Point of Light#1. "Those who say they live in God should live their lives as Christ did" (1 John 2:6, NLT). Christ is God Incarnate. He is our Justifier, Sanctifier, and Judge. Salvation is only found in Christ (Acts 4:12); so stay connected to Him. The Christian life is a battle. Our mind is the battlefield. We need to imitate the life of Christ, experience His love, and embrace His justifying grace. By grace are you saved through faith in Christ (Eph 2:8). We need a close encounter with Jesus Christ today. The world is fixated on the Dragon, Beast, and False Prophet (One World Religious Government). The masses are deceived by antichrists, and reject Jesus Christ. Christ will win the Cosmic War against Satan. The End Time End-Game is near. But no human being knows the day of the Apocalypse or Doomsday so don't plan on a Rapture party. (Matt 24:36). The Gospel is all about creeds and good deeds. God is Love. God loves every one. There is no fear in perfect love. Lust is not love. Divine love is a holy, living principle. Satan's warfare is against God's moral law. God's Ten Commandments are the objective moral standard of the Investigative Judgment. Sin and evil will be destroyed before God creates the New Earth, but only after His just review of our life records. "Blessed and holy are those who have part in the first resurrection. The second death has no power over them." (Rev 20:6). It is pure fiction that sinners are burning in hell today. What kind of God do you think we worship? God is not a sadistic torturer. Our merciful God has no pleasure in the punishment or death of sinners. (2 Peter 3:3-13; Eze 18:32). Every person has the power of choice to decide their destiny. (John 3:16). The probationary door of God's salvational grace will close soon for the human race. The destiny of Satan and all unrepentant sinners is the second death. (Mal 4:1-3). This future event happens when planet Earth becomes a burning inferno. It is the final outpouring of God's wrath. Demons and lawless rebels will perish. "And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire… And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. And anyone not found written in the Book of Life was cast into the lake of fire" (Rev 20:7-15).

True Christianity is having a loving personal relationship with Jesus Christ, and loving our neighbors as ourselves as Jesus loved without selfish, ulterior motives. We all need a conversion, a character transformation. Born again Christians do not worship the cross, icons, idols, or angels. We worship Jesus Christ who was crucified for our sins on a cross at Calvary. Rev 19:10 says, "Worship God: for the Testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy". The Holy Bible testifies of and about Jesus Christ. Jesus is our personal Savior and Substitute. Christ's righteousness is our moral and holy fitness for the kingdom of heaven. God's Word is Light. It will set us free from darkness.

Point of Light #2. Jesus Christ is our JUSTIFIER
We are justified (declared righteous) by faith in Christ and His righteousness, and in His blood atoning sacrifice. "Justification is a full, complete pardon of sin. The moment a sinner accepts Christ by faith, that moment he is pardon. The righteousness of Christ is imputed to him, and he is no more to doubt God's forgiving grace." Ellen White, Faith I Live By, page 107. Justification is instantaneous. It occurs in a split-second moment, but sanctification is a daily, progressive process. (See Rom 13:8-14). Believers believe that God's sin-forgiving, redeeming grace is retroactive and supernatural (Luke 23:39-43). Laodicean Pharisees falsely believe that their self-righteous, emotional feelings constitute sanctification. Sin (stealing, killing, etc) is the violation of God's Law, the Ten Commandments. The moral law is an expression of Christ's character of love. (1 Jn 3:4-10). Jesus said, "I have kept my Father's commandments … If you love Me, keep My commandments" (Jn 15:10; 14:15). God doesn't force or coerce our obedience or worship. He wants us to be motivated by love. Our daily surrender and cooperation with God is essential to our regeneration, reconciliation, and salvation. We can only come into close proximity with our Heavenly Father through our Lord Jesus Christ.

Point of Light #3. "Love one another" (John 13:34-35). Jesus wants you to be a Christlike Ambassador of Love for Him to others. Christ wants us to flood-inundate our communities with a tsunami of selfless deeds, and random acts of love and kindness. Let your light and love shine all over your neighborhood. We must allow Christ to heal us and transform us from the psychogenesis of ethnic bigotry and prejudice. True Christlike love is kind and colorblind. "And in Him (Christ) there is neither Greek nor Jew, black nor white, barbarian, Scythian, bond, nor free; nothing of the kind. All are one in Christ Jesus, and there is no respect of persons with God." -- A. T. Jones, G C Bulletin, 1895 Sermon 16. Sin and hatred lead to immorality and insanity. Confess your sins like David did in Psalm 51. The character of self-righteous hypocrites makes them unfitted for heaven. When we look at the spiritual things of God through the arrogant lens of religious pride, hypocrisy, and dogmatism, we don't clearly discern God's symbols of spiritual reality, the true manifestations of dreams or the prophetic gift, the fulfilling signs of prophecy, or the essential foundations of our Christian Faith. "The Sacrifice of Christ as an atonement for sin is the great (foundational) truth around which all other truths cluster …every truth in the Word of God, from Genesis to Revelation, must be studied in the light that streams from the cross of Calvary" (Gospel Workers, p. 315). Our sins are washed away by the precious blood of Jesus. Live your life as Christ did. Jesus is our only pathway to eternal salvation in Paradise above.

Point of Light #4. Christ is our SANCTIFER
One of my three academic degrees is in Theology. But I have discovered that no one needs a Ph.D. degree in Advanced Prophetics, Eschatology, or Biblical Poetics to understand the symbolic prophecies of Ezekiel, Daniel, and Revelation. You just need to be baptized in, anointed by, and sanctified with the Holy Spirit. You must learn in the School of Christ. God gives the Holy Ghost to them that obey Him (Acts 5:32). Your mind and body is the temple of the Holy Spirit. We all need the mind of Christ. "The kingdom of God is within you" Luke 17:21. "All Scripture is given by inspiration of God" 2 Timothy 3:16. Believe in God's authoritated sacred Word, and you won't be seduced by Bible Secret Code deceivers. Believers can live the Sanctified Life. God can make our spirit, soul, and body fit and holy. Sanctification is holiness. It's the work of a lifetime. It is a Spirit-filled holy lifestyle. God can make us holy saints. God sanctifies us when we obey the Truth. You don't have to live all alone in a desert to overcome the worldliness of the world, or be a monk on the Greek Island of Mount Athos to be a saint. "Here is the patience of the saints: Here are they that keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus" Rev 14:12. The Prophets Enoch, Abraham, Moses, Deborah Samuel, Daniel, and John lived a sanctified life in our evil world, but they were not of the world.

When God set aside the seventh day Sabbath at the end of the Creation Week, there were no Jews in existence. The Sabbath was instituted at Creation. The Lord of the Sabbath never sanctified another day. The seventh day Sabbath was made for worship and rest. Christ made us, redeemed us, and owns us. Our pre-incarnate Christ created all things, and by Him all things consist and exist. (Read Colossians 1:14-17). It was Christ's custom to worship in the synagogue on the seventh day Sabbath (Luke 4:16). God does not change. Christ left us a holy example that we should exemplify. Many folks say: "I am saved, sanctified, and satisfied while living in known sin". My mother was a loving Christian who trusted in God, and kept the Bible Sabbath. I use to watch my Sabbath-keeping grandfather. He would faithfully shutdown his gasoline station from sunset Friday to sunset Saturday so the family could worship God on His Blessed Sabbath day. They are my Christian heroes. God's sacred Sabbath is not a quibble over days. It is a sign of Christ as our Sanctifier. Christlike Christians will obey God's moral law. Shabbat Shalom was given by the Prince of Peace. Sunday is the first day of the week. The first day of the week was never sanctified by God. Read all about it at: www.SundayLaw.net and www.holysunday.com/Sunday.pdf for more info. Jesus did not say that the Sabbath was made for the Jews. The seventh day Sabbath was made for all mankind. See: www.theseventhday.tv . (See Mark 2:27-28). God calls His Sabbath, "My holy day" in Isaiah 58:13. "This calls for patient endurance on the part of the saints who obey God's commandments and remain faithful to Jesus (Rev 14:12, NIV). Jesus is our Wonderful, All-Powerful Creator. Neville Peter wrote these lyrics about the Bible Sabbath in his song: The Sabbath Day. "Out of all the other days in the week you chose number seven, an institution that you started up in heaven. Then you gave it as a gift to the earth to celebrate creations birth". Are you celebrating Creation's birth God's way on the right day? (Look up Exodus 20:8-11).

How is the Sabbath a Sign of Sanctification?
Point of Light #5. Our triune God is holy. He is the omniscient Architect and the omnipotent Creator of the Universe. For "all things were made by Him; and without Him was not anything made that was made." John 1:3. "Because the Sabbath was made for man, it is the Lord's day. It belongs to Christ… Since He made all things, He made the Sabbath. By Him it was set a part as a memorial of the work of creation. It points to Him as both the Creator and the Sanctifier… The Sabbath is a sign of Christ power to make us holy. And it is given to all whom Christ makes holy. As a sign of His sanctifying power, the Sabbath is given to all who through Christ become a part of the Israel of God… To all who receive the Sabbath as a sign of Christ's creative and redeeming power, it will be a delight." Desire of Ages, pp. 288-289. The redeemed saints will celebrate the Sabbath in the New Earth after the earth's re-creation and restoration. (Isaiah 66:22-23). God's sanctifying grace enables us to keep the Sabbath holy. God spoke and wrote these words: "the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord thy God" (Ex 20:10). It's a day of celebration, delight, and blessing to me and not a burden. Michael Battle welcomes the Sabbath Day. Every writer and prophet of the Holy Bible kept the seventh day of the week holy. Christ and His apostles were all Sabbath-keepers. Check out these websites: www.sabbath-truth.org and www.sabbathhistory.com.

"To those who keep holy the Sabbath day it is a sign of sanctification. True sanctification is harmony with God, oneness with Him in character. It is received through obedience to those principles that are the transcript of His character. And the Sabbath is the sign of obedience. He who from the heart obeys the fourth commandment will obey the whole law. He is sanctified through obedience…. The fourth commandment alone of all the ten contains the seal of the great Lawgiver, the Creator of the heaven and the earth." -- E.G. White, Testimonies, vol. 6, p 350. Time is not lost. Remember to keep the Lord's Day Sabbath. "Moreover also I gave them my Sabbaths, to be a sign between me and them, that they might know that I am the LORD that sanctify them" (Ezekiel 20:12). The early Christian Church kept the Sabbath (Read Acts 13:42-44). The new covenant was ratified at Christ's death on Good Friday before the Sabbath. God's Memorial Day will last forever. It has no expiration date, and it is not on Christ's R.I.P. (rest in peace) obituary list.

Here's a quick church history lesson. The first Sunday Law was enacted by the Roman Emperor Constantine in March, 321 A.D. Priest Brady writes: "It is well to remind the Presbyterians, Baptists, Methodists, and all other Christians that the Bible does not support them anywhere in their observance of Sunday. Sunday is an institution of the Roman Catholic Church, and those who observe the day observe a commandment of the Catholic Church" (Priest Brady, Elizabeth, New Jersey, "News," March 18, 1903). Live As Christ Did!

Point of Light #6. The True Lord's Day is His Seventh Day Sabbath.

"Question: Which is the Sabbath Day?" "Answer: Saturday is the Sabbath." "Question: Why do we observe Sunday instead of Saturday?" "Answer: We observe Sunday instead of Saturday because the Catholic Church in the Council of Laodicia (A.D. 336) transferred the solemnity from Saturday to Sunday." – Peter Geiermann, The Convert's Catechism of Catholic Doctrine, p. 50. "He shall… think or try to change times and laws" (Daniel 7:25). Bible Truth will always set you free from sin if you obey it.

"There is no direct scriptural authority for designating the first day the Lord's Day." Dr. D.H. Lucas, Christian Oracle, Jan. 23, 1890.

"The current notion that Christ and His apostles authoritatively substituted the first day for the seventh, is absolutely without authority in the New Testament." Dr. Lyman Abbott, Christian Union, Jan. 19, 1882.

Blessed are those who obey God's commandments. This next quote is from The Catholic Mirror, Sept. 23, 1893. "The Catholic Church for over one thousand years before the existence of a Protestant, by virtue of her Divine mission, changed the day (of worship) from Saturday to Sunday."

"Sunday is founded, not on Scripture, but on tradition, and is distinctly a Catholic institution. As there is no Scripture for the transfer of the day of rest from the last to the first day of the week, Protestants ought to keep their Sabbath on Saturday and thus leave Catholics in full possession of Sunday." Catholic Record, Sept, 17, 1893. Live As Christ Did (LACD).

"You may read the Bible from Genesis to Revelation, and you will not find a single line authorizing the Sanctification of Sunday. The Scriptures enforce the religious observance of Saturday, a day which we never sanctify." Cardinal Gibbons, The Faith of Our Fathers, (92nd Ed,) p.89.

Priest Thomas Enright proudly proclaimed, "I have repeatedly offered $1000 to anyone who can prove to me from the Bible alone that I am bound to keep Sunday holy. There is no such law in the Bible. It is a law of the holy Catholic Church alone." C.S.S.R., President of Redemptorist College, American Sentinel, June 1883. No one has ever collected the reward.

THE JUDGMENT

Point #7. There is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus (Rom 8:1). Jesus Christ is our merciful High Priest, Advocate, and Judge in the heavenly sanctuary. "For the Father judges no one, but has committed all judgment to the Son." John 5:22, NKJV. The apostle Paul says: "We shall all stand before the judgment seat of Christ … so then every one of us shall give account of himself to God" (Romans 14:10-12). We don't have to be physically present. God has life record books. We are justified by our faith, but we are judged by our works and deeds. "Fear God; and give glory to him, for the Hour of His Judgment is come…" (Rev 14:7). We are living during the solemn time of God's Investigative Judgment. Some names will be retained, and some names will be removed from the Lamb's Book of Life. Your denomination or religion will not save you. People love to attend high profile court cases, or see famous trials on TV. But Heaven's Court is now In Session; You and I are the ones on trial. We all (Phoenix/Mesa) must appear before the judgment seat of Christ. We can trust Jesus as our Friend and Intercessor. Now is the time for every one who sincerely wants to be saved in God's Theocratic Government to confess and repent of their sins. Now is the time to accept Jesus Christ as your personal Savior. Now is the time to surrender to Christ. If you really want to make a change, it's time to stop playing church and religious games. Christ came into the world to save sin-sick sinners. Jesus died for "whoever believes". God's People should live as Christ did. A real Christian would never try to replace God's Ten Commandments with his own preconceptions. The Testimony of Jesus Christ supersedes the traditions and testimonies of any church! Happy are the living who live in harmony with Christ. Blessed are those who die in Christ. Jesus is the gateway to heaven.

Tenderly and gingerly Jesus is calling sinners and backsliders to come to Him. Jesus can resuscitate you and me spiritually. Come to Jesus, and He will give you comfort, joy, and hope to cope with your burdens. Yield your will, heart, and mind to Jesus. Pray this Prayer of Full Surrender audibly.

"God of Love, I come to You with a grateful heart of praise and thanksgiving. Thank You for Your saving grace. I thank Jesus for shedding His blood for my sins on Calvary's cross. Lord, I want to live with You forever in eternity. I surrender all to Thee. Clothe me with the spotless garments of Christ's righteousness. His character is my holy fitness for heaven. I ask, believe, and claim my daily bread blessings and fulfilling needs. Empower me, and anoint me with the Holy Spirit. I pray for sin-forgiveness, healing, and a miracle today. I pray for family protection, and a sense of direction. Forgive me for my shortcomings. I want to be ready for Your Second Coming. Help me to grow in my personal love relationship with You. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. I accept You, Jesus Christ, as my Crucified, Risen Savior. This is my sincere prayer in Jesus' precious name. Amen."

Michael Battle   P.O. Box 50471
Mesa, AZ 85208   (602) 679-9405

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