0:07 partly with me church on the bride of Jesus Christ if you turn to the book of Revelation there's a group called 144,000 and many people have wondered 0:32 who is this group of 144,000 whenever you read Revelation remember the first sentence his mom here in the King James 0:48 Version that God sent and signified it by his angel to his bond servant John revelation 1 verse 1 the last part so that what is signified means it was by 1:05 signs that the Lord spoke to John and right from the first chapter you see Jesus with his head his hair white like wool his hair is not actually white and his eyes like a flame of fire and his 1:21 feet is like bronze and this sword coming out of his mouth is it's obvious it's a symbol it's all sign sign sign sign right from the first chapter all the way to the end remember revelation 1 verse 1 signified there all the symbols 1:40 symbols symbols so don't make them literal so when you read one 44,000 it's a symbol how is it a symbol you read 1:58 about in Revelation 14 verse 1 I looked and I saw in the lamb standing on Mount Zion lamb standing on Mount Zion with a hundred and forty-four thousand having his name and the name of his father written on their foreheads 2:14 how it is a symbol it's a symbol in the sense that in the previous chapters in Revelation chapter 7 you read we have another group of people Revelation chapter 7 and verse 9 a great multitude 2:32 which no one could count see in contrast 144,000 can be counted but here is a great multitude which no one can count I don't know how many trillions of people 2:49 that are there of human beings from every nation tribe people tongue standing before the throne and the lamb clothed with white robes palm branches in their hands all same people in heaven 3:07 how many trillions and they are saying our salvation is due entirely to our God and to the land God let him do this it's 3:26 all by grace and they've got nothing to boast about who are these the angel asked and John and John said in verse 14 I don't know he said these are those who 3:45 come out of the Great Tribulation the only qualification is they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb verse 14 yea cleanse 3:59 from sin by the blood of Jesus Christ nothing else it's a great multitude I think a great part of this multitude 4:15 are aborted babies many children who died in all the nations before they came to the age of understanding in all these 6,000 years of human history these are 4:35 not referring to Nava Christians or half-hearted people will never get there many of these are I believe those working children and aborted millions of aborted babies and in many many nations and tribes and there will be some from 4:54 every tribe and tongue because most of these tribes and tongues infant mortality is so high that every tribe and tongue will have somebody there in heaven who died before they came to an age of understanding from every you know 5:11 we doesn't matter what religion they were or no religion they were maybe who died before the age of understanding they're in God's kingdom but then there's another group in chapter 14 which is 144,000 we can say that was a 5:26 number which cannot be counted this is a number which can be counted that is the contrast that is a huge group of people and this is a small group and the qualification for that group was they they were cleansed in the blood of 5:45 Christ every you see every child goes to heaven on the merit of Christ's blood there's no other way they don't go to heaven because they are innocent they go because the righteousness of Christ is attributed to them they put to their 6:01 account just like it's put to our account justified means the righteousness of Christ is put to our account relevant to the account of those babies and they're in heaven but 124,000 is a small group that can be numbered 6:16 these people have another qualification they are not just washed in the blood of the lamb they've got a lot more than that they've got the name of the Father and of Jesus on their foreheads now this 6:33 is in contrast to the followers of the Antichrist who in chapters two verses earlier chapter 13 verse 16 the Antichrist makes all the rich and poor and a great to take a mark but he gives them an option you can have that mark 6:51 either on your forehead chapter 13 verse 16 or on your right hand in your palm and nobody can see it so when the devil tells people be his followers he gives them an option you can either be an open follower of buying the mark on them from 7:08 the forehead and open Satanist an open atheist and open one was not ashamed to say I'm following the devil or you can be a secret disciple of Satan in the palm of your hand you got the mark but you're going to sit in the church 7:26 pretending to be a believer and pretending to love God but you're an agent of Satan sitting there your interest is money and whatever you can grab with your hand the mark is on your hand but when it comes to the followers 7:42 of Jesus this 144,000 they don't have that option their name must only be on the foreheads at all chapter 14 verse 1 not in the hand you can't be a secret disciple of Jesus he was ashamed of me and my words 8:02 in this sinful and adulterous generation I will be ashamed of him before the father and the Angels so these are people who are not ashamed to be known as disciples of Jesus Christ in that place of work wherever they are 8:16 they don't violate the law but they're not ashamed to be known as disciples of Jesus Christ there are many Christians who say they are born again but in that place of work they wouldn't want other people to know that they are not ordinary cursing there 8:32 are radical disciples of Jesus Christ they don't want people to know that because it might affect their job prospects it may affect their the benefits they get from their unconverted bosses at work so they try to hide in 8:50 the fact that they are out and our disciples for Christ I'd like to have the mark in the hand but you can't it has to be on your foreheads symbol remember it's a symbol signified and then it says they sign a new song verse 9:06 three but no one could learn except these 144,000 who been and the word there is a redeemed from the earth redeemed from the earth means they've got detached from earthly things these are people have been detached the 9:26 cords that tied them to earth are cut they are heavenly people cleaning on earth for heavenly people and they are not being defiled with women now the women again signified remember don't 9:45 take them as literal women the women mentioned in Revelation are the daughters of Babylon the harlot harlot women spiritually harlot studies those who claim to be the Bride of Christ but 10:04 commit sin with the world it's like a girl engaged to be married to someone but fools around with other men here and games to be engaged to married to Christ but who's around with the world and lives for the world that is a harlot see 10:21 a non-christian it can never be part of Babylon the harlot because a non-christian does not even claim to be engaged to Christ as his bride no I think we got nothing blue in Christ who are the ones who can be a harlot those who claim to be engaged to Christ 10:41 but their whole way of life on earth it's just like anybody else in the world they live only for money and pleasure and honor they're afraid to witness mostly about Christ less they open their 10:58 friends and relatives okay in the midst of their unconverted relatives they behave just like them there's no difference there's no they're not like the light they try to be like a light in the church but when they go to the 11:11 unconverted relatives that the light is hidden under the bushels nobody can see it this is not 144 cars these are people who are bold and so the women mentioned are the daughters of Babylon the harlot and they have not defined themselves 11:31 with spiritual prostitution or spiritual harlotry that means they were faithful to their divine bridegroom the Bride of Christ and they follow the lamb wherever he goes now that's not true of the great multitude which we saw earlier they were 11:49 only washed in the blood of the Lamb many of them as I said were aborted babies and all they never got a chance to follow the lamb wherever he went like a thief on the cross now people like that was last minute saved people who 12:02 never got a chance to follow the lamb wherever he went I mean if you ask the people on the cross you know some people say that what does it matter finally when you go to heaven that's all that matters no no no no it's not like that so let's go buddy 12:20 let's take an example from the herd supporting a person says ugly on the earth doesn't matter how I live doesn't it whether you're a homeless man begging on the streets or a king in the palace water living on the earth whether the 12:33 world of difference in their way of lives it couldn't be like that in heaven I believe the equivalent to the spiritual equivalent of the homeless man who begs on the street who says I'm also in heaven and the king in the palace 12:47 spiritually speaking in heaven we world of difference those who were faithful and those who are not those like the thief on the cross if you ask him today he's in heaven no doubt he walked in today hey you were a thief and 13:05 a murderer aren't you happy that you're in heaven saying one way yes but boy what regret I have that I can never show my love for the Lord I never got a chance to do that 13:23 hi Here I am enjoying all the benefits here there's no opportunity for sacrifice I never get a chance here in heaven to pick up my cross every day and to show my love for God in the years I lived on earth I never took that 13:40 opportunity that is going to be the regret of many people you know we had a great man of God in India I believe he was the greatest man of God India has ever produced his name was Dada sundar Singh he died in 1929 the age of 42 or something a man 13:57 who was converted from a non-christian religion by vision of Jesus when he was 15 years old radically converted and he lived the next 27 years completely for Christ persecuted almost people try to kill him but he used to say something just like 14:14 we say like we tell people once you die you will never have another opportunity to receive Christ he used to say once you die you'll never have another opportunity to take up a cross and follow Jesus quite another perspective 14:31 once you die you will never have a chance to accept Christ the only thing you were in heaven this man says once you die you won't get a chance to pick up a cross and follow Jesus how will you show your love for him in heaven where 14:43 everybody's praising him you're also going to say yes Lord I want to follow you it costs nothing it's here where Christ is unpopular where the way of the Lord is dishonored this is where you can prove your love for him and that's where 14:56 the 144,000 they follow the lamb wherever he went they'd be purchased as first fruits to God and listen to this no lie was found in their mouth when they were born the 15:14 Bible says in Psalm 58 every child is born telling lies but these folks had soul cleanse themselves from the spirit of lying that they got from Adam's flesh that by the time they came to the end of their life 15:32 there was no lying in their lives there was no hypocrisy in their life no lying means no hypocrisy they what you saw was what they were what you saw on Sundays in the church was exactly the same when they were at home with their wives on 15:50 Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday are exactly the same when they were in their place of work during the week exactly the same when everybody else was having the road rage on the busy roads they were witnesses for Christ there there 16:05 was no difference they were the same here and there there was no light in their life that didn't happen automatically they cleanse themselves they cleanse themselves they had a road-rage just like everybody else in the beginning but they saw it as 16:23 something wrong for a Christian as if Jesus were driving a car he wouldn't get furious with the car in front he would be patient and he decided to be like that that in the place of work even though there were crooks on the left and 16:37 right they decided to be upright me there was more hypocrisy any if you caught them by surprise somewhere they were what you saw in church they were just the same this is the mark for the 16:54 bride of Jesus Christ they're not specially holy on Sunday that language is not specially holy on Sunday or in the church or with other believers their language is just as pure and holy when they are in the mix of unbelievers and a 17:12 place of work on the roads or anywhere some people who rotate them call them the devil whatever it is there is no light in their life what you see is what they are all the time that's a very small number so people say you mean to 17:29 say that 144,000 I say I'm surprised that they're 144,000 who cleansed themselves so much that they've come to this life because there are very very few people hmm about whom Jesus can testify like he testified about 17:47 Nathaniel there is a man without any guy there's a man without any lying and Nathaniel was not even converted what Jesus was saying is what you see in Nathaniel is what he really is he's not pretending to be holy here 18:07 and something else in private I've often thought of that when I read about Jesus saying that about to Nathaniel behold a man in whom there is no guile in Luke and John chapter 1 and there I read some of these statements of Jesus and I say 18:24 Lord can you say that about me can you point to me and say there is a man in whom there is no guile o Lord I'll do anything if you can say that about me I want it the commendation Jesus gave the 18:43 material I don't want any commendation saying the greatest saint on earth or anything a preacher no there is a man in whom there is no guile there is a woman in whom there is no guile you can be like that 19:01 maybe you can't preach like me but can't you be a person without guile you don't say these 144,000 what great preachers or healers or no no no no gifts are not even mentioned gifts are not going to be important when you stand before the Lord 19:17 it's your life the way you live that could be important the father said this is my beloved Son in whom I'm well pleased when Jesus had not exercised any gift of the Spirit never healed anybody never preached never cast out a demon the father said 19:32 I'm happy what did he see his life teaching us that it is your life that's going to determine everything in the final day so this is 100 point four thousand and I want to encourage you first if you are to be in this number 19:48 what type of church should you join and be a part of I'll tell you a church that encourages you to be like this where every time you go to that church and you listen to the Word of God and you meet the people in that church 20:06 they challenge you to be like this wholehearted radical sacrificial following the Lord that's the only type of church I want to be in that's the only type of church I want my children to grow up in because I know that that's 20:22 what a matter in eternity and you know it's like churches are like the many buses here they're not so many but in Bangalore in India there's not so much private transport most people don't have 20:39 cars so there's got to be a lot of public transport buses there are so many buses traveling all across Bangalore's 1,000 square miles or something like that different different directions so you go 20:59 to a bus station there are so many buses this bus is going here this bus is going there this wasn't going here it's all marked in some are big some are small and a sensible man he doesn't look for the big bus of it nicely painted bus he 21:19 looks for the bus which is taking him to his destination so if you're a sensible person if you look for a church that's taking you to the destination if you want to go to not a big church for a fancy church not a bus where there's a 21:38 lot of musicians no no which is taking you to your destination and the destination you want to get just to stand with the lamb on that day having become like him Romans 8:29 says God 21:56 free destined gave us a destination beforehand to become like Jesus Christ I don't have time to share everything here but you go to YouTube 22:13 and please listen to this message I appreciate a couple of Sundays ago hearing right here just right Zack Coonan our destination is Christlikeness and listen to that one our message find the bus that will take you to that 22:33 destination by the shortest route that's what you do when you take a bus on earth I want to get there as quickly as possible the shortest route and I don't want to end up somewhere else I don't look for a big bucks or a painted bus or 22:49 a musical bus for insisting I look for the bus that's going to my destination that's primary whether it's painted nicely or that's big or small whether this music inside or not makes no difference is it going to take me to my 23:00 destination we are so sensible when it comes to these earthly destinations what about something more important our spiritual destination to become totally like Christ to be part of this that is the church which the Lord is going to 23:15 welcome to be his bride one day one last words I promise to close at 5:30 Revelation chapter 19 we are not the wife of the Lamb yet we are the bride 23:33 they're only engaged the marriage is coming and we read about the marriage in Revelation 19 verse 7 let us rejoice and be glad and give the glory to God for the marriage of the lamb has come at 23:51 last and listen to this his bride has made herself ready she was in a church that encouraged her every Sunday to get ready the challenge there every Sunday 24:10 to be ready for the marriage and so because she made us already she was given fine linen bright and clean which is not the righteousness of Christ 24:25 know that we are given as soon as we have won again justified throw to the right hand subscribe this is different it says here these are the righteous actions of the Saints themselves you say hey I thought there were no works in 24:43 Christianity there are works these are the righteous acts of the saints which is her dress so you ask me what is the dress of the bride in the day of the marriage I'll tell you her own righteous actions does she have the righteousness 25:01 of Christ yes so that's given to all believers including those aborted babies but they're not in the bride these are those who have themselves done righteous 25:19 actions those who denied themselves on earth and start to please the Lord in other words Ephesians chapter 2 this 25:37 is what I call the know works what works verse no words what works and you see that verse no works what works no works in the foundation but plenty of works in the superstructure occasions to 8 and 9 and 10 by grace you have been saved 25:54 through faith not of yourself to dedicate to work not as a result of works foundation the silver works but once you're saved on the basis of no works but the free gift of God forgiveness through pain then we become 26:12 his workmanship created in Christ Jesus for a lot of good works which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them now so that's what I call no works but works that's like saying in this building there are no doors and windows in the 26:30 foundation you all agree plenty of doors and windows in the superstructure so in the Christian life no works in the foundation but plenty of works in the superstructure the tragedy in Christendom is today people say no works 26:45 in the foundation no works in the superstructure no doors windows anywhere in the superstructure that's crazy read scripture carefully no works when it comes to free forgiveness but plenty of works within God has already planned 27:03 that you should walk in them but there's no guarantee that you will walk in them if you're not wholehearted I'm very thankful that when I was 21 years old not only one thing I've got a plan for your life I had already made my plan I 27:18 was joined the Navy to go up to the top of the Indian Navy and God said hey he's got a plan for my life and I was probably different from my plan I said Lord I'm sure your plan is better than mine I don't know what it is but I want 27:32 to I want your plan and he never showed it to me except day by day by day and all these more than 55 years since then just like a pillar of cloud day by day you ask the Israelites in the wilderness where you're going tomorrow I don't know 27:47 revell you be next year I don't know but right now we are here we're going to go tomorrow I don't know but we show us tomorrow that's how God has led me in 55 years plenty of works but fully shown day by day doesn't give us a route map 28:00 for the whole journey it's not like a GPS that shows us this is the way you'll go all the way every day I want to say to every one of you if you received Christ salvation is free without any works your works are like filthy rags in 28:16 God's eyes if you want to justify yourself but once you're saved and you're justified I want to say God's got a plan for your life where every day of your life has been planned whether you pretend that plan or not depends on 28:28 whether you take up the cross every day and die to yourself and say Lord I want your will and you can fulfill his will and when you come to the end of your life and you look back there's a song which I love to sing I bless the hand 28:44 that guided I bless the heart that planned my life when I'm prone where glory dwelleth in Emanuel's land hand the guided in the heart but planned 29:00 submitted today let's pray Heavenly Father we have only one life help us to make for use of it everyone here and with us load and challenges for everything we heard today prepare us for the sessions tomorrow as well we pray in 29:20 the name of our Lord Jesus
