Preparing the Bride

So the sermonette had to do a bit with the bride. The special music has to do with a bride. Unbeknownst to me, but I'm gonna be talking about preparing the bride. Of course, in the ministry, one of the happiest moments you can have is performing a wedding. I've probably performed over a hundred of them, and three of my daughters. And wonderful weddings. One is also coming up, God willing. And, of course, the best was my wedding, which I did in Chile 35 years ago under some grapevines. In the patio, the minister had a house, and in Chile they have a lot of grapevines. And very romantic, very enjoyable, and very good price, too. One of the mandates that Christ gave the Church was to prepare as His coming bride. Actually, the part where we are helping to prepare the bride will only be a small part, because thankfully Jesus Christ will do the most as He has in our own lives. Let's view this scene of the wedding feast. And I'll just go real quickly to Philippians, because I mentioned, you know, we shouldn't take much credit for what is going to happen with the bride. Christ is going to take the credit much more than us, because as Paul mentioned there in 2nd Corinthians 4 verse 11, we have these treasures in earthen vessels. All that wonderful spirit God is developing in us, and these wonderful truths, but they're in earthen vessels. Philippians chapter 1 verse 3, just to remember this, Paul is thanking as he sends this epistle to the Church. He says, I thank my God upon every remembrance of you, always in every prayer of mine, making requests for you, all with joy, for your fellowship in the Gospel from the first day until now.

Fellowship is when we get together and we have these things in common that we share. Fellowship, same spirit, same view on things, and we can share the wonderful truths of God among ourselves. He says, being confident of this very thing, that he who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ, until Jesus Christ comes back. So God is in a process.

He is working things out much more than we do, and so the preparing of Christ, thankfully, has to do more with what Jesus Christ does with a bride than what we do as that coming bride. Let's look at the scene in the Bible when this bride of Christ is readied in Revelation chapter 19 verse 6. Revelation 19 verse 6, it says, And I heard, as it were, the voice of a great multitude, as the sound of many waters, and as the sound of mighty thundering, saying, Alleluia, for the Lord God omnipotent reigns, he will on this earth one day.

Let us be glad and rejoice and give him glory, for the marriage of the Lamb has come, and his wife has made herself ready. Just as a wife does, she makes herself ready, many times spends hours preparing for that moment to be presented at the wedding ceremony. And to her it was granted, so it wasn't something that she necessarily deserved, but it was given to her.

It was granted to be arrayed in fine linen, clean and bright, for the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints. So you see, there are works, there are things that we can do to please God. It's not only by grace, it's grace and works, righteous works that God works through us doing. Then he said to me, Right, blessed are those who are called to the marriage supper of the Lamb.

And he said to me, These are the true sayings of God. And I fell at his feet to worship him. But he said to me, See that you do not do that. I am your fellow servant. So the angel had the humility and just explained, I'm not to be worshipped. Only God should be worshipped. And so we see here what a scene. So many happy moments there in the future for those who make up the bride, who has been transformed and perfected.

Jesus Christ is in the process of doing this. We also see in Ephesians chapter 5 verse 22, that same preparation of the bride is a beautiful part. Paul combines the present marriage and with that coming marriage of the Lamb. It has a parallel which he draws upon. He says in Ephesians chapter 5 verse 22, Wives submit to your own husbands as to the Lord.

For the husband is head of the wife, as also Christ is head of the church, and he is the Savior of the body. What does it mean to be the Savior of the body? Well, you have to be the one to make sure, protecting it, saving it.

So the husband has the major responsibility of saving the marriage, of making it work, of helping, carrying it out. He's the Savior of the body. He has a greater responsibility before God than the wife does because of his position of leadership. Continuing on, it says, therefore, just as the church is subject to Christ, so let the wives be to their own husbands in everything. And so we can't have two heads in a marriage, can't have two heads in a human body without it not working right.

So the same way, each one has a role to fulfill. It says, husbands love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave himself for her. So it should be a sacrificial type of love that the husband defers his own needs for the good of the wives and is willing to sacrifice, even watching football too much. He has to sacrifice. Of course, wives know that they should do their part to help men enjoy their moments too.

So there should be cooperation there. It says, verse 25, husbands love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave himself for her, that he might sanctify and cleanse her with the washing of water by the Word. Talking about God's Word and the washing, the cleaning. So the husband has a great responsibility to keep that virtue in his wife, and certainly he has to begin by keeping virtue himself, because it's easy to tell the wife how she should be, but how about himself?

Christ is the one that tells him how he should be, and he should reflect Christ's attitude. Verse 28, so husbands ought to love their own wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself, because tell you, if you want to have peace in the home, you've got to do your part and make sure that love is the basic attitude in the home. For no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as the Lord does the church. So it behooves us that if we treat our wives properly, they're gonna be happy.

We're all gonna be happier, for we are members of his body. So now he uses this parallel between marriage and the preparation of the Lamb and the marriage of the Lamb with Jesus Christ. Notice, for we are members of his body, of his flesh, and of his bones. It's talking, you know, we are taking up more and more the nature of Jesus Christ, and then he says, for this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife and the two shall become one flesh.

So when we are baptized, we separate ourselves, and we are now putting God first in our lives, just like in a marriage. We're preparing for that marriage feast with Jesus Christ, and we are putting him first. And then he says, this is a great mystery, but I speak concerning Christ and the Church, just like in a marriage. You're joining more and more, becoming one. So we should be spiritually with Christ. Nevertheless, let each one of you, in particular, so love his own wife as himself, and let the wife see that she respects her husband.

And certainly that's not the case. Half of the marriages end in divorce in this country.

And it's even greater when you're married twice. The divorce rate is even higher in the second marriage. And God gives us an opportunity to do it his way. But this is the attitude. This is the attitude of the bride that we are preparing one day to face Jesus Christ. In 2 Corinthians 11, another scripture along this line, 2 Corinthians 11 verse 2, notice Paul's role as a minister, what he said. Verse 2, For I am jealous for you with godly jealousy. For I have betrothed you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ. So that's what we are in the process of doing. Presenting people that will be honorable and worthy. Of course, none of us can be perfectly worthy, but it just says that we are in a process of perfecting of Christ being more and more in us. The life application Bible points out when he said betrothed. We don't use that word very much. Today we use the word engaged, but it's actually two different concepts. This life application Bible points out. It says, There were three steps in a Jewish marriage. First, the two families agreed to the union, so the parents were involved. Second, a public announcement was made. At this point, the couple was, quote, pledged or betrothed. This was similar to an engagement today except that their relationship could be broken only through death or divorce, even though sexual relations were not yet permitted. Third, the couple was married and began living together. So we're in kind of a betrothed stage here. We are formally engaged and we are part of getting prepared for that wedding feast. And that's why we have to be faithful to Jesus Christ because it's far more than just an engagement because it is already the pre-emptive part of a marriage. It is the first stage before the union. Galatians 4.12 helps us understand what Paul as a minister was trying to do. Galatians 4, verse 19, it says, My little children, for whom I labor in birth again until Christ is formed in you. So Paul was involved in the process of presenting that bride. Many times it was painful. He says, I'm suffering labor in birth, labor pains. We just went through that with poor Debbie because the baby was a little overdue. And so the baby was much larger and so it was just very hard and it was hard on her and she needed to take some type of pills to calm the pain. And so as the minister works with everybody to be able to present them in this way until Christ is formed in you. How much of Christ is being formed? It's a process where different levels, different stages, there are people that are still in the baby stage, spiritually speaking. Quite immature. Not much of Christ can be seen in them. Oh, they can maybe talk the talk, but the true attitudes of Christ, the true maturity. But then as you develop, then you go into the child stage. And then finally the adolescent stage, spiritually speaking. And finally you come to the mature age where spiritually Christ is doing more and more through you and helping others more through you. There are four great accomplishments that the bride of Christ can carry out now. Four great accomplishments. They can do now and come out of winter before God and in life. Number one is helping in the work of Christ.

Now helping the husband. Are we helping Christ carry out His will here on earth?

In Matthew 24 verse 14 it says that this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the nations as a witness and then the end shall come. So Christ is involved in preaching the gospel to the world and He is using human beings and His church to carry it out. We've had wonderful doors open up.

I don't want to exaggerate as far as we've got, of course, we're very insignificant to many of these mega groups, but as far as from where we were at two years ago to where we are now, there's a lot being carried out and a lot of seed is being planted. So how we help are we helping the husband or are we hindering the husband or are we just passive?

A passive wife just sits there. The husband has to do everything for her. She just fixes her nails, watches TV. The husband has to cook, has to vacuum, has to bring in the money. Is that the way the bride of Christ is supposed to be? I think not. Rather, we have the example of Proverbs 31 that was already mentioned today. Proverbs 31. Let's turn there.

Proverbs 31 in verse 10, it says, who can find a virtuous woman, a virtuous wife, for her worth is far above rubies. It's worth more than any money and treasure you can accumulate, a wonderful and good wife. A wife who is faithful, a wife who is not lazy, self-centered, or self-absorbed.

She's busy cooperating, backing, doing her part. Her husband is very proud because he sees that she does her part. It says the heart of her husband safely trusts her. He doesn't have to worry, looking behind his shoulder, so he will have no lack of gain. He can concentrate on his job because he knows she's doing her part. She's supportive, she's loving, she's doing her part.

She does him good and not evil all the days of her life. She's out there not to undermine him, there are wives that end up being that way. It's like carrying a ball and chain with you, wherever you go, instead of helping you, giving you wings in your feet, like the Hermes, that she can really push you forward. She seeks wool and flax and willingly works with her hands.

She's busy. In those days, she had to make clothing. She had to make sure everybody was well and adequately dressed. So she goes there and she's an expert in finding, because that's her job.

Her husband can't be out there knitting, sewing, preparing things. She's like the merchant ships. She brings her food from afar, so she takes care of the money. She doesn't go for the most expensive things or the most expensive brands all the time. She looks for the deals to be able to squeeze as much as she can out of the dollar. She also rises while it is yet night and provides food for her household. So she knows everybody has to get going in the morning, and she's the one that's out there preparing an apportion for her maidservant. So she takes care of people.

She considers a field and buys it from her profit. She plants a vineyard. So she's got some money on the side that she produces, and she plants a vineyard. So she's always trying to see how to supplement the income. She girds herself with strength and strengthens her arms. So she's out there, and she's got tasks to do. She is able to adequately meet them. She perceives that her merchandise is good, and her lamp does not go out at night. She stretches out her hands to the distaff, and her hand holds the spindle. She extends her hand to the poor. Yes, she reaches out her hands to the needy. So she's involved helping out those less fortunate in the church and the community. She makes tapestry for herself. She says she's not afraid of snow for her household. For all her household is clothed with scarlet. Her husband is known in the gates. Verse 23, when he sits among the elders of the land, I mean, he knows people admire his wife because of how she is careful and prudent and loving and generous and modest and out of her mouth, out of her mouth, gracious words come out.

Verse 25, strength and honor are her clothing. She shall rejoice in time to come. So she takes care of whatever needs there are in the domestic part of the family. She opens her mouth with wisdom, and on her tongue is the law of kindness. She watches over the ways of her household and does not eat the bread of idleness. Her children rise up and call her blessed. Her husband also praises her. Many daughters have done well, but you excel them all. Charm is deceitful and beauty is passing, but a woman who fears the Lord, she shall be praised, give her of the fruit of her hands, and let her own works praise her in the gates. So that's part of the picture of the bride.

Can we identify with it? You know, even men, you can look at the masculine version of this, the same type of diligence, the same type of care. Now, you work as a team where both are strong, what a family unit that creates. And the children go forth, and grandchildren, and it just produces blessings as time goes along. Now, of course, you know, we all have setbacks, but that's part of life, too. And you get up, and you clean your knees up, and go forward again, because those setbacks are part of gaining success in the long run. The second accomplishment as a bride of Christ is maintaining ourselves little in our own eyes, maintaining ourselves little in our own eyes.

1 Samuel chapter 15 verse 16. 1 Samuel 15 verse 16.

After Saul was giving excuses why he decided to do something different than what God had ordered him, verse 16, then Samuel said to Saul, Be quiet, and I will tell you what the Lord said to me last night. So this wasn't something that Samuel came up with. It was something God transmitted in a prayer that was spoken. And Saul said to him, Speak on. So Samuel said, When you were little in your own eyes, were you not head of the tribes of Israel?

And did not the Lord anoint you king over Israel? Weren't you humble at that time?

Didn't you think you were unworthy? You were hiding out there. You didn't even want to show up. And God gave you this great honor. And what did you do? You lost it. You became big in your own eyes. You became important. You knew it better than anybody else. You started deciding on your own what was best. I'm paraphrasing, of course. Verse 18, Now the Lord sent you on a mission and said, Go and utterly destroy the sinners.

Because that's what they were. That's why they were destroyed. God doesn't respect persons, but they were sinners. They were cruel. They were murderers. God had given them a chance after chance. And they had just gotten worse. So that's why. And he said, the Amalekites, and fight against them until they are consumed. Just got to get rid of this plague, this vermin. Why, then, did you not obey the voice of the Lord? Why did you swoop down on the spoil and do evil in the sight of the Lord? God said, Don't touch that spoil. This is sinful merchandise. It's contaminated. As it was mentioned, that be you holy because God is holy. And those people were unholy, and you could not get involved with them. So maintaining ourselves little in our own eyes is so important. By the way, that's the motto that we now have in the Spanish ministry.

That's what we use in our letterhead, this scripture. Maintaining ourselves little in our eyes is a mandate from God. It's one of the great accomplishments that the bride of Christ can carry out. How are you doing in this area? Do you see yourself small in your own eyes, or not? Many people have lost great opportunities because they lost that ability. And by the way, I think that's one of the things that we just lost so much of the ministry in the past 20 years.

We weren't taught this very well at Ambassador College, and we suffered enormously for it.

So we just got to pick ourselves up and do it better. The third great accomplishment is develop as a team player. There's a great potential that the bride has.

They have to learn how to work and cooperate, not do your own thing. Develop as a team player.

Now, last week I used Ephesians 4. You've heard that, how the body, every part is coordinating and cooperating and working to do their part. I wanted to use the second Scripture, which is not as well known, because Paul loved this concept, and he drummed it into the churches to work, cooperating, teamwork was so important. Notice in Colossians chapter 2. Colossians chapter 2. And verse 18.

I'd like to have this as a motto for the Garden Grove Church, this one about maintaining ourselves little in our own eyes, because so many people get spoiled. Sometimes they're given a lot of knowledge.

And what do they do? They begin to think they know better than everyone else. And they've come up with the best sliced bread. They've come up with the best this and that. And sometimes they just lose that maintaining yourself little in your own eyes. Colossians chapter 2 verse 18. It says, So we see the same idea. Working together here in Garden Grove. We work together. We have a local council. We have many things involved. I was reflecting on the other day something that came a couple maybe decades ago or two decades ago. Remember that idea? Well, just pray and pay.

Remember how they'd say, just pray and pay? And some members were just sort of disgruntled.

It's kind of like you have a passive role. And I don't know where that concept, maybe it's out there in the world and it was brought in. But this disparaging idea, just pay and pay, having a kind of a passive attitude, it's kind of like, is that what the church wants?

Of course not. But praying and paying are part of helping Christ's work on earth.

I think it's an honor for me to pray and pay, but it's not just that. See, that's where they made the mistake. Because actually, there are seven Ps involved here. And being able to cooperate, to help in the work of Christ. The seven Ps are pray, pay, participate.

See, don't be passive. Sure. I've been tithing since I was 17 years old. Do I feel that's a problem? No, it isn't. That's a responsibility that I have before God. And I'm very thankful I learned that lesson and I've been enormously blessed by tithing all my life. And being able to go to the feasts, keeping that 10%. You know, God tests us. Are we tithing on what we get?

Are we putting the tithe away for the feasts? That's part of the responsibility that we have.

Of course, if we have deducted the income that we get, the government takes care of what is called the tithe of the poor or third tithe. But you know, we still teach that. If you're independent, if you government doesn't take 10% or more from your income, we still have that every third and sixth year of every seven year cycles after you basically are baptized. So that is the way we honor God with our income. But those are two elements. Is it an embarrassment to pray?

Should we feel we shouldn't do that? Of course, we need to pray and vigorously, but also participate.

We have a lot of ways that we can participate in the church. We have a local council. We have ushers.

We have teachers. We have greeters. Now Nancy Daly is more involved with the greeting there, information table. Esther and Tower is involved as well as with income and just like Jean up to Graf. Dave's there taking care of the translation equipment. You know, it'd be nice to have somebody that would offer Dave to help. How about the sound crew upstairs? The internet? Video? Be nice!

Somebody would put on, you know, the jersey of his team as a church field. Yes, this is my team. This is my church. I want to be involved in it. Those that open and close for several weeks, we're asking can somebody help close the building once a month? Set up the coffee? How about the announcements?

Somebody knows how to type? I'm sure that Emily and others would appreciate helping out as well.

The Kingdom of God seminars that are coming up next week. Are we going to be passive? Do we just think, oh, just pray and pay? Or do we feel a part of the bride? This is what Christ wants. I'm going to be there. Let me cooperate. Besides participating, how about provide as another P? Provide help in so many ways outside of what we do in church services. How about another P? Promote with your example the gospel. Promote. And you can share the good news with those around you that are known and that show interest.

Rose Norgen told me about a person she just met, and he wants to start attending church. And she says the man's being called. Wonderful opportunity. Another one, prepare yourself as the bride. That takes a lot of work. And finally, to persevere in the faith.

Seven Ps we should remember. Now that takes us to the fourth accomplishment, which is staying true to biblical doctrines. Staying true to biblical doctrines.

Second Timothy chapter 3. Let's go there. Second Timothy chapter 3 verse 14.

Paul was instructing Timothy because Paul was going to be dead soon.

Young Timothy was going to have to take up the cloak. He had to take the baton and go forward.

Certainly Paul was going to leave an enormous hole. But Timothy was the one that had to step up to the plate. He says in verse 14, But you must continue in the things which you have learned and been assured of, knowing from whom you have learned them. So Timothy had a mentoring process through Paul. He says, remember these things and who you learned it from. Don't just start learning from any Tom, Dick, and Harry that starts out with different doctrines. And that from childhood, you have known the holy scriptures which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith, which is in Christ Jesus. So the scriptures and faith in Christ Jesus are two vital elements.

And then he says, all scripture is given by inspiration of God. All is inspired by him and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness. Is that where we're getting our teachings from or some other place?

That the man, and certainly this includes the woman, the man of God, may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work. Be well trained in the scriptures. And then he goes on to say, chapter 4, verse 1, I charge you therefore before God and the Lord Jesus Christ, who will judge the living and the dead at his appearing in his kingdom. Preach the word. Be ready in season and out of season. Convince, rebuke, exhort with all long suffering and teaching, for the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine. But according to their own desires, or whims, because they have itching ears, they just have to go and curiously follow the curiosity, just, oh, well, I gotta go over to this place, I gotta listen to this guy, and then, oh, I gotta go to this other place, and you know, pretty soon what do you have? You know, you have mixed vegetables in your head. You have just a whole, whole set of ideas, and you don't know any more what's right, what's wrong. I remember back when I was pastoring in Chile and Bolivia, and the church in Bolivia, we were able to start, and I remember a couple, and very fine people worked for the airline, Bolivian airline at that time, but after 95, when they started listening to all this strange doctrine, and they sort of started, they said, well, we're going to start going to Protestant churches, because we want to learn how to refute what they are teaching.

And what happened? I came back to the States, and afterwards I heard they were attending a Protestant church. They'd lost the truth. They just got their heads so wrapped into different things, and sure, be open-minded, but not so much that your brain falls out, because the Bible says whoever you're with, eventually you'll turn out to be similar to them.

And that just showed me why God said, you know, be careful. Don't just go any place, and if they're teaching false doctrine, and, well, I want to listen to all the false doctrine so I can refute it.

Well, what kind of food are you receiving? Is that what you do with food? Go out in the back of the restaurant, start eating garbage to see how it tastes, to see if it'll do you good or not.

Probably end up with a lot of indigestion. So it says here, people are going to have itching ears. They will heap up for themselves teachers, and they will turn their ears away from the truth, and be turned aside to fables. But you be watchful in all things, endure afflictions.

Do the work of an evangelist. Fulfill your ministry.

So there is great potential for the bride, and we can see it at the end of the Bible, after the bride weds Jesus Christ, and the wonderful thing that Jesus Christ has prepared for all those that become part of that bride. We see the progressive nature of how much he rewards the bride, and it comes in stages. In Revelation chapter 20 verses 4 and 5, it says, And I saw thrones, and they sat on them, and judgment was committed to them. And I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for their witness to Jesus, and for the word of God, who had not worshipped the beast or his image, and had not received his mark on their foreheads or on their hands, and they lived and reigned with Christ for a thousand years. So that's the first reward. You're given thrones, given crowns, you're going to be under training and rulership for a thousand years. That's the first stage of the bride of Christ, what they're going to be doing. And then the next stage, Revelation 20 verse 11. After the thousand years, I'm just going to skip the previous part there that happens at the end of the millennium, verse 11. It says, Then I saw a great white throne, and him who sat on it, from whom the face, the earth, and the heaven fled away, and there was found no place for them. And I saw the dead, small and great standing before God. And the books were opened, and another book was open, which is the book of life. So this is the second resurrection. The great majority of mankind will be part of that second resurrection. There will not be part of those select few in the first resurrection. And they will be given an opportunity to know God's truth. This isn't a judgment of condemnation. It's a judgment of evaluation. The works are going to be evaluated, and they're going to be given a chance to know the truth and have a chance to repent. We see that in Ezekiel 37, where it talks about Israel. They'll be given life, and then they will know the Lord, and the whole world will go through the same process. So we see then that the bride who has had training for a thousand years will have now these billions and billions of people that they will have training and have rulership under Jesus Christ. You see how every time more responsibility is given.

And then at the end, the earth is changed. The New Jerusalem comes down, which is to this earth. It's not a spiritual earth. It's the actual earth, but the works of mankind and all the sin will be burned and purged. There will no longer be a sea. It will have completely evaporated. And the elements, 2 Peter 3, mention it. It will melt all the works, all the blood that has been shed. All of that will be purified. And then the New Jerusalem comes with God the Father and the Lamb. In verse 7, it says, He who overcomes shall inherit all things, and I will be his God, and he shall be my son. So the third reward for the bride will be the greatest, because it will cover more than just this earth. This is the headquarters of this vast universe. God created this universe with a great purpose. It says that the kingdom will go on and on. Christ's kingdom will extend outward. There will be a renewing of the universe. In Romans chapter 8, Romans chapter 8 verse 18, talking about that potential. Let's read it a little bit before verse 16. Romans 8, 16, it says, the Spirit itself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God. See, we are in that pre-nupsal stage, what they call the, again, kind of the engagement period, betrothal period, it would be more accurate. It says, And if children then heirs, heirs of God, and joint heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with him, that we may also be glorified together. So Christ, the inheritance is this vast universe. It says, Everything was made by him and for him. You know that in the visible sky, you can only see up to about 3,000 different stars. That's all the human eye can see. You know, for thousands of years, they looked at the Milky Way galaxy and other stars, and you could only count up to 3,000. People say, well, God created the stars just to light up the sky. Well, I mean, that's 3,000 stars.

There are billions of stars that you can't see, that you need powerful, what they call deep vision telescopes to be able to know there's something way out there. God didn't create that as just little lights decorating the sky. There are billions of galaxies that have been formed, and no human being knew about it even 50 years ago.

Notice in Romans 8, verse 18, It says, for I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us. Paul had that hope. He had that goal of God's kingdom because it's so great the reward for the bride. It says, for the earnest expectation of the creation, the word cosmos means universe. The earnest expectation of the creation eagerly waits for the revealing of the sons of God. So it says the universe is awaiting the transformation of these children of God. So this isn't talking about just the solar system or just the Milky Way, which is just one in multiple billions of galaxies. God didn't just create that because, oops, he had this creation machine and it just went crazy. Instead of making a thousand stars, it made hundreds of billions of them. Those all have a purpose. As the hymnal mentioned there in one of the hymns, he knows every star by name because there's a purpose that he set for it. Notice verse 20. For the creation was subjected to futility not willingly but because of him who subjected it in hope because the creation itself also will be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God. It says this universe is going to be glorified. It's going to be beautified in the future. For we know that the whole creation groans and labors with birth pangs together until now, just waiting for the renovation. Just like we are waiting, just like he says, not only that but we also who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves eagerly waiting for the adoption, the redemption of our body. So we are waiting that, just like he says, the whole creation. There's a lot that God has planned in the future. And as co-heirs with Christ, here the earth has a purpose. It's got two levels to it, the millennium and then afterwards the second resurrection and then of course what is the third resurrection, which is the incorrigibly wicked. After that, basically the function of the earth and those stages will be finished. But then God comes to set up his new headquarters and it will. From then on, it says that you will inherit all things.

You know, Mr. Armstrong, putting the scriptures together, deduced when he wrote this book, The Mystery of the Ages. Back in 1985, he died in 1986. He mentioned from what he understood, again, it's not church doctrine as such, but this is the way he understood, and certainly God used him powerfully, that the universe is not just some empty place that will never be inhabited, that this little earth is the only thing that God has a plan for. And I'd like to read to you from page 89 what he says here. He says, and at this point, it is well to understand the nature of God's original creation. It is like the unfinished furniture available in some stores.

This furniture is, quote, in the raw. It is finished all but for the final varnish, polish, or paint. Some can save money by doing this finishing themselves, provided they have the skill to do so. This furniture may be of fine and superb quality, yet lacking the final beautifying completion. So it is with God's creation. It is perfect, but subject to a beautifying finish that God intended angels to accomplish. The original, quote, unfinished creation was produced by God alone. But he intended angels prehistoricly, and man now to utilize creative power to finish this part in God's creation, of adding the final beautifying and utilitarian phases of what shall be the final completed creation. And whether or not it had been revealed to the angels, it was a supreme trial and test. It was to be the proving ground of obedience to God's government and their fitness to develop into final finished creation the millions of other planets in the vast universe. How did Mr. Armstrong know there were millions of planets? Back in 1985 and 1986, scientists had not discovered any planets beyond this solar system. And yet here he's talking about millions of other planets in the vast universe. For what is revealed in God's word indicates, now again he's saying it indicates, not saying, well this is absolute and this is the only thing, but he says this is what is shown that God had created the entire physical universe at the same time he created the earth.

The seventh word in Genesis 1.1 should be translated, heavens. This word includes the vast universe, not just this earth's atmosphere. Radioactive elements and the law of radioactivity prove that there was a time when matter did not exist. When he died, that was still not very clear. But now it's been 25-26 years virtually since he died and that's what the scientists concluded. There was a time when matter did not exist. And it says what God reveals strongly implies that matter had never existed before the original creation of the earth. You read any of these books or you see any of these programs on the universe, they all say now, well yes, there was nothing at the beginning. And then they try to speculate how something can come out of nothing. But that has also been confirmed.

And here in page 362, it says, put together all these scriptures I have used in this chapter and you begin to grasp the incredible human potential. Our potential is to be born into the God family, receiving total power. We are to be given jurisdiction over the entire universe. What are we going to do then? These scriptures indicate we shall impart life to billions and billions of dead planets as life has been imparted to this earth. We shall create as God directs and instructs. We shall rule through all eternity. Revelation 21 and 22 show there will be no pain, no suffering, no evil, because we shall have learned to choose God's way of good. There will be an eternal life of accomplishment, constantly looking forward in this super joyous anticipation to new creative projects and still looking back also on accomplishments with happiness and joy over what shall have been already accomplished. We shall never grow tired and weary, always alive, full of joyous energy, vitality, exuberant life, and strength and power. That's what Mr. Armstrong wrote over 25 years ago. Now you've probably seen the article came out yesterday.

The question, 160 billion planets in the Milky Way?

It says a statistical analysis based on a survey of millions of stars suggests that there's at least one planet for every star in the sky and probably more. That would add up to 160 billion planets or so in the Milky Way. So Mr. Armstrong talked about billions and billions of planets, dead planets, when there hadn't been any discovered. There's already over 700 planets. They're called extrasolar planets, which means they're beyond our solar system, which we already know. So not bad for a gentleman who had the guts to put that in print, you know, 26 years ago.

Now it's not an absolute doctrine, but it's the best we know. In the United Church of God, we use the teachings of Herbert W. Armstrong as our default mode. It's our starting point There has to be overwhelming evidence to the contrary for anything to be changed. It's not good enough to just have your own opinion based on your own arguments.

And we are like the mustard seed, small and significant, but can become part of that bride of Christ and be part of that unmerited royalty that God is creating. I'll finish with Revelation 3, verse 11. Jesus Christ tells the church, "...hold fast to what you have, that no one may take your crown, your crown, I may add, as part of the bride of Christ."