Home Page: www.ProphecyWatch.biz

Sabbath, November 12, 2005 Newark Seventh-Day Adventist Church
Revelation 11-13; Daniel 7 Pastor Tom Hughes

The Sanctuary in Heaven - I

In our last study, we examined Revelation 10 in the message The Prophecy That Failed and we discovered that the people who experienced the great awakening of the nineteenth century had misinterpreted Daniel 8:14, “…the sanctuary would be cleansed.” and that they had arrested the attention of the entire world.

They had incorrectly concluded that the sanctuary was the earth and that it would be cleansed by fire. The message was sweet in their mouths, as they looked for Jesus to come and receive them into glory but when he did not come, they were bitterly disappointed.

In this sermon, we will examine the message of Revelation 11 that resulted from a closer look at the prophecies of God’s word. We will use this chapter as a springboard to open the wonderful themes of prophecy that God wanted proclaimed to the world because of this Great Awakening Experience. Out of this great disappointment, less than twenty years later, the Seventh-Day Adventist Movement was formed.

Notice in the last verse of Revelation 10 how God told them they must repeat their prophetic message:

Revelation 10:11 – “And he said unto me, Thou must prophesy again before many peoples, and nations, and tongues, and kings.”
Let us bow our heads for prayer.

Father in heaven, as we go boldly into the most holy place; as we study Revelation 11, and understand both the roots of our church as Seventh-Day Adventists, and what the message of that church should be, we pray that you would open our minds and help us to really get a new glimpse of what you called us to do in this 21st Century. We pray in Jesus’ name. Amen.

You see, God made it clear that another movement, a movement of destiny, would arise like a Phoenix from the ashes of disappointment and would proclaim the same prophetic message as was proclaimed in the Great Advent

Awakening, with one difference: rather than the sanctuary being the earth that needed to be cleansed by fire, the Sanctuary in Heaven would the focus, and not the earth.

The cleansing of the Sanctuary in Daniel 8:14 was to take place in heaven, and not on the earth. They were to leave the outer court out; the heavenly sanctuary would be the focus. The outer court is the earth, Jerusalem - the city where Jesus was crucified, the altar of Sacrifice, Mount Calvary.

Revelation 11:1-2 “And there was given me a reed like unto a rod: and the angel stood, saying, Rise, and measure the temple of God, and the altar, and them that worship therein.
2But the court which is without the temple leave out, and measure it not; for it is given unto the Gentiles: and the holy city (Jerusalem) shall they tread under foot forty and two months.”
Now, the earthly, outer court, God’s beloved city, Jerusalem, would be trodden under foot by the Gentiles for a period of forty and two months.

A Jewish month is 30 days. So Jerusalem would be trodden under foot by the Gentiles for 1260 days (30 x 42). The Bible teaches in Ezekiel 4:6 that a prophetic day equals a year in literal time. So the outer court of Jerusalem would be trodden under foot for 1260 literal years.

Daniel says this abomination and desolation. Jesus referred to this period of time as “the days of vengeance” that must be fulfilled in the book of Luke:

Luke 21:20-22, 24 - “And when ye shall see Jerusalem compassed with armies, then know that the desolation thereof is nigh.
22For these be the days of vengeance, that all things which are written may be fulfilled.
24And they shall fall by the edge of the sword, and shall be led away captive into all nations: and Jerusalem shall be trodden down of the Gentiles, until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled.

This prophecy was fulfilled in 70 AD when the Roman General, Titus, conquered Jerusalem. He laid siege to the old city of Jerusalem, starved and slaughtered men, women, and children. Titus leveled it to the ground. As a matter-of-fact, Jerusalem has been leveled completely and rebuilt over 25 times. The Jews were scattered throughout the world. This scattering of Israel is called the Diaspora, and it was predicted in many Old Testament prophecies.

Jerusalem would remain under Gentile control until 1976, when after the Six-Day War of Independence in 1967, the Jews would once again rule over Jerusalem. Now, this very morning, for the first time since the days of King Nebuchadnezzar, there is a Jewish Government in place in Israel, and Jerusalem is once again in Jewish hands. So obviously, the times of the Gentiles have been fulfilled.

The Bible makes it clear in Luke 21:27 that the next event to take place after Jerusalem is restored to Jewish control is the coming of Jesus:

Luke 21:27 - And then shall they see the Son of man coming in a cloud with power and great glory.

We are living in the last days my friends. The message of the last church before Jesus comes again is a message centered in the prophecies concerning the Sanctuary in Heaven. The outer court, the earth, was to be ravaged by a power that would walk all over the Jewish people, and that would make war against the Saints of the most high.

Now this 1260-year period comes from a prophecy originally mentioned in Daniel 7:25 - “And he shall speak great words against the most High, and shall wear out the saints of the most High, and think to change times and laws: and they shall be given into his hand until a time and times and the dividing of time.”

This time period is also mentioned in Revelation 13:5 - “And there was given unto him a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies; and power was given unto him to continue forty and two months.”

And then again in Revelation 11:3 – “And I will give power unto my two witnesses, and they shall prophesy a thousand two hundred and threescore days, clothed in sackcloth.”

And in several other texts in the Bible, this is mentioned. In all these places, the same prophetic period is discussed. Now, who is this power, when does this period of time start and end, and how does it tie in with the message of Revelation 11 concerning the Sanctuary in Heaven?

God was calling a movement to proclaim his last message to a dying world. God did not approve of this false religious-political power, that would institute creature centered worship, and would not only walk all over the Jewish people but would slaughter the Saints of the most high and make war against them. The time had come and now is when he wanted to proclaim the truth about the Sanctuary in Heaven and the true priestly ministry of Jesus.

A counterfeit religion was put forth by the dragon to deceive the world, and prevent God’s true message from reaching God’s people. This false religious-political system has a blaspheming leader, who will trample God’s word, set up a false temple, a false priesthood, a false system of doctrine and worship, and will murder God’s people, and they will reign for that 1260-year period.

Now if you look in 2 Thessalonians 2, Paul wrote about this. And it’s interesting to me that when Paul wrote this book, in about AD 51 –less than 20 years after Jesus died – he said that the church was already apostatizing and beginning to turn to the doctrines of devils instead of the pure doctrines that the apostles had taught. Paul was already seeing in his lifetime in 51 AD.

People are sometimes shocked that in the second century, you have people like Justin Martyr and others bringing in sun worship and other abominations into the Christian church. And they point to this as an example of how possibly Sunday observance should be part of the church because early historians say that sun worship began in the church of Rome around the beginning middle of the second century. Of course it did! Rome was the capital of Jupiter worship, Mythraism1, and sun worship.

And I find it interesting that Justin Martyr and all these early apologetic writers used (for an example) the fact that the sun was created on the first day of the week by God as the reason why Sunday should be kept! They didn’t use the resurrection argument. That was a secondary argument; it wasn’t even their most important argument. And they were arguing for Sunday’s acceptance, which shows you that it was controversial and not universal. We’re going to get into some of that as we go on, but I wanted to show here and Thessalonians was written around 51 AD.

Notice chapter 2:3 “Let no one deceive you by any means. For that day will not come unless the falling away comes first and the man of sin is revealed the son of perdition.”

He is also called the lawless one in the original and you will see that as we go along. In verse 7, in my New King James Version it translates it “lawless.” I think it’s different in the King James Version.

Now notice in verse 4, “who opposes and exults himself above all that is called God or that is worshipped so that he sits as God in the temple of God showing himself that he is God. Do you not remember that when I was still with you I told you these things and now you know what is restraining that he may be revealed in his own time for the mystery of lawlessness (or iniquity) is already at work.”

So this power is going to be a power that does not recognize God’s law, who is lawless. And it says who not only “he who restrains will do so until he is taken out of the way (vs. 8) and then the lawless one will be revealed whom the Lord will consume with the breath of his mouth and destroy with the brightness of his coming the coming of the lawless one is according to the working of Satan all power, signs, and lying wonders.”

So this lawless one is a power that was already working when Paul was there and it would go all the way down to the end of time when Christ would come. That’s interesting to me.

The little horn of Daniel 7 is the power that reigned for 1260 years. Now we need to know when it starts and when it ends. So we will look at that.

Now we have Bible prophecy, which is God’s word, and then we have history. History is the mirror image of prophecy. Sometimes if you want to study prophecy, you have to look into the mirror image of prophecy, history to see how God’s prophecies are fulfilled.

The little horn of Revelation 7 is the power that the Bible says plucked up and defeated three kings. Now he began his rule of 1260 years when he plucked up these three kings so that gives us a clue. The three kings were rulers of three Arian provinces when Rome broke up who believed that Jesus was a created being, and not eternal God. This was a heresy that the Catholic Church was willing to go to war over.
The Ostrogoths believe it or not were one of those barbaric tribes that defeated Rome.

You know these kids that claim to be Goths, they’re barbarians: Goths were the original barbarians so if there’s any Goth people here, here’s where you got you name – from the Ostrogoths. Okay?

In 493 the Ostrogoths, with the permission of Catholic Emperor Zeno, wiped out the Germanic barbarian tribe, the Heruli and defeated them and plucked up one of the horns. There were 10 nations and, according to Daniel 7, there were 10 horns; and then, three of them were plucked out.

When the “dragon” (Rome) broke up, it broke up into 10 nations that are now the nations of Europe. Three of those 10 nations were “plucked up” by this power (according to Daniel 7). One of them was the Heruli and then, after Justinian became the emperor in 527 AD, he issued the Justinian Decree in 533 AD. And that’s very important to you.

Justinian elevated the bishop of Rome to be the “Head of ALL the Holy Churches.” The pope was made the religious and political power that he is today by the Justinian Decree. And he came into power in exactly 538 AD.

Now in 533 AD he makes the Justinian Decree and he elevates the pope to the head of all the holy churches. But this decree could not go into effect because in two of the provinces they had Arian kings who would not recognize the Roman bishop. So, interestingly enough, this decree could not go into practical effect until the Arian armies were removed. In 534 AD, Justinian sent his general Belisarius to destroy the Vandals. This he accomplished in one campaign season, thus plucking up the second horn.

The third horn. Finally the Ostrogoths were defeated and driven out of Rome in March of 538 AD. (Encyclopedia Britannica) The only religious power on earth that was in power in 538 AD was the Roman Catholic Church. They are the only Church that was in power than and that still exists today.

Now if you open your Bible to Daniel 7 we will look at these verses and understand how when the Justinian armies defeated the Ostrogoths, the last of the three Arian tribes, and how the Roman Catholic Church became the supreme religious and political ruler. I am grouping these together to show the characteristics of this little horn and to show the characteristics of the Judgment that takes place about the same time that the little horn stops warring against God’s people.

Titles and Characteristics of the Little Horn

Daniel 7:1-26; 2 Thessalonians 2: 1-8

1 John 2:18 – “Little children, it is the last time: and as ye have heard that antichrist shall come, even now are there many antichrists; whereby we know that it is the last time.”

1 John 2:22 – “Who is a liar but he that denieth that Jesus is the Christ? He is antichrist, that denieth the Father and the Son.”

2 John 7 – “For many deceivers are entered into the world, who confess not that Jesus Christ is come into the flesh. This is a deceiver and an antichrist.”

Revelation 13: 1-18; 14: 9-10; 17: 1-18; 18: 1-24
Titles
The Little Horn
The Man of Sin, the Lawless One
Son of Perdition
That Wicked
The Antichrist
The Beast
Mother of Harlots
Babylon
The Great City

In Revelation 17 and 18, this antichrist power is described as a woman who is decked in purple and scarlet and who has a golden challis (cup) in her hand. She is also described as “that great city” Babylon. Now in ancient times, Rome was known as Babylon and spiritually it certainly would be considered that. Also, when you talk about the name of a city, the only church on earth that I know of that has a city as part of its name is the Roman Catholic Church. But we’ll let the Bible speak for itself.

Daniel 7:8 – “I considered the horns, and, behold, there came up among them another little horn, before whom there were three of the first horns plucked up by the roots: and, behold, in this horn were eyes like the eyes of man, and a mouth speaking great things.”

It arises out of the fourth beast, pagan Rome. It was after the ten horns, different from the other horns. Now the way it’s different is it’s religious and political; it’s not just a political power. And we know it’s a religious power because it says it blasphemed – that’s a religious term. It’s more stout than its fellows, it uprooted three kingdoms and speaks great words against the most high, it wore out the saints and made war, and it sought to change times and laws.

The Roman Catholic Church also changed the Sabbath from Saturday to Sunday and claims that as their mark of distinction. They claim to have changed it. Now they cannot ever change God’s law. They may claim to change it and that’s why the Bible says, “…and they shall think to change times and laws.” They think they can change times and laws.

Now what is the only law in the Ten Commandments that has anything to do with time: the Seventh-Day Sabbath.

Daniel 7:20 – “And of the ten horns that were in his head, and of the other which came up, and before whom three fell; even of that horn that had eyes, and a mouth that spake very great things, whose look was more stout than his fellows.”

Revelation 13:1-2 “And I stood upon the sand of the sea, and saw a beast rise up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and upon his horns ten crowns, and upon his heads the name of blasphemy.

Who is this beast? He is the same symbolic beast who is referred to in Daniel 7.

2And the beast which I saw was like unto a leopard, and his feet were as the feet of a bear, and his mouth as the mouth of a lion: and the dragon gave him his power, and his seat, and great authority.”

Now the 10 horns on the dragon’s head represent the 10 barbaric tribes that came down and conquered Rome. History tells us that pagan Rome had flags that depicted fierce red dragons on them. The red dragon was the symbol for Pagan Rome.

Now it says in the Bible that the dragon, Rome, would give the beast its power, its seat, and its authority. In 533 AD the Emperor Justinian in his Justinian Decree gave the Bishop of Rome his power and his authority by making him the ruler in Rome of secular and religious matters.

When Constantine moved the capital of Rome to Constantinople, he left Rome vacant and the Papacy soon became the most powerful ruler in Rome. The Justinian Decree made it official in 533 AD, and it became a reality in 538 AD when the Ostrogoths were driven out of Rome, insuring the Roman bishop’s rule.

The only religious political power in existence today that existed in 538 AD and that still has its seat, power and authority in Rome (Italy) is the Roman Catholic Church.

Revelation 13:3 – “And I saw one of his heads as it were wounded to death; and his deadly wound was healed: and all the world wondered after the beast.”

This “wounding” took place in 1798 AD when the Pope was captured by the French general, Berthier, Pope Pius VI and was taken to France where he died in prison.

Revelation 13:10 – “He that leadeth into captivity shall go into captivity: he that killeth with the sword must be killed with the sword. Here is the patience and the faith of the saints.”

So the papacy ruled for 1260 years, martyred many Christians during that time, during the Inquisition, and they had great power and then all of a sudden Pius the VI was arrested, taken to prison, and there was no pope. It was dealt a deadly wound.

Revelation 13:4-6 “And they worshipped the dragon, which gave power unto the beast: and they worshipped the beast, saying, Who is like unto the beast? Who is able to make war with him?

5And there was given unto him a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies; and power was given unto him to continue forty and two months.
6And he opened his mouth in blasphemy against God, to blaspheme his name, and his tabernacle, and them that dwell in heaven.”

This religion set up a false priestly system. The Bible teaches that the priestly system came to an end when Jesus died on the cross. As a matter of fact, God made it clear by taking his own hand and taking his own hand and ripping the four- to six-inch thick carpeting (possibly made from leather) that hung between the holy, and the most holy place. And when Jesus died, the Bible says that curtain was torn in half by an unseen hand symbolizing by God that the priestly system was over. But what does this power do?

This power institutes a false priesthood modeled after the Old Testament and does away with the fact that we now have a new high priest that is in heaven, and instead of allowing us to turn our gaze to Jesus in the most holy place and concentrate on the priestly ministry of Christ, they set up a counterfeit priesthood that turns the attention of the world from heaven where it should be to men on earth who claim to have the power to forgive sin. It encourages its members now to pray to Saint’s in heaven. Now it teaches a false doctrine that when you die you immediately go to heaven and that those saints can be prayed to and they have a special access to God.

And then it teaches that their priests have the power to forgive sins. And the Bible says that that is blasphemy for a human being to claim to have the power to forgive sin is blasphemy. Only God can forgive a person’s sin. Amen?

And then this man, who sits in the temple and exults himself above all that is called God, says that he not only is God himself but that he can create God.

Then they institute a system that every day in the mass they actually pray over a piece of bread, which is symbolic, and they claim that they can literally turn that bread into the body and physical flesh of Jesus. And then they put it in the gold monstrance, and set it up on an altar so that, when you come into the church, you have to bow down before that piece of bread (that they call “Jesus” and claim that it is literally the flesh and blood of Christ himself), and you have to bow down and worship it as if it were Christ himself.

And the pope teaches that he is “God on Earth” and that he has the power not only to forgive sin and wash away your sins, but the power to create Jesus in that bread every day.

And as if that weren’t bad enough; then, they teach a false system of salvation based on your good works. And he does away with basically the principle from the Bible that we are saved by grace and not through our own works. He sets of a system works: penance, limbo, purgatory, and all these ways you can work your way up and earn your way into God’s favor. It is a false system of salvation, which is his most grievous affront to the truth of God’s word.

Sam Bacchiocchi summarizes the problem with Catholicism in this way: “These preposterous claims, titles, and semi-divine attributes, speak volumes about the idolatrous veneration of the pope, which has been a historical trademark of the CREATURE-CENTERED worship of Roman Catholicism. By exalting popes, saints, and Mary to a semi-divine place, Catholic worship is CREATURES-CENTERED, rather than GOD-CENTERED. It obscures the true worship of God.” [1]

Revelation 13:7 – “And it was given unto him to make war with the saints, and to overcome them: and power was given him over all kindreds, and tongues, and nations.”
During the Dark Ages, they did make war and it is estimated that there were millions who were martyred during that time.

So let’s refresh our memory…

Daniel 7:24 – “And the ten horns out of this kingdom are ten kings that shall arise: and another shall rise after them; and he shall be diverse from the first, and he shall subdue three kings.”

So the little horn is that diverse horn that shall arise. Now let’s look at the characteristics of the little horn.

The ten horns represent the ten kings on the dragon beast.

2. Three of those horns is “plucked up” or defeated by the little horn.
3. He has the eyes of a man. He too is a king-like power.

4. He is a religious and political power because he speaks great, pompous, blasphemous words against God.

5. He was “more stout” than the other horns – Thicker, possibly richer, or more resilient.

6. The little horn makes war against God’s people for 1260 years, so if it begins in 538 AD. When the three horns were plucked up it would have to continue until 1798. In 538 AD, Justinian, the Roman Emperor, gave the Pope his power and he warred against the Saints until 1798, when Napoleon sent his general, Berthier to capture Pope Pius VI, and take him to France where he was killed in prison. The Roman Church during this time-period of the Dark Ages (Called that because it was a dark time) martyred anywhere between 50 million people by Catholic estimates and 200 million people by Protestant estimates.

7. Also from 538 AD (and I didn’t realize this until I prepared for this sermon), to 1798, the Jewish people were persecuted unmercifully by the Roman Catholic Church. And in the Justinian Decree itself, it decreed that the Jews would be persecuted and I didn’t realize that. Once, again, prophecy is fulfilled.

The “deadly wound was healed” in 1929 when Mussolini made the Vatican an independent nation. Only 500 people live on the grounds of the Vatican today. It is only 112 acres, but it is a country within a country. Today, every major nation sends and ambassador to the Vatican in Rome. And not long ago, we sent a dozen senators, two dozen from the House of Representatives, and our Presidents have gone and bowed before the Papacy, kissed his ring, and paid him homage.

Now I want to stress again being a Roman Catholic myself please do not hold any of this against the Roman Catholic people. God in his word is talking about a system of theology and a system of false doctrine that is far bigger than any one priest or pope.

I loved the last pope. Pope John Paul II was a very interesting man and a devoted man, and I’m sure he had his good points. I cannot judge him. I don’t judge any of them.

Do you see how this power worked over 1260 years? Let’s blame the devil for the real deception because the red dragon is the one behind all this. The reason he works through popes and priests, and sets up these false systems of theology is to deceive us so we can’t be saved! Many other religions are falling for his deceptions, and accepting Catholic teachings.

So let’s blame Satan and not the Roman Catholic people. Let’s try to show them the way by explaining the truth of God’s word to them. So please never misunderstand I’m not putting down Catholicism, or their priests, or their people. I’m talking about the system of theology that Satan has foisted upon the world.

8. The Little Horn persecuted God’s people UNTIL the judgment is made in favor of the Saint’s and UNTIL they possess the kingdom! In 1844, God began to “judge the dead” and place them forever in his kingdom by blotting out their sins and placing them forever beyond Satan’s domain! At about the same time the Judgment in favor of the God’s dead is made the little horn stops making war against God’s people.

Daniel 7:21-22 “I beheld, and the same horn made war with the saints, and prevailed against them;

22Until the Ancient of days came, and judgment was given to the saints of the most High; and the time came that the saints possessed the kingdom.”

So in 1844 at the end of the 2300-day prophecy as we studied in my last sermon (Oct. 22, 2005), the books were opened, the thrones were set up, and the Judgment in heaven began. Now I want you to notice that one of the reasons he stops making war against the saints is because he is slain, or wounded to death by a burning flame.

Daniel 7:11 – “I beheld then because of the voice of the great words which the horn spake: I beheld even till the beast was slain, and his body destroyed, and given to the burning flame.”

In the Bible when we talk about the burning flame, we’re talking about God’s word going forth like a fire. The burning flame that destroyed the papacy was the word of God. They began to teach that the Roman church was the Anti-Christ of the bible. This is not unique to Seventh-Day Adventism. This was the message of the reformation. The Reformation preachers discovered the truths of God’s word and began to preach them with such power that the influence of the papacy was destroyed for a time. This is referred to in Revelation 11:

Revelation 11:3-5 “And I will give power unto my two witnesses (the Old, and New Testaments), and they shall prophesy a thousand two hundred and threescore days, clothed in sackcloth. God’s word during the Dark Ages was chained to the pulpit and no one was allowed to read the bible but the priests. Along came Guttenberg and his printing press and along came Luther, and Knox, and Zwingli and later on the Wesley brothers and they began to preach the word of God with power.

And there are two olive trees, and the two candlesticks standing before the God of the earth – the Old, and New Testaments. The candlesticks representing the light of God’s word going forth into the world.
4These are the two olive trees, and the two candlesticks standing before the God of the earth.
5And if any man will hurt them, fire proceedeth out of their mouth, and devoureth their enemies: and if any man will hurt them, he must in this manner be killed.”

So John, in Revelation, talks about anyone who touches or alters the … (end of Side One).

The Characteristics of the Judgment found in the Daniel Chapter Seven

Daniel 7:9-10 “I beheld till the thrones were cast down, and the Ancient of days did sit, whose garment was white as snow, and the hair of his head like the pure wool: his throne was like the fiery flame, and his wheels as burning fire.
10A fiery stream issued and came forth from before him:

(Side Two)

…thousand thousands ministered unto him, and ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him: the judgment was set, and the books were opened.”

They are the angels of God. Aren’t they? Remember in the holy place on earth (which we’ll be studying about in the next sermon) had angels embroidered on the curtain between the holy and most holy place. That is a symbolic curtain symbolizing these millions of angels around God’s throne. It also symbolizes Christ’s flesh, or his sacrifice. We’re going to have fun. We’re going to go to the throne room of God and talk about it.

Notice at the end of the 1260 years something takes place in heaven that should be of interest to every person on earth. When Judgment is set and the books were opened. When the judgment begins, the thrones are moved, and set up. Now notice it says God the Father is in the room (Dan. 7) and these thrones come in and are set up. Could it be that the angels carry Jesus on his throne and move his throne into the most holy place and they set this room up for a special judgment – the judgment of the saints that began in 1844?

Daniel 7:13 – “I saw in the night visions, and, behold, one like the Son of man came with the clouds of heaven, and came to the Ancient of days, and they brought him near before him.”

Notice it says that Jesus is further away and then they bring Jesus closer to the Father for this judgment scene. And people have made fun of Seventh-Day Adventists because they say we try to keep Jesus out in the holy place and don’t allow him into the throne room of the Father. How ridiculous!

They don’t understand what the throne room is like! It’s a huge place filled with billions of angels and it is just an awesome place where the angels of God worship God all the time. And Jesus is God! Hello? How can you separate him from his Father – ever? He is in his Father, his Father is in him. There are three persons in one God. No matter where they’re sitting, no matter where their throne is, they are one connected being! Hello? I do wish they would understand what we teach before jumping to conclusions.

“They do err” like Jesus said, “not knowing the scriptures.” Amen?

Now Jesus comes in and it says they brought him near before him. Here is a procession. Here is some great event taking place. They bring Jesus in before the Father and they open the books and they begin to judge the dead out of those books.

Daniel 7:14 – “And there was (when he comes in) given him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all people, nations, and languages, should serve him: his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom that which shall not be destroyed.”

Daniel 7:18 – “But the saints of the most High shall take the kingdom, and possess the kingdom for ever, even for ever and ever.”
Shortly after Christ appears before the Father, Judgment is given to the Saints, and they possess the kingdom.

The Seventh-Day Adventist Church interpreted this to mean that in 1844 when Christ was to cleanse the Sanctuary in heaven, he would judge the Saints “Not guilty,” and they would become the kingdom of God.

Revelation 11:15 - And the seventh angel sounded; and there were great voices in heaven, saying, ‘The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ; and he shall reign for ever and ever.’

Christ in his priestly ministry is setting up his kingdom. He’s making his kingdom up of the people who come boldly before the throne and confess their sins and they are marked “not guilty” they are in the Lamb’s book of like and he is putting them forever beyond Satan’s power and rebuking the devil and telling him he can’t have these people!

Revelation 11:16 – “And the four and twenty elders, which sat before God on their seats, fell upon their faces, and worshipped God”

Remember when it says Jesus was resurrected and people many of the saints arose when Christ arose and went into the city and witnessed to the people? Remember it says that in the Bible? In Matthew? Those are some of the 24 elders that ascended with Jesus.

It says when Christ ascended into heaven he took with him the first fruits of his ministry. We know Moses, and Enoch, and Elijah, are there, and 21 of those resurrected saints that went with Christ. These are not people that floated to heaven like Casper the Friendly Ghost. These are people who were resurrected and have bodies.

Revelation 11:17 – “Saying, ‘We give thee thanks, O Lord God Almighty, which art, and wast, and art to come; because thou hast taken to thee thy great power, and hast reigned.’”

Jesus in 1844 began to take the kingdom by force as he says. He’s beginning to make up his kingdom. The Judgment is about to close when he finishes his work, he will take that golden censor (Rev. 8) and it says he will throw it to the earth and that will symbolize the end of the Judgment. We will talk about this Judgment in detail in the next sermon (scheduled for Dec. 10, 2005).

Revelation 11:18 “And the nations were angry, and thy wrath is come, and the time of the dead, that they should be judged…”

So notice the Judgment is going on in heaven while the nations are angry, while they are raging.

And it says the time is coming when “…thou shouldest give reward unto thy servants the prophets, and to the saints, and them that fear thy name, small and great; and shouldest destroy them which destroy the earth.”

So Christ is coming to destroy those who destroy the earth. We’ve had nuclear destruction. We’ve had environmental destruction. There are too many destructive forces to even take the time to list. Men are destroying the earth even as we speak and Christ is going to hold them accountable.

Now notice some of the characteristics of the Judgment in heaven.

The nations are still raging, they are angry when the judgment takes place. Christ has not yet returned.
1. The Judgment takes place before Jesus comes, and the dead are judged and given their reward.

2. The people who are rewarded have prophets in their midst. The dead and the living have prophets among them. It says, “You must prophecy again.” Both in the dead and the living there are prophets among these people; and our prophetic preaching of the books of Daniel and Revelation and the ministry of Ellen G. White fulfills that prophecy in our denomination.

Just let me say I am so proud of Ellen White. I believe she was a messenger who was called of God and used in a mighty way. She said, “The bible and the bible only should be the rule of faith in our church.” But she was not just an ordinary author. She had a prophet gift and she was one of my heroes of the faith. And that’s why people attack her, because she helped to proclaim this great sanctuary message that you’re hearing today. That’s why they hate Ellen White and they want to destroy her influence. Because she was and is such a powerful preacher of the word.

3. When the judgment is concluded, God destroys those who destroy the earth. Trashing the earth, literally, and spiritually.

4. The door into the Most Holy Place is opened.
Let’s read Revelation 11:19 - And the temple of God was opened in heaven, and there was seen in his temple the ark of his testament (the Ten Commandments): and there were lightnings, and voices, and thunderings, and an earthquake, and great hail.”

The door into the most holy place is opened, the dead are judged, and it takes place in the most holy place of the sanctuary.

5. The ark was visible in this room. The Ark of the Covenant is in heaven. The heavenly Sanctuary was the one Moses made a copy of for the Children of Israel in the wilderness.

6. It is called the Ark of His Testament. Some people want to suggest that The Ten Commandments have been done away with, or nailed to the cross. Someone ought to let God the Father know shouldn’t they? He still claims that they’re in heaven. He still claims they’re in his ark and he calls it the ark of his testament! In heaven, in the ark – his testament. It’s as if God is saying “The Testament, the Ten Commandments are mine! They belong to me. I have them in heaven, and no man can change them!” The only reason men want to do away with them, is because they want to do away with God’s Sabbath.

Well, mister law-less preacher, Romans 7:3 says that the only thing on earth not subject to God’s law is the carnal mind. Think about that. Let me see you take your carnal-minded attitude and reach up into heaven and reach into God’s ark! Let me see you take those Ten Commandments out of his ark in heaven! Let me see if you can pull that one off! With your sophistry and your carnal reasoning, you can try to take the Sabbath out of the Ten Commandments, but let me see you try to go up there and reach into that ark and take them out of God’s ark in heaven! Let me see you try to do that one! I submit to you today, you can’t do it! They can’t be touched! God has them up in heaven protecting them and he proclaims they are my commandments in the ark of my testament. And there they stand! As long as God is alive, his law will be alive!

They want to get rid of only one of Gods Commandments: The Sabbath. They will allow all the others, but the very commandment God calls “The Sabbath of the Lord,” they want to take away. The very day God said to remember, they tell you “Oh, just forget it! It’s not important.”

Let me say it as clearly as I can; The Ten Commandments were not nailed to the cross. The Sabbath has never been done away with. The Law of God is just as binding on sinners today, as it was when Jesus said, “I am Lord of the Sabbath.” “I came not to destroy the Law”! Jesus lived a life of perfect Love, and love fulfills the Law of God according to Galatians chapter 6!

When the Seventh-Day Adventists formed their church in 1863, the early Advent believers, they began to study their Bibles and turned their attention to the Sanctuary in heaven. They took the rod from the Angel and began to measure the Altar of Incense, the Ark of the Covenant. As they studied their Bibles, they read the book of Hebrews and Revelation together, and they learned about Jesus’ ministry as the Great High Priest. They learned about the Judgment going on in heaven right now! They looked into the Ark of the Testament and saw the Law of God, including the Seventh-Day Sabbath.

This truth was discovered through Bible study and prayer. (Not from Ellen White as some suggest.) They began to proclaim the message God gave them. They began to share the prophecies of Daniel and Revelation, and to proclaim the Bible Sabbath, and many other doctrines they discovered. In 1863, the Seventh - day Adventist church was formed. It became a movement of destiny, proclaiming the coming kingdom that is even now being formed made up in heaven. Daniel wrote about it in chapter seven:
Dan 7:26, 27 – “But the judgment shall sit, and they shall take away his dominion (speaking of this antichrist’s power), to consume and to destroy it unto the end.
27And the kingdom and dominion, and the greatness of the kingdom under the whole heaven, shall be given to the people of the saints of the most High, whose kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and all dominions shall serve and obey him.”

In 1844, God began judging the dead and will one day come to the living. In 1844, God began putting his saints into his Kingdom, never to be removed by sin or Satan. He is now judging the earth in righteousness. He is taking the kingdom away from Satan and he is giving it to God’s people. It is a legal process.

It is a kingdom of obedience and service to Jesus, and it will be an everlasting Kingdom that will never end!

I am so glad today we have a high priest in heaven who wants to give us the kingdom and write our names down in the Lamb’s book of life and the book of remembrance.

How many of you today want to say “Jesus, our great high priest, please write my name down in your Lamb’s book of life. Please put me down in your kingdom and give me the reward that is promised; not based on my good works and my righteousness, but I accept the free gift, oh God, of your salvation. And through my great high priest in heaven, I ask for forgiveness of sin and eternal life as a free gift. Please, God put me down in your book. Please, God, judge me in the judgment not guilty, and save me when Jesus comes.”?

Is that your prayer today?

That is the message the Seventh-Day Adventist Church is preaching, and I am proud to be part of that message and to be proclaiming the sanctuary truth today. You will not hear this message in any other church. It will only be heard right here from this desk. This is the desk where the Reformation continues – right here! You’re not going to hear this anywhere else. You’re going to hear it from Seventh - day Adventist pulpits because we were the ones that God told to measure the sanctuary and then he opened that door and showed us the most holy place and what was taking place there. And we were the ones God told to proclaim this message, and we will by his grace be faithful to our duty.

Let us pray.

Father in heaven as we conclude our service, help us as we look into the sanctuary in heaven and see the great priestly ministry of Jesus Christ contrasted with the man of sin, the son of perdition, with the Antichrist depicted in these prophecies. May we reject the creature centered worship of this false religion, and all it’s false doctrines. Lord, may we truly find our way into the church that keeps the commandments of God and has the testimony of Jesus. We pray in Christ’s name. Amen.


Closing Song: Hymn No. 495, “Near To The Heart Of God” Seventh - Day Adventist Hymnal, Review and Herald Publishing Association (1991).
All Scriptural References: New King James Version
Ellen G. White References: www.whiteestate.org
Transcription: Wendy J. Riebel
This sermon is also available on cassette tape.
Visit our church website: www.ProphecyWatch.biz

1 The central motif in Mythraism is hunting and sacrificing the mystic bull in a cave. Important rituals included a sacred meal and a process of purification that included baptism. The symbolic shedding of the bull’s blood was for the purpose of purifying the earth and a celebration of Mythras’ great deed of slaying the mystic beast and fertilizing Mother Earth. Followers who partook of the bull’s body and blood in a sacred meal would receive salvation, for when Mythras had completed his exploits on this earth, he was to ascend into the heavens, returning to Sol Invictus. While on earth, Mythras fought for the cause of Good as virtue, heroism, and peacekeeping. His followers, to ensure themselves of eternal life, were to follow his example. They worshipped on the holy day of the Sun (Sunday)—a day on which they were forbidden to work.—Douglas M. Painter, Pagan Influences in Christian Culture: The Hidden Legacy (www.LitJournal.com)

[1] Samuele Bacchiocchi, Seventh-Day Adventist Author