Participants: Jay Rosario
Series Code: 11POFCM
Program Code: 11POFCM000008
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00:48 Why hello and welcome to 3ABN's Worship Center
00:52 here in downtown... yeah almost, Thompsonville, Illinois. 00:56 If there was a beautiful downtown Thompsonville... 00:58 that's right, yeah. 01:00 I hope that all of you have enjoyed today. 01:02 I want to welcome you here in the Worship Center 01:05 but I also want to speak to you that are watching from 01:07 around the world. Now these that are here in the Worship Center, 01:10 they know that for the next three hours 01:12 where are you going to be? Right here. 01:15 And I want to let you know that for the next three hours 01:17 we have got three of the most powerful speakers. 01:20 Amen! And we want you to sit down, relax, 01:24 kick your feet up and don't go anywhere 01:26 for the next three hours. And let me tell you who 01:28 our speakers are. The first one is Jay Rosario. 01:31 And I'll tell you more about him in just a moment. 01:33 But in the next hour we have John Bradshaw, 01:36 and he's going to be speaking on Spiritual Gifts and Ministries. 01:40 And then, Danny, the next hour is C.D. Brooks. 01:43 And his ministry... subject is going to be Growing in Christ. 01:48 So that's what's going to happen in the next three hours. 01:51 Wow. I'm looking forward to that, aren't you? 01:53 Well, all of them really. I mean, honestly, 01:56 a lot of prayer went into the speakers 01:58 and getting the speakers and the singers 02:00 and musicians for this Camp Meeting 02:02 because we want this to be the most spiritual Camp Meeting 02:05 that we've ever had and that you've ever attended. 02:08 Because Jesus... every day Jesus' coming is closer 02:12 and we need to be ready more than ever before, right? 02:15 Right. So that's why we're here. We want to uplift, 02:17 glorify, and magnify the Lord. 02:19 We get up and we have a little fun from time to time 02:21 and I think it's all right for Christians to be happy. 02:24 We should be the happiest, most excited people on planet earth, 02:27 shouldn't we? Amen. We should be! 02:29 But we also can get serious because there's a world 02:32 around us that doesn't know Jesus. 02:34 And God has given us an opportunity and given us 02:36 a channel of blessing through 3ABN. 02:39 And I say "us" because that's all of you here, 02:41 all of you watching and listening around the world 02:43 by radio... whether it's satellite, television, 02:46 however... the Internet. 02:48 That it's all of us working together that makes this happen. 02:51 Without you there would be no 3ABN. 02:53 3ABN reaching, literally, as I mentioned last night 02:56 to virtually every continent - inhabited continent - 02:59 on planet earth. And what a privilege 03:02 to be a Seventh-day Adventist Christian in these closing 03:05 moments of earth's history and know that God has 03:08 literally given us the tool to get the undiluted 03:11 three angels' messages, one that would counteract 03:13 the counterfeit, into all the world 03:15 before Jesus comes back very soon. 03:17 Amen! And He is coming back very soon. 03:20 The signs all foretell that Christ is coming soon! 03:25 We've got to preach this message around the world. 03:28 It... you know, folks, it's not a time for us to pull back. 03:31 The economy may not be the best. 03:34 The financial circumstances may not be the best 03:38 but God says that we are to go. 03:40 "Go ye into all the world and preach the gospel. " 03:44 And He doesn't tell us to slow down when the finances get slow. 03:49 And I've got a good... I don't even know the man's name 03:53 but he writes me every once in a while. 03:55 He doesn't sign his name, and he's so upset that we're not 03:58 just cutting back and he thinks we ought to just cut way back 04:02 and lay everybody off and things like that. 04:05 No! This is the end of time, folks. Amen! 04:08 We can't cut back now. 04:10 We've got to move forward as never before 04:14 with the gospel of Jesus Christ to a dying world. 04:18 There are people out there that are counting on this 04:21 message that have never heard this message before. 04:24 They don't even know that it exists. 04:26 But it is our place to tell them the wonderful good news 04:32 that Jesus Christ is coming again and that He loves them, 04:37 He dies on the cross for them, and that through His blood 04:41 they can receive life eternal. 04:44 And what kind of bride is the Lord returning for? 04:48 Purified. A church that's purified and perfected. 04:50 A glorious bride without spot or wrinkle or blemish 04:53 or any such thing. A bride that's in unity. 04:56 And that's the subject matter that Jay Rosario is going to be 04:59 presenting this evening is Unity in the Body. 05:02 Uh, I asked Jay a little about himself 05:05 and he told me that he was born in Miami, Florida, 05:09 came into the Adventist faith in, of all places, Alaska, 05:13 and he is now living in San Jose, Arizona... 05:15 not Arizona... California. 05:17 And I asked him: "What was your inspiration to become 05:20 a teacher... such a strong preacher? " 05:23 How many of you have seen him here on 3ABN? 05:26 Uh, we got to know him through GYC 05:28 and he is just a powerful preacher! 05:31 And he told me that while he was in Alaska 05:33 he started taking Bible studies. 05:36 And he said the most amazing thing. 05:38 Something that inspired him so much was that when he would 05:41 have questions - and he was full of questions as young people 05:44 usually are - that every time he had a question 05:48 the gentleman that was giving him the Bible studies 05:50 would take him to the Word and give him nothing but scripture. 05:53 This so impressed him, and he asked the gentleman 05:57 one time: "How on earth do you do this? 06:00 How do you know the scripture so well that you can answer 06:02 all of my questions with the scripture? " 06:04 And the gentlemen said to him: "Jay, someday 06:08 you will be teaching and you will be preaching 06:10 just the same way. " And he said: "That so inspired me. " 06:13 You know what the man did? 06:15 He cast a vision and he cast it right inside of Jay. 06:18 And Jay caught that, and now we are just honored 06:21 to have him come and speak for us tonight. 06:23 But before Jay comes, we have got a marvelous young lady 06:27 that we have come to appreciate so much here at 3ABN. 06:31 Through the years she's been faithful 06:34 and we just admire her so much. 06:36 Danny, I think you know this young lady. 06:38 I know this little girl. This is my daughter Melody... 06:41 Melody Dawn. And when she was born, we named her 06:44 Melody in faith that God would give her musical abilities. 06:47 And God has done that. 06:49 And Melody, I love you and appreciate you. 06:51 Someone said tonight: "You've got to quit losing weight! " 06:54 They said: "She's too little. 06:56 Tell her don't lose any more weight. " 06:58 But you know what, when they're almost... I won't say what 07:01 her birthday is, but when she's almost that age 07:03 they pretty well do what they want, right? 07:05 But I love Melody and Greg and all the kids 07:10 and what a blessing they are. 07:12 I'm so thankful that you love Jesus and you're willing to 07:14 use your talent for Him. 07:16 What are you going to sing tonight? He Knows My Name. 07:37 He counts the stars one and all. 07:41 He knows how much sand is on the shore. 07:45 He sees every sparrow that falls. 07:52 He made the mountains and the sea. 07:56 He's in control of everything... 08:00 of all creatures great and small. 08:04 And He knows my name. 08:08 Every step that I take. 08:11 Every move that I make. 08:15 Every tear that I cry. 08:19 And He knows my name. 08:22 When I'm overwhelmed by the pain 08:26 and can't see the light of day, 08:30 I know I'll be just fine 08:34 'cause He knows my name. 08:44 I don't know what tomorrow will bring. 08:49 I can't tell you what's in store. 08:52 I don't know a lot of things. 08:59 I don't have all the answers 09:02 to the questions of life, 09:06 but I know in whom I have believed. 09:12 And He knows my name. 09:15 Every step that I take. 09:19 Every move that I make. 09:23 Every tear that I cry. 09:27 And He knows my name. 09:30 When I'm overwhelmed by the pain 09:34 and can't see the light of day 09:37 I know I'll be just fine 09:42 'cause He knows my name. 09:47 He knew who I was 09:50 when He carried my cross. 09:55 He knew that I would fail Him 09:59 but He took the loss. 10:04 And He knows my name. 10:08 Every step that I take. 10:11 Every move that I make. 10:15 Every tear that I cry. 10:19 He knows my name 10:22 when I'm overwhelmed by the pain 10:26 and can't see the light of day 10:30 I know I'll be just fine 10:34 'cause He knows my name. 10:37 When I'm overwhelmed by the pain 10:41 and can't see the light of day 10:45 I know I'll be just fine 10:53 'cause He knows my name. 11:08 Hello again. 11:10 Aren't you excited that you serve a God who knows your name? 11:13 Amen! 11:14 Aren't you excited that He's going to give you a new name? 11:16 Amen? Amen. I like the name Jay but it'd be kind of cool 11:19 to have a more... more powerful name. 11:22 I always felt like my name was kind of... 11:24 it wasn't strong enough. Jay... just short 11:27 and kind of to the point. A little too concise. 11:29 So I wants something a little bit like, you know, Maximus. 11:33 You know? In high school I think people would have left me alone 11:36 if they knew that my name was Maximus. 11:38 Sounds exciting. I don't know what my new name is going to be 11:40 in the kingdom, but I'm excited to have a new name. 11:43 So... have you been enjoying yourselves? 11:44 Amen! I've been really, really excited 11:47 listening to all... so many different perspectives 11:49 to scripture and it's very... so exciting 11:53 to see how different minds are able to glean 11:58 different perspectives to the same texts. 12:02 So I think that's really the whole point. 12:03 That's why we come together in unity 12:06 to seek the Lord's presence. 12:08 And as we speak about unity in the body of Christ 12:13 I want to invite you to bow your heads with me as we pray 12:15 and invite the Spirit with us. 12:17 Father, We come before You excited 12:19 because you know our names 12:21 and because you're going to give us a new one. 12:23 And Father, in the name of Jesus, we ask that You bless 12:26 us now as we open Your Word and at the same time 12:31 open our hearts. May You speak to us in a powerful way. 12:35 May we leave this presentation, Father, with a deeper 12:39 appreciation of Your... of Your character 12:41 and may You help us, Father, to be more and more like Jesus. 12:44 It's our prayer in His name. Let everyone say... Amen. 12:48 So our message: Unity in the Body of Christ. 12:53 Unity in the Body of Christ. 12:56 This is going to be interesting. Amen? 12:58 Unity. Is it possible to have unity 13:01 in the body of Christ? Do you think it's possible? 13:04 Amen. I think with God all things are possible. 13:07 And once again, we've talked a little bit, you know, 13:10 the reality of church. The challenges that we've had 13:13 in the past experience. But, you know, the Bible promises 13:18 that God's promises will be fulfilled in His people 13:23 in the last days. So maybe you're a person who 13:26 looks at your local church situation 13:30 and you wonder to yourself: "How in the world 13:32 are we going to be united? " 13:34 And I think... I think that's the cry of many of us. 13:38 But I think it's only possible with the Spirit of God. 13:40 And as the Spirit is moving upon the hearts of people 13:44 I believe that slowly but surely He's uniting us more and more 13:48 and more. And I believe that the Bible has been given us 13:50 to unite us into the same foundation. Amen? 13:54 And so may the Lord help us as we endeavor to study this 13:58 a bit further. Unity in the Body of Christ. 14:00 It's interesting because when you consider 14:03 all of the things in scripture - 14:07 particularly the concept of God - 14:11 which is such a sublime, such a profound concept, 14:17 obviously our minds are too limited 14:19 to be able to fully fathom and comprehend 14:22 all of the intricate mysteries of God. 14:24 But the Bible tells us that God 14:28 has three different, distinct personalities. 14:33 Yes? The phrase, of course, we refer to it as the trinity 14:38 although trinity doesn't appear in the Bible. 14:40 The term that appears in the Bible is the term 14:44 Godhead... Godhead. And I think if we really want to understand 14:48 this concept of unity we really have to go to the essence. 14:52 And I believe that when you look at the Godhead you find 14:56 the perfect picture of unity in the entire universe. 15:02 What we will discover is that God Himself 15:06 in His very being is a unity. 15:10 God Himself in His very essence is harmony. 15:15 And when you take a look at... when Jesus is referring to 15:19 the Holy Spirit... If you have your Bibles, run with me 15:22 to John chapter 16. And I have to warn you: 15:25 we're going to be going over scripture. Amen? 15:28 So make sure you have your fingers ready. 15:30 Remember we're going to do finger exercises. 15:32 John chapter 16. 15:36 John chapter 16... Jesus is speaking 15:39 in the future of the coming of the Holy Spirit 15:44 and He's unfolding to His disciples the mission 15:47 of the Holy Spirit and how the Holy Spirit is 15:50 going to manifest Himself. 15:52 And when you're there, please say Amen. 15:54 Amen. And notice what the Bible says in John 16 verse 13. 15:57 Jesus says: "However, when He... " 15:59 Notice He doesn't refer to the Spirit as an it. 16:01 Amen? Because the Spirit is not an it. 16:05 The Spirit is a person. 16:07 "When He the Spirit of Truth has come, He will guide you 16:11 into all truth. " 16:14 Now, Pastor David Shin talked a little bit about this concept 16:18 of truth. Powerful presentation on that. 16:20 So we know that the truth is found where? 16:23 "Sanctify them through Thy truth... Thy... " 16:25 "Word is truth. " So the Spirit of God 16:28 will ultimately lead you to where? 16:31 To the Word of God. 16:32 If there is something that is leading you 16:38 contrary to the Word of God, 16:40 then you can rest assured that it's not the Holy Spirit. 16:43 And there are many claims of the movings and the promptings 16:47 of the Spirit that I believe that they are 16:49 the movings and promptings of A spirit... 16:54 but not necessarily the Holy Spirit. 16:58 Amen? So may the Lord help us to be able to be wise 17:01 and able to discern the movings of the Holy Spirit 17:04 and the movings of other spirits that are not of God. 17:07 So the Spirit of God will guide us into all truth, 17:10 into all of the Word, "for He will not speak 17:13 on His own authority. " 17:15 So as the Holy Spirit comes... and by the way, 17:17 the Holy Spirit is part of the Godhead. 17:20 Uh, they are... they are similar. 17:23 They are... all three of them are powerful. 17:25 And as the Spirit of God is here on planet earth 17:29 He will not speak on His own authority. 17:31 Isn't that interesting? 17:32 And notice what it says: "But whatever He hears 17:35 He will speak, and He will tell you things to come. " 17:40 So as the Holy Spirit... There was a switcheroo. 17:44 Right? Jesus ascended; the Spirit descended. 17:47 And as the Spirit descended, the Spirit speaks nothing 17:51 on His own behalf. 17:52 The Spirit is simply bringing back to mind 17:58 bringing back to our remembrance 18:00 the very things that Jesus said of old. 18:04 So if there is something that you're claiming 18:08 to be the leading and promptings of the Spirit, 18:10 you have to ask yourself the question: 18:12 Is the leadings and promptings of that spirit 18:15 does it coincide, does it harmonize with the leadings 18:18 and the promptings and the teachings of Jesus? 18:20 And if it contradicts the teachings of Jesus, 18:23 well then you have to ask yourself the question: 18:25 is this really the Holy Spirit or is it A spirit? 18:29 So the Holy Spirit simply... The Holy Spirit's task 18:33 is simply to exalt and bring back to mind 18:38 the sacrifice and the words of Jesus. 18:42 When you look in chapter 14 of the same book, 18:45 chapter 14 and verse 26, 18:47 the Bible says: "But the Helper, the Holy Spirit whom the Father 18:51 will send in My name, " Jesus says, 18:53 "He will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance 18:56 all things that I said to you. " 18:58 And when you do a careful study of the Holy Spirit 19:00 you'll discover that the job of the Holy Spirit is to exalt 19:04 and to magnify what Jesus has already done. 19:08 I don't know about you, but that's kind of... 19:11 that's kind of selfless. 19:15 That's kind of humble on the Holy Spirit's behalf. 19:17 You guys follow that? 19:19 Here you have a powerful being that was present in the creation 19:23 account by the way. The Spirit was actively involved 19:25 in the creation of the world. 19:27 Here He is thousands of years later 19:29 and He's heavily involved in the experiences of humanity 19:32 and He doesn't say anything about Himself. 19:35 He just says what Jesus had already said. 19:40 He just quotes; He just brings back to memory. 19:43 He is humble and He exalts the ministry of Jesus. 19:48 The Holy Spirit exalts the ministry of Jesus. 19:52 But what I find interesting is when you look at Jesus. 19:57 Jesus kind of had a motto; He had a certain outline. 20:01 He kind of had a certain rhythm to His life 20:04 which I think is an example for all of us. 20:07 For example, if you read in John chapter 5... 20:10 We're in John; just go a few pages back. 20:12 John chapter 5 and you will find 20:17 something very interesting that Jesus says 20:19 in John chapter 5 and verse 30. 20:21 Jesus says: "I can of Myself do... " What? 20:25 "do absolutely nothing. " 20:27 "As I hear I judge, and My judgment is righteous 20:32 because I do not seek My own will but the will of the Father 20:37 who sent Me. " So here you have Jesus Christ 20:40 who was actively involved in the creation account 20:43 in Genesis chapter 1 along with the Holy Spirit - 20:46 all powerful; almighty - and He is here on planet earth. 20:50 He has all the power to do whatever He wants 20:54 and yet He says: "I can of Myself do nothing. " 20:57 What does He say: "I do not seek My own will 21:01 but the will of My Father who sent Me. " 21:04 You're in John. Go back to Matthew chapter 26. 21:07 I warned you: we're going to go through a lot of Bible texts. 21:09 Matthew chapter 26. 21:12 And this is the melancholy chapter where you find 21:16 Christ weeping and sweating and trembling 21:21 in the cool evening in the Garden of Gethsemane. 21:26 And in Matthew chapter 26 and in verse 42 21:29 and really in that whole passage you find Christ coming 21:34 to the Father and He's praying and He's praying 21:37 and He's praying. And He's praying the same thing. 21:41 You ever find yourself praying the same thing? 21:43 Well, we definitely have a good model of an example here 21:47 that persistence in prayer is important. Amen? 21:50 Don't give up; keep praying. We see that in Jesus' example. 21:53 And in verse 42 of Matthew chapter 26 we see 21:57 Jesus praying a second time. 22:01 "And He went away and prayed saying: 'Oh my Father, if 22:03 this cup cannot pass away from Me unless I drink it 22:06 Your will be done. " And if you read the third time 22:11 He says... He basically surrenders and He says 22:14 finally: "Your will be done. " 22:17 So, what do we have so far? We have the Holy Spirit 22:19 who is an all-powerful being who decides to come to planet earth, 22:23 fully humbles Himself, lives a selfless life, 22:29 and all He does is exalt the ministry of Jesus, 22:32 brings back to humanity the words that Jesus had said 22:36 previously, and that's all He does. 22:38 But when you look at Jesus' ministry, Jesus really was also 22:42 kind of humble and selfless. 22:46 What does He do? What is His motto? 22:48 His motto in life is not to do His will 22:51 but to do the will of His Father. 22:54 Do you... are you guys seeing a pattern? 22:55 Here you have the Holy Spirit submitting and exalting Jesus. 23:01 Here you have Jesus submitting and exalting the Father. 23:05 Ladies and gentlemen, the essence of the Godhead 23:08 is constant submission to each other. 23:13 Is constant exaltation of each other. 23:16 Selflessness. 23:19 And I believe that the reason why the Godhead is united... 23:22 Amen? You're not going to find a more intricate unity 23:25 than the Godhead... is because there is infinite love 23:29 constantly being lavished upon the three members 23:33 of the Godhead. And I believe if that same Godhead 23:38 is dwelling in the hearts of His people - Amen? - 23:41 it should manifest itself in what manner? 23:45 In a way where we also are humble and selfless. 23:50 Does that make sense? Run with me to the book of Psalms. 23:53 Psalms chapter 133. I warned you 23:57 we're going to go through a lot of scripture this presentation. 24:01 Psalm 133; Psalm 133. And this is really kind of... 24:07 this could be the bedrock, the foundation of this presentation. 24:10 Psalm 133. And when you're there, please say Amen. 24:15 Amen. 24:17 Psalm 133 verse 1: 24:19 A song of ascents. Of David. He writes: 24:23 "Behold how good and how pleasant 24:26 it is for brethren to dwell together" how? 24:32 "in unity. " Isn't that a beautiful text to read. 24:34 Next board meeting I want to encourage you to read that text. 24:37 Amen? Amen! 24:39 Don't let them know where you got this idea from. 24:42 Psalm 133 tells us clearly that when God's people are 24:46 united it is good. That's such an understatement, isn't it? 24:50 It is good; it is a pleasant thing. 24:52 I think in the King James it says "blessed. " 24:55 It is a "blessed" thing. 24:56 I'm not sure if it's in the King James that's what it says. 24:58 Pleasant. "It is good for the brethren to dwell together 25:02 in unity. Now if this is true 25:04 then obviously the opposite must be true. 25:06 Yes? So if it's pleasant and if it's good for God's people 25:11 to be in unity, then what must it be like 25:13 when God's people are in disunity? 25:18 It could read this way: "Behold, how bad" - 25:21 all right - "and how unpleasant 25:25 it is for the brethren to dwell together in disunity. " 25:30 Can we say that? I think that's safe. 25:32 I think that's Biblically sound. Ladies and gentlemen, 25:34 the reason why sometimes the world is not attracted 25:38 to us or to our message is because they look 25:43 at a congregation - they look at a group of people - 25:46 that many a time manifest themselves in a very 25:50 disunited fashion. 25:54 And they're thinking: "If you don't even get along 25:56 in there, how in the world... why should I even 26:01 bother coming and spending my time and investing my energy 26:06 in worshiping this God that you say is a God of love 26:10 and yet there is no love being manifested to these people? " 26:15 So when you look at the Holy Spirit who exalts, 26:18 when you look at Jesus who exalts the Father, 26:21 ladies and gentlemen it is very, very clear that 26:23 anyone who is walking and anyone who truly knows God 26:27 is going to walk in a humble fashion. 26:30 Is going to walk in a way that is going to uplift and exalt 26:33 those around them. Amen? 26:35 And we have the contrary example of this 26:38 when you look at that fallen angel. 26:41 Anybody know his name? 26:43 Lucifer! Let's take a look at Isaiah. 26:45 Isaiah chapter 14. 26:48 Told you we're going to go through a lot of texts. 26:51 Isaiah chapter 14. 26:54 The essence of God is unity. 26:56 That is His very essence in His being. 26:59 The Godhead - the three members of the Godhead - are 27:03 lavishing respect and love 27:06 and they are esteeming each other better than themselves. 27:09 And yet in Isaiah 14 something happened. 27:14 Something created, something that was united, 27:17 was divided. Something that was in harmony 27:23 became out of harmony. What happened? 27:26 Isaiah chapter 14. When you're there, say Amen. 27:28 Amen. The Bible says in verse 12 "How you are fallen from heaven 27:32 O Lucifer, son of the morning! 27:34 How you are cut down to the ground 27:35 for you who weaken the nations! 27:38 For you have said" where? 27:39 "in your heart. " Isn't that interesting? 27:42 He said in his heart. So that means that 27:46 this disunity first began where? 27:51 On the inside. 27:54 And then it was manifested on the outside. 27:58 It was just a thought; it was just a feeling 28:02 that Lucifer had. "He said in his heart... " 28:06 Well what did he say in his heart? 28:07 "I will ascend into heaven; 28:09 I will exalt my throne above the stars of God; 28:13 I will also sit on the mount of the congregation 28:15 on the fartherest sides of the north; 28:17 I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; 28:19 I will be like the Most High. " 28:20 Now does that sound like the Holy Spirit exalting Jesus? 28:25 Does that sound like Jesus exalting the Father? 28:28 Here you have an angel that's exalting himself. 28:32 And ladies and gentlemen, this is... this was a foreign 28:36 behavior. This was a foreign attitude 28:39 to the culture of heaven. Amen? 28:41 And this created a disunity and this is what began 28:45 the cosmic conflict between good and evil. 28:47 It was simply an attitude problem. 28:52 Many many problems and issues begin 28:57 simply with a bad attitude. 28:59 And we're talking about unity in the body of Christ. 29:02 And of course, this manifests itself in many different 29:04 contexts, right? In the workplace, yes? 29:08 In the home; at the university; 29:10 and definitely at church as well. 29:12 So here we have kind of like this attitude 29:15 that Lucifer was developing. And he was marinating 29:18 inside of him until eventually it killed him. 29:20 Until eventually it led him to exalt himself 29:24 at the expense of others. 29:28 But when you look at the Bible you find that Jesus 29:32 did exactly the opposite. 29:35 Run with me to Philippians chapter 2. 29:36 Philippians chapter 2. 29:41 Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians. 29:44 Philippians chapter 2. 29:47 We saw that Lucifer exalted himself. 29:50 Lucifer wanted to establish his throne. 29:54 Let's see what Jesus does in Philippians chapter 2 29:56 and when you're there please say "Amen. " Amen. 29:59 Philippians chapter 2 and verse 1. The Bible says: 30:00 "Therefore if there is any consolation in Christ, 30:03 if any comfort of love, if any fellowship of the Spirit, 30:06 if any affection and mercy, 30:08 fulfill my joy... " How? 30:10 "by being like-minded. " 30:13 Having the same love; being of one accord. 30:15 And this is not talking about a vehicle, Amen? 30:18 Being of one accord... uh, of one mind. 30:22 "Let nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit. " 30:26 Well that was Lucifer's problem. 30:28 He did what he did through selfish ambition or conceit. 30:32 "But do it rather... " how? "in lowliness of mind 30:36 let each other esteem others better than himself. " 30:39 And that's exactly what the Godhead does. 30:42 They esteem each other better than themselves. 30:47 And that's why that's the most purest form of love. 30:51 Amen? Agape. 30:53 And by the way, that love is available to you and I. 30:55 Did you know that? And the prayer of Jesus 30:57 in John chapter 17 is that you and I may what? 31:00 Be one as He is one with the Father. 31:04 The same unity that the Godhead has 31:07 is what Christ is inviting us to. 31:10 In fact, if you do a careful study of this in I John, 31:12 you'll discover that really when we do evangelism 31:15 when we proclaim the good news 31:17 you know what we're really doing? 31:18 We're simply inviting people to experience the communion 31:23 that dwells within the Godhead 31:25 which is infinite love lavished upon each of them. 31:29 Ladies and gentlemen, when you look at Philippians chapter 2 31:32 we see exactly the solution to the problem of disunity. 31:37 "Let each of you look out not for his own interest 31:40 but also for the interest of others. " 31:42 Verse 5: "Let this... " what? 31:45 "mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus. " 31:48 And you can read the rest later on. 31:50 I think you guys are familiar with Philippians chapter 2. 31:52 Talks about the sacrifice of Christ. 31:54 It talks about the incarnation. 31:56 But notice before the incarnation, 31:57 before the sacrifice of Christ in verse 5, 32:02 what was the original way 32:07 that the sacrifice was born? 32:12 Paul says "let this mind. " It was a mindset. 32:18 Right? It was an attitude. 32:21 Jesus looked at fallen humanity 32:23 and His heart broke. He felt compassion. 32:26 And He had a particular mindset; He had a particular attitude. 32:31 And that was what? Complete submission, 32:36 complete selflessness, complete humility. 32:40 Are you beginning to see the contrast? 32:42 Isaiah chapter 14 you have Satan who is exalting himself. 32:47 In Philippians chapter 2 you have Jesus 32:51 who is humbling Himself. 32:53 Jesus came into this world to bring unity. 32:56 In fact, you're right there in Philippians. 32:58 Go to the book of Ephesians. 32:59 If you're there, in Ephesians chapter 1: 33:02 why is it that Jesus came into the world? Simple. 33:05 If you look in verse 9 of Ephesians chapter 1 it says: 33:09 "Having made known to us the mystery of His will 33:12 according to His good pleasure which He purposed in Himself 33:15 that in the dispensation of the fullness of time 33:17 He might" - listen - "gather together in" what? 33:21 "one all things in Christ both which are in heaven 33:26 and which are on earth" how? "in Him. " 33:31 Jesus came into the world why? Because the world was 33:34 divided. The harmony and the bliss and the unity 33:40 that existed in the Garden of Eden was lost. 33:42 It was interrupted. There was a different note 33:45 that was introduced into the song. 33:48 How many of you love when somebody... when there's 33:52 a harmony until somebody adds their voice 33:54 and it's completely out of tune. You guys love when that happens? 33:57 You're like... oh, no. Right? 33:59 And that's kind of what happened in the Garden of Eden. 34:02 There was a beautiful rhythm. There was a beautiful 34:05 environment and then there was a different tune. 34:10 There was a different note that was introduced 34:12 that was opposite to God's original plan. 34:15 And in Ephesians the Bible tells us that Jesus came because 34:18 He wants to gather everything in one. 34:20 He wants to unite it. Under what foundation? 34:23 Under the foundation of love. 34:25 God is love, and God expresses that love in the Godhead. 34:30 Job chapter 10 verse 8 says something interesting 34:32 You don't have to go there. It says: "Your hands 34:35 have made me and fashioned me 34:37 in intricate unity. " Isn't that interesting? 34:43 Job talks about the origins of man 34:46 and he says that "God's hands have made us 34:49 and have fashioned us in intricate unity. " 34:53 Well that communicates that even in science, 34:57 even in physiology, even in biology 35:00 you have this element of unity present. 35:03 You find unity in the organs of the body. 35:09 You find how the body is such an amazing machine. 35:13 Amen? It's such an incredible... everything is constantly 35:16 being simultaneously working together 35:20 for the proper function. And you cannot look 35:24 at the human body and say that God doesn't exist. 35:28 That is the most intricate machine 35:31 that you... that any person could ever fathom of creating. 35:35 So when you look at the creation of the world 35:39 you find that even in the creation of the world 35:42 there's unity. 35:45 Even when you look at science. Now I have to warn you, 35:47 I hope my science teacher is not watching this 35:49 'cause I barely passed biology. 35:51 I think he was just merciful because he was tired of me. 35:55 But when you look at science and when you study science 35:57 carefully you will discover that you will find... 35:59 By the way, you find the gospel all over science. Amen? 36:02 The gospel is found in every scientific discipline: 36:06 chemistry, physics, biology. 36:08 When you look at the atom - not ADAM, ATOM - 36:14 when you look at the atom, you have a very interesting reality. 36:19 Even within an atom there are certain components 36:21 inside the atom. Does anybody want to take a guess? 36:24 You have... help me out... 36:29 You have protons - I heard somebody say it here. 36:31 Neutrons. This is science class. 36:34 I'm taking you back to the classroom. 36:36 So in an atom you have electrons. 36:40 You have protons, right? And neutrons. 36:46 What are the differences between protons and electrons? 36:52 The positive and negative charge, yeah? 36:55 Or we could just say "they're different. " 36:58 Right? That's what I liked to tell my science teacher. 37:02 When they would ask me what is the difference: 37:04 "well, they're just different. " 37:05 But this is my point: even though protons 37:09 and electrons are different... 37:13 Somebody said it; somebody beat me to it... 37:18 they're hanging out in the same place. 37:20 Does that make sense? 37:22 I mean, at the atomic level 37:24 I mean, that's the most... that's the... 37:25 In fact, the word atom... I looked this up; 37:26 I thought it was interesting. 37:28 Atom comes from the Greek. 37:30 Atomos is really kind of where it comes from. 37:33 And a is basically the prefix of un - the negative - 37:37 and tomos is to cut. 37:40 So an atom literally means un-cutable, 37:44 indivisible, something that cannot be divided further 37:48 because it's so small. 37:52 So in the atom, even the atom, there's different 37:56 charges. And yet even within the different charges 38:00 they're kind of hanging out together. 38:02 Ladies and gentlemen, in your church 38:05 there are different charges. Amen? 38:09 You guys following me? 38:11 At board meeting there are different charges. 38:16 When you're dealing with issues in the church 38:20 there are different charges. We need to remember 38:23 that just because somebody else is a different charge 38:28 it doesn't mean that we have the right to destroy them. Amen? 38:32 Amen. They're just a different charge. 38:35 We're all a little different and we have to respect that. 38:38 When you look at the atom you find this concept of unity. 38:42 And when atoms form in a group, anybody know what that is? 38:45 You find a molecule. 38:47 And even when you consider the cell... 38:51 What is a cell? What do cells have inside? 38:54 A lot of weird stuff, right? 38:57 Have you seen the science books? 38:59 Like wow, that's inside my body? That's weird. 39:02 You have all kinds of stuff. Anybody remember? 39:05 You have the nucleus. What else? 39:07 The ribosomes. What else have you got? 39:09 The apparatus thing... what's that called? 39:11 The Golgi apparatus I think is what it's called. 39:15 A lot of different things. I mean, the cell is so small. 39:18 The cell is so tiny and yet it's literally a little... 39:23 it's like a little city. 39:25 And there's different things going on inside the cell 39:27 and yet it somehow maintains... here's a key word... 39:31 unity. 39:33 In fact, another word for cell or the popular phrase for cell 39:38 is "the building block of life. " 39:42 So if a cell is the building block of life 39:45 and the cell is full of unity 39:48 even though there's a diverse... different things in there, 39:52 then that would mean that every- thing that extends from the cell 39:56 into a bigger level - meaning you - 40:00 you should also reflect the unity that exists in your cells. 40:04 Does that make sense? Yes. 40:05 So even in biology, even in physio... 40:08 that's why Job said what he said. 40:10 "Your hands have made me and fashioned me 40:13 in intricate unity. " 40:15 And there are different things in the cells. 40:18 But just because they're different does not mean 40:20 that they have to be at odds. 40:22 Take another example: Genesis chapter 1. 40:25 We have the creation account. 40:28 And we already spoke a little bit about how 40:30 God spoke and things came into existence. 40:33 And usually after God finished creating what He was creating 40:39 on that particular day Genesis always concludes 40:43 each day with a phrase. What does it say? 40:45 "It was good. " That's true. 40:48 But right before "it was good, " 40:52 "and the evening and the morning were the first day. " 40:58 Evening and the morning... second day. 41:01 Third day, fourth day, etc. 41:03 Isn't it interesting that here you have in Genesis chapter 1 41:07 God is introducing a unit 41:11 of time, and it's called a day. 41:14 And it's composed of what? Two things. 41:17 And by the way, they're two completely opposite things. 41:23 Daylight and darkness. 41:26 I mean can you get any more opposite than that? 41:29 And even though you have the daytime 41:32 and even though you have the nighttime 41:34 God puts it under the same package and He says: 41:37 "This is the day. " 41:40 What is that trying to tell us? 41:42 That there could be unity in diversity. 41:46 In your church - Amen? - 41:48 there are people that are sunshining the daylight. 41:52 And there are others... I'd better not go there. 41:57 I will refrain from that temptation. 41:59 So the point is that when you look at biology, 42:02 you look at the atom, you look at the molecule, 42:04 you look at the cell, you'll find that the cell is the 42:07 smallest unit of life. It's complex. 42:10 Has a lot of activity and yet is 100% in harmony. 42:15 That's what the body of Christ should be like. 42:17 By the way, go to I Corinthians chapter 12. 42:20 This is really where Paul unpacks this whole concept of 42:25 the body and unity in the body of Christ. 42:28 And it makes sense why it's unity in the BODY of Christ 42:31 because we know that in our bodies there is unity. 42:34 So if there's unity inside of my body, there should also be 42:37 unity outside of my body. Amen? 42:40 There SHOULD be. 42:42 I Corinthians chapter 12 and when you're there, 42:44 please say "Amen. " Amen. 42:46 Beginning with verse 12 42:47 the Bible tells us the following words: 42:49 "For as the body is one and has many members 42:52 but all the members of that one body being many 42:55 are one body, so also is Christ. 42:59 For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body 43:02 whether Jews or Greeks. " Amen? 43:04 Doesn't matter how diverse of cultures you have in a church 43:10 you're all brothers and sisters in Christ. Amen? 43:12 Doesn't matter the complexion of your sin. 43:14 We all are red underneath. Amen? 43:17 Keep that in mind. "Jews or Greeks, whether slave or free. " 43:20 Social status, yeah? Financial status. 43:24 Just because there's somebody in the church who makes 43:27 a little bit more money than the person next to them 43:29 gives that individual no right to use that individual 43:34 as a floormat. Amen? 43:37 Amen. Because behind all of those things we are all one. 43:42 "And have all been made to drink into one Spirit. 43:46 For in fact the body is not one member but many. 43:50 If the foot should say 'because I am not the hand 43:54 I am not of the body, ' 43:56 is it therefore not of the body? " 43:57 No! "And if the ear should say 'because I am not an eye 44:01 I am not of the body' is it therefore not of the body? 44:05 If the whole body were an eye... " 44:07 That would be really weird, wouldn't it? Walking eyes. 44:10 "If the whole body were an eye, where would be the hearing? 44:13 If the whole were hearing, where would be the smelling? 44:17 But now God hath set the members each one of them in the body 44:20 just as He pleased. And if they were all one member 44:25 where would the body be? But now indeed there are 44:28 many members yet one body. 44:31 And the eye cannot say to the hand... " 44:33 Aren't you happy that your eyes and hands don't have mouths? 44:36 That would be very, very interesting. 44:39 Arguments between your body parts: that'd be weird. 44:41 "And they eye cannot say to the hand 'I have no need of you. ' 44:44 Nor again, the head to the feet 'I have no need of you. ' 44:47 No. Much rather those members of the body 44:50 which seem to be weaker are necessary. " 44:55 I'm going to read that one more time. 44:56 "No. Much rather those members of the body 45:00 which seem to be weaker are necessary. " 45:05 Ladies and gentlemen, there are certain people in your church 45:08 that seem to be weaker. 45:11 But ladies and gentlemen, they are necessary. Amen? 45:16 You have no right to marginalize anybody in the church. 45:20 "Those members of the body which we think to be less honorable 45:24 on these we bestow greater honor, and our unpresentable 45:28 parts have greater modesty. 45:30 But our presentable parts have no need. 45:32 For God composed the body having given greater honor 45:34 to that part which lacks it that there should be no schism 45:37 or division in the body but that the member should have 45:40 the same care for one another. And if one member suffers 45:43 all the members suffer with them. " 45:46 By the way, that's what you see in the book of Acts. Amen? 45:48 If somebody has a financial crisis, the whole church 45:51 has a financial crisis and everybody aids that individual. 45:56 If somebody has health problems, the entire church recognizes 46:00 this need and they fulfill that need. 46:02 "And if one member suffers all the members suffer with it 46:05 or if one member is honored, all the members rejoice with it. " 46:09 You can read the rest of the chapter later. 46:11 In I Corinthians chapter 12 what the apostle Paul is saying 46:13 is that the human body is composed of different parts 46:16 that look different and have different functions. 46:20 Just because the eye is smaller than the ear 46:24 doesn't mean that the eye is useless. 46:27 Right? Amen. And the point is that just because 46:31 in the church there are different people... 46:34 there are different types of people... 46:36 some people are taller, some people are shorter... 46:38 some people have more talent than others... 46:39 some people have more experience... 46:41 doesn't mean that those other individuals are useless. 46:45 Some people in the church are the eyes. 46:48 There are those that have vision. 46:50 There are those that can see beyond the horizon of the... 46:52 of the struggles and the difficulties in the church 46:55 and they can cast vision. 46:57 There are those that are the feet. 47:00 They're those that have a lot of energy 47:03 and can do the groundwork. Yes? 47:05 There are those that are the hands. 47:07 There are those that are the ears. 47:08 There are those... and I think you guys get the point. 47:10 So in every church, just because there are differences 47:14 doesn't meant that there has to be disagreements. 47:19 In fact, in business 47:23 there is this new idea of innovation. 47:27 Being innovative. How do you get something innovated? 47:31 And what they're basically saying is when you get two 47:34 completely opposite ideas 47:36 and you merge them together, that is the most cutting-edge 47:41 innovation. Now I don't have time to explain this, but 47:46 the idea is that when you have something 47:49 that has... when you have a group of people that has so many 47:52 different upbringings and different cultures 47:55 and different traditions, that is the most innovative 47:59 group of people that you can deal with. 48:03 And if you go to the book of Acts, if this is true... 48:06 which I believe it is... if you go to the book of Acts 48:08 it makes sense why Pentecost was so powerful. 48:11 Because Pentecost was the most innovative thing, 48:16 innovative trade, that God was able to bring to humanity. 48:20 Now why? Because in Acts chapter 2 not only do you have 48:23 by the way the apostles that are also in what? 48:27 "One accord. " They are in unity. 48:29 And in Acts chapter 2 beginning in verse 9 48:32 we find the apostle Peter proclaiming 48:38 a very powerful truth to a very diverse group of people. 48:42 Notice what verse 9 says when you're there: 48:44 "Parthians, and Medes and Elamites; 48:49 those dwelling in Mesopotamia, 48:51 Judea, Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, 48:54 Phrygia, Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya 48:58 adjoining Cyrene; visitors from Rome 49:01 both Jews and proselytes, Cretans and... " 49:04 I think you guys get the point, right? 49:05 "and Arabs. " What happened during the Day of Pentecost? 49:08 Who was present? 49:09 Everyone. 49:11 And that's why the outpouring of the Holy Spirit 49:13 was such an innovative and powerful thing. 49:16 Because you had every culture you had different perspectives. 49:19 You had different mindsets. 49:21 You had different cultures, different upbringings. 49:23 Different styles of food, Amen? 49:25 And diversity is a wonderful thing, especially when it comes 49:28 to food. Amen? And if you disagree with that 49:31 I invite you to come to my church on potlucks 49:33 and you will be amazed at the innovation that you find 49:36 when you have the burritos and then right next door 49:38 you have the Filipino food 49:40 and right next door you have the Jamaican food. Amen? 49:42 I love... That's innovative, that's exciting. 49:46 The Bible tells us that unity does not have to be uniformity, 49:52 Amen? Unity can express itself in a diverse form. 49:56 Just because there are differences in the church 49:58 doesn't mean that that church can't be united. 50:01 In fact, the unity in that church will be more strong 50:06 because it will be more balanced. 50:08 Because you have so many different perspectives. 50:10 You have different ages, etc. 50:12 God is preparing a group of people that come from 50:15 different parts of the world. Amen? 50:17 That come from different perspectives. 50:19 And yet God is bringing them and trying to create a united 50:24 group of people who in the end will stand 50:26 among those who keep the commandments of God 50:28 and have the faith of Jesus. 50:30 Run with me to the book of Ezra 50:32 as our time is coming to a close. 50:34 Ezra. Ezra. Ever read the book of Ezra before? 50:38 It's a powerful little book. 50:40 Ezra chapter 3. I wish we had time to unpack Ezra 50:44 and all the situations, the historical setting. 50:46 Ezra. There was a crisis in the book of Ezra. 50:48 God's people just came out of Babylon. 50:53 Cyrus the Mede gave permission 50:57 to the Jews to go back to Jerusalem 51:00 and to build the sanctuary that was destroyed. 51:05 And they kept restoring little by little 51:08 different aspects of truth and different aspects of 51:13 the message that they were given. 51:14 And in Ezra chapter 3 how were they going to do this? 51:18 How were they going to accomplish the restoration 51:21 of the temple after spending 70 years in Babylonian captivity? 51:25 And by the way, many of the Hebrews 51:27 who spent 70 years in Babylonian captivity 51:31 did not leave Babylon... they stayed there. You know why? 51:34 Because after 70 years things get kind of what? 51:37 It gets kind of comfortable. 51:40 By the way, there's a parallel in the book of Revelation 51:42 to come out of Babylon. Amen? 51:43 We don't have time to go there. 51:45 Here you have a call to come out of Babylon. 51:48 There's a group - a remnant - that comes out of Babylon 51:51 and they go back to Jerusalem to rebuild the temple. 51:53 And ladies and gentlemen, there were arguments. 51:55 There were disagreements about what the temple should... 51:59 should have been like, etc. Some people wanted it 52:01 this way; other people wanted it that way. 52:03 But notice what Ezra chapter 3 tells us. 52:05 God was trying to develop something powerful 52:07 in Israel in those times. 52:09 Ezra chapter 3 beginning in verse 1. 52:10 When you're there, please say "Amen. " Amen. The Bible says: 52:13 "And when the seventh month had come and the children 52:15 of Israel were in the cities, the people gathered 52:20 together... " How? As one man. 52:23 "as one man 52:25 all the way to Jerusalem. " 52:28 How was it that God was going to accomplish 52:31 the restoration of worship? 52:33 The restoration of the Hebrew temple? 52:36 How was He going to do it? 52:38 He was going to only be able to do this 52:41 by uniting all of His people and uniting them as... 52:47 "one man. " 52:50 We just read about I Corinthians chapter 12. Amen? 52:52 The eye. We read about the ears. 52:55 Read about the hands; read about the feet. 52:58 God was organizing His people. 53:00 They just came out of Babylon; 53:02 they just came out of inactivity. 53:04 And now God was wanting to put them to work. 53:07 But the only way He was going to be able to accomplish this 53:10 if they were as "one man. " Ladies and gentlemen, 53:13 if we are going to accomplish the work that God has 53:15 called us to accomplish, our churches need to become? 53:20 As one man. 53:22 We need to march to the same beat. 53:25 Amen? Amen. We need to be under the blood-stained banner 53:29 of Emmanuel. We need to be in exceedingly great harmony. 53:32 Army, in harmony, ready for war 53:34 and ready to march when General Jesus tells us to do so. 53:38 Maybe today you represent a church that is divided. 53:41 There's all manner of bickering. 53:43 There's all manner of gossip; there's negativity. 53:46 There's bad attitudes in the church. 53:49 This is not an easy thing to deal with. 53:51 Well there's hope and there's good news for you this morning 53:54 because the same disunity that exists in your church 53:58 is the same disunity that existed among the disciples 54:02 in the upper room. But somebody... somebody... 54:06 decided to take initiative. 54:09 Somebody decided to say: "You know what? I'm not going to 54:11 bicker and fight like the rest of them are. 54:13 I'm not going to point fingers like the rest of them are. 54:17 I'm not going to try to defend my position like 54:20 the rest of them are. I am simply going to serve. " 54:25 Jesus got up from the table 54:27 and He began to wash the disciples' feet. 54:29 And that is the glue that kept the 12 disciples together. 54:34 And because of that example they were able to go 54:37 into the far places of the world bringing the gospel. 54:41 And even though there were differences amongst the 54:42 12 disciples, ladies and gentlemen, they were united 54:45 under the love of God. Amen! 54:47 Because the Godhead is united in humility and love 54:52 they began to exemplify that same unity as well. 54:56 And in the Day of Pentecost in Acts chapter 1 54:58 we see the paramount picture of God's people 55:02 united in one accord, esteeming each other better than 55:06 themselves. And I believe that this is a type 55:09 of the end time. And God is wanting you 55:14 maybe to take the initiative in your church. 55:17 Maybe you are the one that God is calling 55:20 to not point fingers like the rest of them. Amen? 55:24 Not be negative like the rest of them. 55:26 Maybe God is asking you to serve. 55:31 Maybe God is asking you to take initiative 55:35 and to bring unity where there is disunity. 55:38 And ladies and gentlemen, the greatest remedy 55:41 for a divided church is what I like to call 55:46 vitamin E... evangelism. 55:52 Amen? Amen. If you have a church that is divided, 55:55 evangelism is the medicine... evangelism is the remedy. 56:00 Why? Because the essence of evangelism... 56:03 When you're involved in evangelism 56:05 whom are you not thinking about? Yourself. 56:08 You're not thinking about yourself. 56:09 Who are you thinking about? Somebody else. Somebody else. 56:12 And when the church develops the culture of evangelism 56:15 you know what they're going to develop? 56:16 They're going to develop the culture of not thinking 56:18 about themselves. And when you have a church 56:20 that doesn't think about themselves 56:22 they're constantly thinking about others. 56:24 How can we help this brother? How can we help this sister? 56:26 Board meetings are going to become so much sweeter. 56:28 Amen? Issues in the church are going to be so much easier 56:32 to resolve. And I believe when the love of Jesus 56:36 permeates each and every one of us 56:38 that's when we come together we're going to 56:41 experience the greatest and the most wonderful taste 56:45 of heaven. Jesus said: "By this shall all men know 56:50 that you are My disciples: 56:52 if you have love for one another. " 56:55 And that type of love is which kind of love? 56:58 The same love that exists in the core, in the nucleus 57:03 of that beautiful triangle of God the Father, 57:06 God the Son, God the Holy Spirit. 57:08 God the Father, God the Son, God the Holy Spirit. 57:10 The essence of that kind of love is a selfless love. 57:13 It's a love that esteems others better than themselves. 57:17 How many of you today would like to say: "Jesus, forgive me 57:19 for not being a positive influence in my church? 57:22 And help me to bring unity, 57:24 and to bring love and to bring peace. " 57:26 How many of you want to say that? 57:27 Amen. Let us pray together. |
Revised 2014-12-17