I must admit, while I hated Covid and everything about it, there were some things I rather enjoyed about the temporary shutdown.
I enjoyed giving Bible studies at home on the phone in my pajamas. I enjoyed Sabbath mornings, relaxing with my Bible and having a nice big breakfast before meeting everyone on Zoom for church. I enjoyed the fact that while we did church on Zoom, old friends from around the world could join us. I even got to speak at my old church in Texas on Zoom, and a retired pastor in Texas who used to be at one of my current churches in Florida, got to be our guest speaker on Zoom.
I even learned I knew how to cook. However, when the restaurants opened back up, I seemed to have forgotten I knew how to cook. I enjoyed all the miles I saved on my car, working from home. Being an introvert, (My friends find this hard to believe but yes, I am an introvert.) I enjoyed having more time to read and write and just think and ponder life. I actually would not mind another shutdown every now and then, just without the Covid!
But as introverted as I may be, I missed people! A single friend who lives alone like I do, mentioned to me on the phone how long it had been since she had been hugged. She said at least people stuck at home with their families can touch and hug each other. For her, though, there was no human touch. For me neither. Human touch is important. As a matter of fact, I believe that is why Satan has so masterfully made inappropriate touching such a problem today. Now people are scared to touch someone even appropriately, and by this Satan has a double win. Bad people are touching others inappropriately and good people aren’t even touching others appropriately, for fear their motives will be misconstrued. But appropriate touch is still so vitally important. Take the story of Jesus healing the leper for example.
Now a leper came to Him, imploring Him, kneeling down to Him and saying to Him, “If You are willing, You can make me clean.” Then Jesus, moved with compassion, stretched out His hand and touched him, and said to him, “I am willing; be cleansed.” As soon as He had spoken, immediately the leprosy left him, and he was cleansed. Mark 1:40-42 NKJV
We all know in the Bible leprosy can be symbolic of sin. I love the fact that while some of our prayers may seem to have a delay in being answered not so the prayer to be made clean. As soon as the request was made for being cleansed, the leper was immediately cleansed. This tells me that when I ask for forgiveness and the moral cleansing referred to in 1 John 1:9 that there is no delay. I am immediately forgiven and cleansed.
But back to my point about how important appropriate touch is. Mark tells us Jesus touched the leper. Why? After all, He healed him with the words, “be cleansed,” so why did Jesus have to touch him? Because, while Jesus cleansed the leprosy with His words, He healed the loneliness with His hand. This man had been an outcast from society and even his own home. He needed more than just physical healing. He needed emotional healing. He needed to be healed from loneliness. Words can heal leprosy, but human touch cures loneliness.
When it comes to sharing the Gospel, many people want to drop a piece of literature on someone’s doorstep and run away before the person opens the door, so they don’t have to talk to them. But the Gospel heals us completely. The Gospel not only gives us amazing facts, but it also gives us amazing relationships. The Gospel takes away our sins, but it also takes away our loneliness. This means mingling with people instead of just throwing Bible facts at them and running away. And get this, while some people complain some Bible study groups and even Sabbath school classes have too much food and refreshments instead of just studying the Bible, the complete Gospel provides both spiritual food and physical food. The complete Gospel fills the mind, the heart and the stomach! The complete Gospel makes us complete spiritually, physically and emotionally. This is why many Bible study growth groups have refreshments after the deep Bible study. This gives the teacher the opportunity to teach and fellowship with the group so he/she can get to bond with everyone.
A while back a friend from Florida moved to another state for a couple of years and then moved back to Florida. When she came back, I asked how she liked where she just moved from. She said, “Everyone was friendly, but nobody wanted to be your friend.” I thought wow, that could describe some of our churches. Everyone smiles at you but as soon as church is over, they all want to run home to be alone. I have often said, you can’t tell how friendly a church is on Sabbath. You can tell how friendly a church is during the week. Smiles and greetings on Sabbath mean absolutely nothing if we ignore each other during the week. That is why its only during the week that you can tell how friendly a church or Sabbath school class is. Our Sabbath Schools classes and Bible study groups are designed to do way more than present a Gospel that just saves you from sin. If that were the case we could all just study our Bible alone and have church by ourselves at home. Our Sabbath School classes and Bible study groups are to present a Gospel that saves the sinner from sin and loneliness.
In the story of Jesus healing the leper, we see that the Gospel cleanses us and makes us whole, spiritually, physically and emotionally.
You may study this week’s Sabbath School lesson here.
Brief Overview: The millennium is the thousand-year reign of Christ with His saints in heaven between the first and second resurrections. During this time the wicked dead will be judged; the earth will be utterly desolate, without living human inhabitants, but occupied by Satan and his angels. At its close Christ with His saints and the Holy City will descend from heaven to earth. The unrighteous dead will then be resurrected, and with Satan and his angels will surround the city; but fire from God will consume them and cleanse the earth. The universe will thus be freed of sin and sinners forever. (Rev. 20; 1 Cor. 6:2,3; Jer. 4:23-26; Rev. 21:1-5; Mal. 4:1; Eze. 28:18, 19.)
Why it is important to know the truth about the millennium: There are many erroneous teachings about the millennium, including the idea some will be given a second chance after the second coming. This is a false security leading many to disregard the exhortation of Paul, “For God says, “At just the right time, I heard you. On the day of salvation, I helped you.”Indeed, the “right time” is now. Today is the day of salvation.” 2 Corinthians 6:2 NLT
Why it is important to understand the millennium in light of the cross: Only when we get to heaven will we see and realize what Jesus left to come and die for us.
Further Study on the Millennium
What happens to the earth when Jesus comes?
Look! The Lord is about to destroy the earth and make it a vast wasteland. He devastates the surface of the earth and scatters the people. Isaiah 24:1 NLT
What happens to all of the wicked?
In that day those the Lord has slaughtered will fill the earth from one end to the other. No one will mourn for them or gather up their bodies to bury them. They will be scattered on the ground like manure. Jeremiah 25:33 NLT
What happens to the righteousness?
We tell you this directly from the Lord: We who are still living when the Lord returns will not meet him ahead of those who have died. For the Lord himself will come down from heaven with a commanding shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trumpet call of God. First, the Christians who have died will rise from their graves. Then, together with them, we who are still alive and remain on the earth will be caught up in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. Then we will be with the Lord forever. 1 Thessalonians 4:15-17 NLT
Note: When Jesus comes the wicked are all slain, the righteous are all taken to heaven, and the earth is left in a desolate state (“without form and void” Jer. 4:23; as a “bottomless pit” Rev. 20:1).
How long is Satan bound to the earth?
Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven with the key to the bottomless pit and a heavy chain in his hand. He seized the dragon—that old serpent, who is the devil, Satan—and bound him in chains for a thousand years. The angel threw him into the bottomless pit, which he then shut and locked so Satan could not deceive the nations anymore until the thousand years were finished. Afterward he must be released for a little while. Revelation 20:1-3 NLT
Note: Satan is chained up by circumstances. All the wicked are dead. The righteous are in heaven, and he has no one to tempt or torment. Before his expulsion from heaven he thought he would make a better ruler than God. See Isaiah 14:14. Satan now gets to roam the world for a thousand years and consider the fruits of his empire.
What will the righteous be doing during the thousand years?
Then I saw thrones, and the people sitting on them had been given the authority to judge. And I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for their testimony about Jesus and for proclaiming the word of God. They had not worshiped the beast or his statue, nor accepted his mark on their foreheads or their hands. They all came to life again, and they reigned with Christ for a thousand years. Revelation 20:4 NLT
Whom shall they be judging?
Don’t you realize that someday we believers will judge the world? And since you are going to judge the world, can’t you decide even these little things among yourselves? Don’t you realize that we will judge angels? So you should surely be able to resolve ordinary disputes in this life. 1 Corinthians 6:2-3 NLT
Jesus spoke of two resurrections.
Don’t be so surprised! Indeed, the time is coming when all the dead in their graves will hear the voice of God’s Son, and they will rise again. Those who have done good will rise to experience eternal life, and those who have continued in evil will rise to experience judgment. John 5:28-29 NLT
Marvel not at this: for the hour is coming, in the which all that are in the graves shall hear his voice, And shall come forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life; and they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation. John 5:28-29 KJV
When are the wicked dead raised?
This is the first resurrection. (The rest of the dead did not come back to life until the thousand years had ended.) Blessed and holy are those who share in the first resurrection. For them the second death holds no power, but they will be priests of God and of Christ and will reign with him a thousand years.Revelation 20:5-6 NLT
What does Satan do when they are raised?
When the thousand years come to an end, Satan will be let out of his prison. He will go out to deceive the nations—called Gog and Magog—in every corner of the earth. He will gather them together for battle—a mighty army, as numberless as sand along the seashore. Revelation 20:7-8 NLT
What descends down from God?
And I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven like a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. Revelation 21:2 NLT
What does Satan attempt and what happens?
And I saw them as they went up on the broad plain of the earth and surrounded God’s people and the beloved city. But fire from heaven came down on the attacking armies and consumed them. Revelation 20:9 NLT
What is this fire called?
Then death and the grave were thrown into the lake of fire. This lake of fire is the second death. Revelation 20:14 NLT
What will God create from the ashes?
But the day of the Lord will come as unexpectedly as a thief. Then the heavens will pass away with a terrible noise, and the very elements themselves will disappear in fire, and the earth and everything on it will be found to deserve judgment. Since everything around us is going to be destroyed like this, what holy and godly lives you should live, looking forward to the day of God and hurrying it along. On that day, he will set the heavens on fire, and the elements will melt away in the flames. But we are looking forward to the new heavens and new earth he has promised, a world filled with God’s righteousness. 2 Peter 3:10-13 NLT
What will the new earth be like?
In those days people will live in the houses they build and eat the fruit of their own vineyards. Unlike the past, invaders will not take their houses and confiscate their vineyards. For my people will live as long as trees, and my chosen ones will have time to enjoy their hard-won gains. They will not work in vain, and their children will not be doomed to misfortune. For they are people blessed by the Lord, and their children, too, will be blessed. I will answer them before they even call to me. While they are still talking about their needs, I will go ahead and answer their prayers! The wolf and the lamb will feed together. The lion will eat hay like a cow. But the snakes will eat dust. In those days no one will be hurt or destroyed on my holy mountain. I, the Lord, have spoken!” Isaiah 65:21-25 NLT
What promise of God does John receive in vision?
Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the old heaven and the old earth had disappeared. And the sea was also gone. And I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven like a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. I heard a loud shout from the throne, saying, “Look, God’s home is now among his people! He will live with them, and they will be his people. God himself will be with them. He will wipe every tear from their eyes, and there will be no more death or sorrow or crying or pain. All these things are gone forever.” And the one sitting on the throne said, “Look, I am making everything new!” And then he said to me, “Write this down, for what I tell you is trustworthy and true.” Revelation 21:1-5 NLT
You may study this week’s Sabbath School lesson here.
Last week I was in a pastor’s meeting where we were reminded, we are preaching the Gospel to a Biblically illiterate generation. Even in the church, for various reasons the current generation is not reading their Bible as the generations before have. Now, before I sound all gloom and doom, I do know many in the current generation who are reading their Bibles. I get invitations from young adults and teens to join their group Bible reading plans on their Bible apps. I get text messages from young people asking questions about a passage of Scripture they just read. Still there are an alarming number of young people who, even though they are attending church, and Bible study groups, they are simply not reading the Bible on their own. Some contributing factors may be that they don’t believe the Bible is real. Also, in previous generations everyone seemed to agree the Bible was the moral standard, regardless of if their lives were in harmony with it or not. They knew the Bible was right. Today’s generation does not think that way. A couple of years ago I had a conversation with a former Adventist academy high school student, who told me she no longer believes in the Bible because it does not harmonize with her feminist views. She also went on to explain that the Bible was hate speech because it condemned homosexuality. In her eyes she was a moral person condemning the Bible because it was immoral. I have just described what could be a discouraging evaluation of our current culture not only in the world but also in the church! yet this is the generation to which the everlasting gospel will be preached. This is the generation that is to experience a reformation of primitive godliness which has not been seen since New Testament times.
So how do we make the Bible relevant to today’s generation? How do we encourage today’s generation to read the Bible on their own, and accept it as the moral standard that judges this generation, instead of this generation judging the Bible? I don’t have all the answers. I don’t even know if I have any of the answers, but I have a few ideas, and would like to hear your ideas also.
1. We need to understand people are Biblically illiterate.
While preaching, we can’t casually refer to a story in the Bible and assume everyone or even anyone knows what we are talking about. We need to share the story from the Bible. This means instead of preaching topical sermons, jumping from passage to passage, we may need to preach on one passage just focusing on one Bible story. This way people can read along in their Bibles, instead of having to find one passage after another. It will also help them become familiar with the actual stories in the Bible and learn their applications. We can focus on one Bible story and make it relevant to today’s generation by finding modern day illustrations to go along with the Bible study. For example, after preaching about Jesus feeding the multitude tell a story about how God provided for you when you had very little.
We need to stop telling the younger generation to only read the KJV. First of all, the King James Version is simply that, a version. It is not the original manuscript. I imagine back when the KJV came out there were probably conspiracy theorists telling people to only read the Geneva Bible or better yet, the original scrolls! I am not going to take too much time to talk about versions of the Bible here, but we can trust that God will protect His Word so that the pure message of the Gospel will not be lost. For more detail let me share an article I wrote a while back. Meanwhile let me just say here, that I have studied with many people who can barely read today’s English let alone 17th century English. A friend once told me, the best version of the Bible is the one that you are reading, I agree! Especially with today’s generation. And don’t worry. I have successfully taught Adventist Bible teachings from the NLT, NIV, and NKJV as well as the KJV, After all, even when reading from the KJV I have to explain mistakes in translations like the misplaced coma in Luke 22:43.
When we are preaching or teaching, instead of just telling people to turn in their Bibles to John 3:16, tell them now to find John 3:16. And take you own time finding John 3:16. Don’t race to it and then make people feel bad for you waiting on them. Again, I know we Adventists love comparing Scripture with Scripture, but there is nothing wrong with sticking to just one passage per presentation. After all, when I was on a mission trip to Peru, a Peruvian Adventist pastor told us, “You American Adventists love using 30 different texts to explain our Bible doctrines. We use 7.” Yes, we want to search the Scriptures. Yes, we want to be well grounded in Bible doctrine, but show me one sermon or parable Jesus gave where He had His listeners refer to several scattered passages of Scripture. Yes, I am aware that in Luke 24 Jesus explained to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning Himself, but that was an exception, and He was not dealing with Scripturally illiterate people in that setting. Yes in Acts 17:11 the people searched the Scriptures daily to see if what Paul said was true. That is the goal, to get people to search the Scriptures for themselves. At the same time, we need to understand point number 2.
2. We need to understand attention spans are smaller in today’s generation.
We can understand this without having to apologize for today’s generation. After all, Jesus never prayed public prayers that lasted all day. His public prayers were extremely brief. Likewise, Jesus never preached long exhausting sermons. His teachings were brief and easy to understand. They were simple, yet profound. His illustrations involved things the people He was talking to worked with every day. I imagine if Jesus was telling parables today, His stories would include computers and cell phones and such. And it is not only today’s younger generation that feels this way. An elderly lady in one of my churches told me the other day she loves it when I preach because my sermons are short. No, she is not in a hurry to get out of church. She is a very devoted, conservative and seasoned Adventist. She just does not like sitting through sermons where the speaker takes all day explaining the same point a hundred different ways. When I fly from Tampa to Dallas I don’t need to fly through New York and Toronto along the way. Likewise, when preaching make a direct route from your introduction to your conclusion, and don’t forget to land the plane and let everyone off. Old people as well as young people will thank you!. And more importantly God will thank you too!
3. We need to assure people the Bible is Truth.
This is why many Bible study guides begin with the prophecy in Daniel 2. So much of Daniel 2 has already been fulfilled it helps the reader to see that God’s Word can be trusted. While we may not rely upon discoveries made by modern archeology to validate the Bible it can be useful to today’s generation. There are a lot of Bible skeptics in the world today, but there is also plenty of evidence in secular research to validate Scripture. Remember one of the reasons Jesus used his humanity to veil His divinity was because He had to gain people’s trust and He knew that would take time. Be patient. Share with new believers reasons why you believe the Bible and how you have found it to be true. If you don’t have plenty of stories to tell about how you have personally tested God’s Word and found it to be true, don’t be so surprised that those who have never tested it may be skeptical.
It may appear we are taking a few steps backwards to reach our current generation with the Gospel but believe me we are not. Simplifying the Gospel is a step forward. After all, Jesus simplified the Gospel in His day. I have heard that if you can’t explain a complex topic to a kindergartner then you really don’t understand it yourself. Simplifying the Gospel does not mean watering it down either. While focusing on the basic teaching of the Bible we are not losing the vision of our Adventists message for the last days. Consider what one of our Adventist pioneers wrote concerning sharing the Gospel in the last days.
“More people than we think are longing to find the way to Christ. Those who preach the last message of mercy should bear in mind that Christ is to be exalted as the sinner’s refuge. Some ministers think that it is not necessary to preach repentance and faith; they take it for granted that their hearers are acquainted with the gospel, and that matters of a different nature must be presented in order to hold their attention. But many people are sadly ignorant in regard to the plan of salvation; they need more instruction upon this all-important subject than upon any other.” –Ellen G. White, Evangelism, pp. 185-186
I have shared some of my ideas. I hope you have more ideas to share with all of us so we can reach this generation for Jesus.
You may study this week’s Sabbath School lesson here.
It is time for You to act, O LORD, For they have regarded Your law as void. Psalm 119:126 KJV
The coming of the lawless one is according to the working of Satan, with all power, signs, and lying wonders, and with all unrighteous deception among those who perish, because they did not receive the love of the truth, that they might be saved. And for this reason God will send them strong delusion, that they should believe the lie, that they all may be condemned who did not believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness. 2 Thessalonians 2:9-12 NKJV
Whoever commits sin also commits lawlessness, and sin is lawlessness. 1 John 3:4 NKJV
A vast majority of the Christian world celebrates the overthrow of God’s law, not realizing that it is not Jesus who did away with the law, but rather Satan, who wants to create the illusion that the law was done away with. Paul makes it clear that the coming of the lawless one is the work of Satan. Meanwhile Jesus says,
“Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill. For assuredly, I say to you, till heaven and earth pass away, one jot or one tittle will by no means pass from the law till all is fulfilled. Whoever therefore breaks one of the least of these commandments, and teaches men so, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever does and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven. Matthew 5:17-19 NKJV
….But if you want to enter into life, keep the commandments. Matthew 19:17 NKJV
But I will reply, ‘I never knew you. Get away from me, you who break God’s laws.’ Matthew 7:23 NLT
For you ignore God’s law and substitute your own tradition. Mark 7:8 NLT
But that doesn’t mean that the law has lost its force. It is easier for heaven and earth to disappear than for the smallest point of God’s law to be overturned. Luke 16:17 NLT
Clearly Jesus did not come to do away with or change the moral law. It is clearly the anti-Christ or the lawless man of sin who “thinks to change times and laws.” See Daniel 7:25.
Isaiah 14:12-14 gives us the crux of the great controversy where Lucifer wants to usurp God’s authority. By voiding out God’s law and changing it, Lucifer hopes to make void God’s authority, so he can overthrow God and set up his own dictatorship. I say dictatorship because while in Genesis 1 we have the Heavenly Trio working as a community using pronouns “us” and “our,” as in let us make man in our own image. Yet Lucifer’s idea of government in Isaiah 14:12-14 gives no hint of community leadership. The only pronoun used is, “I” which exposes Lucifer’s attempt to become a dictator.
Again, the crux of the great controversy centers around Lucifer, or Satan’s attempt to set up his own government and secure our loyalty and worship. For Satan to secure our loyalty and worship he must overthrow God’s law and substitute his own laws. This is why the mark of the beast offers a day of worship totally contrary to God’s day of worship, just as the tree of knowledge of good and evil and the tree of life tested the loyalty of Adam and Eve. Satan wants us to ignore God’s law, because by ignoring His law we are ignoring His authority, and His right to reign over us. By accepting another day of worship other than the one offered at creation and all of Scripture we are ignoring God as our Creator and Ruler. By accepting another law, or another day of worship we would be ignoring God as our Creator and giving our loyalty and worship to Lucifer.
Thos who do not fall for a false law, false day of worship or a false government stay loyal to Jesus and His commandments.
Here is the patience of the saints; here are those who keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus. Revelation 14:12 NKJV
You may study this week’s Sabbath School lesson here.
Do the Scriptures teach that we go to heaven the moment we die? Let’s look.
Did the angel tell Daniel he would die and go straight to heaven? No, he told Daniel he would rest and then rise again at the end of the days, at the second coming.
As for you, go your way until the end. You will rest, and then at the end of the days, you will rise again to receive the inheritance set aside for you.” Daniel 12:13 NLT
Did Peter say that David went to heaven when he died? No. He says David never ascended into heaven.
For David himself never ascended into heaven, Acts 2:34 NLT
Did Jesus tell the repentant thief that they both would be in paradise that day? No. The original manuscripts had no punctuation. When the Bible was being translated man put the comma in the wrong place. With the comma in the right place the passage makes total sense with the rest of Scripture about the state of the dead. With the comma in the right place Jesus says, “I assure you today, you will be with me in paradise.” With the comma which was placed there by man and not inspiration it makes total sense with Jesus’ statement in John 20:17.
““Don’t cling to me,” Jesus said, “for I haven’t yet ascended to the Father.” John 20:17 NLT
Did Paul say we die and go straight to heaven? No. He explained it this way.
“And now, dear brothers and sisters, we want you to know what will happen to the believers who have died so you will not grieve like people who have no hope. For since we believe that Jesus died and was raised to life again, we also believe that when Jesus returns, God will bring back with him the believers who have died. We tell you this directly from the Lord: We who are still living when the Lord returns will not meet him ahead of those who have died. For the Lord himself will come down from heaven with a commanding shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trumpet call of God. First, the believers who have died will rise from their graves. Then, together with them, we who are still alive and remain on the earth will be caught up in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. Then we will be with the Lord forever. So encourage each other with these words.” 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18 NLT
Someone once told me that there may be more to life after death than the Scripture explains, but Paul is saying he wants us to know what happens when we die. In the KJV he says I don’t want you to be ignorant. If he left out some mystery about our souls going to heaven while we are dead, then we would still be ignorant after Paul’s explanation but we are not ignorant because he just told us about the resurrection.
Also, Paul tells us to comfort each other with these words. These words are about the second coming. None of these words mention dying and immediately going home to be with the Lord. Nowhere in Scripture does Paul or anyone else say “They went home to be with the Lord.” Does Paul talk about going to heaven when we die? No. He explains it this way.
But there is an order to this resurrection: Christ was raised as the first of the harvest; then all who belong to Christ will be raised when he comes back. 1 Corinthians 15:23 NLT
But let me reveal to you a wonderful secret. We will not all die, but we will all be transformed! It will happen in a moment, in the blink of an eye, when the last trumpet is blown. For when the trumpet sounds, those who have died will be raised to live forever. And we who are living will also be transformed. For our dying bodies must be transformed into bodies that will never die; our mortal bodies must be transformed into immortal bodies. 1 Corinthians 15:51-53 NLT
Didn’t Paul teach that when we die, we go to be with Jesus? No.
And now the prize awaits me—the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give me on the day of his return. And the prize is not just for me but for all who eagerly look forward to his appearing. 2 Timothy 4:8 NLT
Did Jesus tell the disciples they would be with him as soon as they died, or did He teach them He would have to come again so they could be with him again? He taught them that He would come again and get them so they could be together.
When everything is ready, I will come and get you, so that you will always be with me where I am. John 14:3 NLT
….But rather fear Him who is able to destroy both body and soul in hell. Matthew 10:28 NKJV
Without a single shred of Bible evidence why do so many teach and preach that we go straight to heaven when we die?
For a time is coming when people will no longer listen to sound and wholesome teaching. They will follow their own desires and will look for teachers who will tell them whatever their itching ears want to hear. They will reject the truth and chase after myths. 2 Timothy 4:3-4 NLT
Jesus, Peter and Paul never taught the immortality of the soul but the serpent did!
“You won’t die!” the serpent replied to the woman. Genesis 3:4 NLT
You may study this week’s Sabbath School lesson here.
“The sacrifice of Christ as an atonement for sin is the great truth around which all other truths cluster. In order to be rightly understood and appreciated, every truth in the Word of God, from Genesis to Revelation, must be studied in the light that streams from the cross of Calvary. I present before you the great, grand monument of mercy and regeneration, salvation and redemption—the Son of God uplifted on the cross. This is to be the foundation of every discourse given by our ministers.”- Ellen White, Gospel Workers, 315 (1915).
With this thought in mind, I would like to share a study from the “In Light Of The Cross Bible Study Guides,” which I prepared so that people can see our sacred truths in the light of God’s love as opposed to the legalistic view we are often accused of.
The Sabbath Brief overview: The seventh day of the week, Saturday, is God’s holy Sabbath on which we are to rest from all secular work and activity. God sanctified the Sabbath day and made it holy. See Genesis 2:1-3, Exodus, 20:8-11, Exodus 31:13, John 14:15, Revelation 14:12
Why it is important to understand the truth about the Sabbath: The Sabbath is the only commandment that begins with “remember” while it is also the one commandment man has forgotten. While many agnostics believe that God created us and then left us on our own, the Sabbath tells us that our Creator wants to have a relationship with us. The Sabbath also tells us who our God is. You can keep the other nine commandments and worship any god you choose. You can have no other gods before you besides television and not bow to any other god than television and so forth. The Sabbath commandment is the only commandment that tells us who the Lord is. He is the Creator. This is why Satan wants us to forget this commandment. He wants us to forget God. He wants to be our god instead!
The Sabbath is a sign that we belong to the true God, the one who created us and died for us.
Why it is important to understand the Sabbath in light of the cross: Satan does not want us to forget the Sabbath in order for us to forget the law. Satan knows we are not saved by the works of the law but by grace. The Sabbath is a sign of God’s grace. We do no work on that day, demonstrating that it is not our works that sustain or save us but rather God’s work, both at creation and the cross, that sustain and save us. We rest on the Sabbath, showing that we are resting our faith in the only One who can save us, Jesus Christ. I can imagine God walking with Adam and Eve through the garden, as He showed them all He had made for them, and the wonders of not their works but His works. Adam and Eve realized that day with God, “it is] He [that] hath made us, and not we ourselves.” (Psalms 100:3) Before and after the cross, the Sabbath is a sign that it is God’s work that creates and sustains us.
The Sabbath commandment reminds us that God is our Creator and we refrain from work and worldly activities on the Sabbath day as we rest our faith in God’s power to save and provide for us, instead of our own works and ability to do business and make money.
The same principle is seen in the story of Cain and Abel. In Genesis 4 we read about Abel worshiping the way God had commanded in bringing a lamb as a sacrifice. God accepted Abel’s sacrifice because the lamb God instructed him to bring pointed to Jesus – the Lamb of God who would be sacrificed for our sins. Abel, beyond just worshiping as God had instructed, was saying he trusted in Jesus to save him, rather than his own works. He was looking to the cross. Cain’s sacrifice was refused because he did not worship the way God had instructed, and he brought his own fruit, the work of his own hands. God cannot accept our works and could not accept Cain’s works either. Only the Christ can save us.
Today, many people like Cain, try to be saved by worshiping their own way. Jesus says about them, “But in vain they do worship me, teaching [for] doctrines the commandments of men” (Matthew 15:9). Our own works and man-made ways of worship will never save us.
There’s a story of a little boy years ago who had built his own wooden sailboat. After tying it to a string he set the boat out to sail in a nearby creek, and then would use the string to reel it back in. One day the string broke and the little boat fell victim to the rapids and sailed away. Several days later the boy was window shopping downtown when he saw his boat in a toy store window. He went inside told the owner, “That’s my boat in the window.” The owner of the store, not sure if he should believe the young lad, told the boy he would have to purchase the boat if he wants it back.
The boy did chores around the home and neighborhood to earn the few dollars the boat cost. He returned to the store and purchased his own boat. Walking home, holding his boat close to his chest he was overheard saying, “Little boat, you are twice mine. First I made you, and then I bought you.” That is what Jesus is telling us through the Sabbath today. As we rest from our works on the Sabbath and put our faith in Him, He tells us, “You are twice mine. First, at creation I made you, and then at the cross I bought you.”
Further study on the Sabbath:
Which day is the Sabbath? But the seventh day [is] the sabbath of the LORD thy God: [in it] thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that [is] within thy gates: For [in] six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them [is], and rested the seventh day: wherefore the LORD blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it. Exodus 20:10, 11
How can we know which day is the seventh day? Some reject the seventh-day Sabbath over the belief that we cannot know which day it falls on today, so picking any day should be okay. But this is fallacy.
According to Scripture, Christ died on Friday and rose on Sunday, the first day of the week. Practically all churches acknowledge this by observing Easter Sunday and Good Friday.
“This man went unto Pilate, and begged the body of Jesus. And he took it down, and wrapped it in linen, and laid it in a sepulchre that was hewn in stone, wherein never man before was laid. And that day was the preparation, and the sabbath drew on. The women also, which came with him from Galilee, followed after, and beheld the sepulchre, and how his body was laid. And they returned, and prepared spices and ointments; and rested the sabbath day according to the commandment” (Luke 23:52–56).
This is clear evidence that Jesus died the day before the Sabbath. The day of His death was a “preparation day” because it was the time to get ready for the Sabbath. Notice, then, that the women rested over the Sabbath “according to the commandment.” The commandment says, “The seventh day is the Sabbath,” so we know they were resting on Saturday. The very next verse says, “Now upon the first day of the week, very early in the morning, they came unto the sepulchre, bringing the spices which they had prepared. … And they found the stone rolled away from the sepulchre” (Luke 24:1, 2).
Hasn’t the calendar been changed since the time of Christ? The calendar has not been changed so as to confuse the days of the week. Just as we know that Jesus and His followers observed the same day as Moses, we can be positive that our seventh day is the same day Jesus observed.
Pope Gregory XIII did make a calendar change in 1582, but it did not interfere with the weekly cycle. What did Gregory do to the calendar? He changed Friday, October 5, 1582, to be Friday, October 15, 1582. He did not affect the weekly cycle of days.
The Jews have observed the seventh day from the time of Abraham, and they still keep it today. An entire nation of people, all around the world, continue to observe a Sabbath they have known for more than 4,000 years.
Over 100 languages on earth use the word “Sabbath” for Saturday. For example, the Spanish word for Saturday is “Sabado,” meaning Sabbath. What does this prove? It proves that when those languages originated long ago, Saturday was recognized as the Sabbath day and was incorporated into the very name of the day.” -Joe Crews, Seven Facts About the 7th Day.
Who was the Sabbath made for?
And he said unto them, The sabbath was made for man, and not man for the sabbath: Mark 2:27
Whose day is the Sabbath?
Therefore the Son of man is Lord also of the sabbath. Mark 2:28
What does God call the Sabbath?
If thou turn away thy foot from the sabbath, [from] doing thy pleasure on my holy day; and call the sabbath a delight, the holy of the LORD, honourable; and shalt honour him, not doing thine own ways, nor finding thine own pleasure, nor speaking [thine own] words: Isaiah 58:13
When is the Sabbath to be observed?
From even unto even, shall ye celebrate your sabbath. Leviticus 23:32
What marks the beginning of a day?
And the evening and the morning were the first day. Genesis 1:5
What did Jesus do on the Sabbath?
And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up: and, as his custom was, he went into the synagogue on the sabbath day, and stood up for to read. Luke 4:16
What else should be done on the Sabbath?
And, behold, there was a man which had [his] hand withered. And they asked him, saying, Is it lawful to heal on the sabbath days? that they might accuse him.And he said unto them, What man shall there be among you, that shall have one sheep, and if it fall into a pit on the sabbath day, will he not lay hold on it, and lift [it] out? How much then is a man better than a sheep? Wherefore it is lawful to do well on the sabbath days. Matthew 12:10-12
What are we to “remember” to do?
Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy. Exodus 20:8
What are we to refrain from on the Sabbath?
Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work: But the seventh day [is] the sabbath of the LORD thy God: [in it] thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that [is] within thy gates: For [in] six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them [is], and rested the seventh day: wherefore the LORD blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it. Exodus 20:9-11
Why were the Jews carried into captivity?
In those days saw I in Judah [some] treading wine presses on the sabbath, and bringing in sheaves, and lading asses; as also wine, grapes, and figs, and all [manner of] burdens, which they brought into Jerusalem on the sabbath day: and I testified [against them] in the day wherein they sold victuals.There dwelt men of Tyre also therein, which brought fish, and all manner of ware, and sold on the sabbath unto the children of Judah, and in Jerusalem. Then I contended with the nobles of Judah, and said unto them, What evil thing [is] this that ye do, and profane the sabbath day? Did not your fathers thus, and did not our God bring all this evil upon us, and upon this city? yet ye bring more wrath upon Israel by profaning the sabbath. Nehemiah 13:15-18
What are we to learn from this?
There remaineth therefore a rest to the people of God. For he that is entered into his rest, he also hath ceased from his own works, as God [did] from his. Let us labour therefore to enter into that rest, lest any man fall after the same example of unbelief. Hebrews 4:9-11
What does God want us to be?
And [they that shall be] of thee shall build the old waste places: thou shalt raise up the foundations of many generations; and thou shalt be called, The repairer of the breach, The restorer of paths to dwell in. Isaiah 58:12
How only is this possible?
If thou turn away thy foot from the sabbath, [from] doing thy pleasure on my holy day; and call the sabbath a delight, the holy of the LORD, honourable; and shalt honour him, not doing thine own ways, nor finding thine own pleasure, nor speaking [thine own] words: Isaiah 58:13
What is God’s promise?
Then shalt thou delight thyself in the LORD; and I will cause thee to ride upon the high places of the earth, and feed thee with the heritage of Jacob thy father: for the mouth of the LORD hath spoken [it]. Isaiah 58:14
You may study this week’s Sabbath School lesson here.
Seeing then that we have a great High Priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need. (Hebrews 4:14-16 NKJV)
While working on the sort isle at UPS, I was working alongside a Baptist seminary student named David. David was always cool, calm, and collected. One day I was overwhelmed with the high volume of packages on the sort isle belt, and our supervisor was pressuring us. Under the stress and the pressure I broke and lashed out in a very un-Christlike way. After regaining my composure, there I was sorting packages next to David, who of course remained calm. cool, and collected. I was embarrassed by my behavior, especially since everyone knew I was a Seventh-day Adventist Christian. I told David I was very sorry for the way I acted and how terrible I felt. He sighed in sympathy with my feelings, and said, “It’s really difficult to keep your Christianity around this place. It is so hard with all the stress and pressure we face every day.” I was so comforted by David’s understanding, but then I also realized David had never lost his composure. He kept his Christian composure together while sympathizing with my weakness, and embarrassing outburst.
This is where my High Priest gives me hope.
While enduring all the temptations we endure, Jesus sympathizes with our weakness and forgives our sin, even though He never gave in to the same temptations. When we sin we can come boldly before the throne of grace and receive mercy and forgiveness. How quick our Savior is to forgive!
If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 1 John 1:9 NKJV
Take heed to yourselves. If your brother sins against you, rebuke him; and if he repents, forgive him. And if he sins against you seven times in a day, and seven times in a day returns to you, saying, ‘I repent,’ you shall forgive him.” Luke 17:3-4 NKJV
Then Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do… Luke 23:34 NKJV
If someone sinned against me, told me they repented, and then sinned again against me seven times in one day, I would be prone to tell them they are not genuinely repenting. After all, repenting is turning away from sin, right? It seems to me if my brother told me seven times in one day that he repented I would not believe him. Instead, I would give him a lecture on what true repentance means. But it appears to me that in Luke 17:3-4 Jesus is acknowledging that one can truly fall and repent and fall and repent 7 times in one day? And must be forgiven? How quickly and freely Jesus forgives us when we come boldly to the throne of grace asking for mercy!
I know to some of you this seems like cheap grace and a license to sin, but it is not. First of all, historically, I think many Adventists have accused their brothers and sisters of wanting cheap grace and forgiveness, instead of seeking true repentance and turning from sin. The more I live the more I understand my brothers and sisters are not looking for cheap grace at all. My brothers and sisters are actually very discouraged by their sinful addictions and are tired of hurting Jesus and others. They don’t want to continue their addictions. They just don’t believe they can truly ever have victory. Cheap grace is not their desire, but in deep, dark despair they see it as the only solution.
This is where my High Priest gives me more hope.
Cody was a recovering drug addict with whom I had been studying for several weeks. One night I came to his home for our weekly Bible study and found that Cody was very discouraged because earlier in the week he had a weak moment and did drugs again. He was so disappointed because he thought he had the victory. Now he was doubting God could ever forgive him again after falling so low after so many weeks of victory. Immediately I shared with Cody Psalm 51:17.
The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit, A broken and a contrite heart— These, O God, You will not despise. (Psalm 51:17 NKJV)
I shared with Cody that his heart was broken and contrite. God can never despise a broken and contrite heart no matter how many times that heart has already been broken for the same sin. If a heart is broken and contrite God will never despise it. I shared with Cody, that while Satan was discouraging him from seeking God’s presence, that at this time God’s presence was the only safe place for him to be right now.
And let them make Me a sanctuary, that I may dwell among them. (Exodus 25:8) NKJV
You are my hiding place; You shall preserve me from trouble; You shall surround me with songs of deliverance. (Psalm 32:7 NKJV)
While writing about his sin and need of forgiveness David says God is his hiding place. Did you know that the sanctuary is the only safe place for sinners to be? When you sin, Satan is not your friend. When you get lung cancer from smoking, the cigarette manufacturers are not your friends. Jesus is the only friend for people with lung cancer due to smoking. Jesus is the only friend for sinners! The sanctuary is the only safe place for sinners.
As we saw in Hebrews 4:14-16, we can come boldly before the throne of grace and find mercy and forgiveness. But wait. There is more hope. Hebrews 4:141-6 tells us we can also find grace to help us in time of need. What is grace?
Through Him we have received grace and apostleship for obedience to the faith among all nations for His name, (Romans 1:5 NKJV )
Grace empowers our obedience.
For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them. (Ephesians 2:8-10 NKJV)
Grace empowers us to do good works.
For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men, teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in the present age, (Titus 2:11-12 NKJV)
Grace empowers us to live righteous godly lives right here and now in this present age.
“He gave his life to free us from every kind of sin… (Titus 2:14 NLT)
Several years ago I was walking through Al Lopez Park in Tampa. A section of the park is dedicated to cancer survivors and those still fighting cancer. It features a walking path that has different monuments along the way containing various inspirational quotes for people fighting cancer. One message especially caught my eye. It simply read, “There are people who have survived every form of cancer.” Some cancers are obviously more deadly than others. However, no matter what form of cancer someone has been diagnosed with, there is already someone who has survived it. Titus 2:14 tells us no matter what temptations we are facing, no matter what addictions we are fighting, there are already people Jesus has freed from those same temptations and addictions.
Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need. (Hebrews 4:16 NKJV)
When we fall into sin there is hope. We can go to Jesus and find mercy and forgiveness. But I know you do not want to keep hurting Jesus, others or even yourself, so there is more hope. You can go to Jesus and find grace to overcome. Jesus can forgive you and heal you, even if it means coming back for healing 7 times in one day. Remember Jesus is the only safe place for sinners! And I know you are not looking for cheap grace. You want actual healing, it’s just that you may have already fallen so many times you may doubt healing is actually possible. It is possible.
Cody stopped studying with me. However, a few years later he started studying with a new Bible Worker who replaced me after I left that area. Cody was rebaptized. I reached out recently. Cody is still active in his church family and has been drug free over 15 years now.
Paul tells us in Hebrews 4:14-16 we have hope and more hope. When we want to overcome there is hope. God’s grace can deliver us and free us from every kind of sin. However if we do sin, there is hope. God’s mercy gives us grace and forgiveness. Are you tempted? Look to Jesus. Have you already fallen again? Look to Jesus. Our High Priest gives us hope and then more hope. After all,
But where sin abounded, grace abounded much more, Romans 5:20 NKJV
You may study this week’s Sabbath School lesson here.
Occasionally when I am studying Daniel and Revelation with someone, they will question how we get 360 days to a prophetic year instead of 365.First of all, the Cambridge University Press confirms for us that ancient Israel had a 360-day year with each month having 30 days.
The story of Noah also confirms that in Bible times each month had exactly 30 days, thus giving us 360 years in a Biblical year. 1
First, where do we get a-day -for-a-year in Bible prophecy?
The first time we find a day for a specific year in prophecy is in the book of Numbers.
According to the number of the days in which you spied out the land, forty days, for each day you shall bear your guilt one year, namely forty years, and you shall know My rejection. Numbers 14:34
Later, in Ezekiel repeats this idea of a day for a year.
For I have laid on you the years of their iniquity, according to the number of the days, three hundred and ninety days; so you shall bear the iniquity of the house of Israel. And when you have completed them, lie again on your right side; then you shall bear the iniquity of the house of Judah forty days. I have laid on you a day for each year. Ezekiel 4:5-6
So now, how does the story of Noah and the flood help us establish one year equaling 360 days to a year in Bible prophecy?
In the six hundredth year of Noah’s life, in the second month, the seventeenth day of the month, on that day all the fountains of the great deep were broken up, and the windows of heaven were opened. Genesis 7:11NKJV And the waters prevailed on the earth one hundred and fifty days. Genesis 7:24 NKJV And the waters receded continually from the earth. At the end of the hundred and fifty days the waters decreased. Then the ark rested in the seventh month, the seventeenth day of the month, on the mountains of Ararat. Genesis 8:3-4 NKJV
Here we clearly see that from the 17th day of the second month to the 17th day of the seventh month is exactly 150 days. Every month had 30 days equaling 360 days for a year. The 42 months of Revelation 13:5 would be 1260 prophetic days or 1260 years. 2 and “Appendix Two: The day-for-a-year principle,” accessed May 5, 2024.]
The Jewish 360-day luni-solar calendar was adjusted by adding a leap month of 30-days every six years to coordinate with the solar year. See “Bible Prophecy Year of 360 Days,” accessed May 6, 2024 ↩
Yet it pleased the Lord to bruise Him; He has put Him to grief. When You make His soul an offering for sin, He shall see His seed, He shall prolong His days, And the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in His hand. He shall see the labor of His soul, and be satisfied. By His knowledge My righteous Servant shall justify many, For He shall bear their iniquities. Isaiah 53:10-11 NKJV
Looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Hebrews 12:2 NKJV
Last Sabbath morning, I was having my own personal devotion time before meeting with God’s people. As always my favorite devotional book is the Bible itself. I am not opposed to devotional books, It’s just that I love reading the Bible. I have been reading through the New Testament lately, and last Sabbath I came to Mark 15.
In Mark 15:1-5, I read how the justice system failed Jesus. Yet Jesus never opened His mouth to deliver Himself. Jesus knew, be it ever so wrong that these things were supposed to take place. It has me wondering, if I should ever be wrongly imprisoned would I be protesting or using my injustice as an opportunity to be a missionary to those in prison? Remember when we were studying Ephesians a while back in Sabbath School? Paul referred to himself as a prisoner of the Lord instead of being a prisoner of Rome. Would you be willing to serve a life sentence in prison for a crime you did not commit if it led to just one other prisoner receiving eternal life?
In Mark 15:6-15 I read about how the people preferred the release of a hardened criminal over the loving and gentle healer. Even today we see the basest of men exalted over those who are righteous and humble. And I am talking about the church as much as the world. When this sort of thing happens today, my friend calls it “the Barrabas syndrome.”
In Mark 15:16-20 I read about the soldiers mocking and making fun of Jesus. Why such humiliating treatment for the least deserving Person in the whole universe! When a man becomes president of the United States, they have a huge inauguration parade and inauguration ball to honor him. Instead, Jesus got stripped, beaten and mocked. People have gone to prison for doing lesser things to dogs and yet God allowed this happen to His Son! Why?
In Mark 15:21-37 I read about how Jesus experienced the death of the wicked on the cross. Jesus took the punishment for our sins and died the death that was ours. so we could have the reward of His righteousness and have the life that was His. He took the death we deserve so we could have the life He deserves. Jesus was treated the way we deserve so we may be treated as He deserves. While Jesus was going through all of this the verbal abuse continued from those witnessing the crucifixion, those doing the crucifying, and even those being crucified with Him. Why would God allow His Son to suffer so much? Why would Jesus submit to such suffering? Then I read verse 39.
So when the centurion, who stood opposite Him, saw that He cried out like this and breathed His last, he said, “Truly this Man was the Son of God!” Mark 15:39 NKJV
Then I paused. Could it be that the way Jesus handled all of this persecution convinced the centurion that He was the Son of God? Satan meant to cast so much mockery and persecution on Jesus so as to convince the world that Jesus definitely was not the Son of God, and yet Jesus used the same evidence Satan provided to convince a witness that He was indeed the Son of God. Though Satan cast so much darkness upon the Savior, the centurion could still see the righteousness of Christ shinning with the blazing glory of the noonday sun.
Years ago a Bible worker was in a home where he was answering Bible questions from a young college student. Her father kept making fun of the Bible worker’s answers and the Bible. The Bible worker was afraid the father’s mockery was going to make the daughter not believe the Bible worker or even the Bible. However, the Bible worker noticed the young woman was frustrated with her father and was doing her best to tune him out as she kept asking the Bible worker more questions. The Bible Worker noticed the young woman was not even paying any attention to her mocking father and kept talking to him like her father not even there. She was hanging on to every word the Bible worker shared from the Bible, while pretending her mocking father was not even there. While rhe Bible worker was annoyed by the mocking father, he realized in the end it was a very productive Bible study. A study he could have easily ruined had he retaliated against the father. Instead, the Holy Spirit took over the Bible worker and the entire Bible study. The young woman saw through all the darkness her father was spreading and saw the light of the Bible shinning with the blazing glory of the noonday sun.
Of course we know more than just the centurion believed. One thief repented and I am sure many others did as well that day. Since then, millions and millions have been saved and are being saved. Are you willing to suffer the way Jesus did if it will lead someone to be eternally saved?
You may study this week’s Sabbath School lesson here.
In Light of The Cross 
