Tuesday, 19 August 2014
"The government under which Jesus lived was corrupt and oppressive; on every hand were crying abuses,--extortion, intolerance, and grinding cruelty. Yet the Savior attempted no civil reforms. He attacked no national abuses, nor condemned the national enemies. He did not interfere with the authority or administration of those in power. He who was our example kept aloof from earthly governments. Not because He was indifferent to the woes of men, but because the remedy did not lie in merely human and external measures. To be efficient, the cure must reach men individually, and must regenerate the heart." {DA 509.3}
"But today in the religious world there are multitudes who, as they believe, are working for the establishment of the kingdom of Christ as an earthly and temporal dominion. They desire to make our Lord the ruler of the kingdoms of this world, the ruler in its courts and camps, its legislative halls, its palaces and market places. They expect Him to rule through legal enactments, enforced by human authority. Since Christ is not now here in person, they themselves will undertake to act in His stead, to execute the laws of His kingdom. The establishment of such a kingdom is what the Jews desired in the days of Christ. They would have received Jesus, had He been willing to establish a temporal dominion, to enforce what they regarded as the laws of God, and to make them the expositors of His will and the agents of His authority. But He said, 'My kingdom is not of this world.' John 18:36. He would not accept the earthly throne." {DA 509.2}
"Christianity--how many there are who do not know what it is! It is not something put on the outside. It is a life inwrought with the life of Jesus. It means that we are wearing the robe of Christ's righteousness. In regard to the world, Christians will say, We will not dabble in politics. They will say decidedly, We are pilgrims and strangers; our citizenship is above. They will not be seen choosing company for amusement. They will say, We have ceased to be infatuated by childish things. We are strangers and pilgrims, looking for a city which hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God." {TM 131.1}
Tuesday, 19 August 2014
“Behold, I come as a thief. Blessed is he that watcheth, and keepeth his garments, lest he walk naked, and they see his shame” Christ declares. Have you ever considered the context of this scripture? The word “behold” indicates to us that this scripture and its context is worthy of our deep contemplation so that we are not classed as those who walk naked. The previous two verses bring to view a false, apostate three-fold union that will be active and evident at this time. As the biblical methods of study are employed, it is unmistakable who/what constitutes the dragon, the beast, and the false prophet from whom are emanating the spirits of devils working miracles. The dragon represents paganism and the civil leaders of various nations; the beast is the Papacy; and the false prophet symbolizes professed protestant ministers especially in the United States. Again coming from the mouths of these three entities is seen unclean spirits like frogs working miracles. The symbolism of frogs with its association with miracles should bring one’s mind back to the plague of frogs in ancient Egypt, which was counterfeited by the magicians just prior to the great exodus. Satan counterfeited this miracle/plague so that the people would remain in the house of bondage which is nothing other than heathenism, sin, and false worship. Today, the unclean spirits like frogs which are styled as the spirits of devils working miracles, represent false worship, but more specifically Sunday worship. It is clear, to those students of prophecy who have been watching the signs of the times as they are revealed in current events that all three entities—the dragon, the beast, and the false prophet—have been persistently, aggressively, and persuasively calling for the observance of Sunday as a day of rest, and urging such to be legislated. This three-fold, apostate union is being cemented as leaders of each aforementioned entity are meeting and have recently met, vowing to fulfill Jesus’ prayer for unity in John 17, and hoping that such a unity will be realized in their day, this day. The objective of this union is to direct worship that belongs only to the Creator God to the Beast Power—the Papacy. As this push for unity and compulsory Sunday observance is being agitated, we are instructed by Christ to “Behold” for his coming is imminent and that we should therefore be clad with his garments so that the shame of our nakedness does not appear. The sad reality is however, that lukewarm Laodiceans (people professing to be a part of God’s remnant church) are naked-- some because of willful disobedience, others from the subtle mixture of truth and error, and still a greater number because of the leadership. The counsel to us at this time is to buy of Christ that white raiment which He so graciously is offering us. It is in the mount with God, the secret place of communion, studying and earnestly pleading with God, where this garment can only be obtained. As this experience leads us to victory over sin, the promise is ours for the claiming: “He that overcometh, the same shall be clothed in white raiment; and I will not blot [spew] out his name out of the book of life, but I will confess his name before my Father, and before his angels.” Be blessed as you watch, listen, study, and apply the principles contained in this sermon.
Tuesday, 19 August 2014
The straight Testimony given by the Faithful and True Witness to the Laodicean church is of utmost importance, as acceptance or rejection has eternal consequences. As the searchlight is turned on in the lives of God's professed remnant people, it is clearly identifiable that the majority are not only wretched, miserable, poor, and naked, but that they are blind. This blindness is not literal, it is a spiritual blindness of the mind; a blindness that results from willful rejection of light; a blindness that occurs because of accepting the god of this world and rejecting the Creator of this world. Those who are blind cannot plead ignorance, for ignorance is no excuse for error or for sin while there is every opportunity to know the truth. Such individuals are blind to their own spiritual degradation and therefore can see no need of sight. However there is hope, otherwise there would be no reason for the counsel to obtain from Christ the eyesalve. As one receives the eyesalve he/she becomes painfully aware of his/her deplorable condition and how it is that Christ, along with our cooperation, can clean us up and finally save us. The eyesalve that can enlighten our eyes to the truth and to our standing before God represent the counsels given to us through the Spirit of Prophecy, God's law, and the study of prophecy. If a person continues to reject the Spirit of Prophecy, he/she will continue in the lukewarm Laodicean condition. There are striking and significant parallels between Christ's day and our day today as it relates to the Laodicean condition and message. The blind leaders in Christ's day caused the people to remain blind, which if they continue in darkness, they will alike fall in a ditch. Because of the blind leaders' rejection of the Spirit of Prophecy through John the Baptist, they also rejected Christ and the people generally followed these apostate leaders, and thus it is today. But like blind Bartimaeus desperately crying to Jesus for his sight, and had his request granted, we too can have our spiritual eyesight enlightened as we cry out, acknowledge our blind sinfulness, look into and heed God's laws and testimonies, and diligently study and apply Bible prophecy.
Tuesday, 19 August 2014
The message addressed to the church of Laodicea, those living in this final generation is applicable to every person professing the name and faith of Christ, but specifically this message pertains to Seventh-day Adventists. We can be certain that we are living in the final seconds of earth's history when Christ is about to spew unrepentant sinners out of His mouth because the abominations in Babylon have nearly reached their limit and the abominations in the various nations have just about exceeded their limits; and God's forbearance, so long exercised to mankind, will extend no longer. Just as in the days of Noah, when the state of society reached the point of utter recalcitrance to God's word and the lewd, abominable practices were almost widely accepted, promoted, and celebrated, probation closed and destruction ensued. It is clear that worldwide licentiousness--in its various forms- has become the norm, and God's word is clear that the nations will be spewed out as a result. While the nations are being spewed out, individuals who rise up against the straight testimony will also be spewed out. But in order to be preserved and ultimately saved, one needs to recognize his/her spiritual poverty and destitution and seek for the gold tried in the fire that is offered to them. This gold can only be obtained by making an exchange of our sins for Christ's righteousness. There must also be earnest effort by the pursuant and the trying of our faith which is intended to burn the dross of sin from our lives, leaving us perfect in Christ. Now is the time to receive this gold of faith while mercy still pleads for humanity!
Tuesday, 15 July 2014
Theology of Ordination (TOSC) committee member David Read discusses the question, Does culture drive biblical interpretation, in relation to the question of women's ordination. Considering first the broader culture, then the Adventist subculture, Read also discusses WO in connection with the immediately following issue---homosexuality and the church.
Monday, 14 July 2014
When you consider the message addressed to the church of Laodicea, there is a tendency to dismiss the warnings, counsels and rebukes as applicable to ourselves and believe this message to pertain to others-- those in open apostasy or those in the nominal churches. Hence, one will never examine himself/herself or truly see his/her wretchedness and deplorable condition if he/she does not fall upon the Rock in self-abnegation and be broken. So long as we feel whole and continue to compare ourselves with others and are satisfied with our present experience, we shall never heed the counsel of the True Witness and thus be spewed out of Jesus' mouth, all the while denouncing others as being lukewarm. However, "the Laodicean message applies to the people of God who profess to believe present truth. The greater part are lukewarm professors, having a name but no zeal..." (4T 87). It is astonishing that of the relatively small number of those professing present-truth, the majority are lukewarm. Where do you stand? Are you content with your standing before God? If so, you are in a self-righteous, self-deceived condition and are prepared to not only reject the straight testimony but to rise up against it, be shaken out of truth, and ultimately persecute the Author and the messengers of the straight testimony. Christ's spewing individuals out of His mouth signifies that He will not, in this time of investigative judgment, confess their names before the Father; their names as well as themselves will be rejected. However, there is hope for the Laodiceans, which "is a clear view of their standing before God, acknowledge of the nature of their disease" (4T 87). It is time for lukewarm Laodiceans to acknowledge their utter wretchedness, make confession, be justified, live by faith, receive the straight truth, and give the straight testimony!
Monday, 07 July 2014
As we become increasingly aware of the agitation regarding religious liberty in the public arena, students of prophecy realize that one by one every principle of our constitution is being repudiated, which will inevitably result in the prohibition of freedom of worship if it differs with the government-enforced way and day of worship. This is yet another evidence that Jesus' Second Coming is even at the doors. This is the message to the church of Laodicea, that, if heeded will prepare a people for Jesus' Second Coming. We are living in the Laodicean era, the final phase of God's church, as indicated in the the meaning of the word "Laodicea," which is people living in the judgment. This is the time-period in which the case of every living soul is scrutinized and an irrevocable verdict is pronounced (Revelation 22:11 and 12). After the sentences are rendered, the final events will unravel, be completed, and Christ will come with His rewards. It is therefore incumbent upon each of us to study and look intricately into the message addressed to the church of Laodicea, heed the counsels of the True Witness, endure the shaking (which is caused by the opposition to the straight testimony called forth by the counsel of the True Witness to the Laodiceans), be sealed, and at last, be saved. It is not insignificant that Jesus reveals Himself to Laodicea as the "Amen," the "Faithful and True Witness," and the "Beginning of the Creation of God." Each of these titles unveil important principles of present-truth that must be inculcated in one's daily experience so that we can be "hot" or fervent for Christ. Upon viewing this message, one will be able to determine presently whether he/she is heeding the straight testimony as given in the counsel to Laodicea and are "hot," or whether he/she is rising up against this message and in a lukewarm condition.
Saturday, 05 July 2014
Hold! Hold! Hold! Hold! is the emphatic cry of the sealing angel. The four winds are mercifully being restrained until God's servants are sealed. However, it is evident that these winds are gradually being released even now and are soon to be unleashed in relentless totality when the wrath of God is finally poured out without mixture upon unrepentant sinners. The enactment of the Mark of the Beast is the event that precipitates God's wrath, and all the world events currently taking place indicate that the long-awaited and foretold of crisis is imminent. Even among those in the world, as they observe the restless relations existing between the nations, see that the world is indeed on the verge of a stupendous crisis. While the four winds, which represent not only devastating calamities/disasters but also the various nations striving for world supremacy, are being held in check, those individuals who will be sealed by God must be in such a condition that they can be trusted with God's seal and anointed to the special work of heralding the final messages of mercy to the world.
At this time, while Satan is inciting the nations to war for the purpose of diverting the minds of God's people from the work of preparation, many of the preachers, teachers, and leaders among God's denominated people are negligent in preparing the flock for the close of probation and the events surrounding it; rather they are preaching/promoting messages of peace and safety. Which of the calls will you heed- the three angels' messages or the popular, smooth messages? Which message will you give both by precept and example? Let us learn from the fate of Jehu the sad lesson of allowing pride to cause our downfall and eternal demise. Once anointed, appointed, and mightily used by God to carry forward a work of reform, Jehu allowed pride and self-love to eventually entice him to commit the very sins that he so vehemently warred against. Let us allow God to anoint us with His seal so that we can be steadfast, unmovable, and fully settled into Christ and His truth, both spiritually and intellectually.
Website: www.prophesyagain.org
Saturday, 05 July 2014
"Are we to wait for the fulfillment of prophecy before we say anything concerning them? Of what value will our words be then?" God's people who are reading and studying Bible prophecy and are being sanctified by the truth should now be warning the masses before the night comes when no man can work. Night represents the general close of probation when Christ's mediatorial work ceases, which means there will no longer be opportunity for man to receive the gospel if he had not done so before. Night also signifies death, which can come at any moment. However, one's personal night (individual close of probation) can come while he/she is yet alive, by the persistent and willful rejection of the pleading voice of the Holy Spirit. Therefore, not only by voice and pen is the world to receive warning that night is almost here, but through the example of a sanctified life and the practical work of medical missionary evangelism. While at the same time we must make sure that we are daily working out our own salvation with fear and trembling, lest while warning others, we become castaways.
It is not at all difficult to discern that midnight is only figurative moments away. Before midnight comes there will be a universal call for "peace and safety" (1 Thessalonians 5:1-7). Many are looking to the Papacy as the voice of peace to solve social ills, moral issues, economic matters, religious divergences, as well as world conflicts between nations. However, while posing as a "man of peace," the Pope, styled as "the King of Fierce Countenance" has another objective in view-- "by peace" he conspires to destroy many—Daniel 8:23-25. This "many" that the Papacy endeavors to destroy is the group that the Papacy views as a viable threat to her supremacy/reemergence; those who will not adhere to her dictates. This group represents the small company of faithful Protestants, God's ten-Commandment-keeping People; true Seventh-day Adventists.
While midnight is hastening greatly, and the Papacy is correspondingly enjoying her resurgence and popularity (noon), God's people must be found working the works of Christ, before midnight comes and no man can work—John 9:4. The specific work that God calls upon His people to be doing is the medical missionary work in conjunction with the heralding of the gospel, in order to open the eyes (literally and spiritually) of the blind Laodiceans, thus leading them to a thorough washing of water and the word to rid themselves of their wretchedness and misery. Let us now heed the admonition given us in Isaiah 60:1 and 2: "Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the Lord is risen upon thee.For, behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the people: but the Lord shall arise upon thee, and his glory shall be seen upon thee."
Website: www.prophesyagain.org
Sunday, 22 June 2014
"We are living in the midst of an 'epidemic of crime.'" The deplorable state of society is evidenced by the daily reports of wars, murders, strikes, bold robberies, assaults, and the prevalence of vice of every kind and degree. It is apparent that the prevailing degradation existing presently mirrors the condition of the world prior to and during Jesus' first advent, the very condition that demanded Christ to send forth his disciples, first the twelve then the seventy, with the gospel commission of healing, teaching, and preaching. Men were possessed and controlled by demons and were merely carrying out the impulses of satanic influences. The sad reality is that while the world is steeped in crime and vice and is rushing madly on to eternal ruin, many of God's people are sitting idly, indifferent of the needs of those who have not the light of truth. Christ is asking of you, "what doest thou here." How is it that you, who have had so many privileges and opportunities, have no concern for the salvation of perishing souls? It is at this time that God is calling upon His people to arouse from their spiritual lethargy and study, live, and present the "tidings from the east and the north," which constitute the sealing message. This is the message that directly precedes the close of human probation and that, if heeded, will prepare a people to stand faithfully during the Great Time of Trouble. We must therefore understand, as did the disciples, that there is an inextricable relationship between the sealing message and medical missionary evangelism; furthermore, we must begin to go forth in the power of God, being faithful in all that we do, in the minor as well as the great tasks. Just as Christ anointed His disciple, the twelve and the seventy, to do His work, and as Elijah anointed Elisha to the gospel ministry, so Christ desires to anoint us to His work. The question is, how will you respond. Will you say as said Isaiah, "Here am I Lord, send me?"
Website: www.prophesyagain.org
