Jogos Políticos E Espirituais, O Que Pode Trazer 2023?

No episódio 147, discutimos a contínua oscilação do pêndulo em direção ao lado conservador no mundo secular, político e religioso. Se aplicarmos a filosofia Rei do Norte vs Rei do Sul com o falecimento do Papa Bento XVI, podemos ver que o conflito está a acontecer mesmo dentro de entidades religiosas como a ICAR. Mas isto é a realidade ou parte de um jogo magistral? O que tem 2023 possivelmente reservado?

No Buy No Sell - What does it Mean?

With food shortages just around the corner, the world is leaving the cities and moving to the country faster than God’s people. Should we be preparing for the time of Revelation 13:17 when we can’t buy or sell? Or will God provide for us?

This presentation introduces the concepts and events connected with the mark of the beast, including what the mark is, the close of probation, typology of the sieges of Jerusalem, and why we need to leave the cities. MacKenzie Drebit looks at the order of events that happen right at the end of time and the counsel we’ve been given to prepare for them.

God’s Covenants With Us

Lesson 2, January 7-13

Sabbath Afternoon

Read for This Week’s Study: Matthew 10:22, John 6:29, Deuteronomy 28:1-14, Proverbs 3:1-10, Malachi 3:7-11, Matthew 6:25-33.

Memory Text: “And it shall come to pass, if thou shalt hearken diligently unto the voice of the Lord thy God, to observe and to do all his commandments which I command thee this day, that the Lord thy God will set thee on high above all nations of the earth: And all these blessings shall come on thee, and overtake thee, if thou shalt hearken unto the voice of the Lord thy God.” Deuteronomy 28:1-2

Amazingly enough, God has made contracts (or covenants) with us. Most are bilateral, which means that both parties (God and humans) have a part to perform. An example of a bilateral covenant is “If you will do this, then I will do that.” Or “I will do this if you will do that.”

A rarer type of covenant is unilateral. “I will do this whether you do anything or not.” A few of God’s covenants with humanity are unilateral. For example,

“... he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust” (Matthew 5:45). Whatever we do or don’t do, we can count on God for sunshine and rain. Following the Flood, God promised humanity and “every beast of the earth” that there would never be another flood to cover all the earth (see Genesis 9:9-16), regardless of our actions. He also promised: “While the earth remaineth, seedtime and harvest, and cold and heat, and summer and winter, and day and night shall not cease” (Genesis 8:22). The seasons will come and go, regardless of what we do.

This week we will study some very significant bilateral covenants between God and His children. Let’s pray that, by the grace of God, we shall “uphold our end of the bargain.”

Sunday, January 8 - The Salvation Covenant

The death of Christ on Calvary made salvation possible for every person who has ever lived or who will ever live. Unlike the promise of the seasons, salvation is not unilateral — it is not given to everyone, regardless of what they do. The belief that everyone will be saved is called “universalism.”

Instead, Jesus clearly taught that, though He died for all humanity, many people travel the broad way to destruction and eternal death (Matthew 7:13, 14).

What do the following texts have to say about how people receive the gift of salvation in Jesus?

1 John 5:13

Matthew 10:22

John 6:29

2 Peter 1:10, 11

Paul understood the bilateral nature of the salvation covenant. Knowing that he was soon to be executed, and in spite of the fact that many of his companions had forsaken him, Paul confidently told his dear friend Timothy that he had upheld his end of the bargain. “For I am now ready to be offered, and the time of my departure is at hand. I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith: Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day: and not to me only, but unto all them also that love his appearing” (2 Timothy 4:6-8).

Paul says, “I am ready [because] I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith.” Paul, though, was always very clear that salvation is by faith alone, not the deeds of the law, and so here he is not somehow looking at his works or achievements as earning him merit with God. The “crown of righteousness” awaiting him is the righteousness of Jesus, which Paul, by faith, has claimed for himself and has held on to until the end of his life.

Though salvation is an unmerited gift, what’s the difference between those who accept the gift and those who don’t? What does accepting this gift require that we do?

Monday, January 9 - To Hearken Diligently

The book of Deuteronomy is the printed version of Moses’ farewell messages to the second generation of Israelites following the forty years of wandering in the wilderness. These messages were given on the plains of Moab just east of Jericho. Deuteronomy has been appropriately called “The Book of Remembrance.”

In this book, Moses reviews God’s faithful dealings with Israel. He recounts the travels from Mount Sinai to Kadesh Barnea on the edge of the Promised Land, as well as the rebellion and the 40 years of wilderness wandering. He restated the Ten Commandments, the requirements of the tithe and the central storehouse. But the primary focus of Deuteronomy is the counsel to obey God and receive His blessings. Moses portrays God as One who has the ability, and the desire, to care for His people.

Read Deuteronomy 28:1-14. What great blessings are promised the people? But what must they do to receive them?

Moses was very eager for the people to understand that God had wonderful, even miraculous, blessings in mind for them. His words, “If thou shalt hearken diligently,” let them know that their eternal destiny was at stake here. What a powerful manifestation of the reality of free choice. They were His chosen nation, recipients of great blessings and great promises, but those blessings and promises were not unconditional. They needed to be accepted, received, and acted upon.

And nothing God had asked them was too hard for them to do, either. “For this commandment which I command thee this day, it is not hidden from thee, neither is it far off. It is not in heaven, that thou shouldest say, Who shall go up for us to heaven, and bring it unto us, that we may hear it, and do it? Neither is it beyond the sea, that thou shouldest say, Who shall go over the sea for us, and bring it unto us, that we may hear it, and do it? But the word is very nigh unto thee, in thy mouth, and in thy heart, that thou mayest do it” (Deuteronomy 30:11-14).

Of course, besides the blessings, there were the warnings of the curses, what would come upon them if they were to disobey (Deuteronomy 28:15-68), that is, what consequences their sin and rebellion would bring.

What does it mean for us, today, to “hearken diligently” to what God tells us to do?

Tuesday, January 10 - Honor the Lord

The book of Proverbs is not so much about right and wrong as it is about wisdom and foolishness. As one reads through the book, one will see the benefits of wisdom and the pitfalls of foolishness.

Read Proverbs 3:1-10. What wonderful promises are given here? Also, what does “firstfruits of all your increase” mean?

God asks us to put Him first in the management of our possessions as an acknowledgment of His ownership of all things, and as a demonstration of our faith in Him to provide for us. But even more than this, He says that if we will put Him first, then He will bless what’s left. For us to do this — that is, to put Him first — is an act of faith, an act of trust, a manifestation of trusting in the Lord with all your heart and, indeed, not leaning on your own understanding (which is especially important, because so often things happen that we cannot understand and cannot make sense of).

Nothing, though, should spur us on more in trusting God and His love than does the cross. When you realize what each one of us has been given in Jesus, not just as our Creator (John 1:1-4) and our Sustainer (Hebrews 1:3), but also as our Redeemer (Revelation 5:9), returning to God the firstfruits of whatever we have is, indeed, the least we could do.

“Not only does the Lord claim the tithe as His own, but He tells us how it should be reserved for Him. He says, ‘Honor the Lord with thy substance, and with the first fruits of all thine increase.’ This does not teach that we are to spend our means on ourselves, and bring to the Lord the remnant, even though it should be otherwise an honest tithe. Let God’s portion be first set apart.” Counsels on Stewardship, p. 81

God says that if we put Him first, “So shall thy barns be filled with plenty”. Yet this is not going to happen by miracle; that is, you are not going to wake up one day and find your barns and vats suddenly full.

Instead, the Bible is filled with principles about good stewardship, careful planning, and financial responsibility, of which faithfulness to what God calls us to do is our first and foremost responsibility.

How, though, do we learn to trust God and in His promises during hard financial times when, even while we are seeking to be faithful, the barns and vats are not full?

Wednesday, January 11 - The Tithe Contract

There is a close spiritual connection between the practice of tithing and our relationship to God. The Israelites prospered when they obeyed God and were faithful in tithing. In contrast, they fell on hard times when they didn’t. They seemed to follow a cycle of obedience and prosperity, and then disobedience and problems. It was during one of these periods of unfaithfulness that God, through the prophet Malachi, proposed a bilateral contract with His people.

Read Malachi 3:7-11. What are the promises and the obligations found in these verses?

God promised the people that if they would return to Him, He would return to them. When they asked what He meant by returning to Him, He explicitly said, “... ye have robbed me. [...] In tithes and offerings.” Their robbery was the reason they were being cursed. Here is God’s solution to the problem of the curse: “Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse” (Malachi 3:10). And if you do this, then “... I will ... open you the windows of heaven, And pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it”. If we don’t have room enough to receive it, we have a surplus with which we can help others and help to advance the cause of God.

“He who gave His only-begotten Son to die for you, has made a covenant with you. He gives you His blessings, and in return He requires you to bring Him your tithes and offerings. No one will ever dare to say that there was no way in which he could understand in regard to this matter. God’s plan regarding tithes and offerings is definitely stated in the third chapter of Malachi. God calls upon His human agents to be true to the contract He has made with them.” Counsels on Stewardship, p. 75

One of the positive cycles of obedience is recorded during the reign of good King Hezekiah of Judah. There was a genuine revival in Judah, and the people started faithfully returning their tithes and offerings to the temple storehouse. So much came in that it was piled in heaps at the temple. Second Chronicles 31:5 tells what happened when the people “brought in abundance the firstfruits of corn, wine, and oil, and honey, and of all the increase of the field; and the tithe of all things brought they in abundantly”.

What does your tithing (or lack thereof) say about your own spirituality and relationship to God?

Thursday, January 12 - Seek Ye First

It was said of Jesus that “the common people heard him gladly” (Mark 12:37). Most of the people in the large crowds who followed and listened to Jesus were members of this class, the common people. They were the ones who were fed on the mountainside, and who heard the Sermon on the Mount. Jesus said to them, basically, I know you are concerned about providing for your families. You worry about the food and drink that you will need daily and the clothing that you need for warmth and protection. But here is what I propose . . .

Read Matthew 6:25-33. What was promised here, and what were the people to do in order to receive those promises?

Many of the promises of God have elements of a bilateral covenant. That is, in order to receive the blessing, we need to do our part as well.

Read Isaiah 26:3. What are we asked to do in order to have the peace of God?

Read 1 John 1:9. What will Jesus do if we confess our sins?

Read 2 Chronicles 7:14. What are the “ifs” and “thens” of God’s proposal here?

All these verses and many others deal with the important fact that although God is sovereign, although God is our Creator and Sustainer, and although salvation is a gift of grace and unmerited on our part, we still have a part to play in the great controversy drama here on earth. Using the sacred gift of free will, free choice, we must choose to follow the prompting of the Holy Spirit and obey what God calls us to do. Though God offers us blessings and life, we can choose cursing and death instead. No wonder God says, “therefore choose life, that both thou and thy seed may live” (Deuteronomy 30:19).

Friday, January 13

Further Thought: “Whenever God’s people, in any period of the world, have cheerfully and willingly carried out His plan in systematic benevolence and in gifts and offerings, they have realized the standing promise that prosperity should attend all their labors just in proportion as they obeyed His requirements. When they acknowledged the claims of God and complied with His requirements, honoring Him with their substance, their barns were filled with plenty. But when they robbed God in tithes and in offerings they were made to realize that they were not only robbing Him but themselves, for He limited His blessings to them just in proportion as they limited their offerings to Him.” Testimonies for the Church, vol. 3, p. 395

The Bible is very clear that we are saved through faith alone, a gift of God’s grace. Our obedience to God’s commands is a response to God’s grace; it doesn’t earn it (after all, if it were earned, it wouldn’t be grace: see Romans 4:1-4).

Indeed, when we look at God’s bilateral covenant with us, we can see both our blessings and our responsibilities. By our responses to what God offers to us, we establish our relationship with Him and, to a great degree, determine our own destiny. Obedience — the service and allegiance of love — is the true sign of discipleship. Instead of releasing us from obedience, it is faith, and faith only, that makes us partakers of the grace of Christ, which enables us to render the obedience that God asks from us.

Discussion Questions:

1. It has been said that if every Adventist were faithful in returning tithe, our church would have more than enough money to do all that it needs to do for spreading the message. What are you doing, in terms of tithes and offerings, to help the church do what it has been called to do?

2. Dwell more on the idea of how important our choices and our works are in our relationship with God. How do we keep the questions of works and obedience, including tithe paying and good stewardship, before us but without falling into the trap of legalism?

3. In class, talk about the question at the end of Tuesday’s study regarding when hard times come even when we have been faithful. How do we understand this when it happens, and how do we keep from being discouraged if it does?

Political & Spiritual Games, What Can 2023 Possibly Bring?

In episode 147 we discuss the ongoing swing of the pendulum toward the conservative side in the secular, political, as well as in the religious world. If we apply the King of the North vs King of the South philosophy with the passing of Pope Benedict XVI, we can see that the conflict is even raging inside religious entities such as the Roman Catholic Church. But is this the reality or part of a masterful game? What does 2023 possibly have in store?

Lección 3: El Contrato Del Diezmo

¿Qué enseña la Biblia en relación con el diezmo? ¿Cuál debería ser nuestra actitud en relación con ello? ¿Cómo se llevaba a cabo esta práctica en la Biblia y qué podemos aprender de ello?

Is Country Living Salvational? | MacKenzie Drebit

Are you ready for last day events? What can we do to avoid the seven last plagues written about in Revelation 15 and 16? How can we prepare to be among the 144000 described in Revelation 7?

This presentation looks at what we must do to prepare for the final events of earth’s history and includes a study of terms that are often misunderstood. What is the “little time of trouble” and when does it happen? Has the shaking already begun? When does the close of probation come for God’s people? Join Mackenzie Drebit as he opens God’s Word and the Spirit of Prophecy in this study of the 144000 and final events.

Está A Chegar O Tempo Da Perseguição...

“Nada temas das coisas que hás de padecer. Eis que o diabo lançará alguns de vós na prisão, para que sejais tentados; e tereis uma tribulação de dez dias. Sê fiel até à morte, e dar-te-ei a coroa da vida.” Apocalipse 2:10

O Maior Engano da COP 27 - Não é o que tu pensas

"Quem é o Sumo Sacerdote da igreja hoje? Onde está localizado o monte Sinai bíblico? A mudança climática está a afastar as pessoas dos problemas reais? Neste vídeo, Matthew Schanche e Mackenzie Drebit exploram estas questões e fornecem respostas sólidas."

A Verdade Importa

The Biggest Deception of COP 27 - It's Not What You Think

"Who is the High Priest of the church today? Where is the biblical mount Sinai located? Is climate change leading people away from the real issues? In this video, Matthew Schanche and Mackenzie Drebit explore these questions and provide solid answers."

Truth Matters

Part of God’s Family

Lesson 1, December 31 - January 6

Sabbath Afternoon

Read for This Week’s Study: Galatians 3:26, 29; Psalms 50:10-12; 1 Chronicles 29:13, 14; Philippians 4:19; 1 John 5:3; Matthew 6:19-21.

Memory Text: “Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew him not.” 1 John 3:1

As Christians, an amazing feature about our relationship with God, is that He trusts us to manage His affairs on the earth. At the very outset of human history, God explicitly delegated to Adam and Eve the personal care of a flawless creation. (See Genesis 2:7-9, 15) From the naming of the animals, to keeping the Garden, and to filling the earth with children, God let it be known that we are to work on His behalf here.

He also blesses us with resources, but we are the ones whom He has entrusted to manage them, such as to collect money, to write the checks, to do the electronic transfers, to make the budgets, or to bring our tithes and offerings to the church on Sabbath mornings. God encourages us to spend the resources that He has given to us for our own needs, for the needs of others, and for the advancement of His work. Incredible as it may seem, we are the ones whom God has entrusted with raising His children, building His buildings, and educating the succeeding generations.

In this week’s study, we will explore the privileges and responsibilities of being a part of the family of God.

Sunday, January 1 - We Are Part of God’s Family

“For this cause I bow my knees unto the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, Of whom the whole family pin heaven and earth is named” (Ephesians 3:14, 15). What imagery is evoked in this verse, and what hope is found there?

Early in Jesus’ ministry, He states, “After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name.” (Matthew 6:9). Later He repeats the same prayer privately to His disciples (Luke 11:2). Jesus told us to call His Father, “Our Father in heaven.” When Jesus encountered Mary after His resurrection, she wanted to embrace Him. Jesus said to her, “Jesus saith unto her, Touch me not; for I am not yet ascended to my Father: but go to my brethren, and say unto them, I ascend unto my Father, and your Father; and to my God, and your God.” (John 20:17).

Because we have the same Father as Jesus, He is our brother, and we are all brothers and sisters in the Lord. Jesus became a member of the earthly family so that we could become members of the heavenly family. “The family of heaven and the family of earth are one.” — Ellen G. White, The Desire of Ages, p. 835.

Read Exodus 3:10; Exodus 5:1; and Galatians 3:26, 29. What do these verses say about how God relates to us? Why should this be so encouraging?

In contrast to a view of creation in which we are deemed the mere products of cold, uncaring natural laws, Scripture teaches not only that God exists, but that He loves us and relates to us in such a loving manner that the imagery of family is often used in Scripture to depict that relationship. Whether Jesus calls Israel “My people,” or us “sons of God,” or refers to God as “our Father,” the point is still the same: God loves us the way family members are supposed to love each other. What good news amid a world that, in and of itself, can be very hostile!

Imagine a world in which we treated everyone as family. How can we learn to relate better to all human beings as our brothers and sisters?

Monday, January 2 - God Is the Owner of Everything

Read Psalm 50:10-12; Psalm 24:1; 1 Chronicles 29:13, 14; and Haggai 2:8. What’s the message here, and what should this truth mean to us and how we relate to whatever we possess?

The book of 1 Chronicles, starting with chapter 17, records King David’s desire to build a house for God. He shared this desire with the prophet Nathan, who responded, “Do all that is in thine heart; for God is with thee” (1 Chronicles 17:2). But that night the word of God came to Nathan and instructed him to tell the King that, because he was a man of war, he couldn’t build God’s house. His son would do the work instead. David asked if he could, at least, draw the plans and prepare the building materials. When David was granted this request, he spent the rest of his life amassing a tremendous amount of hewn stone, cedar, iron, gold, silver, and brass “without measure.” When all of the building materials had been prepared and assembled at the building site, David called all the leaders of Israel together for a ceremony of praise and thanksgiving.

In 1 Chronicles 29:13, 14, in King David’s public prayer, what did he say was the real source of all the building materials that he and the people had spent time and money preparing? Of course, in essence, he said, “We really can’t take any credit for all these special materials because we are just giving You back Your own stuff.”

The point is important for all of us, whether rich or poor (but especially the rich). Because God made everything in the beginning (see Gen. 1:1; John 1:3; Ps. 33:6, 9), He is truly the rightful owner of all that exists, including whatever we possess — no matter how hard and diligently and honestly we have worked for it. If not for God and His grace, we would have nothing, we would be nothing; in fact, we wouldn’t even exist. Thus, we must always live with the realization that, ultimately, God owns all that is, and by praising and thanking Him for His goodness to us, we can keep this important truth before us.

“But who am I, and what is my people, that we should be able to offer so willingly after this sort?” (1 Chronicles 29:14). What beautiful principles are expressed in these words, and how do they reflect what our attitude toward God should be and our attitude toward what we possess?

Tuesday, January 3 - Resources Available for God’s Family

God’s greatest gift to His children is Jesus Christ, who brings us the peace of forgiveness, grace for daily living and spiritual growth, and the hope of eternal life.

“For God so loved the world, that he agave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” (John 3:16). “But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name” (John 1:12).

Salvation, then, is the foundational gift because, without this gift, what else could we get from God that in the long run would really matter? Whatever we might have here, one day we will be dead and gone and so will everyone who ever remembered us, and whatever good we did will be forgotten as well. First and foremost, then, we must always keep the gift of the gospel, that is, Christ and Him crucified (1 Cor. 2:2), at the center of all our thoughts.

And yet, along with salvation, God gives us so much more. To those who were concerned about their food and clothing, Jesus offered comfort by saying, “But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.” (Matthew 6:33).

Read Psalm 23:1, Psalm 37:25, and Philippians 4:19. What do these verses say about God’s provision for our daily needs?

Also, when Jesus talked to His disciples about going away, He promised the gift of the Holy Spirit to comfort them. “If ye love me, keep my commandments. And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever; even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you” (John 14:15-17). “He will guide you into all truth” (John 16:13).

Then the Spirit Himself gives amazing spiritual gifts to God’s children. (See 1 Cor. 12:4-11)

In short, the God in whom “we live, and move, and have our being” (Acts 17:28), the God who “giveth to all life, and breath, and all things” (Acts 17:25), has given us existence, the promise of salvation, material blessings, and spiritual gifts in order to be a blessing to others. Again, whatever material possessions that we have, whatever gifts or talents we have been blessed with, we are indebted in every way to the Giver in how we use those gifts.

Wednesday, January 4 - Responsibilities of God’s Family Members

We all enjoy the spiritual and temporal blessings and gifts that God gives us. How comforting to know, too, that we are “part of the family.”

Read Deuteronomy 6:5 and Matthew 22:37. What does this mean, and how do we do it?

How would you love God with “all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind” (Matthew 22:37)? Interestingly enough, the Bible gives us the answer, and it’s not what most people expect, either.

Read Deuteronomy 10:12, 13 and 1 John 5:3. Biblically speaking, what is our proper response in our love relationship with our Father in heaven?

Keeping the law? Obeying the commandments? For many Christians, unfortunately, the idea of obeying the law (especially the fourth commandment) is legalism, and they claim that we are called, simply, to love God and to love our neighbor as ourselves. However, God is clear: we reveal our love to God and to our neighbors by, yes, obeying His commandments.

“For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments” (1 John 5:3). We are used to looking at this verse as, well, we love God and, therefore, we keep His commandments. That’s fine. But perhaps we can also read it as “this is the love of God,” that is, we know and experience the love of God by keeping His commandments.

In Matthew 7:21-27, Jesus said that those who hear and do God’s words are likened to a wise builder who built his house upon the solid rock. Those who hear but don’t obey are likened to a foolish builder who built his house on the sand — with disastrous results. Both heard the word; one obeyed, one didn’t. The results made the difference between life and death.

Think about the link between loving God and obeying His law. Why would love for God be expressed that way? What is it about keeping the commandments that, indeed, does reveal that love? (Hint: think about what disobeying His law causes.)

Thursday, January 5 - Treasure in Heaven

“Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal: But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal: For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.” (Matt. 6:19-21). What crucial truths is Jesus speaking here?

Who hasn’t read story after story of those who had amassed great wealth, only somehow to lose it? Our world is a very unstable place: wars, crime, violence, natural disasters, anything can come in a moment and take away all that we have worked for and, perhaps, even what we have honestly and faithfully earned. Then, too, in a moment, death comes, and so these things become useless to us anyway.

Of course, Scripture never tells us it’s wrong to be rich or to have amassed wealth; instead, in these verses Jesus warns us to keep it all in perspective.

What, though, does it mean to lay up treasure in heaven? It means making God and His cause first and foremost in your life, instead of making money first and foremost. Among other things, it means using what we have for the work of God, for the advancement of His kingdom, for working in behalf of others, and for being a blessing to others.

For instance, when God called Abram, He planned to use Abram and His family to bless all the families of the earth. God said to Abraham, who “was called the friend of God” (James 2:2), “And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing: And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.” (Gen. 12:2, 3).

“So then they which be of faith are blessed with faithful Abraham” (Gal. 3:9). We have the same challenge presented to us as was presented to him.

“Money has great value, because it can do great good. In the hands of God’s children it is food for the hungry, drink for the thirsty, and clothing for the naked. It is a defense for the oppressed, and a means of help to the sick. But money is of no more value than sand, only as it is put to use in providing for the necessities of life, in blessing others, and advancing the cause of Christ.” — Ellen G. White, Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 351.

“For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.” (Matt. 6:21). Where does your heart tell you your treasure is?

Friday, January 6 - Further Thought

“The heart of God yearns over His earthly children with a love stronger than death. In giving up His Son, He has poured out to us all heaven in one gift. The Saviour’s life and death and intercession, the ministry of angels, the pleading of the Spirit, the Father working above and through all, the unceasing interest of heavenly beings, — all are enlisted in behalf of man’s redemption.” — Ellen G. White, Steps to Christ, p. 21.

“If you have renounced self and given yourself to Christ you are a member of the family of God, and everything in the Father’s house is for you. All the treasures of God are opened to you, both the world that now is and that which is to come. The ministry of angels, the gift of His Spirit, the labors of His servants — all are for you. The world, with everything in it, is yours so far as it can do you good.” — Ellen G. White, Thoughts From the Mount of Blessing, p. 110.

Discussion Questions:

1. With all of these awesome gifts that God gives His children, we are compelled to ask, as did the psalmist, “What shall I render to the Lord for all His benefits toward me?” (Ps. 116:12, NKJV). Make a list of the blessings and gifts of God to you in your spiritual and temporal life, and be ready to share it with your class. What does this teach you about how thankful to God you really should be?

2. Though we think about God, and rightly so, as our Creator, Scripture over and over teaches that He is our Sustainer as well. (See Heb. 1:3; Job 38:33-37; Ps. 135:6, 7; Col. 1:17; Acts 17:28; 2 Pet. 3:7) From the galaxies in the cosmos, to the beating of our hearts, to the forces that hold together the atomic structures that make up all known matter, it is only God’s sustaining power that keeps them in existence. How should this biblical truth help us understand just what our obligations are to God, in terms of how we use whatever He has given us? How does this reality help us keep our life and the purpose of our life in proper perspective?

3. The lesson talked about why, of all God has given us, Jesus and the plan of salvation is the greatest gift of all. Why is that true? What would we have if we didn’t have that and the great hope it offers us? An atheist writer depicted humans as nothing but “hunks of spoiling flesh on disintegrating bones.” Why, without the gift of the gospel, would he have a point?

Did Louis F Were Try to Re-Shape Adventism? - Unlocking Prophecy - Part 4

"How have errors crept into Adventism through incorrect methods of interpreting Scripture? Find out how Louis F. Were attempted to change Adventism from its foundations with his own set of hermeneutical principles. Do they align with the principles that Adventism was founded on or are they different? Find out if you are actually a student of Louis F. Were and if his principles have shaped your beliefs. Best of all, discover the dream of William Miller that predicted these things would happen and find out how God will set it right."

Pastor David Gates - La Gran Mentira

Sermón del Sábado especial del 7 de Enero de 2023.

The Ten Commandments Under ATTACK!

In our morally upside down world, the Ten Commandments are under attack. Discover what God’s Law really says, how it addresses many controversial social issues, and how to find forgiveness after you have broken it. Millions think God’s law is either irrelevant, or was nailed to the cross, yet the Bible’s last book clearly predicts that a commandment-keeping people will exist before Jesus Christ returns: “Here are they that keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus.” Revelation 14:12

God Speaks in 2023 (Bible Talks with Steve Wohlberg)

At the beginning of 2023, Pastor Steve Wohlberg recorded this short "Happy NEW Year" greeting inside White Horse Media’s studio. “Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord,” is God’s direct Word to each of us at the start of this NEW year, “and He will lift you up.” James 4:10. If we are willing to humble ourselves, to confess our sins, and to trust fully in Jesus Christ, we will discover that His mercy is “NEW every morning…Great is Your faithfulness." Lamentations 3:23

Sunday Law Update. Marko Kolic

"Exposing the Papal encyclical Laudato si' as a fascist / pantheist document; demonstrating its influence; and how the convids fits into the mark of the beast / Sunday Laws."

Adventure Prof [3] - Beyond Africa

There is hardly a person who is not completely fascinated to be on the road in the vastness of Africa.

On the one hand, this is due to the enormous, versatile nature. But on the other hand, it's because of the animals. Man was also created to experience this animal world, to capture and study. How much more interesting it is to be on the road with an expert of Africa, to learn background information about the continent and the animal kingdom and finally to be in direct confrontation with the largest living creature on earth. All this is of course no coincidence. More and more, God's plan is solidifying for a series of productions that will not only be moving and exciting, but above all, a tribute to our Creator God and His great attention to detail. But it doesn't stop with Africa: Walter and Henry travel to the depths of an extraordinary land in the Northern Hemisphere and both experience God's mighty guidance once again. Numerous, not always easy challenges lie ahead - but God has a mission even in this small but very important country!

How to Read the Bible - Unlocking Prophecy - Part 3

"Did God give instructions on how to read the Bible? What does the Bible say about interpreting Scripture? What rules did Adventist pioneers discover in the Word of God itself? Find out how to identify the correct interpretation of symbolism in Revelation, how to know when to interpret a thing as literal or figurative, and how to discover the meaning of a figure, and more! MacKenzie Drebit demonstrates how to apply the rules in an old-fashioned Bible study of Revelation 9."

Amazing Discoveries 2022 Year End Review

Want to know what Amazing Discoveries has been up to this past year and what lies ahead for this ministry? Join us for a recap in this 2022 Year End Review as we talk about the successes and challenges we faced and take a look ahead at exciting new and ongoing projects for 2023. Mark your calendar for Campmeeting 2023 so you don’t miss Barbara O’Neill, Randy Skeete, Pavel Goia, and others who will be onsite August 21-25. We would love to see you then! Hear about opportunities for expanding our Gospel outreach and learn how you can support Amazing Discoveries with your donations.