Brian Beyond a Shadow of a Doubt, Part 1

When Brian first gave his heart to the Lord, he earnestly prayed to understand more about the mark of the beast. Before becoming a Christian, he heard and read about Revelation 13 all the time and knew it was very important. His study convinced him that whatever it was, this power would be very subtle and deceptive. He knew it would sway practically the whole world. “I didn’t want to receive this mark,” he explains, “which was condemned in the strongest language.”

Brian searched for explanations for the mark of the beast in all kinds of sources. “None of them,” he says, “provided me with a satisfactory answer.” When he gave his life to Christ, he felt assured that the Bible truly was the inspired Word of God and would make this point clear, he believed, “beyond a shadow of a doubt.”

A couple months after his conversion, Brian felt impressed to visit the Sabbath-keeping church that his aunt attended. At the time he didn’t know a thing about this church. It was just another denomination.

On the first Sabbath he attended church, the pastor concluded with an altar call. Brian raised his hand to indicate his interest in being baptized. After the service he spoke with the pastor who gave him a copy of the first lesson in the Amazing Facts Bible Study Guides and said, “A Bible worker will be in touch to study the lesson with you.”

Brian was so hungry to learn truth that he went home and immediately studied the lesson. “I was totally blessed by the information in this guide,” he tells. “It helped me to understand the Bible in a way I had never understood before. And it was so plain!”

When the Bible worker showed up at Brian’s house the following week, they reviewed the first lesson and then she gave him the next lesson titled, “Did God Create the Devil?” That title alone got him fired up about studying this topic. “I knew I would finish this lesson in one day, so I asked if she would leave me more.” She hesitantly left five or six more lessons. Most people would be overwhelmed with these many lessons, so it’s better to leave just a few.

But not Brian!

Reflect: Do you have a hunger for the Word of God? If not, perhaps it is because you might be partaking of things of the world that dull your appetite.

Key Bible Texts

Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled. (Matthew 5:6 KJV)