Participants: Jim Gilley
Series Code: 11POFCM
Program Code: 11POFCM000001
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00:39 Live from the 3ABN Worship Center
00:42 welcome to the Pillars of our Faith event. 00:47 Well good evening, and we welcome you to the 2011 00:52 Pillars of our Faith Camp Meeting 00:54 right here in our Worship Center in beautiful downtown 00:58 Thompsonville. 00:59 It's great to be here, isn't it? 01:01 It is great to be here. 01:02 I don't know about beautiful downtown Thompsonville... 01:05 but that's maybe a little bit of a stretch, but... 01:08 we do have a little place called Thompsonville here 01:10 and a little bigger one called West Frankfort. But... 01:12 I'm happy to be anywhere the Lord's presence is, 01:14 aren't you? It's beautiful to us. 01:16 We were away for a few days and we came back 01:19 and we said: "It's wonderful to be back home. " 01:21 We love it here! 01:23 And about four years ago when we talked to Jim and Camille 01:27 about moving here he said: "How's the weather? " 01:28 And I said: "It's perfect all the time. " 01:30 You see, today... OK, we've had two 01:32 perfect days since I got here. 01:35 Well the first time we had a little bit of a snowstorm 01:37 he called me and he said: "I thought the weather was 01:40 perfect. " I said: "This is the first time I've ever seen 01:42 such a thing. " And then it rained for days. 01:44 He said: "Well, it's raining. " I said: "Well... 01:45 that's just the first time for everything, you know. " 01:48 So I still try to convince him the weather's always perfect 01:51 here. Well, my dad said I would complain if they were to 01:54 hang me with a new rope. Yeah? So... 01:57 I guess... I guess I would, you know, by the way! 02:00 Mine said I would complain if they buried me in a new casket. 02:02 So... our dads must have gone to the same school! 02:07 I think they did. My father never had any of those kind 02:09 of sayings. Didn't have any of that? 02:12 Well, it's great to be here. 02:13 We have a wonderful time at camp meeting. 02:16 We have a spiritual time; we have fellowship together. 02:21 We have... as I'm looking at this Wednesday night 02:26 attendance... We usually have, I think, 02:28 about half this many on Wednesday night. 02:30 This is a great attendance 02:32 and by Sabbath this place is really going to be packed out! 02:36 But if you're planning on coming, come on anyway 02:39 because we will find a place for you. 02:41 One place or the other, there will be a place for you. 02:46 Well Danny, it's great to be here 02:48 and to be with you, and I thank you for inviting Camille 02:52 and me to be a part of the team. 02:54 And I have gotten better acquainted with 02:58 C.A. Murray. I had known him... met him in New York City 03:02 a number of years before I came here. 03:04 But we've gotten better acquainted and we've 03:08 even become friends. 03:10 He comes over and lets me watch football on his TV 03:13 giant television. OK. 03:15 All right. I tell you, we're just happy to be together 03:19 and, you see, I was at the North American Division 03:22 and he was in New York City and, well, I won't 03:26 go into that. But there's... 03:28 But it was really great for us to be on the same team 03:34 and to be here together, it really is. 03:38 Well you know we've got someone else 03:40 that is a part of that team. 03:42 But we're going to get to that in a minute. 03:43 We've had some exciting things happening at 3ABN. 03:48 Tell us about it, Danny. Well, we have one of them is 03:50 that I'm extremely excited about is the new Pillars of our Faith 03:54 Hymns. And how many of you have the Pillars of our Faith CD... 03:58 the first one that came out? OK. 04:00 Many of you if not most of you do. 04:03 We have a project this year and I said: "How can we 04:07 come up with something that's as good 04:09 as the Pillars of our Faith, the incredible songs 04:11 by David Huntsinger and Kristin Wilkinson 04:13 and Remember the Sabbath and Language of Canaan and all 04:16 those songs? And so what we did... I think at maybe C.A. 04:19 and Jim's suggestion... they found a book written in 04:22 about - or published in - 1849, I think, by James White. 04:27 So that was before most of us in this room were born, 04:30 I'm sure, and it's a long time ago. 04:32 Yeah, 1849. And we picked out a lot of those songs, 04:36 and most of this new project is those songs 04:40 that the pioneers were looking forward to. 04:42 They're songs of hope and encouragement and looking 04:45 forward to the second coming of the Lord. 04:48 So we got Tim Parton involved. And Tim 04:51 is a great pianist - nationally known pianist - 04:53 that does a lot with the Gaithers and plays with 04:56 Legacy Five and others. He came on board 04:58 and between E.T. Everett and then Kristin Wilkinson again 05:01 made some great arrangements. And these songs 05:04 really, they're incredible. So starting really Friday night 05:07 we're going to do a two-hour concert of all the new 05:10 Pillars Hymns. In fact, they just came out yesterday! 05:12 I think they just got here yesterday. 05:14 And so it was put together very quickly but 05:17 it's just incredible music that will encourage us 05:20 and strengthen our faith in the Lord. 05:22 In fact, you can pick some up at the end of the program 05:25 tonight. I think they'll be open out there, 05:28 and you can hear the new Pillars music. 05:32 It is beautiful; it is fantastic! 05:34 And these are songs that you have heard all your life 05:38 like Lift up the Trumpet and Loud Let It Ring... 05:40 but you've never heard it like this. 05:42 It is beautiful. Well done... 05:45 Uh, how would you describe it, Danny? 05:48 I think it was very, very spiritual, yeah. Yeah. 05:51 There is one song there that we found that sounds like 05:54 a classic hymn but it is brand new 05:57 but has been the #1 Christian song in the world 06:01 for the past seven years 06:03 written interestingly enough by an Englishman 06:05 and an Irishman: two countries that have been at war 06:07 for 100 years. But they came together in Christ 06:09 and wrote this beautiful song called "In Christ Alone. " 06:12 Wonderful song... #1 Christian song in the world 06:15 since it came out in 2002. 06:17 Right. Well, it's really worth getting, 06:20 I can promise you that. And if you're watching by television 06:24 you can contact 3ABN and the Call Center will be able 06:28 during non-Sabbath hours and during... 06:32 most of the time during the day 06:34 you call and you'll be able to order those. 06:37 And I know you're going to appreciate them as much as 06:40 we have enjoyed listening to this beautiful 06:44 and inspiring music. 06:47 Well, Danny, we have had some other things happen 06:50 and you were telling me a little bit about 06:53 some of the goals that we've had in the past that 06:57 how the Lord has reached out and helped us fill those things. 07:03 Share some of those with the people, would you? 07:05 Well, I was just talking about... We had a board meeting 07:07 today and we are always looking at financing 07:10 and finances. And so especially this time of the year 07:13 in the summer the finances are really low. 07:16 But you know, Ellen White made a statement years ago 07:18 and she said that we need not fear the future 07:21 because all we have to do is look to the past 07:23 and see how God has led us. 07:25 And so today I was encouraging the folk with 07:28 some of the stories of when it looked like 3ABN, 07:31 there's just not going to be enough money... 07:33 whether it's the end of the year whether it's summer. 07:35 And we have lots of assets but sometimes like now 07:38 the cash flow is very low. 07:40 And miracles that the Lord would provide for us 07:43 time and time again. Over 26 years 07:45 God has continued to keep this ministry on its feet 07:49 and going. And we want to thank all of you here 07:51 and those of you watching by television, 07:53 listening by radio and around the world, because without you 07:57 3ABN would be just a dream... still just a dream. 08:01 So because of you we have dared to dream 08:03 and the three angels' messages is literally going 08:05 by ten satellites anywhere on planet earth. 08:08 On every inhabited continent if you really want to watch 08:11 3ABN you can. 08:12 So thank you so much from the bottom of our hearts. 08:15 Also here at the Camp Meeting, if you have a love gift 08:18 be sure and give it to one of us if you're not going to 08:20 be here Sabbath. We're going to take up an offering Sabbath. 08:22 We're not going to bother every service and every day 08:25 maybe taking up those offerings, but at our 3ABN booth 08:28 there'll be a place out here that you can put love gifts. 08:31 And so we do appreciate your love and your prayers 08:34 and your financial support. 08:35 You know, I called a friend of mine - Pastor Gary Grimes - 08:38 who is one of our prayer partners and I was sharing 08:42 with him that we're already into a long, hot summer 08:45 and that it is a real shortage. 08:49 A lot of it has to do with the economy, I'm sure. 08:52 And you know what he said to me? He said: 08:55 "Every ministry that is on the go 08:58 is always short of money. " 09:01 He said: "It tells you two things: 09:04 when you're short of money you're on the go - number 1- 09:07 and number 2: the devil is angry and doing everything he can 09:11 to prevent those from giving. " 09:14 And that, you know, we had prayer together 09:16 and what courage came from those remarks. 09:19 But he's right. You know, if a ministry is doing nothing 09:23 with the money that's coming in then they can build up 09:27 quite a stockpile. But when you see the things that 09:31 are happening and the plans that are on the table 09:34 not only for television and radio 09:37 but also for what we call social media... 09:40 getting more into YouTube and Facebook 09:42 and reaching out to the younger generation 09:45 through these means where even now you can listen 09:49 to 3ABN Radio on your Smartphone... 09:52 if your phone is smart enough. 09:54 My... I have a phone that's not quite that smart. 09:58 I have to tell you, though, I bought one of those 10:00 and I took it back because the phone is smarter than I am 10:03 and we were not compatible. So I took it back 10:06 and got me a simple one. 10:08 I have the same phone you do and I enjoy mine, too. 10:13 It's a... it's a pretty simple phone. 10:15 Well listen, it's just so wonderful to be with you. 10:18 And there was someone who really wanted to be with us tonight 10:22 but he was not able to be here in person. 10:25 But he is going to be bringing us a greeting by video. 10:31 And it's Pastor Ted Wilson, who is the president 10:35 of the General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists. 10:39 Pastor Wilson: 10:41 Greetings from the General Conference headquarters 10:44 of the Seventh-day Adventist Church. 10:46 The Pillars of our Faith Camp Meeting is 10:48 such a blessing to so many. 10:50 The CDs resulting from the last Camp Meeting 10:54 and the 3ABN anniversary celebration are very close 10:58 to my heart as well as to the heart of my wife, Nancy. 11:02 We enjoy the music in our home 11:04 and have shared it with friends. 11:06 We look forward to the new CD releases 11:09 of Pillars of our Faith. 11:11 It would be a wonderful opportunity to greet all of you 11:15 face to face and become personally acquainted with you. 11:19 But allow me to take just a moment 11:22 to share this message of appreciation 11:25 for the work that has been continuing at 3ABN 11:28 for over a quarter of a century. 11:31 I commend and congratulate the leadership, 11:34 staff, and volunteers at Three Angels Broadcasting Network 11:39 for spreading the good news of the gospel of Jesus Christ, 11:43 His three angels' messages of Revelation 14, 11:46 and pointing to His soon second coming. 11:50 You are accomplishing an effective work 11:54 in our Lord's harvest field. 11:55 The Seventh-day Adventist Church is grateful 11:59 to 3ABN and like-minded supporting institutions 12:03 who work tirelessly to reach lost and suffering souls 12:07 who don't know our Savior, Jesus Christ, 12:10 and also to enhance the spiritual walk of fellow 12:15 Seventh-day Adventists and Christians 12:17 of other denominations the world over. 12:20 Our church is experiencing unprecedented growth. 12:24 I believe that it is in part due to media outlets 12:29 like 3ABN, Hope Channel, 12:32 LLBN, and other supporting networks 12:35 which serve as evangelists for the church on a 24-hour, 12:40 seven day a week basis. 12:42 As you know, the Seventh-day Adventist church is seeking 12:46 and praying for world-wide revival and reformation 12:51 through the power of the Holy Spirit 12:53 to accomplish God's great evangelistic mission 12:56 to this world. Uplifting the pillars of our Christian faith 13:01 is an important part of that effort. 13:04 My prayer is that the Spirit of the Lord 13:08 will move in a mighty way during your encampment 13:12 and that you will be revived to have a closer walk 13:15 with the Lord, 13:16 changed more and more into the likeness of Christ 13:20 and energized to work with increased zeal 13:24 for the Lord... all through the mighty power 13:27 of our Redeemer, Savior, and Best Friend 13:31 Jesus Christ. 13:33 Working together, we can hasten the day 13:36 when we shall see Christ coming in the clouds of glory. 13:40 Please know that our prayers are with you. 13:43 We also entreat you to remember us 13:46 as you boldly approach God's throne of grace. 13:50 Today - more than ever - we need to pray for the power 13:54 of the Holy Spirit to work in our lives 13:57 and to grant us heavenly wisdom. 14:00 In a world filled with uncertainty, may you cling 14:04 to the pillars of our faith that are all anchored 14:08 in God's Word... the Bible. 14:11 May your hearts overflow with the blessed hope 14:14 of Jesus Christ's soon coming. 14:20 Amen. And all the people said: "Amen. " 14:23 I want to say thank you so much to Elder Ted Wilson. 14:27 What a blessing he's been to 3ABN already since this past 14:30 year he was elected General Conference president. 14:32 And he's a man with a vision and I believe the type of leadership 14:36 that can take us where we want to go... 14:38 and that's to the end of the road of this earth 14:40 and the beginning of life everlasting. 14:43 And I believe as we work together as a church 14:45 and a people that this can happen very soon: 14:48 yet in our lifetime. 14:49 So it's my privilege at this time to introduce 14:53 to start off the Pillars of our Faith Camp Meeting 14:55 this year with Pastor Jim Gilley. 14:58 And Jim is a wonderful friend. 15:01 He's like a brother. He and Camille are wonderful people. 15:04 We're actually neighbors now 15:05 and I look forward to being neighbors with them, 15:08 as Elder Micheff - Jim Micheff - used to say, 15:10 on Glory Street. And wonderful people. 15:12 And Jim is a tremendous example of a Christian. 15:16 He's... God has appointed him here for such an hour as this. 15:19 Great business head; a great person to work with, 15:22 and I appreciate him so much. And tonight he'll be bringing us 15:25 our first message. But before we do, he's asked me 15:28 to sing a song: the song the Lord gave me about a year ago 15:31 entitled "All My Praise. " 15:47 All my praise, 15:52 I give You all my praise. 16:00 That's all I have 16:04 to offer You. 16:10 I now build a sanctuary 16:16 deep within my heart, 16:22 and all my praise 16:26 I offer up to You. 16:34 I love You, Lord. 16:38 Oh, how I love You, Lord. 16:45 I bare my heart 16:49 and soul to You. 16:57 I'm an empty, broken vessel 17:02 filled with hurt and pain inside. 17:07 Still I offer up 17:11 all my praise to You. 17:19 Fill me, Lord. 17:24 Oh, please fill me, Lord, 17:32 with Your Holy Spirit 17:36 fill me now. 17:42 For I long for Your anointing 17:48 that I may work for You. 17:54 Fill me, Lord, 17:58 touch me, Lord, just now. 18:06 All my praise. 18:11 I give You all my praise. 18:18 That's all I have 18:23 to offer You. 18:29 I now build a sanctuary 18:34 so deep within my heart. 18:39 Oh, and all my praise 18:44 I offer up to You. 18:52 And all my praise 18:56 I offer up to You. 19:09 Appreciate it. 19:13 That song is fast becoming one of my favorites. 19:17 Amen. Really do enjoy hearing Danny sing it. 19:23 Um, I think a lot of you are just like I am: 19:28 you love to hear Danny sing. 19:31 God has really given him gifts... 19:35 many, many gifts... 19:36 and the gift of faith 19:38 is the greatest gift that God has given him. 19:43 The faith to begin this ministry with absolutely nothing. 19:48 The faith to continue this ministry 19:51 with absolutely nothing! 19:54 And I will tell you something: I have never in my life 19:57 seen any place that is just sustained 20:03 by God on a day-by-day basis. Amen. 20:06 And I will tell you that anybody that works in 20:09 the business office will triple that Amen. 20:12 I... they... they have never seen anything like it either. 20:17 And we know that we just trust in God. 20:21 We trust in Him, and He does not... 20:24 You know the text that "we walk not by sight but by faith? " 20:28 I may be saying it backwards but it's the way it is. 20:32 We walk by faith and not by sight. 20:37 Let us pray. 20:38 Father, we pray for Your Holy Spirit to come, 20:41 to lead, to direct, to guide 20:44 in all that's said and done tonight. 20:47 We pray in Jesus' name, Amen. 20:50 If you have your Bibles, turn with me to the 12th chapter 20:54 of Romans and beginning with verse 1. 20:58 A verse familiar text that sometimes is used 21:02 only in one way. 21:05 We often hear it used when people are talking about health 21:08 but it really goes far beyond health. 21:13 It includes health but it goes far beyond health. 21:16 The 12th chapter of Romans beginning with verse 1: 21:19 "I beseech you, therefore, brethren, 21:22 by the mercies of God 21:25 that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, 21:28 holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. 21:33 And do not be conformed to this world 21:37 but be transformed by the renewing of your mind 21:42 that you may prove what is that good and acceptable 21:48 and perfect will of God. " 21:51 Transformed it says. 21:55 Changed. Now I had a teacher one time 22:00 that said: "Whenever you see therefore 22:03 in a sentence, find out what it's there for. " 22:09 And if you look at this: "I beseech you therefore brethren" 22:13 it is referring to the first eleven chapters. 22:18 We're now down to the twelfth chapter. 22:19 It's referring to the first eleven chapters. 22:22 And these first eleven chapters are dealing with the doctrine 22:28 of sin and of salvation. 22:33 The Bible says in Romans the third chapter verse 23 22:36 that "all have sinned and come short of the glory of God. " 22:40 All. 22:43 That means everybody. 22:46 And we've all sinned the Bible says. 22:49 Romans 6:23 says: "The wages of sin is death 22:53 but the gift of God is eternal life. " 22:59 The gift is eternal life. 23:02 Sin? Death. 23:04 God gives life. 23:07 That's the contrast that Romans 1 through 11 23:12 goes into all kinds of detail telling us about. 23:16 Sin... the ugliness of sin, the awfulness of sin. 23:20 How sin separates us from God. 23:23 How there is salvation only in Jesus... 23:27 no place else. 23:29 But it's so clear and so fantastic. 23:34 And then Romans the 10th chapter verse 13 says: 23:38 "Who... " Verse 13 chapter 10: 23:43 "For whosoever calls on the name of the Lord 23:47 shall be saved. " 23:49 That's the way: calling upon the name of the Lord. 23:56 You know Jesus Christ was designated from the very time 24:00 of the fall of man to be the sacrifice. 24:04 He was to come to give His life. 24:08 To go to the cross; die for you and for me. 24:13 The sacrifice. But He was also a living sacrifice. 24:18 He lived a perfect life. 24:22 He demonstrated what real sacrifice was: 24:27 giving up what He wanted so that He would perform 24:31 the will of His heavenly Father. 24:36 You know, that's exactly what we must be. 24:41 Matthew the 10th chapter verse 38 says: 24:44 "He who does not take his cross and follow after Me 24:48 is not worthy of Me. " 24:51 Then He says in verse 39: "He who finds his life 24:55 will lose it and he who loses his life for My sake 25:01 will find it. " 25:04 Galatians 2:20 the apostle Paul says: 25:08 "I am crucified with Christ; nevertheless I live 25:11 yet not I but Christ liveth in me. 25:15 And the life which I now live in the flesh 25:18 I live by the faith of the Son of God 25:20 who loved me and gave Himself for me. " 25:23 But he talks about the going to the cross. 25:27 "I am crucified with Christ. " 25:31 Christ says to take up His cross. 25:33 He says that we must die daily. 25:36 He talks about dying. You know, 25:39 we've had a big flood season this year 25:42 all down through the Mississippi here. 25:44 We've seen so many fields that were flooded. 25:48 And Camille and I have made a number of trips south on 25:51 highway 57 down to 55 and then on down 55. 25:56 And there was one part of 55 that for weeks 26:01 the water was just a thin layer of water 26:04 came over the interstate. 26:05 They slowed you down; you were OK. 26:08 But there was just a little bit of water 26:09 coming over the interstate down there. 26:11 They had sandbagged... held back all they could... 26:15 water was actually higher... You'd look at it; 26:18 it was higher than you were. 26:20 And I remember mentioning to Harold Roddy, good man 26:26 and a great agricultural genius... 26:30 And I said: "Harold, it looks like we're going to lose 26:35 all these crops this year. " 26:37 He said: "Listen, we can plant as late as July 26:41 and still get a good crop. " 26:44 And I thought: "Well that's a praise the Lord. " 26:47 And on our way back up this week 26:51 we saw them planting. 26:54 Some of the areas that were actually covered with water 26:58 already had dried out enough to where they had already plowed it 27:01 and they were planting those areas. 27:04 There were some areas that still were flooded 27:07 not too far from it, but they were... they were 27:10 planting those areas... 27:12 putting that seed in the ground. 27:15 Now when you look at a seed... 27:17 we could take a seed and we could put it on a table 27:21 and we could lay hands on the seed. 27:24 We could anoint the seed. 27:27 We could pray for the seed. 27:29 We could talk to the seed. 27:31 We could encourage the seed, 27:33 but until it goes in the ground 27:35 and it's buried 27:38 then... and it dies... 27:42 then it comes forth a plant. 27:46 My friend, until we die to self 27:52 we are not reborn to a real true life in Christ. 27:58 He said that we must be buried with Him. 28:02 The Bible talks about being buried with baptism. 28:05 Being buried in baptism. 28:08 Coming forth to newness of life. 28:13 The Lord says: "I want you to be a living sacrifice. " 28:19 "I want your life to be not for self. " 28:23 You see, we've got to... we have to get away from 28:26 looking at self, worrying about self. 28:28 Being afraid that self isn't going to have enough to eat. 28:31 Being afraid that self is not going to have enough 28:34 to get by on. Because once we get away from self 28:38 we start looking to God. 28:41 Trusting in Jesus. 28:43 Relying upon Him totally. 28:46 Becoming a living sacrifice. 28:51 Sacrificing self completely 28:55 through Jesus Christ our Lord. 28:58 You know, the disciples had to learn this. 29:02 Peter had to learn it. 29:03 All the other disciples had to learn it. 29:05 That they had to die to self. 29:07 They had to quit trying to figure out 29:09 what was going to be happening for self. 29:12 If you go over to John the 21st chapter 29:17 you remember that after the resurrection... 29:19 Now they had been with Jesus... they had seen Jesus. 29:22 In fact, Jesus had even made the statement to them 29:26 of where He was to meet them on a mountain 29:29 after the resurrection. 29:32 But here we find Peter being inpatient. 29:36 I don't know if Peter went to the mountain, 29:38 waited around a little bit and was impetuous and inpatient 29:41 and he finally said: "Listen, I'm not waiting around 29:44 here any more. I'm just not being here anymore. " 29:49 I don't know if that's exactly what happened or not, 29:51 but I do know that Peter said... 29:55 Simon Peter, Thomas called the twin, 29:57 Nathaniel of Cana of Galilee, 29:59 Sons of Zebedee - that's James and John - 30:01 and two others of His disciples were all together. 30:04 And Simon Peter said to them: "I am going fishing. " 30:08 And they said to him: "We're going with you. " 30:14 And they went out and immediately got into the boat, 30:20 and that night they caught nothing. 30:22 "I'm going fishing. " Nothing wrong with going fishing 30:29 except if God wants you somewhere else. 30:31 God didn't say "I'll meet you at the boat. " 30:35 He said - Jesus said: "I'll be on the mountain; 30:39 I'll meet you on the mountain. " 30:41 And they went fishing. 30:43 They had given up; they had gone back. 30:48 They had been called away from fishing 30:51 and now they were back fishing again, 30:56 and they didn't catch a thing. 31:00 I want to tell you something: there's a real lesson there. 31:02 A real lesson. 31:05 And he said when the morning came 31:09 and Jesus stood on the shore 31:12 yet the disciples did not know that it was Jesus. 31:15 You see, you can get so far away from the Lord 31:18 even when His voice is heard you won't recognize it. 31:22 They were not where they were supposed to be 31:26 and they did not think that He was going to be there. 31:30 But He was. 31:32 And then Jesus said to them 31:37 "Children, have you any food? " 31:41 And they answered Him: "No. " 31:44 And then He said to them: "Cast the net on the 31:47 right side of the boat and you'll find some. " 31:50 You'd think right then they'd have known who it was, 31:52 wouldn't you? But they had gotten so far out of fellowship 31:57 with Him that they didn't recognize His voice. 32:02 They didn't even recognize that this is what He had told them 32:07 3-1/2 years before 32:10 when He had told them to cast the net 32:14 on the other side. 32:17 The Bible says: "So they cast and now they were not able 32:21 to draw it in because of the multitude of fish. 32:26 Therefore that disciple whom Jesus loved 32:31 said to Peter: 'It is the Lord. ' " 32:35 That was John... he finally caught on. 32:39 "It is the Lord! " 32:43 And now you see what Peter did. 32:44 "Now when Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord 32:47 he put on his out garment for he had removed it 32:50 and plunged into the sea... " 32:52 The other disciples came in the little boat. 32:56 "for they were not far from land... 32:59 but about 200 cubits" - which is 100 yards - 33:03 "dragging the net with the fish. " 33:06 Now Peter... You know, sometimes people will say... 33:10 Peter, he... he was different. 33:16 He didn't just wait in the boat until he got there... 33:20 he dove in 33:22 when he found out it was the Lord. 33:24 You remember it was Peter who said: "You're not going to wash 33:26 my feet. " Then he said: "No, my feet, my head, 33:30 everything. " It was Peter that said: 33:34 "Let me walk on the water, " and he jumped in 33:36 and started walking on the water. 33:38 It was Peter! 33:40 Now, Peter was not the first pope. 33:44 Understand that? 33:46 He was not. 33:48 But don't think for a moment that he was not 33:51 the leader of the bunch... because he was. 33:55 He was. 33:57 We see that in so many ways. 34:01 In fact, if you look at all the disciples... 34:04 You got real quiet when I said that. 34:06 But when you look at all the disciples 34:09 they are mentioned all together 129 times. 34:14 When you get to the room tonight if you can't go to sleep 34:17 you count those: 129 times. 34:21 Out of 129, 86 times 34:27 it mentions Peter. 34:31 43- or half the number - 34:34 all of the other disciples together. 34:38 Forty-three times all the other disciples together. 34:44 Peter is mentioned twice for every time 34:48 any of the 11, other 11, are mentioned even once. 34:53 He was the leader. 34:56 Not a pope but he was the leader. 35:01 You watch how many times they list the disciples. 35:03 There'll be Peter, Andrew, James, and John 35:05 and it'll go down through the list. 35:06 But it almost always mentions Peter first 35:11 because he was there on the cutting edge. 35:17 Peter was an ambitious man; he was a hard-working man. 35:20 So were James and John. 35:21 These fellows were fishing. 35:24 Now let me tell you about this fishing. 35:26 This was not just out there with a rod and reel. 35:29 Danny called me the other day and he said: "Do you mind 35:32 if I fish over there in your pond? " 35:35 I said: "No, please do. " 35:36 I have never fished out there once. 35:38 I'm not going to go fishing until the Lord just finally says 35:43 to me: "You're going fishing. " 35:45 All right? 35:47 But Danny was just wanting to test the waters out there. 35:50 He catches them... throws them back in. 35:52 And I have... I think the same fish follows him around. 35:57 I think he likes the thrill of coming up out of that water. 36:00 I think the fish gets a bigger thrill than Danny does 36:04 because it seems like he's a pet fish. 36:06 I saw him walk around there one day 36:09 and catch 12 fish... but they all looked exactly alike. 36:15 And he keeps throwing him back. 36:17 But these men were commercial fishermen. 36:21 They made money doing this. 36:25 By the way, I love the Sea of Galilee. 36:29 I'm going to take a limited trip over there in November. 36:34 I'm only going to take one busload and that's it. 36:37 I'm not going to take four or five hundred people. 36:39 But one bus - about 50 people - 36:41 and we've still got a few seats left. But... 36:44 if you want to go, let me know. 36:46 But I love the Sea of Galilee. 36:49 My favorite place maybe in the whole world. 36:52 And they go to the place - the traditional place - 36:56 where Jesus was cooking those fish. 36:59 Wouldn't you love to do a... have breakfast with Jesus 37:05 on the Sea of Galilee in the earth made new? 37:10 I... I look forward to that. 37:12 Sometime during eternity if He'll just schedule me 37:16 any time to be with Him and have breakfast 37:19 on the Sea of Galilee with Jesus like those disciples did. 37:24 I hope and pray that I can do that someday. 37:30 But you know something? These men... 37:33 this fishing was very important to them. 37:35 The guy that I use over there, Malcolm Cartier, 37:38 he is a genius in this whole area of study. 37:42 And he has found information that leads him to believe 37:47 that these men - Peter, Andrew, James, and John - 37:52 were very successful fishermen. 37:57 They were good at it. 37:59 In fact, they had devised a plan. 38:02 There's one species of fish that's only found in 38:05 the Sea of Galilee. 38:07 And they were taking that fish and somehow 38:12 putting it in a barrel of salt, whatever, I don't know 38:15 what process, and shipping those to Rome. 38:19 Because those people from Rome, particularly the soldiers 38:23 that had done a tour of duty there, 38:26 had developed a taste for that fish and they wanted it. 38:30 And these disciples were doing well. 38:33 They excavated Peter's house a number of years ago, 38:36 and I believe that house was built 38:38 before he went into preaching. 38:40 There's no money in preaching, I can tell you that! 38:42 But I believe that that house was developed 38:46 when he was still in the fishing business. 38:48 It's large! 38:51 Harold Weiss, who was one of my professors in college, 38:53 is one of the leading archaeologists in the world 38:56 today. And he was given the honor 39:00 of leading a group from a number of several universities 39:04 but Notre Dame being one of them. 39:05 And he went with that group, he led the group 39:09 and they excavated Peter's house. 39:11 And I read the article that he had in BAR Magazine: 39:15 Biblical Archaeological Review. 39:17 I try to impress you that I read some of these things. 39:21 But I read that 39:25 and it talks about how exquisite the home was. 39:31 Beautiful, big. 39:32 I've been there, seen it, 39:34 and it looked big to me. 39:38 But this was Peter's home. 39:42 You see, these men... They were not walking away 39:47 from a hobby. They were walking away from a livelihood. 39:52 Zebedee. There are those through the study of the Word 39:57 who have come to the place that believe that Zebedee, 40:01 the father of James and John, was a leading fishermen 40:05 there. That he supplied fish 40:09 to Caiaphas the high priest. 40:11 That this is how John and some of the other disciples 40:16 gained entrance that night. 40:18 You know, when you know the servants 40:20 and you're in on the go, you can go to the door 40:23 and say: "Hey, this is John. Let me in; I'm Zebedee's son. " 40:26 "Come on in; come on in. " 40:28 They didn't let just anybody in there. 40:31 And he... they supplied... 40:34 They found some evidence that indicates that that was true. 40:38 So these men were in business. 40:40 Now listen, there's nothing wrong with being in business. 40:43 Nothing wrong with being in the fishing business. 40:45 Nothing wrong with being successful. 40:47 But if God wants you somewhere else 40:50 then that's where you've got to be. 40:53 Now we take the apostle Paul. 40:56 He was a tentmaker. 40:59 God never told him to quit making tents. 41:02 And I've thought about that. 41:05 I've thought why is it that the Lord called those disciples 41:09 to quit fishing - get out of the fishing business - 41:13 and go hook, line, and sinker into the soul-winning business. 41:19 Why? 41:21 And I think the Lord may have given me a little vision 41:24 into that. You see, Paul could move around 41:27 in the tent building business. 41:29 He could... wherever he went they needed tents. 41:32 Wherever he went they needed an awning. 41:35 Wherever he went he could set up shop again 41:39 and be right back into business and make his livelihood. 41:42 But these fishermen couldn't take the Sea of Galilee 41:45 with them everywhere they went. 41:46 You see what I mean? 41:47 They were tied down to a locale. 41:50 They had one place; they had one species of fish 41:55 they really specialized in. 41:56 They had one business where they were shipping it to Rome. 41:59 They would have been tied down right in that general area. 42:02 And so the Lord says: "No! 42:06 I want to send you out... I want to send you out. " 42:10 And He did. When you look at these men 42:13 and how completely they gave themselves to the Lord 42:19 it is unbelievable. If you go down 42:23 and fast-forward a little bit, 42:26 you will find Paul as a tentmaker. 42:30 You find Peter as a preacher; 42:33 Paul a writer, preacher as well. 42:36 But you see, Peter had Pentecost about three weeks or so 42:42 hence from that time. 42:44 He was there at Pentecost preaching. 42:48 Preaching. Read Acts 2... read that sermon. 42:53 This man who had denied Christ, 42:55 this man who left and went back to fishing, 42:58 Jesus went and got him. 43:00 He wasn't at the mountain where he was supposed to be. 43:04 But Jesus went and looked for him and found him 43:07 and brought him to Him. 43:12 A living sacrifice. 43:16 One hundred percent sold out to Jesus. 43:20 Every part of them. 43:22 Their finances, their life, their character... 43:28 everything. 43:30 As I was looking at this process, sort of a sequence 43:34 that takes place here, 43:35 we see they got all totally out of line. 43:38 The first thing that happens is when we become self-reliant. 43:43 They had been relying on the Lord for 3-1/2 years 43:46 to supply everything for them. 43:48 And finally Peter says: "Hey, this isn't going to cut it 43:51 any more. This is... We've got to get back to work 43:54 and I'm going fishing. 43:57 That's what I know and that's where I'm heading. " 44:00 So what happens? When we become self-reliant 44:03 that leads to disobedience. 44:07 He wasn't where he was supposed to be. 44:09 He was somewhere else. 44:13 Disobedience leads to failure, disappointment. 44:16 They fished all night; they didn't catch a thing. 44:18 I believe if they'd have stayed on that lake forever 44:21 they'd have never caught anything else 44:22 because God wasn't going to bless them. 44:25 It wasn't going to be just that night. 44:28 They were not going to be successful 44:32 in the fishing business any more 44:35 because He was not going to bless them. And that, my friend, 44:41 leads to failure, disappointment. 44:44 Leads to a loss of intimate fellowship with Jesus. 44:49 They didn't even recognize His voice. 44:52 They had lost that fellowship 44:55 and they didn't even recognize Him. 44:58 You know, so many times we can drift like this 45:02 by going our own way, becoming self-reliant, 45:06 not relying upon Him. 45:07 You see, what He wants for us is just the opposite. 45:10 He wants us to rely on Him. 45:13 And when we rely on Him, this leads to a life of obedience 45:18 which leads to success and happiness. 45:21 You will find it all through God's Word. 45:25 Obedience has taken a bad rap. 45:29 A bad rap. 45:32 You know, I love my grandchildren. 45:35 I love 'em. 45:37 I've got some of them with me. 45:39 Some of them are here. 45:40 Have I got any on the front row? 45:42 No? Yeah, I've got one. 45:44 That's right. I've got one. 45:47 And I've got some little ones. 45:49 And... But let me tell you, I don't think one time 45:55 whenever they have obeyed me 45:57 that I've said: "You little legalist. " 46:02 "What in the world are you doing? Are you trying to win 46:05 my approval by obeying? 46:08 Is that what you're trying to do? 46:09 Why you're nothing but a legalist. 46:11 What are you trying to do... work your way into my will? 46:16 Is that what you're trying? " When we see obedience in a child 46:20 we are blessed by it. 46:22 When God sees a willing and obedient heart in us 46:27 He is blessed by it. That fellowship is growing in us. 46:31 Don't let people 46:34 turn you away from obedience. 46:39 Because it will bring success, it will bring happiness, 46:42 it will bring an intimate fellowship with Christ. 46:46 Doesn't bring salvation... no. 46:48 He brings salvation. 46:50 He brings it. 46:52 But it brings all the joy. 46:56 Now that doesn't mean that they're not going to be problems 46:59 in the world. There will be. 47:01 There's always going to be problems for Christians. 47:04 But when you enter into a partnership with Him 47:07 something really happens. 47:11 And I want to tell you something: I believe 47:13 with all my heart that everybody who is a living sacrifice; 47:19 who has really become born with Jesus; 47:23 who has died to self, 47:25 been resurrected to Him; 47:27 I think every one of them... 47:29 I don't care if they work out here on the road crew. 47:31 The road crew's put off their work on this road 47:34 just because of our Camp Meeting. Isn't that wonderful? 47:37 Amen. It doesn't take them much to put off work, 47:40 I guarantee you. But... 47:42 But I appreciate their doing it. 47:46 And they did, by the way. They went to a lot of trouble 47:48 to do it. We had Ben Birkhammer who works with us 47:53 got hold of the Department of Transportation, 47:55 talked to the man in charge. 47:56 And he said: "We're going to be having Camp Meeting. " 47:59 They were supposed to start here Monday 48:02 tearing up this road. 48:03 And he said: "Is there any way you can put that off? " 48:06 They said: "We have another place we can work. 48:08 Thank you, Brother Ben, for calling us 48:11 and we will go work some place else 48:13 and we'll be there next Monday. " 48:15 Isn't that? Praise the Lord! 48:19 Praise the Lord. 48:21 But you see, I believe that everybody has a ministry. 48:26 I don't care if the fellow's working on the road. 48:29 I don't care if he's a surgeon. 48:31 I don't care what he is. We should also have a ministry. 48:37 And God blesses those that do that. 48:43 I was visiting with a member of the Fjarli family today. 48:48 He's on our Board: Brother Bruce. 48:50 Talking about his father, Meriin, 48:52 and something that their family started. 48:55 And they saw a program on 3ABN 48:59 and it excited them about the work in India. 49:04 And so they said: "We're going to start trying to do something 49:07 over there. " In fact, Brother Merlin called Danny 49:10 and he said: "We've been giving a monthly contribution 49:13 to 3ABN. What would you think if we turned around 49:17 and used that in India? " 49:21 I want to tell you, I've never seen a selfish bone 49:24 in Danny Shelton. I never have. 49:27 He said: "If the Holy Spirit is leading you to do that, 49:30 please do that. " 49:31 And that's what we tell you every day 49:33 is "You go and give where God leads you. " 49:37 Amen. Not where man leads you but where God leads you. 49:41 The Holy Spirit. They began a ministry there. 49:44 I don't know how many orphanages they have. 49:48 They have a number of orphanages over there. 49:51 But they have started building churches. 49:54 And how many churches do you think that family has built 49:57 in India? Over 900 churches. Amen! 50:03 Amen? Amen! 50:05 That's a family. They're not in the preaching business. 50:08 They are in the construction business 50:12 and development business. 50:14 But they are in the soul-winning business at the same time! 50:17 You know how many baptisms have been held in the crusades 50:20 they have held and they have paid 50:23 to get lay people, other people to hold over there? 50:26 You want to guess how many have been baptized? 50:29 Would you guess 15,000? 50:32 Would you guess 50,000? 50:34 Would you guess 100,000? 50:37 Would you guess over 150,000 people baptized in India? 50:42 Amen. Amen? 50:46 You see, that, my friend, is a living sacrifice. 50:50 That's what it's all about. 50:52 It's teaming up with God, 50:54 and that's what He wants us to do is to team up with Him. 50:59 It says in Matthew 6:33: 51:01 "Seek ye first the kingdom of God and His righteousness 51:04 and all these things will be added to you. " 51:07 I'm going to tell you something: 51:08 the Fjarli's are not in bread lines. 51:12 They're not. 51:14 God takes care of that partnership. 51:18 He takes care of us when we become partners. 51:21 And we all become partners on different levels. 51:24 Different levels. 51:26 But He takes care of that partnership. 51:30 Matthew 23:23: 51:32 He says... Jesus is talking about the tithe: 51:35 Sometimes people say: "Oh, there's no tithe in the 51:37 New Testament. " Let me tell you something: 51:39 you really get down to it you may be right. 51:42 God wants it all in the New Testament. 51:46 Some of you want to go back to the Old Testament right away, 51:49 don't you? So let me get back to Malachi. 51:52 He only wants 10 per cent in Malachi. 51:56 But God wants a living sacrifice 52:01 when we team up with Him. 52:02 You remember the rich young ruler? 52:05 What'd He say to him? 52:06 This fellow was... this was a good man. 52:08 This is not a bad man... it's a good man. 52:10 The Bible says Jesus loved him. 52:13 But Jesus saw that he loved money more than anything else. 52:18 Now by the way, the Great Physician 52:21 does not give one pill for every illness to everybody 52:25 for the same thing. 52:27 He hasn't told you to sell all you have 52:30 and give it to the poor, but He told him to 52:32 because He knew that that was what he needed. 52:38 But you know something? I wish that man had done it 52:40 because I think the most exciting thing would have 52:42 happened because the more he gave away 52:44 the more God would have given him back. 52:46 As he was shoveling it out... As my good friend 52:48 Rex Callicut used to say: 52:50 "I shovel it out with a teaspoon and the Lord puts it back 52:53 with a front-end loader. " Amen. 52:55 And that's the way that He gives. 52:59 Malachi 3:8-11: "Will a man rob God? 53:01 Yet ye have robbed Me. But you say: 'In what way 53:04 have we robbed You? ' 53:05 In tithes and offerings. 53:08 You are cursed with a curse for you have robbed Me 53:11 even this whole nation. " 53:12 Wonder what the problems are of our nation? 53:15 "Bring all the tithes into the storehouse 53:17 that there may be food in My house. And try Me now 53:20 in this says the Lord of Hosts 53:22 if I will not open for you the windows of heaven 53:24 and pour out for you such blessing 53:28 that there will not be room enough to receive it. " 53:31 Amen! That's His promise! 53:34 "Give that it will be given to you" Jesus said in Luke 6 53:38 the 38th verse: "good measure, 53:41 pressed down, shaken together, running over 53:44 will He put into your bosom. 53:47 For with the same measure that you use it 53:49 it will be measured back to you. " 53:51 And then in II Corinthians 9:6-7 Paul says: 53:55 "But this I say: He who sows 53:57 sparingly will also reap sparingly, 54:00 he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. " 54:06 That, my friend, is the message of commitment to Jesus. 54:12 You know something? When He went back 54:17 to Peter, this time He didn't call him Peter 54:23 the rock; He called him Simon. 54:27 And He said - because Peter had gone back to being Simon - 54:31 he had gone back to fishing... 54:35 And Jesus told him, 54:39 He said: "Do you love Me? " 54:41 And he said: "Yes, You know that I do. " 54:44 He asked him three times: "Do you love Me more than these? " 54:49 When I first used to read that I thought He was 54:51 talking about the other disciples. 54:53 But as I've come to look at it more in the original 54:56 I find that He was talking about the fish. 55:00 The money. That's what He was talking about. 55:05 "Do you love Me more than this success? " 55:08 "Do you love Me more than what this represents? " 55:12 "You're all excited about 153 fish, 55:16 but do you love Me more than that? " 55:18 That is the question for you and for me. 55:23 Do we love Him with all of our hearts? 55:29 Because He says: "I want you to be a living sacrifice. " 55:36 He says: "If you will give Me your heart, 55:40 I will give you life eternal. " 55:43 You know, God is the great giver. 55:46 He knows how to give gifts. 55:48 God loves a cheerful giver the Bible says. 55:51 The reason is that God IS a cheerful giver. 55:53 "For God so loved the world that He gave 55:56 His only begotten Son 55:59 that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish 56:03 but have everlasting life. " 56:06 The greatest gift of all 56:10 God gave when He gave His Son 56:15 for you and He gave Him for me. 56:20 You see, He knew Peter's heart. 56:24 Peter had cursed... 56:28 You cannot imagine how Peter cursed 56:31 when he cursed and denied the Lord. 56:36 You and I have denied the Lord somewhere along the line. 56:40 And there are times we've wondered will He forgive us. 56:45 Yeah, He does. 56:48 He restores. 56:50 He restores your soul; He restores my soul. 56:56 He is our Lord, our God, and our Savior. 57:00 Father in heaven, thank you 57:03 for life eternal. Thank you for the commitment, Lord, 57:06 that You have given to us 57:08 that if we will lay it all on the altar 57:13 that You will cover us with the precious blood of Jesus. 57:20 Thank you, Father, for that assurance. 57:22 In Jesus wonderful and powerful and loving name, Amen. |
Revised 2014-12-17