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Ithaca SDA Church

Unlock Revelation

Taylor Hinkle

Passing the Final Test

Father in heaven, we just thank you so much for the privilege of coming together this morning to look at your Word.

We want to see Jesus and his beauty and his character this morning.

And Father, we just pray that as we study and as we look at your word that our hearts would be touched, that we'd be drawn closer to you, that we'd be encouraged to be able to stand through the times that we're living in.

Now how many of you have ever been in school before?

Many of us have been in school, if not all of us.

Now, how many of you were ever given a test in school?

Did you ever get a teacher handing you a test in school?

Now, 1 thing that is so crucial about tests is not only do we have to know that they're coming, but we have to know how to be able to pass them, right?

Now that was an issue for me as a student.

And don't get me wrong, sometimes I didn't even know that.

But I did realize that if a test was coming, there was nothing significant about just knowing that there was a test without knowing the answers that we're going to be on that test.

Now sometimes it may sound foolish, but how often do we know that there's a test coming upon the earth, but instead of looking to the answer to the test of having to be able to go through it, we start to study the person giving the test more.

Now, if you don't know what I'm saying, I'll give you some answers.

If a teacher gives you a test, is it going to help you at all in your time of taking the test if you know where the teacher went to school?

Is that going to help you as you're taking your mathematics test?

Is it going to help you if you know what their favorite color is or what they ate for breakfast or their testing methods?

Well, maybe their testing methods, potentially.

But the reason why I bring this up is a seventh-day Adventist and as Christians this morning We know because of revelation the passage of scripture that we read that there is a test that is coming upon the earth, right?

Would you agree did we all read the same passage of scripture?

It tells us that all both small and great rich and poor bond and free are going to be faced with a test.

And this morning we're not going to be looking at what is that test, but this morning we're going to be looking at what will it take to withstand that crisis.

In other words, how can we be found faithful and by God's grace, how can we make it through that test?

How many of you think that's an important thing to look at?

Oftentimes we can get so caught up in the person that's going to be involved in giving the test.

Or we can be so caught up in the crisis that's going to hit, right, we can read verses that tell us that those who don't obey and have the mark of the beast will be killed, and we get so frightened and we spend so much time staring at that, that we don't understand what it means to be able to stand during that time.

This morning what we're gonna be looking at is how can we withstand the final crisis.

Now, Turn with me to Revelation chapter 13, some of you may still be there from the scripture reading.

And we want to look at some characteristics of this test.

And I want to ask if any other story in the Bible comes to your mind, okay?

And we're going to look at a few passages.

Revelation chapter 13 in verse 3 tells us, and I saw 1 of his heads as it was mortally wounded and his deadly wound was healed.

All the world wandered or marveled and followed the beast.

And they worshiped the dragon who gave him authority to the beast.

And they worshiped the beast, saying, who is like the beast and who is able to make war with him.

We realize that it's a universal problem, right?

That all the world will be faced with this issue.

But not only that, what does verse 8 tell us?

It tells us that all who dwell on the earth will worship him, those whose names have what?

Not been written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.

In other words, even though all the world will be wondering after this power, there will be 2 classes of people, right?

Those who worship the beast and those whose names are written where?

Now how many of you say I want my name in the book of life?

But not only that, look at some of the imagery that comes up.

He was granted power to give breath to the what?

Image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak and cause as many as would not worship the image of the beast to be what?

Now can you think of anywhere else in scripture where there's a universal calling or maybe even in the then known world, everyone was called together, they were called together to worship an image and those who would not worship the image were to be put to death.

What story comes to mind as you think about this?

Daniel chapter 3, and this morning we're gonna see that the story of Daniel chapter 3 and the story of Revelation 13 go hand in hand and we're not looking at what are the understanding the symbols of who these powers are, but we're looking at how can we be faithful by the grace of God to stand to the final triumph, to the final conflict like the boys in Daniel chapter 3 were.

How many of you think that's a good thing?

Let's turn to Daniel chapter 3, and this morning we're gonna be looking at the story of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego.

Now, the church school kids should know this story, right?

The last time we had worship, we talked about Daniel chapter 3.

I see Avriel nodding her head, at least someone was listening.

Daniel chapter 3, and The question is how are we going to be able to stand?

You know, when John the Revelator is looking at the last days of earth's history, you can read it in Revelation 6, in the last verse, it says, "...and the great day of His wrath has come..." And what?

"...and who shall be able to stand?" The question and the focal point of the Christian is not the crisis, but it's the Christ.

Our goal is not to be looking at all the crazy things in the world going on around us, but how is it that God in us can cause us to stand in that time amen Daniel chapter 3 and we're going to get a first glimpse of seeing if the story truly does match up to Revelation chapter 13 Daniel chapter 3 beginning in verse 1 Nebuchadnezzar the king made an image of gold whose height was what?

He set it up in the plain of Dura in the province of Babylon.

And the king Nebuchadnezzar sent word to gather together the satraps, the administrators, the governors, the counselors, the treasurers, the judges, the magistrates, and all the officials of the provinces gathered together for the dedication of the image of King Nebuchadnezzar had set up.

And they stood before the image that King Nebuchadnezzar had set up.

And then a herald cried aloud, To you it is commanded, O people, nations, and languages, that at the time you hear the sound of the horn, the flute, the harp, the lyre, and psaltery, and symphony with all kinds of music, you shall fall down and worship the gold image that King Nebuchadnezzar has set up.

Verse 6, and whoever does not fall down and worship the image shall be cast immediately into the midst of the burning, fiery furnace.

Now, as you read through this section in Daniel chapter 3, does it ring a bell and sound like Revelation chapter 13?

Well, we might want to just say everyone, right?

He calls together the satraps, the administrators, the governors, the counselors, the treasurers, the judges, the magistrates, and all the officials of the province of Babylon." Now it continues on and tells us in verse 4, "...to you it is commanded, who, O people, nations, and languages..." The people who's in the congregation in the time of Babylon are all the people in the then known world.

All the important people are called together for this great celebration.

In golden image which King Nebuchadnezzar had set up.

How to Rejoice in the Midst of Trials

Father in heaven, we just thank you so much for a beautiful Sabbath day, the wonderful sunshine outside, even though it's cool.

And Lord, we thank you for the special time of year where we can remember the goodness and the blessings that you've given to us.

And Father, we really wanna hear from your word this morning.

We want your spirit to speak to our hearts and our minds, and we need you to direct our thoughts and our conversation.

So Father, we pray that you would come and that you would speak to each 1 of us, that you would clear the distractions, and Lord that you would speak clearly.

Thanksgiving is an interesting time to me, first of all because it's probably 1 of my favorite holidays.

I don't know about you, but it's just nice to not have to worry about getting people gifts, but yet being able to get together as family.

And this Thanksgiving, Ariel and I have some great things to be thankful for, 1 of which we're expecting our first child and wanted to let you know, don't hear it from other people if they would have told you don't believe them.

But yes, it's true, we're having our first child May 17, we're excited, and so we're thankful that you can help raise them.

But also, we're thankful for many other things, our family and all the big blessings.

But something that's ironic to me about Thanksgiving is that even though there's great blessings and great joy and it's supposed to be a time where we're praising the great things that God has done, studies show that November and December are the greatest times for depression of any other time in the years.

That during the holiday season, more than any other time, people tend to discouragement and depression and anxiety.

Now, there's many things that contribute to this.

Some of them, they lost family members and it's just not the same without them.

Others lose family members on Thanksgiving.

We lost 1 of our members at Frost, and the family's grieving that loss.

Other people, it's just the routine is messed up, and life comes into play, and it feels like even though it's a time when you should be giving thanks that it's a time when your heart is the heaviest and maybe some of you can relate to that.

I come from a divorced family where it's hard to come together and feel like your family's ever complete for any holiday but in spite of that God still calls us to give thanks, not just on Thanksgiving, but every day of the year.

Now, when I think of Thanksgiving, 1 of the passages that comes to mind most readily is Philippians chapter 4 and verse 4, and this is what was just read for the scripture reading and I would like us to open our Bibles and turn there to Philippians chapter 4 and verse 4 and we're going to spend some time looking at the fourth chapter of Philippians this morning.

Philippians chapter 4 and verse 4, I think if Paul would have written a Thanksgiving letter it would have been the book of Philippians.

More than any other book in the Bible, Philippians talks about rejoicing.

You know Paul says the word rejoice more than any other letter in all of the New Testament, which is shocking to me because it's 1 of the smallest letters that he ever wrote.

But yet Paul is calling people and God is calling people to have an attitude of rejoicing.

Now notice with me Philippians chapter 4 and verse 4.

Now, how many of you have ever read this passage and thought Paul must be so disconnected from reality in order to be able to rejoice continually?

Have any of you been tempted to think that?

How is it possible to be happy all the time?

In order to rejoice, you have to have some things going on in your life, right?

You have to be thankful, you have to be grateful, maybe experiencing peace.

And Paul is telling us that we're supposed to have this attitude of rejoicing continually.

Now, for some of you, you may not be as pessimistic as I am.

For those of you who don't know that, I struggle with seeing the negative side of life.

I struggle with depression for years and different struggles of that nature.

And so often when I would hear this passage, rejoice in the Lord always, and again I say rejoice, I would group it in my mind with the passages in scripture that say pray without ceasing, and other things that I thought were impossible.

And so I would put it all in that basket and just continue out my day and think that it was okay to feel negative.

But what's interesting about this passage is that God is giving us a command or a desire of his, and that is that we would be Rejoicing always.

Now this morning what we're going to look at is how is it possible to rejoice continually, to have this attitude of thanksgiving not just 1 day a year, but how can we have this as a lifestyle where our lives are filled with the joy of Jesus, regardless of what's taking place in our lives.

This morning we're gonna see 3 key elements that Paul talks about of how we can have an attitude of rejoicing even in the midst of difficulty.

Now in order to understand this passage fully, we have to understand the context in which it was written.

Now when we look at the book of Philippians, it's a letter that Paul wrote to the church of Philippi.

And where was Paul when he was writing this letter?

And you see in Philippians chapter 1, verse 7 and 13, that Paul talks about being in chains.

If you were in prison And you were bound by a bunch of people who didn't believe like you did.

Now, we have to think a little bit deeper too.

What was the view of Christians during the time of Paul?

Now, when Paul was in prison, he was imprisoned by a bunch of people that hated Christians.

Now you see the effect of how much they hated Christians.

I have a letter at home that was written from 1 of the local governors to 1 of the Caesars, and he says, I don't know what to do with this Christian problem.

We're doing everything we can to get them to recant their faith, to worship the pagan gods.

And once we have done all that we can, we persecute them to death for their faith.

Now this is the environment that Paul is living in.

He's not just in prison getting his wonderful meals every day, but he's surrounded by people who would be happier if he was dead than if he was living.

And in the midst of this circumstance, Paul is able to write the book in the Bible that we've talked about out of any letter that he's ever written that tells people to rejoice more than any other letter.

You know, 1 Corinthians is quite a bit longer than Philippians, but yet in these 4 short chapters Paul is focusing on rejoicing and thanksgiving to God.

And my question is, how is it possible that Paul, even in the midst of this difficult situation, could have an attitude of rejoicing?

Would you want to be able to be in prison, being able to go through hard experiences, yet rejoicing in the goodness of the Lord?

Well I believe that Paul gives us these 3 key elements so that we too can experience the joy that he had.

Paul doesn't just say rejoice always, and again I say rejoice, Do you see that?

Rejoice in the Lord always, and again I say rejoice.

What's the difference if Paul would have just said, rejoice, and again I say rejoice, right?

You see, Paul, when he's rejoicing, he doesn't say rejoice in circumstances, right?

You don't say rejoice because of your financial situation.

Rejoice because of your family condition.

But instead, Paul says the key to rejoicing is rejoicing in the Lord.

You know, we may look at our lives and say we have absolutely nothing going for us.

Now I would say that's a cognitive distortion, and we'll talk about that a little bit later.

Maybe our family looks like it's falling apart.

Maybe our financial situation looks discouraging.

Maybe work is a terrible place to be, or our teachers just don't like us at school.

Now I know that doesn't happen at this school, okay?

But all of the things could be crumbling down in our lives and we could be thinking, Lord, how is it possible for me to rejoice?

But Paul gives us the very first, and I believe 1 of the most important keys, and that is that we find our joy in Jesus, not in the circumstances around us.

David has a similar experience that he describes.

How to Have a New Start- Part 3: Faith or Feeling

Father in heaven, what a privilege it is to be here this Sabbath.

What a privilege it is to be called your child and to have your word and to read the encouragement that you give to us.

And Father, we just prayed this morning that as we study the Bible together that your spirit would speak to our hearts and our minds, that Lord, you would give us understanding of your word that would speak directly to the different places where we are in life.

Father, we need your spirit to intercede and to guide as we look through this, and so we pray that you would bless and that you would draw us nearer to you and encourage our hearts.

Well this morning we're gonna be looking at the third part of the message series that we started a couple weeks ago of how to have a new start in the Christian life.

I hope you remember, we've been discussing that a little bit.

And 2 weeks ago, we looked at the story of Luke chapter 15 with the prodigal son.

And we looked at the story, and what we found through that study was that God is a God who longs to give us second chances.

And not only does God long to give us second chances, but God longs to transform our lives.

And we looked at the stories of some of the apostles.

We looked at the story of David who was king and fell into sin and the Lord restored him.

We looked at Saul who God restored and made him into Paul the apostle.

And we looked at all these different glimpses of what God's power can do in the life of his people.

Well last week we looked at what is it that can prevent God's blessing from being made a reality in the life and we saw that the Lord not only desires this to happen but in order for it to take place in our lives to give us a new start in Him there must be an attitude of repentance towards God, right?

And we saw that unless we repent with a deep sorrow for sin, and with a turning away from it, the Lord is unable to give us the new start that he longs to give us.

Now we looked at repentance as nothing that we can produce on our own.

And we saw that it's truly just a gift of God, it's the Spirit who helps us to will and to do of His good pleasure.

And this week, we're looking at a new start, faith or feeling.

And the question that we're looking at this morning is how do you know when you have a new life in Jesus?

And I believe that 1 of the reasons why many of us or many people get discouraged in the Christian life is because what they thought was supposed to happen never takes place.

For anyone who's ever gone on a diet or an exercise program, how many of you have ever given up because you didn't get the results you wanted?

I remember watching those commercials for the perfect push-up stands and different things like that.

And I looked at the guy who was doing those push-ups, and I thought, man, for 1999, if I could look like that, you know, that would be absolutely amazing, you know?

And so we start these new things, and we start going through it, but when we realize that what we expected the outcome to be doesn't happen, we begin to face discouragement in the Christian life.

Well, this morning what we're gonna look at is what is it that God promises the new life in Jesus not only will look like, But what will be the experience that we have when the Spirit of God is working in our lives?

And we're going to attempt to do that by starting and looking at Matthew chapter 8, the story of the centurion.

Matthew chapter 8, the scripture reading is where we're beginning this morning.

And we've already read through it, so it's fresh in your minds.

And this is a story that we had an opportunity to talk about at the elementary school this week.

So some of you young people have already heard the story, and you know some of the punchlines.

So don't tell your parents, because they won't listen anymore.

So Matthew chapter 8, beginning in verse 5, we're going to look at the story 1 more time.

Now Jesus had entered Capernaum, and a centurion came to him, pleading with him, saying, Lord, my servant is lying at home, paralyzed and dreadfully tormented.

Now I wanna ask you a question as we start to analyze this story, is who is it that is coming to Jesus?

Now, a centurion, is that someone who's a low-ranking official or who has some authority of that time?

And we read later on in the story where the man says, I tell someone go, and he goes, and come, and he comes.

I wish it was that easy in our lives today right but this man is 1 who had authority and he comes to Jesus and why is he coming to Jesus what is he looking for healing right and not just for himself but he's looking for healing for his servant.

Now are many of us looking for healing as well in our lives?

You know, what's interesting to note is that the word for salvation or healing in scripture, and you might have heard me say this before, is the word sozo in Greek, which actually means the exact same thing, salvation or healing.

And so as we're reading through this story of a man who's looking for physical healing for his servant, could it be that the Lord could give us some instruction of how to have some spiritual healing, or a new start, or a new life in Jesus.

Now we often realize that Jesus connected health and salvation when he communicated to other people that he was healing.

Remember the man who was lowered through the roof by his friends, right?

And they pulled the tiles off and Jesus is there.

And what does Jesus say to this man first?

And then he says, rise, take up your bed and walk.

Well, he doesn't say take up your bed and walk, but he says go home, you've been healed.

But he has this experience of where he's first spiritually healed and then physically healed.

That's all just to say that this process of spiritual healing and physical healing often coincide with how God delivers it.

Now, we often realize in life too, and this is just a caveat, parentheses, that sometimes we don't realize physical healing in this life.

In other words, sometimes we go through physical pain and we don't have that healing experience that we're praying for, but God always gives us spiritual healing.

God never leaves anyone who's looking for a spiritual new start in discouragement, thinking that there's no possibility.

So this man comes to Jesus, looking for healing for his servants.

Now, I wanna ask a question, and this will give us the first understanding for how it is that this man was so confident that this experience was going to take place.

And the question is, why did this man come to Jesus for healing?

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