Participants:
Series Code: WHO
Program Code: WHO210067S
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00:28 Hello, friends, welcome to 3ABN Worship Hour.
00:31 I'm John Lomacang, the speaker for the hour. 00:35 Thank you so much for taking 00:36 the time to join us to pray for God's guidance, 00:41 to ask for God's Holy Spirit, to be a part 00:45 of what God intends for your life today. 00:49 Before we go into the message entitled "Stained Glass," 00:52 I want to ask for the Lord to lead 00:54 and guide in the communication 00:56 and the application of His Word. 00:59 Let's bow our heads together. 01:01 Loving Father in heaven, we thank You for 01:02 the opportunity and privilege. 01:05 We know that there's someone watching today, 01:08 expecting and listening for a word from You. 01:13 And we pray that you will take Your word 01:15 and find that fertile soil, that fertile ground that may 01:21 receive the seed of God's Word planted, 01:25 nurtured by the Holy Spirit, to bring forth in the life 01:29 of the one listening, and those that may be listening 01:32 and those that may be watching abundant experiences, 01:36 to know not only Your word, but to know you 01:39 as their personal Savior. 01:42 This I ask, in Your precious and Holy Name. 01:46 Amen. 01:49 As I mentioned the message is entitled Stained Glass. 01:54 You might be wondering... 01:55 But let's begin at the beginning. 01:57 Let's go to the first scripture reading, 01:59 2 Peter 1:19 02:01 as I lay the foundation for the message today. 02:06 We read in the Word of God in 2 Peter 1:19, 02:10 "And so we have the prophetic word confirmed, 02:15 which you do well to take heed 02:19 as a light that shines in a dark place, 02:23 until the day dawns and the morning star 02:27 rises in your heart." 02:31 Peter had it correct. 02:33 The intention of God is to have the morning star 02:36 rise in our heart. 02:38 And He has given us prophecy that shines in a dark place, 02:42 in a dark world to accomplish His purpose in your life 02:46 and in my life. 02:48 You know, we're living in the closing scenes 02:50 of the great controversy, and Satan is unveiling 02:54 the strategies that he has compiled 02:57 for the last 6000 years. 03:00 From the dust of his defeat in heaven, 03:03 Satan has been taking notes. 03:05 And his aim is to study God's movements, 03:09 determined to reverse 03:11 everything that God has created. 03:14 For every light, he has darkness. 03:17 For every truth, he has error. 03:19 For every right, he has wrong. 03:22 And Satan has studied God intently, 03:25 determined to reverse everything that God has done. 03:29 So let's begin by going to the Book 03:31 of Genesis Chapter 1 and let's unfold 03:33 what God has done so that we can see 03:36 what the enemy is trying to reverse. 03:39 We read together in Genesis 1:2 the following words, 03:44 "The earth was without form and void, 03:48 and darkness was on the face of the deep. 03:51 And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face 03:56 of the waters." 03:58 You see when you read that scripture, 04:00 what it's saying to us is to eradicate darkness. 04:04 God did what only He can do. 04:07 Look at verse 3. What did God do? 04:10 The Bible says in Genesis 1:3, "Then God said, 04:15 'Let there be light, and there was light.'" 04:19 Now I want you to notice what I just said. 04:21 "God said, 'Let there be light and there was light.'" 04:24 One of the very first changes that God 04:27 affected was in the creation of the world. 04:30 The very thing He did was replace 04:33 darkness with light. 04:36 The very first thing that Satan 04:37 wants to do is replace light with darkness 04:42 and here's the reason why. 04:44 Look at verse 4, Genesis 1:4, 04:48 "And God saw the light, that it was good, 04:53 and God divided the light from the darkness." 04:58 I don't want you to miss that. 04:59 God divided the light from the darkness. 05:02 God made it clear that this is light and this is darkness. 05:05 He did not merge the two together. 05:08 God did not turn darkness into light because you cannot 05:11 make good out of evil. 05:12 He eradicated darkness by expelling it with light. 05:18 God eliminated darkness by introducing the light. 05:22 He separated the light from the darkness. 05:26 And when I studied that 05:29 and I began to absorb that, I could appreciate more deeply 05:34 the words of Jesus when He said in Matthew 5:16, 05:37 "Let your light so shine before men." 05:39 You see, when you allow your light to shine, 05:42 darkness is eradicated, and the light of God is shown. 05:46 When you allow your light to shine, 05:49 truth is seen and error is banished. 05:52 When you allow the light of God's Word 05:54 and the work of the Spirit of God to shine 05:57 through your life, error is put to flight 05:59 and truth is brought front and center. 06:03 God never merged light with darkness. 06:06 He never put the two together. 06:08 He said, "Let there be light, 06:10 and there was light." 06:12 But I want you to notice something that's amazing 06:13 about light and darkness. 06:16 Every night when I go to bed, I turn off the light. 06:18 And I've come to the place where I don't even like 06:20 the light from my phone, or the light from my charger, 06:24 or the light from my headsets, when it's charging. 06:26 I want all the room to be dark. 06:29 But I've noticed something, when I turn off the light, 06:31 it becomes instantly dark. 06:34 It doesn't become dark gradually. 06:37 And the very same thing is true spiritually. 06:39 When you reject God's light, 06:41 you are in darkness immediately. 06:44 Light is replaced by darkness. 06:46 When light is rejected, 06:49 darkness takes his place immediately. 06:53 That is why when God brings light to you from His Word, 06:57 it is important to embrace it. 06:58 Embrace it so that you will not experience 07:01 the darkness that comes upon you. 07:04 But let me develop the thought even further. 07:06 You know, to a large degree 07:08 as we look at the world today, as we look at religion, 07:11 the diversities of religion. 07:13 We're not talking about the people per se 07:15 but the movements themselves. 07:17 There are so many varying degrees 07:19 of movements in the world. 07:21 And the reason why Satan is able to deceive 07:24 is he mixes light with darkness or darkness with light. 07:29 He has a little bit of truth and a little bit of error. 07:33 But like arsenic, you cannot put one drop 07:35 of arsenic in a glass of clean water 07:38 and say that it's not poisonous. 07:40 Even a single drop begins to poison that which is pure. 07:44 But now to understand how Satan has obscured 07:46 the light of God's Word, let me take you to the story 07:50 behind the title Stained Glass. 07:54 In the 12th century, 07:58 the churches in the medieval times begin to embrace 08:01 something called Stained Glass. 08:04 It was the age of Gothic architecture. 08:08 In the 12th century, it was the golden age of diversity. 08:12 And there was a man by the name 08:14 of Abbot Suger of Saint-Denis. 08:17 He was called the father of stained glass. 08:20 He was the first one to conceptualize 08:23 the use of stained glass windows to create as he said, 08:28 heavenly light, which was seen as he quotes, 08:32 "The presence of God in the churches." 08:35 Follow me carefully. 08:37 As Abbot Church of Saint-Denis, which was located near Paris, 08:40 it was described as having the most radiant windows to, 08:44 as I read, illuminates men's minds 08:48 so that they may travel through 08:51 the stained glass to an apprehension 08:54 of God's light. 08:56 You see, the idea for colored glass 08:58 was born in Abbot Suger's mind. 09:01 But he found in the Word of God scriptures, 09:04 making reference to the many colors that represent God 09:07 and the rainbow. 09:08 And instead of leaving it there, 09:10 he decided to use the rainbow colors to dilute 09:14 and to dumb down the purity of the sunlight. 09:17 Medieval churches became prominent. 09:20 Stained glass windows began to be reproduced for two 09:24 prominent reasons and these reasons are very, 09:27 very important. 09:28 One, they said for its spiritual quality 09:32 and then the second reason, 09:33 they said for its sensual appeal. 09:36 Now this is a powerful point. 09:38 To get people inside 09:39 of the churches in the cathedrals, they adorned 09:43 the windows with colored 09:44 glass because the churches were naturally dark. 09:48 They had candlelight 09:49 and they were mostly wooden structures 09:51 and concrete structures 09:52 and because there was no electricity, 09:53 the buildings were dark. 09:55 And people didn't want to come inside of darkened buildings 09:57 made of wood and stone and so they decided 10:00 if they could make colored glass, 10:04 it will attract the people's eyes. 10:06 The stained glass will increase their curiosity 10:10 and then the people would come into the buildings 10:12 to appreciate the light. 10:13 They would look at the stained glass 10:15 and while their eyes are being twinkled 10:17 and their mind being impressed by all this beautiful 10:20 stained glass, it gave the preachers, 10:23 the bishops, the popes, the leaders 10:25 time to mold their intellect. 10:28 You see, the darker the inside, 10:31 the more dazzling and attractive 10:33 the stained glass appeared. 10:35 Candles were kept to a minimum. 10:37 The stained glass not only became visibly appealing, 10:42 but the glass was also designed to instruct 10:45 the people how to think. 10:48 And the amazing thing that happened was the Medieval 10:51 Churches became popular. 10:54 Follow me, not by reading and studying the Bible, 10:58 but by abandoning the Bible in favor of stained glass. 11:03 Now you see, the stained glass became the entertainment 11:06 of their day, the light show of their day. 11:08 They didn't have lights like we have today. 11:10 They did not have electricity. 11:12 They used the light to attract the mind 11:15 and the truths of the Bible became just as distorted 11:18 as the stained glass. 11:20 The truth of God's Word just like 11:22 the light from outside was filtered through stained glass. 11:27 Stained glass became the main attraction 11:30 of the Medieval Churches. 11:31 And now you know why it was called the Dark Ages. 11:37 You know, there is a particular quality about 11:40 stained glass that makes it deceptively attractive. 11:44 And I want you to hear me carefully. 11:46 Although, the source of light remains unchanged, 11:49 it is vastly altered. 11:52 The result is, it makes the altered light 11:56 look more attractive than the pure light. 11:59 That's what's happening today in many churches 12:01 around the world. 12:02 The altered light is packaged so it begins to look more 12:06 valuable and more appreciated than the pure light 12:10 of God's Word. 12:12 The result is, altered light looks 12:14 more appealing to the eyes, but it gives no life-giving 12:18 properties to the mind. 12:19 Altered light makes things look attractive externally, 12:25 but it does not affect any changes internally. 12:28 The reason is clear. 12:29 The light of the sun has been diluted. 12:31 The nourishment of the Vitamin D has been filtered out. 12:35 It is no longer containing nourishment. 12:38 And today, when you filter the Word of God, 12:41 you may be attracted by what you see, 12:44 but there'll be no spiritual nourishment because the light 12:47 of God's Word has been diluted. 12:49 It has been stained by the things 12:51 that are filtered through it. 12:52 Friends, today, the truth 12:55 of God's Word are being filtered 12:58 through stained glass religion, 13:02 which brings me to my first point. 13:05 It has been more than 6000 years, 13:07 but this is the generation of stained glass religion. 13:13 You see, friends, darkness has become more 13:16 appealing than light. 13:18 Notice the words of Jesus in John 3:19 13:22 when He said these words. 13:24 He said, "And this is the condemnation, 13:27 that light has come into the world, 13:31 and men love darkness rather than light, 13:35 because their deeds were evil." 13:38 Notice Jesus didn't say that there's no light. 13:40 He says, "Light has come." 13:42 But because men are molded by stained glass religion, 13:45 by stained glass Christian entertainment, 13:48 men love darkness rather than light, 13:50 because it seems to be more appealing, 13:52 yet it is missing the nourishing qualities 13:56 of the pure Word of God. 13:58 There was a quotation found in the book Testimonies, 14:00 volume 4, page 233 in paragraph 3. 14:04 Listen as I read it. 14:06 It's very pertinent to the topic. 14:08 "In this age of darkness and error, 14:11 men who profess to be followers 14:13 of Christ seem to think that they are at liberty to receive 14:17 or to reject the servants of the Lord at pleasure, 14:20 and that they will not be called to an account 14:23 for so doing. 14:25 Unbelief and darkness led them to do this. 14:29 Their sensibilities are blunted by their unbelief. 14:33 They violate their consciences and become untrue to their own 14:37 convictions and weaken themselves in moral power. 14:41 And they view others in the same light with themselves." 14:46 This is a very powerful point. 14:48 You see, Satan has made religion look appealing, 14:51 but possessing no life-giving power at all. 14:54 There are preachers today proclaiming pieces 14:58 of God's Word, but they don't embrace 15:01 the totality of God's Word. 15:04 They stain what they teach with ideologies of tradition 15:08 and preference and entertainment, 15:11 and what I believe is relevant, 15:13 or what I believe is irrelevant. 15:14 And they become proponents of darkness rather than 15:17 the pure Word of God. 15:19 But this is no surprise to God. 15:21 He knew that eventually that we will get to the age 15:25 where truth will not be embraced 15:26 as he intended it to be embraced, 15:28 and light would not be appreciated as it comes 15:31 clearly from God's Word. 15:33 Jesus knew, He knew that the Age of Darkness would come. 15:38 Listen to the words 15:40 of the Apostle Paul in I Timothy 4:1-2 15:44 as he describes this descending 15:47 darkened age in which the church 15:49 is existing today. 15:50 He said these words. 15:52 "Now the spirit expressly says that in latter times 15:57 some will depart from the faith, 16:00 giving heed to deceiving spirits 16:03 and doctrines of demons, speaking lies in hypocrisy, 16:08 having their own consciences seared with a hot iron." 16:13 When I read that I thought to myself, 16:15 "Seared with a hot iron, what does that mean?" 16:17 What happens when a conscience is seared with a hot iron? 16:20 You see, friends, when truth is repeatedly rejected, 16:24 there's a danger that comes. 16:25 Darkness becomes more appealing. 16:28 A seared conscience is a dead conscience 16:32 like the fingertips of a guitar player 16:34 over the course of time. 16:36 It is callous and hardened so that truth cannot 16:39 penetrate that surface any longer. 16:42 It's dangerous to reject the Word of God. 16:45 When the conscience is seared, the life becomes hypocritical 16:50 and then you become your own standard, 16:53 and God's standard and God's Word is rejected. 16:56 And I want to tell you, as I've grown as a pastor, 16:58 as I've been able to share the truth of God's Word 17:00 with people of varying walks of life, it always amazes me 17:04 when you get to a specific teaching in God's Word 17:07 and the hardened mind from continual rejection 17:10 of light becomes so hard to penetrate. 17:14 They can hear what God's Word says, 17:15 but it bounces off like a hardened skull, 17:19 like a skull that has turned to stone. 17:21 There's no longer the ability to allow 17:24 God's Holy Spirit to penetrate that dark place. 17:28 And the Bible described that this kind 17:31 of atmosphere would exist. 17:33 As a matter of fact, Isaiah the Prophet 17:36 describes this to be the behavior 17:38 of those who embrace darkness. 17:40 But all of a sudden, their minds are so calloused 17:43 that they twist what they see, and they call darkness light. 17:46 Notice the words of Isaiah the Prophet in Isaiah 5:20. 17:50 Listen to what he says. 17:52 "Woe to those who call evil good, 17:54 and good evil, who put darkness for light 17:57 and light for darkness, who put bitter for sweet, 18:02 and sweet for bitter!" 18:05 Notice that, why would you do that? 18:07 Why would you exchange sweet for bitter? 18:10 Why would you put darkness for light? 18:12 Why would you put error for truth? 18:15 The reason is so simple because you've chosen to turn 18:19 away from light so darkness looks bright to you. 18:22 And many ministers today will look at God's Word 18:25 and look at Bible truth, and they will call it a lie. 18:29 I've seen that experience. I've had that experience. 18:32 I've actually had contending controversies 18:36 with preachers on talk shows. 18:38 I remember a number of years ago, 18:39 when I lived in the state of California, 18:41 I was invited to be on a program 18:43 called coast-to-coast. 18:45 It was a roundtable discussion on doctrines 18:48 that were in opposition to one another. 18:50 It's not that the Bible teaches opposition doctrines. 18:53 It's not that the Bible teaches and supports both sides. 18:56 But when you decide to darken what God's Word says, 19:00 you become up with views that are not in harmony 19:02 with God's Word. 19:03 And I remember preacher sitting there when I talked about 19:05 the commandments of God, written by the finger of God. 19:08 I never forget the hypocritical behavior of a minister 19:12 of more than 30 years. 19:13 And he said to me, 19:15 "Which finger did God write with it, with the first finger, 19:16 the index finger?" 19:17 And I thought to myself, "How sacrilegious to look 19:20 at God's commandments and make it so trivial 19:23 and so minimize by saying, 19:25 which finger did God write it with, 19:27 by having no intention of even following 19:31 the Word of God?" 19:34 But Isaiah the Prophet 700 years 19:36 before these words are written down, 19:38 said that this was going to happen. 19:41 The Apostle Paul also 19:43 chimes in as he also by the inspiration 19:46 of God's Spirit predicts the molding environment 19:49 of the last days. 19:51 Notice what he says in 2 Timothy 3:13. 19:55 He says, "But evil men and imposters 20:00 will grow worse and worse, deceiving and being deceived." 20:05 Now pause for a moment and think about it. 20:08 When the Apostle Paul wrote that he was given a preview 20:13 of a developing environment because the church was fairly 20:16 new in his day. 20:17 But Paul was being led by the Spirit of God to see 20:20 what the world was going to become like. 20:22 And it really boggles my mind when he said, 20:24 "Evil men and imposters or seducers 20:27 will grow worse and worse, deceiving and being deceived." 20:31 So he's in essence saying that is the generation of today. 20:35 Why are they deceiving and being deceived? 20:37 Why are they using God's Word, twisting it, 20:41 diluting it to deceive? 20:45 It's because they are evil men. 20:47 They are imposters. 20:49 What is an imposter? 20:51 Somebody who looks apart that he really is not. 20:55 That's why Paul the Apostle warned, he says, 20:58 "That they will be ministers, who appear as ministers 21:01 of righteousness but it's not of marvelous 21:05 thing because Satan himself also appears 21:07 as a minister of righteousness." 21:10 So he's in essence saying, whatever you do, 21:12 don't think it's credible by what you see. 21:15 Check it out by God's Word. 21:17 Listen to another quotation. 21:19 In Testimonies, volume 4, page 234 in paragraph 2, 21:23 powerful quotation, "Men's hearts are no softer 21:27 today than when Christ was upon the earth. 21:31 They will do all in their power to aid 21:34 the great adversary in making it as hard 21:37 as possible for the servants of Christ 21:40 just as the people did with Christ 21:43 when He was upon the earth. 21:44 They will scourge with the tongue 21:46 of slander and falsehood. 21:49 They will criticize and turn against the servant of God, 21:53 the very efforts he is leading them to make." 21:58 What does that mean? 21:59 That means when God's servant is saying, "Walk in the light." 22:02 They will scourge him and malign His character, 22:05 and say, "Don't listen to Him for the following reasons." 22:08 They'll do whatever they can to aid the adversary 22:12 and turning people away from the truth of God's Word. 22:15 And it's done most effectively. 22:17 Hear me carefully. 22:18 It's done most effectively through those who look 22:21 the part of religious leader. 22:25 Now, a drug addict couldn't argue with a minister and say, 22:28 "Take drugs instead of God's Word." 22:30 You'll say, "Well, that's ridiculous," 22:31 because he's obviously leading you down a path of destruction. 22:34 But when somebody that looks apart, 22:37 when somebody that has the external 22:39 appearances of a minister 22:41 begins to guide you in the wrong direction, 22:43 and says it's a safe direction. 22:45 Jesus says, "When the blind leads a blind, 22:48 they both fall into the pit," 22:50 which takes me to my second point. 22:52 Today, we have a religion that how you feel 22:56 is more important than what you believe. 23:00 I mean, if you take the time, 23:02 today religion appeals to the senses, 23:05 but it starves the intellect. 23:08 Look at some of the Christian concerts. 23:09 Now, I'm not saying all Christian concerts 23:11 but I've seen some Christian concerts. 23:13 As a matter of fact, I've gone to some Christian concerts 23:15 that I couldn't stay at because I realized that this concept 23:18 was not about molding my influence to believe God's Word 23:22 but it was about superstition. 23:25 It was about trying to seduce me to believe a certain way. 23:28 And I got... 23:29 And I begin to feel like somehow I was being 23:31 put into a trance. 23:33 As one writer said, "When you begin to be in a place 23:36 where you are repeating the same thing over and over, 23:38 and over and over, it suspends the intellect." 23:42 And as one writer put, "Lofty words, bias repetition, 23:47 praises great and grand, 23:50 but not what God demands." 23:54 And I thought about that. That's so true. 23:56 A good friend of mine calls it 7/11 songs, 23:59 7 words, repeated 11 times. 24:02 And psychologists say that when you begin to repeat 24:05 something more than six times, your mind is open to allow 24:09 anything and everything to come in without 24:12 any intellectual protest. 24:15 That's what the devil does. 24:16 He gets you so wrapped up in vain repetition 24:19 as the heathens. 24:21 Jesus warned, "Don't use vain repetition like the heathens." 24:24 He warned the people of His day. 24:27 But then I also found an article 24:28 called Restoring Kingdom Builders, 24:31 and it marveled me as to what the writer said. 24:34 I'll read it to you verbatim. Listen to what he said. 24:37 And the article was subtitled, "Do Christians sometimes go 24:40 mindless during worship?" 24:43 Let me read it as you listen. He says, "I walked... 24:46 I wanted to walk out of church last Sunday morning 24:49 all because of a song. 24:51 During last Sunday's praise 24:53 and worship time at the church that I've been attending, 24:56 I became very uncomfortable because we kept repeating 25:00 the same phrase while singing a popular worship song 25:03 called King of my Heart. 25:06 Two weeks ago, or two Sundays ago, the worship team led 25:09 the congregation in singing this song. 25:11 And I noticed that one phrase was repeated 22 times. 25:17 You are good, You are good, oh God, 25:21 which means we sing the words good 44 times." 25:26 And he said, and I end the article, 25:27 "I wanted to run out of the service, get in my car 25:31 and drive anywhere." 25:33 Well, that's not just true in Sunday Churches. 25:35 That's true in some Sabbath Churches. 25:37 That's true in many denominations. 25:39 It doesn't matter what the denomination is. 25:41 But when you get to the place 25:42 where vain repetition takes over, 25:44 the mind is no longer making 25:46 calculated decisions about truth, 25:48 it's now open to being seduced. 25:50 And that is why Jesus said in Matthew 6:7 25:53 the following words. 25:54 Listen to these very pertinent words, 25:57 words of caution for our generation, 26:00 for the Christian Church today. 26:02 He says in Matthew 6:7, "And when you pray," 26:05 He says, "do not use vain repetitions 26:09 as the heathens do. 26:11 For they think that they will be heard 26:14 for their many words." 26:18 He's in essence saying, they're using repetition, 26:20 repetition, repetition, repetition. 26:23 What would you do if somebody came to you and said, 26:24 "Give me the car. Give me the car. 26:26 Give me the car. Give me the car. 26:27 Give me the car. Give me the keys. 26:28 Give me the keys. Give me the keys. Give me the keys"? 26:30 You'll say, "Would you cut it out already? 26:31 I heard you the first time." 26:33 You see, friends, God doesn't need us to be banging 26:35 on his door repetitiously, thinking that by saying it 26:39 over and over and over and over and over and over again, 26:43 that somehow is going to bend God's arm to be more 26:46 pliable to your suggestions or to your questions. 26:50 We don't need that. 26:52 But God is saying that's the age in which we live 26:54 and that's a stained glass maneuver. 26:59 Taking the truth of God's Word, darkening it down, 27:02 making a repetition, thinking that's somehow 27:05 I can repeat it over and over 27:07 and somehow it's going to change your heart. 27:09 No, friends, that's not how God works. 27:11 We've got to look at God's Word. 27:14 "Here a little, here a little, there a little, there a little, 27:19 line upon line, line upon line, 27:22 precept upon precept, precept upon precept." 27:26 That's one of the only times in God's Word 27:29 that repetition is used. 27:30 And in that case, repetition is the best teacher. 27:35 Look at the third reason why I believe 27:36 we're living in a stained glass generation. 27:39 Error will be exalted above truth. 27:45 That's what happened during the dark ages. 27:47 It took a long time but the Church of the Dark Ages, 27:50 the Church, the powerful monolith of Rome, 27:53 chained the Bible to the altars. 27:54 And the people had no access to God's Word, 27:57 and they were dumbed down. 27:58 They were taught things that were not 28:00 supported by God's Word like eternally burning hell, 28:03 the immortality of the soul, purgatory, 28:06 limbo, these strange beliefs that could not 28:09 connect to a just and fearing loving God. 28:12 But that's not a surprise because the same thing 28:16 happened to ancient Israel 28:18 when they turned away from God's Word. 28:20 Look at Ezekiel 22:26. 28:24 Listen to what the Prophet Ezekiel says 28:27 about those who turn away from the truth of God's Word. 28:31 He says, "Her priests have violated My law 28:35 and profaned My holy things, they have not distinguished 28:40 between the holy and unholy, nor have they made known 28:44 the difference between the unclean and the clean. 28:49 They have hidden their eyes from My Sabbaths, 28:55 so that I am profaned among them." 28:58 That happened to Israel of all. 29:00 Now watch this, if the devil can do that among 29:03 God's chosen nation, 29:05 if the devil can lead those who had truth to abandon truth, 29:09 and get to the place where they can't see 29:11 the difference between the holy and the unholy, 29:14 the clean, and the unclean then their worship becomes profaned. 29:19 And the Lord says, "I'm profaned among them." 29:22 Well, friends, the same is true about today, 29:24 whenever we are not embracing the truth of God's Word 29:26 as it is written in God's Word, 29:28 when we make no difference between the holy 29:30 and the unholy, and this is the generation 29:33 where as was pointed out in the text. 29:36 There are those who have hidden their eyes from God's Sabbath. 29:39 They're saying, "This is what I prefer. 29:41 Take it or leave it." 29:42 Whoa, friends, the reality of it is God leaves it. 29:44 God doesn't take what we give Him. 29:47 He only takes what He requires. 29:49 Going back to the story of Cain and Abel. 29:51 Cain gave God a basket of fruits. 29:54 Abel gave God the sacrifice He required. 29:58 And the question I asked you today, are you giving God 30:01 what He requires? 30:03 Or are you one of those that says to God, 30:05 "Here's what I'm going to give you. 30:06 Take it or leave it. 30:08 As long as I remember God, that's all that matters"? 30:10 No, that's not the case. 30:11 It's not our standard by which we worship God. 30:15 It is His standard. 30:16 It is His standard by which He calls us to worship Him. 30:21 And I remember the text in John 4:23-24. 30:24 The Bible says, "God is Spirit, 30:25 and those who worship Him 30:27 must worship Him in Spirit and in Truth." 30:30 Why? "For God is seeking such to worship Him." 30:34 Are you worshiping God according to His Word 30:37 or are you worshiping God according to your denomination, 30:40 according to your church? 30:41 Are you comfortable being one of the 33,000 30:45 or are you tracing what you believe to the unerring 30:48 Word of God? 30:50 I recommend that you do that or else 30:51 you can become easily a victim of stained glass 30:56 religion because today, God's truths have been filtered 31:00 through the lenses of stained glass doctrines. 31:03 The Christian world has embraced two 31:06 of the most stained glass doctrines 31:09 I believe that has permeated the Christian Church today, 31:14 the immortality of the soul, and the sacredness of Sunday. 31:18 I'll say that one more time. 31:19 The Christian world today has been polarized by two 31:23 of the most stained glass doctrines of the Christian era, 31:27 the immortal soul, believing that you continue to live after 31:31 you die, and the sacredness of Sunday, 31:34 somehow removing the sanctity 31:35 of God's Sabbath to a different day, and saying, 31:38 "Now this new day is holy." 31:41 There's nothing in Scripture that supports either 31:44 one of those. 31:45 Only God has immortality. 31:48 We will put on immortality when Jesus comes, 31:51 but no one possesses immortality right now. 31:54 We have the promise of immortality. 31:58 When that last trumpet blows, 32:00 this mortal will put on immortality. 32:03 1 Corinthians 15:51-55, we will put it on, 32:07 but right now it's just a promise. 32:09 My loved ones don't die and go to heaven, 32:11 they die and they're placed in the grave or if they are... 32:14 If they become cremated, they're placed in an urn. 32:18 Everybody is waiting for the resurrection, 32:21 so that they can meet the Lord. 32:24 And, friends, what a beautiful 32:25 and glorious day that's going to be when the resurrection 32:28 takes place and the graveyard becomes the location 32:31 of the last great miracle that the world will experience. 32:36 But notice these two great errors, 32:38 the immortal soul, and the sacredness 32:41 of Sunday is embraced today. 32:43 And I'm going to say to you, as I'm proclaiming this, 32:45 there are those that believe that and because the glass 32:48 is so stained, they don't want to turn 32:51 away from it knowing that God's Word says 32:56 something else. 32:57 Preference, tradition, bias, and darkness 33:01 have combined itself together 33:04 and their minds are dangerously becoming 33:07 callous because this is not what they prefer. 33:10 Listen to this quotation in the book 33:12 Darkness Before Dawn, page 32 in paragraph 2. 33:17 Listen to this, "Through the two great errors, 33:22 the immortality of the soul and Sunday sacredness, 33:26 Satan will bring the people under his deceptions. 33:30 While the former lays the foundation of spiritualism, 33:35 the latter creates a bond of sympathy with Rome." 33:41 Notice that. 33:42 Spiritualism comes through the belief that people 33:44 continue to live after they die. 33:48 That's why people believe in ghosts. 33:49 That's why people say, "My mother visited me." 33:52 That's why people say, 33:53 "I smelled my dad's cologne two years after he died. 33:56 He must be in the house trying to send me a signal." 33:58 All this ridiculous spiritualism 34:01 is coming into Christian Churches today. 34:03 It's being taught from pulpits in America 34:05 and around the world that they're in heaven 34:06 looking down now and the Bible doesn't support 34:09 anything along those lines. 34:12 But that's what's happening in our world today, 34:13 stained glass religion, the immortal soul, 34:17 and Sunday sacredness. 34:19 But there's something on the horizon 34:21 that I want to bring to your attention today. 34:23 Something is happening that is causing the latter part 34:26 of that quotation to come to fruition because for decades 34:30 and for millennia, Sunday has been pushed 34:33 as a day to be honored above God Sabbath. 34:36 And this year, combined with the movements 34:40 of the last 25 years, Sunday is coming to the forefront 34:44 strangely enough on the heels of the impact 34:48 of the COVID environment, and the lessening down 34:52 of world travel, ecologists and environmentalists 34:56 and religious and political leaders are beginning to look 34:59 at this environment and say, "Wait a minute, 35:01 we can take advantage 35:02 of this crisis by bringing in the things that we've always 35:06 sought to introduce to society. 35:08 This gives us the perfect opportunity to use our stained 35:13 glass maneuvers on the society of America and the world." 35:18 Back in June 2015, 35:20 I saw this article I want to share with you right now. 35:22 It was called, Global Evangelicals. 35:25 Look at the article, Global Evangelical side 35:28 with Pope's concern for climate change. 35:30 That was back in June 16, 2015. 35:34 And then in the article, what is being pointed out 35:37 is that the evangelical leaders are uniting with the papacy, 35:42 who through the centuries of movement has brought 35:46 Sunday to the forefront as a day to be honored 35:49 above the Sabbath. 35:50 All of a sudden, as he shifts from tradition to climate, 35:55 Evangelical leaders are saying, "That's a perfect environment. 35:58 This is the day that we should do it. 36:00 This is the environment that we should unite with 36:02 the pope to push a climate agenda." 36:06 But pope didn't stop there. 36:08 He didn't stop with Evangelical leaders. 36:10 I was in Washington, DC when he spoke to Congress. 36:14 Look at this next article. What did he say to Congress?" 36:17 Pope to Congress, he said, "Pope to Congress: 36:20 Time to act on climate change and poverty." 36:24 I was amazed when I was there in Washington in 2015, 36:28 listening to this article, listening to this address 36:31 about climate change, about what we should do as a nation, 36:34 and as politicians should embrace movements. 36:37 Now, should we have a cleaner climate? 36:39 Of course, but climate change has nothing to do with 36:42 a specific day of the week. 36:44 It has to do with the everyday rounds of life. 36:47 Cars aren't just driven on Sunday alone, 36:51 is driven every day. 36:52 But the suggestion is made that if we put aside one day 36:56 of the week, where we rest our vehicles, 36:58 close our businesses, close our factories, 37:01 shut down all manufacturing plants that emit 37:05 carbons into the atmosphere. 37:07 That somehow we can heal the planet and get the planet 37:10 ready for the coming of Jesus. 37:12 Well, the irony behind that is Jesus 37:14 is not coming back for this planet. 37:16 Jesus is not coming back to this world. 37:19 He's coming back to take us to His world, 37:22 so there's no need to fix up the world to get 37:24 ready for Jesus coming down here. 37:26 He's not coming down here. He already came down here. 37:29 He already walked the earth 37:30 and accomplished the plan of salvation. 37:32 The next time He's coming back, 37:34 He's taking us to the place that He's preparing for us 37:36 today as I communicate the message. 37:38 He's preparing for us an eternal kingdom. 37:42 But do we have a responsibility to society? 37:44 Of course, but not by merging, 37:47 not by merging together to overshadow 37:51 what God's Word calls us to observe, 37:54 "Remember the Sabbath to keep it holy." 37:56 But these climatologists are saying, 37:58 these climatologists and environmentalists 38:00 and religious leaders are saying, 38:02 "If we can unite together and pick one day, 38:05 and we all unite to shut down things that emit 38:08 carbons into the atmosphere then we could fix the world." 38:12 Well, something is coming up later this year. 38:15 It is called the Conference of Parties, 38:17 notice the next slide. 38:19 It's going to take place in October and November of 2021. 38:24 It's called COP26. 38:26 Look at the slide. 38:27 This is where they're gathering together. 38:30 And this is the summit where religious leaders, 38:33 political leaders, environmentalist, 38:35 ecologists are gathering together to try to put together 38:40 a plan for climate Sunday, and the reversal 38:45 of the pollution of our planet. 38:47 And the next article shows what their intent is. 38:50 I was amazed when I saw this. Here's what it says. 38:53 "It says, uniting the world to tackle climate change." 38:58 When I read that bells 39:00 and whistles went off in my mind, 39:02 "Uniting the world to tackle climate change." 39:06 That's the back door. 39:09 That is the entering argument, but that's not the real issue. 39:14 If I could simply use climate change to bring in something 39:17 that I've always wanted to bring to the forefront 39:19 of Americans and churches around the world, 39:22 I could do it that way. 39:23 I could bring in the preference of worship through 39:28 the auspices and the window of climate change. 39:32 Through the stained glass window of climate change, 39:36 I can dumb down the light. 39:38 But notice something else happening 39:39 in preparation for this uniting of climate change 39:44 symposium coming up later this year. 39:46 There's a movement underway, even now. 39:48 It began September 5, 2021 and notice 39:52 what's behind the movement. 39:53 Look at the next slide. 39:54 It's called National Climate Sunday. 39:59 It's a national movement throughout Europe, 40:02 for people to gather together to have 40:04 a climate Sunday accord. 40:06 And the sponsors of climate Sunday are saying they want 40:09 at least 10,000 church leaders to get together, 40:14 to push climate Sunday in preparation for the COP 40:18 symposium taking place in October and November, 2021. 40:22 Now, I don't know if you've got this. 40:24 Let me pause and distill some of these before 40:26 I go to the next slide. 40:27 Uniting the world, pushing Sunday, climate Sunday, 40:32 global change, ecologists, environmentalists, 40:36 evangelicals, pope, fix the planet, COVID, 40:40 mask, no mask, a new day, 40:43 we can all get together on this one day 40:45 and fix the planet. 40:48 What day do you think it was? 40:49 The last slide we just showed you 40:51 is the day that they're focusing on getting 40:53 all the world together to worship on that day, 40:57 to have church services on that day, 40:59 in honor of the climate but not an honor 41:03 of the God of creation. 41:05 But some of you don't know that for the last 25 years or more. 41:08 There has been a push in America, 41:11 and notice this next slide. 41:12 It's called National Back to Church Sunday. 41:16 Every year... 41:18 It's slated for September 19th, 2021. 41:21 Every year for the last 25 years, 41:24 a National Back to Church Sunday movement 41:27 has taken place in America. 41:29 And some of your churches may have 41:30 signed up to push this initiative, 41:32 go back to church on Sunday. 41:34 When I first heard about this a number of years ago, 41:36 I thought to myself, "Well, there has to be some problem. 41:39 There has to be some glitch. 41:41 There has to be something that is not making sense." 41:43 So I decided, let me go ahead 41:45 and call those that are sponsoring 41:47 the National Back to Church Sunday. 41:49 I said, "Well, maybe they just want us to go back to church 41:52 but not necessarily Sunday." 41:53 When I called them I asked, I said, 41:55 "I'm a Seventh-day Adventist pastor. 41:57 I go to church on Saturday, the Bible Sabbath. 42:01 Are you sponsoring going back to church on the weekends 42:04 or going back to church generally?" 42:06 They said, "No, this is a push to go 42:09 back to church on Sunday." 42:11 And prior to that phone call 42:13 I went to the website to register, 42:15 and all the churches were listed alphabetically. 42:18 And I noticed the very first one, the letter A, Adventist. 42:21 And I thought, "Wow, that's amazing. 42:22 We keep the Sabbath, but this is a push to go 42:24 back to church on Sunday." 42:26 And I scrolled all the way down to S and I saw 42:28 Seventh-day Adventist. 42:29 And I thought, "Well, that's even stranger. 42:31 They have Adventist at the top, 42:32 Seventh-day Adventist in the middle somewhere." 42:35 But they don't recognize that we are not a Sunday 42:37 keeping church, but a Sabbath keeping 42:39 according to Bible, according to God's Bible Sabbath. 42:43 When I made that phone call, the very next year 42:45 I went back to that website to see if any changes 42:48 have been affected. 42:49 And yes, Adventist and Seventh-day Adventist 42:52 were no longer on the list to choose 42:55 as a church that can register for the National Back to Church 43:00 Sunday movement. 43:02 Stained glass religion, 43:05 stained glass maneuvers, 43:08 hiding the real issues, 43:11 covering it in the cloak of climate change 43:14 and the COVID environment, covering it in the cloak 43:18 of preference and tradition, 43:20 that's what's happening in our world today. 43:22 And men are succumbing to it because they cannot 43:25 see that behind the stained glass, 43:28 the purity of God's Word is still there. 43:31 There's a quotation in the book, Last Day Events, 43:33 page 125 that shows us how this is being developed. 43:39 Look at this quotation. 43:41 It says, "The Sunday movement 43:44 is now making its way in darkness. 43:47 The leaders are concealing the true issue, 43:51 and many who unite in the movement do not 43:55 themselves see whither the undercurrent is tending." 44:01 What is being said? 44:02 If they don't see what's under the surface, 44:05 many of those uniting in climate Sunday 44:07 and cleaning up the climate and let's get together 44:11 and support these initiatives to fix the world, 44:13 and let's all pick one day together to worship. 44:16 They have good intentions. 44:17 Some of them I cannot say that they have ill 44:19 or evil intentions on the surface, 44:22 but many of them don't see the undercurrent. 44:25 And there's a powerful undercurrent behind this. 44:28 There's a powerful undercurrent 44:30 when you decide that your initiatives, 44:33 your regulations, your traditions, your beliefs, 44:38 your push, your agenda, your global item of discussion 44:43 is more important than the simple phrase, 44:46 "Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy." 44:49 And that's the command of God. 44:50 But men have through the ages with impunity, 44:54 rejected God's Word. 44:55 And in these last days, in this seducing era 44:59 of doctrines of demons that Paul had prognosticated 45:02 would occur, men are becoming more artistic. 45:05 And behind all those artistic movements, 45:08 you can be sure Satan is pulling the strings, 45:11 but Jesus warned about stained glass religion. 45:14 Jesus warned about concealing the truth. 45:17 He talked about this as something that can 45:19 lead us to a place that we don't want to be. 45:22 Notice the words of Jesus in Matthew 12:35, 45:27 Jesus said to them in Matthew 12... 45:30 Sorry in John 12:35, Jesus said the following words. 45:35 He says, "A little while longer 45:39 the light is with you. 45:41 Walk while you have the light, lest darkness overtake you, 45:47 he who walks in darkness does not know 45:50 where he is going." 45:53 Notice how he said that. 45:55 Those who walk in darkness don't know where they're going. 45:58 You see stained glass religion gets rid of the phrase, 46:02 "untainted truth" and uses the phrase, "alternate truth". 46:06 I was shocked when I heard that phrase 46:08 used in the political environment, 46:10 not too long ago, alternate truth. 46:13 Really, alternate truth? 46:14 Are there two truths? 46:17 Two and two is four, but it could mean also 46:19 something else. 46:20 There's no such thing as alternate truth. 46:22 It's either two and two is four or two and two 46:24 is something else. 46:26 It will never be the same. 46:27 Two and two is always four. 46:29 There is no alternative answer to that. 46:32 But today, Satan has found a clever way 46:35 of saying there are alternate ways of worshiping God. 46:39 There are other things that God doesn't really 46:42 say in His Word but this is okay, 46:44 God is all right, I mean, as long as we remember God. 46:47 No, friends, that's not how God works. 46:49 And we're living in an age where men are being clever 46:51 about concealing the issues, at a time when there are more 46:55 methods than ever before, at a time 46:58 when accessing God's Word through digital means, 47:01 through various translations. 47:03 We can have the Bible on our iPad or our iPhones 47:07 or our Android devices. 47:09 We can have them on tablets and iPads. 47:11 There's so many ways of accessing God's Word, 47:15 but men don't want God's Word in its undiluted form. 47:20 Men are becoming more accepting of the stained 47:23 glass version of God's Word. 47:26 Well, the Apostle Paul says, 47:28 "It's not that the truth of God can't be found, 47:30 but something has happened to make darkness seem more 47:34 appealing than light." 47:36 Notice what he says in 2 Corinthians 4:3-4, 47:42 here's what Paul says, "But even if our gospel 47:45 is veiled or hidden, 47:47 it is veiled to those who are perishing, 47:50 whose minds the god of this age has blinded, 47:54 who do not believe, lest 47:57 the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, 48:00 who is the image of God, should shine on them." 48:05 What is Paul saying? 48:07 He is saying the gospel is not hidden. 48:09 Their minds are darkened. 48:11 It's like a bright light in front of somebody, 48:13 but they have blinders over their eyes. 48:15 The light can be ever so bright, 48:17 but their eyes are covered. 48:18 Their eyes are covered. 48:20 Their eyes are stained, concealed. 48:22 The light hasn't dimmed. 48:23 It's just they can't see it because there's something 48:25 between them and the Bible describes that as the god 48:29 of this age has blinded. 48:32 Their eyes are veiled. 48:34 You know what the veil is? 48:35 A curtain that's been lowered that you can't see 48:37 what's in front of you. 48:39 And the light could be right there, but because tradition 48:42 and preference and modified worship 48:46 and how I feel rather than what God says, 48:48 because of all these veiled preferences have come 48:52 before God's Word, their minds are veiled, they can't see. 48:56 And I'm saying this in a way that I'm hoping that God's 48:58 Holy Spirit can break away some of the callus in your heart. 49:02 Some of those of you that are hearing these 49:04 and saying, "Well, it isn't... 49:05 It doesn't really matter." It does matter. 49:07 It's an eternal issue. 49:08 It's not something that has to do with, 49:10 "Well, I'll make it anyhow." 49:11 There are no 15,000 ways to God. 49:14 There's only one way. 49:15 He is the way, He is the truth, and He is the life. 49:18 There are not many ways, 49:19 no matter how you look at it, but people's minds are being 49:23 developed by darkness. 49:25 Today, people are more comfortable 49:27 with diluted light than pure light, 49:31 which brings me to my final point. 49:34 Light will prevail above darkness. 49:38 I'm going to say that one more time. 49:39 You see the first three points for on a negative slant, 49:43 but the last one is a positive slant. 49:45 Light will prevail above darkness. Why? 49:50 Because God always makes the final move. 49:53 Look at Isaiah 9:2. 49:55 At a time of preferred darkness, 49:57 God is still on the move. 49:59 Here's what Isaiah the Prophet says. 50:01 He says, Isaiah 9:2, 50:04 "The people who walked in darkness have seen 50:07 a great light, those who dwelt in the land 50:11 of the shadow of death, upon them a light has shined." 50:17 You know when I asked my congregation 50:19 one Sabbath morning, "How many of you 50:22 were once in a different movement, 50:24 were once in a different denomination, 50:26 and you found the undiluted, unaltered, untainted, 50:29 unstained Word of God 50:32 and has led you here to the truth of God's Word, 50:34 how many of you?" 50:35 And I was amazed so many in my congregation 50:37 raised their hands. 50:38 Not that we are claiming to be the only one saved, 50:41 but here's the powerful point. 50:43 When God's light is turned on like 50:45 a halogen lamp on the front of a truck in a blizzard, 50:49 you'll be able to find your way. 50:51 But if you try to make your way through a darkened 50:53 world without the light of God's Word shining, 50:55 you may get somewhere, 50:57 but it could be very disastrous. 50:59 You see, God is saying to us... 51:01 The light of His Word is still shining in this dark age. 51:04 God is saying to you today that you 51:06 don't have to settle for tradition. 51:08 You are not hopelessly locked in some, 51:10 kind of, chained relationship. 51:12 You are not bound by what you've heard 51:14 all your life. 51:15 You still have the opportunity to break 51:18 away from what you have had to what God 51:20 is trying to reveal to you. 51:21 You can still make a choice that you can see God's truth. 51:25 You can say, "Lord, open my eyes that I may 51:28 behold wonderful things out of your law." 51:31 Like David prayed, you can pray that prayer too. 51:35 You can ask God to give you wisdom and open your eyes. 51:38 I found a quotation that I believe 51:39 will be encouraging for you today. 51:42 In the book Christian Service, page 38 in paragraph 4. 51:46 Listen to this quotation. 51:48 We are told, 51:50 "It is a wonderful privilege to be able to understand 51:53 the will of God as revealed in the sure word of prophecy. 51:59 This places on us a heavy responsibility. 52:04 God expects us to impart to others the knowledge 52:08 He has given us. 52:09 It is His purpose that divine and human instrumentalities 52:15 shall unite in the proclamation of the warning message." 52:21 What is God saying to us today? 52:23 The light of God's Word is still here. 52:24 God's Word is still here, 52:26 it's still available today, praise God. 52:29 Bibles are the most popular books still sold today. 52:32 Praise God, which asks the question, 52:35 "Why are people still in darkness?" 52:36 It's not because of the Bible, 52:38 it's because of the way they look at it, 52:40 through stained eyes, eyes of tradition. 52:44 I was raised this way. This is what my church says. 52:47 This is what my pastor says. 52:49 You know, it's amazing to me that when God's Word says 52:51 one thing, we go to a man to see if he agrees with it. 52:54 It should be the other way around. 52:55 If a man says something, we should go to God's 52:57 Word to see if he agrees with God's Word. 53:00 But today, we take the authority of a man, 53:03 the authority of a priest or prelate or pastor above 53:06 the authority of God's Word. 53:07 How dangerous is that? 53:09 When the GPS is saying, make a left, 53:11 and somebody says, no, make a right. 53:13 Now, I want to say this, 53:14 I don't necessarily say that GPS 53:16 is as exact as God's Word. 53:19 That's not my point, but the illustration is this. 53:21 Sometimes we're making turns that could be disastrous. 53:25 God's Word is saying to us today, "Follow it. 53:28 It's reliable. It will lead you where I want you to go. 53:31 It is a light shining in a dark world. 53:34 It is truth shining in an age of error. 53:36 It is undiluted in a diluted generation, 53:41 because there's something coming." 53:42 You see, at a time of preferred darkness, 53:46 God is going to intensify the light of God's Word. 53:50 All over the globe, the Word of God 53:53 is going to be proclaimed undiluted, heated up, 53:57 lighted up by the halogen lights of God's Holy Spirit. 54:01 Praise God for that. 54:02 Look at Revelation 18:1, 54:04 the Bible says that He is going to exalt 54:06 His Word throughout the earth, 54:08 and only those who are praying for God to lead them will 54:12 come to the light of God's Word. 54:14 Here's what John the Revelator says to us. 54:17 He says, "After these things," Revelation 18:1, 54:19 "I saw another angel coming down from heaven, 54:22 having great authority and the earth was illuminated 54:26 with his glory." 54:28 The earth was illuminated with His glory. 54:32 Friends, the question is, 54:33 are you asking for God's Word to illuminate your mind? 54:37 Are you praying for God's 54:38 Word to be the foundation on which you stand? 54:42 When the Bible talks about angels coming down, 54:44 it's talking about messengers of God. 54:46 It's not talking about angels flying over your house. 54:49 It's talking about preachers that are filled 54:51 with the unction of the Spirit of God, 54:53 the power of God's Word. 54:55 That's why the Apostle Peter talks 54:56 about those who are removing 54:59 the stained glass by adhering to the commission 55:03 placed on their lives. 55:05 God has a chosen people 55:06 and He's calling them to accomplish 55:09 a specific purpose. 55:10 Look at 1 Peter 20:9, the Bible says of them, 55:13 "But you are a chosen generation, 55:15 a royal priesthood, a holy nation, 55:18 His own special people that you may proclaim 55:21 the praises of Him who called you out 55:24 of darkness into His marvelous light." 55:28 I've had Bible studies where people have said, 55:29 "Pastor, I get it. 55:31 It clicks. I now understand it." 55:34 And when I hear that, I say, "To God be the glory. 55:37 God shines a light amid the darkness." 55:40 And you say, "Well, will they ever get it?" 55:43 Keep on teaching, keep on shining, 55:45 keep on praying, 55:46 keep on working with them because God's light 55:49 will shine amid that darkness. 55:51 In the book Spiritual Gifts, 55:53 I'm encouraged by this volume 1, 55:55 page 195 in paragraph 1. 55:57 Listen to this quotation. 55:59 "Service of God, endowed with power from on high, 56:02 with their faces lighted up, and shining with holy 56:05 consecration went forth fulfilling their work, 56:09 and proclaiming the message from heaven. 56:12 Souls that were scattered all through 56:15 the religious bodies answered the call, 56:19 and the precious were hurried out of the doomed churches, 56:23 as Lot was hurried out of Sodom 56:25 before her destruction." 56:28 And so Peter said it best. 56:30 The Scripture I began with, I end with. 56:33 In this generation of stained glass, 56:35 God's Word is not broken. 56:37 2 Peter 1:19, you see, friends, 56:41 and we also have a prophetic word confirmed. 56:45 "Which you do well to take heed 56:46 as a light that shines in a dark place 56:50 until the day dawns and the morning star 56:52 arises in your heart," 2 Peter 1:19. 56:56 Today, my question, 56:59 which one of you are willing to stand on God's 57:01 undiluted truth? 57:03 God is calling you back to undiluted truth. 57:05 God is calling you back to the pure doctrines of His Word. 57:09 God is calling you back to the undistorted teachings of Jesus. 57:14 Which one of you are ready to abandon 57:16 stained glass in preference to the truth of God's Word? 57:20 May it be you. God bless you. |
Revised 2021-10-21