Participants:
Series Code: SSP
Program Code: SSP220013S
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00:01 Hello, friends, welcome to 3ABN Sabbath School Panel.
00:03 If you've been following us this quarter 00:05 through the Book of Hebrews, 00:06 you know this is our last lesson 00:09 in the series of 13 lessons for this quarter 00:11 and we have enjoyed tremendously 00:14 the walk through God's Word 00:15 learning as we've gone along the way 00:18 and we hope that you have been blessed. 00:20 Our final lesson is entitled Let Brotherly Love Continue. 00:24 And the theme has been In These Last Days 00:27 The Message of Hebrews, 00:29 I hope you've received that message, 00:30 but if you'd like to get a copy of the lesson to follow along, 00:32 go to 3abnsabbathschoolpanel.com 00:35 and download the lesson or, better yet, 00:38 go to your local Seventh-day Adventist Church and join them 00:41 in an exciting study face to face with brothers 00:44 and sisters in Christ. 00:45 All you need is a Bible and an open heart. 00:48 So don't go away. 00:49 Join us in just a moment for our final study once again, 00:52 Let Brotherly Love Continue. 01:25 Hello, welcome to 3ABN Sabbath School Panel. 01:27 Thank you for joining us for our final lesson 01:29 in the series of 13 01:31 and if you've been following us, 01:33 this has been an exciting journey, has it not been? 01:35 Amen. Amen. 01:37 We've all learned something 01:38 and we pray that you have been able to glean something 01:41 from the study that we have undertaken. 01:43 We've done our homework, but we've discovered 01:44 that the books of the Bible are like deep oceans, 01:48 it's always replete with something more to teach us. 01:51 And today is also a very exciting lesson, 01:54 Let Brotherly Love Continue. 01:56 You know a lot of us are Christians, 01:58 and some of you are learning about Christ, 02:01 but the pinnacle of the examination 02:03 of whether or not we have passed from death to life, 02:07 is if we love our brethren. 02:08 The Bible says you know 02:09 that you passed from death to life 02:12 if you love your brethren. 02:13 We're going to talk about brotherly love today 02:15 in five different facets. 02:17 But let me introduce you to our panelists. 02:19 To my immediate left. Ryan, good to have you here. 02:21 Ryan Day, the singer in Israel. 02:23 Yeah, it's a blessing to be a part of this panel. 02:25 That's right. You should be here before the program begins. 02:27 He's always singing. We love it though. 02:29 We do. We always love it. 02:31 John Dinzey, good to have you here today. 02:33 It's a blessing to be here. 02:34 I have Tuesday, Remember Your Leaders. 02:36 Okay. And John has a lot of mileage on all of us. 02:40 Jill, the only lady today. 02:42 Good to have you here, Jill. Thank you, Pastor John. 02:44 I'm looking Wednesday, Beware of Diverse 02:46 and Strange Teachings. 02:48 Oh, wow. That's gonna be good. 02:49 And, James, good to have you here. 02:51 Good to be here, John. 02:52 I have Thursday's lesson, Go to Jesus Outside the Camp. 02:55 Wow. Go to Jesus outside the camp. 02:57 Would you begin with prayer for us? 02:59 Absolutely. Let's pray. 03:00 Father in heaven, thank You so much for Jesus 03:02 and thank You that He was willing 03:04 to be outside the camp. 03:06 We're asking now that You'll guide our hearts 03:08 and the hearts of those who are viewing 03:10 that You will send Your Spirit to teach us, 03:13 to instruct us as to what it means 03:15 to love one another as You've loved us. 03:19 We ask this in Jesus' name. 03:20 Amen. Amen. 03:23 You know love songwriters many years ago I remember the song. 03:27 I think it was Dionne Warwick sang it. 03:28 She sang what the world needs now is love sweet love. 03:31 It's the only thing that there's just too little love. 03:35 Well, that is in harmony with the Word of God. 03:38 Do you know the mark of a Christian 03:39 is his or her ability to love in all circumstances 03:43 under every situation. 03:45 And the world has tried its best to break 03:48 our evidentiary connection 03:53 with Christ. 03:54 And that is loving at all times, 03:56 loving in the moments when we don't feel like loving, 03:59 loving at moments when our lives are being sapped 04:02 in the energies of allegiance to God is being challenged. 04:06 But we'll find out today that it is true 04:10 that through all the moments of life through Christ, 04:14 the love that He has given to us can continue to shine. 04:17 The memory text is a very short one. 04:20 Hebrews 13:1 and I want to tell you, 04:23 let's see if you could say with me, 04:24 Let brotherly love continue. 04:26 Let's try that together. Let brotherly love continue. 04:30 Can't forget that. 04:31 That should be a slogan on a hat 04:33 or on the back of a shirt, let brotherly love continue. 04:37 I heard a saying that I included in my lesson today, 04:42 Mahatma Gandhi. 04:43 I'm familiar with his story. 04:45 Growing up I read one of the books 04:47 that talked about his journey 04:49 as to why he accepted the religion that he did 04:51 and became so well-known for his stance religiously. 04:54 But he said I spent some time in the home of Christians 04:58 and I did not like the way they loved each other, 05:00 they showed such hostility 05:02 and I determined I don't want to be a part of that religion 05:05 and he turned his back on Christ. 05:07 But in his choice of his religious walk in life, 05:12 he said, 05:13 whenever you are confronted with an opponent, 05:16 conquer him with love. 05:18 I thought, how profound because it lines up 05:21 with the very principle in scriptures. 05:23 Let brotherly love continue. 05:26 Hebrews 13, 05:28 presents the apostles concluding admonition, 05:31 and we've gone through the better sacrifices, 05:34 we've gone through ordinances, 05:36 we've gone through the blood sacrifices, 05:38 we've talked about the temple and as all the services, 05:41 the Priesthood of Christ, 05:42 now he's, he's putting all that together 05:45 in the beautiful package, saying, simply, 05:48 Jesus was willing to do all of that, 05:50 because of His love for us 05:52 and we should follow His example, 05:54 and be willing to do all that it takes, 05:56 the greatest sacrifice we could make. 05:58 As Christ made the greatest sacrifice for us 06:00 should be because we love our brethren. 06:02 We find, the author talks about this in the lesson he says, 06:06 the author does not conceive of the audience... 06:10 Let me read that again. 06:12 The author does not conceive of the audience 06:15 only as a group of individuals who works on their salvation, 06:20 and a one-to-one relationship with Jesus, 06:22 but as a family or household saved together. 06:26 And he says Paul has characterized 06:28 the work of Jesus for us as brotherly love. 06:33 He was not ashamed to call them brothers, 06:36 he calls us brothers, 06:38 thus believers should do for one another 06:41 what Jesus did for them. 06:43 Now I didn't number the takeaways, Jill, 06:45 but I have a number of them. 06:46 And I like to begin with Hebrews 13:3. 06:49 And I'd like to title this, Remember the Mistreated. 06:54 There are many people today that are mistreated. 06:56 I was at an academy once I was doing worship for them, 06:59 a week of prayer for the weekend revival. 07:02 And when I walked into the room, 07:05 I was trying to figure out how to get the attention 07:07 of these young people. 07:09 And I made the statement, I said, 07:10 I'm going to only say this once. 07:12 I'm going to give you my phone number 07:13 and the first person to text me 07:14 is going to get the money in my right pocket. 07:17 I said it once 07:18 and all the students hurriedly took out their phones 07:21 and started texting as quickly as they could. 07:23 And I said at the end of our weekend, 07:24 I will reveal who the winner is. 07:26 What was so amazing, the guy who won was a young man 07:30 who on campus was mistreated. 07:33 He wasn't involved, the boys picked on him. 07:36 And when I mentioned his name, 07:38 the young ladies just screamed and they said it's 07:41 and they mentioned his name. 07:42 And I said why did you guys respond that way? 07:44 They said, he's the guy that's always left out, 07:47 always overlooked, always picked on, 07:49 always mistreated, 07:51 and I was so excited to bring him up. 07:52 I said I didn't tell you how much is in my pocket 07:55 but whatever was there on Friday, 07:56 I'll give it to you today. 07:58 And everybody just stood up and clapped 07:59 because he was the one that was mistreated. 08:02 The Bible says in Hebrews 13:3 08:06 these words about remembering the mistreated. 08:09 Remember the prisoners has have chained with them. 08:14 Those who are mistreated, 08:15 since you yourself are in the body also. 08:19 What is he saying? 08:21 He says, you know, at the flip of a coin 08:23 your life can go from miraculous to miserable. 08:27 Your life can switch on a dime. 08:30 You can wonder how did I get here? 08:31 I went to visit one of our, many years ago, 08:34 one of the church members here actually, 08:36 no longer living here is in South America now. 08:39 And I went to visit him in the local county jail 08:41 and I said, "What happened?" 08:43 He said, "I just lost it. I just blew it. 08:47 I'm guilty. 08:49 I just blew it." 08:51 And because of, 08:52 because it was his first offense, 08:54 they let him go three days later. 08:55 And I was so thankful for that. 08:57 He was so excited, so energetic, 08:58 but somebody stepped on this property. 09:01 And his reaction to them was just so off-color, 09:04 that they accused him of something 09:06 that got him arrested, but he was in jail 09:10 and I thought if I were behind the bars, 09:12 what would I want my pastor to say to me now, 09:15 good for you. 09:16 I told you, you shouldn't do that. 09:18 No, or what I say, you know, the Lord is with you. 09:20 It'll be okay. 09:22 And I prayed with him and praise the Lord, 09:23 two days later, he was let free, 09:25 and they didn't even press any further charges. 09:27 But we have to love others 09:28 as though we are also prisoners in chains. 09:31 Hebrews 10:24-25. 09:34 Let's look at this one. 09:35 Also remember the overlooked. 09:40 Verse 24, 09:41 "And let us consider one another 09:43 in order to stir up love and good works, 09:45 not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, 09:49 as is the manner of some, 09:50 but exhorting one another and so much more 09:53 as you see the Day approaching." 09:55 What I say we have fellowship lunch, 09:57 people call it potluck, I said, 09:59 "It's first about fellowship, then it's about food." 10:02 If you focus on the food alone, you miss the fellowship. 10:05 Sometimes it's in the fellowship 10:07 that we get to understand 10:09 the struggles in people's lives. 10:10 I know some of you have struggles 10:12 and what people want more than anything else 10:14 is not that people condemn them in the time of their struggle, 10:17 but that they could simply have a listening ear. 10:19 Sometimes you don't have to give any advice. 10:22 You don't have to give any counsel, 10:23 sometimes all people want to know 10:25 is while I'm being overlooked in life, 10:27 there's somebody who's concerned 10:29 about the way I feel, or what I'm going through. 10:31 We also find the third one in Hebrews 12:15-17, 10:36 guard against the roots of bitterness springing up in you. 10:39 Hebrews 12:15, "Looking carefully, 10:43 lest anyone fall short of the grace of God, 10:46 lest any root of bitterness springing up causes trouble, 10:51 and by this many become defiled." 10:54 Verse 16, "Lest there be any fornicator 10:57 or profane person like Esau, 11:00 who for one morsel of food sold his birthright. 11:04 Verse 17, "For you know that afterward 11:07 when he wanted to inherit the blessing, 11:10 he was rejected, 11:11 for he found no place for repentance, 11:14 though he sought it diligently with tears." 11:17 He forfeited something for selfish reasons 11:20 and then became bitter. 11:22 There a lot of people that are bitter. 11:23 I talk to people on the phone sometimes, 11:25 and they find every reason to just not like the church 11:29 and I say to them, 11:30 "You are whitewashing the entire church 11:32 and its membership and all the pastors 11:33 with that statement. 11:35 You know, brother, sister, 11:36 I think you need to re-examine your heart, 11:38 because I've been around the world, 11:39 and that church can't be as bad as you say it is." 11:43 And so, sometimes people have experiences 11:44 that throw them into that root of bitterness, 11:47 and they begin to see everything the very same way. 11:49 So be careful when you are faced with adversity, 11:52 don't allow the root of bitterness. 11:55 As I've said, confront the issues of your life, 11:57 lest they become the issues of your mind 11:59 and then reveal themselves through the words 12:01 of your mouth. 12:03 The next one Paul encourages us to do is be hospitable. 12:07 Hebrews 13:2, be hospitable. 12:10 It says, "Do not forget to entertain strangers, 12:14 for by so doing some have unwittingly 12:16 entertained angels." 12:18 I may not cover all mine, but I've got to tell the story. 12:20 Once my wife and I and her cousin 12:22 were driving down from Maryland to Florida, 12:24 and it was snowing, heavily snowing, 12:27 and we were on route 95, going down to Florida, 12:29 and we saw a guy on the side of the road, it was snowing. 12:32 And he had an overcoat, he didn't even have on a hat. 12:34 He had his neck covered. 12:35 And we passed him all I think about 60 miles an hour. 12:38 And we just saw the snow blowing. 12:41 I said stop, stop the car and it was not my car, 12:45 it was my wife's cousin's car. 12:47 She said, "What are you going to do?" 12:48 I said, "Let's give that guy a ride." 12:50 She said, "He's wet. 12:52 He's covered in snow." 12:53 "That's okay, put a blanket on the seat. 12:55 Let's give him a ride." And we invited him in the car. 12:57 He sat in the backseat. It was three of us. 13:00 He didn't smell the best, but he wasn't bad. 13:03 It's just the sweat of just being out there in the snow 13:05 and the wetness of the rain. 13:07 And we asked him, "Where are you going?" 13:09 And we took him south of the border, 13:11 took them at a rest area, gave him some money, 13:13 and let him out of the car. 13:15 I don't know if that wasn't an angel. 13:16 I have no idea. 13:18 But when he got on the car, we had some food. 13:19 We gave him something to eat something to drink 13:21 and he leaned his head on the window 13:23 and he fell asleep and was no problem to us 13:25 for the next three or 400 miles. 13:28 Don't be unmindful. 13:32 Be mindful that sometimes the Lord may come to you 13:35 in the person of a stranger. 13:36 Remember this as much as you done it to the least 13:38 of these you've done it to Me. 13:40 Be hospitable, but also because I'm married. 13:42 This one is important. 13:43 Hebrews 13:4, honor your marriage. 13:46 Marriage is honorable among all and the bed undefiled, 13:50 but fornicators and adulterers God will judge. 13:54 Honor your marriage. 13:55 It is the highest example of your relationship 13:58 between the Lord and you and your spouse and you. 14:02 And lastly, avoid covetousness. 14:05 Hebrews 13:5-6, 14:07 let your conduct be without covetousness, 14:10 be content with such things as you have 14:14 for He himself has said 14:15 I will never leave you nor forsake you. 14:18 So we may boldly say the Lord is my helper. 14:21 I will not fear, what can man do to me. 14:25 Ryan? Amen. 14:26 Well, you got right in those are my lesson, 14:29 my brother, that you set it up very nicely, actually. 14:32 I'm Ryan Day, I have Monday's lesson 14:34 which is entitled Covetousness and Sexual Immorality. 14:38 And I just want to say 14:39 if there are any innocent ears laying around, 14:43 you might want to ask him to leave the room. 14:44 I don't know that's your choice, 14:45 but we're going to be talking about some sensitive things. 14:49 Hebrews 13:4-5, pastor just read them. 14:53 Let's go right there and read that again 14:55 because this sets us up nicely. 14:57 Hebrews 13:4-5, 14:59 "Marriage is honorable among all, 15:02 and the bed undefiled, 15:03 but fornicators and adulterers God will judge. 15:07 Let your conduct be without covetousness, 15:10 be content with such things as you have, 15:14 for he himself has said 15:15 I will never leave you nor forsake you." 15:19 We're also going to jump over 15:21 to Luke 16:10-18, 15:25 and also 1 Corinthians 5:1. 15:28 So, James, why don't you take 15:30 and read for us 1 Corinthians 5:1. 15:34 And, Jill, could you help us read Luke 16:10-18? 15:38 I got it. So Luke, yeah, go ahead and just read this. 15:40 Luke 16:10-18? Yes. 15:42 "He who is faithful in what is least 15:43 is faithful also in much, 15:45 he who is unjust in what is least 15:47 is unjust also in much. 15:49 Therefore if you have not been faithful 15:52 in the unrighteous mammon, 15:53 who will commit to your trust for true riches? 15:56 And if you have not been faithful 15:57 in what is another man's, 15:59 who will give you what is your own? 16:01 No servant can serve two masters, 16:04 for He will either hate the one and love the other, 16:06 or else he will be loyal to the one 16:08 and despise the other. 16:09 You cannot serve God and mammon. 16:13 Now the Pharisees who were lovers of money, 16:15 also heard all these things, and they derided Him. 16:18 And He said to them, 16:20 'You are those who justify yourselves before men, 16:22 but God knows your hearts. 16:24 For what is highly esteemed among men 16:27 is an abomination in the sight of God. 16:30 The law and the prophets were until John. 16:32 Since that time the kingdom of God has been preached, 16:34 and everyone is pressing into it. 16:37 And it is easier for heaven and earth 16:39 to pass away than for one title of the law to fail. 16:42 Whoever divorces his wife 16:44 and marries another commits adultery, 16:47 and whoever marries her 16:49 who is divorced from her husband commits adultery." 16:52 All right, so we're establishing a pattern here. 16:54 James, I gave you 1 Corinthians 5:1, 16:57 while he's about to read that, Pastor Dinzey, 16:59 would you have Colossians 3:5. 17:02 So, James, go ahead and read for us, 1 Corinthians 5:1. 17:05 All right, 1 Corinthians 5:1, 17:06 "It is reported commonly that there is fornication among you, 17:10 and such fornication as is not so much as named 17:13 among the Gentiles, 17:14 that one should have his father's wife." 17:17 Okay, so you'll see among all of these passages 17:20 while Pastor Dinzey is finding Colossians 3:5, 17:23 I'm going to read Ephesians 5:3-5, 17:25 you start to see a pattern among these passages. 17:27 So Ephesians 5:3-5, it says, 17:30 "But fornication and all uncleanness or covetousness, 17:34 let it not even be named among you, 17:36 as it's fitting for saints, neither filthiness, 17:40 nor foolish talking, nor coarse jesting, 17:42 which are not fitting, but rather giving of things. 17:45 For this you know, that no fornicator, 17:48 unclean person nor covetous man, 17:51 who is an idolater has an inheritance 17:54 in the kingdom of Christ and God. 17:56 And we match that with Colossians 3:5 which says... 17:59 "Therefore put to death your members which are on the earth: 18:03 fornication, uncleanness, passion, evil desire, 18:07 and covetousness, which is idolatry." 18:10 Okay. 18:11 So, obviously, Paul warns the readers 18:13 against sexual immorality and greed, 18:16 because they were two grave threats 18:19 to brotherly love as pastor just brought up very clearly. 18:22 In fact, New Testament authors 18:24 and ancient moralists noted a connection between them. 18:27 And, of course, this falls under the banner. 18:29 If we go over to 1 John 2:16-17, 18:34 this falls under the banner of those three great sins 18:37 that affect us in life entirely. 18:39 All sins fall under these three categories. 18:42 So this is 1 John 2:16-17, "For all that is in the world, 18:46 the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes, 18:48 and the pride of life is not of the Father 18:50 but is of the world. 18:51 And the world is passing away, and the lust of it, 18:53 but he who does the will of God abides forever." 18:56 The lust of the eyes, the lust of the flesh, 18:59 and the pride of life. 19:00 These things fall under those categories, my friends. 19:03 Paul calls honor in marriage implied the avoidance 19:07 of anything that would belittle it, 19:09 the avoidance including abstaining both from violation 19:12 of the marriage oath and from unwarranted divorces. 19:15 The exhortation to keep the marriage bed 19:18 undefiled refers to avoiding the profanation 19:22 of marriage through sexual relationships 19:25 outside of marriage. 19:27 The expression fornicators refers to the New Testament 19:30 to every form of sexual immorality. 19:34 In addition, Greco-Roman societies this, of course, 19:37 in Paul's day was lacks in regard to sexual ethics. 19:40 A double standard was common. 19:42 This allowed men license in their sexual relationships 19:45 as long as they were discreet. 19:47 Paul warns, however, that God will judge adulterers. 19:50 Believers should not let social conventions 19:52 establish their own ethical standard. 19:55 You know, I was doing some research on this, 19:57 you know, we live in a world where it's an understatement 20:01 to say that our world has become over-sexualized. 20:04 I mean, it's flooding us at every corner, 20:07 but I was just looking at some statistics on this 20:09 and it's amazing how, 20:11 you know, you look from how societies mentality 20:14 on sexual orientation, 20:16 the practices of certain sexual practices, 20:19 how it's completely changed over the years. 20:21 In fact, I saw recent studies 20:24 and a recent statistical report, 65 to 70% 20:28 of Americans believe that it's not a moral issue 20:31 to have premarital sex. 20:34 This is a culmination of many studies 20:36 that have been done over the years. 20:37 But 65 to 70, that's the vast majority think that it's okay. 20:42 In fact, I found one that said it's okay. 20:44 Many of this group of the 65 to 70% 20:47 reported that it's no problem at all if a 16-year-old decides 20:50 that they want to have sex outside of marriage. 20:54 Recent polls show that more than 72% 20:56 of American citizens believe that the LGBTQ movement 20:59 is a great thing. 21:01 So America has changed. 21:02 We know the world, in general, has changed. 21:04 In regards to divorce again, 21:06 this idea of not committing adultery, 21:08 sexual immorality pertaining to the sanctity of marriage, 21:12 the Bible says God will not be mocked, 21:13 my friends, we have to uphold the sanctity 21:15 and the sacredness of marriage that God instituted. 21:18 Over more than 115 studies done over recent years, 21:22 all the way up to the year 2020, almost 50%. 21:26 This is what the statistics show, 21:27 almost 50% of marriages in the United States 21:30 will end in divorce or separation. 21:33 Researchers estimate that 41% of all first marriages 21:36 end in divorce. 21:38 60% of second marriages end in divorce. 21:40 73% of all third marriages end in divorce. 21:44 Every 13 seconds there was one divorce in America. 21:48 That equates to 277 divorces per hour, 21:51 6646 divorces per day 21:55 46,523 divorces per week, 21:58 and 2,419,196 divorces per year. 22:02 That means get this, interesting statistic. 22:05 There are non-divorces in the time 22:07 that it takes for a couple to recite their wedding vows, 22:09 which is approximately two minutes. 22:11 Talk about sexual immorality, 22:12 covetousness let's get on that 22:14 because we have little time here. 22:16 You know, the blessing brings out 22:17 that the love of money was one of the main categories 22:19 of vices in the Greco-Roman world. 22:22 In fact, another letter Paul referred to, of course, 22:25 this is referencing 1 Timothy 6:10, 22:27 where he talks about how the love 22:29 of the desire for money is the root of all evil. 22:32 Of course, the defense against the vices and attitude 22:35 that Paul encourages in several epistles 22:37 verse they should he says be content 22:39 with the things that they had. 22:41 Of course, we know Philippians 4:11-12, 22:44 which says very clearly, 22:45 "Not that I speak in regard to need, 22:47 for I have learned that whatever I am, to be content. 22:53 I know how to be abased, he says, 22:55 and I know how to abound. 22:56 Everywhere and in all things I have learned both to be full 22:59 and to be hungry, 23:00 both to abound and to suffer need." 23:02 My friends, we live in a world of more, more, more and more, 23:04 give me more, give me more. 23:05 In fact, I've heard people say all the time. 23:07 In fact, I used to say this, I used to ignorantly say, 23:10 well, if only I had a million dollars, 23:12 or someone says only I had a million dollars. 23:15 Well, there's a reason why you don't have 23:16 that million dollars. 23:18 Because the Bible says that, you know, 23:19 there are some people, 23:21 some people can handle that amount of money, 23:22 and other people can't. 23:23 But the idea is, you know what a lot of people say 23:25 if I only had a million dollars, 23:26 it would change my life. 23:27 Oh, how much greater I would live. 23:29 But the truth is, we live in a world of more, 23:30 and more, and more, and more of greed. 23:32 The idea is, you know, if I had a million dollars, 23:34 then you would want $2 million. 23:35 And if you had $2 million, you'd want $4 million. 23:37 This is the kind of world that we live in today, my friends. 23:40 Then we have also, it's one thing you see this in the world 23:42 we expect this type of mentality in the world. 23:45 But then we have these people out 23:46 here preaching a prosperity gospel, 23:48 saying that, you know, Jesus wants us to be rich. 23:51 We have to be reminded in Matthew 19:23-24, 23:54 Jesus said to the disciples, "Assuredly, 23:56 I say to you that it is hard for a rich man 23:58 to enter the kingdom of heaven. 24:00 And I say again to you, He says, 24:01 it is easier for a camel to go through the eye 24:03 of a needle than a rich man to enter the kingdom of God." 24:06 My friends, we should be content 24:07 with what we have, addressing in this lesson, 24:10 the covetousness, and the sexual immorality, 24:13 you know, at the end of the day, 24:14 especially with this covetousness, 24:16 I just want to end on this text, 24:17 Matthew 6:21-33, 24:19 "For wherever your treasure is Jesus says there your heart 24:21 will be also, but seek first the kingdom 24:25 of God and His righteousness." 24:27 And really this can fall under anything. 24:29 "Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness 24:31 and all these things shall be added to you." 24:34 We serve a God that does not take away, 24:36 He wants to bless you abundantly. 24:37 Let's seek Him and allow Him to add these things to you 24:40 as He sees fit. 24:42 Wow, thank you, Ryan. 24:43 Wow, that was an unpacking if anything else. 24:47 Don't go away, we have three more days, 24:49 we'll be back in just a moment. 24:55 Ever wish you could watch 24:57 a 3ABN Sabbath School Panel again, 24:59 or share it on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter? 25:02 Well, you can by visiting 25:04 3abnsabbathschoolpanel.com 25:07 A clean design makes it easy 25:10 to find the program you're looking for. 25:12 There are also links to the Adult Bible Study Guide 25:15 so you can follow along. 25:17 Sharing is easy. 25:18 Just click share and choose your favorite social media. 25:21 Share a link, save a life for eternity. 25:25 Welcome back to our Sabbath School Panel 25:27 on the title, Let Brotherly Love Continue. 25:30 Pastor Dinzey, now it's your opportunity 25:32 to share with what... 25:33 Share what the Lord has revealed to you. 25:35 Well, yes, we will move to Tuesday. 25:37 Remember Your Leaders is the lesson. 25:40 And the lesson takes the scriptures 25:44 from Hebrews 13:7-17. 25:48 And here you have exhortation to respect 25:50 and obey the leaders of the congregation. 25:53 And it begins with an invitation 25:54 to remember those leaders of the past 25:58 who spoke the Word of God to them. 26:01 And then it closes with obey the leaders in the present. 26:05 Now let's go to Hebrews 13:7, 26:07 "Remember those who rule over you 26:10 who have spoken the Word of God to you 26:13 whose faith follow considering the outcome of their conduct." 26:18 And so here we have a message for the people 26:21 that are reading the Book of Hebrews and for us, 26:24 and it's used as in the past tense 26:27 indicating the things they have done 26:29 and the example we have seen in them. 26:32 Now, I'd like to say something concerning that, 26:35 because this may include leaders who have passed away. 26:39 And this is not in the sense of remembering them 26:42 to idolatry or praying to them, 26:45 as in some religious groups they do, 26:49 this is remembering their example 26:51 and imitate their example, as Paul said, 26:55 "Be imitators of me as I am of Christ." 26:58 So this is the context of what we have here, 27:03 considering the outcome of their conduct. 27:05 Now, here, we have an interesting aspect 27:09 brought out in the lesson, it says, for Paul, 27:11 the greatest act of remembrance and praise is emulation. 27:14 And this is why I brought out this scripture that Paul says 27:17 be imitators of me as I am of Christ. 27:21 I received a call at one time from a man that was saying, 27:26 you know, I have to be thankful for my son 27:30 because I have been telling him for years, 27:32 son, do not smoke as I do 27:36 and finally the son grew to the age 27:40 where he said, dad, now you've been telling me 27:43 for years not to smoke, but you keep doing it, 27:45 you know, you need to stop that 27:47 because I don't want you to die. 27:49 He said, you know, I think God spoke to me 27:52 through my son. 27:53 And so, when we look at an example 27:56 of somebody else, we need to consider it 27:58 and compare to what the Scripture say. 28:01 And if somebody is telling you not to do something, 28:03 and they are doing it, it is not a good example 28:06 and we are not to emulate what they do. 28:10 We are to emulate things 28:11 as we see people do them in Christ. 28:14 Now, it's interesting here that the context also includes 28:20 these leaders and Paul emphasizes, 28:24 looking unto Jesus in Hebrews Chapter 12, 28:26 looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith. 28:30 So it's in the context of Jesus Christ 28:32 as these people follow Jesus, that we are to remember them. 28:36 In Hebrews 13:8, Bible says, 28:40 Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, 28:43 today, and forever. 28:44 He does not change, 28:46 His example is the one we should follow. 28:49 Now notice, verse 9, 28:50 "Do not be carried about with various 28:54 and strange doctrines. 28:56 For it is good that the heart be established by grace, 29:00 not with foods which have not profited 29:02 those who have been occupied with them." 29:05 Now I want to say something here concerning a group 29:07 of people that were following a man that claimed 29:12 to be Jesus Christ in the flesh. 29:14 And for a period of time, 29:15 he claimed to be the Holy Spirit. 29:17 I'm talking about Jose Luis Miranda, 29:20 which was based in Florida, 29:22 who claimed that he was Christ 29:24 and went into bars and was smoking cigars in bars. 29:28 And as the guy was interviewing him, 29:29 he asked him, 29:31 "You know, I'm finding it strange 29:33 that you claim to be Jesus 29:34 and you're sitting here in a bar, 29:36 smoking a cigar and drinking." 29:38 And he says, "I don't see Jesus doing that." 29:40 "Oh, yes, He would." 29:42 Well, this man is gravely mistaken. 29:44 And he was setting a bad example 29:46 and I'm glad they showed that part of this individual 29:49 because the contrast between this man and Jesus Christ 29:54 that we see presented in the scriptures 29:57 is incredibly different. 30:00 And so this man claimed not to die 30:02 and he died several years ago. 30:05 I want to say something else because He also claimed, 30:08 I'm talking about the part where says strange doctrines. 30:10 I had never heard anybody express saying 30:13 that sin does not exist. 30:16 There's no such thing as sin. 30:19 And, of course, the people... 30:21 I remember one young man that was present 30:23 that talked about in this group. 30:26 He called his father and he said, "Dad, 30:28 I am so happy." 30:30 "Oh, that's great son, why are you happy?" 30:32 "Because my pastor said that sin does not exist anymore." 30:37 And I was shocked when I was told this. 30:40 The Bible says that the wages of sin is death. 30:45 Do we make void the law through faith? 30:48 No, Paul says we establish the law. 30:51 So do not be carried about by strange doctrines, 30:55 we should be studying the scriptures 30:57 that we may show ourselves approved unto God, 31:00 rightly dividing the word of truth. 31:02 Let's go to verse 10. 31:04 Hebrews 13:10, 31:05 "We have an altar from which those who serve 31:08 the tabernacle have no right to eat." 31:11 It seems to be that during this time, 31:13 there were some sacrifices 31:15 being still offered in the temple, 31:17 even though Christ had already died on the cross, 31:21 and the veil was torn from top to bottom. 31:26 Those sacrifices were to cease with the death of Christ 31:29 because Christ fulfilled all of the sacrificial system. 31:34 But it says here we have an altar 31:37 from which those who served the tabernacle 31:39 have no right to eat for the bodies 31:42 of those animals whose blood is brought into the sanctuary 31:45 by the high priests for sin are burned outside the camp. 31:48 Therefore, Jesus also that He might sanctify the people 31:51 with His own blood suffered outside 31:54 the gate and so Jesus Christ, 31:57 our lamb, the Lamb of God, 32:00 which takes away the sin of the world. 32:01 This is the once for all sacrifice. 32:05 And I'm bringing you a quote from the Sabbath School lesson 32:09 from 1948 concerning this scripture. 32:12 He says, let the student note carefully 32:14 the contrast here presented. 32:16 When the blood was carried into the sanctuary, 32:18 the body was burned without the camp, 32:20 Christ, blood was carried into the sanctuary, 32:23 therefore He must suffer without the gate, 32:25 Hebrews 9:11-12. 32:27 In such cases, the flesh must not be eaten, 32:30 Hebrews 13:10. 32:32 Yet Christ says, take, eat, this is My body, 32:35 Matthew 26:26. 32:37 This is the altar which we have or which we may eat, 32:41 but which was forbidden. 32:43 Those of old we can partake of His body 32:45 and blood symbolically in the sacraments 32:48 of the Lord's Supper which they could not do, 32:50 which serve the tabernacle. 32:52 Very interesting thought brought out here 32:54 in this Sabbath School quarterly 32:56 from 1948 that covered the same Book of Hebrews. 33:00 Now we can move to Hebrews 13:13. 33:03 "Therefore let us go forth to Him, 33:05 outside the camp, bearing His reproach. 33:07 Notice verse 14, 33:08 "For here we have no continuing city, 33:13 but we seek the one to come." 33:15 The Christian is ever to keep before him 33:17 that this world is not our final home. 33:21 In its present condition, we have a New Jerusalem, 33:24 which will be the place for God's children 33:29 and the new earth. 33:30 Here we have no continuing city. 33:32 Be careful what roots you are putting down in this world. 33:36 Be careful because Satan is very deceptive 33:40 and will try to deceive you. 33:41 It could be with money, 33:43 it could be with an illicit relationship, 33:46 or appeals for some position, 33:50 be careful not to be carried away not with strange doctrines 33:54 or even the wickedness of this world. 33:56 Verse 15, "Therefore by Him, 33:58 let us continually offer the sacrifice of praise to God, 34:03 that is, the fruit of our lips, 34:05 giving thanks to His name." 34:07 We have much 34:09 to be thankful for. 34:13 Notice this message from the book, 34:15 Christ's Object Lesson, 299. 34:18 I love what is written here. 34:20 And it says, To praise God in fullness 34:23 and sincerity of heart 34:25 is as much a duty as his prayer. 34:28 We are to show to the world 34:31 and to all the heavenly intelligences 34:34 that we appreciate the wonderful love 34:37 of God for fallen humanity 34:39 and that we are expecting larger and yet larger blessings 34:42 from His infinite fullness far more than we do. 34:47 We need to speak of the precious chapters 34:50 in our experience. 34:51 After a special outpouring of the Holy Spirit, 34:54 our joy in the Lord and our efficiency 34:56 in his service would be greatly increased 34:59 by recounting His goodness 35:01 and His wonderful works in behalf of His children." 35:04 Yes, we are to praise God far more than we do. 35:09 As you have already heard, 35:10 I encourage you to stop and consider 35:13 what great and wonderful things God has done for you today 35:16 and during this past week, and praise the Lord for it. 35:19 Thank the Lord for it. 35:21 Let's move quickly to verse 16 and 17. 35:23 "But do not forget to do good and to share, 35:26 for with such sacrifices God is well pleased." 35:30 These are the sacrifices that we are to offer now. 35:33 And in verse 17, it says, "Obey those who rule over you, 35:36 and be submissive, for they watch for your souls, 35:39 as those who must give account. 35:40 Let them do so with joy and not with grief, 35:43 for that would be unprofitable for you." 35:46 I encourage you to pray for the leaders of the church, 35:49 pray for your pastor, 35:51 his family because Satan wants to cause them 35:55 to fall and stumble. 35:57 This will be of great harm to the church. 36:00 So pray for your pastors, 36:02 and pray for the leaders of the church, 36:04 that God may be all in all. 36:06 Amen. Thank you so much, Pastor John, each one of you. 36:09 Can't believe we are at the end of our study on Hebrews. 36:13 My name is Jill Morikone, I have Wednesday's lesson, 36:16 which is Beware of Diverse and Strange Teachings. 36:21 I only have one verse in the section Hebrews 13. 36:23 Let's take a look at it now. 36:25 We're going to Hebrews 13:9. 36:27 Pastor Johnny already read it, 36:29 but we're going to read it again. 36:30 "Do not be carried about with various and strange doctrines. 36:34 For it is good that the heart be established by grace, 36:37 not with foods 36:39 which has not profited those who have been occupied 36:42 with them." 36:44 Let's talk first of all, what this verse is not about 36:46 and then we can talk what it is about. 36:48 The lesson brought out very clearly that this verse 36:51 is not a discussion of clean and unclean foods. 36:55 That is not the discussion of the Book of Hebrews. 36:58 Hebrews does address animal sacrifices. 37:01 We've covered this very clearly in previous lessons, 37:04 and the fact that they are no longer needed 37:07 because Jesus' sacrifice came once for all. 37:11 Jesus' sacrifice was better, 37:13 His blood spilled cleansed you and I from all sin. 37:18 Hebrews not only does address the fact 37:21 that animal sacrifices are no longer needed, 37:23 but it also addresses 37:25 the Levitical priestly mediation in the sanctuary, 37:29 and that that is no longer needed. 37:33 Jesus priestly mediation is far better. 37:36 He has an unchangeable priesthood. 37:39 Remember the Levitical priesthood, 37:40 they all passed away but Jesus has an unchanging priesthood. 37:45 He can save us to the uttermost. 37:47 So this discussion does not have anything to do with clean 37:50 and unclean meats. 37:52 What is it about though? 37:54 Let's read verse 9 again, 37:56 "Do not be carried about with various and strange doctrines. 38:01 For it is good that the heart be established by grace, 38:03 not with foods 38:05 which have not profited those who have been occupied 38:08 with them." 38:09 Do not be carried about is a present passive imperative 38:15 with a negative particle. 38:17 What in the world is that supposed to mean? 38:20 All it means, it usually means 38:23 to stop an act already in process. 38:26 So in other words, when Paul says, 38:28 do not be carried about with various and strange doctrines, 38:31 he's not warning of something that's going to be happening 38:34 in the future. 38:35 He's saying, it's already going on. 38:37 It is already in process, and what was in process? 38:42 It is good that the heart be established by grace, 38:46 not with foods which have not profited those. 38:50 Paul is criticizing the audience for partaking 38:53 of certain foods with the hope of obtaining grace 38:59 or merit through the food. 39:03 Have you met anybody like that? 39:06 Have you been somebody like that? 39:09 I have been. 39:11 My background, 39:12 I was raised in a Seventh-day Adventist Christian home, 39:15 but I didn't know Jesus growing up. 39:18 And all I knew was do's and don'ts, 39:22 rules and regulations, 39:26 partaking of certain foods or not, 39:29 dressing a certain way or not, 39:31 observing the Sabbath a certain way or not, 39:34 doing a certain thing or not, in order to obtain favor, 39:39 in order to make myself better, in order to have God accept me. 39:45 So I want to talk about the seven dangers of legalism. 39:50 I believe, 39:51 especially in the Seventh-day Adventist Church, 39:54 we can have a danger of falling into the trap of legalism. 39:59 Turn with me to the Book of Luke. 40:01 We're going to Luke Chapter 11, these woes to the scribes 40:04 and Pharisees, the legalists of Jesus' day. 40:09 Danger number one, danger of legalism, 40:11 the danger of an unconverted heart. 40:15 Luke 11:37-40, 40:17 "And as He spoke, this is Jesus, 40:19 a certain Pharisee asked him to dine with him. 40:21 So He went in and sat down to eat. 40:23 When the Pharisee saw it, he marveled 40:26 that He had not first washed before dinner." 40:29 Now, this doesn't mean physical cleanliness. 40:31 This is that ceremonial washing. 40:34 "Then the Lord said to him, 40:35 'Now you Pharisees make the outside of the cup 40:38 and dish clean, 40:39 but your inward part is full of greed and wickedness. 40:43 Foolish ones! 40:44 Did not He who made the outside make the inside also?'" 40:48 You see we can look clean, but be dirty inside. 40:52 We can look holy, but still be sinful. 40:56 We can appear to be righteous, 40:58 while our heart is still unconverted. 41:02 The danger of legalism is the danger 41:04 of an unconverted heart. 41:05 We don't even know the actual state of our heart. 41:09 I believe that Jesus had conflicts 41:11 with the legalists more than any other group 41:13 when He walked this earth. 41:15 You see, it wasn't the adulterers 41:17 that put Him on the cross. 41:18 It wasn't the murderers that put Him on the cross 41:20 or the thieves who put Him on the cross. 41:22 It was the legalists. 41:24 Danger number two, 41:25 the danger of false assurance of salvation. 41:30 We were in Luke 11. 41:31 Let's jump over to Luke Chapter 18, 41:33 this parable that Jesus told. 41:35 Luke 18:9, 41:37 "He spoke this parable to some who trusted in themselves 41:41 that they were righteous and despised others." 41:44 Do you trust in yourself that you're righteous? 41:46 Do you believe that if you do certain things, 41:50 you will be saved? 41:51 If I can only try harder, if I can only do more, 41:55 if I only outwardly comply in this way, 41:59 somehow I will be saved. 42:01 That's the danger of legalism, 42:02 the danger of false assurance of salvation 42:05 because we are saved by grace. 42:08 Through faith, the blood of Jesus is a gift. 42:11 Danger number three, the danger of pride. 42:13 We're still in Luke 18. 42:15 Jump down to verses 11 and 12. 42:18 "The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, 'God, 42:22 I thank you that I am not like other men, extortioners, 42:26 unjust, adulterers, even as this tax collector. 42:29 I fast twice a week, 42:31 I give tithes of all I possess." 42:34 The danger of pride of thinking ourselves superior 42:38 to other people. 42:41 When my sister and I were little 42:42 we would go to church and itty bitty, 42:45 all dressed up like swinging in the pews 42:48 little and people would walk into church and say 42:50 how are the Penny angels doing today? 42:52 Penny was our main name and we would look up 42:55 and smile very sweetly and say we're doing well, 42:57 Happy Sabbath. 42:59 And as soon as they turned away, 43:00 my sister would kick me in the shins under the pew 43:02 because you see, we really weren't doing well. 43:04 And we were mad at each other. 43:05 And we were having this private war 43:07 and we would continue 43:08 until the next person came and say 43:09 how are the Penny angels doing today? 43:12 And we would say, Happy Sabbath, 43:14 we're doing well. 43:15 And they would turn around 43:16 and then I would elbow her in the ribs 43:18 because I was still mad. 43:20 The danger of pride. 43:23 Reason number four, the danger of judging. 43:27 Remember John Chapter 8, we won't turn there 43:29 but the woman caught in adultery, had she sinned? 43:31 Absolutely. 43:33 Had the men who accused her of sin sinned? 43:37 Absolutely. 43:39 We judge other people. 43:42 We have little tolerance for people 43:43 who sin differently than we do. 43:48 Danger number five, the danger of hard-heartedness. 43:50 For this we're in Luke Chapter 10. 43:52 This is the story of the Good Samaritan. 43:55 Remember, he went down from Jerusalem to Jericho. 43:57 We won't read this story but if you pick it up in verse 31. 44:02 We're in Luke 10:31, "Now by chance, 44:04 a certain priest came down that road, 44:06 and when he saw him," 44:08 keep in mind that word saw, 44:10 "he passed by on the other side. 44:12 Likewise, a Levite, 44:13 when he arrived at the place came and looked," 44:16 there's that word again, 44:17 "and passed by on the other side, 44:19 but a certain Samaritan as he journeyed 44:22 came where he was and when he saw him, 44:26 he had compassion." 44:27 In the Greek, all three of those words are the same, 44:31 but they had a vastly different response. 44:34 One looked and went the other way, 44:36 and one looked and passed by on the other side, 44:39 and one looked and had compassion, 44:42 the danger of hard-heartedness. 44:45 Danger number six, 44:46 the danger of hindering someone else's salvation. 44:50 For this, we're going back to Luke 11. 44:52 Luke 11:52, "Woe to you lawyers! 44:56 For you have taken away the key of knowledge 44:58 or that's the knowledge of Salvation. 45:01 You did not enter in yourselves, 45:03 and those who were entering in you hindered." 45:05 To me, this is the biggest danger of all. 45:07 If you're walking in legalism 45:11 that's gonna cost to your salvation, 45:13 you will not be in heaven if you walk in legalism, 45:16 but the danger is, you could cause someone else's salvation. 45:19 You could hinder someone else from experiencing joy in Jesus 45:24 and walking in assurance of salvation, 45:27 the danger of hindering someone else's salvation. 45:30 And finally, danger number seven, 45:31 the danger of inconsistency. 45:35 Luke 11:46, "And He said, 45:38 'Woe to you also, lawyers! 45:39 For you load men with burdens hard to bear, 45:43 and you yourselves do not touch the burdens 45:45 with one of your fingers.'" 45:47 It's a double standard, 45:49 do what I say if not what I do. 45:51 Now we can spend time looking at the dangers of legalism, 45:55 but all we have to do is look to Jesus, 45:56 the author and finisher of our faith, 45:59 know that we are saved by grace through faith, 46:01 know that He empowers us to walk in righteousness, 46:07 to live those righteous works by His grace and by His power. 46:11 Amen. Thank you. 46:12 That was powerful. Thanks for being vulnerable. 46:14 I know all of us can relate to that experience 46:16 to some degree or another. 46:18 My name is James Rafferty, and I have Thursday's lesson 46:20 and it's entitled Go To Jesus Outside the Camp, 46:24 and we're looking at Hebrews 13:10-14, 46:27 we're going to read these verses, 46:29 even though they've been read before. 46:31 "We have an altar, 46:32 whereof they have no right to eat 46:34 which serve the tabernacle." 46:35 Verse 11, "For the bodies of those beasts, 46:37 whose blood is brought into the sanctuary 46:39 by the high priests for sin, are burned without the camp. 46:43 Wherefore Jesus also, verse 12, 46:45 that He might sanctify the people with his own blood, 46:49 not ours, suffered without the gate. 46:51 Let us go forth therefore unto him without the camp, 46:55 bearing his reproach. 46:56 For here we have no continuing city, careful, 47:02 but we seek one to come." 47:05 Again, the lesson quarterly was excellent. 47:08 And so I'm going to read it, I'm going to have to read it. 47:10 It says that the place outside the gate was the most impure 47:14 of the whole camp. 47:15 The carcasses of the sacrificial animals 47:17 were burned there, Leviticus 4:12. 47:19 Lepers were also excluded from the camp, Leviticus 13:46. 47:24 And blasphemers and other criminals were executed there, 47:27 Leviticus 24:10-16 and 23. 47:31 1 Kings 21:13 and Acts 7:58, which is talking about Stephen. 47:36 Stephen was executed outside the camp, which we're gonna... 47:39 It's going to help us to make that transition. 47:41 These regulations presuppose that the presence 47:44 of God was within the camp. 47:46 Anything that was impure was cast outside 47:49 because God was unwilling to see any unclean 47:52 or indecent thing in it. 47:53 Numbers 5:3, Deuteronomy 23:14, 47:57 but Jesus suffered on the cross outside Jerusalem. 48:01 John 19:17-20, 48:03 this emphasizes the shame that was cast upon Him. 48:07 Hebrews 12:2, 48:09 looking unto Jesus, the author, and finisher 48:11 who despised the shame. 48:13 He was officially condemned 48:16 as one who had blasphemed the name 48:19 and therefore was repudiate by Israel, 48:21 and executed outside the wall. 48:23 He blasphemed the name of God, 48:24 according to the Jewish leaders, 48:26 Mark 14:63-64 48:28 and Leviticus 24:11-16. 48:31 Jesus was cast outside the camp as a shameful, 48:36 unclean, or indecent thing. 48:39 Again, Hebrews 12:2, 48:42 Paul, however, exhorts believers 48:45 to follow Jesus outside the gate, 48:49 enduring the shame that He endured, 48:52 Hebrews 12:2, Hebrews 13:13. 48:55 This was also the path Moses followed, 48:58 who chose to bear the approach of Christ 49:00 instead of the treasures of Egypt. 49:02 So we have a paradox here, right? 49:04 We have a paradox because Hebrews is suggesting 49:07 that God's presence is now outside the camp. 49:12 The action of following Jesus outside the camp 49:15 means not only bearing His reproach or shame, 49:18 but also going forth to Him. 49:21 The reason we go outside the camp 49:23 is not just to leave the camp. 49:24 The reason we go outside the camp is to find Jesus. 49:27 Hebrews 13:13. 49:29 Just as those Israelites who sought the Lord 49:31 went outside the camp in the desert 49:33 when Moses was removed, 49:35 when Moses removed God's tent from the camp 49:37 after the golden calf apostasy. 49:39 If you go back to Exodus, 49:41 you find that Moses is asked to actually separate himself 49:44 from that denomination that people 49:46 and God was going to make Moses, 49:48 another mighty nation, a new denomination of Moses. 49:51 No, no, no, he pled for them. 49:52 He said, no cast me out of your book 49:54 if you can't forgive them. 49:55 And so God said, okay, 49:57 I'm going to forgive them but you need to take 49:59 your 10 outside the camp and to seek God, 50:01 they had to go outside the camp. 50:03 This account suggests that the rejection of Jesus 50:06 by unbelievers, 50:07 also implied the rejection of God, 50:11 as Israel did in the golden calf apostasy. 50:14 Thus, and that's Exodus 32 and 33. 50:16 Thus, the path of suffering and shame is also the path to God. 50:22 This is huge when we think about it. 50:25 What does that mean for us who are followers of Jesus? 50:28 What does that mean for us? 50:29 When you look at the history of the Bible, 50:31 what you find is that God's people 50:34 have always been persecuted. 50:36 God's people have always been pushed to the edges. 50:39 You go back to Cain and Abel 50:40 and you follow the history of the church 50:42 but this became even more intense 50:44 after the crucifixion of Jesus. 50:46 Right. 50:47 We're told that in Revelation Chapter 12, 50:49 that, "Rejoice you heavens, 50:50 but woe to the inhabitants of the earth, 50:51 for the devil is come unto you having great wrath, 50:53 because he knows his time is short." 50:56 So when we look at the history of the early church, 50:58 we look at Paul, for example, 51:00 and Peter and we see heavy persecution. 51:03 You know, Jesus is talking to Peter, and he says, 51:05 you know, in the end of your life, 51:07 you're going to be led where you don't want to be led, 51:08 in the end of your life. 51:10 And Peter is like, you now, he has a hard time 51:13 even thinking about persecution, 51:15 but by the time he gets to the end of his life, 51:17 by the grace of God, 51:18 he's not even willing to be crucified 51:20 the way that Christ was crucified. 51:22 He was crucified upside down. 51:24 Paul went through the same experience, 51:26 both of them died around the same time, 51:28 under the sword of Nero. 51:29 Paul was a Roman soldier. 51:31 So he was not allowed to be crucified, 51:33 he was beheaded. 51:34 But you look at the early church, 51:36 persecution, persecution, persecution, persecution, 51:38 all the way down by pagan Rome to papal Rome, 51:42 a transition takes place now with the church. 51:45 And the church seems to gain popularity, 51:47 but the true church has to go underground, 51:49 the persecution is so heavy. 51:51 So you've got one set of people calling themselves Christians. 51:53 They've got the political power, 51:55 hello, and they've got the religious power. 51:57 And then you've got another group of people 51:59 calling themselves Christians, 52:00 and they've got the Holy Spirit power. 52:03 What does the Holy Spirit power cause them to do? 52:05 To endure persecution, to endure shame, 52:08 to endure suffering, 52:09 to go to Jesus outside the camp means 52:11 to receive of His blood, His life, His power, 52:14 and to have strength 52:15 through the time of persecution, 52:17 and that's what the church needed, 52:18 going all the way through the Dark Ages, 52:20 and then you come to the reformers 52:21 and the reformers were the outcasts. 52:22 You know, none of them wanted to leave the church, 52:25 Luther, Melanchthon, Hus, all of them 52:28 wanted to be part of the church, 52:29 but they were pushed 52:31 out because they stood for the Word of God 52:33 for the truth. 52:34 And so the reformers take us all the way to the Millerites. 52:36 And the Millerites went through the same thing, 52:38 they've discovered this great truth, 52:40 and all of a sudden, they're being disfellowshipped 52:41 from their churches, Miller is pointing people 52:45 and as a continuation of the reformation, 52:46 he's pointing people to the soon coming 52:49 of Jesus Christ. 52:50 And, of course, we come down to the very end of time 52:52 when the principles of Christianity are going 52:55 to be manifest in such a way that the whole world 52:58 is going to hate you. 52:59 We had an earlier lesson 53:01 that talked about that historian Tacitus. 53:03 And that historian, 53:05 one of the greatest historians of all time 53:07 talks about the Christians. 53:09 He lived from about AD 56 or 57 to AD 120. 53:14 The lesson says it this way, 53:15 and I love the way it's written, 53:16 I didn't get a chance to share this in the lesson. 53:18 So I'm going back now to December 25 to 31st lesson. 53:22 To bear approach of Christ simply means 53:24 to identify oneself with Christ 53:25 and to endure the shame and abuse 53:27 that this association implied. 53:30 Public animosity against Christians was the result 53:33 of their distinctive religious commitments. 53:37 People can get offended by religious practices 53:39 that they don't understand, 53:41 or by people whose lifestyle of morals 53:43 could make others feel guilty or shamed. 53:48 By the middle of the first century AD, 53:49 Tacitus considered Christians to be guilty 53:53 of "hatred against mankind." 53:57 That was the political line, that was the historical line, 54:00 and that's what they were saying, 54:01 these guys hate mankind. 54:03 Read Matthew 24:9, 54:05 because we're headed in that direction again. 54:06 What were the exact reasons for the charge, 54:09 certainly false? 54:10 Many early Christians such as the one Paul 54:12 had written letters to were suffering for their faith 54:14 because they did not want to pray to or acknowledge 54:18 the gods that protect Rome. 54:21 And they were falsely blamed for the burning of Rome, 54:23 something that was really the fault of Nero, 54:25 the fault of the government was placed upon the Christians. 54:28 They were falsely blamed for those things, 54:31 those calamities that were coming upon the earth. 54:34 We're going to repeat that history. 54:37 And so Hebrews Chapter 13 closes up with this admonition, 54:41 this encouragement, this message 54:43 that all of us need to understand as believers 54:45 and I can't think of a better place for us 54:48 to summarize this than in 2 Timothy Chapter 4. 54:53 2 Timothy Chapter 4, we're going to read verses 16, 54:55 17 and 18. 54:57 This is Paul finishing up his ministry 55:00 for the church, for God. 55:01 Again, Paul was beheaded under the government of his time, 55:05 that he called us to pray for, intercede for, 55:07 and to supplicate in behalf of. 55:09 And Paul says here in 2 Timothy 4:16, 55:12 "At my first answer, no man stood with me, 55:17 but all men forsook me." 55:19 Can you imagine being completely forsaken 55:21 even by your church members? 55:23 Completely forsaken? 55:24 And what does Paul say in the next verse? 55:25 He says I pray God, 55:28 that it may not be led to their charge. 55:30 Are you hearing the man who's connected with Jesus, 55:32 who's gone outside, who's gone to the cross? 55:35 Because that's what that altar represents in Hebrews 13. 55:38 "Notwithstanding the Lord stood by me 55:40 and strengthened me." 55:41 I love that. 55:43 I don't think I put the right emphasis on that 55:44 but we need to. 55:45 "Notwithstanding everyone forsakes us 55:47 the Lord stood with me and strengthened me, 55:50 that by me the preaching might be fully known, 55:53 and that all the Gentiles might hear: 55:55 and I was delivered out of the mouth of the lion." 55:57 And verse 18, "The Lord shall deliver me 56:00 from every evil work and will preserve me 56:03 unto His heavenly kingdom: 56:04 to whom be glory forever and ever. 56:07 Amen. 56:09 When no one stands with us, no one stood with Christ, 56:12 no one stood with Stephen, no one stood with Paul, 56:15 the Lord will stand with us. 56:17 Amen. Amen. Thank you all. 56:19 Ryan, a chance to summarize your day. 56:21 Oh, man, I cannot possibly begin 56:23 to leave this lesson without reading my favorite verse 56:26 one last time. 56:28 Hebrews 12:2, I'm gonna read the last part of verse 1 there, 56:31 it says, "Let us run with endurance the race 56:34 that is set before us." 56:35 Verse 2, "Looking unto Jesus, 56:37 the author and finisher of our faith, 56:38 who for the joy that was set before Him, 56:41 endured the cross, despising the shame 56:43 and has sat down at the right hand of God." 56:46 Johnny? 56:47 I would just like to close by saying, 56:48 remember your leaders, pray for them, 56:51 hold them up before God's throne of grace 56:53 that they may stand firm and preach God's Word. 56:56 Amen. 56:57 Hebrews 13:20, "May the God of peace 56:59 who brought up our Lord Jesus from the dead, 57:01 the great Shepherd of the sheep, 57:02 through the blood of the everlasting covenant, 57:05 make you complete in every good work 57:07 to do His will." 57:09 What an incredible promise. Amen. 57:11 And Hebrews 13:13, 57:13 "Let us go therefore unto him without the camp, 57:17 bearing his reproach." 57:19 Well, thank you all. Thank you, James. 57:20 Thank you, Jill. Thank you, John. 57:22 Thank you, Ryan. 57:23 And thank you all for taking the time to join us. 57:25 We've had an excursion that we cannot even imagine. 57:29 We're going to just sit back and enjoy the afterglow 57:32 of the Book of Hebrews, 57:33 In These Last Days the Message of Hebrews. 57:36 And we pray that the blessing is also been with you. 57:39 I leave 1 Thessalonians 4:9 with you, 57:42 "But concerning brotherly love, 57:45 you have no need that I should write to you. 57:48 Love as God has loved you." 57:50 Next quarter the lesson is on the Book of Genesis 57:53 by Dr. Jacques Doukhan. 57:55 We look forward to seeing you then. 57:57 God bless you. 57:58 Amen. Amen. |
Revised 2022-02-10