Episode Transcript
Jesus said in Matthew 28:19, Go, therefore and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost. Welcome to Go Teach all nations, bringing you Christ's teachings through Australian and international speakers.
And here is today's presenter, Pastor Daniel Przybylko. So lineage with hope and purpose. These are my great grandparents. I don't have pictures for two of them, but two I do have. And you know, when we look at our heritage, we can see that faith is passed down through our lineage, isn't it? And, but quite often, as you can see, you know, there's two pictures missing there. The Bible is very true when it says the memory of them is forgotten. When people pass away, we, we forget unless there's records there, unless there's things that you can go back to. We just don't know too much about them. And, but my grand great grandparents here on the bottom, that's my, my, my mom's grandparents. My great grandmother was the sole believer. She was the, she was a Seventh Day Adventist. So that must have been like in the 1930s, I suppose. Over there in, in the top section there, my great grandfather, Mako Martin was his name, he was living in Czechoslovakia and got married to a Czech lady. And when the government was kind of forcing them to do different things, they moved back to Poland and they were building a church there just kind of next door to a house. They were readying the church and one night he was out there painting, getting the place ready and walking home at night. Somebody came up behind him and put a blade in him. He survived and he got home and afterwards the whole village knew that. He said, I don't care what they do to me, I'm going to serve my Jesus anyway. So he was also a Seventh Day Adventist then going to my grandparents, whom of course I knew. On the top there is my grandfather Przybilco. He was a bit of a gangster at one stage before he was an Adventist. Thankfully he was converted. But during the war, during the Second World War, he was put in jail for not building roads for the army on Sabbath. And they thought that they were going to kill him. The whole church was praying for him and they released him and he was, he was fine after that. But yeah, these were people of faith, weren't they? And, and then down the bottom here, my, this is my mum here when she was a child. My grandfather here, somebody coined him the broom evangelist because during the wintertime when there was not much to do, a lot of snow Outside, he would make brooms and. And things like that out of horse hair and wood. And then during the summertime when he had time, he would go up to the mountains and he would sell these brooms and brushes and things like that. And he had a notebook in his pocket. And if anyone needed anything, he would make note of it. He'd write all these things down. He'd be giving away books and things like that. And then he'd come down to where he was living, he'd go and do a big shop and. And then he'd go back up to the mountains again the following week and give out different things that people needed. Some shoes, some cardigans, whatever the people needed, whatever he made with those brooms, he would give back to them. So that was my other grandfather, then my parents here. This was their 60th anniversary about a year ago. Dad was, you know, they had conscription to go into the army and he didn't want to bear arms and things like that. And so he ended up working in the coal mines for two years. And sometimes he'd have to do back to back shifts, 16 hours straight so that he would get Sabbath off. You know, this is what people did. And I guess that faith lineage is probably what you're part of, too. Everyone has a faith lineage of some sort, don't we? Or something that we can pass on then to our children. Sorry, I shouldn't have clicked that one. But for myself then, you know, as I grew up and I was working in engineering, I kind of felt I needed. I wanted to do, I desired to do something for God. And so, you know, I went to Cambodia as a volunteer engineer and the Khmer Rouge was still out at that time. I remember being up in the north and hearing gunfire and things like that. And yes, it was a little bit dangerous, but, you know, at that time in my life, I was, I think, 25 years old or so I thought, you know, I'm here, God, I want to serve you. You look after me and, you know, if things happen, things happen. I'm just going out, I'm going to serve youe with my wife. When we were in Papua New guinea just last year, she wasn't there to preach. She was just there to support me and to run some health programs and things like that. But then it turns out a preacher didn't turn up. And so I said to the regional pastor, I said, my wife preaches and she was keen to go. So they bundled her up into a car and took her up an hour up further into the mountains. And it turns out where she was preaching was very close to the place where back in the 80s, I think it was, the, the missionary Peter Knopper was. Was shot. Do you remember that? So that's where she was preaching for, I think, four or five nights until they flew a new preacher in. You know, she's a bold servant of Jesus as well. That's my wife, Geraldine. And so we tried to pass on that torch of faith today to our children as well. But today I want to look at some messages that were preached in the Book of Acts and how faith is also. We have a lineage of faith that comes to us through the Scripture, through those that have come before us. And, you know, we see in Acts, chapter two, we see that great sermon that Peter preaches, right, at Pentecost. Later on, we see in Acts chapter seven, the sermon that Stephen preaches. And then halfway through the Book of Acts, there's like a transition between Peter and Paul. And Paul then becomes the central character in the book. And Paul preaches in Acts, chapter 13. And, you know, in my ministry experience, I've heard some people say, not of our faith, not of the Christian faith. I've heard some people say that Paul changed the theology of the Bible. Anyone ever heard that? Pastor Byron, have you heard that? No, they say that Paul changed it. But I think Paul actually just understood what was prophesied in the Old Testament and took it to the next level. Right. That's how we understand it. But some people try to discredit the Bible, particularly the New Testament. And. And as we know, Paul has written half of the books in the Old Testament. Right. I used to think that Paul was the greatest, most prolific writer of the New Testament, but he wasn't. It was Luke. Luke wrote more than Paul in the New Testament. So. But anyway, so today I want to compare the sermons of Peter, Stephen and Paul. They all had challenges, right? Different challenges. Peter, tradition tells us that he was crucified upside down during Emperor Nero's time. Stephen, as we read in the Scriptures, was stoned to death. Paul, we're not 100% sure, but most likely he was beheaded in Rome, also under Emperor Nero. Paul, by the way, I believe, was the prophet that is referred to in Daniel 9:24. This was new to me, something that I just discovered last year. But, you know, in Daniel 9:24, if you want to open up there, This is just an aside, really, just an interesting sort of thing to think about. We all study Daniel a fair bit though, don't we, and talks here about the 70 week prophecy. 70 weeks are determined for your people and for Your Holy City, etc. So Daniel is being informed here to finish transgression, to make an end of sins, to make reconciliation, for iniquity, to bring in everlasting righteousness, and to seal up vision and prophecy, our Bible says, and to anoint the most holy. But a Jewish pastor friend of mine just told me just recently how this is actually saying to seal up vision and the prophet. The prophet, which prophet? I think this is talking about Paul, Paul being the prophet to the Gentiles. Because at the end of this 70 weeks, what happens? The Gospel goes to the world, right? The Gospel goes to the Gentiles. And so the covenant of God is then expanded. And it's clear to me that Paul has the same message as all the forerunners in the Christian church. He suffered similar consequences as he participated in the great controversy between good and evil. And so we can expect challenges in mission, isn't that true? We can expect challenges. And as I mentioned, you know, Geraldine was up there in Papua New Guinea. This is a picture from where she was at a place called for, where Peter Knopper was shot. It's believed that the surrounding churches hired hitmen to kill him because of the training and mission work that he was doing in the area. But today we see that lineage of faithful believers that despite that event, continued. And you know, 30 some years later, thousands of people came to these meetings. There was more than 4,000 people attending these meetings and hundreds, hundreds were baptized as a result. So it's interesting to see how people's reactions change down the decade after the seed is sown. How is it that we see such different reactions to our evangelistic efforts, sometimes from unbelievers, sometimes from believers? What is it about the message that people react to that causes them to accept or to reject? As we look at the book of Acts and the message to the Apostolic Church today, how can we be filled with hope, filled with courage, looking at the experiences of our forerunners, Paul changed from an opposer to, to a supporter. We read about that conversion story from Acts chapter seven through to chapter nine. And friends, if he can change, anyone can change. Isn't that true? He went from somebody who was persecuting the church, rounding up Christians, putting them in jail, killing Christians, to being a supporter and the greatest missionary to the Gentile world. And of course, the church was very cautious about Paul. But Barnabas then comes along and Barnabas is trusting of Paul and willing to work with him. And so we see in Acts chapter 11 and 13 through to 14, how they go and they do mission work together. And, you know, this tells me that we also need to trust new believers. Is that true? We need to trust them. We need to empower them. And friends, let me tell you in my church plant, because there's so few people there, when we get a new person, we put them to work. There's none of this sitting in the back row like sometimes happens in the larger churches. Does that happen? No, that doesn't happen here, does it? No. That 80, 20 rule, that doesn't apply to Waitara, does it? I'll leave that one. You know, in Paul's first missionary journey, his first sermon that's recorded In Acts chapter 13, we see that he witnesses boldly for the Lord. And we see there In Acts chapter 13 how, you know, central to his message there, Acts 13, verses 38 and 39, Acts 13, 38, 39. Paul is telling them there, he says, therefore, let it be known to you, brethren, that through this man, through Jesus is preached to you the forgiveness of sins. And by him, everyone who believes is justified from all things by which you could not be justified by the law of Moses, of course, then he goes on to preach. And we read how at the end, after his appeal, he's persecuted and the challenges start to come in. And so we read that towards the end of the chapter, verses 44 to 48. But I believe as I looked at these messages and, you know, if you look at my sermon notes, normally I write out my sermons and then I don't read my sermons, but I write out my sermons and then I kind of, you know, look at the highlights and, and preach that way. But you can see as I compared three sermons, these are my sermon notes, okay, there's just charts that I did, and I compared the sermons of, of Peter, which was at Pentecost, 50 days after, after the crucifixion of Jesus, and then sermon Stephen's sermon three years later, and Paul's sermon on this first missionary journey, most likely another 10 or 14 years after that. And when I looked at those things, I'm going to just show how there's a similarity between all of these, these sermons. First of all, you know, I saw that there were three key components, if you like, to the sermons. First of all, each of the speakers talks about a lineage of faith, lineage and a blessing that comes through that lineage and by following God. Secondly, each of the preachers talked about the centrality of Christ. Jesus is at the center of all of the sermons. And then finally, each of the preachers made an appeal, appeal to the people, to change, to do something. And so first of all, we look at the blessing and heritage of God's people, which the prophets outlined throughout Israel's history. And, and so when we look at Peter's sermon, he refers to the house of Israel or Jacob, and then he ends up at David. In Stephen's sermon in Acts chapter seven, we see there that he gives the whole big story of. Of Israel. And he, he starts with Abraham and the patriarchs, and then he goes to Moses and Joshua, but he finishes up with David. And Paul, also In Acts, chapter 13, refers to Abraham, the prophets, he refers to Samuel and ends up with David. Why is that? Because Jesus came through David. Right? Jesus is at the center of it. Right? Then the next part in this lineage, they all kind of talk about the Exodus experience. And the Exodus is really all about a redeemer, our Savior, right, Who saves his people. And so in Acts chapter two, Peter talks there at Pentecost, which. What was Pentecostal about? Where was the first Pentecost, by the way? Anyone know what happened first? What happened 50 days after the first Passover in Egypt? They were. They were at Mount Sinai, right? They were at Mount Sinai. They received the commandments. And so as people were coming into Jerusalem in the time of Peter, what was front and center in their mind? The Exodus, Mount Sinai, Right? That whole experience was front and center. Peter doesn't actually mention it, but that's what people were thinking. That's what they were there for. In Acts chapter 7, Stephen talks about the rebellion during the Exodus and Paul talks about the wilderness experience. So they all, they all, you know, in their minds, they're thinking about the Exodus and really, as I mentioned, the Exodus, all about our need for the Savior. And finally, the other part that I saw consistent there is Moses is central to all of this. In Acts chapter two, Peter doesn't specifically mention Moses, but as I mentioned, Pentecost is on people's minds. Right? And what are they thinking of the Exodus? They're thinking of Moses. Moses was central to the Jewish people. In Acts chapter 7, Stephen refers to the life and mission of Moses in great detail. And then In Acts chapter 13, Paul refers to the reading of the law, which was, of course, the writing of Moses. So that's the first part where each of the preachers referred to the blessing and heritage of God's people. The second part is that the message is centered on Christ in Peter. In Acts chapter two, sorry, Peter refers to the miracles, signs and wonders of Jesus. In verse 22, in Stephen's message, the sayings of Jesus are misconstrued by what they refer to as the synagogue of freed men. And that happens in the chapter before, actually in chapter six. And so because of that, you know, they. They kind of. They kind of give Stephen a hard time. And that's what led into this sermon. And In Acts chapter 13, Paul doesn't specifically refer to the life and ministry of Jesus, but he does talk about what it led to. And that is the death and resurrection of Jesus. And that is the next point that is, that is central for each of these speakers. They talk about the centrality of Jesus and about how he died for our sins. In Acts chapter 2, verse 36, Peter refers to the crucified Lord and Christ. In Acts chapter 7, Stephen refers to the death that was foretold of the just one Jesus. He's referring back to. To the writings of the prophets. And Paul refers to the prophecies also that were fulfilled in Jesus death. Then finally is the victory. And the victory is in the resurrection of Jesus, where Peter mentions that God raised up and exalted this Jesus as per the Old Testament prophecies. Stephen, when he's about to be stoned, what does he do? He looks up and he sees Jesus there at the right hand of the Father. And so he's. He's exalted after his resurrection. And Paul refers to the Old Testament, to the prophecies of David, how he would be raised up, how he would be raised up. And so Jesus message, the life, ministry, death and resurrection is central to each of these preachers. And finally, the last part is the application and effect of this good news of Jesus. When Peter is preaching Acts chapter two, he asks for change. As he gives them this message of hope, he asks for change. What does he say? He says, repent and be baptized. And so that is relevant for all of us today too, isn't it? Repent, turn and be baptized, be changed. In Acts chapter 7, there's no appeal at the end because they stoned him. But I believe there must have been an appeal in chapter six, because in chapter six, we read about how Stephen is doing all these signs and teaching, et cetera, and this is what led to the sermon. So I think that in chapter six, you know, not everything is recorded in the Bible, but in chapter six, I believe that Stephen must have been appealing to their hearts already. And then as they resisted, he went on and did this big sermon in chapter seven. And so that's why at the end of chapter seven, what does he say there? Let's have a Look. Acts, chapter seven. I think I heard it out there. Acts, chapter seven, verse 51, he says, you stiff necked and uncircumcised in heart. Strong words, eh? I've never made an appeal like that before. I guess you could say that that's an appeal, but you know, not a way to win friends and influence people, right? So that's why I believe that he made an appeal already earlier. And then he's giving them all this information. And then Paul as he's preaching In Acts chapter 13, verses 38 and 39, I think it was, he says there, therefore let it be known to you brethren, that through this man, as I read earlier, is preached to you forgiveness of sins. And by him, everyone who believes is justified from all the things from which you could not be justified. He's appealing to their hearts here. And you know, we need that too today, don't we? We need forgiveness, justification just as much as they did back then. We need Jesus. What happens after an appeal? Generally when somebody makes an appeal, what happens? People either leave, right? Or they look down, look away, or they stand up, jump to their feet, raise their hand, they're happy. Two different reactions. So you know, at Pentecost when Peter was preaching, you know, somebody accused him of being of the whole situation, you know, that they're drunk with wine because of what was happening. As Stephen is preaching, what happened. It says that they gnashed their teeth and then finally they stoned him in the last part of the chapter there. And in verse 50 of Acts chapter 13, we read that the people there, they raised up persecution against Paul. So there was opposition to their preaching, to their appeals, but there was also positive reactions. We read after Peter's sermon that the people were cut to the heart and 3,000 were baptized in Acts chapter two in Stephen's sermon. What's positive out of that, we actually don't read right there. But what is positive is I believe that the seeds of faith were, I, I believe, planted in Paul's heart that later on germinated. Don't you think he was there standing, holding people's coats while Stephen was being stoned. And, and Ellen White talks about how the Holy Spirit spoke to his heart that day. And of course, you know, there was a blessing in that. There was a dispersion afterwards as the persecution ensued and the people were dispersed and the Gospel went out far and wide. And then In Acts chapter 13, we read how at the End of the Paul's sermon, in verses 48 and 49, God was glorified and the word spread. So these are all wonderful results from the preaching of God's word. Isn't that true? When I looked at these three sermons, I thought, how does it apply to us? Oh, wow, I see I've got one minute left in this sermon. Does that, does that count with all that family stuff that I was talking at the beginning? Do I get an extra 10 minutes? Is that all right? Sorry. First sermon. Okay. Forgiving spirit. Yes, thank you. All right. The air conditioners are maxed up. Okay. We're all good. So, you know, when we look at the Seventh Day Adventist Church, we see a similar sort of thing there. You know, as I, as I, as I drew up these quadrants here of different things that were happening, I see that there's a similarity there, because the biblical lineage that we see of the people and the faith is our lineage too, isn't it? Isn't that true? You know, Abraham was to bless all the earth through the patriarchs, the prophets, the house of David, through Jesus. And then finally the church that came afterwards, the Jesus movement, came, and we're part of that. And as a result of that came challenges, didn't they? The Apostle Paul predicted that there would be ravenous wolves, for instance, that would come into the church and there would be an apostasy. But we also know that there was a faithful remnant throughout time, wasn't there? If you go to the Ethiopian church even today, and you ask the people in Ethiopia which day is the Sabbath, they will tell you it's Saturday. They know for a long time people kept Sabbath. In Ethiopia. The Celts kept the Sabbath for more than a thousand years. And so, you know, those that were distant from the Roman Empire, I suppose, survived some of the changes, the apostasies and things that came into the church. Later on, of course, there was the Waldenses and the Huguenots, which I met some South Africans here today. Perhaps your lineage is from the Huguenots. Yeah. And then came the Reformation, of course. You know, we live today in what the Bible refers to, the time of the end, the end times. And we have an end time message. We are a people to take the end time message to the world, to prepare the way for the Lord. We are a movement, a Seventh Day Adventist movement. And so really, we are the ongoing story of the Book of Acts. Do you believe that? I mean, when I was in Papua New guinea, that was just so clear that what is happening here is like Pentecost we're just an ongoing story of the Book of Acts that's not written down in the Bible. But there are many other books that have been written. Right. About what's going on today. And so, you know, when we look at the blessings and heritage of God people, God has always had faithful people through the ages. And then of course, challenges came along, didn't they? Challenges came in the time of Israel, challenges came in the early church, challenges came in our church divisions, diversions, challenges, etc. You know, we need to expect them with, with the early Adventist Church. You know, there was the time when everyone wanted to congregate in one area. What was that place called? Battle Creek. Yeah. And what did God do? He sent a fire to disperse them. Right. So the message would, would go out. That's what we're meant to be about, sharing the message, growing the kingdom. Other challenges came of course, with James White, one of our, our key leaders in the, in the early days. You know, he ends up with a stroke, working too hard, stressed there was no health message, et cetera. And so then God gives us the health message to help us with our health so that we can thrive and be useful and help the world around us. There was other challenges that came. You know, pantheism came through Dr. Kellogg. There was, you know, issues in 1888 about law and grace. And then of course came the death of Ellen White. I mean, that would have, that would have affected the church at that time. But Ellen White, she always did what, she uplifted the Bible. That was her last words, weren't they? At the last general conference she attended, she walked off the platform and then she came back and she lifted up the Bible. And what does she say? Brothers and sisters, I commend to you the scriptures. She uplifted the Bible just like the prophets of old pointing to Christ after her death. Various other challenges came, of course, in the World War I. Time came the reform movement. Right. And we still have people trying to reform the church today with various little offshoots here and there. And, you know, there's various issues that are still playing out today. Aren't they playing out in the public sphere? I just saw a video recently of, you know, how some people refer to the Adventist Church as a cult. Anyone ever heard that? We can't be a cult because of all of our problems are out there in public, aren't they? Occult tries to hide all these things and doesn't allow anyone to say anything. With Adventists, when we argue about stuff, it's all out there. It's all online now, isn't it? And, you know, we have challenges. We have challenges, but you know, we have also counsel from the scriptures in Acts, chapter 15, the wisdom that came from Jerusalem to the church at that time. What did they say? Just three things. They said, abstain from food offered to idols. Basically, abstain from idolatry, from superstition. Secondly, abstain from blood, from strangled animals. So what's the principle there? Adhere to healthy living, okay, by God's principles. And thirdly, abstain from fornication, from sexual immorality. You know, we need to be upright and moral Christians today. And so we see there that the, the same things that happened to Israel, to the early church, also happen in our church today. Well, you know, just like they had a prophet that was pointing them to Christ, we have a prophet that also has pointed us to the Bible and to Christ. Secondly, when we go on to Jesus, being central to all of our messages, we see there that all of our doctrines, all of our amazing teachings in the Adventist church, Christ is at the center of all of that. And that's something that I learned here at Waitara all those years ago when Pastor Louis Torres used to come here. He used to do these Bible studies where Jesus is at the center of those. Have anyone seen those? Anyone remember those? All right, there are a few that were around 20 years ago. Yeah, I still use that. Jesus is at the center of all of our doctrines. And then his resurrection and ongoing ministry is taught as well in our church, which is perhaps a little unique compared to other churches, because other churches kind of just seem to almost stop at the cross. But Jesus is alive today, isn't he? And he's ministering on your behalf and my behalf from, from the heavenly sanctuary. And so, so the journey continues post resurrection. We serve a living, resurrected Christ. And so because Jesus is at the center of our doctrines, you know, when we, when we do outreach programs, when we run health programs, we need to show what. We need to show compassion and care, just like Jesus did in his ministry. We, you know, in our interpersonal relationships, we need to show forgiveness. We need to have a forgiving character. We need to be like Jesus in our daily lives. And the last point here is, you know, when we get down to the life application, whenever the church is moving forward and doing some good things, Satan doesn't sleep, isn't that true? And he causes some challenges, etc. And some of those challenges can be very trivial at times, can't they? You know, I, I never thought that the color of the carpet could be an issue in a church. In fact, I've been blessed. I've never been in a church that had that problem, but I have been in a church that has had arguments about what banner we should put up on the church. A banner? Seriously. So, you know, sometimes trivial things, like things to do with the building can cause issues in a church. Sometimes someone's leadership style can cause issues. You know, we've got a bunch of different leaders here in this church. And I've looked over the nominating list, by the way, and I've seen, you know, different leaders in different areas. Head elder, head deacon, head deaconess and all of that. I've seen who's who, and if you're here today, I'd love to see you afterwards. By the way, I've got a little survey for the leaders to fill out. Would that be. Would that be all right? I've already done that with a few of them over the phone, but to make it easier, come see me afterwards. I'll give you a little form to fill out. Leadership style. You know, everyone is a unique leader. I won't be the same as Pastor Byron. I'm sorry. People have already told me that I've got big shoes to fill, and I understand that. That's why I'm asking for your prayers. But, you know, he's a. He's an. He's lived in Israel. He speaks Hebrew, right? When I went to Avondale, I did what they called the cheats. Course, I just did two years because I had a previous degree, so they didn't make me do the whole four years. So they have to drop something. I didn't do Hebrew. I'm sorry. I'm not a Hebrew expert. But, you know, when I was at Wallora, because we were surrounded by synagogues, I started a Jewish ministry. Isn't that an oxymoron? Somebody who doesn't even know Hebrew starts a Jewish ministry, you know, And I think that's where, you know, we just need to go with the gifts that God has given us. And just like you, each one of you has unique gifts. And God can use your gifts in a very special way. What else did I have here? Sometimes it's hard to preach when you've just got, you know, notes and haven't written everything down in the right way. But, you know, we need to ask ourselves, we're living in the end time. We should have the hope that the Scriptures bring to us, that Jesus gives us. Jesus is coming back soon. Do we have that Hope, what are we doing in the church? Are we causing unity or disunity? Are we perhaps doing something in the background that's causing some angst? We need to be united in order to grow. We need to change. The appeal at the end of each of these sermons was to change, to grow, to put away sin. And, you know, when we put away sin, when we ask Jesus to deal with something, we go down the track, and years later, we look back and how did Jesus do that? Well, he's taken it away, right? God does that for us. And so, friends, we need to live in hope. We need to look beyond the challenges that we might have to God's grace, to God's power and to Christ soon return. And it will empower you for today and for tomorrow. Although, how should I finish off this sermon? And, you know, because the message of the Bible, the message, the doctrines that we have, change lives, don't they? They change lives. And I remember the story that Pastor Torres actually told years ago about a lady that lives somewhere up in Scandinavia. He went to visit her with a doctor, and the doctor said to him, he said, I want you. I want you to go and visit this lady I've been doing Bible studies with. But I won't tell you what to study. You need to figure that out. So Pastor Torre's like, oh, what am I going to do here? So anyway, they get there and he finds out the lady's husband has passed away some time ago. And he felt this strong impression to speak about what happens when you die. Now, normally, you never do that, right? I was taught never to do that on the first study. You have to do certain things beforehand, right? I did it one time because I met this guy. He was a pilot. One of his parents had died, and he kept pushing, kept pushing, kept wanting to know what the Bible says. So, okay, I'll tell you. He never wanted to see me again. After that. I learned my lesson. But anyway, Pastor Torres just opened up the Bible with this lady, did the study on what happens when you die. And of course, the doctor had been doing other studies with her already, so I guess there was four. And this lady, her eyes just opened up because, you know, up until that point, after her husband died, she couldn't go to sleep with the lights off in the house. She had to have all the lights on in the house. She was afraid. And I don't know whether there was some things going on in her house that caused her to do that or what. But after doing this Bible study, you know, she began to cry. And she understood and she was at peace. She was able to turn the lights off at night after that. And so people's response to the message of the Bible can be the same. It can be positive, it can be negative. The question comes for us, what shall we do? What shall I do? We also need to accept the truth of God's word. Isn't that true? The apostles had a message of change. What will you do? Peter, Stephen, Paul, they all appealed to people, to turn to change, to accept. And today, friends, we ought to each be a people of hope that call people to change, that lead people into the truth of the word. As we see the world changing around us, I think it's a no brainer to see the rise in secularism. Isn't that true? I think we all saw that in the Olympics last year, right? We can all see, there's no doubt that there are reduced freedoms around the world, even in the free countries. And we still remain to see what will happen in 2025. We see wars and rumors of wars. Did you know that There are only 10 countries in the world that are not invested somehow in a war? Did you know that? Only 10 countries in the world that are not involved somehow in a war. Even we in Australia, you know, we send military equipment to wars, don't we? So all of these things are signs of Jesus soon coming. And friends, it's this time where we need to look up, look up. We do not need to live in fear, but we need to work together. That's for sure. We need to work together in unity as the world is on the verge of significant change. Will you choose to live in uncertainty, in fear? Or will you choose to live in hope like all the Bible prophets are conveying to us, hope, meaning, purpose, a hope in Jesus. Friends, we have a lineage of faith giants in the Bible and in our SDA pioneers. We have a solid message that is grounded in the Bible. It is Christ centered. And we are a movement in a hope lacking world, in a troubled world that needs hope. Friends, I need to appeal to you today to believe it, to live it and to share it. As Ellen White said, we have nothing to fear for the future except as we shall forget the way that the Lord has led us in his teaching and our past history. Let's pray. Father in heaven, we thank you for the lineage of faith giants, the lineage of the true message, the lineage that we get through the Bible. Some of us have a lineage of parents, grandparents and even grandparents that has been handed down to us. We thank you for that blessing. Some of us may be new to the faith. We pray that you'll empower each one of us. Bless us so that we can be used as your instruments to pass on that faith to the next generation as well. And as we look around the world today, we know that with each year, we are one year closer to your soon coming. As the as the troubles only seem to be increasing in the world, our hope is in you, Lord Jesus, and we thank you for that. In Jesus name, Amen. This message was made available by the Waitara Seventh Day Adventist Church. For more resources like this, visit Waitara Church. This program has been brought to you by 3 ABN Australia radio.
