Participants: Shelley Quinn
Series Code: 14HC
Program Code: 14HC000005
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00:45 Hello and welcome to 3ABN's 2014 Fall Camp Meeting.
00:51 We are so glad to have this wonderful live audience. 00:55 And we've got people who have come quite a distance to be with 00:59 us today, and we found out that we've got a lot of people 01:02 here who are here for the first time, 01:04 and we're excited to have you here. 01:06 But we also want to welcome those who are watching 01:09 on television or listening by the radio. 01:12 This is a special time. 01:15 Have you all been blessed already? Praise the Lord! 01:18 Amen. You can tell they have been. 01:21 You know, Doug Batchelor... Everywhere I go I hear people 01:24 talk about... I run into somebody who came into 01:28 the kingdom because of Doug Batchelor's teachings. 01:31 And he's just a wonderful teacher of the Bible. 01:35 But we are also... It's such an anointed time. 01:39 I think there's something special about this Camp Meeting 01:42 because of the music project that we've been working on 01:46 called Hallelujah! Home At Last! And you'll get to hear 01:50 the entire project on Sabbath. 01:53 And it is so anointed... it's so special. 01:57 Well this hour it's going to be my joy to get to share 02:01 a message from the Bible with you. And I have titled it 02:04 A Test of Citizenship. 02:08 So ya'll think about that now and think where we're going to 02:11 be going in the Bible. But A Test of Citizenship. 02:15 And before I speak we're going to have 02:19 a beautiful message from my pastor: John Lomacang. 02:22 He and his wife Angie are dear friends of ours. 02:25 We love them. He is a man of God, 02:28 and not only can he preach but he has an incredible 02:34 singing ministry. And he's going to be singing 02:37 Touch Your People Once Again. 02:57 We need wisdom, we need power, 03:01 true love for each other. 03:05 We have had so many big but empty words. 03:11 So we come before Your face 03:15 asking for Your grace. 03:18 Bring Your people to a state of kingdom life. 03:24 Restore Your church again. 03:28 Touch Your people once again 03:35 with Your precious holy hand, 03:40 we pray. 03:42 Let Your kingdom shine upon this earth 03:49 through a living and glorious church. 03:56 Not for temporary deeds 04:03 but to restore authority 04:08 and power. 04:10 Let a mighty rushing wind 04:14 blow in... 04:20 touch Your people once again. 04:29 Lord, You see Your tired servants 04:33 and Your broken wounded soldiers. 04:36 Oh, how much we need Your precious healing hand. 04:43 We need the power of the cross 04:47 as the only source for us 04:50 when we stand facing final battle cry... 04:56 restore Your church again. 05:00 Touch Your people once again 05:07 with Your precious holy hand, 05:12 we pray. 05:14 Let Your kingdom shine upon this earth 05:21 through a living and glorious church. 05:28 Not for temporary deeds 05:35 but to restore authority 05:40 and power. 05:43 Let a mighty rushing wind 05:46 blow in... 05:52 touch Your people once again. 05:59 Let that mighty rushing wind 06:04 blow in 06:10 and touch Your people 06:12 once 06:16 again. 06:28 Thank you, John. What a beautiful song. 06:32 Let's pray. Heavenly Father, we come again in the name of Jesus 06:37 Christ, and the message of the song is our heart's plea: 06:42 touch us once again. 06:44 We ask in the name of Jesus, Father, that You would pour out 06:47 Your Holy Spirit on us. 06:50 I pray, Father, please get me out of the way. 06:54 I pray You'll speak through me. 06:56 Let this message be straight from heaven. 06:59 And we ask in the name of Jesus, Father, that 07:02 You would just pour out Your Holy Spirit. 07:03 Give us ears to hear what the Holy Spirit has to say. 07:08 In Jesus' name, Amen. Amen! 07:11 Once again, it's so good to see each and every one of you. 07:17 We're going to be talking today about a test 07:20 of citizenship. You know, when a government is established 07:25 the will of the government becomes binding upon the people, 07:29 doesn't it? A government expects 07:33 that every citizen will abide by its law. 07:37 And if you're not born a citizen, 07:39 you have to go through a naturalization process 07:43 to become a citizen of that country. 07:46 Well, when God established His kingdom government 07:51 His will became legally binding 07:57 upon every citizen of His kingdom. 08:00 Now do you remember His first inaugural address? 08:05 You're quite familiar with it. Do you know where it's located 08:08 in the Old Testament. It was accompanied by pyrotechnics. 08:14 It was a grand message found in Exodus chapter 20 08:20 when God was proclaiming His divine law from Mt. Sinai. 08:26 when He said: "I am the Lord your God who brought you 08:30 out of bondage. You shall have no other gods before Me. 08:35 You shall not create idols. 08:38 You will not take My name in vain. 08:41 You will honor My Sabbath... you'll love it. 08:44 You'll honor your mother and your father. 08:47 You will not murder; you'll not commit adultery; 08:50 you'll not steal; you'll not bear false testimony; 08:53 you will not covet. Why? 08:56 Because that's what it means to be in covenant relationship 09:01 with Me and My divine law is ten promises 09:07 of what I will empower you to do. " 09:11 See, God's law IS His promise to us. 09:16 And boy, He made sure that we would understand. 09:19 The Ten Commandments were the basis - the very foundation - 09:25 of His government. Because who wrote them? 09:29 God wrote them with His own finger. 09:31 Did He write it on tissue paper? 09:34 No, He wrote them on stone with His own finger. 09:39 And then, where did He have Moses put those 10 Commandments? 09:45 Inside the ark. What is the ark? 09:49 The ark is His throne. 09:53 It's the ark of the covenant inside the ark, 09:57 and what is over those Ten Commandments? 10:01 Ah, praise God for the mercy seat. Amen? 10:06 Now He also had Moses write some specific covenant 10:14 laws for His new Jewish nation. 10:19 And Moses wrote these. God dictated them; 10:22 Moses wrote them and he put them in a scroll. 10:26 And where did that go? On the side of the ark. 10:30 Now, God's inaugural address 10:35 which was so thunderous because He spoke it with 10:40 His own magnificent voice that the people trembled. 10:45 But the second time when He wanted to as John was singing 10:50 touch His people once again 10:54 the second inaugural address is recorded by Matthew. 11:00 You know, the gospels of Mark and Luke 11:04 were written to Gentiles, 11:06 but the gospel of Matthew was written to Jews. 11:10 You know, that's kind of ironic when you think about it. 11:13 Levi Matthew was a hated tax collector. 11:17 He was Jewish, but he was collecting taxes for the Roman 11:21 government. He was hated! 11:23 Tax collectors were lower than the lowest 11:26 in the eyes of the Hebrews. 11:28 But... Christ touched him and he was converted. 11:34 And God used him to write the gospel - the good news 11:40 of Jesus Christ - to the Jews. 11:43 Matthew more than anyone else because he was a Jew 11:46 and he's writing to Jews his gospel talks about 11:50 the fulfillment of Old Testament texts, 11:53 and he parallels Jesus' life to Moses repeatedly. 11:59 He establishes Jesus as the new Deliverer, 12:03 the new King if you will of the new Israel... 12:07 and the new Israel who will experience a new exodus, 12:12 a delivery from sin. 12:14 But before Matthew tells us or shares the inaugural 12:19 address, first he talks about the election process 12:23 when God identified His Son in the baptismal water 12:28 saying: "This is My Son in whom I am well pleased. " 12:32 And then Matthew records as Jesus went off into 40 days 12:36 of the wilderness to be tempted of Satan 12:40 and He overcame every temptation. 12:42 Now the one thing he doesn't record which I find fascinating 12:46 but... is that immediately after Jesus' 40 days 12:51 in the wilderness, do you know what the first thing was 12:55 when he came back in? What He did? 12:57 He walked into a Jewish synagogue there in Nazareth 13:03 and they handed Him the scroll and He found the place 13:07 and He stood up and He read from Isaiah 61. 13:12 Luke tells us this story in Luke chapter 4. 13:15 Here's what Jesus read: "The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me 13:19 because He has anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor. 13:23 He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, 13:25 to proclaim liberty to the captives 13:29 and recovery of sight to the blind, 13:31 to set at liberty those who are oppressed, 13:34 to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord. " 13:38 And as every eye in that whole synagogue was fixed upon Him 13:44 what did Jesus say? 13:46 "Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing. " 13:52 What was He doing? 13:55 Why would He say that? 13:57 Because He was identifying Himself as the Messiah 14:02 servant of Isaiah chapter 61. 14:08 Now right after that... Let's go back to Matthew 14:13 because He records Jesus' first sermon... 14:18 His inaugural address. 14:22 And in this inaugural address 14:25 Jesus again affirms Himself 14:29 as the King of the kingdom of divine grace. 14:33 Why don't you turn in your Bibles please to Matthew 14:37 chapter 5 because Christ's inaugural address 14:41 happened on an unnamed mountain in Israel. 14:47 We call this The Sermon on the Mount. 14:51 Now I have... For the last 3 years 14:55 I've had the opportunity to stand at the site 14:58 that is traditionally known as the place from which 15:03 Jesus delivered His Sermon on the Mount. 15:06 And it's a wonderful experience, and this probably really is 15:09 the place because it's the only place that has the natural 15:12 acoustics that He could stand and speak where thousands 15:17 could hear Him. They've actually repeated this 15:21 in a test. And they had thousands of people there 15:24 and had one person who spoke and all could hear him. 15:30 But today we're going to look specifically at His opening 15:34 remarks... the Beatitudes... which is the ideal 15:38 heart condition for citizens of the kingdom. 15:41 This is a test of citizenship and eight blessings 15:45 that go with it, so let's look at Matthew chapter 5. 15:49 In these first three Beatitudes they parallel Isaiah 61. 15:54 And I'll point that out because they confirm Jesus 15:58 not only as the Messiah servant of Isaiah 61 16:03 but also as the servant identified in Isaiah 52 16:08 who would suffer for the sins and receive the punishment 16:13 that sinners deserve. 16:14 Matthew 5 verse 1: 16:17 "And seeing the multitude He went up on a mountain. 16:22 And when He was seated His disciples came to Him. 16:25 Then He opened His mouth and taught them saying this: 16:29 'Blessed... ' " That word means to be joyous. 16:34 To be spiritually prosperous. 16:37 "Blessed are the poor in spirit 16:39 for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. " 16:43 This parallels Isaiah 61 where He said: 16:47 "The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me because the Lord 16:50 has anointed Me to preach good tidings to the poor. " 16:56 In the Old Testament - do a study some time - 17:00 the poor were those who depended totally upon God. 17:05 And to be poor in spirit means that we are talking about 17:10 our... recognizing our own abject spiritual poverty. 17:15 Our spiritual bankruptcy. 17:18 Knowing that apart from Christ we are utterly helpless 17:23 before a holy God. 17:24 To be poor in spirit is to recognize there's nothing - 17:29 trust me - nothing that we can do 17:33 to save ourself. The opposite of being poor in spirit 17:37 is to be self-righteous... to be full of self. 17:43 And people like this don't recognize their need 17:46 for a Savior. They're depending on self for salvation. 17:50 You know, there was a woman who came to 3ABN 17:53 and she said this on the air so I don't mind sharing it. 17:56 She said that she could never understand 18:01 what was such a big deal about Calvary for her. 18:04 She was born into an Adventist family. 18:07 She had been in the church for decades. 18:10 And she said: "I wasn't a bad sinner. 18:13 I didn't murder and commit adultery. 18:16 I didn't do this, this, and this and this. 18:18 I didn't think I was a bad sinner. " 18:21 And you know what? Because of that attitude 18:24 she didn't love God. She didn't love Jesus the way she should. 18:30 It was as someone sat her down and explained it 18:34 when she recognized finally 18:38 that she was poor in spirit then she fell in love with God. 18:45 Jesus said in Luke 7:47 18:48 when He was talking of Mary who was anointing His feet 18:52 He said: "She loves much because she's been forgiven much. " 18:58 And the more we recognize we have this deep sense of 19:01 spiritual need and our total dependence upon God to meet 19:05 that need the more we will love God 19:09 and understand that all of our righteous acts - 19:14 our acts of law keeping, having a healthy diet, 19:18 good works, external conformity to the law of God - 19:23 none of this... none of this will save us. 19:26 Our righteous acts - Isaiah says - are as filthy rags 19:32 before the Lord. 19:34 We can never be good enough. 19:36 We have to appreciate our need of God's salvation 19:42 by grace and approach the Lord in this child-like faith 19:48 recognizing salvation is a gift. 19:51 You know, Jesus tells the story of the Pharisee and the tax 19:54 collector who go to the temple to pray. 19:57 And the Pharisee standing there... It's interesting. 20:01 The scripture says Luke 18:11: "The Pharisee stood and prayed 20:05 thus with himself. " 20:08 Who was he praying to or with? 20:11 Himself. He said: "He prayed thus with himself 20:15 'Oh God, I thank you that I'm not like other men: 20:18 those extortioners, those unjust, adulterers, 20:22 or even as this tax collector. I fast twice a week. 20:27 I give tithes of all that I possess. 20:29 I'm glad I'm not like the rest of them. ' " 20:33 "I'm so glad I'm a Seventh-day Adventist. " 20:37 "I'm so glad that I keep the Sabbath and that I fast 20:41 and I'm not like the rest of them. " 20:45 And Jesus said: "There was a tax collector standing afar off 20:50 and he would not so much as raise his eyes 20:54 to the heavens and then he said 20:57 beating on his breast: 21:00 'Oh God be merciful to me a sinner. ' " 21:04 Amen! And Jesus says: "I tell you this man - 21:08 the tax collector - went down to his house justified 21:12 rather than the other 21:14 for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled 21:18 and he who humbles himself will be exalted. " 21:20 Heaven's blessings are poured out on the poor in spirit. 21:26 God covers our spiritual bankruptcy 21:30 with the riches of His divine grace. 21:33 You see, the self-righteous feel no need to receive 21:37 the grace of God and they decline its blessings. 21:40 But entry to the kingdom of heaven 21:43 is promised to those who are poor in spirit 21:47 who recognize that the salvation plan of grace 21:52 is that we are totally dependent upon God. 21:56 "Blessed are the poor in spirit for theirs is the kingdom. " 22:01 Let's look at the second Beatitude. 22:04 "Blessed are those who mourn... " Jesus said... 22:07 "for they shall be comforted. " 22:09 This word in the Greek, mourn, 22:12 is pentheo... P- E-N-T-H-E-O. 22:15 Pentheo. It is the strongest possible Greek word 22:21 for mourning, and it means that the heart is breaking. 22:27 When... Before I studied this out many years ago 22:30 I used to think that when I'd read "Blessed are those 22:32 who mourn; they shall be comforted" I thought that 22:35 He was only saying that those who've experienced tragedy 22:39 and loss will be comforted. And He certainly does 22:42 comfort those. I know that when my sister died 22:46 just a couple of months ago she was my last living blood 22:51 relative and she was my baby. 22:55 She was only four years younger than I. 22:57 But because of the circumstances of our growing up 23:00 I had always mothered her. 23:02 And just before, just a few days before she died, 23:06 I had had a little procedure that turned out to be a little 23:09 more serious than what they thought it was going to be 23:12 and my heart stopped during that time. 23:16 And they had a little trouble getting me started again. 23:19 And my sister freaked out... totally freaked out. 23:24 And she said: "You're my mother. You're more like my mother 23:28 than my sister. I can't live without you. " 23:31 And six days later, she went to sleep and never woke up. 23:35 What a wonderful way to go... in your sleep, huh? 23:38 She was only 61 years old. 23:41 She was too young, in my opinion, to die. 23:44 But I praise God for the comfort that He gave me 23:47 because I understand that He spared her from a lot of 23:50 suffering. But as I studied this, I learned 23:56 He's not just the God of all comfort who comforts those 24:00 who are in tragedy. As we keep our eyes focused on Him 24:04 trusting in Him that He gives us of that perfect peace 24:07 but this Beatitude also parallels Isaiah 61. Listen: 24:11 "He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, 24:17 to comfort all who mourn, to provide for those who mourn 24:20 in Zion to give them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, 24:25 festive oil instead of mourning, 24:28 and splendid clothes instead of despair. " 24:33 Here in Isaiah 61 the context is 24:36 that Israel is mourning over their sins 24:40 that have cast them into exile. 24:44 So what Jesus is saying here 24:46 His words parallel Isaiah 61 24:50 and He is saying that those who recognize they are poor 24:54 in spirit will naturally mourn and they will be blessed. 24:58 Amen! When we recognize, 25:02 we look back at Calvary and we recognize 25:06 that it was our sin that drove the nails 25:11 in His hands and feet. 25:13 When we recognize that He hung there on the cross 25:19 taking the punishment we deserve 25:21 our heart should be broken. 25:24 We should be mourning and even more... 25:28 You know, I think about this often. 25:30 Not only did He die for me, He gave up His omnipresence 25:35 for me. Amen! Can you imagine? 25:39 God who was omnipresent... He took on 25:44 this flesh of ours and He became not only 25:49 the perfect God but He also became the perfect Son of Man 25:55 and He could no longer be everywhere at one time. 25:59 That's why He told His disciples "Hey, it's better for you 26:02 that I go. If I go, I'm going to send another Comforter to you. " 26:07 See, the Bible tells us in Ephesians chapter 3 that 26:11 the only way Christ lives in our heart is by faith 26:13 through the indwelling power of the Holy Spirit. 26:17 Because He took this flesh back to heaven with Him. 26:22 He limited Himself... isn't that amazing! 26:24 We should experience godly sorrow that leads us 26:29 to repentance. Not the superficial. 26:32 I hear people pray all the time 26:33 "Oh Lord, forgive us of our sins... " 26:38 No! God wants us to recognize what sin cost Him 26:44 and what it cost mankind. 26:48 I remember when I was writing Pressing Into His Presence 26:51 I did a study on sin. 26:54 And as I did this study on sin 26:57 I want you to know that my heart ripped wide open. 27:01 I always thought I was a pretty good person. 27:04 People always told me what a good person I was. 27:06 I recognized my need of a Savior 27:08 but I didn't recognize until I did this study on sin 27:13 how much I needed a Savior 27:16 and how responsible I was for the death of Jesus. 27:20 And I went through a deep season of mourning 27:24 to the point that God had to come along and kind of like 27:27 "Get on with it, My child... " You know? 27:29 "I don't want you to stay here forever. " 27:32 He wants us to receive His forgiveness because 27:36 the Bible tells us when we confess our sins 27:39 He is faithful and just to forgive us of our sins 27:43 and to cleanse us of all unrighteousness. 27:47 He grants us the gift of forgiveness and repentance. 27:51 But if we're presenting ourselves as candidates 27:54 for citizenship in the kingdom of heaven we must mourn 28:00 over our sin... then the blessing will be ours. 28:04 God will draw us near to His heart 28:07 and He will provide the comfort of knowing 28:11 that our sins are forgiven. 28:13 That He can give us that assurance of salvation. 28:16 And He will send His Holy Spirit to indwell us 28:20 and by His power... by His power we will be strengthened. 28:26 So number 3: the meek. 28:29 Matthew 5:5 Jesus said: "Blessed are the meek 28:34 for they shall inherit the earth. " 28:36 The Greek word here is praus. 28:39 It means to be mild and gentle. 28:43 Not to be easily provoked. To be patient and humble. 28:47 Not only humble before man but humble before God. 28:50 To be disciplined. 28:52 Meekness is an attitude that prepares the way 28:55 for sanctification. It's an attitude of surrender, really. 29:00 It is not weakness... it is not to be spineless. 29:06 You know some people, if you say: "He is a meek man" 29:09 you think: "Oh well, you know, cowboy up. " 29:13 You know, "Man up. " 29:15 No, meekness... 29:20 the Bible says that Moses was "more meek than all men 29:24 on the face of the earth. " He was a strong man 29:27 who had a teachable spirit. 29:30 The meek recognize that no matter what fame, fortune, 29:34 or power that they achieve in this world 29:38 that they're no better off than anyone else. Amen. 29:42 Jesus said in Matthew 11:29 29:45 "Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me 29:49 for I am gentle and lowly in heart 29:53 and you will find rest for your soul. " 29:57 Jesus was meek. 29:59 Christian meekness is an inward quality. 30:03 It is based on humility... 30:06 on having the mind of Christ who humbled Himself 30:12 and became obedient, even unto death on a cross. 30:16 Meekness implies submission 30:19 as the outgrowth of our spiritual relationship 30:22 with the Lord. That the meek will accept and do His will 30:26 without hesitation. The opposite of meekness is arrogance 30:31 or pride... those who have an air of superiority, 30:36 who are revengeful. 30:39 God will humble such people. 30:43 But Christ will exalt those who have learned 30:47 the grace of humility. I think of my husband. 30:52 He's one of the most meek men I know. 30:57 He is gentle; he is kind; he is submissive. 31:01 And I can tell you that... I live with him. 31:04 And he's just like that at home, too. 31:07 But you know something? People are drawn to meekness. 31:14 People are drawn to him. 31:17 They want to hear what he has to say. 31:20 When he is witnessing to somebody... if it's a neighbor 31:23 or whomever else... it's not that he takes the Bible 31:26 and beats them over the head 31:29 to try to convince them how beautiful God's message is. 31:33 That would be like taking a violin and beating somebody 31:35 over the head to convince them how beautiful the music is. 31:38 No! What he does is in this humility and this meekness 31:42 and his gentleness suddenly people are drawn to him. 31:47 It's like: "I want to know what you've got. " 31:51 This parallels Isaiah 61. This particular verse 31:56 where it says that they will inherit the earth 31:59 Isaiah 61 verse 7 uses the exact words: 32:03 "They will inherit the land. " 32:05 It's an exact parallel to Matthew 5:5. 32:08 So in context, the Sermon on the Mount and the gospel 32:11 of Matthew as a whole inheriting the earth is not just 32:17 Israel but it is inheriting a re-created earth 32:22 over which Christ will dwell and rule eternally. 32:25 Number four: let's look at Matthew chapter 5 and verse 6. 32:30 The fourth Beatitude... my favorite: 32:33 those who hunger and thirst for righteousness. 32:38 Jesus said: "Blessed... " joyous and spiritually prosperous... 32:43 "are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness 32:46 for they shall be filled. " 32:49 They crave God's righteousness and presence 32:52 just like David did. Remember in Psalm 42 32:56 where David said: "As a deer pants for streams of water 33:01 so my soul pants for You, O God. 33:04 My soul thirsts for You... for the Living God. " 33:09 Again in Psalm 63 he said: 33:11 "O God, You are my God. " Now he's out in the wilderness. 33:15 "Early will I seek You. My soul thirsts for You. 33:19 My flesh longs for You 33:22 in a dry and weary land where there is no water. 33:26 So I have looked for You in the sanctuary 33:28 to see Your power and Your glory 33:31 and because Your lovingkind- ness is better than life... " 33:37 Lord, because Your love is better than life... 33:40 "my lips shall praise You. 33:42 Thus I will bless You while I live. I will lift up 33:45 my hands in Your name. My soul shall be satisfied 33:50 as with marrow and fatness 33:52 and my mouth shall praise You with joyful lips. " 33:56 I'm going to ask you something. Don't raise your hand. 33:59 When's the last time you felt like this? 34:03 When's the last time that you hungered and thirsted 34:08 for righteousness with such an intense desire 34:12 that you hungered and thirsted for the presence of the Lord? 34:18 Not just getting up on Sabbath morning to go to church 34:21 because that's what you do, 34:25 but that you can't wait to get to church to corporate worship 34:29 because you're hungering and thirsting for the Lord. 34:33 You're longing for righteousness. 34:37 I'm going to tell you a secret: 34:39 the more time you spend in the Word, 34:42 the more time you spend with God, 34:44 the more you'll hunger and thirst for righteousness. 34:48 Because when you experience God's love and the more you get 34:52 to know Him, the more you recognize that this is... 34:58 that His riches are unsearchable. 35:02 His grace is unsearchable. 35:05 And longing for righteousness is evidence that Christ 35:09 is at work in our hearts. 35:12 You know, the words here hunger and thirst... those verbs 35:14 in the Greek are the rare accusative case 35:18 which simply means a fervent hunger and thirst 35:22 for the whole thing. Not just a little bit of righteousness 35:26 but for all of it. 35:28 And the promise... What is the promise? 35:31 The promise of fullness of life, "they shall be filled, " 35:36 is conditional on our hungering and thirsting. 35:40 If you don't hunger and thirst, you're not going to be filled. 35:44 You've got to hunger and thirst with that same eagerness 35:48 of a starving and parched man 35:51 both to be made righteous - which avoids the error 35:56 of self-righteousness and legalism because we recognize 35:59 it's God who makes us righteous - 36:01 and then to act in a righteous manner. 36:06 This avoids the error of loose living. 36:11 Those who hunger and thirst for righteousness recognize 36:15 that our behavior affects our acceptance with God. 36:19 And we long to walk as Christ walked. 36:22 You know, in John 14:15- we quote this all the time - 36:26 Jesus said: "If you love Me, keep My commandments. " 36:30 You cannot separate John 14:15 from John 14:16 36:36 cause it goes like this: "If you love Me, keep My commandments 36:41 and I will send another Comforter to abide with you. " 36:47 In the Greek Allos Parakletos. 36:51 "I am going to send you Allos... " One who... 36:54 Another means One who is EXACTLY like Me. 37:00 "I am going to send you the Holy Spirit 37:05 who is exactly like Me and He will dwell in you. " 37:09 But that condition of being filled with the Holy Spirit 37:12 is only for those who hunger and thirst for righteousness. 37:16 No earthly source can satisfy 37:19 the hunger and thirst of the soul. 37:21 Solomon tried to fill his emptiness with... 37:24 with material riches, profound philosophies. 37:28 He tried to satisfy his physical appetite. 37:32 He looked for honor and power. 37:35 And what did he conclude in the end? "All is vanity. " 37:40 All is vanity. None of these things can bring 37:45 the satisfaction and happiness that we long for. 37:48 Solomon finally woke up and realized in the end 37:51 that recognizing and cooperating with our Creator 37:55 is what we provide in doing satisfaction. 37:59 So the words "they will be filled" is a divine passive. 38:04 It's in the passive voice. It means that we can't do that. 38:06 It is an act only God can do. 38:10 And that is crucial to our understanding of 38:13 The Sermon on the Mount. 38:15 Do you remember in this same sermon as you get beyond 38:18 the Beatitudes, if we're going to understand this theology 38:21 we've got to get this right: 38:23 Jesus requires His disciples to keep the least of the 38:26 commandments in verse 19. 38:28 Verse 20: to surpass the righteousness of the scribes 38:32 and the Pharisees. And in verse 48 to be perfect 38:37 as your Heavenly Father is perfect. 38:40 Whoo! Now if your theology is wrong, you can twist these 38:46 ideas to your own destruction 38:50 and you can think that righteousness is achieved 38:54 by works. But what Jesus is saying here - 38:58 that the righteousness that He demands of us He has 39:01 just explained it - is the righteousness that... it's a 39:05 divine gift that He gives to His followers. 39:09 Aren't you glad for the imputed righteousness of Jesus Christ 39:14 where He clothes us with His righteouness? He wipes out our 39:18 spiritual bankruptcy by crediting all of His acts to us 39:23 and thus we are justified. 39:25 This is an act of God where He says: "OK, 39:29 your sins are wiped out. I'm declaring you not guilty. 39:35 You're pardoned... you're pardoned. " 39:38 But then also the imparted righteousness of Jesus 39:41 as the Holy Spirit lives in us 39:44 and then He empowers us to will and to do 39:48 His good work. This is sanctification! 39:51 We can't do that by ourselves. 39:53 We can't even obey by our own power. 39:57 It's God that works in us to will and to do. 39:59 This is a work of God. 40:03 So do you crave righteousness? 40:07 If you don't, I want to suggest that you pray and ask God. 40:13 And trust me, even as I was preparing this sermon 40:17 yesterday I thought: "Lord, have I lost my passion 40:21 for righteousness? " 40:23 "Lord, cause me to hunger and thirst 40:27 for Your righteousness. " 40:29 And He will fill you... He'll do His work in you 40:33 and the fruit of the Spirit will be ours. 40:36 Now, the merciful. This is the fifth Beatitude. 40:40 Matthew 5:7: "Blessed are the merciful 40:42 for they shall obtain mercy. " 40:45 There's two parts to being merciful. 40:48 The first is to have a tender and compassionate heart 40:51 that acts with mercy and benevolence to meet other's 40:54 needs. Their financial, their emotional, their physical, 40:58 even their spiritual needs. 41:00 These people - these merciful - know it's more blessed to give 41:04 than to receive. Jesus tells the story 41:07 in Matthew 25 that when He returns to earth 41:13 with all of His holy angels with Him 41:15 the nations are gathered and the sheep and the goats 41:18 are... are one put on the right hand, one put on the left. 41:22 And then the verse says this: "The King will say to those 41:26 who are on the right hand, the sheep: 'Come, 41:29 ye blessed of My Father. 41:32 Inherit the kingdom prepared for you 41:34 from the foundation of the world 41:36 for I was hungry and you gave Me food, 41:38 I was thirsty and you gave Me drink. 41:41 I was naked and you clothed Me. 41:43 I was sick and you visited Me. I was in prison 41:46 and you came to Me. ' " The merciful. 41:51 According to James "pure religion are deeds of mercy. " 41:56 This, too, is something that only can be achieved 42:02 if God is working within. I remember... 42:06 You know, anyone can demonstrate mercy. It doesn't take money. 42:10 I'm going to tell a bad story on myself. 42:12 My aunts and cousins had come to... We were living in Texas - 42:15 in the center part of Texas - and my aunt, my cousin, 42:19 and my sister - this was many years ago - 42:21 came to visit us. 42:23 And I took them to San Antonio. We were going to the River Walk. 42:27 And when we got there, as we... we kind of... 42:31 There were a few little things that happened so we were 42:34 behind schedule. And we got there and got checked in. 42:37 We were going... we had a reservation at the River Walk. 42:40 And as we are going along... Here I was in ministry. 42:44 I wasn't with 3ABN at the time but I was in ministry. 42:47 And that impressed my aunt a lot. 42:51 Anyway... So we're walking along 42:55 and in... as we're going down the street... in a doorway 42:59 there was a girl who was huddled up 43:02 and by her face and her demeanor and everything else - 43:06 her hair - you could tell she was a drug addict 43:08 and she was "higher than a kite. " 43:11 So like the 43:16 scribes and Pharisees who passed by 43:20 I did like this with my aunt and my cousin. 43:26 We were on our way to a dinner reservation. 43:30 This girl... what could I do for her? She was higher than a kite. 43:34 And as we're about 20 steps down I looked back, and 43:38 my sister was ministering to this girl. 43:41 She stopped to pray for her. 43:43 And the Lord... Oh man! Did He ever... 43:47 I mean it was just like a stab in the heart because 43:49 I recognized I was not being merciful 43:53 'cause I had my own agenda. 43:55 So anyone can show mercy. 43:58 It's just being considerate of someone's needs 44:00 and feelings. A prayer can show mercy. 44:04 But the second and critical part to mercy 44:07 is to have an empathetic and forgiving spirit. 44:11 And this is when we strive to understand 44:15 those who have offended us and to show mercy to them. 44:20 Mercy... 44:22 the merciful are actually putting God's love into action. 44:27 If you have a hard time forgiving an offender 44:32 or feeling merciful towards somebody, let me 44:34 share what happened with me. 44:36 We had a business partner... Before we were married 44:39 J.D. and I were business partners, and we had another 44:41 partner who put us $250,000 into debt because of 44:45 some very crooked things he was doing. 44:48 So we had to assume all... When we married we were 44:51 $250,000 in debt. Well then I exposed this guy. 44:55 I'm traveling all over Europe and I exposed his little scheme. 44:59 And he threatened my life. 45:02 Said that he was putting a hit team out to... 45:07 contract on my life. 45:09 Well! I hated him. 45:13 I thought... I mean, if you've got somebody threatening your 45:15 life it's interesting how you react. 45:17 And I just... I hated him. 45:19 So I came home from Europe... after spending eight weeks 45:22 looking over my shoulder I came home from Europe 45:25 and I remember I was praying. And I said: "Oh, Lord, I'm 45:29 praying for forgiveness of my sins" and suddenly I hear this: 45:32 "I'll forgive you if you'll forgive him. " 45:34 "Well, You've got to be kidding! 45:37 How can I forgive him? " 45:39 And suddenly the Lord impressed me 45:43 that what I needed to do was to... You know, I am sincerely 45:47 saying: "How can I forgive someone like this? 45:49 He's ruined us financially; he's threatened my life. " 45:52 And He impressed me to pray for his salvation. 45:55 And I thought: "I don't care if he rots in you know where. " 46:01 I didn't care at the time. 46:04 But God impressed me to pray for this man's salvation. 46:07 And as I did... I mean, that first week I 46:11 was just being dutiful praying for his salvation. 46:14 Somewhere along the line God changed my heart 46:17 and I was sincerely praying for his salvation because 46:21 I suddenly saw this man as God saw him. 46:25 So we want to have an empathetic and forgiving spirit. 46:33 "Blessed... " number 6... "are the pure in heart 46:36 for they shall see God. " 46:41 The pure in heart: this is the intellect. 46:44 The word heart. Your conscience... your inner man. 46:47 The pure in heart is someone who as a clean, unpolluted heart 46:51 as a result of God cleansing and purging and forgiving 46:55 their sins. The pure in heart: sin no longer rules 47:01 in their heart. Doesn't mean that they're sinless. 47:03 No, no, no, no. It means that their motives are right. 47:08 And if the motives are right the life will be pure. 47:12 They press forward toward the goal of the heavenward call 47:16 to win the prize of Christ Jesus. 47:19 The pure in heart... You can only have purity of heart 47:23 if God is working in you to will and to do His good pleasure. 47:28 It's a dramatic internal transformation! 47:31 It's an authentic type of righteousness. 47:34 And you know righteous- ness can be counterfeited. 47:37 You know that, don't you? Think of the Pharisees. 47:40 Theirs was nothing but counterfeited righteousness. 47:43 But purity of heart is necessary to enter into God's presence. 47:48 And the blessing to them is that divine grace 47:51 will provide spiritual eyes of faith to see God now 47:57 and promises them - assures them - that they will stand 48:01 face to face with Him in the kingdom. 48:03 "Blessed are the pure in heart for they shall see God. " 48:06 And number seven: the peacemakers. 48:09 "Blessed are the peacemakers for they shall be called 48:13 sons of God. " There are three types 48:19 or three ways to keep and maintain peace 48:23 or to make and maintain peace. 48:25 First, peacemakers strive to be at peace with God. 48:28 Romans 5:1 says, Paul says, "We are justified 48:32 by faith, and as we are we have peace with God 48:35 through Christ. " The second way is that peacemakers strive 48:40 for the good of mankind and they bring men together 48:43 by solving disputes and eliminating strife. 48:48 Paul says in I Thessalonians that Christians are to be 48:52 at peace among themselves. And then Hebrews 12:14 48:55 it says: "Pursue peace with all people. " 48:58 We are to pray for peace. We are to pray for conflict resolution. 49:03 Peacemakers don't criticize and gossip and murmur and complain. 49:07 They refuse to seek revenge; they're quick to apologize. 49:12 Now peacemakers are not passive. 49:15 Don't get that wrong. 49:17 Being passive doesn't mean you're a peacemaker. 49:19 You can just be passive and you're afraid to confront 49:23 somebody. Peacemakers will confront a problem 49:26 boldly, but they will do it in a tender way, 49:31 a tactful way to settle disputes 49:35 and to bring about resolutions and eliminate strife. 49:39 Peacemakers love their enemies. 49:43 The third and greatest thing in this Beatitude 49:47 when Jesus is talking about the ministry of peacemaking 49:51 He is in particular talking about being devoted 49:54 to bringing men into harmony with God. 49:57 To help others make peace with God. 50:00 Isaiah 9:6 refers to Christ as the Prince of Peace. 50:04 The messenger of peace from God that brings a message 50:07 of reconciliation. And peacemakers work at this 50:12 ministry of reconciliation between man and God. 50:15 And as they do, guess what happens? 50:17 They develop Christ's true characteristics 50:22 and they're accepted as the sons and daughters of God. 50:26 Now, the final Beatitude: blessed are the persecuted. 50:31 "Blessed are those who are per- secuted for righteousness' sake 50:36 for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. " 50:39 Did you notice the first... "Blessed are the poor in 50:44 spirit for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. " 50:47 It starts... it's bracketed. It starts the Beatitudes 50:51 with the first blessing theirs is the kingdom of heaven 50:53 and how appropriate that it ends bracketed again 50:57 that those who are persecuted theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 51:01 "Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you 51:04 and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake. 51:07 Rejoice and be exceedingly glad 51:09 for great is your reward in heaven 51:13 for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you. " 51:17 Persecuted. That's to endure suffering for Christ. 51:22 To be mocked, ridiculed, criticized, 51:25 ostracized, to be treated with hostility. 51:29 Even to be martyred. 51:32 We don't really know - most of us - 51:36 what it means to truly be persecuted for Christ. 51:39 I have a dear friend in the Middle East who became 51:43 an Adventist, a Christian actually, by watching 3ABN. 51:48 She did this only... I mean, she was Muslim. 51:51 She did it only... She only watched to improve her English. 51:54 And the Lord got a hold of her heart. 51:57 And she lost her job. 52:00 She lost her marriage. 52:01 She lost custody of her two children. 52:05 Little children at the time. 52:08 And God has blessed her like you would not believe. 52:11 He is blessing her. She gets to see her children 52:14 from time to time, but He is using her 52:17 in such a mighty way in the kingdom. 52:19 Blessed are the persecuted. You know, the great controversy 52:24 rages on between Satan and Jesus. 52:28 And even though Jesus has won at the cross 52:32 we know, but it also rages on between the followers 52:36 of Satan - his kingdom - and the followers of Jesus - 52:40 His kingdom. And Jesus tells us 52:43 that all who live godly will suffer persecution. 52:48 Why? Because our godly behavior exposes them 52:52 I believe and they just hate it. 52:54 But II Timothy 2:12 Paul says 52:59 "If we suffer with Him we shall also reign with Him. " 53:04 Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteouness. 53:07 They shall inherit the kingdom of heaven. 53:13 Those who experience these eight qualifications 53:17 for citizenship listed in these Beatitudes 53:20 are worthy of a place in the kingdom. 53:24 Let me ask you: are you experiencing these eight 53:30 conditions? It's kind of a test. 53:35 We need to examine our hearts. 53:38 Blessed are the poor in spirit, theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 53:41 Blessed are those who mourn, they shall be comforted. 53:44 Blessed are the meek, they shall inherit the earth. 53:46 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, 53:49 they shall be filled. 53:50 Blessed are the merciful for they shall obtain mercy. 53:54 Let me tell you something: if you're not merciful 53:56 what does God promise? 53:58 That He'll give you judgment without mercy. 54:00 Blessed are the pure in heart, they shall see God. 54:03 Blessed are the peacemakers, theirs is the kingdom. 54:07 Our citizenship is in heaven. 54:11 We have been born again and enrolled in the Lamb's 54:17 Book of Life. Lars and Sandy here 54:21 have a son here named Cory who's going to be enrolled 54:23 in the Lamb's Book of Life today. 54:27 He's going to be baptized. 54:29 I think it's today. Maybe tomorrow... I'm not sure. 54:31 But what a wonderful thing: to be enrolled 54:36 in the Lamb's Book of Life! 54:39 We're under heaven's government. 54:42 As citizens of heaven, our earthly life is but a moment 54:46 in time compared to the eternal joys we will experience there. 54:50 We know Jesus said "Not everyone who says 54:53 'Lord, Lord' will enter the kingdom but only those 54:56 who do the will of My Father. " So obedience, yes, is necessary. 54:59 But you know, ancient citizens or ancient cities 55:03 used to keep a register of all of their citizens. 55:06 Just as God does, doesn't He? 55:08 The Lamb's Book of Life. And the names of the dead 55:11 were erased. So, too, those who only 55:17 have the name of Christian... 55:20 just the name that they are alive... but they are dead. 55:25 Their names will be blotted out of heaven's register. 55:30 Listen to this: 55:32 Revelation 3:1-6 55:35 "To the angel of the church in Sardis write: 'These things 55:38 says He who has seven spirits of God and the seven stars 55:41 I know your works that you have a name 55:43 that you are alive but you are dead. 55:46 Be watchful. Strengthen the things 55:50 which remain that are ready to die, for I have not 55:53 found your works perfect before God. 55:56 Remember then, therefore, how you have received 56:01 or what you have received and heard. Hold fast 56:05 and repent. Therefore if you will not watch 56:08 I will come upon you as a thief and you'll not know 56:10 what hour I will come upon you. ' " 56:14 And then He says this: "There are a few names 56:18 even in Sardis that have not defiled their government. 56:22 They have walked with me in white. 56:24 They shall walk with Me in white for they are worthy. 56:27 He who overcomes shall be clothed in white garments 56:33 and I will not blot out his name from the Book of Life. 56:38 I will confess his name before My Father 56:41 and before His holy angels. 56:43 He who has an ear, let him hear 56:46 what the Spirit says to the churches. " 56:48 Do we have spiritual ears today 56:51 to understand that the Beatitudes are rich? 56:55 They're rich in instruction; they're rich in blessings. 57:01 God will do it all for us. 57:03 It is just a matter... If we are to pass this test 57:08 of citizenship of the eternal kingdom of God, 57:11 we just have to cry out to God 57:13 as the God of our salvation. 57:16 He is so anxious to have you there 57:20 because heaven will not be heaven to Him 57:23 unless all of His children are there. Amen! 57:27 God bless you; thank you very much. |
Revised 2015-07-07