Participants: David Asscherick
Series Code: EHE
Program Code: EHE000014
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00:17 Welcome friends to another edition of the Eleventh
00:19 Hour Evidence coming to you live from Battle Creek, 00:22 Michigan. I'm your host Pastor Jason Seiber 00:25 and I am so glad you're joining us right now. 00:27 We are excited about what Pastor Asscherick 00:30 has in store for us today, a message I am sure 00:32 you don't want to miss. But, before we go to 00:34 Pastor Asscherick, we have Chuck Bateman 00:36 sitting by with a special music for us. 00:38 Chuck what do you have. 00:41 This is a worship song called ''The Heart of Worship'' 00:44 Take it away. Okay. When the music fades 00:51 All is stripped away And I simply come 00:58 Longing just to bring Something that's of worth 01:03 That will bless your heart 01:06 I'll bring you more than a song 01:09 For a song in itself 01:12 Is not what you have required 01:15 You search much deeper within 01:19 Through the way things appear 01:21 You're looking into my heart 01:25 I'm coming back to the heart of worship 01:29 And it's all about You, It's all about You, Jesus 01:34 I'm sorry, Lord, for the things I've made it 01:39 When it's all about You, It's all about You, Jesus 01:46 King of endless worth No one could express 01:51 How much You deserve Though I'm weak and poor 01:58 All I have is Yours Every single breath 02:03 I'll bring You more than a song 02:06 For a song in itself Is not what You have required 02:13 You search much deeper within 02:16 Through the way things appear 02:18 You're looking into my heart 02:22 I'm coming back to the heart of worship 02:26 And it's all about You, It's all about You, Jesus 02:32 I'm sorry, Lord for the things I've made it 02:36 And it's all about You, It's all about You, Jesus 02:41 I'm coming back to the heart of worship 02:45 When it's all about You, It's all about You, Jesus 02:50 I'm sorry, Lord for the things I've made it 02:55 When it's all about You, It's all about You, Jesus 03:05 Thank you so much Chuck. What was the most 03:08 exciting day in your whole life, anybody. 03:13 I know we are on television no one wants to talk 03:15 right now. Okay, fine I'll tell you what the most 03:17 exciting day in my life was it was the day 03:19 I got married. How about that? How many people 03:23 would say that was probably one of the most 03:24 exciting days in your lives? Alright, the rest of you 03:26 are not yet married, I understand. 03:30 Well there she was, I walked around the side of that 03:33 beautiful little house that bed and breakfast 03:36 we spend our first evening in together in Nevada City 03:39 in the foothills of the Sierras in California, 03:45 and I spotted her. You remember the first time 03:48 you saw your wife wearing that beautiful 03:50 wedding dress, you remember that moment. 03:53 Wow, she was the most beautiful bride created 03:57 since Eve, I am certain of this, I apologize to all you 04:00 other brides, but I happen to know as a personal 04:03 fact that my wife was the most beautiful of them all. 04:06 And as soon as I saw her I was thinking wow 04:10 I cannot believe this lady is waiting for me. 04:14 I looked at my clothes and I said, you know, 04:15 I don't think I am really ready for this moment. 04:19 I was afraid to step out into the open, you know, 04:21 what I am talking about. Anyone else there besides 04:23 me raise your hand come on give me some support. 04:25 Alright, you know, what I am talking about. 04:26 Tim I see your hand up in the air, good for you brother, 04:29 that's exactly how I felt, and I know I never forget 04:33 what came to my mind. I said God help me never 04:36 to let this beautiful woman down. 04:40 Help me never ever to let this beautiful woman down. 04:44 I want to be faithful to her my whole life. 04:48 You know, Jesus when he took us as his bride said 04:51 I will never let you down. It's not a problem of Jesus 04:55 letting his bride down, for Jesus it's the problem 04:58 of the bride letting him down and we are his bride 05:01 you know that don't you. We are the bride of Christ, 05:04 he has adorned his Church in white raiment; 05:07 he has given us a special mission. Wouldn't it be sad 05:11 if we ended up cheating on Christ? No one have any 05:15 part of that, how about you. Today, Pastor Asscherick 05:18 has a special message about two very important women 05:23 and I hope that we'll chose to be the right one. 05:24 Amen, thank you Jason. Good morning everyone. 05:28 Good morning. Nice to be here, isn't it. Amen. 05:31 Well you can guess who won the discussion 05:33 last night about who would preach. 05:36 You see I am staying in his home, so I am at his mercy, 05:39 and he basically said in so many words if you like 05:43 to have a warm home tonight, try you will preach tomorrow. 05:47 He didn't say exactly like that, but he might 05:49 as well have. He actually said something like this, 05:53 the Lord told me that you're supposed to preach 05:55 tomorrow and he told me that he would tell you later. 06:00 You know, that's the classic line that the young man 06:03 uses to win that young lady in the youth group, 06:07 you know, he has a fancy for her and he thinks she might 06:10 be the one and so he says you know the Lord told me 06:13 you are the one I am going to marry, and he told me 06:15 he would tell you later, thank you Jason. 06:19 It's a privilege to be here this morning, I thank you for 06:21 your patience, and I just want to say from the bottom 06:24 of my heart Happy Sabbath. Amen. 06:27 Isn't it glorious to be in the Lord's house on the 06:29 Lord's Day studying from the Lord's word. Amen. 06:32 Amen. Our message this morning is entitled 06:34 Revelation's Bride. Revelation's Bride 06:37 and it will be part of the continuous series of the 06:40 Eleventh Hour Evidence. Now before we get into the 06:42 message proper though what will be our custom 06:45 to pray, so let's begin with the word of prayer. 06:50 Father in Heaven, we come to you just now and we thank 06:53 you for this glorious Sabbath morning. 06:57 Father it is warming up and the buds are preparing 07:00 to bloom and it is a beautiful time here spring. 07:05 And Father spring reminds us of that rejuvenation 07:08 and regeneration that we experience in Christ. 07:10 Please Father now as we open your word, 07:13 we pray that you will condescend to come 07:15 into this room in a person of your spirit. 07:18 You have promised that you would send a spirit of truth 07:21 to lead us into all truth and so Father we are asking you 07:24 that you will do that just now. Father, 07:26 we pray that as we try to uncover and to discover this 07:32 powerful message about the Bride of Christ. 07:35 We pray that your spirit will teach us not because 07:38 of a man, but in spite of a man. May my words today 07:43 be thy words is my prayer in Jesus name, 07:47 and everyone can say Amen. Amen. 07:51 Well let's begin by going to Revelation chapter 12, 07:55 and our message is entitled Revelation's Bride. 07:57 Revelation what chapter are we going to, 12. 08:01 Now Jason said something that's actually very powerful 08:03 and very true in his introduction. He said 08:06 the Church is the bride of Christ. Let me ask you 08:09 a question this morning, is that biblical. 08:11 I said is that's biblical. Amen. 08:14 That is biblical, isn't it? Revelation chapter 12 08:17 and beginning in verse 1 we find here John there writing 08:20 on the lonely Island of Patmos. I can imagine if you 08:24 saw this powerful vision the warmth that must have 08:28 come over his heart as he realized that he was the 08:31 member of the very bride that he was seeing in that 08:33 prophetic vision. He says in Revelation chapter 12 08:36 beginning in verse 1. Now a great sign appeared 08:38 where everyone, in Heaven a woman clothed with the sun 08:43 and the moon under her feet and on her head a 08:45 garland of twelve stars. Then she being with child cried 08:49 out in labor and in pain to give birth. Notice what this 08:53 woman is adorned with, what she is clothed with, 08:56 the sun and the moon and what else everyone, 08:59 the stars; the sun, the moon, and the stars. 09:01 These are the three things that God ordained 09:04 in the creation week, Genesis 1 to bring light to a 09:08 dark planet. When John saw there that woman in 09:11 Revelation 12 in my minds eye, I see John remembering 09:15 Isaiah chapter 60 verses 1 and 2, 'Arise and shine for 09:18 that light has come, and the glory of the Lord is 09:20 risen upon, the whole darkness covers the earth and grows 09:24 darkness the people, but the Lord shall arise upon 09:26 the and his glory shall be seen upon the. 09:29 God here depicts his Beautiful bride transcendent 09:34 and iridescent in her glory bringing light to a dying 09:38 and darkened world, can you say amen. 09:41 Amen. Now in both the old and the New Testament 09:44 it is common for God to refer to his church in a prophetic 09:48 context or symbolic context as a woman. 09:51 We have that in the Old Testament as well as in the 09:53 New Testament, and so it is very biblical and very 09:55 theologically sound for us to affirm that this woman 09:59 that John sees here in this eschatological 10:01 prophecy is none other than the true Church of Christ. 10:06 I want to say that again, the true Church of Christ, 10:10 what church, the true church. Now something 10:14 very interesting happens right here within the context 10:16 of the Book of Revelation and if we go just 5 chapters 10:19 forward, we come to Revelation chapter 17. 10:21 Go with me now to Revelation chapter 17, 10:23 we have seen that first vision of that beautiful woman, 10:27 and now we will know that there is a second, 10:30 a second woman that appears. 10:32 I am in Revelation chapter 17, Then one of the angels 10:36 who had the seven bowls came and talked with me, 10:38 saying to me, "Come, I will show you the judgment 10:41 of the great harlot, the great what everyone, 10:44 harlot or hoer. Friends that is not a pretty word, 10:48 it's even a difficult word to say, the word means 10:50 a prostitute, somebody who has had multiplied lovers, 10:55 who has not been faithful. And notice what it says 10:58 here Come, I will show you the judgment of the 11:00 great harlot who sits on many waters, 11:02 with whom the kings, notice the plural, the kings of the 11:05 earth have committed fornication, fornication is 11:07 sexual immorality, in this context its spiritual 11:11 immorality. And the inhabitants of the earth 11:13 have been made drunk with the wine of her fornication, 11:16 there it is again. So he carried me away in the Spirit 11:18 into a wilderness, and I saw a woman sitting on a scarlet 11:21 beast which was full of the names of blasphemy, 11:24 having seven heads and ten horns. The woman was 11:26 arrayed in purple and scarlet, and adorned with gold 11:28 and precious stones and pearls having in her hand 11:32 a golden cup full of abominations and the 11:34 filthiness, here this again, of her fornication, 11:36 notice that emphasis there fornication, fornication, 11:39 fornication. What John is emphasizing in equivocal 11:42 language is that this woman is unfaithful, this woman 11:46 is what everyone. Now let's put what we have 11:48 already learned together with that salient deduction. 11:51 Listen carefully what does a woman represent 11:54 in Bible prophecy, a church. Now if we have a faithful 11:57 woman in Revelation chapter 12 that what would 11:59 represent a faithful church, and here we have an 12:01 unfaithful woman, that would represent an unfaithful 12:05 church. Now notice as he goes on here in verse 5, 12:07 "And on her forehead was a name written mystery, 12:11 Babylon the great, mother of harlots and of the 12:13 abominations of the earth. I saw the woman, 12:16 drunk with the blood of the saints and with the blood 12:19 of the martyrs of Jesus, and when I saw her I 12:21 marveled with great amazement". Verse 7, "But the 12:25 angel said to me, why did you marvel? I will tell you the 12:28 mystery of the woman, and of the beast that carries 12:30 her which has seven heads and ten horns. 12:34 Now let's ask a few questions here, how many women 12:36 have we been exposed to already this morning in 12:38 Revelation, at least how many women have we been 12:40 exposed too. No you missed it, at least four, 12:44 now why do I say four. Notice verse 5 again, 12:47 when describing this woman it says mystery Babylon 12:51 the great, the other of harlots. 12:55 Now if you have harlots, you put S on the end in the 12:57 English language, that means we are dealing with a 12:59 plural or a multiplicity, that's right. 13:01 So if she has harlot daughters, we have at least 13:04 how many, at least two, and then we have the mother 13:07 and then we have the faithful. Are you with me now, 13:09 yes or no. Now, I believe the language that John 13:12 is using here communicates that it is not just two, 13:14 but it must be at least that. He sees multiplied 13:17 daughters, numerous daughters of this mother. 13:20 So, we've already been introduced now in Revelation 13:22 chapter 12 and 17 to at least four different women. 13:27 Now this raises a significant question, how many 13:29 brides that Jesus have. Is Jesus a polygamist 13:35 or is Jesus going to marry one bride, how many 13:38 will he marry, one bride. Well let's try and put this 13:40 into the context here. Mystery Babylon the great 13:43 the mother of Harlots and of the abominations 13:46 of the earth, contrasted with that beautiful chased 13:49 woman that we saw in Revelation chapter 12. 13:51 Now how can this be, if Jesus is going to only marry one, 13:55 and he establish just one, how can it be that we 13:58 come to Revelation we find not one but two, 14:01 three, four, five, and innumerable number of brides. 14:06 Go with me in your Bible then to Matthew chapter 16. 14:08 Let's see if we can set a context for this. 14:11 Matthew chapter 16, we will come back to Revelation, 14:13 but let's go now to the first book of the New Testament 14:15 from the last book to the first book of the 14:17 New Testament. I am in Matthew chapter 16, 14:20 Matthew what chapter 16. And a byproduct of our 14:23 message tonight will answer this very important 14:27 question that many people are asking, may non-Christians 14:29 even are asking, and that is why are there so many 14:31 different Christian denominations that would be a 14:34 byproduct of our message, and you will see why that 14:37 is the case from the biblical perspective, and not just 14:40 ecclesiological perspective. So we are now in Mathew 14:43 chapter 16, and I am quoting beginning in verse 18, 14:46 let's begin there. Jesus is speaking to Peter actual 14:49 that's back up, let's pick it up in verse 13. 14:51 When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi 14:53 he has his disciple saying "Who do men say that the Son 14:56 of Man is?" Jesus is taking a public opinion survey. 14:59 Verse 14, so they said, "Some say John the Baptist, 15:02 and some Elijah, and others Jeremiah 15:04 or one of the prophets. Jesus was satisfied that they had 15:06 given him an accurate representation of the public 15:08 opinion and so he asks now a more pointed question 15:10 in verse 15. He said to them, "But who do you say 15:14 that I am?" who do what everyone. You say that I am, 15:18 verse 16, Simon Peter speaks up on behalf of the rest, 15:20 and said, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God." 15:24 Was that the right answer by the way yes or no? 15:27 Notice verse 17, Jesus answered and said to him, 15:28 "Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah. 15:30 For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, 15:32 but my Father who is in Heaven." Verse 18,''And I also 15:34 say to you, that you are Peter, you are what everyone, 15:39 Peter, and now the word there is Petros, 15:42 you are Petros and the word means little rolling stone 15:46 or a pebble or what word everyone, a pebble, 15:49 you are Petros, you are a little pebble, but notice 15:52 what he goes on to say. And on this rock, 15:54 now the word here rendered rock in the Greek language 15:58 is Petro, Petro. Jesus is actually using a very powerful 16:02 play on words. He says you are answering correctly 16:04 Simon Peter, and I'm saying to you that you are Petros, 16:07 little rolling stone, little pebble, but upon this Petro 16:11 large, monolithic, unmovable rock. I notice what, 16:16 he will do, we'll build my, what's the next word church. 16:23 Now you will notice that the world church there 16:24 is in the singular, it is in what everyone, singular. 16:28 I will build my church, and the gates of hell will 16:30 not prevail against it. Quick question here according 16:33 to Jesus own words how many churches did he established 16:38 on that Petro. How many everyone? One, 16:42 so if we could have asked Jesus if we could have 16:44 transported ourselves back to ancient Palestine 16:47 and said Jesus how many churches will you build on a 16:50 foundation of the Petro, he would say I have established 16:54 my church, my what everyone, church in the singular. Well 17:00 now this raises significant theological paradoxes 17:03 and questions for us because if Jesus establishes 17:06 a single church in the first book of the New Testament, 17:08 and then we come to the last book of the New Testament, 17:10 we don't have a church, but we have multiple churches 17:13 symbolized by women, this raises an important question. 17:16 Where did all of these women come from, 17:19 you are with me now yes or no. Amen. 17:20 Now let's notice another one and this is in the writings 17:22 of Paul, Book of Ephesians, the book of what everyone, 17:25 Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, 17:29 you will find it right there. You'll have Romans 1 and 2 17:32 Corinthians, and Galatians, Ephesians. Ephesians 17:34 chapter 5, Ephesians chapter 5, and the Apostle Paul 17:39 here draws out some very sublime parallels between 17:43 the relationship that a man and a woman have 17:45 in the martial confines and the relationship the 17:47 Christ has with his church. Notice that with me in 17:50 Ephesians chapter 5 and we will pick it up in verse 2 17:52 Wives submit yourselves to your own husbands 17:55 in verse 22, Wives submit yourselves to your own 17:57 husbands as to the Lord. For the husband he is the head 18:00 of the wife, as also Christ is the head of what, church. 18:04 Notice there in the singular, he is the head of the church 18:07 that is the singular definite article the, 18:09 not the church is. That he is the head of the church, 18:13 and he is the savior of the body, therefore just as notice 18:15 it again, the church is subject to Christ, 18:18 so let wife be subject to their husband in everything. 18:20 Husbands love their wives just as Christ also loved 18:23 what are the next two words, the church, 18:25 and gave himself for her that he might sanctify her, 18:29 notice not them. Sanctify and cleanse her with the 18:33 washing of water by the word that he might present her 18:35 to himself, a glorious church not having spot or wrinkle 18:38 or any such thing but that she should be holy and 18:41 without blemish. Jump down to verse 31, 18:45 For this reason, shall a man leave his father and mother 18:46 and the two should be joined to his wife, 18:48 and two should become one flesh, he is quoting from 18:50 Genesis 2. Then in verse 32 he draws this very 18:53 powerful and salient conclusion. 18:55 "This is a great mystery: but I speak concerning Christ 18:59 and what, the church. There is no escaping it friends 19:02 that the Apostle Paul in Ephesians chapter 5, 19:04 in breaking down this relationship between a man 19:07 and woman as a microcosm of the relationship between 19:10 Christ and his church, he refers to it consistently and 19:13 repeatedly as the church, the church, the church, 19:16 the church, the church in the singular, in what everyone, 19:20 in the singular. Friends Jesus is not a polygamist. Amen. 19:24 In the same way that one man has one wife, 19:28 so too Christ as the second Adam will have one bride, 19:34 Amen. Amen. So, we are on the same page. 19:36 Yet this raises a significant questions about where 19:38 did these other woman come from in the Book of 19:40 Revelation. How can it be that these other women 19:43 come? Well notice that she was referred to as mystery 19:46 Babylon the Great, that word Babylon is pregnant 19:50 with significance, so we need to understand it. 19:51 Go with me now to Genesis chapter 11, first book Bible. 19:56 Genesis in the 11 chapter, let's see if we can wrap 19:59 our fingers around this idea of Babylon. 20:02 Going to Genesis chapter 11, we are going to begin 20:04 in verse 1, Genesis chapter 11 in verse 1. 20:09 I am going to read through this passage quickly 20:10 to set the context, so be sure you are following 20:12 along beginning in verse 1 of Genesis 11. 20:15 Now the whole earth had one language, and one speech. 20:17 And it came to pass, as they journeyed from the east, 20:19 that they found a plain in the land of Shinar; 20:21 and they dwelt there. Then they said to one another, 20:23 come let us make bricks, and bake them thoroughly. 20:26 They had brick for stone and they had asphalt 20:28 for mortar. And they said, come let us build ourselves 20:31 a city, let us build a city for who everyone, 20:34 ourselves, and a tower, whose top is in the heavens. 20:38 Notice that, they wanted to build the tower that 20:40 would reach into heaven itself. Let us make a name 20:43 for ourselves, thus we will be scattered abroad 20:44 over the face of the whole earth in verse 5. 20:46 But the Lord came down to see the city and the tower, 20:49 which the sons of men build, and the Lord said 20:51 indeed the people are one, and they have all one 20:53 language, and this is what they began to do. 20:55 Now nothing that they propose to do will be 20:57 withheld from them. Verse 7, Come, let us go down, let 21:00 us confuse their what, let us confuse their language, 21:05 and they may not understand one another's speech. 21:07 So the Lord scattered them abroad from over the face 21:09 of the whole earth, and they seized building the city. 21:12 Now notice verse 9, verse 9 is sort of the theological 21:14 conclusion from verses 1 through 8. 21:17 Verse 9 says, therefore its name is called what, 21:20 Babel or Babbel; therefore its name is called 21:24 Babel because the Lord, what's the next word, 21:27 confused the language of all the earth and from there 21:32 the Lord scatter them abroad over the face 21:34 of all the earth. When the Bible uses Revelation 21:37 chapter 17, this phrase Babylon the Great, 21:40 this is a direct referent to that original place where 21:44 we find Babel or Babylon, and that's in Genesis 21:47 chapter 11. The flood was history, the flood was 21:50 what everyone history. And God had said to the 21:52 people go disperse yourselves, go out and 21:54 replenish the earth and subdue it much the same 21:57 way that he has said to Adam in the Garden of Eden. 21:59 But instead of going out and dispersing themselves 22:01 they decided to come to a central locality 22:04 and to make for themselves a city, to make what 22:07 everyone, for themselves and this city would 22:10 have a tower, a tower so tall, so robust, 22:14 so architecturally perfect with specificity and 22:18 exactitude that it would reach all the way up into 22:20 the highest of the high heavens. 22:22 Now some theologians have commented on 22:24 commentators that the reason that we are going 22:25 to build this high tower was because they 22:28 distrusted the word of God about the flood. 22:30 He had said I will never again destroy the earth 22:32 with a flood. Now there is an important point there. 22:35 He did not say he would never again destroy 22:37 the earth, what he said is I will never again destroy 22:40 the earth what with a flood, and so the idea that 22:44 some commentators have, and I think its accurate 22:46 is that they were going to build this thing so tall 22:48 that it would actually be outside of the reaches 22:51 of the flood should one come again. 22:53 In other words friends, they were going to work by 22:56 the sweat of their brow, and by the ingenuity 22:58 of their minds, and they were going to save themselves. 23:02 You are with me now, yes or no. Amen. 23:05 So what we find here Babylon symbolizing in its 23:08 original usage and scripture is two things. 23:11 Number one it is a center of confusion and number two 23:15 it is a tribute to the works and edifices and artifice 23:19 of man, you understand. Number one, a center of 23:22 confusion, number two, a tribute to man. 23:26 Now go with me to new Babylon in the Book of Daniel, 23:28 Daniel chapter 4. Daniel chapter 4, 23:32 we find a man by the name of Nebuchadnezzar, 23:34 what's his name everyone, Nebuchadnezzar, 23:37 and you are probably familiar with Nebuchadnezzar 23:38 from Daniel chapter 2. Now I wish we had time 23:41 to go into all of the details of Daniel chapter 4 23:43 because there is a sublime prophecy here that 23:46 talks about Nebuchadnezzar and his downfall. 23:49 He was stricken with the disease for seven years 23:51 called lycanthropy insanity. He went out, 23:53 he ate grass, and at the end of that time, 23:55 he praised the Lord Jesus Christ, because God had 23:58 humbled him utterly. Notice why he needed to be 24:01 humble though I am picking it up in verse 29. 24:04 At the end of the twelve months, he was walking 24:06 about in the royal palace of Babylon that's 24:08 Nebuchadnezzar. Now verse 30, ''The king spoke 24:11 saying, and the picture I have here in my mind 24:12 is Nebuchadnezzar sort of walking out on to one 24:15 of his verandas looking out of the palatial and 24:18 ostentatious display of ancient Babylon, 24:21 which contained one of the seven wonders of the 24:23 world namely the Great Hanging Gardens, 24:24 and he is looking at this glory. 24:26 He is looking at the golden city, that's what 24:28 I say he referred to as he says this in verse 30. 24:31 Is not this great Babylon that I have build for 24:36 a royal dwelling by my mighty power and for the honor 24:40 of my majesty. Friends Nebuchadnezzar's 24:45 buttons were bursting, as he looked out over his 24:47 palatial kingdom, he was saying this is Babylon; 24:50 I have built it for my majesty and for my glory. 24:55 So, Babylon here comes to symbolize neo Babylon 24:58 a tribute to man, his excellence, his majesty, 25:02 his expertise edifice and artifice. Are we together 25:05 now, yes or no. Now when the Bible didn't refer 25:07 in Revelation chapter 17 to this woman as mystery, 25:10 Babylon the Great, it's communicating several 25:13 very powerful, biblical theological points. 25:18 Now let us continue as we move now into the meat 25:22 of this message. Babylon then would symbolize 25:24 a man made system of religion. When it says there 25:28 mystery Babylon the Great, it's a man made 25:32 system of religion, a religion that glorifies man 25:35 and in which man saves himself doesn't need 25:38 the grace of Jesus so much. We will work our way 25:41 as they were going to work their way to the top 25:43 of that ancient tower. Now notice this incredible 25:46 statement here on the screen, go with me. 25:49 This has taken from Wharey's church history. 25:52 It says Christianity had now become popular, 25:55 this is in the fourth century, a man by the name 25:57 of Constantine, what was his name, Constantine, 26:00 the first Roman emperor to profess Christianity, 26:02 and he says Christianity had now become popular 26:05 and a large proportion, perhaps a large majority 26:07 of those who embraced it, only assumed 26:10 though what, the name. They are as much heathen 26:13 as they were before. Error and corruption now 26:15 came in upon the Church like a flood. 26:19 What is Wharey describing here chiefly this. 26:23 Remember that when Jesus established his single 26:26 church, is what everyone, single church. 26:28 Did that church grow rapidly? I said did that church 26:33 grow rapidly you need to go read the book of Acts 26:34 if you say no friends. On the first day of Pentecost 26:36 how many were baptized 26:40 and then the Bible says just shortly thereafter four 26:43 thousand were baptized, and then five thousand 26:45 were baptized, and the church was growing 26:46 so fast exponentially they just stopped counting. 26:50 The church was growing rapidly exponentially 26:53 and as the church grew faster and faster, 26:55 and faster, the Apostle Paul and others 26:57 could look down to the quarters of time, 26:59 and they could see that this rapid growth was not 27:02 always going to be a positive thing. 27:04 And let me just make a salient comment here. 27:06 Friends, the fastest growing church is not necessarily 27:09 God's church. Now there is nothing wrong with 27:11 fast growth, amen. Amen. But I remind you that a 27:14 cancer grows very, very rapidly. 27:16 The repetity of growth is not itself an evidence 27:20 that it is God's church, amen. Now in the first 27:23 century, there is no question it was God's church, 27:25 and it was growing rapidly under the power 27:27 of the apostolic preaching, but into the second 27:30 and especially the third and fourth centuries 27:32 as the number of adherence was increasing this 27:35 little minuscule sective Judaism actually swept 27:39 the ancient Greco Roman world, and it came to the 27:42 place where it was a preeminent religious force 27:44 in the known world, and Constantine actually 27:47 profess Christianity. Now I think it's almost impossible 27:51 for us to appreciate this. Imagine this little 27:55 religion, this little sect, this obscure sective 27:57 Judaism growing so fast, so rapidly in the days before 28:01 CNN, before fax machines, before e-mail 28:04 growing so rapidly that within three short centuries 28:08 it would be the preeminent religious force 28:10 in the ancient Greco Roman world. 28:11 Friends that's fast growth, and when Constantine 28:15 looked out over his empire, he saw that it was 28:17 divided roughly half for the sake of illustration 28:20 into Pagans and into Christians, and they were 28:22 constantly battling one another, 28:24 warring with one another, and Constantine thought 28:26 to himself, how can I bring unity and homogeneity 28:29 to my empire. And he came up with a brilliant 28:31 political scheme. Now I say that I believe was a 28:34 political scheme, historians still debate to this 28:36 day whether or not Constantine profession 28:38 of Christianity was authentic or simply a politically 28:41 motivated move. I believe it was politically 28:42 motivated move. And this is what he saw. 28:45 He saw that if he simply, if he himself profess 28:49 Christianity and could bring them together even 28:52 though they have the same name, 28:54 but they could retain their old identity, 28:56 he could unify his nation, his kingdom under 29:01 a nominal, under what word, nominal Christianity. 29:06 Now I want to go back to that slide there. 29:07 Notice it here, it says Christianity had now become 29:10 popular, and a large proportion, 29:11 perhaps a large majority of those who embraced it, 29:13 only assumed what, assumed the what, 29:16 name, now think about that, I just said it was 29:19 nominal Christianity. What is the root word of 29:22 nominal, that's exactly right, when you say you 29:25 are a nominal Christian? You are saying you 29:26 are Christian in name only. And so Constantine 29:30 in his brilliant stroke of political experience 29:34 he united his empire under the banner of Christianity, 29:39 but friends here is the point, it's not as though 29:42 all those Pagans become converted or even 29:43 Constantine himself became converted, 29:45 but they simply adopted the name Christian, 29:48 and retained their former Pagan identity. 29:53 Now the church absolutely loved it. The church hierarchy 29:55 at this time was becoming so corrupt, they loved it, 29:57 they said wow look at all the Pagans that we are 29:59 winning, look at all of the Pagans that were coming 30:01 to church. The problem was they were not one 30:03 to Christ they were simply going to a locality 30:06 namely a Church. And friends, there is some 30:09 serious lessons for us to learn here today. 30:12 When you go there on stage and you put 30:14 a rock band on the stage or you go, and you put 30:17 a movie or some sort of ridiculous Christian drama, 30:20 you do these things, and people come. 30:22 All people come, and they flood these so called 30:24 mega churches, friends I am not impressed 30:26 with this. Friends all is that communicating 30:29 is that people are going to see the very things 30:31 they loved when they were unconverted, 30:33 you just brought into the church. 30:34 So all of these people fled into the church, 30:36 but they are going or not because of the Christ, 30:38 but because of the entertainment 30:40 and recreation value. Friends let this be a lesson to us, 30:43 putting Paganism into the church to win Pagans 30:46 does not convert the Pagans, it only degrades 30:48 the church. Amen. Now a salient lesson from history 30:53 let us continue. Notice here on the screen. 30:56 Babylon was also a center of image worship, 30:58 the center of image worship. In fact there are 31:02 many statues in Vatican today and scattered 31:05 throughout the Greco Roman world, 31:07 the ancient Greco Roman world there are statues 31:09 of Mary and Jesus. For example this statue here, 31:12 this is Mary and Jesus. The problem is, 31:15 is that many of those statues friends listen 31:18 very carefully are older than Mary and the incarnate 31:22 Jesus. You understand what I am saying. 31:25 Those statues already existed and they were 31:28 monument and edifices and artifices to the glory 31:31 of some other Pagan God. Yet when the church 31:36 now became Christian they simply took, 31:38 I mean after all they didn't want to throw away 31:39 these nice statues, they are so pretty, 31:41 and they are so nice, and look at how the, 31:42 you know sculpture did such a nice job, 31:44 and so they renamed the statues, what everyone, 31:47 rename them, and now they became Christian 31:50 statues. Yet friends many of these statues of Jesus 31:54 and statues of Mary are actually dated to one 31:57 hundred, two hundred, three hundred, 31:58 four hundred years before Mary. 32:01 Are you understanding, yes or no. So it was simply 32:04 adopting and adding and making nominal things 32:07 that were already there, adding on to Paganism. 32:11 Notice this incredible quotation, we are told by 32:13 Eusebius, one of the ancient historians, 32:15 that Constantine, in order to recommend the new religion. 32:19 Now what do you think that new religion would be, 32:21 that's Christianity, to the heathen, 32:23 transferred into it all the outward ornaments 32:26 to which they had been accustomed in their own 32:28 religion. Do you see what's going on there? 32:30 Notice the next part, the use of temples, 32:32 those dedicated to particular saints, incense, 32:34 candles, holy water, processions, 32:36 the ring in marriage, turning to the east, 32:38 images at a later date, that are icons or idols, 32:41 all are what's the next word, pagan origin and 32:44 sanctified by their adoption into the church, 32:48 Cardinal John Henry Neuman. You see what's taking 32:50 place here, Constantine professes Christianity, 32:53 but what's happening is that all of this paganism 32:57 idolatry and heathenism simply comes into the 32:59 church, it's baptized and we now call it Christian. 33:02 Let me give you a good example how we do this 33:04 in modern times. We say this is Christian Rock n Roll. 33:09 Friends this is oxymoronic. Christian Rock n Roll 33:12 is like Christian marijuana. It doesn't exist. 33:17 See I could say oh you know after the service you 33:19 know what did you and I go out back and smoke 33:21 a little Christian marijuana, and you say what 33:23 Christian marijuana. Pastor Asscherick what 33:25 you are talking about. No, I protest, I'd say no, 33:27 no, no the fellow that owns the fields down in 33:29 South America, he is a Christian and all of workers 33:31 are Christian, and they pray over the fields. 33:33 This is Christian marijuana. Would you settle for that? 33:35 No. What if I said oh I've got some nice books 33:37 in my house, I like you to come over and look at them, 33:39 there are Christian pornographic books? 33:42 You are comfortable with that, yes or no. No. 33:43 You are not comfortable at all friends. 33:45 Simply taking the prefix Christian and adding 33:48 it to something doesn't make it sanctified, amen. 33:50 Amen. And so Christian Rock n Roll is no more 33:54 Christian than Rock n Roll itself is Christian. Amen. 33:57 Christian movies, Christian drama, all of these friends, 33:59 no, no, no, no, what's happening is that the church 34:02 is bending under the pressure of what you've got it, 34:06 bending under the pressure of Heathenism, 34:08 bending under the pressure of Paganism, 34:10 and accommodating those things instead of preaching 34:13 strongly against those things, amen. Amen. 34:17 So, then Constantine begins to say hey bring it all them, 34:19 bring in, bring the rivals in, bring all that in, just come 34:22 on into the church, we can all get along and so they 34:25 became Christians, but they were only Christians 34:27 in name. Amen, so far so good. Now this is a quick 34:31 lesson in church history. Babylon is also the center 34:32 of false teachings about death. It has always been. 34:35 This concept, this platonic concept, the 34:37 Greek concept, the Egyptian concept of anthropological 34:41 dualism, you say what are all those syllabus all about. 34:43 Arthropos man, anthropological man dualism is two, 34:48 that's what Plato thoughts, Aristotle thoughts, 34:49 Socrates thoughts, Xenophon thought that man 34:51 was material in his outward being, 34:55 but inward his soul was immortal, his soul was what 34:58 word did I say. Does the Bible teach us all this 35:00 immortal, no, no, no, the says that God will give us 35:03 Bible immortality if we accept the Lord Jesus Christ 35:05 as our savior, amen. Amen. And he gives us 35:07 mortality according to 1 Corinthians 15, 35:09 at the last trump I give resurrection. 35:12 You are not naturally immortal, amen. Amen. 35:15 God said there in Eden Garden, and the day 35:16 that we listed up, four words though shalt surely die, 35:19 in other words you are mortal. Now Satan protest 35:21 and he said no, no, no, God got this wrong 35:23 and the data that we receive was five words, 35:25 though shalt not surely die. God said you are mortal, 35:28 Satan said you are immortal. So friends this pagan 35:33 idea of anthropological dualism that man has an 35:36 outward body that is temporal and an inward 35:39 soul that is eternal, this is pagan, 35:41 this is what word. Pagan. 35:43 And the Egyptians believe that, and that's why 35:44 they have those great big pyramids, and they would 35:46 bury their furrows with grain, and horses, 35:49 and boats, and paintings, and gold because they 35:52 believe that their furrow was going to after death 35:54 sail over the Great River Styx, and then he would 35:58 go to the next life, and they were giving him 35:59 a head start in the next life. 36:00 You're understanding now. But the Bible says 36:03 the dead know not anything and the dead don't 36:08 praise the Lord, amen. Amen. Brothers and sisters, 36:11 Babylon all pagan societies have been deceived 36:15 about the natural immortality of the soul and 36:18 it all originated right there in Babylon, 36:22 in where everyone, in Babylon. Notice this from the 36:25 Watchman, April 1940, the pagan doctrine 36:27 of the immortality of the human soul crept 36:29 into the back door of the church in the early 36:31 centuries, notice the pagan doctrine of the 36:35 immortality of the soul. Babylon is also historically 36:38 been the center of sun worship and I quote you now 36:41 this remarkable quotation from the worship 36:44 of nature by James Brazer, volume 1, page 529. 36:47 In ancient Babylonia the sun was worshipped 36:49 from immemorial antiquity, and those many syllabus 36:53 mean from a long time ago, you are with me. 36:56 What was worshipped everyone, 36:59 the sun was worshipped. Go with me in your Bible 37:00 quickly to Ezekiel chapter 8. You are in the Book 37:03 of Daniel it should be close to that, 37:04 so we go to Ezekiel, chapter 8 just before that. 37:08 Now Ezekiel Chapter 8, the ancient nation of Israel 37:11 was in apostasy that is to say they had fallen away 37:14 from God. And so God gives Ezekiel a tour, 37:18 what word, a tour, and in this tour, it's really 37:21 got to be unique tour, it's not on a plane friends 37:24 or on a boat or a ship or a car. God takes Ezekiel 37:27 the prophet by a lock of his hair, can you imagine 37:30 ladies, picks him up by the lock of his hair and drags 37:33 him around and shows him do you see that Ezekiel, 37:36 do you see that Ezekiel, do you see that Ezekiel, 37:38 he gave him a tour of the apostasies and failures, 37:41 and paganisms of ancient Israel. 37:45 I'll let you read through this very quickly, 37:46 Ezekiel chapter 8 beginning in verse 1 "And it came 37:48 to pass in the sixth year, in the sixth month, 37:49 in the fifth day of the month, as I sat in my house 37:51 with the elders of Judah sitting before me that 37:53 the hand of the Lord fell upon me there and then 37:54 I looked and there was a lightness of the appearance 37:56 of fire, from the appearance of his waist and 37:58 downward fire, and from his waist and upward 38:00 like the appearance of brightness like the color 38:02 of amber." Here he is seeing God, he stretched out 38:04 in the form of a hand and he took me by lock of 38:06 my hair, and the spirit lifted me up between 38:08 earth and heaven and brought me into the visions 38:10 of God to Jerusalem to the door of the North gate 38:13 of inner court, where the seat of image of jealousy 38:16 which provokes to jealousy was, and behold the 38:18 glory of the God of Israel was there like the vision 38:21 that I saw in the plane and he said to me son 38:22 of man lift up your eyes now toward the North, 38:25 so I lifted up my eyes towards the North and there 38:27 North of the altar gate right in the sanctuary 38:30 of God friends. Was the image of jealousy in the 38:33 entrance, for the more he said to me son of man 38:35 do you see what they are doing here, 38:37 the great abominations of the house of Israel 38:39 commits here to make me go far away from my 38:41 sanctuary, turn again and you will see greater 38:44 abominations. So they brought me to the door 38:46 of the court, and when I look there was a hole 38:48 in the wall, and then he said son of man dig into 38:50 the wall and when I dug into the wall there 38:52 was a door, and he said to me go in, 38:54 and see the wicked abominations which they are 38:56 doing here. So, I went in and saw there every 38:59 sort of creeping thing, abominate beast and all 39:01 the isles of the house of Israel portrayed all around 39:03 the walls, and they stood before them seventy men 39:07 of the elders of Israel and in their midst stood Jaazaniah 39:10 the son of Shaphan, each had a center in his hand, 39:13 and a thick cloud of incense went up. 39:16 Then he said to me son of man have you seen 39:18 what the elders of the house of Israel do in the dark 39:20 every man in the room are his idols for they 39:23 say the Lord does not see us, and the Lord 39:25 has forsaken his land. Verse 13, and he said to me 39:28 turn again, and you will see greater abominations 39:31 that they are doing, so they brought me to the door 39:33 of the North gate of the Lord's house, 39:35 and to my dismay Ezekiel says woman were sitting 39:38 there weeping for Tamur. Tamur was a God of 39:42 fertility and the God of agriculture and here 39:45 they are the people of God weeping for Tamur. 39:48 Then he said to me if you see this son of man turn 39:50 again and you will see greater abominations than these, 39:53 now he takes him to the place, where he sees 39:55 the climax, the pinnacle, the cheapest abomination to 39:58 God. Verse 16, so he brought me into the inner court 40:02 of the Lord's house, and there at the door 40:03 of the temple of the Lord between the porch 40:04 and the altar were about 25 men with their back 40:07 toward to what everyone, the temple of the Lord 40:10 and their faces toward which direction, 40:12 the East and they were worshiping the sun towards 40:17 the East. Friends on this remarkable journey as God is 40:21 giving Ezekiel that tour of apostasy, 40:24 that tour of failure falling and foible he shows 40:28 and this one you will actually see greater, 40:29 this one you will see greater, this one you will 40:30 see greater, and then he takes him into the constant 40:32 abomination, the worship of the sun in house of God. 40:36 Amen. God created the sun. Friends the sun 40:40 is a little spec of dust in the great universe. 40:43 There are ten billion galaxies and approximately 40:45 ten billion stars, stars in each galaxy. 40:48 So the sun to worship is like worshiping 40:50 a piece of sand friends and this is an utter abomination 40:53 to God, who created for our blessing, 40:55 for our warmth, and for our atmosphere 40:57 and to worship it is effrontery to the great God 41:00 of Israel. Now you say what it has to do with Babylon, 41:04 I don't understand. Friends Babylon has historically 41:06 been center of sun worship, the center of what did 41:09 I say, sun worship. I notice this incredible quotation, 41:12 not from a member of my church friends. 41:15 But this is taken from the man who wrote the Baptist 41:18 manual, Dr. Edward T. Hiscox, he says "What a pity 41:22 that it [Sunday], what word is that everyone, 41:25 Sunday and notice the two words there the just 41:27 to position Sunday. What a pity that it Sunday 41:32 comes branded with the mark of paganism, 41:34 and christened with the name of the sun God, 41:37 then adopted and sanctioned by the papal apostasy, 41:40 and bequeathed as a sacred legacy to Protestantism. 41:45 Do you see what he is saying, yes or no. 41:47 He is saying that paganism adopted the dear solace 41:50 that is to the day of the sun that was the day 41:54 that Constantine had worshipped on as a pagan. 41:57 That's the day that all of the pagans worshipped 41:58 on the venerable day of the sun and one of those 42:03 compromises and counterfeits that 42:05 Constantine made with paganism was that in addition 42:09 to bringing in all of their idols, in their teachings 42:11 and their jewelry and every kind of thing they 42:13 also adopted the pagan day of worship, 42:17 pagan what word did I say, day of worship, 42:19 I wish I had time to go in, but I'll give you a 30 second 42:21 history lesson. Up to this point the Christians 42:23 were religio ilicita, religio what ilicita illegal religion. 42:29 And in the Roman eyes they were put together 42:32 or cordoned together with the Jews, 42:35 and so to the eyes of the Romans the Jews and the 42:37 Christians were basically one and the same, 42:38 different sex of the same religion. Now Judaism 42:42 was religio ilicita as well, and constantly under the 42:45 persecution of the Roman authority. 42:47 Now the Christians wanted to disassociate or to distance 42:51 themselves from the Jews, from who everyone. 42:54 And so they began hey, hey we are not them, 42:56 we are not like them, you can persecute them, 42:59 but we are totally different, and in beginning to make 43:01 that transition as they came closer and closer 43:03 and closer to paganism. Constantine became more 43:06 and more comfortable with Christianity and Judaism 43:09 remain religio ilicita while compromise Christianity 43:12 became religio licita, legal religion. And one of the 43:18 cheapest things that cause the ancient church 43:20 to disassociate themselves from Judaism was the 43:23 adoption, the rejection first of all of the Seventh Day 43:26 Sabbath, pointing to God as creator and the adoption 43:29 of the venerable day of the sun, the pagan day 43:31 of worship. Brothers and sisters think about the 43:35 significance of that. Even to this day and I want 43:38 to go and record of saying this countless thousands, 43:42 millions of good heart, what word did I say, 43:46 and many of them better Christians than you and I, 43:48 amen. In the vast majority of the world of Christendom 43:54 are at this very moment many of them the vast 43:56 majority of them unknowingly paying tribute and 43:59 homogen honor to the sun God instead of the son 44:02 of God. Amen. Now friends that's heavy, 44:06 the significance of that is incredible. 44:09 But we see now in John Revelation 17 refers to her 44:11 as Babylon the Great, Babylon the Great. 44:15 Well let us then continue as we go now to Revelation 44:18 chapter 17, we are going to identify end time Babylon. 44:21 Let's do that together, Revelation chapter 17. 44:24 We ask the question who is this, it's actually very easy 44:27 to deduce from scripture. Revelation chapter 17 44:30 we have set the background and now we can give 44:32 the identifying marks. Very quickly here by the way 44:40 in, in end time Bible prophecy, a woman symbolizes 44:43 a church and a B symbolizes a king or kingdom or a nation. 44:48 So what do you here in Revelation 17. 44:50 You have a woman sitting on a beast, 44:55 you have a woman sitting on what, beast, now fill in the 44:56 blanks friends. A woman is a church, 44:58 a beast is a nation. You have a church in control 45:01 of a nation, you have a church in state union, 45:05 you are with me, yes or no, this cemetery is easy 45:07 to understand. So, who then is this woman in Revelation 45:10 chapter 17? Let's put the identifying characteristics 45:12 upon the screen. Number one she is church, amen. 45:15 No question about, she sits in the area of many nations, 45:19 she sits on many waters, as Revelation 17:15 says 45:21 those waters are nations or people, 45:23 multitude nations and languages. She is a city, 45:26 she is a city. Number four, she rules over kings, 45:29 she has committed fornication with kings. 45:30 Number five, she sits on the city of seven mountains 45:33 or hills, that's later Revelation 17, 45:35 and her official colors are purple and scarlet, 45:37 purple and what everyone, scarlet. 45:39 I want to show you something that is absolute 45:41 incredible, and I need you to move rapidly with me. 45:43 Take your little fancy notes keep it here or a pen, 45:47 put it right in Revelation chapter 17, 45:48 and go with me hastily to Exodus 28, 45:52 Exodus what everyone, 28. Exodus chapter 28 45:56 and I am reading in verse 5, Exodus chapter 28, 45:58 what verse 5. God here is describing the clothes 46:02 that Aaron and his sons will wear, 46:05 the clothes that who will wear, Aaron and his sons. 46:07 Who is Aaron? He was the high priest, 46:09 not just the priest, he was the high priest. 46:11 Now notice this Exodus chapter 28 46:13 beginning in verse 5, "And they shall take the gold, 46:15 blue, purple, and scarlet thread, and fine linen." 46:19 Notice those color again please and they shall take 46:21 the gold, blue, purple, and scarlet thread, 46:24 and the fine linen, sound familiar yes or no, 46:25 what's missing. What's missing in the woman of 46:29 Revelation 17 that we see here blue. 46:32 Notice the woman in Revelation 17, 46:33 she wears purple and scarlet and gold, 46:35 yet God here years before giving directions 46:39 to Aaron and to the priest on how their garments 46:42 would be decorated. He said you will have purple, 46:44 you will have gold, you will have scarlet, and blue, 46:47 and what everyone, blue, notice in verse 6, 46:50 and they shall make out of gold, purple, 46:52 blue and scarlet thread, and fine woven linen artistically 46:56 worked, and you can read all of the Exodus 46:57 chapter 28 blue, blue, blue comes up in the garments 47:01 of the high priest. Go with me now to chapter 15, 47:04 what is that blue symbolize, what does that blue mean, 47:06 what's all it about. We go to numbers chapter 15, 47:12 numbers what chapter 15, and I am reading in verse 47:15 38, number chapter 15 and verse 38. 47:19 Actually pick it up in verse 37 numbers 15:37, 47:21 put your seatbelts on friends, number chapter 15 47:24 in verse 37, Again the Lord spoke to Moses 47:26 saying speak to the children of Israel. 47:28 Tell them to make tassels on the corners of their 47:31 garments throughout their generations, 47:33 and to put a blue thread in the tassels of the corners. 47:36 What color thread, blue thread. 47:38 Now God tells us in the very next verse, verse 39, 47:41 why they would have to put blue thread, 47:43 are you ready for this, watch this. 47:45 And you shall have the tassel, that you may look 47:47 upon it and remember all the what, 47:51 the commandments of the Lord and do them, 47:53 and that you may not follow the harlotry, 47:57 you may not follow what everyone, 47:58 the harlotry to which your own heart and your own 48:01 eyes are inclined, that you may remember 48:03 and do all My commandments, and be holy for your God. 48:06 I am the Lord your God, who brought you out 48:07 of the land of Egypt, to be your God: 48:09 I am the Lord your God. You see what he is saying, 48:12 you take that tassel of blue and you put that 48:15 blue on, so you can do two things, 48:17 number one you can remember the commandments 48:19 of the Lord, and you won't go new king James 48:21 harlotry, king James says a whoring, 48:23 you won't go on a whoring after the other nations 48:27 and their Gods. Now notice this in Revelation 48:30 chapter 17, notice with me now as we go back, 48:32 you kept your pen there. So you are already 48:35 Revelation chapter 17, and I am reading in verse 4, 48:38 And the woman was raid in purple and scarlet, 48:40 and adorn with gold, and precious stones and pearls, 48:42 having in her hand a golden cup, 48:43 filled with abominations and the filthiness of her 48:44 fornication. Tell me about this woman. 48:46 She is wearing all the colors of the high priest, 48:52 except blue. She is purporting to be the priest of God, 48:57 you with me. Amen. I have already talked about 49:00 the three offices of Jesus, prophet, 49:01 priest and king, one who speaks for God, 49:03 one who ministers for God, one who rules for God. 49:05 This woman purports to be the priest of God yet there 49:09 is something conspicuously absent in her attire, 49:13 its blue, why not the blue because the blue friends 49:17 symbolizes that she would be keeping God's commandments, 49:19 and not going a whoring after the other nations 49:22 and so what's absent in this woman is, 49:24 she looks like a high priest, she acts like a high priest, 49:27 she pretends to be the very people of God, 49:28 the very church of God on earth, 49:30 but the commandments are missing, amen, 49:33 you understanding, its powerful, 49:36 absolutely powerful. So her official colors are purple 49:39 and scarlet. Notice as we put three more identifying 49:41 characteristics up. The Bible says she is a rich church, 49:44 she must be rich. All of those adornments and the 49:47 accoutrement she has she is a persecuting church. 49:49 The Bible goes so far to say she is drunk with the blood 49:52 of the saints, that's a persecuting church, 49:55 and it also says on her head was named blasphemous. 49:59 We have already talked about the three tier 50:00 definition of blasphemy, number one to claim to be 50:02 able to figure sins. Number two to claim to be God 50:03 on earth, and number three to persecute the 50:05 people of God in the name of God. Now friends 50:08 if you put those nine characteristics together it is 50:10 elementary to deduce we are talking about. 50:12 We are talking about the mother church, 50:16 what two words did I say, and the Bible comes 50:18 right out says that, doesn't it say that in verse 5 50:21 the mother of harlots. So this would be the mother 50:24 church, and who is the mother church friends. 50:26 It's the Roman church, it's what church, 50:29 it's a Roman church, the Roman church state. 50:33 Now notice what happens here, it says in verse 5, 50:36 "On her forehead a name was written, a mystery, 50:38 Babylon the Great, the mother of Harlots." 50:41 So this mother the Roman church state also has 50:45 by the way you know she is a church state because 50:47 she is sitting on a beast, you are with me. Amen. 50:51 Notice that she has offspring, she has daughters. 50:54 Now have you ever heard somebody say he is a chip 50:56 off the old block, you heard somebody say that before, 51:00 what does it mean. Looks exactly like, looks sort of 51:06 like, you can tell there is a relation, you are with, 51:10 yeah look similar enough, I can tell people say about 51:12 my son all the time, because he is just you know chaos, 51:14 he is running around, he is everywhere, he is here, 51:16 he is there you know, is just filled with energy, 51:18 and he is gone right, oh he is the chip of the old block. 51:25 Now what we are saying is not that he is, 51:26 not that Landon is exactly like me, 51:29 but that he is similar to me, there are similarities 51:33 in appearance, character, actions, etc. 51:35 You are with me. Amen. So when the Bible says 51:37 that the mother has harlots, she has daughters, 51:41 churches that are not exactly like her, 51:44 but are close in many respects. Now let's answer 51:48 the question, where did all these different denominations 51:50 come from its easy. You have the mother there and 51:54 after the false information in the name by the name 51:55 of Martin Luther what was his name. 51:57 Martin Luther came out and he stood there and he said, 52:00 the just shall live by faith, and he nailed those 52:03 ninety fives thesis to the door at Wittenberg. 52:05 And friends Martin Luther came out and even 52:07 in the days of Martin Luther people would call 52:08 themselves Lutherans and he protested against that. 52:11 Don't call yourselves Lutherans. 52:13 He didn't like that, he had aftermath Luther's death 52:15 instead of advancing and carrying the banner of truth 52:17 still further and further into the future, 52:19 many people set up their camp around Martin Luther 52:22 and they said, if Luther believed it, 52:24 we believed it, but here is a kicker Luther had much 52:26 truth but not all the truth, you with me. 52:29 And so after a little while another man came out, 52:30 his name was John Calvin and he emphasized the 52:33 sovereignty of God, the Calvinist the Presbyterians 52:35 and he didn't like people calling themselves Calvinists, 52:38 but they set their bands up around Calvin and they 52:40 said we are Calvinists, we are Presbyterians, 52:41 we are the reformed church. They came out a 52:43 little further, but they still clung to many of the 52:46 residual elements of Romanism, and then another 52:50 man John Charles Wesley two of my spiritual heroes, 52:52 came out still a little further and they emphasize 52:54 holiness and sanctification, and they set up their 52:58 banner there, they come further up, 53:00 yet people would not press on further into, 53:02 further into the truth and into the future, 53:04 and they set up their banner around Wesleyans 53:06 and they said we are Methodists, 53:07 we are Wesleyans. And then two another man by 53:10 the name of Roger Williams, one of the founders 53:11 of Baptist church they came out a little further, 53:13 they said we must baptize by immersion 53:14 not this you know ridiculous sprinkling stuff, 53:17 it doesn't symbolize anything. So they came out 53:19 just a little bit further, and they said we are the 53:21 Baptists, what they who are. Now each of these 53:24 entities and we could go still further, the Lutherans, 53:27 the Calvinists, the Wesleyans, and the Baptists 53:29 and on into the future each of them have some 53:32 truth, amen. Some more than others, 53:35 and some of them have a significant amount of 53:37 biblical truth, but they still retained vestiges 53:41 and residues of Rome. And so the Bible says 53:46 at the end of the time all of these daughters 53:49 will be lumped together with the mother, 53:52 their daughters of the mother, 53:55 you are with me now. But God have already 53:57 at the end of the time who will come not part 53:59 the way out, not most the way out, not 99 percent out, 54:02 but all the way out of residual Romanism, amen. 54:07 This will be God's true people; this is God's true 54:09 church in Revelation chapter 12. 54:12 Notice this incredible statement here. 54:14 This is from the Washington Post, November 1, 1999, 54:16 Lutherans and Catholics unite to heal 482-year-old 54:19 division. Notice the language friends, 54:20 the Washington Post, Lutherans and Catholics 54:24 coming together, oh we don't have so much, 54:26 after all we only came out little ways and may be 54:28 that was all the misunderstanding and they 54:30 are wanting to go back, wanted to go what words 54:33 did I say back friends. And many of the churches 54:35 are going back and that's exactly how the Church 54:37 of Rome refers to them as a wandering, 54:39 wayfaring daughters, coming back now to momma, 54:43 you are understanding. Amen. Dear friends I want 54:46 you to notice something absolutely remarkable, 54:47 here is another one, this is, we don't have up 54:50 there it's fine, go with me quickly to Revelation 54:52 chapter 14, Revelation chapter 14, we have learned, 54:56 we are not to be, I want you to notice what God 55:01 tells us to be Revelation chapter 14, 55:02 and I am reading in verse 12, what verse 12, 55:05 "Here is the patience of the saints: 55:07 here are those who keep the commandments of God, 55:09 so they retain the blue, and what else do you have 55:13 the faith of Jesus." The commandments of God 55:16 and faith of Jesus. Go with me quickly to Revelation 55:17 18 and I am reading in verse 1, revelation chapter 55:20 18 in verse 1, "And after this things, 55:22 I saw another angel coming down from heaven 55:23 having great authority and the earth was illuminated 55:26 with his glory and he cried mildly with the loud voice 55:28 saying Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen, 55:30 and has become a dwelling place of demons, 55:32 prison for every foul spirit, and a cage of every 55:34 unclean and hated bird! For all nations have drunk 55:36 of the wine of the wrath of her fornication? 55:38 The kings of the earth have committed fornication 55:40 with her, and the merchants of the earth have become 55:42 rich through the abundance of her delicacy 55:43 and notice this verse, one of the most powerful 55:45 verses in the Bible especially the Book of Revelation, 55:47 and I heard another voice from heaven saying, 55:49 "Come out of her, what are the next two words, 55:51 my people." God has his people in those communions 55:56 and he calls them out. He says don't stay there, 56:01 come out of my people not part of the way out, 56:03 not most of the way out, come all the way out 56:05 of the mother, all the way out of the daughters, 56:07 and we come out, we go through the exit door, 56:10 but where is the entrance door. Here are those who 56:13 keep the commandments of God and have the testimony 56:16 of Jesus. Here are they to cling to the commandments 56:18 of God, and have the faith of Jesus. Friends we 56:20 come out of Romanism, and into a Bible believing, 56:24 spirit filled, commandment keeping church, amen. Amen. 56:28 That's where I want to be, how about you. 56:29 Amen. Amen. That's Christ's true bride. |
Revised 2014-12-17