Closer To Heaven
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SILVER SPRING, Maryland — In an effort to more tightly articulate acceptable Sabbath-keeping practices, the General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists (GC) has released a new maximum depth of water through which members can wade on Sabbath afternoon walks without being in danger of doing their own pleasure. While previously church guidelines had set the maximum […] Source: https://atoday.org/satire-gc-lowers-maximum-permissible-depth-of-sabbath-wading-water/
The apostle Paul warns the Christian community of a “falling away” from the truth of God’s Word. He is concerned about the seeds of apostasy already present in the New Testament church, which would flourish in the coming centuries before the second coming of Christ. A counterfeit gospel would come into the church, distorting the Word of God.
Satan is the one who is behind this apostasy. He is the true “man of sin” who desires to exalt “himself above all that is called God” and sits in the “temple of God” (2 Thessalonians 2:4). But the “great deceiver” works through human agencies to accomplish his purposes. The identifying characteristics in Daniel and Revelation reveal that the little horn of Daniel 7:1-28, the beast of Revelation chapters 13 and 14, and the “lawless one” of 2 Thessalonians 2:1-17 represent the same entity.
The SDA Bible Commentary states it this way: “A comparison with Daniel’s prophecy of the blasphemous power that succeeds that of pagan Rome … , and with John’s word picture of the leopardlike beast. … reveals many similarities between the three descriptions [the little horn, the beast power, and the lawless one]. This leads us to the conclusion that Daniel, Paul, and John are speaking of the same power, … the papacy.” — Volume 7, p. 271.
It is extremely important to remember that Bible prophecy is describing a system of religion that has compromised God’s Word, substituted human traditions for the gospel, and one that drifted away from biblical truth. These prophecies are given by a God of incredible love to prepare a people for the coming of Jesus. They are a rebuke of apostate religious organizations that have departed from God’s Word, though not necessarily the people in them (see Revelation 18:4). Our message is about a system that has deceived millions. Though deceived, these people are much loved by Christ. Hence, we must treat them accordingly.
| “Therefore, whatever you want men to do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets” (Matthew 7:12, NKJV). How must we apply this principle in dealing with the theme of the beast powers in Revelation chapters 13 and 14? |
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Шелли Кертис Уивер | 19 января 2023 | В нашем семейном альбоме есть фотография c церемонии закладки фундамента церкви моего детства. На этой фотографии мне три года, я одета в темно-синее свободное пальто фасона 1960-х годов, на мне чопорная шляпка и завитые волосы. Мой дедушка держит лопату, а я, как самый молодой член нашей общины, втыкаю лезвие в землю своими лакированными туфлями Мэри […] Source: https://atoday.org/%d0%bf%d1%8c%d0%b5%d0%b4%d0%b5%d1%81%d1%82%d0%b0%d0%bb-%d1%8d%d1%82%d0%be-%d0%bd%d0%b5%d0%bf%d0%be%d0%b4%d1%85%d0%be%d0%b4%d1%8f%d1%89%d0%b5%d0%b5-%d0%bc%d0%b5%d1%81%d1%82%d0%be-%d0%b4%d0%bb/
Algunas iglesias evangélicas de Estados Unidos imparten una asignatura que llaman “feminidad bíblica”: se trata de cómo (creen ellos) deben comportarse las mujeres a la luz de la Biblia. Consideran que el mundo patriarcal en el que las mujeres estaban sometidas a los hombres era la voluntad original de Dios. El modelo sigue siendo válido […] Source: https://atoday.org/la-distorsion-patriarcal-bajo-la-optica-masculina/
As we have already studied, the beast powers of Revelation 13:1-18 and 14 represent a worldwide system of false worship. But there’s more.
The beast would continue for a period of specific duration of time in history. In symbolic time prophecies, a prophetic day equals a literal year. In Numbers 14:34 we read: “for every day a year” (RSV) — applying the Bible principle of counting a day for a year. Again, God says, “I have appointed thee each day for a year” (Ezekiel 4:6).
Image © Phil McKay at Goodsalt.com
This principle has repeatedly proven itself accurate in interpreting biblical time prophecies, such as with the 70 weeks of Daniel 9:24-27. Calculating the time period mentioned in Revelation 13:5 of 42 months, with 30 days in a month, we come up with 1260 prophetic days or literal years. The ancient calendars regularly had 360 days per year.
In the fourth century, the Roman Emperor Constantine legalized Christianity throughout the empire. When he moved his capital in A.D. 330 to Byzantium to unite the eastern and western parts of his empire, it left a leadership vacuum in Rome. The pope, then, filled this void. He became not only a powerful religious leader but also a political force to be reckoned with in Europe. In A.D. 538, Justinian, the Roman emperor, officially granted the Roman bishop the role of the defender of the faith. The medieval church exercised great influence from A.D. 538 to A.D. 1798, including the terrible persecution mentioned in the introduction to the lesson. Napoleon’s General Berthier took the pope captive in A.D. 1798, in exact fulfillment of the prophecy.
Berthier and his army captured Pope Pius VI and unceremoniously removed him from the papal throne. The blow to the papacy was serious, but, according to Revelation 13:12, the deadly wound would be healed, and the world would hear more from this power — a lot more.
| Think about how amazing biblical prophecy is and how it reveals to us God’s knowledge of future events. What should this fact teach us about why we can trust the Lord’s promises, even the ones we don’t yet see fulfilled? |
(0)The post Sunday: The Deadly Wound appeared first on Sabbath School Net.
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