Welcome to a new Carter Report series, 00:00:01.36\00:00:03.93 The Game Changers. 00:00:03.97\00:00:05.77 These rare individuals appear once in a lifetime. 00:00:05.80\00:00:09.47 Like a blazing meteor across the night sky, 00:00:09.50\00:00:12.44 they change the course of history. 00:00:12.47\00:00:15.18 They show us the way forward. 00:00:15.21\00:00:18.18 Welcome to The Game Changers. 00:00:18.21\00:00:22.35 Many of my Aussie friends 00:00:26.32\00:00:29.82 are very anti-religion. 00:00:29.86\00:00:35.30 Not really anti-God, 00:00:35.33\00:00:38.87 but very anti-religion. 00:00:38.90\00:00:43.04 Now the Aussies are fond of saying, 00:00:43.07\00:00:45.37 and this is rather awful. 00:00:45.41\00:00:49.94 They say there are three sexes, 00:00:49.98\00:00:54.15 men, women, and clergymen. 00:00:54.18\00:00:59.42 Oops, now on the screen, 00:00:59.45\00:01:04.23 we have the Sydney Opera House. 00:01:04.26\00:01:05.63 We hired the Sydney Opera House for more than six months 00:01:05.66\00:01:09.30 when we had evangelistic meetings there. 00:01:09.33\00:01:11.40 Australia was not founded by the Pilgrim Fathers, 00:01:11.43\00:01:15.80 but by convicts. 00:01:15.84\00:01:18.31 Many of whom had stolen a loaf of bread 00:01:18.34\00:01:21.74 to feed their kids. 00:01:21.78\00:01:23.41 And so in the heart of many Australians, 00:01:23.45\00:01:26.45 it was a sense of justice 00:01:26.48\00:01:29.18 and injustice. 00:01:29.22\00:01:33.36 And then, of course, the pedophile scandals 00:01:33.39\00:01:35.72 in the Catholic Church around the world, 00:01:35.76\00:01:40.30 from Europe, Australia, 00:01:40.33\00:01:42.83 to America to Latin America. 00:01:42.86\00:01:47.00 These terrible scandals around the world 00:01:47.04\00:01:50.24 has not helped their appreciation 00:01:50.27\00:01:52.44 of organized religion. 00:01:52.47\00:01:56.38 The Australian government 00:01:56.41\00:01:57.75 has gone out basically by itself. 00:01:57.78\00:02:01.05 And it has formed a royal commission 00:02:01.08\00:02:05.92 to investigate this great church. 00:02:05.95\00:02:09.86 And at present, they're investigating 00:02:09.89\00:02:12.63 Cardinal Pell, 00:02:12.66\00:02:17.00 the highest ranking Roman Catholic prelate 00:02:17.03\00:02:21.57 to be investigated and charged for pedophilia. 00:02:21.60\00:02:27.58 Now, his trial is ongoing. 00:02:27.61\00:02:30.55 But can you imagine 00:02:30.58\00:02:32.01 what the average Australian thinks about this? 00:02:32.05\00:02:36.65 Organized religion, not good. 00:02:36.69\00:02:40.46 A clergyman in the eyes of the sunburned soul 00:02:40.49\00:02:45.89 is a rather weak, colorless individual. 00:02:45.93\00:02:50.87 But I would tell my Aussie friends today, 00:02:50.90\00:02:53.23 the reality is far from the truth. 00:02:53.27\00:02:56.74 If you look at the Australian $20 bill, 00:02:56.77\00:03:02.54 see it here, 00:03:02.58\00:03:05.18 the Aussie $20 bill. 00:03:05.21\00:03:07.12 On the $20 bill, 00:03:07.15\00:03:08.82 there is the portrait of John Flynn. 00:03:08.85\00:03:13.29 I tell my Australian friends, 00:03:13.32\00:03:15.26 this man is recognized all throughout Australia 00:03:15.29\00:03:18.86 as a great hero. 00:03:18.89\00:03:21.36 Did you know 00:03:21.40\00:03:23.13 he was a preacher of the gospel? 00:03:23.16\00:03:26.50 He founded the Australian Inland Mission. 00:03:26.53\00:03:30.97 He had a desperate passion for the lost 00:03:31.01\00:03:34.94 in Australia's greater outback, 00:03:34.98\00:03:37.05 and you've got to go there to find out how big it is, 00:03:37.08\00:03:39.98 how desolate it is, how lonely it is. 00:03:40.02\00:03:45.05 He walked, rode on camel, drove in old cars 00:03:45.09\00:03:48.59 all throughout the outback, and then he founded 00:03:48.62\00:03:51.89 the Royal Flying Doctor Service. 00:03:51.93\00:03:55.83 And so today, if you're living on a remote outback station 00:03:55.86\00:03:59.73 or ranches, as it is called in America, 00:03:59.77\00:04:04.44 and if you get sick, 00:04:04.47\00:04:06.44 they will send a plane with a doctor. 00:04:06.47\00:04:10.61 And John Flynn was the person who brought medical help 00:04:10.65\00:04:14.95 to all those people in the outback. 00:04:14.98\00:04:18.25 He was a minister, not a namby-pamby, 00:04:18.29\00:04:22.79 and certainly not a clergyman. 00:04:22.82\00:04:27.73 We've been talking about the game changers, my friends. 00:04:27.76\00:04:30.57 The game changers are all heroes, 00:04:30.60\00:04:34.14 Moses, Elijah, 00:04:34.17\00:04:36.81 John the Baptist, and Jesus, our Lord. 00:04:36.84\00:04:39.81 Tough, strong, courageous people, 00:04:39.84\00:04:44.21 not namby-pambies. 00:04:44.25\00:04:46.98 And then, we had some other heroes 00:04:47.02\00:04:49.18 like Mary Magdalene, Ruth, and Esther, 00:04:49.22\00:04:53.02 Phoebe, Priscilla, strong people. 00:04:53.05\00:04:58.46 Now there was a man 00:04:58.49\00:04:59.83 whose description goes something like this. 00:04:59.86\00:05:03.23 "Short, stooped, bowed legged, 00:05:03.26\00:05:10.14 hook nose, 00:05:10.17\00:05:13.94 and full of grace, 00:05:13.98\00:05:17.91 the Jew, 00:05:17.95\00:05:19.31 I'm talking about Paul, the Jew, 00:05:19.35\00:05:21.48 changed the history of the world. 00:05:21.52\00:05:23.65 Listen to this, my American friends, 00:05:23.69\00:05:25.89 because virtually nobody remembers this 00:05:25.92\00:05:29.29 or knows this today. 00:05:29.32\00:05:33.60 Paul was responsible for the rise of democracies 00:05:33.63\00:05:38.57 around the world. 00:05:38.60\00:05:40.64 He was actually responsible... 00:05:40.67\00:05:43.30 If you take the long view 00:05:43.34\00:05:44.77 for the founding of the United States of America, 00:05:44.81\00:05:47.98 you believe it? 00:05:48.01\00:05:49.64 And the right to be free. 00:05:49.68\00:05:51.11 He was tough, resilient, courageous, compassionate, 00:05:51.15\00:05:55.78 and a genius, no clergyman, and namby-pamby, 00:05:55.82\00:06:00.59 no wimp, but a hero. 00:06:00.62\00:06:03.69 Take your Bible, 00:06:03.73\00:06:05.53 come with me to Philippians 3:5, 6. 00:06:05.56\00:06:10.80 And these are the words of this man 00:06:10.83\00:06:14.90 who changed the world. 00:06:14.94\00:06:17.47 Philippians 3:5, 6, "Circumcise the eighth day, 00:06:17.51\00:06:21.58 of this stock of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, 00:06:21.61\00:06:25.21 a Hebrew of the Hebrews, concerning the law, a Pharisee, 00:06:25.25\00:06:31.19 concerning zeal, persecuting the church, 00:06:31.22\00:06:35.09 concerning the righteousness which is in the law, 00:06:35.12\00:06:39.46 blameless." 00:06:39.49\00:06:40.83 A Pharisee. 00:06:40.86\00:06:42.43 We're going to notice exciting stories 00:06:42.46\00:06:45.07 about this super game changer. 00:06:45.10\00:06:48.57 He tells us 00:06:48.60\00:06:50.11 that he was born and bred a Pharisee. 00:06:50.14\00:06:55.54 Who were the Pharisees? 00:06:55.58\00:06:58.41 The Pharisees were the very best 00:06:58.45\00:07:01.62 of the very best. 00:07:01.65\00:07:03.52 They were the most religious people 00:07:03.55\00:07:05.89 on the face of the earth. 00:07:05.92\00:07:09.02 Have you heard of Antiochus Epiphanes? 00:07:09.06\00:07:12.59 Now most scholars know about Antiochus Epiphanes. 00:07:12.63\00:07:16.90 In the second century BC, he tried to force hellenization 00:07:16.93\00:07:22.37 or pagan culture upon the Jews. 00:07:22.40\00:07:25.94 In fact, the stories told 00:07:25.97\00:07:28.21 that he went into the Jewish sanctuary 00:07:28.24\00:07:31.71 and he offered a pig on the altar. 00:07:31.75\00:07:37.99 Now the Jews are fighters, 00:07:38.02\00:07:40.66 and they rallied around a man by the name of Judas Maccabeus, 00:07:40.69\00:07:44.83 and his followers were called the Maccabees, 00:07:44.86\00:07:48.50 and you can read them 00:07:48.53\00:07:49.86 in the Apocrypha of the scriptures. 00:07:49.90\00:07:54.04 They had a long and bloody fight. 00:07:54.07\00:07:57.51 And Judas Maccabeus and the Maccabees drove out 00:07:57.54\00:08:02.24 Antiochus Epiphanes, 00:08:02.28\00:08:04.05 one of the greatest events in the history of religion. 00:08:04.08\00:08:08.45 And after they had driven out these people 00:08:08.48\00:08:11.32 who were trying to paganize the church, 00:08:11.35\00:08:14.82 the Jewish people said, 00:08:14.86\00:08:18.03 "Never again. 00:08:18.06\00:08:21.50 We brought this upon ourselves 00:08:21.53\00:08:26.13 because we broke the law of God. 00:08:26.17\00:08:29.97 And thus came into being the Pharisees, 00:08:30.01\00:08:34.31 the defender of orthodoxy, 00:08:34.34\00:08:38.45 and the defender of the Church of God, 00:08:38.48\00:08:41.95 the state of the Israelis," 00:08:41.98\00:08:44.65 we would call them today. 00:08:44.69\00:08:46.55 Back then, 00:08:46.59\00:08:48.62 the Israelites, the Jews. 00:08:48.66\00:08:53.86 The Pharisees had a saying, 00:08:53.90\00:08:55.83 "When Israel keeps the law perfectly, 00:08:55.86\00:08:58.97 Messiah will come and save us." 00:08:59.00\00:09:03.44 There are Christians who think the same today. 00:09:03.47\00:09:07.21 The Pharisees are mentioned 98 times 00:09:07.24\00:09:10.48 in the New Testament. 00:09:10.51\00:09:12.58 They saw Jesus as a threat to their existence. 00:09:12.61\00:09:18.62 They were not a big group, 6,000 strong. 00:09:18.65\00:09:21.69 They were political, they were perfectionists, 00:09:21.72\00:09:26.09 they were proud, 00:09:26.13\00:09:28.70 and Paul was a Pharisee of the Pharisees. 00:09:28.73\00:09:31.07 He hated Jesus and His followers. 00:09:31.10\00:09:34.07 Now Paul had dual citizenship. 00:09:34.10\00:09:37.07 Paul is his Roman name, 00:09:37.11\00:09:40.84 Paulus. 00:09:40.88\00:09:43.68 His Jewish name is the Hebrew word, Saul. 00:09:43.71\00:09:47.68 He never changed his name from Saul to Paul. 00:09:47.72\00:09:53.72 One of our first introductions to him is that we discover 00:09:53.76\00:09:57.16 that he is an accessory to murder. 00:09:57.19\00:10:03.06 Whatever he did, 00:10:03.10\00:10:04.43 he did with a passion, even bad things. 00:10:04.47\00:10:06.53 He was involved in the murder of a good man. 00:10:06.57\00:10:09.87 Turn with me to the Book of Acts 7:54. 00:10:09.90\00:10:14.64 Chapter 7 verse 54. 00:10:14.68\00:10:21.62 "When they heard these things," the Jewish mob, 00:10:21.65\00:10:25.12 "they were cut to the heart, 00:10:25.15\00:10:27.32 they gnashed their teeth at him, Stephen, 00:10:27.36\00:10:29.56 "they gnashed at him with their teeth." 00:10:29.59\00:10:33.09 And then you come to verse 58, 00:10:33.13\00:10:35.56 "And they cast him out of the city and stoned him. 00:10:35.60\00:10:40.04 And the witnesses lay down 00:10:40.07\00:10:41.54 their clothes at the feet of a young man named Saul." 00:10:41.57\00:10:46.88 Chapter 8:1, the first part, 00:10:46.91\00:10:49.38 "Now Saul was consenting to his death." 00:10:49.41\00:10:54.45 I want you to understand today 00:10:54.48\00:10:56.32 that stoning was cruel and bloody. 00:10:56.35\00:11:00.89 The person is usually cast to the ground. 00:11:00.92\00:11:04.59 This is what they did to women 00:11:04.63\00:11:06.33 who were caught in the act of adultery, not to the men. 00:11:06.36\00:11:10.23 And so the person was cast to the ground, 00:11:10.27\00:11:12.60 and then the righteous mob picked up stones, 00:11:12.63\00:11:17.67 and they threw the stones at him and a blood... 00:11:17.71\00:11:22.98 Somebody said the difference between a Pharisee 00:11:23.01\00:11:25.61 and a follower of Christ 00:11:25.65\00:11:27.22 is that while the Pharisees picked up stones, 00:11:27.25\00:11:33.09 Jesus picked up people. 00:11:33.12\00:11:36.12 And if you're in the business of picking up stones, 00:11:36.16\00:11:39.73 then you are no follower of Christ 00:11:39.76\00:11:42.30 even though you may be an elder in the church. 00:11:42.33\00:11:46.37 Is anybody hearing what I'm saying? 00:11:46.40\00:11:51.17 And Saul had dual citizenship like me. 00:11:51.21\00:11:55.84 I have Australian citizenship and American citizenship. 00:11:55.88\00:12:00.62 Saul, his Hebrew name, Paul, his Roman name. 00:12:00.65\00:12:05.19 John is my Australian name, 00:12:05.22\00:12:08.46 and John is my American name. 00:12:08.49\00:12:12.23 He had a misguided zeal for the kingdom of God. 00:12:12.26\00:12:15.56 He was what we would call a religious bigot. 00:12:15.60\00:12:19.27 He was like the inquisitors in the dark ages 00:12:19.30\00:12:22.77 who carried out the inquisition, 00:12:22.80\00:12:24.81 who put people on the rack, 00:12:24.84\00:12:26.78 who burned innocent people at the stake 00:12:26.81\00:12:31.21 when their bodies were fried, 00:12:31.25\00:12:35.15 religious people, religious people. 00:12:35.18\00:12:39.15 What about ISIS today? 00:12:39.19\00:12:40.69 Religious people. 00:12:40.72\00:12:43.59 And Paul was sincere, but he was sincerely wrong. 00:12:43.63\00:12:48.66 Religious bigotry is responsible 00:12:48.70\00:12:51.73 for much of the suffering in the world today. 00:12:51.77\00:12:54.20 I tell you, 00:12:54.24\00:12:55.57 God, save us from religious bigots 00:12:55.60\00:13:00.81 who would pick up stones instead of picking up people. 00:13:00.84\00:13:06.92 Now we come to intervention. 00:13:06.95\00:13:12.25 He was stopped in his tracks. 00:13:12.29\00:13:14.69 Saul went on a rampage persecution. 00:13:14.72\00:13:18.73 He was on his way to Damascus to arrest the Christians. 00:13:18.76\00:13:24.43 For the glory of God, for the glory of Israel. 00:13:24.47\00:13:30.14 Acts 9:1-2, notice it, Acts 9:1-2, 00:13:30.17\00:13:34.74 "Then Saul still breathing threats 00:13:34.78\00:13:38.05 and murder against the disciples of the Lord, 00:13:38.08\00:13:40.68 went to the high priest and asked letters from him 00:13:40.72\00:13:43.59 to the synagogues of Damascus. 00:13:43.62\00:13:47.49 If he found any who were of the way," 00:13:47.52\00:13:49.29 the Christian way, "whether men or women, 00:13:49.32\00:13:52.36 he might bring them bound to Jerusalem." 00:13:52.39\00:13:56.00 Therefore he is on crusading zeal 00:13:56.03\00:14:00.40 for the greater glory of God. 00:14:00.44\00:14:05.17 One of the most important words is the word "But." 00:14:05.21\00:14:10.15 But God had a plan. 00:14:10.18\00:14:14.25 Man proposes... 00:14:14.28\00:14:16.25 What does it say? God disposes. 00:14:16.28\00:14:19.12 Christ appears, 00:14:19.15\00:14:21.69 and the voice of Christ says these words, 00:14:21.72\00:14:25.89 "Saul, Saul," He talks to him in the language he understands. 00:14:25.93\00:14:32.10 "Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me. 00:14:32.13\00:14:36.74 It is hard for you 00:14:36.77\00:14:38.77 to kick against the goads." 00:14:38.81\00:14:43.71 The voice of Christ. 00:14:43.75\00:14:45.61 What are these goads? 00:14:45.65\00:14:49.02 The goads are sharp sticks that are used to direct cattle. 00:14:49.05\00:14:54.12 Poke them into a beast, then the beast will quiver. 00:14:59.46\00:15:03.26 Jesus said, "It's hard for you to kick against the goads," 00:15:06.20\00:15:09.84 the goads of his own guilty conscience. 00:15:09.87\00:15:14.08 Deep down inside him, there was a fire burning 00:15:14.11\00:15:18.15 that he knew that what he was doing 00:15:18.18\00:15:20.52 even though he was consumed by religious zeal 00:15:20.55\00:15:25.89 was somehow wrong. 00:15:25.92\00:15:29.86 And Stephen had made a great impression upon him. 00:15:29.89\00:15:35.36 And so he was on a crusade, a holy religious crusade. 00:15:35.40\00:15:38.57 I've seen lots of people and lots of churches 00:15:38.60\00:15:41.20 on holy religious crusades. 00:15:41.24\00:15:44.47 Holy self-satisfied, holy religious, and holy wrong. 00:15:44.51\00:15:50.65 But something that this man did not realize, 00:15:50.68\00:15:53.21 and lot of people don't realize today, 00:15:53.25\00:15:54.68 is this great truth. 00:15:54.72\00:15:56.25 Christ is the sovereign Lord. 00:15:56.28\00:15:59.65 Christ is in charge of everything in the world. 00:15:59.69\00:16:02.92 And God had a plan and a purpose for the Saul 00:16:02.96\00:16:06.39 a million years before he was born. 00:16:06.43\00:16:08.50 God saw him, God had a plan for him, 00:16:08.53\00:16:11.17 amazing, isn't it? 00:16:11.20\00:16:13.57 Christ is sovereign Lord, not Mr. Trump, 00:16:13.60\00:16:16.24 I would remind my American friends. 00:16:16.27\00:16:18.67 He's not in charge. He may think he is. 00:16:18.71\00:16:22.31 Not Mr. Putin. 00:16:22.34\00:16:23.71 He may think 00:16:23.75\00:16:25.08 he's in charge not only of his own country, 00:16:25.11\00:16:27.62 but of some other people as well. 00:16:27.65\00:16:29.58 Not Mr. Kim in North Korea. 00:16:29.62\00:16:33.96 Christ is the Lord of history, 00:16:33.99\00:16:39.06 and He's Lord of all. 00:16:39.09\00:16:41.73 And Paul is knocked down, he's struck blind. 00:16:41.76\00:16:45.17 And as the great English preacher, 00:16:45.20\00:16:48.57 John Newton said, 00:16:48.60\00:16:50.54 "I was blind, but now I see." 00:16:50.57\00:16:55.24 Saul had to become blind before he could see, 00:16:55.28\00:17:01.25 like some of you 00:17:01.28\00:17:02.62 who are watching the telecast today, 00:17:02.65\00:17:04.45 like some of you sitting here in the studio. 00:17:04.49\00:17:08.39 We have to become blind... 00:17:08.42\00:17:10.39 and after we are blind, 00:17:13.66\00:17:16.90 then we can see. 00:17:16.93\00:17:20.60 Christ tells him to go into Damascus, and he said, 00:17:20.64\00:17:24.97 "I want you to meet one of My children." 00:17:25.01\00:17:27.18 He said, "I know all about him, I can tell you where he lives. 00:17:27.21\00:17:30.81 Actually, I think I've been to his house." 00:17:30.85\00:17:34.22 He says, "I know where he lives, 00:17:34.25\00:17:37.02 I want you to go to his house." 00:17:37.05\00:17:39.15 Did you know this, my friend? God knows where you live. 00:17:39.19\00:17:44.16 He knows your name, 00:17:44.19\00:17:46.56 He knows what you're thinking right now, 00:17:46.59\00:17:50.17 He knows every thought that courses 00:17:50.20\00:17:52.80 through the molecules of your mind. 00:17:52.83\00:17:57.87 How does that make you feel? 00:17:57.91\00:18:00.41 So he goes into Damascus, and he meets Ananias. 00:18:00.44\00:18:05.15 Acts 9:15, 00:18:05.18\00:18:09.58 God said to ananias, 00:18:09.62\00:18:12.12 "Lord said to him, 00:18:12.15\00:18:14.26 'Go for he is a chosen vessel of Mine 00:18:14.29\00:18:17.16 to bear My name before the Gentiles, kings, 00:18:17.19\00:18:20.70 and the children of Israel." 00:18:20.73\00:18:22.76 I don't know what you think about it 00:18:22.80\00:18:24.20 when you read that text, 00:18:24.23\00:18:25.57 but it tells me that God has got a plan 00:18:25.60\00:18:27.94 and a purpose for every life. 00:18:27.97\00:18:29.54 Do I have a sense of destiny? Absolutely. 00:18:33.01\00:18:37.88 When I was a tiny baby, my mother didn't go to church. 00:18:37.91\00:18:41.12 She had enough of religion. 00:18:41.15\00:18:43.39 But as a tiny baby, 00:18:43.42\00:18:45.35 she had an impression in a soul 00:18:45.39\00:18:47.69 that I was going to be a minister 00:18:47.72\00:18:49.92 and an evangelist. 00:18:49.96\00:18:51.29 And I'd preach around the world, 00:18:51.33\00:18:52.66 and she held me up in her arms, this unchurched mother of mine, 00:18:52.69\00:18:58.37 and dedicated me to God. 00:18:58.40\00:18:59.77 Before you're born, God sees you, 00:19:03.30\00:19:07.28 He has a plan for you. 00:19:07.31\00:19:08.68 Then he is baptized, is Saul. 00:19:13.52\00:19:16.82 When he's baptized, the scales because he become blind, 00:19:16.85\00:19:20.59 the scales fall off his eyes. 00:19:20.62\00:19:23.32 It's a new day, it's a new man, 00:19:23.36\00:19:26.43 it's a new mission, and in a sense, 00:19:26.46\00:19:28.70 it's a new world 00:19:28.73\00:19:31.43 because Paul has been unleashed 00:19:31.47\00:19:34.67 upon the powers of darkness. 00:19:34.70\00:19:37.91 Then he goes into the wilderness 00:19:37.94\00:19:40.44 where he has the great revelation. 00:19:40.48\00:19:43.45 I just want to emphasize so much today. 00:19:43.48\00:19:48.15 Like Moses, Elijah, 00:19:48.18\00:19:53.05 John the Baptist, 00:19:53.09\00:19:55.39 like our Lord, Jesus Christ, he's driven by the spirit 00:19:55.42\00:19:59.53 into the wilderness. 00:19:59.56\00:20:01.26 And he's there for about three years. 00:20:01.30\00:20:03.80 God says, 00:20:03.83\00:20:05.33 "I've got to take you away from the city, 00:20:05.37\00:20:07.84 I've got to take you away from your friends. 00:20:07.87\00:20:12.97 I've got to take you away from your cell phone." 00:20:13.01\00:20:15.88 Some people are so addicted to it, 00:20:15.91\00:20:17.91 they can't leave home without it. 00:20:17.95\00:20:20.92 They live with it, they sleep with it. 00:20:20.95\00:20:23.22 When they wake up, 00:20:23.25\00:20:24.59 they look, they're looking at it. 00:20:24.62\00:20:26.35 It is an addiction, 00:20:26.39\00:20:27.72 the same as if they were taking heroin. 00:20:27.76\00:20:32.43 And it causes the greatest dumbing down 00:20:32.46\00:20:35.53 of the human mind. 00:20:35.56\00:20:36.90 People who are on these things all the time, 00:20:36.93\00:20:40.10 their minds are shrinking. 00:20:40.14\00:20:44.27 How does that make you feel? That's a fact. 00:20:44.31\00:20:48.24 That's why I try to stay away from that stuff 00:20:48.28\00:20:50.15 as much as I can. 00:20:50.18\00:20:51.51 It is not going to be my master. 00:20:51.55\00:20:54.05 I'm not going to answer it every time it rings or beeps. 00:20:54.08\00:20:58.55 So he goes into the wilderness. 00:21:02.79\00:21:05.83 He goes into the wilderness where the gold is refined 00:21:05.86\00:21:09.53 and the dross is removed. 00:21:09.56\00:21:11.70 He goes into the vast desert of Arabia for three years. 00:21:11.73\00:21:16.54 And there he receives the great revelation 00:21:16.57\00:21:19.97 that most of us do not understand, 00:21:20.01\00:21:22.51 and we've never had it 00:21:22.54\00:21:23.98 because we're so tied up with the world 00:21:24.01\00:21:26.58 and we're so blind. 00:21:26.61\00:21:28.28 Galatians 1:15-17 says this, 00:21:28.32\00:21:33.36 "When it pleased God, 00:21:33.39\00:21:34.89 who separated me from my mother's womb 00:21:34.92\00:21:37.33 and called me through His grace, 00:21:37.36\00:21:39.36 to reveal His son in me, 00:21:39.39\00:21:41.53 that I might preach Him among the Gentiles, 00:21:41.56\00:21:44.33 I did not immediately confer with flesh and blood, 00:21:44.37\00:21:47.44 nor did I go up to Jerusalem 00:21:47.47\00:21:49.84 to those who were apostles before me, 00:21:49.87\00:21:52.11 but I went to Arabia, returned again," 00:21:52.14\00:21:55.41 after about three years, "to Damascus." 00:21:55.44\00:21:59.95 So he doesn't go to the seminary 00:21:59.98\00:22:03.32 or to the cemetery. 00:22:03.35\00:22:06.19 And he doesn't even go and talk to the apostles, 00:22:06.22\00:22:08.82 God drives him into the wilderness 00:22:08.86\00:22:13.29 for the revelation. 00:22:13.33\00:22:15.20 Galatians 1:11, 12. Think of these verses. 00:22:15.23\00:22:20.27 I would warrant 00:22:20.30\00:22:21.64 that most of you have never thought about this, 00:22:21.67\00:22:24.47 so think about it. 00:22:24.51\00:22:27.84 "But I make known to you, brethren, 00:22:27.88\00:22:30.31 that the gospel which was preached to me 00:22:30.35\00:22:32.71 is not according to man. 00:22:32.75\00:22:34.55 For I neither received it from man, 00:22:34.58\00:22:36.99 nor was I taught it, 00:22:37.02\00:22:38.95 but it came through the revelation 00:22:38.99\00:22:40.72 of Jesus Christ." 00:22:40.76\00:22:44.43 The gospel that Paul received 00:22:44.46\00:22:46.90 that the vast majority of Christians 00:22:46.93\00:22:49.83 do not understand was not taught to Paul, 00:22:49.86\00:22:53.87 it came by a supernatural revelation 00:22:53.90\00:22:59.47 out in the desert. 00:22:59.51\00:23:01.71 What am I talking about? 00:23:01.74\00:23:05.25 There's an old saying, 00:23:05.28\00:23:06.61 "The cat looks at the king, the cat doesn't see the king." 00:23:06.65\00:23:12.22 The cat has got sight, it hasn't got insight. 00:23:12.25\00:23:15.42 Most people in the church today, 00:23:15.46\00:23:17.36 most people in the world have got sight, 00:23:17.39\00:23:19.69 but they've got no insight. 00:23:19.73\00:23:22.43 So the people look at the king, who is he? 00:23:22.46\00:23:25.77 Nobody. 00:23:25.80\00:23:28.00 And that is why when they take up the Bible, 00:23:28.04\00:23:30.11 if they ever do, and try to read it, 00:23:30.14\00:23:31.84 they say, "I can't understand, that's stupid." 00:23:31.87\00:23:35.64 Let me get back to the Kardashians 00:23:35.68\00:23:37.38 or something like this, let me do that. 00:23:37.41\00:23:39.38 Let me do that 00:23:39.41\00:23:40.75 because this is something that I emphasize, 00:23:40.78\00:23:43.12 this is something that I understand that is... 00:23:43.15\00:23:45.39 You know why they do this? 00:23:45.42\00:23:46.76 It is because they've been dumbed down, 00:23:46.79\00:23:49.22 and they're totally blind. 00:23:49.26\00:23:52.56 Walking in darkness 00:23:52.59\00:23:56.30 and Paul gets the revelation. 00:23:56.33\00:23:59.53 The true gospel is revealed to him, 00:23:59.57\00:24:01.40 Christ alone, not by works of the law, 00:24:01.44\00:24:04.91 opposite to all he'd been taught 00:24:04.94\00:24:06.37 in the theological seminary at Avondale. 00:24:06.41\00:24:09.14 Let me tell you something, 00:24:09.18\00:24:10.51 and I want you to think about this 00:24:10.55\00:24:11.88 when I share it with you. 00:24:11.91\00:24:13.58 I was brought up in a super religious home. 00:24:13.62\00:24:17.25 I was almost inoculated for life against religion 00:24:17.29\00:24:21.62 because of religion. 00:24:21.66\00:24:23.02 I went to Avondale College, 00:24:27.56\00:24:29.60 I heard a preacher from England preach on the God filled blank. 00:24:29.63\00:24:34.07 He said, "Inside you, there is an emptiness." 00:24:34.10\00:24:37.94 I said to myself, 00:24:37.97\00:24:39.31 "He's talking to me, it's me." 00:24:39.34\00:24:43.81 When I was a boy of 17 00:24:43.85\00:24:48.18 from a super religious home, 00:24:48.22\00:24:51.32 where there was a lot of religious fighting, 00:24:51.35\00:24:54.56 supernaturally God revealed to me the gospel. 00:24:54.59\00:25:00.60 You say not a supernatural... 00:25:00.63\00:25:01.96 Yes. 00:25:02.00\00:25:03.33 Wherever I walked, 00:25:03.37\00:25:06.53 the sky was bluer, the birds sweeter, 00:25:06.57\00:25:09.57 the people I've met were nicer. 00:25:09.60\00:25:13.04 And something else. 00:25:13.07\00:25:16.01 I knew in my soul 00:25:16.04\00:25:19.98 that Christ had died for me. 00:25:20.02\00:25:24.19 I knew that God loved me. 00:25:24.22\00:25:26.09 I knew that He was my God. 00:25:26.12\00:25:30.06 I felt I owned him. 00:25:30.09\00:25:34.00 That's the only way the gospel can be found 00:25:34.03\00:25:38.80 through a supernatural revelation. 00:25:38.83\00:25:41.27 I ask you the question, "Have you had it?" 00:25:41.30\00:25:45.84 If you haven't, don't sleep until you get it 00:25:45.87\00:25:51.31 because the gospel is the only way 00:25:51.35\00:25:53.25 we can be saved. 00:25:53.28\00:25:55.72 And we'll be back after this short break 00:25:55.75\00:25:58.22 with more revelations 00:25:58.25\00:26:00.52 of the greatest of the apostles, 00:26:00.56\00:26:02.72 the Apostle Paul. 00:26:02.76\00:26:04.36 The reviews for the John Carter biography are in 00:26:15.90\00:26:18.97 and this is what they say: 00:26:19.01\00:26:21.11 "Anyone who reads this fascinating book 00:26:21.14\00:26:22.94 and is not moved 00:26:22.98\00:26:24.31 should check to see if they still have a pulse." 00:26:24.35\00:26:28.48 "I believe this book 00:26:28.52\00:26:29.85 about God's miracles in Russia and Ukraine 00:26:29.88\00:26:31.82 will burn the flame in your heart." 00:26:31.85\00:26:35.52 "This could prove to be 00:26:35.56\00:26:36.89 one of the most important books ever written 00:26:36.93\00:26:38.49 about public evangelism. 00:26:38.53\00:26:40.23 Make sure you get a copy." 00:26:40.26\00:26:44.13 "I believe this book about John Carter's life 00:26:44.17\00:26:46.27 will help readers grasp a vision for their lives." 00:26:46.30\00:26:48.57 For a donation of $100 or more, 00:26:55.41\00:26:58.21 a signed copy of the John Carter biography 00:26:58.25\00:27:00.32 can be yours 00:27:00.35\00:27:01.68 by writing to us at the address on the screen 00:27:01.72\00:27:03.62 or visit our website. 00:27:03.65\00:27:05.52 Do you sometimes get lost in the crowd? 00:27:19.27\00:27:21.70 Do you feel there is just no love in the room, 00:27:21.74\00:27:23.91 like everybody is against you? 00:27:23.94\00:27:25.57 You're all alone with no one to lean on. 00:27:25.61\00:27:27.68 Do you need a word of encouragement? 00:27:27.71\00:27:29.54 Do you know God? Have you tried prayer? 00:27:29.58\00:27:32.65 Pastor Carter would like to pray for you now. 00:27:32.68\00:27:35.38 Let us pray. 00:27:35.42\00:27:36.75 Call 1-800-526-9777. 00:27:36.79\00:27:40.59 Nothing to buy, the call is free. 00:27:40.62\00:27:43.16 Call 1-800-526-9777. 00:27:43.19\00:27:46.70 1.3 billion people live in India. 00:27:49.76\00:27:53.80 Two hundred million of these are Dalits, 00:27:53.84\00:27:56.81 formerly called untouchables. 00:27:56.84\00:27:59.11 One hundred percent of your gift 00:27:59.14\00:28:01.01 will go to fund projects for Dalit girls 00:28:01.04\00:28:03.85 as an alternative. 00:28:03.88\00:28:05.71 Your gift of $600 will educate, cloth, 00:28:05.75\00:28:09.22 and feed one Dalit girl between 5 and 15 years of age 00:28:09.25\00:28:13.86 for one full year. 00:28:13.89\00:28:16.06 Go to cartereport.org 00:28:16.09\00:28:17.76 or to the address on the screen. 00:28:17.79\00:28:22.86 For a copy of today's program, 00:28:22.90\00:28:24.97 please contact us at P.O. Box 1900, 00:28:25.00\00:28:28.54 Thousand Oaks, California 91358. 00:28:28.57\00:28:32.74 Or in Australia, 00:28:32.77\00:28:34.38 contact us at P.O. Box 861, 00:28:34.41\00:28:37.78 Terrigal, New South Wales 2260. 00:28:37.81\00:28:41.95 This program is made possible 00:28:41.98\00:28:43.92 through the generous support of viewers like you. 00:28:43.95\00:28:46.79 We thank you for your continued support. 00:28:46.82\00:28:49.92 May God richly bless you. 00:28:49.96\00:28:51.83