NOTE: THE FOLLOWING ARE NOTES FOR A SERMON THAT WAS PREACHED A NUMBER OF YEARS AGO. THEY ARE COMPREHENSIVE ENOUGH TO BE ABLE TO FOLLOW THE TRAIN OF THOUGHT.
How real is your world?
As human beings we tend to determine reality by our senses.
If I can see it with my own two eyes, then I will believe it.
If I can hear it with my own two ears, then I will accept that as truth.
24 But Thomas, one of the twelve, called Didymus, was not with them when Jesus came. 25 The other disciples therefore said unto him, We have seen the Lord. But he said unto them, Except I shall see in his hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the print of the nails, and thrust my hand into his side, I will not believe. John 20:24-25
But what if what you could see, was not real?
And what if what you could hear, was not real?
What if my world, the society I grew up in,
Was not real?
Was not really what it appeared to be?
Our world is a projection of thoughts.
Just as in the beginning God had a thought, so He spake, and it was – He commanded and it stood fast.
God said let there be light and there was light.
The world was a product of the thoughts of God.
And man was created in the image of God.
So man will also seek to create the very things that his own thoughts consist of.
The ideas and convictions of the individual mind will seek for expression – be it in words, or in acts.
And that is a good thing, when man is in the image of God in his inward thoughts – when he is thinking God’s thoughts after him – his works will be of a Godly nature.
But when man cast aside the thoughts of God and cherished the thoughts of Satan, then as the ideas and convictions of the mind will seek for expression, then what will be the result?
5 And God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. 6 And it repented the LORD that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at his heart. 7 And the LORD said, I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth; both man, and beast, and the creeping thing, and the fowls of the air; for it repenteth me that I have made them. 8 But Noah found grace in the eyes of the LORD. Genesis 6:5-8
Although man was destroyed and but few saved, did the nature of man change?
NO. The nature of man remained the same.
Therefore his thoughts remained the same.
The wicked, through the pride of his countenance, will not seek after God: God is not in all his thoughts. Psalm 10:4
And these thoughts WILL seek for expression.
Nimrod – might hunter before the Lord – He was an over-bearing tyrant in Jehovah’s sight
Engineered a one-world totalitarian government
1 And the whole earth was of one language, and of one speech. 2 And it came to pass, as they journeyed from the east, that they found a plain in the land of Shinar; and they dwelt there. 3 And they said one to another, Go to, let us make brick, and burn them thoroughly. And they had brick for stone, and slime had they for mortar. 4 And they said, Go to, let us build us a city and a tower, whose top may reach unto heaven; and let us make us a name, lest we be scattered abroad upon the face of the whole earth. 5 And the LORD came down to see the city and the tower, which the children of men builded. 6 And the LORD said, Behold, the people is one, and they have all one language; and this they begin to do: and now nothing will be restrained from them, which they have imagined to do. 7 Go to, let us go down, and there confound their language, that they may not understand one another’s speech. 8 So the LORD scattered them abroad from thence upon the face of all the earth: and they left off to build the city. 9 Therefore is the name of it called Babel; because the LORD did there confound the language of all the earth: and from thence did the LORD scatter them abroad upon the face of all the earth. Genesis 11:1-9
The thoughts and imagination will seek for expression.
If the thoughts are evil – the works will be evil.
That which the man produces will be evil.
In the garden of Eden, Adam rejected God’s thoughts and accepted Satan’s mind in its stead.
Now, Satan is described in the scriptures as what?
Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it. John 8:44
A liar
So when we received the thoughts of Satan, what kind of a heart, a mind, did we receive?
The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it? Jeremiah 17:0
Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life. Proverbs 4:23
That which will proceed from us, the things that man will produce in his life, come directly from the heart, the mind, the thoughts.
But if the heart is deceitful, then what are the issues of life?
They are deceptions – desperately wicked deceptions.
It’s simple isn’t it?
Deceitful heart equals deceitful – what?
A deceitful life.
Because out of that deceitful heart are the issues of life.
Our reality, the world which we live in, is what?
It is a deception.
Whether I have had influence on the world in which I live or not, it is the product of sinful man, and if sinful man has a deceitful heart then what is the world in which I live?
One big fat deception.
It is not REAL.
And some people don’t like the world they live in,
They shut themselves up within themselves and live in their own little world.
But what is that?
Its a product of their own deceitful heart. It is not real either.
If you do not know what I am talking about, let us consider this for a while.
Is my world REAL?
I can see it – therefore I believe it.
I can feel it – therefore I know its real.
But is this the fact in reality?
Remember, the heart is deceitful…
We want to break this down.
But let’s first go to the pinnacle of wisdom in this world.
Let’s ask the wise man Solomon: is this real?
1 The words of the Preacher, the son of David, king in Jerusalem. 2 Vanity of vanities, saith the Preacher, vanity of vanities; all is vanity. Ecclesiastes 1:1, 2
What is vanity – Emptiness; want of substance to satisfy desire; uncertainty; inanity; untruth
Vain def: Empty; worthless; having no substance, value or importance
Unreal def: Empty; unsatisfying. The pleasures of life are vain.
False; deceitful; not genuine; spurious.
I have seen all the works that are done under the sun; and, behold, all is vanity and vexation of spirit. Ecclesiastes 1:14
Food and Earnings
All the labour of man is for his mouth, and yet the appetite is not filled. Ecclesiastes 6:7
Ye have sown much, and bring in little; ye eat, but ye have not enough; ye drink, but ye are not filled with drink; ye clothe you, but there is none warm; and he that earneth wages earneth wages to put it into a bag with holes. Haggai 1:6
We work and we work and we work.
And we pay our bills and we pay our bills and we pay our bills.
We never get ahead. We put our money into bags with holes in them.
And if we do, if we manage to get some money, are we satisfied with that?
Oh no. I must have some more.
And more, and more.
Either way you look at it, the appetite is not filled.
The appetite for gain, and the appetite for food.
It’s all fake!
And we can sit down to a meal and indulge the appetite, but the craving will be back again, and so will the stomach ache.
It’s a deceit.
The heart says, yes, you want to eat this, and then you will be happy.
So you eat it, and its all over and then your stomach empties out and what are you left with?
Isn’t it the same with sexual passions?
Sure there might be some pleasure for a short while, but when it’s all over, what have you gained?
Its vanity. All vanity.
We might want to buy a house. But the house begins to fall apart and you have to keep maintaining it.
And the value of the house fluctuates – there’s no guarantee it’s worth any money when you go to sell it.
It’s vanity!
And you can buy a car. Any car. It needs to be maintained. And then it starts to break down, and one day it will rust – the minute you drive it out of the showroom, its value drops dramatically.
What a deception!
You just paid $50,000 for a car. You drive it down the road and its not worth that much any more.
Now what fascinates me is Lamborghini’s, Ferrari’s and Nissan Skylines.
I find it absolutely remarkable, and annoying, how some chunks of metal and plastic can be beaten into a certain shape and before I know it, its got my head turning.
I was into cars when I grew up and I am always having to re-educate myself – Camron, it’s just a chunk of metal with some paint over the top of it – why are you even bothering to look at it?
Isn’t it amazing how even just the shape and colours of the things in this world can be so appealing?
But it’s all a lie. A big fat deception.
It’s not real. The bright red Ferrari is going to rust too…
And you can drive it to it’s potential, but because of the law, you can only drive it like that on a racetrack and then you have got to go home sometime…
What’s the use of it? It’s not lasting. The pleasure only last for a short while and then it’s all over….
It’s fake. It’s not REAL.
So these are some things in our daily life.
What about society?
Well, do I need to say anything about that?
Maybe a hundred years ago I would have had to take a few more scriptures and show you what’s really going on behind the scenes, but I don’t think I need to say much now.
A husband and wife, two children and a dog.
Footy on Tuesday. Netball on Wednesday, Shopping on Thursday, a roast for dinner on Friday and Yippee, we get to got to the movies on Saturday night, then a barbeque on Sunday with the mates.
It all looks so good doesn’t it?
You see them out the front of their houses kissing the children off to school with their packed lunches and the wife embracing the husband before he goes to work.
Hmmm.
Those children are neglected, by the parents at least, but the television is happy to take care of them.
The husband and wife that look so happy. They’re not. They’re always fighting and they hate each other.
The husband says “Oh, I love you” and drives off to work then off to see another woman at his lunch break or after work.
No he’s not. He’s just gone to the pub to drink with some mates. Right?
If he’s not cheating on his wife, he’s at least window shopping.
And the dog? Well, it’ll bite the hand that feeds it.
They speak vanity every one with his neighbour: with flattering lips and with a double heart do they speak. Psalm 12:2
2 The good man is perished out of the earth: and there is none upright among men: they all lie in wait for blood; they hunt every man his brother with a net. 3 That they may do evil with both hands earnestly, the prince asketh, and the judge asketh for a reward; and the great man, he uttereth his mischievous desire: so they wrap it up. 4 The best of them is as a brier: the most upright is sharper than a thorn hedge: the day of thy watchmen and thy visitation cometh; now shall be their perplexity. 5 Trust ye not in a friend, put ye not confidence in a guide: keep the doors of thy mouth from her that lieth in thy bosom. 6 For the son dishonoureth the father, the daughter riseth up against her mother, the daughter in law against her mother in law; a man’s enemies are the men of his own house. Micah 7:2-6
What about the government?
Well, I’m not going to say much about the government.
But Revelation 17 will tell you a whole heap about it.
What about religion?
And all the churches of today?
Aren’t they real? Don’t they say they have the TRUTH?
8 Then said he unto me, Son of man, dig now in the wall: and when I had digged in the wall, behold a door. 8:9 And he said unto me, Go in, and behold the wicked abominations that they do here. 10 So I went in and saw; and behold every form of creeping things, and abominable beasts, and all the idols of the house of Israel, portrayed upon the wall round about. 11 And there stood before them seventy men of the ancients of the house of Israel, and in the midst of them stood Jaazaniah the son of Shaphan, with every man his censer in his hand; and a thick cloud of incense went up. 12 Then said he unto me, Son of man, hast thou seen what the ancients of the house of Israel do in the dark, every man in the chambers of his imagery? for they say, The LORD seeth us not; the LORD hath forsaken the earth. Ezekiel 8:8-12
Maybe this one is a little too revealing about the church.
After all, do we really want the truth?
Let’s just read this one instead.
1 This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come. 2 For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, 3 Without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good, 4 Traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God; 5 Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away. 2 Timothy 3:1-5
23 Then if any man shall say unto you, Lo, here is Christ, or there; believe it not. 24 For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall show great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect. Matthew 24:23, 24
And my own religion, is it possible that I can be deceived, that I have received Christ in vain?
22 Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? 23 And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity. Matthew 7:22, 23
And what about some of the more personal things in life…
What about some of the things that go on inside my head?
Well, we can dream all we want of earning money and buying this and buying that, but we will either never do it, or if we do, we will always be wanting more…
And we can dream of marriage and building castles and all that, but it’s only a dream…
It’s all in your imagination.
ITS NOT REAL!
And what about all those lovely feelings we might have?
When you look at something you like, or when you smell something nice,
Its just chemistry.
Did you know that?
It’s just chemicals and electrical impulses.
And that’s about as real as it gets.
And that soon goes away.
Are you afraid of the dark?
There were they in great fear, where no fear was: for God hath scattered the bones of him that encampeth against thee: thou hast put them to shame, because God hath despised them. Psalm 53:5
Much of our suffering is unreal. We imagine trouble, and we gather clouds of darkness about us. We suffer as surely from imaginary troubles as though they were real. HR, June 1, 1871 par. 13
But they’re not!
They’re NOT REAL!
Vanity of Vanity.
All is vanity!
How much is vanity?
Everything.
Everything in this life is vanity.
It is fake. It is not real.
Nothing endures.
Nothing is lasting.
Nothing satisfies.
Nothing can be trusted.
That which I see with my eyes,
That which I hear with my ears,
It’s all a lie!
And life itself?
What about life itself?
15 For the day of the LORD is near upon all the heathen: as thou hast done, it shall be done unto thee: thy reward shall return upon thine own head. 16 For as ye have drunk upon my holy mountain, so shall all the heathen drink continually, yea, they shall drink, and they shall swallow down, and they shall be as though they had not been. Obadiah 1:15, 16
One thing that is real in this world – as thou hast done, it shall be done to thee.
What goes around, comes around.
Cause to effect.
What we sow we reap.
And the wages of sin is death.
But while the wicked will be as though they had not been, their death will be very painful according to their sin.
But more so, they will have missed out on living the REAL LIFE.
So, how can I find REALITY?
First, I must acknowledge that my world is not real.
I must be willing to admit that I have not been able to satisfy myself or have I found satisfaction anywhere or in anything in this world.
We must be honest with ourselves.
And be willing to accept that the fact that this world is not real.
Then, I must seek for the truth,
7 Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you: 8 For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened. Matthew 7:7, 8
But in seeking for it I must seek for it with my whole heart.
And then when I find it I must throw my whole heart into it.
I must put everything into it.
If everything else is fake, then I need to put everything into the truth.
There is only one thing that is REAL, lasting, enduring, satisfying.
And I will tell you directly where REALITY IS.
24 For all flesh is as grass, and all the glory of man as the flower of grass. The grass withereth, and the flower thereof falleth away: 25 But the word of the Lord endureth for ever. And this is the word which by the gospel is preached unto you. 1 Peter 1:24, 25
There are many arousing but but they are not willing to take acknowledge the Word of the Lord.
And because they do not, they will never find REALITY.
7 For the mystery of iniquity doth already work: only he who now letteth will let, until he be taken out of the way. 8 And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming: 9 Even him, whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders, 10 And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved. 11 And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie: 12 That they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness. 2 Thessalonians 2:7-12
31 Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed; 32 And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free. John 8:31, 32
They are not willing to CONTINUE…
Why?
Because we want to believe in what we see, and believe in what we hear and believe in what we feel…
It’s so much easier to take that as real. No effort required.
We want to trust our senses.
But it’s not real.
Everything in this world proceeds from a deceitful heart….
And Jesus answered him, saying, It is written, That man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word of God. Luke 4:4
We cannot live by sight, by hearing, we must live by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.
And it is going to conflict with all of our senses and we will have one huge convolution, but we must take God at His word, REGARDLESS of the sense, and we must CONTINUE in it.
I need to take God at His word, no matter what my senses tell me.
19 Who is blind, but my servant? or deaf, as my messenger that I sent? who is blind as he that is perfect, and blind as the LORD’s servant? 20 Seeing many things, but thou observest not; opening the ears, but he heareth not. Isaiah 42:19, 20
In this unreal world, we must find REALITY.
The whole world has been engineered and ever since the garden of Eden Satan has been behind it all.
And the great deceiver is running out of time, and coming right before us is one big FINAL DECEPTION.
Its not real. Its fake, but if it were possible, even the very elect will be deceived.
ONE FINAL GRAND DELUSION that will appeal to all of your senses.
It will hit you from every angle.
Sight, taste, smell, feel, hear, chemically, electrically, you name it.
It will be one overpowering deception and if we have not found REALITY, we will believe the lie.
As the crowning act in the great drama of deception, Satan himself will personate Christ. The church has long professed to look to the Saviour’s advent as the consummation of her hopes. Now the great deceiver will make it appear that Christ has come. In different parts of the earth, Satan will manifest himself among men as a majestic being of dazzling brightness, resembling the description of the Son of God given by John in the Revelation. Revelation 1:13-15. The glory that surrounds him is unsurpassed by anything that mortal eyes have yet beheld. The shout of triumph rings out upon the air: “Christ has come! Christ has come!” The people prostrate themselves in adoration before him, while he lifts up his hands and pronounces a blessing upon them, as Christ blessed His disciples when He was upon the earth. His voice is soft and subdued, yet full of melody. In gentle, compassionate tones he presents some of the same gracious, heavenly truths which the Saviour uttered; he heals the diseases of the people, and then, in his assumed character of Christ, he claims to have changed the Sabbath to Sunday, and commands all to hallow the day which he has blessed. He declares that those who persist in keeping holy the seventh day are blaspheming his name by refusing to listen to his angels sent to them with light and truth. This is the strong, almost overmastering delusion. Like the Samaritans who were deceived by Simon Magus, the multitudes, from the least to the greatest, give heed to these sorceries, saying: This is “the great power of God.” Acts 8:10. GC 624.2
Only those who have been diligent students of the Scriptures and who have received the love of the truth will be shielded from the powerful delusion that takes the world captive. By the Bible testimony these will detect the deceiver in his disguise. To all the testing time will come. By the sifting of temptation the genuine Christian will be revealed. Are the people of God now so firmly established upon His word that they would not yield to the evidence of their senses? Would they, in such a crisis, cling to the Bible and the Bible only? Satan will, if possible, prevent them from obtaining a preparation to stand in that day. He will so arrange affairs as to hedge up their way, entangle them with earthly treasures, cause them to carry a heavy, wearisome burden, that their hearts may be overcharged with the cares of this life and the day of trial may come upon them as a thief. GC 625.3
Those who live in the last days must pass through an experience similar to that of Jacob. Foes will be all around them, ready to condemn and destroy. Alarm and despair will seize them, for it appears to them as to Jacob in his distress, that God himself has become an avenging enemy. It is the design of God to arouse the dormant energies of his people to look out of and away from self to One who can bring help and salvation, that the promises given for just such a time may be seen in their preciousness, and relied upon with unwavering trust…
Wrestling with God — how few know what it is! To wrestle with God is to have the soul drawn out with intensity of desire until every power is on the stretch, while waves of despair that no language can express sweep over the soul; and yet the suppliant will not yield, but clings with deathlike tenacity to the promise. ST, November 27, 1879 par. 11,12
17 For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory; 18 While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal. 2 Corinthians 4:17, 18
…
Amen
