1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:12,340 We've said that if you come seven times, seven nights, then you'll have a book, Understanding 2 00:00:12,340 --> 00:00:14,820 Daniel and Revelation, that we'll be giving out. 3 00:00:14,820 --> 00:00:17,020 So this is night four. 4 00:00:17,020 --> 00:00:18,020 Some have been here every night. 5 00:00:18,020 --> 00:00:20,140 A couple have missed one night. 6 00:00:20,140 --> 00:00:24,180 And after tonight, when do we meet next? 7 00:00:24,180 --> 00:00:25,660 Thursday night. 8 00:00:25,660 --> 00:00:29,740 So we're going to take some nights off. 9 00:00:29,740 --> 00:00:37,660 You can rest and relax and do some yard work or whatever you might need to do. 10 00:00:37,660 --> 00:00:42,720 Or just sleep a little bit earlier, if that'll work. 11 00:00:42,720 --> 00:00:48,580 And we'll be back here on Thursday at what time? 12 00:00:48,580 --> 00:00:49,900 Seven p.m. 13 00:00:49,900 --> 00:00:55,260 And so as we've gathered three nights now, we've talked about signs of the times. 14 00:00:55,260 --> 00:00:59,000 We talked about the image of Daniel chapter two. 15 00:00:59,000 --> 00:01:04,860 We talked about the battle between the devil and between Jesus Christ. 16 00:01:04,860 --> 00:01:07,740 And we choose which side we're going to be on. 17 00:01:07,740 --> 00:01:15,240 We talked about the second coming and what that's going to be like, some way that Jesus 18 00:01:15,240 --> 00:01:16,860 will come. 19 00:01:16,860 --> 00:01:18,780 And so we're going to continue on tonight. 20 00:01:18,780 --> 00:01:22,060 We're going to look at America under attack. 21 00:01:22,060 --> 00:01:24,500 Now did we pass out new? 22 00:01:24,500 --> 00:01:26,680 Okay, you've got a new card. 23 00:01:26,680 --> 00:01:32,020 So if you have any questions, we didn't have any questions for today, but if you have any 24 00:01:32,020 --> 00:01:34,740 questions, write those on there. 25 00:01:34,740 --> 00:01:39,700 If you have any prayer requests, we've been praying for different things, for family members, 26 00:01:39,700 --> 00:01:40,700 for sickness. 27 00:01:40,700 --> 00:01:44,820 We know there's so many things to be praying for in our world today. 28 00:01:44,820 --> 00:01:49,220 So feel free to put that on there as well. 29 00:01:49,220 --> 00:01:54,860 And let's bow our heads and we'll get right started and carry on. 30 00:01:54,860 --> 00:01:56,300 Dear God, we thank you so much. 31 00:01:56,300 --> 00:01:58,340 For all that you do for us. 32 00:01:58,340 --> 00:02:01,540 We thank you for bringing us through this weekend. 33 00:02:01,540 --> 00:02:07,380 And we know that there's work that people will be going to tomorrow and maybe school. 34 00:02:07,380 --> 00:02:11,760 But I know also that some schools have fall break, so maybe some young people can have 35 00:02:11,760 --> 00:02:13,460 some days off. 36 00:02:13,460 --> 00:02:17,620 But Lord, I just pray that you'll be with us as we open up your word, that you'll help 37 00:02:17,620 --> 00:02:23,340 us to know more about you and to know you better and that you will continue to guide 38 00:02:23,340 --> 00:02:25,780 us and change us and change our heart. 39 00:02:25,780 --> 00:02:27,180 In your name we pray. 40 00:02:27,180 --> 00:02:28,180 Amen. 41 00:02:28,180 --> 00:02:32,700 So tonight's topic is about the law that anti-Christ hates. 42 00:02:32,700 --> 00:02:39,500 We're going to look at things here as we get started that I don't like to talk about, except 43 00:02:39,500 --> 00:02:43,100 there are things that happen all too frequently. 44 00:02:43,100 --> 00:02:48,260 You can go back to Valentine's Day. 45 00:02:48,260 --> 00:02:59,100 This is in Pittsburgh on a Jewish synagogue and a stranger burst in with some different 46 00:02:59,100 --> 00:03:04,460 firearms and people tried to barricade themselves in the closets. 47 00:03:04,460 --> 00:03:10,100 Call 911 and before that event was through, 11 different people were shot. 48 00:03:10,100 --> 00:03:14,360 11 people were killed and 6 people were wounded. 49 00:03:14,360 --> 00:03:20,400 And then it was Valentine's Day in Parkland, Florida and people perhaps had love on their 50 00:03:20,400 --> 00:03:25,260 mind except for at the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School. 51 00:03:25,260 --> 00:03:28,140 Once again, firearms. 52 00:03:28,140 --> 00:03:35,300 Once again, many people were harmed and killed as one person pulled the fire alarm and so 53 00:03:35,300 --> 00:03:43,140 as students and teachers flocking the hallways, people shot and within 6 minutes, 17 people 54 00:03:43,140 --> 00:03:48,620 are killed and 17 more are wounded and families are devastated. 55 00:03:48,620 --> 00:03:53,980 And it became the deadliest high school shooting in US history. 56 00:03:53,980 --> 00:03:58,220 2017 in Las Vegas at the Mandalay Bay Hotel. 57 00:03:58,220 --> 00:04:04,820 A gentleman rented a room, a 64 year old begun to carry, once again, all kinds of different 58 00:04:04,820 --> 00:04:08,820 weapons up there and people didn't notice. 59 00:04:08,820 --> 00:04:20,020 The day came when down below the hotel was a music festival and shots began to rain out 60 00:04:20,020 --> 00:04:29,860 on October 1st in 2017 and in just 10 minutes, over 1100 rounds were shot and 58 people were 61 00:04:29,860 --> 00:04:36,740 killed and over 400 were injured and as people were fleeing and running, hundreds more got 62 00:04:36,740 --> 00:04:39,300 injured and stampede. 63 00:04:39,300 --> 00:04:45,620 The motive was unclear and this became the deadliest mass shooting by an individual in 64 00:04:45,620 --> 00:04:47,100 US history. 65 00:04:47,100 --> 00:04:51,460 And of course, you can go back just a few weeks right here in Georgia, just outside 66 00:04:51,460 --> 00:04:57,700 of Atlanta, another high school, 4 people shot, 4 people killed. 67 00:04:57,700 --> 00:05:03,380 And we wish that we could say these are isolated incidents, that it's a rare thing. 68 00:05:03,380 --> 00:05:05,520 It doesn't happen often. 69 00:05:05,520 --> 00:05:11,480 But if I said that, you would know that I wasn't telling the truth because you watch 70 00:05:11,480 --> 00:05:19,200 the news, you read the newspapers and we know that crimes like this are happening on a regular 71 00:05:19,200 --> 00:05:24,780 basis and not just that type of crime, but you can look at statistics. 72 00:05:24,780 --> 00:05:33,740 That there's over a million violent crimes every year, over 250,000 robberies take place. 73 00:05:33,740 --> 00:05:37,820 A burglary occurs every 13 seconds. 74 00:05:37,820 --> 00:05:44,460 10 million people in this country are abused. 75 00:05:44,460 --> 00:05:46,540 Statistics are horrific. 76 00:05:46,540 --> 00:05:53,100 That's every 20, every minute, 20 people for some type of abuse. 77 00:05:53,100 --> 00:06:00,700 In fact, over 400,000 people are victims of some type of sexual abuse. 78 00:06:00,700 --> 00:06:04,340 And then there's blue collar crime and white collar crime. 79 00:06:04,340 --> 00:06:06,740 There's dishonesty and corruption. 80 00:06:06,740 --> 00:06:12,820 And people that we're supposed to trust lie to us on a continual basis. 81 00:06:12,820 --> 00:06:18,180 Pornography is a multimillion dollar business. 82 00:06:18,180 --> 00:06:20,860 About half of marriages end in divorce. 83 00:06:20,860 --> 00:06:25,500 And the statistics could go on and on and on. 84 00:06:25,500 --> 00:06:32,500 But society in America does not seem to be getting better, but it seems to be getting 85 00:06:32,500 --> 00:06:33,500 worse. 86 00:06:33,500 --> 00:06:40,660 It seems as if these problems are increasing in frequency and in scope and in multitude. 87 00:06:40,660 --> 00:06:47,060 And it seems like while technology is advancing in many ways, that morals in our nations seem 88 00:06:47,060 --> 00:06:51,760 to be plummeting to even lower levels. 89 00:06:51,760 --> 00:06:56,300 And we can wonder why, and we can say what is going on. 90 00:06:56,300 --> 00:07:03,100 And we can see that the Bible prophecy not only predicted this, but it gives some explanation 91 00:07:03,100 --> 00:07:05,620 and can give even some hope. 92 00:07:05,620 --> 00:07:08,980 So we're going to start today and go to a book of the Bible that we haven't gone to 93 00:07:08,980 --> 00:07:09,980 yet. 94 00:07:09,980 --> 00:07:11,820 And that's the book of Hosea. 95 00:07:11,820 --> 00:07:14,020 Now Hosea is in the Old Testament. 96 00:07:14,020 --> 00:07:18,980 And if you go to Daniel, which we've gone to several times, the very next book after 97 00:07:18,980 --> 00:07:23,100 the book of Daniel is the book of Hosea. 98 00:07:23,100 --> 00:07:26,340 We're going to go to Hosea chapter 4. 99 00:07:26,340 --> 00:07:31,100 We're going to look at Hosea chapter 4, and we're going to pick up the story here because 100 00:07:31,100 --> 00:07:38,160 this is a foundational text as God speaks to this prophet Hosea. 101 00:07:38,160 --> 00:07:44,320 God is looking down from heaven and he begins to see, he begins to describe what he sees. 102 00:07:44,320 --> 00:07:50,800 So in Hosea chapter 4, we're going to pick up the story in verse 1. 103 00:07:50,800 --> 00:07:52,160 So the Bible says, 104 00:07:52,160 --> 00:07:57,220 Hear the word of the LORD, you children of Israel. 105 00:07:57,220 --> 00:08:01,880 For the LORD brings a charge against the inhabitants of the land. 106 00:08:01,880 --> 00:08:07,020 There is no truth or mercy or knowledge of God in the land. 107 00:08:07,020 --> 00:08:14,700 It goes on and says, By swearing and lying, killing and stealing and committing adultery, 108 00:08:14,700 --> 00:08:19,500 they break all restraint with bloodshed upon bloodshed. 109 00:08:19,500 --> 00:08:23,380 So this is what God is seeing as he looks down. 110 00:08:23,380 --> 00:08:28,180 And we could think, well maybe he's looking at one of the pagan nations, which is around 111 00:08:28,180 --> 00:08:32,520 Israel, but no, he's actually talking to his own people. 112 00:08:32,520 --> 00:08:39,500 And yet it sounds like that we could be happening in our world today. 113 00:08:39,500 --> 00:08:41,400 But that's not what's happening. 114 00:08:41,400 --> 00:08:47,260 It's happening to God's people right here in the book of Hosea. 115 00:08:47,260 --> 00:08:55,000 And it goes on and says, God says he is seeing this lying and this killing and this adultery 116 00:08:55,000 --> 00:09:01,540 and this bloodshed upon bloodshed, and it's happening to God's people. 117 00:09:01,540 --> 00:09:08,060 And then notice just a verse or two later, verse 6, God says, the Bible says, My people 118 00:09:08,060 --> 00:09:12,260 are destroyed for, for what? 119 00:09:12,260 --> 00:09:15,060 A lack of knowledge. 120 00:09:15,060 --> 00:09:17,140 For a lack of knowledge. 121 00:09:17,140 --> 00:09:24,620 And it says, Because you have rejected knowledge, I also will reject you from being priest 122 00:09:24,620 --> 00:09:25,920 for me. 123 00:09:25,920 --> 00:09:27,800 And then notice what he says next. 124 00:09:27,800 --> 00:09:33,420 It says, Because you have forgotten, what's it say? 125 00:09:33,420 --> 00:09:36,160 The law of your God. 126 00:09:36,160 --> 00:09:42,100 So this group of people, the Israelites, the people of God, they were supposed to be, as 127 00:09:42,100 --> 00:09:47,700 he said, a priest so that other nations could look to the way that Israel lived and they 128 00:09:47,700 --> 00:09:51,220 could see what it meant to follow the true God. 129 00:09:51,220 --> 00:09:55,380 And yet these people were not doing what they were supposed to be doing. 130 00:09:55,380 --> 00:09:58,180 And it gave two reasons there that we just saw. 131 00:09:58,180 --> 00:10:02,340 There was a lack of spiritual knowledge. 132 00:10:02,340 --> 00:10:06,120 They weren't paying attention to what God was saying. 133 00:10:06,120 --> 00:10:09,380 They were turning away from the principles of God. 134 00:10:09,380 --> 00:10:13,820 And then specifically, they had forgotten the law of God. 135 00:10:13,820 --> 00:10:19,600 They had forgotten what God had instructed them to do. 136 00:10:19,600 --> 00:10:24,700 God had given them principles, principles to live, principles for happiness. 137 00:10:24,700 --> 00:10:31,500 And God said, If you honor these principles, then as an individual you'll be blessed, as 138 00:10:31,500 --> 00:10:33,820 a family you'll be blessed. 139 00:10:33,820 --> 00:10:39,620 But if you set aside those principles throughout the Old Testament, it talks about there's 140 00:10:39,620 --> 00:10:45,740 going to be curses, there's going to be consequences of what's going to happen. 141 00:10:45,740 --> 00:10:49,020 And that's exactly what happened to them. 142 00:10:49,020 --> 00:10:52,040 Things begun to fall apart. 143 00:10:52,040 --> 00:11:00,160 God had given them His law and they had forgotten it, rejected it. 144 00:11:00,160 --> 00:11:04,540 And God says that's the problem that they're facing. 145 00:11:04,540 --> 00:11:10,820 And I think in our world today we could agree that most of our secularized world has set 146 00:11:10,820 --> 00:11:19,020 aside God's word, has set aside God's law, has set aside, for instance, the Ten Commandments. 147 00:11:19,020 --> 00:11:28,580 And because of that, morals are decreasing, society is plummeting down, and we find ourselves 148 00:11:28,580 --> 00:11:36,320 as a world, as a nation, further and further from God because we've forgotten the law of 149 00:11:36,320 --> 00:11:39,700 God and we're lacking in spiritual knowledge. 150 00:11:39,700 --> 00:11:46,340 Now God could have said, I've created you, you know, good luck, you're on your own. 151 00:11:46,340 --> 00:11:47,340 Enjoy. 152 00:11:47,340 --> 00:11:49,700 I hope things work out for you. 153 00:11:49,700 --> 00:11:57,500 But God loves us so much that He gave us specific principles of how we're supposed to live our 154 00:11:57,500 --> 00:11:58,720 life. 155 00:11:58,720 --> 00:12:03,780 If you've ever looked in the glove box of your car, there's probably lots of things 156 00:12:03,780 --> 00:12:04,780 in there. 157 00:12:04,780 --> 00:12:12,180 Maybe some napkins from McDonald's or something, or maybe an old lollipop or something that 158 00:12:12,180 --> 00:12:13,660 your kid stuck in there. 159 00:12:13,660 --> 00:12:18,780 But likely down under all of that stuff is a little booklet. 160 00:12:18,780 --> 00:12:20,540 It's an owner's manual. 161 00:12:20,540 --> 00:12:26,540 And you look in that owner's manual and it tells you what you're supposed to do for your 162 00:12:26,540 --> 00:12:27,540 car. 163 00:12:27,540 --> 00:12:30,900 Are you supposed to use gasoline or are you supposed to use diesel? 164 00:12:30,900 --> 00:12:32,900 What kind of oil are you supposed to use? 165 00:12:32,900 --> 00:12:36,660 How often are you supposed to change your oil? 166 00:12:36,660 --> 00:12:43,940 And the closer we stay to what God says, the better your car is going to do. 167 00:12:43,940 --> 00:12:47,300 And that's a little bit about like what God did for us. 168 00:12:47,300 --> 00:12:57,300 He gave us principles of happiness and principles of life that will bring blessings if we follow. 169 00:12:57,300 --> 00:13:04,340 But if we don't as individuals and as a society, we can get in trouble if we go the other direction. 170 00:13:04,340 --> 00:13:07,420 And we see that our world has rejected them. 171 00:13:07,420 --> 00:13:09,420 Now why are we talking about this? 172 00:13:09,420 --> 00:13:16,180 We're going to see in just a moment that God's law is a big issue in the book of Revelation. 173 00:13:16,180 --> 00:13:19,240 And some verses in just a moment. 174 00:13:19,240 --> 00:13:25,180 And we're going to see that a crisis that takes place in the world is going to reflect 175 00:13:25,180 --> 00:13:27,980 which choice people are making. 176 00:13:27,980 --> 00:13:34,320 Are they choosing to let God guide them or are they choosing to go in a different direction? 177 00:13:34,320 --> 00:13:41,260 And so in order to fully understand that principle, that idea of what Bible prophecy is talking 178 00:13:41,260 --> 00:13:47,520 about, we've got to explore and see what is this law about? 179 00:13:47,520 --> 00:13:49,700 What is God's law even talking about? 180 00:13:49,700 --> 00:13:56,060 There's many people that would say, oh in our society today, we don't need that. 181 00:13:56,060 --> 00:13:59,300 That's old-fashioned. 182 00:13:59,300 --> 00:14:01,780 It's not relevant for us today. 183 00:14:01,780 --> 00:14:03,380 So let's take just a couple minutes. 184 00:14:03,380 --> 00:14:08,860 We're going to go real quickly through these ten principles that God gave us and let's 185 00:14:08,860 --> 00:14:13,100 see if they are relevant for us. 186 00:14:13,100 --> 00:14:18,260 So these can be found in Exodus 20 or Deuteronomy chapter 5, but we've just got them summarized 187 00:14:18,260 --> 00:14:19,260 up here. 188 00:14:19,260 --> 00:14:23,900 So the first commandment says, you shall have no other gods before me. 189 00:14:23,900 --> 00:14:27,660 If we're following God, does that make sense? 190 00:14:27,660 --> 00:14:28,900 Yes. 191 00:14:28,900 --> 00:14:34,100 We don't want to, God doesn't want us to chase after other things. 192 00:14:34,100 --> 00:14:40,560 Just like Satan did, remember we talked about Lucifer who wanted to put himself on the throne. 193 00:14:40,560 --> 00:14:43,060 God wants us to be faithful to him. 194 00:14:43,060 --> 00:14:44,620 And the second one is very similar. 195 00:14:44,620 --> 00:14:49,660 It says you shall not have any graven images, any idols. 196 00:14:49,660 --> 00:14:51,060 Don't make an idol. 197 00:14:51,060 --> 00:14:52,820 And that makes sense. 198 00:14:52,820 --> 00:14:59,340 If God is our creator, if God is the one that sustains this earth, then why would we want 199 00:14:59,340 --> 00:15:04,420 to try to worship something that I've created or that you've created? 200 00:15:04,420 --> 00:15:06,180 So that seems to still make sense. 201 00:15:06,180 --> 00:15:11,780 So number three, it says don't take the name of the Lord in vain. 202 00:15:11,780 --> 00:15:15,540 If we're following God, why would he speak ill of him? 203 00:15:15,540 --> 00:15:22,100 Why would we say his name in a bad way, use his name as a swear word or whatever we might 204 00:15:22,100 --> 00:15:23,420 want to do? 205 00:15:23,420 --> 00:15:26,260 Speak in a profane way. 206 00:15:26,260 --> 00:15:29,460 And then it says remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy. 207 00:15:29,460 --> 00:15:35,100 As God is our creator, that's a way to remember and to rest and to grow in our relationship 208 00:15:35,100 --> 00:15:36,460 with him. 209 00:15:36,460 --> 00:15:40,260 And then number five, honor your father and your mother. 210 00:15:40,260 --> 00:15:42,620 Is that still relevant? 211 00:15:42,620 --> 00:15:44,480 Definitely so. 212 00:15:44,480 --> 00:15:49,580 If you still have a father and a mother, honor them. 213 00:15:49,580 --> 00:15:55,900 If you are a father or a mother, be an honorable parent to those that come after you, to your 214 00:15:55,900 --> 00:15:57,140 children. 215 00:15:57,140 --> 00:16:00,740 The number six, you shall not kill. 216 00:16:00,740 --> 00:16:02,060 Very relevant. 217 00:16:02,060 --> 00:16:08,420 If everybody just followed this one commandment, think how the world would be totally different. 218 00:16:08,420 --> 00:16:14,380 If everybody just did that one thing, the world would be a completely different place. 219 00:16:14,380 --> 00:16:16,900 You shall not commit adultery. 220 00:16:16,900 --> 00:16:23,380 That's certainly relevant in our society because broken marriages, marriages that have fallen 221 00:16:23,380 --> 00:16:31,060 apart, that leads to pain in individuals, pain in family, pain in children. 222 00:16:31,060 --> 00:16:32,060 And we go on. 223 00:16:32,060 --> 00:16:35,940 You shall not steal. 224 00:16:35,940 --> 00:16:38,900 We have things. 225 00:16:38,900 --> 00:16:41,220 Respect what other people have. 226 00:16:41,220 --> 00:16:43,640 That still makes sense. 227 00:16:43,640 --> 00:16:47,860 You shall not bear false witness. 228 00:16:47,860 --> 00:16:49,340 Tell a lie. 229 00:16:49,340 --> 00:16:52,340 That seems pretty sensible. 230 00:16:52,340 --> 00:16:57,220 And we wish that the people we did business with, we wish that they're telling us the 231 00:16:57,220 --> 00:16:58,220 truth. 232 00:16:58,220 --> 00:17:02,380 The politicians, we wish that we could trust that they were telling us the truth. 233 00:17:02,380 --> 00:17:06,740 Our neighbors, we wish that we could trust that they're telling us the truth. 234 00:17:06,740 --> 00:17:09,660 And then finally, don't covet. 235 00:17:09,660 --> 00:17:10,660 What's that mean? 236 00:17:10,660 --> 00:17:12,340 Well, just be happy with what you have. 237 00:17:12,340 --> 00:17:18,220 Be satisfied with what you have and don't think you have to try to get what somebody 238 00:17:18,220 --> 00:17:19,220 else has. 239 00:17:19,220 --> 00:17:25,900 And so just looking at these 10 things, they still make sense. 240 00:17:25,900 --> 00:17:32,900 And many of them not only make sense, but they're part of our laws in our nation and 241 00:17:32,900 --> 00:17:34,460 many other nations. 242 00:17:34,460 --> 00:17:38,180 And you could go back about a hundred years. 243 00:17:38,180 --> 00:17:45,020 We taught the Ten Commandments, appreciated the Ten Commandments, families taught it to 244 00:17:45,020 --> 00:17:46,020 their children. 245 00:17:46,020 --> 00:17:48,000 People memorized the Ten Commandments. 246 00:17:48,000 --> 00:17:52,320 You could go to churches and they talked about the Ten Commandments. 247 00:17:52,320 --> 00:17:54,940 You could see it in a government building, the Ten Commandments. 248 00:17:54,940 --> 00:17:56,020 They were preached about. 249 00:17:56,020 --> 00:17:58,660 They were taught to individuals. 250 00:17:58,660 --> 00:18:03,540 But in the more recent times, there's been a shift in thinking. 251 00:18:03,540 --> 00:18:06,140 There's been a shift in attitude. 252 00:18:06,140 --> 00:18:10,020 There's been a shift in homes. 253 00:18:10,020 --> 00:18:14,960 There's even been a shift in churches about whether or not people will talk about these 254 00:18:14,960 --> 00:18:21,260 things because sometimes we have excuses about why we don't need these things anymore. 255 00:18:21,260 --> 00:18:23,480 And you can see some that are there. 256 00:18:23,480 --> 00:18:29,660 Some would say, that's really, those things are really just for the Jews, right? 257 00:18:29,660 --> 00:18:31,460 They're in the Old Testament. 258 00:18:31,460 --> 00:18:34,220 So that isn't really needed anymore. 259 00:18:34,220 --> 00:18:38,460 That's only for a different nation, for somebody else. 260 00:18:38,460 --> 00:18:45,780 And yet we would say, did God only want the Jewish nation to be happy, to have positive 261 00:18:45,780 --> 00:18:48,780 principles in their life? 262 00:18:48,780 --> 00:18:52,460 And some would say, oh, those are outdated, but we just look through those. 263 00:18:52,460 --> 00:18:55,300 Or some would say, they're nailed to the cross. 264 00:18:55,300 --> 00:18:57,500 They're done away with. 265 00:18:57,500 --> 00:19:01,340 And I would say, they're definitely not the way that we're saved. 266 00:19:01,340 --> 00:19:05,340 And we're going to explore this in just a moment. 267 00:19:05,340 --> 00:19:08,520 And some would say, well, we're under grace now. 268 00:19:08,520 --> 00:19:10,100 So that doesn't matter. 269 00:19:10,100 --> 00:19:13,060 We don't need those things anymore. 270 00:19:13,060 --> 00:19:19,060 As if to say, God's principles for happy living aren't needed. 271 00:19:19,060 --> 00:19:23,540 So we're going to take a couple minutes here and we're going to explore, does the Bible 272 00:19:23,540 --> 00:19:27,340 teach these excuses? 273 00:19:27,340 --> 00:19:30,940 Does the Bible teach that these things are still needed? 274 00:19:30,940 --> 00:19:35,780 Does the Bible teach that these things are done away with? 275 00:19:35,780 --> 00:19:42,660 Because in Bible prophecy, we're going to see that God warned that this shift would 276 00:19:42,660 --> 00:19:45,180 take place. 277 00:19:45,180 --> 00:19:53,760 Because if God's law is about the character of God, then wouldn't antichrist want us to 278 00:19:53,760 --> 00:19:55,760 forget God's law? 279 00:19:55,760 --> 00:19:58,740 Because we would forget the character of God. 280 00:19:58,740 --> 00:20:00,660 In fact, let's go to Daniel. 281 00:20:00,660 --> 00:20:01,880 We're going to go to the book of Daniel. 282 00:20:01,880 --> 00:20:06,740 So if you're still in Hosea, go back just one book and we're going to find ourselves 283 00:20:06,740 --> 00:20:08,660 in Daniel chapter 7. 284 00:20:08,660 --> 00:20:14,500 Now, next week, well the next week after that, we're going to explore this chapter in great 285 00:20:14,500 --> 00:20:17,180 detail in Daniel chapter 7. 286 00:20:17,180 --> 00:20:21,420 But we're going to look at Daniel 7 and verse 25. 287 00:20:21,420 --> 00:20:24,560 Daniel 7 and verse 25. 288 00:20:24,560 --> 00:20:30,860 And it talks about a teaching of the antichrist power in the last days. 289 00:20:30,860 --> 00:20:36,220 And notice what it says in Daniel 7 and verse 25. 290 00:20:36,220 --> 00:20:43,940 Daniel 7 25 says, he shall speak pompous words against the most high, this is the antichrist 291 00:20:43,940 --> 00:20:52,540 power, shall persecute the saints of the most high and shall intend to change times and 292 00:20:52,540 --> 00:21:00,700 laws, or the King James Version says, shall think to change times and law. 293 00:21:00,700 --> 00:21:11,540 And so this antichrist power is in a way wanting to change God's time and God's law. 294 00:21:11,540 --> 00:21:16,860 And we're going to dig into this in much more detail, but we're seeing that the antichrist 295 00:21:16,860 --> 00:21:19,220 is working against two different groups. 296 00:21:19,220 --> 00:21:25,100 It's working against the most high and working against God's people. 297 00:21:25,100 --> 00:21:31,740 And he wants us to forget, he wants us as God's people to forget about God's law so 298 00:21:31,740 --> 00:21:36,520 that we'll be pulled in to following something else. 299 00:21:36,520 --> 00:21:46,340 And so Bible prophecy is telling us that this antichrist power wants to swerve, wants to 300 00:21:46,340 --> 00:21:50,300 deceive, wants to pull us away from God's law. 301 00:21:50,300 --> 00:21:57,420 And we've said that night by night that for every truth that God has, Satan has a deception, 302 00:21:57,420 --> 00:22:06,000 Satan has a counterfeit, Satan wants to pull us away from finding joy in God. 303 00:22:06,000 --> 00:22:11,300 And let's go to Revelation because we're going to see what a picture of God's people is like 304 00:22:11,300 --> 00:22:12,300 in the last days. 305 00:22:12,300 --> 00:22:15,020 We're going to go to Revelation chapter 14. 306 00:22:15,020 --> 00:22:19,540 We've been here a couple nights, but we're going to go to a different verse, Revelation 307 00:22:19,540 --> 00:22:22,220 14 and verse 12. 308 00:22:22,220 --> 00:22:28,140 It's describing God's people here, Revelation 14 and verse 12. 309 00:22:28,140 --> 00:22:29,900 Revelation 14, 12. 310 00:22:29,900 --> 00:22:35,180 It says, here is the patience of the saints. 311 00:22:35,180 --> 00:22:42,820 Here are those who keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus. 312 00:22:42,820 --> 00:22:47,540 So it's describing people, the saints, the holy ones. 313 00:22:47,540 --> 00:22:52,660 It's describing what they are like in the last days. 314 00:22:52,660 --> 00:22:58,340 Just a few minutes of this, there's a verse that talks about we need to worship God as 315 00:22:58,340 --> 00:22:59,780 our creator. 316 00:22:59,780 --> 00:23:03,860 And then there's a warning about worshiping the beast and his image. 317 00:23:03,860 --> 00:23:06,460 And we'll talk about that on a future night. 318 00:23:06,460 --> 00:23:10,780 But what we see here is that in the last days, there's two groups of people. 319 00:23:10,780 --> 00:23:15,220 There's going to be a group that's following God. 320 00:23:15,220 --> 00:23:21,900 This beast in his image and this essence of God's people, the saints, is that they're 321 00:23:21,900 --> 00:23:27,140 going to keep the commandments of God and they're going to have faith in the saving 322 00:23:27,140 --> 00:23:29,900 blood of Jesus Christ. 323 00:23:29,900 --> 00:23:39,660 So in a way, the final crisis is going to revolve around man and God's law. 324 00:23:39,660 --> 00:23:47,180 So let's explore what the Bible says about man's law and about God's law. 325 00:23:47,180 --> 00:23:50,660 We can't say, oh, God's law is nailed to the cross. 326 00:23:50,660 --> 00:23:52,620 It's not important anymore. 327 00:23:52,620 --> 00:23:54,700 We don't need to keep it. 328 00:23:54,700 --> 00:23:55,820 We're under grace. 329 00:23:55,820 --> 00:24:01,140 We don't need to look at any of that stuff because the book of Revelation describes God's 330 00:24:01,140 --> 00:24:08,540 church in the end times as keeping the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus. 331 00:24:08,540 --> 00:24:12,060 So we need to make sure what the Bible teaches about this. 332 00:24:12,060 --> 00:24:16,580 So we're going to go back to the Old Testament here and we're going to see what God says 333 00:24:16,580 --> 00:24:25,620 about his law, about its consistency, about its permanence, about where it started and 334 00:24:25,620 --> 00:24:27,820 where it ends or doesn't end. 335 00:24:27,820 --> 00:24:34,140 So let's go back to Exodus chapter 31. 336 00:24:34,140 --> 00:24:39,260 If you want to read those Ten Commandments, as I said, they're in Exodus 20 or Deuteronomy 337 00:24:39,260 --> 00:24:43,700 chapter 5, but we're going to look at Exodus 31. 338 00:24:43,700 --> 00:24:47,360 Exodus 31 and verse 18. 339 00:24:47,360 --> 00:24:48,360 Notice what it says. 340 00:24:48,360 --> 00:24:56,260 The Bible says, and when he made an end of speaking with him on Mount Sinai, he, God, 341 00:24:56,260 --> 00:25:04,100 gave Moses two tablets of the testimony, tablets of stone written with the finger of God. 342 00:25:04,100 --> 00:25:06,620 Okay, so what do we got here? 343 00:25:06,620 --> 00:25:11,260 We got God giving something to Moses. 344 00:25:11,260 --> 00:25:15,420 He's giving him tablets of what? 345 00:25:15,420 --> 00:25:20,660 Tablets of stone written with the finger of God. 346 00:25:20,660 --> 00:25:23,500 Think about those two elements there. 347 00:25:23,500 --> 00:25:32,260 God did not give him a scroll made of papyrus or of animal skin or of paper that crinkled, 348 00:25:32,260 --> 00:25:37,460 that burned, that could get wet and mold away. 349 00:25:37,460 --> 00:25:40,020 He gave him something written in stone. 350 00:25:40,020 --> 00:25:43,540 And, you know, we still use that description. 351 00:25:43,540 --> 00:25:49,500 If we say something is permanent, something is important, we say, well, that's written 352 00:25:49,500 --> 00:25:52,180 in stone. 353 00:25:52,180 --> 00:25:54,260 And then this was written by what? 354 00:25:54,260 --> 00:25:55,820 By a pen? 355 00:25:55,820 --> 00:25:56,820 By a chisel? 356 00:25:56,820 --> 00:26:01,220 No, written with the finger of God. 357 00:26:01,220 --> 00:26:04,220 This isn't how most of Scripture is written. 358 00:26:04,220 --> 00:26:10,340 In the New Testament it says the Spirit moved the men of old and they wrote as God moved 359 00:26:10,340 --> 00:26:11,820 them. 360 00:26:11,820 --> 00:26:16,420 People wrote down the words of God as they heard them and then interpreted them. 361 00:26:16,420 --> 00:26:23,460 But in this case, it seems as if God wanted to make sure that nothing was amiss, that 362 00:26:23,460 --> 00:26:27,820 nothing was mistaken, and he wrote it with his own finger. 363 00:26:27,820 --> 00:26:34,940 This is the only part of all of Scripture that is written by God himself. 364 00:26:34,940 --> 00:26:42,060 Written in stone, written by God, and God didn't even trust humanity to write it themselves. 365 00:26:42,060 --> 00:26:46,060 God wanted to make sure that we got it because it was that important. 366 00:26:46,060 --> 00:26:47,420 But let's go back a little further. 367 00:26:47,420 --> 00:26:50,620 Let's go back to Genesis chapter 26. 368 00:26:50,620 --> 00:26:54,420 Okay, so we're in Exodus, right? 369 00:26:54,420 --> 00:26:55,860 And now we're going back. 370 00:26:55,860 --> 00:26:58,460 We're going back to Genesis. 371 00:26:58,460 --> 00:27:06,540 If God gave the tables of stone to Moses in Exodus, what could we maybe find in Genesis, 372 00:27:06,540 --> 00:27:09,140 even before Mount Sinai? 373 00:27:09,140 --> 00:27:12,300 Notice Genesis 26 and verse 5. 374 00:27:12,300 --> 00:27:16,780 Notice what the Bible says in Genesis 26 and verse 5. 375 00:27:16,780 --> 00:27:28,340 It says, because Abraham obeyed my voice and kept my charge, my commandments, my statues, 376 00:27:28,340 --> 00:27:29,340 and my laws. 377 00:27:29,340 --> 00:27:36,620 You know, Abraham, we sing songs about Father Abraham, Father of the faithful, you could 378 00:27:36,620 --> 00:27:38,140 see. 379 00:27:38,140 --> 00:27:44,440 So even before Moses, even before Mount Sinai, God already had a law. 380 00:27:44,440 --> 00:27:49,160 And it says that Abraham kept God's law. 381 00:27:49,160 --> 00:27:53,220 But did you know God's law even existed for Abraham? 382 00:27:53,220 --> 00:27:57,140 We can go back further. 383 00:27:57,140 --> 00:27:58,140 Let me picture up. 384 00:27:58,140 --> 00:28:02,020 Do you know what Bible story this might be describing? 385 00:28:02,020 --> 00:28:05,060 Can you see that well enough? 386 00:28:05,060 --> 00:28:08,940 There's two people, what was it? 387 00:28:08,940 --> 00:28:11,200 Cain and Abel, that's right. 388 00:28:11,200 --> 00:28:15,060 Two young men, one carrying a rock. 389 00:28:15,060 --> 00:28:17,240 You remember the story of Cain and Abel. 390 00:28:17,240 --> 00:28:20,660 They both brought a sacrifice to God. 391 00:28:20,660 --> 00:28:27,080 And God had commanded them to bring a sacrifice of a lamb, of an animal, that pointed forward 392 00:28:27,080 --> 00:28:30,620 to Jesus, the one who would be sacrificed. 393 00:28:30,620 --> 00:28:34,460 And Abel brought a lamb, but Cain brought something else. 394 00:28:34,460 --> 00:28:36,400 What did Cain bring? 395 00:28:36,400 --> 00:28:42,780 He brought some fruits and vegetables, the work of his own hand, as if, look, I can earn 396 00:28:42,780 --> 00:28:47,100 my way, I can save myself through my own actions. 397 00:28:47,100 --> 00:28:53,460 And God accepted the lamb of Abel, but he did not accept the fruit of Cain. 398 00:28:53,460 --> 00:28:56,940 And Cain was not very happy about that. 399 00:28:56,940 --> 00:29:00,640 And so Cain killed his brother Abel. 400 00:29:00,640 --> 00:29:06,180 So was that a sin for Cain to kill Abel? 401 00:29:06,180 --> 00:29:10,700 Did Cain break God's law? 402 00:29:10,700 --> 00:29:13,140 He did, he was punished for that. 403 00:29:13,140 --> 00:29:15,180 He had to go away. 404 00:29:15,180 --> 00:29:20,300 Even though there was nothing written in stone yet that said, thou shalt not kill, still 405 00:29:20,300 --> 00:29:28,240 Cain was punished for breaking the law, the commands of God. 406 00:29:28,240 --> 00:29:33,540 How could they have known what these commands were? 407 00:29:33,540 --> 00:29:37,580 So who Cain and Abel's parents? 408 00:29:37,580 --> 00:29:40,180 Adam and Eve, they were in the Garden of Eden. 409 00:29:40,180 --> 00:29:45,700 The Bible says that God came and walked with them in the cool of the day. 410 00:29:45,700 --> 00:29:49,780 And so they knew right and wrong. 411 00:29:49,780 --> 00:29:57,500 They knew, and we talked about a night or two ago about how they chose to follow the 412 00:29:57,500 --> 00:29:58,500 voice of Satan. 413 00:29:58,500 --> 00:30:01,820 They chose to go in a different direction. 414 00:30:01,820 --> 00:30:10,380 And those commands existed before they were written on the stone, before the law was written 415 00:30:10,380 --> 00:30:11,620 on the stone. 416 00:30:11,620 --> 00:30:17,020 Why do you think God finally realized, let's write these in stone? 417 00:30:17,020 --> 00:30:22,620 Could it be because we humans are forgetful? 418 00:30:22,620 --> 00:30:26,420 Adam and Eve forgot what the voice of God said. 419 00:30:26,420 --> 00:30:29,220 Cain forgot what the voice of God said. 420 00:30:29,220 --> 00:30:35,060 Just a chat with you later, the whole world forgot what the voice of God said and God 421 00:30:35,060 --> 00:30:36,060 sent the flood. 422 00:30:36,060 --> 00:30:41,380 Even after that, again, the world forgot again as they tried to build the Tower of Babel. 423 00:30:41,380 --> 00:30:48,360 They kept forgetting and God realized that I've got to write this in stone so that even 424 00:30:48,360 --> 00:30:52,060 if they forget, they can look back and see that it's there. 425 00:30:52,060 --> 00:30:57,100 But even after God wrote it in stone, they forgot. 426 00:30:57,100 --> 00:31:03,940 So soon, within 40 days, because that verse that we just read in Exodus 31, that's actually 427 00:31:03,940 --> 00:31:09,300 the second time God gave those commands in stone. 428 00:31:09,300 --> 00:31:14,660 Because after he gave it the first time, as Moses is still on Mount Sinai, that's where 429 00:31:14,660 --> 00:31:19,540 the people down below are dancing around the golden calf. 430 00:31:19,540 --> 00:31:28,100 And they hear the sound and Joshua says, that sounds like a battle, something's going on 431 00:31:28,100 --> 00:31:29,340 in the camp. 432 00:31:29,340 --> 00:31:34,300 And they come down and they see the people disobeying God and Moses takes those stone 433 00:31:34,300 --> 00:31:37,460 tablets and what does he do? 434 00:31:37,460 --> 00:31:43,100 He throws them down, he breaks them, he crushes them. 435 00:31:43,100 --> 00:31:47,540 And so God had to give those stones again. 436 00:31:47,540 --> 00:31:53,540 He had to write that again because over and over humanity forgot. 437 00:31:53,540 --> 00:32:00,700 But believe it or not, God's law goes even before Cain and Abel, before Adam and Eve, 438 00:32:00,700 --> 00:32:08,500 before the Garden of Eden, because God's law existed in heaven. 439 00:32:08,500 --> 00:32:11,380 Who was the first to break God's law? 440 00:32:11,380 --> 00:32:15,820 Satan or Lucifer, we talked about that the other night. 441 00:32:15,820 --> 00:32:23,140 In Revelation 12 there was war in heaven and they were cast out as Lucifer was trying to 442 00:32:23,140 --> 00:32:29,260 convince these other angels that God's way was not the best way and he had lost his love 443 00:32:29,260 --> 00:32:35,660 for God and they were cast out of heaven to earth and brought this sin and suffering down 444 00:32:35,660 --> 00:32:36,660 here. 445 00:32:36,660 --> 00:32:41,100 And if you think about it, you can even begin to recognize some of the commandments that 446 00:32:41,100 --> 00:32:43,900 Lucifer broke. 447 00:32:43,900 --> 00:32:49,260 Lucifer broke that first commandment, you shall have no other gods before me. 448 00:32:49,260 --> 00:32:51,340 How did he break that one? 449 00:32:51,340 --> 00:32:54,140 Well he wanted the God before God. 450 00:32:54,140 --> 00:33:00,140 He wanted to sit on God's throne and this is the one that sometimes we struggle with. 451 00:33:00,140 --> 00:33:04,740 And you might say, whoa, whoa, wait a second, I don't want to call myself God. 452 00:33:04,740 --> 00:33:07,820 I don't want to sit on God's throne. 453 00:33:07,820 --> 00:33:11,720 But do we ever hear what God is asking us to do? 454 00:33:11,720 --> 00:33:14,780 And we say, well, maybe I don't want to do that. 455 00:33:14,780 --> 00:33:19,020 Okay, God, I see what that says in your commandment, but you know, that's not convenient for me 456 00:33:19,020 --> 00:33:20,020 right now. 457 00:33:20,020 --> 00:33:22,520 I'm going to go in a different direction. 458 00:33:22,520 --> 00:33:32,220 And so we may not say those same words as Lucifer, but that same principle. 459 00:33:32,220 --> 00:33:37,460 We can say, place myself in your place. 460 00:33:37,460 --> 00:33:40,420 I want to be more important than you. 461 00:33:40,420 --> 00:33:47,220 And we should be saying, as it says in Ephesians 5, be filled with the Holy Spirit. 462 00:33:47,220 --> 00:33:53,860 We asking God to fill us with his Spirit day by day and helping us to change from that 463 00:33:53,860 --> 00:34:02,120 selfish heart, but instead letting God transform us and to write his law on our heart. 464 00:34:02,120 --> 00:34:05,980 And then it goes on and some other commandments that Lucifer broke. 465 00:34:05,980 --> 00:34:11,540 You shall not bear false witness, tell lies, because Lucifer came to the other angels 466 00:34:11,540 --> 00:34:17,220 and lied to them and said, you know what, my way is better than God's way. 467 00:34:17,220 --> 00:34:19,420 And then the 10th commandment, don't covet. 468 00:34:19,420 --> 00:34:21,460 He coveted God's authority. 469 00:34:21,460 --> 00:34:23,440 He coveted God's throne. 470 00:34:23,440 --> 00:34:25,380 He coveted God's power. 471 00:34:25,380 --> 00:34:32,220 And that led to that full scale rebellion that ended with them being cast out. 472 00:34:32,220 --> 00:34:36,100 And Lucifer wants to do that same rebellion on this earth. 473 00:34:36,100 --> 00:34:42,740 He wants to turn us away from the principles of happiness that God has given us because 474 00:34:42,740 --> 00:34:46,340 he wants our homes to be a disaster. 475 00:34:46,340 --> 00:34:49,060 He wants our schools to be a disaster. 476 00:34:49,060 --> 00:34:55,660 He wants our communities to be totally messed up and far, far from God. 477 00:34:55,660 --> 00:35:00,720 And you've seen it, whenever tragedies happen, whenever things happen, who's the first person 478 00:35:00,720 --> 00:35:02,380 that gets blamed? 479 00:35:02,380 --> 00:35:10,540 God, how dare you let this happen, even though so often we're moving in a totally different 480 00:35:10,540 --> 00:35:11,820 direction. 481 00:35:11,820 --> 00:35:19,500 We tend to think that God just wants to, you know, cramp our style, us from having fun. 482 00:35:19,500 --> 00:35:25,240 Oh God, you have all these laws and these rules and these regulations. 483 00:35:25,240 --> 00:35:27,060 How dare you? 484 00:35:27,060 --> 00:35:36,420 And yet, as we look at parents with children, parents, do you ever have any rules or regulations 485 00:35:36,420 --> 00:35:39,060 that you instruct your children? 486 00:35:39,060 --> 00:35:43,940 Don't chase the ball into the street when the car's coming. 487 00:35:43,940 --> 00:35:48,180 Don't touch the stove when it's hot. 488 00:35:48,180 --> 00:35:52,660 And we could say, oh, you party poopers, how dare you not let your children play in the 489 00:35:52,660 --> 00:35:54,360 street? 490 00:35:54,360 --> 00:35:58,700 And children may say that when they're at a certain age, but as they get a little bit 491 00:35:58,700 --> 00:36:02,060 older, they realize, no, that's a guard rail. 492 00:36:02,060 --> 00:36:04,180 That's for protection. 493 00:36:04,180 --> 00:36:05,780 That's for safety. 494 00:36:05,780 --> 00:36:09,020 Thank you, parents, for helping me. 495 00:36:09,020 --> 00:36:13,460 If you just let your kids play in the street, if you just let your kids do whatever they 496 00:36:13,460 --> 00:36:16,860 wanted, people would think, oh, you're an awful parent. 497 00:36:16,860 --> 00:36:19,300 You're a terrible parent. 498 00:36:19,300 --> 00:36:24,980 Because we need to give children guidelines and instructions and boundaries, and that's 499 00:36:24,980 --> 00:36:26,720 what God has done for us. 500 00:36:26,720 --> 00:36:34,220 He loves us so much that He wants to give us a boundary that we can thrive in, that 501 00:36:34,220 --> 00:36:39,580 we can find joy in, that we can live our life in, and He gives us principles. 502 00:36:39,580 --> 00:36:44,700 Okay, so this is what we've seen in the Old Testament, but some people say, oh, the Old 503 00:36:44,700 --> 00:36:45,700 Testament. 504 00:36:45,700 --> 00:36:48,360 So let's look at the New Testament. 505 00:36:48,360 --> 00:36:51,820 Let's go to the book of Matthew, Matthew chapter 5. 506 00:36:51,820 --> 00:36:59,460 Now, as you turn to Matthew chapter 5, you might notice that there's three chapters in 507 00:36:59,460 --> 00:37:06,020 a row, Matthew 5, 6, and 7, and they, at least in my Bible, those words are all in red. 508 00:37:06,020 --> 00:37:08,320 What does that mean? 509 00:37:08,320 --> 00:37:14,940 That's what Jesus said, and those three chapters together is the greatest sermon that you can 510 00:37:14,940 --> 00:37:16,700 ever read or ever hear. 511 00:37:16,700 --> 00:37:23,740 And it's known as the Sermon on the Mount, and it gives us an incredible foundation for 512 00:37:23,740 --> 00:37:30,900 what Christianity is supposed to be about, as Jesus shares so many essentials of what 513 00:37:30,900 --> 00:37:32,940 it means to be a follower of Jesus. 514 00:37:32,940 --> 00:37:37,200 And we're going to look at Matthew chapter 5 and verse 17. 515 00:37:37,200 --> 00:37:42,980 Notice Matthew 5 verse 17, written in red, words of Jesus. 516 00:37:42,980 --> 00:37:49,380 Jesus says, do not think that I came to destroy the law or the prophets. 517 00:37:49,380 --> 00:37:54,180 I did not come to destroy, but to, to do what? 518 00:37:54,180 --> 00:37:55,380 Fulfill. 519 00:37:55,380 --> 00:38:03,300 For assuredly I say to you, till heaven and earth pass away, one jot or one tittle will 520 00:38:03,300 --> 00:38:09,060 by no means pass from the law until all is fulfilled. 521 00:38:09,060 --> 00:38:10,100 Think about that. 522 00:38:10,100 --> 00:38:14,180 What is a jot or a tittle? 523 00:38:14,180 --> 00:38:15,820 We don't use that word very often. 524 00:38:15,820 --> 00:38:17,780 I saw a quotation mark. 525 00:38:17,780 --> 00:38:19,620 It's like some punctuation. 526 00:38:19,620 --> 00:38:24,980 It's like we would say dot the I and cross the T. You know, if you're signing a contract 527 00:38:24,980 --> 00:38:29,500 or something, you want to make sure that all the words are spelled correctly, that the 528 00:38:29,500 --> 00:38:31,440 punctuation is there. 529 00:38:31,440 --> 00:38:36,860 And Jesus says that until heaven and earth pass away. 530 00:38:36,860 --> 00:38:39,580 Have heaven and earth passed away yet? 531 00:38:39,580 --> 00:38:40,700 Not yet. 532 00:38:40,700 --> 00:38:47,300 And he says, until that happens, not one part of the law is going to pass away. 533 00:38:47,300 --> 00:38:53,900 It's all going to continue to thrive, continue to be a part of what God says. 534 00:38:53,900 --> 00:38:57,500 And then notice verse 19. 535 00:38:57,500 --> 00:38:58,500 Notice verse 19. 536 00:38:58,500 --> 00:39:07,260 It says, whoever breaks one of the least of these commandments and teaches men so shall 537 00:39:07,260 --> 00:39:12,020 be called least in the kingdom of heaven. 538 00:39:12,020 --> 00:39:16,900 But whoever does and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven. 539 00:39:16,900 --> 00:39:18,420 I think that's messed up up there. 540 00:39:18,420 --> 00:39:20,260 I apologize for that. 541 00:39:20,260 --> 00:39:26,540 So whoever teaches men to break these will be called least in the kingdom of heaven. 542 00:39:26,540 --> 00:39:31,860 That basically means they're going to be in the kingdom of heaven. 543 00:39:31,860 --> 00:39:40,180 Now as a, I see a couple teachers in here and as a pastor and a teacher, this is a pretty 544 00:39:40,180 --> 00:39:43,340 serious statement here. 545 00:39:43,340 --> 00:39:50,060 Because it's saying that if I'm teaching somebody to do the wrong thing, then there's a woe 546 00:39:50,060 --> 00:39:53,900 or a judgment passed upon me. 547 00:39:53,900 --> 00:39:58,940 Because let me tell you, it would be a lot easier as a minister to just tell people, 548 00:39:58,940 --> 00:40:01,120 oh, don't worry about that law. 549 00:40:01,120 --> 00:40:02,440 It's done away with. 550 00:40:02,440 --> 00:40:05,560 It doesn't matter anymore. 551 00:40:05,560 --> 00:40:07,540 It's nailed to the cross. 552 00:40:07,540 --> 00:40:08,540 It doesn't matter. 553 00:40:08,540 --> 00:40:11,740 You know, pastors, ministers, we have a trait. 554 00:40:11,740 --> 00:40:15,460 Like most people, we appreciate people. 555 00:40:15,460 --> 00:40:16,700 We want people to like us. 556 00:40:16,700 --> 00:40:20,020 We want to not have people angry at us. 557 00:40:20,020 --> 00:40:25,260 So it would be much easier to not talk about this. 558 00:40:25,260 --> 00:40:31,780 It would be much easier to be popular, to not step on toes, but this is a warning, a 559 00:40:31,780 --> 00:40:40,420 judgment here to challenge people to look at the whole message of what the Bible says, 560 00:40:40,420 --> 00:40:41,820 of what Jesus says. 561 00:40:41,820 --> 00:40:48,020 The word of God tells me that I can't skip something just because it might be difficult 562 00:40:48,020 --> 00:40:49,060 to hear. 563 00:40:49,060 --> 00:40:55,780 And so I can't say, don't worry about it, because the verse right before that, it says, 564 00:40:55,780 --> 00:41:02,540 till heaven and earth pass away, one jot and one tittle will by no means pass until all 565 00:41:02,540 --> 00:41:04,500 is fulfilled. 566 00:41:04,500 --> 00:41:08,460 Let's go over to the Gospel of John, John chapter 14. 567 00:41:08,460 --> 00:41:14,420 Because Jesus, as he often does, as he usually does, he makes it absolutely clear. 568 00:41:14,420 --> 00:41:26,100 John chapter 14 and verse 15, the Gospel of John chapter 14 and verse 15, Jesus says, 569 00:41:26,100 --> 00:41:30,860 if you love me, what does he say? 570 00:41:30,860 --> 00:41:32,900 Keep my commandments. 571 00:41:32,900 --> 00:41:36,100 If you love me, keep my commandments. 572 00:41:36,100 --> 00:41:44,100 Now he doesn't say, if you love me, if you want to earn your way to heaven, keep my commandments. 573 00:41:44,100 --> 00:41:51,140 He doesn't say, if you want to receive my righteousness, keep my commandments. 574 00:41:51,140 --> 00:41:57,260 He doesn't say, if you want to gain perfection, keep my commandments. 575 00:41:57,260 --> 00:42:04,660 He says, if you love me, keep my commandments. 576 00:42:04,660 --> 00:42:11,220 If you appreciate what I've done for you on the cross, if I appreciate the grace that 577 00:42:11,220 --> 00:42:17,780 I gave you so that you can enter the kingdom of heaven in response to that, he says, keep 578 00:42:17,780 --> 00:42:18,780 my commandments. 579 00:42:18,780 --> 00:42:21,260 We don't honor God's commandments to get saved. 580 00:42:21,260 --> 00:42:23,900 No, we're saved totally by the blood of Jesus. 581 00:42:23,900 --> 00:42:25,980 We're saved by the cross. 582 00:42:25,980 --> 00:42:29,420 We're saved as we confess our sins before him. 583 00:42:29,420 --> 00:42:37,500 But he invites us to live life to the fullest, to keep his commandments, to honor him and 584 00:42:37,500 --> 00:42:39,020 to serve him. 585 00:42:39,020 --> 00:42:42,940 Now we can think about a marriage relationship. 586 00:42:42,940 --> 00:42:45,500 You can think about a relationship that you have. 587 00:42:45,500 --> 00:42:46,980 Many people here are married. 588 00:42:46,980 --> 00:42:48,940 I'm married to Jolie. 589 00:42:48,940 --> 00:42:52,180 I've talked about her before. 590 00:42:52,180 --> 00:42:54,540 Do you think I love my wife? 591 00:42:54,540 --> 00:42:55,940 I hope that you think that I do. 592 00:42:55,940 --> 00:42:57,140 Yes, I do. 593 00:42:57,140 --> 00:43:05,540 So when you get married, there's now certain things that you have to do or that you're 594 00:43:05,540 --> 00:43:06,980 supposed to not do. 595 00:43:06,980 --> 00:43:10,700 You know, I have to love myself. 596 00:43:10,700 --> 00:43:15,060 That means I'm not supposed to flirt with other people. 597 00:43:15,060 --> 00:43:21,220 You know, now that I'm married, the old saying, what I have, she has. 598 00:43:21,220 --> 00:43:24,500 Our belongings belong to each other. 599 00:43:24,500 --> 00:43:26,620 And we treat each other nice. 600 00:43:26,620 --> 00:43:29,820 I'm not supposed to go on dates with other people. 601 00:43:29,820 --> 00:43:35,100 Those are certain expectations, certain laws of marriage. 602 00:43:35,100 --> 00:43:43,220 Now I do not have a sheet of paper in a file cabinet where every morning I go and I read, 603 00:43:43,220 --> 00:43:45,460 okay, what do I have to do again? 604 00:43:45,460 --> 00:43:49,380 Don't go on dates with other women. 605 00:43:49,380 --> 00:43:51,940 Don't flirt with other people. 606 00:43:51,940 --> 00:43:54,100 Treat Jolie nice today. 607 00:43:54,100 --> 00:44:02,520 I don't have to remind myself of those expectations of those. 608 00:44:02,520 --> 00:44:04,380 Because they're in my heart. 609 00:44:04,380 --> 00:44:05,820 They're what I want to do. 610 00:44:05,820 --> 00:44:08,220 I want to show her love. 611 00:44:08,220 --> 00:44:10,780 I want to show her appreciation. 612 00:44:10,780 --> 00:44:16,380 I'm not going to do anything that might hinder that or might hurt that. 613 00:44:16,380 --> 00:44:22,500 It's a natural thing, that law, that those ideas are written in my heart. 614 00:44:22,500 --> 00:44:25,060 And that's how it is with God's law. 615 00:44:25,060 --> 00:44:27,420 Because of what Jesus has done for me. 616 00:44:27,420 --> 00:44:29,100 He's died for my sin. 617 00:44:29,100 --> 00:44:32,780 He lets His perfect life count for my life. 618 00:44:32,780 --> 00:44:36,420 When God looks at me, He doesn't see my mistakes. 619 00:44:36,420 --> 00:44:41,300 He sees the perfect life of Jesus. 620 00:44:41,300 --> 00:44:43,820 He loves me and I love Him. 621 00:44:43,820 --> 00:44:48,900 And if I love Him, I can respond to that. 622 00:44:48,900 --> 00:44:51,980 I can keep His commandments. 623 00:44:51,980 --> 00:44:52,980 Let's look at another one. 624 00:44:52,980 --> 00:44:54,940 Let's go to 1 John. 625 00:44:54,940 --> 00:44:56,940 Little John, back by Revelation. 626 00:44:56,940 --> 00:44:58,540 1 John. 627 00:44:58,540 --> 00:45:06,700 This is one of those ones that isn't the easiest one to read. 628 00:45:06,700 --> 00:45:10,500 Because like I said, I don't want to step on people's toes sometimes. 629 00:45:10,500 --> 00:45:16,020 John here says it a little harsher than maybe I would. 630 00:45:16,020 --> 00:45:23,140 But in 1 John, back by Revelation, 1 John chapter 2, notice verse 4. 631 00:45:23,140 --> 00:45:26,700 1 John chapter 2 and verse 4. 632 00:45:26,700 --> 00:45:29,420 Now this is John. 633 00:45:29,420 --> 00:45:31,980 John was a disciple. 634 00:45:31,980 --> 00:45:35,980 Do you think John was there when Jesus gave the Sermon on the Mount? 635 00:45:35,980 --> 00:45:40,780 And he said this law is going to continue? 636 00:45:40,780 --> 00:45:46,540 John was there in the upper room when Jesus said, if you love me, keep my commandments? 637 00:45:46,540 --> 00:45:48,900 I think that he probably was. 638 00:45:48,900 --> 00:45:49,940 So notice what he says here. 639 00:45:49,940 --> 00:45:52,740 I think this is saying the same thing but in a different way. 640 00:45:52,740 --> 00:45:54,340 A little harsher way. 641 00:45:54,340 --> 00:46:03,420 1 John 2 verse 4, the Bible says, he who says, I know him and does not keep his commandments 642 00:46:03,420 --> 00:46:07,980 is a liar and the truth is not in him. 643 00:46:07,980 --> 00:46:08,980 Ouch. 644 00:46:08,980 --> 00:46:15,780 So that means if we say that we're a follower of Jesus, I know him, I'm a Christian, but 645 00:46:15,780 --> 00:46:22,140 does not keep his commandments, then it says we're a liar. 646 00:46:22,140 --> 00:46:27,700 Now I don't think this is talking about as we go through a day and we make a mistake, 647 00:46:27,700 --> 00:46:31,820 we honestly make a mistake and sometimes we come to the end of the day and we're like, 648 00:46:31,820 --> 00:46:33,700 wow, I shouldn't have spoken that way. 649 00:46:33,700 --> 00:46:36,000 I shouldn't have acted that way. 650 00:46:36,000 --> 00:46:41,100 And when we have fallen short, when we have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God, 651 00:46:41,100 --> 00:46:42,100 what can we do? 652 00:46:42,100 --> 00:46:46,420 We can confess that sin and Jesus promises to forgive us. 653 00:46:46,420 --> 00:46:53,620 This is more the idea of when we know what God wants us to do and we hear what God is 654 00:46:53,620 --> 00:47:00,140 saying to us and we claim to be a follower of Jesus, but we say, you know what? 655 00:47:00,140 --> 00:47:01,300 Not today, God. 656 00:47:01,300 --> 00:47:02,300 Not today. 657 00:47:02,300 --> 00:47:03,300 I'm not going to do that today. 658 00:47:03,300 --> 00:47:06,940 I'm going to choose to do my own thing. 659 00:47:06,940 --> 00:47:15,860 He who says, I know him and does not keep his commandments is a liar and the truth is 660 00:47:15,860 --> 00:47:18,140 not in him. 661 00:47:18,140 --> 00:47:21,140 What did it say in Revelation 14? 662 00:47:21,140 --> 00:47:26,140 Here is the patience of the saints, God's people, the holy ones. 663 00:47:26,140 --> 00:47:31,980 Here are those who keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus. 664 00:47:31,980 --> 00:47:36,100 This is a description of God's people in the last days. 665 00:47:36,100 --> 00:47:39,780 And so we get to choose which side are we going to be on? 666 00:47:39,780 --> 00:47:44,240 Are we going to listen to the voice of the antichrist, which says, no, God's law is done 667 00:47:44,240 --> 00:47:45,240 away with. 668 00:47:45,240 --> 00:47:47,060 It's not important anymore. 669 00:47:47,060 --> 00:47:48,060 It's archaic. 670 00:47:48,060 --> 00:47:49,060 It's irrelevant. 671 00:47:49,060 --> 00:47:55,860 Or can we hear the voice of Jesus, which says, if you love me, keep my commandments? 672 00:47:55,860 --> 00:48:03,540 Because the antichrist wants us to forget about God's law, wants us to pull away from 673 00:48:03,540 --> 00:48:09,180 God, and so that's why he's desperate to wipe out God's law. 674 00:48:09,180 --> 00:48:11,460 So what's the purpose of God's law? 675 00:48:11,460 --> 00:48:15,380 Let's look at one more verse, then we're going to do a little illustration here. 676 00:48:15,380 --> 00:48:18,220 Romans chapter 3 verse 20. 677 00:48:18,220 --> 00:48:22,220 Romans 3 and verse 20. 678 00:48:22,220 --> 00:48:24,380 Notice what it says in Romans 3. 679 00:48:24,380 --> 00:48:31,660 The Bible says, Therefore, by the deeds of the law, no flesh will be justified in his 680 00:48:31,660 --> 00:48:36,980 sight, for by the law is the what? 681 00:48:36,980 --> 00:48:39,980 Is the knowledge of sin. 682 00:48:39,980 --> 00:48:43,180 The law does not do anything to save us. 683 00:48:43,180 --> 00:48:45,620 The law does not make us righteous. 684 00:48:45,620 --> 00:48:48,780 The law does not perfect us in any way. 685 00:48:48,780 --> 00:48:56,700 The law just reminds us of where we fall short of God's glory, and it points us to the cross. 686 00:48:56,700 --> 00:48:59,360 It points us to Jesus. 687 00:48:59,360 --> 00:49:04,380 And that's why the antichrist hates God's law, because anything that's going to point us 688 00:49:04,380 --> 00:49:10,080 to Jesus, antichrist does not want us to have anything to do with that. 689 00:49:10,080 --> 00:49:15,180 And that's why in Daniel, in Revelation, it tells us that in the end, God's law is at 690 00:49:15,180 --> 00:49:17,560 a central point here. 691 00:49:17,560 --> 00:49:24,880 And we get to choose, are we going to heed God's grace and follow him today? 692 00:49:24,880 --> 00:49:26,940 So I'm going to do something here. 693 00:49:26,940 --> 00:49:31,700 I'm going to disappear for just a moment, but I'm still going to be here, okay? 694 00:49:31,700 --> 00:49:34,300 So I'm going to step right back here. 695 00:49:34,300 --> 00:49:37,660 So just wait one second. 696 00:49:37,660 --> 00:49:38,940 Hold on. 697 00:49:38,940 --> 00:49:40,860 I'm stepping back here. 698 00:49:40,860 --> 00:49:44,220 Perhaps maybe I'm doing things that I shouldn't be doing. 699 00:49:44,220 --> 00:49:51,160 I'm involved in some nefarious things that could get me in trouble or will definitely 700 00:49:51,160 --> 00:49:54,060 be against what God wants me to do. 701 00:49:54,060 --> 00:50:02,580 So now I'm coming back, and how do I look? 702 00:50:02,580 --> 00:50:03,580 Same? 703 00:50:03,580 --> 00:50:04,580 You don't see anything? 704 00:50:04,580 --> 00:50:05,580 You don't see any marks on my face? 705 00:50:05,580 --> 00:50:06,580 You don't see anything? 706 00:50:06,580 --> 00:50:10,820 Oh, let me turn this way. 707 00:50:10,820 --> 00:50:15,540 So I got a little dirt on my face, but I had a microphone on this side, so I couldn't put 708 00:50:15,540 --> 00:50:16,840 it over there. 709 00:50:16,840 --> 00:50:23,140 So perhaps, you know, maybe I was out mulching, weeding today, working on the car or something, 710 00:50:23,140 --> 00:50:27,220 and I come in and I've got dirt on my face. 711 00:50:27,220 --> 00:50:31,460 How do I know that? 712 00:50:31,460 --> 00:50:34,220 I can't see that I have dirt on my face. 713 00:50:34,220 --> 00:50:39,820 So if I want to see that I have dirt on my face, oh, I do have, yeah, see I can turn 714 00:50:39,820 --> 00:50:40,820 this way. 715 00:50:40,820 --> 00:50:44,240 I do have some dirt on my face. 716 00:50:44,240 --> 00:50:47,300 So the mirror tells me that I'm dirty. 717 00:50:47,300 --> 00:50:49,420 God's law is like a mirror. 718 00:50:49,420 --> 00:50:51,500 That's what James calls it. 719 00:50:51,500 --> 00:50:56,260 It says that I'm dirty when we've fallen short of God's law. 720 00:50:56,260 --> 00:51:00,860 So do I take the mirror and do I rub it on my face? 721 00:51:00,860 --> 00:51:04,040 Is that how I would get clean? 722 00:51:04,040 --> 00:51:07,620 How would I get clean? 723 00:51:07,620 --> 00:51:09,020 Maybe some water or something? 724 00:51:09,020 --> 00:51:12,860 Well, let's see, I've actually got some water here, so I'm going to kneel down. 725 00:51:12,860 --> 00:51:15,020 I'm going to try not to get the microphone wet. 726 00:51:15,020 --> 00:51:17,980 So let's see if we can wash this dirt off. 727 00:51:17,980 --> 00:51:24,340 Let's see what we can do here as we come to the foot of the cross and we ask Jesus for 728 00:51:24,340 --> 00:51:26,760 forgiveness, for salvation. 729 00:51:26,760 --> 00:51:32,660 So what do you think, am I clean now? 730 00:51:32,660 --> 00:51:34,780 What's that? 731 00:51:34,780 --> 00:51:35,780 Look in the mirror. 732 00:51:35,780 --> 00:51:41,060 Okay, so now I can look in the law, look in the mirror. 733 00:51:41,060 --> 00:51:42,600 Looks like I got it all. 734 00:51:42,600 --> 00:51:49,500 And I can see that in God's eyes, because of God's grace, because of God's forgiveness, 735 00:51:49,500 --> 00:51:53,500 the sins, the dirt is washed away. 736 00:51:53,500 --> 00:51:56,860 The mirror does not cleanse me. 737 00:51:56,860 --> 00:51:59,620 The law does not make me clean. 738 00:51:59,620 --> 00:52:02,780 The law shows me that I'm in need of a Savior. 739 00:52:02,780 --> 00:52:05,820 The law points me to the foot of the cross. 740 00:52:05,820 --> 00:52:09,500 The law reminds me that I need something outside of myself. 741 00:52:09,500 --> 00:52:13,300 I need to go and be cleansed by the blood of Jesus. 742 00:52:13,300 --> 00:52:19,700 The blood that flows from Emmanuel's veins is the only thing that can wash me and make 743 00:52:19,700 --> 00:52:22,700 me clean and make me whiter than snow. 744 00:52:22,700 --> 00:52:24,580 That's what God's law is all about. 745 00:52:24,580 --> 00:52:27,020 That's what the purpose of it is. 746 00:52:27,020 --> 00:52:31,560 Jesus says, if you love me, keep my commandments. 747 00:52:31,560 --> 00:52:35,700 He doesn't say if you want to be saved, keep my commandments. 748 00:52:35,700 --> 00:52:41,740 And as I recognize what Jesus has done for me, as I allow the Spirit to write God's law 749 00:52:41,740 --> 00:52:48,780 upon my heart and upon my mind, then I can come back and I can look at God's law. 750 00:52:48,780 --> 00:52:51,580 Say thank you, Jesus, for cleansing me. 751 00:52:51,580 --> 00:52:52,780 Thank you for your grace. 752 00:52:52,780 --> 00:52:54,620 Thank you for your blood. 753 00:52:54,620 --> 00:52:59,620 Help me to have that law in my heart and to walk with you each and every day. 754 00:52:59,620 --> 00:53:05,580 And that's why the devil hates God's law, because it shows us of our need of a Savior. 755 00:53:05,580 --> 00:53:08,220 It points us to Jesus. 756 00:53:08,220 --> 00:53:15,020 Jesus said in the contemporary English version, he says, if you're tired from carrying heavy 757 00:53:15,020 --> 00:53:20,280 burdens, just come to me and I will give you rest. 758 00:53:20,280 --> 00:53:26,940 If you're tired from carrying heavy burdens, Jesus says, come and I will give you rest. 759 00:53:26,940 --> 00:53:28,220 I will forgive. 760 00:53:28,220 --> 00:53:30,380 I will take those burdens away from you. 761 00:53:30,380 --> 00:53:33,420 I will take those sins away from you. 762 00:53:33,420 --> 00:53:40,340 My life was laid down so that you might live and God will look at you as if you have never, 763 00:53:40,340 --> 00:53:41,340 ever sinned. 764 00:53:41,340 --> 00:53:48,140 Would you like to have that walk with Jesus, that connection with Jesus to allow Jesus 765 00:53:48,140 --> 00:53:52,080 to transform you, that you might walk with him? 766 00:53:52,080 --> 00:53:54,420 If you do, just raise your hand with me. 767 00:53:54,420 --> 00:53:55,420 Let's bow our heads. 768 00:53:55,420 --> 00:54:04,700 Thank God, what an incredible story of salvation that Jesus died for each one of us. 769 00:54:04,700 --> 00:54:11,060 And Lord, we've looked at this foundation piece because we've seen that in prophecies 770 00:54:11,060 --> 00:54:16,420 ahead that there's going to be sides to be taken. 771 00:54:16,420 --> 00:54:21,120 We get to choose to recognize your love for us. 772 00:54:21,120 --> 00:54:28,860 We get to choose to look at the times that we have fallen short and see our need of a 773 00:54:28,860 --> 00:54:29,860 Savior. 774 00:54:29,860 --> 00:54:31,940 So Lord, thank you for your blood. 775 00:54:31,940 --> 00:54:34,380 Thank you for your grace and your forgiveness. 776 00:54:34,380 --> 00:54:38,980 And Lord, fill us with your Spirit that we might walk with you, that we might serve you, 777 00:54:38,980 --> 00:54:39,980 that we might love you. 778 00:54:39,980 --> 00:54:44,140 Be with each person here, each individual that's here tonight. 779 00:54:44,140 --> 00:54:45,140 Guide and bless them. 780 00:54:45,140 --> 00:54:46,140 In your name we pray. 781 00:54:46,140 --> 00:54:53,140 Amen.