Sunday Study: Our Highest Considerations

Sunday Study: Our Highest Considerations

14/11/20

"Death before dishonor or the transgression of God’s law should be the motto of every Christian" CCh 109.3. My friends, the time has come for us to make highest considerations in regards to the  character of the choices that are before us, what shall we choose, policy or principle? The policies to implement the Great Global Reset are upon us and the agents of evil have united and consolidated their powers. The time of long prophesied final movements has now dawned upon us and we are soon to be plunged into a stupendous crisis. We are told that we are going to go through the great dark winter, the plandemic is their agenda to enact mandates that will open the floodgates to persecute God's people. Bill Gates et al have Political clout to influence world leaders to implement one global inoculation solution instead of the current 193 country solutions to combat the plandemic. "These have one mind, and shall give their power and strength unto the beast" Revelation 17:13. The implementation of a "Truly Catholic Agenda" to combat racism, climate change, plandemic etc has already begun. The Jesuits have meddled with the USA politics with the purpose of reviving of Popery.  The first Catholic president was JFK and people feared Catholics like they do to radical islam but now we have an incoming Catholic Biden administration and only few fear the Roman Church-State principles which have become mainstream and will eventually lead to national ruin. Are we going to compromise truth and righteousness for peace and Common Good? I say today that alike the faithful few, we need to make a stand when majority bow to the image of the beast. This work begins with character development as our highest consideration just like Daniel et al: "But Daniel purposed in his heart that he would not defile himself with the portion of the king’s meat, nor with the wine which he drank: therefore he requested of the prince of the eunuchs that he might not defile himself" Daniel 1:8. If the government mandates compulsory vaccination, shall you like Daniel purpose not to defile your body with the nano technology and other poisons in the mandated cocktail? Today we will be looking at Revelation of Jesus in view of the events portrayed in the seventeenth chapter. It will be just head knowledge if by the end of the study we are not aroused to live righteously and soberly in this present age. In Psalms 37:4-5 we are given this promise which we should memorise this week "Delight thyself also in the LORD; and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart.Commit thy way unto the LORD; trust also in him; and he shall bring it to pass". 

What if Daniel and his companions had made a compromise with those heathen officers, and had yielded to the pressure of the occasion by eating and drinking as was customary with the Babylonians? 

"That single instance of departure from principle would have weakened their sense of right and their abhorrence of wrong. Indulgence of appetite would have involved the sacrifice of physical vigor, clearness of intellect, and spiritual power. One wrong step would probably have led to others, until, their connection with heaven being severed, they would have been swept away by temptation.—[The Review and Herald, January 25, 1881] Counsels on Health, 66 - CD 155.3

I will begin by referring us to a quotation which I believe we should also be our principle especially in these days of fake news and false prophecies. "It is the first and highest duty of every rational being to learn from the Scriptures what is truth, and then to walk in the light, and encourage others to follow his example. We should day by day study the Bible diligently, weighing every thought, and comparing scripture with scripture. With divine help, we are to form our opinions for ourselves, as we are to answer for ourselves before God". GC888 598.2.

The dark ages which began with the rule of Roman Church-State from AD 538 all the way to AD1798 are to be re-enacted in our lifetime, already we have seen the final rise of the man of sin as from 1989, the unholy alliance between Regan and John Paul to defeat USSR, the events of Daniel 11:40-45. Today we will by God's grace look at similar events as spoken by John in Revelation.

"The seventeenth chapter of Revelation is a divine history of the power represented by the beast, which John saw arising from the sea, and which is distinguished from all other beasts by its seven heads and ten horns with crowns. The prophet Daniel wrote the history of the world from the standpoint of nations. He mentions Religion, and especially the people of God, but he deals primarily with nations. On the other hand, the history presented to John on the Isle of Patmos was primarily an ecclesiastical history. In order to understand thoroughly the record of events which have taken place on earth, it is necessary, therefore, to study together the two prophecies of Daniel and Revelation, for one is the complement of other. However,in the last days of the world's history, there will be such a close union between the church and the state that, in order to comprehend the outpouring of the judgements of God in the plagues, John was given a view of both the church and the state. The seven last plagues come as the result of a certain course of action. God does not arbitrarily withdraw His mercy from the earth, and torment me because He has the power to do so. Divine law has been revealed to man age after age; and yet,  contrary to that law, men and nations have paved the way for their own destruction. In the history of every nation which has arisen and fallen, God has given an object lesson to the world of the ultimate results of continued disobedience to laws which rule in the universe, and in harmony with which, alone, the universe itself continues to exist". Seer of Patmos. Page 290

The so-called Christian world is to be the theater of great and decisive actions. Men in authority will enact laws controlling the conscience, after the example of the papacy. Babylon will make all nations drink of the wine of the wrath of her fornication. Every nation will be involved. Of this time John the Revelator declares: [Revelation 18:3-7; 17:13, 14, quoted]. “These have one mind.” There will be a universal bond of union, one great harmony, a confederacy of Satan’s forces. “And shall give their power and strength unto the beast.” Thus is manifested the same arbitrary, oppressive power against religious liberty—freedom to worship God according to the dictates of conscience—as was manifested by the papacy, when in the past it persecuted those who dared to refuse to conform with the religious rites and ceremonies of Romanism.—Selected Messages 3:392 (1891). - LDE 136.4

"There can be no question but that the Declaration of Independence was the beginning of this nation. And the first principle embodied in that immortal declaration is that “all men are created equal, and are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights.” The first and greatest of all the rights of men is religious right. And “religion” is “the duty which we owe to our Creator, and the manner of discharging it.” The first of all duties is to the Creator, because to him we owe our existence. Therefore the first of all commandments, and the first that there can possibly be, is this: “Hear, 0 Israel, The Lord our God is one Lord; and thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment.” Mark 12 : 29, 30" What is Patriotism in the United States by AT Jones.

God has revealed the good, the bad and the ugly so that we can choose intelligently the path for our feet. I am reminded of the story of a Levite and his concubine story in judges. The chapter ends with these words: " And it was so, that all that saw it said, There was no such deed done nor seen from the day that the children of Israel came up out of the land of Egypt unto this day: consider of it, take advice, and speak your minds" Judges 19:30. The Lord wants us to make eternal considerations First in our decision making. "The love of the world will exclude the love of God and make our highest interests subordinate to worldly considerations".1TT 405.1. "But that which above all other considerations should lead us to prize the Bible is that in it is revealed to men the will of God. Here we learn the object of our creation and the means by which that object may be attained. We learn how to improve wisely the present life and how to secure the future life. No other book can satisfy the questionings of the mind or the cravings of the heart. By obtaining a knowledge of God’s word and giving heed thereto, men may rise from the lowest depths of degradation to become the sons of God, the associates of sinless angels.  - CT 53.4

Revelation 17:1-14 "And there came one of the seven angels which had the seven vials, and talked with me, saying unto me, Come hither; I will shew unto thee the judgment of the great whore that sitteth upon many waters: With whom the kings of the earth have committed fornication, and the inhabitants of the earth have been made drunk with the wine of her fornication. So he carried me away in the spirit into the wilderness: and I saw a woman sit upon a scarlet coloured beast, full of names of blasphemy, having seven heads and ten horns. And the woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet colour, and decked with gold and precious stones and pearls, having a golden cup in her hand full of abominations and filthiness of her fornication: And upon her forehead was a name written, MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH. And I saw the woman drunken with the blood of the saints, and with the blood of the martyrs of Jesus: and when I saw her, I wondered with great admiration. And the angel said unto me, Wherefore didst thou marvel? I will tell thee the mystery of the woman, and of the beast that carrieth her, which hath the seven heads and ten horns.8The beast that thou sawest was, and is not; and shall ascend out of the bottomless pit, and go into perdition: and they that dwell on the earth shall wonder, whose names were not written in the book of life from the foundation of the world, when they behold the beast that was, and is not, and yet is. And here is the mind which hath wisdom. The seven heads are seven mountains, on which the woman sitteth. And there are seven kings: five are fallen, and one is, and the other is not yet come; and when he cometh, he must continue a short space. And the beast that was, and is not, even he is the eighth, and is of the seven, and goeth into perdition.And the ten horns which thou sawest are ten kings, which have received no kingdom as yet; but receive power as kings one hour with the beast.These have one mind, and shall give their power and strength unto the beast.These shall make war with the Lamb, and the Lamb shall overcome them: for he is Lord of lords, and King of kings: and they that are with him are called, and chosen, and faithful".

1. What are the Prophetic nations of Daniel and Revelation? Answer: Babylon; Medo-Persia; Greece; pagan Rome ; Papal Rome; United States of America; New World Order ( United Nations) and Papal Rome.

2. What are the five fallen kingdoms in Revelation 17:10? Answer: Babylon, Medo-Persia, Greece, Pagan Rome and Papal Rome.

3. Why is the eighth head the Papacy? Answer: Daniel 7:7-8- Rome divided into 10 kingdoms, the papal horn was a separate power,it (the papal horn) uprooted 3 of the first horns leaving 7 with itself being the 8th but of the 7 ( it was in Italy one of the remaining horns).

In Daniel 8:3,5,8,9 - two horns on ram, one on the goat, four horns divided to four winds, the little horn is the eighth

In Revelation 13:1,3- seven heads on the beast, one receives a deadly wound and then is resurrected as the eighth but of the seventh.

Eight is therefore the number of ressurection :  circumcision was to be performed on the 8th days symbol of baptism or new birth (see Leviticus 12:1-3, Luke 1:59, Acts 7:8; Philippians 3:5; Colossians 2:11-13 and Romans 6:3-4.

4. What are the seven mountains of  Revelation 17:9? Answer : At last he [Luther] beheld in the distance the seven-hilled city. With deep emotion he prostrated himself upon the earth, exclaiming, “Holy Rome, I salute thee!”  - GC88 124. The mountains represents churches : Daniel 11:45; 9:16,20 and Isaiah 4:1

5: What does the woman sit upon? Answer : Seven heads: horns, kings, kingdoms. Vs.9; seven mountains: churches. Vs. 9; "A woman sit upon a scarlet coloured beast" Vs 3; I will show unto the judgment of the great whore that sitteth upon many waters" Vs 1 and "the waters which thou sawast, where the whore sitteth, are peoples, and multitudes, and nations, and tongues". Vs 15.

6: What are the seven heads in this prophecy? Answer : seven heads: horns, kings, kingdoms. Vs 9. The seven heads represent civil authority. Pagan Rome was a symbol of civil power. Pagan Rome disinterested into ten kingdoms, and then seven. The European kings gave their militaries and civil authority to the Papacy, while also changing their legal religious profession from pagan to Catholic. The seven heads represent one part of what the whore rules over at the end. That part is the state. A beast is also a symbol of civil power.

" A woman sit upon a scarlet coloured beast" Vs 3

Revelation 17: 15-18 " And he saith unto me, The waters which thou sawest, where the whore sitteth, are peoples, and multitudes, and nations, and tongues. And the ten horns which thou sawest upon the beast, these shall hate the whore, and shall make her desolate and naked, and shall eat her flesh, and burn her with fire. For God hath put in their hearts to fulfil his will, and to agree, and give their kingdom unto the beast, until the words of God shall be fulfilled. And the woman which thou sawest is that great city, which reigneth over the kings of the earth". 

"But God will have a people upon the earth to maintain the Bible, and the Bible only, as the standard of all doctrines, and the basis of all reforms. The opinions of learned men, the deductions of science, the creeds or decisions of ecclesiastical councils, as numerous and discordant as are the churches which they represent, the voice of the majority,—not one or all of these should be regarded as evidence for or against any point of religious faith. Before accepting any doctrine or precept, we should demand a plain “Thus saith the Lord” in its support. - GC88 595.1

The end of all things is at hand; and in consideration of the shortness of time, we as a people should watch and pray, and in no ease allow ourselves to be diverted from the solemn work of preparation for the great event before us. Because the time is apparently extended, many have become careless and indifferent in regard to their words and actions. They do not realize their danger, and do not see and understand the mercy of our God in lengthening their probation that they may have time to form characters for the future, immortal life. Every moment is of the highest value. Time is granted them, not to be employed in studying their own ease and becoming dwellers on the earth, but to be used in the work of overcoming every defect in their own characters, and in helping others to see the beauty of holiness by their example and personal effort. But God has a people upon the earth, who in faith and holy hope are tracing down the roll of fast-fulfilling prophecy, and are seeking to purify their souls by obeying the truth, that they may not be found without the wedding garment when Christ shall appear. - RH October 20, 1885