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♪ theme music ♪
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(Derek) Welcome to Hope Sabbath School,
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an in-depth, interactive study
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of the Word of God.
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We're in the middle
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of an amazing series of studies:
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Preparation for the End Time,
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how we can know Jesus today,
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so that whatever day He comes,
we're ready.
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The topic today, End Time Deceptions,
is important,
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not so that we'll focus on the enemy,
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but we'll know how to stay focused
on Jesus.
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So I'm glad you're with us.
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What a great series of studies
this has been,
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and I'm glad you're here,
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because we bring different ideas
and different testimonies,
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and you're here, too,
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as part of our Hope Sabbath School team.
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We're always happy to hear from you.
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You can write to us at sshope@hopetv.org
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John writes from Indiana
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in the United States
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and says, "A number of years ago
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God called me to be
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an adult teacher at my church.
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I'd never taught adults before,
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and I didn't feel capable of doing it,
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but the Lord led me
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to Hope Sabbath School."
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(Team) Amen.
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(Derek) "I've been using the outlines
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to teach my class.
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I feel like I know the class members,
watching so often,
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hope to meet you someday,
here or in Heaven.
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Keep up the good work."
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Well, John, I'm glad
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you found the outlines.
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I've got mine in my Bible here.
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You can go to our website;
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you can download the outline;
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it's the one that we all use.
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In fact, when I teach in a local church,
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I give everyone the outline,
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because it's a good road map
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for people to follow along.
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So thanks for being part
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of our Hope Sabbath School,
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not just as a participant,
but as a teacher.
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Here's a note - oh, my.
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I get some interesting names, right?
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This is Lalduhawmi from Myanmar,
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but living in Dubai; global network.
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And Lalduhawmi writes and says,
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"I'm from Myanmar, currently
working in Dubai.
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I've been watching Hope
Sabbath School videos
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for a couple of years now
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and forwarding them to my friends
and family."
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(Team) Amen.
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(Derek) "I grew up being a good girl
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as a Methodist Christian.
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I didn't know anything about Sabbath.
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I used to read the Bible
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but not really understand.
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I made a decision to become
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a Seventh-day Adventist when I was
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studying in Mizoram, India.
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It was my summer break at home.
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My dad noticed I'd stopped
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going to church on Sunday
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and realized I had become
a Seventh-day Adventist.
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He told me, 'Either stop being
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a Seventh-day Adventist or you'll never
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go back to India and study.'"
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What should she do?
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"Well I answered," I'm sure respectfully
to her father,
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"and said, 'I will stop going to study
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if you want me to,
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but I will not give up my faith.'"
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(Team) Amen.
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(Derek) "I went through so many
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hard situations during my school
and college years,
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but God was always with me,
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and He always gives me a way out.
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I got detained in my college for one year,
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because my exams fell on Sabbath,
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but I was always blessed
in different ways.
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I got a job with an airline
before I graduated.
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Now I can say that God
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has blessed my life.
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I have every Sabbath
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to worship my Creator...,"
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(Team) Amen.
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(Derek) "...and somehow still
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I feel like something is missing.
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I always say if only I could experience
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the full peace of God,
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but it's difficult to stay connected
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to God all the time,
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and I miss the joy I used to have
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when I was in Mizoram."
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Can anybody relate to that?
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Sometimes there are ups,
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and sometimes there are downs, right,
that's real life.
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"I would like to request
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that the Hope Sabbath School team
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remember me in prayer.
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I also admire to see you getting involved
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in this global ministry.
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I feel like you're already in Heaven."
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Well, we're not quite there yet, are we?
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In fact we would tell you, Lalduhawmi,
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that we're on the same journey as you,
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and your testimony inspired us.
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We want to honor God in all things. Amen?
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(Team) Amen.
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Laurie writes from Alberta in Canada.
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Any Canadians here? No?
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Someone's been to Canada, I'm sure.
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"Hope Sabbath School team,
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I'm emailing you to let you know
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how truly blessed we all are
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by the hope-filled studies.
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I'm not a member of the Seventh-day
Adventist Church,
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but I love your program
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and watch the archives
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as well as the new programs.
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I've been encouraged greatly
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in my faith with our Lord." Amen?
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(Team) Amen.
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(Derek) People ask me,
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"Who's Hope Sabbath School for?"
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I say it's for everybody.
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It's an in-depth, interactive study
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of the Word of God.
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And Laurie, I'm glad
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as a fellow Christian. you're saying,
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"I want to study the Word of God
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and follow Jesus wherever He leads me."
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Well, here's a note from Florida
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from a donor who sent a gift
of 50 dollars
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and said, "There's so much
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going on in the world right now,
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I feel like I need to spend
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more time on my knees,
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more time kneeling than standing.
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Thank you for your commitment
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to helping me focus on the Lord."
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We don't read names of donors,
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but I just want to say thank you,
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because we're all part of the team,
aren't we?
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Helping people prepare for the soon-coming
of Jesus.
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Here's one last note
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from Ken in Australia.
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No Australians, but Travis,
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you've been to Australia, right?
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I watch Hope Sabbath School
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every week from Sydney, Australia.
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My brother in New Zealand
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told me about Hope Sabbath School app."
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So he's got a smartphone,
downloaded the app,
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and by the way, if you have a smartphone,
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whether it's an Apple device
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or an Android device,
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we have an app called Hope Sabbath School.
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It's being used in 150 countries
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around the world, including Australia.
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"At the end of June, I told myself
after the end
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of the last Sabbath School I watched,
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it was time for me to find
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a local church in my area."
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(Team) Amen.
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(Derek) "I've been attending
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the Ashfield Church for six months now,
studying the Bible,
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and I'm planning to be baptized soon."
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(Team) Amen.
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(Derek) Ken, thanks for writing to us.
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Send us a picture of your baptism,
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and we're just glad
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that you're growing in the Lord.
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You know it's not just about broadcasts,
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it's following Jesus all the way
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to baptism and beyond, isn't it,
as we prepare
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for the soon-coming of Jesus.
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Well, it's going to be a great study
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on End Time Deceptions as we focus
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on our strong Deliverer,
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but before we start, we've got to sing
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our theme song, don't we?
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It's taken from Revelation 15,
verses 3 and 4.
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You can download it from the website.
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I know many of you
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have already learned it,
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so let's sing it together.
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♪ music ♪
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(Derek) There are some songs
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that angels can't even sing,
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the songs of the redeemed,
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but I don't know, I think they could sing
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"just and true are Your ways,
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King of the saints," don't you?
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So it may sound even better
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when we have the angels singing with us.
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But right now, I want to pray
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for special guidance of the Holy Spirit,
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because just as the enemy wants to lead us
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into error and deception,
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Jesus promised the Spirit
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will lead us into...?
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(Derek, Team) ...all truth.
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(Derek) I want to invite you
to pray with us
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as we open God's Word.
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Father in Heaven, we're focusing
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on End Time Deceptions
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as we prepare for the End Time,
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and I just want to thank You
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that while we need to be informed,
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we do not need to be distracted
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by the deceptions of the enemy.
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We can stay focused on Jesus,
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our perfect Savior and soon-coming King.
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So guide us by Your Spirit
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in our study today.
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I pray in the name of Jesus. Amen.
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(Team) Amen.
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(Derek) We're going to start
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in the book of Revelation,
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noticing that the enemy is real.
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You know there are some people,
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they say, "Ah, I don't believe
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there's a devil; that's some kind
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of Middle Ages idea."
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But if we don't know the enemy,
we're defenseless.
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We don't know how to react
to his deceptions.
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So we're starting in Revelation,
chapter 2,
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and Liza, I'm going to ask you
if you'd begin
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and read verse 13 and verse 24.
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(Liza) I'll be reading
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from the New King James Version:
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And verse 24:
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(Derek) Now just when those first messages
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to the churches there in Asia Minor,
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which also of course represent
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ages in the Christian church,
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Satan appears to be a very real foe.
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Now they could say,
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"That's just talking symbolically."
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Well, let's keep reading and see
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what we can learn, here, in Revelation.
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Revelation, chapter 12, Laurel,
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if you could read verse 3, 7-9 for us.
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(Laurel) I'll be reading
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from the New American Standard Bible,
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Revelation 12:3 and then 7-9:
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Verses 7 through 9:
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(Derek) And one last verse in Revelation
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in chapter 20, verse 2
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(verses I should say), verses 2, 7 and 10.
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And Kyle, if you could read
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in Revelation 20:2, 7, and 10,
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and then let's think about
what we're hearing.
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This is a book of revelation
of Jesus Christ
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as we prepare for the End Time.
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(Kyle) Revelation, chapter 20,
verses 2, 7, and 10,
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I'll be reading from the New
King James Version:
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Verse 7:
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And going down to verse 10:
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(Derek) Now that last part
is pretty challenging,
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because people go, "Wait a minute, Derek,
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I'm confused because the Bible tells us
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God so loved the world
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that He gave His only Son
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that whoever believes in Him
should not..."?
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(Team) ...perish.
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(Derek) Death is the final end.
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In fact, doesn't it say in Romans
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the wages of sin is...?
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(Team) Death.
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(Derek) So I don't know
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how long that fire will burn,
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but eventually...
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it says fire came down from Heaven,
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in the previous verse, and devoured them,
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so I've told fellow Christians
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who may have different views
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on how long hellfire burns,
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can we all agree we don't
want to be there?
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(Team) Yes.
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(Derek) It's prepared for the devil
and his angels,
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but here in the book of Revelation,
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the devil is presented as a very real foe,
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so I'm just going to take a moment,
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can anybody share from your experience
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that you have seen that in your own life,
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that the adversary, the devil,
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is a very real foe?
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Anybody have that testimony
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that you would share? Travis?
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(Travis) I just know, I've taught
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or preached sermons in different churches
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all over or gave meetings,
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and the weeks leading up,
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it just seemed like anything
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that could go wrong, or you know?
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You could just feel...
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(Derek) Like you feel you're under attack?
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(Travis) Yes, like you're under attack
prior to that,
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and praise God that I've learned
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to counter that with prayer
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and just cling to Jesus,
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but it's real; it's real.
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(Derek) Has anyone else,
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maybe in a ministry setting,
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seen the reality of this adversary?
Lourdes?
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(Lourdes) I remember when we went
to Zambia,
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we were preaching there,
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and that time we were
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going to talk about God
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convicting us of our sins, and I remember
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when calling people for baptism
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the light went off.
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But it was weird, because it was
only our setting.
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Other places like the clubs
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and every other place had lights,
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but we didn't have lights.
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We had a thousand people there, waiting...
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(Derek) A thousand people were listening
to the Word of God...
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(Lourdes) ...and the lights went off.
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Yeah, it was complete darkness
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because we were in the middle...
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(Derek) Could just be coincidence, right?
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Yes? Could just be coincidence,
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or it could be a specific attack.
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I can share my own experience,
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just as a little boy,
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that I experienced the attacks
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of the devil in a very real way.
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I didn't know, Brittany,
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that my grandparents had been involved
with the occult.
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I didn't know what happened in their home,
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but the sins of the father
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are to the children, you know,
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to the third and fourth generation.
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It was very real to me that there was
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some dark supernatural force,
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but I would have known that,
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even without my experience,
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if I'd gone to Matthew, chapter 4,
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which is where I want us to go next,
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because when Jesus came into His ministry
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...let me say this more clearly.
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The Son of God didn't begin
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His existence in Nazareth.
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The pre-incarnate Son of God
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is the Creator of the world,
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John, chapter 1, verses 1 to 3, right,
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the Word who became flesh.
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When He came into humanity
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to work God's Plan of Salvation,
He immediately came
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under the devil's attack,
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even before He was old enough
to protect Himself.
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God had to send supernatural protection
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when Herod the Great tried
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to kill all the babies, remember that?
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But now He's about to begin His ministry,
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and I'm going to ask Nicole if you'd read
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in Matthew, chapter 4,
verses 1 through 11.
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We could take the whole hour
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talking about different ways
Satan tempts us,
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but what we're focusing on here
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is that the enemy is very real.
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Let's see the reality
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of his attacks on Jesus.
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(Nicole) Matthew 4:1-11 in the New
International Version says:
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(Derek) Does that sound
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just like a parable
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or does it sound like a real encounter?
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(Team) A real encounter.
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(Derek) Now do you have any questions?
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Why didn't Satan push Him off the temple?
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Kill Him right there? Brittany?
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Did he want to?
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(Nicole) Probably.
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(Derek) Absolutely He wanted to;
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he'd been trying to kill Him all along.
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Why didn't he just do that, Liza?
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(Liza) I think the first verse
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talks about the Spirit taking Him
into the wilderness,
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which means that it's very clear
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that God has put boundaries
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as to Satan's power and his work.
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So, yes, he is a real foe,
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and, yes, he's powerful,
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but nothing is beyond the control of God,
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and God has His protective hand, still.
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(Derek) Beautiful. With God all things
are possible, right?
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So this is protection.
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You would think that this fallen angel
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would finally understand who's in charge,
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because there are boundaries set,
absolutely.
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He would have gladly killed Jesus
in the wilderness,
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but he wasn't able to,
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but he was certainly tempting Him;
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the temptation is real, isn't it?
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So if the Bible's so clear
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that the enemy is real -
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we've read here in Matthew
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and the book of Revelation -
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why do so many people
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just not believe that he exists?
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What do you think? Jason?
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(Jason) I've got a Scripture we can go to.
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(Derek) Okay.
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(Jason) It's 1 Corinthians,
the second chapter
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and the fourteenth verse.
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(Derek) All right, give us a moment
to find that,
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1 Corinthians, second chapter
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and the fourteenth verse.
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So you're going to answer the question,
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why do some people say,
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"I just don't believe he's real,"
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when we see so much evidence
of evil forces?
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Would you read that for us?
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(Jason) Yes, and I'm reading
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from the King James Version,
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and the Word of God says:
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So it's spiritually discerned.
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You know, the Bible tells us
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which are spiritual things of God,
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so it's foolishness to them
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who don't believe in the Word of God.
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And they will look at Satan
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as being some type of fairy tale
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or some Greek mythology.
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(Derek) Okay, I remember
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someone telling me, spiritual things
are spirituality discerned,
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so if they've discounted all of that,
they can't comprehend
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what's actually going on.
Yes, Kyle?
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(Kyle) The other thing I think of is,
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to be effective, Satan wants
to conceal himself.
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He knows that if we really
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saw him for who he was,
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that no one would want to follow him.
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So he really tries to make people
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believe he doesn't exist
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and confuse people that way.
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I think that's one of the reasons
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a lot of people don't believe he exists.
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(Derek) So let's look at some
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of his deceptive work, together.
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Thank you for sharing.
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2 Corinthians, chapter 11,
verses 13 through 15,
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and 2 Thessalonians 2, verses 9 and 10.
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Let's look at some of that work.
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Jason, would you read for us,
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in the back row there,
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2 Corinthians 11, verses 13 to 15?
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(Jason) I'll be reading
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from the New King James Version,
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2 Corinthians, chapter 11,
verses 13 through 15:
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(Derek) That's a troubling description,
isn't it?
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In fact, how did Satan appear
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to Jesus at first, in the wilderness?
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(Team) As an angel.
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(Derek) But there's a red flag, right?
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There's a warning sign that this
doesn't sound...
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By the end, we know
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it's not an angel sent from God,
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because he said, "Bow down
and worship me,"
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and an angel from God would say,
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"Don't do that; worship God."
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(Nicole) He says "if," as if there's
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a question about who
that Person really is.
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(Derek) Questioning the identity of Jesus.
Travis.
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(Travis) I'd just like to say,
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in the texts in Matthew,
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but then Satan reveals his real character
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and his real purpose.
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He says, "If you bow down and worship me."
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His true character comes out.
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(Derek) Right, which reinforces
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the prophecy that he said, "I will be..."
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(Team) "...like the Most High."
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(Derek) Like the Most High, right?
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So Satan doesn't always come,
looking evil.
-
He could come, looking religious,
good. Kenneth?
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(Kenneth) In fact, that seems to be
-
the most dangerous part of his schemes,
-
because most of us in this day and age
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will not want to worship like the way
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our forefathers worshiped idols,
-
but he allows us to worship ourselves,
-
worship some thing that somehow
looks appealing,
-
but somehow it is replacing God.
-
(Derek) What a powerful thought.
-
You don't have to bow down
-
and worship some strange idol,
-
you can just look in the mirror, right?
-
You can worship yourself.
-
So his deceptions are very real.
-
2 Thessalonians, chapter 2,
verses 9 and 10, Brittany.
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(Brittany) I'll be reading
-
from the New King James Version,
-
2 Thessalonians, chapter 2,
verses 9 and 10:
-
(Derek) So what is the best way
to prepare yourself
-
so you will not be deceived?
-
(Brittany) Accept the truth.
-
(Derek) Accept the truth?
-
(Brittany) Because Satan's doing
the counterfeit of the truth,
-
so when you accept the love of God...
-
(Derek) You want to go beyond
"accept the truth"?
-
(Team Member) You have to know the truth.
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(Derek) Know the truth?
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(Travis) "I am the Way, the Truth."
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(Nicole) Know Jesus.
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(Derek) Didn't it say, "Love the truth"?
-
And walk in it, and that comes
in the context
-
of a daily relationship. Liza?
-
(Liza) I like what Paul says.
-
He talks about arming ourselves,
-
like putting on the armor of God.
-
(Derek) Ephesians 6.
-
(Liza) We can't just go out there and say,
"Okay, I can take down the devil,"
-
but you have to arm yourself
with the Word of God,
-
and Scripture gives us some of those tools
that we can use.
-
(Derek) That's beautiful.
-
The best way we protect ourselves...
-
You know, in another passage
-
besides Ephesians 6,
-
in Romans 13 it says, "Clothe yourselves
-
with the armor of light,"
-
and then in verse 14 of chapter 13,
-
it says, "Clothe yourself
-
with the Lord Jesus Christ."
-
(Team) Amen.
-
(Derek) I like what you said;
-
when Jesus went into the wilderness,
-
He didn't go without the Holy Spirit.
-
The Holy Spirit was with Him.
-
Otherwise He would have been careless
-
in the battle, right? Kyle.
-
(Kyle) I'm not a banker,
-
but the bankers will tell you
-
that to find counterfeit money
-
you have to study the real thing
-
to know what's counterfeit.
-
And so the same is true
in spiritual things.
-
We have to know what's true.
-
We have to focus on what's true.
-
That way we'll know what's not true.
-
And I think that's what God
-
is calling us to do.
-
(Derek) And to love the truth.
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(Kyle) And to love the truth.
-
(Derek) And by the way, who is the Truth?
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(Team) Jesus.
-
(Derek) Right? When we love Him, He says,
-
"I will not leave you comfortless;
-
I will come to you,
-
and the Spirit will guide you into..."?
-
(Team) "...all truth."
-
(Derek) Yeah, so it's just
that relationship
-
is so important, isn't it
in the conflict.
-
Well, let's go back to Genesis,
-
to Satan beginning his deception
on planet Earth.
-
We're in Genesis, chapter 3.
-
We could read the whole chapter;
-
I'm going to focus on verse 4.
-
Someone told me today
-
that Satan's lying from the first time
-
he opens his mouth, in chapter 3, verse 1,
-
questioning, "Did God say that?"
-
But he comes out
-
with a bold-faced lie in verse 4,
-
and Jason, I'm wondering
-
if you could read that for us
-
in Genesis 3, verse 4.
-
It's a bold-faced lie.
-
And the reason I'm mentioning this
-
is because this whole confusion
-
about what happens when we die
-
is a deception Satan's been continuing,
-
on and on.
-
(Jason) Genesis, the third chapter
and fourth verse,
-
and I'm reading from the King James
Version:
-
(Derek) Now go back to chapter 2,
verse 17, someone,
-
still in Genesis. Nicole, Genesis 2:17.
-
Satan has just said,
-
"You will not surely die."
-
Now that's either a wonder word of hope
-
or a bold-faced lie, right?
-
I mean, if Jesus tells me,
-
"You will not surely die,"
-
I'm going to say, "Praise God.
-
I'm going to trust in You,
and I won't die."
-
But this is the deceiver.
-
What had God just said
in chapter 2, verse 17, Nicole?
-
(Nicole) The New International
Version states:
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(Derek) I imagine the devil,
-
I don't know what it looked like
-
there on that tree,
-
but I imagine that serpent,
-
who is the disguise of the evil one,
-
chomping on some of the fruit.
-
I mean, after all, he was mocking
-
the authority of God already
-
and saying, "I'm not dead."
-
Deception: "I'm not dead."
-
But this whole issue -
-
we could take a lot of time with that
-
and the whole Plan of Salvation -
-
but I want to talk about this lie
-
that you won't die.
-
And do you know from that day on
-
there are people who've taught
-
that when you die, you're not really dead.
-
That you have an eternally immortal
something that continues,
-
whether you were good or bad,
-
or you can come back in some other form,
-
and I think as we prepare
-
for the End Times,
-
we need to avoid the deceptions
of the enemy.
-
So we need to go,
-
and we need to ask ourselves,
-
"What does the Bible teach
-
about what happens when you die?"
-
Before we do that,
-
is there anyone that can testify
that growing up
-
you didn't really understand
-
what happens when we die?
-
Or did you all grow up
-
with a clear understanding? Lourdes?
-
(Lourdes) In my country - I'm from Peru -
-
I remember growing up,
-
and when someone passed away
-
they would tell me their spirit
-
would actually come back and say good-bye
-
to the people that they loved.
-
And once they said good-bye to everybody,
-
then they would go to Heaven.
-
But just having that window,
-
that once a person is supposedly dead
-
that the spirit will come,
is so dangerous.
-
(Derek) But that was popular?
-
(Lourdes) It's still popular.
-
(Derek) It's still popular
in your culture.
-
Anyone else grow up
-
with some confused ideas
-
or in your culture some confused ideas
-
about what happens when you die? Kenneth?
-
(Kenneth) I come from Ghana.
-
They believe when you die,
-
you transition to the spirit world,
-
and you become an ancestor
-
or in another term, a saint.
-
And they have various rites and rituals
-
that are dedicated for a funeral
for the dead.
-
It took a while, because the family
-
that I came from,
-
my parents were Christians,
-
but the larger family was not,
-
so you always have to struggle.
-
And there were some manifestations
-
of spiritual world activities in the home
-
so that it will convince you to believe
-
that actually the person lives on.
-
Some even will pay or add money
-
to the person being buried,
-
because they believe the person
-
is going to use that money
-
in the other world.
-
(Derek) So embedded in the culture,
whether in Ghana,
-
in many other countries, right, Peru,
-
is this idea of the spirit coming back.
-
I met a lady from the Philippines;
-
she believed, in her culture -
-
kind of a mixture of Christianity
and spiritualism -
-
that her loved one
-
would come back for 40 days.
-
So right before he died, she said to him,
-
"I don't want you to come back."
-
And she said for about a week
-
everything was quiet;
relatives were there.
-
But when everybody left, she started
-
hearing rapping in the room where he died
[softly knocking].
-
Now this lady had a PhD
-
from a reputable university;
-
she was an educated lady,
-
but she was terrified [softly knocking].
-
So I got a phone call saying,
-
"Would you come and bless this house?"
-
I said I don't bless houses,
-
but I pray blessings for people
-
in the name of Jesus.
-
So I came, and I shared some Bible texts
-
that we're going to read.
-
I said, "This is what the Bible
-
says happens when you die.
-
So whatever that is,
that's not your husband,
-
and you call upon the name of Jesus."
-
In fact, I gave her some
-
of my wife's Scripture songs to play.
-
I said, "Play them loud in the house."
-
It's kind of like having the Holy Spirit
-
right alongside, armor of God.
-
"Let everybody know this house
belongs to God."
-
And I walked out of that house.
-
I thought, "God, now it's up to You"
-
because it's deeply embedded
-
in the culture, right?
-
I said, "God, it's up to You."
-
She called me the next day;
-
we talked on the phone.
-
She said, "The rapping is gone."
-
(Team) Amen.
-
(Derek) So let's see
-
what the Bible teaches, shall we?
-
Because this, from the very beginning,
-
was one of Satan's major deceptions.
-
Ecclesiastes, Eric, do you have
Ecclesiastes?
-
Chapter 9, verses 5, 6 and 10,
-
if you'd read those three verses for us.
-
(Eric) Chapter 9, verses 5, 6, and 10,
and I'll read
-
from the New Living Translation:
-
Verse 10:
-
(Derek) In other words,
-
it's being practical there,
-
"If you're going to do it, do it now."
-
You can't do it after you die.
-
In fact, the living, they know
-
they're going to die,
-
and I think everybody would say,
"Well, that's true."
-
We know, unless Jesus comes back -
-
for some of us, pretty soon -
-
we're going to fall asleep in death.
-
We want to understand that.
-
But it says the living know they'll die,
the dead...?
-
(Team) Know nothing.
-
(Derek) That's what the Bible teaches.
-
Psalm 115 and verse 17,
-
Laurel, would you read that for us?
-
(Laurel) Psalm 115:17, and I'll be reading
-
from the New American Standard Bible:
-
(Derek) Now if, when I was dead,
I knew everything...
-
Or maybe I should ask you,
-
if when you were dead
-
and you knew everything,
-
wouldn't you want to praise the Lord?
-
Why don't the dead praise the Lord?
-
(Team) Because they don't know anything.
-
(Derek) Well, Jesus will answer
-
that question, actually.
-
He says, "Death is like a sleep," right?
-
The dead, they don't work,
-
they don't know anything,
they're not conscious,
-
they don't praise the Lord.
-
Someone have Psalm 146?
-
Travis, Psalm 146 and verse 4.
-
(Travis) I'll be reading
-
from the New King James Version:
-
(Derek) Another translation has,
-
"In that very day, his thoughts...",
-
thoughts and his plans
-
and everything else, right? Yes.
-
(Kyle) I think it's important
to note, too,
-
that when the Bible says spirit,
-
it doesn't mean like his spirit
-
comes out of his body and goes to God.
-
It means his breath departs.
-
So it's the difference
-
between, you know, some people believe
-
your spirit goes out and goes back to God.
-
(Derek) Like a separate conscious entity.
-
(Kyle) Like a separate entity,
-
but it's really just the breath.
-
The breath that God gave me goes back.
-
(Derek) Kyle, how does that tie in
-
with the creation of man in Genesis 2:7?
-
(Kyle) Right, well that's a good point
-
because the Bible says
-
that when God created us
-
He breathed into Adam's nostrils
-
the breath of life...
-
(Derek) And it says, "Man..."?
-
(Team) "...became a living soul."
-
(Derek) That's important, isn't it?
-
He doesn't say, "I'm going to give you
an immortal soul, too."
-
No, he became a living soul
-
because of the breath of God,
-
and what happens when we die
-
according to the Psalm?
-
(Kyle) The breath of God goes back to Him,
-
and the body is laid in the earth.
-
(Derek) Right? Jason.
-
(Jason) I just wanted to give context
to that Scripture
-
that he's referring to, Kyle.
-
It's in the book of Job,
-
it's the twenty-seventh chapter
and third verse.
-
(Derek) Okay, give us a moment,
-
Job 27 and verse 3?
-
All right, we'll be right there.
-
Right before the Psalms, right?
Job...?
-
(Jason) Twenty-seventh chapter
and third verse.
-
(Derek) Twenty-seventh chapter
and third verse.
-
And you'll be reading
-
from the King James?
-
(Jason) Yes, sir, and the Bible says:
-
Of course, going back to Genesis.
-
(Derek) Okay, and it's interesting,
-
from what you said, Kyle,
-
Jason reads in the King James,
-
"The Spirit of God is in my nostrils,"
-
and my Bible translates,
-
"The breath of God is in my nostrils."
-
God gives me breath, and I live.
-
The breath goes back to Him,
-
and I perish, right?
-
I'm dead. Yes, Travis.
-
(Travis) I'm a pilot, and we have
-
to file flight plans,
-
and so when we're flying someplace,
-
I've got to file a flight plan.
-
And when I fill it out,
-
the question is asked,
-
"How many souls are on board?"
-
So a soul is a person;
-
it's not something that's
-
floating out there; we are souls.
-
(Derek) And by the way,
-
that's reinforced in Acts where it says
-
so many souls were saved, right,
-
or souls added to the church;
-
it's talking about people.
-
We've got to move on,
-
because there's another deception
that Satan brings,
-
but I want to look
-
at a couple of other texts,
-
specifically in the words of Jesus
-
in John 11, verses 11 to 14.
-
And Liza, if you could
-
read that for us in John 11,
-
and I'll have someone else read
-
verses 23 and 24 of the same chapter.
-
In fact, I'll just share this
-
if you're watching today, which you are,
-
and studying this important topic,
-
if I just had one chapter in the Bible
-
to tell me what happens when we die,
-
it would be John 11,
because it's so clear.
-
It's so clear; it includes
-
both what happens in death
-
and the beauty of the resurrection.
-
It's all there, in John 11,
-
but let's look at verses 11 through 14
of John 11.
-
(Liza) I'll be reading
-
from the New King James Version:
-
(Derek) So Jesus very simply
describes death as...?
-
(Team) Sleep.
-
(Derek) ...a sleep, but now I want someone
-
to read verses 23 and 24.
-
Lourdes, do you have that?
-
Still in John 11, let's see
-
what this tells us,
-
helps us to understand,
-
and it exposes Satan's deception
about that.
-
(Lourdes) I'll be reading
-
from the English Standard Version,
verse 23 and 24:
-
(Derek) See, Martha had been
-
listening carefully to the teaching
of Jesus.
-
In fact, I'd like someone to read
-
that teaching in John 5, verses 27 and 28,
-
because she knew that while death
is a sleep,
-
that those who believe in Jesus
-
don't stay sleeping forever, right?
-
Nicole, do you have that, in John 5:27,28?
-
I wish you could read 23, 24 and 25,
-
but we don't have time; 27 and 28,
-
what does Jesus tell us?
-
(Nicole) The New International Version
of John 5:27,28 says:
-
(Derek) Talking about the resurrection,
-
talking about it more in Revelation,
-
the first resurrection of the blessed,
-
and then there's the second resurrection
unto condemnation, right?
-
We could study a lot about that,
-
but I want to come up in the first
or blessed resurrection.
-
Actually, I'd kind of like
-
to be living when Jesus comes,
-
and the Bible talks about, we're changed.
-
How long does that take?
-
(Team) In the blink of an eye.
-
(Derek) A moment, a twinkling of an eye
we're changed,
-
but many of our loved ones
-
may fall asleep in death,
-
and we need to understand
-
what the Bible teaches
-
so we're not deceived.
-
So I have a question for you.
-
What about all of these stories
-
people have about a dead loved one,
-
Kenneth, you even mentioned it,
-
a dead loved one coming back,
-
and they felt their presence,
-
they just know whatever the Bible teaches,
-
whatever you say, they just know
there in Peru,
-
that that's what happens.
-
How do you address
-
that deception do you think? Jamie?
-
(Jamie) One of the things we have
to keep in mind
-
is that we're not fighting
-
against flesh and blood,
but principalities
-
and that includes evil angels,
-
fallen angels and demons,
-
and they can trick and deceive you.
-
And it's in their best interest
-
to make you question
-
the status of the dead,
-
which could possibly cause you to question
-
the character of God.
-
So they're here to deceive us,
-
and they will do any means possible
to do that.
-
(Derek) So it shouldn't surprise us
-
that "spirits" show up.
-
The question is, "Is it
your grandpa?" right?
-
Or is it your loved one?
-
So what counsel would you give?
-
I mean, it's very real
-
to these people, right?
-
And they may feel very vulnerable
-
at that time, too. Jason?
-
(Jason) I would actually show them
-
in the Bible where it talks
about spiritualism
-
in the book of Samuel,
-
the twenty-eighth chapter,
-
the thirty-fifth verse,
-
the witch of Endor.
-
(Derek) So you'd warn them
about that deception.
-
Okay, anybody else, what would you do?
Nicole?
-
(Nicole) It happened to me
-
at my mom's funeral.
-
Someone came to me and said,
-
"Oh, you should be happy
she's in Heaven."
-
And my response was, "Actually
-
my belief is that she is not;
-
she actually lying in the ground
-
waiting for Jesus to return."
-
So I think also just letting them
know your truth,
-
hopefully the Spirit will then
talk to them
-
and deal with their heart
-
to understand what true death is.
-
(Derek) But someone says,
-
"But I had a near-death experience myself,
-
and I felt like I was
-
going through a tunnel of light,
-
and you know..."
-
(Lourdes) A lack of oxygen.
-
(Derek) Lourdes says that's a lack
of oxygen.
-
You know, I think it's possible,
-
people watch these movies.
-
"Where did you get that?"
-
They said, "I saw it on a movie."
-
You get these thought patterns
-
put in your mind.
-
We can't trust just our feeling
or our senses,
-
we have to ask, "What does
the Bible teach?"
-
We could spend a lot of time...
-
Maybe someone's watching today,
-
and you say, "I have a lot of questions
-
about what happens when you die."
-
Send us an email: sshope@hopetv.org.
-
We'll send you some resources,
-
because this is a crucial topic.
-
In fact, just talking
-
with my wife recently,
-
she said, "I think this
-
is a key deception of the enemy
-
that can easily lead you, as Jamie said,
-
to distrust the character of God
-
and to be confused and vulnerable
-
to the enemy's attack.
-
He's got another attack,
-
which I didn't really understand at first,
-
and that is that there's
-
no Creator at all.
-
We'll come to that after your comment.
-
(Kyle) I just wanted to say
-
that somebody might listen to this,
-
and they might get afraid
-
when you think about spirits
-
and principalities and powers,
-
but just remember Jesus is more powerful
-
than anything the devil can throw at us.
-
And so if you are ever afraid or if you
-
ever feel like you're being deceived,
-
just say the name of Jesus,
-
speak the truth, and the devil will flee.
-
Jesus is more powerful.
-
(Derek) Thank you.
-
I remember a young adult
-
who saw two demons materialize,
-
and they were coming towards her,
-
and she remembered what she
had been taught.
-
And boldly she said,
-
"You cannot touch me;
-
only Jesus can touch me."
-
(Team) Wow. Praise God.
-
(Derek) But it's real, and you know
-
a lot of people don't talk about it,
-
because it's a bit troubling,
-
and some people would say,
-
"You'll think I'm crazy."
-
But the battle is real, the enemy is real,
-
and the lies about death are real.
-
But let's look at the other
major deception,
-
and that is, there is no Creator.
-
You're just here as a result
of a cosmic accident.
-
And by the way, if that's true,
-
then there's no ultimate good or evil,
-
there's no judge, you can do
whatever you want;
-
the strongest will survive.
-
But let's look at what the Bible says
-
in Genesis, chapter 1, just a couple
of verses,
-
the first verse of the first book,
-
Genesis 1, verse 1, and 26 through 31.
-
Jamie, would you read that for us?
-
And then I want to ask
-
why Satan is trying to undermine
-
the authority of the Creator.
-
(Jamie) The New Living Translation says:
-
Then verses 26 through 31 say:
-
(Derek) It's very clear
-
at the beginning of the creation
-
that God is the Creator
-
and that He created us with a purpose.
-
He wanted to have a relationship with us.
-
So Satan comes, the Bible is clear,
-
created being, he's an angel,
-
he's a created being.
-
Why would it be so important for him
-
to try to undermine the truth
-
that we have a Creator
-
and just make us think
-
we're just here by accident?
-
Why would that be
-
such an important goal for him? Yes?
-
(Jason) It leads us to feel
-
that we can live the way we want to live,
-
you know, with no consequences.
-
(Derek) Let's reinforce that
-
in Romans, chapter 1,
verses 20 through 23.
-
If there's no Creator,
-
then we're not accountable
to anybody, right?
-
All right, who would like
-
to read that for us? Jason?
-
Let's see what it says, Romans 1:20-23.
-
(Jason) I'll be reading
-
from the New King James Version,
-
Romans, chapter 1, verses 20 to 23:
-
(Derek) So if there's no Creator God,
-
I can make anything and worship it,
-
even myself and worship myself.
-
What's the next step after that?
-
Well, you just have to read on
-
in the text what happens.
-
If there's no God, there's no?
-
(Travis) There's no law;
there's no anything.
-
(Derek) There's no good, there's no evil,
-
everyone will just do
-
what they want to do.
-
It says they gave themselves over, right,
-
to corrupt things, because there's no God.
-
How would that support Satan's plan?
-
(Brittany) He wants everyone to be lost.
-
(Derek) Exactly, he wants everyone
-
to deface the image of God. Eric.
-
(Eric) I think we are created
-
to have a relationship with God,
-
and if you can convince someone
-
that there is no God,
-
then you eliminate that relationship
altogether.
-
(Derek) It's not even
a possibility, right?
-
(Kyle) And it reduces their value.
-
We read earlier we are created
-
in the image of God,
-
and if Satan can get us to distrust
-
that we and everybody around us
-
are made in the image of God
-
then we don't value others,
we don't love them,
-
and we don't love God.
-
So it takes away the foundation
-
of everything we believe,
-
if we don't believe He's our Creator.
-
(Derek) Liza.
-
(Liza) I was going to add on
-
to what Kyle said.
-
I think the creation story
-
is the most beautiful story,
-
because it says that we are created
in the image of God,
-
so we have value as human beings.
-
But if you take away that creation story,
-
then I can treat anyone how I want to,
-
because they're just cells and atoms,
-
and I can treat them like I treat animals.
-
I can treat them like I treat leaves.
-
But the respect of human life,
-
that's what creation tells us.
-
(Derek) And isn't it interesting,
-
at the end of that creation work,
-
that God sets aside a day,
-
and the Bible says He rested,
-
and He blessed a day,
-
and He sanctified it.
-
Isn't it interesting that the Sabbath
-
becomes so important in the End Time?
-
Because it's remembering our Creator,
-
but it's also remembering, love God,
-
and also the sanctity of human life.
-
(Nicole) It just occurred to me
-
when everyone was talking,
-
that Satan can't create anything.
-
God created us to worship Him,
-
and Satan wants what God created us for,
-
which is to worship.
-
And so if he can make us believe
-
that we have no Creator,
-
then he can try and get from us
-
what he so desperately wants
-
that we can't give him.
-
(Derek) So now I want to be practical.
-
You've got a dear friend,
-
and she believes, she's been indoctrinated
-
with a theory that there's no Creator,
-
that we are here by accident,
-
that life has no purpose;
-
in fact, it's an absurd idea to think
-
that there's some kind
of purpose to existence,
-
except maybe the survival
of the strongest.
-
How are you going to reach out
to that person
-
and introduce them to a radically
different way
-
of looking at the world?
-
Certainly we ought not to go and say,
-
"Only stupid people believe...," right?
-
Because some of these people
are very bright;
-
the best minds that have abandoned God
have devoted themselves
-
to trying to explain how we got here
without God.
-
How are you going to reach out
-
to a friend like that, Brittany?
-
(Brittany) I think it begins with like
what you said,
-
they have to be a friend.
-
They have to be somebody that you have
a relationship with,
-
that you have something in common
that you can relate with,
-
and then they need to see the purpose
that you have in life
-
and how God is your purpose
-
and your fulfillment and your joy.
-
And when they see that difference in you,
-
that's different than what they see
-
around the world or maybe
in their own life,
-
they see that they have a lack of peace,
-
then they're going to start
asking you questions.
-
And that's the best way
-
to reach someone like that,
-
because if you just come
-
and start telling them all these theories,
-
or you start to try to prove
a point to them,
-
they're not going to be open,
unless you have that relationship,
-
and then they see you have something
that they don't have.
-
(Derek) Agreed? Yes, Jason.
-
(Jason) You don't want to make it
-
a battle of the intellects,
-
because it's a heart matter.
-
A lot of people are drawn
to that type of doctrine
-
because they're either hurt or uncertain.
-
So by you having an ear to hear,
-
being quicker to hear and slow to speak,
-
you can draw them in, to listen to them,
-
and you can get to the root of it.
-
Kind of like the lion in the [folktale],
-
that thorn in the paw.
-
He was angry but nobody knew
-
he had a little thorn in his paw,
-
so that sometimes can be the case.
-
(Derek) So I ought to listen
more than speak,
-
but I like that drawing close to them
-
and letting them see
-
what a view of life that has purpose
-
looks like, right? Travis.
-
(Travis) And if you've ever cooked
-
or if you've ever made something,
-
and the person was skeptical,
-
what you generally did was say,
-
"Well, just have a taste."
-
And Jesus has asked us, "Just taste Me
-
and see if I'm good."
-
(Derek) In fact that's a Psalm, isn't it,
Psalm 34:8?
-
(Derek, Team) "Taste and see
-
that the Lord is good."
-
(Derek) But I would respond,
-
they wouldn't even want a taste
-
if you said the Lord's good,
-
but you don't look good.
-
I'm not talking physically,
-
but you don't show them love,
-
you're critical, you demean them.
-
Why would they want to taste?
-
But if they see that evidence...
-
(Jamie) I was going to add,
-
in a previous lesson we talked
-
about how we're supposed to glorify God
-
by reflecting His character
-
and speaking love into their lives
through our actions.
-
Oftentimes our actions can speak
louder than words,
-
so if you can't have
-
that discussion with them,
-
you can love them,
-
and you can show them the way,
-
and then maybe you can
-
find that common ground.
-
(Derek) Someone told me if they choose
-
not to spend eternity with God,
-
at least love them as many days
as they have.
-
But you're telling me that it may be
-
the love of God that actually
will win their hearts
-
or at least give them
-
an opportunity, Travis, to taste?
-
One key lesson to take out of our study.
-
We've got 30 seconds left.
-
If you could give me one lesson,
Kenneth, what would it be?
-
(Kenneth) Jesus is attractive,
-
and He's the light that shines
-
into all the deceptions of the evil one.
-
(Derek) All right, so Jesus
-
is the light of the world,
-
that darkness can't stand in His presence.
-
So lift up the light of Jesus,
-
and not just in words but in life,
-
and let others be drawn to Jesus.
-
That is the key, because the darkness
is real.
-
In fact, some of you have been watching
-
today, and saying,
-
"Derek, you have no idea
-
how much darkness is around me."
-
In fact, I've had people tell me,
-
"There are people in my own family
-
who are connecting with the spirit world,
-
and it's dark in my home."
-
I want to pray the light of Jesus
-
to cover you today.
-
I want to pray that God's presence
-
will be so real, the angels so powerful,
-
that the darkness will be dispelled.
-
And if there's someone you know
-
who is struggling with darkness,
-
that you have a word of hope
-
to share with them.
-
Let's pray together.
-
Father in Heaven,
-
we know the battle is real,
-
even before reading Scripture,
-
but Scripture confirms that the battle
is real,
-
that darkness oppresses all,
-
even those who want to follow God.
-
But I thank You that we can
-
find hope in Jesus,
-
that the deceptions of the evil one
-
about death or about our origin
-
are dispelled by the truth of God's Word.
-
Help us to believe that Word
-
and as Kenneth said,
-
let the light of Jesus be reflected,
-
shine out from us,
-
to dispel the darkness
-
for the honor of Your name.
-
In Jesus' name. Amen.
-
(Team) Amen.
-
(Derek) Thanks for joining us
-
for Hope Sabbath School.
-
When I was a little boy, I learned a song,
-
"This Little Light of Mine."
-
Yeah, you don't have to start singing,
-
but I'm going to let it shine.
-
And I realized that it's not my light,
-
I'm just reflecting the light of Jesus.
-
But I didn't understand
-
that that light is so powerful
-
it dispels the darkness.
-
So let Jesus shine through you
-
and be a blessing to those around you.
-
♪ theme music ♪