Good Morning, GYC. Good morning.
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You know, I'm so thankful
you all came out this morning.
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It's Sunday morning at
the 2010/2011 Conference.
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And I know we've
had a really full week,
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but the Lord still has
blessings yet in store today.
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So I'm thankful you came to
this devotional this morning.
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We are going to be blessed.
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Why don't we invite
the spirit of our Father,
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our heavenly
Father, the spirit of God,
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to come and join us today,
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as we listen to
the morning devotional.
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So if you would
please bow your heads
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with me in prayer.
Dear Heavenly Father,
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we thank you so much
for all the blessings
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that you have poured out
upon this conference so far.
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We know that you have yet
more in store this morning.
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So we ask, Father, that
you be with the speaker,
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help her words,
Father, to be your words.
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And help our hearts to be
opened to Your Holy Spirit
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that we can
truly learn the lessons
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that you have in
store for us today.
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We thank you so much
for all of your blessings.
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We ask this in your name. Amen.
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I have a prayer as pure as gold
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That where You lead me I will go
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And I'll embrace the holy plea
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Each time Your
Spirit calls to me
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And in that
hour, and in that time
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When I must
lose my will in Thine
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My true devotion will be found
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The day I lay my Isaac down
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Each sacrifice You call me to
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I'll die to
self, I'll live for You
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Take up the
cross, forsake the crown
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The day I lay my Isaac down
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Each sacrifice You call me to
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I'll die to
self, I'll live for You
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Take up the
cross, forsake the crown
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The day I lay my Isaac down
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Take up the
cross, forsake the crown
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The day I lay
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my Isaac down
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Amen! Amen!
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Good morning, GYC. Good morning.
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This is... This is it.
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Are we ready? Yeah.
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I think often
times Sunday morning
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is the hardest part of GYC.
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Kind of like everything is over.
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It's time to go back home
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and start living out
what we have learned.
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Amen. And I pray
by the grace of God
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that we are
ready to go back home
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and live the life
of no turning back.
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This morning, I'm going to share
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with you a message that is very,
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very dear to my
heart. And it's a message
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that I think if I
could preach no other message
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it would be this one.
As I ask your permission
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to speak to your
hearts this morning,
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I'm going to speak my heart.
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And I am going
to lay on our hearts
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a burden that is very,
very heavy on my heart.
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So I ask you to pray for me,
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pray for yourselves and
pray that God would speak
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to each one of us
this morning. Amen. Amen.
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The title of our
message is Ready To Die.
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What's our title? Ready To Die.
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It's not morbid, I
promise. Ready To Die.
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Now as we think
about that title,
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there are many
people we can think of
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in this world who
are willing to die
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for something
that they believe in.
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Martin Luther King, Jr.
is the celebrated champion
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of America's
civil rights movement.
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And we know those famous words
of how he had a dream, right?
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He lived for that dream
and he died for that dream.
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Assassinated in 1968.
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In his speech at the
Great March on Detroit,
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on June 23rd, 1963,
Martin Luther King, Jr.
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said these very,
very powerful words
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that are going to
form the springboard
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of our message this morning.
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And he said this.
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"There are some
things so precious,
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"some things so eternally true
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"that they are worth dying for.
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"And I submit to
you that if a man
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"has not discovered something
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that he will die for,
he's not fit to live."
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I'm gonna read
that last part again.
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"I submit to you that
if a man has not discovered
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"something that he will die for,
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he is not fit to live."
He's not worthy to live.
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Mark those words.
Essentially saying that
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if we have not found
something so dear to us
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that we're
willing to die for it,
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we are not worthy of
life. And this morning,
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I am going to ask us
to reflect on two very
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simple yet profound questions.
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First, is our life worth living?
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And second, is
the cause of Christ
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so dear to us that we'd
be willing to die for it
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if need be? Are
we willing to say,
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"No turning back till death"?
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Before we get into this message,
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I ask that we
pray. I'm going to kneel,
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but you can stay where you are.
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Dear Father in heaven,
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Lord, we have
gathered here this morning
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one more time to
hear a word from you.
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Gracious Lord, we ask humbly
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that yet again You
would send Your Holy Spirit
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to be here with us this morning.
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That You'd send
Your Spirit, Father,
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to speak to our
hearts. And Father,
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to fall afresh
upon each one of us
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here this
morning. And dear Lord,
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for our sake and for
the sake of our salvation,
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for the sake of
everyone who is listening
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to this message this morning,
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we ask that you
would take my thoughts,
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my words, my
lips and anoint them.
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That Father, you would place
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the words in my mouth
that need to be spoken.
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That this morning,
Jesus would be lifted up.
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That this morning, we
would see and touch Him.
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And that this morning,
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He would give us a
new reason for living.
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It's for this that we pray,
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and it's for this
that we ask believing
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in Jesus' name, amen.
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"And I submit to
you that if a man
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"has not discovered
something he will die for,
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he is not fit to live."
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Take you Bibles to Acts 21.
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We are going to read
together what is arguably
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a very moving and
telling account in the life
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of the Apostle Paul. In Acts 21,
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when you get there,
please say amen. Amen.
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Are we all there? I
here the pages turning.
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Are we there? Amen.
Okay, we are going to
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breeze through
a couple of themes
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together in the book
of Acts this morning.
00:10:13.50\00:10:15.43
But in Acts Chapter 21,
00:10:15.83\00:10:17.23
we find Paul in
the midst of his third
00:10:17.23\00:10:20.13
missionary
journey and as we are told
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in Acts Chapter 20 and verse 16,
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he was hurrying to be
in Jerusalem if possible
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for the day of Pentecost.
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And so we are
reading in Acts 21.
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I am going to read and
you are hearing from verse 8.
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The Bible says,
"And the next day
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"we that were of
Paul's company departed
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"and came unto
Caesarea, and we entered
00:10:42.90\00:10:45.86
"into the house of
Philip the Evangelist,
00:10:45.86\00:10:48.23
"which was one of the
seven, and abode with him.
00:10:48.23\00:10:51.03
"And the same man
had four daughters,
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"virgins, which did prophesy.
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"And as we
tarried there many days,
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"there came down from Judaea
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"a certain prophet named Agabus.
00:11:01.13\00:11:03.50
"And when he was coming
to us, he took Paul's girdle
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"and bound his
own hands and feet
00:11:07.70\00:11:10.16
"and said, 'Thus
saith the Holy Ghost,
00:11:10.16\00:11:13.40
"so shall the Jews at
Jerusalem bind the man
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"that owneth this
girdle and shall deliver him
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"into the hands
of the Gentiles.'
00:11:19.93\00:11:21.90
"And when we heard these things,
00:11:23.26\00:11:25.20
"both we and they of
that place, besought him
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"not to go up to Jerusalem.
00:11:27.83\00:11:30.90
"Then Paul answered,
'What mean ye to weep
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"and to break mine heart?
00:11:37.30\00:11:39.00
"For I am ready
not to be bound only,
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"but also to die at Jerusalem
00:11:43.40\00:11:45.63
for the name of the Lord Jesus."
00:11:46.23\00:11:48.40
You're reading this
account, you're told that
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Paul is on his way to Jerusalem.
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And as he and his
companions pause in Caesarea,
00:11:55.63\00:11:58.40
they stop at the house
of Philip the Evangelist.
00:11:58.40\00:12:00.80
And as they are at his house,
00:12:01.26\00:12:02.80
this prophet named
Agabus comes down from Judea
00:12:02.80\00:12:05.53
and he has a
message from the Holy Ghost.
00:12:05.53\00:12:08.30
And the message is
given for us in verse 11.
00:12:08.30\00:12:11.70
The prophet binds his own
hands and feet and then he says,
00:12:12.20\00:12:15.76
"This is what they will do
to you, Paul, in Jerusalem."
00:12:16.06\00:12:18.73
Now this message
is not new to Paul.
00:12:19.96\00:12:22.66
If you go back
to Acts 20 verse 23.
00:12:22.66\00:12:26.06
As Paul is speaking
to the elders of Ephesus,
00:12:27.06\00:12:29.66
he tells them very clearly
that as he's going to Jerusalem
00:12:29.66\00:12:34.53
he doesn't know what
will befall him there,
00:12:34.53\00:12:37.10
save that the Holy
Ghost witnesseth in every city
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saying that bonds and
afflictions abide him.
00:12:40.63\00:12:44.90
So Paul is going there
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knowing that he's got bonds
and afflictions waiting for him.
00:12:46.60\00:12:50.96
And then here
comes the prophet Agabus,
00:12:51.50\00:12:53.33
who confirms
that he already knows.
00:12:53.33\00:12:56.23
And he says, "Paul,
when you get to Jerusalem,
00:12:56.23\00:12:58.70
"they will bind
you, hands and feet,
00:12:58.70\00:13:00.43
and they will deliver
you unto to the Gentiles."
00:13:00.43\00:13:02.53
The message comes, Paul, yes,
00:13:02.90\00:13:05.13
the Holy Ghost is
saying, letting you know
00:13:05.46\00:13:08.33
there's bonds, there's
afflictions waiting for you.
00:13:08.33\00:13:10.76
And then as Paul's companions
00:13:11.86\00:13:13.46
hear these words,
they fear for Paul.
00:13:13.46\00:13:18.26
And we're told in verse
12 that they besought him
00:13:18.26\00:13:22.16
not to go to Jerusalem.
00:13:22.16\00:13:24.26
And so Paul's
companions literally begged him,
00:13:25.00\00:13:28.13
they pleaded with
him, "Paul, please don't go
00:13:28.13\00:13:31.16
"to Jerusalem.
Because if you go,
00:13:31.16\00:13:33.93
"they will bind
you, hand and feet,
00:13:33.93\00:13:35.30
they may even kill you.
Please don't go to Jerusalem."
00:13:35.30\00:13:38.00
And they did it
with tears in their eyes.
00:13:38.76\00:13:42.83
I want you to imagine the scene.
00:13:43.76\00:13:45.53
The aged Apostle
Paul and his friends,
00:13:46.26\00:13:49.03
Luke and his
companions kneeling before him
00:13:49.50\00:13:51.50
with tears in their eyes.
00:13:51.50\00:13:53.76
"Paul, please
don't go to Jerusalem.
00:13:53.76\00:13:57.33
They will bind you
and they will kill you."
00:13:59.53\00:14:02.06
And then listen
to Paul's response.
00:14:03.10\00:14:05.16
As he speaks in
verse 13, Paul says,
00:14:06.03\00:14:09.36
"What mean ye to weep
and to break mine heart?"
00:14:09.80\00:14:12.66
Paul says stop. "Stop weeping,
00:14:13.83\00:14:16.63
"you're breaking my
heart. Because I'm ready,
00:14:16.63\00:14:20.90
"not just to be
bound but also to die,
00:14:20.90\00:14:24.20
if need be for the
name of the Lord Jesus."
00:14:25.00\00:14:27.90
Here is a man
who was ready to die.
00:14:29.23\00:14:32.23
In his state of mind,
it's "Okay, there's bonds,
00:14:33.56\00:14:36.50
"there's
affliction. Fine, bring it on,
00:14:36.50\00:14:38.70
I'm ready to be
bound and to die."
00:14:38.93\00:14:41.93
And placing this in the context
00:14:46.53\00:14:48.63
of Paul's
ministry, we must remember
00:14:48.63\00:14:51.40
that Paul had
already demonstrated
00:14:51.40\00:14:54.46
his willingness
to die for the cause.
00:14:54.46\00:14:58.00
Go back to Acts 14.
00:14:58.00\00:14:59.43
Now I want to read with
you the account recorded
00:14:59.43\00:15:03.16
in Acts Chapter 14.
00:15:03.16\00:15:04.53
The couple chapters before.
00:15:05.73\00:15:07.10
When you get
there, please say amen.
00:15:07.10\00:15:08.56
Amen. In Acts Chapter 14,
00:15:08.56\00:15:12.30
we find Paul and
Barnabas at Iconium.
00:15:12.30\00:15:15.03
And we're told in
verse 1 of Acts Chapter 14,
00:15:15.53\00:15:19.60
that "It came to pass in Iconium
00:15:19.60\00:15:22.33
"that they went both together
into the synagogue of the Jews
00:15:22.33\00:15:25.53
"and so spake
that a great multitude
00:15:25.53\00:15:28.36
"both of the Jews and
also of the Greeks believed.
00:15:28.36\00:15:32.23
"But the unbelieving
Jews stirred up the Gentiles
00:15:32.23\00:15:35.06
"and made their
minds evil affected
00:15:35.06\00:15:37.96
against the brethren."
And so as Paul and Barnabas
00:15:37.96\00:15:41.93
enter Iconium,
they begin to preach,
00:15:41.93\00:15:44.20
to reason in the synagogue.
00:15:44.20\00:15:46.10
And we are told that a
great multitude believes.
00:15:46.10\00:15:49.16
But as this great
multitude believes,
00:15:49.93\00:15:51.43
the unbelieving
Jews stir up trouble.
00:15:51.43\00:15:54.20
And then we're told in verse 5
00:15:54.20\00:15:57.00
of Acts Chapter 14
that they go so far
00:15:57.00\00:16:00.06
as to hatch a plot
"to use them despitefully
00:16:00.06\00:16:03.50
and to stone them."
Then verse 6 tells us
00:16:03.50\00:16:07.76
when they were ware of it,
they fled unto Lystra and Derbe,
00:16:07.76\00:16:12.33
cities of
Lycaonia, and unto the region
00:16:12.60\00:16:14.83
that lieth round about.
00:16:14.83\00:16:16.33
And there they
preached the Gospel.
00:16:16.80\00:16:20.76
Are you reading what's happening
00:16:20.76\00:16:23.00
in this account with me?
00:16:23.00\00:16:25.13
You would think that a
man who was almost stoned,
00:16:25.13\00:16:29.10
according to verse
5, the unbelieving Jews
00:16:29.10\00:16:31.26
hatched a plot to
use them despitefully
00:16:31.26\00:16:34.20
and to stone them. So
there's a very real threat
00:16:34.20\00:16:37.43
that they might be
stoned for preaching the Gospel.
00:16:37.43\00:16:40.56
And then when they
become aware of the plot
00:16:40.56\00:16:42.53
they flee and they
get to the next city,
00:16:42.73\00:16:44.60
Lystra and Derbe. And
guess what they do there?
00:16:44.60\00:16:47.10
They preach the Gospel.
00:16:47.10\00:16:48.33
Now you would think somebody
00:16:49.30\00:16:50.53
who was almost stoned to death
00:16:50.53\00:16:52.66
would have the
sense not to repeat
00:16:52.90\00:16:54.76
the crime for which he
was almost stoned. Not so.
00:16:54.76\00:16:59.03
They were almost stoned,
they flee and they keep on
00:17:00.30\00:17:03.23
preaching the Gospel.
00:17:03.23\00:17:04.50
Fearless! And I can
imagine them saying,
00:17:06.36\00:17:09.90
"Stone me if you must, I cannot,
00:17:09.90\00:17:12.33
dare not stop
living for my Jesus."
00:17:12.33\00:17:14.40
There they preached the Gospel.
00:17:16.03\00:17:18.53
Now lest we think
it was just a threat,
00:17:19.10\00:17:21.86
keep reading in Acts Chapter 14.
00:17:21.86\00:17:23.83
By the time you get to verse 19,
00:17:24.40\00:17:27.50
you are told that "There
came thither certain Jews
00:17:27.50\00:17:31.50
"from Antioch and Iconium
who persuaded the people,
00:17:31.50\00:17:35.26
"and having stoned
Paul, drew him out of the city
00:17:35.26\00:17:39.33
supposing he had been dead."
00:17:39.33\00:17:42.36
So they actually did stone him.
00:17:43.76\00:17:47.03
And verse 19 tells us
that they drew him out
00:17:47.03\00:17:50.00
of the city
supposing he had been dead.
00:17:50.00\00:17:52.96
They did not just take
some small little stones
00:17:53.16\00:17:55.70
and throw them at him.
00:17:55.70\00:17:56.96
They were trying to kill him.
00:17:58.13\00:18:00.50
And I know that verse
tells us they only drew
00:18:00.50\00:18:03.23
him out thinking he was dead.
00:18:03.23\00:18:05.63
So that's how
surely they stoned him
00:18:06.46\00:18:08.60
until they convinced
themselves he was dead.
00:18:08.60\00:18:12.53
And so here's the Apostle Paul.
00:18:14.76\00:18:16.93
Bruised, bleeding,
at the point of death.
00:18:16.93\00:18:21.66
Stoned for preaching the Gospel.
00:18:21.66\00:18:24.13
And they drag him
out thinking he's dead.
00:18:24.13\00:18:28.70
And then verse 20 tells us,
00:18:28.70\00:18:31.23
"Howbeit, as the
disciples stood round about him,
00:18:32.36\00:18:35.80
"he rose up, and
came into the city
00:18:35.80\00:18:38.00
"and the next day he departed
00:18:38.00\00:18:39.96
"with Barnabas to Derbe.
00:18:39.96\00:18:42.16
And when they had preached
the Gospel to that city..."
00:18:42.16\00:18:45.60
Now, I am going in parts,
00:18:46.13\00:18:47.46
because I am thinking
I'm reading about somebody
00:18:47.46\00:18:49.30
who's kind of
out of his mind here.
00:18:49.30\00:18:51.50
Verse 21 tells us, "There
they preached the Gospel."
00:18:52.53\00:18:57.13
And according to
verse 20, the next day...
00:18:58.06\00:19:00.30
The very next day.
Here's a man stoned to death,
00:19:00.76\00:19:04.56
bleeding bad and
bruised from the stoning.
00:19:04.56\00:19:07.06
He gets up, and
the very next day
00:19:07.06\00:19:10.66
guess what he's
doing? Preaching the Gospel!
00:19:10.66\00:19:13.10
Is that Paul? Don't you get it?
00:19:13.73\00:19:15.43
Isn't this the man who
was stoned just yesterday?
00:19:17.73\00:19:20.70
Yes. Is he still
bleeding? Probably.
00:19:20.70\00:19:24.10
Is he hurting?
Probably he's hurting.
00:19:24.10\00:19:26.06
But that was not
enough to stop him
00:19:27.36\00:19:29.76
preaching the
Gospel. Here's a man
00:19:30.83\00:19:33.80
who was ready to
die. Stone me if you must,
00:19:33.80\00:19:38.30
kill me if you must,
00:19:38.30\00:19:39.73
I will still keep on
preaching the Gospel.
00:19:39.73\00:19:43.16
Here's a man who
was ready to die.
00:19:44.46\00:19:46.86
Martin Luther King, Jr.
I'm going to quote again.
00:19:56.53\00:19:59.43
"If a man has
not found something
00:20:00.36\00:20:03.46
that he will die for,
he's not fit to live."
00:20:03.46\00:20:07.30
History records,
as we have learned
00:20:13.30\00:20:16.00
from our evening
devotionals already,
00:20:16.00\00:20:18.26
that Paul did die
for the cause of Christ.
00:20:18.26\00:20:20.56
He was beheaded.
00:20:21.00\00:20:22.03
And Paul doesn't stand alone.
00:20:26.60\00:20:28.50
Many of the other disciples
suffered the same fate.
00:20:30.50\00:20:34.00
Andrew, the brother of Peter
00:20:34.96\00:20:37.23
preached the
Gospel throughout Asia.
00:20:37.23\00:20:40.00
He was arrested,
crucified on a Cross,
00:20:40.00\00:20:42.33
two ends of which were fixed
transversely in the ground.
00:20:42.33\00:20:46.36
Then you know of Stephen,
the first Christian martyr,
00:20:47.50\00:20:50.83
stoned to death for
preaching the returning Savior.
00:20:51.10\00:20:55.80
Luke, the Gospel writer
00:20:57.46\00:20:58.93
traveled with Paul
to various countries
00:20:59.20\00:21:01.63
and was supposedly
hanged on an olive tree
00:21:01.63\00:21:05.13
by a deleterious
priest in Greece.
00:21:05.13\00:21:07.06
And then there are others
in our more recent history.
00:21:09.70\00:21:12.73
David
Livingstone died on his knees
00:21:14.70\00:21:17.96
in the mission fields of Africa,
00:21:17.96\00:21:19.60
having given his
life and his youth
00:21:20.33\00:21:24.13
to bring the Gospel
00:21:24.66\00:21:25.80
to unreached
people groups in Africa.
00:21:25.80\00:21:29.00
In 1956, Jim Elliot
and his missionary friends
00:21:30.53\00:21:34.63
died in the jungle of
Ecuador. You know how they died?
00:21:34.63\00:21:38.56
They had gone there
trying to bring the Gospel
00:21:39.66\00:21:42.53
to a hostile Indian tribe.
00:21:42.53\00:21:45.10
And they were speared to death.
00:21:46.10\00:21:47.96
Do you know what a
spear is? Poisonous spear?
00:21:47.96\00:21:50.73
They were speared to
death by that same tribe.
00:21:50.73\00:21:53.86
People who are ready to die.
00:21:55.86\00:21:57.83
And lest we think that
these are ancient examples,
00:22:01.30\00:22:05.56
let me give you something
that is happening today.
00:22:05.56\00:22:08.10
And I spoke with
you very briefly about
00:22:09.83\00:22:11.63
our missionaries
in IMPACT, Zambia.
00:22:11.63\00:22:13.76
IMPACT is an
acronym. Inspired Missionaries
00:22:13.76\00:22:16.93
Proclaiming the
Advent of Christ Today.
00:22:16.93\00:22:19.20
IMPACT Zambia. And they
took a mission last year...
00:22:20.36\00:22:23.43
Two years ago now,
2009, to Luana Valley.
00:22:24.06\00:22:29.36
Now, Luana Valley is one of
Zambia's most remote areas ever.
00:22:29.73\00:22:35.16
Completely unentered territory.
00:22:35.16\00:22:37.90
And it's a kind of place where
cars cannot even travel there.
00:22:37.90\00:22:41.10
You know, they had to
walk for over 48 hours
00:22:41.96\00:22:45.33
through the valley to get
to homes to preach the Gospel.
00:22:45.33\00:22:48.16
On top of that,
walking through the valley
00:22:49.33\00:22:52.60
they were beset by scorpions,
snakes and crocodiles,
00:22:52.60\00:22:55.80
they had to cross
the river to get there.
00:22:55.80\00:22:57.53
And then on top of
that, they slept in the bush,
00:22:58.53\00:23:01.76
in the open bush at night
00:23:01.76\00:23:03.80
not knowing if they'd
wake up the next morning.
00:23:03.80\00:23:06.40
Friends, these are young people
just like me and just like you
00:23:07.33\00:23:12.66
literally risking their lives
00:23:12.66\00:23:14.66
to bring the
Gospel to Luana Valley,
00:23:14.66\00:23:16.36
unentered territory!
00:23:16.36\00:23:18.73
They could have died.
00:23:20.10\00:23:22.03
And they were
willing to go anyway.
00:23:23.30\00:23:25.00
And as I tell you
about IMPACT Zambia,
00:23:29.40\00:23:33.40
in 2010 alone, through
these dedicated missionaries
00:23:33.60\00:23:39.96
who work out of Lusaka Center
Adventist church in Zambia,
00:23:39.96\00:23:43.40
at least 2500 people
have been baptized. Amen.
00:23:44.46\00:23:51.96
I don't think you heard me, GYC.
00:23:51.96\00:23:55.00
That Amen was
too weak. 2500 souls.
00:23:55.36\00:24:00.73
They were young
people. In one year alone!
00:24:00.73\00:24:03.46
Amen! Why?
00:24:03.46\00:24:07.26
Because they stop at
nothing. They stop at nothing.
00:24:08.56\00:24:13.53
If it means risking their lives,
00:24:13.93\00:24:15.96
they are willing to
go. They stop at nothing.
00:24:16.20\00:24:20.63
And as you think
about these martyrs,
00:24:22.40\00:24:25.20
you think about
Paul, Stephen, Peter.
00:24:25.20\00:24:27.23
You think about the missionaries
00:24:27.23\00:24:28.43
I just told you
about in IMPACT Zambia.
00:24:28.43\00:24:30.36
They are human
beings just like us.
00:24:31.30\00:24:33.16
They could have turned
back, they could have given up
00:24:34.13\00:24:36.66
when the threat of
death became very real.
00:24:36.66\00:24:39.80
But they were ready to die.
00:24:39.80\00:24:41.93
Richard Wurmbrand, founder
of the Voice of the Martyrs,
00:24:44.76\00:24:49.70
has this
profound quotation to say.
00:24:49.70\00:24:52.36
"A man really believes not
what he resides in his creed
00:24:53.83\00:24:58.90
but only the things
he is ready to die for."
00:24:58.90\00:25:02.50
The things we believe
00:25:04.13\00:25:05.70
are not the things we
say and sing and write about.
00:25:05.70\00:25:09.16
The things we
believe are the things
00:25:09.16\00:25:11.03
that we are ready to
die for. In simple terms,
00:25:11.03\00:25:15.36
if we are not
ready to die for Christ,
00:25:15.36\00:25:17.33
we don't believe in Him.
00:25:17.33\00:25:18.60
If we are not
ready to die for Him,
00:25:22.83\00:25:25.03
we do not believe in Him.
00:25:25.03\00:25:26.73
Don't lose Acts,
we'll come back there,
00:25:29.30\00:25:30.96
but flip to
Revelation, Chapter 12.
00:25:30.96\00:25:33.36
And I want to share with
you the kind of followers
00:25:35.33\00:25:38.90
that Christ is asking us
to be this morning, right.
00:25:38.90\00:25:42.00
Revelation 12 verse 11.
00:25:42.50\00:25:43.90
And I think this verse is
what for me captures the essence
00:25:43.90\00:25:47.43
of who these young people
are and what they live for.
00:25:47.43\00:25:50.60
Revelation 12, are we there?
00:25:50.60\00:25:53.00
I'm going to read
verse 10 and verse 11.
00:25:54.10\00:25:56.86
And the Bible says,
Revelation 12, 10 and 11.
00:25:59.03\00:26:03.13
"And I heard a loud
voice saying in heaven,
00:26:03.13\00:26:06.30
"Now is come
salvation and strength,
00:26:06.30\00:26:09.10
"and the kingdom of our
God and the power of His Christ
00:26:09.10\00:26:12.03
"For the accuser of
our brethren is cast down
00:26:12.03\00:26:14.73
"which accuse them
before our God day and night.
00:26:14.73\00:26:18.53
"And they overcame him
by the blood of the Lamb
00:26:18.53\00:26:21.63
"and by the word
of their testimony,
00:26:21.63\00:26:24.03
and they loved not
their lives unto the death."
00:26:24.03\00:26:27.26
Look at the last
half of that verse.
00:26:29.53\00:26:31.50
"They loved not their
lives unto the death."
00:26:32.33\00:26:36.20
That's telling you
and me that these people,
00:26:37.03\00:26:39.73
these brethren,
who we are supposed
00:26:39.73\00:26:41.33
to be a part of, did
not love their lives.
00:26:41.33\00:26:45.10
There was something
that they loved more
00:26:46.16\00:26:47.80
than their lives,
and that was Christ.
00:26:47.80\00:26:50.60
They did not love
their lives unto their death.
00:26:52.20\00:26:54.20
If death is what it
took, they were willing.
00:26:54.20\00:26:58.26
And so yes, we
must be ready to die.
00:27:01.86\00:27:05.60
And you know we talked about
due loss on Friday morning.
00:27:07.13\00:27:10.03
This mindset of
choosing to be a slave of God.
00:27:10.90\00:27:14.53
The other half of due loss
00:27:15.90\00:27:17.30
is that it's a
lifetime commitment.
00:27:17.30\00:27:19.63
What is it?
Life time commitment.
00:27:19.63\00:27:22.46
Once you commit and you say
you're choosing to be a slave,
00:27:22.80\00:27:27.13
it's due loss until death.
00:27:27.33\00:27:29.10
But here's the
other half of the coin
00:27:31.96\00:27:34.46
and this is really the heart
of our message this morning.
00:27:34.46\00:27:36.66
That yes, we
must be ready to die.
00:27:37.16\00:27:38.86
But you cannot,
and please listen
00:27:39.83\00:27:41.50
to this very
closely. You cannot die for
00:27:41.50\00:27:44.80
something that you have
not learned to live for.
00:27:44.80\00:27:48.03
Did you get what I said?
00:27:49.26\00:27:50.43
We can sit here and talk about,
00:27:52.60\00:27:54.30
yes, we are ready to die,
00:27:54.50\00:27:55.63
yes, we are
willing to die for Christ.
00:27:55.63\00:27:58.03
But if we have not
learned to live for Jesus,
00:27:58.03\00:28:02.13
we cannot die for Jesus.
00:28:02.13\00:28:04.93
We cannot die for Jesus.
00:28:08.10\00:28:10.30
Go back to the book of Acts,
00:28:10.93\00:28:12.23
and I want to show
you how this was true
00:28:12.23\00:28:13.90
in Paul's
ministry and Paul's life.
00:28:13.90\00:28:15.73
In Acts 20, back in Acts 20,
00:28:15.73\00:28:19.80
where Paul is speaking
to the elders at Ephesus.
00:28:19.80\00:28:22.70
It's his last time seeing them
00:28:22.70\00:28:24.53
and he has a message of warning
00:28:24.53\00:28:25.93
and reproof for
them. He says to them,
00:28:25.93\00:28:29.16
and I'm going to
read and you're hearing
00:28:29.16\00:28:31.73
from verse 22 in Acts 20.
00:28:31.73\00:28:34.63
"And now, behold, I go bound
in the spirit unto Jerusalem,
00:28:37.16\00:28:42.70
"not knowing the things
that shall befall me there.
00:28:42.70\00:28:46.70
"Save that the Holy
Ghost witnesseth in every city,
00:28:46.70\00:28:50.83
"saying that bonds
and afflictions abide me.
00:28:50.83\00:28:53.83
"But none of
these things move me,
00:28:54.46\00:28:56.90
"neither count I my
life dear unto myself,
00:28:56.90\00:29:01.00
"that I might
finish my course with joy,
00:29:01.90\00:29:04.60
"and the ministry
that I have received
00:29:04.60\00:29:06.40
of the Lord Jesus, to testify
the Gospel of the grace of God."
00:29:06.40\00:29:11.36
And Paul is saying here that,
00:29:13.26\00:29:15.26
"I am going to be
bound and I know that
00:29:15.26\00:29:17.16
bonds and afflictions abide me."
00:29:17.16\00:29:19.33
But verse 24 says "None
of these things move me."
00:29:19.33\00:29:23.20
Here's a man who's
expecting bonds and afflictions
00:29:23.20\00:29:26.33
and he says "I'm not even
moved." Nothing moves him.
00:29:26.33\00:29:30.80
You know what that
means? He's not even affected,
00:29:32.16\00:29:34.70
not even worried, nothing!
He's not even moved. Why?
00:29:34.70\00:29:38.96
Because he accounts not
his life dear unto himself.
00:29:38.96\00:29:42.33
There is one thing and one thing
only that Paul counts as dear
00:29:42.80\00:29:47.03
and that was the ministry
00:29:47.03\00:29:48.73
that calls the
name of the Lord Jesus.
00:29:48.73\00:29:52.16
If he had to
choose between finishing
00:29:52.16\00:29:56.66
the ministry that
Christ had given him
00:29:56.66\00:29:58.80
and preserving his life,
00:29:58.80\00:30:01.10
Paul would choose the ministry.
00:30:01.10\00:30:02.83
His life was a thing
to be dispensed with.
00:30:04.10\00:30:06.76
"I count not my
life dear unto myself."
00:30:07.60\00:30:11.43
"I count not my
life dear unto myself."
00:30:13.06\00:30:17.00
And Paul was
ready to die for Jesus,
00:30:24.90\00:30:28.70
but Paul was
ready to die because
00:30:29.60\00:30:31.46
he was ready to live for Jesus.
00:30:31.46\00:30:33.86
If I were to ask
us here this morning,
00:30:35.40\00:30:38.56
how many of us love Jesus?
00:30:38.56\00:30:40.56
I think every hand would
be up. At least I hope so.
00:30:41.30\00:30:46.26
And if I'd have asked us, how
many of us by the grace of God
00:30:49.26\00:30:53.20
would be ready to die for Jesus?
00:30:53.20\00:30:55.03
I think our hands
would still be up. Right?
00:30:55.56\00:30:58.16
But here's the point.
00:30:59.23\00:31:00.70
You cannot die for
Jesus if you have not learned
00:31:02.66\00:31:06.86
to live for Him and Him alone.
00:31:06.86\00:31:09.36
He that is faithful in the
least is faithful also in much.
00:31:11.03\00:31:16.40
Many of us play or
run with Jesus now.
00:31:17.96\00:31:21.56
And then we think that when
the great day of trial comes,
00:31:21.56\00:31:24.80
we'll suddenly
have the moral courage
00:31:24.80\00:31:27.33
to die for Him.
That's a deception.
00:31:27.33\00:31:30.26
That's a
deception. How can you think
00:31:31.90\00:31:35.33
you can die for Jesus,
if you don't even love Him
00:31:35.33\00:31:38.33
enough to spend at
least an hour with Him
00:31:38.33\00:31:40.80
every morning in devotions?
00:31:40.80\00:31:42.56
How do you think
you can die for Jesus
00:31:44.56\00:31:47.40
when you don't love
Him enough to walk away
00:31:47.40\00:31:49.80
from those darling sins
that are so hateful to Him?
00:31:49.80\00:31:52.76
Cherishing sin in our hearts,
yes, we'll die for Jesus. Hello!
00:31:53.93\00:31:57.36
How do you think
you can die for Him
00:31:59.73\00:32:02.03
when you don't love Him enough
to die to yourself every day?
00:32:02.03\00:32:06.16
How can we die for Him, friends?
00:32:07.00\00:32:08.60
When we don't
love Him enough to care
00:32:09.86\00:32:13.56
about those
perishing souls He died for,
00:32:13.56\00:32:16.16
how can we die for Him?
00:32:17.10\00:32:19.00
Dying for Jesus
begins with living for Jesus!
00:32:20.90\00:32:24.70
It's about living for Jesus.
00:32:26.30\00:32:28.26
If something is worth dying for,
00:32:28.76\00:32:31.36
it must be worth living for.
00:32:31.36\00:32:33.73
And lets not fool
ourselves into thinking
00:32:36.43\00:32:38.20
that we can be
martyrs for Jesus.
00:32:38.20\00:32:40.90
Don't even love Him enough.
00:32:41.43\00:32:42.96
You read Acts 20, and
you read of Paul's ministry.
00:32:43.76\00:32:46.73
A man who loved Jesus.
He tells you in verse 20
00:32:46.73\00:32:53.30
that he kept back
nothing. Acts 20 verse 20.
00:32:54.43\00:32:57.73
"How I kept back nothing
that was profitable unto you,
00:32:57.73\00:33:01.03
"but have shewed you,
and taught you publicly,
00:33:01.03\00:33:03.53
"and from house to house.
00:33:03.53\00:33:05.20
Testifying both to
Jews, and to Greeks."
00:33:05.50\00:33:08.80
Here is a man
who lived for Jesus.
00:33:09.50\00:33:11.90
And as you go down in
the chapter, he tells you
00:33:12.66\00:33:15.13
in verse 26 and 27.
00:33:16.46\00:33:18.96
26, "I take it
to record this day,
00:33:19.80\00:33:22.46
"that I'm pure from
the blood of all men.
00:33:22.46\00:33:25.00
"For I have not
shunned to declare unto you all
00:33:25.00\00:33:28.86
the counsel of God."
00:33:28.86\00:33:30.46
Verse 31.
"Therefore, watch and remember,
00:33:31.33\00:33:34.60
"that by the space of
three years I ceased not
00:33:34.60\00:33:38.03
to warn everyone
night and day with tears."
00:33:38.03\00:33:41.43
Here's a grown man
with tears in his eyes
00:33:42.70\00:33:46.20
warning people to turn to Jesus.
00:33:46.20\00:33:48.33
Here's a man
who lived for Jesus.
00:33:48.33\00:33:50.56
There is no doubt in our minds
00:34:00.80\00:34:03.26
that Paul lived
for one thing only.
00:34:03.26\00:34:07.00
Matter of fact, here's how
he puts it in his own words
00:34:08.73\00:34:12.73
in Philippians 1 verse 21.
00:34:12.73\00:34:14.53
Let's go there and read
how Paul in his own word
00:34:14.96\00:34:17.96
writes about his
reason for living.
00:34:17.96\00:34:20.56
In Philippians 1
verse 21. Are we there?
00:34:21.60\00:34:27.26
It's a very simple verse.
00:34:30.06\00:34:31.66
Another one you can
take and post on your walls,
00:34:32.70\00:34:35.96
on your Facebook statuses,
00:34:35.96\00:34:37.53
because this is
a rule to live by.
00:34:40.36\00:34:42.20
In Philippians 1
verse 21, Paul says...
00:34:43.53\00:34:46.63
Are we there? Yeah.
00:34:48.26\00:34:50.26
"For to me to live is
Christ and to die is gain."
00:34:50.73\00:34:56.26
Ponder that statement
and keep pondering it.
00:34:58.30\00:35:01.56
"To live is Christ
and to die is gain."
00:35:03.00\00:35:07.16
He had no other reason
for living beyond Jesus.
00:35:07.90\00:35:13.30
Living for Christ.
00:35:21.66\00:35:24.53
And as you think about what it
means to say to live is Christ.
00:35:31.33\00:35:35.16
When you get to that
point in your experience
00:35:35.93\00:35:38.00
when everything you do
is for one great object.
00:35:38.00\00:35:42.63
Everything you do
is for one purpose
00:35:43.53\00:35:45.63
and one purpose only in mind.
00:35:45.63\00:35:48.23
And matter of fact, friends,
00:35:48.23\00:35:49.56
I want to submit to
you this morning that
00:35:49.56\00:35:51.66
for you and for me, especially
Adventist young people,
00:35:52.70\00:35:56.63
we have no other reason to live.
00:35:56.63\00:35:58.86
Don't lose Philippians
but turn into another verse
00:36:01.76\00:36:06.00
in which Paul states this.
00:36:06.00\00:36:07.93
In Second Corinthians Chapter 5.
00:36:08.40\00:36:10.86
And I want you to
read this particular verse
00:36:12.06\00:36:15.96
and have you
reason through it with me.
00:36:15.96\00:36:18.43
Second Corinthians Chapter 5.
00:36:19.90\00:36:21.93
And I want you to
read verse 14 and verse 15.
00:36:23.73\00:36:27.33
Are we there? The Bible says...
00:36:31.06\00:36:36.03
Second Corinthians 5, 14 and 15.
00:36:38.00\00:36:40.40
"For the love of
Christ constraineth us
00:36:40.86\00:36:43.76
"because we thus judge,
that if one died for all,
00:36:43.76\00:36:47.06
"then we're all dead.
And that he died for all,
00:36:47.06\00:36:51.13
"that they which
live should not henceforth
00:36:51.13\00:36:54.43
"live unto themselves,
00:36:54.43\00:36:56.63
but unto him which died
for them, and rose again."
00:36:56.63\00:37:00.23
Look at the logic
of verse 15 again.
00:37:01.60\00:37:04.53
"He died for all,
so that those who live
00:37:04.93\00:37:09.30
"should no longer
live unto or for themselves
00:37:09.30\00:37:13.60
but unto him who died
for them and rose again."
00:37:13.60\00:37:17.43
If I'm reasoning correctly,
00:37:18.33\00:37:20.36
this verse seems
to say very clearly
00:37:20.36\00:37:23.00
that Jesus died to give
us a new reason to live.
00:37:23.00\00:37:27.46
He died for all, so
that where as before
00:37:28.43\00:37:31.80
we lived for ourselves,
now we might live for Him
00:37:31.80\00:37:35.33
who died and rose again.
00:37:36.03\00:37:37.40
That's why He
died. To save us, yes.
00:37:37.40\00:37:40.93
But also to give us
a new reason to live.
00:37:41.93\00:37:44.53
Before we lived for ourselves,
00:37:45.90\00:37:48.63
and now if we believe and accept
His death and resurrection,
00:37:48.63\00:37:53.00
we are to live
for Him and Him alone.
00:37:53.00\00:37:55.40
You know, many of us look
at Peter's denial of Christ
00:37:57.43\00:38:01.10
and we think how
could Peter do that.
00:38:01.10\00:38:03.63
And yet, friends, I
submit to you this morning
00:38:06.23\00:38:08.60
that if we go through life
00:38:08.60\00:38:11.36
living for any other
reason other than Christ,
00:38:11.36\00:38:16.63
that is a denial of
Christ's death and resurrection.
00:38:16.63\00:38:21.76
Because Jesus died,
00:38:25.70\00:38:27.16
so that we might
have a new reason to live.
00:38:27.90\00:38:30.93
To live for Him and Him alone.
00:38:32.16\00:38:34.76
And when I say live for Christ,
00:38:35.93\00:38:37.53
I'm not saying that
all of us need to quit
00:38:37.53\00:38:41.03
what we're doing and go
into full time ministry, no.
00:38:41.03\00:38:44.16
God may call
some of us to do that.
00:38:44.16\00:38:46.60
But for the rest of us
00:38:47.53\00:38:48.86
that means everything we
do, everything we do in life
00:38:49.20\00:38:53.10
must be for
Christ and Christ alone.
00:38:53.10\00:38:55.63
Don't go to the
school just to get a degree
00:38:56.50\00:38:58.53
and get those perfect A's.
00:38:58.53\00:39:00.06
Yes, work hard,
excel, get those A's,
00:39:00.06\00:39:02.76
but use those A's for
Christ evangelistically.
00:39:03.76\00:39:07.10
Don't go to work
just to earn a paycheck
00:39:08.36\00:39:10.66
and get
promoted. Yes, work hard,
00:39:10.66\00:39:12.96
be an excellent employee
00:39:12.96\00:39:15.13
but use your
excellence for Christ.
00:39:15.66\00:39:17.43
Use it evangelistically.
00:39:17.43\00:39:19.06
Let me give you an example
to make this real for you.
00:39:20.90\00:39:23.53
You know, when I tell
people that I went to Harvard,
00:39:24.60\00:39:27.20
people place you in
some kind of pedestal.
00:39:27.20\00:39:29.40
"Oh, Harvard. You
must be so smart."
00:39:29.76\00:39:32.06
And there is a certain respect
that people have for Harvard
00:39:32.93\00:39:36.30
and may be
rightly so, I don't know.
00:39:36.30\00:39:38.86
But here's my
point this morning.
00:39:39.16\00:39:40.60
God is no
respecter of Harvard degrees.
00:39:41.30\00:39:44.86
He's not a respecter.
What is Harvard to God?
00:39:46.20\00:39:49.10
God is wisdom personified.
00:39:50.86\00:39:52.56
Harvard professors know
nothing compared to God.
00:39:52.56\00:39:55.50
Amen. When I get to heaven,
00:39:55.80\00:39:57.96
God is not going to
care that I went to Harvard.
00:39:58.83\00:40:01.46
At the welcome table,
00:40:02.13\00:40:03.93
there is no special
seat for Harvard graduates.
00:40:03.93\00:40:07.00
Absolutely not. The only reason
00:40:07.86\00:40:12.06
and get this
clearly, the only way,
00:40:12.06\00:40:14.93
the only reason
my Harvard education
00:40:15.66\00:40:18.60
will matter in eternity,
00:40:18.60\00:40:20.83
is if when I get to heaven,
00:40:21.43\00:40:24.90
I can say, "Father,
because I went to Harvard
00:40:24.90\00:40:27.83
here is the harvest." Amen.
00:40:27.83\00:40:30.36
Here are the people
that came into the kingdom
00:40:30.36\00:40:33.33
because of my time at Harvard.
00:40:33.33\00:40:35.36
Friends, that's
what life is about.
00:40:35.90\00:40:38.20
That's what life is about.
00:40:39.90\00:40:41.56
Ready to die and ready to live
for Christ and Christ alone.
00:40:42.00\00:40:47.00
There is no
other reason to live.
00:40:47.63\00:40:49.83
And you know, worse is...
00:40:50.46\00:40:51.70
I think some of us Adventists
have this foolish idea
00:40:51.70\00:40:55.33
that we can live
the ordinary lifestyle.
00:40:55.33\00:40:57.93
Let me tell you
something, friends.
00:40:58.83\00:41:00.26
Adventists are not ordinary.
00:41:00.26\00:41:02.70
We are not ordinary people.
00:41:03.86\00:41:06.00
The servants of
the Lord tells us,
00:41:08.70\00:41:10.76
in last day event
and I want to read this
00:41:12.10\00:41:14.83
in your hearing
and I want you to hear
00:41:14.83\00:41:17.33
every word of this. Page 45,
00:41:17.33\00:41:20.26
she reminds us.
Then in a special sense
00:41:20.26\00:41:24.53
Seventh-day Adventists
have been set in the world
00:41:24.53\00:41:28.00
as watchmen and light bearers.
00:41:28.00\00:41:30.83
To them has been
entrusted the last warning
00:41:31.50\00:41:35.60
for a perishing world.
00:41:35.60\00:41:37.10
On them is
shining wonderful light
00:41:37.76\00:41:40.46
from the word of
God. They have been given
00:41:40.46\00:41:43.80
a work of the
most solemn imports.
00:41:43.80\00:41:48.30
The proclamation of the first,
00:41:48.96\00:41:51.36
second and third
angel's messages.
00:41:51.36\00:41:54.70
There is no other work
of so great importance.
00:41:55.86\00:42:01.10
They are to allow nothing
else to absorb their attention.
00:42:01.70\00:42:07.50
Do you
understand why you are alive
00:42:09.50\00:42:11.96
as a Seventh-day Adventist?
00:42:11.96\00:42:13.93
That God has given to you...
00:42:15.50\00:42:17.70
And when we read
this, we think corporately.
00:42:18.70\00:42:22.60
God has given to
us the last warning
00:42:23.10\00:42:26.10
for a perishing
world. Let's make this
00:42:26.10\00:42:29.03
practically
personal this morning.
00:42:29.03\00:42:31.80
God has given to
you the last warning
00:42:32.60\00:42:36.30
for your classmates,
00:42:36.30\00:42:37.40
your professors, your co-workers
00:42:37.40\00:42:40.16
and your neighbors.
00:42:40.16\00:42:41.36
God has given to you a
work of the most solemn import.
00:42:42.60\00:42:46.80
No other work of
such great importance.
00:42:46.80\00:42:49.90
And then you want
to walk through life
00:42:51.13\00:42:52.83
being an ordinary person?
00:42:52.83\00:42:54.76
You are not ordinary,
you can never be ordinary.
00:42:56.03\00:42:59.23
And worst yet, friends,
00:42:59.66\00:43:01.20
the world has
enough ordinary people.
00:43:01.20\00:43:03.53
We don't need any more of them.
00:43:04.20\00:43:05.60
We don't need any more
ordinary Jim and Jacks,
00:43:06.80\00:43:08.60
there are enough of them.
00:43:08.60\00:43:09.83
Seventh-day
Adventists are not ordinary.
00:43:11.20\00:43:14.90
We cannot go back to
the ordinary lifestyle.
00:43:15.50\00:43:19.26
Not when we have a work
of such great importance,
00:43:20.33\00:43:23.50
not when God has
given us this last message
00:43:23.50\00:43:26.46
of warning to a perishing world.
00:43:26.46\00:43:28.53
Not ordinary.
00:43:30.13\00:43:32.23
It pains my heart
00:43:41.16\00:43:43.00
that I think about how
dedicated Communists are.
00:43:44.83\00:43:51.10
And in his book,
Dedication and Leadership,
00:43:51.86\00:43:54.60
Douglas Hyde writes
about the dedication
00:43:54.60\00:43:58.26
of a Communist.
And how a Communist
00:43:58.26\00:44:00.56
gets up every morning
and he lives and breathes
00:44:00.56\00:44:04.06
and moves for one thing
only and that's Communism.
00:44:04.06\00:44:07.46
And Communism is not even a
cause worth living for, is it?
00:44:08.06\00:44:12.26
And then here are
Seventh-day Adventists,
00:44:13.93\00:44:17.20
who actually
have not just a cause
00:44:17.20\00:44:19.63
but the greatest
cause ever given to mankind
00:44:19.63\00:44:22.60
in the history of the world.
00:44:22.60\00:44:24.16
And they can't even live for it?
00:44:24.66\00:44:26.60
God have mercy upon us!
00:44:27.33\00:44:29.06
There's no
reason why a Communist
00:44:32.26\00:44:34.36
should be more dedicated
than a Seventh-day Adventist.
00:44:34.36\00:44:36.70
No reason. Amen.
00:44:37.20\00:44:41.30
Life for us, for me
and you, is not about
00:44:41.30\00:44:45.93
going through
school and getting jobs
00:44:45.93\00:44:47.73
and getting
married and having babies.
00:44:47.73\00:44:49.96
Those things are important,
00:44:50.40\00:44:51.90
but we have to live
life for one great object.
00:44:52.76\00:44:56.63
If you go to
school, you go to school
00:44:57.36\00:44:59.80
to advance the
everlasting Gospel. Amen.
00:44:59.80\00:45:02.60
If you go to work,
go to work to advance
00:45:02.60\00:45:05.13
the everlasting
Gospel. If you marry,
00:45:05.13\00:45:09.36
marry to advance
the everlasting Gospel.
00:45:09.36\00:45:14.30
That's what life is about
00:45:14.30\00:45:16.43
if you are a
Seventh-day Adventist.
00:45:16.43\00:45:20.06
And I think sometimes,
friends, that this cause of God,
00:45:23.16\00:45:28.10
this everlasting
Gospel doesn't consume us
00:45:28.10\00:45:31.40
because we don't understand
00:45:31.40\00:45:33.70
what sin has done
to the heart of God.
00:45:33.70\00:45:36.10
I don't think we
remember, friends,
00:45:40.66\00:45:43.46
that God feels my pain,
right? God feels your pain.
00:45:43.46\00:45:48.63
God feels the pain of every
single person in this room.
00:45:49.16\00:45:53.06
God feels the pain
of every single person
00:45:53.06\00:45:55.40
who has ever lived on
the face of the earth.
00:45:55.40\00:45:58.30
What do you think
6000 years of sin have done
00:45:59.13\00:46:02.23
to the heart of God?
00:46:02.23\00:46:03.60
All of those over 800,000 people
00:46:06.83\00:46:09.40
who perished in
the Rwandan Genocide,
00:46:09.40\00:46:11.76
God felt their pain.
00:46:11.76\00:46:13.56
The Jews
massacred in the Holocaust,
00:46:14.33\00:46:16.53
God felt their pain.
00:46:16.53\00:46:18.30
Every women who is raped,
every child who dies of hunger,
00:46:19.50\00:46:23.36
God feels their
pain! 6000 years of sin.
00:46:23.36\00:46:27.70
What do you think that has done
00:46:28.20\00:46:29.33
to the heart of God?
Friends, nobody, nobody
00:46:29.33\00:46:32.16
yearns for the end
of the great controversy
00:46:32.16\00:46:35.73
more than God does. Nobody.
00:46:35.73\00:46:38.43
And Revelation 21 verse 4 paints
a very clear picture of that.
00:46:40.10\00:46:45.96
Revelation 21 and verse 4.
00:46:46.60\00:46:48.36
In writing about the end,
00:46:50.60\00:46:52.20
when there is a new
Heaven and a new Earth.
00:46:55.56\00:46:59.33
When there's a new
Heaven and a new Earth.
00:46:59.33\00:47:01.00
And Revelation 21
and verse 4 tells us...
00:47:01.00\00:47:05.16
Are we there?
God, listen to this!
00:47:07.10\00:47:11.36
"God shall wipe away
all tears from their eyes,
00:47:12.03\00:47:16.46
"and there shall
be no more death,
00:47:16.46\00:47:18.40
"neither sorrow, nor crying,
00:47:18.40\00:47:19.96
"neither shall
there be any more pain,
00:47:19.96\00:47:22.23
for the former
things are passed away."
00:47:22.23\00:47:24.76
Can you see the
heart of God yearning
00:47:26.50\00:47:28.93
for the end of this controversy?
00:47:28.93\00:47:31.10
Yearning for the day
when he will wipe away
00:47:31.80\00:47:34.46
all tears from my
eyes and your eyes.
00:47:34.46\00:47:37.56
And then God has condescended
to put it into our hands.
00:47:39.23\00:47:44.46
By the grace of
God, to hasten that day.
00:47:44.46\00:47:47.30
And then we drag our
feet and we go through life,
00:47:48.20\00:47:51.36
living for other things
that are senseless to live for.
00:47:51.36\00:47:54.60
And then we claim to love God?
00:47:55.40\00:47:57.26
And then we claim to love Him.
00:47:58.80\00:48:00.06
And we sing "Oh,
how I love Jesus."
00:48:00.06\00:48:02.30
God is hurting and we
are here dragging our feet,
00:48:02.30\00:48:06.00
living for ourselves,
and we claim to love Him.
00:48:06.00\00:48:10.13
If you were
separated from your loved one,
00:48:15.70\00:48:19.43
from your sweet heart,
00:48:19.43\00:48:20.43
you would do probably anything
to be reunited with them again.
00:48:21.40\00:48:26.70
Because love from a distance
is difficult, is it not?
00:48:27.43\00:48:31.70
And then we say
God is our beloved,
00:48:34.46\00:48:36.73
we say we love God.
00:48:36.73\00:48:38.53
And we're not
working as hard as we can
00:48:40.83\00:48:44.40
to hasten the day of
our reunion with God.
00:48:44.40\00:48:47.66
And we say we love Him?
Shame on us! Shame on us.
00:48:49.03\00:48:54.00
If we love God, we
would see sin as He sees it.
00:48:55.43\00:49:01.53
And if we loved God,
we would share His heart.
00:49:02.60\00:49:05.70
We would feel as he feels of us,
00:49:06.90\00:49:08.43
and we'd be moved
to end this controversy
00:49:08.43\00:49:12.56
so that we can go home.
00:49:12.56\00:49:14.20
Friends, let me
tell you something,
00:49:14.86\00:49:16.53
God has not called
us to change the world.
00:49:18.50\00:49:23.20
That is a part of it.
00:49:23.20\00:49:24.50
But you know how
in Acts Chapter 17,
00:49:25.33\00:49:28.80
the Bible speaks
about the Apostles
00:49:28.80\00:49:30.20
turning their world upside down.
00:49:30.20\00:49:32.50
For us, it's
even deeper than that
00:49:33.76\00:49:36.66
because God is
calling us to end the world.
00:49:38.43\00:49:42.93
Did you hear what I said?
00:49:43.70\00:49:44.90
Matthew 24:14. "And
this gospel of the kingdom
00:49:47.00\00:49:52.10
"shall be
preached in all the world
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as a witness to all nations,
and then the end shall come."
00:49:54.43\00:49:58.80
The preaching of
the everlasting Gospel
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brings the world to an end.
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Is there a greater
purpose worth living for?
00:50:12.96\00:50:15.90
Is there a higher
aim worth living for?
00:50:17.10\00:50:19.90
Is there? Then how
can we go through life
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saying we love
God and yet trying
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to live the ordinary life?
00:50:33.86\00:50:35.53
When we have a world to end.
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And we have a work of
the most solemn import.
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I pray earnestly
that God would give us
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deeper love for Him.
That God would give us
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true earnest love for Him.
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Because if we
loved Him, friends,
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we wouldn't need
to wait for somebody
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to remind us to do evangelism
or to witness for Christ
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or to share the Gospel.
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Nobody reminds you to
go to school, do they?
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At least if you're a
good student, they shouldn't.
00:51:16.80\00:51:19.10
Nobody reminds
you to go to work.
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You get up and you
go to work every morning
00:51:23.10\00:51:24.60
because you know you have to.
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But we feel as
though we need conferences,
00:51:27.06\00:51:30.06
we need something to
remind us to do evangelism.
00:51:30.06\00:51:34.46
Do you need to be
reminded why you live?
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Do you need to be
reminded why you live, friends?
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And, I don't know
how to communicate
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what I'm trying to communicate
00:51:51.36\00:51:53.40
beyond just saying
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we cannot go back
to the ordinary life.
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We have come to GYC, we've been
inspired, we've been challenged.
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I fear some of us will go back
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and just go back to life
as if that's just what it is.
00:52:23.16\00:52:27.16
Get up in the
morning, you go to work,
00:52:27.83\00:52:29.73
you go to school, you come back,
00:52:29.73\00:52:31.36
you sleep, you
eat, you do whatever.
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May that not be our experience.
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May not that be our experience.
00:52:44.83\00:52:47.23
If we are not turning back...
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Because turning
back is not an option,
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because turning back is suicide.
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If we are not turning back,
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we might as well go all the way.
00:52:57.03\00:52:59.23
Amen. If we're not
going to turn back,
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we might as well put
our hands to the plow
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and go all the way. Amen, amen.
00:53:05.23\00:53:07.63
Review and
Herald, July 21, 1896.
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"The great
outpouring of the Spirit of God
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"which lightens the
whole earth with His glory
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"will not come until we
have an enlightened people
00:53:33.23\00:53:40.06
"that know by
experience what it means
00:53:40.06\00:53:43.50
"to be laborers
together with God.
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"When we have entire,
wholehearted consecration
00:53:49.03\00:53:54.36
"to the service of Christ,
00:53:54.36\00:53:56.56
"God will recognize
the fact by an outpouring
00:53:57.46\00:54:02.50
"of His Spirit without measure.
00:54:02.50\00:54:05.50
"But this cannot be
while the largest portion
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of the church are not
laborers together with God."
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We're praying for His
Spirits to be poured out on us.
00:54:19.06\00:54:23.73
And she reminds us
that this will not happen
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until we have entire
wholehearted consecration
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to service for Christ.
00:54:36.03\00:54:38.06
Our lack of entire consecration
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is delaying the very
thing that we are praying for.
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The pouring out of His Spirit.
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And I think,
friends, it's time, isn't it?
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It's time for us to live
for Christ and Christ alone.
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And friends, if I had
time to speak to you about
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what some of the alive
groups in Africa are doing...
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Africans living
in way of eternity.
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Alive Kenya, alive
Ghana, alive Rwanda,
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alive Liberia, alive Ethiopia
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and how close to 3000 souls
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have been baptized in one year.
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And these are young people
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who are just
groups of 80 or 70 or 90.
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But GYC is an army
of 5000. 5000 strong!
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Where would North America be
00:55:42.80\00:55:44.83
with an actual army of 5000?
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Not conference
attendees, an army!
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Who are moved,
who live and breathe
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and move for one reason only,
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to bring the
Gospel to all the world
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in this generation.
What would North America be
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if we were an
actual army of 5000
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who are ready to die
and to live for Jesus.
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Because, you know what?
Jesus didn't just die for us,
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He lived for us!
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It was for us that Jesus lived
and breathed and moved. For us!
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Can we do that for Him? Amen.
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Let's not go back
to the ordinary life,
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we cannot afford to.
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We are not
ordinary, GYC. We are not.
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I want to make an appeal,
00:56:43.23\00:56:44.93
but I'm afraid
of making an appeal.
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Because I feel that
we are going get up,
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we'll respond,
we'll walk out of here
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and say GYC was
great, praise the Lord.
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And we'll go right
back to the same drudgery.
00:57:00.16\00:57:02.73
We'll be on fire for two weeks,
then by the second month we're
00:57:03.10\00:57:08.16
sinking back to
the drudgery of life.
00:57:08.93\00:57:10.80
So I want us to
pray this morning.
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I want us to
pray and to beg God,
00:57:16.10\00:57:18.53
to plead with God to
give us love for Him.
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Because it is love for God
00:57:22.70\00:57:24.36
that will keep us
on fire this year, GYC.
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It's love for God that
will make us ready to live
00:57:26.86\00:57:30.63
and to die for His cause.
00:57:30.63\00:57:32.60
It's love for
God that'll keep us
00:57:33.13\00:57:35.83
from living the ordinary life.
00:57:35.83\00:57:38.36
If a man has not found
something he would die for,
00:57:39.63\00:57:42.43
he's not fit to live.
00:57:42.43\00:57:44.76
If we're just going through
life like regular people,
00:57:46.56\00:57:49.60
we're not worthy to be alive.
00:57:49.60\00:57:51.56
So we are going to
kneel and we're going
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to beg of the Lord
to give us love for Him.
00:57:55.86\00:57:59.96