Participants: Pr. Mark Finley
Series Code: AOT
Program Code: AOT000095
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00:12 Welcome to Anchors Of Truth from the 3ABN Worship Center.
00:17 When The Spirit Falls, with Mark Finley. 00:22 It is with a hint of sadness that we welcome you to our 00:28 last meeting in this particular sitting of Anchors Of Truth. 00:33 The Spirit has been here in a marked way during these past 00:37 several sittings together and the Lord has blessed 00:39 Pastor Finley in a marked way. 00:42 And I think we've all felt the moving of the Spirit, 00:44 not only this morning, but each evening. 00:47 And we expect no less than the moving of the Spirit 00:50 for this final presentation which is called, 00:53 When God Finishes His Work. 00:56 And I know we are all looking forward to the finishing of the 00:59 work in our own lives and the finishing of the work 01:01 in the world so we can go home and be with Jesus. 01:07 We have felt the Spirit during these times 01:09 and God has been very, very near. 01:11 Mark and Teenie have blessed us with their presence. 01:15 we've done a little cooking, we've eaten a little of 01:16 their food; their physical food, and their spiritual food. 01:20 And both have been very, very good indeed. 01:22 And so we invite and welcome our host audience here 01:26 in Thompsonville, West Frankfort, 01:28 and also our world audience to this very last sitting. 01:33 And we know that it's going to be a really wonderful time. 01:35 I'm going to ask you now to bow your heads with me 01:37 in a word of prayer if you will. 01:39 Father God, we just praise You and Thank You so very much 01:42 for what You have done to our hearts during these 01:48 several occasions that we've been together. 01:50 We thank You for Pastor Finley, for his life dedicated to You, 01:55 a life that has seen him preach all over the world, 01:58 and men and women come to Christ. 02:00 We thank You for his wife who stands dutifully 02:04 and faithfully by his side. 02:06 And we thank You that he is come to this place at this time 02:10 to preach to our hearts and to our souls. 02:13 We ask once again that You use him in a marked and mighty way, 02:19 that You would speak to him and, yea, through him 02:23 so that we can hear, not the words of men, but we want to 02:27 hear the words of God. 02:29 And then we ask for receptive hearts, 02:33 receptive minds, open and receptive ears, 02:36 that we may be doers of the Word and not just hearers. 02:42 Because we know that it is in the doing that we are made 02:46 like Christ Jesus. 02:48 And so bless us this day once again. 02:51 We wait upon You and we thank You in Jesus' name, amen. 02:57 In about 1871, Dr. Charles Weigle, 03:02 an itinerate preacher, a writer of hymns and songs, 03:07 and an evangelist, had just returned home from 03:11 an extended preaching tour. 03:15 The house was empty and he saw a note on the table. 03:20 He recognized immediately the handwriting because it was 03:23 the handwriting of his wife. 03:25 The note was short and simple and rather stark. 03:28 It said, "I am leaving and I'm taking our daughter with me. 03:34 Do not look for me. Do not search for me. 03:37 I will not return. I will never come back." 03:42 Charles Weigle was thrown into a traumatic time in his life. 03:46 For a time, he lost his faith in God. 03:49 He lost his hold, he stopped preaching. 03:51 And he even considered suicide. 03:54 He actually drove to the Gulf of Mexico and intended 03:59 to drive his car right into the gulf. 04:02 But that same Holy Spirit that Pastor Mark has been 04:06 talking to us for the past several evenings 04:08 touched Charles Weigle's heart and arrested him in his course. 04:13 He changed his mind, drove back home, and sat at the piano. 04:19 And there under the aegis of that same Holy Spirit, 04:23 he wrote this song. 04:36 I would love to tell you what I think of Jesus, 04:44 since I found in Him a friend so strong and true. 04:53 I would tell you how He changed my life completely; 05:01 He did something that no other friend could do. 05:10 No one ever cared for me like Jesus; 05:19 there's no other friend so kind as He. 05:28 No one else could take the sin and darkness from me; 05:39 O how much He cares for me. 05:50 All my life was full of sin when Jesus found me; 05:59 all my heart was full of misery and woe. 06:07 Jesus placed His strong loving arms about me, 06:15 and He led me in the path I ought to go. 06:23 No one ever cared for me like Jesus; 06:32 there's no other friend so kind as He. 06:40 No one else could take the sin and darkness from me; 06:51 O how much He cares for me. 07:03 Every day He comes to me with new assurance; 07:11 more and more and more I understand His words of love. 07:19 But I'll never know just why He came to save me 07:26 till someday I see His blessed face above. 07:35 No one ever cared for me like Jesus; 07:44 there's no other friend so kind as He. 07:51 And no one else could take the sin and darkness from me; 08:04 O how much He cares, O how much He cares, 08:16 O how much He cares for me. 08:36 Amen. 08:37 It's the Holy Spirit that impresses our hearts 08:41 with exactly how much Jesus does care for each one of us. 08:47 We are on a journey together and this is the 08:49 last in this presentation on the ministry and 08:51 work of the Holy Spirit. 08:53 When The Spirit Falls. 08:55 We've talked about the personality of the Holy Spirit 08:58 and how the Holy Spirit works in each one of our lives. 09:01 We talked about the urgency, the necessity, of opening our 09:05 hearts to receive the Holy Spirit. 09:07 We talked about the conditions to receive the Holy Spirit; 09:11 of prayer and earnest Bible study, an undivided heart, 09:15 the forgiving spirit, a commitment to witness. 09:18 And we've talked about the Holy Spirit at the end time, 09:21 the outpouring of the Holy Spirit in the latter rain. 09:24 In our last presentation, we talked about the early 09:27 and the latter rain and the Spirit. 09:28 We've looked at the different symbols of the Spirit. 09:31 We've looked at fire and water and oil, 09:35 the meaning of those symbols. 09:37 In this presentation, we're going to focus particularly 09:40 on revival, the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, 09:43 and the finishing of God's work on earth. 09:46 So let's pray. 09:48 Father, teach us through Your Word the glorious 09:54 destiny and future of Your church. 09:58 Open our hearts to see divine realities. 10:02 Impress us with the moving of Your Spirit 10:07 right among us today, and help us see what You want 10:10 to do in the world. 10:12 Help us catch the glorious vision of a finished work 10:17 through the mighty moving of Your Spirit. 10:20 And help us participate in that. 10:22 In Christ's name, amen. 10:25 When you look out over the world today, 10:30 it doesn't look very promising for the gospel to go 10:35 to the ends of the earth. 10:38 For example, let's look at some numbers. 10:51 Now that's very staggering, isn't it. 10:53 We talked about the finishing of God's work on earth. 10:56 We talked about the gospel going to every nation, 10:58 kindred, tongue, and people. 11:00 But after 2000 years of preaching the gospel, 11:04 only about 2.2 billion people are Christians. 11:08 1.5 billion are Muslims. 11:27 When you look at the figures, it's staggering. 11:30 How will the gospel ever go to the ends of the earth? 11:34 But to make it even more challenging, there are, 11:37 when I wrote this, about 16.3 million members. 11:40 But Seventh-day Adventists add about a million 11:42 members every year. 11:44 So now it's about 17 million members. 11:46 25 million people attending Adventist churches. 11:49 But if you just take the sheer numbers, 11:52 say 17 million Adventists, they are only approximately 11:56 one percent of all the Christians and only a fraction 12:00 of all the world's population. 12:01 So how, with a population of 7 billion people, 12:07 will a fraction of one percent ever take the message 12:13 of Jesus to the ends of the earth so Jesus will come? 12:18 Looking at it through human eyes, it seems to be 12:22 very, very impossible. 12:24 Looking at it through human eyes, we say... 12:34 Is it possible for the gospel in the context of... 12:42 How can that ever be possible? 12:44 How can every human being ever have a chance 12:47 ever to hear Jesus' message? 12:54 The answer is the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. 12:57 The answer is that God is going to do something 13:01 that we do not yet imagine. 13:03 His promise is true. 13:05 Matthew 24 verse 14, read it with me please. 13:18 Will Jesus keep His word? 13:20 Will Jesus fulfill His promise? 13:23 In spite of our questioning in our mind, in spite of our 13:28 human doubts, we can thank God that the 13:31 promises of Jesus are true. 13:33 This gospel of the kingdom might be preached in all the world. 13:36 Right? 13:38 Perhaps this gospel of the kingdom will be preached 13:39 in all the world, right? 13:41 This gospel of the kingdom may be preached in all the world. 13:43 Right? What does it say? 13:44 This gospel of the kingdom will be preached 13:47 in part of the world. 13:49 In half of the world. 13:50 To a few people in the world. In what? 13:52 "...in all the world as a witness to..." What? 13:54 "...to all nations." 13:56 Now notice, all of the gospel will be preached in all of the 14:00 world to all of the nations, and then the end will come. 14:03 God's promises are true. 14:06 God's promises never let us down. 14:10 The mission is God's. 14:12 The mission is God's. 14:14 Beyond what our eyes can see, God is working 14:16 with His Holy Spirit. 14:18 Beyond what our eyes can see, God is sending angels 14:21 from the sanctuary in heaven to lead people to light and truth. 14:26 Beyond what we can possibly imagine, God is at work. 14:29 The mission is His. 14:31 We need not weary our self. 14:33 We need not be over anxious. 14:34 We need not be depressed that the gospel 14:37 is not going any faster. 14:39 The mission is not ours. It is God's. 14:43 We have the glorious joy, the wonderful privilege, 14:48 of cooperating with God in His mission. 14:51 But I'll tell you something. 14:52 Whether you or I choose to participate in that mission 14:56 or not, He is going to get the job done. 15:01 The sovereign God is going to get the job done. 15:05 The message of Jesus is going to go to the ends of the earth, 15:09 to every nation, kindred, tongue, and people. 15:11 And He gives us the joy, He gives us the privilege. 15:14 What can be a higher privilege, 15:16 what can be a greater joy, 15:18 what can be a more glorious opportunity, 15:21 than to cooperate with God in what He is doing 15:25 in finishing His work on earth? 15:28 Now the promise of the Spirit was given back to the disciples 15:32 in the first century, and that same promise is given to us. 15:36 When you study that promise, it's quite amazing. 15:38 Acts 1 verse 8, not only has God given us a great commission, 15:42 He's given us a great promise. 15:58 Jesus said, "You will receive power," to the disciples. 16:02 When Jesus spoke that to the disciples, 16:05 120 disciples met in the upper room. 16:10 I was interested recently in doing some demographic 16:13 population studies on ancient Rome. 16:18 The ancient Roman empire had approximately 16:21 180 million people living in it. 16:23 Now you will read different figures depending on 16:25 how far out you go in the empire 16:27 if you take the empire to the farthest reaches. 16:30 Rome had over a million people. 16:32 But the empire had about 180 million. 16:34 Now if you use the numbers only given in the Bible 16:38 and you have 120 that meet in the upper room, 16:41 and Jesus says to them, "You're going to receive power 16:44 and the Holy Spirit is going to be poured out upon you, 16:46 and you are going to go to the ends of the earth 16:49 and preach the gospel and give everybody an opportunity," 16:52 120 meet in the upper room, 180 million in the empire, 16:56 that's one Christian for every 1.4 million people. 17:01 What's the population of the state of Illinois? 17:04 How many million? 17:06 Help me here. 17:08 18 million somebody says? Okay. 17:10 If the ration is one to 1.4 million, it's about 17:16 14 Christians in the state of Illinois. 17:19 What if right here today God gathered 14 Christians, 17:24 not even Adventists, but what if He gathered 14 Christians 17:26 and He said, "Within a matter of 40 years, 17:30 the gospel will go to every person in Illinois." 17:34 That would be amazing, wouldn't it? 17:37 120 Christians meet. 17:40 A ratio of 1 to 1.4 million. 17:43 And Jesus says, "I am going to pour out My Spirit upon you. 17:47 I'm going to do something that you cannot believe. 17:49 Something that's amazing." 17:51 Now when you look at Jesus' promise in the book of Acts, 17:53 there are three aspects of that promise. 17:55 There is the all encompassing nature of the promise. 17:58 There is the all embracing conditions 18:00 to receive the promise. 18:01 And the all empowering results of the promise. 18:04 Let's look at all three of those today. 18:07 First, the all encompassing nature of the promise. 18:10 I want you to see how embracing this promise 18:13 that He gave to them was. 18:15 Jesus called those disciples, those 120, He said, 18:19 "I'm going to pour out My Spirit upon you." 18:21 And here's the promise, Acts 2 verse 17. 18:25 I love the certainty of those words. 18:33 This was fulfilled in Pentecost as a miniature 18:37 of what's going to take place in our day. 18:38 This promise will be fulfilled in its largeness in our time. 18:54 Now I'm interested in the expression, "on all flesh." 18:57 The Holy Spirit in the past has been poured out on an 19:00 individual here, an individual there. 19:02 But just before the coming of Jesus, God will have 19:07 a representative portion of His church that's seeking Him, 19:12 that has an undivided heart, that's reading His Word. 19:16 And we will see upon that "all flesh," just like the 19:21 "all flesh" in the 120 in the upper room, 19:23 we will see the outpouring of the Holy Spirit 19:25 in an abundant measure in the last days 19:29 like we cannot imagine. 19:31 God is going to do something so significant, so amazing, 19:35 the darkness of this world will be met by a greater light. 19:41 The need of this world will be met by a greater power. 19:45 The lack of the gospel will be met by a power 19:49 to take the gospel. 19:51 The marvelous working of Satan will be met by the 19:55 mighty works of God. 19:57 The devil will work with all power from beneath, 20:00 but Jesus will work with all power from above. 20:03 And the Holy Spirit will come in marvelous ways. 20:07 As the disciples prayed, confessing their sins, 20:10 seeking God for power to proclaim His grace, 20:13 the flood gates of heaven opened and the rain of the Spirit 20:17 poured down upon them. 20:19 And that is a prelude to what Jesus is going to do. 20:23 Notice it says in Acts 2 verse 4... 20:30 Languages they never learned. 20:32 God placed in their hearts and minds, and they proclaimed 20:36 those languages, and the gospel went forth with power 20:39 as the Spirit gave them utterance. 20:42 Now notice He said, your sons and your daughters 20:45 are going to prophesy. 20:46 He said, your young men and your old men. 20:49 He said, your man servants and your maid servants. 20:52 God has no respect of gender. 20:56 Your sons and daughters, the Holy Spirit is 20:57 going to pour it out. 20:59 Be poured out on male and female. 21:00 God is going to move by His Spirit. 21:03 Notice it says, God has no respect of age. 21:05 Thank God for that. 21:10 I was telling C.A. Murray before I came out today 21:13 that I was preaching at an ASI convention. 21:16 ASI is a group of Adventist lay people that are committed 21:19 to Jesus and taking His message to the ends of the earth. 21:22 Well you know, I was... 21:24 And they cooperate with the church, and there's a wonderful 21:26 relationship with them. 21:27 I walked out of preaching at one of these ASI conventions. 21:29 A little kid about probably 7 or 8 years old, 21:32 he had this little white suit on and little blue shirt, you know. 21:35 Really dressed with his tie. 21:36 He kept pulling on my coat. 21:38 So I stopped and he kept saying, "Pastor Finley, 21:40 I have something to say to you. 21:42 Pastor Finley, I have to talk to you." 21:44 So I got down on my knees like this, you know, 21:46 and I looked eyeball to eyeball at that kid and he said, 21:49 "Pastor Finley, I just want to tell you, I am praying for you." 21:54 I said, "Son, thank you so much." 21:57 And he said, "As you travel all over the world at your age, 22:02 you're going to need it." 22:07 "Thank you, sonny. Thanks a lot. 22:09 That's really encouraging." 22:13 God has no respect of age. 22:16 I want to encourage somebody watching this today. 22:18 How old was John when he had the vision 22:21 for the book of Revelation? 22:23 In his 90's. 22:24 How old was Moses when he led the children of Israel 22:26 out of Egypt? 22:29 He was in his 80's. 22:30 How old was Daniel when he was a young captive? 22:33 17 years old. 22:35 God uses the young and the old in the 22:37 last days of earth's history. 22:39 He has no respect of gender. 22:40 The Holy Spirit is going to be poured out on men and women. 22:42 He has no respect of age. 22:44 It's going to be poured out on the young and the old. 22:48 On all flesh. 22:49 But notice what else our text says. 22:59 It is not the bank account that one has, 23:02 it's not the credit cards in their wallet, 23:04 not the corporate boards they sit upon. 23:06 God will use anybody that He can use. 23:12 Rich and poor, free and bond, wealthy and poverty stricken. 23:18 Black and white and Asian, and everything in between. 23:22 God is looking for people that He can pour out 23:25 His Spirit on in abundance. 23:27 I thank God for the promise. 23:29 He will pour out His Spirit on what? 23:31 All flesh. 23:32 No respect to gender, no respect to age, 23:35 no respect to social status. 23:37 Our God is an equal opportunity employer. 23:41 He will pour out His Spirit in abundant measure. 23:45 Throughout the Old Testament God poured out His 23:47 Spirit on individuals. 23:48 But on Pentecost, something happened 23:50 that was really different. 23:51 God poured out His Spirit on the church. 23:53 And the Spirit was poured out magnificently on God's church. 23:57 Notice the statement here, Great Controversy. 24:57 That's actually "Acts Of The Apostles," page 50. 24:59 You know, I love that statement that says, 25:02 "If all where..." What? 25:04 "...willing, all would be filled with the Spirit." 25:08 Are you willing? Are you willing? 25:11 Do you long to be filled with the Spirit? 25:14 The promise of the Spirit is for you. 25:27 The promise of the Spirit is ours. 25:30 What happened in the book of Acts will be 25:33 powerfully repeated. 25:35 You might wonder... 25:40 First, I want to take you on a little journey. 25:42 And if you have your Bible, I want to take you on a journey. 25:45 A journey from Acts 1 to the last chapter in Acts. 25:50 And I want you to see what actually happened 25:53 in the book of Acts. 25:54 Because what happened there was so incredibly remarkable. 25:58 What happened there was so amazing. 26:02 You're looking there at Acts 2. 26:04 And we're simply going to look at the numbers in the 26:06 book of Acts and see how God moved through His Holy Spirit. 26:12 When the disciples woke up on Pentecost morning, 26:16 they had no idea what God was going to do. 26:21 They had no idea that the Holy Spirit would be poured out 26:24 so dramatically that it would change the history of the world. 26:28 But in Acts chapter 2 verse 41, the Bible says, 26:32 "Then those who gladly received His word were baptized. 26:36 And the same day, 3000 souls were added to them." 26:40 So they woke up in the morning with 120 believers. 26:43 When they went to bed at night, there were 3000 more. 26:46 But the Spirit was poured out so powerfully. 26:49 Acts chapter 4 and verse 4. 26:52 "However, many of those who heard the word believed 26:55 The number of men was about 5000." 26:58 If you add women and children, it's at least 15,000. 27:01 Now here you have a few days after Pentecost 27:04 and there's at least 15,000 believers. 27:07 But it gets better yet. 27:09 Acts chapter 4 verse 31. 27:12 Acts 4, "When they had prayed..." 27:14 When they had done what? 27:16 "When they had prayed, the place where they 27:18 were assembled was shaken. 27:20 They were filled with the Holy Spirit 27:22 and spoke the word of God with boldness." 27:24 The Holy Spirit continues to fill them. 27:26 Not only in the book of Acts, but the infilling of the 27:29 Holy Spirit is not something we get once for all. 27:32 But God invites us to be filled with the Holy Spirit 27:34 every single day. 27:36 Look at Acts chapter 4, let your eyes drop down to verse 33. 27:41 "With great power the apostles gave witness 27:43 to the resurrection of Jesus." 27:45 So what's happening? 27:46 Acts chapter 2, 3000 are baptized in a day. 27:49 Acts chapter 4 verse 4, 5000 men are added. 27:52 At least 15,000. 27:54 Great power is given. 27:56 Let your eyes come over to Acts chapter 5 and verse 14. 28:00 "Believers were increasingly added to the Lord, 28:03 both multitudes of men and women." 28:04 They have so many coming in by Acts chapter 5, 28:08 the Holy Spirit is powerfully poured out, 28:10 that they can't even count them. 28:12 And all they said is, multitudes keep coming to Jesus. 28:15 Acts chapter 6 verse 7. 28:18 Acts 6, "And the word of God spread and the number of 28:22 disciples multiplied greatly in Jerusalem and a great 28:25 number of the priests were obedient to the faith." 28:27 The Holy Spirit is being poured out. 28:29 Multitudes, they can't even count them. 28:31 Thousands are coming in. 28:33 Religious leaders who crucified Christ and yelled, 28:36 "Crucify Him," are so moved by the Holy Spirit 28:39 they're repenting now. 28:40 They are accepting Jesus. 28:42 Acts 8, Phillip goes over to Samaria. 28:48 And as Phillip goes to Samaria, he preaches, 28:51 in Acts chapter 8 verse 4. 28:54 Therefore, those who were scattered everywhere 28:57 went preaching the word. 28:58 Phillip goes down to Samaria, he preaches the word 29:01 and thousands accept. 29:03 So the gospel is going to Jerusalem. 29:05 The gospel is going to Samaria. 29:07 Phillip is taken away by the Spirit. 29:09 He meets an African man, very influential. 29:13 The treasurer to the Queen of Candace of Ethiopia. 29:16 And he shares the gospel with him. 29:18 This African is baptized. 29:20 He goes down to African and the gospel is opened to Africa. 29:24 And that great continent is moved by the Spirit of God. 29:28 The love of Jesus, the fact that Jesus is coming again, 29:31 the Sabbath truth, goes to the continent of Africa. 29:34 I'll tell you something fascinating. 29:38 Ethiopia was the center of trade. 29:40 There were multiple trade routes that came up to Ethiopia. 29:43 And all of Africa learned the truth by this one man. 29:45 God uses a man, God uses a woman. 29:48 I was preaching in Ghana. 29:50 And as I was preaching in Ghana, I was 29:52 preaching among the Ashanti's. 29:54 And the Ashanti's live in the Kumasi area in central Ghana. 29:58 When the Ashanti's have a male child, 30:01 they name the male child based on the day of the week 30:05 that the child was born on. 30:07 So have you ever heard the name, Kwame? 30:10 Do you know that name? Kwame. 30:12 Kwame is a male child of the Ashanti tribe 30:16 that's born on Saturday. 30:18 And do you know what the literal translation 30:20 of Kwame means? 30:22 One who belongs to the Creator. 30:26 Why does the Ashanti tribe name a male child 30:31 born on Saturday, one who belongs to the Creator? 30:35 Because the gospel that went to Ethiopia 30:39 by that Ethiopian brought Jesus and His love 30:42 and all of His truth, including the Sabbath. 30:45 And when the traders came up, Ghanese traders came up 30:50 to Ethiopia, when they accepted Jesus and the Sabbath truth, 30:54 they brought it back to their culture. 30:56 Now here's something even more fascinating. 30:59 Do you know what a male child that is born on the first day 31:02 of the week is called in the Ashanti language? 31:06 Kwasi. 31:07 And do you know what Kwasi means? 31:09 Foreigner. 31:11 So why is Saturday called, the day belonging to the Creator, 31:16 and why is Sunday called, the day belonging to the foreigners? 31:21 Now when I'm walking down the street in the Kumasi tribe, 31:24 they will say kwasi bruni. 31:26 Bruni means white. 31:28 They don't understand that I understand. 31:30 And they'll say, white foreigner; "kwasi bruni." 31:33 I smile and say, "No, kwame bruni." 31:35 And they start laughing. 31:37 I say, "I'm not a white foreigner. 31:38 I'm a white Sabbath keeper." 31:40 And so they start laughing at me, see. 31:42 Now look, here's the story. 31:45 When the missionaries from Europe 31:49 from the large popular church... 31:52 Do you understand? 31:53 When the missionaries from Europe from the large 31:56 popular Roman church came to Africa, 32:01 they introduced a day that was foreign to that culture. 32:07 As a result of that, the Ashanti said, 32:10 "This is foreigner's day." 32:12 So they named Sunday foreigner's day, 32:15 the Kwasi day. 32:17 But they named the Kwame day for Saturday, 32:22 the day that belongs to the Creator. 32:24 When you look at the book of Acts, 32:26 something incredible is happening. 32:29 In a few short years, thousands are being baptized. 32:33 In a few short years, the gospel is going to Samaria, 32:36 the gospel is going to Judea. 32:38 In a few short years the gospel is going throughout Africa, 32:43 the gospel is going throughout Europe, 32:45 the gospel is going throughout Asia. 32:47 It is amazing what is incredibly taking place. 32:50 Now look at Acts chapter 9 verse 31. 32:52 Acts 9 and verse 31. 32:55 Here the Scripture again speaks to us. 32:59 Look, Acts 9:31, "Then the churches throughout all Judea, 33:03 Galilee, and Samaria..." 33:04 Now you have churches that are planted. 33:06 In a few years there are churches everywhere. 33:08 "There throughout Judea, Galilee, and Samaria 33:11 had peace and were edified. 33:15 And walking in the fear of the Lord and in the 33:17 comfort of the Holy Spirit, they were multiplied." 33:19 What's being multiplied now? 33:20 Now you're not only having people being baptized 33:23 coming to Christ, the Holy Spirit is so heavily being 33:26 poured out the churches are being multiplied everywhere 33:29 and you can't count the number of believers 33:31 because there are so many thousands. 33:32 You have to say, "We've got to look at the churches." 33:34 One last passage in the book of Acts. 33:36 You will not want to miss this one. 33:38 Take your Bible please and turn to Acts the 21st chapter. 33:42 Acts chapter 21. 33:44 The whole book of Acts comes this glorious climax 33:47 using an amazing word to summarize what is taking place 33:50 out of the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. 33:52 Acts chapter 21. 33:54 You're letting your eyes drop down there in 33:55 Acts chapter 21 verse 20. 33:57 "When they heard it..." 33:59 That is, they heard the preaching of Jesus. 34:01 "...they glorified the Lord." 34:03 When they heard the report of how the Gentiles 34:05 received the gospel. 34:07 "When they heard it," this report of what God was doing, 34:09 "they glorified the Lord. 34:11 And they said to him, 'You see, brother, how many myriads 34:15 of the Jews there are who believed." 34:18 Does anybody have a marginal reference for their Bible here? 34:20 You have a marginal reference? 34:22 You're following along in your Bible at home, 34:23 you have a marginal reference King James Version of the Bible? 34:26 What's your marginal reference say for the word "myriads?" 34:28 What does that word mean? What is it? 34:31 You've got it. Thousands upon thousands. 34:34 A thousand times ten thousand. 34:36 The word "myriads" means thousands upon thousands. 34:40 You start the book of Acts with 120 believers 34:45 who are seeking God in prayer. 34:48 God pours out His Holy Spirit so powerfully, so incredibly 34:54 dramatically, that by the time you come to the end of the 34:57 book of Acts there are tens of thousands. 35:00 Most sociologists of Christianity say this. 35:04 Within that 40 year period, as clear as we can tell, 35:09 there were one million believers by the time you come to the 35:14 end of the book of Acts. 35:15 So in Acts chapter 1 you have 120 believers, 35:20 180 million people in the empire; 35:22 a ratio of 1 to 1.4 million. 35:25 By the time you come to the end of the book of Acts, 35:28 it's one million believers to 180 million. 35:31 It's not 1 to 1.4 million. It is 1 to 180. 35:36 Amazing what happened in Acts in 35 to 40 years. 35:42 What happened there is simply a prelude 35:46 of what is going to happen again. 35:48 What do you say? 35:50 God is up to something. 35:51 And you say, "How can I receive the Holy Spirit?" 35:53 How can the church receive the Holy Spirit? 35:55 How can the church receive the mighty outpouring? 35:58 How can that Spirit come upon all flesh? 36:00 We've been studying that in this series. 36:03 Let's review some of the things that we have studied. 36:05 Jesus' promise; what are the all embracing conditions? 36:07 We studied the all powerful nature of the promise. 36:11 What are the conditions of that promise? 36:13 First, Luke 11 verse 13, read it together with me. 36:28 I love it. How much more? 36:30 How much more God has for you, God has for me. 36:34 What does He have for us? What are those two words? 36:36 God has for us what? 36:37 Say it, you know it. What is it? 36:39 Much more. 36:40 God has much more than you can imagine. 36:43 God has much more than you can think. 36:45 God wants to do much more with 3ABN than you can imagine. 36:50 God want to do much more with these media programs 36:53 than you can imagine. 36:54 God wants to do much more with radio, 36:57 much more with television. 36:58 God want to do much more with every local church, 37:01 much more with our Bible studies, 37:03 much more with our health programs, 37:04 much more with our personal witness. 37:06 You may not know it yet, somebody listening 37:10 to this broadcast, God wants to do much more with you. 37:16 There are gifts that He wants to unfold in your life. 37:20 There are blessings that He wants to give you. 37:23 He wants to use you much more. 37:25 It says He will give His Holy Spirit. 37:28 "Much more will the heavenly Father give His Holy Spirit..." 37:31 To those that do what? To those that do what? 37:34 If you don't ask, will He give it in all power? 37:38 He says it's one of the conditions 37:39 to receiving the Spirit. 37:41 I love this, Testimonies, volume 8, page 23. 37:44 We need to read this together. Let's go. 37:55 Can you say that last sentence with me? 37:56 "God stands back of every promise He has made." 38:01 Once again at home join us please now. 38:03 "God stands back of every promise He has made." 38:09 Do you believe that? 38:10 Has He promised the Holy Spirit? 38:12 Will He give the Holy Spirit? 38:14 Are we going to see the outpouring 38:16 in abundant measure? 38:29 The reason He tells us to seek Him is not because 38:34 He does not desire to give it. 38:37 But we do not thoroughly fully completely at times 38:41 desire to receive it. 38:43 It is not that He is reluctant. 38:46 It's that at times we are reluctant to fully 38:49 surrender our hearts to Jesus and allow Him to do everything 38:53 He wants to do in us. 38:55 God wants to do some amazing things in you. 38:58 It's not human plans that's going to finish God's work. 39:03 It's not human methods that's going to finish God's work. 39:07 Literature is not going to finish God's work. 39:10 Giving Bible studies is not going to finish God's work. 39:13 Media is not going to finish God's work. 39:15 God will use all those things. 39:17 They're agencies God uses. Thank God. 39:19 But I will tell you something. 39:21 All the machinery in the world without the power of the 39:27 Holy Spirit will be powerless to finish the work of God on earth. 39:33 The one thing that we need more than anything else 39:39 is the abundant outpouring of the latter rain 39:43 and the abundant outpouring of the Holy Spirit. 39:48 Look, Review And Herald. March 2, 1897 it should say. 40:09 We must seek it with all of our heart. 40:12 God longs to pour out His Spirit upon His church again. 40:16 If He did it in the first century, He will do it again. 40:22 God is going to pour out His Spirit. 40:24 And I believe He's doing that. 40:26 Some amazing things are happening. 40:28 Seed that was sown years ago is coming 40:33 to fruition in amazing ways. 40:36 I'll tell you two interesting stories. 40:37 I was preaching in Indonesia. 40:38 10 or 12 thousand people were coming out to the meetings. 40:41 One of the pastors came up to me and said, 40:43 "Pastor Mark, I've got to tell you a story. 40:44 I have with me the chief from a remote island 40:48 of about 5000 tribes people. 40:51 He is the chief of that tribe. 40:52 Here's the story. 40:54 40 years ago, my father," this pastor told me, 40:57 "was a pastor among the islands out in the South Pacific." 41:02 This island is two and a half hours off Australia. 41:05 It's a little tiny island. 41:07 Never impacted with the message of the Adventist church 41:10 and the Sabbath truth. 41:12 40 years ago, an Adventist pastor went and studied 41:15 with the old chief on the island. 41:17 The chief said, "No, I'm not interested." 41:20 Members of a non-Christian religion came to the island. 41:25 And the chief said to the members of this 41:27 non-Christian religion, "You can come on the island. 41:29 But if you come on, we're going to chop off all your heads. 41:31 You're certainly welcome here, but if you come, 41:34 you know, you'll lose your head. 41:35 But, come." 41:37 They didn't come. 41:38 The old chief had Bible studies with that Adventist pastor 41:42 40 years ago; wasn't interested. 41:44 40 years later, the older pastor said to his son, 41:47 who was a pastor, "Take the speed boat. 41:49 The island is an hour and a half away. 41:52 And son, go over there. Remember that old chief. 41:54 Let's see what the interest is now." 41:56 The son came back. 41:58 The chief said, "I'm ready for you to stay." 42:00 The boy stayed. He was now a young pastor. 42:03 He studied the Bible with the old chief. 42:05 And he said to the old chief, "Pastor Mark Finley 42:07 is coming to preach. 42:09 And it's only one week by boat from our island. 42:12 Why don't we go and hear him preach?" 42:14 The chief came. 42:16 When a chief comes, he doesn't come alone. 42:18 He brought his wife, brought his family, brought others. 42:22 And the chief came to talk to me. 42:24 And he said, "I've been studying the Adventist message. 42:26 I've known it for 40 years. 42:27 I wasn't ready then, pastor. I am ready now. 42:30 Will you baptize me?" 42:31 We baptized the chief. 42:33 This was just a few months ago. 42:34 We baptized his wife. 42:36 We baptized his children. 42:37 And the chief said to me, "Pastor, my island 42:42 does not know Jesus. 42:43 I am the chief going back. 42:45 Could you let me make a video for my whole island 42:49 to tell them I've just been baptized as a 42:51 Seventh-day Adventist and I want them to study." 42:54 And so we did. 42:55 And he looked into the cameras and the chief said, 42:58 "I have taken my stand for Jesus and I'm going to 43:01 invite you to do it to. 43:02 I'm coming back to the island a different man, 43:04 a Seventh-day Adventist." 43:05 Then he said to me, "Would you send missionaries?" 43:08 I said, "We'll be sending missionaries, chief, 43:10 but you've got to do one thing to help us." 43:13 "Yes? What is it?" 43:14 "You've got to tell us... 43:16 You've got to provide a place for those missionaries to stay." 43:19 The big chief got a smile on his face and he said, 43:21 "Pastor Mark, don't worry. 43:23 My house has fourteen bedrooms. 43:28 I will be sure they have a place to stay." 43:32 40 years ago, the seed was sown. 43:35 The Holy Spirit is working. 43:37 Not long ago, my wife and I visited with the 43:40 king and the queen of the Zulu tribe. 43:42 The Zulu's have about 30 million in the southern part of Africa. 43:48 We were satelliting an evangelistic meeting 43:51 through all of South Africa. 43:52 And as we were doing that, a couple of years back, 43:56 we got a call from the queen of the Zulu's. 43:59 And the queen of the Zulu's said to us, 44:01 "We are so disappointed in you." 44:03 I didn't take the call. 44:04 "We didn't see Pastor Finley on Monday night." 44:07 And the phone answerer said, "Well, your Majesty, 44:10 the reason you didn't see Pastor Finley on Sunday night 44:12 is we don't have any meeting in Sunday nights." 44:14 She said, "We are watching in the palace 44:18 every night, the meetings. 44:20 We installed a satellite dish in the palace." 44:25 How would the queen of the Zulu's have a satellite dish 44:30 in the palace to watch Seventh day Adventist television? 44:32 Here's how it happened. 44:35 When the queen of the Zulu's was a little girl, 44:37 she was the princess and her father was 44:40 the king of the Sotho. 44:43 Adventist choirs use to come to sing there. 44:46 And when those Adventist choirs would come to sing 44:49 to the king, he loved religious music, 44:51 some of those Adventist ladies would take little candies 44:55 out of their pocket and give them to the princess. 44:57 Now I know they must have been health candies. 45:00 But anyway, they gave them to the princess. 45:02 She always remembered their kindness. 45:04 When she was older, she was married, 45:07 this princess was married to the king of the Zulu tribe. 45:10 He has seven palaces, incidentally. 45:12 He was educated at Harvard University. 45:14 He jets around the world. 45:16 I mean, this is no back water place. 45:18 It's amazing when you go to the palace. 45:20 I was at a royal banquet; elephant tusks on the table. 45:23 You know, it's just amazing. 45:24 You have to be educated ahead of time how to approach the king. 45:27 So this is what happened. 45:29 This little girl remembered the kindness of the Adventist choir. 45:35 Later when she married the king, he had some major problems. 45:38 Tribal problems, he has 500 tribal chiefs. 45:41 And other problems. 45:43 It impacted his health. 45:44 And she said, "We need somebody to pray for us. 45:46 And I remember those Adventist prayers of the choir years ago." 45:49 She found an Adventist pastor. 45:51 He came into the palace and studied with them. 45:56 He prayed for the king first and the king got better. 46:02 As this Adventist pastor prayed for the king, 46:05 the king said, "You know, I'm feeling so much better. 46:08 Stay and study with us." 46:10 The pastor stayed in the palace for three weeks 46:12 and studied the entire Adventist message. 46:14 He left. 46:15 One day the queen was sitting there and 46:18 she wasn't looking very well. 46:20 She was kind of down trodden. It was a Sabbath. 46:22 And the king came by and he said, "Your Majesty, 46:24 What's the matter, Madam Queen?" 46:26 He said, "I know what's the matter. 46:27 It's Sabbath and you want to be in church with your people. 46:31 Call the royal limousine and go." 46:32 How would you like to be in that church and the royal limousine 46:34 pulls up with all the body guards and the queen gets out? 46:37 She since has been baptized. 46:39 The queen of the Zulu tribe is your sister today. 46:43 God is doing some incredible things, I am telling you. 46:46 When God gets on the move to finish His work, He will do it. 46:50 What are the steps to spiritual revival? 46:52 Here's what Evan Roberts says. 46:54 And remember, we were talking about the Welsh revival. 46:56 Evan Roberts says here are the steps of revival. 46:59 Very similar to what Ellen White says. 47:01 Very similar to what the Bible says. 47:11 Commit your life to Jesus. 47:17 In other words, when the Holy Spirit convicts you 47:19 of something, don't play games with God. 47:21 Don't push that out of your mind. 47:23 When the Spirit convicts you of something, 47:25 say, "Jesus, yes I'm going to do that." 47:29 Fourthly, Evan Roberts said... 47:32 Do you want the Holy Spirit in all abundance? 47:35 Seek God in prayer. 47:36 Have an undivided heart. Commit your life to Jesus. 47:39 Listen to the Holy Spirit's working. 47:42 Be sensitive to the moving of the Holy Spirit. 47:44 And as Jesus changes your life continually, 47:48 as He fills your life with greater power, 47:51 as He anoints you with the baptism of the Holy Spirit 47:54 every day, share and share, and share some more. 47:57 Because the more we share Jesus, the more we grow in Jesus. 48:01 The more we share the message of the Bible, 48:03 the more it's anchored in our own hearts and lives, 48:06 the more our faith is strengthened. 48:09 Because as we express it, God deepens the impression. 48:14 Expression deepens impression. 48:16 And you know, if God impresses something in your heart, 48:19 impression without expression leads to depression. 48:23 If God impresses you to do something and you do not do it, 48:27 you feel this dark cloud surrounding you. 48:30 When God convicts you of sin, do it. 48:32 When God impresses you to witness, do it by the 48:34 grace of God and feel the joy and the exhilaration 48:37 that God gives you. 48:39 The latter rain power comes for witnessing. 48:43 Men and women on their knees praying 48:45 that God will anoint them with the Holy Ghost. 48:47 Praying that the Holy Spirit will be poured out through them. 48:51 God will have a final generation... 48:58 God is going to get the job done. 49:01 Have no question about that. 49:03 The all empowering results, look at the promises of God. 49:07 Revelation 18:1, the earth is going to be lightened 49:10 with the glory of God. 49:15 The candle of truth will not be blown out 49:19 by the winds of apostasy. 49:21 The candle of truth will light a flame, and a bonfire will burn 49:28 for the glory of God. 49:34 Disease will not have the last word; God will. 49:39 Poverty will not have the last word; God will. 49:45 Sickness will not have the last word. 49:47 Who will? God will. 49:54 Man will not have the last word. 49:56 Who will? God will. 49:58 God is going to do something amazing. 50:02 Listen, here's a marvelous prophecy. 50:05 I love the way Ellen White takes the prophecies of the Bible, 50:10 expands upon them. 50:13 The gift of prophecy in God's last day church 50:17 does not contradict the Bible. 50:20 It merely expands what is there already. 50:24 Here is a comment on Revelation 18 verse 1. 50:37 There is going to be a revival. 50:39 There is going to be a reformation. 50:41 There is going to be a great reformatory movement. 50:51 What's a spirit of intercession? 50:52 What's intercession? Prayer. 50:54 So here are churches that, come early Sabbath morning, 50:57 that are praying. 50:58 Here are churches that have a meeting on Wednesday nights 51:02 where they're on their knees praying and seeking God. 51:05 Here are small groups in homes. 51:07 A spirit of intercession was seen even as was manifested... 51:15 We continue with that reference. 51:19 Now this is not a few. 51:25 Wait a minute, let me pause. 51:27 She said, "I saw this in visions of the night." 51:30 These are the last days. 51:32 Ellen White has this vision. 51:33 She sees it in the visions of the night. 51:36 Do you think she saw real people going out knocking on doors? 51:39 Or were these just shadowy figures? 51:41 If these were the last days, if she saw real people 51:46 on their knees praying, did she see you and your prayer group? 51:51 "In the visions of the night, this scene passed before me." 51:55 They must have been real people. 51:57 Did she see you knocking on doors? 51:59 Did she see you giving Bible studies? 52:01 Did she see you sharing literature? 52:03 Did she see you using whatever gift it is 52:05 that God has given you to share with others? 52:07 Hundreds and thousands were seen doing what? 52:10 Visiting families and opening before them the Word of God. 52:18 This is the latter rain. This is the loud cry. 52:29 We haven't seen anything yet. 52:32 "Doors thrown open to the proclamation of the truth." 52:36 Look, here's what it says. 52:54 It happened in Pentecost. 52:55 God's going to do it again. 52:57 It happened in the early advent movement. 52:59 God is going to do it again. 53:01 There are those negative voices that say, 53:04 "Oh, the world could never be reached. 53:06 There are too many people and we have too few Adventists. 53:10 It could never be reached." 53:11 There are those that say, "Look at the apostasy in the church. 53:15 And we need to branch off and start a separate movement." 53:19 You don't want to be stepping off the ship now, my brother, 53:22 you don't want to be stepping off the ship now, my sister, 53:24 into the tumultuous waters. 53:26 God is going to shake out the worldly. 53:30 He is going to shake out the Laodicean complacency. 53:33 And God is going to have a church that is purified. 53:37 A church whom He pours out His Spirit upon. 53:41 A church that He moves through. 53:43 The Holy Spirit will move through God's people. 53:47 The church will rise as fair as the sun, 53:50 as terrible as an army with banners, prophecy says. 53:53 It will have not one spot or wrinkle, or any such thing. 53:56 God will have a people that will be totally committed to Him. 54:00 He will pour out His Spirit upon this praying people; 54:03 this people studying His Word. 54:06 Jesus Christ invites you this very moment to come to Him. 54:13 He invites you this very moment to come to that cross 54:19 and to kneel there and say, "Jesus, the thing that 54:22 really matters is knowing You." 54:25 When I think of Jesus hanging upon that cross 54:29 with a crown of thorns upon His head, 54:32 with blood running down His face, 54:35 bearing the guilt, the shame, the condemnation 54:40 of the sins of the whole world, 54:43 He was treated as we deserve 54:46 so we can be treated as He deserves. 54:49 He died the death that was ours 54:52 so we could live the life that was His. 54:55 He gave His all for us so we can give our all to Him. 55:03 What is Jesus waiting for? 55:06 Why hasn't the Holy Spirit been poured out in its abundance? 55:09 Oh, it has been poured out down through the ages. 55:12 But there is an abundant outpouring. 55:14 He's waiting for you 55:16 and for me 55:18 to on our knees seeking, to in His Word find Him 55:26 anew and fresh, to have the worldliness that entangles 55:31 our hearts gone, to have an undivided heart. 55:37 He's waiting for us to have a passion for this world. 55:42 A passion to share His love, a passion to share His grace, 55:48 a passion that He returns. 55:51 He is longing that we become so nauseated with this world 55:57 that we desire one thing. 55:59 So sick of this world that we desire one thing. 56:03 The our hearts long for heaven. 56:07 Would you like to bow your head with me just now 56:09 and say, "Jesus, burn into my heart that longing for heaven." 56:15 Burn into my heart that longing for eternity. 56:19 Lord, do in my life more than I can imagine, 56:24 more than I can ever hope. 56:27 Lord, use me in ways to make a difference in this world." 56:31 Let's pray... Father in heaven, 56:34 we've discussed in this series the mighty 56:36 outworking of the Holy Spirit. 56:38 And we just thank You for what You are doing. 56:40 We thank You for the way Your Spirit is moving. 56:43 We thank You that You want to take us and use us 56:47 in ways that we can never, ever, ever imagine. 56:52 Oh Jesus, we praise You. 56:55 Oh Jesus, we thank You. 56:58 Oh Jesus, we love You. 57:00 We open our hearts to You right now. 57:06 Fill us with Your Holy Spirit. 57:09 Transform us by Your divine grace. 57:13 And thank You, thank You, thank You, 57:15 that You're going to use us in ways we can never imagine. 57:19 And that we can be part of Your closing work. 57:22 We can participate with You in Your mission to the world. 57:26 Oh Jesus, that's what we want. 57:28 May it be a reality in our lives. 57:30 In Christ's name, amen. |
Revised 2014-12-17