Tip:
Highlight text to annotate it
X
00:48 We've had one beautiful day today. We have... Amen!
00:52 All the people said: "Amen. " All right. 00:55 Wasn't so beautiful outside. I was a
day late 00:59 on my rain prediction. Again... Yeah,
but it's beautiful now. 01:02 I saw a beautiful golden sunset while
ago. 01:04 Oh, I was inside so I missed that.
01:07 But it has been a beautiful day inside 01:11 and we have enjoyed the blessings of
God all day long. 01:16 It's just really been a feast...
01:19 a little foretaste of heaven. 01:21 And Elder Bradford just led us to the
throne again 01:24 a few moments ago. He did! And when
we just went off the air 01:28 if you're watching, Jim and I and John
and C.A. were out here 01:31 and we think he was still preaching
out back. 01:33 So he might even be preaching... There
he is. 01:36 Now he's back here again. He may get
up and preach some more. 01:39 That's right, that's right. Praise the
Lord. 01:42 He did a great job. Now we have Pastor
Mark Finley. 01:44 Yes. And he's assistant to the president
of the General 01:47 Conference of Seventh-day Adventists.
01:49 And Mark is a long-time friend and been in
01:52 ministry for many, many years and has held numerous positions
01:55 within the church. And we're just thankful that...
01:59 In fact, we just had meetings with him ourselves.
02:01 Yes. Trying to work together for a big... it's evangelistic
02:06 crusade in New York City this coming year.
02:08 You'll hear a lot about it. 02:10 But we need every hand and every person.
02:12 We need people praying, people giving financially,
02:15 people, you know, actually volunteers. Right.
02:17 It's going to be a huge crusade and hundreds of meetings
02:20 going on throughout New York City. 02:22 And 3ABN is going to be part of many
other ministries 02:26 joining hands with the church to make
this happen. 02:29 And the end result will be souls for
the kingdom. 02:32 We appreciate Mark and what he does
and his tremendous 02:35 commitment to the cause of God. Not
only the Adventist church 02:39 but the cause of God and what he's done
world wide. 02:41 Absolutely. I've known him for many
years. 02:43 He's probably the hardest working or
one of the hardest... 02:48 most hard working individuals that I
have ever known. 02:53 And he really works for the Lord.
02:57 And the Lord has blessed his evangelism all over the world.
03:01 For many years the speaker of It Is Written.
03:04 But at the same time he wasn't just in a studio preaching.
03:07 He was out there holding evangelistic meetings
03:10 in some really difficult places around the world.
03:14 And so God has blessed him. And we're going to ask him
03:17 to come now and he is going to introduce the music that we have
03:22 for this particular program. 03:24 Pastor Mark Finley. Thank you, Jim;
thank you, Danny. 03:27 In a little while we're going home.
03:32 It was 31 AD. The disciples believed 03:37 with all their hearts based on the prophecies
03:40 of the Old Testament that Jesus was going to come
03:44 and set up His throne. 03:46 They saw Jesus touch the eyes of the
blind and they were 03:49 opened. They saw Jesus touch the ears
of the deaf 03:51 and they were unstopped. They believed
that Christ 03:55 could lead the disciples and the armies
of Israel against Rome. 04:00 And even right up to the crucifixion
04:02 the disciples had no idea that Jesus was not going to
04:06 establish His earthly kingdom. 04:08 In fact, for every prophecy in the Old
Testament 04:11 that these disciples studied on the
first coming of Christ 04:14 there are eight prophecies on the second
coming of Christ. 04:17 So when Jesus was crucified the disciples
were bitterly 04:21 disappointed. Out of the disappointment
of 31 AD 04:24 they looked to the sanctuary
04:27 and there received the outpouring of the Holy Spirit.
04:30 And out of their disappointment, they went out to preach
04:33 the gospel to the world. 04:35 Fast forward 2,000 years almost.
04:38 In the early 1800's, William Miller and others
04:43 began to study the prophecies. 04:46 And like these disciples in Jesus' day,
they too 04:49 misunderstood the prophecies.
04:51 Like these disciples in Jesus' day, they thought Christ was
04:55 going to come to earth in 1844. 04:58 He was... They were bitterly disappointed.
05:02 Shortly after that disappoint- ment, William Miller
05:06 wrote a letter to his friend Joshua V. Hines.
05:11 And this is what Miller said. 05:14 He said: "I fixed my mind on another
time. 05:19 And here I mean to stand until God gives
me more light. 05:25 And that other time is today and today
05:30 and today until He comes. " 05:33 And I can almost hear the old man saying:
05:36 "And I shall see Him for whom my soul yearns. "
05:42 Tonight with you 05:45 I look forward to the coming of Christ
05:48 and my soul yearns for His coming. 05:51 Listen as Reggie comes and sings
05:54 an anthem of William Miller's words: 05:58 I Have Fixed My Mind On Another Time.
06:19 I have fixed my mind 06:22 on another time,
06:26 on another time. 06:33 And here I mean
06:36 to stand until 06:39 God gives me more light.
06:46 And that is today, today, 06:53 today until He comes.
07:00 I have fixed my mind 07:03 on another time,
07:07 on another 07:11 time.
07:17 I have set my course 07:20 on the narrow way,
07:24 on the narrow way. 07:30 For I know the time
07:33 is close at hand 07:36 for which I watch and pray.
07:42 And that is today, 07:48 today,
07:50 today until He comes. 07:57 I have set my course
07:59 on the narrow way, 08:03 on the narrow
08:07 way. 08:10 Even so, Lord, come quickly.
08:16 This is my fervent prayer. 08:23 For I've caught a glimpse
08:26 of glory 08:29 and I'm longing to
08:34 be there. 08:50 When shall the Son of Man
08:55 appear? 08:57 The trumpet sound its blast?
09:02 And Christ descend 09:06 in glorious power
09:09 with all the saints 09:12 amassed?
09:15 We'll rise with those 09:18 who sleep no more
09:22 to meet Him 09:24 in the air!
09:28 When shall the Son 09:32 of Man appear?
09:39 The Son of Man appear? 09:46 Even so, Lord, come quickly.
09:53 This is my fervent prayer. 09:59 For I've caught a glimpse
10:03 of glory 10:06 and I'm longing to
10:10 be there. 10:13 For I've caught a glimpse
10:16 of glory 10:23 and I'm longing
10:27 to 10:33 be there!
10:39 I have set my course 10:42 on a narrow way,
10:50 on another 10:56 time.
11:10 Amen! 11:16 I have set my mind
11:20 on another time. And that is today, 11:24 today, today. Let's pray.
11:26 Father, as we open Your Word tonight may the Spirit
11:29 that inspired the Word come and touch our hearts.
11:32 May the Spirit that spoke to prophets in ages old
11:36 speak to our hearts. 11:38 May the Spirit that speaks to our hearts
every day 11:44 drawing us out to sense that this world
is not our home 11:48 may that Spirit heavily rest upon us
tonight 11:51 and touch us and change us. In Christ's
name, Amen. 11:56 It was just at the end of Sabbath School
12:01 and the teacher was letting the children: 7, 8, and 9 years old,
12:06 go back into the main sanctuary. 12:09 And she thought she ought to give them
a little caution 12:13 so she said: "Children, when you go
back into the sanctuary 12:19 walk very quietly and don't say anything.
" 12:23 "Children, do you know why you have
to go back 12:26 into the sanctuary so quietly? "
12:29 One little girl seven years old raised her hand and said:
12:32 "Oh yes, teacher. Because so many people are sleeping
12:35 in there. " 12:38 Take your Bible, please, and turn to
Revelation 12:40 the third chapter. My topic tonight
is 12:42 The Laodicean Message. Amen.
12:45 Revelation chapter 3. 12:47 If it wasn't so tragic it would be funny.
12:52 Revelation the 3rd chapter. 12:55 We are looking at Revelation chapter
3 and we are beginning 12:58 with the 14th verse.
13:01 Revelation chapter 3 and verse 14. 13:05 The Laodicean message is the last in
a series 13:09 of messages that God gave to seven churches.
13:14 Now keep in mind that these were seven literal
13:17 geographical locations. 13:20 There was Ephesus and Smyrna and Pergamos
and Thyatira 13:23 and Sardis and Philadelphia and Laodicea.
13:27 The book of Revelation describes the spiritual condition
13:32 of seven literal churches that existed 13:36 in John's day.
13:39 The reason why God chose those particular 7 verses
13:44 is because... or those 7 churches rather... 13:48 is because those 7 churches would represent
the church 13:54 down through the stream of time
13:56 in 7 specific epics of time. 14:00 So the spiritual condition of Ephesus,
14:02 the spiritual condition of Smyrna 14:04 and Thyatira and Sardis
14:07 and the spiritual condition of Pergamos and Philadelphia
14:12 and Laodicea would all be represented 14:16 in those 7 ages down through the stream
of time. 14:18 In Revelation chapter 3 we begin:
14:21 "And to the angel of the church of Laodiceans write... "
14:25 Where was Laodicea? 14:28 What can we learn from the spiritual
condition 14:31 of that church in Laodicea
14:34 that would apply to the church today? 14:37 Well the first thing we notice is that
Laodicea is 14:39 the last in the series of seven churches
14:42 so it obviously would speak to the last generation
14:45 of Christians living upon the earth. 14:46 And particularly, if Laodicea is a church,
14:50 the message would speak to God's last-day church
14:52 from the context of the passage. 14:54 The second thing that we would notice
about it is this: 14:56 the meaning of the word Laodicea.
14:59 I often ask many audiences what does the word Laodicea
15:02 mean, and typically I do not get the right response.
15:06 But I know this is a well-educated audience 15:08 at 3ABN and I know the audience watching
on television is 15:12 well-educated. The word Laodicea:
15:14 do you have any idea? What does that mean?
15:17 Oh, I... The condition is lukewarm 15:23 but the word does not mean lukewarm.
15:25 The word means "a people adjudged. " 15:29 A literal translation of the word Laodicea
15:32 is "a people adjudged. " 15:34 So Laodicea is the last church.
15:37 It is the church in the judgment hour just before Jesus comes
15:41 and its condition is lukewarm. 15:44 Where was Laodicea?
15:46 Laodicea was in southwest Turkey. 15:48 I've visited the site on many, many,
many occasions. 15:51 When I first began to visit Laodicea
15:53 it was a very pure *** site. In other words,
15:56 it wasn't excavated yet. 15:58 And it was marvelous. We would ***
up on the site 16:00 and it's quite a large site. Laodicea
was a city 16:03 that had a population of about 150,000.
16:07 Do you know how we evaluate the population base
16:11 of the ancient cities? 16:12 If you take the stadium in the city
16:15 and we can excavate... archaeologists have excavated
16:18 the stadium... If you take the stadium 16:20 and you take the number of people that
could be seated 16:25 in the stadium and multiply it by ten
16:28 that's approximately the population size of the city.
16:31 So that stadium in Laodicea 16:33 might seat 10,000... 12,000. You might
be able to cram in 16:37 more, but we estimate the population
between 120,000 16:40 and 150,000 roughly in Laodicea.
16:43 So this was no backwater city, it was no backwater town.
16:47 In fact, Laodicea was a banking capitol. 16:50 It was extremely wealthy.
16:52 Gold coins were distributed from Laodicea. 16:55 It was a city that was wealth... had
a lot of wealth. 16:59 Laodicea was destroyed by an earthquake
17:02 in 61 AD... AD 61. 17:05 When Laodicea was destroyed
17:07 the Roman government - because Laodicea was a very...
17:12 city that was loyal to Rome - 17:13 the Roman government said "We will help
you rebuild 17:17 your city. " And the Laodiceans said:
17:20 "Forget it. We've got enough money to rebuild the city
17:23 ourselves. " Tacitus, the very famed Roman historian,
17:27 writes about Laodicea, and this what he says:
17:30 "Laodicea arose from its ruins by the strength of her own
17:34 resources and with no help from us. "
17:37 See, that's Laodicea. 17:39 It's wealthy; it's proud; it's affluent.
17:43 "We don't need anybody to help us. " 17:45 Second thing about Laodicea.
17:47 Laodicea had a special type of wool found only there
17:52 in the world really. 17:54 It was a very unique kind of wool.
17:56 They bred a black sheep 17:59 and they had hundreds, thousands of
these black sheep. 18:02 And if you shear them, the wool was
very glossy. 18:06 And the women were really attracted
to these black 18:10 garments. They produced at least 4 kinds
of these black garments 18:13 and they shipped them all over the world,
they exported them. 18:15 So Laodicea was this fashion center.
18:18 If you wanted to buy the latest in fashion, 18:21 particularly these very finely- woven
beautiful black garments, 18:26 you'd go to Laodicea.
18:27 The third thing about Laodicea 18:29 is that Laodicea had a medical center.
18:32 It was an educational medical center. 18:34 They developed the very famous Phrygian
eye salve. 18:37 And the salve came either in a powder
form 18:39 that you mixed liquid with or it came
in a tablet form. 18:43 And it was exported all over the world.
18:44 Somebody has said: "Laodicea was like the Bank of America,
18:49 Macy's, and... " one other one... 18:54 "Bank of America, Macy's, and the Mayo
Clinic 18:58 all rolled in one. " That was it!
19:00 Bank of America, Macy's, Mayo Clinic. 19:02 I mean, Laodicea was just this fantastic
city. 19:06 It was a city of pride and affluence.
19:09 A city that was self-sufficient. 19:11 A city that believed that it needed
19:13 nothing else from nobody else. 19:16 God chose that city.
19:18 Now what was the church like in Laodicea? 19:21 Do we have any description in the New
Testament 19:24 at all that helps us know the spiritual
condition 19:28 of the local congregation in this secular,
godless, 19:32 materialistic, educated culture?
19:35 Do we have any at all? We do! 19:36 If you take your Bible, please, and
turn to the book of 19:38 Colossians. Now Colossae wasn't too
far 19:42 from Laodicea.
19:44 And Paul actually wrote a letter to Colossae.
19:48 And according to the book of Colossians 19:50 he also wrote a letter to the Laodiceans
19:52 which eventually was lost. 19:54 But we get a hint of the spiritual condition
19:57 of the church at both Colossae and Laodicea 20:01 from Paul's writing. He writes to Colossae
and he says to the 20:04 church at Colossae - chapter 2-
20:06 "Send my letter that I have written to the Colossians...
20:10 send that also to the church at Laodicea. "
20:14 So let them read it. In Colossians 2 verse 1
20:18 Paul talks about the trouble in his soul.
20:21 Paul talks about his spiritual anxiety. 20:25 Paul talks about the fact that he is
a spiritual father 20:28 and he's really worried about the church
at Laodicea. 20:31 Colossians 2 verse 1:
20:33 "For I want you to know what a great conflict I have
20:37 for you and those in Laodicea. 20:40 For as many as have not seen my face
in the flesh 20:43 and their hearts may be encouraged being
knit together 20:46 in love and attaining to all the riches
of the full assurance 20:49 of the understanding of the knowledge
and the mystery of God 20:52 both of the Father and of Christ
20:54 in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and
20:57 knowledge. " Now don't miss the last part
20:59 of verse 1 chapter 2. He says: 21:01 "I have a conflict with you. I am troubled
in my soul 21:03 for you and for those in Laodicea. "
21:06 In other words, he looked at the church at Laodicea
21:10 and he had gotten reports about that church.
21:12 And he got reports that the church at Laodicea was
21:15 rich, it was cultured, it had a form of godliness.
21:18 It was apathetic; it was sentimental spirituality.
21:23 They had not denied the gospel; they had not denied Christ.
21:26 But this church at Laodicea had the form of godliness.
21:30 They honored God with their lips 21:32 but their hearts were far from Him.
21:35 That was the literal church at Laodicea. 21:38 And so Jesus addresses that church.
21:42 Revelation chapter 3. What an apt description 21:48 of the church living at the judgment
hour. 21:51 A church that is proud of her accomplishments.
21:54 Many of them it should be. 21:56 A church that is proud of its institutions.
21:59 A church that is proud of its world-wide membership.
22:03 A people that are proud of their doctrines that they're
22:07 doctrinally right. 22:09 But Jesus addresses a special letter
to them: 22:13 the letter to the Laodiceans.
22:16 Let's read it. Revelation 3: 22:19 "And to the angel of the church of the
Laodiceans write: 22:23 these things says the AMEN, the faithful
and true witness, 22:29 the beginning of the creation of God.
" 22:31 It is so easy to skip over verses that
are so fraught 22:36 with meaning. It is so easy
22:41 to skip over verses that speak to our hearts.
22:44 Now let's look at these four descriptions of Jesus.
22:49 He is the AMEN. 22:50 When do you place Amen in a prayer?
22:54 At the end of the prayer. 22:56 So the church at the judgment hour
22:59 is being addressed by the AMEN at the end of human history.
23:03 This is the last church, because after Laodicea there is an AMEN.
23:09 There is no such thing as the remnant of the remnant.
23:13 Does somebody hear me tonight? 23:16 There is no calling out of Laodicea
23:20 for another remnant to arise. 23:23 There is the message to Laodicea
23:26 that brings revival in Laodicea! 23:29 Amen.
23:30 "He that has ears, let him hear what the Spirit says to the
23:33 churches. " If God says "Amen" after Laodicea,
23:39 it's "Amen" at the end of human history 23:43 and God will have a church.
23:44 The AMEN: the faithful and true witness. 23:47 His witness is faithful and it's true.
23:50 We may want to avoid it. 23:52 We may not want to accept it.
23:55 It may make us uncomfortable and squirm in the pew...
24:00 but it's still true. 24:02 "Pastor Finley, I'm so glad you're preaching
the 24:05 Laodicean message. Those brethren need
it! " 24:11 "I'm so glad. I can't wait to get this
tape to show it 24:15 to my local church because they're not
3ABN fans 24:18 and they really need this one. "
24:21 That attitude defines what a Laodicean is all about.
24:27 Laodicea applies the Laodicean message 24:31 to somebody else. That everybody needs
it except me. 24:36 The scriptures says - Revelation chapter
3- 24:40 "These things says the AMEN" - at the
end of history - 24:43 "the faithful and true witness. "
24:44 Jesus is witnessing to my heart tonight. 24:48 Jesus is witnessing to your heart tonight.
24:51 His witness is faithful about me. 24:54 His witness is faithful about you.
24:56 He is the faithful and true witness. Now notice:
24:59 He's "the beginning of the creation of God. "
25:04 Now that strange expression: He's the "beginning of the
25:08 creation of God. " What does that mean? 25:10 That God created Jesus first? Not at
all. 25:12 In the Greek language there are... the
word for beginning 25:16 here is the Greek word arche
25:18 and it means beginner or first cause. 25:20 That Jesus started all creation.
25:23 Keep your finger in Revelation chapter 3. Go back to
25:25 Ephesians 3 verse 9. 25:27 Ephesians 3 verse 9.
25:30 Who is the One that addresses the church at Laodicea?
25:35 Ephesians 3 verse 9. 25:38 "And to make all people see what is
the fellowship 25:41 of the mystery which from the beginning
of the ages 25:44 has been hidden in God who created all
things 25:47 through Jesus Christ. "
25:49 Jesus is the beginning of the creation of God
25:52 in the sense that He is the beginner of the creation of God.
25:56 He is the One that brought forth all creation.
25:59 He spoke and it was done. 26:01 "In the beginning was the Word and the
Word was with God 26:03 and the Word was God. And all things
are created 26:06 by Him and in Him, and by Him all things
are created 26:09 and exist. " So it is the Almighty Creator
26:12 that brought light out of darkness 26:15 that speaks to Laodicea.
26:17 It is the Almighty Creator that hung every star in space
26:21 and caused the planets to revolve around the sun.
26:25 It's the Almighty Creator that said to the tides
26:27 "you come hither and go no further. "
26:30 And it's the Almighty Creator 26:32 that brought life on this earth that
speaks to Laodicea 26:35 and says: "I can re-create your hearts.
" 26:38 "I can bring light out of the darkness
of your mind. " 26:41 "I can turn the form of godliness so
that you'll have 26:44 a new beating spiritual heart. "
26:46 It is the Creator that speaks to Laodicea. 26:49 So the Laodicean message is full of
encouragement. 26:52 It's full of hope because Jesus, the
Creator, says: 26:56 "I can re-create my image in My people.
" 27:00 Now listen here. The Faith I Live By
page 306: 27:02 "The counsel of the True Witness...
" the prophet to the 27:07 remnant says this: "The counsel of the
True Witness... " 27:09 What is that? The counsel of the True
Witness? 27:11 What's that? The Laodicean message.
27:13 "is full of encouragement and comfort. 27:17 The churches may yet obtain the gold
of true faith 27:21 and love and be rich in the blessings
27:24 in the heavenly treasure. " 27:28 The message to the Laodiceans is full
of courage and comfort. 27:33 If you think tonight that the Laodicean
message is one that 27:37 God has given to whip His people and
beat them 27:40 till they feel so discouraged, you've
missed the whole point. 27:43 Tonight as we study the Laodicean message
27:46 I want to show you how full of encouragement it is for you.
27:50 There's somebody watching tonight. 27:52 You just happened to tune in.
27:54 You've got a formal religious experience. 27:58 Your prayers don't go any higher than
the ceiling. 28:01 You rarely study the Bible.
28:03 God's going to speak to you tonight. 28:05 God's going to touch you tonight.
28:06 Jesus is going to break through. There's somebody here tonight...
28:09 God sent you to this meeting for a purpose. 28:13 You may have come into this meeting
tonight knowing 28:16 that there are things in your heart
that are not right 28:18 with God. Sure, you're a Sabbath-keeping,
tithe-paying, 28:20 health-reforming Adventist
28:21 but you know in your heart that you've lost something.
28:24 That you're missing something. 28:27 That there's a void in your heart.
28:28 That the fire in your soul that once burned was not there.
28:32 You know you have to force yourself to get on your knees
28:34 to pray and then you're on there for about 30 seconds
28:38 and your mind wanders. 28:39 And you have a very superficial prayer
life. 28:43 You know that, oh sure, you love to
watch speakers on television 28:47 and get your religious teaching second
hand. 28:51 But as far as opening the Bible yourself
and listening to Jesus 28:54 speak to you and let your heart be warmed,
you know 28:57 that those were days past.
28:59 You know that your religious experience with Jesus
29:01 has become quite apathetic and quite superficial.
29:04 That you have a form of godliness. 29:07 You believe the doctrines but you're
missing something inside. 29:09 Tonight Jesus is going to speak to you.
29:12 Tonight Jesus is going to touch you. 29:14 Tonight your heart is going to be warmed
in some amazing 29:17 new ways as God from the text speaks
to your heart. 29:20 Take your Bible, please.
29:23 The True Witness is speaking... 29:25 the One who can re-create our hearts.
He says: 29:26 "I know your works, that you are neither
cold nor hot. 29:29 I wish you were cold or hot. So then
because you are 29:32 lukewarm... " Indifferent, apathetic...
29:37 "and neither cold nor hot I will spew you out of My mouth. "
29:41 Notice Jesus says to Laodicea 29:43 "You've taken a bath in lukewarm water.
" 29:46 The water in Laodicea was very lukewarm.
29:49 You go visit there today and you look across the valley to
29:51 Hierapolis and you see the hot springs coming up
29:54 out of Hierapolis, and they come across about 6 miles.
29:57 You can still see the ruins of the Roman aqueducts.
30:00 And the water was hot when it came out of the springs
30:04 but by the time it got to Laodicea it was lukewarm
30:07 and it was nauseating. So the church at Laodicea
30:12 had taken a bath in lukewarm water. It was not hot;
30:16 it was not on fire for God. 30:19 But it was not cold; it had not rejected
truth. 30:23 So Jesus says: "Because you say: 'I
am rich 30:27 and have become wealthy... ' You are
doctrinally wealthy. 30:31 You are spiritually wealthy from the
sense of doctrine. 30:35 'that you have need of nothing'
30:38 but you don't know that you're wretched, 30:40 you're miserable, you're poor,
30:42 you're blind, and you're naked... ' " 30:44 Laodicea said: "I'm rich. " Jesus said:
"You're poor. " 30:47 Laodicea said: "I'm a banking capitol"
30:49 and Jesus said: "You're poor. " 30:51 Laodicea said: "I am clothed with the
garments. 30:55 Look at our garments; look at our fashion.
" 30:57 Jesus said: "You're naked. "
30:59 Laodicea said: "I can see. We produce this eye salve. "
31:03 Jesus said: "You're blind. " 31:06 And then Jesus makes this offer.
31:07 The heavenly Merchantman comes and knocks on the door
31:10 of Laodicea and knocks on the door of your heart.
31:13 He knocks on the door of my heart tonight. 31:15 What does Jesus offer and what does
it mean? 31:20 Jesus says: "I counsel you... "
31:23 The True Witness is speaking. He is speaking to you;
31:27 He's speaking to me. 31:28 If you're here in this 3ABN audience,
the True Witness 31:31 is speaking to you.
31:32 The heavenly Merchantman is speaking to you.
31:35 If you're watching by television, 31:37 Jesus is speaking to you.
31:39 "I counsel you to buy of Me gold tried in the fire. "
31:43 We stop there. 31:45 What is the gold tried in the fire that
Laodicea does not have 31:51 that Christ appeals to us to get?
31:54 What is that? Let's let the Bible tell us.
31:57 First we go to Peter. Take your Bible, please,
31:59 and come to Peter with me. 32:01 The first chapter of Peter.
32:03 I Peter chapter 1 verse 7. 32:07 I Peter chapter 1 verse 7.
32:08 What is the gold tried in the fire? 32:12 The gold that Laodicea needs
32:15 Laodicea needs more than a form of godliness. 32:17 Laodicea needs more than to honor Christ
with their lips. 32:21 Laodicea needs more than a doctrinal
correctness. 32:24 Laodicea needs more than simply an external
label. 32:29 Laodicea needs the gold tried in the
fire. 32:32 Gold is precious.
32:35 I Peter chapter 1. We look there... verse 7:
32:40 "That the genuineness of your faith 32:42 being much more precious than gold
32:45 that perishes though it is tested by fire
32:49 may be found to praise, honor, and glory 32:52 at the revelation of Jesus Christ. "
32:54 So the gold is the preciousness of your faith.
32:58 What is faith? 33:00 Faith is trusting God as a friend well
known. 33:05 How do you develop faith?
33:08 Romans chapter 10 verse 17 says: "Faith comes by hearing
33:12 and hearing by the... " What? "Word of God. "
33:15 So when Jesus, the heavenly Merchantman, 33:19 invites us to take the gold, He's inviting
us to develop 33:24 a faith that will stand the crisis of
time. 33:27 He's inviting us to enter into a study
of His Word - 33:32 personally, practically - and let the
Word of God 33:37 transform our lives to develop a deep
relationship of faith 33:41 with Him. Look at what Peter says.
33:44 After he talks about this gold tried in the fire,
33:47 this faith, he says... 33:50 I Peter chapter 1 verse 23:
33:54 "Having been born again, not of corruptible seed
33:58 but incorruptible, through the Word of God
34:01 which lives and abides forever. " 34:03 How is it that when we drift into Laodicean
complacency 34:08 we can be born again? How is it that
as our experience 34:12 with Jesus becomes apathetic our hearts
can be changed? 34:16 That we can be moved from being indifferent?
34:18 Peter tells us. 34:19 "Having been born again, not of corruptible
seed 34:22 but incorruptible, through the Word
of God. " 34:25 II Peter. What is it that will bring
revival 34:30 to God's people? What is it that will
transform 34:33 the Laodicean spiritual experience?
34:35 It is as men and women on their knees 34:38 open God's Word and allow the precious
promises 34:42 of God's Word to transform their life.
34:44 There is nothing that substitutes in the Christian
34:47 life for taking time with Jesus in His Word.
34:51 You cannot be a solid, vibrant, committed 34:56 Christian unless the Word of God transforms
your life 35:00 and changes your mind.
35:02 "We are not conformed to this world but we are transformed
35:05 by the renewing of our mind. " II Peter chapter 1.
35:09 Notice he says... II Peter chapter 1: 35:13 "By which... " verse 4 "have been given
to us exceeding 35:18 great and precious... " What?
35:20 "promises that through these you may be partakers
35:24 of the divine nature having escaped the corruption
35:28 of the world that is through ***. " 35:31 We escape the corruption of the world
35:33 and are partakers of the divine nature 35:36 as we fill our mind with God's Word.
35:39 Listen to what James says. James chapter 1.
35:44 There is a danger. The danger is 35:49 that we substitute listening to sermons
35:53 on DVD to listening to the voice of God in His Word.
36:00 I thank God for the media ministries. 36:02 I thank God for 3ABN.
36:04 I thank God for Hope Channel. 36:05 I thank God for every Adventist ministry...
all of them! 36:09 Breath of Life... praise God for it.
36:12 It Is Written... praise God for it. 36:15 Amazing Facts... praise God for it.
36:17 But if you think that you're going to develop a deep
36:21 spiritual experience by becoming a religious groupie
36:25 and following your favorite TV preacher 36:29 be it Mark Finley or anybody else,
36:33 that will not provide the depth that God wants you to have.
36:40 The answer to Laodicea is found in the Word of God.
36:46 The book of James. 36:47 There is no substitute for opening God's
Word. 36:52 There is no substitute for letting God
speak to you 36:56 through His book. There is no substitute
37:00 for the transformation of character that comes.
37:03 The gold tried in the fire 37:07 is the development of faith
37:11 through a mind immersed in the Word of the Living God.
37:15 James chapter 1. 37:18 Verse... looking there in the book of
James 37:21 chapter 1 verse 21.
37:24 "Therefore lay aside all filthiness and the overflow
37:29 of wickedness and receive with meekness the implanted Word
37:34 which is able to save your souls. " 37:36 The implanted Word! I love that expression.
37:39 Has the Word of God been implanted in your mind?
37:44 Has the Word of God saturated your consciousness? 37:48 Has the Word of God molded and shaped
your thinking 37:53 and transformed your life?
37:55 Revival - genuine, authentic revival - will not come to this
38:00 church simply because there's some music that makes you
38:03 want to clap your hands. 38:06 That may lead to false revival.
38:11 A false revival's going to come. 38:13 It's going to be based on emotionalism
and sentimentalism. 38:17 And for a people that are not used to
disciplined study 38:21 of God's Word and that want a quick
fix in religion, 38:25 that want a candy-coated, sugar-coated
gospel 38:30 that makes them feel good,
38:32 the devil will provide a counterfeit. 38:36 Shallow calls to shallow
38:39 but deep calleth to deep. 38:41 I do not call you tonight to a shallow,
superficial, 38:47 easy-going, crossless Christian experience.
38:52 Tonight I call you to the depths of God's Word.
38:56 I call you to fill your mind for it is written
39:00 none but those who have fortified their minds
39:04 with the teaching of scripture, and I quote:
39:07 "will stand through the final crisis. "
39:11 Revival comes through saturating our minds with the Word of God.
39:15 This is what Jesus is talking about to Laodicea:
39:19 the faith, the gold, the Christian experience 39:21 that comes through God's Word.
39:23 Psalm 119. 39:24 What is the source of revival?
39:27 What is the very heart of revival? 39:30 What is the very essence of revival?
39:32 Psalm 119. 39:35 And we look there in the 119th Psalm
39:38 in the 107th verse... 39:41 Let's look at verses 105, 106, 107.
39:44 Psalm 119 105, 106, and 107. 39:50 "Your Word is a lamp unto my feet and
light unto my path. 39:54 I have sworn and confirmed that I will
keep Your 39:56 righteous judgments. I am afflicted
much. 39:58 Revive me, O Lord, according to Your...
" What everybody? 40:03 "Revive me, O Lord, according to...
" What? 40:06 "Your Word. "
40:08 What is the source and the heart of revival?
40:11 Revival comes as we pray over God's Word.
40:14 Do you see why the Laodicean message is full of
40:18 as the prophet of God to the remnant says:
40:20 "hope and encouragement? " 40:22 Because as we fill our minds with God's
Word 40:24 the same Holy Spirit that inspired the
Bible 40:26 inspires our hearts.
40:28 The Creator God who spoke and it was done,
40:31 who commanded and it stood fast, 40:33 the creative energy and I quote again:
40:36 "the creative energy that brought worlds into existence
40:39 is in the Word of God. " 40:41 The same Jesus who spoke worlds into
existence 40:45 speaks to us through His Word and our
lives are transformed 40:49 through the very Word of God.
40:50 Back to Revelation chapter 3. 40:52 What does the heavenly Merchantman invite
us to do? 40:56 First, He comes knocking on the door
of your heart 40:58 and He says: "Will you give Me time?
" 41:00 "Will you give Me time? "
41:03 In Revelation chapter 3: 41:05 "Will you give Me time to build within
you a faith? " 41:10 "Will you give Me time to build within
you 41:14 a strength of character? "
41:17 "Will you spend time every day 41:21 allowing Me to speak to you from My
Word? " 41:25 Revelation 3.
41:27 "I counsel you to buy of Me gold tried in the fire
41:31 that you may be rich 41:33 and white raiments that you may be clothed.
" 41:37 What are these white raiments?
41:41 Well, Revelation chapter 19. 41:43 Take your Bible there: Revelation chapter
19. 41:46 And you're going to look at Revelation
chapter 19 41:49 and you're going to look at verse 9.
41:52 Revelation chapter 19 verse 9. 41:55 What is this white raiment?
41:58 Revelation chapter 19 verse 9 42:01 describes what this white raiment is.
42:05 Revelation 19 verse 9. 42:09 We'll start with verse 7.
42:12 "Let us be glad and rejoice and give Him glory
42:15 for the marriage of the Lamb has come 42:17 and His wife has made herself ready.
42:19 And to her it was granted to be arrayed in fine linen,
42:23 clean and white, for the fine linen is the righteous acts
42:26 of the saints. " What is this white raiment?
42:29 It is Jesus' righteousness that transforms our lives.
42:35 What is Jesus saying when He says: "Come to Me
42:38 and receive this white raiment? " 42:40 He's saying: "Bathe your mind
42:44 in an understanding of My grace and My righteousness.
42:48 You are frail and weak and sinful 42:52 and all your righteousness is as filthy
rags. 42:55 Even your righteous acts are tainted
by selfish motives 42:59 but come to Me... immerse yourself in
Me. " 43:04 I love that old hymn Not I, But Christ...
43:06 be honored, loved, exalted. 43:09 Not I, but Christ, be seen, be known,
be heard. 43:12 Not I, but Christ, in every look and
action. 43:15 Not I, but Christ, in every deed and
word. 43:18 Jesus says: "Come and allow Me to fill
your heart. 43:22 Come and allow me to change your life.
43:24 Come and allow Me to be your Savior, your Lord.
43:30 Come and allow Me to transform you and make you over again.
43:36 Drink deeply of My grace 43:39 and My love and My salvation. "
43:42 Jesus says to you and to me tonight: 43:45 "Spend time immersing your mind in My
grace, 43:51 My goodness, My righteousness. "
43:53 Dwight L. Moody once said 43:55 "The man the world has yet to see:
44:01 that man, that woman who is totally consecrated to God.
44:06 I will be that man. " 44:08 Do you hear the call of God to your
heart? 44:12 "I will be that man... I will be that
woman. 44:14 Lord, all I want is to reflect Your
love. 44:17 All I want is to reflect Your grace.
44:19 All I want is Your grace to flow out of me.
44:22 I want to reveal Jesus 44:24 in kindness and compassion and gentleness.
44:27 I know, Lord, there's no goodness in me.
44:29 I know that there is no way that my righteousness can
44:33 save me. Nobody else has to tell me how wicked I am
44:38 because I know this man's heart, 44:39 I know this man's mind. "
44:43 Nothing in my hand I bring, 44:47 only to His cross I cling.
44:51 Redeemed, how I love to proclaim it! 44:54 Redeemed by the blood of the Lamb.
44:57 Redeemed and so happy in Jesus! 45:00 Laodicea... an appeal to the cross.
45:06 An appeal to kneel before Him 45:09 and praise Him for His righteousness
and His goodness 45:13 and His love.
45:14 What is the message to Laodicea 45:16 in Revelation chapter 3?
45:19 It is a message to develop faith and strength of character
45:23 through His Word. 45:24 It is a message to be immersed in His
love 45:27 and allow His grace and righteousness
and goodness 45:31 to transform your life.
45:35 The last part of the verse says 45:37 "that you may be clothed. " Verse...
chapter 3 verse 18. 45:43 "That the shame of your naked- ness
may not be revealed. " 45:46 Without Jesus and His righteousness
clothing me 45:52 the x-ray of the divine eyes of eternity
45:56 see through my fig-leaf garments of works
46:02 and I'm seen as naked before God. 46:05 But as I fall on my knees and say: "Jesus,
I'm a sinner 46:08 but You are altogether righteous.
46:10 Clothe me with Your righteousness, Lord... 46:13 clothe me with Your righteousness.
46:15 Transform my life through that righteousness. "
46:19 As a sinner I am declared righteous through the
46:23 righteous life of Christ. 46:27 But as a sinner, the faith that receives
46:33 His justifying grace is the same faith that receives
46:37 His sanctifying power. 46:40 The same faith that receives justification
46:43 for my past and present failures 46:47 receives His power and sanctification
to transform me. 46:52 Salvation comes as I spend time with
Jesus in His Word. 46:57 It comes as I cast my helpless soul
upon Him 47:02 and let Him clothe me with His beautiful
robe of righteousness. 47:06 And He declares me before the universe
as righteous. 47:09 And that which He declares me to be
47:13 He promises to me that He's not only the Author
47:16 but He is the Finisher of our faith! 47:19 He promises me that if I stay with Him
47:22 and don't drop out of the school of Christ
47:26 that He will get me through. 47:28 Because "He which hath begun a good
work in you" - 47:31 Philippians 1 verse 6- "will finish
it. " 47:34 I'm not all that I want to be
47:37 but I will be all I can be 47:41 through the righteousness of Jesus Christ.
47:44 He surrounds me and clothes me with His righteousness
47:47 and works in me through His grace and power to transform me.
47:52 So as John says: "Behold... "Behold now are we
47:56 the sons of God. 47:59 But we do not yet know what we shall
be. 48:01 But we know this: that we shall be like
Him 48:06 because when He appears we shall see
Him as He is. " 48:09 Jesus is taking Laodicea, whom He has
clothed with His 48:12 righteousness, transforming their hearts
to make them 48:17 a loving, kind people to be a witness
to the world. 48:20 This is the message of Laodicea.
48:23 Let Jesus do a deep work in your heart. 48:25 Let Jesus finish the work in your heart
that He began. 48:28 Let Jesus be not only the Author but
the Finisher 48:31 of your faith. Revelation chapter 3
last part 48:33 of verse 18.
48:38 "And anoint your eyes with eye salve that you may see. "
48:41 What is the eye salve? 48:43 It is the Holy Spirit bringing us conviction
of who we are. 48:46 It's the Holy Spirit showing us our
need of Jesus Christ. 48:51 Oh Jesus, I don't want to be so rushed,
even in my ministry, 48:57 that I miss receiving the gold
49:00 and that the faith and strength of character is not developed
49:03 in me to stand in the final crisis. 49:08 I don't want to be so clothed in the
accomplishments of my 49:12 works that I don't kneel before You
49:15 and receive Your grace. 49:18 Lord, I don't want to be so blind
49:21 that I don't see my nature that drives me to Jesus.
49:26 And Jesus says Revelation chapter 3 verse 20:
49:28 "Behold I stand at the door and knock. 49:31 If anyone hears my voice and opens the
door, I will 49:34 come in to him and sup with him and
he with Me. " 49:36 In the Eastern world, supper
49:39 was a meal that you sat down in fellowship. 49:42 You don't run by.
49:43 Jesus says: "I'm standing at the door knocking.
49:45 Can I come in? Can I come in? 49:48 I'm standing there at that door and
knocking. 49:52 Will you make a total complete surrender
49:55 of your life to Me? " 49:57 "Will you allow Me to fill that aching
void in your soul? " 50:02 You're an Adventist. You're a tithe-paying,
Sabbath- 50:06 keeping, health-reforming Adventist
50:08 but you're running through life. And deep down in your soul
50:13 there is an aching for a genuine spirituality. 50:16 You are saying: "God, there must be
something more! " 50:20 And Jesus says to you: "Come. Come.
Open your heart. 50:26 Let Me change your life. "
50:30 I want to read you a remarkable letter. 50:33 This letter was written
50:37 about 40 years ago. 50:41 It was written, in fact, 1968-1970.
50:46 A group of Communist infiltrators came to America.
50:53 They began working on college campuses. 50:56 And a Communist I will say "evangelist"
50:59 converted to Communism a number of American young people.
51:04 One of the young men that accepted Communism 51:09 in the late 60's when Communism was
in its hey-day 51:13 he believed in the ideology of Communism.
51:16 That the classless society that Marx had offered
51:21 was the way forward for all the world. 51:24 This young man who had been a Christian
left Christianity. 51:28 And he had been dating a Christian girl,
and he 51:31 broke up with her. I want to read you
51:34 a copy of the letter that he wrote 51:39 to his Christian girlfriend
51:41 and why, as a Communist, he had to break up
51:44 with a Christian... why they couldn't date.
51:46 "My dear, I am writing this letter to inform you
51:51 that I can no longer continue our relationship. 51:55 I have become a Communist
51:57 and must sacrifice everything for my commitment to the cause.
52:01 We Communists don't have time for fine cars
52:05 and luxurious houses and movies 52:08 and T-bone steaks or fancy clothes.
52:11 We are all consumed by the cause of Communism.
52:15 Communism is my love. 52:17 It is my mistress; it is my sweetheart.
52:21 It consumes my time and absorbs my thoughts. 52:24 Its hold on me grows stronger not weaker
every day. 52:28 I give back to the cause every penny
52:31 except for my living expenses. 52:34 And I'm willing to give up my life for
the cause of Communism. 52:38 Therefore I can have no relationship
that is contrary 52:42 to the cause and we must break up. "
52:46 When I read that I said: "Oh, Jesus, 52:49 oh Jesus, how pathetic
52:55 my commitment to You is at times. 52:57 How superficial!
53:02 Jesus, You are the great Creator. 53:07 Come and re-create my heart.
53:10 Come and transform my life. 53:13 Come and make me like You. "
53:17 Do you hear God speaking to you tonight? 53:19 Is God speaking to your heart?
53:22 Is there the call to something deeper? 53:25 Is it a call to spend time with Him
in prayer? 53:28 Is there the call to spend time in His
book? 53:31 Is there the call to your heart to a
deeper surrender tonight? 53:36 Would you like to bow your heads with
me as we pray? 53:40 Is there somebody here that you know
God is calling you 53:44 to make a change in your life?
53:48 I don't know what that change is, but you hear His voice
53:50 speaking to you tonight. 53:52 Somebody watching by television:
53:55 God is calling you tonight to make that change.
53:58 Would you just raise your hand right now?
54:00 "Lord, I need a change. Lord, I need a change.
54:03 Lord, I need to be anchored in Your Word.
54:05 Lord, I want to be ready when You come. "
54:07 Jesus, thank you for being the great Creator that'll
54:09 change our hearts. 54:10 Oh my Father, thank you that the message
to the Laodiceans 54:14 is so full of hope and encouragement.
54:16 You have not spewed us out of Your mouth. 54:19 You will create a mighty revival, and
the winds 54:22 of revival are blowing. Oh Jesus, tonight
54:25 we open our hearts to You. 54:27 Come and fill them with Your power,
Your strength, 54:30 Your goodness, Your righteousness
54:33 and use us in Your closing work. 54:36 In Jesus' name, Amen and Amen.
54:40 Go tonight knowing... Go tonight knowing 54:45 that you are Christ's and He is yours.
54:49 Amen. Thank you, Mark. 54:51 And all the people said once again:
"Amen! " 54:56 Wow! We've had a wonderful time. We
want to thank all of you 54:59 for coming... those of you at home for
staying with us 55:03 at Camp Meeting. Many of you are watching
55:04 from around the world. 55:06 And this is a spiritual time.
55:08 It's for revival and reformation 55:11 and it's good for all of us.
55:12 And though we're in the business of ministry
55:14 we need to be in the business of coming to Jesus every day,
55:17 right? That's right. Coming to the foot of the cross.
55:19 And sometimes a lot of us are out speaking, 55:22 and it's great to sit down and be fed
by other folks. 55:25 Amen. You know, we will have another
Camp Meeting 55:28 in the spring. And those dates are:
May 30-31, June 1-2. 55:35 And so we're looking forward to that.
55:37 Put it on your calendar and plan to be with us.
55:40 You know the amazing thing, Danny? There are more people
55:43 here at the end of this message 55:45 than there were at the beginning.
55:46 And they just kept coming back in. 55:49 And... I always say when I go to churches
on weekends... 55:52 I say: "Most Adventists will miss the
second coming 55:55 by about 20 minutes. " Yeah.
55:57 'Cause that's about how late... Church starts at 7.
55:59 By 7: 15 there's quite a few there 56:02 and by 7:30 most everybody that's coming
comes, you know. 56:06 That's right. But however late you came
56:09 we're glad that you came and... for sure.
56:12 Well... and what we want to do is leave you with a blessing
56:17 because how many of you have to travel now?
56:21 Got quite a distance to travel. 56:23 We want to pray traveling mercies over
you. 56:25 And our prayer, too, is this word that
has gone forth 56:29 not just for you here but all of you
across the nation 56:33 and throughout the world that have had
this word 56:37 that have received so beautifully from
Bro. Bradford, 56:39 have we not? And from Pastor Finley.
56:42 That this word that has been planted in your heart
56:45 that it will be sealed there by the power of the Holy Spirit.
56:48 That the enemy can't come and steal... not any of that
56:51 word out of your heart but that that word will be planted
56:54 deeply within your heart and it will produce
56:57 not 30-fold, not 60-fold, but how many of you want
57:00 100-fold return on this word that's gone into our heart
57:04 today? So that's our prayer tonight 57:06 for everyone that's here... for everyone
around the world. 57:09 That the power of the Word will be planted
57:11 deeply within your heart 57:13 and that it will have a mighty return
for the kingdom of God. 57:16 Amen. Jesus is coming soon. Amen.
57:20 Good night. God bless you.