The message of the second angel in Revelation 14:1-20 is “Babylon is fallen, is fallen.” In Revelation 17:1-18, the woman identified as spiritual Babylon, dressed in purple and scarlet, rides upon a scarlet-colored beast, passes around her wine cup, and gets the world drunk with error. Church and state unite. Falsehood prevails. Demons work their miracles to deceive. The world catapults into its final conflict.

At the same time, the people of God are maligned, ridiculed, oppressed, and persecuted, but in Christ and through the power of His Holy Spirit, they are steadfast in their commitment.

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All the powers of hell and the forces of evil cannot break their loyalty to Christ. They are secure in Him. He is their “refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble” (Psalm 46:1).

God is calling an end-time people back to faithfulness to His Word. Jesus prayed, “Sanctify them by Your truth. Your Word is truth” (John 17:17, NKJV). The truth of God’s Word, not human opinion or tradition, is the North Star to guide us in this critical hour of earth’s history.

Here is a remarkable statement by Dr. Edward T. Hiscox, the author of the Standard Manual for Baptist Churches. In 1893, he addressed a group of hundreds of Baptist ministers and shocked them as he explained how Sunday came into the Christian church.

“What a pity that it [Sunday] comes branded with the mark of paganism, and christened with the name of the sun god, then adopted and sanctioned by the papal apostasy, and bequeathed as a sacred legacy to Protestantism!” — Edward Hiscox, before a New York ministers’ conference, Nov. 13, 1893.

Read Ezekiel 20:1-20. What is the gist of Ezekiel’s message here, and how does the Sabbath fit in with this call to faithfulness?

Ezekiel 20:1-49 is an earnest appeal for Israel to forsake pagan practices and to worship the Creator instead of their false gods, in this case the “idols of Egypt.” In the message of the three angels, God is making a similar appeal to “worship the Creator,” for “Babylon is fallen.” And, too, as we know, the Sabbath, and faithfulness to it, will play a big role in final events.

<–Tuesday Thursday–>

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You can view an in-depth discussion of Satan’s Final Deceptions in the Hope Sabbath School class led by Pastor Derek Morris. Click on the image to view: [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3kODnecfQn0&w=560&h=315]

With thanks to

Hope Channel – Television that will change your life.

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Source: https://ssnet.org/blog/10-satans-final-deceptions/

“Three Cosmic Messages” encourages us to 
Watch, Ye Saints – Hymn 598 as we near the end of this old world’s history to witness the Second Coming of our Lord, and Saviour, Jesus Christ. This is a wonderful hymn to give courage, dear people, and is our theme for this quarter.,We will note at times throughout the quarter that
“Tis Almost Time For The Lord To Come – Hymn 212 and we should be proclaiming the message that
Jesus Is Coming Again – Hymn 213.

 Our Memory Text states 
This Is The Three-Fold Truth – Hymn 203. As we “immerse ourselves in the Word of God” (Sunday) may we all clearly sing A
ll To Jesus I Surrender – Hymn 309.

 Babylon may be the worship of the sun, but our choice is immeasurable in being able to sing 
O Worship The King – Hymn 83 of this universe, and 
Hymn 6 – O Worship The Lord (Tuesday).

 Hymn 602 – O Brother, Be Faithful is encouraged on Wednesday where we can then sing 
Lord, I Have Made Thy Word My Choice – Hymn 273. Making God’s Word our choice then instructs us to worship the 
Lord of Creation – Hymn 320, and then 
Don’t Forget The Sabbath – Hymn 388 all because we sang 
Hymn 602 – O Brother, Be Faithful (Wednesday). On leaving the Bible study we will then sing 
Hymn 667 – Lord, Bless Thy Word To Every Heart.

Our obedience to God’s Word follows on Thursday teaching us to 
Trust And Obey – Hymn 590.

So, dear people, be encouraged to go forward and
“Lift up the trumpet and loud let it ring, Jesus IS coming again” – Hymn 213.

To learn unknown hymns, you will find the accompaniment music for each one at: https://sdahymnals.com/Hymnal/

Another great resource is for when there is a hymn you wish to sing but can’t find it in your hymnal. Go to https://www.sdahymnal.org/Search and in the search bar type a special word in that is in the hymn. I am sure you will be amazed at the help you will be given.

 2 Timothy 2:15 KJV – “Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.”

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Sun worship was prominent in Egypt, Assyria, Persia, and certainly Babylon. In his book The Worship of Nature, James G. Frazer makes this observation, “In ancient Babylonia the sun was worshipped from immemorial antiquity.” — (London: Macmillan and Co., 1926), vol. 1, p. 529. It may seem surprising, but at times Babylonian sun worship influenced the worship of God’s people in the Old Testament.

Read Ezekiel 8:16 and 2 Kings 23:5, 2 Kings 23:11. What did the prophets write about the influence of sun worship in Israel and Judah? (See also Romans 1:25.)

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The prophet Ezekiel, a contemporary of Daniel, pictured some of God’s people with their backs toward the temple of God worshiping the sun toward the east. Instead of worshiping the Creator of the sun, they worshiped the sun instead.

In Revelation 17:1-18, John describes a time when the principles of Babylon, including sun worship, would enter the Christian church during an age of compromise. The casual conversion of Constantine, in the early part of the fourth century, caused great joy in the Roman Empire. Constantine had a strong affinity for sun worship. Edward Gibbon, the renowned historian, writes, “The Sun was universally celebrated as the invincible guide and protector of Constantine.” — The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire (London: J. O. Robinson & Co, Ltd., 1830), p. 12. In A.D. 321, Constantine also passed the first “Sunday law.” This edict stated, “On the venerable day of the Sun let the Magistrates and the people residing in the cities rest, and let all workshops be closed.” — Edict of Constantine, A.D. 321. This was not a law enforcing Sunday observance for all of Constantine’s subjects, but it did strengthen the observance of Sunday in the minds of the Roman population.

It was in succeeding decades that emperors and popes continued through state decrees and church councils to establish Sunday as the singular day of worship, which it remains today, as well, for the majority of Christians. What a powerful example of the hard truth that just because the majority of people believe in something, or practice it, doesn’t make it right.

<–Monday Wednesday–>

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Source: https://ssnet.org/blog/tuesday-babylon-center-of-sun-worship/

Read Revelation 16:13-14,  and Revelation 18:2, Revelation 18:23. What allusions to spiritualism do you find in these verses?

Such expressions as the “dwelling place of demons” or the “spirits of demons” and “sorcery” all indicate demonic activity. No wonder we have been warned that of the two great deceptions in the last days, one will be “the immortality of the soul” (see Ellen G. White, The Great Controversy, p. 588).

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Of course, that’s so easy to see today. Even in the Christian world, the idea of the soul being immortal is all but staple Christian doctrine. Many Christians believe that, at death, the saved go soaring off to heaven, and the lost descend into hell. How often, for instance, after the great evangelist Billy Graham died, did we hear that “Billy Graham is safe now in heaven, in the loving arms of Jesus,” or the like? This kind of thing is taught all the time from pulpits, in classrooms, and, especially, at funerals.

Read Ecclesiastes 9:5; Job 19:25-27; 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17; and Revelation 14:13. What clear instruction did God give His people about life after death, and where do we find our hope?

One of the pillars of Babylonian deception is a false understanding of death, which, centered on the idea of the immortality of the soul, prepares the way for the deceptive influence of spiritualism. If you believe that the dead, in some form, live on and might even be able to communicate with us, then what protection do you have from any of the myriad deceptions that Satan has? If someone whom you thought were your dead mother or child, or someone else beloved, were suddenly to appear and talk to you, how easy would it be to be fooled by your senses? This has happened in the past, happens now, and, certainly, as we near the very final days, will happen again. Our only protection is to stand firmly rooted in what the Bible teaches and to cling to the biblical teaching about death as a sleep until the second coming of Jesus.

<–Sunday Tuesday–>

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