Participants: C.A. Murray
Series Code: 08TCW
Program Code: 08TCW000003
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00:58 From the 3ABN Worship Center
01:01 it's the Ten Commandments Weekend 2008: 01:03 The Constitution of Grace. 01:07 We welcome all of you back to the Ten Commandments Weekend 01:10 right here in the Worship Center, 3ABN's Worship Center 01:14 in southern Illinois. Did we just enjoy Pastor Gilley 01:17 as he shared a tremendous 01:19 message with us! 01:20 And we are now going to have Commandment #1, 01:24 but I wanted to just welcome all of our viewers and listeners 01:28 from all over the world. The Ten Commandments Weekend 01:31 isn't only going out live via 3ABN television 01:35 both the international channel as well as the English channel 01:39 but also 3ABN radio is broadcasting us live as well. 01:43 And did you know that our Latino network has a 01:46 Ten Commandments Weekend as well? 01:47 They are in the Dominican Republic, and they are 01:49 broadcasting live too. So we are blanketing the whole world 01:54 with the character of God. 01:57 And I think that is something that we can just 01:59 rejoice with. And I want to thank all of you that are here 02:02 in our viewing audience. We appreciate you being here. 02:05 We want you to be refreshed and renewed and open your heart 02:09 and allow God to touch you and minister to you. 02:12 You know, we here at 3ABN are convinced that when we come 02:16 into a service that we are never to leave the way we came in. 02:21 That the Word of God will change us. 02:24 And that's what is happening with us today. 02:26 Well, we have a lovely lady with us tonight. 02:29 Her name is Emily Felts-Jones. 02:31 She has already... she has already ministered once, but 02:34 I am going to invite her out now as she continues to minister. 02:37 And she is going to minister a beautiful song 02:40 "What Wondrous Love. " Welcome, Emily! 03:10 What wondrous love is this, 03:15 O my soul, O my soul? 03:20 What wondrous love is this, 03:25 O my soul? 03:31 What wondrous love is this 03:36 That caused the Lord of bliss 03:42 To bear the dreadful curse for my soul, 03:48 for my soul; 03:50 To bear the dreadful curse 03:55 for my soul? 04:02 When I was sinking down, 04:05 sinking down, sinking down 04:10 When I was sinking down, 04:14 sinking down; 04:19 When I was sinking down 04:23 beneath God's righteous frown, 04:28 Christ laid aside His crown 04:32 for my soul, for my soul; 04:36 Christ laid aside His crown 04:41 for my soul. 04:45 To God and to the Lamb 04:49 I will sing, I will sing; 04:53 To God and to the Lamb, 04:58 I will sing; 05:02 To God and to the Lamb 05:06 Who is the great I AM, 05:10 While millions join the theme, 05:14 I will sing, I will sing; 05:18 While millions join the theme, 05:22 I will sing. 05:27 And when from death I'm free, 05:30 I'll sing on, 05:32 I'll sing on; 05:35 When from death I'm free, I'll sing on. 05:43 When from death I'm free, 05:46 I'll sing and joyful be, 05:50 And through eternity 05:54 I'll sing on, I'll sing on! 05:58 And through eternity, 06:02 And through eternity, 06:07 What wondrous love is this, 06:14 O my soul? 06:32 What wondrous love that the Lord has for every one of us! 06:35 You know, I'm going to invite C.A. Murray to come on out now. 06:38 He's going to bring us teaching on Commandment #1. 06:42 And let me tell you a little about C.A. Murray. 06:45 He was a minister - pastor - for 19 years. 06:49 The Northeastern Conference Communication Director 06:52 for 11 years. And what some of you may not know 06:55 is that in church... in the church that he was pastoring, 06:59 he was John Lomacang's youth pastor, weren't you C.A.? 07:02 So I asked Pastor Lomacang a few minutes ago 07:06 "If you were introducing C.A., what would you say? 07:09 How would you introduce him? " 07:11 And he just simply said: "Mollie, just tell the people... 07:14 ask the people: Could anything good come out of Buffalo, NY? " 07:20 It was 4 years ago at Spring Camp Meeting 07:24 that I first met C.A. Murray. 07:26 Someone came into my office and they said: 07:28 "Mollie, do you... have you met C.A. Murray? 07:30 Do you know who he is? " And I didn't... 07:31 didn't know a thing about him and they said: 07:33 "Well, he reminds me of Owen Troy. " 07:36 And if any of you know Owen Troy, he has got more integrity 07:41 in his character than most. 07:44 And he's on the 3ABN Board and a man that I just 07:48 admire tremendously. 07:49 And so this is who this man was being compared to. 07:52 So I thought I've got to meet C.A. Murray. 07:55 And he came into my office; I invited him in 07:58 and just said real simply: "C.A., have you considered 08:03 coming to 3ABN to work? " And he said: 08:05 "No! " 08:07 Of course he hadn't. That was the furtherest 08:09 thing from his thinking. 08:10 But you know, something that both Danny and I said to C.A.: 08:14 "If it be God's will for you to 08:16 be a part of the ministry 08:17 at 3ABN, 08:19 the Lord won't leave you alone. 08:21 You'll wake up at night thinking about it. 08:23 He'll keep bringing it up in your mind. 08:26 And, uh... to make a long story short, 08:29 this was in May of 04, and in December of 05 08:34 C.A. came to 3ABN. 08:36 He's the Production Manager. 08:38 He's been a tremendous blessing, 08:40 and I have found that what that person told me 08:43 that he had the character, integrity in his character 08:46 that that's been true. So receive from Pastor Murray now. 08:54 I always find Ten Commandments Weekend to be an exciting time, 08:59 and delving into the Word of God is an exciting thing. 09:05 We've entitled this portion of the message 09:13 We are framing this in the context of the 09:15 Constitution of Grace. 09:17 But as we look at Commandment #1 09:20 we want to culture it 09:23 in the ideological elohims. 09:27 Shall we pray? 09:29 Heavenly Father, truly Your word is a lamp unto our feet 09:33 and a light unto our path. 09:35 And we simply ask for Your anointing 09:39 so that Your word may be preached 09:41 so that Your people will hear and understand 09:44 and so that Christ will be glorified. 09:47 And we thank You for Your promise 09:50 to answer the prayer of faith. In Jesus' name, Amen. 09:55 I'll ask you to turn with me, if you will, to the 09:58 20th chapter of the book 10:02 of Exodus. 10:04 Exodus chapter 20. 10:09 When we study God's word, a correct understanding 10:15 of that word is the result of a number of factors 10:20 and ingredients - not limited to but certainly including 10:26 an understanding... some understanding of what 10:29 social scientists call the milieu. 10:33 We would simply call the context. 10:36 Not only an understanding of the people and time 10:41 of the particular book or chapter that we are considering 10:45 but an overall macro context, 10:50 a cosmic context, 10:53 that is framed by God's relationship with man. 10:59 We see God in His word 11:02 as one attempting to initiate 11:06 and desiring to establish and maintain 11:09 an intimate relationship with His people. 11:12 God has always wanted intimacy with His people. 11:16 He has always wanted atonement 11:20 for the world in general and His people in particular. 11:24 And so, those broad-based parameters 11:29 provide, in my opinion, a backdrop 11:32 not only for the Commandments 11:35 but for every law, every rule, every commandment, 11:38 every ordinance, every prohibition, 11:40 every sanction as well as every blessing, 11:43 every promise, every epiphany, 11:45 every prophecy that God gave to His children - 11:50 and through them... to the world. 11:52 From the time that Abraham was asked to look into the sky 11:57 and count the stars through the long period until 12:02 the first stone concussed the holy brow of Stephen 12:06 there was something very special that Jehovah God 12:11 wanted to do with the Jews, to the Jews, 12:15 through the Jews, and for the Jews to the world. 12:20 And so Jesus, the Ego Eimi, 12:23 the I AM, began to codify here in Exodus 12:31 a set of laws 12:34 predicated on the demonstrative fact 12:37 that you can do because He has already done. 12:45 And God enjoins that to His people today. 12:47 We can indeed do all things 12:52 because of what Christ has already done. 12:55 When we were kids and we were playing, my Dad many times 13:01 would tell us to do something. Or perhaps more accurately 13:04 tell us to stop doing something. And my sister, Donna, 13:07 is sitting right there. She can attest to it. 13:11 Sometimes we would get 13:15 a little recalcitrant. 13:18 A little insubordinant. 13:20 A little obstinant. A little just plain hard headed. 13:25 And the context for what ensued was the fact that 13:30 West Indian men... my father is from the Island of Barbados... 13:33 don't take a particular like in saying anything twice. 13:38 In fact, when my parents argued, 13:42 my Dad rarely raised his voice and never said anything twice. 13:47 And so, there were times as kids 13:51 when we thought we were out of range 13:57 and in a safety zone 14:02 that we would actually question one of my father's directives. 14:06 He would say: "Don't do that! " 14:10 And sometimes in a fit of insanity we would say: 14:14 "Why? " 14:20 And my old-school Dad would provide the context - 14:24 um-hmm - 14:28 for the discussion. 14:29 "Because I am your father, " he would say. 14:33 How many have heard that before? 14:35 "I brought you in; I'll take you out. " 14:40 Or... "Because I said so! " 14:43 But once when I was 10 or 11 14:47 I searched my brain and it occurred to me 14:52 that "Because I said so! " or "Because I'm your father" 14:58 was not sufficient justification 15:02 to alter or abate my intended course of action. 15:09 I might have even used the word stupid. 15:16 I thought I was out of reach 15:23 and I thought he had not heard me, 15:28 but my father sprang like a cat. 15:30 With blinding speed and superhuman strength 15:34 he lifted me off my feet and said: 15:36 "Because if I catch you doing that again 15:39 I will kill you. " 15:44 My sister can attest that. Growing up in our house 15:46 there were many infractions 15:47 for which death was the ultimate penalty. 15:53 But I stayed alive long enough to baptize my Dad 15:56 into the Seventh-day Adventist Church. 15:59 And yet, over and over again we see this recitation, 16:03 this preamble that we are about to look at 16:06 that contextualize the prospective and prospective, 16:12 the future relationship and activities between God and 16:15 His people. I'm in Exodus chapter 20 verse 2. 16:18 Exodus 20 verse 2. 16:20 The Bible says: 16:30 And we see this pattern over and over again 16:32 no less than 10 times. 16:34 Four times it is recited on God's behalf; 16:37 six times it is recited by the Lord Himself. 16:41 God, as it were, has to articulate His pedigree 16:45 for a people who, in many instances, did not know God. 16:49 And even when they were introduced to Him 16:51 they were disposed to develop 16:54 and almost irresistible case of spiritual Alzheimer's. 17:02 The pages of the Old Testament are riddled with stories of 17:05 a people afflicted with a volitional, selective 17:09 memory loss. 17:10 A loss that resulted in a continual and habitual 17:14 wandering from God. 17:16 And the truth be told... 17:19 Israel never really got the victory - 17:22 not for any protracted length of time. 17:25 They never really got it right. 17:28 Oh I say and I say again, the only thing worse than 17:30 nostalgia is amnesia. 17:34 And so a loving Lord, knowing the unstable, capricious, 17:37 fickle, on/off, hot/cold nature of His children, 17:41 people would often have to reformulate in their minds 17:44 the reality that "I am the Lord God 17:47 and beside Me there is no other. " 17:49 "I AM! " The can do. The all powerful, covenant-keeping God. 17:55 You know, you've got to love a God who designates Himself 17:58 like that. Lord God. That is a sermon in itself! 18:03 That's a brand name and a generic drug, 18:08 a prescription for sanctification 18:11 in a bottle with your own personal name on it. 18:13 Lord God. Not just a god... YOUR God. 18:17 The God who brought you out of Egypt. 18:20 Pharaoh: a type of Satan. 18:22 Egypt: a type of sin. 18:25 And Jehovah is saying: "I delivered you 18:27 from their presence and their power. 18:30 This is what I did for you, 18:32 now I want you to do the following for Me. " 18:34 Verse 3: 18:43 You know, I always thought it was rather interesting 18:45 that the Lord had to put that there. 18:47 Because it occurred to me... the truth be known... 18:50 other than the one true God 18:53 there is no other god. 18:57 I put it to you. Other than Jehovah God, 18:59 who else is there? Who is your default setting? 19:02 What is your plan B? 19:05 Other than God, there is no god. 19:07 The word in the Hebrew is Elohim. 19:11 Elohim. The word is a Hebrew word. 19:14 E- L-O-H-I-M. The I-M is a pleural ending. 19:18 Elohim is a pleural word. 19:20 It is the word most used in the word of God for God. 19:25 Often it denotes the title or the office of God. 19:29 El was also the head honcho, the audio titular head of 19:33 the Canaanite Pantheon... so it was a borrowed word. 19:36 They had El; we have Eloh... 19:40 our God is greater than your god. 19:43 Elohim bespeaks divinity and might and power 19:48 and keeping ability. 19:49 As I said, it is masculine in gender and always pleural. 19:54 Sometimes it means Jehovah the real God; 19:56 other times it means false god. 19:59 Well, how do you know the difference? 20:01 Context. 20:03 That word context comes back to us. 20:05 When the context is singular with the pleural, 20:08 it's the true God. 20:09 I'll give an example. 20:11 Genesis chapter 1 verse 27, 20:12 Genesis 1:27: 20:14 "So Elohim created man in His image. " 20:19 So, you've got the pleural Elohim 20:21 with the singular word His. Not their but HIS image. 20:25 Pleural with singular... talking about the true God. 20:28 Another example. Genesis chapter 1, verse 29: 20:30 "And Elohim said 'Behold I have given you every herb'. " 20:36 Again, pleural word, singular I. 20:40 Look at Deuteronomy chapter 6 verse 4. 20:42 Deuteronomy chapter 6 verse 4. 20:45 I am reading from the New King James. 20:48 The Bible says: "Hear, O Israel! 20:52 The SINGULAR our PLEURAL is SINGULAR. " 20:57 When you've got a pleural with a singular, 20:59 you're talking about the true God. 21:01 And God doesn't wait very long to get you involved in this. 21:05 The very third word in the Bible is Elohim. 21:09 The Hebrew says Bereshit bara Elohim. 21:13 "In the beginning God... " 21:15 "In the beginning God... " 21:18 So right off the bat you've got to deal with the fact that 21:20 you've got a tri-unity. "In the beginning God... " 21:23 God got together and said: "Let US make man 21:26 in OUR own image... in the beginning. " 21:29 But when you've got a pleural with a pleural, 21:31 then you're talking about a false god. 21:34 Same word but different god: pleural with pleural. 21:38 God says: "Thou shalt have no other gods before Me. " 21:43 No phonys... um-hmmm... 21:48 no demigods; no faux gods. 21:51 No pretend gods. 21:55 No other gods before God. 21:59 In fact, the word God is so holy 22:02 that the ancient Jews didn't even pronounce it. 22:06 They had the word Yahweh. 22:08 We pronounce it Yahweh. We don't even 22:09 know if that's how it's pronounced because 22:11 it's been forgotten. Your early Christians 22:14 found the word Adonai... A- D-O-N-A-I... 22:18 They took the 4 letters from Yahweh. Added the O, the A, 22:23 the O and the A from Adonai and it became Jehovah. 22:28 But the ancient Jews did not pronounce it. 22:31 No one pronounced Yahweh. 22:33 Some pronounced Adonai. 22:36 Most simply call Him Ashem - the name - 22:39 or Adoshem - the great name. 22:42 So there is but one true God. 22:45 But that mixed multitude in the desert thought that there were 22:49 many others. They had been seduced by 400 years 22:53 of Egyptian captivity. But God would have them to know 22:57 that there is only one. 22:59 And anything else, ladies and gentlemen, 23:02 is fiction... it is an idol. 23:04 How dare we attempt to replace the real God with fiction? 23:10 And for the nexus, the kernel, the core of Commandment #1 23:15 is do not elevate to God status anyone or anything 23:20 that can never really be God. 23:22 No idols; no elohims. 23:26 And I would submit to you that as bad as it is 23:30 not to know God, it is arguably egregiously worse 23:35 to know Him and live like He doesn't exist. 23:42 NOTHING, ladies and gentlemen, and I mean NOTHING 23:46 comes before God. 23:50 Amen. 23:53 Nothing is more important than God. 23:55 Not your money; not your home; not your job; 23:59 not your reputation; not your spouse; not your family... 24:03 Did he say family? I said family! 24:07 Now family is very important 24:09 NEXT to God. 24:12 Amen? 24:14 Because none of these things can save you. 24:17 And frankly, I put those in that line early on 24:20 because I don't believe any of these things are really 24:23 our problem. I don't think they are the real issue. 24:27 Like jaundice. 24:29 Jaundice is a symptom of a deeper problem. 24:33 Hey! If you're choosing your job over Jehovah, 24:40 you've got a problem. 24:44 Um-hmmm. 24:47 The real issue is not your job. 24:50 The real issue may lie somewhere else. 24:53 It is far more pandemic, far more invasive, 24:56 far more sinister. 24:58 The real idol, the real demigod, is not what we own, 25:03 ladies and gentlemen, it is what we ARE. 25:06 Because what you own is simply a symbol, 25:10 a symptom, of what you ARE. 25:14 Someone said: Tell me where a person spends his money 25:17 and I'll show you what he is. 25:22 It is a consequence of these last days. 25:26 So that makes what we are about to say present truth. 25:29 Turn with me to II Timothy chapter 3 and verse 1. 25:35 II Timothy chapter 3 and verse 1. 25:41 The word of God says: 25:53 Now that is not inveighing against homosexuality - 25:56 although I've heard it spoken of that way - 25:59 because the Greek word there for men is anthropon 26:03 or anthropoid... which simply means mankind - 26:06 from which we get words like anthropology. 26:09 Paul's caveat to Timothy is that in the last days 26:13 human beings - that is, mankind - 26:16 is going to fall out of love with God 26:19 and in love with itself. 26:24 God is saying that the prevailing sin 26:27 of these last days... of the end time... 26:31 the fertile garden from which so much misery grows... 26:35 is the sin of self love. 26:38 The problem is we are in love with ourselves. 26:43 And we are so in love with ourselves 26:46 we don't have room for God. 26:50 We've replaced God, ladies and gentlemen, 26:53 with us. 26:54 Latter days... later day man's god is man. 27:00 Are you listening to me? 27:03 And what is implied and alluded to in Timothy 27:06 is stated emphatically in Romans chapter 1 verse 25. 27:10 Romans 1 verse 25. 27:12 "Who exchanged the truth of God for the lie... 27:22 Heaven's complaint is that those who were created for God's glory 27:26 have decided they don't want Him anymore. 27:30 They are worshiping themselves. 27:33 How incredibly fascinating, ladies and gentlemen, 27:37 that the genesis of man's latter day ascent to divinity 27:41 and his contaminant descent into degradation 27:43 interestingly enough can be traced to the end of the 27:47 2300 day prophecy. Follow me for just a minute. 27:50 The beginning of Christ's mediatorial work 27:55 in the holy of holys. 27:58 In the days surrounding 1844, 28:03 heaven stepped into high gear... and so did Satan. 28:08 And just as God had His champions, 28:12 as He brought to the field of battle His champions - 28:16 James White, 1821. Ellen White, 1826. 28:20 Joshua Bornheims, 20 years old at that time, 28:24 one of the greatest communicators the world... 28:27 the church has ever produced who moved William Miller 28:29 from the small towns into the large cities. 28:32 And just as God began to raise up young people with strength 28:37 and stamina and Holy Spirit to do a great work for Him, 28:41 interestingly enough Satan also raised up his champions. 28:44 Same time period; right about 1844. 28:47 Rebel and threat to the cause of God... 28:52 Carl Marx, 1818. 28:54 Frederick Ingles, 1820. 28:56 Henry David Thoreau, 1820. 28:59 Some of these born within months or days of God's champions. 29:02 Charles Darwin in 1831... the same year that William Miller 29:07 preached his first sermon... Charles Darwin jumped aboard 29:11 a ship called the HMS Beagle - 29:14 follow me, if you will - 29:15 as an unpaid naturalist. 29:18 He made amazing discoveries in the Galapagos Islands 29:21 about 1,000 leagues west of the country of Ecuador. 29:25 And by the time he returned in 1836, he had convinced 29:31 himself that mankind was the product of an evolutionary 29:34 process that he called natural selection. 29:38 Chance was in... God was out. 29:44 He fine-tuned his ideas for 23 years. 29:47 Others bought into his theory. 29:49 And during the days of the Great Disappointment, 29:52 October 1844, 29:55 Darwin was saying that God had 29:59 nothing to do with our creation. 30:01 And by the time his 1st edition 30:04 of The Origin of the Species 30:06 came out in 1859, it sold out in one day. 30:09 Five additional editions also sold out within days of 30:14 their release, and one Ph. D. egghead said, 30:18 commenting on Darwin's work, "He is the single-most 30:22 influential individual on planet earth in the last 250 years. " 30:26 And it is no coincidence that Darwin came to the fore 30:31 about 1844. 30:34 When Christ stepped up His ministry, Satan stepped up his. 30:38 Get this quote, another Ph. D.: 30:42 "With the publishing of the book Origin, mankind has finally 30:48 escaped from God. " 30:53 Satan didn't stop there. 30:55 Carl Marx and Frederick Ingles collaborated on a book called 30:58 The Communist Manifesto, released, interestingly enough, 31:01 in 1848. Watershed year for the Adventist community. 31:04 The Communist Manifesto served as inspiration for countless 31:08 20th century and 19th century dictators and tyrants 31:11 including Lenin, Stalin, Hitler, Mussolini, and Pol Pot 31:16 and many others who got their theology from 31:20 The Communist Manifesto. 31:22 You see, none of them had any value for human life. 31:25 And when you take God out of the picture, 31:28 all you are left with is an animal 31:32 in a dog-eat-dog world that asserts daddy was a gorilla, 31:38 momma was a chimpanzee. 31:43 The Bible says... Psalm chapter 53 verse 1: 31:46 "The fool hath said in his heart there is no God. " 31:51 There are scientists who will tell you it takes more faith 31:54 to believe in evolution than it does in creation. 31:58 Dr. Mike Denton says: "By the time that Darwin's last edition 32:02 of Origin came off the press in 1872, even Darwin himself 32:06 was plagued by self-doubt because he was unable to meet 32:09 the many objections to his own theory. " 32:12 By the end of his life, Charles Darwin wasn't even buying 32:16 what he was selling. 32:18 But Satan wasn't finished. 32:22 In 1844, one month after the Great Disappointment, 32:25 Marx and Ingles collaborated on another book 32:27 called The Holy Family. 32:29 But there was nothing holy about it. 32:31 The book was described as a sarcastic assault and revolt 32:36 against the state, the family, religion, and God Himself. 32:40 Ingles lived with a woman all of his life 32:42 but he never married her. He refused to marry her 32:45 as an affront to God. He taught that marriage was 32:47 unnatural, unethical, and evil. 32:54 It was no coincidence, ladies and gentlemen, 32:56 that these men came to the fore about the end of the 2300 days 33:02 because Satan knew that his time was short. 33:05 And now the whole world accepts a myth, a theory, 33:11 as fact. 33:13 Science was the hook used to pull God off of His throne 33:18 and to replace Him with us. 33:22 So a new ideology is born. 33:25 Nobody buys that God is dead. 33:27 Nobody buys that God is out to lunch. 33:30 The new theology simply is God is unnecessary. 33:35 When we've got science, we've got computers, 33:38 we've got math, we've got art, we've got medicine, 33:40 engineering, literature. We've got college degrees, 33:43 we've got Ph. D.s. We're learned; we're not illiterate. 33:47 We don't live in tents, we live in houses. 33:49 We rely on ourselves. 33:50 God is just not necessary. 33:56 Romans 1:25 says: 33:58 "Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools. " 34:03 Do you know? Do you know what the most overused, 34:08 underrated, bankrupt word in the English language is? 34:15 May I suggest to you that it is love? 34:19 Um-hmmm. 34:23 I John 4:8: 34:30 The word, the concept like ethics and morality 34:35 have absolutely no meaning without God. 34:41 You can talk about emotionalism, eroticism, physical attraction, 34:45 sex, but if you are talking about real love, 34:48 you've got to be talking about God. 34:51 How curious it is, ladies and gentlemen, 34:54 that the further we move from God, the more we stray from God 34:57 in these last days, the more we tend to use words 35:03 that substitute for God. 35:05 The more we use terms that have their relevance and meaning 35:09 only in God. 35:11 We tend to deify the term and forget about God. 35:16 We have made a god of love. 35:20 I love my dog. I love my cat. 35:23 I love my new clothes. I love my television. 35:26 I love 3ABN. I love my computer. 35:29 I love my horse. I love my boots. 35:32 I love my shoes. I love my new dress. 35:35 I love the summer. I love the winter. 35:37 I love the snow. I love the beach. 35:39 I love waterskiing. I love the mountains. 35:43 I love my new pickup truck. 35:45 I love my wife. I love my John Deere tractor. 35:48 And if either of them gets old and rusty, I'm turning them in 35:51 on a new model. 35:57 The word... the concept itself... 36:00 has been adulterated. 36:02 We talk about love. We read about love. 36:04 We hear about love. We sing about love. 36:06 We sell love. 36:08 We worship love. 36:10 We browse for love on the Internet. 36:12 Ever searching, never finding. 36:14 Looking for love in all the wrong places. 36:17 It's like those guys in Manhattan 36:20 that sell the fake Gucci watches 36:25 or the $4,500 Rolex watches or the $1,500 Gucci handbags. 36:31 Now how do you think you are going to purchase 36:34 a $1,500 Gucci handbag or a $4,500 Rolex watch 36:39 for a cool 25 bucks? 36:45 You're getting ripped off! 36:47 I am saying love in today's world is little more 36:52 than justification for self indulgence. 36:56 God is love, but love is not God. 37:02 And a God of love, as much as He loves, 37:05 said: "You cannot have any other gods before me... 37:08 not even love itself. " 37:11 And so man is latter-day man's god. 37:17 Love is his Holy Spirit, 37:19 and the logical, predictable end to that kind of ideology 37:25 is evolution. 37:26 When you put man at the top and take God off the throne, 37:31 you are in for trouble. 37:33 We see how twisted we can become 37:37 when we leave out the pure gospel. 37:40 So I am my god and you are yours. 37:43 Have you ever heard the story of the self-made man 37:47 who worships his own god? 37:53 Um-hmmm. 37:57 How absolutely pathetic... of all men most miserable. 38:02 If you are your own god, may I suggest to you 38:07 that your god is too small? 38:12 You see, if you are your own god one day you are going to 38:15 run into something that your god can't handle. 38:18 If you are your god, someday your god is going to be sick. 38:24 If you are your own god, occasionally your god is 38:27 going to have a day when he 38:29 simply doesn't want to be bothered. 38:32 If you are your own god, sooner or later your god is going to 38:35 face a problem he can't solve. 38:38 If you are your own god and your god can't keep you, 38:44 and your god can't heal you, 38:46 and your god can't help you, 38:48 and your god can't cure you or comfort you or free you 38:52 or constrain you or change you or transform you... 38:56 If your god can't save you, then what in the world 39:00 is he going to do with me? 39:05 You see, you see, you see... theology aside, 39:10 it just makes good sense to serve the Living God. 39:14 Because if you reject God, all you're left with is you. 39:20 And you will forgive my pejorative English, 39:23 I mean offense to no one, but when it comes to 39:25 my salvation, you ain't good enough for me. 39:34 The Lord said: "I have loved you with an everlasting love; 39:38 therefore, with loving kindness I have drawn you. " 39:40 Excuse me, but that's the God I want to put my money on. 39:45 How about you? 39:49 Look around us. We have paid a heavy price for our arrogance. 39:54 On April 2nd of this year I heard on the news 39:59 that nine 4th graders were arrested for plotting a murder 40:03 of their teacher. 40:05 Nine 4th graders. 40:07 They had planned to smash her skull, 40:12 tie her up, and then stab her to death. 40:17 Nine 4th graders. 40:18 The plot was so well organized that it shocked the community. 40:23 They had brought rope, scissors, a baseball bat, 40:28 bricks, and a knife to school. 40:31 And when asked "Why were you planning 40:34 to murder your teacher? " their answer was 40:38 "She talked mean to one of us. " 40:42 The gods of this world, the elohims, 40:46 have replaced reason and sanity and morality and humility 40:52 and kindness and sympathy. 40:54 And then a terrorist, allegedly in the name of God, 40:57 flies a plane into a 110-story building, 41:01 and in our delirium we cry: "Where was God? " 41:06 The answer? Right where you left Him. 41:12 Hasn't gone anywhere. 41:14 Been in the same spot for 7,000 years. 41:17 He is right where you left Him. 41:20 Genesis said "Bereshit bara Elohim; in the beginning God. " 41:25 He was there then; He's here now! 41:28 "Ye shall find Me, " He said, "when you search for Me 41:32 with all your heart. " 41:34 There are 4 principal ideologies that I want to talk about 41:38 that are the elohims of this world. 41:41 The ideological elohims. 41:44 I cannot take total credit for them. 41:47 I borrowed this from Dr. John Pauling 41:50 who borrowed it from Dr. Tony Campolo 41:53 who borrowed it from Dr. Roger Smith. 41:55 And each of us add our own cherry to the top of the sundae. 41:59 But there are four particular ideologies that define 42:03 modern man. They are the ideological elohims that the 42:06 secular world lives by. 42:08 The first is autonomy. 42:09 The first is autonomy. 42:12 I'm sorry, it's contingency 42:13 followed by temporality, 42:15 followed by relativity, 42:16 then autonomy. 42:18 Let's talk about contingency. 42:20 Contingency suggests that everything that happens 42:24 in this world is the result of cause and effect. 42:28 You do something; you get a response. 42:31 So there's no need to ascribe any of the outcomes 42:35 in my life to the interposition of any supernatural powers. 42:39 In other words, I put in; I get out. 42:41 I don't give God or anybody else credit for what happens to me. 42:44 I do the work; I get the reward. 42:47 In other words, 200 people go for a job. 42:50 199 people don't get the job; I get the job. 42:54 Not because God helped me; because I deserved the job. 42:59 I worked for the job; I'm better than the rest of them 43:03 OR... dumb luck. 43:07 Contingency: I put in; I get out. 43:11 Cause and effect - NOT GOD. 43:32 Even some Christians believe it. 43:34 They believe they've got to help God out. 43:37 If I don't do it, it won't get done. 43:43 You see how that pushes God to the side? 43:46 Takes God off the throne; puts me on top. 43:50 Demigod #2: autonomy. 43:54 The concept is I determine who calls the shots in my life. 44:00 I reserve the right to make my own decisions. 44:03 The concept is: it's MY life and I can do what I want 44:09 so there's no need to seek or follow God for direction. 44:14 If I want that, I get that 44:16 and I don't ask God or anybody else about it. 44:19 If I can take it, I take it. 44:21 If I can steal it, I steal it. 44:22 If I can connive to get it, I do that. 44:24 I am autonomous. I don't owe anything to anybody. 44:28 So, an animal lover will leave $5,000,000 to his cat 44:33 and give nothing to feed starving children in Haiti 44:38 who are eating mud patties. 44:40 Or thousands of dollars to save the rainforest 44:44 but not one dime for inner-city children. 44:48 I'm autonomous; I determine what has value. 44:52 Autonomy says "I report to me. " 45:21 I determine... I give meaning to my life, 45:25 and I don't need God. 45:27 God is unnecessary. 45:32 Demigod #3: relativity. 45:36 Relativity suggests the idea that absolutes are untenable, 45:42 unintelligent, and unreasonable... 45:44 even counterintuitive. 45:47 Relativity insists that the idea that one size fits all, 45:53 that there is one rule or one set of rules, 45:56 or 10 rules is stupid. 46:02 You have an individual situation. It only makes sense 46:06 that you adjust your rules to fit the situation. 46:10 That's relativity. 46:12 Why would you subscribe to a one size fits all mindset? 46:18 I'm different; you're different. 46:22 So the rules for each of us must be? Different! 46:26 That's relativity. 46:28 Every situation being the same? 46:32 That's insane! 46:34 It's all relative. 47:04 Um-hmmm. 47:07 What is right is what is right for me 47:10 is what is right. 47:12 What's right for you... not right for me. 47:16 What's right for me... not right for you. 47:20 You determine what's right for you, 47:22 I'll determine what's right for me, 47:24 and this idea that there are 10 rules that never alter, 47:29 never change, that ain't right. 47:34 That's relativity. 47:36 The final demigod is temporality. 47:40 It simply suggests that nothing lasts forever. 47:44 Your car's not going to last forever. 47:47 Your house is not going to last forever. 47:49 Your wife? 47:55 Your husband. 47:57 Your job, your religion: they're all going to change. 48:03 There are people today who don't just expect things to change 48:09 they engineer change. 48:12 They expect things to change. 48:15 My car is going to last so many years; I gotta' get a new one. 48:20 My house will last so many years; 48:23 I'll have to get a new one. 48:25 My marriage will last so many years... 48:35 They don't expect to be in the same place, 48:39 the same relationship. 48:41 The idea that something can be unchangeable... 48:46 the same yesterday, today, and forever... 48:51 is incomprehensible. 49:12 So if this marriage gets tough I'm gone. 49:16 If serving Jesus gets tough, I'm out of here. 49:21 It's never going to last, so why work at it? 49:28 Every malfeasance, every cancel in the social corpus of mankind 49:32 can be traced to one of these elohims. 49:37 What a world we would have, 49:39 ladies and gentlemen, 49:40 if we could simply put God first. 49:48 Can you imagine the kind of world we would have 49:51 if we all just put God first? 49:58 The kind of nation? The kind of community? 50:03 If every man, every boy, every girl 50:07 simply put God first. 50:11 No elohim before Elohim. 50:17 You know, the tallest of skyscrapers is built on a firm 50:22 and deep foundation. 50:24 The glory of all of the Ten wonderful Commandments 50:30 the constitutional reality of man's existence, 50:34 is foundational and revolves around the fact 50:40 that "In the beginning God... " 50:44 And God desires and deserves 50:49 no rival. 50:51 For truly there is no God 50:57 but God. 50:59 There is none like Him. 51:03 Genesis 1:1: 51:05 "Bereshit bara Elohim. " 51:09 God doesn't try to justify it, doesn't try to explain it, 51:13 doesn't try to rationalize it. 51:15 He says: "In the beginning God... " 51:17 and you have to accept that first page, first chapter, 51:21 first line or else close the book... 51:25 because everything else in this book is based on 51:30 "In the beginning God... " 51:31 And if you're going to live with Him and live for Him, 51:36 then you can't have anybody else in front of Him. 51:41 God says: "I'm a jealous God. " 51:44 I'm not going to take any rivals. 51:47 Not going to take any other courters, no other suitors. 51:50 You date me... that's it! 51:53 God, God, and only God. 51:57 Isaiah picks up the strain in chapter 44 verse 6. 52:03 Isaiah chapter 44, verse 6: 52:09 Give me a second to find it... 52:24 "I am the first, and I am... " the what? "I am the last. " 52:29 "Besides Me there is no God. " 52:34 Amen? No God but God. 52:39 "And who can proclaim as I do? Then let him declare it 52:43 and set it in order for Me. 52:46 Since I appointed the ancient people and the things 52:50 that are coming and shall come. 52:53 Let them show these to them. 52:56 Do not fear nor be afraid. 53:00 Have I not told you from that time and declared it? 53:04 You are My witnesses. " I am reading from the New King James. 53:08 "Is there a God beside Me? 53:12 Indeed, there is no other 53:17 Rock. " 53:20 There's no God but God. 53:22 Ellen White said: "If you cannot see 53:28 the future, look back over the past. 53:33 You ought to be able to see a pattern of what I call 53:37 providential interposition. 53:39 You ought to see a pattern of God inserting His hand 53:44 into your life 53:46 and bringing you from day one to today. 53:50 You ought to be able to look back and see where God 53:53 has blessed you, answered your prayers. 53:57 Kept you, directed you. Instructed you, saved you. 54:02 Ladies and gentlemen, it is no accident that you 54:05 sit in this place on this night. 54:07 It is no accident! God is in control of our lives. 54:12 Amen? Amen. 54:14 There's no God but God. 54:16 And our God is saying: 54:18 "Don't put anybody in front of Me. " 54:21 No one. Not your children. 54:25 Not your brother. Not your sister. 54:28 Not even your husband or your wife. 54:31 Because come Judgment Day, God is not going to say 54:35 "What did your husband do? " 54:40 "What did your wife do? " 54:44 "Tell me, tell me about your parents. 54:48 What did your parents do? " 54:51 He's going to ask "What did you do 54:55 when I came calling? When I knocked on the door? 55:00 I knocked on your door 55:03 and you didn't answer. 55:06 I called, but you had the TV on. 55:11 I sent a letter, but you left it in the mail box. 55:17 I prayed for you, but you didn't answer. 55:24 "Thou shalt have no other gods " 55:29 because no one on this earth has a heaven to give you 55:35 or a hell to keep you from. 55:39 We owe our all to God, 55:43 and there is none other than God. 55:47 And one day soon and very soon we're going to see Him 55:52 face to blessed face. 55:56 The song says "Oh, what a day of rejoicing 56:01 that will be. " 56:03 How many love the Lord tonight? 56:07 How many plan not lettin' anybody or anything 56:10 get between us and our God? 56:13 When you put your hand in His hand, 56:15 nothing, no one 56:19 can take you out of His hand. 56:22 Shall we pray? 56:23 Heavenly Father, we love You, Lord. 56:28 And though we are surrounded by a world that denies 56:31 Your very existence, that worships itself 56:35 in print, on the television screen, on the radio, 56:40 in the arts and sciences. 56:43 We have put ourselves on the throne and pulled You down. 56:48 But Father, we who sit here tonight 56:52 have elevated You to Your rightful status. 56:57 You are on the throne of our hearts. 57:01 You own our lives. 57:04 We submit and surrender ourselves to you 57:08 as living sacrifices. 57:11 Though Satan is angry, 57:14 though he is wroth with the nations, 57:16 though a thousand follow, Lord, we have determined 57:21 we will follow You. 57:23 There will be no other God but You, dear Lord. 57:26 No idols, nothing cherished. 57:30 We open our hands to You and submit our lives to You 57:34 and ask that You would give us the faith, the grace, 57:40 the strength to fight the fight of Jesus each day 57:45 knowing that we do not fight alone but that there is a God 57:50 in heaven who hears and knows and loves us 57:55 and will take us home 57:59 if we will but walk with Him. |
Revised 2014-12-17