Participants: Pr. Doug Batchelor
Series Code: EG
Program Code: EG002818
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00:09 It's been 2000 years
00:10 since the glorious light of the cross 00:12 illuminated the world 00:13 veiled in darkness and confusion 00:15 about the character of God. 00:17 And still today the greatest need of mankind 00:19 is a revelation of God's love 00:21 that's revealed in the life of Christ. 00:23 Amazing Facts presents the everlasting gospel 00:27 with Pastor Doug Batchelor 00:28 coming to you each week 00:30 from Sacramento Central Church 00:31 in Sunny, California. 00:33 Discover hidden treasures in God's word today. 00:38 You know what, 00:41 secret is a powerful word. 00:47 It must be because everybody uses it. 00:51 If you look at book titles, 00:56 Ten Secrets to Investing, Secret Recipes, 01:00 Secrets to a Happy Marriage. 01:03 You have the magazine covers, 01:05 secrets to the future of the-- 01:07 secrets, secrets, secrets. 01:09 People always want to know something that they don't know. 01:13 They're wanting to acquire this additional knowledge. 01:17 Well, the message today is gonna be 01:18 dealing with secret things 01:21 on array of secrets of things. 01:24 You know, the Bible has a lot to say about secrets. 01:26 Matter of fact you will find the word secret 01:29 over a hundred times in the Bible. 01:32 Now to begin with you might have secrets 01:37 and I might have secrets, 01:39 God has secrets but nothing is a secret to God. 01:45 You can't keep information from Him. 01:49 You cannot surprise or tempt God by saying 01:52 I've got a secret 01:54 or I know something You don't know 01:56 because God knows everything. 01:59 We're the ones that have limited knowledge. 02:01 And as always I thought it would be a good idea 02:04 if we're gonna talk about the word secret 02:06 and secrets in the Bible. 02:07 We'd begin with the definition. 02:09 So we're gonna put that Up on the screen for you. 02:12 A secret is something that is kept hidden from others 02:15 or known only to oneself or to a few. 02:18 It's hidden from view, concealed. 02:22 Not expressed, confidential, 02:24 discreet, inward, secluded, mysterious. 02:31 I have got some secrets 02:33 but if I tell you, they stop being secrets. 02:37 You probably have some of your own. 02:39 This special exclusive restricted knowledge. 02:44 Some secrets are best left secrets, 02:47 if you know what I mean. 02:49 And there are some secrets that God wants us to pursue. 02:55 You know I was thinking about this subject 02:57 and I was wondering, what is the best kept 03:00 secret of history 03:03 and the jury is out but I had some-- 03:05 I had some possibilities. 03:08 You think about it for a minute, 03:10 the d-day invasion during the World War II 03:13 was one of the best kept secrets, 03:15 the most momentous secrets ever kept in history. 03:19 That this invasion was about to be launched 03:21 from England across the channel 03:23 against France and Europe and the occupied countries 03:27 but it was one of the most open things to the public. 03:31 By the end of May 1944, 03:33 there are over two million troops stationed in Britain. 03:38 Five thousand ships had been gathered in ports and harbors. 03:42 And the thousands of bombers 03:44 were ready on fields all over the country. 03:47 And yet the invasion came as a surprise when it came. 03:52 To keep that information secret, 03:54 oh, you just think about that that was a monumental task. 03:57 You know, what they say in Washington D.C. 04:01 if two people know something then it's not a secret anymore. 04:06 One of the great secrets of history 04:10 is the military secrets were guarding the nuclear war. 04:17 They managed to keep that pretty secure. 04:19 The single integrated operations plan 04:21 that outlines how a nuclear war would be conducted. 04:26 That's one of the great secret is 04:28 three have been connected with this. 04:29 The national strategic target list 04:32 which lists the nuclear war targets, 04:34 if a nuclear war broke out where are the missiles aimed. 04:38 And three of the national military command authorities 04:41 from the president to the chairman 04:43 of the Joint Chiefs of Staff 04:44 who would have hold the cryptic graphic key 04:46 to the nuclear trigger. 04:48 The identities to the nuclear line of succession 04:52 have never been disclosed. 04:53 Somehow, they managed to keep that secret. 04:55 Even though every living president, 04:57 ex-president, they all know what that line is, 05:01 that's one reason the president still had secrets, 05:04 security people even after they're out of office 05:07 is because they have been given national secrets 05:10 that are very important to protect 05:13 if someone should kidnap and torture the presidents, 05:16 it would be all those things, even the ex-presidents. 05:20 Proverbs 11:13. Can you keep a secret? 05:24 Is it good to keep secrets? Well, it depends. 05:27 You ought to be able to keep something to yourself. 05:29 Proverbs 11:13, "A talebearer reveals secrets, 05:34 but he who is of a faithful spirit conceals a matter." 05:39 There is a time when you need to know to keep silent 05:41 and just to keep something in private. 05:44 You know, if you're involved in ministry, 05:47 people need to be able to trust the pastors. 05:50 That when, it's not that we're priests you confessed to 05:53 but sometimes they are private things you talk about. 05:56 And you want to know that 05:57 when you're done and you pray about it 05:58 that it's not going to suddenly be in the church bulletin. 06:01 You know what I mean? 06:03 You've got to be able to keep people's confidence. 06:05 Something should be kept secret. 06:06 That's between you and that person and God. 06:09 There are no secrets with God. Amen. 06:12 Someone once said, 06:13 he who gives up the smallest part of the secret 06:17 has the rest no longer in his power. 06:20 When you say, well like this is the secret. 06:21 I can't tell the whole thing but-- 06:23 as soon as you start to give up 06:24 some of it, it's like trying to pop a balloon slowly. 06:30 You let it out and it's gone. 06:32 So you got to know how to don't even go there. 06:36 Sometimes we have secrets We're just bursting 06:38 to tell somebody 'cause it's gossip. 06:42 And we feel like we've got 06:43 inside information and its power. 06:46 And people say I've got inside information with power. 06:49 Insider trading is illegal on Wall Street 06:51 'cause those people have tremendous power, 06:53 they know that a stock is gonna go up within a matter of hours 06:55 and they can use that power to make a lot of money, 06:58 Martha Steward of course-- she went to prison for that. 07:02 Lot of other people should go because lot of that goes on 07:06 using that secret information 07:07 and the power associated with it and people feel it sometimes. 07:12 I've thought of some of the great biblical secrets. 07:15 For instance, somewhere out there 07:20 you got some missing arks. 07:23 You got Noah's Ark and you got the Ark of the Covenant. 07:27 And there are people out there searching for it. 07:28 They call it arkheology but it's spelt ark. 07:34 Oh, where are they? 07:36 Can you imagine what would have happened 07:37 if the news were to announce, 07:40 I'm talking about a-- 07:41 of a respected source of the news. 07:45 Noah's Ark discovered, 07:48 it's up there somewhere I believe it. 07:49 I think there are probably still enough 07:51 remains where the evidence would be a very compelling. 07:54 And by the way if Noah's Ark is true, 07:57 think about every other fantastic story in the Bible. 08:00 You'd have to believe all of them, wouldn't you? 08:01 What would that do to evolution? 08:05 If Noah's Ark was discovered intact, think about it. 08:08 I believe it's up there. 08:09 You know you can read in the Book Prophets, 08:11 I'm sorry Patriarchs and Prophets, page 105. 08:14 "As the waters began to subside, 08:17 the Lord caused the ark to drift to a spot 08:19 protected by a group of mountains 08:21 that had been preserved by His power. 08:24 These mountains were but a little distance apart, 08:27 and the ark moved about in this quiet haven, 08:29 and was no longer driven upon the boundless ocean 08:32 which made the sea sick." 08:35 Occupants probably feel much better too. 08:38 And it's still there, water subsided. 08:41 Remember after the flood there was a great wind 08:43 that went blasting around the planet to drive the earth. 08:47 And it was good that the ark had settled 08:49 into this haven surrounded by hills 08:51 to protect it during that time. 08:54 It's still there probably covered by glacial ice 08:58 up on the mountains of Ararat 09:00 or somewhere in the vicinity. 09:02 What about the Ark of the Covenant? 09:06 Wouldn't that be something to find that? 09:08 You've all heard stories, they made movies about it, 09:10 a lot of speculation about where the ark is. 09:13 I've seen on Discovery Channel, 09:14 History Channel and even in the Hollywood, 09:17 they produce movies where is the ark. 09:18 This would be the greatest national treasure 09:20 of the Jewish nation. 09:21 Any Christian, any believer, 09:24 Protestant, Catholic, Jew, 09:26 the Ark of the Covenant are writing written 09:28 by the hand of God himself in that golden box 09:31 that would be something we're finding. 09:34 When did it increase people's confidence 09:35 in the rest of the Bible? 09:37 I hope it is discovered, I'm talking about in the broad 09:41 and compelling way in the end of time. 09:44 See a lot of things are secrets 09:45 not because the knowledge is not available, 09:47 it's because they're secret to you. 09:51 And you just don't know 'cause you haven't read. 09:53 Prophets and Kings, page 453. 09:58 "Among the righteous still in Jerusalem." 10:00 Now remember this is during the time 10:01 when Nebuchadnezzar was about to destroy 10:04 the temple in the city of Jerusalem. 10:06 And Jeremiah had foretold to King Zedekiah, 10:10 you need to turn yourself in 10:11 'cause he's gonna burn the temple. 10:13 He's gonna destroy the city. 10:15 So among the righteous they realize 10:17 if they didn't do anything 10:18 to preserve their national treasure, 10:21 the Ark of the Covenant 10:22 was gonna fall into the hands of enemies. 10:24 Keep in mind had there been another time 10:26 in the history of Israel 10:27 when the ark had fallen into the hands of the enemies. 10:30 The philistines had captured it, 10:31 they said we're never gonna let this happen again. 10:34 "So among the righteous in Jerusalem 10:36 to whom had been made plain the divine purpose, 10:39 were some who determined 10:40 to place beyond the reach of the ruthless hands," 10:43 the Babylonians, 10:44 "the sacred ark containing the tables of stone 10:47 on which had been traced the precepts of the Decalogue." 10:50 With the finger of God. "This they did. 10:53 With mourning and sadness they secreted the ark in a cave, 10:58 where it has been hidden from the people 11:00 of Israel and Judah because of their sins, 11:04 and was to be no more restored to them. 11:06 That sacred ark is yet hidden. 11:09 It has never been disturbed since it was secreted." 11:13 And I mean it was very heavy. 11:17 Normally required 12 men to carry it. 11:19 A smaller group of men could probably carry it 11:21 under desperate circumstances. 11:24 You didn't want too many people to be in that group 11:26 because the more people to know a secret, 11:27 what happens? It gets out. 11:31 And probably in the wee hours of some night 11:33 they had found--if you've ever been to Jerusalem 11:36 you notice it's riddled with caves and tombs and tunnels 11:40 and they found some tomb or some tunnels 11:43 somewhere not far from the city 'cause they had to do it all. 11:45 City was surrounded by the Babylonians, 11:47 right? They couldn't 11:49 take it out on a chariot, they were besieged 11:53 probably underneath Jerusalem 11:55 somewhere in one of the many caverns, 11:56 they was a cave or tomb. 11:58 They opened it, they sealed it 11:59 and hid the entrance 12:01 and it's never been found but it's there. 12:05 So I just told you a secret, you just need to find it. 12:09 All go on a tour like a bunch of moles, 12:12 so we can tunnel around, see if we can find it there. 12:15 That would be a great secret to have revealed. 12:19 Now the Bible says God has some secrets. 12:22 And some of them He reveals. 12:25 Deuteronomy 29:29, "The secret things 12:28 belong to the Lord our God, 12:31 but the things that are revealed 12:32 belong to us and to our children forever, 12:35 that we may do the works of this law." 12:38 God reveals certain secrets to empower us to do His will. 12:44 He doesn't give us secrets to entertain us. 12:47 Matter of fact certain elements of truth 12:49 are hidden from the laws 12:50 because they are not willing to do God's will. 12:52 So who does God reveal His secret to? 12:56 Those who are willing to do His will. 13:00 Psalm 25:14, "The secret of the Lord 13:03 is for those who fear Him, 13:05 and He will show them His covenant." 13:09 God is gonna reveal secrets of truth 13:13 to those who are willing to do His will. 13:16 Bible says if any man, John Chapter 10, Jesus said, 13:18 "If any man is willing to do His will, 13:20 he will know of the doctrine whether it would be of God." 13:25 And again you will search for Me, 13:28 Jeremiah 29:13, "And you will find Me 13:31 when you search for Me with all your heart." 13:34 Secrets like hidden gold are found to those who dig. 13:37 Proverbs 3:32, 13:41 "For the perverse person is an abomination to the Lord, 13:44 but His secret counsel is with the upright." 13:49 J.I. Packer said "One of the many 13:51 divine qualities of the Bible is this, 13:54 that it does not yield its secrets 13:56 to the irreverent and the censorious." 13:59 If you open the word of God reverently 14:02 there's a lot of secrets in the Bible. 14:04 There are secrets in the Bible about investing. 14:09 There are secrets in the Bible about planting. 14:12 There are secrets in the Bible about relationships, 14:14 there are secrets about science that are in the Bible. 14:18 The Bible is filled with secrets people don't see. 14:21 If you go let the holy book of God, 14:23 irreverently well, you're gonna miss it. 14:27 But if you go with a prayerful heart and submission, 14:30 He will reveal secret things to you. 14:35 In the Bible there's even secret code. 14:40 How many of you have heard the story of the Enigma machine? 14:44 During World War II, even just prior to World War II, 14:49 the Nazis had developed this 14:51 extremely intrigued complex machine 14:55 that would receive messages. 14:56 They were typed out on these rolls 14:58 and through the gears and the sequences, 15:01 they were able to put in these key codes and numbers. 15:05 And unless you know what those key codes were 15:06 you could not decipher this message 15:09 that had been typed on this special machine. 15:12 And only others who had the enigma machine 15:15 with the key code, 15:16 you needed the combination to decipher it. 15:19 But there was a group of extremely 15:21 brilliant Jewish Polish mathematicians. 15:26 And they had been working on cracking the enigma code. 15:29 Matter of fact the machine's-- 15:31 that's where you get the word enigma. 15:33 It's an enigma means something that cannot be resolved. 15:38 And also the British Navy, the American Navy, 15:41 they managed to capture few German submarines 15:44 that had key codes in them and they broke-- 15:47 the cryptographers broke the code of the enigma machine. 15:51 They just needed to do some comparisons 15:54 and it all came together. 15:56 Well, in the Bible, in the prophecies of the Bible 16:00 there's a lot of truth 16:01 that is there waiting to be discovered. 16:03 All kinds of truth about history, 16:06 truth about future events, 16:08 a lot of things that were revealed in the past. 16:10 When Jesus came the first time did His people know? 16:15 Were the majority of them in darkness? 16:17 Oh, you got to a few shepherds in the fields 16:19 that were praying about when He might come 16:21 and we had some wise men reading 16:23 the oracles of Balaam in the east. 16:26 Simon who had revelation from the Holy Spirit-- 16:28 but that's about three people there 16:31 out of a whole nation that were looking 16:33 when the Messiah came the first time. 16:36 Could they have known from the prophecies 16:38 when He was coming? 16:40 Could they have known when the time was fulfilled? 16:42 Sure. 16:43 From the prophecies of Daniel and Isaiah 16:45 and Ezekiel and the Psalms, the evidence was there. 16:49 But they were not reading, and if they were reading 16:52 they didn't know how to decipher it. 16:56 Well, let me turn your attention to something. 16:57 Turn with me to the Book of Revelation Chapter 1. 17:00 There are some prophecies in the Bible that are called 17:03 well, they are apocalyptic prophecies if you will. 17:07 If you look right in the Book of Revelation 17:08 I thought it was amazing 17:09 because I heard many pastors say, 17:13 well, the Book of Revelation is a sealed book. 17:15 It's full of mysteries, you shouldn't even read it. 17:18 But some would have said, 17:19 first of all the title of the Book, 17:20 the Revelation, what is it Reveal mean? 17:23 It's a Book of revelation. 17:28 "The revelation of Jesus Christ," 17:30 verse 1 "which God gave Him to show His servants things." 17:35 He is showing us secret things. He wants us to know. 17:39 "To show His servants 17:40 things that must shortly take place." 17:42 The beginning of these fulfillments was 17:43 when it was given and they're still being fulfilled. 17:47 "And He sent and signified it." 17:50 Now you know that word signify. 17:52 In the original, you can actually 17:54 break it up in the English to find out what it means. 17:56 S-i-g-n, spells what? 17:59 Sign. I-f-i-e-d, sign-ified. 18:03 This message of events that were going to take place 18:08 of the history of the world is given in signs and symbols. 18:13 These visions and dreams of strange creatures 18:16 and beasts it's filled with symbolism. 18:19 The code to understand it is the stories of the Bible. 18:23 You probably heard me say before that. 18:25 There are about 404 verses in Revelation. 18:28 Of those 404 verses, 18:30 you can find 278 of them almost word for word 18:34 in the others books of the Bible. 18:35 Like Daniel and Zachariah and Ezekiel 18:40 and Hosea and Psalms. 18:43 And so as you look through the other clues that are given 18:47 you do a little bit of calculating. 18:49 All of a sudden you have these epiphanies 18:50 and illuminations comes in the meaning all opens up. 18:54 Now there's still a lot of mysteries 18:55 and I don't claim to understand 18:56 all the mysterious of the prophecy. 18:58 But I know that the more you search 19:01 and you compare scripture with scripture it unfolds. 19:03 God wants us to know. 19:05 Don't you appreciate a treasure more 19:07 when you got to dig for yourself? 19:10 When you discover these things 19:12 and you're reading the word 19:13 and the Lord reveals secrets to you. 19:16 Well, so often the things that you think you've discovered 19:19 they're the secrets for you 'cause you didn't know it. 19:22 There's someone else out there that knew it. 19:25 I mean, the men that hid 19:27 the Ark of the Covenant in a cave. 19:30 Can you imagine the vow 19:31 that they took with each other 19:32 when they said, "No, we can't tell anybody." 19:35 Many of them may have been killed 19:36 by the Babylonians during the sacking of the city. 19:41 But if, if you find something for yourself 19:43 that no one else has ever found 19:45 before then you really feel special, right? 19:47 When the Lord speaks to you 19:49 and gives you something just for you 19:52 that's when you really have the precious treasure. 19:55 And He does that. 19:57 So some of these messages in the Bible 19:59 are given like in a secret code. 20:00 If you read for instance in Matthew 13:10, 20:03 why did Jesus speak in parables? 20:05 To make the truth hard to understand? 20:08 Matthew 13:10, "And the disciples came to Him 20:12 and they said, 'Why do You speak to them in parables?' 20:16 He answered and He said, 20:18 'Because it has been given to you 20:20 to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven.'" 20:22 There are mysteries in the gospel. 20:25 There are mysteries in the Bible. 20:27 There are things that not everyone can see. 20:31 But it's given to us to understand. 20:33 Jesus will help us, He'll reveal these things. 20:37 "But to them it has not been given. 20:39 For whoever has, to him more will be given, 20:42 and he will have abundance, but whoever does not have, 20:45 even what he has will be taken away. 20:47 Therefore I speak to them in parables, 20:49 because seeing they do not see, 20:50 and hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand." 20:54 What did we read earlier? 20:56 The secret things of the Lord are revealed to those 20:58 who are willing to do His will. 21:01 Why does God do that? 21:03 You realize that in judgment, 21:05 you're responsible for what you know. 21:08 If you know something you're more responsible 21:11 if you violate some offense then if you don't know. 21:14 If a policeman pulls you over and he says you're speeding. 21:17 And you say, officer, I haven't seen a speed sign 21:21 on the freeway for 10 miles. 21:23 And the officer looks up and down 21:24 he says, "You know, you're right. 21:25 This is a section of road where they are no posted speeds. 21:28 I guess I probably should go easy on you. 21:30 But if he pulls you over 21:32 and you just parked right underneath a sign 21:34 that says 55 and you're doing 70. 21:37 And you say, "I didn't know." 21:38 And he goes, you're little more culpable then, right? 21:42 God loves His children. 21:46 He does not want to judge you more severely 21:49 because you knew something. 21:50 And so if you are not willing to do His will, 21:52 He's not gonna show you 21:53 because it's just harder for you in the judgment. 21:56 Did that make sense? 21:58 He loves you too much to make it more difficult than He-- 22:00 if there's a truth out there and for all the truth He reveals 22:04 to who much is given, much is required. 22:07 And He knows that you don't have a willing heart 22:10 He doesn't want to make you more responsible. 22:12 But when your heart is willing, 22:14 you will understand the prophecies, 22:16 you will understand the parables. 22:17 God will illuminate your mind with these secret things. 22:21 And it's exciting. 22:23 I mean isn't it fun when you say, "I've got a secret. 22:26 I've discovered the answer to a secret." 22:28 Can you imagine what it must have been like 22:31 for some of these great curious inventors 22:35 when they finally said, Eureka. 22:37 When Ben Franklin felt that zap coming from the kite key 22:42 to discover lightning is electricity. 22:45 That was--really, that was a great discovery. 22:48 And when he found that out between the time 22:50 he discovered that he got to notify everybody, 22:52 he was probably pretty excited, 22:53 he had this inside knowledge. 22:54 Well, if you are Robert Fleming in the laboratory 22:57 doing experiments with molds 22:59 and you discover there is actually a mold 23:02 that will kill these bacteria but it will not hurt a human. 23:06 That can heal from diseases and infection called penicillin. 23:10 And you've got that knowledge 23:11 and most of the world doesn't know 23:13 how exciting will that be to know 23:16 that you've got what was virtually-- 23:17 it was considered to be one of the greatest inventions 23:20 of the last century, penicillin. 23:23 And you got that information, wouldn't that be exciting? 23:26 What would be more exciting, 23:27 to have that or to have the gospel? 23:30 You've got-- when you got the gospel 23:32 you realize it's a secret. 23:35 Remember what the definition for the secret was, 23:37 you got knowledge that others don't have. 23:39 The harvest is great, the labors are few. 23:41 Most people in the world don't have the gospel. 23:43 When you've got the gospel 23:45 you possess a secret cure for the disease of sin. 23:51 Spurgeon, Charles Spurgeon said this great preacher. 23:54 "There are many locks in my house 23:56 all with different keys 23:58 but I have one master key that opens them all. 24:01 The Lord has many treasures and secrets 24:03 all shut up from the carnal mind 24:06 with locks that they cannot open. 24:08 But he who walks in fellowship with Jesus 24:10 possesses the master-key which will open to him 24:14 all the blessings of the covenant 24:16 and even the very heart of God. 24:18 Through Jesus the well beloved 24:20 we have access to God to heaven 24:23 and to every secret of the Lord." 24:26 You get that? 24:27 Through Jesus, He is the master-key. 24:30 Remember Jesus says in the Revelation, 24:32 "I'm the one who has the keys." 24:34 Through Jesus we get the keys 24:35 to all the mysteries that we need 24:38 that give us access to the elements of salvation. 24:42 There are some mysteries about God that are not revealed. 24:47 Some things remain mysteries. 24:49 And you always run into people that they are preoccupied, 24:54 we're trying to figure out the mysteries 24:56 that are not to be figured out. 24:58 And they are ignoring the ones 24:59 that God wants them to figure out. 25:01 And I've met people before, they wait and wait and wait 25:03 to make a commitment to Jesus 25:05 because they are constantly trying 25:06 to figure out these mysteries 25:07 that you know, are high above the earth as the heavens are 25:13 and they are ignoring the things that had been revealed. 25:16 They are trying to, you know, 25:18 constantly use that as an excuse to postpone. 25:21 Daniel 12:4, "But you, O Daniel, shut up the words, 25:27 and seal the book until the time of the end." 25:31 You know, the lot of the interpretation of Daniel, 25:34 the truth about the Book of Daniel 25:36 was not really revealed 25:38 until the 18th century and the 19th century. 25:41 People began to study it. 25:42 All of a sudden the Book of Daniel 25:44 through comparing scripture with scripture 25:45 at the same time all around the world 25:48 people began to understand these prophecies of Daniel 25:51 that had been sealed for hundreds, 25:53 well, technically thousands of years. 25:57 Now there are some mysteries that are still not exposed. 26:00 For instance Revelation 10:4. 26:04 "Now when--" John is in vision. 26:06 "Now when the seven thunders uttered their voice, 26:08 I was about to write." 26:10 Because all through this he's saying write these things. 26:13 "And I heard a voice from heaven saying, 26:15 'Seal up the things that the seven thunders uttered, 26:18 do not write them.'" 26:20 Now why don't you like to tap John the apostle on the shoulder 26:23 and say, "Come on John, what did the thunder say?" 26:28 God said, "Don't write it." 26:29 You can read in 2 Corinthians 12:2, 3, 4. 26:35 Paul talks about knowing the man in Christ 14 years ago 26:39 who was caught up to the third heaven. 26:41 You've heard before the seventh heaven. 26:43 Bible doesn't talk about 26:44 the seventh heaven, that's a myth. 26:46 There is no seventh heaven. 26:47 The third heaven is the best one. 26:49 First heaven is the atmosphere around the earth, 26:51 second heaven is the starry space. 26:54 The Hebrews talked about the third heaven as paradise, 26:56 the dwelling place of God. 26:58 So here Paul, he's probably talking about himself 27:01 just to protect his identity. 27:04 "He was caught up into paradise 27:06 and he heard inexpressible words 27:09 that it is not lawful for a man to utter." 27:12 And you naturally want to say, what are those words? 27:15 So I can't tell you, it's not lawful. 27:18 I heard some things that I can't even repeat. 27:21 Not because they are bad but they are so good, 27:23 they are so mysterious, they are so profound, 27:24 I can't tell you, it's a mystery. 27:27 There are some mysteries that God has 27:29 that they stay mysteries. 27:30 Acts 1:7, another mystery. 27:34 Mystery of God. Acts 1:7. 27:38 After Christ was about to ascend to heaven, 27:41 the disciples came to Him and they said, 27:43 "Are You gonna now reveal to us the kingdom of God? 27:46 When is it gonna happen?" 27:48 "And Jesus said to them, 27:49 'It is not for you to know the times or the seasons 27:53 that the Father has put in His own authority." 27:58 Have--we all met people that are trying to calculate 28:00 the day and the hour of Jesus coming. 28:02 Let me see, show of hands. 28:03 How many of you met somebody trying to calculate that? 28:06 Come on, face up. 28:09 How many of you have met lots of people like that? 28:12 What does Jesus say? 28:14 Of the day and the hour knows no man. 28:16 Now it is possible after the close of probation 28:19 when it won't make any difference 28:20 that the day and the hour may be revealed. 28:22 But until that time God's not gonna reveal it 28:24 'cause He does not want us getting ready 28:26 based on a calendar. 28:29 It's like people who are saying, 28:30 oops, it's almost April 15, I've got to pay my taxes, 28:33 I better start getting my counting done now. 28:36 God wants us to live a life of preparation all the time. 28:39 Because in reality He could come for you tomorrow, 28:43 He could come for you today, right. 28:47 What I mean by that is your next conscience thought 28:49 will be the Lord coming. 28:52 And none of us knows that 28:53 and so it's silly for us to be putting it off 28:55 and picking a date at sometime in the future. 28:58 Now I think it's important to understand 29:00 and study last day events. 29:01 But even Jesus when He was on the earth 29:05 that knowledge was a mystery to Him. 29:08 Mark 13:32, "But of that day and hour no one knows, 29:12 not even the angels in heaven, 29:14 nor the Son, but only the Father." 29:18 Now there's a mystery. 29:20 The day and the hour of Jesus coming. 29:21 By the way does Jesus know now? Yes. 29:25 When He was on earth in the form of a man He didn't know. 29:29 Think about that, Jesus said, "I don't even know." 29:31 So it's a little bit outrageous 29:34 when you got church members walking around saying, 29:37 I got inside information, 29:39 I know Jesus didn't know but I know." 29:42 Be careful about people who tell you they have now 29:44 figured out the day and the hour of the Lord's coming 29:46 while we don't know the precise date. 29:50 And be careful about anyone who even picks a year. 29:54 Can we know when it's near? 29:57 Yeah, every headline tells us that we are getting closer. 30:00 Matter of fact common sense tells you that every breath, 30:04 every tick of the clock we're getting closer. 30:07 And so I think that especially Adventists ought to be excited 30:11 about the eminence of the advent, 30:13 don't lose that, but don't be picking dates. 30:16 That's not a safe thing to do. 30:20 Now we're talking about secret things 30:22 and so someone might be thinking secret sin. 30:26 Well, I wasn't gonna say anything 30:27 but since you brought it up, 30:29 we probably ought to talk about that. 30:31 Psalm 90:8, "Thou have set our iniquities before thee, 30:37 our secret sins in the light of Thy countenance." 30:42 Now are there any sins that are secret to God? 30:45 So when we talk about secret sins, who are they secrets to? 30:49 To others around us. 30:52 And I would venture to say probably, 30:54 good that you've asked me to talk about this 30:56 because everybody has something 31:00 that would fit into this category. 31:03 What really makes it dangerous is 31:04 have you confessed and forsaken? 31:08 I got some things in my life, I'm not telling you, 31:09 I have not told nobody no, not even Mrs. Batchelor. 31:14 And I'm not gonna tell you now 31:17 because I'm good at keeping secrets. 31:19 You want me to keep your secrets, 31:20 you've told me, right? 31:22 So you would naturally want me to keep my secrets. 31:25 But those things if they are not confessed and forsaken 31:29 people who are living and practicing secret sin 31:31 that's gonna come to the light. 31:33 One reason to turn away from those secret sins is that 31:36 you want to keep them a secret between you and God, 31:38 you need to confess them, forsake them 31:42 and have them covered by the blood of Jesus. 31:45 You know, they say that one of the best paints, 31:48 if you're painting over building or sign 31:51 and you want to paint a new sign, 31:52 you got the old lettering keeps jumping through 31:54 because maybe it was black or white 31:55 and little of it showing through. 31:57 You paint it in red and it seems that the intensity of red 32:02 it will block out whatever was behind it. 32:05 Red primer, then put on your new paint. 32:09 The blood of Jesus will cover those things. 32:12 But it's a dangerous thing to think that, 32:13 well, I'm just gonna hide it from everybody. 32:16 And that won't last. 32:19 Ecclesiastes 12:14, "For God will bring 32:22 every work into judgment, including every secret thing, 32:27 whether it would be good or evil." 32:29 Romans 2:16, "In the day when God will judge 32:33 the secrets of men by Jesus Christ, 32:35 according to my gospel." 32:37 All those things will be brought to life, 32:38 they will brought to judgment. 32:40 1 Corinthians 4:5, "Therefore judge nothing before the time, 32:45 until the Lord comes, who will both bring to light 32:47 the hidden things of darkness 32:49 and reveal the counsels of the heart." 32:52 Not only will the secret things be revealed. 32:54 The motive, the counsels of the heart 32:55 behind those things is revealed. 33:00 When David got into trouble with Bathsheba, 33:03 I'm not gonna go back through the whole story, 33:05 you all know it. 33:07 For a while there he thought 33:08 that he had affected the perfect crime. 33:13 He had, basically had Uriah 33:16 assassinated at the hands of the enemy. 33:20 And he then married Bathsheba 33:21 and they have the baby and everything looked good. 33:25 And he thought, well, I've got that behind, it's all covered. 33:29 But when it was finally exposed 33:31 Nathan the prophet came to him and he said-- 33:33 this is 2 Samuel 12:12. 33:36 "You did it secretly, but I will do this thing 33:40 before all Israel, before the sun." 33:43 The thing that David thought 33:44 it was done secretly in a hidden chamber 33:47 really became advertise on the headlines of the nation. 33:51 That's happened with political leaders before, hasn't it? 33:54 That which they thought nobody will know 33:57 becomes international scandal. 34:04 I forget the verse in Numbers 34:05 where Moses said to the children of Israel, 34:08 "Be sure of this your sin will find you out." 34:11 Someone will find that for me and called it out. 34:13 Ephesians 5:12, "For it is shameful 34:17 even to speak of those things that are done in secret." 34:21 You know one of the keys of a truly converted Christian, 34:24 you don't have to hide what you do. 34:27 You can live a transparent life. 34:29 You don't feel guilty wondering 34:31 if someone's gonna walk around the corner at the wrong moment. 34:34 You have a peace, you don't have anxiety 34:36 'cause you're not trying to hide anything. 34:38 You ever walked up on somebody 34:39 and also they look very nervous 34:41 and you wondered, wonder what they are hiding. 34:46 What's going on? 34:50 Luke 12:2-3, Jesus speaking here. 34:55 "For there is nothing covered that will not be revealed, 34:58 nor hidden that will not be known. 35:00 Therefore whatever you have spoken in the dark 35:03 will be heard in the light. 35:04 Whatever you have spoken in the ear in inner rooms 35:07 will be proclaimed on the housetops." 35:10 You know, both times He says what you have spoken, 35:12 sometimes we talk and we think what we're saying is a secret. 35:16 And more than once, matter of fact it happened this week. 35:22 Somebody was talking to me about somebody else. 35:26 And while they are talking to me about someone else 35:28 that someone else walked up behind them. 35:34 And I don't think the Lord 35:36 wants us gossiping about each other. 35:38 You notice He says, twice here, Jesus says, 35:40 "That which is spoken in the dark, 35:42 that which is spoken in the inner rooms." 35:45 What does Jesus say, we're judged by? 35:47 Matthew Chapter 12, every ideal word that men will speak 35:51 for giving a counter of in the Day of Judgment. 35:54 That's all I'm gonna say about this. 35:55 We all know what to do with those secret things 35:58 we need to confess our sins. 36:00 God will cover them with the blood of Jesus. Amen. 36:03 And then forsake them, live a new life. 36:05 We're gonna have a life of peace. 36:06 Your life is not a life of hypocrisy and cover up 36:09 when you are delivered from those secret sins. 36:13 Some are bearing secret burdens. 36:15 I'm not talking about sin now I'm talking about struggles. 36:18 Others don't know about it, be sensitive to that. 36:22 Virtually everybody has some burden in their life, 36:24 some experience that they are carrying 36:26 that is a struggle for them and you may not know about it. 36:31 Sometimes we're very harsh in how we judge people. 36:34 We don't know about their secret burden 36:36 that they are bearing. 36:37 Bible tells a story about a woman. 36:40 Mark 5:25, "Now a certain woman 36:44 had a flow of blood for twelve years, 36:46 and had suffered many things from many physicians. 36:49 She had spent all that she had and was no better, 36:53 but rather grew worse. 36:55 When she heard about Jesus, 36:56 she came from behind Him in the crowd 36:58 and she touched His garment. 37:00 For she said, 'If I can only touch His clothes, 37:02 I shall be made well.'" 37:05 She had this embarrassing infirmity 37:07 and rendered her unclean according to Jewish law 37:11 and she had a financial problem, 37:13 she had spent everything, she had been humiliated. 37:16 She didn't want to talk to Jesus 37:17 and announce in front of everybody about this problem. 37:21 And she thought, you know, I've got this burden 37:23 but Jesus I think can help me 37:25 with a secret burden that I'm carrying. 37:28 If I just reach out in faith, He can heal me. 37:31 And did He? He healed her. 37:34 There are a lot of people like that out there. 37:36 And some of them are happy and sunny dispositions 37:40 and some of them look like everything in their life 37:43 from the outside is just wonderful. 37:45 And you may not know that 37:46 they got a tremendous health problem 37:48 which is secret and they are hiding it. 37:50 Others it looks like they got everything together 37:52 but they went through some experience in their life 37:54 that scarred them deeply and they can't go a day 37:57 without thinking about it, it pains them. 38:00 Others because of the way they are brought up, 38:03 they may seem a little bit difficult to get along with. 38:06 But if you only knew the burden they carried 38:08 it would be a lot easier for you 38:10 to be patient and forgiving with them. 38:12 People have secret burdens that we may not know about. 38:16 But I'm so glad you can cast your cares on the Lord. 38:19 You can take those things 38:21 and He will bear the burdens with you and for you. 38:25 Just wanted to mention that to help you think about that 38:28 and while we're talking about secrets, 38:30 you ever heard of secret Christians? 38:34 Are there some? 38:36 There are some who tried to be? 38:38 Let me give you an example of one. 38:40 John 19:38, "After this, Joseph of Arimathea, 38:45 being a disciple of Jesus, but secretly, 38:50 for fear of the Jews, he asked Pilate 38:53 that he might take away the body of Jesus." 38:55 Did the secret come out? 38:57 You know, here he had been sitting 38:59 as one of the leaders of the Jews 39:00 and he was believing in Jesus but he was hiding it. 39:03 And he wondered if maybe he had come forward a little sooner, 39:07 things might have been different of course, 39:09 and plan of salvation still needed to be fulfilled. 39:11 John 12:42, "Nevertheless even among the rulers 39:16 many believed in Him but because of the Pharisees 39:19 they did not confess Him, 39:21 lest they should be put out of the synagogue." 39:23 They were scared, so they tried to hide their faith. 39:26 Like Peter when Jesus was betrayed. 39:29 He followed Jesus from a distance. 39:32 Well, if I follow far enough back 39:34 they may not know I'm following, 39:35 I can be a secret follower. 39:37 How did that turn out? 39:40 Before the day was over he denied Jesus 39:42 with cursing and swearing 39:44 and he went out and wept bitterly. 39:46 Someone once said, 39:48 there is no such thing as a secret Christian. 39:52 For either your Christianity will destroy the secret 39:55 or your secrecy will destroy your Christianity. 39:58 But they cannot co-exist. 40:01 You cannot keep that secret for long 40:03 without losing the experience. 40:05 Christianity is made to be shared. 40:08 And it needs to be shared in the life by the example 40:11 and best yet by the words. 40:13 And so if you're trying to be a secret Christian, 40:18 it doesn't work. 40:21 One of them is gonna kill the other. 40:24 Better come out of the closet friends, 40:25 and stand up for the Lord, amen. 40:30 The Bible talks about a lot of verses 40:33 that deal with the subject of a secret refuge. 40:37 You know, in the Land of Israel 40:40 when a person was involved in some unintentional accident. 40:44 Somebody died they have these cities of refuge 40:48 where person might flee. 40:50 If they were cutting a tree in the woods 40:54 and accidentally they hit their partner and there's no witness 40:57 and someone might think they deliberately murder them, 40:59 they could flee to one of these seven cities. 41:01 They were six throughout the Land of Israel and Jerusalem 41:04 ultimately became the seventh city, the temple. 41:06 And you could flee there and if you could get into the city 41:08 before the pursuer blood, the family 41:11 that was gonna take vengeance could catch you, 41:13 your home free, it's like home base and you are safe. 41:17 But that's really not what is talking about 41:19 when it talks about the secret refuges. 41:22 Psalm 91:1, "He who dwells 41:26 in the secret place of the Most High 41:29 will abide under the shadow of the Almighty. 41:32 I will say of the Lord, 'He is my refuge 41:34 and my fortress, my God, in Him I will trust.'" 41:39 It's a secret refuge. 41:43 Now you probably heard about in near Colorado Springs 41:46 they have this great big military operation base 41:49 that's hidden in a mountain. 41:52 And they've got a--there's miles and miles of tunnels 41:55 and apparatus and in theory they could conduct, 41:59 they could operate a nuclear war from the bunker 42:02 that they've got built underneath that mountain. 42:06 But for 30 years they kept a secret 42:09 that not far from Washington DC in West Virginia, 42:16 underneath a posh hotel called the Greenbrier 42:18 that's still there today, it's a resort in West Virginia 42:21 there was a bunker built for Congress. 42:25 They spent probably billions building it. 42:29 It was 700 feet underground 42:31 tunneled between 1959 and '62 they built it. 42:34 They had dormitories for Congress, meeting rooms, 42:37 hospital, power plant, food, 42:39 everything needed to keep Congress humming 42:43 while the world above them was incinerated. 42:47 But it was meant to be a hiding place, 42:49 a refuge, a place of protection. 42:51 All through the Bible you'll hear about this secret place, 42:54 read for instance in Psalms 31:20. 42:58 "You will hide them in the secret place 43:00 of your presence from the plots of men. 43:04 You shall keep them secretly in a pavilion 43:07 from the strife of tongues." 43:09 All through the Psalms, in many places in the Bible 43:12 it talks about the secret place of the Most High. 43:15 Now here's a question. 43:17 Do you know where that secret place is? 43:21 I believe every Christian should know 43:24 where the secret place of the Most High is. 43:28 It's a special relationship between you and Jesus. 43:33 He's got a personal relationship He wants to have with you. 43:39 Isaiah 32:2. "A man will be as a hiding place from the wind, 43:45 and a cover from the tempest, 43:48 as rivers of water in a dry place, 43:50 as the shadow of a great rock in a weary land." 43:52 What shall be? A man. 43:54 Who is the man that is our hiding place? Jesus. 43:58 The Lord is our refuge. He's our hiding place. 44:01 How many times in the New Testament 44:03 do you read about being in Christ? 44:06 We are in Christ, we are in the rock. 44:08 He is our refuge that protects us, 44:10 you know, does that mean that, 44:12 you know, we're to go find a tunnel somewhere in Jesus 44:16 and hide from the world 44:18 or is that a place that you could be right now? 44:21 Right now you can be in Christ 44:23 and it is a refuge, it is a fortress. 44:25 Who does God promise to protect during the last days? 44:28 Read Psalm 91. 44:30 Neither shall any plague come nigh thy dwelling. 44:32 A thousand may fall at your right hand, 10,000 at your side. 44:36 Yet it will not come nigh unto thee 44:39 because the Lord is your refuge. 44:40 He is your hiding place. He protects His people. 44:45 You know, you're reading Revelation about another secret. 44:49 Jesus says in the kingdom, 44:50 Revelation 2:17 talks about secret stone. 44:55 We've just talked about Jesus being a rock and a hiding place. 44:57 Jesus talks about a secret stone. 45:00 Revelation 2:17, "He who has an ear, 45:04 let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. 45:07 To him who overcomes I will give 45:09 of the hidden manna to eat," secret bread. 45:13 "And I will give him a white stone, 45:16 and on the white stone a new name written 45:18 that no one knows except him who receives it." 45:21 Now this is an interesting passage in the Bible. 45:25 Nathan, you can join me up here if you want. 45:28 Nathan and I did a little activity yesterday afternoon 45:31 trying to illustrate this. 45:33 We knew we had some white stones. 45:35 Have you ever read about this in the Bible, the white stone? 45:38 What they would sometimes-- 45:39 good, open up your bag there for a second. 45:42 What they would sometimes do in Bible times is 45:44 they make a covenant with somebody. 45:47 And a white stone represented favor. 45:49 Matter of fact sometimes in judgment 45:51 when the jury came out with their verdict 45:53 or the judge came out with their verdict 45:55 they would either toss a black stone 45:57 or a white stone at the one who is being tried. 46:01 If they got the black stone, 46:02 it meant guilty, condemned, sentence. 46:05 If they got the white stone, innocent, freedom, release. 46:08 So there was a lot meant by, first of all a white stone 46:11 that Jesus gives us, what does that mean? 46:13 You're innocent. 46:15 But there is more to it than that. 46:16 They also use to make a covenant with a stone, 46:19 they would take a stone and they would crack it. 46:21 And they give half of it to one person 46:23 and half of it to the other. 46:25 And they might be separated for a while. 46:27 And suppose I'm getting old, 46:28 all right, good pull out, pull out the right half. 46:30 Okay, is that the right half? 46:31 Oh, we don't yet. Are you hiding it? 46:34 Yes. Oh, okay. 46:35 You're all ready for this. All right. 46:39 So we take this stone, we split it. 46:42 I give half to him, half to me. 46:43 Years go by and we've made this covenant 46:46 that we're gonna be family. 46:49 And I meet somebody and they say, 46:50 look, I'm never gonna get back to see my friend, Nathan again. 46:53 And but whatever he has he will share with you, 46:57 we've made this covenant together. 46:58 And the evidence is this. 47:00 So I give this to somebody, they take it back to Nathan 47:03 and they say, "You know, I knew your father, 47:04 we were good friends. 47:05 And he said he made a covenant with you 47:07 and you're gonna help take care of me 47:09 and that I could live in your house." 47:11 He says, "Well, what proof do you have?" 47:13 Well, so you got all this different stones here. 47:15 If I say, look, I got the white stone. 47:18 He says, "Great, let me see it." 47:19 So he takes the white stone 47:20 let me see you got-- you half here. 47:21 You take that, you put it together and say, 47:23 cameras you might have to get close upon this. 47:27 All right, you didn't make a covenant, 47:28 you tried to trick me but this is no evidence, 47:31 you're not the right one. 47:33 Or you take any of those others, they won't work. 47:35 But Nathan and I cracked a stone yesterday, 47:37 it took a lot of time, 47:38 we crushed most of them into a thousand pieces. 47:41 But finally you see that, it becomes one uniform stone. 47:46 That's like you put water between them, it will stick. 47:49 You can't fake that connection. 47:52 There is no other two stones anywhere in the world 47:55 they are gonna fit together like these two stones. 47:58 And so the Lord is saying I've made a covenant with you. 48:01 How many of you remember when the children of Israel were-- 48:05 yeah, tell you what Nathan, 48:06 you can go share these stone with your friends later. 48:07 You can take those and sit down. Thank you. 48:09 How many of you remember when the children of Israel 48:11 were going to the wilderness they made the articles 48:14 for the vestments of the high priest. 48:16 That he had the Urim and Thummim 48:19 and they would engrave a name, 48:21 they engraved the names of the children of Israel, 48:23 six on one and six on the other. 48:26 So when you read here in the Bible, 48:27 the Lord says I'm gonna give you a white stone 48:29 and there's a new name in it. 48:31 I used to think that it meant like, 48:32 you know, the Lord gave a new name to Abraham 48:35 and a new name to Israel, to Jacob. 48:38 That He's gonna give us a new name not-- 48:40 I don't mind Douglas that much 48:41 but He's giving me new name, that's fine. 48:43 Heaven, we all get a new name there. 48:45 Our Lord is gonna give us a new name. 48:46 But it's really not talking about our name, 48:49 it's talking about His name, did you know that? 48:53 Revelation 3:12, notice here. 48:55 I'm going to another verse now. 48:56 Revelation 3:12, "He who overcomes" 49:01 we just read that in verse 2 or Chapter 2. 49:04 "He who overcomes, 49:05 I will make a pillar in the temple of My God, 49:07 he will go out no more. 49:09 I will write on him the name of My God, 49:13 the name of the city of My God, the New Jerusalem, 49:16 which comes down from heaven from My God. 49:19 And I will write on him my new name." 49:23 You remember when the Lord revealed himself 49:24 to Moses and He-- 49:26 they are all alone just Moses and Jesus, 49:28 the burning bush out in the wilderness 49:30 and He says, look, I got a name, 49:31 I'm gonna tell you that I've not told anyone else. 49:33 I've been known by other names 49:34 but My name is Jehovah, is a name. 49:38 That's the name that you're gonna take to them. 49:41 And so God is telling us that He is gonna reveal 49:44 something about Himself to us 49:46 that is very unique, 49:47 it's very intimate, it's very personal. 49:50 And He's making a covenant, 49:51 He's telling us that we're forgiven, 49:52 all of that is embodied in that white stone 49:56 with a new name in it. 49:58 Well, what shall I more say in the few minutes that remain. 50:03 You remember in Judges 13:18, when the parents of Manoah, 50:09 they asked for the name of the angel, 50:11 and the angel said, why do you ask after my name? 50:14 Seen it as a secret. 50:16 There are secrets about the name of God 50:17 that you and I even don't know. 50:20 Then there is the ultimate mystery, 50:24 which is the mystery of the gospel. 50:26 You know, I don't know 50:27 that we can count how many times in the Bible, 50:29 it says, that the gospel is identified as a mystery. 50:32 Turn in your Bibles, this is a very important verse. 50:35 Romans 16:25, Romans 16:25. 50:42 "Now to Him who is able to establish you, 50:46 according to my gospel 50:48 and the preaching of Jesus Christ, 50:51 according to the revelation of the mystery kept secret 50:55 since the world began." 50:58 The plan of salvation is mysterious. 51:02 The Bible talks about the mystery of inequity. 51:06 Why a creation would want to be the creator is a mystery. 51:09 Why the devil would want God's position? 51:13 On the forehead of Babel and it says mystery, 51:17 Babel and the great, the mother of harlots. 51:19 There's a lot of mysteries about sin, 51:21 I don't understand. 51:23 And while, some of these things may be answered in time, 51:26 but the real mystery that helps us 51:29 to understand everything is the mystery of the Gospel. 51:32 It helps us explain the purpose of life. 51:34 Think about all the people you see everyday 51:36 that are going around in the rat race, 51:38 they don't know why they are alive, 51:40 they don't have purpose, they're destroying themselves, 51:43 in the gospel you have got the secret 51:46 for the purpose of life. 51:47 Paul refers to it as a mystery because for the majority, 51:51 brought us the way that leads to destruction, 51:53 they don't have the secret truth. 51:55 God doesn't wanted to stay a mystery. 51:57 Ephesians 6:19, he says, "And pray for me, 52:01 that utterance may be given to me, 52:03 that I might open my mouth boldly, 52:06 and make known the mystery of the gospel." 52:10 You know, there is a mystery, let me tell you what it is. 52:15 I can't explain how the power of Christ 52:19 can come into an unregenerate heart 52:23 and create a new birth. 52:25 There is a mystery of the new birth. 52:27 Just like Solomon says, who can tell how the bones 52:30 do grow in the womb of her that is it with child. 52:33 How those two cells come together 52:37 and start growing into another human being 52:39 within a human being. Now that's a mystery. 52:43 It's marvelous, when you think about it. 52:45 And we might study that for 100 years 52:46 and learn some new things, 52:48 but we are not gonna know it all. 52:49 It's incredibly profound mysterious. 52:54 How a heart can be changed 52:56 and that old stony heart can be made? 52:58 How we become new creatures? 53:00 How the things we once loved we now hate, 53:02 and the things we once hated we now love? 53:04 The mystery of the gospel is the conversion. 53:07 But you got to believe in it 53:08 even though you may not understand it all. 53:12 You know, years ago there was a young man 53:16 who became something of a song writer 53:19 and a radio celebrity, his name was Stuart Hamblin, 53:23 and he actually developed a radio program 53:25 in Southern California, and he became very popular. 53:29 He hobnob with some of the people in Hollywood, 53:31 made some movies with people like Gene Autry 53:34 and Roy Rogers and he did a lot of drinking, 53:37 did a lot of cursing, did a lot of womanizing. 53:41 Matter of fact one of the popular songs 53:43 he wrote was, "I'm not gonna go hunting with you, 53:45 Jake, but I'll go chasin' woman." 53:48 And he had this radio program. 53:51 Well, a preacher was in Southern California 53:53 and he thought he'd go hear the preacher 53:55 and start making fun of him. 53:57 And actually that night 54:01 that he went to hear the preacher, 54:02 preacher said, "There is someone in this crowd 54:04 and they are total fake." 54:06 And Stuart had this overwhelming conviction 54:08 that he was the one. 54:10 And even though he'd been making 54:12 fun of the evangelistic meetings 54:14 going on there in Southern California, 54:16 he came under great conviction. 54:17 He found out where the preacher was staying, 54:19 he went to pastor's hotel room, 2 in the morning drunk. 54:22 Banging on the door saying, 54:23 you know, I'm just under great conviction, 54:25 conviction, pastor, would you please pray for me. 54:27 Pastor says, no I'm not going to pray for you. 54:29 Says you are battling with God 54:31 and I don't want to get between you both, 54:32 it's between you and Him. 54:35 Said but I'll talk to you and he brought him in 54:37 and they talked until 5 in the morning. 54:40 He surrendered, he fell to his knees 54:42 before the evening was over he gave his heart to the Lord, 54:45 and was a changed man. 54:47 Matter of fact he eventually lost his radio program 54:50 because he refused to advertise for the alcohol sponsors 54:54 that were wanting to buy time. 54:55 He became a dedicated Christian, 54:56 his friends, all said, what's come over. 54:59 yeah, he had this one very close friend named John 55:01 and he said, you seem so different. 55:03 He said, don't you miss your drinking 55:06 and your carousing. 55:08 He said, isn't it hard living like that? 55:10 He said no, I don't miss it one bit. 55:12 So how are you able to quit? 55:15 And he said, well, it's really no secret, 55:16 what He did for me, He can do for you. 55:19 And his friend John said, 55:20 that sounds like a good name for a song. 55:22 And so, Stuart Hamblin put it into a song 55:25 and it became very popular, it is no secret. 55:30 Oh, by the way, the preacher 55:31 that spoke to him was Billy Graham 55:33 and John was John Wayne. 55:36 That's the rest of the story. 55:39 It's a miracle and it's a mystery, 55:41 we may not understand it all, 55:43 the power of the gospel that change hearts, 55:46 but it-- it works. 55:49 In the same way that I can't understand 55:52 how a baby can be born, 55:54 I can't understand so many mysteries in the world of life. 55:58 Matter of fact, if you think about it 55:59 there's a whole lot more 56:00 that you don't know than you do know. 56:03 And the longer you study and the longer you live, 56:06 the more you will know, you don't know. 56:09 But there's some things that God has revealed 56:12 He does want us to know. 56:13 He loves us and He can change us 56:15 and give us new hearts and make us new creatures. 56:18 That's a good news we ought to be 56:20 sharing with people everywhere, 56:22 the secret, the mystery of the gospel, 56:24 in that you have the serum 56:27 for the disease of the world that changes lives. 56:31 I want to accept that good news 56:32 and believe in its power and I want to share that. 56:35 Don't you, friends? Is that your prayer today? 56:39 Father in heaven, dear Lord, 56:42 we are so thankful for what You have revealed. 56:45 What You have revealed about Yourself, 56:47 but Lord we want more. 56:49 We want to know more about Jesus. 56:52 For most of the world it's a secret, 56:53 it's a mystery, they don't know You, Lord. 56:55 We are so thankful that we have that intimate relationship 56:58 but we want to be closer. 57:00 We want to understand the deep things of truth 57:03 that reveal Your greatness. 57:06 Lord, we also want to better understand 57:08 and experience the mystery, 57:09 the power, the science of the gospel 57:12 that totally converts and transforms our lives. 57:16 May not always understand it, 57:17 but we want to experience it, Lord. 57:20 And we are so thankful for Your love for us. 57:24 I pray that the good news of the Gospel 57:27 that is hidden from most of the world, 57:29 that You reveal through Your truth, 57:30 through Your prophecy, through Your parables. 57:33 I pray that we will seek after more of that knowledge 57:36 and then we will share it. 57:37 If we're willing to live the life, 57:39 Lord, we know that You will reveal the truth. 57:42 Bless us all, we thank You 57:43 for the knowledge of Christ that we have. 57:45 We pray that it will be ever unfolding. 57:47 That light will grow brighter and brighter 57:49 as that day approaches. 57:51 We may not know the day and the hour, 57:53 but we pray that we can be ready now and each day. 57:56 Thank You and we ask these things 57:59 in the name of Your son Jesus. Amen. |
Revised 2014-12-17