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Advent Productions

Benjamin Ng

Sensationalism or Conviction

Father in heaven, thank you so much that we have this opportunity to come and study your word again.

Lord, help us to see things new and old from the scriptures this morning.

And more than anything else, May you bring conviction and conversion upon our hearts we pray this morning.

The title of my sermon this morning is Sensationalism or Conviction?

We are continuing our study in the 7 churches and I just felt impressed to give it a different title because This is what we're going to be seeing here this morning, but let's jump straight into the scripture, shall we?

Starting there in Revelation 3, and verse 7.

And to the angel of the church in Philadelphia write, These things saith he that is holy, he that is true, he that hath the key of David, he that openeth and no man shutteth, and shutteth and no man openeth.

Next week we'll be looking at that last church, the Church of Laodicea, which is the most famous of all of them.

But here we're looking at that Church of Philadelphia.

And the Church of Philadelphia, the word Philadelphia just simply means brotherly love and it refers to that time period from 1833 to 1844.

And though it is in the past, we are going to see how this church relates to each and every 1 of us.

We've already seen in the Church of Sardis when it ended in 1833, we already saw judgment language coming up and we'll see more of this in the Church of Philadelphia.

He that is holy, He that is true, He that hath the key of David, He that opens and no man shuts, and shuts and no man opens.

Well, let's start with that holy and true.

In Revelation 6 and verse 10, The Bible says this, and they cried with a loud voice saying, How long, O Lord, holy and true.

Dost thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth.

Well, in Reveille, pardon me, Isaiah 22 and verse 22, this is what the Bible says, And the key of the house of David will I lay upon his shoulder, so he shall open and none shall shut, and he shall shut and none shall open.

And this seems kind of elementary and obvious but the key of David is the key to his house.

And well, what is the house of David connected with?

For there are set thrones of judgment, the thrones of the house of David.

So what is the house of David connected with?

And what are those thrones connected with?

Somehow we see Jesus introduced to the church of Philadelphia and there in those words that are described about holy and true, having the key of David, it is all connected with judgment.

God is going to judge and no 1 can do anything about it.

When He opens that door, no man can close it, and when He closes that door, no man can open it.

Well, only Christ has the authority to judge people.

Because we have a fair judge who understands what we have gone through.

It's not that he's not fair or just at all.

Of course he is, but he's never become human.

He doesn't understand what the human frailties are all about.

He doesn't understand from our perspective.

He can't empathize with us like Jesus can.

In Hebrews chapter 4 and verse 15 and 16 we are told that we have not a high priest which cannot be touched with the feelings of our infirmities but was in all points tempted like as we are yet without sin.

Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.

Yes, a throne where a king sits upon who judges us, we can go boldly to the throne of grace, the throne of God, and what will we find?

We will find mercy to help us in time of need.

We have a high priest, a judge, who can give us that help, and he is more than willing to because he understands what we're going through.

And so even though Jesus is going to judge, he's still extending help to each and every 1 of us.

But do you know in Revelation, there is mentioned another key.

In Revelation chapter 1 and verse 18, the Bible says, I am he that liveth and was dead and behold I am alive forevermore.

Friends, Jesus has the keys of hell and death.

When Christ judges, He has the power to determine who will be saved and who will be lost.

We don't need to worry about what people will think about us and what they will do to us.

What matters most is what Christ thinks and how He will judge us because His judgment is determining future eternal life for either damnation, eternal damnation, or eternal life in heaven.

He has the keys to each and every 1 of our lives and he has a key that is able to open a door which no man can shut, and shut another door which no man can open." Look at what inspiration talks about these doors that are opening and shutting.

Spirit of Prophecy, Volume 4, 268, paragraph 3.

But clearer light came with the investigation of the sanctuary question.

Now we're seeing the application of those words of Christ in the Revelation addressed to the Church at this very time, and that is in Revelation 3, 7, and 8, which is what we're looking at.

Here an open as well as a shut door is brought to view.

At the termination of the 2300 prophetic days in 1844, Christ changed his ministration from where?

When in the ministration of the earthly sanctuary, the high priest on the Day of Atonement entered the Most Holy Place, the door of the Holy Place was closed, and the door of the Most Holy was opened.

So when Christ passed from the Holy to the Most Holy of the heavenly sanctuary, the door or ministration of the former apartment was closed, and the door or ministration of the latter was opened.

Christ had ended 1 part of His work as Our intercessor to enter upon another portion of the work, and he still presented his blood before the Father in behalf of sinners.

Friends, this is really the foundation of our faith.

Pardon me, I should say central pillar of our faith.

The 2, 300 days doctrine found in Daniel chapter 8.

This is what sets us apart from the rest of Christendom.

It is the doctrine of the investigative judgment.

Christ, He moves from the holy place to the most holy place of the heavenly sanctuary.

He's about to start examining records and He's a beginning to judge.

If you're not familiar with that, then please reach out.

Reach out, especially if you're here in Malaysia, in KL.

Reach out and let me know, because that means we've got to sit down and we've got to study together, because this doctrine, this understanding is so interesting and so important to us.

He began for us already to judge in 1844.

In 1 Peter 4, verse 17, the Bible says, For the time is come that judgment must begin, where?

And if it first begin at us, what shall be the end of them that obey not the gospel of God." Friends, the judgment will begin at the house of God.

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