Jëan Ross: Good morning, friends. I'd like to welcome you to "Sabbath School Study Hour" here at the Granite Bay Seventh-Day Adventist Church in Sacramento, California. I'd like to welcome our online members and our friends who are joining us across the country and around the world, our extended Sabbath School class, as well as our regular Sabbath School members and those who are visiting with us today. We're just delighted that you're here this morning. We have a very important lesson that we'll be looking at. It's still on the subject that we have, the theme, for our whole quarter, entitled, "The Least of These." And today we're looking at lesson number six. The title of the lesson is "Worship the Creator." And of course, that has something to do with the Sabbath. The Sabbath is a memorial of God's creative work but there are some other things that's going to be addressed in our lesson today.
So it's lesson number six if you're following along in your lesson quarterly entitled "Worship the Creator." And for those of you who might not have a copy of today's lesson, you can download one for free by simply visiting the website, Lesson.aftv.org. And again, that website is Lesson.aftv.org. Download lesson number six and you'll be able to study along with us. It's entitled "Worship the Creator."
We also have a free offer we'd like to let you know about, those who are joining us on the various networks as well as watching online, a book entitled, "Why God Said Remember." And this is our free offer today. What you'll need to do in order to receive this book is to call the number... and you want to ask for offer number 185. That number again... ask for offer number 185. We'll be happy to send that to anyone here in North America. If you're outside of North America, you can send a text message to the following code and be able to download the book. So you want to send the text code "SH129" to the number 40544. And again, then you'll get a link and you'll be able to download and read the book "Why God Said Remember." I think it'll be a blessing as you read through that. Well, before we get to our study this morning, we're going to start by lifting our voices in song. I'd like to invite our song leaders to please come forward.
Female: Good morning, and happy Sabbath, church family. We invite you to join us in singing our hymn this morning, hymn number 422, "Marching to Zion." And we're going to sing all four verses.
♪♪♪
♪ Come, we that love the Lord, ♪
♪ and let our joys be known; ♪
♪ Join in a song with sweet accord ♪
♪ join in a song with sweet accord, ♪
♪ and thus surround the throne, ♪
♪ and thus surround the throne. ♪
♪ We’re marching to Zion, ♪
♪ beautiful, beautiful Zion. ♪
♪ We’re marching upward ♪
♪ to heavenly Zion, ♪
♪ the beautiful city of God. ♪
♪ Let those refuse to sing, who never knew our God; ♪
♪ but children of the heavenly King ♪
♪ but children of the heavenly King ♪
♪ may speak their joys abroad, ♪
♪ may speak their joys abroad. ♪
♪ We’re marching to Zion, ♪
♪ beautiful, beautiful Zion. ♪
♪ We’re marching upward ♪
♪ to heavenly Zion, ♪
♪ the beautiful city of God. ♪
♪ The hill of Zion yields ♪
♪ a thousand sacred sweets, ♪
♪ before we reach the heavenly fields ♪
♪ before we reach the heavenly fields, ♪
♪ or walk the golden streets, ♪
♪ or walk the golden streets. ♪
♪ We’re marching to Zion, ♪
♪ beautiful, beautiful Zion. ♪
♪ We’re marching upward ♪
♪ to heavenly Zion, ♪
♪ the beautiful city of God. ♪♪
Female: Thank you for singing with us.
Jëan: "Marching to Zion," one of my favorite hymns. What a great theme to kind of remind us that, yes, heaven is our home, that heavenly Zion. Let's bow our heads for a word of prayer. Dear Father, once again, we are grateful that we're able to gather in Your house to open up Your Word and study a very important lesson, a lesson that is so important to us as individuals for we are Your creation. You have made us and You are worthy of worship, and so we do pray that You bless us as we look at this theme of "Worship the Creator," and we commit this time in Your keeping in Jesus's name, amen.
Our lesson this morning is going to be brought to us by the Amazing Facts director of the AFCA program. AFCA is the Amazing Facts Center of Evangelism and one of our evangelists is currently our AFCA director, evangelist Carlos Munoz, and he is going to be sharing our lesson today. God bless you.
Carlos Munoz: Maranatha! Ooh, you sound a little weak there, I see. Maranatha! Christ is coming, amen? So I want to welcome everybody to our Sabbath School. It's a great privilege and an honor to be here with you and when I was asked to share and do the Sabbath School this week, I was interesting because I was making memory and I thought, "You know, I've never actually given the Sabbath School lesson in English, right?" I was--I came in ten years ago through Hispanic churches and so I was thinking, "I've actually never done it in English." I was, like, "Whoo." I was, you know, excited about that. It's the first time I--when I was growing up in the church, I started as a deacon, I was an elder, and I was a Sabbath School teacher, so it comes very natural to me, but--so this is fun, amen? It's fun as we come together and study this wonderful topic and not any topic but what's the title for the lesson this week? It's what? "Worship the Creator."
Now, automatically, when I say the title, "Worship the Creator," what do we think about? What did you think about when you heard the title, "Worship the Creator"? What come to mind? Revelation chapter 14, what? Verse 6, right? It said: "And another angel said flying in the midst of heaven, with the having the," what? "The everlasting gospel." "Fear God and give glory to Him, for the hour of His judgment has come; and worship Him who made," or created, "the heavens, the sea, the earth, and the springs of water." So immediately, it took me to the three angels' message. Now we'll see how this ties in, in the lesson as we continue. Before we start, I'd like to have a word of prayer. Father, thank You for this opportunity to come together and study Your Word in such a wonderful topic as is worshiping You as our creator. And so, Father, we ask that Your Spirit guide us and strengthen us and we ask these things in Jesus's name, amen. Amen.
So "Worshiping the Creator." One of the things that I like to do when I give my Sabbath School lesson is to start off with the title. Now, the first word is "Worshiping." Now, what does "worshiping" mean? What is "worshiping"? Some people think that worshiping is having some type of spiritual manifestation where people are jumping up and down or maybe they're--they think that they're speaking in tongues, right, and they think that this manifestation is a form of worship, right? You ask other people. Other people will say, "Well, worshiping is singing and praising God." Other people will say, "It's preaching." And while some of those things more than others, right, they do apply.
The word "worship" is very interesting in the Bible. In Greek, the word "worship" is proskuneo. Now, what does the word "proskuneo" mean? I'm not going to tell you what it means. I'm going to show you what the word "proskuneo" means. So if you run the camera with me, maybe you want to follow me. This is what proskuneo means biblically. Did you get that? So what does worship mean biblically? It's to what? It's to humble yourself, it's to prostrate yourself before the Lord. It's to put your hands, your knees, and your face on the floor. Is everybody following me? So singing and studying the Bible and praising God, those things are part of our worship, amen?
But the worship is really founded on what? On a humbled heart, on a heart that has been given over to the Lord in submission, amen? Saying, "Lord," if you remember in the Bible it says that when God's people--when some tragedy would happen or where something was intensely--an emergency came, they would do what? They would prostrate themselves. They would throw dust and they would throw what? And they would throw, what else did they throw on themselves? Dust and ashes. And what does that mean? What do they mean when they were throwing dust and ashes on themselves? Dust represents what? What are we made from? Of? Of dust. And ashes. What we're saying is, "Lord." When we prostrate ourselves, "Lord, I am dust," right? "I came from dust. You are my creator. And if I don't repent and I don't submit myself to You, if I don't humble myself to You, I'm going to be turned into," what? "Into ashes." So it's an affliction of the soul, actually. It's a humbling before God. That's what the word "worship" means.
And if we were to give the word "worship" a synonym, and did I say that correctly? I always get it confused with synonym. Synonym is the actual word, not cinnamon. If I were to use a synonym for the word "worship," you know what word I would use? "Obedience," amen? Who wants to worship God? Raise your hand. Then obey Him, because that is the obedience, that is the true worship, is a submission to God's will. It's just saying, "Lord, here I am. Use me in Your service. Use me as You are." And why is it that He deserves worship in this context? It's because He is our what? He is our creator. He is our maker, amen? And He is the life-giver. And so when we choose not to give Him the worship as our creator, to give Him the obedience to submit ourselves in humility as He is the one, what we're saying is, "I don't want to live anymore because He is the life-giver." Is everybody with me? That's what we're saying. We're rejecting life. And He says, if that's what you choose, God respects our decision but what we're saying is, "I don't want to live anymore because He is the one that gives life and so it is through worship, my loved ones, that we are honoring, recognizing Him as our--as our creator, amen?
And we're going to see that as we continue to go into the lesson and so immediately, my loved ones, what we find is then there's an--is worship and idolatry connected? Yes or no, right? Is there a connection between worship and idolatry? Yes, because when you choose not to worship God, automatically what do you fall into? You fall into idolatry. And so we see this connection in Scripture.
So if true worship is obedience to God, then what is false worship? Disobedience to God. It's idolatry. Is everybody following me? And so this is what we find when we come into our lesson, right? It gives us the first example. It talks about what? What is the first example that it gives us about issues with worship in our lesson this week? It was on regards to--it was on regards to what? Egypt, right? It was in regards to Egypt. I call this worshiping Egyptian style. So God--God's people, what happened? We know the story. They were--they had been hundreds of years. They were--they fell into slavery in Egypt. Now, do you think that they fell into slavery into Egypt because they were obeying God? What do you say? Go ahead, you can answer. Do you think that they fell into slavery because they were obeying God, because they were worshiping God properly? No, right? Maybe during the times of Joseph, Joseph was the pillar, right? Joseph was the focal point, but once Joseph died, the Scripture says that they fell out of favor and I'm sure that also they started to follow in the Egyptian worship styles, right? They probably started to eat Egyptian food, Egyptian entertainment, Egyptian fashion, and the Egyptian lifestyle, right? Egyptian worship, and they got all caught up but they fell into slavery because, why? Because they fell away from the Lord.
But the Lord listened to them, it says in Exodus chapter 2, amen? And what happened? That eventually, slavery becomes such a burden on them, that they did what? They had no other where to go than back to the God of Abraham, of Jacob, and of Isaac, amen? Is everybody with me? And so they--it says in Exodus chapter 2, around verse 23 and 24, it says that they pleaded and they say-- they looked up to the Lord. Did the Lord listen to them? Amen, they were slaves.
I have a question. Were we slaves? Yes, we were slaves to what? To sin. We were born in the condition, just as God's people during this time, they had been born under that condition. It's all they knew but it became such a burden that they asked God for freedom, right? And did God send a liberator, yes or no? Oh yes, He did. Who did He send? He sent Moses, amen? Moses, a type of Christ, Moses then comes in. Moses wants to what? Moses then comes in and part of God to do what? To free God's people. Were they freed, yes or no? Yes or no? Oh, yes, through what? Through the blood of the Lamb, amen? And so as the blood of the Lamb comes in, what happens? Then they are taken--they're taken through the Red Sea, which is a representation of baptism.
And then what comes next? And then God takes them into the desert and what does He do with them? He says, "Do you see what I have done for you? I am the God of Abraham, I am the God of Isaac, I am the God of Jacob, and I want to be your God," amen? "I want to be your God. I want to--I just showed you what I did because I want to keep My covenant with My son, Abraham, and I want to be your God. I want you to be My people, My bride." And they said, "Yes," but what happened immediately? What happened immediately after Moses went up to spend that time with God in 40 days? What did they do? They began to worship Egyptian-style, right? They had just said, "We're not going to go running into idolatry." They had just committed to the Ten Commandments, these divine principles, but they chose to do what? They chose then to follow back in what they knew, right? The impatience.
And whose fault was it? Was it their fault? Whose fault was it? Aaron's fault, right? It was Aaron's fault and God--and Moses says, "What have you done? What have you taken them to do?" Is this, my loved ones, is this story planning to point to us? Is God trying to tell us something about worship in the end times, right? That a leadership is supposed to uphold these principles, these divine principles of worship, right? Of how it is to serve God, how it is to live for God, how it is to follow God and to show and witness to others and so we see that God's people did what?
They veered off because of the leadership and this is not only talking about just the pastors and the elders. This is also talking about Mom and Dad at home. Is everybody with me, right? Those principles, go with them, because truly, kids come to church for what? For maybe a couple hours on Sabbath, maybe an hour during the week. The real sanctuary, the real church, is where? Is in your house. It's at home. It's those principles that you have established for them, upholding the principles of God and so we see how this veered off very quickly. Is everybody with me?
And so, go with me please to Psalm. Let's go to Psalm chapter 115 because in the lesson it uses this verse in a very interesting way and I actually, I don't know about you, but I never really saw it--saw this verse through my studies in Psalms chapter 118. We're going to start on verse number 1. Psalms 118. So we see Egyptian-style worship came in, right? And immediately these issues. I have a question. Did the same thing happen with the early church? Yes or no? Right? Christ established the early church. We read in the book of Acts, how was the early church? Ho, they were fervent for the Lord. They were ministering, they were doing the Lord's work, but what happened? After a while, right, the leadership kind of died out. The disciples died out and what led into the church? What does Revelation tell us in the second, third, and fourth seal? What came in? Idolatry came in.
So when we put these principles aside, when we don't uphold the principles of God, when we stop worshiping God, when we stop submitting to God, immediately what is going to come into our lives? Idolatry. In other words, you're going to put something or someone before God. That's the danger and that's why God puts His Ten Commandments, those protections about don't worship, don't follow any other god, don't follow, don't put your worship into any other thing, because anything that you put before Me is going to lead you down to destruction. Why? Because you're going to be submitting yourself to the things of the flesh.
And this is how it leads. And this is what we're looking at. Psalms 115. Everybody there? Verse number 1 says: "Not unto us, O Lord, unto--not unto us, but to Your name give glory, because of Your mercy, because of Your truth," amen? "Why should the Gentiles say, 'So where is their God?' But our God is in heaven; He does whatever He pleases. Their idols are silver and gold, the works of man hands. They have mouths, but they do not speak; eyes, but they do not--" "They have ears, but they do not--" "Noses, but they do not--" Is everybody with me? "They have hands, but they do not handle; feet they have, but they do not walk; nor do they mutter through their throat." And it says: "Those who make them are like them; so is everyone who trusts in them."
So what is this principle talking about here? Is that you will turn into or what you will become what you contemplate, right? Whatever is your idol, whatever is you--whatever you put if--let me put it this way. Anything that you put before God, whether it be a person or whether it be a thing, that is your idol. And you will contemplate that, you will become that. That's psychology 101. What you contemplate is what you will become. And so God puts these limitations. When God puts these Ten Commandments, when He puts these holy principles, it's to protect us from falling into idolatry. Is everybody with me? It's to protect us from our own carnal nature and when we see this, that's--those are the principles and so when we talk about why do we worship God, why do we worship God? The lesson tells us very clearly in the lesson title. Because He is what? Is that the only reason?
Is that the only reason we worship God, because of creation? No, why else? Because of redemption, right? It was talked about in a couple of lessons ago. Deuteronomy chapter 5 when it gives the Ten Commandments, especially specifically the Sabbath. It talks about why? Because You have redeemed us. How? With a strong arm, with open arms, amen? Have we been redeemed through Christ, extending His arms and putting Himself on Calvary, yes or no? And so we worship because of creation. Who wants to thank God for creating us? Let me see, raise your hand. Praise the Lord, I do too. Who wants to thank Christ for redeeming us? Amen, but you know that's not the only reason. The other reason why is because of sanctification. Do you know that? It says that He is a--it is a seal, a sign, that He is our God because He has sanctified us, amen? Who wants to thank God for sanctification? Whoo, because sanctification, my loved ones, is what gets us to be ready to live in the presence of God, amen? And it's not only because of creation. Not only because of redemption, not only because of sanctification but also because of glorification, amen? Because in Isaiah chapter 66, when you read verses 22 and 33, it says that from Sabbath, from new month to month to month and from Sabbath to Sabbath we shall what? "In the new heavens and the new earth we shall all come to worship Him," amen? And it's because of what? Because of what He has. We're worshiping for the past, because of the present, and because of the future, amen? And so these are great reasons, amen? Amen?
Now, there's an issue. The devil knows this and so what does the devil do? He tries to what? He tries to distort God's plan. He tries to deviate us from God's plan. Why? Because he knows that if we deviate from these principles, if we deviate from this foundation of God, worshiping God, submitting our lives, giving our lives over as God is our creator, then what happens? Then he knows were going to automatically fall into idolatry because only God can protect us from the ways of the flesh, only God can sustain us. Is everybody with me, amen? And so what happens? Go with me. I want to show you something fascinating. Romans chapter 1. Go with me to Romans chapter 1. I want to show you how this plays out in Scripture and especially how this leads because, my loved ones, if we do not submit to God, if we do not give ourselves over to God, then we are in danger of following in the ways of the flesh and the ways of the flesh are what? What are the ways of the flesh? Death.
Look at Romans chapter 1. Watch the enemy's plan. Paul saw this. He saw it coming and look at how Paul so masterfully breaks this down. Romans chapter 1. Everybody there? Verse number 18: "For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men," and women, who do what? "Who suppress the truth in unrighteousness." Now, what is this truth that is being suppressed that Paul is talking about? Look at what it says in verse 19. "Because what may be known of God is manifested in them, for God has shown it to them."
What has God shown us? What has God manifested to us that is being suppressed, that is being put aside? Here it is, verse 20: "For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are," what? "So they are without excuse." So what is it making reference? What is Paul pointing to? He's pointing to people that do what? They don't want to look, they don't want to give God credit for being what? The creator, right? And that's what the devil's plan is. He says, "If I can keep their focus away, if I can make them think that they can be Christians, that they can honor God and worship God, and pull away that concept of God as their creator, as God as their foundation, and Paul says what? The evidence is so clear. It's abundantly clear, what? Through the things that we see, amen?
Through the things that we see it is very clear that there is a God. I--I don't know if most of you know, but I used to be an atheist. I didn't believe in God. And when people asked me, "What made you to believe in God?" do you know what I tell them? "Science. Science is what made me believe in God." And people say, "What? That's crazy because I thought science says no." Science, when I studied science, the brain, biology, the universe, the ecosystems, everything, is order and logic. And I said, "This has to come from someplace." Is everybody with me? And this--it took me a long time, it wasn't overnight, trust me. Took me a number of years but eventually science is what got me to believe that there is something supernatural in the world. Does everybody follow me?
Now, a lot of people say, "Oh, but science disproved God." I'm sorry, but science cannot disprove God. Why? Because science is the study of the natural world, hmm? What is science? The study of the natural world, and if God is supernatural, then that means that science is not capable of pointing to God because that's not the purpose of science. Is everybody following me? So how are we going to use something to measure God when it's inept, it's not capable of the supernatural? It would be like me trying to use a ruler to measure how much air is in the tires of my car. Is it going to work? No, that's not what the purpose of the ruler is. Science cannot prove God because God is supernatural. He is above it. Is everybody with me? And so this is what we're seeing. Let's continue to read because this is fascinating. It continues to say, Romans chapter 1, verse number 21: "Because, though they know God, they did not glorify Him as God, nor were thankful, but became futile in their thoughts, and their foolish hearts were darkened. Professing to be wise, they became," what? Why? Because they don't want to recognize God as what? As the creator. "And changed the glory of the incorruptible God into a image made like corruptible man--and birds and four-footed animals and creeping things."
Let's stop here for a minute. Instead of man giving honor and worshiping God and giving Him the praise and glory for being our creator, it says here that they were looking at what? "At corruptible things," at us. I like to say, "God created man and women in His image and likeliness and after sin we have given back the same favor," right? Doesn't translate in English so well but in Spanish it sounds really nice. What it means is that God created us in His image and likeness and after sin what are we doing? We're creating God in our fallen image and likeliness, right? We're wanting God to be like us so why? So it's comfortable. So it's not--so we say, "You know what? I can live the way I want to live, I can live in the ways of the flesh." That's just fine because God is like that too, right? And so this is what humanity is doing. This is what it's pointing to and look at how it goes.
We not only stop worshiping God the creator but now we're looking at the earth and the things that were created. Verse 24: "Therefore also--God also gave them unto uncleanliness, in the lusts of their," what? "Their hearts, to dishonor their bodies among themselves, who exchanged the truth of God for a lie," and what did they worship? "Worshiped and served," what? "Creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever, amen." So what did humanity start to do? Instead of worshiping God as the creator, what did they start to worship? Creation.
I have a question. How is this theory manifested now in society? How is it that human beings are not giving worshiping and honoring God as their creator but worshiping creation? What is that theory called? Evolution, thank you. Evolution. Isn't that what evolution is? Oh, we didn't come from God, we came from what? We evolved from some cosmic, right, some cosmic mucus that became a tadpole, and then it became a fish, and then it became a lizard and then an ape and that's how we came up from. This--isn't that what Paul is talking about? What happens? That's why the devil is so tricky because he's taken humanity to think we don't need to have God as a creator. We've got to not create and by automatically pushing us away from looking and focusing on God as the creator, what happens is that we start to what? We fall into idolatry. We fall into the ways of the lusts of the flesh and we start what? Focusing on us.
And if you start looking at us and looking at creation, you can justify anything. Anything you can justify and that's why we have all of this confusion in this world. Look at what it continues to say. It says in verse number 26: "For this reason God gave them up to vile passions. For even their woman exchanged the natural use for what is," what? "Against nature. Likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust for one another, men with men committing what is shameful, and receiving in themselves the penalty of their error which is due." And you can continue to read.
You know the story. It's basically saying when we keep our focus off of worshiping God, honoring God, as the creator, what happens? We start to fall in the most vile and lustful beliefs of the flesh. And amongst those it's talking about evolution, right? And there are people that look at evolution and they say, "Well." And it's also talking about what? It's also talking about homosexuality, right? Now, does God love the sinner? Amen, right? We're all on that boat, right? But God hates sin. And so we're called to what? To move away from sin but what is the justification? "Oh, no, this is how we are. This is how he made us. C'mon, we see it in nature. We see animals doing homosexual acts too." Are you following me? We're not putting God in His place. We're not telling Him and putting those principles and that automatically will lead into idolatry in the mind and in the being. Is everybody following me? Is everybody with me? And we see in this connection and how the devil is trying to play off, trick us.
Look at what it says here in a quote from "Great Controversy." It said, "It is a law both of the intellectual and the spiritual nature that by beholding, we become changed. The mind gradually adapts itself to the subjects upon which it is allowed to dwell. It becomes assimilated to that which it is accustomed to. Love and reference. Love and reference, I'm sorry. To which it is accustomed to love and reference." I didn't say that right. Let me read that again. "It becomes assimilated to that which it is accustomed to love and reverence." So what you love and reverence, that's what's going to appear.
Have you ever seen somebody that looks like their car? Actually, I know people that worship their car. It's all about their car, all the money, everything is about their car. And it gets to a point where they look like their car. Men will never rise higher than his standard of purity or goodness or truth. It is self in his loftiest ideal, he will never attain to anything more exalted. So if this is the image that you have, then that's how high your standards and your principles are going to go. Is everybody with me? But the grace of God alone has power to exalt man. Left to himself his course must inevitably be downwards. Are you following me? And so the devil knows this. The devil understands this perfectly and that's what he's trying to take us to.
Go with me please to Deuteronomy chapter 10. Deuteronomy chapter 10. Now, in the context of the lesson, does this have to do also with our service, right? Some people say, you know, ministering and servicing to others is part--is a part of our worship. No, it is worship because, remember, worship is not just doing x or y. Worship is what? What did we show worship to be? A total submission to God's will. And so in God's will, we see that service to others in the same way that God served us should be the ideal or the principle that is brought forth when you have known and given your life over to God, amen? Because in the same way that He has done for us, we were slaves, we were foreigners, we were dead in our lusts and in our flesh.
God sent His Son, amen, to do what? To save us, to bring us up, to show us what it means to live a holy righteous life in the Spirit. And so because he has served us, automatically what should we be doing? Serving others that were in our same condition, in our unsaved, fleshly, live condition. Is everybody with me? And so what happens is, let's go to Deuteronomy chapter 10. What happens is, my loved ones, is that now we understand why the devil attacks the Sabbath. Why? Because if you take away the Sabbath, what does the Sabbath point to? Creation, worshiping Christ as what? As the creator. And so the devil says, "If I can take the Sabbath away, then I can take their focus away from Christ as their creator and then what? And then I could do anything I want with them, right? Because they've left the door open for me to come in."
Look at Deuteronomy chapter 17: "For the Lord your God is God of gods and Lord of lords, the great God, mighty and awesome, who shows no," what? Who shows no what? Should we be showing partiality towards others? No, God wasn't impartial with us, amen? God was what? God was pointing to us directly, amen. He didn't say, "Look at these people." He sent His only begotten Son, amen? I'm glad that when I started my Christian walk, somebody did not look at me because I did get the looks when I got into church because before I became a Christian ten years ago, whoo-hoo! Piercings all over the place, tattoos, ripped jeans. I was all over the place. And they--people looked at me. They looked at me, eugh. "This guy--eugh, this kid ain't going nowhere." But I'm glad that as God does not show partiality, so was I not showing partiality, amen? And I was received and accept the same. They didn't see me for who I was. They saw me for who I was going to become in Christ. "He administers justice for the fatherless and the widows, and loves the stranger, giving him food and clothing. Therefore love the stranger, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt. You shall fear the Lord your God; you shall serve Him, and do Him--and to Him you shall," what? "Hold fast, and take oaths in His name. He is your praise, He is your God, who has done for you these great and awesome things which you--" which you what? "Which you have seen with your own eyes."
I have a question. Have you seen the glory of God in your life? Have you been witness to the glory of God in your life? Then you are not the same person because when God touches you, when God comes into your life, you can't be the same. "Your fathers went down to Egypt with 70 persons, and now the Lord your God has made you as the stars of heaven in multitude," amen? And so it's pointing to, again, it's just giving honor to God as our creator but also because he is a God of what? He is a just God, amen? He is a righteous God. He is a holy God. And in that context, it's clearly pointing to what? To serving others, amen? To love for others.
What are the two--what are the--how many table commandments do we have? We have how many? Ten Commandments divided in how many tablets? Two. Why two tablets? 'Cause when God was writing the first tablet, He ran out of space and, "Hey, give Me another tablet. C'mon, I'm running out of space." No, why? Because the first commandment, the first tablet, has to do with what? Our worship towards. But the second commandment also has to do with our worship towards God, right? But our responsibility and commitment to who? To others, amen? And so that's why when you see in the Gospels, you see when Christ comes along, He doesn't focus too much on the first tablet, if you're noticed. He does touch on the fourth one, the Sabbath, because of what it had become. But really, Christ focuses on what? On the aspect of loving your neighbor. He consistently is pushing them. Why? Because they had become so legalistic, they had become so full of themselves, they had become so adapted as Isaiah as we see in the lesson, to the ritual and the practices and they thought that that was the end and not knowing that that was a mean to the end, who was Christ, amen? All of those things were pointing to Christ but they thought it, what? By them fulfilling it, they were what? Oh, they will--and they forgot what? They forgot the most basic and elemental part of what? Of loving your neighbor. Because how is it that we can love God who we have not seen if we don't love our neighbors who we do see? Isn't that a principle in the Bible?
Go with me, Romans chapter 13. Go with me. I'm sorry, 1 John. I wanted to show you this. 1 John. This is the foundation, my loved ones, of our worship. And our worship leads us into automatically a unique and a distinct perspective of our neighbors are those that are around us. We're not here in a vacuum. We're not here sitting down, just putting on the seatbelt and hitting cruise control, waiting for Christ to come. We have a job. 1 John chapter 4. Who's there? 1 John chapter 4. 1 John chapter 4. It says--we're going to start on verse number 7. Look at this: "Beloved, let us love one another, for love is of--and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. He who does not love does not know God, for God is love. In this the love of God was manifested toward us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through Him."
Now watch this. This verse--this verse number 10--the 9 is amazing; 10 is just--it should shake us to the bones. "In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins," amen? "By this we know that we--" I'm sorry. "Beloved, if God so loved us, then we also ought to," what? "Love others." It's--you can't take it apart. That's why when people say, "Oh, ministry is part of our walk." No, it is. It's the express manifestation of the love for God is what? Is a love for one another. It's a ministering to one another. It's the sharing to one another. It's the seeing where I came from and how now God has used me and changed and transformed me and I want to be that same instrument to others, amen? And that's what it's pointing to. That's why it says--go with me to Romans chapter 13. Romans chapter 13. These are profound principles, my loved ones. You cannot--I'm looking for the word in English. I'm thinking in Spanish. As you know, I've already mentioned to you, I think in Spanish but I'm translating in English and so, good for you, because that way I speak slower. In Spanish I'm like a machine gun, right? Romans chapter 13, right? You can't separate. That's the word. You can't separate the love for God from the love for others, and when you love others you will minister, you will treat them, you will reach out to them. You will love them.
Romans chapter 13. Who's there? Look at verse number 8: "Owe no one anything except to," what? "To love one another, for he who loves another has," what? "Fulfilled the law. For the commandment says, 'You shall not commit adultery,' 'You shall not murder,' 'You shall not steal,' 'You shall not bear false witness,' 'You shall not covet,' and if there is any other commandment, are all summed up in this saying, 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself,' love does no harm to the neighbor; therefore the love is the," what? "The fulfillment of the law," amen?
So how do we love our neighbors? That second table, right? It's that second perspective. But that only happens, my loved ones, when we have a transformed heart. That's why when you go to Matthew chapter 25, when it talks about the separating, right, of the lamb--of the lambs and the goats in English, right? And what happens? He says to the lambs, "Oh, you fed Me, you took care of Me, you gave Me food, you gave Me water, you visit Me in prison," and what did they say? "When? When would we do that, Lord?" And He said, "When you did it to one of My little ones," right? It's the expression, the manifestation, of the love of God in us is manifested through the love of God to others. But this is not human because we are selfish. Is everybody following me? So this has to be a transforming power of God working in us. And it's by contemplating, by looking at Him, by pointing to Him, by keeping Him as the focus and His power, His Spirit, working through us, then we can minister to others as He has ministered to us, amen?
But what happens in the time of Isaiah, right? They were saved from Egypt, amen? Saved from Egypt. They were taken, they were given a little pow-pow lesson in the desert because they didn't get it so for 40 years God what? God had to let that generation go and restart, right? It was a restart, reboot, His people through giving him the law again. But then what happens? Then, as they start to establish as a kingdom, then comes the time of Isaiah.
Go with me please to the times of Isaiah, whoo. And that's kind of where the lesson left off last week in the book of Isaiah. Let's go with me to chapter 1. Isaiah chapter 1, and we're going to go to verse number 10. And now when we read this, remember I've--I think I've mentioned this to you. When we read these things, please read it as if it's happening to us. This is talking about us. This is talking about our times because these things will what? These things will happen again, my loved ones. They're not here just to say, "Wow, these people during the times of Isaiah, they were terrible. Whoo, good thing we're not like that."
The reason it's here is because history repeats itself, and God is putting it because the devil is the devil and he's going to continue to push us into living and worshiping in the flesh. Isaiah chapter 1, everybody there? And it says in verse number 10: "Hear the word of the Lord, you rulers of Sodom." What? He's not talking to Sodom. He's talking to who? To his people. "Give ear to the law of our God," why? Why the law of the God? Because the law of God has what? Holy principles, amen? Holy principles that protect us from sin. I didn't hear anybody say, "Amen."
That's how I see the Ten Commandments. The Ten Commandments is like a barrier. It's a protection wall that God has given us to say, "That's what sin is. Stay away from it. Don't get close to it." And so the law of God protects us from ourselves. It's the manifestation of God's love, showing us, "Don't, because I know what transgression of My law does. I know what happens when you walk away, when you become idolatrous." Continues to read: "'To what purpose is the multitude of your sacrifices to Me?' says the Lord. 'I have had enough of burnt offerings of rams and the fat of fed cattle. I do not delight in the blood of bulls, or of lamb or goats. When you come to appear before Me,'" He says. What does He say? "Who has required this from your hand, to trample My courts? Bring no more futile sacrifices; incense is an abomination to Me. The New Moons, the Sabbaths, the calling of assemblies--I cannot endure iniquity and the sacred meetings. Your New Moons, your appointed festivals My soul hates; they are a trouble to Me, I am weary of bearing them. When you spread out your hands, I will hide My eyes from you; even though you make many prayers, I will not hear. Your hands are full of blood. Wash yourselves," amen? "Make yourselves clean; put away the evil of your doings before My eyes. Cleanse to do evil--cease to do evil, learn to do good; seek justice, rebuke the oppressor; defend the fatherless, plead for the widow."
Now, I have a question. All of these things were instituted by God, yes or no, in the Mosaic law? Yes, the incense, the sacrifices, all of the feast days, all of this was instituted. Is he saying not to do them? Is that what he's saying? No. Remember, all those things pointed to Christ, amen? They all point to Christ. He's not saying not to do them. He's saying, what? You're doing them because you think that these are the end, that this is the purpose. No, these are the means to an end. They are pointing to something greater but you've taken these rituals, you've taken them and you've put them in a ritualized way and you've made them the what? The center and you forgot about what? You forgot about those around you.
And so when we take--when we keep our focus, here's what happens in Christianity. When we keep our focus off Christ, when we disconnect with God, when we no longer have that intimate daily communion with God, then those things which are supposed to be a means to obtain, to connect with God, we then place them as what? As these holy principles over serving and worshiping God with our hearts. And so we put them and what do we do with them? We make, "Oh, they--it's more important." I'm sure you've seen--I like the lessons because sometimes they have questions.
I'll give you an example of this. Have you ever seen when they do the Communion service, right? I remember one time in my church they were doing Communion sermon and this deaconess, she was new, right? And so they put her to do the cloth, right? And so, obviously, she wasn't doing that good because, you know, she made mistakes. They didn't practice with her enough. And so she was there, trying to do her best but what happened? Oh, you can see the head deaconesses and they were just fuming, "Ohh, look at what she's doing." And they had rage in their heart, and then they took her and they scolded her and, "Oh, look at what you did." That poor child, that poor lady, she was just doing what? What she knew.
And so we have taken these--established these beautiful sermon, baptism and Communion, and we've taken these things and we've put them above the love for others. It doesn't mean that we don't do them. It doesn't mean that these are not holy things of God, but they are not the end. They are the means. They are pointing to Christ. Is everybody with me? And so sometimes, we put these things over the love of our fellow beings and we do the same thing, my loved ones, consistently. Why? We do this consistently when we are not connected with God. We forget that the purpose of God is to what? Is to save humans, amen? And that should be the focus, as we keep our focus on the Lord.
And so when we go into the book, it talks about the number of ways to worship and it goes into Isaiah chapter 58, right? And it talks about, again, about fasting. I have a question. Is fasting not biblical? Yes, it is biblical but what was happening? What is Isaiah pointing to in Isaiah chapter 58? Yes, they were using it as a means--as an end, right? To obtain something and not knowing that what he says--what is the fast? What is it I want you to do? I want you to stop focusing on yourself. That's basically what Isaiah 58 is saying. Stop focusing on yourself, stop being so preoccupied in your own things, your--what you want, and go serve. Go minister. That is, my loved ones, that is the manifestation, that is the result. It is of seeing and--are we just ministering to minister?
I have a question. Are we just ministering to minister? No, 'cause I'll tell you the truth. I know churches that they do a lot of work, communities, oh, community service, then they come back and the question is, "And how many people did you minister to? Yes, you fed them, amen, amen. Yes, you reached out to them. But the purpose was what? The purpose is to show them Christ, amen? To win, to touch on their needs, to touch and minister to what they have. It's not just to say, to calm your conscience and say, "Oh, I did my work this week," right? "I gave somebody some food and I'm good to go." Look at what it says: "Christ's method alone will give true success in reaching," what? "The people. The Savior mingled with men as one who desired their good. He showed His sympathy for them. He ministered to their needs and won their confidence but with what purpose? What is the end result of all of these things? And then He obeyed them to," what? "Follow Me," amen?
So when we're ministering, we're not just ministering to put a checklist on what I'm--I behaved like a Christian this week. Or a checklist because I said, "Whoo, now I can say I've done what I need to do." No, the purpose of ministering to people's needs, the purpose as God is God wants us to be a blessing so that they can see our God that we serve, amen? That through our lives, through our works, they can see something different and they can see the God that we serve and they say, "You know what? I want to serve that God. That God that you're serving, I like it." And they'll be listening. Isn't that what Jesus did? He didn't heal just to heal. Because after the healing what's going to happen? They're going to die again. But what? The purpose was to give them what? Something that could not--would not pass away here on earth but would be what? Everlasting life, amen? And so as we're ministering to people, we should be focusing on what? On trying to reach them-- but, again, we need to be what? We need to be connected with God. That submission to God's will. If we don't have it, my loved ones, if we cease to focus on worshiping God for the right purpose, because He created us, because He redeemed us, because He has sanctified us, because He is going to glorify us. If we keep that out of focus and we don't give--then, we're going to fall into all of these legalistic ways of thinking that we're living by God and we're really trying to prove ourselves to others and to God. And that is not salvation. Is everybody with me?
And so the way you live, worship is not a moment. Worshiping is not just coming here to church, it's not just about preaching, it's not just about reading, it's not just about singing. Worship is a lifestyle. It's a daily manifestation, is how you carry yourself when you talk, when you walk, when other people see you. What do your neighbors think about you? What do your friends think about you? Have you been ministering to them? This is not just homeless people, it's not just going to Africa. You have a mission field where you live. You are a missionary, amen? You might be a contract worker, but you're really a missionary disguised as a contract worker. You might be an accountant. No, you're not an accountant; you're a missionary disguised as an accountant. God has placed you there so that what? You can serve that mission field, amen, to reach out to others, to minister to others.
But the foundation of all is what? That God is what? Is the God that we are serving. It is why we do it. Is everybody with me? And so, I mean, there's so much to talk about, my loved ones. It's a fascinating lesson. What I want to do is I want to challenge you. I want to challenge you to go out and minister. Minister to your neighbors. Minister to the people that you know, to your--people that you maybe never met. Maybe somebody that lives down the block. Minister, go out, pray with them. Show them the God that we serve, amen? Show them the God that created us and has saved us. That is the same God that we want to show others. Is everybody with me?
And so is the Sabbath a purpose of this, my loved ones? That's what the lesson "Worshiping the Creator." Sabbath is the great day. Sabbath is the purpose, amen? With the Sabbath, what are we doing? We're putting it together. We don't work today. Jesus says, "It is lawful to do good on the Sabbath." So that means that today is a great day to minister as a church, amen? To go out and reach people, to go out and minister to people. That's what we're called to do, my loved ones, amen? And we do it every day but a Sabbath is a special part. That's why we worship the Creator. What better way to worship the Creator on His day than to go out and minister to others, amen?
Praise the Lord and so I want to remind you that we have our offer for those that are watching: "Why God Said Remember." "Why God Said Remember." This is our free offer, number 185. You can if--reach out at... And also you can text the code "SH129." Text it to number 40544 if you would like to receive this free gift that we have, and so thank you for this time we spent together and remember, we'll be back next week with another lesson. Praise the Lord.
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Doug Batchelor: On Christmas Eve, 1971, 17-year-old Juliane Koepcke bordered LANSA flight 508 with her mother in Lima, Peru. They intended to join her father for Christmas at his research station in the Amazon Rainforest. After crossing the Andes at about 21,000 feet, their aircraft was enveloped by large dark thunderclouds and it encountered severe turbulence. Lightning was flashing everywhere and the plane was shaking violently, which naturally terrified the passengers. Then a bolt of lightning struck the plane's engine and tore off a wing. As the doomed airliner hurtled towards the earth, the cabin came apart and the next thing she knew, Juliane found herself strapped alone to a row of seats, falling and spinning silently from over 10,000 feet above the rainforest. She plummeted through the jungle canopy and slammed to the forest floor.
When she awoke the next day, Juliane was amazed to realize she had survived the 2-mile fall with just a broken collarbone and a bad gash in her arm. After failing to find any other survivors, Juliane relied on what her father had taught her, that walking downstream will always lead to civilization. So with a bag of candy that had fallen from the plane and one sandal, she started walking. For ten days, Juliane hobbled, swam, or floated downstream. Her wounds became infected and she was plagued by maggots while having to dodge crocodiles, piranhas, and relentless insects. Eventually, she came to a shack where she slept and she was soon discovered by Peruvian loggers. Eventually, Juliane was united with her amazed father.
It's hard to imagine a 17-year-old girl surviving such a fall and then hiking alone out of the world's largest rainforest. You know, the Bible talks about some who survived an even greater fall than Juliane. In fact, according to the Scriptures, when Adam and Eve fell in the Garden of Eden, it brought the whole human race down. But Jesus came to redeem the world from sin. Perhaps you're thinking to yourself, "Well, that's okay for the world but I've fallen too far." Well, if the Lord can save Juliane, God can save you. You've not gone farther than Moses who was guilty of murder or David who was guilty of adultery or Peter who denied Jesus, and all of them were saved and restored from their fall. Or maybe you're thinking, "I've fallen too many times."
Be of good courage. It says in Proverbs chapter 24, verse 16: "A righteous man falls seven times and rises again." And Jesus cast seven devils out of Mary Magdalene. So don't get discouraged, friend. If you've fallen, get back up again. The same way that He could save Juliane, lead her from that lost condition in the rainforest, and restore her to her father, Jesus can lead you from your lost condition and restore you to your heavenly Father.
Diana Dixon: My name is Diana Dixon. I'm a professional truck driver. In August 4, 2011, I stopped to help in an accident. male: Diana Dixon also tried to help. She parked her semi, jumped out, and headed toward the pick-up. That's when she saw vehicles barreling toward her so she reacted by jumping off 475 to a road below. Diana: Well, a pick-up had clipped a semi, and I stopped to help and I saw it in the mirror, so I walked back. A gentleman told me, he says, "Hey, you know, everything's okay. Call 911." And I looked over at the pick-up and there was a black pick-up over there and he was okay. At about that time, I don't know how far I walked, but I walked far enough and a semi hit him and it imploded. I knew it was going to hit me. I had 30 seconds to decide and I decided to jump."
Diana: Yeah, I jumped off the bridge. My back's broken.
Dispatcher: Where are you at?
Diana: I don't know.
Diana: Fractured my pelvis in 24 places, 5 broken ribs, C5 neck fracture, I had a collapsed lung, I had a lacerated bladder, I was bleeding internally, I had no marks on the outside of me at all but a scrape where my arm had scraped the concrete. From the chest down, I was on fire. I was a dispatcher for a year after the accident and I went back, finished my degree, and I went to Pittsburgh. Threw a backpack over my back, walked like all the other students. I ran a marathon and I'm--since then I've been back to truck-driving. There was a gentleman I worked with and one day he was walking in and he walked up to my desk and I was reading my Bible. And he says, "Are you a believer?" And I said, "Yes." And he gave me some "Amazing Facts" study guides and it just--it was an eye-opening experience for me. I mean, I started reading them and I had a bunch of questions to ask him, so I got online and I got on the "Amazing Facts" web page and I just found information just that I'd never known.
I went back to work as a truck driver because that was my ministry. It was my ministry before the accident and I was driving down the road and I just needed a connection and I was flipping through and somehow I ended up on YouTube and next thing I know, "Amazing Facts," one of those things would come up there and I listened to it. I'm driving down the road, I got 11 hours of driving. So I listened to one, I listened to another one. And the more I listened to him, everything that I thought in my heart, I'd just click on to one of these YouTubes and there he was giving me the answer. I walked in Seventh-day Adventist Church for the first time and I felt at home. I was baptized in the Seventh-day Adventist Church because I had found the truth that I just was searching for and I'd been praying about. "Amazing Facts" has been such an inspiration and important for my coming back into ministry that I want to be able to give back to anyone that I can and "Amazing Facts" is the backbone of my ministry. My name is Diana Dixon. Thank you for changing my life.