Friday: Further Thought – The Impending Conflict
Daily Lesson for Friday 14th of June 2024
Worshiping the beast and its image alludes to Daniel 3:1-30, in which Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego were commanded by the king of Babylon to bow down to a golden image or be thrown into a fiery furnace. Ancient Babylon, modern Babylon—the issue is worship. True worship springs from a mind taught by God’s Word, a soul transformed by His love, and a heart filled with His Spirit. Then we will not be “conformed to this world” but live according to God’s will, which is found in His Word. That is our only safety!
Image © Stan Myers from GoodSalt.com
“God never forces the will or the conscience; but Satan’s constant resort—to gain control of those whom he cannot otherwise seduce—is compulsion by cruelty. Through fear or force he endeavors to rule the conscience and to secure homage to himself. To accomplish this, he works through both religious and secular authorities, moving them to the enforcement of human laws in defiance of the law of God.”—Ellen G. White, The Great Controversy, p. 591.
“In order to endure the trial before them, they must understand the will of God as revealed in His word; they can honor Him only as they have a right conception of His character, government, and purposes, and act in accordance with them. None but those who have fortified the mind with the truths of the Bible will stand through the last great conflict.”—The Great Controversy, p. 593.
“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 nor 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.”—The Great Controversy, p. 595.
Discussion Questions
- How can we live in the expectation of the coming of Christ and share that hope without becoming alarmists?
- Dwell more on the question of worship. What does our daily life, our daily routine, tell us about who or what we worship?
- How can we help ourselves and others face the future with confidence and not with fear?
- What practical difference does understanding last-day events make in our lives today?
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As most of our readers know, my current obsession is bird photography. I know a lot about birds, what they eat, their scientific names, where to find them, their wing structure and flight patterns, and their identifying marks. I annoy Carmel because I can tell the difference between a Raven and a Crow. But among all that knowledge I have another agenda. I am active in our community in sharing my love for birds in a way that encourages them to look after and care for our birds. All the bird knowledge in the world does not help if I do not communicate, not just the facts, but the love for birds. By doing this I hope that I am doing my bit to protect the birds and their environment. And one of the best ways of doing this is to invite my friends to join me in experiencing encounters with birds.
There is a danger that we become encyclopedic with our knowledge and interpretation of prophecy. We may be able to interpret the meanings of the beasts, horns, land and sea. But our main agenda is to share the love of Jesus to the people we associate with in our daily lives. All too often, our arguments sound like, "My knowledge is bigger and better than yours, so you better believe it!"
Our prophetic understanding comes with a caveat. If we do not have a Christ-centric gospel to preach (by living), all our prophetic knowledge comes to naught. Knowledge is useful and provides us with an understanding of where we are, but it should also provide us with the impetus to live a Christ-centred life that influences others around us.
Counterfeiters will imitate anything that might fool someone else. While most imitations are subtle changes to the original, others are blatantly untrue but persistently repeated until they are normalised by the target audience. A lifetime of study could never teach us how to identify every counterfeit.
There is only one way to avoid being fooled. Experts who root out counterfeits do not constantly study counterfeits. Their expertise is knowing every detail of the original. They know with such certainty that they immediately spot a fake, simply because it isn't the original.
I have friends caught up by the fearful excitement of supposed secrets, conspiracies, counterfeits and plots. Their daily sustenance has drifted from prayer and Bible study, to video and TV preachers who regularly change predictions, because their predictions rely on political intrigue.
No-one can hope to understand all the constantly changing politics of the world. Most of us don't keep up with politics in our own country, much less the ever-changing yarns of conspiracies and plots. The only way for us to be safe from Satan's end times counterfeits is for us to know Jesus, the only original, so well that we only reflect Him.
Why worry, when Jesus promised we are safe in Him!
Your wrote,
And therein lies the chief danger. Satan cares little on what we place our attention, as long as it isn't Jesus and His Word and mission. Only He can save!
How can we live in the expectation of the coming of Christ and share that hope without becoming alarmists?
Bullying, Bible-bashing and spreading fear are the marks of a cult. Too often, religious people push their "truth" at people who didn't ask and are not interested. This does not break down barriers, nor open the heart to want more. Instead it causes disdain and animosity, with the hearer unlikely to ever listen again.
The only true way to break down barriers is to pattern our daily lives to be a reflection of Jesus. Then people want to know, ask to learn more, and happily hear the Good News, including the signs of the end and the wonderful news that Jesus has already won the war.
The Bible presents what will happen in the final days so the careful student gets prepared for what is ahead. But what we have now is the present! Today! And life is about "nows". What matters today is who or what we worship, who or what is first in our hearts - because this will make all the difference when the final day comes!
Yes Christ will see us through the conflict, by Him we will be and are victorious. He promised many times personally and through his ministers of the word hundreds of times. The more we study, the stronger the message is that Christ will be with us through it all, becoming written on our hearts, just like the laws of God become written in our minds.
John 14:1-3.
1 Peter 1:3-5.
Psalm 34:6-7.
So we show our love for Christ by obeying His commandments.
He has promised the Holy Spirit will be with us forever and in us. So, through faith in Christ, we greatly rejoice. Knowing this, who can be against us? No one.
John 14:15-17.
Romans 8:31.