Class: PETER – 2 Peter 1 and 2
Knowledge; False Teachers
Class Questions
- How has God given us everything pertaining to life and godliness? 2 Peter 1:3 ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
- (yes or no) Are there qualities which a Christian should add to his faith?
What will be the result? 2 Peter 2:1-7, 11 ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ - How did Peter know the things which he had taught? 2 Peter 2:16 ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
- In 2 Peter, Peter spoke of his death as (a) soon, (b) distant, or (c) unknown?
2 Peter 1:14 ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ - Where did Peter say that prophecies originated? 2 Peter 1:21 ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
- According to Peter, who would distort the truth? 2 Peter 2:1-3
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ - How can a person become enslaved to sin? 2 Peter 2:19 ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Sermon: Grace, Grace To It! (Zechariah 4)
Zec 4:1 ΒΆ Now the angel who talked with me came back and wakened me, as a man who is wakened out of his sleep.
2 And he said to me, “What do you see?” So I said, “I am looking, and there is a lampstand of solid gold with a bowl on top of it, and on the stand seven lamps with seven pipes to the seven lamps.
3 “Two olive trees are by it, one at the right of the bowl and the other at its left.”
4 So I answered and spoke to the angel who talked with me, saying, “What are these, my lord?”
5 Then the angel who talked with me answered and said to me, “Do you not know what these are?” And I said, “No, my lord.”
6 So he answered and said to me: “This is the word of the LORD to Zerubbabel: ‘Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit,’ Says the LORD of hosts.
7 ‘Who are you, O great mountain? Before Zerubbabel you shall become a plain! And he shall bring forth the capstone With shouts of “Grace, grace to it!”‘”
8 Moreover the word of the LORD came to me, saying:
9 “The hands of Zerubbabel Have laid the foundation of this temple; His hands shall also finish it. Then you will know That the LORD of hosts has sent Me to you.
10 For who has despised the day of small things? For these seven rejoice to see The plumb line in the hand of Zerubbabel. They are the eyes of the LORD, Which scan to and fro throughout the whole earth.”
11 ΒΆ Then I answered and said to him, “What are these two olive trees-at the right of the lampstand and at its left?”
12 And I further answered and said to him, “What are these two olive branches that drip into the receptacles of the two gold pipes from which the golden oil drains?”
13 Then he answered me and said, “Do you not know what these are?” And I said, “No, my lord.”
14 So he said, “These are the two anointed ones, who stand beside the Lord of the whole earth.”
(NKJV)
<inaudible><inaudible> good morning. We are in second Peter chapters one and two. We’re going to have to move a little faster than we did on Wednesday. If we’re going to turn this into a two lesson study instead of a three lesson study, but, uh, I think we can do it. Let’s begin with a word of prayer, our gracious father in heaven.
We bound before your throne grateful at this time for all of your many blessings, grateful, grateful for what you do for us on a daily basis, we ask that you watch over us care for us, protect us, help us through the difficult times in life and help us to remember you and not forget you in the good times in life. Help us to always strive to look to you for wisdom and strength,
guidance in our lives, by seeking out those things from your word and from the revelation that you have delivered to us throughout these many years and pray that we might be able to go back to those things, which Peter will tell us we can be assured of. And we might go back to them and use them as the light in our lives. We pray that you will be with those who are struggling with illness,
difficulty, pray that you’ll be with those who are struggling because of loss of jobs or because of other situations they’re encountering Pray that they will be restored back to their desired position in life. In all these areas, we pray for the doctors and the nurses and all those that are enduring the hard times and the many hours involved in helping others. We pray that as they minister to others,
that they will receive comfort and strength from those around them as well. All this, we pray in jesus’ name. Amen. Okay. We’re going to begin with a clarification because sometimes what I say and what I fought, aren’t always the same thing. So we’re just going to make sure we’re all on the same page. Second, Peter chapter one, verse three,
as his divine power has given unto us all things that pertain to life and godliness. I said on Wednesday night that the idea here is not that God has explained every fact, every detail, but instead that he has given us all things that pertain to eternal life. Well, in a moment of not being clear, what I am, let me define what I mean by that.
God has given us everything. We need to go through this life and be obedient to him and achieve the next life. Okay? So not to say that God has given us everything we need to know about the next life or that the focus of that statement is the next life, but it is this life headed toward that life. Okay? So while we do not have exhaustive knowledge or revelation from God,
we have the same idea here that Jesus gave when he spoke to the apostles and he said the Holy spirit would come and guide them into how much truth, all truth. Okay. That doesn’t mean that the Holy spirit was going to reveal to them algebraic formulas, or how to fly a plane. It means that in the context of the revelation of God and everything necessary for being obedient to God,
they would have every thing they needed, they would have complete truth. And so in this passage, we’re dealing with the same idea here. And by the way, both of them are in the same context of God has delivered that through the knowledge of him. Okay. So I just wanted to clarify that because I was made aware that when we were done,
I wasn’t clear. So, and, and I wasn’t clear, uh, but I thought I was. So for this reason, that’s verse 12. For this reason, I will be negligent to remind you always of these things though, you know, and are established in the present truth. Peter has told them, you need to add to your faith,
these things, and you need to go back and do them again. And you need to be reminded of these things. And I’m going to remind you of these things. And if you do these things, you will never fall. And he says, I won’t be negligent to remind you of this. I won’t be the one who fails to point you back to the foundation of your spiritual life.
As a matter of fact, he says, he said, you need to be established in the present truth. When he says the present truth, he doesn’t mean the truth that we think is accurate. Right now, he’s talking about the old ways present truth. The world will change. The sun will rise and the sun will set. And the world around us will shift.
And the ideas and cultures and everything around us will shift and change throughout our lives. But one thing will never change. Jesus said that not one jot or one tittle would fall from the word of God. All of it would be fulfilled. Jesus said that his word would stand for forever. It is not the truth of the past. It is not the truth of the future.
It is the always present truth. It is truth now. And when now is in the future, or now was in the past, it was still true because it was true before the world was formed. It was true before you and I ever stepped foot on this planet. It was always true. And he says, that’s where your foundation is. How do you make it through the hard times in life?
When everything around you seems to be shifting sand? Well, Jesus said, you put your foundation on a bedrock that always present truth, the word of God. So he says, I’m not going to be negligent to always remind you of these things. Yes, I think it is right. As long as I am in this tent to stir you up by reminding you,
what does he mean by being in a tent, temporary life while I’m in this body? That’s what he’s saying. He says so long as I’m in this flesh and bone, I’m going to keep reminding you. He says, knowing that I short or that shortly, I must put off my tent just as our Lord. Jesus Christ showed me. Moreover,
I will be careful to ensure that you always have a reminder of these things after my decease. When did Jesus tell Peter about his death? Anybody remember comm on Mel, John chapter 21, John chapter 21 beginning in verse 18, after Jesus is resurrected. This conversation occurs John chapter 21, verse 18. This is right after Jesus has said to Peter,
three times, do you love me? Feed my sheep? Do you love me? Do you love me the third time? Do you love me? Feed my sheep? Now he said, most assuredly. I say to you, verse 18, when you were younger, you girded yourself and walked where you wished. But when you are old, you will stretch out your hands and another will gird you and carry you where you do not wish.
Now notice the commentators statement as it were by John this, he spoke signifying what death he would glorify God. Now this isn’t talking about what death Jesus would use to glorify God, because Jesus has already died and been resurrected. This is the death by which Peter would glorify God, this, he spoke, signifying the death that he would glorify God. And when he had spoken this,
he said to him, follow me. So Peter says, the Lord showed me what my demise would be and it’s coming and it’s coming soon. But I have already set in place situations and opportunities and room and people in place to remind you of the same thing. So, so Peter’s already said, listen, I’m going to remind you of these things.
As long as I’m in this life, I’m going to remind you of these things. I’m not going to be negligent to remind you of these things. And when I die, I’m still going to remind you of these things. You know, sometimes I think it’s a shame because we have times and situations in life where we find people didn’t make preparations for the next generation before they died.
That’s one of the things Peter saying is I’ve already made preparations for you, even though I’m still alive because I know my deceases coming. I know the end of my life is, is an earring. And so I want you to know I’ve already set these things in place. I don’t know which other person it probably wasn’t one of the apostles. It was probably someone else.
Maybe it was John Mark. Maybe it was another individual who traveled with Peter, who was associated with Peter. And Peter was telling them when I’m gone, you start writing to them. You start reminding you go visit these churches and you tell them these things again. And again and again. So then he says for, we do not, we did not,
excuse me, follow cunningly, devised fables. When we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord, Jesus Christ. He said, when we spoke to you, when we preached the gospel to you and we told you about Christ, we, we weren’t following fables. We weren’t following myths. We weren’t following ideas, handed down generation after generation of mystical things.
No, he said, but we were eye witnesses of his majesty. He’s going to specify exactly what he’s talking about. He says for he received from God, the father honor and glory when such a voice came to him from the excellent glory. This is my beloved son in whom I am well pleased. And we heard this voice, which came from heaven.
When we were with him on the Holy mountain, Matthew chapter 17, Matthew chapter 17, beginning in verse one. Now six days after six days, Jesus took Peter James and John. His brother led them up on a high mountain by themselves. And he was transfigured before them. His face shone like the sun and his clothes became as white as the light and behold,
Moses and Elijah appeared to them, talking with him. Then Peter answered and said, gee said to Jesus, Lord, it is good for us to be here. If you wish, let us make your three Tabernacles. One for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah, while he was still speaking behold, a bright cloud, overshadowed them. And suddenly a voice came out of the cloud saying,
this is my beloved son in whom I am well pleased. Hear him, Peter, in his lack of understanding witnesses Jesus on the mountain with Moses and Elijah, the two individuals from the old Testament that stood for everything that the old Testament was. And Peter, without understanding the significance of what it was, he was saying said, Lord, let us build three Tabernacles,
one for you. And one for, for Moses and one for Elijah and God corrects him. God said, this is my beloved son. Hear him? God says these two. They’re not even in the same category as this one. They’re not the Messiah. He is. They’re not deity in the flesh. He is hear him. So now Peter reminds them of this,
by the way, he’s not telling them something. They haven’t already heard that. They probably already read the book of Matthew and Luke. They knew the account. They knew Peter was there, but he’s reminding them of this. I was there. He’s not only confirming what Matthew wrote and what Pete, what Luke wrote, but he’s reminding them saying, listen,
we know that of which we speak. We heard God’s voice. But then he says, we heard this voice, which came from heaven when we were with him on the Holy mountain. And so we have the prophetic word confirmed, which you do well to heat as a light that shines in a dark place until the day dawns and the, and the morning star rises in your hearts.
This idea of, of the, the day star that that’s here, the idea, listen, you’ve got all of these things that you’re unsure of. You have all of this life that you’ve had in the past. All of the things that you thought you knew until you actually came into contact with the word of God. And now God’s word is shining through the darkness and it’s the light in your life.
And you hold onto that light. You won’t always understand everything around you. You own always understand why things happen the way they do, but you focus on that light. It goes right back to that idea of present truth. It’s the one thing you can always know and always trust. So he says, knowing this first understand, first of all, set this as the establishing reality.
When you look at the word of God, knowing this first that no prophecy of scripture is of any private interpretation for prophecy never came by the will of man, but Holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy spirit. Some people will read verse 20 and then they’ll comment on verse 20 ignoring the fact that it’s right in the middle of a sentence,
do not read verse 20 without verse 21, because 21 is the context for 20. When Peter says no prophecy is of any private interpretation, he’s not talking about how we interpret or understand the prophecy. He’s not saying that they, that we will all reach the exact same conclusion about everything. God says, that’s not the interpretation that he’s using there. He says,
no. Prophecy is of any private interpretation for prophecy came or never came by the will of man. The interpretation he’s talking about is the origination of the prophecy. Well, you and I, we, we often in, in modern terms, we’ll use the word interpretation to talk about one. Who’s trying to understand something. That’s not the way Peter’s using it.
Peter’s saying, where did it originate from? Okay, go to Deuteronomy chapter 13 because these two ideas are tied together. Deuteronomy chapter 13, if there arises among you a prophet or a dreamer of dreams, and he gives you a sign or a wonder in the sign, or the wonder comes to pass of which he spoke to you saying, let us go after other gods,
which you have not known and let us serve them. You shall not listen to the words of that prophet or that dreamer of dreams for the Lord. You’re gone is testing you to know whether you love the Lord, your God, with all your heart and with all your soul. You shall walk after the Lord, you’re gone and fear him and keep his commandments and obey his voice.
You shall serve him and hold fast to him. God says, here’s your test. Somebody prophesies something. And then it comes to pass. Well, you don’t automatically believe that he’s a prophet. He may have said something and he may have had some way to know that it was going to come to pass three days from now, someone’s going to write in and tell you about this great thing that happened over here.
And then three days later, somebody rides it and you don’t even realize he paid the guy to wait three days to come and tell you. He said the fact that somebody prophesized something and then it comes to pass isn’t enough. If they then teach you to disobeyed God, if they then tell you things that lead you away from the Lord, instead of to him,
you know their prophecies faults. Now this Is the context of chapter two verse one that we’re headed into. But then he also says this. He says, but that prophet or that dreamer of dreams shall be put to death because he has spoken in order to turn you away from the Lord, your God, that word, he has spoken there. That phrase carries with it.
The idea he spoke from himself, God, didn’t give this message to him. God, didn’t tell him, go tell them this so that you can teach them this. No, it came from their own private interpretation. They prophesied from themselves, not from God. So God says, you find a prophet who prophesies something and it comes to pass. But then he teaches you to go after falsehood.
You put him to death because he’s not a prophet. He doesn’t belong to me or he wouldn’t be teaching you to turn away from me. Now Peter says the origination of a prophecy. Didn’t originate with men. Hosea. Didn’t wake up one day and think I need to start writing. Jeremiah. Didn’t start out as a young man thinking I need to,
I need to start prophesizing. No, they spoke as the Holy spirit, moved them to speak. Now the Holy spirit used their talents, their ability, their personality in their writing and in their prophesying. But there’s a good example of this towards the end of chapter two that we’re going to get into. But when they spoke as profits, they couldn’t change the message.
When the Holy spirit moved them to speak. And sometimes the Holy spirit moved people who weren’t righteous people to speak. Sometimes he moved individuals who had no intention of being a prophet to speak. Sometimes the Holy spirit moved and donkey to speak and not one single time. Did they get any say on what the message was? God determined the message. And that’s what Peter wants you to have confidence in.
When God said, this is my message. And when God confirmed, this is my son, you now can set in stone. There’s no one who can come to you and deny that truth. Now, then he says, but there were also false prophets among the people. You go back into the old Testament and he’s stringing these things forward from the old Testament.
And he mentions They had false prophets before they’ve had them before, and we’re going to have him today. He knows what he says. He says there were also false prophets among the people, even as there will be false teachers among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Lord who bought them and bring on themselves Swift destruction. He said there were false prophets in the past,
there were false prophets in the old Testament, Deuteronomy chapter 13, warns you about those and you better believe there’s false teachers. Now, there, there are some who have a mentality that we shouldn’t speak out against people who are teaching false doctrine. Peter would not fall into that category. He would not be one of those people who would think that, because notice what he’s about to say.
He says, not only have they secretly brought in things that this wasn’t done openly, this wasn’t done with everybody speaking together and communicating and everybody giving their, I know this was done in secret. He said they secretly brought in things and have denied the Lord who bought them notice. First and foremost, he does not suggest these pers, these people were not Christians.
Did the Lord purchase the salvation of anyone who has not been obedient to him. I’m not saying this in the Calvinistic sense where somebody says, Oh, well Lord only spilled his blood for those who would ultimately be a tone. No, what I’m saying is if they were bought, they were bought with a price and they were only bought with a price based upon actually being obedient to God.
That’s called redemption. Here they are. They’ve been obedient to God, but now they’ve turned a side and they’ve started bringing these things in secretly. And they’re denying the Lord. If you turn over to Hebrews chapter six, you’ll read about that. You turn over to Hebrews chapter 10. You’ll read about it again. People who will fully turn their back on God.
And yet these are their teachers. He says many will follow their destructive ways because, uh, because of whom, the way of truth will be blast themed. There’s a little kind of subtle warning here. When you see someone rise up and they begin teaching something different and a whole bunch of people in the church start following them. That should be a warning sign.
Not a Greenlight. That should be a, Hey, wait, Whoa, wait a minute. Why is there suddenly something new that no one else realized and no one else understood. And now everybody thinks it’s all the craze. Peter said, you better pay attention because these things aren’t happening without you being aware of them. If you’re paying attention, he says by covetousness,
they will exploit you with deceptive words for a long time. Their judgment has been, or has not been idle. And their destruction does not slumber. He’s talking about teachers in the church. He’s not talking about false prophets. He’s not talking about pagans coming in and telling them they need to be worshiping Astor and, and bale. And no he’s talking about teachers in the church.
And he says to them for if God did not spare the angels who sinned, but cast them down to hell and delivered them into chains of darkness, to be reserved for judgment and did not spare the ancient world, but saved Noah. One of eight people of preacher of righteousness, bringing in the flood on the world of the ungodly and turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah into ashes,
condemn them to destruction, making them an example to those who afterward would live on godly and delivered righteous lot, who was oppressed by the filled deep conduct of the world for that righteous man dwelling among them tormented his righteous soul from day to day, by seeing and hearing their lawless deeds. Then before we get to the conclusion, the then statement, because this is an if then statement go back through that list real quick,
just as a bullet point list and notice who he’s categorized, the angels who sinned the ancient world in the days of Noah Sodom and Gomorrah. Those are his three examples to compare the destruction of false teachers in the church to, if God knew how to bring about destruction on these three groups of people and at the same time, protect righteous lot in the midst of their evil,
then the Lord, Oh wait, then verse nine. The Lord knows how to deliver the godly out of temptations and to reserve the unjust under punishment for the day of judgment. And he’s talking about false teachers in the church. Yes. This has always been kind of like our higher education is very destructive. I guess the very premise of this in order to get a doctorate in theology,
you kind of have to come up with that thesis. Yup. Yup. Uh, it, it is astounding how, how that works. You know, this whole idea that with higher education, when you hit a doctorate level, you’ve got to put together a thesis and there’s gotta be something, you know, unique about it. You’ve got to put together all the new,
new study, new knowledge and not saying it couldn’t be done the right way, but let’s face it. Most people who are still going through their education at that period in their life, don’t do it the right way. They’re there. They’re looking for something new. And, and, you know, Paul mentioned that if yes, Paul mentioned there in Athens,
what, what was it that the, the astute learners and the astute scholars of Athens were doing on a daily basis, they were looking to always hear something new. They wanted to hear something new. And if you came into town and you said, well, I know something you all haven’t learned yet. You got a platform to speak because they were always looking for something new.
Peter said, what’s been delivered to you. Number one, it’s not changing. Number two. It’s absolutely true. Number three, it’s present truth. It is true now and will always be, and number four, it originated with God and not man, but there will be those among you who will leave it. And for, and notice this whole background.
He said, here, this is the fundamental basic that he said in this context of their motivation, he said, covetousness, the desire for earthly gain will be the motivation for this happening. But then notice he goes on. He says, the Lord knows how to reserve the unjust under punishment and, uh, under punishment for the day of judgment. And especially those who walk according to the flesh in the lush of uncleanness and despise authority.
Second foundational principle of these individuals who will become false teachers. Number one, self-interest, that’s what covetousness always ultimately is. It’s selfishness. And number two men who despise authority, you can’t tell me what to do. You can’t tell me what to preach. You. You can’t, you can’t tell me that this means that and this other, you can’t tell me that God said these two things.
These two attributes will bring about false teachers every time. So then he says they are presumptuous. Self-willed they are not afraid to speak evil of dignitaries. Whereas angels who are greater in power and might do not bring a reviling accusation against them before the Lord. He said, these people, they know no limits. They have no authority. They will not balk out.
And they will even speak evil of those who are above them, where angels. And we’re talking about literally angels here. This is not just the idea of messengers. This is the idea of, of angels. Angels in heaven will rebuke someone, but only through the Lord, you find the occasion. I think it’s over in Jude where Jude speaks about Michael rebuking,
Satan, by the word of the Lord, but not by his word. This idea that they so reverence via Thoratec of God and everyone in whom God has instilled authority. This is the same idea by the way that David had concerning Saul. David said, I won’t lift my hand against the Lord’s anointed. Well, wait a minute. Saul was unrighteous.
Saul was doing things that were wrong. Saul Saul was unhinged, literally. And yet David said, no, no, no, no, God put him there. I’m not speaking against him. God put him there. I’m not taking his life. If God put him there, God knows how to get him out, but not these false teachers. So then he says,
but these, but these like natural brute beasts made to be caught and destroyed, speak evil of the things they do not understand and will utterly perish in their own corruption and will receive the wages of unrighteousness. As those who count it pleasure to corrals in the daytime. They are spots and blemishes carousing in their own deceptions while they feast with you. He pictures these false teachers as dumb animals.
Not that they aren’t powerful, not their, they aren’t cunning in their ability to, to hunt. Now that they’re not those who are deceptive in their ways, but those who ultimately fall prey to men, I mean, let’s face it. There are a lot of powerful creatures that have lived on this earth and which ones of them haven’t ultimately met their demise,
that the cunning of men. And yet Peter says, they think they’re smart. They think they’re coming. They think they’re doing it in secret notice they’ve they figured these things out in secret as if God doesn’t know, but they’re just carrying on the long tradition of the people all the way back in the old Testament who thought we’re going to do this? And God won’t know.
There’s prophecy after prophecy, after prophecy about Israel living that way, we’re going to do this and God will never find out. And every time God says, who do you think I am? That I don’t know? And that I won’t bring you into judgment. And he says, so here, these people are they’re dumb, like brute beasts. Why are they dumb?
Like rubies? Because they haven’t learned the lessons of the past because they aren’t looking to the wisdom of the old Testament and the wisdom of those who have gone before to see their mistakes and correct them in their own lives. They’re too. Self-interested they’re too self willed. They’re too self-absorbed. And so the easiest way to take down a ferocious creature, that’s only worried about himself is use his own self desires to ensnare him.
And that’s what God’s going to do. But then he says this, he said, they’re going to be as those who corrals in the day. What’s that a description of it. They have nothing else to do except evil. Okay. There’s people in, here’s the, here’s the kind of the analogy. There’s the people who corrals at night. You know,
they work all day long. There’s there’s country song after country selling about this. You know, they work all day long. They’re straight laced and everything. The minute five o’clock happens. They’re off nothing but corrals until morning time. And they’re back at the job just like everything’s normal. No, he said, these are those people. These are the people who never stop partying.
It’s party from morning until morning and all the next day, until they drop all they care about is themselves. All they want is the next high. All they want is the next pleasure. And he said, these people’s judgment. Now, remember, he’s talking not about those who corrals during the day, he said their judgments coming. He’s talking about false teachers.
And he says their judgment is going to be just like theirs. They have forsaken or verse 14, having eyes full of adultery that cannot cease from sin, enticing, unstable souls. They have a heart trained in covetous practices and are a cursed children, but he was rebuked for his iniquity. A dunk, wait a minute. I have, I have skipped a verse.
All right. So he calls them dumb children, uh, or excuse me, your curse children getting my analogies confused because there’s so many different ones here. He calls them the curse children. And now he’s going to go to that example. I mentioned earlier, he said they have forsaken the right way and have gone astray following the way of bailing. The son of beore who loved the wages of unrighteousness,
but he was rebuked for his iniquity, a dumb donkey speaking with a man’s voice, restrained the madness of the prophet. You go back in your Bibles to the book of numbers and you will go through and notice the story bailed them is approached by who may lack the King of Moab King of Moab, by the way, kin folks to the Israelites, but didn’t want them there.
Knew what God had told them, knew that they would be coming back, knew what had happened on the way out of Egypt, but he didn’t want them going through their land. BeyLat comes to bail them, bail him as a prophet, tells bail them. I’ll pay you whatever you ask curse the children of Israel. And Balal makes it clear over and over and over again.
Even though he desires the reward, even though he desires to do what Baylock says, desires to achieve these things, he repeats over and over again. I can only speak what the Lord puts in my mouth. And so Baylock will bring bailed them up to a mountain and show him the people of Israel down below. And he’ll ha say, go curse them and he’ll stand up to speak and he’ll bless them instead.
Why? Because that’s what God put in his mouth. No prophecy came by private interpretation. Baylor wanted a curse to come out. And what did he come? What came out instead a blessing. Why? Because the Holy spirit moved him to speak a blessing. So the second time again, Bailey, I tries again, alright, bale them go curse them.
And he stands up to speak after reminding him whatever the Lord puts in my mouth. That’s what I’m going to say. And he stands up to speak and he blesses them again. Baylock is irate. At this point, it happens a third time. And finally Baylock decides he needs a new course of action. But Bay Salem being the dishonest, greedy and self interested person that he was would inform Bay lack.
I can’t curse them for you, but I can tell you how to get them to curse themselves. And Bay lack will send the women of Moab in to bring the men of Israel back to commit fornication and idolatry. And we’ll achieve his goal of cursing Israel through the sin of, Oh, wait a minute. What did Peter call them? Stable souls,
you and I, as members of the church, we have to watch out for other members of the church. Not only for those who are, might become false teachers or be false teachers, we have to watch out for those. But we’ve got to watch out for our brethren who maybe aren’t as knowledgeable and are maybe going to get caught unaware by a false teacher.
And we need to watch out for them and help protect them. That’s by the way, one of the job of elders, one of the very specific jobs of elderships is that they are to stand up and rebuke one who teaches falsehood, not because of that person specifically, but because of everyone else who might be deceived by that falsehood. So then we read,
he said they, he was rebuked for his iniquity, a dumb donkey speaking with a man’s voice restrained the madness of the prophet. These are Wells without water clouds carried by a Tempest for whom is reserved. The blackness of darkness forever. Peter holds back no, no description at all for the destruction and the judgment and the punishment of false teachers for when they speak great swelling,
words of emptiness. They allure through the lust of the flesh, through lewdness the ones who have actually escaped from those who live in error. He said their descriptions, their words, their fancy way of speaking. They’re their imaginative ways of bringing people in contact with their own desires. I don’t know if you’ve ever done this, but take a moment at some point and look at the styles of worship in the churches around here and ask yourself whoever thought that that was enticing to people,
because it’s the only reason they’re doing it is it’s enticing to people. And it’s described right here. They will convince people to follow their own desires and Euless while convincing them. It’s obedient to God. And that’s the absolute epitome of quote unquote Christianity in America today. Follow what you enjoy. Do what makes you feel good? And that’s spirituality. It’s no surprise that there are preachers and televangelists throughout the world who have one topic.
They’ll never talk about sin that there cannot be any question as to why Joel Olsteen has said, there’s one topic I’ll never preach on sin. It doesn’t fit the message. I’ll just put it that way and it doesn’t fit what the people are there for. Oh, almost made it. He tried. I mean, he’s, he’s back there. He’s just like,
alright, let’s go through the questions. We’ll pick up with the last few verses at the beginning of next class. Question number one. How has God given us everything pertaining to life and godliness, all right. By his divine power, through the knowledge of him, either one of those answers or both of them combined would be the correct answer. Yes or no.
Are there qualities which a Christian should add to his faith? Yes. What will be the result of adding those qualities to your faith righteousness? Um, let’s see entrance to the everlasting kingdom. Yes. All right. So I, my brain is, I was answering it. I didn’t go read the verse. So I put, they would never fall,
but that’s verse 10, verse 11 is the correct one. And that is, uh, the, the four. So, and entrance will be supplied to you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom. So entrance into the kingdom. Uh, how did Peter know the things which he had taught by the way that should be chapter one, verse 16, not chapter two,
verse 16. I witness in second, Peter Peter spoke of his death as a soon, be distant or see on known soon. Number five. Where did Peter say that prophecies originated? Holy spirit. According to Peter who would distort the truth, false prophets or false teachers, either one of those answers be fine. Uh, question number seven. How can a person become enslaved to sin that again,
by following, after his own sinful desires or being overcome through corruption. Okay. We are dismissed.
Good morning. It’s good to see everybody here at Collierville church of Christ. Sunday morning, worship service. I hope everybody’s dealing with the heat real well. It’s normal July. So what can we say? Um, if you’re VeriStor, we’d appreciate it.
If you’d fill out a barrister’s card, by the way, it’s good to see Rebecca back over in that corner. The day she’d been out, down in Florida, most of the summer, but, uh, if you are a visitor, we’d appreciate if you’d fill out a visitor’s card. So we’ll have a record of your attendance. Uh, we want to remind everybody well,
most everybody’s regular here this morning, but by picking up your communion, cert supplied back there, uh, we need to remember. I said the Wilson’s Rodale and Dorothy and Joan Springer. They’re still battling with their illnesses. Pam shaving still down in her back and Sylvia had her MRI, but she probably won’t know anything about that until Thursday when she goes back to the doctor.
So the nation wide gospel meeting flyers are out on for your table. We’ll have a man’s meeting tomorrow night at 6:30 PM here at the building. And we have a card from Jackie Ross. Her brother passed away a few weeks ago and he said, I would like to thank everyone for showing up showing so much love during the past passing of my brother, Maurice Porter.
Thank you for all the cards, prayers, and kindnesses comforting word. And you are the best jacket Ross. Well, Eric just reminded me about the, excuse me. The hand sanitizer that we’re using is not on the FDA recall list. There’s a lot of hand side hand sanitizers AF pair that are, and you can find out about it by going on the FDA recall list on your internet,
uh, Marie will be leaving sang, and Joe has the opening prayer. Mark Phillips has the lower supper. Aaron has the, a sermon and I will have the closing prayer 227 on science, Gloria<inaudible> I heard the song and hear all his first<inaudible><inaudible><inaudible> to<inaudible> to<inaudible>. Oh,<inaudible><inaudible> like me.<inaudible><inaudible><inaudible><inaudible><inaudible><inaudible><inaudible><inaudible> Right.
Oh God. Our father in heaven. We, they come before your throne realizing that you are God and that all things were made by you. We’re thankful father for your love for us. And for us creating us in your own image. We’re grateful, dear God, that we have the ability to be able to have the cleansing blood of our savior cleanses from all of our sins are mindful father of this day that we have come together to worship you and we pray it will be in his spirit.
And intruth, we’re so thankful for your word that we’ve been able to study this morning, that we might be strengthened in our faith and have a better understanding of your will father. We pray that we will continue to encourage each other as the days go by and remember one another and prayer often, and try to build up the church here and be allied in this community.
We pray father that you give us the strength and understanding of your word, that we might reach out to those in this area with the gospel that they too might come to an understanding of your will and be obedient to it. Father, we’re grateful for all the members that have gathered here today. And we pray that we remember those that are not able to be with us.
We’re thankful that they can see the streaming online and be with us. And that way we’d know that our hearts and minds are looking to them and thinking about them and praying for them as the days go by father. We pray that you be with those that are ELL of this congregation, as well as friends and neighbors of ours. We pray that they might receive the attention.
They need to regain that out. We pray father that you help us to each day be mindful of those that are going through difficult times. And we especially want to remember the children at Potter and the own blood mothers there. We’re so thankful for those that are working in that work and for the instruction that they’re giving you, these young people that they to come to knowledge of your will and be obedient to it.
Father we’re mindful of those and other lands, teaching and preaching your word. We pray your blessings to be upon them, help us to be an encouragement to them that they continue reach those souls and those different areas. Father, we’re so grateful for every blessing that we have in the, we pray that we, as we come together today and sing these songs of praise,
that the words and the songs or tugging our heart strings and that we are trying to have better lives because of what we’re singing to the in praise that we are aware of how we live and conduct ourselves upon this earth. We’re so grateful father for our savior. And we pray father that we live each day. That it’s as if it were our last day,
that we try to be faithful and try to be courageous in this world of sin and try to help those that are living in sin to come to your word and be willing to change their lives and live it. After our savior father, we are grateful for Aaron as he has been teaching and preaching the gospel here, he and his family. We pray you continue to bless him and be with him today.
As he brings a lesson, we pray for all those that are ministers of the gospel and pray that you’d help us to encourage them as we’ve had that privilege and opportunity pray father, that you continue to bless us and worship today. And we pray that we’ll always give you the honor and the glory and the praise forever and ever amen. Number 337, as we prepare our minds for the Lord supper.
Number three, three, seven, And a saw rule was a name for the son of God who can ruin<inaudible> claim.<inaudible> bearing shame, man, golfing rude, and my plate condom. Do you hood you my part and with blood? Hi there<inaudible> and<inaudible>, uh, God was he fall a tone, but can it be had, and<inaudible> lift it up.
Was he to die? It is. And it was his cry now and exalt in high high waters.<inaudible> when he comes our Gloria King, all his Ryan son, Hong to bring then a anew, the song Wells DJing. Hi,<inaudible><inaudible> It’s time now to remember the sacrifice that Jesus made on the cross for our sins that is pray having it followed.
We’re thankful for this bread that represents jesus’ body. That was nailed to the cross for the sins of mankind. And we pray heavenly father, you please forgive us of our sins. Amen. Let us pray. Having a father. We’re thankful for this fruit of the vine that represents jesus’ blood. That was shed on the cross for the sins of mankind.
And we pray heavenly father, you please forgive us of our sins. These things we ask in Jesus name, amen, separate from the Lord’s table, have an to give. As we As prosper, let us pray. Heavenly father. We’re thankful for the financial gains you have given us through the years. We pray heavenly father, that you will accept a portion of these back to you to continue the work here at Carver church of Christ,
amen, or the lesson we’ll be singing number 129, number 129. I want to say this. We need to pay particular attention to the words of this song, because Aaron will be centered in his lesson around grace this morning. And I thought, well, this is a good way to get our minds thinking in the right direction and help make this song more meaningful to us.
Oh man. Hey saying gray last week. Uh, uh,<inaudible> uh, uh, uh, uh, wasp, blah, but nah, I see<inaudible> my<inaudible> and gray. My fan<inaudible> uh, eh, the, ah, ah,<inaudible><inaudible> I had, Oh man.<inaudible><inaudible> bro. My said, Hey, uh, uh,<inaudible> me.
Oh,<inaudible> 10th a house. Uh<inaudible><inaudible><inaudible><inaudible> God spray is that when wave five big, um, Our song of encouragement be number nine Oh nine. It will be on the overhead overhead. Now, Aaron, good morning. Take your Bibles if you will, and open them to Zechariah. So we continue our studies in this old Testament book,
this bridge between the old prophets and the new Testament we noticed last week, chapter three and chapter three, we noticed Joshua the high priest standing before God. Again, these things are happening in the vision. These things are being seen by Zechariah. God is showing him these things and Joshua stands there. Of course, Joshua, just for keeping everybody up,
up to date, this isn’t the Joshua of the book of Joshua. This is Joshua. Who’s called Jeshua in the book of Ezra here’s Jeshua. He is standing there before God, but he’s closed in filthy rags. He’s closed with all the sin of Israel and his own sin, but he’s also closed with all the iniquity sin and transgression of the priesthood.
That’s come before from Erin on down, it wasn’t in perfect priesthood. It was a priesthood that was not perfect. It was not sinless. It was among the people who departed from God and brought about the Babylonian captivity. This picture of Israel as a soiled garment. And yet God says, I’m going to take away his iniquities. I’m going to make him clean.
And there stands Joshua, the high priest as a representation of the remnant and as a representation of the people and as a representation of the priesthood. But God says, I’m going bring my servant, the branch. I’m going to lay in Israel, the cornerstone. And I’m going to set upon this. Man’s work the capstone and the seven eyes that look for,
look forth from that capstone into all the world. And so we see as we close out, chapter three in that day, says the Lord of hosts. Everyone will invite his neighbor under his vine and under his fig tree. Now the angel who talked with me, came back and wakened me. This is one of those things that happens in these books that are about visions.
You find it happening over the book of Daniel, Daniel, chapter 18, or chapter eight, verse 18, Daniel’s awake, Daniel seeing visions. And then suddenly we find out Daniel’s asleep. We don’t know why, but the angel wakes up Daniel and shows him something else. Now here, Zechariah says, now the angel returned to me and woke me.
He says, he woke me as a man who was wakened out of his sleep. Zechariah startles awake because the angel has something else to tell him to show him. Did all of these visions happen in Zechariah’s life one right after another, maybe all in one night or did they, were they spanned out over a period of time. We don’t really know concerning all of them,
but what we do know is they’re happening at a time. The first visions are given a specific date. They’re happening at a time where Israel is struggling to complete the temple. Israel is struggling and those in Jerusalem are struggling to build the remainder of the temple. They’ve been set back to work, had guy and Zechariah have prophesied before them. And they’re striving to do what they were sent back to Israel to do.
But they’re under the leadership of two people. Jeshua and<inaudible><inaudible> is not a King. He is a governor. He has been put in this position to lead these people back to build the temple and what God is doing in chapter three is putting his stamp of approval on the high priest. And what he’s going to do in chapter four is put his stamp of approval on the governor and insist that these are his instruments and his men.
So chapter four, Zechariah startled awake. Then he said to me, that is the angel said to him, what do you see? I find this interesting, this, this happens a number of times throughout the vision of the old Testament. This happens at other times when you’re dealing with visions, that the angel comes to the person, having the vision and wants the person who’s having the vision to describe it.
It’s kind of like what teachers do. They will show the student what they’re supposed to be learning, and then ask them, what did you learn? What do you see getting them to bring forth what’s in their mind? And so that’s what the angel does here was Zechariah. He says, what do you see? So I said, I am looking and there is a lampstand of solid gold with a bowl on top of it.
And on the stand seven lamps with seven pipes to the seven lamps. Okay? So he begins to describe the vision. He begins to describe what’s before him. And he describes a light Mustang. He describes a lampstand with, with seven lamps. And this is not something that is abnormal for us. Any of us who have had any acquaintance at all with Jewish imagery,
we’re, we’re familiar with the lampstand with seven lamps, but there’s more to it than that. They’re seven lamps with seven pipes. There’s a bowl on top of the lamps. And these seven pipes are going to the seven lamps, but there’s more, he says there are two olive trees by it, one at the rind of the bowl. And the other edits left.
Go back. If you will, with me to the book of Exodus for a moment, it’s interesting that when Zechariah and God through these visions to Zechariah brings forth these things, he doesn’t take Zechariah back to a vision of Solomon’s temple. He doesn’t remind Zechariah of how majestic the place in Jerusalem was that Solomon built. He takes Zechariah in these visions, back to the tabernacle,
back to that tent in the wilderness, back to that place in a, in a, the near the side of a, of a mountain Mount Sinai, they’re in a place of, of death being deserted by others. It’s a place of wilderness. It’s a place where these people have come. They’ve left Egypt. They have the, the spoils of Egypt,
but they have no home. They have no permanent dwelling place in they’re here. And they build this tabernacle. They build it out of the spoils of Egypt. They build it out of the freewill gifts and offerings of the people. The people gave so much. They finally had to tell them we can’t take anymore. God Takes Zechariah back to that. If you notice in Exodus chapter 25,
Verse 31, you shall also make a lampstand of pure gold. The lampstand shall be of hammered work. It’s shaft, it’s branches, it’s bowls, it’s ornamental knobs and flowers shall be of one piece. And six branches shall come out of its side. Three branches of the lamp stand out of one side and three branches out of the lampstand of the other side,
three bowls shall be made like Allmond blossoms on one brand with an ornamental knob and a flower three bowls made like a almond blossoms on the other branch with an ornamental knob and a flower. And so for the six branches that come out of the lamp, stand on the lampstand itself, four bowls shall be made like almond blossoms each with its ornamental knob and a flower.
And there shall be a nom for under the first two branches of the same, a knob under the second two branches of the same and a nom under the third two branches of the same. According to the six branches, then extend from the lampstand, their knobs and their branches shall be of one piece. All of his shall be one hammered piece of pure gold.
You shall make seven lampstands for, uh, for it. And they shall arrange its lamps so that they give light in front of it. And it’s WIC tremors and their trays shall be of pure gold. It shall be made of a talent of pure gold with all these utensils and see to it that you make them according to the pattern, which was shown you on the mountain.
God tells Moses and Israel through Moses and the craftsman that were given the ability by God to do these things exactly what he wanted. Exactly what it was to look like. Now, here’s Zechariah is he’s. He’s probably never seen that. Lampstand probably never witnessed these things in real life, but yet here he is. And he’s being told, there it is.
He’s seeing it for himself, but he’s seeing something else with it. He sees the lampstand, but turn to Exodus, chapter 40 Exodus chapter 40 verses 24 and 25. As we’re concluding out the book of Exodus, we read concerning Moses. And of course, Moses isn’t necessarily doing all these things by hand he’s causing them to be done. He put the lampstand in the tabernacle of meeting across from the table on the South side of the tabernacle.
And he lit the lamps before the Lord, as the Lord commanded Moses. So here, the lampstand goes into the tabernacle. It goes into the Holy place and it is there that it is lit for the very first time. And it’s done. Don’t miss this in accordance with the commandments of the Lord. So you step back to chapter 24. And what do you find this great lampstand fashioned with very much,
very much with precision and very much with skill, but very much according to the pattern that God gave, and then you jump forward to the lighting of it. And even the lighting of it is done in precision. According to the commandment of the Lord. Now let’s go back over to the Zechariah. Zechariah sees there in chapter four, the lamp stand solid gold with a bowl on top of it.
Well, what’s the bowl doing? We’re going to find that out in a moment, the bowl is there and there are two olive trees. What we’re going to be prompted to understand is that this lamp never goes out. You see if you have a lamp that is being fed because there’s a bowl and someone, an individual has to come by every so often and fill up the bowl.
Imagine as if, if you were because we’ve all done. This we’ve all been to Cracker barrel before, and they’ve got one of the lamps there on the table. What if there’s no oil in the bottom of the lamp? It goes out. It will sit there and it will burn and it will burn. And it will consume the oil. And when the oil runs out,
the light will go out. But not this lampstand, this lamp stand with its seven lambs never go Out. Why? Because it is being fed by the olive trees as they continue to live. And as they continue to grow, they produce the oil that feeds the lamp. You’re getting a picture of God saying the light is before you. And it never goes out.
Imagine if you would the tabernacle, a tent in a hot deserted place by the side of a mountain and the tents built, and there’s the door to the tabernacle and put yourself in the position of the high priest. The tabernacle has been built. It’s been set up. All of the things are over. It. It looks exactly the way God said it was supposed to look.
And then you open the door and you go inside. And the tent flap shuts behind you. And you’re in pitch darkness. Doesn’t matter what time of the day it is because of the way they were told to build it. There’s no natural light in there. The door shut behind you and there’s darkness, except the lamp. The lamp provides the light.
Now walk with me through this because the tabernacle wasn’t just a tent. The tabernacle was a forecasting of God’s relationship to Israel. It was a sign of something that was to come. It was a type of an antique type. And it was a type of the church, the outer area of the tabernacle, the Holy place, where every priest went in on a daily basis to serve that is the church and the veil that stood before that place.
And the most Holy place, the place where the throne of God was the place where the mercy seat was the place where the arc of the covenant was, will veil that stood between the church and God was torn down. When Jesus died. It Is for that reason. Then you remember when Jesus died, that the veil of the temple was rent from top to bottom,
not bottom to top. That’s how a man would re would tear it. But from top to bottom, that’s how God tears it. Man is separated from the throne of God, but no more in and Hebrews chapter four in verse 16 in verses 14 and 15, he says we have a high priest who cannot be touched with the feelings of our infirmities for he was on all points.
Uh, Tim did like, as we are yet without sin, there’s the soiled high priest in chapter three, but there’s the perfect high breezed never touched within equity. Never touched by sin. No sin offering needed to be made for him before he made the atoning offering. He was perfect. He entered into the Holy place and he entered through the Holy place and he entered into the throne of God.
And he made the sacrifice for us, the perfect sacrifice and the perfect high priest. But imagine if you were a high priest on that very first day in the very first tabernacle and you went in and the door shut behind you and it was dark. And imagine yourself standing before God, without his revelation. Imagine standing before the judge of all the earth,
if he had never revealed to us his word, and imagine walking before his throne into the complete unknown in nothing but darkness by way of our knowledge of him. But God didn’t put us in that situation. God, didn’t give us the responsibility to go through this life and try to be obedient to him and into the next life and do so in complete darkness in a complete lack of knowledge,
guessing only what kind of God created this universe and what kind of God would give us all that we have and what kind of God would let sin and suffering and pain and anguish go on in this world. God, didn’t give us that situation. God said, come into my Holy tabernacle and I’ll give you the light. John chapter one, John chapter one is one of those passages that you need to have footnoted next to Zechariah chapter four,
because John chapter one says in the beginning was the word and the word was with God. And the word was, God notice. First and foremost, that the whole premise of John chapter one is there is a revelation and it is embodied in Jesus Christ. The word was, God, the word was with God. The word was in the beginning. He was in the beginning with God.
All things were made through him. And without him was nothing made that was made in him was life. And the life was the light of men. And the light shines in the darkness and the darkness did not comprehend it. John says, Jesus Christ is the light turn to revelation. Chapter two revelation actually revelation chapter one, revelation chapter one, we find this same picture revelation chapter one beginning in verse 12 in verse 11,
Jesus introduces himself as the alpha, the Omega, the first and the last, but then verse 12. Then I turned to see now here’s John and his vision. Now, as I’ve mentioned before, I’m going to keep saying it shared imagery doesn’t mean same interpretation. Okay? But get the imagery. Chapter two, chapter one, verse 12. Then I turned to see the voice that spoke with me and having turned.
I saw seven golden lamp stands. And in the midst of the seven lampstands one, like the son of man clothed with a garment down to the feet and girded about the chest with a golden band, his head and hair were white, like wool, as white as snow and his eyes were like a flame of fire. His feet were like fine brass.
Is it refined in a furnace? And his voice as the sound of many waters he had in his right hand, seven stars out of his mouth when a sharp twoedged sword and his countenance was like the sun shining in its strength. John turns to see who’s talking to him and he sees Jesus one like the son of man. And as he turns to see,
he also sees the lampstand. Now, John, why would you be describing the lampstand? You’re not part of Israel anymore. You’re not under the old Testament. You don’t go to the tabernacle because the tabernacle was pointing forward. The light of God, there pointed towards the light of God that shown not as seven lamps in a dark room, but as the sun in all of its brilliance,
chapter two, verse one to the angel of the church of Ephesus, write these things, says he who holds the seven stars in his right hand, who walks in the midst of the seven golden lamp stands back in Zechariah chapter four. When you see the lampstands, you see the eternal light of God. And now you’re going to see Zechariah get pulled into understanding what that means.
He sees the two olive trees that are buy it one at the right of the bowl and the other end it’s left. So I answered and spoke to the angel who talked with me saying, what are these? My Lord Zechariah sees what he sees. He, he, he, he can see it, but he doesn’t know what it means. And so he asked,
what are these? Then the angel who talked with me answered and said to me, do you not know what these are? And I said, no, my Lord, the angel ass much, again like a teacher, do you not understand provoking the one who’s learning the one who’s seeing these things to admit he needs help to understand these things. John will experience the same thing.
John will be asked by the angel, what is this? What do you see? What does it mean? And John will reply. You know, as if to say, don’t ask me, you tell me. So he answered and said to me, this is the word of the Lord.<inaudible> not by might nor by power. But by my spirit says the Lord of hosts,
who are you? Oh, great mountain before. Zerubbabel you shall become a plain. And he shall bring forth the capstone with shouts of grace, grace To it, zero will says, or sorry. Zechariah says, I don’t know what this means. Explain it to me. And the angel says, what you see is the word of the Lord. What you see is the revelation of God to<inaudible>.
What you see is God using his revelation to bring forth the governor that would stand and bring forth. What’s coming over and over. I’ve said, Zechariah’s the bridge. And he’s ringing forward the imagery of the prophets. And he’s bringing forward the profits from before from Isaiah and Jeremiah and Elijah and others. He’s bringing forward Moses and his lampstand and those things that they declared about the future.
And now he’s pointing them to here, the governor<inaudible> and beyond him to the Christ. He says, this is the word of the Lord. Not by might, nor by power. All of this is happening to a small ragtag group of people in a small, up until 16 years before deserted city in a small place in the middle of the world that looked like it had no significance at all.
And yet God says, it’s not going to be by Mike. What I’m going to do. I’m not going to do through some great army and it’s not going to be by power. It’s not going to be what this world would expect, but it’s going to be by the spirit of God. What’s that revelation. God says, you look around you and you don’t see all the power.
You think you need, you look around you and you don’t see the army that you need to defend. You. You look around you and you see a temple. That’s nothing By comparison to what came before. And yet all you need to remember is I’m here. And that’s where we read. Who are you? Oh, great mountain. I’m firmly convinced.
This is a reference back to previous prophets and their prophecies of Babylon. Cause remember Israel went away into Babylon. They went away into captivity, but God gave the King of Babylon a message. God gave Nebuchadnezzar a vision of a mountain that would be carved out without hands a mountain that wouldn’t originate with the greatest King in a line of Kings, in a line of nations,
Nebuchadnezzar being the first and the head of gold, bringing about nation after nation, after nation. And yet God would set up a kingdom that would like them away and would set up a kingdom that would never be destroyed. And it wouldn’t be by might. And it wouldn’t be by military power. It would be by his word before it’s irrevocable, you shall become a plain and he shall bring forth the capstone.
Now verse seven needs to get connected back to the stone, talked about in chapter three, the stone with the seven eyes. Okay. We we’ve talked about God laying the foundation and the chief cornerstone, but we also talked about the capstone, the very last stone to go on top of the temple. The very last piece of that temple to be created.
Here’s the capstone in the eyes, looking out, God saying I see everything and Zerubbabel brings that forward. And he does. So with shouts, with shouts of grace, turned to Ezra. As soon as I figured out where I wrote this down as we chapter three, this is from the time of the foundation being laid, but it sets the picture that I think you need to get from this of the capstone.
The very last piece of the, of the temple being laid chapter three, verse 10 of Ezra. When the builders laid the foundation of the temple of the Lord, the priest stood in their repair roll with trumpets and the Levites and the sons of ASAP with symbols and praise to the Lord. According to the ordinance of David King of Israel. And they sang responsively,
praising and giving things to the Lord for is good for his mercy endures forever toward Israel, mercy, and goodness, grace. Isn’t it. The goodness of God and his mercy extended together, isn’t it grace. But then he says, then all the people shouted with a great shout and they praise the Lord because the foundation of the Lord’s house was laid.
And here’s the rest of the context, but many of the priests and Levis and heads of the father’s houses, old men who had seen the first Tembel leapt with a loud voice when the foundation of this temple was laid before their eyes yet, and many shouted aloud for joy so that the people could not discern the noise of the shallow of joy from the noise of the weeping of the people for the people shouted with a loud shout.
And the sound was heard of far off. This shout goes up when the last stone goes on top of the temple, grace, grace to it, God you’ve been with us this far. Don’t turn your back on us. Now extend your grace. There are some people who say there is no grace in the old Testament. They haven’t read Zechariah chapter four,
apparently because it’s right here because it’s, God’s saying it’s not you. And it’s not your strength and it’s not your goodness. And it’s not your righteousness. It’s me, it’s mine, but I’m giving it to you. I will make you what you ought to be. Verse eight. Moreover, the word of the Lord came to me saying, now here’s the remainder of Ezra chapter three.
Here’s the, they saw the foundation laid and there was a shout of joy and there was the praise to God, but there was also the sorrow at what they were seeing in comparison to the old temple. Moreover, the word of the Lord came to me saying the hands of<inaudible> have laid the foundation of this temple. His hands shall also finish it.
Then you will know that the Lord of hosts has sent me to you. God says through the angel to Zachariah this governor, this man will finish the temple. This man will bring forth what I commanded. And then you will know that he’s mine and that he’s doing my work. Then we read that the Lord of hosts has sent me to you for who has the day of small things for these seven rejoice to see the plumb line in the hand of the rubble.
What was the plumb line? The used for you hung it from the top to make sure everything was straight. Everything was according to the pattern. Everything was exactly the way the architect designed it to be well who’s the architect is God. And you see the governor and you see him holding the plum line and the seven are witnessing it. What seven, the seven lampstands.
This is the bringing about the enacting of the revelation of God and the word of God taking place in their lives. He sees a rebel with a plumb line. He says, they are the eyes of the Lord, which scan to and fro throughout the whole earth. Then I answered and said to him, what are these two olive trees? Okay. So,
so John gets, or excuse me, Zechariah gets this. And he says, Oh, okay, I’ve got the lampstands. What are the olive trees? I I’ve got that. I need the rest of the vision. What, what, what are they? He says, what are these two olive trees at the Rite of lampstand? And then it’s left.
And I further answered and said to him, what are these two olive branches that drip into the receptacles of the two gold pipes from which the golden oil drains. Now you’ve got the full picture. You see, it’s not just that. There were two olive trees on either side of the lampstand, but the two olive trees have two branches. And from them continually drips the oil that keeps the lamp eternally lit.
Now you can’t read Zechariah chapter four and read about two olive trees until you and finish reading that until you go read revelation, chapter 11, revelation chapter 11. Then I was given a read verse one like a measuring rod and the angel stood and said rise and measure the temple of God, the altar and those who worship there, but leave out the court,
which is outside the temple and do not measure it for it has been given to the Gentiles and they will tread the Holy city under foot for 42 months. And I will give power to two witnesses. I alright, two witnesses keep track of those. I will give power to my two witnesses and they will prophesize 1,260 days clothed in sackcloth. Hmm. What is sat cloth?
It’s filthy rags to witnesses and their profits. Two witnesses. And they’re looking at Jerusalem, two witnesses, and they’re seeing the destruction. That’s coming two witnesses and they’re mourning. That’s why you put sackcloth on. These are the two olive trees and the two lampstands standing before the God of the earth. And if anyone wants to harm them, fire proceeds from their mouth and devours their enemies.
And if anyone wants to harm them, he must be killed in this manner. As if to say, here are people who are enemies of God and they say, we’re going to put out the light of God. We’re going to stop the prophecies of God. We’re going to stop the word of God. And yet from these olive trees, proceeds fire and destroys the enemies of God.
We’ve never known of a prophet who destroyed the enemies of God with fire from heaven. Did we? Oh yeah. Yeah. We’ve seen that, but there’s a little bit more because notice he says these have power to shut heaven so that no rain falls in the days of their prophecy. Oh, wait a minute. Who did that? Oh, that’d be Elijah.
And they have power over water to turn them to blood. Wait a minute. Who did that? That’d be Moses. And to strike the earth with all plagues, as often as they desire who did that? That’s Moses, God says, here are my profits and they’re not letting the light go out and they’re going to stand and they’re going to prophesize.
And my word is going to come forth. And my light is going to come forth from them and they will defend the truth. They will defend the light and they have been given power by me to do so. Now shared doesn’t mean shared interpretation because those aren’t this tame to olive trees in Zechariah chapter four, but you needed to see those to get these because here are Moses and Elijah who stand as the four runners of Christ.
Oh, wait a minute. Who met with Christ on the Mount of transfiguration in Matthew chapter 17, Moses and Elijah. And they talked with him in the mountain about the death. He was about to suffer and were told that. But in chapter four of Zechariah, it’s not Moses. And Elijah, he says, then he answered me and said, do you not know what these are?
And I said, no, my Lord. So he said, these are the two anointed ones who stand before or excuse me, beside the Lord of the whole earth. Wait a minute. Which two anointed ones, these aren’t two Kings. These are Jeshua.<inaudible> the high priest and the governor chapter three and chapter four. He said, they’re not going to let the light go out for who has despised the day of small things,
two olive trees and a lampstand. Well, how much light can it give all the light? They need to olive trees in a lampstand. Won’t they eventually be destroyed. No, because God will be their defense, two men and a remnant. Will they be able to do what God said they would do? Oh yes. Why not? Because of Mike and not because of power,
but because of the word of the Lord, because God chose them and told them he would be with them in the same way. God chose Moses and Elijah and said, I’ll be with you now go. Now we need to bring all of this forward to us. We have the word of the Lord. We have everything it’s told us to do and everything it’s promised about what’s to come and that light will never go out.
And that light in bodied in Christ is the light. And the one who spoke to those churches in revelation chapter two and chapter three, and told them to the one who overcomes I will give a crown of life. But to the one who turns his back to the one who becomes self-interested to the one who gives in to Satan to the one who turns his back,
when brought about, or when temptation or when testing is, is brought about to that one, I’ll fight against them. Isn’t it interesting that in revelation 11, when you see the two trees, they’re measuring out the judgment against Israel, they’re measuring Israel to show they come up lacking. They’re measuring out the judgment that is going to come about against a nation that turned its back on God.
But in Zechariah chapter four, there, the hope for the future God’s word is always present. It’s always present to shine, a light of truth and a light of judgment and the determination and the terminating factor is which side of his truth will we be on? Will we be on the side of truth or will we stand against him and opposing if you’re here this morning and you’re outside the body of Christ,
you don’t stand with the truth because you haven’t submitted to it. You haven’t put on Christ and been immersed in water for the remission of your sins. You haven’t been covered in the blood of the lamb. The sacrifice doesn’t cover you, but it can, you can hear the word of God and believe that Jesus Christ is the son of God. You can repent of your sins and confess the name of Christ.
You can be immersed in water, die to sin and rise to walk in newness of life, a toned, clean made pure, and you can then follow the light of God by being obedient to the revelation that he’s given. If you’re outside the body of Christ, you have the opportunity To obey now. And always, if you’re a member of the body of Christ and maybe you’ve become a little bit like the remnant,
that’s lost. Hope you need to remember the light. Hasn’t gone out. If you have need of the invitation, why not come now? As we stand in, as we sing<inaudible><inaudible> me thirsty.<inaudible> rock dance class.<inaudible> that may not is here. Watershed.<inaudible> Certainly appreciate Aaron’s sermon today. I know it’s one that we gain much knowledge from and much strength from when we know that it’s God’s word that leads us through life and we need to be faithful to the word.
Now we’ll have a closing prayer and brother terrier, sander simulators. I was probably father who art in heaven. We thank thee for this beautiful first day of the week and an opportunity to we’ve had to come together as your children to study that word and then worship you the only true and living God, we pray that we have learned something that will help us in our everyday lives to be stronger.
Christians. We pray that you would remember. Those are our number that are sick and unable to be here. We pray that you would restore them to their health, hormone health to enable them to be back with us. We pray that you would go with us now and keep us safe. We return again in Christ name. We pray. Amen.