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Advent HOPE Sabbath School

Anthony Baca Weekend 2019

Anthony Baca

The Intention of the Bible

Gracious Heavenly Father, we want to thank you so much for the privilege we have to come and study your Word.

I pray that you'd organize my thoughts, that you'd put your words in my mouth, you'd help me to just wholly rely upon you, to trust in you, and to let you speak to each of us individually and personally, even to myself.

Take the verses that we read, take the inspired references that we look at, and impact us, Lord.

Take your word and change us, for this is our prayer in Christ's name.

Today's presentation is entitled, The Intention of Scripture, The Devotional Life of the Remnant.

The Intention of Scripture, The devotional life of the remnant.

Now before I dive in, I want to kind of give a principle, a concept, a thought that I think is important.

And I actually learned this in school this week actually, so it's kind of interesting.

I was in class, my math class, and the teacher was covering something that I actually already knew.

Have you ever had that happen when a teacher presents something you already actually know?

So what do you do when a teacher starts talking about something that you already know?

I grab my little AirPod, I slip the AirPod into my right ear, I double-tap this so it resumed the playlist, I pulled out the iPad, swiped it over off of the note section onto another section, and I was working on something totally unrelated to that particular class.

Because I'm about to tell you something that I should have known that that day.

I also have found that we don't just do that in like a secular setting, but we do that in a spiritual setting all the time.

And I noticed this at an evangelistic series when I was sitting there and I preach evangelistic campaigns and the preacher started, he gave the title, he gave his introductory story and I knew where he was going already.

I could have probably told you the verses before he used the verses and when that happens, what happens to our brains?

And they start thinking about what's for dinner or how much bad traffic gonna be on the way home from this meeting, whatever we think about when we're checked out.

1 Corinthians 8, verse 2, our introductory text, kind of unrelated, more of just a foundation so that we don't check out.

The Bible says if anyone thinks he knows anything, he knows nothing.

So if you think that as we're going to talk about the devotional life and the intention of Scripture, like I know the purpose of the Bible and of course I have devotions and immediately your brain is already beginning to think about potluck and what church service you're gonna go to next and who's gonna have the best potluck or whatever it is that we think about on Sabbath when we check out.

Don't check out, amen, Because if you thought you knew something that was evidence you know nothing, as you should know it.

And therefore you should pay very close attention because you may learn something new, amen?

Or you just might be reminded of something that God knows that you need, or else why would he have allowed you to be here today?

So I believe God has a special particular blessing for each person when they come and I know God has something for you today as we dive in.

So I hope that helps you to kind of harness the power of the mind as we dive in.

We're gonna look at the intention of the Bible in Scripture in 3 points.

Number 1, we're gonna look at the purpose of the Bible.

And you are free to totally disagree with me.

I am but a man and can err, but I will share with you things that I have studied and conclusions that I have come to on why I believe big picture why God gave us the Bible.

Number 2, we're going to look at the practical impact of understanding that purpose because when you understand why God gave the Bible, you can maximize his intention, amen?

I mean, if God gave this for reason A, but you're using it for reason B, you're missing out on what God intended.

And you may be getting something good, but you're not maximizing.

So we're gonna talk about that with a practical impact of this purpose and then 0.3 kind of sounds like it makes no sense, but we'll get there.

We're gonna look at the other half of God's character and that would just be 0.3.

We all have unique backgrounds and I'm no different.

I'm a convert from being an atheist, from a secular background, 1 who didn't believe in God, who wasn't a practicing religion, practicing any religion of any sorts.

And so for me, when I first became a Christian, I had my understanding of the purpose of the Bible based on my experience and background.

First 2 verses I ever read in Scripture were Isaiah 46, 9 and 10.

The very first verses I ever read for myself.

The Bible says, Remember the former things of old, for I am God and there is no other.

And this was proposed to me as God's claim to his existence.

And verse 10 was his evidence, declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times, things that are not yet done, saying, My counsel shall stand, and I will do all my pleasure.

And the New Testament rendition of that concept, I believe it's found in John 14 29 also on the screen.

It says, Jesus says, and now I have told you before it comes to pass that when it does come to pass you might believe.

So if you were to ask me as a young Christian, what is the purpose of the Bible?

I would have given you a threefold answer based on these passages right here.

Number 2, to show the reliability of his word.

In other words, to show what is right and what is wrong.

And obviously, because I'm studying it, I'm what?

So it's 3 points for me in my mind as a young Christian.

Number 2, reliability of the Bible through the prophetic word, and number 3, to show what is right and what is wrong and that the things that I now believe are the right.

And this was kind of my big-picture view of the Bible.

Ah, so this was kind of my understanding of the Bible and I took a great delight in actually utilizing these 3 concepts in friendly, cordial debating of individuals to try to go over what's right and what's wrong according to the scripture.

And for the better part of 2 years, this is how I viewed the Bible as a young Christian.

I studied the Bible 8 hours a day for 2 years with that premise in mind.

I'm studying the Bible, I'm dedicating 2 years of my life so that I can 1, show God clearly exists.

Number 2, show that the Bible is reliable more than you can imagine.

And number 3, to show what is right versus obviously what is wrong.

Well, after studying the Bible for a couple years and growing in the Christian faith, I eventually came across a concept that changed how I study my Bible and it's found in John 5 39.

Jesus says something here that everyone in this room probably has heard, you've probably read it, but I'm going to challenge us today to actually apply this concept.

Jesus says, you search the scriptures, speaking to some Pharisees, for in them you think you have eternal life.

And these are they which testify of me, Jesus speaking.

Here Jesus gives us a concept, a principle that you cannot miss.

I actually used to hear people quote this verse all the time and say but instead of the word and.

And that actually changes the meaning of the verse, doesn't it?

Because in the scriptures, can you find the source of eternal life, yes or no?

And so here Jesus is saying, look, your focus is wrong.

A Deeper Look:  The Intention of Scripture

Father in heaven, thank you again for the time that we have to come here and to study your word.

And we invite you through the third person of the Godhead to be our special guest.

The place where we would be standing and sitting would be holy ground that would not be taken lightly.

That we would recognize that we are coming into the presence of the king of the universe.

And that there would be a solemnity of mind and of heart as we listen for that still small voice to speak to us through your word today and give us an experience that we are all searching for.

I pray this Lord because you said that we can't ask anything if it's according to your will and I believe that that prayer is according to your will.

That you will not only hear us but that you will answer it.

So we thank you for the fulfillment of that prayer, Lord, as we now seek earnestly for the blessing you have instored.

So let's begin with a quick review from this morning.

So this morning we looked at a concept of the title was the intention of scripture.

And the ballpark picture that I tried to illustrate from scripture today is that God's intention of scripture is to give you a revelation of Jesus in every story, in every passage.

Yes, even those obscure Old Testament passages that we have, we're so confused when we read them, Jesus is in there too, amen?

He is in there And God doesn't just give that arbitrarily, but God gives this picture of Jesus in these passages so that through beholding Him, it would shed light on God's character, light on the knowledge of the glory of God, which is what we saw in 2 Corinthians 4, verse 6.

And that as it would shed light on God's character and we would understand his character more, we can then take that story and bring it into our own experience.

And that was kind of the focal point is the Bible has to come alive.

It can't be treated like a math book or a science book and the sense of just learning information to regurgitate with the right answers.

God is desperately seeking to have an experience with you.

He wants that word to be living and abiding within you.

To where when you speak of the stories of the Bible, you speak with conviction, because it's almost like it's your own story now.

When you speak of Elijah, when you speak of the disciples, when you speak of any of these characters, you speak from 1 who has walked with them side by side because you've experienced God in the way they have.

That's what God is seeking for us to have through Scripture, and this is what brings the Bible to life.

And so we talked about that this morning, and so this afternoon we're gonna take a deeper look now and apply that concept and how we view and understand certain things.

I've had the experience of being an evangelist.

I love preaching public evangelistic campaigns.

So if I say anything that almost sounds contradictory to that, That's not true.

However, I've learned a lot of things through trial and error as a young evangelist, and I'll be sharing some of those stories.

So our 3 points today are, number 1, how do we view prophecy with this understanding that it's Christ-centered, revealing his character as the primary focal point.

How do we then view prophecy, such as particularly books of Daniel, Revelation, and you can apply that to books like Ezekiel, Isaiah, etc.

Number 2, How do we view our fundamental beliefs?

How do we view the different doctrines that we believe as our core doctrines with this concept in mind?

And then number 3, we're going to summarize and tie everything all together.

Prophecy, I love, now again, I love prophecy, so if it sounds like I'm speaking contrary to that, that's not true.

It's 1 of my favorite books in the Bible.

However, in my experience with prophecy, and maybe you can relate to a degree with this, I found that often when we speak of prophecy, the emphasis is on events and dates and things of this nature.

That tends to be the primary emphasis and in fact if you sit through an evangelistic campaign on the 2300 day prophecy, Daniel chapter 9 verse 24 to 27, if you sit in an evangelistic meeting, the primary focus of that presentation is the dates, right?

It's the math and the dates and that the investigative judgment began in...

And so That seems to be the primary focal point.

Or, when we look at things like the trumpets, the 7 trumpets of Revelation, and yes, we are going to take a peek at the trumpets this afternoon.

When you look at things like the trumpets, typically, what I have found is there is a little debate and discussion over the interpretation of the trumpets.

If you're a revelation person who loves to study, you might have found that to be true.

That there's kind of division over interpretation of the trumpets?

No matter who I hear present on the trumpets, what's the main focal point of the trumpets as presented?

Historical events or future events, depending on how they're explaining it.

It's events that occur and that take place.

And it's not that prophecy should be void of these things, because that's the very nature of prophecy, right?

That it's saturated with events and dates and things.

First John chapter 4 verse 8, as we began on this verse, I believe summarizes much of what we talked about this morning.

Does anyone know, pop quiz number 2, what Jesus' favorite subject was to discourse on?

Yes, but even more specific, more specific, she says, the paternalness of God.

There's something about this talking about who God was that was just His favorite thing to talk about.

So, as we go to 1 John 4, verse 8, though it is a very common and almost cliche verse, I hope with that in mind it's a very important verse because it says here in 1st John chapter 4 verse 8, he who does not love does not know God For God is what?

And so here we see this, again, summary of this morning, a benevolent, beautiful, merciful, loving God.

Now, if, or since this is who God is, and if the burden of every passage is to reveal God, then every prophecy should show God is?

It sounds simple, But I'll be quite honest with you, I've sat through prophecy seminars and presentations before and sometimes you don't really leave thinking, wow, like feeling like, wow, God is love.

I used to leave thinking like, man, that was like more numbers than my math class I got to memorize.

Or I used to leave thinking I have no idea what that was even about.

Or I used to leave thinking like wow so much stuff happened in history it's amazing it's crazy so many so many things happened in history.

But I couldn't say very often looking back on my experience as a young Christian, when I would leave prophecy meetings, that I would leave the seminar, the presentation, saying, Wow, God is love.

And then I then became a Revelation teacher, and I would give lectures, and after my own lecture, I would look back on my lecture and say, I don't think my student can leave saying, wow, God is, I must have an incomplete understanding of prophecy.

And then I thought to myself, well, isn't prophecy supposed to be there to urge us to make a decision to follow God?

Isn't that how we view prophecy many times?

I was at a particular church as an evangelist, and there was a, the pastor asked me, or he mentioned to me, he said, you don't need to cover the 2200 prophecy in your presentations and I was kind of taken aback.

I was like actually I do it's an important concept He said oh, we don't need that another prophecy just to scare people to accept Jesus You have plenty prophecies that will scare people to accept Jesus And I remember I thought to myself, I kind of smirked and kind of giggled, but it's because I, and part of me realized that that was true.

That as an evangelist it's really easy to get up front and to really kind of drive that home, and then I read this quote from FH page 159.

The shortness of time is urged as an incentive for us to seek righteousness and to make Christ our friend.

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Anthony Baca Weekend 2019

A Deeper Look: The Intention of Scripture

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