Participants:
Series Code: WHO
Program Code: WHO200010S
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00:26 Welcome to the hour of worship,
00:29 the hour of blessing here on 3ABN. 00:32 We are glad you have decided to join us 00:34 and we encourage you to sing along and pray with us. 00:38 We want to thank each and every one of you 00:40 that prays for 3ABN. 00:42 We need your prayers to keep going forward 00:44 preaching the gospel to all the world. 00:48 During this hour, 00:49 it's my pleasure to introduce my brother Tim Parton 00:53 that will be leading you 00:55 in singing praises to God in prayer. 00:57 Thank you, Brother Tim. Amen. 00:59 Thank you, Brother Johnny. 01:02 Luke 12:6-7. 01:05 Jesus says, "What is the price of five sparrows, 01:08 two copper coins?" 01:10 Yet God does not forget a single one of them. 01:13 And the very hairs on your head are all numbered. 01:16 So don't be afraid. 01:18 You are more valuable 01:21 than a whole flock of sparrows 01:23 or a flock of geese 01:26 or a bunch of quail. 01:32 You are more important to God than those sparrows. 01:35 And yeah, He's watching out for the sparrow. 01:38 So whatever you have need of today, 01:42 I encourage you to look to God, 01:45 to trust in Him for your answer to be your source. 01:52 I always like to sing this song to myself. 01:55 Are you weary 01:58 Are you heavy hearted? 02:00 Tell it to Jesus 02:03 Tell it to Jesus 02:06 Are you grieving Over joys departed? 02:11 Tell it to Jesus alone 02:17 Tell it to Jesus 02:20 Tell it to Jesus 02:23 He is a Friend 02:25 That's well known 02:29 You've no other 02:32 Such a friend or brother 02:34 Tell it to Jesus alone 02:40 So, Lord, we bring our needs to you. 02:42 We trust that You care 02:44 about each and every one of them. 02:45 Father, those viewers who are watching 02:48 that are facing situations 02:50 that they know only you can do 02:54 something about, 02:58 whether it be for a job, 03:04 for some dependable transportation, 03:07 for healing, 03:10 physical healing, 03:11 relational healing, healing in their marriage, 03:15 they need healing in their family. 03:19 God we know that You are the one 03:21 who hears and You care. 03:25 Do you fear 03:27 The gathering Clouds of sorrow? 03:31 Tell it to Jesus 03:34 Oh, tell it to Jesus 03:37 Are you anxious 03:40 What shall be tomorrow? 03:43 Oh, please, Tell it to Jesus alone 03:50 Tell it to Jesus 03:53 Tell it to Jesus 03:56 He is a Friend 03:58 That's well known 04:02 You've no other 04:05 Such a friend nor brother 04:09 So tell it to Jesus alone 04:16 Father, forgive us. 04:19 When we wanna talk about our problems, 04:23 we wanna talk about our sad situations 04:29 to each other. 04:32 Lord, we know we are to tell each other 04:34 and bear each other's burdens, 04:36 but, God, sometimes we just make it a, 04:39 just a time of gossiping about our own sad song 04:46 in our sad state. 04:48 But, Father, You are the one I want to run to, 04:51 in all desperate times, for all my desperate needs. 04:57 So, Father, I will tell You, 04:59 we bring to You our needs, oh, God. 05:04 Are you troubled At the very thought of dying? 05:10 Tell it to Jesus 05:13 Tell it to Jesus 05:17 For Christ's coming kingdom 05:21 Are you sighing? 05:23 Oh, tell it to Jesus alone 05:29 Lord, we know that there are people 05:30 on our prayer lists, 05:33 who we want to see 05:38 give their heart to You. 05:41 So I'm praying God that, Lord, 05:43 You would work Your way and Your will. 05:48 Father, You declare 05:51 that You don't want anyone to perish. 05:58 So I ask that You will stir our hearts 06:02 to continue to pray for those souls 06:06 that need to be won into Your kingdom. 06:09 And we thank You, Father, that You are victorious. 06:12 We are victorious through You. 06:16 Thank You for the victory that You gave us. 06:19 And we claim that victory 06:21 and we will walk into that victory. 06:26 Tell it to Jesus 06:30 Tell it to Jesus 06:33 He is a Friend 06:35 That's well known 06:39 You've no other 06:41 Such a friend nor brother 06:45 Tell it to Jesus 06:48 Alone 06:52 And then once you've told it to Him. 06:55 Only trust Him 06:58 Only trust Him 07:02 Only trust Him now 07:07 And He will hear you 07:11 He will hear you 07:14 And He will save you 07:18 He will save you 07:21 He will save you 07:27 Now. 07:32 You can depend on Him. 07:35 Amen. Amen. 07:36 Thank you, Brother Tim Parton. 07:38 It's always a blessing to hear him 07:39 play the piano and sing. 07:41 And we encourage you to keep a song in your heart. 07:44 Tell it to Jesus. 07:46 He is waiting to hear from you. 07:50 The title for today is 07:52 "Coronavirus, the Preventable Crisis?" 07:57 The question is, is it possible 07:59 that this worldwide Coronavirus COVID-19, 08:03 which threatens to kill millions of people 08:05 around the world? 08:06 The question is, are we facing a preventable crisis? 08:11 We're gonna go through a study of God's Word. 08:13 And I would like to encourage you 08:15 to join me along, 08:16 get your Bible ready, 08:18 perhaps some paper to jot some things down, 08:21 but before we do that, 08:22 I like to go to the Lord in prayer once again 08:24 and ask for His blessing, 08:26 to ask Him to take over completely. 08:29 That He may bless us according to our needs. 08:33 Let us pray. 08:34 Our loving Heavenly Father, 08:37 we come before You in Jesus' name. 08:40 And we thank You, Lord, that we can worship You, 08:43 trust in You, 08:44 and tell You all of our concerns. 08:47 In this moment, Lord, we ask for Your blessing 08:50 upon everyone that is listening, watching. 08:54 We pray that Your Holy Spirit 08:56 will give us understanding of those things 08:59 You want us to do, and to learn. 09:03 And we ask You, Father, 09:05 to be with each and every one of Your children. 09:07 And, Lord, I place myself in Your hands. 09:11 I ask for Your Holy Spirit, 09:13 that every word may come from Your throne of grace. 09:16 And we ask You for these blessings. 09:18 In Jesus' name, amen, amen. 09:24 When we consider the sufferings of this world, 09:29 we must really ask ourselves, 09:30 where is this suffering coming from? 09:34 Some suffering comes to us because of our own making, 09:40 our own decisions. 09:42 Some sufferings comes to us 09:44 because of being in contact with someone that may be sick. 09:49 There are many different reasons, 09:50 different factors that cause these things, 09:54 but unfortunately, 09:55 sometimes people blame God for things He has not done. 10:00 And perhaps there are people 10:01 blaming God for this Coronavirus, 10:04 in which He really has had nothing 10:07 to do with. 10:08 I would like to invite you to join me in 1 John 4:8. 10:12 1 John 4:8, the Bible tells us, 10:16 "He who does not love does not know God, 10:20 for God is love." 10:23 Now, understanding that God is love, 10:26 we should be able to see and understand 10:30 that He does not delight in seeing people suffer, 10:35 so He will not cause suffering upon people unnecessarily. 10:42 In John 3:16. 10:44 And I will also read verse 17. 10:47 Notice what the Bible tells us, 10:49 "For God so loved the world 10:52 that He gave His only begotten Son, 10:54 that whoever believes in Him 10:57 should not perish but have everlasting life. 11:01 For God did not send His Son into the world 11:04 to condemn the world, 11:05 but that the world through Him might be saved." 11:10 This is the God, the Creator, the one that loves us, 11:15 the one that does not want to see us 11:17 suffer in any way, 11:20 but we must understand 11:23 that we are living in a time 11:26 when there's a great controversy 11:28 between good and evil. 11:30 The Bible talks about the enemy, 11:32 the devil as a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour, 11:38 but he works in different ways. 11:41 And he works very, very sneakily, 11:45 if I could say it that way 11:47 and deceives people into saying things 11:50 and doing things 11:52 that causes them harm and causes other people harm. 11:57 In 1 John 1:2, 12:01 I'm sorry, 3 John 1:2. 12:05 The Bible tells us, "Beloved, 12:07 I pray that you may prosper in all things and be in health, 12:13 just as your soul prospers." 12:15 This is the Apostle John writing to God's Church, 12:21 but at the same time, 12:23 we must understand that this is the same desire 12:26 that God has for us. 12:28 He wants us to prosper and be in good health. 12:33 I would like to go to the Book of Jeremiah 12:37 and read for you a scripture 12:41 that details what God has in mind for you. 12:47 In Jeremiah 29:11, the Bible tells us, 12:51 "For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, 12:55 says the Lord, 12:57 thoughts of peace and not of evil, 12:59 to give you a future and a hope." 13:03 This is the marvelous God that created us, that loves us, 13:08 that gave His only begotten Son to die for us 13:11 so that we can have eternal life. 13:14 And He has thoughts of peace 13:16 and thoughts of hope for you and for me. 13:22 We are facing a great controversy 13:24 between good and evil. 13:27 And we must understand 13:28 that God is not the author of mass suffering, 13:33 as some people have painted Him. 13:36 And so now, we are gonna go 13:39 to the Book of Lamentation 3:33. 13:44 In Lamentations 3:33, 13:47 notice what the Bible says, 13:52 "For he does not afflict willingly 13:56 nor grieve the children of men." 14:00 So this is the way God is. 14:03 And in the Bible are several examples 14:07 of God exercising mercy, 14:10 exercising love, 14:12 extending opportunity for people 14:16 to repent before He punishes the people 14:20 for the wickedness they do. 14:22 Let's go to Genesis Chapter 18. 14:25 And I wish we had time to go through the whole thing, 14:28 but we're going to have to skip some verses 14:31 because we have a lot of things to share with you. 14:34 In Genesis Chapter 18, 14:36 Abraham and his wife are visited, 14:39 and the three individuals come to see them 14:45 if I could say it that way. 14:47 Three angels, 14:49 but one of them is a divine being. 14:54 In Genesis 18:20, 14:58 now that they have had time with Abraham. 15:02 Then we pick up in verse 20, 15:06 "And the Lord said, 15:07 'Because the outcry 15:09 against Sodom and Gomorrah is great, 15:12 and because their sin is very grave, 15:16 I will go down now 15:18 and see whether they have done 15:20 altogether according to the outcry 15:23 that has come to Me, 15:25 and if not, I will know.' 15:28 Then the men turned away from there 15:31 and went towards Sodom, 15:32 but Abraham still stood before the Lord. 15:36 And Abraham came near and said, 15:38 'Would you also destroy the righteous with the wicked? 15:43 Suppose there were fifty righteous 15:46 within the city, 15:48 would you also destroy the place 15:50 and not spare it for the fifty righteous 15:52 that were in it? 15:53 Far be it from You to do such a thing as this, 15:57 to slay the righteous with the wicked, 16:00 so that the righteous should be as the wicked, 16:03 far be it from You! 16:05 Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?' 16:10 " Abraham was acquainted with God 16:13 and knew that God will not do such a thing. 16:16 So he's asking him, 16:17 are you going to slay the wicked 16:19 with the righteous. 16:21 It didn't seem like something God would do, 16:23 so he's asking this question. 16:26 Notice the answer of the Lord in Genesis 18:26. 16:31 "So the Lord said, 'If I find in Sodom 16:35 fifty righteous within the city, 16:39 then I will spare all the place for their sakes.'" 16:44 Notice here that God starts at 50. 16:48 And we don't know how many people 16:51 were in Sodom and Gomorrah, 16:53 perhaps they were thousands, 16:55 but according to what God says here, 16:57 what the Lord says there is wickedness 17:01 in Sodom and Gomorrah to such a degree, 17:05 that God must do something 17:08 so that this doesn't spread to other nations. 17:12 So God has to take action, 17:16 but Abraham appeals to the Lord. 17:19 Notice 17:21 in Genesis 17:23 18:27-31. 17:30 I'm sorry, we're just gonna read 17:34 two more verses here. 17:35 Genesis 18:27-28. 17:42 "Then Abraham answered and said, 'Indeed now, 17:44 I who am but dust and ashes have taken it upon myself 17:50 to speak to the Lord. 17:51 Suppose there were five less than the fifty righteous, 17:57 would you destroy all the city for lack of five? 18:03 So He said, 'If I find there forty-five, 18:08 I will not destroy it.'" 18:10 Praise the Lord, 18:12 that we have such a picture of the Lord, 18:15 that He starts at 50, but Abraham said, 18:17 "What if there are just 5 less than the 50?" 18:21 And the Lord said, "If there are 45 good people, 18:24 I will spare them 18:27 because there are 45 righteous people." 18:30 What a marvelous God. 18:31 This helps me to understand that today, societies, 18:35 countries, cities 18:37 benefit from the fact 18:39 that there are good righteous people 18:42 in those cities, 18:44 but notice, if you keep reading on 18:46 you will notice that Abraham continue 18:49 to appeal to the Lord. 18:50 Lord, what if there are 30, 18:56 and then he went to 20 18:59 and the Lord continue to say, 19:00 "I will not destroy it for the sake of the 20, 19:04 of the 30, the 40, the 30, the 20." 19:09 And you'd think, wait a minute, 19:13 with the mass multitude of people, 19:15 God is gonna spare all of this wickedness 19:18 and put up with it 19:20 because there are 20 good people there. 19:22 God is so good, 19:24 but now I wanna take you to verse 32. 19:30 When Abraham appeals to the Lord took him, 19:35 if you wanna say that way 19:36 from 50 down to a number that is very low. 19:41 "Then he said, 'Let not the Lord be angry, 19:44 and I will speak but once more. 19:46 Suppose ten should be found there?' 19:49 And He said, 19:50 'I will not destroy it for the sake of ten.'" 19:55 Praise God. 19:56 Verse 33 says, "So the Lord went His way 19:58 as soon as He had finished speaking with Abraham, 20:01 and Abraham returned to his place." 20:04 Brothers and sisters, 20:06 God is so good, so marvelous, 20:10 that He helps us to understand 20:13 that His mercy is beyond our understanding. 20:17 He was willing to spare Sodom and Gomorrah, 20:20 if there were just 10 good righteous people there. 20:25 The wickedness was so, so large, 20:27 so great that God had to come down 20:32 to take action, 20:33 before the wickedness, 20:35 wickedness spreads to the rest of the countries, 20:38 the rest of the people around them, 20:41 but unfortunately, 20:44 there were not even 10 righteous people 20:48 in Sodom and Gomorrah. 20:51 And so the Lord had to take action 20:53 to stop the evil from spreading 20:55 and Sodom and Gomorrah were destroyed. 20:59 If you can continue reading in Genesis you will find 21:02 that only four people left Sodom and Gomorrah 21:07 before destruction came. 21:11 And of the four, Abraham's wife, I'm sorry, 21:15 Lot's wife turned back, 21:18 and disobeyed what she was told 21:21 and turned into a pillar of salt. 21:23 So we have God letting us know 21:26 that He is merciful. 21:30 In fact, 21:31 it is the devil that causes mass destruction 21:35 and does so much terror upon the world. 21:41 Notice, 21:42 from the Great Controversy, 589. 21:46 In the Great Controversy, 589, page 589, 21:49 I'm gonna read something that helps us understand this. 21:52 "Even now he is at work." Talking about Satan. 21:55 "In accidents and calamities by sea and by land, 21:58 in great conflagrations," those are fires, 22:03 "in fierce tornadoes and terrific hailstorms, 22:06 in tempests, floods, cyclones, tidal waves, and earthquakes, 22:10 in every place and in a thousand forms, 22:13 Satan is exercising his power. 22:15 He sweeps away the ripening harvest, 22:18 and famine and distress follow. 22:20 He imparts to the air a deadly taint, 22:23 and thousands perish by the pestilence. 22:27 These visitations are to become 22:30 more and more frequent and disastrous. 22:33 Destruction will be upon both man and beasts. 22:36 'The earth mourneth and fadeth away, 22:39 ' 'the haughty people do languish. 22:41 The earth also is defiled under the inhabitants 22:45 and thereof, 22:46 because they have transgressed the laws, 22:49 changed the ordinance, 22:50 broken the everlasting covenant.'" 22:53 This is partially quoted from Isaiah 24:4-5. 22:58 So Satan is at work 23:00 causing tornadoes and hailstorms, 23:03 earthquakes and people suffer, 23:06 and then people blame God for these things. 23:11 The history of Jacob helps us understand 23:15 that Satan is the one that inflicts punishment. 23:21 Read the story of Job, I'm sorry, yes, 23:24 of Job and you will notice 23:26 how Satan caused great suffering upon Job 23:30 and his family. 23:32 And I am going to read to you from Desire of Ages, 471, 23:37 "The history of Job had shown that suffering 23:39 is inflicted by Satan, 23:42 and is overruled by God for purposes of mercy. 23:45 But Israel did not understand the lesson. 23:48 The same error 23:49 for which God had reproved the friends of Job 23:52 was repeated by the Jews in their rejection of Christ." 23:58 You know, the Bible gives us examples 24:02 of how the Lord acts and what process He takes, 24:06 what steps He takes before destruction 24:08 comes upon a city or a people. 24:11 You can go through... 24:13 We can mention several examples, 24:14 but easily you remember Noah, 24:17 the Lord for 120 years through Noah and his family 24:20 preached to the people that destruction was coming, 24:22 that they should prepare themselves 24:24 and get into the ark. 24:25 Also, you can look 24:27 at what we just talked about Sodom and Gomorrah, 24:29 they were warned before the things 24:33 they were punished. 24:34 Moses in Egypt warned the people of Egypt 24:37 and also warned the people of Israel 24:39 that if they don't obey, 24:41 they would suffer because of their bad decisions. 24:44 Jonah was sent to the people of Nineveh 24:47 to repent before they had to suffer 24:49 for their sins. 24:51 So you see, the examples the Bible gives to us 24:54 shows us that God warns people 24:57 before He takes action 24:58 such as causing punishment upon people. 25:02 So the Bible has information for us 25:05 so that we can make better decisions. 25:09 Now let's go to the Book of Matthew 24:3-8 25:15 really quick, we're gonna read here 25:17 because the disciples wanted to know 25:19 about the end of the world 25:20 and the destruction of Jerusalem. 25:22 In Matthew 24, beginning in verse 3, 25:25 "Now as He sat on the Mount of Olives, 25:26 the disciples came to Him privately saying, 25:29 'Tell us, when will these things be? 25:32 And what will be the sign of Your coming, 25:34 and of the end of the age?' 25:37 And Jesus answered and said to them, 25:38 'Take heed that no one deceives you. 25:41 For many will come in My name, saying, 'I am the Christ, ' 25:44 and will deceive many. 25:46 And you will hear wars and rumors of wars. 25:48 See that you are not troubled, 25:50 for all these things must come to pass, 25:52 but the end is not yet. 25:54 For nation will rise against nation, 25:57 and kingdom against kingdom. 25:58 And there will be famines, pestilences, 26:02 and earthquakes in various places. 26:05 All these are the beginning of sorrows.'" 26:09 And you may have heard this mentioned before, 26:11 you've read it before, 26:13 but please understand 26:14 that the fact that this is mentioned 26:16 as something that is going to happen 26:18 in the future, 26:19 from the time of the disciples on to the time of the end 26:24 that we are living in 26:25 does not mean that God is the one 26:28 that is causing the earthquakes 26:31 and the wars and the pestilences 26:35 in various places. 26:36 You will know that is one nation 26:39 gets upset with another nation 26:40 and they cause war among each other. 26:43 But Satan gets involved in these earthquakes 26:47 and tornadoes and tempest 26:49 and even pestilences 26:52 such as we are facing now, 26:55 the global pandemic 26:58 Coronavirus COVID-19. 27:03 In the Book of Isaiah, 27:05 we have a message from the Lord 27:08 that we should consider. 27:11 And I am going to read to you 27:12 from Isaiah 26:20, 27:18 and then in a moment I will read verse 21. 27:23 "Come, my people, enter your chambers, 27:27 and shut your doors behind you. 27:30 Hide yourself, as it were, for a little moment, 27:35 until the indignation is past." 27:38 This gives me a picture of the situation 27:41 that we are facing now. 27:42 God wants us to hide as it for a moment, 27:45 to protect ourselves 27:47 from being infected by this virus 27:50 that close contact with people brings upon us. 27:56 So let us now read Isaiah 26:21. 28:02 "For behold, the Lord comes out of His place 28:05 to punish the inhabitants of the earth 28:07 for their iniquity. 28:09 The earth also will disclose her blood, 28:12 and will no more cover her slain." 28:15 The time will come, 28:17 when God will act to punish the inhabitants of this world 28:22 for the iniquity and the evil that they are doing. 28:27 But God warns His people, 28:30 warns people before He takes action. 28:35 The majority of the suffering that comes our way 28:38 is because of our own decisions, 28:40 or intentional sin or rebellion. 28:44 I can give you the example of somebody that decides. 28:47 Well, I've heard the information, 28:50 but I'm going to smoke anyway. 28:51 And you see that the cigarette packs 28:54 have the sign on them 28:55 that this could cause problems for your health, even cancer. 28:59 They are now putting these on cigarettes. 29:01 But people go ahead and do this anyway. 29:04 Will they blame God for inflicting the sickness 29:08 that comes upon them 29:09 from disobeying the laws of health? 29:13 Some people do. 29:14 There are also different things that people do. 29:17 They put themselves in unnecessary danger. 29:20 For me, I see it as an unnecessary risk 29:26 to jump off a cliff, 29:27 a bridge or high structure with a bungee cord 29:30 for merely enjoy myself. 29:33 These are decisions that people make 29:36 that causes suffering upon themselves, 29:39 and many other things. 29:42 There are even laws in the land about speed limits 29:45 and things like that, 29:47 stop signs that people say, 29:48 "I'm just going to go through stop signs whenever I please." 29:51 And they can get into accidents. 29:53 They can go through faster than the speed limit allows 29:55 in the city where there is 20 miles, 29:58 30 miles per hour and they can go and run, 30:01 drive over other people. 30:03 So bad decisions causes suffering. 30:07 I want to point to you to Galatians Chapter 6. 30:11 In Galatians Chapter 6, 30:13 there is a principle there that we need to read 30:18 to understand the way things are for us 30:23 as human beings. 30:24 This is a principle. 30:26 The Bible tells us in verse 7, Galatians 6:7. 30:30 "Do not be deceived, God is not mocked, 30:34 for whatever a man sows that he will also reap." 30:40 And so the decisions we make will bring results. 30:44 If you decide to plant grapes, 30:46 you should expect to get grapes, oranges, 30:48 you should get oranges. 30:50 If you decide to do good things, 30:53 you should expect good things to happen. 30:55 If you decide to do bad things, 30:57 you should expect that bad things 31:00 will happen to you or others. 31:03 And if you do harm upon others, 31:05 you will have to pay for these things 31:06 because the Bible tells us 31:08 that the wages of sin is death. 31:12 But sin also causes suffering now 31:16 while we are living 31:17 because there are consequences for our bad decisions. 31:22 I want to read to you 31:25 from Desire of Ages, 31:29 824, 31:33 a message that helps us understand these things. 31:35 "Christ had been the guide and teacher of ancient Israel, 31:38 and He taught them that health is the reward of obedience 31:42 to the laws of God. 31:43 The Great Physician 31:45 who healed the sick in Palestine 31:46 had spoken to His people from the pillar of cloud, 31:51 telling them what they must do 31:53 and what God would do for them. 31:56 'If thou wilt diligently hearken to the voice 31:59 of the Lord thy God,' 32:00 He said, 'and wilt do that which is right in His sight, 32:04 and wilt give ear to His commandments, 32:06 and keep all His statutes, 32:08 I will put none of these diseases 32:10 upon thee, 32:11 which I have brought upon the Egyptians, 32:13 for I am the Lord that healeth thee.'" 32:17 Exodus 15:26. 32:19 "Christ gave to Israel 32:21 definite instruction 32:23 in regard to their habits of life, 32:26 and He assured them, 32:27 'The Lord will take away from thee all sickness.'" 32:31 Deuteronomy 7:16. 32:34 When they fulfilled the conditions, 32:36 the promise was verified to them." 32:39 And this is why you find in Psalm 105:37 32:43 the following words, 32:45 "There was not one feeble person 32:49 among their tribes." 32:51 Praise be to God. 32:53 I want to encourage you 32:55 to follow the principles of health 32:57 found in the Bible. 32:59 And we're going to read some of them given time. 33:03 You may recall from the story in the gospels, 33:08 something that Jesus said. 33:10 Jesus said, several people that Jesus healed, 33:14 He told them something specific 33:17 because a lot of diseases 33:22 is the result of violating God's laws. 33:28 So some of the people that Jesus healed, 33:31 He specifically told them, "Go and sin no more, 33:35 lest a worse thing come upon you." 33:40 So I encourage you to follow God's principles 33:43 that you may enjoy good results. 33:46 Because, remember, "Be not deceived, 33:50 God is not mocked for whatever a men sows 33:53 that will he also reap." 33:56 Now the Coronavirus, 33:58 COVID-19 is one of the greatest threats 34:01 that is, humanity is facing right now. 34:05 And there's great fear among the people. 34:07 So we have to ask ourselves questions. 34:10 Where did this come from? 34:14 Now doing some research and I have to praise the Lord 34:17 because my wife Idalia, 34:19 I was praying and asking the Lord, 34:20 "Lord, where did this thing come from? 34:23 Why is it that we have this horrific pandemic going on 34:28 killing hundreds and thousands of people?" 34:31 And I was praying and praying shortly thereafter, 34:33 my wife Idalia, put on a video and I started to listen. 34:39 And I said, "This is logical, this makes sense." 34:42 And it led me on to do further research. 34:45 And I want to read to you. 34:46 I mean, yes, read to you from a YouTube video 34:50 where a Dr. Michael Greger 34:53 Director of Public Health and Animal Agriculture 34:56 in the Humane Society, 34:57 he shared a lot of interesting information. 35:02 You can easily find this video because this is Pandemics, 35:05 History and Prevention. 35:07 Pandemics, History and Prevention. 35:09 Now he did so much research. 35:11 There are about 22 pages of references of articles 35:14 and books that he looked into 35:16 before he prepared his presentation. 35:19 So the question that I asked, where did this come from? 35:24 It's answered in that video by another doctor 35:28 because Jim Lehrer 35:30 from the News Hour with Jim Lehrer, 35:33 he says, well, 35:35 the senior correspondent of News Hour 35:37 with Jim Lehrer posed that question to Dr. Webster. 35:40 Who's Dr. Webster? 35:42 The so called godfather of flu research. 35:45 "Was there's something qualitatively different 35:50 about this last decade 35:53 made it possible for this disease 35:56 to do something it's never done before, 35:59 some kind of changing conditions 36:01 that suddenly lit a match to the Tinder?" 36:05 Webster replied to Jim Lehrer, 36:08 He said, "Farming practices have changed." 36:12 He talks about growing up on a farm. 36:14 And then he says, 36:15 "But now we put millions of chickens 36:18 into a chicken factory, next door to a pig factory. 36:23 And this virus has the opportunity 36:26 to get in one of these chicken factories 36:29 and make billions and billions 36:31 of these mutations continuously. 36:34 And so what we've changed 36:37 is the way we raise animals 36:40 and our interaction with those animals." 36:43 And then he talks 36:45 about how the virus is escaping from the factories 36:48 infecting even the wild birds. 36:51 He says that's what's changed. 36:54 We've changed the way we raise animals. 36:58 But as we change the way we raise the animals, 37:00 we raise animals now by the billions, 37:03 and the conditions these animals live in, 37:07 there are pictures you can find on the internet. 37:10 You can easily look under industrialized farms 37:13 and you will find pictures of chickens 37:17 living in conditions 37:19 inside hundreds and thousands upon thousands of chickens. 37:24 There are stories or not stories 37:27 but information that in China 37:29 there is one such industrialized farm 37:34 or these farms where the animals are kept, 37:38 there has about a million chickens, 37:41 and they have many of these farms in China. 37:43 We have some of these industrialized farms 37:46 here in the US, 37:48 where they have cows, where they have pigs, 37:51 hundreds and hundreds side by side in cramped spaces. 37:55 And this creates an atmosphere for disease to grow, 38:00 and viruses to mutate, go from one to another. 38:05 Also, there are places in the world 38:09 that still sell live animals 38:12 and people go there 38:14 and buy their animals while they're alive. 38:16 This is also a dangerous situation, 38:19 because this is how diseases have spread. 38:22 And then actually, there are so called wet farms. 38:26 And it's understood the research I've done 38:28 indicates that these were the conditions 38:30 upon which the Coronavirus COVID-19 surface. 38:36 There are markets in Wuhan 38:38 where people have all kinds of different animals, 38:42 live animals 38:43 and people go to these places and buy them 38:47 and dangerous, dangerous conditions. 38:51 Let's continue. 38:53 Another video, 38:55 actually this is an article found on the internet 38:58 from the magazine, the Atlantic. 39:01 And this time is Dr. Robert Lawrence, 39:04 professor of environmental health sciences, 39:07 health policy, and international health 39:08 at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. 39:13 And he says, 39:15 "Our current model of food animal production 39:19 factors heavily 39:20 into viral evolution and transmission. 39:23 The system, 39:25 which is vastly different than it was 39:26 just a century ago, provides some efficiency, 39:30 but it poses grave threats to public health 39:33 including increased risk of pandemic influenza. 39:39 Beginning in the 1940s, " he says, 39:41 "and intensifying recently, 39:43 small farms were replaced by large industrial operations 39:47 that can find thousands 39:49 or even millions of animals at a single site. 39:52 The animals are raised in cramped charters 39:55 in constant contact with their waste, 39:57 and fed corn and soybeans in place of the forage 40:01 for which their digestive systems evolved." 40:04 He believes in evolution that's why he uses these words. 40:06 Additionally, he says, 40:08 "The stress is induced by confinement 40:11 and constant respiratory exposure 40:14 to high concentrations of ammonia, 40:16 hydrogen sulphide, and other gases 40:18 from concentrated waste leaves animals 40:22 more susceptible to viral infections. 40:25 These conditions allow viruses to infect again and again 40:30 increasing the frequency of mutations 40:33 and viral reassortment, 40:35 the raw material for evolution." 40:38 In other words, he's saying the conditions 40:41 that we are raising these animals, 40:43 is a condition upon which diseases can spread 40:47 and be passed on to human beings. 40:50 In the LA Times article, 40:53 January 26, 2020, Wendy Orent, 40:59 who is the author of a book, "Plague, 41:02 the Mysterious Past and Terrifying Future 41:05 of the World's Most Dangerous Disease, 41:08 " she says Coronaviruses have proven themselves 41:11 masters at jumping from one species to another, 41:15 and how they affect each species 41:18 can differ greatly, 41:19 and infection hardly noticeable in a wild animal. 41:23 Perhaps a civet cat may spread easily to the next cage 41:28 where that cage houses more civets 41:30 or another million species. 41:33 With Coronaviruses, 41:35 the jump from species to species 41:37 appears to happen fairly easily." 41:43 And so she also states, 41:46 "The massive poultry farms of Asia, 41:49 which may house as many as 5 million chickens, 41:52 present a different but also potentially 41:56 lethal source of human infection. 41:58 Their viruses such as influenza 42:01 become highly adapted in crowded circumstances, 42:05 even more deadly to chickens, 42:08 and there is no cost to the virus if it's lethal. 42:10 The next host is only a beak away." 42:15 So caging these different wild beasts 42:17 together by the hundreds and thousands 42:19 is creating atmosphere for infectious disease. 42:24 I must hurry. 42:25 I see the time is going quickly. 42:27 Let's go quickly to Leviticus Chapter 11. 42:30 In Leviticus Chapter 11 42:33 going to read quickly verses 1 through 5. 42:36 "Now the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying to them, 42:39 'Speak to the children of Israel saying, 42:41 'These are the animals which you may eat 42:43 among all the animals that are on the earth, 42:47 among them.''' 42:49 Verse 3, 42:50 "Among the animals, whatever divides the hoof, 42:52 having cloven hooves and chewing the cud, 42:55 that you may eat.'" 42:57 This includes the cow. 42:58 "Nevertheless these you shall not eat 43:01 among those that chew the cud 43:02 or those that have cloven hooves, the camel, '" 43:06 not supposed to eat camels, 43:08 "because it chews the cud 43:09 but does not have cloven hooves, 43:12 it is unclean to you. 43:14 The rock hyrax,'" 43:15 which is also called the coney in the King James Version, 43:18 "because it chews the cud but does not have cloven hooves 43:22 is unclean to you." 43:24 So this rock hyrax is also called the cape hyrax, 43:28 a rock rabbit, and a coney. 43:30 Now these are conditions or these are things 43:33 that God is telling us how to avoid diseases. 43:36 These animals were animals, 43:39 they are animals that clean up 43:41 after the rubbish and garbage 43:43 that are left behind by the forest, 43:45 by other animals. 43:47 They even eat dying and decaying animals. 43:51 Notice Leviticus 11:6, 43:53 "The hare, because it chews the cud 43:55 but does not have cloven hooves, 43:56 is unclean to you." 43:58 Leviticus 11:7, 8, notice, 44:02 "And the swine, though it divides the hoof, 44:05 having cloven hooves, yet does not chew the cud, 44:08 is unclean to you. 44:10 Their flesh you shall not eat, 44:12 and their carcasses you shall not touch. 44:15 They are unclean to you." 44:18 What are we talking about here? 44:19 We're talking about pork, you may call it pork, swine, 44:21 whatever it is, you call it. 44:23 These animals are like a factory house 44:26 of infectious things to grow. 44:29 You may have heard of the worm Trichina 44:32 that has killed a lot of people. 44:34 I met a man recently, 44:36 in Dominican Republic where he told me, 44:38 "I nearly died. 44:40 I was eating pork 44:42 and I didn't know better and I was eating. 44:43 I used to eat this a lot and it nearly killed me." 44:47 He told me he was for a long time 44:49 in the hospital, 44:50 was even in a coma. 44:52 And he says, "Thanks to God, I am alive today." 44:55 To warn other people, to lead this thing... 44:56 Well, you may say, 44:58 "I've been eating pork for years 44:59 and nothing has happened to me." 45:01 Be thankful to God. 45:03 But the scriptures say 45:06 that this is an animal that is unclean, 45:08 and an animal that is dangerous to eat. 45:10 I encourage you to leave that 45:13 and follow what God says to avoid diseases. 45:16 Notice what Isaiah 66:17 tells us, 45:21 "Those who sanctified themselves 45:22 and purify themselves, to go to the gardens, 45:26 after an idol in the midst, 45:29 eating swine's flesh 45:31 and the abomination and the mouse, 45:34 they shall be consumed together,' 45:37 says the Lord." 45:38 So this animal, 45:41 swine and mouse 45:43 are not fit food for God's people. 45:47 If you want to avoid diseases, you can go to Leviticus 11, 45:51 learn a lot of information, 45:53 guidelines for you to follow 45:55 if you want to live a healthy life. 45:58 You may remember now that I mentioned swine, 46:00 that there was a swine flu in 2009. 46:03 And this swine flu, it was a pandemic 46:07 that sprang out of one of the massive farms 46:09 in Veracruz, Mexico, 46:12 where hundreds of pigs died in an outbreak 46:14 that eventually moved into people. 46:18 This caused an influenza virus 46:20 and infected at least 1.6 million people 46:23 and killed at least 19,000 worldwide. 46:27 In 1967, there was a Hong Kong Flu 46:31 that killed at least 1 million people 46:33 around the globe. 46:34 You also may have heard 46:36 recently about the infamous 1918 influenza 46:42 that claimed about 50 million people. 46:45 The conditions that animals are being raised today, 46:49 it's a dangerous condition, 46:51 and we need to make wise decisions 46:54 to avoid sickness. 46:56 Leviticus 11:9-12. 46:59 We're not going to be able to read all Leviticus 11 47:02 because of lack of time. 47:03 But I will read quickly to you here. 47:05 "These you may eat all that are in the water, 47:07 whatever in the water has fins and scales, 47:09 whether in the seas or in the rivers 47:11 that you meet." 47:13 Good news. 47:15 "But in the seas or in the rivers 47:17 that do not have fins and scales, 47:21 all the move in the water 47:23 or any living thing that which is in the water, 47:26 they are an abomination to you. 47:28 They should be an abomination to you, 47:30 you shall not eat their flesh, 47:32 but you shall regard their carcasses 47:34 as an abomination.'' 47:35 So brothers and sisters, we need to avoid these things. 47:40 They are dangerous, bad for your health 47:43 and this that I just read 47:47 includes shrimp, lobster, 47:50 these animals that clean in the ocean, 47:53 they are dangerous for your health. 47:55 Leave them to avoid sickness is my appeal to you. 48:00 This is what the Bible tells us. 48:03 This new virus, 48:06 the early information that I heard about the virus 48:09 in Wuhan, China, 48:13 where this Coronavirus, they say it originated there. 48:18 First information I heard 48:20 it was somebody eating bat soup 48:22 that was contaminated, that brought this about. 48:25 I also heard that perhaps it was snake. 48:28 Whichever one of these it was, it was in this market. 48:32 They know it was in the market 48:34 that such as described these wet markets 48:35 where there are different types of animals, 48:38 filthy conditions, crowded, and this is a dangerous thing. 48:43 So we as a people in the world need to make changes. 48:49 I want to say something interesting to you 48:53 because looking in YouTube 48:56 found a video by Dr. Anthony Fauci. 48:59 And in 2017, 49:01 speaking before a group of people 49:04 analyzing data from other diseases 49:07 and history and conditions in the world, 49:09 he said, "There could be in the future 49:12 a pandemic outbreak of influenza." 49:16 We are facing that. Is he a prophet? 49:19 No. 49:20 But he examines data scientifically. 49:24 The conditions are there for diseases to spread 49:27 and he was just stating 49:28 a possibility of something happening 49:30 in the future and we are facing today. 49:32 Coronavirus, COVID-19 is a type of influenza. 49:36 Remember, "Be not deceived, 49:39 God is not mocked 49:41 for whatever a man sows that will he also reap." 49:44 So what do we do? 49:46 How do we stop this thing from surfacing again? 49:50 Well, Robert Webster, that I quoted earlier, 49:53 a leading flu scientist concluded a landmark article 49:58 on the emergence of pandemic viruses. 50:01 This is several years ago. 50:03 He said these words in that article, 50:05 "An immediate practical approaches 50:07 to close all live poultry markets. 50:11 He goes on to note 50:13 that with refrigeration systems widely available, 50:17 "It is no longer necessary to sell live birds. 50:20 The reality is that traditions change very slowly. 50:26 But a new pandemic could accelerate this process." 50:30 In other words, 50:32 they should take the warnings of the pandemics 50:35 that have already killed thousands of people and say 50:37 we need to make changes here. 50:39 And there are these types of markets 50:41 in different countries. 50:43 I want to read to you from Testimonies volume 7, 50:47 page 124, 50:49 Ellen G. White making a statement, 50:50 notice these words, 50:52 "Animals are becoming more and more diseased, 50:56 and it will not be long 50:58 until animal food will be discarded 51:01 by many besides Seventh-day Adventists." 51:06 Wow! 51:07 This is an incredible statement. 51:09 This was made in 1902, and it is true today. 51:12 Many people are realizing that a lot of the food, 51:16 a lot of the meats are not good to eat. 51:19 And others besides Seventh-day Adventists 51:21 are abandoning meat 51:23 because they understand that there is a better way. 51:27 And if you look in the Bible, 51:29 you will notice 51:30 that the original diets that God gave to people 51:33 did not include meat. 51:35 And if animals are becoming more and more diseased, 51:39 in 1902, this statement was made, 51:42 what should you do? 51:43 We are living in the last days. 51:45 And I encourage you to make wise decisions. 51:48 3ABN has wonderful cooking programs 51:52 showing you how to make healthy recipes, 51:55 vegan vegetarian recipes without animal products 52:00 so that you may enjoy better health. 52:03 I encourage you to watch 3ABN, see these programs, 52:07 and learn how to cook food that is good for you. 52:13 Now if you want to increase your probability of survival, 52:17 if you're infected with the Coronavirus 52:19 or whatever disease you may have, 52:21 I would like to read to you from The Ministry of Healing, 52:23 page 295, 52:26 also found in Counsels on Diets, page 81. 52:31 These are the words, "Grains, fruits, nuts, 52:34 and vegetables constitute the diet 52:38 chosen for us by our Creator." 52:40 I'll say that again. 52:42 "Grains, fruits, nuts, and vegetables 52:44 constitute the diet chosen for us by our Creator. 52:48 These foods, prepared in as simple and natural 52:52 a manner as possible, 52:53 are the most healthful and nourishing. 52:56 They impart a strength, a power of endurance, 52:59 and vigor of intellect, 53:01 that are not afforded by a more complex 53:05 and stimulating diet." 53:07 So brothers and sisters, 53:09 I appeal to you 53:11 make good decisions for your health. 53:16 God is coming for people. 53:20 And we have a wakeup call for us 53:24 in this pandemic to get our lives 53:27 in order and to follow the Lord with all of our heart. 53:31 I encourage you to consider these things 53:34 that you may enjoy better health. 53:37 God loves us, wants the best for us. 53:42 And I want to read to you from Daniel 4:27. 53:46 This is a principal. 53:47 This is Daniel talking to King Nebuchadnezzar, 53:50 after sharing with him something about the way 53:54 he was living in Daniel 4:27. 53:57 He says, "Therefore, O king, 53:59 let my advice be acceptable to you, 54:02 break off your sins by being righteous, 54:06 and your iniquities by showing mercy to the poor. 54:09 Perhaps there may be 54:11 a lengthening of your prosperity." 54:14 So if you see 54:15 that you have been making error 54:17 in the way you have been eating, 54:20 it is time to make changes. 54:21 And I understand that there are companies 54:26 messing around with the food 54:28 and they are being genetically modified 54:30 and some grains have been affected 54:32 that I would say 54:33 it's better not to eat those grains. 54:36 Look for grains 54:37 that are not genetically modified 54:40 to have the best chances of health. 54:43 In 2 Chronicle Chapter 7, 54:49 we have a message from the Lord for us. 54:53 2 Chronicles Chapter 7, 54:55 I'm going to start reading in Verse 11. 54:59 "Thus Solomon finished the house of the Lord 55:02 and king's house. 55:04 And Solomon successfully accomplished 55:06 all that came into his heart 55:08 to make in the house of the Lord 55:10 and in his own house. 55:13 Then the Lord appeared to Solomon by night 55:15 and said to him, 55:17 'I have heard your prayer, 55:18 and have chosen this place for Myself 55:21 as the house of sacrifice. 55:24 When I shut up heaven and there is no rain, 55:28 or commend the locusts to devour the land, 55:31 or send pestilence among My people, 55:35 if My people 55:36 who are called by My name will humble themselves, 55:40 and pray and seek My face, 55:44 and turn from their wicked ways, 55:46 then I will hear from heaven, 55:49 and will forgive their sin and heal their land.'" 55:54 Praise God. 55:56 Even if because of our sins, God sends locusts, 56:00 God sends a pestilence, He is willing to forgive us. 56:05 He is willing to heal us, if we humble ourselves, repent, 56:11 ask Him for forgiveness. 56:13 If we appeal to God in this way, 56:16 He will have mercy upon us. 56:19 Psalms 103:1-8, the Bible tells us, 56:23 "Bless the Lord, O my soul, 56:25 and forget not all His benefits, 56:28 who forgives all your iniquities, 56:30 who heals all your diseases, 56:32 who redeems your life from destruction, 56:35 who grounds you with loving kindness 56:36 and tender mercies, 56:38 who satisfies your mouth with good things, 56:41 so that your youth is renewed like the eagle's. 56:44 The Lord executes righteousness 56:47 and justice for all who are oppressed. 56:51 He made known His ways to Moses, 56:53 His acts to the children of Israel. 56:56 The Lord is merciful and gracious, 57:00 slow to anger, and abounding in mercy." 57:05 Praise be to God. 57:08 The Lord is merciful and kind to each and every one of us. 57:12 He's been merciful and kind to you. 57:15 You have opportunity to search the scriptures, 57:19 to read and get yourself ready. 57:22 Let us pray for all of the people 57:25 affected by the Coronavirus. 57:27 Let us pray for all of these medical personnel 57:29 that are helping 57:31 hundreds and thousands of people. 57:33 Let us humble ourselves before the Lord, 57:35 that we may receive His blessing. 57:38 God bless you. |
Revised 2020-06-18