Participants:
Series Code: WHO
Program Code: WHO210055S
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00:28 Hello, friends, and welcome to 3ABN Worship Hour.
00:33 This is where we dive deep into the Word of God. 00:36 And we take on some of the topics, 00:39 some of the content, 00:40 some of the Bible passages and information 00:43 that we need in these last days 00:45 to help us be drawn closer to Jesus Christ. 00:48 And as you know, this is a worship hour. 00:49 And when we are worshiping Him, 00:51 the Bible says we must worship Him 00:53 in spirit and in truth. 00:54 And I just want to formally welcome you, 00:56 and thank you for joining us during this time. 00:58 We are certainly going to uplift Jesus today. 01:01 We're going to dive deep into His Word 01:04 as we're going to pray in a moment for the Holy Spirit 01:06 to lead us to rightly divide His Word of truth. 01:09 Because today we have a very special message. 01:11 It's kind of an acronym, 01:13 as you can see on the screen in the back 01:14 in just a moment, BVDG. 01:17 It stands for Blind Visionaries and Dumb Geniuses, 01:22 and I have there in parentheses, 01:24 deaf listeners, 01:26 and it's quite an interesting topic. 01:28 But I come up with interesting topics 01:29 because I want it to grab your attention. 01:32 And I promise you 01:33 this Blind Visionaries Dumb Geniuses, 01:36 there's a purpose to this title 01:38 because it talks a little bit or testifies to the fact that 01:41 what we're going to be talking about today 01:43 that is found in Scripture. 01:45 And so before we go any further, 01:47 let's go to the Lord in prayer and ask Him 01:49 to lead and guide us through this time together. 01:53 Our Father in heaven, Lord, as always, 01:56 we are privileged and honored to be alive 01:58 during these times, to be here, where we are 02:01 where You have brought us at this moment. 02:04 And, Lord, it's such an honor to be able to stand here today 02:06 and worship You, Lord, because You are worthy. 02:10 You are good to us. 02:11 You love us, and You take care of us 02:13 when we don't deserve it. 02:15 And so, Father, we're asking today, 02:17 that as we open Your Word, give us the Spirit, 02:21 the Holy Spirit, Lord, 02:23 to lead and guide us in this study, 02:25 that every scripture, every passage that we read, 02:28 may it not just be text on a page, 02:30 but may it speak to our heart 02:32 and draw us closer to our Savior, Jesus Christ. 02:35 Lord, this is a time in which we need revival. 02:37 And this is a message calling us to revival. 02:41 And so, Lord, wake us up, impart in us and give us, Lord, 02:46 Your love, so that we can see as You see, hear as You hear, 02:50 understand as You understand, Lord, and love as You love. 02:54 We praise You and we thank You. 02:56 And we ask this in Jesus' holy name. 02:58 Amen. Amen. 03:00 Blind visionaries and dumb geniuses. 03:05 It was many years ago that 03:07 I find myself making a transition 03:11 from one church denomination to another 03:14 or from one faithful aspect 03:18 and ideology of living to another. 03:21 You see, I haven't always been 03:22 a Seventh-day Adventist Christian. 03:24 I was primarily for the majority of my life, 03:27 born and raised 03:28 into the Oneness Apostolic Pentecostal Church, 03:32 it is the most conservative. 03:35 In fact, you can even say, 03:36 the most ultraconservative form of Pentecostalism, 03:41 charismatic Pentecostalism that there is. 03:43 And I was raised in this 03:45 for more than 20 years of my life. 03:48 But it's very interesting that at one point in my life, 03:53 I was absolutely 100% convinced that 03:57 the faith that I was in, 03:59 the path that I was taking, 04:01 the information that I had been taught, 04:04 the doctrines and the principles of faith 04:07 and the different tenets, theological tenets 04:09 that I had been that I had received, 04:11 and it had been bestowed upon me as a youth growing up, 04:14 I believed that all of those were 100% accurate 04:17 and that there was no other truth to be known. 04:22 Until one day that the Lord opened my eyes, 04:25 because there came a point in my life 04:27 where I simply became honest with myself. 04:29 And I simply said, "Lord, 04:31 if there's something that I'm missing, 04:33 if there's something that I can't see, 04:35 Lord, open my eyes that I can see, 04:37 give me the spiritual ear," because all through the Bible, 04:41 especially through the Book of Revelation, 04:42 we hear the message echoed so loudly, 04:45 those who have ears, 04:46 let this listen and let us listen to the spirit 04:49 because the spirit is telling you something, right? 04:52 The spirit is speaking to us. 04:54 And so very clearly I'm saying, 04:55 Lord, give me the spiritual hearing 04:58 that I can hear what the spirit indeed says to me 05:01 and to the church. 05:03 And also I find myself saying, 05:04 Lord, give me the mind of Christ, 05:07 so that I can examine myself and that You can show me 05:09 what it is that may not need to be there 05:11 or that may need to be in my life 05:13 that I have not adopted or that I have not accepted. 05:16 And I remember praying that prayer, 05:18 even though at one time I was 100%, convinced 05:22 I was right, I was in the right faith, 05:24 I was following God with all my heart, 05:26 mind and soul. 05:28 Jesus brought me out of one way of thinking to another 05:33 because He opened my eyes. 05:35 You see, I once I was deceived, 05:38 and I was unaware of that I was deceived, 05:41 until I had genuinely approached God 05:44 and said, "Lord, show me, awaken me. 05:48 Dial in my spiritual vision." 05:51 And so, I can tell you with absolute certainty, 05:55 that the Lord did that. 05:57 And I saw the error of what I was in. 06:01 And God basically completely transformed my understanding, 06:04 and my thinking, my approach to living for Him, 06:07 my understanding 06:09 of what it means to be a disciple 06:10 and a follower of Jesus. 06:12 He took me from being blinded, 06:15 and He opened my eyes and gave me sight. 06:17 I was once in a deaf, a spiritually deaf state. 06:21 And He opened my ears that I could hear 06:22 what the spirit was saying to me. 06:24 And, of course, He opened my mind 06:26 so that I can perceive and discern 06:30 His spiritual path for my life. 06:32 Today, I want to just preach to you today, 06:35 I want to teach to you today, 06:37 I want to appeal to you today, my friends, 06:39 that we are living in a time like no other, 06:41 where deception is the central theme, 06:45 although it seems. 06:47 All through the Bible, Old and New Testament, 06:50 we find very clearly, many, many different warnings, 06:54 signs and messages, 06:56 where God is simply trying to wake us up, 06:58 and trying to warn us 07:00 that we should not be deceived to take heed what we hear, 07:04 to watch what it is that we set before our eyes, 07:07 and to make sure that 07:08 we have the spiritual mind of Christ 07:10 that we may not be deceived, 07:12 and turned away from the truth. 07:14 I want to share a few scriptures with you now. 07:15 We're going to kind of do rapid fire 07:17 for the next few minutes. 07:18 But I want to read you, I want to show you 07:20 how overwhelmingly clear this is. 07:21 And again, this is not even all the text in the Bible 07:24 that has to deal with deception. 07:26 But I want to start in the Book of Jeremiah 29:8-9. 07:31 Let's go there. 07:32 Jeremiah 29:8-9. 07:36 The Bible says, 07:37 "For thus says the Lord of hosts, 07:39 the God of Israel: 07:40 Do not let your prophets and your diviners 07:43 who are in your midst deceive you, 07:46 nor listen to your dreams which you cause to be dreamed. 07:51 For they prophesy falsely to you in My name, 07:56 I have not sent them, says the Lord." 08:01 That scripture is powerful, 08:02 because what basically God is saying is that 08:05 there are people out there that's going to come to you 08:07 and try to speak to you on My behalf. 08:10 They're going to try to tell you that 08:11 I'm giving you a message 08:13 or that I've sent them to deliver a message, 08:14 or perhaps maybe a dream that you might have had 08:17 or someone else has had or a vision of some kind, 08:20 that they're saying, it's from the Lord. 08:21 What does He say here? 08:22 He says, "Do not believe them, for they are, 08:24 they prophesy falsely to you in My name, 08:27 I have not sent them, says the Lord." 08:30 My friends, deception is a key issue 08:33 throughout the Old and New Testament. 08:35 But I can say this with again, absolute certainty, 08:38 that if you if you study 08:39 the New Testament responsibly and properly, 08:42 you'll find that this issue of deception amplifies 08:46 and picks up as you continue in 08:48 to read the new text or the New Testament text. 08:51 In fact, let's go to Matthew Chapter 24 08:53 because this is within the context 08:55 of the great Olivet Discourse 08:57 that Jesus delivers to the disciples 08:59 atop the Mount of Olives. 09:00 And the very first words out of His mouth 09:03 as He's about to deliver this famous, 09:05 powerful prophetic message. 09:07 It is basically His farewell address 09:10 to the disciples telling them about the end times, 09:12 and what is to come and what they can expect 09:14 and what we can expect before the coming of Jesus. 09:17 The very first words out of His mouth, 09:19 Matthew 24:4-5. 09:21 Notice what it says, 09:22 "Jesus answered and said to them: 09:25 'Take heed that no one deceives you. 09:29 For many will come in My name, saying, 'I am the Christ,' 09:34 and will deceive," notice, not a few, 09:38 "but will deceive many.'" 09:41 Again, you hear Jesus say this often throughout 09:43 His time in His ministry. 09:45 In fact, in that same Olivet Discourse, 09:47 right there in Matthew 24, 09:49 if you skip down to verses 24 and 25. 09:51 Notice again what He says, He brings it back up. 09:54 He says, "For false christs and false prophets will rise 09:58 and show great signs and wonders to," 10:00 there it is again, "to deceive, 10:03 if possible, even the elect." 10:07 And then He says, "See, I have told you beforehand." 10:12 My friends, I mean, 10:13 it can't get any clearer than that 10:14 from the Master of the Universe, right? 10:16 Jesus is saying, look, the issue, 10:18 one of the major issues in the last days is deception. 10:21 People are going to be deceived left and right. 10:24 Paul, who wrote the majority of the New Testament, 10:27 this is a common theme in his writings 10:29 as he brings it up and up again. 10:31 Let's go to 1 Corinthians 6:9-10. 10:35 Again, 1 Corinthians 6:9-10. 10:37 Notice what He says. 10:39 He says, "Do you not know 10:40 that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? 10:44 Do not be deceived. 10:47 Neither fornicators, nor idolaters, 10:49 nor adulterers, nor homosexuals, 10:50 nor sodomites, nor thieves, 10:51 nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, 10:54 nor extortioners will inherit the kingdom of God." 10:58 So He makes it absolutely clear here, 11:00 He says, "Do not be deceived, 11:01 because these type of unrighteous people 11:03 will not make it into the kingdom of God." 11:06 He basically echoes the same message 11:08 over and over throughout His writings. 11:10 1 Corinthians 15:33, notice what the Bible says. 11:15 Again, Paul writes, "Do not be deceived: 11:18 'Evil company corrupts good habits.'" 11:22 So what we're doing is we're trying 11:23 to establish the validity of the fact that 11:25 one of the major themes 11:27 throughout all the New Testament 11:28 and I'm going to even go a step further and say, 11:30 even in the great prophetic writings 11:32 that you and I are supposed to study 11:35 and be aware of and know, and in reference 11:37 to how to prepare for the soon coming of Jesus. 11:40 This is one of the central themes 11:41 all throughout the Bible. 11:43 God is sending a message through His messengers, 11:45 through His prophets, to warn us that 11:47 one of the major issues is deception, 11:49 that it's going to plague not just the world, 11:52 but as we're going to see in a little bit, 11:53 even the church in the last days. 11:56 Let's read another one here, Galatians 6:7. 11:59 Notice again what Paul writes. 12:01 He says, "Do not be deceived, God is not mocked, 12:05 for whatever a man sows, 12:06 that he will reap also, or that he will also reap." 12:11 Ephesians 5:6-7. 12:15 Notice what Paul writes, 12:16 "Let no one deceive you with empty words, 12:19 for because of these things the wrath of God 12:21 comes upon the sons of disobedience. 12:24 Therefore do not be partakers with them." 12:29 Again and again and again. 12:31 We see this also in Colossians Chapter 2. 12:34 It says, "Beware," this is Colossians 2:8. 12:38 Paul again says, 12:39 "Beware lest anyone cheat you through philosophy 12:43 and empty deceit, 12:45 according to the tradition of men, 12:47 according to the basic principles 12:49 of the world, 12:51 and not according to Christ." 12:54 My friends, did you catch that? 12:55 Did you see that very clearly? 12:57 Right there he says, 12:58 "Beware of those who cheat you 13:00 through philosophy and empty deceit." 13:02 My friends, there are people in this world 13:05 that fully believe 13:07 this is where deception comes in. 13:08 This is the very art, 13:09 the very art and the very heart of deception 13:12 is that people are unaware that they're deceived. 13:14 In fact, that's the very essence of deception 13:16 is that they are unaware that they are deceived, 13:18 and many times become a stumbling block for others 13:22 because with their empty deceits, 13:25 and their wrong and twisted philosophies, 13:28 they come and they share things with people in the name of God 13:31 or under the banner of Christianity, 13:33 and they communicate things and they share things 13:36 that is simply not of the will of God, 13:37 that is simply not in harmony with God's Word. 13:41 Of course, we get even deeper into the subject of deceit 13:44 when we get into the prophecies 13:46 and into the prophetic writings, 13:48 as we spend a little time in Matthew 24 earlier. 13:51 Now let's go into 2 Thessalonians Chapter 2. 13:53 And again, read in verse 3, what Paul has to say about 13:56 this leading Antichrist figure of the last days. 13:59 Notice what he says, he says, 14:00 "Let no man deceive you by any means: 14:03 for that day shall not come, 14:04 except there comes a falling away first, 14:07 and that man of sin be revealed, 14:10 the son of perdition." 14:12 Again, this is the Lord knocking on the door 14:14 of our hearts saying, "Look, 14:16 don't think yourself too high and mighty 14:17 that you cannot be deceived." 14:19 If you're not connected to the vine, 14:20 if you are not abiding in Jesus Christ, 14:23 you very well could 14:24 become a part of those who walk away 14:26 or drift away from the truth of God's Word. 14:29 And so that's exactly what he's warning. 14:31 Notice the church of Thessalonica, 14:33 he's saying, there's coming a leading man of sin, 14:36 this leading Antichrist figure, 14:38 who is going to oppose all that God stands for, 14:41 he's going to exalt himself above the stars of God, right? 14:44 He's going to sit on the throne, 14:46 as if he is God himself declaring that he is God. 14:49 And in this case, he says, 14:51 "Let no one deceive you by any means." 14:54 Of course, the beloved disciple John, 14:56 who also would go on to write the Book of Revelation. 14:59 He writes this in his first letter, 15:01 and found in 1 John Chapter 2. 15:03 This is verse 26. Notice what he says. 15:05 He's speaking to the church again, 15:07 he says, "These things I have written to you 15:09 concerning those who try to deceive you." 15:12 So even John is writing. 15:14 He's saying, "Look, I'm writing these things to you, 15:16 the contents of this book 15:18 and the contents of this particular passage, 15:20 I'm writing it to you to warn you, 15:22 to inform you, to make you aware, 15:24 to enlighten you of those 15:26 that the enemy has sent out 15:27 for the sole purpose of deceiving you." 15:31 Even in the Book of Revelation 12:9 15:33 when John was envisioned on the Island of Patmos, 15:36 and he saw that great vision of the woman 15:38 and the child and the dragon. 15:40 Notice, speaking of Satan himself, 15:43 he writes in Revelation12:9. 15:45 He says, "So the great dragon was cast out, 15:48 that old serpent called the Devil and Satan, 15:51 who," notice, "deceives, not just a few, 15:54 but the whole world, he was cast to the earth, 15:58 and his angels were cast out with him." 16:02 My friends, this is vitally, vitally important 16:04 that we comprehend this message. 16:07 Because what we're showing here, 16:08 the opening moments of this message, 16:11 is that we are living in a time when deception 16:14 is greater than any other time before us. 16:17 The devil has amplified his works. 16:20 He has basically multiplied 16:24 his efforts to try to distract 16:27 and to try to lure God's people away 16:29 from the truth, all the while believing, 16:33 while they are believing that they are in Christ. 16:35 My friends, that's deception. 16:37 Speaking of that second beast of Revelation Chapter 13. 16:41 Again, the second beast, 16:43 which we believe to be none other than 16:44 the United States, 16:45 playing its role in the final events 16:47 of Bible prophecy. 16:48 Notice what it says there. 16:50 Again, because it has been speaking as the dragon 16:53 just because it's being empowered 16:55 by the same power that first beast 16:56 is being empowered by the devil himself. 16:59 Notice what Bible prophecy says in Revelation 13:14. 17:03 It says, "And he deceives those who dwell on the earth 17:06 by those signs 17:08 which he was granted to do in the sight of the beast..." 17:12 Deceives, deceives, deceives, deception, do not be deceived. 17:17 You see, this come up over and over and over. 17:19 In fact, the word deceive appears more than 70 times 17:25 in the Bible, I would say that that's a big deal. 17:27 I would say that that's God's effort 17:29 trying to reach out to us and say, 17:31 "Look, I'm giving you the sign that you can't believe 17:34 every little thing you see in here. 17:35 Make sure you're grounded in the truth." 17:38 As we said earlier, the very essence of deception 17:42 is that you're unaware that you are deceived, right? 17:44 I have never met a person who if you were to ask them, 17:47 "Hey, are you deceived?" 17:48 That they just openly admit, 17:50 "Oh, yes, I'm living in a state of deception." 17:52 I've never met anyone like that. 17:53 Because everyone who is deceived believes that 17:56 they're absolutely 100% correct in all aspects of their life, 18:01 or at least in the aspect of their faith in Jesus Christ. 18:04 And therefore they believe that they are in no wrong. 18:08 And that's a scary state, my friends. 18:09 In fact, I used to be there, 18:11 I know that, I know what it feels like. 18:13 It's a scary thing to know that 18:15 you've been living all your life, 18:16 the majority of your life, 18:18 believing one thing and that one thing 18:20 that you believe are those series 18:22 of things that makes up 18:23 what you believe to be the right faith, 18:26 only to find out that all that time, 18:28 you were deceived. 18:30 You weren't living in harmony by the truth of God's Word. 18:34 It's a scary, very eerie feeling to know 18:38 or to feel at one time that you were 18:39 just absolutely convinced that you were right 18:41 when in reality you were actually 18:44 not in harmony with the will of God. 18:46 My friends, that's a very serious thing. 18:49 In other words, you think you are in the light, 18:53 but really, you are blind to the fact that 18:55 you are walking in darkness. 18:58 You think that you know what's right, 19:00 when in reality 19:01 you are completely oblivious to the truth. 19:05 And let me tell you something, as I'm speaking these words, 19:07 right now, there's probably someone at home or somewhere, 19:10 wherever you are around the world watching this. 19:12 And you're probably saying to yourself, 19:14 "Well Ryan, all of those things, 19:15 of course, pertain to the world 19:16 because the world is lost and the world is deceived." 19:19 But, my friends, make no mistake about it, 19:21 when you study the Word of God correctly, 19:24 rightly dividing the Word of truth. 19:26 And you allow God to speak to you from the Word, 19:28 let me tell you something, God does not hide the fact 19:30 that in the last days within the ranks 19:32 of what we consider Christianity 19:34 or the Christian Church, there are many, many people 19:38 who are aiding to this issue of deception. 19:41 Because the devil has made his way in 19:43 and he has planted his tares. 19:45 He has planted his deceits 19:47 and only those who are connected 19:48 to the vine of Jesus, only those who are living 19:51 according to the true Word of God 19:53 are those who see and understand these deceits. 19:57 In fact, what I would like to continue on with 20:00 is I would like to look back at 1 Thessalonians, excuse me, 20:03 2 Thessalonians 2:3. 20:06 We read this verse earlier, 20:07 but I want to highlight something very clearly. 20:08 Again, we're talking about the church. 20:10 2 Thessalonians 2:3, let's look and see what that says again. 20:14 It says, "Let no one deceive you 20:15 by any means: for that day," 20:18 that is the second coming of Jesus, 20:21 "that day will not come," 20:24 or it shall not come, 20:26 "except there come a falling away first, 20:29 and that man of sin be revealed, 20:30 the son of perdition." 20:33 Now, what is this verse telling us? 20:34 Let me highlight this very clearly 20:35 because this is important. 20:37 This is a prophetic verse, my friends. 20:40 This is speaking about the state of the church 20:42 prior to the second coming of Jesus. 20:45 In fact, what this verse is telling us is that 20:47 right before Jesus returns, 20:51 there's going to be those even in the church, 20:54 who will be taking part in this great falling away 21:00 that must occur before Jesus returns. 21:04 Now, what's interesting 21:05 is when you go and look in their original, 21:06 I've brought this out before 21:08 in some of my previous messages, 21:09 but I want to highlight it again, 21:11 in case there's someone at home 21:12 that has never heard this before. 21:13 When you go into the original Greek language, 21:15 and you study out the word 21:16 that's behind that phrase, falling away, 21:20 it's the Greek word apostasia. 21:23 Okay, it sounds familiar, right? 21:25 Apostasia. 21:26 It's where we get our English word 21:27 or our English concept of apostasy. 21:30 And we know apostasy is very much a strong thing. 21:33 It's a big issue in the church. 21:36 We don't want to apostatize at all. 21:38 We don't want to be a part of apostasy, 21:40 we want to be in the light of Jesus Christ. 21:43 But when you look up what that word apostasia means 21:47 in the original Greek, 21:49 it simply means a defection or turning away from the truth. 21:54 And a secondary definition to that would mean to divorce. 21:59 So in other words, what Paul is saying here, 22:01 what he's revealing prophetically, 22:03 is before Jesus Christ comes back, 22:05 there's going to be 22:06 such a strong state of deception 22:09 that many of the people have fallen into, 22:12 that there's going to be a Great Apostasy to take place 22:15 in which those in the church, 22:17 many of those in the church will fully believe 22:21 that they're married to Jesus, 22:24 when really they have divorced to Him. 22:26 They fully are convinced that they're walking in the truth, 22:30 when really, they have rejected the source of the power, 22:34 powerful source of the Holy Spirit 22:36 to continue to cause them to walk in that truth. 22:39 In other words, they have defected 22:40 or fallen away or fallen away from the truth, 22:44 all the while deceived into believing that 22:47 they're still in God's way. 22:48 My friends, there is, 22:50 I can't think of any scarier situation to be in. 22:53 This is not a message to pull you down. 22:55 This is not a message to discourage you. 22:56 This is a message calling for revival and awakeness, 23:01 to awake us to the reality that as we gain closer 23:04 and closer to the second coming of Jesus, 23:06 my friends, we are told that 23:07 the Spirit of God is being withdrawn from this planet. 23:11 And why is that? 23:12 Well, we're going to reveal why that is in just a moment. 23:14 But I'm just telling you right now, 23:16 we don't need to be pushing the Holy Spirit 23:18 away from our lives, we need to be 23:19 inviting the leading guiding power 23:21 of the Holy Spirit in our life. 23:22 Because if we have any hope of getting out of here, 23:24 it's because the Spirit of truth 23:26 is leading and guiding us 23:27 because we have humbled ourselves 23:29 to its guidance. 23:33 I want to make that very clear. 23:36 The Spirit of God will lead us unto righteousness, 23:41 if we humble ourselves 23:43 and allow ourselves to be led by God. 23:49 So how will the devil bring about 23:51 this great falling away in the church? 23:53 How's he going to do it? 23:55 Well, it's very simple. 23:56 He's going to attack the truth. 23:58 And you say, "Well, Ryan, that's nothing new. 24:00 The devil's always been attacking the truth, right?" 24:02 Well, of course, he's always been 24:03 attacking the truth, 24:05 but he's going to attack the truth 24:06 in such a way 24:08 so to cause confusion and division 24:13 even within the church of God. 24:17 Okay, I'm going to say that one more time. 24:19 In what way is he going to attack the truth? 24:22 He's changing his method, 24:24 so not to try to completely get rid of the truth. 24:27 But if he can distort it, twist it, 24:30 or cause confusion 24:31 among the ranks of God's people, 24:34 that confusion will bring 24:36 about division within the church 24:38 and if you have division within your church, 24:41 oh, my goodness, my friends. 24:42 Let me tell you, let me just remind you 24:44 what the Bible says about those. 24:45 We're going to get to some scriptures 24:47 in a moment about division within God's house. 24:49 That's not a good thing. 24:50 But yet, it happens to be 24:52 the reality of what we're talking about today 24:54 all because of the enemy. 24:57 I want to take us now to Isaiah 5:20-23. 25:01 Talking about the confusion that he's going to sow, 25:04 the way he's attacking the truth 25:06 to bring about confusion even 25:08 within our very ranks, 25:09 even within the Christian church today. 25:11 Isaiah 5:20-23. 25:14 Now these verses can apply 25:15 just as much to the world as it does for church. 25:17 But let's hear it right now. 25:19 The Bible says, 25:20 "Woe to those who call evil good, 25:24 and good evil, who put darkness for light, 25:28 and light for darkness, 25:30 who put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter! 25:34 Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes, 25:39 and prudent in their own sight! 25:42 Woe to men mighty at drinking wine, 25:47 woe to men valiant for mixing intoxicating drink, 25:52 who justify the wicked for a bribe, 25:55 and take away justice from the righteous man!" 26:00 My friends, if there is ever a truer text 26:02 in all of the Bible 26:04 that could very much describe 26:06 the state of not just the world, 26:08 but also it seems even the church sometimes. 26:11 And that is it seems like that there's not 26:13 any clear objective truth anymore. 26:15 There's so much confusion and so much division 26:17 that you got brothers and sisters in here 26:19 that are calling evil good and good evil, 26:22 so much confusion so much that 26:24 that we have people in the world today 26:26 who are saying that light is darkness 26:28 and darkness is light. 26:29 Something that's supposed to be right is wrong, 26:31 something that's supposed to be wrong is right. 26:33 And so you just sow that much confusion 26:36 and doubt in the minds of God's people, 26:38 and it's going to cause confusion. 26:40 And that confusion is going to bring about division. 26:46 That's why Proverbs 14:12 says very clearly, 26:50 "There is a way that seems right to a man, 26:56 but the end thereof is the way of death." 27:02 We live in a world today 27:03 where everybody thinks that their way is right. 27:06 Only because this little, 27:07 this, this, this, this amazing part of their body, 27:12 I'm just going to say this, an amazing muscle 27:13 or organ that's between, 27:16 you know, their head here, in their head. 27:17 Many people believe that what goes on up 27:20 there is that's what's most right, 27:23 with the way they perceive things. 27:24 But, my friends, just because we perceive 27:26 something to be right 27:27 doesn't always mean that it's right. 27:28 And just because we perceive something to be wrong 27:30 doesn't always mean that it's wrong. 27:32 Who is to decide if something is right, 27:34 who is to determine if something is wrong? 27:36 My friends, it's the Word of God. 27:38 It is God, the Creator of the universe. 27:40 But yet we are living in a world 27:42 where even people today are taking this very Word, 27:45 they're twisting it to their own destruction, 27:47 and calling that which God said is right, 27:49 they're calling wrong. 27:51 And they're saying that which is wrong that 27:52 God has clearly described and declared as wrong, 27:55 they're saying it's no longer wrong, 27:56 it's okay in the sight of God. 27:59 Confusion, confusion. 28:01 In fact, that's scripture 28:02 I read earlier in Isaiah Chapter 5, 28:04 it goes on to say, "Woe to them mighty, 28:07 woe to the men, the mighty men who drink wine, 28:11 woe to men valiant 28:12 from mixing intoxicating drink." 28:15 My friends, do we have a prophetic warning, 28:17 a prophetic message in the three angels' messages, 28:20 in fact, more specifically, 28:21 the second angel's message that warns us of a harlot 28:24 who has some wine 28:26 that she has made the world drunk with. 28:29 And you sit here today and you say, 28:30 "Oh, but Ryan, there's no way in my church. 28:33 There's no way in my church, 28:35 that people are drunk on Babylon's wine." 28:39 My friends, you see at the very core 28:43 of this dilemma is pride and selfishness. 28:48 Self-deceived intoxication. 28:53 Babylon's intoxicating wine causes confusion. 28:58 And confusion brings about not unity, 29:02 the opposite of unity. 29:04 It brings about division. 29:08 Remember, I said how Jesus 29:09 spoke on the subject of division, 29:12 and how God's Church must not remain divided. 29:17 Well, let's go to Matthew Chapter 12. 29:19 You're going to see here that 29:20 Jesus has been challenged by the Pharisees. 29:23 And they've been, they've already accused Jesus, 29:25 they said, "Look, this brother, 29:26 he's doing all these signs and miracles and wonders, 29:28 by the power of the devil, Beelzebub." 29:32 And Jesus says, "What? 29:34 You think I'm doing all this by the power of Satan? 29:36 I'm trying to unify the people, 29:38 but yet you're accusing Me 29:39 of using the power of the one person 29:41 who's trying to divide the people." 29:43 And He goes onto say in Matthew 12:25-26. 29:47 Notice what the Bible says, 29:48 "Every kingdom divided 29:50 against itself is brought to desolation, 29:54 and every city or house divided against itself 29:58 will not stand." 30:00 And then notice verse 26, 30:01 "If Satan casts out Satan, he is divided against himself. 30:06 How then will his kingdom stand?" 30:09 Did you catch that? 30:11 Let me just go ahead and just make it real clear, 30:14 disclaimer here. 30:16 Satan's kingdom is the most divided. 30:19 Satan's kingdom is divided. 30:21 In fact, we know his house won't stand 30:22 because the Book of Revelation makes it very clear 30:25 that even he knows he has 30:27 but a short time, he's on a suicide mission. 30:31 The devil is on a suicide mission. 30:32 He knows that he has but a short time, 30:34 and he's going to do all that 30:36 he can to take as many people out with him. 30:39 And if you think he's going to take 30:40 his attention off the church, 30:42 that's who he has amplified his efforts to deceive 30:45 and to attack, because the dragon is wroth, 30:48 he's mad, he's angry with the woman 30:50 that is God's Church. 30:52 We even see, wouldn't it, 30:54 while we know Satan's kingdom is divided, 30:57 we even see this very mentality 31:00 put on display in Daniel Chapter 11. 31:02 Now, I'm not going to get into all the details of Daniel 11. 31:04 That's a very complex chapter. 31:06 But I just want to highlight the fact that 31:08 there's a king of the north 31:10 and a king of the south in Daniel Chapter 11. 31:13 Neither one of them, brothers, are any good. 31:15 I'm just going to tell you, they both represent sin, 31:17 they both represent selfishness, 31:19 they both represent the world. 31:21 And guess who is working both sides? 31:23 And you say, "Ryan, surely that don't make any sense. 31:25 Why would the devil work both sides?" 31:27 Of course, he wants to work both sides. 31:29 He's on the side of the king of the north. 31:31 He's on the side of the king of the south, 31:33 he's working both sides because again, 31:35 his goal is to create confusion and further division. 31:40 And we even see this 31:42 within the story of God's chosen people 31:44 of the Old Testament, Israel. 31:47 It's so sad, but it's true, 31:49 that the very spirit of the north and the south, 31:54 that the devil infused and put within that 32:00 conflict of the king of the north and the south, 32:02 he has infused that same spirit 32:04 of the divisional north and the south 32:06 within the kingdom of Israel. 32:09 So much that not only do we see a physical division, 32:13 where we see a northern kingdom 32:14 and a southern kingdom, 32:16 but the people that God had chose 32:18 to be His representatives on earth, 32:20 they were broken down 32:21 and their kingdom did not stand, it fell. 32:24 Why? 32:25 Because the devil was working both sides. 32:28 They turned their back on God. 32:31 They no longer listen 32:32 to the leading guiding power of God's Word. 32:36 And the devil came in, he caused confusion, 32:40 he spread deception, 32:42 and it divided God's people. 32:47 Even in the days of Jesus, 32:49 the nation of Israel was divided. 32:51 They weren't united. 32:53 In fact, you can see, interestingly enough, 32:55 if you go to John 8:31-36. 32:58 In fact, for the sake of time, 33:00 I'm not going to read those verses, 33:01 but I'm referencing John 8:31-36. 33:05 Jesus is having again, kind of a showdown 33:08 between the people of Israel, 33:10 the leadership of Israel, the Pharisees there, 33:13 and He basically is having this conversation 33:15 with them about Abraham. 33:17 And it's interesting because He says, 33:18 "If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed." 33:21 Of course they like that 33:22 until He started talking about Abraham. 33:24 And He said, and they even answered Him 33:25 and said, "We are Abraham's descendants, 33:27 and have never been in bondage to anyone. 33:29 How can you say you will be made free?" 33:31 Because Jesus said, "You abide in My word, 33:33 you'll be made free, 33:34 because the truth shall make you free." 33:36 But they didn't realize that 33:38 they had already been in bondage 33:40 because the Son of God was standing in their midst. 33:43 And the majority of them were rejecting Him, 33:45 they were rejecting the Word of God. 33:47 They were too caught up in the deceptions of the devil 33:50 had sown amongst them. 33:52 And let me tell you something, this was an ultraconservative, 33:56 dogmatic, ritualistic works approach mentality 34:01 among these people that had dominated the hearts 34:04 and minds of the leaders 34:05 and the church during the time of Jesus. 34:08 So that brings me to my point at this point, 34:10 you see, we're talking about a division. 34:12 And usually today, especially in modern terms, 34:16 when you're talking about a division in the church, 34:18 most people how they categorize an individual 34:21 is based on the time that they spend around them, 34:24 and they hear them talk about spiritual things, 34:25 or they spend some time 34:27 around them enough to figure out 34:28 what kind of Christian they are. 34:30 Most of the time, not all the time, 34:31 but most of the time, 34:33 we find and we hear this language, 34:34 I'm just going to say it 34:35 because I've just put it out there. 34:37 It's not a secret anymore. 34:38 Most of the time, we will categorize 34:40 even a Christian as either being liberal 34:43 or conservative. 34:45 So not only do we do this in our church, 34:48 but also it goes into the other world, 34:49 goes into the political world. 34:51 You know, are you liberal or conservative, 34:53 based on the particular values 34:55 or the particular principles that you believe in or live by. 34:58 You see the people of Jesus' time, 35:01 these pharisaical minded people, 35:04 they weren't just conservative. 35:06 They were what people 35:07 someone would call ultraconservative. 35:10 They didn't have a balanced approach 35:11 to how to live to believe for God. 35:13 And so because of all of the deceptions, 35:16 that Satan was able to sow among these people, 35:18 that particular nation 35:20 and those people in that particular time 35:22 had become what you might call 35:24 an ultraconservative pharisaical minded 35:28 believer or followers. 35:31 Notice what Jesus says, in Matthew 13:13-15, again, 35:36 talking about these type of people. 35:38 He says, "Therefore, I speak to them in parables, 35:40 because seeing they do not see, 35:43 and hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand. 35:47 And in them, the prophecy of Isaiah is fulfilled, 35:50 which says: 'Hearing you will hear 35:52 and shall not understand, 35:53 and seeing you will see and not perceive, 35:56 for the hearts of this people have grown dull. 35:59 Their ears are hard of hearing, 36:01 and their eyes they have closed, 36:03 lest they should see with their eyes 36:06 and hear with their ears, 36:07 lest they should understand with their hearts and turn, 36:10 so that I should heal them.'" 36:12 You know what Jesus is saying 36:14 about this group of people here? 36:15 He's saying, "Look, they got eyes, 36:16 but they can't see. 36:18 They got ears they can't hear. 36:19 I have to speak to them in a special way 36:20 because if I were to speak plainly 36:22 to these brothers and sisters, they wouldn't perceive it 36:24 because they don't have the spiritual mind of Christ." 36:26 In other words, you know 36:27 what he would probably call them? 36:29 Blind visionaries and dumb geniuses. 36:32 Deaf listeners, blind visionary, 36:36 someone who thinks they're just a visionary, 36:38 they see everything, they understand everything, 36:39 when in reality, they're blind. 36:42 Someone who thinks they're a genius, 36:43 they know it all, they see it all, 36:45 they understand it all. 36:46 There's nothing you can teach them. 36:47 But yet, in reality, they're spiritually dumb. 36:50 It's someone who believes that 36:51 their spiritual ear is so in tune with God's truth, 36:53 but yet in reality, they are spiritually deaf. 36:58 Blind visionaries, dumb geniuses, 37:01 deaf listeners. 37:04 And then you have the second group. 37:05 So we just talked about 37:07 the ultraconservative group, right? 37:08 Does any of this make a sense? 37:10 I hope this is speaking to someone, 37:11 because there was 37:12 the ultraconservative group in Jesus' day 37:14 but things begin to happen down through time, 37:15 there's a little bit of a change 37:17 that occurred in the church. 37:18 And that's why we come to Revelation Chapter 2, 37:20 Jesus begins to deliver some messages to the churches, 37:23 and He delivers a special message to Ephesus. 37:26 But in verse 6, even though he had said, 37:28 "Look, you've lost your first love, 37:29 you need to get that first love back." 37:31 In verse 6, He commended them for this one thing. 37:33 Notice what it says here, Revelation 2:6. 37:36 It says, "But this you have, 37:39 that you hate the deeds of the Nicolaitans, 37:43 which I also hate." 37:46 Okay. 37:47 Now, the reason why I read that 37:49 is because now we're going to get 37:50 into the second group. 37:51 Remember, the devil's causing division. 37:53 He don't care 37:54 which side of the camp you're on, 37:56 as long as you're on one side or the other, 37:57 and you remain confused, deceived, and divide. 37:59 And that's all he cares about. 38:00 So he's got his ultraconservatives way 38:02 over here, and way over here, he's working on another group. 38:04 And this just happens to be, 38:06 Jesus illustrates them through this example 38:08 of what he calls the Nicolaitans. 38:11 And he commended the Church of Ephesus, 38:12 He said, praise the Lord. 38:14 You're not bought in or deceived by this, 38:16 these deeds of the Nicolaitans. 38:19 By the time he gets to the church of Pergamos. 38:23 Now, let me remind you in your Bible, 38:25 if you have a little subheading 38:26 there for that church, it has been nicknamed 38:29 or called the compromising church, 38:31 and that's not good at all. 38:34 So they by the time He gets to Pergamos, 38:36 this is what he writes in Revelation 2:12, 14-16. 38:42 So verses 12, 14-16, Revelation 2, 38:45 this is what it says." 38:47 And to the church in Pergamos write... 38:50 I have a few things against you, 38:53 not because you have there 38:55 those who hold of the doctrine of Balaam, 38:57 who..."' 38:58 Excuse me, "because you have 39:00 there those who hold the doctrine of Balaam, 39:02 who taught Balak to put a stumbling block 39:04 before the children of Israel, 39:06 to eat things sacrificed to idols, 39:08 and to commit sexual immorality." 39:12 But then notice what he says in verse 15, 39:14 "Thus you also have those who hold 39:17 the doctrine of the Nicolaitans, 39:20 which thing I hate." 39:23 And then he says, "Repent, 39:25 or else I will come to you quickly 39:26 and will fight against them with the sword of My mouth." 39:30 There's something about these Nicolaitans. 39:32 I mean, God uses the term of the word the concept. 39:35 He says, I hate it. 39:37 I mean, when the Lord of the universe says, 39:40 I hate it, my friends, your ears should perk up, 39:43 because He's saying it about these Nicolaitans. 39:45 Now, what, who are these Nicolaitans? 39:48 Well, I did some research. 39:50 And if you do a little bit of research, 39:52 you'll run into the historians 39:55 by the name of Hippolytus and Arrhenius, 39:58 and this is what according to them, 40:00 according to Hippolytus and Arrhenius 40:01 who lived during these times of the time of the Nicolaitans, 40:03 this is what they said. 40:05 They tell us that the Nicolaitans 40:07 were heretical followers of Nicolas, okay? 40:10 Now Nicolas was one of the seven deacons 40:13 that was mentioned in Acts 6:5, okay. 40:16 And if this is true, of course, 40:17 Nicolas was one of the followers 40:20 that actually apostatized from the faith. 40:23 So the Nicolaitans, get this, the Nicolaitans were a group 40:26 who taught a radical dualism between the body and the soul, 40:31 because they believe the soul was this immortal, translucent, 40:34 ghostlike thing that is liberated 40:35 and separated from the body, again, 40:37 something that we know the Bible doesn't teach. 40:39 But notice, based on this deceit, 40:41 this deception, this confusion, 40:43 they believed in this radical dualism 40:45 between the body and the soul. 40:47 Therefore, they taught that 40:48 the believers are freed from the law, 40:52 and that they can do as they please. 40:55 In other words, do what thou wilt, 40:57 do what you want. 40:59 Why? 41:00 Tell me if this sounds familiar, 41:02 because we're not under the law, 41:03 we're under grace. 41:05 Now we know there's a scripture in the Bible that says that, 41:07 but do people take that scripture 41:09 and twist it to their own destruction? 41:11 Eisegetically inserting something in there 41:14 that it doesn't say, the idea that somehow 41:16 because we're not under the law, 41:18 and we're under grace, that that gives us a free pass 41:20 to sin in the flesh, because we're sinners, 41:22 where we sin is constant as breathing, we can't help it. 41:25 We're just going to continue to sin 41:26 until Jesus comes back. 41:28 Absolutely not, my friends. 41:30 But yep, that is the doctrine of the Nicolaitan and God says, 41:33 "I hate it. 41:34 I hate that doctrine." 41:35 Because we know that God 41:37 did not come into this world and die, 41:38 so that we could just have forgiveness. 41:39 He came into this world to die, 41:41 so that we can also have complete victory over sin now. 41:45 But that's not what the Nicolaitans believe. 41:46 In other words, you might have called them 41:48 or someone in the world might call 41:50 these people ultra-extreme liberals. 41:55 So you got your ultraconservatives, 41:57 and you have your extreme liberals over here. 42:00 And both sides believe they're absolutely correct. 42:03 And both sides believe that 42:05 the other side is absolutely wrong. 42:08 Oh, my goodness. 42:09 Does any of this sound familiar? 42:12 Can we resonate with this type of mentality today? 42:14 Do we see this division 42:17 and this confusion within the church today? 42:19 Sadly, I believe we do. 42:21 Who do you think is behind 42:24 those unbalanced ultraconservative 42:27 pharisaical believers? 42:29 Who do you think is behind that mentality? 42:32 Who do you think is behind that 42:33 extreme liberal approach to Christianity? 42:37 Certainly not God. 42:40 But certainly the devil himself. 42:43 You see, if the devil can create 42:45 an unstableness within the ranks of both 42:50 and convince both sides 42:52 to drink the Kool Aid, okay, let's just say it. 42:55 If he can get them deceived, 42:58 then he has accomplished the greatest deception of all. 43:03 Because taking consideration, 43:04 both groups claim Jesus as Lord and Savior, 43:07 both groups claim the Bible 43:09 as their only rule of faith. 43:12 Both groups are convinced that they are 100% wrong 43:15 and that the other ones are right. 43:18 That seems to be the world we live in today. 43:20 So much division. 43:23 Meanwhile, there's a third group. 43:28 You see, this is the group that I pray every day. 43:33 Lord, let me be 43:35 a part of the true remnant church 43:41 that You are leading. 43:44 You see, God has a remnant. 43:49 A real remnant, let me just emphasize that, 43:51 a real remnant, genuine. 43:56 They are balanced 43:57 in their approach to serving God. 43:59 They are balanced in their overall perspective 44:01 of true Christianity. 44:03 They are not ultraconservative, they are not extreme liberals, 44:07 they are those who follow the Lamb 44:09 wherever He goes. 44:12 These are they who have the patience of the saints, 44:15 who keep the commandments of God, 44:18 and have the love and the testimony of the faith 44:20 of Jesus Christ. 44:22 They have spiritual eyes that see, 44:25 they have ears that hear, 44:27 they have, they are exercising the faith of Jesus, 44:31 because they have adopted the mind of Christ. 44:35 We would call these the true remnant of God. 44:40 And yes, even as I'm saying this right now, 44:42 and I'm describing this remnant, 44:44 there's got to be, there's someone probably 44:45 right now listening to this, and they're saying, 44:47 "Oh, you know, praise the Lord. 44:48 I'm a part of that remnant. I'm not a part of any." 44:50 You know what that very well may be true, 44:52 but you got to believe there's someone out here 44:54 listening to this, that saying, 44:55 "Hey, I'm a part of that remnant," 44:56 when in reality you're not. 44:58 Why? 44:59 Because many people believe that 45:00 just because they're a member 45:02 of the Seventh-day Adventist Church, 45:03 that somehow that makes them true remnant believers. 45:09 You see, if that is your mentality, 45:12 then you are the very ones 45:13 for which this sermon was created, 45:15 and the very ones I'm preaching to. 45:21 You might call yourself an SDA Christian. 45:25 But that does not mean that you are. 45:27 You might call yourself 45:29 a member of the remnant church of God, 45:30 but that does not mean that you are. 45:34 See, it's just like what Jesus said 45:35 to the church of Philadelphia. 45:37 In Revelation 3:9, 45:40 notice what he said to the church of Philadelphia. 45:42 He said, "Indeed, I will make 45:44 those of the synagogue of Satan, 45:46 who say they are Jews and are not, 45:48 but lie, and indeed I will make them come 45:51 and worship before your feet, 45:52 and to know that I have loved you." 45:57 Did you hear that? 45:58 They say that they're Jews, but they really ain't. 46:03 They lie. 46:05 They say that they're remnant Christians. 46:08 You see, but God knows the heart. 46:09 He says, "I can see the heart. 46:11 They're lying. I know." 46:13 He says, "And I will bring, them" notice, "I will make 46:15 those of the synagogue of Satan, 46:17 who say that they are Jews and are not." 46:18 A Jew is anyone who is in Christ. 46:22 If you are Christ and you are of Abraham's seed 46:25 and heirs according to the promise, 46:28 but if you claim to be a spiritual Jew, 46:30 if you claim to be of God's remnant movement, 46:34 but yet, you are not in Christ genuinely, 46:38 then you are deceived. 46:42 But there's a cure for deception. 46:45 There is hope. 46:48 I was once deceived, 46:49 I once was lost, but now I'm found. 46:55 I once was blind but Ryan Day 46:57 can tell you that right now, 46:59 I have never seen clearer in my life, 47:01 not because of what I've done, 47:03 but because what I have allowed God to do in me. 47:06 And I'll be the first to tell you, my friends, 47:09 I'm not where I need to be. 47:12 I'm striving toward the goal. 47:15 I'm running the race. 47:17 But I haven't quite finished the course. 47:19 But praise the Lord, 47:21 even though I'm not where I need to be just yet. 47:25 Praise God, I'm not where I once was. 47:29 I want to read you one last quote, 47:31 it's rather lengthy. 47:33 But I believe all of this sums up 47:34 what we're talking about today. 47:36 And I want you to really focus in on these words. 47:38 This comes from Desire of Ages, page 309. 47:42 And what she's talking about 47:43 here is what was happening 47:45 in the time of Jesus, in Jesus' day. 47:50 But here's what's interesting, this, she takes that mentality 47:52 and she says that 47:54 it's still the same issue today. 47:55 So even though we were some 2,000 years 47:58 almost from the time of Jesus, 47:59 many people have the mentality, 48:00 oh, we live in a different time, 48:02 we live in a different age. 48:03 It's much different today than it was then. 48:05 Well, I'm about to prove all that wrong, 48:06 because the same issue 48:08 that was the problem in Jesus' day 48:09 is very much still the same issue today. 48:12 Let me read this. 48:13 Again, this is the Desire of Ages, page 309. 48:17 Notice what it says. 48:18 "The greatest deception 48:20 of the human mind in Christ's day 48:25 was that a mere assent 48:27 to the truth constitutes righteousness. 48:32 In all human experience, 48:35 a theoretical knowledge of the truth 48:38 has been proved to be insufficient 48:41 for the saving of the soul. 48:44 It does not bring forth the fruits of righteousness. 48:48 A jealous regard for 48:50 what is termed theological truth 48:53 often accompanies a hatred of genuine truth 48:58 as made manifest in the life. 49:01 The darkest chapters of history are burdened 49:05 with the record of crimes committed 49:07 by bigoted religionists. 49:10 The Pharisees claimed to be children of Abraham, 49:14 and boasted of their possession of the oracles of God, 49:17 yet these advantages 49:19 did not preserve them from selfishness, 49:23 malignity, greed for gain, and the basest hypocrisy. 49:29 They thought themselves 49:30 the greatest religionists of the world, 49:33 but their so-called orthodoxy led them 49:37 to crucify the Lord of glory. 49:42 The same danger still exists." 49:46 Let me say that one more time, 49:47 the same danger still exists. 49:53 "Many take it for granted that they are Christians, 49:57 simply because they subscribe 50:00 to certain theological tenets. 50:06 But they have not brought the truth into practical life. 50:12 They have not believed and loved it, 50:15 therefore they have not received the power and grace 50:19 that come through sanctification of the truth. 50:23 Men may profess faith in the truth, 50:28 but if it does not make them sincere, 50:31 kind, patient, forbearing, heavenly-minded, 50:37 it is a curse to its possessors, 50:41 and through their influence it is a curse to the world." 50:46 My friends... 50:52 Wow. 50:55 You see, there's a part of that message, 50:57 all of that message is very powerful. 50:59 But there's a part that sticks out to me. 51:00 And I want to read out, 51:02 I want to speak to my brothers and sisters 51:04 very candidly right now, very transparently. 51:08 Because I believe we're coming to a time, 51:11 we're beating around the bush 51:13 and sugarcoating something as not, 51:14 that never has been the way to go. 51:17 But definitely in the times that we're living, 51:19 we need to be very clear and transparent with each other 51:23 if we're ever going to prepare for the kingdom of God. 51:27 I want to read you one of those sentences 51:29 that was just in that and I want to read it clearly 51:31 and make a point here. 51:34 It says here, "Many take it for granted 51:38 that they are Christians, 51:41 simply because they subscribe 51:44 to certain theological tenets." 51:53 Twenty eight fundamentals. 51:57 You see, what makes you a part 52:01 and a member of God's remnant church 52:04 is not because you subscribe 52:05 to a few theological principles or teachings. 52:09 But yet we live in the world today 52:11 where even within our own ranks, 52:13 we hear people say, "Oh, I'm a third, 52:15 fourth fifth seventh day generation, 52:17 Seventh-day Adventist, 52:18 or I've been in the church, you know, 52:19 I've been a Baptist for, you know, 52:21 50 years or I've been a Methodist 52:24 now all my life. 52:25 My grandma was a Methodist. 52:27 My grandma, my papa was a Methodist." 52:29 My friends, at the end of the day, 52:30 and I'm going to speak to my brothers and sisters 52:32 and even in my church, 52:33 the Seventh-day Adventist Church, 52:34 again, certainly theological tenets 52:36 just because you subscribe, 52:38 and sign on the dotted line or say yes, 52:41 I make a profession of faith, 52:42 that this is what I believe 52:44 doesn't necessarily mean that you are now signed, 52:47 sealed and delivered for heaven. 52:50 What makes you a genuine believer 52:53 in Jesus Christ, my friends, 52:55 is when you are alive, awaken. 52:59 You can see clearly, 53:01 hear clearly and are spiritually mentally 53:03 led by the Holy Spirit enough to humble yourself 53:07 and submit your entire life, 53:09 your entire will to Jesus Christ 53:11 on a daily basis in every aspect of your life. 53:15 I have met and I just want to go down here. 53:17 Let me just read these just right down here. 53:19 May men, men may profess faith in the truth. 53:22 Notice this, "Men may profess faith in the truth, 53:26 but if it does not make them sincere, 53:28 kind, patient, forbearing, 53:30 heavenly minded, 53:32 it is a curse to its possessors 53:34 and through their influence, it is a curse to the world." 53:37 My God help us, have mercy on us. 53:42 Oh, my friends, if there was ever a time 53:46 that we as a people need to be awakened, 53:50 that these dry bones need to be awakened 53:53 and put some flesh on them, it's now. 53:57 Oh, how I hear 53:58 so many of my brothers and sisters say, 54:00 "Well, you know I believe in the truth," 54:02 or, "I'm a Seventh-day Adventist Christian." 54:04 And just because again, 54:05 you believe in these truths that we teach 54:08 doesn't necessarily 54:09 make you a genuine believer of Christ, 54:13 because you can believe in those truths. 54:15 hey, the five foolish virgins had their lamp. 54:21 The five foolish virgins put their trust 54:24 in the Word of God 54:25 and their faith in the fact that 54:27 the bridegroom was going to return 54:28 and get them, in fact, 54:30 they even got up and showed their works 54:31 and faithfully going out to meet Him. 54:34 But yet, when the midnight cry was heard, 54:40 that lamp that had a little bit of oil 54:42 when they first went out, it had burned out. 54:49 And when they reach down 54:50 into their vessels to retrieve extra oil, 54:55 they had none. 54:56 Why? 54:58 Because they had professed to believe in this, 55:03 but the power behind this 55:06 they had not submitted to. 55:10 You see, when we talk about 55:12 being sincere, kind, patient, 55:17 forbearing, heavenly-minded. 55:20 You see, all of these are things 55:22 that only a submission to the Holy Spirit can give us. 55:28 In fact, those are fruits of the Spirit. 55:32 How do you know 55:33 if someone's truly led by the Spirit of God? 55:36 Do they have the fruit bearing in their life? 55:41 Do you sense the love and the compassion, 55:44 and the joy and the kindness 55:45 and the patience and all of that that comes 55:48 with being led by the Holy Spirit? 55:51 Oh, my friends, we can say that 55:55 we are Seventh-day Adventists all day long. 55:58 We can say we believe in all these truths, 56:01 we can teach them like a champion. 56:06 But if we do not have love, 56:08 and we do not show each other love, 56:11 and we do not come together 56:13 in the unity of the faith in love, 56:18 then who are we? 56:23 I'll tell you who we are. 56:25 If we think we're going to get to heaven, 56:28 knowing all of this but having that legalistic, 56:34 ultraconservative pharisaical mindset, 56:37 you are a blind visionary, 56:39 a dumb genius, and a deaf listener. 56:44 And the same thing goes for those others 56:46 if you think you're going to get out of this world 56:48 denying the truth of God's Word, 56:51 being extreme liberal, my friends, 56:54 you are a blind visionary, 56:55 a dumb genius and the deaf listener. 56:59 May we submit ourselves to Jesus today. 57:03 And then we ask Him unto our heart to transform us. 57:08 Father in heaven, give us Your Holy Spirit. 57:12 Create in us a clean heart, O God, 57:14 and renew a right spirit within us. 57:16 We ask in Jesus' holy name. 57:19 Amen. |
Revised 2021-07-23