Participants:
Series Code: TAM
Program Code: TAM000015S
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00:30 Let's bow our heads for prayer.
00:34 Our beloved heavenly Father, as we study today about the mark 00:38 of the beast part two. 00:40 We ask for a special out pouring of your holy spirit 00:44 and grace upon us. 00:46 This is not an easy subject to deal with. 00:50 There are many of those individuals out there, in the 00:54 churches that are sincere, they love you with all there hearts 00:57 they just don't know the full truth about the change of day 01:02 in worship and how it came into the Christian church 01:06 I just ask Lord that you will soften minds and hearts 01:11 so that people might be able to see the truth as it is 01:14 in Jesus. 01:16 Help us to see Lord, how the Devil has deceived the whole 01:20 Christian world into believing that the day of worship has been 01:26 changed. I ask Lord that you will give us willing hearts 01:30 and we thank you for hearing our prayer 01:33 for we ask it in the precious name of Jesus, Amen. 01:39 A question that many times comes up is whether anybody in the 01:44 world has the mark of the beast, yet. 01:48 The fact is, no one has the mark of the beast. 01:54 The mark of the beast is some thing that is given at the very 01:56 end of human history. However, having said that, 02:01 when messages are presented, like these, showing clearly from 02:07 the Bible, that the Sabbath is God's day of rest. 02:10 Sunday, is a day that entered through the back door 02:15 so to speak, through Paganism into the church 02:19 and an individual fails to make a decision 02:22 Each time you say no to the Lord, it becomes more difficult 02:27 to say yes to him the next time. 02:29 So, what you're doing, is preparing your self, if time 02:33 lingers, eventually, to receive the mark of the beast 02:36 by rejecting the seal of God. No one yet, has received the 02:41 mark of the beast. The mark of the beast will be received 02:43 when an individual knowingly keeps Sunday as the day of rest 02:49 even though he/she knows that it's a day that God has not 02:53 condoned, God has not blessed, and they still insist on keeping 02:57 it. So, they can buy and sell. So, they won't be subject to the 03:01 death decree. Then, they will receive the mark of the beast. 03:06 The decisions that we are making now, will determine what are 03:11 decision will be then. It's important to hear the voice of 03:15 God, now. 03:18 For our study today, I would like to do a little review 03:22 of a very impressive prophecy that we find in 03:27 Daniel chapter 7. 03:29 I'm not going to study all the prophecy in the chapter 03:33 I'm just going to give you the highlights. 03:36 I want you to see the sequence of powers that we have 03:40 in this chapter. Daniel Chapter 7, presents a 03:45 sequence of world powers beginning with the days 03:49 of the prophet, Daniel. I'm just going to give you 03:53 the symbols and what they mean. In Daniel 7, we have a lion 03:57 that lion represents the kingdom of Babylon. Then we have a bear, 04:02 the bear represents the kingdom that followed Babylon 04:07 It represents the Meads and the Persians. 04:10 Then we have a leopard beast. The leopard beast represents the 04:14 the kingdom of Greece. Then we have a dragon beast. 04:19 It's not called a dragon in Daniel 7, but acts like a dragon 04:25 it tramples, has iron teeth, it destroys everything in its way 04:30 Of course, that fourth beast represents the Roman Empire 04:36 Then we are told, the head from that fourth beast, come forth 04:40 ten horns. Which represents the kingdoms the Roman Empire 04:46 was divided, as a result of the barbarian invasions 04:51 This happened in the year 476. 04:56 The Bible tells us, that among these ten horns, 04:59 and after these ten horns are in place, a little horn rises 05:05 and this little horn does some amazing things 05:10 It persecutes the saints of the most high. It speaks 05:14 blasphemous words against the most high. It thinks it can 05:19 change times and the law of God and it rules for time, 05:26 times and the dividing of time. 05:30 Now, there can be no doubt as we examine the sequence of powers 05:34 that this little horn represents the Roman church. 05:39 Simply because we follow the sequence of powers. 05:42 Babylon, Medo-Persia, Greece, the Roman Empire, the divided 05:48 Roman Empire and then, within the divided Roman Empire, 05:52 which took place in the year 476, finalized in 476, 05:57 then you have the little horn that comes up and rules 06:02 for time, times the dividing of time which is equivalent 06:07 to 1260 days, but in prophecy, days are equal to years. 06:15 There is just no way around it. There is only one system in the 06:18 world that arose from ancient Rome that ruled over 1000 years 06:23 That is the Roman Catholic papacy. 06:27 I want to dwell on one particular characteristic 06:31 of the little horn. go with me to Daniel 7:25. 06:37 Daniel 7:25. It say here, speaking about the little horn 06:56 Lets stop here for a moment. the pompous words in Revelation 06:59 are identified as blasphemies. the Bible indentifies 07:03 blasphemies as when a man claims to be God or have the powers 07:09 of God and when a man claims to be able to forgive sin. 07:14 You know the Roman Catholic papacy claims they have the 07:18 vicar of Christ on earth. One who has the authority of Jesus 07:22 Christ, who is God. Its a system that claims to have the power 07:27 to forgive sins. Also, you've heard this, we have studied this 07:32 the inquisition, the persecuting of those that are not in harmony 07:36 with the church, through the arm of the state. That's what this 07:40 is talking about. He shall speak pompous words against the most 07:43 high, shall persecute the saints of the most high. 08:02 That is for 1260 years. 08:07 Now, in our last lecture, we studied the quotations from 08:12 several theologians. These theologians, the Roman Catholic 08:16 church. Told us, that the change of the Sabbath day to Sunday 08:21 was performed by the church. Some of them even say that the 08:26 change was made by the Pope. 08:28 It's not talking about a particular Pope, it's talking 08:31 about a successions of Popes, by the papacy, in other words. 08:36 They completely say so. They say that the day changed 08:40 by the Roman Catholic church or by the papacy. 08:44 Somebody might say, Pastor, those are quotations 08:49 from theologians and even though theologians of the church 08:53 are important, what evidence do you have, of higher up 08:59 in the Roman church that say the same thing as these theologians 09:04 Well, the most respected person, in the world. 09:12 Until recently, was Pope John Paul II. 09:18 Highly respected all over the world for his moral views. 09:25 On May 31, 1998, Pope John Paul II, published an apostolic 09:34 letter. An apostolic letter is a letter he write to 09:38 the religious leaders of the church giving them counsel 09:42 The name of this letter was dies domini. 09:46 Which means 'the Lord's day'. 09:50 What I'm going to share with you is many of the aspects 09:56 that we find in this apostolic letter, domini. 10:01 Allow me to make a note of clarification as we begin 10:05 and that is, what I'm going to share with you has nothing 10:09 to do with John Paul II as a person. 10:14 We are not going to get into personalities here. 10:18 What I am going to deal with is, compare his views 10:23 in his apostolic letter with what the Bible says 10:28 What we are going to do is, discuss things theologically 10:34 and we're going to leave the personal aspect out of question 10:39 We are going to study his theological views in dies domini 10:43 as compared with the Bible. 10:47 We are going to do it in question and answer form. 10:52 Here's the first question... 10:55 According to the Bible, which day did God bless and sanctify 11:02 and which day in the Bible is called the Lord's day? 11:09 I can answer biblically and clearly with scripture 11:13 There is no doubt what so ever that, the seventh day Sabbath 11:19 is the day God blessed and sanctified. There's no doubt 11:23 biblically, that the Sabbath is the Lord's day. You say, where 11:29 in the Bible do we find this? Lets read several verses 11:35 Genesis 2:2-3... It's explicit. Someone might say, the Sabbath 11:45 was made for the Jews, and the Sabbath was made to point 11:48 forward to Jesus, who was going to die on the cross 11:50 and he was going to be at rest. 11:53 The fact is, what I'm going to read now, actually is describing 11:58 something that existed before there was any Jew. 12:01 Before there was any sin, there was no need for any cross 12:05 so there was no need for any redemption. It's part of God's 12:08 original plan. Genesis 2:2-3... 12:34 Three times it speaks of the seventh day. We are told, God 12:40 blessed and sanctified the seventh day Is that explicit and 12:46 clear enough? There is no way around it. 12:51 Lets go to the fourth commandment of God's law. 12:54 Do you think the ten commandment are still binding today? 12:57 Some people think that they are the ten suggestions 13:02 or the ten recommendations. No Christian in the world today 13:07 would say that the ten commandments are no longer 13:10 important. Some churches say the ten commandments were nailed 13:15 to the cross, then they will say, we need to have the ten 13:19 commandments in our court rooms. You can't talk out both sides 13:23 of your mouth. They were either nailed to the cross or they were 13:27 not nailed to the cross, period. 13:30 Exodus 20:8... 13:33 Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days you shall 13:37 labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is the Sabbath 13:43 of the Lord your God. Which is the Lord's day? 13:48 The seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord. It's a possessive 13:54 it is the Sabbath of the Lord your God. 13:57 in it, you shall do no work. You nor your son nor your daughter 14:03 nor your male servant, nor your female servant nor your cattle 14:08 nor your stranger who is within your gates. 14:12 For in six days, the Lord made the heavens and the earth 14:16 the sea and all that is in them and rested, which day? 14:21 the seventh day, therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day 14:25 and hallowed it. That means he made it holy. 14:30 Question, which is the Lord's day according to the fourth 14:33 commandment? It's the Sabbath of the Lord, thy God 14:38 Which number day is it? It is the seventh day. 14:42 What did God do with the seventh day Sabbath? He blessed and 14:47 he what? Sanctified it. 14:51 Notice Mark 2:27-28... 14:59 Lets notice who Jesus said, the Lord's day is. 15:03 And he said to them, the Sabbath was made for man and not 15:08 man for the Sabbath. That's why the Sabbath was made after man 15:12 It was made for the benefit of man. If God had made the Sabbath 15:16 first and then man afterwards, he would have been making 15:19 man for the Sabbath. It says, the Sabbath was made for man 15:24 and not man for the Sabbath. Therefore, the son of man is 15:29 also Lord of Sunday. 15:32 That's not what the text says, it says, Therefore the Lord 15:37 is Lord of the Sabbath. If Jesus is the Lord of the Sabbath 15:45 what is the Lord's day? A child can understand this. 15:49 The Lord's day is the Sabbath. 15:53 The only day in the Bible, the Lord claims his, is the Sabbath 15:58 Notice, Isaiah 58:13-14. 16:05 If you turn away your foot from the Sabbath, from doing your 16:11 pleasure, on my holy day. what does God call the Sabbath 16:15 MY holy day, and call the Sabbath a delight the holy day 16:21 of Moses. No, no, no... it says the holy day of the Lord. 16:27 Honorable and shall honor him, not doing your own ways, nor 16:31 finding your own pleasure, nor speaking your own words, then 16:35 then you shall delight yourself in the Lord. 16:38 What is the Lord's day? The Lord's day is the Sabbath. 16:43 What number day is the Sabbath? The seventh day. What did God 16:49 do with the seventh day? He blessed and sanctified it 16:52 I want you to see what John Paul II said in dies domini. 16:58 I will mention the paragraph because this document 17:02 is divided into paragraphs. This is what he says... 17:05 Unabashedly, 17:31 Did you catch that? 17:35 Where does the Bible say that Sunday is the Lord's day 17:40 Where does it say, anywhere, that God made Sunday 17:46 holy and blessed Sunday? No where. You can look from Genesis 17:51 to Revelation, you will find no verse, where it says that Sunday 17:55 is holy. You will uniformly find that Sabbath is Lords day 18:00 Sabbath is the day the God sanctified and blessed. 18:04 This is an outright untruth. 18:11 By the way, if Jesus or the apostles changed the Sabbath 18:17 to Sunday, there would have been an uproar among the Jews 18:22 Allow me to share this quotation from Sam Bacioci. 18:28 Who has written extensively about the Sabbath. By the way, 18:32 Sam Bacioci, died just recently. He wrote a very good book 18:39 titled, From Sabbath to Sunday, that would be good for 18:42 everyone to read. Here he gives the historical evidence 18:45 of how Sabbath was changed to Sunday. It wasn't biblical 18:50 it was several historical circumstances that took place. 18:53 Here in this quotation, which is in his internet publication 18:57 issues for Friday, August 7, 1998. 19:00 He says this, If Paul, or any other apostle had attempted 19:07 to promote the abandonment of the Sabbath, a millenarian 19:12 institution deeply rooted in the consciousness of the people 19:17 and the adoption instead of Sunday observance, there would 19:23 have been considerable opposition on the part of Jewish 19:26 Christians, as was the case with reference to circumcision. 19:31 Do you remember that when was abolished? 19:35 There was an uproar among the Jews and they had to call a 19:37 counsel in Jerusalem? He continues saying, the absence of 19:42 any echo of Sabbath Sunday controversy in the new testament 19:47 is a most telling evidence that the introduction of Sunday 19:53 observance, is a post apostolic phenomenon. 19:58 In other words, it came in after the days of the apostles 20:04 I want to ask another question, which is the day that stands 20:09 at the very heart of all worship? 20:14 Lets let the Bible tell us. Revelation 14:6-7 20:48 The first angels message calls us to worship whom? 20:53 To worship the creator. My question is, where does the 21:00 language from the first angels message, come from? 21:03 This language, worship him who made heaven, earth, the sea 21:07 and the springs of water? This language comes from 21:11 Exodus 20:11 and it comes ultimately from Genesis 2:2-3 21:18 I want you to notice Exodus 20:11. 21:37 Notice, both the text in Exodus 20:11 and the text 21:42 in Revelation 14:7, bring to view the creator of the heavens 21:47 the earth, the seas and everything that is in them. 21:50 The fourth commandment says, that the sign of the creator 21:54 is his holy Sabbath. 21:59 Which day is at the very heart of all worship? 22:05 The Sabbath. In our last lecture, we read Isaiah 66:22-23 22:13 It says that when we get to the new earth after God has 22:17 created a new heaven and new earth. We will come from new 22:21 moon to new moon. That means from month to month, 22:24 because we are going to eat from the tree of life 22:26 We will come from month to month and Sabbath to Sabbath 22:29 to worship before the Lord. We are going to come on 22:33 Sabbath to worship before the Lord, because he has created 22:37 a new heavens and a new earth it will be the sign of a new 22:42 creation. At the heart of all worship is the Sabbath 22:48 because the Sabbath identifies the creator. 22:52 What does John Paul II say in dies domini? 22:56 Paragraph 19 of his document. Listen to this. 23:01 The intimate bond between Sunday and the resurrection of the Lord 23:08 is strongly emphasized by all of the churches of east and 23:14 west. He is saying there is a link between Sunday and the 23:17 resurrection of Jesus and this link is clear in the churches 23:21 in the east and the west. The Catholic and Eastern Orthodox. 23:26 He continues saying, in the tradition of eastern churches 23:31 in particularly, every Sunday is the 23:34 anastasimos himera, that means the day of the resurrection. 23:41 this is why it stands at the heart of all worship. 23:49 What stands at the heart of all worship, according to 23:52 John Paul II? Its not the Sabbath of creation, and by the 23:56 way, Jesus rested in the tomb on the Sabbath as well 24:00 Jesus was the creator, he rested the seventh day, Jesus 24:04 said it is finished on the cross, and he rested in the tomb 24:08 on the seventh day. When he creates a new heavens and earth 24:11 We will rest on the seventh day. The Bible is clear. 24:14 John Paul II says, in the churches of east and west 24:18 Sunday is at the very heart of worship. Is it surprising that 24:23 the beast demands worship on Sunday and imposes the mark 24:28 which is the observance of Sunday as the day of rest 24:32 as a sign of his authority? 24:35 Here's another question. What is the distinguishing mark 24:39 of God's people? 24:42 Well the Bible says the mark of God's 24:45 people is the Sabbath. Notice Ezekiel 20:12. 25:11 How do we know the Lord, who makes us holy or sanctifies us, 25:16 what is the sign? The sign is the Sabbath. 25:21 Notice Ezekiel 20:20. God says... 25:37 What is the sign that shows that we are the subjects of the 25:40 Lord our God? The Sabbath, according to the Bible. 25:44 What does John Paul II say in dies domini? 25:49 Paragraph 21. 25:53 He appeals to Revelation 1:10. I was in the spirit on the Lord's 25:58 day. If you let the Bible explain it's self, what is the 26:02 Lord's day? The Sabbath, but he says the Lord's day is Sunday. 26:07 You know why he says that? He says that, because at the end of 26:10 the second century in the apocryphal gospel of Peter 26:16 its an apocryphal book, it says there that the Lord's day is 26:20 Sunday, but its not until the end of the second century 26:23 Let me put this into some perspective so that you can 26:26 understand the time frame. The first century covers from 26:31 the year 1-99. The 2nd century goes from the year 100-199. 26:39 The book of Revelation was written, according to most 26:42 scholars, around the year 95. I want you to notice that 26:48 the apocryphal gospel of Peter was written towards the end of 26:52 the 2nd century, a hundred years after the book of Revelation 26:56 was written. It is not fair to take the meaning of the Lord's 27:00 day a hundred years later and project that back in Revelation. 27:06 The meaning of the expression, Lord's day, in the apocryphal 27:11 gospel of Peter, does not mean the same as in Revelation. 27:30 Revelation 1:10, does not identify which day it is. 27:33 It simply calls it the Lord's day. By letting the Bible 27:35 explain its self, the Lord's day the seventh day of the week, 27:39 the Sabbath. Notice what he continues saying. This, Sunday 27:44 observance, would now be a characteristic distinguishing 27:50 Christians from the world around us. According to John Paul II 27:55 what is the sign that distinguishes from the 27:57 world? Sunday. Notice what he says in paragraph 30. 28:26 Notice what he says in Paragraph 7 28:36 So, according to John Paul II, what is the distinguishing sign 28:41 between God and his people that them from the world 28:45 It's Sunday. 28:47 The Bible say the distinguishing sign is the Sabbath. 28:53 Lets ask another question. 28:54 Where has God placed his seal? 28:58 We studied this in our last lesson. The seal of God is found 29:03 in the fourth commandment. It has the three characteristics 29:07 of a seal. It has his name, his office or function and the 29:12 territory over which he rules. Very clearly, the Sabbath 29:17 is God's seal. 29:21 Notice Exodus 20:11. 29:37 Now, notice what John Paul II says, contains the seal God 29:41 He is quoting the great Roman Catholic theologian St Augustine 29:48 and notice what he says... 30:07 According to John Paul II, which day has God's seal? 30:11 Sunday, has God's seal. 30:13 What does the Bible say, contains God's seal? 30:16 Sabbath, contains God's seal. 30:20 If I were to ask you the question, which is the day 30:24 above all other days? What would your answer be? No brainer 30:28 The Sabbath is the day, above all other days. Does Genesis 30:33 indicate that Sabbath is the day above all other days? 30:35 It is the only day that has a name and a number. It's the 7th 30:40 day and its called the Sabbath. The only day that God blessed. 30:45 Its the only day that God sanctified. The only day that 30:49 God rested. Its the day that Jesus rested in the tomb. 30:54 Its the only day God calls his. Its the only day in which 30:58 manna did not fall. Which is the day above all days? 31:01 There is no doubt what so ever, biblically that day above all 31:06 days is the Sabbath. 31:08 What does John Paul II say in dies domini? 31:12 Paragraph 25... 31:32 ...and in paragraph 55, he says... 31:47 My question is, did God raise Sunday above all other days? 31:53 No, the beast did. He is saying, blessed be he who raised 31:59 Sunday above all other days, and if he did it, he's the one 32:03 that is supposed to be, what? Blessed. That's blasphemy 32:09 The Bible tells us that the day above all other days is the 32:16 seventh day Sabbath. That's the testimony of scripture. 32:21 Lets ask another question. Did the adoption of Sunday as the 32:28 day of rest, have anything to do with pagan worship of Sunday? 32:35 For this, I want to go back to what we talked about in our 32:40 last lecture. Ezekiel 8:16-17. You remember Jerusalem was going 32:45 to be destroyed? There was a group of leaders in the temple 32:50 and they had their backs to the temple and they were worshiping 32:53 the sun? You remember that, they were worshiping the sun to the 32:56 east and there was a group that was sighing and crying 32:59 because of this abomination and other abominations that were 33:01 being committed in the temple? Lets read about it. 33:04 Ezekiel 8:16-17. 33:07 So he brought me into the inner court of the Lord's house 33:11 and there at the door of the temple of the Lord, 33:15 between the porch and the alter, were about 25 men 33:18 with their backs to the temple of the Lord and their faces 33:21 toward the east and they were worshiping the sun in the east. 33:25 He said to me, have you seen this, oh son of man? 33:29 is it a trivial thing to the house of Judah to commit these 33:32 abominations which they commit here? They have filled the land 33:36 with violence, then they have returned to provoke me 33:40 to anger. 33:44 Let me ask you, did John Paul II, make any connection between 33:50 the pagan worship of the sun and Christian worship on Sunday? 33:56 I'll read an amazing statement that he makes in dies domini. 34:00 Paragraph 27. You remember last time that I asked a question 34:06 whether worshiping the sun is the same thing as worshiping 34:10 on the day of the sun? Remember that? 34:12 I showed that in principle, worshiping on the day of the sun 34:16 is the same thing as worshiping the sun? 34:18 In principle, its the same. God didn't make the sun for worship 34:22 if you worship the sun, which is a secular object, you're 34:27 practicing idolatry. You make a day of worship for worship 34:31 that God didn't make for worship and you are using as a day 34:35 of worship, that's idolatry. God didn't make it for worship 34:38 its a man made day for worship. Are you following me? 34:41 Listen to what he has to say in paragraph 27. 34:59 He is saying the day of the sun is Christianized. 35:06 It was adopted into Christianity and Sunday became the day of 35:10 Christians as well as the day of pagans. 35:15 I don't say it, John Paul II says it. 35:21 I don't know if any of you have been to the Vatican Museum. 35:25 It is an amazing sight to see. 35:30 The one thing that amazed me, more than anything else, 35:33 is to see the number of sun bursts that are found there in 35:39 the Vatican Museum. 35:41 Not only in the Vatican Museum, but in Roman Catholic cathedrals 35:45 and churches. There are sun bursts over the heads of saints 35:50 there are sunbursts on the alter on the glass stained windows 35:54 on the works of art, on the challises, on the vestments 35:58 there are sunbursts rays coming from all over the place. 36:02 this does not come from the Bible. 36:07 This comes from ancient paganism. 36:11 Roman Catholic authors have made it very clear that they realize 36:17 that many of the practices of the church came directly from 36:21 paganism. In the dies domini, John Paul II, is admitting 36:26 that the day of the sun, was Christianized. 36:29 It came into the times of Emperor Constantine. 36:35 Who called it the venerable day the sun. He also called it 36:40 the invincible sun. He was a sun worshiper, so now, because 36:46 he was a politician, he sees all over the empire 36:49 he says, hey how can I join and pagans? 36:54 He says, hey the pagans keep the first day of the week 36:57 in honor of the sun and the are starting to keep 37:01 the day of Sunday, in honor of the resurrection. Maybe we can 37:06 merge the two. 37:08 This can be shown to be true, historically. 37:13 Let me ask you this question. Should the observance of Sunday 37:18 be guaranteed by civil legislation? 37:21 Should the church appeal to the state, so that the state will 37:25 guarantee, that people can keep Sunday, or Saturday 37:30 for that matter, as a day of rest? 37:32 Lets see what the Bible has to say. 37:35 Matthew 22:21-22. He said to them, render therefore to Cesar 37:44 this is Jesus speaking, the things that are Cesar's and to 37:47 God, the things that are God's. 37:50 To whom does the Sabbath belong? To Cesar or to God? 37:55 The Sabbath belongs to God. Should Cesar get involved in 37:59 mandating worship on Sunday and guaranteeing it by civil 38:05 legislation? Absolutely not. 38:07 The first amendment of the constitution of United States 38:11 says congress shall make no law respecting the establishment 38:15 of religion, nor prohibiting the free exercise there of. 38:20 Congress can't make any law having to do with establishing 38:23 religion or forbidding the free exercise of religion 38:27 the state should be independent for the religion business. 38:31 It is here to rule in civil matters. That's what Jesus meant 38:36 when he said, render therefore to Cesar what is Cesar's 38:39 and to God what is God's. 38:40 That's what is represented by the two horns, like a lamb. 38:45 Which we studied about, remember? 38:47 The beast that rose from the earth that had two horns like a 38:50 lamb. Two kingdoms in one nation The United States recognizes 38:55 two kingdoms. The kingdom of the church and the kingdom of state 38:59 but separate from one another. What does John Paul II say 39:03 in dies domini, about the state getting involved in legislating 39:08 the day of worship? Notice paragraph 66. 39:12 He is revering to Pope Leo XIII. 39:31 Must the state guarantee the observance of Sunday? 39:35 Absolutely not. By the way, I'm not going to read it, 39:39 but in this same document, Pope John Paul II, extols 39:45 and praises the first Sunday law that was written by Constantine 39:50 in the year 321. Saying, this is the way it should be done. 39:55 I'm paraphrasing here. Notice paragraph 67. 40:13 He is saying that should fight for legislation 40:17 to ensure that everyone can keep Sunday holy. That is not 40:24 biblical. 40:25 Actually, as we have studied before, it was a union of church 40:29 and state that led to the crucifixion of Jesus Christ 40:32 They are to remain separate, not to be together. 40:38 Here comes another question. Who changed the day of worship 40:47 Now, Pope John Paul II does a valiant effort, he puts forth 40:53 a effort to try and prove that change was already 40:57 contemplated in the new testament. 41:00 He uses the same Bible verses that Protestants use. 41:03 Well, Jesus resurrected the first day of the week. 41:06 Jesus appeared to the two disciples on the road to Emmaus 41:11 on Sunday. Jesus appeared to the apostles on Sunday night 41:16 in the upper room. The apostle Paul had this prayer meeting 41:22 service in Acts 20 where it was an evening meeting on the first 41:29 day of the week, it says. Paul also says that we are to take 41:33 our tithes and offerings to the church on the first day of the 41:36 week. 1 Corinthians 16:1-2. All of those texts have been 41:41 more than satisfactory answered by Sam Bacioci in his book 41:46 From Sabbath to Sunday. If I had the time I would go into it 41:50 Just because Jesus resurrected on the first day of the week 41:53 does not make the day holy. No where does the Bible say that 41:57 the day is holy because Jesus resurrected that day. 41:59 No where does it say that we are supposed to go to church. 42:02 That meeting that Paul held, according to Acts 20, was an 42:06 extraordinary meeting because he was leaving the next day 42:09 the people wanted to continue hearing him preach. By the way, 42:12 it was not a meeting on Sunday night, it was a meeting on 42:15 Saturday night. 42:17 I don't have time to show you that. When people use 1 Cor 16:2 42:22 and Paul was saying to take your offerings to the church, 42:25 in fact it says, everyone supposed to lay aside at home 42:29 a certain sum the first day of the week. That's the way many 42:33 versions translate it. 42:36 The fact is, the Bible tells us that God sanctified and blessed 42:42 the Sabbath, because he rested on the Sabbath in order for 42:45 Sunday to be blessed and sanctified God would have rested 42:49 on Sunday and Jesus didn't rest on Sunday, he rested in the 42:53 tomb on the Sabbath. 42:56 As you read this document carefully you soon discover 43:01 that John Paul II, actually attributes the change 43:06 to tradition and to Christians 43:10 You have to read carefully, I think what he is doing 43:13 or what he did in this letter that he wrote, is that he wanted 43:18 to appeal to Protestants. You see Catholics traditionally have 43:22 not used these verses from the Bible, Jesus resurrected the 43:25 day, appeared to the disciples on Sunday night, Paul had this 43:30 meeting on Saturday night, which they say is Sunday night. 43:33 Your supposed to take your money to church on Sunday, every 43:37 first day of the week. Catholics never used to use this verses 43:41 They always used to say, the church changed it, the papacy 43:45 changed it by the authority God gave them. John Paul II was a 43:49 very ecumenical Pope, and so he uses the verses that 43:53 use in order to say hey, I'm on your side. 43:58 When you read the document carefully, he actually reveals 44:04 whom it was that changed the day. Notice paragraph 6. 44:37 Notice paragraph 18... He says.. 45:02 Who gave the right to make that change? 45:06 Interestingly enough, he doesn't say the Bible. 45:09 He says Christians, as you read dies domini, it becomes a very 45:14 frustrating document. John Paul II argues mostly from a 45:20 philosophical perspective. He is a philosopher. 45:23 So, he just philosophies, and he reasons, he uses human reason 45:29 to try and prove Sunday is the day of rest, but he has no 45:34 Thus saith the Lord from scripture. 45:37 So, he says in Paragraph 27... 45:49 Since when does Christian reflection change the day of 45:51 worship? Since when does pastoral practice have a right 45:56 to change the day of worship? 45:58 Paragraph 63 46:22 Who gave Christians such a right? 46:26 Only God would have the right to change the day. If the papacy 46:31 claims to have made the change, they must claim that they 46:35 have the power and prerogatives of God. 46:40 That's why, 46:42 2 Thessalonians 2 says that the man of sin sits in the temple 46:48 of God which is the church, showing himself that he is God. 46:55 Notice paragraph 81... 47:17 Are you catching, as you read carefully, where he says where 47:20 change comes from? He can provide no verse from the Bible 47:26 that justifies the change, what so ever. 47:30 He appeals to history as he interprets it. He appeals to 47:34 arguments to reason, he appeals to philosophical 47:40 arguments. Never can he present a text where thus saith the 47:47 Lord. Listen folks, if we are going to change the day 47:50 that we worship on, we better have a thus saith the Lord. 47:58 Few years ago, I was speaking in Argentina. 48:04 It was at a seventh day university, but there were many 48:08 students that were not seventh day Adventist who were attending 48:10 and one evening, I preached a sermon on the harlot of Rev. 17. 48:17 I said, I'm going to preach about the harlot of Rev. 17 48:20 I'm going to give you all of the characteristics, but I'm not 48:23 going to tell you what system this applies to. 48:27 You are going to know, I said, by the characteristics 48:31 which system of the world, this harlot is referring to. 48:36 So, I preached the sermon. I gave woman represents the church 48:40 harlot woman is the fallen church she sits upon many waters 48:43 which means its a world church, she fornicates with the kings 48:46 of the church, which means she is involved with politics 48:48 She is decked with gold, silver and precious stones 48:51 she must be a very rich church majors in these materials 48:54 She has daughters, because she is called the mother of harlots 48:58 daughters that were born from her, I went through all the 49:01 characteristics. 49:03 I never identified what system I was referring to. 49:07 The next morning, I was in a room, where I had interviews 49:11 with students, they could come and ask questions and I would 49:14 pray for them, they would have prayer requests. 49:17 This woman came in, actually a young lady, she says 49:21 pastor, I want you to know that you offended me last night 49:26 I looked at her, and I said, Really? 49:27 I offended you? Why did I offend you? She said, well you didn't 49:31 offend me, you offended my church. 49:35 I looked at her, and I said, but I don't remember mentioning 49:39 the name of any church last night. She says, No, you didn't 49:41 mention the name, but by all of the characteristics we knew 49:44 you were talking about the Roman catholic church. 49:48 I looked at her and said, Hey, 49:51 if all I had to give you was the characteristics, and by the 49:55 characteristics, you reached the conclusion without me having 49:59 to tell you, maybe you should pay attention. 50:02 Then I asked her a question, 50:04 I said which day of the week are we supposed to go to church 50:08 and worship? She says, On Sunday. 50:13 I said, Oh really, why? 50:17 She says, that's what the Bible says. 50:20 I said, Really, where? 50:24 She said, Well, the church has told us, the Bible says that we 50:27 are supposed to keep Sunday. I said, have you ever read 50:30 the ten commandments in the Roman Catholic Bible? 50:34 She says, I can't remember reading them. 50:37 I said, How about you get a Roman Catholic Bible and you 50:42 read Exodus 20:8-11 in your own Roman Catholic Bible. 50:48 She says, What difference would it make? 50:50 I said, if you read in there, you are going to find that it 50:54 says, remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy and its going to 50:58 tell you that the Sabbath is the seventh day. 51:01 She says, Well, Sunday is the seventh day. 51:03 I said, Oh really? Which day of the week did Jesus resurrect? 51:07 She says, He resurrected on the first day of the week. 51:11 I said, Really, what day is the first day of the week? 51:14 She says, Sunday. I said Okay, the seventh day isn't Sunday 51:20 She said, Oh. Things started dawning. 51:24 I said, Go read it, in your own Roman catholic Bible 51:28 It says that the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord your God 51:33 I said, So who are you going to believe? 51:36 Are you going to believe your Roman Catholic Bible? 51:39 Or are you going to believe your Roman Catholic Pope? 51:45 She paused for the longest moment in time. 51:49 She said, I'm confused. 51:53 I don't know how to resolve this. I'm going to go talk to my 51:57 bishop. I told her, Go talk to him. 52:03 I'm going to tell you what he's going to tell to you. 52:06 He's not going to be able to give any verse in the Bible 52:08 that says the day was changed, but he's going to say 52:12 that Jesus gave authority to the church to change the day of 52:17 worship from Saturday to Sunday. 52:20 She left. To this day, I don't know what happened to this lady 52:27 I pray to God, that when she meet with her bishop, if she did 52:30 that she asked additional questions and she came to accept 52:35 the truth as its found in the Bible, but I don't know. 52:39 So, my question to Roman Catholics is, whose authority do 52:42 you accept? The authority of your Roman catholic Bible and 52:47 the fourth commandment that's in there, or do you accept 52:49 the authority of dies domini? 52:52 Yours is the choice. I say to Protestants, do you accept the 52:58 testimony of the Bible that the Sabbath was made at creation. 52:59 It was blessed and sanctified by God. 53:04 Or will you observe the first day of the week, which never the 53:08 Bible says was made holy be God. Never says it is blessed by 53:12 God. Never is it called God holy day. Will you keep that day 53:18 thinking that you are keeping it, because the Bible teaches it 53:22 but you are really keeping it because it has been handed down 53:26 by the tradition of the Roman Catholic church. 53:29 This is where the choice is in the end time. The choice in the 53:35 end time is between the seal of God and the mark of the beast. 53:40 Its between one day and another. The seal of God is the Sabbath 53:44 The mark of the beast is the first day of the week. 53:47 Oh, your saying then, that the whole world is going to be 53:51 divided by a day? 53:55 Let me tell you, the day is only the means by which God 54:00 will test you, to see whose authority you accept. 54:06 Who you are loyal to? 54:10 Do you remember that God placed a tree in the Garden of Eden 54:13 know as the tree of knowledge of good and evil? 54:17 He said to Adam and Eve, you can eat of all of the trees of the 54:19 garden, like he says to us, you can work six days and do all of 54:24 your labor. God said, don't eat from that tree 54:29 He was saying that tree is off limits to you, that's my tree. 54:32 That's not yours. 54:35 Was the test over a tree? No. The purpose of the tree was only 54:43 to test Adam and Eve to see whether they would be loyal to 54:47 him or loyal to Satan. Whether they would accept Gods authority 54:53 or whether they would accept the devils authority. 54:56 The external tree was the means of testing to whom they would 55:01 be loyal. 55:03 So, at the end of time, the day of worship is the way in 55:07 which God is going to test people to see, to whom they 55:12 will be loyal and to whose authority they accept. 55:16 If you, in the end time, accept the authority of the beast 55:22 you will receive his day of worship, you will keep the first 55:27 day of the week. 55:29 The Bible says, those that receive the mark of the beast 55:32 will receive the wrath of God. 55:37 That's why this is such an important issue. I want to end 55:42 with a quotation from that classic book, The Great 55:44 Controversy, pg 53. 55:47 Here Ellen White speaks about the process of how Sunday was 55:50 adopted. She says. 57:02 It can be proven historically true and Sam Bacioci 57:05 has done it in his publications. The bottom line is this. 57:10 Will I accept the authority of God and reveal it by keeping his 57:16 Sabbath and receiving his seal or will I accept the authority 57:20 of the beast and receive his sign, which is the observance of 57:24 the first day of the week? |
Revised 2023-04-20