Participants:
Series Code: SSP
Program Code: SSP200017S
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00:01 Hello, welcome to 3ABN Sabbath School Panel.
00:03 We thank you for taking the time to join us. 00:05 We are starting on lesson number four, 00:07 "The Bible-the Authoritative Source of Our Theology." 00:11 And our overall study for this quarter is 00:13 "How To Interpret Scripture." 00:15 Get your Bible, get your pens, invite your family to sit down. 00:19 If you'd like a copy of the lesson, 00:20 go to absg.adventist.org 00:24 or go to your local Seventh-day Adventist Church 00:26 and join them for a tremendous Bible study. 00:29 But right now join us as we walk through 00:31 the Word of God and understand His plan 00:33 for our lives in this lesson. 01:07 Welcome to our 3ABN Sabbath School Panel. 01:10 We are so thankful that 01:11 you've taken the time to join us. 01:13 We are going to dive into an exciting study today, 01:16 The Bible-the Authoritative Source of Our Theology. 01:21 All you need is a Bible and some time to sit down 01:24 and find out what the Lord has in store for you today. 01:27 But before we go any further meet our panelists today, 01:29 to my immediate left is Pastor John Dinzey, 01:30 Head of 3ABN Latino. 01:32 Good to have you today. 01:33 It's a pleasure to be here 01:35 and it's wonderful to be able to dig into God's Word. 01:37 And my forever evangelist, Pastor Kenny Shelton, always, 01:40 I know you're always ready, 01:42 you bring that down home flavor to our panel. 01:44 Thank you for being here today. It's always a pleasure. 01:47 Thank you. 01:48 And I assume that 01:49 Jill might have a list back of my mind. 01:52 Good to have you here, Jill. 01:53 Thank you, Pastor John, 01:54 that assumption might be accurate. 01:56 Might be accurate. And my singer in Israel. 02:00 Pastor Ryan Day, good to have you here today. 02:02 And I'm blessed and so glad to be here. 02:04 Amen. 02:05 Well, why don't you begin with prayer for us? 02:06 Absolutely. Okay. 02:08 Father in heaven, Lord, God, 02:09 we just thank You so much for being able to 02:11 gather here to break bread. 02:14 Amen. Break bread with You, Lord. 02:16 And we would dare not go into the study 02:19 without asking for the leadership 02:21 and guidance of Your Holy Spirit. 02:22 And so, Father, 02:23 I pray that You will give us again, 02:25 the spiritual eyesight, the spiritual hearing, 02:28 the spiritual mind of Jesus to be able to rightly divide 02:31 Your word of truth at this time. 02:32 And Lord, as this message goes around the world, 02:34 may someone be blessed, 02:36 may someone be brought closer to Jesus 02:38 because of this study we ask in Jesus' name. 02:41 Amen. 02:42 Amen. Amen. 02:43 The Bible-the Authoritative Source of Our Theology. 02:47 You know, I cannot think of a Christian church 02:49 that does not use the Bible to conclude what they believe. 02:55 And the ironic thing about that is how can so many conflicting, 03:01 contradicting beliefs be found 03:04 in so many different denominations 03:06 and all claim to be reading the same Bible. 03:10 I mean, think about that if we had a GPS, 03:13 and we all bought it from the same company, 03:15 and we all began at the same beginning point 03:18 going to the same destination, 03:20 how could we all be going in all different directions, 03:23 claiming to have the same destination? 03:27 What we've discovered though, 03:29 is the role of Scripture plays a different role 03:31 in the minds of each person handling it 03:34 and each person looks through a window of their experiences. 03:38 We know that the Protestant Reformation 03:39 was a movement back to the Bible, 03:42 but out of the Protestant Reformation, 03:43 people came out of that 03:45 and as we studied this, Pastor Dinzey, 03:46 you seen that the churches that broke away 03:49 from the Church of Rome during the Dark Ages. 03:52 Different leaders grappled with different topics 03:55 like Martin Luther 03:56 dealt with justification by faith, 03:58 "The judge shall live by faith." 04:00 You had Calvinism, you had Zwingli, Hus, Jerome, 04:03 Wycliffe, all of these individuals 04:05 had different beliefs that 04:06 they decided to bring to the forefront. 04:08 Baptism was reestablished based on scripture. 04:12 The just shall live by faith. 04:13 Jill, it was established based on the Word of God. 04:17 The Sabbath eventually came back 04:19 in the 1800s through the Millerite Movement 04:22 by a name of a lady by the name of Rachel Oakes 04:25 who was a Seventh-day Baptist. 04:27 And what we found is that 04:29 through the plethora of beliefs, 04:32 some understandings of Scripture 04:35 have been placed in concrete 04:38 that really are not linked to Scripture. 04:42 And the role that has played so much significance in that 04:45 is the role of tradition. 04:48 Now let's begin with our text 04:49 because the Bible gives us an unmistakable blueprint 04:52 that we can follow to examine whether or not 04:55 what is being taught is from the Word of God. 04:57 So we begin in Isaiah 8:20 04:59 the memory text for this lesson. 05:02 The Bible says, "To the law and to the... 05:03 Testimony. Testimony! 05:05 If they do not speak according to this word, 05:09 it is because there is no light in them." 05:11 So there's an acid test in Isaiah, 05:14 there's an acid test in 1 John 2:3-4. 05:18 "Hereby we do know that we know Him, 05:20 if we keep His commandments. 05:21 He who said, 'I know Him,' 05:24 and does not keep His commandments, 05:26 is a liar, and the truth is not in him." 05:28 In both of these cases you find the commandments of God 05:30 and the testimony there. 05:32 But I wanna talk about tradition 05:33 for a brief moment because tradition, 05:36 while it's on the 80% side, not a good thing 05:40 when it comes to the Bible. 05:41 There are some traditions that are not bad. 05:44 But I heard a story about a person 05:45 who had a tradition in their family 05:47 and we don't need him. 05:48 I just wanna make that point clear, 05:49 but the story fits in this role. 05:51 There was a lady on a particular holiday 05:54 during the year she decided to cut off 05:56 two inches from the hand before she put it in the oven. 05:58 And her husband said why are you doing this? 06:00 She said, "Well, my mother did that 06:01 while she called her mom. 06:03 Mom, why do we do that?" 06:05 Well, grandma does that thing. 06:06 Thank the Lord three generations 06:08 and she called grandma. 06:09 "Grandma, why do we do that? Does it add to the taste?" 06:11 She said, "No, I cut off two inches 06:13 because it was just too big to fit in the pan." 06:16 No relevant reason to cut it off, 06:19 but traditions usually exist 06:21 without any explanation 06:22 as to why this tradition exists. 06:24 That's good. 06:25 I saw there at Buckingham Palace. 06:29 I saw soldiers standing at a spot 06:31 and he was guarding absolutely nothing, 06:34 but he was standing at an odd ironic spot. 06:37 And I thought why are they changing guards 06:39 and I'm looking down all I see is pavement. 06:42 Came to find out that 06:44 must have been 70 years earlier, 06:46 that there was a plant that had been planted 06:49 there by one of the royal children 06:50 and that child requested that nobody destroys that plant 06:55 so they put a guard to guard it. 06:57 Well, the plant had since long died, 06:59 but there was nothing to guard, 07:00 but tradition carried it through. 07:02 That's right. 07:03 Traditional system establishing routines in our lives. 07:06 Tradition also establishes consistent practices, 07:10 but it's important that 07:11 those practices are biblically based. 07:14 Tradition tends to grow in its requirements, 07:17 whereas truth is constant. 07:19 Let's look at some of the dangers of tradition. 07:21 Hebrews 13:8. 07:24 Tradition is a cumulative, but Jesus is fixed. 07:30 Now I say that in the sense, Hebrews 13:8, 07:33 "Jesus Christ is the same," come on together... 07:35 Yesterday. 07:37 "Yesterday, today, and forever." 07:38 Right. Amen. 07:40 Since He is the same, 07:41 what does the Bible say about truth? 07:42 It's the same yesterday, today, and forever. 07:46 Even when the phrase 07:48 new light comes to the forefront, 07:50 you may have just discovered it, 07:52 but France has always been there. 07:53 That's right. 07:54 It's not new light to those who live in France, 07:57 as in the New World, 07:59 wasn't the New World to the Indians 08:01 when Christopher Columbus got here, 08:02 it was their backyard. 08:04 So tradition is a cumulated, 08:06 meaning, tradition tends to add more requirements 08:10 over the course of time. 08:11 Read some of the Jewish traditions in the Bible. 08:14 You can walk more than a half a mile on the Sabbath, 08:17 they call it the Sabbath day's journey. 08:19 So they added another tradition to violate that tradition. 08:24 If I left food at your house on Friday, Ryan, 08:27 then I could walk more than a half a mile. 08:29 It was ridiculous. 08:31 That was a tradition 08:32 that was not based on Scripture at all. 08:34 And many Christians today don't adhere to certain things 08:37 in Scripture that are a command of God, 08:40 like remember the Sabbath to keep it holy 08:42 because they have embraced tradition, 08:44 which is not supported by Scripture. 08:46 The other one, let's go to Mark 7:2-3 tradition views, 08:51 non compliance as disrespect, I want you to get that. 08:55 Tradition often views non compliance as disrespect. 08:59 So people might say why don't you keep this? 09:03 Look at Mark 7:2-3. Jill, do you have that? 09:06 I do. Just read that for us. 09:08 Mark 7:2-3. 09:10 "Now when they saw 09:11 some of His disciples eat bread with defiled, 09:14 that is, with unwashed hands, they found fault. 09:17 For the Pharisees and all the Jews 09:19 do not eat unless they wash their hands 09:21 in a special way, 09:22 holding the tradition of the elders." 09:24 Notice what happened 09:25 non-compliance was seen as disrespect, 09:27 they found fault. 09:29 In a lot of traditions that people hold special 09:31 that are not scripturally required, 09:33 they find fault when you don't adhere to it. 09:36 It's embarrassing to them or it's disrespectful. 09:39 That's why it says holding the tradition of the elders. 09:42 And there're those of you watching that might think that 09:45 the Sabbath is a tradition. 09:47 It's not a tradition. It's a scriptural requirement. 09:50 It's the fourth commandment. 09:52 It's not a commandment taken out of the 10 09:55 and set aside for any particular denomination 09:58 like all the other 9 commandments. 10:00 It's a requirement by Christ for those who follow Him. 10:04 The other thing, let's go to Mark 7:7-9. 10:07 Doctrine based on tradition is a hindrance to true worship. 10:12 Ryan, do you have verse 7-9? Yes, absolutely. 10:15 It says, "And in vain they worship Me, 10:16 teaching as doctrines the commandments of men. 10:20 For laying aside the commandment of God, 10:21 you hold the tradition of men, 10:23 the washing of pitchers of cups, 10:25 and many other such things you do. 10:27 And He said to them, 10:29 'All too well you reject the commandment of God, 10:31 that you may keep your tradition.'" 10:33 And that's happening in the Christian world today, 10:35 the commandments of God is seen as, 10:37 look at the excuses, tradition makes people say 10:40 it was nailed to the cross. 10:41 Well, if it was nailed to cross, 10:42 if the commandments of God were nailed to the cross 10:44 based on traditional views, 10:46 then all the churches have no reason to exist 10:48 because the commandments 10:49 is the standard of righteousness. 10:52 It is in fact the blueprint of our relationship 10:54 between God and our fellow man. 10:57 If the commandments are done away with, 10:59 then the church has no reason to exist. 11:01 You cannot call people to repentance 11:03 because there's no longer any sin. 11:05 So don't allow tradition to make you believe that 11:07 somehow what you don't like 11:09 in the commandments now causes you to think 11:12 that it is done away with. 11:14 The third thing about tradition is or four thing. 11:17 Tradition is more important. Truth is more important. 11:21 And I wanna say this correctly, more important than admiration. 11:25 Yes. 11:26 Let's look at Matthew 15:2, 11:29 tradition is more important than admiration 11:32 because a lot of people think that well. 11:34 Let's just read Matthew 15:2, it says, "Why do Your disciples 11:39 transgress the tradition of the elders? 11:43 For they do not wash their hands 11:44 when they eat bread." 11:46 Now we read that in a different gospel, 11:49 but the reason I read it again is because admiration, 11:53 they say we would admire your disciples 11:55 more if they would follow the tradition of the elders, 11:58 but truth is more important than admiration. 12:01 Simply put another way. 12:02 Some people might say, "Well, Pastor Kenny, 12:04 I really would like you if you honor our traditions." 12:06 Well, I would forego admiration for being in harmony with God. 12:10 Amen. Right. That's a very important. 12:13 So don't do things to be in harmony with people 12:15 and be out of harmony with God. 12:17 That's right. 12:18 Tradition should never push you out of harmony with God. 12:21 Also tradition that harmonizes with truth is not necessary, 12:26 but admissible. 12:28 Now that's a powerful one. 12:29 Tradition that harmonizes with truth is not necessary, 12:33 but admissible. 12:35 Let's go to 1 Corinthians 11:2 an example here. 12:38 I'm not gonna go all the way through it. 12:39 And I can see by the clock, 12:40 I won't get through all of mine, 12:42 but I'll save it for another time. 12:44 There are certain traditions 12:46 that are not bad if you keep them, 12:48 but they're not necessary. 12:49 1 Corinthians 11:2, it says, "Now I praise you, brethren, 12:55 that you remember me in all things 12:56 and keep the traditions just as I deliver them to you." 13:01 And in verse 16. 13:02 And I'll give you the middle verses. 13:04 Verse 16 says, 13:05 "But if anyone seems to be contentious, 13:07 we have no such custom, nor do the churches of God." 13:11 The topic here was whether or not 13:15 a woman should cover her head. 13:18 And there are some people, I had some people, 13:20 sadly enough in our own church, not our church physically here, 13:23 but in our own denomination saying, 13:25 "Why don't you women cover their hair?" 13:28 And I said, they said, 1 Corinthians 11:2, 13:30 there's a joke in our family. 13:32 We say we had a guy that said, 13:33 "You mean to tell me you're not gonna do 13:35 what the Bible says." 13:36 And I said, "Read the whole story 13:37 and don't forget verse 16." 13:39 Because it says, 13:40 "If any of you seem to be contentious, 13:42 we have no such custom, nor do the churches of God." 13:45 The push was women need to cover their head. 13:48 And the Apostle Paul says, 13:50 "That's why God gave them hair." 13:52 That's right. 13:54 First and secondly, that's why God gave them 13:56 a husband for covering, but that, 13:59 so if you wanna cover your head, 14:01 it's not against truth, 14:03 but don't make it a requirement 14:06 that is not a necessary command of God. 14:08 On that note, 14:10 I'm gonna give it to Pastor Dinzey. 14:11 I have some more, but I'll cover later on. 14:13 Well, moving to Monday's part we go to Experience. 14:17 And what does experience have to do as far as 14:20 in our theology and interpreting scripture? 14:22 Let's go to our first question in the lesson, 14:25 which is "How do we experience the goodness, 14:28 forbearance, forgiveness, and kindness and love of God?" 14:32 The wonderful thing is that God is working behind the scenes, 14:35 working in our hearts, working in our minds to lead us 14:39 to a personal experience with Him. 14:42 So for this, we turned to Romans Chapter 2. 14:45 And we're gonna go to verse 4. 14:48 In Romans 2:4, if someone has found 14:52 that would you kindly read that for us, Romans 2:4? 14:56 "Or do you despise the riches of His goodness, 14:58 forbearance, and longsuffering, not knowing that 15:01 the goodness of God leads you to repentance? 15:03 Amen. 15:04 So we have here this scripture with a wonderful question. 15:08 And this tells us that the goodness of God 15:11 leads us to repentance. 15:13 We have to go from being spectators 15:16 and having head knowledge to actually entering 15:20 into the experience that the Bible invites us into. 15:23 You know, I remember that we had a Dr. Meshach Samuel. 15:27 Pastor Lomacang can remember Samuel. 15:29 I think some, most of you. Oh, yeah. 15:31 He said something that really impacted me 15:34 because in India they have over 50 million gods 15:38 that are not really gods because there are trees 15:41 that are gods and different things, 15:43 but there's one Creator God, 15:44 and he said that in his country, 15:47 there's no such thing as these the people 15:50 having a relationship with the God 15:54 because it's something they fear, 15:56 something they respect and worship 15:58 but no personal experience and relationship. 16:01 God invites us 16:03 into a personal relationship with Him 16:05 and embracing the message of hope 16:08 that He gives to us. 16:09 So I like to now go to Titus 3:4-5. 16:15 Notice these wonderful words, 16:17 "But when the kindness and love of God our Savior 16:20 toward man appeared, 16:22 not by works of righteousness which we have done, 16:25 but according to His mercy He saved us, 16:27 through the washing of regeneration 16:29 and renewing of the Holy Spirit." 16:31 Coming into the knowledge of these things 16:34 should draw us to the Lord, 16:36 so that we can get the full, 16:41 wonderful blessing of knowing a God that loves 16:44 because the Bible says God is love. 16:46 But if you just stay there and say, "Oh, that's great. 16:50 That's good to know." 16:52 But if you don't experience the love of God, 16:54 then you are just a spectator. 16:58 This is why as the lesson brings out very well, 17:03 that we have to move from an abstract 17:07 intellectual knowledge to moving 17:10 into an actual experience with God. 17:12 And so one of my favorite passages 17:15 in the Bible is Psalms 34:8. 17:18 Amen. Oh, yeah. 17:19 Psalm 34:8, and I see that 17:21 the memory has already said, I know that. 17:23 That's right. 17:25 The Bible says, "Oh, taste 17:26 and see that the Lord is," what? 17:28 Good. "Good." 17:30 So this is an invitation from God 17:32 to just don't just stand there, 17:34 taste and see that the Lord is good. 17:38 Enter into the experience 17:40 of tasting and seeing, you know, 17:42 when you taste something, you go from merely admiring 17:45 how good it looks, and merely admiring 17:48 how good it smells, you know, something that you... 17:52 Like, when my wife is cooking something that 17:54 the aroma just hits, you know, I wanna taste that, 17:58 but if I just stay there I never enjoy it. 18:01 And so likewise God invites us 18:03 to not only read the Scriptures, 18:05 study the Scriptures, 18:07 but enter into the actual experience of loving God 18:11 and loving our neighbor as ourselves. 18:13 Now the verse concludes with these words, 18:17 "Blessed is the man whose trust in Him!" 18:20 So besides just having the, you know, 18:24 like the Bible says that the devils believe and tremble, 18:30 so it is not enough to just believe, 18:32 but they believe and tremble 18:33 because but their belief is not a belief 18:36 that brings them into a saving experience. 18:39 They've rejected God. 18:40 So besides believing, we have to trust God 18:45 and that when you enter into that experience, 18:48 you're entering into an experience 18:49 a saving experience with God. 18:52 Now experience, of course, leads us to trust God, 18:57 and to know God is to really love God. 19:00 And this is why Isaiah 26:3-4 19:03 another very known, well-known scripture. 19:06 In Isaiah 26:3-4. 19:09 And I like to ask our, Pastor Ryan, 19:11 if you find that there for us and read. 19:14 Isaiah 26:3-4 says, 19:17 "You will keep him in perfect peace, 19:19 whose mind is stayed on You, because he trusts in You. 19:23 Trust in the Lord forever, for in Yah, the Lord, 19:27 is everlasting strength." 19:29 Amen, amen. 19:30 Now there is another scripture that helps us understand that 19:34 we have to enter into the experience. 19:37 Not only do you see the Bible talking about peace, 19:41 Jesus says, peace I give to you, 19:44 my peace, give I unto you. 19:46 Now if Jesus is holding out this opportunity for peace. 19:49 And you say thank you, thank you, 19:51 but you don't embrace it. 19:53 You never experience that 19:56 wonderful peace that passes all understanding. 19:59 And here again, Isaiah 26 it says, 20:04 "You will keep him in perfect peace, 20:05 whose mind is," what? 20:06 "Stayed on You." 20:08 That's an experience that you enter into. 20:10 And that brings you the blessing 20:13 and trust in the Lord forever. 20:15 And in Him you have everlasting strength. 20:17 Amen. That's right. 20:18 Enter into the experience receive the blessing, 20:21 the joy, the peace, that God wants to give to you. 20:25 Now when we are talking about the scriptures, 20:29 I like to bring to you a book written by Ellen G. White 20:33 called Acts of the Apostles, page 388. 20:37 Notice these words, "Paul pleaded 20:39 with those who had once known 20:41 in their lives the power of God, 20:43 to return to their first love of gospel truth. 20:46 With unanswerable arguments he said before them 20:49 their privilege of becoming free men 20:52 and women in Christ, 20:54 through whose atoning grace all who make full surrender," 20:59 notice, the word full surrender, 21:00 "are clothed with the robe of His righteousness. 21:03 He took the position that every soul 21:07 who would be saved must have a genuine, 21:11 personal experience in the things of God." 21:15 Every individual has to have 21:17 a genuine personal experience with God. 21:22 Some people stay at the head knowledge, 21:24 but the people stay at the... 21:26 Oh, that's good to know. But they never enter. 21:28 You know, there are millions of people that say, 21:33 "Oh, yes, I believe there's a God." 21:34 But that's it. 21:36 They believe there's a God, 21:37 but they do not take the step of knowing God. 21:40 And it's a sad, sad thing to know that 21:44 salvation is available full and free through Jesus Christ, 21:48 but you never accept it, 21:50 you never enjoy it in this world 21:55 and the world to come. 21:56 That's why when you look at the Bible, 21:58 you see a picture, it's a brief picture 22:01 but a very sorrowful picture 22:03 because the Bible says that 22:05 there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. 22:08 These people that rejected the grace of God, 22:11 rejected the experience of salvation, 22:13 reject their salvation through Jesus Christ. 22:16 Now in the last moments that remain, 22:20 I like to mention something. 22:22 As far as interpreting Scripture, 22:25 we have to, 22:26 as we have said before in these programs, 22:28 we have to study to show ourselves 22:30 approved unto God, 22:32 a workman that needs not to be ashamed, 22:36 rightly dividing the word of truth. 22:40 Because the Bible also gives us a warning that 22:44 there will be deceivers that will come, 22:47 twisting the scriptures, 22:49 and every wind of doctrine is blowing, 22:51 that is not founded on the scriptures. 22:54 That's why we have to study to show ourselves approved 22:59 and some people have entered into a wrong experience. 23:02 I remember a young man that followed a group. 23:05 There was a guy that claimed 23:07 to be Jesus Christ in the flesh, 23:09 you may remember this man. 23:10 He claimed, I heard him in the news, I cannot die. 23:15 Well, he died about three years ago. 23:17 But this man told his followers 23:20 that sin does not exist. 23:25 That's not scriptural. 23:26 But hundreds of people followed him 23:30 and entered into a horrible experience 23:33 in which they thought, I can do anything, 23:36 I have freedom to do anything, 23:39 but forgetting that the Bible is balanced and true, 23:43 the Bible says, "For the wages of sin is death, 23:48 but the gift of God is eternal life." 23:50 This scripture helps us to understand that` 23:52 these people were completely wrong 23:54 and other scriptures, of course. 23:56 So as far as our experience is concerned, 23:58 we have to weigh it in the balance of Scripture 24:03 and study to show ourselves approved up to God 24:06 rightly dividing the word of truth. 24:09 Amen. Thank you, Johnny. 24:10 That was a wonderful. Yes. 24:12 You know, when we think about experience, 24:15 experience can pull us to God or may lead us to God 24:18 or propel us away from God. 24:20 On that note, we're gonna just take a short break. 24:22 Don't go anywhere. We'll be right back. 24:29 Ever wish you could watch 24:31 a 3ABN Sabbath School Panel again, 24:33 or share it on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter? 24:36 Well, you can by visiting 3abnsabbathschoolpanel.com. 24:41 A clean design makes it easy 24:43 to find the program you're looking for. 24:46 There are also links to the Adult Bible Study Guide 24:49 so you can follow along. 24:51 Sharing is easy. 24:52 Just click share and choose your favorite social media. 24:55 Share a link, save a life for eternity. 24:59 Welcome back to our Sabbath School Panel, 25:01 we now transition from Experience to Culture. 25:05 Pastor Kenny. I do. 25:06 This is on Tuesday's lesson Culture. 25:08 That's right. 25:09 And that, to me it's very interesting subject 25:11 when you talk about the culture 25:13 because everybody has a culture. 25:15 That's right. 25:16 You know, some part of it, 25:17 you know, it has an influence on our life. 25:20 Wherever we come from some time 25:22 we come across the other side of the tracks, 25:23 and some were born here, some, you know, 25:26 but there's a culture there. 25:27 And sometimes culture might possibly get in the way 25:30 of our belief in the Word of God 25:32 if we're not careful. 25:34 So hopefully in the lesson 25:35 we see a little bit of balance on this, 25:36 give a definition of culture. 25:38 This is from the dictionary, so I read it, 25:40 and then I had to read it again. 25:42 Then I read it again and I thought I'd put 25:43 a little something simple down there, 25:45 if that's all right with you. 25:46 The definition of culture 25:47 from the dictionary says the arts 25:49 and other manifestations of human 25:51 intellectual achievement regarded collectively. 25:56 So I didn't get a whole lot out there. 25:59 So I thought of just go ahead and do it little simple this, 26:02 what is this, is that okay? 26:04 Yeah. 26:05 Now simply put culture is a way 26:07 there's a word for simply the way of life. 26:11 The way of life or for groups of people 26:14 meaning simply the way they do things. 26:17 People do things, different ways 26:19 in different places of the world, 26:21 they eat different, they talk different, 26:22 they believe different 26:23 and you mentioned a lot of gods and different things here. 26:25 So hopefully we can put it together in the culture 26:27 here that it doesn't get in our way 26:30 of what the Bible teaches as truth. 26:32 Now included in that culture 26:34 could be knowledge, 26:36 included in that could be a belief, 26:38 it could be a behavior, it could be an outlook, 26:41 it could be an attitude, it could be values, 26:44 it could be moral. 26:46 So a lot of this is included and customs. 26:49 We are all influenced and shaped. 26:51 I know I have been shaped by certain, 26:54 you know, things like culture, 26:56 I've been shaped or just things 26:57 that are there that you grew up 26:58 with that you automatically believe, 27:00 this is it and you put into experience. 27:02 We live in a cultural transmission world. 27:06 And what I mean by that? 27:07 Well, we learn a behavior 27:10 by observing someone else. 27:15 Does that ever happen to anyone? 27:16 Absolutely, I've learned a lot of things 27:18 by watching someone else. 27:20 And then we have to decide whether it's the thing 27:21 we wanna incorporate in our life or not. 27:24 And so where did they learn their behavior? 27:27 By watching someone else. And how did that go? 27:30 They watch somebody else. 27:31 And so it goes on and on and on. 27:33 So we learn that way. 27:34 It covers all ages, it can be young, 27:38 it can be old, it doesn't matter. 27:39 And for instance, I've got a story, 27:42 it's kind of interesting, a child, 27:44 that he sees another child getting his way 27:46 when he throws a fit. 27:48 Right quick, they pick up on that, 27:51 you know, I have had a wonderful step, 27:53 stepdad Earl. 27:55 And I didn't call him stepdad I call him my dad. 27:59 You know, he was such a good person. 28:01 And I often told him, 28:02 we will be doing these things. 28:03 Well, parents, grandparents, stepparents are still alive, 28:07 you know, Torre Morris that I loved him, 28:09 and that I appreciated him. 28:10 And I said, you know, if I could choose 28:13 some man in the world to take care of my mother 28:16 after my dad passed away, it would be you. 28:19 Now that's pretty good as far as my thinking. 28:21 So he was that kind of man, but anyway, he had two sons. 28:25 And we talked about the influence and culture. 28:27 It was different many years ago. 28:29 So just to kind of hang on to your hats 28:31 and don't get excited 28:32 about some of these things 'cause we said, 28:33 "We don't do that nowadays." 28:35 But he took his youngest son into the store. 28:38 And the son said, "I want this toy." 28:41 I've got to have this toy. 28:42 And dad said, 28:44 "No, you can't have that toy right now. 28:45 We don't have time. Let's go." He said, "No, I want that toy." 28:48 He said, "No, you can't have that toy." 28:50 Well, pretty soon. 28:51 The boy just lays down on the concrete floor. 28:53 All right. 28:55 And he looks at his dad, 28:57 all the people start to get around. 28:59 And then he goes banging his head on the concrete. 29:04 He started, and dad looked him and said, 29:06 "He's never done this before. 29:08 Why is he doing this?" 29:09 You know, so we got down real quick 29:11 and said, "Son get off of the floor." 29:12 I want that toy. 29:14 He's about saying, I want that toy. 29:16 Dad thought, you know what, 29:17 evidently the banging of the head 29:18 is not doing any good. 29:20 So I'm gonna help him. 29:21 So he got a hold of his neck and he went boom, boom. 29:27 And all of a sudden the boy thought 29:29 this is not quite what I had in mind. 29:31 So he decided to change his mind 29:33 and get up and go. 29:34 So dad wanted to get out of it gathered a group, 29:38 but right now just as soon as that happened, 29:40 there would be phones, dialing 911, and family server, 29:44 you know, all kinds of stuff going on, 29:45 way back then it didn't. 29:47 You know, a lot of them probably say good 29:49 give it to him, you know, he took him outside. 29:52 I guess the whole point took him outside. 29:53 He said, "Son, Ted," was his name, 29:55 "Ted, why in the world did you do that? 29:58 You've never done that before." 30:00 He said, "Dad because 30:01 I saw the boy next door over here he wanted the toy. 30:04 They said no. 30:06 And he began to bang his head on the floor 30:07 and he got the toy." 30:09 So we see that they learn by what? 30:12 What they see and thought he was going to get. 30:14 All he got was a bigger knot on his head. 30:17 And he never did do that again. 30:20 So we know, we did, 30:21 throwing a fit sometime it depends. 30:23 You know, the outcome depends upon how the parent handles it. 30:26 And we're gonna handle it by the Word of God 30:28 here in the time that we have left. 30:29 God warned ancient Israel. 30:32 He warned them up against, you know, 30:33 about mingling with other nations. 30:35 Why? 30:36 Because they will be influenced. 30:38 God did not want them to pick up on things 30:39 and have them in their culture 30:41 to bring it into God's special seed, His people. 30:45 So He warned them. 30:46 And I wonder how many of us 30:47 as I read the one passage of scripture 30:49 in Ezra 9:1-2, I thought was so interesting, 30:53 and I'm just paraphrasing here because of the time. 30:56 This says, "The people of Israel 30:57 are doing abominations. 30:59 The Holy seed have mingled 31:01 with other people in other lands." 31:03 So we see that there and notice, 31:05 what the Prophet Ezra did? 31:08 I thought it was very, very interesting. 31:10 It tore him up. 31:14 You know, as a pastor 31:16 sometime do we get torn up elders of the church, 31:17 leaders of the church get torn up 31:19 when our people are going in the wrong direction. 31:22 This tore him up so much, it said he rent his clothes. 31:26 It said he pulled some of his hair out. 31:29 He pulled some of his beard out. 31:31 And some have said, "Oh, man I'm not gonna go 31:33 through that I hate that the Joe is doing this." 31:35 But we don't maybe get so connected, 31:37 but this tore him up. 31:38 Not so much of what but because God said 31:41 don't do that these things are abomination. 31:44 When God says come apart 31:45 and be separate touch not the unclean. 31:48 That's exactly what's that 2 Corinthians 6:17 31:51 is that's exactly what God means why? 31:54 He wants to protect us. That's right. That's right. 31:56 He doesn't want us to get in trouble, 31:57 pick up any of these bad habits or sins from other nations. 32:01 He doesn't want us to get old knot on our head. 32:05 He doesn't want that to happen. 32:06 But there has to be a good balance in Scripture 32:08 because you can't just leave everything out there. 32:12 The Bible says that we are in the world 32:14 but not to be of the world there in John 17:16. 32:19 And so we have a place in this world 32:21 and we have an influence in this world. 32:23 We have a culture, 32:24 all of us do come from different places. 32:26 We hear about New York, you know, different things. 32:29 And it's not kind of coming 32:30 from a cornfield in Southern Illinois. 32:32 There's a difference in culture, 32:34 but yet we need to have 32:35 the Bible as the basic and the rule, 32:37 the influence that transcends all culture, 32:42 all other tradition that you're talking about here 32:45 and traditions, the Bible and the Bible only. 32:47 Why? 32:48 Because the Bible is the only book 32:50 that can transform your life. 32:52 It can change your life. It can make the ugly pretty. 32:56 That's right. Did you get it? 32:57 Right. It can make the ugly pretty. 32:59 It can take the things that Paul talked about things 33:02 he once loved that we now hate. 33:04 It can change you just right around in a circle for sure. 33:07 That's why the question is asked there 33:09 in 1 John 2:15-17. 33:11 We can't read that right now, 33:13 but it's talking about that we're not to love what? 33:15 The world. 33:16 Of the world, love the world 33:18 or things that are in the world. 33:19 John just simply says, 33:21 "Love not stop loving, do not, you know, 33:23 continue to love the world, the things in the world 33:27 or even the people of the world." 33:28 It's very difficult sometimes for us when people are involved 33:32 and yet they're say it nicely, they're worldly, 33:35 they just haven't accepted Jesus, 33:37 but, you know what, we hang around 33:38 with those kind of folks sometime we'll, 33:40 you know, their culture will come back on us 33:42 and be able to change our thoughts and our opinion, 33:44 rather than staying in the Word of God. 33:47 So we realized here this good, we must be aware 33:50 and resist these things the enemy puts on us in 33:54 I think it's James 4:7 33:57 says submit yourself unto God, right, and do what? 34:00 Resist. That means fight. 34:02 That means we have to be willing to fight to the death 34:05 as it were like Jesus did, that we'd rather in our life, 34:08 we'd rather die than commit annoying sin. 34:11 That's pretty heavy duty. That's right. 34:13 But God wants us to come to that point. 34:16 It's not to be influenced by the world. 34:17 So we resist the enemy. 34:19 Quickly here in just less than a minute. 34:21 There's about seven things we can look at real quick, 34:23 we submit to God, we resist the devil, 34:25 the Bible said we draw a nigh to God, 34:27 we clean hands, right? 34:29 Purify hearts, humble ourself, and then one thing down 34:32 there in verse 10 there of James 4:7-10. 34:35 It says, "Don't speak evil, about one another." 34:38 You know, probably all of us could learn that lesson 34:41 by the grace of God not to speak evil. 34:44 Man, I always said, if I can't say something good, 34:45 you know, you've heard that input. 34:47 Don't say if you can't say something good, 34:49 don't say anything to the person. 34:51 You know, because that's the following scripture. 34:53 And then James 4:10 simply says, 34:55 "Then if you do these things, then He will lift you up." 34:59 And by the grace of God I wanna be lifted up. 35:00 I wanna be lifted up in higher plane. 35:02 I don't wanna be influenced by culture. 35:04 I don't wanna be influenced by the world, 35:05 even though culture is good in some things, but what? 35:08 We wanna be influenced by the Word of God. 35:10 Amen. 35:11 Thank you so much, Pastor Kenny. 35:12 Each one of you as I think about this lesson, 35:15 tradition is not all bad, 35:17 but if tradition supersedes the Word of God, 35:20 there's a problem. 35:21 Experience is good, but if experience supersedes 35:24 the Word of God, there's an issue. 35:26 Culture is not all bad, 35:28 but if culture supersedes the Word of God, 35:30 there's an issue. 35:31 So on Wednesday, we look at Reason. 35:34 Reason is not bad, 35:36 but if it supersedes the Word of God, 35:38 there is a problem. 35:40 Yes. 35:41 We're looking at four aspects here. 35:43 I'll tell you that upfront so, you know, where we're going. 35:46 We're gonna look at empiricism, irrationalism, rationalism, 35:51 and then biblical faith. 35:54 The first three might all have some elements 35:57 of truth mixed with error. 35:59 We get to the end biblical faith 36:00 that is 100% solid. 36:02 So let's look at that empiricism. 36:04 What is that? 36:05 True Christians must reject empiricism. 36:09 Empiricism is a theory that all knowledge is derived 36:13 from experience or from your senses. 36:17 It's a philosophical belief 36:19 that states your knowledge of the world 36:20 is based on your experiences, 36:23 based on your sensory experiences. 36:27 This is where what Pastor Johnny talked about, 36:29 you could get the danger of having experience 36:32 when it's not in line with a Word of God. 36:35 Of course, we know experience 36:36 is important as Pastor Johnny brought out so well, 36:39 taste and see that the Lord is good. 36:41 Psalm 34:8, we are called to experience God. 36:45 1 John 1:1-3. 36:47 This is some of my favorite scriptures, 36:50 John the Apostle writing, 36:52 "That which was from the beginning, 36:53 which we have heard, 36:55 which we have seen with our eyes, 36:57 which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, 37:00 concerning the Word of life." 37:02 We jumped to verse 3. 37:04 "That which we have seen and heard we declare to you, 37:07 that you also may have fellowship with us, 37:10 and truly our fellowship is with the Father 37:12 and with His Son Jesus Christ." 37:15 John saying what we have experienced 37:17 walking and talking with Jesus, 37:20 we are sharing that with you. 37:22 So there's elements of truth and experience 37:24 because we want an experience. 37:26 God calls us to experience Him, 37:29 but there's also a danger of empiricism. 37:33 I see that in 2 Peter 1. 37:34 2 Peter 1:16-19. Verses 16 and 19. 37:39 Verse 16, says, 37:40 "We did not follow cunningly devised fables 37:43 when we made known to you the power 37:44 and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, 37:47 but were eyewitnesses of His majesty." 37:49 So Peter again is saying, we experienced 37:52 and were telling you just like John did, 37:54 were telling you what we experienced. 37:57 But then verse 19, Peter goes on to say, 37:59 "We have the prophetic word confirmed." 38:01 We have a more sure word of prophecy. 38:05 We have the prophetic word more fully confirmed meaning 38:08 that the Word of God is to be trusted 38:11 even above our experience. 38:13 Yes. That's empiricism. 38:16 Next, let's look at irrationalism. 38:19 The true Christian must reject irrationalism. 38:24 Irrationalism is a system of belief 38:26 or action that disregards 38:28 or contradicts rational principles. 38:31 Irrational would be something that's not logical, 38:34 something that's not reasonable. 38:36 Now Mark Twain said, 38:37 "Faith was believing what you know ain't so." 38:41 Some people say, 38:45 "Faith takes over where reason leaves off." 38:49 Some people say, 38:50 "Well, Christianity just can't be proven." 38:53 There might be one element 38:55 of truth in this in irrationalism 38:59 when God asks us to do something 39:01 that maybe seems contradictory, 39:03 Pastor Ryan, to rational thought. 39:06 That would be maybe when God called Abraham 39:08 to sacrifice his son, Isaac. 39:10 Now that would be considered irrational, 39:12 would it not? 39:13 You would say, well, that goes against God, 39:15 you promised my son, right? 39:17 And there's supposed to be a great nation coming from him. 39:20 So that might appear irrational when God asked that. 39:25 What are the dangers of irrationalism? 39:28 Faith involves reason. 39:29 And we know that when we get to biblical faith, 39:32 we will see that. 39:33 In fact, the word for faith in Greek is pa-stis. 39:36 It's used over 240 times in the New Testament, 39:41 and it literally means to be persuaded. 39:45 Faith involves that reason. 39:47 Isaiah 1:18, Pastor Kenny, God says, 39:50 "'Come now and let us reason together,' 39:53 says the Lord. 39:55 Though your sins are like scarlet, 39:56 they shall be white as snow." 39:58 1 Peter 3:15. 40:00 Peter tells us, 40:02 "Sanctify the Lord God in your hearts, 40:04 and always be ready to give a defense to everyone 40:07 who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you, 40:10 with meekness and fear." 40:11 So reason is important to our faith. 40:15 The next danger is rationalism. 40:17 Now we swing from irrationalism, 40:19 where there's no logic to the opposite end 40:22 of the spectrum. 40:23 True Christians must reject rationalism. 40:26 The definition of rationalism would be a belief or a theory, 40:30 that opinions and actions should be based on reason 40:33 and knowledge rather than religious belief 40:37 or emotional experience. 40:41 It's the practice of treating reason as the ultimate 40:45 authority in religion. 40:48 Now clearly we already talked about that 40:51 we are to reason and God calls us to do that, 40:53 we are to study and what the Word of God 40:56 said the Word of God, the faith in the Word of God. 41:00 There is reason behind that, but there's also a danger. 41:05 If we use our minds and senses to begin to judge God's Word. 41:10 Eve did that in the Garden of Eden, 41:13 that first temptations, Genesis 3:6. 41:17 Bible says, "When the woman saw that 41:19 the tree was good for food, 41:20 that it was pleasant to the eyes, 41:22 and a tree desirable to make one wise, 41:24 she took of the fruit and ate. 41:27 She also gave to her husband with her, and she ate." 41:30 She decided that her mind, 41:32 her reason would be above what the Word of God said. 41:35 And God said, 41:36 "Don't eat of the tree of knowledge of good and evil." 41:40 And she decided her mind, her intellect, 41:42 her reason would be even above 41:45 what the Word of God said. 41:48 2 Corinthians Paul tells us. 2 Corinthians 10:5-6. 41:53 This is when we can use arguments 41:55 and false reasoning to judge God's Word. 41:58 "Casting down imaginations." King James says. 42:02 New King James says, "Casting down arguments 42:04 and every high thing that exalts itself 42:07 against the knowledge of God, 42:09 and bringing into captivity 42:11 every thought to the obedience of Christ." 42:15 We are called to cast down those arguments 42:18 that exalt themselves against the Word of God. 42:21 So true Christians must exercise biblical faith. 42:25 All right. 42:26 Hebrews 11:1, 42:28 "Faith is the substance of things hoped for, 42:31 the evidence of things not seen." 42:34 Biblical faith is not blind faith. 42:36 Biblical faith is the substance of things hoped for. 42:39 The word hoped for means confident expectation. 42:44 We believe and trust 42:46 and know that God stands back of His Word. 42:50 Let's look quickly in closing five keys 42:54 to understanding biblical faith and reason. 42:57 Key number one. 42:59 God invites questions and discussion and dialogue. 43:03 God invites that. 43:05 We read the scripture earlier, Isaiah 1:18. 43:07 "'Come now, let us reason together,' 43:09 says the Lord, 43:10 'Though your sins be a scarlet, they'll be white as snow, 43:13 though they'd be red like crimson, 43:15 they shall be as wool.'" 43:16 God invites questions discussion and dialogue. 43:20 Number two, understanding God precedes 43:24 any true wisdom or reason. 43:26 In other words, 43:28 we need to understand God first, 43:29 before we ever have any wisdom or any understanding. 43:33 Proverbs 9:10, 43:35 "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, 43:38 and the knowledge 43:39 of the Holy One is understanding." 43:41 We need to know God first, before we have anything else. 43:44 Number three, obeying God 43:47 precedes any true knowledge or wisdom. 43:50 So not only do we need to understand God, 43:52 we need to obey Him. 43:55 Proverbs 1:7, 43:56 "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, 43:58 but fools despise wisdom and instruction." 44:03 Number four, sanctification precedes 44:07 sharing the reason for our faith with others. 44:11 Let's look at a scripture for that. 44:12 1 Peter 3:15. 44:14 "Sanctify the Lord God in your hearts, 44:18 and be ready always to give a defense 44:21 to everyone who asks you a reason 44:22 for the hope that is in you, with meekness and fear." 44:25 What does that say before we witness, 44:27 before we share the truth, 44:29 before we share the Word of God with others? 44:32 God wants to sanctify our hearts. 44:34 He wants to sanctify our lives first then we're equipped 44:39 to share our faith with someone else. 44:41 And finally, number five, 44:43 reason is part of biblical teaching and sermons. 44:48 Acts 17:17 Paul. 44:51 "Paul reasoned in the synagogue with the Jews 44:54 and with the Gentile worshipers, 44:56 and in the marketplace daily 44:58 with those who happen to be there." 45:00 He reasoned, he discussed 45:02 because reason is an important piece, 45:05 an integral part of our faith. 45:07 We just need to make sure it is always subject 45:10 to the Word of God. 45:11 Amen. Praise the Lord. 45:13 Man, this particular lesson 45:14 was very, very relevant to me personally, 45:17 and I know it had to be relevant to you guys 45:19 because going through this, you know, 45:21 hearing Pastor Lomacang 45:23 talk about the traditional aspect 45:25 and, of course, Brother Dinzey talking about 45:27 the experience, 45:28 and then Pastor Kenny with the culture, 45:30 and then of course, you with the this reason 45:34 aspect of Scripture. 45:36 Thursday's lesson is entitled The Bible. 45:38 And it kind of brings all of these, 45:40 kind of ties all of these together, 45:42 but it adds an element 45:43 in which we have to put in proper perspective, 45:46 the relationship between the Holy Spirit 45:49 and Scripture because again, 45:52 all of these aspects that we've discussed so far, 45:54 you know, there's many people 45:56 that will say, you know what, because of my tradition, 45:59 I believe this is Holy Spirit led 46:02 my experiences this and I know, 46:03 the Holy Spirit led me to experience this, you know, 46:06 in this culture that we live in, 46:08 you know, God's Spirit would not be, 46:11 you know, would not be leading me astray 46:13 into a culture that's not right. 46:14 And, of course, in my reasoning, 46:16 in my thoughts, in my ideas, 46:17 and the Holy Spirit's leading and guiding me, 46:20 this particular lesson on Thursday, 46:22 there was a part in here that I have to read. 46:25 It's very well put, 46:26 and so I just want to read it right now. 46:27 It says, "The Holy Spirit, who has revealed 46:29 and inspired the content of the Bible to human beings, 46:33 will never lead us contrary to God's Word 46:38 or astray from the Word of God." 46:41 Very simple put, but very powerful. 46:43 And it goes on to say, "For Seventh-day Adventists, 46:45 the Bible has a higher authority 46:47 than human tradition, experience, reason, or culture. 46:52 The Bible alone is the norm by which everything else 46:56 needs to be tested." 46:57 So hence why this study is entitled The Bible 47:00 because you have all these different aspects 47:02 that people are led by, but at the end of the day, 47:04 we must allow God's Word 47:06 and God's Word alone to lead and guide us. 47:08 In fact, this is very true 47:10 for Jesus Christ in the scriptures. 47:12 Go with me to John Chapter 5. John 5:46-47. 47:18 And then we're gonna jump over to John Chapter 7. 47:21 And you'll see that there's a common theme 47:23 in these two particular texts in relation 47:25 to how Jesus allowed scripture to lead His life. 47:29 John 5:46-47. 47:32 Jesus says here, "For if you believed Moses, 47:35 you would believe Me, for he wrote about Me. 47:39 But if you do not believe his writings, 47:41 how will you believe My words?" 47:44 Okay, so that's John Chapter 5. 47:45 Jesus says it's strongly emphasizing 47:48 the importance of scripture, 47:49 go back to the Bible, study the scripture 47:51 because if you've read these, and of course, 47:53 he's referring to the Old Testament text. 47:55 If you read this Old Testament, 47:56 if you read the scriptures that come before, 47:58 you know that they are testifying of Me. 48:01 John 7:37-38, very similar context. 48:05 Notice, what it says here, "On the last day, 48:08 the great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, 48:11 saying, 'If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink. 48:16 He who believes in Me," notice this, 48:19 "as the Scripture has said, 48:21 out of his heart will flow rivers 48:23 of living waters.'" 48:24 So Christ is always emphasizing God's Word in His preaching, 48:28 in His teaching, in His counsel. 48:31 But notice this first off notice, 48:33 notice how Jesus is confirming His divinity 48:36 and His Messiahship here? 48:39 This is a powerful, it's simple, but powerful here. 48:42 Notice, how He's not showing up on the scene and saying, 48:45 you know, "Hey, look, 48:46 look at all these wonderful signs 48:47 and wonders that I'm working here. 48:49 Oh, let me turn this water into wine, 48:50 that proves that I'm your Messiah. 48:52 Let me raise the sky from the dead. 48:54 Surely that proves that I'm your Messiah. 48:55 Let me work all these signs and wonders and these miracles. 48:58 Surely that is the solidified proof 49:00 that I am your coming Messiah." 49:02 That's not what we find here. 49:03 Jesus never pointed the people to the signs and the wonders 49:06 and the experience and the things that 49:08 they were seeing with their eyes. 49:10 He always pointed them back to the scripture saying, 49:11 "Look, I'm your Messiah." 49:13 Why? Because the Bible confirms it. 49:15 Go back to the Scripture, study the Word of God, 49:18 then you will see that I am indeed your Savior. 49:22 It's powerful. You know, he's not using... 49:24 In any of these cases He's not using convoluted, 49:26 you know, out of thin air spiritualistic revelation 49:31 to be the basis of His Messiahship. 49:33 He allows the Word of God to be the basis 49:36 and proof for His ministry and His accomplishments. 49:41 And, you know, this really hit home for me 49:43 because I grew up going, you know, 49:46 to many different churches 49:47 studying with many different denominations, 49:48 but my primary experience growing up in Christianity 49:52 was in the charismatic Pentecostal churches 49:55 and I just want to say for the record, 49:56 I love those people, you know, there's good people, 49:59 wonderful people in this movement. 50:01 But nonetheless, I remember growing up, 50:03 you know, much of that experience 50:05 is based on personal feeling, personal experience, 50:10 and then you'll hear a lot of people say, 50:12 "Well, the Holy Spirit said to me. 50:14 Well, the Holy Spirit told me. 50:16 Well, God said to me last night. 50:18 Well, God came and told me to give you this message." 50:22 And then, you know, some of the things that 50:23 would come out of people's mouths, 50:25 years later, I would find out 50:26 that's not in harmony with God's Word. 50:28 The Holy Spirit will never ever speak to someone 50:32 and lead them contrary to God's Word 50:34 and that's what this lesson here on Thursday's lesson 50:37 is emphasizing the fact that, you know, 50:40 you can have this spiritualistic experience, 50:44 but it leads you to personal philosophies 50:46 and these secret revelations 50:48 that you think are coming from God, 50:50 but it's not from the Spirit of God. 50:53 I think of Desire of Ages, page 671 notice, 50:56 powerful statement from Desire of Ages, page 671. 51:00 "Through the Scriptures 51:02 the Holy Spirit speaks to the mind." 51:04 How does the Holy Spirit minister us? 51:06 Through the Scriptures. 51:08 "And impresses truth upon the heart. 51:11 Thus He exposes error and expels it from the soul. 51:14 It is by the Spirit of truth." I wanna emphasize that. 51:18 Spirit of truth, never will the Holy Spirit. 51:21 Again, I've said this many times. 51:22 Never will the Holy Spirit, teach you something, 51:25 give you something or share something with you 51:27 that is not in harmony with God's truth. 51:28 That's why it's referred to the spirit of truth. 51:30 Jesus said, "I am the way, the truth, and the life." 51:33 And, of course, Jesus said, you know, "Sanctify them 51:35 by thy truth, thy word is truth." 51:38 This particular quote goes on to say, 51:40 "It is by the Spirit of truth, 51:41 working through the word of God, 51:43 that Christ subdues His chosen people to Himself." 51:47 So, you know, when I hear a brother or sister say, 51:49 you know, the word... 51:50 I did many different evangelistic series 51:53 and, you know, you meet a lot of different people, 51:55 and you give out, you know, 51:56 you send out those public announcements 51:59 that you're gonna have an evangelistic series 52:00 and you invite people, you want people to come, 52:02 but you never know who's gonna show up, 52:04 and what kind of experience you're gonna have? 52:06 One particular experience comes to my mind, 52:08 where I had done a sermon on the Holy Spirit 52:11 and the gifts of the Spirit. 52:12 And in a small portion of that particular sermon, 52:15 I talked about how, you know, 52:16 the gift of speaking in tongues. 52:19 And I noticed this one lady who came, 52:21 she came every night to my evangelistic series, 52:23 but after that particular sermon, 52:24 she didn't come back. 52:26 And so a day or two kind of went by and I thought, 52:27 "Oh, this isn't, this isn't like her." 52:29 So I called her. 52:30 I said, "Hey, you know, we're missing you, 52:31 is everything okay?" 52:33 And she commenced to tell me, 52:34 "Well, I didn't agree with what you said about that 52:35 because I speak in tongues 52:37 and the Holy Spirit speaks through me 52:39 and the Holy Spirit tells me 52:41 that what I've experienced is real." 52:43 And I remember asking her, 52:44 but what if what you're experiencing 52:47 what you're feeling, and these revelations 52:50 that you're receiving from the Spirit of God 52:52 is not in harmony with God's Word. 52:54 And her response didn't surprise me, 52:56 but yet it did. 52:57 Her response was, "Well, I'm not sure exactly 53:00 what all the Bible teaches on this subject, 53:03 but I know what I've experienced. 53:05 And I know what the Holy Spirit has told me, 53:09 even though it's not in harmony with God's Word." 53:10 And so we got to be careful 53:12 because the Bible tells us in 1 John 4:1, 53:16 "Beloved, do not believe every spirit, 53:19 but test the spirits, whether they are of God, 53:22 because many false prophets have gone out into the world." 53:25 We need to make sure that 53:26 the spirit that is ministering to us 53:29 and teaching us and guiding us is that of the Spirit of God 53:31 and that it's in harmony with God's Word. 53:34 There's no doubt in my mind 53:35 that a Spirit spoke to that woman that 53:38 she was experiencing something that was real, 53:41 but it was not of the genuine Spirit of God. 53:46 Just in closing here, 53:50 and also referencing John 16:8, 13-14. 53:54 We learn what the Bible teaches us 53:56 about the Holy Spirit 53:57 and what we can experience from this, 53:59 "But the Helper, the Holy Spirit," 54:00 this is John 14:26, "The Helper, the Holy Spirit, 54:03 whom the Father will send in My name, 54:05 He will teach you all things, 54:07 and bring to your remembrance 54:09 all things that I have said to you." 54:10 Jesus says. 54:12 So He's not gonna send the Holy Spirit and say, 54:13 you know, just going down there and just tell them whatever. 54:15 No, no, no, the Holy Spirit ministers to us 54:17 of the Word of God. 54:19 John 16:8, 13-14 says, "And when He has come, 54:24 He will convict the world of sin, 54:26 and of righteousness, and of judgment. 54:28 However, when He, the Spirit of," there it is, 54:30 "truth, has come, 54:32 He will guide you into all truth, 54:33 for He will not speak of His own authority," 54:36 there it is, "but whatever He hears He will speak, 54:39 and He will tell you things to come. 54:41 He will glorify Me, for He will take of Mine 54:43 and declare it unto you." 54:45 So there's five things here. 54:47 I'm gonna give, I'm gonna use the list here, 54:48 five things in closing really quickly here. 54:50 The Holy Spirit will teach you 54:52 all things according to Christ's Word. 54:54 He will remind you always of God's ways, 54:58 He will reprove that is convict the world of sin, 55:01 He will guide you into all truth, 55:03 and of course, number five, He always will glorify Christ 55:06 by revealing His character to you. 55:08 So the ultimate lesson 55:10 we can learn here is trust in God's Word. 55:12 Go back to the Bible, 55:14 and the Holy Spirit will continue 55:15 to lead you always. 55:16 Amen. Wow, this is powerful lesson. 55:18 I've really, really enjoyed this 55:20 because all these aspects, 55:23 that quote that you made just a moment ago, tradition, 55:25 experience, culture, reason, 55:28 don't put any of those above the Bible. 55:30 Pastor Dinzey, your closing thought? 55:32 My closing thought is from John 17:2, 55:36 "As you have given Him authority over all flesh, 55:40 He should give eternal life 55:42 to as many as You have given him. 55:45 And this is life eternal, that they may know You, 55:47 the only true God, and Jesus Christ 55:50 whom You have sent." 55:51 Enter into the experience of knowing 55:54 the Father and the Son, and you have eternal life. 55:57 That's right. Thank you. Pastor Kenny? 55:58 Just a quick thought on the Counsels to Parents 56:00 and Teachers, page 323, it says, 56:02 "The followers of Christ are to be separate 56:04 from the world in principle and interests, 56:07 but they are not to isolate themselves 56:09 from the world. 56:11 The Savior mingled constantly with men, 56:13 to uplift and ennoble them." 56:15 That's right. Amen. 56:17 Psalm 119:105, we know the scripture, 56:22 "Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path." 56:26 God's Word illumines our reason, 56:29 our mind, our intellect to enable us to understand 56:33 and share that Word with others. 56:35 That's right. Powerful. 56:36 There was a particular message in Thursday's lesson that 56:41 I just wanna read again, it's powerful. 56:43 It says, "The Holy Spirit should never be understood 56:47 to replace the Word of God." 56:50 And that makes perfect sense because it works in harmony 56:52 with the Word of God, right? 56:53 Rather, as it says, "He works in harmony with 56:56 and through the Bible to draw us to Christ, 56:58 thus making the Bible the only norm 57:01 for authentic biblical spirituality." 57:04 Wow, this lesson is one and I thought, 57:07 I wondered to myself where is this lesson going? 57:10 But if you look at 57:12 what we've just talked about tradition, 57:14 experience, culture, reason, 57:17 all are subject to the Word of God. 57:19 That's right. Amen. 57:21 I've met so many people, Ryan, I was really listening 57:23 from an evangelistic perspective, 57:24 and it's so true. 57:26 The wall against accepting truth 57:27 has been all these categories, 57:29 but I know what the Spirit said to me, 57:31 well, my culture doesn't fit. 57:32 Well, I mean, I've experienced certain things 57:34 that you also experience so this must be 57:36 from the Spirit of God. 57:37 Well, I'm not sure about that. 57:39 Let me see what's the reason I should keep the Sabbath? 57:41 It all comes back to the Word of God. 57:43 So all things are from the Word of God, 57:46 "Sanctify them by Your truth. 57:48 Your word is truth." John 17:17. 57:50 Join us next time 57:52 for the following study lesson number five, 57:54 By Scripture Alone-Sola Scriptura. 57:57 May the Lord bless you, tradition, experience, culture, 58:00 reason, may it all lead you to know Christ. 58:02 Amen. 58:04 Amen. |
Revised 2020-04-23