Participants: Dr. Eric Walsh
Series Code: 10GYC
Program Code: 10GYC000004
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00:11 Good morning GYC. It is my pleasure
00:15 tonight to introduce our speaker for the 00:18 evening meeting at GYC this year. 00:20 Dr. Eric Walsh, I've had the privilege of living 00:24 in the same neck of the woods as Dr. Walsh 00:26 for the past several years down in 00:28 Southern California and so have been 00:31 able to hear him preach often on over the years. 00:33 And I can tell you he preaches with passion. 00:36 He preaches from his heart and he preaches 00:39 about real life things that are going 00:41 on in our lives. Dr. Walsh is a physician 00:45 living in the Southern California area 00:47 and along with hearing him preach 00:49 over the years, I've seen him in action 00:51 as a doctor. I took a trip into the 00:54 Urgent Care while back with a bee sting 00:56 that was swelling at my arm and Dr. Walsh 00:58 just happen to be the doctor on call in house 01:01 and I can tell you from personal experience 01:03 he takes very good care of his patients 01:06 and he is a wise and caring doctor. 01:08 He is currently the Director of the 01:12 Health Department in Pasadena, California 01:15 and he is on the faculty at the 01:17 Loma Linda University School of Medicine. 01:20 Dr. Walsh has a family. He is married 01:22 to his wife Annette and they have 01:25 three children. We are grateful 01:28 and excited to have Dr. Walsh here with us 01:31 at GYC for these next three days, 01:33 and I know that we are all in for a treat 01:37 and a tremendous blessing. 01:58 See there by the road, there's a man 02:05 about to give up, thinking it's too hard 02:11 we can't keep going on like this. 02:17 Then hears a voice inside him saying, 02:22 my child I know that it's hard. But I've gone 02:27 this way before you, there's no time 02:32 for turning around. There's no turning back, 02:41 no man that puts his hand to the plow 02:47 and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God. 02:57 There's no turning back, though all hell should 03:03 try to shake us, keep pressing on till we see 03:09 our savior's face. No turning back. 03:23 Though tempted to turn back we will find 03:29 we can keep up, if we truly seek to give God, 03:37 or love ourselves, we will find a strength 03:43 in him that will never let us go. 03:50 He will take us by the hand 03:54 and gently lead us home. There's no turning back, 04:05 no man that puts his hand to the plow 04:10 and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God. 04:20 There's no turning back, though all hell 04:25 should try to shake us, keep pressing on till 04:31 we see our savior's face. No turning back. 04:42 There's no turning back, no man that puts 04:50 his hand to the plow and looks back is fit 04:59 for the kingdom of God. There's no turning back, 05:07 though all hell should try to shake us, 05:12 keep pressing on till we see our savior's face. 05:19 No turning back. No turning back. 05:28 No turning back. No turning back. 05:41 No turning back. Amen. 06:03 Good evening GYC. Good evening. 06:06 Let me just say that it is a privilege 06:08 and an honor to be here with you tonight 06:10 and I can tell you that to see an army 06:15 of young people come together to be trained 06:19 and to be educated, to lift one another 06:23 for the cause of Jesus Christ really thrills 06:25 my heart, in fact I'm humble even to be here, 06:28 because there are a lot of places young people 06:32 could be this weekend amen. 06:34 There are a lot of people trying to 06:35 figure out where they're gonna party 06:36 this weekend, but I praise God that we could 06:39 fill a room so large that I really can't see 06:44 the back of it. And I praise God 06:47 that God's church still has young people 06:51 who are very serious about finishing 06:54 the work. So let's just say amen. Amen. 06:58 And let's give the Lord a hand praise. 06:59 Let's just tell God that we love Him, 07:01 because God is good. Let me tell you 07:04 something we could, we could go 07:06 all night about this, but I work in the field 07:10 of public health and I see young people 07:11 all the time who are in dire states. 07:15 And I've prayed with many of them many times 07:17 and asked them to you know make wise decision 07:20 or to encourage them to do good things. 07:24 So I'm glad to know that I can go back 07:26 and say look I've seen what God 07:28 can do for young people. And I saw it at GYC, 07:31 somebody ought to say amen. Amen. 07:34 If you don't mind turn with me in your Bibles 07:37 to the book of 2nd Timothy. 07:39 The second chapter, 2nd Timothy chapter 2 07:42 starting at verse one. 2nd Timothy chapter 2 07:45 starting at verse one. And I'm gonna read 07:51 the first four verses from the second chapter 07:54 of the book of 2nd Timothy. 07:58 2nd Timothy chapter 2 verses 2 to 4. 08:02 The scripture says, Thou therefore, my son, 08:05 be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. 08:09 And the things that thou hast heard of me 08:11 among many witnesses, the same commit thou 08:14 to faithful men, who shall be able to 08:17 teach others also. Verse three says, 08:21 Thou therefore endure hardness, 08:25 as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. 08:29 No man that warreth entangleth himself 08:32 with the affairs of this life; 08:36 that he may please him who hath chosen him 08:38 to be a soldier. Our message this evening is 08:44 entitled the good soldier, 08:47 the good soldier. Let us pray. 08:49 Father God, we thank you Lord for this 08:52 opportunity to go into your word. 08:56 I ask Father God right now that you make me 08:58 just a rusty old, sorry old nail Lord. 09:03 But Lord I ask that you hammer that 09:04 nail into a wall and then upon that nail 09:08 I ask Lord Jesus that you would hang a 09:12 portrait of yourself, so that tonight Eric Walsh 09:16 is not seen or heard. But Father God 09:20 I ask that we would hear a message 09:21 from the throne room of grace. 09:24 This is our prayer in Jesus' name, 09:26 let the church say amen. Amen. 09:30 The city of Rome was on fire, 09:34 in fact three fourths of the city 09:37 wound up burning. It started in July of AD 64 09:45 on the night between the 18th and the 19th. 09:50 It was said to have started at the 09:52 south-eastern end of the Circus Maximus 09:54 where flammable goods were being sold. 09:57 And once the fire caught in the Ancient Rome 10:01 it was difficult to stop the fire, 10:03 because the way that the city was built. 10:05 The homes were connected. But not only 10:09 were the homes connected, they were 10:10 connected and the walls of those connected homes 10:13 were flammable. So once the city began to burn. 10:18 The city of over two million people, 10:21 the city began to burn in rapid succession. 10:25 The fire burned for six days in Rome. 10:29 Six long difficult days to die down 10:35 and then burn again for three more days. 10:39 Three great ancient historians Cassius Dio, 10:43 Suetonius and Tacitus all state that it was 10:47 Nero who started the fire. These historians 10:51 also state that he played the lyre 10:54 and he sang from the palace walls 10:58 as the city burned. There are those who 11:02 argue that in fact what Nero really wanted 11:05 was an opportunity to clear out sections 11:08 of the city, so that he could build 11:10 a larger palace. Something that 11:13 he ultimately does after the fire is quenched 11:16 by the battalions of firemen building a large 11:20 palace and over a 130 foot, 11:23 30 meter high statue of himself in gold. 11:28 Nero was a sick man and history records 11:31 that not only is he guilty of killing 11:34 his mother and of killing his second wife. 11:37 But Nero was the first of the Pagan emperors 11:41 to begin to torture the Christians. 11:45 And when the fire was burning, 11:48 one of the things that happened is that 11:50 the citizens of Rome began to believe 11:52 that somehow Nero was guilty of the fire. 11:57 Nero was so upset at, at the idea 12:00 that he was being indicted that he decided 12:03 to turn his attention and the attentions 12:05 of the citizens of Rome off of himself 12:07 and on to another group of people. 12:12 In fact he arrested and tortured 12:16 a few Christians and those Christians 12:19 implicated other Christians 12:22 and so on until the young Christian religion 12:26 newer to Rome than most other religions 12:29 which was a religion popular along the poor 12:32 and the destitute, that religion 12:34 if you belong to it people were being 12:37 gathered up and collected and torture. 12:43 In fact Tacitus and Tacitus is a very 12:46 important ancient historian. 12:48 There was a time when it was argued that 12:51 there was no evidence of Jesus Christ 12:54 outside of the scripture. But Tacitus 12:57 writes and I want you to hear this. 12:59 Tacitus writes, therefore speaking of, 13:02 of Nero is therefore to stop the rumor that 13:05 he had set Rome on fire, he the emperor Nero 13:09 falsely charged with guilt and punished 13:12 with the most fearful tortures, 13:14 the persons commonly called Christians 13:16 who are generally hated for their enormities. 13:21 Christus, the founder of that name. 13:23 The founder of the Christian religion 13:25 they say. He says was put to death 13:27 as a criminal by Pontius Pilate, 13:31 procurator of Judea in the reign of Tiberius, 13:34 but the pernicious superstition repressed 13:38 for a time broke out yet again not only through 13:41 Judea where the mischief originated, 13:44 but through the city of Rome also, 13:47 where all horrible and disgraceful things flow. 13:51 Tacitus makes it clear in his writings. 13:53 He was a boy when the city burned 13:55 and he speaks negatively of Christianity 13:57 of course because to speak positively of 14:00 Christianity would have meant that he might have 14:02 found himself being tortured. 14:05 But Tacitus anchors a few things in history. 14:07 He anchors in history the fact that not only 14:10 did Jesus exist, but Jesus was put to death 14:13 by Pontius Pilate, and I submit to you 14:16 that the other ancient historian 14:18 that does this Josephus are both important, 14:21 because even Josephus says that Jesus 14:23 was the Messiah, being that he was a 14:25 Jewish historian. So I submit to you that 14:29 out of this, this fire comes the torture of the 14:32 Christians, but it also cements Christianity 14:35 in Pagan Rome as a religion. How horrific 14:40 was the torture of the Christians as this, 14:44 after the city burned. It was so horrific, 14:46 because they would take Christians 14:48 and they would put them up on stakes. 14:51 They would take animals skins freshly ripped 14:55 from off of the bodies of animals, 14:58 and wrap the Christians up in the animal skins 15:01 and then release up the Christians hungry dogs. 15:07 So terrible was Nero who wanted desperately 15:11 to be a great charioteer, that Nero 15:15 would take the Christians and sometimes 15:17 he would put them on poles and he would 15:19 light them on fire. And at night Nero would 15:24 practice his chariot racing as he bobbed 15:28 and weaved in between the human torches 15:31 that were Christians. But no matter 15:38 what they did, GYC. No matter how tortured 15:42 the Christians were. One of the powerful things 15:46 that happens is the Christian church 15:48 only gains strength. In fact Tacitus says 15:54 something profound. He says that as the average 15:57 citizens see what's happening, 15:59 many of them begin to feel sorry 16:02 for the Christians. And as Christians sing hymns 16:07 even as they are set ablaze. The last sound 16:14 uttered out of their parched mouths 16:17 are songs of praise to God. Can you imagine 16:23 being an spectator and watching as one of these 16:27 Christian dies and no matter how fierce 16:31 the power of the Roman Empire is upon 16:34 the group, no matter how pointed 16:36 and directed the attack, no matter how hateful 16:39 and slanderous the words, yet this group of 16:43 Christians only continue to praise 16:46 the living God. Amen. Nero realized 16:56 that he was going to do away with Christianity 17:00 he had to do away with it's leadership. 17:04 So for the second time he goes 17:08 and he arrests a very small feeble 17:11 older gentleman by the name of Paul. 17:15 And Paul is dragged in and thrown 17:18 into a dungeon. And left there to suffer. 17:24 Nero trying to make an example of him, 17:26 trying to squash out this religion, 17:29 who after a while they no longer said that 17:32 their crime was, was burning down the city, 17:35 but eventually the crime leaves being simply 17:38 burning down the city and Tacitus puts 17:40 it like this he says, eventually their crime 17:43 is the hating of the human race. 17:47 Let me warn you young people that 17:49 if you're going to be a Christian. 17:51 The enemy is gonna tell lies on you. 17:55 The enemy is going to try to galvanize 17:58 the world against us. You're gonna be seen 18:02 as barbaric, antiquated, out of touch, 18:07 out of date, you're slow, you're not that 18:11 smart actually. In fact these pernicious lies 18:15 have began and a very sophisticated trap 18:18 has already been sprung on the Christian world, 18:21 and in fact much of Christendom 18:23 doesn't realize this trap has been sprung. 18:26 When I look at individuals like 18:28 Sarah Palin or the lady here in Delaware, 18:34 just close by recently ran for the Senate seat 18:37 in the United States. The lady who said 18:40 she wasn't a witch. You notice that 18:44 what they do is when Sarah Palin is asked 18:46 and O'Donnell are asked if they believe 18:50 in evolution or creationism. 18:52 When these questions are posed to them 18:55 there are commentators and pundits that 18:57 now say listen I remember hearing 19:00 Arianna Huffington say about Sarah Palin, 19:03 she is not qualified to be the 19:05 President of the United States, 19:06 because she believes in a six day creation. 19:12 Now many would argue there are a lot of 19:14 reason Sarah Palin may not have been qualified 19:17 to be the President of the United States. 19:22 But I hope you get the trap that's being set. 19:26 If you can combine certain elements with 19:30 Christianity and make anyone who is a Bible 19:33 believing Christian seem as if they are at odds 19:37 with science and progress. Do you see 19:41 that the trap is being set. 19:49 Paul is arrested for the second time. 19:54 While he's in the dungeon he is asked 19:58 what it is that he would want? 20:02 At the end of the book of 2nd Timothy he says 20:04 he wants his cloak, he wants his, 20:07 he would want something to write with 20:08 and Paul begins to write the book of 2nd Timothy. 20:13 Let me give you an overview of the next 20:15 three nights. We're gonna go through 20:17 the book of 2nd Timothy in three parts. 20:20 We're gonna look at the major players 20:22 out of the book of 2nd Timothy. 20:24 One of course the Apostle Paul himself, 20:27 second of course we're gonna look at Timothy, 20:30 the third we will also look at Nero the Emperor 20:33 and the Roman Empire. We'll look at Paul 20:36 from a different angle tomorrow night, 20:38 we'll look at Paul as a Prophet. 20:41 We look at the comparison that 20:43 Ellen White and many great historians draw 20:45 between Nero himself and Paul the Apostle. 20:49 Over the next three nights we'll go deep 20:52 into this book, looking not only at what 20:54 is in scripture, but trying to build 20:56 the historical context, because I believe 20:58 this book was written for three separate 21:00 groups of people. One, the book was written for 21:04 Timothy himself obviously. Paul wanted 21:07 to make sure that he left with Timothy 21:10 final words of importance. So that 21:13 Timothy would be armed to deal with 21:16 what he was gonna have to face as Timothy 21:17 advanced to becoming a bishop. 21:20 Secondly of course this book was written for us, 21:24 in fact if I could name the message 21:28 something else I would name it a letter 21:31 to the last generation. Paul is truly warning 21:36 those of us who would be alive 21:37 at the end of time, He is warning us, 21:41 preparing us and instructing us 21:44 in how to survive the difficult days 21:46 that the Christians will have to 21:48 once again survive. Who better to write that 21:52 world map for the end of the world 21:54 then the Apostle who bore the brunt of 21:59 Pagan Rome's torture. But finally and maybe 22:06 most interestingly in some ways, 22:07 this letter was also written to the 22:11 Roman Empire itself in fact on Saturday night 22:15 I'll show you that I believe that Paul hoped 22:18 that Nero himself would read this letter. 22:24 But first let's deal with Timothy. 22:26 2nd Timothy chapter 1 starting at verse one. 22:32 2nd Timothy chapter 1 starting at verse one. 22:35 The scripture says, Paul, an apostle of 22:38 Jesus Christ, by the will of God, according 22:40 to the promise of life which is in 22:42 Christ Jesus. To Timothy, my dearly 22:46 beloved son: Grace, mercy and peace from God 22:50 the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord. 22:54 In the third verse of the book Paul 22:56 is an dungeon, he's probably hungry, 22:58 he is probably been beaten, but look at 23:01 how just three verses and Paul says I thank 23:04 God whom I serve. Let me submit to you 23:08 that torture didn't sway Paul's allegiance 23:12 to God. His being hungry, his being alone, 23:16 his being destitute. Paul knew that 23:19 even in the worst of situations he must thank 23:23 the living God. We'll tell you something 23:27 some of us are fair weather Christians. 23:31 We're happy to serve God when everything 23:33 is going well, but when we're faced with 23:36 adversity there are a lot of Christians 23:38 who quickly began to back track 23:40 and question God. Oh if we had 23:44 the faith of Paul. Instead of questioning 23:47 God we would view every difficult situation 23:50 we find ourselves in as an opportunity, 23:56 as an opportunity to lift up the name of 23:59 Jesus Christ. Paul says, I thank God whom I serve 24:07 from my forefathers with pure conscience 24:11 that without ceasing I have remembrance 24:13 of thee in my prayers night and day. 24:18 In fact he says something profound in 24:19 verse 5 as he introduces this young man Timothy 24:23 he says, when I call to remembrance 24:25 the unfeigned faith that is in thee which dwelt 24:28 first in thy grandmother Lois and thy mother 24:31 Eunice, and I am persuaded that is 24:34 in thee also. You see Timothy was an 24:38 interesting young man. His father was a Greek. 24:43 His mother Eunice is mentioned in chapter 5 24:45 was probably a Jewish. It's clear from the 24:50 book of 2nd Timothy that Timothy was well 24:53 trained in the scripture. In fact 24:56 one of the things I like to tell young people 24:58 based on that verse of scripture is that 25:01 many of us who have been raised 25:02 in the church like Timothy who was raised 25:05 to know God, have been raised with 25:08 a legacy of faith. We've been raised 25:11 with a legacy of faith and probably 25:14 one of the most disheartening things 25:15 that I see in the church is when young people 25:18 take that legacy of faith and just throw 25:21 it away. All of the advantages of being 25:25 sent to Christian Adventist schools, 25:28 growing up in homes where alcohol 25:30 wasn't allowed. Hearing the word of God 25:33 preach from week to week in churches 25:36 and when they come of age, had friends 25:40 like that growing up who would every week 25:43 at church at 13 and 14 years of age 25:46 would remind us, man when I turn 18 brother 25:50 I'm out of here. I'm escaping this place. 25:55 They thought of the church as a jail 25:58 and I praise God that I've lived long enough 26:01 to see many of them that ran out of the church 26:03 come running back in. They've found out that 26:07 real freedom isn't in the world, 26:09 isn't in drugs and illicit sexual affairs, 26:13 it's not in chasing the all mighty Taliban 26:16 but real freedom comes when you can turnover 26:19 your life to Jesus Christ somebody 26:21 ought to say amen. But some of us have been 26:25 given this legacy of faith and I challenge 26:28 those of you who are parents or who will be 26:30 parents that we parent in such a way 26:35 that if Paul was writing about our child. 26:38 He can write this verse about our child. 26:41 The unframed faith that was in Eric Walsh. 26:47 That has now been passed on to his child. 26:53 A legacy of faith has given. 26:56 The Paul goes on and he looks, 26:58 look at verse six. He says that, 27:01 wherefore I put thee in remembrance that 27:03 I will stir up the gift of God which is in thee 27:06 by the putting on my hands. 27:09 For God has not given us the spirit of fear. 27:14 But of power and of love and of a sound mind. 27:21 If you are going to survive 27:22 in the last days, you will not be able to 27:26 survive the last days living 27:29 your life out of fear. Fear is a very poor 27:35 motivator, studies are pretty well documented, 27:40 they're just scaring people with tar 27:43 blackened lungs from cigarettes are 27:44 not enough to help people to be 27:46 motivated to quit smoking. 27:49 Fear only lasts for a little while and in fact 27:51 when you really read the scriptures carefully 27:53 fear is actually the opposite of love, 27:55 because perfect love does what? 27:59 It casts out all fear. The Christian not 28:03 operate out of fear, if you are a 28:05 Sunday Adventist Christian and your 28:07 relationship you live one afraid that 28:10 everyday when you wake up you're gonna 28:12 wake up and mess up and make mistake. 28:14 If you're operating out of fear something is 28:16 wrong with your relationship with 28:17 Jesus Christ. Because God has not given you 28:22 a spirit of fear. The devil wants you 28:24 to be afraid. The devil wants you to be afraid 28:27 that you won't make it. Roger Morneau's 28:32 last book. I'm a big fan of Roger Morneau. 28:36 When I read A Trip Into The Supernatural 28:37 I've to admit it, it was a little hard to 28:40 go to sleep that night, but I'm just being 28:43 honest some of you won't admit that. 28:45 I'll just admit it for you. But I read his book 28:49 Beware of Angels. And there's a powerful part 28:52 in the book where one of the woman who have 28:54 comeback to God and this woman had been dealing 28:58 with demons. I won't get into the story, 28:59 I don't have time, but they've been dealing 29:01 with some demon issues and one of the woman 29:04 who would comeback to God says you know 29:05 Roger Morneau he is interviewing her 29:07 in prison. You know the only time the demons 29:12 comeback is when I question watch this. 29:14 When I question whether or not God has actually 29:19 forgiven me for what I've done. 29:22 Steps to Christ Ellen White warns against 29:24 this idea that when you've, when you've 29:27 repented and turned your sins over it is, 29:30 it is the spirit of fear to go back and wonder 29:35 if God has forgiven you, because now you begin 29:38 to question the power of the blood 29:40 of Jesus Christ and it is, it actually infuses 29:46 power into the enemy against you. 29:49 Let me tell you something. Most of you 29:53 put bleach in a washing machine, 29:55 add a little bit of Tide detergent. 29:57 You don't go back and check half way through 29:59 cycle if the clothes is actually getting clean. 30:03 You've got more faith in Clorox 30:05 and Tide then you do in the blood of 30:07 Jesus Christ. Let me warn you that 30:12 you will live a trapped weekend life 30:16 if you leave your spiritual experience 30:18 afraid of God. We always read John 3:16 30:25 and I love John 3:16, but John 3:17 says, 30:28 For God send not his Son into the world 30:31 to condemn the world, but that the world 30:34 to his Son might be what? Let me tell you 30:36 something I don't doubt because I have 30:38 a stronger belief in Christ's ability 30:41 to save me. Then in the devil's ability 30:45 to take me. Amen. And it manifest, 30:50 look at the verse, loot at the verse, 30:52 God has not given us the spirit of fear, 30:54 but of power Christians ought to function 30:57 out of power. Not pride, but power. 31:04 Let me tell you something, I'm gonna 31:06 get into this tomorrow night a little bit more, 31:08 but I'm on national committees, and I went 31:10 to a recent meeting, a national meeting 31:12 and they had. They brought a high ranking 31:15 Catholic Priest to represent the bishops 31:17 and they brought in people from, 31:19 they worked for focus on a family 31:21 and all these different kind of right wing 31:24 etiologic areas even though I found out 31:27 the Catholic priest ironically were so far 31:30 left I couldn't find them. And as I'm sitting 31:36 there and I'm hearing what the 31:38 U.S. government. I will get into it 31:40 a little more tomorrow night. 31:41 It is planning to do in the area of education 31:44 around sex and sexuality I begin to pray 31:47 and ask God not that I be afraid to speak up, 31:50 because I'm in the presence of people 31:52 who are, who are of influence, 31:54 of dignitaries who run divisions at the centers 31:57 for disease control, but I say Lord 31:59 like Daniel now. Like Joseph now. 32:04 Let me speak for the people of America 32:07 who don't know that demonic forces 32:10 are at work to change the policies 32:12 of this great nation. Christian doesn't 32:16 function out of timidity and fear. 32:19 It's time when you got to stand up and say 32:22 right is right and wrong is wrong. Amen. 32:26 There's way too many chickens in the church. 32:30 Too many namby pamby, yellow bellied cowards 32:34 running around in the church. 32:37 Anything, we don't wanna offend anybody. 32:43 You think you can go to a Muslim school 32:45 and do some of the stuff we allow to happen 32:46 in our schools. We're afraid of everybody now. 32:53 And you know what happens when 32:54 you're afraid of everybody nobody 32:55 respects you. I'm getting ahead of myself, 33:00 we'll wait tomorrow night for that. 33:05 But the scripture said, he's given us power 33:07 and love, the church ought to function 33:10 out of love. I was talking to a 33:12 group of Pastors. We meet together, 33:14 we played basketball in Southern California. 33:16 We were talking and I said you know 33:18 we want to do community service 33:20 and we should do community service, 33:21 but I tell you what. We ought to do 33:23 community service simply because we love 33:25 the community. There ought to be no strings 33:29 attached. We're ought not do community service 33:31 and expect by default people are gonna be 33:34 baptized into the church. In other words 33:37 we ought to feed people who are hungry in our 33:39 communities simply because they're hungry 33:41 and we love them. Amen. Because we maybe 33:44 planting a seed that doesn't generate 33:46 or germinate for 10 or 15 years, 33:50 but we've to function out of love 33:52 for the people around us. Paul is warning us, 33:55 as he is warning Timothy that fear isn't how 33:58 you function, love is how you function. 34:02 But the last thing he says in verse seven 34:04 is powerful. The last thing he says 34:07 is powerful. He says, God has not given us 34:09 the spirit of fear. He says but of power of 34:13 love and of a sound mind. As a physician 34:17 one of the things I found interesting is 34:18 how many people would come to me. 34:20 When I used to work in Urgent Care 34:22 I don't work there anymore I miss it. 34:23 Still on, still on faculty there, 34:25 but and people would come in 34:28 and their only complaint would be 34:33 they're anxious, they're afraid. 34:36 I mean you would see people come in 34:38 and they were afraid of both options. 34:40 Now let me explain that. Young ladies would 34:43 come in and they would want me 34:44 to medicate them, because they were afraid 34:48 to get married. But they were also 34:51 afraid to stay single. There are people who are 34:57 afraid to take the job and afraid to stay 35:01 unemployed. We live in a society of fear, 35:06 anxiety disorders have taken over 35:08 and people come in and they ask for SSRIs 35:11 Serotonin Selective Reuptake Inhibitors, 35:14 the most famous of which is Prozac 35:16 and they figure if you write them 35:18 a prescription for the magic pill. 35:22 All of their problems will go away 35:25 and you know what I used to do. 35:26 I still love doing this, that's why I love 35:27 working at Loma Linda, because I get my 35:30 prescription pad. I'd get a copy of book 35:32 Steps to Christ. And I would write on the 35:36 prescription pad. I said I will write you 35:38 a better medicine than Prozac. 35:41 And I would write 2nd Timothy chapter one 35:46 and verse seven. Amen. I want you to take this 35:49 TID which means three times a day. 35:52 And, and, and you don't have to take it 35:55 with food in fact you're better off fasting 35:58 when you take this medicine. Amen. 36:04 A sound mind is what we need, but yet we live 36:07 in a time when people are so addicted to 36:09 substances and media and pornography 36:13 and everything else and I do studies 36:15 where I talk about and I got the idea from 36:17 one of our great preaching leader 36:19 Doug Batchelor about the body 36:21 as, as, as the temple in and when I went into it 36:24 as a physician I looked at the frontal lobe 36:26 of the brain and the human brain is 36:27 33 percent frontal lobe. And when I looked at it. 36:34 If you line up a sanctuary, you imagine 36:37 up to the body, the frontal lobe, 36:38 the reasoning part of your brain, right 36:40 here behind your forehead boom. 36:43 It's like the most Holy place. 36:45 This is where all of the most complex reasoning 36:49 where GABA, Dopamine, Acetylcholine, 36:52 adrenaline were all of these known chemicals 36:54 are released in your brain. These are what 36:56 make you have your being, your sensibility, 36:58 make you think. It's the frontal lobe 37:01 of your brain where cocaine and alcohol 37:03 and caffeine and nicotine all have 37:05 their affect. Oh I don't miss this. 37:08 If this is where all of them have their affect. 37:12 In fact what you do when people become addicts 37:16 and get on these substances as mild as 37:18 caffeine is considered to be or as harsh as 37:21 cocaine is considered to be. 37:22 What you actually you do is block 37:24 what the most holy place is made for, 37:27 which is, for the kind of glory of God 37:29 to fall on. The reason the devil wants 37:35 the world addicted to substances 37:37 and pornographic and movies and music 37:39 and all the rest of the addicted behaviors, 37:42 gambling is because if your mind is occupied, 37:48 the part of your brain where the Holy Spirit 37:52 is supposed to plug in and what the Bible says 37:55 the love of Christ can strain at us, 37:58 because GABA is one of those chemicals 37:59 in your brain that when it is working right 38:01 it literally helps you to behave properly. 38:06 It is a constraining element, 38:09 but alcohol and marijuana both block 38:11 the release of GABA, so the frontal lobe, 38:14 the sanctuary model being used like 38:17 the holy place in the, the most holy place 38:19 in the sanctuary. If you're on that stuff 38:21 you block out. The affects of the 38:26 living God in your life hence the scripture says 38:30 the drunk will not inherit the 38:33 kingdom of God. Because you can't 38:38 have a sound mind. Yet our young people, 38:47 more and more of them are getting caught up 38:49 and you know the devil's slick. 38:52 He couldn't get some of us with marijuana, 38:55 he couldn't get some of us with alcohol, 38:57 but he created these lattes 39:01 and caffeine-filled beverages and you know 39:05 you start studying you need to stay awake 39:07 at night, so you break out some Mountain Dew. 39:11 So of you are laughing, with a guilty 39:13 looking laugh. And I understand, 39:19 I've been a student. I understand 39:20 the stress is, but understand that 39:23 the devil just wants an end. A sound mind, 39:28 everyone of our churches should have a way 39:32 for people who are addicted to receive 39:34 the counseling and the help they need 39:37 to get off of whatever substance 39:39 or behavior is addicting them. 39:41 Our churches are incomplete in their 39:44 ministry if we don't have that. 39:46 Because if you bring people in with 39:48 their addiction, the chemical addictions 39:50 will leave a door open for the devil 39:53 to continually get to them. 39:58 Paul says in verse 8. Be not thou therefore 40:03 ashamed of the testimony of our Lord. 40:08 Nor of me his prisoner. Let me tell you that 40:14 Paul was not afraid. He was okay with 40:18 being a prisoner. He understood 40:21 the importance of suffering for God. 40:25 In fact when you jump to chapter 2 40:29 and I've gonna jump down to verse three 40:31 of chapter 2 for time sake. 40:33 Chapter 2 and verse 3 of 2nd Timothy 40:36 Paul as he's in his dungeon writing 40:38 this letter to Timothy. He says in verse 3 40:41 of chapter 2. He says, Thou therefore endure 40:44 hardness as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. 40:49 He said to me you got to be able to take some 40:50 licks if you're gonna be a soldier. 40:53 No man that warreth entangleth himself 40:56 with the affairs of this life. 40:58 That he may please him who have chosen him 41:02 to be a soldier. Let me tell you something 41:04 when you joined the church. Now let me, 41:07 let me couch this just right. 41:09 I think it's important that the church has 41:11 social aspects to it. I think it's important 41:14 that we have potlucks and fellowships 41:15 and, and, and other things like that. 41:18 I think that's critical. Because it's important 41:20 that we don't need, we can kind what we need 41:22 in the church and wouldn't have to go out 41:24 in the world looking for it. 41:25 So I think those things are important, 41:27 the things like GYC. When we have, 41:29 we have a free time and walking us 41:31 you guys sitting on tables and talking as 41:33 important. But understand you 41:34 didn't joined a potluck club when you 41:36 joined a church. I know some folk they live for 41:40 the potluck. I know folk that. 41:42 In California there are so many wonderful, 41:44 beautiful different ethnicities you can, 41:47 you can just do a rotation. Korean church 41:49 this week, Korean potluck. Filipino church 41:52 next week, Filipino potluck. Spanish church 41:55 the next week, Spanish potluck, 41:57 but you didn't join a potluck club. 42:00 You've joined an army. You've joined the army 42:04 of the living God. Amen. And it's important 42:09 as soldiers in the army of the living God, 42:13 that we understand that this earth 42:16 is not our home. I had a friend who was in Iraq. 42:23 And he was in Saddam Hussein's palace 42:25 emailing me few years back. He was telling me 42:29 how the toilets were gold encrusted 42:31 and all of the fancy things 42:33 that were in there. Thank you. 42:34 And he said one of the things that he learned 42:38 in combat. Well he is not active combat. 42:44 Is that when you're out there they are actually 42:46 fighting I mean your fighting it's a terrible 42:49 thing to think about home while 42:52 you're fighting. While you're fighting 42:55 your mind has to be only be on the fight. 42:58 Paul says to Timothy look be careful that 43:01 you don't make the earth your home. 43:03 Be careful that your thoughts aren't here, 43:06 you are not more concerned with moving up 43:08 the corporate ladder. More concerned with how 43:11 good looking your spouse, somebody 43:13 ought to say amen? Amen. Because some of us 43:17 we're doing the genetic surveys of individuals 43:19 to figure out how good looking our children 43:22 are gonna be. When you're a soldier in the 43:28 army of God the earth is not what captures you. 43:34 Let me tell you something, after burying 43:36 relatives the last four, five years in a row 43:39 I can tell you at every funeral was the casket 43:43 is dropped into the hole is that Lord God 43:46 remind me on a daily bases. There is nothing 43:50 in this earth that can be afforded to me. 43:52 That replaces what God has in store for me. 43:57 Because you won't be a good soldier 43:59 if this is your home. We jump down to verse 15 44:07 of chapter 2 where Paul says, 44:11 Study to show yourself approved unto God, 44:14 a workman that needs not to be ashamed, 44:17 rightly dividing the word of truth. 44:21 He says but shun profane and vain babbling, 44:26 for they will increase unto more ungodliness. 44:30 It sounds like Paul knew what the top 40 would 44:35 look like in 2010 at the end of the year. 44:39 The music of this world today literally is 44:42 almost described here. It is literally profane 44:47 and vain everybody bragging about 44:51 what they had and what they can get. 44:53 Who they are and how much of a 44:55 rock star they are. But Paul says don't do that, 44:59 study to show yourself approved unto God. 45:05 Rightly dividing the word of truth, 45:07 everything you do your studying, 45:09 did you know that. Every television program 45:12 you watch, every movie, every book you read, 45:14 everything you do you're constantly 45:16 and always studying, the human brain 45:18 is so complex that everything we taken 45:20 in is permanently filed and stored. 45:23 As people will ask, well why I can't 45:24 get it back when I wanna take a test. 45:26 Well usually the reason people can't retrieve 45:28 information for tests they store too much 45:30 of the junk in front of the stuff 45:31 they need to get to. So it's not enough to 45:36 coming to church once a week and be filled up. 45:38 And then go back can be filled up with the world 45:41 you have a six and half days of the week. 45:44 You won't ever be able to get the stuff 45:46 you need to get to when you need to get to it. 45:49 He says study to show yourself approved 45:52 not to men, but to God. He says in verse 20 46:01 in a great house there are not only 46:03 vessels of gold and of silver, 46:05 but also wood and a worth some to honor 46:09 and some to dishonor for men therefore perch 46:12 himself from these he shall be a vessel 46:14 unto honor sanctified and meet for the 46:17 master's use and prepared on to 46:20 every good work. The Great House 46:22 is the church. And I warn people sometimes 46:26 when you come to church you expect that 46:28 everybody in church gonna kind and loving 46:30 and very Christian. Paul is warning Timothy 46:33 and he is warning us that in church 46:35 there are people how are made out of 46:36 golden silver spiritually. 46:37 But in church there are also be 46:39 who are made of wood and clay in fact 46:42 there are people who are made out of Tupperware 46:44 and Styrofoam in some churches. 46:48 And what happens is those people will say 46:50 one wrong word to you and you know 46:53 what happens people run away from church. 46:55 Don't be so gullible. Understand that 46:59 the devil is going to send his people to 47:01 church as well, but I like what Paul does here 47:05 for Timothy, because Paul even says 47:08 even the people who are in church 47:10 for the wrong reason can be saved. 47:12 Watch this, he says in verse 24, 47:15 And the servant of the Lord must not strive; 47:19 but be gentle unto all men, 47:21 apt to teach, patient. In meekness instructing 47:25 those that oppose themselves; 47:28 if God peradventure will give them repentance 47:32 to the acknowledging of the truth. 47:34 Watch verse 26, its powerful, 47:37 And that they may recover themselves 47:39 out of the snare of the devil, 47:42 who are taken captive by him at his will. 47:49 The good soldier is a specialist 47:52 in reconnaissance. Amen. The good soldier 47:56 specializes in finding those that have 47:59 drafted away from God. How have given upon 48:01 God, the good soldier goes on Reconnaissance 48:04 missions and gets back for God 48:06 what's been lost. You see some of us 48:09 we've been so insolated. We don't want to go 48:13 out and I mean in sometimes you have 48:15 to stay awake, if it's your old past 48:17 and a place you used to be maybe ought not to be 48:19 the one that goes back. But don't be afraid 48:22 there's somebody else to go, somebody else 48:24 to go get your cousins. Don't be afraid 48:26 there's somebody else to go get your old friends 48:29 from high school. Don't be afraid to go back. 48:32 We are in a reconnaissance 48:34 state of mind. We are looking for people 48:36 who can be redeemed, why? Because we have 48:40 been redeemed. And guess what if God can 48:43 redeem a wretch like me. I have full confidence 48:47 that there is nothing on this planet, 48:49 no one on this planet that cannot be redeemed. 48:55 The good soldier is on a Reconnaissance mission. 48:59 And a good soldier loves to see when the devil 49:02 had someone. And God is able to bring them 49:05 back to him. The story is told of an earthquake 49:11 that happened in Armenia. A father was 49:17 taking his son to school one day. 49:20 And as the father is taking 49:22 his son to school. He drops the young boy 49:26 at the front of the elementary school. 49:31 The father normally cannot get back in time 49:34 to pick up his son, so this particular day 49:36 the young boy says, daddy promise me, 49:39 promise me that you will be back to get me today 49:43 at the school. The young boy's name was Armon. 49:52 The father says Armon, I promise, 49:56 I will be back to get you. And the father 50:00 arrives at his factory and begins to work, 50:04 the ground begins to sway, and the building 50:07 begins to sway. The factor is damaged 50:10 the father runs outside. He looks around 50:15 and most of his co-workers are okay, 50:17 but as he begins to look around the city 50:19 as the earthquake begins to settle down 50:21 he sees that there is seriously damage 50:24 to much of the buildings around. 50:29 Father decides that he needs to go back 50:32 to the school and look for his son to see 50:34 what happened. He begins to run back across town 50:39 over the rubble to the school. 50:42 When he gets to the school, parents have 50:44 already began to gather around the building 50:46 where it once stood, now a pile of rubble. 50:49 Parents are weeping, crying. 50:55 This father steps back and looks around for 50:58 landmarks whatever is left and figures out 51:00 where his son's classroom would 51:02 have been and climbs up to the top of the rubble 51:04 gets to the top and begins to take 51:06 one piece of rubble a time and throw it aside. 51:14 The parents say what are you doing up there? 51:17 Are you crazy they're all dead, come down. 51:23 The father doesn't pay them any mind 51:25 and he just continues tossing it aside. 51:29 Firemen and police come, fireman says, 51:33 it's not safe get down. He ignores them 51:36 and just keeps tossing the rubble aside. 51:44 Twelve hours later he's still there, 51:47 16 hours later he is still there, 51:50 24 hours later he's still there. 51:53 Hands now bloody from the twisted metal 51:56 and the sharp rubble, but he keep 51:58 throwing it aside. Thirty six hours later 52:05 the father is there spent, hungry, thirsty, 52:10 working to remove the rubble. 52:13 In the 36th hour when all hope would seem 52:17 to have been lost he picks up a piece of 52:19 rubble and tosses into the side 52:21 and sees a dark cavern. Raises his head back 52:28 and puts his mouth, hand to his mouth 52:30 and he shouts down into the hole Armon, Armon. 52:38 A small voice from inside the dark pit 52:41 cries back out yes daddy. His father says, 52:47 Armon are you okay? Armon says, yes daddy. 52:53 We're hungry, some of us have been injured daddy, 52:56 but we're here and we're alright, 52:57 the room fell around us daddy. 53:02 His father says give me your hand son let me 53:04 pull you out. He says no daddy, 53:06 I'm gonna help my friends get out first, 53:08 some of them are hurt, because I told 53:11 my friends don't worry, my daddy is coming back 53:15 to get me. Let me tell you young people, 53:22 your daddy is coming back to get you. 53:25 I know this world is all messed up and I know 53:28 it seems like there is no hope sometimes, 53:30 but I promise you our daddy is coming back 53:34 to get us. We just draw near to Him, 53:38 He will draw near to us. As the appeal song 53:42 is sung, you wanna comedown front 53:46 and give your life to Jesus Christ. 53:47 We dedicate your life. Just join me down front. 54:12 For your nearness Lord I hunger 54:17 For your nearness Lord I wait 54:22 Hold me ever closer Father 54:27 Such a love I can't escape 54:35 For your nearness I am hoping 54:40 For your nearness Lord I long 54:45 Have no need of any other 54:50 I have found where I belong 54:55 Yes, I have found where I belong 55:00 So draw me nearer Lord Never let me go 55:11 Closer to your heart Draw me nearer Lord 55:22 Draw me nearer my Lord 55:36 In your nearness there is healing 55:41 What was broken now made whole 55:46 Restoration in its fullness 55:51 Lasting hope for all who come 55:57 In your nearness I take shelter 56:02 Where you are is where I'm home 56:07 I have need of only one thing 56:12 To be here before your throne 56:18 To be here before you throne 56:23 So draw me nearer Lord Never let me go 56:34 Closer to your heart Draw me nearer Lord 56:45 So draw me nearer Lord Never let me go 56:55 Closer to your heart Draw me nearer Lord 57:07 Draw me nearer Lord And keep me here, 57:17 keep me here There's nowhere else I rather be 57:24 So keep me here, keep me here 57:29 There's nowhere else I rather be 57:34 There's nowhere else I rather be 57:43 So draw me nearer Lord Never let me go 57:54 Closer to your heart Draw me nearer Lord 58:05 Draw me nearer Lord Draw me nearer my Lord. |
Revised 2014-12-17