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Advent Productions

Benjamin Ng

The Laodicean Dilemma

Father in heaven, Lord I want to thank you for this time that we have.

Thank you Lord for this the internet that we can connect with each other and even though we're far from each other Lord I know that you're close to us for there's no place that we can run that you're not there and so Father please now I pray that you'd grace us with thy presence no matter where we are in this world as we're listening that you'd speak to our hearts this morning and guide us O Lord we pray in Jesus name amen I'd like to invite you to turn with me in your Bibles to Revelation chapter 3.

This is something new that has spoken to my heart, and maybe it might not be new to you as I'm sharing it, but it definitely spoke to my heart this past week or 2 since I've been teaching Revelation.

And we're looking at the most famous church of the 7 churches.

We're going to start there this morning and please turn your Bibles with me to there as we follow along, we read along as we study and For the SALT students, I apologize if you're listening to this again.

I pray that you'll be blessed even though it is the second time you're listening to it.

But as we studied conversion class at the beginning of this year, we were still together there in January, and I went through this ladder that we see in Laodicea, is a little different to how I'm seeing it today.

And so I just wanted to share with you this perspective about our church and the time period that we're living in.

And unto the angel of the church of the Laodiceans write, You know, the word Laodicea does not mean lukewarm.

The word Laodicea is a people judged and certainly since 1844 this church has been in judgment.

Jesus has moved from the holy to the most holy place and there he started the work of investigative judgment.

But the way that Jesus introduces himself here in Revelation 3, verse 14, is by 3 names.

And we hear this word amen in reference to prayer.

And so when you say amen you're agreeing to what I'm saying or agreeing for it to be done and when we pray amen somehow it gives us this connotation that Jesus is about to answer the last prayers of his people.

Almost as if alluding to the fact that the people in this time more than any other time have to pray.

Pray that the Holy Spirit would give us an understanding of his Word.

If not, friends, we will never finish the work here on this earth.

But then it says, he is the faithful and true witness.

What does it mean to be a faithful and true witness.

Let's go over to Proverbs chapter 14 and verse 5.

Let's follow along in our Bible shall we?

What does it mean to be a faithful and true witness?

The Bible says here, a faithful witness will not lie, but a false witness will utter lies.

Well, that is kind of obvious, but you know, if a friend comes to you and tells you, hey, I got to tell you something.

The fact that they say this, it means that something is really important.

Something they're about to tell you is really, really important.

And the fact that Jesus says, look, I'm a faithful and a true witness.

What I'm about to tell you is really important.

Jesus calls Himself a faithful and true witness.

But in John 5 39 the Bible says this, Search the Scriptures for in them ye think ye have what?

And these are they, they are they which what?

What testifies or witnesses of Jesus Christ?

And Jesus says look the word that I speak to you, this will not lie.

Almost to seem to imply that in these days, people really don't believe in Sola Scriptura, which is what we studied in our Sabbath School lesson just 30 minutes ago.

It almost seems so pliable that we have to be reminded that the Bible is true.

That the Scriptures really tell us about Jesus and everything written in there is true.

Interesting that Jesus has to tell us this and remind us about this.

But this is the introduction that He's given to the 7 churches.

And 1 more, He is the beginning of the creation of God.

Friends, this does not mean that He was created.

When it talks about the beginning of the creation of God, we know that Jesus was involved in creation.

All you have to do is go to that scripture song we sing in 2nd Corinthians chapter 4 verse 6.

For God who commanded the light to shine out of darkness have shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of what?

And then all you have to do is go to John 1, verse 1, in the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and the Word was God and what?

So Jesus, He is the beginning of the creation of God.

All 3, the Godhead, were involved in creation.

The Holy Spirit was hovering upon the face of the waters, it says there in Genesis chapter 1, and God spoke, and that was not only Jesus, but it was the Father.

They spoke all these things that we enjoy today in nature into existence.

Why is the attention drawn back to being the beginning of the creation of God?

Well, you see, what does this have to do with being a faithful witness, friends?

There is 1 thing that is connected with the creation of God.

Really there are 2 things, but the 1 that we focus on in Revelation is the Sabbath.

The other thing that God blessed at creation was marriage.

And really these 2 institutions are under attack today.

The Sabbath more than anything else, but even marriage with gay marriage coming in and all the legalization of all these things, marriage is definitely being defiled today.

We're also going to see this next week, okay?

But the Sabbath is the crowning act of God's creation and somehow Jesus introduces Himself to our church, our time in these 3 areas.

He's gonna answer the prayers of the saints.

Somehow people are gonna stop believing the word of God and start believing traditions.

And there's 1 tradition that is believed above all others, it is Sunday worship, Sunday sacredness.

The Sabbath above all things is the heart of the controversy here in the book of Revelation.

Why does the devil hate the Sabbath so much?

It is because that is the 1 commandment that identifies who the true God is.

Look, you can worship me as a God but it doesn't mean that I'm the true God.

The Sabbath says that the true God made heaven and earth.

He made it in 6 days and He rested on the Sabbath.

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The Laodicean Dilemma

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