Participants: John Lomacang
Series Code: 15WAC
Program Code: 15WAC000004
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00:16 Heavenly Father, this is Your hour.
00:21 Do with it Father what will glorify 00:23 Your holy name, 00:27 in Jesus' name we pray, amen. 00:33 They tell me on the program 00:34 that I'm supposed to be preaching about 00:36 the prophetic significance of the early rain. 00:39 That's what they have in the book 00:42 and so that's what I'm going to do, is that all right? 00:45 But I like you to turn with me in your Bibles 00:47 this evening to the Book of Acts, 00:51 what book did I say? 00:53 The Book of Acts, A-C-T-S, 01:00 chapter 2 and we're gonna read together verse 1 and 2, 01:03 and I'm reading from the New King James Version, 01:05 but whatever version you have is just fine. 01:09 Acts Chapter 2:1 and 2, 01:19 and the word of the Lord reads as follows, 01:22 "When the day of Pentecost had fully come, 01:27 they were all with one accord in one place 01:32 and suddenly there came a sound from heaven 01:36 as of a rushing mighty wind 01:40 and it filled the whole house where they were sitting." 01:45 I am looking forward to the day 01:47 when God will fill the house again, what do you say? 01:50 Come on, you could say amen better than that, 01:52 what did they say? 01:54 One day God is really going to fill His house, hallelujah. 01:58 Right now, they are those who are being watered 02:03 but the day is coming that God is going to separate 02:05 the wheat from the tare, 02:06 and everybody that's going to be in the house 02:08 is going to be those that are filled 02:11 by the power and presence of God's Holy Spirit. 02:16 You wonder about the condition of the day of Pentecost, 02:20 I wasn't there, but I plan on being here 02:23 when the Lord pours out His spirit again 02:26 on His last day church. 02:29 I read a story about a place 02:30 that seems to be unusually unique, 02:32 it is called "the driest place on earth, 02:36 "the Atacama Desert," a plateau in South America 02:41 covering 1000 kilometers, a single strip of land, 02:46 about 600 miles if you're from America. 02:50 What makes this desert so unique is its location. 02:55 It is not located in the central region 02:58 of South America, far away from a body of water, 03:03 but on the Pacific Coast 03:05 nestled between the Pacific Ocean on the west 03:09 and the Andes Mountains on the east. 03:13 In spite of its location right by the ocean, 03:18 the Atacama Desert is the driest non polar desert 03:22 or place in the world. 03:24 And when I read the story, 03:26 the question that came to my mind 03:28 is how can you be so close to water 03:31 and still be the driest place on earth? 03:35 Which says to me that proximity is not everything, 03:41 and let me make application immediately. 03:43 We can talk about how close we are to Jesus 03:46 and still have the driest Christian 03:49 experience on the earth. 03:52 It's not enough to be close to Jesus, 03:54 the Bible does not teach if any man is close to Jesus, 03:59 the Bible teaches if anyone is in Christ Jesus, 04:03 he is a new creation. 04:04 What do you say? 04:06 See, it's not enough to be close to Christ. 04:10 We've got to be in Christ. 04:12 One of the greatest places 04:14 of a blessing today, in these last days 04:17 is not to be close but to be in. 04:21 If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. 04:24 "Old things have passed away, 04:27 behold all things have become new." 04:30 I know that very well myself. 04:32 When I was growing up, I shared with a young man 04:34 in my class today, when I was growing up 04:36 I was a disc jockey, I was a partier, 04:39 I was a gambler, I was a pool hustler, 04:43 not swimming pools but billiards. 04:47 And I was in the church, I was in the building, 04:50 but I was not in the Lord. 04:51 I would sit where you sat, 04:53 I would come to church on Sabbath mornings. 04:55 Matter of fact when I was in my party mode, 04:58 I was a dating a young lady who is now my wife. 05:00 She was my girlfriend back then, she is now my wife, 05:03 but she is also my girlfriend, can I say amen. 05:06 They're the same. 05:09 But I was in the building and when Sabbath morning came 05:15 and I was just getting home 05:16 from a party about 3 or 4 o'clock in the morning, 05:19 and I promised that I would be there 05:21 and I didn't show up, 05:23 my girlfriend would come to my house, 05:26 get my father to open the door, 05:29 wake me up, iron my clothes, make me take a shower 05:34 and get me down to the church 05:35 and I would sit in the back like many of you 05:37 but I would be sleeping. 05:38 Thank God, you are awake tonight, amen somebody? 05:41 And I would sit in the back 05:42 and I would nod as the sermons were preaching, 05:45 I would sleep, I would snore, I was dressed, 05:48 I was in the building, but I was not in the Lord. 05:51 Let me began it by saying tonight, 05:53 it's not enough to be in the building, 05:54 we've got to be in Jesus, what do you say? 05:57 We got to be where the power is 05:59 and sometimes we get satisfied with our church membership, 06:04 but it's fellowship that's going to make 06:07 the difference between who we were 06:09 and who we can become in Christ, 06:11 but she kept inviting me, I was there from week to week 06:14 until one day the Holy Spirit fell down in my life 06:17 and the rest is to the glory of God, what do you say? 06:21 You see the value of your Christianity 06:23 has everything to do with your connection to Christ. 06:27 Location is everything. 06:29 You can be just like that, that South American desert 06:34 located between the Pacific Ocean 06:36 and the lush snow covered 06:39 mountain tops of the Andes Mountain 06:41 and still be drying up from the lack of thirst. 06:46 Location is everything. 06:48 We can sit in the church 06:49 where the power of God is flowing 06:51 and still remain untouched. 06:53 We can stand a few feet away from the baptismal pool 06:57 for the rest of our lives and still be lost, why? 07:00 Because we fail to connect to the only source 07:03 that can really change our lives. 07:06 Location is everything. 07:10 When I began to continue to dig into the story about 07:14 this unusual desert, not like the Sahara, 07:18 not like in the West of the United States 07:21 far away from any body of water. 07:24 A number of very interesting facts 07:26 began to stand out to me 07:27 that had spiritual significance. 07:29 For example, it is pointed out statistically that 07:33 this desert receives less than, 07:36 and I'm trying to be Australian, 07:38 so you have to help me out. 07:40 This desert receives less than 15 millimeters of rain. 07:47 I got to go back to America that's less than half an inch, 07:52 105,000 square kilometers, 49, 000 square miles 07:58 and all it receives in one year 08:00 is a little more than half inch of rain. 08:04 That's why it was so dry, right on the Pacific Ocean, 08:08 right in the shadow of the Andes Mountains 08:09 that can fill that land with abundance of water 08:14 when the snow begins to run down, 08:17 which says to me 08:18 until the Holy Spirit softens our lives, 08:21 our hearts will be nothing more than hard hearted Christianity. 08:26 You know what my prayer has been and continues to be. 08:28 I don't want my heart to be hard, 08:29 with hard with just doctrines, 08:31 I want my heart to be softened 08:34 by the influence of God's Holy Spirit. 08:36 What do you say? 08:38 Asking Christ to come in, to have that personal 08:41 one-to-one relationship with Christ. 08:43 And it really makes a difference between 08:45 who you are and who you can be in Christ. 08:47 I remember my first encounter with God, 08:50 and you know there's amazing ways 08:53 that God finds ways to come into our lives. 08:56 One Friday evening, when I was visiting with my girlfriend, 09:00 she is the youngest of eight children, 09:02 she has five Jamaican brothers 09:04 and that's a big deal. 09:06 If you know anything about Jamaicans, 09:08 they really protected their sister. 09:09 So the only way that they would let me come 09:11 to her house is if it was for family worship, 09:14 that's a good reason. 09:18 This particular Friday night, she introduced to me 09:20 to a book called "The Great Controversy" 09:22 and I've heard about the book, but I've never read it. 09:25 The first chapter that I read in "The Great Controversy" 09:28 was the time of trouble that will get your attention, 09:33 and then I read the promises of Christ's second coming, 09:35 and that Friday evening the Lord stepped 09:37 into this young man's life and began to break down 09:40 all the obstacles between Him and me 09:44 and led me to the place 09:45 where I got rid of all the albums, 09:47 the pool stick, the nightlife, 09:50 and from Friday evening 09:52 when I read "The Great Controversy," 09:54 I didn't wait to go to the school of evangelism, 09:56 I didn't go to a training seminar, 09:58 I'm gonna tell you what God can do in your life. 10:00 From that Friday evening, 10:01 and let me put this in the context, 10:03 I worked at Bank of America down in Wall Street area. 10:06 When I went to work everyday I had a boom box. 10:08 Anybody know what that is? 10:11 You guys have iPads and iPods, 10:12 you don't know what a boom box is. 10:14 A boom box is a radio 10:16 that can boom your head right off your shoulder. 10:19 I went to work with the boom box 10:21 and a pool stick everyday. 10:24 I would gamble after work 10:25 and I'd play music at my lunch hour. 10:28 But when the Lord came into my life that Friday evening, 10:30 I traded my boom box and my pool stick 10:32 for a "Bible and The Great Controversy." 10:35 Come on, can you say amen to that. 10:37 And when I got to work on Monday morning, 10:39 I didn't go to any lengthy process. 10:41 You see, some of us need the schools of evangelism. 10:45 That's a good thing, you can sharpen the skills. 10:47 Well, let me say this, 10:48 when the Lord comes into your life, 10:50 you can be a witness immediately. 10:53 That Monday morning, when I went to work, 10:54 this is unusual in New York City, 10:56 I was on the train and in Brooklyn 10:59 any part of New York for that matter in the greater city, 11:02 you don't walk up to people on the train 11:04 and just start talking to folk. 11:07 But whenever people made eye contact, 11:09 that Monday morning see I was shy on Friday, 11:12 but I was excited about Jesus on Monday. 11:16 There was a young lady that made eye contact 11:18 with me on the train, on my way to work 11:21 and I said to her, 11:22 "Would you like to have Bible studies at lunch hour." 11:26 Amen, somebody. 11:27 Now I want to let you know, 11:28 I had no concordance in that Bible, 11:32 it was one of those prison ministry bibles 11:34 just Genesis to Revelation. 11:37 But what God had revealed to me on Friday 11:40 was all I needed to know to share 11:41 with somebody on Monday. 11:42 Can you say amen to that? 11:43 You see, when the Lord comes into your life, 11:45 the greatest evidence of the change in your life, 11:47 as you can share your testimony 11:49 as to what difference God made in your life. 11:53 We had Bible studies at the base 11:54 of the World Trade Center. 11:55 The difference was just two days, 11:58 Friday, three days, Friday to Monday. 12:05 God is waiting to do the same thing 12:06 to His church in these last days. 12:09 God can do in an instant, 12:11 what it takes man to do in a lifetime. 12:14 When I was sitting down 12:15 in the Northern California Conference as a young pastor, 12:18 I remember this very well, 12:19 I was sitting down with a Ministerial Director 12:21 and after I left the Heritage Singers 12:23 back in 1986, some of you weren't even born, 12:26 don't tell me that. 12:32 My wife and I got involved in the, in the work industry. 12:36 I worked in banks and law firms and insurance companies 12:39 in the Wall Streetarea downtown New York City. 12:42 But when I travel for two years 12:44 with the Heritage Singers and came back home in 1986, 12:47 I thought, well, let me just go back into the business field, 12:50 but the Lord had so changed 12:52 my attitude about working in His vineyard 12:55 that I could no longer sit behind a desk. 12:59 And my wife and I got a job together 13:01 working at a construction excavation company, 13:03 and she walked passed my office and she looked at me 13:06 and I was so unhappy and she said to me, 13:08 "John, why are you so unhappy?" 13:10 And I said, "Honey, there's got to be more to life than this, 13:13 I want to be in the ministry," 13:16 and we began to pray, we began to pray. 13:19 I believe when prayer goes up, blessings come down. 13:23 We began to pray, everyday we began to pray. 13:25 We knelt on our beds and began to pray 13:27 and doors began to open up, and I began to ask the Lord 13:31 is this the door You want us to walk through? 13:34 And God would say "no" and I would say I'm not going. 13:37 The Lord called us to the Virgin Islands, 13:39 now that's a good place to be an evangelist, 13:40 what do you say? 13:42 But we prayed and said 13:43 that's now where God is calling us, 13:45 then the call came to go to some place in the Midwest, 13:49 I forgot where it was but it was a cow town 13:52 and I knew God was not calling 13:54 this New Yorker to a cow town, so we said "no." 13:58 But one Sunday afternoon, we met some friends in the mall 14:01 and they said we can never get you, 14:03 you're never home, 14:04 so we brought an answering machine and we prayed. 14:08 Here's what happened. 14:09 We said, Lord, we want to be involved in ministry 14:11 but we'll go anywhere except California. 14:15 Don't ever limit God, but when we prayed that week 14:20 for seven days straight, we knelt on our beds like, 14:24 you know, like the Muslims pray with their face to the ground. 14:27 We knelt on our beds and say, "Lord, we will go anywhere." 14:31 And the first phone call 14:32 we got on that answering machine 14:34 was from the Northern California Conference 14:36 and here's how it went, 14:41 "A position open up in evangelism, 14:44 if you're interested give us a call." 14:46 Was I interested, I called and they gave me the details 14:53 and here were the details. 14:54 "Here's how much you'll get per month, 14:56 for only one year, no insurance, 15:00 you have to find your own place to live, 15:02 you've to get out here however you can. 15:04 That's 3,000 plus miles away 15:07 and at the end of that timeframe 15:08 we can say thank you, but no thanks." 15:11 Would you accept that, I said, "We're on our way." 15:16 And here's the reason why? 15:17 When you ask God to pour into your life, 15:21 He's able to do, and listen to me carefully, 15:24 He's able to do exceedingly abundantly 15:26 above all that you can ask or think. 15:29 Why? 15:30 Because God is not involved in failure. 15:32 What do you say? 15:33 So there we were, we were in Northern California Conference, 15:36 God open the doors 15:38 and at the end of that 11 month period, 15:39 I sat in the Ministerial Director's Office, 15:41 and he said what do you want-- the President's Office, 15:44 what do you want us to do for you young man? 15:47 I said, "I simply want us to believe our message. 15:50 I think it's time that we believe what we preach." 15:52 And he said, "What do you mean by that?" 15:53 And I said, "Well, didn't Ellen White said that 15:55 in the last days, that God will call men, 15:59 that were not trained by our literary institutions 16:03 and call them from their vocation 16:05 to the field of ministry." 16:06 Didn't she say that? 16:07 He said, "She did." And I said, "I believe that." 16:10 He said, "I believe that too. 16:11 What kind of church do you want?" 16:13 And I'm gonna tell you, they gave this New Yorker, 16:16 this young, no gray hair New Yorker, 16:21 a church in the mountains of Northern California 16:23 that only had old people in it. 16:29 I'm glad you didn't say amen. 16:33 When we went-- when we got to that church 16:35 it was so empty on Sabbath morning, 16:37 if you shot a shotgun inside, you would hit no one. 16:42 I kid you not, but by the time we left, 16:46 22 months later, it was standing room only, 16:50 come on, somebody say amen. 16:52 Up in the mountains of Northern California, 16:55 God transforming and using our lives, 16:57 and one thing that my wife and I've learned 17:00 is that we have to get away 17:01 from the legalism of Christianity 17:05 to the spirit field walk in Christianity. 17:08 We've got to connect our connection-- 17:09 our connection with Christ 17:11 has to be more than just a good diet. 17:15 I believe that health is a good thing, 17:16 I mean look at me I'm 75 years old, 17:20 I'm just kidding, I'm past 50 but you give me your best, 17:27 I bet you I could play basketball 17:29 and beat anyone of you guys in here. 17:33 Don't take me up on that 17:34 unless you really want to be embarrassed. 17:37 I said that one Sabbath morning 17:39 at a church in Central Florida, I thought I'm in trouble. 17:43 But praise God, He prevailed. 17:47 God can do anything He wants in our lives 17:50 if we simply make ourselves 17:51 available to God, for Him to begin to trickle, 17:56 then drizzle, then pour into our lives. 18:00 What had happened that was so sad 18:03 that by the time Jesus arrived, 18:06 He came and found a people that were just simply comfortable 18:10 with their formal religion 18:12 and He could not do anything with them 18:14 and that's why He rose up, He raised up 12 disciples 18:20 that all they wanted to do was get n touch with Jesus. 18:24 In the book Christians Service, 18:26 listen to what Ellen White says, 18:27 she says, "Legal religion will not answer for this age, 18:33 we may perform all the outward acts of service 18:36 and yet be as destitute of the quickening influence 18:40 of the Holy Spirit as the hills 18:42 of guilt bow over destitute of due in rain." 18:46 We all need spiritual moisture. 18:49 If you want to see something die, 18:51 extract the moisture from it. 18:54 Formal religion is a religion without moisture. 18:58 We cannot boast about our institutions, 19:00 we can only boast about 19:01 the infilling of Christ's Holy Spirit. 19:04 We cannot say that 19:05 because we have the right message 19:07 that we have the right relationship. 19:10 We have to have more than just the right message. 19:12 We have to have the right connection to Christ 19:15 for a people that had the right message. 19:18 I thought it was amazing 19:19 when I was preaching around Christmas, 19:20 this thought came to my mind 19:22 and I had never received this thought 19:25 before, I'll finish the quotation in just a moment, 19:28 but the thought came to my mind 19:29 when I was thinking about the wise men. 19:31 Why the angels chose to lead the wise men to Jerusalem 19:37 before the angels led them to Bethlehem? 19:41 Amazing concept, it never came to me after 28 years, 19:43 31 years of marriage, 28 years of pastoral ministry, 19:46 it finally came clear why the angels led them 19:49 to Jerusalem first, and then to Bethlehem. 19:52 The angels led the wise men to Jerusalem to reveal to them 19:58 what happens to a people 20:01 that is only satisfied with religion. 20:05 We've got a powerful message. 20:08 Can you say amen to that? 20:10 But what we need more than a powerful message 20:12 is a powerful connection to Christ, 20:15 because the message is a fact, 20:17 you can't argue the Sabbath, 20:18 you can't argue the State of the Dead, 20:19 you can't argue the 2,200 days, 20:21 you cannot prove that wrong at all. 20:24 But I know, as I go back to my own experience, 20:27 when I believed all that 20:30 I was still partying every Saturday night. 20:33 I was a junior usher in the church, 20:36 but I still partied when the Sabbath was over. 20:38 I had the right doctrine 20:40 but the wrong connection to Christ. 20:41 And I must say one of the reasons 20:43 I'm glad about the witness conference 20:44 is young people, many of you are faced 20:46 with some of the same challenges 20:48 and deficits that I had as a young man. 20:50 Well, let me encourage you, 20:51 all you got to do is simply put your hand 20:54 in the hand of one who knows no failure 20:56 and God can deliver you from anything that binds you 20:59 and transform your life so that His glory 21:03 and His message maybe reflected through your life. 21:07 I thought about that. 21:09 The Lord led them to Jerusalem. 21:11 He found the people with the right day of worship. 21:14 Follow me carefully. 21:15 They had the right day of worship in Jerusalem. 21:20 They had the right diet. 21:22 They had the right dress, message. 21:26 They had right prophetic angle, 21:29 but they had no connection to Christ. 21:34 From Jerusalem to Bethlehem, 21:38 and Peter, I was thinking about a sermon, 21:41 instead of preaching a sermon about Jerusalem, 21:43 I said we ought to entitle it Bethlehem, 21:46 because it's not until the wise men found Jesus 21:49 that they were able to bow on their knees, 21:52 offer to Him their worship, 21:54 and present their gifts to Christ. 21:56 And here's my point. 21:57 Until we have a connection with Christ, 21:59 our worship will never be activated 22:01 and we'll never get to the place. 22:03 Young folk, where we are willing to give 22:05 all the gifts that we have back to Christ. 22:08 You have a lot of gifts. 22:10 I've seen that, some of you are good at teaching, 22:12 some of you are great musicians, 22:14 but until you have a connection with Christ, 22:16 you can go through the motions, 22:18 but if we're talking about the early and the latter rain, 22:21 God does not just want people that have good skills, 22:24 He want people that have a good connection to Him, 22:28 amen somebody. 22:29 Hard, stony, barren conditions, 22:33 God is not looking for a people that have the right things, 22:38 but a people that have the right connection. 22:41 And I thought about the early rain 22:43 as I'm talking about 22:44 the prophetic significance of the early rain. 22:47 You see Jesus came at a time when what His church needed 22:50 more than anything else 22:52 was a fresh infilling of an early rain. 22:58 Jesus came at the right time. 23:01 The prophetic significance of the early rain is this. 23:04 Jesus came at the right time. 23:08 Galatians 4:4 the Bible says, 23:10 "When the fullness of time had come, 23:12 God send forth His son, born of a woman, 23:16 born under the law." 23:19 Jesus became the precursor to the day of Pentecost. 23:25 He had to come before the day of Pentecost, why? 23:29 Because Jesus had to come to find new soil 23:32 into which to pour His Holy Spirit. 23:36 He came at the right time, 23:37 He came when man was at his worse, 23:42 Jesus came to offer His best. 23:45 He came during the desert of human spirituality. 23:48 I mean, the Bible makes it very clear. 23:50 Look at John 1:11, if you have your Bible very carefully. 23:53 Look at the people that had a message 23:55 for almost 2,000 years, 23:57 look at what time had reduced them to. 24:01 John 1:11 here is what the Bible says. 24:06 It says, "He came to His own, 24:10 and His own did not receive Him." 24:15 But they had the right oracles, 24:17 they had right message, they had right day of worship. 24:21 That's why when we have these things 24:23 God has given us all these right things, 24:26 not to boast about our rightness, 24:29 but to boast about His righteousness. 24:33 Never find security in the right message, 24:36 find security in the right relationship. 24:38 When you have the right relationship, 24:39 the right messages falls into place. 24:43 We got people coming to our church there in Thompsonville. 24:45 One of the most amazing stories that 24:47 I find God is still moving on hearts. 24:49 Let me just say this. 24:50 When you're out there laboring for the Lord, 24:51 never get discouraged because you may not see 24:54 the results of your labor but oh, how sweet it is 24:56 when God allows you sometimes 24:58 to see the results of your labor. 25:00 This lady that came to our church with her husband, 25:02 their name is Mike and Kris 25:04 and they're part of the beauty of the 3ABN success story. 25:08 They said 30 years ago, when 3ABN was being built, 25:11 they were Baptist. 25:12 They said they saw the buildings going up 25:14 but they were determined to have nothing to do with 3ABN 25:19 for 30 years. 25:22 When Danny was building, 25:23 they said they would borrow the tractor, 25:25 Danny used the tractor on Sunday to build, 25:27 they would say can we use it on Sabbath. 25:29 They said, "We used the same machinery 25:33 but we had in our minds, we were determined 25:35 not to be connected with Adventism at all." 25:38 And then she said, 25:39 "When the radio station was established," 25:41 my wife works for 3ABN Radio, she said, 25:44 "The sermons would come on 25:45 and every time the Sabbath came on 25:47 she would turn the radio off." 25:48 She said, "Those Adventists are tripping over the Sabbath." 25:53 All they talk about is the Seventh-day, 25:55 the commandments of God. 25:57 She said "I was sick of it." 25:58 But here's the beauty of God, 26:00 here's the beauty of the Holy Spirit, 26:02 the Holy Spirit never stops pursuing a heart 26:05 that is seeking after God. 26:06 Come on, say amen somebody. 26:08 She had a relationship with Christ, 26:10 but she needed, she needed time 26:12 for God to trickle into her heart, 26:16 then pour in, and soften all those areas 26:19 that were hard to receive the truth 26:21 that God had made available to them. 26:24 And so she said it was, she said, 26:25 "You know, one day a dawn dawned on me 26:28 as I was in church on Sunday." 26:30 She said, "I was reading there 26:32 and the pastor was preaching a sermon, 26:35 and he read John 14 and 15," 26:36 which you all know come on say it together 26:38 if you love me what? 26:40 She said, "All of a sudden it jumped out at me 26:45 that if I really love the Lord, 26:46 I cannot say, I really love the Lord 26:48 and not keep His commandments." 26:50 And she said, "When she got home, 26:51 her husband and her they looked at each other 26:55 and they said you know what our Christianity is false. 26:59 If we really do love the Lord, 27:00 we got to keep His commandments." 27:03 So they showed up at the last camp meeting, 27:04 that we had not too many months ago, 27:06 actually around October the Fall Camp Meeting 27:08 when Pastor Batchelor was there, 27:10 and now they're in my church every Sabbath 27:12 and I'm looking at them 27:13 when we study the Bible, it is so good. 27:15 You see, if you want to get excited about Jesus 27:17 and the message you have, 27:19 go to people that don't know the message 27:22 and don't get weary and well doing for him, 27:24 in due time the Bible says, 27:25 "You will reap if you do not faint." 27:27 One plants and another waters 27:29 but God gives the increase but now on Sabbath morning, 27:31 there they are and she piped on this last Sabbath 27:34 before we left to come here 27:36 and she said, "Pastor, I just want to say something, 27:38 I'm going through an experience that is blowing my mind." 27:40 I said, "What do you mean?" 27:42 She says, "I am having to go through my Bible 27:44 and cross out stuff that I put in there 27:47 and put the right thing in." 27:48 Amen somebody? 27:50 She says, "I used to believe in the rapture, 27:52 but I don't anymore." 27:54 And what makes it even more difficult 27:56 is she is living in her own hometown. 27:58 She's surrounded by all her Baptist friends 28:02 and you know what she said, 28:03 she says, "For the first time in my life, 28:05 I'm not ashamed to say 28:08 I'm going to the Adventist church." 28:10 What made the difference? 28:12 You see God, we got to put-- 28:13 we can't put God on the timetable, 28:15 because sometimes people labor 28:19 but they never live to see the results of their labor 28:22 and I could use my mother as an example. 28:24 The lady that raised me, 28:26 as I was abandoned at three months old, 28:27 some of you know the story. 28:29 It's good to be abandoned in a home 28:31 of a Seventh-day Adventist Christian. 28:35 My natural mother left me there, 28:38 but she left me under the care of a woman 28:41 who had the right God, the right relationship, 28:44 and a powerful message 28:47 but when she, when she passed away 28:49 when I was 12 years old, I left the church 28:51 and I told you about my journey going out into the world. 28:56 But because the seeds were planted 29:00 and the Holy Spirit continued to water those seeds, 29:05 God brought His son back to the place 29:08 that God always knew I would be. 29:11 So when I see people that are straying away 29:13 and I wanted to say this for a particular reason, 29:15 if you know somebody and chances are, 29:16 you know someone that may have been in the church 29:18 and they've strayed away. 29:20 You cannot be discouraged by that 29:21 because the Lord is working more diligently 29:24 than you are to bring that person back. 29:26 Amen somebody? 29:27 For Jesus says, 29:28 "I'm not willing that any should perish." 29:30 The work of the Holy Spirit is to convict of sin 29:33 and of righteousness and of judgment. 29:36 And as young folk that are fired up 29:37 about the message you have, just simply do the Lord's work 29:40 and leave the results to God. 29:44 I look back on where I was and where I am, 29:48 and I'm so glad for that good old hymn that says, 29:50 "When things are dry and rough, 29:52 there shall be showers of blessings." 29:55 This is the promise of love. 29:58 There shall be a season of refreshing sent 30:01 from the heaven above. 30:03 When Jesus came the first time, 30:05 Jesus came to begin a refreshing work. 30:09 He came to revive a sleeping people, 30:11 to restore a broken nation, 30:13 to revitalize a forgotten message, 30:16 and to recharge a complacent community. 30:20 Acts of the Apostles, Ellen White says it this way, 30:23 "Priests and rulers became fixed 30:25 in a rut of ceremonialism, 30:28 they were satisfied with a legal religion, 30:31 and it was impossible for them 30:33 to give to others the living truths of heaven." 30:37 They rejected the truth, the truths died to them, 30:41 that's why I pray for our church today. 30:42 Let me say this and you know I'm somewhat of militant, 30:45 I'm from Brooklyn first of all. 30:47 I'm somewhat military in my approach to the gospel, 30:50 because I firmly believed 30:53 that when God gives you something that's true, 30:56 you've got to protect that 30:57 and not allow that to be modified 31:00 or watered down by anything that is false. 31:05 God has given us a beautiful message. 31:07 Can you say amen to that? 31:08 But what's so important and significant about that 31:11 beautiful message is this. 31:12 Whenever you meet people that don't believe like you do, 31:15 you got to give them time 31:16 for their eyes to adjust to the light, 31:19 but never apologize for the message 31:21 that God has given to you. 31:24 Don't apologize for it because if the light gets turned off, 31:27 if the light gets turned off here, 31:30 where are people going to find the light, 31:32 we are a people of light. 31:34 When the Lord came, 31:35 He came to give back to the church 31:37 something that they had lost. 31:39 I like the way that Isaiah the prophet says it. 31:41 Go to Isaiah 45:8. 31:43 Look at this very wonderful verse, 31:45 if you've not seen it before, 31:46 this is the beautiful indication 31:48 of what Jesus came to do. 31:50 At a time when His people need it the most, 31:53 He came to revive what had dried up. 31:57 Isaiah 45:8, 32:01 the words of the Lord said what a wonderful prophecy. 32:08 It begins with two powerful words, 32:10 "Rain down you heavens from above 32:13 and let the skies pour down righteousness, 32:17 let the earth open, let them bring forth salvation 32:21 and let righteousness spring up together, 32:24 I the Lord have created it." 32:28 And when I looked at that, I asked myself the question. 32:30 Well, if the Lord was coming to rain down on humanity, 32:34 this beautiful message of heaven, 32:35 why did He come as a babe? 32:38 And the Lord just poured into my mind 32:39 something that I never thought about, 32:42 He came as a babe for two reasons. 32:43 One, He came as a babe to take on the human flesh 32:47 that everyone of us are in possession of, 32:50 that's one obvious reason. 32:52 But the second reason why Jesus came as a babe, 32:56 is He came to exemplify the simplicity of the gospel, 33:02 because His people were not ready 33:05 for the glory of the gospel. 33:07 Let me say that again. 33:09 Had He come as a king, 33:11 His own people were not ready to receive a king, 33:14 so He came, Ellen White says 33:16 He came in the simplicity of a babe 33:20 because His people were not ready 33:22 for the glory of the gospel. 33:25 He came to give them time to get used to the idea 33:29 that the king was here, He came to remind them 33:32 that this babe although small 33:34 is very much the same Son of God. 33:37 He came to remind them that don't get put off by my size, 33:42 I'm still the same Lord that created heaven and earth. 33:45 Jesus veiled His glory in the simplicity of a babe. 33:49 But He was in fact very much the Son of God. 33:52 As a matter of fact Mary was not carrying Jesus, 33:56 Jesus was carrying Mary. 33:58 Mary did not deliver Jesus, Jesus delivered Mary. 34:02 Mary was the momentary garden for the Rose of Sharon. 34:04 She was the vessel out of 34:06 which the oil of gladness would flow. 34:08 Mary was a temporary walking nuclear reactor, 34:12 can you imagine that? 34:13 She had more power in her 34:15 than all of humanity combined together. 34:19 Had Jesus not come as a "helpless babe," 34:22 Mary would've been consumed but He was not a helpless babe, 34:27 He was on this earth for 33 years 34:29 but He was not 33 years old. 34:31 He just took a vacation 34:32 from hanging galaxies for 33 years. 34:35 Come on, say amen to that. 34:37 This galaxy hanging God 34:39 sneaked into the backdoor of Bethlehem 34:43 to revive and revitalize His church. 34:46 But I tell you when He comes again, 34:47 He's not sneaking in any door, He's coming 34:49 and He's not going to be silent. 34:50 What do you say? 34:51 He's coming back for a revived church, 34:54 a church filled and revitalized and refreshed 34:57 and ready to work for the coming of the Lord, 34:59 that's why these conferences. 35:01 My wife and I don't mind traveling far, 35:03 people on our church say, "You're going again? 35:07 Where are you going this time?" 35:09 And you know what the condition or the mindset 35:12 of Australians in America is you guys are so liberal, 35:16 there's a whole lot of apostasy over here. 35:19 I don't want to hear it, and you guys say, 35:22 "Everything is going bad" and they always say, 35:25 "Well, you know Desmond Ford came from Australia." 35:28 Well, I say when they focus on Desmond Ford I say, 35:31 "Well, you know Ellen White went to Australia." 35:37 You could've say amen, 35:38 but I know you got caught in the exchange. 35:44 So it's not all bad on Australia, 35:46 I said don't, don't feel bad for Australia, 35:49 because God is working as powerfully in Australia 35:52 as He is in America, what do you say? 35:56 So you young folk keep on, keeping on, don't get tired. 36:00 Go against the flow, don't slow down 36:03 because people want you to get down. 36:05 Don't move out of the way 36:07 because it seems like an inconvenient thing to do. 36:10 Keep holding the torch high, it's good to be a people, 36:13 or young people that are fired up about the message 36:16 that God has given to them. 36:18 The people that have lost the message 36:22 and deny the power of the message, 36:25 Jesus came to revive again 36:27 and it's not that they didn't have something that was good 36:29 but in the book, My Life Today, 36:30 Ellen White said this. 36:32 "It is not because of any restriction on God's part 36:36 that the riches of His grace did not flow to men, 36:40 if all were willing to receive 36:43 all would be filled with the spirit." 36:46 But she says, "We are too easily satisfied, 36:49 get this, with a ripple on the surface 36:52 when it is our privilege to expect 36:54 the deep moving of the spirit of God." 37:00 That's why the devil is so busy nowadays, 37:02 he wants young folk to be distracted 37:05 by the music and the entertainment 37:07 and all the world is trying to flood you away. 37:10 When you read Revelation 12, 37:11 you see the devil is involved in that too 37:13 because he poured out a flood 37:15 after the women trying to wash away 37:17 all that God was trying to fill the women with 37:20 and he's still pouring out floods today. 37:23 And even though the Sanhedrin rejected Jesus in his day, 37:26 the Lord found a wonderful place to fill 12 men, 37:31 and on the day of Pentecost not only men 37:33 but also women, filled them with the power 37:35 to carry the gospel to the world. 37:37 And when you read about the progress 37:38 of the New Testament church, 37:40 it is said that they cover the entire world 37:42 with a gospel in only 34 years. 37:44 They began with just a 120. 37:48 And I submit to you, 37:49 if they can turn the world upside down with only 120, 37:52 what can we do in Australia with more than a 120? 37:55 Come on, say amen, somebody? 37:57 You know what they prayed for? 37:58 They prayed for the infilling of the spirit of God, 38:00 and let me say this, 38:02 "You can't pray for a single event, 38:04 you got to pray every day 38:06 in preparation for the great event, 38:08 you can't wait for the latter rain, 38:10 to receive the latter rain you got to work toward 38:13 and pray toward and revitalize yourself every day 38:16 in preparation for the latter rain." 38:20 Because before the day of Pentecost came, 38:23 Jesus breathed on His disciples and He said, 38:27 "Receive ye the Holy Spirit." 38:30 They were special not because of what they knew 38:34 but because of to whom they were connected. 38:36 You see the only good thing about us, is not who we are, 38:41 but is the goodness is in the God we're connected to 38:44 and in the power of the message that we preach. 38:47 We don't have good preachers, we got a good message, 38:53 because you know some of those people in other churches 38:55 if it's about preaching style, 38:58 there are other preachers that can out preach us. 39:00 I'm so glad it's not about the preaching style, 39:02 but it's about the message, come on, say amen. 39:05 Because I don't care what the postman looks like 39:07 as long as I get my letter, am I right? 39:12 Some people get hung up on the preacher 39:14 don't, don't discount the message, 39:16 some people say who's preaching? 39:17 Oh, that's a bad question. 39:20 What are they preaching is the real question 39:23 because some people could preach really well, 39:24 but what they're preaching is what makes the difference. 39:28 The light that we reflect makes us who we are. 39:32 That's why Peter says it this way, 39:34 "But you are a chosen generation, 39:36 a royal priesthood, a holy nation, 39:38 His own special people, and here is the reason 39:40 why that you may proclaim the praises of Him 39:44 who called us out of darkness 39:46 into our church into His marvelous light." 39:52 I think about the way I used to be before I met Christ. 39:55 I thought that fun was going from Brooklyn to Manhattan, 39:58 that was the extent of my lifestyle. 40:01 And I thought I was really living it up, 40:02 you know the devil can do a job on you, 40:04 he can make you think your life is successful, 40:06 but you really won't know what success really is, 40:08 and what power really is, until you put your life 40:10 in the hand of God who can do much more for you 40:13 than you can ever envision. 40:15 And let me make this point very clear. 40:17 God doesn't do anything for us to campaign for us, 40:22 but everything God does for us He does through us, 40:28 but He has to first do it in us. 40:31 Are you ready for the formula? 40:34 God works on us so He can work in us, 40:40 then He can work through us. 40:44 If you don't let God work on you, 40:46 He can't work in you, 40:47 and He surely won't work through you. 40:51 When God called me out of the world, 40:52 He had to work hard on me. 40:54 And I want to tell you, 40:55 some of us know what that's like to have God working on us, 40:59 to have Jesus chiseling away at all the things 41:02 that used to be connected to our former life. 41:04 We know what's it's like to be worked on, 41:08 but how wonderful it is, 41:09 when the working on transitions to the working in, 41:13 and then God transitions to the working through. 41:16 So what God does through your life 41:18 always give the glory back to the Lord. 41:21 Amen, somebody? 41:23 I believe that when we're convinced 41:24 that Jesus cannot fail, 41:25 then we will make ourselves available to Him. 41:30 You see the early rain was not just the day of Pentecost 41:34 because Jesus had a work for the disciples to do 41:36 before the day of Pentecost. 41:39 We won't get involved in the greater work 41:42 if we neglect the lesser work. 41:45 God will not pour out the latter rain on 41:47 those who are idle, nor on those who claim 41:50 that they have nothing to do. 41:52 The Acts of the Apostles, 41:54 listen to what inspiration tells us, page 54. 41:59 "There are some who, instead of wisely improving 42:03 present opportunities, are idly waiting 42:06 for some special season of spiritual refreshing 42:11 by which their ability to enlighten others 42:14 will be greatly increased. 42:18 They neglect present duties and privileges, 42:20 and allow their light to burn dim, 42:23 while they look forward to a time 42:24 when, without any effort on their part, 42:27 they will be made the recipients 42:29 of special blessing, by which they will be transformed 42:33 and fitted for service." 42:34 You know what, my brother and sisters, 42:36 the transformation comes moment by moment and day by day. 42:39 What do you say? 42:41 That's what you have to-- everything you do everyday 42:43 cannot be done naturally, it has to be done spiritually. 42:45 Let me confess as a pastor. 42:47 You know, they say confession is good for the soul 42:49 but hard on the reputation. 42:52 You can work so hard for God 42:54 that sometimes you can fail at allowing God to work in you. 43:01 Don't get caught up in just working for God 43:03 but also realize that God wants to work in us. 43:07 You can be in the work of God, 43:09 but sometimes fail to allow that same God to work in you. 43:15 My wife and I were on our way to California. 43:18 When we moved there for the first time, 43:20 that is moved there more permanently 43:22 to get involved in ministry, 43:23 and I remember the distance was so far, 43:26 the journey was so long that we thought that 43:28 that we can drive from Orlando, Florida to Northern California 43:31 and we had about three days to do it 43:33 and so we drove to the middle of Texas 43:35 and we decided to stop in the middle of Texas. 43:38 And we woke up the next morning, 43:42 got in our 4Runner with our u-haul connected behind it. 43:47 I don't know what you call that out here, caravan, 43:50 you got some strange terminology in Australia, 43:53 we call it the trunk, you call it the boot. 43:55 We wear boots anyway, let me not try to sort it out, 44:01 so in Australia you put your boots in the boot, 44:05 but in America we put our boots in the trunk. 44:08 Don't worry about it 44:09 and then Australia elephants have trunks, 44:10 I understand, so let's not even go down that road. 44:14 But we got up that morning to continue our journey, 44:17 and as we are journeying to our destination 44:21 my wife said, she commented at about 44:23 maybe 15 or 20 minutes in the journey she said, 44:25 "Hey, you know what John, 44:29 they have a restaurant just like that, 44:33 we passed the restaurant just like that 44:34 yesterday didn't we, yeah." 44:37 10 minutes later, "Hey, you know what 44:38 they've a monument just like that, 44:41 we passed yesterday it by half hour, yeah, we did." 44:46 It dawned to me after about 35 minutes, 44:48 we were going in the wrong direction 44:51 and here's my point this has spiritual significance to that, 44:53 if the things that you passed 44:55 began to show up in your life again 44:58 you're going in the wrong direction. 45:04 That is the greatest need for prayer in our lives. 45:10 The devil wants to bring back the things 45:12 that we passed in our ultimate journey 45:16 to fulfillment in Christ. 45:17 If the things that you pass 45:20 began to show up in your life again, 45:21 that means you're going in the wrong direction, 45:24 but the good news is if you're going 45:25 in the wrong direction, God allows u-turns. 45:28 What do you say? 45:30 I got of the exit, realizing we lost 35 minutes of time 45:34 and turned around 45:35 and headed in the right direction. 45:37 And so what I want to do tonight 45:39 in preparation for my time with you 45:41 that is from this particular point preaching, 45:43 what I wanted to do tonight 45:44 is something a little differently. 45:46 I don't want to just end with the prayer, 45:48 but I want to begin our time together with a commitment. 45:52 Because I know that you are here 45:53 for the witness conference, you paid, 45:54 you registered for the classes, 45:56 this is the time of spiritual refreshing and renewal 45:59 and a time where we reconnect with Christ, 46:02 but tonight I want to make an appeal, 46:03 a very specific appeal. 46:05 If your desire is to reconnect, 46:10 now, now hear me carefully, there are some of you 46:12 that are not yet fully connected as you could be. 46:15 But if your desire is to reconnect 46:19 your relationship to the power 46:22 that Christ wants to make available to you, 46:26 you want to reconnect because you know that 46:29 you're not where God want you to be. 46:31 If your desire tonight is to reconnect to the Christ that 46:36 wants to work in your life, simply stand tonight 46:39 wherever you are, I want to pray for you. 46:40 If you want to reconnect, 46:43 praise the Lord, there somebody that admits 46:45 to praise the Lord to someone else. 46:47 Praise the Lord. 46:49 Praise the Lord. 46:51 If there's something in your life 46:53 that you know needs to be disconnected 46:55 and you want to reconnect to Christ to have Him, 46:58 to continue His work in your life, 46:59 praise the Lord, praise the Lord, 47:02 a young folk and people of very young ages. 47:05 You see this is the time of self examination, 47:07 I'm not waiting for the latter rain, 47:09 I want to make sure that I've got it right now. 47:12 I don't want to wait for some great opportunity 47:14 in the future where everybody says 47:15 "Hey, the latter rain just fell." 47:17 I want you to know that the latter rain is falling on 47:19 people to your left and to your right. 47:21 God wants to transform your life before that great 47:23 and glorious outpouring of the latter rain. 47:27 But He wants us to examine ourselves to see 47:30 if things are showing up in our lives 47:33 that were once in our past. 47:35 Then my final appeal is this. 47:37 There are those that are standing, 47:38 we gonna pray for those that reconnect their hearts 47:40 and their lives to Christ, 47:43 but then there are those of you that are saying, 47:45 "Lord, I don't know where I fit in Your work, 47:47 I'm not exactly sure what You are going to do in my life 47:52 and how glorious that's going to be, 47:54 but Father tonight I simply want to make myself available 47:58 for the Holy Spirit to come in." 48:01 If there's somebody here tonight 48:03 that wants to make himself or herself available 48:06 for the spirit of God to come in 48:07 and begin a work in your life, 48:09 why don't you stand tonight and join with me? 48:11 You want to make yourself available. 48:13 Young man, young lady, 48:15 you want to make yourself available. 48:20 Available. 48:24 You know what the day of Pentecost was? 48:27 A 120 folk that simply made themselves available 48:31 that's what it was. 48:33 Look at what God did. 48:35 He turned the world upside down. 48:36 And I want to say as I pray tonight, 48:39 I'm gonna pray for God 48:40 to keep the things of your past in your past, 48:45 and then to fill your life 48:48 with such an abundance of His Holy Spirit 48:51 that you're no longer worrying about 48:52 what God is going to do in your life. 48:55 Whether you're equipped educationally or not, 48:58 the world is going to look at your life 49:00 and say that they maybe uneducated, and unlearned, 49:06 but they've surely been with Jesus. 49:08 The day is coming again. 49:11 God wants to do something powerful in your life. 49:14 When the day of Pentecost had fully come, 49:17 it's going to come again 49:19 and God wants to transform your life. 49:20 Bow your heads with me tonight. 49:22 Heavenly Father, Your people are standing tonight 49:25 in commitment at the beginning of my time with them. 49:30 Father, You've done so much in my own life, 49:33 yet You call me as a preacher of righteousness, 49:38 to see to it that the things of my past 49:42 don't show up again in my present. 49:44 And so, Father, those who have stood tonight, 49:46 making a commitment asking 49:48 for You to disconnect them from their past, 49:50 Lord Jesus send Your spirit to severe those things 49:53 that are calling us to go back, 49:56 that we may put our hands to the plow and not look back. 50:01 Those that are standing tonight, Father, 50:02 that are not sure about 50:03 what You're going to do in their lives. 50:06 We pray, Father, that they not be worried 50:09 that they simply make themselves available 50:12 for You to work in them. 50:15 This mighty host of all ages, and all races, 50:19 and all classes of people will one day stand up 50:22 when they're fully transformed into Your likeness 50:26 and they'll finally understand 50:28 what it means to be connected to that eternal power. 50:31 So heavenly Father, come Holy Spirit, 50:35 fill this place, fill Your people, 50:38 that the world may know that Jesus is coming again. 50:43 This is our prayer and this is our desire, 50:46 we pray in Jesus name and all of God's people said, 50:50 amen, and amen. 50:52 God bless you, you maybe seated, 50:54 you maybe seated. |
Revised 2015-03-26