Welcome to Anchors Of Truth,
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live from the
3ABN Worship Center.
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And we take this opportunity to
welcome you to the opening night
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of this particular
Anchors Of Truth series,
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The Law Before the Law,
with our speaker Ty Gibson.
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And we are so very,
very happy and pleased
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that we can have him
here with us during this
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last Anchors for 2014.
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It is cold outside,
but it is warm inside.
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And our hearts are warm.
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And I am quite sure that we
will be warmed by the messages
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that we will receive over
the next five sittings together.
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Ty Gibson, of
course, a co-founder of
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Light Bearers Ministry.
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And that ministry is
growing by leaps and bounds.
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He just showed me a
brand new set of Bible lessons
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that he has authored that
are, and we use this term,
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taking the country by storm.
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But really something that
conferences and individuals
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are really falling in love with.
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And perhaps he'll tell us
a little bit more about that.
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When we think of Light Bearers,
we think of James Rafferty,
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Jeffrey Rosario, Ty
Gibson, and David Asscherick.
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Light Bearers has
spread all around the world.
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They have a teaching
branch now in Australia,
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as David has relocated there.
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So this is a ministry that
is really doing a great job
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helping to
finish the work of God
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and to lighten the
world with His glory.
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So we are very,
very pleased to have Ty
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come and be with us again.
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These subjects
are rather intriguing.
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"The Law Before the
Law" is our subject tonight.
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The Law Before the Law.
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Kind of tickles your
ear just a little bit.
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And I'm quite sure that
he will have much to say.
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We have to thank Sue Gibson,
Ty's wife, because she has to
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share him with the world.
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And He spends so much time
on the world that her ministry
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to him is also a ministry to
us, because she allows him to
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travel and preach for our
Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
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And so we are quite
pleased to have him here.
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And we know that
we're going to be blessed
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during our next
five sittings together.
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Our special music is coming
from Pastor John Lomacang,
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our pastor and friend.
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And he is going to be singing,
Turn Your Heart Towards Home.
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But before he does so, join me
if you will in a word of prayer.
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Gracious heavenly Father,
we praise You so very much
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for this another
opportunity to assemble here
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at the house of
praise and prayer.
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We thank Thee, Lord,
for another opportunity to
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hear the Word of
God preached with power.
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We ask that You would be
with he who has been called to
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speak for You tonight.
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We know that he has
studied and You have given him
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something for us.
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And so prepare him to be
but a channel of blessing
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and a spokesman for You.
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And then prepare
those who sit in this house
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and those who sit and
consume from around the world.
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May our hearts be blessed.
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May we be
encouraged and inspired.
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May we take one more step along
that road that leads to glory.
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Bless the music
that shall be sung,
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the words that
shall be preached.
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May Christ be seen
and glorified and felt.
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And we thank You.
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In Jesus' name, amen.
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And now Pastor John Lomacang.
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Late in the evening
when everyone was sleeping,
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the father of a wayward
son stepped out in the night.
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Looked towards the
city, wiped away his tears,
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praying his son
would hear him cry.
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Turn your heart toward home,
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turn your heart toward home.
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You've been gone so long,
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turn your heart toward home.
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But not only the
sons are the wayward ones;
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there are mothers and fathers
who have said their goodbyes.
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And the sad eyes of children
looking through their tears
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praying mom and dad
would hear them cry.
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Turn your heart toward home,
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turn your heart toward home.
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You've been gone so long,
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turn your heart toward home.
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There are many who have
never walked away from home,
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but in their hearts
they're many miles away.
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But their Father in heaven
is the only one who knows.
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If they'd listen,
they would hear Him say:
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Turn your heart toward home,
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turn your heart toward home.
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You've been gone so long,
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turn your heart toward home.
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You've been gone so long,
please don't wait too long
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to turn your heart toward home.
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Turn your heart toward home.
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Thank you, John.
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What a blessing.
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Good evening, everybody.
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We are embarking
upon an exciting study
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in this five part
series, focusing our attention
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on the law of God.
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Now on my way out here
somebody called me and asked,
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"Hey, what are
you doing right now?
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Can we talk?"
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I said, "Well, I'm about
to catch a plane because I'm
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headed to 3ABN to do a
series of presentations."
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And they said,
"Well, what's the subject?"
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And I said, "We're going to
be exploring the law of God."
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And this guy, without
missing a beat, he said,
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"We've already got that down.
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Why are we talking about that?
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We know the law of God.
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It's very simple, it's
very easy to understand.
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There's just Ten Commandments.
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'Thou shalt...'
'Thou shalt not...'
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What is there to
explore and study?"
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And I shared with him a
verse that I would like to be
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a kind of prayer
that we keep in mind
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through this five part series.
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And it's in
Psalm 119 and verse 18.
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And you'll hear right away
that this is, in fact, a prayer.
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And King David says,
"Open my eyes that I may behold
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wondrous things in your law."
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Now the word, "wondrous,"
here is a wonderful word.
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It indicates that there's
depth, that there's dimension,
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that there's
beauty in the law of God.
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The law of God is not simple,
in the sense of simplistic.
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It is complex and
beautiful and deep.
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Not hard to understand,
not that kind of complexity.
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But the kind of complexity
in which that law touches
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every aspect of our
lives as human beings,
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whether we're in harmony with
it or out of harmony with it.
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The law of God is
multi-dimensional.
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That would be a
good word to apply to it.
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David says it's wondrous.
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And he prays that
God would open his eyes.
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I want to suggest that we
pray that God will open our eyes
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to see things in the
law of God that perhaps
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we have never seen before.
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I'm going to give you
a little bit of a hint,
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as we go through this
series beginning in this opening
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presentation, a little bit of
a hint, we're going to discover
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the gospel in the law of God.
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The gospel of grace is
not at odds with the law,
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it's not contrary to the
law, and it's not something
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other than the law of God.
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In fact, we're going to
discover that the gospel itself,
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the good news of eternal
salvation and the grace of God,
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is deliberately,
intentionally embedded within
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the Ten Commandments.
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That's just a little
hint of what we're going to be
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discovering in
this five part series.
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Now as we begin with
this opening presentation,
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I think the best way to access
the concept that we want to
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wrap our minds around
tonight is by sharing with you
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a pretty exciting, exhilarating,
and a little bit scary
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experience that I had.
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Now how many of you,
when I say these words,
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you know exactly
what I'm talking about:
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"Bugatti Veyron."
00:10:53.36\00:10:55.25
Anybody? Raise
your hand if you...
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Not a single... One cameraman.
00:10:57.71\00:11:00.22
That's it.
00:11:00.25\00:11:01.57
A Bugatti Veyron is a very
interesting, a very amazing
00:11:02.24\00:11:10.02
piece of engineering.
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A Bugatti Veyron is the fastest
street legal car on earth.
00:11:11.94\00:11:19.01
How fast is this car?
00:11:19.59\00:11:21.03
Now by the way,
when you look it up
00:11:21.06\00:11:22.78
you'll find that's debatable.
00:11:22.81\00:11:24.57
Because since I had the
opportunity to encounter
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in a first hand kind
of way the Bugatti Veyron,
00:11:28.77\00:11:31.54
there have been other
automobiles developed by
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engineers trying to
beat the street speed
00:11:34.51\00:11:38.67
of the Bugatti Veyron.
00:11:38.70\00:11:40.31
But, by many measures in
the debate, the Bugatti Veyron
00:11:40.34\00:11:46.75
is the fastest street legal car
on earth, reaching a top speed
00:11:46.78\00:11:50.30
of 267 miles an hour.
00:11:50.33\00:11:52.68
Now think this
through for a moment.
00:11:53.34\00:11:55.15
The Bugatti Veyron is
engineered in such a way
00:11:55.18\00:12:00.12
that it is so fast that at
its top speed, it only gets
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three miles to the gallon.
00:12:04.11\00:12:05.51
Three miles to the gallon.
00:12:05.87\00:12:07.90
You're out of gas at top
speed in 15 minutes, 15 minutes.
00:12:07.93\00:12:14.90
Not only are you out of
gas in 15 minutes at top speed,
00:12:14.93\00:12:19.11
but get this, at top
speed after 15 minutes,
00:12:19.14\00:12:23.81
you need new tires.
00:12:23.84\00:12:25.57
And new tires, new tires for
the Bugatti Veyron are $42,000.
00:12:26.01\00:12:32.81
Not each. All four. It's a deal.
00:12:32.93\00:12:35.78
Now you might imagine that
an automobile that has tires
00:12:37.86\00:12:42.66
that cost $42,000
for the set, right,
00:12:42.69\00:12:46.77
is a pretty expensive car.
00:12:46.80\00:12:48.36
That car, the Bugatti
Veyron, well the price ranges
00:12:48.56\00:12:52.16
according to the amenities
that you choose to have with
00:12:52.19\00:12:56.07
your Bugatti Veyron, but
about two million dollars
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for this car.
00:12:59.75\00:13:00.96
And I just happened to
have been scheduled for a series
00:13:01.06\00:13:05.17
of presentation
in a foreign country.
00:13:05.20\00:13:09.10
And a friend of mine knew that
I was going there, and he said,
00:13:09.31\00:13:12.64
"Hey, are you aware of the
fact that we have a brother,"
00:13:12.67\00:13:15.60
that is, a fellow
Seventh-day Adventist Christian,
00:13:15.63\00:13:17.82
"that we have a brother
over there who actually owns
00:13:17.85\00:13:21.07
a Bugatti Veyron?"
00:13:21.10\00:13:22.58
I said, "No, I
didn't realize that."
00:13:22.61\00:13:24.54
And I said to my friend, I
said, "And I'm going there?
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I'm going to get in
close proximity to this
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brother and his Bugatti?"
00:13:30.48\00:13:31.61
He said, "Yeah,
you're going to the very city
00:13:31.71\00:13:34.34
in which this brother lives."
00:13:34.37\00:13:36.34
And I said with
confidence to my friend,
00:13:37.00\00:13:39.31
"I will drive that Bugatti."
00:13:39.34\00:13:42.15
And my friend said, "You
will not drive that Bugatti.
00:13:43.72\00:13:47.59
That's a two million dollar car.
00:13:47.62\00:13:49.57
And I have heard
rumor that nobody is allowed
00:13:50.23\00:13:54.30
to drive the Bugatti
except for the brother
00:13:54.33\00:13:57.74
that owns the Bugatti."
00:13:57.77\00:13:59.44
That makes sense when
you have a car that costs
00:14:00.11\00:14:02.35
two million dollars.
00:14:02.38\00:14:03.87
But I said to him
again, with emphasis this time,
00:14:04.27\00:14:06.68
"I guarantee you, I will...
00:14:06.78\00:14:09.02
If a fellow Seventh-day
Adventist owns a Bugatti Veyron,
00:14:09.05\00:14:11.90
I'm driving that car."
00:14:11.93\00:14:14.71
And so I went to do my meetings.
00:14:16.05\00:14:19.16
My wife Sue and I arrived
at the home of the brother
00:14:19.60\00:14:23.28
that owns this Bugatti.
00:14:23.31\00:14:24.90
And I was tactfully
trying to figure out how to
00:14:25.65\00:14:28.48
bring the subject up.
00:14:28.68\00:14:30.59
And after we shared a
meal together, I said,
00:14:31.32\00:14:33.97
"Hey, is it true
that you have Bugatti?"
00:14:34.00\00:14:37.27
And he looked at me and he said,
"Yeah, I do have a Bugatti."
00:14:37.30\00:14:40.06
And I said, "Can
we see the Bugatti?"
00:14:40.72\00:14:42.78
He said, "Absolutely."
00:14:42.98\00:14:44.01
We went outside,
went over to his garage,
00:14:44.04\00:14:47.66
the door opened, and
there sat the Bugatti Veyron.
00:14:47.76\00:14:52.66
I said to him, leaning in with
kind of a solemn whispered tone,
00:14:53.58\00:14:59.39
"Could I drive the Bugatti?"
00:14:59.88\00:15:02.90
And he looked at me, and
without any hesitation he said,
00:15:03.20\00:15:06.38
"Absolutely not."
00:15:06.41\00:15:07.94
I said, "Could I
please drive the Bugatti?"
00:15:09.82\00:15:16.45
He said, "No, it's
a very expensive car,
00:15:16.48\00:15:19.45
and I haven't
let anyone drive it."
00:15:19.48\00:15:22.89
My wife standing beside me knows
that I'm going to be persistent.
00:15:23.77\00:15:28.12
And I ask one more time.
00:15:28.15\00:15:29.54
And she's doing hand motions
behind this brother, saying,
00:15:29.57\00:15:32.61
"No, don't let him drive it."
00:15:32.64\00:15:35.00
And I said something I never
say, I said, "Woman, silence.
00:15:35.70\00:15:39.67
This is between the
brother and myself."
00:15:40.74\00:15:43.68
Well not exactly like that.
00:15:44.24\00:15:45.71
But I said, "Sue,
please, let me negotiate
00:15:45.81\00:15:49.64
with this brother."
00:15:49.92\00:15:51.46
I said, "Listen, if you
let me drive the Bugatti,
00:15:53.47\00:15:57.45
I will use it in a
sermon illustration."
00:15:58.41\00:16:01.54
He said, "You
will?" And I said, "Yeah."
00:16:02.32\00:16:03.91
He said, "Okay,
you can drive it."
00:16:04.41\00:16:05.92
It was that simple.
00:16:05.95\00:16:07.43
It was that simple.
00:16:07.90\00:16:09.81
And so he pulled
it out of the garage.
00:16:09.84\00:16:12.49
And he said, "I'll
drive it first and you'll
00:16:12.52\00:16:14.31
be in the passenger seat."
00:16:14.34\00:16:15.44
I said, "That's fine with
me. Show me how it's done."
00:16:15.47\00:16:18.08
So he got in the driver's seat
and I got in the passenger side.
00:16:18.70\00:16:22.27
I said to my wife,
"Hey, you want to go with us?"
00:16:22.30\00:16:24.83
And she said, "Absolutely not."
00:16:24.86\00:16:27.50
She knows me and
adventure, me and speed.
00:16:28.65\00:16:32.32
And she said,
"Nope, I'm not going.
00:16:32.57\00:16:35.39
I'll wait right here."
00:16:35.52\00:16:37.19
And we very, very slowly
drove out of the parking lot,
00:16:37.22\00:16:41.53
out of the driveway.
00:16:41.56\00:16:42.98
And we just began
moving down a country road.
00:16:43.18\00:16:45.80
And we came to a straight
away and he looked over at me,
00:16:45.83\00:16:47.78
he said, "Are you ready?"
00:16:47.81\00:16:49.11
And I said, "I was born ready.
00:16:49.59\00:16:51.64
Bring it on."
00:16:52.07\00:16:53.22
And he dropped it to the floor,
and we picked up top speed.
00:16:53.42\00:16:58.30
In a matter of
seconds we were flying,
00:16:58.33\00:17:01.07
it felt like, down the road.
00:17:01.10\00:17:02.23
I felt the g-force all
around me just sucking me into
00:17:02.26\00:17:06.91
that beautiful leather seat.
00:17:06.94\00:17:09.23
And then he slowed down.
00:17:10.67\00:17:12.02
We went a few
more miles and he said,
00:17:12.22\00:17:14.29
"Are you ready to drive it?"
00:17:14.32\00:17:15.96
I said, "Sure."
00:17:15.99\00:17:17.04
He pulled over,
we switched seats.
00:17:17.51\00:17:20.26
I'm now in the driver's seat.
00:17:20.29\00:17:22.51
Oh man, this is
going to be great.
00:17:22.83\00:17:24.85
But I'm nervous.
00:17:25.03\00:17:26.43
I'm thinking, "Do I
really want to floor this?
00:17:26.60\00:17:28.19
I wonder if he has
insurance on this thing?
00:17:28.22\00:17:30.15
Of course he has
insurance on this thing.
00:17:30.18\00:17:32.28
A lot of
insurance on this thing.
00:17:32.48\00:17:34.34
It's perfectly fine," I
say to myself in my mind.
00:17:34.37\00:17:37.18
And then I have another
thought that enters my mind.
00:17:37.21\00:17:39.43
"He should put his seatbelt on."
00:17:40.02\00:17:41.60
Because he didn't have it on.
00:17:41.70\00:17:43.24
So I suggested it.
He said, "Oh yeah."
00:17:43.54\00:17:45.39
And he put it on.
00:17:45.42\00:17:46.56
And we begin going
down that country road.
00:17:46.59\00:17:49.06
Just slow at first.
00:17:49.36\00:17:50.40
I wasn't going to floor
it without his permission.
00:17:50.43\00:17:53.17
And I just kept going
along 40, 50, 60 miles an hour.
00:17:53.93\00:17:57.16
And he said, "Okay,
this is a good spot.
00:17:58.05\00:18:01.11
Do it."
00:18:01.14\00:18:02.17
And I floored it.
00:18:02.20\00:18:04.05
And it was so exhilarating and
so frightening and terrifying
00:18:04.08\00:18:08.54
at the same time that
I couldn't even look down
00:18:08.57\00:18:11.51
at the speedometer to
find out how fast I was going.
00:18:11.54\00:18:14.32
But I'm telling
you, it was really fast.
00:18:14.35\00:18:16.90
And this guy, who had never been
in the passenger seat before,
00:18:16.93\00:18:19.71
was grabbing for the
dashboard and the mirrors and...
00:18:19.74\00:18:23.98
I was going to tell you he began
to scream like a little girl,
00:18:25.07\00:18:27.22
but that wouldn't be
nice and it wouldn't be true.
00:18:27.25\00:18:29.22
But it was something like that.
00:18:29.25\00:18:31.16
This guy had never been
in the passenger seat before.
00:18:31.19\00:18:33.71
Now I tell you
this whole experience
00:18:34.01\00:18:35.97
to point something out.
00:18:36.00\00:18:37.19
The Bugatti Veyron
is something specific.
00:18:38.06\00:18:43.14
How would you define it?
00:18:44.26\00:18:45.29
What is a Bugatti Veyron?
00:18:45.32\00:18:48.39
A Bugatti Veyron is a very
finely tuned highly engineered
00:18:48.42\00:18:56.35
driving machine.
00:18:56.38\00:18:58.94
That's what it is.
00:18:59.14\00:19:00.25
It is made, it is
designed for driving
00:19:00.63\00:19:07.04
and for a driving experience.
00:19:07.07\00:19:09.15
That's what it is by design.
00:19:09.18\00:19:11.38
And the Bugatti
Veyron, because of its design,
00:19:11.99\00:19:15.63
is made to operate and
function on a very high
00:19:16.09\00:19:20.23
octane fuel source.
00:19:20.26\00:19:22.83
A very special gasoline.
00:19:23.70\00:19:25.70
The kind that
they use in airplanes.
00:19:25.80\00:19:30.40
Very pure fuel source.
00:19:30.70\00:19:33.03
And that fuel source is
what gives the Bugatti Veyron
00:19:33.16\00:19:38.29
its power to
function at the optimal level
00:19:38.39\00:19:42.90
according to its design.
00:19:42.93\00:19:44.52
Now what I'm here to
share with you this evening
00:19:44.82\00:19:47.24
is that we, as human beings,
are a particular kind of thing.
00:19:47.59\00:19:53.22
A particular type of
apparatus, if you will.
00:19:53.46\00:19:56.99
We're a
particular kind of creature,
00:19:57.02\00:20:00.47
you and I, human beings are.
00:20:00.50\00:20:02.68
We are finely
tuned, highly engineered,
00:20:02.94\00:20:07.25
psychological, emotional,
and biological machines
00:20:07.28\00:20:11.27
of a particular specific sort.
00:20:11.30\00:20:13.61
And we were made by our Maker
to operate on a very specific
00:20:14.61\00:20:21.49
pure energy source.
00:20:21.62\00:20:25.29
And that energy source,
that fuel source, that power
00:20:26.54\00:20:30.79
that causes the human being
to operate at the optimal level,
00:20:30.99\00:20:35.73
to really be human as
we were intended to be...
00:20:35.76\00:20:40.89
Because there's a
whole lot of subhuman,
00:20:41.09\00:20:43.68
subhuman activity
going on in our world.
00:20:44.09\00:20:47.46
A whole lot of
actions and deeds and pursuits
00:20:47.89\00:20:51.20
that are not
worthy of our humanity,
00:20:51.23\00:20:54.68
that are actually pursuits
and actions that are contrary
00:20:55.57\00:21:00.17
to the design protocols
that the Creator of the universe
00:21:00.20\00:21:05.40
and our Creator
has designed us for.
00:21:05.43\00:21:08.86
Designed protocols built in
to our minds and our emotions
00:21:08.89\00:21:13.69
and our bodies.
00:21:13.72\00:21:14.93
Now the pure fuel
source, the energy source,
00:21:15.15\00:21:18.39
that you and I were designed
and created to operate on
00:21:18.90\00:21:22.17
is none other
than the love of God.
00:21:22.20\00:21:26.65
We're going to
see this in Scripture
00:21:26.85\00:21:28.16
as we begin our study tonight.
00:21:28.19\00:21:30.48
Look with me first of all, we're
going to look at a number of
00:21:30.51\00:21:33.09
Scriptures tonight, but
we're going to build our case
00:21:33.12\00:21:36.18
by first taking a
look at Matthew chapter 22.
00:21:36.21\00:21:40.74
If you have a Bible,
open it up and take a look
00:21:40.77\00:21:43.60
at this incredible
interaction between Jesus
00:21:43.63\00:21:47.75
and a particular individual.
00:21:48.25\00:21:50.15
Starting with verse 36,
this person, this lawyer,
00:21:51.11\00:21:55.97
says to Jesus, "Teacher,
which is the great commandment
00:21:56.00\00:22:02.08
in the law?"
00:22:02.11\00:22:03.67
Now notice the
language, "the law."
00:22:03.70\00:22:05.81
Because this five
part series is on what?
00:22:05.84\00:22:08.99
It's on the law.
00:22:09.02\00:22:10.05
That's what we're exploring.
00:22:10.08\00:22:11.12
We are asking God, "Lord,
open our eyes that we may see
00:22:11.34\00:22:16.80
wondrous things in your law."
00:22:17.00\00:22:21.58
That's our topic.
00:22:21.61\00:22:22.70
Five part series
on the law of God.
00:22:22.80\00:22:25.77
Our topic this evening
is, The Law Before the Law.
00:22:25.98\00:22:31.36
And the significance of that
provocative title is going to
00:22:31.39\00:22:34.80
unfold before us as
we continue our study.
00:22:34.83\00:22:38.21
So the question here is
regarding the law of God.
00:22:38.41\00:22:42.38
And specifically, this guy
wants some kind of hierarchical
00:22:42.96\00:22:47.20
statement to be made.
00:22:47.23\00:22:48.61
"Which," he says, "is the
great commandment in the law?"
00:22:48.71\00:22:53.12
He's anticipating that there
is some point, some command,
00:22:53.15\00:22:58.49
of the law that is head and
shoulders above all the others,
00:22:58.52\00:23:02.55
and that everything else falls
under that one great command.
00:23:02.72\00:23:07.61
And Jesus gives a
fascinating answer.
00:23:07.64\00:23:10.41
He says, watch this,
verse 37, "Jesus said to him,
00:23:10.74\00:23:15.88
'You shall love the Lord
your God with all your heart,
00:23:15.91\00:23:21.33
and with all your soul,
and with all your mind.'"
00:23:21.61\00:23:25.55
This is interesting.
00:23:25.58\00:23:26.61
Your heart is to be involved.
00:23:26.64\00:23:28.70
That's your emotional makeup.
00:23:28.73\00:23:30.99
The way you feel.
00:23:31.46\00:23:33.03
Your soul is to be
involved in this love.
00:23:33.39\00:23:38.63
The word, "soul," there
in the Greek is, "psyche."
00:23:38.66\00:23:42.10
The center of the
operations of the human being.
00:23:42.26\00:23:47.55
It refers to the
seat of decision making.
00:23:47.58\00:23:50.28
The will, the power of choice.
00:23:50.31\00:23:52.37
Freedom that is
built into the human being.
00:23:52.40\00:23:56.17
The capacity
for freewill action.
00:23:56.49\00:23:59.98
"...and with all your mind."
00:24:00.08\00:24:01.80
That is your intellect.
00:24:01.83\00:24:03.59
All of the total person of the
human being is to be brought in
00:24:03.97\00:24:09.99
to this experience.
00:24:10.02\00:24:11.97
"You shall love the
Lord your God with,"
00:24:12.00\00:24:15.59
shall we say it this way,
"the totality of your being."
00:24:15.79\00:24:19.76
From the inside out.
00:24:20.16\00:24:22.56
The whole thing.
00:24:22.73\00:24:24.59
Everything that you
are is to be brought
00:24:24.62\00:24:28.05
into this
experience of the love of God.
00:24:28.08\00:24:32.38
And then Jesus goes on.
00:24:32.41\00:24:34.29
And He says in verse
38, "This is the first and
00:24:34.97\00:24:38.59
great commandment.
00:24:38.62\00:24:39.91
And the second is like it."
00:24:39.94\00:24:42.41
It's the same in
basic essence in nature.
00:24:42.73\00:24:46.16
It's just focused
in another direction.
00:24:46.19\00:24:48.32
"You shall love your
neighbor as your..." What?
00:24:48.87\00:24:52.99
"...as yourself."
00:24:53.21\00:24:54.79
So here Jesus makes,
first of all, a statement
00:24:55.16\00:24:59.19
regarding what we might refer
to as our vertical relationship
00:24:59.22\00:25:04.39
with God.
00:25:05.54\00:25:06.87
From my mind, my heart, my soul
upward and outward toward God.
00:25:07.53\00:25:13.50
And then Jesus tells us
that this love is to impact
00:25:13.70\00:25:19.93
our horizontal relationships
with our fellow human beings.
00:25:19.96\00:25:25.13
Jesus then summarizes
and He says, "On these two
00:25:25.87\00:25:30.50
commandments hang,"
notice the language,
00:25:30.53\00:25:33.40
"all the Law and the Prophets."
00:25:33.43\00:25:36.52
All the Law and the Prophets.
00:25:37.03\00:25:39.92
It's important to
realize that when this lawyer
00:25:40.02\00:25:43.73
asked the question, "What is the
great commandment in the law?"
00:25:43.76\00:25:47.16
and when Jesus says,
"All the Law and the Prophets
00:25:47.19\00:25:50.77
hangs upon," is
enveloped in these two;
00:25:50.80\00:25:56.06
love to God and love
to our fellow human being.
00:25:56.09\00:25:58.61
The word, "law," here
is referring not merely to
00:25:58.64\00:26:03.65
the Ten Commandments,
but it is inclusive of
00:26:03.68\00:26:07.12
the Ten Commandments.
00:26:07.15\00:26:08.31
The Jews commonly
referred to the first five books
00:26:08.79\00:26:11.76
of the Bible
written by Moses as the Law.
00:26:11.79\00:26:15.38
And then the Prophets.
00:26:15.92\00:26:18.30
They would refer to
the Law and the Prophets.
00:26:18.33\00:26:21.31
And the Law and the Prophets
basically meant the entire
00:26:21.41\00:26:26.11
Old Testament scriptures.
00:26:26.14\00:26:27.82
Now they didn't call
it, the Old Testament.
00:26:27.85\00:26:29.33
It was the only
testament they had.
00:26:29.36\00:26:31.09
That was the Bible, that
was the Scriptures for them.
00:26:31.40\00:26:34.48
And Jesus is telling us here
that from Genesis to Malachi,
00:26:34.51\00:26:41.28
the entirety of the
Law, everything that you read
00:26:41.31\00:26:46.14
in Genesis straight through
to Malachi, it's all about
00:26:46.17\00:26:51.61
one thing, if
you distill it down.
00:26:51.64\00:26:54.28
It's all about love.
00:26:54.31\00:26:57.27
It is about the love of
God as the designed protocol
00:26:57.30\00:27:05.15
for human existence.
00:27:05.18\00:27:06.85
When the Bible says in Genesis
that God man, or mankind,
00:27:07.14\00:27:12.03
in His own image, that
simply means that God made
00:27:12.06\00:27:15.89
human beings to think and
to feel and to behave like
00:27:15.92\00:27:20.13
God thinks and
feels and behaves.
00:27:20.16\00:27:22.75
In other words, to
love like God loves.
00:27:22.78\00:27:25.89
The whole Bible, Genesis
to Malachi, and now we have
00:27:26.28\00:27:30.95
the New Testament straight
on through to Revelation,
00:27:30.98\00:27:34.50
the whole Bible,
Genesis to Revelation,
00:27:34.53\00:27:37.20
is encompassed in the
vertical love relationship
00:27:37.23\00:27:41.46
and horizontal
love relationships.
00:27:41.49\00:27:44.70
That's what the whole
Bible is actually about.
00:27:44.73\00:27:48.57
Now this poses a
problem immediately.
00:27:48.91\00:27:51.56
And here's the problem.
00:27:51.95\00:27:53.27
Because if we think
of the Ten Commandments
00:27:53.63\00:27:57.37
specifically, we run up
against the problem that
00:27:57.40\00:28:03.09
a lot of human history
unfolded before we come
00:28:03.12\00:28:07.26
to the giving of
the Ten Commandments,
00:28:07.29\00:28:09.00
the writing of the law
of God, the Ten Commandments
00:28:09.03\00:28:11.47
on tables of stone.
00:28:11.50\00:28:12.53
A lot of human
history is unfolded
00:28:12.56\00:28:14.87
by the time we get
to Exodus chapter 20.
00:28:15.52\00:28:19.22
And we have no
mention specifically of the
00:28:19.94\00:28:23.90
Ten Commandments before
that point in the narrative,
00:28:23.93\00:28:28.29
the story of human history.
00:28:28.32\00:28:30.71
But here's the
fascinating thing.
00:28:30.74\00:28:32.46
Jesus, in this text,
says that the whole Law,
00:28:32.56\00:28:36.68
going all the way back
to Genesis, the whole Law
00:28:36.71\00:28:40.64
and the Prophets is encompassed
in the vertical principle of
00:28:40.67\00:28:45.21
love and the
horizontal principle of love.
00:28:45.24\00:28:48.35
I think you'll find it
interesting that the law of God
00:28:49.23\00:28:53.85
as we have it on tables
of stone, what we commonly
00:28:53.95\00:28:58.70
refer to as the
Ten Commandments...
00:28:58.73\00:29:01.77
Alright, follow this.
00:29:01.80\00:29:03.26
...are, well by Exodus
20, are a rather new thing
00:29:03.70\00:29:10.63
for human beings and
angels to contemplate
00:29:11.00\00:29:14.15
the law in that form, in
the form of Ten Commandments.
00:29:14.18\00:29:18.06
If you were to talk to angels
before Mount Sinai, for example,
00:29:18.77\00:29:25.46
and the giving of the
law on tables of stone,
00:29:25.56\00:29:27.87
the angels would not be familiar
with the law in that form.
00:29:28.07\00:29:32.72
Fascinating.
00:29:32.75\00:29:33.80
Do you have the
book, the commentary, on
00:29:33.83\00:29:37.21
the sermon on the mount
by the author Ellen White
00:29:37.24\00:29:41.60
called, Thoughts From
the Mount of Blessing?
00:29:41.63\00:29:43.55
Anybody have that book?
00:29:43.58\00:29:44.78
I want to encourage
you to check out page 109.
00:29:45.31\00:29:49.62
And you'll read
these fascinating words,
00:29:49.94\00:29:52.18
this incredible
insight on that page.
00:29:52.21\00:29:55.56
Can you picture this?
00:30:26.25\00:30:27.57
When Satan rebelled against God,
and the word went out that Satan
00:30:29.13\00:30:36.05
had rebelled, and God
began to speak of the fact that
00:30:36.08\00:30:39.48
Satan has now broken God's law,
the angels found the idea...
00:30:39.58\00:30:47.50
What does it say here?
00:30:47.53\00:30:48.59
...the idea that there was a
law as something unthought of.
00:30:48.62\00:30:54.60
They didn't know
anything about a law
00:30:54.74\00:30:57.01
in the form of Ten Commandments;
00:30:57.21\00:30:59.88
"Thou shalt..."
"Thou shalt not..."
00:31:00.15\00:31:02.42
Why not? Well the
statement goes on.
00:31:02.68\00:31:04.67
And it says this.
00:31:04.70\00:31:06.13
Now what we need
to understand here
00:31:34.94\00:31:37.76
is that when the law was given
in the form of Ten Commandments
00:31:38.47\00:31:43.86
on tables of stone,
listen now, that was not when
00:31:43.89\00:31:48.71
the law began to exist.
00:31:48.91\00:31:51.43
The law had existence
before we find it showing up
00:31:52.89\00:31:58.56
in history, in
universal history.
00:31:58.59\00:32:01.15
Before the law shows up at
Mount Sinai on tables of stone,
00:32:01.25\00:32:05.88
the law already existed.
00:32:05.91\00:32:08.06
Where did the law exist?
00:32:08.50\00:32:10.11
The law existed,
listen carefully now,
00:32:10.14\00:32:12.53
in the very essence and fabric
of God's heart and identity.
00:32:12.56\00:32:17.29
That's why we say sometimes
that the law is a transcript
00:32:18.00\00:32:21.00
of God's character.
00:32:21.03\00:32:23.48
Before we find it
showing up on tables of stone,
00:32:23.58\00:32:27.24
the law of God was,
simply and profoundly,
00:32:27.27\00:32:31.35
the essence of God's character.
00:32:31.45\00:32:33.99
God had always been a God
of infinite other-centered
00:32:34.76\00:32:40.19
self-giving love.
00:32:40.39\00:32:42.51
That's who God is.
00:32:42.61\00:32:44.27
That's how He
thinks, how He feels,
00:32:44.49\00:32:46.23
how He behaves.
00:32:46.26\00:32:47.98
Then sin entered the universe.
00:32:49.18\00:32:52.10
Beginning with the
rebellion of Lucifer
00:32:52.13\00:32:54.28
and the fall of approximately
one-third of the angels.
00:32:54.31\00:32:57.27
And then taking in humanity,
sin entered the universe.
00:32:57.30\00:33:02.43
And when sin entered
the universe, now it became
00:33:03.21\00:33:06.84
necessary to articulate the
law in the form that we find it
00:33:06.87\00:33:11.88
with the Ten Commandments.
00:33:11.91\00:33:13.28
Remember what the statement
said that we just read.
00:33:13.31\00:33:15.78
When the law finally comes forth
in a written codified form;
00:33:16.46\00:33:23.26
number one, number two,
number three, number four,
00:33:23.46\00:33:25.16
straight through
ten, ten commandments,
00:33:25.19\00:33:27.27
when the law comes forth in that
form, how do the angels respond?
00:33:27.30\00:33:33.22
"Well that's strange,"
they say to themselves.
00:33:34.59\00:33:36.21
"There's a law? What law?
00:33:36.24\00:33:37.75
Gabriel, you've
heard of any law?"
00:33:38.31\00:33:39.44
"No, I haven't
heard of any law?"
00:33:39.47\00:33:40.81
What's this law?
00:33:40.84\00:33:42.08
What's this law idea?
00:33:42.12\00:33:43.87
Why was it that the angels
were unfamiliar with the law
00:33:43.97\00:33:51.33
in the form of ten commandments?
00:33:51.36\00:33:53.62
Because the law was written
in to the fabric and the essence
00:33:54.75\00:34:01.01
of their very natures as angels.
00:34:01.04\00:34:03.70
God created them to
love like God loves.
00:34:03.73\00:34:07.87
And so,
psychologically and emotionally,
00:34:08.19\00:34:10.85
the angels were made,
or designed, or engineered
00:34:11.07\00:34:15.07
to operate optimally on
the fuel, the power source,
00:34:15.27\00:34:20.63
the energy of God's love.
00:34:20.66\00:34:22.91
It's intrinsic to the
angelic nature to love.
00:34:23.65\00:34:28.01
So they were
simply loving one another.
00:34:28.92\00:34:31.24
Living, each angel,
for all the other angels.
00:34:31.88\00:34:35.39
And all of them
collectively and individually,
00:34:35.42\00:34:37.71
all living for God.
00:34:37.81\00:34:40.15
And God, being the God
of infinite love that He is,
00:34:40.85\00:34:44.77
God living for them.
00:34:44.80\00:34:46.89
And that's what the
universe was made to look like
00:34:47.54\00:34:50.76
and to operate like.
00:34:50.79\00:34:52.36
So the angels are
surprised, they're blown away.
00:34:53.14\00:34:56.24
"Law? What law?
00:34:56.27\00:34:57.56
I've never heard of any law,"
the angels say to themselves
00:34:57.59\00:35:00.45
and among themselves.
00:35:00.48\00:35:02.61
"I've never heard of any law."
00:35:02.64\00:35:03.96
Oh, and yet there is a law.
00:35:04.55\00:35:06.11
And now it's
brought forth in this form.
00:35:06.51\00:35:08.54
What about human beings?
00:35:08.57\00:35:10.12
The law of God didn't
merely begin to exist at Sinai.
00:35:10.68\00:35:14.88
When Adam and Eve
sinned originally in Eden,
00:35:14.91\00:35:19.04
when they became
sinners, they had broken
00:35:20.68\00:35:24.19
the law of God.
00:35:24.22\00:35:25.65
But they had
broken the law of God
00:35:27.30\00:35:29.18
at its most fundamental level.
00:35:29.21\00:35:32.01
There were no ten
commandments enshrined
00:35:32.56\00:35:35.23
in the Garden of Eden somewhere?
00:35:35.26\00:35:37.40
There was one basic command.
00:35:37.80\00:35:39.88
And what was it?
00:35:39.91\00:35:40.97
"You're totally free
to eat, to partake of,
00:35:41.87\00:35:45.57
to just enjoy
yourself and partake of all the
00:35:45.60\00:35:50.27
trees of the
garden, but not this one.
00:35:50.30\00:35:53.99
And in that simple
command, God had put in place
00:35:54.45\00:35:59.62
a mechanism by which
they could be free to choose
00:35:59.78\00:36:04.01
to live for Him above themselves
00:36:04.04\00:36:07.74
or choose to
live for themselves.
00:36:07.77\00:36:09.66
The tree of the
knowledge of good and evil,
00:36:09.87\00:36:11.65
we might think of it like this:
00:36:11.68\00:36:12.93
It's a kind of voting booth.
00:36:12.96\00:36:14.78
It's God saying,
"I'm not going to lock you
00:36:16.15\00:36:19.20
in a room with Myself.
00:36:19.23\00:36:21.06
I'm not going to
imprison you in a room with Me.
00:36:21.78\00:36:26.64
I'm going to create
you with all the capacities
00:36:26.90\00:36:31.30
for love and other-centeredness,
and then I'm going to give you
00:36:31.40\00:36:36.76
a door, if you so
choose, to walk out of the room,
00:36:37.37\00:36:41.63
to walk out of
this relationship."
00:36:41.89\00:36:44.78
God set up the system in
such a way that human beings
00:36:45.04\00:36:52.18
were designed to operate on the
premise of other-centered love.
00:36:52.21\00:36:57.10
That's what we are, my friends.
00:36:57.20\00:36:58.99
Just as a Bugatti
Veyron is a highly engineered
00:36:59.34\00:37:03.75
driving machine, you
and I, each one of us,
00:37:04.11\00:37:07.33
we are highly
engineered love machines;
00:37:07.36\00:37:10.86
psychologically,
emotionally, even biologically.
00:37:11.00\00:37:14.79
Every one of us
operate at the optimal level
00:37:14.99\00:37:19.22
when we are in
the process of giving.
00:37:19.25\00:37:22.93
Living for others
above and before ourselves.
00:37:23.61\00:37:27.87
And when we choose
not to live for others
00:37:28.02\00:37:31.87
above and before ourselves,
that's what the Bible calls sin.
00:37:31.90\00:37:36.01
Now look at it in
the big picture of the
00:37:36.55\00:37:40.72
biblical storyline.
00:37:40.75\00:37:43.23
The ministry that I represent
is called, Light Bearers.
00:37:43.72\00:37:46.29
And we conduct an annual school,
a discipleship training course
00:37:46.32\00:37:50.79
called, ARISE.
00:37:50.82\00:37:52.18
And that course that we
run, once each year in the
00:37:52.21\00:37:56.20
United States and once
each year in Australia,
00:37:56.23\00:37:58.76
that school, that
discipleship course,
00:37:59.04\00:38:01.54
the entire curriculum
moves through the Bible,
00:38:01.74\00:38:04.88
Genesis to Revelation.
00:38:04.91\00:38:06.90
And it is built on the grid,
if you will, of the narrative
00:38:06.93\00:38:12.37
of Scripture, the
storyline of Scripture.
00:38:12.40\00:38:15.37
And the storyline
looks something like this:
00:38:15.40\00:38:19.20
First of all, as we
bring up the first visual,
00:38:19.23\00:38:23.05
the first graphic...
00:38:23.08\00:38:24.11
And I don't know how
you're going to see it.
00:38:24.14\00:38:26.13
Oh there it is. Alright.
00:38:26.33\00:38:27.44
The first graphic gives
the whole story of Scripture,
00:38:27.47\00:38:30.95
Genesis to Revelation.
00:38:30.98\00:38:32.63
And there are seven chapters
to the story, if you will,
00:38:33.51\00:38:36.87
or seven modules to our
discipleship training course.
00:38:36.90\00:38:40.94
The first one, give me
the next slide, the first one
00:38:41.14\00:38:44.07
we call, Pre-Creation.
00:38:44.17\00:38:46.90
Pre-Creation.
00:38:47.35\00:38:48.39
Go ahead and change the slide.
00:38:48.42\00:38:49.92
Pre-Creation.
00:38:50.23\00:38:51.72
And pre-creation
refers to that period of time
00:38:52.33\00:38:57.60
before human beings
and angels were made.
00:38:57.88\00:39:00.71
If God is eternal,
right, and we're created beings,
00:39:00.81\00:39:05.64
along with the angels,
that means we're driven
00:39:05.67\00:39:09.10
logically to the conclusion
that God, who alone is eternal,
00:39:09.13\00:39:13.12
existed in all eternity
past before we were made,
00:39:13.15\00:39:17.49
before we were created.
00:39:17.52\00:39:19.09
And what's going
on there with God;
00:39:19.28\00:39:22.30
Father, Son and Holy
Spirit, prior to our creation
00:39:22.40\00:39:25.82
in this pre-creation period?
00:39:25.85\00:39:29.08
Well it's very simply,
and beautiful, and profound.
00:39:29.63\00:39:33.56
The Father, the Son, and
the Holy Spirit are living
00:39:34.57\00:39:37.46
in
other-centered self-giving love.
00:39:37.66\00:39:40.14
Or you could say it this way,
00:39:40.17\00:39:41.60
they're living
according to "their law."
00:39:41.63\00:39:45.99
What is the law of God?
00:39:46.35\00:39:48.31
The law of God, according
to Jesus, is summarized
00:39:48.34\00:39:50.99
in a single word.
00:39:51.02\00:39:52.05
What is that word?
00:39:52.08\00:39:53.11
Love.
00:39:53.26\00:39:54.29
And then as the story unfolds,
next slide, pre-creation
00:39:55.11\00:39:59.51
gives way to creation in
the storyline of Scripture.
00:39:59.54\00:40:04.34
God brings into existence
others to love like God loves.
00:40:04.96\00:40:10.75
To experience the
joy and the beauty
00:40:10.86\00:40:14.41
of other-centered existence.
00:40:14.44\00:40:17.28
In other words, in creation
God is simply reproducing
00:40:17.64\00:40:23.31
the capacity in others
for loving like He loves.
00:40:24.32\00:40:29.58
It's an amazing thing.
00:40:29.61\00:40:30.79
This is what it means
when it says God created man
00:40:30.82\00:40:33.43
in His own image.
00:40:33.46\00:40:35.73
And then the
story unfolds forward
00:40:35.76\00:40:37.78
and it begins to get ugly.
00:40:37.81\00:40:39.75
The third module or the
third chapter in the biblical
00:40:39.78\00:40:44.05
narrative is
the fall of mankind.
00:40:44.08\00:40:48.06
Next slide.
00:40:48.15\00:40:49.18
The fall of mankind.
00:40:49.74\00:40:51.60
This is where
something horrible takes place.
00:40:52.37\00:40:56.63
What is the fall of mankind?
00:40:56.66\00:40:59.02
The fall of mankind
is simply love violated.
00:40:59.34\00:41:04.95
Love in reverse.
00:41:05.08\00:41:06.78
It's human beings that
were created to live for others,
00:41:06.81\00:41:12.51
for God and our
fellow human beings,
00:41:12.54\00:41:14.59
above and before ourselves.
00:41:14.62\00:41:16.35
The fall is
basically selfishness
00:41:16.38\00:41:19.68
entering into the system.
00:41:19.71\00:41:21.67
It's like putting a corrupted
fuel source in the Bugatti.
00:41:21.70\00:41:26.92
It's like putting a fuel
source in the Bugatti that will
00:41:27.72\00:41:32.76
cause it to malfunction.
00:41:32.79\00:41:34.96
It won't operate the
way it's suppose to operate.
00:41:34.99\00:41:37.68
The moment Adam and
Eve begin living each one
00:41:37.71\00:41:41.59
for self, the
relationship between themselves
00:41:41.79\00:41:45.59
and God breaks
down, and the relationship
00:41:45.62\00:41:48.12
between themselves as
husband and wife breaks down.
00:41:48.15\00:41:50.72
We see in Genesis
the relationship between
00:41:50.75\00:41:53.07
parents and
children breaking down,
00:41:53.10\00:41:55.35
brother and
brother breaking down.
00:41:55.38\00:41:57.80
Each one living
for him or herself.
00:41:58.43\00:42:03.03
And so the law of God
is broken, it's violated.
00:42:04.01\00:42:07.81
And at this point in
the story, still there's no
00:42:07.84\00:42:09.86
ten commandments
on tables of stone.
00:42:09.89\00:42:11.92
That's still future.
00:42:11.95\00:42:13.07
And yet, we're encountering
the law before the law.
00:42:13.10\00:42:16.70
What is the law before
the law is given in the
00:42:16.73\00:42:21.85
form of ten commandments?
00:42:21.88\00:42:23.24
It is the love of God.
00:42:23.34\00:42:24.74
Jesus made that clear.
00:42:25.76\00:42:27.36
And the fall is simply
the violation of God's love.
00:42:27.72\00:42:32.65
It is the breakdown
of relational integrity.
00:42:32.68\00:42:36.65
It's when I begin to
think of and live for myself,
00:42:36.94\00:42:40.41
and you do the same,
00:42:40.44\00:42:41.76
and relationships
begin to disintegrate.
00:42:41.79\00:42:44.45
And there's violation
and abuse of every kind.
00:42:44.48\00:42:48.60
But the story unfolds forward.
00:42:48.77\00:42:51.41
After pre-creation
and creation and the fall,
00:42:51.44\00:42:56.65
then we see as the story
unfolds this incredible idea,
00:42:56.68\00:43:00.97
next slide, this incredible
idea that is pervasive
00:43:01.00\00:43:06.01
through the story of
Scripture; the idea of covenant.
00:43:06.04\00:43:09.16
God Himself is a God of
covenantal relationships.
00:43:09.73\00:43:15.84
Father, Son, and Holy
Spirit in pre-creation
00:43:16.32\00:43:19.09
lived in covenantal
relationship one with another.
00:43:19.26\00:43:23.12
According to Scripture, even
before humanity was created,
00:43:23.58\00:43:27.41
Father, Son, and Holy Spirit
entered into a covenant of peace
00:43:27.66\00:43:31.66
to save you and me if we were
to fall, to save the human race.
00:43:31.69\00:43:36.96
To embark upon a
salvation venture if necessary.
00:43:36.99\00:43:43.94
And covenant is the
central biblical idea.
00:43:44.39\00:43:47.65
When you read the
word, "covenant," in the
00:43:47.75\00:43:49.87
biblical story, it simply
means relational faithfulness.
00:43:49.90\00:43:54.74
When God says, "I am entering
into a covenant with you,"
00:43:54.88\00:44:00.42
essentially what God means
is, "I will be faithful to you.
00:44:00.83\00:44:04.32
I will continue to be good.
00:44:04.50\00:44:06.89
I will continue to love you even
though you violate the covenant.
00:44:06.92\00:44:10.90
Even though you sin
and rebel against Me,
00:44:11.00\00:44:14.33
I will continue to make
and keep My promises to you."
00:44:14.36\00:44:18.56
That's the essence
of the idea of covenant.
00:44:18.59\00:44:21.80
And it is the hinge
idea in the biblical story.
00:44:21.83\00:44:25.94
God promising faithfulness
and following through
00:44:26.17\00:44:32.11
to the point of
death at Calvary finally.
00:44:32.14\00:44:34.70
Which brings us to the
next module in the story,
00:44:34.73\00:44:36.88
the next chapter;
and that's Messiah.
00:44:36.91\00:44:39.15
We read in Scripture
that when Messiah comes
00:44:39.71\00:44:45.62
to our world as the Savior,
according to Daniel chapter 9,
00:44:45.65\00:44:49.11
He will confirm the covenant.
00:44:49.14\00:44:52.53
He's going to ratify,
He's going to fulfill,
00:44:54.18\00:44:59.14
covenantal faithfulness.
00:44:59.97\00:45:02.51
He's going to keep
covenant as God toward man.
00:45:02.70\00:45:07.11
But He's going to do
something else remarkable.
00:45:07.14\00:45:09.23
Through, by virtue of the
incarnation, Jesus is going to
00:45:09.47\00:45:13.79
fulfill covenant faithfulness
from the human side as well.
00:45:13.82\00:45:17.64
In Jesus, the
divine human person,
00:45:17.75\00:45:22.58
where we see that
the Savior of mankind
00:45:23.20\00:45:27.48
has retained His divinity...
00:45:27.51\00:45:28.89
He's one hundred
percent divine; He is God.
00:45:28.92\00:45:31.59
And now He is become
one hundred percent human.
00:45:32.04\00:45:35.41
It's not 50/50.
00:45:35.89\00:45:37.42
It's 100/100.
00:45:37.45\00:45:38.95
Jesus comes to our world, and
according to Daniel's prophecy,
00:45:39.76\00:45:43.21
He's come for a reason.
00:45:43.24\00:45:45.19
And that is to
confirm the covenant.
00:45:45.22\00:45:49.55
To keep faithfulness
in covenantal integrity
00:45:49.58\00:45:54.01
as God toward man.
00:45:54.04\00:45:57.01
But now, by virtue of the
incarnation, Jesus lives a
00:45:57.30\00:46:00.55
perfect life of covenantal
faithfulness toward God.
00:46:00.58\00:46:03.78
So He is our Savior
in the fullest sense
00:46:04.50\00:46:08.22
that we could
possibly comprehend.
00:46:08.40\00:46:10.29
And how does He do it?
00:46:10.32\00:46:11.41
How does Jesus
save the human race?
00:46:11.44\00:46:14.38
By maintaining covenantal
faithfulness in the relationship
00:46:14.86\00:46:20.33
between God and humanity from
both sides of the relationship.
00:46:20.93\00:46:26.46
That's how He becomes
our substitute and surety.
00:46:26.77\00:46:30.88
That's how He becomes
the Redeemer and Savior
00:46:31.28\00:46:35.08
of the human race.
00:46:35.11\00:46:37.36
We might say it
from another angle.
00:46:37.39\00:46:39.67
Jesus saves the human
race by keeping the law of God.
00:46:40.42\00:46:45.67
Because what have we discovered?
00:46:46.55\00:46:47.88
That the law of God, before
we see it on tables of stone,
00:46:48.12\00:46:53.02
Ten Commandments, that
law had eternal existence
00:46:53.27\00:46:56.60
in the heart of God.
00:46:56.63\00:46:57.66
You could no more
abolish or do away with
00:46:57.69\00:47:00.11
the law of God than you
could do away with God Himself.
00:47:00.14\00:47:03.04
God is love.
00:47:03.48\00:47:07.52
He doesn't simply love, as
one aspect of His identity.
00:47:08.64\00:47:12.91
God is love, in the
totality of His identity.
00:47:12.94\00:47:16.04
And everything else that is true
of God is true of God because
00:47:16.07\00:47:20.20
God is love.
00:47:20.23\00:47:22.61
God is love,
therefore God is just.
00:47:22.77\00:47:25.84
Justice is a
manifestation of love.
00:47:25.87\00:47:28.32
It's not contrary to love.
00:47:28.35\00:47:29.85
It's a manifestation of love.
00:47:30.10\00:47:31.55
God is merciful,
because God is love.
00:47:31.58\00:47:35.58
God is generous and kind
and patient and long suffering.
00:47:35.61\00:47:39.95
In other words,
everything that is true of God
00:47:39.98\00:47:43.14
is true of God
because God is love.
00:47:43.74\00:47:46.29
And that love comes
to us in the Messiah,
00:47:46.54\00:47:51.86
in the person of Jesus Christ.
00:47:51.89\00:47:53.73
Jesus keeps the law
with utter and absolute
00:47:53.85\00:47:58.38
covenantal perfection.
00:47:58.49\00:48:00.80
And that's how He becomes
the Savior of the human race.
00:48:00.83\00:48:05.69
But that's not
the end of the story.
00:48:05.72\00:48:07.34
Because after pre-creation,
and creation, and fall,
00:48:07.37\00:48:10.89
and after covenant promises
made through all the prophets,
00:48:11.14\00:48:15.69
and after Messiah comes to
fulfill covenantal faithfulness
00:48:16.07\00:48:20.45
from both sides
of the relationship,
00:48:20.65\00:48:23.04
the next part of the
story that we find unfolding
00:48:23.51\00:48:25.76
in the New
Testament is the church.
00:48:25.79\00:48:28.58
The church of God that
we see coming to formation
00:48:28.95\00:48:33.84
in the New Testament, first
with Jesus calling the twelve,
00:48:34.33\00:48:38.51
and then surrounding
them with the seventy,
00:48:38.54\00:48:40.91
and this expansive
circle of witness and evangelism
00:48:40.94\00:48:45.56
to the world, takes on a
very active aggressive form
00:48:45.59\00:48:51.02
in the book of Acts.
00:48:51.05\00:48:52.35
And in the book of Acts,
we find the development of
00:48:52.96\00:48:56.39
the New Testament church.
00:48:56.42\00:48:57.98
What is the church?
00:48:58.01\00:48:59.18
The church is now the
body of Christ, the Messiah.
00:48:59.21\00:49:04.20
The church is now
covenantal faithfulness
00:49:04.63\00:49:09.52
coming to
development and perfection
00:49:09.55\00:49:12.95
within the body of Christ.
00:49:12.98\00:49:15.20
The same life that Jesus
lived of covenantal faithfulness
00:49:15.23\00:49:20.56
with God is now to take on
life in the body of Christ.
00:49:20.59\00:49:25.45
Why do we exist
as the church of God?
00:49:25.70\00:49:28.47
We exist to live God's
love toward one another
00:49:28.87\00:49:33.32
and to expand the witness
of that love to the world.
00:49:33.77\00:49:37.38
Jesus very clearly said, "They,"
speaking of the world at large,
00:49:37.41\00:49:41.91
"will know that you're My
disciples because of the love
00:49:41.94\00:49:45.92
that you have for one another."
00:49:45.95\00:49:47.43
Which is just another way
of saying, "The world will know
00:49:47.95\00:49:51.75
that you're My disciples by the
fact that you will keep My law."
00:49:51.78\00:49:57.13
Because to keep
the law of God is...
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What did we
discover a moment ago?
00:50:01.67\00:50:03.51
To love God with all our
heart, soul, mind, and strength;
00:50:04.30\00:50:06.89
and to love our
neighbor as ourselves.
00:50:06.92\00:50:09.66
It is one and the same thing
to say the church exists to love
00:50:10.82\00:50:15.79
and the church exists to
live in harmony with God's law,
00:50:15.88\00:50:21.01
vertically and horizontally.
00:50:21.04\00:50:22.85
The whole world looks on.
00:50:22.88\00:50:24.32
And what they're looking for,
what in fact the whole universe
00:50:24.35\00:50:27.91
is looking for, is that in
the church would be manifested
00:50:27.94\00:50:32.06
the love of God
in all its beauty.
00:50:33.00\00:50:36.91
And the story then
comes to a conclusion
00:50:37.01\00:50:39.62
with the final chapter.
00:50:39.65\00:50:41.11
And that final
chapter is re-creation.
00:50:41.82\00:50:45.88
The story begins
with pre-creation,
00:50:46.29\00:50:51.92
move straight
through to re-creation
00:50:52.09\00:50:55.01
where finally we see in
many passages in Isaiah,
00:50:55.04\00:50:59.22
many passages in the
prophets of the Old Testament,
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as well as in the New Testament,
and finally reaching its climax
00:51:03.29\00:51:08.67
in the book of Revelation,
we see that God is aiming
00:51:08.70\00:51:14.02
through Christ to re-create
human beings in His image
00:51:14.31\00:51:20.21
and to re-establish a
world, and in fact a universe,
00:51:20.40\00:51:25.37
in which only one
principle, only one principle,
00:51:25.40\00:51:29.65
rules and reigns.
00:51:29.75\00:51:31.64
And that principle,
that law is the law of love,
00:51:31.67\00:51:36.41
the law of life.
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I want you to notice a
couple of quotations here
00:51:40.43\00:51:43.00
that wrap language
around the law of God
00:51:43.40\00:51:46.32
that I think
you'll find interesting.
00:51:46.35\00:51:47.43
The first is in,
Desire Of Ages, page 19.
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In the book, Desire Of Ages, by
Ellen White, it is a commentary
00:51:50.18\00:51:53.54
on the life of Christ.
00:51:53.83\00:51:56.22
So as we bring up
that slide, notice...
00:51:56.56\00:52:00.68
What a fascinating
way of articulating
00:52:38.04\00:52:41.58
the law of God.
00:52:41.61\00:52:42.74
The law of God is
here described as the
00:52:43.88\00:52:47.18
law of self-renouncing love.
00:52:47.21\00:52:50.34
And where do we see, according
to what we just read here in,
00:52:50.37\00:52:53.56
Desire Of Ages,
page 19, where do we see
00:52:53.59\00:52:56.28
the law of self-renouncing
love manifested with perfection?
00:52:56.31\00:53:01.61
What did it say? At Calvary.
00:53:01.64\00:53:03.78
Because what do you see
taking place at Calvary?
00:53:04.06\00:53:06.31
Jesus dying on the cross
is Jesus living for all others
00:53:06.34\00:53:14.04
above and before Himself.
00:53:14.29\00:53:15.85
In other words, Calvary
is the law of God enacted.
00:53:16.84\00:53:21.83
Jesus personified the law
of God throughout His life,
00:53:22.35\00:53:28.13
and reaching its
climax at Calvary itself.
00:53:28.53\00:53:33.56
Jesus perfected in
human nature the love of God.
00:53:34.35\00:53:41.58
Which is simply to
say that Jesus lived in
00:53:41.61\00:53:44.00
perfect harmony
with the law of God;
00:53:44.03\00:53:46.10
which is the law of
self-renouncing love.
00:53:46.37\00:53:48.55
The next statement
from, Desire Of Ages, page 21,
00:53:48.58\00:53:51.46
just a couple of pages
over, interestingly speaking of
00:53:51.49\00:53:55.15
this love, it says...
00:53:55.18\00:53:58.93
Notice the language again.
00:54:41.09\00:54:42.56
This is the third time
we've encountered this language.
00:54:42.59\00:54:45.49
And that's the
title of our series here,
00:54:49.34\00:54:51.73
The Law of Life.
00:54:52.27\00:54:54.77
What we're realizing, as
we embark upon this study of
00:54:55.27\00:54:59.18
the law of God, is
what the law of God is not,
00:54:59.21\00:55:04.05
and by contrast,
what the law of God is.
00:55:04.08\00:55:06.84
The law of God is
not, listen carefully,
00:55:07.69\00:55:11.25
the law of God is
not an arbitrary list
00:55:12.16\00:55:17.39
of externally
imposed rules for conduct.
00:55:17.42\00:55:21.70
The way an emperor or
a king in ancient times
00:55:22.80\00:55:26.73
might create
laws for his subjects.
00:55:26.76\00:55:30.90
Diabolical and tyrannical
rulers manufacturing rules
00:55:32.41\00:55:38.19
for their subjects.
00:55:38.69\00:55:40.00
The law of God is not
arbitrary, by which we mean
00:55:40.03\00:55:43.47
the law of God is not
contrary to the operations
00:55:43.89\00:55:49.24
of reality itself.
00:55:49.84\00:55:51.47
God created the
world and human beings
00:55:51.65\00:55:55.51
to
intrinsically operate by love.
00:55:55.72\00:55:58.63
So it's not as if,
think about it this way,
00:55:59.41\00:56:01.74
it's not as if God
could have just come up with
00:56:01.77\00:56:04.32
a different ten.
00:56:04.35\00:56:06.22
No, the Ten Commandments
perfectly express exactly
00:56:08.34\00:56:11.61
what love looks like toward God
00:56:11.64\00:56:13.45
and toward our
fellow human beings.
00:56:13.48\00:56:15.26
The law of God is not an
arbitrary list of rules imposed
00:56:15.73\00:56:19.49
to control conduct.
00:56:19.69\00:56:21.03
No. So what is the law?
00:56:21.06\00:56:22.39
The law of God
is the law of life.
00:56:22.42\00:56:27.53
The law of God is the
principle of self-giving love
00:56:28.97\00:56:36.47
explained in the
Ten Commandments,
00:56:36.50\00:56:39.64
and in the whole of Scripture
from Genesis to Revelation.
00:56:39.67\00:56:42.96
The law of God is in
fact the means by which
00:56:43.31\00:56:48.20
human beings, as individuals and
as family units and as a church
00:56:48.23\00:56:53.51
and as a world, the law
of God is the means by which
00:56:53.54\00:56:57.43
God's law, God's
love, is incorporated
00:56:57.46\00:57:01.07
into every aspect of our living.
00:57:01.17\00:57:04.01
So that's what we're
going to be exploring
00:57:05.05\00:57:06.63
in our five part
series, The Law of Life.
00:57:06.66\00:57:09.11
Tonight, The Law Before the Law.
00:57:09.14\00:57:11.66
That is, the love of
God manifested in the way
00:57:12.11\00:57:18.57
we live toward God and the
way we live toward one another.
00:57:18.60\00:57:21.91
It's a very practical law.
00:57:21.94\00:57:23.48
It's a beautiful law.
00:57:23.51\00:57:24.84
God, open our
eyes that we may behold
00:57:24.89\00:57:28.06
wondrous things in Your law.
00:57:28.27\00:57:30.84