THE TESTIMONY OF JESUS CHRIST

1
(No Transcript)
2
The Three Angels' Messages

• 18. WHAT IS THE TESTIMONY OF JESUS CHRIST?

3
ELLEN G. WHITE, TESTIMONIES FOR THE CHURCH, VOL.
9, pp. 11-16

• We are living in the time of the end. The
  calamities by land and sea, the unsettled state
  of society, the alarms of war, are portentous.
  The daily papers are full of indications of a
  terrible conflict in the near future. Bold
  robberies are of frequent occurrence. Strikes are
  common. Thefts and murders are committed on every
  hand. Men possessed of demons are taking the
  lives of men, women, and little children. Men
  have become infatuated with vice, and every
  species of evil prevails

4
ELLEN G. WHITE CONTINUES...

• In the great cities there are multitudes living
  in poverty and wretchedness, well-nigh destitute
  of food, shelter, and clothing while in the same
  cities are those who have more than heart could
  wish, who live luxuriously, spending their money
  on richly furnished houses, on personal
  adornment, or worse still, upon the gratification
  of sensual appetites, upon liquor, tobacco, and
  other things that destroy the powers of the
  brain, unbalance the mind, and debase the soul.
  On one occasion, when in New York City, I was in
  the night season called upon to behold buildings
  rising story after story toward heaven. These
  buildings were warranted to be fireproof, and
  they were erected to glorify the owners and
  builders

5
As these lofty buildings went up, the owners
rejoiced with ambitious pride that they had money
to use in gratifying self and provoking the envy
of their neighbours. Much of the money that they
thus invested had been obtained through exaction,
through grinding down the poor. They forgot that
in heaven an account of every business
transaction is kept every unjust deal, every
fraudulent act, is there recorded. The scene that
next passed before me was an alarm of fire. Men
looked at the lofty and supposedly fire-proof
buildings and said They are perfectly safe. But
these buildings were consumed as if made of
pitch. The fire engines could do nothing to stay
the destruction. The firemen were unable to
operate the engines
6
There are not many, even among educators and
statesmen, who comprehend the causes that
underlie the present state of society. Those who
hold the reins of government are not able to
solve the problem of moral corruption, poverty,
pauperism, and increasing crime. They are
struggling in vain to place business operations
on a more secure basis. If men would give more
heed to the teaching of God's word, they would
find a solution of the problems that perplex
them. Absorbed in worldly business and pleasure,
the antediluvians knew not until the Flood came,
and took them all away. They had heaven-sent
warnings, but they refused to listen.
7
Not all in this world have taken sides with the
enemy against God. Not all have become disloyal.
Soon the battle will be waged fiercely between
those who serve God and those who serve Him not.
Soon everything that can be shaken will be
shaken, that those things that cannot be shaken
may remain. Satan is a diligent Bible student.
God's people will not find their safety in
working miracles, for Satan will counterfeit the
miracles that will be wrought. God's tried and
tested people will find their power in the sign
spoken of in Exodus 3112-18. They are to take
their stand on the living word "It is written."
This is the only foundation upon which they can
stand securely.
8
WHO IS ELLEN G. WHITE?

• Background History
• Ellen G. White received her first vision in
  December of 1844. prior to her first vision,
  Ellen had been a prophet for 65 years. She served
  as a prophet for 70 years prior to her death. She
  received over 4000 visions, dreams, and wrote
  over 100, 000 pages. Books such as Desire of
  Ages, the Great Controversy, Steps to Christ,
  Ministry of Healing, Education, and wrote on
  every subject imaginable to man, with just 2.5
  years of education.

9
WHAT ABOUT ELLEN G. WHITES PREDICTIONS
CONCERNING THE PAPACY?

• Biblically, lets examine two predictions in
  DANIEL 725.
• Times and Laws
• 1260 years Prophecy
• What does it mean to change times?
• ACTS 17
• And he said unto them, It is not for you to know
  the times or the seasons, which the Father hath
  put in his own power.
• Times or seasons refer to prophetic events

10
WHAT ARE PROPHETIC EVENTS?

• 1 THESSALONIANS 51, 2
• But of the times and the seasons, brethren, ye
  have no need that I write unto you. For
  yourselves know perfectly that the day of the
  Lord so cometh as a thief in the night.
• Prophetic Events refer to prophetic calendar
• DANIEL 425 Nebuchadnezzar
• That they shall drive thee from men, and thy
  dwelling shall be with the beasts of the field,
  and they shall make thee to eat grass as oxen,
  and they shall wet thee with the dew of heaven,
  and seven times shall pass over thee, till thou
  know that the most High ruleth in the kingdom of
  men, and giveth it to whomsoever he will.

11
SO WHOS HE WHO HAS POWER TO CHANGE GODS TIMES?

• The Little Horn
• Why would the little horn do that?
• In DANIEL 2 God gives his Prophetic Time Line
• In DANIEL 3 Nebuchadnezzar refuses God sovereign
  rule and sets up his image of gold

12
(No Transcript)
13
WHY DID KING NEBUCHADNEZZAR SET UP HIS GOLDEN
IMAGE?

• DANIEL 2
• He wanted his subjects to worship and honour him
• He repudiated Gods Prophetic Times and Events as
  regarding prophecies concerning his reign
• He wanted to stand in place of God himself
• He wanted to establish authority that he was able
  to impeach Gods sovereign rule
• He wanted his subjects to know that he was their
  only visible king they could see and trust
• He thought he alone had the power to
  condemn/condone/pardon/remit/give access to

14
LIKE NEBUCHADNEZZAR, HOW DID THE LITTLE HORN
THINK TO CHANGE GODS PROPHETIC CALENDAR?

• In (1534), St. Ignatius of Loyola founded the
  Society of Jesus (also known as the Jesuits).
  Besides providing the papacy with a formidable
  secret police force, the Jesuits also trained an
  elite of theological scholars whose avowed
  purpose was to overthrow Protestantism. Loyolas
  Jesuit Order soon spawned two able scholars whose
  views would at last arrest and reverse the
  Protestant Reformation, by introducing two
  methods of interpretation Futurism and Preterism.

15
WHAT IS PRETERISM AND FUTURISM?

• Roman Catholic Scholars
• Preterism is the idea that prophecies of Daniel
  and revelation were fulfilled in the six
  centuries of the Christian era, and that prophecy
  regarding the Papacy could not apply. If this
  method of interpretations was right, then the
  antichrist pointed not at the Papacy, but at
  Antiochus Epiphanes who lived 165 years before
  Christ.
• Who was Luis De Alcazar?
• Luis de Alcazar, Jesuit from Seville, Spain.
  From 1569 onward, Alcazar worked to counteract
  the Protestant view of the prophecies. He wrote a
  book on Revelation entitled An Investigation of
  the Hidden Sense of the Apocalypse. The book was
  published posthumously in 1614.

16
WHAT IS FUTURISM?

• Futurism is the idea that as soon as the Roman
  Empire fell apart, a literal evil individual
  would arise out of the middle east in future
  prior to the second coming of Christ. So this
  prophetic interpretation is shifted into the
  future, which makes it impossible for one to see
  that this prophecy bears the hallmark of Rome.
  Rome shifts Gods prophetic time clock, and
  establishes its own.
• Who was Francisco Ribera?
• Francisco Ribera (1537-1591), from Salamanca,
  Spain. Ribera was a brilliant student who
  specialized in Latin, Greek and Hebrew. He
  received a doctorate in theology from the
  University of Salamanca and joined the Jesuit
  Order in 1570 when he was just 33 years old.

17
Question Would God raise up a people who would
restore Gods prophetic calendar prior to the end
of this period?
18
THE FIRST BEAST PERSECUTES THE WOMANWHILE THE
SECOND BEAST HELPS THE WOMAN.

• REVELATION 122-17 REVELATION 1311-18
• The woman flees into the wilderness for a period
  of 1260 years.
• 2. The earth helps this woman by opening her
  mouth and swallowing the flood.
• 3. The dragon now goes and makes war with the
  remnant of her womans seed, which keeps the
  commandments of God, and have the testimony of
  Jesus Christ.

19
REVELATION 13 TWO BEASTS

• First Beast
• First Beast Has been wounded and was healed.
• First Beast Persecutes the saints42 months.
• First Beast Blasphemes Gods Name/Tabernacle
  Dwellers in Heaven.
• Second beast
• Second Beast Image of the First Beast.
• Second Beast Helps the saints
• Second Beast Two Horns Religious Civil
  powers.
• Second Beast threatens to kill those who disobey
  its orders.

20
WHAT DOES THE TESTIMONY OF JESUS CHRIST MEAN?

• Does the testimony of Jesus Christ have something
  to do with the preaching of the true and correct
  concept of Prophetic Calendar?
• REVELATION 1910
• And I fell at his feet to worship him. And he
  said unto me, See thou do it not I am thy
  fellow servant, and of thy brethren that have the
  testimony of Jesus worship God for the
  testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.
• Is God going to raise up a people who would keep
  his commandments, in contrast to Satan, who would
  inspire a people to break Gods commandments?

21
THE SPIRIT OF PROPHECY SETS PROPHECY RIGHT

• REVELATION 1910
• I am thy fellow servant, and of thy brethren
  that have the testimony of Jesus worship God
  for the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of
  prophecy.
• REVELATION 228, 9
• And when I had heard and seen, I fell down to
  worship before the feet of the angel which showed
  me these things. Then saith he unto me, See thou
  do it not for I am thy fellowservant, and of
  thy brethren the prophets, and of them which keep
  the sayings of this book worship God.

22
WHAT ABOUT THE CHANGE OF GODS LAW AND TIMES?

• People who keep all of Gods commandments have
  reinstated the original Law of God back into
  their lives as was first given at Mount Sinai.
  The change of law by the Papacy has been
  corrected by people who keep all of Gods
  commandments.
• These people have two characteristics
• They keep Gods commandments.
• They have the Gift of Prophecy Spirit of
  Prophecy.

23
SATAN TWO EMISSARIES

• REVELATION 1311-18
• 1. First Beast Governs for 1260 years
• This Beast Changes Gods Law and Times
  Prophetic Calendar
• 2. Second Beast Enforces the mark of the Beast
  First Beast
• He enforces pain on those who reject its command
• He decrees death on those who reject the mark of
  the Beast Sunday law
• How is Satan going to counteract the true gift of
  prophecy?

24
THREE UNCLEAN SPIRITS

• REVELATION 1613
• And I saw three unclean spirits like frogs
  come out of the mouth of the dragon, and out of
  the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of
  the false prophet.
• The Dragon in REVELATION 1217
• The Beast Sea beast in REVELATION 131-10
• The Land Beast Image to the beast or False
  Prophet in REVELATION 1311-18

25
GODS ADVANCE WARNING THE THREE ANGELS MESSAGES
OF REVELATION 146-12

• Is the true church going to identify the Dragon,
  the Beast, and the False Prophet?
• Is the true church going to identify the Mark of
  the Beast?

26
STORY ELIJAH AND THE FALSE PROPHETS OF BAAL

• 1 KINGS 1819, 25, 26, 36, 40
• Gather to me all Israel unto mount Carmel, the
  prophets of Baal four hundred and fifty, and the
  prophets of the groves four hundred, which eat at
  Jezebel's table. And Elijah said unto the
  prophets of Baal, Choose you one bullock for
  yourselves, and dress it first for ye are
  many and call on the name of your gods, but put
  no fire under. let it be known this day that
  thou art God in Israel, and that I am thy
  servant, and that I have done all these things
  at thy word. And Elijah said unto them,
• Take the prophets of Baal let not one of them
  escape. and Elijah brought them down to the
  brook Kishon, and slew them there.

27
QUESTIONS THAT NEED ANSWERS

• Was Gods true prophet able to identify those
  false prophets?
• Whom did those false prophets call upon?
• And whom did Gods true prophet call upon?
• Did Elijah know who were his enemies?
• How many enemies did Elijah have?
• King Ahab State/Civil Ruler
• Jezebel Harlot woman/mother of witchcraft
• False Prophets Baal worshippers/Sun god

28
A SIMILAR COUNTERFEIT OF ELIJAHS PROPHETS IN THE
N.T.

• REVELATION 1613 Three Unclean Spirits
• Dragon King of this earth
• Beast Harlot Jezebel
• False Prophet He Image to the beast will
  enforce the mark of the beast Sun worship
• 1 KINGS 1821 Elijahs Message
• And Elijah came unto all the people, and said,
  How long halt ye between two opinions? if the
  LORD be God, follow him but if Baal, then
  follow him. And the people answered him not a
  word.

29
WHAT ABOUT JOHN THE BAPTIST?

• Did John The Baptist know his enemies?
• MATTHEW 144 Three enemies
• For John said unto him, It is not lawful for
  thee to have her.
• King Herod State or Civil power
• Herodias Harlot
• Herodias daughter Image or likeness of Herodias
• John The Baptist message
• MATTHEW 32
• And saying, Repent ye for the kingdom of heaven
  is at hand.

30
DID ELIJAH PREACH GODS EVERLASTING MESSAGE?

• 1 KINGS 1817, 18
• And it came to pass, when Ahab saw Elijah, that
  Ahab said unto him, Art thou he that troubleth
  Israel? And he answered, I have not troubled
  Israel but thou, and thy father's house, in that
  ye have forsaken the commandments of the LORD,
  and thou hast followed Baalim.
• 1 KINGS 1838
• Then the fire of the LORD fell, and consumed the
  burnt sacrifice, and the wood, and the stones,
  and the dust, and licked up the water that was
  in the trench.

31
WILL ELIJAHS TESTIMONY OF JESUS CHRIST BE
REVIVED PRIOR TO THE END-TIME?

• MALACHI 44, 6
• Remember ye the law of Moses my servant, which I
  commanded unto him in Horeb for all Israel,
  with the statutes and judgments. Behold, I will
  send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of
  the great and dreadful day of the LORD And he
  shall turn the heart of the fathers to the
  children, and the heart of the children to their
  fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a
  curse.

32
HOW DO I RECOGNIZE GODS TRUE ELIJAH?

• Law Ten Commandments
• Worship Creator
• Testimony Jesus Christ
• New Heart--New Path--New Spirit
• THE WORD OF GOD IT IS WRITTEN

33
GODS TRUE ELIJAH FELLOWSHIP WITH GODS ENEMIES

• Gods Elijah Not liked by those three enemies
• Gods people Persecuted by those three enemies
• Persecutors Satans friends allies
• Persecuted Gods friends allies
• Elijah Calamities in his age
• Gods true people Calamities in the end-time

34
SIMILARLY, WHAT OTHER BIBLE EVENTS HAVE OCCURED
WHERE FIRE COMES DOWN FROM HEAVEN?

• ACTS 21, 3
• And when the day of Pentecost was fully come,
  they were all with one accord in one place. And
  there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as
  of fire, and it sat upon each of them.
• REVELATION 1313
• And he doeth great wonders, so that he maketh
  fire come down from heaven on the earth in the
  sight of men...

35
HOW WOULD YOU KNOW THAT THIS FIRECOMES IS OF GOD?

• HOLY SPIRIT ANALYSIS
• BIBLICAL ANALYSIS
• JESUS LORD OF ALL
• BEHAVIOURAL ANALYSIS
• Does he preach Elijahs message?
• Does he keep Gods Commandments?
• Does he persecute Gods people?
• Does he manifest Gods Holy Spirit?

36
ELLEN G. WHITE, THE GREAT CONTROVERSY pp. 463,
464, 592

• Modern Revivals the Scriptures a Safeguard
• Popular revivals are too often carried by
  appeals to the imagination, by exciting the
  emotions, by gratifying the love for what is new
  and startling. Converts thus gained have little
  desire to listen to Bible truth, little interest
  in the testimony of prophets and apostles. Unless
  a religious service has something of a
  sensational character, it has no attractions for
  them. The plain warnings of God's Word, relating
  directly to their eternal interests, are
  unheeded. The Spirit and power of God will be
  poured out upon his children...

37
At that time many will separate themselves from
those churches in which the love of this world
has supplanted love for God and his Word. Many,
both of ministers and people, will gladly accept
those great truths which God has caused to be
proclaimed at this time, to prepare a people for
the Lord's second coming. The enemy of souls
desires to hinder this work and before the time
for such a movement shall come, he will endeavour
to prevent it, by introducing a counterfeit. In
those churches which he can bring under his
deceptive power, he will make it appear that
God's special blessing is poured out there will
be manifest what is thought to be great religious
interest...
38
Multitudes will exult that God is working
marvelously for them, when the work is that of
another spirit. There is an emotional excitement,
a mingling of the true with the false, that is
well adapted to mislead. Yet none need be
deceived. In the light of God's Word it is not
difficult to determine the nature of these
movements. Wherever men neglect the testimony of
the Bible, turning away from those plain,
soul-testing truths which require self-denial and
renunciation of the world, It is evident that
these movements are not the work of the Spirit of
God. Those who honour the Bible Sabbath will be
denounced as enemies of law and order, as
breaking down the moral restraints of society,
causing
39
anarchy and corruption, and calling down the
judgments of God upon the earth. Their
conscientious scruples will be pronounced
obstinacy, stubbornness, and contempt of
authority. They will be accused of disaffection
toward the government. Ministers who deny the
obligation of the divine law will present from
the pulpit the duty of yielding obedience to the
civil authorities as ordained of God. In
legislative halls and courts of justice,
commandment-keepers will be misrepresented and
condemned. A false coloring will be given to
their words the worst construction will be put
upon their motives.
40
As the Protestant churches reject the clear,
scriptural arguments in defense of God's law,
they will long to silence those whose faith they
cannot overthrow by the Bible. The dignitaries of
church and State will unite to bribe, persuade,
or compel all classes to honour the Sunday. The
lack of divine authority will be supplied by
oppressive enactments. Political corruption is
destroying love of justice and regard for truth
and even in free America, rulers and legislators,
in order to secure public favour, will yield to
the popular demand for a law enforcing Sunday
observance. Liberty of conscience, which has cost
so great a sacrifice, will no longer be
respected. In the soon-coming conflict we shall
see exemplified the
41

• prophet's words "The dragon was wroth with the
  woman, and went to make war with the remnant of
  her seed, which keep the commandments of God, and
  have the testimony of Jesus Christ." REV.
  1217.
• These statements were written in 1911
• ISAIAH 820
• To the law and to the testimony if they speak
  not according to this word, it is because
  there is no light in them.