What is the role of prayer in preparing for the outpouring of the Holy Spirit? Join Mr. Lemon and discover in Scripture the necessity of praying daily for the Promise as you study the work, nature, and power of the Holy Spirit.

GYC 2011: Fill Me

<p>What is the role of prayer in preparing for the outpouring of the Holy Spirit? Join Mr. Lemon and discover in Scripture the necessity of praying daily for the Promise as you study the work, nature, and power of the Holy Spirit.</p>

<p>Free sharing permitted under the Creative Commons <a rel="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/us/">BY-NC-ND 3.0 (US)</a> license.</p>

Generation. Youth. Christ. (GYC)

GYC 2011 Seminar: The Prophetic Significance of the Early and Latter Rain

Dwayne Lemon

What, and Who, Are You Praying For?, Part 1

This message was presented at the GYC 2011 conference.

For other resources like this, visit us online at gycweb.org.

Our Father in heaven, we praise you and we thank you for the privilege and the opportunity to come together as brothers and sisters in Christ.

It is our desire that this will not be another conference.

Lord, we talk so much about finishing the work, but heaven is waiting for somebody to finally do what they say.

And Lord, my hope, my desire, is that through the power of your Holy Spirit, that you will stimulate minds and hearts in these meetings.

Not just this meeting here, Lord, all the meetings, all the different speakers, Lord.

We all consecrate ourselves before you at this time.

Lord, I pray that something dynamic and wonderful beyond our expectations would take place as a result of humanity and divinity becoming 1.

And so we pray, please forgive us of our sins, cleanse us from all unrighteousness, may you truly teach us how to be holy and help us to look to Jesus, the author and the finisher of our faith, for we trust that by beholding him we shall become changed into the same image.

Take our lives and let it be consecrated, Lord, to Thee.

Now, 1 of the things you're going to find is that when you're doing a study like this, our general theme is going to be dealing with the topic preparation for the latter rain.

We're gonna talk about the prophetic significance of the early and latter rain, the outpouring of God's Holy Spirit.

You're gonna find that many scriptures and quotations I'll share with you are things that you perhaps have heard or studied at some point in your life, but by the grace of God, we want to make it all connect, that it can make sense and, most importantly, be practical, because a practical gospel is what God's people need right now, more than anything else.

We need to be able to hear the message in such a way that we can actually apply what we've learned and not just become a bunch of intellectual giants and go from being ignorant sinners to intelligent sinners.

So, therefore, we want to make sure that God can show us how to go from being ignorant sinners to intelligent saints of God.

And so we're going to go ahead and study and we're going to take a look at these topics here and as a movement, God has called us to do something and it's found in Revelation chapter 10.

So I want you to turn your Bibles to the book of Revelation chapter 10.

If you want to understand the very history and foundation of the Seventh-day Adventist church, you will find that while Revelation 12 tells us wonderful things, and while Revelation 14 tells us wonderful things, and while Revelation 18 tells us wonderful things, it is in Revelation chapter 10 where we find our foundation.

And in Revelation the 10th chapter, you'll notice that the Bible tells us something.

It was after the great disappointment that we understand to have taken place in what year?

Now, this is where Revelation 10, it talks about sweet in the mouth bitter in the belly It was an amazing experience for God's people.

They were going through a wonderful time.

They thought Jesus was going to come He did not come and then after they realized Jesus did not come they went through a horrific Disappointment, but you know the story after that disappointment.

They were able to come out of it by searching the Scriptures again.

And when they searched the Scriptures, they began to see that they did make a mistake.

They misunderstood that term cleansing the sanctuary.

They thought the sanctuary was the earth, but as a result of study directed by God's Spirit, they realized that the sanctuary was not earth, but that there was a sanctuary where?

And as they looked into that sanctuary and they began to see that in that most holy place there was that wonderful ark that contained the law of God and that's how they came to an understanding that God is calling us in these last days to keep his commandments to fear God and keep his commandments.

For this is the whole duty of man and when they came to that understanding they no longer were just in the experience of the first and second angels message but now they began to understand the third angels message and so Revelation 10 and verse 11 clearly says as they understood this God now brought to their attention where he says in verse 11 read it with me and he said unto me thou must do what Prophesy again before many peoples and nations and tongues and kings.

And so it is that now we are no longer simply living in the time of the first and second angels message but we are especially living in the time of the what?

And so we are now in that time of the wonderful herald of the third angel's message which we will see encompasses the first and the second.

Now I want you to go ahead and look at me look with me to Revelation 14.

In Revelation the 14th chapter we're going to just briefly look over that third angel's message because you're going to find that that's the focus.

You're going to find that that's the focus that third angel's message and remember the third angel's message does not negate the first 2, it is inclusive of the first 2.

So when we talk about the third angel's message, we're not talking about excluding the other 2, amen?

Many of us, I'm sure, can repeat it, but what's more important than repeating Scripture is experiencing Scripture.

The Bible says in Revelation 14 9 it says we can read it together it says and the third angel follow them saying with a loud voice if any man worship the beast in his image and receive his mark in his forehead or in his hand the same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his indignation and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the lamb, and the smoke of their torment ascendeth up forever and ever, and they have no rest day nor night who worship the beast in his image and whosoever receiveth the mark of his name.

Here are they that keep the commandments of God and have the faith of Jesus.

It should be yours and my determination to be counted amongst that number.

Now, understanding that the third angel's message, this is the herald that is to go out, and we just looked at it in brief.

But I want you to see something now in Revelation 13 that gives us a little bit more of a picture of what this third angel was talking about.

In Revelation 13, we now go to verse 1, where the Bible lets us know something.

Remember, in Revelation 13 verses 1 to 3, we're going to see something.

The Bible says, And I stood upon the sand of the sea, And I saw a beast rise up out of the sea, having 7 heads and 10 horns, and upon his horns 10 crowns, and upon his head the name of Blasphemy.

And the beast which I saw was like unto a leopard, and his feet were as the feet of a bear, and his mouth as the mouth of a lion.

And the dragon gave him his power and his seed and great authority." Now look at verse 3.

Verse 3 says, "...and I saw 1 of his heads as it were, " what?

It says, "...the deadly wound was healed." And how many?

It says, "...all the world wondered after the beast." Now brothers and sisters, I don't know about you, but that's startling.

Because for John to say all the world wondered after the beast, based on my understanding of all, that means every single 1 of you are going to get the mark of the beast, including me.

Now this is strange, because you have a third angel's message that's telling everybody don't receive the mark but then you have John under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit saying that all the world is going to wonder after the beast so my question is how do we reconcile these 2 There's 2 numbers we're gonna all be counted amongst.

We're either gonna be counted amongst those who wonder after the beast, or those who keep the commandments of God and have the faith of Jesus.

So 1 of the first things that I need to know is how can I make sure that I'm not part of that all that will wander after the beast?

Don't you think that that should be a burden?

I don't care if you're 10 years old or 100 years old.

That should be the great burden of every single 1 of us.

Lord, How can I make sure I'm not part of those who wander after the beast, but I'm part of those who keep the commandments of God and have the faith of Jesus?

Now, how can you make sure you're not part of those who wander after the beast?

And If somebody were to ask you the question, how can you biblically explain who is it that's really gonna wander after the beast, and then that way understand how I can biblically not wander after the beast?

If somebody were to ask you that question, have you ever thought about this question?

But we know that there needs to be an experience amongst God's people where we do not wonder.

You see, it's kind of like when, you know, a husband and wife get into a disagreement.

And when the husband and wife get into a disagreement, they get to a point where either the husband or the wife shares to 1 or the other and says, dear, honey, or whatever terms of endearment that you use, they say, dear, you always do that.

Now, when that husband says, honey, you always do that, Or when the wife says, honey, you always do that.

What, and Who, Are You Praying For?, Part 2

Our Father in heaven, we once again praise you and thank you for the privilege and the opportunity to hear heaven speak to our hearts.

And Lord, we're just simply coming before you as your son David did, where he said, open thou mine eyes and help me to behold wondrous things out of your law.

We're not looking necessarily for new startling truths.

We just want to embrace the old truths that we already know but are still not living And Lord, I just pray that your spirit will do something in us that man cannot do in and of himself We thank you that though We will seek by might or by power But it's only by your spirit that these things can be accomplished so we pray in the very words of Jesus our Savior where he said not my will but thy will be done bless us now and abide with us we pray and thank you for hearing our prayer for we ask it all in Jesus name amen all right we are in the book.

We just want to look at it again 1 more time.

We can make sure that our hearts are prepared as we go through this study here.

Now, I want us to look back at Luke 21 because it's the crux of what our mission is.

And I want you to see how the Bible spells this out in Luke 21 and verse 36.

Well once again it says unto us, and let's read it together if you don't mind, Watch ye therefore and pray always that ye may be accounted worthy to escape all these things that shall come to pass and to stand before the Son of Man." That's the focus.

Now, 1 of the reasons why the doctrine of the investigative judgment is so logical is because God just made it clear, the only people who are going to make it into heaven are those who are accounted worthy.

And in order to be accounted worthy, your life has to be investigated.

The only way someone can be accounted worthy is their life has to be looked at.

Their life has to be investigated so that God can make a proper judgment.

So therefore, it is imperative because God says that once I make my final judgment, I wanna make sure that all creation is in harmony with me.

Now, if it was just simply up to God, God could do it all on his own and he knows everything, so it's no problem.

But God knows that there's a whole universe that's beholding and he wants to make sure that there are no question marks above the top of anyone's head when he executes his final judgment.

And God therefore lays it out and he says, I'm gonna have an investigative judgment.

We're gonna look at everyone and make sure that they are accounted worthy.

Now I started to look up the term accounted worthy.

Do you know that the word worthy means entirely deserving?

So God is saying that when I look at my people I want to be able to look at their lives and I want to see that they are entirely deserving to stand before me.

Now I don't know about you, but when I look back just at the past 24, 48 hours, 72 hours, the past week, the past month, the past year, I can say a lot of things about my life, but I cannot say that I've been entirely deserving.

God is saying the only people who will be able to stand before the Son of Man, the only people who will be able to stand true to me during the investigative judgment, the only people that will be able to do this and ultimately receive the reward, are those who I can look at and I can say, not man can say, because man will pray that which is abominable.

God says this, when I can say entirely deserving, when I can look at someone and say that, then it's all right to bring them home.

And the reason why this becomes so solemn, brothers and sisters, is go to the book of Matthew, chapter 7.

You know, I told you earlier that, you know, I gave some quotes from the Spirit of Prophecy.

Now I've learned that the writings of Ellen White are like a magnifying glass.

They simply make clearer that which was already in the Bible.

Now, you'll find that when you look at the Bible, when you look at the writings of Sister White, and you see the statements that she makes, Even when she says, like volume 5, 136, at the time when the majority forsake us, or when you look at Great Controversy 608, large class are going to turn to the beast.

When you look at volume 1 of the testimonies, 608 as well, and it talks about how just like the children of Israel where there was only the 2 who came in of the original group, so shall it be with those of us who makes it, over and over and over again, when I read the spirit of prophecy, I see that it's not gonna be a majority that's gonna make it.

God wants everybody to be saved But God is not arbitrary God does not force people to obey He has to let people make their own decisions But I've learned that all those quotations from the Spirit of Prophecy can be found right here in Matthew 7.

In Matthew the 7th chapter, notice how the Bible said it.

This is where I believe, at least 1 of the verses, where Sister White got all of these wonderful statements from.

In Matthew the 7th chapter, notice what the Bible says.

Now we're going to look at verses 21 to 23 first.

It's a great day of embarrassment because there's nothing worse than when you go to somebody and you act like you know them and then they don't know you.

I always reflect back when I was in the hip-hop industry and I used to go ahead and meet all sorts of celebrities and when I would meet them, some of them I didn't know.

But, you know, because I was in a high-profile area as a dancer and choreographer, I said, well, I got to act like I know them so that way all my friends can see me and say, wow, Dwayne knows everybody, you know, and all that stuff.

So I would go up to certain people, hey, what's going on?

And they would literally just, do I know you?

And you know, they did the head thing and everything.

Imagine so many people going to Jesus Jesus spelt it out like this in verse 21 Matthew 7 it says not everyone that saith unto Me Lord Lord shall enter into the kingdom of heaven.

But he that doeth the will of my Father, which is in heaven, many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name?

That's not worldlings that's gonna say this.

This is religious people, church people, people who profess to follow Christ.

They said, have we not prophesied in thy name, and in thy name have cast out devils, and in thy name done many wonderful works, and then will I profess unto them, I never knew you.

And you know, it's 1 thing if Jesus says, I don't know you.

Do you know that that's the saddest statement that can come from the list of Jesus?

How can a God who knows everything look at creation in the eyes and say I never knew you?

People who actually think they're walking with Jesus and are not.

This is why the time of the investigative judgment calls for the most deepest heart searching, brothers and sisters.

Try me and know my thoughts and see if there be any wicked way in me.

And if there is, lead me in the way everlasting.

Now brothers and sisters, you ever been jealous?

Do you remember how you behaved over that thing you're jealous about?

Now we typically think about male and female when we think of jealousy.

And if it's a man and some guy looks like he's even sneaking to try to talk to his woman, that brother can have a fire start burning in him.

He becomes jealous and he says you better take a step back.

I might I might just consider being physical.

In other words when you're jealous you're almost ready to go at any length to protect that thing that you prize.

Gospel Workers page 100 says, guard jealously your time for prayer, the searching of the scriptures, and the examination of your heart.

You know what's supposed to guard jealously time for heart examination.

God says the reason why is because your heart is deceitful, above all things and desperately wicked.

And Matthew 7 proves that God is right because there will be a great majority that are gonna think They're all right when they were all wrong.

They're gonna be stricken with that disease of Laodicea.

I'm rich, I'm increased with goods, and I have need of nothing.

And they did not understand that they were wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked.

The Sanctuary and the Early and Latter Rains, Part 1

Our Father in Heaven, we praise you and thank you Lord for the privilege and the opportunity to study together, to learn more of your wonderful word of truth, to receive the outpouring of your Holy Spirit through the early and the latter rain.

I pray that you'll please give us understanding, please forgive us of our sins, and that you will open our eyes, help us to behold wondrous things out of your law.

We thank you, Lord, for hearing this prayer, for we ask it all in Jesus' name.

Now, you know, there's a topic of the early and the latter rain that you find throughout the Bible.

And 1 of the things I want to encourage you to do, if we were doing a class and if I was, you know, working with you all as students, 1 of the things that would be your assignment is you would have to find everywhere in the Bible that the word rain is used.

And you would have to look for everywhere in the Bible that the word showers are used.

And you have to look in the Bible to find every time the word do is used.

And what you would do is you would take all these different words, rain, showers, do, and so on, and you would find out, well, what do they mean?

Do any of those verses apply to the Holy Spirit?

Now, if someone were to ask you, where in the Bible do we even find, like, where do we find that the Holy Spirit is referred to as rain?

If someone were to even ask you that question, is there a Bible verse that could help us understand that the Holy Spirit is referred to as rain?

Now, let's go to the book of Isaiah chapter 44.

In Isaiah the 44th chapter, this is a great example and I like it.

If it is found, you know, if it can be found in the Bible, then we obviously want to express it from there.

Now, rain, showers, waters, dew, all of these different words and terminologies you'll find are referenced to the Spirit.

Now, is God down here or is God up there?

So he's not here with us, quote-unquote, his very presence is up or above us, right?

Now you'll find there's a reason why I'm asking you this specifically.

I know that God's Spirit can dwell within us and I'm not negating that.

In Isaiah 44, notice what the Bible says in verse 3.

Now, how do you know the Lord is talking?

So, verse 2 shows us that, thus saith the Lord.

Now, if God is above us, then if God is way above us, beyond the earthly heaven or beyond the atmospheric heaven, beyond the starry heaven, if God's way up in paradise and then He says, I will pour water down to you.

When water is poured from top to bottom, what do we call that in the common vernacular?

Alright so God says for I will pour water upon him that is thirsty and floods upon the dry ground And now God begins to explain more clearly what this water or floods are all about in the next statement.

Pour my spirit upon thy seed and my blessing upon thine offspring So you find that God will use terms like water he'll use terms like rain he'll use terms like do he use terms like showers He uses all these different types of terms to basically teach us lessons about his Holy Spirit.

So God tells us, all right, I'm gonna go ahead and I'm gonna pour down rain.

Now there are other verses that we can go to.

I'll leave them out to 2 or 3 witnesses, so let it be established.

And when we look at Joel chapter 2, and you'll find that the reason why this is so important is because again, there's something called Adventist language.

Which basically means that because we spend so much time around 1 another that we start to talk the language of our movement.

You know, I say 1844, you know exactly what I'm thinking.

If I go to most of your homes and if I wanted to find out what's the security code on your house, 1844.

So, 7 Day Adventists could probably have a lot of success breaking into seven-day Adventist homes.

We have a language, we have a lingo, we have ways that we communicate with each other and we use certain expressions and terms.

But what we want to do is we want to be able to always remember that our expressions and our terms should be Bible-based.

We want to do all that we can that if we were ever asked the question, where in the Bible does it even talk about the Holy Spirit being equated to rain?

You and I should be able to say, oh turn to this page or turn to this book, turn to this verse, turn to this chapter.

We should be able to direct, is that right?

So don't take Adventist lingo for granted.

When the time comes that you want to talk about the remnant, When time come when you want to talk about early latter rain or any of these topics, you should be able to open up your Bible and walk people right through it and show them, here's where it is right here.

Now, in the book of Joel chapter 2, you find that the Bible says in verse 23, be glad then ye children of Zion and rejoice in the Lord your God for he has given you the what?

The former rain moderately and he will cause to come down for you the rain.

The former rain and the latter rain and when's he gonna do it?

He says, And it shall come to pass afterward that I will pour out my Spirit upon all flesh, and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, and your young men shall see visions.

So in verse 23, he says, I'm gonna pour down former ladder rain.

In verse 28, he says, I'm gonna pour out my spirit.

And then when we go to the book of Acts chapter 2, where the spirit of God came down on Pentecost, Peter says this is a confirmation of what Job was talking about.

So therefore we have the witnesses in the Bible that we can clearly see that this rain clearly can be represented as what?

That's going to be something we're going to have to study out, right?

We're going to be studying that throughout the remainder of our sessions together.

Because remember, we need to understand the time of rain.

Well, let's go to Ecclesiastes 3, 1 first, and then we'll go to Deuteronomy 11.

So Ecclesiastes 3, 1, And then we'll go to Deuteronomy 11.

And then we'll go to Deuteronomy the 11th chapter.

I remember 1 time I was doing a health meeting, a health lecture, and I was talking about times to eat and times to drink.

And I said, did you know that the Bible teaches us principles about times to eat and times to drink?

And they said, well how do you figure that?

Series

GYC 2011 Seminar: The Prophetic Significance of the Early and Latter Rain

What, and Who, Are You Praying For?, Part 1

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