet earth, but now God is drawing his attention 05:36 upward and he is peering through this open door 05:39 and he is going to actually be able to glimpse 05:42 into the heavenly sanctuary of God. 05:44 And has to be a privilege for John because not many of the 05:47 prophets had this opportunity. 05:49 Just a few mentioned here. Moses - we know Moses was 05:52 taken in vision into vision into the heavenly sanctuary 05:55 of God; another comes to mind, Isaiah, Ezekiel the prophet, 05:59 Daniel was even given visions, and now John has the privilege 06:02 of being ushered in, in vision, into God's very presence. 06:07 Notice Revelation 4:2-3... "Immediately I was in the 06:14 Spirit and behold a throne set in heaven, 06:18 and One sat on the throne; and He who sat there was 06:23 like a jasper and sardius stone in appearance. 06:27 And there was a rainbow around the throne in appearance 06:30 like an emerald." 06:32 And so, obviously, as we go through the context of this 06:36 particular passage, you will see that this figure, who is 06:39 sitting on the throne is none other than the Father Himself. 06:42 We know that as we get over into Revelation 5, the Lamb 06:47 comes into the scene, so we know this isn't Jesus, 06:49 this has to be the Father, and I thought it to be 06:52 interesting because many people would say... 06:54 "Oh John got to see the Father," but actually we know 06:57 that the Scriptures told us that no man has seen 07:00 God, and so actually what John is looking at here is 07:02 not God Himself, but the glory of God and it's mentioned 07:06 here in reference to this jasper and sardius stone. 07:10 And if you've ever seen a jasper and sardius stone, 07:13 you know that... it's interesting, they're very 07:14 similar - jasper is reddish in color with black veins, 07:18 and the sardius stone also reddish in color, 07:20 but with white veins. 07:21 So I can't even begin to imagine as the Bible tells us, 07:24 you know, eyes have not seen, ears have not heard, 07:26 nor has it entered into the heart of 07:28 man what God has prepared for us. 07:29 We see this but yet we don't see it and to see what 07:32 John has seen, I don't even know that 07:34 John was even in vision able to 07:35 see the fullness of the glory of God, but he saw something 07:38 that was amazing that captivated his attention. 07:41 Revelation 4:4, notice what it says here... 07:45 "Around the throne were 24 thrones and on the thrones 07:50 I saw 24 elders sitting, clothed in white robes and they had 07:57 crowns of gold on their head." 07:59 Now this is an interesting topic because this could launch us 08:04 into a whole nother study on the 24 elders - who are they? 08:08 And, I have done some study on this over the years, 08:11 I'm sure, as all of us have, studied this 24 elders topic. 08:14 Now there are two suggestions 08:15 as to the identity of these 24 elders. 08:17 I'm not going to go into that particularly because I 08:19 know that I think Pastor Kenny is going to 08:21 tell us exactly who this is, but I'm just going to 08:23 throw out the two possible suggestions that have 08:25 been thrown out there and that is... they could be 08:28 created beings from other worlds that have not sinned; 08:31 the beings from other fallen worlds 08:33 that are mentioned in Scripture and, of course, 08:35 the second option... they are the ones who were resurrected 08:37 at the time of Christ's resurrection and were 08:39 taken to heaven as mentioned in Matthew 27:52-53, 08:44 as well as Ephesians 4:8. 08:47 So Pastor Kenny is going to take us 08:48 into that in just a few moments. 08:50 But it's interesting to know what John is seeing here. 08:52 Just to kind of step back and take it all in... 08:54 He's seeing the glory of God, He is seeing all of these 08:57 amazing colors, this beautiful amazing rainbow... 09:00 Again, extending the communication of the wonderful 09:03 promise that we have in God, and then, of course, now he's 09:06 seeing these 24 thrones with 24 beings sitting on them, 09:11 with the 24 different crowns upon their head. 09:14 It's incredible what he is seeing here. 09:16 I want to go on to verse 5 because we are running 09:18 out of time quickly. 09:20 It says..."And from the throne proceeded lightnings, 09:23 thunderings, and voices. 09:25 Seven lamps of fire were burning before the throne, 09:28 which are the seven Spirits of God." 09:31 Now there's already been a mentioning of the seven 09:33 Spirits of God already in some of our previous studies, 09:36 but here it is again... and we see that these 09:39 lightnings, these thunderings... what are these? 09:41 What are these voices? What are these 09:42 lightnings? What are these thunderings? 09:44 Now I was doing a little bit of studying on this, 09:46 and I actually did not know this until I was studying 09:48 this particular subject... 09:50 I found in "Great Controversy," p.512 as well as the fifth 09:54 volume of the "Testimonies," p.754, Mrs. White makes mention 09:58 that the lightnings which you see there appearing before 10:01 the throne are actually (get this) represents the speed 10:05 in which the angels and the creatures perform God's work. 10:09 So that's powerful! 10:10 And then, of course, the thunderings and the voices 10:13 are those from the four living creatures praising God. 10:17 And a good reference to that would be Ezekiel 3:12-13, 10:21 so not only is he seeing, he's hearing all of these 10:24 incredible sounds that you and I probably can't even begin 10:27 to fathom or imagine exactly what it is that John is 10:30 seeing, but you know, we're going to try to imagine 10:32 the best that we can. 10:33 I want to move on to verse 6 and 7, it says in verse 6... 10:39 "Before the throne, there was a sea of glass like crystal, 10:43 and in the midst of the throne and around the throne 10:47 were four living creatures full of eyes in front and in back." 10:54 Now I have to admit when I read this, every time I read it, 10:57 it's like.. what in the world? That's an interesting 11:00 thing to see - these interesting creatures with eyes on 11:03 the front and in the back... 11:04 When I've done little bit of studying, the beast 11:07 are the living creatures around the throne, 11:09 closely resembled those in Ezekiel's vision which they are 11:13 called actually "cherubims." 11:14 These are the cherubims that are around the throne of God 11:17 day and night and we're going to see in just a few moments, 11:19 they are chanting, they are praying, they're praising God 11:22 all the time and they are described as being, of course, 11:25 full of eyes, as we mentioned on the front and the back, 11:27 and this could be understood as a symbol as their intelligence 11:30 and watchfulness as mentioned there in Ezekiel 10. 11:34 So these are not just some random interesting-looking 11:37 beings, they are intelligent beings that serve a purpose. 11:40 Revelation 4:7, let's continue on... "The first living creature 11:45 was like a lion, the second living creature like a calf, 11:48 the third living creature had a face like a man, 11:51 and the fourth living creature was like a flying eagle. 11:54 Are you in Revelation 4:7? 11:55 Oh, did I say... You said 5:7. 11:58 Oh I apologize, no, no that is right. 11:59 You are absolutely correct, Revelation 4:7. 12:04 And so now you have these four living creatures with the 12:06 different faces, the lion, the calf, the one that appears 12:10 like the face of a man and, of course, one like an eagle. 12:13 And so, what does this represent? 12:15 There is a possibility of what these could actually represent, 12:18 and I think there's a two-fold, two phases or two 12:20 understandings of this. 12:22 #1... The lion could represent Christ pre-incarnation. 12:25 The different phases of His ministry. 12:27 A lion is a symbol of strength and royalty, 12:30 as told to us in Revelation 5:5, as well as Proverbs 20. 12:35 The second beast, of course, with the calf could represent 12:37 the incarnation of Christ; of course, oxen were used 12:41 as sacrificial beasts throughout the sanctuary services, 12:45 and throughout the Old Testament. 12:46 Of course, the face of a man could represent Christ's 12:49 high priestly ministry for us in heaven and as the 12:52 Son of Man, He intercedes on our behalf before the Father, 12:55 as according to Hebrews 4. 12:58 And then, of course, we come down here to this last one 13:01 which is the face of an eagle, very interesting. 13:03 It could represent Christ's kingly role when He comes 13:06 back to earth as, of course, the King of Kings and 13:10 Lord of Lords. 13:11 Of course, this also represents the four different camps 13:14 of Israel... for each camp, for instance, Judah 13:17 was represented by a lion; Reuben was represented 13:20 by a calf; Ephraim was, of course, a man; 13:23 and Dan was an eagle. 13:25 I mean there's so much symbolism here and I'm getting down 13:28 to my last few seconds, but I want to mention 13:31 here in the last closing few moments... 13:33 That the scene that is actually happening, 13:35 is happening in the Holy Place of the heavenly sanctuary. 13:38 There's plenty of evidence for that as we've seen here 13:40 in this chapter and as we're going to see in chapter 5. 13:43 But Revelation 5:8-11, I want to just read the last 13:47 part, verse 11 for us here and I said chapter 5 again, 13:50 I mean chapter 4- I think I recorded that wrong in my notes. 13:54 Notice what it says here in verse 11... "You are worthy 13:56 O Lord, to receive glory and honor and power 13:58 for You created all things and by Your will, 14:01 they exist and were created." 14:03 That is why He is worthy to be 14:05 praised in His Heavenly Throne Room. Amen! Pastor Kenny. 14:09 Oh wow, that's a good set up, isn't that wonderful? Yes it is. 14:12 We're starting to gaze into heaven - seeing the activity 14:16 that's going on there and to me, that's always exciting 14:18 that God loves us so much that He is willing to reveal 14:21 some of these things to us... that really encourages me 14:25 to get back in the word and, you say, find out some more 14:27 about these things and what you're bringing up here on 14:29 Monday's lesson, "The Heavenly Assembly in the Throne Room" 14:32 First of all, I thought right here... "Man, what a 14:34 throne room that must be." Amen! 14:36 How big can this throne room be? 14:39 Talking about all the intelligence, everything 14:40 gathering together, you know, God is big, God is mighty, 14:44 nothing is too small, nothing is too big for Him. 14:47 But yet, what a throne room this is, and as you read 14:49 in Revelation 4:4, it says, around that throne, 14:53 we have to realize around that throne, was talking about 14:55 there's 4 and 20 elders, and again, you talked about 14:58 the different concepts that different people have about 15:02 the 4 and 20 elders. 15:04 But notice they were sitting clothed in white raiments, 15:07 they had on their head crowns of gold. 15:09 All of a sudden, that sounds good to me. 15:11 Number one sounds real good because they're there in heaven. 15:14 And then they have the white robes on, then they had the 15:16 crowns on signifying the victory that they obtained 15:19 and heaven is going to be their home. 15:21 And this passage reminded me in the Book of Isaiah 15:24 in Isaiah 24:23, now this is in a Lexicon so as you read it, 15:29 it just simply says, "The Lord shall reign, I love it... 15:31 He shall reign and before the elders, he shall be glorified." 15:36 So this is part of the big battle that's going on, 15:39 and it kind of made me realize for a little bit of a fresh 15:42 the great controversy, the great getting together 15:45 in the throne room of God, once again was because 15:47 the great controversy and the great challenge. 15:50 Great challenge - the enemy was challenging 15:52 of who should be in charge. 15:54 This is what it's all about... Who is going to be in charge? 15:57 Is it going to be Jesus, God? 15:58 It is going to be the enemy? 16:00 And so they're all coming around to say... Who is in charge? 16:03 And so we're looking at this, John is giving 16:05 this symbolic vision and we realize you mentioned 16:09 heavy symbolism really comes into being here 16:12 and I think it's still good because it gets us back 16:14 into the word of God. 16:15 And it says, "We must understand this example." 16:18 Why such heavy symbolism here? 16:21 And just to give an example in Revelation 5:6, you'll turn 16:25 there and you'll see what I'm talking about here... 16:28 Revelation 5:6, Christ here is described as a Lamb, 16:33 but notice how He is described; a Lamb as though 16:36 it has been what? Slain, notice this, and 16:38 had seven horns, here notice, and seven eyes, 16:41 but yet He was what? Yet He was alive. 16:44 ... And comes and takes the book from God. 16:48 And I'm saying, "Why use symbolism here?" 16:51 Well I'm not trying to question God's authority 16:53 and how He does it, but, you know, in our human 16:55 mind, it's kind of why the symbolism here. 16:57 Well, we're dealing with heavenly things, 16:59 heavenly things that are going on - way too much 17:02 for my mind... maybe others can grasp, but it's heavy 17:06 duty for my mind. 17:07 And I'm just wondering here, could it be that our language 17:11 that we have - our literal language that we use 17:14 cannot express this thought, it can't reach the higher plane 17:20 that heaven has for us and of heavenly things. 17:24 I think maybe that might just be it and I'm thankful 17:26 that God has put it down so we can think, 17:29 you know, the way that we should. 17:31 In Isaiah 55:8, it says, "For My thoughts are not 17:34 what? Your thoughts. 17:36 Isaiah 55:8, a very familiar Scripture but He makes it 17:40 clear - "For My thoughts are not your thoughts, 17:42 neither your ways are My ways." 17:45 And I'm thinking... "But how little, you know, 17:48 and a lot of times we sit around and dig and carry on, 17:50 "Well we know so much; so and so knows so much, 17:52 and boy, they're so brilliant here," 17:54 how little that we really know. 17:56 God has been so good to reveal what He has to us, 17:59 but how little man comprehends, really to me, about the 18:03 goodness and the mercy of God. Amen! 18:05 How little we comprehend and, for instance, He talks about 18:09 our thoughts - I think about my own thoughts sometimes 18:13 and you don't want to be that way but in human beings, 18:15 our thoughts sometimes there's bitterness. 18:17 Sometimes our thoughts are selfishness. 18:19 Sometimes there's things you want your own way, 18:22 there's selfishness but, you know, that's not the way with 18:24 God's thoughts - that's why He says your thoughts 18:26 are different than ours. 18:27 His are always good and it's always 18:29 what's best for us as a people. 18:31 And then He goes on... because I think, man, for instance, 18:34 I think about time... none of us here probably... 18:39 we always think about time. 18:41 What does God think about? 18:43 I think He thinks about eternity and about us being 18:47 in heaven with Him. 18:50 Man thinks about self, God thinks about creation, 18:54 His creation and then man 18:58 He likes to think in terms of just what he wants and 19:01 and when he wants it and how he wants it. 19:03 And it's interesting... and what he can get! Right. 19:06 And God is always thinking... what He can give. Amen. 19:09 How interesting that is... that's why 19:11 He lets us know right quickly here... 19:12 You know talk about John sees the 24 elders that was mentioned 19:16 here... as time is going down quickly, and God had 19:19 the robe of righteousness on and you can say "12 and 12," 19:22 you look at it all and you divide it all up. 19:25 Representing God's people, you can look at the 24 divisions 19:29 in the priestly ministry and so on and so forth, 19:32 but God's people overall here, Galatians 3:27, says... 19:37 "For as many as you have been baptized into what? 19:39 You've been baptized into Christ, you have put 19:42 on what? You've put on Christ. 19:44 We're talking about putting that robe of righteousness around us; 19:47 a symbol of purity, a symbol of holiness. 19:50 And then you find a group of people - they've washed their 19:53 robes white in the blood of the Lamb. 19:56 You know, that's today for us too, we need to wash our 19:58 robes white in the blood of the Lamb. 20:00 That's the only way that it can get white. 20:02 That's the only way our sins can be forgiven, 20:04 in Revelation 7:13-14 is what it's talking about here. 20:08 So white raiment then would be the characteristics 20:10 of those who simply, to me, make it to heaven. 20:13 And certainly it speaks about God and speaks about His 20:16 throne in Daniel 7:9-10. 20:19 Twenty-four elders - they have crowns. 20:21 We know these crowns are what? 20:23 That's the emblem of victory. 20:25 Revelation 2:10 says... "Faithful unto death." 20:27 "If you're faithful unto death, 20:28 I will give thee a what? ... a crown of life." 20:32 This seems to indicate, with the 24 elders, 20:35 as you were mentioning here, it seems to indicate that they 20:38 were redeemed from the earth. Let's just throw this out... 20:40 You can study on it but it seems that they are, 20:43 right? because crowns are given to those who have 20:45 gained the victory - they have been redeemed 20:47 by the blood of the Lamb. 20:48 Notice this... If this refers to the 24 elders as 20:52 human beings, that means they were already in heaven 20:56 in John's day... that blows some people's minds. 20:58 Say, "Well, we realize when we go to heaven," but again as 21:02 you mentioned in the past, I think was it Matthew 27, 21:05 Matthew 27, I think 52 and 53, it talks about when Christ 21:09 died, you remember when He arose, what happened? 21:12 The graves were opened and many came out of the graves 21:15 Ephesians 4:8 that slept. 21:17 So the saints arose when Christ was resurrected, 21:21 but still as we think about it, keep this in mind... 21:23 Remember, the main resurrection is still what? 21:26 It's still future. That's right. 21:28 This was a special resurrection here, so could it be that 21:31 the 20 and the 4 elders, could it be the redeemed here from the 21:34 earth, you see that's up there. 21:36 Could it be representing God's people? 21:39 Well, we realize they're talking about the main resurrection, 21:42 1 Thessalonians 4:16, talks about it. 21:45 That's the main resurrection we're looking for... 21:47 "The dead in Christ rise first, we which are alive 21:51 and remain will be caught up to meet them in the air." 21:55 And really, before this, I don't know, Pastor, if you've found... 21:58 I've never found the 24 elders 21:59 ever mentioned before this time in Scripture. 22:02 It's kind of the first time that they're mentioned here. 22:04 It's kind of like they've been brought in to the scene 22:07 that they're... talking about the new men on the block. 22:11 They're new to this and come in to the throne room of God. 22:14 They've all assembled together and then what 22:17 they're doing here - they're going to reinstate 22:20 Jesus back, right? to His heavenly position. 22:24 I mean, this is a big deal! 22:26 This is really going on and so it talks about the beast 22:29 and so on that you talked about and the wings and so on, 22:34 and the angels and the four living beings and so on 22:37 and so forth and we'll talk more about that 22:39 in the next lesson we get in, because it's very, very 22:41 powerful about the seals. 22:43 And as we look about the seals, all this great controversy, 22:47 all that's going on and all the gathering together, 22:49 we're going to see why they gathered together. 22:52 We're going to see the outcome of the gathering. 22:53 We're going to see the One who is the rightful Ruler 22:56 and He should sit on the throne. 22:59 Psalm 99:1 says this... "He sitteth between the 23:04 cherubims, but let the earth be moved." Amen. 23:08 He's King of Kings and Lord of Lords. 23:11 Thankful for those... you mentioned those angels, 23:14 those flying swiftly that's doing the biddings of God. 23:16 God's word, right when He says it, it's gone and it's done! 23:20 I think it pleased God to create the universe and give life 23:24 to His creatures and then so He created... what He 23:28 created, He now... Praise God, He now sustains it. 23:31 Think about it, He loves to sustain all things. 23:33 Colossians 1:17 says, "And He is before all things, 23:38 and by Him, all things consist." 23:42 So in looking at this lesson, 23:46 I think it gets better and better as we go along. 23:50 It's like it's giving a little foretaste in this lesson, 23:53 the next - it just really opens up and the information 23:56 really comes alive and it helps us to see more 23:59 of what God's plan is and God is going to fulfill that plan, 24:02 and that we're involved in that plan. 24:04 I think that's a wonderful thing. 24:06 Isn't that wonderful that we are involved, 24:08 the universe is involved, God's character is on 24:10 the line, we're on the line and we're going to see 24:12 how it all works out and I praise God for that. 24:14 I think we're going to take a short break. 24:17 We're going to be back in just a few moments with 24:19 Pastor John Lomacang's "The Sealed Scroll" 24:21 lesson for Tuesday. 24:23 We'll see you in a few minutes. 24:29 Ever wish you could watch a 3ABN Sabbath School Panel 24:32 again, or share it on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter... 24:35 Well, you can! By visiting 3ABN Sabbath School Panel.com 24:40 A clean design makes it easy to find the program 24:44 you're looking for. 24:45 There are also links to the Adult Bible Study Guide 24:48 so you can follow along. 24:50 Sharing is easy, just click share and choose your 24:53 favorite social media. 24:55 Share a link, save a life for eternity! 25:01 Welcome back to 3ABN Sabbath School Panel. 25:03 We're going to continue on with Tuesday's lesson, 25:05 "The Sealed Scroll," with Pastor John Lomacang. 25:08 Thank you Pastor Kenny and Pastor Ryan 25:12 for setting it up for me. 25:13 You know, Revelation 5 is to me, where the race begins. 25:21 Revelation 4 introduces the Father but there's a scene 25:25 that all of a sudden, as Revelation 4 closes 25:29 its eyes, it closes with the words, "You are worthy," 25:36 Revelation 4:11, "You are worthy," so God is sitting on 25:38 the throne - He is worthy to receive glory and honor 25:41 and power for You created all things and by Your will 25:44 they exist and were created." 25:46 Then all of a sudden, John's vision is focused to His hands. 25:51 Remember the 24 elders, remember 10 thousand times 25:55 10 thousand are in the court setting. 25:57 They will be introduced in the next chapter. 26:00 But John is focused on the hands of the One who is 26:02 sitting on the throne, the Almighty. 26:04 And he says, in verse 1 of chapter 5, "And I saw in the 26:07 right hand of Him who sat on the throne, a scroll written 26:12 inside and on the back, sealed with... how many seals? Seven. 26:15 Sealed with seven seals. 26:17 Now remember, God just received the declaration from 26:20 the 24 elders and the living creatures, He received the 26:22 declaration - "You are worthy," 26:24 you are worthy to hold the scrolls, but verse 2. 26:29 "Then I saw a strong angel Now when I get that word 26:34 "strong," the Bible talked about the power of one angel 26:37 that killed 180,000 men, but now it introduces 26:41 "a strong angel," proclaiming with a loud voice, 26:46 that's gotta be resonating... I could imagine worlds 26:50 that are out of sight, are saying, "did you just 26:54 hear that?" Can you imagine, unfallen worlds... 26:56 did you hear that? 26:58 The strong angel with a mighty voice is proclaiming 27:01 and he's asking the question, "Who is worthy to open 27:06 the scroll and to loose its seals," and envision 27:10 like the Magellan Spacecraft, John lands in the midst 27:16 of a scene with this question resonating and the crowd is 27:21 looking for an answer... Who is worthy to open... 27:23 And then verse 3 says, "And no one in heaven or on the earth 27:28 or under the earth was able to open the scroll or look at it. 27:32 Now let's pause... "No one in heaven" - because 27:34 Jesus is not there yet, "no one on earth," 27:37 because He's no longer there and no one "under the earth" 27:41 because He is not in the grave anymore. That's right. 27:44 He's not in the grave, He's not walking on the earth, 27:47 and He hasn't arrived in heaven yet. 27:49 So there's this caveat... Well where is He? 27:52 ... is the question - He's not on the earth, we checked. 27:55 He's not in the grave, we know that. 27:57 And He hasn't arrived yet, so where is He? 28:00 And the Psalmist David catapults us... 28:03 you know where I'm going Jill... 28:04 The Psalmist David says, "I've got an answer, 28:07 and he takes it to Psalm 24. 28:09 And the Spirit of Prophecy talks about this glorious scene 28:13 after Mary grips the risen Savior and He says, 28:17 "Do not cling to Me for I have not yet ascended to My Father" 28:21 and your Father and My God and your God." 28:24 So Jesus says, I'll be back, when I get back, 28:29 Mary, tell the disciples where to meet Me. 28:31 I'm going to take a little trip. 28:36 I'm going on a brief excursion because there's a crowd 28:39 waiting for the answer to the question I just heard them ask. 28:45 Who is worthy? This mighty angel, they chose 28:48 an angel that's mighty, strong with a loud voice 28:51 and the Lord says, "I just heard them ask a question... 28:53 I'll be back." That's right. 28:55 And the day with the psalmist, as Ellen White paints 28:57 this picture of Jesus like Canadian Geese heading south 29:04 in the formation and He is taking, as it were, this lead 29:13 and the angel hears the turbulence of Jesus 29:17 on His way to the Kingdom. Amen! 29:20 The planets are moving out of the way of their Creator 29:24 because they don't want that question to take too long 29:28 to be answered. That's powerful! 29:31 And Space is saying, "He's coming and the angel 29:34 hears him and then Jesus, in his post-light speed, 29:40 is almost there and He says, because there's an angel 29:44 guarding the gate... you just can't come, the angel is 29:48 guarding the gate and He echoes through space and time, 29:54 Psalms 24:7... "Lift up your heads, O ye gates, 29:58 and be ye lifted up your everlasting doors 30:01 and the King of Glory shall come in and the angel 30:04 recognizing His voice says, "Who is the King..." 30:07 he doesn't say that in ignorance, He says, "Tell me 30:09 that again, who is the King of Glory? 30:12 Who is the King? The Lord strong and mighty. 30:15 The Lord, mighty in battle." The battle He just won 30:18 because the tomb is empty. That's right! 30:20 "Lift up your heads, O ye gates; and be lifted up 30:23 you everlasting doors; and the King of glory shall come in." 30:26 And the angel, "Who is the King of glory? 30:28 And He answers, "The LORD of hosts, 30:30 He is the King of glory." 30:32 And He descends, as it were, the flame that is under Him, 30:37 if He were a spacecraft, begins to die out to 30:40 to slow down His descent, and while John is weeping 30:44 in verse 4, "I wept much because there was no one 30:47 found worthy to open and read the scroll and to look at it. 30:50 Revelation 5:4... "But one of the elders...(I could see Kenny 30:53 grabbing my arm... my name is John, I could see Kenny 30:56 grabbing my arm... John, he says, don't weep. 31:00 Behold, (LOOK)the Lion of the tribe of Judah, 31:06 the Root of David has prevailed to open the scroll and to 31:10 loose its seven seals." 31:12 Now I gotta spend a minute on this... 31:14 I did an entire study in the Old Testament... of all the tribes, 31:18 1 and 2 Kings and the controversies... see the Old 31:21 Testament - the theme of the Bible in the Old Testament 31:24 Satan has attempted to keep Christ from entering the 31:26 world, and he led the kings of Israel into such sin 31:31 even eventually the tribe of Judah. Yes. 31:35 But the Lord made a declaration when He said, 31:37 "I'm going to tear away the ten kingdoms from you, 31:40 but I'm going to keep one. I'm going to keep Judah." 31:47 Then He says, "So that My light will not go out, 31:50 and I will maintain My witness in the earth." Amen. 31:53 All through the Old Testament, Satan's attempt 31:55 was to get rid of the tribe of Judah because He knew that 31:58 that's the tribe through which Jesus was coming." Absolutely! 32:01 So when you get to the phrase in Luke, where the Bible says 32:05 in Luke 2, when the Bible says, 32:11 "So there is born to you this day, in the City of 32:15 David, a Savior which is Christ the Lord... 32:16 If you only knew what it took to get to phrase, "This day," 32:20 if you only knew the thousands 32:22 of years and the battles and the controversy and 32:24 the resistance that heaven put up to prevent the tribe of 32:27 Judah from being destroyed, for the angel to say... 32:30 "There is born unto you this day," so at the beginning 32:34 of this scene, this day came for the birth of Christ. 32:37 He went through the day of His crucifixion 32:40 and resurrection and now He's coming to a new day, 32:43 and John says, "Behold the Lion of the tribe of Judah 32:45 has prevailed," and what is amazing to me... is in this 32:49 scene, John turns (in verse 6) "...And Behold, in the midst 32:56 of the throne and of the four living creatures, 33:00 and in the midst of the elders, stood a Lamb as though 33:05 it had been slain, having seven horns and seven eyes, 33:09 which are the seven Spirits 33:10 of God sent out into all the earth." 33:12 That means, the Bible says, "The eyes of the Lord 33:15 roamed to and fro throughout the earth to show Himself 33:17 strong on behalf of those whose hearts are loyal to Him." Amen! 33:20 And you laid the foundation about the seven Spirits of God 33:22 meaning God is completely in charge, He sees the entire 33:25 scene, He knows exactly what's going on. 33:27 But then, I want you to see this because God is already 33:30 worthy, right? Yes! God is already worthy 33:32 to hold the scrolls... Who is worthy? Jesus is worthy! 33:35 Now, look at verse 7... "Then He came (and can you 33:40 imagine the scene... of the crowd - the word crowd is 33:44 a small word because we're talking ten thousand 33:48 times ten thousand and thousands of thousands 33:51 watching Him, as it were their eyes were moving with 33:54 the Lamb when He comes to the Ancient of Days 33:57 and I could see the Father with pleasure, says to His Son, 34:01 and He begins to unfold seal one, seal two and then 34:07 you find... verse 8, "Now when He had taken the scroll, 34:11 the four living creatures, the 24 elders fell down 34:16 before the Lamb, each having a harp and golden bowls 34:18 full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints." 34:21 The saints praying for somebody to be found worthy, 34:24 and then they begin to sing a new song... (they sang a 34:28 new song... Worthy the Lamb) You are worthy to take 34:35 the scroll and to open its seals for You were slain, 34:37 You have redeemed us to God by Your blood out of every 34:41 tribe and tongue and people and nations and have made us 34:44 kings and priests to our God; 34:46 And we shall reign on the earth." 34:48 You see, that's where we come into the scene. 34:50 We are with the Lord... Do you realize all 34:53 that was hanging on that? 34:54 The revelation of God's providence is that history 34:57 was based on the worthiness of Christ. 34:59 The mystery of the hidden gospel was based on the opening 35:02 of the scroll. 35:03 The mystery that had to be known - Jesus was the key 35:07 to unveiling that mystery. 35:09 God's plan for the resolution of the sin problem 35:11 was based on who was worthy to open the scroll. 35:13 The release of the final phase of the preaching of the 35:16 gospel was based on who can open the scroll and the seals 35:19 contained the final scenes in our redemption. 35:23 Thank the Lord that Jesus was worthy to say 35:27 now we're down to the last part and give me one second. 35:31 That's when Revelation 12 says... 35:32 Real quick, I have never done this before but I gotta 35:35 do it... 35:37 Revelation 12:10... That's where 35:40 Revelation 12:10 comes into play. 35:43 "Then I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, 35:46 "NOW salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God 35:50 and the power of His Christ have come, for the accuser 35:53 of our brethren, who accused them before our God 35:56 day and night, has been cast down. 35:58 And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb 36:01 and by the word of their testimony." Amen! 36:03 That declaration could not be made until Jesus 36:06 was declared worthy. Amen! Amen! Good! 36:09 Thank you so much Pastor John, we're having church! 36:12 I'm not even sure I can talk right now, I'm so thankful 36:16 for the gift of Jesus. 36:18 I'm so thankful that He was victorious and that the 36:23 plan of redemption, the plan of salvation is secure. 36:27 I'm so thankful that Christ has won and that Satan 36:30 is defeated once and for all. 36:33 We know at the end of the Book of Revelation 36:36 that there would be a new heaven and a new earth 36:37 and the complete and total annihilation of sin, 36:41 but this scene in Revelation 5 indicates the security of 36:45 our salvation, Jesus lived the perfect... 36:49 Give Jill 10 more seconds... but just can I hit verse 12? 36:52 That's when the Bible says, "The devil has come down 36:55 with great wrath, because he knows he has a short time." 36:57 from then on, his time is short. Absolutely! 37:00 That's where we're going is John 12:31-32 and Jesus said, 37:05 "Now is the judgment of this world; now the ruler of this 37:10 world will be cast out. And He's speaking of the cross. 37:13 And I, if I am lifted up from the earth, will draw 37:17 all peoples (all men, all women) to Myself." Amen! 37:21 So at the cross Jesus was victorious. 37:24 He lived a perfect life, He died our death and He 37:28 ascended and was enthroned at the right hand of the Father, 37:33 was worthy to take that seal. 37:35 So I love this passage, Revelation 4, moving in to 37:38 Revelation 5...that whole vision of the throne. 37:41 My lesson is: "Worthy is the Lamb" 37:43 which Pastor John set up so powerfully, 37:46 and what I want to talk about today is worship. 37:49 Look at Revelation 4:11, they worship. 37:53 Now this is before the Lamb enters the scene. 37:55 But they worship because... 37:57 Revelation 4:11... "You are worthy, O Lord, to receive 38:00 glory and honor and power; For You created all things, 38:04 and by Your will they exist and were created." Amen! 38:07 So God is worshipped because He is the Creator, but we move 38:10 to Revelation 5, it begins the same... 38:13 Revelation 5:9, "... You are worthy (the same words) 38:16 to take the scroll, and open its seals (but why?) 38:19 (not creation but redemption) For You were slain 38:23 and have redeemed us to God by Your blood." Amen 38:27 I want to take a look here, we're going to look at 38:29 seven principles of worship that I see in this passage. 38:32 Revelation 4 and Revelation 5. 38:34 But before we get to the seven principles, you see a growing 38:38 number of people, of angels, of creatures in this 38:43 worship process. 38:45 You see, in Revelation 4:8, it says, "Holy, holy, holy, 38:51 Lord God Almighty, Who was and is and is to come!" 38:55 This here is the four living creatures. 38:59 Then we see the number increases, 39:01 where here in verse 11... "You are worthy, O Lord, 39:04 to receive glory and honor and power; For you created 39:06 all things, And by Your will they exist and were created." 39:09 This is the 24 elders. 39:12 Then we move down to verse 8. 39:15 Now we have the 24 elders combined with the 39:18 4 living creatures and they say, "You are worthy 39:21 to take the scroll and to open the seals. 39:24 You were slain and have redeemed us to God 39:26 by Your blood." 39:28 Then we come down to verse 11, this is what 39:30 Pastor John talked about. 39:31 "I looked, and heard the voice of 39:33 many angels around the throne." 39:35 So we have the living creatures, we have the 24 elders, 39:39 and the number of them - this is the innumerable 39:42 heavenly hosts of angels. Wow. 39:45 Ten thousand times ten thousand 39:47 and thousands of thousands. 39:49 Now, 10,000 in English, 10,000 x 10,000 39:52 would be what? One-hundred-million. 39:54 But, in Greek, the word is myriads, not ten thousand. 39:58 Myriads times myriads, which really means an innumerable 40:02 number - nobody can count the number of people that are 40:06 joining in this praise session right here saying in verse 12. 40:10 "Worthy is the Lamb who was slain, to receive power and 40:13 riches and wisdom, and strength 40:15 and honor, and glory, and blessing." 40:16 Now when I read that, I think it can't get any bigger 40:19 or any better than that, but look at what happens next. 40:22 Verse 13, "Every creature which is in heaven and on the 40:27 earth and under the earth and such as are in the sea, 40:31 and all that are in them." 40:33 So now we have not only the innumerable heavenly hosts 40:37 that you can't even count, we have everything in the 40:39 heaven, everything in the earth, everything in the sea... 40:42 You know what that indicates? 40:44 ALL CREATION is joining together right now in praise 40:49 saying: "Blessing and honor and glory and power 40:52 be to Him who sits on the throne, 40:53 And to the Lamb, forever and ever!" 40:56 So let's talk about seven principles of worship 40:58 as found in these two chapters. 41:00 Principles #1... True worship focuses on God not on us. 41:07 You notice here, each one of these worship passages 41:10 that we just read here... none of them focus on us; 41:13 everything is focused on God and Jesus and His worthiness. 41:18 I even noticed there's no confession; there's 41:21 no repentance; there's not even any 41:23 giving of thanks featured here. 41:25 Now I'm not saying that's not part of worship because we 41:28 know that it's important to confess our sins. 41:30 We know it's important to repent. 41:32 We know it's important to intercede for other people. 41:35 But in a special sense, this worship is nothing about 41:39 me or my problems or my issues or my own insecurities, 41:42 or even my victories, everything is about God. 41:46 That's principle #1. 41:48 Principle #2... True worship acknowledges God's attributes. 41:53 Let's look at some of the attributes that are 41:55 acknowledged in this worship section. 41:57 We're in Revelation 4:11, we're going to read it again. 42:00 "Holy, holy, holy"... so what does that say? 42:03 God is holy - true worship acknowledges 42:07 the holiness of God. 42:09 "Who was and is and is to come." God is eternal! 42:13 True worship acknowledges that He is divine and He is 42:17 from everlasting to everlasting. 42:19 Jump down to verse 11. "You are worthy, O Lord, 42:23 to receive glory and honor and power." 42:24 True worship acknowledges the worthiness of God. 42:28 "For You created all things." True worship acknowledges 42:31 Him as our Creator. 42:34 Jump down to chapter 5, verse 9. 42:36 "You are worthy to take the scroll." 42:38 So not only is God worthy, Jesus is worthy. 42:42 "For You were slain and have redeemed us to God 42:45 by Your blood." He is redeemer. 42:47 True worship acknowledges our role as sinner and Him 42:51 as our Redeemer. 42:53 "And have redeemed us to God by Your blood out of every 42:56 tribe and tongue and people and nation." 42:59 Salvation is for all people. 43:01 True worship acknowledges that salvation is not 43:04 just for me but it is for everyone! 43:07 "And have made us kings and priests to our God; 43:09 "And we shall reign on the earth." 43:11 True worship acknowledges that God transforms us. 43:14 He allow us to reign. 43:15 He makes us kings and priests. 43:18 Jump down to verse 12. "Worthy is the Lamb 43:20 who was slain to receive power." 43:22 He possesses all power. 43:24 He possesses all wealth. 43:26 He possesses all wisdom. 43:28 He possesses all strength and honor and glory and blessing. 43:33 True worship focuses on God, not me. 43:35 True worship acknowledges God's attributes. 43:38 Principle #3... True worship leads to praise and adoration 43:43 of God. 43:44 Jump over to Revelation 5:14, the last verse of that chapter. 43:48 It says, "The four living creatures said, "Amen!" 43:51 And the 24 elders fell down and worshipped Him 43:54 who lives forever and ever." 43:57 I imagine them falling prostrate on their face before God, 44:01 and Jesus and the Holy Spirit before them, falling prostrate. 44:06 True worship leads to praise and adoration of God. 44:08 Principle #4... True worship is given to the Godhead. 44:11 Revelation 4, we see God the Father; we've already 44:14 established this. 44:16 Revelation 5, we see the Lord Jesus Christ and we talked 44:20 about the Holy Spirit being present in both 44:23 Revelation 4 and Revelation 5. 44:26 Principle #5... True worship is united. 44:30 It's not something we do individually. 44:32 Now of course, we can worship God 44:34 individually, we're not saying that. 44:35 We can worship God in our own heart, in our own 44:38 prayer closet - you can worship God. 44:40 But in a special way, true worship here is done 44:44 corporately - done corporately. Amen! 44:47 Principle #6... True worship includes music. 44:51 It says, "They sang a new song and instruments are mentioned, 44:56 so true worship includes music. 44:59 And finally, true worship invites other people to join. 45:04 Remember, they started with the four living creatures, 45:06 then they moved to the 24 elders, then they did 45:09 the 4 creatures and the 24 elders which is 28, 45:12 and then they added the innumerable angels, 45:15 the ten thousand times ten thousand. 45:18 Then they added all of creation, everything in heaven. 45:21 Everything in the earth and everything in the sea, 45:24 so true worship invites other people to join. Amen, Amen. 45:30 I can't get over the gift of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen. 45:36 The plan of salvation, of redemption that was put 45:40 in plan before we were even created, before the start of 45:47 this world - Jesus said... In the event that someone chooses 45:50 to walk away from Me, I want to buy them back. 45:54 And that's how much the Lord Jesus loves you. Amen. 45:58 And He says right now... Don't you want to spend 46:00 eternity with Me? 46:01 Don't you want to spend eternity in worship? 46:04 Don't you want to spend eternity 46:06 with the Lord Jesus who died for you? 46:08 So I just want to make a special appeal right now... 46:11 Make a choice, ask Jesus into your heart and your 46:16 life will never be the same. Amen! 46:18 Amen and Amen, but you know, I can't help as I'm listening 46:21 to you and wondering... when is the last time you 46:24 felt that your church really participated in true worship? 46:29 You know, this is something that we need to develop 46:33 a heart for worship and that's why the lesson that I have 46:40 for Thursday: "The Significance for Pentecost" 46:43 is so vital because we have seen the Holy Spirit 46:48 before the throne and He could not descend for His 46:53 permanent ministry until the new covenant 46:57 was ratified by Jesus. 47:00 So when we think of Pentecost, you know that 47:02 that was one of the three major Jewish feasts also known as 47:07 "The Feast of Weeks" and the name "Pentecost" 47:10 in the Greek meant "50 days." 47:12 This was 50 days after Passover is when they 47:16 celebrated Pentecost. 47:18 So we know that Christ, after His death and resurrection, 47:23 when He went to heaven on the 50th day after the 47:28 Passover, after His ascension, is when the Holy Spirit 47:31 was poured out on the earth, Halleluiah! 47:37 In John 17:4-5, Jesus prayed in the garden and He is 47:41 praying to His Father and He says, "Father, I have 47:43 glorified You on the earth; I've finished the work 47:47 that You sent Me to do and given Me to do, 47:50 now Father, glorify Me together with Yourself with the glory 47:56 that I had with You before the world was." 48:02 So before the creation of the world, Christ had this glory 48:08 that He emptied Himself of to come to earth so that 48:12 He could become a man and save us... 48:17 And what He is doing here is, He is now saying and once He 48:23 got back to heaven, He was restored with this glory, 48:28 the same exaltation, He appeared before the Father; 48:33 He offered His sacrifice - His sacrifice on behalf of humanity 48:38 was accepted and Christ's blood ratified the new covenant. 48:44 You know, in Luke 22:20, it says... "Likewise He also 48:50 took the cup after supper, saying, "This is the cup 48:54 of My new covenant; this is the new covenant in My blood 49:02 which is shed for you." 49:05 So the temporary covenant with Israel - what we 49:09 sometimes refer to as the old covenant, was also ratified 49:14 with blood and I want to read that to you in Hebrews 9:17-19. 49:18 Hebrews 9:17-19, it says... "For a testament is in force 49:26 after men are dead, (that's like a last will and testament) 49:29 is in force after men are dead, since it has no power at all 49:33 white the testator lives. 49:34 Therefore not even the first covenant (this is the law 49:39 of Moses) was dedicated without blood (the book of the law). 49:44 For when Moses had spoken every precept to all the people 49:48 according to the law, he took the blood of calves and goats, 49:51 with water, scarlet wool, and hyssop, and sprinkled both 49:56 the book itself (that's the book of the law) and all the people." 50:01 So we see that this first one was ratified with blood, 50:05 but this is what's going on in heaven now is - Jesus is 50:09 ratifying the new covenant with His blood. 50:11 Hebrews 9:23 says... "Therefore it was necessary that the 50:17 copies of the things in the heavens should be purified 50:21 with these, but the heavenly things themselves 50:25 with better sacrifices than these." 50:28 So He brings His blood back. 50:31 And you know, Jesus promised that He would send the 50:35 Holy Spirit after He was glorified. 50:37 I love this Scripture, John 7:38-39. 50:41 John 7:38-39, and He says, "He who believes in Me, 50:47 as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow 50:52 rivers of living water." 50:55 But this He spoke concerning the Spirit, (so not only 51:01 is oil a symbol for the Holy Spirit but the living water 51:06 is a symbol for the Holy Spirit) whom those 51:09 believing in Him would receive for the Spirit 51:13 was not yet given, because Jesus was not yet glorified." 51:20 So, you remember in John 14:16 when Jesus said, "I will pray 51:26 the Father and He will give you "allos Parakletos," 51:34 another helper. 51:35 Allos Parakletos - One who is just like Me. 51:39 That's what that word "allos." There are two words 51:42 in the Greek for "another," one is "allos," 51:45 one is "heteros;" heteros means one that is similar. 51:49 But allos means one that's just exactly the same. 51:52 So He is saying He is gonna give you another parakletos 51:58 because the Messiah was the Parakletos, but not He is 52:01 sending another that He may abide with you forever, 52:05 Jesus said and He told His disciples, in John 16:7, 52:09 (this is amazing), He said, "Nevertheless, I tell you 52:12 the truth, it is to your advantage that I go away; 52:17 for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; 52:20 but if I depart, I will send Him to you." 52:23 What is He saying here? 52:25 For in His incarnate body, once He became a man, 52:29 He emptied Himself of His omnipresence and He took that 52:33 flesh back to heaven with Him, so He couldn't be present 52:36 everywhere and for Him to live in our hearts, He lives in our 52:42 hearts by faith through the Holy Spirit. 52:46 The Holy Spirit dwells in our hearts... in Ephesians 3:16-17. 52:51 Paul says - He is praying that God would grant you 52:54 according to the riches of His glory, 52:57 to be strengthened with might (with the dunamis power) 53:01 through His Spirit in the inner man, 53:05 that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith..." 53:11 So that's how Jesus dwells in each one of us now, 53:15 is through the Holy Spirit. 53:17 So since the promise of the Holy Spirit was given by Christ, 53:21 He's going to be the One to fulfill it, right? Amen! 53:23 After He received the authority in heaven. 53:26 Revelation 5 is one of the most decisive events in the history 53:31 of the plan of salvation. That's right. 53:33 This is the inauguration of Christ into His post-Calvary 53:38 ministry as King and Priest in the heavenly sanctuary. 53:44 He overcame sin and He was exalted to His Father's throne. 53:50 And by taking His seat on the heavenly throne, 53:52 at the right hand of the Father, Christ is able to carry out 53:57 the plan of salvation to His ultimate. 54:01 And, you know, when we think about this, 54:03 the outpouring of the Holy Spirit on humanity 54:07 was the inauguration of the new covenant. 54:10 That is what marked the spread of the gospel... remember on the 54:16 day of Pentecost when the Holy Spirit was poured out 54:20 and they went out and preached and how many souls were saved? 54:23 Three-thousand! 54:26 So the outpouring of the Spirit 54:28 completed the prophecy that ushered in the church age, 54:32 and the new covenant in which all believers are given 54:36 the Holy Spirit... ALL! Halleluiah! What a promise 54:41 is according to the terms of the new covenant. 54:44 Now, I want to make a point... The outpouring of the Holy 54:47 Spirit was a unique event, this is different than the 54:51 filling of the Holy Spirit. 54:52 To be filled with the Holy Spirit means you need to 54:55 be surrendered to Christ and this is a day-by-day, 54:59 sometimes hour-by-hour occurrence, is it not? 55:02 Because it is possible for us to resist or grieve even 55:06 quench the Holy Spirit, but I just have to read 55:11 this Scripture... Jesus now in the heavenlies, 55:16 He is fulfilling His post-Calvary ministry 55:22 as our high priest. 55:24 Hebrews 8:1 says... "Now this is the main point of the things 55:29 we are saying: We have such a High Priest, who is seated 55:34 at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens." 55:39 And in chapter 4 of Hebrews, verses 4-15, it says... 55:44 "We don't have a High Priest who cannot sympathize 55:46 with our weaknesses, but was in all points 55:49 tempted as we are, yet without sin." 55:54 And because of that, because we have a High Priest who 55:57 understands, it says - "Let us therefore," for that reason 56:01 come boldly to the throne of grace that we may obtain 56:06 mercy and find grace to help in time of need." 56:10 He is our Mediator in the heavenly places, 56:13 and it is so exciting that He has been enthroned. Amen! Amen! 56:19 Praise God! Yes! What a powerful lesson! 56:24 Anytime we have an opportunity to talk about Jesus 56:26 in this way... prophetically and historically, 56:29 it's just overwhelming! 56:31 Well we're almost out of time, we have a few... 56:34 just a little over a minute left. 56:36 I want to turn it back to the panel now for us to 56:39 give us some insight on the lesson, 56:41 just something from your heart. 56:44 Yeah, things that hit my heart there was talking about the 56:47 good news - it's all about the good news of Jesus Christ. 56:50 Nothing can change a heart; nothing can change a life 56:52 but the power of the Holy Spirit living inside of mankind. 56:55 This is what we need, dedicate your heart and your 56:58 life to Jesus right now and be ready for His soon coming 57:00 because it's just around the corner. Amen! 57:02 Jesus is the only One that is worthy, but He loves us 57:07 so much - He creates in our hearts a worthiness 57:12 by His character. 57:14 I just can't even embrace that. 57:18 I can't even fathom that, but I praise the Lord for it. 57:22 We can't understand it, but we can be blessed by it. Amen! 57:25 Do you feel unworthy? He is worthy. 57:28 Do you feel sinful? He is Holy. 57:30 He has redemption and He has salvation for each one of us. 57:34 Amen! And all I can say is the King of Kings and the Lord 57:38 of Lords, is enthroned, but He lives in your heart 57:42 through the power of the Holy Spirit, so day-by-day 57:45 ask to be filled - don't leave home without Him! 57:49 Ask to be filled with the Holy Spirit. Amen! 57:52 Worthy is the Lamb! 57:55 Well, we have run out of time for this week. 57:57 It was such a powerful lesson that we had this week. 57:59 We're going to have another powerful lesson next week. 58:01 We want to invite you back to join us, but until then... 58:04 May God continue to bless you, may the Holy Spirit 58:07 lead and guide you and we will see you next week! 58:10 God bless! Amen and Amen! |
Revised 2024-08-14