Participants:
Series Code: SSP
Program Code: SSP240006S
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00:01 Welcome, children of God, to 3ABN Sabbath School Panel.
00:04 This week we are on lesson number six, which is called, 00:07 I Will Arise. 00:09 And if you want to join us with a Sabbath school quarterly, 00:12 you can get one by downloading it at 00:14 3ABNSabbathSchoolPanel.com 00:17 Or if you would like to head to your local 00:18 Seventh-Adventist church they'd be happy to share one with you. 00:21 Can't wait for what we hear in this study today. 00:53 Welcome back to Sabbath School Panel. 00:55 This week we're on lesson number six. 00:58 I'm Daniel Perrin, and we've been going through the 01:01 book of Psalms, which really takes us from start to finish 01:04 in the Bible, and we're going to see it all. 01:06 This week we've got some really important parts of 01:08 God's character to be revealed. 01:10 So if you've been following along and you'd like to know 01:13 more of how we put together our notes and what we've got, 01:15 then give us an email at... 01:21 And what they'll send you is the notes that we're using here. 01:25 And you can use them for yourself and add to them, 01:28 and let them help you as you think about Sabbath school. 01:30 So we're going to look at who we've got with us today. 01:33 Starting over here to my left we have Jill Morikone. 01:36 Thank you so much, Daniel. I'm delighted to be here. 01:38 On Monday we look at, Justice for the Oppressed. 01:41 ~ Alright, and thank you. And Pastor James. 01:43 ~ Good to be here, Daniel. 01:45 I have Tuesday's lesson, How Long Will You Judge Unjustly? 01:48 Okay. Ryan, you're next. 01:50 Wednesday's lesson is a deep one entitled, 01:53 Pour Out Your Indignation. 01:56 Alright. And Shelley. 01:57 Well I get to lift ours up a little bit. 01:59 Mine is Thursday, The Lord's Judgment and the Sanctuary. 02:05 Alright, from the sound of it, this is going to be a somewhat 02:08 heavy set of topics. 02:09 But I think God will lead us through it. 02:11 Shelley, would you be willing to open us with prayer today? 02:13 ~ I would love to, thank you. 02:16 Our most gracious, loving, heavenly Father, 02:19 help us to always keep our mind aware of Your love, 02:26 and Your righteousness, and Your consistency. 02:30 Lord, now we ask that You would fill us afresh 02:33 with Your Holy Spirit. 02:35 Give us all ears to hear what the Spirit has to say. 02:39 In Christ, we pray, amen. 02:42 Amen. 02:43 So as we look through the lesson this week called, 02:46 I Will Arise, it starts us off with the 02:49 memory text from Psalm 12:5. 02:53 And the text says, "'For the oppression of the poor, 02:57 for the sighing of the needy, now I will arise,' 03:01 says the Lord; 'I will set him in the safety 03:04 for which he yearns.'" 03:06 And so the context of this lesson says we're going to look 03:09 to God, and it's going to be what He does 03:12 in the midst of oppression. 03:15 Psalm 12 starts with the word, "Help." 03:18 Maybe you've cried out, "Help." 03:21 I think the human condition has led every one of us 03:23 at some point to cry out, "Help." 03:26 And I know that as a child, and I've got kids myself, 03:29 they sometimes say, "Help me." 03:31 Sometimes it's something really big. 03:33 And sometimes it's something that I say, 03:35 "Oh you're going to have to figure that out on your own." 03:38 But ultimately I have my eyes on them and I'm going to give them 03:41 the help that they need. 03:43 The word for, "help," there is, "yasha," 03:46 which means to liberate, to save, 03:48 and especially to save in battle. 03:51 In other words, the deliverance that is going to take place 03:54 is going to come with a fight. 03:57 There's going to be something that is going to be in conflict 04:00 with an enemy. 04:02 Now the help that is needed in this chapter 12 of the Psalms 04:06 focuses not on me, but on the oppression of the poor. 04:10 And so this is where we're looking today. 04:12 That word, "oppression," the Hebrew word is, "shod," 04:14 which really deals with devastation, 04:17 destruction, or ruin. 04:20 Oppression isn't just an idea. 04:22 It has results and consequences for real people's lives. 04:27 Looking around at our world today, about 50 million people 04:31 in our world, 50 million are in modern slavery. 04:34 Like full-on slavery. 04:37 And the average cost of a slave in the world today 04:41 is about 90 to 100 dollars US. 04:46 20 million of those 50 million are in debt bondage. 04:50 What that means is, they're free, but not really free. 04:54 They have a debt that they can never pay off, 04:57 so they are locked in bondage to pay this unpayable debt. 05:01 160 million children in the world, children, 05:04 are in child labor. 05:06 In the poorest countries of the world, one in five children 05:09 are involved in some kind of child labor. 05:11 And this is not making their bed in the morning. 05:14 This is making bricks, mining gold, sugar cane, coffee, 05:18 cocoa, cotton, textiles and manufacturing, 05:22 agriculture, and mining. 05:24 All sorts of different industries. 05:27 9.2% of the world's population, that's 720 million people, 05:32 are living in poverty every day with less than $2.15 to live on. 05:39 And it doesn't matter what economy you're in, 05:42 that is next to nothing. 05:43 Most of those usually working for next to nothing 05:46 in the most undesirable positions at the lowest rung 05:50 of the supply chain ladders that we benefit from. 05:55 The Bible tells us that God takes special interest 05:58 in the poor, and the widows, 06:01 and the orphans, and the foreigners. 06:03 Just one statement out of many from Exodus 22:22-25. 06:08 "You shall not afflict any widow or fatherless child." 06:12 This is God speaking, don't hurt the widows or orphans. 06:17 "If you afflict them in any way, and they cry out at all to Me, 06:21 I will surely hear their cry; and My wrath will become hot, 06:26 and I will kill you with the sword; 06:29 your wives shall be widows, and your children fatherless." 06:32 These are words in the Bible. 06:35 God says, "I will personally care for their needs 06:38 when there's no one to care for them." 06:40 These words are strong, we should pay attention to them. 06:44 Israel knew what it was like; oppression. 06:47 At one time or another, they had been either on the giving 06:50 or receiving end of oppression. 06:53 And so the seventh century prophets, 06:55 especially that's Micah, Amos, Hosea, and Isaiah, 06:59 they talk a lot about a wealthy prosperous Israel 07:03 who've joined house to house and field to field. 07:06 And they living at ease, and they have large houses 07:10 hewn out of stone, while they're exacting heavy taxes. 07:12 And the Bible, the prophets, describe them as 07:14 grinding the faces of the poor, oppressing down on the poor, 07:18 buying the poor for a pair of sandals. 07:21 selling them for money or for silver. 07:24 Sunday's lesson. 07:26 The problems associated with oppression needs serious study 07:30 and evaluation in our world today. 07:32 And we need to participate in relieving the needs 07:36 of the suffering, and the needy, and the poor. 07:38 But we are not to turn away from them and simply say, 07:42 "God is going to help them. 07:44 God is going to take care of it." 07:46 We are called to participate with what God is doing. 07:50 So this lesson right here begins with focusing on 07:54 God's role, what God is going to do. 07:56 But we always keep in mind 07:57 that He's inviting us into the process. 08:00 Because sometimes we jump into the problems of poverty, 08:03 or sickness, or things that we think that 08:06 we're going to solve them on our own. 08:08 And while we are supposed to be involved, 08:10 God is ultimately the problem solver that we participate with. 08:14 So He solves, we participate. 08:17 Sunday's lesson looks into Psalm 18, 08:20 especially verses 4-19. 08:23 And this one gets us an up-close picture of the delivering God; 08:27 a majestic warrior. 08:30 Think of this psalm, Psalm 18, as one of those moments 08:33 when the newscaster says, "We've got breaking news. 08:37 A firsthand account here. 08:39 There's a report from someone on the ground." 08:42 So I want you to picture this scene here of someone 08:44 being pulled out into safety. 08:46 They've been rescued from a burning structure, 08:48 or the car pushed off the railroad tracks. 08:51 And right there, the collision was about to happen, 08:54 but at the last moment somebody stepped in 08:57 powerfully and delivered them. 08:58 And so you've got a dramatic rescue, 09:01 and you have someone with exuberance and breathlessness 09:04 pouring out the firsthand details. 09:07 There they are with a fresh wide-eyed memory saying, 09:10 "Here's what happened. I just saw it, I was there." 09:13 Their adrenaline is pumping, their heart rate is elevated, 09:16 and they're speaking probably louder and 09:19 faster than necessary. 09:20 Maybe like me, I feel right now. 09:22 And so we're looking back through the 3000 years 09:25 of history, through the poetry, to a person who speaks this. 09:30 And so when we look at Psalm 18, it actually begins like this. 09:33 Listen to what it says there. 09:36 It says, "...this song on the day that the Lord delivered him 09:40 from the hand of all his enemies..." 09:42 This is David, not years later, but he is now saying this 09:45 in the moment. 09:47 Alright, so we're now looking at Psalm 18, starting with verse 4. 09:50 And this is the firsthand witness. 09:52 Alright, here is it saying this. 09:54 "The pangs of death surrounded me, 09:57 and the floods of ungodliness made me afraid. 10:00 The sorrows of Sheol surrounded me; 10:03 the snares of death confronted me. 10:06 In my distress, I called out to the Lord, 10:09 and cried upon my God. 10:11 He heard my voice from His temple, 10:14 and my cry came before Him, even to His ears. 10:18 Then the earth shook and trembled; 10:22 and the foundations of the hills also quaked and were shaken, 10:26 because He was angry. 10:29 Smoke went up from His nostrils, 10:32 and devouring fire came out of His mouth; 10:34 coals were kindled by it. 10:37 He bowed the heavens also, and He came down 10:40 with darkness under His feet. 10:43 And He rode upon a cherub, and He flew; 10:47 He flew upon the wings of the wind. 10:49 He made darkness His secret place; 10:52 His canopy around Him was dark waters 10:55 and thick clouds of the skies." 10:58 Are you hearing him now? He's telling the experience. 11:01 "Look at what I went through." 11:03 "From the brightness before Him, His thick clouds 11:06 passed with hailstones and coals of fire. 11:10 The Lord thundered from heaven, 11:12 and the Most High uttered His voice, 11:15 hailstones and coals of fire. 11:18 He sent out His arrows and He scattered the foe, 11:23 lightnings in abundance, and He vanquished them. 11:27 Then the channels of the sea were seen, 11:31 the foundations of the world were uncovered..." 11:34 Here he is saying, "Look, remember what they went through? 11:36 Remember what God did for them? 11:38 God did it for me." 11:40 "...at Your rebuke, O Lord..." 11:42 Here he's looking up to God. 11:43 "...at the blast of the breath of Your nostrils. 11:47 He sent from above, He took me; He drew me out of many waters. 11:53 He delivered me from my strong enemy, 11:56 from those who hated me, for they were too strong for me. 12:01 They confronted me in the day of my calamity, 12:05 but the Lord was my support. 12:08 He also brought me out into a broad place; 12:11 He delivered me because He delighted in me." 12:16 And there his testimony has ended. 12:18 And then the camera pans off to the distance, 12:21 and you see the aftermath of what God has done. 12:24 And David here is excited, saying, 12:26 "God, look what He's done for me." 12:28 So here's the message. 12:30 And I hope you have a message like this that you can share 12:33 with someone when they need to hear it. 12:35 "Look at God. 12:37 Let me tell you what He's done for me. 12:39 There was a time in my life when it wasn't like this. 12:42 Oh man, I was facing hard things. 12:45 But look at God and look at what He's done for me." 12:48 This is a primary witness. 12:50 It's not some researcher who's gone through the books 12:53 and said, "Here's some evidence from the past." 12:57 God is powerful and He is good. 13:00 Look what He's done. 13:01 David doesn't take any credit for this. 13:03 He gives all the glory to God. 13:06 And this is the theme through the whole book of Psalms, 13:09 through psalm and through the whole Bible. 13:11 God is the one who is going to bring it to completion. 13:14 Let's take a few more statements, because 13:17 David has got more to say before the camera is off of him. 13:19 Go to verse 31 of Psalm 18. 13:23 "For who is God except the Lord? 13:26 And who is a rock except our God?" 13:29 Nobody else could have done this. 13:32 Verse 46 and 47. 13:34 "The Lord lives. Blessed be my Rock. 13:38 Let the God of my salvation be exalted. 13:41 It is God who avenges me..." 13:44 He says, "I've got to thank my Rescuer." 13:46 And then verse 49 says this: 13:49 "Therefore I will give thanks to You, O Lord, 13:51 among the Gentiles..." 13:53 "I want everybody else to know God is good, 13:56 He will win." 13:57 ~ Amen. Thank you so much. 14:00 Glory, we're having church. I love that. 14:03 God the Majestic Warrior. Thank you, Daniel, for that. 14:07 My name is Jill Morikone. 14:08 On Monday we look at, Justice for the Oppressed. 14:13 Daniel gave us those sobering statistics 14:17 of the people who are oppressed right now in the world. 14:22 I want to start with a question. 14:23 How do we protect and provide justice for the vulnerable 14:29 and the oppressed in society? 14:32 Does this question keep you awake at night? 14:34 I have to be honest with you. 14:36 Sometimes it does me. 14:37 When I look out and I see the people who are broken, 14:42 the people who are lost and alone, 14:45 the people who are in bondage, God, what can I do about it? 14:51 How do we protect those people? 14:53 How do we seek to provide justice? 14:57 First of all, who are the vulnerable in society? 15:00 David refers to them as the poor and the needy, does he not? 15:03 Who are they? 15:04 What about physically vulnerable? 15:06 Are people physically vulnerable? 15:08 That would be people maybe through poverty; 15:10 lack of food, as you talked about, 15:12 lack of education, lack of health care. 15:15 Maybe people who are disabled; 15:17 some sort of deformity or weakness. 15:19 Maybe the orphans. 15:21 They have nobody to take care of them. 15:24 What about a mental or emotional vulnerability? 15:29 These would be people who are abused right now. 15:32 People who are beat down, and bruised, and oppressed. 15:36 These would maybe be people who even are mentally unstable 15:40 or struggle with mental illness. 15:44 These could be children right now who are being trafficked. 15:48 What about people who are spiritually vulnerable? 15:51 People maybe who have a twisted understanding of 15:55 Scripture because their pastor taught them wrongly. 15:58 Or a religious leader held over them 16:01 some sort of God of judgment and oppression, and condemnation. 16:05 People lack understanding of who our God is. 16:10 How do we protect these people? 16:12 How do we provide justice for the vulnerable 16:15 and the oppressed in society? 16:18 Now this lesson is just very practical. 16:20 And I want to give you four steps that I gleaned from 16:23 my study of Psalms and the scriptures 16:25 that we have for my lesson. 16:27 Let's go first to Psalm 9. 16:32 "For the needy shall not always be forgotten; 16:36 the expectation of the poor shall not perish forever." 16:41 Now this could mean people who are experiencing poverty, yes. 16:44 But especially it's talking about the oppressed. 16:47 It occurs over 30 times there in the book of Psalms. 16:51 And it talks about those who are afflicted, 16:53 those who are oppressed, those who are poor. 16:56 This is the fatherless, this is the stranger, this is the widow. 17:00 These are those who need help. 17:02 Step number one, choose to keep these 17:06 people's needs at the forefront. 17:08 You know, it's easy to be like the priest and Levite 17:11 and walk on the other side. 17:13 "I don't have time to get involved." 17:15 "Well, it won't matter if I just help one. 17:17 There's a million others who need help. 17:19 I'm going to harden my heart or become callous to their needs 17:23 and push them aside." 17:25 Or, "I'm too busy doing God's work 17:26 to help this person over here." 17:28 Choose to keep their needs at the forefront. 17:32 Let's look at Psalm 12:5. 17:36 "'For oppression of the poor, for the sighing of the needy, 17:40 now I will arise,' says the Lord. 17:44 'I will set him in the safety for which he yearns.'" 17:49 How is God going to set them in safety 17:51 unless you and I do something about it? 17:54 Psalm 113:7, "He raises the poor out of the dust, 17:59 and lifts the needy out of the ash heap." 18:03 Step number two, you and I need to seek safe places 18:08 to provide for the vulnerable and the oppressed. 18:12 Now what does that look like? 18:13 That looks different for every person. 18:15 Maybe you could financially support 18:17 or pray for those who do provide safe houses, 18:21 safe places for others. 18:23 Maybe God is calling you to step out in a ministry 18:27 to seek to provide a safe place. 18:30 Maybe it's someone who is traveling through 18:32 and who needs a bed for a night, and God says, 18:35 "Open up your home to them tonight." 18:37 Step out of your own comfort zone and reach out and 18:42 help someone else. 18:45 Let's look at Psalm 40:17. 18:48 "But I am poor and needy; yet the Lord thinks upon me. 18:53 You are my help and my deliverer; 18:56 do not delay, O my God." 18:59 Here, he's crying out to God. 19:02 Step number three, you and I need to ask 19:04 for divine assistance. 19:05 We can't seek to help the oppressed, 19:07 we can't seek to provide justice, 19:09 we can't seek to do anything without going to God. 19:13 Clearly, only God is the Majestic Warrior. 19:15 Only He can deliver the oppressed. 19:18 Only He can help the vulnerable. 19:20 But He asks you and I to work in concert with Him. 19:25 We can help, but only God is the one who brings deliverance. 19:29 So go to God and ask Him, "God, what would You have me do?" 19:35 One of my favorite psalms is Psalm 146. 19:38 And we're going to go there. 19:39 This is so practical. 19:41 And I know in the psalm it's talking about God 19:44 and who He is to us, but I think we can 19:47 apply it for us today and how we can reach out 19:49 to the vulnerable and those who are oppressed. 19:52 We'll pick it up in verse 5. 19:57 And all of this goes along with step number four, 19:59 which is, you and I need to find practical ways 20:03 that we can help the oppressed and the vulnerable. 20:06 Verse 5, "Happy is he who has the God of Jacob for his help, 20:10 whose hope is in the Lord his God..." 20:13 God is our helper. 20:16 Verse 6, "...who made heaven and earth, the sea, 20:18 and all that is in them..." 20:20 God is our Creator. 20:23 "...who keeps truth forever..." 20:26 God is unchanging. 20:29 Now it gets really practical for you and me. 20:31 Verse 7, "...who executes justice for the oppressed..." 20:36 Now we can say God is our judge, and that is true. 20:39 But how could you and I find justice for the oppressed? 20:43 Maybe we need to listen and offer support 20:46 to those who are oppressed. 20:48 Maybe we need to go attend a court hearing. 20:52 That's very practical. 20:53 You have someone who is engaged in something, 20:56 you go to the courthouse with them 20:58 and attend that court hearing. 21:00 Maybe... God needs lawyers. 21:03 You could be a lawyer or a judge and execute that judgment 21:08 or seek to defend those who need help. 21:13 Maybe you could be an advocate and raise awareness 21:17 for those who are oppressed. 21:19 Let's keep reading. We're in verse 7. 21:21 "...who gives food to the hungry." 21:23 Now we could say God is our provider, and that is true. 21:27 But in what ways can you provide food to those who are hungry? 21:31 There's an incredible ministry, they've been many times on 21:33 3ABN, they're called SALT. 21:35 Service And Love Together. 21:37 They operate out of Florida. 21:39 And what they do, they have trailers, shower trailers 21:42 for the homeless. 21:44 People come in and can take a shower. 21:46 They provide food and clothing for those who need it. 21:51 And then maybe they go for a job interview 21:53 and seek to get themselves back on their feet. 21:56 Maybe you need to volunteer at a local soup kitchen. 21:59 Or bring food to the homeless or those people who need it most. 22:04 Let's keep reading. We're still in verse 7. 22:07 "The Lord gives freedom to the prisoners." 22:11 So God is ultimately our deliverer. 22:14 But in what way can you and I bring freedom 22:16 to the prisoners? 22:17 3ABN has an incredible prison ministry. 22:20 We mail out thousands of Remnant Study Bibles 22:23 and Andrews Study Bibles to prisoners, 22:25 to those who are incarcerated. 22:27 We provide religious literature to them, we pray with them. 22:31 I have on the set out latest 3ABN Bible study guides. 22:35 And we're giving this in an addition 22:38 that will be glued instead of stapled 22:40 so that it can go into prisons. 22:42 What is God calling you to do to support 22:45 those who are incarcerated? 22:47 Maybe you need to go. 22:49 Maybe you need to pray for them. 22:50 Maybe you need to become involved in prison ministry. 22:54 Let's keep going. Verse 8. 22:56 "The Lord opens the eyes of the blind." 22:58 The Lord is our healer. 23:00 What can you and I do to provide healing? 23:02 Can you pray for those who are sick? 23:05 Can you help provide for the needs of those who struggle 23:08 with health illness? 23:09 Maybe you can become involved in an organization 23:12 that provides free medical care to those who cannot afford it. 23:16 Let's keep going. 23:17 "The Lord raises those who are bowed down." 23:21 God is our encourager. 23:22 Who can you encourage today? 23:25 Who can you send a text to, who can you call? 23:28 Who can you write a letter to? 23:30 How can you intercede for the depressed and the discouraged? 23:34 Who can you invite to your Bible study group? 23:36 Or to go out to lunch with you and try to encourage them. 23:40 Keep reading verse 8. 23:42 "The Lord loves the righteous." 23:44 The Lord is a friend to us. 23:47 Who can you be a friend to today? 23:50 Verse 9, "The Lord watches over the strangers." 23:53 How can you protect those who can't protect themselves? 23:58 There are ministries out there who seek to help 24:01 those who are trafficked. 24:02 Who seek to help those who cannot help themselves. 24:06 "The Lord watches over the stranger, 24:09 and helps the fatherless and widow. 24:11 The Lord turns the way of the wicked upside down." 24:16 We can't do everything, but you can go to God and say, 24:19 "God, what are practical ways that I can seek 24:22 to help the vulnerable in society?" 24:26 Thank you, that was a practical real-world look at the lesson. 24:29 We're going to take a brief break and we'll be right back. 24:36 Ever wish you could study more deeply along with 24:38 the 3ABN Sabbath School Panel members? 24:41 Well, now you can. 24:42 Just send an email request to... 24:47 ...and we'll email you the Sabbath School panelist 24:49 notes on a weekly basis to enhance your 24:51 own study of God's Word. 24:53 That address again is... 24:56 We'd love to send you their notes 24:58 just as they've prepared them. 25:00 Thank you for watching. 25:07 Welcome back. 25:08 We are now passing it on to Pastor James Rafferty 25:10 for Tuesday's lesson. 25:12 Thank you, Daniel. I have Tuesday's lesson. 25:13 How Long Will You Judge Unjustly? 25:17 The lesson quarterly says, "The Lord has endowed 25:19 Israel's leaders with authority to maintain justice in Israel. 25:23 Psalm 72:1-7, 12-14 25:27 Israel's kings were to execute their authority in accordance 25:30 with God's will. 25:32 The leader's central concern should be ensuring 25:35 peace and justice in the land and caring 25:37 for the socially disadvantaged." 25:39 Which we've been talking about with Jill and with Daniel. 25:42 "Only then shall the land and the entire population prosper. 25:46 The king's throne is strengthened by faithfulness 25:49 to God, not by human power." 25:53 So we have Psalm 82. 25:54 We're just going to rest right there in Psalm 82. 25:57 It's going to be our main focus for this lesson. 25:59 We're going to look at some other verses 26:01 in the Bible, but Psalm 82 is going to be our main focus. 26:04 So let's settle in there. 26:06 The question is asked by the lesson quarterly, 26:08 what happens when the leaders pervert justice 26:11 and oppress the people that they are tasked to protect? 26:15 And then we quote Psalm 82. 26:17 These are some difficult passages for me because... 26:20 Well, we'll talk about that in just a second. 26:22 Verse 1, "God stands in the congregation of the mighty; 26:24 He judges among the gods." 26:27 Okay, there's verse 1. 26:28 Verse 2, "How long will ye judge unjustly, 26:32 and accept the persons of the wicked? Selah." 26:34 Verse 3, "Defend the poor and fatherless: 26:36 do justice to the afflicted and needy. 26:39 Deliver the poor and needy: 26:40 rid them out of the hand of the wicked." 26:43 Now verse 5, "They know not, neither will they understand; 26:46 they walk in darkness: all the foundations of the earth 26:49 are out of course." 26:51 Verse 6, "I have said," here it is, "Ye are gods; 26:54 and all of you are children of the Most High." 26:58 Verse 7, "But ye shall die like men, 27:00 and fall like one of the princes." 27:03 Verse 8, "Arise, O God, judge the earth: 27:06 for Thou shalt inherit all nations." 27:09 If you picked up those two verses, verse 1 and verse 6, 27:13 you're going to know that these verses have been difficult, 27:16 at least for me, to understand, you're gods? 27:19 Now it's a small "g". 27:20 Yes it's a small "g", but it's still saying, "Ye are gods." 27:24 You know, "In Psalm 82," the lesson quarterly says, 27:27 "God declares His judgments upon Israel's corrupt judges. 27:31 The 'gods', Psalm 82:1, 6, are clearly neither pagan gods 27:36 nor angels because they were never tasked with delivering 27:39 justice to God's people, and so could not 27:43 be judged for not fulfilling it." 27:45 Well then, who are these gods? 27:47 "The charges listed in Psalm 82:2-4 echo the laws 27:50 of the Torah, identifying the 'gods' as Israel's leaders." 27:56 And then the quarterly quotes Deu 1:16-18, Deu 16:18-20, 28:03 and finally John 10:33-35. 28:08 We're going to look at John 10 because 28:10 this is where Jesus quotes Psalm 82 28:15 in defending Himself as the Son of God. 28:19 The Jews are trying to stone Him. 28:20 "And the Jews said unto Him," verse 33 of John 10, 28:24 "'For a good work, we stone thee not; but for blasphemy; 28:26 because thou being a man maketh thyself a God.' 28:30 Jesus answers, 'Is it not written in your law, 28:34 "I said, 'Ye are gods?'"'" 28:36 Verse 35, "If he called them gods, unto whom the word of God 28:40 came, and the scripture cannot be broken 28:42 say ye of him," that is, "of Me", "whom the Father 28:45 hath sanctified and sent into the world, 28:47 'Thou blasphemist,' because I said I am the Son of God?" 28:51 Now obviously, Jesus is not quoting the psalms 28:53 in reference to this. 28:55 He's quoting the law. 28:56 And so we look in Exodus 22:28. 28:59 Exodus 22:28 says that the judges appointed by God 29:04 are called gods; notice this, verse 28. 29:06 "Thou shalt not revile the gods," comma, 29:10 "nor curse the ruler of thy people." 29:12 So whether we're quoting Exodus 22:28 29:15 or we're quoting Psalm 82:1, 6, we still have three references 29:23 in the Bible that refers to people as gods, small "g". 29:28 I've struggle with this just a little bit over time. 29:31 I've actually wondered if we'd ever get this question 29:33 in a 3ABN Q and A, and how to answer this question. 29:36 It's clear though from the Bible, and the lesson quarterly 29:39 brings this out, that God uses that word, "god," small "g", 29:43 in reference to rulers or judges of the people. 29:47 But why does He do that? 29:49 "Scripture," the lesson quarterly goes on to say, 29:52 unswervingly upholds the view that the Lord is the only God." 29:56 Capital "G". 29:58 "God," capital "G", "shares His governance of the world 30:01 with appointed human leaders as His representatives. 30:04 Romans 13:1 30:06 How often, however, have these human representatives, 30:09 both in history and even now, perverted the 30:12 responsibility that they have been given?" 30:14 The lesson quarterly goes on to say, 30:16 "Psalm 82 mockingly exposes the apostasy of some of the leaders 30:20 who believed themselves to be gods," small "g", 30:23 "above the people. 30:24 Although God gave the authority and the privilege 30:28 to the Israelite leaders that they were called the 30:31 'children of the Most High' and were to represent Him, 30:33 God renounces these wicked leaders. 30:36 God reminds them that they are mortal, they are subject 30:39 to the same moral laws as all the people. 30:42 No one is above the law of God." 30:44 So God is actually describing them this way because 30:48 as judges and rulers of the people, 30:50 they've got an attitude. 30:51 And their attitude is, well, they're god. 30:54 It reminds me of a poster that I once saw 30:56 in a restroom that said, "Two facts of human enlightenment: 31:01 There is a God, and you are not Him." 31:05 Sometimes we get this God feeling in the way 31:09 that we relate to people. 31:10 In the way that we relate to people because perhaps 31:12 we're in positions of authority, or rulership, 31:14 or positions as judge. 31:17 And this is the issue that is being 31:19 dealt with here in Psalm 82. 31:21 The quarterly goes on to say, "What kind of authority 31:24 do you hold over others? 31:26 How justly and fairly are you exercising that authority?" 31:30 Right? So we look at the Bible, we have a couple of verses, 31:33 for example in Rev 3:21, 31:37 where Jesus makes a promise to God's people. 31:40 He says, "To him that overcomes I will grant to sit with Me 31:43 on My throne, even as I also overcame and sat down 31:47 with My Father on His throne." 31:49 So we're going to sit with Christ and do what? 31:52 Well we're told in 1 Cor 6:1-3, 31:56 "Dare any of you, having a matter against another, 31:58 go to law before the unjust and not before the saints? 32:01 Do you not know that the saints will judge the world? 32:05 And if the world will be judged by you, 32:07 are you unworthy to judge the smallest matters? 32:10 Know ye not that we shall judge angels? 32:13 How much more the things that pertain to this life?" 32:16 So here we find in the context of Rev 3:21, 32:20 in the context of 1 Cor 6:1-3, that we're going to sit 32:25 in judgment, we're going to sit on thrones 32:28 with Christ judging fallen angels. 32:31 Putting judgment upon those who have rejected 32:35 God's mercy and God's grace. 32:36 In fact, Revelation 20 tells us this. 32:38 "I saw thrones," verse 4, "and they sat on them, 32:41 and judgment was given unto them." 32:43 That's talking about the redeemed, 32:45 that's talking about God's people. 32:46 "And I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for 32:48 their witness of Jesus and the word of God, 32:50 that had not worshiped the beast, neither his image, 32:52 nor received his mark upon their foreheads or in their hands. 32:55 And they lived and reigned with Christ for a thousand years." 32:58 During the thousands of years God's people sit in judgment 33:01 with Christ upon this great controversy theme, 33:04 upon fallen angels and those who are lost. 33:06 So if God called judges and rulers, "gods," because they 33:11 were God's voice on the earth set up on earthly thrones 33:15 to judge justly and righteously according to His word, 33:18 how much more, Christ is saying is the Son of God, 33:21 Jesus Christ Himself, God? 33:23 Again, redeemed human beings will sit with Christ 33:26 on His throne judging angels, 33:28 and in a sense is god, who has given judgment to the Son, 33:33 though never are they as God in the sense of Creator. 33:37 He who alone is immortal, having self-existence, 33:41 infinite, omniscient, omnipotent, or in any other 33:46 sense in which God alone is God. 33:49 No, they are rulers. 33:51 They sit in judgment with Christ. 33:53 But again, the scripture cannot be broken. 33:55 That is, taken apart and discarded. 33:58 Though I've often wished at times the scripture could 34:01 kind of be missing from the text 34:03 because it seems like such a hard one. 34:05 But these verses are unbreakable. 34:08 And they called judges of the people, gods; Ps 82:1, 6, 34:13 and also Exodus 22:28. 34:15 Yet only in the sense that they are sitting on thrones 34:19 and judging in God's behalf, or sitting with Christ 34:23 in judgment during the thousand years. 34:25 They are not gods in the sense of God as Creator, 34:29 God as all-powerful, God as immortal and infinite. 34:33 And so Jesus uses these unbreakable scriptures 34:35 to establish how much more is His position 34:38 as Judge, capital "J", of all, 34:40 even of all of those finite judges called at times, "gods." 34:44 And therefore, God of all, equal with the Father, 34:48 Jesus Christ, the Son of God; 34:51 Jesus Christ, the one who is immortal; 34:53 Jesus Christ, the one before whom all will stand 34:57 in the last days. 34:58 For it says in the Scriptures, "The Father judges no man, 35:03 but He has committed all judgment to the Son 35:05 that all men should honor the Son 35:08 even as they honor the Father." 35:11 ~ Amen. Thank you, Pastor Rafferty. 35:13 Appreciate that beautiful lesson. 35:15 I am Ryan Day, and I have Wednesday's lesson entitled, 35:19 Pour Out Your Indignation. 35:22 Now I'm just going to say, some of these text that I'm 35:25 about to read, whoa, if I were to post some of these 35:33 on Facebook, and I were not to quote them or to provide any 35:40 type of references to where they came from, 35:43 as if they were coming from me, the storm that would follow... 35:48 People accusing me of being unChrist-like, 35:51 and having lost my mind, and having no love and no care. 35:55 As I was reading these passages, I thought to myself... 35:58 Because I actually thought these... 36:00 Because we're conditioned to think that way sometimes. 36:02 We read these very heavy, heavy, deep passages 36:05 where it seems like God's people who are writing 36:10 have taken the gloves off. 36:12 And they're letting that very angry, 36:18 carnal side of their nature comes out. 36:22 And it's quick and easy to dismiss it as unChrist-like, 36:26 not right, "What are you doing?" 36:28 "That's not the spirit of Jesus." 36:30 But yet I believe that the Bible does show us glimpses 36:33 and instances, as we're about to read right now, 36:35 where there are moments where God understands, 36:39 He relates, He sympathizes with these feelings. 36:42 And even though they're extremely difficult to read, 36:45 let me give you an example. 36:49 I'm going to start with verse 6. 36:51 And if I were to say this to my enemies, 36:54 if I were to pray to God and ask this, 36:56 "Lord, break their teeth in their mouth. 37:00 Break out the fangs of the young lions, O Lord. 37:03 Let them flow away as waters rush continually. 37:06 When he bends his bow, let his arrows be as if cut in pieces. 37:13 Let them be like a snail which melts away as it goes, 37:16 like a stillborn child of a woman, 37:20 that they may not see the sun." 37:23 Have mercy! 37:25 I mean, but you can just sense the spiritual agony 37:31 and the righteousness indignation 37:33 that is pouring forth from his heart, 37:35 tough very difficult to take in. 37:38 Psalm 69:22-28, you get the same feeling. 37:42 "Let their table become a snare before them, 37:44 and their wellbeing a trap. 37:46 Let their eyes be darkened, so that they do not see; 37:48 and make their loins shake continually. 37:51 Pour out Your indignation upon them, 37:56 and let Your wrathful anger take hold of them. 37:59 Let their dwelling place be desolate; 38:01 let no one live in their tents." 38:04 Now again, if we just left it at that, it would be like, 38:08 "Whoa, calm down there." 38:10 But you can sense the judgment that is coming from 38:14 the mind of these righteous individuals saying this. 38:17 For the reasoning behind it, verse 26: 38:19 "For they persecute the ones You have struck, 38:22 and talk of the grief of those You have wounded. 38:25 Add iniquity to their iniquity, 38:28 and let them not come," now this is tough right here, 38:31 "let them not come into Your righteousness. 38:34 Let them be blotted out of the book of the living, 38:37 and not be written with the righteous." 38:39 I mean, that would be like me going online and saying, 38:41 "Lord, this enemy of mine, may they not go to heaven. 38:45 May they rot in hell forever." 38:46 Well, that's tough words to hear, right? 38:50 But essentially, that is the spirit that's coming forth here. 38:53 The enemies of God are being called out. 38:57 And actually the writers here are calling out God and saying, 39:00 "Lord, what are You going to do? 39:01 Please, answer. 39:03 Come forth and bring a judgment against these enemies of mine." 39:08 This is Psalm 83:9-17. 39:11 I'm probably not going to read all of this 39:13 because it's a lengthy passage. 39:14 But I do want to start, let's say, in verse 13. 39:19 Verse 13 of Psalm 83. 39:21 "O my God, make them like the whirling dust, 39:24 like the chaff before the wind. 39:25 As the fire burns the woods, 39:27 and as the flame sets the mountains on fire, 39:29 so pursue them with Your tempest, 39:31 and frighten them with Your storm. 39:33 Fill their faces with shame, 39:34 that they may seek Your name, O Lord." 39:37 Oh did you see that? 39:38 Now there's a little bit of a spirit. 39:39 "Lord, bring about what is necessary that they may 39:42 seek Your name, O Lord." 39:44 "Let them be confounded and dismayed forever; 39:46 let them be put to same and perish..." 39:49 Psalm 94:1-2, again just setting the ground of the fact 39:53 that these men in their, again, full of the Spirit of God, 39:57 are pouring out and sharing with us, with God, 40:02 their pouring their heart out to God in a psalm 40:04 of prayer saying, "Lord, avenge the righteous, 40:08 and help bring vengeance upon those who are deserving." 40:12 And it says, "O Lord, to whom vengeance belongs, 40:15 O God, to whom vengeance belongs, shine forth. 40:19 Rise up, O Judge of the earth; 40:21 render punishment to the proud." 40:24 And again, as I'm reading these, I just want to go 40:27 crawl under a table because it's hard to hear this. 40:31 Because we have been conditioned with all of the Word of God, 40:34 that we know with all of the information that we have 40:38 of character of God. 40:39 Again, even the destruction of the wicked at the end of time. 40:42 It's called what? God's strange act. 40:44 So it's kind of like, you want to be like, 40:46 "Whoa brothers, calm down. What are you saying?" 40:49 But yet, this is what we find often times in the psalms. 40:52 It's a part of the psalms. 40:53 It's a part of the anger, the righteous indignation 40:57 that the righteous feel towards the injustices, 41:00 and all of the angry acts, and the unkindness, 41:05 and the oppression that has been brought against 41:07 the righteous. 41:08 And so, even in Psalm 137, 41:10 and this one was tough for me to read. 41:14 "Remember, O Lord, against the sons of Edom 41:16 the day of Jerusalem, who said, 'Raze it, raze it...'" 41:19 That simply means to basically tear it down, tear it down. 41:22 "...to its very foundation. 41:24 O daughter of Babylon, who are to be destroyed," 41:27 here it is, "happy the one who repays you 41:31 as you have served us. 41:32 Happy the one who takes and dashes 41:35 your little ones against the rock." 41:39 Wow! 41:40 But the lesson brings out and says, "God's retribution 41:43 is measured with justice and grace. 41:46 God's children are called to pray for those who mistreat them 41:49 and even to hope for their conversion," 41:52 according to Psalm 83:18 and of course Jer 29:7. 41:57 We have to bring balance to what we've just read. 41:59 That's heavy stuff. 42:01 The lesson goes on to say, "However while seeking to fit 42:04 these psalms with the biblical norms of love your enemies," 42:08 that's what Jesus said, right, 42:09 "we must be careful not to minimize the agonizing 42:12 experience expressed in them. 42:15 God acknowledges the suffering of His children 42:17 and reassures them that 'precious in the sight 42:21 of the Lord is the death of His saints.'" 42:25 In other words, God does not look at the oppression. 42:27 He does not look at the injustices that are done 42:30 against the righteous and just turn a blind eye. 42:32 That He will bring the proper justice, 42:35 because He is a just God. 42:37 "Divine judgment obliges God's people to raise their voices 42:40 against all evil and seek the coming of 42:43 God's kingdom in its fullness. 42:45 The Psalms also give voice to those who suffer, 42:48 letting them know that God is aware of their suffering 42:50 and that one day justice will come." 42:53 This is not just an Old Testament theme, 42:56 as I know some people have read text like this, 42:58 and they say, "The God of the Old Testament is an angry, 43:01 you know, vengeful God." 43:03 But we also see that these issues come up 43:05 even in the New Testament. 43:07 For instance, I'll give you just a couple here. 43:08 I don't have time to read them all. 43:10 But I will make it clear here. 43:14 Right there within the context of the fifth seal. 43:17 It says, "When He opened..." 43:18 This is verses 9 through 11 in Revelation chapter 6. 43:21 "When He opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar 43:23 the souls of those who had been slain for the word of God 43:26 and for the testimony which they held." 43:28 So again, injustice is brought against them. 43:30 Verse 10, "And they cried out with a loud voice saying, 43:33 'How long, O Lord, holy and true, until You judge and avenge 43:38 our blood on those who dwell on the earth?' 43:41 Then a white robe was given to each of them; 43:44 and it was said to them that they should 43:46 rest a little while longer until both the number of their 43:48 fellow servants and their brethren, who would be killed 43:51 as they were, was accomplished." 43:52 God is basically saying "Look, hold off a little longer, 43:55 because justice will come." 43:57 And this is normal even of all of us. 44:00 Even as much as we try to follow God, we try to understand His 44:03 will, and we try to understand all of the injustices 44:06 and the things that are brought against the righteous, 44:08 you cannot take away from the fact that sometimes 44:10 we find ourselves calling out to God and saying, 44:12 "Lord, are you going to continue to allow this to happen? 44:16 Is there ever going to come an end to this? 44:17 Are You going to bring righteous judgment against those who 44:21 are oppressing others, who have hurt 44:23 and who have destroyed others?" 44:26 And so, this is just a natural thing, I think, 44:28 that the Bible is bringing out here, this book of Psalms 44:31 brings out over and over, that this is not necessarily 44:34 a bad thing, but obviously must be kept within a perfect balance 44:38 of understanding that we do not necessarily wish these things 44:41 in an unbalanced and an unrighteous type way. 44:45 But rather according to the righteous judgment of God. 44:48 "Lord, bring proper justice." 44:49 Even in Rev 16:4-7, we see God allowing a plague to be 44:55 poured out in the last days still yet to come. 44:57 And what are His remarks? What does it say there? 45:00 "Because you have shed the blood of the saints, 45:02 God will give you blood to drink." 45:04 God understands in His perfect righteousness 45:07 what the judgment shall be. 45:08 And sometimes even in our humanity 45:11 we call out to God and say, 45:12 "Lord, why are You allowing this to happen?" 45:14 But I think the overall thing that we see here 45:16 in this message entitled, Pour Out Your Indignation, 45:20 "Lord, pour it out righteously. 45:21 You are Judge, we trust You. We put our hand in Yours. 45:24 And we know that You will do right by Your saints." 45:27 ~ Amen. 45:29 It was heavy, what you were going through. 45:32 But I have to say, I grew up in a church that 45:36 I was taught that the God of the Old Testament 45:40 was the God of wrath, and the God of the New Testament 45:42 was the God of love. 45:43 That the God of the Old Testament 45:45 was the God of judgment, 45:46 and the God of the New Testament was the God of mercy and peace. 45:51 And we're missing the point. 45:55 I'm Shelley Quinn, I have Thursday's lesson, 45:59 The Lord's Judgment and the Sanctuary. 46:02 I want to set a foundation for this. 46:04 Because we've got to get rid of our preconceived opinions. 46:08 We've got to quit telling this story wrongly. 46:13 Before we start, just remember this: 46:16 The Bible says God is love. 46:19 The Bible says God is light. 46:21 That's His righteous character. 46:23 The Bible says God is just. He is fair. 46:27 All of His ways are perfect. 46:31 He judges without partiality. 46:35 He governs by love. He never forces. 46:38 And He has boundaries of love. 46:41 They're called His Ten Commandments. 46:44 They are the charter of His government of love. 46:49 Now, they're found all in Genesis. 46:53 These weren't new in Exodus. 46:56 God announced the penalty of death for unrighteousness. 47:01 You know what unrighteousness is? 47:03 Unrighteousness is, we don't do things God's way. 47:07 And 1 John 5:17 says all sin is unrighteous. 47:12 So when Adam and Eve lost, when they sinned, 47:15 they lost their spiritual innocence. 47:17 They could not replace it on their own. 47:20 But God's holiness demanded this God of justice 47:27 He wanted to... 47:31 He decided He was going to restore their righteousness. 47:35 God could not just get rid of His moral code of love. 47:40 If He meted out the punishment they deserved, 47:43 they would die. 47:44 So what did God do? 47:46 He stepped down out of heaven and took our flesh. 47:54 God became a human. 47:57 You know, we read earlier in one of these lessons 48:01 that humans are a little lower than the angels. 48:06 The created order: God created angels, 48:09 humans are a little lower, animals, and insects. 48:13 God didn't just lower Himself to the position of an angel. 48:17 He became a human. 48:19 That would be like a human, not lowering themself 48:23 to the position of an animal, but to the position of a 48:26 cockroach to save a cockroach. 48:29 Can you imagine? 48:30 So here's the point. 48:32 He came to be our substitute. 48:35 He fulfilled His own justice by dying to pay our sin penalty. 48:45 So what you see in the Sanctuary is, we see a picture. 48:52 It is theology in physical form. 48:56 The outer court represented justification by faith. 49:00 It was the dealing of the Messiah with our sin penalty. 49:06 The Holy Place, which was the first of the two compartments 49:11 of the Sanctuary represented sanctification. 49:15 The daily empowerment of the Messiah and the Holy Spirit 49:19 to influence our lives. 49:21 The Most Holy Place represented direct access to God. 49:26 So let me ask you, what are the practical implications 49:31 of the Sanctuary being the place of divine judgment? 49:36 It created a constant awareness of God's holiness. 49:40 It demonstrated God's requirements of righteous living 49:45 for those who enter into a covenant relationship with Him, 49:49 who are saved by grace through faith, 49:52 through the Messiah Jesus Christ. 49:56 The Sanctuary was the place of divine judgment. 50:00 And the psalmist saw the Sanctuary 50:04 as a place for forgiveness of sins, 50:08 for restoration of righteousness. 50:11 Let's look. 50:20 The psalmist says, "Honor and majesty are before Him; 50:26 strength and beauty are in His Sanctuary. 50:31 Give to the Lord glory and strength, 50:34 the glory due His name. 50:36 Bring an offering and come into His courts. 50:40 Worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness." 50:45 Holiness means to be totally separated from sin. 50:49 God cannot sin. Love does no harm. 50:54 "Worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness. 50:57 Tremble before Him, all the earth. 51:00 Say among the nations, 'The Lord reigns; 51:04 the world also is firmly established, 51:08 and it shall not be moved. 51:11 He shall judge the people righteously.'" 51:16 Go makes no mistakes. 51:18 And I'll tell you, judgment, we know from Daniel, 51:21 is in favor of God's people who have been made 51:27 righteous by faith. 51:29 But when we think of the judgment that's coming upon 51:32 the evil, they are getting what they've chosen. 51:38 They are getting the consequences of the 51:43 lifestyle they chose. 51:44 They've rejected God's way of life. 51:48 They would not submit to Him. 51:50 So when we see the final judgment, 51:53 God is being fair. 51:55 He is not being partial. 51:57 Isaiah 59, we're not going to turn there, 52:01 but let me just give you these references. 52:03 Isaiah 59:15-20, there's a beautiful description 52:09 of how God intervened through Christ. 52:12 In verse 17, Isaiah 59:17, 52:16 it says, Christ "put on righteousness as a breastplate." 52:22 And in verse 18 it says He will repay wrath to His adversaries 52:29 according as their deeds deserve. 52:34 So the psalmist saw the Sanctuary 52:37 as a place of forgiveness, a place of restoration, 52:41 but also as a place where the wicked would receive vengeance. 52:49 The unrepentant would receive vengeance. 52:56 "You answered them, O Lord our God; 52:59 You were to them, God-Who-Forgives, 53:04 though You took vengeance on their deeds." 53:08 So some psalms depict God on His throne in the Sanctuary 53:13 ready to judge the world for its sin and evil. 53:18 And the Sanctuary, according to the psalmist's understanding, 53:22 this was the place where the problem of evil was handled. 53:26 It was transformed. 53:28 We read earlier Psalm 73:17 53:32 where the psalmist is so confused 53:35 by the great controversy. 53:37 "O how long, how long?" 53:39 And then finally he says that he went to the Sanctuary 53:45 of God, and then he understood the end of the wicked. 53:50 So Christ's ministry right now in the heavenly Sanctuary 53:54 is good news for us. 53:57 Romans 8:34, "Who is he who condemns? 54:01 It is Christ who died..." 54:03 Christ who was depicted in the Sanctuary system. 54:07 "...furthermore He is risen, He's at the right hand of God, 54:13 and He makes intercession for us." 54:15 And Hebrews 7:25 says, "He is able to save to the uttermost 54:22 those who come to God through Him, since He always lives 54:30 to make intercession for them." 54:32 Please just understand this. 54:36 Judgment... 54:38 Let me give you a quote from Cathleen Falsani. 54:41 She's an American journalist. 54:44 She says, "Justice is getting what we deserve. 54:48 Mercy is not getting what we deserve. 54:53 Grace is getting what we absolutely don't deserve." 54:57 God fulfilled His own justice by dying for us 55:03 so that He could remain just and be the justifier. 55:08 Don't be afraid of God's judgment 55:11 if your heart is right before Him. 55:15 But if it's not today is the day of salvation. 55:20 Turn to Him now, confess your sins, and repent. 55:24 ~ Amen. ~ Thank you, Shelley. 55:26 And thank you each for your work in preparing and sharing. 55:29 We've got a few moments left for some final thoughts. 55:32 The title of the lesson is, I Will Arise. 55:35 And we talk about how God is going to arise. 55:38 But I just want to challenge you, are there ways that 55:41 you can arise? 55:42 That you can reach out to the vulnerable in your communities? 55:46 Amen. Tuesday's lesson, How Long Will You Judge Unjustly? 55:50 You know, God wanted us to judge 55:52 as He judges, but we failed miserably. 55:54 But the Son of Man becoming a man and being God, 55:57 all judgment has been committed to Him. 56:00 And so we can see a day when God will judge 56:02 with righteousness. 56:04 2 Timothy 2:15 reminds us that we 56:07 need to study to show ourself approved. 56:09 There's going to be things that we run into in the Bible, 56:11 such as on my day talking about pouring out of indignation. 56:15 Sometimes we don't have all the answers for it, 56:17 but as we continue to learn and grow and study, 56:20 God's heart on this issue will become 56:22 clearer and clearer over time. 56:25 Psalm 96:10 says, "The Lord reigns; 56:29 the world also is firmly established, 56:32 it shall not be moved. 56:34 He shall judge the people righteously." 56:38 According to His righteous character. 56:40 ~ Amen. ~ Amen. 56:42 You know, as we look around at the world today, 56:44 we can tell that sin still is holding sway. 56:48 At least that's the way it appears. 56:50 There is oppression, there is unrighteousness 56:53 all around us, but it's not going to be that way forever. 56:56 Right now here each week we look forward, 56:59 and we're saying, "Lord, we're looking forward 57:01 to what You're going to do." 57:03 But in the not-too-distant future, we know that 57:05 we're going to be looking back and we're going to be 57:07 saying, "Lord, just and true are Your ways. 57:10 Lord, Your works are marvelous. 57:13 Just and true, O King of the saints." 57:16 So maybe you're in a position right now where you're 57:18 one of the ones who's saying, 57:19 "Lord, when are you going to act?" 57:22 I want to remind you that God says 57:24 that He will come through for each of His people, 57:27 each of His saints. 57:29 And reach out to those around you. 57:31 For those of you, like Jill said, you're looking around 57:35 and you're saying, "What can I do?" 57:37 God has got something for you to do, 57:39 and it's in your community. 57:40 There are people all around you who need to be lifted up. 57:43 And you can do that for them. You can bring that to them. 57:46 I want to share with you one psalm here right at the end. 57:51 It says, "For Your mercy reaches unto the heavens, 57:54 and Your truth unto the clouds." 57:57 That brings us into next week's lesson, lesson number seven, 58:01 which is, Your Mercy Reaches to the Heavens. 58:04 I'm looking forward to that. |
Revised 2024-07-08