Special Endtime message to Adventist -Stephen Bohr

and ask the lord to be with us as we study together father in heaven we thank you for the privilege of being at asi what a blessing it is to see so many friends so many ministries involved in presenting the message of the adventist church for these last days it's comforting to see that so many ministries are being established to share the message with the entire world father we ask that as we study this material this morning that your holy spirit will be with us to guide our thoughts to open our minds to give us understanding to give us your wisdom and we thank you father for your presence because we ask it in the precious name of jesus amen okay i'm going to follow this material quite closely because uh we are so limited in time that i want to cover as much of it as possible if we don't finish you'll have it in written form so that you can refer to it i'd like to begin by referring to revelation chapter 16 and verse 15. let me give you a little bit of context about this verse this verse is found in the context of the sixth plague of the book of revelation uh you're aware of the fact that the plagues fall after the close of probation but this verse we're going to find does not describe events after the close of probation this verse is a parenthetical warning stating that you need to prepare before the close of probation so that when this moment of the six plague comes you're not caught by surprise and so we're going to take a look at this text and i'm just going to read it behold jesus is speaking behold i am coming as a thief blessed is he who watches and keeps his garments lest he walk naked and they see his shame you notice that there are six elements there that we're going to take a look at now if you look at a red letter edition of the bible you'll find that this is the first time that jesus speaks after the messages to the churches and he doesn't speak again until revelation 21-22 so this verse is a warning of christ inserted between the message to the churches and the messages concerning the new heavens and the north in revelation 21-22 so it must be extremely important the fact that jesus speaks there in this one verse between the first three chapters and the last two chapters of revelation this message is especially for seventh-day adventists you say why is this because basically the terminology in revelation 16 verse 15 is a repetition of the terminology that is used in connection with the church of laodicea which is our church uh let's read revelation 3 verse 18 and you'll immediately see the connection you notice that uh in what we just read it says that we need to keep our garments lest we walk naked and they see our shame now notice the connection with the message to the church of leonisia it says the message to the um i counsel you to buy from me gold refined in the fire that you may be rich here you have the garments now white garments that you may be clothed and what's the purpose of the garments that the shame of your nakedness may not be revealed and anoint your eyes with i said that you may see so is there a dangerous uh danger that laodicea will be found walking naked uh in the context of the sixth plague yes it's a message especially to the leolisian church which we understand to be the seventh adventist church and we don't say that proudly ellen white agrees in volume 2 of selected messages page 66 she says the message to the laodiceans is applicable to seventh-day adventists who have had great light and now notice this and have not walked in the light so in other words it deals with action walking has to do with action we're going to notice that they have great light they profess great light but she says here that they have not walked in the light it is those who have made great profession but have not kept in step with their leader in other words haven't walked with their leader that will be spewed out of his mouth unless they repent so there's a very real danger that laodiceans will be found on the wrong side at the time of the sixth plague and it has to do with righteousness by faith because it speaks about garments and garments are related to righteousness by faith how important is this message it's a matter of life and death folks because the message to the laodiceans is going to cause the shaking and i believe it is causing the shaking notice ellen white's comment at the bottom of this page volume one of the testimonies page 181 she says i asked the meaning of the shaking i had seen and was shown that it would be caused by the straight testimony called forth by the council of the true witness to the laodiceans this will have its effect upon the heart of the receiver and will lead him to exalt the standard and pour forth the straight truth some will not bear this straight testimony they will rise up against it and this will cause a shaking among god's people powerful so how important is revelation 16 verse 15 and revelation 3 verse 18. it will determine whether you stay in or whether you're shaken out it's that important now let's go to the page the title where it says the context of revelation 16 verse 15. by the way i have a different page order i have all of the material here so i'm going to mainly go by titles the context of revelation 16 verse 15. revelation 16 12 portrays the moment that the sixth plague of the sixth plague after the closure probation when the persecuting waters of babylon withdraw their support and turn against babylon so basically uh at the moment of the six plague the waters the multitudes nations tongues and peoples are about to drown god's people basically and the sixth plague simply means that the multitudes will be arrested the waters will be dried up on babylon they will no longer support her they'll turn against her and they'll be in favor of god's people that's the moment of the sixth plague now let's read this verse then the sixth angel poured out his bowl on the great river euphrates that's babylon's river spiritual babylon at the end of time by the way and it's water that's multitudes nations tongues and peoples was dried up that means that the waters withdraw their support from babylon so that the way of the kings from the east that's jesus and his angels might be prepared so basically that's the message of the sixth flag and then we have verses uh 13 and 14. these verses go back in time toward the very end of probationary time when three counterfeit angels gather the wicked of the world on satan's side in other words revelation 16 13 and 14 do not follow sequentially after verse 12. they take you back to before the close of probation are you following me and you're going to see that in a minute comes forth clearly the purpose of the gathering of the wicked waters is for them eventually to drown god's people on the other hand three holy angels will gather god's people on the lord's side so in other words revelation 16 13-14 speaking about the gathering of the wicked the waters eventually to persecute god's people on the other hand we're going to notice that god is gathering his people as well now let's read this these two verses and i saw three on and i have explanations in brackets i saw three unclean spirits what are unclean spirits fallen angels right so they had three fallen angels i i saw three unclean spirits like frogs coming out of the mouth of the dragon the dragon represents the secular powers of the world out of the mouth of the beast which is the papacy and out of the mouth of the false prophet apostate protestantism as represented in the united states and then we find the reason why these three evil angels so to speak are are working through this threefold union they have a specific purpose verse 14 for they are the spirits of demons performing signs and here comes the purpose which go out to the kings of the earth and of the whole world to gather them to battle to the battle of that great day of god almighty so what is the purpose of these three evil angels working through this threefold alliance it is to gather the entire world on the devil's side against god's people so there are two gatherings you notice here i have a little chart you have a gathering of the righteous three holy angels gather the righteous to god's side does god also have three angels the proclaim messages to the world absolutely revelation says that those individuals who are gathered on god's side follow the lamb wherever he goes they worship god they are gathered to jerusalem spiritual jerusalem because jerusalem is global at the end of time represents god's people all over the world and god's people receive the seal of god on the other side you have the gathering of the wicked three evil angels gather the wicked to satan's side revelation says that they don't follow the lamb wherever he goes they follow the beast instead of worshiping god they worship the beast instead of being gathered to jerusalem they're gathered to babylon and instead of receiving the seal of god they receive the mark of the beast so verses 13 and 14 are speaking about events that take place before the close of probation it takes you before in time than what verse 12 is now let me just read you a statement from ellen white where she makes it very clear that these two verses refer to pre-close of probation events this is found in the seventh avenue bible commentary page volume seven page nine eighty three she says the present is a solemn fearful time for the church the angels are already girded awaiting the mandate of god to pour their vials of wrath upon the world destroying angels are taking up the work of vengeance for the spirit of god is gradually withdrawing from the world notice that it doesn't happen overnight it's gradually withdrawing from the world and now notice the term the tense of the verb satan is also mustering his forces of evil and now she's going to quote revelation 16 verse 14 going forth unto the kings of the earth and of the whole world to gather them under his banner to be trained for the battle of that great day of god almighty so is that gathering taking place now the gathering of revelation 16 13 and 14 absolutely it's taking place now and and then by the time you get to the sixth plague they're all gathered to destroy god's people and that's when god is going to dry up the waters and the multitudes will withdraw their support from babylon now revelation 16 15 in other words is a parenthetical statement that encourages god's people to prepare for the close of probation and to gather on the lord's side for the final battle now revelation 16 15 is is a parenthetical statement a warning where god says okay the world is going to be gathered on two sides ultimately the multitudes will withdraw their support from babylon make sure that you're on the lord's side make sure that you're in jerusalem this warning would be fruitless after the close of probation because by then all cases will have been decided right the esv english standard version puts this verse in parentheses indicating that it breaks the flow of thought this is clear from the context verse 14 i want you to notice the connection there's a connection between verse 14 and verse 16. 15 is a parenthetical statement verse 14 ends with the word gather and verse 16 picks up with the word gather the expression they gathered them they is the three evil angels they gathered them refers to the three counterfeit angels that gather the wicked world on satan's side so let's read revelation 16 and verse 14 skip verse 15 and read verse 16. it says for they are spirits of demons performing signs which go out to the kings of the earth and the whole world to gather them to the battle of the great day of god almighty and they gathered them together to the place called in hebrew armageddon are you are you with me so revelation 16 15 jesus inserts that there he says listen when this time comes you make sure that you're on the right side so it's a warning now let's analyze the terminology in revelation 16 verse 15 and how it relates to righteousness by faith i come as a thief i come as a thief we usually think of this as the second coming of christ it's not referring to the second coming of christ it's really referring to the close of probation you see if you go to matthew 24 37 to 39 you're going to find that jesus compared the days of noah to the coming of the son of man that coming there does not refer only to the second coming because it goes on to say as it was in the days of noah so also shall the coming of the son of man be they were eating and drinking marrying and giving in marriage until the day that noah entered the ark and they did not know until the flood came and took them all away there's two points of time there there's two untils first until is when the door closes and the second until is when it starts to rain in between the people didn't know that they were lost they did not know until the flood came and took them all away so jesus coming as a thief means people are taken are caught by surprise when probation closes notice what ellen white had to say see he understood this and this is only one statement of many she understood that that god's people are prepared not not to prepare for the second coming they're to prepare for the close of probation because if you're not ready for the close of probation you're not going to be ready for the second coming i'm going to read this statement quickly powerful statement jesus has left us word watch ye therefore for ye know not when the master of the house cometh a master of the house cometh at even or at midnight or at the crowing or in the morning lest coming suddenly he find you sleeping and what i say unto you i say unto all watch is that one of the words in revelation 16 15 yeah watch and then she comments on this on this verse where it speaks about the coming of the master and the surprise of the coming of the master she says we are who would the we refer to there seventh avenues right we are waiting and watching for the return of the master who is to bring the morning lest coming suddenly he find us sleeping and then she asked this question what time is he referred to what time is is this referring to the coming of the master not to the revelation of christ in the clouds of heaven to find the people asleep no but to his return from his ministration in the most holy place of the heavenly sanctuary when he lays off his priestly attire and clothes himself with garments of vengeance and when the mandate goes forth he that is unjust let him be unjust still and he which is filthy let him be filthy still and he that is righteous let him be righteous still and he that is holy let him be holy still and then she comments when jesus ceases to plead for man that's a closer probation the cases of all are forever decided this is the time of reckoning with his servants and now notice the terminology what the dangers are for adventists because he's talking to adventists to those who have neglected not rejected to those who have neglected the preparation of purity and holiness wow that's sanctification isn't it to those who have neglected uh she says uh the preparation of purity and holiness which fits them to be watching wants to welcome their lord the sun sets in gloom and darkness and rises not again probation closes christ intercession cease in heaven this time finally comes suddenly upon all and now notice and those who have what there it is again neglected to do what to purify their souls by obeying the truth are found sleeping does obedience have anything to do with uh with watching and being ready for the coming of the master oh yeah has to do with action then she says they became weary of waiting and watching they became indifferent are you noticing the terminology neglected weary indifferent regarding the coming of their master they longed not for his appearing do you long for his appearance i mean long for his appearing they long not for his appearing and thought there was no need of such continued persevering watching they had been disappointed in their expectations and might be again they concluded that there was time enough yet to arouse they would be sure not to lose the opportunity of securing an earthly treasure it would be safe to get all of this world they could and in securing this object they lost all anxiety and interest in the appearing of their master they became notice the terminology again they became indifferent and careless as though his coming were yet in the distance by but while their interest was buried up in their worldly gains the work closed in the heavenly sanctuary and they were unprepared so what is meant here by i come as a thief it's speaking about the close of probation and those who are indifferent and careless and don't long for the second coming of christ they're adventists you know they go to church on sabbath and they believe all the doctrines of the adventist church but they have not purified their soul by obedience to the truth so somehow the message of revelation 16 verse 15 has to do with obedience to the truth now the next uh word that we need to analyze is the word watch and i'm not going to read all these texts i'm just going to refer to some of them jesus says i'm coming as a thief therefore watch what did he mean by watch well basically the word means to be alert to be awake to be aware to be vigilant for that we have to be studying don't we and we have to be praying remember when jesus told the disciples why don't you pray i'm going to go pray you pray with me watch what did they do they slept they were totally unaware what was happening because they were sleeping at the conclusion of the parable of the ten virgins you have this matthew 25 13. jesus says watch by the way this is when the when the door closes remember the door closes that's not the second coming in the parable of the virgins the closing of the door is not the second coming because after this those who don't have enough oil have time to go and try and look for more oil it refers to the moment when the door of probation closes and notice notice the warning that jesus gives in in matthew 25 13 this is the last verse of the parable of the ten virgins watch therefore for you know neither the dane or the hour in which the son of man is coming and this is not talking about the second coming it's talking about the coming of jesus to close the door of probation you know it's kind of like you know just imagine that you live in grand rapids michigan i lived at anders university it is freezing here in the in the winter and lots of snow and you know you've you've just come home and you've changed into your pajamas and you know you put the thermostat down and so you get into bed and you're nice and warm under the cover say oh i'm looking forward to a good night's sleep and then you remember say oh oh i forgot to lock the door you say oh i just i i hate to get up out of this bed it's so warm ah i've lived in this house 25 years and the thief has never come and that night while everybody in the house is sleeping the thief comes are the people in the house aware that the thief came because they're sleeping when do they find out that the thief has come when they wake up the next morning but then it's too late you have to two moments of time there you have the moment when the thief comes and the people are surprised but they don't know it and then when they actually find out that the thief came but then it's too late are you understanding my point so what does it mean to watch well to watch means simply to be alert to be awake to be vigilant to be studying to be praying uh you know to be witnessing to other people it means to be active in the things of the lord in the light of where we are revelation 3 verse 3 remember therefore how you have received how you have received and heard hold fast and repent therefore if you will not watch i will come upon you as a thief say this is the connection with revelation 16 15 again i will come upon you as a thief and you will not know what hour i will come upon you so we understand now what it means to the jesus coming as a thief we know what it means to watch what does it mean to keep the garments to keep well that word the greek word tereo means to preserve to protect or to safeguard to preserve to protect or to safeguard according to the exegetical dictionary of the new testament it means now listen carefully keeping or preserving the unblemished nature of a person or a condition so must the person be in an unblemished condition in order to be able to keep that unble unblemished condition absolutely very very important now the apostle paul uses this uh this word keep incidentally it's the same word that says here are they who keep the commandments of god the apostle paul says i have kept the faith at the end of his life what does he mean when he says i have kept the faith i've stayed faithful until the end right so he accepted the faith and at the very end he's still faithful to the faithful paul also encouraged the ephesians to keep unity must they have been united before in order to keep unity of course so if you're supposed to keep your garments must you have received those garments before absolutely and then jude 6 speaks about the rebel angels who did not keep their place in heaven see they were in heaven but they didn't keep their place so what is meant by keep keeping the garments it means persevering until the end it means that you at one point received a white garment but you're supposed to what but you're supposed to persevere in it i should have turned this off i tell my church members to turn it off every sabbath and i tell them that if any cell phone that sounds will be confiscated and sold and the proceeds will be given for church budget but we are not in my church all right it's off now so i understand what it means to keep in order to keep you must have received before so i mean speaking about perseverance speaking about obedience and speaking about remaining faithful even till the end now the next point that we find in this verse is uh you know walking keeping your garments so that you don't walk naked and they see your shame so we need to ask the question what does walk mean when the word walk is used in a spiritual sense in scripture it always refers to behavior or conduct so do a garments have anything to do with conduct keeping the garments does that have anything to do with behavior with living a sanctified life it does absolutely let me give you some examples ephesians 2 verse 10 for we are his workmanship created in christ jesus for what good works which god prepared beforehand that we should what walk in them is that behavioral yes it is first john 2 6 you can repeat this one from memory he who says he abides in him ought himself awful to walk just as he walked does that have to do with uh with life conduct behavior absolutely hebrews 11 verse 5 says that enoch walked with god and he was not god took him because he walked with god and the book of genesis says that he pleased god amen his life his life revealed that his faith was genuine but you know the wicked also walk notice ephesians chapter 2 verses 1 to 3 and you he made alive who were dead in trespasses and sins trespasses and sins in which you once walked so does a walk there have to do with behavior it has to do with wicked behavior here in which he once walked according to the course of this world according to the prince of the power of the air the spirit who now works in the sons of disobedience among whom also we all once notice what's the next word conducted does that have to do with conduct or behavior yes conducted ourselves in the lusts of our flesh fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind and we're by nature children of wrath just as the others and then colossians 3 6 and 7 says because of these things the wrath of god is coming upon the sons of what disobedience which you yourselves once walked when you lived in them so does walking have to do with conduct or behavior so does revelation 16 15 have anything to do with with when you're covered with the garments that you're going to walk the way the lord walked and the wicked are going to walk in a contrary way absolutely now notice the message to the church of sardis revelation 3 verses 4 through 6 here connects actually with the garments it says therefore if you will not watch that's a word that we found in revelation 16 15 i will come upon you as a that's there also as a thief and you will not know what hour i will come upon you and then it says you have a few names even in sardis who have not what defiled their garments must they have had white garments in order to be able to defile them yes absolutely so it says uh and um you have a few names even in sardis who have not defiled their garments and they shall what walk with me in white for they are worthy he who overcomes shall be clothed in white garments they're speaking about the future by the way now we wear spiritual white garments but then we will have literal white garments of light and you know i might make a parenthesis here the idea of garments and light is really interesting you know ellen white says that adam and eve were covered with robes of light white robes of light in the garden of eden before they sinned the the the garments were literal literal garments of white white light but those garments of light symbolized their righteousness they were righteous because they were obedient now when they sinned what did they lose first their spiritual robe or their literal robe they lost righteousness right because the robe represents right they lost righteousness and so when they lost their spiritual robe what happened with the robe of light it went away too the literal robe of light left so how does god restore the robe he first of all restores which robe he first of all covers you with a spiritual robe of light and then when jesus comes he'll give you the literal rope of light so first you lose your spiritual and then you use your literal robe when jesus restores he restores your spiritual robe and then when he comes he will give you the literal room and this is speaking about when jesus will give his literal robe so it says in verse once again verse four you have a few names even in sardis who have not defiled their garments they shall walk with me in white for they are worthy he who overcomes shall be clothed in white garments and i will not blot out his name from the book of life but i will confess his name before my father before his angels so the robe that is being talked about in revelation 16 verse 15 yes it has to do with imputed righteousness there there can be no holy life unless christ imputes his righteousness to us but the emphasis that is being presented here in revelation 16 verse 15 is the life that flows from justification now i want to read some statements that make this clear in the book of revelation revelation 19 verse 8 speaking about the church in the white garments notice let us be glad and rejoice and give him glory for the marriage of the lamb has come and his wife has made herself ready and to her it was granted to be arrayed in fine linen clean and bright and now notice what the clean linen represents for the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints what does i thought the white raiment represents the righteousness of christ it is but the righteousness of christ is imputed and it is also imparted this is speaking about his imparted righteousness because you have to have the imputed in order to receive the imparted but it's interesting it says the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints notice revelation 22 verse 11 i'm reading from the english standard version let the evil doer still do evil action and the filthy still be filthy and the righteous still what do right notice that the emphasis is on action still do right and the holy still be holy now i want to read you some statements from ellen white very interesting statements christ object lessons 310 actually that whole chapter is phenomenal she says by the wedding garment and the parable is represented the pure spotless character which christ true followers will possess so god's people will possess christ what character to the church it is given that she now she's going to quote the verse that we just mentioned that she should be arrayed and find linen clean and white not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing the fine linen says the scripture is the righteous ness of saints the righteousness of saints it is the righteousness of christ his own unblemished character that through faith is what's the next word not imputed is imparted to all who receive him as their personal savior so the emphasis is upon the impartation of christ's character now notice the next paragraph notice in the following statement that the fig leaf garment is synonymous with nakedness and the deformity of sin that is to cover ourselves with our own righteousness you see is equivalent to nakedness this is the reason why when adam and eve sinned they still felt naked and ashamed even after they had covered themselves with the big leaves they cover themselves and then they're hiding god says where are you oh we were afraid because we're naked but they weren't naked they had the figaes but to have fig leaves is to be naked notice this next statement by his perfect obedience he has made it impossible oh thank you very much he has made it possible for every human being to obey god's commandments and then comes the secret when we submit ourselves to christ the heart is united with his heart the will is merged with his will the mind becomes one with his mind the thoughts are brought into captivity to him we live his life this is what it means to be clothed with the garment of his righteousness then as the lord looks upon us he sees not the fig garment fig leaf garment not the nakedness and deformity of sin so the fig garment is what fig leaf garment is what the nakedness and deformity of sin but his own robe of righteousness which is perfect obedience to the law of jehovah you know there's a lot of discussion about the 1888 message there's one little short statement here from ellen white that synthesizes what it was you know it's not rocket science it doesn't take an encyclopedia testimonies to ministers 91 and 92 she says the 1888 message presented justification through faith in the surety it invited the people to receive the righteousness of christ which is made manifest in obedience to all the commandments of god see the balance justification is man how do you how do you know a person is justified it's manifested by what by obedience to all of god's commandments i love this statement in reviewing herald june 4 1895. she says righteousness within is testified by righteousness without so if you're righteous within the testimony that that's true is by your outside then she says the righteousness by which we are justified is imputed imputed means that it is credited to our account it is not ours it's his righteousness that's imputed is a theological term the righteousness by which we are justified is imputed the righteousness by which we are sanctified is imparted now it becomes part and parcel of us because we reflect the character of christ she says the first is our title to heaven or our right to heaven the second is our fitness for heaven is jesus going to take anyone to heaven who's not fit no let me ask you would it be possible do you think that someone could get a driver's license who doesn't know how to drive yeah i think so he knows the right people get a driver's license that would give him that would give him the right to drive but he doesn't have the fitness do you think there's anybody who has who knows how to drive but doesn't have a driver's license of course what do you need you need the right to drive and you need to know how to do it in order to drive and so it is in order to make it to heaven we not only need to have what ellen white calls the title to heaven but we need to have the fitness for heaven justification and sanctification yes uh maybe a little bit at the end let's save them for the end now the book of revelation describes the end time generation in revelation 7 1-8 revelation 14 1-5 and revelation 15 2-4 revelation 7 describes a sealing of 144 thousand revelation 14 describes the sterling character of 144 000 and interestingly enough revelation 15 describes their victory over the beast his image and his mark so three emphasis revelation 7 the ceiling revelation 14 the character revelation 15 the victory over the beast his image and his mark have you ever noticed that revelation chapter 6 verse 17 you know the previous verses speak about the second coming of christ you know people are going to be hiding in caves they're going to cry for the rocks to fall upon them and then the verse verse 17 ends with a question for the great day of his wrath is come and who shall be able to stand the very next verse speaks of the sealing of the 144 000. now i want to show you several other verses that ask that same question who and you're going to see that always when the who is asked it's followed by a sterling character joel 2 verse 11. this is not in your material so uh you know the just the references are but not uh not the texts in joel chapter two verses one one through ten you have the second coming it's described you can read those verses and then verse 11 says the lord gives voice before his army this is the lord coming with the wit on the white horse with the white horses following him at the second coming for his camp is very great for strong is the one who executes his word for the day of the lord is great and very terrible remember that revelation 6 verse 17 says for the great day of his wrath has come who shall be able to stand now notice for the day of the lord is great and very terrible who can endure it if you read beginning with verse 12 through verse 17 it uses day of atonement terminology it speaks about the sounding of the trumpet it speaks about afflicting the soul between his fortune the altar altar crying up lord spare your people it speaks about fasting all events that took place on the day of atonement in other words now is not a time for the church to be jumping up and down in church and rolling in the aisles now we are on the day of atonement it's a time of affliction examining the life the celebration will come in the feast of tabernacles but the day of atonement is a solemn day of heart searching to making sure that our life is in harmony with the law of the lord notice psalm 15 lord who may abide in your tabernacle who may dwell in your holy hill listen to the answer he who walks uprightly and works righteousness and speaks the truth in his heart he who does not backbite with his tongue nor does he evil to his neighbor nor does he take up a reproach against his friend in whose eyes a vile person is despised but he honors those who fear the lord he who swears to his own hurt and does not change he who does not put his out his money at usury doesn't take advantage of people nor does he take a bribe against the innocent are those all behavioral characteristics yes and then notice the last verse he who does these things shall never be moved who will be able to stand these people isaiah 6 33 ask the same question the sinners in zion are afraid fearfulness has seized the hypocrites and then comes the question who among us shall dwell with the devouring fire who among us shall dwell with everlasting burnings you know and usually if you ask that question of somebody who's not an ambulance say oh the wicked they're going to burn in the fires forever no it's the righteous that will live in the midst of the fire forever because the wicked are not fireproof the fire is eternal because the fire is the glory of god so the fire never goes out but that doesn't mean that what it burns doesn't go out and so now notice the answer who will dwell with the divine fire who among us shall dwell with everlasting burnings here comes the answer he who walks righteously and speaks uprightly he who despises the gain of oppressions who gestures with his hands refusing bribes who stops his ears from hearing a bloodshed and shuts his eyes from seeing evil are those all behavioral characters characteristics yes he will dwell on high his place of defense will be fortress of rocks bread will be given him his water will be sure ellen white quotes that text in the context of the time of trouble one final verse where the question is asked psalm 24 verses 3 through 6 who may ascend into the hill of lord remember that 144 000 are standing in mount zion right which is the lord's hill who may ascend into the hill of the lord or who may stand in his holy place he who has clean heart hands in a pure heart who has not lifted up his soul to an idol nor sworn deceitfully he shall receive blessing from the lord and righteousness from god of his salvation this is jacob the generation of those who seek him who seek your face are you seeing the emphasis on sanctification now righteousness by faith and verity we only have like 25 minutes but we're going to try and get through this so that you see the gist of it i hope you'll read the rest of it ellen white in review and herald april 1 1890 said this wrote this several have written to me inquiring if the message of justification by faith is the third angel's message and i have answered it is the third angel's message in verity so the third angel's message is a message of what righteousness by faith but when you read the third angel's message i don't know for a long time i struggled to find righteousness by faith in that verb in those verses and i think that uh i think that i know now what ellen white meant revelation 14 9-12 let's read those verses then a third angel followed them saying with a loud voice if anyone worships the beast in his image and receives his mark on his forehead or on his hand he himself shall also drink of the wine of the wrath of god which has poured out full strength into the cup of his indignation he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the lamb and the smoke of their torment ascends forever and ever and they have no rest day or night who worship the beast and his image and whoever receives the mark of his name of course the question is what possible relationship does this passage have with righteousness by faith it certainly is not describing forensic justification you don't understand what i mean by forensic justification it's not it's not speaking about imputed righteousness here let me ask you what's the time of trouble going to be like ellen white says that the most vivid imagination cannot grasp what it's going to be like because basically the devil is going to be in total control of planet earth except god is going to say you can't kill my people the story of job is going to be repeated god's people are going to lose everything and satan is going to torture them with the idea that their sins have been so great that they that they can't be accepted so you better make sure that you're that you've repented of sin that you've confessed your sins that they've gone into the sanctuary through the blood of jesus because the devil is going to try to convince you that your sins are too big that jesus jesus didn't forgive you and ellen white says that if you if you come to the point where you believe that jesus didn't forgive you you're sunk because it's because it's trusting in the promise of god that that god forgave your sins that even though you don't feel forgiven she says you look at the the righteous will look at their lives and they don't see anything good but they claim the promises of god it's like jesus when he was on the cross he says my god my god why have you forsaken me because he was bearing the sins of the world if he had gone by feelings he would have failed but jesus ellen white says that jesus and the cross did not trust his feelings where the devil was saying you're going to be separated from your father forever because you're bearing the sins of the world it's too offensive to god you're never going to see your father's face you're not going to see beyond the portals of the tomb illinois says that jesus at that moment claimed the promises of his father and he ignored his feelings isn't it true that many of our problems come because we're always caught up in our feelings rather than the promises of god now i'm going to skip this section that deals with martyrs of the past and of the future you can read that uh it's it's pretty interesting but i want to go to the part where it says daniel and his three friends so we understand righteousness by faith and the third angel's message ellen white when she talks about righteousness by faith in the third angel's message she's referring primarily to righteousness by faith exhibited in faithfulness in the life she's talking about the sanctification she's talking about faithfulness now let's go through this very quickly the three young friends of daniel are examples of the end time generation the story of the three young men is fulfilled on a global scale in revelation the third angel's message is actually a globalization of this story because the same elements are present in both did nebuchadnezzar for a while behave as a beast did he raise up an image did he command everyone to worship the image did he threaten any everyone who was not willing to worship the image does that sound like revelation 13 absolutely ellen white in fact links the story of daniel 3 with the end time crisis in manuscript releases volume 14 page 91 she says an idol sabbath has been set up as the golden image was set up in the plains of dura and as nebuchadnezzar the king of babylon issued a cr decree that all who would not bow down and worship this image should be killed so a proclamation will be made that all who will not reverence the sunday institution will be punished with imprisonment and death so the crisis is going to be very similar it's going to be global now how did daniel and his three friends reveal that they had experienced righteousness by faith the answer is folks that their faithfulness exhibited their faith so the third angel's message is righteousness by faith in the sense that those who go through this crisis will exhibit their faith through faithfulness the three young men revealed their trust and allegiance to christ by their faithfulness even in the face of death in youth instructor july 12 1904 ellen white says the three hebrews were called upon to confess christ in the face of the burning fiery furnace it cost them something to do this for their lives were at stake these youth imbued with the holy spirit declared to the whole kingdom of babylon their what their faith how how did they show that they had faith by by being willing to die right so she says these youth imbued with the holy spirit declared to the whole kingdom bible in their faith that he whom they worship was the only true and living god the demonstration of their faith on the plains of dura was a most eloquent presentation of their principles the demonstration of their faith because of their faith the young men were delivered just like god's people will be delivered because they don't worship the beast his image or receive the mark or the number of his name significantly this is important significantly the word deliver is used in only three contexts in the book of daniel daniel 3 daniel 6 and daniel 12 1. those are the only places in daniel where the word deliver is used so they must be related right so let's read this passage daniel 3 16 to 18 verse 28 and verse 29 and uh it says there shadrach meshach and abednego answered and said to the king oh nebuchadnezzar we have no need to answer you in this matter if that is the case our god whom we serve see what is the emphasis yeah they they they have been made righteousness righteous by faith but how is that exhibited by their words and their actions our god in whom we uh whom we serve is able to what that's a key word deliver us from the burning fiery furnace and he will deliver us from your handle king but if not see they don't serve the lord for the for the loaves and the fishes but if not let it be known to you o king that we do not serve your gods nor will we worship the gold image which you have set up nebuchadnezzar spoke saying this is after the crisis nebuchadnezzar uh spoke saying blessed be the god of shadrach meshach and abednego who sent his angel who was by jesus by the way and here comes the key word and what delivered his servants who what's a synonym of trust faith who trusted in him and they have frustrated the king's word and yielded their bodies that they should not serve nor worship any god except their own god does the third angel's message have anything to do with being faithful to god in a crisis like this absolutely so it's righteousness imputed righteousness manifested in faithfulness to god verse 29 therefore i make a decree that any people nation or language which speaks anything amiss against the god of shadow misha and ben ego shall be cut in pieces and their houses shall be made an ash heap because there is no other god who can deliver like this so the word delivers used four times in the context of daniel 3 which is symbolic of the end time incidentally do you know that hebrews 11 verses 33 and 34 clearly says that by faith the three young men quench the fire that's not talking about imputed righteousness is talking about faithfulness because they know jesus because they have experienced the righteousness of jesus they are faithful so hebrews 11 33 and 34 underlines the fact that the three young men quench the fiery fire through faith this indicates that their faith was more than intellectual assent more than believing something in their heads more than a juridical act of imputation true faith is exhibited in faithfulness this is righteousness by faith in the end time you understand a little better the connection with third angel's message now let's talk about daniel you can read the next statement it uses expressions such as stand steadfastly for the right stand unmoved put their trust in him see the emphasis on faith and faithfulness what about daniel and the lions then another passage that illustrates righteousness by faith in the end time crisis is the story found in daniel 6. this story is an illustration of the crisis that will come as a result of the violation of the free exercise clause i won't get into that but really these two experiences daniel 3 and daniel 6 are an illustration of the establishment clause and the free exercise clause of the first amendment to the constitution what happens when the establishment and free exercise clauses are violated the very existence of daniel was put in jeopardy because of his worship practices and the law of his god are we going to see that crisis all over again absolutely notice daniel we'll read several texts from daniel daniel 6 5 then these men the enemies of daniel said we shall not find any charge against this daniel unless we find it against him concerning the law of his god is that what the end time crisis is about oh absolutely now notice the following verses saw the king gave command and they brought daniel and cast them into the den of lions but the king spoke saying to daniel now notice here your god whom you what serve continually so what is the emphasis here the fact that he depends on the lord consistently he will what there's the key word deliver you and then after he comes back to the lion's den the next morning and when he came to the den he cried out with a lamenting voice to daniel the king spoke saying to daniel daniel servant of the living god has your god whom you serve what continually been able to deliver you from the lions and then the king says he delivers and rescues and he works signs and wonders in heaven and on earth who has delivered daniel from the power of the lions see the emphasis on deliver what kind of people is god going to deliver in the end time those who not only have faith but are faithful that's connection with 13 see the third angel's message says you're going to have a crisis over the beast his image and his mark and you're going to have to choose whether you'll be faithful to god even having to die and that will show you you truly have faith and trust in jesus is that righteousness by faith in verity as ellen white said now when the trial was over daniel explained he says my god sent his angel and shut the lion's mouth so that they have not hurt me because i was found what innocent before him and also o king i have done no wrong before you is that behavioral yes by the way do you know that hebrews 11 also refers to this it says that by faith daniel shut the mouths of lions by faith really by faithfulness now let's talk about paul and james quickly at this point it might be well to ask does paul's definition of righteousness by faith conflict with that of james are you are you with me i hope so because i i have extra extra stuff here did paul believe that man is made righteous by a forensic act of god while james believed that man is made righteous by holy life not at all faith and works are a package deal neither can exist without the other in order to be genuine faith must be active faith is an action word paul was looking at the motivating force of works and james was looking at the result of true faith paul was looking at the root and james was looking at the fruit true faith is an uncompromising trust in jesus that translates into obedient faithfulness in other words faith is faithful james presented two examples of faith abraham and rahab did abraham act on his face when god said leave what did what didn't uh he do what did abraham do he said pack up sarah we're leaving how about when god asked him to sacrifice his son that would did i take faith oh yeah how about rahab it says by face you receive the slide you say well how much faith is it in receiving the spice folks if they had discovered that she had the spice she would have been killed in fact matrix and prophets 482 and 43 says the inhabitants of the city terrified and suspicious were constantly on the alert and the messengers were in great danger they were however preserved by rahab a woman of jericho at the peril of her own life in return for her kindness they gave her a promise of protection when the city should be taken so rahab is given as an example and and you know james some people don't like james you know how when is james quoted when you talk about righteousness by faith hardly ever because jane says rahab was not rehab justified by works was not abraham or father justified by works and don't don't think that james and paul are contradicting each other no james is looking at the fruit of faith he's looking at at you know what proves that faith is genuine whereas paul is looking at the saving act of faith in fact let's notice in the next paragraph the heroes and heroines of hebrews 11 did not merely believe in something they believed in someone they were acting in trust upon god's word their faith was made complete by their works the emphasis in hebrews 11 is not primarily upon imputed righteousness but rather upon the faithful obedient life that flows from a saving relationship with christ true faith always leads to faithfulness faithless works will not save a person and a workless faith will not save him either faith is the invisible side of works and works on the visible side of faith faith is the internal propelling force and works are the external manifestation the heroes and heroines of hebrews 11 are doing something notice the list abel offered enoch pleased noah built abraham lift abraham offered isaac and jacob blessed moses was hidden which was an act of faith because it was a crime moses refused moses left moses kept israel passed israel marched rahab hid somehow i want i i think god is trying to tell us that faith is an action word now let's go to where it says daniel 12 1. it's a little bit further ahead daniel 12 1. this is the only other place in daniel where the word deliver is used interesting daniel 3 the three young men who stood before the image of the beast and didn't um didn't worship daniel 6 where daniel was thrown into lions then because of his worship practices and now we come to the end time fulfillment of daniel 3 and daniel 6 in in daniel 12 1. at that time michael shall stand up that refers to the close of probation the great prince who stands watch over the sons of your people there shall be a time of trouble such as never was since there was a nation even to that time that's a crisis over the beast his image and his mark folks time of trouble where the lives of god's people will be in danger but then notice and at that time your people shall be what there's the word is there connection between daniel 3 6 and 12 absolutely your people shall be delivered everyone who is found written in the book after the close of probation god's people will go through the same experience as daniel and his three friends but on the global scale the faith of god's people will be exhibited by their faithfulness and loyalty to god that's the connection with the third angels message faith without faithfulness is not really faith now here comes an important paragraph some adventist scholars are soteriological dualists they say what does that mean the word soteriology means salvation when it comes to salvation they're dualists but they are anthropological monists in other words uh when it comes to the doctrine of man they they are not duelists they're modests single unity you know like evangelists they'll say you know uh the body and the breath makes one person living soul but when it comes to righteousness by faith we say faith alone no works that's that's dualism soteriological dualism because there's no such thing people are not saved by by faith alone they're saved by a faith that works and sometimes we just totally depreciate works so it works they count for nothing ellen white warned uh jones and white said listen i understand what you're saying but you need to be you need to be clear on what you're saying about this well well they certain adventist scholars say that man is saved by faith alone without works they also say that the body alone cannot live without the spirit but james makes it clear that as the body without the spirit is dead so faith without works is dead as well so is man justified by faith or by works is the question how do we reconcile these two the only way is showing that james is teaching that faith is shown by faithfulness and obedience even to the point of death justification is exhibited in sanctification faith is revealed in abraham being willing to slay his own son and rey have been willing to risk her life in loyalty even to the point of death now um i'm going to jump to where it says the book of ephesians i want to leave it just a couple of minutes for questions the book of ephesians you can read that paragraph you know that book is divided into three key words summarize that book sit walk and stand watch my knee actually wrote a book many years ago the title of the book is sit walk stand see first of all you're we're seated with christ in heavenly places because it's his righteousness so when we're seated and resting in christ then we walk and when we walk it with him we're able to stand against the wiles of the devil so basically that summarizes what what we've been talking about now how can this how can this experience be real in our lives well there's a section here that says how i'm just going to end by reading these two statements one from the bible and the other from the spirit of prophecy hebrews 12 1-2 says therefore we also since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses just talked about all those who have who had faith let us lay aside every weight and the sin which so easily ensnares us so one thing we have to do is lay aside sin and let us what run with endurance the race that is set before us did that involve action those who have run in marathons know that they'll run with endurance the race that is set before us and and then notice what it says looking unto what there it is unto jesus the author and finisher of our faith who for the joy that was set before him he endured the cross why was jesus able to endure the cross because of the joy that was set before him seeing seeing everyone saved in his kingdom despising the shame and sat down at the right hand of god uh volume 5 of the testimonies 202 and 203 there's one number missing there elon white says it says a deadly spiritual malady is upon the church its members are wounded by satan but they will not look to the cross of christ as the israelites looked to the brazen serpent that they may live the world has so many claims upon them listen carefully the world has so many claims on them that they have not time to look at the cross of calvary long enough to see its glory or to feel its power so it has to do with the length of your looking when they now and then catch a glimpse of the self-denial and self-dedication which the truth demands it is unwelcome and they turn their attention in another direction that they may the sooner forget it so it's dwelling it's abiding in christ keeping your eyes on him not a glance here and there but constantly keeping our eyes on him you know when we keep our eyes on jesus you know what happens first of all we see how evil we are and we cry out when we look at jesus amen he's so holy and perfect i'm undone but then as you look at the cross you say but wait a minute jesus was willing to die on the cross to save me from my sin so there's hope so when you look at the holiness of jesus we see our unholiness but when we look at the cross we see what jesus has done to rescue us from our sinfulness so the whole key is keeping our eyes on jesus and you know that's what enoch did if you read about enoch and patrick's and prophets always says that he walked with the lord day by day closer and closer dwelt on him through prayer through through uh you know through communion with him through entering the communication with the people that surround him and he drew so close to jesus that jesus said enoch you know there's no use me walking up here and you're walking down there come on up here to the new jerusalem walk together in the street of gold that's what god is waiting for and that is included in righteousness by faith i hope you study the section on the martyrs past and future revelation 5 the fifth seal it speaks about the matters of the past during the 1260 years and the martyrs of the future by the way some people will lose their lives because they did not worship the beast's image or receive the mark revelation 20 verse 4 makes that clear but that's during the short time of trouble before the close of probation so folks bottom line is let's spend quality time with our lord by beholding we are changed if we contemplate the world we'll be like the world if we behold christ and keep our eyes focused on him we will be like jesus there is power transforming power in the life and in the cross of christ let's pray and then we'll take a couple of questions father in heaven we thank you for the beauty of your holy word we thank you that in spite of our sinfulness and our wicked sinful nature you have made everything uh possible for us not only to receive the imputed righteousness of christ but to live the life of christ in our everyday walk father we long to have that experience with jesus help us lord to abide in him to focus on him to speak about him to pray to him to study his word that we might learn more about him help us lord to stay close to jesus closer each day we thank you father for having been with us for answering our prayer for we ask it in jesus name amen

Channel: Sermons Room

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Keywords: Adventist sermons, Adventist, message, prophecy, Stephen Bohr

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Length: 73min 3sec (4383 seconds)

Published: Tue Nov 17 2020