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Ithaca SDA Church

Unlock Revelation

Taylor Hinkle

Passing the Final Test

How to Rejoice in the Midst of Trials

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

Our Greatest Need

Lifting Up Jesus

1. Our Day in Bible Prophecy

2. The Master Key to Bible Prophecy

3. The War Behind All Wars

4. Unfolding the Revelation

5. Revelation’s Global Peace Plan

6. Revelation’s Eternal Sign

7. History’s Greatest Religious Cover-up

8. Revelation’s Time of the End

9. The Mystery of Death

10. Revelation’s 1000 Years

11. Revelation’s Lake of Fire

12. A Thief in the Night

13. Babylon Rising

14. Buried and Forgotten by God

15. The Mark of the Beast

16. US in Bible Prophecy

17. The 144,000

18. The Scarlet Woman

19. Back From the Wilderness

20. The Unpardonable Sin

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.

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Series

Unlock Revelation

Passing the Final Test

Transcript

Parent Series

Sponsor

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