Library

sermonette: A Message of Thanks

Background to the Opening of the New Building
John W. Ritenbaugh
Given 13-Aug-05; Sermon #733sb; 23 minutes

Description: (show)

---

I want you to go with me to Psalm 10. This just seemed appropriate to me. And in verse 4, it says the wicked through the pride of his countenance will not seek after God. God is not in all his thoughts. Now this is one of the things that separates a true Son of God from those who may claim to be Son of God. They may even be a pretty good group of people, but they are not really sons of God. That which separates the sons of God is that God is in all of their thoughts. And the reason is they want to have God's perspective on everything. And so they are thinking of Him often. What would God have me to do in this case? Think searching it out in His word, trying to understand things that they have heard in sermons and Bible studies, and make a practical application in whatever the situation is that they are involved in. Now, when it says they, We seek God. It doesn't mean seek Him in the sense of looking to find Him because God has already revealed Himself to His children. What it means is seeking Him for the purpose of finding out specifically what he is like and what His will is for them. Because they want to be in his image. Now there is another scripture that I want you to look at. This time it's in II Corinthians 3 and in verse 5II Corinthians 3, and in verse 5. That's not the one I want. It's II Corinthians 13:5. Where it says, examine yourselves, whether you be in the faith, prove your own selves. Don't you know that your own selves, that you, that how that Jesus Christ is in you except you be reprobate. This is a scripture that we usually use sometime around that period of leading up to Passover and the Days of Unleavened Bread. We are to examine ourselves, but brethren, we need to be doing that all the time. Looking for God working in our lives, whether it's in terms of our own personal growth and overcoming, or whether it is looking for him working. Let's say signs. May be visible signs, strong indications that he is working in our lives because it builds our confidence and trust to know that indeed though we can't see him, we can't hear him, that we see evidence that he is working with us. Now the foundational sermon of the Church of the great God. The one that was given at the very first service of the Church of the Great God on January 11th, 1992 was actually a spin-off. of a Series of Bible studies that I gave on the book of Hebrews, actually, it began back in the 70s, when I first did that when we were pastoring Columbia, South Carolina. And then, I heard a sermon by Garner Ted Armstrong and there was one part of that sermon also given at a feast of Tabernacles in the 70s, probably about 76 or 77 at Jekyll Island, Georgia. So there was a piece of that sermon that Garner Ted gave that really stuck in my mind and In that series on the book of Hebrews, and I put these concepts together into the sermon. Do you see God? By the time I gave that sermon, or that sermon was given at the first service, I had already given that sermon probably 4 or 5 times at 2 or 3 different feasts of tabernacles. I really related to it. And I love to give it because it meant so much to me. I thought that I could give it in a way that would build confidence in people to be able to see a major. Purpose being worked out in their lives. We can't do that, brethren, unless we can see God, not visibly, but we know we understand that he indeed is working with us. So these first two scriptures that I've given to you. Sort of support this. We not only seek God, we look for evidence that he is working with us. Well, something interesting happened last Sabbath. That I'll relate to all of you now. I did say something to the people who were there at services last Sabbath, and it's just an interesting little thing. Maybe it's not so little. As you might think And that is When I got the services, The first person I saw practically was Martin. And he had this card in his hand. And He had prepared The lead music. Well, unbeknownst to him, Richard had called me earlier in the week and asked me if I would lead, lead songs. Because he was originally scheduled to lead them that week. I said, Sure, I'll do it, and then promptly forgot it. When I got the services, Martin was unaware that this had taken place. He had no idea. And so he, he knew Richard was not there, so he thought, I'll, I'll get ready. And so he chose 5 songs. That he knew would be on one CD disk because Brian was not there to play the piano. He was up on the camp out. So he picked out 5 songs. Well, those five songs turned out to be number 39, 21, 33, and 27. Well, I saw that and I thought, boy, that's interesting. Every single one of them is divisible by 3. I mentioned this to, to Martin. He did not know. It never entered his mind. That all of those songs were divisible by 3, OK. I still had to get somebody to give the opening prayer and the closing prayer. There were not very many men at services last Sabbath. And I knew, I think Mike had given one of the prayers the week before and he was there. I did not want to ask him again. They over in the corner working on the sound system was Ted Bowling and Benjamin Wolf. My two victims. So I walked over to Ted. And I said, Would you give the opening prayer? Sure, he said. I said, to Benjamin, would you give the closing prayer? All right, he said, I'll do it. And I, I said, Do you know that Martin picked all these songs that are divisible by 3? They said no. They did not know. Well, David was standing there. And he said, you know what? Said the subject of my sermon and the title. Also has a 3 in it. Now all of this happened without anybody else knowing. And what he was doing was giving 3. Indications signs. That First John 5:7 does not support a Trinity. So that's what his subject was. The Trinity has to do with 3. You begin to see what's happening here, a whole series of threes. Do you know what 3 indicates in biblical numerology? It indicates a completion, a finality. That something is over. Now remember, the week before that, Richard gave the sermon. And what was it about? How did he open that sermon up? He began showing how all kinds of things happen in threes. He went through, he must have, he must have had pretty close to 10 of them. Births, deaths, I mean, you name it, tragedies, hurricanes, tornadoes, whatever. Happen in threes. OK. Anyway, during services, every once in a while my mind would drift off, and I began to think how many times have we met in this room. And so I counted it out quickly so that when I got up here I would have another 3 for everybody when I would reveal to them that all these because I had told them there is something. That all of these songs have in In a common with each other. Anyway, I said to them, Do you know that we probably have had 30 services in this building? Well, it turned out that we did not. We had 29. Two different people counted it out. Turned out to be 29. Do you know what the number 29 means in Scripture? It's not divisible by 3. Incidentally, one more 3. The date Added up. To 21. Last Sabbath, added up to 21, which is divisible by 3, and it produces a 7. God's number of perfection. Now, there is other things. They're a little bit ancillary. And maybe only important to Evelyn and I. Uh, the 29. Do you know what the number 29, according to Bollinger means in Scripture? Departure. We were going to leave that meeting hall for a new place. How about that? The number 19 Has particular meaning to Evelyn and I. No kidding. It has followed us. All through and even before our coming into the church. Now it's not something that we have worked. To cause to happen at all. But very significant things have happened to us, having the number 19 in it. We were married on the 19th. We were baptized on the 19th. We left for Ambassador College on August 19th, 1968. I could go on and on. I do not know how many there. I do not know how many houses that we have lived in. When the the address added up to 19, including the one that we are presently in, it not only adds up to 19, but it's got a 19 in the number itself. And it's to us it is just an indication. That God is saying I'm here. I'm here. Go ahead, see, with confidence. I'm with you. OK. Now, we will just get you started a little bit. Because we really haven't thought too much about today. But at any rate, on the Hebrew calendar, This day is the 5th month, the 12th day. Do you know what the number 17 means? Victory Let's see. Oh, The date on the Gregorian calendar. It is August 13th, 2005. Add all the numbers together. 8 plus 1 + 3 + 2 + 5 equals. 19. We did not plan that. Do you know that all of those delays that we had I'm just joking with you. We laid out, made by God so that we would end up with the number 19. The cake that we got Has on it the scripture with God all things are possible. Do you know where that scripture is in the Bible? Matthew 19. Uh, I'll finish this in Deuteronomy one. Now, the reason we are in Deuteronomy 1, Is that most of you are aware, that the Jews put together. A triennial, Uh, reading of the scriptures. And it takes three. Years For that cycle to be completed. There is a scripture or two sometimes. That are to be read for every day. In that 3 year period. OK, the scripture for today, On the Hebrew calendar is Deuteronomy 1. Verses 1 through 3. Where it says. These be the words which Moses spake unto all Israel on this side of Jordan. I want you to think of the symbolism here. In other words, they were just outside of the promised land. Are we just outside? of our inheritance In the wilderness in the plain over against the Red Sea between Phran and Tophel and Laban and Hazarat and Dazahab. And then a very interesting parenthetical statement. Why it's here we are wondering. There are 11 days' journey from Horeb. The area in which Mount Sinai was. By the way of Mount Cyr unto Kadesh Barnea. Which is where Petra was located. And incidentally Barnea, Roughly means sons of the Holy One. Bar, you know, sun. Kadesh means holy. Sons of the holy. Unto Kadesh Barnea, and it came to pass in the 40th year, in the 11th month, on the 1st day of the month, that Moses spake unto the children of Israel according to all that the Lord had given him in commandment unto them. OK, the 11th month was she bat, is she bat, still is she bat. So, sometime during that period of time, Moses began writing. The Book of Deuteronomy, which I personally feel. It's not only my favorite of all the books in the Old Testament, I think it is the single most important book in the Old Testament for the Church of God today. Because it was written in that period just before they went into the promised land, we are living in the end time, and what is contained in this book is especially important to preparing us to receive the inheritance. Now he's giving here a series of dates. Whether they mean anything, I do not know. It's for us to speculate on, and our speculations usually aren't worth dirt, but we can still think about them. So in the month of Shebad, he began authoring the Book of Deuteronomy, which means the second law or the second telling. It was to remind Israel why they were there and to get them prepared for the kingdom, not the kingdom, for the promised land. Then Moses died. And they mourned his death for 30 days. That seems to be through the whole month of Adar. Which is the 12th month. And then, On the 10th day, Of the first month Nyan. Under Joshua They entered the land. You got that? Now, maybe, All of these things, Remember a big maybe here all of these things. Have significance not just to us but to the whole church. All of God's people, all of God's people aren't in this room. It's just a tiny group that is part of the scattered Church of God. But it gives us a little bit of insight. How all of these things fell together. All of these indications that God was saying, I am with you, and he is saying, I am aware of what is going on. This is ending. You are departing, and now something. Is about to happen. Is it 11 days off? I have no idea. Is it a day for a year? We can only guess. 11 years off? Oh. I do not think we really like to think of that. 11 more years to go. I'll be 84 years old. OK. I'm creaky as it is. But that is so interesting. And I think it's something to think about. It almost seems Planned. That it's not coincidental. Now our hope is that this building Then can be a launching pad for greater service to God. In whatever his assignment is for us. One word of caution, he's blessed us with a wonderful place to meet. And we want to use it in the right way. And not take advantage of it. And forget about all the things that took place to put us in this position. And we hardly did a thing. It's given to us. So let's not get a big head. Let's not think that somehow we are better than others or more deserving than others. Every blessing that God gives has a reason, a purpose behind it that has something to do with what he's doing. Every blessing Is not only a gift to us or to whomever. It also is a responsibility to use it in his service. And so this building doesn't make us one bit better, it only makes us more responsible. To use that gift, this gift. The way that he wants to. So please pray to that end. That we will come to understand what we are to do with this building other than just occupy it because it has to be a place for the glorification of God.