Welcome to Anchors Of Truth live
from the 3ABN Worship Center.
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Well, we're just
happy to have you here.
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And happy to have you
join us by television.
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Because this is an
exceptionally fine series.
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Pastor Frank Gonzalez, who
is the senior pastor of the
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Avon Park
Seventh-day Adventist Church,
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who is also the former
speaker/director for 17 years
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of The Voice of Hope,
which is La Voz in the
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Latino Voice of
Prophecy, is our speaker.
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And how God has been blessing
us through his ministry.
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He's been covering
the seven words of hope.
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These are the seven saying
that took place from the cross
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when Christ was being crucified.
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Or the seven thoughts
and ideas that came forward.
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And this afternoon,
he is covering two more.
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This morning at the
11 o'clock hour he did
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Delivered and Fulfilled.
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And today again, two
sermons; Saved and Accepted.
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In between those two
sermons, Tina and Michael Berry
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are going to do for us;
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Tina will be
singing, Michael playing,
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The Blood Will
Never Lose Its Power.
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We want to give all the
time we can possibly give
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to Pastor Frank Gonzalez.
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And so Pastor
Frank, the time is yours.
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Welcome.
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Thank you for coming.
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And thank you for tuning in.
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Heavenly Father, may
the meditation of Your
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servant's heart and
the words of his mouth
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be acceptable unto You
and of help to somebody.
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And we'll give You the honor,
and the glory, and the praise.
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And we'll do it in Jesus' name
and for His sake, amen and amen.
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We have been looking
at the cross of Christ.
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It's a good thing to
look at the cross of Christ.
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There's life in that look.
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Do you know that the Bible
is the only book that I know
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that tells you that
there's life in a look?
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The Bible invites us to look.
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Sometimes, dear, that's
all you have the energy to do.
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Life has beat you down
and your energy is gone.
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And all you can do is see.
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If you can see
and if you can listen,
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there's hope for you today.
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Because this is coming to
you, not from this pulpit,
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but from the universe's tallest
pulpit; the cross of Christ.
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Which is lifted up high so
that we can see it clearly,
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and so that we can get
the life and the spirit
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and the power that is
only there, only there.
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And we have been looking
in a special way at these
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seven short sermons that
Christ preached from His cross.
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Have you been blessed,
those of you who have come?
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I know I have.
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We've come to the
sixth of these words.
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Now you know, it's a common
idea that when Christ died,
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He saved the church, or
the good people in the church.
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But it surprises us to learn
that He accomplished far more.
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He literally
saved the world itself.
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Realizing what this
means lifts our hearts
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as nothing else can do.
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This marvelous feat that
Christ accomplished on His cross
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has been
overlooked for many centuries.
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Now the time has come
that the whole world learns
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what has been dimly
understood for so long.
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Why Jesus cried out with almost
His last breath in a voice
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that shook heaven and
earth, "It is finished."
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John 19 verse 30.
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You know, even the
physical energy required for a
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dying man to shout
indicates and maybe an angel
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strengthened Him to
make that utterance.
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Now let me ask
you this question.
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What was it that He finished?
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He said, "It is finished."
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What did He finish?
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Did He mean that now
His sufferings were over
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and He could rest?
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That He paid the
debt we owe? Yes.
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That and far, far more.
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Jesus told the
people, in John 12 verse 47,
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that the Father sent Him down
here with a specific assignment.
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A job description, if you will.
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He was sent on
a special mission.
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And we read in
chapter 17 of John verse 4
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that the night before He died,
in His prayer to His Father,
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He claimed that He had done it.
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He said, "I have
glorified thee on the earth.
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I have finished the work
which thou gavest me to do."
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What did He say?
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That He finished it.
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This cry, "It is finished,"
is the sixth of the seven
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words of hope that
we have been looking at.
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Now, this is good news.
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The Bible says that
this news one day is going to
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enlighten the globe
with the glory of God.
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Now let's look
at what this means.
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You know, it wasn't
the disciples and it wasn't
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church people that
understood this first.
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You know who it was?
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The Samaritans.
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The Samaritans understood
the truth more quickly
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than the Jews.
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In fact, more quickly
than the twelve apostles.
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After only one meeting
with Jesus, they said of Him,
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in John chapter 4 verse
42, "This is indeed the Savior
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of the world."
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Now Paul said
something interesting in
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1 Timothy chapter 4 verse 10.
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And this is going
to start helping us.
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This is sort of a, oh someone
would say, a hermeneutic key.
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It just means, something
to help you understand.
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To unlock what does
it mean that Jesus is
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the Savior of the world.
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1 Timothy chapter
4 verse 10, it says
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that He "is the
Savior of all men,
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especially of
those that believe."
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Did you get that?
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So Jesus is the Savior
of all men, but specially
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of those that believe.
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So if He's said to be
especially the Savior of those
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that believe, there
must be a sense, some sense,
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in which He's also the
Savior of people who do not
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believe in Him.
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You get that?
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He's the Savior of the world,
specially of those that believe.
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This is actually
very simple and clear.
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There are two ways in
which the word, "Savior,"
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is understood.
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He saved us all now in
our present physical life.
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And for those who
believe, He also saved them
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unto eternal life.
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You see, this is a truth
that is not often shared.
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But this world would not be
around already if it were not
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for the Savior of the world.
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That cross has
preserved the physical world,
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this world.
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And you know it's in bad
shape, and getting worse.
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But it wouldn't be around if it
were not for the cross of Christ
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where the Savior
of the world died.
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That's a new take on ecology.
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Christ ecology.
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You see, our very physical
life was purchased for us
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by the sacrifice
of the Son of God.
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One wise writer, she says
that every meal that we eat
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is in reality a sacrament
that the cross of Christ,
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she says, "is stamped
on every loaf of bread.
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Most people do not realize this,
for they have never been told.
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That means that they eat
unworthily not discerning
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the Lord's body."
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She's quoting 1
Corinthians 11:27.
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Jesus said, "I am
the bread of life."
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John 6:48
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"The bread of God is He
which cometh down from heaven
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and giveth life unto the world."
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See that?
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He gave life to
the world itself.
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Oh, people go their merry
way and they don't realize.
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They say, "Well you
know, Jesus is for you guys.
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Jesus is for you
religious people.
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Jesus is for the church people.
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He's done nothing for me."
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Excuse me?
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Excuse me?
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The very life you have...
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Listen, stop a moment
there and take a deep breath.
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Let's all take a deep breath.
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Now, you should give
thanks to Jesus for that breath.
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Because whether you
deserved it or not...
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And in fact, you
didn't. And I didn't.
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...it is a gift that
Christ has given you and me
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as the Savior of the world.
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But this isn't
often communicated.
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The world itself
would have perished,
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life on this
planet would have ceased,
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if the Son of God had
not given Himself for us.
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All of this is included in the
truth of the cross of Christ.
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See that?
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We should be more grateful.
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And there's still a
larger sense in which Christ
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accomplished a
mighty feat on the cross.
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You know one of the
of the things He did?
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He conquered Satan.
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Praise God.
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The enemy of God.
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Do you know that
Satan was at one point
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the most beautiful
of all the holy angels?
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But he came up
with a new invention.
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All by his lonesome self.
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You know what the invention is?
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Sin, yes.
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And when he refused to repent...
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By the way, he
had chances to repent.
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When he refused to repent
again and again and again,
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he lost his
character as Lucifer.
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Meaning, the one who
bears light; the light bearer.
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And he rebelled.
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And he decided he
was going to defeat God
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in this cosmic war of the ages
and take over the throne of God
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for himself.
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God help us.
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This is known as
the great controversy
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between Christ and Satan.
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The war is fought in
human hearts worldwide.
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It's a war of either
believing the truth of God
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or believing Satan's lie.
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And the cross is the
means of Satan's defeat.
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Whether in the
great cosmic controversy
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or in the battle with
sin in yours and mine single
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human heart, the key
is the cross of Christ.
00:14:05.80\00:14:10.03
The controversy began in heaven.
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We read it in Revelation 12.
00:14:16.98\00:14:19.21
You know, some people
are fixated on heaven.
00:14:20.42\00:14:23.26
The only thing they care
about is to go to heaven.
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Now it's not a bad pursuit.
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We all want to go to heaven.
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But the safety, the
hiding place, for the soul
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is not heaven as such.
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It is in heaven.
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But it's not heaven, as such.
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Because this began in heaven.
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The problem began in heaven.
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Our safety is not heaven.
00:14:58.73\00:15:00.84
Our safety is Jesus Christ.
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We read in Revelation 12,
"There was a war in heaven."
00:15:07.03\00:15:11.49
In heaven?
00:15:11.52\00:15:12.78
Yeah, there was a war in heaven.
00:15:12.81\00:15:14.34
"Michael and his angels
fought against the dragon,
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and the dragon
fought, and his angels,
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and prevailed not.
00:15:21.93\00:15:23.26
Neither was their place
found any more in heaven.
00:15:23.29\00:15:25.82
And the great dragon was
cast out, the old serpent,
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called the Devil, and Satan,
which deceiveth the whole world.
00:15:30.26\00:15:35.37
He was cast out into
the earth, and his angels
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were cast out with him."
00:15:39.90\00:15:42.33
Verses 7 through 9.
00:15:42.60\00:15:44.10
You know, Michael is one
of the many names of Christ.
00:15:44.13\00:15:48.17
It means, one who is like God.
00:15:48.20\00:15:51.15
Our first parents, Adam
and Eve, believed the lie
00:15:53.33\00:15:56.36
Satan had said.
00:15:56.39\00:15:59.39
And they welcomed him
into their world and our world.
00:15:59.42\00:16:04.24
And now Satan's big argument
is that he's invented something
00:16:05.76\00:16:10.64
so powerful, so strong,
that not even God can defeat it.
00:16:10.67\00:16:18.52
See?
00:16:18.82\00:16:19.85
And that something that
Satan claims is invincible
00:16:21.62\00:16:26.31
is sin in our
sinful fallen flesh.
00:16:26.34\00:16:30.96
He says, "Good luck."
00:16:31.49\00:16:34.08
And it has seemed
as though he's right.
00:16:36.50\00:16:39.01
It has seemed as though Satan
would win the great controversy.
00:16:39.57\00:16:42.95
Because sin has taken
root in our sinful nature
00:16:42.98\00:16:46.64
so deeply that the
world is full of it.
00:16:47.93\00:16:51.89
Everybody has
been a slave of sin.
00:16:52.91\00:16:55.68
Romans 3:23 says,
"All have sinned."
00:16:55.71\00:16:59.63
"And there is none
righteous, no not one."
00:17:00.39\00:17:06.07
"One," with a lowercase.
00:17:07.75\00:17:10.91
But there is One,
with a capital case,
00:17:12.12\00:17:16.03
who did in our common humanity.
00:17:16.68\00:17:22.23
He took on our common humanity.
00:17:22.63\00:17:24.96
He took on our
dysfunctional humanity.
00:17:25.75\00:17:29.20
And in His own life He
defeated, Christ, in the flesh.
00:17:29.37\00:17:35.94
According to Hebrews 4:15,
it says that Jesus was, quote,
00:17:37.16\00:17:41.98
"in all points
tempted like as we are..."
00:17:42.19\00:17:47.11
And there we pause, breathless.
00:17:48.08\00:17:51.15
And what happened?
00:17:51.18\00:17:52.50
He was tempted in all points.
00:17:53.10\00:17:56.11
What was the outcome?
00:17:56.14\00:17:57.61
The inspired words go on.
00:17:58.56\00:18:00.45
"...yet without sin."
00:18:00.48\00:18:02.15
Praise God.
00:18:02.18\00:18:03.62
For Him, the
temptation to give into Satan
00:18:03.98\00:18:06.75
and go ahead and sin was
so terribly strong, people,
00:18:06.78\00:18:12.37
that He sweated drops of blood.
00:18:12.40\00:18:18.11
We haven't done that yet.
00:18:18.14\00:18:19.64
It took every milligram
of His soul energy to say no
00:18:20.57\00:18:25.81
to Satan's most
alluring temptations.
00:18:25.84\00:18:29.45
But I've got news for you.
00:18:30.54\00:18:32.21
Oh, if it weren't that you're a
little dizzy with what you ate,
00:18:32.78\00:18:39.38
I'd have you get up and shout.
00:18:40.12\00:18:42.27
Jesus said that He
emerged victorious.
00:18:42.97\00:18:49.15
The Bible says
that He, I'm quoting,
00:18:49.18\00:18:53.30
"condemned sin in the flesh."
00:18:53.33\00:18:56.56
Thus He gained
the glorious victory.
00:18:59.33\00:19:01.92
And all who
appreciate what He accomplished
00:19:02.22\00:19:04.45
will pray David's prayer,
00:19:04.48\00:19:06.75
"Create in me a
clean heart, oh God."
00:19:06.78\00:19:10.37
Psalm 51:10
00:19:10.40\00:19:11.99
Now the Son of God has fought
this great battle of the ages
00:19:12.98\00:19:17.17
in His own human heart.
00:19:17.20\00:19:19.17
As He has hung on
His cross in the darkness
00:19:19.49\00:19:23.24
He has endured what no
other human being in all of time
00:19:23.44\00:19:27.66
has had to endure; the
total forsakenness of God.
00:19:27.69\00:19:34.01
He has endured total
darkness of human spirit.
00:19:35.24\00:19:39.01
He has endured the
wrath of God against sin,
00:19:39.04\00:19:42.87
for He was made to be
sin for us who knew no sin.
00:19:42.90\00:19:48.10
There is nothing more than
any lost person could endure
00:19:48.81\00:19:51.63
in the second death
that will come to the lost
00:19:51.66\00:19:54.59
in the final judgment.
00:19:54.62\00:19:56.23
Paul says that there is a
sting of death, which is sin.
00:19:56.43\00:20:00.94
1 Corinthians 15:56-57
00:20:01.93\00:20:05.43
Now, that sting has
spent itself out in Christ.
00:20:06.15\00:20:14.66
He has beared His
soul to endure its sting.
00:20:14.99\00:20:19.89
That is, it's
total condemnation.
00:20:19.92\00:20:22.86
Glory of glories.
00:20:23.33\00:20:25.05
The throne of God is now
secure for all eternity to come.
00:20:25.08\00:20:31.46
Aren't you happy?
00:20:31.49\00:20:32.89
And by faith, you and
I can share the victory.
00:20:34.02\00:20:36.87
Now Christ has the
right to trumpet His cry
00:20:38.00\00:20:42.33
throughout the universe of
God to all the unfallen worlds,
00:20:42.36\00:20:46.33
to all the holy angels, to every
nook and cranny of the world,
00:20:46.36\00:20:50.93
to every demon in hell,
and say, "It is finished."
00:20:50.96\00:20:57.61
Satan and sin are
forever vanquished.
00:20:57.91\00:21:02.95
Does your heart rejoice
in this glorious victory?
00:21:03.41\00:21:07.34
Do you say amen?
00:21:07.37\00:21:08.86
Oh, people, the
victory is won in Christ.
00:21:09.83\00:21:16.59
But I've got to say something.
00:21:18.54\00:21:19.99
Still as of today, the battle
in your heart and my heart
00:21:21.00\00:21:26.74
remains to be finished in
triumph over Satan and sin.
00:21:26.94\00:21:31.42
We've got to decide
where we're going to stand.
00:21:32.16\00:21:34.48
We've got a choice to make.
00:21:34.92\00:21:36.62
Are we going to
be with the enemy
00:21:37.21\00:21:38.76
or are we going to be
on the side of Christ?
00:21:38.79\00:21:41.29
Now you and I can bring
glory to Christ by demonstrating
00:21:42.35\00:21:47.56
that His gospel is the
power of God unto salvation
00:21:47.76\00:21:53.25
here and now.
00:21:53.28\00:21:55.25
And we are exhibit A.
00:21:56.96\00:21:58.72
That's something
worth living for.
00:22:00.06\00:22:01.92
The power of God.
00:22:02.76\00:22:04.34
God is going to
give you His power.
00:22:04.55\00:22:07.61
But it comes from the gospel.
00:22:07.81\00:22:09.85
It comes from looking at
Jesus, the Savior of the world.
00:22:10.35\00:22:14.18
It comes from, like
Paul says, from comprehending
00:22:14.21\00:22:18.13
with all the saints the
height, the depth, the width,
00:22:18.16\00:22:23.92
the breadth of the love of God.
00:22:23.95\00:22:26.83
That love of God is
poured into your heart.
00:22:27.03\00:22:29.55
And it knows how
to clean the heart.
00:22:31.85\00:22:34.26
You need an agape cleansing.
00:22:35.48\00:22:37.49
Nothing cleanses the
heart like agape of God.
00:22:38.60\00:22:43.21
Oh, I've got a
little time to tell a story.
00:22:45.02\00:22:47.69
Is it okay if I tell a story?
00:22:49.46\00:22:51.26
Evangelists have a
few stories to tell.
00:22:54.31\00:22:56.80
I've got to tell you,
it's almost a confession.
00:22:58.48\00:23:03.78
When Columbia was in the throws
of that terrorism and, umm...
00:23:04.57\00:23:11.71
...drug cartels
and all of that, oh...
00:23:12.59\00:23:16.13
...it wasn't exactly in
my radar for evangelism.
00:23:18.97\00:23:22.48
I mean, I didn't
put it out of the radar,
00:23:23.86\00:23:26.79
but I wasn't going
to put it in there.
00:23:26.82\00:23:28.67
You know what I mean?
00:23:29.16\00:23:30.38
And even the General
Conference at the time said,
00:23:31.16\00:23:34.98
"Oh no, don't go. Don't go."
00:23:35.01\00:23:36.85
But everything
changes when God says, "Go."
00:23:38.62\00:23:43.65
Right?
00:23:44.70\00:23:45.73
Because the safest
place in the world for you
00:23:46.12\00:23:50.09
is to be where
God wants you to be.
00:23:50.12\00:23:52.24
And if you don't believe
that, have a little conversation
00:23:54.21\00:23:57.24
with our friend, Jonah.
00:23:57.27\00:23:59.76
And see what he tells you.
00:24:01.43\00:24:03.04
Yeah.
00:24:03.84\00:24:05.11
The safest place is to be
where God wants you to be.
00:24:05.71\00:24:08.38
And so God said go to Columbia.
00:24:08.41\00:24:10.98
And I went there, not only
worried about the situation,
00:24:12.05\00:24:15.70
not so much that, but
you know, because of all of
00:24:15.73\00:24:21.16
the rigamarole going on I
didn't have the opportunity
00:24:21.19\00:24:25.25
to really prepare the
field the way you normally do
00:24:25.28\00:24:29.32
with small groups, and do
four or five visits before
00:24:29.35\00:24:32.76
you finally go a year later.
00:24:32.79\00:24:34.48
You know, all of that.
00:24:34.51\00:24:35.78
And so I didn't know
what I was going to find.
00:24:36.12\00:24:38.57
But I got in my hotel
room and the first good news;
00:24:38.94\00:24:42.52
I was going through the
channels, boom, boom, boom,
00:24:42.55\00:24:45.70
boom... What?
00:24:45.73\00:24:47.64
That's 3ABN.
00:24:47.85\00:24:49.95
In open channel.
00:24:52.40\00:24:53.93
I said, "This is good."
00:24:54.74\00:24:57.97
The next thing, I
go to a church Sabbath
00:24:59.38\00:25:03.28
and there are people
there and they tell me,
00:25:03.68\00:25:08.58
"You know, we've
been praying for you."
00:25:09.05\00:25:13.34
"And the 'we,'" she
said, "are those of us..."
00:25:13.54\00:25:17.39
Because that particular
city had gone through terrible,
00:25:17.42\00:25:20.09
terrible persecution.
00:25:20.45\00:25:21.81
She said, "Those of us
who lived through that time
00:25:21.84\00:25:26.94
and we remember the martyrs,
and the blood that was spilled
00:25:27.14\00:25:31.22
in the streets, and those
of us who are remnant of those,
00:25:31.25\00:25:35.19
we are praying for you
that God will bless you."
00:25:35.22\00:25:38.07
I said, "Wow," you
know. "This is special."
00:25:38.10\00:25:41.94
And the third thing
that encouraged me was,
00:25:42.96\00:25:45.21
you know, the city, the
authorities, had told them
00:25:45.82\00:25:49.53
again and again and again
that they couldn't use these
00:25:49.56\00:25:51.49
stadiums, you know,
that the government owned.
00:25:51.52\00:25:54.98
So they built their own.
00:25:55.75\00:25:58.52
Where the church and
the school were, they built
00:26:00.70\00:26:02.84
a 7000 seat stadium.
00:26:02.87\00:26:05.97
I said, "These
people mean business.
00:26:07.24\00:26:09.74
These are a people of faith."
00:26:10.09\00:26:12.16
And there's no place better
to be than with people of faith.
00:26:12.50\00:26:15.90
And so I felt good.
00:26:16.25\00:26:17.74
Well I've got to
tell you this story.
00:26:18.65\00:26:20.23
Because I've got
not a lot of time.
00:26:21.12\00:26:24.06
I'm standing there on the
platform and we made the call.
00:26:24.85\00:26:29.39
Hundreds of people come
forward, praise the Lord.
00:26:29.60\00:26:32.09
Hundreds and hundreds.
00:26:32.18\00:26:33.83
And I hear a voice,
like coming from under my
00:26:33.86\00:26:37.24
feet, it seemed like.
00:26:37.27\00:26:38.54
From underneath the
earth, it seemed like.
00:26:38.57\00:26:41.00
And the voice said,
"Pastor Frank, help me.
00:26:41.20\00:26:44.90
I am a terrorist."
00:26:44.93\00:26:47.02
I started looking for him.
00:26:48.95\00:26:50.67
What?
00:26:51.20\00:26:52.49
I noticed what he said.
00:26:52.52\00:26:53.91
He didn't say, "I
use to be a terrorist."
00:26:53.94\00:26:56.62
"I was a terrorism."
00:26:58.74\00:27:00.21
He said what?
00:27:00.24\00:27:01.27
"I am a
terrorist. Please help me.
00:27:01.30\00:27:06.05
What do I do?"
00:27:06.44\00:27:07.71
Now, there was a platoon
of soldiers that were there.
00:27:08.91\00:27:11.97
And they were assigned to us.
00:27:12.97\00:27:14.69
And they would wisp
me out through the back,
00:27:15.13\00:27:17.36
and they would take
me to my hotel each night
00:27:17.39\00:27:20.18
with a different direction,
different, you know, route.
00:27:20.21\00:27:22.97
And they were
beginning to pull me.
00:27:24.53\00:27:28.26
And I was having a
conversation with this man
00:27:29.30\00:27:31.45
and they were pulling me away.
00:27:31.48\00:27:32.89
And so I had to scream.
00:27:33.51\00:27:35.83
He said, "What do
I do? What do I do?"
00:27:36.46\00:27:38.26
I said, "Jesus, Jesus.
00:27:38.41\00:27:42.88
Give your heart to Jesus."
00:27:44.12\00:27:46.68
And I didn't see him again.
00:27:48.58\00:27:51.81
Every night, you know,
people must have thought,
00:27:51.84\00:27:54.97
"You know, Pastor
Frank wants to look at every
00:27:55.07\00:27:58.17
single one of us."
00:27:58.20\00:28:00.38
But I was trying
to find my young man.
00:28:00.41\00:28:02.43
Is he there?
00:28:03.17\00:28:04.68
The nights went on.
00:28:05.38\00:28:07.04
And the next to last
night of the meetings,
00:28:07.74\00:28:11.05
he did the same maneuver,
you know, and came all the way
00:28:12.05\00:28:15.42
and put himself in
the same exact place.
00:28:15.45\00:28:18.36
As if to jar my memory.
00:28:18.54\00:28:20.18
It didn't need any jarring.
00:28:20.21\00:28:22.16
And now he said, "Pastor Frank,
I'm going to get baptized."
00:28:24.09\00:28:30.62
Praise the Lord.
00:28:31.96\00:28:34.14
And the next night, I saw him
descend into the baptismal tank
00:28:34.17\00:28:42.21
and be baptized.
00:28:42.47\00:28:44.83
Wow.
00:28:45.97\00:28:47.24
Jesus is so powerful.
00:28:48.47\00:28:50.50
He can even save terrorists.
00:28:50.86\00:28:56.01
Sometimes we think
there's nothing you can do
00:28:58.38\00:29:00.51
for these people
except get rid of them.
00:29:00.54\00:29:03.63
But God can save them.
00:29:04.92\00:29:06.97
Because Jesus, praise His
name, He is truly the Savior
00:29:07.69\00:29:15.13
of the world.
00:29:15.16\00:29:17.77
And yes, my
friend, that means you.
00:29:18.06\00:29:22.29
You who are watching.
00:29:22.32\00:29:23.86
Whatever your background
is, whatever your situation is.
00:29:23.89\00:29:27.81
You know, at lot of these
terrorists in Latin America,
00:29:27.84\00:29:31.49
they're picked up in their
homes when they're children
00:29:31.52\00:29:34.27
against their will, their will
and the will of their parents.
00:29:34.30\00:29:36.74
They are taken away and then
they are raised as terrorists.
00:29:36.77\00:29:41.39
That's what happens.
00:29:41.42\00:29:42.76
I don't know what has
happened in your life.
00:29:44.18\00:29:46.20
Life has a way, forces and life
have a way of shaping our lives.
00:29:47.43\00:29:51.26
But there's a bigger force.
00:29:51.43\00:29:54.17
It is the force of
the cross of Christ.
00:29:54.20\00:29:56.71
It is the power that
comes from Jesus dying for you
00:29:56.74\00:30:00.10
and saying, "It is finished.
00:30:00.13\00:30:01.93
I saved you.
00:30:02.48\00:30:03.67
Now come to me
and I'll do the job."
00:30:04.04\00:30:07.42
Before we go to our next
word, I want you to listen
00:30:08.12\00:30:14.08
to this very, very
special musical selection
00:30:14.28\00:30:20.51
that we will
present for the glory of God
00:30:20.81\00:30:23.45
and for the
inspiration of all of us.
00:30:23.87\00:30:26.44
The blood that
Jesus shed for me,
00:30:59.29\00:31:07.05
way back on Calvary;
00:31:09.02\00:31:14.43
the blood that gives me
strength from day to day,
00:31:14.46\00:31:22.59
it will never lose its power.
00:31:22.62\00:31:29.55
It reaches to
the highest mountain,
00:31:30.52\00:31:37.37
and it flows to
the lowest valley;
00:31:38.16\00:31:44.99
the blood that gives me
strength from day to day,
00:31:46.40\00:31:54.17
it will never lose its power.
00:31:54.20\00:32:01.20
It soothes my
doubts and calms my fears,
00:32:02.32\00:32:10.38
and it dries all my tears;
00:32:12.33\00:32:17.92
yes, the blood that gives
me strength from day to day,
00:32:17.95\00:32:25.92
it will never lose its power.
00:32:25.95\00:32:33.29
It reaches to
the highest mountain,
00:32:34.13\00:32:40.71
and it flows to
the lowest valley;
00:32:41.26\00:32:48.05
yes, the blood that gives
me strength from day to day,
00:32:48.08\00:32:57.70
it will never lose its power.
00:32:57.73\00:33:04.53
It reaches to
the highest mountain,
00:33:04.85\00:33:12.59
and it flows to
the lowest valley;
00:33:13.56\00:33:20.47
yes, the blood that gives
me strength from day to day,
00:33:20.50\00:33:30.34
it will never
lose, it will never lose,
00:33:30.37\00:33:37.91
it will never lose
00:33:37.94\00:33:45.83
its power.
00:33:46.39\00:33:56.38
Amen. Thank you so very much.
00:34:03.75\00:34:06.91
Well, it's taken a little while,
but we come to the final word.
00:34:08.39\00:34:15.37
And you don't want
to miss this final word.
00:34:15.57\00:34:19.31
If you've just tuned in,
we are looking at the words,
00:34:19.61\00:34:26.37
the little sermons
that Jesus preached
00:34:26.72\00:34:30.10
while He was on His cross.
00:34:30.13\00:34:32.19
And hang on,
because He said His words
00:34:32.53\00:34:36.51
are spirit and are life.
00:34:36.72\00:34:40.01
And there is nothing that has
quite the spirit and the life
00:34:40.40\00:34:46.39
as what He did and what He
said while He was on His cross
00:34:46.42\00:34:52.06
as the Savior of the world.
00:34:52.09\00:34:54.82
That includes
you, that includes me.
00:34:54.85\00:34:57.36
And you know, it
was on a Friday at noon,
00:34:57.78\00:35:01.59
according to Mark 15
verse 33, the Bible calls it the
00:35:02.74\00:35:08.99
sixth hour, that the
sins of the whole world
00:35:09.02\00:35:13.48
were laid upon Jesus,
the Savior of the world.
00:35:13.78\00:35:17.84
He felt they were His
sins, you have to understand.
00:35:18.49\00:35:21.71
Although they were not.
00:35:22.47\00:35:23.80
He was totally sinless.
00:35:24.50\00:35:26.25
But this burden
crushed His soul.
00:35:27.38\00:35:31.58
He felt as the lost will feel
at last as they stand totally
00:35:31.61\00:35:36.21
and finally condemned
before the great white throne.
00:35:36.24\00:35:41.29
Jesus was
heartbroken, in despair.
00:35:42.17\00:35:46.38
And as we saw in one
of our previous studies,
00:35:47.10\00:35:49.73
the fourth word from the
cross, he was tasting death
00:35:50.10\00:35:54.59
for every man.
00:35:54.89\00:35:56.12
The real thing.
00:35:56.42\00:35:57.86
What the Bible
calls, the second death.
00:35:57.89\00:36:00.52
You know, at Avon Park, we're
kind of starting a movement.
00:36:01.07\00:36:06.53
And it's interesting that
now I'm here and I have the
00:36:08.51\00:36:14.31
ability to present
it to a lot of people.
00:36:14.34\00:36:18.46
We want to start the, "Friday
Noon for Jesus," movement.
00:36:19.57\00:36:23.30
You know, we don't
say, "Thank you," enough.
00:36:25.47\00:36:28.03
And here's what we're doing.
00:36:28.64\00:36:29.74
Friday at noon, wherever
you are, whatever you're doing,
00:36:29.77\00:36:32.64
you stop and you
say, "Thank You, Jesus.
00:36:32.67\00:36:37.06
Because it was on a Friday
at noon that You took my sins
00:36:37.44\00:36:43.38
in a special way.
00:36:43.41\00:36:44.80
And I want to
thank You for that."
00:36:44.83\00:36:46.66
And I've actually come
up with a little formula
00:36:46.86\00:36:49.14
if you want to write it down.
00:36:49.17\00:36:50.57
It's, JC-G6-12.
00:36:51.49\00:36:59.81
I want to make
t-shirts with that.
00:37:00.29\00:37:02.43
Not to sell or anything.
00:37:03.31\00:37:04.79
But you know, as something
that will spark conversation.
00:37:04.82\00:37:09.82
JC-G6-12
00:37:10.33\00:37:17.10
What does it mean?
00:37:17.13\00:37:18.20
What do you think "JC" is?
00:37:18.23\00:37:19.98
Jesus Christ.
00:37:20.44\00:37:22.07
"G" is for gratitude.
00:37:22.40\00:37:25.08
Gratitude.
00:37:26.35\00:37:27.82
"6" is for Friday.
00:37:28.67\00:37:31.28
"12" is for twelve noon.
00:37:33.50\00:37:35.98
JC-G6-12
00:37:37.66\00:37:45.97
I hope that...
00:37:48.16\00:37:49.41
And at 3ABN, if somebody here
wants to make those t-shirts
00:37:50.32\00:37:54.37
and get them out, or
whatever, you don't have to
00:37:54.40\00:37:58.62
consult with me, please.
00:37:59.13\00:38:01.05
I presented this in church, and
a sister in the church, Marilyn,
00:38:02.26\00:38:09.72
she presented me with a
t- shirt that she had made.
00:38:10.33\00:38:14.49
And so when you go out, and
people, you have that JC-G6-12,
00:38:16.10\00:38:22.17
they're going to
say, "What is that?
00:38:22.20\00:38:23.85
Excuse me, what does that mean?"
00:38:24.13\00:38:26.53
And you have an opportunity
to share the good news
00:38:27.71\00:38:32.60
of the cross of Christ.
00:38:32.63\00:38:34.47
Well, we've come to the
seventh word from the cross.
00:38:36.51\00:38:39.74
And now Jesus' heart,
finally, finally is at rest.
00:38:40.48\00:38:45.20
He has progressed from
that cry of forsakenness
00:38:45.91\00:38:51.71
to a cry of total
trust in His Father.
00:38:52.01\00:38:57.00
He's gained the victory.
00:38:57.31\00:38:59.27
He has seen no
miracle performed.
00:39:00.33\00:39:02.60
He has heard no voice
from heaven to speak to Him.
00:39:03.53\00:39:08.25
No one has spoken a
word of encouragement to Him.
00:39:09.08\00:39:12.78
Not even His own disciples.
00:39:13.14\00:39:16.13
But by faith He
has gained the victory.
00:39:16.87\00:39:20.34
He has remembered
what He learned in His
00:39:21.19\00:39:25.15
study of the Bible.
00:39:25.18\00:39:26.98
Now the end is here. He prays.
00:39:27.73\00:39:30.22
Now He can say it.
00:39:31.07\00:39:32.39
He didn't say it before.
00:39:32.88\00:39:33.94
He said, "My God, My God."
00:39:33.97\00:39:37.20
He couldn't say Father.
00:39:37.63\00:39:39.33
Now He says it, "Father."
00:39:39.67\00:39:43.36
Now He hasn't seen the Father.
00:39:45.12\00:39:48.20
The situation hasn't changed.
00:39:49.46\00:39:51.94
He has changed.
00:39:51.97\00:39:53.67
He believes the
Father is there with Him.
00:39:55.82\00:39:58.99
He can't see
Him, can't sense Him.
00:39:59.61\00:40:03.18
But by faith He believes
that the Father loves Him.
00:40:03.62\00:40:08.64
He understands He's
the Savior of the world.
00:40:08.97\00:40:12.26
And now that He has finished...
00:40:12.83\00:40:17.06
The last word
was, "It is finished."
00:40:17.65\00:40:20.45
...now He can say,
"Father, into Your hands
00:40:21.05\00:40:25.01
I commend My spirit."
00:40:25.04\00:40:27.62
This is in Luke
chapter 23 verse 46.
00:40:27.65\00:40:32.58
These were the last words
Jesus spoke before His death.
00:40:32.79\00:40:36.87
His seventh word from the cross.
00:40:36.90\00:40:39.78
Now He's ready to die.
00:40:39.81\00:40:41.58
His work is done.
00:40:42.30\00:40:43.85
He dies triumphant.
00:40:44.32\00:40:46.83
But we must note
something very important here.
00:40:48.94\00:40:51.65
These last words
were not His own words.
00:40:52.81\00:40:55.67
They were a direct
quotation from the Bible.
00:40:56.59\00:41:00.34
I'm trying to tell you,
people, He relied on the Bible.
00:41:00.63\00:41:05.15
"You mean Jesus..."
00:41:06.60\00:41:08.07
Yes, Jesus relied on Scripture.
00:41:08.10\00:41:12.31
On what He had studied.
00:41:12.54\00:41:14.50
It's the words of
David's 31st Psalm.
00:41:15.96\00:41:21.05
These words were in His heart.
00:41:21.88\00:41:24.44
In verse 5 of
that psalm, it says,
00:41:25.36\00:41:29.69
"Into your hand
I commit my spirit.
00:41:29.72\00:41:33.34
You have redeemed
me, O Lord God of truth."
00:41:34.22\00:41:40.06
All that Jesus
knew, the man Jesus,
00:41:42.28\00:41:46.48
all that He knew of His
Father while on earth He learned
00:41:46.51\00:41:51.87
from the Bible.
00:41:51.90\00:41:53.34
He truly became
Emmanuel, God with us.
00:41:55.34\00:41:59.30
He laid aside all of
His divine prerogatives.
00:41:59.33\00:42:05.01
He emptied Himself
to become one of us.
00:42:05.31\00:42:09.22
He was a baby born in Bethlehem.
00:42:09.25\00:42:12.26
He had no conscious
memory of His pre-existence.
00:42:12.29\00:42:15.99
He did not sit in Mary's lap and
regale her with stories of the
00:42:16.02\00:42:20.91
wonderful place heaven is and
of His former life adventures
00:42:20.94\00:42:25.68
with the angelic hosts.
00:42:25.99\00:42:27.78
No, He didn't do that.
00:42:27.81\00:42:28.99
He was a true human baby.
00:42:29.38\00:42:31.78
He had to learn to
walk, to talk, everything.
00:42:31.81\00:42:36.26
Everything.
00:42:36.91\00:42:38.40
Now don't get it wrong.
00:42:39.23\00:42:40.80
He was also at the
same time the Son of God.
00:42:40.83\00:42:44.11
But you can never
know by looking at Him.
00:42:46.16\00:42:48.12
What was different about
Him was that He had absorbed,
00:42:49.69\00:42:54.68
by faith, the Bible
so much as His education
00:42:54.88\00:43:00.64
that He became
the Word made flesh.
00:43:01.04\00:43:04.65
This is why in the
last hour of His life
00:43:07.18\00:43:11.17
His mind was still saturated
with what He had learned
00:43:11.20\00:43:17.60
in the Bible
when He was a youth.
00:43:17.63\00:43:20.26
All that He had read
was stored in His memory.
00:43:21.13\00:43:25.04
And now in His
hour of greatest need,
00:43:25.65\00:43:28.40
there it was to
comfort Him, to encourage Him.
00:43:28.43\00:43:32.57
He had lived by the Word,
and now He could die by the Word
00:43:32.80\00:43:37.26
in perfect peace and happiness.
00:43:37.29\00:43:40.39
He said, "Man shall
not live by..." What?
00:43:40.42\00:43:45.29
"...bread alone but by
every word that proceedeth
00:43:45.90\00:43:51.12
out of the mouth
of God," Matthew 4:4.
00:43:51.15\00:43:53.87
Listen people, when you feast
upon this same bread of life,
00:43:55.83\00:44:01.05
the Word of God,
those treasures of truth
00:44:01.52\00:44:05.85
will also become part
of your permanent memory.
00:44:06.23\00:44:10.91
You know, I told you one of
my heroes is H.M.S. Richards.
00:44:13.18\00:44:19.01
The man knew his Bible.
00:44:21.84\00:44:23.44
Del Decker would
visit me often in my office.
00:44:26.83\00:44:30.26
Am I making you jealous?
00:44:30.76\00:44:32.53
Wayne Hooper would
come around all the time.
00:44:34.46\00:44:37.15
Bob Edwards.
00:44:38.18\00:44:39.50
People like that.
00:44:40.29\00:44:41.41
And H.M.S. Richards Jr.
00:44:42.88\00:44:44.79
But it was the quartet
that would tell me the story.
00:44:46.39\00:44:53.23
They'd say, "You know, Frankus,
we were in this camp meeting
00:44:53.26\00:44:57.21
and we were behind H.M.S.
00:44:57.51\00:44:59.92
And he was 'reading' his Bible.
00:45:01.50\00:45:07.33
Because he didn't make a
show of his learning, you know.
00:45:08.85\00:45:12.42
But he was reading his Bible.
00:45:13.40\00:45:15.68
Well, we looked and
there was something wrong
00:45:16.08\00:45:18.12
about the Bible.
00:45:18.15\00:45:19.70
And we looked closer.
00:45:19.73\00:45:21.34
It was upside down, Frank.
00:45:21.79\00:45:23.99
It was upside down.
00:45:26.11\00:45:29.05
The man wasn't
reading his Bible.
00:45:29.08\00:45:31.85
The Bible was in his
mind and it was in his heart."
00:45:32.32\00:45:37.71
Now I'm not saying you've got to
memorize the whole Bible, dear.
00:45:38.40\00:45:41.49
But you've got to treasure it.
00:45:42.10\00:45:43.81
Take a verse every
morning, treasure it.
00:45:43.84\00:45:47.10
These truth's of the Bible,
treasure them, learn them.
00:45:47.42\00:45:52.42
It'll give you life and spirit.
00:45:55.29\00:45:57.21
And Jesus
promises, in John 14:26,
00:46:00.07\00:46:03.84
you know the promise, that
He "will teach you all things,
00:46:03.87\00:46:07.94
and bring to your remembrance
00:46:08.17\00:46:10.90
all things that I
said to you," He says.
00:46:11.20\00:46:13.91
Right?
00:46:14.36\00:46:15.42
The Holy Spirit is
going to bring it back to you
00:46:16.66\00:46:18.68
when you need it.
00:46:18.71\00:46:19.82
Jesus needed it there,
and it was there for Him.
00:46:20.14\00:46:23.90
In other words, when Satan tries
to assail your mind, dear one,
00:46:25.18\00:46:28.76
and your heart, tempting you to
doubt that Jesus is your friend
00:46:30.17\00:46:37.29
and your Savior, the Holy
Spirit will flash into your mind
00:46:37.32\00:46:42.28
those Scriptures
that you have read.
00:46:42.48\00:46:45.06
And fortified by the Word
of God, you will command Satan,
00:46:45.77\00:46:49.69
"Get behind me
Satan," Matthew 16:23.
00:46:50.30\00:46:55.43
We wonder why did Jesus
quote that particular Psalm 31
00:46:57.45\00:47:01.35
in His last breath.
00:47:01.38\00:47:02.80
When we turn to
read it, we discover why.
00:47:03.10\00:47:06.44
It describes His own experience.
00:47:07.09\00:47:09.26
He saw Himself in this psalm.
00:47:09.51\00:47:12.77
Look at verse 11.
00:47:13.26\00:47:15.05
"I am a reproach
among all my enemies,
00:47:16.27\00:47:18.89
but especially
among my neighbors,
00:47:19.59\00:47:21.98
and I am repulsive
to my acquaintances.
00:47:22.01\00:47:25.18
Those who see me
outside flee from me."
00:47:25.42\00:47:30.10
Verse 12, "I am forgotten
like a dead man out of mind.
00:47:30.59\00:47:37.35
I am like a broken vessel."
00:47:37.38\00:47:39.94
Verse 13, "For I
hear the slander of many.
00:47:40.50\00:47:44.46
Fear is on every side.
00:47:44.76\00:47:46.65
While they take
counsel together against me,
00:47:46.68\00:47:49.54
they scheme to
take away my life."
00:47:49.57\00:47:52.32
Verse 14, "But as for
me, I trust in You, O Lord.
00:47:53.01\00:47:58.76
My times are in Your hands."
00:47:59.12\00:48:01.87
Verse 17, "Do not let
me be ashamed, O Lord."
00:48:02.38\00:48:05.87
Verse 22, "For I said
in my haste, I am cut off
00:48:06.64\00:48:10.22
from before Your eyes."
00:48:10.25\00:48:12.17
That's what He said at
the beginning, remember?
00:48:12.37\00:48:14.24
The fourth word.
00:48:16.20\00:48:18.82
"You have forsaken Me, God.
00:48:19.82\00:48:21.16
Why have You forsaken Me?"
00:48:21.19\00:48:22.63
"In my haste, I said, I am
cut off from before Your eyes.
00:48:22.66\00:48:27.04
Nevertheless, You heard
the voice of my supplications
00:48:27.24\00:48:30.92
when I cried out to You."
00:48:30.95\00:48:32.82
Oh people, can you begin
to see how real Jesus is?
00:48:34.79\00:48:42.10
How close to us He has become?
00:48:42.79\00:48:45.78
How He knows our
experiences, our temptations?
00:48:46.32\00:48:50.41
How His heart is
touched with our weaknesses?
00:48:50.44\00:48:53.93
Will the Father
resurrect Jesus to new life?
00:48:56.47\00:48:59.22
Now in His last
breath, Jesus resigns
00:49:00.12\00:49:04.30
all into His Father's hands.
00:49:04.50\00:49:06.89
"Resurrect Me or
not," Jesus prays in effect,
00:49:08.14\00:49:11.80
"I commit My spirit, My
life, My all, into Your hands."
00:49:11.83\00:49:17.29
The thought of reward
was not in Jesus' mind.
00:49:17.63\00:49:20.89
He was like Moses
who, you remember,
00:49:21.99\00:49:24.40
prayed long ago that if
God could not forgive Israel,
00:49:24.43\00:49:27.46
"Blot me, I pray, out of Your
book which You have written."
00:49:27.49\00:49:30.68
Exodus 32:32
00:49:30.71\00:49:32.82
It was a type of Christ.
00:49:33.25\00:49:36.15
It was a typological
thing that looked forward
00:49:36.18\00:49:40.88
to what Christ went through.
00:49:40.91\00:49:43.27
No, what was
uppermost in Christ's mind
00:49:44.30\00:49:47.69
as He drew His last breath
was not a reward awaiting Him.
00:49:47.89\00:49:53.45
But He was thinking of the
great reward that those who
00:49:53.48\00:49:57.72
believe in Him will inherit.
00:49:57.75\00:50:00.04
In other words,
"Whatever happens to Me,
00:50:00.69\00:50:02.51
take My life and
give it to them."
00:50:02.54\00:50:04.67
"Whatever happens,
Father, I'm in Your hands.
00:50:06.60\00:50:10.04
But take My life,
take My eternal life,
00:50:10.96\00:50:14.92
and give it to them.
00:50:15.77\00:50:17.20
And if I perish, I perish.
00:50:18.23\00:50:19.98
But save My precious," remember.
00:50:20.70\00:50:24.02
"Save My darling.
00:50:24.05\00:50:26.21
Save those that I came to save."
00:50:26.24\00:50:30.68
Oh wow.
00:50:31.13\00:50:32.68
Will you join me in
giving thanks to Jesus,
00:50:34.43\00:50:39.83
and giving thanks to God?
00:50:40.08\00:50:42.17
Oh, I don't have a lot of time.
00:50:45.55\00:50:46.95
I wanted to tell you the
story of my father in prison.
00:50:46.98\00:50:50.95
I've got six and a half minutes,
I'm going to have to be brief.
00:50:51.40\00:50:54.09
You want to hear it?
00:50:54.12\00:50:55.15
I told you my
father was an agnostic.
00:50:57.25\00:51:00.54
However, don't get it wrong,
he admired people of faith.
00:51:01.22\00:51:05.67
I mean, he had to.
00:51:06.19\00:51:07.35
He married my mother.
00:51:07.38\00:51:08.97
And he respected it.
00:51:10.90\00:51:14.65
And he respected
religious liberty.
00:51:15.77\00:51:17.83
And when he saw it
taken away in our country,
00:51:19.28\00:51:23.22
it was one of the reasons
he started conspiring against
00:51:23.43\00:51:26.88
the tyrannical regime
that started being despotic,
00:51:27.26\00:51:31.61
and atheistic, and imposing
their atheism on people.
00:51:31.93\00:51:36.12
Well, he ended up in prison.
00:51:38.06\00:51:40.27
I told you how a first cousin
of my mother went to arrest him
00:51:41.97\00:51:48.14
with a platoon of soldiers.
00:51:48.17\00:51:49.90
Years went by.
00:51:51.71\00:51:52.80
When he came out in 1979,
Jesse Jackson went to Cuba.
00:51:52.83\00:51:58.61
You might remember that.
00:51:58.64\00:52:00.01
And the government
doesn't always like
00:52:00.58\00:52:04.53
for Jesse to do these things.
00:52:04.56\00:52:06.36
But once he's determined
to do it, then they say,
00:52:06.81\00:52:10.83
"Okay, if you're going
to do it, if you have to go,
00:52:10.86\00:52:13.34
here are the people that
we want you to negotiate for."
00:52:13.59\00:52:17.20
And my father was in that list.
00:52:17.60\00:52:19.67
Because they know here
what happens over there.
00:52:20.68\00:52:23.38
And anyway, my father
came out at that time.
00:52:24.08\00:52:28.62
And it wasn't until 1992
that he told me this story.
00:52:29.13\00:52:32.42
He couldn't talk
about his imprisonment
00:52:32.45\00:52:34.01
for all of that time.
00:52:34.04\00:52:36.13
At one time I
was in Pennsylvania
00:52:36.93\00:52:39.36
working on a
sermon, Thursday night.
00:52:41.38\00:52:43.75
He came down to the
basement where I was
00:52:44.32\00:52:47.04
and asked me what I was doing.
00:52:48.03\00:52:50.37
I told him.
00:52:50.40\00:52:51.44
He said, "Well, what
is the sermon about?"
00:52:52.56\00:52:54.18
I said, "Prayer."
00:52:54.21\00:52:55.97
And he said, "Prayer, oh? Hmmm."
00:52:56.92\00:52:58.93
And I could tell he
wanted to tell me something.
00:52:59.78\00:53:02.01
My father the agnostic wanted to
tell me something about prayer.
00:53:02.96\00:53:06.47
And I said, "Well, you
have something to tell me?"
00:53:08.45\00:53:12.24
He said, "Yes, I do."
00:53:12.27\00:53:13.81
And I swiveled my chair, I said,
"You've got my full attention."
00:53:14.71\00:53:18.25
And he told me what
happened to him when they first
00:53:19.70\00:53:24.77
arrested him.
00:53:25.31\00:53:26.63
He said, "Frank, I
was arrested and tortured
00:53:27.74\00:53:32.99
for 47 days."
00:53:33.39\00:53:36.76
And of course, he didn't
know how many there would be,
00:53:38.66\00:53:41.34
and so forth.
00:53:41.37\00:53:42.55
He said, "I went
through all those nights."
00:53:42.58\00:53:44.63
And I said, "But dad," I
said, "how could you possibly
00:53:46.50\00:53:53.38
endure 47 days of torture?"
00:53:53.99\00:53:59.32
He said, "Well, I didn't know
it was going to be that many.
00:53:59.35\00:54:01.64
You know, you just want
to survive the next day."
00:54:01.67\00:54:03.83
And I said,
"Well, why did you do it?
00:54:05.33\00:54:08.67
What was your method?"
00:54:09.19\00:54:10.72
He said, "Well, I
thought of all the people
00:54:11.77\00:54:16.10
that would be arrested, all
the men that would be arrested,
00:54:16.13\00:54:18.93
if I talked.
00:54:18.96\00:54:20.09
And I thought of their children.
00:54:21.09\00:54:22.56
And I had a child in my mind.
00:54:23.54\00:54:25.27
Little Mary, little Mary.
00:54:27.74\00:54:29.23
I went to the torture
chamber thinking of little Mary.
00:54:29.26\00:54:31.82
This is for little
Mary. This is for little Mary.
00:54:31.85\00:54:34.85
Oh God, this is for little Mary.
00:54:34.88\00:54:36.53
Little Mary, little Mary.
00:54:36.56\00:54:37.96
And then it was little Joseph.
00:54:38.47\00:54:42.11
And it was...you know.
00:54:42.14\00:54:43.19
It was somebody.
00:54:43.43\00:54:45.11
And that's," he said,
"that's how I did it."
00:54:45.47\00:54:48.24
He said, "But Frank," he
said, "I came to one night
00:54:49.22\00:54:51.78
where I knew my
body was so frail.
00:54:51.88\00:54:54.93
I had taken so much."
00:54:55.53\00:54:57.35
He said, "I could
not take any more.
00:54:57.39\00:54:59.16
And I told God, 'If
they come the next morning
00:54:59.19\00:55:03.21
and take me to
the torture chamber,
00:55:03.49\00:55:05.38
I'm going to
tell them everything.
00:55:06.05\00:55:08.99
And it will be Your fault.'"
00:55:09.02\00:55:10.65
He said, "But I didn't know
if I was talking to somebody."
00:55:11.64\00:55:13.82
He said, "I didn't believe...
00:55:13.85\00:55:15.36
I wasn't sure if
He existed or not."
00:55:15.65\00:55:20.28
You know, that's
what an agnostic is.
00:55:20.31\00:55:22.00
An atheist knows
there's no God, you know.
00:55:22.48\00:55:24.96
But an
agnostic, he doesn't know.
00:55:25.38\00:55:27.06
He said, "I didn't know if I was
talking to the roof, or what.
00:55:27.49\00:55:31.11
But I said, 'If
they come and get me,
00:55:31.73\00:55:33.66
I'm going to
spill all the beans.
00:55:33.69\00:55:36.11
And the lives of those
men will be in Your hands.'"
00:55:36.14\00:55:40.73
He wrestled with God.
00:55:41.45\00:55:42.93
He said, "The next morning,
the same knock at the door.
00:55:43.40\00:55:46.53
Same two guys.
00:55:46.85\00:55:48.39
And I started
talking to Him, you know.
00:55:50.30\00:55:52.51
You know,
whispering. Talking to God.
00:55:52.61\00:55:54.15
And the guards said,
'Oh, you know, he's cuckoo.'"
00:55:54.35\00:55:57.07
You know, that
would happen there.
00:55:57.10\00:55:58.77
He said,
"Frank, they grabbed me.
00:55:59.88\00:56:02.39
We went down the hall.
00:56:03.04\00:56:04.63
But instead of
turning left on the hallway
00:56:04.91\00:56:08.35
to take me to
the torture chamber,
00:56:08.83\00:56:10.71
they put me on a jeep,
took me straight to prison,
00:56:10.97\00:56:14.78
and never in 16 years,
never touched me again."
00:56:14.81\00:56:21.61
And you know,
he's kind of funny.
00:56:24.15\00:56:25.35
He's got a sense of humor.
00:56:25.38\00:56:26.50
And so he looked at me and
said, "Put that in your sermon."
00:56:26.60\00:56:29.88
I said, "You better believe it."
00:56:32.22\00:56:33.65
And you know what?
00:56:36.40\00:56:37.77
My father is a
believer in Christ.
00:56:38.32\00:56:41.95
Oh yes.
00:56:42.58\00:56:44.00
You know, maybe you
are going, dear one,
00:56:44.77\00:56:47.03
you're listening,
you're going through...
00:56:47.28\00:56:48.67
It may not be that dramatic, but
you're going through something.
00:56:48.70\00:56:52.51
And you're wondering,
"Is there really a God?"
00:56:53.10\00:56:57.63
And you know the proof?
00:56:58.45\00:56:59.85
You know what the proof is?
00:56:59.88\00:57:01.47
What the
historical proof is of God?
00:57:01.50\00:57:04.66
What the historical proof
is that God cares for you?
00:57:04.76\00:57:07.76
It's Jesus Christ on
the cross of Calvary.
00:57:07.79\00:57:10.85
That's the proof.
00:57:11.12\00:57:12.85
He was dying for
you that horrific death
00:57:13.23\00:57:16.21
so that He could be your Savior.
00:57:16.80\00:57:18.73
Open your heart
and welcome Him in,
00:57:18.76\00:57:22.24
and He will accept you.
00:57:22.44\00:57:23.87
You are His precious.
00:57:23.90\00:57:25.47
He died for you.
00:57:25.92\00:57:27.46
Accept Him today.
00:57:27.68\00:57:29.49