3. Who Are The 24 Elders - Pr. Stephen Bohr - Who Are The 24 Elders - The 24 Elders

you good evening it's good to see all of you here we are going to have a word of Prayer and then I'll tell you where we're going to go in our next three studies let's bow our heads father in heaven what a privilege it is to call you Father we thank you so much that we have the privilege of being your children and we ask that this evening your Holy Spirit will be with us to guide our thoughts and to open our hearts we're going to study a complex subject and we need understanding we need clear minds we just ask that through your Holy Spirit you will make it possible for us to understand and we thank you Father for the privilege of Prayer thank you for hearing us for we ask it in Jesus name Amen in the first two sermons in this series we studied about the mission of Jesus on earth the title of that presentation was mission accomplished and then in our study our last study we dealt with the Ascension of Jesus Christ to the holy place in heaven and the title of that presentation was the return of the war hero now our daring the next three studies together we are going to deal with a specific topic we're going to deal with a specific group that was present there when Jesus arrived a group that is called in Scripture the 24 elders now I need to make something very clear as we begin our study and that is that you need to be here for all three studies because we're going to have a lot of loose ends until at the very end we tie all of these loose ends together and then everything will make sense if you come just to the presentation today you're going to have part of the picture but if you come to all three you're going to have the full fixed picture and I can guarantee that you're going to understand this topic very very well now in our last study we noticed that when Jesus ascended the heaven the heavenly throne room had been prepared before his arrival we that God the Father was sitting on his throne also in the midst of the throne were four living creatures representing the Seraphim and the cherubim surrounding the throne we noticed that there was a group called the 24 elders and before the throne were the seven spirits representing the fullness of the Holy Spirit then later in chapter five when Jesus arrives then you have Jesus in the scene and you also have the angelic hosts who had gone to earth to pick up Jesus to take him to heaven now the specific group that we want to study about is that group called the 24 elders now the traditional view that is held especially in the seventh day adventist church in almost every single publication that i have read is that the 24 elders represent those that resurrected with Jesus that Jesus took the heaven upon his ascension and he presented to his father as the firstfruits of the great harvest that will take place at the second coming of those who died in Christ in other words they were a little sample or a small guarantee that the rest of those who died in Christ would resurrect when Jesus would return in power and glory now we need to ask the question does this interpretation square with what is taught in Scripture as well as in the spirit of prophecy because our authority is number one scripture and then we go to the spirit of prophecy to see if the spirit of prophecy squares with what is taught in Scripture and we're going to find that both of these sources are in perfect harmony now let's go in our Bibles as we begin our study to job 38 and let's read verses 4 through 7 job 38 in verses four through seven here God is asking job a series of questions and it says this where were you when I laid the foundations of the earth tell me if you have understanding who determined its measurements surely you know God says somewhat sarcastically or who stretched the line upon it to what were its foundations fastened or who laid its cornerstone so what event is being described in these verses there's no doubt that it's referring to the creation story in Genesis chapter 1 in Genesis chapter 2 but now notice what happened at creation it says at the last part of this passage when the morning stars sang together and all the sons of God shouted for joy interesting we're told that at creation when this world was created the morning stars sang together and all the sons of God shouted for joy this is taking place at creation week in other words these beans were present when God created this world which means that they existed before the creation of this world they pre-existed creation in other words now we need to understand that hear the expression morning stars and the expression sons of God are really synonymous these are not two different groups they are the same group described in two different ways in Hebrew poetry you know you have what is called synonymous parallelism where what I said in the first line is repeated in the second line but in different words the same thought so when we're told here that the morning stars sang together and all the sons of God shouted for joy the morning stars and the sons of God are the same group but they're described in different language or different terms now let's talk a little bit about the identity of the morning stars and the sons of God when we look at Scripture there's no doubt whatsoever that stars represent angels this is very very clear for example in Revelation chapter 12 and verse 3 where we're told that the dragon drew a third of the stars of heaven with his tail and then a little bit later in verse 9 were told that the devil was cast heaven with his angels in other words the stars that he drew with his tail represent the Angels that decided to follow him in his rebellion in other words the morning stars represent angels now it's interesting to notice that Ellen White explains that the sons of God are angels so what we're seeing is that the Bible defines the morning stars as angels Ellen White describes the sons of God as angels that's why I'm saying that really it's the same group but with two different names notice great controversy page 519 where Ellen White describes what happened in job 1 and 2 do you remember that the sons of God came to present themselves before the Lord notice how she describes this the Scriptures declare that upon one occasion when the angels of God came to present themselves before the Lord Satan came also among them now interesting in the book of Job it says that the sons of God came to present themselves before the Lord Ellen White here says that the angels of God came to present themselves before the Lord and Satan came also among them not to bow before the eternal King but to further his own malicious designs against the righteous with the same object he is in attendance when men assemble for the worship of God so we find that Ellen White identifies the sons of God as angels and scripture speaks of the stars as angels now we're going to go in a few moments to job 1 and 2 where this same expression sons of God is used but before we do I need to give you a word of explanation a question that always comes up when I've dealt with the issue of the 24 elders is concerning Genesis chapter 6 where it says that the sons of God saw that the daughters of men were beautiful and so scholars say the sons of God are angels and what this means is that before the flood the angels called the sons of God had sexual relations with human women with the daughters of men and this relationship produced the the Giants or a hybrid that was part human and part angel and of course they say you know if the sons of God in job are angels well the same expression should mean the same thing in Genesis chapter 6 and that sounds very logical however terms and expressions need to be understood within the context that they are used the expression does not always mean the same thing it can mean different things in different contexts let me give you an example what does a lion represent in Scripture if I asked you that question I believe that I would have several answers can a lion represent Jesus Christ absolutely he's the line of the tribe of Judah can a lion represent the devil he goes forth as a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour can a lion represent the kingdom of Babylon absolutely in Daniel chapter 7 can a lion represent Judah the son of Jacob absolutely and so lion doesn't mean the same thing in every context you have to respect the context then you also have livened when I asked what does 11 or yeast represent people say oh it represents in and that's true but it doesn't always represents in because in the parable that Jesus gave of 11 Jesus speaks of putting the leaven in the dough and it makes the dough grow now what is Jesus saying he's saying that when the Holy Spirit is in the church represented by the by the loaf the church grows just like the lump of dough grows and so the 11 can represent also the Holy Spirit and so let's not jump to conclusions that just because sons of God is used in job and it refers to angels that it has the same meaning in Genesis chapter 6 actually if you look at the context of Genesis chapter 6 you're going to find that sons of God has a different meaning immediately before Genesis chapter 6 you have in chapter 4 wicked descendants of Cain and there are three evil women in his genealogy those would be the daughters of men in chapter 5 you have the descendants of Seth that is the lineage of the righteous and then in the very next verse Genesis 6 verse 1 as well as verse 2 it speaks about the sons of God and the daughters of men the context indicates that the sons of God are the righteous descendants of Seth whereas the daughters of men are the wicked women mentioned in the genealogy of Cain so the context must dictate the meaning incidentally in Scripture Adam is called the Son of God in Luke 3 and and we know that Adam was not an angel right and yet he's called the Son of God so we see that son of God are sons of God has different meanings in different contexts do you know that the Apostle Paul refers to the righteous as sons of God notice Romans 8 and verses fortress 14 Romans chapter 8 and verse 14 here the Apostle Paul says for as many as are led by the Spirit of God these are the sons of God so I suppose that every believer is an angel of course not the expression Son of God represents the righteous those who have accepted Jesus Christ those who are led by the spirit just like the descendants of sin are you with me so I needed to clear this up even though it we're digressing from the central theme that we're studying because I know that if I don't touch upon it we're going to receive lots of phone calls and we're going to receive lots of emails saying yeah what about Genesis chapter 6 so I decided that I would clarify this now let's go to two other places in job where the expression sons of God is used go with me the job chapter 1 and verses 6 and 7 remember we already looked at job 38 in verses 4 through 7 where it speaks about creation and it tells us that the sons of God the morning stars sang when God created this world which means that they existed before creation and they actually with creation job 1 verses 6 and 7 now there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the Lord and Satan also came among them and the Lord said to Satan from whence do you come so Satan answered the Lord and said from going to and fro on the earth and from walking back and forth on it now there are several things that I want us to notice about these two verses in job 1 verses 6 and 7 first of all the sons of God do not always dwell in the presence of God because we're told in this passage that a certain day they came to present themselves before the Lord in other words they don't dwell well the Lord is they are invited to come on certain days to be present before the Lord another thing that I want us to notice is that Satan felt that he had a perfect right to belong to that group because Satan comes not with them but he comes among the sons of God so he's saying I have a perfect right to belong to this group Satan came among these sons of God a certain day from somewhere because they came they were not there another thing that we notice here is that when God asked Satan where he came from Satan answered I have come from the earth now the earth is a planet right the devil is saying I've come among the sons of God and my planet that I represent is planet Earth would it be too much of an exaggeration to believe that the other sons of God represented other worlds in the universe of God if Satan comes to that meeting representing a planet what would make us think that the other sons of God are not coming also representing what representing the planets that they came from now let's go to job chapter 2 and verses 1 and 2 this will get clearer and clearer as we go along well you know we're just introducing this subject but we're going to study some amazing things in our study today as well in the next two periods that we're going to spend together job two verses 1 and 2 this is a second meeting that takes place in heaven where the sons of God are invited to come notice what it says in job 2 verse 1 again there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the Lord also among them to present himself came whom Satan and now notice and the Lord said to Satan from where do you come Satan answered the Lord and said from going to and fro under earth and from walking back and forth on it now let's take a look at this do the same principles apply to this second meeting as to the first meeting absolutely did the sons of God leave and go back to where they came from after the first meeting of course they must have because it says that again they came which means that if again they came they must have left after the first meeting are you with me or not to wherever they came from Satan came from where he came from planet earth and after the meeting where does he go he returns to Planet Earth to afflict job with boils from the tip of his head to the bottom of his feet so in other words these sons of God they come to present themselves before the Lord after the meeting takes place they return to where they came from they do not permanently live in the presence of God they come from planets if you please now do you know that God operates the universe in a democratic fashion God has a representative style of government where representatives from the different worlds in the universe come together to deliberate and come together to make this is concerning the administration and the operation of the universe let me give you another example from Scripture go with me the second chronicles chapter 18 and verses 18 to 22 this is a powerful passage you remember that in the days of King Ahab Ahab had a meeting with Jehoshaphat a hub was the king of the ten tribes of the north and Jehoshaphat was a king of the two tribes of the South known as Judah and that they had this family reunion in the city of Samaria and Jehoshaphat was a good king and a half was a bad King and so a obsess to Joseph at you know now that you're here don't you think it would be good idea for us to go and fight against our common enemy the Syrians and jossa that says you know that might be a good idea and don't you think we should consult the Lord do you have any profits around and am says all profits I've got profits galore and so he calls 400 prophets that he had and he says to these 400 prophets now Josephat and I want to go fight against the Syrians are common enemy do you think that's a good idea and of course the 400 prophets they were false prophets as all yes King go to battle and you're going to gain a great victory but Joseph I wasn't too convinced and so he says now am don't you have a prophet of the Lord around and and the King King apses yeah I've got him but he's in the dungeon and because every time I ask him to prophesy he prophesized evil and so I froman thrown him into the dungeon and Jehoshaphat says that's God's prophet that's where God's prophets live they live in prison and their hated and so bring it and so ma mai kya comes before am an Ahab says should we go to battle against the Syrians and i want you to notice what my kya answers the name of the Prophet it says there in second chronicles 18 verses 18 to 22 then my kiya said therefore or hear the word of the Lord I saw the Lord sitting on his throne and all the hosts of heaven standing on his right hand and on his left hmm interesting and the Lord sent by the way who is the host of heaven all of the angelic host right and the Lord said who will persuade a hab king of Israel to go up that he may fall at ramoth gilead notice who's going to convince him to go to battle so that he gets killed hey no listen to what happens so one spoke in this manner and another spoke in that manner you know everybody had their suggestion in the heavenly Council and now notice what happens verse 20 then a spirit came forward and stood before the Lord and said I will persuade him this is a meeting happening in heaven but it has to do with earthly events I will persuade him the Lord said to him in what way so he said I will go out and be a lying spirit in the mouth of all of his prophets do you think that was a good angel a loyal angel it says I'll go out and I'll lie so the so the Ahab goes to battle gets killed absolutely not God does not use lying to accomplish his purposes who was this being that was there in the heavenly Council that says I'll go and I'll deceive him to go and back to battle so that he gets killed who do you think that lion spirit was it was Satan the same one that went there in job chapter 12 the heavenly Council you're saying what was he doing there we'll come to that now do you know that when God makes decisions regarding this world or any other world in the universe God calls the heavenly counsel together God is not a dictator God is not an autocrat God does simply doesn't simply say I'll do it all and this is the way we're going to do it God consults the representatives of the universe let me read you from patriarchs and prophets page 36 this is when Lucifer had these jealous feelings towards Christ we're told in heavenly counsel that's cou and c IL it's not talking about counseling it's talking like like City Council in other words in heavenly Council the angels pleaded with Lucifer when the devil laid his strategy to tempt Adam and Eve and lead them into sin in the book story of redemption page 29 we find this interesting statement God assembled the angelic hosts to take measures to avert the threatened evil that is of Eve Adam any falling into sin notice it was decided in Heaven's council for angels to visit Eden and warn Adam that he was in danger from the foe to angels sped on their way to visit our first parents so everything concerning the operation and administration of the universe is decided in the heavenly Council and god of course presides in the heavenly Council so what is being described in job chapters one and two is the heavenly Council and those who appear there are the representatives of all of the sinless realms that God created the representatives of the worlds that never sinned now how does Ellen White identify the 24 elders who are they who are the sons of God in the morning stars according to the spirit of prophecy in desire of Ages in a statement that we read in our last study together Ellen White clearly identifies who the sons of God are remember the sons of God our angels right according to her definition the sons of God are angels but now she's going to amplify what that means who the sons of God are when Jesus arrives in heaven we're told who was present there she says the commanders of the angel hosts the sons of God the representatives of the unfallen worlds are assembled notice what she says the sons of God the commanders of the angel hosts the representatives of the unfallen world's three phrases that are describing the same group are assembled and then she says this the heavenly Council before which Lucifer had accused God in His Son the representatives of those sinless realms over which Satan had thought to establish his Dominion all are there to welcome the Redeemer interesting statement so the sons of God are the commanders of the angel hosts they're the highest of angels they're powerful angels they are the representatives of the worlds that never sinned in other words the worlds are represented by powerful angels that God has placed to rule over them now the question comes up so you're saying that there are other inhabited worlds in the universe absolutely the Bible has many hints to that effect let me give give it let me give you just one text that indicates that and then I'm going to read you a quotation from Billy Graham probably the most famous preacher that that exists is well known in the whole world now notice what it says in Revelation chapter 12 and verse 12 therefore rejoice o heavens and you who dwell in them did you notice that rejoice what ye heavens and those who dwell in them and then it says woe to the inhabitants of the earth and the sea for the devil has come down to you having great wrath because he knows that he has a short time so notice it says here rejoice o heavens and you who dwell in them so there's inhabitants that dwell in all of the heavens according to this text now Billy Graham so that you know that this is not just a preposterous idea that Pastor Steven boar has notice what he had to say I believe there is life on other planets we have this galaxy the Milky Way and they now speculate that there are millions and millions of galaxies and in each galaxy a trillion stars planets and all that I can't imagine that we're the only one that has life that would be a terribly egotistical thing for us to say as a planet I believe that God is the god of all of it and that's why he's so awesome and so tremendous and why when I come into his presence I feel that I'm not worthy so Billy Graham is saying I believe that there are many worlds in the universe that are populated they are inhabited but listen up none of them have sinned except for this little planet planet earth now Ellen White then identifies the sons of God as the commanders of the angel hosts and as the representatives of the unfallen worlds now I want to read you some additional statements from Ellen White that shows that the elders are really angels now let me ask you if the elders are really angels can the 24 elders be those who resurrected with Christ those human beings are resurrected with Christ it would be impossible now Revelation chapter 5 verse 5 notice John is weeping because no one worth is worthy to open the scroll and no one is worthy to read the contents of the scroll and we're told in Revelation 5 verse 5 that one of the 24 elders comes to John to console him let me read that text John revelation 5 verse 5 but one of the elders said to me notice one of the elders said to me do not weep behold the Lion of the tribe of Judah the root of david has prevailed to open the scroll and to loose at seven seals who was it that spoke those words don't weep behold the Lion of the tribe of Judah the root of david has prevailed to open the scroll and to loose at seven seals it says in Revelation 5 verse 5 that it was one of the elders now notice what Ellen White had to say about this in manuscript releases volume 12 and pages 296 and 297 this is powerful she's speaking about the same event and this is how she describes it this role was written within and without John says I wept much because no man was found worthy to open and to read the book neither to look there on the vision as presented to John made its impression upon his mind the destiny of every nation was contained in that book John was distressed at the utter inability of any human being or angelic intelligence to read the words or even to look there on his soul was wrought up to such a point of agony and suspense now listen carefully that one of the strong angels had compassion on him and laying his hand on him assuring Lee said weep not behold the Lion of the tribe of Judah the root of David have prevailed to open the book and to lose the seven seals there are are you understanding why I'm bringing this to view revelation 5 verse 5 says that it was whom one of the elders Ellen White says the same words were spoken by one of the strong angels now let me give you another example this one is from Revelation chapter 7 you're aware that revelation chapter 7 describes a great multitude which no one can number from every nation tribe tongue and people that's found in Revelation chapter 7 and verse 9 the great multitude which no one can number from every nation kindred tongue and people is introduced there in verse 9 and John of course wants to know who this group is and so we find in verse 13 that it tells us then one of the elders answered saying to me who are these arrayed in white robes and whence did they come from no that's who is this great multitude that no one can number is what the elder is asking John then I want you to notice that John replies to the elders question by saying and I said to him sir you know this is verse 14 and then the elder says to John this is in verse 15 so he said to me these are the ones who come out of the Great Tribulation and wash their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb now who is John entertaining a conversation with with one of the what with one of the elders John and the elder are conversing and they're conversing about the great multitude is the elder a part of the great multitude he is not because the elder is is actually asking about the great multitude he is not part of the great multitude from every nation kindred tongue and people that clear in your mind now you say why do you bring this to view because i want you to notice how Ellen White interprets this in signs of the times December 22 1887 Ellen White describes this same scene in these words John B holds an innumerable company precious refined purified around the throne of the majesty of heaven now notice the angel inquires of John what are these which are arrayed in white robes and whence came they what does Revelations say who asked that question the elder according to Ellen White who asked the question the angel whom she has already identified as one of the strong angels already she continued say the angel inquires of John what are these which are arrayed in white robes and whence came they and John answers sir thou knowest then the angel declares these are they which came out of the Great Tribulation and have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb and so revelation says it was one of the elders and Ellen White says that it was one of the angels who is describing this now I want you to remember this point because we're going to come back to it in the next two lectures because there's a problem in translation in Revelation five verses 9 and 10 you get the impression they're that the 24 elders were redeemed from the earth and they're going to rain on the earth which would give the impression that they're humans actually we're going to find that there's a problem in translation here because the elders we've already noticed are not part of the great multitude that's no one can number I want you to save this in the corner of your mind because we're going to come back to it a little bit later now two more quotations from ellen white this one is found in a book called sermons and talks volume 1 page 20 she says this and she's also still discussing Revelation chapter 7 John saw a company standing around the throne and the angel asked him who are these in white robes he answered thou knowest and the angel said these the angel said notice the angel said these are they who have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb there is a fountain in which we may wash from every stain of impurity and then she says and says the angel he shall lead them to fountains of living waters and shall wipe away all tears from their eyes this will be the happy privilege of those that have kept the commandments of God in the earth once again three times in this statement Ellen White says even though revelation says that was one of the elders Ellen White says the angel asked him the angel said says the angel in the mind of LNG white the elders are powerful angels now notice one other statement this is found in signs of the times November 22 1905 speaking once again about revelation chapter 7 as John saw the multitude standing around the throne the question was asked what are these which are arrayed in white robes and whence came they now notice these are they which came out of Great Tribulation the angel answered and have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb I mean if Ellen White had only one little statement where she said an angel that would be one thing but she has several statements where she says that the elder that spoke was one of the strong angels among the heavenly hosts now in Revelation chapter 5 and verse 8 we're told that the living creatures and the 24 elders play harps and they present the prayers of the Saints before the throne of God the elders and the four living creatures were told there in Revelation 5 verse 8 that they actually present the prayers of the Saints before the throne of God in bowls of incense now Ellen White is going to comment on this verse revelation 5 and verse 8 and I want you to notice what she says about these beings that offer the prayers of the Saints before the throne of God this isn't the devotional book lift him up page 370 she says heavenly beings are appointed to answer the prayers of those who are working unselfishly for the interests of the cause of God what does she say heavenly beings are appointed to what to answer prayers but then she says who these beams are it's not just any old being any old heavenly being because she says the very highest angels in the heavenly courts are appointed to work out the prayers which ascend to God for the Advancement of the cause of God each angel has his particular post notice of duty his particular post of duty which he is not permitted to leave for any other place if he should leave the powers of darkness would gain an advantage so on the mind of Ellen White the 24 elders are according to her terms strong angels and according to this text the highest of angels so my question is are the 24 elders those that Jesus presented before the father forty days after his resurrection it's impossible because they were not angels they were human beings now we need to answer the question why was Satan among the sons of God in that meeting in job chapter 2 I think you already know the answer but let's go in scripture to Luke 4 and verses 5 and 6 Luke chapter 4 in verses 5 and 6 is going to explain why in the Old Testament that is until the death of Jesus Christ why when there was a heavenly Council like a one mentions in Chronicles and the one mentioned in job it says that Satan went among the sons of God that is the highest of angels the most the strongest angels the devil goes among that group and he presents himself before they have any counsel why Luke four five and six speaking about the Temptation of Jesus on the Mount it says then the devil taking him up on a high mountain showed him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time to whom did these kingdoms belong at first to whom did the kingdom's belong they belonged to Adam but now notice what the devil says and the devil said to him all this authority that is over these kingdoms i will give you and their glory for this listen carefully has been delivered to me and i give it to whomever i wish therefore if you will worship before me all will be yours did the devil claim that this was his he claimed it was his who gave it to him he says it's been delivered to me who delivered it to him Adam delivered it to him who would have been in that heavily council meeting if Adam had not given in to the temp Adam would have been there in the heavily Council representing planet Earth but the Bible tells us that the devil stole Adams throne he stole Adams territory and therefore he says I now represent planet Earth and that's the reason why he appeared in the everly council in chronicles as well as in the book of Job Satan stole the legitimate position of Adam the original representative of planet Earth in fact Jesus you know shortly before his death he says now is the judgment of this world now the ruler of this world will be what cast out and he was talking about the cross so Jesus himself is saying before his death that the devil is the ruler of this world because we become slaves of him whom we choose to obey adam chose to obey the devil and so now from being lured from occupying the throne from having the crown adam now become the servant and he becomes the slave of the one who conquered him as we've studied before now we need to transition why do all of the worlds of the universe have strong angels or the highest of angels representing them while planet earth was represented by Adam are you understanding my question when we expect God also to place a powerful or the highest of angels to represent planet Earth why did God do something different with this earth and have someone from the human race represent planet earth and not one of the strong or powerful angels the answer is that God's plan for the human race was a different plan than for any other world that God created in the universe you see the worlds are represented by strong angels or by the highest of angels as we're going as is going to become clearer and clearer but the purpose for the creation of this world was different than the creation of any the world in the universe and you say how do you know that sons and daughters of God paid seven this devotional book Ellen White explains that this world had a different type of being than every other world in the universe this is what she says all heaven took a deep and joyful interest in the creation of the world and of man notice all heaven is interested in what's taking place on earth she says human beings were a new and distinct order they were a new and distinct order they were made in the image of God and it listen carefully and it was the creator's design that they should populate the earth they were to live in close communion with heaven receiving power from the source of all power upheld by God they were to live sinless life was this order a distinct order was it different than any other planet in the universe yes she says this was a new and a distinct order and the idea was that man would do what he would populate the lot he would populate the earth now the question is what would be the purpose of populating the earth is it possible that the other worlds do not have procreation that God established procreation on this world for a very specific purpose the Bible tells us that man was created a little lower than the angels that after man would pass the test of being loyal to God God would use the human race to repopulate the vacancies that were left in heaven by Satan and his angels now you're saying wow is that in the Bible hold on you're going to see it first of all allow me to read the truth about angels pages 48 and 49 the truth about angels 40 and 49 where Ellen White explicitly states that this was God's purpose in establishing procreation on this earth this is the earth that has procreation has marriage and the purpose purpose of marriage which the devil has destroyed to a great degree is to prepare a group of people to take the places that were left vacant by the fall of Satan and his angels this is what Ellen White says God created man for his own glory that after test and trial no lyst after they passed the test and trial the human family might become one with the heavenly family it was God's purpose to repopulate heaven with the human family what does it mean to repopulate were there vacancies left in heaven yes she says it was God's purpose to repopulate heaven now you say well that was before sin what about after sin was it still God's plan to repopulate heaven listen to this statement prophets and kings and then we're going to go to the Bible prophets and Kings page 5 88 and 589 she says Satan has an accurate knowledge of the sins that he has tempted God's people to commit and he urges his accusations against them declaring that by their sins they have forfeited divine protection and claiming that has a right to destroy them he pronounces them just as deserving as himself of exclusion from the favor of God and now notice what he says to God are these he says the people who are to take my place in heaven and the place of the angels who united with me interesting are you understanding what what he's saying are these the ones that are going to take my place and the place of the angels that fell from heaven that's prophets and Kings 588 and 589 not a story of redemption page 19 she mentions this many times story of redemption page 19 she says the father consulted his son in regard to at once carrying out their purpose to make man in have a man to inhabit the earth this is after Lucifer sinned God says should we go ahead yes let's go ahead with a plan she continued sane he would place man upon probation to test his loyalty before he could be rendered eternally secure if he endured the test we're with God saw fit to prove him he should eventually may listen carefully he should eventually be equal with the angels he was to have the favor of God and he was to converse with angels and they with him what would happen with man if he passed the test in the trail he would become equal with what with the angels he was created a little lower than the Angels according to Psalm 8 but if he passed the test of the trial were told here that he would be equal with the Angels one more statement then we'll go to the Bible the truth about angels page 49 this is so clear that nobody can misunderstand what Ellen Wade is saying she says the vacancies made in heaven by the fall of Satan and his angels will be filled by the redeemed of the Lord I mean how could she be clear she says the vacancies made in heaven by the fall of Satan and his angels will be filled by the redeemed of the Lord and so people ask they say well yet all you're doing is reading Ellen White so far but now let's go and see if Scripture is it says the same thing if Ellen White is in harmony with Scripture go with me to Luke chapter 20 and verses 34 to 36 Luke chapter 20 and verses 34 to 36 Jesus is entertaining a conversation with the Sadducees the Sadducees did not believe in the resurrection of the Dead and so they present this hypothetical case of this individual who was married seven times who with the spouse be when the resurrection took place you notice they're ridiculing the idea that there's going to be a resurrection by giving this extreme case now notice Luke 20 34 to 36 how Jesus answers jesus answered and said to them the sons of this age Mary and are given in marriage what does this age mean this world right the sons of this sage marry and are given in marriage but those who are counted worthy to attain that age what is that age the new earth right that age and the resurrection from the dead neither marry nor are given in marriage why is there not going to be any marriage because the purpose of marriage has been what fulfilled she can it Luke continues saying quoting Jesus once again but those who are accounted worthy to attain that age and the resurrection from the dead neither marry nor are given in marriage nor can they die anymore no listen carefully for they are equal to the Angels wow they are equal to what to the angel is that what elevates it absolutely but there's more they are equal to the angels and are what sons of God being sons of the resurrection are you catching the picture here for conclusions that we can reach from this answer of Jesus number one marriage had a specific purpose in this age and that purpose was what procreation secondly there will be no marriage in the world to come because the purpose of marriage has been fulfilled number three in the world to come to redeem will be equal to the Angels as we read from ellen white and in the fourth place the redeemed will be called sons of god the same name that is given in the book of Job now let's conclude by reading a powerful statement from Illinois this is found in the book medical ministry page 99 and this will be our concluding thought have you learned anything new tonight there's a lot of stuff in Scripture that perhaps we haven't seen before and this is only one of the three see this will give you just a piece of the puzzle now you need to come to the two other pieces so that you have a complete picture this is what she says there are men today who express their belief that there will be marriages and births in the new earth there are there individuals who say what that there will be marriages and births in the new earth but those who believe the Scriptures cannot accept such doctrines the doctrine listen carefully the doctrine that children will be born in the new earth is not part of the sure word of prophecy is there going to be procreation when we at our established in the new earth absolutely not why not because the purpose of procreation has been fulfilled the vacancies left by the devil and his angels have been what have been filled she continued saying the words of Christ are too plain to be misunderstood those are the words that we just read from the Gospel of Luke they should forever settle the question of marriages and births in the new earth neither those who shall be raised from the dead nor those who shall be translated without seen death will marry or be given in marriage they will be as the angels of God members of the royal family powerful statement is what she is saying biblical absolutely biblical and I'll tell you something I'll just testify to this there are many people who are critical of Ellen White they say oh no you Adventist you go bye-bye what Ellen White says but we go by what the Bible says well surprise surprise if you really sat down with an open mind in a sincere heart and you read the writings of Ellen White and you searched in Scripture for what she says you would always find it because her writings are in harmony with Scripture it's only a misinterpretation of her writings that leads people to think that what she wrote under inspiration was contrary to what the scriptures say you know I find that there are two different kinds of people that criticize Ellen White the first type are those that never read anything that she wrote there are plenty of those they take they go to the internet and they open these websites you know that a critical of Ellen White some of them are hateful and they raise objections that by the way have been answered by the white estate with luxury of detail if you go to the white estate website all of these objections are answered but they bring them up and the novices who are unacquainted with ellen white they read these criticisms of ly there's all that but is there a cult because ellen white you know they have this prophet who contradicts scripture so one group are those individuals who who never read what Ellen White says the other group are those who read the writings of Ellen White with the intention of criticizing do you know that there are people who read the Bible with the intention of criticizing the Bible in finding mistakes in the Bible if you go to the Bible you might find some mistakes of minor details but that does not affect my view of the inspiration of the Bible the Bible has shown that it is it is beyond human reason to have produced it are there little insignificant details that might be a problem in the Bible yes if you let these things ruin your faith I feel sorry for you but the Bible shows that it is trustworthy the same is true with LNG white her writings folks are trustworthy what we need to do is we need to sit down read what she says and then do what I usually do and that is now where does the Bible say that and so we go from her writings to the Bible sometimes I'll go to the Bible and I'll read something that I can't understand in the Bible I say what I wonder what Ellen White has to say about this and so then I go to the writings of Ellen White where she comments on that verse and she she gives some light and some understanding that I had not found in my study of Scripture I say oh now I understand what scriptures saying it works both ways you can go to Scripture and then go to see what L white says or you can go to ellen white and then say now wait a minute is that found in the bible and then you go to the bible they work back and forth in other words it's not either/or it's both and and folks if we read the writings of Ellen White with an open heart you'll receive a tremendous blessing she's not contradicting scripture for example when she says that the elders are strong and the highest of angels as we're going to continue study you're going to be amazed as we continue studying these things and how what Ellen White says is in perfect harmony with Scripture and so folks we have a lot to study yet we still have two more lectures in this series now next time lord willing we're going to talk about Adam the original Son of God that God placed upon this planet and then we're going to study about Jesus and we're going to look at the characteristics of the 24 elders and we're going to see that those characteristics apply to Adam before he sinned and they applied to Jesus Christ who reconquered the position that Adam lost so folks don't miss the next exciting episode in this series of presentations Oh you

Channel: secretsunsealed

Views: 20,526

Rating: 4.856041 out of 5

Keywords: SUMTV, SUMtv, SecretsUnsealed, Secrets Unsealed, 24 Elders, War Hero, Revelation, Earth Two Representatives, Earth 2 Representatives, heaven, God, Jesus, Pastor Stephen Bohr, Pastor Bohr, Pastor Borh, Pastor Esteban, Pastor Esteban Bohr

Id: RYwi8IGnOTY

Length: 58min 34sec (3514 seconds)

Published: Thu Nov 15 2018