What Is Jesus Doing in Heaven Right Now?

SPEAKER A 00:00:12 - 00:00:35 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 Geoff Youlden SPEAKER B 00:00:35 - 00:00:56 All right, today we are in the midst of discussing God's way in the sanctuary, and we noticed in the book of Psalms in the first session that God's way in this is in the sanctuary. So we concluded in the first session that if God's way is in the sanctuary, then the sanctuary is important. Would you agree with that? SPEAKER C 00:00:57 - 00:00:58 Yeah. SPEAKER B 00:00:58 - 00:02:41 And yet would we have to confess that some of us know little about it? Which is very sad because we don't hear enough about the sanctuary and we should. You may never have noticed, but there's a very, very close relationship between Calvary And the outpouring of the Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost. Now you may not have noticed the linkage, but I'm going to point that out now because it's very, very significant. Because most of us when we think about the day of Pentecost, we are— we concentrate on the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, speaking in tongues, and Peter's conversion of— or helping to convert over 2,000 3,000 people on the day of Pentecost, and they're all wonderful things. It's wonderful. But do you know that that is not the most significant thing that happened on the day of Pentecost? Important as they all are, and I'm not in any way minimizing the things that we've mentioned, but there's something even more important the day of Pentecost points out. I'm going to suggest that while what happened on earth is deeply significant, something else happened in heaven that is sometimes forgotten. Something else that you may have noticed in the Bible when you read it through, that whenever God has a big event take place, fire comes down from God out of heaven. Have you noticed that? SPEAKER C 00:02:41 - 00:02:41 Yes. SPEAKER B 00:02:42 - 00:04:04 I'll give you a few texts. Let's go over to the book of Leviticus chapter nine, and notice this was the inauguration of the earthly sanctuary. And notice what happened. Leviticus chapter nine and verse twenty-two. Leviticus chapter nine and verse twenty-two. And this is what it says: Then Aaron lifted his hand toward the people, blessed them. and came down from offering the sin offering, the burnt offering, and peace offering. And Moses and Aaron went into the tabernacle of meeting and came out and blessed the people. All right, we're all clear on what's happened. Then notice what then happens. Then the glory of the Lord appeared to all the people and fire came out of heaven Before the Lord and consumed the burnt offering and the fat on the altar. When all the people saw it, they shouted and fell on their faces. So what was the Lord doing in having fire come down on the altar at the inauguration of the earthly sanctuary? What was actually happening? What did the fire represent? SPEAKER C 00:04:04 - 00:04:05 Yes. SPEAKER B 00:04:07 - 00:04:09 Just think about that for a moment. SPEAKER C 00:04:09 - 00:04:09 What— SPEAKER B 00:04:09 - 00:05:42 when the fire came down from heaven, what was it saying? That God was very happy with what was going on. See? Let me give you another illustration. Come over now to the book of Chronicles, 2 Chronicles, which is a bit further on. 2 Chronicles, And we'll notice here, second— after Kings, then comes Chronicles. 2 Chronicles chapter 7 and verse 1. Chapter 7, verse 1, it says, When Solomon had finished praying, fire came down from heaven and consumed the burnt offering and the sacrifices, and the glory of the Lord filled the temple. Now this is not talking about Moses' sanctuary now. This happens to be talking about Solomon's Temple. And once again, fire comes down from heaven and the Lord was showing His approval with what the people were doing. Let me give you another illustration, and there are many in the Bible. What about the time of Elijah on Mount Carmel? Remember? And between Baal And God's prophet, 850 against 1. And God consumed the— remember, not only did He consume the burnt or the offering, what else did the fire of God consume? SPEAKER C 00:05:42 - 00:05:44 The water. SPEAKER B 00:05:44 - 00:05:50 The water, lapped up all the water. And then what else did it lap up? SPEAKER C 00:05:50 - 00:05:50 The stones. SPEAKER B 00:05:50 - 00:07:15 The stones. Imagine how hot that fire would be. That's volcanic heat. And so it seems to me that as I read the Bible through, that when fire comes down from God out of heaven, it is indicating God's approval of what was taking place. God was very happy about it. Now, we've noticed that when Jesus came and lived among us, if we go back to the sanctuary illustration, Jesus, we've noticed in the first session, tabernacled amongst us like the people tabernacled around the sanctuary. And then The priest would go to the burnt offering, and the person would come and confess their sin over the head of the animal. The animal was then slain, and then the priest would then go to the altar or the laver, which represents he would wash his hands and his feet before he went into the sanctuary, which in type— because now let's have a look at the type. The type of the altar of burnt offering, what does that represent? SPEAKER C 00:07:15 - 00:07:17 Crucifixion. SPEAKER B 00:07:18 - 00:07:41 What does this altar represent? Are we all clear on what this represents? Remember, this is not just filling up some spaces in the Bible. This is a type of the whole plan of salvation. And so when we study this, we just don't study it from the table of showbread and the altar. important, but what we've got to ask ourselves, what does it represent? SPEAKER C 00:07:41 - 00:07:42 The cross. SPEAKER B 00:07:42 - 00:08:18 Yes, this is when Jesus died on the cross. The lamb represented Jesus. He's the Lamb of God which takes away the sin of the world. Then he, the priest, would go to the laver next. Now the laver represented a new life, which is a symbol of Christ's Resurrection. Then next, where did the priest go after washing in the laver? Where did he go next? In the type, in the illustration, where does he go next? SPEAKER C 00:08:18 - 00:08:19 Inside the temple. SPEAKER B 00:08:19 - 00:08:51 Inside the temple into what is called the Holy Place, and there he carried on a ministry in the Holy Place. That's what the, the sanctuary represents. Now the key event on the Day of Pentecost was that God was sending His fire down from heaven at Pentecost, saying that the death of Jesus and His resurrection had been approved in heaven. SPEAKER C 00:08:51 - 00:08:53 Yes! SPEAKER B 00:08:53 - 00:13:05 And so fire came down in the form of, um, Tongues and so forth, so that the message could be taken out around the world. Once again, the fire from heaven. And then Jesus went into the first apartment of the heavenly sanctuary to deal out and to share the benefits of his death on the cross. That's his purpose in the in the first apartment to to share the benefits. What were the benefits? He lived a perfect life, and God wanted to give us Jesus' life to be ours. Then his perfect death. The Bible is illustrating that God wanted to have us partake of the perfect death of Jesus. We can become partakers of that. And as Jesus lived his perfect life, so he offers that life to everyone. And we were reading in the first session Galatians. Galatians chapter 2. So would you just come over to Galatians chapter 2? This is such a wonderful, wonderful verse. I would believe that many of you could repeat this by heart. Galatians 2 and verse 20. And it said this, for I have been crucified with Christ. So there is the benefits. This is what Jesus has gone to heaven in the heavenly sanctuary To impart, I am crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me. So the Bible is pointing out here that this is not just an intellectual understanding. Christ wants to abide in me, and the life which I now live in the flesh, I live by faith in the Son of God. Who loved me and gave himself for me. So this verse is illustrating the fact that Christ's life and his death can be mine. He wants to give it to you. He wants to give it to me, so that I can get the benefits of what he did on Calvary for me. That's the work that Jesus is doing in the heavenly sanctuary. That's why he went to heaven, and God was so happy with what Jesus had done. That He poured out His Spirit on the day of Pentecost. Now, not only do we study this from the point of view of the sanctuary, that gives us a mighty, mighty big clue, but also the Bible tells us that Jesus went to minister in the first apartment of the heavenly sanctuary after His ascension. Let's find that out. Come over to Revelation chapter 4. Revelation, the 4th chapter, and notice this. Revelation 4 and verse 5. It says— this is Revelation 4:5— and from the throne proceeded lightnings, thunderings, and voices. 7 lamps of fire were burning before the throne, which are the 7 spirits of God, and Now there in heaven, Jesus is standing before the 7-branched candlestick. So where was Jesus if he's standing before the 7-branched candlestick? Where was he? In the first apartment of the heavenly sanctuary. The Bible makes that very clear. He's just gone to heaven, and there he's standing before the 7-branched candlestick. In fact, by the way, when it talks about 7 spirits of God, it's not saying there are 7 Holy Spirits. 7 is a number of perfection, and God was pointing out here that the work of the Holy Spirit is perfect in all its ways. Now, when you come into chapter 5, it expands it even more. Chapter 5 and verse 8 of Revelation. SPEAKER C 00:13:05 - 00:13:07 Revelation 5:8. SPEAKER B 00:13:07 - 00:13:30 It says, now when he had taken the scroll, the 4 living creatures and the 24 elders fell down before the Lamb, each having a harp and golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints. So now where is Jesus? Is he still in the Holy Place or the Most Holy Place? SPEAKER C 00:13:32 - 00:13:32 The Most Holy Place. SPEAKER B 00:13:32 - 00:13:37 Standing before the altar of incense, where was that, in the Most Holy Place or the Holy Place? SPEAKER C 00:13:37 - 00:13:37 The Holy Place. SPEAKER B 00:13:37 - 00:15:06 The Holy Place. He's still in the Holy Place. And John is picturing Him as he sees Him in vision, His work in the first apartment of the Holy— of the sanctuary. So we are very clear that not only do we see that in the type, in the illustration of the sanctuary, the altar of burnt offering, the laver, and then the priest entered the Holy Place. Now we see it after Jesus goes back to heaven. We now see Jesus pictured in the first apartment of the sanctuary in heaven before the altar of incense, before the 7-branched candlestick. Then in verse 6 of chapter 5, it adds something else. And I looked, and behold, in the midst of the throne and of the 4 living creatures and in the midst of the elders stood a Lamb as though it had been slain. Now here we see Jesus in the, in the heavenly sanctuary. John is looking at him as though he has just been slain. So this is following his death on the cross. It has just happened, and John sees him as it's been slain, having 7 horns and 7 eyes, which are the 7 spirits of God sent out into all the earth. So the purpose of the Day of Pentecost, when the outpouring of the Holy Spirit took place, what was the purpose? SPEAKER C 00:15:06 - 00:15:10 To spread the Gospel. SPEAKER B 00:15:10 - 00:16:12 To spread the Gospel. And here we find that the purpose of the Holy Spirit being poured out was to take now the message of the slain Lamb that has just taken place to all the people. And the agency of the Holy Spirit was there to enable us to have that. Now I want to read you a verse, Hebrews chapter 9, which is very often misunderstood. Now let's go over to Hebrews. This is an important point because let me explain why this is important. There are many Christians today in the world, in fact, I would say any person who studied anything about the sanctuary, and that's a pretty small number really in comparison to the Christians, if they have much understanding at all, it is believed by them that when Jesus went to heaven, He went into— where do you think? The Most Holy Place. SPEAKER C 00:16:12 - 00:16:14 The Most Holy Place. SPEAKER B 00:16:15 - 00:16:16 That's what they teach. SPEAKER C 00:16:16 - 00:16:17 Mm. SPEAKER B 00:16:18 - 00:17:37 That's why we're going over this so that we can show you from the Bible, from the type, first of all, and then what actually happened as outlined in the Book of Revelation. This is very important, let me tell you, because every attack that has been made against God's truth has always centered in the sanctuary. I don't care, I could name them all, but perhaps we won't this morning, but over the years that's where the attack has come to pass, and the reason it has been a little bit successful at the time, and I mean success by getting people to listen to the heresy, is because many of us have no idea about the sanctuary. And someone comes along with white teeth and a voice and they seem to make sense and because we don't know much about it, we're sucked in and that's what's happened. But if you study the Bible for yourself, you can tell heresy a mile away and that's why I want you to listen today, not just because I want you to listen to what I'm saying. The truth of the sanctuary is vital for us to understand. SPEAKER C 00:17:37 - 00:17:38 Amen. SPEAKER B 00:17:38 - 00:18:28 And the devil has done everything he can to cause us to not understand it. Oh, it's not that important. As long as you love Jesus, I've heard people say. As long as you love Jesus, that's all that's important. Well, it's important that we love Jesus, of course, but there's more to it than that. Why does the Bible speak so much on the sanctuary if it's that There are whole books in the Bible about it. You can't understand Revelation, you don't understand Hebrews unless you understand the sanctuary. It's, it's just loaded with sanctuary language. Look, come back to Hebrews and I'll read you this verse that has caused some problems. Hebrews 9 and verse 12. SPEAKER C 00:18:28 - 00:18:29 Hebrews 9:12. SPEAKER B 00:18:30 - 00:18:55 Where Paul says this, not with the blood of goats and calves, but with His own blood He entered. Now notice the next phrase, if you've got the New King James Version, but with His own blood He entered, where does it say? The Most Holy Place. Now some versions will not have it. If you have the Old King James, it will not say that at all. It says the Holy Place, is that right? SPEAKER C 00:18:55 - 00:18:55 Yes. Yes. SPEAKER B 00:18:55 - 00:19:54 Yes, and in this case, the old King James is correct. The New King James is incorrect, and any other version that says the Most Holy Place is absolutely incorrect. I mean, not only is the translation incorrect because they didn't understand— the translators of the Bible in the main didn't understand it, and we can be very thankful for the old King James. For helping us in so many areas and certainly it's true to the text in this particular case. And we can understand that Jesus did not go into the Most Holy Place at His ascension. He went into the Holy Place because the type tells us and John in Revelation tells us step by step. Now eventually Jesus does go into the Most Holy Place and we'll read that a little bit later in Revelation. We'll deal with that this afternoon. SPEAKER A 00:19:54 - 00:19:54 Amen. SPEAKER B 00:19:56 - 00:20:23 But at this stage, his work is in the Holy Place. And we're going to investigate now, what is his work in the Holy Place? Why has he gone into the Holy Place? You know, I asked some of these folk who maintain that Jesus went into the Most Holy Place, I say to them, what has Jesus been doing? If you believe he's in the Most Holy Place, what has Jesus been doing for the last 2,000 years? SPEAKER C 00:20:23 - 00:20:25 That's true. SPEAKER B 00:20:27 - 00:21:13 And if there's no sanctuary in heaven, like some actually teach, if you please, what has Jesus been doing? You see, you do away with the sanctuary and you don't understand that there's more to the story of salvation than it all finished at the cross. Now, that's another popular Teaching today that it all finished at the cross. And the vast majority of evangelical Christians believe it all finished at the cross. And there are some Adventists, if you please, I even hate to think it, let alone say it, but it's true and you need to understand it. There are some Adventists who have copied that, that error. SPEAKER C 00:21:13 - 00:21:16 That's right. SPEAKER B 00:21:17 - 00:23:43 And so we need to study the reasons why. What has Jesus been doing in the heavenly sanctuary? Now, another reason why Jesus didn't go into the Most Holy Place is this reason. The day of Pentecost was part of the spring festivals in the Jewish Inauguration. The Jews had divided their feasts into 2 areas. One was the spring and the other was the autumn. Now, the day of the Passover, for example, happened at the beginning of the spring session. The day of Pentecost fell at the end of the spring, what we would say about May in our calendar. The, the day of the Passover often comes close to Easter. It's got nothing to do with Easter, but it's— but in our calendar, I'm just trying to locate it for you, in as far as the Jewish calendar is concerned and our calendar, the day of the Passover more aligns at the beginning, which is usually about April. Whereas the day of Pentecost, as you know, 50 days later, comes to us in what we often refer to as May. Just to give you some idea of timing here. Now, the Day of Atonement, which was when Jesus went into the Most Holy Place, actually is part of the autumn festivals. So that's another reason why we know that when Jesus went home to heaven, He didn't go into the Most Holy Place because that was a festival that took place later in the year. And if you study the Bible at all, you know that the Bible is full of types and antitypes. That is illustrations that the Bible gives us all the way through to help us to understand the real truth. The whole sanctuary was a— like a kindergarten lesson to us to help us to understand all the depth of the plan of salvation. You get the idea? SPEAKER C 00:23:43 - 00:23:45 Yes. SPEAKER B 00:23:45 - 00:25:13 And we understand, and Jesus used parables because He knows that our minds are helped to understand big truths when we use illustrations. And much of this is an illustration in the Old Testament of what was to happen later. And the book of Hebrews is very, very clear about that. Now, what has Jesus been doing? Well, let me illustrate it this way. Let's say that there's a very kind bank manager. He's a very gracious man. Now I know that you don't associate bank managers with graciousness and grace, do you? Normally. But this man was a good man. He was a bank manager and he had so much money. And what he did, he said, I know there are so many earthlings there that are struggling with their mortgage, with their education fees, with their children's clothes and so forth. I know that they're full of debt, and I'll tell you what I'm going to do. I'm going to bring all this wealth into my bank, and I'm going to pay off the debts of any person who wants their debt to be paid. SPEAKER C 00:25:13 - 00:25:15 Whoa. SPEAKER B 00:25:15 - 00:26:12 You bring your mortgage. But there's one condition, he says, and the condition is this: you have to come into the bank and ask for it personally. You have to front up, and I want to see your debts, and when I see your debts, I'll be happy to pay them off, but you've got to come in. All right, that's the condition. So if I want my mortgage paid, it's no good me ringing up on the telephone and speaking to him. No, I've got to front up. Now, I'm using that as an illustration because when Jesus died on the cross, He put enough credit, so to speak, enough credit in the bank of heaven for all of us to pay our debt. Get the idea? SPEAKER C 00:26:12 - 00:26:14 Yes. SPEAKER B 00:26:14 - 00:27:35 That's what He did. His death on the cross is so much greater than you and me and every other human being put together that's ever lived on the earth and that will ever live on the earth, and He's put all that credit into the bank of heaven. And when I go and ask Him, and I must front up with this, when I go and ask Him for forgiveness, He's got plenty of of credit to give to me to pay off all my debts. Get the idea? And sometimes when we understand it from that point of view, we can appreciate the fact of what Jesus has done for us. You know, that's why we never need to worry that God is going to run out of grace and power and forgiveness. But I have to front up. I have to personally ask. Christ's death on the cross doesn't cover my sins until I ask. And if I come, the Bible says, in repentance and confess my sins and believe in faith that he has died for me, then his grace and, and the benefits of of that salvation is so great, he can cover my sins no matter what they are. SPEAKER C 00:27:35 - 00:27:36 Praise God. SPEAKER B 00:27:36 - 00:29:40 Praise God. Thank you. That's true. You say, well, what's the proof of that? Everywhere I go, I am meeting people who tell me that, as I said, it all finished at the cross. Now listen, friend, if it all finished at the cross, we're still lost because when Jesus said, it is finished, when He died on the cross, it wasn't the whole complete story of salvation wasn't finished. He was talking about His death on the cross to provide salvation for us all. That was paid complete and nothing will ever need to be added to that. But there are other things that Jesus needs to do for me, and I'm going to read you those statements. In fact, if you have got your Bible there, as you have, come over to 2 Timothy. Timothy is just back before Hebrews. 2 Timothy. chapter 2 and verse 5. 2 Timothy chapter 2, verse 5, it says— sorry, 1 Timothy. 1 Timothy chapter 5. No, 1 Timothy chapter 2, verse 5. We'll get there. That's what happens when you get past 21. Yes, 1 Timothy chapter 2, And we want verse five. Do you remember? Ah, Thessalonians now. Chapter two, verse five. For there is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus. How many mediators do we need? One. SPEAKER C 00:29:41 - 00:29:41 So. SPEAKER B 00:29:42 - 00:31:27 Is it important then that I understand the mediatorial work of Jesus? Did that finish at the cross? Absolutely not. I have a Savior today in the first apartment of the heavenly sanctuary who's there as my mediator. That's why we don't need the Virgin Mary. We don't need the saints because we have one mediator, not hundreds, one mediator, and that mediator is the Lord Jesus Christ. And then it goes on to say in the next verse, who gave himself a ransom for all to be testified in due time. So he wants to put his life to my account. And he's in heaven today doing a work in the heavenly sanctuary, the work of mediatorial work there, and as my mediator and as your mediator. Let me read you another verse that says that. 1 John chapter 2 and verse 1, right toward Revelation. 1 John. Turn to 1 John chapter 2, verse 1. chapter 2 and verse 1. 1 John chapter 2, verse 1, where he says, my little children, these things I write to you so that you may not sin. And if anyone sins, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. So according to 1 John, what is Jesus doing now in heaven? SPEAKER C 00:31:27 - 00:31:27 Interceding. SPEAKER B 00:31:30 - 00:31:47 Yes, He's my Advocate. He's my lawyer, my barrister. He's there on my behalf pleading for me because He's not pleading against the Father because the Father wants to condemn us. Who's He pleading against? SPEAKER C 00:31:47 - 00:31:48 Friends. SPEAKER B 00:31:48 - 00:32:06 When we say pleading, we don't mean getting down on our hands and knees, but in court the plead goes, between the defense and the prosecution, isn't that right? That's what we're talking about. That's what the Bible's talking about here. It's using court language. Who is the accuser? SPEAKER A 00:32:06 - 00:32:07 Satan. SPEAKER B 00:32:07 - 00:32:44 Satan, and do you think that Satan is happy about you having salvation? Of course not. He's doing his utmost to down you and to draw up all your mistakes in life. That's his That's his purpose. He's the accuser of the brethren, and the work of Jesus in the Heavenly Sanctuary as your attorney and as my attorney is to stand on my behalf. He's defending me against these accusations. Does that make sense? SPEAKER C 00:32:44 - 00:32:45 Yes. SPEAKER B 00:32:45 - 00:33:35 Is that important? Did it— did that finish at the cross? Certainly not. That's going on every day. Let me read you another verse. Hebrews chapter 7. Hebrews chapter 7 and verse 25. Hebrews 7:25. Look at this. This is beautiful. It says, therefore he is also able to save to the uttermost. Those who come to God through Him. All right, that's what we've been reading about. So here Paul again is saying that Christ is able to save to the uttermost. There's no one here that has sinned so great that Jesus can't save them. What a wonderful truth that is. No matter what we've done, He can save to the uttermost. SPEAKER C 00:33:37 - 00:33:38 Since— SPEAKER B 00:33:38 - 00:33:53 Now notice the last part of this verse. And for anyone who believes that it all finished at the cross, I want you to answer what the rest of this verse says. What does it say? Since or because— what's He doing? SPEAKER C 00:33:53 - 00:33:55 He makes intercession for us. SPEAKER B 00:33:55 - 00:34:10 He makes intercession for us. So tell me this, on the basis of the text that we have read, do you consider that the intercession of Jesus is as important in our salvation as His death on the cross? SPEAKER C 00:34:10 - 00:34:10 Yes. SPEAKER B 00:34:10 - 00:34:11 Is it? SPEAKER C 00:34:11 - 00:34:12 Yes. SPEAKER B 00:34:12 - 00:36:04 Absolutely. Just as important because Jesus just didn't die for us. Today He's interceding in that heavenly sanctuary. He's my mediator. He's standing there fighting against the accusations of the devil who would like to see me lost and like to see you lost. That's the work that Jesus is doing. Shouldn't we be grateful for a Savior like that who stands in our stead? He's our attorney. He's there on my behalf. We ought to thank God every day in our prayers. Thank you, Lord, for not only your death on the cross, but I hear very few prayers which say, thank you, Lord, for your interceding in the heavenly sanctuary. Just as important. The cross, the cross, the cross. Who would want to minimize the cross? Certainly I don't want to minimize it, but I also want to uphold the other parts of it. And the intercession of Jesus is vitally important. Let me read you back in Romans chapter 8. Romans the 8th chapter and verse 31. Romans chapter 8, verse 31. What shall we say to these things? Paul writes, if God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things? Who shall bring a charge against God's elect? It is God who justifies. Who is he who condemns? It is Christ who died and furthermore is also risen. who is even at the right hand of God, who also makes what? SPEAKER C 00:36:04 - 00:36:05 Intercession. SPEAKER B 00:36:05 - 00:36:29 Intercession for us. This is the New Testament talking after the death of Jesus, and Paul is extolling the fact that Jesus today— thank God for the intercession of Jesus. We will be lost without the intercession of Jesus. Let me ask you another question. Were all sins forgiven at the cross? SPEAKER C 00:36:29 - 00:36:31 Yes. SPEAKER B 00:36:31 - 00:37:08 Now before you say yes or no, just think. Were all sins forgiven at the cross? The answer to that is no. Otherwise you believe in universalism. The provision was made at the cross for all sins to be forgiven. That is true. 100% true, but not all sins were forgiven at the cross because what have I got to do in order to have my sins forgiven? When I, when I go to the bank manager, what have I got to do? Front up. SPEAKER C 00:37:08 - 00:37:10 Front up. SPEAKER B 00:37:10 - 00:37:35 It's not just a blanket forgiveness like some teach, you know, that we were forensically forgiven at the cross. I've heard people say, what does that mean? What a lot of nonsense! It's not what the Bible teaches. I've got to front up, and the way I front up is by asking God to forgive me, kneeling down and confessing my sin. SPEAKER C 00:37:35 - 00:37:38 Amen. SPEAKER B 00:37:39 - 00:37:48 And forgiveness is a personal thing. Forgiveness is not something that is done corporately. Every one of us has to be forgiven individually. SPEAKER C 00:37:48 - 00:37:48 Amen. SPEAKER B 00:37:48 - 00:41:51 Now I want to read a couple of verses on forgiveness. Come over to Luke chapter 24, and Jesus here is on the way to Emmaus, and you know the story in Luke 24 of how the disciples were so dejected, so cast down, you know, that you can imagine them walking along with their shoulders down, their head down, because the person they thought was going to deliver them from the Romans, Was now dead. The bottom had fallen out of everything as far as they were concerned, and while they were sort of dejected and walking along the road, dragging their feet, suddenly someone comes up alongside them and begins to talk. Have a look at Luke 24 and verse 46. Then he said to them, "Thus it is written, and thus it was necessary for the Christ to suffer." and to rise from the dead the 3rd day, and that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in His name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem. So Jesus here is giving the disciples, the sorrowing disciples, instruction, and He's saying, I want you to go out and teach the people to have forgiveness of sins and remission of sins, repentance, And that needs to be preached in all the world. To everyone needs to know that, because as we've concluded, and it's correct, forgiveness is a personal thing. Now, did the disciples obey Jesus? Come over to the book of Acts now, the second chapter. Acts chapter two and verse thirty-seven. Acts the second chapter and verse thirty-seven. This is Peter on the day of Pentecost, and toward the end of his sermon, he says this in verse 37. Now when they heard this—that is, the people heard what Peter was saying—they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, "Men and brethren, what shall we do?" Then Peter said to them, "Repent and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ." For the remission of sins. The very thing that Jesus told them that they were to do, now they were putting into practice what Jesus had said, to go out and teach the people for forgiveness and repentance and to be baptized. You see, that's why baptism is so important for us, because baptism represents the fact that Jesus died for me. He was buried for me and He rose again for me. That's why baptism by immersion is the only correct biblical method of baptism because it symbolizes the death, the burial, and the resurrection of Jesus, and it symbolizes it so that it's personal because when I'm baptized, I am saying publicly that I've accepted Jesus' death, burial, and resurrection for me. Why I encourage people all the time when I'm studying with them or they're coming to my meetings to be baptized. It's important. Now, if you come over to Acts the fifth chapter and verse thirty-one, Acts five and verse thirty-one, it says this. Him God has exalted to his right hand to be Prince and Savior, to give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins. So by the way, where is the throne? And you'll remember when we read back in Revelation 4 and 5, where was the throne? The holy place or the most holy place? SPEAKER C 00:41:51 - 00:41:52 Wait a moment. SPEAKER B 00:41:54 - 00:43:35 The throne was in the Holy Place. The throne was in the Holy Place. Don't you remember that verse? Should we turn it up? I think you better because this is important, another important point, because they say the throne of God is in the Most Holy Place. That's not true, like many things. Fake news, as someone would say. Yes, have a look at— let's go back to Revelation chapter 5. Revelation 5, and we'll read what we read before. Chapter 5, or perhaps we'll read chapter 4 for a start. 4:6, right? Chapter 4:6. Before the throne there was a sea of glass like crystal, Verse 5 says 7 lamps. That's right. And from the throne— this is verse 5— and from the throne proceeded lightning, thunderings, and voices. 7 lamps of fire were burning before the throne. Where's the throne then? In the holy place. See, people say things because they never study the Bible. And here the throne, at this stage, the throne is in the Holy Place and it's also before the altar of incense. So when we read here that the throne of God, then we know that it's talking here about the Holy Place. SPEAKER C 00:43:35 - 00:43:36 Amen. SPEAKER B 00:43:37 - 00:44:05 And God gives us repentance. You know, repentance is not something that we work up in our hearts. Repentance is a gift from God, the same as salvation is a gift from God. Righteousness is a gift from God. Repentance is a gift from God. I won't even want to repent unless I have the Spirit of God in my heart and God gives me the Spirit of repentance, because by nature I don't want to repent. I'm happy with the sins I commit. SPEAKER C 00:44:05 - 00:44:09 Amen! 2, 4, 5. SPEAKER B 00:44:09 - 00:44:32 In my natural condition, I'm happy with it. But you see, when Jesus comes into our hearts, He gives us a Spirit whereby we're not happy with our condition, and He then— He gives us the Spirit of repentance so that we want to confess our sins that are wrong. And then as well as that, He gives us the power to be able to do it. SPEAKER C 00:44:32 - 00:44:35 Amen. SPEAKER B 00:44:35 - 00:44:53 And that's a very, very, very important point because I believe that God's grace is so great that it can overcome any sin or shortcoming that we have. Do you believe that? SPEAKER C 00:44:53 - 00:44:54 Yes. SPEAKER B 00:44:54 - 00:47:38 I want to tell you, it's true. Now unto Him that is able to keep you from falling and to present you faultless. What does that mean? If it doesn't mean what it says, what does it mean? What about the woman that was taken in adultery? Now that's a sin that we all understand. She was taken in adultery. What did Jesus say to her just before she left? Go. Was He playing with words there, or was He stating something that's true? Go and sin no more. In other words, don't do it anymore. He forgave the woman, and let me read you. Look, this is one of the most wonderful Psalms. Psalm. 32, in the middle of the Bible. Psalm 32. This is David's prayer after he committed the sin with Bathsheba. Psalm 32 and verse 5, yes. Now notice what David says when he was convicted. He says, I acknowledge my sin. He didn't blame someone else for it. He didn't even blame Bathsheba for it. I acknowledge my sin to you, and mine iniquity I have not hidden. I said, I will confess my transgressions to the Lord, and you forgave the iniquity of my sin. So was there a personal acceptance in David's prayer. He didn't blame someone else. I'm the one. I'm guilty. And he confessed his iniquity and God forgave him, as we know, called him a man after God's own heart. And those stories are recorded not because God wants us to get involved in all the gore and You know, scratching at people's lives. That's not why God records this. God records this so that you and I will have hope, because all of us have done things that are wrong, and sometimes we may consider that we've gone too far. Well, these verses tell us, and the experience of David assures us, that God will forgive. SPEAKER C 00:47:38 - 00:47:38 Amen. Confess. SPEAKER B 00:47:38 - 00:51:44 He confessed and turned away from that sin. So that again illustrates that forgiveness is not contained in the cross. The provision was provided at the cross, but forgiveness is something that I have to ask for. I have to show up and, and confess Those sins. You know, Jesus used and told lots of stories. He told the story of the Pharisee and the publican. You know the story well. And the Pharisee said, "Thank God I'm not like other these other people, that publican over there. I live such a righteous life." And what did Jesus say about him? He said that man. He's not forgiven at all. But the publican, on the other hand, Jesus illustrated and said, he'd hardly— he was so ashamed he wouldn't even lift up his head. And he said, God, be merciful to me, a sinner. And Jesus said about that man that he went to his house justified. That is as though when God looked at him, he hadn't committed those sins that he was confessing because he was justified. And that's the wonderful teaching of the Bible. And the sanctuary helps us to understand this, that this is something that is Personal, I need to like David. I need to confess my sin. I need to own up and not blame everybody else, my parents or whoever we want to blame. No, I did it. I'm confessing my sin, and the Bible says that when we confess our sins like that, God will wonderfully, wonderfully forgive us. And I want to encourage us today. This is the. work that Jesus is doing in heaven today. And one of the things that we ought to say in our prayers, particularly our personal prayers, when we pray personally, but also in church too, to remind us all that we have a Savior today, an Advocate who's in heaven. Not only did He die for us, but today He's interceding for us. And even many of the hymns that we sing, Beautiful hymns that I love, and I'm sure you love too, especially when we have an organ like we've had this morning. You know, I don't think that you've ever sung better than I heard this morning. It was beautiful. But many of the hymns were written by men who didn't understand the fullness of the Gospel. And so many of the hymns center in the death of Jesus. You, you look at the hymns, the cross, the cross, the cross. And once again, we don't want to minimize the cross, God forbid that. But once again, we are saying, what about His mediatorial work? How many times does the hymn talk about that? And I'd like to encourage you in your prayers, personal and public, that we thank God and praise God not only for his death on the cross but also for his mediatorial work, his advocacy in the heavenly sanctuary. That's just as important. And God wants me not only to love him but also to be obedient, and the gospel teaches me that there's more to it than just believing that Jesus forgives me. God wants me, as He said, if you love Me, you will keep My commandments, and that's where obedience comes in. And we're going to talk a little bit more about that in our next session, about the, the, the Most Holy Experience, because it's not just a matter of the goats and so forth that were associated with the Most Holy Experience. SPEAKER C 00:51:44 - 00:51:45 Amen. SPEAKER B 00:51:45 - 00:52:38 It is all the— it's the personal experience that is important for us all to understand. And I trust that God will not only bless us as we have lunch together today, but you'll be here to hear it. And I would like to encourage you also to listen to this material more than once because you won't remember everything that's been said this morning, but God will help you Amen. To remember the more times you hear it. Help us, Lord, to remember that you today are interceding on our behalf in the heavenly sanctuary. Thank you, Lord, not only for your death but also for that wonderful work you are doing as our barrister. Lord, thank you and be with us now as we have time with lunch and then this afternoon as we look into the Most Holy Place. I pray for Christ's sake. SPEAKER C 00:52:39 - 00:52:40 Amen. SPEAKER B 00:52:56 - 00:53:09 This message was made available by the Victoria Park Seventh-day Adventist Church. For more resources like this, visit their YouTube page. Vic Park SDA Church. SPEAKER A 00:53:21 - 00:53:40 This program has been brought to you by 3ABN Australia Radio. To listen to our Australian programs on demand, visit both of our YouTube channels 3ABN Australia Radio and Creation Conversations, or search for us on your favorite podcast directory.