Participants: C.A. Murray
Series Code: 13HC
Program Code: 13HC000007
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00:46 Hello and welcome to 3ABN Camp Meeting... Fall Camp Meeting.
00:49 We've been having a great time, haven't we? Yes we have! 00:52 Absolutely. We've been having a good time before we went on 00:54 the air, didn't we? 00:56 We're just having a little bit of fun. 00:58 And it's great that the Sabbath is just beginning. 01:00 And we're going to have a great group of people here. 01:04 Some sermons tonight. We're going to hear some good 01:06 music tonight. I know you're going to be singing here in just 01:09 a little bit. We've got Lisa over here playing the piano. 01:11 Mollie Sue, you're especially... 01:14 Mollie's happy all the time. Oh yes. Have you ever seen her? 01:16 I've know her for 30+ years; I always see her smiling. 01:19 Now Hal may not always say that but I've always seen her - 01:22 and we're in close quarters - we've worked together 01:24 for many, many years. She has a great attitude. 01:27 But tonight you're just beaming. There's something special. 01:30 Step up here in the light. Look at that glow around her. 01:33 My whole family is here tonight. Both of my children, 01:37 my grandchildren, my husband. 01:40 Raise your hands, OK. My son-in-law. 01:42 Raise your hand, Dee Dee. All right. All of the kids. 01:45 Now let's get a camera shot over there. Somebody got 'em? 01:47 All right. There you go. Isn't that a good looking family? 01:50 Jeremy's over there. Even Pastor Hal's... The whole group. 01:54 The whole group is here, and do you all know what that 01:57 does to this mother's heart? 01:58 I am a happy woman tonight. 02:00 I'm happy for you. Now, I have to say hello 02:03 to some really special people. 02:05 My daughter Melody was supposed to be here for Camp Meeting 02:08 and I love it. I love Melody but I love it even more 02:12 when she brings all these grandkids. 02:13 That's right. Grandkids come up here. But... 02:16 Noah has been sick with the flu for almost a week. Wow. 02:19 And he really wanted to come and Baby Faith and Jonah 02:23 Mama said today "they're just beside themselves 02:27 saying 'We want to go to Camp Meeting. 02:29 We want to see Papa; we want to go to Camp Meeting. ' " 02:31 I brainwashed them 'cause they always say: 02:33 "We want to see Papa. " And that's all right, 02:35 grandparents. You can do that. It's legal. 02:37 Right? And so I said: "All right, tell them if they'll 02:40 look tonight and Papa's going to say hello to them. " 02:43 Baby Faith and Jonah, Papa loves you, OK? 02:46 And Noah, we're praying for you. 02:48 Justin is there. I think Hayley and Jesse are gone. 02:52 But for Melody, for all of you, we love you 02:55 and I look forward to seeing you. And Papa will come down 02:57 and see you in a few weeks. All right? 02:59 You know, Mollie and I would like to add our word to that 03:01 too. We miss you Melody and we miss all those grandchildren. 03:05 And especially the little two. They always... 03:08 We enjoy having them come up here on the platform. 03:11 And your family is there. You've got a bunch of grandkids. 03:13 I've got several of them here, that's right. 03:15 The Krueger family except for Ben. 03:18 Ben's at home. I hope he's watching on TV. 03:20 And Katie is out at Weimar. 03:24 She is in school there and working there. 03:28 So yeah, we love these grandkids. We really do. 03:30 Well, we've got some special music tonight. 03:34 But before we do that we want to sing a chorus. 03:37 And I don't know where John is. I like to get all the people 03:40 we can up here. So we're going to expect you to do it all. 03:43 We have Miss Yvonne here of course. 03:45 Pastor C.A. - he's going to be preaching 03:47 so we'll let him rest back there. But Lisa, 03:49 why don't you lead us in Because He Lives. 03:52 You the director Miss Yvonne? 03:59 Let's sing it out. 05:32 Let's bow our heads. Father in heaven, 05:36 because He lives we can face tomorrow. 05:41 And because He died we have that assurance 05:46 of life through Him. 05:50 And Father, we just thank You for that. 05:53 We thank you because You loved us first 05:59 and we return that love to You, Father. 06:02 And we simply thank you for being our Lord, 06:08 our God, and our Savior. 06:11 In Jesus' name, Amen. Amen. 06:15 Yvonne Lewis has been such a blessing to all of us at 3ABN 06:20 and to Dare to Dream. We appreciate what you do 06:23 for the cause of God. And tonight you're going to be 06:25 singing? It just left my brain. 06:29 Well you'll know when the sound track goes? 06:31 All right. Oh my goodness. Yes, it left my brain totally. 06:34 All right. Let's put the music on. This is live television too. 06:37 Oh yeah. With All My Heart. 06:40 Ah, there you go. With All My Heart. All right. 06:42 Praise the Lord. Thank you. 06:57 In this quiet place with You 07:01 I bow before Your throne. 07:05 And bare the deepest part of me 07:09 to You and You alone. 07:13 I keep no secrets for there is no thought 07:19 You haven't known. 07:22 I bring my best and all the rest 07:26 to You and lay them down. 07:31 Oh, oh, oh, oh... 07:36 With all my heart 07:41 I want to love You, Lord. 07:45 And live my life 07:49 each day to know You more. 07:54 All that is in me 07:57 is Yours completely. 08:02 I'll serve You only 08:06 with all my heart. 08:22 You faithfully supply my needs 08:27 according to Your plan. 08:30 So help me, Lord, to seek Your face 08:35 before I seek Your hand. 08:39 And trust, You know what's best for me 08:43 when I don't understand. 08:47 Sometimes I don't understand. 08:52 But I'll follow in obedience 08:58 in every circumstance. 09:07 With all my heart 09:13 I want to love You, Lord. 09:17 And live my life 09:20 each day to know You more. 09:24 All that is in me 09:27 Lord, it's Yours... it's Yours completely. 09:32 I'll serve You only 09:42 with all my heart. 10:00 Beautiful, Yvonne. Thank you. 10:02 It's my privilege now to... I shouldn't say introduce 10:06 but for tonight, most of you know Pastor C.A. Murray. 10:09 And I met C.A. oh, I don't know if it's been 10:12 10, 12 years or so ago now. It's been a number of years ago. 10:16 Probably over a decade. I went to New York 10:18 and I'll make this part really short. But I went to New York 10:22 and went to a Camp Meeting... a huge Camp Meeting there. 10:25 Mollie said: "The pastor, you and Melody are singing, 10:28 but the pastor says he's singing with you 10:30 on a song that Melody wrote. " 10:32 And I said: "No, I don't want to do that because we haven't 10:34 practiced. There's 12,000 people - whatever - there. " 10:37 "Oh he said he knows the song. " 10:38 I said: "Well, he may be a great singer but we haven't 10:41 practiced together. " Well it ended up 10:43 it was Pastor C.A. Murray. 10:44 So I said: "Well I have to hear you. " 10:47 So he knew the part perfectly. He had listened to it. 10:49 In fact, he knew it better than I did for sure. 10:51 So we sang together. He brought me to his house 10:54 for lunch, and we got to know each other. 10:57 And what a tremendous man of God and his wife Irma. 11:00 We're so thankful that C.A. and Irma and their family 11:04 have come to 3ABN. Have been here for so many years. 11:07 He's a producer. He can direct. 11:11 He can - when it comes to television - he's hosted. 11:14 He used to host on TBN years ago 11:17 and he does radio. And most of all he's just 11:21 a man who loves Jesus with all of his heart, 11:24 his soul and mind, and he's a great friend. 11:27 And it gives me great privilege introducing him tonight 11:30 as speaker of the hour. 11:45 I need to fly in the face of what is 11:52 an obligatory amenity for public discourse. 12:00 They say when you are speaking before a crowd 12:05 you should never start any public presentation 12:08 with an apology. 12:10 That is standard for elocution courses, homiletics, 12:15 and preaching. You never start your sermon with an apology. 12:17 And of course you never end with an apology 12:19 because that's the last thing they hear so you don't want to 12:21 leave them with an apology. 12:24 And if you're a politician running for office 12:28 they say never be caught apologizing in the middle 12:33 of your presentation. 12:36 So you wouldn't apologize at the beginning; 12:38 you would not apologize at the end; and you certainly 12:40 wouldn't apologize in the middle. 12:41 But I have got to reject that and issue an apology. 12:48 I don't know what is listed as a sermon title 12:51 in your bulletin. 12:53 Step Child. OK, that's not the title. 12:59 The truck had Rendezvous at Beth Peor. 13:04 That is not the title. 13:09 Some weeks ago the title was 13:12 Stepchildren of Kadesh. 13:15 That is not the title. 13:19 I need to give you some insight into my ersatz 13:23 schizophrenia. 13:27 I have never considered myself a proud person 13:33 or an egotistical person. I prayed against that. 13:36 I read where Ellen White in Testimonies volume 1 13:39 asked the Lord: "Lord, keep me from being proud. " 13:41 And early on in my ministry I asked that same prayer. 13:45 And I asked the Lord: "Lord, I You ever did anything 13:47 for me, with me, to me, or through me 13:49 keep me from being egotistical and proud. " 13:54 Those are two character traits that I particularly dislike, 13:58 and I am correspondingly attracted to 14:01 people who have ability and humility. 14:05 I find that combination constellation of gifts 14:09 almost irresistible. If you are good at what you do 14:12 but manage to stay humble, I am automatically 14:15 attracted to you. I just... I love that. 14:17 And as such I have always asked for that in my own life. 14:21 And God has been kind. 14:24 When I came out of school the conference president said 14:26 "We're going to take two pastors. " I was #5 on the list. 14:29 And they broke the rules and for the first, last, and only 14:32 time in our conference they took five guys 14:34 and I got a call. And then 8 years after the Seminary 14:38 I was asked to pastor one of the 3 largest churches 14:41 in North America. And when I went into that pulpit 14:44 of the Ephesus church I said: "Lord, keep me humble. " 14:46 When I got on the General Conference Committee I said: 14:48 "Lord, keep me humble. " And I've always prayed for humility. 14:52 And yet there are times when 14:56 the Lord has to deal with me. 14:59 And about a month ago - maybe three weeks ago - 15:05 as I addressed myself to this particular sermon 15:08 God was leading me into preaching on the covenants. 15:13 And about three weeks ago I came to understand that 15:16 David Asscherick was also preaching on the covenants. 15:20 And so I said: "OK Lord, I'm not preaching on that. " 15:23 I didn't ask God. I said: "If he's preaching... I'm not 15:26 going to preach on the covenants. I'll find 15:27 something else. " And so I said: "Lord, give me something else 15:30 to say. " And I began to work on something else. 15:35 And nothing else came. 15:38 And up until last week I had nothing. 15:41 The other night I was sitting up till 3 o'clock in the morning 15:43 2:30... quarter of three. I came to bed 15:45 and Irma was already asleep and she kind of said... 15:48 My wife can talk in her sleep. She can carry on a full 15:51 conversation in her sleep. And she said: "Did you finish 15:53 the sermon? " And I said: "Yeah. " 15:58 And I had a blank sheet of paper. 16:00 And so she said: "I'm glad. " And I kissed her on the cheek 16:02 and she kind of kissed the air. You know... 16:04 and then she went back to sleep. 16:08 Then last week I was supposed to give my graphics. 16:11 You know, the little things we put on the screen. 16:13 The texts and the titles to Will Warren. 16:15 And he asked me: "You got your graphics? " 16:17 I said: "No, " because I had nothing. 16:20 And then Jim Gilley asked me: "How's your sermon coming? " 16:22 And I said: "Jim, I've got nothing. " 16:25 And up until this week I had nothing because 16:29 I determined I wasn't going to preach what David was 16:32 going to preach on. "Asscherick's got that. 16:35 I'm not preaching that stuff. I want my own sermon. " 16:38 And God was dealing with me 16:41 and the Lord was saying to me: "If you don't preach what I 16:45 told you to preach, I'm not going to give you anything. " 16:50 And so two nights ago... well, Monday night 16:53 again up till 1 o'clock in the morning 16:55 staring at a blank sheet of paper. 16:56 Tuesday... nothing. 16:59 And I heard as it were the voice of God 17:02 say to me: "Murray, you're going to go in that pulpit 17:06 and you're going to preach what I told you to preach. " 17:13 And then three nights ago 17:15 I was up all night because Irma was now in Panama. 17:19 We got a bunch of clothes. She wanted to take clothes 17:22 down to the Indian people that live up in the mountains. 17:24 So we stayed here till 10 o'clock at night. 17:27 We packed clothes till 2 o'clock in the morning. 17:29 Took Irma to the airport at 2:00 AM. 17:31 Put her on her plane at 6:00 AM. 17:33 Drove back here at 8:00 AM. Went into board meeting 17:36 right after that. Stayed in board meeting all afternoon. 17:39 Did some things and then got here last night 17:41 on 30 minutes of sleep. 17:43 Sang and then Jim Gilley said: "How's your sermon coming? " 17:50 And I said: "I've got nothing. " 17:55 And so he said: "Here's what you're going to do: 17:57 You're going to go home and stay in that house 18:02 until God gives you a message. " 18:05 So I went home. I propped myself in a chair. 18:08 And I sat down and I wrote what God told me to write 18:12 and I finished an hour ago. 18:20 So I am wired and inspired! 18:25 And sleepy. 18:29 But we'll get through it 18:31 because God is good. 18:32 If you are of the notion that preachers are called 18:35 to preach because they are perfect people, let me 18:37 disabuse you of that notion. 18:40 God has to deal with us just like He deals with anybody else. 18:44 And sometimes it's harder because our heads tend to be 18:46 harder and we tend to do things in Jesus' name 18:50 when Jesus has nothing to do with it. 18:55 So the new title 19:00 of the sermon is Of Kingdoms and Covenants. 19:06 Amen and amen. 19:12 Hal, I think I'll pray first. 19:16 Father God, we importune You now 19:22 because we need to hear a word from the Lord. 19:29 Not the mind of man but the mind of Christ. 19:36 And so speak to us because we need to hear from You. 19:42 Amen. 19:44 Let me say here parenthetically 19:45 do prepare to come to next year's Spring Camp Meeting. 19:49 You are going to hear some fifteen sermons 19:52 all on the subject of the second coming. 19:55 And I guarantee you nobody will say the same thing. 19:57 Fifteen different preachers preaching on the same subject. 19:59 I guarantee you every one will be different. 20:02 It will be a power time preach- ing about the second coming. 20:06 And so God said to me: "You know you and David Asscherick 20:09 are on the same team; you're wearing the same uniform. 20:12 So you preach what you've got to preach 20:15 and he'll preach what he has to preach... 20:18 and God will be glorified. " 20:19 Turn with me if you will to the book of Genesis. 20:23 Two short texts. 20:25 Genesis 17 verses 10 and 11 20:28 and then we will flip over to Joshua 5:5-7. 20:32 God a lot of stuff to do and very little time to get it done. 20:36 Genesis 17:10-11. 20:44 The Word of God says: "This is My covenant 20:47 which you shall keep between Me and you 20:50 and your descendants after you. " God speaking to Abraham. 20:54 "Every male child among you shall be circumcised 20:57 and you shall be circumcised in the flesh of your foreskin 21:00 and it shall be a sign of the covenant between Me and you. " 21:04 Joshua 5 now. 21:06 Joshua 5:5-7. 21:14 Joshua 5:5: "For all the people came out 21:17 that had been circumcised 21:19 but all the people born in the wilderness on the way 21:23 as they came out of Egypt had not been circumcised. 21:27 For the children of Israel walked forty years in the 21:30 wilderness till all the people who were men of war 21:34 who came out of Egypt were consumed because they did not 21:38 obey the voice of the Lord. 21:42 To whom the Lord swore that He would show them 21:45 the land which the Lord had sworn to their fathers 21:48 that He would give us a land flowing with milk and honey. " 21:59 Let's deal with some definitions to begin. 22:04 When we talk about covenant, covenant is the way 22:09 that God has chosen - has elected - 22:12 to deal with mankind. 22:17 Covenant relationship is how Jehovah has determined 22:23 to interact, to interrelate, to interface, and to save 22:28 mankind. Covenants contain promises, 22:33 rewards, sanctions, and security. 22:39 The Hebrew word for covenant is beriyt. 22:43 It is often translated fetter or tied down or bind. 22:50 The New Testament word for covenant is even stronger. 22:53 In fact there are two words in the New Testament 22:55 and when the Septuagint writers began to translate 22:58 they found two particular words. The first word suntheke is 23:02 is translated contract. It is simply a contract 23:06 given or done among two equals. 23:11 But the word they chose to use for covenant 23:15 is even stronger than that. It is diatheke. 23:21 And they chose to use that stronger word even though 23:24 it is less used in the New Testament because 23:27 they understood and felt that covenants are no light thing. 23:34 That a covenant is a binding commitment 23:38 between man and his God. 23:42 Here, then, is the working definition for covenant. 23:45 See, I should have a nice graphic up there now. 23:50 Ego. 23:52 Here's the definition: 23:53 a covenant is an unchangeable divinely appointed 23:58 and imposed legal commitment or agreement between God and man 24:04 that stipulates the conditions of their relationship. 24:10 A covenant is an unchangeable divinely appointed 24:14 and imposed legal agreement between God and man 24:18 that stipulates the conditions of their relationship. 24:23 In other words, it defines the rules of engagement. 24:27 Covenant is also translated testament. 24:31 Same word. New covenant... New Testament. 24:34 Old covenant... Old Testament. 24:35 The words are the same. 24:37 In fact, the new covenant is simply the insurance policy 24:42 on the old or everlasting covenant. 24:45 The new covenant is the if clause in the everlasting 24:49 covenant. So one does not supersede the other. 24:52 One grows out of the other as the New Testament grows 24:55 out of the Old Testament. If you are a New Testament Christian, 24:58 you are de facto an Old Testament Christian 25:01 because the New Testament does not supersede the Old Testament, 25:03 it grows out of the Old Testament. 25:07 Covenants contain 4 elements: 25:10 parties, promises, rewards and sanctions, and as I said before 25:15 security. 25:18 Now, once a covenant is entered into 25:22 the rules of the game ladies and gentlemen are fixed. 25:27 They cannot, they do not change. 25:33 That's part of the security so that every time you go to God 25:37 you know you've got the same God. 25:40 He is the same yesterday, today, and forever. 25:43 So even if you change, even if you're having a bad day, 25:47 God never does. So every time you go to Him 25:49 you know you've got the same God. Amen? Amen! 25:52 That's part of the security. 25:55 So there are no moving of the goal posts; 25:57 no changing of the parameters. 26:01 There can never be negotiation of covenants. 26:05 You don't get to negotiate with God 26:09 the terms of the covenant that He sets down. 26:13 You don't get to change the rules. 26:16 You don't change the elements. 26:18 There is no detente; no rapprochement; 26:21 no arguing; no bickering; no bantering; 26:25 no arbitration; no haggling. 26:27 Covenant comes at full price; it is never on sale. 26:37 You don't get to change... you don't get to change the terms. 26:43 Jesus didn't change the rules and you can't either. 26:50 It was the covenant and His love 26:54 that sent Him to the cross. 26:58 So you don't get to change the rules just because you are 27:01 having a bad day. 27:05 Amen. And if you can't say "Amen" say "ouch. " 27:16 There is no honorable discharge from covenant. 27:21 If you break a covenant, 27:26 it is done so through shame and disgrace. 27:32 There are some states - I think New York State is one - 27:35 that have no-fault divorce. 27:36 You know: "He's not at fault; she's not at fault; 27:38 he's not wrong; she's not wrong. 27:40 We just can't get along so we're just separating. " 27:43 You don't have that in covenants. 27:45 You break the covenant somebody's going to be shamed. 27:51 Somebody's going to be disgraced... 27:53 and it's not going to be God. 27:58 Amen or ouch... your choice. 28:05 To the only way out of covenant is through a wall of shame. 28:09 Covenant is important because the truth be told 28:12 God is more concerned about saving you 28:15 than even you are about saving yourself. 28:17 Amen. 28:18 He is much more concerned about keeping you from the flames - 28:24 um-hmm - 28:26 than even you are. 28:28 How do I know that? 28:30 Two words: the cross. 28:40 If there ever was any doubt about how seriously God takes 28:46 saving your soul just look at the cross. 28:57 Look at that blood- stained figure on the cross. 29:01 The covenant, ladies and gentlemen, is your guarantee 29:05 that when you've finally had enough of dancing with the devil 29:11 and come to your senses and turn around and look for Jesus 29:16 He'll be right there. 29:21 "For he that cometh unto Me 29:25 I will in no wise cast out. " 29:32 John 6:37. 29:34 That's... that's... that's covenant language. 29:39 And it doesn't matter what you've done or how long you've 29:41 done it or how many times you've done it 29:43 or how deeply you've fallen into sin. 29:45 When you come to yourself and look for Jesus 29:50 the covenant guarantees that Christ will be there! 29:55 Amen. 29:57 And His arms will be open. 30:00 And He's not going to wash your face with your sins. 30:03 He's going to free you from them. 30:09 The covenant affirms that whatever hole you fall into 30:15 or crawl into, if you've got enough sense to call 30:19 He's got enough love to answer. Amen! 30:23 So you can't run too far, you can't run too fast... 30:26 you cannot outrun God's love. 30:32 Now before we get into the sermon... and by the way, 30:34 this is not the sermon. This is just ecclesiological 30:36 or benedictive. 30:39 I'm gettin' ready to get into the sermon. 30:41 This ain't it. 30:43 This is just... this is just... this is just 30:46 sneezing. I'm sneezing in your face trying to infect you. 30:53 And I know you're supposed to cover when you sneeze 30:56 but I don't want to cover 'cause I want you to be infected. 31:00 I want you to catch the virus. 31:03 So before we go into the sermon I want to give you what I call 31:07 "the cookies and milk of the covenant. " 31:10 You ready for some cookies and milk? 31:13 Soymilk. 31:20 Here then are the cookies and milk of the covenant. 31:22 The salas used to call this this donum super adetum. 31:28 That's Latin for somethin' extra. 31:32 Matthew chapter 10 verse 7. 31:37 Little cookies and milk. 31:39 Jesus said - words in red - 31:43 He told the disciples to preach that the kingdom of God 31:47 is at hand. 31:49 Not only is that covenant; that's cookies and milk. 31:53 Now it has several applications. 31:55 One of them is the fulfilling of a prophecy that Christ 31:59 spoke or alluded to in Matthew chapter 4 verse 17 32:02 dealing with the law and the prophets. And David dealt with 32:05 that a little bit this morning. 32:07 But Christ was also trying to tell the disciples 32:12 to tell the people... In fact, let me turn to that quickly. 32:15 Matthew 10... because there's something right on the back side 32:17 of that that I want you to see. 32:19 Matthew chapter 10 verse 7. 32:21 He says: "Tell the people the kingdom of God is at hand. " 32:24 What He is saying among other things is that "on your way 32:29 to glorification, on your way to pie in the sky 32:34 by and by, God's got a little something for you in the here 32:40 and now. " PLEASE say "Amen. " 32:43 Amen! Now let me tell you what you just said amen to. 32:51 On your way to "at-one-ment with God" 32:56 to atonement 32:58 while you're walking this Christian journey 33:02 while you are waiting for and working towards 33:05 glorification, you're going to get a little adoration, 33:09 a little exaltation, and a little jubilation 33:12 in the here and now. 33:15 Amen? Look at it in the very next verse. 33:18 You were in Matthew 10:7... look at verse 8. 33:22 "Heal the sick, cleanse the leper, 33:26 raise the dead, cast out demons, 33:29 freely you have received freely... " What? "give. " 33:33 Now that's covenant language. 33:35 When are those things going to happen? 33:38 Now! Amen? Amen. 33:41 So God is saying: "When you come into covenant relationship 33:45 with Jesus, not only do you have the promise of a perfect 33:50 future, God is going to give you some cookies and milk 33:55 here and now. " 33:59 Amen. Amen. 34:02 Now, the sun shines on the just and the unjust 34:06 as does the rain. But I contend that 34:11 having cancer with Jesus 34:17 is qualitatively better 34:22 than having cancer without Jesus. Amen. 34:29 Um-hmmm. 34:31 Getting fired from your job with Jesus 34:37 is better than getting fired from your job 34:42 without Jesus. Amen. 34:49 Christians get cancer. 34:55 Christians get fired. 34:59 Christians get sick. 35:02 In point of fact, most of the things that happen 35:06 to people who are non-Christians 35:09 happen to Christians. 35:11 Being in Christ does not insulate you from the things 35:14 that happen in the world. Amen? Amen. 35:17 You get sick, you get fired, you get flat tires. 35:21 People cut you off on the freeway. 35:24 People say stupid stuff to you. 35:29 You get all that stuff... 35:32 but you also get company 35:38 so you don't go through them alone. 35:41 You've got somebody on your side. 35:48 That's why when you get Jesus 35:52 you get joy. 35:55 Amen? Amen. You get a taste of paradise. 35:58 You get people who believe like you believe 36:01 so that even when you get in trouble 36:03 you've got somebody by your side. You see, 36:06 kingdom living, covenant living, living in the covenant, 36:09 living in the kingdom... life ought to be so lived... 36:12 it ought to be so lived that those outside the kingdom 36:15 who are looking on at your life ought to be... 36:18 ought to be so envious of what is going on in your life 36:22 that they say to themselves: "I've got to get me 36:24 some of that. " 36:27 Paul calls it "provoking them to jealousy. " 36:32 So when person A gets fired without Jesus 36:36 and person B gets fired with Jesus 36:38 A ought to look at B and say 36:41 "I don't know what you've got 36:43 but I want some of that! " Amen. 36:49 That's kingdom living. 36:51 That's covenant living. 36:53 That's Christ saying: "Hey, the kingdom of God 36:58 is here and now. " 37:02 It's cookies and milk on the way to glorification. Amen? 37:09 When you make your entrance into the kingdom 37:12 it brings joy, doesn't it? 37:15 Now listen, we tend to say parenthetically 37:18 "Christians ought to be the happiest people in the world. " 37:21 Here's the truth about that statement: 37:23 sounds good... ain't true. 37:25 Nobody can be happy all the time. 37:31 Nobody can be happy all the time. 37:36 Some days you get up - you will forgive my pejorative English - 37:41 that day you ain't going to be happy. 37:43 Ever had days like that? 37:45 Today is not a happy day. 37:48 Ate something. Wife kicked you in the night. 37:53 Fell out of bed. 37:56 You ain't going to be happy. 37:58 But even on the days when you aren't happy 38:00 you can have joy because joy supersedes happiness. 38:04 The Bible doesn't say: "in His presence is the fullness of 38:06 happy. " There's fullness of? Joy. 38:10 Because you can have joy even when you're not happy. 38:12 When you are living in covenant relationship with God 38:16 even in the worst of times 38:18 you can be... you can have joy 38:22 because joy comes when you enter into the kingdom 38:27 and when you come into the covenant relationship with God. 38:31 Now nobody's happy all the time. Do you run around grinning 38:33 all the time? Folks think you've got a mental problem. 38:39 But you can have joy 38:41 even when you're not happy. Amen? 38:44 Now let me embarrass us. 38:46 We all know Mollie's battling stuff. 38:50 And one of the things she told us when she came back to work 38:56 was... Mollie said: "Listen. " 38:59 I was in the office. I think Danny was there. 39:01 Jim, some other people. 39:03 She said: "Listen, every time you see me 39:06 do not ask me 'How you feeling? ' 39:12 I don't want that. Every time 'How you feeling? ' " 39:17 She said: "I don't plan on living my life like that. " 39:21 Amen. Amen. 39:23 "I'm not going to be a victim so don't come 'How you feeling? ' 39:30 because that's not who I am so don't do that. 39:34 I've got good doctors. I've got a loving husband. 39:36 I've got exercise and diet and I've got God! " 39:40 Amen. 39:44 So I never ask her how she's feeling. 39:47 I say: "How you doing? " 39:53 But you get my point. 39:57 This week I got some bad news. 40:00 I got two sets of bad news in the same day. 40:04 Have you ever had days you're sailing along, 40:06 life is going along fine, 40:07 you're sailing along and all of a sudden life comes and just 40:09 kicks you in the stomach? 40:11 Ever have a day like that? 40:13 I got that this week. 40:15 Sailing along and all of a sudden somebody came 40:20 and told me something that I just was not prepared for. 40:23 It's like the devil just sucker punched me. 40:24 I just... I wasn't ready for that. 40:27 And it just... I had to sit down. 40:29 I... you've got to... what? 40:38 I couldn't believe it. 40:42 And then right after that I got some more bad news. 40:49 Totally unexpected. 40:51 You know, you get that kind that kind of rocks you back on your 40:56 heels because it seems to come out of nowhere. 41:00 And things you count on and people you count on 41:03 and stuff that you expect to happen just falls apart. 41:06 And you want to say: "Lord, what in the world is going on? " 41:13 But you know what? 41:19 Here I stand. 41:25 Nothing's changed. 41:28 God is still on the throne. Amen. 41:31 Nothing's changed. 41:35 That's what happens 41:38 when you live in kingdom/covenant reality. 41:48 You know, when I preach I... not always but many times... 41:53 I in my mind's eye picture that Christ is standing right 41:58 by me. And in my mind He's always one step over 42:02 and one step back. Just a little visual game 42:06 I have with myself. Christ is always by my side. 42:08 And so I see Him here. 42:13 Tall... good looking. 42:18 He doesn't have that permed hair I see in the pictures. 42:21 His hair is combed straight. 42:24 Flawless figure... except for the nails, 42:31 hands and feet. 42:34 And I visualize that. 42:41 And don't pity Him because of the nails 42:47 because He got those volitionally. 42:51 He volunteered for those. 42:55 And the covenant says He will keep those throughout 43:01 all eternity because He loves us. 43:10 He loves you, and because the eternal and everlasting 43:15 covenant said that Christ would do 43:19 whatever was necessary 43:23 to win you back to the Father. 43:27 Such is the seriousness of the covenant. 43:34 One of the few Spanish terms I've learned is 43:37 asunto serio. 43:39 Serious business. 43:43 The covenant is serious business. 43:46 Now my time is fast slipping away. I've got a bunch of things 43:48 to talk about. We've got to move kind of fast. 43:50 Going back to Genesis/Joshua. 43:52 In looking at this Genesis/Joshua relationship 43:55 I'll try to tie all this together. 43:56 Particularly as we look at the children of Israel's 44:00 trek through the wilderness. 44:03 Ellen White says this. She says 44:05 we ought to study their Egypt-to-Canaan experience 44:08 because we are paralleling their experience 44:13 in many many ways. As we go from earth to heaven 44:17 there are striking parallels in their trek from Egypt 44:21 to Canaan. She also says 44:23 that we ought to spend a lot of time 44:27 in the book - interestingly enough - 44:29 of Deuteronomy. 44:31 Here's a quote. Ellen White says: 44:33 "The principles set forth in Deuteronomy 44:35 for the instruction of Israel 44:38 are to be followed by God's people to the end of time. " 44:42 So she says you need to study what happened to God's people 44:45 from Egypt to Canaan because as we move from earth to glory 44:49 we're making the same mistakes, falling into the same traps, 44:51 having the same problems. We need to look at their 44:54 mistakes and learn from them. 45:01 True prosperity - not wealth - is dependent upon a continuing 45:07 covenant relationship with God ladies and gentlemen. 45:12 Deuteronomy, then, is prep school for those of us 45:15 who would be heirs to the Promised Land. 45:19 Three things are stressed in the book of Deuteronomy 45:21 that we need to take care of tonight. 45:23 Number one: know your religion. 45:30 Know what you believe. 45:32 By knowing it I mean be able to defend it. 45:40 Know your faith 45:42 because there will come a time when you may have to 45:45 defend it. So just don't go to church and listen to a preacher 45:49 preach. Know your faith for yourself. 45:51 That's stressed in Deuteronomy. 45:53 Number two: practice what you preach. 45:57 Amen. 46:00 Practice what you preach. 46:03 Don't just preach it... live it. 46:07 Amen. Amen. 46:09 Number three: watch out who you hang out with. 46:18 Now I'm not saying don't go to people who don't know the Lord 46:21 because that's how you witness. 46:22 I'm talking about people you hang out with. 46:28 Watch your company. 46:30 If that was ever true, it is surely true now 46:33 in these last days. Know your stuff. 46:37 Don't just say it... do it. 46:40 Spend most of your time with people who are traveling 46:43 in the same direction as you. 46:45 That's Deuteronomy. 46:47 Here's a quote from Ellen White: 46:49 "Especially today while earth's history is closing 46:53 the Lord requires of His children 46:56 a vigilance that knows no relaxation. " 47:00 The price of being a Seventh-day Adventist 47:04 is vigilance. 47:06 Keeping your eyes open. 47:10 No naps; no vacations. 47:14 Let us then reaffirm the truth that wandering in the wilderness 47:19 for 40 years was never God's plan. 47:22 You listening to me? 47:23 The Bible says - Deuteronomy 6:23- 47:25 "He brought them out that He would take them in. " 47:28 He brought them out that He should take them in. 47:30 He brought them out that He should take them in. 47:33 God brought you out of the world with the intention 47:35 of taking you into the kingdom, not having you wander 47:37 around 3ABN Camp Meeting for the rest of your life. 47:43 He called us out of the world that we might go in 47:46 through covenant relationship with Him. 47:48 That includes: a new birth, a new life, new joy, 47:51 new desires, new friends, new family, 47:53 new tastes, new habits, new pursuits. 47:55 A new name, a new occupation, 47:57 and a new destiny. 48:01 "That where I am there ye may be also. " 48:06 And the clock is becoming my enemy. 48:08 God's desire for humanity has never changed. 48:12 Jeremiah 21:11. 48:14 The same song Danny talks about: I Know The Plans. 48:20 John 17:11 Jesus said: 'I'm praying for the ones 48:24 that You game Me that we all may be one. " 48:32 So if you're wandering or drifting in the wilderness, 48:34 if you cannot seem to find your way, not only are you not 48:38 where God wants you to be 48:40 you may not be who God wants you to be. 48:50 You've got a heritage; you've got an inheritance. 48:54 Go and get it. 48:59 Now I don't have time to read Romans 8:16-17 49:02 or Galatians 3:26-29 49:04 because it says that we are "heirs to the promise. " 49:08 What is so arresting about this Genesis connection 49:13 are the signatures of the covenant. 49:15 And I'm not going to have time to go through it. 49:17 Let me jump to something else. 49:19 I feel like David. I need like 5 hours. 49:23 Ellen White makes two very, very important statements 49:27 and I've got to get to them before we close. 49:29 Here's the first one 49:31 dealing with covenant relationship and kingdom living. 49:35 Here's the first statement. She says: 49:37 "Our Christian lives 49:39 should not be a ceaseless round of sinning 49:43 and repenting. " I want you to hold onto that. 49:47 How many have ever sinned and repented? 49:51 How many have done it more than once? 49:54 How many have done it a lot of times? 49:57 OK. That's all right. 49:59 Ellen White says: "Sinning and repenting ought not to 50:03 characterize your Christian relationship. " 50:09 If you sin, you need to repent. 50:13 Amen. Amen. 50:16 But sinning and repenting ought not be 50:19 the sum and substance, the center and circumference 50:22 of your relationship with God. 50:24 That's yo-yo religion. 50:26 That's not kingdom or covenant religion. 50:29 Sinning and repenting is Satan's ersatz substitute 50:34 for victorious Christian living. 50:36 You've got some people whose lives are nothing but 50:38 sinning and repenting, sinning and repenting, 50:39 sinning and repenting, sinning and repenting. 50:42 That's not victorious Christian living. 50:45 Some people actually define their relationship with God 50:48 by sinning and repenting. 50:51 It marks their days, it marks their nights, 50:52 it marks their Sabbath, it marks all their relationships. 50:55 It marks their view of God and His ability or inability 50:59 to save. Sinning and repenting and sinning and repenting. 51:01 It turns heaven into a cruel joke 51:05 and salvation into a figment of our imagination. 51:09 Sinning and repenting, sinning and repenting, 51:11 sinning and repenting. God's people Israel 51:14 practiced that for 1000+ years 51:19 and in the end it destroyed them 51:22 because sinning and repenting, sinning and repenting, 51:24 sinning and repenting denies sanctification. 51:30 It denies victorious Christian living. 51:33 It denies what is at the essence of covenant living 51:37 and reality. It says: "I cannot overcome. " 51:44 It says that our flesh is stronger than His Spirit. 51:49 It says that I John 1:9 is only a half truth. 51:56 "When I confess my sins He is faithful and just 51:59 to forgive but He cannot cleanse. " 52:04 Ladies and gentlemen, any sin that you are forgiven for 52:09 but not cleansed from 52:11 you are destined to repeat. 52:18 "Oh, I forgive you. but you're going to do it again. " 52:22 You've got to have the whole package. 52:24 I need to be forgiven for and cleansed from 52:29 because if I am not cleansed from, it will destroy me 52:32 and separate me from God. 52:36 You see, John chapter 1 verse 12 says: 52:40 "To as many as received Him to them gave He the right, 52:44 the authority, the power to say 'No! ' 52:50 to Satan and to becomes a son of God. " 52:54 That's victorious Christian living. 52:57 That's the power of kingdom living 53:00 and covenant relationship. 53:02 Romans chapter 6 tackles the idea of being dead to sin 53:05 and alive to righteousness. 53:07 If you're dead to sin, you can't live in sin. 53:11 And let me say this parenthetically. 53:13 Any relationship - family, friends, husband, wife, 53:18 boyfriend, girlfriend, business associate relationship, 53:21 anything that is turning you into a spiritual yo-yo 53:25 you need to fix it or end it. 53:31 If the God you are serving can't keep you, then may I 53:35 suggest you try mine. 53:39 "For He is able to keep you from falling 53:41 and to present you faultless before His presence 53:44 with exceeding joy. " The New King James says 53:47 "keep you from stumbling. " 53:49 The Moffatt's translation says "keep you from slipping. " 53:53 The AHB translation says, Danny, "keep you from tripping 53:59 and to present you faultless. " 54:04 Our Christian journey, number two. 54:07 Ellen White says this: 54:09 "Our Christian journey should not be a pilgrimage 54:13 of sighs. " 54:15 Not size. S-I-G-H-S. 54:21 Your Christian journey 54:24 ought not be a pilgrimage of sighs. 54:29 "How're you doin? " 54:32 "Ahhhh. " 54:37 "Isn't God good? " 54:42 "Ahhhh. " 54:45 Ellen White says that in Christ Object Lessons. 54:47 "Your Christian journey ought not be a pilgrimage of sighs. " 54:51 There ought to be some joy in your life. 54:55 Ought to be some happiness in your life. 54:58 Ought to be some "Praise God" in your life. 55:01 It ought not be a joyless existence 55:04 because with all of the stuff you've got as a child of God 55:09 you've got Jesus. 55:15 And so if your life is a joyless Christian existence... 55:20 Someone actually came to me some time ago and said: 55:22 "You know what? I just don't feel Jesus. 55:24 I don't... I don't feel happy in Jesus. 55:26 I just don't feel a... I don't... I don't feel it. 55:29 I just... I hear people praising God and I just... 55:32 I come to church and I hear the sermons 55:33 but I just... I just... There's something wrong. 55:35 There's some disconnect. 55:40 I just don't feel it. " 55:41 May I suggest humbly and respectfully 55:45 that if that is part of your experience 55:48 the wrong person is seated on the throne of your life. 55:53 You need to get off the chair and let Jesus get on. 55:59 Get out of the driver's seat; slide to the passenger seat; 56:04 and let Jesus take the wheel. 56:06 Amen. 56:08 Um-hmmm. 56:10 Here's what happens when you put Jesus in the driver's seat. 56:14 Psalm chapter 16 verse 11. 56:17 "You will show me the path of life 56:19 and in Your presence is fullness of joy... " 56:25 Amen? Amen. 56:27 "and pleasures forever more. " 56:28 So number one: no up and down. 56:30 Number two: when you get up stay up 56:33 and let God give you joy. 56:37 And I maintain again that as long as you have Jesus 56:40 you have joy. 56:42 That is the truth about covenant living 56:47 and kingdom reality. 56:50 God has sold out for you 56:56 and you will never be happy, you will never be content, 56:59 you will never have the true joy of Jesus 57:04 until you sell out for Him. |
Revised 2014-12-17